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116 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS.

Ibid.: That Marcus was a man whom it is easier to admire in silence than to praise, since no speech could be equal to the man's virtues. For from his earliest youth he maintained a steadfast and tranquil life, and was never seen to change his countenance either from fear or for pleasure. He praised the philosophers of the Stoa; and he was indeed an imitator of them, not only in the practice of their regimen, but also in the comprehension of their studies. Thus, he shone so brightly from a very young age, that Hadrian often wished to bring the succession of the empire to him. But since he had already legally adopted Pius first, he kept his own succession for him, but decided that this one should be joined in marriage to Pius, so that he might come to the leadership through the succession of the family. And so he lived his private life on equal terms with the many Romans, in no way changed by his adoption into the imperial family. And when he came to the leadership, ruling as a monarch and enjoying supreme power, he was never led into any arrogance; but he was generous and lavish in his benefactions, and good and moderate in the administration of the provinces. 117 Exc. Salm.: Marcus, 19 years. Before Marcus, Titus Aurelius Fulvus Boionius Antoninus Pius (called Eusebes) 24 years. Marcus Antoninus, when the public treasuries were exhausted in war, did not tolerate raising money in an unusual way, but brought all the imperial treasure to the marketplace and sold it for gold. And when the barbarian movement was settled, to those who voluntarily returned the imperial property, he paid back the same measure of the price, and those who were unwilling he did not compel. To him the senate after his death erected a golden statue on account of his virtue. After Marcus, his son Commodus, 13 years. After Commodus, Pertinax, 6 months. After whom, Didius Julianus, 60 days. 118 Exc. De ins.: That Cassius, the governor of Syria, a man terrible in warfare, who had demonstrated many remarkable feats during the Parthian war, and being otherwise an innovator, was incited to revolution, being led to this idea by Faustina, the wife of Marcus. For she, thinking that Marcus, having fallen ill and being otherwise of sickly constitution, would die, and fearing that she would become a private citizen if the leadership passed to another, since Commodus was still young and not fit to rule, persuaded Cassius, secretly sending some of her faithful attendants, to make a bid for the empire if he should hear that Marcus was dead, promising to marry him and to cooperate in all other matters. He, when a false rumor reported to him that the emperor was dead, acted before the truth came out, and unwillingly appeared as an enemy to the emperor. On account of these things, therefore, Marcus sent Commodus away from Rome, and he himself was dispatched from Pannonia to Syria; however, he had no need of arms against the rebels, for Cassius was killed beforehand by one of his own men. And so, having passed through Syria and Egypt in peace, he neither investigated nor punished any people or city, or private citizen or magistrate, who was thought to have supported the cause of Cassius, but even on behalf of those arrested in Rome (for many senators there too had been convicted of having openly supported Cassius) he wrote to the senate, to decide nothing harsh, using these very words; for they will be quoted, as they clearly show the man's goodness. And they were as follows: "I beseech you, O senate, to keep my reign pure from all senatorial blood. May it not happen that any one of you, on my account or on yours

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116 ΜΑΡΚΟΣ ΑΥΡΗΛΙΟΣ ΑΝΤΩΝΙΝΟΣ.

