Cicero to C. Trebatius Testa, written from the Tusculan villa around the middle of June 44 BC — the morning after a dinner party, by every internal sign. The question that had come up over the wine was a technical one in the law of theft: can an heir bring the actio furti for a theft committed before the inheritance fell in? Cicero had said it was a contested point; Trebatius had teased him, on the ground that no one held the contrary view.

Cicero, returning home late and well-watered, has nonetheless looked up the chapter and now sends Trebatius the relevant passage — with three jurists’ names attached: Sex. Aelius (Paetus Catus), M’. Manilius, and the elder M. Brutus. The note ends with a courteous swerve: “for all that, I side with Scaevola and Testa.” The first is Q. Mucius Scaevola, the classic authority; the second is Trebatius himself. Cicero proves his point on the books and yields it on the day.