Frag. 105now lucius junius was a son of tarquin's sister; his father and brother tarquin had killed. so he, fearing for his own person, feigned madness, employing this means of safety as a screen for his life. hence he was dubbed brutus, for this is the name by which the latins are accustomed to call idiots. while pretending to be mad he was taken along as a plaything by the children of tarquin, when they journeyed to delphi. and he said that he was carrying a votive offering to the god; this was a staff, apparently possessing no point of excellence, so that he became a laughing stock for it all the more. It furnished a kind of image of the affliction that he feigned. For he had hollowed it out and had secretly poured in gold, indicating thereby that the disesteem which he suffered for his madness served to conceal a sound and estimable intelligence. Frag. 107to the query of the sons of tarquin as to who should succeed to their father's sovereignty the god replied that the first who kissed his mother should obtain the power. and brutus, comprehending, fell down as if accidentally and covered the earth with kisses, rightly deeming her to be the mother of all.
Frag. 108this brutus overthrew the tarquins, taking as his justification the case of Lucretia, though these rulers were even without that hated by all for their tyrannous and violent characteristics. Lucretia was a daughter of Lucretius Spurius, a man that was a member of the senate, and she was wife of the distinguished Tarquinius Collatinus and was renowned, as it chanced, for her beauty and chastity. Frag. 108sextus, the son of tarquin, set his heart upon outraging her, not so much because he was inspired with passion by her beauty as because he chose to plot against her chaste reputation. so, having watched for collatinus to be away from home, he came by night to her and lodged at her house, since she was the wife of a relative. and first he tried by persuasion to secure illicit pleasure from her and then he resorted to violence. as he could not succeed, he threatened to cut her throat. but inasmuch as she despised death, he threatened furthermore to lay a slave beside her and to kill them both and to spread the report that he had found them sleeping together and killed them. this rendered lucretia distraught, and in fear that this might be believed to have so happened she surrendered. and after the act of adultery she placed a dagger beneath the pillow and sent for her husband and her father. when they came, accompanied by brutus and publius valerius, she shed many tears and with moans related the entire transaction. then she added: "and i will treat my case as becomes me, but do you, if you are men, avenge me, yourselves, and show the tyrants what manner of creatures you are and what manner of woman they have outraged." having spoken to this effect she immediately drew the dagger from its hiding place and killed herself.
(BOOK 4, BOISSEVAIN.)
VII, 13.—The Sabines, however, because of wrath at their treatment, did not keep quiet even through the winter, but overran Roman territory and damaged the forces of Postumius when he was for the second time consul. And they would absolutely have captured him, had not Menenius Agrippa, his colleague, come to his aid. And assaulting them they killed a number, with the result that the rest withdrew. After this Spurius Cassius and Opiter Verginius as consuls made peace with the Sabines. And capturing the city of Camerium they executed most of the inhabitants; the remnant they took alive and sold, and razed the city to the ground.
Postumius Cominius and Titus Larcius arrested and put to death some slaves who were hatching a conspiracy to seize the Capitoline. Servius Sulpicius and Marcus Tullius in their turn anticipated a second conspiracy composed of slaves and some others that had joined them, for it was reported to the consuls by certain men privy to the plot. They surrounded and overpowered the conspirators and cut them down. To the informers citizenship and other rewards were given.
When a new war was stirred up on the part of the Latins against Rome, the people, demanding that a cancellation of debts be authorized, refused to take up arms. Therefore the nobles then for the first time established a new office to have jurisdiction over both classes. Dictator was the name given to the person entitled to the position, and he possessed all powers as much as had the kings. People hated the name of king on account of the Tarquins, but being anxious for the benefit to be derived from sole leadership (which seemed to exert a potent influence amid conditions of war and revolution), they chose it under another name. Hence the dictatorship was, as has been said, so far as its authority went, equivalent to kingship, except that the dictator might not ride on horseback unless he were about to start on a campaign, and was not permitted to make any expenditure from the public funds unless the right were specially voted. He might try men and put them to death at home and on campaigns, and not merely such as belonged to the populace, but also members of the knights and of the senate itself. No one had the power to make any complaint against him nor to take any action hostile to him,—no, not even the tribunes,—and no case could be appealed from him. The office of dictator extended for a period of not more than six months, to the end that no such official by spending much time in the midst of so much power and unhampered authority should become haughty and plunge headlong into a passion for sole leadership. This was what happened later to Julius Cæsar, when contrary to lawful precedent he had been approved for the dictatorship.
