Dio's Rome, Volume 3

At the consecration of the hero-shrine there were all sorts of contests, and the children of the nobles performed the Troy equestrian exercise. Men who were their peers also contended on chargers and pairs and three-horse teams. A certain Quintus Vitellius, a senator, fought as a gladiator. All kinds of wild beasts and kine were slain by the wholesale, among them a rhinoceros and a hippopotamus, then seen for the first time in Rome. Many have described the appearance of the hippo and it has been seen by many more. As for the rhinoceros, it is in most respects like an elephant, but has a projecting horn at the very tip of its nose and through this fact has received its name. Besides the introduction of these beasts Dacians and Suebi fought in throngs with each other. The latter are Celts, the former a species of Scythian. The Suebi, to be exact, dwell across the Rhine (though many cities elsewhere claim their name), and the Dacians on both sides of the Ister. Such of them, however, as live on this side of it and near the Triballic country are reckoned in with the district of Moesia and are called Moesi save among those who are in the very neighborhood. Such as are on the other side are called Dacians, and are either a branch of the Getae or Thracians belonging to the Dacian race that once inhabited Rhodope. Now these Dacians had before this time sent envoys to Caesar: but when they obtained none of their requests, they turned away to follow Antony. To him, however, they were of no great assistance, owing to disputes among themselves. Some were consequently captured and later set to fight the Suebi.

The whole spectacle lasted naturally a number of days. There was no intermission in spite of a sickness of Caesar's, but it was carried on in his absence, under the direction of others. During its course the senators on one day severally held banquets in the entrance to their homes. Of what moved them to this I have no knowledge, for it has not been recorded. Such was the progress of the events of those days.

[-23-] While Caesar was yet in his fourth consulship Statilius Taurus had both constructed at his own expense and dedicated with armed combat a hunting-theatre of stone on the Campus Martius. On this account he was permitted by the people to choose one of the praetors year after year. During this same period Marcus Crassus was sent into Macedonia and Greece and carried on war with the Dacians and Bastarnae. It has already been stated who the former were and how they had been made hostile. The Bastarnae are properly classed as Scythians and at this time had crossed the Ister and subdued the part of Moesia opposite them, then the Triballi who live near it, and the Dardani who inhabit the Triballian country. While they were so engaged they had no trouble with the Romans. But when they crossed the Haemus and overran the portion of Thrace belonging to the Dentheleti who had a compact with Rome, then Crassus, partly to defend Sitas king of the Dentheleti, who was blind, but chiefly because of fear for Macedonia, came out to meet them. By his mere approach, he threw them into a panic and drove them from the land without a conflict. Next he pursued them, as they were retiring homeward, gained possession of the district called Segetica, and invading Moesia damaged that territory. He made an assault upon a strong fortification, also, and though his advance line met with a rebuff,—the Moesians making a sally against it, because they thought these were all of the enemy,—still, when he came to the rescue with his whole remaining army he both cut his opponents down in open fight and annihilated them by an ambuscade.

[-24-] While he was thus engaged, the Bastarnae ceased their flight and remained near the Cedrus[78 - The name of this river is also spelled Cebrus.] river to watch what would take place. When, after conquering the Moesians, the Roman general started against them, they sent envoys forbidding him to pursue them, since they had done the Romans no harm. Crassus detained them, saying he would give them their answer the following day, and besides treating them kindly he made them drunk, so that he learned all their plans. The whole Scythian race is insatiable in the use of wine and quickly succumbs to its influence. Crassus meanwhile, during the night, advanced to a wood, and after stationing scouts in front of the forest made his army stop there. Thereupon the Bastarnae, thinking the former were alone, made a charge upon them, following them up also when the men retreated into the dense forest, and many of the pursuers perished there as well as many others in the flight which followed were obstructed by their wagons, which were behind them, and owed their defeat further to their desire to save their wives and children. Their king Deldo was slam by Crassus himself. The armor stripped from the prince he would have dedicated as spolia opima to Jupiter Feretrius, had he been a general acting on his own authority. Such was the course of that engagement: of the remainder some took refuge in a grove, which was set on fire all around, and others leaped into a fort, where they were annihilated. Still others perished, either by being driven into the Ister or after being scattered through the country. Some survived even yet and occupied a strong post where Crassus besieged them in vain for several days. Then with the aid of Roles, king of some of the Getae, he destroyed them. Roles when he visited Caesar was treated as a friend and ally for this assistance: the captives were distributed to the soldiers.

