Ep. 8.21.1Ut in vītā sīc in studiīs pulcherrimum et hūmānissimum exīstimō sevēritātem cōmitātemque miscēre, nē illa in trīstitiam, haec in petulantiam excēdat.As in life, so in literature, I think it most admirable and most humane to mix seriousness and good humour, so that the one does not pass into gloom, the other into impudence. Ep. 8.21.2Quā ratiōne ductus graviōra opera lūsibus iocīsque distinguō.Guided by this principle, I intersperse my weightier works with playful and humorous pieces. Ep. 8.21.2Ad hōs prōferendōs et tempus et locum opportūnissimum ēlēgī, utque iam nunc assuēscerent et ab ōtiōsīs et in triclīniō audīrī, Iūliō mēnse, quō maximē lītēs interquiēscunt, positīs ante lectōs cathedrīs amīcōs collocāvī.To present these I chose a most suitable time and place, and so that they might grow used even now to being heard by people at leisure and in the dining room, in the month of July, when lawsuits are most at rest, I seated my friends on chairs placed before the couches. Ep. 8.21.3Forte accidit ut eōdem diē māne in advocātiōnem subitam rogārer, quod mihi causam praeloquendī dedit.It happened by chance that on the morning of that same day I was asked to act as advocate at short notice, which gave me a reason for some introductory words.
Ep. 8.21.3Sum enim dēprecātus, nē quis ut irreverentem operis argueret, quod recitātūrus, quamquam et amīcīs et paucīs, id est iterum amīcīs, forō et negōtiīs nōn abstinuissem.For I begged that no one should accuse me of disrespect for my work because, when about to give a reading, though to friends and few of them, that is, friends again, I had not kept away from the forum and business. Ep. 8.21.3Addidī hunc ōrdinem mē et in scrībendō sequī, ut necessitātēs voluptātibus, sēria iūcundīs anteferrem, ac prīmum amīcīs tum mihi scrīberem.I added that I followed this order in my writing too, putting necessities before pleasures, serious things before pleasant ones, and writing first for my friends and then for myself. Ep. 8.21.4Liber fuit et opusculīs varius et metrīs.The book was varied both in its little pieces and in its metres. Ep. 8.21.4Ita solēmus, quī ingeniō parum fīdimus, satietātis perīculum fugere.This is what we usually do, we who have little confidence in our talent, to escape the danger of boring people. Ep. 8.21.4Recitāvī bīduō.I read for two days.
Ep. 8.21.4Hoc assēnsus audientium exēgit;The approval of my audience demanded this; Ep. 8.21.4et tamen ut aliī trānseunt quaedam imputantque quod trānseant, sīc ego nihil praetereō atque etiam nōn praeterīre mē dīcō.and yet, while others skip certain passages and take credit for skipping them, I leave nothing out, and indeed I say that I leave nothing out. Ep. 8.21.4Legō enim omnia ut omnia ēmendem, quod contingere nōn potest ēlēcta recitantibus.For I read everything so that I may correct everything, which cannot happen for those who read selections. Ep. 8.21.5At illud modestius et fortasse reverentius;But that, you may say, is more modest and perhaps more respectful; Ep. 8.21.5sed hoc simplicius et amantius.but this is more candid and more affectionate. Ep. 8.21.5Amat enim quī sē sīc amārī putat, ut taedium nōn pertimēscat;For a man shows love who thinks himself so loved that he does not fear causing boredom; Ep. 8.21.5et aliōquī quid praestant sodālēs, sī conveniunt voluptātis suae causā?and besides, what use are companions if they come together for their own pleasure? Ep. 8.21.5Dēlicātus ac similis ignōtō est, quī amīcī librum bonum māvult audīre quam facere.A man is fastidious and like a stranger who would rather hear a friend's book when it is good than make it good.
Ep. 8.21.6Nōn dubitō cupere tē prō cēterā meī cāritāte quam mātūrissimē legere hunc adhūc musteum librum.I do not doubt that, with your affection for me in other things, you want to read this still unfermented book as soon as possible. Ep. 8.21.6Legēs, sed retractātum, quae causa recitandī fuit;You shall read it, but revised, which was the reason for the reading; Ep. 8.21.6et tamen nōn nūlla iam ex eō nōstī.and yet you already know some parts of it. Ep. 8.21.6Haec ēmendāta posteā vel, quod interdum longiōre morā solet, dēteriōra facta quasi nova rūrsus et rescrīpta cognōscēs.These, corrected afterwards or, as sometimes happens after too long a delay, made worse, you will get to know as if new and rewritten. Ep. 8.21.6Nam plērīsque mūtātīs ea quoque mūtāta videntur, quae manent.For when most things have been changed, even those that remain seem changed. Ep. 8.21.6Valē.Farewell.