The Jugurthine War (Sallust)

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	The Jugurthine War Author: Sallust	Translator: John Selby Watson
10	" Paruum ego te , Iugurtha , amisso patre , sine spe , sine opibus in meum regnum accepi , existimans non minus me tibi quam liberis , si genuissem , ob beneficia carum fore . Neque ea res falsum me habuit . Nam , ut alia magna et egregia tua omittam , novissime rediens Numantia meque regnumque meum gloria honorauisti tuaque virtute nobis Romanos ex amicis amicissimos fecisti . In Hispania nomen familiae renovatum est . Postremo , quod difficillimum inter mortalis est , gloria invidiam vicisti . Nunc , quoniam mihi natura finem vitae facit , per hanc dexteram , per regni fidem moneo obtestorque te , uti hos , qui tibi genere propinqui , beneficio meo fratres sunt , caros habeas neu malis alienos adiungere quam sanguine coniunctos retinere . Non exercitus neque thesauri praesidia regni sunt , verum amici , quos neque armis cogere neque auro parare queas : officio et fide pariuntur . Quis autem amicior quam frater fratri ? Aut quem alienum fidum invenies , si tuis hostis fueris ? Equidem ego vobis regnum trado firmum , si boni eritis , sin mali , inbecillum . Nam concordia paruae res crescunt , discordia maximae dilabuntur . Ceterum ante hos te , Iugurtha , qui aetate et sapientia prior es , ne aliter quid eveniat , prouidere decet . Nam in omni certamine qui opulentior est , etiam si accipit iniuriam , tamen , quia plus potest , facere videtur . Vos autem , Adherbal et Hiempsal , colite , obseruate talem hunc virum , imitamini virtutem et enitimini , ne ego meliores liberos sumpsisse videar quam genuisse ."	"I received you, Jugurtha, at a very early age, into my kingdom, at a time when you had lost your father, and were without prospects or resources, expecting that, in return for my kindness, I should not be less loved by you than by my own children, if I should have any. Nor have my anticipations deceived me; for, to say nothing of your other great and noble deeds, you have lately, on your return from Numantia, brought honor and glory both to me and my kingdom; by your bravery, you have rendered the Romans, from being previously our friends, more friendly to us than ever; the name of our family is revived in Spain; and, finally, what is most difficult among mankind, you have suppressed envy by preeminent merit. "And now, since nature is putting a period to my life, I exhort and conjure you, by this right hand, and by the fidelity which you owe to my kingdom, to regard these princes, who are your cousins by birth, and your brothers by my generosity, with sincere affection; and not to be more anxious to attach to yourself strangers, than to retain the love of those connected with you by blood. It is not armies, or treasures, that form the defenses of a kingdom, but friends, whom you can neither command by force nor purchase with gold; for they are acquired only by good offices and integrity. And who can be a greater friend than one brother to another? Or what stranger will you find faithful, if you are at enmity with your own family? I leave you a kingdom, which will be strong if you act honorably, but weak, if you are ill-affected to each other; for by concord even small states are increased, but by discord, even the greatest fall to nothing. "But on you, Jugurtha, who are superior in age and wisdom, it is incumbent, more than on your brothers, to be cautions that nothing of a contrary tendency may arise; for, in all disputes, he that is the stronger, even though he receive the injury, appears, because his power is greater, to have inflicted it. And do you, Adherbal and Hiempsal, respect and regard a kinsman of such a character; imitate his virtues, and make it your endeavor to show that I have not adopted a better son than those whom I have begotten."
