Texte grec :
| [3,72] Βασιλεὺς δὲ Ταρκύνιος ἀναπεπαυμένος
ἤδη τῶν πολεμικῶν ἔργων διὰ γῆρας, ἦν γὰρ ὀγδοηκονταέτης,
δολοφονηθεὶς ὑπὸ τῶν Ἄγκου Μαρκίου
παίδων ἀποθνήσκει ἐπιχειρησάντων μὲν ἔτι πρότερον
ἐκβαλεῖν αὐτὸν ἐκ τῆς ἀρχῆς καὶ πολλάκις τοῦτο
πραγματευσαμένων κατ´ ἐλπίδα τοῦ περιπεσεῖν εἰς
αὐτοὺς ἐκπεσόντος ἐκείνου τὴν δυναστείαν, ὡς δὴ
πατρῴαν σφίσιν ὑπάρχουσαν καὶ ἐκ τοῦ ῥᾴστου
πρὸς τῶν πολιτῶν δοθησομένην. ἐπεὶ δὲ διήμαρτον
τῆς ἐλπίδος, ἐπιβουλὴν ἄφυκτον κατ´ αὐτοῦ ἐμηχανήσαντο,
ἣν οὐκ εἴασεν ἀτιμώρητον γενέσθαι τὸ δαιμόνιον.
διηγήσομαι δὲ καὶ τὸν τῆς ἐπιβουλῆς τρόπον
ἀπὸ τῆς πρώτης ἐπιχειρήσεως αὐτῶν ἀρξάμενος.
ὁ Νέβιος ἐκεῖνος ὁ δεινὸς οἰωνομάντις, ὃν ἔφην ἐναντιωθῆναί
ποτε τῷ βασιλεῖ πλείονας ἐξ ἐλασσόνων
ποιῆσαι τὰς φυλὰς βουλομένῳ, ὅτε μάλιστα ἤνθει διὰ
τὴν τέχνην καὶ πλεῖστον ἠδύνατο Ῥωμαίων ἁπάντων,
εἴτε φθονηθεὶς ὑπὸ τῶν ἀντιτέχνων τινὸς εἴτ´
ἐπιβουλευθεὶς ὑπ´ ἐχθρῶν εἴτε ὅ τι δή ποτε ἄλλο
παθὼν ἀφανὴς ἄφνω γίνεται, καὶ οὔτε τὸν μόρον
αὐτοῦ τις ἠδύνατο τῶν προσηκόντων συμβαλεῖν οὔτε
τὸ σῶμα ἐξευρεῖν· ἀχθομένου δὲ τοῦ δήμου καὶ δεινῶς
φέροντος τὸ πάθος ὑπονοίας τε πολλὰς καὶ κατὰ
πολλῶν λαμβάνοντος, κατανοήσαντες τὴν ὁρμὴν τοῦ
πλήθους οἱ τοῦ Μαρκίου παῖδες, ἐπὶ τὸν βασιλέα
Ταρκύνιον τὴν διαβολὴν τοῦ ἄγους ἀνέφερον ἄλλο
μὲν οὐθὲν ἔχοντες φέρειν τῆς διαβολῆς οὔτε τεκμήριον
οὔτε σημεῖον, δυσὶ δὲ τοῖς εἰκόσι τούτοις κρατυνόμενοι
πρῶτον μέν, ὅτι πολλὰ καὶ καινὰ περὶ τὴν
πολιτείαν διεγνωκὼς παρανομεῖν τὸν ἐναντιωσόμενον
ὥσπερ ἐπὶ τῶν προτέρων ἐκ ποδῶν ἐβούλετο
ποιήσασθαι, ἔπειτα ὅτι δεινοῦ πάθους γεγονότος
οὐδεμίαν ἐποιήσατο τῶν δεδρακότων ζήτησιν, ἀλλ´
ἀμελείᾳ παρέδωκε τὸ πραχθέν, ὅπερ οὐκ ἂν ποιῆσαί
τινα τῶν ἔξω τῆς αἰτίας ὑπαρχόντων. παρασκευασάμενοι
δὲ μεγάλας ἑταιρείας περὶ αὑτοὺς πατρικίων
τε καὶ δημοτικῶν, οἷς τὰς ἑαυτῶν οὐσίας κατηγορήγουν,
πολλὴν ἐποιοῦντο τοῦ Ταρκυνίου κατηγορίαν
καὶ τῷ δήμῳ παρῄνουν μὴ περιορᾶν ἄνδρα μιαρὸν
ἱεροῖς τε προσφέροντα τὰς χεῖρας καὶ τὴν ἐξουσίαν
μιαίνοντα καὶ ταῦτ´ οὐκ ἐπιχώριον ἀλλ´ ἐπήλυτον
ὄντα καὶ ἄπολιν. τοιαῦτα κατὰ τὴν ἀγορὰν δημηγοροῦντες
ἄνδρες ἰταμοὶ καὶ λέγειν οὐκ ἀδύνατοι πολλοὺς
μὲν ἠρέθισαν τῶν δημοτικῶν, οἳ παραγενόμενον
αὐτὸν εἰς τὴν ἀγορὰν ἀπολογίας χάριν ἐξελαύνειν
ἐπεχείρησαν ὡς οὐ καθαρόν· οὐ μὴν καταγωνίσασθαί
γε τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἴσχυσαν οὐδὲ πεῖσαι τὸν δῆμον
ἐδυνήθησαν ἐκβαλεῖν αὐτὸν ἐκ τῆς ἀρχῆς. ἐπεὶ δὲ
αὐτός τε ἀπολογηθεὶς κράτιστα περὶ αὑτοῦ τὴν διαβολὴν
ἀπελύσατο καὶ ὁ κηδεστὴς αὐτοῦ Τύλλιος, ᾧ
τὴν ἑτέραν δεδωκὼς ἦν θυγατέρα, μέγιστον ἐν τῷ
δήμῳ δυνάμενος εἰς ἔλεον τοὺς Ῥωμαίους ὑπηγάγετο,
συκοφάνται καὶ πονηροὶ δόξαντες εἶναι καὶ πολλὴν
ὀφλόντες αἰσχύνην ἀπῆλθον ἐκ τῆς ἀγορᾶς.
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Traduction française :
| [3,72] King Tarquinius,8 being now obliged to desist from warlike activities by reason
of old age (for he was eighty years old), lost his life by the treachery of the sons of
Ancus Marcius. They had endeavoured even before this to dethrone him, indeed had
