CEVX qui apparient Caton le Censeur, au ieune Caton meurtrier de soy-mesme, apparient deux belles natures et de formes voisines. Le premier exploitta la sienne à plus de visages, et precelle en exploits militaires, et en vtilité de ses vacations publiques. Mais la vertu du ieune, outre ce que c’est blaspheme de luy en apparier nulle en vigueur, fut bien plus nette. Car qui deschargeroit d’enuie et d’ambition, celle du Censeur, ayant osé chocquer l’honneur de Scipion, en bonté et en toutes parties d’excellence, de bien loing plus grand que luy, et que tout autre homme de son siecle?
Those who pair Cato the Censor with the younger Cato, who killed himself, are pairing two fine natures of similar form. The first exercised his in more ways, and excels in military exploits and in the usefulness of his public offices. But the virtue of the younger—besides the fact that it is blasphemy to set any beside it in vigor—was far purer. For who could clear the Censor’s virtue of envy and ambition, when he dared to attack the honor of Scipio, a man far greater than he, in goodness and in every quality of excellence, and greater than any other man of his age?
Ce qu’on dit entre autres choses de luy, qu’en son extreme vieillesse, il se mit à apprendre la langue Grecque, d’vn ardant appetit, comme pour assouuir vne longue soif, ne me semble pas luy estre fort honnorable. C’est proprement ce que nous disons, retomber en enfantillage. Toutes choses ont leur saison, les bonnes et tout. Et ie puis dire mon patenostre hors de propos. Comme on defera T. Quintius Flaminius, de ce qu’estant general d’armée, on l’auoit veu à quartier sur l’heure du conflict, s’amusant à prier Dieu, en vne battaille, qu’il gaigna. Imponit finem sapiens et rebus honestis.
What is said of him, among other things, that in his extreme old age he set about learning the Greek language with an ardent appetite, as if to quench a long thirst, does not seem to me much to his honor. It is precisely what we call falling back into childhood. All things have their season, good ones and all. And I can say my Paternoster at the wrong time. Thus Titus Quinctius Flamininus was accused because, when he was general of an army, he had been seen off to one side at the moment of the clash, busy praying to God, in a battle that he won. The wise man sets a limit even to good things.
Eudemonidas voyant Xenocrates fort vieil s’empresser aux leçons de son escole: Quand sçaura cettuy-cy, dit-il, s’il apprend encore? Et Philopœmen, à ceux qui hault-louoyent le Roy Ptolomæus, de ce qu’il durcissoit sa personne tous les iours à l’exercice des armes: Ce n’est, dit-il, pas chose louable à vn Roy de son aage, de s’y exercer, il les deuoit hormais reellement employer. Le ieune doit faire ses apprests, le vieil en iouïr, disent les sages. Et le plus grand vice qu’ils remerquent en nous, c’est que noz desirs raieunissent sans cesse. Nous recommençons tousiours à viure.
Eudemonidas, seeing Xenocrates, very old, eagerly attending the lessons of his school, said: “When will this man know, if he is still learning?” And Philopoemen, to those who were highly praising King Ptolemy for hardening his body every day in the exercise of arms: “It is not a praiseworthy thing,” he said, “for a king of his age to practice with them; by now he ought to be using them in earnest.” The young should make their preparations, the old enjoy them, say the wise. And the greatest vice they note in us is that our desires keep growing young again. We are always beginning to live.
Nostre estude et nostre enuie deuroyent quelque fois sentir la vieillesse. Nous auons le pied à la fosse, et noz appetis et poursuites ne font que naistre. Tu secanda marmora / Locas sub ipsum funus, et, sepulcri / Immemor, struis domos. Le plus long de mes desseins n’a pas vn an d’estenduë: ie ne pense desormais qu’à finir: me deffay de toutes nouuelles esperances et entreprinses: prens mon dernier congé de tous les lieux, que ie laisse: et me depossede tous les iours de ce que i’ay. Olim iam nec perit quicquam mihi, nec acquiritur, plus superest viatici quàm viæ. Vixi, et quem dederat cursum fortuna peregi.
Our studies and our desires ought sometimes to smack of old age. We have one foot in the grave, and our appetites and pursuits are only just being born. You contract for marble to be cut / on the very brink of death, and, forgetful of the tomb, / you build houses. The longest of my plans does not extend a year. I think now only of ending; I am getting rid of all new hopes and undertakings; I take my last leave of every place I depart from; and every day I strip myself of what I have. For a long time now I have neither lost nor gained anything; I have more provisions for the journey than journey left. I have lived, and finished the course that Fortune gave me.
C’est en fin tout le soulagement que ie trouue en ma vieillesse, qu’elle amortist en moy plusieurs desirs et soings, dequoy la vie est inquietée. Le soing du cours du monde, le soing des richesses, de la grandeur, de la science, de la santé, de moy. Cettuy-cy apprend à parler, lors qu’il luy faut apprendre à se taire pour iamais. On peut continuer à tout temps l’estude, non pas l’escholage. La sotte chose, qu’vn vieillard abecedaire! Diuersos diuersa iuuant, non omnibus annis / Omnia conueniunt.
This, in short, is all the relief I find in my old age: that it deadens in me many desires and cares by which life is disturbed—care for the course of the world, care for riches, for greatness, for knowledge, for health, for myself. This man is learning to speak when he ought to be learning to be silent forever. One can go on studying at any age, but not going to school. What a silly thing, an old man learning his ABCs! Different things please different men; not all things / suit all ages.
S’il faut estudier, estudions vn estude sortable à nostre condition: afin que nous puissions respondre, comme celuy, à qui quand on demanda à quoy faire ces estudes en sa decrepitude: A m’en partir meilleur, et plus à mon aise, respondit-il. Tel estude fut celuy du ieune Caton, sentant sa fin prochaine, qui se rencontra au discours de Platon, de l’eternité de l’ame. Non, comme il faut croire, qu’il ne fust de long temps garny de toute sorte de munition pour vn tel deslogement. D’asseurance, de volonté ferme, et d’instruction, il en auoit plus que Platon n’en a en ses escrits. Sa science et son courage estoient pour ce regard, au dessus de la philosophie.
If we must study, let us take up a study suited to our condition, so that we may answer like the man who, when asked what he wanted these studies for in his decrepitude, replied: “To leave this world better and more at ease.” Such was the study of the younger Cato when, feeling his end approaching, he came upon Plato’s discourse on the eternity of the soul. Not, we must believe, that he had not long been furnished with every kind of provision for such a departure. Of assurance, firm will and learning he had more than Plato has in his writings. His knowledge and his courage were, in this respect, above philosophy.
Il print cette occupation, non pour le seruice de sa mort, mais comme celuy qui n’interrompit pas seulement son sommeil, en l’importance d’vne telle deliberation, il continua aussi sans choix et sans changement, ses estudes, auec les autres actions accoustumées de sa vie. La nuict, qu’il vint d’estre refusé de la Preture, il la passa à iouer. Celle en laquelle il deuoit mourir, il la passa à lire. La perte ou de la vie, ou de l’office, tout luy fut vn.
He took up this occupation not for the sake of his death. Rather, as a man who did not even interrupt his sleep for the gravity of such a decision, he also went on with his studies, without choosing and without changing, along with the other customary actions of his life. The night after he was refused the praetorship he spent playing games. The night on which he was to die he spent reading. Losing life or losing office—it was all one to him.