Delphi Complete Works of Cornelius Nepos

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by Cornelius Nepos


  11. Quibus ex malis ut se emersit, nihil aliud egit quam ut quam plurimis, quibus rebus posset, esset auxilio. cum proscriptos praemiis imperatorum vulgus conquireret, nemo in Epirum venit, cui res ulla defuerit: nemini non ibi perpetuo manendi potestas facta est; [2] quin etiam post proelium Philippense interitumque C. Cassii et M. Bruti L. Iulium Mocillam praetorium et filium eius Aulumque Torquatum ceterosque pari fortuna perculsos instituit tueri atque ex Epiro iis omnia Samothraciam supportari iussit. difficile est omnia persequi et non necessarium. [3] illud unum intellegi volumus, illius liberalitatem neque temporariam neque callidam fuisse. [4] id ex ipsis rebus ac temporibus iudicari potest, quod non florentibus se venditavit, sed afflictis semper succurrit: qui quidem Serviliam, Bruti matrem, non minus post mortem eius quam florentem coluerit. [5] sic liberalitate utens nullas inimicitias gessit, quod neque laedebat quemquam neque, si quam iniuriam acceperat, non malebat oblivisci quam ulcisci. idem immortali memoria percepta retinebat beneficia; quae autem ipse tribuerat, tam diu meminerat, quoad ille gratus erat, qui acceperat. [6] itaque hic fecit ut vere dictum videatur: “Sui cuique mores fingunt fortunam hominibus.

  “ neque tamen ille prius fortunam quam se ipse finxit, qui cavit ne qua in re iure plecteretur.

  XI. When he had delivered himself from these troubles, he had no other care than to assist as many persons as possible, by whatever means he could. When the common people, in consequence of the rewards offered by the triumvirs, were searching for the proscribed, no one went into Epirus without finding a supply of everything; and to every one was given permission to reside there constantly. After the battle of Philippi, too, and the death of Caius Cassius and Marcus Brutus, he resolved on protecting Lucius Julius Mocilla, a man of praetorian rank, and his son, as well as Aulus Torquatus, and others involved in the same ill fortune, and caused supplies of everything to be sent them from Epirus to Samothrace.

  To enumerate all such acts of his would be difficult; nor are they necessary to be particularized. One point we would wish to be understood, that his generosity was not timeserving or artful, as may be judged from the circumstances and period in which it was shown; for he did not make his court to the prosperous, but was always ready to succour the distressed. Servilia, for instance, the mother of Brutus, he treated with no less consideration after Brutus’s death than when she was in the height of good fortune. Indulging his liberality in such a manner, he incurred no enmities, since he neither injured any one, nor was he, if he received any injury, more willing to resent than to forget it. Kindnesses that he received he kept in perpetual remembrance; but such as he himself conferred, he remembered only so long as he who had received them was grateful. He accordingly made it appear, to have been truly said, that “Every man’s manners make his fortune.” Yet he did not study his fortune before he formed himself, taking care that he might not justly suffer for any part of his conduct.

  12. His igitur rebus effecit ut M. Vipsanius Agrippa, intima familiaritate coniunctus adulescenti Caesari, cum propter suam gratiam et Caesaris potentiam nullius condicionis non haberet potestatem, potissimum eius deligeret affinitatem praeoptaretque equitis Romani filiam generosarum nuptiis. [2] atque harum nuptiarum conciliator fuit (non est enim celandum) M. Antonius, triumvirum rei publicae constituendae. cuius gratia cum augere possessiones posset suas, tantum afuit a cupiditate pecuniae, ut nulla in re usus sit ea nisi in deprecandis amicorum aut periculis aut incommodis. [3] quod quidem sub ipsa proscriptione perillustre fuit. nam cum L. Saufei equitis Romani, aequalis sui, qui complures annos studio ductus philosophiae habitabat Athenis habebatque in Italia pretiosas possessiones, tresviri bona vendidissent consuetudine ea, qua tum res gerebantur, Attici labore atque industria factum est ut eodem nuntio Saufeius fieret certior se patrimonium amisisse et recuperasse. [4] idem L. Iulium Calidum, quem post Lucretii Catullique mortem multo elegantissimum poetam nostram tulisse aetatem vere videor posse contendere, neque minus virum bonum optimisque artibus eruditum, post proscriptionem equitum propter magnas eius Africanas possessiones in proscriptorum numerum a P. Volumnio, praefecto fabrum Antonii, absentem relatum expedivit. [5] quod in praesenti utrum ei laboriosius an gloriosius fuerit, difficile est iudicare, quod in eorum periculis non secus absentes quam praesentes amicos Attico esse curae cognitum est.

