Selected quad for the lemma: book_n
Text snippets containing the quad
|
ID |
Title |
Author |
Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) |
STC |
Words |
Pages |
|
A33162
|
Cicero's Laelius a discourse of friendship : together with A pastoral dialogue concerning friendship and love.; Laelius de amicitia. English
|
Cicero, Marcus Tullius.; J. T.
|
1691
(1691)
|
Wing C4308; ESTC R11183
|
37,288
|
122
|
Instructions of his and made it my business to improve by so wise a Conversation Upon his Death I apply'd my self to Scaevola the Priest whom I dare affirm for Learning and Justice to be the most excellent Person in Rome But having spoken of Him in another place I shall now return to Scaevola the Augur Among other Discourses of his I remember when I and two or three of his most familiar Friends were sitting with him he fell upon a Subject which was then in every Man's Mouth For I suppose Atticus You who were so well acquainted with P. Sulpicius can't forget how the mortal hatred he bore Q. Pompeius who was Consul when he was Tribune and with whom he had formerly been very intimate did amaze as well as trouble all the Town Scaevola took occasion from this to entertain us with a Discourse of Loelius's to Him and his other Son in Law C. Fannius Marcus's Son upon Friendship which pass'd within a few days after the Death of Africanus The Heads of this Discourse I remember very well and have digested them into this Treatise after my own Method For I have brought in the Persons speaking to one another that I might avoid the troublesom repetition of said I and said He and that they might seem to talk as if they were present Now having been often desir'd by You to write something of Friendship and looking upon it as a Subject that might be as worthy of every one's Knowledge as of our Familiarity I was the more inclin'd to contribute what I cou'd to the publick Good and your private Satisfaction But as in that Dialogue of mine concerning Old Age which was dedicated to You I brought in the elder Cato discoursing because I thought to Person fitter to speak upon that Theme than one who had seen the World so long and had flourish'd so eminently in his later years So having understood from Tradition that the Friendship between C. Laelius and P. Scipio was very famous I judg'd it proper to make Laelius once more speak those things concerning Friendship which Scaevola remember'd to have been formerly said by Him This way of Discourse seems to carry the more weight in it when 't is grounded upon the Authority of Men so Ancient and Illustrious insomuch as in the reading over that former Treatise I am sometimes so strangely affected with it tho' 't was written by my self that methinks Cato speaks not I. But as in that Book being my self an Old Man I wrote to an Old Man concerning Age so in this being a Friend I write to a Friend concerning Friendship there Cato spoke than whom no Man of his time was Older or Wiser Here Laelius who always had the repute of the Wisest Man and the Faithsullest Friend talks of Friendship Therefore I must desire you to divert your thoughts from Me that write it to Laelius that speaks it Caius Fannius and Quintus Mucius are suppos'd to come to their Father-in-Law upon the Death of Africanus They begin the Discourse with Laelius who talks all the way of Friendship and in whose Character of a Friend you will see your own FANNIUS What you say Laelius is true for there never was a Man of greater Prudence or Renown than Africanus but you must consider that the Eyes of all are now upon You You only are call'd and counted Wise This was lately the Attribute of Cato and formerly of L. Atilius But both of them had it in a different respect Atilius for his knowledge in the Civil Law Cato for his long Experience in the World his Wisdom and Courage in the Senate and his Wit and Eloquence at the Bar So that when He came to be Old the Epithet of Wise was in a manner become his Proper Name But You are esteem'd for another kind of Wisdom which is no less owing to your Industry and Knowledge than to your Nature and Manners And that not as Wisdom goes among the Vulgar but as the better sort describe a Wise Man such as Greece never had For the more exact Critics will not allow those Seven who were called the Sages to be perfectly Wise we read of One only at Athens and Him pronounced so by Apollo Now the Wisdom which is held to be in You is such as enables you to esteem all that can be call'd your own as proceeding from your Self and to look upon all humance Accidents as things beneath the thoughts of a Vertuous Man Therefore several have enquir'd of Me and I believe of Scaevola how You bear the Death of Africanus and so much the rather because when we met last Nones according to our custom in D. Brutus's Garden to discourse You only were absent who always us'd to observe that day and that Duty very punctually SCAEVOLA 'T is true Laelius several as Fannius says enquire But I answer them from my own observation that You bear the loss of so great a Man and so good a Friend with all the moderation that can be expected that indeed a Man of your good Nature cou'd not but be somewhat moved but that your absence from Us was occasion'd by your Illness rather than by any excess of Grief LAELIUS You say well Scaevola No small Impediment should have kept me from an Office which I always attended when I was in health For I don't think that any Accident can excuse a Man of Resolution from the performance of his Duty But you Fannius that attribute more to Me than I either desire or deserve shew more of your Friendship to Me than of your Justice to Cato for either no Man ever was Wise which I am more inclinable to think or if ever Man was He was For to omit other Instances how bravely did he bear the Death of his Son Paulus I remember and Caius I have seen but their Loss was not so great as Cato's and consequently their Trial less Their Sons died in their Childhood Cato's was a Man not only of great Hopes but of approved Verâ—ues Wherefore have a care of preferring even Him whom you say Apollo judged the Wisest of Men before Cato for if the Sayings of the First deserve our Praise the Actions of the Last will challenge our Admiration But now to deal freely with you Both as to your Sentiments of Me. Whether I shou'd do well or no in denying my self to be concern'd for Scipio's Death let the Learned determine I 'm sure I should not speak the Truth for I must needs say I am moved at the loss of such a Friend as I think there never will be and I am certain there never was But I want no Remedies I am my own Comforter and chiefly in this that I am freed from an Error with which most Men are possess'd upon the Death of their Friends for I think not that any Harm has hapned to Scipio all that has hapned is to Me Now to take one's own Misfortunes to heart shews more like Self-love than Friendship But who can deny
Cicero's LAELIUS A DISCOURSE OF FRIENDSHIP Together with a Pastoral Dialogue Concerning FRIENDSHIP and LOVE Licensed Rob. Midgley LONDON Printed for William Crooke at the Green-Dragon without Temple-Bar 1691. THE PREFACE THE usual design of a Preface is either for an Introduction to the Book it self or an Apology to the Reader for the Publication of it the Former of these being the more pertinent and useful of the two thô 't is partly done already by my Author I shall insist most upon that The following Discourse was written by Tully as Himself observes in his later years which produc'd many excellent Treatises in This particularly we find more of Majesty than Gaiety in his Style we see the Philosopher joyn'd to the Orator and which is somewhat rare the Friend to the States man he being qualify'd besides his own natural Abilities by a long experience of Friendship in his familiarity with Pomponius Atticus to treat of this Subject with great exactuess The Discourse being occasion'd by Scipio's Death and his Character making so considerable a part of it it will not be improper to set down some brief Memoirs of his Life which may serve to explain several Passages in this Treatise He was the Son of Paullus Aemilius the greatest General of his time from whom he was call'd Aemilianus Plutarch in Vit. Paulli Aemilij and upon the Divorce that happen'd between his Parents was adopted by the Son of Africanus major his Cousin-german and by him nam'd Scipio Plutarch says that from his Youth he was endu'd above any of his Equals with all the good Qualities requisite in a General or a States-man Ibid. First He serv'd under his Father in the Macedonian War and had a considerable share in the defeat of Perseus's Army Afterwards Oros Lib. 4. Cap. 23. in the Third Punic War which began 606 Years after the Building of Rome and lasted 4 Years he overthrew Carthage and from his Successes in Africk got the Title of Africanus Minor About 15 Years after that Oros Lib. 5. he reduc'd Numantia after it had held out for 14 Years against the Romans Whilst he lay with his Army before this Place Plutarch in Vit. Tib. Gracch Oros Lib. 5. Cap. 