Letter 19
As soon as your letters arrived, I replied with equal devotion — neither the protocol of correspondence nor the reciprocity of our affection would let me sit idle any longer. Now again I declare my gratitude, because you never let good news reach me through the grapevine when you can deliver it yourself.
I'd written you much the same in an earlier letter. But if the messenger did get that through to you, a little repetition won't hurt. I'd rather wear out your ears with repeated thanks than cheat them by saying nothing.
I'm thrilled about the honor given to my brother Hesperius, but wounded by his silence. If he considers me a true friend — and experience should have proved that — he ought to have written before the rumor reached me, since the news was uncertain for so long and kept the joy in suspense. He should have been the one to announce our shared good fortune, so that his own letter would have settled the matter and left nothing to guesswork.
But you'll say he was too modest to boast about his own success. Does a man really blush when he's talking about himself to himself? And why would he fail to share news that he knew perfectly well concerned us both?
I raise these complaints sincerely, but I drop them gladly — because my affection for you both won't let me keep silent about what troubles me, nor will our friendship allow the pain to linger past its due. Farewell.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.
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