he confessed its faults; he called to mind the indiscreet embassy, which the insolent pride of the orator who spoke, had rendered still more criminal: but he begged the senate to make some difference between the entire body of the nation, and a few private persons disavowed by them, whom they were ready. to deliver up. He represented, that there was no republic nor city, that did not include some bad members. That after all, there were no other crimes objected to them but words; foolish indeed, rash, extravagant (which he confessed to be the characteristics and failings of his nation) but such as wise persons seldom lay much stress upon, or punish with exceeding rigour, no more than Jupiter aims his thunders at all that speak with little respect of his divinity. "But (said he) the neutrality ob"served by us in the late war, is looked upon as a cer"tain proof of our enmity towards you. * Is there a tribunal in the world, wherein the intention, when without effect, is punished as the action "itself? But let your severity be carried to that excess, at most the punishment can only fall on "those who have had this intention, and then the majority of us are innocent. Admitting even that "this neutrality and inaction make us all criminal;

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ought the real services we have rendered you, in "the two preceding wars, to be deemed as nothing, "and will they not cover the omission imputed to us "in the last? Let Philip, Antiochus, and Perseus, "bear witness now in our cause. The voices of the two first will certainly be for us, and absolve us; and, for the third, at most, and in the severest sense, the sentence must appear doubtful and un"certain. Can you then, according to this state of "the question, pass sentence of death against Rhodes; "for you are now upon the point of deciding, whe"ther it shall subsist any longer, or be entirely de

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• Neque moribus neque legibus ullius civitatis ita comparatum esse, ut, siquis vellet inimicum perire, si nihil fecerit quo id fiat, capitis damnetur. Liv.

VOL. VII.

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stroyed? You may declare war against us; but not a single Rhodian will take up arms against you. If you persist in your resentment, we de"mand time to go and report our deputation at "Rhodes, and at that moment our whole city, men, women, and free persons, will embark, with all our estates and effects; we will abandon our house"hold gods, as well public as private, and come to "Rome, where, after we have thrown our gold and "silver, and all we have, at your feet, we will de"liver up ourselves, our wives, and our children, "to your discretion. We will suffer here before your eyes, whatever you shall think fit to inflict upon us. If Rhodes is condemned to be plundered and set on fire, at least we shall spare our"selves the sight of that calamity. You may, by

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your resolves, declare us to be your enemies; but "there is a secret sentiment in the bottom of our "hearts, that declares quite the contrary, and assures us, that whatever hostilities you may act against us, you will never find us otherwise than friends and servants."

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After this discourse, the deputies prostrated themselves upon the earth, and held out their hands towards the senators, with olive branches in them, to demand peace. When they were withdrawn, by order of the senate, they proceeded to vote upon the aflair. All who had served in Macedonia, in quality of consuls, prætors, or lieutenants, and who had most experienced their foolish pride and enmity to the Romans, were very much against them. M. Portius Cato, the celebrated censor, known by the severity of his character, which often rose to hardness of heart, was softened at this time in favour of the Rhodians, and spoke for them with great warmth and eloquence. Livy does not repeat his discourse, because it was then extant in a work of Cato's own, intitled, De Originibus, wherein he had inserted his own orations.

The world has reason to regret the loss of so va

e

luable a collection. Aulus Gellius has preserved some fragments of this discourse of Cato's; by which it appears, he made use of almost the same reasons with the ambassadors from Rhodes. I shall cite some passages of it at the bottom of the page, to assist the reader in knowing and distinguishing the manly and energetical style, which characterized the Roman eloquence in those ancient times, when more attention was paid to the force of thoughts, than to the elegance of words.

Cato* begins his discourse by representing to the Romans, that they ought not to abandon themselves to the extravagance of excessive joy. That prosperity generally excites pride and insolence. That he apprehends, in the present case, they may form resolutions, which may draw some misfortune upon Rome, and cause the frivolous joy, to which they give themselves up, to vanish like a dream. Adver sity (says he) in humbling the spirit, restores us to our reason, and teaches us what is necessary to "be done. Prosperity, on the contrary, hurries us "in a manner out of our way, by the joy it occa"sions, and makes us lose sight of the measures, "which a calm situation of mind would enable us to

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discern, and execute. It is therefore, fathers, I "am absolutely of opinion, that we should defer the

decision of this affair, till having recovered from "the violent emotions of our joy, we may be masters "of ourselves, and capable of deliberating with more maturity." He adds, " That he indeed be"lieves the Rhodians were far from desiring that the

Lib. vii. c. v.

