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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 
 
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 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
M. TULLI CTCERONIS 
 
 CATO MAIOR 
 
 DE SENECTUTE 
 
 EDITED 
 
 WITH INTRODUCTION AND NOTES 
 
 BY 
 
 FRANK ERNEST ROCKWOOD, A.M. 
 
 PROFESSOR OF LATIN IN BUCKNELL UNIVERSITY 
 
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 NEW YOKK •:• CINCINNATI •:• CHICAGO 
 
 AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY 
 
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 Copyright, 1895, by 
 AMEEICAN BOOK COMPAET, 
 
 All rights reserved. 
 
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 •new lorfe, Ifl. S. B. 
 
 LC Control Number 
 
 tmp96 031260 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 The text of this edition of Cicero De Senectute is substantially 
 that of C. F. W. Mliller (Leipsic, 1879). The few deviations 
 from his reading are stated on p. 152, and discussed in the sup- 
 plementary notes. A different punctuation has been adopted in 
 some passages, and in a few words the orthography has been 
 corrected to conform to Brambach. 
 
 The De Senectute is usually given a place in the early part 
 of the college course, when training in the reading of the Latin 
 is imperatively needed. To assist the student in acquiring greater 
 accuracy in pronunciation, the long vowels in the text have been 
 marked. In this Lewis has been taken as a guide, and both his 
 Latin Dictionary for Schools and his Elementary Latin Dictionary 
 have been consulted. It is earnestly hoped that this feature may 
 be welcomed by teachers, and may prove to be of practical value. 
 It must be remembered, however, that absolute accuracy in mark- 
 ing quantities is out of the questioji. 
 
 The Introduction has been made somewhat full in order to 
 present, in convenient form, a sketch of Cicero's life, with a brief 
 account of what he has accomplished in literature, and more 
 especially in philosophy. In the preparation of the sections 
 which bear upon his standing as a philosopher and his relation 
 to the leading schools. Mayor's admirable Sketch of Greek Philoso- 
 phy has been very helpful. 
 
 Cicero's defense of old age is so charming in style and so 
 interesting in subject-matter that it deserves something more by 
 way of commentary than mere discussion of grammatical and 
 
4 PREFACE. 
 
 linguistic usage. Accordingly an attempt has been made in the 
 illustrative notes, on the pages with the text, to give sufficient 
 prominence to the historical and literary features of the essay, 
 and to show by numerous quotations what ancient and modern 
 authors have uttered like thoughts, couched in similar forms of 
 expression. In numerous cases it will be seen that there is some- 
 thing more than a mere similarity of thought and expression. 
 Without doubt many modern writers have drawn their inspiration 
 direct from the lofty sentiments of Cicero's essay, and thus the 
 student is introduced to a very interesting and important literary 
 study of the great master of Latin prose. If this portion of the 
 work shall prove suggestive and stimulating, it will accomplish 
 its intended purpose. 
 
 In the supplementary notes a large number of grammatical 
 references have been given, and whatever assistance seemed 
 necessary in the translation of difficult passages, together with 
 brief discussions of disputed readings. For convenience of refer- 
 ence an index to the notes and an index of proper names have 
 been added. 
 
 In the preparation of this edition many works have been 
 consulted. The most assistance has been received from the 
 editions of Lemaire, Tischer, Lahmeyer, Sommerbrodt, Meissner, 
 and Eeid. My thanks are especially due to the editors of the 
 American Book Company, who have made many valuable sug- 
 gestions, and who have greatly lightened the labor of taking these 
 pages through the press. 
 
 FRANK E. ROCKWOOD. 
 BucKNELL University, 
 December, 1894. 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
 
 General Introduction : 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Life of Cicero . . . « . . - . . . 7 
 
 Table of Cicero's Life . « 15 
 
 Cicero as a Philosopher .17 
 
 Cicero's Works . . . 20 
 
 Books of Reference . . . . . . - . .21 
 
 The De Senectnte 25 
 
 Analysis 36 
 
 Summary 37 
 
 Text, with Literary and Illustrative Notes ... 45 
 
 Supplementary Notes, Grammatical and Textual . . 113 
 
 Variations from the Text of Mijller 152 
 
 Index to Notes 153 
 
 Index of Proper Names 158 
 
 5 
 
GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 LIFE OF CICERO. 
 
 1. Introduction. — Cicero must be regarded as essentially a 
 man of letters. Whatever strength or weakness he may have 
 manifested in public life, he undoubtedly forms the central figure 
 in Eoman literature. His matchless style, his rich and varied 
 learning, and his wonderful powers of application easily made 
 him the foremost writer of Latin prose. To the student hitherto 
 acquainted with Cicero only through his orations and letters, he 
 is revealed in a new character in the light of his ethical and 
 philosophical works. For a just appreciation of the latter, a 
 brief review of the author's life and studies will be eminently 
 helpful. . 
 
 2. Early Life and Education. — Marcus TuUius Cicero was 
 born at Arpinum in Latium, 106 b.c. His father belonged to the 
 equestrian order and was well qualified by learning and culture 
 to direct the training of the future orator and student of philoso- 
 phy. The young Marcus, with his brother Quintus, was early 
 taken to Rome to receive the best instruction which the capital 
 had to offer. Among his teachers were the poet Archias, the 
 famous lawyers of the Scaevola family, Phaedrus the Epicurean 
 philosopher, Philo of the ISTew Academy, Diodotus the Stoic, and 
 Molo the rhetorician. 
 
 Cicero was especially fond of Greek literature and philosophy, 
 and gained from these sources the elegance of expression and 
 
 7 
 
8 GENERAL IXTRODUCTIOX. 
 
 wealth of illustration so abundantly displayed in his maturer 
 works. To oratory and law he devoted himself with the utmost 
 eagerness, both from his natural fondness for these subjects, and 
 because he saw the possibility of winning by eloquence and skill 
 as an advocate the leadership in Rome which others had acquired 
 through valor and success on the held of battle. A brief experi- 
 ence in military affairs, however, formed part of his early train- 
 ing, for at the age of seventeen he served through one campaign 
 in the Social War. 
 
 Cicero's genuine enthusiasm in his studies prompted him to 
 tireless activity in their pursuit and to the adoption of the most 
 thorough and practical methods known to his day. Actors, ora- 
 tors, rhetoricians, and philosophers were his teachers. The 
 principles of their instruction he put in practice in declamation, 
 debate, and composition, in both Greek and Latin. The success 
 of his later years was no mere accident, nor was it the manifestar 
 tion of brilliant genius, untrained and untaught, — it w^as rather 
 the natural result of the most painstaking and persistent toil. 
 The whole soul of the man was aglow with the fire of learning. 
 Every opportunity to secure enlarged intellectual growth and 
 development was eagerly seized. 
 
 In the school, the lecture-room, the courts, and the Forum he 
 was an interested observer and an eager learner. Books and 
 men, history and life, were the objects of his study. Whatever 
 he acquired he tested for himself and used for the enlightenment 
 of his fellows, always actuated by an irresistible desire to obtain 
 the clear light of truth and to illumine others with its brightness. 
 Like his rival for the palm of eloquence among the ancients, the 
 renowned orator of the Greeks, he succeeded chiefly by his 
 remarkable application to work and his untiring effort to realize 
 a high ideal. Of the two masters of forensic speech, Cicero was 
 the broader intellectually, while Demosthenes was more impres- 
 sive as a speaker, carrying conviction ofttimes as much by the 
 weight of his character as by the force of his words. 
 
LIFE OF CICERO. 9 
 
 3. First Appearance as an Advocate. — Cicero did not yield to 
 any boyish temptation to display his immature talents for the 
 sake of winning temporary applause, but chose rather to bide his 
 time and offer himself as a candidate for popular favor only after 
 rigorous training and long-continued study. Accordingly, he was 
 twenty-live when he appeared as an advocate in behalf of P. 
 Quinctius, and a year older when he won great applause by his 
 bold defense of Sex. Roscius, who had been accused of parricide by 
 a freedman of the dictator Sulla. It was not precocit}^ of talent, 
 but disciplined strength and conscious power that gave him the 
 victor's laurels at the very beginning of his career. Too intense 
 application to literary pursuits, however, somewhat impaired his 
 health, and consequently, in 79 b.c, he followed the advice of 
 friends, and sought rest and recuperation in Greece and the East. 
 While in quest of bodily strength he improved every opportunity 
 to hear the best teachers in Athens, Ehodes, and Asia Minor ; 
 and after an absence of two years returned to Eome in renewed 
 physical vigor, more proficient in the orator's art, and with a 
 mind richly stored with the fruits of study and travel. All rivals 
 in the race for fame were speedily distanced, and he became the 
 acknowledged leader of the Roman bar, the most eloquent orator 
 of his age. 
 
 4. Public Offices. — Public honors were heaped upon the rising 
 advocate in generous profusion. In due order of time, he held 
 the offices of quaestor, aedile, praetor, and consul, each at the 
 earliest age permitted by law. His learning, eloquence, devotion 
 to duty, personal integrity, and above all, his unbounded patri- 
 otism, ensured him marked success in every public station which 
 he was called upon to occupy. During his consulship the liberties 
 of Rome and the very existence of the government were jeopard- 
 ized by the conspiracy of Catiline, Cicero's defeated rival for the 
 highest honor in the gift of the citizens. But by the vigilance of 
 the consul the plot was detected, and its full extent and purpose 
 were made known to the senate. Many of the leaders were 
 
10 GENERAL INTR0DUCTI0:N\ 
 
 arrested in the city and put to death, and Catiline himself, forced 
 to fly for safety, was afterwards defeated and slain, while attempt- 
 ing to gain by open war what he had hoped to accomplish by 
 assassination and secret plotting. 
 
 5. Cicero in Exile. — In the year 68 B.C., came the first serious 
 blow to Cicero's hopes and ambitions. Up to this time his success 
 had been brilliant in the extreme. Born in a provincial town, 
 without distinguished ancestors, he had made his way by the 
 force of his intellect and the persuasive power of his eloquence to 
 the highest pinnacle of political renown. In return for his 
 courage and patriotic devotion in the hour of Eome's impending 
 danger, he had been hailed by his grateful fellow-citizens as the 
 savior of his country. But Clodius, an unprincipled noble, 
 enraged at Cicero for testifying against him when on trial for 
 attending the festival of the Bona Dea at Caesar's house, secured 
 adoption into a plebeian family for the sole purpose that he might 
 be elected tribune and bring about Cicero's banishment. Installed 
 in office, he obtained the passage of a law ordaining exile for any 
 one who had ordered the death of a Eoman citizen without due 
 form of legal trial. This was aimed directly at Cicero, who had 
 caused Lentulus, Cethegus, and others of the Catilinarian con- 
 spirators to be put to death in prison. From March, 58, to August, 
 57, B.C., the ex-consul dragged out a wretched existence as an exile 
 in Greece, forbidden on pain of death to approach within five 
 hundred miles of Eome. The calamity was severer than he could 
 bear. Discouraged and well-nigh broken-hearted, he gave himself 
 up to grief and bitter repining. 
 
 But at last the efforts of friends to procure his recall were 
 successful. The homeward journey from Brundisium to Eome 
 was one continuous ovation. From all sides the people flocked 
 to greet him and accompany him on his way to the capital, until 
 his final entry to the city was like the triumph of a returning 
 conqueror. For the time, the multitude recalled with gratitude 
 his former services, and welcomed him back with distinguished 
 
LIFE OF CICERO. 11 
 
 honor to the city which he had once saved from traitors' 
 hands. 
 
 6. Proconsul in Cilicia. — A law was passed in Pompey's third 
 consulship restricting the government of foreign provinces to 
 praetors and consuls who had been at least five years out of office. 
 To fill vacancies immediately occurring, appointments were made 
 by lot from those not debarred by the new law. To Cicero's 
 intense disgust his name came forth from the urn for the procon- 
 sulship of Cilicia. His administration, however, was marked by 
 the same energy and integrity that had characterized his conduct 
 in more acceptable official positions. Though he reluctantly laid 
 aside his studies to enter upon the less congenial duties of pro- 
 vincial governor, yet his course was marked with such intelligence 
 and justice that all classes and orders coming under his rule 
 looked upon him as an upright judge and a faithful protector 
 of his people. 
 
 Even success in arms was added to his victories of peace, 
 and he was hailed by his soldiers with the title of imperator. 
 Encouraged by this, Cicero seemed at last to catch the true spirit 
 of a soldier and looked with longing eyes toward that goal of 
 every Eoman general's ambition, the splendid honor of a triumph. 
 The commendable record made by him in his new, and not 
 altogether pleasing, field of labor, may be taken as a clear 
 indication of his breadth of character, and as ample proof of the 
 wonderful power there is in simple honesty of purpose and 
 unfaltering industry to make one successful, even under the most 
 unfavorable circumstances. 
 
 7. Position in the Civil War. — That portion of Cicero's life 
 which immediately followed his return to Rome, in January, 
 49 B.C., was probably marked by more doubt and perplexity than 
 any other period in his entire history. Certainly his course 
 during those eventful months has given his admirers in all ages 
 but little unalloyed satisfaction. Caesar and Pompey were 
 contending for supremacy. Civil war with its attendant horrors 
 
12 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 was about to break forth. Cicero's ideal was the old Republic. 
 It was impossible for him to turn with enthusiasm and hope 
 either to Caesar or to Pompey. The course which he adopted 
 seems weak and vacillating because he was compelled to choose 
 between two evils and found it exceedingly difficult to decide 
 which was the less. He was undoubtedly mistaken in judgment 
 on many points, and blind to the true condition of the times. 
 He failed to realize that the former order of things had irrev- 
 ocably changed, that old forms of government had lost their 
 force, and that, unless there should be a complete regeneration 
 of the Roman people, only the strong hand of a master could 
 give peace and stability to the government. For a long time 
 weak and irresolute in the face of the most distressing doubt and 
 uncertainty, he at length cast his fortunes with Pompey, only, 
 however, to regret his choice when he realized how vain his 
 hope had been that this much overrated man and inefficient 
 leader could restore the dignity of the senate and the majesty 
 of the Republic. 
 
 After the crushing defeat of the senatorial army at Pharsalus 
 and the subsequent flight and death of its commander, Cicero 
 yielded to the inevitable and accepted the clemency of the con- 
 queror, who, whatever else may be said of him, was generous to 
 his foes. Portunate it was for his countrymen and for us, that 
 Cicero's patriotism was not of that narrow, rigid sort which 
 impelled Cato of Utica to look upon death as a welcome relief 
 from the supremacy of one man. Cicero was indeed cast in a 
 nobler mold and fashioned of diviner stuff. He possessed more 
 of the scholar's spirit and a larger measure of the philosopher's 
 consolation and hope. Withdrawing from public gaze, he found 
 solace in the contemplation of truth and inspiration in the 
 ennobling pursuit of letters. Devoting himself in this time of 
 political distress and confusion to the composition of his noblest 
 works, he brought forth the ripened fruit of years of laborious 
 study, and handed down to the scholars of all time the priceless 
 
LIFE OF CICERO. 13 
 
 inheritance of his most earnest philosophical discussions and his 
 loftiest ethical teachings. 
 
 8. Opposition to Antony. — But Cicero was not destined to 
 close his life in the peaceful retirement of the scholar. Still 
 stormier scenes awaited him than any through which he had yet 
 passed. The murder of Caesar on the Ides of March, 44 b.c, 
 was but the renewal of strife and bloodshed that were destined 
 to end only with the founding of the new Empire. Cicero's first 
 impulse was to seek personal safety in G-reece; but though he 
 commenced the journey, he quickly changed his course and 
 repaired to Eome in the earnest belief that the senatorial party 
 would ultimately prevail. The closing year of his life was filled 
 with stirring events. He became the leader of the senate and 
 people, and bent all his energies to the establishment of peace 
 on a secure basis and the rehabilitation of the government on its 
 former lines. Looking upon Antony as a dangerous foe to the 
 state, he attacked him in those fiery invectives known as the 
 Philippics. But the temporary success of the consuls over 
 Antony at Mutina and the ceaseless efforts which Cicero made 
 to strengthen the hands of the constitutional party in the city 
 and provinces failed to revive the ancient spirit and to restore 
 the liberties of the people. 
 
 Octavianus, at the head of his legions, forced his own election 
 to the consulship, although but nineteen years of age, and then, 
 uniting with Antony and Lepidus in the formation of the second 
 triumvirate, shattered the hopes of all who had fondly dreamed 
 that the golden age' of the Eepublic was about to return. The 
 current was, in fact, setting in the other direction, and a stronger 
 arm and stouter heart than Cicero's would have been powerless 
 before it. Complete success for the three self-appointed lords of 
 Rome was possible only by the destruction of their personal foes 
 and the death of every leader of the opposition. Accordingly, 
 the proscription of Sulla was renewed, and Cicero's name was 
 placed by Antony's command on the list of those to be destroyed. 
 
14 GENERAL INTRODUCTIOX. 
 
 9. Cicero's Death. — Cicero's only safety from impending fate 
 now lay in immediate flight. Hastening from his Tusculan villa 
 to Astura^ he embarked on board a vessel bound for Macedonia, 
 but overcome with anguish at the thought of leaving Italy forever, 
 he ordered the ship's prow turned toward the land. Delaying 
 for a little time at Circeii, he again set out on his journey by sea, 
 only to yield once more to his fatal irresolution, or to his over- 
 mastering love for his native country, even though delay within 
 its borders meant certain death. The soldiers found him at his 
 Formian villa attended by his faithful slaves, who were vainly 
 urging him to make a final effort to escape by sea from the hands 
 of his bloodthirsty enemies. Overtaken by his pursuers under 
 command of Popilius Laenas, whom he had once defended on 
 a capital charge, Cicero met death calmly and courageously, 
 addressing his executioner in these words, " Here, veteran ! if 
 you think it right — strike ! ^' The orator's head and hands were 
 carried to Antony and afterwards nailed to the rostra, the scene 
 of his former triumphs. Antony's wife, who was, at the time of 
 her marriage to him, the widow of Clodius, pierced the tongue 
 of the murdered man with a bodkin, that she might show the 
 malignity of her hate and the keenness of her delight that 
 the tongue which had lashed with cutting satire her two base 
 and unprincipled husbands had been forever silenced. 
 
 Thus perished Cicero, in the sixty-fourth year of his age, after 
 a life varied by brilliant successes and overwhelming defeats, 
 at one time the foremost man in Eome, at last hunted to death 
 like a condemned criminal. It is equal folly either to bestow 
 upon him unlimited praise or to subject him, as some have done, 
 to merciless criticism. We must view him in the light of his 
 own time, and measure him according to the standard of his own 
 age. In this way the good in his life will be seen vastly to 
 outweigh the evil. None can question his patriotism, his desire 
 to aid his country and preserve what he believed to be her 
 best traditions. His utter inability to stay the course of Caesar 
 
TABLE OF CICERO'S LIFE. 15 
 
 in his ambitious struggle for absolute power, and his impotency 
 in the presence of an unscrupulous tyrant like Antony, were as 
 clearly apparent to Cicero himself as they can now be to any 
 of his detractors. 
 
 10. Service to Literature. — But it is to his work in the realm 
 of letters that we can turn with the greatest satisfaction. As an 
 orator he is without a peer in the annals of Eome and second 
 in the whole world. In literature and philosophy he has fulfilled 
 the words of Horace, and "reared a monument more enduring 
 than bronze, loftier than the pyramids, those moldering relics 
 of old kings.'^ To estimate his services to the Latin tongue 
 would be indeed a difiicult task. Subsequent writers found in 
 him a model of elegance and good taste. If we could annihilate 
 his influence upon Eoman letters, blot his own works out of 
 existence, and close forever their rich storehouse of history, 
 literature, and philosophy, Ave might gain by way of contrast 
 some conception of the service he rendered his age and the real 
 value of the contribution he made to the world's literature. 
 But in modern times we are under greatest obligation to Cicero 
 for bringing to our knowledge, through the medium of his own 
 works, the highest conclusions, embodied in the teachings and 
 speculatitDus of Greek philosophy, reached by the human intellect 
 alone, in its attempt to determine the duty and destiny of man. 
 
 TABLE OP CICERO^ LIFE. 
 
 B.C. AGE. 
 
 106. Cicero was born, Jan. 3. Pompey was born in the same year. 
 
 100. The birth of Caesar. 6 
 
 90. Cicero assumed the toga virilis, and studied law under Q. Mucins 16 
 
 Scaevola, the Augur. Beginning of the Social War. 
 
 89. Served as a soldier under Pompeius Strabo, the father of Pom- 17 
 
 pey the Great. 
 
 88. Heard Philo and Molo at Rome. End of the Social War. 18 
 
 86. Death of Marius. 20 
 
 82. Sulla made perpetual Dictator. • 24 
 
 81. Cicero appeared as an advocate in behalf of P. Quinctius. 25 
 
16 GENERAL IXTRODUCTIOX. 
 
 % 
 
 B.C. AGE. 
 
 80. Defended Sex. Roscius in a criminal trial. 26 
 
 79. Visited Athens. Studied philosophy under Antiochus the 27 
 
 Academician, and Zeno and Phaedrus the Epicureans ; 
 
 rhetoric and oratory under Demetrius of Syria. 
 78. Traveled in Asia Minor. Studied under ]\Iolo at Rhodes. 28 
 
 77. Cicero returned to Rome. Married Terentia. Resumed his 29 
 
 law practice. 
 75. Quaestor in Sicily. ' 31 
 
 74. Returned to Rome. 32 
 
 70. Consulship of Pompey and Crassus. Cicero conducted the 36 
 
 impeachment of Yerres. Birth of Vergil. 
 69. Cicero, Curule Aedile. 37 
 
 6Q. Cicero, Praetor. He delivered his oration in favor of the 40 
 
 ManiJian Law, by which the command against Mithridates 
 
 was given to Pompey. 
 65. Cicero declined the government of a province. Birth of 41 
 
 Horace. 
 63. Consul, with C. Antonius. He suppressed the conspiracy of 43 
 
 Catiline. 
 62. Return of Pompey from the East, Cicero spoke in behalf of 44 
 
 the poet Archias. 
 61. Trial of Clodius. 45 
 
 60. Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus formed the first triumvirate. 46 
 
 59. Livy was born in 59 or 57 B.C. Caesar, Consul. 47 
 
 58. Caesar went to Gaul as Proconsul for five years. Cicero went 48 
 
 into exile, going first to Dyrrachium and then to Thessa- 
 
 lonica. 
 57. Cicero was recalled from exile by a vote of the people. 49 
 
 55. Cicero wrote his Be Oratore. Caesar's command in Gaul 51 
 
 extended for five years. 
 54. Cicero wrote the De Republica. 52 
 
 53. Cicero, Augur. Defeat and death of Crassus in the East. 53 
 
 52. Cicero defended Milo, who had been accused of the murder of 54 
 
 Clodius. Probably wrote his De Legibus in this year. 
 51. Proconsul in Cilicia. 55 
 
 49. Returned to Rome. Civil War between Caesar and Pompey. 57 
 
 Caesar crossed the Rubicon and advanced upon Rome. 
 
CICERO AS A PHILOSOPHER. 17 
 
 B.C. AGE. 
 
 Pompey and his adherents fled. In June, Cicero left Italy 
 
 and joined Pompey in Greece. Caesar made Dictator. 
 18. Caesar defeated Pompey at Pharsalns. Cicero, who was not 58 
 
 present at the battle, returned to Italy. The Alexandrine 
 
 War. 
 47. Meeting and reconciliation of Caesar and Cicero at Brundisium. 59 
 
 Cicero returned to Rome. 
 16. Caesar's victory at Thapsus in Africa. Caesar made Dictator 60 
 
 for ten years ; in 44 b.c. for life. Cicero wrote his Brutus 
 
 and his Orator. 
 45. Cicero divorced Terentia and married a young ward named 61 
 
 Publilia. Death of his daughter Tullia. In this year he 
 
 completed several of his important works: Academicae 
 
 QuaestioneSj De Finibus, Tusculanae Disputationes. Caesar 
 
 gained the battle of Munda in Spain and returned to 
 
 Rome. 
 44. Caesar was assassinated on the 15th of March. Cicero wrote 62 
 
 his De Natura Deorum, De Divinatione, De Officiis, De Senec- 
 
 tute, De Amicitia.. Delivered the first, third, and fourth 
 
 Philippics (the second was never delivered). 
 43. Cicero delivered Philippics Y.-XIY. Antony, Lepidus, and 63 
 
 Octavianus formed the second triumvirate. Proscription. 
 
 Murder of Cicero, by order of Antony, Dec. 7. 
 
 CICERO AS A PHILOSOPHER. 
 
 11. Greek Philosophy. — Among pre-Socratic philosophers the origin 
 of the universe was the chief subject of investigation and theorizing. 
 Thales of Miletus, who flourished about 600 b.c. and founded the Ionic 
 school, first sought to explain the mysteries of nature in a scientific 
 manner. Influenced, perhaps, by Homer and his account of Oceanus, he 
 ascribed the origin of things to water. Various theories were advanced 
 by his successors in their attempts to solve the same problem. Anaxi- 
 mander found the beginning of things in "indeterminate matter"; 
 Anaximines, in " air " ; and Heraclitus, in " fire." Pythagoras of Samos, 
 who settled at Crotona in Italy in 529 b.c. and founded the Italic school 
 of philosophy, held that the key of the universe was to be found, not in 
 material substance, but in " number and proportion." 
 
 DE 9ENEC. 2 
 
18 GENERAL INTRODUCTION^. 
 
 After a century or more of such fruitless speculation and vague 
 discussion and theorizing, a natural reaction occurred, and the Sophists 
 appeared upon the stage. Protesting against such profitless use of mental 
 energy, they boldly declared their scepticism in regard to absolute truth, 
 and sought to turn logic and philosophy to practical account in acquiring 
 wealth and distinction for themselves. But a more important advance 
 was made in the history of man's intellectual development by the 
 advent in the philosophical world of Socrates (469-399 b.c), who fur- 
 nished inspiration, directly or indirectly, to all later schools of Greek 
 thought. His appearance marked the dawn of a new era. It was 
 his special mission to turn men's thoughts from physical to ethical truth, 
 from the solution of the problem of the universe to the determination of 
 man's destiny. 
 
 12. Schools of Philosophy in Cicero's Time. — In Cicero's time 
 there were four leading schools of philosophy, the Academic, Peripa- 
 tetic, Stoic, and Epicurean. The first owed its foundation to Plato, the 
 pupil of Socrates, and received its name from the grove of Academus, 
 w^here its founder lectured. In its historical development it was known 
 successively as the Old, Middle, and New Academy. Aristotle, famous 
 alike as the pupil of Plato and teacher of Alexander, discoursed on 
 philosophy in the Lyceum at Athens, receiving the name of Peripatetic 
 from his habit of walking while he lectured. But with the national 
 decline of the Greeks and the waning influence of their religion, there 
 was urgent need of some strong principle, or noble inspiration, to pre- 
 vent men from relapsing into doubt and despondency. Zeno the Stoic, 
 who taught in a painted porch, or stoa, began in 308 b.c. to proclaim the 
 new philosophy, designed to meet this special want, and boldly asserted 
 that man's highest duty consists in living in accordance with nature. 
 Only a few years later, Epicurus appeared in his garden in Athens as 
 the expounder of still another doctrine whose special object it was to 
 liberate men from all groundless fears and enable them to live happy 
 and contented lives. According to the distinctive tenet of this system, 
 pleasure is the highest good ; it should be remembered, however, that 
 the term as used by Epicurus signified pleasure in its purest and best 
 sense. 
 
 13. Standing as a Philosopher. — Cicero was personally acquainted 
 with the leading representatives in his day of the four great schools, the 
 Academy, the Lyceum, the Porch, and the Garden. Besides receiving 
 
CICERO AS A PHILOSOPHER. 19 
 
 instruction from the most eminent expounders of the doctrines of these 
 schools, he had roamed over the whole field of Greek philosophy and 
 made himself familiar with ail that had been accomplished in this 
 department of intellectual activity. In spite of his fondness for the 
 subject, however, he was not an original thinker, nor did he attempt 
 to establish a system or found a school of his own. His mission lay 
 in making known to his countrymen what had been wrought out by 
 the Greeks. Taking their works as a basis and adapting them to Roman 
 needs, he discussed, in popidar style, the vital questions pertaining to 
 man's existence, and laid down principles of action and rules of conduct 
 which approach very closely at many points to the highest Christian 
 standard. 
 
 So far as adherence to any system is concerned. Cicero was an inde- 
 pendent, or more correctly, an eclectic. In speculative philosophy he 
 accepted the doctrine of the Xew Academy, which holds a high degree 
 of probability as alone attainable in human knowledge, regarding abso- 
 lute certainty as beyond the domain of man's reason. In ethics he 
 agreed with the Stoics and Peripatetics on their common ground: that 
 virtue is the highest good, and that life in accordance with nature or 
 right reason, is the perfection of duty. In his view of external good, he 
 wavered between the severe logic of the Stoics, who affirmed that it was 
 a matter of indifference, and the less dogmatic reasoning of the Peri- 
 patetics, who ascribed some value and importance to it, while holding 
 that it must never be made the sole object of man's desire. Epicurean- 
 ism received no favor at the hands of Cicero. Its passive doctrines of 
 ease and contentment could have no charm for one who found his 
 greatest enjoyment, either in the varied excitement and manifold duties 
 of public office, or in the most intense intellectual activity. 
 
 Cicero's independence and eclecticism led him to expound and com- 
 pare opposing views and conflicting systems. This fact has resulted 
 greatly to our advantage in enlarging our horizon and making us ac- 
 quainted with much in the history of philosophy that must otherwise 
 have remained unknown to us. The value of his achievements in this 
 particular to the Romans can hardly be overestimated. To them he 
 disclosed the choicest treasures and the most ennobling products of 
 Greek thought, and made intelligible by translation, by definition, and 
 practical illustration, truths and sentiments to which they had hitherto 
 been strangers. 
 
20 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 CICERO'S WORKS. 
 
 14. Orations. — Fifty-seven orations ascribed to Cicero are now ex- 
 tant, of which some are incomplete, and four or five may possibly be 
 spurious. We have fragments of about twenty more, and know the titles 
 of thirty-three others. 
 
 15. Letters. — More than eight hundred of Cicero's letters have 
 been preserved. These are divided as follows : — 
 
 Epistulae ad Familiares, 16 Books. 
 Epistulae ad Atticum, 16 Books. 
 Epistulae ad Quintum Fratrem, 3 Books. 
 Epistulae ad M. Brutum, 2 Books. 
 
 16. Poems. — Only fragpaents of Cicero's poetical works remain. 
 These give evidence of skill in versification, but are lacking in poetic 
 inspiration. Most of them belong to his earlier years ; they were often 
 mere youthful exercises, or translations from the Greek. Cicero wrote a 
 metrical account of his own consulship, in three books, of which about 
 eighty lines are still preserved. He also wrote a poem entitled De Meis 
 Temporibus, supposed to have been a continuation of the poem on his 
 consulship. 
 
 17. Philosophical Works. — The following arrangement has been 
 adapted from Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography. 
 
 A. Rhetorical. 
 
 De Inventione Rhetorica, 2 Books. 
 
 De Oratore, 3 Books. 
 
 De Claris Oratorihus (^Brutus), 
 
 Orator. 
 
 De Partitione Oratoria. 
 
 T'opica. 
 
 De Optimo Genere Oratorum. 
 
 [Rhetorica {Ad Herennium, Incertis Auctoris), 4 Books.] 
 
 B. Political. 
 
 De Republican 6 Books. (Fragments.) 
 De Legibus, 3 Books. 
 
BOOKS OF REFERENCE. 21 
 
 C. EthicaL 
 
 De Officiis, 3 Books. 
 
 De Senectute (^Cato Maior). 
 
 De Amicitia (Laelius). 
 
 De Gloria, 2 Books. (Now lost.) 
 
 De Consolatione. (Fragments.) 
 
 D. Speculative. 
 Academicae Quaestiones, 2 Books. 
 
 De Finibus Bonorum et Malorum, 5 Books. 
 
 Tusculanae Disputationes, 5 Books. 
 
 Paradoxa. 
 
 De Philosophia (Hortensius). (Fragments.) 
 
 Timaeus ex Platone. 
 
 E. Theological, 
 De Natura Deorum, 3 Books. 
 De Divinatione, 2 Books. 
 
 De Fato. (Fragment.) 
 
 BOOKS OF REFERENCE. 
 
 For a fuller account of the life and works of Cicero, the reader is 
 referred to the following books : 
 
 18. Lives of Cicero. 
 
 Abeken : Life and Letters. Translated by Merivale. 
 
 Forsyth : Life of Cicero. 
 
 MiDDLETOx : Life of Cicero (last ed. Edinburgh, 1887). 
 
 Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography, Cicero. 
 
 Trollope : Life of Cicero. 
 
 Watson : Select Letters of Cicero. 
 
 For ancient authorities, and for Latin versions of Cicero's life made 
 up of extracts from his works, see Smith's Dictionary (cited above), 
 Vol. I., p. 718. 
 
 Abeken's Cicero in seinen Briefen, Hanover, 1835, the original of 
 Merivale*s translation, is a standard work. Forsyth's life is the best. 
 
22 GENERAL mTRODUCTIOX. 
 
 It is favorable to Cicero, but not blindly partisan. Middletou's book is 
 old and highly eulogistic, but not without merit. Smith's dictionary 
 contains an interesting sketch of the orator, together with a complete 
 list of his works. The article is especially convenient for reference. 
 Trollope's life is attractive in style, and bold in Cicero's defense. It 
 brings out his personal characteristics in a vivid manner. Watson's 
 edition of select letters includes useful tables, introductions, and dis- 
 cussions. It is a valuable help to the study of Cicero's life as revealed 
 in his correspondence. 
 
 19. Histories^ containing Accounts of Cicero and His Times. 
 
 Leighton : History of Rome. 
 
 LiDDELL : History of Rome. 
 
 Merivale : History of the Romans under the Empire, 
 
 Merivale : The Roman Triumvirates. 
 
 Mommsen: History of Rome. 
 
 NiEBUHR : Lectures on the History of Rome. 
 
 Leighton's liistory is well written and ambitious in plan. It is well 
 supplied with convenient summaries and illustrative material. Liddell 
 has long maintained its hold on popular favor. The author seeks to 
 treat Cicero fairly. Merivale's larger work is a recognized authority on 
 the history of Rome from the fall of the Republic to the age of the 
 Antonines. The Roman Triumvirates is a smaller work of the same 
 author. Merivale gives due prominence to Cicero and recognizes his 
 strong as well as weak points. Mommsen's history is devoted to the 
 growth and development of the State. It is a work of great value, but 
 its conclusions are sometimes based upon speculation and not upon well- 
 established evidence. Mommsen is exceedingly harsh in his treatment of 
 Cicero. Xiebuhr's Rome marked an epoch in historical studies. It was 
 an attempt to demolish the old record and construct a new one. The 
 lectures were published after his death fi'om fragmentary notes, and are 
 of less importance than the history. 
 
 20. Works on Roman Literature. 
 
 Bender : Brief History of Roman Literature. Translated by Crowell 
 
 and Richardson. 
 Cruttwell : History of Roman Literature. 
 SiMCOX : History of Roman Literature. 
 
BOOKS OF REFERENCE. 23 
 
 Teuffel : History of Roman Literature. English translation. 
 WiLKiNS : Primer of Roman Literature. 
 
 Bender's history and Wilkins's primer are brief but well written com- 
 pendiums, designed to give the student an outline of Roman literature. 
 The works of Cruttwell and Simcox, the latter in two volumes, are much 
 broader in scope and better suited to the wants of the general reader. 
 Cruttwell's is a good handbook ; Simcox is more profound and scholarly. 
 TeuffePs history, in two volumes, is especially valuable for reference. It 
 contains an immense amount of material and is absolutely indispensable 
 to the scholar, but is not intended for general reading. 
 
 21. Histories of Philosophy. 
 
 Butler : Lectures on the History of Ancient Philosophy. 
 
 Mayor : Sketch of Ancient Philosophy. 
 
 RiTTER : History of Ancient Philosophy. 
 
 ScHWEGLER : History of Philosophy. Translated by Seelye. 
 
 Zeller : Greek Philosophy. Translated by Evelyn Abbott. 
 
 Zeller : The Stoics, Epicureans, and Sceptics. Translated by Reichel. 
 
 Ueberweg: History of Philosophy. Translated by Morris. 
 
 Butler's lectures contain a readable exposition of the principles of 
 Greek philosophy, together with accounts of the different schools and 
 their founders. Mayor's sketch is excellent for a brief presentation. 
 Ritter's history is a comprehensive work, invaluable for reference. The 
 author gives a minute statement of Cicero's philosophy, and points out 
 clearly the nature and value of the service rendered by him to Roman 
 thought. Schwegler is clear in the statement of general principles, but 
 not very thorough in the discussion of doctrines. Zeller shows the 
 results of critical research and accurate scholarship. Morris's translation 
 of Ueberweg, with additions by Porter, is, perhaps, superior in practical 
 value to any other history of philosophy. Its bibliographical information 
 is an important feature. 
 
 22. Miscellaneous Books. 
 
 Beesly : Catiline, Clodius, and Tiberius, 
 
 BoissiER : Ciceron et ses Amis. 
 
 Church : Roman Life in the Days of Cicero. 
 
 Collins : Cicero (Ancient Classics for English Readers). 
 
24 GENERAL IXTRODUCTIOX. 
 
 Dyer : The City of Rome. 
 
 Fowler : Julius Caesar (Heroes of the Nations). 
 
 Froude : Caesar. 
 
 Landor : Imaginary Conversation between Cicero and his Brother. 
 
 Lord : The Old Roman World. 
 
 Napoleon III. : History of Julius Caesar. 
 
 Montesquieu : Grandeur and Decadence of the Romans, 
 
 A Greek version of the De Senectute was prepared by Theo. Gaza, 
 Basel, 1524; edited by Hess, Halle, 1833. 
 
 Sir John Denham (1615-1668) published a metrical version in English. 
 
 Beesly's work, a collection of review essays, contains a severe arraign- 
 ment of Cicero. Boissier gives a charming account of Cicero and his 
 friends. The works of Church and Collins are popular in character, the 
 latter designed especially for those who cannot read Latin. Dyer describes 
 in brief compass the growth and development of the city, and relates the 
 story of its famous monuments. Fowler's Caesar is an entertaining 
 sketch prepared for the general reader. It sets forth Cicero's relations 
 with Caesar. Froude regards Caesar as the one man for' his time, and 
 looks upon Cicero as a strange mixture of strength and weakness. 
 Landor's imaginary conversations, after the manner of Plato, give one a 
 familiar acquaintance with the personages involved. Lord's book is in 
 popular vein, entertaining in matter and style. Napoleon III. made an 
 elaborate attempt to defend Caesar. Montesquieu's is an old but valu- 
 able work. 
 
 The lists given above are not intended to be complete, but simply 
 suggestive. 
 
THE DE SEXECTUTE. 25 
 
 THE DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 23. Time of Composition. — It is impossible to fix the date of 
 the De Senectute with absolute certainty. Slight hints in the 
 essay itself and allusions in Cicero's letters lead us to believe 
 that it was completed a few weeks after the death of Caesar. 
 It may be assigned, therefore, with some degree of positiveness 
 to April, 44 b.c. At all events, it belongs to the closing period 
 of the author's life, when a^nid many disappointments and dis- 
 couragements he manifested his greatest literary activity. The 
 existing political conditions had compelled Cicero to withdraw 
 from public affairs and seek consolation in philosophy. The 
 death of his daughter Tullia, to whom he was devotedly attached, 
 had filled his heart with lasting sorrow. It is not strange, then, 
 that, bowed down as he was by personal grief, and distressed by 
 the appalling calamities of the state, he turned his thoughts to 
 the subject of Old Age. As the increasing weight of years rested 
 more and more heavily upon him, it was but natural that he 
 should reflect upon approaching death, and dwell with eager 
 anticipation on the possibility of rejoining his loved ones in that 
 spirit world, where he hoped also to meet and know the great 
 and good of all ages and lands. 
 
 24. Plan of the Work. — Cicero represents Cato the Elder as 
 setting forth the compensations and advantages of Old Age at the 
 earnest solicitation of his young friends, Laelius and Scipio. 
 Dialogue was a common form of literary presentation among the 
 Greeks, and had already been made familiar to the Eomans. 
 Cicero, however, did not employ the Socratic method found in 
 Plato's works, with its frequent interchange of question and 
 answer, but chose rather the Aristotelian plan, a complete expo- 
 sition of the subject by one leading speaker, with very few inter- 
 ruptions on the part of the listeners. In this way the author, 
 through the medium of an appropriate historical character, pub- 
 lishes his own beliefs and gives them a touch of real life. To 
 
26 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 the reader, the ideas advanced seem to flow from the actual expe- 
 rience of the speaker. No other method so successfully combines 
 careful, accurate statement, on the one hand, with vividness, 
 personal force, and dramatic action on the other. Cicero himself 
 bears witness to its effectiveness: ^^Accordingly while reading 
 my own words, I am at times so much affected that I think Cato 
 and not myself speaking*' {De Am, I. 4). 
 
 The scene of the imaginary dialogue is laid at the home of 
 Cato, 150 B.C. Scipio and Laelius are supposed to pay a visit to 
 the Censor and express their admiration of the manner in which 
 he bears old age. Cato was at that time eighty-four and still 
 remarkable for his physical and intellectual vigor. He was a 
 representative Roman of the old school, a type of the men who 
 subdued Italy and prepared the way for the conquest of the 
 world. Scipio and Laelius belonged to a younger generation ; 
 their life-work was still before them. They might well be sup- 
 posed to realize their responsibility in view of the opportunities 
 opening before them, and feel anxious to learn what course they 
 should pursue to reach such an honorable and enjoyable old age 
 as that which had crowned Cato's long and active life. 
 
 25. Dedication to Atticus. — Cicero dedicated his De Senectute, 
 and also the De Amicitia, later, to Titus Pomponius Atticus, as a 
 tribute of respect to a lifelong friend. Their acquaintance began 
 in boyhood, when they were schoolmates, and grew Avith advanc- 
 ing years into a strong and abiding attachment. Atticus, inher- 
 iting great wealth and preferring a life of refinement and leisure 
 to the cares of public office, withdrew from the turmoil and 
 danger consequent upon the unsettled condition of the Eoman 
 state, and resided for many years in Greece. This gave him 
 abundant opportunity to pursue his studies and to try his hand 
 as publisher, author, and literary critic, in the last of which rdles, 
 especially, he displayed talent of no mean order. The expe- 
 rience thus gained, combined with an amiable disposition and 
 refined character, made him a congenial companion for Cicero, 
 
THE DE SENECTUTE. 27 
 
 while his excellent judgment and scholarly taste enabled him to 
 assist his friend with practical suggestions and wise criticisms. 
 When the De Senectute was completed, Atticus had already 
 reached the age of sixty-five. It was eminently fitting, there- 
 fore, that Cicero should inscribe- his essay on Old Age to him, and 
 bestow this mark of honor upon a friend of such long standing, 
 upon one, in fact, who had been alike the sharer of his youthful 
 joys and the trusted companion of his riper age. It was Atticus' 
 fortune, as the sequel proved, to survive the author ten years and 
 test in his own experience the ingenious reasoning employed by 
 his friend in his charming defense of life's declining years. 
 
 26. Greek Sources. — In the composition of the De Senectute, 
 Cicero occasionally borrowed from Plato's Eepublic and Xeno- 
 phon's Oeconomicus and Cyropaedia. The arguments which he 
 gives for the immortality of the soul he simply repeats in sub- 
 stance from the works of Plato. An allusion in the first chapter 
 to Aristo of Ceos certainly indicates that he was acquainted with 
 a treatise on Old Age by that author. But whether he drew 
 from this to any great extent or not we are unable to determine, 
 for Aristo's work has not come down to us. Cicero makes no 
 attempt to conceal his indebtedness to the Greeks. On the other 
 hand, he frequently mentions his authorities for the purpose of 
 strengthening and enforcing his point. In dealing with the orig- 
 inals he sometimes follows the text closely, and sometimes trans- 
 lates with greater freedom, often varying the minor features of an 
 illustration in order to give it a more pronounced Eoman coloring. 
 