Ibid.: Ὅτι Μάρκος ἀνὴρ ὃν ἐκπλήττεσθαι σιωπῇ μᾶλλον ἢ ἐπαινεῖν ῥᾴδιον, οὐδενὸς λόγγου ταῖς τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἀρεταῖς ἐξισουμένου. Ἐκ πρώτης γὰρ ἤδη τῆς ἡλικίας εὐσταθῆ τε καὶ ἡσύχιον βίον ὑποστησάμενος, οὔτε κατὰ δέος οὔτε καθ' ἡδονὴν τραπεὶς τὸ πρόσωπον ὤφθη πώποτε. Ἐπῄνει δὲ τῶν φιλοσόφων τοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς στοᾶς· καὶ ἦν ἄρα ἐκείνων μιμητὴς, οὐ μόνον κατὰ τὴν τῶν διαιτημάτων ἐπιτήδευσιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ τὴν τῶν μαθημάτων σύλληψιν. Οὕτω γοῦν ἐκ νέας κομιδῆ τῆς ἡλικίας ἐξέλαμπεν, ὡς πολλάκις τὸν Ἀδριανὸν ἐπὶ τοῦτον ἐθελῆσαι τὸν τῆς βασιλείας ἀγαγεῖν κλῆρον. Ἐπεὶ δὲ ἔφθασε τὸν Εὐσεβῆ πρότερον κατὰ νόμον παῖδα ποιησάμενος, ἐκείνῳ μὲν τὴν ἑαυτοῦ διαδοχὴν ἐφύλαξε, τοῦτον δὲ συνοικεῖν ἔγνω διὰ τῆς ἐπιγαμίας τῷ Εὐσεβεῖ, ὡς ἂν κατὰ τὴν τοῦ γένους διαδοχὴν ἐς τὴν ἡγεμονίαν παρέλθοι. Τόν τε γοῦν ἰδιώτην βίον ἐν ἰσηγορίᾳ τοῖς πολλοῖς Ῥωμαίοις ἐβίω, οὐδὲν τῇ ἐσποιήσει τοῦ βασιλείου γένους ἀλλοιωθείς. Καὶ ἐπεὶ παρῆλθεν εἰς τὴν ἡγεμονίαν κατὰ μοναρχίαν ἐξηγούμενος, καὶ τὴν ἄκραν δυναστείαν καρπούμενος, πρὸς οὐδεμίαν ἀλαζονείαν ὑπήχθη πώποτε· ἀλλ' ἦν ἐλευθέριος μὲν καὶ δαψιλὴς ἐν τοῖς εὐεργετήμασιν, ἀγαθὸς δὲ καὶ μέτριος ἐν ταῖς τῶν ἐθνῶν διοικήσεσιν. 117 Exc. Salm.: Μάρκος ἔτη ιθʹ. Πρὸ τοῦ Μάρκου Τίτος Αὐρήλιος Φοῦλβος Βοιώνιος Ἀντωνῖνος Πῖος (ὁ κληθεὶς Εὐσεβὴς) ἔτη κδʹ. Μάρκος Ἀντωνῖνος, ἐν πολέμῳ τῶν δημοσίων ἐξηντλημένων ταμείων, πράξασθαι μὲν χρήματα παρὰ τὸ σύνηθες οὐκ ἠνέσχετο, πάντα δὲ τὸν βασιλικὸν κόσμον ἐπ' ἀγορᾶς ἀγαγὼν πρὸς χρυσίον ἀπέδοτο. Καταστάσης δὲ τῆς βαρβαρικῆς κινήσεως, τοῖς μὲν ἑκουσίαν ποιουμένοις τὴν τῶν βασιλικῶν σκευῶν ἀνάδοσιν, τὸ αὐτὸ μέτρον τῆς τιμῆς ἀπεδίδου, τοὺς δὲ μὴ θέλοντας οὐκ ἠνάγκαζε. Τούτῳ ἡ βουλὴ μετὰ τελευτὴν χρυσοῦν ἀνδριάντα ἔστησεν διὰ τὴν ἀρετὴν αὐτοῦ. Μετὰ Μάρκον ὁ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ Κόμοδος ἔτη ιγʹ. Μετὰ Κόμοδον Περτίναξ μῆνας ςʹ. Μεθ' ὃν ∆ίδιος Ἰουλιανὸς ἡμέρας ξʹ. 118 Exc. De ins.: Ὅτι Κάσσιος ὁ τῆς Συρίας ἡγούμενος, ἀνὴρ δεινὸς τὰ πολέμια, πλεῖστά τε καὶ λόγου ἄξια κατὰ τὸν Παρθικὸν πόλεμον ἀποδειξάμενος, ἄλλως δὲ ὢν νεωτεροποιὸς, καινοτομεῖν ἐπήρθη, πρὸς τῆς Φαυστίνης τῆς τοῦ Μάρκου γαμετῆς ἐς τήνδε προαχθεὶς τὴν ἔννοιαν. Αὐτὴ γὰρ τὸν Μάρκον ἀρρωστήσαντα τεθνήξεσθαι ἄλλως τε καὶ νοσώδη ὄντα οἰηθεῖσα, μὴ εἰς ἕτερον περιελθούσης τῆς ἡγεμονίας ἰδιωτεύσῃ, τοῦ Κομόδου ἔτι νέου ὄντος καὶ ἄρχειν οὐκ ἐπιτηδείου, ἔπεισε τὸν Κάσσιον, κρύφα πέμψασα τῶν αὐτῇ πιστῶν τινὰς, ἐπιθέσθαι τῇ βασιλείᾳ, ἢν αἴσθηται τὸν Μάρκον τεθνεῶτα, συνοικήσειν τε αὐτῷ καὶ τἄλλα συμπράξειν ὑποσχομένη. Ὃς, φήμης τινὸς ψευδοῦς τεθνηκέναι οἱ δηλωσάσης τὸν βασιλέα, προεξανέστη τῆς ἀληθείας, ἄκων τε πολέμιος ἀνεφάνη τῷ αὐτοκράτορι. Τούτων μὲν οὖν ἕνεκα ὁ Μάρκος τόν τε Κόμοδον ἐκ τῆς Ῥώμης διεπέμψατο, καὶ ἐπὶ τὴν Συρίαν ἐκ τῆς Παιονίας ἐστάλη· οὐ μὴν ὅπλων αὐτῷ κατὰ τῶν ἐπαναστάντων ἐδέησεν· ὁ γάρ τοι Κάσσιος ἀναιρεθεὶς πρός τινος τῶν ἀμφ' αὐτὸν ἔφθασε. Καθ' ἡσυχίαν δ' οὖν τήν τε Συρίαν καὶ Αἴγυπτον ἐπελθὼν, οὔτε δῆμον οὔτε πόλιν, οὔτε ἰδιώτην οὔτε ἄρχοντα ἐσπουδακέναι τὰ τοῦ Κασσίου δόξαντα ἐπολυπραγμόνησεν ἢ ἐκόλασεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἐν Ῥώμῃ συνειλημμένων (ἐξεληλεγμένοι γὰρ ἦσαν κἀνταῦθα τῶν βουλευτῶν συχνοὶ τὰ τοῦ Κασσίου περιφανῶς ἐσπουδακότες) ἐπέστειλε τῇ βουλῇ, μηδὲν χαλεπὸν γνῶναι, τούτοις ἄντικρυς τοῖς ῥήμασι χρησάμενος· αὐτὰ γὰρ εἰρήσεται, τὴν χρηστότητα τοῦ ἀνδρὸς σαφῶ ἐνδεικνύμενα. Ἦν δ' οὖν τοιαῦτα· «Ἱκε»τεύω ὑμᾶς, ὦ βουλὴ, καθαράν μου τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀπὸ «παντὸς αἵματος βουλευτικοῦ φυλάξασθαι. Μὴ γένοιτό «τινα ἐξ ὑμῶν ἐπ' ἐμοῦ ἢ τῇ ἐμῇ ἢ τῇ ὑμετέρᾳ