MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS MARCUS AUUELILS AS A YOUTH (Prom a bust iu the Capitoline Museum), MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS BY PAUL BAERON WATSON *-^ OP" THE 5S [UNIVERSIT NEW YORK HARPER & BROTHERS, FRANKLIN SQUARE 1884 Entered iiccordiiig to Act of Congress, in the year 1884, by Harper & Brothers, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Wasliington. All rights reserved. PREFACE. The life of Marcus Aurelius has never before been written in tlie English language — a fact which, of itself, would seem to be a sufficient apology for the present work. In endeavoring to supply this want, the author wishes at the outset to guard against every possible misconception. The work here offered to the public pretends to be nothing more than a study of the character of Marcus Aurelius. It has been the author's aim to eliminate, as far as possible, all such details of contempo- rary history as do not have a direct bearing upon this theme. There is one subject, however, in which it has been found im- possible to practise so great conciseness as would' for some reasons appear desirable — I mean, the chapter on the attitude of the Emperor towards Christianity. "Without a tolerably complete acquaintance with the state of Christianity at that time, we can form no just conception of Marcus's religious character. It has been deemed wise, however, to consider only those characteristics of Christianity which were then most prominent, and which furnished the basis for the atti- tude taken by the Emperor. In this way we are forced to present a very one-sided picture of Christianity. The reign of Marcus Aurelius marks a period extremely rife in heresy ; and it was mainly with an heretical Christianity that the Em- peror was brought face to face. The reader will understand, therefore, why in this book he so seldom meets with the plain and simple doctrines which were taught by Jesus. vi PREFACE. As to the authorities consulted, I have sought to make use of all that has been written on my subject, whether in ancient or in modern times. The variety of my materials may be seen by referring to the bibliography inserted immediately before the Index to this volume. While I have endeavored to make the list as complete as possible, I am aware that some works of recent date may possibly have escaped my notice. It is hoped, however, that everything has been examined which was written on my subject previously to the sixteenth century. Should it be found that my inquiries have been at all success- ful in presenting a truer view of Marcus Aurelius than has hitherto prevailed, the credit must be given mainly to the kindness and efficiency of the officers of j;he Harvard College Library. I wish, also, to express my deep obligations to the Boston Public Library and to the Boston Athenaeum. Cambuidge, Februarxj 29, 1884. CONTENTS. Chaptek I. CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. A.D. 121-138. Charaeteristics-efthe^econd Century. — Birth of Marcus. — His Ancestors. — Condition of the Roman Empire. — Dearth of Population. — Scarcity of Resources. — Dissatisfaction in the Provinces. — Insurrection of Im- perial Legates. — Despotic Power of the Emperors. — Marcus is Brought up by his Grandfather. — His Aunt, Faustina, Marries Antoninus. — Marcus is called Vermimus by Hadrian. — Is Enrolled among the Knights. — Enters the College of Salic Priests. — Becomes Interested in Philosophy. — His Grandfather Dies, and Marcus Goes to Live at the Country Estates of Antoninus. — Affection for his Uncle. — Life at Lorium and Lanuvium. — Hadrian Appoints Antoninus his Suc- cessor. — Antoninus Adopts Marcus and Lucius Verus. — Death of Hadrian Page 1 Chaptee II. THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. A.D. 138-161, Marcus Takes the Names Aurelius Antoninus. — Assists his Adoptive Fa- ther in the Government. — Theii- Policy. — Popularity of Antoninus Pius. — His Private Life. — Marcus is Made Quasstor. — Seuir turmae. — Consul. — Caesar. — Private Life of Marcus. — Love for his Cousin, Faustina. — Marriage.— Continues his Studies. — Intimacy with his Teacher, Pron- to. — Incidents in his Country Life. — Early Life of Lucius Verus. — Marcus Becomes Dissatisfied with Rhetoric and Takes up Philosophy. — Esteem for his Instructors. — Ill-health. — Domesticprief.— Death of An- toninus Pius 23 viii CONTENTS Chapter III. EMPEROR.— LEGISLATION.— THE PARTHIAN WAR. A.D. ]61-1(J5. Thoughts on Death. — Marcus Makes Lucius Verus his Colleague.— Revolt in Britain. — King of Parthia Invades the Empire.— Army Sent to the East under Lucius Verus. — Marcus Remains at Rome. — Inundation of the Tiber.— Efforts of Marcus to Alleviate the Distress.— His Activity in the Administration of Justice. — Introduces Changes in the Proce- dure. — His Imperial Enactments. — Passes Laws in Aid of Slaves. — Ad- vances the Position of Sons and Wives. — Regulations for Probating Births. — Innovations in the Laws of Inheritance. — Enactments in Fur- therance of Trade and Agriculture. — Marcus Strengthens the Provin- cial Senates. — Moderates the Gladiatorial Shows — Restores the Dignity of the Roman Senate. — Philosophical Studies of Marcus. — His Domes- tic Relations. — Lucius Verus in the East. — Forces in Charge of Avi- dius Cassius. — Rout of Vologeses. — Ambitious Schemes of Lucius. — His Return to Rome Page 59 Chapter IV. THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI (FIRST PERIOD). A.D. 166-169. Triumph. — Pestilence. — Marcus Attempts to Check it. — Lucius Retires to his Villa. — War Breaks out in Germany. — State of the German Tribes. — Marcus Sacrifices to the Gods and Marches with Lucius to the North. — German Tribes Withdraw. — The Empe^rors in Pannonia. — Success over the Barbarians. — Return to Italy, and Death of Lucius 151 Chapter V. THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI (SECOND PERIOD).— THE JOURNEY TO THE EAST. A.D. 169-178. Reflections of Marcus on his Brother's Death. — Domestic Relations. — Mar- cus Returns to the North. — Forces of the Barbarians. — Imperial Forces. — Policy of the Emperor. — Methods of German Warfare. — Success over the lazyges. — Defeat of the J^arcomanni. — Engagement with the Quadi and " Miraculous Victory." — Second Victory over the lazyges. — Revolt of Avidius Cassius.— Tlie Emperor Sends to Rome for Commodus and Draws up Treaties- with the German Tribes. — Cassius is Killed by his own Soldiers.— Marcus Journeys to the East. — Death o f Faustina^— Marcus Returns to Rome. — Triumph. — Promotion of Commodus. — General Prosperity ^175 CONTENTS. Chaptek VI. THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI (THIRD PERIOD). —THE "THOUGHTS."— DEATH. A.D. 178-180. Departure for the North. — Policy of the Emperor. — The ThoughU.r- Sickness of Marcus. — His Last Words.— Death... Page 231 Chapter VII. THE ATTITUDE OF MARCUS AURELIUS TOWARDS CHRIS- TIANITY. Marcus Aurelius a Persecutor of the Christians. — Nature of Christianity at the Time. — Heretics : Valentiuus ; Ptolemaeus ; Colorbasus ; Mar- cus ; Marciou ; Apelles ; Tatian ; IMoutanus ; Alogi. — Fantastic No- tions of the Orthodox: Justin; Clementhie Horn Hies; Tertulliau; Papias of Hierapolis ; Irenaeus ; Bardesanes. — Conflict between the Orthodox and Heretics. — Polemics of Pagan Writers: Crescentius ; Fronto; Celsus; Lucian. — Christian Apologists : Justin; Tatian; Apol- linarius; Melito; Athenagoras. — Christians Attack the Religion of Home: Hermias; Sibylline Grades. — Enmity of the People Aroused. — Martyrdom of Justin. — Of Polycarp. — Persecutions at Lugdunum and Vienna. — Part Taken by Marcus in these Persecutions. — His Al- leged Hatred of Christianity and Fondness for the Jews. — Real Nature of his Opposition to Christianity. — Its Causes. — Reasons why he did not Embrace the New Religion. — Christians were Enemies of the Em- pire. — Christianity of the Age very Corrupt. — Superstition and Im- postors. — Persecutions in Reality a Blessing to the Church 257 LIST OF THE CHIEF WORKS CONSULTED 309 INDEX 325 NUMISMATICAL ILLUSTRATIONS. Gold Coiu of A.D. 140. On one side, the head of Antoninus Pius, with the in- scription : ANTONINVS AVG. PITS P. P. TR. P. COS. III. On the other, the head of Marcus Aurelius as a youth, with the inscription : AVRELIYS CAESAR AVG. PII F. COS ' PageZ2 Bronze Medallion of A.D. 145 or 146. On one side, the bust of Marcus Aurelius as a youth, with the inscription : AVRELIYS CAESAR AVG. PII F. COS. II. On the other, Minerva, with shield and spear, facing Vulcan, who holds in his left hand a weapon, and is placing his right hand on a vase that rests on the table between them 50 Gold Coin. On one side, the bust of Faustina, with the inscription : FAVSTINA AVG. PII AVG. FIL. On the other, a dove, with the inscription : CONCOR- DIA 55 Bronze Medallion. On one side, the bust of Faustina, with the inscription : FAV- STINA AVGVSTA. On the other, Venus, seated, holding in her hand a little statue of Victory, with the inscription : VEXVS FELIX 56 Bronze Coin of A.D. 145 or 146. On one side, the head of Marcus Aurelius, with the inscription : AVRELIVS CAESAR AVG. PII F. On the other, a wreath, with the inscription : IV VEXTVS COS. II. S. C 57 Silver Coin of A.D. 163. On one side, the bust of Lucius Verus, with the inscrip- tion : L. VERVS AVG. ARMEXIACVS. On the other, Armenia, seated, sur- rounded Vjy weapons, in front of her a standard, with the inscription : TR. P. in. IMP. IL ARMEX 146 Bronze Medallion. On one side, the busts of Commodus and Annius Verus as children, with the inscription : COMMODVS CAES. VERVS CAES. On the other, the four Seasons, represented by four children, with the inscription : TEMPORVM FELICITAS 176 Bronze Medallion. On one side, the bust of Annia Lucilla, with the inscription : LVCILLAE AVG. ANTONINI AVG. F. On the other, two women, with trees and genii 177 Gold Coin of A.D. 172. On one side, the bust of Marcus Aurelius, with the in- seription : M. AXTONIXVS AVG. TR. P. XXVI. On the other, Marcus An- relius and his army crossing the Danube on a bridge of boats, with the in- scription : VIRTVS AVG. IMP. VL COS. Ill 189 Bronze Coin. On one side, the bust of Faustina, with the inscription: DIVAE FAVSTINAE PIAE. On the other, Faustina, seated, holding in her hand a ball on which is a phoenix, and before her three standards, with the inscrip- tion: MATRI CASTRORVM S. C 206 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. Characteristics of the Second Century. — Birth of Marcus. — His Ancestors. — Condition of the Roman Empire. — Dearth of Population. — Scarcity of Resources. — Dissatisfaction in the Provinces. — Insurrection of Im- perial Legates. — Despotic Power of the Emperors. — Marcus is brought up by his Grandfather. — His Aunt, Faustina, Marries Antoninus. — Marcus is called Verissimus by Hadrian. — Is Enrolled among the Knights. — Enters the College of Salic Priests. — Becomes Interested in Philosophy. — His Grandfather Dies, and Marcus goes to Live at the Country Estates of Antoninus. — Affection for his Uncle. — Life at Lo- rium and Lanuvium. — Hadrian Appoints Antoninus his Successor. — Antoninus Adopts Marcus and Lucius Verus. — Death of Hadrian. The second century of the Christian era is characterized by a striking contrast of lights and shadows. We are dazzled by the splendor of its present, while we shrink with dread before the gloominess of its future. The age of the Antonines is a period of transition. In their reigns, the wealth and power and magnificence of the Roman Empire are contemplated at their highest point. Indeed, so far had Trajan carried his conquests, that it now seemed impossible to conquer more. The ambition which had extended the boundaries of Rome until they embraced the whole of the known world, began to fade away for lack of anything on which to exercise itself. The Roman people were gradually withdrawing from public activity, in order to enjoy in peace the fruits of their past 1 2 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.I. conquests. The enjoyment which they souglit, however, was beyond their reach. They had carried the arts of warfare and of politics almost to perfection. But to the moral and social problems, which are always of the first importance in times of peace, they had given little thought; and to the solution of such problems the Roman temperament was ill-adapted. The work of the Eoman Empire had ended with her conquests ; and, in the midst of all their splendor, her subjects found themselves in penury. Among the many striking contrasts which this age affords, there is none more conspicuous than that presented by the in- dividual characters of the time. From Nerva to Marcus Au- relius, that period when the world was sunk to its lowest depths of degradation, the throne was occupied by a succes- sion of rulers such as have been granted to few nations before or since. The grandest figure in this line of so-called Good Emperors was Marcus Aurelius Antoninus. He was the last emperor who can be truly said to represent the majesty of ancient Rome. In contemplating this lofty character we in- variablj' experience a feeling of strange depression, even more intense than that which comes over us in reading of the mon- sters by whom he was succeeded. However disgusting the picture of a Commodus, it is, at any rate, in harmony with its surroundings. We imagine Commodus perpetually attended by a throng of parasites, whose sympathies are in perfect uni- f!on with the diabolical schemes with which his own breast is filled. We seem to see in him a true reflection of his age. But with his father it is not so ; and it is this contrast between Marcns Aurelius and those about him which makes a study of his life, in many ways, so painful. He seems quite out of place in the century in which he lived. We think of him as almost without a sympathizing friend ; as passing through the world in loneliness and grief; as eager to bi'eak away from the vain ambitions of the past, yet unprepared to grasp the consolation soon to be embraced by his descendants. He stands forth as the last, the best, representative of all the old religion could accomplish. He exhibits in its highest form the character of an ancient Roman ; and in him we are ena- A.D. 121-13S.] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. 3 bled, better than in any other figure of antiquity, to study the relative merits of Paganism and Christianity. Marcus Aurelius was born in his fathers villa at Rome, on Mount Coelius, on the 26th of April, a. d. 121.' In accordance with the custom of the times, the little child whose eventful life we are to follow was given his jpraeno- men, Marcus, on the ninth day after birth. To this were added his nomen gentilicium and the family name ; so that in his early life our hero was known as Marcus Annius Verus. The appellation Aurelius was not assumed till sev- eral years later. The family to which Marcus belonged came originally from Succubo, a town in Hispania Bsetica, not far from the present city of Cordova. In this town Annius Yerus, the first of the family who came into public notice, was born ; and it was probably Jiere that the cognomen Verus was added to the nomen gentilicium in recognition of the personal trustwor- thiness of the man. This Annius Yerus, the great grand- father of our hero, filled, at one time, the office of prsetor in his native town ; and later, on coming to Rome, was appointed senator. His son, the grandfather of Marcus, held the post of prefect of the city; and it wasdie that was raised by Yespa- sian to the rank of patrician. The nature and privileges of the patrician order had undergone great changes since the days when every Roman citizen was a patrician, and all oth- ers slaves. After the foundation of the order of plebeians the patricians soon lost their distinctive character as citizens of Rome, and gradually came to be looked upon solely in the light of descendants from the senators of old. In other words, their glory as an aristocracy of birth increased in proportion as their political prerogatives declined. The patricians still maintained, however, the exclusive privilege of performing certain religious ceremonies ; and in these rites they took a great deal of pride, since it was along with its religious pre- * Capitolinus, M. Ant. Phil., c. 1 : Nattis est Marcus Romae VI. leal. Maias in monte Coelio in Jiortis, auo suo iterum et Augure consulihus. See also an inscription in Gaetano Luigi Marini, Gli atti e monumenti de' fratelU Arvali. Roma, 1795. 2 v. 4°. v. 2, p. 387. 4 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. rogatives that the patrician order had first gained its civil and political supremacy. Anuius Yerns, then, the father of the future Emperor, was born in a patrician family. This, to be sure, entitled him, as we have seen, to little political honor; but the influence which is always connected with nobility of birth gave him the pros- pect of an easy rise to eminence, and when only a young man he began to aspire to a political career. His father, the member of the family who had been ennobled, was already consul for the second time ; and he himself had married a daughter of Calvisius Tullus, who had been twice consul. This woman was also well descended on her mother's side, being a granddaughter of Catilius Severus, who had been twice consul and prefect of the city. The name of this lady, who was to give birth to the famous Emperor, was Domitia Lucilla.' At the time when the young Marcus was born, and when his father, Annius Yerus, was about to enter the public life for which he seemed destined by his family position, the Ro- ' Capitolinus gives her name as Domitia Calvilla. Capit., M. Ant. Phil.., c. 1 : Mater Domitia Caluilla Calimii Tulli Us consults Jilia. But this is contradicted by Spartianus, Didius Jul.., c. 1 : Educatus est apud Domi- tiam Lueillam matrem Marci i7nperatoris. Of tlie two passages the latter is undoubtedly the correct one. For, in the first place, the diminutive from Calvisius would not be Calvilla, as Capitolinus suggests, but Cal- visilla; and, secondly, a number of inscriptions have been found which' prove conclusively that the name of Marcus's mother was Domitia Lu- cilla. See Borghesi's article entitled Figulina di Domisia Lucilh, madre delV Imperntore 31. Aurelio (in Giornale arcadico, v. 1, pp. 359-76). With regard to her grandfather, Catilius Severus, we are told that his name was also given to Marcus in his earliest days. Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 1 : M. Antoninus 2}7'incijno aeui sui nomen Tiaiuit Gatilii Seueri materni proaui. And it is possible that Galen refers to the same fact when he says {Aduers. eos qui de typ. scrips, c. 1 [v. 7, p. 478 of Kuhn's ed.]) : ""B^px^ Si tote ^el3ijpog, iavTov iiiv 'Avnovivov (itTovofiaffaQ. But this name occurs in none of Mar- cus's inscriptions, and, if he was given the name at all, it must have been very early dropped ; for Capitolinus himself says that after the death of his father, which occurred shortly after Marcus's birth, his name was al- tered. Capit., ^. Ant. Phil., c. 1 : Post excessum uero ijatris ah Hadriano An- nius Verissimus uocatus est. A.D. 121-138.] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. 5 man world was at the zenith of its glory. The campaigns of Trajan, who died in 117, had extended the Eoman sway far- ther than it ever reached before or since. At his death the Empire was more than two thousand miles in breadth, from the wall of Antoninus to Mount Atlas and the tropic of Can- cer; and in length it reached from the Atlantic Ocean to the river Euphrates, a distance of over three thousand miles. So vast an acquisition of territory had not been made without the aid of warlike measures. Trajan had been a soldier al- most from his birth; and, when raised to the imperial throne, had determined upon a policy very different from that of many of liis predecessors. His one idea of strength was cen- tred in the army ; and to give effect to this idea he was ready to make any sacrifice whatever. A vast military estab- lishment like that introduced by Trajan, together with the enormous extension of territory which he accomplished by force of arms, could not fail to be productive of future dan- gers and difficulties to the Empire. No sooner, then, was Ha- drian chosen emperor than he was called upon to meet five diflBculties which seemed especial-ly to threaten the safety of the Koman world. These same difiiculties presented them- selves later to Marcus Aurelius; and, since the greater part of his public life was spent in struggling against them, and since, moreover, it is in them that we are to trace the final downfall of the Romnii Empire, it will be well to fix them clearly in our minds at this stage of our studies. I.^In the first place, the military establishment introduced on so vast a scale by Trajan was soon found to have a material influence in diminisliing the Koman population. This was an evil which Julius Cresar had often tried to meet' It did not spring alone from the fact that the young men were killed in -war, but from the far more, disastrous effect which a martial discipline has in destroying all home influence and married life. The neglect of marriage was an evil always much more prevalent among the Romans than it is with us. Indeed, so alarming had become the danger, even in the times of Angus- ' Dion Cassius, lib. 43, c. 35. 6 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. tus, that he had found it necessary to pass the so-called lex lulia, which was nothing less than a bribe offered by the state to induce its citizens to marry. But that this law did not prove pernjanently successful in encouraging an increase of the population we shall see later, when we come to treat of the plague which devastated Eome in the reign of Marcus Aurelius. II. _ The second difficulty against which Hadrian had to fight was the lack of money. , This, again, was brought about to a great extent by the necessity of keeping a standing army perpetually moving about from one part of the Empire to an- other. The triumphs, too, and the extensive military displays to which the Koman soldiers were accustomed, only added to the evil. Even the burdens imposed upon the people of con- tinental Europe to-day convey but a poor impression of the sufferings which the martial policy of Kome inflicted upon her exhausted subjects. Scarcely a feature of the imperial age makes itself so prominent as the grinding taxation to which the Roman people were exposed. And the most un- fortunate circumstance connected with this matter was that the need of a revenue was always greatest at those times when the nation was reduced by war and famine — in other words, the rate of taxation usually increased in proportion as the power of paying it diminished. III. The two deficiencies of which we have just treated, viz., a dearth of population and a scarcity of resources, the emperors attempted to supply by imposing upon the conquered provinces the burdens which had hitherto been borne by the citizens at home. Instead of calling upon the Roman people to enlist in the service of their country, it grew to be the cus- tom to fill up the broken ranks almost entirely from the prov- inces. Thus the Roman army came in time to be little more than a horde of barbarians; and on several occasions the fore- most generals were men who had themselves been conquered by the Roman arms. Further than this, it was from the new- ly acquired provinces that the money for carrying on new wars and for making architectural improvements at home was levied. Merivale says, " The princely prodigality of Trajan's A.D. 121-138] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. T taste was defrayed by the plunder or tribute of conquered enemies."* So heavy an imposition of duties upon a con- quered people, coupled with the fact that this conquered peo- ple formed the bulwark of the Empire, could have but one result. It created a dissatisfaction in the provinces at the same time that it furnished them with a potent means of re- sistance. One by one, therefore, the provinces revolted ; and, though they were many times put down, they continued to harass the emperors by their rebellious projects, until at last they proved themselves successful. IV. In order to keep the provinces in subjection and at the same time to collect with certainty the quota of men and re- sources which the emperors demanded from them, it was nec- essary to establish legates, with almost supreme power, in the various provinces of the Empire. This opened a new danger to the central government. The ambitious generals who had been placed in the outlying districts of the Empire found ready supporters in the dissatisfied people whom they gov- erned. Some of these rebellions — for example, those of Gal- ba, of Vitellius, of Vespasian — had been successful. Others, as we shall see hereafter, were soon put down. But, in either case, the emperors found it extremely difficult to grant to the several provinces that degree of independence which appeared desirable and yet to preserve the unity of the Empire. V. Each of the difficulties thus far considered tended to one final result, which, though it might prove to be of the greatest possible advantage to Rome, yet did at last turn out to be her ruin. The indispensable requisite for every military administration is the concentration of power in the hands of a single executive. The enrolment of the necessary forces at the desired moment, the apportionment of the prop- er taxes at the proper time, and the appointment of the va- rious generals who in the different parts of the Empire should act in perfect unison — all this demanded a single executive with powers both of legislation and of administration. Con- ^ Merivale, Eist. of the Romans^ v. 7, p. 204. 8 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. seqiiently, we find tlie early emperors gradually usurping all the other powers in the state. Not only did they subordinate every executive and military officer to themselves, but even the senate was compelled in time to give up nearly all its functions ; until at last the emperor was left alone to take the initiative in every measure which was necessary for the pub- lic interest. Nor was this change effected by an opposition to the people's will. It was the universal sentiment that the only remedy to the evils which threatened to destroy the Em- pire consisted in placing almost absolute power in the em- peror's hands. But how to accomplish this without allowing the ruler to become a despot was a question to which there seemed to be no answer. These were the problems with which the Koman world was grappling while the young Marcus was lying in his cradle. Four years before, in 117, Trajan had passed away; and his successor, Hadrian, was now seated on the throne. Hadrian, though brought up in the pursuit of arms and already distin- guished as one of Trajan's most successful generals, relin- quished his former course of life almost immediately upon being raised to the imperial throne, and paid his entire atten- tion to cementing together the various parts of his enormous territory. His policy was eminently successful ; for-, though it reduced somewhat the extent of his dominions by depriving him of Trajan's conquests beyond the Euphrates, it strength- ened the alliance of those provinces which were preserved ; and thus, at the time when our hero was born, the Roman world was enjoying universal peace. Scarcely had young Marcus seen the light three months when his father, who was then exercising the office of praetor, died. This misfortune, however, was to a great extent re- paired by the generosity of his grandfather, Annius Yerus. The latter was at this time one of the most eminent men in Rome, and, in the very year when his son died, was perform- ing for the second time the duties of consul. In the house of this great man theAoung Marcus found a home, and it was a home such as few are blessed with. His grandfather's es- tate was situated on ^Mount Coelius, not far from the villa in A.D. 121-13S.] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. 9 which Marcus had himself been born, and close to the palatial residence of the Laterani.* Here the young child was praised and petted by the aristocracy of Rotne. Among the eminent persons who visited at the house of Marcus's grandfather was a young man of sterling qualities named Titus Aurelius An- toninus. His birthplace was Lanuvium, a beautiful village sit- uated on a spur of the Alban Hills, about twenty miles to the southeast of the Capital ; and the greater part of his life had been spent here and at his villa at Lorium, on the Via Aure- lia, about twelve miles to the north of Rome.^ From these quiet retreats, however, his marked abilities soon brought him into notice, and he had already, in the year 120, been chosen consul. It was probably, too, about the same time that An- nius Verus, recognizing his powers and worth of character, gave him in marriage his only daughter, Annia Galeria Faus- tina, the sister of Marcus's father.^ Thus Marcus became connected with one who was a few years later to be the Em- peror of Rome. The most august guest whom the venerable grandfather of Marcus was in the habit of entertaining at his house was Ha- drian. That genial emperor seems to have early taken an un- usual liking to the family of Annius Yerus, and in Marcus's grandfather he found a warm friend of about his own age, with whom he delighted to spend the evenings which he was able to snatch from the cares and duties of his imperial posi- tion. The two friends had many bonds of sympathy. True, one of them was the wearer of a crown. But it had not al- ways been so. The family from which Hadrian was sprung had, like that of Annius, found its origin in Spain. The his- tory of their ancestors had not been dissimilar. Annius's father, and a somewhat more remote ancestor of Hadrian. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 1 : Educatus est in eo loco in quo natus est et in domo aui sui Veri iitxta aedes Laterani. * Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 1 : Ipse Antoninus Pius natus est XIII. leal. Oetolrres Fl. Domitiano XII. et Oornello Bolabella consulibus in uiUa Lanuuina, edu- catus Lorii in Aurelia, uM postea palatium extruxit cuius hodieque reliquiae manent. ' Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 1 : Uxor Annia Faustina. 10 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. had risen from the condition of a provincial prefect to the fore- most offices at Eome. Hadrian iiad been designated Emperor by Trajan, and Vespasian had raised Annius to tlie dignity of patrician. Annius had passed his childhood in his native town in Spain, and it was in the same country that the youth- ful Hadrian had won his first victory in war. It is not diffi- cult to picture to ourselves the zeal with which these friends used, after a rich but quiet repast in the residence of the senator, to discuss the bright days of the past, and look for- ward with anxiety to the uncertainties of the future. Eacli was ambitious to establish his own family interests, and each was fully aware that before many years his own efforts in this direction would have to cease. We can easily imagine with how great sadness on such occasions the Emperor was forced to recollect that he was without a child. Then perhaps the young Antoninus, who had been already raised to positions of great honor by the Emperor, would come in to bring some little token from Faustina to her father ; he would inquire for his nephew, Marcus, and the child would be brought in to be kissed and to receive the blessing of the Emperor. It would be strange if Hadrian did not at times env}^ the good fortune of his friend, who was blessed with such a son and grandson. But Hadrian's envy was of short duration. His was no selfish heart ; and the more he saw of little Marcus, the more the child's frank manner pleased him. Instead of Yerus he used to call him Veriss{7nus;^ and as he went away at night he would urge the elder Annius Yerus to educate the little boy for high pursuits. The visits of the Emperor to liome, however, were not fre- quent, nor of long duration. Hadrian's was a peculiar tem- perament. As we have already seen, he departed entirely from the martial policy of Trajan, and returned to the" less ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 1 : Post excessnm nero jjatris ab Eadriano Annius Verissimus uocatus est. This name was sometimes stamped on tlie medals made in Marcus's honor. See the medal cited by Vaillant, Numism. p. 58, where we read around the head of Marcus Aurelius the words BHPICCIMOC. KAICAP. Justin also dedicates his first Apology to the Emperor Antoninus and Ovripi(j(yift([i v'lqi Thoughts, lib. l,c. 3. A.D. 121-138.] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. 13 in procuring good teachers for him than to indulge him in the luxuries of the table; and in his Thoughts Marcus ex- presses his gratitude that he did not attend the public schools, but was supplied with good teachers at home, and that he was taught to feel that on such tilings a man should spend his money liberally.' Exactly how long this happy life at his grandfather's resi- dence in Rome continued, it is impossible to determine; but from the fact that we hear no more of Annius Verus after his third consulship, in 126, and from the statement of Capitoli- nus that Marcus was educated in his father's house, and after- wards in that of his grandfather,^ it seems probable that Annius died when the little fellow was quite young. From Capitolinus we learn, further, that, when he was about twelve years old, the young philosopher put on the cloak by which the devotees of philosophy were distinguished, and began to practise so zealously the austerity of the Stoics that it was only with the greatest difficulty that his mother could induce him to cover his bed at night with the warm skin of some wild animal.^ During the four or five years succeeding this event Marcus seems to have divided his time between his mother and little sister at Rome, and the quiet country life of Lorium and Lanuvium. It was to their villas at these two places that Antoninus and Faustina had returned after the former had, in 130, completed his duties in the East; and the country home which his aunt and uncle thus kindl}' of- fered him was of the greatest benefit to the youth, whose constitution was even then far from robust. The domestic concerns of the family in which Marcus thus spent the bright days of his boyhood were by no means what Antoninus wished. On more occasions than one he experienced a bitter pang of ' TJiougJits^MhA^c.L ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 1 : Educatus est in eo loco in qxio natus est et in domo aui sui Veri. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 2 : Philosophiae opermn iiehementer dedit et qiiidem adhuc puer. nam duodecimum annum ingressus halitum philosophi sumpsit et deinceps tolerantiam, cum studeret in pallio et humi cubaret, uix autem matre agente instrato pellibus lectulo accubaret. 14 MARCUS AUEELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. grief upon hearing the stories which were circulated about his wife, Faustina.' He undoubtedly remonstrated with her again and again, and urged her to reject the advances of the many flatterers who surrounded her. He probably pointed to her own children and to her pretty little nephew, who was growing up to manhood under their roof, and tried to make her feel the danger to which her example was exposing the younger generation, especially in those days, when vice was so prevalent in the upper classes of society. At such times as these it is likely that Faustina repented, and confessed with bitter tears her former folly. And thus her husband became all the more attached to her, since pity was mingled with his affection. As far as the records of their private life have been preserved to us, we read only of the honors which her faithful husband heaped upon her,^ and after her death he founded a hospital in her name. Marcus was less influenced, however, by the vices of Faus- tina than by the virtues of Antoninus. In addition to the eulogies of the latter, which we find everywhere in Capitoli- nus, there is preserved in Marcus's Thoughts one of the no- blest tributes that a son has ever paid his father (and it was always as a father that Marcus looked upon Antoninus). He says, " In my father I observed mildness of temper, and un- changeable resolution in the things which he had determined after due deliberation ; and no vain-glory in those things which men call honors; and a love of labor and perseverance; and a readiness to listen to those who had anything to propose for the common weal ; and undeviating firmness in giving to every man according to his deserts ; and a knowledge derived from experience of the occasions for vigorous action and for remission. And I observed that he had overcome all passion for boys; and he considered himself no more than any other citizen ; and he released his friends from all obligation to sup with him or to attend him of necessity when he went abroad, * Capit., Ant. PL, c. 3 : Be huius uxore multa dicta sunt db nimiam liber- tatem et uiuendi facilitatem, quae iste cum animi dolore compressit. * Capit., J.ntPt.,c. 5: Uxorem Faustinam Augiistam appeUari a senatu permisit. See also c. 6 and 8. AD. 121-i^s.] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. 15 and those who had failed to accompany him, by reason of any urgent circnmstances, always found him the same. I observed, too, his habit of careful inquiry in all matters of deliberation, and his persistency, and that he never stopped his investiga- tion through being satisfied with appearances which first present themselves; and that his disposition -was to keep his friends, and not to be soon tired of them, nor yet to be ex- travagant in his affection ; and to be satisfied on all occasions, and cheerful ; and to foresee things a long way off, and to provide for the smallest without display ; and to check im- mediately popular applause and all flattery ; and to be ever watchful over the things which were necessary for the ad- ministration of the Empire, and to be a good manager of the expenditure, and patiently to endure the blame which he got for such conduct ; and he was neither superstitious wnth re- spect to the gods, nor did he court men by gifts or by trying to please them, or by flattering the populace; but he showed sobriety in all things, and tirmness, and never any mean thoughts or action, nor love of novelty. And the things which conduce in any way to the commodity of life, and of which fortune gives an abundant supply, he used without ar- rogance and without excusing himself; so that when he had them, he enjoyed them without affectation, and when he had them not, he did not w-ant them. No one could ever say of him that he was either a sophist, or a [home-bred] flippant slave, or a pedant; but every one acknowledged him to be a man ripe, perfect, above flattery, able to manage his own and other men's affairs. Besides this, he honored those who were true philosophers, and he did not reproach those who pre- tended to be philosophers, nor yet w^as he easily led by them. He was also easy in conversation, and he made himself agree- able without any offensive affectation. He took a reasonable care of his body's health, not as one wdio was greatly attached to life, nor out of regard to personal appearance, nor yet in a careless way, but so that, through his own attention, he very seldom stood in need of the physician's art, or of medicine, or external applications. He was most ready to give way without envy to those who possessed any particular faculty, 16 MARCUS AUEELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. such as that of eloquence, or knowledge of the law or of morals, or of anything else; and he gave them his help, that each might enjoy reputation according to his deserts ; and he always acted conformably to the institutions of his country, without showing any affectation of doing so. Further, he was not fond of change nor unsteady, but he loved to stay in the same places, and to employ himself about the same things ; and after his paroxysms of headache he came immediately fresh and vigorous to his usual occupations. His secrets were not many, but very few and very rare, and these only about public matters; and he showed prudence and economy in the exhibition of the public spectacles and the construction of public buildings, his donations to the people, and in such things, for he was a man who looked to what ought to be done, not to the reputation which is got by a man's acts. . . . There was in him nothing harsh, nothing implacable nor violent, nor, as one may sa}'^, anything carried to the sweat- ing-point ; but he examined all things severally, as if he had abundance of time, and without confusion, in an orderly way, vigorously and consistently. And that might be applied to him which is recorded of Socrates, that he was able both to abstain from, and to enjoy, those things which many are too weak to abstain from, and cannot enjoy without excess.'" It was at the table of such a father as this that Marcus and his little cousin Faustina, whom Antoninus had with tender love named after her mother, grew to maturity. The zeal with which the boy, when only twelve years old, had devoted himself to the life and habits of a philosopher, did not abate as he grew older. His uncle, however, aware of the danger in allowing a child to apply his mind exclusively to one sub- ject, wisely checked his nephew's philosophical studies by employing private teachers to instruct him in the other ele- mentary branches of education. Capitolinus gives us a long list of the teachers whom Antoninus selected for the boy, and among them we find the names of persons who were cele- brated in all departments.'' Xot only are the elements of ' Thourjlits, lib. 1, c. IG. ^ Capit., M. Ant. rkil, c. 2. A.D. 121-138] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. I7 Greek and Latin, and rhetoric, and oratory, and mathematics mentioned in tlie list, but we also find the j'oung scholar try- ing his hand at writing poetry and comedies. Indeed, his uncle seems to have spared neither pains nor money to pro- cure from all parts of the Empire the men most eminent in their professions. This kindness was not wasted on the youth. In every subject which he took up he found a new source of interest. The more he learned, the more he wished to know. And this insatiable appetite for knowledge remained with him throughout his life. His parents noticed the extreme diligence with which the boy pursued his studies, and, though they felt a secret joy therein, yet it caused them no little anx- iety. The weary eyes with which the youth looked in his mother's face, as he kissed her in the morning, told of late hours spent over his Cicero and his Csesar the night before. His sunken cheeks lacked the ruddy glow of boyhood, and his whole frame seemed too weak to bear the fatigues for which his uncle was more than half aware the child was destined. Some new course must be devised. Measures must be taken to strengthen the youth's frail body. His uncle, therefore, insisted upon the importance of out-of-door exercise. He bought a pony for his nephew, and the two used often to start out before breakfast and take a gallop together over the beautiful hills of Lorium. When the novelty of tliis amuse- ment wore away, Antoninus would invite his friends to come down from the city, and Marcus had to throw away his books and join the others in a hunt. By such means as these the boy was enabled to preserve his health ; but even while dash- ing over the hills his busy n)ind was with his books at home. During all these years of Marcus's childhood the Emperor Hadrian had been travelling constantly from one end of his Empire to the other ; but towards the close of the year 135 he returned to Rome once more — this time never to depart again. Sixty busy years had passed over his head, and the weaknesses of age were coming fast upon him. The genial temperament, for which he was in early life so celebrated, was giving way to sourness and irritability. Many of his old friends were becoming offended at him, or he was losing confidence 18 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. in them. But the imperial power still remained in his hands ; and, therefore, being sensible of his own increasing weakness, he began to look about him for a -successor. Ainong the no- bility who at this time frequented the court of Hadrian, and continued to flatter him in spite of the infirmities of his old age, was a young man of society named L. Ceionius Commo- dus Yerus. This person had ah-eady ingratiated himself with the Emperor, and it seems that, even as early as the year 130, when Verus was appointed prsetor, Hadrian had partl}^ made up his mind to nominate him as his successor. According to Spartianus, he adopted the young man at about the same time.' Subsequently Hadrian appointed him governor of Pannonia. In the year 136 he was admitted for the first time to the con- sulship ; and it was during the course of this year, probably between June 19th and August 29th of the year 136, that Hadrian formally granted him the title of Caesar, thereby designating him as his successor to the throne. Commodus thereupon took the name of ^lius, the family appellation of Hadrian, and in his second consulship, which took place in 137, we find him referred to as L. ^lius Verus.° The rea- ' Spart., Ael. Ver., c. 3 : Adoptatus autem Aelius Verus db Hadriano eo tempore quo iam, ut superius diximus, pariim uigelat et de successore necessa- rio cogitabat. * The chronology of this man's life i^resents a good deal of difficulty. Spartianus, in his Ael. Ver., c. 3, says he was adopted just before being made prefect, which was in 130 ; and in a letter to Servianus (preserved in the Scriptores Historiae Augustae, in Flavius Vopiscus's life of Saturninus, c. 8), which could not have been written later tlian 134, Hadrian speaks of ^lius asjilium meum Verum. It is, therefore, clear that the adoption of ^lius took place about the year 130. And this view is supported also by the assertion of Spartianus, Ael. Ver., c. 3, that between the time of his adoption and his first consulship, in 136, he held the offices of prajtor and governor of Pannonia; for, if we put his adoption much later than 130, the interval between that event and his first consulship would not be long enough for him to have occupied these positions. The only objec- tion to this view of his adoption in 130 is that Spartianus, in his Hadr., c. 23, says that upon his adoption he was called ^lius Verus Coesar ; and all the inscriptions which are dated before his first consulate, in 136, speak of him as L. Ceionius Commodus (see Orelli, nos. 1681, 4354, and 6086), those only which are dated from his second consulship, in 137, A.D. 121-13S.] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. 19 sons which induced Hadrian to nominate this man as his suc- cessor have been the subject of mucli dispute. The difficulty arises from some passages in Spartianus, where L. ^lius Verus is spoken of as a voluptuary, whose most important qualifica- tion for the throne consisted in the fact that he had invented a new sort of pasty which tickled the palate of the Emperor.* But such grounds as these could not have been of any weight with a man like Hadrian, afflicted though he was by the in- firmities of age. Indeed, Spartianus himself hints at some other traits of ^lius which make us suspect that he is scarce- ly dealing fairly with this young man. ^lius certainly pos- sessed the arts of popularity in no slight degree. He is said to have had a handsome face and manly figure, and to have been by no means deficient either in eloquence or in educa- tion." And from the fact that the reputation which he won as praetor and governor of Paimonia was sufficient to raise him to the consulship, and that he was chosen to this high office a second time, we may feel justified in adding to the faint praise of Spartianus that even in the management of public affairs he possessed some slight measure of ability. In- deed, the hasty comment of Spartianus, that the Emperor adopted him "against the will of everybody,"^ is, in itself, a good ground for suspecting a lack of fair play either in calling him L. ^lius Caesar (see Orelli, nos. 828, 856, and 6527). This ob- jection, however, loses its entire force if we separate the act of his adop- tion from that of his nomination as Caesar, and hold that when Spartia- nus, in the passage first cited (Ael. Ver., c. 3), speaks of his adoption, he refers to the private act of Hadrian's taking him into his family, in 130, and when he sjDeaks the second time (Radr., c. 23) of his adoption, he means the formal recognition of him as his successor, in 136. This, then, would seem to be the true interpretation. The question is learnedly discussed in Borghesi, QSuvres, v. 8, p. 457 ; Duruy, Hist, des Romans, v. 4, p. 406, note ; and Peter, Oesch. Moms, v. 3, pt. 2, p. 186, note. ' Spart., Ael. Ver., c. 5. '^ Spart., Ael. Ver., c. 5 : Fuit hie uitae laetissimae, eruditus in litteris, Ma- driano, iit maliuoli locuntur, acceptior forma quam moribiis . . . comptus, decorus,prdchritudinis regiae,oris uenerandi,eloquentiae celsioris, uersu faci- lis, in re publica etiam nan inutilis. ' Spart., Hadr., c. 23 : Inuitis omnibus. 20 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. I. Spartianus or in the source whence he derived his informa- tion. Be this as it may, ^lius did not obtain an opportunity to display his talents as an emperor. In less than eighteen months after his nomination he was suddenly taken sick, and died on the 1st of January, 138/ Thus Hadrian, who now felt his end rapidly approaching, was compelled to choose once more a successor to the throne. This time he seems to have found little difficulty in coming to a determination. In all the vicissitudes of his life he had not ceased to remember his little favorite Verissimus, whose sterling qualities he had first had reason to notice at the house of the old senator, An- nius Yerus. It was only in the preceding year, 137, that Ha- drian had appointed the young Marcus, then sixteen years of age, to the position of prefect of the Latin festivities at Home, while the consuls were away at Sount Albus;^ and here the young man had proved himself well worthy of the honor with which his Emperor had intrusted him. Marcus, there- fore, presented himself to the Emperor's mind as the person best suited to take his place. But there was one difficulty in the way of appointing him his successor, and that was the fact that L. ^lius Yerus, whom Hadrian had nominated Caesai\ had died leaving a son,L, Ceionius Commodus ; and it seemed unjust to this boy to appoint another Caesar \;\\\iQ the son of the former Caesar was still alive. Hadrian, however, soon found a solution to this difficulty; and on the 25th of February, 138, he fixed upon Marcus's uncle, Antoninus, as his successor; but only on the condition that he should adopt these two boys, L. Ceionius Commodus Yerus and Marcus Annius Yerus, and that at the death of Antoninus they should be admitted together to the throne.^ Further, in or- ' Spart., Ael. Ver., c. 4 : Kalendis iims lanuariis lyeriit. =* Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c, 4 : Mc multo post praefectusferiarum Latinarum Suit. ^ Capit., Ant. PL, c. 4: Adoptionis lex huiusmodi data est, itt quern ad mo- dum Antoninus ah Hadriano adoptalatur ita sibi ille adoptaret M. Antoni- num fratris uxoris suae Jilium et L. Verum Aelii Veri qui db Hadriano adoptatus fuerat Jilium, qui postea Verus Antoninus est dictus adoptatus est V. Teal. Martias. A.D. 121-13S.] CHILDHOOD AND YOUTH. 21 der that Antoninus might not sliow greater favor to Marcus tlian to the other, since he was Marcus's nncle and his daugh- ter Faustina had ah-eadj been betrothed to her young cousin, he stipulated that Faustina should be given in marriage to the young Commodus, and tliat Marcus, in return, should marry Fabia, the sister of Commodus, his adopted brother.' In this way Hadrian was enabled to place the Empire in the hands of a man well on in life, whose powers liad already stood the test of trial ; and, at the same time, by joining his two favorites to each other and to their adoptive father by the ties of marriage, to insure their future accession to the throne and an harmonious government under their joint rule. Having made this last provision for the future interests of the Empire, the weary Hadrian retired to his villa at Bai«, to enjoy the soothing influence of a Neapolitan sun and to in- dulge in the warm mineral springs for which that fashionable resort was celebrated. Even this precaution, however, was now too late. Hadrian lingered but a few months longer, and expired on the 10th of June, 138.^ Antoninus was now Emperor of the Roman world. 1 Some of Marcus's biograj^hers have been quite in error as to the marriage stipulation upon which Hadrian insisted. It has been thought tliat Marcus was originally betrothed to Fabia, and that Hadrian induced him to give up this intention in order to marry his own cousin, Faustina. But Spartianus is quite explicit on the subject. He says, in his Ael Ver., c. 6, that Hadrian adopted Antoninus " on the condition that he should give his daughter to Verus, not to Marcus;" and, again, in Capitolinus, M. Ant. Phil, c. 4, we read that Marcus w\as betrothed to the daughter of the elder Commodus in accordance with the desire of Hadrian. ^ Spart., Eadr., c. 25 : Apud ipsas Baias periit die sexto iduum luliarum. MAKCUS AUiiELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. Chaptee II. THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. A.D. 138-161. Marcus Takes the names Aurelius Antoninus. — Assists bis Adoptive Father in the Govermnent.— Their Policy. — Popularity of Antoninus Pius.— His Private Life. — Marcus is made Quaestor. — Seuir turmce. — Consul. — Caesar. — Private Life of Marcus. — Love for his Cousin, Faustina. — Mar- riage. — Continues his Studies. — Intimacy with his Teacher, Fronto. — Incidents in^iis Country Life. — Early Life of Lucius Verus.— Marcus becomes Dissatisfied with Rhetoric and takes up Philosophy. — Esteem for his Instructors. — Ill-health.— Domestic Grief. — Death of Antoninus Pius. The fii'st public act which Antoninus performed after his accession was to convey the ashes of his predecessor to Rome, and to demand from the senate tliat Hadrian should be en- rolled among the gods. For this act of piety and affection the senate conferred upon him the title of Pius — the appella- tion by which he is known to history. On the other hand, Marcus became known, after his adoption, as Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, in honor of his adoptive father.' The little Lu- ' We are told that Marcus was sometimes known during his childhood by the name of his mother's grandfather, Catilius Severus, and that upon assuming the toga uirilis he laid aside this name and was known simply as Marcus Annius Verus. Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 1 : M. Antoninus prin- cipio aeui sui nomen habuit Catilii Seueri matemi proaui . . . post uirilem autem togam Annius Verus. Dion Cassius seems to have thought Marcus retained the name Catilius till the time of his adoption, in 138. See Dion Cassius, lib. 69, e. 21. Galen leaves him the name Severus until he took up the name Antoninus, in 138, thus agreeing with Dion Cassius. Galen., Aduers. eos qui de typ. scrips., c. 1 [v. 7, p. 478 of Kiihn's ed.] : 'Hpx£ £e Tore 'ZtlSfjpog, iavrdv fiiv 'AvTU)v~tvov fitTovojjidaac. In all probability the change was gradual, none of bis other names being entirely given up un- til, in 138, he became known as Marcus Aurelius Antoninus. AD. 138-101] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. £3 cius Yerus now combined tlie name ^liiis, whieli Hadrian had given to liis father, with that of Aurelius Antoninus, in honor of his adoptive father ; but he is more often designated by liis original name of Lucius Yerus. The path of life which the young Marcus thus found pre- pared for him was in many respects an unenviable one. We have already had occasion to dwell somewhat upon the dan- gers which threatened the overthrow of the Empire during the reign of Hadrian. The conciliatory measures of that wise prince had, at any rate, checked the ruin which all thoughtful citizens must have felt was imminent. But the policy adopted throughout the long reign of Trajan had exerted an influence upon the constitution of the Roman Empire which it required the exertions of more than a single monarch to overcome. Public sentiment must always be brought into sympathy with a change of policy before a ruler can with safety pro- mulgate that policy to his people. This had been pre-emi- nently the work of Hadrian. He had, to a great extent, succeeded in making tlie entire mass of his subjects feel that the future welfare of Eome demanded a cessation of hostili- ties with foreign powers and a thorough reformation of the government and society at home. Towards bringing about this reformation, however, Hadrian had been able to con- tribute little. He had paved the way; it rested with his successors to introduce the necessary changes. It is some- what difficult for us at this day to appreciate how imperative this policy of reformation had become ; it is hard to picture to ourselves the state of degradation which the society of Rome had reached, or to conceive tlie utter laxity in the forms of government administration which had been allowed to creep in during the reigns of despotic or martial emperors. An able writer enumerates, among the evils which threatened the Empire at the accession of Antoninus Pins (and I believe every one of these evils will be found to have its origin in the exclusively martial policy of the early emperors), the fol- lowing: " The depopulation of the provinces, the steady dimi- nution in the class of freemen, the multitude of slaves and freedmen, tlie influential position of informers, the degrada- 24 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [cnAP.ll. tion of character with reference to all sorts of superstition, the depravity of morals, the sacrifices which the emperors were called upon to make to the populace and the army, who were the principal and necessary supporters of the throne; the danger which surrounds an authority that is absolute and uncontrolled, and the difficulty of introducing such reforms as were demanded for the public welfare.'" These were some of the anxieties which presented themselves to the philosophic mind of Marcus, when, in his eighteenth year, he was called to undertake the duties of public life. It is not strange, therefore, that his mind was filled with sadness and forebodings as he transferred his residence to the palace of the emperors.^ Antoninus Pius was fifty -two years of age when he as- cended the throne. The little Lucius Yerus was then but a child of eight, and seems at no time during his adoptive father's life to have attained to any share in the administra- tion of the Empire. Marcus Aurelius, however, though at the time only seventeen years of age, had already shown him- self, in the ej^es of Antoninus, well fitted for the discharge of weighty duties. He was, therefore, almost at once associated with his father in the supreme command. He did not, to be sure, receive the title of Emperor until his father's death, and of course his sanction was not requisite to any matter of imperial prerogative ; but in practice Antoninus was greatly influenced by the young man's wishes, and he rarely promoted any one to office without the consent of Marcus.^ In all mat- ters of essential importance they acted as one man ; and in the majority of public acts which took place during this pe- riod, the records seldom inform us whether they emanated from the father or the son. It seems, therefore, appropriate, especially as history presents us with little more than a gen- eral picture of this time, that we should regard this picture as '■ Suckau, Etude sur Marc-Aurele, pp. 37-8. ' CeiTpit., M.A?it. Phil., c. 5: Mngis est deterritv^ quam laetatus iussusque in Hadriani priuatam domum migrare inuitus de maternis hortis recessit. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. : Tantumqne apud Pium ualuit, ut numquam quemquam sine eo facile promouerit. A.D. 13S-1G1.