11	Ad ea Iugurtha , tametsi regem ficta locutum intellegebat et ipse longe aliter animo agitabat , tamen pro tempore benigne respondit . Micipsa paucis post diebus moritur . Postquam illi more regio iusta magnifice fecerant , reguli in unum convenerunt , ut inter se de cunctis negotiis disceptarent . Sed Hiempsal , qui minimus ex illis erat , natura ferox et iam antea ignobilitatem Iugurthae , quia materno genere impar erat , despiciens , dextra Adherbalem assedit , ne medius ex tribus , quod apud Numidas honore ducitur , Iugurtha foret . Dein tamen , ut aetati concederet , fatigatus a fratre , vix in partem alteram transductus est . Ibi cum multa de administrando imperio dissererent , Iugurtha inter alias res iacit oportere quinquenni consulta et decreta omnia rescindi , nam per ea tempora confectum annis Micipsam parum animo valuisse . Tum idem Hiempsal placere sibi respondit , nam ipsum illum tribus proximis annis adoptatione in regnum pervenisse . Quod verbum in pectus Iugurthae altius , quam quisquam ratus erat , descendit . Itaque ex eo tempore ira et metu anxius moliri , parare atque ea modo cum animo habere , quibus Hiempsal per dolum caperetur . Quae ubi tardius procedunt neque lenitur animus ferox , statuit quovis modo inceptum perficere .	To this address, Jugurtha, though he knew that the king had spoken insincerely, and though he was himself revolving thoughts of a far different nature, yet replied with good feeling, suitable to the occasion. A few days afterward Micipsa died. When the princes had performed his funeral with due magnificence, they met together to hold a discussion on the general condition of their affairs. Hiempsal, the youngest, who was naturally violent, and who had previously shown contempt for the mean birth of Jugurtha, as being inferior on his mother's side, sat down on the right hand of Adherbal, in order to prevent Jugurtha from being the middle one of the three, which is regarded by the Numidians as the seat of honor. Being urged by his brother, however, to yield to superior age, he at length removed, but with reluctance, to the other seat. In the course of this conference, after a long debate about the administration of the kingdom, Jugurtha suggested, among other measures, "that all the acts and decrees made in the last five years should be annulled, as Micipsa, during that period, had been enfeebled by age, and scarcely sound in intellect." Hiempsal replied, "that he was exceedingly pleased with the proposal, since Jugurtha himself, within the last three years, had been adopted as joint-heir to the throne." This repartee sunk deeper into the mind of Jugurtha than any one imagined. From that very time, accordingly, being agitated with resentment and jealousy, he began to meditate and concert schemes, and to think of nothing but projects for secretly cutting off Hiempsal. But his plans proving slow in operation, and his angry feelings remaining unabated, he resolved to execute his purpose by any means whatsoever.
12	Primo conventu , quem ab regulis factum supra memoravi , propter dissensionem placuerat dividi thesauros finisque imperi singulis constitui . Itaque tempus ad utramque rem decernitur , sed maturius ad pecuniam distribuendam . Reguli interea in loca propinqua thesauris alius alio concessere . Sed Hiempsal in oppido Thirmida forte eius domo utebatur , qui proximus lictor Iugurthae carus acceptusque ei semper fuerat . Quem ille casu ministrum oblatum promissis onerat impellitque , uti tamquam suam visens domum eat , portarum clauis adulterinas paret — nam verae ad Hiempsalem referebantur — ceterum , ubi res postularet , se ipsum cum magna manu venturum . Numida mandata brevi conficit atque , uti doctus erat , noctu Iugurthae milites introducit . Qui postquam in aedis irrupere , diuersi regem quaerere , dormientis alios , alios occursantis interficere , scrutari loca abdita , clausa effringere , strepitu et tumultu omnia miscere , cum interim Hiempsal reperitur occultans se tugurio mulieris ancillae , quo initio pauidus et ignarus loci perfugerat . Numidae caput eius , uti iussi erant , ad Iugurtham referunt .	At the first meeting of the princes, of which I have just spoken, it had been resolved, in consequence of their disagreement, that the treasures should be divided among them, and that limits should be set to the jurisdiction of each. Days were accordingly appointed for both these purposes, but the earlier of the two for the division of the money. The princes, in the mean time, retired into separate places of abode in the neighborhood of the treasury. Hiempsal, residing in the town of Thirmida, happened to occupy the house of a man, who, being Jugurtha's chief lictor, had always been liked and favored by his master. This man, thus opportunely presented as an instrument, Jugurtha loaded with promises, and induced him to go to his house, as if for the purpose of looking over it, and provide himself with false keys to the gates; for the true ones used to be given to Hiempsal; adding, that he himself, when circumstances should call for his presence, would be at the place with a large body of men. This commission the Numidian speedily executed, and, according to his instructions, admitted Jugurtha's men in the night, who, as soon as they had entered the house, went different ways in quest of the prince; some of his attendants they killed while asleep, and others as they met them; they searched into secret places, broke open those that were shut, and filled the whole premises with uproar and tumult. Hiempsal, after a time, was found concealed in the hut of a maid-servant, where, in his alarm and ignorance of the locality, he had at first taken refuge. The Numidians, as they had been ordered, brought his head to Jugurtha.
