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of Flaccus,^[1]I shall take action myself on my homeward journey through Asia.

⁴ Now I come to your second letter. You send me a well outlined sketch-plan, as I may call it, of the crisis as it affects both of us, and of the general political situation, and I am very grateful for the insight you show in your letter; for I gather that the dangers are less than I feared, and the safeguards greater, if, as you write, all the strength of the state has put itself at the disposal of Pompey; and at the same time I recognized your promptitude and alertness in the defence of the Republic, and I derived extraordinary pleasure from the pains you took, I mean in being so kind as to send me word of the political situation, engrossed as you were in matters of such vast importance. For pray put away the "augural books" until we are both at leisure; I assure you that when I kept urging and pressing you by letter to fulfil your promises, I was under the impression that you had absolutely nothing to do while waiting outside the City. As it is, however, according to your own promise, instead of the "augural books" I shall look forward to having all your "orations" complete.

⁵ Decimus Tullius, whom you entrusted with a message for me, has not yet met me; and there is now not one of your people with me, except all my people, who are all equally yours. What letter of mine it is you describe as unduly choleric I cannot make out. I wrote to you twice, clearing myself carefully, and mildly rebuking you for having too readily believed what was said of me; and it seemed to me that kind of remonstrance was befitting in a friend; but if you do not like it, I shall not adopt it