Marcus Tullius Cicero→Titus Pomponius Atticus|c. 43 BC|Cicero|From Rome|To Rome/Athens|AI-assisted
So far (for I have reached Sicca's place at Vibo) my voyage has been comfortable rather than swift; we went largely by oar, since there were no following winds. One thing was quite convenient: there were two bays that had to be crossed, the bay of Paestum and the bay of Vibo. We crossed both with a fair wind. And so I came to Sicca on the eighth day after leaving my villa at Pompeii, having stopped one day at Velia, where indeed I stayed very gladly with our friend Thalna, and I could not have been more generously received, especially in his absence. So on the ninth day before the Kalends [the 24th] I reached Sicca's, where of course I am as if in my own home. And so I have prolonged my stay another day. But I was thinking that, once I had reached Regium, I should, being there "dolichon ploon hormainontes" ["pondering a long voyage"], have to consider whether to go to Patrae by a merchant ship, or by light skiffs to Tarentine Leucopetra and from there to Corcyra; and, if by a cargo vessel, whether straight across the strait or by way of Syracuse. About this I shall write to you from Regium.
By Hercules, my dear Atticus, I often say to myself, "He deur' hodos soi ti dynatai?" ["What good can this journey here do you?"] Why am I not with you? Why do I not see the little eyes of Italy, my little villas? But this one fact-that I am not with you-is enough and more than enough. And what am I fleeing from? Danger? Yet at the present moment, unless I am mistaken, there is none. For it is your own authority that calls me back: you write that my departure is being praised to the skies, but only on condition that I return before the Kalends of January [1 January]; and that, at any rate, I will certainly strive to do. For I would rather be at home in fear than without fear in your beloved Athens. But all the same, watch closely which way matters are tending, and either write to me or-what I should much prefer-bring the news yourself. So much for that.
The following request I should like you to take in good part-that I am pressing you about a matter which I know is of greater concern to you than to me. My debts, for the gods' sake, settle them, pay them off. The balance I have left is handsome; but care is needed so that the sum due to my coheirs for the Cluvian estate is paid in full by the Kalends of Sextilis [1 August]. You will see how the business with Publilius is to be handled. He ought not to press, since I am not insisting on my legal rights. But all the same, I quite wish him too to be satisfied. As for Terentia, what am I to say? Pay her even before the due date, if you can. Indeed, if-as I hope-I am soon off to Epirus, I ask you to see in advance to this sum that I owe under a guarantee, to settle it cleanly and leave it paid off.
But enough of these matters, and I am afraid you may think it is too much. Now learn of my carelessness. I sent you the book On Glory. But the preface to it is the same as the one in the third book of the Academics. This happened for the following reason: I keep a volume of prefaces. From it I am accustomed to make a selection whenever I have set up some treatise [syngramma]. And so, while at my villa at Tusculum, not remembering that I had already used that preface, I tacked it onto the book I sent you. But when I was reading the Academics on the boat, I recognized my error. So at once I drafted a new preface and sent it to you. You will cut off the old one and glue on this one. Give my greetings to Pilia and to Attica, my delight and my darling.
I have got as far as Sicca's house at Vibo, and at present I have taken it easy and not exerted myself. We have rowed most of the way, as there have been none of the usual north winds. That was rather lucky, as there were two bays to cross, that of Paestum and that of Vibo. We crossed both with the wind behind us. So I got to Sicca's place eight days after leaving Pompeii, having stopped one day at Velia. There I stayed at Talna's house very enjoyably, and I could not have been more liberally entertained, especially as he was away. So I got to Sicca on the 24th, and here I am quite at home. So I have stayed a day longer than I meant. But I think, when I get to
Regium, there, being "on a far voyage bent," I shall have to consider whether to proceed by a merchant vessel to Patrae or by packet-boats to Tarentine Leucopetra, and thence to Corcyra; and, if by a merchant ship, whether direct from the Sicilian strait or from Syracuse. On this point I will write to you from Regium.
Upon my word, Atticus, I often say to myself: "Why, what avails thee all thy journey here?" Why am not I with you? Why may I not see my country houses, the jewels of Italy? But that alone is enough and more than enough, that I am not with you. And what am I fleeing from? Danger? Nay, unless I am mistaken, there is no danger now. For it is precisely at the hour of danger that you bid me come back. For you say my departure is praised to the skies, provided I return by the end of the year; and that I will certainly strive to do. For I had rather be at home in fear and trembling, than in your loved Athens without a fear. However, keep your eye on the trend of events, and write to me, or what I should much prefer, bring the news yourself. Enough of this.
