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Livy · History of Rome §35.7.1-35.7.8

Legislation Against Usury and Successes in Spain

Passage 1236 of 1770 · Latin

Summary

This passage describes the legal measures taken to address the issue of usury and the evasion of laws through allied names in Rome, followed by the military operations and successes of Flaminius and Fulvius in Spain.

§35.7.1de ea re nihil temere decerni placuit; ad frequentiores consultatio dilata est;
It was resolved that nothing should be decided rashly concerning this matter; the consultation was adjourned to a fuller attendance.
§35.7.2instabat enim cura alia, quod civitas faenore laborabat, et quod, cum multis faenebribus legibus constricta avaritia esset, via fraudis inita erat, ut in socios, qui non tenerentur iis legibus, nomina transcriberent; ita libero faenore obruebantur debitores.
For another anxiety was pressing, because the state was suffering from high interest rates, and because, although greed had been restricted by many usurious laws, a way of fraud had been entered upon, namely that they transferred the debts to the allies, who were not bound by those laws; thus the debtors were being crushed by unrestricted interest.
§35.7.3cuius coercendi cum ratio quaereretur, diem finiri placuit Feralia, quae proxime fuissent, ut, qui post eam diem socii civibus Romanis credidissent pecunias, profiterentur, et ex ea die pecuniae creditae, quibus debitor vellet legibus, ius creditori diceretur.
When a method of checking this was being sought, it was resolved that a deadline should be fixed at the Feralia which had most recently occurred, so that those allies who, after that day, should have lent money to Roman citizens, should declare it, and that from that day, regarding money lent, justice should be administered to the creditor according to whatever laws the debtor should prefer.
§35.7.4deinde postquam professionibus detecta est magnitudo aeris alieni per hanc fraudem contracti, §35.7.5M. Sempronius tribunus plebis ex auctoritate patrum plebem rogavit, plebesque scivit, ut cum sociis ac nomine Latino creditae pecuniae ius idem quod cum civibus Romanis esset.
Then, after the magnitude of the debt contracted through this fraud was revealed by the declarations, Marcus Sempronius, tribune of the plebs, by the authority of the senate, proposed to the plebeians, and the plebeians decreed, that for money lent with the allies and the Latin name, the same law should apply as with Roman citizens.
haec in Italia domi militiaeque acta.
These things were done in Italy at home and in the field.
§35.7.6in Hispania nequaquam tantum belli fuit, quantum auxerat fama.
In Spain there was by no means as much war as rumor had magnified.
§35.7.7C. Flaminius in citeriore Hispania oppidum Inluciam in Oretanis cepit, deinde in hibernacula milites deduxit, et per hiemem proelia aliquot nulla memoria digna adversus latronum magis quam hostium excursiones vario tamen eventu nec sine militum iactura sunt facta.
Gaius Flaminius in Nearer Spain captured the town of Inlucia among the Oretani, then led his soldiers into winter quarters; and through the winter some battles not worthy of record were fought against the incursions of bandits rather than enemies, yet with varied success and not without loss of soldiers.
maiores gestae res a M. Fulvio.
Greater things were achieved by Marcus Fulvius.
§35.7.8is apud Toletum oppidum cum Vaccaeis Vettonibusque et Celtiberis signis collatis dimicavit, exercitum earum gentium fudit fugavitque, regem Hilernum vivum cepit.
He fought a pitched battle near the town of Toletum with the Vaccaei, the Vettones, and the Celtiberi, routed and put to flight the army of those nations, and captured their king Hilernus alive.

Notes

  1. 35.7.1frequentiores — Comparative adjective used substantively or as a predicate, meaning 'fuller numbers' or 'in a larger meeting of the senate,' indicating postponement to a session with better attendance.
  2. 35.7.2ut in socios... nomina transcriberent — This ut clause functions substantively as an appositive explaining the specific content of the preceding 'via fraudis' (way of fraud). 'Nomina transcribere' is a financial-legal term meaning to transfer the claims or debts on the accounts to another person's name.
  3. 35.7.3quibus debitor vellet legibus — A construction featuring the attraction of the antecedent (legibus) into the relative clause, equivalent to 'legibus quibus debitor vellet.' The imperfect subjunctive 'vellet' expresses a hypothetical choice or condition dependent on the historical main verb 'placuit' and subordinate 'diceretur.'
  4. 35.7.5creditae pecuniae — A genitive of reference or definition modifying 'ius,' meaning 'the law/legal status concerning the lent money' transacted with the allies and those of the Latin name.

Cite this passage

Livy, History of Rome §35.7.1-35.7.8. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:35.7.1-35.7.8

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