μετὰ ταῦτα Κλώδιον μὲν ἀποκτίννυσι Μίλων· καὶ διωκόμενος φόνου Κικέρωνα παρεστήσατο συνήγορον. ἡ δὲ βουλὴ φοβηθεῖσα μὴ κινδυνεύοντος ἀνδρὸς ἐνδόξου καὶ θυμοειδοῦς τοῦ Μίλωνος ταραχὴ γένηται περὶ τὴν πόλιν, ἐπέτρεψε Πομπηίῳ ταύτην τε καὶ τὰς ἄλλας κρίσεις βραβεῦσαι, παρέχοντα τῇ πόλει καὶ τοῖς δικαστηρίοις ἀσφάλειαν.
After this Clodius was killed by Milo; and Milo, being prosecuted for murder, engaged Cicero as his advocate. But the senate was afraid that at the trial of Milo, who was a man of repute and high spirit, there might be a disturbance in the city, and therefore intrusted the superintendence of this and the other trials to Pompey, who was to furnish security for the city and the courts of justice.
ἐκείνου δὲ τὴν ἀγορὰν ἔτι νυκτὸς ἀπὸ τῶν ἄκρων περιλαβόντος τοῖς στρατιώταις, ὁ Μίλων τὸν Κικέρωνα δείσας μὴ πρὸς τὴν ὄψιν ἀηθείᾳ διαταραχθεὶς χεῖρον διαγωνίσηται, συνέπεισεν ἐν φορείῳ κομισθέντα πρὸς τὴν ἀγορὰν ἡσυχάζειν, ἄχρι οὗ συνίασιν οἱ κριταὶ καὶ πληροῦται τὸ δικαστήριον.
So Pompey, while it was still night, posted his soldiers on the heights so as to command the forum, and Milo, fearing that Cicero might be disturbed at the unusual sight and conduct his case less successfully, persuaded him to be brought in a litter to the forum and to wait there quietly until the jurors assembled and the court-room was filled.
ὁ δʼ οὐ μόνον ἦν, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἐν ὅπλοις ἀθαρσής, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῷ λέγειν μετὰ φόβου προσῄει, καὶ μόλις ἂν ἐπαύσατο παλλόμενος καὶ τρέμων ἐπὶ πολλῶν ἀγώνων ἀκμὴν τοῦ λόγου καὶ κατάστασιν λαβόντος. Λικιννίῳ δὲ Μουρήνᾳ φεύγοντι δίκην ὑπὸ Κάτωνος βοηθῶν, καὶ φιλοτιμούμενος Ὁρτήσιον ὑπερβαλεῖν εὐημερήσαντα, μέρος οὐδὲν ἀνεπαύσατο τῆς νυκτός, ὡς ὑπὸ τοῦ σφόδρα φροντίσαι καὶ διαγρυπνῆσαι κακωθεὶς ἐνδεέστερος αὐτοῦ φανῆναι.
Now Cicero, as it would seem, was not only without courage under arms, but also felt fear when he began to speak, and in many trials he hardly ceased quivering and trembling after his eloquence had become high and sustained. When he was to plead for Licinius Murena in a case brought against him by Cato, and was ambitious to surpass Hortensius, whom had made a successful plea, he took no rest at all during the night before, so that his lack of sleep and his great anxiety did him harm, and he was thought inferior to himself in his plea.
τότε δʼ οὖν ἐπὶ τὴν τοῦ Μίλωνος δίκην ἐκ τοῦ φορείου προελθών καὶ θεασάμενος τὸν Πομπήϊον ἄνω καθεζόμενον ὥσπερ ἐν στρατοπέδῳ, καὶ κύκλῳ τὰ ὅπλα περιλάμποντα τὴν ἀγοράν, συνεχύθη καὶ μόλις ἐνήρξατο τοῦ λόγου, κραδαινόμενος τὸ σῶμα καὶ τὴν φωνὴν ἐνισχόμενος, αὐτοῦ τοῦ Μίλωνος εὐθαρσῶς καὶ ἀνδρείως παρισταμένου τῷ ἀγῶνι καὶ κόμην θρέψαι καὶ μεταβαλεῖν ἐσθῆτα φαιὰν ἀπαξιώσαντος· ὅπερ οὐχ ἥκιστα δοκεῖ συναίτιον αὐτῷ γενέσθαι τῆς καταδίκης· ἀλλʼ ὅ γε Κικέρων διὰ ταῦτα φιλέταιρος μᾶλλον ἢ δειλὸς ἔδοξεν εἶναι.
And so at this time, when he came out of his litter to plead Milo’s cause and saw Pompey stationed on the heights as in a camp, and arms flashing all around the forum, he was confounded and could scarcely begin his speech, for his body quivered and his voice faltered; whereas Milo showed the good courage of a brave man at the trial and had not deigned to let his hair go untrimmed or to change his attire to a dark one; and this seems most of all to have contributed to his condemnation. However, Cicero’s behaviour led men to think him devoted to his friends rather than cowardly.
γίνεται δὲ καὶ τῶν ἱερέων οὓς Αὔγουρας Ῥωμαῖοι καλοῦσιν, ἀντὶ Κράσσου τοῦ νέου μετὰ τὴν ἐν Πάρθοις αὐτοῦ τελευτήν. εἶτα κλήρῳ λαχὼν τῶν ἐπαρχιῶν Κιλικίαν καὶ στρατὸν ὁπλιτῶν μυρίων καὶ δισχιλίων, ἱππέων δὲ δισχιλίων ἑξακοσίων, ἔπλευσε, προσταχθὲν αὐτῷ καὶ τὰ περὶ Καππαδοκίαν Ἀριοβαρζάνῃ τῷ βασιλεῖ φίλα καὶ πειθήνια παρασχεῖν.
