Note 33 — Chapter V · THE PROSE OF THE ROMAN STATESMEN

Orator, 191 ff. When in Orat. 213 Cicero attempts to analyze the measures of Carbo his theory fails him. Again in 217, when he enumerates the feet that Greek theory allowed he fails to notice that his own feeling for Latin rhythms demanded a cretic before all of them. Indeed his selection of passages from his own orations in 210 is faulty (see Kroll’s commentary). In fact his usage is far truer to the genius of Latin than his theory. It is probable that Tyrannio, with whom he discussed Greek accents and rhythms during this period (ad Att. xii. 6, 2—about June 46) misled him. We need also to bear in mind Cicero’s statements that the ear unconsciously operates in selecting good rhythms (Brutus, 34) and that the tendency to seek balance—a very old quality of native Latin verse—also produces rhythm (doubtless because of the paenultimate law) (Orator, 167, 220). Needless to say, what compelled Cicero to shape clausulae somewhat unlike those of Isocrates was the stress-accent of Latin operating under the penultimate law.