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 25 representing equally the policy of Marcus and of Antoninus. Indeed, the entire harmony of their views on all public mat- ters is clearly manifest by the acts which were performed by Marcus after he became sole emperor. ^A single policy runs throughout both reigns, and unites the two emperors so close- ly to each other that history usually designates their succes- sive administrations by a single appellation — " the reign of the Antonines." . The policy of Antoninus was, on the whole, a continuation of that pursued by Hadrian. Each aimed to create a feeling of national union in all parts of the Empire. Hadrian had taken the preparatory step in this direction. His entire life was spent in journeying throughout the Empire, with a view to inspire a national feeling in his subjects. The tranquil life of Antoninus presents a striking contrast to the restless ac- tivity of his predecessor, but in the main their purposes were alike. No national sentiment could long exist in the prov- inces unless they had reason to believe themselves bound to Rome by other ties than those which bind a servant to his master. And this relation of master and servant Antoninus saw that it was impossible to alter, except by cleansing the state entirely from the abuses which the late wars Ijad brought about. ^ To prevent a decrease in the population of Rome, and at the same time to elevate the character of her citizens, to obtain the resources requisite for carrying on the govern- ment, without creating dissatisfaction among the provinces, to insure the strict administration of justice throughout the Em- pire without conferring dangerous powers upon the local gov- ernors, and to preserve the dignity of the imperial office with- out leaving it in the power of future rulers to become despotic — these were the reforms which the Antonines found it most necessary to take in hand. It will be seen at once that the ends to be attained presented very serious difficulties. The Antonines sought to bring about the union of two things which had been hitherto deemed irreconcilable — empire and liberty. "With this in view they turned their attention first to the necessities of the provinces ; for it was here that per- haps the greatest abuses in the whole Empire were manifest. 26 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. There cannot be the slightest doubt that the provinces had been called upon to furnish far more than their just quota tow- ards defraying the expenses of the government ; and, worse than this, a large portion of the taxes thus collected had never found its way into the public treasury, but had been stolen by the unworthy agents of the Emperor. To these acts of injus- tice and extortion Antoninus put a stop at once. Those who had charge of the imperial revenues in the provinces were or- dered to be lenient in collecting the tribute. Whenever any one felt himself overburdened, Antoninus invariably granted him a ready hearing ; and, if he found that more than was just had been extorted from any of his subjects, he took care that the surplus should be immediately returned.' It was in this way, and also by ceasing to levy the huge armies which his predecessors had kept on foot, that Antoninus succeeded in winning the allegiance of his subjects in the colonies. These lenient measures, however, could not fail to excite dis- satisfaction among the people of Italy and Rome. To appease them he set apart a sum of money to insure the regular per- formance of gladiatorial sports, and he also supported the chariot-races with extraordinaiy zeal.'' Further, he managed to keep the soldiers in a state of quiet by granting them occa- sional largesses.' It is also said that he conciliated the people greatly by his leniency in administering justice. He pardoned the guilty in every case where his conscience would allow it ; and more than once refrained from punishing persons who had been condemned by Hadrian, saying that if Hadrian had * Capit., Ant. PL, c. 6 : Procuratores suos et modeste susdpere tributa iussit et excedentes modum rationem factorum suorum reddere praecepit. nee um- quam ullo laetatus est lucro qno pirouincialis opipressus est. contra procura- tores suos conquerentes libenter audiuit. ^ Capit., J-W^. P/., c. 12: Sumptwn muneribus gladlatoriis instltuit. uehi- cularium cursum summa diligentia subleuauit. ' Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 4 : Congiarium populo de p>rop>rio dedit et ea quae pater promiserat. et ad opera Hadriani plurimum contulit et aurum corona- rium, quod adoptionis suae causa oblatum fuerat, Italicis totum, medium prouincialibus reddidit. The coins of Antoninus Pius's reign show that he granted largesses in 139, 140, 148, 153, and 163. See Eckhel, v. 7, pp. 11, 13, 18, 23, and 27. A. D. 138-161. J THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 27 lived, he, too, would have seen his way to pardoning them." Moreover, he instituted many new laws and made alterations in several of those already existing, all of which measures were directed towards protecting the weak and the oppressed."" "It is from the time of the Antonines," says Kenan, "that nearly all those laws date which relax the rigor of the ancient law." ' As another means of keeping alive the affection of the people, he completed every good work which had been begun by Hadrian, and it is said he did not remove a single officer whom that popular monarch had appointed.^ In all these admirable measures Antoninus was beset with one well-nigh insuperable difficulty — the lack of resources. Previous emperors had met this difficulty by increasing the taxation. Antoninus pursued a very different course ; he even diminished the amount of tribute to be levied from the prov- inces. And yet, without increasing the quota to be contrib- uted in Italy, he succeeded in satisfying the people with largesses, with works of architecture, and with spectacular performances. The means by which he accomplished this was chiefly in the practice of a rigorous economy. Indeed, one of his biographers tells us he carried this principle so far that some of his subjects called him Ku/xtvoTrptaTrjc, or, the cummin-splitter,' Contrary to the custom of Hadrian, he made no long journeys, as he said the expenses attendant thereon were too great a burden to the people." Whenever it was possible he sought retirement at his villa outside of * Capit.,^ni5. Pi., c. 6 : Sis quos Hadrianus damnauerat in senatu indul- gentias peiiit dicens etiam ipsum Hadrianum hoc fuisse facturum. ' See Gains, Inst., lib. 1, c. 53; and lustinian., Big., lib. 1, tit. 12, c. 8, and lib. 48, tit. 8, c. 1,§2. ' Renan, Marc-Aurele, pp. 22-3. * Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 5 : Nulli eorum quos Hadrianus prouexerat successorem dedit. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 70, c. 3 : AE-yerai Sk 6 ' Ai'Tiovlvog ^i]ti)tikoq Xivsa^ai, Kal firidt TTSpl TCL fiiKpd Kal to, Tvxovra TrJQ aKpifSoXoyiciQ dfiffracrBai ' o^oi> avrtiv o\ atCWTTTOVTEQ Kal KVfllVOTTpiffTtJV tKoXoVi'. ^ Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 7: Wee ullas expeditiones obiit nisi quod ad agros suos profectus est ad Campaniam, dicens grauem esse prouincialihus comitatum principis etiam nimis parci. 28 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. n. Kome. He also did away with the informers, who had be- come extremely numerous, and who lived by giving informa- tion in regard to crimes and receiving tlierefor one quarter of the criminal's property; so that all that Lad formerly gone into the pockets of these sycophants now found its way into the public treasury. In some cases, too, we are told that the largesses given by Antoninus to the soldiers were defrayed from his own private property.* The method, however, which Antoninus adopted more gladly than any other, in order to keep the treasury in a flourishing condition, was by reducing the numbers, and consequently the expenses, of the standing army. It must not be supposed, as it often is,^ that the reign of Antoninus was entirely free from wars. Capi- tolinus himself tells us that "through his legates he waged many wars. By Lollius Urbicus he overcame the Britons," and, after driving them back, erected a second earthen ram- part. The Moors he compelled to sue for peace. The Ger- mans, the Dacians, and many other peoples, among them the Jews, who had risen in rebellion, he subdued through the governors and legates whom he had appointed. In Achaia, also, and in Egypt, he repressed insurrections. The Alani, who often became restless, he quieted."^ But these wars seem all to have been of short duration, and were probably in great part carried on by means of a militia levied on the spot. Whenever any calamities fell upon the people, he did all in his power to relieve them. Thus, when the earthquakes took place which Dion Cassius tells us* resulted so disastrously to the towns in Bithynia and along the Hellespont, and which utterly destroyed the splendid city of Cyzicus, there can be no doubt that Antoninus contributed largely towards repair- ing the loss. Indeed, in every way he attempted to make his subjects feel that he had their welfare entirely at heart. 1 Capit., A7it. Pi., c. 4 : Gongiarium populo de proprio dedit. ^ Eipault, Marc-AureU, v. 1, pp. 220-1. ' This was in the year 140. See a coin in Eckhel, v. 7, p. 14. ♦ Capit., Ant. PL, c. 5. * Dion Cassius, lib. 70, C. 4 : 'Etti tov 'AvTwvivov XkysTai kuI ^o^epwraroQ irepl TO. fispt] Tijg Bi^vviag Kal Toii 'EXkrjtJTrovTov aeicrfibg yevkffSrai k. t. X. y] A.D. 138-161] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 29 Without resigning into the hands of the people those powers which he felt would be more safely vested in the ruler, he succeeded in making them sympathize with him in all his works; and by reporting every measure which he had deter- mined upon to the senate, and b}'' proclaiming it in an edict to the people,' he inspired his subjects with a feeling of na- tionality and a desire for the welfare of the entire realm. In this way Antoninus was enabled to spread abroad the princi- ples of liberty, and, at the same time, to preserve intact the dignity and power which belonged to him as Emperor, The private life of Antoninus accorded well with his puljlic virtues, and the same principles by which he was actuated in the affairs of state seem always to have guided him in his dealings with his friends. His whole conduct, public and pri- vate, was pervaded by a simplicity of purpose such as has rarely been equalled by any monarch. Though possessed of great wealth, and well able to indulge in all the pomp and brilliancy of Roman society, he preferred the quiet of his suburban villas, and even when most deeply involved in the anxieties of public life he usually managed to spend his even- ings in the bosom of his family at Lanuvium or Lorium. At the latter place, in order to offer a more hospitable welcome to his friends, he built a palace;* and at the houses of other people he was not infrequently a guest. Indeed, Capitolinus tells us that he spent a great deal of his time in the society of his friends ;' and, when he did so, he took care that every one about him should be treated as on an equality with himself. In all sorts of recreations he took an intense pleasure. We have already seen with what zeal he applauded and encour- aged the various scenic amusements which were offered to the Roman people. His favorite pastimes, however, were of a more private nature. It was his great delight, wlienever he could snatch an afternoon from the duties of the Empire, to * Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 13 : Omnium quae gessit et in seuatu et pei' edicta ra- tionem reddidit. ' Capit., ^?j^. Pi., c. 1 : Educatus Lorii in Aurelia, vbi postea palatium extruxit mius hodieque reliquiae manent. ^ Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 11 : Frequentauit et ipse amicorum suorum conuiuia. 30: MAECUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.ll. get a few friends together and go off on a quiet hunting or fishing party in the vicinity of his villa.' On such occasions his amiable disposition must have contributed largely to the happiness of those about him. In humor, too, he was by no means deficient. There is a story told about him which illus- trates well at the same time his remarkable forgiveness of in- juries and his sense of humor. It is said^ that when he first went to Smyrna as proconsul of Asia, he was offered tempo- rarily the house of Polemon, the celebrated Sophist and rhet- orician, who happened at the time to be away. A short time afterwards Polemon returned, in the middle of the night, and, finding his house occupied, exclaimed in anger that he had been turned out of his own house. The proconsul overheard the remark, and, getting out of bed at once, he collected his luggage together and went in search of other lodgings. After Antoninus was appointed Emperor, Polemon had occasion to come to Rome. One day Antoninus chanced to see him in the street. lie smiled, and, after conversing pleasantly with him a few moments, gave orders that a room in the palace should be made ready for the stranger. " But be sure," he said good-humoredly to the servant, " that no one shall turn him out." This gentle rebuke, however, did not succeed in improving Polemon's temper. At a play which he attended while in Pome one of the actors failed to perform his part to Polemon's satisfaction ; whereupon Polemon insisted that the fellow should be driven off the stage. Later, the comedian, bringing the matter to the notice of the Emperor, was asked, "At what hour did he drive you from the stage?" "It was at mid-day." " Ah," replied Antoninus, " it was at mid-night that he drove me from his house, and I made no complaint." This leniency in dealing with offenders was not, however, car- ried to such an extent as to be injurious to tlie public welfare. We have already seen that when the circumstances of the case demanded it, he was the first to take steps to remedy any wrong. As a rule, however, he avoided wars and other dis- i Capit., ^ni. Pi., c. 11 : Piscando se et uenando multum oUectauit et de- amhulatione cum amicis atque sermone. « Philostratus, Vit. Sophist., V\h. 1, c. 35, § 3. A.D. 138-lCl.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 31 turbances until it was an absolute necessity to exert his im- perial authority. His love of peace was such, says Capitolinus, that he used often to remark, with Scipio, that " he preferred to serve one citizen than to kill a thousand enemies." ' This desire to serve his fellow-men is brought prominently before us in the statement of Capitolinus that he always refused to accept legacies from any one who died and left descendants.^ But the most characteristic picture of his nature is given us in the following story : One day, while Marcus was weeping over the deatli of a favorite instructor, the servants surround- ed him and tried by sympathetic words to make him forget his loss. But Antoninus, coming up to them, told them to cease their efforts. " Do not," he said, " try to suppress the feelings which belong to a true man. Neither philosophy nor the Empire can destroy one's love." ' The reign of Antoninus Pius may be termed, not inappro- priately, a period of probation for his successor. It had, to be sure, been included among the stipulations which Hadrian had made with Antoninus, that Marcus should eventually as- cend the throne. But the Boman army and people had al- ready, on more than one occasion, proved themselves capable of frustrating the will of a deceased emperor; and there can be little doubt that, had Marcus shown hiniself, during the reign of Antoninus, unworthy of the dignity for which he had been destined, he could have had little hope of succeeding to that high honor. As a matter of fact, however, the issue was at no time doubtful. The young Marcus, promoted from one position of trust to another, grew in popularity by every change of circumstances; and when the moment came for Antoniniis's successor to assume his duties, there was but a single opinion as to who that successor should be. The first public office" which Marcus held after the death of Hadrian (and, indeed, it seems probable that Hadrian had, during the last few months of his life, called on the senate to con- firm the nomination of Marcus) was that of qusestor. The ' Capit., Ant. PL, c. 9. "^ Capit., Ant. PL, c. 8 : Ilereditates eorum quifilios habebant repudiauit. ' Capit., ^?i«. P/.,c.lO. 82 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. duties of tliis position he assumed in the autumn of 138, at the unusually early age of seventeen,' The precise status of these quaestors during the times of the early emperors it is difficult to determine. Indeed, the objects for which they were appointed are so various that it is scarcely possible to give any exact description of their office. As a rule, how- ever, they seem to have partaken more of the character of private secretary than of anything else. Some of the quses- tors were intrusted with the raising of the revenue in the va- rious parts of the Empire. But as there seems no reason for believing that Marcus was at this time absent from the vicin- ity of Rome, we may be justified in assuming that he was one of those quaestors who bore the title of candidati p7'incipis. If so, his functions consisted chiefly in reading before the senate the communications which the Emperor had to make to that assembly. Though the responsibility of this position was by no means insignificant for a lad of seventeen, it was probably regarded in his case chiefly as a stepping-stone to something higher. This promotion was not long postponed. In 139, when Antoninus was chosen consul for the third time, the senate appointed his adopted son as his colleague in the consulship.'^ Between his appointment and the 1st of Janu- ary, 140, when he was to enter upon his consular duties, the title by which he was known was consul designatus j and it was during these months, as we are told by Capitolinus, that Anto- ninus raised him to the dignity of seuir turmaeJ" This position, thouo-h essentially an honorary one, was of the utmost im- > Capit., M. Ant. Phil.., c. 5 : Octauodecimo ergo aetatis anno adoptatus in secundo consulatu Antonini, iam patris sui, Hadriano ferente gratia aetatis facta quaestor est designatus. " Capit. Ant. PL, c. 6 : 3f. Antoninum quaestorem consulem 2yetente senatu creauit ; and Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 6 : Quaestm'em et consulem secuni Pius Marcum designauit. * ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 6 : Et seuirum turmis equitum Boma7iorum iam consulem designatum creauit. A.D. 138-161.] THE PERIOD OF PKOBATION. 33 portance to every young man wlio aspired to eminence in public life. It will be remembered that when only six years old Marcus had been enrolled among the knights — the body from which all the higher officers in the army and the chief magistrates in the state were chosen. These knights were divided into six turmae, or companies, each of which was commanded by an officer called the seuir Uirmae ; and it was the custom at Eome, after the time of the Emperor Claudius, to place the probable successor to the throne over one of these six corps immediately upon his entry into public life.' It was now that Marcus received the appellation of Caesar. On the 1st of January, l-iO, Marcus's first Consulate began. This event was celebrated, as usual, by a solemn pro- cession to the Capitol, where the Emperor and senators joined the consul of the year in the customary sacrifices to Jupiter Capitolinus.^ The address which Marcus delivered on this occasion before the senate has not been preserved to us ; but we learn from some of the letters which passed between him and his instructor that he had devoted a long study to this, his first public effort in oratory,' and there is every reason to believe that his endeavors did not remain unrewarded. Throughout this entire period, and up to the time when he succeeded to the Empire, Marcus's home continued to be with Antoninus. Whether at Lorium or at Lanuvium — whether confined at Kome by the cares of his imperial office, or rec- reating under the genial influence of the sun of Naples — our young hero was almost constantly an attendant upon his father. Capitolinus tells us that during the twenty -three years he lived with Antoninus they were absent from each ' On this subject see Noel des Vergers, E%%ai sur Marc-Aurele, p. 21, notes 1 and 2. ^ A statue was found at Tyndaris, and is now in the Museum at Paler- mo, which Noel des Vergers {Essai sur Marc-Aurele, p. 19) thinks was consecrated at this time. It represents Marcus as a very young man, clothed in the sacerdotal robes, and presiding at a sacrifice. The in- scription on the base runs thus: M. AVRELIO|VERO. CAESARE. COSilMPIT. AELI. HADRIANI||ANTONINL AVG||PII||FILIOiP.P.D.D. ' See Pronto, Ejnst. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 1. 3 34 MARCUS AUEELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.n. other but two nights,' and throughout that time the Emper- or's love for \\h protege coutinuallj grew stronger. IS'or was this affection entirely on one side, as is clearly shown in. a let- ter which Fronto wrote to Marcus soon after the death of Antoninus. " Who does not recollect," he writes, " how, when your father was- unwell, you remained continually by his side, and refrained from the bath and wine, and did not even in- dulge in bread or water. You chose your own times neither for waking nor for sleeping, neither for eating nor for exer- cising. In everything you were governed by your father's needs." ° Dutiful as Marcus showed himself, however, his obedience was no more than Antoninus was entitled to. It would be safe to say that no father ever did more for his favorite son than Antoninus did for Marcus. Not only did he adopt his nephew and colleague into the bosom of his fam- ily, but he found a place there also for Marcus's mother. Just when Domitia Lucilla gave up her house in Eome, from which, according to Capitolinus, Marcus was called away when sum- moned to the imperial palace,^ it is difficult to determine. But from the fact that in the correspondence which passed be- tween Marcus and his teacher, Fronto, in 139 and 140, the first years of their acquaintance, frequent messages were con- veyed to and from his mother by Marcus, it is evident she had by that time taken up her abode M'itli him." In the same generous home, too, Marcus's married life began. It was a bard struggle that the young man had to undergo in order to make up his mind on this subject. From the days when he first, a little city boy, used to go out to his uncle's country ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 7 : Ifec i^raeter duas nodes per tot annos mansit diuersis uicihis. * Fronto, Epist. ad M. Ant. Imp., lib. 1, epist. 5. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 5 : De matefmis hm'tis recessii. * See Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 3, epist. 7 and 8 ; lib. 5, epist. 3, etc. As Fronto alwaj'S speaks of Marcus's mother merely as " domina mater tua^'' it is difficult, from any single passage, to be sure -wlietlier those words have reference to Domitia Lucilla or to Faustina, Marcus's adoptive mother. Since, however, Fronto continues to use the same expression long after the elder Faustina's death, it seems likely that he always in- tends to designate by that expression Domitia Lucilla. A.D. 13S-161.] THE PERIOD OF PKOBATION. 35 houses to pass the summer holidays, he had formed a warm attachment to his pretty little cousin, Faustina. She was only a year or two younger than himself, and, as they roamed over the beautiful hills together, we may picture to ourselves the games in which they figured as husband and wife ; how they built their castles in the air, and plighted themselves to travel together through this happy Avorld. In such sports as these the days fiew by, until they both began to realize the deep meaning at the bottom of the words they had so lightly ut- tered. Almost, however, before the youth had been fully aware how earnestly he loved his cousin, the Emperor of Rome had nominated him his successor to the throne, and on one condition — that he should give up his hope of marrying Faustina, and should leave her to become the wife of Lucius Yerus. It was a severe blow to him, and he hesitated a long time before accepting the condition. But at last he seems to have yielded. At all events, he had not made known his re- fusal to comply with the condition when Hadrian died ; and when Antoninus assumed tlie reins of government the young Marcus consented to be adopted as his successor. ISTow, how- ever, his determination began to waver. ■ Brought into a closer connection than ever with his fair cousin, who was just grow- ing into the most attractive period of womanhood, her charms exerted a stronger influence upon the young man's feelings than they had ever done before. The struggle between his love and duty pressed hard upon him, and at last the former won the day. There were not wanting, moreover, strong ar- guments in favor of the course which Marcus finally pursued. There did seem an inconsistency in betrothing Faustina to a little boy seven years her junior — one, too, who had never ex- hibited any marked affection for the young lady to whom he was to be allied. " Besides," we can imagine Marcus arguing with himself, " the Emperor Hadrian had no other reason for desiring the marriage of Lucius with Faustina than that he might insure the boy's accession to the throne. . But now there is no need of that. I shall not deprive him of that honor. I shall be all the more zealous to choose him as my colleague, now that he has resigned Faustina to me. Surely, 36 MARCUS AUEELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. therefore, I can do Hadrian no wrong in taking her." And thus the matter ended. Antoninus, who loved \\\q protege far more than many fathers love their sons, was only too glad to place Faustina in such noble hands. The little Lucius, who could only have been burdened by the thought that he was bound to marry in the distant future the lady whom Ha- drian's policy had selected for him, lent, without the slightest hesitation, a consenting voice. In 140, the year of Marcus's consulship, the marriage of Marcus and Faustina was cele- brated, and they continued to live in harmony with their father, Antoninus.' Amidst all these additional duties which his public ofBce and his married life imposed upon him, Marcus did not fail to continue the literary pursuits to which he had devoted hiin- ' There has been considerable divergence of opinion as to the exact date when Marcus's marriage took place. The difficulty arises from a passage in Capitolinus, if.^nf.PM., c. 6, where he enumerates a number of honors which were conferred upon Marcus after he was adopted by Antoninus. Among them, and this he mentions last, he says that Anto- ninus made him consul a second time. Then, one sentence intervening, in which he speaks of Marcus's literary zeal throughout this period, he adds, " Post Jiaec Faustinam duxit xixovemP Now, since Marcus's second consulship was in 145, we should have to place the marriage after that date unless we suppose that Capitolinus did not intend to include under the word "Aaec" all that he has said above. But this supposition we may justly make ; for, while all the other occurrences which he is speaking of took place in 139 or 140, the second consulship did not occur till af- ter an interval of five years, and seems to have been suggested merely by the fact that our biographer has just mentioned the first appointment of Marcus to the consulship. At all events, whether Capitolinus was misin- formed or fell into an error in language, we have enough external proofs to show conclusively that the marriage of Marcus took place in 140. Chief among them is a coin of the year 140, on which is represented An- toninus and the elder Faustina seated, with a sceptre in their hands, and below them two other figures joining hands over an altar which is be- tween them. See Eckhel, v. 7, p. 14. Further, in Marcus's letter to Fron- to {Ejnst. ad M. Caes^ lib. 5, epist. 45), written in 140, he informs his mas- ter that Faustina is now confined ; in Fronto's letter {Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 53), also written in 140, he exclaims, " Filiam tuam uidi. Vi- deor mihi te simul et Faustinam ivfantes uidisse." And in Marcus's letter {Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 11) of the same year he speaks of his little girl as ^'•paruola nostra Faustina.'''' A.D. 13^161.] THE PERIOD OF PKOBATION. 37 self with such diligence in his boyhood's days. Capitolinus gives us a list of his tutors.' Among them we find the names of Trosins Aper, Pollio, Eutychius Procnlus, and many others who were celebrated as teachers of the rudiments of Greek and Latin. As the boy grew up, however, it became necessary for his father to find more advanced masters for him. Two of these, in particular, exerted a deep influence, not only upon Marcus's education, but upon his moral growth. They were Herodes Atticus, the celebrated Greek rhetorician, and Cor- nelius Fronto, his rival in Latin oratory. The former, a na- tive of Marathp.©, and a man of great wealth, was born about 104. At an early age he had moved to Rome, and before the death of Hadrian had already won a wide reputation as a teacher of Greek oratory. The Emperor Antoninus therefore engaged him, probably about the time of his ac- cession to the throne, as an instructor for his adopted son." The other, Cornelius Fronto, won a still firmer hold upon his pupil's affections, and from their life-long correspondence with each other we are enabled to gain a more intimate knowledge of the character of Marcus than we possess in the case of any other Roman emperor. Fronto was considerably older than Herodes, having been born at Cirta, in Numidia, during the reign of Domitian. Like Herodes, he had come to Rome be- fore the death of Hadrian, and had gained so great a reputation as an orator and pleader that he was compared by his contem- poraries with Cicero.^ It is diflicult to feel that Fronto de- served quite so much renown as the scholars of his time granted him. In fact, the taste of the age had become very degener- ate ; rhetoric had developed into an art which offered little field either for genius or for originality. With Fronto elo- quence consisted chiefly in the selection of proper words, and he looked with the greatest favor upon those who followed most servilely the writers of antiquity. His letters abound * See Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 2 and 3. ' In the year 139 Herodes had already begun his duties. See Fronto, .E2nst. ad M. Caes., lib. 3, epist. 2 and 3. ' See the excellent article on Fronto, by M. L. A. Gaston Boissier, in the Eevue des deux mondes, v. 74, pp. 671-98. 38 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.U. in subtile distinctions of synonyms, and present a style which is both over-refined and affected. But, notwithstanding this unfortunate characteristic of his writings, there is something in the man which cannot fail to impress us favorably. When we succeed in getting beneath the superficiality of his style, we discover a heart by no means lacking in noble qualities. In one of Marcus's letters the young man complains to his tutor that " the sons of kings are always surrounded by a crowd, who, to use the words of Nsevius, 'listen, applaud them, and obey.' " ' This was a charge which Marcus never had occasion to make against Fronto. Indeed, though the latter was often invited to pay long visits at the imperial residence, we find him continually excusing himself on ac- count of sickness or affairs of business. And even when he did allow himself to be prevailed upon by the entreaties of Marcus, his attitude was anything but that of a flatterer. In fact, to the superficial reader of his letters, Fronto usual- ly seems to have treated his young pupil with too great harshness. In his zeal to improve Marcus in what he be- lieved to be the most important art of life, he never per- mitted the slightest inaccuracy of expression to pass without a severe reprimand. Whatever weaknesses Fronto may have had, it can never be said that he was lacking in the virtue of true independence. His intercourse with Marcus began in 139,^ The latter was then nearly nineteen years of age, and had just entered public life. It may seem strange to us that under such circumstances he should be found taking up the study of rhetoric with a new instructor. But we must re- member that in the times of which we are treating an elegant use of language was regarded as of vital importance to an educated Koman ; and it was by no means uncommon for the lectures delivered by the eminent rhetoricians of Eome, of Athens, and of Smyrna to be attended regularly b}'^ citizens who were far advanced in life. Moreover, there were special reasons wliy the person designated as the successor to the » Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 2, epist. 10. ' See Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes.,\ib. 3, epist. 1. This is the firet letter that passed between them. A.D. 138-161.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 39 throne should avail himself of every opportunity to acquire the art of oratory. Not only in the senate, but before the people, in the streets of Kome or in the presence of their ar- mies, the emperors were continually called upon to display their abilities as public speakers. These were the motives which induced Antoninus to engage the services of Fronto for his son. To Marcus's natural love of study, therefore, was added the incentive of conscience; and he applied him- self at once to his new pursuit with such enthusiasm that the only anxiety expressed by his friends was lest his frail health should be unable to endure the strain of these additional ex- ertions. The method of instruction pursued by Fronto seems, from the beginning, to have assumed a veiy practical charac- ter. From a letter written by Marcus a month or two after he had taken up his new study, it appears that Fronto had suggested to his pupil a dozen similes, which the latter was to expand and apply to cases that actually occurred about him.' One of the problems given was as follows: "In the centre of the island called vEnaria there is a lake, and in the lake another island, which, like the first one, is inhabited by men — draw from this a simile." Marcus did not succeed in finding a suitable application for this idea, so he applied to his teacher for aid. Fronto offers the following ex- planation : "Just as the island ^naria, in the midst of the sea, receives the buffetings of the waves and wards them off; just as she endures the force of fleets, of robbers, of tem- pests — and yet within her bosom protects the second isle from every danger and adversity ; and just as the second islet, encompassed by the glittering waves, refreshed by health-giving breezes, and enjoying an extensive view over the tranquil waters, shares her protector's joys; so your father endures the troubles and difficulties of the Roman sway, and yet preserves you safe within his breast, an ally of all his dignity and glory, and a participator in his success."* In this way Fronto hoped to stimulate the mind of his pupil, ' See Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 3, epist. 7. ^ Fronto, Epist. ad M. Goes., lib. 3, epist. 8. 40 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. and awake in him the habit of presenting to his hearers a vivid picture of the every-day occurrences of life. He was not, however, content with these elementary exercises. It seems likely that he carried his pupil through very much the same course that our books on rhetoric adopt to-day ; and in 145, about the time when he ceased to give his lessons regu- larly to his pupil, we find him initiating Marcus into the art of pleading. A single instance of his method of instruction in this department will suffice. The following case is offered him : " At the feast of Minerva a certain consul laid aside his toga, and, putting on a coat of mail, joined the young men in a combat with a lion ; this, too, before an assembly of the Ro- man people. The matter was brought to the notice of the censors, before whom the case was argued. Draw up the case and make suggestions.'" It must not, however, be supposed that even during those years when Fronto was regularly employed to give instruc- tion to Marcus, their relations towards each other were exclu- sively those of pupil and teacher. Though, up to the very moment when death brought their intercourse to an end, Mar- cus always addressed Fronto as " my master," the friendship between them was of the warmest and most confidential nat- ure. Fronto never hesitated to mention any little deficiencies which he thought he saw in his pupil's character, and in re- turn the youthful Marcus often suggested in a modest way the opportunities for improvement which it seemed to him his master was allowing to pass unobserved. In one of the very first letters that we have, we find Marcus, then a boy of eio-hteen, exhibiting the character of peacemaker between his two instructors, Fronto and Herodes Atticus.^ The exact nature of their quarrel is unknown ; but it appears from Marcus's letter that it was something of a public character. Herodes was a brilliant young man of the world, and from the accounts given us of him by contemporary writers it is known that he often spent portions of his vast wealth in ways > Fronto, Efist. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 22. ' See Fronto, Epist. adM. Caes., lib. 3, epist. 3. A.D. 13S-161.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION, 41 not sanctioned by the laws of Kome. Perhaps it was one of these injuries to the public welfare that he had in the present instance committed. At all events, Fronto, who was one of the foremost pleaders of his time, had been summoned as the counsel for the prosecuting party. When Marcus was made aw^are of this fact, he was greatly disturbed about it. He did not, to be sure, desire that an offender against the laws should go unpunished, but he was afraid lest Fronto should seize upon this opportunity to give vent to the personal ani- mosity which the success of the gay young Herodes had in- flamed in the breast of the pedantic old rhetorician. So Mar- cus went to Herodes and tried to smooth over their personal enmity by singing the praises of his master. And then he wrote Fronto a long letter, in which he said that he had al- ready won Herodes Atticus over to his love; he therefore urged Fronto to regard any personal hostility that had existed between them as entirely a matter of the past, in order that he might be able to look upon the merits of the present case with a perfectly unprejudiced judgment. It appears that Fron- to allowed himself to be persuaded, and that he introduced in his argument nothing which was not of direct importance to a true decision of the case. At any rate, Marcus's efforts were successful in bringing about a reconciliation between his two instructors, and in a later letter we find Fronto speaking of his rival in the highest terms.** This was by no means the only occasion on which Marcus undertook the role of peace- maker. In 144, he wrote a letter to Fronto, in which he urged the latter to aid him in bringing together two of his young friends who had got into some difliculty with each other.^ So successful were his endeavors to promote a feeling of good- will among those about him that his master writes, in one of his letters, " But of all your virtues, the one which deserves most to be admired is your faculty of keeping all your friends in a state of harmony — a feat more difficult than it is to tame the savage lions with the cithara." ^ Among the friends with ' See Fronto, Efut. ad L. Ver. Imp., lib. 2, epist. 9, -written in 165. ' See Fronto, E2nst. ad M. Cues., lib. 4, epist. 3. ^ Fronto, Epist. ad M. Cues., lib. 4, epist. 1. 42 MAKCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.n. whom Marcus was at this time most intimate Capitoliuus mentions Seius Fuscianus and Aufidius Victorinus/ both of whom were in later life made senators ; he also showed a par- ticular liking for two other young men of the equestrian or- der, who, however, never found their way into the senate : these were Bfehius Longus and Calenus.^ In company with them he took the scanty recreation which he allowed himself from his official duties and from his studies. At Lorium, at Lanuvium, or on the heights that overlook the Bay of Naples, he delighted to have his friends about him. And whenever he found it possible to join them in their sports, no one en- tered into the enjoyment of the hour with more zest than he. Though Marcus's love for philosophy drew him away to a great extent from out-door recreation, and rendered him se- rious and thoughtful, it did not destroy his natural affability — an affability always present in his dealings, not only with his friends, but with every one with whom he came in contact. He was virtuous, but no hypocrite ; retiring, but not diffident ; and serious, without being gloomy.^ Every little incident was full of interest for him ; and it is on this account that the vivid pictures which he often gives his master of his private country life are so pleasing. In one of his letters, written from Na- ples in 143, he tells his tutor this story : " After my father had returned from the vineyards to his palace, I followed my usual custom and took a ride on horseback. I had not gone far, when a large flock of sheep appeared in the middle of the road. It was a lonely spot ; and here were these sheep, with two shepherds and four dogs. As soon as the shepherds saw us on our horses, one of them said to the other, 'Take care, now ; these mounted fellows are often robbers.' I overheard what he said, and spurred my horse at once right into the midst of the sheep. The whole flock scampered away in fright and confusion, bleating, and scattering in all direc- * Capit., M. Ant Phil., c. 3 : Amauitque e condiscipulis praecipuos senatorii ordinis Semm Fuscianum et Aufidium Vietorinum. ^ Capit., 3L Ant. Phil, c. 3. ^ Cap\t.,M.A}it.Phil.,c.4:: Cum frugi esset sine contumacia,uerecundus sine ignauia, sine tristitia grauis. A.D. 13S-161.] THE PERIOD OF PEOBATION. 43 tions. One of the shepherds then tlirew his stick at me, but it missed me and struck one of the servants, who was behind me. Then we dashed away at full speed ; and the poor shep- herd, who had feared the loss of his entire flock, escaped with- out losing anything but his stick." ' On another occasion he writes from his father's villa at Lanuvium : " After we bade you good-bye we had rather a comfortable drive, though we were sprinkled a little with the rain. We did not come di- rectly to the villa, but took a short excursion of about a mile, to Anagnia. This ancient town is now of little importance, but it contains a great many relics of antiquity, especially in sacred monuments and religious souvenirs. There is not a cor- ner to be found which does not boast of some sanctuary, some chapel, or a temple. And there are also here a number of sa- cred chronicles. Upon leaving the town we saw engraved on both sides of the gate these words : Flamen Sume Samentum. I asked one of the men in the town what this meant, and he told me the words were in the old dialect of Latium, being a direction to the priest, when he entered the gates, to place on his head the little piece of sacrificial hide which has been honored by tradition in the annals of the town. A great deal of other information, too, we were fortunate enough to ob- tain. Indeed, we had but a single cause of regret — that you were absent." * A few days later he writes again to Fronto from Lanuvium : " This morning I got up at three o'clock, and, after a good breakfast, studied till eight. I then took a delightful two hours' promenade on the veranda in front of my window ; after that I put on my shoes, and, dressed in my military cloak (for the Emperor has told us always to come thus dressed when we appear before him), went to bid good- morning to my father. Then we all started for the chase, and some splendid shots wei'e made. There was a rumor that some one had killed a boar, but I didn't have the privilege of seeing the performance. At any rate, we scaled a very rugged clifl. About noon the party came straggling back to the pal- ' Tronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 2, epist. 13. ' Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 4, written in 144. 44 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. ace — I to mj books. The entire afternoon I passed on my couch, divested of my shoes and robe. Cato's oration on the property of Pulchra and another of his on appointing a tri- bune were the books I read. . . . Now I am going to bed. Not a drop of oil shall I pour into my lamp to-night, my horse and the cold IVe taken have so fatigued me. Good- night, my dear, sweet master. It is for you I long, believe me, far more than for Eome herself." ' The rapidity with which Marcus's letters to Fronto followed each other during this period shows what a warm affection the pupil had for his old master. When he was away from the city in his father's villas, Marcus used to write often two or even three letters a day to Fronto.^ It was probably only a day or two after the above letter was written that he gives his master the following description of his life at Lanuviura : " I slept late this morn- ing on account of my cold, which seems now to be quieted ; so I did not begin my studies till five o'clock, from which time till nine I spent on Cato's A-gricultiire and in writing — not so much, however, as I wrote yesterdaj^. Then I gargled my throat, and after that went to greet my father and attend him as he offered sacrifice. Then to breakfast ; and what do you suppose I ate ? Nothing but a little piece of bread, though I saw the others all devouring beans and onions and fish. Then we went out to the vintage, and grew hot and merry, but left a few grapes still hanging, as the old poet says, ' atop on the topmost bough.' At noon we came home again, and I studied a little, though with poor success. Then I chatted a long time with my mother, as she was sitting on her couch. My conversation consisted of, 'What do you suppose my Fronto is doing at this moment?' to which she answered, 'And my Gratia,^ what is she doing?' and then I, ' And our little birdie. Gratia the less V * And while we were talking and quarrelling as to which of us loved you all the best, the gong sounded — the signal that my father had gone over to the bath. So we bathed and dined in the oil-press room. I * Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 5. ' See Fronto, Ejnst. ad M. Cacs., lib. 3, epist. 13. ' Fronto's wife. * Fronto's little daughter. A.D. 13S-161.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 45 don't mean that we bathed in the press-room, but we bathed, and then dined, and amused ourselves with listening to the peasants' banter. And now that I am in my room again, be- fore I roll over and snore, I am fulfilling my promise, and giving an account of my day to my dear tutor ; and if I could love him better than I do I would consent to miss him even more than I miss him now. Take care of yourself, my best and dearest Fronto, wherever you are. The fact is that I love you, and you are far away." ' Can we fail, in reading these letters, to be touched by the warmth of affection which the young Marcus at all times dis- plays for his old master? He seems to be unable to enjoy fully the pleasures which surround him until he has com- municated them to Fronto. Nor could he find happiness in anything so long as he knew that Fronto, or any one else dear to him, was in grief. A number of his letters were written to Fronto when the latter was suffering from the gout, and in all of them the sympathy with which he enters into his mas- ter's troubles is really striking.'' His own afflictions, however, whether of body or mind, he conceals even from his dearest friends; and, when that is no longer possible, he treats them as if they were mere transient inconveniences, or, rather, as opportunities granted him in order that he may prove his superiority to the ills of nature. In one letter, written when he was suffering from a severe inflammation of the lungs, he remarks, cheerfully, " I should feel ashamed if I allowed my courage to fail while yet my body is able to endure the shock of sickness." ' Marcus's patience with the faults of others, too, is everywhere visible in his writings. We have already referred to the oration which he was called upon to deliver before the senate on entering upon his consulship ; and we have letters written to him by his nervous old master, who kept continually worrying him about the matter, recommend- ing, first this alteration, and then that addition, until the poor ' Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes.^ lib. 4, epist. 6. " See, for example, Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 1, epist. 2, written in 145. ^ Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 8. 46 MAECUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. boy's feelings must have been worked up to an intense pitch of confusion and excitement. At last the fidgety Fronto writes to him to be sure and not study late at night, but to sleep a long time, in order that he may be in a good condition for his oration.' Marcus's reply is full of sweetness, and yet not without a touch of humor. It is simply, '■'• Ego te num- quam satis amabo ; dormiamP " This art of making every one about him happy, which Marcus possessed to such an un- usual degree, must have been often tried to the utmost in the home in which he lived. It would scarcely be possible to find a family anywhere which, from the natural disposition of its members, would give us reason to expect such discord as the family of Antoninus. It has been often said that no house is large enough for more than a single family. In this case, however, not only did Marcus and his wife reside under the same roof with Antoninus and the elder Faustina, but Mar- cus's mother and the young Lucius Yerus were also members of the household. There must, too, have been such an entire dissimilarity of character between Marcus's mother and the elder Faustina that it is really strange we never hear of the slightest difficulty between them. Undoubtedly, the harmony which prevailed in their family circle was due chiefly to the prudent foresight of Antoninus. But I cannot help believing that many a family jar was averted solely by the gentle man- ners of Marcus and by his willingness to yield to the claims of other members of the family. It was only for a short time, how- ever, that the family remained so large. Three years after his accession to the throne Antoninus lost his wife ;'' and Marcus's unselfish efforts were now directed to consoling him in his afiiiction. This was no easy task ; for, notwithstanding the evil rumors which history has given us of the elder Faustina, she remained to the last the dearest object of her husband's affec- tions. As late as 143, two years after she had passed away, * Fronto, Epi&t. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 1. ' Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 2. ^ Capit., Ant. Pi., c. 6 : Tertio anno im2^erii sni Faustinam iLxorem perdi- dit. See, also, Eckhel, v. 4, p. 73, and v. 7, p. 39 ; Gruter, p. 261, no. 3 ; and Clinton, Fasti Boman., ad an. 141. A.D. 138-161.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 47 Antoninus did not cease to- mourn for her ; and in a sudden outburst of grief lie writes to Fronto, " O God ! I would rather live with her an exile in Gjara than without her in the palace." * Meanwhile, the young Lucins Yerus was receiving his edu- cation under the auspices of his adoptive father. Born in 130, he was only eight years old when Hadrian died ; but even at that early age he began to display the characteristics which had marked his father. His adoption by Antoninus brought hiiii, of coarse, more completely under the moral in- fluence of Marcus. But the difference in their ages prevented Marcus from making him his companion, either in his rec- reation or in his studies; so that their relation towards each other was not so intimate as, for the benefit of Lucius, M'e might wish. As he grew older, and was exposed to the temp- tations of youth, Lucius did not succeed in giving his father entire satisfaction. Capitolinus tells us that though he did not make himself conspicuous by his vices, yet neither did he abound in virtue.* His leading trait was his love of all kinds of fun and pleasure. In good-fellowship and humor, too, he was by no means deficient. To the boy's education An- toninus seems to have given quite as much attention as he had given to that of Marcus; not, however, with so sat- isfactory a result. Lucius was provided with instructors in Greek and Latin grammar; and, when he became old enough to take up more advanced studies, Herodes Atticus and Fron- to were summoned to teach him oratory. He even devoted himself somewhat to philosophical pursuits, and attended the lectures of Apollonius and Sextus.^ For all of these teachers he acquired a good deal of affection, and, though he was by no means gifted with literary talents, his pleasant, boyish wa3'8 drew from them a feeling of affection in return. As a boy he displayed a fancy for composing verses, but, as time went on, the writing of orations attracted more of his attention. In ijeither of these lines, however, was his progress very remark- ' Fronto, Epist. ad Ant. Pi.., epist. 2, "^ Cajoit., Ver. Imp., c.l : Quern constat non inhorriiisse ^dti^s, non abundasse uirtutibus. • ' Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 2. 48 MAKCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. IT. able. Of the two, he was said to have been a better orator than poet ; but Capitolinus thinks it nearer the truth to de- scribe him as not quite so poor an orator as he was a poet.' When fourteen years of age he assumed the virile robe ; and from Fronto's criticism of the oration which the boy de- livered on this occasion, I am inclined to suspect that Lucius was not such a fool as some of his contemporaries describe him. Fronto's letter to Marcus runs : " Your brother's ora- tion delighted me. It was eloquent and spirited, and I know he could have had but a short time in which to get it ready.'"' It was not till several years later, probably in 153, that Lucius attained to the office of qusestor, and in 154 he was promoted, along with Sestilius Lateranus, to the consulship." Lucius was of a peculiar disposition. I cannot help believing that he pos- sessed a good deal of ability, but he lacked the power of ap- plication. Whenever he could be induced to undertake any occupation there was no fault to be found with him. It was during the intervals that his conduct was chiefly blameworthy. After retiring from the consulship he seems to have spent several years in private life. His name was seldom heard in public, and no title was ever granted him until his acces- sion to the throne.* It should be mentioned, however, that he was throughout this period a conspicuous devotee of the race-course and the gladiatorial sports. His manner of life was a severe disappointment to Antoninus. Capitolinus says the latter was so displeased with the habits of Yerus that he would not have kept him in his family had it not been for the promise he had made to Hadrian.^ As it was, '■ Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 2 : Et meliar quidem orator fuisse dieitur quam poeta, immo, ut uerius dicam, 'peioi- poeta quam rhetor. * Fronto, Ejiist. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 38. ^ Camt.., Ant. Pi., c. 10: Verum Anto7iimim post quaesturam consulem fecit; and Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 3: Post quaesturam statim consul est /actus cum SestlUo laterano. * Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 3 : Nee aliud ei honor ijicentiae ad nomen adiunctum est quam quod Augusti Jilius appellatiis est. ' Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 3 : Hie cum tantis deliciarum et luxuriae quateretur errm'ibus, ah Antonino uidetur ob hoc retentus quod eum pater ita in adopii- onem sili transire iusserat ut nepotem appellaret. A.D. 13S-161.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 49 he contented himself with urging liira continually to imitate the example of his brother Marcus. The contrast between the life of Marcus during these years of probation and that of his future colleague is certainly very striking. While Lucius was letting the years slip by in idle- ness or in attendance upon the gladiatorial sports at Eome, his brother was in the very centre of his country's politics, preparing for the time when the entire burden of the Empire was to be transferred from his father's shoulders to his own. The weight, however, of his public duties was slight when compared with his domestic griefs and the mental struggle that he was passing through. It was a good many years ago that he, a little boy of twelve, had first become fired with a longing to imitate the life of the grand old Stoic, Zeno. That had been a mere ephemeral passion of his childhood, and by the judicious treatment of his mother it had been soon sub- dued. But it was none the less prompted by an inclination which had its roots in the inmost nature of the boy. And. though his zeal for philosophy was for several years stifled by the efforts of Antoninus, it was certain to break out some day with greater force than ever. Indeed, it can hardly be sup- posed that Antoninus desired to deprive his son of that study which he must have felt to be the noblest pursuit of man. He probably was fully aware that such an attempt was cer- tain in the end to fail. He knew the time must come when the problem of his existence would present itself in all its vividness to the young man's mind ; but he saw that in Mar- cus's case this problem was likely to present itself before his mind was strong enough for its solution, and he therefore wjsel}^ sought to save his protege from the danger, or, at all events, the unhappiness, of groping in the dark, until the in- strument with which he was to find his way should become strong enough for that purpose. For several years the exqui- site phrases of his master, Fronto, had succeeded in concealing from Marcus the emptiness of the thoughts that lay beneath them. But at last the light burst through, and Fronto's rhet- oric was exposed before him in all its nakedness. It was tow- ards the close of 145, while Marcus was in his second con- A. 50 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. IL sulship/ that Fronto, who at that time was engaged in instruct- ing his pupil in the art of pleading, sent him the following case for his consideration : "M. Lucilius, tribune of the people, committed a free citizen of Kome to prison, of his own authority, and after the man had been acquitted by Lucilius's col- leagues; whereupon Lucilius was reprimanded by the senators. Di- vide the case into pleadings, and sub- mit arguments jo/'o and cow." ^ This letter made a deep, and not very favorable, impression on the young man's mind. He had long been asking himself whether, after all, oratory, the art of clothing one's thoughts in an attractive dress, was a pursuit worthy of a Eoman em- peror. And in the few spare mo- ments which he occasionally suc- ceeded in saving to himself, he had devoured with eagerness one or two books that seemed to satisfy the craving of his soul. Chief among these was a work of Ariston, the Stoic philosopher, who, as Lactantius tells us, taught that " ad uirtutem capessendam nasci homines.'''' From this book our hero learned to feel more strongly every day the utter worthlessness of any action which did not have virtue as its aim. And now his master's letter came, recommending him to prove a certain course of conduct wrong, and then to turn about and offer arguments in its favor. This was more than the young man's conscience could endure. Overwhelmed with the thought of how little he had yet accomplished in this life, he threw himself on his couch and wrote to Fronto the last letter which is preserved to us of those written before his accession to the throne. The let- ter reads as follows : " I am now deep in the work of Ariston Eckhel, V. 7, pp. 46-7. * Fronto, Epist. ad M. Goes., lib. 5, epist. 27. A.D. 138-161.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 51 — a book that renders me at times pleased, and then, again, disgusted, with myself ; pleased, when it teaches me to be vir- tuous, and disgusted, when it shows me how far I am yet from the models of virtue which it lays before me. Ah ! how your pupil grows red with shame as he reflects that he is now twen- ty-five years of age, and that these pure, these noble thoughts have not yet impressed themselves upon his soul. I feel the scourge of punishment, I grow angry with myself, I envy other men, and in my moroseness I crave for nourishment. It is because my mind has been fettered by such thoughts as these that I have put off from day to day the study of the case which you presented to me. But now I will devise some arguments ; I will, for a little space, allow Ariston to sleep in quiet, and, following the suggestion of the Athenian orator who said that even the laws must be allowed to sleep at times, I will turn to the subjects which you recommend. To assume the position, however, of pleader both jpro and con — Ariston will never sleep so soundly as to permit me to do that. Good- bye, my noble, my respected master." ' This was but the first expression which Marcus gave to the struggle that was going on within him. The ascendency which Fronto had gained over him was now perceptibly on the wane, and the decline in esteem with which he regarded that celebrated man was hastened through the influence of another scholar with whom Marcus about this time became associated. This was the au- stere Stoic, Q. Junius Rusticus — a person whose brusque man- ners often caused the gentle Marcus to lose his temper," but to whom, in later life, he looked back with feelings of deep gratitude. " From Rusticus," he says, " I received the impres- sion that my character required improvement and discipline; and from him I learned not to be led astray to sophistic emu- lation, nor to writing on speculative matters, nor to delivering little hortatory orations, nor to showing myself off as a man who practises much discipline, or does benevolent acts in or- der to make a display ; and to abstain from rhetoric, and poe- * Fronto, Epistad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 13, written at the beginning of 146. » TAoM^Afs, lib. 1,0.17. 