[50.1] The senate having rejected their request for a triumph, Valerius and his colleague were indignant, and feeling that they had been grievously affronted, they called the multitude to an assembly; and after they had uttered many invectives against the senate and the tribunes had espoused their cause and introduced a law for the purpose, they obtained from the people the privilege of celebrating a triumph, being the first of all the Romans to introduce this custom. [2] This gave occasion to fresh accusations and quarrels on the part of the plebeians against the patricians; they were egged on by the tribunes, who called assemblies every day and uttered many invectives against the senate. But the thing which exasperated the masses most was the suspicion, which the tribunes had contrived to strengthen and was increased by unavowed reports and not a few conjectures, that the patricians were going to abolish the laws which had been enacted by Valerius and his colleague; and a strong opinion to this effect, which was little less than a conviction, possessed the minds of the masses. These were the events of that consulship.
[51.1] The consuls of the following year were Lar Herminius and Titus Verginius; and they were succeeded by Marcus Geganius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
[52.1] When they made no answer but continued to feel aggrieved, Scaptius again came forward to the tribunal and said: “There you have the admission, citizens, from our adversaries themselves that they are laying claim to territory of ours which in no wise belongs to them. Bearing this in mind, vote for what is just and in conformity with your oaths.” [2] While Scaptius was thus speaking, a sense of shame came over the consuls as they considered that the outcome of this trial would be neither just nor seemly if the Roman people, when chosen as arbiters, should take away any disputed territory claimed by others and award it to themselves, after having never before put in a counter-claim to it; and a great many speeches were made by the consuls and by the leaders of the senate to avert this result, but in vain. [3] For the people, when called to give their votes, declared it would be great folly to permit what was theirs to remain in the possession of others, and they thought they would not be rendering a righteous verdict if they declared the Aricians or the Ardeates to be the owners of the disputed land after having sworn to award it to those to whom they should find that it belonged. And they were angry with the contending parties for having asked to have as arbiters those who were being deprived of this land, with this end in view, that they might not even afterwards have it in their power to recover their own property which they themselves as sworn judges had decreed to belong to others. [4] The people, then, reasoning thus and feeling aggrieved, ordered a third urn, for the Roman commonwealth, to be placed before each tribe, into which they might put their voting tablets; and the Roman people were declared by all the votes to be the owners of the disputed land. These were the events of that consulship.
[53.1] When Marcus Genucius and Gaius Quintius had assumed office, the political quarrels were renewed, the plebeians demanding that it be permitted to all Romans to hold the consulship; for hitherto the patricians alone had stood for that office and been chosen in the centuriate assembly. And a law concerning the consular elections was drawn up and introduced by the tribunes of that year, all the others but one, Gaius Furnius, having agreed upon that course; in this law they empowered the populace to decide each year whether they wished patricians or plebeians to stand for the consulship. [2] At this the members of the senate were offended, seeing in it the overthrow of their own domination, and they thought they ought to endure anything rather than permit the law to pass; and outbursts of anger, recriminations and obstructions continually occurred both in private gatherings and in their general sessions, all the patricians having become to all the plebeians. [3] Many speeches also were made in the senate and many in the meetings of the popular assembly by the leading men of the aristocracy, the more moderate by men who believed that the plebeians were misled through ignorance of their true interests and the harsher by men who thought that the measure was concocted as the result of a plot and of envy toward themselves.
[54.1] While the time was dragging along with no result, messengers from the allies arrived in the city reporting that both the Aequians and the Volscians were about to march against them with a large army and begging that assistance might be sent them promptly, as they lay in the path of the war. [2] Those Tyrrhenians also who were called Veientes were said to be preparing for a revolt; and the Ardeates no longer gave allegiance to the Romans, being angry over the matter of the disputed territory which the Roman people, when chosen arbiters, had awarded to themselves the year before. [3] The senate, upon being informed of all this, voted to enrol an army and that both consuls should take the field. But those who were trying to introduce the law kept opposing the execution of their decisions (tribunes have authority to oppose the consuls) by liberating such of the citizens as the consuls were leading off to make them take the military oath and by not permitting the consuls to inflict any punishment on the disobedient. [4] And when the senate earnestly entreated them to put aside their contentiousness for the time being and only when the wars were at an end to propose the law concerning the consular elections, these men, far from yielding to the emergency, declared that they would oppose the decrees of the senate on any subject to be ratified unless the senate should approve by a preliminary decree the law they themselves were introducing. [5] And they were so far carried away that they thus threatened the consuls not only in the senate, nature in the assembly of the people, swearing the oath which to them is the most binding, namely by their good fortune, to the end that they might not be at liberty to revoke any of their decisions even if convinced of their error.
