The letters of Cicero - 1899 Author:Marcus Tullius Cicero Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CICERO'S LETTERS CLXXXII (f in, 2) From May in this year Cicero was absent from Italy till November, B.c. 50, as proconsul of Cilicia—which, to his chagrin... more », he was obliged to undertake owing to the regulation in Pompey's law (de B.c. 51. Coss., pravinciis) of the previous year enforcing a five years' M. Claudius interval between consulship or prsetorship and a province, Servius'smI- an providing for the interim by drawing on the ex- picius Rufus. consuls and ex-praetors of previous years who had not had provinces. He is informed by letters of what is going on in Rome, where the burning question was, should Ccesar stay in Gaul till consul-designate for B.C. 48, or come home to stand for the consulship as a private citizen ? From the necessity of making his professio in person Csesar had been by name exempted in Pompey law, but the senate nevertheless (or a party in it) hoped to make him do so by its authority, and Pompey played fast and loose with the question, though gradually coming round to the side of the senate. Ctesar believed that he could not safely come home as a privatus, as his enemies would ruin him by a prosecution. There are no speeches or writings during this year. TO APPIUS CLAUDIUS PULCHER (IN CILICIA) Rome (before May) Though, contrary to my own wishes, and to my surprise, it has turned out that I am obliged to go to a province with imperium', in the midst of many various anxieties and reflexions one consolation occurs to me, that you could have no more friendly successor than I am to you, nor I take over a province from anyone more inclined to hand it over in good order and free from difficulties. And if you, too, entertain the same expectation as to my goodwill towards you, you will certainly never find yourself mistaken. In the name of our int...« less