Texte grec :
| [6,96] Οὐ πολλῷ δ´ ὕστερον χρόνῳ τῆς ἑορτῆς
τῶν ὑπατικῶν εἷς Μενήνιος Ἀγρίππας ἐτελεύτησε
τὸν βίον, ὁ νικήσας Σαβίνους καὶ τὸν ἐξ αὐτῶν θρίαμβον
ἐπιφανέστατον καταγαγών, ᾧ πεισθεῖσα ἡ βουλὴ
τὴν κάθοδον ἐπέτρεψε τοῖς φυγάσι, καὶ ὁ δῆμος πιστεύσας
ἀπέστη τῶν ὅπλων· καὶ αὐτὸν ἔθαψεν ἡ
πόλις δημοσίᾳ καὶ καλλίστῃ πάντων ἀνθρώπων καὶ
λαμπροτάτῃ ταφῇ. οὐσία γὰρ οὐκ ἦν τῷ ἀνδρὶ εἰς
μεγαλοπρέπειαν ἐκκομιδῆς καὶ ταφῆς ἀποχρῶσα· ὥστε
καὶ τοῖς ἐπιτρόποις αὐτοῦ τῶν παίδων βουλευομένοις
ἔδοξεν ὡς ἕνα τῶν πολλῶν εὐτελῶς ἐκκομίσαι τε καὶ
θάψαι. οὐ μέντοι γε ὁ δῆμος εἴασεν, ἀλλὰ συναγαγόντες
οἱ δήμαρχοι τὸ πλῆθος εἰς ἐκκλησίαν καὶ πολλὰ
διελθόντες ἐγκώμια τῶν τε κατὰ πόλεμον ἔργων τοῦ
ἀνδρὸς καὶ τῶν πολιτικῶν, τήν τε σωφροσύνην αὐτοῦ
καὶ τὴν λιτότητα τοῦ βίου, μάλιστα δὲ τὴν εἰς χρηματισμὸν
ἐγκράτειαν ἐπὶ μήκιστον ἄραντες τοῖς ἐπαίνοις, αἴσχιστον
ἔφησαν εἶναι τῶν πραγμάτων ἄνδρα
τηλικοῦτον ἀσήμου καὶ ταπεινῆς κηδείας τυχεῖν διὰ
πενίαν· παρῄνεσάν τε τῷ δήμῳ τὴν δαπάνην ἀναδέξασθαι,
καὶ συνεισενεγκεῖν κατ´ ἄνδρα, ὅσον ἂν αὐτοὶ
τάξωσι. τοῖς δ´ ἀκούσασιν ἄσμενον ἐγένετο, καὶ αὐτίκα
φέροντος ἑκάστου τὸ ταχθὲν πολύ τι χρῆμα συνήχθη
διαφόρου. μαθοῦσα δὲ τοῦθ´ ἡ βουλὴ δι´ αἰσχύνης
τὸ πρᾶγμα ἔλαβε καὶ ἔκρινε μὴ κατ´ ἄνδρα ἐρανισμῷ
τὸν ἐπιφανέστατον Ῥωμαίων περιιδεῖν θαπτόμενον,
ἀλλ´ ἐκ τῶν δημοσίων ἐδικαίωσε τὸ ἀνάλωμα γενέσθαι
τοῖς ταμίαις ἐπιτρέψασα τὴν ἐπιμέλειαν. οἱ δὲ πολλῶν
πάνυ μισθώσαντες χρημάτων τὰς παροχὰς κόσμῳ τε
πολυτελεστάτῳ κοσμήσαντες αὐτοῦ τὸ σῶμα καὶ πάντα
τὰ λοιπὰ ἐπιχορηγήσαντες εἰς μεγαλοπρέπειαν ἔθαψαν
αὐτὸν ἀξίως τῆς ἀρετῆς. ἀντιφιλοτιμούμενος δ´ ὁ
δῆμος πρὸς τὴν βουλὴν οὐδ´ αὐτὸς ἠξίωσε τὸ συνεισενεχθὲν
διάφορον ἀποδιδόντων τῶν ταμιῶν ἀπολαβεῖν, ἀλλ´
ἐχαρίσατο τοῖς παισὶ τοῦ ἀνδρὸς οἰκτείρων τὴν ἀπορίαν, ἵνα
μηδὲν ἀνάξιον ἐπιτηδεύσωσι τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς ἀρετῆς.
ἐγένετο δὲ καὶ τίμησις ἐν τῷ χρόνῳ τούτῳ διὰ τῶν ὑπάτων·
ἐξ ἧς εὑρέθησαν ὑπὲρ ἕνδεκα πάντων μυριάδες αἱ τιμησάμεναι.
καὶ τὰ μὲν ἐπὶ τῆς τούτων ὑπατείας πραχθέντα Ῥωμαίοις ταῦτ´ ἦν.
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Traduction française :
| [6,96] Not long after this festival Menenius Agrippa, one of the ex-consuls, died. It was
he who had overcome the Sabines and had celebrated a most notable triumph for that
victory; and it was through his persuasion that the senate had allowed the seceders to
return and that the populace, because of their confidence in him, had given up their
arms. He was buried at the expense of the public and his funeral was the most
honourable and the most splendid that has fallen to any man. His estate, it seems,
was not sufficient to defray the expense of a magnificent funeral and burial, so that
even the guardians of his children resolved after consultation to carry him out of the
city and bury him like any ordinary person at little expense. This, however, the
people would not permit; but the tribunes, having assembled them and paid lengthy
tributes to the achievements of Agrippa in both war and peace, lauding to the highest
degree his moderation and his frugal manner of life, and, above all, his refraining
from amassing riches, said it would be the most dishonourable thing imaginable that
such a man should be buried in an obscure and humble manner by reason of his
poverty; and they advised the people to take the expense of his funeral upon
themselves and every man to contribute towards it such an amount as they, the
tribunes, should assess. His audience gladly heard this proposal, and when each
man had presently contributed the amount he was assessed, a large sum was
collected. The senate, being informed (p143) of this, was ashamed of the business and
resolved not to allow the most illustrious of all the Romans to be buried by private
contributions, but thought it fitting that the expense should be defrayed from the
public funds; and it entrusted the care of the matter to the quaestors. These let the
contract for the furnishing of his funeral for a very large sum of money; and having
arrayed his body in the most sumptuous manner, and furnished everything else that
could tend to magnificence, they buried him in a manner worthy of his virtue.
Thereupon the people, in emulation of the senate, refused on their part to receive
back the sum they had contributed, when the quaestors offered to return it, but
presented it to the children of the deceased in compassion for their poverty and to
prevent them from engaging in any pursuits unworthy of their father's virtue. there
was also a census taken at this time by the consuls, according to which the number of
the citizens who registered was found to amount to more than 110,000.
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