Epist. 1.18.1Sī bene tē nōvī, metuēs, līberrime Lollī,
scurrantis speciem praebēre, professus amīcum
ut mātrona meretrīcī dispār erit atque
discolor, īnfīdō scurrae distābit amīcus,
5est huic dīversum vitiō vitium prope maius,
asperitās agrestis et inconcinna gravisque,
quae sē commendat tōnsā cute, dentibus ātrīs,
dum volt lībertās dīcī mera vēraque virtūs,
virtūs est medium vitiōrum et utrimque reductum.If I know you well, most outspoken Lollius, you will be afraid to give the appearance of a parasite when you have professed yourself a friend. As a married woman will be unlike a harlot and different in colour, so the friend will differ from the faithless parasite. There is a vice opposite to this one, almost greater: a boorish rudeness, uncouth and offensive, which commends itself by close-cropped skin and black teeth, while it wants to be called pure frankness and true virtue. Virtue is the mean between vices, set back from both. Epist. 1.18.10Alter in obsequium plūs aequō prōnus et īmī
dērīsor lectī sīc nūtum dīvitis horret,
sīc iterat vōcēs et verba cadentia tollit,
ut puerum saevō crēdās dictāta magistrō
reddere vel partīs mīmum trāctāre secundās.One man, too prone to obsequiousness, a jester on the lowest couch, so dreads the rich man's nod, so repeats his sayings and picks up his words as they fall, that you would think a boy was reciting his dictation to a stern schoolmaster or a mime-actor playing second parts.
Epist. 1.18.15Alter rixātur dē lānā saepe caprīnā,
prōpugnat nūgīs armātus: "scīlicet, ut nōn
sit mihi prīma fidēs, et vērē quod placet ut nōn
ācriter ēlātrem!Another often quarrels about goat's wool, and fights, armed, for trifles: 'To think that I should not be believed first, and should not bark out sharply what I truly think! Epist. 1.18.18Pretium aetās altera sordet."A second life would be a worthless price.' Epist. 1.18.19Ambigitur quid enim?For what is in dispute? Epist. 1.18.19Castor sciat an Dolichos plūs;Whether Castor or Dolichos knows more; Epist. 1.18.20Brundisium Minucī melius via dūcat an Appī.whether the road of Minucius or of Appius leads better to Brundisium. Epist. 1.18.21Quem damnōsa Venus, quem praeceps ālea nūdat,
glōria quem suprā vīrēs et vestit et unguit,
quem tenet argentī sitis importūna famēsque,
quem paupertātis pudor et fuga, dīves amīcus,
25saepe decem vitiīs īnstrūctior, ōdit et horret,
aut, sī nōn ōdit, regit ac velutī pia māter
plūs quam sē sapere et virtūtibus esse priōrem
volt et ait prope vēra: "meae (contendere nōlī)
stultitiam patiuntur opēs;Whom ruinous love, whom headlong dice strip bare, whom vanity clothes and anoints beyond his means, whom a relentless thirst and hunger for money holds, whom shame and flight from poverty, his rich friend, often equipped with ten more vices, hates and abhors; or, if he does not hate him, governs him, and like a fond mother wants him to be wiser than himself and to excel in virtues, and says what is nearly true: 'My wealth (do not try to compete) permits folly; Epist. 1.18.29tibi parvola rēs est.your means are tiny.
Epist. 1.18.30Arta decet sānum comitem toga;A narrow toga suits a sensible client; Epist. 1.18.30dēsine mēcum
certāre."stop competing with me.' Epist. 1.18.31Eutrapelus, cuicumque nocēre volēbat,
vestīmenta dabat pretiōsa: "beātus enim iam
cum pulchrīs tunicīs sūmet nova cōnsilia et spēs,
dormiet in lūcem, scortō postpōnet honestum
35officium, nummōs aliēnōs pāscet, ad īmum
Thraex erit aut holitōris aget mercēde caballum."Eutrapelus, whenever he wished to harm someone, used to give him costly clothes: 'For now, happy with his handsome tunics, he will adopt new plans and hopes, will sleep till daylight, will put a harlot before honourable duty, will feed debts with interest, and in the end will become a Thracian gladiator or drive a greengrocer's nag for hire.' Epist. 1.18.37Arcānum neque tū scrūtāberis illīus umquam,
commissumque tegēs et vīnō tortus et īrā.You will never pry into his secret, and will keep what is entrusted to you, though racked by wine and anger. Epist. 1.18.39Nec tua laudābis studia aut aliēna reprendēs,
40nec, cum vēnārī volet ille, poēmata pangēs.Nor will you praise your own pursuits or find fault with another's, nor, when he wants to hunt, will you compose poems.
