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This casting about for an excuse shows how low philosophy stood in public estimation at Rome.
See Introd. p. 29. The same elaborate apologies often recur, cf. esp the exordium of N.D. I.
§12. Brutus: the same praise often recurs in D.F. and the Brutus Graecia desideret so all Halm's
MSS., except G, which has Graeca. Halm (and after him Baiter) adopts the conj. of Aldus the
younger, Graeca desideres. A reviewer of Halm, in Schneidewin's Philologus XXIV. 483,
approves the reading on the curious ground that Brutus was not anxious to satisfy Greek
requirements, but rather to render it unnecessary for Romans to have recourse to Greece for
philosophy. I keep the MSS. reading, for Greece with Cicero is the supreme arbiter of
performance in philosophy, if she is satisfied the philosophic world is tranquil. Cf. Ad Att. I. 20,
6, D.F. I. 8, Ad Qu. Fr. II. 16, 5. I just note the em. of Turnebus, a Graecia desideres, and that of
Dav. Graecia desideretur. Eandem sententiam: cf. Introd. p. 56. Aristum: cf. II. 11, and M.D.F. V.
8.
§13. Sine te: = s?? d??a. Relictam: Cic. very rarely omits esse, see note on II. 77, for Cicero's
supposed conversion see Introd. p. 20. Veterem illam: MSS. have iam for illam. The position of
iam would be strange, in the passage which used to be compared, Pro Cluentio 16, Classen and
Baiter now om. the word. Further, vetus and nova can scarcely be so barely used to denote the
Old and the New Academy. The reading illam is from Madv. (Em. 115), and is supported by
illam veterem (18), illa antiqua (22), istius veteris (D.F. V. 8), and similar uses. Bentl. (followed
by Halm and Bait.) thinks iam comprises the last two syllables of Academiam, which he reads.
Correcta et emendata: a fine sentiment to come from a conservative like Cic. The words often
occur together and illustrate Cic.'s love for small diversities of expression, cf. De Leg. III. 30,
D.F. IV. 21, also Tac. Hist. I. 37. Negat: MSS. have negaret, but Cic. never writes the subj. after
quamquam in oratio recta, as Tac. does, unless there is some conditional or potential force in the
sentence; see M.D.F. III. 70. Nothing is commoner in the MSS. than the substitution of the imp.
subj. for the pres. ind. of verbs of the first conjug. and vice versa. In libris: see II. 11. Duas
Academias: for the various modes of dividing the Academy refer to R. and P. 404. Contra ea
Philonis: MSS. have contra Philonis merely, exc. Halm's V., which gives Philonem, as does the
ed. Rom. (1471). I have added ea. Orelli quotes Ad Att. XII. 23, 2, ex Apollodori. Possibly the
MSS. may be right, and libros may be supplied from libris above, so in Ad Att. XIII. 32, 2,
Dicaearchi pe?? ????? utrosque, the word libros has to be supplied from the preceding letter, cf.
a similar ellipse of bona in 19, 22. Madvig's Philonia is improbable from its non-appearance
elsewhere, while the companion adjective Antiochius is frequent. Halm inserts sententiam, a
heroic remedy. To make contra an adv. and construe Philonis Antiochus together, supplying
auditor, as is done by some unknown commentators who probably only exist in Goerenz's note,
is wild, and cannot be justified by D.F. V. 13.
§14. A qua absum iam diu: MSS. have strangely aqua absumtam diu, changed by Manut.
Renovari: the vulg. revocari is a curious instance of oversight. It crept into the text of Goer. by
mistake, for in his note he gave renovari. Orelli—who speaks of Goerenz's "praestantissima
recensio," and founds his own text upon it two years after Madvig's crushing exposure in his Em.
often quoted by me—not only reads revocari, but quotes renovari as an em. of the ed. Victoriana
of 1536. From Orelli, Klotz, whose text has no independent value, took it. Renovare in Cic. often
means "to refresh the memory," e.g. 11, Brut. 315. Nisi molestum est: like nisi alienum putas, a
variation on the common si placet, si videtur. Adsidamus: some MSS. have adsideamus, which
would be wrong here. Sane istud: Halm istuc from G. Inquit: for the late position of this word,
which is often caused by its affinity for quoniam, quidem, etc., cf. M.D.F. III. 20 Quae cum essent
dicta, in conspectu consedimus (omnes): most edd. since Gulielmus print this without essent as a
hexameter, and suppose it a quotation. But firstly, a verse so commonplace, if familiar, would
occur elsewhere in Cic. as others do, if not familiar, would not be given without the name of its
author. Secondly, most MSS. have sint or essent before dicta. It is more probable therefore that
omnes was added from an involuntary desire to make up the hexameter rhythm. Phrases like quae
cum essent dicta consedimus often occur in similar places in Cic.'s dialogues cf. De Div. II. 150,
and Augustine, the imitator of Cic., Contra Academicos, I. 25, also consedimus at the end of a
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