Marcus Tullius Cicero→Titus Pomponius Atticus|c. 44 BC|Cicero|From Rome|To Rome/Athens|AI-assisted
On the 26th I received a letter from Dolabella, and I am sending you a copy. In it he says he has done everything you wanted. I answered at once, thanking him profusely. Still, to keep him from wondering why I was thanking him twice, I gave as my reason that when we met earlier I had not yet been able to get information from you. To be brief, here is a copy of my letter:
"Once before, when our friend Atticus had informed me by letter of your great generosity and the great kindness you had shown him, and when you yourself had written that you had done everything we wished, I thanked you in words meant to show that you had done me the greatest favor. But afterward Atticus came to me in person at Tusculum solely to declare his gratitude to you. He had seen your remarkable, indeed wonderful, kindness in the matter of the people of Buthrotum, and your strong affection for him. So I could not avoid expressing my thanks again more clearly in this letter. Of all the favors and services you have done for me, and they are overwhelming, my dear Dolabella, the greatest and most gratifying is this: you have shown Atticus how great my affection is for you, and yours for me. For the rest, since one generally wants to secure favors already received, although the case of Buthrotum and its existence as a city have been placed on a firm footing by you, I would like you to use your authority and power to protect it, since it was put under your care and repeatedly recommended to you by me. That will be enough to safeguard Buthrotum forever. If, as a kindness to me, you undertake to see that they are always protected, you will relieve Atticus and me of a great care and anxiety. This I beg and implore you to do."
After finishing this letter, I have devoted myself to my treatise. I fear you will mark many passages in red. I have been so distracted and hindered by heavy thoughts.
On the 26th I received a letter from Dolabella, and I am sending you a copy of it. In it he says he has done everything you wanted. I answered at once, thanking him profusely. However, to prevent his wondering why I should do so twice, I gave as a reason that I had not been able to get any information from you before when I met you. But, to cut it short, here is a copy of my letter:—
"Once before, when our friend Atticus had informed me by letter of your great liberality and the great kindness you had shown him, and when you yourself had written that you had done all that we wished, I sent you my thanks couched in such terms that you might understand that you had done me the greatest favour. But afterwards, when Atticus came himself to me at Tusculum solely to declare his gratitude to you, as he had observed your remarkable and indeed wonderful kindness in the matter of the people of Buthrotum and your strong affection for himself, I could not help expressing my thanks again more clearly in this letter. For of all the favours and services you have done for me, and they are overwhelming, my dear Dolabella, let me assure you that the highest and the most gratifying is, that you have shown Atticus how great my affection is for you, and yours for me. For the rest, as one generally wishes to secure favours received, though the case of Buthrotum and its existence as a city have been set on a firm footing by you, I
should like you to use your authority and your power to protect it, as it was put in your care and repeatedly recommended to you by me. That will be sufficient to safeguard Buthrotum for ever, and, if in compliment to me you will undertake to see them always protected, you will relieve Atticus and me of a great care and anxiety: and this I beg and entreat you to do."
After finishing this letter I have devoted myself to my treatise. I fear you will run your red pencil under many passages in it. I have been so distracted and hindered by weighty thoughts.
vi Kalend. accepi a Dolabella litteras. quarum exemplum tibi misi. in quibus erat omnia se fecisse quae tu velles. statim ei rescripsi et multis verbis gratias egi. sed tamen ne miraretur cur idem iterum facerem, hoc causae sumpsi quod ex te ipso coram antea nihil potuissem cognoscere. sed quid multa? litteras hoc exemplo dedi: CICERO DOLABELLAE COS. SVO. [2] antea cum litteris Attici nostri de tua summa liberalitate summoque erga se beneficio certior factus essem cumque tu ipse etiam ad me scripsisses te fecisse ea quae nos voluissemus, egi tibi gratias per litteras iis verbis ut intellegeres nihil te mihi gratius facere potuisse. postea vero quam ipse Atticus ad me venit in Tusculanum huius unius rei causa tibi ut apud me gratias ageret, cuius eximiam quandam et admirabilem in causa Buthrotia voluntatem et singularem erga se amorem perspexisset, teneri non potui quin tibi apertius illud idem his litteris declararem. ex omnibus enim, mi Dolabella, studiis in me et officiis quae summa sunt hoc scito mihi et amplissimum videri et gratissimum esse quod perfeceris ut Atticus intellegeret quantum ego te, quantum tu me amares. quod reliquum est, Buthrotiam a et causam et civitatem, quamquam a te constituta est (beneficia autem nostra tueri solemus), tamen velim receptam in fidem tuam a meque etiam atque etiam tibi commendatam auctoritate et auxilio tuo tectam velis esse. satis erit in perpetuum Buthrotiis praesidi magnaque cura et sollicitudine Atticum et me liberaris, si hoc honoris mei causa susceperis ut eos semper a te defensos velis. quod ut facias te vehementer etiam atque etiam rogo. [4] his litteris scriptis me ad sunta/ceij dedi; quae quidem vereor ne miniata cerula tua pluribus locis notandae sint. ita sum mete/wroj et magnis cogitationibus impeditus.
