The Roman History of Ammianus Marcellinus: During the Reigns of the Emperors Constantius, Julian, Jovianus, Valentinian, and ValensAmmianus Marcellinus
History
The Roman History of Ammianus Marcellinus: During the Reigns of the Emperors Constantius, Julian, Jovianus, Valentinian, and Valens
Ammianus Marcellinus
Rome -- History -- Empire, 284-476
2. The voices of the generality are formidable and threatening, whether
they are in good humour or angry: they are all exceedingly careful of
cleanliness and neatness, nor in all the country, and most especially in
Aquitania, could any man or woman, however poor, be seen either dirty or
ragged.
3. The men of every age are equally inclined to war, and the old man and
the man in the prime of life answer with equal zeal the call to arms,
their bodies being hardened by their cold weather and by constant
exercise so that they are all inclined to despise dangers and terrors.
Nor has any one of this nation ever mutilated his thumb from fear of the
toils of war, as men have done in Italy, whom in their district are
called Murci.
4. The nation is fond of wine, and of several kinds of liquor which
resemble wine. And many individuals of the lower orders, whose senses
have become impaired by continual intoxication, which the apophthegm of
Cato defined to be a kind of voluntary madness, run about in all
directions at random; so that there appears to be some point in that
saying which is found in Cicero's oration in defence of Fonteius, "that
henceforth the Gauls will drink their wine less strong than formerly,"
because forsooth they thought there was poison in it.
5. These countries, and especially such parts of them as border on
Italy, fell gradually under the dominion of the Romans without much
trouble to their conquerors, having been first attacked by Fulvius,
afterwards weakened in many trifling combats by Sextius, and at last
entirely subdued by Fabius Maximus; who gained an additional surname
from the complete accomplishment of this task, after he had brought into
subjection the fierce tribe of the Allobroges.
6. Cæsar finally subdued all the Gauls, except where their country was
absolutely inaccessible from its morasses, as we learn from Sallust,
after a war of ten years, in which both nations suffered many disasters;
and at last he united them to us in eternal alliance by formal treaties.
I have digressed further than I had intended, but now I will return to
my original subject.
XIII.
§ 1. After Domitianus had perished by a cruel death, Musonianus his
successor governed the East with the rank of prætorian prefect; a man
celebrated for his eloquence and thorough knowledge of both the Greek
and Latin languages; from which he reaped a loftier glory than he
expected.
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