Dio's Rome Volume IV Part 8

[-12-] The bodies of Lucius and of Gaius were brought to Rome by the military tribunes and by the chief men of each city. The targes and the golden spears which they had received from the knights on entering the cla.s.s of iuvenes were set up in the senate-house.

Augustus was once called "master" by the people, but he not only forbade that any one should use this form of address to him but took very good care in every way to enforce his command.

[A.D. 3 (_a. u._ 756)]

When his third ten-year period had been accomplished, he then accepted the rulers.h.i.+p for the fourth time,--of course under compulsion! He had become milder through age and more hesitating in regard to offending any of the senators and now wished to have no differences with any of them.

For lending for three years to such as needed it fifteen hundred myriads of denarii, without interest, he was praised and reverenced by all.

Once, when a fire destroyed the palace, and many persons offered him large amounts, he would take nothing except an aureus from the various peoples and a denarius from single individuals. The name _aureus_, which I give here, is a local term for a piece of money worth twenty-five denarii.[9] Some of the Greeks also, whose books we read for acquiring a pure Attic style, give it this name. When Augustus had restored his dwelling he made all of it public property, either because of the contributions made by the people or because he was high priest and wished to live in a building both private and public.

[-13-] The people urged Augustus very strongly to rescind the sentence of exile pa.s.sed upon his daughter, but he answered that fire would mix with water before she should be brought back. And the populace did throw a good deal of fire into the Tiber. For the time being they accomplished nothing, but later they brought such pressure to bear that she was at last moved from the island to the mainland.

And later the outbreak of war with the Celtae found Augustus worn out in body (by reason of old age and sickness) and incapable of taking the field. Yielding, then, partly to the requirements of the situation and partly to the persuasions of Julia[10] (who had already been restored from banishment) he both adopted Tiberius and sent him out[11] against the Celtae, granting him the tribunician authority for ten years.

[A.D. 4 (_a. u._ 757)]

Yet suspecting that he might lose his head and fearing a possible insurrection he adopted for him also his nephew Germanicus, though Tiberius himself had a son. After this he took courage, and feeling that he had successors and supporters, he became desirous to organize the senate once more. So he nominated the ten senators whom he most honored and appointed three of them, selected by lot, to be scrutinizers. There were not many, however, who either imposed sentence on themselves beforehand,--permission being given them to do so, just as previously,--or were retired against their will.

This business, then, was managed by others. The emperor himself took a census of the inhabitants of Italy possessing property valued at not less than five myriad denarii. The weaker citizens and those dwelling outside of Italy he did not compel to undergo the taking of a census, for he feared that they might be disturbed and show insubordination of some sort. And in order that he might not seem to be acting in the capacity of censor (for the reason I mentioned before) [12] he a.s.sumed proconsular powers for the purpose of completing the census and accomplis.h.i.+ng the purification. And inasmuch as many of the young men of the senatorial cla.s.s and of the equestrian, as well, had grown poor though not at fault for it themselves, he made up to most of them the required amount of property, and in the case of some eighty increased it to thirty myriads.

[A.D. 4 ( _a. u._ 757) ]

Since, also, many were giving unrestricted emanc.i.p.ation to their slaves, he directed what age the manumitter and likewise the person to be liberated by him must have reached: moreover, what regulations people in general, and the former masters, should observe toward those made freedmen.

[-14-] While he was thus occupied plots were formed against him, and notably one by Gnaeus Cornelius, a son of the daughter of Pompey the Great. For some time the emperor was a prey to great perplexity not wis.h.i.+ng to kill the men,--for he saw that no greater safety would be his by their destruction,--nor yet to let them go, for fear this might attract others to conspire against him. While he was in a dilemma as to what he should do and could not be free from anxiety by day nor from terror by night, Livia one day said to him:--

"What is this, husband? Why is it you do not sleep!"

"Wife," answered Augustus, "who could be even to the slightest degree free from care, that has so many enemies and is so constantly the object of plots of one set of men or another? Do you not see how many are attacking both me and our sovereignty? The vengeance meted out to those found guilty does not r.e.t.a.r.d them: quite the contrary, as if they were pressing forward to do some n.o.ble action the rest also hasten to perish similarly."