13	Ceterum fama tanti facinoris per omnem Africam brevi diuulgatur . Adherbalem omnisque , qui sub imperio Micipsae fuerant , metus invadit . In duas partis discedunt Numidae : plures Adherbalem secuntur , sed illum alterum bello meliores . Igitur Iugurtha quam maximas potest copias armat , urbis partim vi alias voluntate imperio suo adiungit , omni Numidiae imperare parat . Adherbal tametsi Romam legatos miserat , qui senatum docerent de caede fratris et fortunis suis , tamen fretus multitudine militum parabat armis contendere . Sed ubi res ad certamen venit , victus ex proelio profugit in prouinciam ac deinde Romam contendit . Tum Iugurtha patratis consiliis , postquam omnis Numidiae potiebatur , in otio facinus suum cum animo reputans timere populum Romanum neque aduersus iram eius usquam nisi in auaritia nobilitatis et pecunia sua spem habere . Itaque paucis diebus cum auro et argento multo Romam legatos mittit , quis praecipit , primum uti ueteres amicos muneribus expleant , deinde nouos aqquirant, postremo quaecumque possint largiendo parare ne cunctentur . Sed ubi Romam legati venere et ex praecepto regis hospitibus aliisque , quorum ea tempestate in senatu auctoritas pollebat , magna munera misere , tanta commutatio incessit , ut ex maxima invidia in gratiam et fauorem nobilitatis Iugurtha veniret . Quorum pars spe , alii praemio inducti singulos ex senatu ambiendo nitebantur , ne grauius in eum consuleretur . Igitur ubi legati satis confidunt , die constituto senatus utrisque datur . Tum Adherbalem hoc modo locutum accepimus :	The report of so atrocious an outrage was soon spread through Africa. Fear seized on Adherbal, and on all who had been subject to Micipsa. The Numidians divided into two parties, the greater number following Adherbal, but the more warlike, Jugurtha; who, accordingly, armed as large a force as he could, brought several cities, partly by force and partly by their own consent, under his power, and prepared to make himself sovereign of the whole of Numidia. Adherbal, though he had sent embassadors to Rome, to inform the senate of his brother's murder and his own circumstances, yet, relying on the number of his troops, prepared for an armed resistance. When the matter, however, came to a contest, he was defeated, and fled from the field of battle into our province, and from thence hastened to Rome. Jugurtha, having thus accomplished his purposes, and reflecting, at leisure, on the crime which he had committed, began to feel a dread of the Roman people, against whose resentment he had no hopes of security but in the avarice of the nobility, and in his own wealth. A few days afterward, therefore, he dispatched embassadors to Rome, with a profusion of gold and silver, whom he directed, in the first place, to make abundance of presents to his old friends, and then to procure him new ones; and not to hesitate, in short, to effect whatever could be done by bribery. When these deputies had arrived at Rome, and had sent large presents, according to the prince's direction, to his intimate friends, and to others whose influence was at that time powerful, so remarkable a change ensued, that Jugurtha, from being an object of the greatest odium, grew into great regard and favor with the nobility; who, partly allured with hope, and partly with actual largesses, endeavored, by soliciting the members of the senate individually, to prevent any severe measures from being adopted against him. When the embassadors, accordingly, felt sure of success, the senate, on a fixed day, gave audience to both parties. On that occasion, Adherbal, as I have understood, spoke to the following effect:
14	" Patres conscripti , Micipsa pater meus moriens mihi praecepit , uti regni Numidiae tantummodo procurationem existimarem meam , ceterum ius et imperium eius penes vos esse ; simul eniterer domi militiaeque quam maximo usui esse populo Romano ; vos mihi cognatorum , vos affinium loco ducerem : si ea fecissem , in vestra amicitia exercitum divitias munimenta regni me habiturum . Quae cum praecepta parentis mei agitarem , Iugurtha , homo omnium quos terra sustinet sceleratissimus , contempto imperio vestro Masinissae me nepotem et iam ab stirpe socium atque amicum populi Romani regno fortunisque omnibus expulit . Atque ego , patres conscripti , quoniam eo miseriarum venturus eram , vellem potius ob mea quam ob maiorum meorum beneficia posse me a vobis auxilium petere , ac maxime deberi mihi beneficia a populo Romano , quibus non egerem , secundum ea , si desideranda erant , uti debitis uterer . Sed quoniam parum tuta per