[8,35] Περὶ δὲ τῆς μετριότητος, ἐφ´ ἣν παρακαλεῖτέ με, καὶ τοῦ μὴ πρόρριζον ἀνελεῖν τὸ Ῥωμαίων γένος μηδ´ ἐκ βάθρων ὅλην ἀναστῆσαι τὴν πόλιν, εἶχον μέν, ὦ Μηνύκιε, λέγειν, ὅτι οὐκ ἐγὼ τούτου κύριος οὐδὲ πρὸς ἐμὲ ὁ περὶ τούτων ἐστὶ λόγος, ἀλλ´ ἐγὼ στρατηγός εἰμι τῆς δυνάμεως, πολέμου δὲ καὶ εἰρήνης οὗτοι κύριοι· ὥστε παρὰ τούτων αἰτεῖσθέ γ´ ἀνοχὰς ἐπὶ διαλλαγαῖς, ἀλλὰ μὴ παρ´ ἐμοῦ. οὐ μὴν {ταύτην γε δίδωμι τὴν ἀπόκρισιν} ἀλλὰ καὶ θεοὺς σέβων τοὺς πατρῴους καὶ τάφους αἰδούμενος προγόνων καὶ γῆν, ἐξ ἧς ἔφυν, γυναῖκάς τε καὶ παῖδας ὑμῶν ἐλεῶν, οἷς οὐκ ἐπιτηδείοις οὖσι τὰ πατέρων καὶ ἀνδρῶν ἥξει σφάλματα, καὶ οὐχ ἥκιστα τῶν ἄλλων καὶ δι´ ὑμᾶς, ὦ Μηνύκιε, τοὺς προχειρισθέντας ὑπὸ τῆς πόλεως, τάδε ἀποκρίνομαι· ἐὰν ἀποδῶσι Ῥωμαῖοι Οὐολούσκοις χώραν τε ὅσην αὐτοὺς ἀφῄρηνται καὶ πόλεις ὅσας κατέχουσιν ἀνακαλεσάμενοι τοὺς ἐποίκους, φιλίαν τε ποιήσωνται πρὸς αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸν ἀεὶ χρόνον καὶ ἰσοπολιτείας μεταδῶσιν ὥσπερ Λατίνοις ὅρκους καὶ ἀρὰς κατὰ τῶν παραβαινόντων τὰ συγκείμενα ποιησάμενοι, διαλύσομαι πρὸς αὐτοὺς τὸν πόλεμον, πρότερον δὲ οὔ. ταῦτ´ οὖν ἀπαγγέλλετε αὐτοῖς, καὶ τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον ὅνπερ πρὸς ἐμὲ καὶ πρὸς ἐκείνους περὶ τοῦ δικαίου πάνυ ἐπιστρεφῶς ταῦτα διαλέγεσθε· καλόν τοι τὰς ἰδίας ἕκαστον ἔχοντα κτήσεις ἐν εἰρήνῃ ζῆν, καὶ πολλοῦ ἄξιον τὸ μηθένα δεδοικέναι μήτ´ ἐχθρὸν μήτε καιρόν, αἰσχρὸν δὲ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων περιεχομένους οὐκ ἀναγκαῖον πόλεμον ὑπομένειν, ἐν ᾧ καὶ περὶ τῶν ἰδίων ἁπάντων κινδυνεύσουσιν ἀγαθῶν· τά τ´ ἆθλα ἐπιδείκνυτε αὐτοῖς οὐκ ἴσα κατορθοῦσί τε καὶ μὴ τυχοῦσι γινόμενα γῆς ἀλλοτρίας γλιχομένοις, εἰ δὲ βούλεσθε, προστίθετε καὶ τὰς πόλεις τῶν ἠδικημένων προσλαβεῖν βουλομένοις, ἐὰν μὴ κρατῶσι, καὶ τὴν ἑαυτῶν γῆν τε καὶ πόλιν ἀφαιρεθῆναι, καὶ ἔτι πρὸς τούτῳ γυναῖκας ἐπιδεῖν τὰ αἴσχιστα πασχούσας καὶ παῖδας εἰς ὕβριν ἀγομένους καὶ γονεῖς δούλους ἀντ´ ἐλευθέρων ἐπὶ γήρως ὀδῷ γινομένους. καὶ ἅμα διδάσκετε τὴν βουλήν, ὅτι τούτων τῶν κακῶν οὐκ ἂν ἔχοιεν αἰτιάσασθαι Μάρκιον, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἀφροσύνην. παρὸν γὰρ αὐτοῖς τὰ δίκαια ποιεῖν καὶ μηδενὶ δεινῷ περιπεσεῖν τὸν ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐσχάτων κίνδυνον ἀναιρήσονται μέχρι παντὸς φιλοχωροῦντες {ἐν} τοῖς ἀλλοτρίοις. ἔχετε τὰς ἀποκρίσεις· τούτων οὐθὲν ἂν εὕροισθε παρ´ ἐμοῦ πλέον, ἀλλ´ ἄπιτε καὶ σκοπεῖτε, ὅ τι πρακτέον ὑμῖν· ἕως δὲ βουλεύσησθε, δίδωμι χρόνον ὑμῖν ἡμερῶν τριάκοντα. ἐν δὲ τῷ μεταξὺ χρόνῳ σήν τε χάριν, ὦ Μηνύκιε, καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὑμῶν ἕνεκα τὴν στρατιὰν ἐκ τῆς χώρας ἀπάξω· μεγάλα γὰρ ἂν βλάπτοισθε μενούσης αὐτῆς ἐνθάδε. τῇ δὲ τριακοστῇ προσδέχεσθέ με ἡμέρᾳ τὰς ἀποκρίσεις ληψόμενον.

