§10.1ἀλλὰ διʼ ἐκεῖνα μᾶλλον ἤχθοντο τῷ Οὐαλλερίῳ καὶ προσέκρουον, ὅτι Βροῦτος μέν, ὃν πατέρα τῆς ἐλευθερίας ἐνόμιζεν ὁ δῆμος, οὐκ ἠξίωσε μόνος ἄρχειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ πρῶτον αὐτῷ συνάρχοντα προσείλετο καὶ δεύτερον
οὑτοσὶ δʼ,
ἔφασαν,
εἰς αὐτόν ἅπαντα συνενεγκάμενος οὐκ ἔστι τῆς Βρούτου κληρονόμος ὑπατείας μηδὲν αὐτῷ προσηκούσης, ἀλλὰ τῆς Ταρκυνίου τυραννίδος. §10.2καίτοι τί δεῖ λόγῳ μὲν Βροῦτον ἐγκωμιάζειν, ἔργῳ δὲ μιμεῖσθαι Ταρκύνιον, ὑπὸ ῥάβδοις ὁμοῦ πάσαις καὶ πελέκεσι κατιόντα μόνον ἐξ οἰκίας τοσαύτης τὸ μέγεθος ὅσην οὐ καθεῖλε τὴν τοῦ βασιλέως; καὶ γὰρ ὄντως ὁ Οὐαλλέριος ᾤκει τραγικώτερον ὑπὲρ τὴν καλουμένην Οὐελίαν οἰκίαν ἐπικρεμαμένην τῇ ἀγορᾷ καὶ καθ ο ρ ῶς αν ἐξ ὕψους ἅπαντα, δυσπρόσοδον δὲ πελάσαι καὶ χαλεπὴν ἔξωθεν, ὥστε καταβαίνοντος αὐτοῦ τὸ σχῆμα μετέωρον εἶναι καὶ βασιλικὸν τῆς προπομπῆς τὸν ὄγκον.
But they were rather annoyed and displeased with Valerius for the following reasons: that Brutus, whom the people regarded as the father of liberty, did not deign to rule alone, but chose first a colleague for himself, and then a second; "but this man," they said, "having concentrated everything in himself, is not the heir to Brutus's consulship, which in no way belongs to him, but to Tarquin's tyranny." "And yet, what need is there to praise Brutus in words, but in deeds to imitate Tarquin, descending alone under all the rods and axes together from a house so grand in size that even that of the king, which was demolished, did not equal it?" For indeed Valerius dwelt in a rather tragic fashion in a house situated above the so-called Velia, hanging over the forum and commanding a view of everything from its height, but difficult of access and steep from the outside, so that when he came down, his appearance was lofty and the pomp of his procession was kingly.
§10.3ὅσον οὖν ἐν ἀρχῇ καὶ πράγμασι μεγάλοις ἀγαθὸν ἦν ἔχειν ὦτα παρρησίαν ἀντὶ κολακείας προσιέμενα καὶ λόγους ἀληθεῖς, ἔδειξεν.
He showed, therefore, how great a good it is for those in authority and in high affairs to have ears that admit frankness instead of flattery, and true words.
ἀκούσας γὰρ ὅτι τοῖς πολλοῖς ἁμαρτάνειν ἐδόκει τῶν φίλων διεξιόντων, οὐκ ἐφιλονείκησεν, οὐδʼ ἠγανάκτησεν, ἀλλὰ ταχὺ πολλοὺς συναγαγὼν τεχνίτας ἔτι νυκτὸς οὔσης κατέβαλε τὴν οἰκίαν καὶ κατέσκαψεν εἰς ἔδαφος πᾶσαν, §10.4ὥστε μεθʼ ἡμέραν τούς Ῥωμαίους ὁρῶντας καὶ συνισταμένους τοῦ μὲν ἀνδρὸς ἀγαπᾶν καὶ θαυμάζειν τὴν μεγαλοφροσύνην, ἄχθεσθαι δὲ τῆς οἰκίας καὶ ποθεῖν τὸ μέγεθος καὶ τὸ κάλλος, ὥσπερ ἀνθρώπου, διὰ φθόνον οὐ δικαίως καταλελυμένης, τοῦ δὲ ἄρχοντος, ὥσπερ ἀνεστίου, παρʼ ἑτέροις οἰκοῦντος.
For when he heard from his friends who went into details that he seemed to the multitude to be doing wrong, he did not argue nor was he angry, but quickly gathering many workmen while it was still night, he tore down the house and razed it entirely to the ground, so that the next day, when the Romans saw it and gathered together, they admired and wondered at the magnanimity of the man, but were grieved for the house, regretful of its size and beauty, as though it were a human being unjustly destroyed through envy, and they pitied their ruler, who, like a homeless man, was living in other people's houses.
ἐδέχοντο γὰρ οἱ φίλοι τὸν Οὐαλλέριον ἄχρι οὗ τόπον ἔδωκεν ὁ δῆμος αὐτῷ καὶ κατεσκεύασεν οἰκίαν ἐκείνης μετριωτέραν, ὅπου νῦν ἱερόν ἐστιν Οὐίκας Πότας ὀνομαζό μενον.
For his friends entertained Valerius until the people gave him a site and built a house more modest than that one, where now stands the temple called that of Vica Pota.
§10.5βουλόμενος δὲ μὴ μόνον ἑαυτὸν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀντὶ φοβερᾶς χειροήθη καὶ προσφιλῆ ποιεῖν τοῖς πολλοῖς, τούς τε πελέκεις ἀπέλυσε τῶν ῥάβδων, αὐτάς τε τὰς ῥάβδους εἰς ἐκκλησίαν παριὼν ὑφῆκε τῷ δήμῳ καὶ κατέκλινε, μέγα ποιῶν τὸ πρόσχημα τῆς δημοκρατίας, καὶ τοῦτο μέχρι νῦν διαφυλάττουσιν οἱ ἄρχοντες.
And wishing to make not only himself but also his office, instead of being formidable, easy to manage and agreeable to the multitude, he removed the axes from the rods, and as he entered the assembly, he lowered the rods themselves to the people and inclined them, making much of the appearance of democracy; and this practice the magistrates preserve even to this day.
§10.6ἐλάνθανε δὲ τούς πολλοὺς οὐχ ἑαυτὸν, ὡς ᾤοντο, ποιῶν ταπεινόν, ἀλλὰ τὸν φθόνον τῇ μετριότητι ταύτῃ καθαιρῶν καὶ κολούων, αὐτῷ δὲ προστιθεὶς τοσοῦτον μέγεθος δυνάμεως ὅσον ἀφαιρεῖν ἐδόκει τῆς ἐξουσίας, ὑποδυομένου μεθʼ ἡδονῆς αὐτῷ τοῦ δήμου καὶ φέροντος ἑκουσίως, ὥστε καὶ Ποπλικόλαν ἀνηγόρευσεν αὐτόν σημαίνει δὲ τοὔνομα δημοκηδῆ·
But he was undetected by the multitude, not in making himself humble, as they thought, but in removing and diminishing their envy by this moderation, and in adding to himself as great a magnitude of power as he seemed to subtract from his authority, the people submitting to him with pleasure and bearing it willingly, so that they even proclaimed him Poplicola.
καὶ τοῦτο μᾶλλον ἴσχυσε τῶν ἀρχαίων ὀνομάτων, ᾧ καὶ ἡμεῖς χρησόμεθα τὸν λοιπὸν βίον τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἱστοροῦντες.
This name signifies 'one who cares for the people'; and this name prevailed over his ancient names, and we also shall use it in narrating the remainder of the man's life.