 27. Literary Character. — As a literary production the De Senec- 
 tute has deserved and won the highest praise. Cicero was preemi- 
 nently a master of style, and in this treatise, in the composition 
 of which he evidently took genuine delight, we see him at his 
 best. The dialogue form made lively, animated discourse, easy 
 of attainment, while the special line of argument employed pre- 
 pared the way for apt and forcible illustrations. One by one the 
 supposed charges against Old Age are reviewed and met by exam- 
 
28 GENERAL IXTRODUCTIOX. 
 
 pies of eminent Greeks and Eomans who preserved their vigor, 
 military prowess, commanding influence in state affairs, literary 
 skill, poetic inspiration, or philosophical acuteness far beyond 
 man's allotted age of three score and ten. Cicero's wide acquaint- 
 ance with literature and history made it an easy task for him to 
 marshal the hosts of ancient worthies in support of his argu- 
 ments. Besides this, in the simpler matter of form and arrange- 
 ment he has displayed his best characteristics and made his work 
 worthy of the most careful study. Sentence order based upon 
 emphasis, pleonasm for rhetorical effect, anaphora with its result- 
 ing force and brevity, and, including all other excellences, the 
 well-rounded period, so stately in its movement, and so impressive 
 to the Eoman mind, are exemplified in this essay in the well-nigh 
 faultless style of the greatest master of the Latin tongue. For 
 more than eighteen centuries the De Senectute has been read and 
 admired, a fact sufl&cient in itself to prove its beauty of expression 
 and depth of meaning. 
 
 28. Philosophical Value. — In its philosophical import it is to 
 be regarded as an ethical treatise written for a definite, practical 
 purpose, to help his friend Atticus, and all who might read it, to 
 bear the ills and burdens of life's closing period with becoming 
 dignity and manly courage. Educated Eomans had already lost 
 faith in the corrupt and fanciful religious beliefs of their fathers. 
 Lest they be tempted to yield ultimately to despair or to plunge 
 into the mire of vice and immorality, the noblest minds sought 
 refuge in the teachings of philosophy. For such, Cicero's moral 
 treatises were full of comfort and inspiration. He delighted to 
 draw his illustrations from the best years of his country's his- 
 tory, and to commend in earnest terms the simple virtues and 
 temperate lives of Fabricius, Curius, and the men of their day. 
 By such examples he sought to revive in the hearts of his fellow- 
 citizens the ancient spirit of patriotism, which shrank from no 
 sacrifice, even that of life itself, in defense of the honor and 
 liberties of Eome. 
 
THE DE SEXECTUTE. 29 
 
 But Cicero's message, uttered by the lips of Cato, was not lim- 
 ited to the men of his own time merely. The truths which he 
 proclaimed were as broad in their meaning and as wide in their 
 application as humanity itself. Emerson, in his essay on Old 
 Age, thus bears witness to the enduring value and suggestive 
 force of Cicero's work: -^The speech led me to look over at 
 home Cicero's famous essay, charming by its uniform rhetorical 
 merit; heroic with Stoical precepts; with a Eoman eye to the 
 claims of the state ; happiest, perhaps, in his praise of life on 
 the farm ; and rising at the conclusion to a lofty strain. But he 
 does not exhaust the subject; rather invites the attempt to add 
 traits to the picture from our broader modern life." Of its lit- 
 erary excellence and soundness in doctrine, the late Professor 
 Lincoln thus speaks : " I have been impressed more than ever 
 before with the worth of this Latin essay, in the justness 
 of its sentiments and in the finish of its diction. The tone is 
 cheerful and genial, and yet calm and serious ; the argument for 
 age moves on at times with a moderate concession, but mostly 
 with a happy ingenuity and glowing fervor of defense. It is 
 Eoman in its good sense and sober, practical spirit; it is Cice- 
 ronian in the fullness and richness of its ideas and illustrations, 
 and it is human and humane in all its views of man's life and 
 destiny." (In Memoriam, J. L. L., p. 624.) 
 
 29. Characters. (1) Laelius. — Gains Laelius, surnamed Sapiens, 
 was born about 186 b.c. His father was the friend and associate of the 
 elder Africanus in the Second Punic War, and was elected to the consul- 
 ship, 190 B.C. The younger Laelius added broader culture and greater 
 versatility of talent to the. good qualities of the elder. He succeeded 
 alike as soldier, orator, and author, and held the offices of tribune, 
 praetor, augur, and consul, the last in the year 140 B.C. In the fierce 
 struggle at the capture and destruction of Carthage, he was second in 
 command to Scipio, and displayed remarkable skill and bravery. As a 
 patron of literature he was even more distinguished than in the capacity 
 of statesman or general. Well trained in oratory, law, and philosophy, 
 he delighted to gather about him the choicest spirits and brightest wits 
 
30 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 of his time. To his home came Pacuvius, Terence, Lucilius, Scaevola, 
 and men of similar tastes, and together they studied the best authors or 
 discussed the profoundest questions in philosophy. From this group 
 of scholarly men radiated an influence beneficial to the interests of 
 learning and culture in Rome. To this company, too, belonged Scipio, 
 in whom Laelius found a kindred soul and a never-failing friend. 
 Though the younger Africanus received more ample civil and military 
 honors, yet he willingly yielded the palm to Laelius as a man of letters 
 and a patron of scholars. For years these distinguished leaders, the 
 best products of Roman civilization, alike the ornament and the defense 
 of the state, shared their burdens and their pleasures. Of the noted 
 friendships of antiquity, none surpasses that of Laelius and Scipio in 
 sincerity and unselfishness, or in nobility of aim and purity of purpose. 
 When Cicero wrote his De Amicliia, he selected Laelius as best qualified 
 by experience to set forth the principles and advantages of friendship, 
 and eulogize the life and character of the departed Scipio. How long 
 Laelius survived the death of the latter is not known. 
 
 (2) Scipio. — Scipio was the son of Aemilius Paulus Macedonicus, 
 who defeated Perseus at Pydna, 168 B.C., and thus completed the conquest 
 of Macedonia. He was born 185 B.C., and was adopted by the eldest 
 son of Scipio Africanus. By virtue of this adoption, his full name 
 became Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus, to which was afterwards 
 added Africanus, in honor of his victory over Carthage. His first expe- 
 rience as a soldier was gained under his father at Pydna. In the year 
 151 B.C. he served as military tribune in Spain, and won distinction by 
 his energy and personal courage. In the Third Punic War, the Romans, 
 disheartened by the ill success of their generals, elected Scipio consul for 
 the year 147 b.c, though he had not yet reached the legal age, and gave 
 him the chief command, in the hope that he would quickly terminate 
 the conflict, and add new luster to Roman arms. Their confidence was 
 not misplaced. In the following spring he captured the city, utterly 
 overthrew the Carthaginian power, and received as his own reward a 
 magnificent triumph at Rome. Again, in 133 b.c, he was called upon 
 to retrieve losses due to the mismanagement and incompetency of others, 
 and brought to a successful issue the Xumantine War, which had been 
 prolonged, to the injury and discredit of Rome, ten years. Upon his 
 return from this campaign, he lost the favor of the popular party by 
 expressing approbation of the murder of Ti. Gracchus. 
 
THE DE SENECTUTE. 
 
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32 GENERAL IXTRODUCTIOX. 
 
 Scipio's death occurred 129 B.C., under very suspicious circumstances. 
 After making vigorous opposition in the senate to some of the provisions 
 of the agrarian laws of Gracchus, he was conducted to his home by- 
 senators and landed proprietors of the Italian allies, who showed in this 
 manner their appreciation of his bold stand in advocating their interests 
 against the demands of the reformers. On the following morning he 
 was found dead on his couch. The true story of his death still remains 
 a mystery. Many suspected foul play, and openly charged Carbo, one 
 of the leaders of the Gracchan party, with the crime of murder. His 
 subsequent suicide gave strong ground for belief in his guilt, but the 
 accusation was never substantiated by legal proof. 
 
 Scipio, like his lifelong companion, Laelius, was a man of great cul- 
 ture and refinement, a patron of Greek learning in its best form, and the 
 warm friend of the historian Polybius. In purity of life and devotion 
 to principle, the younger Africanus has had no superior in the annals of 
 his country. Great as he appeared in war, as the conqueror of the two 
 cities most hostile to Rome, he deserves still higher distinction for his 
 cultivation of the ennobling arts of peace and his generous patronage of 
 the famous " Scipionic Circle," composed of the most enlightened authors 
 and scholars of Rome. 
 
 The table on page 31, adapted from Smith's Dictionary of Biography, 
 shows the relationship of the most noted members of the Scipio family. 
 
 (3) Cato. — The chief events in Cato's life are enumerated by Cicero 
 in the De Senectute, but a brief sketch of the man will be appropriate at 
 this point and will help to a clearer understanding of the text. It must 
 be borne in mind that Cicero did not select Cato as the principal speaker 
 in the dialogue in the belief that he was in all respects an ideal person, 
 but rather on account of the integrity, the physical vigor, and the intel- 
 lectual activity which he manifested in extreme old age, and that in the 
 progress of the work he found it necessary to remodel Cato's character 
 to some extent, softening its harsh features, rounding off the sharp cor- 
 ners and imparting to it more refinement and culture than ever actually 
 marked the stern old Censor. 
 
 Marcus Porcius Cato belonged to a plebeian family of Sabine stock 
 and was born at Tusculum, 234 b.c. Though we know little of his early 
 years, yet we may reasonably conclude that he received the best training 
 in law and oratory afforded by his native town and the neighboring city 
 of Rome. The plain, austere life of the hardy Sabines seems to have 
 
THE DE SENECTUTE. 33 
 
 suited hi« vigorous constitution and pleased his simple tastes, for he not 
 only labored in his boyhood on the paternal estate, but always mani- 
 fested special fondness for his country home, and never shrank from the 
 severest kind of toil known to the sturdy farmers of that rude age. 
 
 Like other young men of his time, he rendered his first service to the 
 state, as a soldier in the Second Punic War, taking part with great credit 
 to himself in several important engagements, including the decisive 
 battle of the Metam'us. In the year 204 b.c. he was quaestor in Sicily 
 under Scipio. The two men were totally unlike in disposition and in 
 their views of public service. Cato's vigorous opposition to what he 
 regarded as the unwarranted extravagance of his superior in office 
 resulted in the mutual hatred and open hostility which existed between 
 them for nearly twenty years and terminated only at Scipio's death. 
 Cato became aedile 199 b.c, praetor in the following year, and in 195 b.c. 
 reached the dignity of the consulship. 
 
 His colleague in the latter office was his patron and life-long friend 
 Valerius Flaccus, a wealthy and powerful Roman, who had been early 
 impressed with the sterling qualities of the young Cato and had in- 
 duced him to take up his abode in the metropolis that he might try 
 his powers in a broader field. The province of Spain fell to his lot, 
 and this he ruled with so much vigor, and at the. same time with such 
 wisdom and justice, that he won the respect and confidence of the 
 provincials and received on his return to Rome the distinguished 
 honor .of a triumph. 
 
 In 191 B.C., Antiochus, king of Syria, invaded Greece at the instiga- 
 tion of Hannibal, the implacable foe of the Republic, and in the 
 campaign which followed Cato served as legatus consularis on the staff 
 of Acilius Glabrio, the Roman commander, adding new luster to his 
 military fame. By his success in gaining the rear of the enemy by a 
 night march through a difficult and dangerous path, and by his sudden 
 attack upon the unsuspecting foe, he contributed very materially to 
 Glabrio's victory at Thermopylae. 
 
 In the year 184 B.C., Cato held the office of censor. It was in this 
 position that he gained his greatest distinction and made the force of his 
 personality most strikingly felt. Supported by his colleague, his old 
 friend and admirer Valerius Flaccus, he at once adopted the strictest 
 measures to check extravagance and corruption, and tried to bring about 
 a complete reform in the morals of Rome. The lists of knights and 
 
 DE SENEC. — 3 
 
34 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 senators were carefully revised, and those whose moral baseness or wilKul 
 neglect of duty had rendered them unworthy of high rank were deprived 
 of their privileges and branded with disgrace, regardless of their wealth 
 or distinguished family connection. Jewels, fine clothing, beautiful orna- 
 ments, and expensive slaves were heavily taxed in the hope of putting an 
 end to the lavish expenditure of money on such useless luxuries. By 
 this radical course Cato became involved in countless legal difficulties 
 and was made defendant in nearly fifty suits at law. But while he 
 proved powerless to change the current of events and stay the rising tide 
 of wealth, with its attendant evils, yet he never faltered or wavered in 
 his belief, nor did he cease to cry out against the corruption of his time 
 and to advocate the sterner virtues and simpler living of the best days 
 of the Republic. 
 
 Cato's closing years were marked by the most intense hostility to 
 Carthage. The increasing prosperity and growing power of the Phoeni- 
 cian city filled him with apprehension and alarm for the future supremacy 
 of Rome. A war of extermination against the hated rival appeared to 
 him the only course for the senate to pursue, and consequently in season 
 and out he reiterated his dire forebodings and sternly demanded the 
 destruction of the ill-fated city. Delenda est Cartliago was his constant 
 cry. The inevitable struggle came at last, but the death of the grim old 
 Censor in the year 149 B.C. prevented him from seeing the fulfillment of 
 his cherished desire and beholding the final and complete triumph of 
 Rome. 
 
 It is difficult to make a just estimate of Cato's character. In our day, 
 he would be looked upon as narrow and intolerant to the last degree. 
 Compared with the men of his own time, he was austere and imperious, but 
 nevertheless thoroughly in earnest in his zeal for the true welfare of Rome 
 and uncompromising in his war on every form of evil which threatened 
 to sap the lifeblood of the people or waste their substance. In his 
 public career, while he was always ready to fight to the bitter end 
 against the enemies of the Republic, he was equally emphatic in his 
 advocacy of impartial justice to the provincials and fair dealing with 
 all law-abiding dependents of the state. He desired to see in Rome the 
 thrift and freedom from luxury which marked the life of his Sabine 
 neighbors, and, though his failure to win over the wealthy aristocracy to 
 his way of thinking was a foregone conclusion, yet he never relaxed his 
 principles or acknowledged defeat. 
 
THE DE SENECTUTE. 35 
 
 Cato was a voluminous author; he has, in fact, been justly called 
 " the creator of Latin prose writing " ; but with the exception of the 
 De Re Rustica, which is still extant in a fairly good state of preservation, 
 only fragments of his works have come down to us. Cicero was ac- 
 quainted with one hundred and fifty of his speeches and knew the titles 
 of eighty or ninety more. As an orator, Cato had no peer in his own 
 day. His intense earnestness gave added force to his words, while at the 
 same time, training and practice had made him eloquent in language 
 and convincing in argument, — in short, master of the orator's most 
 effective resources. His addresses were filled with caustic wit, pithy 
 sayings, and wise utterances, which were greatly enjoyed by the people 
 and readily passed into proverbial expressions. His keen insight and 
 his undisguised hatred of fraud and shams of every kind impelled hinr 
 to utter the. honest truth in the most telling way. But Cato's principal 
 literary effort was the composition of the Origines, an account of Rome 
 and the early Italian communities. The loss of this work is to be deeply 
 resetted ; for it far surpassed in excellence and thoroughness the annals 
 and chronicles which had preceded it, and was, in fact, the first produc- 
 tion in the Latin language deserving the name of history. 
 
 Cato looked upon the Greeks with utter contempt and anticipated 
 disastrous effects from the influence of their learning upon the Romans. 
 " Whenever," he said, " that nation shall give us its literature, it will 
 corrupt everything." When the famous philosophers, Carneades the 
 Academic, Critolaus the Peripatetic, and Diogenes the Stoic, came to 
 Rome as ambassadors, 155 B.C., he advocated in the senate their expul- 
 sion from Italy. As to the extent of his own knowledge of the Greek 
 language and literature, the accounts are not very clear. This, however, 
 is true ; if Cicero were trying to draw an accurate picture of the living 
 Cato, he would not represent him as so deeply imbued with Stoic philos- 
 ophy, or so fond of quoting Xenophon and Plato as he has made him 
 appear in the De Senectute. Cicero was in reality expressing his own 
 thoughts by the lips of Cato. 
 
 After all due allowances have been made, the great censor, viewed in 
 any light, is one of the most striking figures in Roman history. With 
 his tireless energy, his indomitable will, and his unyielding devotion to 
 his cherished principles, he made a wonderful impression upon his own 
 age and gained for himself a name that will endure as long as that of 
 Rome itself. 
 
36 
 
 GENERAL INTRODUCTIOISr. 
 
 ANALYSIS. 
 I. Introduction : 
 
 1. Dedication to Atticus. 
 
 2. Form of the work. 
 
 3. Preliminary conversation : 
 
 a. Laelius and Scipio ask Cato the secret of his happy old age. 
 h. Cato replies that character alone will make the burden of 
 
 age easy to bear. 
 c. Illustrations of this : Fabius, Plato, Isocrates, Gorgias, 
 
 Ennius. 
 
 II. Discussion : Four reasons why old age seems to be unhappy : 
 
 A. It withdraws one from active life. 
 
 B. It makes the body weak. 
 
 C. It deprives one of pleasure. 
 
 D. It is not far from death. 
 
 A. In answer to the first charge it may be said : 
 
 1. There are duties which can be best performed by old men. 
 
 2. Memory can be retained by proper use. 
 
 3. Both Greek scholars and Sabine farmers are active till 
 
 death. 
 
 B. In answer to the second reason : 
 
 1. Old age does not need youthful vigor. 
 
 2. Physical strength is often impaired by the vices of youth. 
 
 3. Ill health is common to all ages. 
 
 4. Bodily vigor may be retained by care of health and by 
 
 devotion to intellectual pursuits. 
 
 C. In refutation of the third charge : 
 
 1. Old age is free from many of the temptations of youth. 
 
 2. Old men find sufficient pleasure in conversation, literary 
 
 pursuits, agriculture, honor and respect paid them 
 by the young, and in the influence that belongs to 
 the wisdom of age. 
 
 3. Peevishness is the fault of character, not of old age. 
 
SUMMARY. 87 
 
 D, The fourth reason is shown to be groundless by the 
 following : 
 
 1. There is nothing in death really to be dreaded. 
 
 2. The young are exposed to it, as well as the old. 
 
 3. It comes in the course of nature. 
 
 4. It is a haven of rest to the aged who have lived wisely 
 
 and well. 
 
 5. It leads to immortality. Cato is led to this belief by 
 
 reason and philosophy, as shown in : 
 a. Pythagoras' doctrine of the world-soul. 
 h. Plato's four arguments for immortality, 
 c. Cyrus' words to his sons. 
 d» The fact that belief in a future life inspires men to 
 
 great deeds. 
 €, The calm manner in which the wisest die. 
 /. The soul's longing to depart and rejoin its loved ones. 
 
 III. Conclusion: Whether the teachings of philosophy concerning the 
 immortality of the soul be true or not, death is natural to old 
 age and should be accepted as the close of life's drama. " May 
 you, O Laelius and Scipio, live to experience the truth of what 
 I say." 
 
 SUMMARY. 
 
 Chapter I. 
 
 Cicero addresses Atticus with verses from Ennius, and dedicates the 
 De Senectute to him, in the hope that it may lighten the increasing 
 burden of old age. The work of composition has been a delight. 
 The characters in the dialogue ^are Cato the elder, Scipio, and 
 Laelius. 
 
 Chapter II. 
 
 Scipio. ^'I admire the way in which you bear the burden of years, 
 
 Cato." 
 Cato. "It is easy enough. Those who have resources in themselves 
 
 are prepared for all the changes of life. My wisdom consists simply 
 
 in following Nature." 
 Laelius. " Tell me, Cato, the secret of a happy old age." 
 
38 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Chapter III. 
 
 Cato. "Old men complain that they are deprived of pleasure and 
 neglected by their friends, but the fault is in their own characters." 
 
 Laelius. " True ; and yet you have been more highly favored by for- 
 tune than many others." 
 
 Cato. "You are partly right, but you do not cover the whole ground. 
 The story of Themistocles and the Seriphian illustrates the case. 
 A well-spent life is the surest way to a happy old age." 
 
 Chapter IV. 
 
 The aged Fabius restored the state by his policy of delay ; recaptm-ed 
 Tarentum; strove to maintain the authority of the senate; served 
 as augur; displayed remarkable fortitude in bearing the death of 
 his son ; and was well versed in history and literature. 
 
 Chapter Y. 
 
 Maximus won military honors in old age. Plato, Isocrates, and Gorgias 
 never gave up their literary pursuits. Ennius was happy at seventy 
 in spite of his poverty. Four reasons why Old Age seems to be 
 miserable. 
 
 Chapter YI. 
 
 First : Old Age removes us from active business. To this Cato replies, 
 there are duties requiring wisdom and experience, which old men 
 alone can properly perform. Paulus, Fabricius, Appius Claudius, 
 Cato himself, and many others illustrate this. Among the Lacedae- 
 monians old men hold the highest offices. Youth is rash. Old Age 
 prudent. 
 
 Chapter VII. 
 
 Memory fails. Not if well trained. Themistocles retained his. Cato 
 does not fear that his will be destroyed by reading inscriptions on 
 tombstones. Old men remember whatever they are interested in. 
 Sophocles and many illustrious poets and philosophers maintained 
 their intellectual activity in extreme old age. Cato's Sabine neigh- 
 bors do the same. 
 
SUMMARY. 39 
 
 Chapter YIII. 
 
 The old, said Caecilius, see many things which they do not wish to see 
 and become burdensome to their friends. In reply to this it may be 
 said, that wise old men and young men of good ability enjoy each 
 other's society. Old men are always occupied. Solon learned some- 
 thing new every day. 
 
 Chapter IX. 
 
 Second : Loss of physical strength comes with old age. But old men do 
 not need the vigor of youth. The foolish lament of Milo, the ath- 
 lete. Gentle discourse is becoming to the aged. Old men can find a 
 pleasant task in teaching the young. Bodily weakness due to dissi- 
 pation in early years. Cyrus and Metellus retained the strength of 
 youth. 
 
 Chapter X. 
 
 Homer's account of the aged ^N'estor. Cato at eighty-four, though lack- 
 ing youthful vigor, is still able to discharge his manifold civil duties. 
 It is more important that one use his strength properly than that he 
 have a great amount. Pythagoras' intellect is worth more than 
 Milo's strength. Each period of life has its distinguishing charac- 
 teristics. Masinissa's wonderful vigor at ninety. 
 
 Chapter XI. 
 
 Old men are exempt from duties which require bodily strength. They 
 suffer from ill health ; but so do young men, as shown in the case of 
 Africanus' son. One must resist old age by taking due care of both 
 body and mind. Dotage is not characteristic of all old men. Appius 
 Claudius maintained his authority over his household. The ideal 
 senex is old in body only, not in spirit. Cato finds consolation for 
 the loss of physical strength in literature and civil duties. 
 
 Chapter XII. 
 
 Third : Old Age deprives us of pleasure. This is indeed a blessing; for 
 bodily pleasure is the greatest source of evil. We ought to thank 
 
40 GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Old Age for freeing us from its dominion. Cato removed T. Flami- 
 ninus from the senate because of his disgraceful conduct. 
 
 Chapter Xni. 
 
 Epicurus taught that all things ought to be referred to pleasure as the 
 standard of right. Curius and Coruncanius wished that the Samnites 
 could be made to believe this. Fabricius thought that the beautiful 
 and the good ought to be sought for their own sake. Old Age avoids 
 overindulgence in pleasure and therefore escapes its attendant evils. 
 Cato enjoys clubs and banquets. In the latter he finds more pleasure 
 in companionship than in eating and drinking. 
 
 Chapter XIY. 
 
 Cato even indulges in prolonged banquets for the sake of conversation 
 with old and young. He often invites his Sabine neighbors to dine 
 with him. Old Age loses its desire for the baser pleasures of youth, 
 but is not wholly devoid of enjoyment. When the mind is no longer 
 under the sway of passion and folly, it takes delight in intellectual 
 pursuits, astronomy, poetry, law. Such pleasures increase with age. 
 
 Chapter XY. 
 
 The pleasures of the husbandman are not lessened by old age. The 
 earth returns what it receives, with interest. It causes the seed to 
 germinate and the fruit to grow. The cultivation of the vine; the 
 ripening cluster ; the supporting trellis ; irrigation, digging, and fer- 
 tilizing. The story of Laertes. The many delights of rural life. 
 
 Chapter XYI. 
 
 Curius spent his closing years in farming; his indifference to wealth. 
 Cincinnatus was called from the plow to the office of dictator. The 
 life of the farmer is happy and useful. A farm, with its meadows, 
 orchards, and vineyards, affords the most delightful home for the 
 aged. Let the youth keep their games and exercises ; the old can be 
 happy without such amusements. 
 
SUMMARY. 41 
 
 Chapter XVII. 
 
 Xenophon's Oeconomicus. Lysander's visit to a park belonging to 
 Cyrus the younger. Agriculture the best occupation for old men. 
 Corvinus, though six times consul, engaged in it. Authority is the 
 crown of old age. This was true of Metellus, Calatinus, and many 
 others. 
 
 Chapter XVIII. 
 
 A happy old age comes only from a well-spent youth. Old men enjoy 
 the respect of their juniors. The Spartans noted for the honor they 
 paid to the aged. Contrast between the Spartans and Athenians. 
 Respect paid to age in the college of augurs. Peevishness, fault-find- 
 ing, and avarice are due to character, not to age. 
 
 Chapter XIX. 
 
 Fourth : The approach of death. But this should not be feared, for it is 
 followed either by eternal happiness or by annihilation. Even the 
 young are not sure of life ; many dangers threaten them. Young 
 men hope for long life; old men have attained it. The longest 
 existence must end at last. A short life may be pure and happy ; if 
 prolonged, its closing years are the time for gathering life's fruit. 
 Death in the young is untimely; by the old it is welcomed as a 
 haven of rest after a long voyage. 
 
 - Chapter XX. 
 
 Old age is more courageous than youth. The most suitable time for 
 death. Nature fashions and destroys our bodies. Pythagoras for- 
 bids suicide. Solon wished to be mourned after death. Ennius 
 thought it the gate of immortality, and therefore no occasion for 
 tears. We must remember its certainty and cease to fear it. The 
 example of great commanders and common soldiers who have faced 
 death should give us courage. The pleasures of each age in time 
 lose their charm and death comes in the course of nature. 
 
42 
 
 GENERAL mTRODUCTIO:N^. 
 
 Chapter XXI. 
 
 Cato's reason and the authority of eminent philosophers impel him to 
 believe that the soul is of divine origin and the body its prison-house. 
 Pythagoras taught that the souls of men come from the great world- 
 soul which animates the universe. A brief statement of Plato's 
 arguments for the immortality of the soul. 
 
 Chapter XXII. 
 
 The dying words of Cyrus the Elder to his sons. The soul is invisible. 
 The spirits of the illustrious dead continue to influence us. The soul 
 released from the body enters upon a higher and purer existence. 
 Death compared to sleep. 
 
 Chapter XXIII. 
 
 Belief in immortality inspires great men to live laborious lives. The 
 wisest meet death most calmly. Cato is anxious to rejoin his de- 
 parted friends and to see the great heroes of former ages. He does 
 not wish to live his life over again, though he does not regret that he 
 has lived. This earth is an inn, not a home. Cato longs to depart 
 and be with his son, whose death he bore so calmly because he 
 thought it but a temporary separation. In conclusion, Cato thinks 
 old age agreeable and easy to bear ; and hopes that his auditors may 
 live to test his theories. 
 
M. TULLI CICERONIS 
 
 CATO MAIOK DE SENECTtJTE LIBER 
 
 AD T. POMPONIUM ATTICUM. 
 
M. TULLI CICERONIS 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE LIBER 
 
 AD T. POMPONIUM ATTICUM. 
 
 TiTE, SI quid ego adiuero curamve levasso, 
 Quae nunc te coquit et versat in pectore fixa, 
 Ecquid erit praemi ? 
 
 O Tite 
 
 praemi. These verses 
 
 and the two following are taken from 
 the tenth book of the Annales of En- 
 nius, a poem in eighteen books, on the 
 model of Homer, recounting the his- 
 tory of Rome from the wanderings of 
 Aeneas to the time of the poet, who 
 lived from 239 to 169 b.c. In this 
 national epic, of which only a few 
 fragments now remain, the old Sa- 
 turnian measure first gave way to the 
 Greek hexameter. The lines here so 
 aptly addressed by Cicero to his friend 
 Atticus are supposed to have been 
 spoken by an Epirote shepherd to 
 Titus Quinctius Flamininus, the com- 
 mander of the Romans in the war 
 against Philip of Macedon, 198 b.c. 
 Philip's army, advantageously posted 
 in a narrow defile connecting Epirus 
 and Thessaly, held the Romans at 
 bay for six weeks, until a chief, one 
 
 Charops by name, sent a shepherd to 
 Flamininus to show him a way over 
 the mountains. A force was dis- 
 patched by this secret path to a com- 
 manding position in the rear of the 
 Greeks, who were then attacked on 
 all sides and driven from the pass. 
 Livy relates the occurrence in XXXII. 
 9, 10. See also LiddelPs History of 
 Borne, pp. 424-428, for the same in- 
 cident and for an account of the sub- 
 sequent victory of the Romans at 
 Cynoscephalae, 197 b.c. 
 
 Cicero, in his letters to Atticus, 
 XVI. 3 and 11, uses the words Tite 
 to designate this essay. In like man- 
 ner the Romans called the Aeneid of 
 Yergil Anna virumque cano and Lu- 
 cretius' works Aeneadum genetrix. 
 So the Bulls and Encyclicals of the 
 Popes receive their distinct names 
 from their initial words. 
 
 45 
 
46 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 Licet enim mihi versibus eisdem adfarl te, Attice, quibus 
 adfatur riaminlnuni 
 
 lUe vir hand magna cum re, sed plenus fidei ; 
 quamquam certo scio non, ut Flamininum, 
 
 SoUicitari te, Tite, sic noctesque diesque ; 5 
 
 noYi enim moderationem animi tui et aeqnitatem, teqne non 
 cognomen solum Athenis deportasse, sed htimanitatem et 
 
 Flamininum. Scarcely anything 
 is known of the early life of Elamini- 
 nus. He was made consul 198 b.c, 
 at which time he is said to have been 
 but thirty years of age. Having 
 brought the second Macedonian war 
 to a successful close, he held the fate 
 of Greece in his hands. When in the 
 summer of 196 b.c, the people, anx- 
 ious to know his decision, had as- 
 sembled in great numbers in the 
 amphitheater at Corinth, on the oc- 
 casion of the Isthmian games, he 
 ordered a crier to announce that 
 *'the Roman senate and Titus Quinc- 
 tius, the commander, having con- 
 quered Philip and the Macedonians, 
 declared all the Greeks who had been 
 subject to the king free and indepen- 
 dent." In the year 183 b.c, Flami- 
 ninus was sent on an errand that 
 reflected no credit upon himself or 
 the senate. He was commissioned to 
 visit the court of Prusias, king of 
 Bithynia, and demand the person of 
 Hannibal. But the proud-spirited 
 Carthaginian, defeated in all his plans 
 against Rome and now driven from 
 his last place of refuge, terminated 
 by poison the life that had long ceased 
 to be worth the living. Plamininus 
 appears to have been living in 168 b.c, 
 
 but after that time disappears from 
 history. 
 
 aequitatem. Horace refers to the 
 same quality of mind in Odes II. 3, 
 
 Aequam memento rebus in arduis 
 Servare ment^m, jion^ecns in bonis 
 Ab insolenti temperatam 
 Laetitia, moriture Delli. 
 
 cognomen. A Roman had at least 
 two names, generally three, praeno- 
 men, nomen, cognomen, as Gains 
 Julius Caesar. The term cognomen 
 is applied to the family name, and 
 also used to designate a by-name, as 
 Africanus and Atticus. Titus Pom- 
 ponius received this surname from 
 his long residence in Athens (86- 
 65 B.C.) and from his generosity to 
 the Athenians and his true Attic cul- 
 ture. He left Rome on account of 
 the disturbed condition of the state 
 and sought Athens as a favorable 
 place to prosecute his studies. Cf. 
 Nep. Att. 2, idoyieum tempus ratus 
 studiis obsequendi suis, Athenas se 
 contulit ; also ibid. Hie ita vixit, ut 
 universis Atheniensibus merito esset 
 carissimus ; ibid. 4, Sic enim Graece 
 loquebatur ut Athenis natus videretur. 
 
 hiimanitatem. Derived from hu- 
 manus, that which becomes a man, 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 47 
 
 prudentiam intellego. Et tamen te suspicor eisdem rebus 
 quibus ine ipsum interdum gravius commoveri, quarum con- 
 solatio et maior est et in aliud tempus differenda. Nunc aut- 
 em visum est mihi de senecttite aliquid ad te eonscnbere. Hoc 
 enim onere, quod mihi commune tecum est, aut iam urgen- 5 
 tis aut certe adventantis senectutis et te et me etiam ipsum 
 levari volo ; etsi te quidem id modice ac sapienter, sicut om- 
 nia, et ferre et laturum esse certo scio. Sed mihi, cum de 
 senectute vellem aliquid scribere, tu occurrebas digaus eo 
 munere, quo uterque nostrum commtiniter uteretur. Mihi 10 
 quidem ita iucunda huius librl confectio fuit, ut non modo 
 omnTs absterserit senectutis molestias, sed effecerit moUem 
 etiam et iucundam senectutem. ISTumquam igitur satis digne 
 laudarl philosophia poterit, cui qui pareat, omne tempus 
 aetatis sine molestia possit degere. Sed de ceteris et diximus 15 
 multa et saepe dicemus ; hunc librum ad te de senectute 
 misimus. Omnem autem sermonem tribuimus non Tithono, 
 
 culture. Cf . the English ' ' humanity ' ' 
 in the sense of "liberal education," 
 and '' the humanities " equivalent to 
 *' branches of polite learning," espe- 
 cially ''the classics." 
 
 commune. Cicero was sixty-two, 
 Atticus sixty-five. 
 
 senectutis. The Romans divided 
 the life of man into the following 
 periods, each of the first four about 
 fifteen years in length : pueritia^ adu- 
 lescentia, inventus, aetas seniorum, 
 senectus. Some of these terms were 
 occasionally used loosely, without 
 strict regard for the exact divisions 
 of human life to which they techni- 
 cally belonged. 
 
 modice. What substantive has 
 Cicero previously employed to de- 
 
 note this same characteristic of 
 Atticus ? 
 
 certo. How does this differ in 
 force from certe? 
 
 iucundam. This effect does not 
 seem to have been lasting; cf. Ad 
 Att. XIV. 21, 3, Legendus mihi sae- 
 pius est Cato maior ad te missus. 
 Amariorem enim me senectus facit. 
 Stomachor omnia. 
 
 laudari philosophia poterit. For 
 Cicero's high opinion of philosophy, 
 cf. Tusc. V. 2, 5, vitae philosophia 
 dux! virtutis indagatrix expul- 
 trixque vitiorum ! 
 
 Tithono. The son of Laomedon 
 and husband of Aurora. In answer 
 to her prayers, Jupiter granted him 
 length of days, but not immortal 
 
48 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 ut Aristo Cms (parum enim esset auctoritatis in fabula), 
 sed M. Catoni senl, quo maiorein auctoritatem haberet 
 oratio ; apud quein Laelium et Scipionem facimus ad- 
 mirantis, quod is tain facile senectutem ferat, eisque eum 
 respondentem. Qui si eruditius videbitur disputare quam 5 
 consuevit ipse in suis libris, attribuito litteris Graecis, 
 quarum constat eum perstudiosum fuisse in senectute. Sed 
 quid opus est pltira ? lam enim ipsius Catonis sermo 
 ex.plicabit nostram omnem de senectute sententiam. 
 
 II. 
 
 SciPio. Saepe numero admirari soleo cum hoc C. Laelio lo 
 cum ceterarum rerum tuam excellentem, M. Cato, perfec- 
 tamque sapientiam, tum vel maxime, quod numquam tibi 
 senectutem gravem esse senserim, quae plerisque senibus 
 sic odiosa est, ut onus se Aetna gravius dicant sustinere. 
 
 youth. After a very feeble old age 
 he was turned into a cicada^ " katy- 
 did." For a fine rendering of this 
 story, see Tennyson's Tithonus: — 
 The woods decay, the woods decay 
 
 and fall, 
 The vapors weep their burthen to 
 
 the ground, 
 Man comes and tills the field and 
 
 lies beneath, 
 And after many a summer dies the 
 
 swan. 
 Me only cruel immortality 
 Consumes : I wither slowly in thine 
 
 arms, 
 Here at the quiet limit of the world, 
 A white-hair' d shadow roaming like 
 
 a dream 
 The ever silent spaces of the East, 
 Far-folded mists, and gleaming halls 
 
 of morn. 
 
 Aristo. A peripatetic philosopher 
 of Ceos, one of the Cyclades. He 
 flourished about 225 b.c. His writ- 
 ings have been lost. 
 
 suis libris. Cato wrote a treatise 
 on farming, De Be Bustica ; a his- 
 torical work, Origines ; and many 
 orations. See Introduction, p. 35. 
 
 litteris GraecTs : cf . YIII. 26, qui 
 litteras Graecas senex didici; also 
 Plut. Cato, 2, waLdeias 'EWtjvlktjs 
 6\f/LiuLadT]s yev^crdaL Xiyerai. Pliny, N". H, 
 XXIX. 8, says, however, that Cato 
 regarded it satis esse ingenia Grae- 
 corum inspicere.) non perdiscere. Cf. 
 Cic. De Orat. III. 33, 135, Quid enim 
 M. Catoni praeter hanc politissimam 
 doctrinam transmarinam atque ad- 
 venticiam defuitf 
 
 Aetna gravius. Cicero undoubt- 
 edly had in mind Euripides, Here. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 49 
 
 Cato. Eem haud sane difl&cilem, Sclpio et Laeli, admi- 
 rarl videmini. Quibus enim nihil est in ipsis opis ad bene 
 beateque vivendum, eis omnis aetas gravis est ; qui autem 
 omnia bona a se ipsi petunt, eis nihil malum potest videri, 
 quod naturae necessitas adferat. Quo in genere est in 5 
 primis senectus ; quam ut adipiscantur omnes optant, ean- 
 dem accusant adeptam; tanta est stultitiae inconstantia 
 atque perversitas. Obrepere aiunt eam citius, quam putas- 
 sent. Primum quis coegit eos falsum putare ? Qui enim 
 citius adulescentiae senectus quam pueritiae adulescentia 10 
 
 Fur. 637, "old age, a burden heavier 
 than lofty Aetna." According to an 
 ancient myth, the Giants, overcome 
 in their contest with the gods, were 
 buried under Aetna. Cf. Yerg. Aen. 
 III. 578-581 : — 
 
 Fama est Enceladi semiustum fulmine 
 
 corpus 
 Urgueri mole hac, ingentemque insu- 
 
 per Aetnam 
 Impositam ruptis flammam exspirare 
 
 caminis ; 
 
 also Hor. Odes III. 4, 73-76, Iniecta 
 monstris Terra dolet suis, . . . nee 
 peredit Impositam celer ignis Aetnam, 
 Longfellow relates the story of Ence- 
 ladus in a poem bearing that name : 
 
 Under Mount Aetna he lies, 
 It is slumber, it is not death. 
 
 Allusions to the height and fires of 
 Aetna passed into proverbial expres- 
 sions ; cf. Plant. Mil. Glor. 1065, 
 Aetna non aeque alta est ; Verg. Aen, 
 VII. 786, Aetnaeos efflantem fauci- 
 hus ignes. 
 
 in ipsis opis. It was a fundamen- 
 tal doctrine of the Stoics that man 
 ought to find the means for a happy 
 
 DE SENEC. — 4 
 
 life in virtue alone and not in any 
 form of material wealth. Cf. Cic. 
 Tusc. Y. 14, 42, Qui autem poterit 
 esse celsus, et erectus, et ea, quae 
 homini accidere possunt^ omnia parva 
 ducenSj qualem sapientem esse vo- 
 lumus, nisi omnia sibi in se posita 
 censehitf 
 
 Obrepere . . . putassent. The 
 sentiment is true to nature. Cf. 
 Bryant's The Old Mail's Counsel^ 
 lines 59-65 : — 
 
 Slow pass our days 
 In childhood, and the hours of light 
 
 are long 
 Betwixt the morn and eve ; with 
 
 swifter lapse 
 They glide in manhood, and in age 
 
 they fly ; 
 Till days and seasons flit before the 
 
 mind 
 As flit the snow-flakes in a winter 
 
 storm, 
 Seen rather than distinguished. 
 
 adulescentiae. See on senectutis^ 
 p. 47 ; adulescentia here includes in- 
 ventus. In like manner senectus is 
 often used where greater exactness 
 
50 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SEXECTUTE. 
 
 obrepit ? Deinde qui minus gravis esset eis senectus, si 
 octingentesimum annum agerent quam si octogesimum? 
 Praeterita enim aetas quamvis longa cum effltixisset, nulla 
 consolatio permulcere posset stultam senecttitem. Quo- 
 circa si sapientiam meam admirarl soletis (quae utinam 
 digna esset opinione vestra nostroque cognomine !), in lioc 
 sumus sapientes, quod naturam optimam ducem tamquam 
 deum sequimur elque paremus ; a qua non veri simile est, 
 cum ceterae partes aetatis bene descriptae sint, extremum 
 actum tamquam ab inert! poeta esse neglectum. Sed tamen 
 
 10 
 
 would require two terms, aetas seni- 
 orum and senectus (in the restricted 
 sense). 
 
 opinione . . . cognomine. Note 
 the chiasmus. Cato received the sur- 
 name Sapiens on account of his prac- 
 tical wisdom, as manifested in his 
 pithy sayings; cf. De Am. II. 6, in 
 which Eannius says Cato was called 
 wise, quia multarum rerum usum 
 habehat. 
 
 naturam optimam ducem. The 
 Stoics taught that man ought to live 
 in accordance with nature. By na- 
 tura they meant the law of man's 
 being, *' right reason" applied to 
 human conduct. They believed it 
 possible for man to learn by observa- 
 tion and self-study the constitution of 
 his being, and the natural law to 
 which he was in duty bound to con- 
 form his life. Cf. De Am. Y. 19, 
 naturam optimam bene vivendi ducem ; 
 De Off. III. 3, quod summum bonum 
 a Stoicis dicitur^ convenienter na- 
 turae vivere ; De Leg. I. 6, Ista (na- 
 tura) duce errari nullo pacto potest. 
 
 extremum actum. The last act 
 of the drama of life ; for other in- 
 
 stances of this figure, cf. XVIII. 64 ; 
 XIX. 70 ; XXIII. 85. The compari- 
 son of life to a play is of very frequent 
 occurrence in ancient and modern 
 literature. Cf. Shakespeare's well- 
 known lines. As You Like It, Act II. 
 sc. 7, 
 
 All the world's a stage, 
 And all the men and women merely 
 players ; 
 
 also The Merchant of Venice^ Act I. 
 sc. 1, 
 
 I hold the world but as the world, 
 
 Gratiano ; 
 A stage, where every man must 
 
 play a part ; 
 
 Macbeth, Act V. sc. 5, 
 
 Life's but a walking shadow ; a 
 
 poor player. 
 That struts and frets his hour upon 
 
 the stage 
 And then is heard no more ; 
 
 Thos. Heywood, Apology for Actors, 
 
 The world's a theater, the earth a 
 
 stage 
 Which God and Nature do with 
 
 actors fill. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 51 
 
 necesse fuit esse aliquid extremuni et tamquam in arborum 
 bacTs terraeque frtictibus maturitate tempestiva quasi vie- 
 tum et cadticum, quod ferundum est molliter sapient!. 
 Quid est enim aliud Gigantum modo bellare cum dls nisi 
 naturae repugnare ? 5 
 
 6 Laelius. AtquT, Cato, gratissimuni nobis, ut etiam pro 
 Scipione pollicear, feceris, si, quoniam speramus, volumus 
 quidem certe senes fieri, multo ante a te didicerimus, quibus 
 facillinie rationibus ingravescentem aetatem ferre possimus. 
 
 Cato. Faciam vero, Laeli, praesertim si utrlque vestrum, 10 
 ut dicis, gratum futurum est. 
 
 Laelius. Volumus sane, nisi molestum est, Cato, tam- 
 quam longam aliquam viam confeceris, quam nobis quoque 
 ingrediundum sit, isttic, quo pervenisti, videre quale sit. 
 
 III. 
 
