He seemed to me, I do declare, moderate and sensible: certainly he has always been thought to be in favour of peace. How he disliked this present pass! How he seemed to fear these âmes damnées, as you call them! In the course of a long talk I showed him Caesar's letter to me, of which I sent you a copy before, and I asked him to explain what Caesar meant by writing that he wished "to take advantage of my advice, my influence, my position and my help of all sorts." Matius replied that undoubtedly Caesar wanted my help and influence to make peace. Would that I could succeed in carrying through some political compromise in this miserable state of affairs! Matius himself declared that Caesar had that feeling, and promised that he would help such a course.
However the day before Crassipes had been with me, and he said that he had quitted Brundisium on the 6th of March and left Pompey there; the same tale was brought by those who quitted the place on the 8th. All of them, and among the rest Crassipes, who was quite capable of observing what was going on, had the same story, threatening words, breach with the loyalists, hostility to the municipalities, nothing but proscriptions, nothing but Sullas. How Lucceius talked, all the Greeks and Theophanes too! Nevertheless the only hope of safety lies in them, and I am on the watch and take no rest and long to be with the most uncongenial associates to escape the plague here. For what crime do you think that Scipio will stick at, or Faustus and Libo, when their creditors are said to be selling them up, and what do you suppose they will do to the citizens when they win? How pusillanimous Pompey is! They say that he is thinking of Egypt and Arabia Felix and Mesopotamia
cogitare, iam Hispaniam abiecisse. Monstra narrant; quae falsa esse possunt, sed certe et haec perdita sunt et illa non saltaria. Tuas litteras iam desidero. Post fugam nostram numquam tam longum earum intervallum fuit. Misi ad te exemplum litterarum mearum ad Caesarem, quibus me aliquid profecturum puto.
XIa
CICERO IMP. S.D. CAESARI IMP
Scr. in Formiano XIV K. Apr.
Ut legi tuas litteras, quas a Furnio nostro acceperam, quibus mecum agebas, ut ad urbem essem, te velle uti "consilio et dignitate mea" minus sum admiratus; de "gratia" et de "ope" quid significares mecum ipse quaerebam, spe tamen deducebar ad eam cogitationem, ut te pro tua admirabili ac singulari sapientia de otio, de pace, de concordia civium agi velle arbitrarer, et ad eam rationem existimabam satis aptam esse et naturam et personam meam. Quod si ita est, et si qua de Pompeio nostro tuendo et tibi ac rei publicae reconciliando cura te attingit, magis idoneum, quam ego sum, ad eam causam profecto reperies neminem, qui et illi semper et senatui, cum primum potui, pacis auctor fui, nec sumptis armis belli ullam partem, attigi, iudicavique eo bello te violari, contra cuius honorem populi Romani beneficio concessum inimici atque invidi niterentur. Sed, ut eo tempore non modo ipse fautor dignitatis tuae fui, verum etiam ceteris auctor ad te adiuvandum, sic me nunc Pompei
and has given up Spain. The report is monstrous, but may be false. Certainly all is lost here, and there is not much hope there. I long for a letter from you. Since my flight there has never been so long a break in our correspondence. I send you a copy of my letter to Caesar. I think it will do some good.