Marcus Tullius Cicero→Publius Cornelius Lentulus Spinther|c. 58 BC|Cicero|From Rome|To Cilicia|AI-assisted
Written at Rome in the month of February (after the sixth day before the Ides) in the 698th year from the founding of the city. Marcus Cicero sends greetings to Publius Lentulus, proconsul.
What is being done here, and what has been done, I think you have learned both from the letters of many people and from their messengers; but those things that rest on conjecture, and that seem likely to happen, I judge that I ought to write to you. After Pompey, on the eighth day before the Ides of February [6 February], was buffeted before the people with shouting and abuse while he was speaking on behalf of Milo, and in the Senate was attacked by Cato harshly and far too bitterly amid a very great silence, he seemed to me to be violently disturbed. And so the Alexandrian affair, which still remains untouched so far as we are concerned-for the Senate has taken nothing from you except what, by reason of that same religious scruple, cannot be granted to anyone else-seems to have been plainly abandoned by him. Now this is what we hope for and this is what we are working toward: that the king [Ptolemy XII Auletes, seeking restoration to the Egyptian throne], once he understands that he cannot attain what he was contemplating-namely, to be restored by Pompey-and that, unless he is restored through you, he will be left deserted and cast aside, will set out to join you. And this, without any hesitation, he will do, if only Pompey shows even slightly that it is agreeable to him; but you know the man's slowness and his reticence. We, however, are passing over nothing that bears upon this matter. As for the other injuries that have been put forward by Cato, we shall, as I hope, easily withstand them. Among the men of consular rank I see that you have no friend except Hortensius and Lucullus; the rest are partly hostile in a more covert way, partly angry without any concealment. See that you are of a brave and great spirit, and that you hope it will come to pass that, once the onslaught of this most fickle man has been broken, you will recover your former dignity and glory.
I believe you have learned from the letters and messengers of many people what is being done here and what has been done; but those matters which rest on conjecture and which seem likely to happen, I think it proper that I should write to you about. After Pompey, when speaking on behalf of Milo before the people on the sixth of February, was battered by shouting and abuse, and in the senate was accused by Cato harshly and bitterly to a very great silence, he seemed to me to be deeply shaken. And so the Alexandrian affair, which remains open for us so far — for the senate has taken nothing from you except what, by that same religious scruple, cannot be given to anyone else — seems to have been entirely abandoned by him. Now our hope and effort is this: that the king, when he understands that what he had in mind — namely, to be restored by Pompey — he cannot achieve, and that unless he is restored through you he will be left deserted and cast aside, will set out to you. And this he will undoubtedly do, if only Pompey shows even slightly that it is agreeable to him; but you know the man's slowness and reticence. We, nevertheless, are leaving nothing undone that pertains to this matter. As for the other attacks that have been put forward by Cato, we shall resist them easily, I hope. I see that among the consulars you have no friend except Hortensius and Lucullus; the rest are partly hostile in a more concealed way, partly openly angry. Be sure to keep your spirit strong and high, and trust that, once the assault of this most fickle man is broken, you will recover your former dignity and glory.
Vb. Scr. Romae mense Februario (post VI. Idus) a.u.c. 698. M. CICERO S. D. P. LENTULO PROCOS.
Hic quae agantur quaeque acta sint, [ea] te et litteris multorum et nuntiis cognosse arbitror; quae autem posita sunt in coniectura quaeque videntur fore, ea puto tibi a me scribi oportere. Posteaquam Pompeius et apud populum a.d. VIII. Idus Februarias, cum pro Milone diceret, clamore convicioque iactatus est in senatuque a Catone aspere et acerbe nimium magno silentio est accusatus, visus est mihi vehementer esse perturbatus; itaque Alexandrina causa, quae nobis adhuc integra est—nihil enim tibi detraxit senatus nisi id, quod per eandem religionem dari alteri non potest—, videtur ab illo plane esse deposita. Nunc id speramus idque molimur, ut rex, cum intelligat sese, quod cogitabat, ut a Pompeio reducatur, assequi non posse et, nisi per te sit restitutus, desertum se atque abiectum fore, proficiscatur ad te: quod sine ulla dubitatione, si Pompeius paullum mode ostenderit sibi placere, faciet, sed nosti hominis tarditatem et taciturnitatem; nos tamen nihil, quod ad eam rem pertinent, praetermittimus. Ceteris iniuriis, quae propositae sunt a Catone, facile, ut spero, resistemus. Amicum ex consularibus neminem tibi esse video praeter Hortensium et Lucullum; ceteri sunt partim obscurius iniqui, partim non dissimulanter irati: tu fac animo forti magnoque sis speresque fore, ut fracto impetu levissimi hominis tuam pristinam dignitatem et gloriam consequare.