52 MAECUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. try, and fine writing." ' But the greatest benefit which Rus- ticus conferred upon our hero was in making him acquaint- ed with the discourses of Epictetus, " the noblest of Pagan slaves." Under such influences as these it is not strange that the gilded oratory of Fronto lost its charm, nor that Marcus's love for philosophy grew more ardent every day. As his zeal in this pursuit increased, new teachers were summoned from all parts of the Empire ; and, though he esteemed Rus- ticus more highl}^ than the rest, and communicated to him all his plans, whether of a public or of a private nature,^ yet he attended the lectures of several others with the utmost regu- larity. In the choice of his instructors he exercised a liberal discretion, and among them many shades of thought were rep- resented. " Their doctrines differed, however, rather in the metaphysical than in the moral aspect. All, by their les- sons as well as by their example, aided in imparting to him the same tranquillity of soul, the same virtues in his social life. The quality which, above all others, Marcus loved to remember in his teachers — the characteristic which, more than any other, he sought to imitate — was their calm serenity in the midst of every vicissitude of fortune, their gentle dig- nity, their resignation, their humilit}', and their readiness to pardon or to serve." ^ The precepts of Apollonius, the Stoic philosopher whom Antoninus called from Chalcis, were "free- dom of will and undeviating steadiness of purpose ; and to look to nothing else, not even for a moment, except to reason ; and to be always the same, in sharp pains, on the occasion of the loss of a child, and in long illness." * By Sextus of Chseronea, grandson of Plutarch, Marcus tells us he was made familiar with " a benevolent disposition, and the example of a family governed in a fatherly manner, and the idea of living conform- ably to nature; and gravity, without affectation, and to look carefully after the interests of friends, and to tolerate igno- rant persons, and those who form opinions without consider- ' Thoughts, \ih.l,c. 7. * Capit., 3f. Ant. Phil., c. 3 : Cum quo omnia communicauit piiblica priua- taque consilia. ^ Suckau, £tude sur Marc-Aurele, p. 29. * Thoughts, lib. 1, c. 8. A.D. 138-101.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 53 ation." ' From Alexander the Platonist he learned "not frequently, nor without necessity, to say to any one, or to write in a letter, that he had no leisure; nor continually to excuse the neglect of duties required by our relation to those with whom we live, by alleging urgent occupations."^ Cinna Catulus, a Stoic who instructed Marcus in philosophy, taught him "not to be indifferent when a friend finds fault, even if he should find fault without reason, but to try to restore him to his usual disposition." ^ From Claudius Severus, the Peri- patetic, whom he calls his brother, he says, "I received the idea of a polity in which there is the same law for all, a polity administered with regard to equal rights and equal freedom of speech, and the idea of a kingly government which re- spects most of all the freedom of the governed." * Finally, he tells us that he learned from his instructor, Claudius Maxi- mus, "self-government, and not to be led aside by anything; and cheerfulness in all circumstances, as well as in illness; and a just admixture, in the moral character, of sweetness and dignity, and to do what was set before him without complain- ing." " We cannot fail to notice in these extracts from Mar cus's Thoughts how little weight he placed upon the meta- physical distinctions insisted on by his several teachers. There can be no doubt that such questions entered very deeply into the instructions which they furnished him. But they did not form the subject of philosophy, as it presented itself to his un- derstanding. I do not mean that he entirely disregarded the metaphysical doctrines of his teachers ; we shall see later on that such was by no means the case ; but he held this portion of philosophy to be of very inferior importance to the deeper problems of morality and religion. And in this latter aspect of philosophy he had a teacher who far surpassed all those that have just been enumerated — I mean his father, Antoni- nus. The truest philosophy may be attained in more ways than one. Reason is not the only instrument that God has » ThougJits, lib. 1, c. 9. => Thoughts, lib. 1, c. 12. ' Thoughts, lib. 1, c. 13. * Thoughts, lib. 1, c. 14. Claudius Severus was a brother of Marcus in that his SOD, also named Claudius Severus, married Marcus's daughter, Cornificia. See Borghesi, (Euvres, v. 3, p. 247. * Thoughts, lib. 1, c. 15. 54 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. 11. given us for arriving at the truth. And I cannot help feel- ing the justice of Kenan's observations when he contrasts the philosophy of tlie Emperor with that of his even more illus- trious son. " Simple, loving, full of sweet gayety, Antoninus was a philosopher without saying so, almost without knowing it, Marcus was a philosopher in sincerity and by nature, but he became such by reflection." ' There was one disadvantage under which Marcus labored in all his philosophical pursuits ; and this, too, a misfortune which pressed more heavily upon him as the years rolled by. From his earliest childhood he had shown a tendency to physical weakness, and though his governors and friends did everything they could to counteract this tendency, the defect in his constitution was scarcely remedied at all. It cannot be denied, too, that he was very injudicious in liis manner of life. With a strange inconsistency of purpose he allowed his zeal for moral improvement to serve as an excuse for neglecting the laws of health ; and, like many other noble men, before and since, he failed to keep in mind the injury he was there- by inflicting upon his descendants. In his letters to Fronto we scarcely ever find mention of his ill-health ; but from the continual exhortations which his master made him, to attend more conscientiously to his physical duties, it is evident that his constitution had begun at an early age to weaken. The authority which his mother had been called upon to exercise over him when a boy of twelve has been mentioned. Her watchful care of him continued for several years after he was nominated successor to the throne. She remained his guar- dian even after he was married, and passed the later years of her life in the imperial residence with him. Had it not been for her unselfish efforts in his behalf there is good reason to believe that an early death would liave deprived the Eoman world of the noblest figure in its long line of sovereigns. The relation between Marcus and his mother was always of the most tender, the most loving nature ; and he scarcely ever ends a letter to Fronto without sending some little message * Renan, 3farc-AiireIe, p. 2. A. D. 138-161.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. 55 of affection from his mother. Exactly how long the influence of her gentle society was granted him we cannot determine ; but he tells us himself that she died while still young,' and from his letters to Fronto it is plain that he lost her between the year 146 and his accession to the throne.'' Her death must have been a heavy blow to the young man. However, her place was at this time in part filled by his wife, Faustina,' of whom, in spite of the evil rumors that history has con- nected with her name, her husband says, " To the gods I am indebted that I have such a wife, so obedient, so affectionate, and so simple." ' Their love for each other was still fur- ther strengthened by the numer- ous children which Faustina bore him ; and several coins represent- ing Faustina with a dove, and bearing the inscription Concordia or Yembs Felix, attest the felicity of their union. Marcus was not, however, spared the pangs of domestic afliictiou. One after another, the little children whom Faustina bore him were carried to the grave,* and with > r^(??/^^^lib. l,c. 17. =* In Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 13, Marcus sends, as usual, the remembrance of his mother to Fronto. This letter, written in 146, is the last one preserved to us of those written when Marcus was a young man. The next one we have was written after an interval of fifteen years. See Fronto, Eimt. ad M. Ant. Imp., lib. 3, epist. 3. But in these later let- ters no mention is ever made of Marcus's mother. ' Thoughts, lib. 1, c. 17. ♦ Unfortunately, it is not possible to give an accurate statement of the dates when each of Marcus's children was born and died. As far as our knowledge extends, however, the following observations will be found true: The first child was born in 140; for in YYonto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 45, written in 140, Marcus informs his instructor that Faustina is confined. This child was a girl, as appears from Fronto, Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 5, epist. 53, also written in 140, in which Fronto exclaims, " Fi- liam tuam uidi. Videor mihi te shmd et Faustinam infantes uidisse.^^ In Fronto, Ejjist. ad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 11, written in 140, she is called ^'■paruola nostra Faustina;'''' and she is mentioned again in Fronto, Epist. ad M. Cues., lib. 5, epist. 30. Her name in full was Domitia Faustina, and she died before her father became emperor, as is proved by her epitaph, 56 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTOXIXUS. [CHAP. II. each new death the love of Marcus for her who M'as his sym- pathizer in affliction became more warm. " Thus the domestic jojs of Marcus were by no means unmingled with domestic found in the mausoleum of Hadrian, where she is spoken of as '■^ M.Aure- lii Caesaris Jiliay See Jean Mabillon, ^?i«Zecto -wefera, Paris., 1675-85, 4v. 8°. p. 363; Gruter, p. 260, 7io. 13; Orelli, no. 872; and Borghesi, (Euvres, v. 5, p. 433. The second daughter that Faustina bore was Annia Lucilla. Her name is given in full in 'MioniiGt, Descrij^.de med.a?itiq., V. 1, p. 379, 710. 107. The exact date of her birth is not known, but that she was one of the earliest-born children is evident from Herodiau., Hist, lib. 1,C. 8: AovKiWa ijv tw TLojinoCij) TrpEffjSvTaTt] ttoivtwv adeXv Kofifiocov aSeX^uiv ((paciWa tjv bvofia ali-ij). Fa- dilla is also mentioned as a daughter of Marcus in two inscriptions given in Muratori,^^o?. 242, no. 3, and p. 590, no. 4. One more daughter was born before Marcus ascended the throne. Her name was Cornificia, and she is mentioned in Fronto, Epist. ad M.Ant. Iirqi., lib. 1, epist. 1, written in 161. In addition to these daughters there were two boys, as is proved by epitaphs in Mabillon, Analect. uet., v. 4, pp. 500-1; and in Pagi, Critic, hist.-chron., v. 1, p. 176, c. 3. Their names were T. Aurelius An- toninus and T. ^lius Aurelius. They were both born and died while Marcus was still Caesar, and Antoninus Pius as yet without the title Diuus. One of them appears to have been born and to have died in 146 or 147; for there is a letter written by Marcus from Lorium, on the 28th of Marcli of his iirst tribuniciate, in which he thanks the people of Smyrna for congratulating him on the birth of his son, and grieves at c AD. 138-101.] THE PERIOD OF PROBATION. ' 57 grief. But these sorrows and anxieties merely add something more tender, something more touching, to the affection of the husband and the father. It makes ns glad to see these senti- ments of true nature by the side of his rigid Stoicism, and to observe the preoccupations of his family life in the midst of an existence consecrated to study and the cares of govern- ment,"' The period of Marcus's probation is now drawing near its end. From tho year 147, when he was granted, for the first time, the title of tribune,'' he held, to all intents and purposes, the position of Antoninus's colleague in the empire. The public measures enacted by these two joint-rulers have been already considered in this chapter. There remains but one scene more for us to picture before we pass to other subjects. On the 5th of March, 161, in the third consulship of Marcus Aurelius and the second of Lucius Verus, the aged Emperor, worn out by the cares of the day, retired to his chamber at an earlier hour than usual. He had eaten at his dinner some fresh cheese that his servants had recently brought him from Switzerland, and, as a consequence, he was pre- vented from obtaining rest. The following morning, after a sleepless night, he attempted to go through the usual rou- tine of his daily work ; but he soon found himself so over- come with the slight exertions which he had made that he was compelled to retire to his bed. Before night he was pros- trated by a violent fever; and, though the best physicians the sad issue. The letter is given in Spon, Misc. erud. ant, p. 354 ; and in Berlin. Akad. der Wiss. Cor}}, insc. Ornec.^no. 3176. ' Suckau, Etude sur Marc-Aiirele, pp. 213-4. * Eckhel, V, 7, p. 47 ; and Clinton, Fasti Roman., ad an, 147. 58 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. II. were at once summoned, they could offer little remedy to a constitution worn out with age. ■ On the next day, the 7th of March, feeling that he was near his end, he called his prefects about him, and in their presence commended the state and his daughter Faustina to Marcus Aurelius ; at the same time com- manding that the gold statue of Fortune, which was by cus- tom kept in the bedroom of the emperor, should be transferred from his own apartments to Marcus's room. He then gave the tribune the word Aequanimitas ; and after that, turning on his side as if in sleep, he breathed his last.* ' Capit., Ant. Pi.., c. 12. Dion Cassius says, lib. 70, c. 3, the deatli of An- toninus was tjSiffTtjv Kal laov v-KVi^ r

2^. Afs^., lib. 12, c. 2, ex- presses the same view. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., e. 8: Ipse Homam remansit, quod res tirianae im- peratoris praesentiam postularent. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 8 : Et Verum qiddem Marcus Capuam usque prosecutus amicis comitantibus a senatu ornauit, additis officiorum omnium principibus. ' Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 6 : Cumque inde per omnium uillas se ingurgitaret, morbe inplicitus apxid Canusium aegrotauit. quo ad eum uisendum frater contendit. ♦ Capit., ilf. ^nf. P7(/?., c. 8: Sed cum Romam redisset Marcus cognouis- setque Verum apud Canusium aegrotare, ad eum uidendum contendit susceptis in senatu uotis. See also Fronto, Epiist. ad L. Ver. Imp., lib. 2, epist. 6. 5 66 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. On his return to Rome, Marcus found himself utterly worn out by the cares which had devolved upon him. He was in need of rest ; but rest had never been more difficult to obtain than at the present moment. At last his friends persuaded him to leave Rome, if only for a few days. The annual fes- tivities were about to take place at Alsium, an ancient and remarkably healthy town on the coast of Etruria. These Marcus deemed it wise, though quite contrary to his incli- nations, to attend.' This was in the autumn of 161. His stay at Alsium was of very short duration. A day or two found him back again at his work in Rome. He now be- gan more bitterly than ever before to grieve for the noble father he had lost. The firm hand which had hitherto borne him up in all his trials was now sadly missed. Each day his anxieties seemed to press more heavily upon him, and at times even his philosophy refused him consolation. On oii^ of these occasions he writes the following letter to his old master, Fronto, with all the affection of fifteen years before : "I have read a little of Coelius and Cicero's oration, but only by snatches, as it were, and, I assure you, very hastily; with such rapidity does one care press upon another. My only rest is in taking a book into my hands during the rare mo- ments of leisure which intervene. . . . Send me some book to read — whatever you deem best — either of your own, or of Cato, or Cicero, or Sallust, or Gracchus ; for I need rest, and mos-t of all this kind of rest. I need some book to lessen the weight of my anxieties and make me forget them."' A few days later, but still before the close of the year 161, he writes from the villa at Lorinm : "While enjoying this pure country air, my master, I cannot but feel anxious to know whether you are well. Set my mind at rest, I pray you, on this mat- ter. As for my sojourn in the country, it is by no means free from the cares of government. We lead here the life of Rome. Indeed, the duties whicii rest upon me compel me to ' See the letters in his correspondence with Fronto entitled De fei'iis AUiensihits. - Fronto, Ejnst. ad 2f. Ant. Imp., lib. 2, epist. 1. A.D. 161-105] EMPEROR. 67 cut short tliis letter. Often tliej prey upon the hours which should be given to sleep." ' Perhaps the most serious difficulty that he was called upon at this time to meet was the inundation of the Tiber, which occurred in the spring of 162. Tliis, according to the histo- rians of the time, was the most disastrous overflow of the Tiber ever known.* It carried away many houses in the city, and destroyed large numbers of the herds that usually found pasture on the surrounding plains. The natural result was that upon the subsiding of the waters a terrible famine spread throughout the most populous portion of Italy. The misery attendant thereon was, to a great extent, alleviated by the ex- ertions of Marcus, who at this time undertook vast improve- ments in the distribution of food to the needy.^ It will be remembered by ever}^ student of Roman history that as far back as the times of the Republic it was the custom for corn, oil, and wine to be distributed to the poor at the public ex- pense. The officers appointed to render this assistance were usually called qiiaestores alimentoruin / and the distributions, or congiarih^ were not made at any stated times, but were left, in great measure, at the discretion of these quaestors. This method of rendering assistance to the poor was un- satisfactory for two reasons. In the first place, the quaes- tors, who were often men of quite inferior character, and who were scarcely responsible to any one for the faithful dis- charge of their duty, in many cases abused the power intrusted to them, so that the money intended for the relief of the poor was not ultimately used for that purpose. The chief objec- tion, however, to the system of public charity which prevailed in the early times of the Empire was that the donations wxre confined to those who were of age, so that if any children were so unfortunate as to be orphans, there was great danger of their starving. These faults were remedied to some extent * Fronto, Ejiint. ad M. Ant. /m;j., lib. 2, epist. 4. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 8 : Bed interpellauit istam felicitatem securita- temqtie imperatoris prima Tiberis inundntio quae sub illis grauissimafuit. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 11 : Italicis ciuitatihus f amis tempore frumentum ex urbe donauit omnique frumentariae rei consuluit. 68 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. by ISTerva ; and during his reign and that of his successors it seems that children were admitted to some share in the public charity, and that the quaestors were held to a stricter perform- ance of their duty by being subjected to the supervision of certain frocuratores alimentoruTn^ who received their appoint- ment directly from the emperor. From the beginning of Marcus's reign, however, we find the supervision of this im- portant work intrusted only to persons of the very highest position in the Empire, men either of consular or of praetorian rank; and they received the designation oi jpraefecti alimen- torum^ instead of the inferior one oi procurator es^ which they had hitherto borne.' It is probably to this innovation that Capitolinus alludes when he sa^^s, "Z^e alimentis publicis multa prudenter inueniV'^ With reference, too, to the pro- vision for orphans and poor children, Marcus carried his charitable measures farther than any of his predecessors. The Emperor Trajan had, among the numerous benevolent plans which he carried out, instituted at Kome an establish- ment for the support of certain poor children, who were called after \\m\, pueri puellaeque Ulpiani. Ajiother institu- tion of the same kind, we have also seen, was due to the energy of Antoninus Pius, the inmates of which received the name, in honor of Antoninus's wife, of Faustiniani. The object of each of these institutions was noT merely to furnish food for needy children ; they seem rather to have been homes, in which those who were admitted were brought up and educated entirely at the public expense. It was, of course, impossible for all the needy children in the city to be taken care of in this way; and Marcus, with his usual benevo- lence, w^as not slow to perceive the necessity of carrying out this good work on a larger scale. He therefore undertook * On this subject see Henzen's article De tabula alimentaria Baebiano- rum, in Rome. Istit. di corrisp. archeol. ArMol. delV inst. per Vanno 1844. Roma, 1844. pp. 39-48 ; Borghesi's article Osservazioni intorno i due primi praefecti alimentarum, in Rome. Istit. di corrisp. archeol. Bull. deW inst. per Vanno 1844. Roma, 1844. pp. 125-7; M. E. Desjardins, De talulis alimentariis. Paris, 1854 ; and Noel des Vergers, Essai sur Marc-Aurele, pp. 39-43. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 11. A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 69 the foundation of a new asylum for orphan and destitute children, which was probably completed about the time of his daughter's marriage with Lucius Verus; and on account of this marriage the boys who were admitted were called Veriani and the girls Aurelianae} In the administration of justice the energy of Marcns Au- relius was especially apparent, not only from the diligence with which he attended personally to cases brought under his notice, but also from several important changes which he in- troduced. It was a fundamental principle in the Roman Em- pire that all judicial power was vested in the emperor him- self. Since it was impossible for every question of law or fact to be brought before the emperor in person, he delegated various officers in the different parts of his dominions to per- form the functions of judges; but it is to be noticed that all such officers, be they 'consuls, praetors, fediles, or tribunes, pos- sessed that authority only by virtue of the imjperium with which they were clothed. The extent to which this judicial power was delegated varied under the different emperors. Some neglected their duties almost entirely, either through laziness or because they were occupied with other matters. As a general rule the emperors contined their own jurisdic- tion chiefly to the important cases in Rome itself. To the different portions of Italy judges were assigned, with almost unliuiited power; while in the provinces the emperor was represented by his legally whose duty it was to decide the ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil.^ c. 7 : Ob hanc coniunctionem pueros et puellas nouorum nominum frumentariae perceptioni adscribi praeceperunt. The reading nominum in place of Jiominum was first suggested by Saumaise in the edition of the Script, hist. Avff.,\)uh. at Lugdun. Bat., 1671. v. 1, p. 318; and followed in the edition of Jordan and Eyssenhardt, Berol., 1864. It is approved by Noel des Vergers in his Essai stir Mnrc-Aurele, pp. 42-3; and is certainly sanctioned by sound judgment. The expres- sion noui homines was scarcely ever used in the times of Marcus Aurelius, when almost all the curule offices were held by noui homines. Moreover, it seems hardly likely that the children of those who were noui homines could be so destitute as to need assistance from the state. The similari- ty in form between h and n accounts for the probable confusion of those letters in this case. 70 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. ni. cases of minor importance, and, whenever any doubtful or difficult question arose in their district, to send it to Eome, that it might receive the emperor's consideration. Thus we see that the methods of administering justice which prevailed under the early emperors were very vague; and the difficulty of obtaining a just decision will be still more manifest when we recollect that the mass of undigested law in accordance with which the judges were supposed to render their decisions was so enormous that they were, in fact, left to decide almost entirely at their own discretion. It was, therefore, of the ut- most importance for the welfare of his subjects that the em- peror, in whom was centred the ultimate power in this vague system, should be prudent as well as diligent in the pi'omotion of justice throughout his realm. This Marcus seems to have felt more clearly than any of his predecessors, and in more than one instance we have records of the remarkable zeal which he displayed in righting those who had been wronged.^ The number of days in the year on which he was prepared to have cases brought before him he increased to the extraor- dinary number of two hundred and thirty;'' and all capital cases in which the defendants were persons of distinction, he judged himself, saying that he deemed it right for all mat- ters of importance to be decided by him who was the repre- sentative of the people.' Moreover, in every case brought before him, he allowed the pleaders all the time they needed, in order that his decision might be accurate in every part. With this in view he sometimes spent eleven or twelve days on a single case, and often prolonged the investigation till late into the night,^ Whenever, in a particular case, the ac- ' Cii^iit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 10: ludiciariae rei singularem diligentiam ad- hibuit. " Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 10 : Fastis dies iudiciarios addidit ita ut ducentos triginta dies annuos rebus agendis lltibusque disceptandis constituerat: ^ C^t^^it., M. Ant. Phil., c. 24: Capitales cmisas homimim honestorum ipse cognouit et quideni summa aequitate, ita ut prnetorem reprehenderet qui cito reorum causas audierat, luberetque ilium iterum cognoscere, dignitatis eorum interesse dicens tit ab eo audirentur qui piro p>02mh iudicaret. * Dion Cassias, lib. 71, C. 6 : Tag re Trvaug kuI rag avaKpinuQ i-rrl /.laKpo- repov iTroiEiTO, wC'ti possint., ut imperatori describatur aestimaturo, quatenvs coerceri debeant. Bed diuus Marcus cumfratre suo pro sua humanitate Tianc rem temperauit, tit, si {quod plenimque euenit) per errorem huiusmodi instru- menta proferantur, ignoscattir eis, qui tale quicquam protulei'int. ^ Gaius, Inst., lib. 2, c. 151 : Si quis ah intestato honorum possessionem pe- tierit et is, qui ex eo testamento Tieres est, petat hereditatem suam esse, uincat quidem necesse est in Tiereditatis petitione ; sedjiscus ei quasi indigno auferet Tiereditatem, ne ullo mode ad eum, quern testator heredem habere uoluit, per- ueniat hereditate. et hoc ita rescripto Imperatoris Antonini signijicatur. A.D. 161-1G5.J LEGISLATION. 77 to fail through this technical flaw, and that the slaves shall succeed exactly as if they had been freed and instituted heirs.' This extraordinary zeal in olitaining perfect justice for all his people induced the Emperor to sacrifice a vast amount of his time in order to point out what he be- lieved to be the principles of law. He did not always wait until particular cases were presented to him for his decision, but often issued proclamations beforehand with a view to prevent cases of injustice from arising. For instance, in a rescript to Sextius Verus, he attempts to impress upon him that the law will invariably protect any persons who are overreached in business.^ On another occasion he declares that no covenant may be made by two parties which conflicts with the rights of others ; so that an heir may not make an agreement with the mother of the testator to rescind the tes- tator's will, so long as there are other persons interested in it. If he does so, the manumitted slaves and tlie legatees are to have their action against him.^ One further example, and we shall have finished our consideration of Marcus's per- sonal activity in the courts. It is taken from a rescript ad- dressed by the Emperor to Scapula Tertyllus, and shows the extreme caution with which he dealt with that knotty point * lustinian,, Cod., lib. 6, tit. 27, c. 2 : Imp. Antoninus A. Anfidio. Cum uos serui constituti siib appellatione libertorum Tieredes scripti essetis, ea sm2)tura henigna interpretatione perinde habenda est., ao si liberi et heredes instituti fuissetis. qiiod in legato locum non hdbet. Accepta VII. Ml. Mart. Frisco et Apollinari conss. " Big.., lib. 18, tit. 1, c. 71 : Imperatores Antoninus et Verus Augusti Sextio Vero in haec ueria rescripserunt : '■'■ quihus mensuris aut pretiis negotiatores uina compararent, in contrahentium potestafe esse: neque enim quisquam cogitur uendere, si aut pretium aut mensura dispUceat, 'praesei-tim si nihil contra consuetudinem fegionisjiat.''' ' Dig., lib. 2, tit. 15, c. 3 : Imperatores Antoninus et Verus ita rescripserunt : '■'■ Priuatis pactionibus non duhium est non laedi ius cderorum. quare trans- actione, quae inter heredem et matrem defuncti facta est, neque testamentum rescissum iiideri posse neque manumissis ^lel legatariis actiones suae ademptae. quare quidquid ex testamento petunt, scriptum heredem conuenire debent: qui in transactione hereditatis aut cauit sihi pi'o oneribus hereditatis, aut si non cauit, non debet negligentiam suam ad alienam iniuriam referre.^^ 78 MAKCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. in Jaw — the question of insanity in a person accused of homi- cide. "If," he says, "you find it proved beyond all question that ^lius Priscus is in such a state as to be continuously deprived of reason, and that there is no ground for suspect- ing fraud in the statement that he was acting under the im- pulse of insanity when he killed his mother, you may with- hold the punishment; for he is already sufficiently punished by his insanity. You must, however, confine him lii future more closely, and even, if you deem it necessary, put him in chains ; so much is demanded by justice, his own welfare, and the security of those about him. But if, on the other hand, you find, as is usual with insane persons, that he enjoys lucid intervals, it is your duty to investigate carefully, in order to determine whether or not the crime was committed in one of these intervals; and, if so, whether or not, even then, it is not to be attributed to liis disease. In case you find this latter supposition probable, you are to consult me as to whether, on account of the enormity of tiie crime, we are not to deem him to have acted scienter, and, consequently, to be worthy of pun- ishment. Moreover, I learn from your letter that he was in the custody of his relatives, or, at all events, was living un- confined at home. You will, therefore, do well to summon those who were acquainted with his mental condition at tlie time, to learn the reason of their negligence in not placing him in the hands of the proper authorities, and to punish or exonerate them as the circumstances of the case may justify. For the insane are kept in custody not merely in order that they may do no injury to themselves, but also that they may not infiict harm upon others; so that, if any harm is done, it is but just that those who have been negligent in their duty, of guarding the insane man should be lield responsible." * However diligent Marcus might be, it was, of course, im- possible that he should personally conduct more than a small portion of the litigation which arose among sixty-five millions of people. He was forced, as all his predecessors had been, to delegate to others by far the greater portion of his judicial 'Z>/^.,lib. l,tit. 18,c.l4. A.D. 161-1G5.] LEGISLATION. 79 duties. In doing so, however, he used the greatest possible care, in order that none but the most trustworthy persons might be selected to perform these important functions. In one respect, in particular, he accomplished a much-needed re- form. Throughout the entire period of the earlier emperors the methods of nominating the judges for the different por- ' tions of Italy had been growing continually more lax ; and in many cases the emperors seem to have allowed the munici- palities of the peninsula to regulate their own judicial mat- ters, without even insisting upon their following any definite laws or precedents. But this method became at last so mani- festly deficient in securing justice that the Emperor Hadrian had found it necessary to establish a greater uniformity in the law by altogether remodelling the system. Instead of allow- ing the law to be administered by a number of officers hold- ing their positions under different authorities and forming their decisions in accordance ^-ith different principles, Ha- drian divided the whole of Italy into four circles of justice, assigning one person of consular rank to each of these judicial districts ; probably placing in the hands of these four judges the power of nominating their inferiors in their own districts.' This system did not survive long after Hadrian's death,' prob- ably through the exertions of the various municipalities, who would naturally oppose an innovation which took away any of the prerogatives they had previously enjoyed; and by the time that Marcus Aurelius ascended the throne matters had re- turned to very nearly .the condition in which they were before the time of Hadrian. Marcus, therefore, undertook once more to establish a uniformity in the administration of justice, adopting as his model the system which Hadrian had intro- duced.^ Between the two systems, however, there were some ' Spartianus, Had)'., c. 22 : Quattuor conmlares pe)' omnem Italiam indices constituit. ' Appian., Be lellis ciuilis, lib. 1, c. 38. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 11 : Datls iuridicis Italiae consuluit, ad id ex- emplurri, quo Hndrianus considares ^liros reddere iura frnecepernt. On the interpretation of this passage see the notes of Casaubon and Saumaise to Spart., Iludr., c. 22, and Cajiit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 11, in their editions of the 80 MARCUS AUllELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. points of difference. Tn the first place, whereas Hadrian had appointed only men of consular rank to serve as judges, we find that the iuridici established by Marcus were praetorians.' This alteration may have been due to the fact that the old system had caused dissatisfaction by placing the administra- tion of Italy on a different basis from that of the provinces. At all events, it was, in fact, one step further towards a uni- formity of organization throughout the Empire. Henceforth the iuridici of Italy were, like those of Britannia, Pannonia, and the other provinces, men belonging to the praetorian rank. The second difference between the consulares of Ha- drian and the iuridici of Marcus is with reference to their number and the extent of their jurisdiction. The considares had been four in number; whereas the iuridici appointed by Marcus were five, and the districts as at first assigned to them were as follows: 1. Transpadana, including Venetia and His- tria (corresponding with regiones XL and X., as established by Augustus);' 2. .Emilia Liguria (r^//. ZZ". and VIII.) \^ Script, hist. Aug. ; H. Dodwell's Praelectiones academ. in sclwla historices Camdeniana. Oxon., 1692. 8°. p. 351 ; Savigny's Oesch. des rom. Rechts im Mittel(dte7%y. 1, cli. 3, § 11 ; Savigny's article Ueber den rom. Volkschluss der Tafel von Heraclea, in the Zeitschrift fiir gesch. Jiechtswissenschqft, v. 9, p. 334; Burckhardt's Lehrh. des rom. SecMs, pt. l,p. 208; Puclita's Cursus der Institutionen. Leipz., 1841. 8°. v. l,p. 397; Puchta's article Ueber den Inlialt der lex Riibria, in tlie Zeitschrift fur gesch. Bechtsicissensehaft, v. 10, p. 204; Walter, Gesch. des rom. Rechts., j^t. 1, pp. 362-3; Dirkseu's Die Script, hist. Aug., pp. 78-105; Borghesi's (Euvres, \. 5, pp. 391-2; and Mommsen's article Die libri colon iarmn, in Die Sehriften der rom. Feldmes- ser, edited by Blunie, Lachmann, and Eudorif. BerL, 1852. 8°. v. 2, pp. 192-5. ' See Borghesi's article Iscrizione onoraria di Co7tcordia, in Rome. Istit. di corrisp. archeol. Annal. delV inst.per Vaimo 1853. Roma, 1853. pp. 196- 209 (repub. in Borghesi's (Euvres, v. 5, pp. 391-400). ' See the inscriptions in Orelli, no. 3143 ; Mommsen, Insc. reg. Neap. Latin., no. 3604 (also in Henzen, no. 6486) ; Berlin. Akad. der Wiss. Corp. insc. Latin., y. 5, 7io. 1874 (also in Borghesi, CEiivres, v. 5, p. 383), tzo. 4332, and no. 4341 (also in Borghesi, (Euvres, v. 5, p. 393) ; and Borghesi, (Eu- vres,Y. 5, p. 403. 3 Orelli, no. 3044 ; and Mommsen, Insc. reg. Map. Latin., no. 4237 (also in Henzen, 7io. 6482). A.D. lGl-165.] LEGISLATION. 81 3. Apulia and Calabria {reg. II.) ; ' 4. Lucania Brittii {reg. III.) ; * 5. Umbria and Picennm, together with the agei' Gallicus., known also as Flaniinia (r See Dig., lib. 2, tit. 15, c. 8; lib. 5, tit. 3, c. 22 and 40; lib. 17, tit. 2, c. 52, § 10; lib. 23, tit. 2, c. GO; and lib. 24, tit. 1, c. 32. A.D. 101-165] LEGISLATION. 85 consulia, were regarded as the supreme legislative authorities in the state ; and the}^ continued to be the law forever, unless retracted, or abolished by a contradictory enactment of some later emperor. Thus we see what a wide-reaching influence it was possible for a Eoman emperor to exert upon the law, and, through that, upon the morality of his time. In the laws of Marcus's reign which we are now to study, we shall ob- serve everywhere the reflection of his noble mind. The con- ception of justice which had found its birth in that little Stoic child — which had developed under the loving influence of his father, his mother, and his master, and which was now, at length, to be given to the Roman world — has exerted upon us of this later generation an influence which it would be diflicult to overestimate. It was under Marcns Aurelius that three of the most eminent lawyers of all times flourished. The works of Julian, of Gaius, and of Papinian, from which the Digest of Justinian was in great measure compiled, form the basis of both the civil and the common law of our own day. The writings of these men exhibit a conception of justice which is essentially a modern one. In this conception, however, they were by no means alone. They are merely the best mirror preserved to us of the times in which they lived. LThe reign of the Antonines Mall always be memorable as the age when the spirit of Christianity first found its way into the body of the Roman laws. And yet it is impossible that this Christian spirit should have been, at that early daj^, the effect of Christianity itself. The broad and charitable atti- tude which men were beginning to take with reference to the rights and duties of the various portions of society can be due only to the principles of Stoicism, which were forcing themselves upon the minds of men — principles which reached their highest form in the minds of the very monarchs who ruled the world throughout the second century of the Chris- tian era. To the characters of these monarchs, therefore, we owe it in a large degree that the Roman law became imbued with Christian principles so long before the introduction of Christianity itself.' * As a proof of this change of attitude, it will be well to study, in addi- 86 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. ill. In no way was this breadth of purpose more marked than in the laws which Marcus passed in aid of slaves. This un- fortunate class of society was never in a more deplorable condition than under the early Eoman emperors. The utter wretchedness of the slave's position found its roots in the prin- ciple of theRoman law that a slave was destitute of personality ; ' he fell absolutely into the category of a chattel personal, and his owner had precisely the same power over him that he had over any other piece of personal property. A slave was an ob- ject of inheritance," like all other goods. He could be given away," or left as a legacy;^ he could be put out upon usury," or wagered ; * and he could be sold.^ In short, the master had complete control over his slave, including even the power of life and death. But what made the position of the slave more intolerable than all else was that, since he was deprived of all rights, the law refused to recognize in him any respon- sibilities.* Previous to the reign of Marcus a master could not accuse his slave of committing adultery;* for the slave pos- sessed no right of marriage. His intercourse with a fellow- slave was mere cohabitation, which began by his master's or- ders and continued at his master's will. Finally, the slave was deemed incapable of committing theft ; '" for, if he took any- thing from his master, it was merely a displacing of property, it being still in the master's possession ; and, if he took from any one else, it was his master's act. Thus the slave, stripped of all rights and duties which distinguish human beings from brutes, found himself in a relation to the rest of the world tion to the laws which we are about to consider, the following passages in Gaius's Institutiones : lib. 1, c. 1, 158 and 189, and lib. 2, c. 65-6,69, 73, and 79. ' lustinian., Inst, lib. 1, tit. 16, c. 4 : Nullum caput hdbuit. " Dig., lib. 28, tit. 5, c. 31 : Hereditatem dominam esse defuneti locum optinere. ^ lustinian., Inst., lib. 2, tit. 4, c. 2. * lustinian., J??s?., lib. 2, tit. 20, c. 22, and tit. 21, c. 1. * lustinian., Inst., lib. 2, tit. 4, c. 2, and tit. 5, c. 3; and Big., lib. 21, tit. 1, c. 28. « Dig., lib. 20, tit. 1, c. 1, § 1. ' Dig., lib. 21, tit. 1, c. 1, § 1. « Dig., lib. 50, tit. 17, c. 23 : In personam seruilem nulla cadit oUigatio. » lustinian., Cod., lib. 9, tit. 9, c. 23 ; and Dig., lib. 48, tit. 2, c. 5, and tit. 5, c. 6. '" Dig., lib. 47, tit. 2, c. 17. A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 87 which, threatened soon to extinguish every trace of the digni- ty and morality that belong to man. This final degradation, however, was happily averted ; in part, perhaps, by the feel- ings of charity which induce all men to take pity on the op- pressed, but chiefly because the Roman masters found it for their own interest to provide for the welfare of their slaves. During the later times of the Republic and under the early emperors the number of slaves increased, through wars and the growth of luxury, to such an extent that it was no longer possible to employ them all in the menial occupations which they had hitherto pursued. Into one trade after another they pushed themselves until, in the time of the Antonines, there were but very few professions in which they did not work. And as soon as they allied themselves with any department, that line of business became at once so unpopular among the higher classes that before long it ceased to be practised by any persons except those belonging to the inferior grades of society. In this way nearly all the mechanical arts, and even grammar, philosophy, and medicine, came to be looked upon very largely as the proper sphere of the lower classes. When, at length, the slave? had risen to those positions in which success depended almost entirely upon their own efforts, the masters found it manifestly to their advantage to encourage, in every possible way, the exertions of their dependants; and they were not slow to discern that the greatest human efforts are always made under circumstances of the greatest per- sonal independence. So that the custom of enfranchising one's slaves, which had always been more or less practised among the Romans, came to be adopted to a far greater de- gree than ever before. A dever slave who was thus enfran- chised could render a service to his master ten times more valuable than was possible for him when in a condition of servitude. In enfranchising his servant it was often o-ustom- ary for the master to stipulate that a certain sum should be paid him within a year, or that certain annual payments should be made, from the earnings of the freedman ; and such sums, when paid, usually proved to be a generous rec- ompense to the master for dispensing Avith the services of his 88 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [cnAP.m. slave. But even where no stipulation of this kind was made, it was generally an advantage to be able to claim the services of a freedman, rather than those of a slave ; for it must not be imagined that the freedman ceased immediately upon his enfranchisement to owe allegiance to his former master. The_ manumitted slave became, to be sure (except in the cases of the liberti Latini and the dediticii)^ a Eoman citizen ; but he was by no means freed from all marks of his former bondage. He continued in a state of semi-servitude, and the term pa- tronus was used to designate the relation which the formei' master bore to his manumitted slave. In addition to any special stipulations which the patron might see lit to make (and this right of stipulation was sometimes imposed most cruelly), every freedman owed personal I'espect {obsequium) and assistance {officmm) to his patron. The duty of render- ing obsequium prevented the person manumitted from bring- ing against his former master any action by which the lat- ter's reputation could be assailed ; he was bound to endure many injuries, and, even in cases of real oppression, to be very slow to complain ; if he was compelled to come before the law, he could do so only with extreme deference.' The officia of the freedman were doubtless the same as those of the client ; they consisted in personal escort, in aiding his patron with money at the marriage of his daughter, and in ransoming him if he was imprisoned for debt or impover- ished by any other misfortune.'' As regards the property which the freedman might acquire, the law was as follows: If a freedman died intestate and without an heir-at-law, the patron succeeded to his entire property; if he made a will, he was bound to give his patron at least one half his property, and upon failure to do so the praetor would assign it to the patron. Thus we see that the condition of the freed- man, though nominally a degree higher, was, in fact, scarcely any improvement upon that of the slave. He remained prac- tically at the command, and toiled mainly for the profit, of > Dig., lib. 37, tit. 15, c. 5 and 7. " Dionysius Halicarnensis, Antiq. Roman., lib. 3, c. 10 ; and Gellius, Noct. A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 89 liis former master; he bore about his person contimially the external badges of his previous servitude, and this degrading relation of subjection to his patron descended to the third generation of the emancipated slave. In numbers the freed- men increased so rapidly under the early emperors that by the time of Marcus Aurelius they had usurped nearly all those lines of business which contribute to the physical welfare and comfort of society; so that while the free-born Romans con- fined themselves chiefly to those professions whose end is the government of others, they found themselves forced to rely on a nation of slaves and freedmen for those arts through which alone any government is possible. The forces by which a state is kept alive were, in the Tioman Empire, almost ex- clusively in the hands of a class whose industry could accom- plish little for themselves, and whose loyalty to the state was greatly subordinate to their necessity of allegiance to the pa- tron. Even when released from the remembrance of their former servitude, it took them several generations to acquire a loyalty and affection for the country in which they had re- cently been naturalized; and meanwhile their places had been filled by newly imported slaves, who became so numerous that, when it was once proposed in the senate to assign a distinct dress for slaves, the measure was overthrown because of the danger in allowing the slaves to see how few the free citizens were in comparison with them.' In addition, therefore, to the feelings of benevolence which actuated Marcus Aurelius in relieving this down-trodden class of society, he was induced by political reasons to enact meas- ures to avert the impending danger. How to augment the relatively small free population and how to alleviate the dis- tress of the slaves and freedmen, were problems which Mar- cus kept continually before him. He strove to make real that idea which" he speaks of in his Thoughts — the idea of a "polity in which there is the same law for all, a polity admin- istered with regard to equal rights and equal freedom of speech, and the idea of a kingly government which respects most of all the freedom of the governed." "^ It was a difiicult > L. Annaeus Seneca, be clem., lib. 1, c. 24. « Thoughts, lib. 1, c. 14. 90 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. in. task that lay before the Emperor, Revolutions sometimes take place in politics — in law, never. The boast of law is that it is founded on justice ; and the principles of justice remain eternally the same. The principles of political par- ties may be overthrown by the weight of numbers or the power of wealth; in law, whatever alterations are accom- plished are effected by force of argument alone. To con- vince the Roman people that a person taken in war is not the property of the captor was more than any one emperor could accomplish. Marcus Aurelius did a noble work in promul- gating this doctrine ; but its final adoption could only be ef- fected by the reasoning of ages. As a first step towards tlie abolition of slavery Marcus introduced a practice which was, in fact, almost a logical consequence of his immediate prede- cessors' beneficent laws. Hadrian had attempted to put an end to the cruelty with which some masters treated their slaves, by forbidding that any slav^e should be put to death unless after condemnation by the courts ;' and Antoninus Pius liad passed a law which strengthened still further the position of Hadrian, declaring that whoever should, without just cause, put one of his slaves to death should be liable to the same punishment as if he had killed the slave of another.^ These enactments, it will be said, did not go very far. But they in- volved a new principle in the Roman law, which opened the door for vast changes. Once granted that the slaves had a standing, even the slightest, in the courts, and they would soon succeed in having that standing defined according to the logic of the law. Marcus Aurelius was quick to perceive the ad- vantage which had thus been gained ; and he at once followed it up by an enactment, framed as a privilege to the master, but in reality a decided benefit to the slave. By this new law the master was empowered to bring an action in the courts for ' Spartianus, Hadr.^ c. 18 : Seruos a dorninis occidi zietiiit eosque iussit damnari per indices si digni essent. ' Dig., lib. 1, tit. 6, c. 1, § 2 : Ex const itutione diui Antonini qui sine causa seruum suum Occident, non minus puniri iuietm; quam qui alienum seruum occiderit. See also Gaius, Inst., lib. 1, c. 53; and lustinian, Inst., lib, 1, tit. 8, c. 2. A.D.lGl-165.] LEGISLATION. 91 every injury suffered at the hands of his slave.' Thus the masters were encouraged to lay all their grievances before the tribunals instead of taking the punishment of their slaves into their own hands, as they had done hitherto. It was one step more towards placing both upon the same foot- ing. If the masters could be induced to rely on the courts to award them justice for all injuries from their slaves, it would follow almost as a corollary that the slaves might look to the courts for protection from the injustice of their masters. It is always the oppressed that gain when law is substituted in the place of despotism. A secondary purpose which Marcus had in encouraging masters to lay their griev ances before the courts was to do away with a brutal custom known as the quaestio, or torture. This had long been the ordinary way of inducing a slave to confess any crime which he had committed, and also of compelling him to furnish evidence against his fellows. It was a method which failed chiefly in the uncertainty of its result. The likelihood that a guilty slave, when put to the torture, would confess the truth, was counterbalanced by the chance that an innocent slave would be induced by the same means to tell a falsehood. But the quaestio was so deeply grounded in the habits of the peo- ple that its inefficiency as well as its enormity escaped general notice. Even Marcus Aurelius seems to have aimed rather at substituting a more just method of obtaining evidence than at abolishing entirely the older form of procedure. To his cred- it, however, it should be said that he urged strongly the pro- priety of resorting to this method only as a last resource, and even then of using as little violence as possible. Indeed, the compilers of the Digest have preserved a letter in which Mar- cus recommends that a slave who, under torture, had confessed a crime of which he turned out afterwards to be innocent, should be set at liberty, in recompense for the indignity he had suffered." Another humane law, by which Marcus re- ' Dig,^ lib. 48, tit. 2, c. 5 : Sed ex rescripto diui Marci etiam aduersus pro- prium senium accusationem instituere dominus potest, post hoe igitur rescrip- tum accusandi necessitas incunibet domino senium smim. * Dig., lib. 48, tit. 18, c. 1, § 37 : Extat epistula diuorum fratrum ad Vo- 92 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. ill. strained the cruelty of masters, provided that if a slave should be sold, otherwise than after judgment in the courts, for the purpose of being pitted against beasts in the arena, both the seller and the buyer should be punished,' As long, however, as the masters were just and kind towards their slaves, the Em- peror felt that the slaves were, in return, bound to obey their masters. He therefore published an open letter, in which he proclaimed it to be the duty of all governors, magistrates, and police soldiers to aid masters in their search for fugitive slaves. When found, the runaways were to be returned to their mas- ters, and whoever aided in concealing them was to be pun- ished.* Indeed, Marcus went further ; and made it lawful for the search to be conducted upon the estates of the emperor as well as upon those of senator or peasant.^ It was not only, however, with a view towards relieving the condition of those in actual slavery that Marcus worked, he sought, also, to render enfranchisement more easy. Previous to his time it had frequently happened that a master who had conium Saxam,, qua continetur liberandum eum, qui in se fuerat confessns, cuius post damnatlonem de innocentia constitisset, cuius uerba haec sunt: " Prudenter et egregia ratione humariitatis, Saxa carissime, Primitiuum ser- uum, qui homicidium in se covfingere metu ad dominum reuertendi suspectns esset, perseuerantem falsa demonstratione damnasti quaesiturus de consciis, quos aeque habere se commentitus fuerat, ut ad ceriiorem ipsius de se confessi- onem peruenires. nee frustra fuit tarn prudens consilium tuum, cum in tor- mentis constiterit neque illos ei conscios fuisse et ipsum de se temere commen- tum. potes itaque decreti gratiam facere et eum per officium distralii iubere, conditione addita, ne umquam in potcstatem domini reuertatur, quern pretio recep>to cerium haiemus libenter tali seruo cariturum.''^ ' Big., lib. 18, tit. 1, c. 42: Domini neque per se neque per procuratores suos possunt saltern criminosos seruos uendere, ut cum lestiis pugnarent. et ita diuifratres rescripserunt. See also Dig., lib. 48, tit. 8, c. 11. ^ Dig., lib. 11, tit. 4, c. 1, § 2 : Est etiam generalis epistula diuorum Mar- ci et Commodi, qua declaratur et praesides et magistratus et milites statio- narios dominum adiuuare debere inquirendis fugitiuis, et ut inuentos red- derent, et ut hi, apud quos delitescant, puniantur, si crimine contingantur. ^ Dig., lib. 11, tit. 4, c. 3 : Diuus Marcus oratione, qicam in senatu recit- auit,facultatem dedit ingrediendi tarn Caesar is quam senatorum et pagan- orwn praedia uolentibm fugitiuos inquirere scrutarique cubilia atque ues- tigia occultantium. A.D.1C1-1C5.] LEGISLATION. 93 intended to enfrancliise his slaves at his death died without making a will, or that his will was void by reason of some technical flaw in the construction, as for lack of designating an heir. In these cases, of course, every clause in the will and every expressed intention of the master would be without effect; and the heir appointed by law would succeed to the intestate's entire property, including the slaves which he had intended to enfranchise. To this there was no remedy, and the purpose of the intestate was absolutely thwarted. Often, however, where the master died intestate, no one was willing to assume the position of heir; for the Eoman heir, unlike ours, was responsible for the deceased's debts in solldo / that is to say, he was bound to satisfy creditors from the estate of the deceased as far as it extended, and, if that was not suf- flcient, he had to supply the remainder from his own prop- erty. So that the position of heir to one who died insolvent was not a charge which many people cared to undertake ; and when no heir could be found, it was originally the law that the creditors might claim all the deceased's effects, including his slaves. But Marcus Aurelius saw an opportunity here to ben- efit the oppressed. He enacted that, if no heir presented him- self, the slaves of the deceased should be permitted to ad- minister the estate ; and that, though the deceased must be regarded as intestate and his will void if the heir designated therein refused to accept, yet those clauses of the will which granted the slaves their freedom should be respected ; so that those who were directly enfranchised became free at once, and those enfranchised by fideicommissum passed into the hands of the person to whom the goods of the deceased were adjudged, to receive from him their manumission.' Further, ' lustinian., /«s^., lib. 3, tit. 11 : Accessit nouns casus successionis ex consti- tutione diui Marci: nam si iiqui lihertatem aceeperunt a domino in testa- mento ex quo non aditur Tiereditas, uelint bona sibi addict lihertatum conser- uandarum causa, audiuntur. Also lustinian., Cod., lib. 7, tit. 2, c. 15 : Cum constiUitio diui Marci declaret, si quis testamento condito uel sine tes- tamento moriens, ut locus fiat ab intestato successioni, libertates reliquerit, nemo autem adire unit defuncti hereditatem eo, quod suspecta esse uidetur, et sifuerint libertates forsitan et sine scriptis fideicommissariae relictae, 94: MAKCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CUAP. III. Marcus strengthened the position of those who were enfran- chised hj fideicommissum, by a rescript providing that when a slave was sold to another person on condition that he should be freed at a certain time, the enfranchisement must take place at that time, whether the master who sold him should after- wards change his mind or not ; this, too, even if both buyer and seller should die before the time appointed.' This rule was also applicable to those cases where a husband gave a favorite slave to his wife, with the stipulation that she should manumit him before a certain day ; when the time came the slave was to be freed, w^hether or not the husband was then living.^ So, also, if a mother gave her daughter a slave to be manumitted as soon as she, the mother, died ; and the time for the slave's manumission might even be hastened, if the mother before her licere uel cuilibet extraneo uel uni ex semis, qui et ipse liljertate donatus est et pro sua periclitatur condicione, adire Tiereditatem sub hac condicione et satisdatione, quod et cr editor ihus omnibus satisfaciat et libertates impo- nat his, quibus uoluerit testator. Also Big., lib. 40, tit. 5, c. 2 : Si quis in- testatus decedens codieillis dedit libertates neque adita sit db intestato Tiere- ditas,fauor constitutionis diui Marci debet locum habere et hoc casu, quae iubet Ubertatem competere seruo et bona ei addict, si idonee creditoribus ca- uerit de solido, quod cuique debetur soluendo. Also Theophilus, Inst., lib. 3, tit. 11, C. 1 : 'EoTi Kai TtTupTov elSoQ tF)C kuB' ofidSa /crjjfffwf, Kaivoraroi' kui toXq ■rraXatoXc ayvioarov, tK ^tara^Ewf rov BtioTarov MdpKov iinvor]^'iv. 