Livia, hearing this, said: "That you should be the object of plots is not remarkable, nor is it contrary to human nature. Having so large an empire you must do many things and naturally you cause grief to not a few people. A ruler can not please all: on the contrary, even an exceedingly upright sovereign must inevitably make foes of many persons. For those who wish to be unjust are many more than those who act justly, and their desires it is impossible to satisfy. Even among such as possess a certain excellence some yearn for many great rewards which they can not obtain and some chafe because they are inferior to others: so both of them find fault with the ruler. From this you can see that it is impossible to avoid evil, and furthermore that of all the attacks made none is upon you but all upon your position of supremacy. If you were a private citizen, no one would willingly do you any harm unless he had previously received some injury. But for the supremacy and for the good things that it contains all yearn, and those who occupy any post of influence far more than their inferiors. It is the nature of wicked men, who have very little sense, to do so. It is implanted in their dispositions, just like anything else, and it is impossible by either persuasion or compulsion to remove such a bent from some of them. There is no law or fear stronger than natural tendencies. Reflect on this and do not take the offences of others so hard, but keep yourself and your supremacy carefully guarded, that we may hold it safely not by virtue of inflicting severe punishments but by means of strict watchfulness."

[-15-] To this Augustus replied: "Wife, I too know that nothing great is ever free from envy and plots,--least of all sole power. We should be peers of the G.o.ds if we did not have troubles and cares and fears beyond all private individuals. But to me it is also a source of grief that this is inevitably so and that no cure for it can be found."

"Yet," said Livia, "since some men are so const.i.tuted as to want to do wrong in any event, let us guard against them. We have many soldiers who protect us,--some marshaled against foreign foes and others about your person,--and a large retinue, so that by their help we may live safely both at home and abroad."

"I do not need," said Augustus, interrupting, "to state that many men on many occasions have perished at the hands of their immediate a.s.sociates.

For in addition to other disadvantages this, too, is a most distressing thing in monarchies, that we fear not only enemies (like other people) but also our friends. Many more rulers have been plotted against by such persons than by those who had nothing to do with them. This is to be expected, since the inner circle is with the potentate day and night, exercising and eating, and he has to take food and drink that they have prepared. Moreover, against acknowledged enemies you can array these very men, but against the latter themselves there is no one else to employ as an ally. To us, therefore, the whole time through, solitude is dreadful, company dreadful: to be unguarded is terrifying, but most terrifying are the guards themselves: enemies are difficult to deal with, but still greater difficulties are presented by our friends. They must all be called friends, whether they are such or not, but even if one should find them most reliable, even so one may not trust one's self in their company with a clear, carefree, unsuspecting heart. This, then, and the fact that it is requisite to take measures of defence against ordinary conspirators, make the situation overwhelmingly dreadful. For to be always compelled to be inflicting punishment and chastis.e.m.e.nt upon somebody is highly repugnant to men of character."

[-16-] "You are right," answered Livia, "and I have some advice to give you,--at least, if you prove willing to receive it and willing not to censure me that, woman as I am, I dare to make suggestions to you which no one else, even of your most intimate friends, would venture. And this is not through any lack of knowledge on their part, but because they are not bold enough to speak."

"Say on," rejoined Augustus, "and let us have it."

