1 Tum, i.e. after Sulla’s victory at the Colline Gate, 82 B.C.
C. Marius. ‘He possessed his father’s martial spirit, courage and unyielding perseverance.’—Ihne.
2 per cuniculos = through subterranean passages.
B. The Sullan Proscriptions.
‘Sulla quoque immensis accessit cladibus ultor.
Ille quod exiguum restabat sanguinis urbi
Hausit: dumque nimis iam putria membra recidit,
Excessit medicina modum, nimiumque secuta est,
143Qua morbi duxere, manus . . . .
145Tum data libertas odiis, resolutaque legum
Frenis ira ruit. Non uni cuncta dabantur,
Sed fecit sibi quisque nefas: semel omnia victor
Iusserat . . .
221Hisne Salus rerum, Felix his Sulla vocari,
His meruit tumulum medio sibi tollere Campo?
Haec rursus patienda manent: hoc ordine belli
224Ibitur: hic stabit civilibus exitus armis.’
232....Sic maesta senectus
Praeteritique memor flebat metuensque futuri.
139 Sulla . . . ultor = Sulla too in his vengeance came to crown these fearful disasters.—Haskins.
141-143 dumque . . . manus. Sulla is compared to a surgeon who in too great haste to remove the mortified flesh cuts away the sound flesh also.
146 non uni . . . = all crimes were not committed for one man’s sake, i.e. to please Sulla.
223-224 hoc ordine belli ibitur = in this course of war events will move.—H. i.e. History will repeat itself.
232 sic maesta senectus. An old man, who had lived through the Marian and Sullan times, predicts similar horrors of the Civil War between Caesar and Pompey.
The Proscriptions. ‘They were the product not of passion or thirst of blood, but of a cool political calculation, and the conviction of its inevitable necessity.’—Ihne.
A. Sulla appointed Dictator, 81 B.C.
Dictator creatus (cuius honoris usurpatio per annos centum et viginti intermissa; nam proximus post annum quam Hannibal Italia excesserat, uti appareat populum Romanum usum dictatoris haud metu desiderasse tali quo timuisset potestatem) imperio, 5 quo priores ad vindicandum maximis periculis patriam usi erant, eo in immodicae crudelitatis licentiam usus est.
1-2 cuius honoris . . . intermissa. The last real Dictator (M. Junius Pera) was appointed after Cannae 216 B.C.
5-8 imperio quo . . . usus est. ‘The Dictator of the first age of the Republic down to the Punic Wars had always a well-defined special duty to discharge in a given time. Sulla’s task was of a general nature and all-comprehensive range, and he had the most essential of all monarchical attributes, which is the unlimited duration of office.’—Ihne.
B. Sulla lays down his Dictatorship, 79 B.C.
Nec minoris impotentiae voces propalam edebat, ut Titus Ampius scribit, ‘Nihil esse rempublicam, 10 appellationem modo sine corpore ac specie. Sullam nescisse litteras, qui dictaturam deposuerit.’
9 impotentiae = arrogance (lack of self-restraint).
10 Ampius. Titus Ampius Balbus, a Pompeian general.
11-12 Sullam nescisse litteras = (i) S. had not profited by the teachings of History, or (ii) S. was without a liberal education.
C. Death of Sulla, 78 B.C.
Puteolis enim ardens indignatione, quod Granius, princeps eius coloniae pecuniam a decurionibus ad refectionem Capitolii promissam cunctantius daret, 15 animi concitatione nimia atque immoderato vocis impetu convulso pectore, spiritum cruore ac minis mixtum evomuit, nec senio iam prolapsus, utpote sexagesimum ingrediens annum, sed alita miseriis reipublicae inpotentia furens. Igitur in dubio est 20 Sullane prior an iracundia Sullae sit extincta.
13 Granius, the chief magistrate of Puteoli, had kept back money destined for the building of the new temple of Jupiter Capitolinus. The old one was destroyed by fire 83 B.C. ‘It was Sulla’s great desire that his name should be recorded on the front of the new temple, for it was to be the symbol of the Republic, restored as he fondly hoped by him to its pristine purity.’—Ihne.
THE LEGES CORNELIAE, 81 B.C.
A. Limitation of the Tribune’s Right of Veto.
In ista quidem re vehementer Sullam probo, qui tribunis plebis sua lege iniuriae faciendae potestatem ademerit, auxili ferendi reliquerit.
2 iniuriae faciendae, e.g. by their abuse of the right of veto.