 7 Cato. Faciam, ut potero, Laell. Saepe enim interfui is 
 querells aequalium meorum (pares autem vetere proverbio 
 
 Volumus. With this passage, cf. 
 Plato's Bepublic, I. 328 (Jowett's 
 translation): "Socrates. 'There is 
 nothing which I like better, Cephalus, 
 than conversing with aged men like 
 yourself ; for I regard them as travel- 
 ers who have gone a journey which 
 I too may have to go, and of whom I 
 ought to inquire, whether the way is 
 smooth and easy, or rugged and diffi- 
 cult. And this is a question which I 
 should like to ask of you who have 
 arrived at that time which the poets 
 call the threshold of old age, — is life 
 harder towards the end, or what re- 
 port do you give of it ? ' " 
 
 vetere proverbio. Cf. Homer, 
 Od. XVII. 218, "Thus ever doth 
 
 some god join like with like''; 
 Plato's Bep. I. 329 (Jowett's Trans.), 
 "Old men flock together; they are 
 birds of a feather, as the proverb 
 says"; Phaedrus, 240, "Equals, as 
 the proverb says, delight in equals " ; 
 Symposium^ 195, "He is not a bird 
 of that feather ; youth and love live 
 and move together, — like to like, as 
 the proverb says" ; so Ter. Heaut. 
 419, Nos quoque senes est aequom 
 senibus obsequi; Hor. Ep. I. 6, 25, 
 ut coeat par iungaturque pari; Liv. 
 I. 46, 7, Contrahit celeriter similitudo 
 eos, ut fere fit ; malum malo aptissi- 
 mum ; Quint. Y. 11, 41, e^ apud Cice- 
 ronem, Pares autem . . . congre- 
 gantur ; Amm. Marcell. XXVIII, 1, 
 
62 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 cum paribus facillime congregantur), quae C. Salmator, 
 quae Sp. Albinus, homines consulares, nostri fere aequales^ 
 deplorare solebant^ turn quod voluptatibus carerent, sine 
 quibus vitam nullam putarent, turn quod spernerentur ab 
 els, a quibus essent coli solitl. Qui mihi non id videbantur 5 
 acctisare, quod esset acctisandum. Nam si id culpa senec- 
 ttitis accideret, eadem mihi tisu venirent reliquisque omni- 
 bus maioribus' natu, quorum ego multorum cognovi senec- 
 ttitem sine querela, qui se et libldinum vinculls laxatos esse 
 non moleste ferrent nee a suis despicerentur. Sed omnium 10 
 istius modi querelarum in moribus est culpa, non in aetate. 
 Moderati enim et nee difficiles nee inhumani senes tolera- 
 bilem senectutem agunt, importtinitas autem et inhtima- 
 nitas omni aetati molesta est. 
 
 Laelius. Est, ut dicis, Cato ; sed fortasse dixerit quis- 15 
 piam tibi propter opes et copias et dignitatem tuam tole- 
 rabiliorem senectutem videri, id autem non posse multis 
 contingere. 
 
 Cato. Est istud quidem, Laeli, aliquid, sed nequaquam 
 in isto sunt omnia. Ut Themistocles fertur Serlphio cui- 20 
 
 63, ut Solent pares facile congregari 
 cum paribus. 
 
 facillime. In the sense of liben- 
 tissime. This chapter to § 9 is a very 
 close imitation of Plato's Bepublic, I. 
 329-330. 
 
 C. Salinator. C. Livius Salinator 
 was about four years younger than 
 Cato. He commanded the Koman 
 fleet against Antiochus, 191 b.c, and 
 was consul 188 b.c. 
 
 Sp. Albinus. Sp. Postumius Al- 
 binus held the consulship, 186 b.c. 
 
 Sed omnium . . . molesta est. 
 Cf. Plato's Bep. I. 329, ''And of 
 
 these regrets, as well as of the com- 
 plaint about relations, Socrates, the 
 cause is to be sought, not in men's 
 ages, but in their characters and 
 tempers ; for he who is of a calm 
 and happy nature will hardly feel 
 the pressure of age, but he who is 
 of an opposite disposition will find 
 youth and age equally a burden." 
 
 Themistocles. A celebrated 
 Athenian general and statesman, 
 born about the year 614 b.c. As 
 soon as he was old enough to take 
 part in public affairs, he revealed an 
 overmastering ambition for brilliant 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 53 
 
 dam in iurgio respondisse, cum ille dixisset non eum sua, 
 sed patriae gloria splendorem adsecutum : ' Nee hercule/ 
 inquit, ' si ego Seriphius ess em, nee tu sT Atheniensis, 
 clarus umquam fuisses.' Quod eodem modo de senecttite 
 dici potest. Nee enim in summa inopia levis esse senecttis 5 
 potest ne sapient! quidem nee insipienti etiam in summa 
 copia non gravis. Aptissima omnino sunt, Scipio et Laell, 
 arma senectutis artes exercitationesque virtutum, quae in 
 omni aetate cultae, cum diu multumque vixeris, mirificos 
 ecferunt fructus, non solum quia numquam deserunt, ne lo 
 extremo quidem tempore aetatis (quamquam id quidem maxi- 
 mum est), yerum etiam quia conscientia bene actae vitae 
 multorumque bene factorum recordatio iticundissima est. 
 
 display and personal glory. He 
 arrayed himself against many of the 
 leaders of the state and manifested 
 bitter hostility to Aristides the Just, 
 upon whose ostracism he became the 
 leading spirit in the political affairs 
 of Athens. Special credit was due 
 him for his wise course in building 
 up the Athenian fleet, which he com- 
 manded with marked success in the 
 great battle of Salamis, 480 b.c. But 
 after a long career of self-seeking and 
 political trickery, Themistocles was 
 ostracised by his fellow-citizens, 471 
 B.C., on charges of bribery and extor- 
 tion. To escape trial for treason, in 
 which he had been implicated, he fled 
 to the Persian court in 465 b.c, and 
 there by his brilliant talents gained 
 the favor of the king and enjoyed the 
 wealth and honor of a prince until 
 the close of his life in 449 b.c. The 
 report that he brought on death by 
 poison has gained some currency but 
 
 lacks any substantial proof. He was 
 honored with a monument in the city 
 of Magnesia, in which he had spent 
 the last years of his life. Themisto- 
 cles was, in a word, a man of marked 
 ability, but utterly devoid of charac- 
 ter. 
 
 Seriphio. An inhabitant of Seri- 
 phus, a small island in the Aegean 
 Sea, now Seifo. The island was of 
 very little importance. 
 
 eum. Themistocles. This story 
 is taken from Plato's Bepicblic, I. 
 330. It is also found in Plutarch's 
 life of Themistocles. Herodotus, 
 Yin. 125, relates the same incident 
 in substance, but he differs from 
 this account in some of the minor 
 points. 
 
 Quod eodem . . . dici potest. 
 Cf. Plato, Bep. I. 330, ''And to those 
 who are not rich and are impatient 
 of old age, the same reply may be 
 made." 
 
64 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 IV. 
 
 10 Ego Q. Maximum^ eum qui Tarentum recepit, senem 
 adulescens ita dilexi^ ut aequalem ; erat enim in illo viro 
 comitate condita gravitas, nee senectus mores mutaverat. 
 Quamquam eum colere coepi non admodum grandem natu, 
 sed tamen iam aetate provectum. Anno enim post consul 5 
 primum fuerat^ quam ego natus sum^ cumque eo quartum 
 consule adulescentulus miles ad Capuam profectus sum 
 quintoque anno post ad Tarentum. Quaestor deinde qua- 
 driennio post factus sum, quem magistratum gessi consulibus 
 Tuditano et CethegOj cum quidem ille admodum senex 10 
 
 Q. Maximum. Q. Fabius Maxi- 
 mus Verrucosus was one of the most 
 prominent figures in the history of 
 Rome during the last quarter of the 
 third century b. c. He was honored 
 with the censorship in 230, with the 
 dictatorship, 221 and 217, and with the 
 consulship five times, 233, 228, 215, 
 214, 209 B.C. Fabius was the chief 
 of the Roman envoys to Carthage at 
 the outbreak of the Second Punic 
 War, and it was he who played the 
 principal part in the scene so dra- 
 matically set forth by Livy, XXI. 18, 
 Turn Bomanus, sinu ex toga facto. 
 '' Hic^^ inqiiit, 'vobis helium et pacem 
 portamus : utrum placet^ sumite.'' 
 Appointed Dictator after the battle 
 of Trasumennus, he inaugurated his 
 famous policy of "delay," by which 
 he hoped to break down Hannibal's 
 strength without risking a pitched 
 battle. From this plan, which he so 
 persistently followed himself and 
 urged upon other commanders, he 
 received the surname Cunctator. 
 
 After the disaster to the Roman 
 arms at Cannae, 216 b.c, Fabius 
 was for many years the mainstay 
 of the government and people. He 
 died in 203 b.c. at an advanced age 
 and with his fame overshadowed at 
 the last by the greater success of the 
 more aggressive Scipio. 
 
 Anno . . . quadriennio post fac- 
 tus sum. The following are the 
 dates referred to in the passage : — 
 
 B.C. 234. Birth of Cato. 
 
 " 233. Fabius' first consulship. 
 
 " 214. " fourth " 
 
 " 214. Cato, a common soldier 
 (jniles) at Capua. 
 
 " 209. Cato with Fabius at the 
 recapture of Taren- 
 tum. 
 
 " 204. Cato, Quaestor. 
 
 " 204. Tuditanus and Cethe- 
 gus, Consuls. 
 
 Tuditano et Cethego. P. Sem- 
 pronius Tuditanus and M. Cornelius 
 Cethegus. For the date of their con- 
 
CHAPTER lY. 
 
 55 
 
 suasor legis Cinciae de donls et muneribus fuit. Hie et 
 bella gerebat ut adulescens, cum plane grandis esset, et 
 Hannibalem iuveniliter exsultantem patientia sua molliebat; 
 de quo praeclare familiaris noster Ennius : 
 
 Unus homo nobis cunctando restituit rem. 
 
 Noenum rumores ponebat ante salutem. 
 
 Ergo plusque magisque viri nunc gloria claret. 
 
 sulship, see above. Note the connec- 
 tive et. When the praenomina are 
 expressed the names generally stand 
 without any conjunction. 
 
 legis Cinciae. M. Cincius Ali- 
 mentus, Tribune of the plebs, 204 
 B.C., secured the passage of this law, 
 by which advocates were forbidden 
 to take fees from their clients. It 
 was nominally in force until the time 
 of the Emperor Claudius, though 
 often evaded in various ways. Taci- 
 tus, Ann. XI. 6, thus alludes to it, 
 consurgunt patres legemque Cinciam 
 flagitant, qua cavetur antiquitus, ne 
 quis ob causam orandam pecuniam 
 donumve accipiat, 
 
 Hannibalem. Hannibal was un- 
 doubtedly one of the greatest generals 
 in the world's history. Taught by 
 his father Hamilcar to hate the 
 Romans, he remained until the day 
 of his death their bitterest foe. Had 
 he been loyally supported by his own 
 government, he might have been in- 
 strumental in changing the subse- 
 quent course of history. He will 
 always be noted in military annals 
 for his famous passage of the Alps 
 and his overwhelming victories at 
 Trasumennus and Cannae. For the 
 manner of his death, see on Flami- 
 ninus, p. 46. 
 
 iuveniliter. Hannibal entered 
 Italy, 218 b.c, at the age of twenty- 
 nine, and was recalled to Carthage 
 sixteen years later. 
 
 patientia. This refers to Fabius' 
 "staying" qualities, to his stubborn 
 persistence in one definite plan of 
 tiring out Hannibal. 
 
 Ennius. Ennius, sometimes called 
 "the father of Roman poetry," was 
 born at Rudiae in Calabria, 239 b.c. 
 A¥hile serving as a soldier in Sar- 
 dinia, near the close of the Second 
 Punic War, he won the friendship of 
 Cato, and was taken by him to Rome. 
 Ennius was versed in Latin, Greek, 
 and Oscan, and found opportunity in 
 the busy life of the metropolis to 
 turn his linguistic knowledge to prac- 
 tical account, as teacher and play- 
 wright. For his great work, the 
 Annals, see p. 45. 
 
 tJnus homo. These lines are 
 from the eighth book of the Annales. 
 They are quoted again by Cicero, De 
 Off. I. 24 ; Vergil, Aen. VI. 846, bor- 
 rows the first line, 
 
 Tu Maximus ille es, 
 Unus qui nobis cunctando restituis 
 rem ; 
 
 cf. also Livy, XXX. 26, Sic nihil 
 certius est, quam nnum hominem 
 
56 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 11 Tarentum vero qua vigilantia, quo consilio recepit ! cum 
 quidem me audiente Salinatori^ qui amisso oppido ftigerat 
 in arcem, glorianti atque ita dicent! : ' Mea opera, Q. Fabi, 
 Tarentum recepisti': ^Certe/ inquit ridens, ^nam nisi tu 
 amisisses, numquam recepissem/ Nee vero in armis prae- 
 stantior quam in toga ; qui consul iterum Sp. Carvilio conlega 
 quiescente C. Flaminio tribtino plebis, quoad potuit, restitit 
 
 nobis cunctando rem restituisse, sicut 
 Ennius ait; Ov. Fast. II. 240-2, 
 
 Unus de Fabia gente relictus erat, 
 Scilicet ut posses olim tu, Maxime, 
 nasci, 
 Cui res cunctando restituenda f oret. 
 
 Salinatori. This is M. Livius 
 Salinator, consul in 219 b.c. and 
 father of the Salinator mentioned in 
 III. 7. He was given the nickname 
 Salinator^ because of the salt-tax 
 which he instituted when censor, 204 
 B.C. In his second consulship, in 207 
 B.C., he commanded the Romans in 
 the fierce battle of the Metaurus, 
 which resulted in the defeat and 
 death of the Carthaginian general 
 Hasdrubal, brother of Hannibal. This 
 bloody struggle proved to be, in 
 fact, the turning point in the war, 
 and is now regarded as one of the 
 world's decisive battles. (See 
 Creasy's Fifteen Decisive Battles.) 
 But Cicero is probably in error in con- 
 necting Salinator with the incident 
 here related. We learn from Livy, 
 XXVII. 34, 7, that M. Livius Maca-- 
 tus commanded the garrison at Ta- 
 rentum when the city was treacher- 
 ously delivered to Hannibal, 212 
 B.C. Cicero was very likely misled 
 by the fact that the first two names 
 
 were identical and that the com- 
 mander was called in the records 
 simply Marcus Livius. Macatus held 
 the citadel until the town was re- 
 taken by Fabius. The words Mea 
 opera y etc., were probably uttered 
 during a debate in the senate to de- 
 cide whether the commander should 
 be praised for holding the citadel, or 
 censured for losing the city. The 
 latter was the outcome of the discus- 
 sion. 
 
 Sp. Carvilio. Sp. Carvilius Maxi- 
 mus was consul in 234, and again in 
 228 B.C. 
 
 C. Flaminio tribuno plebis. 
 Flaminius was tribune of the people 
 and secured the passage of this 
 law in 232 b.c, four years be- 
 fore Fabius' second consulship. The 
 easiest way to get over the apparent 
 contradiction is to suppose that 
 Flaminius was appointed a special 
 officer to aid in carrying out the pro- 
 visions of his agrarian law, and that 
 he continued in the performance of 
 these duties until the year 228 b.c 
 Flaminius held the consulship in 220, 
 and again in 217 b.c In the latter 
 year he was defeated and slain at 
 Lake Trasumennus as the result of 
 his own rash folly. Cf. Cic. Brut. 
 14, 57, Dicitur etiam C. Flaminius, 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 67 
 
 agrum Picentem et Gallicum viritim contra senatiis aucto- 
 ritatem dividenti ; augurque cum esset, dicere ausus est 
 optimis auspiciis ea geri, quae pro rei publicae salute gere- 
 rentur; quae contra rem publicam ferrentur, contra auspicia 
 12 ferri. Multa in eo viro praeclara cognovi ; sed nihil admi- 
 rabilius, quam quo modo ille mortem fill tulit, clari viri 
 
 is qui tribunus plebis legem de agro 
 Gallico et Piceno viritim dividundo 
 tulit^ qui consul apud Trasumennum 
 est interfectus, ad populum valuisse 
 dicendo. 
 
 agrum Picentem et Gallicum. 
 The territory included Picenum and 
 a portion of Umbria. The Senonian 
 Gauls had been driven from this 
 region by the Romans. Livy gives 
 this as one reason v^hy the Gallic 
 chiefs would not promise the Roman 
 envoys to prevent Hannibal from 
 marching through Gaul to Italy ; cf . 
 Liv. XXI. 20, 6, Contra ea audire 
 sese, gentis suae homines agro fini- 
 busque Italiae pelli a populo Bomano, 
 
 augur. The public augurs con- 
 sulted the omens and decided v^hether 
 they were favorable or unfavorable. 
 In course of time they acquired 
 almost unlimited power. Every act 
 of the government, including the pas- 
 sage of laws, the election of officers, 
 and the declaration of war, depended 
 upon the auspices. Nothing could be 
 done by the magistrates unless the 
 omens were favorable. With their 
 exclusive right to interpret the lat- 
 ter, the augurs practically ruled the 
 state. The number in the college was 
 nine in Cato's time, but was increased 
 ultimately to sixteen. The members 
 were chosen for life. It is said that 
 
 Fabius held the sacred office sixty- 
 two years. The omens were deter- 
 mined in five ways : by the appear- 
 ance of the heavens ; the singing and 
 flight of birds ; the feeding of the 
 sacred chickens ; from the sudden 
 or unusual appearance of animals (a 
 private omen) ; from various occur- 
 rences, such as accidents, noises, 
 sneezing, stumbling, and the like. 
 
 optimis auspiciis. Cf. Cic. De 
 Leg. III. 3, 8, salus populi suprema 
 lex esto. Gernhard, followed by many 
 editors, compares Hector's words, 
 Hom. II. XII. 243 (Bryant's transla- 
 tion) : — 
 
 Thou dost ask 
 That I be governed by the flight of 
 
 birds. 
 Which I regard not, whether to the 
 
 right 
 And toward the morning and the sun 
 
 they fly. 
 Or toward the left and evening. We 
 
 should heed 
 The will of mighty Jupiter, who bears 
 Rule over gods and men. One augury 
 There is, the surest and the best, — 
 
 to fight 
 For our own land. 
 
 fHi. He bore his father's name, 
 Q. Fabius Maximus, and was consul 
 213 B.C., the year following his 
 father's fourth consulship. 
 
58 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 et consularis. Est in inanibus laudatio, quam cum legimus, 
 quern philosophum non contemnimus ? Nee vero ille in 
 luce modo atque in oculis civium magnus^ sed intus 
 domlque praestantior. Qui sermo, quae praecepta, quanta 
 notitia antiquitatis, scientia itiris auguri! Multae etiam, 
 ut in homine Eomano, litterae ; omnia memoria tenebat non 
 domestica solum, sed etiam externa bella. Cuius sermone 
 ita turn cupide f ruebar, quasi iam divmarem, id quod evenit, 
 illo exstincto fore, unde discerem, neminem. 
 
 V. 
 
 13 Quorsus igitur haec tam multa de Maximo ? Quia prof ecto lo 
 videtis nefas esse dictti miseram fuisse talem senecttitem. 
 Nee tamen omnes possunt esse Sclpiones aut Maximi, ut 
 urbium expugnationes, ut pedestrls navalisve pugnas, ut bella 
 a se gesta, ut triumphos recordentur. Est etiam quiete et 
 pure atque eleganter actae aetatis placida ac lenis senectus, i5 
 qualem accepimus Platonis, qui tino et octogesimo anno 
 
 laudatio. Fabius pronounced the 
 eulogy upon his own son. Funeral 
 orations delivered by near relatives 
 or intimate friends were preserved in 
 the family archives. For the his- 
 torical value of these addresses, see 
 Cic. Brut. 16, 62, his laudationibus 
 historia reriim nostrariim est facta 
 mendosior; and Livy, YIII. 40, 
 Vitiatam memoriam funebribus lau- 
 dibus reor. 
 
 Multae . . . litterae. On the late 
 development of literature at Rome, 
 compare the well-known lines of 
 Horace, Ep. II. 1, 156-163, in which 
 he refers the beginning of Roman 
 
 letters to the years immediately fol- 
 lowing the Second Punic War. 
 
 illo eisstincto. He died in the 
 year 203 b.c. 
 
 Platonis. Plato was born in 
 Athens 429 or 428 b.c. At the age 
 of twenty he became a pupil of Soc- 
 rates. After the latter' s death, he 
 traveled extensively for about ten 
 years, then returned to his native 
 city, and a little later began to give 
 instruction in philosophy to a band of 
 young men who gathered about him 
 in the grove of Academus. Cicero 
 styles him deus philosophorum^ N. D. 
 II. 12, 32. Plato was doubly fort- 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 59 
 
 scribens est mortuus, qualem Tsocratis, qui eum librum, qui 
 Panathenaicus inscribitur, quarto et nonagesimo anno scrip- 
 sisse se dicit vixitque quinquennium postea ; cuius magister 
 Leontinus Gorgias centum et septem complevit annos 
 neque umquam in suo studio atque opere cessavit. Qui, 
 cum ex eo quaereretur, cur tarn diu vellet esse in vita: 
 ^ Nihil habeo/ inquit, ^quod acctisem senecttitem.' Prae- 
 14 clarum responsum et docto homine dignum. Sua enim 
 vitia insipientes et suam culpam in senectutem conf erunt ; 
 quod non faciebat is, cuius modo mentionem feci, Ennius : 
 
 Sicut fortis equus, spatio qui saepe supremo 
 Vicit Olympia, nunc senio confectus quiescit. 
 
 10 
 
 unate in having Socrates for his 
 teacher and Aristotle for his pupil. 
 
 scribens est mortuus. Plato 
 died 347 b.c, while writing. But 
 according to another account, he 
 died at a marriage feast to which he 
 had been bidden as a guest. Nauck 
 recalls the fact that Petrarch and 
 Leibnitz also died with the pen in 
 hand. 
 
 isocratis. Isocrates was a dis- 
 tinguished teacher of rhetoric and 
 oratory, first at Chios, and later in 
 Athens. He was the lifelong friend 
 of Plato and a most devoted admirer 
 of Socrates. Alone of all he dared 
 to appear in mourning after the 
 utterly unpardonable execution of 
 the great philosopher. After the 
 victory of Philip of Macedon in the 
 battle of Chseronea, 338 b.c, Isocrates 
 is said to have been so overcome with 
 grief for the loss of Grecian liberty 
 that he refused all food and died of 
 voluntary starvation. To him, Mil- 
 ton, in his tenth sonnet, refers : — 
 
 Broke him, as that dishonest 
 
 victory 
 At Chaeronea, fatal to liberty. 
 Killed with report that old man 
 
 eloquent. 
 
 Panathenaicus. An address in 
 praise of Athens, written for the 
 great Panathenaic festival, in which 
 the less elaborate annual celebration 
 was merged every fourth year. 
 
 Leontinus Gorgias. Gorgias of 
 Leo7itini, to be distinguished from 
 Gorgias of Athens. He was born 
 about 485 b.c, and lived, Cicero 
 says to 107 years, but the authorities 
 vary between 105 and 108. He was 
 a famous teacher of rhetoric, and 
 numbered Isocrates among his pupils. 
 For his readiness to speak on any 
 theme proposed for discussion, cf. 
 Cic. De Fin. II. 1, Eorum erat iste 
 mos, qui turn sophistae nominahan- 
 tur : quorum e numero primus est 
 ausus Leontinus Gorgias in con- 
 ventu poscere quaestionem^ id est. 
 
60 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 Equi fortis et victoris senectuti comparat suam. Quern 
 quidem probe meminisse potestis ; anno enim undevicesimo 
 post eius mortem hi consules, T. Mamininus et M\ Acilius, 
 f acti sunt ; ille autem Caepione et Philippo iterum consuli- 
 bus mortuus est, cum ego quinque et sexaginta annos natus 5 
 legem Voconiam magna voce et bonis lateribus suasissem. 
 Annos septuaginta natus (tot enim vTxit Ennius) ita fere- 
 bat duo, quae maxima putantur, onera, paupertatem et 
 senecttitem, ut eis paene delectari videretur. 
 15 Etenim, cum complector animo, quattuor reperio causas, lo 
 cur senecttis misera videatur : unam^ quod avocet a rebus 
 gerendis; alteram, quod corpus faciat infirmius; tertiam, 
 quod privet fere omnibus voluptatibus ; quartam, quod baud 
 procul absit a morte. Earum, si placet, causarum quanta 
 quamque sit itista una quaeque, videamus. 15 
 
 VI. 
 
 A rebus gerendis senectus abstrahit. Quibus ? An eis, 
 quae iuventute geruntur et viribus ? Nullaene igitur res 
 sunt seniles, quae vel infirmis corporibus animo tamen 
 administrentur ? Nihil ergo agebat Q. Maximus, nihil 
 
 inhere dicere, qua de re qiiis vellet 
 aitdire. 
 
 T. Flamininus. Probably the son 
 of the Flam minus mentioned in I. 1. 
 
 Caepione et Philippo iterum 
 consulibus. Cn. ServiUus Caepio 
 and Q. Marcius Philippus were con- 
 suls 169 B.C. iterum applies only to 
 Philippus, who had been consul for 
 the first time in the year 186 b.c. 
 
 legem Voconiam. The law was 
 proposed by the tribune Q. Yoconius 
 Saxa, 169 e.g. It provided; 1, That 
 
 no one enrolled as having 100,000 
 sesterces should make a woman his 
 heir. 2, That no one enrolled should 
 give in legacies more than would 
 come to the heir or heirs, i.e, the 
 heir or heirs should receive at least 
 half the estate. The law was de- 
 signed to check the extravagance of 
 women by limiting their means, and 
 also to keep the estate, as far as pos- 
 sible, in the possession of the testa- 
 tor's family. — Smith's Diet. Antiq. 
 vol. II. s. V. Voc. Lex. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 61 
 
 L. Paulus, pater tuus, socer optimi viri, fill mei? Ceteri 
 seiies, Fabricii, Ciirii, Coruncanii, cum rem ptiblicam consilio 
 16 et auctoritate def endebant, nihil agebant ? Ad AppI Claudi 
 senecttitem accedebat etiam, ut caecus esset ; tamen is, cum 
 sententia senattis incliuaret ad pacem cum Pyrrli5 f oedusque 
 faciendum, non dubitavit dicere ilia, quae versibus perse- 
 cutus est Ennius : 
 
 L. Paulus. L. Aemilius Panlus, 
 consul 182 and 168 b.c. and censor 
 164 B.C., received the surname Mace- 
 donicus on account of his victory over 
 Perseus, king of Macedonia, at tlie 
 battle of Pydna, 168 b.c. He was 
 the father of Scipio Africanus Minor. 
 His death occurred 160 b.c, when he 
 was nearly seventy years of age. 
 
 fili. M. Porcius Cato, who died 
 162 B.C., when praetor elect. He 
 married Aemilia, daughter of Paulus. 
 
 Fabricii, Curii, Coruncanii. 
 " Such men as Fabricius, Curius, Co- 
 runcanius." C. Fabricius Luscinus 
 was consul 282, 278, and 273 b.c. and 
 censor 275 b.c. He was prominent 
 in the war against Pyrrhus, 280-275 
 B.C., and won universal respect for 
 his unswerving devotion to duty and 
 his high conception of Roman honor, 
 by refusing the proffered bribes of 
 the king and scorning the promised 
 assistaiice of a traitor who was ready 
 to poison his master Pyrrhus. M'. 
 Curius Dentatus, consul 290, 275, and 
 274, and censor 272 b.c, ended the 
 war with Pyrrhus by his victory over 
 the latter at Ben even tum 275 b.c. 
 Tiberius Coruncanius, consul in 280 
 and Pontifex Maximus in 252 b.c 
 (the first plebeian elected to that 
 office), was especially noted as a 
 
 jurist. He gained fewer military 
 honors than Fabricius or Dentatus, 
 but acquired great fame for his wis- 
 dom and skill in expounding the law. 
 These three distinguished Romans 
 are often referred to by Cicero as 
 types of their class. They possessed 
 those qualities which contributed so 
 materially to the nation's success, 
 simplicity of life, integTity of purpose, 
 and unfaltering patriotism. Cf . Hor. 
 Odes, I. 12, 40-41. 
 
 AppI Claudi. Appius Claudius, 
 surnamed Caecus, the blind, was 
 consul 307 and 296 b.c, but his 
 fame rests principally upon his cen- 
 sorship in 312 B.C., during which he 
 constructed the Appian Way, "the 
 queen of roads," from Rome to 
 Capua, and also built the first aque- 
 duct for the introduction of water to 
 Rome. Pjn^rhus, after his victory 
 at Heraclea, 280 b.c, sent Cineas to 
 Rome to make peace. When the 
 senators seemed inclined to accept 
 his terms, Appius Claudius was car- 
 ried into the senate-house and spoke 
 against the proposed treaty with such 
 power that it was rejected and the 
 war continued. Cicero says of Appius, 
 Tusc. Y. 38, 112, in illo suo casu nee 
 privato, nee publico miineri defuisse. 
 
 Pyrrho. See p. 80. 
 
62 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 Quo vobis mentes^ rectae quae stare solebant 
 Antehac, dementes sese flexere vial ? 
 
 ceteraque gravissime; notum enim vobis carmen est; et 
 tamen ipsius Appi exstat oratio. Atque haec ille egit 
 septimo decimo anno post alterum consulatum, cum inter 5 
 duos consulatus anni decem interfuissent censorque ante 
 superiorem consulatum fuisset ; ex quo intellegitur Pyrrhl 
 bello grandem sane fuisse ; et tamen sic a patribus accepi- 
 lY mus. Nihil igitur adferunt, qui in re gerenda versari senec- 
 ttitem negant, similes que sunt ut si qui gubernatorem in lo 
 navigando nihil agere dicant, cum alii malos scandant, alii 
 per foros cursent, alii sentinam exhauriant, ille autem 
 clavum tenens quietus sedeat in puppi, non faciat ea, quae 
 iuvenes. At vero multo maiora et meliora facit. Non 
 viribus aut velocitate aut celeritate corporum res magnae i5 
 geruntur, sed consilio^ auctoritate, sententia; quibus non 
 
 18 modo non orbari, sed etiam augeri senecttis solet. Nisi 
 forte ego vobis, qui et miles et tribunus et legatus et consul 
 versatus sum in vario genere bellorum, cessare nunc videor, 
 cum bella non gero. At senatui, quae sint gerenda, prae- 20 
 scribo et quo modo; Karthagini male iam diti cogitanti 
 bellum multo ante denuntio ; de qua vereri non ante desi- 
 
 19 nam quam illam excisam esse cognovero. Quam palmam 
 utinam di immortales, Scipio, tibi reservent, ut avi reliquias 
 persequare! cuius a morte tertius hic et tricesimus annus 25 
 
 tribunus. Every legion had six 
 military tribunes. Some were elect- 
 ed by the comitia trihuta, while 
 others were appointed by the com- 
 mander. Young men of wealth and 
 influence often secured these posi- 
 tions, even though utterly lacking in 
 military experience. This was espe- 
 
 cially true near the close of the 
 Republic. 
 
 legatus. The legati were staff- 
 officers and were, as a rule, men of 
 senatorial rank, sometimes even ex- 
 consuls. They were second in 
 authority only to the commander- 
 in-chief. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 63 
 
 est, sed memoriam illms virl omnes excipient annl conse- 
 quentes. Anno ante me censorem mortiius est, novem annis 
 post meum consulatnm, cum consul iterum me consule 
 creatus esset. Num igitur, sT ad centesimum annum vlxis- 
 set, senectutis eum suae paeniteret ? Nee enim excursione 5 
 nee saltti nee eminus hastis aut comminus gladiis titeretur, 
 sed consilio, ratione, sententia ; quae nisi essent in senibus, 
 non summum consilium maiores nostri appellassent sena- 
 20 turn. Apud Lacedaemonios quidem ei, qui amplissimum 
 magistratum gerunt, ut sunt, sic etiam nominantur senes. lo 
 Quod SI legere aut audire Yoletis externa, maximas res 
 publicas ab adulescentibus labefactatas, a senibus susten- 
 tatas et restittitas reperietis. 
 
 Cedo, qui vestram rem publicam tantam amisistis tarn cito ? 
 
 Sic enim percontantibus in Naevi poetae Ludo respondentur i5 
 et alia et hoc in primis : 
 
 Proveniebant oratores novi, stulti adulescentulT. 
 
 SIC etiam . . . senes. The Spar- 
 tan yepovaia, or council of state, con- 
 tained twenty-eight members, all over 
 sixty years of age. They were ap- 
 pointed for life and were presided 
 over by the two kings. The word 
 etiam is added because the Lacedae- 
 monians called the members of their 
 assembly y^povres, old men^ while the 
 Romans used a word of similar deri- 
 vation, senator es^ but not the simple 
 term senes. 
 
 Naevi. Cn. Naevius, a younger 
 contemporary of Rome's first poet 
 Livius Andronicus, was born in Cam- 
 pania, of Latin stock. The exact 
 date of his birth is not known, but 
 
 his literary activity began in 235 b.c. 
 Fragments only of his dramatic com- 
 positions, thirty-four comedies and 
 seven tragedies, now remain. His 
 greatest work was a historic poem on 
 the Punic War, in which he had him- 
 self been a soldier, and was written 
 in the old Saturnian measure. From 
 the few verses which are still extant 
 it is impossible to form a fair estimate 
 of its literary quality. 
 
 novi. "inexperienced." Cf. Byron, 
 Childe Harold, Canto II. 84 : — 
 
 A thousand years scarce serve to form 
 
 a State ^ 
 An hour may lay it in the dust. 
 
64 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 Temeritas est videlicet florentis aetatis, prudentia sene- 
 scentis. 
 
 VII. 
 
 21 At memoria minuitur. Credo, nisi earn exerceas, aut eti- 
 am SI SIS nattira tardior. Themistocles omnium civium peree- 
 perat nomina; num igitur censetis eum, cum aetate processis- 5 
 set, qui Aristides esset, Lysimachum saltitare solitum ? Equi- 
 dem non modo eos noYi, qui sunt, sed eorum patres etiam 
 
 et avos, nee sepulcra legens vereor, quod aiunt, ne memoriam 
 perdam; his enim ipsTs legendis in memoriam redeo mor- 
 tuorum. Nee vero quemquam senem audivi oblitum, quo 10 
 loco thesaurum obruisset ; omnia, quae curant, meminerunt, 
 
 22 vadimonia constittita, quis sibi, cui ipsi debeant. Quid? 
 iuris consult!, quid? pontifices, quid? augures, quid? 
 
 Temeritas . . . senescentis. Cf . 
 
 Bacon's essay, Youth and Age, 
 *' Generally youth is like the first 
 cogitations, not so wise as the sec- 
 ond." 
 
 Themistocles. Themistocles was 
 especially noted for his wonderful 
 memory. That he did not always 
 appreciate this gift may be inferred 
 from Cic. De Fin. II. 32, 104, Themi- 
 stocles quidem, cum ei Simonides, aut 
 quis alius artem memoriae pollicere- 
 tur : ^ Oblivionis,^ inquit, ^mallem; 
 nam memini etiam quae nolo, obli- 
 visci 7ion possum quae volo.'' 
 
 Aristides. Aristides the Just, son 
 of Lysimachus and contemporary of 
 Themistocles, was a celebrated Athe- 
 nian general and statesman. At the 
 instigation of Themistocles, he was 
 banished for a time, but recalled in 
 the sixth year of his exile to assist in 
 
 defending his country against the 
 invading hosts of Xerxes. Before his 
 ostracism he had fought at Marathon ; 
 after his return he took part in the 
 great battles of Salamis and Plataea. 
 By his honesty and fidelity he won 
 the respect of Athens and the neigh- 
 boring Grecian states. After holding 
 the highest positions of trust and 
 honor, he died at an advanced age, 
 leaving no wealth but his good name. 
 iuris consult!. Men who ex- 
 pounded the law and gave advice to 
 those desiring it. Coruncanius (VI. 
 15) was one of the earliest examples 
 of this class. Until the establishment 
 of the Empire, the opinions and writ- 
 ings of the jurisconsults were of a pri- 
 vate nature, without binding force ; 
 but from the time of Augustus cer- 
 tain men were given the right to 
 interpret the statutes, and their opin- 
 
CHAPTER YIL 
 
 65 
 
 pMlosophi series quam multa meminerunt ! Manent ingenia 
 senibus, modo permaneat studium et industria, neque ea 
 solum in claris et honoratis virls, sed in vita etiam privata 
 et quieta. Sophocles ad summam senecttitein tragoedias 
 fecit; quod propter studium cum rem neglegere familia- 5 
 rem videretur, a filiis in iudicium vocatus est, ut, quem ad 
 modum nostro more male rem gerentibus patribus bonis in- 
 terdici solet, sic ilium quasi desipientem a re familiar! remo- 
 verent indices. Tum senex dicitur eam fabulam, quam in 
 manibus habebat et proxime scripserat, Oedipum Coloneum, lo 
 recitasse itidicibus quaesisseque num illud carmen desipientis 
 videretur. Quo recitato sententiis iudicum est llberatus. 
 23 Num igitur hunc, num Homerum, Hesiodum, Simonidem, 
 
 ions had the authority of law. The 
 Digest of Justinian's code was made 
 up of extracts from the writings of 
 eminent jurisconsults. 
 
 Sophocles. Sophocles was born 
 at Colonus, near Athens, 495 b.c. 
 He was well endowed by nature and 
 received the best training afforded by 
 the schools of Athens. To intellec- 
 tual powers of a high order he added 
 the charms of a beautiful person and 
 a genial disposition. At the age of 
 20 he won the prize in tragic verse 
 over the renowned Aeschylus, who 
 was thirty years his senior, and from 
 that time continued to be a success- 
 ful competitor in the great literary 
 contests of Greece, winning twenty 
 first prizes and a still greater number 
 of second. His death occurred 405 b.c. 
 Of his numerous works, only seven 
 tragedies have come down to us. 
 
 Oedipum Coloneum. Oedipus 
 at Colonus. Banished from Thebes, 
 
 Oedipus wandered to the grove of the 
 Furies at Colonus and there disap- 
 peared from mortal view. Eor the 
 story, see Class. Diet. s. v. Oedipus. 
 It is now believed that the play was 
 written by Sophocles many years be- 
 fore and was only revised and enlarged 
 at this time. 
 
 Hesiodum. Hesiod, commonly 
 assigned to the ninth century b.c, is 
 second only to Homer in point of 
 antiquity. Three works now pass 
 under his name : Works and Days, 
 the Theogony, and the Shield of 
 Hercules. 
 
 Simonidem. A lyric poet, who 
 was born in Ceos, 556 b.c, and died 
 at Syracuse, 469 b.c His most famous 
 composition is the epitaph on the 
 Spartans who fell at Thermopylae. 
 Cicero, Tusc. I. 42, 101, gives this 
 version of it : — 
 Die, hospes, Spartae nos te hie vidisse 
 
 iacentes 
 
 DE SENEC. - 
 
66 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 Stesicliorum, num^ quos ante dixi, Isocraten, Gorgian, num 
 philosophorum prmcipes, Pythagoram, Democritum, num 
 Platonem, mini Xenocraten, num postea Zenonem, Clean- 
 them aut eum, quern vos etiam vidistis Eomae, Diogenem 
 Stoicum, coegit in suis studiis obmtitescere senectus ? An 
 24 in omnibus studiorum agitatio vltae aequalis f uit ? Age, ut 
 
 Dum Sanctis patriae legibus obsequi- 
 niur. 
 
 Stesichorum. Stesichorus, a lyric 
 poet of Himera in Sicily, 630-550 b.c. 
 
 Pythagoram. Pythagoras of Sa- 
 mos settled at Crotpna in Italy about 
 529 B.C. and founded what is known 
 as the Italic school of philosophy. 
 He established a sort of religious 
 brotherhood with strict rules of liv- 
 ing, and taught the immortality and 
 the transmigration of souls. The 
 exact date of his death, like that of 
 his birth, is unknown. 
 
 Democritum. Democritus of Ab- 
 dera in Tlirace was born about 460 b.c. 
 and is said to have reached the age 
 of 104. He was the principal ex- 
 pounder of the atomic theory, which 
 was originated by his friend Leucip- 
 pus. He is known as the ''laughing 
 philosopher." Mayor calls him the 
 last of the " pre-Socratic dogmatists." 
 
 Xenocraten. Xenocrates, who 
 lived from about 396 to 314 b.c, was 
 a pupil of Plato and became, after 
 Speusippus, the leader of the Aca- 
 demic school. 
 
 Zenonem. Zeno of Citium in Cy- 
 prus, founder of the Stoic school, 
 began to teach in Athens, in the 
 painted porch, about 308 b.c. He 
 was probably about 50 years old at 
 
 that time, and is said to have been 
 98 at his death. 
 
 Cleanthem. Cleanthes was the 
 pupil of Zeno and then his successor 
 as the head of the Stoic school. The 
 accounts of his age vary, but indicate 
 that he lived to be 80 or over. 
 
 Diogenem Stoicum. Diogenes 
 of Babylonia, called the Stoic to dis- 
 tinguish him from the famous Cynic 
 of the same name, came to Rome, 
 155 B.C., with Carneades the Aca- 
 demic and Critolaus the Peripatetic, 
 to ask the remission of a fine imposed 
 upon the Greeks for plundering the 
 city of Oropus after the war with 
 Perseus. Cato violently opposed 
 these men. On the inconsistency 
 here involved, see on eruditius, p. 115. 
 
 Vltae aequalis fuit. Cf. with this 
 Longfellow's Morituri Salutamus : — 
 
 But why, you ask me, should this 
 tale be told 
 
 To men grown old, or who are grow- 
 ing old ? 
 
 It is too late ! Ah, nothing is too 
 late 
 
 Till the tired heart shall cease to 
 palpitate. 
 
 Cato learned Greek at eighty; Sopho- 
 cles 
 
 Wrote his grand Oedipus, and Si- 
 monides 
 
CHAPTER YIT. 
 
 67 
 
 ista divina studia omittamiis, possum nominare ex agro 
 Sablno rtisticos Eomanos, vicinos et familiares meos, quibus 
 absentibus numquam fere ulla in agro maiora opera fiimt, 
 non serendis, non percipiendis, non condendis fructibus. 
 Quamquam in aliis minus hoc mirum est; nemo enim est 5 
 tarn senex, qui se annum non putet posse vivere ; sed idem 
 in els elaborant^ quae sciunt nihil ad se omnino pertinere : 
 
 Serit arbores, quae alterl saeclo prosint, 
 
 25 ut ait Statins noster in Synephebis. Nee vero dubitat 
 agricola, quamvis sit senex, quaerenti, cui serat, respon- lo 
 
 Bore off the prize of verse from his 
 
 compeers, 
 When each had numbered more 
 
 than four score years, 
 And Theophrastus, at four score 
 
 and ten, 
 Had but begun his Characters of 
 
 Men. 
 Chaucer, at Woodstock with the 
 
 nightingales, 
 At sixty wrote the Canterbury 
 
 Tales ; 
 Goethe at Weimar, toiling to the 
 
 last, 
 Completed Faust when eighty years 
 
 were past. 
 These are indeed exceptions ; but 
 
 they show 
 How far the gulf-stream of our 
 
 youth may flow 
 Into the arctic regions of our lives, 
 Where little else than life itself sur- 
 vives. 
 
 Read Emerson's essay on Old Age, 
 in which he says: "And if the life 
 be true and noble, we have quite an- 
 other sort of seniors than the frowzy, 
 
 timorous, peevish dotards who are 
 falsely old — namely, the men who 
 fear no city, but by whom cities 
 stand ; ... as blind old Dandolo, 
 elected Doge at 84 years, storming 
 Constantinople at 94, and after the 
 revolt, again victorious, and elected 
 at the age of 96 to the throne of the 
 Eastern Empire, which he declined, 
 and died Doge at 97." 
 
 Statius noster. "Our fellow- 
 countryman Statins." Caecilius Sta- 
 tius was an Insubrian Gaul. The 
 exact date of his birth and death can- 
 not be determined. He was, how- 
 ever, a contemporary of Ennius, and 
 was brought to Rome 222 e.g. by 
 Marcellus, the conqueror of the In- 
 subrians. Through the generosity 
 of his master he received both his 
 freedom and a liberal education, and 
 became the successor of Plautus as a 
 writer of comedies. Like the other 
 authors of his time, he followed Greek 
 models pretty closely. Only frag- 
 ments of his works now remain. 
 
 Synephebis. Based upon Me- 
 nander's livvecprj^oi, "The Young 
 
68 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 dere : ^ Dis immortalibuSj qui me non accipere modo haec 
 a maioribus voluerunt, sed etiam posteris prodere.' 
 
 VIII. 
 
 . Et melius Caecilius de sene alter! saeclo prospiciente 
 quam illud Idem : 
 
 Edepol, senecttis, si nil quicquam aliud viti 
 Adportes tecum, cum advenis, tinum id sat est, 
 Quod diti vivendo multa, quae non volt, videt. 
 
 Et multa fortasse, quae volt ! atque in ea, quae non volt, 
 saepe etiam adulescentia incurrit. Illud vero Idem Cae- 
 cilius vitiosius : 
 
 10 
 
 Tum equidem in senecta hoc deputo miserrimum, 
 Sentire ea aetate eumpse esse odiosum alteri. 
 
 26 Iticundum potius quam odiosum. Ut enim adulescentibus 
 bona indole praeditis sapientes senes delectantur leviorque 
 fit senecttis eorum, qui a iuventute coluntur et dlliguntur, 15 
 sic adulescentes senum praeceptis gaudent, quibus ad vir- 
 tutum studia dticuntur ; nee minus intellego ine vobis quam 
 mihi vos esse iucundos. Sed videtis, ut senecttis non modo 
 languida atque iners non sit, verum etiam sit operosa et 
 semper agens aliquid et moliens, tale scilicet, quale cuius- 20 
 que studium in superiore vita fuit. Quid ? qui etiam addi- 
 scunt aliquid? ut et Solonem versibus gloriantem videmus. 
 
