Chapter C: Sallustii Crispi (3)

[247] _Male consulere_, 'to form bad' or 'injurious resolutions.'
[248] _Perse_. Respecting the forms of this name, see Zumpt, SS 52, 54.
[249] _An_ must be explained by supplying another interrogation before
it, such as _alione?_ 'had that speech any other object, or had it
this one?' for _an_ is used only in the second part of a double
question.
[250] 'To be sure words will fire him on, whom the thing itself did not
move'--that is, words are sure not to rouse him whom the thing
itself did not move; for _scilicet_ has an ironical force.
[251] _Injuriae suae_, 'the injuries done to him.'
[252] 'Many have taken them more seriously to heart than was necessary.'
It is more common to say _gravius tulerunt_. The perfect, _habuere_,
in expressing a general truth, has the sense of a present, or rather
of a Greek aorist, denoting that which once happened, and still
continues to happen. Compare p.22, note 2 [note 68].
[253] _Vitam habent_ for _vitam agunt_, which is more common. Sallust is
very fond of the verb _habere_ in certain phrases. See _Jug_. 10.
[254] _Equidem ego_ for _ego quidem_. See Zumpt, S 278.
[255] _Inimicitiae_. About this plural, see Zumpt, S 94. The singular
_inimicitia_ is not used at all.
[256] 'Such I know to be the character of the man.'
[257] _Subigere_ here, as in many other passages of Sallust, has the
meaning of _cogere, invitum impellere_ ('to force a person to
something'), followed by an infinitive instead of a clause with _ut_.
[258] _Id quod res habet_, 'that which is in the nature of the thing.'
Caesar hereby means to represent his opinion as philosophically
correct, and in accordance with nature. _Id quod_ belong together.
[259] Such had indeed been the custom in former times. The condemned
person, previous to being beheaded with the axe, was bound to a post
and scourged. This barbarous punishment continued to be inflicted
sometimes even at a later period, when it was expressly mentioned in
the verdict that the criminal should be punished _more majorum_.
_Animadvertere_ is the proper expression for the infliction of
bodily punishment by a lictor, who _has to pay attention to his
orders_; but it is also used of the person who gives the order,
and causes it to be carried into effect, just as _interficere_
is said both of the executioner and the person who orders a man to be
put to death.
[260] This law, proposed by one Porcius, and passed by the people,
forbade the scourging of Roman citizens on the naked body; so that,
after the passing of that law, an execution consisted simply in
beheading a criminal with the sword; and if he was a soldier,
flogging took the place of scourging. The celebrated M. Porcius Cato,
about B. C. 160, recommended this bill to the people; but it was not
he who proposed it, but an unknown person of the name of Porcius,
probably a tribune of the people.
[261] There were no Roman laws forbidding capital punishment, or
substituting exile in its place, and for this reason Caesar does not
refer to any such law. He supports his view only by the circumstance
that, in all the more recent laws, especially in the criminal law of
Sulla, exile (_interdictio aquae et ignis_) was fixed upon as the
extreme penalty; and that according to the usual indulgence (not
sanctioned by any law), accused persons, if they denied being guilty,
and were defended by some one, remained in the enjoyment of their
freedom until the sentence was passed. Thus it happened that a
person, foreseeing his condemnation, might quit the Roman territory,
and take up his abode within the territory of some town or city where
the Roman law was not in force, and where the Roman state placed no
obstacles in his way.
[262] 'How is it consistent?' Respecting _qui_ for _quomodo_ or _quo
pacto_, see Zumpt, S 133, note. The _minus negotium_ is the
scourging, and the _majus negotium_ the execution.
[263] _At enim_ introduces an objection raised by the orator himself.
_At_ represents the objection, and _enim_ introduces an explanation
of it. See Zumpt, S 349.
[264] Caesar means to say that the present senate, which, as he
flatteringly says, consists of worthy men, will not abuse the power
of putting Roman citizens to death; but that a subsequent senate,
taking such an example as a precedent, might abuse its power. It
must be observed that the Roman senate possessed the power over the
life and death of citizens, not by virtue of legal enactments, but
only by ancient custom. This power legally belonged only to the
people assembled in the Comitia Centuriata, or to those to whom the
people expressly intrusted it--namely, the ordinary and extraordinary
courts of justice. It may seem surprising that Caesar does not
express himself more energetically against the right claimed by the
senate; but he would certainly have spoken in vain, for it was
every senator's interest that the power of the senate should be
recognised in its greatest extent, even though it should not be
exercised in every particular case.
[265] That is, the so-called thirty tyrants in the year B. C. 404.
[266] _Ea_; for this accusative, see Zumpt, S 385.
[267] _Damasippus_ was only a surname of the praetor M. Junius Brutus,
who in the year B. C. 82 put to death a great many Roman nobles of
the party of Sulla.
[268] Namely, by Sulla, after he had been made dictator.
[269] _Pleraque_; most of the ensigns and distinctions by which the
magistrates were distinguished from private persons, especially the
_toga praetexta_, _sella curulis_, _fasces_ (which were carried
by the lictors), and, above all, the splendid procession of the
_triumphatores_.
[270] _Legibus_ is here a pleonasm, and might have been omitted. We
must here repeat that Caesar makes an artful application of the
circumstance that, in all the late criminal laws, the _interdictio
aquae et ignis_ was fixed as the severest punishment, as if
thereby a person had been simply permitted to withdraw from the
republic. The _interdictio_ was a much more severe punishment,
inasmuch as the person on whom it was inflicted lost all his rights
as a citizen, and as every one was forbidden to receive him into his
house, so that he was a complete outcast. Wherever these regulations
were not carried into effect, and even in case a criminal made his
escape before the sentence was pronounced, we can see nothing but an
abuse of clemency.
[271] _Quominus_ is here used because the leading clause conveys the
idea of a hindrance; but _ne_ also might have been written.
[272] _Per municipia_, 'among the municipia.' See Zumpt, S 301.