3 auxili ferendi. ‘Sulla limited the office of tribune to the original functions for which it was established, the legal protection of the people from the abuse of magisterial power.’—Ihne.
B. Abolition of Corn Distributions.
Populus Romanus, paullo ante gentium moderator, exutus imperio gloria iure, agitandi inops despectusque ne servilia quidem alimenta relicua habet.
5 agitandi inops (i.e. vitam sustentandi) = without means of livelihood.
6 servilia alimenta = a slave’s allowance of food. Sulla abolished the largesses of corn.
C. Restoration of Judicial Functions to the Senators.
Iudicandi munus quod C. Gracchus ereptum senatui ad Equites, Sulla ab illis ad Senatum transtulerat.
8-10 Sulla filled up the gaps in the Senate from the ranks of the Equites, and to the new Senate thus constituted he entrusted the administration of justice.
D. A Sumptuary Law, Limiting the Expense of the Table.
L. Sulla dictator, cum plerique in patrimoniis amplis eluerentur et familiam pecuniamque suam prandiorum conviviorumque gurgitibus proluissent, legem ad populam tulit, qua cautum est, ut Kalendis, Idibus, Nonis diebusque ludorum et feriis quibusdam 15 sollemnibus sestertios trecenos in cenam insumere ius potestasque esset, ceteris autem diebus omnibus non amplius tricenos.
12 eluerentur = had squandered (lit. ‘washed away’).
Leges Corneliae. ‘Sulla’s legislation was an attempt to revive what was dead and gone. The time had arrived when the old republican institutions could last no longer. The transformation of the state into a monarchy was inevitable.’—Ihne.
The Sultan Constitution. It had as little endurance as that of Cromwell, and was finally destroyed in 70 B.C. during the consulship of Pompeius and Crassus.
Speech of Lepidus against Sulla, 78 B.C.
Nam praeter satellites commaculatos quis eadem volt? aut quis non omnia mutata praeter victorem? Scilicet milites, quorum sanguine Tarulae Scyrtoque, pessumis servorum, divitiae partae sunt! Itaque maxumam mihi fiduciam parit victor exercitus, cui 5 per tot volnera et labores nihil praeter tyrannum quaesitum est. Nisi forte tribuniciam potestatem evorsum profecti sunt, per arma conditam a maioribus suis, utique iura et iudicia sibimet extorquerent, egregia scilicet mercede, cum relegati in paludes et 10 silvam contumeliam atque invidiam suam, praemia penes paucos intellegerint. Quare igitur tanto agmine atque animis incedit? Quia secundae res mire sunt vitiis obtentui; quibus labefactis, quam formidatus est, tam contemnetur; nisi forte specie 15 concordiae et pacis, quae sceleri et parricidio suo nomina indidit; neque aliter rempublicam et belli finem ait, nisi maneat expulsa agris plebes, praeda civilis acerbissima, ius iudiciumque omnium rerum penes se, quod populi Romani fuit. Quae si vobis 20 pax et concordia intelleguntur, maxuma turbamenta reipublicae atque exitia probate, annuite legibus impositis, accipite otium cum servitio et tradite exemplum posteris ad populum Romanum suimet sanguinis mercede circumveniundum. 25
1 Nam, sc. ‘His luck is not so great as he supposes, for. . .’
7-8 tribuniciam . . . evorsum, i.e. by the Leges Corneliae 81 B.C.
9 iudicia. Sulla restored the judicial functions to the Senate (from the Equites).
10 relegati in paludes. Sulla established 120,000 soldiers in military colonies in different parts of Italy, but their roaming adventurous life had unfitted them for agricultural pursuits.
13-14 Quia . . . obtentui = because prosperity serves in a marvellous manner to cover a man’s faults of character.—Holden. For obtentui cf. draw a veil over.
16 parricidio = treason.
18 nisi . . . agris, i.e. Sulla’s confiscations of estates, especially of those Italians who had fought against him.
24-25 ad p. R. circumveniundum = for oppressing (enslaving) the people of Rome.
M. Aemillus Lepidus, Consul 78 B.C., a disappointed Optimate, jealous of Sulla’s power, but without Sulla’s ability. He posed as leader of the democratic party, took up arms against the State, but was defeated by Q. Catulus at the Milvian Bridge, 77 B.C.
WAR WITH SERTORIUS IN SPAIN, 78-72 B.C. (1)
Sertorius and his Fawn.
