Ep. 3.9.1Possum iam perscrībere tibi quantum in pūblicā prōvinciae Baeticae causā labōris exhauserim.I can now write you a full account of how much labour I have spent on the public case of the province of Baetica. Ep. 3.9.2Nam fuit multiplex, āctaque est saepius cum magnā varietāte.For it was complex, and was pleaded several times with great variety. Ep. 3.9.2Unde varietās, unde plūrēs āctiōnēs?Why the variety, why several hearings? Ep. 3.9.2Caecilius Classicus, homō foedus et apertē malus, prōcōnsulātum in eā nōn minus violenter quam sordidē gesserat, eōdem annō quō in Āfricā Marius Prīscus.Caecilius Classicus, a vile and openly wicked man, had conducted his proconsulship there no less violently than corruptly, in the same year as Marius Priscus in Africa. Ep. 3.9.3Erat autem Prīscus ex Baeticā, ex Āfricā Classicus.Now Priscus came from Baetica, Classicus from Africa. Ep. 3.9.3Inde dictum Baeticōrum, ut plērumque dolor etiam venustōs facit, nōn illepidum ferēbātur: "Dedī malum et accēpī."Hence a saying of the Baeticans — for resentment often makes people witty too — went the rounds, and not without humour: 'I gave a bad one and got a bad one back.' Ep. 3.9.4Sed Marium ūna cīvitās pūblicē multīque prīvātī reum perēgērunt, in Classicum tōta prōvincia incubuit.But Marius was prosecuted by one city officially and by many private individuals, whereas the whole province fell upon Classicus.
Ep. 3.9.4Ille accūsātiōnem vel fortuītā vel voluntāriā morte praevertit.He forestalled the prosecution by death, whether accidental or self-inflicted. Ep. 3.9.4Nam fuit mors eius īnfāmis, ambigua tamen: ut enim crēdibile vidēbātur voluisse exīre dē vītā, Cum dēfendī nōn posset, ita mīrum pudōrem damnātiōnis morte fūgisse, quem nōn puduīsset damnanda committere.For his death was notorious, yet uncertain: for while it seemed credible that he had wished to depart from life since he could not be defended, it seemed strange that he should have escaped by death the shame of condemnation when he had felt no shame in committing acts that deserved condemnation. Ep. 3.9.6Nihilō minus Baetica etiam in dēfūnctī accūsātiōne perstābat.Nonetheless Baetica persisted in its prosecution even of the dead man. Ep. 3.9.6Prōvīsum hoc lēgibus, intermissum tamen et post longam intercapēdinem tunc reductum.This had been provided for by the laws, but had fallen into disuse and was then revived after a long interval. Ep. 3.9.6Addidērunt Baeticī, quod simul sociōs ministrōsque Classicī dētulērunt, nōminātimque in eōs inquīsītiōnem postulāvērunt.The Baeticans went further, in that they also indicted Classicus' associates and agents at the same time, and demanded an inquiry against them by name.
Ep. 3.9.7Aderam Baeticīs mēcumque Lucceius Albīnus, vir in dīcendō cōpiōsus ōrnātus;I appeared for the Baeticans, and with me Lucceius Albinus, a copious and polished speaker; Ep. 3.9.7quem ego cum ōlim mūtuō dīligerem, ex hāc officiī societāte amāre ardentius coepī.though we had long had a mutual regard, from this partnership in duty I began to love him more ardently. Ep. 3.9.8Habet quidem glōria, in studiīs praesertim, quiddam nōbīs tamen nūllum certāmen nūlla contentiō cum, uterque parī iugō nōn prō sē sed prō causā nīterētur cuius, et magnitūdō et ūtilitās vīsa est postulāre nē, tantum oneris singulīs āctiōnibus subīrēmus subiremus.Glory, it is true, especially in literary pursuits, has something that cannot be shared; yet between us there was no rivalry, no contention, since we both strove under an equal yoke not for ourselves but for the case, whose magnitude and importance seemed to demand that we should not take on so great a burden in single hearings. Ep. 3.9.9Verēbāmur nē nōs diēs nē vōx nē latera dēficerent, sī tot crīmina tot reōs ūnō velut fasce complecterēmur;We feared that the day, our voices and our lungs would fail us if we embraced so many charges and so many defendants in a single bundle, as it were; Ep. 3.9.9deinde nē iūdicum intentiō multīs nōminibus multīsque causīs nōn lassārētur modo vērum etiam cōnfunderētur;then, that the attention of the judges might be not only wearied but even confused by many names and many cases; Ep. 3.9.9mox nē grātia singulōrum collāta atque permixta prō singulīs quoque vīrēs omnium acciperet;next, that the influence of the individuals, combined and intermingled, might gain for each of them the strength of all; Ep. 3.9.9postrēmō nē potentissimī vīlissimō quoque quasi piāculārī datō aliēnīs poenīs ēlāberentur.finally, that the most powerful might slip away through the punishment of others, the lowliest being handed over as a kind of scapegoat.