se ipsa probitas est neque mihi in manu fuit , Iugurtha qualis foret , ad vos confugi , patres conscripti , quibus , quod mihi miserrimum est , cogor prius oneri quam usui esse . Ceteri reges aut bello victi in amicitiam a vobis recepti sunt aut in suis dubiis rebus societatem vestram appetiuerunt ; familia nostra cum populo Romano bello Carthaginiensi amicitiam instituit , quo tempore magis fides eius quam fortuna petenda erat . Quorum progeniem vos , patres conscripti , nolite pati me nepotem Masinissae frustra a vobis auxilium petere . Si ad impetrandum nihil causae haberem praeter miserandam fortunam , quod paulo ante rex genere fama atque copiis potens , nunc deformatus aerumnis , inops alienas opes expecto , tamen erat maiestatis populi Romani prohibere iniuriam neque pati cuiusquam regnum per scelus crescere . Verum ego iis finibus eiectus sum , quos maioribus meis populus Romanus dedit , unde pater et auos meus una vobiscum expulere Syphacem et Carthaginiensis . Vestra beneficia mihi erepta sunt , patres conscripti , vos in mea iniuria despecti estis . Eheu me miserum ! Hucine, Micipsa pater , beneficia tua euasere , ut , quem tu parem cum liberis tuis regnique participem fecisti , is potissimum stirpis tuae extinctor sit ? Numquamne ergo familia nostra quieta erit ? Semperne in sanguine ferro fuga versabitur ? Dum Carthaginienses incolumes fuere , iure omnia saeva patiebamur : hostes ab latere , vos amici procul , spes omnis in armis erat . Postquam illa pestis ex Africa eiecta est , laeti pacem agitabamus , quippe quis hostis nullus erat , nisi forte quem vos iussissetis . Ecce autem ex improuiso Iugurtha , intoleranda audacia scelere atque superbia sese efferens , fratre meo atque eodem propinquo suo interfecto primum regnum eius sceleris sui praedam fecit ; post ubi me isdem dolis nequit capere , nihil minus quam vim aut bellum expectantem in imperio vestro , sicuti videtis , extorrem patria domo , inopem et coopertum miseriis effecit , ut ubiuis tutius quam in meo regno essem . Ego sic existimabam , patres conscripti , uti praedicantem audiueram patrem meum , qui vestram amicitiam diligenter colerent , eos multum laborem suscipere , ceterum ex omnibus maxime tutos esse . Quod in familia nostra fuit , praestitit , uti in omnibus bellis adesset vobis ; nos uti per otium tuti simus , in vestra manu est , patres conscripti . Pater nos duos fratres reliquit , tertium Iugurtham beneficiis suis ratus est coniunctum nobis fore . Alter eorum necatus est , alterius ipse ego manus impias vix effugi . Quid agam ? Aut quo potissimum infelix accedam ? Generis praesidia omnia extincta sunt . Pater , uti necesse erat , naturae concessit . Fratri , quem minime decuit , propinquos per scelus vitam eripuit . Affinis amicos propinquos ceteros meos alium alia clades oppressit : capti ab Iugurtha pars in crucem acti , pars bestiis obiecti sunt , pauci , quibus relicta est anima , clausi in tenebris cum maerore et luctu morte grauiorem vitam exigunt . Si omnia , quae aut amisi aut ex necessariis aduersa facta sunt , incolumia manerent , tamen , si quid ex improuiso mali accidisset , vos implorarem , patres conscripti , quibus pro magnitudine imperi ius et iniurias omnis curae esse decet . Nunc vero exul patria domo , solus atque omnium honestarum rerum egens quo accedam aut quos appellem ? Nationesne an reges , qui omnes familiae nostrae ob vestram amicitiam infesti sunt ? An quoquam mihi adire licet , ubi non maiorum meorum hostilia monumenta plurima sint ? Aut quisquam nostri misereri potest , qui aliquando vobis hostis fuit ? Postremo Masinissa nos ita instituit , patres conscripti , ne quem coleremus nisi populum Romanum , ne societates , ne foedera nova acciperemus : abunde magna praesidia nobis in vestra amicitia fore ; si huic imperio fortuna mutaretur , una occidendum nobis esse . Virtute ac dis volentibus magni estis et opulenti , omnia secunda et oboedientia sunt : quo facilius sociorum iniurias curare licet . Tantum illud vereor , ne quos privata amicitia Iugurthae parum cognita transuersos agat . Quos ego audio maxima ope niti ambire fatigare vos singulos , ne quid de absente incognita causa statuatis ; fingere me verba et fugam simulare , cui licuerit in regno manere . Quod utinam illum , cuius impio facinore in has miserias proiectus sum , eadem haec simulantem videam , et aliquando aut apud vos aut apud deos immortalis rerum humanarum cura oriatur : ne ille , qui nunc sceleribus suis ferox atque praeclarus est , omnibus malis excruciatus impietatis in parentem nostrum , fratris mei necis mearumque miseriarum