[6,57] Ταῦτ´ εἰπόντος τοῦ Μενηνίου θροῦς πολὺς ἐνέπεσε τῇ βουλῇ, καὶ διελάλουν ἕκαστοι κατὰ συμμορίας, οἱ μὲν οἰκείως διακείμενοι πρὸς τοὺς δημοτικοὺς παρακαλοῦντες ἀλλήλους πᾶσαν εἰσφέρεσθαι προθυμίαν, ὅπως κατάξουσι τὸν δῆμον εἰς τὴν πατρίδα, ἐπειδὴ προσειλήφεσαν ἡγεμόνα τῆς τότε γνώμης ἀνδρῶν ἀριστοκρατικῶν τὸν ἐπιφανέστατον· οἱ δ´ ἀριστοκρατικοὶ καὶ περὶ παντὸς θέλοντες μὴ κινεῖσθαι ἐκ τοῦ πατρίου κόσμου τὴν πολιτείαν ἀποροῦντες, ὅ τι χρήσονται τοῖς παροῦσι, μεταθέσθαι μὲν οὐκ ἀξιοῦντες τὰς προαιρέσεις, μένειν δ´ ἐπὶ τῶν ἐγνωσμένων οὐ δυνάμενοι· οἱ δ´ ἀκέραιοί τε καὶ τῶν στάσεων οὐδετέρᾳ συμφιλονεικοῦντες εἰρήνην ἄγειν βουλόμενοι καὶ ὅπως μὴ τειχήρεις ἔσονται σκοπεῖν ἀξιοῦντες. σιωπῆς δὲ γενομένης ὁ πρεσβύτερος τῶν ὑπάτων ἐπαινέσας τὸν Μενήνιον τῆς γενναιότητος, καὶ τοὺς λοιποὺς ἀξιώσας ὁμοίους ἐκείνῳ γενέσθαι κηδεμόνας λέγοντάς τε ὅσα φρονοῦσι μετὰ παρρησίας καὶ πράττοντας δίχα ὄκνου τὰ δόξαντα, δεύτερον ἐκάλει τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον ἐξ ὀνόματος, ἀξιῶν γνώμην ἀποφήνασθαι, Μάνιον Οὐαλέριον ἀδελφὸν τοῦ συνελευθερώσαντος ἀπὸ τῶν βασιλέων τὴν πόλιν, ἄνδρα παρ´ ὁντιναοῦν τῶν ἀριστοκρατικῶν τῷ δήμῳ κεχαρισμένον.

[6,57] When Menenius had thus spoken, a great murmuring broke out in the senate and the members consulted together, each with their own groups. Those who were favourably disposed toward the plebeians exhorted one another to devote every energy toward bringing the people back to their country, now that they had got as the champion of their present view the most distinguished man of the aristocratic party. The aristocrats, in turn, who above everything wished no change to be made in the traditional form of government, were at a loss how to act in the present juncture, being unwilling to change their principles and yet unable to persist in their resolutions. And those, again, who were neutral and sided with neither of the parties in their (p27) strife, desired to see peace prevail and demanded that the senate should consider means to prevent the city from being besieged. When silence reigned, the elder of the consuls praised Menenius for his magnanimity and asked the rest to show themselves equally loyal defenders of the state, not only by expressing their opinions frankness, but also by carrying out their resolutions without fear; and then he called upon a second senator by name in the same manner to deliver his opinion. This was Manius Valerius, a brother of the Valerius who had assisted in delivering his country from the kings, a man acceptable to the people beyond any other member of the aristocratic party.