  XII. By such conduct, therefore, he brought it to pass, that Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, who was united in the closest intimacy with young Caesar, though, through his own interest and Caesar’s influence, he had power to choose a wife from any rank whatever, fixed on a connexion with him rather than with any other, and preferred a marriage with the daughter of a Roman knight to an alliance with the most noble of women. The promoter of this match (for it is not to be concealed) was Mark Antony, when triumvir for settling the state; but though Atticus might have increased his property by the interest of Antony, he was so far from coveting money, that he never made use of that interest except to save his friends from danger or trouble; a fact which was eminently remarkable at the time of the proscription; for when the triumviri, according to the way in which things were then managed, had sold the property of Lucius Saufeius, a Roman knight, who was of the same age as Atticus, and who, induced by a love for the study of philosophy, had lived with him several years at Athens, and had valuable estates in Italy, it was effected by the efforts and perseverance of Atticus, that Saufeius was made acquainted by the same messenger, that “he had lost his property and had recovered it.” He also brought off Lucius Julius Calidus, whom I think I may truly assert to have been the most elegant poet that our age has produced since the death of Lucretius and Catullus, as well as a man of high character, and distinguished by the best intellectual accomplishments, who, in his absence, after the proscription of the knights, had been enrolled in the number of the proscribed by Publius Volumnius, the captain of Antony’s engineers, on account of his great possessions in Africa; an act on the part of Atticus, of which it was hard to judge at the time, whether it were more onerous or honourable. But it was well known that the friends of Atticus, in times of danger, were not less his care in their absence than when they were present.

  13. Neque vero ille minus bonus pater familias habitus est quam civis. nam cum esset pecuniosus, nemo illo minus fuit emax, minus aedificator. neque tamen non inprimis bene habitavit omnibusque optimis rebus usus est. [2] nam domum habuit in colle Quirinali Tamphilianam, ab avunculo hereditate relictam, cuius amoenitas non aedificio, sed silva constabat: ipsum enim tectum antiquitus constitutum plus salis quam sumptus habebat: in quo nihil commutavit, nisi si quid vetustate coactus est. [3] usus est familia, si utilitate iudicandum est, optima, si forma, vix mediocri. namque in ea erant pueri litteratissimi, anagnostae optimi et plurimi librarii, ut ne pedisequus quidem quisquam esset, qui non utrumque horum pulchre facere posset, pari modo artifices ceteri, quos cultus domesticus desiderat, apprime boni. [4] neque tamen horum quemquam nisi domi natum domique factum habuit: quod est signum non solum continentiae, sed etiam diligentiae. nam et non intemperanter concupiscere, quod a plurimis videas, continentis debet duci, et potius industria quam pretio parare non mediocris est diligentiae. [5] elegans, non magnificus, splendidus, non sumptuosus: omnisque diligentia munditiam, non affluentiam affectabat. supellex modica, non multa, ut in neutram partem conspici posset. [6] nec praeteribo, quamquam nonnullis leve visum iri putem, cum inprimis lautus esset eques Romanus et non parum liberaliter domum suam omnium ordinum homines invitaret, non amplius quam terna milia peraeque in singulos menses ex ephemeride eum expensum sumptui ferre solitum. [7] atque hoc non auditum, sed cognitum praedicamus: saepe enim propter familiaritatem domesticis rebus interfuimus.

