Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Livy 1.10


Now the spirits of the seized (dat. pos.) had been greatly appeased.  But the parents of those seized then most greatly were agitating their state with mourning garment and tears and complaints.  [Nec] Nor only were they containing their indignations at home, but everywhere they were gathering to Titus Tatius, king of the Sabines, and legations were convening to him because the name of Tatius was the greatest in these regions.  The Caeninenses, and the Crustumini, and the Antemnates were to whom part of this injury pertained.  Tatius and the Sabines seemed to act slowly to them; these peoples themselves among the three commonly prepare war.  [Ne]  Not even the Crustumini and the Antemnates move themselves energetically enough for the ardor and anger of the Caeninenses: thus on its own behalf the very name Caeninus makes an attack on Roman territory.  [Sed] But Romulus with an army happens upon those pillaging in scattered flight, and a light battle teaches that anger without strength is empty.  He routes and puts the army to flight; he pursues the routed.  He kills and despoils the king in the battle; with the leader of the enemy having been killed he takes the city in the first attack.

Then, the victorious army having been lead back, he himself, because he was then a hero magnificent in deeds no less than a displayer of deeds, bearing the spoils of the slaughtered leader of the enemy hung from a fork made fit for this he climbed the Capitolium and there, when he had deposited these at the oak sacred to the shepherds, at the same time when he marked with the gift the boundaries for a temple to Jove, and he added the cognomen to the god.  “Juppiter Feretrius,” he said, “I, Romulus, victor (and) king, bear these royal weapons to you, and I dedicate a temple in these regions which I have measured out in purpose (and) in will, a seat for the best spoils, which my descendants, following me as author, will carry from slaughtered kings and leaders of the enemy.”  This is the origin of the temple, which first of all is sacred to Rome.  Thus then seen by the gods and the voice of the temple founder was not in vain, by which he announced that his descendants would bear spoils here and his praise was not made common by a multitude of those in possession of this gift.  Twice after among so many years, so many wars have the best spoils been provided: so rare was the fortune of this glory.

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