Humanitext Reader

Cicero · Letters to Friends §16.16.1-16.16.2

Quintus's Gratitude for Marcus Freeing Tiro

Passage 405 of 413 · Latin

Summary

Quintus expresses deep gratitude and congratulations to Marcus for freeing his secretary Tiro, praising Tiro's intellectual refinement in comparison with the fidelity of his own freedman Statius.

§16.16.1de Tirone, mi Marce, ita te meumque Ciceronem et meam Tulliolam tuumque filium videam, ut mihi gratissimum fecisti, quom eum indignum illa fortuna ac nobis amicum quam servum esse maluisti.
As to Tiro, my dear Marcus, as I hope to see you, my own Cicero, my Tulliola, and your son, so true is it that you have done what is most pleasing to me, in that you preferred him to be our friend rather than our slave, deeming him unworthy of that condition.
mihi crede, tuis et illius litteris perlectis exsilui gaudio et tibi et ago gratias et gratulor.
Believe me, having read through your letter and his, I leaped for joy, and I both thank you and congratulate you.
§16.16.2si enim mihi Stati fidelitas est tantae voluptati, quanti esse in isto haec eadem bona debent additis litteris, sermonibus humanitate, quae sunt his ipsis commodis potiora! amo te omnibus equidem de maximis causis, verum etiam propter hanc vel quod mihi sic ut debuisti nuntiasti.
For if the fidelity of Statius is a source of so great pleasure to me, of how much value must those same good qualities be in your man, with the addition of literature, conversation, and refinement, which are superior to those very advantages! I love you indeed for all the greatest reasons, but also for this one, or even because you announced it to me in just the way you ought to have done.
te totum in litteris vidi.
I saw your whole self in your letter.
Sabini pueris et promisi omnia et faciam.
I have both promised everything to Sabinus's boys and I will perform it.

Notes

  1. 16.16.1ita... videam, ut... — A formulaic expression of a strong oath or affirmation. The ita clause containing the present subjunctive of wish (videam) corresponds to the ut clause containing the perfect indicative of fact (fecisti), meaning "as surely as I hope to see [my loved ones], so surely have you done what is most pleasing to me."
  2. 16.16.2tantae voluptati — Double dative. The pronoun mihi (dative of reference/interest) is combined with tantae voluptati (dative of purpose/result), serving a predicative function meaning "is a source of so great pleasure to me."
  3. 16.16.2quanti — Genitive of value. It goes with the infinitive esse which depends on debent, emphasizing the high estimation of the qualities in Tiro ("of how much value they ought to be").
  4. 16.16.2additis litteris, sermonibus humanitate — Ablative. The past participle additis agrees with the coordinate nouns litteris, sermonibus, and humanitate. It functions as an ablative absolute (or ablative of attendant circumstances/means), meaning "with the addition of literature, conversation, and refinement."

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Friends §16.16.1-16.16.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi056.humanitext-lat1:16.16.1-16.16.2

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