Ep. 3.9.10Etenim tum maximē favor et ambitiō dominātur, cum sub aliquā speciē sevēritātis dēlitēscere potest.For favour and self-interest hold sway most of all when they can lurk beneath some show of severity. Ep. 3.9.11Erat in cōnsiliō Sertōriānum illud exemplum, quī rōbustissimum et īnfirmissimum mīlitem iussit caudam equī - reliqua nōstī.We had in mind that famous example of Sertorius, who ordered the strongest and the weakest soldier to pull the horse's tail — you know the rest. Ep. 3.9.11Nam nōs quoque tam numerōsum agmen reōrum ita dēmum vidēbāmus posse superārī, sī per singulōs carperētur.For we too saw that so numerous a column of defendants could be overcome only if it were picked off one by one. Ep. 3.9.12Placuit in prīmīs ipsum Classicum ostendere nocentem: hic aptissimus ad sociōs eius et ministrōs trānsitus erat, quia sociī ministrīque probārī nisi illō nocente nōn poterant.We decided first of all to show that Classicus himself was guilty: this was the most suitable way to pass on to his associates and agents, since associates and agents could not be proved guilty unless he was guilty. Ep. 3.9.12Ex quibus duōs statim Classicō iūnximus, Baebium Probum et Fabium Hispānum, utrumque grātiā, Hispānum etiam fācundiā validum.Two of these we joined with Classicus at once, Baebius Probus and Fabius Hispanus, both powerful through influence, Hispanus through eloquence as well.
Ep. 3.9.12Et circā Classicum quidem brevis et expedītus labor.And as far as Classicus was concerned, the work was brief and easy. Ep. 3.9.13Suā manū relīquerat scrīptum, quid ex quāque rē, quid ex quāque causā accēpisset;He had left a record in his own hand of what he had received from each transaction, from each case; Ep. 3.9.13mīserat etiam epistulās Rōmam ad amīculam quandam, iactantēs et glōriōsās, hīs quidem verbīs: "Iō iō, līber ad tē veniō;he had also sent boastful and bragging letters to Rome to a little lady friend, in these very words: 'Hurrah, hurrah, I am coming back to you a free man; Ep. 3.9.13iam sēstertium quadrāgiēns redēgī parte vēnditā Baeticōrum."I have already raised four million sesterces, having sold off part of the Baeticans.' Ep. 3.9.14Circā Hispānum et Probum multum sūdōris.Over Hispanus and Probus there was much sweat. Ep. 3.9.14Hōrum ante quam crīmina ingrederer, necessārium crēdidī ēlabōrāre, ut cōnstāret ministerium crīmen esse: quod nisi fēcissem, frūstrā ministrōs probāssem.Before I came to their charges, I thought it necessary to work hard to establish that acting as an agent was itself a crime: had I not done so, I would have proved them agents to no purpose.
Ep. 3.9.15Neque enim ita dēfendēbantur, ut negārent, sed ut necessitātī veniam precārentur;For their defence was not to deny the facts but to beg pardon on the ground of necessity; Ep. 3.9.15esse enim sē prōvinciālēs et ad omne prōcōnsulum imperium metū cōgī.for they were provincials, they said, and were compelled by fear to obey every command of the proconsuls. Ep. 3.9.16Solet dīcere Claudius Restitūtus, quī mihi respondit, vir exercitātus et vigilāns et quamlibet subitīs parātus, numquam sibi tantum cālīginis tantum perturbātiōnis offūsum, quam cum praerepta et extorta dēfēnsiōnī suae cerneret, in quibus omnem fīdūciam repōnēbat.Claudius Restitutus, who replied to me, a practised and alert man, ready for anything however sudden, often says that never had such darkness, such confusion been cast over him as when he saw the points snatched away and wrested from him on which he rested all his confidence for his defence. Ep. 3.9.17Cōnsiliī nostrī exitus fuit: bona Classicī, quae habuisset ante prōvinciam, placuit senātuī ā reliquīs sēparārī, illa fīliae haec spoliātīs relinquī.The outcome of our plan was this: the senate decided that the property Classicus had possessed before his province should be separated from the rest, the former to be left to his daughter, the latter to those he had despoiled.
