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[10]
Therefore, take care not to give the precedence over Cato even to that man, whom, as
you say, Apollo adjudged the wisest of men; for
the former is praised for his deeds, the latter for
his words.
Now, as to myself, let me address you both at
[p. 119]
once and beg you to believe that the case stands thus:
3. If I were to assert that I am unmoved by grief at
Scipio's death, it would be for “wise” men to judge
how far I am right, yet, beyond a doubt, my assertion
would be false. For I am indeed moved by the
loss of a friend such, I believe, as I shall never have
again, and—as I can assert on positive knowledge—
a friend such as no other man ever was to me. But
I am not devoid of a remedy, and I find very great
consolation in the comforting fact that I am free
from the delusion which causes most men anguish
when their friends depart. I believe that no ill
has befallen Scipio; it has befallen me, if it has
befallen anyone; but great anguish for one's own
inconveniences is the mark of the man who loves
not his friend but himself.
Cicero: De Senectute De Amicitia De Divinatione. With An English Translation. William Armistead Falconer. Cambridge. Harvard University Press; Cambridge, Mass., London, England. 1923.
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