Off. 1.5.1Fōrmam quidem ipsam, Mārce fīlī, et tamquam faciem honestī vidēs, "quae sī oculīs cernerētur, mīrābilēs amōrēs," ut ait Platō, "excitāret sapientiae."You see, Marcus my son, the very form and, as it were, the face of the honourable, 'which, if it could be seen with the eyes,' as Plato says, 'would arouse a wondrous love of wisdom.' Off. 1.5.1Sed omne, quod est honestum, id quattuor partium orītur ex aliquā: aut enim in perspicientiā vērī sollertiāque versātur aut in hominum societāte tuendā tribuendōque suum cuique et rērum contrāctārum fidē aut in animī excelsī atque invictī magnitūdine ac rōbore aut in omnium, quae fīunt quaeque dīcuntur, ōrdine et modō, in quō īnest modestia et temperantia.But everything that is honourable arises from one of four parts: for it is concerned either with the perception of truth and with skill, or with preserving human society, giving each his due and keeping faith in contracts, or with the greatness and strength of a lofty and unconquered spirit, or with order and measure in all that is done and said, in which lie moderation and self-control. Off. 1.5.1(15) Quae quattuor quamquam inter sē colligāta atque implicāta sunt, tamen ex singulīs certa officiōrum genera nāscuntur, velut ex eā parte, quae prīma discrīpta est, in quā sapientiam et prūdentiam pōnimus, īnest indāgātiō atque inventiō vērī, eiusque virtūtis hoc mūnus est proprium.Although these four are bound and intertwined with one another, yet from each of them arise definite kinds of duties: for example, in that part which was described first, in which we place wisdom and prudence, lies the search for and discovery of truth, and this is the proper function of that virtue.
Off. 1.5.16Ut enim quisque maximē perspicit, quid in rē quāque vērissimum sit.For the more clearly anyone perceives what is truest in each matter, Off. 1.5.16quique acūtissimē et celerrimē potest et vidēre et explicāre ratiōnem, is prūdentissimus et sapientissimus rīte habērī solet.and the more keenly and quickly he can both see and explain the reason for it, the more prudent and wise he is rightly accounted. Off. 1.5.16Quōcircā huic quasi māteria, quam trāctet et in quā versētur, subiecta est vēritās.Therefore truth is placed beneath this virtue as, so to speak, the material which it handles and with which it is concerned. Off. 1.5.17Reliquīs autem tribus virtūtibus necessitātēs prōpositae sunt ad eās rēs parandās tuendāsque, quibus āctiō vītae continētur, ut et societās hominum coniūnctiōque servētur et animī excellentia magnitūdōque cum in augendīs opibus ūtilitātibusque et sibi et suīs comparandīs, tum multō magis in hīs ipsīs dēspiciendīs ēlūceat.To the remaining three virtues, on the other hand, the necessary tasks are assigned of procuring and preserving those things on which the activity of life depends, so that both the society and union of men may be maintained, and excellence and greatness of spirit may shine forth, both in increasing resources and in acquiring advantages for oneself and one's own, and much more in disdaining these very things.
Off. 1.5.17Ōrdō autem et cōnstantia et moderātiō et ea, quae sunt hīs similia, versantur in eō genere, ad quod est adhibenda āctiō quaedam, nōn sōlum mentis agitātiō.Order, moreover, and consistency and moderation, and the qualities like these, belong to that sphere in which some action is required, not merely activity of the mind. Off. 1.5.17Iīs enim rēbus, quae trāctantur in vītā, modum quendam et ōrdinem adhibentēs honestātem et decus cōnservābimus.For by applying a certain measure and order to the things handled in life, we shall preserve honour and propriety.