ἐκ τούτου πάλιν ἄλλας αἰτίας αὐτῷ καὶ δίκας ἐπῆ; γον ὡς τοὺς συμμάχους ἀφιστάντι καὶ κεκοινωνηκότι τῆς περὶ Φρέγελλαν ἐνδειχθείσης συνωμοσίας, ὁ δὲ πᾶσαν ὑποψίαν ἀπολυσάμενος καὶ φανεὶς καθαρὸς εὐθὺς ἐπὶ δημαρχίαν ὥρμησε, τῶν μὲν γνωρίμων ἀνδρῶν ὁμαλῶς ἁπάντων ἐναντιουμένων πρὸς αὐτόν, ὄχλου δὲ τοσούτου συρρέοντος εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἐκ τῆς Ἰταλίας καὶ συναρχαιρεσιάζοντος ὡς πολλοῖς μὲν οἰκήσεις ἐπιλιπεῖν, τοῦ δὲ πεδίου μὴ δεξαμένου τὸ πλῆθος ἀπὸ τῶν τεγῶν καὶ τῶν κεράμων τὰς φωνὰς συνηχεῖν.
After this, other fresh charges and indictments were brought against him, on the ground that he had caused the allies to revolt and had been privy to the conspiracy at Fregellae, information of which was brought to Rome. But he cleared himself of all suspicion, and having established his entire innocence, immediately began a canvass for the tribuneship. All the men of note, without exception, were opposed to him, but so great a throng poured into the city from the country and took part in the elections that many could not be housed, and since the Campus Martius could not accommodate the multitude, they gave in their voices from the house-tops and tilings.
τοσοῦτον δʼ οὖν ἐξεβιάσαντο τὸν δῆμον οἱ δυνατοὶ καὶ τῆς ἐλπίδος τοῦ Γαΐου καθεῖλον, ὅσον οὐχ, ὡς προσεδόκησε, πρῶτον, ἀλλά τέταρτον ἀναγορευθῆναι. παραλαβὼν δὲ τὴν ἀρχὴν εὐθὺς ἦν ἁπάντων πρῶτος, ἰσχύων τε τῷ λέγειν, ὡς ἄλλος οὐδείς, καὶ τοῦ πάθους αὐτῷ παρρησίαν πολλὴν διδόντος ἀνακλαιομένῳ τὸν ἀδελφόν.
So far, however, did the nobility prevail against the people and disappoint the hopes of Caius that he was not returned first, as he expected, but fourth. But after entering upon his office he was at once first of all the tribunes, since he had an incomparable power in oratory, and his affliction gave him great boldness of speech in bewailing the fate of his brother.
ἐνταῦθα γὰρ ἐξ ἁπάσης προφάσεως περιῆγε τὸν δῆμον, ἀναμιμνῄσκων τῶν γεγονότων καὶ παρατιθεὶς τὰ τῶν προγόνων, ὡς ἐκεῖνοι μὲν καὶ Φαλίσκοις ἐπολέμησαν ὑπὲρ Γενυκίου τινὸς δημάρχου λοιδορηθέντος, καὶ Γαΐου Βετουρίου θάνατον κατέγνωσαν, ὅτι δημάρχῳ πορευομένῳ διʼ ἀγορᾶς οὐχ ὑπεξέστη μόνος· ὑμῶν δὲ ὁρώντων, ἔφη, Τιβέριον ξύλοις συνέκοπτον οὗτοι, καὶ διὰ μέσης τῆς πόλεως ἐσύρετο νεκρὸς ἐκ Καπετωλίου ῥιφησόμενος εἰς τὸν ποταμόν·
For to this subject he would bring the people round on every pretext, reminding them of what had happened in the case of Tiberius, and contrasting the conduct of their ancestors, who went to war with the people of Falerii on behalf of Genucius, a tribune whom they had insulted, and condemned Caius Veturius to death because he was the only man who would not make way for a tribune passing through the forum. But before your eyes, he said, these men beat Tiberius to death with clubs, and his dead body was dragged from the Capitol through the midst of the city to be thrown into the Tiber; moreover, those of his friends who were caught were put to death without trial.
οἱ δὲ ἁλισκόμενοι τῶν φίλων ἀπέθνῃσκον ἄκριτοι, καίτοι πάτριόν ἐστιν ἡμῖν, εἴ τις ἔχων δίκην θανατικὴν μὴ ὑπακούει, τούτου πρὸς τὰς θύρας ἕωθεν ἐλθόντα σαλπιγκτὴν ἀνακαλεῖσθαι τῇ σάλπιγγι, καὶ μὴ πρότερον ἐπιφέρειν ψῆφον αὐτῷ τοὺς δικαστάς. οὕτως εὐλαβεῖς καὶ πεφυλαγμένοι περὶ τὰς κρίσεις ἦσαν.