[-25-] After accomplishing this Crassus turned his attention to the Moesians; and partly by persuading some of them, partly by scaring them, and partly by the application of force he subjugated all except a very few, though with labor and danger. Temporarily, owing to the winter, he retired into friendly territory after suffering greatly from the cold, and still more at the hands of the Thracians, through whose country, as friendly, he was returning. Hence he decided to be satisfied with what he had effected. For sacrifices and a triumph had been voted not only to Caesar but to him also, though, according at least to some accounts, he did not secure the title of imperator, but Caesar alone might apply it to himself. The Bastarnae, however, angry at their disasters, on learning that he would make no further campaigns against them turned again upon the Dentheleti and Sitas, whom they regarded as having been the chief cause of their evils. Then Crassus, though reluctantly, took the field and by forced marches fell upon them unexpectedly, conquered, and thereafter imposed such terms as he pleased. Now that he had once taken up arms again he conceived a desire to recompense the Thracians, who had harassed him during his retreat from Moesia; for news was brought at this time that they were fortifying positions and were spoiling for a fight. And he did subdue them, though not without effort, by conquering in battle the Merdi and the Serdi and cutting off the hands of the captives. He overran the rest of the country except the land of the Odrysae. These he spared because they are attached to the service of Dionysus, and had come to meet him on this occasion without arms. Also he granted them the piece of land in which they magnify the god, and took it away from the Bessi, who were occupying it.

[-26-] While he was so occupied he received a summons from Roles, who had become embroiled with Dapyx, himself also a king of the Getae. Crassus went to help him and by hurling the horse of his opponents back upon the infantry he thoroughly terrified the latter, so that he carried the battle no further but caused a great slaughter of the fugitives of both divisions. Next he cut off Dapyx, who had taken refuge in a fort, and besieged him. During the investment some one from the walls saluted him in Greek, and upon obtaining an audience arranged to betray the place. The barbarians caught in this way turned upon one another, and Dapyx was killed, besides many others. His brother, however, Crassus took alive and not only did him no harm, but released him.

At the close of this exploit he led his army against the cave called Keiri. The natives in great numbers had occupied this place, which is extremely large and so very strong that the tradition obtains that the Titans after the defeat administered to them by the gods took refuge there. Here the people had brought together all their flocks and their other principal valuables. Crassus after finding all its entrances, which are crooked and hard to search out, walled them up, and in this way subjugated the men by famine. Upon this success he did not keep his hands from the rest of the Getae, though they had nothing to do with Dapyx. He marched upon Genoucla, the most strongly defended fortress of the kingdom of Zuraxes, because he heard that the standards which the Bastarnae had taken from Gaius Antonius near the city of the Istriani were there. His assault was made both with the infantry and upon the Ister,—the city being near the water,—and in a short time, though with much labor in spite of the absence of Zuraxes, he took the place. The king as soon as he heard of the Roman's approach had set off with money to the Scythians to seek an alliance, and did not return in time.

This he did among the Getae. Some of the Moesians who had been subdued rose in revolt, and them he won back by the energy of others: [-27-] he himself led a campaign against the Artacii and a few other tribes who had never been captured and would not acknowledge his authority, priding themselves greatly on this point and imbuing the rest with both anger and a disposition to rebel. He brought them to terms partly by force, as they did but little, and partly by the fear which the capture of some inspired. This took a long time. I record the names, as the facts, according to the tradition which has been handed down. Anciently Moesians and Getae occupied all the land between the Haemus and the Ister. As time went on some of them changed their names to something else. Since then there have been included under the name of Moesia all the tribes which the Savus by emptying into the Ister north of Dalmatia, Macedonia and Thrace, separates from Pannonia. Two of the many nations found among them are the Triballi, once so named, and the Dardani, who have the same designation at present.

notes

1

The events, however, run over into the following year.

