Texte grec :
| [8,81] Μετὰ γὰρ τὸν τοῦ Κασσίου θάνατον οἱ
μὲν αὐξάνοντες τὴν ἀριστοκρατίαν θρασύτεροί τε καὶ
ὑπεροπτικώτεροι τῶν δημοτικῶν ἐγεγόνεσαν· οἱ δ´ ἐν
ἀφανεῖ τῆς δόξης φερόμενοι καὶ βίου εἰς ταπεινὰ συνεστάλησαν,
καὶ ὡς ἄριστον ἀπολωλεκότες φύλακα τῆς
δημοτικῆς μερίδος πολλὴν ἄνοιαν ἑαυτῶν ἐπὶ τῇ καταδίκῃ
κατηγόρουν. τούτου δ´ αἴτιον ἦν, ὅτι τὰ δόξαντα
τῇ βουλῇ περὶ τῆς κληρουχίας οὐκ ἔπραττον οἱ ὕπατοι,
δέον αὐτοὺς ἄνδρας τ´ ἀποδεῖξαι δέκα τοὺς ὁριοῦντας
τὴν γῆν καὶ γνώμην εἰσηγήσασθαι πόσην τ´ αὐτῆς καὶ
τίσι δεήσει νεμηθῆναι. συνῄεσάν τε πολλοὶ κατὰ συστροφὰς περὶ
τῆς ἀπάτης ἑκάστοτε διαλεγόμενοι, καὶ
ἐν αἰτίᾳ τοὺς προτέρους εἶχον δημάρχους ὡς προδεδωκότας τὸ
κοινόν· ἐκκλησίαι τε συνεχεῖς ὑπὸ τῶν
τότε δημάρχων ἐγίνοντο καὶ ἀπαιτήσεις τῆς ὑποσχέσεως. ταῦτα
συνιδόντες οἱ ὕπατοι γνώμην ἐποιήσαντο
πολέμων προφάσει τὸ παρακινοῦν ἐν τῇ πόλει μέρος
καὶ ταραττόμενον καταστεῖλαι· ἔτυχε γὰρ ἐν τῷ αὐτῷ
χρόνῳ λῃστηρίοις τε ὑπὸ τῶν πλησιοχώρων πόλεων
καὶ καταδρομαῖς τισιν ἡ γῆ βλαπτομένη. τιμωρίας μὲν
δὴ τῶν ἀδικούντων ἕνεκα προὔθεσαν τὰ τοῦ πολέμου
σημεῖα, καὶ τὰς δυνάμεις τῆς πόλεως κατέγραφον· οὐ
προσιόντων δὲ τῇ καταγραφῇ τῶν ἀπόρων ἀδύνατοι
ὄντες τὴν ἐκ τῶν νόμων ἀνάγκην τοῖς ἀπειθοῦσι προσφέρειν·
προειστήκεσαν γὰρ τοῦ πλήθους οἱ δήμαρχοι
καὶ κωλύσειν ἔμελλον, εἴ τις ἐπιχειρήσειεν ἢ τὰ σώματα τῶν
ἐκλειπόντων τὴν στρατείαν ἄγειν ἢ τὰ χρήματα φέρειν· ἀπειλαῖς
χρησάμενοι πολλαῖς ὡς οὐκ
ἐπιτρέψοντες τοῖς ἀνασείουσι τὸ πλῆθος, λεληθυῖαν
ὑποψίαν κατέλιπον ὡς δικτάτορα ἀποδείξοντες, ὃς ἔμελλε
καταλύσας τὰς ἄλλας ἀρχὰς τὴν τυραννικὴν καὶ ἀνυπεύθυνον
μόνος ἕξειν ἐξουσίαν. ὡς δὲ ταύτην ἔλαβον
τὴν ὑπόνοιαν οἱ δημοτικοί, δείσαντες, μὴ τὸν Ἄππιον
ἀποδείξωσι πικρὸν ὄντα καὶ χαλεπόν, πάντα πρὸ τούτου
πάσχειν ὑπέμενον.
|
|
Traduction française :
| [8,81] After the death of Cassius those who sought to extend the power of the
aristocracy had grown more daring and more contemptuous of the plebeians, while
those of obscure reputation and fortune were humbled and abased, and feeling that
they ad lost the best guardian of the plebeian order, accused themselves of great folly
in having condemned him. The reason for this was that the consuls were not carrying
out the decree of the senate regarding the allotting of the land, though it was their
duty to appoint the decemvirs to fix the boundaries of the land and to present a
proposal as to how much of it ought to be distributed, and to whom. Many met in
groups, always discussing this duplicity and accusing the former tribunes of having
betrayed the commonwealth; and there were continual meetings of the assembly
called by the tribunes then in office, and demands for the fulfilment of the promise.
The consuls, perceiving this, determined to repress the turbulent and disorderly
element in the city, taking the wars as a pretext. For it chanced that their territory
was at that very time harassed by bands of robbers and forays from the neighbouring
cities. To punish these aggressors, then, they brought out the war standards and
began to enrol the forces of the commonwealth. And when the poor did not come
forward to enlist, the consuls, being unable to make use of the compulsion of the laws
against the disobedient — for the tribunes defended the plebeians (p249) and were
prepared to prevent any attempt to seize either the persons or the goods of those who
failed to serve — made many threats that they would not yield to those who were
stirring up the multitude, leaving with them a lurking suspicion that they would
appoint a dictator, who would set aside the other magistracies and alone by himself
possess a tyrannical and irresponsible power. As soon as the plebeians had
entertained this suspicion, fearing that Appius, a harsh and stern man, would be the
one appointed, they were ready to submit to anything rather than that.
|
|