"I will tell you," continued Livia, "without hesitation, because I share your comforts and adversities, and while you are safe I myself hold dominion day by day, whereas if you come to any harm (which Heaven forbid!) I shall perish with you. Well, then, human nature persuades some to sin under any conditions, and there is no device for controlling it when it has once started toward any goal. What seems good to persons,--not to rehea.r.s.e the vices of the ma.s.ses,--at once induces very many of them to do wrong. [-17-] The boast of birth and pride of wealth, greatness of honor, audacity founded on bravery, and conceit due to authority, bring s.h.i.+pwreck to not a few. There is no making n.o.bility ign.o.ble, bravery cowardly, or prudence foolish: it is impossible. Nor, again, is it to curtail men's abundance or to strike down ambitions where conduct has been correct: that is iniquitous. That he who is on the defensive and antic.i.p.ates others' movements should incur injury and ill repute is inevitable. Come, let us change our policy and spare some of them. To me it seems far more feasible to set things right by kindness than by harshness. Not only are those who grant pardon loved by the objects of their clemency, who strive to repay the favor, but all others both respect and reverence them and will not readily endure to see harm done to them. Sovereigns, however, who maintain an inexorable anger not only are hated by those who have aught to fear, but cause uneasiness to all the rest. As a result, men plot against them to avoid meeting an untimely fate. Do you not notice that physicians very rarely have recourse to cutting and burning, wis.h.i.+ng to avoid aggravating a person's disease, but in the majority of cases soothe and cure by means of fomentations and mild drugs? Do not think that because those ailments have to do with the body and these with the mind that they are essentially different. Very many experiences of the body are similar in a way to what goes on in the souls of men, no matter how bodiless the latter may be. The soul contracts under the influence of fear and expands under that of wrath. Pain humiliates men and audacity puffs them up. The correspondences then are very close and therefore both kinds of trouble need treatments which are much alike. A gentle speech uttered to a man causes all his unruliness to subside, just as a harsh one provokes to anger even an easy-going person. The granting of pardon melts the most audacious, just as punishment irritates the most mild. Acts of violence inflame all men in every instance, even though such measures may be thoroughly just, but considerate treatment mollifies them. Hence one would more readily brave great dangers through persuasion and voluntarily, than under compulsion. Such is the inherent, unalterable quality of both methods of behavior that even among brute beasts that have no mind many of the strongest and fiercest are domesticated by petting and are subdued by coaxing, whereas many of the most cowardly and weak are made unmanageable and maddened by cruelties and terrors.

[-18-] "I am not saying that we must spare absolutely all wrongdoers, for we must cut out of the way the daredevil and busybody, the man of evil nature and evil devices, who gives himself up to an unyielding, persistent baseness, just as we treat parts of the body that are quite incurable. But of the rest, who err through youth or ignorance or a misunderstanding or some other chance, some purposely and others unwillingly, it is proper to admonish some with words, to bring others to their senses by threats, and to handle still others with moderation in some different way, precisely as in other [matters] ... all men impose upon some greater and upon others lesser punishments. So far as these persons are concerned you may employ moderation without danger, inflicting upon some the penalty of banishment, upon others that of loss of political rights, upon still others a money fine. You may also place some of them in country districts or in certain cities.

"In the past a few have been brought to their senses by missing what they hoped for, by failing to secure what they aimed at. A degradation in seats[13] and factional disputes involving disgrace, as well as being injured or terrified before they could make a move, has improved not a few. Yet one well born and courageous would prefer to die rather than to have any such experience. As a result, vengeance would become not easier for the plotters but more difficult, and we should be able to live in safety, since not a word could be said against us. At present we are thought to kill many through anger,[14] many because of a desire for their money, others through fear of their bravery, and a great many others on account of jealousy of their excellence. No one will readily believe that a person possessing so great an authority and power can seriously be the object of the plots of any unarmed individual. Some talk as above and others say that we hear a great many lies and foolishly pay heed to many of them, believing them true. They a.s.sert that those who spy into and overhear doubtful matters concoct many falsehoods, some being influenced by enmity, others by wrath, some because they can get money from their foes, others because they can get no money from the same persons, and further, that they report not only the fact of certain persons having committed suspicious actions or intending to commit them, but also how A said so-and-so, and B hearing it was silent, how one man laughed and somebody else wept.

[-19-] "I could cite innumerable other details of like nature which, no matter how true they were, are no business for free men to concern themselves about or report to you. If they went unnoticed, they would do you no harm, but when heard they might irritate you even against your will: and that ought by no means to happen, especially in a ruler of the people. Now many believe that from this cause large numbers unjustly perish, some without a trial and others by some unwarranted condemnation of a court. They will not admit that the evidence given or statements made under torture or any similar proof against them is genuine. This is the sort of talk, though some of it may not be just, which is reported in the case of practically all so put to death. And you ought, Augustus, to be free not only from injustice but from the appearance of it. It is sufficient for a private individual to avoid irregular conduct, but it behooves a ruler to incur not even the suspicion of it. You are the leader of human beings, not of beasts, and the only way you can make them really friendly to you is by persuading them by every means and constantly, without a break, that you will wrong no one either voluntarily or involuntarily. A man can be forced to fear another but he has to be persuaded to love him: and he is to be persuaded by the good treatment he himself receives and the benefits he sees conferred on others. The person, however, who suspects that somebody has perished unjustly both fears that he may some day meet the same fate and is compelled to hate the one responsible for the deed. And to be hated by one's subjects is (besides containing no element of good) exceedingly unprofitable. The general ma.s.s of people feel that ordinary individuals must defend themselves against all who wrong them in any way or else be despised and consequently oppressed: but rulers, they think, ought to prosecute those who wrong the State but endure those who are thought to commit offences against them privately; rulers can not be harmed by disdain or a.s.sault, because they have many guardians to protect them.