Huic Sertorio cerva alba eximiae pulchritudinis et vivacissimae celeritatis a Lusitano quodam dono data est. Hanc sibi oblatam divinitus, et instinctam Dianae numine colloqui secum, monereque, et docere, quae utilia factu essent, persuadere omnibus instituit: 5 ac, si quid durius videbatur, quod imperandum militibus foret, a cerva sese monitum tum praedicabat. Id cum dixerat, universi, tamquam si deo, libentes parebant. Ea cerva quodam die, cum incursio esset hostium nuntiata, festinatione ac tumultu consternata 10 in fugam se proripuit, atque in palude proxima delituit; et postea requisita perisse credita est. Neque multis diebus post inventam esse cervam Sertorio nuntiatur. Tum, qui nuntiaverat, iussit tacere: ac, ne cui palam diceret, interminatus est: 15 praecepitque, ut eam postero die repente in eum locum, in quo ipse cum amicis esset, immitteret: admissis deinde amicis postridie, visum sibi esse ait in quiete cervam, quae perisset, ad se reverti, et, ut prius consueverat, quod opus esset facto praedicare. 20 Tum servo, quod imperaverat, significat. Cerva emissa in cubiculum Sertorii introrupit; clamor factus et orta admiratio est: eaque hominum barbarorum credulitas Sertorio in magnis rebus magno usui fuit. 25
1 alba = a dull white as opp. to ater = dull black. Cf. candidus = shining white as opp. to niger = shining black.
3 instinctam = fired, animated.
15 interminatus = he forbade with threats. inter + minor, freq. in Plautus and Terence.
23-25 ‘Sertorius did not disdain to turn to account the superstition of the ruder Spanish tribes, and to have his plans of war brought to him as commands of Diana by the white fawn of the goddess.’—M.
Character of Sertorius. ‘He was the only democratic (Marian) officer who knew how to prepare and to conduct war, and the only democratic statesman who opposed the furious doings of his party with statesmanlike energy. His Spanish soldiers called him the new Hannibal, and not merely because he had, like that hero, lost an eye in war. He in reality reminds us of the great Phoenician by his equally cunning and courageous strategy, and by the quickness of his ingenuity in turning to good account his victories and averting the consequences of his defeats.’—M.
WAR WITH SERTORIUS IN SPAIN (2)
A. A New Hannibal.
Sertorius, exsul et profugus feralis illius tabulae, vir summae quidem sed calamitosae virtutis, malis suis maria terrasque permiscuit; et iam Africae, iam Balearibus insulis fortunam expertus usque in Oceanum Fortunatasque insulas penetravit consiliis, 5 tandem Hispaniam armavit. Viro cum viris facile convenit. Nec alias magis apparuit Hispani militis vigor quam Romano duce. Quamquam ille non contentus Hispania ad Mithridatem quoque Ponticosque respexit regemque classe iuvit. Et quid futurum 10 fuit satis tanto hosti, cui uno imperatore resistere res Romana non potuit? Additus Metello Gnaeus Pompeius. Hi copias attrivere viri prope tota Hispania persecuti. Diu et ancipiti; semper acie pugnatum est nec tamen prius bello quam suorum scelere 15 et insidiis extinctus est.
1 feralis illius tabulae = from that fatal list, i.e. Sulla’s list of proscribed Marians 82 B.C.
9-10 ad Mithridatem . . . iuvit. In 75 B.C. he concluded a formal treaty of alliance with Mithridates, and sent him the propraetor M. Marius to lead his troops. Cf. alliance between Hannibal and Philip.
14-15 Diu et ancipiti semper acie pugnatum est, e.g. the defeat of Pompey near Lauro. (For a graphic account of the strategy by which the battle was won see Frontinus, Strat. ii. 5.)
B. The Death of Sertorius.
M. Perpenna praetorius e proscriptis, gentis clarioris quam animi, Sertorium inter cenam Oscae interemit Romanisque certam victoriam, partibus suis excidium, sibi turpissimam mortem pessimo 20 auctoravit facinore. Metellus et Pompeius ex Hispaniis triumphaverunt.
17 M. Perpenna praetorius (= ex-praetor), with the remnant of the army of Lepidus (defeated by Pompey in 77 B.C.) joined Sertorius in Spain. After serving under Sertorius for some years, through jealousy, he brought about his leader’s assassination.
21 auctoravit = he brought about. More usu. as auctorari = to hire oneself out for some service, e.g. of gladiators.