Please take my next request in good part. I know you devote more care to it than I do myself. For mercy's sake keep my accounts clear and pay my debts. I have left a handsome balance; but it requires care to see to the payment of my fellow-heirs for the Cluvian property on the 1st of August. You will see how to manage about Publilius. He ought not to be pressing, as I am not insisting upon my legal rights. Still I should much like him also to be satisfied. As to Terentia, what am I to say? Pay her even before the proper date, if you can. But if, as I hope, you are coming soon to Epirus, pray make
arrangements first for any bills I have put my name to, and put affairs straight and leave them paid. But of this enough, and I fear you may think too much.
Now I must confess my carelessness. I sent you the work On Glory. But the preface to it is the same as that to the third book of the Academics. That is due to my having a volume of prefaces, from which I select one when I have begun a composition. So, when I was at Tusculum, forgetting I had used that preface, I put it into the book I sent you. But when I was reading the Academics on the boat I noticed my mistake. So I dashed off a new preface at once, and have sent it to you. Please cut the other off and glue this on. Pay my respects to Pilia and to my pet and darling Attica.
ego adhuc (perveni enim Vibonem ad Siccam) magis commode quam strenue navigavi; remis enim magnam partem, prodromi nulli. illud satis opportune, duo sinus fuerunt quos tramitti oporteret, Paestanus et Vibonensis. utrumque pedibus aequis tramisimus. veni igitur ad Siccam octavo die e Pompeiano, cum unum diem Veliae constitissem; ubi quidem fui sane libenter apud Thalnam nostrum nec potui accipi, illo absente praesertim, liberalius. viiii Kal. igitur ad Siccam. ibi tamquam domi meae scilicet. itaque obduxi posterum diem. sed putabam, cum Regium venissem, fore ut illic ' dolixo\n plo/on o(rmai/nontej cogitaremus corbitane Patras an actuariolis ad Leucopetram Tarentinorum atque inde Corcyram et, si oneraria, statimne freto an Syracusis. hac super re scribam ad te Regio. [2] me hercule, mi Attice, saepe mecum, H( deu=r' o(do/j soi ti/ du/natai; cur ego tecum non sum? cur ocellos Italiae, villulas meas, non video? sed id <satis> superque tecum me non esse, quid fugientem? periculumne? at id nunc quidem, nisi fallor, nullum est. ad ipsum enim revocat me auctoritas tua; scribis enim in caelum ferri profectionem meam sed ita si ante K. Ianuar. redeam; quod quidem certe enitar. malo enim vel cum timore domi esse quam sine timore Athenis tuis. sed tamen perspice quo ista vergant mihique aut scribe aut, quod multo malim, adfer ipse. haec hactenus. [3] illud velim in bonam partem accipias me agere tecum quod tibi maiori curae sciam esse quam ipsi mihi. nomina mea, per deos, expedi, exsolve. bella reliqua reliqui; sed opus est diligentia coheredibus pro Cluviano Kal. Sextil. persolutum ut sit. Cum Publilio quo modo agendum sit videbis. non debet urgere, quoniam iure non utimur. sed tamen ei quoque satis fieri plane volo. Terentiae vero quid ego dicam? etiam ante diem, si potes. quin si, ut spero, celeriter in Epirum, hoc quod satis dato debeo peto a te ut ante provideas planeque expedias et solutum relinquas. [4] sed de his satis, metuoque ne tu nimium putes. nunc neglegentiam meam cognosce. 'de gloria' librum ad te misi. at in eo prohoemium idem est quod in academico tertio. id evenit ob eam rem quod habeo volumen prohoemiorum. ex eo eligere soleo cum aliquod su/ggrama institui. itaque iam in Tusculano, qui non meminissem me abusum isto prohoemio, conieci id in eum librum quem tibi misi. Cum autem in navi legerem academicos, adgnovi erratum meum. itaque statim novum prohoemium exaravi et tibi misi. tu illud desecabis, hoc adglutinabis. Piliae salutem dices et Atticae, deliciis atque amoribus meis.
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So far (for I have reached Sicca's place at Vibo) my voyage has been comfortable rather than swift; we went largely by oar, since there were no following winds. One thing was quite convenient: there were two bays that had to be crossed, the bay of Paestum and the bay of Vibo. We crossed both with a fair wind. And so I came to Sicca on the eighth day after leaving my villa at Pompeii, having stopped one day at Velia, where indeed I stayed very gladly with our friend Thalna, and I could not have been more generously received, especially in his absence. So on the ninth day before the Kalends [the 24th] I reached Sicca's, where of course I am as if in my own home. And so I have prolonged my stay another day. But I was thinking that, once I had reached Regium, I should, being there "dolichon ploon hormainontes" ["pondering a long voyage"], have to consider whether to go to Patrae by a merchant ship, or by light skiffs to Tarentine Leucopetra and from there to Corcyra; and, if by a cargo vessel, whether straight across the strait or by way of Syracuse. About this I shall write to you from Regium.