 Friends." Statins borrowed very 
 freely from Menander (342-291 b.c), 
 the leading writer of the New Com- 
 edy. 
 
 Edepol . . . videt. See Supple- 
 mentary Notes, VIII. 26. 
 
 Sol5nem. Solon, the famous law- 
 
 giver of Athens and one of the seven 
 wise men of Greece, flourished about 
 600 B.C. Some authorities give his age 
 as 100; others put it at 80. 
 
 versibus. Given by Plutarch in 
 his life of Solon, yripda-Koj 5' aid iroWd 
 
 8L5a(TK6fJL€VOS. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 69 
 
 qui se cotidie aliquid addiscentem dicit senem fieri, et ego 
 feci; qui litteras Graecas senex didici; quas quidem sTc 
 avide arripui quasi diuturnam sitim explere cupiens, ut ea 
 ipsa mihi nota essent, quibus me nunc exemplis titi videtis. 
 Quod cum fecisse Socratem in fidibus audirem, vellem 5 
 equidem etiam illud (discebant enim fidibus antiqui), sed 
 in litteris certe elaboravi. 
 
 IX. 
 
 27 ISTec nunc quidem vires desidero adulescentis (is enim 
 erat locus alter de vitiis senecttltis), non plus, quam adule- 
 scens tauri aut elephant! desiderabam. Quod est, eo decet lo 
 uti et, quicquid agas, agere pro viribus. Quae enim vox 
 potest esse contemptior quam Milonis Crotoniatae ? qui 
 
 litteras Graecas. '' Greek litera- 
 ture." Cf. Quint. XII. li, 23; M. 
 igitur Cato idem siimmus imperator^ 
 idem sapiens^ idem orator^ idem hi- 
 storiae conditor, idem iuris, idem 
 rerum rusticarum 'peritissimus fiiit ; 
 inter tot operas militiae, tantas domi 
 contentiones^ rudi saeculo^ litteras 
 Graecas aetate iam declinata didicit, 
 ut esset hominihus documentor ea 
 quoque peroipi posse^ quae senes con- 
 cupissent. 
 
 Socratem. After receiving the 
 usual training given the Athenian 
 youth of that period, Socrates 
 followed the occupation of his father 
 Sophroniscus as a sculptor. He held 
 certain civil offices and served with 
 distinction as a soldier, giving evi- 
 dence of great courage and wonder- 
 ful powers of endurance. With an 
 experience thus varied he turned his 
 attention in middle life to philosophy, 
 and from that time sought to teach 
 
 men in his own peculiar manner the 
 true philosophy of life. Ridiculed 
 and maligned for his new doctrines, 
 he was at last brought to trial on a 
 charge of impiety and condemned by 
 an unrighteous judgment to drink the 
 fatal hemlock. For Socrates' influ- 
 ence on Greek philosophy, see Intro- 
 duction, p. 18 ; for a full account of 
 his life, see Smith's Dictionary of 
 Biographij. 
 
 Milonis. Milo, a pupil of Pythag- 
 oras and a celebrated athlete, flour- 
 ished in the last quarter of the sixth 
 century b.c. He won the victor's 
 crown seven times at the Pythian 
 games and six at the Olympic. For 
 an account of his exploits and his 
 marvelous appetite, see Class. Diet. 
 Gellius, XV. 16, relates the story of 
 his tragic death in the forest, after 
 attempting in vain to tear apart an 
 oak log that had been partly cleft by 
 wedges. 
 
70 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 ciim iam senex esset athletasque se exercentis in curriculo 
 videret, aspexisse lacertos suos dicitur inlacrimansque 
 dixisse ' At hi quidem mortul iam sunt.' Non vero tarn 
 isti quam tti ipse, nugator! neque enim ex te umquam 
 es nobilitatus, sed ex lateribus et lacertis tuis. Nihil Sex. 5 
 Aelius tale, nihil multis annis ante Ti. Coruncanius, nihil 
 modo P. Crassus, a quibus itira civibus praescrlbebantur ; 
 quorum usque ad extremum splritum est provecta prti- 
 
 28 dentia. Orator metuo ne languescat senectute; est enim 
 mtinus eius non ingeni solum, sed laterum etiam et virium. lo 
 Omnino canorum illud in voce splendescit etiam nescio 
 quo pacto in senectute, quod equidem adhtic non amisi, et 
 videtis annos. Sed tamen est decorus sen! sermo quietus 
 
 et remissus, facitque per se ipsa sibi audientiam diserti 
 senis composita et mitis oratio. Quam si ipse exsequT i5 
 nequeas, possTs tamen ScipionT praecipere et Laelio. Quid 
 enim est iticundius senectute stipata studiis iuventtitis ? 
 
 29 An ne illas quidem vires senectuti relinquemus, ut adule- 
 scentis doceat, Tnstituat, ad omne offici mtinus mstruat ? 
 qu5 quidem opere quid potest esse praeclarius ? Mihi vero 20 
 et On, et P. Scipiones et avi tui duo, L. Aemilius et P. 
 
 Sex. Aelius. Sex. Aelius Paetus, 
 consul 198 and censor 194 b.c, was 
 one of the most distinguished of the 
 early jurists. He wrote a commen- 
 tary upon the XII. Tables. Cicero, 
 Brut. 78, thus speaks of him, Sex. 
 Aelius., iiiris quidem civilis omnium 
 peritissimus, sed etiam ad dicendum 
 paratus. 
 
 P. Crassus. P. Licinius Crassus, 
 consul 205 b.c, was noted for his 
 great legal attainments, on account of 
 which he was chosen Pontifex Maxi- 
 mus. He also held the offices of 
 
 praetor and censor, and served in 
 the war against Hannibal. As he 
 died in 183 b.c, thirty-three years 
 before the supposed date of this dia- 
 logue, modo must be understood in 
 a relative sense, *'in later times," as 
 opposed to multis annis ante. 
 
 Cn. et P. Scipiones. Cn. Cor- 
 nelius Scipio, uncle of Africanus 
 Maior, was consul in 222 b.c; P. 
 Cornelius Scipio, father of Africanus, 
 was consul 218 b.c and commanded 
 the Komans in the battle of the Tici- 
 nus. The two brothers served several 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 71 
 
 Africanus, comitatti nobilium iuvenum fortunati videban- 
 tur, nee uUi bonarum artium magistri non beat! putandi, 
 quamvis eonsenuerint vires atque defecerint. EtsI ipsa 
 ista defectio virium adulescentiae vitiis efficitur saepius 
 quam seDecttitis ; libidinosa enim et intemperans adule- 5 
 30 scentia effetum eorpus tradit senecttiti. Cyrus quidem 
 apud Xenophontem eo sermone^ quern moriens habuit, cum 
 admodum senex esset^ negat se umquam sensisse senectti- 
 tem suam imbecilliorem factam, quam adulescentia fuisset. 
 Ego L. Metellum memini puer, qui cum quadriennio post lo 
 
 years in Spain, but were ultimately 
 defeated and slain by Hasdrubal, 212 
 
 B.C. 
 
 avi tui duo. L. Aemilius was his 
 real grandfather, and P. Africanus his 
 grandfather by adoption. 
 
 L. Aemilius. Consul 219 and 216 
 B.C.; fell in the battle of Cannae. 
 
 P. Africanus. P. Cornelius Scipio 
 Africanus Maior, the conqueror of 
 Hannibal at Zama, 202 b.c. 
 
 Etsi . . . senectutis. With the 
 sentiment of this and the following 
 sentence compare Shakespeare, As 
 You Like It^ Act II. sc. 3 : — 
 
 Though I look old, yet am I 
 strong and lusty ; 
 
 For in my youth I never did 
 apply 
 
 Hot and rebellious liquors in my 
 blood ; 
 
 Nor did not with unbashful fore- 
 head woo 
 
 The means of weakness and de- 
 bility ; 
 
 Therefore my age is as a lusty 
 winter, 
 
 Frosty, but kindly. 
 
 Also cf. Taylor's Holy Living , II. sec. 
 2 : ** And Antipater, by his reproach of 
 the old glutton Demades, well ex- 
 pressed the baseness of his sin, saying 
 that Demades, now old, and always 
 a glutton, was like a spent sacrifice, 
 nothing left of him but his belly and 
 his tongue ; all the man besides is 
 gone." 
 
 Cyrus : Cyrus the Elder, founder 
 of the Persian Empire, captured Bab- 
 ylon 538 B.C. and released the Jews 
 from captivity. 
 
 apud Xenophontem. In the Cy- 
 ropaedia, VIII. 7, 6, a philosophical 
 romance on the education of Cyrus. 
 Xenophon, pupil of Socrates, and 
 historical writer, is best known as 
 the leader of the Greeks in the 
 famous retreat of the Ten Thousand. 
 
 L. Metellum. L. Caecilius Metel- 
 lus, consul 251 and 247 b.c. In his 
 first consulship he defeated the Car- 
 thaginians at Panormus. He was 
 made Pontifex Maximus 243 b.c, and 
 two years later rescued the Palladium 
 from the burning temple of Vesta, in 
 honor of which service his statue was 
 placed on the Capitol, 
 
72 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 alterum consulatum pontifex maximus factus esset, vTginti 
 et duos annos el sacerdotio praefuit, ita bonis esse viribus 
 extremo tempore aetatis, ut adiilescentiam non requireret. 
 Nihil necesse est mihi de me ipso dicere, quamquam est 
 id quidem senile aetatique nostrae conceditur. 5 
 
 X. 
 
 31 Videtisne, ut apud Homerum saepissime Nestor de virtu- 
 tibus suis praedicet ? Tertiam iam enim aetatem liominum 
 videbat, nee erat ei verendum, ne vera praedicans de se 
 nimis videretur aut insolens aut loquax. Etenim, ut ait 
 Homerus^ ' ex eius lingua melle dulcior fluebat oratio/ quam 10 
 ad suavitatem ntillis egebat corporis viribus. Et tamen 
 dux ille Graeciae nusquam optat, ut Aiacis simills habeat 
 decem, sed ut Nestoris ; quod si sibi acciderit, non dubitat, 
 
 32 quin brevi sit Troia perittira. Sed redeo ad me. Quartum 
 ago annum et octogesimum ; vellem equidem idem possem is 
 
 apud Homerum. II. I. 260 ; YII. 
 
 124 ff. ; XL 668 ff. 
 
 Nestor. Son of Neleus and king 
 of Pylos, famous among the Grecian 
 heroes at Troy for his wisdom and 
 eloquence. 
 
 ut ait Homerus. Cf. II. I. 316- 
 322, Bryant's translation : — 
 
 But now uprose 
 Nestor, the master of persuasive 
 
 speech. 
 The clear- toned Pylian orator, whose 
 
 tongue 
 Dropped words more sweet than 
 
 honey. He had seen 
 Two generations that grew up and 
 
 lived 
 With him on sacred Pylos pass 
 
 away, 
 
 And now he ruled the third. With 
 
 prudent words 
 He thus addressed the assembly of 
 
 the chiefs. 
 
 Aiacis . . . deoem. Cf. II. II. 
 
 371-4, Pope's translation : — 
 
 Oh ! would the gods, in love to 
 
 Greece, decree 
 But ten such sages as they grant in 
 
 thee! 
 Such wisdom soon should Priam's 
 
 force destroy ; 
 And soon should fall the haughty 
 
 towers of Troy. 
 
 Ajax, son of Telamon, king of Sala- 
 mis, was second only to Achilles 
 among the Greeks in strength and 
 valor. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 73 
 
 gloriari, quod Cyras, sed tamen hoc queo dicere, non me 
 quidem els esse viribus, quibus aut miles bello Punico aut 
 quaestor eodem bello aut consul in Hispania fuerim aut 
 quadriennio post, cum tribtinus mllitaris depugnavi apud 
 Thermopylas M'. Grlabrione consule; sed tamen, ut vos 5 
 videtis, non plane me enervavit, non adflixit senecttis, non 
 curia vires meas desiderat, non rostra, non amici, non clien- 
 tes, non hospites. Nee enim umquam sum adsensus veteri 
 ill! laudatoque proverbio, quod monet ' mature fieri senem, 
 si diu veils senex esse.' Ego vero me minus diu senem esse lo 
 mallem quam esse senem, ante quam essem. Itaque nemo 
 adhuc convenire me voluit, cui fuerim occupatus. At 
 33 minus habeo vTrium quam vestrum utervis. Ne vos quidem 
 T. Ponti centurionis vires habetis ; num idcirco est ille 
 
 consul in Hispania. In 195 b.c. 
 Thermopylas . . . consule. M'. 
 
 Acilius Glabrio, consul 191 b.c, gained 
 a signal victory over Antiochus, king 
 of Syria, on the famous battle ground 
 of Thermopylae in Greece. Cato 
 contributed very largely to the suc- 
 cess of the Romans by forcing his 
 way over the mountains and attack- 
 ing the enemy in the rear. He V7as 
 publicly thanked by the consul, and 
 sent to Rome with news of the vic- 
 tory. See LiddelPs Hist, of Bome, 
 pp. 435, 436. 
 
 curia . . . rostra. Put by me- 
 tonymy for the senate and people. 
 rostra (plural of rostrum) was the 
 name given to the platform in the 
 Forum from which speakers addressed 
 the people. It was so called from 
 the ships' beaks, taken from the An- 
 tiates in the Latin War, 338 e.g., with 
 which it was adorned. Cicero, Bimt. 
 
 20, 80, says that Cato addressed the 
 people the last year of his life, qui 
 (Cato) annos quinque et octoginta 
 natus excessit e vita^ cum quidem eo 
 ipso anno contra Ser, Galham ad 
 populum summa contentione dixisset^ 
 quam etiam orationem scriptam reli- 
 quit. 
 
 clientes. It was the custom for 
 plebeians to ally themselves to power- 
 ful patricians. The client remained 
 free, but received protection and as- 
 sistance from his patronus, and in 
 return followed and defended him in 
 war. The Lusitanians chose Cato as 
 their patron, and it was in their be- 
 half that he delivered the oration 
 against the pro-praetor Ser. Galba. 
 
 T. Ponti centurionis. Probably 
 some centurion famous for his 
 strength. The men who held this 
 office were usually chosen on account 
 of their size and strength. 
 
74 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SEXECTUTE. 
 
 praestantior ? Moderatio modo virium adsit^ et tantum, 
 quantum potest quisque nitatur, ne ille non magno desiderio 
 tenebitur virium. Olympiae per stadium ingressus esse 
 Milo dicitur, cum umerls sustineret bovem. Utrum igitur 
 has corporis an Pythagorae tibi malls vires ingeni dari ? 5 
 Denique isto bono titare, dum adsit^ cum absit, ne requiras, 
 nisi forte adulescentes pueritiam, paululum aetate pro- 
 gress! adulescentiam debent requirere. Cursus est certus 
 aetatis et una via naturae, eaque simplex, suaque cuique 
 parti aetatis tempestivitas est data, ut et mfirmitas puero- lo 
 rum et ferocitas iuvenum et gravitas iam constantis aetatis 
 et senectutis maturitas nattirale quiddam habeat, quod suo 
 34 tempore percipi debeat. Audire te arbitror, Sclpio, hospes 
 tuus avitus Masinissa quae faciat hodie nonaginta natus 
 annos ; cum ingressus iter pedibus sit, in equum omnino is 
 non ascendere ; cum autem equo, ex equo non descendere ; 
 ntillo imbri, ntillo frigore addtici, ut capite operto sit, sum- 
 mam esse in eo siccitatem corporis, itaque omnia exsequi 
 regis officia et munera. Potest igitur exercitatio et tempe- 
 rantia etiam in senectute conservare aliquid pristini roboris. 20 
 
 Olympiae. Olympia was a dis- 
 trict in Ells in Peloponnesus, where 
 the Olympian games were held. 
 
 Masinissa. Masinissa, kuig of 
 Numidia, was the guest-friend of 
 Scipio's adoptive grandfather, Sclpio 
 Africanus Maior. At the outbreak of 
 the Second Punic War, the Numidian 
 prince, who was then quite young, 
 prevailed upon his father. Gala, to 
 take up arms against the Romans. 
 He fought with success in Spain, and 
 aided in the overthrow of Gnaeus 
 and Publius Sclpio, 212 b.c. But a 
 few years later, he deserted the Car- 
 
 thaginians, formed an alliance with 
 Scipio, and urged him to invade 
 Africa. The victory of the Romans 
 at Zama was made more certain 
 by the valor of Masinissa and his 
 wild cavalry, and in return for the 
 valuable services which he rendered, 
 he was securely established upon 
 the throne of Numidia, reigning 
 over the entire country from Mauri- 
 tania to Gyrene. From that time 
 Masinissa remained the foe of Car- 
 thage, but he did not live to see its 
 downfall, as he died 148 b.c, at the 
 age of 90. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 75 
 
 XI. 
 
 Non sunt in senecttite vires. Ne postulantur quidem 
 vires a senectute. Ergo et legibus et Instittitis vacat aetas 
 nostra intineribus eis^ quae non possunt sine viribus susti- 
 nerl. Itaque non modo, quod non possumus, sed ne quan- 
 
 35 turn possumus quidem cogimur. At multl ita sunt inbe- 5 
 cilli senes, ut nullum offici aut omnlno vitae mtinus exsequi 
 possint. At id quidem non proprium senecttitis vitium est, 
 sed commune valetudinis. Quam fuit inbecillus P. African! 
 fllius, is qui te adoptavit, quam tenui aut nulla potius 
 valettidine ! Quod ni ita fuisset, alterum illud exstitisset lo 
 lumen civitatis ; ad paternam enim magnitudinem animi 
 doctrina tiberior accesserat. Quid mirum igitur in senibus, 
 
 SI Tnfirmi sint aliquando, cum id ne adulescentes quidem 
 effugere possint ? Eesistendum, Laeli et Scipio, senecttiti 
 est, eiusque vitia diligentia compensanda sunt ; pugnandum is 
 
 36 tamquam contra morbum sic contra senectutem, habenda 
 ratio valetudinis, utendum exercitationibus modicis, tantum 
 cibi et potionis adbibendum, ut reficiantur vires, non oppri- 
 mantur. Nee vero corpori solum subveniendum est, sed 
 menti atque animo multo magis; nam haec quoque, nisi 20 
 tamquam Itimini oleum instilles, exstinguuntur senectute. 
 Et corpora quidem exercitationum defatigatione ingrave- 
 
 muneribus eis. Under the Re- 
 public, the legal period during which 
 Roman citizens were under obliga- 
 tion to serve in the army was between 
 the ages of 17 and 46. In cases of 
 great emergency, however, they might 
 be called out for military service when 
 still older. See Smith's Dictionary of 
 Antiquities^ s.v. Exercitus. 
 
 filius. He bore his father's name, 
 Publius Cornelius Scipio. Cf. Cic. De 
 Off, I. 33 ; also Brut. 19, 77, filius 
 quidem eius, is qui hunc minorem 
 Scipionem a Paulo adoptavit^ si cor- 
 pore valuisset^ in primis habitus esset 
 disertus ; indicant cum oratiunculae 
 tum historia quaedam Graeca scripta 
 dulcissime. 
 
76 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 scunt, animi autem exercendo levantur. Nam quos ait 
 Caecilius ^comicos stultos senes/ hos slgnificat credulos, 
 obllviosos, dissoltitos, quae vitia sunt non senectutis, sed 
 inertis, ignavae, somnlculosae senectutis. Ut petulantia, 
 ut libido magis est adulescentium quam senum, nee tamen 5 
 omnium adulescentium, sed non proborum, sic ista senilis 
 stultitia, quae deliratio appellari solet, senum levium est, 
 
 37 non omnium. Quattuor robustos filios, quinque filias, 
 tantam domum, tantas clientelas Appius regebat et caecus 
 
 et senex ; intentum enim animum tamquam arcum habebat lo 
 nee languescens succumbebat senectuti. Tenebat non modo 
 auctoritatem, sed etiam imperium in suos : metuebant servi, 
 verebantur liberl, carum omnes habebant; vigebat in ilia 
 
 38 domo mos patrius et disciplina, Ita enim senecttis honesta 
 est, SI se ipsa defendit, si ius suum retinet, si nemini i5 
 emancipata est, si usque ad tiltimum spiritum dominatur 
 in suos. Ut enim adulescentem in quo est senile aliquid, 
 sic senem in quo est aliquid adulescentis probo ; quod qui 
 sequitur, corpore senex esse poterit, animo numquam erit. 
 Septimus mihi liber Orlginum est in manibus ; omnia 20 
 
 regebat. The power of the house- 
 hold father was largely due to his 
 priestly character. He inherited from 
 his predecessor the supervision of the 
 ancestral worship, and was amenable 
 only to the gods for the character 
 of his domestic government. The 
 father's power extended over all the 
 persons and property of the patri- 
 archal family. — Morey's Boman 
 Law, p. 5. But the authority of the 
 father, though at first unlimited, was 
 afterwards restricted, from time to 
 time, both by law and custom, until, 
 under the Empire, it finally lost 
 
 most of its harsh and arbitrary feat- 
 ures. 
 
 Originum. The first book covered 
 the period of the kings ; the second 
 and third gave the origin and early his- 
 tory of the Italian states ; the fourth 
 and fifth contained the history of the 
 First and Second Punic Wars; the 
 sixth and seventh books brought the 
 history down to the last year of Cato's 
 life. The name of the entire work, 
 Origines, is probably due to the 
 character of the second and third 
 books. For its historical value, see 
 Introduction, p. 35. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 7T 
 
 antiquitatis monumenta colligo ; caiisarum inlustrium, 
 quascumque defend!, nunc cum maxime conficio orationes ; 
 itis augurium, pontificium, civile tracto; multum etiam 
 Graecis litterTs titor Pythagoreorumque more exercendae 
 memoriae gratia, quid quoque die dixerim, audierim, ege- 5 
 rim, commemoro vesperl. Hae sunt exercitationes ingeni, 
 haec curricula mentis, in his desudans atque elaborans 
 corporis vires non magno opere desidero. Adsum amicis, 
 venio in senatum frequens ultroque adfero res multum 
 et diu cogitatas casque tueor animi, non corporis viribus. lo 
 Quas si exsequi nequirem, tamen me lectulus mens oblec- 
 taret ea ipsa cogitantem, quae iam agere non possem ; sed 
 ut possim, facit acta vita. Semper enim in his studiis 
 laboribusque vlventi non intellegitur quando obrepat se- 
 nectus. Ita sensim sine sensu aetas senescit nee subito is 
 frangitur, sed diuturnitate exstinguitur. 
 
 orationes. For Cicero's opmion 
 of Cato as an orator, see Brut. 17, 
 65, Quis illo gravior in laudandof 
 acerhiorin vituperandof in sententiis 
 argutiorf in docendo edisserendoque 
 suhtiliorf Befertae sunt orationes 
 amplius centum quinquaginta^ quas 
 quidem adhuc invenerim, et legerim, 
 et verbis et rebus inlustribus. Omnes 
 oratoriae virtutes in eis reperientur. 
 For Cato's famous definition of an 
 orator, see Quint. XII. I. 1, Sit ergo 
 nobis orator, quern constituimus, is, 
 qui a M. Catone finitur, ' vir bonus 
 dicendi peritus ' ; verum, id quod 
 et ille posuit prius, et ipsa natura 
 potius ac maius est, utique ^vir 
 bonus.'' 
 
 Graecis litteris. See note on , 
 p. 48. 
 
 acta vita. '* Past life." Cf. Bry- 
 ant's beautiful poem The Old 3fan^s 
 Counsel : — 
 
 Wisely, my son, while yet thy days 
 
 are long. 
 And this fair change of seasons 
 
 passes slow, 
 Gather and treasure up the good 
 
 they yield — 
 All that they teach of virtue, of 
 
 pure thoughts 
 And kind affections, reverence for 
 
 thy God 
 And for thy brethren ; so when 
 
 thou shalt come 
 Into these barren years, thou may'st 
 
 not bring 
 A mind unfurnished and a withered 
 
 heart. 
 
78 
 
 CATO MAJOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 XII. 
 
 39 Sequitar tertia vituperatio senecttitis, quod earn carere 
 dicunt voluptatibus. praeclarum munus aetatis, siqni- 
 dem id aufert a nobis, quod est in adulescentia vitio- 
 sissimuni ! Accipite enim, optimi adulescentes, veterem 
 orationein Archytae Tarentini, magni in primis et praeclari 5 
 viri, quae mihi tradita est, cum essem adulescens TarentI 
 cum Q. Maximo. XuUam capitaliorem pest em quam volup- 
 tatem corporis hominibus dicebat a natura datam, cuius 
 voluptatis avidae libidines temere et ecfrenate ad potien- 
 
 40 dum incitarentur. Hinc patriae proditiones, hinc rerum lo 
 publicarum eversiones, hinc cum bostibus clandestina coUo- 
 quia nasci; nullum denique scelus, nullum malum f acinus 
 esse, ad quod suscipiendum non libido voluptatis impelle- 
 ret ; stupra vero et adulteria et omne tale flagitium nuUis 
 excitari aliis inlecebris nisi voluptatis ; cumque homini 15 
 sive natura sive quis deus nihil mente praestabilius dedis- 
 set, huic divino mtineri ac dono nihil tam esse inimicum 
 
 41 quam voluptatem; nee enim libldine dominante temperan- 
 tiae locum esse, neque omnino in voluptatis regno virtutem 
 posse consistere. Quod quo magis intellegi posset, fingere 20 
 animo iubebat tanta incitatum aliquem voluptate corpo- 
 ris, quanta percipi posset maxima; nemini censebat fore 
 dubium, quin tam diti, dum ita gauderet, nihil agitare 
 
 Archytae Tarentinl. Archytas, a 
 distinguished soldier and statesman 
 of Tarentum, flourished about 400 
 B.C. He was a follower of Pythago- 
 ras, a friend of Plato, and eminent 
 for his attainments in mathematics, 
 astronomy, and philosophy. Horace 
 refers to him. Odes, I. 28. 
 
 libldine . . . temperantiae . . . 
 esse. Cf. Taylor's Holy Living, II. 2 ; 
 ' ' Sobriety is the bridle of the passions 
 of desire, and Temperance is the bit 
 and curb of that bridle, a restraint 
 put into a man's mouth"; also De 
 Off,, I. 39, praestantissirmim est appe- 
 titum ohtemperare rationi. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 79 
 
 mente, nihil rati one, nihil cogitatione consequi posset. 
 Quocirca nihil esse tarn detestabile tamque pestifenim 
 quam volnptatem, siquidem ea, cum maior esset atque 
 longinquior, omne animi lumen exstingueret. Haec cum 
 C. Pontio Samnlte, patre eius, a quo Caudino proelio 5 
 Sp. Postumius, T. Veturius consules superati sunt, locutum 
 Archytam IN'earchus Tarentinus, hospes noster, qui in ami- 
 citia populi Roman! permanserat, se a maioribus natu 
 accepisse dicebat, cum quidem ei sermon! interfuisset Plato 
 Atheniensis, quem Tarentum venisse L. Camillo, Ap. lo 
 42 Claudio consulibus reperio. Quorsus hoc ? Ut intellege- 
 retis, si voluptatem aspernar! ratione et sapientia non pos- 
 semus, magnam habendam esse senecttit! gratiam, quae 
 efficeret, ut id non liberet, quod non oporteret. Impedit 
 enim consilium voluptas, ration! inim!ca est, mentis, ut ita is 
 d!cam, praestringit oculos nee habet tillum cum virttite 
 
 C. Pontio Samnite. C. Pontius 
 Herennius was the father of C. 
 Pontius Telesinus, who defeated the 
 Romans in the Second Samnite War, 
 321 B.C., at Caudium in Samnium, 
 and sent them under the yoke. For 
 an account of this famous battle, and 
 for the defeat and death of Pontius 
 at the close of the war, see Liddell, 
 pp. 214, 215. 
 
 Sp. Postumius. Sp. Postumius 
 Albinus was consul 334 and 321 b.c. 
 
 T. Veturius. T. Yeturius Cal- 
 vinus was twice the colleague of 
 Postumius in the consulship. After 
 their disgrace at Caudium, a dictator 
 was appointed. 
 
 Nearchus. A Pythagorean phil- 
 osopher, in whose home Cato was en- 
 tertained at Tarentum, after the re- 
 
 capture of the city in 209 b.c. From 
 him Cato learned the principles of 
 Pythagoras' philosophy. 
 
 in amioitia . . . permanserat. 
 The city was betrayed and delivered to 
 Hannibal by those who were hostile 
 to the Romans, 212 b.c. See on IV. 
 10 and 11. 
 
 cum quidem . . . Atheniensis. 
 This clause is to be taken with 
 locutum. Plato visited Italy 361 
 B.C., but it is hardly probable that 
 he went again at the time here indi- 
 cated, 349 B.C., for he was then about 
 eighty years old. 
 
 L. Camillo . . . consulibus. L. 
 Furius Camillus, a descendant of the 
 great Camillus, and Appius Claudius 
 Crassinus were consuls in the year 
 349 B.C. 
 
80 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SEXECTUTE. 
 
 commercium. Invitns feci, ut fortissimi viri T. Flaminini 
 fratrem, L. Flamininum, e senatii eicerem septem annls 
 post, quain consul fuisset, seel notandam putavi libidinem. 
 Ille enim, cum esset consul in Gallia, exoratus in convivio 
 a scorto est, ut securi ferlret aliquem eorum, qui in vin- 
 culis essent, damnati rei capitalis. Hic Tito fratre suo 
 censore, qui proximus ante me fuerat^ elapsus est; mihi 
 vero et Flacco neutiquam probari potuit tam flagitiosa et 
 tam perdita libido, quae cum probro privato coniungeret 
 imperi dedecus. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 43 Saepe audivi ex maioribus natti, qui se porro pueros a 
 senibus audisse dicebant, mirari solitum C. Fabricium, quod, 
 cum apud regem Pyrrhum legatus esset, audisset a Thessalo 
 
 10 
 
 T. Flaminini. See p. 46. 
 
 L. Flamininum. L. Quinctius 
 Flamininus served as a naval com- 
 mander under his brother in the war 
 against Philip of Macedon, and was 
 consul 192 B.C. He had Cisalpine 
 Gaul as his province, and carried on 
 war against the Boii. 
 
 septem annis. Cato was censor 
 184 B.C., so that septem annis must 
 be understood as seven full years. 
 
 Tito . . . fuerat. 189 b.c. The 
 censors were chosen every five years. 
 
 Flacco. L. Valerius Flaccus, col- 
 league of Cato in his consulship 195 
 B.C., and in the censorship 184. 
 
 apud . . . Pyrrhum. "At the 
 court of King Pyrrhus." Pyrrhus, 
 claiming descent from the warlike 
 Achilles, was born 318 b.c, and be- 
 came the king of Epirus in the year 
 296 B.C. He was a brave soldier, a 
 
 generous foe, and one of the most 
 skillful generals that the Romans 
 ever met. His invasion of Italy was 
 due to a request from the people of 
 Tarentum to aid them in their strug- 
 gle against Rome. In 280 b.c he 
 gained a victory at Heraclea, but he 
 could do nothing more than tempo- 
 rarily check the progress of the in- 
 domitable Romans. In 278 he went 
 to Sicily, and aided the people 
 against Carthage. Returning to Italy 
 two years later, he was beaten in 
 the decisive battle of Beneventum, 
 and soon afterward he withdrew 
 from Italian soil. While engaged 
 in war with Argos, 272 b.c, he 
 was killed by a tile thrown from a 
 house-top by the hand of a woman, 
 — a most inglorious death for so 
 brave a soldier and so brilliant a 
 commander. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 81 
 
 Cinea esse quendam Athems^ qui se sapientem profiteretur, 
 eumque dicere omnia, quae faceremus, ad voluptatem esse 
 referenda. Quod ex eo audientis M'. Curium et Ti. Corun- 
 canium optare solitos, ut id Samnitibus ipslque Pyrrho 
 persuaderetur, quo facilius vinci possent, cum se voluptati- 
 bus dedissent. Vixerat W. Curius cum P. Decio, qui quln- 
 
 Cinea. Cineas the Thessalian 
 was the chief adviser of King Pyrrhus. 
 He had been a pupil of Demosthenes, 
 and was himself an orator of marked 
 ability. Pyrrhus was very materially 
 aided in his plans for conquest by 
 the wise counsels and skillful diplo- 
 macy of Cineas. For his embassy to 
 Rome, see on Appi Claudi, p. 61. 
 He probably died while Pyrrhus was 
 in Sicily, as we hear no more of him 
 after that time. 
 
 quendam Athenis. Epicurus 
 (341-270 B.C.) began his teaching 
 about 306 b.c, in Athens, and be- 
 came the founder of the philosophical 
 school called from his name. In 
 physics, he adopted, for the most 
 part, the atomic theory of Democri- 
 tus, which is set forth at considerable 
 length in the De Natura Beriim of 
 Lucretius. In ethics he taught that 
 pleasure is the highest good, but he 
 places permanent tranquillity above 
 momentary gratification, and prefers 
 mental pleasures to bodily, as better 
 in themselves and more enduring. 
 "The wise man, i.e. the virtuous 
 man, is happy because he is free 
 from the fears of the gods and of 
 death, because he has learned to mod- 
 erate his passions and desires, be- 
 cause he knows how to estimate and 
 compare pleasures and pains, so as 
 
 DE SENEC. — 6 
 
 to secure the largest amount of the 
 former with the least of the latter." 
 — Mayor. In criticising Epicurus, 
 Cicero followed the popular interpre- 
 tation of his philosophy, understand- 
 ing "pleasure" in a bodily sense, 
 while, as a matter of fact, Epicurus' 
 doctrine and life were based upon a 
 higher and purer conception of the 
 term. 
 
 P. Decio. P. Decius Mus, consul 
 312, 308, 297, 295 b.c, sacrificed his 
 life in the battle of Sentinum, in the 
 Third Samnite War, in order to bring 
 victory to the Roman arms. By his 
 bold act the soldiers were inspired 
 with new courage, the day was won, 
 and the power of Samnium broken 
 forever. See Liddell, p. 213. Cf. 
 Liv. X. 28, 13, datum hoc nostro 
 generi est ut luendis pericuUs pu- 
 blicis piacula simiis ; iam ego mecum 
 hostium legiones mactandas Telluri 
 et dels manibus dabo. The father of 
 this Decius, also named P. Decius 
 Mus, sacrificed his life in like manner 
 in the Latin War at the battle near 
 Mt. Vesuvius, 340 b.c. Cicero, in 
 the Tusculan Disputations, mentions 
 a third Decius, who followed the ex- 
 ample of his father and grandfather, 
 and devoted his life, in the battle of 
 Asculum, in the war with Pyrrhus, 
 279 B.C., Tusc. I. 37, 89, quae quidem 
 
82 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 quennio ante eum consulem se pro re publica quarto 
 consulatu devoverat; norat eundem Fabricius, norat Corun- 
 canius ; qui cum ex sua vita, turn ex eius, quern dico, Decl, 
 facto iudicabant esse profecto aliquid nattira piilchrum 
 atque praeclarum, quod sua sponte peteretur, quodque 5 
 spreta et contempta voluptate optimus quisque sequeretur. 
 44 Quorsus igitur tarn multa de voluptate ? Quia non niodo 
 vituperatio nulla, sed etiam summa laus senecttitis est, 
 quod ea voluptates nullas magnopere desiderat. Caret 
 epulis exstructisque mensis et frequentibus poculTs; caret lo 
 ergo etiam vinulentia et cruditate et InsomniTs. Sed si 
 aliquid dandum est voluptatT, quoniam eius blanditiis non 
 facile obsistimus (divTne enim Plato ' escam malorum ' 
 appellat voluptatem, quod ea videlicet homines capiuntur 
 ut pisces), quamquam immoderatls epulis caret senectus, is 
 modicTs tamen conviviis delectari potest. C. Duellium M. 
 fllium, qui Poenos classe primus devlcerat, redeuntem a 
 cena senem saepe videbam puer ; delectabatur cereo ftinall 
 et tlbicine, quae sibi nullo exemplo privatus sumpserat; 
 
 si timeretur . . . non aim Latinis 
 decertans x>(iter Decius, cum Etruscis 
 fiUns, cum Pyrrlio nepos^ se hostium 
 telis obiecissent. The story of the 
 grandson, however, is not very well 
 authenticated ; see Smith's Diet, 
 of Biog. 
 
 vinulentia. Cf. Juvenal, Sat. I. 
 142-144, in regard to over-indulgence 
 at banquets. Poena tamen praesens^ 
 . . . Hinc suhitae mortes atque in- 
 testata senectus. 
 
 escam malorum. Cf. Plato's 
 TimaeuSf69, "pleasure, the greatest 
 incitement to evil." 
 
 C. Duellium. Duellius gained a 
 
 signal victory over the Carthaginian 
 fleet near Mylae, on the coast of 
 Sicily, 260 b.c. The famous corvi^ 
 grappling bridges, were used in this 
 fight. The columna rostrata was 
 erected in the Forum to commemo- 
 rate the victory. A later version of 
 the inscription upon the column is 
 still extant. For the battle, see Lid- 
 dell, pp. 269, 270. 
 
 sumpserat. Cf. Florus, I. 18, 10, 
 Cum Duellius imperatory non con- 
 tentus unius diei triumpho, per vitam 
 omnem, uhi a cena rediret, praehi- 
 cere funalia et praecinere sibi tibias 
 iussitt quasi cotidie triumpharet. 
 
CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 83 
 
 45 tantum licentiae dabat gloria. Sed quid ego alios ? Ad 
 me ipsum iam revertar. Primum habui semper sodalTs. 
 Sodalitates antem me quaestore constitutae sunt sacrTs 
 Idaeis Magnae Matris acceptis. Epulabar igitur cum soda- 
 libus omnino modice, sed erat quidam fervor aetatis ; qua 5 
 progrediente omnia fiunt in dies mitiora. E"eque enim 
 ipsorum conviviorum delectationem voluptatibus corporis 
 magis quam coetti amicorum et sermonibus metiebar. Bene 
 enim maiores accubitionem epularem amicorum, quia vltae 
 conitinctionem haberet, convlvium nominaverunt, melius lo 
 quam GraecT, qui hoc idem tum compotationem^ tum con- 
 cenationem vocant, ut^ quod in eo genere minimum est, id 
 maxime probare videantur. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 46 Ego vero propter sermonis delectationem tempestivis 
 quoque conviviis d elector, nee cum aequalibus solum, qui i5 
 pauci admodum restant, sed cum vestra etiam aetate atque 
 vobiscum, habeoque senecttiti magnam gratiam, quae mihi 
 
 Reid suggests that this honor was 
 probably conferred upon him by the 
 comitia tributa^ and not assumed on 
 his own authority. 
 
 Sodalitates. ''Clubs, societies." 
 These brotherhoods, sometimes for 
 religious purposes, sometimes for po- 
 litical, combined banquets and social 
 features with their other duties. 
 Their origin belongs to the earliest 
 years of Rome, and was probably 
 based upon kinship, union through 
 the same clan or gens. The text 
 means that new societies were 
 founded at this time, not that the 
 institution itself first became known. 
 
 quaestore. In the year 204 b.c. 
 
 sacrTs Idaeis . . . acceptis. The 
 
 worship of Cybele, magna mater 
 deorum, was introduced into Rome, 
 204 B.C., when the image of the 
 goddess was brought from Pessinus 
 in Phrygia, and placed in the temple 
 of Victory, on the Palatine hill. 
 The sacred statue was received by 
 P. Cornelius Scipio Nasica, chosen 
 for the service because of his purity 
 of character. The Megalesian festival 
 and games were established in honor 
 of Cybele, and observed in April. 
 Cf. Ov. Fast. IV. 249 ff. 
 
 qua . . . fiunt. Cf. Hor. Up. II. 
 2, 211. 
 Lenior et melior fis, accedente senecta? 
 
84 CATO MAIOR DE SEXECTUTE. 
 
 sermonis aviditatem auxit^ potionis et cibi sustulit. Quod 
 SI quern etiam ista delectant (ne omnino bellum indlxisse 
 videar voluptatl, cuius est fortasse quidam naturalis modus), 
 non intellego ne in istis quidem ipsis voluptatibus carere 
 sensti senectutem. Me vero et magisteria delectant a maio- 5 
 ribus instittita et is sermo, qui more maiorum a summo 
 adhibetur in poculo, et pocula, sicut in Symposio Xeno- 
 phontis est, mintita atque rorantia et refrlgeratio aestate 
 et vicissim aut sol aut Ignis liibernus ; quae quidem etiam 
 in Sabinis persequi soleo conviviumque vicinorum cotldie lo 
 compleo, quod ad multam noctem, quam maxime possumus, 
 
 47 vario sermone prodticimus. At non est voluptatum tanta 
 quasi titillatio in senibus. Credo, sed ne desideratio qui- 
 dem ; nihil autem est molestum, quod non desideres. Bene 
 Sophocles, cum ex eo quidam iam adfecto aetate quaereret, i5 
 utereturne rebus veneriis : ' Di meliora ! ' inquit ; ' libenter 
 vero istinc sicut ab domino agresti ac furioso profugL' 
 Cupidls enim rerum talium odiosum fortasse et molestum 
 est carere, satiatis vero et expletis iilcundius est carere 
 quam frui. Quamquam non caret is, qui non desiderat; 20 
 
 48 ergo hoc non deslderare dico esse iucundius. Quod si istis 
 ipsis voluptatibus bona aetas fraitur libentius, primum par- 
 vulls fruitur rebus, ut diximus, deinde els, quibus senecttis 
 etiamsl non abunde potitur, non omnino caret. Ut Tur- 
 
 magisteria. "Presidencies," re- da /zcm to attend to the club-dinners, 
 
 ferring to the office of master of the \ and having more important duties 
 
 feast, magister^ rex, or arbiter bibendi, ' than those of the arbiter bibendi. 
 
 corresponding to the Greek av/jLiroo-l- Symposio. The Banquet of the 
 
 apxos. A member of the company Philosophers, an imaginary dialogue 
 
 was chosen by lot to preside at the | between Socrates and his friends at a 
 
 banquet and lead in the merry- dinner given by the Athenian Callias. 
 
 making. Reid refers magisteria to Turpione. Lucius Ambivius Tur- 
 
 officers elected annually by the so- pio was the most noted actor and 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 85 
 
 pione Ambivio magis delectatur, qui in prima cavea spectat, 
 delectatur tamen etiam^ qui in ultima, sic adulescentia 
 voluptates propter intuens magis fortasse laetatur, sed 
 delectatur etiam senectus procul eas spectans tantum, 
 
 49 quantum sat est. At ilia quanti sunt, animum tamquam 5 
 emeritis stipendiis libidinis, ambitionis, contentioiiis, inimi- 
 citiarum, cupiditatum omnium secum esse seciimque, ut 
 dicitur, vivere ! Si vero habet aliquod tamquam pabulum 
 studi atque doctrinae, nihil est otiosa senecttite iucundius. 
 Videbamus in studio dimetiendi paene caeli atque terrae lo 
 C. G-alum, familiarem patris tui, Scipio. Quotiens ilium 
 lux noctu aliquid describere ingressum, quotiens nox op- 
 
 60 pressit, cum mane coepisset ! Quam delectabat eum defec- 
 tiones solis et lunae multo ante nobis praedlcere ! Quid in 
 levioribus studiis, sed tamen acutis ? Quam gaudebat bello i5 
 suo Ptinico Kaevius ! quam Truculento Plautus, quam 
 
 theatrical manager of Cato's time. 
 He and his company brought out the 
 comedies of Terence. 
 
 emeritis stipendiis. A metaphor 
 from military Uf e ; an old man is lik- 
 ened to a soldier who has completed 
 his service. Compare this with the 
 following from Emerson's Old Age : — 
 
 ' ' We live in youth amid this rabble 
 of passions, quite too tender, quite 
 too hungry and irritable. Later, the 
 interiors of mind and heart open, 
 and supply grander motives. We 
 learn the fatal compensations that 
 wait on every act. Then, — one after 
 another, — this riotous, time- destroy- 
 ing crew disappear." . . . "When 
 life has been well spent, age is a loss 
 of what it can well spare, — muscu- 
 lar strength, organic instincts, gross 
 
 bulk, and works that belong to these. 
 But the central wisdom, which was 
 old in infancy, is young in fourscore 
 years, and, dropping off obstructions, 
 leaves in happy subjects the mind 
 purified and wise." 
 
 Galum. C. Sulpicius Galus, con- 
 sul, 166 B.C., was noted for bis literary 
 culture, and especially for his skill as 
 an astronomer. Before the battle of 
 Pydna, 168 b.c, he predicted an 
 eclipse of the moon, and thus allayed 
 the superstitious fears of the soldiers. 
 