'Edv yap o'l TvxovTtQ iXevBspiag iv £ia^r]Ky, firidevog ddiTEvovrog, airrjawaiv iavroTg TrpooKv- pujBfjvai rd irpdyfiara, (pvXaKTsujv 'iveica rwv iXsvBepiiov iirirtv^ovrai tovtov. Also Big., lib. 40, tit. 5, c. 30, § 13 : Si alter sine successore decesserit, alter ex iusta causa absit, extat reseriptum diuorum Marci et Veri perinde dicen- tium eum ad Ubertatem peruenturu?n, ac si ab eo qui sine successore decessit et ab eo qui ex iusta causa abesset ad Ubertatem ut ojiortuit perductus esset. ^ Big., lib. 40, tit. 8, c. 1 : Si seruus uenditus est, ut intra certum tempus manumitteretur, etiamsi sine herede decessissent et uenditor et emptor, seruo libertas competit : et hoc diuus Marcus rescripsit. Sed et si mutauerit uen- ditor uoluntatem, nihilo minus libertas competit. See also Big., lib. 36, tit. 4, c. 3, § 2, and lib. 40, tit. 1, c. 20, tit. 9, c. 30, § 1, and tit. 12, c. 38, §1. ' Big., lib. 24, tit. 1, c. 7, § 8': Uxori quis donauit seruum ita, tit eum in- tra annum manumitteret : an, si mulier non obtemperet uoluntati, consti- tutio diui Marci imponat ei Ubertatem, si uir uel uiuit v£l etiam diem suum obierit f A.D. lGl-105.] LEGISLATION. 95 deatli consented to have her freed.' In cases where a slave Avas sold or given away, to be manumitted at the death of the recipient, Marcus insisted, with the utmost imperativeness, that the manumission must be performed. Nothing was al- lowed to stand in the way.^ Even if the one who bought the slave to be manumitted died insolvent, the claims of the cred- itors were not to extend to such a slave." In one case, indeed, where the master of a slave to be manumitted died without performing the ceremony, the Emperor did not at once de- clare the slave to be free ; but in this case there seem to have been special reasons influencing him, and even then he pro- claimed that at the end of six months the slave should receive his liberty.' Moreover, he further encouraged enfranchise- ment by allowing all corporations aggregate to manumit their slaves^ — a privilege which, until within a few years, had even been withheld from the provincial cities.* The condition, too, of slaves who had already received their liberty, Marcus at- tempted to alleviate. In the first place, he declared that no operae could be demanded from those freedmen who, accord- ing to his constitution, had obtained their liberty by act of law; for they were not under obligations to any individuals ' Dig.^ lib. 40, tit. 8, c. 8 : Mancipia mater filiae donaiierat, utfilia cura- ret ea post mortem suam esse libera: cum donationis legi non esset dbtempe- ratum, ex sententia constitutionis diui Marci libertates optingere matre consentiente respondi: quod si ante filiam mater uita decessit, omni- modo. ^ Big., lib. 40, tit. 5, c. 30, § 16 : Diuus etiam Marcus rescripsit Jideicom- missas libertates neque aetate neque condicione neque mora non praestanti- um tardiusiie reddentium corrumpi aut in deteriorem statum perduci. ' Big., lib. 40, tit. 8, c. 6 : 8i qtiis obligatum seruum hac lege emerit, ut manumittat, competit libertas ex constitutione diui Marci, licet bona omnia quis obligauerit, quae habet habiturusue esset. See also Big., lib. 40, tit. 1, c.lO. * Big., lib. 18, tit. 7, c. 10 : Biuus Marcus ex lege dicta libertatis in uen- dendo quamuis non manumissos fore liberos in semenstribus constituit, licet in mortis tempus emptoris distulit venditor libertatem. * Big., lib. 40, tit. 3, c. 1 : Biuus Marcus omnibus collegiis, quibus coeundi ius est, 77ianumittendi potestatem dedit. * This privilege had been granted to the provincial cities by Hadrian. See lustinian., Cod., lib. 7, tit. 9, c. 3. 96 :\rARCus aurelius antoninus. [cnAP.m. for their liberty.' Again, seeking to protect tliera from hav- ing their period of freedmanship extended beyond the legal three generations, he enacted that if, during a man's life, he was declared by the authorities to be ingeniius, that decision could not be reversed after the man was dead.^ The right of claiming that there was collusion in the proceedings he permitted, not only to the persons interested, but also to strangers ; if, however, the claim of collusion was not set up within five years after the proclamation of ingenuitas, it would not be listened to.' With reference to the children of freed- women Marcus passed another humane law, providing that if the slave who was to be manumitted at a certain time should be delayed, and should bring forth a child after the time appoint- ed, but before she received her liberty, the child was to be re- garded as ingenuus." In all doubtful cases with regard to slaves and freedmen Marcus preferred to fail on the side of charity rather than to encourage cruelty ; and we hear of some in- stances where he even went so far as to allow a freedman to be ' Dig., lib. 38, tit. 1, c. 13 : Si quis Tiae lege emptus sit, tit mamimittatur, et ex comtitutione diui Marci peruenerit ad libertatem, operae ei impositae nullum effectum Tidbebunt. (Sed nee cui lona addicta sunt ex constitutione diui Marci libertatium conseruandarum causa, poterit operas petere neque ab his, qui directas, neque ai Ms, qui fideicommissarias acceperunt, quamuis fideicommissaTias libertates qui acceperunt, ipsius liberii efficiantur : non enim sicfiunt liberti, ut sunt prop>rii, quos nulla necessitate cogente manu- misimus. •, * Big., lib. 40, tit. 15, c. 1, § 3 : Oratione diui Marci cauetur, ut, si quis ingenuity pronuntiatus fuerit, liceat ingenuitatis sententiam retractare, sed uiuo eo qui ingenuus pronuntiatus est, non etiam post mortem, in tantum,ut etiam, si coepta quaestio fuit retractationis, morte eius extinguatur, ut ea- dem oratione cauetur. ' Big., lib. 40, tit. 16, c. 2 : Conlusionem detegere ingenuitatis post senten- tiam intra quinquennium posse diuus Marcus constituit. . . . Oratione diui Marci cauetur, ut etiam extraneis, qui pro altera p)ostulandi ius Tiaherent, liceret detegere conlusionem. * Big., lib. 38, tit. 16, c. 1, § 1 : Quaeri poterit, si ex ea, quae infideicom- missa libertate moram passa est, conceptua et natus sit, an suus patri existat. et cum p)lac€at eum ingenuum nasci, ut est a diuis Marco et Vera et impera- tffre nostro Antonino Augusto reseriptum, cur rwn, etc. ;<:/ A.D. 1G1-1C5.] LEGISLATION. 97 chosen as tutor to his infant patron.' One law more we must notice before leaving the subject of slavery. It is set forth in a rescript of Marcus Aurelius, and reflects clearly the benevolent principles which actuated the Emperor in all his public life. The aim of the law was to prevent mastei'S who had stipulated with their slaves that they should be freed if they performed such and such services before a certain time, from evading ' their contract. Tiie enactment provides that if a slave has been granted his liberty by Jldeicommissum, and the settle- ment of the accounts has not yet been completed, the enfran- chisement of the slave shall not on that account be postponed ; " for principles of humanity demand that a money considera- tion shall never stand in the way of a person's freedom ; an arbiter must, however, be appointed at once by the praetor, and before him the newly enfranchised slave shall be com- pelled to render his account."* Closely allied with the question of slavery is the so-called ' patria potestas, or power of a father over his children. Orig- inally the father had the power of life a^nd death over his son. He could sell him into slavery ; he could give him in marriage at his pleasure; and, being responsible for the son's crimes, he was at liberty to inflict any restraint or punishment upon him that he saw fit. The soij could acquire property and col- lect debts due him from third persons ; but whatever sums he might accitmulate he acquired for his father, and was bound to render them up unless the father released him from this obligation. In short, the position of the son was practi- cally little better than that of the slave, if we except the odium which always attaches to the name of slavery. This patria jyotestas continued as long as the father lived, and ex- tended over his children, grandchildren, and all his descend- ' luris anteiustinian. frag., c. 220: Oratio enim diui Marci ita scribta est, ut patroni patronae libertus tutor deligi possit, tametsi aliquo priuile- gio subnixus sit. ' Dig., lib. 40, tit. 5, c. 37 : '■'■ Neque humnmim fuerit db rei pecuniariae quaestionem libertati moram fieri, qua tamen repraesentata confestim arbi- ter a praetore erit dandus, apud quern rationem, quam administrasse eum apparuit, ex fide reddatP 7 98 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. ants. The point at which it pressed most heavily was with regard to the child's marriage. In this matter the son or daughter was entirely at the parent's caprice. The father might at one time consent to the marriage, and then, before it was consummated, change his mind and order the engage- ment to be broken off. Indeed, he even possessed the right of having his child divorced after the marriage had taken place; so that the bond that united the daughter to her betrothed, or the wife to her husband, became very precarious. The sanc- tity of the marriage tie was very slightly felt, and public mo- rality was forced to suffer. Appreciating the danger, Marcus published a rescript declaring that when a father had once consented to his child's marriage, and afterwards made an opposition to it, this opposition could, if reasonable grounds were given, be rendered void, provided the future wife went at once to the house of her aftianced for the purpose of cele- brating the marriage.' In another way Marcus attempted ta render the son more independent of his father, or, at all events, to give him a personality distinct from that of his father, viz., by declaring that a son should be in no way tainted by his father's crimes.'' One of the most serious objections to the theory that the child, in acquiring property, acted only as his father's agent was that it tended to destroy all senti- ments of family affection. On the supposition that the child would some day prove a valuable piece of property, the law looked upon any instruction or other benefits which the par- ents might confer on their children, not as kindnesses, but as investments, which it was for the fathers interest to make. This tendency Marcus sought to counteract. We have a re- script of his to a woman who claimed that she had a right to a * lustinian., Cod., lib. 5, tit. 17, c. 5 : Dissentientis patris, qui initio con- sensit matrimonio, cum marito concordante uM>re filia familias ratam non haberi uoluntatem diuus Marcus pater noster rellgiosissimus imperator coii- stituit, nisi magna et iusta causa inter ueniente pater hoc fecei'it. " Dig., lib. 48, tit. 19, c. 26 : . Crimen uel poena paterna nullam maculam filio infiigere potest: namque'unusquisque ex suo admisso sorti siibicitur nee alieni criminis successor constituitur, idque diuifratres Hierapolitanis rescripserunt. A.D.lGl-165.] LEGISLATION. 99 certain sum of mone}^ from her father for the payment of lier daughter's education ; Marcus's reply is, "You have no claim upon your father for that which the sentiments of humanity command you to furnish your daughter, even thougli his father did pay the expenses of educating him." ' This re- script exhibits a spirit which was somewhat novel at that time, but which the Emperor was continually striving to in- fuse into the minds of his people. In a number of his laws, as well as throughout his letters, we find references to women, and in all cases lie seems to have regarded them as standing on quite as high a plane as men. In one of his rescripts, for example, he recognized the right of a woman to appear in court and enter a public complaint against the method in which the corn-laws were administered.^ This was, however, quite contrary to the attitude taken generally by his contem- poraries. The position of women under the early emperors was, if possible, even more unfortunate than that of sons. Immediately upon marriage all the wife's property, together with anything that she might thereafter acquire, passed into her husband's hands. She was looked upon as belonging to him, and by a strange fiction of the Roman law her status was exactly that of his daughteV. It will be seen at once that this was a great hardship to the wife, in case her husband died intestate ; for, under the Roman law, all the sons and daughters of the intestate took equal shares, and the widow received no more than each of her sons and daughters. A further hardship was that the consanguinei, i. e., all brothers and sisters by the same father, were entirely excluded as long as ' Dig.^ lib. 25, tit. 3, c. 5, § 14 : 8i mater alimcnta, quae fecit injilium, a patre repetat^ eum modo earn audiendam. ita diuus Marcus rescripsit An- toniae Montanae in Jiaec uerha : " 8ed et quantum tibi alimentorum nomine, quibus necessario filiam tuam exhihuisti a patre eius praestari oporteat, indices aestimabunt, non impetrare debes ea, quae exigente materno affectu in filiam tuam erogatura esses, etiamsi a patre sua educeretur ^ * Big., lib. 48, tit. 13, c. 3 : Item in Jiaec uerba rescripserunt : '■' Elsi non Solent Tioc genus nuntiationis mulieres exercere, tamen quia demonstraturam tequae ad utilitatem annonae pertinent polliceris, praefectum annonae do- cere potes.^^ 100 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. there was a single heres situs; so that a widow was prevented from succeeding to any of her children who died intestate, and, in return, they could not inherit from her so long as any of her remote heredes sui were living. This injustice was at length remedied by a senatus consuUum, passed in the reign of Hadrian, and known as the senatus consultum Tertul- lianum, which granted mothers the right to succeed to their children who died intestate, in all cases where the mother was a free woman, and had given birth to three children — the same privilege being granted also to women who had been enfranchised, provided the number of their children was four or over.' The converse of this law — without, how- ever, the restriction as to the number of children — was pro- vided by the senatus consultum Orphitianum, passed in 178, in the reign of Marcus Aurelius ; "" so that subsequent to this time children succeeded to their mothers, and the mothers to their children, in preference to any of the heredes sui. A further measure towards the social elevation of women was adopted by Marcus in 161. It seemed to him unjust that a wife should be represented by her husband in every position which it was desirable to occupy, and yet, when in any pecun- iary difficulty, should be compelled to come into court as sole defendant. He therefore provided that a woman might plead through her husband to the charge brought against her by her adversary.^ Every Roman child under the age of eight was deemed inca- pable of performing any legal act. After attaining eight years of age, a boy still continued to be an impubes till the end of his ' Instinian., Inst., lib. 3, tit. 3, c. 3. "^ Ulpian., Frag., tit. 26, c. 7 : Imperatorum Antonini et Commodi oratione in senatu recitata id actum est, ut matrum legitimae hereditates ad filios pertineant, exclusis consanguineis et reliquis agnatis. See, also, lustinian., Inst, lib. 3, tit. 3, c. 4 ; Dig., lib. 38, tit. 17, c. 6, 7, and 9 ; Cod., lib. 6, tit. 57, c. 1 ; and Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 11. * lustinian., Cod., lib. 2, tit. 12, c. 2 : Diui frMres Sextiliae. Cum rem pecuniariam esse dicas, potes per maritum tuum sollemnihus impletis ap- pellationi aduersariae respondere, cum appellationes pecuniariae etiamper procuratores exerceri ab utraque parte litigantium possunt. Accepta VIII. Teal. Aug. ipsis III. et II. conns. A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 101 fourteenth year, and a girl till the end of her twelfth year; and if children remained in the jpatria potestas they did not acquire the capacity to perform legal acts until they ceased to be impubes. When, however, the father died before the child attained the age of puberty, it obviously became impor- tant that the son or daughter should be capable of performing, certain acts with reference to his or her property ; yet it was, of course, impossible to allow the child to assume all the duties and responsibilities which attend the possession of wealth. A tuto7' was, therefore, appointed, either by the will of the de- ceased father or by some public official, and his duty was to look after the property of the piipillus ; but his power did not extend to the person of the ward, nor did he have abso- lute control over the property. The ward was capable of per- forming all legal acts with the authority of his tuto7% and even without that authority he might perform any acts which were for his own advantage. When the ward attained the age of puberty the power of the tutor ceased. In some cases, how- ever, it was found expedient to appoint a curator to take care of the property, even after the owner was of age. The com- monest cases were where the person was an idiot or a spend- thrift, or where he himself made application to the praetor that a curator might be appointed. The curator^ in these cases, seems to have possessed very nearly the same authority that the tutor exercised over his impubes. With reference to each of these offices the Emperor Marcus Aurelius introduced an innovation of some importance. In the first place, he in- stituted a praetor tutelaris, whose duty it was to superintend the acts of the tutores in Rome and the city diocese.' The tutores had previously been compelled to account only in a vague sort of way to the consuls, and the new measure was passed for the purpose of insuring a more rigorous examina- tion of their management. This innovation was adopted be- tween the years 161 and 169.^ With regard to the regulation ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 10 : Praetorem tutelarem primus fecit cum ante tutores a consulihus poscerentur, ut diligentius de tutoribus tractaretur. See also luris anteiustinian. frag.., c. 205, 232, and 241. "^ See the inscription in Henzen,wo. 6485. The statement of Paulus in 102 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. which Capitohnns tells us' the Emperor Marcus effected in the matter of the curatores there has been a good deal of dis- cussion. Tlie general belief is that he extended the practice of appointing curatores so as to embrace all minors, i. e., all persons under the age of twenty-five, who were not m patria potestas.'' And if so, it was certainly a wise method of put- ting an end to the numerous losses and frauds to which the young men from fifteen to twenty -five had previously been exposed. These two changes in the law of guardianship called for further alterations in the method of appointing tutores and curatores. The power of appointment was left, as before, in the hands of the father of the child. If, how- ever, he failed to nominate any one by his will, and if the persons entitled by law to undertake the duty did not present themselves, the question arose, upon whom the appointment should devolve. Previously to Marcus's innovation the pow- er of appointing tutores rested, in Rome and the city diocese, with the consuls, and in the provinces with the proconsul or other governor of the province. So far, Marcus seems to have left the subject very nearly as he found it ; ^ but the strictness the luris anteiustinian.frag.^ c. 244: Ex epistola diuorum Hadriani et Antonini etfratrum ad Caerelliiim Priseum praetorem tutelarem^ would seem to assign the institution oi t\\e praetor tutelaris to a time previous to the reign of Marcus Aurelius; but it is agreed by Mommsen, in the Beriehten der Gesellschaft der Wissensch. zu Leipzig. Leipz., 1853. p. 270; by Rein, Das Privatrecht, p. 518 ; and by Borghesi, in Rome. Istit. di cor- risp. archeol. Annal. delV inst. j^er Vanno 1853. Roma, 1853. pp. 191-3, that the proper reading in this passage is epistolis, not epistola, which makes it still more evident that Paulus is referring here to three separate rescripts — the one ad Caerellium praetorem tutelarem being that of the fratres (Marcus and Lucius). > Capit, M. Ant. Phil., c. 10 : De curatores uero cum ante non nisi ex lege Plaetoria uel propter lasciuiam vel propter dementiam darentur, ita sta- tuit ut omnes adulti curatores acciperent non redditis causis. * This seems to be justified by lustinian., Inst., lib. 1, tit. 23 : Masculi puberes etfeminae uiripotentes usque ad uicesimum quintum annum com- pletum curatores accipiunt ; quia licet puberes sint, adJiuc tamen eius aetatis sunt ut sua negotia tueri non possint. See also lustinian., Inst, lib. 1, tit. 24 ; and Dig., lib. 4, tit. 4, c. 1, § 3. ^ Gains, Inst., lib. 1, c. 198 : Ex iisdem causis et in prouinciis a praesidi- bus earum curatores dari uoluit. A.D. 161-1C5.] LEGISLATION. 103 which he insisted on in the appointment of a tutor or curator for every child under twenty-live years of age increased the duties of the imperial authorities so greatly that, in addition to the jpraetor tutelaris, which he established for Kome and the city diocese, he permitted the proconsuls in the provinces to delegate their power to their lieutenants whenever they found it impossible to undertake it themselves.' In one case, too, he intrusted the duty of appointing tutores to the iuridi- cus at Alexandria.'' Now it will be at once apparent that if some met4iod were not devised by which the tutores and cura- tores might be compelled, when appointed by the imperial authorities, to accept the duties imposed upon them, the en- tire purpose of the new measure would be frustrated. In- deed, the law seems to have been passed solely with reference to those cases where no one was willing to present himself voluntarily as the orphan's guardian. It was based upon the principle of family responsibility, which plays so great a part in the Koraan law, the natural corollary of which was that every child's nearest relative was bound to look after the child's interests; so that if the relative did not take upon himself voluntarily this duty, it was deemed but just that the state should exert a controlling influence upon him. Marcus Aurelius, therefore, merely codified an acknowledged principle in the law when he enacted that if a father appoints any one as tutor or curator to his children, that person is bound to accept the position, unless he can allege some good reason for being excused.^ And this law extended with even greater propriety to those tutores and curatores who were ap- pointed by the emperor. The grounds on which persons ap- pointed were excused would, of course, be very various. It ' Dig., lib. 26, tit. 5, c. 1, § 1 : Legatus quoque proconsuUs ex oratione diui Marci tutorem dari potest. See also Dig., lib. 1, tit. 16, c. 15. " Dig., lib. 1, tit. 20, c. 2 : luridico, qui Alexandriae agit, datio tutoris constitutione dini Marci concessa est. ^ Dig., lib. 27, tit. 1, C. 15, §§ 1 and 2: 'O rif Trarpl tTrayyfiXa/tfroc eiri- TpOTTEvBiv Twv iraiSoJV cKpieffBai ravrrjc rriQ tTriTpoTrrjc ov Svvarai, kclv oWujq exy SiKUia d(ps(Tiiog. EiSivai Sh oti d^iiofia ovSevl Trape^si Trapairrjaiv. oSrev idv Tig avjKXtjTiKOC y, ovtoq iTnTpoinvaH Kai twv KaraSeeffTepac tuK^wq ovT(DV (TvyKXrjTiKuip, OTTEp dvTsypa\liai> oi Bdoraroi MdpKog Kai Ko/Ji^odog. 104 MARCUS AURELIUS AXTOXIXUS. [CHAP. III. is possible, however, to give an imperfect list of them, and it will be observed that the law on this subject was developed mainly in the rescripts of Marcus Aurelius. In the first place, he declared that no person connected with the treasury should be compelled, so long as his fiscal duties continued, to act either as tutor or as curator} Indeed, we learn in another place that any one exercising any office of power under the state might be excused, but that if he had already undertaken his tutelary duties, he could not be released therefrom by being appointed to a public office.* Further, those who al- ready had three or more children of their own to look after were, as a rule, excused by Marcus from accepting tutorships, on the ground that their time was fully occupied in caring for the interests of their own family.' Poverty could, also, according to a rescript of Marcus, be alleged, and would be accepted as a valid excuse for not entering upon the duties of guardianship.* Again, in another i-escript of the same emperor, it was declared that the mensores fruraentarii^ i. e., persons who were engaged in measuring the corn conveyed up the Tiber for the public granaries, were excused from acting as tutores or curatores!' This was in order that a de- partment which was of such vital importance to the public welfare might not suffer by even a temporary absence of its ■ lustinian., /«sf., lib. l.tit. 35, c. 1: Item diuus Marcus in semenstribus rescripsit, eum qui res Jisci administrate a tutela uel cura, quarndiu ad- ministrate exeusari posse. See also Dig., lib. 27, tit. 1, c. 41. * lustinian., Inst., lib. 1, tit. 25, c. 3: Et qui potcstatem habent aliquam, se excusare possunt, ut diuus Marcus rescripsit ; sed coeptam tutelam de- screre non possunt. See also Dig., lib. 27, tit. 1, c. 17, § 5. ^ luris anteiustinian. frag., c. 24,7 : Qui tres phiresue liberos habent superstites, exeusari solent idque compluribus const itutionibus cauetur tarn divLWum Marci et Luci,quihus Pontium Marcellum trium liberoriim pa- irem liberauerunt litteris ad eum emissis, quam dominorum nostrorum. * lustinian., Inst., lib. 1, tit. 25, c. 6: Sed et propter pavperitatem ex- cusationem trihui tam diui fratres quam per se diuus Marcus rescripsit, si quis imparem se oneri iniuncto possit docere. See also Big., lib. 27, tit. 1, c. 7; and luris anteiustinian.frag., c. 185, 240, and 243. * Dig., lib. 27, tit. 1, c. 26 : Mensores frumentarios habere ius excusationis apparet ex rescripto diuorum Marcia et Commodi, quod rescripserunt prae- fecto annonae. A.D. lGl-165.] LEGISLATION. servants. In some cases, also, we find that Marcus allowed insignificance, or rusticity, or domestic diSiculties, to serve as a good excuse.* So, too, if a man was chosen as tiito)- or GU7'ator at Rome, and he did not live there, or in one province while his home was in another.^ For similar rea- sons no inhabitant of Komc or the city diocese was obliged to accept a tutorship in any of the regions of Italy which were under the supervision of the iuridici, or in any of the prov- inces. But the Emperor took care to enact that those who accepted legacies under the testament which appointed tlieni tutores, were bound to accept the tutorships also/ Lastly, we have a rescript which exhibits in a striking way the character of Marcus. Previous to his time it was the law that no per- son who was seventy years of age could be compelled to ac- cept a tutorship. But now the Emperor declared that old age could not be pleaded as an excuse. It seemed to him a mis- take that the state should be deprived of the sound judgment and ripe experience which comes with advancing years; and he therefore insisted that no one who had seen seventy years of life should be excused, unless some special ground of inca- pacity were shown." Thus we see that it was the question of expediency which governed Marcus in all these regulations. He never compelled any one to accept the guardianship of a * luris antenistinian. fraff., c. 244: Mediocritas et rusticitas et domesticae lites interdum exeusationes merentur ex epistula diuoriim Hadriani et An- tonini et fratrum ad Gaerellium Priscum praetorem tutelarem. ' luris anteiuntinian.frag., c. 203 : Est et hoc genus excusationis, si quis se dicat domicilium no7i habere Romae delectus ad munus uel in ea prouincia, uM domicilium non hahet, idque et diuus Marcus Pertinaci et Aeliano consuli- ius rescripsit. * Juris anteiustinian. frag., c. 205: Provide si quis ad urbicam diocesim pertinens testamento tutor datur, excusare se debebit db eo j)atrimonio^ quod in regionibus iuridicorum est, similiter a re prouinciali ; sed caueat, si legatum accepit, hocfacere; licite enim urbana sola administrat, uerum quia non in plenum uoluntati paret, legati ei relicti petitio denegabitur, idque diuus Mar- cus in eo, qui se a re prouinciali excusauit testamento tutor datus, Claudio Pulchro rescripsit. * Dig., lib. 36, tit. 1, c. 76 : Quamuis scire se diceret a diico Marco non excu- satum a tutela eum qui septuagensimum annum aetatis ingressus fuisset. 106 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. child if he felt that the guardian would be deterred thereby from performing some greater service to the public. But in all cases where a guardian was appointed, he insisted that if no excuse were alleged within a certain prescribed time, the guar- dian should lose his privilege of pleading an excuse.' It must not be supposed, however, that the Emperor, in his zeal to ob- tain guardians for the orphan children, was careless in the ap- pointments which he made, or that he intrusted this important duty to unworthy persons. He provided expressly that if the authorities of any city were unable to decide on a person in their own town who, in their judgment, was fitted for the office, it should be their duty to ask the authorities of the neighboring cities to nominate some honorable citizen for them,'' Further than this, he took every precaution to pre- vent the nomination of any man whose reputation was at all questionable ; and enacted that if any third person should come forward and make a hona fide complaint of the appointment of a certain curator^ the curator should be excused and another chosen in his place.^ Pie also applied to the case of the guar- dians now appointed by the public authorities an old law, which had been passed for the purpose of securing children against incompetency or rascality on the part of tutores appointed by their parents. By this regulation, if several persons were ap- pointed to act as tutores in common, and one of them offered to furnish a bond for the faithful performance of his duties, he was empowered to administer alone if the otheiis refused * -D/p., lib. 26, tit. 7, c. 1, § 1 : Id enim a diuo Marco constltutnm est, ut qui scit se tutorem datv.m nee excusationem si quam habet allegat intra tempore p'aestitiita, suo periculo cesset. ^ Dig., lib. 26, tit. 5, c. 24 : Diui Marcus et Verus Carnelio Proculo. " 8i quando desint in ciuitate, ex qua pupilli oriundi sunt, qui idonei uideantur esse tutores, officium sit magistratuum inquirere ex uicinis ciuitatibus honestis- simum quemqtie et nomina pracsidi prouinciae mittere, non ipsos arlitrium dnndi sihi uindicarey ^ Dig.,\\h. 27, tit. 1, c. 6, § 18: 'Ert aTroXvzrai imrpoTriig, oTrSrav afi(pi(rl3f}- rrjiriv tiq rif 6p(pavo^ inpi TrJQ KaTaaTaiTiuQ KU'y, (paivczai Si tovto jitj ffVKOrofessio a matre irata facta, resjiondit, ueritati locum super- fore. ^ Dig., lib. 23, tit. 2, c. 60 and § 5 : Paulxs libro singulari ad orationem diuiAiitoninietCommodi. . . . Quamuis uerlis aixitionis cautum sit,neuxor- em tutor pupillam suam ducat, tamen intelligendum est ne desponderi qui- dem posse. ' Dig., lib. 23, tit. 2, c. 16 : Oratione diui Ifarci cauetur^ ut, si senatoris filia libertino nupsisset, nee nuptiae essent. Also, Dig., lib. 23, tit. 1, c. 16 : Oratio imperatorum Antonini et Commodi, quae quasdam nuptias in perso- nam senatorum inhihuit, etc. * Juris anteiustinian.frag., c. 195 : Enim secundum orationem diui Marci, 114 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. ni. K'o portion, probably, of the Roman law was found by Marcus in such a deplorable condition as the law of inheri- tance. We have already found it necessary to deal somewhat with this question, especially with reference to the rights of children, wives, and slaves. We shall now consider the sub- ject rather more in detail. It has been the universal experi- ence of legislative bodies that justice can be more certainly and expeditiously obtained under a strict administration of the rules of law than under a system which attempts to isolate each particular case from all those which have preceded, and to decide it purely upon a consideration of its own individual circumstances. To this rule there is in the common law one marked exception. Testaments, which are presumed to be drawn up, as a rule, without legal advice, and which present in themselves an almost infinite variety of circumstances, are deemed to be scarcely capable of precedent ; and are, there- fore, treated with greater leniency than any other subject of the common law. In the Roman law, on the other hand, the rigidity of interpretation, which became even more marked as the mass of precedents accumulated, seems to have been ap- plied with equal cruelty to testaments and to other documents. To remedy this evil, to facilitate the transmission of property by will, was one of the aims for which the reign of Marcus Aurelius is celebrated. As we have already seen, a son while still in. patria potestas was incapable of holding any property. Whatever he might earn belonged in law to his father, or, if his father was not living, to the person in whose patria po- testas he was at the time. As a consequence of this principle 2, filius familiae was, of course, incompetent to bequeath any- thing by will. As long as the son continued a member of his father's family the injustice of the system was not so apparent. It pressed hardest on those who resided at a distance from qnam intastris praetoris recitauit Paulo iterum et Aproniano oonss. VIII. id. lan.^ id hdbebit anus, quod Tiabet in nepotibus ex Jilio natis. Cuius ora- tionis uerla haec sunt: '■'• et quo facilius ueterani nostri soceros repperiant, illos quoque nouo priuilegio soUicitauimus, ut auus nepotum ex ueterano praetoriano natorum iisdem c&mmodis nomine eorumfruatur, quihus fruere- tur, si eos hdberet ex Jilio.'''' A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 115 their fathers, or who were engaged in some foreign and inde- pendent occupation, as, for example, in the pursuit of war. To abolish entirely the right oi jpatrla jpotestas over all chil- dren twenty-one years of age would have been a step too far in advance of the general conceptions of the times. We have already had occasion, however, to observe some of the meas- ures which Marcus Aurelius felt justified in taking, in order to secure to the son some degree of independence. He now felt that he could, by a single act, promote the independence of the son, and improve the condition of the soldier. He therefore decreed that soldiers, even though in patria potestas, should be at liberty to dispose by will of any property which they had acquired in the army.' / Another method by which Marcus attempted to facilitat"e the transmission of property was with reference to the so-called praetorian succession. In the earlier times no property at Eoine could be transferred by will unless in accordance with a cumbersome process called mancipatio., corresponding in some respects to the livery of seizin in the common law. This method was felt in time to be so inconvenient, and under it so many persons were de- frauded of their inheritance by some slight flaw in the pro- ceedings, that the praetors grew into the habit of granting a new sort of succession, called honomm possessio, in those cases where the deceased had failed to make a will. The full name of this prsetorian succession was honorum possessio intestati ; and it was found to be such a simple method that it supplanted to a great degree the old manner of succession. Indeed, it was frequently preferred and made use of by those who were also entitled to the inheritance in accordance with the terms of the will, but who were not allowed to succeed through the will by reason of some failure in the proper legal ceremonies. So the praetorian succession came to be known under two * Ulpian., Frag.^ tit. 20, c. 10: Filius familiae testamentum facere non potest, quoniam nihil suum Jiabet, ut testari de eo possit. sed diuus Augiustua Marcus constituit, ut filius familiae miles de eo peculio, quod in castris ad- quisiuit, testamentum facere possit. See also Theophilus, Inst., lib. 2, tit. 10, c. 9. 116 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. heads : the 'bonorum possessio intestati, and the })onoruin pos- sessio secundum tdbulas j of which the former, since it was the earlier one established, would always prevail against the latter. This, however, Marcus deemed unjust. Both kinds of praetorian succession having been established in order to transfer the property in cases where there was no valid will, he maintained that of two claimants to the inheritance that one should be preferred whose claim was based upon an in- valid testament rather than he whose claim was founded upon no testament at all. This decision is set forth in a rescript which he delivered.' The method of relying, in the interpre- tation of wills, rather upon the intention of the testator than upon the strict form of the document (a principle which has been incorporated into the common law), is conspicuous in several rescripts of the Emperor. In one case, for example, we read that he held all formal words uimecessary, and even permitted a testament to be written in a foreign tongue, pro- vided only the meaning was made clear." Another instance is the following : A certain IS'epos, then deceased, had made bis will in due form ; but afterwards, for some reason, had changed his mind with reference to the heir, and erased the name of the man whom he had instituted. Before being able to appoint any other heir he died. In strict law, therefore, the entire will was void; but, since it was evident that the will expressed accurately the disposition which the testator wished to make of his property, Marcus declared that the legacies must be discharged in accordance with the testator's wish.^ A further proof of the Emperor's desire to do away " Gaius, Inst., lib. 2, c. 120 : Bescripto enim Imperatoris Antonini signiji- catur, eos qui secundum tabulas testamenti non iuref actus lonorum posses- sionem pet ierint, posse aduersus eos qui ab intestato ^rmdicant hereditatem defendere se per exceptionem doli mali. See also Poste's commentary on the Institutes of Gaius, pp. 188-9. ' Dig., lib. 28, tit. 1, c. 20, § 9 : Non tamen intellegentiam sermonis exi- gimus: hoc enim diuus Marcus Didio luliano in teste, qui Latine non no- uerat, rescripsit: nam si uel sensu percipiat quis, cui rei adhihitus sit, svf- ficere. ^ Big., lib. 28, tit. 4, c. 3: Antoninus Caesar remotis omnibus cum delibe- A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 117 with all formality in matters of inheritance is shown in the very slight importance which he attached to the so-called cretio. In the Roman law, by which the heir stepped into the shoes of the deceased and represented his entire person- ality, it had always been deemed important that, on entering upon his duties, he should declare solemnly by cretio his in- tention of becoming heir. He was allowed, however, if a heres institutus, to diCt pro herede without making this decla- ration. But in that case he was bound to admit the heres S'uhstifutus, if there was one, to a share in the inheritance. Marcus, now, took another step towards the abolition of the formal cretio, by permitting the heres institutus to act as sole heir even without making the declaration.' Finally, he passed a law for the purpose of securing children from being de- frauded of their inheritance by their guardians. It had long been customary for testators, in making their wills, to provide that, in case the person whom they instituted heir failed to accept, a certain other person should be substituted heir. This was called the suhstitutio uulgaris. When the heir instituted by the will was the testator's imputes child, it was customary to substitute an heir to succeed in case the child should die rasset et admitti rursus eodem iussisset, dixit: '■'■ Cansa praesens admittere uidetur humaniorem interpretationem, ut ea dumtaxat existimemus Nepo- tem irrita esse uoluisse, quae induxiV Nomen serui, quern liberum esse iusserat, induxit. Antoninus rescripsit liberum eum nihilo minus fore : quod uidelicet fauore constituit libertatis. A similar decision of Marcus Aurelius is found in Dig.^ lib. 34, tit. 9, c. 12 : Cum quidam seripsisset Jiere- des qiios instituere non potu^rat, qiiamuis institutio non ualeret neque su- perius testamentum ruptum esset, heredibus tamen ut indignis, qui non ha- buerunt supremam uoluntatem, abstulit iam, pridem hereditatem. quod diuus Marcus in eius persona iudicauit, cuius nomen peracto testamento testator induxerat : eausam enim ad praefectos aerarii misit : uerum db eo legata relicta salua manserunt. And again, in Big., lib. 34, tit. 9, c. 16, § 2 : Cum Tieredis nomen mutata uoluntate pater familias incisis tabulis induxisset atqiLe ideo fisco portionis emolumentum adiudicatum fuisset, earn, rem lega- tariis non obesse, qui retinuerant uoluntatem, diuo Marco placuit, et ideo cum sua onere fiscum succedere. ' Ulpian., Frag., tit. 22, c. 34 : 8ed postea diuus Marcus constituit^ ut et pro herede gerendo ex assefiat heres. 118 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. before attaining pubertj. This was the suhstitutio pupillaris. It will be seen that the substitutio pupillaris always implies the substitutio uulgaris j and in Cicero we read of instances where it was presumed from the former that the latter was intended.* In other words, it was presumed that where a father appoints his son heir, and then provides that some one else shall be heres suhstitutus, it is intended that the latter shall succeed at once if the child, upon his father's death, has not attained pubertj. This was manifestly unjust, and in many cases quite contrary to the wishes of the deceased. In- deed, it is a proposition which does not appear to have been very frequently maintained. The converse of the proposition, however, is not only much fairer towards the children of the deceased, but it also in the majority of cases embodies the real intention of the testator. So Marcus Aurelius enacted that if a testator's will discloses a substitutio uulgaris, no mention being made in the will of the testator's son, and the testator dies leaving an hnpubes son, it will be presumed that the in- tention was to create a substitutio 'pujpillaris? It is a universally acknowledged principle that no country can long continue prosperous where the various obligations that arise in trade and commerce cannot be strictly enforced by the authority of the law. Unless the government takes measures to insure the regular payment of loans and other forms of credit, capitalists prefer to let their money lie in idleness rather than to risk it upon investments from which they cannot be certain of obtaining a return. As a conse- quence, business becomes stagnant, and few extensive improve- ments are undertaken. Men confine themselves rather to petty enterprises, and the general welfare of the state must suffer. It was probably some such considerations as these * M. Tullius Cicero, Be inuent. rhet., lib. 2, c. 21 and 42 ; De oratore, lib. 1, c. 39 and 57, and lib. 3, c. 6 and 32 ; Brutus, c. 39 and 52 ; and Pro Caecina, c. 18 and 24. "^ Big., lib. 28, tit. 6, c. 4 : lam hoc iure utimur ex dim Marei et Veri constitutione, ut, cum pater impulerifilio in alterum dasum substituisset, in utrum casum substituisse intellegatur, siue Jilius heres non exstiterit sine exstiterit et impubes decesserit. A.D. 161-105] LEGISLATION, 119 that induced Marcus Aurelius to enact that, if any person lent money to another for the purpose of restoring a building which had been destroyed, he should have a lien upon the new building when completed/ This privilege he further extended to the creditor who, upon the promise of the archi- tect, furnished money directly to the builders as payment for their labor.^ In the same way, in cases where a house owned by two or more persons in common had been destroyed, he encouraged them to rebuild it by declaring that if one of them would take upon himself the responsibility of reconstruction, he should be entitled to a return of his principal, with interest, from the other owners ; and that, if they failed to pay him within four months after the edifice was erected, the entire property in the premises should vest in him.' One of the greatest hinderances to business enterprises of all kinds is a lack of mutual confidence between the parties. The capitalist or vendor is reluctant to furnish credit, for fear the contract- ing party may prove to be insolvent. This risk was perhaps greater under the Empire than it is with us, owing to a peculiar characteristic of the Roman system. It was the custom, in order that a man might preserve his reputation, for him, when aware of his probable insolvency, to come to an agreement with his creditors, by which they were to succeed to the in- heritance of his estate. Thlspactio was sanctioned by law in all cases of insolvency where a majority of the creditors de- sired it. Antoninus Pius had declared that a minority of the creditors, even though the treasury and other privileged classes (of course, not including mortgagees) were among the number, were bound by the decision of the majority. To this ' Dig., lib. 42, tit. 5, c. 24, § 1 : Diuus Marcus ita edixit: '■'■ Creditor, qui ob restitutionem aedificiorum crediderit, in pecunia, quae credita erit,pri- uilegium exigendi habebity ' Big., lib. 20, tit. 2, c. 1 : Senatus consuUo quod sub Marco imperatore factum est pignus insulae creditori datum, qtd pecuniam ob restitutionem aedificii exstruendi mutuam dedit,, ad eum quoque pertinebit, qui redemptori domino mandante numraos ministrauit. ' Big., lib. 17, tit. 2, c. 52, § 10 : Oratio enim diui Marci idcirco quattuor mensibusfinit certas usuras, quia post quattuor dominium dedit. 120 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [chap. ill. system there could be no possible objection, were it not for the fact that the creditors, in their eagerness to secure them- selves individually from all loss, often made private stipula- tions with the bankrupt, so that there M'as a great deal of dif- ficulty in finding out what the desire of the majority really was ; and moreover, the entire proceedings were of such a secret nature that innocent persons were often induced, after the jpactio had been made, to lend the bankrupt sums of money, in ignorance of any such previous assignment of his property. It was desirable that the ])actio should not be allowed unless agreed upon at a formal assembly of a majority of the credit- ors. Such was the provision made by a constitution of Mar- cus on the subject.' In order to induce his people to under- take new enterprises on a somewhat larger scale than here- tofore, tlie Emperor encouraged in every way the formation of corporations. Their privileges, too, he extended in some respects. "We have already considered the constitution by which he granted to corporations the power of manumitting slaves. In another rescript we read that he permitted them to be the recipients of legacies," a right which had hitherto been withheld from them, because they were deemed incapable of going through the form of declaration necessary before an individual could become an heir. He also endeavored to con- centrate the interest of members in their corporations by de- claring that no man should be a member of more than one society ; if he found himself already in two, he was to choose at once from which of them he preferred to withdraw, and his associates in that corporation should be bound to refund * Big.^ lib. 2, tit. 14, c. 10 : Rescriptum autem dim Marci sic loquitur, quasi omnes creditores debeant conuenire. . . . et repeto ante formam a diuo Marco datum diuum Pium rescripsisse fiscum quoque in Ms casibus, in qui- hus hypotliecas non ha'bet, et ceteros prluilegiarios exemplum creditorum sequi oportere. See also Big., lib. 2, tit. 14, c. 33. * Big., lib. 34, tit. 5, c. 20 : Cum senatus temporihus diui Marci permise- rit collegiis legare, nulla didjitatio est, quod, si corpori cui licet coire legatum sit, ddteatur : cui autem non licet si legetur, non ualebit, nisi singulis lege- tur : hi enim non quasi collegium, sed quasi certi Jiomines admittentur ad L A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 121 to him his proportion of the total assets,' In the Roman Empire there were many ways in which the public treasury succeeded to tlie property of private individuals. By gift, by forfeiture, by failure of heirs, a large amount of property, both real and personal, passed into the imperial treasury. How to dispose advantageously of the articles that from time to time accumulated in the hands of the emperor was a prob- lem of considerable importance. As a rule, they were offered to buyers at a public sale. But the people were somewhat chary of investing in articles offered in this way ; for in many instances it turned out that the treasury had a bad title to the goods ; and, on a valid claim being presented to the authorities, the one who had bought the goods was bound to surrender them to the claimant. This was a disadvantage which it was scarcely possible to prevent. What was needed was rather to lessen the vendee's risk by setting a limit to the time in which the original owner could put forth his claim. Such appeared to Marcus Aurelius the desired amendment to the system. Accordingly, he enacted that the vendee ac- quired a valid title to any property bought from the treasury, provided no prior right in the goods was proved within five years from the time of the sale.'' Other measures for the pro- tection of buyers, we are told, he introduced in the matter of money-changers and public auctioneers.^ In nothing is the activity of Marcus Aurelius more ap- parent than in the laws he passed to meet the special dan- gers with which his reign was threatened, viz., the famine and the plague. We have already had occasion to consider ^ Big., lib. 47, tit. 22, c. 1, § 2 : Non licet autem amplius quam unum col- legium licitum habere, ut est constitutum et a diuis fratribus : et si quis in dudbiis fuerit, resc7'iptum est eligere eum oportere, in quo mag is esse ue- lit, acceptuTum ex eo collegia, a quo recedit, id quod ei comp)etit ex ratione, quae communis fu it. " lustinian., Inst., lib. 2, tit. 6, c. 14 : Edicto diui Marci cauetur, eum qui a fisco rem alienam emit, si post uenditionem quinquennium praeterierit, posse dominum rei per exceptionem repellere. See also lustinian., Cod., lib. 2, tit. 36, c. 3 ; and Iheophilus, Inst, lib. 2, tit. 6, c. 14. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil. c. 9 : AUasque de mensariis et auctionibus tulit. 122 MAKCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. some of the measures to which he was impelled by the over- flow of the Tiber and the famine consequent thereon. Here- after we shall have something to saj of his efforts to mit- igate the plague. At present it will be well to mention a few laws which he passed for similar purposes, but not with a view to meet any special emergency. In those times, when the science of agriculture was in its infancy, when the geographical area of the world was comparatively unknown, and when all merchant vessels depended solely upon the winds, the result of a poor harvest in any one part of the world was terrible in the extreme. The history of India, in our own times, furnishes a true picture of the suffering which in former daj's fell periodically upon the fairest portions of Southern Europe. A long season of drought, followed by a famine, left but one course open to a majority of the inhabit- ants — to starve. So horrible were these scourges that from the very earliest history of Rome we read of measures taken to mitigate the evil. Throughout the Eoman Eepublic there was no more burning question than the people's cry for corn. The legislation on this subject passed through an infinite va- riety of phases ; until in the time of Augustus it took a form which, with some few exceptions, it preserved until the down- fall of the Empire. The system introduced by Augustus was briefly this : a praefectus cmnonae was appointed, in whose hands was placed the duty of obtaining regular supplies of corn from the distant provinces. These supplies were kept, until called for, in the store-houses erected in different parts of Italy. The number of persons entitled to make use of the public granaries was limited, according to the system of Au- gustus, to 200,000, those being preferred who could establish the best title to Roman citizenship. The price which these persons had to pay was small, often falling very much below the market value. In some emergencies, indeed, the distribu- tions were gratuitous, this being regularly the case with those citizens who were in abject poverty. The charitable work thus instituted was of the utmost benefit, not only to the poor recipients, but also to the citizens at large. To this system there seem to have been only two objections ; and these were A.D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 123 not insuperable. In the first place, it furnished an opportu- nity for a great deal of unfair dealing on the part of the officials ; and, secondly, it tended to the discouragement of agriculture in Italy, The first of these two evils showed it- self in many ways ; but the danger most frequently experi- enced was lest the authorities in the towns or provinces should attempt to bring about an advance of prices by buying up all the corn there was in the market. Thus the ofiicials more than once succeeded in securing to themselves the profits which would otherwise have been realized by private dealers. In this way it would have been possible to thwart the entire scheme, the profits of the trade being now monopolized by the provinces and towns. To obviate this difficulty Marcus Aurelius declared it illegal for the provincial senate to offer grain of an inferior quality to that furnished by the praefectus annonae in Italy ; and he also deprived the different towns of the. right to regulate the price.' As regards the second objection to the system of Augustus, viz., that it tended to discourage Italian agriculture, there is little to be said. So long as the government undertook to supply the people with corn obtained in large quantities from the provinces, and sold at a great reduction, it was inevitable that the Italian farmers, who had hitherto commanded high prices for their produce, should suffer a diminution in their profits. They were un- able, of course, to compete for a moment with the government, which sold the corn at the lowest figure possible without suf- fering a loss. But they could still compete with the farmers in the provinces, from whom the government obtained its supplies ; and over them they possessed this obvious advan- tage, that whoever bought in Italy was saved the entire ex- pense of transportation ; hence the Italian farmers could com- mand a price considerably in advance of that obtained by the farmers in the provinces. Many of them, however, who had ' Dig.^ Jib. 48, tit. 13, c. 3 : Imperatores Antoninus et Verus Augusti in haec uerbfb rescripsenmt : " Minime aeqvum est deciiriones ciuiius stiis fru- mentum uilius quam annona exigit uendere.'''' Item scripserunt ius non esse ordirii cuiusque ciuitatis pretium grant quod inuenitur statuere. 124 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. become accustomed to much greater profits, preferred to live in idleness rather than to take the trouble of farming at a profit less than that which they had hitherto received ; and, consequently, a large part of the Peninsula was allowed to lie uncultivated. Marcus Aurelius saw that this result was very harmful to Italy ; and he therefore took measures to encour- age, as far as possible, Italian agriculture. Among other things he enacted that a litigant might not compel his adversary to appear in court during the harvest months, since this would be injurious to the occupations of the field. If the praetor summoned him and he did not come till the harvest was over, he was nevertheless protected ; but if he did come, he had to abide by the decision rendered, even though he was not bound in the first place to obey the summons. In cases, however, where the circumstances required his immediate presence, the praetor might insist upon his appearing in the midst of the harvest season.' Further, in order to protect the crops as far as possible from the droughts with which Italy was visited, the iEmperor introduced a measure regulating the use of water from the streams. By this regulation, the farmers living along the banks of streams were entitled to the use of the water for purposes of irrigation in proportion to the area of their land. If any one wished to claim a larger share, he was bound to prove some valid title thereto.'^ It remains to consider but one other enactment on the general subject of supplies. It was a custom not unusual in the Roman Empire, where ex- travagance was carried to an extent almost unprecedented, for parents to provide for the future support of their children by leaving them alimentary legacies in their wills. Even when this precaution was taken, however, a spendthrift son sometimes succeeded in frustrating his father's intention. ' Dig., lib. 2, tit. 12, c. 1 : Ne qiiis messium nindemiarumque tempore aduersarium cogat ad iudicium uenire, oratione diui Marci exprimitur, quia occiipati circa rem rusticam in forum compellendi non sunt. Sed si praetor, etc. ' Dig., lib. 8, tit. 3, c. 17: Imperatores Antoninus et Verus Aitgvsti re- scripserunt aquam de Jiumine puhlico pro tnodo possessionum ad irrigandos agros diuidi oportere, nisi propria iure quis plus sibi datum ostenderit. A.D. lGl-165.] LEGISLATION. 125 Being in want of ready money, he sought out some person with capital to invest, and bartered his future welfare for a present dissipation. To arrangements of this kind Marcus put an end.* We come now to those measures introduced by Marcus Aurelius for the general advancement of the state. In con- sidering them, we should bear in mind that the difficulties which he had to meet were, in tlie main, the same as those by which Hadrian and Antoninus Pius had been beset. Indeed, two of their troubles, dearth of population and insurrection among the imperial legates, fell upon Marcus Aurelius with greater force than upon either of his predecessors. This we shall see hereafter. At present we shall confine ourselves to Marcus's treatment of the three questions, liow to keep the provinces contented, how to provide the necessary resources, and how to preserve the imperial dignity and power. The harmonizing of these three pi^lems was very^ difficult to ac- complish; but it was a task to which the Emperor applied himself with the utmost diligence during his brother's ab- sence in the East ; and it may be safely said that his efforts were crowned with a success such as few emperors before him had attained. The methods which he employed in order to render the various parts of the provinces contented were somewhat novel. The financial condition of the state was such that he could not exempt them from the taxes imposed upon them by previous emperoi's, nor could he get along without the customary enlistment of soldiers from the prov- inces. He trusted rather to the arts of persuasion ; and en- deavored, by making the provinces feel their own importance, to inspire them with an enthusiasm for the central govern- ment. To improve the condition of the colonies seemed to him the first aim of one who had at heart the welfare of ' Dig.^ lib. 2, tit. 15, c. 8,: Cum hi, quibus alhnenta relicti erant, facile transigerent contenti inodieo praesenti : diuus Marcus oratione in senatu recitata effecit, ne aliter alimentorum transactio rata esset, quam si auctore praetore facta, solet igitur praetor interuenire et inter consentientes ar- hitrari, an transactio uel quae admitti debeat. 