[55.1] In view of these threats the oldest and most prominent of the leaders of the aristocracy were assembled by the consuls in a private meeting apart by themselves and there considered what they ought to do. [2] Gaius Claudius, who by no means favoured the plebeians and had inherited this political creed from his ancestors, offered a rather arrogant motion not to yield to the people either the consulship or any other magistracy whatever, and, in the case of those who should attempt to do otherwise, to prevent them by force of arms, if they would not be convinced by arguments, giving no quarter to either private person or magistrate. For all who attempted to disturb the established customs and to corrupt their ancient form of government, he said, were aliens and enemies of the commonwealth. [3] On the other hand, Titus Quintius opposed restraining their adversaries by violence or proceeding against the plebeians with arms and civil bloodshed, particularly since they would be opposed by the tribunes, “whose persons our fathers had decreed to be sacred and sacrosanct, making the gods and lesser divinities sureties for the performance of their compact and swearing the most solemn oaths in which they invoked utter destruction upon both themselves and their posterity if they transgressed a single article of that covenant.”
[56.1] This advice being approved of by all the others who had been invited to the meeting, Claudius resumed his remarks and said: “I am not unaware of how great calamities to us all a foundation will be laid if we permit the people to give their votes concerning this law. But being at a loss what to do and unable alone to oppose so many, I yield to your wishes. [2] For it is right that every man should declare what he thinks will be of advantage to the commonwealth and then submit to the decision of the majority. However, this advice I have to give you, seeing that you are involved in a difficult and disagreeable business, — not to yield the consulship either now or hereafter to any but patricians, who alone are qualified for it by both religion and law. [3] But whenever you are reduced, as at present, to the necessity of sharing the highest power and magistracy with the other citizens, appoint military tribunes instead of consuls, fixing their number as you shall think proper — in my opinion six or eight suffice — and of these men let the patricians not be fewer than the plebeians. For in doing this you will neither debase the consular office by conferring it upon mean and unworthy men nor
will you appears to be devising for yourselves unjust positions of power by sharing no magistracy whatever with the plebeians.” [4] When all approved this opinion and none spoke in opposition, he said: “Hear now the advice I have for you consuls also. After you have appointed a day for passing the preliminary decree and the resolutions of the senate, give the floor to all who desire to say anything either in favour of the law or in opposition to it, and after they have spoken and it is time to ask for the expression of opinions, begin neither with me nor with Quintius here nor with anyone else of the older men, but rather with Lucius Valerius, who of all the senators is the greatest friend of the populace, and after him ask Horatius to speak, if he wishes to say anything. And when you have found out their opinions, then bid us older men to speak. [5] For my part, I shall deliver an opinion contrary to that of the tribunes, using all possible frankness, since this tends to the advantage of the commonwealth. As for the measure concerning the military tribunes, if it is agreeable, let Titus Genucius here propose it; for this motion will be the most fitting and will create the least suspicion, Marcus Genucius, if introduced by your brother here.” [6] This suggestion was also approved, after which they departed from the meeting. But as for the tribunes, fear fell upon them because of the secret conference of these men; for they suspected that it was calculated to bring some great mischief upon the populace, since the men had met in a private house and not in public and had admitted none of the people’s champions to share in their counsels. Thereupon they in turn held a meeting of such persons as were most friendly to the populace and they set about contriving defences and safeguards against the insidious designs which they suspected the patricians would employ against them.
[57.1] When the time had come for the preliminary decree to be passed, the consuls assembled the senate and after many exhortations to harmony and good order they gave leave to the tribunes who had proposed the law to speak first. [2] Then Gaius Canuleius, one of these, came forward and, without trying to show that the law was either just or advantageous or even mentioning that topic, said that he wondered at the consuls, who, after already consulting and deciding by themselves what should be done, had attempted to bring it before the senate as if it were a matter that had not been examined and required consideration, and had then given all who so chose leave to speak about it, thereby introducing a dissimulation unbecoming both to their age and to the greatness of their magistracy. [3] He said that they were introducing the beginnings of evil policies by assembling secret councils in private houses and by summoning to them not even all the senators, but only such as were most attached to themselves. He was not so greatly surprised, he said, that the other members had been excluded from this senatorial house party, but was astounded that Marcus Horatius and Lucius Valerius, who had overthrown the oligarchy, were ex-consuls and were as competent as anyone for deliberating about the public interests, had not been thought worthy to be invited to the meeting. He could not imagine on what just ground this had been done, but he could guess one reason, namely that, as they intended to introduce wicked measures prejudicial to the plebeians, they were unwilling to invite to these councils the greatest friends of the populace, who would be sure to express their indignation at such proposals and would not permit any unjust measure to be adopted against the interests of the people.
