XXXV |
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XXXV
XXXV
Quintus Cicero to Tiro
(Time and Place Uncertain)
I have castigated you, at least with the silent reproach of my thoughts,
because this is the second packet that has arrived without a letter from you.
You cannot escape the penalty for this crime by your own advocacy: you will
have to call Marcus to your aid, and don`t be too sure that even he, though he
should compose a speech after long study and a great expenditure of midnight
oil, would be able to establish your innocence. In plain terms, I beg you to
do as I remember my mother used to do. It was her custom to put a seal on wine
- jars even when empty to prevent any being labelled empty that had been
surreptitiously drained. In the same way, I beg you, even if you have nothing
to write about, to write all the same, lest you be thought to have sought a
cover for idleness: for I always find the news in your letters trustworthy and
welcome. Love me, and good-bye.
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