By Hercules, my dear Atticus, I often say to myself, "He deur' hodos soi ti dynatai?" ["What good can this journey here do you?"] Why am I not with you? Why do I not see the little eyes of Italy, my little villas? But this one fact-that I am not with you-is enough and more than enough. And what am I fleeing from? Danger? Yet at the present moment, unless I am mistaken, there is none. For it is your own authority that calls me back: you write that my departure is being praised to the skies, but only on condition that I return before the Kalends of January [1 January]; and that, at any rate, I will certainly strive to do. For I would rather be at home in fear than without fear in your beloved Athens. But all the same, watch closely which way matters are tending, and either write to me or-what I should much prefer-bring the news yourself. So much for that.
The following request I should like you to take in good part-that I am pressing you about a matter which I know is of greater concern to you than to me. My debts, for the gods' sake, settle them, pay them off. The balance I have left is handsome; but care is needed so that the sum due to my coheirs for the Cluvian estate is paid in full by the Kalends of Sextilis [1 August]. You will see how the business with Publilius is to be handled. He ought not to press, since I am not insisting on my legal rights. But all the same, I quite wish him too to be satisfied. As for Terentia, what am I to say? Pay her even before the due date, if you can. Indeed, if-as I hope-I am soon off to Epirus, I ask you to see in advance to this sum that I owe under a guarantee, to settle it cleanly and leave it paid off.
But enough of these matters, and I am afraid you may think it is too much. Now learn of my carelessness. I sent you the book On Glory. But the preface to it is the same as the one in the third book of the Academics. This happened for the following reason: I keep a volume of prefaces. From it I am accustomed to make a selection whenever I have set up some treatise [syngramma]. And so, while at my villa at Tusculum, not remembering that I had already used that preface, I tacked it onto the book I sent you. But when I was reading the Academics on the boat, I recognized my error. So at once I drafted a new preface and sent it to you. You will cut off the old one and glue on this one. Give my greetings to Pilia and to Attica, my delight and my darling.
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
ego adhuc (perveni enim Vibonem ad Siccam) magis commode quam strenue navigavi; remis enim magnam partem, prodromi nulli. illud satis opportune, duo sinus fuerunt quos tramitti oporteret, Paestanus et Vibonensis. utrumque pedibus aequis tramisimus. veni igitur ad Siccam octavo die e Pompeiano, cum unum diem Veliae constitissem; ubi quidem fui sane libenter apud Thalnam nostrum nec potui accipi, illo absente praesertim, liberalius. viiii Kal. igitur ad Siccam. ibi tamquam domi meae scilicet. itaque obduxi posterum diem. sed putabam, cum Regium venissem, fore ut illic ' dolixo\n plo/on o(rmai/nontej cogitaremus corbitane Patras an actuariolis ad Leucopetram Tarentinorum atque inde Corcyram et, si oneraria, statimne freto an Syracusis. hac super re scribam ad te Regio. [2] me hercule, mi Attice, saepe mecum, H( deu=r' o(do/j soi ti/ du/natai; cur ego tecum non sum? cur ocellos Italiae, villulas meas, non video? sed id <satis> superque tecum me non esse, quid fugientem? periculumne? at id nunc quidem, nisi fallor, nullum est. ad ipsum enim revocat me auctoritas tua; scribis enim in caelum ferri profectionem meam sed ita si ante K. Ianuar. redeam; quod quidem certe enitar. malo enim vel cum timore domi esse quam sine timore Athenis tuis. sed tamen perspice quo ista vergant mihique aut scribe aut, quod multo malim, adfer ipse. haec hactenus. [3] illud velim in bonam partem accipias me agere tecum quod tibi maiori curae sciam esse quam ipsi mihi. nomina mea, per deos, expedi, exsolve. bella reliqua reliqui; sed opus est diligentia coheredibus pro Cluviano Kal. Sextil. persolutum ut sit. Cum Publilio quo modo agendum sit videbis. non debet urgere, quoniam iure non utimur. sed tamen ei quoque satis fieri plane volo. Terentiae vero quid ego dicam? etiam ante diem, si potes. quin si, ut spero, celeriter in Epirum, hoc quod satis dato debeo peto a te ut ante provideas planeque expedias et solutum relinquas. [4] sed de his satis, metuoque ne tu nimium putes. nunc neglegentiam meam cognosce. 'de gloria' librum ad te misi. at in eo prohoemium idem est quod in academico tertio. id evenit ob eam rem quod habeo volumen prohoemiorum. ex eo eligere soleo cum aliquod su/ggrama institui. itaque iam in Tusculano, qui non meminissem me abusum isto prohoemio, conieci id in eum librum quem tibi misi. Cum autem in navi legerem academicos, adgnovi erratum meum. itaque statim novum prohoemium exaravi et tibi misi. tu illud desecabis, hoc adglutinabis. Piliae salutem dices et Atticae, deliciis atque amoribus meis.