126 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. m. Rome itself. Consequently, all his measures introduced for the purpose of satisfying the provinces were really directed towards the accomplishment of those changes which would render the provinces better satisfied with themselves. As an instance of the way in which the Emperor applied this policy, it may be well to cite here a constitution providing that every man chosen member of a colonial senate was bound to ac-' cept the duties to which he was' elected ; but that if he were' unable, through poverty, to support the dignity of the oiSice, he might on that account be excused.' In this way the in- fluence and dignity of the colonies were advanced, and their growth in self-respect was accompanied by a corresponding feeling of loyalty to the Empire. When we consider the extended calamities that fell upon the Empire during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, and when we attempt to calculate the vast expenses which must have been incurred by the treasury on that account, we are fairly lost in wonder at the ease with which the necessary rev- enue was raised. I suspect, however, that if we were more accurately informed of the Emperor's secret thoughts and schemes with reference to this subject, we should find it was not without far-reaching plans and exceedingly minute calcu- lations that he was enabled to meet the obligations which were continually arising in all parts of the Empire. That we hear so little of the straitened condition of the finances in his time is due especially, no doubt, to two peculiarities of Marcus's system : in the first place, he deemed it wise to preserve as far as possible the public confidence in the government dur- ' Dig., lib. 50, tit. 4, c. 6 : Bescripto diuorum fratrum ad Rutilium Lupum ita declaratur : " Constitution qua cautum est, prout quisque decurio creatiu est, ut ita ei magistratum apiscatur, totiens seruari debet, quotiens idoneos et sufficientes omnes contingit. ceterum si ita quidem tenues et exJiausti sunt, ut non modo publicis hoiwribus piares non sint, sed et uix de suo uictum sus- tinere possint : et minus utile et nequaquam honestum est talibus mandari magistratum, praesertim cum sint qui conuenienter ei et suae fortunae et splendori pid)lico possint creari. Sciant igitur locupletiores non debere se hoc praetextu legis uti et de tempore, quo quisque in curiam allectus sit, inter eos demum esse quaerendum, qui pjro substantia sua capiant honoris digni- tatem.'''' A.D. 161-165] LEGISLATION. 127 ing these periods of misfortune ; and, secondly, lie refused to call upon the people in their calamity for extra subsidies. In short, he succeeded in gaining the end for which most legis- lators strive in vain — an increase in the revenue without any augmentation of the taxes. This result he brought about by practising a rigid economy in all departments of the state ; and there never was a state in which economy was more needed tlian in the Eoman Empire. The proverbial extrava- gance of the Roman people is displayed most clearly in their love of the theatre and the circus. The favorite amusements to which these places were devoted during the times of Marcus Aurelius were pantomimes and chariot races and gladiatorial combats. The pantomime was the form of drama which ap- pealed most forcibly to the Roman taste. It was imported from the East during the reign of Augustus, and at once be- came a popular means of recreation. The performers, how- ever, in this kind of representation, as, indeed, in all other theatrical exhibitions, were chiefly Greeks. The Romans had from their earliest history looked upon the actor's pro- fession as more or less degrading; and they could never fully make up their minds to enter it themselves. But they contributed with lavish hands to the support of the Greek actors who came to Rome. The number of theatres which we hear of in the city is astounding. One of them, that of Pompey, was said to seat 40,000 persons. The chariot- races, better adapted than scenic amusements to the stern character of the Romans, maintained their popularity till long after the reign of Marcus, In these entertainments the ex- citement was never allowed to flag. If the contestants proved an unequal match, the lack of interest in the race was com- pensated by the angry shouts of the defeated factions. To what a pitch the fury of these factions sometimes rose will be manifest when we recall thS riot in the circus at Con- stantinople in 532, which resulted in the death of 30,000 citizens. There was one recreation which delighted the Ro- man people far beyond all others— the gladiatorial combats. The Roman custom of matching armed men against each other for the amusement of spectators had its origin in b.c, 264, 128 MARCUS AUKELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. III. when Marcus and Decimus Brutus celebrated the obsequies of their father. As time went on, this amusement came to be regarded as appropriate to every occasion of rejoicing, and was, moreover, commended as a means of promoting courage and skill in self-defence. The combatants were originally con- demned criminals, but, as criminals were not numerous enough to appease the general appetite for the sport, it became cus- tomary for victorious emperors to bring their captives back to Kome, that the desires of their people might be satisfied. When prisoners of war were wanting, refractory slaves wel'e substituted for them ; and, as many wealthy slave-owners found thus a means of gratifying their vanity or ambition, the arena was seldom empty for lack of combatants. Indeed, the diffi- culty was rather that the arena was itself too small — an evil remedied by Vespasian and Titus, who erected the Colosseum, with a capacity to seat 100,000 persons. It was here that the Emperor Trajan, on his return from the last Dacian war, en- tertained the people with sports in which 10,000 gladiators combatted against each other. These amusements came to be such a regular institution at Rome that if an emperor re- fused to gratify the whims of the people in this matter, his folly was rewarded by an open rebellion. Even the best and most moral writers of the times seem to have had but a slight appreciation of the crimes every day committed about them. The licentiousness of the theatre, the dangers of the circus, and the barbarity of the amphitheatre they palliate rather than decry. We cannot fail to be disappointed at the small amount of good which Marcus Aurelius accom- plished in this direction ; and yet he did more than al- most any other emperor until the time of Constantino. As we have already seen, he passed a law prohibiting masters from selling their slaves that they might be employed in fighting with wild beasts. He also took many other meas- ures, not so much, it is true, for the purpose of abolishing all combats in the arena, as with a view to diminish the number and cruelty of the gladiatorial sports. Capitolinus records of him that " he moderated the gladiatorial shows in every way ; he also reduced the imperial donations in support of scenie A. D. 161-165.] LEGISLATION. 129 entertaiumeiits, by fixing the actor's pay at five aurei, and by providing that the manager of the performance should re- ceive no more than ten aurei at the highest."' Again, it is said that he restricted the theatrical performances in such a way that they might not interfere with trade.^ In Dion Cas- sius we are told that he had the gladiators fight with buttons on their swords ; and such was his horror of bloodshed that on one occasion, when a trained lion who had already caused the death of many men was brought in, he turned his face away in disgust ; afterwards, the people begging that the owner of the lion might receive his liberty, the Emperor re- fused to grant their request, saying the man had done no act to entitle him to freedom.^ On another occasion he enlisted the gladiators in his army, and took them off to defend the Empire against the barbarians — an act which caused the peo- ple to complain that* he was trying to make them all philoso- phers,'' The displeasure with which he looked upon all these kinds of amusement is brought out clearly by Gallicanus, who says that the only class of people by whom Marcus was not loved was the voluptuaries.^ It was in such ways as these that the Emperor endeavored to keep the treasury in a solid condition, while at the same time he was improving the morals ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 11 : Gladiatoria spectatula omnifariam tem- perauit. temperauit etiam scaenicas donationes, iuhens ut quinos aureos scaenici acciperent, ita tamen ttt nullus editor decern aureos egTcderetur. " Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 23 : lusserat enim ne mercimonia impedirentur tardius pantomimos exhibere non uotis diebus. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 39 : MapKOQ ye. n-qv oiSro* n ipovoiQ ovk ixaipev, ojffre Kal tovq fiovojxaxovQ iv ry 'Pix)fiy wcnrep dB'Xrjrag aKivcvvwc iu>pa /la^OjUEV- ovg • awt'jpiov yap ovSsTroTe ovStvl avTuiv o^v tSojKev, dX\d Kai dixj3\t(nv, wairep iffipaipionivoig, ttuvteq tfidxovro. Kai ovtij} ye iroppis) TravTog raefectus urbis. This position he held for several years ; and during the entire pe- riod of his administration he never lost the confidence of his sovereign." The same respect with wdiich Marcus treated Ju- nius Rusticus was exhibited, though in a less degree, to all eminent philosophers. In promoting them from one position to another the Emperor was fond of quoting the well-known saying of Plato, that either all kings should be philosophers, or else philosophers should become the kings.^ In his zeal, however, to reward those who were interested in his favorite pursuit, he did not allow himself to be deceived by false pre- tences. We are expressly told that he was very hostile to all such as, under the show of philosophy, were injurious to tlie welfare of the community and to the character of individu- als." Moreover, it must be remembered that, however great his esteem for philosophers, it was by no means from this class alone that his associates were chosen. Among members of the legal profession were some of his warmest friends. For example, L. Volusius Msecianus, who had been one of Mar- cus's instructors in the law,^ continued to act as his adviser in later years;* and the intimacy of their relations is shown by the affectionate way in which Marcus always mentions him ■ Fronto, Ejnst. ad M. Ant. Imf.., lib. 1, epist. 2. =* At exactly what time Rusticus withdrew from his official duties we cannot be sure. But, as we have numerous references to him, it may be presumed that his prefecture was of a considerable duration. See an in- scription found at Maintz and published by Orelli, no. 4345 ; also a re- script in the Digest, lib. 49, tit. 1, c. 1, § 3, addressed by Marcus Aurelius and Verus " ad lunium Busticum amicum nostrum praefectum uriis.'''' ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 27 : Sententia Platonis semper in ore ilUusfuit florere ciuitates, si aut philosophi imperarent aut imperantes pMlosopTiaren- tur. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 23 : Fama fuit sane quod suh philosophorum specie quidam rem publicam uexarent et priuatos. quod ille purgamt. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 3 : Studuit et iuri audiens L. Volusiiim Maecia- num. * Fronto; Epist. ad M. Caes., lib. 4, epist. 2 : Maecianus urgedat. A.D. 161-165] LEGISLATION. 135 in the Digest} Many other lawyers he kept continually about him for consultation." The one from whom he derived, perhaps, the greatest benefit was the eminent Scgevola.' Nor were these lawyers honored for their legal abilities alone. Several of them held important political offices under Marcus. Claudius Saturninus, for example, was at one time praetor." Indeed, it is one of the greatest beauties in Marcus's cl^arac- ter that, in spite of his intense liking for certain men and studies, he was yet capable of appreciating the good in almost everything. It is true, he never overcame the dislike for rhetoric which he had acquired in early life. But this aver- sion was directed rather to the particular phase of the subject presented to him by Fronto than to the true theory of the study. What he objected to was the deception practised by most rhetoricians in concealing, by a profusion of words, the paucity of their ideas. There can be no doubt that he ap- proved heartily the desire to express one's thoughts easily and clearly. Throughout his correspondence we cannot fail to see that he himself made an effort to do this; and Philo- stratus witnesses the same thing when he says that Marcus excelled all other emperors as a letter-writer.^ The general tenor of his private life, after being summoned to the throne, differs little from that which he had led in the society of Antoninus. He kept up the habit, which he had learned from his father, of spending the vintage seasons in the country ; and on all other occasions, when it was possible, he ' Big.^ lib. 37, tit. 14, c. 17 : Diuifratres in haec ueria rescripserunt ; " . . . Volusius Maecianus amicus noster ut et iuris ciuilis praeter ueterem et bene fundatam peritiam anxie diligens^ etc.'''' * Capit., M. Ant. Phil.., c. 11 : Habuit secum praefectos quorum ex autori- tate et periculo semper iura dictauit. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 11 : Usus autem est SmeiLola praedpue iuris perito. See also Dig., lib. 18, tit. 7, c. 10 ; lib. 36, tit. 1, c. 23 ; and lib. 50, tit. 1, c. 24. * Dig., lib. 17, tit. 1, c. 6, § 7 : Hie a Claudio Saturnino praetore, etc. * Philostratus, Dialexis, c. 1 : Tbv iTnaroXiKov x^-P'^i^T'ipo- tov Xoyov fierd Toi'g iraXaiovg dpiaTo. fioi doKovai die](TavTa, lirE^idj^tv. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 9 : Gestae sunt res in Armenia prospere per Sta- tium PrisGum Artaxatis capttis. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 14: Tipicdrtjv ffaTpcnr)]v to. re iv ry 'Apfiepig. rapa^avra Kai rbv tHjv "Hvtoxwv fiaaiKka cnroa^d^avTa^ rt^ re Briptp kiriri- fiUJVTL 01 TTEjoi TOVTdiv TO ^iipoQ tTvavaTHvofiivov, fiT) KTiivaQ., dW tQ Bperra- riai' TTSfiipag. * Capit, M. Ant. Phil, c. 9 : Delatumque Armeniacum nomen utrique prin- eipum. quod Marcus per uerecundiam primo recusauit, postea tamen re * Eckbel, V. 7, p. 90 ; and Clinton, Fasti Roman., ad an. 163. 10 146 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. ill. the second time.' In the next year, 164, Marcus accepted the title of Armeniacus.'' The coins of 164 also represent the Emperors restoring the former king to Armenia." This was Sosemus, who had been driven from his throne by Vologeses, and since his expulsion had lived at Rome." The news of the Roman success in Armenia soon spread throughout the country, and the army of Vol- ogeses, already beginning to be worsted, at- tempted gradually to withdraw. Once, how- ever, within the confines of Mesopotamia, the courage of the barbarians revived. They collect- ed together their scattered forces, and prepared again for bat- tle, but in vain. One after another their cities were forced to surrender. Dausara,^ Nicephorium,* and Edessa" all fell be- fore the Roman legions. The next battle was fought at Eu- ropus, with a like result.' The Parthians now retreated with all haste to the extremities of their kingdom, and Cassius pursued them with equal zeal. At the city of Sura they met again, where the Roman army was once more victorious.' On reaching Seleucia the Romans, it is said, were admitted inside the gates as friends, and then turned upon the inhabitants with their arms.' At any rate, the city was taken and set on fire,'" and Cassius continued his march to Ctesiphon. Here ' Eckhel, V. 7, pp. 50 and 90 ; and Clinton, Fasti Roman., ad an. 1G3. ^ Eckhel, V. 7,ix 50 ; and Clinton, Fasti Bojiian., ad an. 164. ^ Eckhel, V. 7, p. 91 ; and Clinton, Fasti Roman., ad an. 164. * Photius, BiUiotheca, c. 94 [v. 1, p. 75, line 29 of the ed. of Bekker, Berl., 1824-5]. ' Fronto, Epist. ad L. Ver. Imp., lib. 2, epist. 1. ^ Lucian., Quomodo hist, conscrib. sit, c. 22. ' Luciau., c. 20 and 28. * Lucian., c. 29. ' Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 8 : Et hoe nan L. Veri uitio, sed Casii a quo contra -fidem Seleucia, quae ut amicos milites nostras reeeper-at, expugnata est. '" Eutropius, Breuiar. hist. Roman., lib. 8, .. 10 : Seleudam., Assyriae urlem nodilissimam, cum quadraginta milUMs hominum cepit; Sextus Rufns,5rc- uiar., c. 21 : Seleueiam, Assyriae urhem., cum quadringentis milliJms hostium cepit; Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 2 : Kal rriv n ^eXivKnav Sis Thoughts, lib. 5, c. 6. ' Capit, Ver. Imp., c. 8: Beuerms e Parthico lello minore circa fratrem cultufuit Verus. nam et libertis inhonestius indulsit et multa sine fratre disposuit. ' Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 8 : Histriones eduxit e Syria, qiicyrmn praecipmis fuit Maximinus qxiem Paridis nomine nuncupatiit. * Fronto, Epist. ad L. Ver. Imp., lib. 1, epist. 2, written in 166. The circumstances of Fronto's death are not recorded, but It probably took place in this year; since Fronto had already reached an advanced age, and the correspondence, which had been continued, with scarcely an in- terruption, for the last five years, discloses a serious physical disorder in Fronto, and breaks off suddenly in the year 166. 16i MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. IV. consul.' But ill those days, when the consules svffecti were so often substituted for the regular consuls of the year, there is little reason to suppose that Lucius Yerus allowed himself to be long burdened by the duties of his office. The year 167 opened with a series of events well suited to extinguish any spark of hope yet lingering in the Romaji breast. For some time the barbarians on the northern fron- tiers had displayed an ever-growing uneasiness and desire for warfare. Only a few months after the death of Antoninus Pius the Chatti,a wild tribe dwelling in what is now Southern Germany, had wandered away from their home and made an incursion into the province of Rlisetia.* We are told that Aulidius Yictorinus was sent against them.^ But nothing further is recorded of this trouble." It appears, however, that this movement among the German nations, even if quieted for a little time, was by no means permanently settled. While the Parthian war was still in progress, a disturbance broke out among the Marcomanni ; and it was only by the most strenuous exertions of the Roman officers stationed in that part of the Empire that it was possible to delay an open ' Eckhel, V. 7, p. 52; and Clinton, Fasti Roman.^ ad an. 167. "^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 8 : Chatti in Germaniam ac Bhaetiam inrupe- rant. ^ Capit., M. Ant. PJiil, c. 8 : Contra Chattos Aitfidius Victorinus. * From a passage in Gallicanus, however, there seems reason to be- lieve that the hostilities carried on at this time between the Germans and the Roman forces w^ere of a somewhat serious nature. In the pas- sage referred to, it is stated that at one time the army of Avidius Cassius attacked three thousand of the Sarmatians on the banks of the Danube, and obtained from them a vast amount of plunder. Gallic, Auid. Cass., c. 4 : Cum exercitum duceret et inscio ipso manus anxiliaria centurionibus suis auctorihus tria milia Sarmatarum neglegentius agentium in Danuuii ripis occidissent et cum praeda ingenti ad eum redissent, etc. Since we know that Cassius was left in charge of the eastern provinces immedi- ately after the Parthian war (Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 3), and that he re- mained there until his death, we are forced to place the event mentioned above by Gallicanus in the period immediately preceding the Parthian war ; in accordance with this hypothesis, it seems likely that the ability of Avidius Cassius to conduct the w-ar in the East became known to the Emperors while he was yet fighting against the Germans. A. D. 166-169.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 165 war until the return of the army from the East.' At last the evil reached a point at which conciliatory measures were no longer possible. Just at the moment when the pestilence was raging at its very worst, the dismal tidings were brought to Eome that the Victual! and Marcomanni, two Avandering tribes whose temporary homes had been along the northern bank of the Danube, had stirred up their neighbors to rebell- ion by threats of slaughter, and, in company with them, had made an incursion into the Roman territories, had overthrown \X\Q praefectus -praetorio Victorinus, with a portion of his army, and had already advanced as far as Aquileia, on the Adriatic Sea.^ As the entire remaining portion of Marcus Aurelius's ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 12 : Dum Partkicum lellum geritur natum est Marcomannicum, quod dm eorum qui aderant arte suspensum est, ut finito iam orientall liello Marcomannicum agi posset ; also Galen., De prae- not., c. 9 [v. 14, p. 649 of Kiihn's ed.] : 'E7raw\?;Xi;S-6roc rov Mvk'iov, ttoXs/jlov d" irepov rov vpog Tepfiavovg iroKEiirjSikvTOQ avTolg apxr} KaBecTTTjKEi. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 14 : Et Victualis et Marcomannis cuncta tur- iantibus ; aliis etiam gentibus quae pulsae a superioribus harbaris fugerant nisi reciperentur bellum inferentihus. nee parum profuit ista profeetio, cum Aquileiam usqtie uenissent . . . qiiod amissus esset praefectus praetorio Fu- rius Victorinus atque pars exercitus interisset. Wietersheim, in his Geseh. der Volhencand., Buch 2, Capit. 1, Anmerk. 1, asserts, quite without rea- son, that Capitoliuus was in error as to the praefectus praetorio who was thus slain; and he refers to Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 3, in support of his view that the name of the praefectus praetorio was Macrinus Vindex. It will be evident, however, on consulting these two passages, that there is not the slightest ground for supposing that Dion Cassius and Capitolinus have in mind the same event. The death of Macrinus Vindex occurred, in all probability, at a later stage in the war. From a passage in Lucian, it appears that the engagement under Fu- rius Victorinus was of a very serious nature. In speaking of one of the oracles prochvimed by Alexander, he says that while Marcus Aurelius was in the heat of the war with the Marcomanni and Quadi, the oracle com- manding that two lions should be thrown into the Danube was obeyed ; and yet, as a denunciation of the false prophet Alexander, a great defeat and slaughter presently after befell the Eoman forces, nearly twenty thousand of them being slain in a single battle. Lucian., Alex, seu Pseud., c. 48 : Ai- Tiica Se TO fiayiffTOV rpavfia ToTg r/fiiTSpoic tysvero diafivpicov irov ffxicbv dSfpowv cLTToXofieviDv. That this slaughter of nearly twenty thousand of the Ro- man troops was the same battle as that in which Capitolinus says Furius 166 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [cnAP. IV. reign was occupied with struggles against these nations, it may be well to consider briefly the causes which led to this irruption in 167. For many centuries after the German tribes found their way into the territory between the Khine and the Vistula they preserved their primitive habits as a wandering people. Even so late as the days of Caesar they are described as subsisting mainly on what they could get by hunting and fishing, and as spending their spare time in making war upon their neighbors. After a while, however, they appear to have outgrown this style of life. They gradually cast off their wandering habits, and settled down to farming. At the same time their wars against each other became less frequent. This corresponds with the picture of them given us by Taci- tus, about a century after Christ. The result of this regular, agricultural life, combined with a comparative freedom from invasions, tended in a short time to a vast increase in the pop- ulation. Meanwhile it must be remembered that the pressure of their brethren from the East had never ceased. One tribe after another pushed its way westward into the territory of its forerunners, until, about the time of Marcus Aurelius, the country between the Rhine and the Vistula became so densely peopled that the inhabitants, with their imperfect knowledge of agriculture and mechanics, could no longer live on the products of their farms. Thus the old love for war and plun- der, which still smouldered in the German breast, was stimu- lated into activity once more. But there was one important difference between the movement which we are now consid- ering and that which first brought the Teutonic nations into Europe ; the Germans were no longer striving to acquire a home, but were seeking to enlarge a home which they pos- sessed already. In other words, while the first movement may properly be called a wandering, the second is to be re- Victorinus, -with a portion of his army, was slain, there can be no ques- tion ; for Lucian goes on to say that immediately after this slaughter fol- lowed the trouble at Aquileia, when the city itself was almost taken. hucian., Alex. sen Pseud., c. 4:8 : Eira tTrrjKoXovBijae ra irtpi 'AicvXrjtav ysvofuva Kai Tj Trapd /xiKpov Tijc TroXewg iiceiviiQ uXuxjiq. A.D. 166-169.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 167 garded rather as an expansion. This general expansion of the German tribes between the Rhine and the Yistula began to make itself felt in the Roman Empire at almost the same time tliat the Ostrogoths, another tribe of Germanic origin, dwelling just beyond the Vistula, at its mouth, began to spread in a southeasterly direction towards the Black Sea. With the Ostrogoths the reign of Marcus Aurelius is not at all con- cerned. They were gathering up their strength for a later period, leaving it to their brothers on the west side of the Vistula to make the first incursions into the Roman terri- tory. This inroad of the year 167 was the earliest of a series of invasions which form the main feature in all the later his- tory of the Empire. ISTow, for the first time, the Roman Em- pire was forced to take the defensive in her relations with the German people. We can readily believe that, when the intelligence of this new distress reached the plague-stricken city, the people were in consternation.' It seemed as if the many evils that had come upon them within the last few years must be a visita- tion from the gods. The Pagan superstitions, which had long been allowed to slumber in comjjarative quiet, awoke once more with all their former vigor. It was at this time that the notorious Alexander proclaimed the oracular mes- sage that the people were to trust in Phcebus ; that he was the god who would deliver them from the plague.' Such was the general terror that everybody believed the impostor, and Lucian tells us that in his days this oracle of Alexander was often to be seen inscribed on the doors of houses as an infallible alexijpharmacon^ All felt that some public sacrifice must be performed ; that the gods demanded an atonement for their neglected worship. Even Marcus, apparently, shared the general opinion. At any rate, he gratified on this occa- ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 13: Tantus autem timor lelli Marcomannici fuit, ut, etc. ' Lucian., Alex, seu Pseud., c. 36 : ^ol(3og uKepcreiconrjQ Xoi/iou ve(ps\r]v ane- pvKei. ' Lucian., Alex, seu Pseud., c. 36. 168 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. iv. sion the wishes of his subjects. In order that no one might be dissatisfied, he summoned priests from all directions, and performed not only the Eoman rites, but also those practised among foreign nations.' For seven successive days he con- ducted tlie Roman rite known as the lectisternium : "" and the people, believing that by this ceremony the transgressions of the past were purged away, began to look forward to the fut- ure with brighter hopes. At last the Emperors, clad in their military garments, set off together for the war.' This was, probably, in the early spring of the year 167.* It may seem strange that, after the life which Lucius had passed during his campaign in the East, his brother should have selected him as his companion in the German war; but the difference in circumstances must not be forgotten. On this occasion Lucius was not to serve as a mil- itary leader in any way. His position was clearly subordi- nate, if, indeed, he held any position at all. The reason why Marcus desired to have his brother with him is obvious. The rumor mentioned by Dion Cassius, that after the Parthian war Lucius became ambitious to rule alone, may have had no weight with Marcus ; but, at all events, he must have felt that his colleague was not deriving much benefit from his luxurious life in the Roman suburbs, and he certainly was do- ing little there to promote the welfare of the state.^ A sol- » Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 13: Undique sacerdotes Antonimis accitierit, peregrines ritus impleverit, Bomam omni genere lustrauerit retardatusque hellica profectione sit. The coins of 167 also represent the Emperor in the act of offering sacrifices. Eckhel, v. 7, p. 53. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 13: Celel/rauit et Romano ritu lectisternia per septem dies. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 14 : Profedi tamen sunt paludati amlo impera- tores. * It could not have been much earlier, for Lucius began his duties as consul on the 6th of January of that year. Nor could it have been a great deal later, for Marcus was already in Rome again on the 6th of Jan- uary, 168. * Capit., Fen Imp., c. 9 : Ad helium Germanicum Marcus quod nollet Lu- cium sine se uel ad lellum mittere uel in urle dimittere causa luxuriae, simul profecti sunt. A.D. 1C6-1C9.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNt.^f ' dier's life, under the strict surveillance of Marcus, miglrf be expected to produce a good result. The force which accompanied the Emperors on this expedi- tion against the Marcomanni was undoubtedly a small one; for, at the time, Rome was not able to furnish an army of great strength. Some few fragments of the troops which had returned victorious from the East were still left. These, with a few additions from the younger generation, probably consti- tuted the imperial forces. The march was directed towards the town of Aquileia, where the barbarians were believed to be collected. The distance to be covered was little more than three hundred miles ; so that in less than three weeks the Roman army came into the neighborhood of the enemy. The terrifying news which had been received at Rome had prepared them for a pretty serious encounter; but in this they were disappointed. On reaching Aquileia they were greeted with the intelligence that the enemy had withdrawn towards the northeast. In- stead of meeting with an armed resistance they were accosted by ambassadors from the various aggressive tribes, who now sued for peace. Tiie reasons for this change of attitude are manifest. When the Germans began their predatory march they had a very indefinite idea of what they wanted. Indeed, their numbers were made up from several independent tribes, each of which was urged on by its own peculiar interests. They seem to have had but two things in coviimon — dissatis- faction with their present lot and a longing for some change. Apparently, the most powerful element in this first uprising consisted of the Victuali and Marcomanni.' These tribes, al- ready outgrowing the limits of their territories, experienced about this time an unusual pressure from their neighbors on the north, and thus the final incentive was given to a migra- tion of many of their people. The natural direction for their wanderings was that in which they felt the least pressure — in other words, towards the south. Probably, too, they were ^ Cdi^it.^ 31. Ant. Phil., clA:-. Et Victualis et Marcomannis cuncta tur- lantibus. Of tbese two tribes the Marcomanni, from whom the war de- rived its name, were undoubtedly the leading power. 170 MAECUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. IV. allured by the attractive pictures of the lands of Italy which had been brought to them by occasional stragglers. These tribes, therefore, leagued themselves with the Germans who had pressed upon them from the north, and together they journeyed across the Carnic Alps in quest of a habitation.' On their way they were joined by several other tribes, or por- tions of tribes, who were discontented with their present con- dition. Ciiief among these were the Quadi, a powerful race who dwelt in the mountainous region contiguous to the terri- tory of the Marcoraanni on the east. By this motley throng of malcontents the country around Aquileia was laid waste. Not long, however, after their first appearance in the Roman provinces, dissension began to spread itself throughout their ranks. An army bound together by no stronger ties than a general feeling of dissatisfaction cannot remain- long united. One man after another straggled away from the main body, either with the belief that his individual needs could be best provided for by his own efforts, or else recalled by the pros- pect of a brighter future in his home. Several of the petty kings withdrew, taking with them the entire body of their people, and putting to death those who had incited them to the insurrection ; * so that when the Emperors arrived at the seat of war they were confronted solely by a number of am- bassadors, suing for pardon.^ On learning of this change in the attitude of the barbarians, Lucius, still despondent over the death of Furius Yictorinus, dreaded any farther advance of the army, and urged that the ambassadors' petitions should be granted.* Marcus, however, distrusted the sincerity of the Germans,^ or, at all events, fore- * Capit., 3LAnt. Phil., c. 14 : Aliis etiam gentibus quae pulsae a svperwr- thus 'barlaris fugerant nisi Teciperentur helium irtferentibiis. ^ Capit., M. Ant. PJiil,, c. 14 : Plerique reges et cum pcypulis suis se retraxe- runt et tumultus auctores interemerunt. * Capit., if. -4»t PA^?.,c. 14: Cum plerique ad legatos imperatorum mit- terent defectionis ueniam postiilantes. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 14 : Lucius quidem quod amissus esset praefectus praetorio Furius Yictorinus atque pars exercitus interisset redeundnm esse sebat. Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 14 : Marcus antem fingere larlaros aestimans et A.D. 106-169.] THE WAK WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 171 saw that the conditions which had given rise to the present trouble would before long recur once more. He therefore deemed it folly to retire without taking steps to prevent fut- ure depredations on the part of the barbarians. In the end the authority or arguments of Marcus prevailed. The Em- perors crossed the Carnic Alps into the provinces of Noricum and Pannonia/ and here they seem to have remained during the rest of the year, with a view to inspire fear in the barba- rians by their presence. In this same year the Quadi, who had recently lost their king, sent to the Emperors requesting them to choose his successor.^ Marcus seems to have com- plied with their request, and to have selected as their king a man named Furtius.^ Towards the end of the year Marcus felt' himself needed at Rome on some matter of state; and Lucius, to whom the provincial life in Pannonia offered few attractions, accompanied his brother as far as Aquileia," Ex- actly how long Marcus remained in the imperial city we can- not determine, but he was still there on the 6th of January, 168, for on that day he delivered an oration before the soldiers in the praetorian camp.^ Immediately upon the conclusion of fugam et cetera quae secnritatem hellicam ostenderent^ ob hoc ne tanti appar- atus mole premerentur instandum esse ducebat. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 14 : Denique transcensis Alpibus hngius processe- runt. " Capit., 3f. Ant. Phil, c. 14 : Quadi autem amisso rege suo non prius se cortfirmatrnvs eum qui erat creatiis dicebant quam id nostris placuisset im- peratoribus. ^ We are not told in distinct terms that this king, Furtius, owed his ap- pointment to Marcus Aurelius; but it seems probable that such was the case, for it is asserted by Dion Cassius that, when the Quadi, at a later stage of the war, dethroned King Furtius, and raised up a certain Ario- ga3sus in his stead, Marcus was so indignant that he refused in any way to recognize the new king. Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 13: Kai rbv f3aai\ea (T(piov ^ovpTiov fKJ3a\6vT£g, 'ApiojaKTOv avrol df' iavTuiv (SaffiXsa (j(pi(nv iaTrj- (Tavro. Kai tovtoiq Sid ravra 6 avTOKpdrwp ovre tKeivov, wf icai v6fi<{> rivi yeyovoTa efiffSaiiDaEV ovte Tag (nrovddg, Kai-mp irkvTt fivpidSag alxfiaXwrwv uTToSwaEiv vTnaxi'ovn'tvoig, dvEVEwaaro. * Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 9 : Conp)osito autem bello in Pannonia, urgento Lu- cio Aquileiam redierunt. ' luris anteiustinian. frag., c. 195 : Enim secundum orationem diui Marci, 172 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. IV. the business which had called him to Kome he returned to the North, and was joined by his brother at Aquileia. The two Emperors passed the rest of the winter together at Sir- mium, the capital of Pannonia/ where their time was occu- pied not so much in carrying on warfare as in settling dis- putes among the barbarian tribes, and in establishing on a firmer basis the relations of these tribes to the Roman Em- pire." It seems, however, that even as early as this Marcus anticipated renewed difficulties in the future, for he busied himself diligently in strengthening the fortifications neces- sary for the protection of Italy and of Illyricum." During the course of this year, probably in the summer of 168, it seems likely that another engagement took place between the Romans and the barbarians, in which the imperial forces came off victorious. Marcus and Lucius were now hailed as Im- peratores for the fifth time." Shortly after this event Lucius determined to remain in Pannonia no longer. The military regulations to which he had for the last eighteen months sub- jected himself were extremely distasteful to his nature. He quam in castris prnetoris recitauit Paulo iterum et Aproniano conss. VIII. id. Ian. ' This appears from a passage in Philostratus, -wliere it is stated that a certain dispute was laid before Marcus, then residing at Sirmium, in Pan- nonia. The date is fixed at 1C8 by the statement that Lucius was still alive at the time. Philostratus, Vit. SopJiist., \ib. 2, c. 1,§ 11: 01 Sk vin^- fiX^ov d r<^ ^ipfii<{) " Capit., Ver. Lnp., c. 9 : De quo hello [qidclem per legatos harbarm'um pa- cem petentmm quidem per duces nostras gestum est], 2 Cvi\At.., M. Ant. Phil., c.li: Composueruntque omnia quae ad munimen Italiae atque Illyrici pertinebant. ♦ Some of the coins of this year still bear the inscription Imp. IV. ; whereas on others we read the inscription Foi't. red. (i. e., Fortuna redux) as well as Imp. V. Eckhel, v. 7, pp. 57 and 93 ; and Clinton, Fasti Ro- man., ad an. 168. It is, therefore, evident that the advantage gained over the enemy which won for the fifth time the title of Imperatores oc- curred in the course of the year 168. A.D. 166-169.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 173 longed for the luxuries of city life.' The plague, too, appears to have broken out with unusual violence at this time, espe- cially about Aquileia, where the army was wintering.^ The celebrated Galen had been sent for, that the soldiers might re- ceive the benefit of his experience," but thus far his endeavors had failed to check the spread of the disease/ Marcus, there- fore, was compelled to give up his intention of marching against the Germans as soon as the winter was over;^ so he at last ceased to urge his brother to remain at Aquileia longer. A letter was despatched to the senate, instructing them to make preparations to receive the Emperors on their return to Rome;" and about the 1st of January, 169, they began the return-journey, taking with them a small body of their soldiers.' Lucius, however, was not to visit again the scene of his earlier debauches. Scarcely had they passed the town of Concordia, in the district of Yenetia, when, with the walls of Altinum almost in sight, Lucius was struck with a fit of apoplexy, of which he died at Altinum three days after.* This was between the 1st of January ' Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 9 : Qvodqiie urbanas desiderdbat Lucius uoluptates. * Galen., Z>e lib. prop., c. 2 [v. 19, p. 18 of Kiihn's ed.] : 'ETvijiavTOQ ovv fiov Ttic 'AKvXiac Kare(TKr]\l/(v 6 Xoi/xof wQ ovwd) irpoTtpov. ' Galen., Be lib. prop., C. 2 [v. 19, p. 18] : 'A^i'/cero c' EvBewg i^ 'AKvKiag rd Trapd Twv avTOKparopiov ypan^iara KaXowTwv fie. * Galen., De lib. prop., c. 2 [v. 19, p. 18]: 'Rfidg Se tovq ttoWovc fi6\iQ tv Xp6v TToWqi SiaaioBrivaty TrXeiarojv dTroXXvfteviiiv ov fiovov Sid rbv Xotfibv aXXd Kal to cid fisaov xufiwvoQ e'ivai rd vpaTTofiEva. * Galen., De lib. prop., C. 2 [v. 19, p. 18] : UpoypnvTO ydp auroi xiindcravrec iiri TOVQ Tepfiai'ovQ i^EXavvHv. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 14 : Placuit autem urgente Lucio ut praemissis ad senatum litteris Lticius Romam rediret. ' Galen puts it that they fled fr6m the disease. Galen., De lih. prop., C. 2 [v. 19, p. 18] : "QoT£ TOVQ fiev avTOKpdropaQ avTiKa ^evyuv ttQ 'Pw/xtjv ufia arpaTiwraiQ oXiyoiQ. * Capit., Ver. Imp., c. 9 : Sed non huge ah Altino subito in uehiculo moi'bo apoplexin uocant coi'reptus Lucius, depositus e uehiculo, detracto san- guine Altinum perductus, cum triduo mutus uixisset apud Altinum periit. See also Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 14; Eutropius, Breuiar. hist. Soman., lib. 8, c. 10; Orosius, Hist, adners. Pagan., lib. 7, c. 15, § 3; Victor, Epit. de Caes.., c. 16, § 5; and Victor, De Caes., c. 16, § 8. 174 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. IV. and the 23d of February, 169.' Marcus at once conveyed Lis brother's body to Rome,^ and placed it by the side of his father in Hadrian's splendid mausoleum.^ The senate thereupon raised the deceased Emperor to a place among the gods, in recognition of his services to the state during the troubles in the East; and Marcus, in a funeral oration, delivered in the senate, thanked that body for the honor thus conferred upon his brother, although, in pi-ivate, he acknowledged that he was himself the main author of the projects carried out in the Parthian war.^ Moreover, he now i-esigned the titles Armeniacus and PartJiicus^ which he had before been reluctant to accept, thinking it right that Lucius alone should be known to posterity by the titles won in the war in which he was, at any rate, the nominal commander.^ * That the death of Lucius did not occur till after the 1st of January, 169, is proved by the fact that some of the coins of that year bear his name. Eckhel, v. 7, pp. 94-5. Nor could it have been so late as the 23d of February, 169; for a law of that date in the Codex bears the name of Marcus alone. lustinian., Cod.^ lib. 6, tit. 27, c. 1 : Imf. Antoni- nus A. Aufidio et aliis. — Accepta VII. hal. Mart. Frisco et ApolUnare conss. " Galen., Be lib. prop., c. 2 [v. 19, p. 18]: MEraaTavroQ S' IS, avSrp'ofectionis diebus in secessu Praenestino agens filium nomine Venim Caesarem execto sub aure tubere septennem amisit. Herodian refers to the same event; but confuses the father's appellation with that of the son. Herodian., iTJsi., lib. 1, c. 2 : TCJv Si dppsvwv rovTOJV 6 jiiv 'irspog Ko/Mdy vsoc rbv jSiov fierrjXXa^e * Brjpiacnfioc S' rjv ovojxa avr<^. It has been maintained by Casaubon, in a note to Lam- prid., Gommod. Ant, c. 1, in his edition of the Script, hist. Aug.., that the sickness of Annius Verus is described in Galen., De praenot., c. 10 [v. 14, p. 651 of Klihn's ed.], and Casaubon is thus furnished with an argument to prove that Annius Verus was also known by the name Sextus. This opinion is, however, erroneous : for, in the first place, we do not find a son of Marcus spoken of anywhere else by the name of Sextus ; in the second place, iu the case described by Galen no mention is made of the Emperor, which would certainly have been done if the sickness occurred, as Capitoliuus says that of Annius Verus did, while Marcus was still in the vicinity of Rome ; thirdly, Galen says nothing of the issue in this case, at which he was one of the physicians, but he certainly would have done so if it had resulted in death ; and, lastly, Galen speaks of this Sex- tus as a son of Antoninus, and begins the chapter with the word ovv., thereby connecting it with the end of the preceding chapter, where he has just stated that he is about to describe the sickness of a son of Quintilia- nus. In short, the Sextus of whom Galen speaks was not the son of the Emperor, but of one Antoninus Quintilianus. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 16: Erat enim ipse tantae tranquillitatis, ut uultum numquam mutauerit maerore uel gaudio. See also Eutropius, Bre- uiar. hist. Roman., lib, 8, c. 11. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 21 : Quern nan plus quinque diebus luxit, con- solatusque etiam medicos actibus publicis se reddidit. 182 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. v. This was no easy task. Little more than two years before he had drained Rome of all her young men fit for service ; and the plague was still raging among the people. The energy which the Emperor displayed in this emergency is truly marvellous. No person capable of bearing arms was able to escape his eye. Scarcely a citizen was left at home %vho was not absolutely needed to provide the people with the necessaries of life. He enlisted all the gladiators under his banners, thinking it wrong to sacrifice lives at Rome for amusement while the citizens in Pannonia were shedding their blood to save the state. The slaves, too, he instructed in the art of war. Moreover, by his orders the diogmitae, or light-armed troops who were kept on the frontiers for the pursuit of robbers, became now a portion of the regular army ; and, lest danger might thereby result to the provinces, he made soldiers out of all the robbers whom he could secure. Further, whenever he could win a barbarian nation to his side, either by conquest or b}^ persuasion, he joined its members with himself against the other tribes.* To ac- complish this in the then existing condition of the treasury required a great sacrifice. Indeed, so straitened were the fi- nances at the time that there was scarcely sufiicient money in the treasury to furnish the regular pay to the soldiers. The Emperor, therefore, rather than impose a new tax on the prov- inces, offered at public sale in the Forum of Trajan his own personal treasures and all those insignia of the imperial dignity which were not absolutely needed for state ceremonies.' After the war was over he redeemed his goods from all who were willing to sell ; but in no case did he compel the purchasers to return them." Before starting he held out to the despond- ent soldiers the prospect of a reward ; and, as an earnest of his intentions, a donatiuum was distributed to the army while ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil.., c. 21 : Serxios, quern ad modum hello Punico factum fuerat., ad militiam parauit. quos uoluntarios cxemph uolontim. appellauit. a/rmauit etiam gladiatores. quos dbsequentes appellauit.latrones etiam Dal- matiae atque Bardaniae milites fecit, armauit et diogmitas. emit et Oer- manorum auxilia contra Germanos. * Capit., ilf.^««. Phil., c. 17 and 21; and Etropius, Breuiar. hist. Roman., lib. 8, c. 13. ^C&^\i.,M.Ant.Phil.,c.\l. A.D. 169-178.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 183 yet in Eome.' That the dangers of the pestilence might be reduced to a niinininm, and that all possible assistance might be furnished to the wounded, Marcus urged the physician Galen to accompany him ; but Galen succeeded in excusing himself," and the army marched without him, the Emperor giving orders that if Commodus, who was left at Rome under the care of his instructors, should at any time need medical advice, Galen was to be summoned at once.^ The date of the departure was the autumn of 169 ; * and it appears that when the Emperor left the city he expected to return within a short time.^ In this hope Marcus was disappointed. The historians of his reign record that the Roman armies had never undergone a severer struggle than that to which they were exposed in the war with the Marcomanni.* In the short interval which had elapsed since the Emperor had last awed the barbarians by his presence, an unprecedented uprising had taken place among the tribes. The whole of Germany seemed to be in a state of violent commotion, ready to hurl itself upon the Roman fron- tier. As Capitolinus puts it, "Every nation, from Illyricum ' This event is fixed to the year 169 by a coin which bears the inscrip- tion M. ANTONINVS. AVG. TR. P. XXIII.; reverse: LIBERAL. AVG. V. COS. III. Eckhel, v. 7, p. 57. '^ Galen., De praenot., c. 9 [v. 14, p. 650 of Kiihn's ed.] : T/'/e Itti tovq rep/xm'ovQ oSoiTTopias dx^ro KEXfywi/ sTreaSrai Kq,jxk. xpif^Tov 3' ovra kuI (piXdv- ^pwnov avTov tSvvi]Srr}v, (l>g o'i(7Ba, iruaai KaTaXnrsXv tv ry 'Pw//j; /i€. ' Galen., De praenot.^ c. 9 [v. 14, p. 650] : K6|U/to^oc, virb UeiSroXdi^ Tps(p6- fitvoQ IvToKaQ txovTL Trap' avrov rov avroKparopoq 'Avtojvivov, kuXeIv Trpbg ttjv tTrij^iXiiav sTTi TraiSbc, ei vo(Tr](TEis irore. * The date of the departure is proved to be 169 by a coin bearing the inscription M. ANTONINVS. AVG. TR. P. XXIII. ; reverse : PROFEC- TIO. AVG. COS. nil. S. C. Eckhel, v. 7, p. 58. From a passage in Ga- len it would appear that the Emperor's stay in Rome was no longer than was absolutely necessary to pay the final honors to his brother. Galen., De praenot., C. 9 [v. 14, p. 650] : "O dSeXcpog avrov KOfihag slg 'Pio/irjv to rrw/xa Kal 7roii]]v Uawoviav txi^v 6pfir]Tt]piov, iiroKiiii^aiv, 186 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.V. praetorian rank. Now, however, owing to the incursions of the barbarians, this part of the Empire began to take such a prominent phice in history that the Emperor raised Pannonia Inferior to the dignity of a consular province.' This was not the only change that Marcus introduced in the administration of the j)rovinces. He lived at a time when new forces were making themselves felt in the state, and, as a consequence, new methods of administration were needed. Marcus Aurelius was the first emperor to perceive the necessity of guarding his northern boundaries, not only by stronger lines of fortification, but also by a minute and personal attention to the politics of that region. Foreseeing that, sooner or later, the barbarians must be allowed to settle in the Empire, he sought not so much to drive back the invaders by force of arras, as to strengthen the provinces against injury at their hands. With this in view, he did not hesitate to make a number of changes in the constitution of the provinces." What he had done for Pannonia Inferior he did also for the province of Dacia; and the wisdom of this measure is evidenced by the fact that after the reign of Marcus Aurelius we hear of none but consular legates administering in Dacia.^ A similar change he made in Rhsetia, which had been previously governed by a &[inY)\e p7'ocurato7' f' during the reign of Marcus, and after- wards, until the time of Diocletian, it was governed by the commander of the legion stationed there.* With regard to the forces which Marcus had under his com- mand during this war the historians of the time tell us almost nothing. We are enabled, however, by the aid of inscriptions, to form a tolerably accurate estimate of their strength. There can be no doubt that the Roman army stationed at this time * Marquardt, Edm. Staatsverwaltung^ v. 1, p. 138. ' Capit., M. Ant. PJiil., c. 22 : Prouincias ex proconsularibm consulares aut ex consularibus proconsulares aut praetorias pro lelU necessitate fecit. ' Marquardt, Rdm. Staatsverwaltitng, v. 1, p. 154 ; and Berlin. Akad. der Wiss., Corp. insc. Latin., v. 3, nos. 823, 826-7, and 1092. *Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 24; Orelli, no. 1943; Marquardt, Rom. Staats- verwaltung, v. 1, p. 135 ; and Berlin. Akad. der Wiss., Corp. insc. Latin., v. 8, nos. 993, 1017, 5793, and 5874. A.D. 169-178.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNL 187 along the northern boundaries was far greater than that com- manded bj Lucius Yerus in the Parthian war. Even when the demand for soldiers in other parts of the Empire was greatest, a liberal supply of men had always been ief t to guard the northern frontier. The repeated inroads of plundering barbarians from the North necessitated an ever -increasing watchfulness on the part of Roman emperors. And it seems likely that the number of legions regularly stationed in Rhse- tia, Noricum, Pannonia, and Dacia was never greater than at the breaking-out of the Marcomannic war. To this body an important addition was made by the withdrawal of the troops from Syria after their victory over Yologeses. So that when the Emperor returned to Pannonia, after the death of Lucius, he was in command of an army numbering sixteen legions at the least. These legions were, apparently, the 1st, called Itali- ca,'^ the 1st, called Adiutrix ;^ the 1st, called Mineruiaf the 2d, called Adiutrix ;" the 4th, called Flauia Felix f" the 5th, called J/(2(?66?6»w/m;' the 8th, called Augusta f the 10th, called ' This was the one which Nero had stationed in McEsia Inferior. Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 24. * Instituted by Galba, and placed by him in Pannonia Inferior. Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 24 ; and Gruter, p. 381, no. 1. ^ Stationed by Domitian in Germania Inferior. Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 24. This was one of the legions which had been sent to the Parthian war ; but that it had returned by this time is proved by numerous inscrip- tions in J. W. C. Steiner, Codex inscriptionum Romanarum Rheni. Darm- stadt, 1837. 2 Theile. 8°. nos. 619, 723, 768, 781, 785-6, 788, 880, 962, and 964. * Placed by Vespasian in Pannonia Inferior. Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 24 ; and Orelli, nos. 1234, 1645, and 1931. * Muratori, Nouus thesaur. net. insc, p. 730, no. 1 ; and Steiner, Cod. inse. Roman. Rheii.^no. 111. This must have been one of those brought from Syria, where, according to Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 24, it had been stationed by Vespasian. * According to Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 23, belonging in Dacia. But it had also been engaged in Mcesia Inferior. Gruter, p. 481, no. 1, and p. 490, no. 2. ^ Wurtembergischc JalirMcher, 1835, v. 1, pp. 15, 39, 43, 46, 48, 50, 54, and 93; and Steiner, Cod. insc. Roman. Rhen.., nos. 19, 27, 65, 86, 91, 125, 153, 165, 247, 254, 272, 317, 339, 375, 386, 613, 627, and 754. This legion 188 MAKCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHART. Gemina;^ the 11th, called Claudia;'' the 12th, called Fuhni- nataf the 13th, called, like the 10th, Gemina;" the 1-lth, called Gemina Martia Victrix;" the 22d, called Primdgenia ;^ the 30th, called Ulpia Yictrix ;"" and two others established bv Marcus himself, viz., the 2d and 3d, to both of which the name Italica was given, probably because thej M-ere levied in Italy and accompanied Marcus to the Worth. One of these, the 3d Italica^ he levied for the needs of Rhaetia ; the other, called the 2d Italica^ he stationed in Noricum.* Assuming that these sixteen legions contained on an average 5000 men each, we shall have as a total an armed force of 80,000 soldiers. To this number must be added nearly as many more auxiliaries, making in all about 150,000 men.^ received during the reign of Marcus Aurelius the names P/«, Fidelis^ Con- stans, and Commoda. Fabretti, Insc. antiq., p. 665, no. 517. ' This legion was in Pannonia Superior in the time of Antoninus Pius. Ptolemaeus, Geographia, lib. 2, c. 15. And was still there in the time of Septimius Severus. Gruter, p. 23, no. 7, and p. 74, no. 6. ' Belonging, according to Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 23, in Mojsia Inferior. ' This legion had its proper seat in Cappadocia. So we are told by Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 23, who calls it Fulminifera. That it was engaged in this war will appear farther on. * Stationed by Trajan in Dacia. Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 23; and Gru- ter, p. 429, no. 1. * In Pannonia Superior. Dion Cassius, lib.. 55, c. 23 ; F. S. Maflfei, Mv- seum Veronense Ti. e. antiquarum inscriptiomim atque anaglyphorum collec- tio. Veronae, 1749. f". p. 113, no. 2 ; and Gruter, p. 1029, «o. 1. « Its headquarters were at Maintz. Steiner, Cod. insc. Roman. Ehen., nos. 408-32. ' Stationed along the banks of the Ehine. Steiner, Cod. insc. Roman. Rhen., nos. 222, 591, 609, 636, 638-9, 650-1, 654, 661, 665, 667, 669, 674-6, 678, 694, 709, 729, 749, 794, 861, 881-2, 902, and 948. * Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 24 : ' Xv-uvIvoq 6 'MdpKoc to ct CEvrepov to tv Ntu- piKip. Kcd TO Tpirov TO tv 'VaiTia^ a icai 'iTaXiKO. KtK\j]Tai. ^ While I must acknowledge my obligations to Noel des Vergers for this entire description of the army under Marcus Aurelius, I cannot agree with him in his estimate of the number of troops engaged. He jjlaces the number of regular soldiers at nearly 100,000. See his Essai sw Marc- Aurele, p. 82. To obtain this result it is necessary to reckon 6000 men to each legion. ISTow, though under the Antonines this was, no doubt, the regular number, it is impossible to believe that so soon after the Partliian A.D. 169-178.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 189 With this force at his command the Emperor reached Pannonia about the beginning of the year 170. The cam- paign on which he was now entering proved the most active period of the whole Marcomannic war. The distinctly ag- gressive attitude noticeable everywhere among the German tribes made it impossible for the Emperor to employ the con- ciliatory measures which, under other circumstances, he would have preferred. There was no course open to him but to re- pel the invaders by force of arms. The energy and success with which Marcus Aurelius adopted this warlike policy, so contrary to all the instincts of his nature, is an irrefutable an- swer to those who maintain that a life guided by philosophic principles cannot cope with the practical requirements of this world. I^ot only is the general policy of the Marcomannic war to be attributed to the Emperor; he took part personally in the various campaigns of his armies in the hostile country.* With matters of a purely military nature, however, he did not interfere, since he had but little knowledge of the subject. He used to say, " It is more just that I should follow the ad- vice of all these valuable friends about me than that they war, and especially at the very height of the plague, the legions were by any means full ; and, though they may afterwards have recuperated some- what, still, the Marcomannic war was too bloody to admit of their filling their ranks so long as it continued. It is more reasonable to estimate the legions at 5000 men each. As to the auxiliaries, their number was doubt- less large. We have already mentioned the success of the Emperor in enlisting some of the barbarian tribes against the others. Such contin- gents as these it would be quite contrary to the Roman practice to enroll along with the imperial soldiers in the regular legions. They would go to swell the number of the auxiliary forces, which, at their highest point, amounted to nearly as many men as were contained in the legions them- selves. If, therefore, we assume the sixteen legions to represent 80,000 men, it is not unreasonable to suppose the auxiliaries would carry the number up to about 150,000. » This appears from a coin of 172, on which the Emper- or is to be seen crossing the Danube on a bridge of boats, along with bis army. Eckhel, V. 7, p. 60. 190 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. V. should all follow my will." ' Among these generals whom he so warmlj praises the foremost place was occupied, of course, by the praefecti ^raetorio, who, during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, were two in number.' The post made vacant by the death of Furius Victorinus, of whom we have already spoken, was at once filled by his successor; and at the time of the sec- ond German war \X\q jpraefecti jpraeto^no were Macrinus Yin- dex and Bassasus Ruf us.^ Besides these, there were two other generals in whom the Emperor placed especial confidence, and by whom, as we shall see hereafter, he was greatly aided in the Marcomannic war. These were Claudius Pompeianus, the husband of Lucilla, and Pertinax, who succeeded Commodus on the throne. It is noteworthy that not one of these able servants was distinguished by wealtli or ancestr3\ Such rec- ommendations went for little in winning the favor of the Emperor. Unfortunately, it is impossible to state with certainty the precise order in which the events of this war occurred. It is clear, however, from the language used by Dion Cassius, that the Marcomanni and lazyges first engrossed the Emperor's attention.* Apparently, his success was for a long time doubt- ful ; for we do not find that he was granted the title of Ln- perator at all during the first year of this period. The cam- paign was marked by several important battles, one of which took place in 170, and is described on a coin of that year." ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 22 : "■Aequius est ut ego tot talium amicorum con- silium, sequm\ quam ut tot tales amici meam unius uoluntatem sequantur.'''' * That there was more than one praefectiis praetorio under Marcus ap- pears from Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 22 : Diteentibus etiani exercitum legatis et praefecUs 'praetorio. This had grown to be the custom some time be- fore the reign of Marcus Aurelius. Dion Cassius, lib. 67, c. 15. Under Hadrian there were two. Spartianus, Hadr., c. 9. Marcus Aurelius's suc- cessor had three. Lampridius, Commod. Ant., c. 6. ' Macrinus Vindex is spoken of as praefectus jyraetorio in Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 3 ; and Bassseus Rufus in Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 5. See also an inscription in Gruter, p. 513, no. 1. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 8 : MapKOfiavovr f.iiv ovv kuI 'laZvyaQ ttoWoTq Kai fieydXoiQ ayuxn Kal kiv^vvolq 'MapKOQ viri-a^sv. iTvi Si rovQ Ka\oi'j.i(i'ovc Kova- Sovg Kai TroXsfiog avT(^ avvkari} [isyag. * Eckhel, V. 7, p. 58. A. D. 169-178.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 191 This was soon followed by another success, which won for Marcus, in the year 171, the title of Imperator VI.' Although the Romans were victorious in these encounters, it was only at the cost of a large number of their own men. A contest with the savage tribes of Germany was, under any circum- stances, a serious affair. Brought up in a life of predatory wan- dering, and with little that was attractive in their homes, they learned to battle with all the energy of their nature. Their method of warfare is thus described by Ripault : " The Ger- mans light in the same way that they live, by families, the relatives all in line together, the young around their chief. The women, behiud the ranks, cheer on their husbands and sons by promising them their love, and by portraj'ing, in their shouts, the terrors of slavery aud the infamy of surrender. The children, stationed between the men and women, carry to their fathers food and arms, and bring back to their mothers the fathers' words of courage. All fight in one way or anoth- er. Frenzy, combined with the love of liberty and honor, en- ables them to face any danger. It is infamy to abandon one's shield, and still more disgraceful to be taken ; so that he who redeems his liberty by suicide covers himself with glory. As they join battle they begin to sing ; and when the conflict has once begun, their songs are superseded by their shouts of rage. If they flee, their wives repel them from the camp and drive them back to meet the enemy's sword. The infantry forms a compact mass ; and the battle-axe, which they wield as an axe or hurl as a javelin, is a formidable weapon even to the heavy- armed soldier. Their individual courage is indomitable. Were it not for their ignorance of tactics, they would be sure of victory."' With the lazyges it appears that a nnmber of battles were fought during this year, 170.' "The Romans conquered the lazyges, flrst on land and then on water. I do not mean there was a naval battle, but that, the river being frozen, the Romans ' Eckhel, V. 7, p. 59. » Ripault, Mare-Aurele, v. 2, pp. 38-9. ' Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 8 : Map/co/iavoi^c /*£»' ovv kuI 'Id^vyag itoXXoXq kuI jisydXoig dyuiai Kai Kivdvvoig MdpKog virira^ev. 192 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. V. pursued the enemy and fought them on the ice as if on laud. For the lazyges, seeing the Eomans still in pursuit, turned around, when thej reached the river, and renewed the combat, expecting an easy victorj-, since the Romans were utterly un- skilled in fighting on the ice. Their own horses being used to this sort of warfare, the barbarians surrounded their oppo- nents and attacked them front and rear. The Romans, how- ever, kept good order, and presented an unbroken line in all directions. Several of them placed their shields on the ice, in order to have something solid against which to brace them- selves. In this way they withstood the first shock ; and after- wards they seized the bridles of their opponents' horses, or grasped the shields of the barbarians, or caught hold of the axes in their hands ; so that, getting intermingled with them, they overturned both men and horses. For the enemy could not resist the shock in a place so slippery without being at once thrown down. Many of our men fell too; but if they found themselves on their backs, they caught hold of their opponents' legs and upset them, as in the athletic contests ; and if they fell on their faces, they carried down the others beneath them. So that in every way our men had the advan- tage, since the barbarians were utterly unskilled in these meth- ods of combat ; and, besides, the enemy were almost all light- armed, and were thus unable to withstand our men, so that few of them escaped." ' The success which the Emperor thus gained at the close of 170, though not final, at any rate so dis- abled the lazyges that they withdrew to their own territories for a time.^ Marcus was now free, therefore, to give more attention to the Marcomanni. Although few details are recorded of the events which followed, it is clear, from the name by which the war is designated, that the Romans, during this period, en- countered their most powerful opponents. The campaign was ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. T. ' In Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 8, we read that he " subdued " the Marco- manni and lazyges before he turned to the Quadi ; but this can only mean a temporary subjection, for the title of Sarmaticus \f as not conferred on Marcus till 175. A. D. 169-178.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. I93 marked by a series of bloody battles,' and lasted until the sum- mer of 172. At length the Marcomanni began to lose ground. One battle after another resulted disastrously to the barbari- ans, until at last they were forced to sue for peace. Where- upon the senate voted the title of Germanicus to the Emperor; but he was unw^illing to appropriate the title to himself alone, and on the 15tli of October, 172, it was conferred on Connnodus also.^ A great part of this success was due to the zeal of Mac- rinus Yindex, one of the praefecti jpraetorio. This brave sol- dier, who, during the Marcomannic war, was in command of the Roman cavalry, led an attack upon six thousand of the barbarians who had forced their way across the Danube. The enemy were routed, and, as a consequence, Ballomarius, the king of the Marcomanni, and ten other ambassadors chosen by the allied tribes, were despatched to Pannonia to sue for peace.* But Macrinus Vindex had fallen in the encounter; whereupon the senate, at the suggestion of the Emperor, erect- ed three statues in honor of his bravery.* Vindex was prob- ably succeeded in his position oi praefectus praetorio by T. ' Diou Cassius, lib. 71, C. 8 : IIoXXoTe koL fieydXoig ayaiirt. ^ Lampridius, Commocl. Ant., c. 11 : Appellatm Germanicus idihis Her- ciileis Maximo et Orfito consulibus. See also Eckhel, v. 7, pp. 59 and 103. ^ Petrus Patriciiis, Historiae, c. 6 : "Ort Aayyi/3«p^aiv kuI '0/3iwr t^aKicrxi- XiujV 'iffTpOV TTEpatwSltVTlOV, TUtV TTSpl BlvSlKU ITnTEOUV t^iXaffdvTOJV Kai TWV dj-Kpi Kdi'SiSov TieZ-o}' tTTKp^aadvTMV, elg TzavTikri (pvyrjv 01 (idp(3apoi tTpdirovro. i(p' olg ovTOJ TTpax^Aaiv sv Sket (caratrravrEC tK Trp(t)Tj]Q tirixeipi'jaeojQ 01 f3dp(3apoi, Trptff^eiQ Tzapd Ai'Xioi/ Bdaaov rffv Ylaioviav hknovra (TTtWovai, BaWofidptov te Tov (SaaiXea MapKOfidvviov /cai trspovQ Seku, Kara 'i^vog ETViXEidjitvoi tva. Kai opKOiQ T7]V Eipfjvrjv 01 TvpEd^EiQ TTiffrwffa^evot o'lKaSe xf^povaiv. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 3 : Tbv BivSiKa t6v MaKplvov ETrapxov uvra diro- KTELvdvTdiv, Tovrqi fiEv TpEiQ dv^pidvTaQ t(Tri]asv. This custom of erecting statues in honor of successful Roman generals was established by Marcus Aurelius. It was designed to take the place of the ornamenta triumpha- Ua, which, since the time of Trajan, had been enjoyed only by the emper- ors. Several instances occur in which Marcus thus honored his deserv- ing subjects. See Borghesi, (Euvrcs, v. 5, pp. 35-8. Capitolinus tells us he placed statues of all tl>e illustrious men who fell in the Marcomannic war in the Forum of Trajan. Capit., ^. ^«^. P/iiZ., c. 22. 13 194 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CUAP. v. Yitrasius Pollio.' While the war with the Marcoraanni was still in progress, a number of the German tribes whose homes were along the right bank of the Khine had become inspired with the warlike spirit of their neighbors on the east, and had penetrated as far south as Italy itself. The generals whom Marcus selected to march against them were Pompeianus and Pertinax." A better choice could scarcely have been made. The success with which Pompeianus fought is manifest by the fact that in the next year, 173, he was made one of the regu- lar consuls of the year. As for Pertinax, we are expressly told that he wrested Rhsetia and Noricum from the power of the barbarians.^ The warfare being now suspended for a time, the Emperor was given an opportunity to recruit his diminished forces. This he accomplished, as we have before said, by enlisting the conquered nations on his side.* Towards the close of 173 or the beginning of 174 he went to Rome, probably to carry out his agreements with the barbarians.^ But the respite thus afforded him was of short duration ; for the Quadi began once * This was the maa who was consul for the second time in 176. The only reason for supposing he was at one time 2)raefectus praetorio is, that in the apocryphal letter of Marcus Aurelius to the senate, annexed to the first Apology of Justin Martyr, the Emperor speaks of Vitrasius Pollio as his " prefect." Tlie letter, though not inserted by Justin Martyr him- self, who had suffered death several years before this time, is of an early date ; and it is contended by Borghesi that the " prefect '" therein men- tioned was the praefectus p>i'(ietorio who succeeded Macrinus Vindex. See Borghesi's letter to M. Gerhard, in the Mem. de la soc. des antiqui- taires du BJnn, 1843, n. 2, pp. 104-5; his (Euvres, v. 5, p. 37; and his letter to M. Renier, dated April 29, 1854, " Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 3 : UoXXol de Kai rCJv virsp rbv 'Frjvov KsXrwv ^£- Xpi TtJQ 'IraXi'ac I'/Xacrav, ical iroWd tdpaaav ig tovq 'Piofiaiovc Stivd ' oIq 6 Mdp- K0£ avTt-ivuuv, HopTf/jiai'ov re Kai YlEprivaKa tovq VTroarparrj-yovg dv-iKit^iarr]. ^ Capit., Pert in., c. 2: Statimqiie Haeiias et Noricum ab Tiastihus uiiuli- cauit; Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 3 : Koi ripioTivcrev 6 Uepriva^. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 21 : Emit et Qermanorum auxilia contra Ger- manos. * This advent of the Emperor to the capital is not mentioned by any of the historians ; but it appears clearly from a coin in Eckhel, v. 7, p. 61. AD. 1G9-1TS.] THE WAR WITH THE xMARCOMANNI. I95 more to pour down upon the Roman frontiers.' It was in the campaign which the Emperor now conducted against this tribe that the so-called "miraculous victory" was won. In the summer of 174*" the forces of Marcus Aurelius, " finding them- selves, in the midst of the combat, reduced to the last extrem- ity, were rescued from danger in a manner altogether super- natural. The Romans had been driven into a position in ev- ery way favorable to the Quadi ; the latter had then surround- ed them on all sides and hemmed them in. The imperial forces, therefore, were compelled to battle vigorously ; but the barbarians put themselves entirely upon the defensive, trust- ing that the Romans would be overcome by thirst and heat, and they seized every avenue of approach in order that the army might be cut off from the water. At last the Roman forces became so prostrated by sickness, by wounds, by the heat of the sun, and by thirst, that they were able neither to fight longer nor to retreat, and it seemed as if the entire army must certainly perish on the spot. But all at once the sky became overcast with clouds, and the rain descended in tor- rents, not by chance, but by divine assistance. For it is said that a certain Arnuphis, a magician of Egypt, who was with Marcus, had by some magic arts invoked the favor of Mercu- ry and other spirits, and through their aid had called down the rain. . . . When the rain began to fall, all, looking up, at first received it in their mouths. Afterwards they caught it, some in their shields, others in their helmets, out of which * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 8: 'EttI ce rovg KoKovfisvovc KovdSovc kuI ttoXs- fiog avT(^ (TvvsffTri ^isyag. '' Wietersheim, Gesch. der VoU-erwand., v. 1, p. 126, places the battle in 173 ; and he bases his opinion upon a coin in Eckhel, v. 7, p. 60, on which we find a figure of Mercury. But Eckhel maintains, I believe with jus- tice, that the figure of Mercury has no connection with this battle. A conclusive proof that it occurred much later is furnished by the fact that we are told in Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 10, that immediately after tlie bat- tle Marcus was saluted as Imperator VIL Now, some of the coins of 174 bear the title of Imjyerator VL and some that of Imperator VIL Eckhel, V. 7, pp. 61-2. The victory must, therefore, have occurred during the year 174; and, by the fact that the soldiers were then suffering from the intense heat, it is fixed to the summer of that year. 196 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. V. they drank greedily, and also gave to their horses to drink. And when the barbarians fell upon them they drank and fought at the same time ; and some who were wounded drank water mixed with the blood which fell from their wounds into their helmets. And, indeed, being attacked while most of them were busy quenching their thirst, they would have suffered greatly from their enemies, had not a violent storm of hail, with lightning, descended upon the combatants; so that at the same time, and in the same place, might be seen water and fire coming down from heaven, whereby the one party was refreshed with drink, and the other was burned and consumed. The fire did not reach the Romans, or if it did, it was immediately extinguished, I^or did the rain help the barbarians, but rather increased the flame, like oil ; so that, though they were rained on, they called for water ; and some wounded themselves, that they might put out the fire with blood ; and others went over to the Romans, since their water only it was possible to drink. "Wherefore Marcus took pity on them." ' After this victory the soldiers immediately ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 8 and 10. To this accouiit Xiphilinus, the Christian abbreviator of the eleventh century, adds : " So this affair is re- lated by Dion. But it seems to me he lies, either on purpose or through ignorance. I am rather inclined to think he does so purposely ; for he was not unacquainted with the legion of soldiers called the 'thundering legion,' which he himself has mentioned in his catalogue of the other legions. Nor has it ever been said that it obtained that name for any other reason than on account of what happened in that war. For it was this legion, not Arnuphis the magician, tliat was the cause of deliv- erance to the Romans and of destruction to tlie barbarians. Nor is it anywhere related that Marcus was fond of magicians or their tricks. The truth is tliis : Marcus had a legion, the soldiers of which were brought from Melitene, and were all Christians. At that time the praefectus prae- tario, being in great perplexity, and apprehensive of the loss of the whole army, is said to have come to the Emperor, telling him that there was noth- ing which Christians were not able to perform by prayers, and that there was in the army a whole legion of this sect. When Marcus heard that, he desired them to pray to their God. As soon as they did so, God imme- diately heard them and beat down their enemies with lightning, while the Romans he refreshed with rain. At whicli Marcus, being greatly as- tonished, favored the Christians with an edict, and ordered that the legion should be called ' the thundering legion.' It is also said there is an epis- A.D.169-17S.] THE WAR WITH THE ]\IARCOMANNI. I97 saluted Marcus as Imjperator VII. And, altliough he was not in the habit of accepting the title before it was voted him by tie of Marcus concerning these things. The Greeks know very well, and bear witness, that there is a legion with that name ; but they do not give the reason of it." Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 10. Xiphilinus does not men- tion his authority, but that is of little importance ; for, in his time, the view he expressed was universally accepted. See, for example, Zonaras, Epit. 7iist.,\ih. 12, c. 2 ; also Nicephorus Callistus Xanthopuhis, Hist. Eccles., lib. 4, c. 12. In tracing the belief back to its origin we find it upheld by Orosius, Rist. aduers. Pagan., lib. 7, c. 15, §§ 7-11 ; by Gregorius Nyssenus, Be quadr. martyr, orat., 2; and by Eusebius, Hist. Eccles., lib. 5, c. 5. All these were Christian writers. Of the three Eusebius gives the story most fully. He says, " It is said that when Marcus Aurelius was about to en- gage in battle with the Germans and Sarmatians, bis army was suffering greatly from thirst, and he knew not what course to take. Then, how- ever, the soldiers that belonged to the Melitene legion, as it was called, which still subsists as a reward of their faith, bending their knees upon the earth, according to our peculiar custom of praying, offered their prayers to God while drawn up in battle array against the enemy. And as this was a singular spectacle to the barbarians, a still more singular circumstance is reported to have happened soon after; streaks of lightnmg descended, which drove the enemy into flight and destruction, but a shower of rain fell on the army which had prayed to God, and refreshed them when they were on the point of perishing with thirst. This is related by such writers as are far from embracing our religion, but were concerned in recording the events of those times ; it is also related by our authors. By other writers, who were averse to our religion, the wonderful event is recorded, but they do not acknowledge that it was owing to the prayers of our people ; but by our authors, who were lovers of truth, what hap- pened is related in a plain and ingenuous manner. One of them is Apol- linarius, who says that from that time the legion, by whose j^rayers that wonderful deliverance was obtained, was by the Emperor's orders called ' the thundering legion,' a name suited to the event. Tertullian is anoth- er witness worthy of credit, who, in his apology for our faith, addressed to the Roman senate in the Latin tongue (of which we also before made mention), strongly confirms the truth of this story; saying that there is still extant the letter of that worthy Emperor, Marcus, in which he testi- fies that when his army was in great danger of perishing in Germany for want of water, it was saved by the prayers of the Christians. Tertullian likewise says that the same Emperor threatened the punishment of death to such as should accuse them. But of these things let every one judge as he sees fit." Unfortunately, Eusebius does not name the heathen writers, who, as he says, have recorded this event ; and of Apollinarius, one of the 198 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. V. the senate, on this occasion he did accept it, as being a gift from heaven/ Christian writers whom he mentions, nothing has come down to us' Tlie other, Tertullian, speaks of the fact in his Ad Scapulam, c. 4, where he says, "Marcus Aurelius, also, in his expedition to Germany, by the prayers his Christian soldiers offered, to God, got rain in that well-known thirst;" and again, in his Ajyologeticus, c. 5, he alludes to "the letter of that grave emperor, Marcus Aurelius, in which he bears testimony that the drought in Germany was relieved by rain obtained through the prayers of the Christians who chanced to be fighting under him. And, though he did not by public law remove from Christians their disabili- ties, yet in another way he put them openly aside, even adding a sentence of condemnation against their accusers, and that, too, a severer one than would have been inflicted on the Christians whom they accused." Ter- tullian, again, neglects to tell where the letter of Marcus is to be found. Such an epistle, however, may be read at the end of Justin Martyr's A^jo- logia. It runs thus: "Tlie Emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, Germanicus, Parthicus, Sarmaticus, to the people of Rome and to the sa- cred senate, greeting: I explained to you my grand design, and what ad- vantages I gained on the confines of Germany, though with much labor and suflFeriug, since I was surrounded by the enemy ; I myself being shut up in Carnuntum by seventy-four cohorts, nine miles off. And the ene- my being at hand, the scouts pointed out to us, and our general, Pompe- ianus, showed us, that there was close on us an enormous multitude of 977,000 men, which, indeed, we saw ; and I was shut up by this vast host, having with me a battalion composed of the 1st, the 10th Gemina, and the Fretensis legions. Having thus examined my own position and my host, with respect to the vast mass of barbarians and of the enemy, I quickly betook myself to prayer to the gods of my country. But being disregarded by them, I summoned those among us who go by the name of Christians. And, having made inquiry, I discovered a great number of them, and raged against them, which was by no means becoming; for afterwards I learned their power. Wherefore they began the battle, not by preparing weapons, nor arms, nor bugles ; for such preparation is hate- ful to them, on account of the God they bear about in their conscience. Therefore it is probable that those whom we suppose to be atheists have God as their ruling power intrenched in their conscience. For, having cast themselves on the ground, they prayed not only for me, but also for * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 10: Ilapa ck twv ffrpariwvrCJv to «/3oo/iov avro- Kpdrojp irpoatjyoptvBT]. KaiTrep Se ovk dt»Stu)Q, irplv ttjv jiovKriv \l/i](pi(raj yt- povffig, tTreffTEiXev. See also Eckhel, v. 7, p. 63. A.D. 160-lTS.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNL 199 During tliese years, while Marcus was engaged with the more westerly tribes of Germany, the lazyges liad found an the whole army as it stood, that it might be delivered from the present thirst and ftimine. For during five days we had got no water, because there was none; for we were in the heart of Germany and in the enemy's country. And, simultaneously with their casting themselves upon the ground, and praying to God (a God of whom I am ignorant), water poured from heaven, upon us most refresliingly cool, but upon the enemies of Rome a fiery hail. And immediately we recognized the presence of God following on the prayer — a God unconquerable and indestructible. Founding upon this, then, let us pardon such as are Christians, lest they pray for and obtain such a weapon against ourselves. And I counsel that no such person be accused on the ground of his being a Christian. But if any one be found laying to the charge of a Christian that he is a Christian, I desire that it be made manifest that he who is accused as a Christian, and acknowledges that he is one, is accused of nothing else than only this, that he is a Christian ; but that he who arraigns him be burned alive. And I further desire, that he who is intrusted with the government of the province shall not compel the Christian, who confesses and certifies such a matter, to retract ; neither shall he commit him. And I desire that these things be confirmed by a decree of the senate. And! command this, my edict, to be published in the Forum of Trajan, in or- der that it may be read. The prefect, Vitrasius PoUio, will see that it be transmitted to all the provinces round about, and that no one who wishes to make use of or to possess it be hindered from obtaining a copy from the document I now publish." This, then, is the document upon which the entire claim of Eusebius and the rest is based. It is unfortu- nate for their cause that the letter has come down as a part of Justin Martyr's works ; for Justin had suffered martyrdom -several years before the " miraculous victory " occurred. It may be worth while to say a word or two more about this letter. In the first place, it bears an odd inscrip- tion; in no other passage is Marcus Aurelius designated by the three titles — Oermanicus, Pm'thicus, Sarmaticus ; the two latter he resigned on the death of Lucius Verus, before he received the former. Secondly, the number of the enemy, 977,000, is striking, both in its magnitude and in the accuracy of the computation. Thirdly, the attitude which Mar- cus takes in this letter towards the Christians is directly opposed to what we learn from other sources. For these and many other reasons, Scaliger (ad Eusebium,\). 223), Saumaise {ad Capitolinum, M. Ant. Phil., c. 24), and Reiraarus {ad Dlonem, lib. 71, c. 9) do not hesitate to declare the letter a forgery ; and they have been followed by Lardner, Worls, v. 7, p. 446, and Clinton, Fasti Roman., v. 2, p. 25. But even if we give this let- ter up, are there not other reasons for believing the story ? Eusebius says 200 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.V. opportunity to recruit their strength and courage. Scarcely had he succeeded in repressing the Quadi before his presence that Apollinarius (the authority whose works are now lost) records that in recognition of the services rendered by the legion of Christian soldiers Marcus conferred upon it the name of K£paiij'o/3oXoj', or the "Thundering Legion;" and he also says that the legion came originally from Melitene. Now, it is odd that there was in the time of Trajan a legion called by the same name, Fulminatrix, and that this was the 12th legion (see Gruter, p. 193, 7W. 3), the very one which, after the siege of Jerusalem, was sent to Melitene. losephus, Bell. lud., lib. 7, c. 1, § 3. Indeed, this same legion was in existence in the time of Augustus, and known as the Ke- pavvo(p6pov. Dion Cassius, lib. 55, c. 23. Thus the last argument in favor of the legion of Christians falls away. At what time this story iirst gained credence it is difficult to say. We have already seen that Dion Cassius knew nothing about it; nor, indeed, did the composer of the SibylUne oracles, although he was a Christian; for in the twelfth book, believed to have been written in the third century, the miraculous victory is at- tributed to the Emperor's prayers. Orac. Silpl., lib. 12, ver. 195-200 : Xwpi]v ce HIV i^a\a7rdS.ei Harrav repjxavwv, biroTav fikya aiJHa Oeolo OvpavoBev Trpocpav?}, kcu t dvSpai; X'^^i^oKopvcTTag Tpvxofiivov£ ffuxjeis Si Ev(TEf3ir]v fSaffiXrjoQ. Avrtii yap Qeoq ovpdviog fidXa vavB' vTruKovaei ' Ev^afiiV(j) l3peS,ei irapaKaipiov on!^piov vdiop. Coming down to later times we find no mention of the story in Capitoli- nus, who likewise attributes the victory to the prayers of Marcus Aurelius himself. Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 24 : Fulmen de caeh precibus suis contra hostium macMnamer\tum extorsit, suis2)hiina im23etrata cum siti laborarent. Lampridius is thought to have had in mind the Christian tradition when he says, in his Ant. Heliog., c. 9 : Cum Marcomannis tellum inferre uellet quod Antoninus pulcJierrime profligarat, dictum est a quibusdam per Chal- daeos et magos Antoninum Marcum id cgisse ut Marcomanni populo Bo- mano semper deuoti essent atqve amici, idque factis carminibus et consecra- tione. It seems probable, however, that what is really referred to here is Dion Cassius's story about the Egyptian Arnuphis. In the time of Euse- bius it had clearly not become a settled question, for he ends his account with the remark, "But of these things let every one judge as he sees fit." Themistius, in an oration delivered in 381 before a Christian emperor, attributes the victory to the prayers of Marcus Aurelius. Themist., Orat., 15 : 'AvTit>viv(p T(^ 'FojfiaidJV avTOKpdropi, (fi tovtiji ahro knuyvvfiov 6 fi'(7f/3/)e ijv, Tov arpaTEVHaroe virb Siipovg avri^ 7ri£?o/i«i/ou, ava^xd^v rw x"P^ o fiaai- Xevq irpog tov ovpavbv, ravry, fcpi], ry x^'P' ■KpohrpEipcmriv ce Kai 'iKtTivca tov A.D. 1G9-17S] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. OQl Avas needed again in Pannonia to check the incursions of the lazyges. It was not long, however, before these barbarians had i-eason to repent once more of their rashness in invading the Roman Empire. This time thej were thoroughly defeated. So complete was the victory won by the Romans in this en- gagement, that the Emperor felt justified in accepting the title of Sarmaticus, and, at the same time, that of Impera- tor viii: The future now began to look much brighter, and Marcus seriously entertained the hope of making a province out of ^w^e SoTrjpa, y Kojtjv ovk d(pei\6firjv. kui ovtcj KarySeae tvv Bebv Ty ivxy uj(TT€ t^ aiSrpiag r\Kov vefkXai iSpo(popov(Tai Tolg ffrparuoraic. Finally, in the year 404, the poet Claudian, speaking of Marcus's battle, leaves us our choice between two views, either that the victory was due to Chaldgean magicians, or that it was obtained by means of the Emperor's prayers; but he says nothing about the Christians. So that the story of the Chris- tian legion cannot have been generally accepted till, at any rate, later than the beginning of the fifth century. Claudian's words are : " Clemens Marce redis, cum gentibus tindique cinctam Exuit Hesi^eriam paribus Fortuua pei'iclis. Laus ibi nulla ducum ; nam flammeus imber in hostem Decidit: hunc dorso trepidum fumante ferebat Ambustus sonipes ; hie tabescente solutus Subsedit galea liquefactaque fulgure cuspis Canduit et subitis fluxere uaporibus enses. Tunc conteuta polo mortalis nescia teli Pugna fuit : Chaldaea mago seu carmina ritu Armauere deos, seu, quod reor, omne Tonantis Obsequium Marci mores potuere mereri." Claudian., Be sexto cons. Honor., ver. 340-50. Those who are interested in pursuing this question further will do well to consult Hermann Witsius, Diatribe de legione fulminatrice [in his Ae- gyptiaca, 3a ed., Herbornae Nassauiorum, 1717. 8°. pp. 429-64]; the let- ters between Mr. Moyle and Mr. King [in Walter Movie's Woi-lcs, Lond., 1726. 2v. 8°. V. 2, pp. 79-390] ; Thomas Woolston, A defence of the mira- cle of the Thundering Legion, Lond., 1726. 8°; Nathaniel Lardner's Jew- ish and Heathen testimonies [in his Worhs, Lond., 1788. 11 v. 8°. v. 7 pp. 438-59] ; John Henry Newman's Essay on the miracles recorded in the Ecclesiastical history of the early ages [prefixed to a portion of Fleury's Ecclesiastical history, Oxf, 1843. 8". pp. cxiii.-cxxii.] ; and Clinton, Fasti Roman., v. 3, pp. 33-6. ' Eckhel, v. 7, pp. 68-3. 202 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP.V. the territory of the MarcoinanTii; he even desired to annex a portion of Sarmatia to the Roman Empire;' but just at this time came tlie news that one of his generals had revolted in the East. It will be remembered that at the close of the Parthian war Marcus had left the Syrian legions in command of their able leader, Avidius Cassius.'' The success with which he had driven the army of Vologeses from the Koman fron- tier made him the most popular man in all the eastern prov- inces. This popularity was increased by the fact that Cassius was himself a Syrian by birth,'' and it gained greatly by the contrast which his own rigid military demeanor offered to the wantonness of Lucius Yerus. Cassius was not displeased to observe the growing sentiment in his favor. He was an am- bitious man, and even as early as the Parthian war had given Lucius reason to distrust his loyalty. While in charge of the legions in the East, Lucius had written to his brother a let- ter communicating his suspicions, and recommending the re- moval of the dangerous leader." Marcus, however, thougli * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 24 : Voluit Marcomanniam prouinciam, uoluit etiam Sarmatiam facers. ' Noel des Vergers, in his Essai sur Marc-Aiirele, p. 96, interprets the words of Dion Cassius (lib. 71, c. 3: Tor ^dvroi Kao-o-foi/ 6 MapKog ti]q 'Afft'ae oTrao-jjc tTriTpomveiv iKsXevatv) as implying that the political admin- istration of the provinces was intrusted to Cassius. This supposition meets with a serious difficulty when we try to determine what is meant by Asia ; for we know that Martius Yerus was left, as the Roman govern- or of Cappadocia, and that he was still there when the revolt took place. Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 23: "O Se dt) MdpKog trapa tov Bfjpov, tov rije Kmr- TraSoKiag dpxovroc, rijv iiravdaTaaiv fiaBiov. Indeed, the hypothesis is al- most disproved by the very passage on which it is based ; for the words immediately following seem to point to the fact that while it was in Asia that Cassius was left in command, the wars to which the Emperor him- self attended were those with the Quadi and the Marcomanni. Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 3: Avtoq is toXc Trepl tov 'l(TTpov jSapjSapotQ, 'ldZv%i te Kai MapKOfiavoiQ . . . iTroXtfirjaei'. It is probable, tlierefore, that Cassius held a purely military position, similar to that intrusted hiter to the Quintilii, during the absence of Marcus from Pannonia. ' Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 22: 'O Sk h) Katrtnoc, ^vpog ^Iv ik rtjg Kipov ijv. * Gallic, Anid. Cass., c.l: Ex epistula Veri '^ Amdius Cassius auidus est, quantum et mihi uidetur et iam inde suh auo meo patre tuo innotuit, imperii, quern uelim dbseruari iubeas. omnia ei nostra displicent, opes non AD.1C0-1T8.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 203 well aware of the hold which Cassias had on the affections of the people, felt that this was just the qualification most needed to meet the peculiar emergencies of the time. He therefore deemed it unwise to remove Cassius from his post, although he had before, under somewhat similar circumstances, re- moved Statius Priscus, his legate in Britain. Marcus ac- cepted what appeared to him a necessary evil, and trusted his own welfare and that of his descendants to the care of Providence. The letter bj which he sought to quiet the fears of Lucius is so characteristic that it is worth while to give it in full. "I have read," he says,' "your letter expressing fear in regard to Cassius. It is a letter unworthy of an emperor and of the time in which we live. If the deities intend the Empire for Cassius, we have no power to resist their will. You recollect the saying of your ancestor, ' No man ever murders his successor.' But if the destiny of Cassius is not written in the skies, his own efforts will, without action on our part, be his ruin. Besides, we cannot condemn any one against whom there is no accusation, especially if, as you yourself say, he is loved by all his soldiers. Moreover, it is the peculiar nature of treason that the evidence of it is itself the thing which constitutes the injury. You remember what your grandfather, Hadrian, used to say — 'No one believes an accusation of treason until those against whom it is directed have been killed.' I have preferred to cite Hadrian, rather than Domitian, although the latter first made this remark, for in the mouths of tyrants even noble sayings lose their force, I pray you, then, let the actions of Cassius take their own course, especially since he is an excellent leader, a rigid mas ter, and a useful servant to the throne. In regard to what you say about the necessity of my providing for my children's welfare by his death — ah! let the children of Marcus Aure- lius perish if they deserve less love than Cassius, and if the good of the country will be promoted by their death." Why mediocres pai'at, Utteras nostras ridet. te philosopliam aniculam, me luxori- osum morionem uomt. uide quid agendum sit, ego hominem non od% sed uide ne tibi et liberis tuis non hene consulat, cum talem inter praecinctos habeas qualem miUtes libenter audiunt, libenter uidenW'' * QoWic, Auid. Cass., c. 3. 204 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. v. Cassius was still left in command after the Parthian war was over is more difficult to explain ; but the Emperor was prob- ably injBlnenced by the same motives that had led to the first appointment of this general. Though a complete victory had been won, the territories exposed to tlie barbarian tribes along the eastern boundaries were of such vast extent that it seemed dangerous to remove one who had alreadj^ impressed the hostile nations by his power. In dealing with these peo- ple it was never safe to count upon a long cessation of hos- tilities, as was proved by what occurred wliile Marcus was en- gaoled in fio^htina; the Marcomanni : for it was not Ions; after the Parthian war that the Bucolici, a wandering tribe in Egypt, incited by one of their priests and led by a certain Isidore, formed a plan to overcome the Roman ofticers. Dis- guising some of their number as women, they gained admis- sion to the centurion's house, on pretence of negotiating with him, and murdered him. Thereupon they were joined b}' many other Egyptian tribes, and were actually on the point of making a hostile entry into Alexandria, when Avidius Cassius arrived upon the scene. He did not venture a battle with these nomadic peoples, but was enabled, by sowing dis- cord among them, to cause them to disperse.' On returning to Syria, Cassius was hailed with increased fervor by his compatriots. His growing favor with tlie inhabitants of the eastern provinces so stimulated his ambition that, in 175, the rumor being spread abroad that Marcus Aurelius was dead, he ventured to proclaim liimself the nominated successor to the throne.'' According to Dion Cassius, Faustina was the im- »Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 4; Capit., M.Ant. Phil, c. 21; and Gallic, Auid. Cass., c. 6. " Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 17 and 22; Capit., 31. Ant. Phil, c. 24; Gal- lic, Auid. Cass., c 7; Victor, Ejyit. de Cues., c. 16; Ammiau. Marcellin., Her. gest., lib. 21, c. 16, § 11 ; and Zonaras, Epit. hist, lib. 12, c. 3. The date of the insurrection is fixed at a little before May 19th, 175, for in Dion Cassius we read that on receiving tlie news Marcus sent to Rome for Commodus. Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 22 : To? £i Kaaaiov Kara Tr)v 2v- piav veujTSpiffavTog, atpoSpa fKTrXayelg 6 Mdpicog, tuv Kofi/JoSov rbv v'tov Ik Ttje 'Pio^ijjg, djg Kai ig i(pt]l3ovg ijSr] nXuv Svvafievov, ynsrtTrEyu^'^ro. And in Lam- pridius we learn that tlie departure of Commodus occurred on the 19tli A.D. 1G9-1TS.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 205 mediate cause of this insurrection ; for, perceiving that lier husband's health was failing rapidly, and fearing that if Marcus should die while Commodus was yet a boy some stranger might obtain the rule, she deemed it wise to secure her own future welfare by promising Cassius that if he suc- ceeded in mounting the throne she would become his empress.' of May, 175. Lamprid., Commod. Ant., c. 12 : Pisone et luliano consulibus. profectus in Oermaniam XIIII. Teal. Aelias, ut postea nonmiauit, isdem consulibus. Whether, as some writers assert, Cassius started the report of Marcus's death in order to gain adherents to himself is of little im- portance. It is certain that, when it became known throughout Asia that the Emperor was still living, Cassius did not renounce the claim he had set up, but persisted with even greater zeal in the line of conduct which he had adopted. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 22 : Tovro Sk di) ^tivwe iifiaprev, virb ^avffrivTjg airaTij^Eig. avrr] yap tov dvdpa appuxTTrjaavra (jjv de rov EiKTs/^oDe 'AvTiovivov $vyaT7]p) TrpoaSoKijffaffa oaov ovk t'lSr] TtXevTrjCjeiv, i Svvdi-iei'ov, fJCiTBTrsfiiparo. * Lampridius, Commod. Ant., c. 13 : Pisone et luliano consulibus, profec- tiis in Germanium XIIII. Teal. Aelius, ut postea nominauit, isdem consuli- bus. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 36 : "Ev 5' ovv tovto Iq t^v ovk eidaifioviav avrov avvrjvsx^t], on rbv vibv Kai SrpE\pag Kai iraiSixxrag wg olov re fjv apiara irXfiarov avTov o(Tov Sirji-iaprev. ♦ Herodian., Hist., lib. 1, c. 2 : Tov Si Tnpiovra KonfioSov re KaXov/ievov 6 TTartjp fiETo. TToWfjg eTnueXtiag dvsS'ptypaTO, vavroBev Tovg iv roig tSrvecnv ettI Xoyoig SoKi^iuraTOvg evri avvrd^sffiv ovk EvKaTapcig Trjg fisBopiag dvrjKEV, (xxyrf. avrovg oktm ttov Kai rpidKovra (jTuSiovg a^ro Tov "larpov aTroiKsiv. ^ Diou Cassius, lib. 71, C. 15 : Kai t« xwpia Tag re r'lfiipag rijg tTrif-U^iag d^wpiae {irpoTEpov ydp ov SuKSKpiVTo), Tovg re ofirjpovg r'jWd^avTO. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 11 : Ol ^t tipr]vr]V alrovfisvoi, oxnrEp oi. Kovadoi, Kai tTvxov y£ avTijg, 'iva re dnb tCjv M-apKOfidviitv dTromzacbwm, Kai oti 'iwKOvg Kai l3ovg TToWdg iSwKav, rovg tb avTOfioXovg TrdvTag, Kai TOvg alxnaXoWovg, irpoTt- pov fiiv eg /ivpiovg Kai TpiffXiXiovg, vaTSpov St Kai TOvg Xonrovg dxoSwcriiv vir- saxovTo ; and Petrus Patricius, Historiae, c. 7 : "On KoiaSoi irpkafiHg 'itztfi-^av Trpbg MapKOv elprjvrjv aWovfitvoi, Kai tTvxov. Kai iroXXovg fitv 'i-mrovg, TroXXovg Sk fioag dtSwKaffi, Kai alxfiaXuTovg tote fi'tv fivpiovg Kai Tpiax^^iovg, ixJTspov 6t Kai fTspovg TrXda-ovg d-rvkXyaav. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 11 : Ov iitVTOi Kai Trjg tTrt/xi^iac Kai iv Taig dyo- 212 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. V. performed. The Qnadi became discontented. They drove out Furtins, the king whom Marcus had placed over them, and raised up Ariogsesus in his stead. For some unknown reason this act made the Emperor very indignant. He at once offered a thousand aurei (about $5000) for the capt- ure of Ariogsesus, or half that sum if he should be killed.' At this the Quadi became frightened, and promised 50,000 captives if the. Emperor would pardon them. But he re- fused.° Later, however, when Ariogsesus was brought before him, the Emperor took pity on him, and simply punished him by banishment to Alexandria.^ What terms Marcus finally accepted from the Quadi we are not told ; but it is probable that he renewed the stipulations on which he had before insisted, and, in addition, took from them the 50,000 pris- oners they had promised. It seems likely, too, that at this time he erected a number of castles in the barbarians' terri- tory in order to secure the fulfilment of his wishes." To the smaller tribes who had revolted he was more lenient, partly because he feared less trouble from them, and partly because many of them had rendered him some assistance in the war. The Astingi, for example, under their leaders Raus and Rapt, had come into Dacia with the hope of being granted land and money. Both were promised them on condition that they would attack the Costoboci, in the northeast of Dacia. They therefore left their wives and children under Clemens, the governor of the province, and marched against the Costoboci, palQ tTvxov, 'iva fir/ Kai ot MapKOiidvoi o'l re 'la'Cvyec, ovc ovre ct^affBai ovre diTjCTtiv Sid TrJQ X'^P^^S ofibjfioKeaav, afia [iiyvvwvrai a/X3ov fiiv Iq TTiv Aaiciav oiKrjaai, sXtti'^i tov kuI xpZ/juara Kai x<^p(^^ «7ri avfi- fiaxtg. Xij^l/ecrBai ' ^fj tvxovteq St avrdv, irapeKariBevTO rd£ yvva~iKaQ Kai tovq 7ra75ag r(^ KXiJixevn, we i^al rjjv tuiv Ko(ttov(3(1)ku)v xwpai' roXg otvXoiq KTriaofiEvoi' vtKi'jffavTSs Si tKEivovg, k. t. X. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 12: Aeiaavreg Se ol AdyKpiyot, fit) Kal 6 KXtfurjc 0o/3»/3'£(f, (T^af tQ Ti]v yrjv, rjv avrol ivt^KOVv, laayayy, iTrsBevTO avrolg [ifi vpoa- SexofiEvoic, Kal ttoXv eKpdTr](Tav. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 21 : Kai oi 'Sapiaral raXanriopj'iffavreg, rpiaxlXioi lifia i]i)T0fi6Xriaav, Kal ytyi> Iv ry rjfiEripg, iXajSov. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 11 : 01 Si Kal yrjv, ol fiiv iv AaKi^, oi Si iv liav- vovicf, 01 Si Mvffig. Kal repjiavi^, ry r£ 'IraXiq, avry iXafSov. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 12 : Konvol Si ifftjyytiXavro avrolg ofioia' Tap- povvTTjvtov Si Hdrepvov, tov rag iTnaroXug avrov Tag AaTivag Sid xetpof ixovTa, vapaXajSovreg, ibg Kal ittI tovq MapKOfidvovg avTi^ GV(TTpaTEi av irXiiov ri Tcapa to KuSttaTi^KoQ Xdl3(t) TcXeov rov KaSrearTjKoroQ Xajifidvovaiv oi arpaTiCjrai, Toaov- Tov SK rov aluaroQ tSiv yovkiuv avr&v Kai tuiv avyyevwv i^spxErai. " Bionis excerpta, C. 107 : "On TrapaaKtvaS^ofikvov rov McipKov dc rov tov Kaffcriov TroXe/J.ov, ovdefiiav ^ap^apiKriv avfi/xaxiav iSs^aro, Kai toi ttoXXwv avv- Spa^iovTiov aiiTi^, Xayujv firf XPW^'' ''O'C (iapf3dpoig eiSsvai rd fxeTa^i) 'Ptufiaiuv KlVOVj-lE%>a KUKd. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 27 : Kai 6 /ikv o'vtuj firjvdc te rpEXc kuI r'lfikpag t^ Ti)v dpxijv oaeipw^ag, ta\i(T^svTOQ ovde rrjv ic£<}>a\ijv ayrov idelv VTri/xeivEv, dWd, ttXtjv TrXrjffidffai tovq avrox^i-pag, Tacpfjvai ttov sksXeuctev; and Gallic, Auid, Cass., c. 8 : Caput eius ad Antoninum cum delatum esset, ille non exultauit, non elatus est, sed etiam doluit ereptam sibi esse occasionem misericordiae, cum diceret se uiuum ilium uoluisse capere, ut illi exprdbraret heneficia sua eumque seruaret. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 28 : Ta Si. inrofivyj^ara rd Trfpi avrov yEvofiEva KartKavaev, "iva ju?;o' ovEiSiaiid n t^ avrutv axv i ^^^ Ammian. Marcellin., Rer. gest., lib. 21, c. 16, § 11 : Marci illius dissimilis principis uerecundi, qui, cum ad imj)eriale culmen in Syria Cassius surrexisset, epistolarum fascem ab eo ad conscios missum, perlatore capto sibi oblatum, illico signatum exuri praecepnt, agens adhuc in Illyrico, ne insidiatoribus cognitis, inuitus quos- dam hahere posset offensos. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 25 : Maecianum etiam filium Cassii cui Alex- andria erat commissa, exereitus occidit. nam et praefectum praetm'io sibi fecerat. qui et ipse occisus est; and Gallic, Auid. Cass., c 7: Imperatorio animo cum processisset, eum qui sibi aptauerat ornamenta regia statim prae- fectum praetorii fecit, qui et ipse occisus est Antonino inuito ab cxercitu. qui et Maecianum, cui erat commissa Alexandria quique consenserat spe particlpatus Cassio, inuito atque ignorante Antonino, interemit. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 26 : Deportatus est Heliodorus filius Cassii, et alii liberum exilium acceperunt cum bonorum parte, filii autem Cassii et ampUus media parte acceperunt paterni patrimonii et auro atque argento adiuti, mulieres autem etiam ornamentis. ita ut Alexandria fllia Cassii et Druentianus gener liberam uagandi potestatem haberent, commendati amitae A.D. 169-lTa] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 217 complices already taken, Marcus urged the senate to treat them with all the leniency possible.' And he even brought about, to some extent, the abolition of capital punishment, by obtaining the promise that no senator should be put to death durino^ the' remainder of his reie-n.^ The rebellion being thus brought to a close, the Emperor was forced to reflect carefully upon its origin. Although its immediate cause had been the ambitious projects of Avidius Cassius, it was undeniable that a very large number of people in the East had consented to the dethronement of the Em- peror. Such a spirit among his subjects it had ever been the endeavor of Marcus Aurelius to prevent. And though tlie result of the insurrection showed that he possessed the confi- dence of the majority, even in the most distant provinces, it was a cause of regret to him that a single one of his subjects marito ; and Gallic, J.M^'(^. Cass.^ c. 9: Filios Auidii Cassii Antoninus Marcus parte media paterni patrimonii donauit, ita ut filias eius auro, ar- gento et gemmis cohonestaret. nam et Alexandriae filiae Cassii et genera Druentiano liberam euagandi uM uellent potestatem dedit. uixeruntque non quasi tyranni pignora sed quasi senatorii ordinis in summa securitate, cum illis etiam in lite ohici fortunam propriae uetuisset domus damnatis aliqui- bus iniuriarum qui in eos jJetulantes fuissent. qvx)S quidem amicae suae ma- rito commendauit. * Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 25 : In conscios defectionis uetuit senatum graui- ter uindicare; and Gallic, Auid. Cass., c. 8: Ipse autem Antoninus a se- natupetiit ne grauiter in conscios defectionis animaduerteretur. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 30 : "Eypa^/ze r^ ^ov\y, ^r]Skva rwv JLavanji cvya- pafisvaiv reSrvdvai, wg Kal ek fiovov rovrov, TrapafivSfiov tivoq km ry ^avaTivy Tvx^tv Svvr](T6fiEV0Q. " M?) yap ykvoiTO,^'' t Kal Tovg ffvyyevelg, dvreypaipEv dXXa re nva Kal ravra, Skofiai Kal ikstsvo), KaSiapdv fiov rfiv dpxvv dirb travTog jBovXev- TiKov dijiaTog (pvXd^are • fiff yap ykvoiro fii]Ssva vfiCJv vtt' Ifiov fir} re ry sfiy p.r]TE ry vfiETspg. ^pVpff aTroXeecrBai ; and Zonaras, Epit. hist., lib. 12, c 3: Kal ry jSovX^ Se tirscTTEiXe fii]Siva rS)V Kaaau^ avvapafievojv reSfvdvai' " firi yap ysroiVo " t(pT} '^ firjSkva vfitjv Si sfie firjre. ry tp] /it'jte ry vfitrspcf ^t)^poSi(ji(ii T(p 'P Eckhel, V. 7, pp. 63 and 107. 22S MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. V. power.' On the conclusion of these public acts the Emperor obtained a little respite, and withdrew to the quiet of Lavin- ium.' Conimodus now, Jan. 1, 177, entered for the first time upon the duties of consul, at an extremely early age.^ Indeed, he was so young that he could only be made consul by obtain- ing a special exemption from the lex armaria." In the course of this same year the Emperor, fearing that his presence would soon be needed again in Pannonia, hastened to find a wife for Coramodus.' The woman he selected was Crispina, daughter of L. Fulvius Bruttius Prsesens, who had already been once consul snffectus.^ The ceremony was entirely without osten- ' I say apparently; for there is much confusion in regard to the tribu- nician years of Commodus. At the time of Commodus's death, Dec. 31, 193, liis IStli tribunician year was current, which would make the first year begin before Dec. 31, 175. But, in 191, all his coins are marked TR. Xr\^., which would make the first tribunician year run from Jan. 1, 176, to Jan. 1, 177. This is the order preserved .through the greater part of his reign. Going back still farther we find that the coins marked COS. (i. e., 177) bear some of them TR. P. and some of them TR. P. II., which would make the first year begin some time during the course of the year 176. Finally, we read in Capitoliuus that his tribuniciate did not begin till after the triumph, Dec. 23, 176. Capit., M. Ant. PML, c. 27 : Bomam ut uenit triumpJiauit. exinde Lauinium profectus est. Commodum demde sibi collegam in tribuniciam potestatem iunxit. The probable so- lution of this difiiculty is that the earlier authorities are the more cor- rect; that Commodus was appointed colleague in the tribuniciate on the 23d of Dec, 176, on the day of the triumph ; that since he had been designated as consul for the coming year, some coins were struck oif be- tween Dec. 23, 176, and Jan. 1, 177, with the inscription TR. P. COS. ; and that on the 1st of Jan., 177, in order that his tribunician years might coincide with the consulate, he began Avith TR. P. II. This ques- tion is discussed in Eckhel, v. 8, pp. 417-21 ; in Clinton, Fasti Roman.., ad an. 179 ; and in Cohen, Descrip. hut. des monnaies frappiees sous VEmp. Rom., V. 3, p. 52. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., e. 27 : Exinde Laninium profectus est. ^ Ca])it., M. Ant. Phil., c. 22 : Eum ante tempus consulem designauit. * Lampridius, Commod. Ant., c. 2 : Venia legis annariae impetrata consul est /actus. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 33 : 'Etteici) ci rd 2/ci'3-(/cd av^ig ahrov tcerj^t], yvvaiKa Tt^ v\€i Ssclttov ci aird f) il3ov\eTO Kpiffwiimv (tvv^ikiuev. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 27 : Filio siio Brnttii Praesentis Jiliam iunxit. That PriBsens had been already consul svffectus appears from the fact AD. 169-178] THE JOURNEY TO THE EAST. 229 tation, but Marcus distributed another congiariurn to the peo- ple in commemoration of the marriage of their future ruler.' The period which now followed was one of great prosperity for the Empire. In the course of the year 177 further vic- tories were gained by the army left in Pannonia under the Quintilii. AVhereupon Marcus received the title of Impe- rator IX. and Commodus was hailed as Imperator II? The plague was now apparently at an end ; and the financial status of the Empire had been restored to a sound condition by the prudent management of Marcus. The Emperor therefore sought to relieve in every way the burdened provinces/ Among other things, we are told that he remitted all the un- paid taxes which had accrued since the year 132.* About the same time, probably in 178, Smyrna was seriously injured by an earthquake ; but Marcus did not allow the inhabitants to suffer. . It is recorded that the old Stoic Aristides, whom Mar- cus had met in Smyrna, presented such a mournful picture of the destruction that the Emperor's eyes were filled with tears, and he undertook at once the restoration of the city.^ With tliat a few years later, in 180, we find him consul for the second time. He must not be confused with the C. Bruttius Praesens who was consul in 153. The date of the marriage is fixed to 177 by coins in Eckhel, v. 7, pp. 106-7. See also an inscription in Mommsen, Insc. reg. Necqy. Latin.^ no. 371, of the year 177, which Noel des Vergers, in his Essai siir Marc- Aurelc, p. 133, regards as made in commemoration of the marriage of Crispina. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 37 : Nuptiis celebratis exemplo priuatorum. quare etimn congiarium dedit populo. ^ Eckhel, V. 7, pp. 64 and 107. ^ Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 33 : Trihita uel uectigalia uhi necessitas cogebat remisit; and Zonaras, Epit. hist., lib. 13, c. 3 : "0 Sr]fioiTi(i) vraffiv d(pr]K£ rag 6(puXdc- ttoXecti re xpj'/juai'a SsSujKev. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 33 : Tolg dipdXovcri re t<^ (iaaiXiKi^ koI ti^ Srjfioaii^), Trdai Trdvra rd 6(peiX6i.iEva diprjKiv, diro irwv 'i^ Kal reaaapdKOVTa, X'^P'C ^<^i' SKKaiSiKa roil 'Adpiavou ' Kal itdvra rd irtpi avrujv ypdnfiara iv ry dyopq, kuv- Srivai iKiXivffBv ; and Orosius, Hist, aduers. Pagan., lib. 7, c. 15, § 13 : Prae- teriti etimn temporis per omnes prouincias tributa donauit omniaqiie simul fiscalium negotiorum calumniosa monumenta congesta inforo iussit incendi. * Philostratus, Vit. So2)hist., lib. 3, c. 9, § 3 : Tj)r yap iroXiv Tavr-qv dipavia- Btiaav vtto (TuafiCJv re Kai x^-^l'^^'^^v ovrw rt wXo(pvpaTO TTpbg tov MdpKov, wg ry 230 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. v. these works of benevolence the Emperor employed his time at Eome, while tlie army was preparing for another war. Iiev dWy novt^dig. Bafid iiTLffnvd^ai top jSacnXsa, im cs T(f " Zifvpoi Of tpl}Hi]v KaTaiTvkovai " Kai SuKpva rij) /3i/3Xty iirifrrd^ai rov (3a(nXta ^vvoiKiav re ry ttoXu tK tS)v tov 'ApicrreiSov IvSotrifnov vtvcrai ; Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C 32 : Xprjuard re TToWaTe TroXtmv tSujKEj'^ Iv alg Kai ry ^fxvpvy Siivwe vtto (ju(J}.iov (pSrapeiffy " Kai ai>T))v Kai fiovXevry iaTpar-qyqKon dvoiKoSofxriaai Trpotrkra^tv ; and Zonaras, Epit. hist., lib. 12, C. 3: Tt)v 'S.fivpvav vtto CTEiafiov iraSromav dvoiKoSojxi]^i]vai Trpocrira^ev. A.D.17S-1S0.] THE WAR WITH THE MAKCOMANNI. 231 Chapter YI. THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI (THIRD PERIOD).— THE " THOUGHTS."— DEATH. A.D, 178-180. Dej)artui-e for the North. — Policy of the Emperor. — The Thoughts. — Sick- ness of Marcus. — His Last Words — Death. It is scarcely to be supposed that, when the Emperor de- parted from Panuonia for his journey through the East, he anticipated a speedy cessation of the disturbances along the northern frontier. A war so vigorous and so protracted as that which the imperial forces had been waging for the past ten years could not be easily forgotten. The real significance of the commotion among the barbarian nations, though per- haps not fully realized by the soldiers, could not fail to im- press itself upon the minds of those in power. The writers of the time do not, to be sure, emphasize the importance of the new force which was gathering in the North so much as we might expect; but there can be no question that the Em- peror himself, as well as a good many of his generals, was fully alive to the danger which was destined in future reigns to threaten the very existence of the Empire. Whatever, then, the feelings of the people when they learned, in the summer of 178, that their ruler must leave them for the seat of war once more, the news cannot, at any rate, have caused the Em- peror much surprise. The generals who had been left in charge of the army were Sextus Quintilius Condiauus and his brother, Sextus Quintilius Maximus. That they were men of great wealth and influence is evident from the ruins of their splendid villa, which are still to be seen in the Campagna, near Rome. They 232 . MARCUS AUHELIUS AXTOXINUS. [CHAP. VI. were, too, generals of no mean ability,' Bat apparently they had not the personal magnetism requisite to keep together the discontented forces. It is not recorded that they suffered any disastrous defeats while the soldiers were under their command; we are merely told in somewhat general terms tliat their success was slight.^ And so, in the summer of 178, they wrote to Eome to implore the presence of the Emperors.' Before setting out Marcus performed an act which portrays in a striking manner either the personal modesty of the man, or the respect he felt for what he deemed the people's rights. Although, in accordance with the prerogative usurped by his predecessors, he was at liberty to take from the treasury what- ever suras were needed for carrying on the war, he neverthe- less submitted so far to the will of the senate as to ]aj before them a petition soliciting an appropriation for that purpose.* In the oration which he delivered on this occasion, he declared that " An emperor has nothing which is private. Even the house in which he lives belongs to you."^ The appropriation was granted. And now there was only one thing more to do. Marcus, still reluctant to renounce the superstitions of his fathers, and perhaps, too, with a view to encouraging his fol- lowers, performed a final sacrifice before his departure; and then, moistening his spear-point with the blood of the sacrificial bull, he hurled it in the direction of the enemy on the fron- tier, in token of the victory which the army was to win." ' Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 33 : KaiTrfp cvo re ovrtc, Kai ]v fSovXiQv Xsywv) o'vTiog ovciv 'iciov ixon^v, wcrrs Kai tv Ty vfiertpif o'lKia oiKovfiEv.'''' ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 33 : T6 copv to alfiaTwSeg napd r^ 'Ej^i'Ei^ tg to A.D. 1T*-1S0.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 233 This done, he left the city in company with his son, August 3, 1T8, on an expedition from which he was never to return.* The third period of tlie Marcomannic war, though less eventful than either of those which had preceded it, was far richer in advantages to the Etnpire. The precautions which had been taken during the last few years to protect the fron- tier from the assaults of the barbarians were beginning to produce a beneficial effect. So little, however, is really known about the status of the German tribes at this time that it would not be safe to assert positively how much is to be at- tributed to the measures which the Emperor had adopted. It may well be that the internal causes which gave rise to the commotion during the earlier years of the reign of Marcus Aurelius had for the present ceased. But, whatever the rea- son, there can be no question that his efforts were accom- panied by a proportionate relaxation in the inroads of the barbarians ; so that the third period of the Marcomannic war was occupied with but few battles, and those few of no very serious nature. The presence of the Emperors was needed not so much to spur the soldiers on to the encounter, as to keep the discontented army together, and to supervise the political management of the provinces. It must not be sup- posed, however, that the period was utterly devoid of warlike features. There is reason to believe that the attitude of the imperial forces was throughout one of armed hostility. But their method was in the main to subdue the enemy by a con- tinual display of power, rather than by marching forcibly into the barbarian territories. The Emperors seem to have taken up their quarters at various points along the frontier in order that they might the more easily receive the overtures of peace which were made to them from time to time. Occasionally this pacific life was interrupted by some uprising of the enemy. For example, we are told that one tribe, to whom TroXkfiiov drj ^WjOiov (wg y£ Kal toiv avyyivon'ivrnv avr(^ iJKovffa) aKOVTiaag, t^up- ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 27: Dein ad conjiciendum lellum conuersus ; and Lampridius, Commod. Ant., c. 12: Itertim profectus III. non Commo- dias Orfito et Riifo consulibus. 