 Plautus. T. Maccius Plautus was 
 born about 254 b.c, at Sarsina, in 
 Umbria, and died 184 b.c. But little 
 is known of his life. He began to 
 write for the stage when about thirty 
 years of age, and produced, if the ac- 
 counts be true, a large number of 
 
86 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 Pseudolo ! Vidl etiam senem Livium 5 qui, cum sex aiinis 
 ante quam ego natus sum fabulam docuisset Centone Tudi- 
 tanoque consulibus, usque ad adulescentiam meam processit 
 aetate. Quid de P. Licinl Grass! et pontificii et civilis itiris 
 studio loquar aut de huius P. Scipionis qui his paucis die- 
 bus pontifex maximus f actus est ? Atque eos omnis, quos 
 commemoravl, his studiis flagrantis senes vidimus. M. vero 
 Cethegum, quem recte ' Suadae medullam ' dixit Ennius, 
 quanto studio exerceri in dicendo videbamus etiam senem ! 
 Quae sunt igitur epularum aut ludorum aut scortorum 
 voluptates cum his voluptatibus comparandae? Atque 
 haec quidem studia doctrinae, quae quidem prudentibus et 
 bene instittitis pariter cum aetate crescunt, nt honestum 
 illud Solonis sit, quod ait versiculo quodam, nt ante dixi, 
 
 10 
 
 comedies ; but of the 130 plays 
 ascribed to him, only twenty-one are 
 regarded as certainly genuine. Of 
 these, twenty are still extant. They 
 are all from Greek sources and be- 
 long to the earliest period in Roman 
 literature. Truculentus (the Grumb- 
 ler), and Pseudolus (the name of a 
 slave), are two of his comedies. 
 
 Livium. Livius Andronicus, a 
 Greek born in Tarentum, about 285 
 B.C., was taken prisoner by the 
 Romans and became the slave pos- 
 sibly of M. Livius Salinator. Subse- 
 quently he was set free and began 
 life as a teacher of Greek and Latin. 
 He translated the Odyssey into Latin 
 verse for the use of his pupils. In 
 the year 240 b.c, he brought out on 
 the stage a Latin tragedy and comedy, 
 borrowed from Greek sources. This 
 date marks the beginning of Roman 
 literature. Cf. Hor. Ep. 11. 1, 156, ff. 
 
 Centone Tuditanoque. C. Clau- 
 dius Cento, son of Appius Claudius 
 Caecus, and M. Sempronius Tudi- 
 tanus, were consuls 240 b.c. 
 
 huius P. Scipionis. Of the 
 present Fuhlius Scipio. Cf. hi con- 
 sules, Y. 14. P. Cornelius Scipio 
 Nasica was surnamed Corculum, on 
 account of his legal attainments and 
 eminence as a jurist. 
 
 M. Cethegum. Cicero, Brut, 15, 
 57, calls Cethegus the first Roman 
 orator, primus est M. Cornelius 
 Cethegus^ cuius eloquentiae est auctor 
 et idoneus quidem mea sententia Q. 
 Ennius^ praesertim cum et ipse eum 
 audiverit et scrihat de mortuo. 
 
 Suadae medullam. Cf. Brut. 
 15, 59, ' Suadaeque medulla^'' ireLdiv 
 quam vacant Graeci, cimis effector est 
 orator^ hanc Suadam appellavit 
 Ennius. According to Cicero, Ennius 
 also called Cethegus suaviloquens. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 87 
 
 senescere se multa in dies addiscentem, qua voluptate 
 animi nulla certe potest esse maior. 
 
 XV. ^^ 
 
 51 Venio nunc ad voluptates agricolarum, quibus ego incre- 
 dibiliter delector ; quae nee uUa impediuntur senectute et 
 mihi ad sapientis vitam proxime videntur accede re. Ha- 
 bent enim rationem cum terra, quae numquam recusat 
 imperium nee umquam sine ustira reddit, quod accepit, 
 sed alias minore, plerumque maiore cum faenore. Quam- 
 quam me quidem non fructus modo, sed etiam ipslus terrae 
 VIS ac nattira delectat. Quae cum gremio mollito ac sub- 
 acto sparsum semen excepit, primum id occaecatum cohibet, 
 
 10 
 
 ad voluptates agricolarum. The 
 
 Romans considered farming the 
 only honorable employment for men 
 of senatorial rank. Cicero himself 
 was fond of country life, and- very 
 fitly attributes these words to Cato, 
 who was thoroughly familiar with 
 rural affairs and took great delight in 
 his Sabine estate. In his De Be 
 Rustica, Cato says : Et virum bonum 
 cum (maior es nostri) laudabant, 
 ita laudabant, ' bonum agricolam 
 bonumque colonum ' ; and ibid. 4, 
 At ex agricolis et viri fortissimi, et 
 milites strenuissimi gignuntiu\ max- 
 imequepiiis quaestus, stabilissimusque 
 conseqintu7% minimeque invidiosus : 
 minimeque male cogitantes sunt, qui 
 in eo studio occupati sunt. Horace 
 sings the praises of a farjner's life in 
 Epod. 2, — 
 
 Beatus ille, qui procul negotiis, 
 
 Ut prisca gens mortalium, 
 Paterna rura bobus exercet suis. 
 
 Cf. also Verg. Geor. II. 513, ff. 
 (Dryden's translation) : — 
 
 The peasant, innocent of all these ills, 
 
 With crooked plow the fertile fal- 
 lows tills, 
 
 And the round year with daily 
 labor fills. 
 
 * ***** 
 
 Such was the life the frugal Sabines 
 led: 
 
 So Eemus and his brother god were 
 bred, 
 
 From whom th' austere Etrurian 
 virtue rose ; 
 
 And this rude life our homely 
 fathers chose. 
 
 Old Rome from such a race deriv'd 
 her birth 
 
 (The seat of empire, and the con- 
 quered earth), 
 
 AVhich now on sev'n high hills tri- 
 umphant reigns. 
 
 And in that compass all the world 
 contains. 
 
88 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 ex quo occatio, quae hoc efficit, nominata est^ deinde tepe- 
 factum vapore et compressti suo diffundit et elicit herbe- 
 scentem ex eo viriditatem, quae nixa fibris stirpium sensim 
 adulescit culmoque erecta geniculato vaginis iam quasi 
 ptibescens includitur; ex quibus cum emersit, fundit frti- 5 
 gem spici ordine structam et contra avium minorum morsus 
 
 52 mtinitur vallo aristarum. Quid ego vitium orttis, sattis, in- 
 crementa commemorem ? Satiari delectatione non possum, 
 ut meae senectutis requiem oblectamentumque noscatis. 
 Omitto enim vim ipsam omnium, quae generantur e terra; lo 
 quae ex fici tantulo grano aut ex acini vinaceo aut ex cete- 
 rarum frtigum aut stirpium mintitissimis seminibus tantos 
 
 t run cos ramosque procreet. Malleoli, plantae, sarmenta, 
 viviradices, propagines nonne efficiunt, ut quemvTs cum 
 admiratione delectent ? Vitis quidem, quae nattira cadtica 15 
 est et, nisi fulta est, fertur ad terram, eadem, ut se erigat, 
 claviculis suis quasi manibus, quicquid est nacta, complec- 
 titur ; quam serpentem multiplicl lapsu et erratico f erro 
 amputans coercet ars agricolarum, ne silvescat sarmentis 
 
 53 et in omnis partis nimia fundatur. Itaque ineunte vere 20 
 in els, quae relicta sunt, exsistit tamquam ad articulos 
 sarmentorum ea, quae gemma dicitur, a qua oriens uva se 
 ostendit, quae et stico terrae et calore solis augescens primo 
 est peracerba gustatu, deinde maturata dulcescit vestitaque 
 pampinTs nee modico tepore caret et nimios solis defendit 25 
 ardores. Qua quid potest esse cum fructti laetius, turn 
 aspectu pulchrius ? Cuius quidem non titilitas me solum, 
 
 ut ante dixi, sed etiam culttira et nattira ipsa delectat, 
 adminiculorum ordines, capitum iugatio, religatio et propa- 
 gatio vitium, sarmentorum ea, quam dixi, aliorum amputa- 30 
 tio, aliorum immissio. Quid ego irrigationes, quid fossiones 
 agri repastinationesque proferam, quibus fit multo terra 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 89 
 
 54 fecundior ? Quid de iitilitate loquar stercorandi ? Dixi 
 in eo libro, quern de rebus rtisticis scrips!; de qua doctus 
 Hesiodus ne verbum quidem fecit, cum de cultura agri 
 scriberet. At Homerus, qui multis, ut mihi videtur, ante 
 saeculis fuit, Laertam lenientem desiderium, quod capiebat 5 
 e filio, colentem agrum et eum stercorantem facit. Nee 
 vero segetibus solum et pratis et vinels et arbustis res riisti- 
 cae laetae sunt, sed hortis etiam et pomariis, tum pecudum 
 pastti, apium examinibus, florum omnium varietate. Nee 
 consitiones modo delectant, sed etiam insitiones, quibus lo 
 nihil invenit agri cultura soUertius. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 55 Possum persequi permulta oblectamenta rerum rtisticar 
 rum, sed haec ipsa, quae dixT, sentio fuisse longiora. Igno- 
 scetis autem; nam et studio rtisticarum rerum provectus 
 sum, et senecttis est natura loquacior, ne ab omnibus eam 15 
 vitiis videar vindicare. Ergo in hac vita M\ Curius, cum 
 de Samnitibus, de Sabinis, de Pyrrho triumphasset, con- 
 
 de . . . agri. Hesiod's poem was 
 entitled "EpYa Kal 'H/x^/)at. 
 
 Laertam. Laertes was king of 
 Ithaca and father of Odysseus. He 
 gave up his kingdom to his son and 
 spent his time in the cultivation of 
 his farm. 
 
 colentem . . . stercorantem. 
 Cato refers to Od. XXIV. 226, in 
 which Laertes is represented as 
 simply digging in his garden. 
 
 insitiones. Cf. Verg. Geor. II. 
 32-34 (Dry den's translation) : — 
 
 'Tis usual now an inmate graff to 
 see 
 
 With insolence invade a foreign 
 
 tree: 
 Thus pears and quinces from the 
 
 crab tree come : 
 And thus the ruddy cornel bears the 
 
 plum ; 
 
 also ibid. 73-82 for the various methods 
 of grafting. Read Bacon's essay 
 on Gardens, "God Almighty first 
 planted a garden ; and indeed it is 
 the purest of human pleasures " ; also 
 Addison's Spectator, No. 477, " I look 
 upon the pleasure which we take in a 
 garden, as one of the most innocent 
 delights in human life " ; and Emer- 
 
90 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 sumpsit extremum tempus aetatis. Cuius quidem ego vil- 
 lain contemplans (abest enim non longe a me) admlrari 
 satis non possum vel hominis ipsius continentiam vel tem- 
 56 porum discipllnam. Curio ad focum sedenti magnum aurl 
 pondus Samnites cum attulissent, repudiati sunt ; non enim 
 aurum habere praeclarum sibi videri dixit, sed eis, qui 
 haberent aurum, imperare. Poteratne tantus animus effi- 
 cere non iticundam senecttitem? Sed venio ad agricolas, 
 ne a me ipso recedam. In agrls erant tum senatores, id 
 est senes, siquidem aranti L. Quinctio Cincinnato ntintia- 
 tum est eum dictatorem esse factum ; cuius dictatoris iussu 
 
 10 
 
 son's essay on Farming, in which he 
 says, '* And the profession (of the 
 farmer) has in all eyes its ancient 
 charm, as standing nearest to God, 
 the First Cause." 
 
 Curio. This story is thus related 
 by Plutarch, Life of CatOy 2 : — 
 
 " The little country house of Manius 
 Curius, who had been thrice carried 
 in triumph, happened to be near his 
 farm ; so that often going thither, and 
 contemplating the small compass of 
 the place and plainness of the dwell- 
 ing, Cato formed an idea of the mind 
 of the person, who being one of the 
 greatest of the Romans, and having 
 subdued the most warlike nations, 
 and driven Pyrrhus out of Italy, 
 now, after three triumphs, was con- 
 tented to dig in so small a piece of 
 ground, and live in such a cottage. 
 Here it was that ambassadors of the 
 Samnites, finding him boiling turnips 
 in the chimney corner, offered him a 
 present of gold ; but- he sent them 
 away with this saying, that he who 
 was content with such a supper, had 
 
 no need of gold ; and that he thought 
 it more honorable to conquer those 
 who possessed the gold than to pos- 
 sess the gold itself. Cato, after re- 
 flecting upon these things, used to 
 return, and reviewing his own farm, 
 his servants, and housekeeping, in- 
 crease his labor, and retrench all 
 superfluous expenses." 
 
 L. Quinctio Cincinnato. Cincin- 
 natus belongs to the legendary period 
 of Roman history. In 458 b.c, ac- 
 cording to tradition, he was sum- 
 moned from the plow to become 
 dictator in the war against the 
 Aequians. Twenty years later he 
 was given similar authority to quell 
 a revolt of the people. For the story 
 of Cincinnatus, see Livy, III. 26 ; Lid- 
 dell, Hist, of Borne, pp. 106-108, 134. 
 
 magister . . . Ahala. The dic- 
 tator, having been appointed by the 
 consul at the instance of the senate, 
 nominated his second in command, 
 the master of the horse. Ahala held 
 this ofiice in the second dictatorship 
 of Cincinnatus. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 91 
 
 magister equitum C. Servilius Ahala Sp. Maelium regnum 
 adpetentem occupatum interemit. A villa in senatum 
 arcessebatur et Curius et ceteri series, ex quo, qui eos 
 arcessebant, viatores nominati sunt. IS'uin igitur horum 
 senecttis miserabilis fuit, qui se agri cultione oblectabant ? 5 
 Mea quidem sententia baud scio an nulla beatior possit 
 esse^ neque solum oflBcio, quod hominum generl universo 
 cultura agrorum est saltitaris, sed et delectatione, quam 
 dixi, et saturitate copiaque rerum omnium, quae ad victum 
 hominum, ad cultum etiam deorum pertinent, ut, quoniam lo 
 haec quidam desiderant, in gratiam iam cum voluptate 
 redeamus. Semper enim boni assiduique domini referta 
 cella vinaria, olearia, etiam penaria est, viUaque tota locu- 
 ples est, abundat porco, haedo, agno, gallina, lacte, caseo, 
 melle. Iam hortum ipsi agricolae succidiam alteram appel- 15 
 lant. Conditiora facit haec superyacaneis etiam operis 
 
 67 aucupium atque venatio. Quid de pratorum viriditate aut 
 arborum ordinibus aut vinearum olivetorumve specie pltira 
 dicam ? Brevi praecTdam : Agro bene culto nihil potest 
 esse nee usu uberius nee specie ornatius; ad quem fruen- 20 
 dum non modo non retardat, verum etiam invTtat atque 
 adlectat senecttis. Ubi enim potest ilia aetas aut calescere 
 vel apricatione melius vel ignl aut vicissim umbris aquisve 
 
 58 refrigerari salubrius ? Sibi habeant igitur arma, sibi equos, 
 sibi hastas, sibi clavam et pilam, sibi natationes atque cur- 25 
 stis, nobis senibus ex lusionibus multis talos relinquant et 
 
 Sp. Maelium. Sp. Maelius was 
 a wealthy plebeian. His offense con- 
 sisted in buying up corn in Etruria, in 
 a season of great scarcity and drought 
 (440 B.C.), and distributing it at a 
 small price, or gratuitously, among the 
 poor. This action exposed him to the 
 
 hatred of the ruling class. The charge 
 of aiming at regal power was simply 
 a pretext on the part of the patricians. 
 They were angry at the plebeians for 
 their aggressive course in wresting 
 enlarged political privileges from the 
 unwilling hands of the ruling class. 
 
92 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 tesseras, id ipsum ut lubebit, qiioniam sine eis beata esse 
 senecttis potest. 
 
 XVII. 
 
 59 Multas ad res pertitiles Xenophontis librl sunt; quos 
 legite, quaeso, studiose, ut facitis. Quam copiose ab eo 
 agri culttira laudatur in eo libro, qui est de tuenda re fami- 5 
 liarl, qui Oeconomicus mscribitur! Atque ut intellegatis 
 nihil ei tarn regale videri qu^-m studium agrI colendi, Socra- 
 tes in eo libro loquitur cum Critobtilo Cyrum minorem, 
 Persarum regem, praestantem ingenio atque imperi gloria, 
 cum Lysander Lacedaemonius, vir summae virtutis, venis- 10 
 set ad eum Sardis eique dona a sociis adtulisset, et ceteris 
 in rebus commtinem erga Lysandrum atque humanum 
 
 Xenophontis libri. In addition 
 to his historical works, Xenophon 
 wrote three small treatises on Hus- 
 bandry, 'OiKOPOfjiLKos ; Horses, wepl 'Itt- 
 TTLKTjs ; and the Chase, KvprjyeTLKds. 
 
 ut facitis. Cf. Cic. Tusc. II. 26, 
 62, Itaqiie semper Africanus Socrati- 
 cumXenophontem in manibus habebat. 
 
 Oeconomicus. Written in the 
 form of a dialogue with Socrates and 
 Critobulus as the speakers. Cicero 
 had translated this when a young 
 man. The passage following is a free 
 rendering of Ch. IV. 20-25. 
 
 Critobulo. Critobulus became the 
 pupil of Socrates, at the request of 
 his father Crito, who was one of the 
 great philosopher's most influential 
 friends and devoted followers. 
 
 Cyrum minorem, Persarum re- 
 gem. "Cyrus the younger, prince 
 of the Persians " (he was not actually 
 king). Cyrus, the second son of 
 
 Darius Nothus, is best known for his 
 unsuccessful attempt to wrest the 
 Persian Empire from his brother 
 Artaxerxes. After his defeat and 
 death at Cunaxa, 401 e.g., the Greeks, 
 who had been the mainstay of his 
 army, achieved the masterly retreat 
 described by Xenophon in the Anab- 
 asis. 
 
 Lysander. Lysander became prom- 
 inent in the latter part of the Pelo- 
 ponnesian war. While in command 
 of Lacedaemonian troops on the coast 
 of Asia Minor, in 407 e.g., he made 
 the acquaintance of Cyrus, then a 
 Persian satrap. In 405 e.g., Lysander 
 defeated the Athenians at Aegos- 
 potamos, and by this decisive victory 
 prepared the way for the final capture 
 of Athens. Later he was influential 
 in placing the thirty tyrants in power. 
 His death occurred in a battle against 
 the Thebans, 395 e.g. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 93 
 
 fuisse et el quendam consaeptum agrum diligenter consi- 
 tum ostendisse. Cum antein admiraretur Lysander et 
 proceritates arborum et derectos in quTncuncem ordines et 
 humum subactam atque ptiram et suavitatem odorum, qui 
 adflarentur ex floribus, turn eum dixisse mirari se non modo 5 
 diligentiam, sed etiam sollertiam eius, a quo essent ilia 
 dimeiisa atque discrlpta ; et Cyrum respondisse : ' Atqui 
 ego ista sum omnia dimensus ; mei sunt ordines, mea 
 discriptio, multae etiam istarum arborum mea manti sunt 
 satae.' Tum Lysandrum intuentem purpuram eius et nito- lo 
 rem corporis ornatumque Persicum multo auro multisque 
 gemmis dixisse : ' Eecte vero te, Gyre, beatum . f erunt, quo- 
 60 niam virtuti tuae fortuna coniuncta est.' Hac igitur for- 
 tuna frui licet senibus, nee aetas impedit, quo minus et 
 ceterarum rerum et in prlmis agri colendi studia teneamus is 
 usque ad tiltimum tempus senecttitis. M. quidem Vale- 
 rium Corvinum accepimus ad centesimum annum perdu- 
 xisse, cum esset acta iam aetate in agris eosque coleret ; 
 cuius inter primum et sextum consulatum sex et quadra- 
 ginta anni interfuerunt. Ita, quantum spatium aetatis 20 
 maiores ad senecttitis initium esse voluerunt, tantus illi 
 cursus honorum fuit ; atque huius extrema aetas hoc beatior 
 quam media, quod auctoritatis habebat plus, laboris minus ; 
 
 Recte . . . est. Cf. Xen. Dec. 
 IV. 25, AiKaidis fioL 8ok€is ^(py], w KOpe, 
 €v5aifji.(s)p elvaif ay adds yap wv dvrjp 
 evdaL/jLOveis. 
 
 M. . . . Valerium Corvinum. 
 M. Valerius Corvinus was consul six 
 times, first in 348 e.g., and the last 
 time in 299 b.c. Therefore the exact 
 period intervening between his first 
 and sixth consulship was forty-nine 
 years, and not forty -six, as stated in 
 
 the text. Valerius owed his surname, 
 Corvinus, to the fact that a raven 
 {corvus) lighted upon his helmet 
 when, in 349 b.c, he engaged in 
 single combat with a huge Gaul. 
 See Liddell, Hist, of Bome^ p. 151. 
 
 sex et quadraginta. See above 
 on Corvinum. The regular period of 
 military service closed with the forty- 
 sixth year, and the aetas seniovum 
 commenced. 
 
94 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 61 apex est autem senectutis auctoritas. Quanta fuit in L. 
 Caecilio Metello, quanta in A. Atllio Calatmo ! in quern 
 illud elogium : ^ Hunc unum plurimae consentiunt gentes 
 populi prlmarium fuisse virurn.' Notum est carmen incl- 
 sum in sepulcro. Itire igitur gravis^ cuius de laudibus 
 omnium esset fama consentiens. Quern virum nuper P. 
 Crassum, pontificem maximum, quem postea M. Lepidum, 
 eodem sacerdotio praeditum, vidimus ! Quid de Paulo aut 
 Africano loquar aut, ut iam ante, de Maximo ? quorum non 
 in sententia solum, sed etiam in nutti residebat auctoritas. 
 Habet senectus honorata praesertim tantam auctoritatem, 
 ut ea pluris sit quam omnes adulescentiae voluptates. 
 
 10 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 62 Sed in omni oratione mementote eam me senecttitem 
 laudare, quae fundamentis adulescentiae constittita sit. Ex 
 quo efficitur id quod ego magno quondam cum assensti is 
 omnium dixi, miseram esse senecttitem quae se oratione 
 defenderet. Non cam nee rugae repente auctoritatem arri- 
 
 A. Atllio Calatino. Aulus Atil- 
 ius Calatinus was a native of Calatia 
 in Campania. Elected consul in 258 
 and 254 b.c. and appointed dictator 
 in 249, he rendered good service in 
 the Eirst Punic War. 
 
 in sepulcro. His tomb was near 
 that of the Scipios, on the Appian 
 Way, outside the Capena gate. Cf. 
 Cic. Tiisc. I. 7, 13, an tu egressus porta 
 Capena, cum Calatini, Scipiomim, 
 Serviliorumy Metellorum sepulcra 
 vides, miseros putas illos 9 
 
 M. Lepidum. M. Aemilius Lepi- 
 dus was consul 187 b.c. and 175, and 
 Pontifex Maximus 180 b.c, and 
 
 princeps senatus six times in succes- 
 sion. He constructed the Aemilian 
 Way, a continuation of the Flamin- 
 ian. His death occurred about 150 b.c. 
 cam. Sc. capilli. Cani with its 
 noun omitted is poetic. With this 
 passage, Non cani . . . possunt, cf. 
 Seneca, Tranq. III. 7, Saepe grandis 
 natu senex nullum aliud habet argu- 
 mentum, quo se probet diu vixisse, 
 praeter aetatem; also Sheridan, 
 Pizarro^ Act IV. sc. 1 : — 
 
 " A life spent worthily should be 
 measured by a nobler line, — by 
 deeds, not years." 
 
CHAPTER XVm. 95 
 
 pere possunt, sed lioneste acta superior aetas friictiis capit 
 
 63 auctoritatis extremos. Haec enim ipsa sunt honorabilia, 
 quae videntur levia atque communia, salutari, adpeti. 
 decedl, adsurgi, deduci, redtici, consiili; quae et ajjud nos 
 
 et in alils civitatibus, ut quaeque optime morata est, ita 5 
 diligentissime observantur. Lysandrum Laeedaemonium. 
 cuius modo feci mentionem, dicere aiunt solitum Lacedae- 
 monem esse honestissimum domicilium senecttitis : nus- 
 quam enim tantum tribuitur aetatl, nusquam est senecttis 
 honoratior. Quin etiam memoriae proditum est. cum Athe- i" 
 nis ludis quidam in theatrum grandis natu venisset. magno 
 consessti locum nusquam ei datum a suis civibus : cum 
 autem ad Lacedaemonios accessisset, qui legati cum essent. 
 certo in loco consederant, consurrexisse omnes illi dicuntur 
 
 64 et senem sessum recepisse. Quibus cum a ctincto consessu i- 
 plausus esset multiplex datus, dixisse ex eis quendam 
 Atheniensis scire, quae recta essent, sed facere nolle. 
 Multa in nostro collegio praeclara. sed hoc. de quo agi- 
 mus, in primis, quod, ut quisque aetate antecedit. ita 
 sententiae prmcipatum tenet, neque solum honore antece- 20 
 dentibus, sed eis etiam. qui cum imperio sunt, miiiores natu 
 augures anteponuntur. Quae sunt igitur voluptates cor- 
 poris cum auctoritatis praemils comparandae ? Quibus qui 
 splendide tisi sunt, ei mihi videntur fabulam aetatis pere- 
 gisse nee tamquam inexercitati histriones in extremo actti 20 
 corruisse. 
 
 Lacedaemonem. The city was | cum auctoritatis praemiis. Cf. 
 called Sparta or Lacedaemon. Ac- ' Shakespeare, J/ac-^^f/i, Act V. so. 3: — 
 cording to fable, LacedaemoD, son of j 
 
 Jupiter, married Sparta, the daughter And that which should accompany 
 of Eurotas. The Laconian city in old age. 
 
 which they lived and reigned received | As honor, love, obedience, troops of 
 the name of each. t friends. 
 
96 CATO MAIOR DE SEXECTUTE. 
 
 65 At sunt morosl et anxii et iracuncli et difficiles senes. 
 Si quaerimus, etiam avari ; seel haec morum vitia sunt, non 
 senectutis. Ac morositas tamen et ea vitia, quae dixi, 
 habent aliquicl excusationis non illius quiclem iustae, sed 
 quae probarl posse videatur; contemni se putant, despici, 5 
 inludi; praeterea in fragili corpore odiosa omnis offensio 
 est. Quae tamen omnia dulciora fiunt et moribus bonis 
 
 et artibus, idque cum in vita, tum in scaena intellegl potest 
 ex eis fratribus, qui in Adelphis sunt. Quanta in altero 
 diritas, in altero comitas ! Sic se res habet : ut enim non lo 
 omne vinum, sic non omnis natura vetustate coacescit. 
 Severitatem in senectute probo, sed earn, sicut alia, modi- 
 
 66 cam, acerbitatem nullo modo. Avaritia vero senilis quid 
 sibi velit, non intellego; potest enim quicquam esse ab- 
 surdius quam, quo viae minus restet, eo plus viatici 15 
 quaerere ? 
 
 XIX. 
 
 Quarta restat causa, quae maxime angere atque sollicitam 
 habere nostram aetatem videtur, adpropinquatio mortis, 
 quae certe a senectute non potest esse longe. miserum 
 senem, qui mortem contemnendam esse in tam longa aetate 20 
 non viderit ! quae aut plane negiegenda est, si omnino 
 
 Adelphis. Adelphi. The Broth- toMicio ; cf. Adelph. 1. 863, Ille suam 
 ers, one of the comedies of Terence semper egit vitam in otio. in con- 
 (195-159 B.C.), the successor of Plan- viviis : Clemens, placidus. 
 tus, and a member of the Scipionic Avaritia, etc. With this passage 
 circle. His six comedies are still cf. Ter. Adelph. 11. 831-4 : — 
 extant. I noster Demea, 
 
 diritas. '' Harshness " ; referring ' ad omnia alia aetate sapimus rectius ; 
 to Demea; cf. Adelph. 1. 866, Ego solum unum hoc vitium adfert senec- 
 ille agrestis, saevos, tiistis^ parens, tus hominibus : 
 trucidentus, tenax. adtentiores sumus ad rem omnes, 
 
 comitas. " Kindness " j referring quam sat est. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 97 
 
 exstinguit animunij aut etiam optanda, si aliquo eum dedti- 
 cit^ ubi sit futtirus aeternns; atqui tertium certe nihil 
 
 67 inveniri potest. Quid igitur timeam, sT aut non miser post 
 mortem aut beatus etiam futtirus sum? Quamquam quis 
 est tam stultus, quamvis sit adulescens, cui sit exploratum 5 
 se ad vesperum esse victurum ? Quin etiam aetas ilia 
 multo pltiris quam nostra casus mortis habet; facilius in 
 morbos incidunt adulescentes, gravius aegrotant^ tristius 
 curantur. Itaque pauci veniunt ad senecttitem; quod ni 
 ita accideret, melius et prudentius viveretur. Mens eiiim lo 
 et ratio et consilium in senibus est; qui si null! fuissent, 
 nullae omnino civitates fuissent. Sed redeo ad mortem 
 impendentem. Quod est istud crimen senecttitis, cum id 
 
 68 61 videatis cum adulescentia esse commune ? Sens! ego in 
 Optimo filio, tu in exspectatis ad amplissimam dignitatem 15 
 fratribus, Scipio, mortem omni aetati esse communem. At 
 sperat adnlescens diti se victurum, quod sperare idem senex 
 non potest. Insipienter sperat. Quid enim stultius quam 
 incerta pro certis habere, falsa pro veris ? At senex ne 
 quod speret quidem habet. At est eo meliore condicione 20 
 quam adulescens, quoniam id, quod ille sperat, hic conse- 
 
 69 cutus est ; ille vult diti vivere, hic diti vixit. Quamquam, 
 
 SI. . . . exstinguit animum. The 
 
 doctrine of the annihilation of the 
 soul. According to Sallust, Cat. 51, 
 20, Caesar declared his belief in this 
 doctrine : De poena possum eqiddem 
 dicere, id quod res habet^ in luctu 
 atque miseriis mortem aernmnarum 
 reqniem, non cruciatiim esse, eam 
 cuncta mortalium mala dissolvere, 
 ultra neque curae neque gaudio lo- 
 cum esse. Lucretius, who accepted 
 the philosophy of Epicurus, set forth 
 
 DE SENEC. — 7 
 
 the same belief in De Katura Berum, 
 III. 417, ff. 
 
 fratribus. The two sons of Aemi- 
 lius Paulus, aged twelve and fourteen, 
 who died, the younger five days be- 
 fore and the older three days after 
 Paulus' triumph over King Perseus 
 of Macedonia. Their death left him 
 without heirs, as his older sons had 
 been adopted into other families, one 
 into the Fabian gens, the other (Sci- 
 pio) into the Cornelian. 
 
98 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 di boni! quid est in hominis natura diti ? Da enim 
 summum tempus, exspectemus Tartessiorum regis aetatem 
 (fuit enim, ut scriptum video, Arganthonius quldam Gadi- 
 bus, qui octoginta regnavit annos, centum viginti vixit) — 
 sed mihi ne dititurnum quidem quicquam videtur in quo est 5 
 aiiquid extremum. Cum enim id advenit, tum illud, quod 
 praeteriit, effltixit ; tantum remanet, quod virtute et recte 
 factis consecutus sis; horae quidem cedunt et dies et 
 menses et annl, nee praeteritum tempus umquam reverti- 
 tur, nee, quid sequatur, sciri potest ; quod cuique temporis lo 
 70 ad Ylvendum datur, eo debet esse contentus. IS'eque enim 
 histrioni, ut placeat, peragenda fabula est, modo, in quo- 
 cumque fuerit actti, probetur, neque sapientibus usque ad 
 ^Plaudite' veniendum est. Breve enim tempus aetatis 
 satis longum est ad bene honesteque vivendum ; sin proces- 15 
 serit longius, non magis dolendum est, quam agricolae 
 dolent praeterita verni temporis suavitate aestatem autum- 
 numque venisse. Ver enim tamquam adulescentiam slg- 
 
 Tartessiorum . . . Gadibus. The 
 
 country about the mouth of the river 
 Baetis, in southern Spain, of which 
 Gades (Cadiz) was the principal city, 
 was called Tartessus. 
 
 ut scriptum video. Herodotus I. 
 163, ervpavvevae de TapT7]<T(Tov 6y8dj- 
 KovTa erea, e^iojae 5^ irdvTa etKoai Kal 
 cKarop. Arganthonius belongs to the 
 sixth century b.c. 
 
 quod . . . esse contentus. Cf. 
 Hor. Sat.l. 1, 117-119: — 
 
 Inde fit, ut raro, qui se vixisse beatum 
 Dicat, et, exacto contentus tempore, 
 
 vita 
 Cedat uti conviva satur, reperire 
 
 queamus. 
 
 Plaudite. Plays usually closed 
 with this word. Cf. Plautus, Trin. ; 
 also Hor. A, P. 155 : — 
 
 Sessuri donee cantor 
 dicat. 
 
 vos plaudite ' 
 
 It is the closing word in every one 
 of Terence's six comedies. For the 
 comparison of life to a play, see 
 p. 50. 
 
 Breve enim . . . vivendum. L. 
 Huxley compares Ben Jonson's 
 lines : — 
 
 In small proportions we just beauties 
 
 see. 
 And in short measures life may 
 
 perfect be. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 99 
 
 nificat ostenditque frtictus fiituroS; reliqua autem tempora 
 demetendls fructibus et percipiendls accommodata sunt. 
 
 71 Fructus autem senecttitis est, ut saepe dixi, ante partorum 
 bonorum memoria et copia. Omnia autem, quae secundum 
 nattiram fiunt, sunt habenda in bonis. Quid est autem tam 5 
 secundum nattiram quam senibus emorl ? Quod idem con- 
 tingit adulescentibus adversante et repugnante natura. 
 Itaque adulescentes mih.i mori sic videntur, ut cum aquae 
 multitudine flammae vis opprimitur, senes autem sic, ut 
 cum sua sponte nulla adhibita vi consumptus Ignis exstin- lo 
 guitur; et quasi poma ex arboribus, cruda si sunt, vix 
 evelluntur, si matura et cocta, decidunt, sic vltam adule- 
 scentibus vis aufert, senibus maturitas ; quae quidem mihi 
 tam iucunda est, ut, quo propius ad mortem accedam, quasi 
 terram videre videar aliquandoque in portum ex longa i5 
 navigatione esse venturus. 
 
 XX. 
 
 72 Senectiitis autem ntillus est certus terminus, recteque in 
 ea vivitur, quoad mtinus offici exsequi et tueri possit [mor- 
 temque contemnere] ; ex quo fit, ut animosior etiam senec- 
 tus sit quam adulescentia et fortior. Hoc illud est, quod 20 
 
 senibus maturitas. Cf . Job v. 26, 
 '^ Thou Shalt come to thy grave in a 
 full age, like as a shock of corn com- 
 eth in his season"; also Words- 
 worth's lines : — 
 But an old age serene and bright, 
 And lovely as a Lapland night, 
 Shall lead thee to thy grave. 
 
 aliquando. "At length " ; i.e. the 
 desired haven has been reached. In 
 II. 6, life is likened to a long journey 
 by land. In Tusc. I. 49, 119, Cicero 
 
 calls death "a harbor of refuge," 
 portum potius paratum nobis et per- 
 fiigium putemiis. Cf. Longfellow's 
 sonnet on Old Age : — 
 
 The course of my long life hath 
 
 reached at last, 
 In fragile bark o'er a tempestuous 
 
 sea, 
 The common harbor, where must 
 
 rendered be 
 Account of all the actions of the 
 
 past. 
 
100 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 Pisistrato tyranno a Solone responsum est, cum illi quae- 
 renti, qua tandem re fretus sibi tam audaciter obsisteret, 
 respoiidisse dicitur: ^ Senecttite.' Sed vivendT est finis 
 optimus, cum Integra mente certisque sensibus opus ipsa 
 suum eadem, quae coagmentavit, natura dis solvit. Ut 5 
 navem, ut aedificium Idem destruit facillime, qui construxit, 
 SIC hominem eadem optime, quae congltitinavit, natura dis- 
 solvit. lam omnis conglutinatio recens aegre, inveterata 
 facile divellitur. Ita fit, ut illud breve vitae reliquum nee 
 avide adpetendum senibus nee sine causa deserendum sit ; lo 
 73 vetatque Pythagoras iniussti imperatoris, id est del, de 
 
 Pisistrato ... . responsum est. 
 
 According to Plutarch, Solon, 31, this 
 reply was made to others and not to 
 Pisistratus directly. Pisistratus be- 
 came despot of Athens 560 b.c, and 
 held his position, except during a few 
 years, until 627 b.c, when his two 
 sons succeeded him in the govern- 
 ment. His rule is said to have been, 
 in the main, wise and conducive to 
 the prosperity of Athens. Pisistratus 
 founded a public library and also 
 caused the works of Homer to be col- 
 lected and edited. 
 
 sine causa. Implying that suicide 
 might be justified under certain cir- 
 cumstances, — a doctrine held by the 
 Stoics. Compare with this the teach- 
 ing of Pythagoras given in the passage 
 following. 
 
 vetatque . . . decedere. Cf . Cic. 
 Som. Scip. III. 7, Qua re et tibi, Piibli, 
 etpiis omnibus retiiiendus animus est 
 in custodia corporis^ nee iniussu eius 
 a quo ille est vobis datus ex hominum 
 vita migrandum est, ne munus huma- 
 num adsignatum a deo defugisse vide- 
 
 amini ; also Tusc. I. 30, 74. Plato 
 in the Phaedo, 61, 62, represents 
 Socrates as saying, "Then he, or any 
 man who has the spirit of philosophy, 
 will be willing to die, though he will 
 not take his own life, for that is held 
 not to be right." "There is a doc- 
 trine uttered in secret that man is a 
 prisoner who has no right to open the 
 door of his prison and run away ; this 
 is a great mystery, which I do not 
 quite understand. Yet I, too, believe 
 that the gods are our guardians, and 
 that we are a possession of theirs." 
 "Then there may be reason in say- 
 ing that a man should wait, and not 
 take his own life until God summons 
 him, as he is now summoning me." 
 Jowett's Trans. Cf. Tennyson's 
 Lucretius : — 
 
 Whether I mean this day to end 
 
 myself. 
 Or lend an ear to Plato where he says, 
 That men like soldiers may not quit 
 
 the post 
 Allotted by the Gods. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 101 
 
 praesidio et statione vitae decedere. Solonis quidem sapi- 
 entis est elogiunij quo se negat velle suam mortem dolore 
 amicorum et lamentis vacare. Volt, credo, se esse carum 
 suls ; sed hand scio an melius Ennius : 
 
 Nemo me lacrumis decoret neque funera fletti 5 
 
 Faxit. 
 
 Non censet Itigendam esse mortem, quam immortalitas 
 74 consequatur. lam sensus moriendi aliquis esse potest, isque 
 ad exiguum tempus, praesertim sen! ; post mortem quidem 
 sensus aut optandus aut ntillus est. Sed hoc meditatum ab 10 
 adulescentia debet esse, mortem ut neglegamus, sine qua 
 meditatione tranquillo animo esse nemo potest. Morien- 
 dum enim certe est, et incertum an hoc ipso die. Mortem 
 igitur omnibus horls impendentem timens qui poterit animo 
 76 consistere ? De qua non ita longa disputatione opus esse 15 
 videtur, cum recorder non L. Brtitum, qui in llberanda 
 patria est interfectus, non duos Decios, qui ad voluntariam 
 
 elogium. This saying has been 
 preserved by Plutarch in his com- 
 parison of Solon and Publicola. 
 Cicero has thus translated it in 
 Tusc. I. 49, 117 : — 
 
 Mors mea ne careat lacrimis ; linqua- 
 
 mus amicis 
 Macro rem, ut celebrent funera cum 
 
 gemitu. 
 
 Nemo . . . Faxit. Cf. Tusc. I. 34, 
 for the full form : — 
 
 Nemo me lacrimis decoret nee funera 
 
 fletu 
 Paxit. Cur ? Volito vivus per ora 
 
 virum. 
 
 Cf. with this Wordsworth's trans- 
 lation of Prancesco Ceni's epitaph : — 
 
 Weep not, beloved Priends ! nor let 
 
 the air 
 For me with sighs be troubled. Not 
 
 from life 
 Have I been taken ; this is genuine 
 
 life 
 And this alone, — the life which now 
 
 I live 
 In peace eternal ; where desire and joy 
 Together move in fellowship without 
 
 end. 
 
 L. Brutum, L. Junius Brutus, 
 the leader of the people in the ex- 
 pulsion of Tarquinius Superbus, and 
 one of the first two consuls, 509 b.c. 
 Tradition says he was slain in single 
 combat by Aruns, the son of Tarquin. 
 
102 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SEXECTUTE. 
 
 mortem cursum equorum incitayerunt, non M. Atilium, qui 
 ad supplicium est profectus, ut Mem host! datam conserva- 
 ret, non duos Scipiones, qui iter PoenTs vel corporibus suis 
 obstruere voluerunt^ non avum tuum L. Paulum, qui morte 
 luit conlegae in Cannensi ignominia temeritatem^ non M. 5 
 Marcellum, cuius interitum ne crudelissimus quidem hostis 
 honore sepulturae carere passus est, sed legiones nostras, 
 quod scrips! in Originibus, in eum locum saepe profectas 
 alacri animo et erecto, unde se redituras numquam arbitra- 
 rentur. Quod igitur adulescentes, et ei quidem non solum lo 
 indocti, sed etiam rustic!, contemnunt, id doct! senes exti- 
 
 M. Atilium. M. Atilius Regulus, 
 consul, 267 and 256 b.c. Cicero here 
 refers to the story of Regulus' cap- 
 ture by the Carthaginians in Africa, 
 in the Eirst Punic War, his mission 
 to Rome to effect an exchange of 
 prisoners, his advice to the senate 
 against this measure, and his volun- 
 tary return to Carthage in accordance 
 with the pledge he had given, if his 
 errand proved fruitless. Cf. De Off. 
 I. 13, 39 ; Hor. Odes III. 6, 41-56. 
 
 conlegae. M. Terentius Yarro, 
 whose rashness brought on the battle 
 of Cannae, 216 b.c, in which Paulus 
 was killed, and the Romans suffered 
 a terrible defeat. Cf. Liv. XXII. 
 45-50. 
 
 M. Marcellum. M. Claudius Mar- 
 cellus was consul ^"vq times. In his 
 first term of office, 222 b.c, he slew 
 the Insubrian chief, Yiridomarus, 
 and obtained the spolia opima. In 
 the Second Punic War he was known 
 as the sword of Rome, as Fabius was 
 called the shield, and succeeded in 
 capturing Syracuse, 212 b.c, after a 
 
 famous siege, in which the defenders 
 of the city were greatly aided by 
 the inventive genius of Archimedes. 
 Marcellus was surprised by an am- 
 buscade near Venusia, 208 b.c, and 
 killed, in the sixtieth year of his age. 
 
 crudelissimus . . . hostis. There 
 is no reason for believing this epithet 
 deserved by Hannibal. In fact, the 
 instance here given would indicate 
 that he was just the opposite in his 
 treatment of the dead Marcellus. 
 Hannibal's remarkable victories over 
 the Romans rendered them incapable 
 of taking an impartial view of his 
 character. 
 
 sed legiones nostras . . . arbi- 
 trarentur. Cf. Tusc. I. 42, 101, 
 where almost the same words are 
 used ; also Tennyson's lines : — 
 
 Was there a man dismayed ? 
 Not though the soldier knew 
 Some one had blundered : 
 Theirs not to make reply, 
 Theirs not to reason why, 
 Theirs but to do and die. 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 103 
 
 76 mescent ? Omnino, ut mihi quidem videtur, studiorum 
 omnmm satietas vitae facit satietatem. Sunt pueritiae 
 ' studia certa ; nuni igitiir ea desiderant adulescentes ? Sunt 
 ineuntis adulescentiae ; num. ea constans iam requirit aetas, 
 quae media dicitur ? Sunt etiam eius aetatis ; ne ea qui- 
 dem quaeruntur in senectute. Sunt extrema quaedam 
 studia senectutis; ergo, ut superiorum aetatum studia 
 occidunt, sic occidunt etiam senectutis ; quod cum evenit, 
 satietas vltae tempus maturum mortis adfert. 
 
 XXI. 
 
 77 Non enim video, cur, quid ipse sentiam de morte, non lo 
 audeam vobis dicere, quod eo cernere mihi melius videor, 
 quo ab ea propius absum. Ego vestros patres, P. Scipio, 
 tuque, C. Laeli, viros clarissimos mihique amicissimos, 
 vivere arbitror, et cam quidem vltam, quae est sola vita 
 nominanda. Nam, dum sumus incltisi in his compagibus is 
 corporis, mtinere quodam necessitatis et gravi opere per- 
 
 Omnino . . . adfert. With this 
 whole section compare the opening 
 and closing lines of Browning's 
 Bahhi Ben Ezra : — 
 
 Grow old along with me ! 
 
