The Letters of Cassiodorus Part 62

[On the promotion of Felix.]

[Sidenote: The same subject.]

'As the sky with stars, or the meadow with flowers, so do we wish the Senate to be resplendent with the men of eminence whom we introduce into it. It is itself a seminary of Senators; but our favour and the dignities of our Court also rear them.

'The Quaestors.h.i.+p is the true mother of the senatorial dignity, since who can be fitter to take his seat in the Curia than he who has shared the counsels of his Sovereign?

'You know the eloquence of our candidate [Felix], his early triumphs, his modesty, his fidelity. To leave such a man unpromoted were a public loss; and he will always love the laws by the practice of which he has risen to eminence.

'Nor is he the first of his race to earn rhetorical distinction. His father shone so brilliantly in the Forum of Milan, that he bloomed forth with undying fruits from the soil of Cicero[536]. He stood against Magnus Olybrius, he was found equal in fluency to Eugenius[537] and many others whom Rome knew as foremost in their art. If the transmission of material wealth by long descent makes men n.o.ble, how much more should the inheritance of the treasures of the intellect give n.o.bility.'

[Footnote 536: 'Pater ita in Mediolanensi foro resplenduit, ut aeterno fructu e Tulliano cespite pullularet.']

[Footnote 537: 'Is palmarum Eugenetis linguae ubertate suffecit.'

Possibly this is the Magister Officiorum of Var. i. 12, and the person to whom is addressed a letter of Ennodius (iv. 26). The form Eugenetis, instead of Eugenii, belongs to the debased Latinity of the age.]

20. KING ATHALARIC TO ALBIENUS, VIR ILl.u.s.tRIS AND PRAEFECTUS PRAETORIO[538] (527).

[Footnote 538: In Nivellius' edition the t.i.tle of this office is given as _Praepositus_.]

[Sidenote: Albienus made Praetorian Praefect.]

'Your predecessor has been the model of a bad governor. As the North wind clears the face of the sky from the rain and clouds brought by the South wind, so do we look to you to repair the evils wrought by his misgovernment. In all things your best maxim will be to do exactly the opposite of what he did. He made himself hateful by his unjust prosecutions: do you become popular by your righteous deeds. He was rapacious: be you moderate. Soothe and relieve the hara.s.sed people entrusted to your charge. Receive for this sixth Indiction [Sept. 1, 527-528] the fasces of the Praefecture, and let the office of Praetorian Praefect return to its ancient fame, an object of praise to the whole world[539]. This office dates from Joseph, and rightly is he who holds it called by our laws Father of the Provinces, Father of the Empire.

[Footnote 539: 'Redeat ad nomen antiquum Praefectura illa Praetorii, toto orbe laudabilis.' Is it possible that there had been some attempt to change the _t.i.tle_ of the Praefect, which accounts for the _Praepositus_ which in some MSS. we find in the heading of this letter?]

'See that you avoid all unjust exactions. We cannot bear that our Treasury should be filled by unrighteous means.

'Your descent from a father who has held the same high office, and your intimate knowledge of the _Dicta prudentum_, warrant us in believing that you will make a good judge.'

[I have not been able to find any hint of the name of the Praefectus Praetorio for 526-527, so bitterly condemned in this letter. As he may have held office for some years, his misgovernment may have been connected with the death of Boethius (524). Can we connect him with the Trigguilla 'Regiae Praepositus Domus' whose injustice is denounced by Boethius ('Phil. Cons.' i. 4)?]

21. KING ATHALARIC TO CYPRIAN, PATRICIAN.

22. KING ATHALARIC TO THE SENATE OF THE CITY OF ROME.

[Sidenote: Cyprian's elevation to the Patriciate.]

In these two letters the high character and distinguished services of Cyprian are commemorated. 'Under Theodoric he distinguished himself both in war and peace. At the time of the war of Sirmium he was conspicuous both in his resistance to the fiery onslaught of the Bulgarians and in his active pursuit of them when their ranks were broken[540]. He then filled, with great credit to himself, the office of Referendarius[541]. Great was the responsibility of exercising peaceful as well as warlike offices under such a master as Theodoric.

In fact the training for one was helpful for the other, since it required a soldier's courage and promptness to be always ready with a truthful and accurate reply to that keen, firm-minded ruler of men[542].

[Footnote 540: 'Vidit te adhuc gentilis' (still under the dominion of the Gepidae) 'Danubius bellatorem: non te terruit Bulgarorum globus, qui etiam nostris erat praesumptione certaminis obstaturus. Peculiare tibi fuit et renitentes Barbaros aggredi, et conversos terrore sectari. Sic victoriam Gothorum non tam numero quam labore juvisti.']

[Footnote 541: For a description of his services in this function, see Var. v. 40.]

[Footnote 542: This is evidently the meaning; but something seems to have dropped out of the text.]

'Thence he was promoted to the dignity of Count of the Sacred Largesses, a post well suited to his pure, self-restrained character[543]. He is now growing old in body, but ever young in fame, and the King heartily wishes him increase of years to enjoy his renown.

[Footnote 543: 'Hoc est laborum tuorum aptissimum munus: quam sic casta sic moderata mente peregisti ut majora tibi deberi faceres, quamvis eam in magna praemia suscep.i.s.ses.']