[58.1] When Canuleius had spoken thus with great indignation and the senators who had not been summoned to the council resented their treatment, Genucius, one of the consuls, came forward and endeavoured to justify himself and his colleague and to appease the anger of the others by telling them that they had called in their friends, not in order to carry out any design against the populace, but in order to consult with their closest intimates by what course they might appear to do nothing prejudicial to either one of the parties, whether by referring the consideration of the law to the senate promptly or doing so later. [2] As for Valerius and Horatius, he said their only reason for not inviting them to the council had been to prevent the plebeians from entertaining any unwarranted suspicion of them as of men who had changed their political principles, in case they should embrace the other opinion, which called for putting off the consideration of the law to a more suitable occasion. But since all who had been invited to the meeting had felt that a speedy decision was preferable to a delayed one, the consuls were following the course thus favoured. [3] Having spoken thus and sworn by the gods that he was indeed speaking the truth, and appealing for confirmation to the senators who had been invited to the meeting, he said that he would clear himself of every imputation, not by his words, but by his actions. [4] For after all who desired to speak in opposition to the law or in favour of it had given their reasons, he would first call for questioning as to their opinions, not the oldest and the most honoured of the senators, to whom this privilege among others was accorded by established usage, nor those who were suspected by the plebeians of neither saying nor thinking anything that was to their advantage, but rather such of the younger senators as seemed to be most friendly to the populace.
[59.1] After making these promises he gave leave to any who so desired to speak; and when no one came forward either to censure the law or to defend it, he came forward again, and beginning with Valerius, asked him what was to the interest of the public and what preliminary vote he advised the senators to pass. [2] Valerius, rising up, made a long speech concerning both himself and his ancestors, who, he said, had always been champions of the plebeian party to the advantage of the commonwealth. He enumerated all the dangers from the beginning which had been brought upon it by those who pursued the contrary measures and showed that a hatred for the populace had been unprofitable to all those who had been actuated by it. He then said many things in praise of the people, alleging that they had been the principal cause not only of the liberty but also of the supremacy of the commonwealth. After enlarging upon this and similar themes, he ended by saying that no state could be free from which equality was banished; [3] and he declared that to him the law, indeed, seemed just which gave a share in the consulship to all Romans, — to all, that is, who had led irreproachable lives and had performed actions worthy of that honour, — but he thought the occasion was not suitable for the consideration of this law when the commonwealth was in the midst of war’s disturbances. [4] He advised the tribunes to permit the enrolling of the troops and not to hinder them when enrolled from taking the field; and he advised the consuls, when they had ended the war in the most successful manner, first of all things to lay before the people the preliminary decree concerning the law. These proposals, he urged, should be reduced to writing at once and agreed to by both parties. [5] This opinion of Valerius, which was supported by Horatius (For the consuls gave him leave to speak next), had the same effect upon all who were present. For those who desired to do away with the law, though pleased to hear that its consideration was postponed, nevertheless accepted with anger the necessity of passing a preliminary decree concerning it after the war; while the others, who preferred to have the law approved by the senate, though glad to hear it acknowledged as just, were at the same time angry that the preliminary decree was put off to another time.
[60.1] An uproar having broken out as the result of this opinion, as was to be expected, since neither side was pleased with all parts of it, the consul, coming forward, asked in the third place the opinion of Gaius Claudius, who had the reputation of being the most haughty and the most powerful of all the leaders of the other party, which opposed the plebeians. [2] This man delivered a prepared speech against the plebeians in which he called to mind all the things the populace had ever done contrary, as he thought, to the excellent institutions of their ancestors. The climax with which he ended his speech was the motion that the consuls should not permit to the senate any consideration of the law at all, either at that time or later, since it was being introduced for the purpose of overthrowing the aristocracy and was bound to upset the whole order of their government. [3] When even more of an uproar was caused by t
his motion, Titus Genucius, who was brother to one of the consuls, was called upon in the fourth place. He, rising up, spoke briefly about the emergencies confronting the city, how it was inevitable that one or the other of two most grievous evils should befall it, either through its civil strifes and rivalries to strengthen the cause of its enemies, or, from a desire to avert the attacks from the outside, to settle ignominiously the domestic and civil war; [4] and he declared that, there being two evils to one or the other of which they were bound to submit unwillingly, it seemed to him to be more expedient that the senate should permit the people to usurp a portion of the orderly constitution of the fathers rather than make the commonwealth a laughing-stock to other nations and to its enemies. [5] Having said this, he offered the motion which had been approved by those who had been present at the meeting held in a private house, the motion made by Claudius, as I related, to the effect that, instead of consuls, military tribunes should be appointed, three from the patricians and three from the plebeians, these to have consular authority; that after they had completed the term of their magistracy and it was time to appear the new magistrates, the senate and people should again assemble and decide whether they wished consuls or military tribunes to assume the office, and that whichever course met with the approval of all the voters should prevail; moreover, that the preliminary decree should be passed each year.
Delphi Complete Works of Dionysius of Halicarnassus (Illustrated) (Delphi Ancient Classics Book 79) Page 107