Scio solere plerisque hominibus rebus secundis atque prolixis atque prosperis animum excellere, superbiam atque ferociam augescere atque crescere: quod mihi nunc magnæ curæ est, quia hæc res tam secunde processit, ne quid in consulendo adversi eveniat, quod nostras secundas res confutet; neve hæc lætitia nimis luxuriosè eveniat. Adversa res se domant, & docent quid opus sit facto: secundæ res lætitifi transversum trudere solent à rectè consulendo atque intelligendo. Quo majore opere edico suadeoque,uti hæc res aliquot dies proferatur, dum ex tanto gaudio in potestatem nostram redeamus.

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*

"Romans should have conquered Perseus; but that they had such sentiments in common with all "other states; sentiments, which did not proceed " from their enmity to the Romans, but from the love of their own liberty; for which they had just cause to fear, when there should be none in a con"dition to dispute empire with us, and we should "become absolute masters of all nations. For the 66 rest the Rhodians did not aid Perseus. Their "whole crime, by the consent of their most vio"lent accusers, is that they intended to declare war against us. But how long has the will, the inten"tion only, been a crime? Is there any one amongst us, that would be willing to subject himself to "this rule? For my part, I am sure, I would not. "The Rhodians, it is said, are proud; I should "be very sorry that my children could justly make me that reproach. But, pray, in what does their pride affect us? Would it become us to impute it "to them as a crime that they were prouder than we "are?"

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The opinion of so grave and venerable a senator as Cato, prevented a war against the Rhodians. The answer given them did not declare them enemies, nor treat them as allies; but left matters still in suspence. They were ordered to remove their governors from the cities of Lycia and Caria. Those provinces were given up to them after the defeat of Antiochus, and now taken from them by way of punishment. They were ordered also to evacuate Caunus and Stratonice. They had bought the first for two hundred talents (about twenty-five thousand pounds) of Ptolemy's generals, and the second had been given them by

• Qui acerrimè adversus eos dicit, ita dicit; hostes voluisse fieri. Et quis tandem est nostrûm, qui, quod ad sese attinet, æquum censeat quempiam pænas dare ob cam rem, quòd arguatur malè facere voluisse? nemo opinor: nam ego, quod ad me attinet, nolim.

↑ Rhodienses superbos esse aiunt, id objectantes quod mihi à liberis meis minimè dici velim. Sint sanè superbi. Quid id ad nos attinet? Idne iruscimini, siquis superbior est quàm nos?

Antiochus and Seleucus; they drew from those two cities an annual revenue of an hundred and twenty talents (or fifteen thousand pounds.) At the same time the senate granted the island of Delos an exemption from customs, which considerably diminished the revenues of the Rhodians. For instead of a million of drachmas (about five-and-twenty thousand pounds sterling) to which the revenue from those customs amounted before, it paid afterwards only an hundred and fifty thousand (about three thousand seven hundred and fifty pounds sterling.)

The senate's answer having dispelled at Rhodes the fear that the Romans would take arms against the republic, made all other evils appear light, as it is common for the expectation of great misfortunes to deaden the sensation of small ones. How hard soever those orders were, they submitted to them, and put them in immediate execution. They decreed at the same time, a crown of gold to the Romans, of the value of ten thousand pieces of gold, and chose their admiral Theodotus to present it. He had orders to solicit the alliance of the Romans. The Rhodians had not demanded it till then, though for almost an hundred and forty years they had shared in the most glorious expeditions of that republic; which was a feature of their politics. They were unwilling to hamper their liberty with the chains of oaths and treaties; in order that, continuing free, and their own masters, they might either aid the kings in distress, or be supported by them upon occasion, In the present conjuncture, they earnestly demanded to be admitted as allies, not to secure themselves against other powers, for they were in no apprehensions of any besides the Romans; but to remove, by that change of conduct, all suspicions that might have been conceived to the prejudice of their republic, The alliance was not, however, granted them at this time.

* This might amount to about six thousand pounds, reckoning the piece of gold (xgsous) at twelve shillings, or thereabouts.