[10,4] Μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα οἵ τε ὕπατοι καὶ τῶν πατρικίων οἱ πλεῖστον δυνάμενοι τραχύτερον ἤδη αὐτῶν προσιόντες καθήπτοντο λέγοντες, ὡς οὐκ ἐπιτρέψουσιν αὐτοῖς νόμους εἰσηγεῖσθαι καὶ τούτους ἀπροβουλεύτους. συνθήκας γὰρ εἶναι κοινὰς πόλεων τοὺς νόμους, οὐχὶ μέρους τῶν ἐν ταῖς πόλεσιν οἰκούντων. τοῦ τε πονηροτάτου ὀλέθρου καὶ ἀνηκέστου καὶ οὐδ´ εὐσχήμονος ἀρχὴν ἀπέφαινον εἶναι πόλεσί τε καὶ οἴκοις, ὅταν τὸ κάκιστον τῷ κρατίστῳ νομοθετῇ. Ποίαν δὲ ὑμεῖς, ἔφασαν, ὦ δήμαρχοι, νόμων εἰσφορᾶς ἢ ἀναιρέσεως ἐξουσίαν ἔχετε; οὐκ ἐπὶ ῥητοῖς μὲν δικαίοις ταύτην τὴν ἀρχὴν παρὰ τῆς βουλῆς ἐλάβετε, τοῖς δ´ ἀδικουμένοις ἢ κατισχυομένοις τῶν πενήτων βοηθεῖν ᾐτήσασθε τοὺς δημάρχους, ἄλλο δὲ μηδὲν πολυπραγμονεῖν; εἰ δ´ οὖν καὶ πρότερον ἦν τις ὑμῖν δύναμις, ἣν οὐκ ἐκ τοῦ δικαίου βιασάμενοι ἡμᾶς ἐλάβετε, ὑποκατακλινομένης ἑκάστῳ πλεονεκτήματι τῆς βουλῆς, οὐχὶ καὶ ταύτην νῦν ἀπολωλέκατε τῇ μεταβολῇ τῶν ἀρχαιρεσιῶν; οὔτε γὰρ βουλῆς δόγμα ὑμᾶς οὐκέτι ἀποδείκνυσιν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀρχήν, οὔτε αἱ φρᾶτραι τὴν ψῆφον ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν ἐπιφέρουσιν, οὔτε ἱερὰ προθύεται τοῖς θεοῖς πρὸ τῶν ἀρχαιρεσιῶν, ἃ κατὰ νόμους ἐχρῆν ἐπιτελεῖσθαι, οὔτε ἄλλο τῶν πρὸς τοὺς θεοὺς εὐσεβῶν ἢ πρὸς ἀνθρώπους ὁσίων οὐθὲν ἐπὶ τῆς ἀρχῆς τῆς ὑμετέρας γίνεται. τίνος οὖν ὑμῖν ἔτι μέτεστι τῶν ἱερῶν καὶ σεβασμοῦ δεομένων, ὧν ἕν τι καὶ ὁ νόμος ἦν, ἐξαρνησαμένοις ἅπαντα τὰ νόμιμα; Ταῦτά τε δὴ τοῖς δημάρχοις ἔλεγον οἱ πρεσβύτεροι καὶ οἱ νέοι αὐτῶν καθ´ ἑταιρίας διεξιόντες ἀνὰ τὴν πόλιν καὶ τοὺς μὲν ἐπιεικεστέρους τῶν δημοτῶν ὁμιλίαις ἀνελάμβανον κεχαρισμέναις, τοὺς δ´ ἀπειθεῖς καὶ ταραχώδεις ἀπειλαῖς κατεπλήττοντο κινδύνων, εἰ μὴ συμφρονήσειαν· ἤδη δέ τινας τῶν πάνυ ἀπόρων καὶ ἀπερριμμένων, οἷς οὐθενὸς τῶν κοινῶν παρὰ τὰ ἴδια κέρδη φροντὶς ἦν, παίοντες ὥσπερ ἀνδράποδα ἀνεῖργον ἐκ τῆς ἀγορᾶς.

[10,4] After this the consuls and the most influential of the patricians, going to the tribunes, upbraided them more harshly than before, saying that they would not permit them to propose laws, and especially laws not recommended by a preliminary decree of the senate. For laws were compacts of states affecting all alike, and not of a single portion of the residents of states. They further pointed out that it is the first step in the most wicked, irremediable and indecent ruination for both states and households when the worst element prescribes laws for the best. "And what authority," they asked, "have you, tribunes, to introduce or to abrogate laws? Did you not receive this magistracy from the senate upon explicit terms? Did you not ask that the tribunes might come to the assistance of those of the poor who were injured and oppressed, but should meddle with nothing else? But, be that as it may, even if you previously possessed some power which you had wrongfully extorted from us, because the senate (p175) weakly gave in to each encroachment of yours, have you not lost even this power now through the changed character of your elections? For neither a decree of the senate appoints you any longer to the magistracy, nor do the curiae give their votes concerning you, nor are there offered up to the gods before your election the sacrifices appointed by the laws, nor is anything else done in connexion with your magistracy that is holy in the eyes of the gods or right in the sight of men. What share have you, then, any longer in any of the things that are holy and call for reverence — of which the law was one — now that you have renounced everything lawful?" These were the arguments that the older and the young patricians, going about the city in organized groups, used with the tribunes. The more fair-minded of the plebeians they sought to win over by friendly intercourse, and the refractory and turbulent they attempted to terrify with threats of dangers which they would incur unless they came to their senses. Indeed, in the case of some who were very poor and abject and cared naught for the public interests in comparison with their own advantage, they drove them out of the Forum with blows as if they had been slaves.