§5.71.1μετὰ τοῦτο πολλὴ ζήτησις ἐνέπιπτε τοῖς προεστηκόσι τῆς βουλῆς καὶ πρόνοια περὶ τοῦ παραληψομένου τὴν ἡγεμονίαν.
After this, much inquiry and consideration fell upon the leaders of the senate concerning who should receive the leadership.
ἐδόκει γὰρ αὐτοῖς δραστηρίου τʼ ἀνδρὸς εἰς τὰ πράγματα δεῖν καὶ πολλὴν τῶν πολεμικῶν ἀγώνων ἐμπειρίαν ἔχοντος, πρὸς δὲ τούτοις φρονίμου τε καὶ σώφρονος καὶ μηδὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ μεγέθους τῆς ἐξουσίας ἐπὶ τὸ ἀνόητον παραχθησομένου· ὑπὲρ ἅπαντα δὲ ταῦτα καὶ τἆλλα ὅσα δεῖ προσεῖναι στρατηλάταις ἀγαθοῖς ἄρχειν ἐγκρατῶς εἰδότος καὶ μηθὲν μαλακὸν ἐνδώσοντος τοἰς ἀπειθοῦσιν, οὗ §5.71.2μάλιστα ἐν τῷ παρόντι ἐδέοντο.
For it seemed to them that there was need for the state's affairs of an active man, who possessed much experience in warlike contests, and in addition to this, of one who was wise and prudent, and who would not be led away to folly at all by the greatness of his power; and above all these and all other qualities that ought to belong to good generals, of one who knew how to rule firmly and would yield nothing soft to the disobedient, which they stood in greatest need of at the present time.
ἅπαντα δʼ ὁρῶντες ὅσα ἠξίουν περὶ τὸν ἕτερον ὑπάρχοντα τῶν ὑπάτων Τῖτον Λάρκιον· ὁ γὰρ Κλοίλιος ἐν ταῖς πολιτικαῖς χρείαις διάφορος ὢν τὸ δραστήριον καὶ φιλοπόλεμον οὐκ εἶχεν, οὐδέ γε τὸ ἀρχικὸν καὶ φοβερόν, ἀλλʼ ἐπιεικὴς τιμωρὸς ἦν τῶν ἀπειθούντων· ἡ δὲ βουλὴ διʼ αἰσχύνης ἐλάμβανον τοῦ μὲν ἀφελέσθαι τὴν ἀρχήν, ἣν κατὰ τοὺς νόμους εἶχε, τῷ δὲ χαρίσασθαι τὴν ἀμφοτέρων ἐξουσίαν, μείζονα βασιλικοῦ σχήματος γινομένην· καί τι καὶ δέος αὐτὴν ὑπῄει, μὴ βαρεῖαν ὁ Κλοίλιος ἡγησάμενος τὴν ἀπαξίωσιν τῆς ἀρχῆς ὡς ἠτιμασμένος ὑπὸ τῆς βουλῆς ἔπειτα μεταθῆται τὴν προαίρεσιν τοῦ βίου τοῦ δήμου γενόμενος προστάτης §5.71.3καὶ πάντα ἀνατρέψῃ τὰ κοινά.
And they saw that all the qualities they required belonged to one of the consuls, Titus Lartius; for Cloelius, though excellent in civil duties, lacked an active and warlike disposition, nor indeed did he possess authority and the power to inspire fear, but was a mild punisher of the disobedient; but the senate felt it a matter of shame to deprive the one of the office which he held according to the laws, and to bestow upon the other the power of both, which was becoming greater than a kingly state; and they were also crept in upon by a certain fear, lest Cloelius, considering his rejection from the office as a heavy thing, as one dishonored by the senate, should then change his manner of life, becoming a champion of the people, and overturn all public affairs.
αἰδουμένων δʼ ἁπάντων, ἃ φρονοῦντες ἐτύγχανον, εἰς μέσον ἐκφέρειν καὶ μέχρι πολλοῦ τοῦτο ποιούντων ὁ πρεσβύτατός τε καὶ τιμιώτατος τῶν ὑπατικῶν γνώμην ἀπεδείξατο, διʼ ἧς ἀμφοτέρους ἐν ἴσῃ τιμῇ τοὺς ὑπάτους φυλάξας παρʼ αὐτῶν ἐκείνων τὸν ἐπιτηδειότερον ἄρχειν εὕρετο· ἔφη γὰρ αὑτῷ δοκεῖν, ἐπειδὴ τὸ μὲν τῆς ἀρχῆς κράτος ἥ τε βουλὴ διέγνωκε καὶ ὁ δῆμος ἐπεψήφικεν ἑνὶ δοθῆναι, δύο δὲ καταλείπεται βουλῆς καὶ φροντίδος οὐ μικρᾶς δεόμενα, τίς ὁ παραληψόμενος τὴν ἰσοτύραννον ἀρχὴν ἔσται καὶ ὑπὸ τίνος ἀποδειχθεὶς ἐξουσίας νομίμου, ἐκ τῶν τότε ὄντων ὑπάτων τὸν ἕτερον, εἴτε παραχωρήσαντος τοῦ συνάρχοντος, εἴτε κλήρῳ λαχόντα, ἑλέσθαι Ῥωμαίων ὃν ὑπολαμβάνει κράτιστα καὶ συμφορώτατα τὰ τῆς πόλεως ἐπιτροπεύσειν.
While all were ashamed to bring into the open what they happened to think, and continued to do so for a long time, the oldest and most honored of the ex-consuls expressed an opinion, by which, while preserving both consuls in equal honor, he found a way to obtain the more suitable of them to rule from those very men; for he said that it seemed to him that, since the senate had decided and the people had confirmed that the supreme power of the office should be given to one man, but two things remained requiring the senate's deliberation and no small concern, namely, who should be the one to receive the power equal to a tyrant, and by what legitimate authority he should be appointed, therefore, one of the two existing consuls, either upon the yielding of his colleague or by having obtained it by lot, should choose from among the Romans the one whom he supposes will manage the affairs of the city best and most advantageously.
μεσοβασιλέων δʼ αὐτοῖς μηθὲν ἐν τῷ παρόντι δεῖν, οὓς ἐν ταῖς μοναρχίαις ἀποδείκνυσθαι μονογνώμονας τῶν μελλόντων ἄρξειν ἔθος ἦν, ἐχούσης τῆς πόλεως τὴν ὅσιον ἀρχήν.
And they had no need at present of interreges, whom it was the custom to appoint under monarchies as sole determiners of those who were about to rule, since the city possessed its legitimate magistracy.