with confusion and thoroughly
discredited.

That most excellent boy, your son Quintus, is getting on splendidly with
his education. I notice this the more because Tyrannio[471] gives his
lessons in my house. The building of both your house and mine is being
pushed on energetically. I have caused half the money to be paid to
your contractor. I hope before winter we may be under the same roof. As
to our Tullia, who, by Hercules, is very warmly attached to you, I hope
I have settled her engagement with Crassipes.[472] There are two days
after the Latin festival which are barred by religion.[473] Otherwise
the festival of Iuppiter Latiaris has come to an end.

The affluence which you often mention I feel the want of to a certain
extent; but while I welcome it if it comes to me, I am not exactly
beating the covert for it.[474] I am building in three places, and am
patching up my other houses. I live somewhat more lavishly than I used
to do. I am obliged to do so. If I had you with me I should give the
builders full swing for a while.[475] But this too (as I hope) we shall
shortly talk over together.

The state of affairs at Rome is this: Lentulus Marcellinus is splendid
as consul, and his colleague does not put any difficulty in his way: he
is so good, I repeat, that I have never seen a better. He deprived them
of all the comitial days; for even the Latin festival is being
repeated,[476] nor were thanksgiving days wanting.[477] In this way the
passing of most mischievous laws is prevented, especially that of
Cato,[478] on whom, however, our friend Milo played a very pretty trick.
For that defender of the employment of gladiators and beast-fighters had
bought some beast-fighters from Cosconius and Pomponius, and had never
appeared in public without them in their full armour. He could not
afford to maintain them, and accordingly had great difficulty in
keeping them together. Milo found this out. He commissioned an
individual, with whom he was not intimate, to buy this troop from Cato
without exciting his suspicion. As soon as it had been removed,
Racilius--at this time quite the only real tribune--revealed the truth,
acknowledged that the men had been purchased for himself--for this is
what they had agreed--and put up a notice that he intended to sell
"Cato's troop." This notice caused much laughter. Accordingly, Lentulus
has prevented Cato from going on with his laws, and also those who
published bills of a monstrous descr