Letter 2009: Both my respect for you and my sense of duty would make any occasion for writing worth seizing — let alone one as...

Quintus Aurelius SymmachusUnknown|c. 369 AD|Quintus Aurelius Symmachus|AI-assisted
illness

Both my respect for you and my sense of duty would make any occasion for writing worth seizing — let alone one as good as this, presented by a fellow citizen. You'll recognize him: a man from the seven hills [i.e., Rome], known at home for the distinction of his family and abroad for his years of military service.

There's no need for me to say much on his behalf. Recommendations are meant for strangers; for him, it's enough to win your favor that he's both a Roman and a friend.

AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.

Latin / Greek Original

Et tui cultus et mei officii gratia quaelibet ad scribendum amplectenda esset
10 occasio; tantum abest, ut eam praeterire debuerim, quam civis ingessit. agnoscis enim
de septem montibus virum et domi cognitum bonitate generis et foris aetate militiae.
pro qno mihi apud te loqui longum non est necesse. commendatio enim praestari
debet incognitis, huic vero ad conciliationem gratiae tuae sufficit, quod et Romanus
et amicus est.

t& X ante a. 895.

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