 The best is yet to be, 
 
 The last of life, for which the first 
 
 was made : 
 Our times are in His hand 
 Who saith, "A whole I planned, 
 Youth shows but half ; trust God : 
 
 see all, nor be afraid ! ' ' 
 
 My times be in Thy hand ! 
 Perfect the cup as planned ! 
 Let age approve of youth, and death 
 complete the same. 
 
 constans . . . aetas. Cf. X. 33. 
 
 For the periods into which the life of 
 man was divided, see on senectutis, 
 p. 47. 
 
 vestrSs patres. Aemilius Paulus 
 (cf. VI. 15) and C. Laelius, consul, 
 190 B.C., the friend and companion 
 of the elder Africanus, under whom 
 he served in the Second Punic War, 
 commanding the cavalry at the battle 
 of Zama. 
 
 inclusi . . . corporis. Cf. Scip. 
 Som. III. 6, ei vivunt, qui e corpo- 
 rum vinculis tamquam e carcere 
 evolaverunt, vestra vero quae dicitur 
 vita mors est; also De Am. IV. 14, 
 ut optimi cuiusque animus in morte 
 facillime evolet tamquam e custodia 
 
104 
 
 CATO MAIOE DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 fungimur j est enim animus caelestis ex altissimo domicilio 
 depressus et quasi demersus in terram, locum divinae natu- 
 rae aeternitatlque contrarium. Sed credo deos immortalis 
 sparsisse animos in corpora humana^ ut essent/qui terras 
 tuerentur, quique caelestium ordinem contemplantes imita- 
 rentur eum vitae modo atque constantia. Kec me solum 
 ratio ac disputatio impulit, ut ita crederem, sed nobilitas 
 78 etiam summorum philosophorum et auctoritas. Audiebam 
 Pythagoram Pythagoreosque, incolas paene nostros, qui 
 essent ItalicI philosoplii quondam nominati, numquam 
 dubitasse^ quin ex universa mente divlna delibatos animos 
 haberemus. Demonstrabantur milii praeterea, quae Socra- 
 
 10 
 
 vincuUsque corporis. With this and 
 the preceding passage, compare the 
 lines of Browning : — 
 
 Dying we live, 
 Eretless and free, 
 
 Soul, cap thy pinion ! 
 
 Earth have dominion, 
 Body, o'er thee ! 
 ***** 
 Body may slumber ; 
 Body shall cumber 
 
 Soul-flight no more. 
 
 qui terras tuerentur. Cf. Scip. 
 Som. III. 7, Homines enim sunt hac 
 lege generati^ qui tuerentur ilium 
 globum . . . quae terra dicitur. 
 
 contemplantes imitarentur. Cf. 
 K. D. II. 14, 37, Ipse autem homo 
 ortus est ad mundum contemplandum 
 et imitandum ; also Tusc. I. 28, 69, 
 hominem ipsum quasi contemplato- 
 rem caeli ac deorum ipsorumque cul- 
 torem ; and Plato's Timaeus, 47 
 (Jowett's translation) : — 
 
 "God invented and gave us sight 
 
 to this end, — that we might behold 
 the courses of intelligence in the 
 heaven, and apply them to the courses 
 of our own intelligence which are 
 akin to them, the unperturbed to the 
 perturbed ; and that we, learning 
 them and being partakers of the true 
 computations of nature, might imi- 
 tate the absolutely unerring courses 
 of God and regulate our own vaga- 
 ries." 
 
 incolas paene nostros. Pythag- 
 oras lived and taught his philosophy 
 at Grotona, in southern Italy. For 
 this reason his school was called the 
 Italic, and was thus distinguished 
 from the schools afterward founded 
 in Greece. 
 
 delibatos. The soul of each man 
 was a portion of the great world-soul. 
 Cf. Tusc. Y. 13, 38. Humanus 
 autem animus, decerptus ex mente 
 divina, cum alio mdlo, nisi cum ipso 
 deo, si hoc fas est dictu, comparari 
 potest; N. D. I. 11, 27; Yerg. Aen. 
 YI. 724-729. 
 
CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 106 
 
 tes supremo vitae die de immortalitate animorum disse- 
 ruisset, is qui esset omnium sapientissimus oraculo ApoUi- 
 nis iudicatus. Quid multa? Sic persuasi mihi, sic sentio, 
 cum tanta celeritas animorum sit, tanta memoria praeteri- 
 torum futurorumque prudentia, tot artes, tantae scientiae, 5 
 tot inventa, non posse eam naturam, quae res eas contineat, 
 esse mortalem, cumque semper agitetur animus nee princi- 
 pium motus habeat, quia se ipse moveat, ne finem quidem 
 habiturum esse motus, quia numquam se ipse sit relicturus, 
 et, cum simplex animi esset nattira neque haberet in se lo 
 quicquam admixtum dispar sui atque dissimile, non posse 
 eum dividi; quod si non posset, non posse interire; magno- 
 que esse argtimento homines scire pleraque ante quam nati 
 sint, quod iam pueri, cum artis difficilis discant, ita celeriter 
 res innumerabilis arripiant, ut eas non tum primum accipere is 
 videantur, sed reminisci et recordarl. Haec Platonis fere. 
 
 disseruisset. In Plato's Pliaedo. 
 
 is qui . . . sapientissimus . . . 
 
 iudicatus. Cf. Plato's Apology^ 5. 
 
 tanta celeritas animSrum. Cf. 
 
 Tiisc, I. 19, 43, nulla est celeritas^ 
 quae possit cum animi celeritate con- 
 tendere. 
 
 Haec Platonis fere. The four 
 arguments are based upon the ca- 
 pacity., the self -activity^ the simplicity., 
 and the preexistence of the soul. 
 They are taken in part from the 
 Phaedrus, and in part from the 
 Phaedo. In one passage in the lat- 
 ter (§80), Socrates says: "Is not 
 the conclusion of the whole matter 
 this, — that the soul is in the very 
 likeness of the divine, and immortal, 
 and intelligible, and uniform, and 
 indissoluble, and unchangeable ; and 
 
 the body is in the very likeness of 
 the human and mortal, and unintel- 
 ligible, and multiform, and dissoluble, 
 and changeable?" Cf. Emerson's 
 Old Age, closing paragraph: "I 
 have heard, that, whenever the 
 name of man is spoken, the doctrine 
 of immortality is announced ; ^ it 
 cleaves to his constitution. The mode 
 of it baffles our wit, and no whisper 
 comes to us from the other side. But 
 the inference from the working of in- 
 tellect, hiving knowledge, hiving 
 skill, — at the end of life just ready 
 to be born, affirms the inspirations of 
 affection and of the moral sentiment." 
 On the preexistence of the soul, cf. 
 Wordsworth's famous lines in his 
 ode, Intimations of Immortality from 
 Becollections of Early Childhood: — 
 
106 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 79 Apud Xenophontem aiitem moriens Cyrus maior haec 
 dicit : ^ ^Nolite arbitrari, mihi carissimi filii, me, cum a 
 vobis discessero, nusquam aut nullum fore. Nee eniin, 
 duin eram vobiscum, animum meum videbatis, sed eum 
 esse in hoc corpore ex eis rebus, qnas gerebam, intellege- 5 
 batis. Eundem igitur esse creditote, etiamsi nullum vide- 
 
 80 bitis. Nee vero clarorum virorum post mortem honores 
 permanerent, sT nihil eorum ipsorum animi efficerent, quo 
 diutius memoriam sui teneremus. Mihi quidem numquam 
 persuader! potuit animos, dum in corporil3ns essent morta- lo 
 libus, Ylvere, cum excessissent ex eis, emori, nee vero tum 
 animum esse msipientem, cum ex insipienti corpore evasis- 
 set, sed cum omni admixtione corporis liberatus purus et 
 
 Our birth is but a sleep and a for- 
 getting : 
 The soul that rises with us, our life's 
 Star, 
 Hath had elsewhere its setting, 
 
 And Cometh from afar : 
 Not in entire forgetfulness. 
 And not in utter nakedness. 
 But trailing clouds of glory do we 
 come 
 From God, who is our home : 
 Heaven lies about us in our infancy ! 
 Shades of the prison-house begin to 
 close 
 Upon the growing boy. 
 
 Apud Xenophontem. In the 
 
 Cyropaedia^ VIII. 7, 17, of which 
 Cicero has given a free rendering, 
 omitting a few lines. 
 
 Nee vero . . . teneremus. With 
 this cf. Tusc. I. 15, 35, verisimile est, 
 cum optimus quisque maxime posteri- 
 
 tati serviat, esse aliquid, cuius is post 
 mortem sensum sit hahiturus. With 
 this and the following passage cf. 
 Lowell's lines from his Elegy on 
 the Death of Dr. Channing : — 
 
 Therefore I cannot think thee wholly 
 gone; 
 The better part of thee is with us 
 still ; 
 Thy soul its hampering clay aside 
 hath thrown. 
 And only freer wrestles with the 
 111. 
 * * * 
 
 And often, from 
 on this 
 Some gleams from great souls gone 
 before may shine. 
 To shed on struggling hearts a clearer 
 bliss, 
 And clothe the Right with luster 
 more divine. 
 
 * * * 
 
 that other world. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 107 
 
 integer esse coepisset, turn esse sapientem. Atque etiam 
 cum hominis nattira morte dissolvitur, ceterarum rerum 
 perspicuum est quo quaeque discedat; abeunt enim illtic 
 omnia, unde orta sunt, animus autem solus, nee cum adest 
 nee cum discedit, apparet. lam vero videtis nihil esse 5 
 81 morti tam simile quam somnum. Atqui dormientium animi 
 maxime declarant divinitatem suam; multa enim, cum 
 remissl et liberi sunt, futtira prospiciunt. Ex quo intelle- 
 gitur, quales futuri sint, cum se plane corporis vinculis 
 relaxaverint. Quare, si haec ita sunt, sic me colitote,' lo 
 inquit, ' ut deum ; sin una est interiturus animus cum cor- 
 pore, vos tamen deos verentes, qui hanc omnem pulchritti- 
 dinem tuentur et regunt, memoriam nostrl pie inviolateque 
 servabitis.' 
 
 abeunt . . . orta sunt. Cf. Ec- 
 
 cles. xii. 7, ''Then shall the dust 
 return to the earth as it was; and 
 the spirit shall return unto God who 
 gave it." 
 
 nihil esse morti . . . somnum. 
 Cf.Ov.^7>ior. 11.9,41, 
 
 Stulte, quid est somnus, gelidae nisi 
 mortis ima-go ? 
 
 Horn. IL XIV. 231, 
 
 Death's brother, Sleep ; 
 
 Sir Wm. Jones, from the Persian : — 
 
 So live, that sinking in thy last long 
 
 sleep, 
 Calm thou mayst smile, while all 
 
 around thee weep ; 
 
 Scott's Lady of the LaJce^ Cant. I. : — 
 
 Sleep the sleep that knows not break- 
 ing, 
 Morn of toil, nor night of waking ; 
 
 Bryant's Thanatopsis, last stanza : — 
 So live, that when thy summons 
 
 comes to join 
 The innumerable caravan that moves 
 To the pale realms of shade, where 
 
 each shall take 
 His chamber in the silent halls of 
 
 death. 
 Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at 
 
 night. 
 Scourged to his dungeon, but sus- 
 tained and soothed 
 By an unfaltering trust, approach thy 
 
 grave 
 Like one who wraps the drapery of 
 
 his couch 
 About him, and lies down to pleasant 
 
 dreams. 
 
 servabitis. Read Bacon's essay 
 on Death, and Addison's Spectator, 
 No. 133, in which the dying Epa- 
 minondas says : "This is not the end 
 of my life, my fellow-soldiers j it is 
 
108 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 10 
 
 82 Cyrus quidem haec moriens ; nos, si placet, nostra videa- 
 mus. Nemo umquam mihi, Scipio, persuadebit aut patrem 
 tuum Panlum aut duos avos, Paulum et Africanum, aut 
 African! patrem aut patruum aut multos praestantis viros, 
 quos enumerare non est necesse, tanta esse conatos, quae 
 ad posteritatis memoriam pertinerent, nisi animo cernerent 
 posteritatem ad se ipsos pertinere. An censes, ut de me 
 ipse aliquid more senum glorier, me tantos labores diurnos 
 nocturnosque domi militiaeque suscepttirum f uisse, si eisdem 
 finibus gloriam meam, quibus vitam, essem terminaturus ? 
 Nonne melius multo f uisset otiosam aetatem et quietam sine 
 tillo et labore et contentione tradticere ? Sed nescio quo modo 
 animus erigens se posteritatem ita semper prospiciebat, 
 quasi, cum excessisset e vita, tum denique victurus esset. 
 Quod quidem ni ita se haberet, ut animi immortales essent, 15 
 baud optimi ctiiusque animus maxime ad immortalitatem 
 
 83 et gloriam niteretur. Quid ? quod sapientissimus quisque 
 aequissimo animo moritur, stultissimus iniquissimo, nonne 
 vobis videtur is animus, qui plus cernat et longius, videre 
 se ad meliora proficisci, ille autem, cuius obtusior sit acies, 
 non videre? Equidem efferor studio patres vestros, quos 
 colui et dilexi, videndi, neque vero eos solos convenire aveo. 
 
 20 
 
 now your Epaminondas is born, who 
 dies in so much glory." 
 
 nostra, i.e. examples of this belief 
 among Romans. 
 
 tantos labores. Cf. Pro Arch. 
 XI., Certe, si nihil animus praesen- 
 tiret in posterum, et si, quibus regio- 
 nihus vitae spatium circumscriptum 
 est, eisden omnes cogitationes termi- 
 
 naret suas, nee tantis se lahoribus 
 frangeret neque tot curis vigiliisque 
 angeretur nee toties de ipsa vita dimi- 
 caret. 
 
 ad meliora. With this passage cf . 
 Browning's poem, Prospice : — 
 
 For sudden the worst turns the best 
 to the brave. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 109 
 
 quos ipse cognovi, sed illos etiani, de quibus audivl et leg! 
 et ipse conscripsi. Quo quidem me proficiscentem haud 
 sane quis facile retraxerit nee tamquam Peliam recoxerit. 
 Et SI quis deus mihi largiatur, ut ex hac aetate repuera- 
 scam et in cunis vagiam, valde recusem nee vero velim 5 
 84 quasi decurso spatio ad carceres a calce revocarl. Quid 
 habet enim vita commodi ? Quid non potius laboris ? Sed 
 habeat sane, habet eerte tamen aut satietatem aut modum. 
 Non lubet enim mihi deplorare vitam, quod multl, et el 
 docti, saepe fecerunt, neque me vixisse paenitet, quoniam lo 
 ita vixi, ut non fmstra me natum existimem, et ex vita ita 
 
 sed illos etiam. Cf. with this 
 passage Plato, Apol. XXXII. 41 : 
 ''But if death is the journey to an- 
 other place, and there, as men say, 
 all the dead are, what good, O my 
 friend and judges, can be greater 
 than this? . . . What would not a 
 man give if he might converse with 
 Orpheus and Musaeus and Hesiod 
 and Homer ? Nay, if this be true, 
 let me die again and again. " 
 
 Peliam. Medea, the famous sor- 
 ceress, restored Aeson, the father of 
 Jason, to youth, by cutting him up 
 and boiling him. The daughters of 
 Pelias, king of lolcos and half- 
 brother of Aeson, tried the same 
 experiment with their father, at the 
 suggestion of Medea, but failed. 
 Cicero confuses the two stories. 
 
 carceres. A row of small, vaulted 
 chambers, twelve or less in number, 
 each large enough to hold a chariot 
 and its horses. At the signal for the 
 race, slaves threw open the folding 
 doors in front of the carceres. 
 
 calce. " The finish line. " A chalk 
 line was drawn across the arena 
 
 opposite the judge's box to mark the 
 end of the course. On this and car- 
 ceres^ above, see Smith's Diet. Antiq. 
 vol. I. s.v. circus. Cf. De Am. 
 XXY. 101, quibuscum tamquam e 
 carceribus emissus sis, cum eisdem 
 ad calcem, ut dicitur, pervenire. 
 With this whole passage compare 
 Byron's lines from A Fragment : — 
 Could I remount the river of my 
 
 years 
 To the first fountain of our smiles 
 
 and tears, 
 I would not trace again the stream 
 
 of hours 
 Between their outworn banks of 
 
 withered flowers. 
 But bid it flow as now — until it glides 
 Into the number of the nameless tides. 
 
 Quid non potius laboris. Com- 
 pare this with Ps. xc. 10, "yet is 
 their strength labor and sorrow." 
 
 ei docti. In Tusc. I. 34, 84, 
 Cicero mentions Hegesias, who wrote 
 ^AwoKaprepQv, i.e. one who refrains 
 from eating that he may die and be 
 free from the troubles of life. 
 
110 
 
 CATO MAIOR DE SENECTUTE. 
 
 discedo tamquam ex hospitio, non tamquam e domo. Com- 
 morandl enim natura devorsorium nobis, non habitandi 
 dedit. O praeclarum diem, cum in illud divinum animo- 
 rum concilium coetumque proficiscar cum que ex hac turba 
 et conluvione discedam! Proficiscar enim non ad eos 5 
 solum viros, de quibus ante dixi, verum etiam ad Catonem 
 meum, quo nemo vir melior natus est, nemo pietate prae- 
 stantior; cuius a me corpus est crematum, quod contra 
 decuit, ab illo meum, animus vero non me deserens, sed 
 respectans in ea profecto loca discessit, quo mihi ipsi 10 
 cernebat esse veniendum. Quem ego meum casum fortiter 
 ferre visus sum, non quo aequo animo ferrem, sed me ipse 
 consolabar existimans non longlnquum inter nos digressum 
 85 et discessum fore. His mihi rebus, Scipio (id enim te cum 
 Laelio admirari solere dlxisti), levis est senectus, nee solum 15 
 non molesta, sed etiam iucunda. Quod si in hoc erro, qui 
 animos hominum immortalis esse credam, libenter erro nee 
 mihi hunc errorem, quo delector, dum vivo, extorqueri volo ; 
 sin mortuus, ut quidam mintiti philosophi censent, nihil 
 
 non habitandi. Sc. locum. Cf. 
 Heb. xiii. 14, "For here have we 
 no continuing city, but we seek one 
 to come." 
 
 cum in illud ... discedam. 
 Cf . Byron's lines : — 
 But wherefore weep ? Her match- 
 less spirit soars 
 Beyond where splendid shines the 
 orb of day ; 
 And weeping angels lead her to 
 those bowers 
 Where endless pleasures virtue's 
 deeds repay. 
 
 Proficiscar ... ad Catonem 
 meum. Cf.Whittier's Snow-Bound : — 
 
 Alas for him who never sees 
 The stars shine through his cypress- 
 trees ! 
 Who, hopeless, lays his dead away, 
 Nor looks to see the breaking day 
 Across the mournful marbles play ! 
 Who hath not learned, in hours of 
 faith, 
 The truth to flesh and sense un- 
 known, 
 That Life is ever lord of Death, 
 And Love can never lose its own ! 
 
 libenter erro. For a similar senti- 
 ment, cf. Tusc. I. 17, 39. Err are 
 mehercide malo cum Platone . . . 
 quam cum istis vera seiitire. 
 
CHAPTER XXni. 
 
 Ill 
 
 sentiam, non vereor, ne hiinc errorem meum pMlosophi 
 mortui irrideant. Quod si non sumus immortales fnturl, 
 tamen exstingui homini suo tempore optabile est. Nam 
 habet nattira^ ut aliarum omnium rerum, sic vivendi modum. 
 Senecttis autem aetatis est peractio tamquam fabulae, 
 cuius defatigationem fugere debemus, praesertim aditincta 
 satietate. 
 
 Haec habni, de senectute quae dicerem ; ad quam utinam 
 perveniatis ! ut ea, quae ex me audistis, re expert! probare 
 possitis. 
 
 10 
 
 Quod SI non sumus . . . est. 
 
 Contrast the uncertainty of philoso- 
 phy with the certainty of revelation, 
 2 Tim. i. 10, "But is now made mani- 
 fest by the appearing of our Saviour 
 Jesus Christ, who hath abolished 
 death and hath brought life and im- 
 mortality to light through the gospel." 
 Nam habet . . . satietate. Ad- 
 dison has taken this passage for the 
 text of No. 153 of the Spectator. 
 The old age of a frivolous life he de- 
 scribes in No. 260, taking for the 
 heading Horace, Ep. II. 2, 55 : — 
 
 Singula de nobis anni praedantm^ 
 euntes. 
 
 On the possibility of usefulness, even 
 in the last act {peractio) of the drama 
 of life, cf. the closing lines of Long- 
 fellow's Morituri Salutamus : — 
 
 For age is opportunity no less 
 
 Than youth itself, though in another 
 dress. 
 
 And as the evening twilight fades 
 away 
 
 The sky is filled with stars, invisi- 
 ble by day. 
 
 Haec habui . . . dicerem. Cf. 
 
 the closing paragraph of the De Am., 
 in which the same form of expression 
 is employed. 
 
SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES 
 
 CONTAINING GRAMMATICAL REFERENCES, SUGGESTIONS UPON 
 THE TRANSLATION OF DIFFICULT PASSAGES, AND TEXT- 
 UAL NOTES. 
 
 In the grammatical references those to Harkness are in full-faced type (100) ; those to 
 Allen & Greenough in ordinary type (100) ; those to Gildersleeve (revised edition), in 
 italics (100). 
 
 I. 1. quid : adverbial accusative. 
 
 adiuero : the full form would be adiuvero. The v has fallen out and u 
 become short. 
 
 levasso : for levavero. For an explanation of the form, see 240, 4 ; 128, 
 e, 5 ; 131, 4, &, 1. 
 
 coquit: most editors translate vexes, harasses. Shuckburgh renders, 
 ''which fixed (like a sting) in your breast now burns and tortures you." 
 He thinks the metaphor is taken from a sting or poisoned dart which causes 
 a lasting irritation and pain. The word is used figuratively by the poets 
 and post-Augustan prose writers. It is found in Plant. Trin. 225 ; Yerg. 
 Aen. VII. 345 ; Sil. XIV. 103 ; Quint. XII. 10, 77. 
 
 versat : the original quantity of the vowel is retained in this instance. 
 See 21, 1 ; 580, III. n. 2 ; 375, g, 5 ; 721, 
 
 praemi : until the time of Augustus nouns in -ius and -inm formed the 
 genitive in a single i. 
 
 enim : here and with iiovi below, enim is affirmative rather than explan- 
 atory. Observe its position. What other particles follow the same rule ? 
 
 lUe vir : the shepherd. 
 
 re: i.e. re familiarly of little wealth. The preposition might have been 
 omitted, and then the construction would be an ablative of characteristic. 
 
 plenus : final s is here elided, a common practice in the early poets ; but 
 it was generally sounded in Cicero's time. See 608, 1, n. 3 ; 375, a ; 703, 3. 
 
 fidei : trustworthiness. This form is older than fidel. See 120, 2 ; 72, n. ; 
 63, 2, n. 1. 
 
 quamquam : corrective, = Kairoi, and yet. etsi in § 2 has the same 
 
 DE SENEC. — 8 113 
 
114 SUPPLEMENTARY XOTES. 
 
 force ; but quamquam is more frequently used to modify a previous state- 
 ment than etsi. 
 
 SIC : Reid thinks the hne has been changed from the original and sic 
 inserted to correspond with ut before Flamininum, 
 
 que . . . que : rarely used for et . . . et except in poetry. 
 
 novi : perfect with the force of the present. 
 
 moderationem : self-control ; an observance of the proper limit (modus) ; 
 keeping within due bounds. 
 
 aequitatem : even balance ; to be taken like moderationem with animi. 
 
 prudentiam : not "prudence," \)Vit practical wisdom^ good sense. 
 
 eisdem rebus : the condition of the state after Caesar's death ; namely, the 
 increasing power of Antony and the uncertainty as to his ultimate designs. 
 
 me ipsum : in the same case as te. It is used instead of the more accurate 
 quibiis ego ipse commoveor. 
 
 gravius : the comparative has the force of "too." 
 
 quarum : objective genitive. 
 
 maior : i.e. too great to be set forth in this treatise. 
 
 autem : however. For the exact force of the adversative particles, see 
 554, III. 2 ; 156, b ; 483-491. 
 
 ad te : i.e. dedicated to Atticus. 
 
 2. certe : at least. 
 
 adventantis : observe the iterative or intensive form of the verb ; coming 
 rapidly on. 
 
 etsi : see on quamquam above. 
 
 te quidem : you surely^ whatever others might do. 
 
 Sed : this indicates a return to the thought in Nunc . . . visum est, after 
 a brief digression. 
 
 eo munere . . . uteretur: such a gift as we might enjoy in common, 
 eo is equivalent to tali. For the mood of uteretur , see 503, I. ; 320 ; 631, 1. 
 
 confectio : the task of writing. 
 
 effecerit : for the tense, see 495, VI. ; 287, c and rem. ; 513. 
 
 cui qui . . . possit : equivalent to cum is, qui ei pareat . . . possit. 
 Note the juxtaposition of the two relatives, possit is a subjunctive of cause 
 or reason. It gives the reason for the very strong statement in the preced- 
 ing sentence, Numquam . . . poterit. pareat depends upon possit and is 
 attracted into the same mood. This seems to me the best explanation of 
 the construction, and it is the one given by most editors. Reid, however, 
 regards cui as simply connective, = et ei, and qui pareat . . . degere as a 
 conditional sentence of irregular form (qui = siquis). 
 
 omne tempus aetatis : every period of life. 
 
SECTIONS 3-4. 115 
 
 3. Sed : see on sed above. 
 
 ceteris: in the neuter gender. It refers to other philosophical topics, 
 and not to other periods of life or to the political troubles of the day. It is 
 proleptic or anticipatory in its use, looking forward to de senectute and 
 excluding from present consideration all themes but that. Cicero had 
 already discussed many philosophical questions, and had in mind additional 
 treatises of a kindred nature, but now he proposed to write only on Old Age. 
 
 diximus multa et saepe dicemus : observe the chiastic arrangement. 
 
 misimus : the perfect here accords with the epistolary style. See 472, 1 ; 
 282 ; 252. 
 
 tribuimus : perfect tense. 
 
 parum ... in fabula : i.e. if the principal speaker in the dialogue should 
 be a mythical personage and not an actual historical character. 
 
 esset : for the mood, see 486, I. n. 2 ; 311, a ; 600, 2. 
 
 apud quern : at whose house. The scene is laid at the house of Cato, 
 With this use of apud., cf . the Greek irapd and French chez. 
 
 facimus : represent. It is used in the sense of inducimus. 
 
 ferat : for the mood, see 516, 11. ; 341, d ; 541. 
 
 Qui ; equivalent to et is. The relative is frequently employed in this 
 manner to connect a sentence with the foregoing where the English would 
 use a conjunction and demonstrative. See 453; 180, /; 610. For a 
 fuller account of this usage, see Madvig, 448. 
 
 eruditius : for the force of the comparative, see on gravius, § 1. Cicero 
 here anticipates the criticism that he well knew would be urged against his 
 representation of Cato as a man conversant with Greek philosophy and an 
 admirer of Grecian culture. See Introduction, p. 35. 
 
 suis libris : note the emphatic position of suis. 
 
 plura : sc. dicer e. 
 
 lam : straightway. 
 
 explicabit : unfold. Cf. English explication. 
 
 de senectute: observe the attributive arrangement, giving the preposi- 
 tional phrase the force of an adjective. 
 
 II. 4. cum hoc: "with this Laelius here present." Note the use of 
 cum . . . cum, and see note on XIX. 67. 
 
 rerum : objective genitive, limiting sapientiam. 
 
 excellentem : superior, when compared with the wisdom of others. 
 
 quod . . . senserim : the subjunctive is used with quod to assign a 
 reason on the authority of a person other than the speaker. This principle 
 of construction is also applied to a reason based upon the speaker's own 
 
116 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 thought at some previous time. See 516, II. 1 ; 341, d, rem. ; 541 ; Madvig, 
 357, a, 1 and 2. 
 
 SIC : ita might have been employed, but sic, as a correlative to the following 
 ut, is more emphatic. 
 
 odiosa: disagreeable; it should not be rendered ''hateful." 
 
 Quibus : the dative of possession. 
 
 enim : certainly ; as in § 1. 
 
 bene beateque vivendum : a pure and happy life. Cf . De Fin. V. 29, 88, 
 Nee dubitatum, quin in virtute omnis, ut bene, sic etiam beate vivendi spes 
 poneretur. 
 
 ipsi : observe that the demonstrative is made to agree with the subject, 
 and not with se. 
 
 necessitas : law. 
 
 adferat: subjunctive of characteristic ; see 503, I. ; 320 ; 631, 2. Some 
 editors, however, regard quod as equal to si id, and the subjunctive conditional. 
 
 Quo in genere : note the order. A monosyllabic preposition is often 
 thus placed between a qualifying word and its noun, as quam ob rem, magna 
 cum laude. 
 
 ut . . . adeptam : chiastic arrangement. The reading, adept am, is not 
 certain. Some MSS. and many editions have adepti, but the meaning is 
 practically the same in either case. The objection to adeptam, that Cicero 
 nowhere else uses it in the passive, is not conclusive, from the fact that he 
 does sometimes employ the perfect participle of other deponent verbs in the 
 passive, and Sallust, Cat. VII. 3, has adepta libertate; Tacitus, Ann. I. 7, 8, 
 adepto principatu. 
 
 stultitiae : translate, foolish men ; the abstract is here used for the 
 concrete. 
 
 aiunt : those who say this are the stulti implied in stultitiae. 
 
 putassent : the subjunctive in a dependent clause in the indirect dis- 
 course. The direct form would be putaveram. 
 
 falsum : that which is untrue. Note the substantival use of the adjective. 
 
 Qui : how. For this case-form, used as an adverb, see 188, II. 2 ; 104, c ; 
 105, 3. 
 
 Praeterita enim : enim is here explicative. See on I. 1. 
 
 quam VIS longa : however long. 
 
 cum effluxisset : the subjunctive is used because the clause depends 
 upon posset. The case is a supposed one, and cum has practically the force 
 of si, if 
 
 cons51atio : this is the reading of the best MSS. Many editors prefer 
 to follow inferior MSS., and read consolatione. 
 
SECTIONS 5-6. 117 
 
 posset : for the mood, see on esset, I. 3. 
 
 5. quae : see on qui^ I. 3. 
 
 esset : this is a more modest form of wish than utinam sit. The imper- 
 fect implies that Cato does not think his wisdom worthy of their admiration. 
 
 tamquam deum : the masculine is here used in the generic sense, a divine 
 being. Cf. Sen. Ben. TV. 7, 1, Quid enim aliud est natura quam deus et 
 divina ratio toti miindo partihus eiiis inserta. 
 
 a qua: equivalent to ah ea enim; the reference is to Nature, which is 
 here personified. 
 
 aetatis : employed in the sense of vitae. 
 
 descriptae : some editors prefer discriptae, for which there is also MS. 
 authority ; but descriptae, written out, seems to harmonize better with the 
 context than discriptae, assigned. — Reid. 
 
 inert! : indolent. 
 
 fuit : i.e. it was and always will be. It is according to the nature of things. 
 
 aliquid extremum : something final. 
 
 bacis . . . fructibus : note the difference in the meaning of these words, 
 here distinctly brought out by the genitives arborum and terrae. 
 
 vietum : vimen and vitis have also the same root. 
 
 caducum : ready to fall ; derived from cado. 
 
 quod : but this. The leading thought is really found in this clause. 
 
 ferundum : for this form, instead oiferendum, see 239 ; 126,f.-n. 2 ; 130, 8. 
 
 molliter : with submission. 
 
 Gigantum : see on Aetiia gravius, p. 48. For what else but resisting 
 nature is equivalent to fighting as the giants did against the gods? The 
 English arrangement of the clauses differs somewhat from the Latin. How- 
 son gives a very concise rendering, ' ' Rebellion against nature is nothing else 
 but war with the gods." 
 
 6. Atqui : Reid translates, True, but. Atqui is here used to confirm the 
 preceding statement, and also to add another point to the argument. 
 
 nobis : explained by the clause, ut . . . pollicear. 
 
 pollicear: to promise. The principal clause, on which the final clause 
 depends, may sometimes be omitted, as in this instance. It must then be 
 inferred from the context. 
 
 feceris . . . didicerimus : future perfect tense, where the English would 
 employ the simple future. In place of didicerimus, Gernhard suggested that 
 si nos docueris, if you shall have taught us, would have been more natural 
 after /6C6ns. The change was probably made because didicerimus puts the 
 statement, which is practically a request, in a milder way, and also harmonizes 
 with the intervening forms, speramus and volumus. 
 
118 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 quibus . . . rationibus : how^ i.e. hy what course of reasoning. 
 
 ingravescentem : note the inceptive force, beginning to grow heavy ^ 
 becoming more and more biirdensome. 
 
 possimus : the subjunctive used in a dependent question. 
 
 vestrtim. Why vestrum and not vestri 9 
 
 confeceris : for the mood, see 513, II. n. 1 ; 312, rem. ; 602. 
 
 quam . . . ingrediundum sit : equivalent to quae . . . ingrediunda sit. 
 For this construction see 371, I. 2, 2) n. ; 294 c. (where this example is 
 cited). For the form ingrediundum^ see on ferundum^ II. 6. 
 
 istuc: the object of videre. Note its force as the so-called demonstra- 
 tive of the second person. With quo pervenisti it is equivalent to '' the end 
 of your journey." 
 
 III. 7. Faciam, ut potero : I will do the best I can. The Latin uses 
 potero and not possum, because the time of the subordinate clause is in 
 reality future. In English the future in the principal clause (faciam) is 
 sufficient to indicate the real time involved in both clauses. See 470, 2 ; 
 278, b ; 242, 1. 
 
 interfui : interfui querelis here means, " I have been present when com- 
 plaints were made," and so, *' I have heard the complaints." 
 
 quae : a case of anacoluthon. The construction is changed after the 
 parenthetical clause, pai^es autem. The words quae deplorare refer to the 
 idea in querelis. The author proceeds to give specific instances of the com- 
 plaints to which a general allusion is made in the first part of the sentence. 
 
 consulares : ex-consuls. Cicero was quite careful to apply this term of 
 respect to all who were entitled to it. He was very proud of the fact that 
 he was himself a consularis. — Shuckburgh. 
 
 nostri fere aequales : Cato was consul in the year 195 b.c. 
 
 carerent . . . spernerentur: the subjunctive, because the reasons are 
 stated on the authority of Salinator and Albinus. See on ferat, I. 3, and 
 senserim, 11. 4. 
 
 vitam nullam : " life was not worth the living." 
 
 putarent . . . essent soliti : these verbs depend upon subjunctives and 
 take the same mood ; see 529, II. n. 1, 1; 342 ; 663. 
 
 Qui : see on I. 3. 
 
 mihi : note its emphatic position. 
 
 esset accusandum : for the mood, see on uteretur, I. 2. 
 
 Nam : stronger than enim ; the latter is corroborative and explanatory, 
 while nam formally introduces a real reason. See on enim, I. 1. 
 
 id: refers to the two complaints mentioned above, carerent and sper- 
 
SECTIONS 7-9. 119 
 
 nerentur, and treats them for the moment as involving but one idea ; namely, 
 the hard lot of old age. 
 
 accideret . . . venirent : observe the mood and tense. 
 
 usu: usu venire, to come in experience, i.e. to happen, to occur. Some 
 editors think usu may be a predicative dative. Roby, 1238, regards it as an 
 ablative of manner. For the numerous instances of this expression in 
 Cicero, see Harpers' Lat. Lex. s.v. usus, II. C. 2. 
 
 quorum . . . querela : and yet I have observed that the old age of many 
 of them is free from complaint. The phrase sine querela has the force of an 
 adjective. The prepositions cum and sine are frequently used in such attrib- 
 utive expressions. 
 
 qui . . . ferrent : subjunctive of characteristic. 
 
 non moleste: litotes, not ill, i.e. gladly, libenter. Instead of the usual 
 nee . . . nee, the first connective is divided into et . . . non ; this throws 
 the force of the negative particle on moleste, 
 
 8. sed fortasse dixerit quispiam : hut perhaps some one may say. That 
 this may be taken as the meaning of the Latin is perfectly apparent ; the 
 exact construction of dixerit, however, is a mooted question. Many editors 
 regard it as a potential subjunctive, in which the perfect has practically the 
 same force as the present. Roby, vol. 11. Pref. pp. 101-106, after a careful 
 consideration of the subject, inclines strongly to the opinion that the verb is 
 future perfect indicative. 
 
 opes : influence, in the state. 
 copias : wealth. 
 
 dignitatem : rank, high social standing. 
 
 tblerabiliorem : observe the passive force of this verbal adjective, *'that 
 which can be endured." 
 
 id : i.e. the possession of so many desirable things ; such good fortune. 
 
 istud : see on istuc, II. 6. 
 
 levis . . . gravis : chiastic arrangement. 
 
 nee . . . non gravis : nor can it fail to be burdensome. 
 
 9. omnino : certainly. 
 arma : defensive weapons. 
 senectutis : subjective genitive. 
 
 artes exercitationesque virtutum : knowledge and good deeds. With 
 artes sc. liber ales. But Cicero has especially in mind the effect of artes 
 liberales or optimae in giving one knowledge and intellectual power. 
 
 cultae : the participle has a conditional force, if cultivated. 
 
 cum . . . vixeris : for this use of the subjunctive in a general condition, 
 see 518, 2 ; 309, a. 
 
120 SUPPLEMEXTARY NOTES. 
 
 ecferunt : an earlier form for efferunt. 
 
 numquam desenint : Reid very aptly compares this passage with Pro 
 Arch. 7, at haec studia. 
 
 quamquam : see on I. 1. 
 
 conscientia . . . recordatio : observe the order. 
 
 bene factorum : participles when used substantively sometimes retain 
 their adverbial modifiers. 
 
 lY. 10. Ego: emphatic. 
 
 eum . . . recepit : these words are regarded as a gloss by some editors, 
 but there seems to be no sufficient reason for rejecting them from the text. 
 eum is in apposition with Maximum. 
 
 comitate . . . gravitas: dignity seasoned with courtesy, condita is 
 from condire. 
 
 mores: character, disposition. 
 
 Quamquam : corrective, as in I. 1. 
 
 eum colere coepi : I learned to respect him. colere expresses the feeling 
 of a young man for an older and more experienced friend. 
 
 ad Capuam : for the use of ad with the name of a town, see 380, II. 1 
 (1); 258,1, &, n. 2; 337,4. 
 
 quadriemiio post : i.e. after an interval of four complete years. 
 
 quem magistratum gessi : an office lohich I held. Quaestor implies 
 quaesturam, which explains magistratum. 
 
 cum quidem: =tum quidem cum, at that time namely, when. — Meissner. 
 
 suasor . . . fuit : spoke in favor of. What kind of a noun is suasor 9 
 
 cum : concessive. 
 
 rem: i.e. rempuhlicam, 
 
 Noenum : from ne + oenum (unum), an old form for non. Most editors 
 follow Lachman, who suggested noenum in place of non enim of the MSS. 
 
 rumores : the harsh reports circulated by those who were dissatisfied 
 with Fabius' slow methods. Some, however, understand it in the sense of 
 *'fame." 
 
 ponebat : for the quantity of a, see on versat, I. 1. 
 
 plusque magisque : the MS. reading is postque magisque. Bemays sug- 
 gested p^i^sgwe, which Reid adopts ; Bergk proposed jjriwsg we and is followed 
 by Sommerbrodt. 
 
 11. cum quidem: see on § 10. 
 
 in toga : in civil life, as a statesman. 
 
 iterum : numeral adverbs are frequently used with official titles. 
 
 viritim : among the plehs. 
 
SECTIONS 11-13. 121 
 
 contra senatus auctoritatem : against the will of the senate. An auc- 
 toritas senatus was a resolution passed by the senators as expressive of their 
 sentiments, but lacking the completeness and legal force of a decree, con- 
 sultum. In this instance the senate favored the aristocracy against the 
 plebeians. 
 
 dividenti : attempting to divide. 
 
 cum esset : concessive. 
 
 gererentur: the subjunctive because dependent upon an infinitive and 
 essential to the general thought of the sentence. 
 
 ferrentur: ferre legem is the regular Latin expression for the English, 
 ''to propose a law," '' to introduce a bill." For the mood of ferrentur^ see 
 on gererentur^ above. 
 
 12. admirabilius : more worthy of admiration. 
 
 quo modo : equivalent to modum quo. 
 
 in manibus : sc. omnium^ in every one^s hands, and so, well-knoicn. 
 
 quam : = et eam. 
 
 philosophum . » . contemnimus : the calm and dignified manner in 
 which Fabius bore his grief at the loss of his son impressed Cato more forci- 
 bly than any philosophical theorizing about the proper method of enduring 
 such affliction. 
 
 in luce : "in the light of publicity." 
 
 in oculis : i.e. before his fellow-citizens, in their presence. It does not 
 mean ''in their estimation." 
 
 Qui . . . praecepta : what a gift he had for entertaining and instruct- 
 ing ! — Meissner. 
 
 Multae . . . litterae : he was well read for a Boman. This use of ut to 
 limit a preceding statement is not uncommon. 
 
 externa bella : the wars of foreign nations. 
 
 ita : to be taken with fruebar. It is explained by quasi . . . divinarem. 
 
 unde : equivalent to a quo. 
 
 discerem: see on ferrent, III. 7. 
 
 V. 13. Quorsus . . . tarn multa : sc. dixi ; some editors understand 
 pertinent or spectant. For similar elliptical expressions, see XII. 42 ; 
 XIII. 44. They naturally follow a lengthy exposition. 
 
 Quia profecto : because certainly. The reply might have taken the form 
 of a purpose clause, " That you might certainly see." 
 
 senectutem : note its emphatic position at the close of the sentence. 
 
 Nee : equivalent to et non, and yet all cannot be. 
 
 Sclpiones . . . Maximi : such men as Scipio or Maximus. 
 
122 SUPPLEMENTARY :NrOTES. 
 
 exptignationes : the plural of the abstract noun is used to denote fre- 
 quent instances of the act. Abstracts in the plural are less common in 
 English than in Latin. 
 
 recordentur : for the cases admissible with recordor, see 407, n. 1 ; 
 219, b ; 376, 2. 
 
 Est . . . senectus : " A life passed with repose and refinement and taste 
 has. for its part (etiam) a calm and gentle old age." — L. Huxley. Observe 
 the connectives ; quiete corresponds to pure atque eleganter. 
 
 qualem : sc. fuisse senectutem. 
 
 vixitque : and yet he lived. The enclitic is adversative in force. 
 
 cessavit : he was always at work, never idle. 
 
 Qui, cum ex eo quaereretur : we might have expected Ex quo cum quae- 
 reretur. The imperfect in quaereretur accords with the real time involved in 
 the historical present, inquit. 
 
 esse in vita : to live. The ancients believed suicide right and desirable 
 under certain circumstances. 
 
 quod accusem : for the construction after nihil habeo, see 503, I. n. 2 
 (where this example is cited) ; 631, 2. 
 
 docto homine : a philosopher. 
 
 14. Sua . . . suam: emphatic. 
 
 fortis : gallant. The lines are taken from the eighth book of the Annales. 
 
 spatio . . . supremo : at the end of the race. 
 
 Vicit Olympia : has luon the Olympic prize. Olympia may be regarded 
 as a cognate accusative. This use of vincere is in imitation of the Greek 
 'OXiy/ATTta plkcLp. The Olympic games, the greatest of the national festivals 
 of the Greeks, were celebrated every four years at Olympia in Elis. 
 
 c5nfectus: see on plenus, 1. 1. 
 
 Quem . . . meminisse : for the accusative with meminisse, see 407, n. 
 1 (2) ; 219, 2, a ; 376, 2. 
 
 hi consules: the present consuls, namely in the year 150 b.c, the sup- 
 posed date of the dialogue. 
 
 magna voce et bonis lateribus : with loud voice and good lungs. 
 
 15. Etenim: and indeed; this marks a transition to the real discussion 
 of the subject, senectus. 
 
 videatur : observe Cicero says not *' is," but seems. 
 
 avocet . . . faciat . . . privet . . . absit: the subjunctive is used 
 because the reason in each instance is not the speaker's, but one urged by 
 those who find fault with old age ; see on ferat., I. 3. 
 
 a rebus gerendis : from active duties. 
 
 infirmius : weaker., than it had been before. 
 
SECTIONS 15-17. 123 
 
 quanta quamque . . . iusta : how important and how reasonable. 
 
 VI. A rebus . . . abstrahit : a statement of the topic to be discussed. 
 
 Quibus : the preposition and verb are to be supplied from the preceding 
 sentence. 
 
 Aneis: there is an ellipsis of omnibusne, the first alternative. ''Does 
 old age take us away from all duties, or only from those," etc. An affirma- 
 tive answer to an eis is implied. See 353, 2, n. 4 ; 211, b ; 457. 
 
 iuventute . . . et viribus: youthful vigor; an example of hendiadys. 
 