The Death of Sertorius. ‘So ended one of the greatest men that Rome had hitherto produced—a man who under more fortunate circumstances would perhaps have become the regenerator of his country.’—M.
Character and Early Career of Lucullus.
Magnum ingenium L. Luculli, magnumque optimarum artium studium, tum omnis liberalis et digna homine nobili ab eo percepta doctrina, quibus temporibus florere in foro maxime potuit, caruit omnino rebus urbanis. Ut enim admodum adolescens, 5 cum fratre pari pietate et industria praedito, paternas inimicitias magna cum gloria est persecutus, in Asiam quaestor profectus, ibi permultos annos admirabili quadam laude provinciae praefuit: deinde absens factus aedilis, continuo praetor: licebat 10 enim celerius legis praemio: post in Africam: inde ad consulatum: quem ita gessit ut diligentiam admirarentur omnes, ingenium cognoscerent. Post ad Mithridaticum bellum missus a senatu non modo opinionem vicit omnium quae de virtute eius erat, sed 15 etiam gloriam superiorum. Idque eo fuit mirabilius, quod ab eo laus imperatoria non admodum exspectabatur, qui adolescentiam in forensi opera, quaesturae diuturnum tempus, Murena bellum in Ponto gerente, in Asiae pace consumpserat. . . . 20 In eodem tanta prudentia fuit in constituendis temperandisque civitatibus, tanta aequitas, ut hodie stet Asia Luculli institutis servandis et quasi vestigiis persequendis.
1-3 ingenium, studium, doctrina, subjects of caruit.
3-5 quibus temporibus . . . urbanis = all this was divorced (caruit, lit. was cut off from) from the business of the capital, at the season when he might have had a specially brilliant career in the forum.—J. S. Reid.
6 paternas inimicitias = his father’s quarrel. The first appearance of Lucullus in public life was as the accuser of the Augur Servilius who had procured the banishment of his father.
7-9 in Asiam . . . praefuit, i.e. as Sulla’s quaestor in the first Mithridatic War, 88-84 B.C. and then till 80 B.C. in charge of the province of Asia (= orig. Kingdom of Pergamus, N.W. part of Asia Minor).
11 legis praemio = owing to a privilege conveyed by statute. J. S. R.
13-14 ad Mithridaticum bellum, i.e. the 3rd M. War, which he carried on for eight years (74-66 B.C.) with great success, until superseded by Pompeius in 66 B.C.
19-20 Murena . . . gerente. Lic. Murena, anxious for distinction, provoked the disastrous 2nd Mithridatic War, 83-81 B.C., when by the peremptory orders of Sulla the peace was renewed.
23 stet . . . servandis = persists in maintaining (lit. stands by) the ordinances of L.—J. S. R.
Reference. For Character of Lucullus, see Mommsen, vol. iv. pp. 337-8. Cf. also Vell. Paterc. ii. 32.
A. A Soldier of Lucullus.
Luculli miles collecta viatica multis
Aerumnis, lassus dum noctu stertit, ad assem
Perdiderat; post hoc vehemens lupus, et sibi et hosti
Iratus pariter, ieiunis dentibus acer,
30Praesidium regale loco deiecit, ut aiunt,
Summe munito et multarum divite rerum.
Clarus ob id factum donis ornatur honestis,
Accipit et bis dena super sestertia nummum.
Forte sub hoc tempus castellum evertere praetor
35Nescio quod cupiens hortari coepit eundem
Verbis, quae timido quoque possent addere mentem:
‘I, bone, quo virtus tua te vocat, i pede fausto,
Grandia laturus meritorum praemia. Quid stas?’
Post haec ille catus, quantumvis rusticus, ‘Ibit,
40Ibit eo quo vis qui zonam perdidit,’ inquit.
26 viatica = savings (cf. prize-money). viaticum = originally travelling-money.
28 vehemens lupus = a very wolf in his fury. Cf. Vergil’s simile for a forlorn hope—‘lupi ceu | Raptores.’—Wickham.
32 donis honestis = gifts of honour—i.e. the corona muralis, the mural crown, such as is worn by the goddess Cybele.
33 nummum (= nummorum) = in hard cash.
39 catus = shrewd, witty, a Sabine word, = acutus.
39-40 Ibit . . . quo vis, the original of Juvenal’s ad caelum, iusseris, ibit.
40 zonam = purse. The zona here was a broad belt made double or hollow to carry money in.
