§38Sed nec populo aut moenibus patriae pepercit.
But he spared neither the people nor the walls of his homeland.
dicente quodam in sermone communi:
ἐμοῦ θανόντοσ γαῖα μειχθήτω πυρί, 'immo,' inquit, 'ἐμοῦ ζῶντοσ,' planeque ita fecit.
When someone said in a common conversation: "ἐμοῦ θανόντοσ γαῖα μειχθήτω πυρί," "Nay," he said, "ἐμοῦ ζῶντοσ," and he did exactly so.
nam quasi offensus deformitate ueterum aedificiorum et angustiis flexurisque uicorum, incendit urbem tam palam, ut plerique consulares cubicularios eius cum stuppa taedaque in praediis suis deprehensos non attigerint, et quaedam horrea circa domum Auream, quorum spatium maxime desiderabat, ut bellicis machinis labefacta atque inflammata sint, quod saxeo muro constructa erant.
For, as if offended by the ugliness of the old buildings and the narrowness and windings of the streets, he set fire to the city so openly that many consulars, having caught his chamberlains on their estates with tow and torch, did not touch them, and certain granaries around the Golden House, whose space he especially desired, were demolished with war machines and set on fire because they were built with stone walls.
per sex dies septemque noctes ea clade saeuitum est ad monumentorum bustorumque deuersoria plebe compulsa.
For six days and seven nights this disaster raged, while the populace was driven into the shelters of monuments and tombs.
tunc praeter immensum numerum insularum domus priscorum ducum arserunt hostilibus adhuc spoliis adornatae deorumque aedes ab regibus ac deinde Punicis et Gallicis bellis uotae dedicataeque, et quidquid uisendum atque memorabile ex antiquitate durauerat.
Then, besides an immense number of insulae, the houses of ancient generals, still adorned with hostile spoils, and the temples of the gods vowed and dedicated by the kings and later during the Punic and Gallic wars, and whatever was worth seeing and memorable that had survived from antiquity, were burned.
hoc incendium e turre Maecenatiana prospectans laetusque 'flammae,' ut aiebat, 'pulchritudine' Halosin Ilii in illo suo scaenico habitu decantauit.
Gazing at this fire from the tower of Maecenas and rejoicing, as he said, "in the beauty of the flames," he sang "The Fall of Ilium" in his theatrical costume.
ac ne non hinc quoque quantum posset praedae et manubiarum inuaderet, pollicitus cadauerum et ruderum gratuitam egestionem nemini ad reliquias rerum suarum adire permisit; conlationibusque non receptis modo uerum et efflagitatis prouincias priuatorumque census prope exhausit.
And lest he should not seize as much plunder and spoils from this source as well, having promised the free removal of corpses and debris, he permitted no one to approach the remains of their own property; and having not only received but even demanded contributions, he nearly exhausted the provinces and the fortunes of private individuals.
§39accesserunt tantis ex principe malis probrisque quaedam et fortuita: pestilentia unius autumni, quo triginta funerum milia in rationem Libitinae uenerunt; clades Britannica, qua duo praecipua oppida magna ciuium sociorumque caede direpta sunt; ignominia ad Orientem legionibus in Armenia sub iugum missis aegreque Syria retenta.
To such great evils and disgraces caused by the emperor, certain accidental disasters were added: a plague of a single autumn, in which thirty thousand deaths entered into the accounts of Libitina; the British disaster, in which two chief towns were sacked with a great slaughter of citizens and allies; the disgrace in the East, when the legions in Armenia were sent under the yoke and Syria was retained with difficulty.
mirum et uel praecipue notabile inter haec fuerit nihil eum patientius quam maledicta et conuicia hominum tulisse, neque in ullos leniorem quam qui se dictis aut carminibus lacessissent extitisse.
It would be surprising and especially notable among these things that he bore nothing more patiently than the curses and insults of men, and was gentler toward none than those who provoked him with words or verses.
multa Graece Latineque proscripta aut uulgata sunt, sicut illa:
"
Νέρων Ὀρέστησ Ἀλκμέων μητροκτόνος. νεόψηφον: Νέρων ἰδίαν μητέρα ἀπέκτεινε.
Many lampoons in Greek and Latin were posted or published, such as these: "Νέρων Ὀρέστησ Ἀλκμέων μητροκτόνος. νεόψηφον: Νέρων ἰδίαν μητέρα ἀπέκτεινε.
"
"
Quis negat Aeneae magna de stirpe Neronem?
sustulit hic matrem, sustulit ille patrem.
"" Who denies that Nero is of the great lineage of Aeneas? This one took away his mother, that one carried away his father.
Dum tendit citharam noster, dum cornua Parthus,
noster erit Paean, ille Hecatebeletes.
While our leader tunes his lyre, and the Parthian his bow, our leader will be Paean, the other Hecatebeletes.
Roma domus fiet: Veios migrate, Quirites,
si non et Veios occupat ista domus.
