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And if things had merely gone on like this, the affair, while being a source of shame and of ridicule alike, would still have been deemed free from danger. But as a fact he devastated the whole of Greece precisely as if he had been despatched to some war and without regard to the fact that he had declared the country free, also slaying great numbers [of men, women and children. At first he commanded the children and freedmen of those who were executed to leave him half their property at their death, and allowed the original victims to make wills in order to make it seem less likely that he had killed them for their money; and he invariably took all that was bequeathed to him, if not more. In case any one left to him or to Tigillinus less than they were expecting, the wills were of no avail.--Later he deprived persons of their
entire
property and banished all their children at once by one decree. Not even this satisfied him, but he destroyed not a few of the exiles.] For no one could begin to enumerate all the confiscated possessions of men allowed to live and all the votive offerings that he stole from the very temples in Rome. [The despatch-bearers hurried hither and thither with no piece of news other than "kill this man!" or that that man was dead. No private messages, only state documents, were delivered; for Nero had taken many of the foremost men to Greece under pretence of needing some assistance from them merely in order that they might perish there.
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The whole population of Rome and Italy he surrendered like captives to a certain Helius, a Caesarian. The latter had been given absolutely complete authority, so that he might confiscate, banish, and put to death (even before notifying Nero) ordinary persons, knights, and senators alike.]
Thus the Roman domain was at that time a slave to two emperors at once,--Nero and Helius; and I do not feel able to say which was the worse. In most respects they behaved entirely alike, and the one point of difference was that the descendant of Augustus was emulating zither-players, whereas the freedman of Claudius was emulating Caesars. I consider the acts of Tigillinus as a part of Nero's career because he was constantly with him: but Polyclitus and Calvia Crispinilla by themselves plundered, sacked, despoiled all the places they could get at. The former was associated with Helius at Rome, and the latter with Sabina, born Sporus. Calvia had been entrusted with the care of the boy and with the oversight of the wardrobe, though a woman and of high rank; and she saw to it that all were stripped of their possessions.
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