Ep. 3.9.17Additum est, ut pecūniae quās crēditōribus solverat revocārentur.It was added that the money he had paid to his creditors should be recovered. Ep. 3.9.17Hispānus et Probus in quīnquennium relēgātī;Hispanus and Probus were banished for five years; Ep. 3.9.17adeō grave vīsum est, quod initiō dubitābātur an omnīnō crīmen esset.so serious did that appear which at first was doubted to be a crime at all. Ep. 3.9.18Post paucōs diēs Claudium Fuscum, Classicī generum, et Stilonium Prīscum, quī tribūnus cohortis sub Classicō fuerat, accūsāvimus disparī ēventū: Prīscō in biennium Ītaliā interdictum, absolūtus est Fuscus.A few days later we prosecuted Claudius Fuscus, Classicus' son-in-law, and Stilonius Priscus, who had been tribune of a cohort under Classicus, with differing results: Priscus was banned from Italy for two years, and Fuscus was acquitted. Ep. 3.9.19Āctiōne tertiā commodissimum putāvimus plūrēs congregāre, nē sī longius esset extrācta cognitiō, satietāte et taediō quōdam iūstitia cognōscentium sevēritāsque languēsceret;In the third hearing we thought it most convenient to gather several together, lest, if the inquiry were drawn out too long, the justice and severity of the judges should flag through a kind of surfeit and weariness; Ep. 3.9.19et aliōquī supererant minōrēs reī datā operā hunc in locum reservātī, exceptā tamen Classicī uxōre, quae sīcut implicita suspīciōnibus ita nōn satis convincī probātiōnibus vīsa est;and besides, there remained the lesser defendants, deliberately kept for this stage, with the exception, however, of Classicus' wife, who, though entangled in suspicions, did not seem sufficiently convicted by the proofs; Ep. 3.9.20nam Classicī fīlia, quae et ipsa inter reōs erat, nē suspīciōnibus quidem haerēbat.for Classicus' daughter, who was also among the accused, was not even touched by suspicion.
Ep. 3.9.20Itaque, cum ad nōmen eius in extrēmā āctiōne vēnissem - neque enim ut initiō sīc etiam in fīne verendum erat, nē per hoc tōtīus accūsātiōnis auctōritās minuerētur -, honestissimum crēdidī nōn premere immerentem, idque ipsum dīxī et līberē et variē.And so, when I came to her name in the last hearing — for there was not the same reason at the end as at the beginning to fear that the authority of the whole prosecution might be weakened by this — I thought it most honourable not to press one who did not deserve it, and I said this very thing both freely and in various ways. Ep. 3.9.21Nam modo lēgātōs interrogābam, docuissentne mē aliquid quod rē probārī posse cōnfīderent;For at one moment I asked the envoys whether they had told me anything that they were confident could be proved by the facts; Ep. 3.9.21modo cōnsilium ā senātū petēbam, putāretne dēbēre mē, sī quam habērem in dīcendō facultātem, in iugulum innocentis quasi tēlum aliquod intendere;at another I asked the senate's advice whether it thought that I ought, if I had any ability in speaking, to aim it like a weapon at the throat of an innocent woman; Ep. 3.9.21postrēmō tōtum locum hōc fīne conclūsī: "Dīcet aliquis: Iūdicās ergō?finally I closed the whole topic with this conclusion: 'Someone will say, "Are you passing judgement, then?"
