[7,34] Εἰπὼν δὲ ταῦτα καὶ δόξας μέτριος ὀργὴν εἶναι
καὶ διαλλακτικὸς ἐπιστρέφει πρὸς τὸν Μάρκιον
παρεστηκότα τοῖς ὑπάτοις καὶ λέγει· Σὺ δέ, τί
οὐκ ἀπολογῇ πρὸς τοὺς σαυτοῦ πολίτας, ὦ γενναῖε,
περὶ ὧν εἶπας ἐν τῇ βουλῇ; μᾶλλον δὲ τί οὐκ ἀντιβολεῖς καὶ
παραιτῇ τὰς ὀργὰς αὐτῶν, ἵνα μετριωτέραν
ἐπιθῶσί σοι ζημίαν; ἀρνεῖσθαι μὲν γὰρ οὐκ ἂν ἀξιώσαιμί σε
τοσούτων ἀνδρῶν εἰδότων οὐδ´ εἰς ἀναισχύντους καταφεύγειν
ἀπολογίας, Μάρκιον ὄντα καὶ φρόνημα μεῖζον ἢ κατ´ ἰδιώτην
ἔχοντα· εἰ μὴ ἄρα τοῖς
μὲν ὑπάτοις καὶ τοῖς πατρικίοις καλῶς ἔχει πείθειν
ὑπὲρ σοῦ τὸν δῆμον, σοὶ δ´ οὐκ ἄρα καλῶς ἕξει ταὐτὸ
τοῦτο περὶ σεαυτοῦ ποιήσαντι; Ταῦτα δ´ ἔλεγεν οὐκ
ἀγνοῶν, ὅτι μεγαλόφρων ἀνὴρ οὐχ ὑπομενεῖ κατήγορος
ἑαυτοῦ γενόμενος ὡς ἡμαρτηκὼς ἄφεσιν αἰτεῖσθαι τῆς
τιμωρίας, οὐδ´ εἰς ὀλοφυρμοὺς καὶ δεήσεις καταφεύξεται
παρὰ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ τρόπον, ἀλλ´ ἤτοι καὶ τὸ παράπαν
ἀπαξιώσει τὴν ἀπολογίαν, ἢ τὴν ἔμφυτον αὐθάδειαν
φυλάττων οὐθὲν ὑποθωπεύσει τὸν δῆμον μετριάσας
περὶ τοὺς λόγους· ὅπερ καὶ συνέβη. γενομένης γὰρ
ἡσυχίας καὶ πολλῆς ἐμπεσούσης ὀλίγου δεῖν πᾶσι τοῖς
δημοτικοῖς προθυμίας ἀπολύειν αὐτόν, εἰ τὸν παρόντα
θεραπεύσειε καιρόν, τοιαύτην αὐθάδειαν ἐπεδείξατο
λόγων, καὶ τοσοῦτον αὐτῶν κατεφρόνησεν, ὥστε παρελθὼν
ἔξαρνος μὲν ὑπὲρ οὐθενὸς ἦν τῶν πρὸς τὴν
βουλὴν εἰρημένων κατὰ τοῦ πλήθους, οὐδ´ ὡς μεταγινώσκων ἐπ´
αὐτοῖς εἰς οἴκτους καὶ παραιτήσεις ἐτρέπετο· ἀρχὴν δ´ οὐδὲ
δικασταῖς αὐτοῖς ἠξίου χρῆσθαι
περὶ οὐδενὸς πράγματος, ὡς οὐδεμίαν ἔχουσιν ἐξουσίαν
νόμιμον· εἰ δὲ βουλήσεταί τις ἐπὶ τῶν ὑπάτων αὐτοῦ
κατηγορεῖν εἴτ´ ἔργων εὐθύνας ἀπαιτῶν εἴτε λόγων,
ἔνθα νόμος ἐστὶν ἕτοιμος εἶναι δίκην ὑπέχειν. παρεληλυθέναι δὲ
πρὸς τοὺς δημότας ἔλεγεν, ἐπειδὴ καλοῦσιν αὐτοί, τὰ μὲν
ἐπιτιμήσων ταῖς παρανομίαις
αὐτῶν καὶ πλεονεξίαις, αἷς ἐχρήσαντο περί τε τὴν
ἀπόστασιν καὶ μετὰ τὴν κάθοδον· τὰ δὲ συμβουλεύσων
ἐπισχεῖν ἤδη ποτὲ καὶ συστεῖλαι τὰς ἀδίκους ἐπιθυμίας. καὶ μετὰ
τοῦτ´ ἐπιστρεφῶς πάνυ καὶ θρασέως
ἁπάντων αὐτῶν καθήπτετο καὶ μάλιστα τῶν δημάρχων.
προσῆν δ´ αὐτοῦ τοῖς λόγοις οὐχ ὡς πολίτου δῆμον
ἀναδιδάσκοντος εὐλόγιστος αἰδώς, οὐδ´ ὡς ἰδιώτου
πολλοῖς ἀπεχθομένου σώφρων εὐλάβεια πρὸς τὰς τοῦ
κρατοῦντος ὀργάς, ἀλλ´ ὡς ἐχθροῦ προπηλακίζοντος
ἀδεῶς τοὺς ὑπὸ χεῖρας ἄκρατός τις χολὴ καὶ βαρεῖα
τοῦ κακῶς πάσχοντος ὑπεροψία.
| [7,34] Having spoken thus and given the impression that he was moderate and
conciliatory in disposition, he turned to Marcius, who stood near the consuls, and
said: "And you, sir, why do you not clear yourself before your fellow-citizens in regard
to what you said in the senate? Or rather, why do you not entreat them and deprecate
their anger, that they may impose a milder penalty upon you? For I would not advise
you to deny the fact, as so many are acquainted with it, or to have recourse to
shameless excuses, since you are Marcius and have a spirit above that of a man in
private station — unless, indeed, it is seemly for the consuls and the (p241) patricians to
intercede for you with the populace, but will not be seemly for you to do this same
thing for yourself." This he said, well knowing that a man of his proud spirit would
never submit to be his own accuser, and, as if he had transgressed, to ask for a
remission of his punishment or, contrary to his character, to have recourse to
lamentations and entreaties, but that he would either scorn to make any defence at all
or, preserving his innate arrogance, would indulge in no flattery of the populace by
showing moderation in his words. And this is just what happened. For when silence
prevailed and almost all the plebeians felt a strong desire to acquit him if he would
make the most of the present opportunity, he showed such arrogance in his words
and so great a contempt of the plebeians that he did not deny a single thing he had
said in the senate against them, nor, as if he repented of what he had said, resort to
appeals for pity or to prayers for mercy. Indeed, he absolutely refused even to let
them be his judges in any matter, as having no lawful authority; but if anyone should
think fit to accuse him before the consuls and require an accounting of either his
words or his actions, he was ready to stand trial in a place appointed by law. He said
that he had come before the plebeians since they themselves summoned him, partly
to reprimand them for the lawlessness and the grasping for more power in which they
had indulged both in connection with their secession and after their return, and
partly to advise them now at last to check and restrain their unjust desires. After
that he inveighed against them all (p243) with great vehemence and boldness, and
particularly against the tribunes. In his speech there was not the calculated deference
of the political leader instructing a popular assembly, nor the prudent caution of one
in private station who, hated by many, faces the angry outbursts of his ruler, but
rather the untempered wrath of an enemy fearlessly insulting those under his power
and a harsh contempt for his victim.
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