‘Da veniam subitis: non displicuisse meretur,
festinat, Caesar, qui placuisse tibi.’
Martial received the ‘ius trium liberorum’ from two of the emperors. This probably means that Titus bestowed it and Domitian ratified it. Cf. ix. 97, 5,
‘tribuit quod Caesar uterque
ius mihi natorum.’
Martial became a titular tribune, and consequently an eques, an honour probably given him by Titus; iii. 95, 9
‘vidit me Roma tribunum’;
v. 13, 1,
‘Sum, fateor, semperque fui, Callistrate, pauper,
sed non obscurus nec male notus eques.’
Martial is unsparing in his flattery of Domitian and his freedmen. Cf. ix. 79, iv. 45, of Parthenius, the emperor’s chamberlain; vii. 99, viii. 48, of Crispinus, the emperor’s favourite. In A.D. 86 we find his poems eagerly read by the emperor. Cf. iv. 27,
‘Saepe meos laudare soles, Auguste, libellos.’
He obtained citizen rights for several applicants; cf. ix. 95. 11,