§45.10.1victoriae Romanae fama cum pervasisset in Asiam, Antenor, qui cum classe lemborum ad Phanas stabat, Cassandriam inde traiecit.
When the report of the Roman victory had spread into Asia, Antenor, who was stationed with a fleet of light vessels at Phanae, crossed over from there to Cassandrea.
§45.10.2C. Popilius, qui Deli in praesidio navibus Macedoniam petentibus erat, postquam debellatum in Macedonia et statione summotos hostium lembos audivit, dimissis et ipse Attali navibus ad susceptam legationem peragendam navigare Aegyptum pergit, §45.10.3ut prius occurrere Antiocho posset, quam ad Alexandreae moenia accederet.
Gaius Popilius, who was at Delos in defense of the ships heading for Macedonia, after he heard that the war in Macedonia had ended and the enemy's light vessels had been removed from their station, dismissed Attalus' ships also on his part, and proceeded to sail to Egypt to carry out the embassy he had undertaken, so that he might be able to meet Antiochus before he should approach the walls of Alexandria.
§45.10.4cum praeterveherentur Asiam legati et Loryma venissent, qui portus viginti paulo amplius milia ab Rhodo abest, ex adverso urbi ipsi positus, principes Rhodiorum occurrunt — iam enim eo quoque victoriae fama perlata erat — orantes, ut Rhodum deveherentur: §45.10.5pertinere id ad famam salutemque civitatis, noscere ipsos omnia, quae acta essent quaeque agerentur Rhodi, et conperta per se, non volgata fama Romam referre.
When the legates were sailing past Asia and had come to Loryma, a port which is a little more than twenty miles distant from Rhodes, situated directly opposite to the city itself, the leading men of the Rhodians met them—for the report of the victory had already been brought there too—begging them to sail down to Rhodes, urging that this concerned the reputation and safety of their state, and that they should themselves know everything that had been done and was being done at Rhodes, and report to Rome what they had found out for themselves, not by common rumor.
§45.10.6diu negantes perpulerunt, ut moram navigationis brevem pro salute sociae urbis paterentur.
Although they refused for a long time, the Rhodians prevailed upon them to allow a brief delay in their voyage for the safety of an allied city.
postquam Rhodum ventum est, in contionem quoque eos iidem precibus pertraxerunt.
After they arrived at Rhodes, the same men by their entreaties dragged them even into the assembly.
§45.10.7adventus legatorum auxit potius timorem civitati quam minuit; omnia enim Popilius, quae singuli universique eo bello hostiliter dixerant fecerantque, §45.10.8rettulit, et vir asper ingenio augebat atrocitatem eorum, quae dicerentur, §45.10.9voltu truci et accusatoria voce, ut, cum propriae simultatis nulla causa cum civitate ei esset, ex unius senatoris Romani acerbitate, qualis in se universi senatus animus esset, coniectarent.
The arrival of the legates increased rather than diminished the fear of the state; for Popilius recalled everything that they, individually and collectively, had said and done in a hostile manner during that war, and being a man of a harsh disposition, he exaggerated the atrocity of what was being said, with a fierce countenance and an accusing voice, so that, although he had no cause of private enmity with the state, they might infer from the bitterness of a single Roman senator what the disposition of the entire senate was toward them.
§45.10.10C. Decimi moderatior oratio fuit, qui in plerisque eorum, quae commemorata a Popilio essent, culpam non penes populum, sed penes paucos concitores volgi esse dixit: §45.10.11eos, venalem linguam habentis, decreta plena regiae adsentationis fecisse et eas legationes misisse, quarum Rhodios semper non minus puderet quam paeniteret. quae omnia, si sana mens populo foret, in capita noxiorum versura.
Gaius Decimius' speech was more moderate; he said that in most of the matters mentioned by Popilius, the blame lay not with the people, but with a few agitators of the populace: those men, possessing venal tongues, had passed decrees full of royal flattery and had sent those embassies of which the Rhodians would always be no less ashamed than repentant; all of which, if the people had a sound mind, would turn upon the heads of the guilty.
§45.10.12cum magno adsensu auditus est, non magis eo, quod multitudinem noxa levabat, quam quod culpam in auctores verterat.
He was heard with great approval, no more because he relieved the multitude of guilt than because he turned the blame onto the authors of it.
§45.10.13itaque cum principes Rhodiorum Romanis responderent, nequaquam tam grata oratio eorum fuit, qui, quae Popilius obiecerat, diluere utcumque conati sunt, quam eorum, qui Decimio in auctoribus ad piaculum noxae obiciendis adsensi sunt.
Therefore, when the leading men of the Rhodians replied to the Romans, the speech of those who tried in some way to explain away what Popilius had charged was by no means so pleasing as the speech of those who agreed with Decimius in offering the authors as an expiation of the guilt.
§45.10.14decretum igitur extemplo, ut, qui pro Perseo adversus Romanos dixisse quid aut fecisse convincerentur, capitis condemnarentur.
Therefore, a decree was immediately passed that those who should be convicted of having said or done anything in favor of Perseus against the Romans should be condemned to death.
excesserant urbe sub adventum Romanorum quidam, alii mortem sibi consciverunt.
Some had departed from the city on the arrival of the Romans; others inflicted death upon themselves.
§45.10.15legati non ultra quam quinque dies Rhodi morati Alexandream proficiscuntur.
The legates, having delayed at Rhodes no more than five days, set out for Alexandria.
nec eo segnius iudicia ex decreto coram iis facto Rhodii exercebant; quam perseverantiam in exequenda re tam Decimi lenitas quam Popili effecerat asperitas.
Nor did the Rhodians on that account carry out the trials based on the decree made in their presence any more slackly; this perseverance in executing the matter had been brought about as much by the leniency of Decimius as by the severity of Popilius.