frequently made the attempt, in the hope that when he had been removed the royal
power would devolve upon them; for they looked upon it as theirs by inheritance
from their father and supposed that it would very readily be granted to them by the
citizens. When they failed in their expectation, they formed against him a plot from
which there would be no escape; but Heaven did not allow it to go unpunished. I shall
now relate the nature of their plot, beginning with their first attempt. Nevius, that
skilful augur who, as I said, once opposed the king when he wished to increase the
number of the tribes, had, at the very time when he was enjoying the greatest repute
for his art and exceeded all the Romans in power, suddenly disappeared, either
through the envy of some rival in his own profession or through the plotting of
enemies or some other mischance, and one of his relations could either guess his fate
or find his body. And while the people were grieving over and resenting the calamity
and entertaining many suspicions against many persons, the sons of Marcius,
observing this impulse on the (p259) part of the multitude, endeavoured to put the
blame for the pollution upon King Tarquinius, though they had no proof or evidence
to offer in support of their accusation, but relied upon these two specious arguments:
first, that the king, having resolved to make many unlawful innovations in the
constitution, wished to get rid of the man who was sure to oppose him again as he
had done on the former occasions, and second, that, when a dreadful calamity had
occurred, he had caused no search to be made for the perpetrators, but had neglected
the matter a thing, they said, which no innocent man would have done. And
having gathered about them strong bands of partisans, both patricians and plebeians,
upon whom they had lavished their fortunes, they made many accusations against
Tarquinius and exhorted the people not to permit a polluted person to lay hands on
the sacrifices and defile the royal dignity, especially one who was not a Roman, but
some newcomer and a man without a country. By delivering such harangues in the
Forum these men, who were bold and not lacking in eloquence, inflamed the minds of
many of the plebeians, and these, when Tarquinius came into the Forum to offer his
defence, endeavoured to drive him out as an impure person. However, they were not
strong enough to prevail over the truth or to persuade the people to depose him from
power. And after both Tarquinius himself had Middle Ages powerful defence and
refuted the calumny against him, and his son-in-law Tullius, to whom he had given
one of his two daughters in marriage and who had (p261) the greatest influence with the
people, had stirred the Romans to compassion, the accusers were looked upon as
slanderers and wicked en, and they left the Forum in great disgrace.
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