8. the Sedition of the Gracchi broke out at Rome and Tiberius Gracchus the Elder of the two Brothers having endeavour'd the establishment of some new Laws in favour of the Commons which were against the interest of the Nobility was slain in the Capitol in his Second Tribuneship Vpon Scipio's return to Rome he being ask'd by Caius Gracchus and Fulvius Plutarch in Vit. C. Gracch what he thought of Tiberius's Death reply'd That he always dislik'd Tiberius's way of Proceeding This Answer thô 't was deliver'd with a great deal of sincerity lost him the affections of the Populace and mightily iucens'd Caius Soon after this Idem ibid. in Vit. Romuh Scipio was found dead in his Bed and no outward Cause of his Death appear'd Some said he dy'd easily and suddainly having been naturally sickly others that he poison'd himself others that his Enemies who were suppos'd to be Caius Gracchus and Fulvius broke in upon him in the night and stifled him Certain it is that they Two were suspected to be the Authors of his Death and tho' his Body lay open to be seen of all and gave some suspicion of a violent Death yet there was no publick Enquiry made into it and 't was thought the Rabble oppos'd all Proceedings of Justice for fear that Caius should be found accessary to the Murder His Death happen'd in Caius's second Tribuneship who pursuing the same measures with his Brother suffer'd the same fate and being forsaken by all his Adherents was slain by his own Servant Plutarch in Vit. Paull Aemil. Scipio in his life-time was esteem'd the Valiantest of the Romans and had the greatest Authority among them He was a strict abserver of Military Discipline Flor. Lib. 2. Cap. 18. and made a great Reformation in the Army His vacant hours were employ'd in the Study of Philosophy and Politicks in which he had Panaetius and Polybius for his Masters Thus was his Life divided between the Arts of War and Peace in both which his Friend Laelius shar'd with him who was no less famous for Wisdom than Scipio for Valor In Vit. Ti. Gracch Plutarch gives us a remarkable Instance of his prudent management in the Divisions that happen'd in Rome about the Agratian Law which gain'd him the Name of Laelius the Wise Thus much by way of Introduction As for the Apology tho' I think the Translation wants it very much for really I don't know how to justify the Presumption of an attempt to express Tully's Conceptions in any other Language or Words than his own yet I 'm sure the Poem that follows stands in most need of it and being more my Own must consequently be more obnoxious to Censure However I have ventur'd to place it at the End as treating of the same Subject tho' upon a different Occasion I hope the Fair Sex will not think their Prerogative invaded because in that Poem I prefer Friendship to Love since the Love I condemn there is a Passion which I dare say the Best and Modestest part of them will not think themselves concern'd to defend As for Conjugal Love I look upon it as a Vnion of Souls as well as Bodies and a State so exactly conformable to all the Laws of Friendship that methinks the Names of Friend and Wife should signifie the same They who will think it something unseasonable for Me to be giving Rules of Friendship when all the World is in Arms may as well blame Laelius for making this Discourse when Rome was distracted by the Ambition of Gracchus and Tully for publishing it at a time when all Italy was divided by the Factions of Pompey and Caesar Certainly Remedies are never more Necessary than when Diseases are most Epidemical I hope the Reader is not curious to know whether these Papers are publish'd at the Importunity of Friends by the Command of Superiors or for the Prevention of false Copies These are the common Topics which every Prefacer makes use of to justify his intrusion into the Press I shall therefore wave all Evasions and boldly but my self upon my Reader 's mercy for I don't understand why an Author may not have the liberty of keeping his Reasons to himself as well as his Name CICERO'S LAELIUS A DISCOURSE OF FRIENDSHIP The Author 's Prefatory Epistle To T. Pomponius Atticus QVintus Mucius Scaevola the Augur would often talk of Caius Laelius his Father-in-Law with a great deal of pleasure and in all his Discourses gave him the Title of Wise As soon as I came to Age my Father dispos'd of me so entirely to this Scaevola that unless some extraordinary occasion call'd me away I was never from him During this time I furnish'd my Memory with many excellent Sayings and useful