B. The Wealth of Lucullus.
Chlamydes Lucullus, ut aiunt,
Si posset centum scaenae praebere rogatus,
‘Qui possum tot?’ ait; ‘tamen et quaeram, et quot habebo
Mittam’: post paulo scribit sibi milia quinque
Esse domi chlamydum; partem vel tolleret omnes.
Subject. Horace says ‘I am like Lucullus’ soldier—when his pocket was empty he would volunteer for forlorn hopes; when it was full again he would do so no more. It was poverty that made me write verses.’—W.
40 Chlamydes. The Chlamys was the light short mantle of the Greeks, here wanted for a pageant on the stage.
44 tolleret. The subj. is the praetor or person giving the show.—W.
Reference. For the magnificence of his Villas at Tusculum and near Neapolis, see Cicero De Fin. ii. § 107, De Leg. iii. § 30, Pliny, N. H. ix. 170.
WAR WITH SPARTACUS, 73-71 B.C.
Spartacus and his Gladiators.
Spartacus, Crixus, Oenomaus effracto Lentuli ludo cum triginta aut amplius eiusdem fortunae viris erupere Capua; servisque ad vexillum vocatis cum statim decem amplius milia coissent, homines modo effugisse contenti iam et vindicari volebant. 5 Prima sedes velut rabidis beluis mons Vesuvius placuit. Ibi cum obsiderentur a Clodio Glabro, per fauces cavi montis vitineis delapsi vinculis ad imas eius descendere radices et exitu inviso nihil tale opinantis ducis subito impetu castra rapuerunt. Adfluentibus 10 in diem copiis cum iam esset iustus exercitus, e viminibus pecudumque tegumentis inconditos sibi clipeos et ferro ergastulorum recocto gladios ac tela fecerunt, Indo iam consulares quoque aggressus in Appennino Lentuli exercitum percecidit, apud 15 Mutinam Gai Cassi castra delevit. Tandem enim totis imperii viribus contra mirmillonem consurgunt, pudoremque Romanum Marcus Crassus asseruit: a quo pulsi fugatique hostes in extrema Italiae refugerunt. Ibi circa Bruttium angulum clusi cum 20 fugam in Siciliam pararent neque navigia suppeterent ratesque ex trabibus et dolia connexa virgultis rapidissimo freto frustra experirentur, tandem eruptione facta dignam viris obiere mortem, et quod sub gladiatore duce oportuit, sine missione 25 pugnatum est. Spartacus ipse in primo agmine fortissime dimicans quasi imperator occisus est.
1 Spartacus, by birth a Thracian, who had served among the Thracian auxiliaries in the Roman army, had deserted and become a chief of banditti. He was taken prisoner and sold to a trainer of gladiators.
Crixus, Oenomaus, the slave-names of two Celts.
1-2 effracto ludo = broke out of the gladiators’ school.
8 vitineis vinculis = by means of ropes made of vine-branches.
9 inviso = unknown, lit. unseen.
13 ergastulorum = from the slaves’ work-houses.
17 mirmillonem. The Mirmillones were a class of gladiators usually matched with the Thraces or the retiarii (net-fighters).
18 Marcus Crassus, the Triumvir of 60 B.C.
asseruit = maintained. Cf. our assert.
21 in Siciliam, where the slaves had risen in 133 and 104 B.C., and only waited an impulse to break out a third time.
25 sine missione = without quarter. Cf. missio = the discharge from service of soldiers and gladiators.
THE THIRD MITHRIDATIC WAR, 74-63 B.C. (1)
Lucullus Ponticus.
Quoniam de genere belli dixi, nunc de magnitudine pauca dicam. Atque ut omnes intellegant me L. Lucullo tantum impertire laudis, quantum forti viro et sapienti homini et magno imperatori debeatur, dico eius adventu maximas Mithridatis 5 copias omnibus rebus ornatas atque instructas fuisse urbemque Asiae clarissimam nobisque amicissimam, Cyzicenorum, obsessam esse ab ipso rege maxima multitudine et oppugnatam vehementissime, quam L. Lucullus virtute, assiduitate, consilio summis 10 obsidionis periculis liberavit: ab eodem imperatore classem magnam et ornatam, quae ducibus Sertorianis ad Italiam studio inflammata raperetur, superatam esse atque depressam; magnas hostium praeterea copias multis proeliis esse deletas patefactumque 15 nostris legionibus esse Pontum, qui antea populo Romano ex omni aditu clausus fuisset; Sinopen atque Amisum, quibus in oppidis erant domicilia regis, omnibus rebus ornatas atque refertas, ceterasque urbes Ponti et Cappadociae permultas uno 20 aditu adventuque esse captas; regem spoliatum regno patrio atque avito ad alios se reges atque ad alias gentes supplicem contulisse: atque haec omnia salvis populi Romani sociis atque integris vectigalibus esse gesta. 25
5-6 maximas . . . fuisse. M. had 140,000 well-trained men, Roman officers sent by Sertorius, 16,000 cavalry, a war-fleet of 400 ships, and abundance of stores.
