§4'Collocutus sum cum Tiberio, ut mandasti mea Liuia, quid nepoti tuo Tiberio faciendum esset ludis Martialibus.
'I have spoken with Tiberius, as you instructed, my Livia, as to what should be done by your grandson Tiberius at the games of Mars.
consentit autem uterque nostrum, semel nobis esse statuendum, quod consilium in illo sequamur.
Now, both of us agree that we must establish once and for all what policy we are to follow regarding him.
nam si est artius, ut ita dicam, holocleros, quid est quod dubitemus, quin per eosdem articulos et gradus producendus sit, per quos frater eius productus sit? sin autem ἠλαττῶσθαι sentimus eum et βεβλάφθαι καὶ εἰς τὴν τοῦ σώματοσ καὶ εἰσ τὴν τῆσ ψυχῆσ ἀρτιότητα, praebenda materia deridendi et illum et nos non est hominibus τὰ τοιαῦτα σκώπτειν καὶ μυκτηρίζειν εἰωθόσιν.
For if he is, so to speak, complete and sound in all his limbs, what reason is there for us to doubt that he should be advanced through the very same stages and steps through which his brother was advanced? But if, on the other hand, we feel that he is deficient and impaired in the soundness of both his body and his mind, we must not provide an opportunity of mockery, both of him and of ourselves, to men who are accustomed to mock and sneer at such things.
nam semper aestuabimus, si de singulis articulis temporum deliberabimus, μὴ προϋποκειμένου ἡμῖν posse arbitremur eum gerere honores necne.
For we shall always be in a state of anxiety if we deliberate on each individual occasion, unless it is beforehand established as a premise for us whether we think he can hold offices or not.
in praesentia tamen quibus de rebus consulis, curare eum ludis Martialibus triclinium sacerdotum non displicet nobis, si est passurus se ab Siluani filio homine sibi affini admoneri, ne quid faciat quod conspici et derideri possit.
For the present, however, concerning the matters about which you consult me, we do not object to his taking charge of the priests' dining room at the games of Mars, provided that he is willing to let himself be advised by the son of Silvanus, a man related to him, so that he does not do anything that can be noticed and mocked.
spectare eum circenses ex puluinari non placet nobis; expositus enim in fronte prima spectaculorum conspicietur.
We do not approve of his watching the circus games from the pulvinar; for, exposed in the very front of the spectacles, he will be stared at.
in Albanum montem ire eum non placet nobis aut esse Romae Latinarum diebus.
We do not approve of his going to the Alban Mount, or of his being in Rome during the days of the Latin Festival.
cur enim non praeficitur urbi, si potest sequi fratrem suum in montem? habes nostras, mea Liuia, sententias, quibus placet semel de tota re aliquid constitui, ne semper inter spem et metum fluctuemur.
For why is he not made prefect of the city, if he is able to follow his brother to the mount? You have our opinions, my Livia, by which we prefer that something be decided once and for all about the whole matter, so that we may not always fluctuate between hope and fear.
licebit autem, si uoles, Antoniae quoque nostrae des hanc partem epistulae huius legendam. ' rursus alteris litteris:
'Tiberium adulescentem ego uero, dum tu aberis, cotidie inuitabo ad cenam, ne solus cenet cum suo Sulpicio et Athenodoro.
You will be permitted, moreover, if you wish, to give this part of this letter to our Antonia to read.' Again in another letter: 'I shall indeed invite the young Tiberius to dinner every day while you are away, so that he may not dine alone with his Sulpicius and Athenodorus.
qui uellem diligentius et minus μετεώρωσ deligeret sibi aliquem, cuius motum et habitum et incessum imitaretur.
I wish he would select for himself someone more carefully and less flightily, whose carriage, posture, and gait he might imitate.
misellus ἀτυχεῖ: nam ἐν τοῖσ σπουδαίοισ, ubi non aberrauit eius animus, satis apparet ἡ τῆσ ψυχῆσ αὐτοῦ εὐγένεια. ' item tertiis litteris:
'Tiberium nepotem tuum placere mihi declamantem potuisse, peream nisi, mea Liuia, admiror.
