BOOK I. IV. 6-9 



very eminent men, Lucius Lucullus " and Quintus 

 Scaevola,^ of whom the one put up too large a stand 

 of buildings, the other not large enough to meet 

 the requirements of his acreage ; though either 

 error is contrary to the interests of the owner. For 7 

 not only are we put to excessive expense in erecting 

 buildings on too large a scale, but also we pay more 

 for upkeep ; on the other hand, when they are 

 smaller than the farm requires, its products are 

 wasted. For both the moist and the dry products 

 which the earth produces are easily spoiled if there 

 are no buildings into which they may be carried, or 

 if such buildings are unsuitable because of their 

 scantiness. Furthermore, the master should be 8 

 housed as well as possible in proportion to his means, 

 so that he may more willingly visit the country 

 and find more pleasure in staying there. And 

 especially, if his wife also accompanies him, since 

 her disposition, like her sex, is daintier, she 

 must be humoured by amenities of some sort to 

 make her stay more contentedly with her husband. 

 The farmer, then, should build handsomely, but 

 without letting building become his passion, and 

 he should take in only so large a plot that, as Cato 

 says, " the buildings may not seek for land, nor the 

 land for buildings." <^ As to the qualities of a 

 building site, I shall now speak in general terms. 



As a building which is begun should be situated 

 in a healthful region, so too in the most healthful 

 part of that region ; for when the surrounding 

 atmosphere is bad, it is a contributing factor to a 

 host of physical ills. There are certain places, such 



" Cato, 3. 1 ; c/. Varro, R.R. I. 11. 1, and Pliny, loc. cit. 



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