7-11 urbemque . . . liberavit. The city of Cyzicus stood on the S. side of the island of the same name in the Propontis (Sea of Marmora), close to the shore of Mȳsia, to which it was joined by two bridges.
12-14 classem . . . depressam, i.e. probably the Battle of Tenedos 73 B.C., in which Marcus Marius and the ablest of the Roman emigrants met their death, and the whole Aegean fleet of Mithridates was annihilated.
15 multis proeliis, e.g. of Cabira, 72 B.C.; Tigranocerta, 69 B.C.
18 Sinopen. Sinope, on the W. headland of the great bay of which the delta of the R. Halys forms the E. headland, was the birthplace and residence (domicilia) of M.
22 ad alios reges, e.g. to his son-in-law, Tigranes of Armenia.
23-24 salvis . . . vectigalibus, i.e. without ruining the provincial by forced contributions and requisitions.
Reference. For Siege of Cyzicus, see Mommsen, vol. iv. pp. 326-328; Frontinus, Strat. ii. 13. 6.
CN. POMPEIUS MAGNUS, 106-48 B.C.
His Character, and Career to 66 B.C.
Iam vero virtuti Cn. Pompei quae potest oratio par inveniri? Quid est quod quisquam aut illo dignum, aut vobis novum aut cuiquam inauditum possit adferre? Neque enim illae sunt solae virtutes imperatoriae, quae vulgo esistimantur, labor in 5 negotiis, fortitudo in periculis, industria in agendo, celeritas in conficiendo, consilium in providendo, quae tanta sunt in hoc uno, quanta in omnibus reliquis imperatoribus, quos aut vidimus aut audivimus, non fuerunt. Testis est Italia, quam ille ipse 10 victor L. Sulla huius virtute et subsidio confessus est liberatam: testis est Sicilia, quam multis undique cinctam periculis non terrore belli, sed consilii celeritate explicavit: testis est Africa, quae magnis oppressa hostium copiis eorum ipsorum sanguine 15 redundavit: testis est Gallia, per quam legionibus nostris iter in Hispaniam Gallorum internecione patefactum est: testis est Hispania, quae saepissime plurimos hostes ab hoc superatos prostratosque conspexit: testis est iterum et saepius Italia, quae 20 cum servili bello taetro periculosoque premeretur, ab hoc auxilium absente expetivit, quod bellum exspectatione eius attenuatum atque imminutum est, adventu sublatum ac sepultum: testes nunc vero iam omnes orae atque omnes exterae gentes ac nationes. 25
10-12 Testis est Italia . . . liberatam. In 83 B.C. Pompeius, aged twenty-four, raised three legions in Picenum, gained several advantages over the Marian generals, and was saluted by Sulla as Imperator.
12-14 testis est Sicilia . . . explicavit. In 82 B.C. Pompeius, sent as propraetor to Sicily, quickly took possession of the island for Sulla.
14-16 testis est Africa . . . redundavit. In 81 B.C. Pompeius defeated at Utica the Marian Ahenobarbus (allied with Hiarbas of Numidia), and was, though a simple Roman eques, granted a triumph by Sulla and saluted as Magnus.
16-18 testis est Gallia . . . patefactum est. In 77 B.C., on his way to Spain as proconsul against Sertorius, he had to cut his way through the Transalpine Gauls, and laid out a new and shorter road over the Cottian Alps.
21 servili bello. On his return from Spain he cut to pieces the scattered remnants of the army of Spartacus.
21-23 ab hoc . . . imminutum est. Cic. assumes that the enemy was crippled even by the mere notion of sending for Pompeius.
References. Plutarch, Pompeius; Vell. Paterc. ii. 29.
GAIUS IULIUS CAESAR (1)
The Man Caesar.
