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arrival at Rome. The death of Vitellius happened in this way. The soldiers of Vespasian had already approached Rome, and bursting into it, they committed every kind of atrocity. As the city was being sacked, Vitellius, in fear, put on a ragged tunic and hid himself in a dark little room where dogs were kept, intending to escape by night to Tarracina to his brother. But the soldiers, having searched for him, seized him, covered with filth and blood, for he had been mauled by the dogs; and tearing his clothes and binding his hands behind his back, and putting a rope around his neck, some slapped him, others plucked his beard, and all mocked him for his other faults and for his profligacy. And as he was ashamed at these things and looked down, the soldiers pricked him under the chin with their daggers, so that even against his will he would look up. But a certain Celt, pitying him, said, "I will help you as I alone am able." And he wounded that man and killed himself; Vitellius, however, did not die from the wound, but was dragged to the prison. Grieved by what he was suffering and what he was hearing, he said, "But I was your empe3.52ror." The soldiers, therefore, becoming angry, cut him to pieces, and cutting off his head, they carried it around the whole city, after he had lived fifty-four years and eighty-nine days, and reigned for a year less ten days. After these things were done, Mucianus arrived and governed jointly with Domitian. And Vespasian was acclaimed emperor by the senate, and both Titus and Domitian were called Caesars. And Mucianus was called 'brother' by Vespasian, and he had received authority to do and write whatever he wished, only signing the name of the emperor; and for this reason he wore a ring sent to him, so that documents might receive the imperial seal. At any rate, he and Domitian gave magistracies and procuratorships to many, and they appointed one prefect after another and consuls, as if they were sole rulers themselves. so that Vespasian wrote to Domitian, "I thank you, my son, that you permit me to rule and have not yet deposed me." And Vespasian, having arrived in Alexandria, collected a great deal of money from there, raising funds from every source, and he renewed many taxes that had lapsed, increased those that were customary, and added other new ones. He did this same thing afterwards both in the rest of the subject territory and in Italy and in Rome itself. He therefore settled Egypt in a short time, and sent much grain to Rome 3.53 from it; but having left his son Titus at Jerusalem to sack it, he awaited