6. And so we prepare to commence this our Fifth
Book, O Emperor Augustus. For it was but right that the Fourth
Book should end with our discussion on the Vine, lest otherwise we
should seem to have overloaded that book with a tumultuous mass of
subjects, rather than to have filled it with the fruit of the spiritual
vineyard. On the other hand, it was not seemly that the gathering
of the vintage of the faith should be left unfinished, whilst there was
still all abundance of such great matters for discussion.