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Cicero · Letters to Friends §8.17.1-8.17.2

Caelius's Regret and Disgust with Caesar's Camp

Passage 173 of 413 · Latin

Summary

Caelius regrets his past choices when Cicero set out for Pompey and accuses Cicero of failing in his duty as a friend. He expresses disgust for the moral decay in Caesar's camp while revealing that he has secretly influenced the common people to support the Pompeian cause.

§8.17.1ergo me potius in Hispania fuisse tum quam Formiis, quom tu profectus es ad Pompeium! quod utinam taut Appius Claudius in ista parte C. Curio, quoius amicitia me paulatim in hanc perditam causam imposuit; nam mihi sentio bonam mentem iracundia et amore ablatam.
To think, then, that I should rather have been in Spain at that time than at Formiae, when you set out for Pompey! Oh that either Appius Claudius <had been> on that side of yours, or C. Curio <on this side>, whose friendship has gradually forced me into this ruined cause; for I feel that my good sense has been taken away from me by anger and passion.
tu: tu porro, cum ad te proficiscens Ariminum noctu venissem, dum mihi pacis mandata das ad Caesarem et mirificum civem agis, amici officium neglexisti neque mi consuluisti.
You—and you furthermore, when I had set out towards you and come to Ariminum by night, while you were giving me instructions of peace to Caesar and playing the part of a wonderful citizen, neglected the duty of a friend and did not consult my interests.
§8.17.2neque haec dico quod diffidam huic causae, sed, crede mihi, perire satius est quam hos videre.
Nor do I say this because I distrust this cause, but, believe me, it is better to die than to look upon these men.
quod si timor vestrae crudelitatis non esset, eiecti iam pridem hinc essemus; nam hic nunc praeter faeneratores paucos nec homo nec ordo quisquam est nisi Pompeianus.
Indeed, if there were no fear of your cruelty, we would have been cast out from here long ago; for here now, except for a few money-lenders, there is neither any man nor any class that is not Pompeian.
equidem iam to effeci ut maxime plebs et, qui antea noster fuit, populus vester esset.
Indeed, I have already brought it about that the common people especially, and the populace which was previously ours, should be yours.
'cur hoc?' inquis.
"Why this?" you ask.
immo reliqua exspectate; vos invitos vincere coegero. †Arruntanum me Catonem; vos dormitis nec haec adhuc mihi videmini intellegere, qua nos pateamus et qua simus imbecilli.
Nay, wait for the rest; I shall have forced you to conquer against your will. <Call> me an †Arruntian Cato; you are asleep and do not yet seem to me to understand this: where we are exposed and where we are weak.
atque hoc nullius praemi spe faciam sed, quod apud me plurimum solet valere, doloris atque indignitatis causa.
And this I shall do with no hope of reward, but for the sake of pain and indignation, which usually have the greatest weight with me.
quid istic facitis? proelium exspectatis, quod firmissimum †haec? vestras copias non novi; nostri valde depugnare et facile algere et esurire consuerunt.
What are you doing over there? Are you waiting for a battle, which <is your> most secure †<defense>? I do not know your forces; our men are accustomed to fight hard and to bear cold and hunger easily.

Notes

  1. 8.17.1me potius in Hispania fuisse tum quam Formiis — Accusative with infinitive of exclamation, expressing strong regret or exclamation over a past situation.
  2. 8.17.1quod utinam aut Appius Claudius in ista parte... aut C. Curio — The introductory quod is a connecting relative. utinam introduces an unfulfilled present wish with the subjunctive imperfect (with esset omitted).
  3. 8.17.1ad te proficiscens — The manuscript reading ad te proficiscens ('setting out for you') is syntactically difficult given that Caelius went to Caesar at Ariminum on Cicero's behalf. Some emend to a te ('setting out from you'), but if retained, it means 'on my way to you' or 'setting out for your sake.'
  4. 8.17.2timor vestrae crudelitatis — vestrae crudelitatis is an objective genitive dependent on timor, meaning 'fear of your (the Pompeians') cruelty' felt by the people.
  5. 8.17.2eiecti iam pridem hinc essemus — The pluperfect subjunctive eiecti... essemus in the apodosis, combined with the imperfect subjunctive esset in the protasis, expresses a past contrafactual condition ('we would have been driven out long ago').
  6. 8.17.2vos invitos vincere coegero — The future perfect coegero indicates a future action that will be completed with certainty, or expresses the speaker's strong conviction or resolve: 'I shall have forced you to conquer.'
  7. 8.17.2Arruntanum me Catonem — The text is corrupt (indicated by the obelus). The accusative me Catonem can be interpreted with an omitted verb of calling or holding (such as habetote or vocate), meaning 'regard me as a Cato,' or as an accusative of exclamation.

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Friends §8.17.1-8.17.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi056.humanitext-lat1:8.17.1-8.17.2

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