[93]
The following1 provides an example of argument from
something more difficult: “I beg you, Tubero, to
remark that I, who do not hesitate to speak of my
own deed, venture to speak of that performed by
Ligarius”; and again, “Has not Ligarius reason
for hope, when I am permitted to intercede with
you for another?” For an argument drawn from
something less take this passage from the pro
Caecinaa2: “Really! Is the knowledge that the
men were armed sufficient to prove that violence
was offered, and the fact that he fell into their
hands insufficient?”
1 xvi. 45. Caecina had attempted to take possession of lands left him by will, but was driven off by armed force. Cicero has just pointed out that there were precedents for regarding the mere sight of armed men in occupation of the property claimed as sufficient proof of violence.
2 pro Lig. iii. 8 and x. 31. Cicero's point is that he has been a much more bitter opponent of Caesar than Ligarius, and yet he has been pardoned while Ligarius has not.
Quintilian. With An English Translation. Harold Edgeworth Butler. Cambridge. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1921.
The Annenberg CPB/Project provided support for entering this text.
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.
An XML version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer Perseus any modifications you make. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system.