Letters to Atticus Passage 2

equidem sperabam, ut saepe etiam loqui tecum solebam, sic orbem rei publicae esse conversum ut vix sonitum audire, vix impressam orbitam videre possemus; et fuisset ita, si homines transitum tempestatis exspectare potuissent. sed cum diu occulte suspirassent, postea iam gemere, ad extremum vero loqui omnes et clamare coeperunt.

I had hoped, as I often used to say in conversation with you, that the wheel of the Republic had turned so quietly that we could scarcely hear a sound or see the track it had impressed. So it would have been, had men been able to wait for the storm to pass. But after sighing secretly for a long time, everyone began first to groan, and finally to speak and shout.

J’espérais, comme je te l’ai souvent dit, que le cercle de la République se serait retourné de telle sorte que nous aurions à peine entendu le bruit et à peine vu la trace imprimée de sa roue. Il en aurait été ainsi si les hommes avaient pu attendre que passe la tempête. Mais après avoir longtemps soupiré en secret, tous ont commencé à gémir, puis enfin à parler et à crier.