VII, 14.—At this time, consequently, when Larcius became dictator, the populace made no uprising but presented themselves under arms. When, however, the Latins came to terms and were now in a quiescent state, the lenders proceeded to treat the debtors more harshly and the populace for this reason again rebelled and even came running in a throng into the senate. And all the senators would there have perished at the hands of the inrushing mob, had not some persons at this juncture reported that the Volsci had invaded the country. In the face of such news the populace became calm, not regarding this action, however, in the light of clemency to the senate, for they felt sure that that body would almost immediately be destroyed by the enemy. Hence they did not take the trouble to man the walls nor render any assistance until Servilius released the prisoners held for default of payments and decreed a suspension of taxes for as long as the campaign lasted and promised to reduce the debts. Then in consequence of these concessions they proceeded against the enemy and won the day. Inasmuch, however, as they were not relieved of their debts and in general could obtain no decent treatment, they again raised a clamor and grew full of wrath and made an uprising against both the senate and the prætors.
But at the approach of another war the prætors decreed a cancellation of debts: others opposed this measure: and so Marcus Valerius was named dictator. He was of the kindred of Poplicola and was beloved by the people. Then, indeed, so many gathered, animated with such zeal (for he had promised them prizes, too), that they overran not only the Sabines, but the Volsci and Æqui who were allied with them. As a sequel, the populace voted many honors to Valerius, one of which was their bestowal of the title Maximus. This name, translated into Greek, signifies "greatest." And he, wishing to do the populace some favors, made many addresses to the senate but could not get it to follow his guidance. Consequently he rushed out of the senatorial assembly in a rage, and after making to the populace a long speech against the senate resigned his command. Frag. 164and the populace was all the more provoked to revolt. as for the money-lenders, by insisting in the case of debts upon the very letter of the agreement and refusing to make any concession to those who owed them they both failed to secure the exact amount and were disappointed in many other hopes. for poverty and the resulting desperation is a heavy curse, and is, if it spreads among a large number of people, very difficult to combat. now the cause of most of the troubles that befell the romans lay in the unyielding attitude adopted at this time by the more powerful toward their inferiors. For as the military contingent came to be hard pressed by dint of campaigns and was baffled out and out in frequent hopes frequently entertained, and the debtors were repeatedly abused and maltreated by the money-lenders, the people became inflamed to such a pitch of fury that many of the destitute abandoned the city, withdrew from the camp, Frag. 165and like enemies gathered their subsistence from the country.
when this situation had been brought about, since numbers came flocking to the side of the revolutionists, the senators, dreading that the latter might become more estranged and the neighboring tribes join their rebellion for purposes of attack, made propositions to them in which they promised everything that the senate was empowered to do for them. but when they displayed the utmost audacity and would accept no offer, one of the envoys, agrippa menenius, begged them to hearken to a fable. having obtained their consent he spoke as follows. once all the members of the body began a contention against the belly. and the eyes said: "we give the hands the power to work and the feet the power to go." and the tongue and the lips: "through us the counsels of the heart are made known." and then the ears: "through us the words of others are despatched to the mind." and the hands: "we are the workers and lay up stores of wealth." and finally the feet: "we tire ourselves out carrying the whole body in journeys and while working and while standing." and all in a chorus: "while we labor so, thou alone, free from contribution and labor, like a mistress art served by us all and the fruit of all our labors thou thyself alone dost enjoy." the belly herself admitted that this was so, and said she: "if you like, leave me unsupplied and make me no presents." this proposition suited, and the members voted never more to supply the belly by their common effort. when no food was presented to her, the hands were not nimble to work, being relaxed on account of the failure of the belly, nor were the feet possessed of strength, nor did any other of the limbs show its normal activity uninjured, but all were inefficient, slow, or completely motionless. and then they comprehended that the presents made to the belly had been supplied not more to her than to themselves and that each one of them incidentally enjoys the benefit conferred upon her.