Dio's Rome Volume V Part 13

Julius (?) Fabius (?), not being able to endure his son's effeminacy, desired to throw himself into the river.

[Sidenote: A.D. 138 (a.u. 891)] [Sidenote:--20--] Hadrian became consumptive as a result of the great loss of blood, and that led to dropsy. And as it happened that Lucius Commodus was suddenly removed from the scene by the outgus.h.i.+ng of a large quant.i.ty of blood all at once, he convened at his house the foremost and most renowned of the senators; and lying on a couch he spoke to them as follows: "I, my friends, was not permitted by nature to secure offspring, but you have made it possible by legal enactment. There is this difference between the two ways,--that a begotten son turns out to be whatever sort of person Heaven pleases, whereas one that is adopted a man takes to himself because he chooses just that sort of being. Thus in process of nature a maimed and [Sidenote: A.D.

138 (a.u. 891)] senseless creature is often given to a parent, but by process of voluntary decision one of sound body and sound mind is certain to be selected. For this cause I formerly chose out Lucius from among all, a person of such attainments as I could never have prayed to find in a child. But since the Heavenly Power has taken him from among us, I have found an emperor in his place whom I now give you, one who is n.o.ble, mild, tractable, prudent, neither young enough to do anything reckless nor old enough to neglect aught,--one brought up according to the laws, who has held possession of authority according to his country's traditions, so that he is not ignorant of any matters pertaining to his office, but can handle them all effectively. I refer to Aurelius Antoninus here. Although I know him to be the most retiring of men and to be far from desiring any such thing, still I do not think that he will deliberately disregard either me or you but will accept the office even against his will."

[Sidenote:--21--] So it was that Antoninus became emperor. Since he was dest.i.tute of male children, Hadrian adopted for him Commodus's son Commodus and, moreover, besides the latter, Marcus Annius Verus; for he wished to appoint those who were afterwards to be emperors for as long a time ahead as possible. (This Marcus Annius, earlier named Catilius, was a grandson of Annius Verus who had thrice been consul and prefect of the city). And though Hadrian urged Antoninus to adopt them both, he preferred Verus on account of his kins.h.i.+p and his age and because he already exhibited an extremely strong cast of mind. This led him to apply to the young man the name Verissimus, with a play upon the meaning of the Latin word.

[Sidenote:--22--] By certain charms and species of magic Hadrian was relieved of the water, but shortly was full of it again. Since, therefore, he was constantly growing worse and might be said to be slowly peris.h.i.+ng day by day, he began to long for death. Often he would ask for poison and a sword, but no one would give them to him. As no one would obey him, although he promised money and immunity, he sent for Mastor, an Iazygian barbarian that had become a captive, whom he had employed in hunts on account of his strength and daring. Then, partly by threatening him and partly by making promises, he compelled the man to undertake the duty of killing him. He drew a colored line around a spot beneath the nipple that had been shown him by Hermogenes the physician, in order that he might there be struck a finis.h.i.+ng blow and perish painlessly. But even this plan did not succeed, for Mastor became afraid of the project and in terror withdrew. The emperor lamented bitterly the plight in which the disease had placed him and bitterly his powerlessness, in that he was not able to make away with himself, though he might still, even when so near death, destroy anybody else. Finally he abandoned his careful regimen and through using unsuitable foods and drinks met his death, saying and shouting aloud the popular saying: "Many physicians have ruined a king."

[Sidenote:--23--] He had lived sixty-two years, five months and nineteen [Footnote: Seventeen, according to the common tradition.] days, and had been emperor twenty years and eleven months. He was buried near the river itself, close to the Aelian bridge; that was where he had prepared his tomb, for the one belonging to Augustus was full and no other body was deposited there.

This emperor was hated [by the people, in spite of his excellent reign] on account of the early and the late murders, since they had been unjustly and impiously brought about. Yet he had so little of a bloodthirsty disposition that even in the case of some who took pains to thwart him he deemed it sufficient to write to their native lands the bare statement that they did not please him. And if any man who had children was absolutely obliged to receive punishment, still, in proportion to the number of his children he would also lighten the penalty imposed.

[Notwithstanding, the senate persisted for a long time in its refusal to vote him divine honors, and in its strictures upon some of those who had committed excesses during his reign and had been honored therefor, when they ought to have been chastised.]

After Hadrian's death there was erected to him a huge equestrian statue representing him with a four-horse team. It was so large that the bulkiest man could walk through the eye of each horse, yet because of the extreme height of the monument persons pa.s.sing along on the ground below are wont to think that the horses themselves as well as Hadrian are very small.

DIO'S ROMAN HISTORY 70

Antoninus Pius, succeeding by adoption, effects the deification of Hadrian (chapter 1).

The cognomen Pius is bestowed upon Antoninus by the senate (chapter 2).

He showed little hostility toward the Christians: was careful in trifles: met a quiet death in old age (chapter 3).

Earthquake that damaged Bithynia, the h.e.l.lespontine region, and especially Cyzicus (chapter 4).

He is compared with Numa: his gentleness and kindliness (chapter 5).

He was intent upon justice, not upon enlarging the empire: hence the barbarians brought their quarrels to him to settle (chapters 6, 7).

