Texte grec :
| [10,14] Ἐν τοιαύτῃ δὲ ταραχῇ τῆς πόλεως οὔσης
ἀνήρ τις ἐκ τοῦ Σαβίνων ἔθνους πατέρων τε οὐκ
ἀφανῶν καὶ χρήμασι δυνατός, Ἄππιος Ἑρδώνιος
ὄνομα, καταλῦσαι τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἡγεμονίαν ἐπεβάλετο
εἴθ´ ἑαυτῷ τυραννίδα κατασκευαζόμενος εἴτε τῷ Σαβίνων ἔθνει πράττων ἀρχὴν καὶ
κράτος εἴτ´ ὀνόματος
ἀξιωθῆναι βουλόμενος μεγάλου. κοινωσάμενος δὲ
πολλοῖς τῶν φίλων ἣν εἶχε διάνοιαν καὶ τὸν τρόπον
τῆς ἐπιχειρήσεως ἀφηγησάμενος, ἐπειδὴ κἀκείνοις ἐδόκει
συνήθροιζε τοὺς πελάτας καὶ τῶν θεραπόντων οὓς
εἶχεν εὐτολμοτάτους· καὶ δι´ ὀλίγου χρόνου συγκροτήσας δύναμιν ἀνδρῶν
τετρακισχιλίων μάλιστα, ὅπλα τε
καὶ τροφὰς καὶ τἆλλα ὅσων δεῖ πολέμῳ πάντα εὐτρεπισάμενος, εἰς σκάφας
ποταμηγοὺς ἐνεβάλετο. πλεύσας
δὲ διὰ τοῦ Τεβέριος ποταμοῦ προσέσχε τῆς Ῥώμης
κατὰ τοῦτο τὸ χωρίον, ἔνθα τὸ Καπιτώλιόν ἐστιν
οὐδ´ ὅλον στάδιον ἀπέχον τοῦ ποταμοῦ. ἦσαν δὲ
μέσαι τηνικαῦτα νύκτες, καὶ πολλὴ καθ´ ὅλην τὴν
πόλιν ἡσυχία, ἣν συνεργὸν λαβὼν ἐξεβίβασε τοὺς
ἄνδρας κατὰ σπουδὴν καὶ διὰ τῶν ἀκλείστων πυλῶν·
εἰσὶ γάρ τινες ἱεραὶ πύλαι τοῦ Καπιτωλίου κατά τι
θέσφατον ἀνειμέναι, Καρμεντίδας αὐτὰς καλοῦσιν·
ἀναβιβάσας τὴν δύναμιν εἶχε τὸ φρούριον. ἐκεῖθεν
δ´ ἐπὶ τὴν ἄκραν ὠσάμενος, - ἔστι δὲ τῷ Καπιτωλίῳ
προσεχής, - κἀκείνης ἐγεγόνει κύριος. ἦν δὲ αὐτοῦ
γνώμη μετὰ τὸ κρατῆσαι τῶν ἐπικαιροτάτων τόπων
τούς τε φυγάδας εἰσδέχεσθαι καὶ τοὺς δούλους εἰς
ἐλευθερίαν καλεῖν καὶ χρεῶν ἄφεσιν ὑπισχνεῖσθαι τοῖς
ἀπόροις τούς τε ἄλλους πολίτας, οἳ ταπεινὰ πράττοντες
διὰ φθόνου καὶ μίσους εἶχον τὰς ὑπεροχὰς καὶ μεταβολῆς ἄσμενοι ἂν ἐλάβοντο,
κοινωνοὺς ποιεῖσθαι τῶν
ὠφελειῶν. ἡ δὲ θαρρεῖν τε αὐτὸν ἐπαγομένη καὶ
πλανῶσα ἐλπίς, ὡς οὐθενὸς ἀτυχήσοντα τῶν προσδοκωμένων, ἡ πολιτικὴ στάσις ἦν,
δι´ ἣν οὔτε φιλίαν
οὔτε κοινωνίαν οὐδεμίαν ὑπελάμβανε τῷ δήμῳ πρὸς
τοὺς πατρικίους ἔτι γενήσεσθαι. ἐὰν δὲ ἄρα μηθὲν
αὐτῷ τούτων κατὰ νοῦν χωρῇ, τηνικαῦτα Σαβίνους
τε πανστρατιᾷ καλεῖν ἐδέδοκτο καὶ Οὐολούσκους καὶ
τῶν ἄλλων πλησιοχώρων ὅσοις ἂν ᾖ βουλομένοις ἀπηλλάχθαι τῆς Ῥωμαίων
ἐπιφθόνου ἀρχῆς.
|
|
Traduction française :
| [10,14] While the city was in such turmoil, a man of the Sabine race, of no obscure birth
and powerful because of his wealth, Appius Herdonius by name, attempted to
overthrow the supremacy of the Romans, with a view either of making himself tyrant
or of winning dominion and power for the Sabine nation or else of gaining against
name for himself. Having revealed his purpose to many of his friends and explained
to them his plan for executing it, and having received their approval, he assembled
his clients and the most daring of his servants and in a short time got together a force
of about four thousand men. Then, after supplying them with arms, provisions and
everything else that is needed for war, he embarked them on river-boats and, sailing
down the river Tiber, landed at that part of Rome where the Capitol stands, not a full
stade distant from the river. It was then midnight and there was profound quiet
throughout (p211) the entire city; with this to help him he disembarked his men in haste,
and passing through the gate which was open (for there is a certain sacred gate of the
Capitol, called the porta Carmentalis, which by the direction of some oracle is always
left open), he ascended the hill with his troops and captured the fortress. From there
he pushed on to the citadel, which adjoins the Capitol, and took possession of that
also. It was his intention, after seizing the most advantageous positions, to receive the
exiles, to summon the slaves to liberty, to promise the needy an abolition of debts,
and to share the spoils with any other citizens who, being themselves of low
condition, envied and hated those of lofty station and would have welcomed a change.
The hope that both inspired him with confidence and deceived him, by leading him to
believe that he should fail of none of his expectations, was based on the civil
dissension, because of which he imagined that neither any friendship nor any
intercourse would any longer exist between the populace and the patricians. And if
none of these expectations should turn out according to his wish, he had resolved in
that event to call in not only the Sabines with all their forces, but also the volscians
and as many from the other neighbouring peoples as desired to be delivered from the
hated domination of the Romans.
|
|