'Rightly, too, is there now conferred upon him the dignity of _Patricius_, since he is the father of such n.o.ble sons, men whose childhood was pa.s.sed in the palace under the very eye of Theodoric (thus like young eagles already learning to gaze upon the sun), and who now cultivate the friends.h.i.+p of the Goths, learn from them all martial exercises, speak their language, and thus give evident tokens of their future fidelity to the Gothic nation[544].

[Footnote 544: 'Relucent etiam gratia gentili, nec cessant armorum imbui fortibus inst.i.tutis. _Pueri stirpis Romanae nostra lingua loquuntur; eximie indicantes exhibere se n.o.bis futuram fidem, quorum jam videntur affecta.s.se sermonem.... Variis linguis loquuntur egregie_, maturis viris communione miscentur.']

'The Senate is therefore exhorted to welcome its thus promoted colleague, who at each accession of rank has shown himself yet worthier of his high place, and whom grandfather and grandson have both delighted to honour. Thus will it renew the glories of the Decii and the Corvini, who were its sons in the days of old.'

[The subject of these letters is indisputably the same Cyprian whom the 'Anonymus Valesii' speaks of as suborning false witnesses against Albinus and Boethius, and of whom the latter says ('Phil. Cons.' i.

4): 'Ne Albinum, Consularem virum praejudicatae accusationis poena corriperet, odiis me Cypriani delatoris opposui.' Compare the remarks made on Letters 16 and 17; and remember that this letter was composed three years after the death of Boethius, when Theodoric also was dead, and his daughter was only too willing to retrace his steps, in all that concerned the severities of the latter years of his reign. For the pedigree of Cyprian see p. 363.]

23. KING ATHALARIC TO BERGANTINUS, VIR ILl.u.s.tRIS AND COMES PATRIMONII.

[Sidenote: Gifts to Theodahad.]

'Kings should always be generous, but especially to those of their own family.

'Therefore we desire your Greatness to transfer the farms herein described, to the exalted and most honourable Theodahad, weighing out to him so many solidi, out of that which was formerly the patrimony of his magnificent Mother; and we guarantee to him the absolute owners.h.i.+p of such farms, free from any claims to the inheritance on our part[545].

[Footnote 545: 'Atque ideo ill.u.s.trem magnitudinem tuam praecelso atque amplissimo viro Theodahado ma.s.sas subter annexas, tot solidos pensitantes, ex patrimonio quondam magnificae foeminae matris ipsius, praecipimus reformari, ejus feliciter dominio plenissime vendicandas, cujus successionis integrum jus in ea qua praecipimus parte largimur.'

According to Dahn (Konige der Germanen iv. 60-61), these lands had been given in her lifetime by Theodahad's mother to the King, and are now begged for by Theodahad. But why 'tot solidos pensitantes?' Why should Theodahad receive both land and money? There seems no authority for translating 'pensitantes' receiving. Probably the solidi thus paid to him are mesne rents received by the King and accounted for to Theodahad. On the whole affair cf. Procopius, De Bello Gotthico i. 4.]

'We trust to his sincerity and good faith, that in the future he will deserve the remainder of the above-mentioned patrimony, with the addition of the whole quant.i.ty[546].

[Footnote 546: 'De cujus fide ac synceritate praesumimus, ut sequenti tempore reliqua supra memorati patrimonii c.u.m omni adjecta quant.i.tate mereatur.' This sentence is to me quite unintelligible.]

'What can we deny to such a man, whose obedience might claim a higher reward even were he not our cousin--a man who is not puffed up by any pride of his n.o.ble birth, humble in his modesty, always uniform in his prudence? Therefore instruct the Cartarii of your office to make over the aforesaid farms to his Actores without delay[547].'

[Footnote 547: Cf. the formalities connected with Odovacar's deed of gift to Pierius (Marini, Pap. Diplom. 82, 83), quoted in Italy and her Invaders iii. 165.]

24. KING ATHALARIC TO THE CLERGY OF THE ROMAN CHURCH.

[Sidenote: Ecclesiastical immunities.]

'For the gift of kingly power we owe an infinite debt to G.o.d, whose ministers ye are.

'Ye state in your tearful memorial to us that it has been an ordinance of long custom that anyone who has a suit of any kind against a servant of the sacrosanct Roman Church should first address himself to the chief Priest of that City, lest haply your clergy, being profaned by the litigation of the Forum, should be occupied in secular rather than religious matters. And you add that one of your Deacons has, to the disgrace of religion, been so sharply handled by legal process that the Sajo[548] has dared actually to take him into his own custody.

[Footnote 548: In the text, 'Sajus.']

'This dishonour to the Ministers of holy things is highly displeasing to our inborn reverence, yet we are glad that it gives us the opportunity of paying part of our debt to Heaven.

'Therefore, considering the honour of the Apostolic See, and wis.h.i.+ng to meet the desires of the pet.i.tioners, we by the authority of this letter decree in regular course[549]:

[Footnote 549: 'Praesenti auctoritate moderato ordine definimus.' Dahn interprets 'moderato ordine,' 'not so absolutely as the Roman clergy desires.' Is not this to attribute rather too much force to the conventional language of Ca.s.siodorus?]