Texte grec :
| [10,5] Ὁ δὲ πλείστους τε περὶ αὑτὸν ἔχων ἑταίρους
καὶ μέγιστον τῶν τότε νέων δυνάμενος Καίσων
Κοίντιος ἦν, υἱὸς Λευκίου Κοιντίου τοῦ καλουμένου
Κικιννάτου, ᾧ γένος τ´ ἦν ἐπιφανὲς καὶ βίος οὐθενὸς
δεύτερος, ἀνὴρ ὀφθῆναί τε κάλλιστος νέων καὶ τὰ
πολέμια πάντων λαμπρότατος φύσει τε περὶ λόγους
κεχρημένος ἀγαθῇ· ὃς ἐν τῷ τότε χρόνῳ πολὺς ἔρρει
κατὰ τῶν δημοτικῶν οὔτε λόγων φειδόμενος, ὧν βαρὺ
τοῖς ἐλευθέροις ἀκούειν, οὔτ´ ἔργων ἀκολούθων τοῖς
λόγοις ἀπεχόμενος. οἱ μὲν οὖν πατρίκιοι τίμιον αὐτὸν
ἐπὶ τούτοις εἶχον καὶ μένειν παρὰ τὰ δεινὰ ἠξίουν
αὐτοὶ παρασχεῖν τὸ ἀσφαλὲς ὑπισχνούμενοι· οἱ δ´ ἐκ
τοῦ δήμου πάντων δὴ μάλιστα αὐτὸν ἀνθρώπων ἐμίσουν.
τοῦτον τὸν ἄνδρα ἔγνωσαν οἱ δήμαρχοι πρῶτον
ἐκποδὼν ποιήσασθαι, ὡς καταπληξόμενοι τοὺς λοιποὺς
τῶν νέων καὶ προσαναγκάσοντες σωφρονεῖν. γνόντες
δὲ ταῦτα καὶ παρασκευασάμενοι λόγους τε καὶ μάρτυρας πολλοὺς
εἰσάγουσιν αὐτὸν ὑπὸ δίκην ἀδικήματος
δημοσίου, θανάτου τιμησάμενοι τὴν δίκην. παραγγείλαντες δ´ αὐτῷ
παρεῖναι πρὸς τὸν δῆμον, ἐπειδὴ
καθῆκεν ὁ χρόνος, ὃν ἔταξαν τῇ δίκῃ, συναγαγόντες
ἐκκλησίαν μακροὺς ἐποιήσαντο κατ´ αὐτοῦ λόγους, διεξιόντες ὅσα βίᾳ
διαπεπραγμένος ἐτύγχανεν εἰς τοὺς
δημότας, ὧν τοὺς πεπονθότας αὐτοὺς παρῆγον μάρτυρας. ὡς δὲ παρέδωκαν
τὸν λόγον, αὐτὸ μὲν τὸ μειράκιον οὐχ ὑπήκουε καλούμενον ἐπὶ τὴν ἀπολογίαν,
ἀλλ´ ἠξίου τοῖς ἰδιώταις αὐτοῖς ὑπὲρ ὧν ᾐτιῶντο πα–
θεῖν κατὰ τὸν νόμον ὑπέχειν δίκας, ἐπὶ τῶν ὑπάτων
τῆς κρίσεως γινομένης· ὁ δὲ πατὴρ αὐτοῦ χαλεπῶς
φέροντας τὴν αὐθάδειαν τοῦ μειρακίου τοὺς δημοτικοὺς ὁρῶν
ἀπελογεῖτο τὰ μὲν πολλὰ ψευδῆ τε καὶ ἐξ
ἐπιβουλῆς συγκείμενα κατὰ τοῦ παιδὸς ἀποδεικνύς·
ὅσα δ´ οὐκ ἐνῆν ἀρνήσασθαι μικρὰ καὶ φαῦλα καὶ οὐκ
ἄξια δημοσίας ὀργῆς εἶναι λέγων καὶ οὐδὲ ταῦτα ἐξ
ἐπιβουλῆς ἢ δι´ ὕβριν, ἀλλ´ ὑπὸ φιλοτιμίας μειρακιώδους
γεγονότα ἐπιδεικνύμενος, δι´ ἣν πολλὰ μὲν
αὐτῷ συμβῆναι δρᾶσαι τῶν ἀβουλήτων ἐν ἁψιμαχίαις,
πολλὰ δ´ ἴσως καὶ παθεῖν, οὔτε ἡλικίας ἐν τῷ κρατίστῳ
ὄντι οὔτε φρονήσεως ἐν τῷ καθαρωτάτῳ. ἠξίου τε
τοὺς δημοτικοὺς μὴ μόνον ὀργὴν μὴ ἔχειν ἐφ´ οἷς
ἥμαρτεν εἰς ὀλίγους, ἀλλὰ καὶ χάριν εἰδέναι περὶ ὧν
ἅπαντας εὖ ποιῶν ἐν τοῖς πολέμοις διετέλεσε, τοῖς
μὲν ἰδιώταις ἐλευθερίαν κτώμενος, τῇ δὲ πατρίδι
ἡγεμονίαν, ἑαυτῷ δὲ εἴ ποτε ἁμάρτοι τι φιλανθρωπίαν
παρὰ τῶν πολλῶν καὶ βοήθειαν. καὶ διεξῄει τάς τε
στρατείας πάσας καὶ τοὺς ἀγῶνας ἅπαντας, ἐξ ὧν
ἀριστεῖα καὶ στεφάνους παρὰ τῶν στρατηγῶν ἔλαβε,
πολιτῶν τε ὁπόσων ἐν ταῖς μάχαις ὑπερήσπισε καὶ
τείχεσι πολεμίων ὁσάκις πρῶτος ἐπέβη. τελευτῶν δ´
εἰς οἴκτους κατέβαινε καὶ δεήσεις, ἀντὶ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ
πρὸς ἅπαντας ἐπιεικείας βίου τε, ὃς ἐμαρτυρεῖτο αὐτῷ
πάσης καθαρὸς διαβολῆς, μίαν ἀπαιτῶν παρὰ τοῦ
δήμου χάριν, φυλάξαι τὸν υἱὸν αὐτῷ.
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Traduction française :
| [10,5] But the person who was attended with the largest number of followers and had the
most influence of all the young men at that time was Caeso Quintius, the son of
Lucius Quintius called Cincinnatus, a man of both illustrious birth and of a fortune
