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Cicero · Letters to Atticus §14.8.1-14.8.2

Rumors of Lepidus's Plot and Cleopatra's Flight

Passage 391 of 461 · Latin

Summary

Cicero acknowledges receipt of Atticus's letter and comments on Lepidus's rumored plot, the flight of Cleopatra, and the situation in Baiae, while eagerly awaiting news from other regions and expressing concern for Brutus's safety.

§14.8.1tu me iam rebare, cum scribebas, in actis esse nostris, et ego accepi xvii Kal. in deversoriolo Sinuessano tuas litteras.
\nWhen you were writing, you supposed me to be already on our shores, and I received your letter on the seventeenth day before the Kalends at a small lodge in Sinuessa.
de Mario probe, etsi doleo L. Crassi nepotem.
As for Marius, well and good, though I grieve for the grandson of Lucius Crassus.
optime iam etiam Bruto nostro probari Antonium.
It is excellent that Antonius is now approved of even by our Brutus.
nam quod Iuniam scribis moderate et amice scriptas litteras attulisse, mihi Paulus dedit ad se a fratre missas; quibus in extremis erat sibi insidias fieri; se id certis auctoribus comperisse.
For as to your writing that Junia brought a letter written in a moderate and friendly tone, Paullus gave me a letter sent to him by his brother, at the end of which it was written that a plot was being laid against him, and that he had learned this from reliable sources.
hoc nec mihi placebat et multo illi minus.
This did not please me, and pleased him much less.
reginae fuga mihi non molesta est.
The flight of the queen is not displeasing to me.
Clodia quid egerit scribas ad me velim.
I should like you to write to me what Clodia has done.
de Byzantiis curabis ut cetera et Pelopem ad te arcesses.
As for the Byzantines, you will take care of it as you do other things, and summon Pelops to you.
ego, ut postulas, Baiana negotia chorumque illum de quo scire vis, cum perspexero, tum scribam, ne quid ignores. §14.8.2quid Galli, quid Hispani, quid Sextus agat vehementer exspecto.
As for me, as you request, once I have looked into the affairs at Baiae and that troupe about which you wish to know, I will write to you, so that you remain ignorant of nothing.\n\nI am eagerly waiting to hear what the Gauls, what the Spaniards, and what Sextus are doing.
ea scilicet tu declarabis qui cetera.
You of course will make these things clear, you who make other things clear.
nauseolam tibi tuam causam oti dedisse facile patiebar.
I was well content that your slight attack of nausea gave you an excuse for leisure.
videbare enim mihi legenti tuas litteras requiesse paulisper.
For as I read your letter, you seemed to me to have rested for a little while.
de Bruto semper ad me omnia perscribito, ubi sit, quid cogitet.
Write to me fully everything about Brutus always: where he is, and what he is thinking.
quem quidem ego spero iam tuto vel solum tota urbe vagari posse.
As for him, I indeed hope that he can now wander safely even alone through the whole city.
verum tamen—.
But yet—.

Notes

  1. §14.8.1in actis ... nostris — actis (from acta) is used to mean "beaches" or "shores," referring here to the seaside villas at Puteoli or Baiae, which fits the geographical context of Cicero's journey. Although it could theoretically refer to "public records" (acta), the physical context makes "shores" the most natural interpretation.
  2. §14.8.1optime ... probari Antonium — The adverb of exclamation optime functions with an implied est, with the accusative-and-infinitive clause Antonium ... probari serving as the subject: "It is excellent that Antonius is approved of by our Brutus."
  3. §14.8.1quod Iuniam scribis ... attulisse — The clause introduced by the conjunction quod functions restrictively to introduce a topic ("as to your writing that..."), setting up the main clause. The verb scribis takes the accusative-and-infinitive construction Iuniam ... attulisse.
  4. §14.8.2qui cetera — The relative pronoun qui refers back to the subject tu. Within the relative clause, a verb corresponding to declarabis (such as declaras or scis) is omitted: "you who [make clear/know] other things." This relative clause implies the reason why Atticus is expected to explain these matters.
  5. §14.8.2nauseolam tibi tuam causam oti dedisse facile patiebar — Although patiebar (imperfect of patior) literally means "to suffer" or "to endure," here it has the positive nuance of "to be well content" or "to gladly accept." The accusative-and-infinitive clause nauseolam ... dedisse serves as its object.
  6. §14.8.2videbare enim mihi legenti tuas litteras requiesse — The main verb videbare (an alternative form of videbaris) is used in a personal construction ("you seemed") with the syncopated perfect infinitive requiesse (= requievisse) as its complement. Mihi legenti ("to me reading") is a dative of reference indicating the person judging.

Cite this passage

Cicero, Letters to Atticus §14.8.1-14.8.2. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0474.phi057.humanitext-lat1:14.8.1-14.8.2

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

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