(BOOK 24, BOISSEVAIN.)

Frag. LXXXII1. ¶Tiberius Gracchus caused an upheaval of the Roman state,—and this in spite of the fact that he belonged to one of the foremost families (his grandfather being Africanus), that he possessed a natural endowment worthy of the latter, that he had gone through a most thorough course of education, and had a high spirit. In proportion to these great gifts of his was the allurement that they offered to follow his ambitions: and when once he had turned aside from what was best he drifted even involuntarily into what was worst. It began with his being refused a triumph over the Numantini: he had hoped for this honor because he had previously had the management of the business, but so far from obtaining anything of the kind he incurred the danger of being delivered up; then he decided that deeds were estimated not on the basis of goodness or truth but according to mere chance. And this road to fame he abandoned as not safe, but since he desired by all means to become prominent in some way and expected that he could accomplish this better through the popular than through the senatorial party, he attached himself to the former. (Valesius, p. 621.)

2. ¶Marcus Octavius on account of an hereditary feud with Gracchus willingly made himself his opponent. B.C. 133
(a.u. 621)Thereafter there was no semblance of moderation: striving and quarreling as they were, each to survive the other rather than to benefit the community, they committed many acts of violence as if they were in a principality instead of a democracy, and suffered many unusual calamities proper for war but not for peace. In addition to their individual conflicts, there were many who, banded together, instituted grievous abuses and battles in the senate-house itself and the popular assembly as well as throughout the rest of the city: they pretended to be executing the law, but were in reality making in all things every effort not to be surpassed by each other. The result was that the authorities could not carry on their accustomed tasks, courts came to a stop, no contract was entered into, and other sorts of confusion and disorder were rife everywhere. The place bore the name of city, but was no whit different from a camp. (Valesius, p. 622.)

3. ¶Gracchus proposed certain laws for the benefit of those of the people who served in the army, and transferred the courts from the senate to the knights, bedeviling and disturbing all established customs in order that he might be enabled to lay hold on safety in some wise. And after he found not even this of advantage to him, but his term of office was drawing to a close, when he would be immediately exposed to the attacks of his enemies, he attempted to secure the tribuneship also for the following year (in company with his brother) and to appoint his father-in-law consul: to obtain this end he would make any statement or promise anything whatever to anybody. Often, too, he put on a mourning garb and brought his mother and children, tied hand and foot, into the presence of the populace. (Valesius, ib.)

Frag. LXXXIII
B.C. 129
(a.u. 625) ¶Scipio Africanus had more ambition in his makeup than was suitable for or compatible with his general excellence. And in reality none of his rivals took pleasure in his death, but although they thought him a great obstacle in their way even they missed him. They saw that he was valuable to the State and never expected that he would cause them any serious trouble. When he was suddenly taken away all the possessions of the powerful class were again diminished, so that the promoters of agrarian legislation ravaged at will practically all of Italy. And this seems to me to have been most strongly indicated by the mass of stones that poured down from heaven, falling upon some of the temples and killing men, and by the tears of Apollo. B.C. 131
(a.u. 623)For the god wept copiously[47] for three days, so that the Romans on the advice of the soothsayers voted to cut down the statue and to sink it in the deep. (Valesius, p. 625.)