Humanitext Reader

Cicero · Letters to Atticus §1.6.1-1.6.2

Father's Death, House Purchase, and Villa Ornaments

Passage 6 of 461 · Latin

Summary

Cicero promises to write back diligently and shares updates regarding the purchase of a house in Naples, his brother's attitude, his father's passing, and requests for villa ornaments.

§1.6.1non committam posthac ut me accusare de epistularum neglegentia possis; tu modo videto in tanto otio ut par in hoc mihi sis.
I will not let it happen hereafter that you can accuse me of negligence in my correspondence; only do you see to it, in the midst of so much leisure, that you are my equal in this matter.
domum Rabirianam Neapoli, quam tu iam dimensam et exaedificatam animo habebas, M. Fontius emit HS CCCIↃↃↃ X_X_X_.
The house of Rabirius at Naples, which you already had measured and completed in your mind, Marcus Fontius has bought for 130,000 sesterces.
id te scire volui, si quid forte ea res ad cogitationes tuas pertineret.
I wanted you to know this, in case that matter should by any chance have any bearing on your plans.
§1.6.2Quintus frater, ut mihi videtur, quo volumus animo est in Pomponiam et cum ea nunc in Arpinatibus praediis erat et secum habebat hominem χρηστομαθῆ D. Turranium.
My brother Quintus, as it seems to me, is of the mind we wish toward Pomponia, and is now with her at his estate in Arpinum, and has with him Decimus Turranius, a highly learned man.
pater nobis decessit a. d. iv Kal. Dec.
Our father passed away on the 28th of November.
haec habebam fere quae te scire vellem.
This is about all I had that I wished you to know.
tu velim, si qua ornamenta γυμνασιώδη reperire poteris quae loci sint eius quem tu non ignoras, ne praetermittas.
I should like you, if you can find any ornaments suitable for a gymnasium which are fit for that place you know of, not to pass them by.
nos Tusculano ita delectamur ut nobismet ipsis tum denique cum illo venimus placeamus.
We are so delighted with our Tusculan villa that we only feel pleased with ourselves when we arrive there.
quid agas omnibus de rebus et quid acturus sis fac nos quam diligentissime certiores.
Let us know as accurately as possible how you are doing in everything and what you are going to do.

Notes

  1. §1.6.2quo volumus animo — An expression of the ablative of quality. There is an ellipsis of a construction such as `quo [animo] eum esse volumus` (of the mind in which we wish him to be), where `animo` functions as the ablative of quality describing Quintus's state of mind.
  2. §1.6.2velim ... ne praetermittas — The main verb `velim` is a present subjunctive expressing a polite or hesitant wish ("I should like"). The dependent clause of volition `ne praetermittas` ("that you do not pass by") is connected directly with the omission of the conjunction `ut`.
  3. §1.6.2loci... eius — `eius` is the antecedent of the relative pronoun `quem`. The genitive `loci` functions predicatively with `sint` to denote suitability or possession ("such as are fit for that place").
  4. §1.6.2a. d. iv Kal. Dec. — Abbreviation for `ante diem quartum Kalendas Decembres`. According to the ancient Roman calendar system, which counts inclusively, the fourth day before the Kalends of December (December 1st) corresponds to November 28th.

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Atticus §1.6.1-1.6.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi057.humanitext-lat1:1.6.1-1.6.2

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