Humanitext Reader

Cicero · Letters to Atticus §12.39.1-12.39.2

Proposal for a Pause in Correspondence

Passage 313 of 461 · Latin

Summary

Cicero deduces the reason for Atticus's silence, showing consideration for his schedule, and proposes a temporary pause in their correspondence given the lack of news and the postponement of business affairs.

§12.39.1tabellarius ad me cum sine litteris tuis venisset, existimavi tibi eam causam non scribendi fuisse quod pridie scripsisses ea ipsa ad quam rescripsi epistula.
When the courier arrived at my place without any letter from you, I supposed that your reason for not writing was that on the previous day you had written in that very letter to which I have just replied.
exspectaram tamen aliquid de litteris Asini Pollionis.
Even so, I had been expecting something about the letter of Asinius Pollio.
sed nimium ex meo otio tuum specto.
But I judge your leisure too much by my own.
quamquam tibi remitto, nisi quid necesse erit, necesse ne habeas scribere nisi eris valde otiosus.
However, I excuse you, and unless there is some necessity, do not feel obliged to write unless you are completely at leisure.
§12.39.2de tabellariis facerem quod suades, si essent ullae necessariae litterae, ut erant olim cum tamen brevioribus diebus cotidie respondebant tempori tabellam, et erat aliquid, Silius, Drusus, alia quaedam.
Regarding the couriers, I would do as you advise if there were any necessary correspondence, as there used to be in the old days when, despite the shorter days, they daily delivered the tablets on time, and there was something to write about—Silius, Drusus, and certain other matters.
nunc nisi Otho exstitisset, quod scriberemus non erat; id ipsum dilatum est.
Now, if Otho had not come forward, there would have been nothing for us to write; and that very matter has been postponed.
tamen adlevor cum loquor tecum absens, multo etiam magis cum tuas litteras lego.
Nevertheless, I am relieved when I talk with you in your absence, and even much more when I read your letters.
sed quoniam et abes (sic enim arbitror) et scribendi necessitas nulla est, conquiescent litterae nisi quid novi exstiterit.
But since you are away (for so I suppose) and there is no necessity for writing, our correspondence will rest, unless something new should arise.

Notes

  1. 12.39.1ea ipsa ad quam rescripsi epistula — epistula is in the ablative case, functioning adverbially with the preceding adjectives ea ipsa to modify scripsisses ("in that very letter"). The relative clause ad quam rescripsi modifies epistula.
  2. 12.39.1ne habeas scribere — A negative command (prohibition) expressed by ne with the present subjunctive (habeas). The phrase habere with an infinitive (scribere) means "to have to do something" or "to feel obliged to do something," yielding the sense "do not feel obliged to write."
  3. 12.39.2quod scriberemus non erat — While the protasis (nunc nisi Otho exstitisset) is a past contrafactual using the pluperfect subjunctive, the apodosis uses the indicative imperfect (non erat). The clause quod scriberemus is a relative clause of characteristic, functioning as the subject of non erat ("there was nothing of such a kind that we should write").

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Atticus §12.39.1-12.39.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi057.humanitext-lat1:12.39.1-12.39.2

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