Letter 5036: The matter of the appointment you mentioned in your last letter is one I have been giving some thought to, and I...

From: Quintus Aurelius Symmachus, senator and orator To: [Unknown correspondent] Date: ~383 AD Context: Symmachus, Book V, letter 36. A letter touching on public affairs and private concerns. The matter of the appointment you mentioned in your last letter is one I have been giving some thought to, and I want to share what I have concluded before the moment for acting on it passes. The appointment is possible. The man you have in mind has the qualifications and, more importantly, has the reputation that the position requires. Qualifications without reputation are often not enough in the current environment; reputation is what creates the confidence among those who need to be persuaded that the appointment is a good one. He has both. What is required is the kind of well-timed intervention that makes the appointment seem natural rather than forced — an intervention from the right person at the right moment. I have in mind who that person might be, and I am prepared to approach him if you think the timing is right. Write to me and tell me what you have heard from the relevant quarter about the current inclinations of those who make these decisions. I remain confident that with the right management of the circumstances this can be done. Your friend and occasional conspirator in the management of appointments, Symmachus