[-20-] "When I hear this and turn my attention to this I feel inclined to tell you outright to put no one to death for any such reason. Places of supremacy are established for the preservation of subjects, to prevent them from being injured either by one another or by foreign tribes: such places are not, by Jupiter, for the purpose of allowing the rulers themselves to hard their subjects. It is most glorious to be able not to destroy most of the citizens but to save them all, if possible. It is right to educate them by laws and, favours and admonitions, that they may be right-minded and further to watch and guard them, so that even if they wish to do wrong they may not be able. And if there is anything ailing, we must cure and correct it in some way, in order that there may be no entire loss. To endure the offences of the mult.i.tude is a task requiring great prudence and force: if any one should simply punish all of them as they deserve, before he knew it he would have destroyed the majority of mankind. For these reasons, then, I give you my opinion to the effect that you should not inflict the death penalty for any such error, but bring the men to their senses in some other way, so that they will not again do anything dangerous. What crime could a man commit shut up on an island, or in the country, or in some city, not only dest.i.tute of a throng of servants and money, but under guard, if it be necessary? If the enemy were anywhere near here or some alien force had dominion over this sea so that one of the prisoners might escape to them and do us some harm, or if, again, there were strong cities in Italy with fortifications and weapons, so that if a man seized them he might become a menace to us, that would be a different story. But all towns in this neighborhood are unarmed and lacking any walls that would serve in war, and the enemy is removed from them by vast distances; a long stretch of sea, and a journey by land including mountains and rivers hard to cross lie between them and us.

Why, then, should one fear this man or that man, defenceless, private citizens, here in the middle of your empire and enclosed by your armed forces? I can not see how any one could conceive such a notion or how the maddest madman could accomplish anything.

[-21-] "With these premises, therefore, let us give the idea a trial. The discontented will soon themselves change their ways and bring about an improvement in others. You notice that Cornelius is both of good birth and renowned. This matter has to be reasoned out in a human fas.h.i.+on. The sword can not effect everything for you; it would be a great blessing if it could bring some men to their senses and persuade them or even compel them to love any one with genuine affection: but, instead, it will destroy the body of one man and alienate the minds of the rest. People do not become more attached to any one because of the vengeance they see meted out to others, but they become more hostile through the influence of their own fears. That is one side of the picture. On the other hand, those who obtain pardon for any crime and repent are ashamed to wrong their benefactors again, but render them much service in return, hoping to receive much more again for it. When a man is saved by some one who has been wronged, he thinks that his rescuer, if fairly treated, will go to any lengths to aid him. Heed me, therefore, dearest, and make a change. Then all your other acts that have caused displeasure will appear to have been due to necessity. In conducting so great a city from democracy into monarchy it is impossible to make the transfer without bloodshed. But if you follow your old policy, you will be thought to have done these unpleasant things intentionally."

[-22-] Augustus heeded these suggestions of Livia and released all those against whom charges were pending, admonis.h.i.+ng some of them orally; Cornelius he even appointed consul. Later he so conciliated both him and the other men that no one else again really plotted against him or had the reputation of so doing. Livia had had most to do with saving the life of Cornelius, yet she was destined to be held responsible for the death of Augustus.

[A.D. 5 (a. u. 758)]

At this time, in the consuls.h.i.+p of Cornelius and Valerius Messala, earthquakes of ill omen occurred and the Tiber tore away the bridge so that the City was under water for seven days. There was an eclipse of the sun, and famine set in. This same year Agrippa was enrolled among the iuvenes, but obtained none of the same privileges as his brother. The senators attended the horse-races separately and the knights also separately from the remainder of the populace, as is done nowadays. And since the n.o.blest families did not show themselves inclined to give their daughters for the service of Vesta, a law was pa.s.sed that the daughters of freedmen might likewise be consecrated. Many contended for the honor, and so they drew lots in the senate in the presence of their fathers; no priestess, however, was appointed from this cla.s.s.

