[FLORENTINUS libro decimo institutionum. ] §29.1.24.prDiuus Traianus Statilio Seuero ita rescripsit: 'Id priuilegium, quod militantibus datum est, ut quoquo modo facta ab his testamenta rata sint, sic intellegi debet, ut utique prius constare debeat testamentum factum esse, quod et sine scriptura et a non militantibus fieri potest.
[FLORENTINUS, in the tenth book of his Institutes.] The Divine Trajan replied by rescript to Statilius Severus as follows: 'That privilege which has been granted to those in active service, namely, that testaments made by them in any manner whatsoever should be valid, must be understood in such a way that, in any case, it must first be established that a testament has been made, which can be done both without writing and by those not in active service.
si ergo miles, de cuius bonis apud te quaeritur, conuocatis ad hoc hominibus, ut uoluntatem suam testaretur, ita locutus est, ut declararet, quem uellet sibi esse heredem et cui libertatem tribuere: potest uideri sine scripto hoc modo esse testatus et uoluntas eius rata habenda est.
If, therefore, the soldier, about whose property there is an inquiry before you, having called people together for this purpose, in order to attest his will, spoke in such a way as to declare whom he wished to be his heir and to whom he wished to grant freedom: he can be deemed to have made his will in this manner without writing, and his will must be held valid.
Ceterum si, ut plerumque sermonibus fieri solet, dixit alicui: 'ego te heredem facio', aut tibi bona mea relinquo', non oportet hoc pro testamento obseruari.
But if, as is commonly done in conversation, he said to someone: "I make you my heir," or "I leave you my property," this ought not to be observed as a testament.
nec ullorum magis interest, quam ipsorum, quibus id priuilegium datum est, eiusmodi exemplum non admitti: alioquin non difficulter post mortem alicuius militis testes existerent, qui adfirmarent se audisse dicentem aliquem relinquere se bona cui uisum sit, et per hoc iudicia uera subuertuntur'.
Nor is it of greater interest to anyone than to those themselves to whom that privilege has been granted, that such an example is not admitted: otherwise, after the death of some soldier, witnesses would not difficultly appear who would assert that they heard him saying that he left his property to whomever he pleased, and by this, true judgments are subverted.'