Epist. 1.18.41Grātia sīc frātrum geminōrum, Amphīonis atque
Zēthī, dissiluit, dōnec suspecta sevērō
conticuit lyrā.So the friendship of the twin brothers, Amphion and Zethus, broke apart, until the lyre, suspect to the stern brother, fell silent. Epist. 1.18.43Frāternīs cessisse putātur
mōribus Amphīōn: tū cēde potentis amīcī
45lēnibus imperiīs, quotiēnsque ēdūcet in agrōs
Aetōlīs onerāta plagīs iūmenta canēsque,
surge et inhūmānae senium dēpōne Camēnae,
cēnēs ut pariter pulmenta labōribus ēmpta:
Rōmānīs sollemne virīs opus, ūtile fāmae
50vītaeque et membrīs;Amphion is believed to have yielded to his brother's character: do you yield to the mild commands of your powerful friend, and whenever he leads out into the fields his pack animals laden with Aetolian nets, and his hounds, rise and lay aside the moroseness of your unsociable Muse, so that you may dine together on a relish bought with toil: a customary task for Roman men, useful for reputation, life and limbs; Epist. 1.18.50praesertim cum valeās et
vel cursū superāre canem vel vīribus aprum
possīs, adde virīlia quod speciōsius arma
nōn est quī trāctet;especially since you are in good health and can outdo the hound in running or the boar in strength. Add that there is no one who handles manly weapons more gracefully; Epist. 1.18.53scīs, quō clamōre corōnae
proelia sustineās campestria;you know with what shouts from the ring of spectators you sustain the battles of the Campus; Epist. 1.18.54dēnique saevam
55mīlitiam puer et Cantabrica bella tulistī
sub duce quī templīs Parthōrum signa refīgit
nunc et, sī quid abest.finally, as a boy you endured hard service and the Cantabrian wars under a leader who is now taking down our standards from the temples of the Parthians, and, if anything is lacking.
Epist. 1.18.57Ītalīs adiūdicat armīs.is assigning it to Italian arms. Epist. 1.18.58Ac nē tē retrahās et inexcūsābilis absīs,
quamvīs nīl extrā numerum fēcisse modumque
60cūrās, interdum nūgāris rūre paternō:
partītur lintrēs exercitus, Actia pugna
tē duce per puerōs hostīlī mōre refertur;And so that you do not hold back and stay away without excuse: though you take care to do nothing out of time and measure, you sometimes play about on your father's estate: the army divides the boats, the battle of Actium is re-enacted under your command by slaves in the manner of enemies; Epist. 1.18.63adversārius est frāter, lacus Hadria, dōnec
alterutrum vēlōx Victōria fronde corōnet,
65cōnsentīre suīs studiīs quī crēdiderit tē,
fautor utrōque tuum laudābit pollice lūdum.your brother is the enemy, the lake is the Adriatic, until swift Victory crowns one or the other with leaves. He who believes that you agree with his pursuits will, as a supporter, praise your game with both thumbs. Epist. 1.18.67Prōtinus ut moneam (sī quid monitōris egēs tū)
quid dē quōque virō et cui dīcās, saepe vidētō,
percontātōrem fugitō: nam garrulus īdem est,
70nec retinent patulae commissa fidēliter aurēs,
et semel ēmissum volat irrevocābile verbum,
nōn ancilla tuum iecur ulceret ūlla puerve
intrā marmoreum venerandī līmen amīcī,
nē dominus puerī pulchrī cāraeve puellae
75mūnere tē parvō beet aut incommodus angat.To go on with my advice (if you need any adviser), consider often what you say about each man, and to whom. Avoid the questioner, for he is also a chatterer; open ears do not faithfully keep what is entrusted to them, and a word once let out flies off beyond recall. Let no maid or boy within the marble threshold of your revered friend inflame your heart, lest the owner of the pretty boy or the dear girl bless you with a trifling gift or torment you by refusing.
Epist. 1.18.76Quālem commendēs, etiam atque etiam aspice, nē mox
incutiant aliēna tibi peccāta pudōrem,
fallimur et quondam nōn dignum trādimus: ergō
quem sua culpa premet, dēceptus omitte tuērī,
80ut penitus notum, sī temptent crīmina, servēs
tūtērisque tuō fīdentem praesidiō: quī
dente Theōnīnō cum circumrōditur, ecquid
ad tē post paulō ventūra perīcula sentīs?Look again and again at the kind of man you recommend, lest soon another's misdeeds strike you with shame. We are deceived, and sometimes introduce an unworthy man: so, once deceived, give up defending one whom his own fault weighs down, so that you may save one you know thoroughly if charges assail him, and protect him as he trusts in your defence: when he is gnawed round by Theon's tooth, do you not sense that the dangers will come to you a little later? Epist. 1.18.84Nam tua rēs agitur, pariēs cum proximus ārdet,
85et neglēcta solent incendia sūmere vīrēs.For it is your own concern when the next wall is burning, and fires neglected tend to gather strength. Epist. 1.18.86Dulcis inexpertīs cultūra potentis amīcī:
expertus metuit.Cultivating a powerful friend is sweet to those who have not tried it: one who has tried it fears it.
Epist. 1.18.87Tū, dum tua nāvis in altō est,
hoc age, nē mūtāta retrōrsum tē ferat aura.While your ship is on the deep, attend to this, lest the wind shift and carry you back. Epist. 1.18.89Ōdērunt hilarem trīstēs trīstemque iocōsī,
90sēdātum celerēs, agilem nāvumque remissī;The gloomy hate the cheerful man and the jesting the gloomy, the quick the sedate, the easy-going the active and energetic; Epist. 1.18.91pōtōrēs
porrēcta negantem pōcula, quamvīs
nocturnōs iūrēs tē formīdāre tepōrēs.drinkers hate the man who refuses the cups held out to him, however much you swear that you fear the fevers of the night. Epist. 1.18.94Dēme superciliō nūbem: plērumque modestus
95occupat obscūrī speciem, taciturnus acerbī.Take the cloud from your brow: very often the modest man takes on the look of the secretive, the silent man of the sour. Epist. 1.18.96Inter cūncta lēgēs et percontābere doctōs,
quā ratiōne queās trādūcere lēniter aevum,
num tē semper inops agitet vexetque cupīdō,
num pavor et rērum mediocriter ūtilium spēs,
100virtūtem doctrīna paret Nātūrane dōnet,
quid minuat cūrās, quid tē tibi reddat amīcum,
quid pūrē tranquillet, honōs an dulce lucellum,
an sēcrētum iter et fallentis sēmita vītae.Amid all this, you will read and question the learned how you can pass your life gently; whether ever-needy desire is to drive and torment you, whether fear and the hope of things of middling worth; whether learning procures virtue or Nature gives it; what lessens cares, what makes you a friend to yourself, what brings pure calm: honour, or sweet little gains, or a secluded journey and the path of a life unnoticed.
Epist. 1.18.104Mē quotiēns reficit gelidus Digentia rīvus,
105quem Mandēla bibit, rūgōsus frīgore pāgus,
quid sentīre putās?Whenever the cool stream of Digentia refreshes me, from which Mandela drinks, a village wrinkled with cold, what do you think I feel? Epist. 1.18.106Quid crēdis, amīce, precārī?What do you suppose, my friend, I pray for? Epist. 1.18.107Sit mihi quod nunc est, etiam minus, et mihi vīvam
quod superest aevī, sī quid superesse volunt dī;May I have what I have now, or even less, and live for myself what remains of my life, if the gods want anything to remain; Epist. 1.18.109sit bona librōrum et prōvīsae frūgis in annum
110cōpia, neu fluitem dubiae spē pendulus hōrae.may I have a good supply of books and of food stored for the year, nor waver, hanging on the hope of an uncertain hour. Epist. 1.18.111Sed satis est ōrāre Iovem, quī pōnit et aufert,
det vītam, det opēs;But it is enough to pray to Jupiter, who gives and takes away, that he grant life, that he grant means; Epist. 1.18.112aequum mī animum ipse parābō.a balanced mind I shall provide for myself.