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On the 26th I received a letter from Dolabella, and I am sending you a copy. In it he says he has done everything you wanted. I answered at once, thanking him profusely. Still, to keep him from wondering why I was thanking him twice, I gave as my reason that when we met earlier I had not yet been able to get information from you. To be brief, here is a copy of my letter:
"Once before, when our friend Atticus had informed me by letter of your great generosity and the great kindness you had shown him, and when you yourself had written that you had done everything we wished, I thanked you in words meant to show that you had done me the greatest favor. But afterward Atticus came to me in person at Tusculum solely to declare his gratitude to you. He had seen your remarkable, indeed wonderful, kindness in the matter of the people of Buthrotum, and your strong affection for him. So I could not avoid expressing my thanks again more clearly in this letter. Of all the favors and services you have done for me, and they are overwhelming, my dear Dolabella, the greatest and most gratifying is this: you have shown Atticus how great my affection is for you, and yours for me. For the rest, since one generally wants to secure favors already received, although the case of Buthrotum and its existence as a city have been placed on a firm footing by you, I would like you to use your authority and power to protect it, since it was put under your care and repeatedly recommended to you by me. That will be enough to safeguard Buthrotum forever. If, as a kindness to me, you undertake to see that they are always protected, you will relieve Atticus and me of a great care and anxiety. This I beg and implore you to do."
After finishing this letter, I have devoted myself to my treatise. I fear you will mark many passages in red. I have been so distracted and hindered by heavy thoughts.
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
vi Kalend. accepi a Dolabella litteras. quarum exemplum tibi misi. in quibus erat omnia se fecisse quae tu velles. statim ei rescripsi et multis verbis gratias egi. sed tamen ne miraretur cur idem iterum facerem, hoc causae sumpsi quod ex te ipso coram antea nihil potuissem cognoscere. sed quid multa? litteras hoc exemplo dedi: CICERO DOLABELLAE COS. SVO. [2] antea cum litteris Attici nostri de tua summa liberalitate summoque erga se beneficio certior factus essem cumque tu ipse etiam ad me scripsisses te fecisse ea quae nos voluissemus, egi tibi gratias per litteras iis verbis ut intellegeres nihil te mihi gratius facere potuisse. postea vero quam ipse Atticus ad me venit in Tusculanum huius unius rei causa tibi ut apud me gratias ageret, cuius eximiam quandam et admirabilem in causa Buthrotia voluntatem et singularem erga se amorem perspexisset, teneri non potui quin tibi apertius illud idem his litteris declararem. ex omnibus enim, mi Dolabella, studiis in me et officiis quae summa sunt hoc scito mihi et amplissimum videri et gratissimum esse quod perfeceris ut Atticus intellegeret quantum ego te, quantum tu me amares. quod reliquum est, Buthrotiam a et causam et civitatem, quamquam a te constituta est (beneficia autem nostra tueri solemus), tamen velim receptam in fidem tuam a meque etiam atque etiam tibi commendatam auctoritate et auxilio tuo tectam velis esse. satis erit in perpetuum Buthrotiis praesidi magnaque cura et sollicitudine Atticum et me liberaris, si hoc honoris mei causa susceperis ut eos semper a te defensos velis. quod ut facias te vehementer etiam atque etiam rogo. [4] his litteris scriptis me ad sunta/ceij dedi; quae quidem vereor ne miniata cerula tua pluribus locis notandae sint. ita sum mete/wroj et magnis cogitationibus impeditus.