234 MAECUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. Marcus had granted territory near Eavenna, rebelled and took possession of that city ; whereupon the Emperor, regretting his former leniency, removed all the barbarians from Italy.' It is also said that he succeeded in keeping back some of the German tribes by the aid of their neighbors, whom he em- ployed as mercenaries.^ To the lazyges and Buri, who on one occasion sent ambassadors to him, asking him to remit some of the burdens imposed upon them, he rej)lied that he would show them no mercy unless they would render aid to the Romans.' This seems to have been done in the end ; for we find that he did remit some of their burdens. He did not remove the stipulations in regard to their commerce ; they were still prohibited from using boats of their own, and from landing on the islands in the Danube. But he granted them the right to j)ass through Dacia in order to trade with the Boxolani, whenever the governor of that province should permit.'' The Quadi continued to give some trouble. They found the restrictions placed on them, and tlie castles erect- ed in their land, so disagreeable that they attempted to migrate in a body to the Semnones.^ If this had been all ' Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 11 : Kal avrutv iv'PalSkwy riv'sc olKOvvnc iviwrk- piffav, wffre Kal T-qv ttoKiv KaraaxHv roXfirjaai. Kal Sid rovr ovkst tg t^v 'iToXiav oii^'tva Twv f3apl3apu)v i(Tt)yajev. ciWci Kal tovq Trpoafpiy/itvovg t^t^Kurev. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 11 : IloXXol yap Kal tote irpoQ ahrbv r/X^ov, o'l fiiv avfijxaxlaQ VTrirrxvovfiEVOi, wv Tjytlro BarTapiOQ ttoTc sroji' t/3', Kal xpi^p-aTo. re tXa- jSov, Kal TdpfSoi' SvvdarTjv 7r\i](n6x'^pov fftpuii', eg te ti)v AaKiav iXBovra, Kal dp- yvpiov aiTOvvTU, direiXovvrd re TroXe^rirreiv, h firj XdjSoi, dvelp^av. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 18 : 01 Sk 'IdZvysg tirpia^evaavTO, Kal yrrfaav rivd d(pi^7jvai (Tcpiaiv tK rwv otfioXoyrifikvwv ' Kal (Tvv(.x<^pi)Siriadv riva avrolg, 'iva fifi Kal Trai'TeXCJg aXXoTpKoBaxriv. ov fikvroi irporepov ovrs ovroi, ovte oi j3ovppoi avfi- fiaxtjffai Tolg 'Pwfiaioig T)^kXr]aav, irplv iriaTug irapd MapKOj; Xajitlv, fj firiv fiixpi TzavTog r({j TroXi/Kf) xp)7(T£(T^ai. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 19 : Kal tirsiSrj ol 'IdZvyeg xpW^^t'^'^''')ffat. A.D. 178-180.] THE WAR WITH THE MARCOMANNI. 235 it would have been a benefit to the Komans. But there seem to have been other facts connected with this migra- tion ; for the Emperors at once despatched a force to cut ofi the Quadi and prevent the intended journey.' Probably the most serious en^counter of this period took place in the year 179. Which of the barbarian tribes were engaged in it we are not told ; but the leader on the Roman side was Tar- runtenus Paternus, of whom we have already spoken.'' The battle was a protracted one. The barbarians fought with their accustomed stubbornness; and it was not till the day was over that they gave way. But in the end the Roman victory was complete ; and the enemy's forces were entirely cut to pieces.^ Marcus was now hailed as Imperator X., and Com modus was granted at the same time the title of Imper- ator IID After this event the Emperors retired again to their headquarters, and continued their negotiations with the German tribes. An opportunity was thus afforded the Emperor for com- pleting his Thoughts, a work which will render his name fa- mous long after his wars with the Marcomanni have been for- gotten. I have not hesitated to quote it at various periods of his career; for the suggestions contained in these Thoughts were undoubtedly the principles by which his whole life was governed ; but it seems likely that no portion of the work was actually written in his younger days. The later chapters were apparently not compiled until a short time be- fore his death.'* Just as there is a considerable difference in * Dion Cassius, lib 71, C. 20: 'O 5k 'Avtu)v~ivoq irpofia^wv Ttjv Sidvoim' av- TuJv, TUQ diocovQ aTTotppci^aQ, tKa)\v(TEv. ° See above, p. 213. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 33 : Ty UaHpvift Sovg x"P« ii(^ya\i]v, tmii-iptv av- rov elg tuv Trjg fiax^C ayfSva. Kai o'l f3dpj3apoi avreTSivav (ikv Sid rfjg i]jiipaQ dvrdaijg, KaTeKOTTTjrrav de vivo tmv 'Pwfialeuv TzdvTiQ. * Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 33 : 'O MdpKog rb SsKaTov aiiTOKpdnop Trpoo-r/yo- pev^Tj. This passage, coming immediately after the description of the battle, fixes the date of the battle to the year 179, when these titles were conferred. See Eckhel, v. 7, pp. 65 and 108. ^ The authorsjiip of this work has never been disputed. A number of passages in it prove beyond all possibility of doubt that it was written by the Emperor himself. In lib. 6, c, 26, he sijeaks of himself 236 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. vi. time between the compilation of the earlier and of the later books, so there seems to have been a difference in their pur- pose. The first two or three books consist almost entirely of entries jotted down in spare moments snatched from the duties of the office or the camp. The sentences are thrown together without the slightest care, in such a way t^hat it is often impos- sible for US to be sure of the exact meaning intended by the writer. Here there is no verb, there the whole sentence is left incomplete — an idea is suggested to the mind, and we are left to follow out the meaning by ourselves. In the order, too, there is no regularity. Just as the thoughts occurred to him they are written down, and it is sometimes odd to notice in what strange company an idea is placed.' Evidently, the writer had at first no intention of showing the book to others. He is merely meditating with himself. In one place he says, speaking of Antoninus Pius, "We know how he behaved to UDder tlie name of Antoninus ; and again in lib. 6, c. 44, this time in such a way as to show that he is Emperor. In lib. 6, c. 30, he calls himself a disciple of Antoninus (i. e.,Pius). In lib. 10, c. 27, he speaks of the ex- perience which he has had m the court of Hadrian and Antoninus ; and in lib. 10, c. 31, he compares himself with other " Caesars." Finally, lie recounts in the first book a number of incidents which we know from other sources to have been incidents in the life of Marcus Aurelius. With regard to the date of the work, it seems clear that no portion of it was written before 169; for, as we have seen, it was not till that year that he could call the philosopher Severus his " brother." See Tliouglits^ lib. 1, c. 14. Again, in lib. 2, c. 2, he says, "Thou art an old man;" and in lib. 2, c. 6, " Every man's life is sufficient. But thine is nearly finished." Perhaps, therefore, this book was written in the course of the second or third Marcomannic war. And this hypothesis is supported by the fact that the first book is dated Among the Quacli at the Granua^ and the second This in Carnuntum. The seventh and eleventh books are full of quotations from other writers — a fact which would seem to show that they were composed when the Emperor was surrounded by his books; perhaps during his stay in Rome before the third Marcomannic war. The twelfth book should probably be assigned to a period shortly before his death, chiefly because of the retrospective manner of its termination. When the work was first given to the world is not known. None of the contemporary writers mention it. Indeed, the first writer who seems to have been aware of its existence is Suidas, of the eleventh century. > Cf. lib. 4, c. 5 and 6 ; and lib. 4, c. 27 and 28. A.D. ITS-ISO.] THE "THOUGHTS." 237 the toll-collector in Tusciilum, who asked his pardon ;" ' but he does not let us hear the story. The book was written solely for his own consolation, written in his stronger moments, to uphold him in the hour of trial. As the work progresses, however, it grows more systematic; the quotations become more frequent ; the thoughts are often studied ; and we begin to feel that the Emperor has in mind a succeeding generation — perhaps his own son Commodiis. And yet the book re- tains throughout the same purity and grace. It is the mirror of a soul overflowing with love for humanity. We shall now try to systematize, as far as possible, the Thoughts^ in order to bring the various portions of the work into one connected whole. Its aim, as we have already seen, was essentially a moral one. In this the Emperor proved himself a true disciple of the Stoics, whose whole philosophy was based on an ethical principle, and took its shape from that fact. They sought to inculcate a practical morality, and all phenomena were of importance to thera solely as bearing on this problem. What is a good life? was the question which they asked ; and this was the question which Marcus Aurelius sought to answer. The most comprehensive answer he offers is that a good life is a life guided by the principles of -philosophy. " What, then," he asks, "is that which is able to conduct a man % One thing, and only one — pliilosophy." '' He does not, to be sure, maintain that philosophy can solve all his doubts. Pie himself says that " things are in such a kind of envelopment that they have seemed to philosophers — not a few, nor those common philosophers — altogether un- intelligible ; nay, even to the Stoics themselves, they seem difficult to understand." ' But, as far as man can know the truth, philosophy must be his guide. It is, therefore, impor- tant for us to know in what sense he uses this term, philoso- phy. Does he mean the metaphysical subtleties which have perplexed the world from the time of Thales to our own days? Far from it. Expressly rejecting all philosophy of this de- scription, he thanks the gods "that, when he had an inclina- ' Lib. 1, c. 16. » Lib. 2, c. 17. ' Lib. 5, c. 10. 238 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. tion to philosophy, he did not fall into the hands of any sophist, and that he did not waste his time on writers of his- tories, or in the solution of syllogisms." ' L A philosophical life was to Marcus Aurelius nothing more nor less than a life in accordance with nature.^ This is the fundamental truth of his whole system.'^ He who lives such a life reaches the high- est point that man can attain. What a life in accordance with nature is each man must learn for himself. It is a knowledge that can be acC[uired, and it can be taught. He himself thanks the gods " that he received clear and frequent impressions about living according to nature, and what kind of a life that is, so that, so far as depended on the gods, and their gifts and help and inspirations, nothing hindered him from forthwith living according to nature," " though," he continues, " I still fall short of it through my own fault, and through not observing the admonitions of the gods." ^ From this it fol- lows naturally that all sin is the result of ignorance ; or, as he expresses it, "that men do wrong involuntarily."* This fact should always be present to'Ojir minds when we form our es- timate of men. "Begin the morning by saying to thyself, I shall meet with the busybody, the ungrateful, the arrogant, the deceitful, the envious, the unsocial. All these things hap- pen to them by reason of their ignorance of what is good and evil." ^ And again : " Every soul, the philosopher says, is in- voluntarily deprived of truth ; consequently, in the same way it is deprived of justice and temperance and benevolence, and everything of the kind. It is most necessary to bear this constantly in mind, for thus thou, wilt be more gentle towards all." * " Men exist for the sake of one another. Teach them, then, or bear with them."'' "Enter into every man's ruling faculty, and also let every other man enter into thine." ' The law of- nature being, then,- the proper field of study for mankind, we should seek to discover in what this law consists. The answer is plain : it consists of three things — the law of > Lib. 1, c. 17; cf. lib. 7, c. 67. » Lib. 3, c. 17. =" Lib. 1, c. 17. * Lil). 4, c. 3. > Lib. 2, c. 1. « Lib. 7, c. 63. ' Lib. 8, c. 59. ' Lib. 8, c. 61. A.D.178-1S0.] THE "THOUGHTS." 239 one's own nature, the social law, and the law of God. And, first, with reference to the law of one's own nature. Man consists of three parts : body, breath, and intelligence.' " To the body belong sensations, to the soul appetites, to the intel- ligence principles."" "Of these, the first two are thine, so far as it is thy duty to take care of them ; but the third alone is properly thine.'" "The third, then, is the ruling part.'" Thus we see how he subordinates the soul to the intelligence. He has but a single word to signify breatl^, life, and soul ; and, indeed, he makes no distinction between them. The soul is merely the principle of life, which man possesses in com- mon with beasts."* The conception of a soul such as we rec- ognize to-day is quite foreign to the Emperor's philosophy. And yet, at times, he seems to have caught a glimmer of a deeper meaning in the soul than he had at first suspected. Once he goes so far as to say that the soul is not acted upon ; it merely acts.' In another passage he does not seem to dis- tinguish between the mind and soul. He says: "Such as are thy habitual thoughts, such also will be the character of thy mind ; for the soul is dyed by the thoughts.'' ' And, still again, he attempts to convey his vague idea by forming a combination of the reason and the soul. Wood, stones, etc., he says, are held together by cohesion, or natural organization, flocks and herds by a living principle, and men by a " rational soul." ^ And yet there can be no question that, in the main, his idea of the soul was that it had a material character. This being so, it would naturally follow that he would not attribute immortality to the soul as delineated in his system ; but this denial he was by no means ready to make. It was a question which he always looked upon as open to inquiry. At one time he asks himself, " If souls continue to exist, how does the air contain them from eternity?" And then this material way of looking at the problem strikes him as so ridiculous that he meets it with the counter-thought, " But how does the earth > Lib. 12, c. 3 ; and lil). 2, c. 2. ^ Lib. 3, c. 16. " Lib. 12, c. 3. * Lib. 2, c. 2. * Lib. 9, o. 9. « Lib. 5, c. 19. ' Lib. 5, c. 16. « Lib. 6, c, 14. 240 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. contain the bodies of those who have been buried from time so remote ?" ' As a proof of the uncertainty he felt, compare tliis remark : " Everything which belongs to the body is a stream, and what belongs to the soul is a dream and vapor, and life is a warfare and stranger's sojourn, and after-fame is oblivion ;" "^ and this : " Thou existest as a part. Thou shalt disappear in that which produced thee ; but, rather, thou shalt be received back into its seminal principle," ^ with the follow- ing: "I am composed of the formal and the material; and neither of them will perish into non-existence, as neither of them came into existence out of non-existence." * But the attitude which he takes, in the main, is one of ignorance. " Alexander the Macedonian and his groom, by death, were brought to the same state ; for either they were received among the same seminal principles of the universe, or they were alike dispersed among the atoms." ' " About death : whether it is a dispersion, or a resolution into atoms, or anni- hilation, it is either extinction or change." " And then there follow some exquisite passages on the vanity of things. "All things soon pass away and become a mere tale, and complete oblivion soon buries them," ' " As soon as they have breathed out their breath they are gone, and no man speaks of them." ^ "Time is like a river, made up of the events which happen, and a violent stream ; for as soon as a thing has been seen it is carried away, and another comes in its place, and this will be carried away too.-"^ "Substance is like a river in a con- tinual flow, and the activities of things are in constant change, and the causes work in infinite varieties; and there is hardly anything which stands still. And consider this which is near to thee, this boumlless abyss of the past and of the future, in, which all things disappear." '" And then, in the midst of all this gloom, he offers us some words of consolation, which rise in parts almost to the grandeur of the Psalms. Death is, to be sure, a mystery ; but still it is one of the operations of nat- 'Lib. 4,c. 21. «Lib. 2, c. 17. ^ Lib. 4, c. 14. * Lib. 5, c. 13. " Lib. 6, c. 24. « Lib 7, c. 32; cf. lib 2, c 12, and lib. 12, c. 5. ' Lib. 4, c. 33. « Lib. 4, c. 33. « Lib. 4, c. 43. » Lib. 5, c. 23. A.D. ITS-m] THE "THOUGHTS." 241 ure, and so should be no cause of dread. " Death is such as generation is — a mystery of nature; a composition out of the same elements, and a decomposition into the same; and, altogether not a thing of which any man should be ashamed, for it is conformable to the nature of a reasonable animal, and not contrary to thfe reason of our constitution." ' Then comes a masterly argument against regret at dying. The argument appears to be based on the belief that there is no personal existence of the soul hereafter; and, to unbelievers in the immortality of the soul, probably no more perfect consolation was ever offered than in these words of Marcus: "Though thou shouldest be going to live three thousand years, and as many times ten thousand years, still remember that no man loses any other life than this which he now lives, nor lives any other than this which he now loses. The longest and shortest are thus brought to the same. . . . For the present is the only thing of which a man can be deprived, if it is true that this is the only thing which he has, and that a man cannot lose a thing if he has it not." * In another place he says, " Do not act as if thou wert going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over thee. While thou livest, while it is in thy power, be good." ^ Lastly come the words, " Why, then, dost thou not wait in tranquillity for thy end, whether it is extinction or removal to another state ?" * Tranquillit3^ This was the acme of Stoic virtue. We scarcely find in any of their writings a single thought of self- improvement. Their aim is merely that they may not sink. So the Emperor praises his teacher Maximus as one who "presented the appearance of a man who could not be divert- ed from the right, rather than of a man who had been im- proved." * He can appreciate no higher virtue than " to live a life which flows in quiet, and is like the existence of the gods."* Antoninus Pius was a noble character because he had no "love of novelty.;"' and because "he loved to stay in the same places, and to employ himself about the same » Lib. 4, c. 5. "^ Lib. 2, c. 14. » lh,. 4, c. 17. * Lib. 5, c. 83. ' Lib. 1, c. 15. « Lib. 2, c. 5. '' Lib. 1, c. 16. , 16 242 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. things." ' " From Apollonius," writes Marcus, gratefully, " I learned freedom of will and undeviating steadiness of pur- pose ; and to look to nothing else, not even for a moment, ex- cept to reason ; and to be always the same, in sharp pains, on . the occasion of the loss of a child, and in long illness."" " The mind which is free from passions is a citadel, for man has nothing more secure to wliich he can flee for refuge, and for the future be inexpugnable." ' " Be like the promon- tory," he exclaims, "against which the waves continually break ; but it stands firm, and tames the fury of the water around it."* Furthermore, the tranquillity of the true phi- losoplier is not to be attained by the aid of others; we must learn the value of independence. " Seek not external help, nor tlie tranquillity '"which others give." ^ For a man "must stand erect, not be kept erect by others." ® Then he breaks out into a denunciation of those who are ever prying into the characters of their neighbors, but take no care to scrutinize themselves. "It is a ridiculous thing," he says, "for a man not to fly from his own badness, which is, indeed, possible; but to fly from other men's badness," which is impossible."' And again : " I have often wondered how it is that every man ■loves himself more than all the rest of men, and yet sets less ; value on his own opinion of himself than on the opinion of pothers." * He is never tired of urging the importance of self- ' examination. "A man has seldom been seen to be unhappy through not observing what is in the mind of anotlier; but those who do not observe the movements of their own minds must of necessity be unhappy." ' " Men seek retreats for them- selves — houses in the country, sea -shores, and mountains; and thou, too, art wont to desire such things very much. But tliis is altogether a mark of the commonest sort of men, for it is in thy power, whenever thou shalt choose, to retire into thyself. For nowhere, either with more quiet or more freedom from trouble, does a man retire than into his own > Lib. 1, c 16. » Lib. 1, c. 8. ^Lib. 8, c. 48. * Lib. 4, c. 49. «Lib. 3, c 5. ^Lib. 3 c. 5. ' Lib. ' Lib. 2, c. 8. 7, c 71. « Lib. 12, c. 4. A.D. I7s-isn.] THE "THOUGHTS." 243 soul." * "Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig." " This contem- plation of the good that is within us should be perpetual, for by habit character is formed. " Such as are thy habitual thoughts, such also will be the character of thy mind ; for the soul is dyed by the thoughts." ^ The value of habit he illus- trates in another way. " Practise thyself," he says, " even in the things which thou despairest of accomplishing; for even the left hand, which is ineffectual for all other things, for want of practice, holds the bridle more vigorously than the right hand, for it has been practised in this." * The mind thus trained can never be overcome by opposition from without ; for, like the fire, its strength increases by its own activity. But, however complete the ruling faculty may be in itself, it is a mistake for it to attempt to get along entirely without the world about it ; for " it makes a material for itself out of that which opposes it, as fire "lays hold of what falls into it." ^ This brings us to the second division of the law of nature — the social law. So important is this law in the system of Mar- cus, that he says, " The prime principle in man's constitution is the social."" One of the great beauties in the Emperor's philosophy is that it does not seek to prove the truths which are made known to us through the feelings. Why a man should follow the dictates of his own reason he never in- quires ; nor does he attempt to prove why he should obey the dictates of the social law. It is enough that there are other people in the world besides himself. Therefore he must regard their necessities as of equal importance with his own. A man must maintain his own independence ; but he must re- member that he is only a single part in this vast universe. It is inspiring to hear an emperor on the Roman throne exclaim, " The whole earth is a point, and how small a part of it is this thy dwelling !" ' In another place he praises Antoninus Pius, because "he esteemed himself of no more account than any other citizen." * His modesty is manifest everywhere. He » Lib. 4, c. 3. => Lib. 7, c. 59. ^ Lib. 5, c. 16. * Lib. 12, c. 6. * Lib. 4, c. 1. ^ Lib. 7, c. 55. ' Lib. 4, c. 3. « Lib. 1, c. 16. 2ii JIARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. ^ never accepts any good thing as coming from himself. In the ; Thouglds he is careful to point out at the start that all his I good qualities, if he has any, were derived from his mother, ! from Antoninus Pius, or from his tutors. But he makes us feel ; at all times that he possesses that other quality — dignity — which makes a virtue of a weakness, which, in place of humble- ness, gives us humility. That combination of qualities which is portrayed with such exquisite skill in the San Sistine Ma- donna at Dresden, and which shines out with so much beauty in the face of Marcus Aurelius, is one of the foremost char- acteristics of the Thoughts. The Emperor is very fond of such expressions as " simple dignity," ' " sweetness and dig- nity," "^ " knowledge without ostentation ;" ' and in one place he urges upon himself to "pass through the rest of life like one who has intrusted to the gods, with his whole soul, all that he has, making himself neither the tyrant nor the slave of any man." * Everything that savored of hypocrisy he detested with his whole soul. " ISTever value anything as profitable to thyself which shall compel thee to break thy promise, to lose thy self-respect, to hate any man, to suspect, to curse, to act the hypocrite, to desire anything which needs walls and cur- tains." ' The vanity of riches he frequently portrays." Here is a lesson for the princes of the world : " I am thankful to the gods . . . that I was subjected to a ruler and a father who was able to take away all pride from me, and to bring me to the knowledge that it is possible for a man to live in a palace without wanting either guards or embroidered dresses, or torches and statues, and such-like show ; but that it is in such a man's power to bring himself very near to the fashion of a private person, without being, for this reason, either meaner in thought or more remiss in action, with respect to the things which must be done for the public interest in a man- ner that befits a rulei*." ' Listen to this, you who would know the true use of riches : " I am thankful to the gods , . . that, whenever I wished to help any ipan in his need, or on any 'Lib. 2, c. 5. "Lib. l,c. 15. = Lib. 1, c. 9. * Lib. 4, c. 31. « Lib. 3, c. 7. • See lib. 1, c. 3 ; and lib. 1, c. 11. ■ Lib. 1, c. 17. A.D. 1T8-1S0.] THE "THOUGHTS." 245 other occasion, I was never told that I had not the means of doing it.'" Then, with regard to all flattery and ostentation, lie is never weary of denouncing it. He notes with joy the eagerness which Antoninus Pius exhibited " to check imme- diately popular applause and all flattery." ^ " What more dost thou want when thon hast done a man a service ? art thou not content that thou hast done something conformable to thy nature, and dost thou seek to be paid for it? just as if the eye demanded a recompense for seeing, or the feet for walking."^ " As a horse when he has run, a dog when he has tracked the game, a bee when it has made the honey, so a man, when he has done a good act, does not call out for others to come and see, but goes on to another act, as a vine goes on to produce again the grapes in season."* But the social law not only made the Emperor lowly in his own eyes, it made him charitable to his neighbors. In his as- siduous regard for the feelings of others, he recommends us not to find fault with those who make gross errors in their speech, " but dexterously to introduce the very expression which ought to have been used, and in the way of answer or giving confirmation, or joining in an inquiry about the thing itself, not about the word, or by some other fit suggestion."^ Another valuable rule is this: "Accustom thyself to attend carefully to w^hat is said by another, and, as much as it is possible, be in the speaker's mind."" So prone are we all to overestimate the injuries we suffer that we shall do well to make forgiveness our universal rule. It is scarcely possible to err on the side of too great charity. Indeed, if we will \ only stop to examine our minds when we feel offended, we shall almost invariably find that the wrong is in ourselves. '' If thou art pained by any external thing, it is not this thing that disturbs thee, but thy own judgment about it."' "Take .away thy opinion, and then there is taken away the complaint, ' I have been harmed.' Take away the complaint, ' I have been harmed,' and then the harm is taken away." ® And then 'Lib. l,c. 17. ^Lib. l,c. 16. ^ Lib. 9, c. 42. " Lib. 5, c. 6. ^Lib. l,c. 10. " Lib. 6, c. 53. ' Lib. 8, c. 47. « Lib. 4, c. 7. 246 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP VL he gives us a few simple words of advice, " We ought," he says, " to check in the series of our thoughts everything that is useless and without a purpose, but most of all the over-curi- ous feeling and the malignant ; and a man should accustom himself to think of those things only about which, if one should suddenly ask. What hast thou now in thy thoughts ? with perfect openness thou mightest immediately answer, This or That ; so that from thy words it should be plain that everything in thee is simple and benevolent, and such as be- fits a social animal, and one that cares not for thoughts about pleasure or sensual enjoyments at all, or any rivalry or envy or suspicion, or anything else for which thou wouldst blush to say thou hadst it in thy mind."/ The two parts of the law of nature which we have thus far considered would be very incomplete without the last. It is the law of God that brings together and unites the other two. Here, as before, the fundamental truths are not deemed proper subjects for investigation. That there is a God, and that his laws are to be obeyed, the Emperor regards as too firmly established to admit of doubt. In one passage, how- ever, he does condescend to answer the objection of unbe- lievers. " To those who ask, Where hast thou seen the gods, or how dost thou comprehend that they exist, and so wor- shippest them ? I answer, in the first place, they may be seen even with the eyes ; in the second place, neither have I seen even my own soul, and yet I honor it. Thus, then, with re- spect to the gods, from what I constantly experience of their power, from this I comprehend that they exist, and I venerate them."* In other words, the gods make themselves known both through the sight and through the inner feelings. It is the harmony that pervades everything, internal and external, which convinces us that there is a supreme power behind it all. Nor is this idea of the gods, of the universe, in any es- sential aspect different from the Christian's idea of God. The Emperor says, " There is one universe made up of all things, and one god who pervades all things, and one substance, and ' Lib. 3, c. 4. » Lib. 12, c. 28. A.D. 178-180.] THE "THOU(^TS." 247 one law."' "Constantly regard the universe as one living being, having one substance and one soul."^ Surely, these thoughts breathe the spirit of Christianity. Now it is by studying the workings oi this universe that we shall be en- abled to discover the will of God. And in our studies we shall learn, according to Marcus Aurelius, that " the Universe loves nothing so much as to change the things which are and to make new things like them."^ "Some things are hurry- ing into existence, and others are hurrying out of it ; and of that wdiich is coming into existence part is already extin- guished. Motions and changes are continually renewing the world, just as the uninterrupted course of time is always re- newing the infinite duration of ages."* The whole duty of man, therefore, is to contribute to this work. He is to con- form to the law of his own nature and to the social law only because in that way he will best co-operate in producing the changes of the universe. It is for this work that man was formed. " We are made for co-operation, like feet, like liands, like eyelids, like the rows of the upper and lower teeth."' A neglect to contribute to this work is contrary to the law of nature, and is sin. We must, therefore, endeavor to preserve our health, that we may be the better enabled to perform our work,^ and when our work is over, we should gladly die. Whether or not the philosophy of Marcus regards it as a man's duty, when his powers fail him, to die by his own hand, is not quite clear. In one place he says, " And considering whether a man should now depart from life ;" ^ and again, "Who is he that shall hinder thee from being good and sim- ple? Do thou only determine to live no longer, unless thou shalt be such. For neither does reason allow thee to live, if thou art not such."' But, on the other hand, he asks, " Why, then, dost thou not wait in tranquillity for thy end?"° One further duty the law of God imposes on us. Not only must we help our neighbor when he is in need ; we must also be willing to receive help from him. " Be not ashamed to be ' Lib. 7, c. 9. » Lib. 4, c. 40. ' Lib. 4, c. 36. * Lib. 6, c. 15. » Lib. 2, c. 1. « See lib. 1, c. 16. ' Lib. 3, c. 1. « Lib. 10, c. 32. » Lib. 5, c. 33. 248 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. vi. helped; for it is thj business to do thj duty like a soldier in the assault on a town. How then, if, being lame, thou canst not mount up on the battlements alone, but with the help of another it is possible V ' The crowning beauty of the whole philosophy of the Em- peror is its optimistic view of nature. This view follows as a necessary consequence from his firm conviction of the om- niscience and omnipotence of God. Everything that happens must be for the best. " We are all working together to one end, some with knowledge and design, and others without knowing what they do. . . : Men co-operate after diiferent fashions: and even those co-operate abundantly who find fault with what happens, and those who try to oppose it and to hinder it; for the universe had need even of such men as these."* Like most men who really believe in the omnipo- tence of God, Marcus 'Aurelius did not believe it to be his duty to punish wickedness. He therefore recommends " a benevolent disposition, even to liars and unjust men."^ He speaks out boldly (what no true Christian can deny) that " wickedness does no harm at all to the universe. ... It is only harmful to him who has it in his power to be released from it."' So deeply ingrafted was this principle in his nature that in almost everything he was able to~discern some hidden good. "To the gods," he says, "I am indebted for having good grandfathers, good parents, a good sister, good teachers, good associates, good kinsmen and friends, nearly everything good."' He certainly had the power in a remark- able degree of gathering to himself the sweet things of this world. All nature appeared to his soul alive with beauty. " Figs, when they are quite ripe, gape open ; and in the ripe olives the very circumstance of their being near to rottenness adds a peculiar beauty to the fruit. And the ears of corn bending down, and the lion's eyebrows, and the foam which flows from the mouth of wild boars, and many other things — though they are far from being beautiful if a man should ex- amine them severally, still, because they are consequent upon > Lib. 7, c. 7. 2 Lib. 6, c. 42. ^ Lib. 6, c. 47. * Lib. 8, c. 55. * Lib. 1, c. 17. .] THE "THOUGHTS. El) 1, it the tilings which are formed by nature, help to ad( and tliey please the mind. . . . Many such things wil themselves, not pleasing to every man, but to him only who has become truly familiar with nature and her works.'" This habit of seeing a Divine Hand at work in everything it should always be our endeavor to acquire. An inestimable benefit is to be derived from contemplating the good, the deity, that is in ourselves. "Nothing is more wretched than a man who, traverses everything in a round, and pries into the things be- neath the earth, as the poet says, and seeks by conjecture what is in the minds of his neighbors, without perceiving that it is sufficient to attend to the deity within him, and to reverence it sincerely."' Much, too, is to be obtained by searching out the ever-present relation between the human and divine. "As physicians have always their instruments and knives ready for cases which suddenly require their skill, so do thou have principles read}' for the understanding of things divine and human, and for doing everything, even the smallest, with a recollection of the bond which unites the divine and human to one another." ^ This thought the Emperor is never weary of repeating. It is the' idea on which, more than on any other, he loves to dwell ; and at times his philosophy is carried by it above the realms of reason, and pierces into the infinity beyond. His Thoughts reach their highest point in a personal communion with the gods. And yet this communion never becomes selfish, like much of the so-called piety we see about us, iThe prayers of Marcus Aurelius to his gods are for one thing only — that their will be done. All else is vain, all else is rebellion against the universe itself. Our form of worship should be like this : " Everything harmonizes with me which is harmonious to thee, O Universe. Nothing for me is too early nor too late, which is in due time for thee. Everything is fruit to me which thy seasons bring, O Nature : from thee are all things, in thee are all things, to thee all things return."' One cannot rise from a study of these Thoughts without a feeling of intense depression. I believe it would be impossi- » Lib. 3, c. 2. 2 Lib. 2, c. 13. ^ Lib. 3, c. 13. * Lib. 4, c. 23 ; cf. lib. 5, c. 7 ; and lib. 9, c. 40. 250 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. ble to find another book, outside of Christianity, in which the reader meets with so much that is truly pathetic as in this. The Thoughts of Marcus Aurelius present us with tlie pict- ure of a noble, earnest soul, striving to reach the solution of problems for which his religion and his philosophy are quite inadequate. He is groping in the dark for a consolation which, even in the end, he is not fully able to secure. And yet, in this endeavor to seize the truth, often so very far be- yond his read), he is ever contented, ever cheerful, ever en- thusiastic. It is a humiliating lesson that is forced upon us by a stud}' of these Thoughts ; and it is a lesson which makes itself all the more strongh^ felt by reason of the similarity be- tween the times of Marcus Aurelius and our own. The Ro- man people of those daj^s were, like ourselves, at that stage in their history when all enthusiasm for divine things was fast giving way before the vast strides which men were making in their conquests over the forces of the world. By the ma- jority of the people religion was tolerated as a relic of their early history rather than cherished as a natural concomitant of progress. And we, too, of this cold nineteenth century, in wdiich there is so little religion that is not stereotyped in forms of thought bequeathed to us by more enthusiastic gen- erations, are often inclined to look back upon our ancestors with a sort of pity rather than with admiration. But we shall not be wise to neglect the lesson taught us by the his- tory of Eome. If it is our ambition to leave behind us a name that may be honored in later ages, we shall do well to consider for a moment the place which Marcus Aurelius holds, after these many centuries, and to ask ourselves whether men do not still attach some value to the fresh, clear notes that burst from the soul of that early seeker after God. While the Emperor was engaged on the last few chapters of his book, he was made to feel that his work on earth was now drawing to its close. From his earliest days his life had been one continual warfare with disease.' If we had no source of information but his own words, we should know ' Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 36 : 'Ek h' ovv rijQ TroWns dtrxoXi'ac re koI aa- Kr](T£(t)g aff^evitrraTov to fftD/ia iffxfv. A. D. 178-180. J THE "THOUGHTS." 251 nothing of the agony he suffered. And if we were left to judge of his pliysical constitution solely by the activity of his mind, we should picture him as a man of extraordinary health and vigor. But that it was otherwise we know from the works of Galen, who was a contemporary of Marcus. This celebrated physician speaks more than once of the disease with which his ruler was afflicted. The exact nature of his trouble is not known ; but it appears to have been some chronic stomach complaint of the most aggravated form. The suffering which attended this disease was so acute that during the latter part of his life the Emperor scarcely ate a morsel of food during the entire day; his habit was to get up long before daybreak and take a little nourishment at that hour; and this lasted him throughout the day.' Such a regimen, though apparently a matter of necessity, proved so enervating to his system that during the later years of his life he could hardly endure the exertion required to address his soldiers.'^ It was only by extreme care that he was able to keep his body in a condition to perform his daily work. And yet, by strict temperance and severe reg- ularity of habits, he succeeded in accomplishing his duties in a way which would have done honor to the most robust and vigorous of his predecessors. Galen speaks in terms of the highest praise of the temperance which Marcus invariably practised.^ There was a remedy, known as theriaca, which seemed to alleviate the Emperor's pain more than anything else. This drug, which was a mixture of opium and spices, was a favorite of Galen's, and it was apparently by his advice 'Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 6: O'vtioq do^evfiQ ri^ awjian iyevtTO, wcrrf fiiire rb \pvxoi; rfjv ye irpu)rT]v VTroj-ielvai, dWa kuI irpiv dia\ex^r)vai toIq arpuTi- wraig, ffvvEXriXvSroffiv ijdri kuto. to Traprjy-ytXfisvov, dvax^prjaai, Kai rpoiprlv f3paxvrdrT]v, Kal ravrip' iv vvkti, del \af.ifidvHv. ov yap tariv ote ^e^' t'lfiipav. "" Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 6. ^ Galen., ^(Z Pison. de theriaca, c. 2 [v. 14, p. 216 of Eiihn's ecL] : Tdv Bilov MdpKOV Kal i'lfiiig o'lSafiev tvBsafKvg Trore jSaaiXevffavra, Kai aKpifSCig tavTOv Sid. rffv avvtaiv rq) avyKpdan tov awnaroQ TrapaKoXovdfjaavTa, Kara- Kopwg re, Kal wg rivi Tpo€7'a sunty^ On the 17th of March, 180, Marcus Aurelius breathed his last, being then in the fifty-ninth year of his age and the twentieth of his reign.' ' Heroclian., Hist, lib. 1, c. 4. ' Dionis excerpta; edid. Angelo Mai \in his Scriptorum ueterum noua col- lectio e Vaticanis codicibus. Romae, 1835-38. lOv. 4". v. 2, pp. 135-233], c. 106. ' Dion Cassius, lib. 71, C. 33: Ty tTrraKathKary tov MapWow (leryWaKsv ; and C. 34 : "Ett/ yap oktco kuI Trjj-rrjKOvra, Kal [xrjvas Sbku, t'lfiepag te e'Ikooi Kal Svo Zrjcras, Kq,v tovtoiq ti^ te irpiv ' AvTiDvivcjt ffvxvdv xpovov V7rap£,ag, Kai avTog ivvka Kai Sbku trt], Kal evSeKa rffiepag avrapxriaag. See also Clinton, Fasti Roman., ad an. 180. Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 33, hints, after bis usual fashion, that Marcus was poisoned by his son Commodus. The si- lence of other historians on this point is the best answer to the insinua- tion. It has also been suggested, quite without authority, that the pesti- lence was tlie immediate cause of Marcus's death. It is true that the pestilence still lingered in some out-of-the-way places ; and an inscriptiou 254 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. His death, according to the expression of Dion Cassius, marks the point at which the Koman world sank from tlie Golden to the Iron Age.' The Emperor's remains were carried at once to Rome. It most have been a sad task that his generals were thus called has been found at Bauerkirchen wliich records the death of an entire family by the pestilence in the year 183. Henzen, no. 5489. But it is quite gratuitous to maintain that the Emperor's death had any connection therewith. The fact that he had outlived the severity of the contagion, as well as the fiict that all the contemporary writers assume that he died of his chronic trouble, prove sufficiently that his death was not due in any way to the pestilence. The place of his death is given variously as Vienna and as Sirmium. See Tertullian., Apologet., c. 25 ; Victor, Be Caes., c. 16, § 13; and Victor, Epit. de Caes., c. 16, § 12. ^ Dion Cassius, lib. 71, c. 36: Ilejot ov ■^Sri pr]rkov, cnrb xpvarjc te (iaai- Xeiag eq mSijpav Kai Karairiojixsvojv, Tiitv re Trpayiidrujv rolg tots 'Ptofiaioig, Kai ripXv vvv Karairtaovaijg rije laroplaQ. It has been maintained that Mar- cus Aurelius was in part to blame for the evil times which followed upon his death, inasmuch as it was he who selected Commodus for his suc- cessor. And the Emperor Julian, in his Caesares (v. 1, pp.401 and 429 of Hertlein's ed.), makes this the main point of his attack on Marcus. But before forming our opinion too hastily we should consider one or two matters connected with it. In the first place, Marcus had absolute- ly no reason for suspecting that his son would turn out such a despicable character as we now know him to have been. It must be remembered that at his father's death Commodus was but nineteen years of age ; and, though Marcus was undoubtedly often pained to notice how little devel- opment his son's character underwent, he had no reason to suppose Com- modus capable of such crimes as he afterwards committed. Indeed, there is a passage in Capitolinus wdiich would seem to prove that until shortly before his father's death the morals of Commodus were not exceptionally bad. See Capit., M. Ant. PMl., c. 27. Moreover, in accordance with tl>e custom of the times, Commodus may almost be said to have been the rightful successor to the throne. Antoninus Pius, as -well as Hadrian and Trajan, had, it is true, chosen their successors outside of their own families, but that was only because they had no children of their own. Marcus Aurelius, on the other hand, not only had a son, but that son had been for several years already joined with his father in the empire. If, tiien, under such circumstances, Marcus had dethroned his son of nine- teen solely on the ground that his habits were somewhat wild, he would justly liave laid himself open to the charge of cruelty, and it may well be questioned whether such an act would have been a wise precedent to establish. A.D. 178-180.] THE "THOUGHTS." 255 upon to perform. The success with which Marcus Aurelius had conducted the Marcomannic war was so marked as to be often referred to by writers of a later age.' And we are told that, if he had lived another year, he would have made provinces of the countries occupied by the Marcomanni, the Hermunduri, the Sarmatse, and the Quadi.^ This plan, even if it could ever have been practicable, was now thwarted. The enthusiasm of the soldiers seems to have died away now that their Emperor was no more ; and a large body of them returned with his remains to Rome. ';.. We are told that Mar- cus was so universally loved by his people that on the day of his funeral all joined with one accord in the sentiment that there should be no mourning, since he was now returned to the gods, who had lent him to the world. When it was pro- posed to deify the departed Emperor, not a dissenting voice was heard. And, among all the other honors which were heaped upon him, it was deemed sacrilege if any one whose means allowed it did not possess an image of the Dinus Marcus.^ Indeed, so long after as in the reign of Diocletian, ' For example, Capit., M. Ant. Phil, c. 17 : Contra Oermanos res feliei- ter gessit; aud Lampriditis, ^/z^. i?eZ«(?rjr., c. 9 : Cum Marcomannis helium inferre nellet quod Antoninus puhherrime projiigarat, dictum est a quihus- dam per Chaldaeos et magos Antoninum Marcum id egisse ut Marcomanni populo Romano semper deuoti essent atque amieis. " Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 37 : Dein ad conjiciendum helium conuersus in administratione eius helli ohiit, lahentihus iam,filii marihus ah instituto sua. triennio helium postea cum Marcomannis, Hermunduris, Sarmatis, Qitadis etiam egit. et si anno uno superfuisset prouincias ex Ms fecisset. Capitoli- nus is mistaken in stating the period of the Marcomannic war during which the Emperor died as of three years' duration ; in fact, it histed but little over eighteen months. Eutropius, Breuiar. hist. Poman., lib. 8, c. 13, makes the same error: Ingenti ergo lahore et moderatione, cum apud Carnuntum iugi triennio perseuerasset, helium Marcomannicum confecit, quod cum. his Quadi, Vandali, Sarmatae, Sueui, atque omnis harharia com- mouerat. ' Capit., M. Ant. Phil., c. 18 : Tantusque illius amor die regit funeris claruit, ut nemo ilium plangendxim censuerit, certis omnibus, quod ah diis commodatus ad deos redisset. denique, priusquam funus conderetur, ut pU- rique dicunt, quod numquam antea factum, fuerat neque postea, senatus popu- lusque non diuisis locis sed in una sede propitium deum dixit . . . et parum 256 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VI. Capitolinus could say that " many statues of him are still kept among the household gods." ' It would be out of place to dwell here at any length upon the numerous works of art by which his memory was kept alive at Rome. We may, how- ever, be allowed to mention the three chief memorials to his greatness. First is the admirable equestrian statue in bronze, once gilded, and formerly in the Forum ; but in 1538 transferred to the Piazza del Camjndoglio, where it yet looks down upon us with the calm, sweet expression of the Emperor. Then there was the triumphal arch erected in his honor, which remained in the Co7'so until Pope Alexander VII. demolished it in order to gain greater space for the races ^t the Carnival. Lastly, we have the enormous Column of :^ntoninus, raised to commemorate the victories of the Mar- ci^nannic war, and until recently regarded as in honor of An- toflKnus Pius — a singular tribute to the modesty as well as the greatness of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus. sanefuit qtiod illi honores diuinos omnis aetas, omnis scxus, omnis condicio ac dignitas dedit, nisi quod etiani sacrilegus iudkatus est qui ems imaginem in sua domo non Jiabuit, qui per fortunam uel potuit habere uel debuit. ' CsLint., M. Ant. Phil, c. 18. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. 257 Chapter VII. THE ATTITUDE OF MARCUS AURELIUS TOWARDS CHRIS- TIANITY. Marcus Aurelius a Persecutor of the Cliristian&( — Nature of Christianity at the Time. — Heretics : Valentinus ; Ptolemgeus ; Colorbasus ; Mar-, cus; Marcion; Apelles ; Tatian ; Montanus; Alogi. — Fantastic No-j tions of the Orthodox: Justin; Clementine Homilies; Tertulliar Papias of Hierapolis ; Irenaeus ; Bardesanes. — Conflict between t\ Orthodox and Heretics. — Polemics of Pagan Writers: Crescentii, Fronto; Celsus; Lucian. — Christian Apologists: Justin; Tatian; Ai linarius; Melito ; Athenagoras. — Christians Attack the Religion of Rome: Hermias; Sibylline Oracles. — Enmity of the People Aroused. — Martyrdom of Justin. — Of Poly carp. — Persecutions at Lugdunum and Vienna. — Part Taken by Marcus in these Persecutions. — His Al- leged Hatred of Christianity and Fondness for the Jews. — Real Nature of his Opposition to Christianity. — Its Causes. — Reasons why he did not Embrace the New Religion. — Christians were Enemies of the Em- pire. — Christianity of the Age very Corrupt. — Superstition and Im- postors. — Persecutions in Reality a Blessing to the Church. While Marcus Aurelius was passing his busy life in lead- ing the imperial armies, in legislating for the down-trodden among his subjects, and in composing his T/ionghfs, a new power was forcing its way into the Empire with rapid steps. There is no other fact in history which it is so difficult to account for as the rapidity with which Christianity spread through Europe during the three centuries immediately fol- lowing the death of Christ. The reign of Marcus Aurelius marks an important stage in this miraculous growth. Be- fore his time the new religion had made its progress in sin- gular obscurity. Apart from the writings of its own follow- ers, scarcely a single reference is made to Christianity, and those few Pagan writers who condescend to mention it seldom do more than speak of it in contemptuous terms as an exi- 17 258 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VII. tidbilis superstitio. It was looked upon by the vast majority of citizens as a superstition wbicli could exert only a tempo- rary influence upon the common people ; and was generally regarded as scarcely worthy of opposition. But during the reign of Marcus Aurelius the world begins to adopt a new attitude towards Christianity. The scholars of the time apply themselves diligently to a study of the new religion, and make it the subject of their polemics and their satire ; while its supporters retaliate by presenting their Apologies before the throne. Christianity becomes one of the prominent feat- ures of the age ; and the Emperor is bound to sanction it or put it down. It has been the fashion among those Christian writers who have treated of Marcus's reign to cease their eulogy of his character at this point, and to make the contrast between Christianity and Paganism all the sharper by pointing out how cruel a persecutor even the noblest man can be if he is a stranger to the doctrines of Jesus Christ. This view of the subject appears to me altogether incorrect. I believe it is based upon a total misunderstanding of the times. Marcus Aurelius was a persecutor ^f the Christians; but let us not pass judgment upon his actions and his motives until we have discovered the real nature of the Christianity which he en- deavored to repress. For a good many years after the death of Jesus the Church which he had founded continued to be guided by the oral teaching of the apostles, who had derived their doctrine from the Fountain-head. It was to these men, who had seen and heard the Lord, that the early Christians flocked for counsel and instruction. About the year TO, however, a very impor- tant change began to take place in the methods of the Chris- tian Church. That was the year in which Jerusalem was de- stroyed by Titus; and the consequent dispersion of the Jews and Christians marks the point at which the diffusion of Christianity throughout the world began. The most impor- taut result of this dispersion is found in the necessity it cre- ated for a written document relative to the origin and nature of Christianity. This need was felt all the more strongly as HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. 259 the apostles one by one were put to death, and the infant Church was thus left witliout direct testimony to the teachings of its Founder. In this way arose the Gospels, compiled in great measure, as it seems, from the written notes of the apostles, but largely supplemented by the legendary stories that were in everybody's mouth. Obviously, these documents, compiled by different persons and at different times, could never possess the authority which was conceded to those men who had seen and walked with Jesus. But they were the best authorities that could be had; and so the followers of Jesus went forth into the world, armed with the Gospels of their Lord, and supplementing them, when necessary, by their own oral testimony'. The field which the early Christians mapped out for their conquest was the world, but the world was not yet I'eadj to receive their teaching. Many centuries of training were req- uisite before men could grasp the simple meaning of the rev- elation. The different portions of the Roman Empire were strongly marked by their own peculiarities, by methods of thoughts inherited from their fathers ; and as the new religion spread throughout the Empire it became stamped at once by the various characteristics of the people by whom it was re- ceived. In Palestine and Syria the devotional element made itself manifest from the very first; the old Mosaic usages were incorporated into Christianity ; and by many converts an ascetic life was deemed important. In Greece, and in the cities where Grecian influence was predominant, a spQ<3u- lative spirit was soon infused into the new religion ; the fol- lowers of Jesus sought to develop Christianity into a sj^stem of philosophy. At Rome, Christianity took on a formal and external character; and there sprang up gradually the idea of a religion which should rule the world temporally as well as spiritually. These were the three tendencies which came in contact with each other inside the Church itself; and the more violent the conflict between them grew, the less likeli- hood was there that Christianity would find acceptance from the Pagan world. At the time when Marcus Aurelius began his reign, the strict- 260 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VII. ly Judaizing tendency which at first had played a very prom- inent part in Palestine, and was represented chiefly by the Ebionites and Nazarenes, had nearly died away, and the great majority of the Christians were of Gentile race. This change was due mainly to the rebellion of Barcocheba, in 135. Af- ter his fall, almost all the Christians in Palestine, becoming dissatisfied with their Jewish brethren, had abandoned the Mosaic rites which they had hitherto practised, and had chos- en for the first time a Gentile bishop. They were, therefore, permitted to reside at ^lia Capitolina, the city built on the ruins of the old Jerusalem, while the Christians who perse- vered in their Jewish ways were not allowed by Hadrian to approach the city.' Thus the gap between the Jews and Christians grew wider and wider, until, in the time of Mar- cus Aurelius, the Jewish tendency was scarcely felt at all inside the Church. The Eastern enthusiasm, however, which the people of Syria possessed in common with the Jews, con- tinued to act as a powerful factor in the growth of Chris- tianity ; but only as it adapted itself to the vastly more im- portant Hellenizing tendency, which found its origin especial- ly in Alexandria. The leading trait of the Alexandrians was their love of speculation ; and as soon as the divinity of Christ was preached to them, they endeavored to explain it by their theory of the Xoyng. It is believed that the apostle John composed his Gospel under the influence of this idea. The problem which lay at the basis of this Alexandrian specula- tion was, to account for the evil in the world ; and the disciples of this school attempted to solve the problem by a dualistic theory, maintaining that the world was created by an evil spirit, the Demiurgus, and that the good spirit, God, sent Christ, his X070C, into the world to redeem us from our sin. Tlie faculty by which we can appreciate our relation towards God is theyi^watc — a word which gave the Alexandrian school the name of Gnostics. Their speculations, spreading through- out Syria, were pretty generally adopted, though with modi- fications, by the Christians there ; and thence they spread to 1 Euseb., Hist. Eccles., lib. 4, c. 6, aud lib. 5, c. 12. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHEISTIANITY. 261 Rome ; so that by the time of Marcus Anrelins the Gnostic influence had penetrated everywhere. It took on innumera- ble forms, these forms being shaped in great measure by the characteristics of the countries where they originated. We shall now present a brief description of these peculiar views. Passing over the sects founded by Cerinthns, Basilides, Sa- turninns, Carpocrates, and Cerdo, we come to those Gnostic teachers who flourished in the latter half of the second cen- tury. One of the first of these was Yalentinus, who came from Alexandria to Rome about 140, and died about 160. He founded a sect which was called after himself, and he counted a very large portion of the Church among his followers. The Valentinians, according to the testimony of Irengeus, main- tained " that in the invisible and ineffable heights above there exists a certain perfect, pre-existent ^on, whom they call Proarche, Propator, and Bytlius, and describe as invisible and incomprehensible. Eternal and unbegotten, he remained thronghout innumerable cycles of ages in profound serenity and quiescence. There existed along with him Enncea, whom they also call Charis and Sige. At last this Bythus deter- mined to send forth from himself the beginning of all things, and deposited this production (which he had resolved to bring forth) in his contemporary, Sige, even as seed is deposited in the womb." Sige then brought forth children, who in turn brought forth others, until there were altogether thirty JEons; and these thirty constitute the Pleroma, or heaven, as distin- guished from the lower beings. " They maintain also, that these thirty vEons are most plainly indicated in the parable of the laborers sent into the vineyard. For some are sent about the first hour, others about the third hour, others about the sixth hour, others about the ninth hour, and others about the eleventh hour. Now, if we add up the numbers of the hours here mentioned, the sum total will be thirty : for one, three, six, nine, and eleven, when added together, form thirty." Lastly, all of these yEons "brought together whatever each one had in himself of the greatest beauty and preciousness; and uniting all these contributions so as skilfully to blend the whole, they pro- duced, to the honor and glory of Bythus, a being of most per- 262 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VII. feet beauty, the very star of the Pleroma, and the perfect fruit of it, namely, Jesus." These thirty ^ons are, moreover, divid- ed into an Ogdoad, a Decad, and a Duodecad. " The Duodecad of the ./Eons is indicated by tlie fact that the Lord was twelve years of age when he disputed with the teachers of the law, and by the election of the apostles, for of these there were twelve. The other eighteen ^ons are made manifest in that the Lord, according to the Yalentinians, conversed with his disciples for eighteen months after his resurrection from the dead." And so on throughout the entire system, each step of which is based upon some reason equally conclusive with those given above.' The worst thing about this sect was its degraded code of morals. If we are to believe Irenseus, the Valentinians led very disreputable lives, and even in their teaching encouraged such a course, " maintaining that carnal things should be allowed to the carnal nature, while spiritual things are provided for the spiritual." ' One of the followers of Valentinus was Ptolemseus, who, however, differed in some points from his master, and conse- quently founded a separate sect. The school of Ptolemseus taught that Bythus " has two consorts, which they also name Diatheses (affections), viz., Ennoea and Thelesis. For, as they affirm, he first conceived the thought of producing some- thing, and then willed to that effect. Wherefore, again, these two affections, or powers, Ennoea and Thelesis, having inter- course, as it were, between themselves, the production of Mo- nogenes and Aletheia took place according to conjunction. These two came forth as types and images of the two affec- tions of the Father — visible representations of those that were invisible — Nous (i. e., Monogenes) of Thelesis, and Aletheia of Ennoea, and accordingly the image resulting from Thele- ' This account of the doctrines of the Valentinians is taken from Irenaeus, Contr. haer., lib. 1, c. 1 and 3. For further information, see the anonymous work Aduers. omnes 7iaer., c. 4 ; PhilosopJiumena, lib. 6, c. 21- 37, and libi 10, c. 13; Philastrius, Be haer. post Christ., c. 10; Epipha- nius, Adkiers. haer., lib. 1 [v. 41, pp. 474-543 of Migne's ed.] ; Augustinus, De haer., c. 11 ; and Theodoretus, Haer. fab. compend., lib. 1, c. 7. * Iren., Cmtr. haer.., lib. J, c. 6, §§ 2 and 3. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. 263 sis was masculine, while that from Ennoea was feminine. Thus Thelesis (Will) became, as it were, a faculty of Enncea (Thought). For Ennoea continually yearned after offspring; but she could not of herself bring forth that which she de- sired. But when the power of Thelesis (the faculty of Will) came upon her, then she brought forth that on which she had brooded." ' Then came Colorbasus, who differed from the other Gnos- tic teachers in that he held that Bythus did not produce the first Ogdoad gradually, but that all of the eight were born at the same time. In fact, he seems to have regarded the first eight ^ons very nearly as attributes of Bythus." The system of Marcus was similar, but very poetic in its fancies. " He set forth his system in a poem, in which he in- troduced the divine ^ons discoursing, in liturgical forms, and with gorgeous symbols of worship. In the manner of the Jewish Cabala, he hunted after special mysteries in the number and position of letters. The idea of a \6yoQ tov ovtoq, of a word manifesting the hidden divine essence in the crea- tion, was spun out by him into the most subtile details."^ Irenseus tells us of a trick which Marcus was in the habit of performing by means of two cups of different sizes. The large one he used to keep nearly full of wine, pretending, however, that it was empty. The small one being then filled, Marcus would pour the wine from the smaller into the larger cup until the latter overflowed; and in this way he made the people believe that he could repeat the miracle of the loaives and fishes." Marcus's private life, too, seems to have been open to objection. It was said that he was in the habit of ' Iren., Contr. Jiaer., lib. 1, c. 12, § 1. See also the anonymous work Aduers. omnes haer., c. 4; P/iilosophum., lib. 6, c. 39; Philastr., De Aaer, post Christ., c. 11; Epiplian., Aduers. Jiaer., lib. 1 [v. 41, pp. 555-78 of Migne's ed.] ; and Augustin., Be haer., c. 13. ' See Iren., Contr. haer., lib. 1, c. 12, § 3 ; the anonymous work Aduers. omnes haer., c. 5 ; Pliilastr., Be haer. post Christ., c. 15 ; Augustin., Be haer., c. 15 ; and Theodoret., Haer.fah. compend., lib. 1, c. 12. > ^ Neander, Christ, relig. and Gfmrch, v. 1, p. 440. ..<^ \ * Iren., Contr. haer., lib. 1, c. 13, § 2. 264 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. Vll. compounding philters and love-potions, by means of which he attracted women into his society.' Of the other Gnostics we can merely mention the names. The foremost of them were Heracleon, Bardesanes, Hermoge- ues, the Ophites, the Cainites, the Pseudo-Basilideans, the Anti- tactes, the Prodicians, the Nicolaitans, and the Simonians. Besides all these, there was a sect founded by a man named Marcion. He is usually regarded as a Gnostic; but he was not a very sincere one ; for the tendency among the Gnostics is towards speculation, whereas the characteristic of Marcion is his essentially practical nature. He believed that Chris- tianity had become covered up by a mass of doctrine which did not belong to it, and his aim was to restore it to its orig- inal simplicity. He felt that the errors were due chiefly to the common practice of allegorizing the Scriptures ; and he therefore strongly advocated a literal interpretation. He taught that man was formed by the Deraiurgus, but that the Demiurgus had no power to give man a godlike principle of life, by which he could overcome evil ; so that men had to struggle with their sin. The Demiurgus, however, chose out the Jews to be his people, and promised them that he would give them a Kedeemer. But God, who is by nature full of compassion, could not bear to see all the rest of the world suf- fering : so he sent them Christ in place of the Messiah prom- ised in the Old Testament by the Demiurgus to the Jews. This sj^stem of Marcion sprang more from the heart than from the head ; and consequently it was accompanied by an enthu- siastic mode of life. His followers condemned other Chris- tians for shrinking from martyrdom, and maintained that it > Iren., Contr. Tiaer., lib. 1, c. 13, § 5. For further information about Marcus, see Iren., Contr. haer.., lib. 1, c. 13-22 ; Tertullian., Aduei^s. Valen- tin., c. 4 ; De resur. earn.., c. 5 ; the anonymous work Aduers. omnes haer., c. 5 ; Philosophum.., lib. 6, c. 40-56 ; Philastr., De haer. post Christ., c. 14 ; Euseb., Hist. Eccles., lib. 4, c. 11; Epiphan., Aduers. haer., lib. 1 [v. 41, pp. 581-626 of Migne's ed.] ; Hieronymus, Coinment. in Isai. [v. 24, p. 623 of Migne's ed.] ; Epist. ad Theodoram [v. 22, p. 687 of Migne's ed.] ; Augustin., De haer.,c. 14; and Theodoret., Haer.fal. compend., lib. 1, c. 9. ^. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. £65 was every Christian's duty, if called upon, to suffer death.' The Marcionites were firmly convinced that they alone pos- sessed the true Christian teaching; and were careful not to admit to baptism any who were not ready to practise a life of the most rigid asceticism.^ Among the disciples of Marcion was a certain Apelles, who, however, was led away by the influence of a harlot named Philumene, and founded a sect of his own.' Like his master, he ascribed the Mosaic law to the Deraiurgus ; but he went much further than Marcion in his interpretation of it, and maintained that both the Old Testament and the New were SQ\-^' largely mixed up with fables." Tliere was another of the early Christian writers, and one of the greatest of them, who, though originally a pupil of Jus- tin Martyr, went over after his master's death to the Marcion- ites. This was Tatian. Some of the Gnostic ideas which he held are discernible in the works he wrote before he joined the Marcionites; but what especially attracted him towards that sect was the ascetic life of its members. This Tatian re- garded as all-important ; and we are told that he not only re- jected marriage, but refrained entirely from the ^^se of meat.^ The immediate followers of Tatian called tliemselves Encra- ' Euseb., De martyr. Palaest., c. 10 ; and Hist. Eccles.^ lib. 7, c. 12. ' For further details about Marcion and liis system, see Iren., Contr. haer.^ lib. 1, c. 27-8 ; Tertullian., Aduers. Marc, passim ; the anonymous work Aduers. omn.es haer.., c. 6; PMlosopTium., lib. 7, c. 29-31, and lib. 10, c. 19 ; Philastr., De haer. post Christ.., c. 17 ; Epiijhan., Aduers. haer., lib. 1 [v. 41, pp. 695-818 of Migne's ed.] ; Angustin., De haer., c. 22 ; and Theo- CiOY&t., Haer. f ah. cornpend., lib. 1, c. 24. ' See Tertullian., Aduers. Marc., lib. 3, c. 11 ; De praescrip. aduers. haer., c. 6 and 30. But the account in Euseb., Hist. Eccles., lib. 5, c. 13, would seem to give Apelles a better character. * For further particulars about Apelles, see Tertullian., Aduers. Marc, lib. 3, c. 11 ; De praescrip. aduers. haer., c. 6, 30, 33, 34, and 37 ; the anony- mous work Aduers. omnes haer., c. 6 ; Philosophum., lib. 7, c. 38-9, and lib. 10, c. 20; Origen., Contr. Cels., lib. 5, c. 54; Philastr., De haer. post Christ., c. 19; Euseb., Eist. Eccles., lib. 5, c, 13; Epiphan., Aduers. haer., lib. 1 [v. 41, pp. 821-32 of Migne's ed.] ; Augustin., De haer., c. 23; and Theodoret., Haer.fah. compeiul., lib. 1, c. 25. * Hicron., Aduers. louin., lib. 1, c. 3 [v. 23, pp. 212-14 of Migne's ed.]. 266 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VII. tites, the "pure ones," and their successors, who went still further, became known as Severians, or Cathares, or Saeco- phores, or Apotactes, according as the folly of their leaders brought one idea or another into especial prominence.' In addition to these sects there arose in the reign of Mar- cus Aurelius still another, the Montanists. Thej taught no new system of theology. Their innovation was rather one of method ; and in some respects they were not unlike the Methodists of the nineteenth century. The founder of this sec-t was Montanus, an enthusiast, born at Pepuza, on the boundary between Mysia and Fhrygia, He called himself the Paraclete ; and was soon joined by a number of followers, who regarded themselves as prophets or prophetesses, and among whom the chief were two wealthy women named Maximilla and Priscilla. Montanus himself believed that he was a prophet sent by God to complete the reformation which the Saviour had begun on earth. He encouraged a fanatical enthusiasm for martyrdom ; he declared it wrong for any Chris- tian to enter military service ; and finally his disciples came to look upon marriage as a disgrace. The rigorous morals of this sect attracted many of the purest souls of the time, as well as many hypocrites. Tertullian at last became a Mon- tanist, and so did Theodotus. Of the various parties into which the Montanists split up, the most important were the Priscillians, the Artotyrites, and the Trascodrugites.* Finally came the Alogi, a sect whose teaching was directly opposite to the teaching of the Montanists. They hated every * On the views of Tatian and his followers, see, in addition to Tatian's own works, Iran., Contr. haer.^ lib. 1, c. 28, and lib. 3, c. 23 ; the anony- mous work Aduers. omnes Tiaer.^ c. 7 ; Philosojjkum., lib. 8, c. 16 and 20, and lib. 10, c. 18; Philastr., Dehaer.post Christ.^ c. 20; Epiphan., ^r?i Lib. 1, c. 70. *Lib. 2,c. 11. * Lib. 2, c. 18. « Lib. 2, c. 12. ' Lib. 4, c. 14. « Lib. 6, c. 73. ° Lib. 4, c. 3. "> Lib. 4, c. 7. " Lib. 7, c. 1 8. "' Lib. 6, c. 78. " Lib. 2, c. 70. '* Lib. 2, c. 70. 18 274 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONI^"US. [CHAP. VII. take him so many days to create the world ; wasn't he strong enough to do it all at once?* I suppose that must have been the reason ; for you tell us that he took a day to rest after he liad finished his work.^ And again, why did an angel come to roll away the stone from the sepulchre ? Couldn't God roll it away without the help of some one else ? ^ Then take an- other case ; how do you suppose it possible that Jesus should be a direct descendant from the old Jewish kings, and yet his mother, a common laboring woman, know nothing about it?" Really, your teaching is difficult to understand. In one pas- sage you tell us that Jesus was a God, and in the next you be- wail the sufferings which he underwent. How can a God un- dergo suffering?" I should be very sorry to cavil ; but your religion seems to me selfish. You boast that God made the universe for your sake, and you say that the only animal he cares for is man.^ Now I should like to ask why the matter which forms your body is to be immortal any more than the other matter in the universe? I must confess I am unable to understand why you are so eager to have your soul forever \J fettered by this filthy worm-eaten body.'' And if your body is to go along with you into another life, you are certainly not wise in subjecting it to the tortures which you do.* You are calling these persecutions upon yourselves by your own fool- ishness. If God is, as you maintain, the God of the whole world, then why do you refuse to join ns when we worship him?* I say you are very narrow. Why can't you manage to serve two masters, as other people do ? " The fact is, in reality, that you do serve more than a single master. For when your God sends his servant to you, you worship him." I have but one more remark to make, and that is this : your whole religion is proved to be without foundation by the fact that your God does not revenge himself upon those who per- secute his followers.'" Even from this meagre synopsis of Celsus's book, it will be y Lib. 6, c. 60. ' Lib. 6, c. 61. =" Lib. 5, c. 58. * Lib. 2, c. 32. « Lib. 2, c. 23. « Lib. 4, c. 23, and lib. 4, c. 99. ' Lib. 5, c. 14. « Lib. 8, c. 49. ' Lib. 8, c. 21. '"Lib. 8, c. 2. " Lib. 8, c. 12. " Lib. 2, c. 35. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. 275 manifest tliat the author was a man of no ordinary powers. Celsus was an Epicurean, a school which corresponded in the imperial times pretty nearly to the Materialists of to-day. His views on religious- matters, however, were not very clear. The Epicureans did not, as a rule, come out strongly in oppo- sition to the national creed ; but their aim was always to ma- terialize the popular belief in the gods. This is the attitude which Celsus, in his Tnie discourse^ takes with regard to Chris- tianity. He assumes, for the sake of argument, that there is a God ; but he fights vehemently against the idea that God in- terferes at all in the affairs of this world. The arguments which he uses are at times illogical; but they are always clever. To each point of Christian doctrine he applies the microscope and dissecting-knife, with a dexterity which few opponents of Christianity to-day can rival. Every flaw in the system he detects with masterly ingenuity; and Origen, in more cases than one, is outwitted in the contest. But in studying the work of Celsus we cannot fail to observe that tliere is a large portion of Christianity which he leaves en- tirely unexplored, as, indeed, he is bound to do by his rejec- tion of all supersensnal knowledge. The moral and religious beauties of the structure are beyond his reach. He can criti- cise in those realms where his experience of physical phe- nomena can guide him, but no further. The truths of Chris- tianity which are based upon intuition, upon the supersensuous feelings, are left intact ; and it was by means of them that the Church was destined in later ages to win acceptance throughout the Empire. "While Celsus was thus attacking Christianity with the weap- ons of a scholar and a critic, another man, a friend of Celsus, was making the new religion the object of his sarcasm and his wit. Lucian was the most perfect master of satire that the second century produced. His education was superficial, and he cared little for knowledge of any kind. His argu- mentative faculties were weak, and he looked npon argument as beneath his genius. Philosophy he detested more than anything else in the world, unless, perhaps, religion. Kidicule was his tool, and philosophy and religion were his butts. The 27G MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CIIAP. VII. sober attitude which his friend Celsus took towards Chris- tianity lie conld not understand ; and it was very likely in order to show Celsus the folly of his ways that Lucian joined him in his attacks. The only work in which Lucian mentions unequivocally the followers of Christ is his De morte Peregrini / but it was not necessary to speak of them by name, for the work is tliroughout an obvious satire upon their practices. The hero of the story is a certain Proteus Peregrinus, a Cynic philosopher of some note, who com- mitted suicide, in the reign of Marcus Aurelius, by throw- ing himself into the fire, near Olympia.* Lucian appears to have witnessed the event, and the voluntary death of this philosopher struck him as so similar to the fanaticism of the Christian martyrs, that he determined to expose in a single work the absurdity of philosophy and Christianity. Proteus, so the story begins, after a boyhood stained by all sorts of crimes, and accused, among other charges, of having contrib- uted to his father's death, left his native land and began a journey through the world. In the course of his travels he came to Palestine, where he joined himself to the Christians, and was initiated into the mj^steries of their religion. So rapidly did he acquire their secrets that before long these poor people were but children in comparison with him. They made him prophet, leader of their company, chief-priest. He ex- plained and interpreted their books, and even composed new ones for himself. The Christians looked upon him as a legisla- tor, they chose him to be their president, and finally they came to consider him a god. They continued, however, to worship the great magus who was crucified in Palestine for introduc- ing the mysteries wiiich they practise ; and before long Pere- grinus was thrown into prison for a like cause. But " no sooner was he in confinement, than the Christians, who looked upon it as a great disappointment to the common cause, at- > On Proteus Peregrinus see, in addition to Lucian., De morte Pere- grini, the following: Gellius, Nod. Attic, lib. 1, c. 11 ; Tatian., Orat. ad- uers. Grace, c. 25; Atlieuagoras, Sicpplicat. fro CliriM., c. 26; Philostra- tus, Vit. Sophist., lib. 2, c. 1, § 13; Tertullian., ^^ martyr., c. 4; and Ammian. Marcellin., Eer. gest., lib. 29, c. 1, § 39. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. 277 tempted by all possible means to procure his release; and not succeeding, they let him at least want for nothing, and were the more assiduous in affording him every supply that oould conduce to his accommodation and comfort. By the first dawn of day a number of old women, widows, and young or- phans were seen hovering about the prison ; some of the most important among them even bribed the jailers, and kept con- stantly about him. Likewise, sumptuous meals were carried in to him, and they read their sacred books together ; in short, their dear Peregrine, as they used to call him, was to them a second Socrates. Several even came from different cities in Asia, as deputies from the Christians in those parts, to offer their assistance, to be his advocates when on his trial, and to comfort him. For these people, in all such cases, where the interest of the whole community is concerned, are inconceiv- ably alert and active, sparing neither trouble nor expense. Accordingly Peregrine, by his imprisonment, amassed money to a large amount, in consequence of the presents that were sent him, and raised a considerable income from it. For these poor people have taken it into their heads that they shall, body and soul, be immortal, and live to all eternity ; thence it is that they contemn death, and that many of them run vol- untarily into his clutches. Besides, their original legislator taught them that they were all brothers, when they had taken the great step to renounce the Grecian deities, and bow their knee to their crucified sophist, and live in conformity to his laws. All things else they despise in the lump, holding them vain and worthless, without having a competent reason for be- ing attached to these opinions. Whenever, therefore, any cunning impostor applies to them, who understands the prop- er trick, he finds it an easy matter to lead these simple people b}^ the nose, and very soon to become a rich man at their ex- pense. Peregrine, however, after a formal trial, w'as set at liberty by the governor of Syria, a great lover of philosophy, who, on perceiving what absurd notions had filled the head of this poor creature, and that he was fool enough, out of vanity and the lust of posthumous fame, voluntarily to die, chose rather to give him his discharge, as not thinking him 278 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. VII. worth cljastising." Lucian then continues his tirade against Christianity by recounting that Peregrinus afterwards deter- mined to make over all his property to the people of his na- tive town; but that he soon repented of his liberality, and tried to get the property back again. This incensed the peo- ple to such a degree that he had to flee once more. The Cliristians received him on his return with open arms, but, unfortunately, one day he was caught eating some kind of food that their tenets interdicted ; and so they turned him out. He then found his way to Egypt, "where he signalized him- self by a quite new and admirable method of practical virtue ; he shaved one half of his head, daubed his face over with mud, whipped himself with a rod, and invited others to do it for him, and, to show that such acts were among the adiaphora, played a number of other ridiculous and scanda- lous pranks, whereby he endeavored to acquire the reputa- tion of being an extraordinary man. After these excellent preparatives, he took sail for Italy, and no sooner had he landed there than he began to abuse and vilify all the world, particularly the Emperor, who was known to be a sovereign of' such a mild and gentle disposition that he might boldly utter anything against him." The Emperor deemed the fel- low beneath his notice, but the people soon became so enraged against him that they would have stoned him to death if he had not fled. At last he hit upon a plan for retrieving his injured reputation. He proclaimed everywhere that at the next Olympic festival he would throw himself into the fire. This he really did, in Lucian's presence. Lucian then adds that, after it was over, " to the simpletons who came open- mouthed, eager to gulp down anything right marvellous, I had recourse to some tragical embellishments of my own in- vention ; telling them with the utmost gravity that, as soon as the pile was in a blaze, and Proteus had jumped in, the earth began to quake tremendously, after which a rumbling noise ensued, and from out the flames a vulture flew up, tak- ing his course direct to the skies, shouting out in human voice: 'Soaring above the earth, I ascend to Olympus.' At this account the poor people were all amazement, shud- Ills ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRIST! A^TT^. 279 dered with awe, and seeretl}^ sent up devout ejaculations to the new demigod." " You may, therefore, picture to yourself what miraculous things will in consequence be related of him ; how the bees will flock to hive in his fireplace, what crickets will there be gathered together, what flocks of crows, as for- merly at the tomb of Hesiod, will there flutter about, and so forth. Of this I am persuaded, that the Elians, no less than the other Greeks, to whom he had already written circular letters, will presently erect statues to him in abundance. For it is confidently atiirmed that he issued briefs to several con- siderable cities, containing various exhortations and new insti- tutes and regulations, as a sort of last will and testament; and some of his disciples, under the titles of messengers from the dead, or couriers from the shades below, are employed in the transmission of these epistles." ' The Christian Church, being at length brought forth from her hiding-place by the polemics of philosophers and satirists, found it necessary to appear in public in her own defence ; and thus the reign of Marcus Aurelius not only marks the be- ginning of polemics, it also displays the first of the great apol- ogists." As would naturally be expected, the earliest apolo- gists were all philosophers who had been converted to Chris- tianity. Justin tells us the reasons which induced him to embrace the new religion. "I myself," he says, "when I was delighting in the doctrines of Plato, and heard the Chris- tians slandered, and saw them fearless of death, and of all other things which are counted fearful, perceived that it was impossible that they could be living in wickedness and pleas- ure." ' And " when I discovered the wicked disguise which ' This account of Proteus Peregriuus is taken from Lucian's work, De morte Peregrini. " The first apologist of all was a philosopher named Aristides, who presented his Apologi/ to the Emperor Hadrian in 125. See Hieron., Be uir. illust., c. 20; and Epist. ad Magnum [v. 22, p. 667 of Migne's ed.]. There was also another, named Quadratus, who wrote an Apology short- ly after 126. See Euseb., Hist. Eccles., lib. 3, c. 37, lib. 4, c. 3, and lib, 5, c. 17. But the works of both these men are lost. " lustiu., Apol. 2, c. 13. 280 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS. [CHAP. Vll. the evil spirits had thrown around the divine doctrines of the Christians, to turn aside otliers from joining them, I laughed both at those who framed these falsehoods, and at the disguise itself, and at popular opinion ; and I confess that I both boast and with all my strength strive to be found a Christian." ' It was with the intention of disabusing the minds of others of the falsehoods by which he had been him- self deceived that Justin composed his two Apologies, one in the reign of Antoninus Pius, the other probably within a few years after Marcus Aurelius ascended the throne. Justin ap- pears never to have occupied any official position in the Church ; and his works, though marked with an enthusiasm for his cause, are pervaded throughout by a liberal spirit of inquiry. He is not an enemy of philosophy ; he has merely given it up because he has found something better. Accord- ing to Justin, there is much that is commendable in the old Greek philosophers, but whatever is good among them is Christianity. " Socrates," he says, " was persecuted, like our- selves, and, like us, he was accused of introducing new divini- ties, and of not believing in the national gods. Socrates, how- ever, did not know the entire truth. He was only acquainted with Christ in part." ^ This plain, straightforward method of investigation was eminently successful in winning prose- lytes to the faith. Chief among those who were induced by the teaching of Justin to embrace Christianity was Tatian, who himself became famous in later life as an apologist. Ta- tian tells us that he was born in Assyria, was instructed in the Greek mythology, and finally was converted to Christian- ity.^ The fruit of his conversion was his Oratio aduei'sus Graeeos, written in order to prove to the Greeks the superior- ity of Christianity over their mythology. This work, like those of his master, is written in a charitable spirit, and sets forth in a clear manner the essentials of the Christian faith. Another writer who followed in the same spirit w\as Claudius Apollinarius, bishop of Hierapolis, in Phrygia. Besides be- * lustin., Apol. 2, c. 13. "" lustin., Apol. 2, c. 10. ^ Tcitian., Orat. aduers. Graec.^ c. 42. HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. 281 ing the author of several other works, he presented to Marcus Aurelius, about lYO, an Apology, which Jerome calls an excel- lent book/ but which, unfortunately, is lost.'^ Melito, bishop of Sardis, in Lydia, who lived about this time, also addressed an Apology to Marcus Aurelius. Only a few fragments of it have been saved ; but those few are sufficient to show that the high esteem in which Melito was held by his contemporaries was not undeserved,^ Athenagoras was another Greek phi- losopher, who, after his conversion to Christianit}', proved his zeal by addressing an Apology for the new faith to Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. This work is preserved, and in it we can trace clearly the Platonic ideas among which the au- thor had been brought up. The apologetic spirit which was thus begun continued to display itself with unabated ardor in the years immediately following Marcus's death. In this place I can merely mention, as exhibiting the apologetic spir- it, Theophilus of Antioch, the Clementine Recognitiones and Ilomilia, Minucius Felix, and Tertullian. Had the Christians confined themselves to this moderate way of meeting the attacks of their opponents, it is not un- likely that their religion would have soon won universal favor. But many of the Christians preferred to meet the attacks of the Pagans by a counter-satire. They were unwilling to stand solely on the defensive, and some of their works have been preserved which display a purely aggressive policy. In this class was Hermias, a Christian philosopher of the second century. He called his book an Irrisio gentilium philoso- phorum ; and he could not have found a name better suited to describe the nature of his work. Its aim was to point out the vacillating nature of the heathen philosophy. " Now I am immortal," he exclaims, " and I am happy ; the next mo- ment I am mortal, and in grief. Then I learn that I am to be dissolved into atoms; I become water, then air, then fire. ' Hieron., De uir. illust, c. 26. ^ The fragments of Apollinarius have been collected by M. J. Routh, in his Reliquiae sncrae. Oxon., 1846. 47. 8". v. 1, pp. 155-74. ' The fragments of Melito have been collected by M. J. Routh, in his Reliquiae sacrae. Oxon,, 1846. 4v. 8°. v. 1, pp. 111-53. 282 MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONI^^US. [CIIAP. VII. Next I am turned into a beast, and a fish ; dolphins are my brotliers. But when I see my body, I am afraid, and do not know what name to call it by, whether it is a man, or a dog, or a wolf, or a bull, or a bird, or a serpent, or a dragon, or a chimera. For the philosophers change me in turn into every kind of animal, terrestrial, aquatic, aerial, multiform, wild, tame, dumb, musical, irrational, and then rational. Lastly comes Empedocles, and I am a tree." ' The Pagans naturally did not relish such attacks as this ; and we can well believe that the Irrislo roused their indignation greatl3\ But the thing that fanned their excitement to its highest pitch of fury was the boldness with which the Christians predicted the speedy downfall of their enemies. The twentieth chapter of the Apocalypse came in time to be universally applied to Rome ; and, indeed, it may well be that the writer so intend- ed it. The second book of Esdras was written by a fanati- cal Christian in the reign of Marcus Aurelius, and it is to this same period that a large portion of the Sibylline oracles belong. These verses do not hesitate to pour out their indig- nation on Rome herself. We shall quote only from those parts which are believed to have been written in the reign of Marcus." The fifth book begins: "Now let me tell of the calamities which shall befall the illustrious Latins ;" ' and a little fartiier on the vice of the capital is pictured with as- tounding boldness. The oracle then declares that Rome shall be visited with a severer punishment than any other city.* ^ Hermias, Irrisio, c. 3. ^ For the dates when the cliflferent portions of the Oracula Sibylllna were composed, see the exhaustive discussion in Alexandre's Excursus ad, Sibyllina [pub. as v. 2 of his edition of the Oracula SihyUina] ; and the concise statement in Champagny's Antonins, v. 3, p^j. 427-31. ' Orac. Sihyl, lib. 5, ver. 1 : 'AW ay£ fioi CTOVoEVTa xpovov kXhi'wv te Aarivdjv. * Orac. Sihyl, lib. 5, ver. 165-70 : Moixfi^rti Tcapa aol, Ka'i nai^wv ixihQ a^^rrfiog, 9r/X?;y6v/)e, dSiKog r£, Kaicr) ttoXi, Iva^iope TraaHiv. At ai, -n-avT' aKotSrap-s iroXi AaTiviSoQ ah]Q, Maivdg IxiSvoxapvQj X^P^ KuS^iCoio Trap' oxSrag, HIS ATTITUDE TOWARDS CHRISTIANITY. 283 Her army shall be of no avail in saving her ; ' and the unhappy emperor who is at that day on the throne will call his senate together to consult — how they may die.* It is surprising to note how bold the Christians grew when their enemies attacked them ; the hostility of the Pagans only served to increase their arrogance. " Your public assemblies," cries Justin, " I have come to hate. For there are excessive banquetings, and sub- tle flutes, w^hich provoke to lustful movements, and useless and luxurious anointings, and crowning with garlands. With such a mass of evils do you banish shame ; and ye fill your minds with them, and are carried away by intemperance, and indulge as a common practice in wicked and insane fornica- tion.''^^ The excitement, which was thus grown so intense through- out the intellectual world, could not fail to produce its influ- ence upon the people. From the very first, Christianity had !/ found a bitter enemy in the lower classes. The reason of this hostility it is not difiicult to conceive. Whenever, under any government, there exists a class of people whose interests are entirely different from those of the majority, that class will always be unpopular. And when that class boldly sets itself up in opposition to the interests of their fellow-citizens, the hatred of their opponents will invariably display itself in force. Xow it must be remembered that the Christians who first came to Rome were mainly Jews. The very name was enough to create opprobrium in the Roman mind ; and the destruc- tion of Jerusalem by Titus, and the subsequent rebellion of L Barcocheba only served to keep alive this hatred. Conse- Kai Trorafibg TifSepig tre KXavtrerai, fjv ■jrapa.KoiTiv, "Hr£ fiuufovov rjTop tX^iQ, cKTsfiF] cs tb Srv/xov. " Orac. Sibyl, lib. 8, ver. 145-6 : OVKSTI V(KJJ(T£l£ TTiSoV 'ViOfir\q ipl^t]XoV, 'OTTirorav i^ 'Affirjg KparBOiv tX^j; (tiV dprfi. ^ Orac. Sibyl., lib. 8, ver. 176-7 : Kat TOT iirUT avBig icpeiwv fjiirpoa^n' 6 TXtj/iioVf ^vjicaXsaag fSovXijv, fSovXivaerai wg dTroXi irpoaBiivai riva, ei kuI fiij jiijiaiav cnrodei^iv, irapafivBiav y ovv iicavriv T(p Xoyy Trtpl ratv oktm Troior^rwv, 'Iva fxri TiQ ivSri'C kut dpxdg, tjQ eiQ Mu)v(Tov Kul XpioTow diarpij3riv d Contemporary review. LoiuL, 1869. 8". v. 10, pp. 81-95. Marcus Au- relius and the Talmnd, by E. H. Plumptre. IBepub. in Every Saturday. Bost., 1869. 8°. V. 7, pp. 236-41.] Dahn, Felix. Urgeschichte der germauischen uud roiuischeu Volker [i« Allgemeiue Geschichte]. Berl., 1881. 2 v. 8°. v. 2, pp. 169-84. De Quincey, Thomas. The Caesars. Ed. of Bost., 1851. 8°. Dirksen, Heiurich Eduard. Die Scriptores historiae Augustae. Leipz., 1842. 8^ Dorgens, Hermann. L. Annaei Seuecae discipliuae moralis cum An- toniuiaua conteutio et comparatio. Lips., 1857. 8". Duruy, Jean Victor. Histoire des Romaius depuis les temps les plus re- cuMs jusqu' a la fin du regne des Antouins. Paris, 1870-6. 5 v. 8°. v. 4 and 5. Eckhel, Joseph Hilarius. Doctriua numorum ueterum. Vindobouae, 1792-8. 7 V. 4°. V. 7. Fabretti, Rafl'aelo. luscriptionum antiquarum quae in aedibus pater- nis asseruantur explicatio. Eomae, 1702. 4°. Pabricius, Johaun Albert. Bibliotheca Graeca sine notitia scriptorum ueterum Graecorum ; cur. G. C. Harles. Hamb., 1790-1809. 12 v. 4°. v. 5, pp. 500-15. Farrar, Frederic William. Marcus Aurelius [i« his Seekers after God. Lond., 1879. 8°. pp. 257-317]. Fessler, Iguaz Aurelius. Marc-Aurel. 3te Aufl.,Breslau, 1799. 4 v. 8°. Fortnightly review. Lond., May, 1882. 8". v. 37, pp. 564-86. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, by Frederic W. H. Myers, IBejnib. in Myers's Essays classical. Loud., 1883. 2 v. 8°. v. 1, pp. 117-223.] Frank, Adolph. Dictiounaire des sciences pbilosoi)hiques. 2® 6d., Paris, 1875. 4°. pp. 1036-40. Marc-Aurele, par Jules Simon. Fraser's magazine. Lond., Feb., 1878. 8°. v. 97, pp. 142-67. Origen aud Celsus, by James Anthouy Froude. \_Eepub. in Fronde's Short studies ou great subjects. Fourth series, N. Y., 1883. 8". pp. 237-81.] Fresquet, Raymond de. Traits ^Idmeutaire du droit romaiu. Paris, 1854. 2 V. 8°. Froude, James Anthony. See Fraser's magazine, and Nineteenth cen- tury. Gibbon, Edward. The history of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire. Ed. of Lond., 1846. 6 v. 8". Gieseler, Johann Carl Ludwig. Lehrbucb der Kirchengeschichte. Bonn, 1824-53. 3 v. 8°. [Eug. traus., N. Y., 1857-80. 5 v. 8°. v. 1.] Giornale arcadico. Roma, 1819. 8°. v. 1, pp. 359-76. Figulina di Domi- zia Lucilla, da Barfolommeo Borghesi. iReinib. in Borghesi's (Euvres. Paris, 1862-70. 7 v. 4". v. 3, pp. 33-47.] Giornale arcadico. Roma, 1824. 8°. v. 22, pp. 48-95. Sul digesto ante- giustiniano, da Bartolommeo Borghesi. iRepnb. in Borghesi's CEuvres. Paris, 1862-70. 7 v. 4°. v. 3, pp. 97-142.] 320 LIST OF THE CHIEF WORKS CONSULTED, Giomale arcadico. Eoma, 1829. 8". v. 41, pp. 96-134. Historicorum Graecorum escerpta Vaticaua, da Bartolomineo Borghesi. lEejJui.in Bor- ghesi's CEnvres. Paris, 1862-70. 7 v. 4°. v. 3, pp. 197-259. ] Gottiiigen. Koiiigliche Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften. Commen- tationes, 1783-4. Gottiugen, 1784. v. 6, pp. 107-36. Commeutatio de Marci Aurelii Aiitouiui ingeuio, a Christoph. Meiners. Gratz, Hirsch. Geschichte der Judeu von den iiltesten Zeiteu bis auf die Gegeuwart. Leipz., 1854-75. 11 v. 8°. Gruter, James. Iiiscriptiones autiqiiae totius orbis Eomani in corpus rodactae. Amst., 1707. 2 t. f ". Guevara, Autoine de. Eelox de principes, o Marc Aurelio. Valladolid, 1529. f. [This is a sort of romance in Spanish, which the author wrote for Charles V., using as his authority a Greek manuscript of the Thoughts, which had been sent to him from Florence. The author pretended that his work was a translation of the manuscript. This fraud was soon dis- covered; but the popularity of the romance was not lessened. It was translated into French by Ren6 Berthault de la Grise, under the title of Litre dore de Marc Aurele. Paris, 1531. 4". (2^ 6d., under the title of Vorloge des princes, Paris, 1540. f"; 3^ 6d., under the same title, Paris, 1555. f "). It was translated into English by Thomas North. Lond., 1619. f °. It was also translated into Latin. Torgau, 1611. f ".] Hecker, Justus Friedrich Carl. De peste Autoniuiana commentatio. Berol., 1835. 8". Hegevwisch, Dietrich Hermann. Ueber die fiir die Menschheit gliick- lichste Epoche. Hamb., 1808. 8°. [French trans., Paris, 1834. 8°.] Henzen, Johann Heinrich ^Yilhelm. Inscriptionum Latinarum selec- tarum amplissima collectio. Turici, 1856. 8° [published as v. 3 of Orelli's Insc. Latin, select, coll.]. Hertzberg, Gustav Friedrich. Geschichte des romischen Kaiserreiches lin Allgeraeine Geschichte]. Berl., 1880. 8". Jost, Isaak Markus. Geschichte der Israeliten. Berl., 1820-8. 9 v. 8°. Kellermann, Olaus Christian. Vigilum Eomanorum. Eomae, 1835. 4". Konigsbeck, Max. De stoicismo Marci Antonini. Eegimonti Pr., 1861. 8". Lardiier, Nathaniel. A large collection of ancient Jewish and Heathen testimonies to the truth of the Christian religion \_in his Works. Loud., 1788. 11 v. 8°. V. 7]. Lecky, William Edward Hartpole. History of European morals from Augustus to Charlemagne. N. Y., 1869. 2 v. 8°. Le Nain de Tillemont, Louis Sebastieu. Histoire des empereurs. 2" 6d., Paris, 1690-1738. 6 v. 4°. v. 2. Marquardt, Karl Joachim. See Mommscn, Christian Matthias, and Mar- quardt, Karl Joachim. Mascov, Johann Jacob. Geschichte der Teutschen bis zum Aufang der LIST OF THE CHIEF WORKS CONSULTED. 321 frankiscben Monarchie. Leipz., 1726-37. 2v. 8°. [Eng. traus., Loud, and Westminst., 1837-8. 2 v. 4°.] Martha, Charles. Les moralistes sous I'Empire Komain. Paris, 1864. 8°. Maurice, John Frederick Denison. Moral and metaphysical philoso- phy. Philosophy of the first six centuries lin Encyclopaedia metropoli- tana]. 2d ed., Loud, and Glasg., 1854. 8°. Maynz, Charles. Cours du droit romain. 3^ ^d., Brux. et Paris, 1870-5. 3 V. 8". Mediobarbus Biragus, Franciscns. Imperatorum Romanorum numis- mata a Pompeio Magno ad Heraclium ab Adolfo Occoue olim cougesta; cur. Phillipo Argelato. Mediolani, 1730. f °. Merivale, Charles. History of the Romans under the Emjjire. Ed. of N.Y., 1880.7v.8'\v.7. Milman, Heury Hart. History of Christianity. Loud., 1840. 3 v. 8''. V.2. Mind. Loud., 1879. 8". v. 4, pp. 47-68. Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic philosophy, by Frederick Pollock. Mionnet, Theodore Edme. Description de m^dailles antiques. Paris, 1806-37. 17 V. 8°. Mommsen, Christian Matthias, and Marquardt, Karl Joachim. Hand- bucb der romischeu Alterthiimer. Leipz., 1871-9. 6 v, 8°. v. 4, 5, and 6. Eomische Staatsverwaltuug, von K.J. Marquardt. Mommsen, Theodor. luscriptioues regni Neapolitanae Latinae. Lips., 1852. f 0. Munich. Konigliche Academic der Wissenschaften. Historische Commission. Forschungen zur deutschen Geschichte. Gottiugen, 1862- 82. 22 V. 8". V. 12, pp. 167-223. Geschichte des Marcomauuischen Krieges, von Hermann Dettmer. Muratori, Ludovico Antonio. Nouus thesaurus ueterum inscriptionum. Mediolani, 1739-42. 4 v. f. Myers, Frederic W. H. See Fortnightly review. Nation. N. Y., 1881. 4°. v. 3, pp. 489-90 and 510-11. Renan's Marcus Aurelius. Neander, Johann August Wilhelm. Allgemeine Geschichte der christ- lichen Religion uud Kirche. Hamb., 1825-45. 5 v. 8". [Eng. trans., Bost., 1871. 5v. 8".v. 1.] New-Englander. New Haven, 1881. 8". v. 40, pp. 415-31. Marcus Au- relius Antoninus. Niebuhr, Berthold Georg. Roraische Geschichte. Berl., 1811. 2 v. 8". [Eng. trans., Loud., 1849. 3 v. 8°. v. 3.] Nineteenth century. Lond., Sept., 1879. 8". v. 6, pp. 551-70. A Caglios- tro of the second century, by James Anthony Froude. \_Bepuh. in Fronde's Short studies on great subjects. Fourth series, N. Y., 1883. 8". pp.282-311.j 21 322 LIST OF THE CHIEF WORKS CONSULTED. Nineteenth century. Loud., 1880. 8". v. 7, jip. 742-55. Marc-AurMe, par Ernest Eeiian. Noel des Vergers, Jo8ei)h Marie Adolplie. Essai sur Marc-Aurele. Paris, 1860. 8°. Nouvelle biographie generale. Paris, 1862-70. 46 v. 8°. v. 33, pp. 381- 429. Marc-Aur(5le, par J. M. A. Noel des Vergers. Orelli, Johanu Kaspar von. luscriptiouum Latinarum selectarum am- plissima collectio. Turici, 1828. 2 v. 8". Pagi, Antoiue. Critica historico-chronologica in uuiuersos annales Ecclesiasticos Barouii. Antuerp., 1705. 4 v. f. Pauly, Gottlieb Wilhelm August. Real-Encyclopadie der classischen Altertljumswissenscbaft. Stuttgart, 1842-52. 6 v. 8". Peter, Karl Ludwig. Geschichte Roms. 2te Aufl., Halle, 1865-9. 3 v. 8°. Pfitzner, Johauu Friedrich Wilhelm Lndwig. Geschichte der romi- schen Kaiserlegioneu von Augustus bis Hadriauus. Leipz., 1881. 8". Popular science monthly. N. Y., 1877. 8". v. 11, pp. 461-9. A philo- sophical emperor, by Calvert Vaux. Rein, Wilhelm. Das Privatrecht und der Civilprozess der Rcimer von iiltesten zeit bis auf Justiuianus. Leipz., 1858. 8°. Renan, Joseph Eruest. Histoire des origines du christianisme. Paris, 1863-82. 7 V. 8". v. 7. Marc-Aurele et la fin du monde antique. Renan, Joseph Eruest. Melanges d'histoire et de voyages. Paris, 1878. 8". pp. 169-95. Exameu de quelques faits relatifs a I'imperatrice Faus- tine femme de Marc-Aurele (hi daus la s^auce publique auuuelle des ciuq Academies, le 14 aoftt, 1867). Revue ^es deux mondes. Paris, Apr. 15, 1864. 8". v. 50, pp. 870-98. L'exameu de conscience d'uu empereur remain, par Charles Martha. Revue des deux mondes. Paris, Apr. 1, 1868. 8°. v. 74, pp. 671-98. La jeunesse de Marc-Aurele, par M. L. A. Gaston Boissier. Revue des deux mondes. Paris, Apr. 15, 1876. 8°. 3'= p^riode, v. 14, pp. 787-821. Les premieres persecutions de l'£glise, par M. L. A. Gaston Bois- sier. Ripault, Louis Madeleine. Marc-Aur&le, on histoire philosophique de I'Empereur Marc-Antonin. Paris, 1820. 5 v. 8°, and atlas, 4°. Ritter, August Heinrich. Geschichte der Philosophie. Hamb., 1829-53. 12 Theile, 8„. [Eug. trans.. Loud., 1838-46. 4 v. 8°. v. 4.] Ritter, August Heinrich, and Preller, Ludwig. Historia philosophiae Graeco-Romauae. 3° ed., Gothae, 1864. 8°. Robertson, James Craigie. History of the Christian Church from the Apostolic age to the Reformation. N. Y., 1874. 8 v. 8°. v. 1. Rome. Istituto di corrispondenza archeologica. Anuali dell' iusti- tuto per I'anno 1846. Roma, 1846. 8°. v. 18, pp. 312-50. Intorno a due iscrizioni esistenti a Fuligno, da Bartolommeo Borghesi. IRejmb.in Bor- ghesi's (Euvres. Paris, 1862-70. 7 v. 4°. v. 5, pp. 1-39. ] LIST OF THE CHIEF WORKS CONSULTED. 323 Rome. Istituto di corrispondenza archeologica. Aunali dell' insti- tuto per I'auuo 1853. Roma, 1853. 8". v. 25, pp. 188-227. Iscrizioue oneraria tli Concordia, da Bartolomuieo Borgliesi. IRepub.in Borgbesi's CEuvres. Paris, 1862-70. 7 v. 4^ v. 5, pp. 381-422.] Rudorff, Adolf Friedrich. Romische Rechtsgeschicbte. Leipz., 1857-9. 2 V. 8". Smith, William. A dictionary of Greek and Roman biograpby and my- tbology. Lond., 1873. 3 v. 8°. Smith, William. Adictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Lond., 1873. 8». Southern quarterly review. Cbarleston, 1852. 8^. v. 22, pp. 360-413. Marcus Anrelius. Spoil, Jacques. Miscellanea eruditae antiquitatis. Lugd., 1685. f ". Steiuer, Jobauu Wilbelm Christian. Codex inscriptionum Rbeni. Darmstadt, 1837. 2 v. S\ Suckau, fidonard de. £tude sur Marc-Aurele. Paris, 1857. 8^ Taine, Hippolyte Adolpbe. Marc-Aurele lin his Nouveaux essais de critique et d'bistoire. 2^ 6d., Paris, 1866. 8". pp. 301-16]. Theological repository. Lond., 1773. 8". v. 1, pp. 75-99 and 147-73. Marcus Anrelius a persecutor of Cbristiaus, by Walter Moyle. Thomas, Antoine Leonard, filoge de Marc - Aurele. Paris, 1770. 8". [Eng. trans., N. Y., 1808. 8^] Thierry, Amedee Simon Dominique. Tableau de TEmpire Romain. 7" 6d., Paris, 1876. 8'\ Vaillant, Jean Foi. Numismata Imperatorum, Augustorum, et Caesa- runi, a populis Ronumae ditionis, Graece loquentibus. Amst., 1700. 4°. Victoria magazine. Lond., 1864. 8°. v. 2, pp. 1-19. Marcus Anrelius, by Matthew Arnold. \_EepuI). in Arnold's Essays in criticism. Bost., 1865. 8°. pp. 253-83.] Wallon, Henri Alexandre. Histoire de I'esclavage dans I'antiquit^. Paris, 1847. 3 v. 8°. Walter, Ferdinand. Gescbicbte des romischeu Recbts bis auf Justin- ian. 2te Aufl., Bonn, 1845-6. 2 Theile, 8°. Weitersheim, Eduard von. Gescbicbte der Volkerwanderung. 2te Aufl., Leipz., 1880-1. 2 v. 8". v. 1. ZeUer, Eduard. Marcus Anrelius Antoninus [iw his Vortriige uud Ab- handlungeu gescbiclitlicbeu Inbalts. Leipz., 1865. 8°. pp. 82-107]. Zeller, Eduard. Pbilosophie der Griecben. 2te Aufl., Tiibingeu, 1856- 68. 3 Theile, 8". [Eng. trans, of Tb. 3, Abtbeil. 1, under the title of The Stoics, Epicureans, and Sceptics. Lond., 1870. 8".] Zimmern, Sigmund Wilbelm. Gescbicbte des romiscben Privatrechts bis Justinian. Heidelb., 1826-9. 2 v. (1 and 3) 8". INDEX. AcHAiA, insurrection in, repressed by Antoninus Pius, 28. Actio expilcdae hereditatis, introduced by Marcus, 74. Actors. See Theatres. Administration of justice, leniency in, by Antoninus Pius, 26-7 ; ac- tivity of Marcus in, 09-78; Ha- drian's circles of justice, 79 ; the iuridici established by Marcus, 79- 83. Adrian, the rhetorician, Marcus at- tends the lectures of, 222-3. Aduersiis omnes haereses, 314. Advent, opinions in regard to, 268. ^lia Capitolina, built on the ruins of Jerusalem, 260. iElius. See Aurelius (T. ^lius); also Verus (L. JSlius). Agricola (Calpurnius), sent to quell disturbance in Britain, 62. Agriculture, efforts of Marcus to eu- courage, 122-4. Alani, quieted by Antoninus Pius, 28 ; invade the Empire in time of Mar- cus, 185. Alexander, the False Prophet, his or- acle about the lions, 165, note 2 ; his influence, 167, 306-7. Alexander, the Platonist, esteem of Marcus for, 53. Alexandria, hostile entry of the Bu- colici into, 204; visit of Marcus Aurelius to, 219-20 ; characteris- tics of Christianity in, 260. Alogi, a mystic sect, 266-7. Alsium, journey of Marcus to, 66. Ammianus Marcellinus, the histori- an, 316. Amusements. See Gladiatorial sports ; also Theatres. Anagnia, visit of Marcus to, 43. Auuia. See Lucilla (Anuia). Annius. See Verus (Aunius). Antioch, its place in the Parthian war, 139, 142-3 ; Marcus postpones his visit to, 219; is punished for joining in the revolt of Cassius, 220. Autiochianus, his history of the Par- thian war, 144, note 2. Antistius. See Burrus (Antistius). Antitactes, a Gnostic sect, 264. Antonines, characteristics of their age, 1. Antoninus (Marcus Aurelius), his character, 2 ; his birth, 3 ; early names, 3; death of his father, 8; goes to live with his grandfather, 8 ; is called Verissiinus by Hadrian, 10 ; is enrolled among the knights, 12 ; is placed in the college of Sa- lic priests, 12 ; when twelve years of age becomes interested in phi- losophy, 13 ; goes to live with An- toninus Pius, 13 ; his eulogy of Antoninus Pius, 14-6; his early studies, 16-7; in 137 is made pre- fect of the Latin festivities, 20 ; is adopted by Antoninus Pius, 20 ; stipulation for his marriage with Fabia, 21, and note ; gives up his early names, 22, and note ; sadness in entering the imperial palace, 24 ; his influence with Antoninus Pius, 24 ; grief at death of a teach- er, 31 ; quaestor, 31 ; consul, 32 ; se- idr tunnae,32; affection for Anto- ninus, 33-4 ; love for Faustina, 34- 5; their marriage, 35-6, and note; his early education, 36-40 ; inter- course with Frouto, 40-0 ; iu the 326 INDEX. family of Antoninus, 46 ; gives up rhetoric for philosophy, 49-51 ; his iuterconrse with Rusticus, 51-2; his estimates of his other teachers, 52-4 ; second consulship, 49-50 ; ill-health, 54 ; love for his mother, 54-5; domestic relations, 55 — 7; tribune, 57 ; Antoninus Pius ap- points him his successor, 57-8; thoughts on the death of Antoni- nus Pius, 59-60; makes Lucius Verus his colleague, 60, aud note ; quells disturbance in Britain, 61- 2; prci)arations for war in Par- thia, 62-4 ; anxiety and ill-health, 66-7; overflow of the Tiber, 67; charitable measures, 67-9; his per- sonal activity in the administra- tion of justice, 69-78 ; establishes iuridici, 79-83; influence of Stoi- cism on him, 85; laws in aid of slaves, 86-92 ; laws in aid of freed- men, 92-7 ; laws in regard to the patria potestas, 97—100 ; laws in re- gard to tutores aud curatorcs, 101-7; establishes a registry of births, 107-9 ; laws in regard to marriage, 109-13 ; laws in regard to inherit- ance, 114-8 ; laws in regard to trade and commerce, 118-21 ; distribu- tion of food, 122-3 ; laws iu regard to agriculture, 123-4 ; laws in re- gard to alimentary legacies, 124-5; treatment of the provinces, 125-6; methods of raising money, 126-31; efforts to improve the morals, 127- 30 ; deference for the senate, 131- 2; his continued interest in phi- losophy, 133-4 ; his legal studies, 134-5; domestic relations, 135-8; his opinion of Avidius Cassias, 140-1; rumors of his intended journey to Parthia, 144, note 1 ; receives title Armeniacus, 145-6; Imperuior II., 145-6; Imperator III., 147 ; mediates between Fron- to and Lucius Verus, 148 ; intrusts Asia to Avidius Cassius, 150; his triumph (in 166), 151-6; receives title Parthicns, 157 ; Medicus, 157 ; Imperaior /F.,157; pater patriae, 157 ; eflbrts to mitigate the pesti- lence, 160-2; attempts to improve the morals of Lucius, 162-3; su- perstition of, 167-8; sets off for the Marcomannic war, 168; rea- sons for taking Lucius with him, 168; his dealings with the barba- rians, 170-2 ; receives title Impera- tor v., 172 ; returns to Rome, 173- 4 ; his feelings on death of Lucius, 175-6 ; domestic relations, 177-81 ; preparations for the Marcomannic war, 183-3 ; makes changes in the administration of the provinces, 185-6 ; his policy in the Marco- mannic war, 189-90 ; receives title Imperator VI., 191 ; Germanicus, 193 ; visits Rome, 194 ; " miracu- lous victory," 195-6 ; receives title Imperator VII., 197; defeats the lazyges, 199-201 ; receives title See Lucilla (Do- mitia). Calvisius. See Tullus (Calvisius). Capitolinus, his love of exaggera- tion, 142 ; bibliography, 314. Carpocrates, the Gnostic, 261, 286. Cassius (Avidius), placed in com- mand of the army, 139-41 ; his vic- tories in the Parthian war, 144-7 ; intrusted with the governorship of Asia, 150, 202, note 2 ; his army, 158 ; his battle with the Germans, 164, note 4 ; revolt of, 202-9 ; is slain by his own soldiers, 215, and note 3; treatment of his family by Marcus, 216-7. Cassius. See Dion Cassius Cocceia- nus. Cathares, a Gnostic sect, 266. Catilius. See Severus (Catilius). Cato, interest of Marcus in, 44. Catulus (Cinna), the Stoic philoso- pher, esteem of Marcus for, 53. Cedrenus ( Georgius ), the Greek monk, 317. Celsus, the Epicurean philosopher, his attack on Christianity, 271-5, 284 ; confuses heretical doctrines with Christianity, 305. Cerdo, the Gnostic, 261 ; not exclud- ed from the Church till he came to Rome, 304. Cerinthns, the Gnostic, 261. Chariton, martyrdom of, 290; bibli- ography, 311. Charitus, martyrdom of, 290 ; bibli- ography, 311. Charity, of Marcus Aurelius, 67-9, 122-3 ; of Augustus, 122-3. Chatti make an incursion into Rhae- tia, 164. INDEX. 329 Children. See Pairia potestas ; also Isidores, Curatores, Praetor tutelaris. China, relations of Koman Empire with, 154, and note. Christianity, in comparison with Pa- ganism, 3 ; principles of, in Roman law, 85; its silent progress, 257; becomes prominent, 258, 271 ; its early history, 258-9 ; various ten- dencies in, 260-1 ; its opposition to Rome, 302-4 ; split up into nu- merous sects, 304 ; prevalence of superstition in, 305-7. Christians, legion composed of, 196, note 1 ; dispersed at the destruc- tion of Jerusalem by Titus, 258 ; in Palestine, 260; their fantastic interpretation of the Biile, 267 ; their writings destroyed, 271, note 4 ; their attacks on Paganism, 281- 3 ; hostility between Paganism and, 283-4 ; charges against, 285- 6; their hostility to the Jews, 297. Chronicon Paschale, 317. Church, its early history, 258-9 ; va- rious tLMulencies in, 260-1 ; becomes prominent in the reign of Marcus, 279. Cinna. See Catulus (Cinna). Claudian, his testimony in regard to the "miraculons victory," 201, note ; bibliogi-aphy, 316. Claudius. See Severus (Claudius) ; also Maximus (Claudius). Clemens Alexandrinus, 313. Clemens, governor of Dacia, 212-3. Clementine homilies, their fantastic in- terpretation of the Bible, 267 ; their apologetic character, 281; bibli- ography, 313. Clementine recognitions, their apolo- getic character, 281 ; bibliography, 313. Cobotes, a German tribe, 185. Coelius (Mount), birthplace of Mar- cus, 3 ; site of the estate of Mar- cus's grandfather, 8-9; aristocra- cy of, 151. Colonies. See Provinces. Colorbasus, the Gnostic, his teach- ing, 263. Colosseum, built' by Vespasian and Titus, 128. Column of Antoninus, 256. Commodus, son of Marcus, his de- graded character, 2 ; his birth, 13&-7 ; mention of, 177 ; receives title Caesar, 180; Germaniciis, 193; Marcus sends for him from Pauno- nia, 204, note 2, 205, note 1, 209 ; his character, 209-10 ; assumes the toga, 225, and note 2 ; chosen jjrin- ceps iuuentutis, 226 ; receives title Imperator, 227 ; his triumph, 227 ; receives title pater patriae, 227 ; his tribuniciate, 228, note 1 ; con- sul, 228 ; marriage, 228-9 ; receives title Imperator II., 229; sets out for the Marcomannic war, 233 ; re- ceives title Imperator III., 235 ; is intrusted by his father with the Empire, 252-3 ; accused of having poisoned his father, 253, note 3; reasons why Marcus made him his successor, 254, note 1. Compensatio, its use extended by Marcus, 73-4. Confessio, regulation of Marcus with regard to, 73. Constiiutiones, their significance, 84-5. Constitutiones apostolicae, 314. Corn, distribution of, by Augustus, 122-3 ; by Marcus, 122-4. Corneliauus (Attidius), governor of Syria, 64. Cornificia, daughter of Marcus, 53, note, 56, note, 136, 177 ; marries Pe- tronius Mamertinus, 178, note 4, 179-80. Corporations, laws of Marcus in re- gard to, 95, 120-1. Costoboci, a German tribe, 185, 212- 3. Cotinl, a German tribe, 213. Creditors, laws of Marcus in regard to, 73-4, 77, 119-21. Cresceutins, the Cynic philosopher, his attack on Christianity, 271; his hostility to Justin, 289. Cretio, law of Marcus in regard to, 117. Crispina, marries Commodus, 228. Ctesiphon, destroyed by Avidius Cas- sius, 14&-7. Curatores, laws of Marcus in regard to, 101-7. 330 INDEX. Cvzicus, destroyed by earthquake, '28. Dacia, subdued by Antoninus Pius, 28 ; Costoboci given land in, 185 ; changes in tlie administration of, 186 ; difficulties with the tribes in, 212-3 ; Marcus gives the Germans land in, 213; journey of Marcus through, 219. Daldianus. See Artemidorus Daldi- auus. Daphne, life of Lucius at, 142-3, 148. Dausara, capture of, 146, 148. Decreta, their significance, 84. Digest of Justinian, composition of. 85. Dilatio, instituted by Marcus, 75. Dion Cassius Cocceiauus, 313. Dionysius, the Christian bishop, 312. Divorce, frequency of, 110. Domitia. See Lucilla CDomitia) ; also Faustina (Domitia)- Domitiau, his remark about treason, 203 ; his persecution of Christian- ity, 286. Druentianus, son-in-law of Cassius, 216, note 4, 225, note 1. Ebionites, 260. 'EKKkr]aia, a term in frequent use, 303. Ecclesiae Smyrnensis de martjjrio S. Polycarpi epistola circidaris, 311. Ecclesiae Viennensis et Lugdunensis epistola, 311. Edessa, capture of, 146. Edicta, their significance, 84. Egypt, insurrection in, repressed by - Antoninus Pius, 28. Elegia, attacked by Vologeses III., 63. Eleusinian Mysteries, Marcus is ini- tiated into, 222. Eleutherus, bishop of Rome, 293, note 1, 295, note 1. Empedocles, sneered at by Hermias, 282. Encratites, a Gnostic sect, 265-6. Enfranchisement. See Slaves ; also Freedmen. Epictetus, Marcus becomes familiar with, 52. Epicureans, their characteristics, 275. Epiphanius, the Christian writer, 316. Epistolae, their significance, 84. Equites, importance of the order, 12, note, 33. Euelpistus, his martyrdom, 290. Eusebius, testifies in fiivor of the " miraculous victory," 197, note ; bibliography, 315. Eutropius, the historian, 315. Fabia, daughter of L. iElius Verus, marriage stipulation with Marcus Aurelius, 21. Fadilla, daughter of Marcus, her birth, 56, note; mention of, 136, 176 ; marries Claudius Severus, 178, and note 4, 206, note. Famine, 67, 122. Faustina (Annia Galeria), marries Antoninus Pius, 9 ; returns in 130 with her husband to Lorinm and Lanuvium,13; immorality of, 13— 14 ; her husband's love for, 46-8 ; her death, 46. Faustina, daughter of Antoninus Pius, birth of, 11 ; grows up with her cousin Marcus, 16 ; her aflfec- tion for him, 35 ; their marriage, 36, and note ; domestic life, 55-7 ; commended by Antoninus Pius to Marcus, 57; her children, 136-7; her pride, 178; her connection with the revolt of Avidius Cas- sius, 204-5 ; mater castrorum, 206, note ; her death, 220-1 ; her char- acter, 222, and note 2; referred to in the TrtZmwfZ, 298, note. Faustina (Domitia), daughter of Mar- cus, her birth and death, 55, note. Faustinopolis, its identity with Ha- lale,221, note 3. Felicitas, martyrdom of, 295, note; bibliography, 312. Felix. See Minucius Felix. Finances. See Money ; also Taxa- tion. Food. See Corn. Freedmen, laws of Marcus in regard to, 92-7. Free-will, theories on, 268-9. INDEX. 331 Fronto (Cornelius), his first acquain- tance -with Marcus, 34 ; his power as an orator, 37, and note ; his char- acter, 38 ; intercourse with Mar- cus, 40-6 ; quarrel with Herotles Atticus, 40-1 ; as instructor of Lucius Verus, 47 ; Marcus becomes disgusted with his rhetoric, 49- 51 ; his intercourse with Marcus, 136-8 ; his Principia historiae, 144, note 2, 148-50; his death, 163, note 4 ; his attack on Christianity, 271, and note 4 ; his letters to Marcus Aurelius, 309-10. Fundanus (Minucius), proconsul of Asia Minor, 287, note 3. Furtius, chosen liing of the Quadi by Marcus, 171, and note 3; driven out by the Quadi, 212. Fuscianus (Seius), intimacy with Marcns, 42. Gains, the Roman lawyei;, 85 ; bibli- ography, 311. Galba, rebellion under, 7. Galen, the physician, his estimate of the pestilence, 159 ; endeavors to check the pestilence, 173 ; de- scribes the sickness of one Sextus, 181, note 1 ; enjoys the patronage of the Emperor, 183; his experi- ence as the Emperor's physician, 251-2 ; bibliography, 313. Gallicanus, the historian, 315. Gaul, Christianity in, 292. Gellius (Aulus), the author, 310. Germans, subdued by Antoninus Pins, 28, 164 ; expansion of, 165- 7 ; their uprising, 183-5 ; their method of warfare, 191. Ghidiatorial sports, encouraged by Antoninus Pius, 26; Marcns for- bids the employment of slaves in, 92 ; description of, 127-9 ; eflforts of Marcns to moderate, 128-9, 156, 227 ; encouraged by Trajan, 128, 156 ; Marcus enlists gladiatox's in the army, 182. Gnostics, their characteristics, 260-1. God, Marcus's idea of, 246-9. Gospels, origin of, 259 ; Marcion charged with destroying them, 270 ; large number of, 305, note 2. Gratia, Fronto's wife, 44, and note. Gratia, Fronto's daughter, 44, and note. Greece, characteristics of Christian- ity in, 259. Gregorius KyssenuSjthe Greek Father, 316. Guardians. See Tutores; also Cura- tores. Hadrian, difficulties which he had to meet, 5-8 ; his peaceful policy, 8 ; intimacy with the grandfather of Marcus, 9-10 ; gives Marcus the name Verissimus, 10 ; his restless ac- tivity, 10-11 ; returns to Rome, 17 ; chooses .