878 CTDd 586 HENRY FROWDE, M.A. PUBLISHER TO THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD mina тел. LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK PREFACE In preparing this edition of the Laelius I have had in view the wants of a University student, who may be supposed to take an intelligent interest, not only in the grammatical, but in the literary, historical, and philosophical aspects of the books he reads. Baiter's text has been followed, with a few variations which have been mentioned in the notes. The idea of uniting in one table the pedigrees of the Aemilii Pauli and Scipiones is derived from Mr. Sidgwick's edition of this dialogue; so also are a few apt renderings, which are acknowledged in their place. Beyond this I have no obligations to record to my predecessors, having thought that the attempt at a fresh treatment was the best justification for editing an already well edited book. My thanks are due to Mr. Evelyn Abbott for his indefatigable labour in revision; to Mr. A. C. Clark, Fellow of Queen's College, for having sent me the proof-sheets of his valuable recension of the Harleian MS.; and to Mr. Christopher Phillips, Scholar of Brasenose, who was kind enough to arrange the Index to the Notes. 8 MUSEUM ROad, Oxford, December, 10, 1892. 163906 INTRODUCTION § 1. Greatness of Cicero. ALL Rome is summed up for us in Cicero. He united in his one person the diverse characters of statesman, orator, lawyer, general and priest. These, however, were but the ordinary attributes of the Roman princeps, who had to be equipped at all points, having the world to govern as well as to conquer. But beyond all this Cicero was the greatest literary man that Rome, or perhaps the world, has ever seen. He freed his countrymen from the reproach of being conquered in genius by those whom their arms had conquered'. To say nothing now of eloquence, in which he was supreme, he was Rome's philosopher, moralist and logician; he was its greatest literary critic; he was its theologian and metaphysician; he was its writer on rhetoric and the art of oratory; he was its exponent of political and legal philosophy; he was its model of epistolary elegance; and, to crown all, he was its wit, upon whom all stray jokes were fathered 2. § 2. Value of his writings. Would we realise the amount of our debt to Cicero, let us consider for a moment how great our loss would be if his works 'Qui effecit ne, quorum arma viceramus, eorum ingenio vinceremur.' -Vel Pat. II, 34, § 3. 2 Ep. Fam. VII, 32, § 1, IX, 16, § 4, XV, 21, § 2. Cicero's witticisms were published in three books by his freedman Tiro, or somebody else, of whom Quintilian (VI, 3, § 5) complains that he did not exercise |