Fuisse traditur excelsa statura, colore candido, teretibus membris, ore paulo pleniore, nigris vegetisque oculis, valetudine prospera; nisi quod tempore extremo repente animo linqui atque etiam per somnum exterreri solebat. Armorum et equitandi 5 peritissimus, laboris ultra fidem patiens erat. In agmine nonnunquam equo, saepius pedibus anteibat, capite detecto, seu sol seu imber esset; longissimas vias incredibili celeritate confecit. In obeundis expeditionibus dubium cautior an audentior, 10 exercitum neque per insidiosa itinera duxit umquam nisi perspeculatus locorum situs. A Brundisio Dyrrachium inter oppositas classes hieme transmisit cessantibusque copiis, quas subsequi iusserat, cum ad accersendas frustra saepe misisset, 15 novissime ipse clam noctu parvulum navigium solus obvoluto capite conscendit, neque aut quis esset ante detexit aut gubernatorem cedere adversae tempestati passus est, quam paene obrutus fluctibus. Ne religione quidem ulla a quoquam incepto absterritus 20 umquam vel retardatus est. Cum immolanti aufugisset hostia, profectionem adversus Scipionem et Iubam non distulit. Prolapsus etiam in egressu navis, verso ad melius omine Teneo te, inquit, Africa.
4 animo linqui = he was subject to fainting-fits.
8 capite detecto, so Cyrus the Younger and Hannibal.
9 incredibili celeritate, cf. Cic. Ep. ad Att. viii. 9 hoc τέρας (= prodigy) horribili vigilantia, celeritate, diligentia est. Cf. also Napoleon the Great.
14 cessantibusque copiis = and when the troops delayed their coming. Caesar did not then know that Antonius had himself been attacked at Brundisium by a Pompeian fleet, and had shown great skill in baffling it, and forcing it to put to sea again. Once more Antonius set sail with 4 legions and 800 horsemen, and fortunately a strong S. wind carried him safely to the port of Lissus (N. of Dyrrachium).
18-19 gubernatorem . . . passus est. ‘Quid times? Caesarem vehis!’ was Caesar’s famous exhortation to the pilot. (Florus.)
21-22 Cum . . . hostia: if the victim even tugged at the rope when being led to sacrifice, it was considered unfortunate, and hence a long slack rope was used. Cf. Juv. xii. 5 Sed procul extensum petulans (butting) quatit hostia funem.
24 According to Frontinus his words were ‘Teneo te, terra mater.’
The man Caesar. ‘We may picture him as a man the dignity of whose bodily presence was in due proportion to the greatness of his mental powers.’—Warde Fowler.
GAIUS IULIUS CAESAR (2)
Captured by Pirates.
Studies Oratory at Rhodes, 76-75 B.C.
Composita seditione civili Cornelium Dolabellam consularem et triumphalem repetundarum postulavit; absolutoque Rhodum secedere statuit, et ad declinandam invidiam et ut per otium ac requiem Apollonio Moloni clarissimo tunc dicendi magistro 5 operam daret. Huc dum hibernis iam mensibus traicit, circa Pharmacussam insulam a praedonibus captus est, mansitque apud eos, non sine summa indignatione, prope quadraginta dies cum uno medico et cubicularis duobus. Nam comites servosque 10 ceteros initio statim ad expediendas pecunias, quibus redimeretur, dimiserat. Numeratis deinde quinquaginta talentis, expositus in litore non distulit quin e vestigio classe deducta persequeretur abeuntis, ac redactos in potestatem supplicio, quod saepe illis 15 minatus inter iocum fuerat, adficeret. Vastante regiones proximas Mithridate ne desidere in discrimine sociorum videretur, ab Rhodio quo pertenderat, transiit in Asiam, auxiliisque contractis et praefecto regis provincia expulso, nutantes ac dubias civitates 20 retinuit in fide.
1 Composita seditione civili, i.e. after the abortive attempt of Lepidus to make himself master of the state 77 B.C.
C. Dolabellam, impeached for illegal extortion during his government of Macedonia.
Repetundarum (sc. pecuniarum), post-Aug. for de repetundis (pecuniis), used i. of money extorted by an official and to be returned, ii. of money extorted as a bribe. Caesar lost his case, but succeeded in showing that Sulla’s senatorial judges were corrupt.
4 Apollonio Moloni, the famous rhetorician, whose pupil Cicero was both at Rome and at Rhodes. Very possibly Caesar took this step by the advice of Cicero.
7 circa Pharmacussam insulam: S.W. of Miletus (= mod. Farmako).