 NuUaene : the interrogative particle is appended to the emphatic word. 
 
 infirmis corporibus : ablative absolute ; equivalent to a concessive clause. 
 
 animo : the intellectual power of old men is contrasted with the physical 
 vigor of youth, iuventute et viribus. 
 
 administrentur : the subjunctive of characteristic. 
 
 cum . . . defendebant : cum is here merely temporal ; see 521, II. 1 ; 
 325, a ; 580. 
 
 16. non dubitavit : he did not hesitate. 
 
 Quo vobis . . . viai : from the sixth book of the Annales. 
 
 vobis : the dative of reference ; it may be translated your. 
 
 Antehac : to be read as a dissyllable. 
 
 dementes : observe the oxymoron, witless wits. 
 
 vial : an old form of the genitive. It is to be taken as a partitive limit- 
 ing Quo. 
 
 et tamen : and yet. The meaning is this : it is not necessary to rely on 
 Ennius' account of the speech ; the oration itself can be consulted at first 
 hand. 
 
 cum : though. 
 
 censor : it was very unusual for one to be elected censor before he had 
 held the consulship. 
 
 grandem sane fuisse : as he was probably not less than forty- three when 
 he was first made consul he must have been seventy or more at the outbreak 
 of the war with Pyrrhus, 280 b.c. 
 
 17. Nihil . . . adferunt : they prove nothing. 
 negant : avoid the literal rendering, " deny." 
 
 similesque sunt ut sT qui : an unusual combination, employed to intro- 
 duce a supposed example, i.e. "It is about the same as if one should say that 
 the pilot does nothing on the voyage." Those who declare that old age is 
 idle, display as little reason as those who say the pilot has nothing to do. 
 
 cum: causal, since. 
 
 non faciat . . . iuvenes. At vero . . . facit : this is Reid's text. 
 
124 SUPPLEMEXTARY XOTES. 
 
 Many editors prefer Non facit . . . facit. The MS. reading is facial . . . 
 faciat, except in one instance in which facit is found in the last clause. 
 Meissner brackets non facial . . .facial. 
 
 maiora et meliora: i.e. involving more responsibility and contributing 
 more to the safety of the others. 
 
 quibus : note its twofold construction with orbari and augeri. 
 
 18. Nisi forte : ironical. 
 
 miles . . . consul : see Introduction, p. 33. Note the repetition of the 
 connective.' 
 
 genere : note the use of the singular where the English idiom requires 
 the plural. 
 
 male . . . cogitanti: Ireacherously plolling . 
 
 iam diu . . . mult5 ante : the first expression emphasizes the continu- 
 ance of the plotting ; the second shows that Cato began to urge war against 
 Carthage long before it was officially declared. The present in denunlio 
 implies that he has been and is still advocating the commencement of 
 hostilities. 
 
 excisam : some editors read exscissam from exscindo. 
 
 19. utinam . . . tibi reservent: we are to remember the date of the 
 supposed dialogue, 150 b.c, and the actual time of writing, 44 b.c. 
 
 avi : P. Cornelius Scipio Africanus Maior. 
 
 reliquias : that which was left unfinished by Scipio 's grandfather. With 
 this construction cf . Yerg. Aen. I. 30, reliquias Danaum alque immilis Achilli. 
 
 tertius . . . tricesimus : all the MSS. have terliiis^ which puts Scipio^s 
 death in 183 b.c, and so agrees with Livy, XXXIX. 60. 10 ; but since this 
 conflicts with the statement Anno ante me censorem and also with novem 
 annis post . . . consulatum, tor Cato was consul 195 and censor 184 b.c, 
 some editors read sextus or quiyitus, making 185 b.c the date of his death. 
 This will remove the discrepancy, but involves a change in the text. The 
 numbers YI. and III. might easily be confused by a copyist. 
 
 itenim : to be taken with consul creatus est, elected consul for the second 
 time, which would make his election fall in the year 195 and his term of 
 office 194 B.C. 
 
 Num : observe the force of the interrogative particle. 
 
 paeniteret: the imperfect instead of the pluperfect, to denote continu- 
 ance of the action. 
 
 enim : enim presupposes a negative answer and gives the reason for such 
 a reply. 
 
 hastis : the allusion is really to the pilum, which was shorter than the 
 hasta proper and was used for hurling long distances. 
 
SECTIONS 19-21. 125 
 
 consilio . . . sententia: cf. consilio . . . sententia, § 17. 
 
 quae : equivalent to et ea. The neuter is used because the antecedents 
 are not of the same gender and do not refer to living beings. 
 
 senatum : a body of old men. senatus and senex have the same root sen. 
 Cf. also XVI. 56, senatores, id est series. 
 
 20. voletis : note the exactness of the Latin in the use of the future in 
 this instance. Ci. faciam ut potero, III. 7. 
 
 externa : the history of foreign nations. 
 
 Cedo . . . cito : the verse is an acatalectic iambic tetrameter. The 
 spondee may take the place of the iambus in any foot except the last. The 
 following is the scansion : — 
 
 Cedo : give, tell ; an old imperative of uncertain origin. Its plural is cette. 
 
 qui: how. 
 
 tantam : "great as it v^as." 
 
 percontantibus . . . respondentur ; suggested by Mommsen and adopted 
 by Kornitzer in place of percontantur^ ut est in . . . Lndo ; respondentur. 
 
 Ludo: neither the reading nor the meaning is very certain. It may 
 be the particular name of the play or the general word for a dramatic 
 production. 
 
 Proveniebant . . . adulescentuli ; in the same measure as the preced- 
 ing and scanned thus : — 
 
 the spondee, or its equivalent, may replace the iambus except in the last 
 foot ; accordingly we have the dactyl in the first and sixth places. 
 
 Proveniebant: many editors take this as an agricultural term, "they 
 were coming forward," or " springing up," i.e. as crops grow. 
 
 VII. 21. At memoria minuitur : at introduces a supposed objection, 
 stated merely for the purpose of refutation. 
 
 Credo : in an ironical sense ; "undoubtedly." 
 
 exerceas : for the mood and the use of the second person, see 508, 5, 2 ; 
 309, a ; 595, 3. 
 
 natura tardior : a little slow, or dull, naturally. 
 
 aetate processisset : cf. aetate provectum, IV. 10. For the mood, see 
 524 ; 336 B, a, n. 2 ; 650. 
 
 qui Aristides . . . solitum : that he was accustomed to greet Aristides 
 as Lysimachus. After the analogy of verbs of naming, salutare may take 
 
126 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 two accusatives, but in this instance two accusatives would be ambiguous, 
 therefore qui Aristides esset, the one who icas Aristides, is used in place of 
 one. Lysimachum must be translated as Lysimachus^ i.e. he was not in 
 the habit of taking Aristides for Lysimachus by mistake, esset is in the 
 subjunctive because it depends upon an infinitive, see 529, II. n. 1. 1 ; 342 ; 
 663. 
 
 Equidem : from the interjection e + quidem ; usually employed with the 
 first person singular ; for my part, so far as I am concerned. Observe that, 
 unlike quidem, it may stand first in its clause. 
 
 sunt : equivalent to vivunt. 
 
 sepulcra : epitaphs. He was gathering material for his Origines. 
 
 quod aiunt: itt aiunt and itt dicitur are more common in this sense. 
 Long, in commenting on this passage, says: "It was, says Erasmus, a 
 popular notion that it injured the memory to read sepulchral inscriptions. 
 I do not know where Erasmus got this from." Otto, Sprichioorter der Bomer, 
 p. 218, thinks these words have no reference to a proverb, but rather to a 
 common superstition that one who spends his time in reading epitaphs and 
 studying the history of ancient times is apt to forget the present and become 
 unfitted for his ordinary duties. 
 
 senem : used instead of a clause, lohen, or because^ he was an old man. 
 
 vadimonia constituta: engagements at court. This expression applies 
 to both plaintiff and defendant. To give bail is vadimonium promittere. 
 Cf. Hor. Sat. I. 9, 36, et casu tunc respondere vadato Dehehat. 
 
 22. Quid : for rhetorical effect in passing to another point. It may be 
 rendered furthermore. The following nominatives are subjects of memine- 
 runt, "Furthermore, how many things jurisconsults, pontiffs, augurs, and 
 philosophers remember, even in their old age ! " 
 
 ingenia: mental powers, I.e. their inborn talents. 
 
 modo : provided, if only. 
 
 hondratis : those who have held public offices, honores. It is contrasted 
 ^it\i privata ; so Claris with quieta. 
 
 quod . . . cum : and when on account of his zeal for writing. 
 
 rem . . . familiar em : his property. 
 
 a filiis : according to the common version of the story, by his oldest son, 
 lophon. 
 
 in . . . vocatus est: a Roman legal expression. The first step in an 
 action was the summons before the magistrate, vocatio in ius, to determine 
 whether there was an actual cause for trial. 
 
 nostro more : such provision was made by the law of the XII. Tables. 
 
 male rem gerentibus : mismanaging their property. 
 
SECTIONS 22-25. 127 
 
 patribus bonis interdici: patnhus is in the dative ; honis^ in the abla- 
 tive, meaning, from the control of their property. For this construction, with 
 interdici^ see Harpers' Lat. Lex. s.v. interdico, B, 8. 
 
 earn f abulam : the play. 
 
 in manibus : i.e. he was still engaged in perfecting it. The expression, 
 in manihus^ in IV. 12, has a different meaning. 
 
 proxime : lately. 
 
 sententiis . . . est liberatus : he was acquitted by the votes of the 
 judges. 
 
 23. Num igitur hunc : Cato now mentions Greek poets and philosophers 
 who continued their intellectual pursuits even in extreme old age. 
 
 studiorum agitatio : " vigorous pursuit of their studies." 
 
 24. Age : marking a transition in the discourse. 
 
 ut . . . omittamus : a final clause. The verb on which it depends is to 
 be supplied. 
 
 possum : see on XVI. 55. 
 
 ex . . . Sabino : where Cato had his country home. 
 
 serendis . . . percipiendis . . . condendis fructibus : gerundive con- 
 struction in the ablative of specification. In rendering, use the active form, 
 in storing the produce. 
 
 in aliis : proleptic ; i.e. in other things except the one which follows, 
 namely, the planting of trees. Some editors prefer his^ which is the reading 
 of one MS. 
 
 annum: "one year more." 
 
 idem : the nominative plural. 
 
 Serit . . . prosint : the bacchius ( ^ Z. _) is the fundamental foot of 
 the verse, which may be scanned as follows : — 
 
 The final syllable in serit is made long by the ictus ; the last foot is a molos- 
 sus, but some editors regard o in saeclo as short, an example of systole. 
 
 quae . . . prosint: a final clause. 
 
 saeclo : generation, 
 
 25. quamvis sit: a concessive clause. 
 
 haec : his estate. 
 
 VIII. Caecilius : Caecilius Statins. 
 
 alter! saeclo prospiciente : prospiciens with the dative means not only 
 "looking forward to," but "looking out for." The allusion is to the quota- 
 tion above, JSe^HC . . . prosint. 
 
128 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 illud : the following. 
 
 idem : i.e. Caecilius ; sc. dixit. 
 
 Edepol . . . videt : taken from Caecilius' play entitled Plocium {The 
 Necklace)^ based upon one of Menander's. The lines are iambic senarii and 
 may be scanned as follows : — 
 
 Edepol senectus si nil quicqu«"^ aliiid viti 
 Adportes tecum, c^"* advenis, un^"* id sat est, 
 Quod dill vivendo miilta, quae non volt videt. 
 
 Edepol is an anapaest ; diu is pronounced as a monosyllable. Tischer, how- 
 ever, scans quod diu. 
 
 Edepol : formed from the old interjection e + deus + Pollux ; literally, 
 Ah ! god Folliix ; render indeed., truly. 
 
 quicquam : pleonastic with nil. 
 
 vitT : from vitium. 
 
 videt : experiences ; its subject, the indefinite one^ is implied in diu vivendo^ 
 which is equal to si quis diu vivit. 
 
 incurrit: a stronger word than incidit ; indicating the impetuosity of 
 youth. 
 
 Illud : see on illud above. 
 
 vero . . . vitiosius : still more objectionable. 
 
 Turn equidem . . . alter! : taken from a play of Caecilius entitled 
 Ephesio ; in the same measure as the verses above and may be scanned 
 thus : — 
 
 ^um equid^"* in senect* hoc d^puto miserrimum 
 Sentir« e« aetat^ eumps« ess« odios^"* alteri. 
 
 Observe the anapaest in the first line and the dactyl in the second. 
 
 senecta : found mostly in poetry and post- Augustan prose. 
 
 eumpse: archaic for ipsum, see 186, V. f.-n. 5; 100, c; 103, 3, n. 1. 
 It refers to a person implied in the abstract senecta and is the subject of 
 sentire. 
 
 odiosum: disagreeable. 
 
 26. indole : inborn, natural quality. Found only once in the plural, 
 Gell. XIX. 12, 5. 
 
 delectantur : take pleasure in. 
 
 coluntur et diliguntur: are honored and esteemed, colere means to 
 regard one with honor or reverence; diligere (dis + legere) implies love based 
 upon respect ; amare, to love, from affection or passion. 
 
 praeceptis: in the locative ablative ; see 425, II. 1. 1 ; 254, 5, 1. 
 
SECTIONS 26-27. 129 
 
 minus : modifies iuczmdos. 
 
 quam . . . iucundos : we might expect quam milii vos estis iucundi ; 
 see on me ipsum, I. 1. 
 
 Sed: hut to return to the point. With et melius Caecilius, Cato began a 
 digression from the course of his argument. 
 
 ut : an interrogative particle, how. 
 
 senectus : abstract for concrete ; old men. 
 
 moliens: undertaking. The participle differs from the verb here in 
 emphasizing the continuance of the action. 
 
 cuiusque : sc. senis. 
 
 Quid . . . aliquid: " What shall v^e say of those who are always add- 
 ing something to their knowledge." Quid is for rhetorical effect; see on 
 VII. 22. 
 
 et Solonem : contrasted with et ego^ below. 
 
 senex : when I was an old man. 
 
 SIC : to be taken with quasi and not with avide. 
 
 exemplis : as illustrations. 
 
 in fidibus : on the lyre. 
 
 vellem : for the full construction, Lahmeyer cites Tusc. I. 41, 98, Equidem 
 saepe emori^ si fieri posset, vellem. See 485 ; 486, I. n. 2 ; 311, a and b; 
 257, n. 2. 
 
 discebant . . . fidibus : sc. canere, to play upon. 
 
 sed in . . . elaboravi ; but in literature, at least, I have accomplished 
 something. 
 
 IX. 27. Nee nunc quidem, etc. : Cato begins the refutation of the 
 second charge against old age. iVec joins the sentence to the preceding and 
 shows its negative character ; JVbr do I now indeed feel the loant of, etc. 
 
 locus alter: the second topic. Cf. Y. lb, ^alteram quod corpus , . . in- 
 firmius. 
 
 non pliis quam : any more than. 
 
 tauri aut elephant! : sc. vii^es. 
 
 Quod est : sc. tibi. 
 
 quicquid agas : the subjunctive is used in a general condition to denote 
 the act of an indefinite subject, lohatever one does. 
 
 Quae enim . . . Crotoniatae : a question implying a negative answer is 
 here used, for rhetorical effect, instead of a direct statement. 
 
 lacertSs: muscles, lacertus refers to the upper arm, from the elbow 
 (ulna) to the shoulder (umerus), in distinction from the fore-arm (brac- 
 chium) . 
 
 DE SENEC. — 9 
 
130 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 At: indicating emotion. It implies an ellipsis, "How I would like to 
 exercise with you, but." — Sommerbrodt. 
 istl : note the force of this demonstrative. 
 
 ex te : i.e. on account of your intellectual ability and personal character, 
 est provecta : continued. 
 prudentia: sc. iuris. 
 
 28. Orator : the position of the word shows that it is used to introduce 
 a new topic ; As for the orator, I fear lest he he enfeebled by old age. 
 
 Omnino : concessive, triie^ to he sure ; it is about equivalent to sane. 
 
 canorum . . . splendescit: note the mixed metaphor, "sound shining 
 with luster." Examples of a similar usage attributing brightness to sound 
 are found among Greek writers. 
 
 et videtis : et is adversative, and yet you see. 
 
 Sed tamen : opposed to Omnino above. 
 
 decorus: predicative. 
 
 sen! : the reading of Madvig for senis. 
 
 sermo : style of speaking. 
 
 Scipioni . . . Laelio : a Scipio and a Laelius ; i.e. to young men like 
 these. 
 
 senectute stipata studiis iuventutis : observe the alliteration, and the 
 use of abstract terms. Translate studiis iuventutis., by young men eager to 
 learn. 
 
 29. doceat, instituat . . . instruat : teach^ train, prepare. 
 consenuerint . . . defecerint : for the mood, see 515, IIL,.n. 3; 313, 
 
 a; 606. 
 
 Etsi: see on quamquam, I. 1. 
 
 30. quidem : used to introduce an important illustration, Cyrus for example. 
 moriens : "on his death -bed." 
 
 cum . . . esset : concessive ; to be taken with the following clause. 
 
 admodum senex : he is said to have been seventy. 
 
 negat : the present may be used of authors whose works are extant ; see 
 467, 3 ; 276, /. 
 
 cum: although. 
 
 bonis . . . viribus : the ablative of characteristic. 
 
 esse : for the present infinitive depending upon memini, see 537, 1 ; 
 336, A, n. 1 ; 281, 2, n. 
 
 Nihil : to be taken with necesse. 
 
 mihi: the dative depends upon necesse est, and is used instead of the 
 accusative, to emphasize the person. 
 
 id : refers to de me ipso dicer e. 
 
SECTIONS 31-33. 131 
 
 X. 31. Videtisne: ne appended to the principal verb often has the 
 force of nonne, and expects the answer yes. 
 
 ut : hoio, 
 
 praedicet: boasts. 
 
 videbat: this is a better reading than vivebatj which some editors 
 adopt. 
 
 vera praedicans : the participle takes the place of a conditional clause. 
 
 insolens : arrogant. 
 
 Etenim : adds a statement corroborative of the foregoing. 
 
 egebat: egere, to be destitute of something which one needs; indigere^ to 
 feel the need^ differing from egere in emphasizing the sense of need rather 
 than the need itself ; desiderare, to miss, to long for; requirere, to ask back 
 again, i.e. to feel the loss and ask to have it repaired ; carere, to be without, 
 — generally, though not always, in reference to something desirable; opus 
 esse, to need something for use ; vacare, to be free from, — usually in respect 
 to what is undesirable. 
 
 dux ille Graeciae : Agamemnon, ille in the sense of that well-knoion, 
 famous. 
 
 nusquam : nowhere in the Hiad or Odyssey. 
 
 Aiacis : for the case, see 391, II. 4 (2) ; 234, d, 2 ; 359, Rem. 1. 
 
 acciderit : in the subjunctive because in a dependent clause in the oratio 
 obliqua; see 525, 2 ; 337 ; 656, 661. 
 
 32. Quartum . . . octogesimum : I am in my eighty-fourth year. 
 vellem : see on VIII. 26. 
 
 idem : the neuter pronoun used as cognate accusative after gloriari. 
 
 possem: ut is sometimes omitted, especially after volo, malo, nolo, facio, 
 
 quod : as. 
 
 miles . . . quaestor : cf. lY. 10. 
 
 depugnavi : the indicative emphasizes the fact stated. 
 
 sed . . . enervavit : a return to the direct discourse. 
 
 hospites: guest-friends ; i.e. friends from foreign cities and countries. 
 
 fieri : after monet the subjunctive might have been used. 
 
 mallem : see on vellem above. Cato takes the proverb literally, whereas 
 it simply means that one must begin in early years to live prudently, if one 
 desires to reach a good old age. 
 
 cui . . . occupatus : ' ' whom I refused to see, on the plea that I was 
 occupied." 
 
 fuerim : subjunctive of characteristic introduced by cui. 
 
 At: see on VII. 21. 
 
 33. "NLoderatid: proper control, right use. 
 
132 SUPPLEMENTARY XOTES. 
 
 modo : see on VII. 22. 
 
 ne : truly. For its form and use, see Harpers' Lat. Lex. 
 
 non . . . desiderio tenebitur : will not greatly feel the lack, stronger 
 than 7ion desiderahit. 
 
 Olympiae : in the locative like names of towns. 
 
 cum . . . sustineret : translate by the present participle, hearing on his 
 shoulder's. Many editors cite Quint. I. 9. 5, Milo, quern vitulum assueverat 
 ferre, taurum ferehat. 
 
 has corporis : Milo's physical strength. 
 
 malis : potential subjunctive in an interrogative sentence. Cf . mallem, 
 § 32, and note the force of the tense in each. 
 
 utare . . . requTras: for the mood and tense of these two verbs, see 
 484, IV. n. 2 ; 489, 3 ; 266, a ; 269, b ; 263, 2, a. 
 
 dum adsit, cum absit : dum and cum are simply temporal ; adsit depends 
 upon utare, and absit upon requiras. 
 
 nisi forte : see on VI. 18. 
 
 aetate progress! : cf. aetate processisset, VII. 21. 
 
 requirere : see on egebat, X. 31. 
 
 infirmitas . . . maturitas : note the apt terms chosen to characterize 
 each period of life. 
 
 suo : its own ; i.e. at the fitting time. 
 
 percipi : this is used of the gathering of ripe fruit. Cf . VII. 24, percipi- 
 endis . . . fructibus. 
 
 34. Audire : the present audire is used with the force of the perfect, 
 like the Greek dKorjcLv ; I think you have heard, and so, I think you are 
 info7*med. — Meissner. 
 
 capite operto : predicate ablative of characteristic. 
 
 siccitatem : this term applies to the body of an athlete in training ; it 
 denotes hardness of flesh and freedom from humors, impurities, and flabbi- 
 ness. 
 
 XL Non sunt . . . vires : this states a defect in old age for the purpose 
 of showing that it does not necessarily render it unhappy. Some editors 
 read ne sint. 
 
 a senectute: from old men; the abstract for the concrete as in the 
 preceding sentence. 
 
 legibus et institutis : by law and custom. 
 
 non modo: for 7ion modo non; the second non is usually omitted before 
 sed ne . . . quidem when the verb of the second clause belongs also to the 
 first. See 552, 2 ; 149, e ; 482, 5. 1. 
 
SECTIONS 34-37. 133 
 
 quod: adverbial accusative. For this construction, cogi aliqidd, see 
 Harpers' Lat. Lex. s.v. cogo, II. B, 1 ; cf. also Yerg. Aen. III. 56 : — 
 
 Quid non mortalia pectora cogis 9 
 
 35. At : see on VII. 21. 
 At id : the reply to at multi. 
 
 valetudinis: valetudo means simply state of health; whether good or 
 bad will be determined by the context. 
 
 is : in apposition with filius. 
 
 valetudine : see on capite operto, X. 34. 
 
 alterum : second only to his father. 
 
 illud : it stands for ille. but agrees with lumen in gender. 
 
 paternam . . . animi: the sou had inherited the father's greatness of 
 soul. 
 
 Resistendum : emphasized by its position. 
 
 vitia : deficiencies. 
 
 dUigentia: about equivalent to diligenti cura valetudinis., as shown by 
 the following sentence. 
 
 36. utendum exercitationibus : for the construction, see 544, 2, n. 
 5; 294, c; 427,4.. 
 
 tantum . only so much. 
 
 non : note the asyndeton ; we would expect et or sed non. 
 
 menti atque animo : the intellect and soul. 
 
 haec : neuter plural, referring to menti atque animo. See 445, 3, n. 1 ; 
 198, a. 
 
 lumini oleum: instilles admits the dative and accusative. 
 
 instHles: for the mood, see on exerceas, YII. 21. 
 
 quos ait : sc. esse. 
 
 cdmicos . . . senes : the stupid old men in the play. The quotation is 
 given more fully in De Am. XXVI. 99. 
 
 hos significat : by these he means, significat, after the analogy of verbs 
 of naming, admits two accusatives; cf. salutare, VII. 21. 
 
 dissolutos : careless, broken down. 
 
 quae vitia sunt: faults which belong. For this use of the relative, cf. 
 quem magistratum, IV. 10. 
 
 deliratio: dotage. For its derivation, see Harpers' Lat. Lex. s.v. 
 
 37. robustos: sturdy. 
 
 tantas clientelas : so many dependents. 
 
 et caecus et senex : note the emphatic position and the concessive force. 
 
 in suos : over his household. 
 
134 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 metuebant, verebantur : the distinction in the meaning of these verbs 
 may be gathered from the subjects, servi, liheri. Cf. the English revere. 
 
 vigebat . . . disciplina : the reading is doubtful. Reid has v. i. illo 
 animus patrius et d. ; Sommerbrodt, v. i. ilia domo patrii moris d. ; still other 
 readings are given, patrius; of our fathers. 
 
 38. Ita : restrictive, equivalent to ea lege, on this condition. 
 
 emancipata est : primarily a legal expression, emancipo meant strictly 
 to put a son out of the hand and power of the father. This was accomplished 
 at first by three fictitious sales ; in later times by a simple declaration before 
 the proper magistrate, emancipo was also used in a wider sense to denote the 
 transfer of ownership in property from one person to another. Again, it 
 was employed, apart from its legal significance, in the general sense of giving 
 up, or surrendering something to another. 
 
 in manibus : see on YII. 22. 
 
 causarum . . . defend! : of all the famous causes in which I have 
 appeared as advocate. 
 
 nunc . . . maxime : at this very time. The expression is elliptical ; see 
 Harpers' Lat. Lex. s.v. Cum^ G, 1, h. 
 
 conficio : compose ; he was preparing his speeches for publication. 
 
 exercendae . . . gratia : the practice of the Pythagoreans was for moral 
 discipline rather than for exercise of the memory, merely. 
 
 desidero : miss ; see on egebat, X. 31. 
 
 Adsum: laid my friends in court; especially as an advocate. 
 
 frequens : an adjective where the English idiom would require an ad- 
 verb. 
 
 ultro : of my own accord. The senators might branch off into a discus- 
 sion of almost any subject they chose when giving their opinion upon the 
 question proposed by the presiding officer. 
 
 lectulus: a couch. The Romans usually reclined when engaged in 
 literary labor of any kind. 
 
 viventT : the dative of reference, see 384, 4, n. 3 ; 235 ; 352. Some 
 editors take it as depending upon obrepat. 
 
 sensim sine sensu aetas senescit : the alliteration (ss, s, ss, s, ss) 
 corresponds to the gradual fading away of the life of an old man. — Som- 
 merbrodt. 
 
 XII. 39. vituperatio senectutis : charge against old age. 
 
 quod . . . dicunt : the full construction would be, quod, ut dicunt, careat 
 or caret. For the construction in the text, an infinitive depending upon a 
 verb of saying, see 516, II. 1. 
 
SECTIOXS 39-42. 135 
 
 voluptatibus : sensual pleasure. 
 
 aetatis : for senectutis. 
 
 quae . . . est : ichich loas reported to me. 
 
 cum . . . Q. Maximo : cf . IV. 10. adulescens is in apposition with the 
 subject of essem. 
 
 capitaliorem : moi^e deadly. 
 
 a natura : see on a qua, II. 5. 
 
 cuius voluptatis : dependent upon avidae. 
 
 ad potiendum : so. vohiptate. 
 
 incitarentur : the mood is due to the indirect discourse. The tense 
 conforms to that of dicebat. 
 
 40. Hinc : from this source. 
 
 impelleret : its object is homines understood. For the mood, see on 
 incitarentur, above. The clause also characterizes scelus and malum f acinus. 
 
 vero : adds a still stronger statement. 
 
 flagitium : disgraceful deed ; scelus means crime ; f acinus was primarily 
 a deed, then it came to be taken in a bad sense, evil deed ; a crime against 
 the gods is nefas; libido differs from these words in referring to the desire, 
 rather than to the accomplished deed. 
 
 cumque : and while. The clause is a continuation of the oratio obliqua. 
 
 sive . . . sive : for the use of the disjunctives, aut, sive, vel, see 554, 
 II. 2, 3; 156, c; 492-497. 
 
 41. in . . . regno : " where pleasure is king." — Shuckburgh. 
 
 quo : for the subjunctive with quo = ut eo, see 497, II. 2 ; 317, 6 ; 545,2. 
 
 tanta . . . maxima: one excited by the greatest pleasure that could 
 possibly be experienced. For tanta . . . quanta . . . maxima, cf. De Am. 
 XX. 74. 
 
 tam diu, dum : so long as. Cicero has the same expression in Cat. III. 7. 
 
 nihil agitare mente . . . posset : mens is the intellect ; ratio and cogi- 
 tatio refer to intellectual processes. A person, under the supposed circum- 
 stances, would lose control of his mind ; he could neither reason nor reflect. 
 
 siquidem: literally, if indeed; it is about equivalent to since. 
 
 maior . . . longinquior : the comparative has the force of too, or very. 
 
 locutmn : sc. esse ; predicate of Archytam. 
 
 42. Quorsus hoc : see on V. 13. 
 
 ut intellegeretis : see on Quia profecto, V. 13. The imperfect is due to 
 an implied dicebam or dixi upon which the clause Quorsus hoc depends. 
 
 efficeret : for the mood, see on ferrent. III. 7 ; for the tense, on intell^- 
 geretis, above. 
 
 ut ita dicam : to soften the metaphor. 
 
136 SUPPLEMENTARY iSTOTES. 
 
 oculos : a rare use of oculus ; acies is the regular term in this sense. 
 
 commercium : intercourse. 
 
 Invitus : see on frequens^ XI. 38. 
 
 fuisset ; the mood is due to eicerem. 
 
 notandam : branded. The allusion is to the nota censoria affixed to the 
 names of those who were to be degraded in rank ; see Harpers' Lat. Lex. 
 s.v. 7iota, II. B. 2. 
 
 in Gallia : this means that he served in Gaul during his consulship ; see 
 on L. Flaynininum, p. 80. 
 
 ut securi feriret : to behead. 
 
 essent : see on fuisset above. 
 
 damnati . . . capitalis : condemned to death. Livy, XXXIX. 42, says 
 the person killed was a Boian of high rank who had come with his family to 
 ask the consul for protection. 
 
 quae : causal ; equivalent to cum ea, since it. 
 
 imperi : opposed to privato. While serving as consul he represented the 
 Roman people. The disgrace was double, affecting both the man himself 
 and the nation. 
 
 XIII. 43. audivi ex : observe a senihus, a Thessalo, and ex eo, below ; 
 the ablative with de may also be used. 
 
 se porro pueros : that they in turn when boys. 
 
 esse quendam Athenis : that there was a certain one at Athens ; the 
 reference is to Epicurus ; esse shows that he was living at the time Fabricius 
 met Cineas. 
 
 qui se . . . profiteretur : i.e. he was a philosopher by profession. 
 
 omnia quae faceremus . . . referenda : all we do ought to be judged 
 according to the standard of pleasure, faceremus takes its tense from dice- 
 bant. In English we would use the present. 
 
 optare : to express the ivish. 
 
 id : id may be regarded as the accusative of extent, or as a nominative, 
 modifying the impersonal subject oi persuader etur. See Roby 1423. 
 
 Samnitibus : the dative depending upon the verb used impersonally in 
 the passive. 
 
 quo : see on XII. 41. 
 
 Vixerat . . . cum: i.e. Curius had been a contemporary and friend of 
 Decius. 
 
 eundem: Decius. 
 
 Deci : in apposition with eius. 
 
 profecto : assuredly. 
 
SECTIONS 43-46. 137 
 
 sua sponte : for its own sake ; i.e. regardless of all external considerations. 
 optimus quisque : all good men; see 458, 1 ; 93, c ; 318^ 2. 
 
 44. Quorsus : cf. XII. 42. 
 
 Quia . . . quod : quia regularly introduces a fact ; quod either a fact, 
 or a statement ; see 156, /. 
 
 Caret: see on egehat, X. 31. 
 
 exstructis : heaped up, loaded with food. 
 
 vinulentia . . . cruditate . . . insomniis : drunkenness, indigestion, 
 and sleeplessness. 
 
 Sed . . . est voluptatT : hut if some concession must he made to 
 pleasure. 
 
 quoniam : see on quia and quod, above. 
 
 divine : about equivalent to praeclare, admirably. 
 
 capiantur : the subjunctive because the reason is Plato's. 
 
 modicis . . . conviviis: reasonable entertainments. 
 
 primus : was the first to ; for this use of the adjective, see 442 ; 191 ; 
 325, 7. 
 
 cereo funali : the MSS. have crehro or credo. Mommsen, following Manu- 
 tius, prefers cereo, and this reading has been adopted by a number of editors. 
 
 nullo exemplo : with no precedent. 
 
 privatus : after the expiration of his term of office. 
 
 45. Sed . . . alios : sc. commemoro. 
 Ad me . . . revertar : cf . X. 32. 
 
 Primum : instead of a corresponding deinde we find quoque, XIV. 46. 
 
 aetatis ; ''belonging to that time of life" ; aetas has here the force of 
 iuventus. 
 
 amicorum : to be taken with coetu and sermonihus. 
 
 convivium : " a living together." 
 
 tum . . . tum : sometimes . . . sometimes. 
 
 compotationem : o-vinroaLov. 
 
 concenatidnem : a-ijvdenrvoi'. 
 
 in eo genere : sc. rerum. 
 
 id : the physical part of the feast in distinction from the good-fellowship 
 and intellectual enjoyment. 
 
 XIV. 46. tempestivis . . . conviviis : early banquets. The usual hour 
 for dinner was the ninth, about three o'clock in summer, and two in winter. 
 A tempestivum convivium began before the customary hour. These pro- 
 tracted banquets were often attended with over-indulgence in eating and 
 drinking. 
 
138 
 
 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 quoque : see on primum, XIII. 45. 
 
 qui . . . restant : of whom very few survive. For qui pauci, see 397, 
 2, n. ; 216, e ; 370, 2. 
 
 cum . . . aetate : the abstract for the concrete ; translate, with men of 
 your age. 
 
 quae . . . auxit . . . sustulit : the indicative states the reason simply as 
 a fact. Note the omission of a connective between the two clauses. For the 
 sentiment, cf . Plato, Bep. 1. 328, '' I find that at my time of life, as the pleasures 
 and delights of the body fade away, the love of discourse grows upon me." 
 
 ista ; with a tone of contempt. 
 
 ne . . . videar : for the omission of the principal clause on which the 
 final depends, see 499, 2, n. ; 317, c. 
 
 cuius . . . modus : this departs from the strict teaching of the Stoics. 
 The force of the statement is softened by fortasse. 
 
 non . . . ne . . . quidem : ne quidem emphasizes the negation ; see 
 553, 2 ; 209, a, 1 ; 445, 
 
 a summo : the following diagram shows the arrangement of the couches 
 and the position of the guests. The cup passed from left to right, beginning 
 
 summus 
 
 1 
 
 
 9 
 
 imus 
 
 medius 
 
 2 
 
 
 8 
 
 medius 
 
 imus 
 
 3 
 
 
 7 
 
 summus 
 
 
 4 
 
 5 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 CQ 
 
 
 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 OQ 
 
 
 
 
 B 
 
 S 
 
 OQ 
 
 
 
 B 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 
 lectus medius 
 
 adhibetur in poculo : is carried on over the cups. 
 
 minuta atque rorantia : small cups from which the wine is merely 
 sipped ; literally, from which it flows drop by drop. 
 
 refrigeratio : some editors refer this to the cooling of the wine by artificial 
 means ; others, to the place where the banquet was held, a cool apartment, 
 or a cool retreat. The second explanation seems to be the better one. It 
 was common to have a dining room in the cool part of the house, for summer 
 use ; and another, exposed to the sun, and artificially heated, for occupation 
 in winter. 
 
SECTIONS 46-49. 139 
 
 quae : see on Qui, I. 3. 
 
 in Sabinis : sc. agris. Cato had a country estate at Tusculum, in the 
 Sabme hills. 
 
 vicinorum : in the genitive depending upon compleo, which, however, 
 often takes the ablative. See 410, Y. 1 ; 248, c, 2, rem. ; 383, 1 ; Draeger, 
 Syntax, I. p. 568 (where this example is cited). Reid makes it depend upon 
 convivium, 
 
 ad multam noctem : till late at night. 
 
 quam maxime possumus : emphatic expression. 
 
 47. At: see on VII. 21. 
 
 tanta . . . titillatio : so keen a relish. — Crowell. This is used for the 
 Greek yapyaXicrfjiSs ; quasi implies that the Latin term does not exactly 
 translate the original ; cf. Cic. iV. Z>. I. 40, 113, quibus quasi titillatio (Epicuri 
 enim hoc verhum est) adhibetur sensibus. 
 
 quod . . . desideres : for the mood, see 507, 2 ; 316 ; 593. For the 
 force of the verb, see on egebat, X. 31. 
 
 Sophocles: sc. dixit. 
 
 Dimeliora: God forbid I sc. duint (archaic for dent). The story is 
 taken from Plato, Bep. I. 329. 
 
 istinc : referring to rebus veneriis. 
 
 agresti: icild. 
 
 hoc non desiderare : used as the subject of esse. 
 
 48. Quod SI : but if. 
 
 bona aetas: i.e. adulescentia, youth. 
 
 potitur: used instead of fruitur, for variety. 
 
 Turpione Ambivio : the cognomen is often placed before the nomen 
 when the praenomen is omitted. 
 
 in prima cavea : the front seats. The term cavea applied to the whole 
 auditorium, which was semicircular in form, and provided with ascending 
 tiers of seats. Prima or ima, media, and summa or ultima designated the 
 three grades of seats occupied respectively by the highest, middle, and lowest 
 classes of citizens. There were no permanent theaters in Cato's time. 
 Cicero's language strictly applies to his own day, and not to the supposed 
 time of the dialogue. 
 
 propter : an adverb, close by, near at hand. 
 
 tantum . . . est : to be taken with delectatur. 
 
 49. ilia: the following ; explained by awim?^^ . . . vivere. 
 
 otiosa senectute : free from public duties ; devoted to study and self- 
 improvement. 
 
 describere : the regular term for mathematical drawing. 
 
140 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. . 
 
 oppressit: surprised. 
 
 50. actitis : i.e. those which require muteness of intellect. 
 docuisset : the manager taught the play to the actors ; translate, had 
 
 brought out on the stage. 
 
 processit aetate : lived on; cf. aetate processisset, VII. 21. 
 
 loquar : deliberative subjunctive. 
 
 senes : having the force of a temporal clause. 
 
 exerceri : reflexive in force. 
 
 comparandae : can he compared. The gerundive in a negative sentence, 
 or in a question suggesting a negative ansv^er, has the force of possibility. 
 
 illud : that well-known. 
 
 ante dixi : in YIII. 26. 
 
 51. Habent . . . rationem : the subject refers to agricolarum. habere 
 rationem is a commercial expression, to have an account with. 
 
 recusat imperium : cf . Tac. Germ. 26, sola terrae seges imperatur. 
 
 plerumque : stands in place of a second alias. 
 
 Quamquam : see on I. 1. 
 
 VIS ac natura : hendiadys ; the natural force. 
 
 Quae : see on qui^ I. 3. 
 
 gremio: note the omission of the preposition. The word is used figu- 
 ratively, '' in the lap of mother earth." 
 
 occaecatum : hidden from the light. 
 
 occatio : harrowing. This is not connected with occaecatum ; but comes 
 from occare., root AC. 
 
 tepef actum : accusative ; sc. semen. 
 
 vapore : heat. 
 
 diffundit : it causes the seed to expand. 
 
 viriditatem : a green shoot; abstract for concrete. 
 
 fibris stirpium : fibers of the roots. 
 
 culmo . . . geniculato : on its jointed stalk. 
 
 vaginis : translate in the singular, a sheath. 
 
 quasi pubescens : as if maturing. 
 
 spici : from spicum ; limiting ordine. 
 
 52. commemorem : see on loquar, XIV. 60. 
 
 ut . . . noscatis : there is an ellipsis of the governing clause, *'I say 
 this," that. See on we . . . videar, XIV. 46. 
 
 omnium quae . . . e terra : the Latin has no one substantive which can 
 be used in this comprehensive sense. — Meissner. 
 
 tantulo : note the force of the diminutive and the omission of its correl- 
 ative term. 
 
 J 
 
SECTIONS 52-54. 141 
 
 procreet : subjunctive of characteristic. 
 
 Malleoli : mallet-shoots^ so called because of the form in which they were 
 cut. 
 
 plantae : slips y cut from the main stock. 
 
 sarmenta : vine-cuttings, from the branches. 
 
 viviradices : quick-sets ; they had already taken root. 
 
 propagiues: layers; branches bent to the ground and allowed to take 
 root. 
 
 fertur: sinks. 
 
 eadem : this repeats the subject vitis^ which is separated from its verb by 
 the relative clause. 
 
 quam serpentem . . . erratico : serpentem has about the force of a con- 
 ditional clause, and if it creeps along in its irregular, xoinding course. 
 
 ars agricolarum : the abstract for the concrete ; the skillful husband- 
 men, 
 
 ne . . . sarmentis : lest it run to wood. 
 
 53. exsistit : sprouts out, springs up. 
 
 ea quae : they take their gender from gemma, 
 
 gemma: eye, hud. This is the original meaning of the word, and not 
 jewel or precious stone. See Harpers' Lat, Lex. s.v. 
 
 nee . . . et : instead of nee . . . nee. Translate, it neither lacks moder- 
 ate warmth nor suffers from the intense heat of the sun. 
 
 fructu laetius : richer in fruit. 
 
 capitum iugatio : the joining of the tops, i.e. the joining of the props by 
 a cross-bar. Some editors think the tops of the vines were joined in the 
 form of a yoke. 
 
 religatio : this probably refers to the fastening of the vines to the trellis 
 formed by the uprights and cross pieces. Reid thinks the allusion is to " the 
 tying down of the shoots to make them take root." 
 
 propagatio vitium: i.e. the cultivation by layers, propagines ; see 
 on § 62. 
 
 Immissio : opposed to amputatio. Some branches are cut off, others are 
 left on the vine and allowed to grow. This seems to me more correct than 
 *' engrafting," the meaning given in Harpers' Lat. Lex, Stickney refers it 
 to the intertwining of the branches in the trellis. Long refers it to putting 
 the ends of some shoots in the ground to let them take root. 
 
 54. loquar : deliberative subjunctive, as in proferam, above. Cf. com- 
 memorem, § 52. 
 
 stercorandi : of enriching the soil. 
 in e5 libro : entitled De Be Bustica. 
 
142 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 doctus Hesiodus : often used of poets, like the Greek (7o06s ; cf. Cic. 
 Tusc, I. 1, 3, cum apud Graecos antiquissimum sit e doctis genus poetarum. 
 cum . . . scriberet : a concessive clause. 
 fuit : for vixit. 
 
 lenientem : denoting an attempted action ; cf . dividenti, IV. 11. 
 arbustis : groves. Vines were often trained on the trees. 
 res rusticae : country life. 
 pomariis : orchards. 
 omnium : i.e. of every kind. 
 
 XVI. 55. Possum : / might. For the indicative where the English 
 would use the conditional construction, see 476, 4 ; 311, c ; 254^ 1. 
 
 longiora : too long. 
 
 provectus sum : / have been carried away. 
 
 loquacior : the comparative has the force of somewhat^ or rather. 
 
 ne . . . vitiis videar vindicare: cf. ne . . . videar^ XIV. 46, and 
 ut . . . noscatiSy XV. 52. Notice the alliteration. 
 
 vitiis : defects, failings. 
 
 Ergo : on account of the delights of rural life. 
 
 triumphasset : the subjunctive here with cum may be translated parti- 
 cipially, after triumphing. 
 
 Cuius : see on qui, I. 3. 
 
 a me : from mine ; i.e. from my country seat. 
 
 56. cum: when. 
 
 Poteratne . . . senectutem: non potest non = necesse est, ihQVQioxexQndiQV, 
 Must not such a spirit, of necessity, make old age happy f — Sommerbrodt. 
 
 Sed venio : Cato returns to his subject proper. 
 
 in agris : in the country . Note its emphatic position. 
 
 senatores . . . senes : see on VI. 19, 20. 
 
 aranti : while plowing ; emphatic by its position. 
 
 dictatorem esse factum : as the dictator was appointed, not elected, 
 we would expect the verb dicere instead of facere. 
 
 dictatoris : in apposition with cuius. 
 
 adpetentem : with the force of a causal clause. 
 
 occupatum : a perfect participle where the English idiom would take a 
 verb. It may be translated anticipated. It is not, however, strictly coordi- 
 nate in thought with interemit, but has in the Latin about the force of a 
 temporal clause. Livy gives a somewhat different account of the event IV. 14. 
 The act was in reality murder, and Ahala was afterwards placed on trial for 
 his crime, but escaped punishment by voluntary exile. 
 
