Horace, Epistles 1.12

Iccius and true wealth

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Epist. 1.12.1Frūctibus Agrippae Siculīs, quōs colligis, Iēcī,
sī rēctē frueris, nōn est ut cōpia maior
ab Iove dōnārī possit tibi.If you rightly enjoy, Iccius, the Sicilian produce of Agrippa which you collect, there is no way that greater abundance could be given you by Jupiter. Epist. 1.12.3Tolle querellās:
pauper enim nōn est, cui rērum suppetit ūsus,
5sī ventrī bene, sī laterī est pedibusque tuīs, nīl
dīvitiae poterunt rēgālēs addere maius.Stop your complaints: for he is not poor who has enough for his use. If it is well with your belly, your sides and your feet, royal riches can add nothing greater. Epist. 1.12.7Sī forte in mediō positōrum abstēmius herbīs
vīvis et urtīcā, sīc vīvēs prōtinus, ut tē
cōnfestim liquidus Fortūnae rīvus inauret,
10vel quia nātūram mūtāre pecūnia nescit,
vel quia cūncta putās ūnā virtūte minōra.If perhaps, abstaining from what is set before you, you live on herbs and nettles, you will go on living the same way, even if Fortune's flowing stream should suddenly gild you, either because money cannot change one's nature, or because you think all things lower than virtue alone. Epist. 1.12.12Mīrāmur, sī Dēmocritī pecus ēdit agellōs
cultaque, dum peregrē est animus sine corpore vēlōx;We wonder that Democritus' cattle ate his fields and crops while his mind, swift without the body, was travelling abroad; Epist. 1.12.14cum tū inter scabiem tantam et contāgia lucrī
15nīl parvum sapiās et adhūc sublīmia cūrēs:
quae mare compescant causae, quid temperet annum,
stellae sponte suā iussaene vagentur et errent,
quid premat obscūrum lūnae, quid prōferat orbem,
quid velit et possit rērum concordia discors,
20Empedoclēs an Stertinium dēlīret acūmen.when you, amid so great an itch and contagion of gain, have no petty thoughts and still care for sublime things: what causes confine the sea, what regulates the year, whether the stars roam and wander of their own accord or by command, what obscures the moon's orb, what brings it forth, what the discordant harmony of things means and can do, whether Empedocles or the keen wit of Stertinius is raving.

Epist. 1.12.21Vērum seu piscīs seu porrum et caepe trucīdās,
ūtere Pompeiō Grosphō et, sī quid petet, ultrō
dēfer;But whether you are slaughtering fish or leeks and onions, make use of Pompeius Grosphus, and if he asks for anything, offer it freely; Epist. 1.12.23nīl Grosphus nisi vērum ōrābit et aequum,
vīlis amīcōrum est annōna, bonīs ubi quid dēest.Grosphus will ask nothing but what is right and fair. The market price of friends is low when good men lack something. Epist. 1.12.25Nē tamen ignōrēs, quō sit Rōmāna locō rēs,
Cantaber Agrippae, Claudī virtūte Nerōnis
Armenius cecidit;But that you may not be ignorant of how Roman affairs stand, the Cantabrian has fallen to the valour of Agrippa, the Armenian to that of Claudius Nero; Epist. 1.12.27iūs imperiumque Phrāātēs
Caesaris accēpit genibus minor;Phraates on bended knee has accepted Caesar's law and rule; Epist. 1.12.28aurea frūgēs
Ītaliae plēnō dēfūdit Cōpia cornū.golden Plenty has poured her fruits on Italy from her full horn.

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Grammar in this passage: purpose clauses ×1, indirect statement ×1

Latin vocabulary for this passage (144 words)