52. Postquam Caesar dicendi finem fecit, ceteri verbo alius alii varie assentiebantur: at M. Porcius Cato, rogatus sententiam, hujuscemodi orationem habuit: 'Longe mihi alia mens est, P. C., quum res atque pericula nostra considero, et quum sententias nonnullorum mecum ipse reputo.[273] Illi mihi disseruisse videntur de poena eorum, qui patriae, parentibus, aris atque focis suis bellum paravere; res autem monet cavere ab illis magis quam, quid in illos statuamus, consultare. Nam cetera maleficia tum persequare, ubi facta sunt; hoc nisi provideris ne accidat, ubi evenit, frustra judicia implores; capta urbe nihil fit reliqui victis. Sed, per deos immortales, vos ego appello, qui semper domos, villas, signa, tabulas vestras pluris quam rem publicam fecistis,[274] si ista, cujuscunque modi sunt quae amplexamini, retinere, si voluptatibus vestris otium praebere vultis, expergiscimini aliquando et capessite rem publicam.[275] Non agitur de vectigalibus neque de sociorum injuriis: libertas et anima nostra in dubio est. Saepenumero, P. C., multa verba in hoc ordine feci,[276] saepe de luxuria atque avaritia nostrorum civium questus sum, multosque mortales ea causa adversos habeo; qui mihi atque animo meo nullius unquam delicti gratiam fecissem,[277] haud facile alterius libidini male facta condonabam. Sed ea tametsi vos parvi pendebatis, tamen res publica firma erat; opulentia neglegentiam tolerabat.[278] Nunc vero non id agitur, bonisne an malis moribus vivamus, neque quantum aut quam magnificum imperium, populi Romani sit, sed haec cujuscunque modi videntur, nostra an nobiscum una hostium futura sint. Hic mihi quisquam mansuetudinem et misericordiam nominat.[279] Jampridem equidem[280] nos vera vocabula rerum amisimus, quia bona aliena largiri liberalitas, malarum rerum audacia fortitudo vocatur, eo[281] res publica in extremo sita est. Sint sane, quoniam ita se mores habent, liberales ex sociorum fortunis, sint misericordes in furibus aerarii; ne illi sanguinem nostrum largiantur, et[282] dum paucis sceleratis parcunt, bonos omnes perditum eant. Bene et composite G. Caesar paulo ante in hoc ordine de vita et morte disseruit, credo falsa existimans ea, quae de inferis memorantur, diverso itinere malos a bonis loca taetra, inculta, foeda atque formidolosa habere. Itaque censuit pecunias eorum publicandas, ipsos per municipia in custodiis habendos; videlicet timens, ne, si Romae sint, aut a popularibus conjurationis aut a multitudine conducta per vim eripiantur. Quasi vero mali atque scelesti tantummodo in urbe et non[283] per totam Italiam sint, aut non ibi plus possit audacia, ubi ad defendendum opes minores sunt. Quare vanum equidem hoc consilium est, si periculum ex illis metuit; sin in tanto omnium metu solus non timet, eo magis refert[284] me mihi atque vobis timere. Quare quum de P. Lentulo ceterisque statuetis, pro certo habetote,[285] vos simul de exercitu Catilinae et de omnibus conjuratis decernere. Quanto vos attentius ea agetis, tanto illis animus infirmior erit; si paululum modo vos languere viderint, jam omnes feroces aderunt.[286] Nolite existimare, majores nostros armis rem publicam ex parva magnam fecisse.[287] Si ita res esset, multo pulcherrimam eam nos haberemus; quippe sociorum atque civium, praeterea armorum atque equorum major nobis copia quam illis est. Sed alia fuere, quae illos magnos fecere, quae nobis nulla sunt, domi industria, foris justum imperium, animus in consulendo liber, neque delicto neque libidini obnoxius.[288] Pro his nos habemus luxuriam atque avaritiam, publice egestatem, privatim opulentiam; laudamus divitias, sequimur inertiam; inter bonos et malos discrimen nullum est; omnia virtutis praemia ambitio possidet. Neque mirum: ubi vos separatim sibi quisque consilium capitis, ubi domi voluptatibus, hic[289] pecuniae aut gratiae servitis, eo fit, ut impetus fiat in vacuam[290] rem publicam. Sed ego haec omitto. Conjuravere nobilissimi cives patriam incendere,[291] Gallorum gentem infestissimam nomini Romano ad bellum accersunt; dux hostium cum exercitu supra caput est: vos cunctamini etiamnunc, quid intra moenia deprensis hostibus faciatis?[292] Misereamini censeo[293],--deliquere homines adolescentuli per ambitionem,--atque etiam armatos dimittatis. Nae ista vobis mansuetudo et misericordia, si illi arma ceperint in miseriam onvertet.[294] Scilicet res ipsa aspera est, sed vos non timetis eam.[295] Immo vero[296] maxime; sed inertia et mollitia animi alius alium expectantes cunctamini, videlicet dis immortalibus confisi, qui hanc rem publicam saepe in maximis periculis servavere. Non votis neque suppliciis muliebribus auxilia deorum parantur; vigilando, agendo, bene consulendo prospera omnia cedunt; ubi socordiae te atque ignaviae tradideris, nequidquam deos implores;[297] irati infestique sunt. Apud majores nostros A. Manlius Torquatus bello Gallico filium suum, quod is contra imperium in hostem pugnaverat, necare jussit,[298] atque ille egregius adolescens immoderatae fortitudinis morte poenas dedit: vos de crudelissimis parricidis quid statuatis cunctamini? Videlicet cetera vita eorum huic sceleri obstat. Verum parcite dignitati Lentuli, si ipse pudicitiae, si famae suae, si dis aut hominibus unquam ullis pepercit; ignoscite Cethegi adolescentiae, nisi iterum jam patriae bellum fecit. Nam quid ego de Gabinio, Statilio, Caepario loquar? quibus si quidquam[299] unquam pensi fuisset, non ea consilia de re publica habuissent. Postremo, P. C., si mehercule peccato locus esset,[300] facile paterer vos ipsa re corrigi, quoniam verba contemnitis; sed undique circumventi sumus. Catilina cum exercitu faucibus urguet:[301] alii intra moenia atque in sinu urbis sunt hostes: neque parari neque consuli quidquam potest occulte; quo magis properandum est. Quare ita ego censeo: quum nefario consilio sceleratorum civium res publica in maxima pericula venerit, iique indicio T. Volturcii et legatorum Allobrogum convicti confessique sint caedem, incendia aliaque se foeda atque crudelia facinora in cives patriamque paravisse, de confessis sicuti de manifestis rerum capitalium more majorum supplicium sumendum.'

