Letter 4026: You ask me to be sure to look over and correct my speeches, which you have taken the greatest pains to get together.
L To Maecilius Nepos.
You ask me to be sure to look over and correct my speeches, which you have taken the greatest pains to get together. I will with pleasure, for what duty is there that I ought to be better pleased to undertake, especially as it is you who ask me? When a man of your weight, scholarship, and learning, and, above all, one who is never idle for a moment, and is about to be governor of an important province, sets such store on having my writings to take with him on his travels, surely I ought to do my best to prevent this part of his luggage from appearing useless in his eyes. So I will do what I can, first, to make those companions of your voyage as agreeable as possible, and, secondly, to enable you to find on your return others that you may like to add to their number. Believe me, the fact that you read what I write is no small incentive to me to produce new works. Farewell.
Modern English rendering for readability. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek for scholarly use.
Related Letters
The memorial of the people of Apamea which you enclosed with your letter makes it unnecessary for me to examine into...
Your kindness to me, Sir, has cemented the friendship between Rosianus Geminus and myself, for he was my quaestor...
It is impossible for me to draw up a general rule as to whether newly-made senators in every city in Bithynia ought...
I was delighted to find that you are so zealous a student of my uncle's books that you would like to possess copies...
I am much concerned at your loss of a pupil who, as you say, showed the greatest promise.