§6.81.1ὁ μὲν δὴ Βροῦτος τοιούτους εἰπὼν λόγους ἐπαύσατο· τοῖς δὲ παροῦσιν, ὅσα τε περὶ τῶν δικαίων εἶπεν, ἀληθῆ εἶναι ἐδόκει καὶ ὅσα τῆς ὑπεροψίας τοῦ συνεδρίου κατηγόρησε, μάλιστα δʼ ἐν οἷς τὸ ἀσφαλὲς τῶν ὁμολογιῶν δόλου μεστὸν ἀπεδείκνυε καὶ ἀπάτης.
Brutus, having spoken such words, ceased; and to those present, all that he said about justice seemed to be true, and all the charges he made against the arrogance of the senate, and especially in those parts where he showed that the security of their agreements was full of deceit and fraud.
ἐπεὶ δὲ τὰς ὕβρεις τελευτῶν διῆλθεν, ἃς ἦσαν ὑβρισμένοι ὑπὸ τῶν δανειστῶν, καὶ τῶν οἰκείων ἕκαστον ἀνέμνησε κακῶν, οὐδεὶς ἦν στερρὸς οὕτω τὴν διάνοιαν, ὃς οὐκ ἐξεχεῖτο τοῖς δάκρυσι καὶ ἀνεκλαίετο τὰς κοινὰς συμφοράς· καὶ τοῦτʼ οὐκ αὐτοῖς μόνοις συνέβαινε παθεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς παρὰ τῆς βουλῆς ἥκουσιν.
And when at last he went through the outrages which they had suffered at the hands of the creditors, and reminded each of them of his domestic misfortunes, there was no one so stubborn of mind that he did not burst into tears and lament their common misfortunes; and it happened that not only they suffered this, but also those who had come from the senate.
οὐδὲ γὰρ οἱ πρέσβεις τὰ δάκρυα κατέχειν ἴσχυον ἐνθυμούμενοι τὰς ἐκ τοῦ διοικισμοῦ τῆς πόλεως ἀτυχίας, καὶ πολὺς ἦν χρόνος ἐν ᾧ κατηφεῖς καὶ δεδακρυμένοι καὶ §6.81.2τί χρὴ λέγειν ἀποροῦντες εἱστήκεσαν.
For not even the envoys were able to hold back their tears, considering the misfortunes resulting from the breaking up of the city, and for a long time they stood downcast, weeping, and at a loss as to what they ought to say.
ἐπειδὴ δʼ ὅ τε πολὺς θρῆνος ἐπαύσατο καὶ σιωπὴ κατέσχε τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, παρῆλθεν ἀπολογησόμενος πρὸς ταῦτα, ὅσπερ ἐδόκει τῶν ἄλλων πολιτῶν ἡλικίᾳ τε προὔχειν καὶ ἀξιώσει, Τῖτος Λάρκιος, ὃς δὶς ἀποδειχθεὶς ὕπατος δυναστείᾳ τῇ καλουμένῃ δικτατορίᾳ κράτιστα πάντων ἀνθρώπων χρησάμενος ἱερὰν καὶ σεβασμοῦ μεστὴν ἐποίησε νομισθῆναι τὴν ἐπίφθονον ἀρχήν.
And when the great lamentation ceased and silence occupied the assembly, there came forward to make a defense against these charges Titus Lartius, who seemed to surpass the other citizens in age and dignity, who, having twice been appointed consul and having used the authority called dictatorship in the best manner of all men, made that office, though otherwise object of envy, to be esteemed sacred and full of respect.
§6.81.3ἐπιβαλλόμενος δὲ περὶ τοῦ δικαίου ποιεῖσθαι λόγους, καὶ τὰ μὲν τοῖς δανειστικοῖς ἐγκαλῶν ὡς ὠμὰ καὶ ἀπάνθρωπα διαπεπραγμένοις, τὰ δὲ τῶν πενήτων καθαπτόμενος ὡς οὐ δικαίως ἀξιούντων βίᾳ μᾶλλον ἀφεῖσθαι τῶν ὀφειλημάτων ἢ χάριτι, καὶ ὡς τὴν βουλὴν οὐκ ὀρθῶς δι’ ὀργῆς ἐχόντων ἐπὶ τῷ μηθενὸς τῶν μετρίων παρʼ §6.81.4αὐτῆς τυγχάνειν, μᾶλλον ἢ οὐχὶ τοὺς αἰτίους· πειρώμενός τʼ ἀποφαίνειν βραχὺ μὲν ὑπάρχον τοῦ δήμου τὸ μὴ κατὰ γνώμην ἀδικοῦν, ὑπὸ δὲ μήκους ἀπορίας ἠναγκασμένον αἰτεῖσθαι τὴν ἄφεσιν, τὸ δὲ πλεῖον ἀκολασίᾳ καὶ ὕβρει καὶ τῷ καθʼ ἡδονὰς ζῆν ἐφεικὸς καὶ δι’ ἁρπαγῆς ἐκ τῶν ἀλλοτρίων ὑπηρετεῖν ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις παρεσκευασμένον, διακρίνεσθαί τε οἰόμενος δεῖν ἀπὸ τῶν ἐλεεινῶν τὰ πονηρὰ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν φιλανθρωπίας δεομένων τὰ μίσους ἄξια, καὶ τοιούτους τινὰς ἄλλους καθιστάμενος λόγους ἀληθεῖς μέν, οὐχ ἅπασι δὲ τοῖς ἀκούουσι κεχαρισμένους, οὐκ ἔπειθεν, ἀλλὰ θροῦς ἦν ἐφʼ ἑκάστῳ πολὺς καὶ τῶν μὲν ἀγανακτήσεις ὡς ἐξαιμάττοντος τὰς λύπας, τῶν δʼ ἐξομολογήσεις ὡς οὐδὲν τῶν ἀληθῶν ἀποκρυπτομένου· ἔλαττον δὲ πολλῷ τοῦτʼ ἦν θατέρου τὸ μέρος, ὥστʼ ἠφανίζοντο τῷ πολλῷ καὶ περιῆν ἡ τοῦ ἀγανακτοῦντος βοή.
And attempting to make a speech concerning justice, on the one hand accusing the money-lenders of having behaved in a cruel and inhuman manner, and on the other hand attacking the poor because they did not justly demand to be released from their debts by favor rather than by force, and because they unjustly held the senate in anger for obtaining nothing moderate from it, rather than those who were actually to blame; and attempting to show that only a small part of the populace did wrong not by intention, but was forced by the extent of their poverty to ask for the release, while the greater part was devoted to licentiousness, insolence, and living for pleasure, and prepared to serve their desires by plundering the property of others; and thinking that they ought to distinguish bad things from pitiable things, and those deserving of hatred from those needing humanity; and making other such arguments which, though true, were not pleasing to all who heard them, he failed to persuade them, but there was a great clamor at each statement, some being indignant as if he were making their griefs bleed, and others acknowledging them because he concealed nothing of the truth; but this latter part was much smaller than the other, so that they were drowned out by the majority, and the shout of the indignant prevailed.