Epist. 1.17.1Quamvīs, Scaeva, satis per tē tibi cōnsulis et scīs,
quō tandem pactō deceat maiōribus ūtī,
disce, docendus adhūc quae cēnset amīculus, ut sī
caecus iter mōnstrāre velit;Although, Scaeva, you take care enough of yourself on your own and know in what way at last it is fitting to deal with the great, learn what your humble friend, who still needs teaching himself, thinks, as if a blind man should wish to show the way; Epist. 1.17.4tamen aspice sī quid
5et nōs, quod cūrēs proprium fēcisse, loquantur.yet see whether I too may say anything you might care to make your own. Epist. 1.17.6Sī tē grāta quiēs et prīmam somnus in hōram
dēlectat, sī tē pulvis strepitusque rotārum,
sī laedit caupōna, Ferentīnum īre iubēbō,
nam neque dīvitibus contingunt gaudia sōlīs,
10nec vīxit male, quī nātus moriēnsque fefellit.If pleasant rest and sleep till the first hour delight you, if dust and the din of wheels, if the tavern annoys you, I shall bid you go to Ferentinum; for joys do not fall to the rich alone, nor has he lived badly who from birth to death has passed unnoticed.
Epist. 1.17.11Sī prōdesse tuīs paulōque benignius ipsum
tē trāctāre volēs, accēdēs siccus ad ūnctum.If you want to benefit your family and treat yourself a little more generously, you will go, a dry man, to one well oiled. Epist. 1.17.13"Sī prandēret holus patienter, rēgibus ūtī
nōllet Aristippus."'If Aristippus could patiently lunch on vegetables, he would not want to associate with kings.' Epist. 1.17.14"Sī scīret rēgibus ūtī,
15fastīdīret holus quī mē notat."'If he who criticises me knew how to associate with kings, he would turn up his nose at vegetables.' Epist. 1.17.15Utrīus hōrum
verba probēs et facta docē, vel iūnior audī
cūr sit Aristippī potior sententia, namque
mordācem Cynicum sīc ēlūdēbat, ut aiunt:
"scurror ego ipse mihi, populō tū;Tell me which of these men's words and deeds you approve, or, as the younger, hear why Aristippus' view is better; for this, they say, is how he dodged the snapping Cynic: 'I play the buffoon for my own benefit, you for the people's; Epist. 1.17.19rēctius hoc et
20splendidius multō est.this is more right and much more splendid.
Epist. 1.17.20Equus ut mē portet, alat rēx,
officium faciō;I do my duty so that a horse may carry me and a king feed me; Epist. 1.17.21tū poscis vīlia, vērum
dante minor, quamvīs fers tē nūllīus egentem."you beg for cheap things, but are lower than the giver, though you claim to need no one.' Epist. 1.17.23Omnis Aristippum decuit color et status et rēs,
temptantem maiōra, ferē praesentibus aequum,
25contrā, quem duplicī pannō patientia vēlat,
mīrābor, vītae via sī conversa decēbit.Every colour, condition and circumstance suited Aristippus, who aimed at greater things but was mostly content with what he had; but as for the man whom endurance clothes in a doubled rag, I shall be amazed if a change in his way of life suits him. Epist. 1.17.27Alter purpureum nōn exspectābit amictum,
quidlibet indūtus celeberrima per loca vādet,
persōnamque feret nōn inconcinnus utramque;The one will not wait for a purple cloak, will go through the busiest places dressed in anything, and will play either part not without grace; Epist. 1.17.30alter Mīlētī textam cane peius et anguī
vītābit chlamydem, moriētur frīgore, sī nōn
rettuleris pannum.the other will shun a cloak woven at Miletus worse than a dog or a snake, and will die of cold if you do not give him back his rag.
Epist. 1.17.32Refer et sine vīvat ineptus.Give it back, and let him live his foolish life. Epist. 1.17.33Rēs gerere et captōs ostendere cīvibus hostīs
attingit solium Iovis et caelestia temptat:
35prīncipibus placuisse virīs nōn ultima laus est.To achieve great deeds and display captured enemies to one's fellow citizens touches the throne of Jupiter and reaches for the heavens: to have pleased leading men is not the least of praise. Epist. 1.17.36Nōn cuivīs hominī contingit adīre Corinthum.It is not every man's lot to get to Corinth. Epist. 1.17.37Sēdit quī timuit nē nōn succēderet.He who feared he would not succeed sat still. Epist. 1.17.37"Estō.'So be it. Epist. 1.17.38Quid, quī pervēnit, fēcitne virīliter?"What of him who got there? Did he act like a man?' Epist. 1.17.38Atquī
hīc est aut nūsquam, quod quaerimus, hic onus horret,
40ut parvīs animīs et parvō corpore maius;And yet here or nowhere is what we are seeking. This one shudders at the burden, as too great for small minds and a small body; Epist. 1.17.41hic subit et perfert, aut virtūs nōmen ināne est,
aut decus et pretium rēctē petit experiēns vir.that one takes it up and carries it through. Either virtue is an empty name, or the man who makes the attempt rightly seeks honour and reward.
Epist. 1.17.43Cōram rēge suā dē paupertāte tacentēs
plūs poscente ferent : distat, sūmāsne pudenter
45an rapiās;Those who keep silent before their patron about their poverty will get more than the one who asks: it makes a difference whether you take modestly or snatch; Epist. 1.17.45atquī rērum caput hoc erat, hic fōns.and yet this was the head and source of the matter. Epist. 1.17.46"Indōtāta mihi soror est, paupercula māter,
et fundus nec vēndibilis nec pāscere firmus,"
quī dīcit, clāmat, vīctum date!'My sister has no dowry, my mother is poor, and my farm can neither be sold nor keep us': he who says this is crying out, 'Give me food!' Epist. 1.17.48Succinit alter,
et mihi!Another chimes in, 'And me!' Epist. 1.17.49Dīviduō findētur mūnere quadra,
50sed tacitus pāscī sī posset corvus, habēret
plūs dapis et rixae multō minus invidiaeque.The loaf will be split into shares; but if the crow could feed in silence, it would have more of the feast and much less quarrelling and envy. Epist. 1.17.52Brundisium comes aut Surrentum ductus amoenum
quī queritur salebrās et acerbum frīgus et imbrēs,
aut cistam effrāctam et subducta viātica plōrat,
55nota refert meretrīcis acūmina, saepe catellam,
saepe periscelidem raptam sibi flentis, utī mox
nūlla fidēs damnīs vērīsque dolōribus adsit,
nec semel irrīsus triviīs attollere cūrat
frāctō crūre planum, licet illī plūrima mānet
60lacrima, per sānctum iūrātus dīcat Osīrim:
crēdite, nōn lūdō;He who, taken as companion to Brundisium or lovely Surrentum, complains of the bumpy roads and the bitter cold and the rains, or bewails his box broken open and his travel money stolen, repeats the well-known tricks of the harlot who often weeps for a necklace, often for an anklet stolen from her, so that soon no belief is given to her real losses and grief. Nor does one who has once been fooled care to lift up at the crossroads a quack with a broken leg, though many a tear flows from him, though, swearing by holy Osiris, he says: 'Believe me, I'm not joking; Epist. 1.17.61crūdēlēs, tollite claudum!cruel people, lift up the lame man!' Epist. 1.17.62Quaere peregrīnum, vīcīnia rauca reclāmat.'Look for a stranger,' the hoarse neighbourhood shouts back.