Formula of the Quaestorship.
If the glory of an office is measured by its proximity to the royal presence, and if frequent attendance reveals the ruler's esteem, then no judge can be more glorious than the one admitted to share in our very thoughts. To some we entrust the management of public funds; to others we grant jurisdiction over lawsuits; to others we delegate the administration of our patrimony. But the Quaestorship we receive into our whole heart, for we regard the Quaestor as the voice of our own tongue.
This office is of necessity bound intimately to our thoughts, so that the Quaestor can properly express what he knows we have in mind. He sets aside his own judgment and so completely adopts the will of our mind that what he says is believed to have come from us. How difficult it is for a subordinate to assume the words of a ruler -- to speak in a way that is credited to us, and in the glow of public honor to produce a magnificent fiction! Consider the weight and the glory of what you hold together. When we are uncertain, we consult the Quaestor, who is the treasury of the state's reputation, the storehouse of the laws, always ready for any sudden demand.
As Cicero, the master of eloquence, says: nothing seems more excellent than the ability to hold the minds of men through speech, to attract their wills, and to drive them where you wish or lead them back from where you wish. For if it is the orator's special task to speak with gravity and elegance so as to move the minds of judges, how much more eloquent must the man be who, speaking with the voice of the prince, admonishes the peoples to love what is right, despise what is wrong, praise the good without limit, and vigorously condemn the wicked? In this way, the severity of punishment may practically go on holiday where the force of eloquence prevails. Let the Quaestor be the wisest imitator of the ancients, correcting the morals of others while guarding his own with proper integrity.
Such, then, must the Quaestor be -- one fit to bear the image of the prince. For if, as sometimes happens, we choose to hear a case in person, what authority the Quaestor's voice must carry to satisfy the royal genius before our very eyes! He must possess knowledge of the law and caution in speech, so that no one may fault what the prince is shown to have decreed. Beyond this, firmness of spirit is required, so that he is turned aside from the path of justice neither by bribes nor by threats.
For the sake of preserving justice, we even allow ourselves to be contradicted -- by the very man whom it is also right to obey. But take care to bring such learning that, when questioned on any matter, you can give a creditable answer. Other offices may seek the help of assessors; yours supplies counsel to the prince himself. Moved, therefore, by the fame of your wisdom and eloquence, we grant you the Quaestorship -- that glory of letters, that temple of civilization, that mother of all honors, that house of self-restraint, that seat of every virtue -- from the coming indiction, God willing. Act in a manner that proves you equal to the things I have described.
The provinces send their petitions to you. The Senate looks to you for legal assistance. The learned themselves seek from you what they already know, and you must be sufficient for all who come to seek legal remedies from us. Yet when you have done all this, do not be carried away by arrogance, nor consumed by envy, nor take pleasure in the misfortunes of others -- for what is hateful to the prince cannot become the Quaestor. Exercise the prince's power in the condition of a subject. Speak gloriously with our voice, yet remember that you will one day render an account to us as your judges -- where the guilty man receives his due, and the man of good purpose wins the glory of praise.
V.
FORMULA QUAESTURAE.
[1] Si tantum clarae sunt dignitates quantum nostris aspectibus perfruuntur, si praesentia frequens prodit dominantis affectum, nullus ita iudicum potest esse gloriosus quam ille qui est in cogitationum nostrarum participatione susceptus. aliis enim pecuniae publicae committimus procurationem, aliis causas concedimus audiendas, aliis patrimonii nostri iura delegamus: quaesturam toto corde recipimus, quam nostrae linguae vocem esse censemus. [2] Haec nostris cogitationibus necessario familiariter applicatur, ut proprie dicere possit quod nos sentire cognoscit: arbitrium suae voluntatis deponit et ita mentis nostrae velle suscipit, ut a nobis magis putetur exisse quod loquitur. o quam arduum est subiectum verba dominantis assumere, loqui posse quod nostrum credatur et provecti in publicum decorem gloriosam facere falsitatem! [3] Considerate quid ponderis habeatis pariter et decoris. si quid dubitamus, a quaestore requirimus, qui est thesaurus famae publicae, armarium legum, paratus semper ad subitum et, ut ait Tullius magister eloquentiae, nihil praestabilius videtur quam posse dicendo tenere hominum mentes, allicere voluntates, impellere quo velit, unde autem velit, deducere. nam si oratoris est proprium graviter et ornate dicere, ut possit animos iudicum commovere, quanto facundior debet esse, qui ore principis populos noscitur ammonere, ut recta diligant, perversa contemnant, bonos sine fine laudent, pessimos vehementer accusent? ut paene feriata sit districtio, ubi praevalet eloquentiae fortitudo. sit imitator prudentissimus antiquorum, mores et alienos corrigat et suos debita integritate custodiat. [4] Talem denique oportet esse quaestorem, qualem portare