Amic. 19.1Exsistit autem hōc locō quaedam quaestiō subdifficilis, num quandō amīcī novī, dignī amīcitiā, veteribus sint antepōnendī, ut equīs vetulīs tenerōs antepōnere solēmus.But at this point a somewhat difficult question arises: whether new friends, if worthy of friendship, are ever to be preferred to old ones, as we usually prefer young horses to old. Amic. 19.1Indigna homine dubitātiō;A doubt unworthy of a human being; Amic. 19.1nōn enim dēbent esse amīcitiārum, sīcut aliārum rērum, satietātēs;for there ought not to be a surfeit of friendships, as there is of other things; Amic. 19.1veterrima quaeque, ut ea vīna quae vetustātem ferunt, esse dēbent suāvissima, vērumque illud est, quod dīcitur, multōs modiōs salis simul ēdendōs esse, ut amīcitiae mūnus explētum sit.the oldest should be the sweetest, like those wines which bear age well, and true is the saying that many pecks of salt must be eaten together before the duty of friendship is fulfilled. Amic. 19.68Novitātēs autem, sī spem afferunt, ut tamquam in herbīs nōn fallācibus frūctus appāreat, nōn sunt illae quidem repudiandae, vetustās tamen suō locō cōnservanda;New friendships, however, if they hold out hope that fruit will appear, as in plants that do not disappoint, are certainly not to be rejected, yet the old must be kept in their own place; Amic. 19.68maxima est enim vīs vetustātis et cōnsuētūdinis.for the power of age and habit is very great.
Amic. 19.68Quīn in ipsō equō, cuius modo fēcī mentiōnem, sī nūlla rēs impediat, nēmō est quīn eō, quō cōnsuēvit, libentius ūtātur quam intractātō et novō;Indeed, in the case of the horse itself, which I have just mentioned, if nothing prevents it, there is no one who would not more gladly use the one he is used to than one untried and new; Amic. 19.68nec vērō in hōc, quod est animal, sed in eīs etiam, quae sunt inanima, cōnsuētūdō valet, cum locīs ipsīs dēlectēmur, montuōsīs etiam et silvestribus, in quibus diūtius commorātī sumus.and habit has force not only in this, which is a living creature, but even in things that are lifeless, since we take delight in the very places, even mountainous and wooded ones, in which we have lingered for a long time. Amic. 19.69Sed maximum est in amīcitiā superiōrem parem esse īnferiōrī.But the most important thing in friendship is for the superior to be on a level with the inferior. Amic. 19.69Saepe enim excellentiae quaedam sunt, quālis erat Scīpiōnis in nostrō, ut ita dīcam, grege.For there are often certain outstanding men, as Scipio was in what I may call our flock.
Amic. 19.69Numquam sē ille Philō, numquam Rupiliō, numquam Mummiō anteposuit, numquam īnferiōris ōrdinis amīcīs.He never put himself above Philus, never above Rupilius, never above Mummius, never above friends of a lower rank. Amic. 19.69Q. vērō Maximum frātrem, ēgregium virum omnīnō, sibi nēquāquam parem, quod is anteībat aetāte, tamquam superiōrem colēbat suōsque omnīs per sē posse esse ampliōrēs volēbat.His brother Quintus Maximus, an excellent man indeed but by no means his equal, he treated as his superior because he was ahead of him in age, and he wished all his relations to be able to rise higher through him. Amic. 19.70Quod faciendum imitandumque est omnibus, ut, sī quam praestantiam virtūtis ingenī fortūnae cōnsecūtī sunt, impertiant ea suīs commūnicentque cum proximīs;This is what all should do and imitate, so that, if they have attained any eminence in virtue, talent or fortune, they should share it with their own people and impart it to those nearest them; Amic. 19.70ut, sī parentibus nātī sint humilibus, sī propinquōs habeant imbēcilliōre vel animō vel fortūnā, eōrum augeant opēs eīsque honōrī sint et dignitātī.so that, if they have been born of humble parents, or if they have relatives weaker either in spirit or in fortune, they may increase their resources and be a source of honour and dignity to them.
Amic. 19.70Ut in fābulīs, quī aliquamdiū propter ignōrātiōnem stirpis et generis in famulātū fuērunt, cum cognitī sunt et aut deōrum aut rēgum fīliī inventī, retinent tamen cāritātem in pāstōrēs, quōs patrēs multōs annōs esse dūxērunt.As in the stories, those who for a time, through ignorance of their stock and family, have been in servitude, when they are recognised and found to be the sons either of gods or of kings, still keep their affection for the shepherds whom for many years they took to be their fathers. Amic. 19.70Quod est multō profectō magis in vērīs patribus certīsque faciendum.And this, surely, should be done much more in the case of true and certain fathers. Amic. 19.70Frūctus enim ingenī et virtūtis omnisque praestantiae tum maximus capitur, cum in proximum quemque cōnfertur.For the fruit of talent and virtue and every kind of excellence is reaped most fully when it is bestowed on all those nearest to us.