Humanitext Reader

Dionysius of Halicarnassus · Roman Antiquities §11.52.1-11.52.4

The Roman People Vote to Annex the Disputed Territory

Passage 852 of 962 · Greek

Summary

Scaptius urges the people to vote, claiming that the rivals' silent anger constitutes an admission of Roman ownership. Disregarding the consuls' warnings about the dishonorable nature of the act, the Roman people add a third ballot box and vote to claim the disputed land for themselves.

§11.52.1μηδὲν δʼ αὐτῶν ἀποκρινομένων, ἀλλʼ ἀγανακτούντων παρελθὼν αὖθις Σκάπτιος ἐπὶ τὸ βῆμα· ἔχετʼ, ἔφη, παρακεχωρημένον, ἄνδρες πολῖται, παρʼ αὐτῶν τῶν διαφερομένων, ὅτι τῆς ἡμετέρας χώρας ἑαυτοῖς μηδὲν προσηκούσης ἀντιποιοῦνται·
But when they made no answer and only showed their resentment, Scaptius came forward again to the tribunal and said: "Citizens, you have it conceded by the parties to the dispute themselves that they are laying claim to our territory, which does not belong to them at all.
πρὸς ταῦτα ὁρῶντες τὰ δίκαια καὶ τὰ εὔορκα ψηφίσασθε. §11.52.2ταῦτα τοῦ Σκαπτίου λέγοντος αἰδὼς εἰσῄει τοὺς ὑπάτους ἐνθυμουμένους, ὡς οὔτε δίκαιον οὔτʼ εὐπρεπὲς ἡ δίκη λήψεται τέλος, ἄν τινα ἀμφισβητουμένην ὑφʼ ἑτέρων χώραν δικαστὴς αἱρεθεὶς ὁ Ῥωμαίων δῆμος μηδέποτʼ αὐτῆς ἀντιποιησάμενος ἑαυτῷ προσδικάσῃ τοὺς ἀμφισβητοῦντας ἀφελόμενος·
In view of this, vote with a regard to what is just and consistent with your oath." As Scaptius was saying this, a sense of shame came over the consuls, who reflected that the trial would have a conclusion neither just nor honorable if the Roman people, having been chosen as arbitrator, should adjudge to themselves a territory disputed by others, which they had never claimed for themselves, by taking it away from the disputants.
καὶ πολλοὶ σφόδρα ἐλέχθησαν εἰς ἀποτροπὴν τοῦ πράγματος ὑπὸ τῶν ὑπάτων καὶ τῶν ἡγουμένων τῆς βουλῆς λόγοι διακενῆς.
And many speeches were made by the consuls and the leaders of the senate in an effort to avert this action, but to no purpose.
§11.52.3οἱ γὰρ ἀνειληφότες τὰς ψήφους πολλὴν μωρίαν εἶναι λέγοντες ἑτέρους περιορᾶν τὰ σφέτερα κατέχοντας, καὶ οὐκ εὐσεβὲς ἐξοίσειν τέλος ὑπολαμβάνοντες, ἐὰν Ἀρικηνοὺς ἢ Ἀρδεάτας κυρίους ἀποδείξωσι τῆς ἀμφισβητησίμου γῆς ὀμωμοκότες ὧν ἂν εὕρωσιν αὐτὴν οὖσαν τούτων ἐπικρινεῖν· τοῖς τε δικαζομένοις ὀργὴν ἔχοντες, ὅτι τοὺς ἀποστερουμένους αὐτῆς δικαστὰς ἠξίωσαν λαβεῖν, ἵνα μηδʼ ὕστερον ἔτι σφίσιν ἐγγένηται τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἀνακομίσασθαι κτῆσιν, ἣν αὐτοὶ μεθʼ ὅρκου δικάσαντες ἑτέρων ἐπέγνωσαν εἶναι.
For those who had received the ballots, declaring that it was great folly to allow others to keep possession of what belonged to themselves, and assuming that they would bring about an impious result if they should declare either the Aricians or the Ardeates to be the owners of the disputed land, since they had sworn to adjudge it to those to whom they should find it belonged; and they were angry with the litigants because they had seen fit to choose as arbitrators those who were excluded from the land, in order that it might not be possible for the Romans later to recover their own property, which they themselves, after judging the case under oath, had acknowledged to belong to others.
§11.52.4ταῦτα δὴ λογιζόμενοι καὶ ἀγανακτοῦντες τρίτον ἐκέλευσαν τεθῆναι καδίσκον ὑπὲρ τῆς πόλεως Ῥωμαίων καθʼ ἑκάστην φυλήν, εἰς ὃν ἀποθήσονται τὰς ψήφους·
Reasoning and feeling indignant in this way, they ordered a third urn to be placed for the city of Rome in each tribe, in which they should deposit their ballots.
καὶ γίνεται πάσαις ταῖς ψήφοις ὁ Ῥωμαίων δῆμος τῆς ἀμφιλόγου χώρας κύριος.
And by all the votes the Roman people became the owners of the disputed territory.
ταῦτα μὲν ἐπὶ τούτων τῶν ὑπάτων ἐπράχθη.
These were the events that took place during the consulship of these men.

Notes

  1. 11.52.1ἔχετʼ, ἔφη, παρακεχωρημένον — A periphrastic perfect construction combining `ἔχω` with the perfect passive participle `παраκεχωρημένον`. Similar to a regular perfect tense, it emphasizes the current state of possession or attainment resulting from the opponents' action.
  2. 11.52.2ὡς οὔτε δίκαιον οὔτʼ εὐπρεπὲς ἡ δίκη λήψεται τέλος — `ὡς` introduces an indirect statement (noun clause) dependent on `ἐνθυμουμένους` ('reflecting that...'). With the future verb `λήψεται`, the double negative `οὔτε... οὔτε...` predicts and warns of an dishonorable outcome if the conditional clause (`ἄν... προσδικάσῃ`) is realized.
  3. 11.52.3τοὺς ἀποστερουμένους αὐτῆς — The present passive participle `ἀποστερουμένους` refers to those who are 'excluded' or 'debarred' from the land (`αὐτῆς`), namely the Romans themselves. The populace is angry because they perceive that the litigants chose them as judges precisely to bind them by their oath, preventing the Romans from recovering their own land in the future.

Cite this passage

Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities §11.52.1-11.52.4. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0081.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:11.52.1-11.52.4

Please note the AI-draft status of the translation and the date accessed.

Translation, notes and summary are AI-generated drafts, revised through reader feedback.