2

Interesting to compare are three citations from an unknown Byzantine writer (in Excerpta cod. Paris, suppl. Gr. 607 A, edited by M.

Treu, Ohlau, 1880, p. 29 ff.), who seems to have used Dio as a source:

a) The mother of Augustus just one day previous to her travail beheld in a dream how her womb was snatched away and carried up into heaven.

b) And in the same night as Octavius was born his father thought that the sun rose from his wife's entrails.

c) And a certain senator, Nigidius Figulus, who was an astrologer, asked Octavius, the father of Augustus, why he was so slow in leaving his house. The latter replied that a son had been born to him. Nigidius thereupon exclaimed: "Ah, what hast thou done? Thou hast begotten a master for us!" The other believing it and being disturbed wished to make away with the child. But Nigidius said to him: "Thou hast not the power. For it hath not been granted thee to do this."

3

Suetonius in relating this anecdote (Life of Augustus, chapter 5) says that the senate-meeting in question was called to consider the conspiracy of Catiline. Since, however, Augustus is on all hands admitted to have been born a. d. IX. Kal. Octobr. and mention of Catiline's conspiracy was first made in the senate a. d. XII. Kal. Nov. (Cicero, Against Catiline, I, 3, 7), the claim of coincidence is evidently based on error.

4

Compare again the same Byzantine writer quoted in footnote to chapter 1,—two excerpts:

d) Again, while he was growing up in the country, an eagle swooping down snatched from his hands the loaf of bread and again returning replaced it in his hands.

e) Again, during his boyhood, Cicero saw in a dream Octavius himself fastened to a golden chain and wielding a whip being let down from the sky to the summit of the Capitol.

5

Compare Súetonius, Life of Augustus, chapter 94

6

See footnote to Book Forty-three, chapter 42.

7

The senate-house already mentioned in Book Forty, chapter 50.

8

This word is inserted by Boissevain on the authority of a symbol in the manuscript's margin, indicating a gap.

9

Inserting with Reimar [Greek: proihemenos], to complete the sense.

10

See Roscher I, col. 1458, on the Puperci Iulii. And compare Suetonius, Life of Caesar, chapter 76.

11

For further particulars about Sex. Clodius and the ager Leontinus (held to be the best in Sicily, Cicero, Against Verres, III, 46) see Suetonius, On Rhetoric, 5; Arnobuis, V, 18; Cicero, Philippics, II, 4, 8; II, 17; II, 34, 84; II, 39, 101; III, 9, 22.

12

Compare here (and particularly with, reference to the plural Spurii) the passage in Cicero, Philippics, III, 44, 114:

Quod si se ipsos illi nostri liberatores e conspectu nostro abstulerunt, at exemplum facti reliquerunt: illi, quod nemo fecerat, fecerunt: Tarquinium Brutus bello est persecutus, qui tum rex fuit, cum esse Romae licebat; Sp. Cassius, Sp. Maelius, M. Manlius propter suspitionem regni appetendi sunt necati; hi primum cum gladiis non in regnum appetentem, sed in regnum impetum fecerunt.

13

For the figure, compare Aristophanes, The Acharnians, vv. 380-381 (about Cleon):

[Greek: dieballe chai pseudae chateglottise mou chachychloborei chaplunen.]

14

Dio has in this sentence imitated almost word for word the utterance of Demosthenes, inveighing against Aischines, in the speech on the crown (Demosthenes XVIII, 129).

15

Compare Book Forty-five, chapter 30.

16

There is a play on words here which can not be exactly rendered. The Greek verb [Greek: pheaegein] means either "to flee" or "to be exiled."

17