Ep. 3.9.21Ego vērō nōn iūdicō, meminī tamen mē advocātum ex iūdicibus datum."No, I am not judging; but I do remember that I was assigned as advocate from among the judges.' Ep. 3.9.22Hic numerōsissimae causae terminus fuit quibusdam absolūtīs, plūribus damnātīs atque etiam relēgātīs, aliīs in tempus aliīs in perpetuum.This was the end of a case with a great many defendants, some being acquitted, more condemned and even banished, some for a term, others for life. Ep. 3.9.23Eōdem senātūs cōnsultō industria fidēs cōnstantia nostra plēnissimō testimōniō comprobāta est, dignum sōlumque pār pretium tantī labōris.In the same decree of the senate our industry, good faith and steadfastness were approved with the fullest testimony, a worthy and the only fitting reward for so great a labour. Ep. 3.9.24Concipere animō potes quam sīmus fatīgātī, quibus totiēns agendum totiēns altercandum, tam multī testēs interrogandī sublevandī refūtandī.You can imagine how tired we are, who had to plead so often, to dispute so often, to examine, support and refute so many witnesses. Ep. 3.9.25Iam illa quam ardua quam molesta, tot reōrum amīcīs sēcrētō rogantibus negāre, adversantibus palam obsistere!Then again, how hard, how irksome it was to refuse the friends of so many defendants when they asked in private, and to resist them openly when they opposed us!
Ep. 3.9.25Referam ūnum aliquid ex iīs quae dīxī.I will relate one of the things I said. Ep. 3.9.25Cum mihi quīdam ē iūdicibus ipsīs prō reō grātiōsissimō reclāmārent, "Nōn minus" inquam "hic innocēns erit, sī ego omnia dīxerō."When some of the judges themselves protested loudly to me on behalf of a defendant of great influence, I said: 'He will be no less innocent if I have said everything.' Ep. 3.9.26Coniectābis ex hōc quantās contentiōnēs, quantās etiam offēnsās subierīmus dumtaxat ad breve tempus;You will gather from this how many disputes, how many offences too, we incurred, though only for a short time; Ep. 3.9.26nam fidēs in praesentiā eōs quibus resistit offendit, deinde ab illīs ipsīs suspicitur laudāturque.for good faith at the moment offends those whom it resists, but afterwards it is looked up to and praised by those very people. Ep. 3.9.26Nōn potuī magis tē in rem praesentem perdūcere.I could not have brought you more fully into the scene itself. Ep. 3.9.27Dīcēs: "Nōn fuit tantī;You will say: 'It was not worth it; Ep. 3.9.27quid enim mihi cum tam longā epistulā?"for what have I to do with so long a letter?' Ep. 3.9.27Nōlītō ergō identidem quaerere, quid Rōmae gerātur.Then do not keep asking what is happening at Rome.
Ep. 3.9.27Et tamen mementō nōn esse epistulam longam, quae tot diēs tot cognitiōnēs tot dēnique reōs causāsque complexa sit.And yet remember that a letter is not long which has embraced so many days, so many hearings, and finally so many defendants and cases. Ep. 3.9.28Quae omnia videor mihi nōn minus breviter quam dīligenter persecūtus.All of which I think I have gone through no less briefly than carefully. Ep. 3.9.28Temerē dīxī "dīligenter": succurrit quod praeterieram et quidem sērō, sed quamquam praeposterē reddētur.I was rash to say 'carefully': something occurs to me that I had passed over, and late indeed, but though out of its place, it shall be given. Ep. 3.9.28Facit hoc Homērus multīque illīus exemplō;Homer does this, and many others following his example; Ep. 3.9.28est aliōquī perdecōrum, ā mē tamen nōn ideō fīet.it is besides very elegant, though that is not why I shall do it. Ep. 3.9.29Ē testibus quīdam, sīve īrātus quod ēvocātus esset invītus, sīve subōrnātus ab aliquō reōrum, ut accūsātiōnem exarmāret, Norbānum Liciniānum, lēgātum et inquīsītōrem, reum postulāvit, tamquam in causā Castae - uxor haec Classicī - praevāricārētur.One of the witnesses, whether angry at having been summoned against his will, or suborned by one of the defendants to disarm the prosecution, charged Norbanus Licinianus, envoy and investigator, with collusion in the case of Casta — she was Classicus' wife.
Ep. 3.9.30Est lēge cautum ut reus ante peragātur, tunc dē praevāricātōre quaerātur, vidēlicet quia optimē ex accūsātiōne ipsā accūsātōris fidēs aestimātur.It is laid down by law that the defendant's case should be completed first and then the inquiry into the colluder held, evidently because the good faith of a prosecutor is best judged from the prosecution itself. Ep. 3.9.31Norbānō tamen nōn ōrdō lēgis, nōn lēgātī nōmen, nōn inquīsītiōnis officium praesidiō fuit;Yet neither the order of the law, nor his title as envoy, nor his duty as investigator protected Norbanus; Ep. 3.9.31tantā cōnflagrāvit invidiā homō aliōquī flāgitiōsus et Domitiānī temporibus ūsus ut multī, ēlēctusque tunc ā prōvinciā ad inquīrendum nōn tamquam bonus et fidēlis, sed tamquam Classicī inimīcus - erat ab illō relēgātus -.so great was the hatred that blazed up against a man otherwise wicked, who had exploited the times of Domitian like many others, and who had been chosen by the province on this occasion to investigate not as a good and trustworthy man but as an enemy of Classicus — he had been banished by him —.