He became also one of the priests whom the Romans call Augurs, in place of the younger Crassus, who had died among the Parthians. Then the lot gave him Cilicia as his province, with an army of twelve thousand men-at-arms and twenty-six hundred horsemen, and he set sail, with instructions to keep Cappadocia friendly and obedient to King Ariobarzanes.
ταῦτα τε δὴ παρεστήσατο καὶ συνήρμοσεν ἀμέμπτως ἄτερ πολέμου, τούς τε Κίλικας ὁρῶν πρός τὸ Παρθικὸν πταῖσμα Ῥωμαίων καὶ τὸν ἐν Συρίᾳ νεωτερισμὸν ἐπηρμένους κατεπράυνεν ἡμέρως ἄρχων, καὶ δῶρα μὲν οὐδὲ τῶν βασιλέων διδόντων ἔλαβε, δείπνων δὲ τούς ἐπαρχικοὺς ἀνῆκεν αὐτὸς δὲ καθʼ ἡμέραν τοὺς χαρίεντας ἀνελάμβανεν ἑστιάσεσιν οὐ πολυτελῶς, ἀλλʼ ἐλευθερίως.
This he accomplished and arranged satisfactorily without war, and seeing that the Cilicians, in view of the Parthian disaster to the Romans and the uprising in Syria, were in an agitated state, he pacified them by his mild government. Gifts he would not receive, not even when the kings offered them, and he relieved the provincials from the expense of entertainments; but he himself daily received men of pleasing accomplishments at banquets which were not expensive, although generous.
ἡ δʼ οἰκία θυρωρὸν οὐκ εἶχεν, οὐδʼ αὐτὸς ὤφθη κατακείμενος ὑπʼ οὐδενός, ἀλλʼ ἕωθεν ἑστὼς ἢ περιπατῶν πρὸ τοῦ δωματίου τούς ἀσπαζομένους ἐδεξιοῦτο. λέγεται δὲ μήτε ῥάβδοις αἰκίσασθαί τινα μήτʼ ἐσθῆτα περισχίσαι μήτε βλασφημίαν ὑπʼ ὀργῆς ἢ ζημίας προσβαλεῖν μεθʼ ὕβρεων.
His house, too, had no door-keeper, nor did anyone ever see him lying a-bed, but early in the morning he would stand or walk in front of his chamber and receive those who came to pay him their respects. It is said, moreover, that he never ordered any man to be chastised with rods or to have his raiment torn from him, and that he never inflicted angry abuse or contumelious punishments.
ἀνευρὼν δὲ πολλὰ τῶν δημοσίων κεκλεμμένα τάς τε πόλεις εὐπόρους ἐποίησε, καὶ τούς ἀποτίνοντας οὐδὲν τούτου πλεῖον παθόντας ἐπιτίμους διεφύλαξεν. ἥψατο δὲ καὶ πολέμου, λῃστὰς τῶν περὶ τὸν Ἀμανὸν οἰκούντων τρεψάμενος· ἐφʼ ᾧ καὶ αὐτοκράτωρ ὑπὸ τῶν στρατιωτῶν ἀνηγορεύθη.
He discovered that much of the public property had been embezzled, and by restoring it he made the cities well-to-do, and men who made restitution he maintained in their civil rights without further penalties. He engaged in war, too, and routed the robbers who made their homes on Mount Amanus; and for this he was actually saluted by his soldiers as Imperator.
Καιλίου δὲ τοῦ ῥήτορος δεομένου παρδάλεις αὐτῷ πρός τινα θέαν εἰς Ῥώμην ἐκ Κιλικίας ἀποστεῖλαι, καλλωπιζόμενος ἐπὶ τοῖς πεπραγμένοις γράφει πρός αὐτὸν οὐκ εἶναι παρδάλεις ἐν Κιλικίᾳ· πεφευγέναι γὰρ εἰς Καρίαν ἀγανακτούσας ὅτι μόναι πολεμοῦνται, πάντων εἰρήνην ἐχόντων, πλέων δʼ ἀπὸ τῆς ἐπαρχίας τοῦτο μὲν Ῥόδῳ προσέσχε, τοῦτο δʼ Ἀθήναις ἐνδιέτριψεν ἄσμενος πόθῳ τῶν πάλαι διατριβῶν.
When Caelius the orator asked Cicero to send him panthers from Cilicia for a certain spectacle at Rome, Cicero, pluming himself upon his exploits, wrote to him that there were no panthers in Cilicia; for they had fled to Caria in indignation because they alone were warred upon, while everything else enjoyed peace. On his voyage back from his province he first touched at Rhodes, and then gladly spent some time at Athens in fond remembrance of his old pursuits in that place.
ἀνδράσι δὲ τοῖς πρώτοις ἀπὸ παιδείας συγγενόμενος καὶ τούς τότε φίλους καὶ συνήθεις ἀσπασάμενος καὶ τὰ πρέποντα θαυμασθεὶς ὑπὸ τῆς Ἑλλάδος εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἐπανῆλθεν, ἤδη τῶν πραγμάτων ὥσπερ ὑπὸ φλεγμονῆς ἀφισταμένων ἐπὶ τὸν ἐμφύλιον πόλεμον.
Then, after associating with men who were foremost for their learning, and after greeting his old-time friends and intimates, and after receiving from Greece the tokens of admiration that were his due, he returned to Rome, where a violent inflammation, as it were, was already forcing matters on towards the civil war.
Cite This Text