§7Praeter saeuitiam suspecta in eo etiam luxuria erat, quod ad mediam noctem comisationes cum profusissimo quoque familiarium extenderet; nec minus libido propter exoletorum et spadonum greges propterque insignem reginae Berenices amorem, cui etiam nuptias pollicitus ferebatur; suspecta rapacitas, quod constabat in cognitionibus patris nundinari praemiarique solitum; denique propalam alium Neronem et opinabantur et praedicabant.
In addition to cruelty, luxury was also suspected in him, because he extended revels until midnight with the most prodigal of his intimates; nor was lust less suspected, on account of his troops of pathics and eunuchs, and on account of his notorious love for Queen Berenice, to whom he was even said to have promised marriage; rapacity was also suspected, because it was clear that in his father's judicial investigations he was accustomed to traffic in judgments and receive bribes; finally, people both thought and openly proclaimed that he would be another Nero.
at illi ea fama pro bono cessit conuersaque est in maximas laudes neque uitio ullo reperto et contra uirtutibus summis.
But that reputation turned out to his advantage and was converted into the highest praise, since no vice was found in him, and on the contrary, the greatest virtues.
Conuiuia instituit iucunda magis quam profusa.
He gave banquets that were pleasant rather than lavish.
amicos elegit, quibus etiam post eum principes ut et sibi et rei p. necessariis adquieuerunt praecipueque sunt usi.
He chose friends whom even the emperors after him relied upon and particularly employed, as being necessary both to themselves and to the state.
Berenicen statim ab urbe dimisit inuitus inuitam.
He immediately sent Berenice away from the city, unwilling though he was and unwilling though she was.
quosdam e gratissimis delicatorum quanquam tam artifices saltationis, ut mox scaenam tenuerint, non modo fouere prolixius, sed spectare omnino in publico coetu supersedit.
He refrained not only from favoring too lavishly, but even from watching at all in a public assembly, certain of his favorite darlings, although they were such skillful dancers that they soon held the stage.
Nulli ciuium quicquam ademit; abstinuit alieno, ut si quis umquam; ac ne concessas quidem ac solitas conlationes recepit.
He took nothing from any citizen; he abstained from the property of others as much as anyone ever did; and he did not even receive the allowed and customary contributions.
et tamen nemine ante se munificentia minor, amphitheatro dedicato thermisque iuxta celeriter extructis munus edidit apparatissimum largissimumque; dedit et nauale proelium in ueteri naumachia, ibidem et gladiatores atque uno die quinque milia omne genus ferarum.
And yet, second to no one before him in munificence, when the amphitheater was dedicated and the baths quickly built adjacent to it, he produced a most elaborate and lavish show; he also gave a naval battle in the old naumachia, and in the same place gladiators, and in a single day five thousand wild beasts of every kind.
§8Natura autem beniuolentissimus, cum ex instituto Tiberi omnes dehinc Caesares beneficia a superioribus concessa principibus aliter rata non haberent, quam si eadem isdem et ipsi dedissent, primus praeterita omnia uno confirmauit edicto nec a se peti passus est.
By nature, moreover, most benevolent, whereas from the practice of Tiberius all the Caesars thereafter did not hold benefits granted by previous emperors as valid, unless they themselves had granted the same things to the same persons, he was the first to confirm all past grants by a single edict, and did not allow himself to be petitioned.
in ceteris uero desideriis hominum obstinatissime tenuit, ne quem sine spe dimitteret; quin et admonentibus domesticis, quasi plura polliceretur quam praestare posset, non oportere ait quemquam a sermone principis tristem discedere; atque etiam recordatus quondam super cenam, quod nihil cuiquam toto die praestitisset, memorabilem illam meritoque laudatam uocem edidit: 'amici, diem perdidi. '
Populum in primis uniuersum tanta per omnis occasiones comitate tractauit, ut proposito gladiatorio munere, non ad suum, sed ad spectantium arbitrium editurum se professus sit;
Indeed, in all other requests of men, he most resolutely maintained the rule of sending no one away without hope; nay, when his household staff warned him that he was promising more than he could perform, he said that no one ought to depart sad from an audience with the emperor; and also, having once remembered over dinner that he had performed no service for anyone during the whole day, he uttered that memorable and deservedly praised saying: "Friends, I have lost a day." Above all, he treated the entire populace with such great affability on all occasions that, having proposed a gladiatorial show, he declared he would produce it not according to his own judgment, but according to that of the spectators; and he plainly did so.