SECTIONS 56-58. 143 
 
 viatores: travelers^ from via. They were employed by certain magis- 
 trates as messengers. Officers having both lictors and viatores used the 
 former as personal attendants, the latter to summon the senate and to deliver 
 other official messages. They were mostly freedmen, or of low birth. Smith's 
 Diet. Antiq. 
 
 agri cultione : a very rare expression for the customary agn cultura. For 
 the other passages in which it is found, see Harpers' Lat. Lex. s.v. cultio. 
 
 baud scio an nulla . . . esse : / am inclined to think none can he hap- 
 pier, haud scio an^ literally, / know not whether., often implies the probable 
 truth of the following clause. 
 
 ad cultum . . . deorum: referring to the fruits and victims offered in 
 sacrifice. 
 
 ut . . . redeamus : there is an ellipsis of the governing clause. See on 
 ne . . . videar, XIV. 46. Observe also the similarity in sentiment in the 
 two passages. 
 
 pore 6 . . . gallina : used collectively. 
 
 lam : moreover. 
 
 succidiam alteram : a second flitch., i.e. the garden was only second in 
 importance and usefulness to the supply of salt meat, and was almost as con- 
 venient when food was needed. 
 
 Conditiora : the employment of spare time in fowling and Minting gives 
 a keener relish to these things. 
 
 57. praecidam : sc. sermonem. 
 
 usu . . . ornatius: ci.fructu laetius, aspectu pulchrius, XV. 53. 
 
 ad quein fruendum : in early writers fruor was used with the accusative ; 
 for the construction in this instance, see 544, 2, n. 5 ; 296, rem. ; 427, 5. 
 
 non modo non retardat, verum etiam : translate, so far is old age from 
 proving an obstacle that it even, etc. 
 
 aut . . . vel . . . ve : see on sive . . . sive, XII. 40. 
 
 58. Sibi habeant : referring to young men. 
 
 clavam : the foil ; made of wood and used in sword exercises. Young 
 soldiers, specially, practiced with it against a stake (palus) set in the ground 
 to represent an adversary. 
 
 pilam : the ball. For a full account of the various games of ball in vogue 
 among the Greeks and Romans, see Smith's Diet. Antiq, Vol. II. s.v. pila. 
 
 talos . . . et tesseras : dice. The tali, daTpdyaXot, were originally made 
 of bone, afterwards of metal. They were oblong, rounded at the ends and 
 marked on four sides, 1 and 6 opposite each other and 3 and 4. Four of 
 these were used in playing. The tesserae, kv^ol, of which three were employed 
 in a game, were like the modem dice. For a full account of these and their 
 
144 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 use, see Becker's GalluSy p. 499 ff. ; and Smith's Diet. Antiq. Vol. II., 
 talus and tessera. 
 
 id ipsum ut : this is the reading of several MSS. and has been adopted by 
 H. Allen, Long, and Reid. The more common reading utrum in place of ut^ 
 is more difficult to explain. Supply /aczaw^, and translate even in that they 
 may do as they please. 
 
 XVII. 59. qui . . . qui: note the two relative clauses. We might 
 expect quique in the second. 
 
 tuenda : management. 
 
 ut intellegatis : cf . ut . . . iwscatis, XY. 52. 
 
 regale ; worthy of a king. regale = quod regem decet; regium=quod regis 
 est. — Meissner. 
 
 Sardis : accusative plural, denoting the limit of motion. 
 
 a sociis : the allies of Sparta in the war against Athens. 
 
 communem . . . humanum : courteous and kind. 
 
 c5nsaeptum agrum : a park ; a translation of the Greek irapd^eiaov. 
 
 proceritates : note the plural of the abstract ; the height of the different 
 trees. 
 
 in quincuncem: quincunx =quinque'Unciae, five twelfths of a unit of 
 weight or measure. It was used in reference to trees planted in the form of 
 the five spots on dice, thus : — 
 
 See Harpers' Lat. Lex, s.v. 
 
 dimensa ; note its use in the passive, measured off. 
 
 discripta: arranged. 
 
 Atqui : and yet. 
 
 ego . . . mei . . . mea : emphatic. 
 
 purpuram : purple robe. 
 
 multo auro : ablative of characteristic. The Persians were noted for 
 their beautiful ornaments of gold, silver, and precious jewels. 
 
 60. impedit : sc. nos. The pronoun is regularly omitted when quominus 
 with its clause follows. 
 
 perduxisse : sc. agri colendi studia. 
 
 esset: equivalent to viveret. Its mood is due to its dependence upon 
 perduxisse. 
 
SECTIONS 60-63. 145 
 
 acta iam aetate : ablative absolute ; with his best years already past. 
 The more common expression is exacta aetate. 
 
 senectutis initium : i.e. aetas seniorum. In the strict sense of the term, 
 senectus began with the sixty-first year. 
 
 apex : used figuratively, the crowning feature. For its ordinary mean- 
 ing, see Harpers' Lat. Lex. s.v. I. 
 
 61. illud elogium : that well-known epitaph, elogium is not equivalent 
 to the English "eulogy," the idea of which is expressed in Latin by 
 laudatio. 
 
 Hunc . . . virum : early inscriptions upon tombs and monuments were 
 written in the old Saturnian measure, populi limits virum^ not gentes. 
 
 carmen : the inscription. 
 
 cuius . . . esset : a causal clause in which cuius is equivalent to cum 
 eius. 
 
 Quern virum nuper P. Crassum : Crassum is the subject of esse under- 
 stood, and quern virum is the predicate accusative after it. vidimus governs 
 two accusatives after the analogy of verbs of making, calling, and the like. 
 nuper is used like modo in IX. 27. 
 
 praeditum : invested with. 
 
 ut . . . ante . . . Maximo : in IV. 10-12. 
 
 sententia : a deliberate judgment expressed in the form of a set speech 
 or vote. 
 
 honorata : equivalent to a conditional clause. It refers to one who has 
 held public office. 
 
 XVIH. 62. in omni oratione : in my whole discourse. 
 
 eam : "only that." 
 
 constituta sit ; for the mood, see on uteretur, I. 2. 
 
 quae . . . defenderet : the verb takes its tense from dixi^ rather than 
 from efficitur. 
 
 extremes ; at the close. Influence is the final reward of old age. 
 
 63. honorabilia : said to occur only here in good Latin. 
 
 salutari . . . consul!; that men should greet us, seek after us, give us 
 precedence, rise in our presence^ accompany ics on the street, escort us home 
 at the close of day, and ask us for advice, decedi and adsurgi are used 
 impersonally. 
 
 morata: an adjective derived from mos. "In proportion as they are 
 most highly civilized." 
 
 tantum tribuitur : is so much respect paid> 
 
 Quin etiam : nay more. 
 
 DE SEXEC. — 10 
 
146 SUPPLEMEXTARY XOTES. 
 
 V 
 
 ludis: at the time of the games. The allusion is to the great games, held 
 every four years in the month of July, in honor of Athene, the patron god- 
 dess of Athens. 
 
 magno consessu : ablative absolute ; translate, in the great assembly. 
 
 certo in loco : seats were reserved in the theater for ambassadors and 
 men of distinction. For the custom, see Greek Lex. s.v. irpoedpia^ the front 
 seat at the theater. 
 
 sessum : for this use of the supine, see 546, 1 ; 302 ; 435. 
 
 64. multiplex: repeated. 
 
 dixisse . . . quendam : depending upon proditum est., above. The indi- 
 rect discourse, which was interrupted at qui^ is again resumed. 
 
 coUegio : the college of augurs. 
 
 antecedit : sc. alios. 
 
 sententiae principatum : ' ' the privilege of speaking or voting first. ' ' 
 
 honore: in official position. 
 
 cum imperio : this applies to consuls and praetors during their term of 
 office. 
 
 comparandae : see on XIV. 60. 
 
 65. At: see on YII. 21. 
 quaerimus : sc. verum. 
 morum : character. 
 
 non illius quidem iustae ; not sufficient indeed, quidem has a conces- 
 sive force. Eor the use of the redundant pronoun illius with quidem, see 
 450, 4, n. 2 ; 151, e, and 195, c ; 307, rem. 4. 
 
 contemn! : slighted. 
 
 odiosa : cf . II. 4. 
 
 offensio : with passive force. 
 
 bonis : to be taken with both moribus and artibus. 
 
 in vita : in real life. 
 
 natura : disposition. 
 
 66. quid sibi velit : what it means. 
 quo . . . eo: the . . . the. 
 
 XIX. soUicitam habere : to keep in a constant state of anxiety. The 
 perfect participle with habere denotes the continued effect of the action of 
 the verb. See 388, 1, n.; 292, c ; 238. 
 
 aetatem : abstract for concrete. 
 
 esse longe : equivalent to abesse longe. 
 
 qui . . . vTderit : subjunctive of characteristic. 
 
 ubi sit futurus : for the mood, see on qui , . . viderit, above. 
 
SECTIOiSrS 66-70. 147 
 
 atqul^ tertium .^ . . potest: the meaning is this, "Death ends all, and 
 therefore is not to be feared, or is the gate to immortality, and is to be 
 desired." The author thus limits the future state to endless sleep, or eter- 
 nal happiness, and omits the third alternative, a state of punishment for the 
 wicked. 
 
 67. Quid . . . timeam : deliberative subjunctive. 
 Quamquam: corrective, as in I. 1. 
 
 cui : the dative of reference, and equivalent to lU ex. Translate, that he 
 is sure. 
 
 ad vesperum : "at eventide." 
 
 aetas ilia : referring to adulescens. 
 
 quod : see on qui^ I. 3. 
 
 melius et prudentius : i.e. there would be more wise old men, and they 
 would have more influence in leading the young to live circumspectly. 
 
 Mens . . . ratio : cf. nihil agitare mente, XII. 41. . 
 
 qui . . . nuUi: see on qui pauci, XIY. 46. 
 
 nuUae . . . fuissent : cf . VI. 20. 
 
 Sed redeo : cf. X. 32. 
 
 cum . . . cum : cf . II. 4, for a similar use of the conjunction and prepo- 
 sition in close proximity. 
 
 68. in Optimo filio : cf. VI. 16. 
 tu : sc. sensisti. 
 
 exspectatis . . . dignitatem : who were expected to attain the highest 
 honors of the state. See Harpers' Lat. Lex, s.v. exspecto, II. B. 
 
 At: cf. VII. 21. 
 
 idem : to be taken with quod 
 
 At ... At : Cf . XI. 35. 
 
 eo : so much. 
 
 ille . . . hie : ille and hie depart from their usual meaning, the former, 
 the latter, in order of mention, ille refers to adulescens, as more remote, 
 and hie to senex, as nearer in thought to the speaker. 
 
 69. Quamquam: corrective, and yet; see on § 67. 
 aliquid extremum : so in II. 5. 
 
 effluxit : cf . effluxisset, II. 4. 
 tantum: only so much. 
 
 quod . . . consecutus sis : for the mood, see 486, III. ; 311, a ; 257, 3. 
 et . . . et . . . et: note the polysyndeton. Cf. VI. 18, et miles et 
 tribunus, etc. 
 
 quid sequatur : what may follow, i.e. what the future is to be. 
 
 70. modo : provided. 
 
148 SUPFLEMEXTARY NOTES. 
 
 prdcesserit : sapiens aetate may be supplied. Some editors, however, 
 understand aetas as the subject. 
 
 aestatem . . . venisse : the object of dolent. See 371, III. n. 1 ; 237, 
 h ; 330^ rem. 
 
 tempora : seasons. 
 
 71. secundum naturam: that it is man's duty to live in accordance 
 with nature, was a fundamental principle in the Stoic philosophy. Cf. II. 5. 
 
 emori : stronger than mori. 
 
 Quod idem contingit : hut this also happens. 
 
 adversante . . . natura : with the force of a concessive clause. 
 
 ut cum . . . ut cum : the cum is superfluous ; omit it in translating. 
 
 quasi : quasi for sicut or quemadmodum is archaic. — Meissner. 
 
 quo propius : the neare7\ 
 
 accedam : the subjunctive ; see 529, 11. n. 1, 1 ; 342; 629. 
 
 XX. 72. quoad . . . possit: so far as one (i.e. senex) may he 
 ahle. 
 
 munus offici : this expression is found also in IX. 29. It refers to one's 
 professional or business duties. 
 
 mortemque contemnere : regarded by some editors as a gloss. 
 
 animosior . . . fortior : animosus means courageous^ spirited, not cast 
 down ; fortis is said of one hrave in the immediate presence of danger. 
 
 Hoc illud est : this is the meaning of the answer which^ etc. 
 
 tandem : pray, it adds emphasis to the question. 
 
 audaciter : archaic and rare for audacter. 
 
 integra; unimpaired. 
 
 certis : to he depended upon, trustworthy. The ablative absolute in each 
 of these expressions has the force of a temporal clause. 
 
 ipsa suum eadem quae : note the grouping of pronouns. 
 
 coagmentavit . . . conglutinavit : Tischer calls attention to Cicero's 
 fondness for these metaphors, and gives examples of their use ; see also 
 Harpers' Lat. Lex. 
 
 lam : hesides. It introduces another point in the argument. 
 
 reliquum : note the adjective used as a substantive, with adjective and 
 genitive modifiers. 
 
 73. Volt . . . suls : he wishes, I suppose, to he thought dear to his 
 friends, 
 
 baud scio an : see on XVI. 66. 
 
 Ennius: sc. dixerit. 
 
 Faxit: see 240, 4 ; 128, e, 3, and 142 ; 131, 4, h, 2. 
 
SECTIONS 74-78. 149 
 
 74. lam: see on § 72. 
 isque: *'but only." 
 
 sensus aut optandus . . . est : cf . this with quae aut plane neglegenda 
 . . . optanda, XIX. 6Q. 
 
 meditatum : used passively. Cf . adeptam, II. 4 ; and dimensa, 
 XVII. 59. 
 
 ab : from, not " by " ; from youth up. 
 
 incertum an : *' perhaps. " 
 
 timens : the participle has the force of a conditional clause. 
 
 qui : equivalent to quo modo ; see on II. 4. 
 
 animo consistere : to he of firm mind. 
 
 75. nonitalonga: not very long. 
 
 indocti . . . rustic! : i.e. without training in philosophy and without 
 the culture that easily comes to men enjoying the advantages of city life. 
 The legions were largely recruited from the rustici. 
 
 76. Omnino : on the whole, i.e. to sum the matter up briefly. 
 
 ne . . . quidem : neither; less emphatic than the usual no^ eijen. t. 
 
 XXI. 77. quod : because. Some editors regard quod as a relative. 
 
 cemere : i.e. to see clearly v^th the mental vision; it is stronger than 
 videre. 
 
 quo ab ea propius absum : the nearer I am to it. Note the difference 
 between the Latin and English forms of expression. The Latin emphasizes 
 the fact of separation, even though the objects are very near each other. 
 
 vivere : are living. 
 
 contrarium : uncongenial. 
 
 qui terras tuerentur : to care for the world. 
 
 caelestium : of the heavenly bodies. 
 
 mod5 . . . constantia : moderation and regularity. 
 
 ut ita crederem : to this belief 
 
 78. universa mente divina : the world- soul. 
 
 delibatos : derived from. The soul of each man was a portion of the 
 great world-soul. 
 
 haberemus : it takes its tense from audiebam. In a general truth like 
 this the English would employ the present. 
 
 quae Socrates . . . disseruisset : for the mood, see 528, 1; 341, c; 
 628. 
 
 Sic : explained by the following statements. 
 
 memoria . . . prudentia : observe the chiasmus ; prudentia {providentia), 
 foresight. 
 
150 SUPPLEMEl^TARY NOTES. 
 
 tantae scientiae : bracketed by some editors ; by some taken in the 
 genitive, limiting artes; by others, as nominative plural, scientia is rarely 
 used in the plural, but may possibly be here because of artes and inventa, 
 Kender, so many branches of knowledge. 
 
 naturam : being. 
 
 ne . . . quidem : see on XX. 76. 
 
 esset . , . haberet . . . posset: note the change from the present to 
 the imperfect. Various explanations have been suggested ; none of them 
 very satisfactory. Sommerbrodt thinks such changes occur more frequently 
 when reference is made to authors who lived in the past, but whose writings 
 belong to the present. 
 
 magno . . . argumento ; strong proof; predicate dative. 
 
 esse : its subject is the clause, quod lam pueri . . . recordari. 
 
 reminisci . . . recordari : note the distinction in meaning ; the first 
 refers to a momentary, the second, to a continued act. 
 
 Haec Platonis fere : these are in brief the arguments of Plato. 
 
 XXII. 79. Nolite arbitrari: for the forms of prohibition, see 489; 
 269, a ; 271, 2. 
 
 nusquam . . . fore : the Greek is cbs oi}biv elfii iy^ ert. 
 
 dum eram v5biscum : so long as I was with you. Note the imperfect 
 with dum instead of the usual present. 
 
 80. dum . . . essent : the subjunctive is due to the indirect discourse. 
 cum excessissent : note the adversative asyndeton. 
 
 emori : see on XIX. 71. 
 
 insipientem : unconscious ; Greek &<ppo)v. 
 
 sed : mihi persuasum est is to be understood from mihi . . . persuaderi 
 . . . potuit, above. Without supplying the ellipsis, it may be translated, 
 but rather that. 
 
 integer: undefiled, i.e. free from contamination with the body. 
 
 sapientem : truly conscious. 
 
 ceterarum rerum : depending upon quaeque. On the propleptic use of 
 ceterarum, see I. 3. 
 
 lam vero : see on iam, XVI. 56 ; vero adds emphasis. 
 
 81. Atqui: and yet ; see on II. 6. 
 futuri sint : they are destined to be. 
 
 est interiturus : for the force of the periphrastic form, see futuri sint, 
 above. 
 
 banc . . . pulchritGdinem : this beautiful universe. 
 tuentur : cf. XXI. 77. 
 
SECTIONS 81-84. 151 
 
 servabitis : for the future indicative instead of the imperative, see 487, 4 ; 
 269,/; 272, 1, h. 
 
 XXIII. 82. patrem . . . Paulum : cf. VI. 16. 
 
 duos avos . . . patnium : cf . IX. 29. 
 
 multos ; sc. alios. 
 
 esse cdnatos: instead of conaturos fuisse ; cf. swscepiwrwm /m'sse, below. 
 In the direct discourse, two constructions are admissible, — non conati essent 
 nisi crevissent, and the less common non conahantur nisi cernerent. The 
 indirect esse conatos corresponds to the direct conahantur. See 527, III. 
 and n. 2, 1 ; 337, 6, 2, and 308, h ; 659, n., and 254, 3. 
 
 pertinere : cf . VII. 24. 
 
 An censes : cf. An eis, VI. 15. 
 
 aliquid : cognate accusative with glorier ; cf . idem, X. 32. 
 
 suscepturum fuisse : see on esse conatos, above. 
 
 aetatem ; equivalent to vitam. 
 
 nescio quo modo : iii some way. 
 
 quasi . . . victurus esset : cf . this sentiment with vivere arbitror . . . 
 nominanda, XXI. 77. 
 
 excessisset : attracted into the subjunctive by victurus esset. 
 
 ut animi . . . essent: for this result clause in apposition with quod 
 (= et id), see 501, III. ; 332,/; 553, 4. 
 
 83. Quid : see on VIII. 26. 
 
 qui . . „ cernat . . . cuius ... sit : for the mood, see on uteretur, I. 2. 
 
 ad meliora : to a better life. 
 
 Equidem efferor : for my own part I am carried away. 
 
 patres vestros : cf . § 82. 
 
 Quo : equivalent to ad quos. 
 
 retraxerit: potential subjunctive ; see 311 ; Roby, 1636, 1540. 
 
 SI . . . largiatur : note the present in a condition, really impossible, but 
 regarded as possible, for the sake of the argument ; see 509, n. 2 ; 596, 
 rem. 1. 
 
 ut . . . repuerascam : the object of largiatur. 
 
 quasi decurso spatio : cf. spatio supremo, V. 14. 
 
 84. Sed habeat sane: sc. aliquid commodi ; concessive subjunctive, 
 but the concessive particle is omitted. 
 
 et ei docti : and that, too, philosophers. Cf. doctus, XV. 54. 
 
 quod contra : whereas on the contrary. — Reid. 
 
 meum : sc. cremari. 
 
 quo : equivalent to ad quae ; cf . § 83. 
 
152 
 
 SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES. 
 
 nonquo: not because. 
 
 ferrem : for the mood, see 516, II. 2 ; 341, rem. ; 541, 2. 
 
 85. dixisti : in II. 4. 
 
 qui : causal ; equivalent to cum ego. 
 
 minuti : petty. He refers to the Epicureans, and thinks them of little 
 account in comparison with Socrates and Plato. 
 nihil sentiam : I shall be unconscious. 
 quae dicerem : a final clause ; see Roby, II. 1632. 
 
 VARIATIONS FROM THE TEXT OF MtlLLER. 
 
 I. 
 
 2 satis digne 
 
 
 Miiller 
 
 , digne satis. 
 
 II. 
 
 4 adeptam 
 
 
 (( 
 
 adepti. 
 
 II. 
 
 5 descriptae 
 
 
 a 
 
 discriptae. 
 
 lY. 
 
 10 plusque 
 
 
 ii 
 
 postque. 
 
 Y. 
 
 14 suasissem. Annos 
 
 
 u 
 
 suasi. Sed annos. 
 
 VI. 
 
 18 modo ; Karthagini male 
 
 u 
 
 modo Karthagini . . . cui male 
 
 YI. 
 
 20 percontantibus in . 
 
 , . Ludo " 
 
 percontantur t ut est in . . 
 
 
 respondentur 
 
 
 
 Ludo; 
 
 IX. 
 
 28 composita 
 
 
 
 compta. 
 
 XI. 
 
 35 morbum 
 
 
 
 morborum vim. 
 
 XIY. 
 
 49 Yidebamus 
 
 
 
 tMori videbamus. 
 
 XYI. 
 
 56 quam dixi 
 
 
 
 de qua dixi. 
 
 XYI. 
 
 58 ipsum ut lubebit 
 
 
 
 ipsum utrum lubebit. 
 
 XYII. 
 
 59 communem 
 
 
 
 comen. 
 
 XYIII. 
 
 64 nostro 
 
 
 
 vestro. 
 
 XIX. 
 
 68 quoniam 
 
 
 
 quod. 
 
 XIX. 
 
 70 sapientibus 
 
 
 
 sapienti. 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 82 ullo labore et 
 
 
 
 ullo aut labore aut. 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 85 defatigationem 
 
 
 
 defectionem. 
 
INDEX TO NOTES. 
 
 The numbers refer to sections ; those in full-faced type to the foot-notes ; those in ordinary 
 type to the supplementary notes. 
 
 ah, 74. 
 
 ablative, absolute, 15, 71, 72; locative, 
 26 ; of characteristic, 30, 59. 
 
 abstracts, in the plural, 13, 59 ; for con- 
 crete, 26, 34, 46, 51, 52, QQ. 
 
 absum, 77. 
 
 accusative, adverbial, 1, 34; cognate, 
 32, 82 ; two, 61 ; with memini, 14. 
 
 acta vita, 38. 
 
 actus, 5. 
 
 ad, 10. 
 
 adept am, 4. 
 
 adferat, 4. 
 
 adiuero, 1. 
 
 adjective, in place of adverb, 38, 42 ; as 
 substantive, 72. 
 
 adsum, 38. 
 
 ad te, 1. 
 
 adulescentia, 2, 4. 
 
 adversative particles, 1. 
 
 aeqxdtas, 1. 
 
 aetas, 39, 45, 48, 60, 67, 76, 82. 
 
 aetas seniorum, 2, 4. 
 
 aetate progressi, 33. 
 
 age, 24. 
 
 agri cultio, 56. 
 
 aliquid eztremum, 5. 
 
 alliteration, 28, 38. 
 
 ambassadors, seats for, 63. 
 
 a me, 55. 
 
 anacoluthon, 7. 
 
 an eis, 15. 
 
 animosus, 72. 
 
 animus, 36. 
 
 annihilation, the doctrine of, 66. 
 
 antehac, 16. 
 
 apex, 60. 
 
 appositive, with force of clause, 21, 26, 
 50. 
 
 apud quern, 3. 
 
 a qua, 5. 
 
 arbusta, 54. 
 
 arma, 9. 
 
 artes, 9. 
 
 asyndeton, 36, 80. 
 
 at, 21, 27, 33, 35, 47, 65, 68. 
 
 atqui, 6, 59, 81. 
 
 auctoritas senatus, 11. 
 
 audaciter, 72. 
 
 audire, prepositions with, 43. 
 
 augur, 11, 64. 
 
 auspicia optima, 11. 
 
 autem, 1. 
 
 bacae, 5. 
 
 bacchius, 24. 
 
 banquets, 46. 
 
 bene beateque vivendum, 4. 
 
 benefactorum, 9. 
 
 caducum, 5. 
 
 calce, 83. 
 
 cani, 62. 
 
 capite operto, 34. 
 
 car ceres, 83. 
 
 carere, 31. 
 
 carmen, 61. 
 
 cavea, 48. 
 
 cec?o, 20. 
 
 censor, 16, 42. 
 
 centurion, 33. 
 
 cereo, 44. 
 
 cernere, 77. 
 
 cer^e, 2. 
 
 cer^o, 2. 
 
 cetera, 3, 80. 
 
 chiasmus, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 78. 
 
 clava, 58. 
 
 clientes, 32. 
 
 cogitatio, 41. 
 
 153 
 
164 
 
 INDEX TO NOTES. 
 
 cognomen y 1 ; position of , 48. 
 
 colere, 10, 26. 
 
 columna rostrata, 44. 
 
 comicif 36. 
 
 comitaSf 10, 65. 
 
 commune i 2. 
 
 compotatiOf 45. 
 
 concenatiOf 45. 
 
 confeceriSi 6. 
 
 confectiOy 2. 
 
 confectus^ 14. 
 
 conficio, 38. 
 
 consaeptus ager, 59. 
 
 consolatiOf 4. 
 
 considaris, 7. 
 
 conviviumf 45. 
 
 coquOt 1. 
 
 crec?o, 21. 
 
 cruelty of Hannibal, 76. 
 
 cuifuerim occupatus, 32. 
 
 cwi quipareatf 2. 
 
 cultaey 9. 
 
 cum, 4, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 30, 33, 40, 55, 
 
 56, 61, 67, 71. 
 cwria, 32. 
 
 dative, of possession, 4; predicate, 78; 
 
 withpT-ospicie/is, 25; of reference, 16, 
 
 38. 
 (fecec^i, 63. 
 deliratiOf 36. 
 
 deponents, in the passive, 4, 59, 74. 
 descrihere, 49. 
 descriptae, 5. 
 desiderare, 31. 
 deifc5, 5. 
 dictator, 56. 
 dignitaSy 8. 
 diligentia, 35. 
 diligere, 26. 
 diritas, 65. 
 
 disjunctive particles, 57. 
 dividentiy 11. 
 divine f 44. 
 dixeritf 8. 
 doceo, 50. 
 doctuSj 54. 
 drama, of life, 5. 
 duhito, 16. 
 
 duint, 47. 
 dwm, 33, 79. 
 
 JSdepol, 25. 
 
 egrere, 31. 
 
 65^0, 10, 59. 
 
 elogium, 61, 73. 
 
 emancipOy 38. 
 
 emoriy 71. 
 
 enm, 1, 4, 7, 19. 
 
 equidem, 21. 
 
 eruditiuSy 3. 
 
 esse, conatosy 82; with meminiy 30, 
 
 43, 78. 
 esse^ 3, 5. 
 e^, adversative, 28. 
 etenimy 15, 31. 
 e^si, 2, 29. 
 excellenSf 4. 
 excisamy 18. 
 explication, 3. 
 ex ^e, 27. 
 
 faciat, 17. 
 
 facillimey 7. 
 
 facinuSy 40. 
 
 falsum, 4. 
 
 father, power of the, 37. 
 
 /aa;z^, 73. 
 
 /era^, 3. 
 
 /erre leg em y 11. 
 
 ferundumy 5; 
 
 ^(iei, 1. 
 
 fiagitiumy 40. 
 
 fortassey 46. 
 
 fortiSy 14, 72. 
 
 fructuSy 5. 
 
 fruor, 57. 
 
 /wi?, 5, 54. 
 
 future tense, 6, 20, 81. 
 
 gemma y 53. 
 
 genitive, objective, 1, 4; subjective, 9 ; 
 
 with compleoy 46; with similiSy 31. 
 yepovaia, 20. 
 gerundive, 24, 50, 59. 
 Gigantumy 5. 
 grandis, 16. 
 gravitas, 10. 
 
INDEX TO NOTES. 
 
 155 
 
 graviiLS, 1. 
 gremiurriy 51. 
 
 habere rationem^ 51. 
 hastay 19. 
 
 haud scio an, 56, 73. 
 hendiadys, 15, 51. 
 hie, 68. 
 
 honorabilia, 63. 
 honor ati, 22. 
 hospites, 32. 
 humanitas, 1. 
 
 mm, 3, 72, 74, 80. 
 
 iam diu, 18. 
 
 ^(^, 7, 8, 30, 43, 45. 
 
 idem, 24. 
 
 ille, 31, 68. 
 
 i^^MQ^, 25, 35, 50. 
 
 immissio, 53. 
 
 immortality, arguments for, 78. 
 
 imperfect tense, 13. 
 
 imperium, 64. 
 
 in aliis, proleptic use of, 24. 
 
 incurro, 25. 
 
 indicative, 32, 46. 
 
 indigere, 31. 
 
 indoles, 26. 
 
 infinitive, 39, 47, 70. 
 
 infirmitas, 33. 
 
 ingenia, 22. 
 
 ingravescens, 6. 
 
 m ipsis, 4. 
 
 m ?t/ce, 12. 
 
 in manibus, 12, 22. 
 
 m oculis, 12. 
 
 insitio, 54. 
 
 instillare, 36. 
 
 m sitos, 37. 
 
 inter did, 22. 
 
 interfui, 7. 
 
 m ^ogra, 11. 
 
 in vi^a, 65. 
 
 ipsi, 4. 
 
 is^e, 27, 46. 
 
 is^wc, 6, 8. 
 
 i^a, 12, 38. 
 
 iterative verb, 2. 
 
 iterum, 11, 14, 19. 
 
 iucundus, 2. 
 iugatio, 53. 
 iw7*is consulti, 22. 
 iuveniliter, 10. 
 inventus, 2. 
 
 lacertus, 27. 
 
 laudatio, 12. 
 
 lectulus, 38. 
 
 lectus, 46. 
 
 legatus, 18. 
 
 levasso, 1. 
 
 Zeaj, Cincia, 10 ; Focoma, 14. 
 
 libido, 40. 
 
 litotes, 7. 
 
 litterae Graecae, 3, 26, 38. 
 
 ^ocw-s, 27. 
 
 Zwc?i, 63. 
 
 Ludus, 20. 
 
 magisteria, 46. 
 
 Magna Mater, 45. 
 
 rnaior, 1, 41. 
 
 raallem, 32. 
 
 malleoli, 52. 
 
 maturitas, 33, 71. 
 
 me ipsum, 1. 
 
 memory, exercise of, 38. 
 
 mens, 36, 41. 
 
 metaphor, favorite, 72; from military 
 
 life, 49; mixed, 28; softened, 42. 
 Metaurus, battle of, 11. 
 metonymy, 32. 
 metuo, 37. 
 mi/ii, 30. 
 yninuta, 46. 
 misimus, 3. 
 moderatio, 1, 33. 
 modice, 2. 
 moc^o, 22, 33, 70. 
 moliens, 26. 
 morata, 63. 
 mores, 10, 65. 
 moriens, 30. 
 mifcZ^o an?e, 18. 
 
 nam, 7. 
 
 natura, 5, 65, 71, 78. 
 
 ne, 33. 
 
156 
 
 INDEX TO NOTES. 
 
 7iec, 13, 27, 53. 
 
 7iecessitas, 4. 
 
 nefas, 40. 
 
 nego, 17. 
 
 7ie quidem, 46, 76, 78. 
 
 m/iz^ habeo, 13. 
 
 nisi forte, 18, 33. 
 
 nohis^y 6. 
 
 noenum, 10. 
 
 non modo non, 34, 57. 
 
 nonne, 31. 
 
 no fa censoria, 42. 
 
 noun, singular used collectively, 56. 
 
 nom, 1. 
 
 nullaene, 15. 
 
 nitm, 19. 
 
 numquam deserunt, 9. 
 
 nrtnc cwm maximey 38. 
 
 oceatiOf 51. 
 odiosa, 4, 25. 
 offensio, 65. 
 omninOf 9, 28. 
 opes, 8. 
 opt^s esse, 31. 
 orator, 28, 38. 
 otiosay 49. 
 
 participle, for conditional clause, 31, 52, 
 61, 74; for causal clause, 56; perfect, 
 56, 66. 
 
 patientia, 10. 
 
 percipi, 33. 
 
 percontantibus, 20. 
 
 periphrastic, the force of, 81. 
 
 person, second singular, 21. 
 
 philosophia, 2. 
 
 p^^a, 58. 
 
 plantae, 52. 
 
 plaudit e, 70. 
 
 plenus, 1. 
 
 plerumquey 51. 
 
 phisque, 10. 
 
 poUicear, 6. 
 
 polysyndeton, 69. 
 
 ponebat, 10. 
 
 porro, 43. 
 
 possum, 24, 55. 
 
 poteratne . . . non, 56. 
 
 potero, 7. 
 praemi, 1. 
 
 present tense, 30, 34, 43, 78, 83. 
 primus, 44. 
 
 prohibitions, forms of, 79. 
 pronoun, relative, 36; omitted, 60; re- 
 dundant, 65 ; grouping of, 72. 
 propagatio, 53. 
 propagines, 52. 
 propter, 48. 
 provenire, 20. 
 proverbs, 21. 
 prudentia, 1. 
 pueritia, 2. 
 pm^ura, 59. 
 putassent, 4. 
 
 quadriennio posty 10. 
 
 gwae, 19, 42, 46, 51. 
 
 quaestor, 10. 
 
 gwam . . . ingrediundum, 6. 
 
 gwam . . . iucundos, 26. 
 
 quamquam, 1, 9, 10, 51, 69. 
 
 quamvis, 25. 
 
 quamvis long a, 4. 
 
 quasi, 71. 
 
 gwe . . . gwe, 1. 
 
 gm, 3, 4, 5, 7, 20, 55, 67, 74, a5. 
 
 gma, 13, 44. 
 
 quibus, double construction of, 17. 
 
 gwid, 22, 26, 83. 
 
 quidem, 30, 65. 
 
 quiete, 13. 
 
 quincunx, 59. 
 
 quisque, with superlative, 43. 
 
 gwo, 83, 84. 
 
 g^^oc?, 5, 32, 44, 77, 84. 
 
 gwo m genere, 4. 
 
 gwo modo, 12. 
 
 quoniam, 44. 
 
 quoque, 46. 
 
 quorsus, 13, 42, 44. 
 
 rafio, 41. 
 recordor, 13, 78. 
 refrigeratio, 46. 
 religatio, 53. 
 reliquias avi, 19. 
 requirere, 31. 
 
INDEX TO NOTES. 
 
 167 
 
 I 
 
 re5 familiaris, 22. 
 rhetorical question, 27. 
 rostra, 32. 
 runiores, 10. 
 rustici, 75. 
 
 salutare, 21. 
 
 sapiens, 80. 
 
 sarmenta, 52. 
 
 Saturnian measure, 61. 
 
 scelus, 40. 
 
 scientiae, 78. 
 
 scribens, 13. 
 
 5ecZ, 2, 3, 26, 80. 
 
 senatus, 19. 
 
 senecta, 25. 
 
 senectus, 2, 4. 
 
 sententia, 61. 
 
 sepulcra, 21, 61. 
 
 sermo, 28. 
 
 service in the army, 34. 
 
 sessum, 63. 
 
 szc, 4, 26. 
 
 siccitas, 34. 
 
 significare, 36. 
 
 similesque sunt ut si qui, 17. 
 
 si/ie querela, 7. 
 
 singular, for English plural, 18. 
 
 siquidem, 41. 
 
 sodalitates, 45. 
 
 spatium supremum, 14. 
 
 spondee, in place of iambus, 20. 
 
 stultitiae, 4. 
 
 suada, 50. 
 
 5wa sponte, 43. 
 
 subjunctive, by attraction, 2, 82; of 
 characteristic, 2, 4, 7, 15, 42, 52, 62, 
 66, 83 ; concessive, 58, 84 ; conditional, 
 9, 27, 47; deliberative, 50, 52, 54, 67; 
 dependent clause, 6, 7, 11, 31, 60 ; final, 
 24, 46, 52, 56, 85 ; indirect discourse, 
 4, 39, 40, 80; potential, 33, 69, 83; 
 reason, 4, 7, 15, 44; result, 82; with 
 cum, 4 ; with quo, 41, 43 ; with 
 quod, 4. 
 
 succidia altera, 56. 
 
 suicide, Stoic doctrine of, 72. 
 
 suis libris, 3. 
 
 sunt, for vivunt, 21. 
 suus, 33. 
 
 ?a?i, 58. 
 
 tarn diu dum, 41. 
 
 tandem, 72. 
 
 fan^a . . . quanta . . . maxima, 41. 
 
 temerltas, 20. 
 
 tempus aetatis, 2. 
 
 ?e quidem, 2. 
 
 tertius . . . tricesimus, 19. 
 
 tesserae, 58. 
 
 tolerabiliorem, 8. 
 
 trihuimus, 3. 
 
 tribunus, 18. 
 
 ^t^or, 77. 
 
 w^tro, 38. 
 z^?zc?e, 12. 
 wsw, 7. 
 
 wf, 12, 26, 31, 32. 
 utare, 33. 
 utendum,, 36. 
 uteretur, 2. 
 
 vacare, 31. 
 vadimoiiium, 21. 
 valetudo, 35. 
 ve/^em, 26, 32. 
 vereor, 37. 
 vero, 40. 
 versat, 1. 
 vestrum, 6. 
 vetere proverbio, 7. 
 ?;iai, 16. 
 viatores, 56. 
 vici? Olympia, 14. 
 mc?e^ 25. 
 vietum, 5. 
 vinulentia, 44. 
 viritim, 11. 
 vi^a nulla, 7. 
 vz^za, 35. 
 vituperatio, 39. 
 viviradices, 52. 
 vixitque, 13. 
 vocatio in ius, 22. 
 
 world-soul, the, 78. 
 
INDEX OF PROPER NAMES. 
 
 The numbers refer to sections in tlie text. 
 
 M'. Acilius Balbus, 14. 
 
 M'. AciliusGlabrio, 32. 
 
 Sex. Aelius Paetus, 27. 
 
 M. Aemilius Lepidus, 61. 
 
 L. Aemilius Paulus, 29, 61, 75, 82. 
 
 L. Aemilius Paulus Maeedonicus, 15, 
 
 Africanus. See Cornelius. 
 
 Aiax, 31. 
 
 Albinus. See Postumius. 
 
 L. Ambivius Turpio, 48. 
 
 Apollo, 78. 
 
 Archytas, 39, 41. 
 
 Arganthonius, 69. 
 
 Aristides, 21. 
 
 Aristo, 3. 
 
 Athenae, 1, 43, 63. 
 
 A. Atilius Calatinus, 61. 
 
 M. Atilius Regulus, 75. 
 
 Atticus, T. Pompdnius, 1. 
 
 Brutus. See Junius. 
 
 L. Caecilius Metellus, 30, 61. 
 
 Caecilius Statins, 24, 25, 36. 
 
 Caepio. See Servilius. 
 
 Camillus. See Furius. 
 
 Cannensis, 75. 
 
 Capua, 10. 
 
 Sp. Car villus Maximus, 11. 
 
 Cato. See Porcius. 
 
 Cento. See Claudius. 
 
 Cethegus. See Cornelius. 
 
 Cineas, 43. 
 
 App. Claudius Caecus, 16, 37. 
 
 App. Claudius Crassinus, 41. 
 
 C. Claudius Cento, 50. 
 
 M. Claudius Marcellus, 75. 
 
 Cleanthes, 23. 
 
 M. Cornelius Cethegus, 10, 50. 
 
 Cn. Cornelius Scipio Calvus, 29, 75. 
 
 82. 
 
 P. Cornelius Scipio Africanus Maior, 
 
 29, 35, 61, 82. 
 P. Cornelius Scipio Africanus Minor, 3, 
 
 4, 9, 19, 28, 34, 35, 49, 68, 77, 82, 85. 
 P. Cornelius Scipio Nasica Corculum. 
 
 50. 
 Ti. Coruncanius, 15, 27, 43. 
 Crassus. See Licinius. 
 Critobulus, 59. 
 
 M. Curius Dentatus, 15, 43, 55, 56. 
 Cyrus, the Elder, 30, 32, 79, 82. 
 Cyrus, the Younger, 59. 
 
 P. Decius Mus, 75. 
 P. Decius Mus, 43, 75. 
 Democritus, 23. 
 Diogenes, 23. 
 C. Duellius, 44. 
 
 Q. Ennius, 10, 14, 16, 50, 73. 
 
 Q. Fabius Maximus Verrucosus, 10, 11, 
 
 13, 15, 39, 61. 
 C. Fabricius Luscinus, 15, 43. 
 Flamininus. See Quinctius. 
 C. Flaminius, 11. 
 L. Furius Camillus, 41. 
 
 Gades, 69. 
 Gallia, 42. 
 
 Glabrio. See Acilius. 
 Gorgias, 13, 23. 
 
 Hannibal, 10. 
 Hesiod, 23, 54. 
 Hispania, 32. 
 Homer, 23, 31, 54. 
 
 Isocrates, 13, 23. 
 L. Junius Brutus, 76. 
 
 168 
 
IXDEX OF PROPER XAMES. 
 
 159 
 
 Karthago, 18. 
 
 Lacedaemon, 63. 
 
 C. Laeliiis, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 28, 35, 77, 85. 
 
 Laertes, 54. 
 
 Lepidus. See Aemilius. 
 
 P. Licinius Crassus, 27, 50, (>!. 
 
 Livius Andronicus, 50. 
 
 M. Livius Macatus, 11. 
 
 C. Livius Salinator, 7. 
 
 M. Livius Salinator, 11. 
 
 Lysander, 59, 63. 
 
 Lysimachus, 21. 
 
 T. Maccins Plautus, 50. 
 Sp. Maelius, 56. 
 Marcellus. See Claudius. 
 Q. Marcius Philippus, 14. 
 Masinissa, 34. 
 Maxim us. See Fabius. 
 Metellus. See Caecillius. 
 Milo, 27, 33. 
 
 Cn. Naevius, 20, 50. 
 Nearchus, 41. 
 Nestor, 31. 
 
 Oedipus Coloneus, 22. 
 Olympia, 33, 
 Origines, 38. 
 
 Paulus. See Aemilius. 
 
 Pelias, 83. 
 
 Persae, 59. 
 
 Philippus. See ^lareius. 
 
 Pisistratus, 72. 
 
 Plato, 13, 23, 41, 44, 78. 
 
 Plautus. See Maccius. 
 
 Poeni, 44, 75. 
 
 C. Pontius, 41. 
 
 T. Pontius, 33. 
 
 M. Porcius Cato, Censor, 3 and ff. 
 
 M. Porcius Cato, 15, 68, 84. 
 
 Sp. Postumius Albinus, 41. 
 
 Sp. Postumius Albinus, 7. 
 
 Pyrrhus, 16, 43, 55. 
 Pythagoras, 23, 33, 73, 78. 
 
 L. Quinctius Cincinnatus, 56. 
 L. Quinctius Flamininus, 42. 
 T. Quinctius Flamininus, 1, 42. 
 T. Quinctius Flamininus, 14. 
 
 Regulus. See Atilius. 
 Roma, 23. 
 
 Sabini, 46, 55. 
 
 Salinator. See Livius. 
 
 Samnites, 43, 55. 
 
 Sardis, 59. 
 
 Scipio. See Cornelius. 
 
 M. Sempronius Tuditanus, 50. 
 
 P. Sempronius Tuditanus, 10. 
 
 C. Ser villus Ahala, 56. 
 
 Cn. Servilius Caepio, 14. 
 
 Simonides, 23. 
 
 Socrates, 26, 59, 78. 
 
 Solon, 26, 50, 72, 73. 
 
 Sophocles, 22, 47. 
 
 Statins. See Caecilius. 
 
 Stesichorus, 23. 
 
 G. Sulpicius Galus, 49. 
 
 Tarentum, 10, 11, 39, 41. 
 
 Tartessii, 69. 
 
 Themistocles, 8, 21. 
 
 Thermopylae, 32. 
 
 Tithonus^ 3. 
 
 Troia, 31. 
 
 Tuditanus. See Sempronius. 
 
 Turpio. See Ambivius. 
 
 M. Valerius Corvinus, 60. 
 L. Valerius Flaccus, 42. 
 T. Veturius Calvinus, 41. 
 
 Xenocrates, 23. 
 Xenophon, 30, 46, 59, 79. 
 
 Zeno, 23. 
 
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