◆
Written at Rome in the month of February (after the sixth day before the Ides) in the 698th year from the founding of the city. Marcus Cicero sends greetings to Publius Lentulus, proconsul.
What is being done here, and what has been done, I think you have learned both from the letters of many people and from their messengers; but those things that rest on conjecture, and that seem likely to happen, I judge that I ought to write to you. After Pompey, on the eighth day before the Ides of February [6 February], was buffeted before the people with shouting and abuse while he was speaking on behalf of Milo, and in the Senate was attacked by Cato harshly and far too bitterly amid a very great silence, he seemed to me to be violently disturbed. And so the Alexandrian affair, which still remains untouched so far as we are concerned-for the Senate has taken nothing from you except what, by reason of that same religious scruple, cannot be granted to anyone else-seems to have been plainly abandoned by him. Now this is what we hope for and this is what we are working toward: that the king [Ptolemy XII Auletes, seeking restoration to the Egyptian throne], once he understands that he cannot attain what he was contemplating-namely, to be restored by Pompey-and that, unless he is restored through you, he will be left deserted and cast aside, will set out to join you. And this, without any hesitation, he will do, if only Pompey shows even slightly that it is agreeable to him; but you know the man's slowness and his reticence. We, however, are passing over nothing that bears upon this matter. As for the other injuries that have been put forward by Cato, we shall, as I hope, easily withstand them. Among the men of consular rank I see that you have no friend except Hortensius and Lucullus; the rest are partly hostile in a more covert way, partly angry without any concealment. See that you are of a brave and great spirit, and that you hope it will come to pass that, once the onslaught of this most fickle man has been broken, you will recover your former dignity and glory.
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
Vb. Scr. Romae mense Februario (post VI. Idus) a.u.c. 698. M. CICERO S. D. P. LENTULO PROCOS.
Hic quae agantur quaeque acta sint, [ea] te et litteris multorum et nuntiis cognosse arbitror; quae autem posita sunt in coniectura quaeque videntur fore, ea puto tibi a me scribi oportere. Posteaquam Pompeius et apud populum a.d. VIII. Idus Februarias, cum pro Milone diceret, clamore convicioque iactatus est in senatuque a Catone aspere et acerbe nimium magno silentio est accusatus, visus est mihi vehementer esse perturbatus; itaque Alexandrina causa, quae nobis adhuc integra est—nihil enim tibi detraxit senatus nisi id, quod per eandem religionem dari alteri non potest—, videtur ab illo plane esse deposita. Nunc id speramus idque molimur, ut rex, cum intelligat sese, quod cogitabat, ut a Pompeio reducatur, assequi non posse et, nisi per te sit restitutus, desertum se atque abiectum fore, proficiscatur ad te: quod sine ulla dubitatione, si Pompeius paullum mode ostenderit sibi placere, faciet, sed nosti hominis tarditatem et taciturnitatem; nos tamen nihil, quod ad eam rem pertinent, praetermittimus. Ceteris iniuriis, quae propositae sunt a Catone, facile, ut spero, resistemus. Amicum ex consularibus neminem tibi esse video praeter Hortensium et Lucullum; ceteri sunt partim obscurius iniqui, partim non dissimulanter irati: tu fac animo forti magnoque sis speresque fore, ut fracto impetu levissimi hominis tuam pristinam dignitatem et gloriam consequare.