Dio's Rome, Volume 6: An Historical Narrative Originally Composed in Greek During the Reigns of Septimius Severus, Geta and Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus: and Now Presented in English FormCassius Dio Cocceianus
History
Dio's Rome, Volume 6: An Historical Narrative Originally Composed in Greek During the Reigns of Septimius Severus, Geta and Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus: and Now Presented in English Form
Cassius Dio Cocceianus
Rome -- History
[Sidenote:--18--] At the same time the public demanded that the
horse-race given on his birthday be abolished, that absolutely all the
statues, both gold and silver, erected [Footnote: Supplying, with Reiske,
[Greek: hidruthentas].] in his honor be melted down, and that those who
had served with him in any capacity as informers be made known and
punished with the utmost speed. For great numbers, not only slaves and
freedmen and soldiers and Cæsarians, but likewise knights and senators
and numerous very distinguished women, were believed to have given
secret hints during his reign and to have blackmailed various persons.
And although they did not attach to Antoninus the name of Enemy, they
did keep vociferating that Martialius (on account of the similarity of
his name to that of Mars, as they pretended,) ought to be honored with
enconiums and with statues for worship. They also showed for the moment
no indication of annoyance at Macrinus], the reason being that they were
so overwhelmed by joy on account of the death of Tarautas as not to have
leisure to think anything about his humble origin, and they were glad to
accept him as emperor. They were less concerned about whose slaves they
should be next than about whose yoke they had shaken off, and were
impressed with the idea that any chance comer who might present himself
would be preferable to their former master. [All the unusual
expenditures were rehearsed that had been made, not only by the Roman
Treasury but privately for any persons and on the part of any foreign
nations as a result of the former sovereign's direction: and thus the
overthrow of those charged with carrying out the enactments made by him
and the hope that in the future nothing similar would be done inclined
people to be satisfied with the existing arrangement.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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