DURATION OF TIME.

Camerinus, Niger. (A.D. 138 = a.u. 891 = First of Antoninus, from July 10th).

Antoninus Pius Aug. (II), Bruttius Praesens. (A.D. 139 = a.u. 892 = Second of Antoninus).

Antoninus Pius Aug. (III), Aurelius Caesar (II). (A.D. 140 = a.u. 893 = Third of Antoninus).

M. Peducaeus Sylloga Priscinus, T. Hoenius Severus. (A.D. 141 = a.u. 894 = Fourth of Antoninus).

L. Cuspius Rufinus, L. Statius Quadratus. (A.D. 142 = a.u. 895 = Fifth of Antoninus).

C. Bellicius Torquatus, Tib. Claudius Atticus Herodes. (A.D. 143 = a.u.

896 = Sixth of Antoninus).

Avitus, Maximus. (A.D. 144 = a.u. 897 = Seventh of Antoninus).

Antoninus Pius Aug. (IV), M. Aurelius Caesar (II). (A.D. 145 = a.u. 898 = Eighth of Antoninus).

s.e.x. Erucius Clarus (II), Cn. Claudius Severus. (A.D. 146 = a.u. 899 = Ninth of Antoninus).

Largus, Messalinus. (A.D. 147 = a.u. 900 = Tenth of Antoninus).

L. Torquatus (III), C. Iulia.n.u.s Vetus. (A.D. 148 = a.u. 901 = Eleventh of Antoninus). Sergius Scipio Orfitus, Q. Nonius Priscus. (A.D. 149 = a.u.

902 = Twelfth of Antoninus).

Gallica.n.u.s, Vetus. (A.D. 150 = a.u. 903 = Thirteenth of Antoninus).

Quintilius Condia.n.u.s, Quintilius Maximus. (A.D. 151 = a.u. 904 = Fourteenth of Antoninus).

M.' Acilius Glabrio, M. Valerius Homullus. (A.D. 152 = a.u. 905 = Fifteenth of Antoninus).

C. Bruttius Praesens, A. Iunius Rufinus. (A.D. 153 = a.u. 906 = Sixteenth of Antoninus).

L. Ael. Aurelius Commodus, T. s.e.xtius Latera.n.u.s. (A.D. 154 = a.u. 907 = Seventeenth of Antoninus).

C. Iulius Severus, M. Rufinius Sabinia.n.u.s. (A.D. 155 = a.u. 908 = Eighteenth of Antoninus).

M. Ceionius Silva.n.u.s, C. Serius Augurinus. (A.D. 158 = a.u. 909 = Nineteenth of Antoninus).

Barbaras, Regulus. (A.D. 157 = a.u. 910 = Twentieth of Antoninus).

Tertullus, Sacerdos. (A.D. 158 = a.u. 911 = Twenty-first of Antoninus).

Plautius Quintilius, Statius Priscus. (A.D. 159 = a.u. 912 = Twenty-second of Antoninus).

T. Clodius Vibius Varus, App. Annius Atilius Bradua. (A.D. 160 = a.u. 913 = Twenty-third of Antoninus).

M. Ael. Aurelius Verus Caesar (III), I. Ael. Aurelius Commodus (II). (A.D.

161 = a.u. 914 = Twenty-fourth of Antoninus, to March 7th).

I. From Dio:

[Sidenote: A.D. 138 (a.u. 891)] [Sidenote:--1--] It should be noted that information about Antoninus Pius is not found in the copies of Dio, probably because the books have met with some accident, so that the history of his reign is almost wholly unknown, save that when Lucius Commodus, whom Hadrian had adopted, died before Hadrian, Antoninus was also adopted by him and became emperor, and that when the senate demurred to giving heroic honors to Hadrian after his demise on account of certain murders of eminent men, Antoninus addressed many words to them with tears and laments, and finally said: "I will not govern you either, if he has become base and inimical and a national foe in your eyes. For you will of course be annulling all his acts, of which my adoption was one." On hearing this the senate both through respect for the man and through a certain fear of the soldiers bestowed the honors upon Hadrian.

[Sidenote:--2--] Only this in regard to Antoninus is preserved in Dio.

Yes, one thing more--that the senate gave him the t.i.tles both of Augustus and of Pius for some such reason as the following. When in the beginning of his imperial reign many men were accused and some of them had been interceded for by name, he nevertheless punished no one, saying: "I must not begin my career of supervision with such deeds."

[Sidenote: LXIX, 15, 3] [When Pharasmanes the Iberian came to Rome with his wife, he increased his domain, allowed him to offer sacrifice on the Capitoline, set up a statue of him on horseback in the temple of Bellona, and viewed an exercise in arms of the chieftain, his son, and the other prominent Iberians.]

[Sidenote: A.D. 139 (a.u. 892)] We do not find preserved, either, the first part of the account of Marcus Verus, who ruled after Antoninus and all that the latter himself did in the case of Lucius, son of Commodus, whom Marcus made his son-in-law, and all that Lucius accomplished when sent by his father to the war against Vologaesus. I shall speak briefly about these matters, gathering my material from other books, and then I shall go back to the continuation of Dio's narrative.

II. From Xiphilinus: