Marcus Tullius Cicero→Titus Pomponius Atticus|c. 45 BC|Cicero|From Rome|To Rome/Athens|AI-assisted
You wrote to my son [the younger Marcus] in a way that could not have been written either more sternly or more temperately, nor any more precisely as I myself would most have wished; and you also wrote most wisely to the Tullii. So either those letters will do some good, or we shall have to try something else. As for the money, I see that you are applying every diligence, or rather that you have already applied it. If you bring it off, I shall owe the gardens to you. And indeed there is no kind of property I would rather have, above all of course for the sake of the purpose that has been undertaken; you relieve me of my haste over it, since you promise, or rather guarantee, the summer. And then too, for spending out the rest of my life [Greek: katabiosin] and for lessening my grief, nothing more suitable can be found for me; my craving for it sometimes drives me to want to urge you on. But I check myself, for I have no doubt that, in a matter you suppose I want so badly, you will outdo me in eagerness yourself. And so I now regard that as good as done.
I am waiting to hear what those people decide about the letter to Caesar. Nicias loves you, as he ought, and is deeply delighted by your remembrance of him. And as for our friend Peducaeus, I am extremely fond of him; for all the regard I had for his father I now feel wholly toward this man himself, and I love him for his own sake just as much as I loved that other, and you most of all, who wish this affection to be felt by each of us. If you inspect the gardens and if you let me know about the letter, you will have given me something to write to you about; and if not, I shall write something anyway. For there will never be any lack of it.
You used just the right amount of severity and of moderation in your letter to my son, and it was exactly as I should have wished it to be. Your notes, too, to the Tullii were full of good advice. So either those letters will set things right or we shall have to try some other means. As to the money, I see you are making every effort, or rather you have done so already. If you manage it, I shall owe the gardens to you. Indeed, there is no other kind of property I should prefer, especially for the matter I have in hand. You remove my impatience by your promise, or rather your pledge, about the summer. There is nothing either that could be found more likely to solace my declining years and my sorrow. My eagerness for it impels me at times to urge you to haste. But I restrain myself, for I have no doubt that, as you know I want it very much, your eagerness more than equals mine. So I count the matter as already settled.
I am waiting to hear what your friends decide about the letter to Caesar. Nicias is as devoted to you, as he ought to be, and is highly delighted at your remembering him. I am extremely fond of
Peducaeus; for all I felt for his father I have given to him, and I love him for himself as much as I loved his father; and you most of all for trying to promote this feeling between us. If you see the gardens, and if you let me know about the letter, you will supply me with something to write about; but, anyhow, I will write something. For there will always be something to say.
ad Cicerone ita scripsisti ut neque severius neque temperatius scribi poterit nec magis [quam] quem ad modum ego maxime vellem; prudentissime etiam ad Tullios. [2] qua re aut ista proficient aut aliud agamus. de pecunia vero video a te omnem diligentiam adhiberi vel potius iam adhibitam esse. quod si efficis, a te hortos habebo. nec vero ullum genus possessionis est quod malim, maxime scilicet ob eam causam quae suscepta est; cuius festinationem mihi tollis, quoniam de aestate polliceris vel potius recipis. deinde etiam ad καÏαβίÏÏιν maestitiamque minuendam nihil mihi reperiri potest aptius; cuius rei cupiditas impellit me interdum ut te hortari velim. sed me ipse revoco; non enim dubito quin, quod me valde velle putes, in eo tu me ipsum cupiditate vincas. itaque istuc iam pro facto habeo. [3] exspecto quid istis placeat de epistula ad Caesarem. Nicias te, ut debet, amat vehementerque tua sui memoria delectatur. ego vero Peducaeum nostrum vehementer diligo; nam et quanti patrem feci, totum in hunc ipsum per se aeque amo atque illum amavi, te vero plurimum qui hoc ab utroque nostrum fieri velis. si hortos inspexeris et si de epistula certiorem me feceris, dederis mihi quod ad te scribam; si minus, scribam tamen aliquid. numquam enim deerit.
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You wrote to my son [the younger Marcus] in a way that could not have been written either more sternly or more temperately, nor any more precisely as I myself would most have wished; and you also wrote most wisely to the Tullii. So either those letters will do some good, or we shall have to try something else. As for the money, I see that you are applying every diligence, or rather that you have already applied it. If you bring it off, I shall owe the gardens to you. And indeed there is no kind of property I would rather have, above all of course for the sake of the purpose that has been undertaken; you relieve me of my haste over it, since you promise, or rather guarantee, the summer. And then too, for spending out the rest of my life [Greek: katabiosin] and for lessening my grief, nothing more suitable can be found for me; my craving for it sometimes drives me to want to urge you on. But I check myself, for I have no doubt that, in a matter you suppose I want so badly, you will outdo me in eagerness yourself. And so I now regard that as good as done.
I am waiting to hear what those people decide about the letter to Caesar. Nicias loves you, as he ought, and is deeply delighted by your remembrance of him. And as for our friend Peducaeus, I am extremely fond of him; for all the regard I had for his father I now feel wholly toward this man himself, and I love him for his own sake just as much as I loved that other, and you most of all, who wish this affection to be felt by each of us. If you inspect the gardens and if you let me know about the letter, you will have given me something to write to you about; and if not, I shall write something anyway. For there will never be any lack of it.
AI-assisted translation - This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
ad Cicerone ita scripsisti ut neque severius neque temperatius scribi poterit nec magis [quam] quem ad modum ego maxime vellem; prudentissime etiam ad Tullios. [2] qua re aut ista proficient aut aliud agamus. de pecunia vero video a te omnem diligentiam adhiberi vel potius iam adhibitam esse. quod si efficis, a te hortos habebo. nec vero ullum genus possessionis est quod malim, maxime scilicet ob eam causam quae suscepta est; cuius festinationem mihi tollis, quoniam de aestate polliceris vel potius recipis. deinde etiam ad καÏαβίÏÏιν maestitiamque minuendam nihil mihi reperiri potest aptius; cuius rei cupiditas impellit me interdum ut te hortari velim. sed me ipse revoco; non enim dubito quin, quod me valde velle putes, in eo tu me ipsum cupiditate vincas. itaque istuc iam pro facto habeo. [3] exspecto quid istis placeat de epistula ad Caesarem. Nicias te, ut debet, amat vehementerque tua sui memoria delectatur. ego vero Peducaeum nostrum vehementer diligo; nam et quanti patrem feci, totum in hunc ipsum per se aeque amo atque illum amavi, te vero plurimum qui hoc ab utroque nostrum fieri velis. si hortos inspexeris et si de epistula certiorem me feceris, dederis mihi quod ad te scribam; si minus, scribam tamen aliquid. numquam enim deerit.