Ep. 3.9.32Darī sibi diem, ēdī crīmina postulābat;He demanded that a day be granted him and that the charges be set out; Ep. 3.9.32neutrum impetrāvit, coāctus est statim respondēre.he obtained neither, and was forced to reply at once. Ep. 3.9.32Respondit, malum prāvumque ingenium hominis facit ut dubitem, cōnfīdenter an cōnstanter, certē parātissimē.He replied — the man's evil and perverse character makes me doubt whether boldly or steadfastly — but certainly with the greatest readiness. Ep. 3.9.33Obiecta sunt multa, quae magis quam praevāricātiō nocuērunt;Many charges were brought against him which did him more harm than the collusion; Ep. 3.9.33quīn etiam duo cōnsulārēs, Pompōnius Rūfus et Libō Frūgī, laesērunt eum testimōniō, tamquam apud iūdicem sub Domitiānō Salvī Līberālis accūsātōribus adfuisset.indeed two consulars, Pomponius Rufus and Libo Frugi, damaged him with their testimony, alleging that under Domitian he had assisted the accusers of Salvius Liberalis before the judge. Ep. 3.9.34Damnātus et in īnsulam relēgātus est.He was condemned and banished to an island. Ep. 3.9.34Itaque cum Castam accūsārem nihil magis pressī, quam quod accūsātor eius praevāricātiōnis crīmine corruisset;So when I was prosecuting Casta I pressed nothing harder than the fact that her accuser had fallen on a charge of collusion; Ep. 3.9.34pressī tamen frūstrā;but I pressed it in vain; Ep. 3.9.34accidit enim rēs contrāria et nova, ut accūsātōre praevāricātiōnis damnātō rea absolverētur.for a contrary and novel thing happened: with the accuser condemned for collusion, the defendant was acquitted.
Ep. 3.9.35Quaeris, quid nōs, dum haec aguntur?You ask what we were doing while this was going on? Ep. 3.9.35Indicāvimus senātuī ex Norbānō didicisse nōs pūblicam causam, rūrsusque dēbēre ex integrō discere, sī ille praevāricātor probārētur, atque ita, dum ille peragitur reus, sēdimus.We informed the senate that we had learned the public case from Norbanus and must learn it again from the beginning if he were proved a colluder, and so, while he was on trial, we sat still. Ep. 3.9.35Posteā Norbānus omnibus diēbus cognitiōnis interfuit eandemque ūsque ad extrēmum vel cōnstantiam vel audāciam pertulit.Afterwards Norbanus attended every day of the inquiry and maintained the same steadfastness, or audacity, right to the end. Ep. 3.9.36Interrogō ipse mē, an aliquid omīserim rūrsus, et rūrsus paene omīsī.I ask myself whether I have left anything out again, and again I almost did. Ep. 3.9.36Summō diē Salvius Līberālis reliquōs lēgātōs graviter increpuit, tamquam nōn omnēs quōs mandāsset prōvincia reōs perēgissent, atque, ut est vehemēns et disertus, in discrīmen addūxit.On the last day Salvius Liberalis severely rebuked the rest of the envoys for not having prosecuted all the defendants the province had entrusted to them, and, vehement and eloquent as he is, brought them into danger.
Ep. 3.9.36Prōtēxī virōs optimōs eōsdemque grātissimōs: mihi certē dēbēre sē praedicant, quod illum turbinem ēvāserint.I protected these excellent men, who are also most grateful: at any rate they declare that they owe it to me that they escaped that whirlwind. Ep. 3.9.37Hic erit epistulae fīnis, rē vērā fīnis;This will be the end of the letter, truly the end; Ep. 3.9.37litteram nōn addam, etiamsī adhūc aliquid praeterīsse mē sēnserō.I shall not add a single letter, even if I realise that I have still passed over something. Ep. 3.9.37Valē.Farewell.