Texte grec :
| [10,29] Ταῦτα καὶ πολλὰ τούτοις ὅμοια εἰπὼν
παρεστήσατο τοὺς πρεσβυτάτους τῶν πατρικίων κλαίοντας, οὓς ἰδόντες πολλοὶ τῶν
δημοτικῶν οὐδ´ αὐτοὶ
κατέχειν τὰ δάκρυα ἐδύναντο. γενομένης δὲ πολλῆς
συμπαθείας πρός τε τὰς ἡλικίας τῶν ἀνδρῶν καὶ πρὸς
τὰς ἀξίας μικρὸν ἐπισχὼν ὁ ὕπατος· Οὐκ αἰσχύνεσθε,
ἔφησεν, ὦ πολῖται, οὐδὲ κατὰ γῆς δύεσθε, εἰ οἵδε οἱ
γέροντες ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν τῶν νέων τὰ ὅπλα ἀναλήψονται,
ἀλλ´ ὑπομενεῖτε ἀπολειφθῆναι τούτων ἡγουμένων, οὓς
ἀεὶ πατέρας ἐκαλεῖτε; ὦ σχέτλιοι ὑμεῖς καὶ οὐδὲ πολῖται
ταύτης ἄξιοι λέγεσθαι τῆς γῆς, ἣν ἔκτισαν οἱ τοὺς
πατέρας ἐπὶ τῶν ὤμων ἐνέγκαντες, οἷς καὶ δι´ ὅπλων
καὶ διὰ πυρὸς ὁδοὺς ἀσφαλεῖς θεοὶ παρέσχον. Ὡς δὲ
κατέμαθεν ὁ Οὐεργίνιος ἀγόμενον τὸν δῆμον ὑπὸ τῶν
λόγων, δεδοικώς, μὴ παρὰ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γνώμην κοινωνεῖν
ὑπομείνῃ τοῦ πολέμου, παρελθὼν εἶπεν· Ἡμεῖς
οὔτ´ ἐγκαταλείπομεν οὔτε προδίδομεν ὑμᾶς, ὦ πατέρες,
οὐδ´ ἂν ἀπολειφθείημεν ὑμῶν, ὥσπερ οὐδὲ πρότερον
ἠξιώσαμεν οὐδεμιᾶς ἀπολειφθῆναι στρατείας, ἀλλὰ καὶ
ζῆν αἱρούμεθα σὺν ὑμῖν καὶ πάσχειν, ὅ τι ἂν τῷ
δαίμονι δοκῇ, μεθ´ ὑμῶν. πρόθυμοι δ´ ἐν παντὶ καιρῷ
περὶ ὑμᾶς γεγονότες ἀξιοῦμεν μετρίας παρ´ ὑμῶν
τυχεῖν χάριτος, ὥσπερ τῶν κοινῶν κινδύνων ἰσομοιροῦμεν ὑμῖν, οὕτως καὶ τῶν
δικαίων τὸ ἴσον ἔχειν,
νόμους καταστησάμενοι φύλακας τῆς ἐλευθερίας, οἷς
ἅπαντες ἀεὶ χρησόμεθα. εἰ δὲ προσίσταται τοῦθ´
ὑμῖν, καὶ οὐκ ἀξιοῦτε τοῖς ἑαυτῶν πολίταις ταύτην
συγχωρῆσαι τὴν χάριν, ἀλλὰ θανάτου τιμᾶσθε τὸ
μεταδοῦναι τῷ δήμῳ τῆς ἰσηγορίας, οὐκέτι φιλονεικοῦμεν ὑμῖν· αἰτησόμεθα δ´ ἑτέραν
παρ´ ὑμῶν χάριν, ἧς
τυχόντες ἴσως ἂν οὐδὲ καινῶν ἔτι δεηθείημεν νόμων.
εἰσέρχεται δ´ ἡμᾶς εὐλάβεια, μή ποτε οὐδὲ ταύτης
τύχωμεν, ἐξ ἧς τῇ βουλῇ μὲν οὐδὲν ἔσται βλάβος, τῷ
δὲ δήμῳ τιμή τις ὑπάρξει καὶ φιλανθρωπία.
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Traduction française :
| [10,29] After he had said this and many things to the same purport, he brought before
them the oldest patricians in tears, at sight of whom many of the plebeians could not
even themselves refrain from weeping. When great compassion had been aroused
both by the age and the dignity of these men, the consul, after a short pause, said:
"Are you not ashamed, citizens, and ready to sink beneath the earth, when these old
men are going to take up arms in defence of you who are young? Will you bear to
abandon these leaders whom you always called fathers? Wretched men that you are,
and unworthy even to be called citizens of this land settled by men who carried their
fathers on their shoulders,33 men to whom the gods granted a safe passage through
arms and through fire!" When Verginius perceived that the people were moved by
these words, he was afraid lest, contrary to his desire, they might consent to join in
the war; and coming forward, he said: "As for us, we are neither abandoning nor
betraying you, fathers, nor would we desert you, even as we have hitherto never
declined taking part in any expedition; on the contrary, we choose both to live with
you and to suffer with you whatever Heaven shall decree. But since we have at all
times been zealous in your service, we desire to receive from you a moderate favour —
that, even as we share the common dangers with you, so we may also enjoy an
equality (p267) of rights, by instituting as safeguards of our liberty laws which we shall
all alike use always. However, if this proposal offends you and you do not deign to
grant this favour to your fellow citizens, but regard it as a capital crime to give the
populace an equal share of rights, we shall no longer contend with you; but we shall
ask another favour of you, upon obtaining which we may possibly no longer stand in
need of new laws. We have a shrewd suspicion, however, that we shall not obtain
even this favour — one which, while doing no injury to the senate, will bring to the
populace a kind of honour and general goodwill."
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