et plane ita fecit. nam neque negauit quicquam petentibus et ut quae uellent peterent ultro adhortatus est.
For he neither denied anything to those who asked, and even exhorted them to ask for what they wished.
quin et studium armaturae Thraecum prae se ferens saepe cum populo et uoce et gestu ut fautor cauillatus est, uerum maiestate salua nec minus aequitate.
Nay, openly displaying his partiality for the Thracian style of armor, he often joked with the populace both in voice and gesture as a supporter, but without compromising his majesty and with no less fairness.
ne quid popularitatis praetermitteret, nonnumquam in thermis suis admissa plebe lauit.
Lest he should omit any opportunity for popularity, he sometimes bathed in his own baths after admitting the common people.
Quaedam sub eo fortuita ac tristia acciderunt, ut conflagratio Vesuuii montis in Campania, et incendium Romae per triduum totidemque noctes, item pestilentia quanta non temere alias.
Certain accidental and sad events occurred under him, such as the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Campania, and a fire at Rome for three days and as many nights, and also a pestilence as great as had rarely occurred at other times.
in iis tot aduersis ac talibus non modo principis sollicitudinem sed et parentis affectum unicum praestitit, nunc consolando per edicta, nunc opitulando quatenus suppeteret facultas.
In so many and such great adversities, he showed not only the concern of an emperor but also the unique affection of a parent, now by consoling through edicts, now by helping as far as his means allowed.
curatores restituendae Campaniae e consularium numero sorte duxit; bona oppressorum in Vesuuio, quorum heredes non extabant, restitutioni afflictarum ciuitatium attribuit.
He chose by lot commissioners for the restoration of Campania from among the ex-consuls; he assigned the property of those who perished in Vesuvius, whose heirs were not to be found, to the restoration of the afflicted cities.
urbis incendio nihil publice nisi perisse testatus, cuncta praetoriorum suorum ornamenta operibus ac templis destinauit praeposuitque compluris ex equestri ordine, quo quaeque maturius peragerentur.
In the fire of the city, declaring that nothing had perished except at his own expense, he destined all the ornaments of his villas for public works and temples, and appointed several of the equestrian order, so that each task might be completed more promptly.
medendae ualitudini leniendisque morbis nullam diuinam humanamque opem non adhibuit inquisito omni sacrificiorum remediorumque genere.
For curing health and mitigating diseases, he applied every divine and human assistance, having searched out every kind of sacrifice and remedy.
Inter aduersa temporum et delatores amendatoresque erant ex licentia ueteri.
Among the evils of the times were also informers and suborners, arising from the old license.
hos assidue in foro flagellis ac fustibus caesos ac nouissime traductos per amphitheatri harenam partim subici ac uenire imperauit, partim in asperrimas insularum auehi.
Having ordered these to be constantly beaten in the forum with whips and clubs, and finally led through the arena of the amphitheater, he commanded some to be put up for sale and sold, and others to be carried away to the most rugged of the islands.
utque etiam similia quandoque ausuros perpetuo coerceret, uetuit inter cetera de eadem re pluribus legibus agi quaeriue de cuiusquam defunctorum statu ultra certos annos.
And so that he might forever restrain those who would venture on similar things at any time, he forbade, among other things, that an action should be brought under multiple laws concerning the same matter, or that inquiry should be made into the status of any deceased person beyond a certain number of years.