Rome will become a house; migrate to Veii, Citizens, if that house does not occupy Veii as well.
"
sed neque auctores requisiit et quosdam per indicem delatos ad senatum adfici grauiore poena prohibuit.
"But he neither searched for the authors, and when some were reported to the senate by an informer, he forbade them to be punished with too severe a penalty.
transeuntem eum Isidorus Cynicus in publico clara uoce corripuerat, quod Naupli mala bene cantitaret, sua bona male disponeret; et Datus Atellanarum histrio in cantico quodam
"
ὑγίαινε πάτερ, ὑγίαινε μῆτερ
"
ita demonstrauerat, ut bibentem natantemque faceret, exitum scilicet Claudi Agrippinaeque significans, et in nouissima clausula
"
Orcus uobis ducit pedes
"
senatum gestu notarat.
As he was passing by, Isidorus the Cynic had reproached him in public with a loud voice, because "he sang the ills of Nauplius well, but disposed of his own goods badly"; and Datus, an actor of Atellan farces, in a certain song at the words "ὑγίαινε πάτερ, ὑγίαινε μῆτερ" had gestured in such a way as to represent drinking and swimming, clearly indicating the end of Claudius and Agrippina, and in the very last clause "Orcus uobis ducit pedes," he had indicated the senate with a gesture.
histrionem et philosophum Nero nihil amplius quam urbe Italiaque summouit, uel contemptu omnis infamiae uel ne fatendo dolorem irritaret ingenia.
Nero did nothing more to the actor and the philosopher than to banish them from the city and Italy, either out of contempt for all infamy or lest by showing pain he should provoke men's wits.
§40Talem principem paulo minus quattuordecim annos perpessus terrarum orbis tandem destituit, initium facientibus Gallis duce Iulio Vindice, qui tum eam prouinciam pro praetore optinebat.
Having endured such a prince for a little less than fourteen years, the world at last deserted him, with the Gauls taking the initiative under the leadership of Julius Vindex, who then governed that province as pro-praetor.
Praedictum a mathematicis Neroni olim erat fore ut quandoque destitueretur; unde illa uox eius celeberrima: τὸ τέχνιον ἡμᾶσ διατρέφει, quo maiore scilicet uenia meditaretur citharoedicam artem, principi sibi gratam, priuato necessariam.
It had been predicted to Nero long ago by astrologers that he would one day be deserted; whence arose that very famous saying of his: "τὸ τέχνιον ἡμᾶσ διατρέφει," so that he might practice with greater excuse the cithara-playing art, agreeable to him as a prince and necessary as a private citizen.
spoponderant tamen quidam destituto Orientis dominationem, nonnulli nominatim regnum Hierosolymorum, plures omnis pristinae fortunae restitutionem.
Yet some had promised him the dominion of the East when deserted, some specifically the kingdom of Jerusalem, and many the restoration of all his former fortune.
cui spei pronior, Britannia Armeniaque amissa ac rursus utraque recepta, defunctum se fatalibus malis existimabat.
Being more inclined to this hope, when Britain and Armenia were lost and both were recovered again, he thought he had escaped his fatal misfortunes.
ut uero consulto Delphis Apolline septuagensimum ac tertium annum cauendum sibi audiuit, quasi eo demum obiturus, ac nihil coniectans de aetate Galbae, tanta fiducia non modo senectam sed etiam perpetuam singularemque concepit felicitatem, ut amissis naufragio pretiosissimis rebus non dubitauerit inter suos dicere
"pisces eas sibi relaturos. "
Neapoli de motu Galliarum cognouit die ipso quo matrem occiderat, adeoque lente ac secure tulit ut gaudentis etiam suspicionem praeberet tamquam occasione nata spoliandarum iure belli opulentissimarum prouinciarum; statimque in gymnasium progressus certantis athletas effusissimo studio spectauit.
But when he heard from the oracle of Apollo at Delphi that he must beware of his seventy-third year, thinking that he would die only then, and suspecting nothing of Galba's age, he conceived such confidence not only of old age but also of a perpetual and unique good fortune, that when he lost his most precious things in a shipwreck, he did not hesitate to say among his followers that "the fishes would bring them back to him." He learned of the movement of the Gauls at Neapolis on the very day on which he had killed his mother, and he took it so slowly and securely that he even gave rise to a suspicion of rejoicing, as if an opportunity had arisen for plundering the richest provinces by the law of war; and immediately proceeding to the gymnasium, he watched the competing athletes with the most enthusiastic interest.
cenae quoque tempore interpellatus tumultuosioribus litteris hactenus excanduit, ut malum iis qui descissent minaretur.
Even at dinner time, interrupted by more turbulent letters, he flared up only so far as to threaten evil to those who had revolted.
denique per octo continuos dies non rescribere cuiquam, non mandare quid aut praecipere conatus rem silentio obliterauit.
Finally, for eight consecutive days, he neither wrote back to anyone nor attempted to give any order or instruction, but buried the matter in silence.