  XIII. Nor was he considered less deserving as a master of a family than as a member of the state; for though he was very rich, no man was less addicted to buying or building than he. Yet he lived in very good style, and had everything of the best; for he occupied the house that had belonged to Tamphilus on the Quirinal hill, which was bequeathed to him by his uncle, and the attractions of which consis
ted, not in the building itself, but in the wood by which it was surrounded; for the edifice, constructed after the ancient fashion, showed more regard to convenience than expense, and Atticus made no alteration in it except such as he was obliged to make by the effects of time. He kept an establishment of slaves of the best kind, if we were to judge of it by its utility, but if by its external show, scarcely coming up to mediocrity; for there were in it well-taught youths, excellent readers, and numerous transcribers of books, insomuch that there was not even a footman that could not act in either of those capacities extremely well. Other kinds of artificers, also, such as domestic necessities require, were very good there, yet he had no one among them that was not born and instructed in his house; all which particulars are proofs, not only of his self-restraint, but of his attention to his affairs; for not to desire inordinately what he sees desired by many, gives proof of a man’s moderation; and to procure what he requires by labour rather than by purchase, manifests no small exertion. Atticus was elegant, not magnificent; polished, not extravagant; he studied, with all possible care, neatness, and not profusion. His household furniture was moderate, not superabundant, but so that it could not be considered as remarkable in either respect. Nor will I omit the following particular, though I may suppose that it will be unimportant to some: that though he was a hospitable Roman knight, and invited, with no want of liberality, men of all ranks to his house, we know that he was accustomed to reckon from his day-book, as laid out in current expenses, not more than three thousand asses a month, one month with another; and we relate this, not as hearsay, but as what we know, for we were often present, by reason of the intimacy between us, at his domestic arrangements.

  14. Nemo in convivio eius aliud acroama audivit quam anagnosten, quod nos quidem iucundissimum arbitramur; neque umquam sine aliqua lectione apud eum cenatum est, ut non minus animo quam ventre convivae delectarentur: namque eos vocabat, quorum mores a suis non abhorrerent. [2] cum tanta pecuniae facta esset accessio, nihil de cottidiano cultu mutavit, nihil de vitae consuetudine, tantaque usus est moderatione, ut neque in sestertio viciens, quod a patre acceperat, parum se splendide gesserit neque in sestertio centiens affluentius vixerit, quam instituerat, parique fastigio steterit in utraque fortuna. [3] nullos habuit hortos, nullam suburbanam aut maritimam sumptuosam villam, neque in Italia, praeter Arretinum et Nomentanum, rusticum praedium, omnisque eius pecuniae reditus constabat in Epiroticis et urbanis possessionibus. ex quo cognosci potest usum eum pecuniae non magnitudine, sed ratione metiri solitum.

  XIV. At his banquets no one ever heard any other entertainment for the ears than a reader; an entertainment which we, for our parts, think in the highest degree pleasing; nor was there ever a supper at his house without reading of some kind, that the guests might find their intellect gratified no less than their appetite, for he used to invite people whose tastes were not at variance with his own. After a large addition, too, was made to his property, he made no change in his daily arrangements, or usual way of life, and exhibited such moderation, that he neither lived unhandsomely, with a fortune of two thousand sestertia, which he had inherited from his father, nor did he, when he had a fortune of a hundred thousand sestertia, adopt a more splendid mode of living than that with which he had commenced, but kept himself at an equal elevation in both states. He had no gardens, no expensive suburban or maritime villa, nor any farm except those at Ardea and Nomentum; and his whole revenue arose from his property in Epirus and at Rome. Hence it may be seen that he was accustomed to estimate the worth of money, not by the quantity of it, but by the mode in which it was used.

  15. Mendacium neque dicebat neque pati poterat. itaque eius comitas non sine severitate erat neque gravitas sine facilitate, ut difficile esset intellectu, utrum eum amici magis vererentur an amarent. quidquid rogabatur, religiose promittebat, quod non liberales, sed leves arbitrabatur polliceri quod praestare non possent. [2] idem in tenendo, quod semel annuisset, tanta erat cura, ut non mandatam, sed suam rem videretur agere. numquam suscepti negotii eum pertaesum est: suam enim existimationem in ea re agi putabat, qua nihil habebat carius. [3] quo fiebat ut omnia Ciceronum, M. Catonis, Q. Hortensii, A. Torquati, multorum praeterea equitum Romanorum negotia procuraret. ex quo iudicari potest non inertia, sed iudicio fugisse rei publicae procurationem.

