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Cicero · Letters to Friends §4.15.1-4.15.2

Reply to a Brief Letter and Comfort in a Shared Danger

Passage 73 of 413 · Latin

Summary

Cicero replies to a very brief letter from his friend, noting that while he could not learn his friend's situation, he was assured of his affection, and encourages him by stating that they all share the same common danger and should maintain mutual trust.

§4.15.1accepi perbrevis tuas litteras; quibus id, quod scire cupiebam, cognoscere non potui, cognovi autem id, quod mihi dubium non fuit; nam quam fortiter ferres communis miserias, non intellexi, quam me amares, facile perspexi.
I received your very brief letter, by which I could not learn what I was eager to know, but I did learn what was not doubtful to me; for I did not understand how bravely you were bearing our common miseries, but I easily perceived how much you loved me.
sed hoc scieram, illud si scissem, ad id meas litteras accommodavissem.
Yet I had known the latter; if I had known the former, I would have adapted my letter to it.
§4.15.2sed, tamen etsi antea scripsi quae existimavi scribi oportere, tamen hoc tempore breviter commonendum putavi, ne quo in periculo te proprio existimares esse.
But, although I have previously written what I thought ought to be written, yet at this time I thought I should briefly remind you, lest you should think that you are in any danger peculiar to yourself.
in magno omnes, sed tamen in communi sumus.
We are all in a great, but yet a common danger.
qua re non debes aut propriam fortunam et praecipuam postulare aut communem recusare.
Therefore you ought neither to demand a personal and exceptional fortune, nor to refuse the common one.
quapropter eo animo simus inter nos, quo semper fuimus; quod de te sperare, de me praestare possum.
For this reason, let us be of that mind towards each other in which we have always been; which I can hope for on your part, and guarantee on my own.

Notes

  1. §4.15.1perbrevis tuas litteras — The accusative plural feminine of the adjective modifying the noun `litteras`. It features the archaic `-is` ending instead of the standard `-es` common in classical Latin.
  2. §4.15.1hoc scieram, illud si scissem — The demonstrative pronoun `hoc` refers to the closer element or the latter ('how much you love me'), while `illud` refers to the remoter element or the former ('how bravely you bear the miseries'). The second clause is a past contrary-to-fact conditional with the pluperfect subjunctive.
  3. §4.15.2ne quo in periculo — Here `quo` is the ablative singular neuter of the indefinite pronoun `quis` (used adjectivally modifying `periculo`), which drops the prefix `ali-` after the conjunction `ne`. It means 'any danger' or 'some danger'.
  4. §4.15.2in magno omnes, sed tamen in communi sumus — An elliptical construction where the noun `periculo` from the preceding clause must be supplied, resulting in 'in magno [periculo] ... in communi [periculo]'.

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Friends §4.15.1-4.15.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi056.humanitext-lat1:4.15.1-4.15.2

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