[11,59] Ὑποσχόμενος δὲ ταῦτα καὶ δοὺς ἐξουσίαν τοῖς βουλομένοις λέγειν, ἐπειδὴ οὔτε κατηγορήσων οὔτ´ ἀπολογησόμενος οὐδεὶς ὑπὲρ τοῦ νόμου παρῄει, παρελθὼν αὖθις ἐρωτᾷ πρῶτον Οὐαλέριον, τί τῷ κοινῷ συμφέρει, καὶ τί προβουλεῦσαι τοῖς συνέδροις παραινεῖ. ὁ δ´ ἀναστὰς καὶ πολλοὺς διεξελθὼν ὑπὲρ αὑτοῦ τε καὶ τῶν προγόνων λόγους ὡς ἐπὶ τῷ συμφέροντι τῆς πόλεως τοῦ δημοτικοῦ μέρους προϊσταμένων, καὶ καταριθμησάμενος ἅπαντας ἐξ ἀρχῆς τοὺς κατασχόντας τὴν πόλιν κινδύνους ἐκ τῶν τἀναντία πολιτευομένων, τοῖς τ´ ἀπεχθῶς ἐσχηκόσι πρὸς τὸ δημοτικὸν ἅπασιν ἀλυσιτελὲς γενόμενον ἀποδείξας τὸ μισόδημον, ἐπαίνους τε πολλοὺς περὶ τοῦ δήμου ποιησάμενος, ὡς αἰτιωτάτου τῇ πόλει γεγονότος οὐ μόνον τῆς ἐλευθερίας, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς ἡγεμονίας, ἐπεὶ ταῦτα καὶ παραπλήσια τούτοις διεξῆλθε, τελευτῶν ἔφη μὴ δύνασθαι πόλιν ἐλευθέραν εἶναι, ἐξ ἧς ἄν τις τὴν ἰσότητ´ ἀνέλῃ· ἔφη τε δοκεῖν ἑαυτῷ τὸν μὲν νόμον δίκαιον εἶναι τὸν ἀξιοῦντα πᾶσι μετεῖναι Ῥωμαίοις τῆς ὑπατικῆς ἀρχῆς, τοῖς γε δὴ βίον ἀνεπίληπτον ἐσχηκόσι καὶ πράξεις ἀποδεδειγμένοις τῆς τιμῆς ταύτης ἀξίας, τὸν δὲ καιρὸν οὐκ ἐπιτήδειον εἰς τὴν ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ διάγνωσιν ἐν πολεμικαῖς ὑπαρχούσης ταραχαῖς τῆς πόλεως· συνεβούλευέ τε τοῖς μὲν δημάρχοις ἐᾶν τὴν καταγραφὴν γενέσθαι τῶν στρατιωτῶν καὶ τὴν ἔξοδον μὴ κωλύειν τῶν καταγραφέντων, τοῖς δ´ ὑπάτοις, ὅταν τὸ κράτιστον τέλος ἐπιθῶσι τῷ πολέμῳ, πρῶτον ἁπάντων τὸ περὶ τοῦ νόμου προβούλευμα εἰς τὸν δῆμον ἐξενεγκεῖν. ταῦτα δὲ γραφῆναί τ´ ἤδη καὶ διομολογηθῆναι πρὸς ἀμφοτέρων. Ταύτην ἀποδειξαμένου τὴν γνώμην Οὐαλερίου καὶ μετὰ τοῦτον Ὁρατίου - δευτέρῳ γὰρ τούτῳ λόγον ἀπέδωκαν οἱ ὕπατοι - ταὐτὸ πάθος ἅπασι τοῖς παροῦσι συνέβη. οἱ μὲν γὰρ ἀνελεῖν τὸν νόμον βουλόμενοι τὴν ἀναβολὴν τῆς περὶ αὐτοῦ διαγνώσεως ἀγαπητῶς ἀκούσαντες, τὸ μετὰ τὸν πόλεμον ἐπάναγκες εἶναι σφίσι προβουλεῦσαι περὶ αὐτοῦ χαλεπῶς ἀπεδέξαντο· οἱ δὲ κύριον ὑπὸ τοῦ συνεδρίου κριθῆναι προαιρούμενοι τὸ μὲν ὡμολογημένον δίκαιον εἶναι τὸν νόμον ἀσμένως ἤκουον, τὸ δ´ εἰς ἑτέρους ἐκπίπτειν χρόνους τὸ προβούλευμα πρὸς ὀργὴν ἐλάμβανον.

[11,59] After making these promises he gave leave (p183) to any who so desired to speak; and when no one came forward either to censure the law or to defend it, he came forward again, and beginning with Valerius, asked him what was to the interest of the public and what preliminary vote he advised the senators to pass.Valerius, rising up, made a long speech concerning both himself and his ancestors, who, he said, had always been champions of the plebeian party to the advantage of the commonwealth. He enumerated all the dangers from the beginning which had been brought upon it by those who pursued the contrary measures and showed that a hatred for the populace had been unprofitable to all those who had been actuated by it. He then said many things in praise of the people, alleging that they had been the principal cause not only of the liberty but also of the supremacy of the commonwealth. After enlarging upon this and similar themes, he ended by saying that no state could be free from which equality was banished;and he declared that to him the law, indeed, seemed just which gave a share in the consulship to all Romans, — to all, that is, who had led irreproachable lives and had performed actions worthy of that honour, — but he thought the occasion was not suitable for the consideration of this law when the commonwealth was in the midst of war's disturbances. He advised the tribunes to permit the enrolling of the troops and not to hinder them when enrolled from taking the field; and he advised the consuls, when they had ended the war in the most successful manner, first of all things to lay before the people the preliminary decree concerning the law. (p185) These proposals, he urged, should be reduced to writing at once and agreed to by both parties.This opinion of Valerius, which was supported by Horatius (For the consuls gave him leave to speak next), had the same effect upon all who were present. For those who desired to do away with the law, though pleased to hear that its consideration was postponed, nevertheless accepted with anger the necessity of passing a preliminary decree concerning it after the war; while the others, who preferred to have the law approved by the senate, though glad to hear it acknowledged as just, were at the same time angry that the preliminary decree was put off to another time.