§100.8Humilia praeterea tibi videri dicis omnia et parum erecta; quo vitio carere eum iudico.
Furthermore, you say that everything seems to you lowly and insufficiently elevated; a fault from which I judge him to be free.
Non sunt enim humilia illa sed placida et ad animi tenorem quietum compositumque formata, nec depressa sed plana.
For those things are not lowly, but placid and formed according to a quiet and composed state of mind, nor are they depressed, but level.
Deest illis oratorius vigor stimulique, quos quaeris, et subiti ictus sententiarum.
They lack oratorical vigor and the stimuli that you look for, and the sudden blows of maxims.
Sed totum corpus videris quam sit comptum; honestum est.
But look at the whole body, how well-ordered it is; it is honorable.
Non habet oratio eius, sed dabit, dignitatem.
His speech does not have majesty, but will give it.
§100.9Adfer, quem Fabiano possis praeponere.
Bring forward anyone whom you can prefer to Fabianus.
Dic Ciceronem, cuius libri ad philosophiam pertinentes paene totidem sunt, quot Fabiani; cedam, sed non statim pusillum est, si quid maximo minus est.
Mention Cicero, whose books pertaining to philosophy are almost as many as those of Fabianus; I shall yield, but it is not immediately petty if something is less than the greatest.
Dic Asinium Pollionem; cedam, et respondeamus: in re tanta eminere est post duos esse.
Mention Asinius Pollio; I shall yield, and let us reply: in so great a matter, to be after two is to be eminent.
Nomina adhuc.
Name still others.
T. Livium, scripsit enim et dialogos, quos non magis philosophiae adnumerare possis quam historiae, et ex professo philosophiam continentis libros; huic quoque dabo locum.
Titus Livius, for he wrote both dialogues, which you could not count more to philosophy than to history, and books containing philosophy professedly; to him also I will give a place.
Vide tamen, quam multos antecedat, qui a tribus vincitur et tribus eloquentissimis.
See, however, how many he precedes, who is surpassed by three, and those three most eloquent.
§100.10Sed non praestat omnia: non est fortis oratio eius, quamvis elata sit; non est violenta nec torrens, quamvis effusa sit; non est perspicua, sed pura.
But he does not excel in all things: his speech is not strong, although it is elevated; it is not violent nor torrential, although it is poured out; it is not transparently clear, but pure.
"Desideres," inquis, "contra vitia aliquid aspere dici, contra pericula animose, contra fortunam superbe, contra ambitionem contumeliose, volo luxuriam obiurgari, libidinem traduci, inpotentiam frangi.
"You might wish," you say, "for something to be said harshly against vices, courageously against dangers, proudly against fortune, insolently against ambition; I want luxury to be reproved, lust to be exposed, self-indulgence to be broken.
Sit aliquid oratorie acre, tragice grande, comice exile. "vis illum adsidere pusillae rei, verbis; ille rerum se magnitudini addixit, eloquentiam velut umbram non hoc agens trahit.
Let there be something oratorically sharp, tragically grand, comically plain." You wish him to sit down at a petty thing, words; he has devoted himself to the greatness of things, and drags eloquence along like a shadow, not making this his business.
§100.11Non erunt sine dubio singula circumspecta nec in se collecta nec omne verbum excitabit ac punget, fateor.
Undoubtedly individual words will not be carefully weighed, nor compressed into themselves, nor will every word arouse and sting, I confess.
Exibunt multa nec ferient et interdum otiosa praeterlabetur oratio, sed multum erit in omnibus lucis, sed ingens sine taedio spatium.
Many things will go forth and not strike, and sometimes the speech will glide past idly, but there will be much light in all of them, and a vast space without weariness.
Denique illud praestabit, ut liqueat tibi illum sensisse quae scripsit.
Finally, he will perform this, that it may be clear to you that he felt what he wrote.
Intelleges hoc actum, ut tu scires quid illi placeret, non ut ille placeret tibi.
You will understand that this was done so that you might know what pleased him, not so that he might please you.
Ad profectum omnia tendunt, ad bonam mentem, non quaeritur plausus.
All things tend toward progress, toward a good mind; applause is not sought.
§100.12Talia esse scripta eius non dubito, etiam si magis reminiscor quam teneo haeretque mihi color eorum non ex recenti conversatione familiariter, sed summatim, ut solet ex vetere notitia.
I do not doubt that his writings are such, even if I recollect them rather than hold them fast, and their color clings to me not familiarly from recent association, but in outline, as is usual from old acquaintance.
Cum audirem certe illum, talia mihi videbantur, non solida, sed plena, quae adulescentem indolis bonae attollerent et ad imitationem sui evocarent sine desperatione vincendi, quae mihi adhortatio videtur efficacissima.
Certainly when I heard him, they seemed such to me, not solid, but full, such as would elevate a young man of good disposition and summon him to imitation of himself without despair of surpassing, which seems to me the most effective encouragement.
Deferret enim qui imitandi cupiditatem fecit, spem abstulit.
For he would discourage who created a desire to imitate, but took away hope.
Ceterum verbis abundabat, sine commendatione partium singularum in universum magnificus.
For the rest, he was abundant in words, magnificent as a whole without the commendation of individual parts.
VALE.
FAREWELL.