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Livy · History of Rome §42.4.1-42.4.5

Death of Fabius and the Land Distribution Commission

Passage 1594 of 1770 · Latin

Summary

Following the sudden death of the praetor Fabius on his way to Hither Spain, the senate decided to extend the command of the predecessor Furius. Meanwhile, a board of ten commissioners was established to distribute public lands in Gaul and Liguria, and envoys from Aetolia and Thessaly arrived in Rome.

§42.4.1ex praetoribus, qui in provincias ierant, N. Fabius Massiliae moritur, cum in citeriorem Hispaniam iret.
Of the praetors who had gone to their provinces, Numerius Fabius died at Massilia while he was on his way to Hither Spain.
§42.4.2itaque cum id nuntiatum a Massiliensibus legatis esset, senatus decrevit, ut P. Furius et Cn. Servilius, quibus succedebatur, inter se sortirentur, uter citeriorem Hispaniam prorogato imperio obtineret.
Therefore, when this was reported by envoys from Massilia, the senate decreed that Publius Furius and Gnaeus Servilius, who were to be succeeded, should draw lots between themselves as to which of them should hold Hither Spain with prolonged command.
§42.4.3sors opportuna fuit, ut P. Furius idem, cuius ea provincia fuerat, remaneret.
The lot was favorable, so that the same Publius Furius, whose province that had been, remained.
eodem anno, cum agri Ligustini et Gallici, quod bello captum erat, aliquantum vacaret, senatus consultum factum, ut is ager viritim divideretur.
In the same year, since a considerable amount of the Ligurian and Gallic land, which had been captured in war, was vacant, a decree of the senate was passed that this land should be distributed individually.
§42.4.4decemviros in eam rem ex senatus consulto creavit A. Atilius praetor urbanus M. Aemilium Lepidum C. Cassium T. Aebutium Parrum C. Tremellium P. Cornelium Cethegum Q. et L. Apuleios M. Caecilium C. Salonium C. Munatium.
For this purpose, the urban praetor Aulus Atilius, in accordance with the decree of the senate, appointed a board of ten commissioners: Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, Gaius Cassius, Titus Aebutius Parrus, Gaius Tremellius, Publius Cornelius Cethegus, Quintus and Lucius Apuleius, Marcus Caecilius, Gaius Salonius, and Gaius Munatius.
diviserunt dena iugera in singulos, sociis nominis Latini terna.
They distributed ten iugera to each citizen, and three to each of the allies of the Latin name.
§42.4.5per idem tempus, quo haec agebantur, legati ex Aetolia Romam venerunt de discordiis seditionibusque suis, et Thessali legati nuntiantes, quae in Macedonia gererentur.
Around the same time that these things were being done, envoys came to Rome from Aetolia concerning their internal discords and seditions, and also Thessalian envoys, reporting what was being done in Macedonia.

Notes

  1. §42.4.2quibus succedebatur — The relative pronoun quibus is in the dative case. The intransitive verb succedo (to succeed, replace) is used in an impersonal passive construction; literally 'to whom it was being succeeded', meaning 'who were to be replaced by successors'.
  2. §42.4.3quod bello captum erat — Although the antecedent is agri... aliquantum (a considerable portion of the Ligurian and Gallic land), the relative pronoun quod is in the neuter singular. This is because it agrees with the partitive neuter noun aliquantum (or the general concept of the land quantity) rather than the masculine plural agri.
  3. §42.4.4Q. et L. Apuleios — The accusative plural form Apuleios indicates two individuals of the Apuleian gens collectively, namely Quintus (Q.) and Lucius (L.) Apuleius. They constitute two of the ten commissioners.

Cite this passage

Livy, History of Rome §42.4.1-42.4.5. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:42.4.1-42.4.5

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