[273] Cato says, '_When I consider the danger of our situation, I form
quite a different view_ from what I do when I reflect upon the
opinions expressed by some about the punishment of the criminals; for
the present danger demands energetic measures of defence, while some
of you are speaking only about the punishment of a crime already
committed. But such a view is incorrect, for we are still surrounded
by the greatest dangers.'
[274] _Pluris facere_, 'to esteem higher.'
[275] _Capessere rem publicam_, 'to take part in the administration of
the state,' or 'to devote one's self to its service.'
[276] _Verba facere_, 'to speak,' or 'to make a speech.'
[277] 'I who had never connived at any of my bad acts'--that is, I who
had never given way to my own weaknesses. About this subjunctive
expressing the reason why the orator does not allow the faults of
others to pass unnoticed, see Zumpt, SS 555, 558.
[278] 'The strength of the state bore the negligence' in restraining the
arbitrary proceedings in which individuals indulged.
[279] 'And here any one will speak to me of clemency and mercy!' alluding
to Caesar. The negative pronoun _quisquam_ is used because the
meaning implied is, that no one ought to have done so. See
Zumpt, S 709.
[280] _Equidem_ for _quidem_, as often in Sallust, but never in
Cicero. The meaning is: 'We have indeed (_quidem_) long since lost
the habit of calling things by their true names, but this erroneous
application of the word _mercy_ is not to be borne.'
[281] _Eo_; Cicero would have said _ea re_.
[282] Instead of _et_, the author might have used _neve_ (_neu_), since
from the preceding clause we have to supply _ne_ to _et_. This is not
a very common mode of speaking; but it occurs most frequently when,
after a negative clause, _et_ introduces a kind of antithesis, and
thus acquires the power of _sed_.
[283] _Et non_ corrects the untrue supposition, that there were no rebels
except at Rome. In such a case we can neither use _non_ without _et_,
nor _neque_. See Zumpt, S 334.
[284] 'If Caesar alone is unconcerned, it is more requisite (necessary
or important) that I should be concerned for me and for you.' About
_refert_, see Zumpt, SS 23, 449, note.
[285] _Habetote_; this future imperative denotes that something is to be
done when something else shall take place. Zumpt, S 583.
[286] The meaning is: 'All will be there immediately'--that is, they will
rise to make the attack.
[287] Cato means to say, 'It is a wrong opinion that our state has
become great by arms; for if this were true, it would now be in the
most flourishing condition, as our military power is now greater
than it ever was. The republic has become great much more by the
activity of the citizens, and by the justice of the government, and
it is this activity and stern justice that must be restored.'
[288] _Obnoxius_, 'subject to a punishment,' or 'to be injured (_noxa_);'
hence, figuratively, 'bound,' 'dependent.' Our ancestors, says Cato,
could deliberate and judge without bias, for their minds were not
crippled either by crimes they had committed, nor by immoderate
desires and passions--a hint intimating that those who were in favour
of lenient measures were conscious of their own guilt, and not free
from bad intentions.
[289] _Hic_--that is, in the senate, in discussing matters of public
importance, you allow yourselves to be guided only by your desire to
gain money and popularity, being anxious not to offend any one who
may be in your way.
[290] _Vacuam_--namely, _a defensoribus_, 'defenceless,' 'helpless.'
[291] _Incendere_, a free use of the infinitive for _ad patriam
incendendam_.
[292] A question expressive of wonder, in which the interrogative
particles are commonly not used. See Zumpt, S 351, note.
[293] Ironically: 'I am of opinion that you should have mercy, and
dismiss the criminals.' The subjunctive without _ut_ depends upon the
verb _censeo_; it is not a subjunctive for an imperative.
[294] 'Assuredly this clemency of yours will end in misery.' Respecting
_nae_, see Zumpt, S 360; and on the transitive sense of _vertere_,
S 145.
[295] The sentence beginning with _scilicet_ is again ironical. The
sense, without the irony, is: 'Nor can it be supposed that you
consider the matter indeed difficult, but that you are without fear.
You are, on the contrary, full of fear, but you hesitate.'
[296] _Immo vero_, 'oh no; on the contrary.' See Zumpt, S 277.
[297] Respecting this form of hypothetical sentences, see Zumpt, S 524,
note 1. The verb in the apodosis might be _implorabis_, without
altering the meaning.
[298] This statement differs in two points from the current tradition
of history. First, the praenomen of this Manlius is commonly _Titus_,
and so we must no doubt correct here, even though the manuscripts
have _Aulus_. Secondly, he did not show his severe military
discipline towards his son in the Gallic war, but in the great Latin
war, which ended, in B.C. 340, with the subjugation of Latium.
Manlius ordered his son to be executed in presence of the army; and
to characterise that harsh severity, the orator uses the word
_necare_ instead of _interficere_ or _occidere_.
[299] _Quidquam_ is stronger than _siquid_--that is, the expression of
the negative is more strongly marked in the protasis.
[300] 'If there were room for a mistake'--namely, in the resolution to be
come to. The meaning is: 'No time is to be lost, since, if you come
to a wrong determination, you will be ruined before you have time to
correct your decision.'
[301] 'Is upon our necks,' a figurative expression, properly applied to
a wrestler who seizes another by the throat.