principis decet imaginem. nam si nos, ut assolet, causam gestis audire contingat, quae auctoritas erit linguae, quae sub oculis regalem genium possit implere? adesse debet scientia iuris, cautela sermonis, ut nemo debeat reprehendere quod principem constiterit censuisse. opus erit praeterea firmitas animi, ut a iustitiae tramite nullis muneribus, nullis terroribus auferatur. [5] Nam pro aequitate servanda et nobis patimur contradici, cui etiam oportet oboediri. sed vide ut tantum doctrinae deferas, quatenus probabiliter omnia perquisitus exponas. aliae quippe dignitates assessorum solacia quaerant: tua vero dignitas principi consilia sumministrat. atque ideo prudentiae vel eloquentiae tuae fama provocati quaesturam tibi, gloriam litterarum, civilitatis templum, genetricem omnium dignitatum, continentiae domicilium, virtutum omnium sedem, per illam indictionem deo praestante concedimus, ut sic agas, quemadmodum te parem rebus praedictis esse contendas. [6] Ad te enim provinciae sua vota transmittunt: a te senatus iuris quaerit auxilium: a te docti probantur expetere quod noverunt, et necesse tibi est omnibus sufficere, quantos a nobis contigerit legum remedia postulare. sed cum haec omnia feceris, nullis elationibus efferaris, nulla mordearis invidia, alienis calamitatibus non laeteris, quia quod odiosum est principi, non potest convenire quaestori. exerce potestatem principis condicione subiecti. sic ore nostro glorificatus eloquere, ut te tamen rationem credas nobis iudicibus redditurum, ubi aut culpabilis vicissitudinem recipit aut boni propositi gloriam laudatus adquirit.
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Formula of the Quaestorship.
If the glory of an office is measured by its proximity to the royal presence, and if frequent attendance reveals the ruler's esteem, then no judge can be more glorious than the one admitted to share in our very thoughts. To some we entrust the management of public funds; to others we grant jurisdiction over lawsuits; to others we delegate the administration of our patrimony. But the Quaestorship we receive into our whole heart, for we regard the Quaestor as the voice of our own tongue.
This office is of necessity bound intimately to our thoughts, so that the Quaestor can properly express what he knows we have in mind. He sets aside his own judgment and so completely adopts the will of our mind that what he says is believed to have come from us. How difficult it is for a subordinate to assume the words of a ruler -- to speak in a way that is credited to us, and in the glow of public honor to produce a magnificent fiction! Consider the weight and the glory of what you hold together. When we are uncertain, we consult the Quaestor, who is the treasury of the state's reputation, the storehouse of the laws, always ready for any sudden demand.
As Cicero, the master of eloquence, says: nothing seems more excellent than the ability to hold the minds of men through speech, to attract their wills, and to drive them where you wish or lead them back from where you wish. For if it is the orator's special task to speak with gravity and elegance so as to move the minds of judges, how much more eloquent must the man be who, speaking with the voice of the prince, admonishes the peoples to love what is right, despise what is wrong, praise the good without limit, and vigorously condemn the wicked? In this way, the severity of punishment may practically go on holiday where the force of eloquence prevails. Let the Quaestor be the wisest imitator of the ancients, correcting the morals of others while guarding his own with proper integrity.
Such, then, must the Quaestor be -- one fit to bear the image of the prince. For if, as sometimes happens, we choose to hear a case in person, what authority the Quaestor's voice must carry to satisfy the royal genius before our very eyes! He must possess knowledge of the law and caution in speech, so that no one may fault what the prince is shown to have decreed. Beyond this, firmness of spirit is required, so that he is turned aside from the path of justice neither by bribes nor by threats.
For the sake of preserving justice, we even allow ourselves to be contradicted -- by the very man whom it is also right to obey. But take care to bring such learning that, when questioned on any matter, you can give a creditable answer. Other offices may seek the help of assessors; yours supplies counsel to the prince himself. Moved, therefore, by the fame of your wisdom and eloquence, we grant you the Quaestorship -- that glory of letters, that temple of civilization, that mother of all honors, that house of self-restraint, that seat of every virtue -- from the coming indiction, God willing. Act in a manner that proves you equal to the things I have described.
The provinces send their petitions to you. The Senate looks to you for legal assistance. The learned themselves seek from you what they already know, and you must be sufficient for all who come to seek legal remedies from us. Yet when you have done all this, do not be carried away by arrogance, nor consumed by envy, nor take pleasure in the misfortunes of others -- for what is hateful to the prince cannot become the Quaestor. Exercise the prince's power in the condition of a subject. Speak gloriously with our voice, yet remember that you will one day render an account to us as your judges -- where the guilty man receives his due, and the man of good purpose wins the glory of praise.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.