[-23-] The soldiers were displeased at the small size of the prizes for the wars that had taken place at this period and no one was willing to carry arms for longer than the specified term of his service. It was therefore voted that five thousand denarii be given to members of the pretorian guard when they had ended sixteen, and three thousand to the other soldiers when they had completed twenty years' service.

Twenty-three legions were being supported at that time, or, as others say, twenty-five, of citizen soldiers. Only nineteen of them now remain.

The Second (Augusta) is the one that winters in Upper Britain. Of the Third there are three divisions,--the Gallic, in Phoenicia; the Cyrenaic, in Arabia; the Augustan, in Numidia. The Fourth. (Scythian) is in Syria, the Fifth (Macedonian), in Dacia. The Sixth is divided into two parts, of which the one (Victrix) is in Lower Britain, and the other (Ferrata) is in Judaea. The soldiers of the Seventh, generally called Claudians, are in Upper Moesia. Those of the Eighth, Augustans, are in Upper Germany. Those of the Tenth are both in Upper Pannonia (Legio Gemina) and in Judaea.

The Eleventh, in Lower Moesia, is the Claudian. This name two legions received from Claudius because they had not fought against him in the insurrection of Camillus. The Twelfth (Fulminata) is in Cappadocia: the Thirteenth (Gemina) in Dacia: the Fourteenth (Gemina) in Upper Pannonia: the Fifteenth (Apollinaris) in Cappadocia. The Twentieth, called both Valeria and Victrix, is also in Upper Britain. These, I believe, together with those that have the t.i.tle of the Twenty second[15] and winter in Upper Germany Augustus took in charge and kept; and this I say in spite of the fact that they are by no means called Valerians by all and do not themselves use the t.i.tle any longer. These are preserved from the Augustan legions. Of the rest some have been scattered altogether and others were mixed in with different legions by Augustus himself and by the other emperors, from which circ.u.mstance they are thought to have been called Gemina.

[-24-] Now that I have once been brought into a discussion of the legions, I shall speak of the forces as they are at present according to the disposition made by subsequent emperors: in this way any one who desires to learn anything about them may do so easily, finding all his information written in one place. Nero organized the First legion, called the Italian, and now wintering in Lower Moesia; Galba, the First legion, called Adiutrix, in Lower Pannonia, and the Seventh (Gemina), which is in Spain; Vespasian, the Second, Adiutrix, in Lower Pannonia, and the Fourth (the Flavian) in Syria; Domitian, the First (Minervia), in Lower Germany; Trajan, the Second (the Egyptian), and the Thirtieth (Germanic), which he also named after himself. Marcus Antoninus organized the Second, which is in Noric.u.m, and the Third, in Rhaetia; these are also called Italian: Severus the Parthian legions, i. e., the First and the Third in Mesopotamia and between them the Second, the one in Italy.

This is at present the number of legions which are enrolled in the service, exclusive of the cohortes urbanae and the pretorian guard.

At that time, in the days of Augustus, those I mentioned were being supported, whether twenty-three or twenty-five altogether; and then there was some allied force, whatever the size, of infantry and cavalry and sailors. I can not state the exact figures. The body-guards, ten thousand in all, were divided into ten portions, and the six thousand warders of the city into four portions, and there were picked foreign hors.e.m.e.n to whom the name Batavians is applied (from the island Batavia in the Rhine), because the Batavians are noted for superiority in horsemans.h.i.+p.

I can not, however, state their exact number any more than that of the evocati. He began to reckon in the latter from the time that he called the warriors who had previously supported his father to arms again against Antony; and he retained control of them. They const.i.tute even now a special corps and carry rods, like the centurions.

For the distribution mentioned he needed money and therefore introduced a motion into the senate to the effect that a definite permanent fund be created, in order that without troubling any private citizen they might obtain abundant support and rewards from the proposed appropriation.

The means for such a fund was accordingly sought.--As no one showed a willingness to become aedile, some from the ranks of ex-quaestors and ex-tribunes were compelled by lot to take the office. This happened frequently at other times.

[A.D. 6 (_a. u._ 759)]

[-25-] After this, in the consuls.h.i.+p of aemilius Lepidus and Lucius Arruntius, when no source for the fund was found that suited anybody, but quite everybody felt dejected because such an attempt was being made, Augustus in the name of himself and of Tiberius put money into the treasury, which he called the aerarium militare. Some of the ex-praetors--such as drew the lots--he instructed to administer it for three years, employing two lictors apiece and such further a.s.sistance as was fitting. This was done by successive officials for a number of years.