53. Postquam Cato assedit, consulares omnes itemque senatus magna pars sententiam ejus laudant, virtutem animi ad coelum ferunt, alii alios increpantes timidos vocant, Cato clarus atque magnus habetur, senati decretum fit, sicuti ille censuerat. Sed mihi multa legenti, multa audienti, quae populus Romanus domi militiaeque, mari atque terra praeclara facinora fecit, forte libuit attendere, quae res maxime tanta negotia sustinuisset.[302] Sciebam saepenumero parva manu cum magnis legionibus hostium contendisse; cognoveram parvis copiis bella gesta cum opulentis regibus, ad hoc saepe fortunae violentiam toleravisse, facundia Graecos, gloria belli Gallos ante Romanos fuisse. Ac mihi multa agitanti constabat, paucorum civium egregiam virtutem cuncta patravisse,[303] eoque factum, uti divitias paupertas, multitudinem paucitas superaret. Sed postquam luxu atque desidia civitas corrupta est, rursus res publica magnitudine sua imperatorum atque magistratuum vitia sustentabat, ac, sicuti effeta parentum,[304] multis tempestatibus haud sane quisquam Romae virtute magnus fuit. Sed memoria mea ingenti virtute, diversis moribus fuere viri duo, M. Cato et G. Caesar; quos quoniam res obtulerat, silentio praeterire non fuit consilium, quin[305] utriusque naturam et mores, quantum ingenio possem, aperirem.

[302] 'What has chiefly helped in carrying out such great undertakings.'
_Negotium sustinere_, 'to be able to carry out a business,'
representing the _negotium_ as a burden.
[303] Sallust states that, after mature consideration of all the
circumstances, he has come to the conviction that the merit of
individual citizens had raised Rome to its supremacy over the world,
but that afterwards there were no men of importance, or excelling
others by mental superiority, and that the state, as a whole, alone
made the faults of individuals bearable. We must honour the judgment
of Sallust, but cannot agree with it; we must rather believe that the
unvarying ability of the whole Roman people, notwithstanding the not
very prominent minds of individuals, was the cause of the rapid
progress of the Roman dominion. In the later times, on the other
hand, we meet a Scipio the younger, a Marius, a Sulla, a Pompey, and
a Caesar, all of whom were men or generals of eminent talent, while
all those who served under them were persons of inferior abilities.
[304] _Effeta parentum_, the same as _effeta parens_, 'a mother who has
had children, but can have no more.' Respecting the partitive
genitive (as in _aliqui militum_ for _aliqui milites_), see
Zumpt, S 430. The author in the progress of his sentence abandons the
construction with which he began, and which ought to have been
continued thus: _Roma haud sane quemquam virtute magnum protulit_,
for which he says, _Romae haud sane quisquam virtute magnus fuit_.
This deviation from the construction may be explained still more
easily, if in our mind we add _facit_ to the words _sicuti effeta
parentum_, 'as is the case with an aged mother.' _Multis
tempestatibus_, 'during a long time.' The singular _tempestas_ in the
sense of 'time' is not uncommon, but the plural _tempestates_ in the
sense of 'periods of time' occurs only in Sallust in this passage,
and _Jug_. 73, 96, and 108.
[305] _Quin_ is used regularly for _ut non_ after a negative clause:
'I would not pass them over in silence, without unfolding their
characters.'

54. Igitur his genus, aetas, eloquentia prope aequalia fuere; magnitudo animi par, item gloria, sed alia alii.[306] Caesar beneficiis ac munificentia magnus habebatur, integritate vitae Cato. Ille mansuetudine et misericordia clarus factus, huic severitas dignitatem addiderat. Caesar dando, sublevando, ignoscendo, Cato nihil largiundo gloriam adeptus est. In altero miseris perfugium erat, in altero malis pernicies; illius facilitas, hujus constantia laudabatur. Postremo Caesar in animum induxerat laborare, vigilare; negotiis amicorum intentus sua neglegere, nihil denegare, quod dono dignum esset; sibi magnum imperium, exercitum, bellum novum exoptabat, ubi virtus enitescere posset. At Catoni studium modestiae, decoris, sed maxime severitatis erat. Non divitiis cum divite, neque factione cum factioso, sed cum strenuo virtute, cum modesto pudore, cum innocente abstinentia certabat, esse quam videri bonus malebat; ita quo minus petebat gloriam, eo magis ilium sequebatur.[307]

[306] 'But the one a different one from the other.' The Latin custom of
repeating the same word obliges the author, having once said _alia_,
to use _alii_, which, strictly speaking, should be _alteri_, as he is
speaking of only two persons.
[307] 'The less he strove after fame, the more it followed him of
itself,' so that _gloria_ must be supplied.