frūctus, -ūs, m.	enjoyment; fruit
Siculus, -a, -um	Sicilian; fretum Siculum: the strait of Messina
quī, quae, quod, rel. pron.	who, which
colligō, -ere, -lēgī, -lēctum	gather, collect (sē colligere: recover oneself)
iaciō, iacere, iēcī, iactus	throw, cast, hurl
sī, conj.	if
rēctē (adv.)	rightly, properly; safely
fruor, -ī, frūctus sum (+ abl.)	enjoy
nōn, adv.	not
sum, esse, fuī, futūrus	be
ut, conj.	as; when; that; ita ut, as
cōpia, -ae, f.	supply, abundance; plur., forces, troops
magnus, -a, -um	large, big, great, mighty; loud
ā, ab (prep. + abl.)	away from, from; by (ā only before consonants)
dōnō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum	give; present (someone with something)
possum, posse, potuī	be able, have power, can
tū, tuī, pers. pron.	thou, you
tollō, tollere, sustulī, sublātus	lift, raise; take away, remove; ancorās tollere, to weigh anchor
querella (querēla), -ae f.	complaint, lament
pauper, -eris	poor; as a noun, a poor person
enim, conj.	for
rēs, reī, f.	thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really
suppetō, -ere, -īvī	be at hand, be in supply
ūsus, -ūs, m.	use; experience
venter, ventris, m.	belly
bene, adv.	well; successfully
latus, lateris n.	side, flank
pēs, pedis, m.	foot
que, enclitic conj.	and
tuus, -a, -um	thy, thine, your
nihil, n., indecl.	nothing
dīvitiae, -ārum f. pl.	riches, wealth
rēgālis, -e	royal
addō, -ere, -didī, -ditus	add, put to
forte, adv.	by chance, accidentally
in, prep. with acc. and abl.	with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on
medius, -a, -um	mid, middle
pōnō, pōnere, posuī, positus	place, put; pōnī with in and abl., to be placed in, rest or depend on
abstēmius, -a, -um	abstaining from wine; sober, temperate
herba, -ae, f.	herb, plant
vīvō, vīvere, vīxī, vīctus	live
et, conj.	and; et ... et, both ... and
urtīca, -ae f.	nettle
sīc, adv.	so, thus
prōtinus (adv.)	straight on; at once
cōnfestim (adv.)	at once, immediately
liquidus, -a, -um	liquid, flowing; clear
fortūna, -ae, f.	fortune
rīvus, -ī m.	stream, brook
inaurō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	gild, overlay with gold; enrich
vel	or; vel … vel: either … or
quia (conj.)	because
nātūra, -ae, f.	nature, character
mūtō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	change
pecūnia, -ae, f.	money (the possession of cattle constituting wealth in early times)
nesciō, -scīre, -scīvī	not know, be ignorant; nesciō quis, I know not who, some one or other (nesciō is thus used with other interrogative words also)
cūnctus, -a, -um	all, the whole
putō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	think
ūnus, -a, -um	one; only, alone
virtūs, -tūtis, f.	manliness, courage, bravery
parvus, -a, -um	little, small
mīror, -ārī, -ātus	wonder, wonder at
pecus, pecoris, n.	herd, flock, cattle
ēdō, -dere, -didī, -ditus	put forth, give out, utter
agellus, -ī m.	small field, little farm
colō, colere, coluī, cultus	till, cultivate; inhabit; worship
dum, conj.	while, as; as long as; until
peregrē (adv.)	abroad; peregrē proficīscī, go abroad
animus, -ī, m.	mind; heart; spirit, courage
sine, prep. with abl.	without
corpus, corporis, n.	body
vēlōx, vēlōcis	swift, fast
cum, conj.	when, while, after; since; although
inter, prep, with acc.	among, between
scabiēs, -ēī f.	roughness, scurf; mange, the itch
tantus, -a, -um	so great or much
contāgium, -ī n.	contagion, infection, contact
lucrum, -ī, n.	gain
sapiō, -ere, -īvī	be wise, have sense
adhūc, adv.	to this point, up to this time, yet, still
sublīmis, -e	high, lofty; in sublīme: up on high
cūrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum	take care of; (+ gerundive) have something done
quī, quae, quod, interrog. pron. adj.	what?
mare, maris, n.	sea
compescō (conp-), -ere, -pescuī	hold in check, restrain; quench (thirst)
causa, -ae, f.	cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of
quis, quid, interrog. pron.	who? which? what?
temperō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum (ab + abl.)	refrain (from)
annus, -ī, m.	year
stēlla, -ae f.	star
sponte, f. abl. sing., modified by meā, tuā, suā	of one's own accord, voluntarily
suus, -a, -um	his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their
iubeō, iubēre, iussī, iussus	bid, order, command
vagor, -ārī, -ātus sum	wander, roam
errō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	wander, stray; be mistaken
premō, premere, pressī, pressus	press, check, restrain
obscūrus, -a, -um	dark
lūna, -ae f.	moon
prōferō, -ferre, -tulī, -lātus	bring forward, bring out
orbis, -is, m.	circle; orbis terrae or terrārum, circle of the earth or lands, earth, world
volō, velle, voluī	wish
concordia, -ae f.	agreement, harmony
discors, -cordis	discordant, not in harmony
an, conj.	or (in questions)
Stertinius, -a, -um	of Stertinius, the Stoic philosopher; Stertinian
dēlīrō, -āre, -āvī	be crazy, rave, act foolishly
acūmen, -inis n.	a point, sting; sharpness of mind, shrewdness
vērum (conj.)	but, but in fact; nōn modo ... vērum etiam: not only ... but also
sīve or seu, conj.	or if; sīve ... sīve, whether ... or
piscis, -is m.	fish
porrum, -ī n.	leek
caepe (cēpe), -is n.	onion
trucīdō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	slaughter, butcher
ūtor, ūtī, ūsus	use
quis, qua, quid, indef. pron.	any one, anybody, anything, some one, somebody, something
petō, -ere, -īvī or -iī, -ītus	seek, ask; attack
ultrō (adv.)	of one's own accord; besides (ultrō citrōque: back and forth)
dēferō, -ferre, -tulī, -lātus	bear or carry away or off
nisi, conj.	if not, unless
vērus, -a, -um	true; rē vērā, in truth, in fact
ōrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	speak; beg, pray
aequus, -a, -um	level; equal; fair
vīlis, -e	cheap, worthless
amīcus, -ī, m.	friend
annōna, -ae f.	the year's grain supply; the price of grain
bonus, -a, -um	good
ubi, adv.	where; conj., when
dēsum, deesse, dēfuī	be lacking, fail
nē, adv.	not; nē ... quidem, not ... even; conj., that not, lest
tamen, adv.	however, yet, nevertheless
ignōrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	be ignorant of
Rōmānus, -a, -um	Roman
locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n.	place, situation
Armenius, -a, -um	Armenian; as noun, an Armenian; pl. the Armenians
cadō, cadere, cecidī, cāsūrus	fall
iūs, iūris, n.	right, justice, law; iūs dīcere, to pronounce judgment; iūs iūrandum, iūris iūrandī, oath
imperium, -ī, n.	command; sway, rule
accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus	take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer
genū, -ūs n.	knee
aureus, -a, -um	of gold, golden
frūx, frūgis f. (usu. pl.)	crops, produce
plēnus, -a, -um	full
dēfundō, -ere, -fūdī, -fūsus	pour out, pour down
cornū, -ūs, n.	horn

Horace, Epistles I. Latin text: H. R. Fairclough, Horace: Satires, Epistles and Ars Poetica (Loeb, 1929), public domain; digital text from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA. Word analysis: drafted by our own tagger (trained on the hand-checked texts on this site), with every doubtful word checked by hand. English translation and section titles: written for this app, each checked against the Latin by a second reader.