[7,15] Οἱ δ´ ὕπατοι τῇ κατόπιν ἡμέρᾳ συνεκάλουν τὴν βουλὴν περίφοβοι ὄντες ἐπὶ τοῖς καινοτομουμένοις καὶ τὴν τοῦ Βρούτου δημοκοπίαν εἰς μέγα τι κακὸν ἀποσκήψειν οἰόμενοι. πολλοὶ μὲν δὴ καὶ παντοδαποὶ ὑπό τ´ αὐτῶν ἐκείνων ἐρρήθησαν ἐν τῷ συνεδρίῳ λόγοι καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν ἄλλων πρεσβυτέρων, τῶν μὲν οἰομένων δεῖν θεραπεύειν τὸν δῆμον ἁπάσῃ εὐπροσηγορίᾳ λόγων καὶ ὑποσχέσει ἔργων καὶ τοὺς ἡγεμόνας αὐτοῦ μετριωτέρους παρασκευάζειν, τιθέντας εἰς μέσον τὰ πράγματα καὶ μετὰ σφῶν ὑπὲρ τοῦ κοινῇ συμφέροντος παρακαλοῦντας σκοπεῖν. τῶν δὲ μηθὲν ἐνδιδόναι μαλακὸν συμβουλευόντων πρὸς ὄχλον αὐθάδη καὶ ἀμαθῆ ἢ θρασεῖάν τε καὶ ἀνύποιστον δημοκόπων ἀνθρώπων μανίαν, ἀλλ´ ἀπολογεῖσθαι μέν, ὡς οὐδὲν εἴη τῶν γεγονότων παρὰ τῶν πατρικίων αἴτιον, καὶ ὑπισχνεῖσθαι πρόνοιαν ἕξειν τοῦ κακοῦ τὴν δυνατήν, τοῖς δὲ ταράττουσι τὸν δῆμον ἐπιτιμᾶν καὶ προαγορεύειν, ὡς εἰ μὴ παύσονται τὴν στάσιν ἀναρριπίζοντες ἀξίας τίσουσι δίκας. ταύτης ἡγεῖτο τῆς γνώμης Ἄππιος, καὶ ἦν ἡ νικῶσα αὕτη πολλῆς ἐμπεσούσης πάνυ τοῖς συνέδροις φιλονεικίας· ὥστε καὶ τὸν δῆμον ὑπὸ τῆς βοῆς αὐτῶν ἐξακουομένης ἐπὶ πολὺ ταραχθέντα συνδραμεῖν ἐπὶ τὸ βουλευτήριον, καὶ πᾶσαν ὀρθὴν ἐπὶ τῇ προσδοκίᾳ γενέσθαι τὴν πόλιν. μετὰ δὲ τοῦθ´ οἱ μὲν ὕπατοι προελθόντες συνεκάλουν τὸν δῆμον εἰς ἐκκλησίαν· ἦν δ´ οὐ πολὺ τῆς ἡμέρας ἔτι τὸ λειπόμενον· καὶ παρελθόντες ἐπειρῶντο τὰ δόξαντα σφίσιν ἐν τῇ βουλῇ λέγειν. ἐνίσταντο δ´ αὐτοῖς οἱ δήμαρχοι, καὶ οὐκ ἦν ἐν μέρει οὐδ´ ἐν κόσμῳ γινόμενος παρ´ ἀμφοῖν ὁ λόγος. ἐβόων γὰρ ἅμα καὶ ἐξέκλειον ἀλλήλους, ὥστε μὴ ῥᾴδιον εἶναι τοῖς παροῦσι τὰς διανοίας αὐτῶν {ὅ τι βούλονται} συνιδεῖν.

[7,15] The next day the consuls assembled the (p191) senate, being terrified at this revolutionary behaviour and believing that the demagogy of Brutus would end in some great mischief. And many proposals of every sort were made to that body both by the consuls themselves and also by the older senators. Some were of the opinion that they ought to court the populace by all possible expressions of kindness and by promises of deeds, and make their leaders more moderate by bringing the public business into the open and inviting them to join in their deliberations concerning the common advantage. But others advised not to show any sign of weakness toward a headstrong and ignorant multitude and toward the bold and insufferable madness of creatures who courted the mob, but to declare in their own defence that the patricians were in of way to blame for what had happened and to promise that they would take all possible care to remedy the evil, and at the same time to reprimand those who were stirring up the people and warn them that if they did not desist from rekindling the sedition they would be punished as they deserved. The chief proponent of this view was Appius, and it was this opinion that prevailed, after such violent strife among the senators that even the people, hearing their clamour at a great distance, rushed in alarm to the senate-house and the whole city was on tip-toe with expectation. After this the consuls, going into the Forum, called the people together when not much of the day now remained; and coming forward, (p193) they attempted to inform them of the decision they had reached in the senate. But the tribunes opposed them, and thereupon neither the consuls nor the tribunes spoke in their turns nor observed any decorum in their debate; for they cried out together and endeavoured to prevent one another from speaking, so that it was not easy for those who were present to understand what they meant.