55. Postquam, ut dixi, senatus in Catonis sententiam discessit,[308] consul optimum factu ratus, noctem, quae instabat, antecapere, ne quid eo spatio novaretur, III. viros[309] quae supplicium postulabat parare jubet; ipse, praesidiis dispositis, Lentulum in carcerem deducit;[310] idem fit ceteris per praetores. Est in carcere locus, quod[311] Tullianum appellatur, ubi paululum descenderis ad laevam, circiter duodecim pedes humi depressus.[312] Eum muniunt undique parietes atque insuper camera lapideis fornicibus vineta,[313] sed incultu,[314] tenebris, odore foeda atque terribilis ejus facies est. In eum locum postquam demissus est Lentulus, viridices rerum capitalium,[315] quibus praeceptum erat, laqueo gulam fregere. Ila ille patricius ex gente clarissima Corneliorum, qui consulare imperium Romae habuerat,[316] dignum moribus factisque suis exitium vitae invenit. De Cethego, Statilio, Gabinio, Caepario eodem modo supplicium sumptum est.[317]

[308] _Dicessit_; that is, after the senate, a division having taken
place, had decided in favour of Cato's opinion. Compare p. 50, note 2
[note 245].
[309] Read _tresviros_; each one by himself was called _triumvir_ 'one of
the college of the three.' These officers belonging to the
magistratus minores, had the superintendence of the public prison,
and the carrying of the sentence into execution; whence their
complete title was _tresviri capitales_. The singular, _triumvir_,
does not justify the plural _triumviri_, since the ordinary
grammatical laws require _tres viri_. In manuscripts, we usually had
_III. viri_. Compare Zumpt, S 124.
[310] The preposition _de_ in this compound adds to the idea of the
simple verb _ducere_, that of the place to which a person is led,
and in which he is to remain; hence it is frequently used in the
expression _domum deducere_, 'to take' or 'lead a person home.'
[311] _Locus, quod_. Respecting the gender of the relative pronoun,
see Zumpt, S 372.
[312] The whole structure was called _carcer Mamertinus_, and its main
parts still exist, being changed into a Christian church, _San Pietro
in carcere_. It is situated not far from the ancient _forum Romanum_,
to the north-east, at the foot of the Capitoline hill. According to
Sallust's description, persons on entering had to go down a few
steps leading to the entrance of the _Tullianum_, a subterraneous
apartment cut into the rock, and covered over with a roof; and this
was the place where prisoners were executed. Their corpses were
afterwards publicly exhibited in the adjoining _Scalae Gemoniae_.
The name Tullianum is derived by the Romans from their king, Tullius
Hostilius.
[313] 'The roof is bound together by arches of stone,' to make it strong,
for otherwise, wooden beams were used for such purposes.
[314] _Incultus_, a substantive of rare occurrence, denoting 'want of
cleanliness,' 'the absence of care.'
[315] 'Punishers of capital offences' is only a paraphrase for
_carnifices_, 'executioners.'
[316] _Cornelius Lentulus_ had been consul as early as B.C. 71, but the
year after, he had been ejected from the senate by the censors, on
account of his base conduct. In order to be able to re-enter the
senate, he caused himself to become praetor a second time in this
year, B.C. 63, in which he ended his life so disgracefully. It is
mentioned that he was of a manly and handsome appearance; but the
baseness of his character is attested also by other authors.
[317] The only one among the others who was a member of the senate was
Cornelius Cethegus; Gabinius and Statilius were men of equestrian
rank, and Caeparius was a native of the municipium of Terracina.

56. Dum ea Romae geruntur, Catilina ex omni copia,[318] quam et ipse adduxerat et Manlius habuerat, duas legiones instituit, cohortes pro numero militum complet,[319] deinde, ut quisque voluntarius aut ex sociis in castra venerat, aequaliter distribuerat, ac brevi spatio legiones numero hominum expleverat, quum initio non amplius duobus milibus[320] habuisset. Sed ex omni copia circiter pars quarta erat militaribus armis instructa; ceteri, ut quemque casus armaverat, sparos aut lanceas,[321] alii praeacutas sudes portabant. Sed postquam Antonius[322] cum exercitu adventabat, Catilina per montes iter facere, modo ad urbem, modo in Galliam versus castra movere, hostibus occasionem pugnandi non dare; sperabat propediem magnas copias sese habiturum, si Romae socii incepta patravissent. Interea servitia repudiabat, cujus[323] initio ad eum magnae copiae concurrebant, opibus conjurationis fretus, simul alienum suis rationibus existimans, videri[324] causam civium cum servis fugitivis communicavisse.