its capture, so that he might return to Rome with his son. But as time was being spent on the siege, he left Titus in Palestine, and he himself, embarking on a merchant ship, sailed to Lycia, and from there, partly on foot and partly sailing, he was brought to Brundisium. And coming to Rome, he provided donatives to the soldiers and the people, and he undertook the restoration of the temples and public works that had fallen into disrepair, and repaired those already ruined, and when they were completed, he did not inscribe his own name, but that of the original builders. And he gave up the property of those who had opposed him and had fallen in battle to their children or other relatives, and he also destroyed the old contracts pertaining to the public treasury. And while spending magnificently for the public good, he lived very frugally, and spent nothing beyond what was necessary. He was neither of noble birth nor rich. And he received all who came to him. And he met with his friends both before dawn and while lying on his couch; and the doors of the palace were open throughout the whole day, and there was no guard at them. And in sum, in his care for public affairs he was considered emperor, but in other respects

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πρὸς τὴν ̔Ρώμην ἀφίξεως. ̔Ο δὲ τοῦ Οὐιτελλίου θάνατος τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον ἐγένετο. ηδη οἱ Οὐεσπασιάνειοι στρατιῶται πεπλησιακότες ησαν τῇ ̔Ρώμῃ, καὶ ἐς αὐτὴν ἐσβαλόντες οὐδὲν ο,τι τῶν δεινῶν οὐκ ἐποίησαν. τῆς δὲ πόλεως πορθουμένης ὁ Οὐιτέλλιος φοβηθείς, χιτωνίσκον τε ῥακώδη περιβαλόμενος, ἐς οικημα σκοτεινόν, ἐν ῳ κύνες ἐτρέφοντο, κατεκρύφθη, διανοούμενος νυκτὸς ἐς τὴν Ταρακῖναν πρὸς τὸν ἀδελφὸν ἀποδρᾶναι. ἀναζητήσαντες δὲ οἱ στρατιῶται αὐτὸν συνέλαβον φορυτοῦ πεπλησμένον καὶ αιματος, ὑπὸ γὰρ τῶν κυνῶν ἐλελύμαντο, καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα περιρρήξαντες αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς τοὐπίσω τὼ χεῖρε δεσμήσαντες, σχοῖνόν τε αὐτῷ περιθέντες περιαυχένιον, οἱ μὲν ἐρράπιζον, οἱ δὲ τοῦ γενείου ετιλλον, πάντες δὲ εσκωπτον τά τε αλλα καὶ τὴν ἀσωτίαν αὐτοῦ. αἰσχυνομένου δὲ ἐπὶ τούτοις καὶ κάτω βλέποντος, οἱ στρατιῶται ξιφιδίοις αὐτὸν ὑπὸ τὸ γένειον ὑπεκέντουν, ινα καὶ ακων ανω βλέπῃ. Κελτὸς δέ τις ἐλεήσας αὐτόν "ἐγώ σοι" εφη "βοηθήσω ὡς μόνος δύναμαι." καὶ ὁ μὲν ἐκεῖνον ετρωσε καὶ ἑαυτὸν ἀπέσφαξεν· οὐ μέντοι καὶ ὁ Οὐιτέλλιος ἀπέθανεν ἐκ τοῦ τραύματος, ἀλλ' ἐσύρετο εἰς τὸ δεσμωτήριον. περιαλγήσας δὲ οις τε επασχε καὶ οις ηκουεν "ἀλλ' εγωγε" εφη "αὐτοκρά3.52 τωρ ὑμῶν ἐγενόμην." ὀργισθέντες ουν οἱ στρατιῶται κατέκοψαν