μετὰ δὲ τὰς Ἑλληνικὰς πράξεις καὶ τὸν Ἀντιοχικὸν πόλεμον ἀπεδείχθη τιμητής, ἥτις ἐστὶν ἀρχὴ μεγίστη καὶ τρόπον τινὰ τῆς πολιτείας ἐπιτελείωσις. καὶ συνῆρχε μὲν αὐτῷ Μαρκέλλου τοῦ πεντάκις ὑπατεύσαντος υἱός, ἐξέβαλον δὲ τῆς βουλῆς τῶν οὐκ ἄγαν ἐπιφανῶν τέσσαρας, προσεδέξαντο δὲ πολίτας ἀπογραφομένους πάντας, ὅσοι γονέων ἐλευθέρων ἦσαν, ἀναγκασθέντες ὑπὸ τοῦ δημάρχου Τερεντίου Κουλέωνος, ὃς ἐπηρεάζων τοῖς ἀριστοκρατικοῖς ἔπεισε τὸν δῆμον ταῦτα ψηφίσασθαι.
After his achievements in Greece and the war with Antiochus, Titus was appointed censor. This is the highest office at Rome, and in a manner the culmination of a political career. Titus had as colleague in this office a son of the Marcellus who had been five times consul, and the two censors ejected from the senate four men of lesser note, and received into citizenship all who offered themselves for enrolment, provided they were born of free parents. To this step they were forced by the tribune Terentius Culeo, who wanted to spite the nobility and so persuaded the people to vote the measure.
τῶν δὲ γνωριμωτάτων κατʼ αὑτὸν ἀνδρῶν καὶ μεγίστων ἐν τῇ πόλει διαφερομένων πρὸς ἀλλήλους, Ἀφρικανοῦ Σκηπίωνος καὶ Μάρκου Κάτωνος, τὸν μὲν προέγραψε τῆς βουλῆς, ὡς ἄριστον ἄνδρα καὶ πρῶτον, Κάτωνι δἐ εἰς ἔχθραν ἦλθε συμφορᾷ τοιαύτῃ χρησάμενος. ἀδελφὸς ἦν Τίτῳ Λεύκιος Φλαμινῖνος, οὔτε τὰ ἄλλα προσεοικὼς ἐκείνῳ τὴν φύσιν ἔν τε ταῖς ἡδοναῖς ἀνελεύθερος δεινῶς καὶ ὀλιγωρότατος τοῦ πρέποντος.
The two men of his time who were most notable and had the greatest influence in the city, Scipio Africanus and Marcus Cato, were at variance with one another. Of these, Titus appointed Scipio to be Dean of the Senate, believing him to be its best and foremost man; but with Cato he came into hostile relations, owing to the following unfortunate circumstances. Titus had a brother, Lucius, who was unlike him in all other ways, and especially in his shameful addiction to pleasure and his utter contempt of decency.
τούτῳ συνῆν μειρακίσκος ἐρώμενος, ὃν καὶ στρατιᾶς ἄρχων ἐπήγετο καὶ διέπων ἐπαρχίας εἶχεν ἀεὶ περὶ αὑτόν, ἔν οὖν πότῳ τινὶ θρυπτόμενος πρὸς τὸν Λεύκιον οὕτως ἔφη σφόδρα φιλεῖν αὐτόν ὥστε θέαν μονομάχων ἀπολιπεῖν οὔπω γεγονὼς ἀνθρώπου φονευομένου θεατής, τὸ πρὸς ἐκεῖνον ἡδὺ τοῦ πρὸς αὑτὸν ἐν πλείονι λόγῳ θέμενος. ὁ δὲ Λεύκιος ἡσθείς οὐδὲν, ἔφη, δεινόν· ἰάσομαι γὰρ ἐγώ σου τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν.
This brother had as companion a young boy whom he loved, and took him about and kept him always in his train, whether he was commanding an army or administering a province. At some drinking party, then, this boy was playing the coquet with Lucius, and said he loved him so ardently that he had come away from a show of gladiators in order to be with him, although he had never in all his life seen a man killed; and he had done so, he said, because he cared more for his lover’s pleasure than for his own. Lucius was delighted at this, and said: Don’t worry about that! I will give thee thy heart’s desire.
καὶ κελεύσας ἕνα τῶν καταδίκων ἐκ τοῦ δεσμωτηρίου προαχθῆναι, καὶ τὸν ὑπηρέτην μεταπεμψάμενος, ἐν τῷ συμποσίῳ προσέταξεν ἀποκόψαι τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τὸν τράχηλον. Οὐαλλέριος δὲ Ἀντίας οὐκ ἐρωμένῳ φησίν, ἀλλʼ ἐρωμένῃ τοῦτο χαρίσασθαι τὸν Λεύκιον. ὁ δὲ Λίβιος ἐν λόγῳ Κάτωνος αὐτοῦ γεγράφθαι φησίν, ὡς Γαλάτην αὐτόμολον ἐλθόντα μετὰ παίδων καὶ γυναικὸς ἐπὶ τὰς θύρας δεξάμενος εἰς τὸ συμπόσιον ὁ Λεύκιος ἀπέκτεινεν ἰδίᾳ χειρί τῷ ἐρωμένῳ χαριζόμενος.
Then ordering a man who had been condemned to death to be brought forth from his prison, and sending for a lictor, he commanded him to strike off the man’s head there in the banquet-hall. Valerius Antias, however, says it was not a lover, but a mistress whom Lucius thus sought to gratify. And Livy says that in a speech of Cato himself it is written that a Gaulish deserter had come to the door with his wife and children, and that Lucius admitted him into the banquet-hall and slew him with his own hand to gratify his lover.