[318] A regular military force is more commonly called _copiae_, but
the singular, _copia_, also occurs in the sense of 'army,' especially
when it consists of an irregular mass of troops.
[319] _Cohortes complet_ cannot mean in this passage, 'he makes the
cohorts complete,' for such a completeness (consisting of at least
420 men) is incompatible with the addition _pro numero militum_,
'according to the number of his soldiers' in each cohort was not the
usual number of a complete cohort. _Complet_ refers to the number
of cohorts, ten of which made a legion. Translate therefore, 'he
makes the full number of cohorts.'
[320] _Duobus milibus_, Sallust might have said _duo milia_, with the
ellipsis of _quam_ so customary with _plus_, _amplius_, and _minus_.
See Zumpt, S 485.
[321] _Sparus_ is said to be a wooden kind of weapon, resembling a
shepherd's staff, turned at the top; and _lancea_ a spear with
a handle in the middle. Both these weapons were not used by Roman
soldiers, for the latter, besides the short and broad _gladius_,
used the _pilum_, as long as a man is high, and as thick as a
fist, the upper end of which was strongly provided with iron, and
sometimes the _hasta_, which was still longer, and had an
iron point.
[322] _L. Antonius_, the colleague of Cicero in the consulship, B.C. 63.
[323] _Servitia, cujus magnae copiae_; a singular construction, which
cannot be explained otherwise than by taking _cujus_ as a neuter,
'slaves, _of which_ large numbers flocked to him.' This explanation,
however, is supported by the consideration that slaves were regarded
as things, and were designated by names of the neuter gender, as
_servitia_, _mancipia_. In ordinary language, we should say _cujus
generis_, 'of which class of men.'
[324] _Videri_ for _se videri_, 'he thought it contrary to his interest
to appear to have maintained the cause of citizens with the aid of
runaway slaves.' Respecting the omission of the subject of the
infinitive when it is a personal pronoun, see Zumpt, S 605.

57. Sed postquam in castra nuntius pervenit Romae conjurationem patefactam, de Lentulo et Cethego ceterisque, quos supra memoravi, supplicium sumptum; plerique, quos ad bellum spes rapinarum aut novarum rerum studium illexerat, dilabuntur; reliquos Catilina per montes asperos magnis itineribus in agrum Pistoriensem[325] abducit, eo consilio, uti per tramites occulte perfugeret in Galliam Transalpinam. At Q. Metellus Celer cum tribus legionibus in agro Piceno praesidebat, ex difficultate rerum eadem illa existimans, quae supra diximus, Catilinam agitare. Igitur, ubi iter ejus ex perfugis cognovit, castra propere movet ac sub ipsis radicibus montium consedit, qua illi descensus erat in Galliam properanti. Neque tamen Antonius procul aberat, utpote qui magno exercitu locis aequioribus expeditos in fuga sequeretur.[326] Sed Catilina postquam videt montibus atque copiis hostium sese clausum, in urbe res adversas, neque fugae neque praesidii ullam spem, optimum factu ratus, in tali re fortunam belli temptare, statuit cum Antonio quam primum confligere. Itaque contione advocata hujuscemodi orationem habuit:

[325] The territory of Pistoria, in the north of Etruria, not far from
Faesulae, and to the north of Florentia, is in the Apennines. The
regular road from Pisae to Genoa, and thence across the Alps into
Transalpine Gaul, ran along the sea-coast. Cisalpine Gaul was
likewise protected against Catiline by Metellus, so that he could
reach his goal (Transalpine Gaul) only by mountain passes.
[326] Antonius followed the bands of Catiline, which were not
inconvenienced by baggage, as they were fleeing (_in fuga_; that is,
_fugientes_). Antonius's army marched on smoother roads, but had
to carry heavier baggage. From all this, we see why Antonius, though
not far from the enemy, yet could not reach him. Respecting the
adverb _utpote_, see Zumpt, S 271. _Utpote qui_, 'the which,' is
used as a conjunction for _quippe qui_, generally with the
subjunctive, and indicates the cause of the preceding statement.

58. 'Compertum ego habeo, milites, verba virtutem non addere, neque ex ignavo strenuum neque fortem ex timido exercitum oratione imperatoris fieri. Quanta cujusque animo audacia natura aut moribus inest, tanta in bello patere solet. Quem neque gloria neque pericula excitant, nequidquam hortere; timor animi auribus officit.[327] Sed ego vos, quo pauca monerem, advocavi; simul uti causam mei consilii aperirem. Scitis equidem, milites, socordia atque ignavia Lentuli quantam ipsi nobisque cladem attulerit; quoque modo, dum ex urbe praesidia opperior, in Galliam proficisci nequiverim.[328] Nunc vero quo in loco[329] res nostrae sint, juxta mecum omnes intellegitis. Exercitus hostium duo, unus ab urbe, alter a Gallia obstant; diutius in his locis esse, si maxime animus ferat, frumenti atque aliarum rerum egestas[330] prohibet. Quocunque ire placet, ferro iter aperiundum est. Quapropter vos moneo; uti forti atque parato animo sitis et, quum proelium inibitis, memineritis vos divitias, decus, gloriam, praeterea libertatem atque patriam in dexteris vestris portare. Si vincimus, omnia nobis tuta erunt, commeatus abunde, municipia atque coloniae patebunt; sin metu cesserimus, eadem illa adversa fient: neque locus neque amicus quisquam teget, quem arma non texerint. Praeterea, milites, non eadem nobis et illis necessitudo impendet; nos pro patria, pro libertate, pro vita certamus: illis supervacaneum est pro potentia paucorum pugnare. Quo audacius aggredimini, memores pristinae virtutis. Licuit vobis cum summa turpitudine in exilio aetatem agere; potuistis nonnulli Romae amissis bonis alienas opes expectare: quia illa foeda atque intoleranda viris videbantur, haec[331] sequi decrevistis. Si haec relinquere vultis, audacia opus est; nemo nisi victor pace bellum mutavit.[332] Nam in fuga salutem sperare, quum arma, quis[333] corpus tegitur, ab hostibus averteris, ea vero dementia est. Semper in proelio iis maximum est periculum, qui maxime timent; audacia pro muro habetur. Quum vos considero, milites, et quum facta vestra aestimo, magna me spes victoriae tenet. Animus, aetas, virtus vestra me hortantur;[334] praeterea necessitudo, quae etiam timidos fortes facit. Nam multitudo hostium ne circumvenire queat, prohibent angustiae loci. Quodsi virtuti vestrae fortuna inviderit, cavete,[335] inulti animam amittatis, neu capti potius sicuti pecora trucidemini, quam virorum more pugnantes cruentam atque luctuosam victoriam hostibus relinquatis.'