At present they are chosen by whoever is emperor and they go about without lictors. Augustus himself made some further contributions and promised to do this annually, and he accepted offers from kings and certain peoples. From private individuals, though a number were ready and glad to give (as they said), he would take nothing. But as all this proved very slight in comparison with the large amount spent, and there was need of some inexhaustible supply, he ordered each one of the senators to devise means by himself, to write his plan in a book, and give it to him to look over. This was not because he had no plan of his own, but because he was most anxious to persuade them to choose the one that he wished. Various men proposed various courses, but he would approve none of them: instead, he arranged for five per cent. of the inheritances and bequests which should be left by deceased persons (except in the case of very near relations or poor families); he pretended that he had found this tax suggestion in Caesar's memoirs. It was a method that had been introduced once before, but had been later abolished and was now introduced anew. In this way he increased the revenues. The expenditures made by three men of consular rank, whom the lot designated, he partly made smaller and partly did away with altogether.

[-26-] This was not the only source of trouble to the Romans: there was also a severe famine. As a consequence, the gladiators and the slaves offered for sale were removed to a distance of over seven hundred and fifty stadia, Augustus and others dismissed the greater part of their retinue, there was a cessation of lawsuits, and senators were permitted to leave the city and go where they pleased. In order to prevent any hindrance to decrees from this last measure it was ordered that all those framed by as many as happened to attend meetings should be binding.

Moreover, ex-consuls were appointed to take charge of grain and bread supplies, so as to have a stated quant.i.ty sold to each person. Those who were recipients of public bounty had as much added to their supply gratis by Augustus as they might obtain at any time. When even that did not suffice, he forbade the citizens to hold any public festivals on his birthday.

Since also at this time many parts of the City fell a prey to fire, he formed a company of freedmen in seven divisions to render a.s.sistance on such occasions, and appointed a knight as their leader, thinking soon to disband them. He did not do this, however. Having ascertained by experience that the aid they gave was most valuable and necessary, he kept them. The night-watchmen exist to the present day, subject to special regulations, and those in the service are selected not from the freedmen only any longer but from on the rest of the cla.s.ses as well.

They have barracks in the city and draw pay from the public treasury.

[-27-] The mult.i.tude, under the burden of the famine and the tax and the losses sustained by fire, were ill at ease. They discussed openly many schemes of insurrection and by night scattered pamphlets more still: this move was said to be traceable to a certain Publius Rufus, but others were suspected of it. Rufus could not have originated or have taken an active part in it; therefore it was thought that others who aimed at a revolution were making an illicit use of his name. An investigation of the affair was resolved upon and rewards for information offered.

Information accordingly came in and the city as a result was stirred up.

This lasted till the scarcity of grain subsided, when gladiatorial games in honor of Drusus were given by Germanicus Caesar and Tiberius Claudius Nero, his sons. [In the course of them an elephant vanquished a rhinoceros and a knight distinguished for his wealth fought as a gladiator.] The people were encouraged by this honor shown to the memory of Drusus and by Tiberius's dedication of the temple of the Dioscuri, upon which he inscribed not only his name but also that of Drusus.

Himself he called Claudia.n.u.s instead of Claudius, because of his adoption into the family of Augustus. He continued to direct operations against the enemy and visited the City constantly whenever opportunity offered; this was partly on account of various kinds of business but chiefly owing to fear that Augustus might promote somebody else during his absence.

These were the events in the City that year.

In Achaea the governor died in the middle of his term and directions were given to his quaestor and to his a.s.sessor (whom, as I have said,[16] we call legatus) that the latter should administer the government as far as the isthmus, and the former the rest of it. Herod [17] of Palestine, who was accused by his brothers of some wrongdoing, was banished beyond the Alps and his portion of the Palestinian domain reverted to the State.

[Augustus suffered from old age and infirmity, so that he could not transact business for all that needed his aid: some cases he reviewed and tried with his counselors, sitting upon the tribunal on the Palatine; the emba.s.sies which came from the various nations and princes he put in charge of three ex-consuls, under the arrangement that any one of them individually might listen to such an emba.s.sy and return an answer, except in cases where it was necessary for himself and the senate to render a decision besides.]