[6,0] ΔΙΟΝΥΣΙΟΥ ΑΛΙΚΑΡΝΑΣΕΩΣ ΡΩΜΑΙΚΗΣ ΑΡΧΑΙΟΛΟΓΙΑΣ ΛΟΓΟΣ ΕΚΤΟΣ.

[6,0] BOOK VI.

[6,1] Οἱ δ´ ἐν τῷ κατόπιν ἐνιαυτῷ τὴν ὕπατον ἀρχὴν παραλαβόντες, Αὖλος Σεμπρώνιος Ἀτρατῖνος καὶ Μάρκος Μηνύκιος, ἐπὶ τῆς ἑβδομηκοστῆς καὶ πρώτης ὀλυμπιάδος, ἣν ἐνίκα στάδιον Τισικράτης Κροτωνιάτης ἄρχοντος Ἀθήνησιν Ἱππάρχου, ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν οὔτε πολεμικὸν οὔτε πολιτικὸν ἱστορίας ἄξιον ἐπὶ τῆς ἑαυτῶν ἀρχῆς ἔπραξαν· αἵ τε γὰρ πρὸς Λατίνους ἀνοχαὶ πολλὴν αὐτοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν ἔξωθεν πολέμων παρέσχον εἰρήνην ἥ τε τῆς ἀναπράξεως τῶν δανείων κώλυσις, ἣν ἐψηφίσατο ἡ βουλή, τέως ἂν ὁ προσδοκώμενος πόλεμος εἰς ἀσφαλὲς ἔλθῃ τέλος, ἔπαυσε τοὺς ἐντὸς τείχους νεωτερισμούς, οὓς ἐποιοῦντο οἱ πένητες ἀφεῖσθαι τῶν χρεῶν ἀξιοῦντες δημοσίᾳ· δόγμα δὲ βουλῆς ἐκύρωσαν ἐπιεικέστατον, Λατίνοις ἀνδράσιν εἴ τινες ἔτυχον ἐκ τοῦ Ῥωμαίων ἔθνους συνοικοῦσαι γυναῖκες ἢ Ῥωμαίοις Λατῖναι, ἑαυτῶν εἶναι κυρίας, ἐάν τε μένειν θέλωσι παρὰ τοῖς γεγαμηκόσιν ἐάν τε {μή,} εἰς τὰς πατρίδας ἀναστρέφειν· τῶν δ´ ἐκγόνων τὰ μὲν ἄρρενα παρὰ τοῖς πατράσι μένειν, τὰς δὲ θηλείας καὶ ἔτι ἀγάμους ταῖς μητράσιν ἕπεσθαι· ἐτύγχανον δὲ πολλαὶ πάνυ γυναῖκες εἰς τὰς ἀλλήλων πόλεις ἐκδεδομέναι καὶ διὰ τὸ συγγενὲς καὶ διὰ φιλίαν, αἳ τυχοῦσαι τῆς ἐκ τοῦ ψηφίσματος ἀδείας ἐδήλωσαν ὅσην εἶχον ἐπιθυμίαν τῆς ἐν Ῥώμῃ διαίτης. αἵ τε γὰρ ἐν ταῖς Λατίνων πόλεσι Ῥωμαῖαι μικροῦ δεῖν πᾶσαι καταλιποῦσαι τοὺς ἄνδρας ὡς τοὺς πατέρας ἀνέστρεψαν, αἵ τε Ῥωμαίοις ἐκδεδομέναι Λατίνων πλὴν δυεῖν, αἱ λοιπαὶ τῶν πατρίδων ὑπεριδοῦσαι παρὰ τοῖς γεγαμηκόσιν ἔμειναν· οἰωνὸς εὐτυχὴς τῆς μελλούσης πόλεως ἐπικρατήσειν τῷ πολέμῳ. Ἐπὶ τούτων φασὶ τῶν ὑπάτων τὸν νεὼν καθιερωθῆναι τῷ Κρόνῳ κατὰ τὴν ἄνοδον τὴν εἰς τὸ Καπετώλιον φέρουσαν ἐκ τῆς ἀγορᾶς, καὶ δημοτελεῖς ἀναδειχθῆναι τῷ θεῷ καθ´ ἕκαστον ἐνιαυτὸν ἑορτάς τε καὶ θυσίας. τὰ δὲ πρὸ τούτων βωμὸν αὐτόθι καθιδρύσθαι λέγουσι {τὸν} ὑφ´ Ἡρακλέους κατεσκευασμένον, ἐφ´ οὗ τὰς ἐμπύρους ἀπαρχὰς ἔθυον Ἑλληνικοῖς ἔθεσιν οἱ τὰ ἱερὰ παρ´ ἐκείνου παραλαβόντες· τὴν δ´ ἀρχὴν τῆς ἱδρύσεως τοῦ ναοῦ τινες μὲν ἱστοροῦσι λαβεῖν Τῖτον Λάρκιον τὸν ὑπατεύσαντα τῷ πρόσθεν ἐνιαυτῷ, οἱ δὲ καὶ βασιλέα Ταρκύνιον τὸν ἐκπεσόντα τῆς ἀρχῆς· τὴν δὲ καθιέρωσιν τοῦ ναοῦ λαβεῖν Πόστομον Κομίνιον κατὰ ψήφισμα βουλῆς. τούτοις μὲν δὴ τοῖς ὑπάτοις εἰρήνης ὥσπερ ἔφην βαθείας ἐξεγένετο ἀπολαῦσαι.

[6,1] Aulus Sempronius Atratinus and Marcus Minucius, who assumed the consulship the following year, in the seventy-first Olympiad (the one in which Tisicrates of Croton won the foot-race), Hipparchus being archon at Athens, performed no action either of a military or administrative nature worthy of the notice of history during their term of office, since the truce with the Latins gave them ample respite from foreign wars, and the injunction decreed by the senate against the exaction of debts till the war that was expected should be safely terminated, quieted the disturbances raised in the city by the poor, who desired to be discharged of their debts by a public act; but they caused the senate to pass a most reasonable decree which provided that any women of Roman birth who were married to Romans should have full power to decide for themselves (p241) whether they preferred to stay with their husbands or to return to their own cities, and also provided that the male children should remain with their fathers and the female and unmarried should follow their mothers. For it happened that a great many women, by reason of the kinship and friendship existing between the two nations, had been given in marriage each into the other's state. The women, having this liberty granted to them by the decree of the senate, showed how great was their desire to live at Rome; for almost all the Roman women who lived in the Latin cities left their husbands and returned to their fathers, and all the Latin women who were married to Romans, except two, scorned their native countries and stayed with their husbands — a happy omen foretelling which of the two nations was to be victorious in the war. Under these consuls, they say, the temple was dedicated to Saturn upon the ascent leading from the Forum to the Capitol, and annual festivals and sacrifices were appointed to be celebrated in honour of the god at the public expense. Before this, they say, an altar built by Hercules was established there, upon which the persons who had received the holy rites from him offered the first-fruits as burnt-offerings according to the customs of the Greeks. Some historians state that the credit for beginning this temple was given to Titus Larcius, the consul of the previous year, others, that it was even given to King Tarquinius — the one who was driven from (p243) the throne — and that the dedication fell to Postumus Cominius pursuant to a decree of the senate. These consuls, then, had the opportunity, as I said, of enjoying a profound peace.