Marcus Porcius Cato→Marcus Tullius Cicero|c. 47 BC|Cicero|From Rome|To Rome|AI-assisted
I gladly do what the republic and our friendship urge me to do: I rejoice that your virtue, integrity, and energy, already known at home in the greatest matters while you were a civilian, have been maintained abroad with the same careful discipline now that you hold military command.
Therefore, what I could conscientiously do, I did in speech and vote. I set out in praise that the province had been defended by your wisdom, that the kingdom of Ariobarzanes and the king himself had been preserved, and that the feelings of the allies had been won back to loyalty to our rule.
I am glad that a thanksgiving was decreed, if you prefer that we thank the gods rather than give you the credit for a success that was in no respect left to chance, but was secured for the republic by your own remarkable prudence and self-control. But if you think a thanksgiving creates a presumption in favor of a triumph, and therefore prefer fortune to receive the credit rather than yourself, remember that a triumph does not always follow a thanksgiving. It is a far brighter honor than a triumph for the senate to declare that a province was retained more by the uprightness and mildness of its governor than by the strength of an army or the favor of heaven. That is what I meant to express by my vote.
I write this at greater length than usual because I want above all for you to think that I have taken pains to convince you of two things: that I wished for you what I believed was most honorable, and that I am glad you obtained what you preferred.
Farewell. Continue to love me, and by the way you conduct your journey home, secure for the allies and the republic the benefits of your integrity and energy.
CCLXV (Fam. XV, 5) M. PORCIUS CATO TO CICERO (IN CILICIA) ROME (JUNE) I gladly obey the call of the state and of our friendship, in rejoicing that your virtue, integrity, and energy, already known at home in a most important crisis, when you were a civilian, should be maintained abroad with the same painstaking care now that you have military command. Therefore what I could conscientiously do in setting forth in laudatory terms that the province had been defended by your wisdom; that the kingdom of Ariobarzanes , as well as the king himself, had been preserved; and that the feelings of the allies had been won back to loyalty to our empire — that I have done by speech and vote. That a thanksgiving was decreed I am glad, if you prefer our thanking the gods rather than giving you the credit for a success which has been in no respect left to chance, but has been secured for the Republic by your own eminent prudence and self-control. But if you think a thanksgiving to be a presumption in favour of a triumph, and therefore prefer fortune having the credit rather than yourself, let me remind you that a triumph does not always follow a thanksgiving; and that it is an honour much more brilliant than a triumph for the senate to declare its opinion, that a province has been retained rather by the uprightness and mildness of its governor, than by the strength of an army or the favour of heaven: and that is what I meant to express by my vote. And I write this to you at greater length than I usually do write, because I wish above all things that you should think of me as taking pains to convince you, both that I have wished for you what I believed to be for your highest honour, and am glad that you have got what you preferred to it. Farewell: continue to love me; and by the way you conduct your home-journey, secure to the allies and the Republic the advantages of your integrity and energy.
V. Scr. Romae inter Non. Mai. et Non. Iun. a.u.c. 704. M. CATO S. D. M. CICERONI IMP.
Quod et res publica me et nostra amicitia hortatur, libenter facio, ut tuam virtutem, innocentiam, diligentiam, cognitam in maximis rebus domi togati, armati foris pari industria administrari gaudeam: itaque, quod pro meo iudicio facere potui, ut innocentia consilioque tuo defensam provinciam, servatum Ariobarzanis cum ipso rege regnum, sociorum revocatam ad studium imperii nostri voluntatem sententia mea et decreto laudarem, feci. Supplicationem decretam, si tu, qua in re nihil fortuito, sed summa tua ratione et continentia rei publicae provisum est, dis immortalibus gratulari nos quam tibi referre acceptum mavis, gaudeo: quod si triumphi praerogativam putas supplicationem et idcirco casum potius quam te laudari mavis, neque supplicationem sequitur semper triumphus et triumpho multo clarius est senatum iudicare potius mansuetudine et innocentia imperatoris provinciam quam vi militum aut benignitate deorum retentam atque conservatam esse, quod ego mea sententia censebam. Atque haec ego idcirco ad te contra consuetudinem meam pluribus scripsi, ut, quod maxime volo, existimes me laborare, ut tibi persuadeam me et voluisse de tua maiestate, quod amplissimum sum arbitratus, et, quod tu maluisti, factum esse gaudere. Vale et nos dilige et instituto itinere severitatem diligentiamque sociis et rei publicae praesta.
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I gladly do what the republic and our friendship urge me to do: I rejoice that your virtue, integrity, and energy, already known at home in the greatest matters while you were a civilian, have been maintained abroad with the same careful discipline now that you hold military command.
Therefore, what I could conscientiously do, I did in speech and vote. I set out in praise that the province had been defended by your wisdom, that the kingdom of Ariobarzanes and the king himself had been preserved, and that the feelings of the allies had been won back to loyalty to our rule.
I am glad that a thanksgiving was decreed, if you prefer that we thank the gods rather than give you the credit for a success that was in no respect left to chance, but was secured for the republic by your own remarkable prudence and self-control. But if you think a thanksgiving creates a presumption in favor of a triumph, and therefore prefer fortune to receive the credit rather than yourself, remember that a triumph does not always follow a thanksgiving. It is a far brighter honor than a triumph for the senate to declare that a province was retained more by the uprightness and mildness of its governor than by the strength of an army or the favor of heaven. That is what I meant to express by my vote.
I write this at greater length than usual because I want above all for you to think that I have taken pains to convince you of two things: that I wished for you what I believed was most honorable, and that I am glad you obtained what you preferred.
Farewell. Continue to love me, and by the way you conduct your journey home, secure for the allies and the republic the benefits of your integrity and energy.
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
V. Scr. Romae inter Non. Mai. et Non. Iun. a.u.c. 704. M. CATO S. D. M. CICERONI IMP.
Quod et res publica me et nostra amicitia hortatur, libenter facio, ut tuam virtutem, innocentiam, diligentiam, cognitam in maximis rebus domi togati, armati foris pari industria administrari gaudeam: itaque, quod pro meo iudicio facere potui, ut innocentia consilioque tuo defensam provinciam, servatum Ariobarzanis cum ipso rege regnum, sociorum revocatam ad studium imperii nostri voluntatem sententia mea et decreto laudarem, feci. Supplicationem decretam, si tu, qua in re nihil fortuito, sed summa tua ratione et continentia rei publicae provisum est, dis immortalibus gratulari nos quam tibi referre acceptum mavis, gaudeo: quod si triumphi praerogativam putas supplicationem et idcirco casum potius quam te laudari mavis, neque supplicationem sequitur semper triumphus et triumpho multo clarius est senatum iudicare potius mansuetudine et innocentia imperatoris provinciam quam vi militum aut benignitate deorum retentam atque conservatam esse, quod ego mea sententia censebam. Atque haec ego idcirco ad te contra consuetudinem meam pluribus scripsi, ut, quod maxime volo, existimes me laborare, ut tibi persuadeam me et voluisse de tua maiestate, quod amplissimum sum arbitratus, et, quod tu maluisti, factum esse gaudere. Vale et nos dilige et instituto itinere severitatem diligentiamque sociis et rei publicae praesta.