τοῦτο μὲν οὖν εἰκὸς εἰς δείνωσιν εἰρῆσθαι τῆς κατηγορίας ὑπὸ τοῦ Κάτωνος· ὅτι δὲ οὐκ αὐτόμολον ἤν, ἀλλὰ δεσμώτης ὁ ἀναιρεθεὶς καὶ ἐκ τῶν καταδίκων, ἄλλοι τε πολλοὶ καὶ Κικέρων ὁ ῥήτωρ ἐν τῷ περὶ γήρως αὐτῷ Κάτωνι τὴν διήγησιν ἀναθείς εἴρηκεν.
This feature, however, was probably introduced by Cato to strengthen the force of his denunciation; for that it was not a deserter, but a prisoner, who was put to death, and one who had been condemned to die, is the testimony of many others, and especially of Cicero the orator in his treatise On Old Age, where he puts the story in the mouth of Cato himself.
ἐπὶ τούτῳ Κάτων τιμητὴς γενόμενος καὶ καθαίρων τὴν σύγκλητον ἀπήλασε τῆς βουλῆς τὸν Λεύκιον, ὑπατικοῦ μὲν ἀξιώματος ὄντα, συνατιμοῦσθαι δὲ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ δοκοῦντος αὐτῷ. διὸ καὶ προελθόντες εἰς τὸν δῆμον ἀμφότεροι ταπεινοὶ καὶ δεδακρυμένοι μέτρια δεῖσθαι τῶν πολιτῶν ἐδόκουν, ἀξιοῦντες αἰτίαν εἰπεῖν τὸν Κάτωνα καὶ λόγον, ᾧ χρησάμενος οἶκον ἔνδοξον ἀτιμίᾳ τοσαύτῃ περιβέβληκεν.
In view of this, when Cato became censor and was purging the senate of its unworthy members, he expelled from it Lucius Flamininus, although he was a man of consular dignity, and although his brother Titus was thought to be involved in his disgrace. Therefore the two brothers came before the people in lowly garb and bathed in tears, and made what seemed a reasonable request of their fellow citizens, namely, that Cato should state the reasons which had led him to visit a noble house with a disgrace so great.
οὐδὲν οὖν ὑποστειλάμενος ὁ Κάτων προῆλθε, καὶ καταστὰς μετὰ τοῦ συνάρχοντος ἠρώτησε τὸν Τίτον εἰ γινώσκει τὸ συμπόσιον. ἀρνουμένου δὲ ἐκείνου, διηγησάμενος εἰς ὁρισμὸν προεκαλεῖτο τὸν Λεύκιον εἴ τί φησι τῶν εἰρημένων μὴ ἀληθὲς εἶναι, τοῦ δὲ Λευκίου σιωπήσαντος, ὁ μὲν δῆμος ἔγνω δικαίαν γεγονέναι τὴν ἀτιμίαν καὶ τὸν Κάτωνα προέπεμψε λαμπρῶς ἀπὸ τοῦ βήματος,
Without any hesitation, then, Cato came forward, and standing with his colleague before Titus, asked him if he knew about the banquet. Titus said he did not, whereupon Cato related the incident and formally challenged Lucius to say whether any part of the story told was not true. But Lucius was dumb, and the people therefore saw that he had been justly disgraced, and gave Cato a splendid escort away from the rostra.
ὁ δὲ Τίτος τῇ συμφορᾷ τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ περιπαθῶν συνέστη μετὰ τῶν πάλαι μισούντων τὸν Κάτωνα καὶ πάσας μὲν ἃς ἐκεῖνος ἐποιήσατο τῶν δημοσίων ἐκδόσεις καὶ μισθώσεις καὶ ὠνὰς ἠκύρωσε καὶ ἀνέλυσεν ἐν τῇ βουλῇ κρατήσας, πολλὰς δὲ καὶ μεγάλας δίκας κατʼ αὐτοῦ παρεσκεύασεν, οὐκ οἶδὲ ὅπως εὖ καὶ πολιτικῶς πρὸς ἄρχοντα νόμιμον καὶ πολίτην ἄριστον ὑπὲρ ἀνδρὸς οἰκείου μέν, ἀναξίου δὲ καὶ τὰ προσήκοντα πεπονθότος ἀνήκεστον ἔχθραν ἀράμενος.
Titus, however, was so affected by the misfortune of his brother that he leagued himself with those who had long hated Cato, and after getting the upper hand in the senate, revoked and annulled all the public rentals and leases and contracts which Cato had made, besides bringing many heavy indictments against him. That he acted the part of a good man or a good citizen I cannot affirm, in thus cherishing an incurable hatred against a lawful magistrate and a most excellent citizen on account of a man who, though a kinsman, was nevertheless unworthy and had suffered only what he deserved.
οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ τοῦ Ῥωμαίων ποτὲ δήμου θέαν ἔχοντος ἐν τῷ θεάτρῳ καὶ τῆς βουλῆς, ὥσπερ εἴωθε, κόσμῳ προκαθημένης, ὀφθεὶς ὁ Λεύκιος ἐπʼ ἐσχάτοις που καθήμενος ἀτίμως καὶ ταπεινῶς οἶκτον ἔσχε· καὶ τὸ πλῆθος οὐκ ἠνέσχετο τὴν ὄψιν, ἀλλʼ ἐβόων μεταβῆναι κελεύοντες, ἕως μετέβη, δεξαμένων αὐτὸν εἰς ἑαυτοὺς τῶν ὑπατικῶν.
However, as the Roman people was once enjoying a spectacle in the theatre, and the senate, according to custom, had seats of honour in the foremost rows, Lucius was seen sitting somewhere in the rear among the poor and lowly, and excited men’s pity. The multitude could not bear the sight, but kept shouting to him to change his place, until he did change his place, and was received among their own number by the men of consular rank.
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