  XV. He would neither utter a falsehood himself, nor could he endure it in others. His courtesies, accordingly, were paid with a strict regard to veracity, just as his gravity was mingled with affability; so that it is hard to determine whether his friends’ reverence or love for him were the greater. Whatever he was asked to do, he did not promise without solemnity, for he thought it the part, not of a liberal, but of a light-minded man, to promise what he would be unable to perform. But in striving to effect what he had once engaged to do, he used to take so much pains, that he seemed to be engaged, not in an affair entrusted to him, but in his own. Of a matter which he had once taken in hand, he was never weary; for he thought his reputation, than which he held nothing more dear, concerned in the accomplishment of it. Hence it happened that he managed all the commissions of the Ciceros, Cato, Marius, Quintus Hortensius, Aulus Torquatus, and of many Roman knights besides. It may therefore be thought certain that he declined business of state, not from indolence, but from judgment.

  16. Humanitatis vero nullum afferre maius testimonium possum, quam quod adulescens idem seni Sullae fuit iucundissimus, senex adulescenti M. Bruto, cum aequalibus autem suis Q. Hortensio et M. Cicerone sic vixit, ut iudicare difficile sit, cui aetati fuerit aptissimus. [2] quamquam eum praecipue dilexit Cicero, ut ne frater quidem ei Quintus carior fuerit aut familiarior. [3] ei rei sunt indicio praeter eos libros, in quibus de eo facit mentionem, qui in vulgus sunt editi, sedecim volumina epistularum, ab consulatu eius usque ad extremum tempus ad Atticum missarum: quae qui legat, non multum desideret historiam contextam eorum temporum. [4] sic enim omnia de studiis principum, vitiis ducum, mutationibus rei publicae perscripta sunt, ut nihil in eis non appareat et facile existimari possit, prudentiam quodam modo esse divinationem. non enim Cicero ea solum, quae vivo se acciderunt, futura praedixit, sed etiam, quae nunc usu veniunt, cecinit ut vates.

  XVI. Of his kindness of disposition, I can give no greater proof than that, when he was young, he was greatly liked by Sulla, who was then old, and when he was old, he was much beloved by Marcus Brutus, then but young; and that with those friends of the same age as himself, Quintus Hortensius and Marcus Cicero, he lived in such a manner that it is hard to determine to which age his disposition was best adapted, though Marcus Cicero loved him above all men, so that not even his brother Quintus was dearer or more closely united to him. In testimony of this fact (besides the books in which Cicero mentions him, and which have been published to the world), there are sixteen books of letters, written to Atticus, which extend from his consulship to his latter days, and which he that reads will not much require a regular history of those times; for all particulars concerning the inclinations of leading men, the faults of the generals, and the revolutions in the government, are so fully stated in them that every thing is made clear; and it may be easily concluded that wisdom is in some degree divination, as Cicero not only predicted that those things would happen which took place during his life, but foretold, like a prophet, the things which are coming to pass at present.

  17. De pietate autem Attici quid plura commemorem? cum hoc ipsum vere gloriantem audierim in funere matris suae, quam extulit annorum nonaginta, cum ipse esset septem et sexaginta, se numquam cum matre in gratiam redisse, numquam cum sorore fuisse in simultate, quam prope aequalem habebat. [2] quod est signum aut nullam umquam inter eos querimoniam intercessisse, aut hunc ea fuisse in suos indulgentia, ut, quos amare deberet, irasci eis nefas duceret. [3] neque id fecit natura solum, quamquam omnes ei paremus, sed etiam doctrina: nam principum philosophorum ita percepta habuit praecepta, ut iis ad vitam agendam, non ad ostentationem uteretur.

  XVII. Of the affectionate disposition of Atticus towards his relatives,
why should I say much, since I myself heard him proudly assert, and with truth, at the funeral of his mother, whom he buried at the age of ninety, that “he had never had occasion to be reconciled to his mother,” and that “he had never been at all at variance with his sister,” who was nearly of the same age with himself; a proof that either no cause of complaint had happened between them, or that he was a person of such kind feelings towards his relatives, as to think it an impiety to be offended with those whom he ought to love. Nor did he act thus from nature alone, though we all obey her, but from knowledge; for he had fixed in his mind the precepts of the greatest philosophers, so as to use them for the direction of his life, and not merely for ostentation.

 

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