[327] _Officere_ is properly 'to oppose,' 'obstruct,' _aliquid alicui
rei_; then omitting the object (_aliquid_) with the dative alone, 'to
be an obstacle to,' or 'to hinder,' therefore, _officia famae tuae_,
'I oppose something to your fame.' 'Internal fear is a hindrance to
the ear,' so that admonitions are either not heard at all, or do not
penetrate into the mind.
[328] Catiline assigns the circumstance that he had expected aid and
succours from Rome itself, as the cause of his not having set out for
Gaul earlier, when he might have accomplished his end. _Opperior_,
'I wait for,' or _expecto dum aliquis veniat_.
[329] _Quo in loco_, 'in which situation.' The preposition _in_ might
have been omitted. See Zumpt, S 481.
[330] _Egestas_, 'want,' with the genitive of the thing wanted, is of
rare occurrence for _inopia_ or _penuria_. _Egestas_ is commonly used
absolutely in the sense of 'poverty,' 'neediness.'
[331] _Haec_ is here used in the general sense of 'these circumstances;'
that is, this honourable but difficult war. This we must infer from
the _haec_ following.
[332] For the construction of _mutare_, see Zumpt, S 456.
[333] _Quis_ for _quibus_. _Ea_, not _id_. Zumpt, S 372.
[334] 'Give me courage,' or 'give me hope,' for _hortari_ is applied to
persons doing good things, and _admonere_ to persons doing bad ones:
_hortamur properantem, admonemus cunctantem_.
[335] _Cavete--amittatis, neu trucidemeni_ for _cavete, ne amittatis,
neve (neu) trucidemini_. See Zumpt, S 586.

59. Haec ubi dixit, paululum commoratus, signa canere jubet,[336] atque instructos ordines in locum aequum deducit. Dein, remotis omnium equis, quo militibus exaequato periculo animus amplior esset, ipse pedes exercitum pro loco atque copiis instruit. Nam, uti planities erat inter sinistros montes et ab dextera rupe aspera,[337] octo cohortes in fronte constituit, reliquarum signa[338] in subsidio artius collocat. Ab his centuriones omnes, lectos et evocatos, praeterea ex gregariis militibus optimum quemque armatum in primam aciem subducit.[339] G. Manlium in dextera, Faesulanum quendam in sinistra parte curare[340] jubet; ipse cum libertis et colonis propter aquilam assistit,[341] quam bello Cimbrico G. Marius in exercitu habuisse dicebatur. At ex altera parte G. Antonius, pedibus aeger,[342] quod proelio adesse nequibat, M. Petreio legato[343] exercitum permittit. Ille cohortes veteranas, quas tumulti[344] causa conscripserat, in fronte post eas ceterum exercitum in subsidiis locat. Ipse equo circumiens, unum quemque nominans appellat, hortatur, rogat, ut meminerint, se contra latrones inermes, pro patria, pro liberis, pro aris atque focis suis certare. Homo militaris, quod amplius annos triginta tribunus aut praefectus aut legatus aut praetor cum magna gloria in exercitu fuerat, plerosque ipsos factaque eorum fortia noverat; ea commemorando militum animos accendebat.

[336] _Canere_ is used in different ways: _tubicen canit signum_, 'the
trumpeter blows the signal;' _tubicen canit_, 'the trumpeter blows
(his instrument);' _signa canuntur_, 'signals are blown' or 'given;'
and lastly, _signa canunt_, 'the signals sound.' The last expression
is the one used in our passage.
[337] _Rupe aspera_, &c. 'For in accordance with the nature of the plain
between hills on the left-hand side, and on the right a rugged rock,
he drew up (only) eight cohorts in front.' A simpler construction
would have been _et rupem asperam a dextra_, but the manuscripts are
decidedly in favour of the ablative, which must be considered as an
ablative absolute, and as forming a distinct clause. Other editions
have the correction _rupis aspera_, 'the rough part of a rock'
(_aspera_ being the neut. plur.), but this is a poetical expression.
See Zumpt, S 435.
[338] Literally, 'The signals (_vexilla_) of the other cohorts he places
in the rear as a reserve, more closely together.' _Signa_ here
denotes the separate divisions of the troops; that is, the cohorts
and the three maniples in each cohort, which are distinguished from
one another by their flags or banners (_vexilla_). When an army was
drawn up in a spacious plain, a space was left between the several
divisions, but in this case, the plain being too narrow, there were
no such spaces.
[339] 'From among these who were drawn up as a reserve, he draws, for the
purpose of strengthening the van, all centurions, picked men (in
apposition), and the volunteers who had not been enlisted, as well as
the ablest of the common soldiers who were provided with arms.' The
word _lectos_ belonging to _centuriones_, shows that Catiline had
appointed to the office of centurions only chosen men who were
personally known to him as able soldiers. _Evocati_ were those
soldiers in a Roman army who did not serve in the ranks of the other
common soldiers, but as a separate corps, and were exempt from
the ordinary military duties of standing as sentinels, making
fortifications, foraging, and the like. They derived their name from
the fact that they were invited (_evocare_) by the general to serve
in the army as volunteers; they, moreover, were generally more
advanced in years than the regular troops.
[340] _Curare_, 'to command.'
[341] Catiline himself stood nearest the standard (eagle) with his most
faithful followers, whose personal fate depended upon him; that is,
the freedmen of his family and the tenant farmers of his estates.
The Roman nobles, as early as that time, used to parcel out their
estates in small farms, which were tenanted especially by their
freedmen, who were thus patronised by their former masters.
[342] _Pedibus aeger_. He had the gout. Dion Cassius, a later historian
of Rome, who wrote in Greek, states that Antonius only pretended to
be ill, in order not to have to fight against his friend Catiline.
[343] A _legatus_, in this sense (for it also means 'ambassador'),
supplied, in a Roman army, the place of a commander possessing the
_imperium_. Accordingly, consuls and praetors, when intrusted with
the command of an army, had one or more legates, according to the
number of legions which they had under their command. The office of
legate was given by the senate to such men as had held a magistracy,
generally the praetorship, or at least the quaestorship, and the
senate appointed them on the proposal of the commander-in-chief.
When there were several legates, the commander-in-chief might
intrust one of them with the command of the whole army; but the
commander-in-chief was answerable for all the acts of his legate.
[344] _Tumulti_ for _tumultus_, as _senati_ for _senatus_.