The poor boy is unfortunate; for in serious matters, where his mind has not gone astray, the nobility of his soul is sufficiently apparent.' Likewise in a third letter: 'May I die, my Livia, if I am not full of admiration that your grandson Tiberius was able to please me when declaiming.
nam qui tam ἀσαφῶσ loquatur, qui possit cum declamat σαφῶσ dicere quae dicenda sunt, non uideo. '
Nec dubium est, quid post haec Augustus constituerit et reliquerit eum nullo praeter auguralis sacerdotii honore impertitum ac ne heredem quidem nisi inter tertios ac paene extraneos e parte sexta nuncuparet, legatoque non amplius quam octingentorum sestertiorum prosecutus.
For how one who speaks so indistinctly can, when he declaims, say what needs to be said so clearly, I do not see.' Nor is there any doubt what Augustus decided after this, and he left him endowed with no honor other than that of the augural priesthood, and did not even name him as heir except among the third-degree heirs, and almost as a stranger, for a sixth part of his estate, and leaving him a legacy of no more than eight hundred thousand sesterces.
§5Tiberius patruus petenti honores consularia ornamenta detulit; sed instantius legitimos flagitanti id solum codicillis rescripsit, quadraginta aureos in Saturnalia et Sigillaria misisse ei.
His uncle Tiberius, when Claudius petitioned for offices, conferred upon him the consular ornaments; but when Claudius demanded the regular offices more importunately, Tiberius wrote back to him in a codicil only this, that he had sent him forty gold pieces for the Saturnalia and Sigillaria.
tunc demum abiecta spe dignitatis ad otium concessit, modo in hortis et suburbana domo, modo in Campaniae secessu delitescens, atque ex contubernio sordidissimorum hominum super ueterem segnitiae notam ebrietatis quoque et aleae infamiam subiit, cum interim, quanquam hoc modo agenti, numquam aut officium hominum aut reuerentia publice defuit.
Then at last, throwing away all hope of dignity, he retired to leisure, hiding himself now in his gardens and suburban villa, now in his retreat in Campania; and from his association with the most degraded of men, in addition to his old reputation for laziness, he also incurred the infamy of drunkenness and gambling. Yet, in the meantime, although he lived in this manner, he never lacked either the attentions of individuals or public respect.
§6Equester ordo bis patronum eum perferendae pro se legationis elegit, semel cum deportandum Romam corpus Augusti umeris suis ab consulibus exposceret, iterum cum oppressum Seianum apud eosdem gratularetur; quin et spectaculis aduenienti assurgere et lacernas deponere solebat.
The equestrian order twice chose him as their patron to head an embassy on their behalf, once when they requested of the consuls that the body of Augustus might be carried to Rome on their shoulders, and again when they congratulated the same consuls on the downfall of Sejanus; moreover, when he entered the spectacles, the spectators used to rise and lay aside their cloaks in his honor.
senatus quoque, ut ad numerum sodalium Augustalium sorte ductorum extra ordinem adiceretur, censuit et mox ut domus ei, quam incendio amiserat, publica impensa restitueretur, dicendaeque inter consulares sententiae ius esset.
The senate also decreed that he should be added extra ordinem to the number of the Sodales Augustales, who were chosen by lot, and soon after, that his house, which he had lost by fire, should be rebuilt at public expense, and that he should have the right of giving his opinion among the consulars.
quod decretum abolitum est, excusante Tiberio imbecillitatem eius ac damnum liberalitate sua resarsurum pollicente.
This decree, however, was annulled, since Tiberius excused his weakness and promised that he would repair the damage with his own liberality.
qui tamen moriens et in tertiis heredibus eum ex parte tertia nuncupatum, legato etiam circa sestertium uicies prosecutus commendauit insuper exercitibus ac senatui populoque R. inter ceteras necessitudines nominatim.
Yet, at his death, Tiberius named him among his third-degree heirs for a third part of his estate, leaving him also a legacy of about two million sesterces, and furthermore recommended him by name to the armies, the senate, and the Roman people, among his other relatives.