8-9 non sine summa indignatione: Plutarch, Caes. gives a picturesque account of his adventures as their prisoner.
10 cubicularis (cubiculum) = lit. chamber-servants.
11 pecunias . . . Velleius says that Caesar’s ransom was paid out of public funds.
14 e vestigio (= statim) = immediately.
Caesar at Rhodes. ‘Caesar, from what we know of his taste and character, could hardly have found the same delight as Cicero in his studies at Rhodes. He nevertheless became one of the greatest orators of his day, and according to some accounts, second only to Cicero. It is characteristic of Caesar, but unfortunate for us, that he never took any pains to collect and preserve his speeches.’—Warde Fowler.
CICERO PROSECUTES VERRES, 70 B.C.
A Roman Citizen maltreated.
Quid ego de P. Gavio, Consano municipe, dicam, indices? Aut qua vi vocis, qua gravitate verborum, quo dolore animi dicam? Quod crimen eius modi est ut, cum primum ad me delatum est, usurum me illo non putarem; tametsi enim verissimum esse 5 intellegebam, tamen credibile fore non arbitrabar. Quid nunc agam? Rem in medio ponam: quae tantum habet ipsa gravitatis ut neque mea, quae nulla est, neque cuiusquam ad inflammandos vestros animos eloquentia requiratur. 10
Caedebatur virgis in medio foro Messanae civis Romanus, iudices; cum interea nullus gemitus, nulla vox alia illius miseri inter dolorem crepitumque plagarum audiebatur, nisi haec, Civis Romanus sum. Hac se commemoratione civitatis omnia verbera 15 depulsurum, cruciatum a corpore deiecturum arbitrabatur. Is non modo hoc non perfecit ut virgarum vim deprecaretur, sed cum imploraret saepius usurparetque nomen civitatis, crux, crux, inquam, infelici et aerumnoso comparabatur. 20
O nomen dulce libertatis! O ius eximium nostrae civitatis! O lex Porcia legesque Semproniae! O graviter desiderata et aliquando reddita plebi Romanae tribunicia potestas! Hucine tandem omnia reciderunt ut civis Romanus in provincia populi Romani, 25 in oppido foederatorum, ab eo qui beneficio populi Romani fasces et secures haberet deligatus in foro virgis caederetur?
1 Consano municipe = a burgess of Consa, on the borders of Lucania.
22 Lex Porcia. Passed by M. Porcius Cato, 197 B.C., forbade the execution or scourging of a Roman citizen.
Leges Semproniae, a code of laws passed by C. Sempronius Gracchus, 123 B.C. One of these declared it to be the sole right of the people to decide capital cases.
22-24 O graviter desiderata . . . potestas! Sulla (Dictator 82-79 B.C.) took from the tribunes the right of proposing laws, and left them only their original right of Intercessio or veto. In 70 B.C. Pompeius, who had formally accepted the democratic programme, gave back to the tribunes the power to initiate legislation.
The Orationes In Verrem. Cicero, as patronus of the Sicilians, undertook the prosecution of the Senator C. Verres for his gross misconduct as governor of Sicily, 73-71 B.C.
CN. POMPEIUS MAGNUS, 106-48 B.C.
The Lex Gabinia, 67 B.C.
Converterat Cn. Pompei persona totum in se terrarum orbem et per omnia maior cive habebatur. Qui cum consul perquam laudabiliter iurasset se in nullam provinciam ex eo magistratu iturum idque servasset, post biennium A. Gabinius tribunus 5 legem tulit, ut cum belli more, non latrociniorum, orbem classibus iam, non furtivis expeditionibus, piratae terrerent, quasdamque etiam Italiae urbis diripuissent, Cn. Pompeius ad eos opprimendos mitteretur essetque ei imperium aequum in omnibus 10 provinciis cum proconsulibus usque ad quinquagesimum miliarium a mari. Quo decreto paene totius terrarum orbis imperium uni viro deferebatur; sed tamen idem hoc ante biennium in M. Antoni praetura decretum erat. Sed interdum persona ut exemplo 15 nocet, ita invidiam auget aut levat: in Antonio homines aequo animo passi erant; raro enim invidetur eorum honoribus, quorum vis non timetur: contra in iis homines extraordinaria reformidant, qui ea suo arbitrio aut deposituri aut retenturi videntur 20 et modum in voluntate habent. Dissuadebant optimates, sed consilia impetu victa sunt.