Rosc. Am. 15.1"Nesciō" inquit "quae causa odī fuerit;'I do not know,' he says, 'what the reason for the hatred was; Rosc. Am. 15.1fuisse odium intellegō quia anteā, cum duōs fīliōs habēret, illum alterum quī mortuus est sēcum omnī tempore volēbat esse, hunc in praedia rūstica relēgārat."but I understand that there was hatred, because formerly, when he had two sons, he wanted the other one, who has died, to be with him at all times, while this one he had banished to his country farms.' Rosc. Am. 15.1Quod Eruciō accidēbat in malā nūgātōriāque accūsātiōne, idem mihi ūsū vēnit in causā optimā.What befell Erucius in his bad and trifling accusation has happened to me in an excellent case. Rosc. Am. 15.1Ille quō modō crīmen commentīcium cōnfirmāret nōn inveniēbat, ego rēs tam levīs quā ratiōne īnfirmem ac dīluam reperīre nōn possum.He could not find how to support a fabricated charge, and I cannot discover by what means to weaken and wash away things so trivial. Rosc. Am. 15.43Quid ais, Erucī?What do you say, Erucius? Rosc. Am. 15.43tot praedia, tam pulchra, tam frūctuōsa Sex. Roscius fīliō suō relēgātiōnis ac supplicī grātiā colenda ac tuenda trādiderat?had Sextus Roscius handed over so many farms, so fine, so productive, to his son to cultivate and look after by way of banishment and punishment?
Rosc. Am. 15.43Quid?What? Rosc. Am. 15.43hoc patrēs familiae quī līberōs habent, praesertim hominēs illīus ōrdinis ex mūnicipiīs rūsticānīs, nōnne optātissimum sibi putant esse fīliōs suōs reī familiārī maximē servīre et in praediīs colendīs operae plūrimum studīque cōnsūmere?do not fathers of families who have children, especially men of that class from country towns, think it most desirable for themselves that their sons should devote themselves above all to the family estate and spend most of their effort and zeal on cultivating their farms? Rosc. Am. 15.44An āmandārat hunc sīc ut esset in agrō ac tantum modo alerētur ad vīllam, ut commodīs omnibus carēret?Or had he sent this man away in such a way that he was kept in the country and merely fed at the farmhouse, so that he lacked every comfort? Rosc. Am. 15.44Quid?What? Rosc. Am. 15.44sī cōnstat hunc nōn modo colendīs praediīs praefuisse sed certīs fundīs patre vīvō fruī solitum esse, tamennē haec ā tē vīta eius rūsticāna relēgātiō atque āmandātiō appellābitur?if it is agreed that this man not only managed the cultivation of the farms but was accustomed to enjoy the income of certain estates while his father was alive, will this life of his in the country still be called banishment and sending away by you?
Rosc. Am. 15.44Vidēs, Erucī, quantum distet argūmentātiō tua ab rē ipsā atque ā vēritāte.You see, Erucius, how far your argument stands from the facts themselves and from the truth. Rosc. Am. 15.44Quod cōnsuētūdine patrēs faciunt, id quasi novum reprehendis;What fathers do by custom, you find fault with as though it were new; Rosc. Am. 15.44quod benivolentiā fit, id odiō factum crīmināris;what is done out of goodwill, you charge as done out of hatred; Rosc. Am. 15.44quod honōris causā pater fīliō suō concessit, id eum supplicī causā fēcisse dīcis.what a father granted his son as an honour, you say that he did as a punishment. Rosc. Am. 15.45Neque haec tū nōn intellegis, sed ūsque eō quid arguās nōn habēs, ut nōn modo tibi contrā nōs dīcendum putēs vērum etiam contrā rērum nātūram contrāque cōnsuētūdinem hominum contrāque opīniōnēs omnium.Nor do you fail to understand this, but you are so utterly at a loss for anything to charge that you think you must speak not only against us but also against the nature of things, against the custom of mankind and against the opinions of all.