[8,35] "As regards the moderation which you recommend to me and your plea that I should not utterly destroy the Roman race or overthrow the city from its foundations, I might answer, Minucius, that this is not in my power to decide, nor should your plea be addressed to me. No, I am general of the army, but as to war and peace these men here have the decision; so apply to them for a truce as a step toward reconciliation, and not to me. Nevertheless, because I revere the gods of my fathers and respect the sepulchres of my ancestors and the land which gave me birth, and feel compassion for your wives and children, on whom, though undeserving, will fall the errors of their fathers and husbands, and, not least of all, on account of you men, Minucius, who have been chosen envoys by the commonwealth, I answer as follows: If the Romans will return to the Volscians the land they have taken from them and the cities they hold, first recalling their colonists, and if they will enter into a league of perpetual friendship with them and give them equal rights of citizenship, (p103) as they have done in the case of the Latins, confirming their covenant by oaths and by imprecations against those who may violate it, I will put an end to the war against them, and not until then. So carry this report back to them, and discuss very earnestly with them also, in the same way as you have with me, these considerations of justice — how fine a thing it is for everyone to enjoy his own possession stone to live in peace, but how disgraceful it is for a people, by clinging to the possessions of others, to expose themselves to an unnecessary war, in which they will run the hazard of losing even all their own blessings. Point out to them also how unequal are the prizes street reward success and failure when men covet the territory of others. Add too, if you please, that people who desire to seize the cities of those they have wronged, if they do not overcome them, are deprived of both their own territory and city, and in addition to this see their wives suffer the greatest indignities, their children led away to contumely, and their parents upon the threshold of old age become slaves instead of free men. And at the same time point out to the senators that they would not be able to impute the blame for these evils to Marcius, but to their own folly; for though they have it in their power to practise justice and to incur no disaster, they will hazard their all by their continual fondness for the possessions of others. "You have my answer, and you will get nothing (p105) further from me. Depart, then, and consider what you must do. I will allow you thirty days for your deliberation. in the meantime, to show my regard for you, Minucius, as well as for the rest of you envoys, I will withdraw my army from your territory, since it would cause you great injury if it remained here. And on the thirtieth day expect my return in order to receive your answer."