And yet it is ancient usage among us that if anyone who is arraigned on a capital charge does not answer to his summons, a trumpeter shall go to the door of this man’s house in the morning and summon him forth by sound of trumpet, and until this has been done the judges shall not vote on his case. So careful and guarded were the men of old in capital cases.
τοιούτοις λόγοις προανασείσας τὸν δῆμον ἦν δὲ καὶ μεγαλοφωνότατος, καὶ ῥωμαλεώτατος ἐν τῷ λέγειν, δύο νόμους εἰσέφερε, τὸν μέν, εἴ τινος ἄρχοντος ἀφῃρῇτο τὴν ἀρχὴν ὁ δῆμος, οὐκ ἐῶντα τούτῳ δευτέρας ἀρχῆς μετουσίαν εἶναι· τὸν δʼ, εἴ τις ἄρχων ἄκριτον ἐκκεκηρύχοι πολίτην, κατʼ αὐτοῦ διδόντα κρίσιν τῷ δήμῳ.
Having first stirred up the people with such words as these (and he had a very loud voice, and was most vigorous in his speaking), he introduced two laws, one providing that if the people had deprived any magistrate of his office, such magistrate should not be allowed to hold office a second time; and another providing that if any magistrate had banished a citizen without trial, such magistrate should be liable to public prosecution.
τούτων τῶν νόμων ἄντικρυς ὁ μὲν Μᾶρκον Ὀκτάβιον ἠτίμου τὸν ὑπὸ Τιβερίου τῆς δημαρχίας ἐκπεσόντα, τῷ δʼ ἐνείχετο Ποπίλλιος· οὗτος γὰρ στρατηγῶν τοὺς τοῦ Τιβερίου φίλους ἐξεκήρυξε. καὶ Ποπίλλιος μὲν οὐχ ὑποστὰς τὴν κρίσιν ἔφυγεν ἐξ Ἰταλίας· τὸν δὲ ἕτερον νόμον Γάιος αὐτὸς ἐπανείλετο, φήσας τῇ μητρὶ Κορνηλίᾳ δεηθείσῃ χαρίζεσθαι τὸν Ὀκτάβιον.
Of these laws, one had the direct effect of branding with infamy Marcus Octavius, who had been deposed from the tribunate by Tiberius; and by the other Popillius was affected, for as praetor he had banished the friends of Tiberius. Popillius, indeed, without standing his trial, fled out of Italy; but the other law was withdrawn by Caius himself, who said that he spared Octavius at the request of his mother Cornelia.
καὶ ὁ δῆμος ἠγάσθη καὶ συνεχώρησε, τιμῶν τὴν Κορνηλίαν οὐδὲν ἧττον ἀπὸ τῶν παίδων ἢ τοῦ πατρός, ἧς γε καὶ χαλκῆν εἰκόνα στήσας ὕστερον ἐπέγραψε Κορνηλίαν μητέρα Γράγχων. ἀπομνημονεύεται δὲ καὶ τοῦ Γαΐου πολλὰ ῥητορικῶς καὶ ἀγοραίως ὑπὲρ αὐτῆς εἰρημένα πρός τινα τῶν ἐχθρῶν σύ γάρ ἔφη, Κορνηλίαν λοιδορεῖς τὴν Τιβέριον τεκοῦσαν;
The people were pleased at this and gave their consent, honouring Cornelia no less on account of her sons than because of her father; indeed, in after times they erected a bronze statue of her, bearing the inscription: Cornelia, Mother of the Gracchi. There are on record also many things which Caius said about her in the coarse style of forensic speech, when he was attacking one of his enemies: What, said he, dost thou abuse Cornelia, who gave birth to Tiberius?
ἐπεὶ δὲ διαβεβλημένος ἦν εἰς μαλακίαν ὁ λοιδορηθείς· τίνα δέ, εἶπεν, ἔχων παρρησίαν συγκρίνεις Κορνηλίᾳ σεαυτόν; ἔτεκες γὰρ ὡς ἐκείνη; καὶ μὴν πάντες ἴσασι Ῥωμαῖοι πλείω χρόνον ἐκείνην ἀπʼ ἀνδρὸς οὖσαν ἢ σὲ τὸν ἄνδρα τοιαύτη μὲν ἡ πικρία τῶν λόγων ἦν αὐτοῦ, καὶ πολλὰ λαβεῖν ἐκ τῶν γεγραμμένων ἔστιν ὅμοια.
And since the one who had uttered the abuse was charged with effeminate practices, With what effrontery, said Caius, canst thou compare thyself with Cornelia? Hast thou borne such children as she did? And verily all Rome knows that she refrained from commerce with men longer than thou hast, though thou art a man. Such was the bitterness of his language, and many similar examples can be taken from his writings.
Cite This Text