inferior to none, the handsomest of youths to look upon, distinguished above all
others in warfare, and (p177) possessing a natural talent for speaking. This he freely
indulged at that time against the plebeians; and he neither spared words hard for free
men to listen to nor refrained from deeds that matched his words. For these reasons
the patricians held him in great esteem and urged him to continue on his dangerous
course, promising to afford him impunity; but the plebeians hated him above all men.
This man the tribunes determined to remove out of the way first, expecting to terrify
the rest of the youths and compel them to act sensibly. Having come to this decision
and got ready their accusations and numerous witnesses, they brought him to trial for
a crime against the state, for which they fixed death as the penalty. When they had
summoned him to appear before the populace and the day they had appointed for the
trial had come, they called an assembly and delivered lengthy speeches against him,
enumerating all the acts of violence he had committed against the plebeians and
presenting as witnesses the victims of his acts in person. When they gave him leave
to speak, the youth himself, being called upon to make his defence, refused, but asked
the right to give satisfaction to the private persons themselves for the injuries of
which they accused him, the hearing to take place before the consuls. His father,
however, observing that the plebeians were offended by the haughtiness of the youth,
endeavoured to excuse him by showing that most of the accusations were false and
deliberately invented against his son; that the instances which he could not deny
were slight and trivial and not deserving the resentment of the public, and that not
(p179) even these had proceeded from design or insolence, but from a youthful ambition
which had led him to do many unpremeditated things in scrimmages perhaps to
suffer many too since he was neither at the prime of life nor at the best age for clear
judgement. And he asked the plebeians not only to entertain no resentment for the
offences which he had committed against a few, but even to feel grateful for the
services he had constantly rendered to them all in the wars while trying to secure
liberty for his fellow citizens in private life, supremacy for his country, and for
himself, if he should be guilty of any offence, friendly consideration and succour from
the people generally. He proceeded to enumerate all the campaigns and all the battles
in which he had received from his generals rewards of valour and crowns, how many
citizens he had shielded in battle, and how often he had been the first man to scale
the enemy's walls. And at last he ended with appeals to their compassion and with
entreaties; in consideration of his fairness toward all men and of his life in general,
which stood approved as free from all reproach, he asked of the people one single
favour to safeguard his son for him.
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