C. PLĪNIUS SARDŌ SUŌ S.
Postquam ā tē recessī, nōn minus tēcum, quam cum ad tē fuī. Lēgī enim librum tuum, identidem repetēns ea maximē (nōn enim mentiar), quae dē mē scrīpsistī, in quibus quidem percōpiōsus fuistī. Quam multa, quam varia, quam nōn eadem dē eōdem nec tamen dīversa dīxistī! (2) Laudem pariter et grātiās agam? Neutrum satis possum et, sī possem, timērem nē adrogāns esset ob ea laudāre, ob quae grātiās agerem. Ūnum illud addam, omnia mihi tantō laudābiliōra vīsa quantō iūcundiōra, tantō iūcundiōra quantō laudābiliōra erant. Valē.
notes
Pliny responds to a friend thanking him for writing to him and for writing nice things about him.
ā tē recessī: “I left you,” a normal verb for departure in all types of Latin. OLD recedo 1.
nōn minus ... quam cum: correlatives, “no less then (when I was) ... just as when.” Cum temporal takes the indicative, fuī, as normal. AG 545.
ad tē: “in your presence.” Ad = apud to indicate proximity is not uncommon, LS ad A.3.
ea maximē: “especially those passages.”
in quibus: “in which (passages).”
percōpiōsus: “very rich in your expression,” "very profuse." This very rare adjective is a compound of the much more common cōpiōsus ("plentiful," "eloquent") and the intensive prefix per- (cp. percoquo "to cook thoroughly," perantiquus, "very ancient").
nōn eadem: “not the same,” neut. pl. acc.
dē eōdem: “(yet) on the same topic.”
(2) Laudem ... grātiās agam: deliberative subj., “should I praise … should I give thanks?” AG 444.
Neutrum satis possum: "I can (do) neither thing adequately."
sī possem, timērem: impf. subj., in a present contrary to fact condition, “if I were able (but I’m not), I would be afraid,” + fear clause.
timērem nē: nē is used as “that” in a fear clause, “I would be afraid that.”
adrogāns esset: impf. subj., in a fear clause, “it would be arrogant” + infin.
ob ea: “for that (passage).”
ob quae: “for which,” i.e., the passage.
Ūnum illud: "this one point." See OLD ille 13, "the following words."
mihi ... vīsa: supply esse, “seemed to me to be.”
tantō laudābiliōra ... quantō iūcundiōra: “more praiseworthy by as much as it was charming.”
tantō iūcundiōra quantō laudābiliōra erant: “and more charming by as much as it was praiseworthy.” The subject is omnia.
vocabulary
identidem: again and again
mentior mentīrī mentītus: to lie
percōpiōsus –a –um: very abundantly supplied
pariter: alike2
neuter neutra neutrum: neither
arrogans –antis: arrogant
tantō: by so much
laudābilis –e: praiseworthy, laudable
iūcundus –a –um: pleasant, delightful, agreeable