Letter 7018: I'm glad you missed hearing from me, but I reject any charge of negligence.
I'm glad you missed hearing from me, but I reject any charge of negligence. My reply was all ready -- it was your own letter-carrier who ran off, alarmed, as I understand it, by worries about your health. So you see: the reasons for my delay were genuine and not conjured from thin air. I won't belabor the point -- truth's case is brief.
I congratulate you on your recovery. After so much fear, the news brought a flood of joy into my heart. The very charm of your letter was the first sign of your returning strength. You ask me to send you [Text breaks off in source.]
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.
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