αὐτόν, καὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀποτεμόντες αὐτοῦ κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν πόλιν περιήγαγον, ζήσαντος ετη τέσσαρα καὶ πεντήκοντα καὶ ἡμέρας ἐννέα καὶ ὀγδοήκοντα, αρξαντος δὲ ἐνιαυτὸν δέκα ἡμερῶν ἐπιδέοντα. Πεπραγμένων δὲ τούτων ὁ Μουκιανὸς ἐπῆλθε καὶ τῷ ∆ομετιανῷ συνδιῴκει· αὐτοκράτωρ τε ὁ Οὐεσπασιανὸς καὶ πρὸς τῆς βουλῆς εὐφημήθη, καὶ Καίσαρες ο τε Τίτος καὶ ὁ ∆ομετιανὸς ἐπεκλήθησαν. ὁ δὲ Μουκιανὸς ἀδελφὸς παρὰ τοῦ Οὐεσπασιανοῦ ὠνομάζετο, καὶ ἐξουσίαν ειληφε πάνθ' οσα ἐβούλετο πράττειν καὶ γράφειν, τὸ ονομα τοῦ αὐτοκράτορος μόνον ἐπιγραφόμενος· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο καὶ δακτύλιον πεμφθέντα οἱ ἐφόρει, ινα τὸ αὐτοκρατορικὸν σφράγισμα λαμβάνῃ τὰ σημαινόμενα πολλοῖς γοῦν ἀρχάς τε καὶ ἐπιτροπείας αὐτὸς καὶ ὁ ∆ομετιανὸς εδοσαν, καὶ ἐπάρχους αλλους ἐπ' αλλοις καὶ ὑπάτους ἀπέδειξαν, ὡς αὐτοὶ αὐταρχοῦντες. ωστε τὸν Οὐεσπασιανὸν ἐπιστεῖλαι τῷ ∆ομετιανῷ οτι "χάριν εχω σοι, τέκνον, οτι με ἐᾷς αρχειν καὶ οὐδέπω με καταλέλυκας." ̓Ες δὲ τὴν ̓Αλεξάνδρειαν ὁ Οὐεσπασιανὸς ἀφικόμενος χρήματα πολλὰ ἐκεῖθεν ἠργυρολόγησε, χρηματιζόμενος πάντοθεν, καὶ τέλη πολλὰ τὰ μὲν ἐκλελειμμένα ἀνενεώσατο, τὰ δὲ καὶ νομιζόμενα προσεπηύξησε, καινά τε προσέθετο ετερα. τὸ δ' αὐτὸ τοῦτο καὶ ἐν τῇ αλλῃ ὑπηκόῳ τῇ τε ̓Ιταλίᾳ καὶ αὐτῇ τῇ ̔Ρώμῃ μετὰ ταῦτα ἐποίησε. τὴν μὲν ουν Αιγυπτον δι' ὀλίγου κατεστήσατο, καὶ σῖτον πολὺν εἰς τὴν ̔Ρώμην 3.53 επεμψεν ἀπ' αὐτῆς· τὸν δὲ υἱὸν αὐτοῦ Τίτον εἰς τὰ ̔Ιεροσόλυμα καταλελοιπὼς πορθῆσαι αὐτά, τὴν ἐκείνων ἀνέμενεν αλωσιν, ινα μετὰ τοῦ υἱέος ἐπανέλθῃ πρὸς τὴν ̔Ρώμην. τριβομένου δὲ χρόνου ἐν τῇ πολιορκίᾳ, τὸν μὲν Τίτον ἐν τῇ Παλαιστίνῃ κατέλιπεν, αὐτὸς δὲ ὁλκάδος ἐπιβὰς ἐς Λυκίαν επλευσε, κἀκεῖθεν τὰ μὲν πεζῇ, τὰ δὲ ναυτιλλόμενος εἰς τὸ Βρεντέσιον ἐκομίσθη. ̓Ελθὼν δ' ἐς τὴν ̔Ρώμην καὶ τοῖς στρατιώταις καὶ τῷ δήμῳ παρέσχηκε δωρεάς, καὶ τὰ τεμένη καὶ τὰ δημόσια εργα τὰ πεπονηκότα ἀνελάμβανε, καὶ τὰ ηδη ἐφθαρμένα ἐπανεσκεύαζε, καὶ συντελουμένοις αὐτοῖς οὐ τὸ ἑαυτοῦ ἐπέγραφεν ονομα, ἀλλὰ τὸ τῶν πρώτως δομησαμένων. τὰς δὲ οὐσίας τῶν ἐναντιωθέντων αὐτῷ καὶ ἐν ταῖς μάχαις πεσόντων τοῖς παισὶν ἐκείνων η τοῖς αλλως οἰκείοις ἀφῆκε, καὶ τὰ συμβόλαια τὰ παλαιὰ τὰ τῷ δημοσίῳ προσήκοντα προσδιέφθειρε. μεγαλοπρεπῶς δὲ εἰς τὸ κοινὸν ἀναλίσκων, εὐτελέστατα διῃτᾶτο, καὶ οὐδὲν εξω τῶν ἀναγκαίων ἐδαπάνα. ην δὲ ουτε ἐξ εὐγενῶν ουτε πλούσιος. πάντας δὲ τοὺς προσιόντας αὐτῷ προσεδέχετο. τοῖς δὲ φίλοις καὶ πρὸ τῆς εω καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς εὐνῆς κατακείμενος συνεγίνετο· καὶ αἱ θύραι τῶν βασιλείων ἠνεῳγμέναι διὰ πάσης τῆς ἡμέρας ησαν, καὶ φρουρὸς οὐκ ην ἐν αὐταῖς. τό τε σύμπαν, τῇ μὲν προνοίᾳ τῶν κοινῶν αὐτοκράτωρ νενόμιστο, εἰς ταλλα δὲ