60. Sed ubi, omnibus rebus exploratis, Petreius tuba signum dat, cohortes paulatim incedere jubet, idem facit hostium exercitus. Postquam eo ventum est, unde a ferentariis[345] proelium committi posset, maximo clamore cum infestis signis[346] concurrunt; pila omittunt, gladiis res geritur. Veterani, pristinae virtutis memores, comminus acriter instare; illi haud timidi resistunt; maxima vi certatur. Interea Catilina cum expeditis in prima acie versari, laborantibus succurrere; integros pro sauciis accersere, omnia providere, multum ipse pugnare saepe, hostem ferire; strenui militis et boni imperatoris officia simul exequebatur. Petreius, ubi videt Catilinam, contra ac ratus erat, magna vi tendere, cohortem praetoriam[347] in medios hostes inducit, eosque perturbatos atque alios alibi resistentes interficit; deinde utrimque ex lateribus ceteros aggreditur. Manlius et Faesulanus in primis pugnantes cadunt. Postquam fusas copias seque cum paucis relictum videt Catilina, memor generis atque pristinae suae dignitatis, in confertissimos hostes incurrit ibique pugnans confoditur.

[345] _Ferentarii_ are light-armed troops fighting at a distance with
javelins.
[346] The banners being turned hostilely against one another. Respecting
_cum_, see Zumpt, S 473; for we also find _infestis signis
concurrere_, without _cum_, as an ablative of the instrument.
[347] The _cohors praetoria_ was a battalion which, in forming an army,
was composed of the ablest and most tried soldiers, as the bodyguard
of the commander-in-chief. They had to protect him, and assist him in
contriving to bring any engagement to the point where he wished it
to be. Under the emperors, the _cohortes praetoriae_, nine or
ten in number--the emperors having several armies under their
command--formed the body-guard of the emperor and the garrison of
Rome.

61. Sed confecto proelio, tum vero cerneres,[348] quanta audacia quantaque vis animi fuisset in exercitu Catilinae. Nam fere, quem quisque vivus pugnando locum ceperat, eum amissa anima corpore tegebat. Pauci autem, quos medios[349] cohors praetoria disjecerat, paulo diversius, sed omnes tamen adversis vulneribus[350] conciderant. Catilina vero longe a suis inter hostium cadavera repertus est, paululum etiam spirans ferociamque animi, quam habuerat vivus, in vultu retinens. Postremo ex omni copia neque in proelio neque in fuga quisquam[351] civis ingenuus captus est: ita cuncti suae hostiumque vitae juxta[352] pepercerant. Neque tamen exercitus populi Romani laetam aut incruentam victoriam adeptus erat; nam strenuissimus quisque aut occiderat in proelio aut graviter vulneratus discesserat. Multi autem, qui de castris visundi aut spoliandi gratia processerant, volventes hostilia cadavera, amicum alii, pars hospitem aut cognatum reperiebant; fuere item, qui inimicos suos cognoscerent. Ita varie per omnem exercitum laetitia, moeror, luctus atque gaudia[353] agitabantur.

[348] 'There you might indeed have seen.' See Zumpt, S 528, note 2.
[349] In the centre of the army where they were drawn up.
[350] _Adversa vulnera_, 'wounds in the breast,' or 'in the front part
of the body' generally. _Aversa vulnera_, on the other hand, are
'wounds in the back,' such as are inflicted on cowards that run away.
[351] _Quisquam_ for ullus_. See Zumpt, S 676.
[352] _Juxta_, 'equally little.' They had spared the life of their
enemy as little as their own. Compare p. 41, note 3 [note 194].
[353] These four substantives form contrasts, though intentionally not
in the regular way, for _gaudium_ and _moeror_ denote a joyous and
sad state of mind, 'joy' and 'sadness;' _laetitia_ and _luctus_ at
the same time express the audible expressions of joy and grief.
Accordingly, _laetitia_ contrasts with _luctus_, and _gaudia_ with
_moeror_. Respecting the omission of the conjunction in describing
contrasts of this nature, see Zumpt, S 783.

* * * * *