grauis poenas reddat . Iam iam , frater animo meo carissime , quamquam tibi immaturo et unde minime decuit vita erepta est , tamen laetandum magis quam dolendum puto casum tuum . Non enim regnum , sed fugam exilium egestatem et omnis has quae me premunt aerumnas cum anima simul amisisti . At ego infelix , in tanta mala praecipitatus ex patrio regno , rerum humanarum spectaculum praebeo , incertus quid agam tuasne iniurias persequar ipse auxili egens an regno consulam , cuius vitae necisque potestas ex opibus alienis pendet . utinam emori fortunis meis honestus exitus esset neu viuere contemptus viderer , si defessus malis iniuriae concessissem . Nunc neque viuere libet neque mori licet sine dedecore . Patres conscripti , per vos , per liberos atque parentis vestros , per maiestatem populi Romani , subuenite mihi misero , ite obviam iniuriae , nolite pati regnum Numidiae , quod vestrum est , per scelus et sanguinem familiae nostrae tabescere ."	"My father Micipsa, Conscript Fathers, enjoined me, on his death-bed, to look upon the kingdom of Numidia as mine only by deputation; to consider the right and authority as belonging to you; to endeavor, at home and in the field, to be as serviceable to the Roman people as possible; and to regard you as my kindred and relatives: saying that, if I observed these injunctions, I should find, in your friendship, armies, riches, and all necessary defenses of my realm. By these precepts I was proceeding to regulate my conduct, when Jugurtha, the most abandoned of all men whom the earth contains, setting at naught your authority, expelled me, the grandson of Masinissa, and the hereditary ally and friend of the Roman people, from my kingdom and all my possessions. "Since I was thus to be reduced to such an extremity of wretchedness, I could wish that I were able to implore your aid, Conscript Fathers, rather for the sake of my own services than those of my ancestors; I could wish, indeed, above all, that acts of kindness were due to me from the Romans, of which I should not stand in need; and, next to this, that, if I required your services, I might receive them as my due. But as integrity is no defense in itself, and as I had no power to form the character of Jugurtha, I have fled to you, Conscript Fathers, to whom, what is the most grievous of all things, I am compelled to become a burden before I have been an assistance. "Other princes have been received into your friendship after having been conquered in war, or have solicited an alliance with you in circumstances of distress; but our family commenced its league with the Romans in the war with Carthage, at a time when their faith was a greater object of attraction than their fortune. Suffer not, then, O Conscript Fathers, a descendent of that family to implore aid from you in vain. If I had no other plea for obtaining your assistance but my wretched fortune; nothing to urge, but that, having been recently a king, powerful by birth, by character, and by resources, I am now dishonored, afflicted, destitute, and dependent on the aid of others, it would yet become the dignity of Rome to protect me from injury, and to allow no man's dominions to be increased by crime. But I am driven from those very territories which the Roman people gave to my ancestors, and from which my father and grandfather, in conjunction with yourselves, expelled Syphax and the Carthaginians. It is what you bestowed that has been wrested from me; in my wrongs you are insulted. " Unhappy man that I am! Has your kindness, O my father Micipsa, come to this, that he whom you made equal with your children, and a sharer of your kingdom, should become, above all others, the destroyers of your race? Shall our family, then, never be at peace? Shall we always be harassed with war, bloodshed, and exile? While the Carthaginians continued in power, we were necessarily exposed to all manner of troubles; for the enemy were on our frontiers; you, our friends, were at a distance; and all our dependence was on our arms. But after that pest was extirpated, we were happy in the enjoyment of tranquillity, as having no enemies but such as you should happen to appoint us. But lo! on a sudden, Jugurtha, stalking forth with intolerable audacity, wickedness, and arrogance, and having put to death my brother, his own cousin, made his territory, in the first place, the prize of his guilt; and next, being unable to ensnare me with similar stratagems, he rendered me, when under your rule I expected any thing rather than violence or war, an exile, as you see, from my country and my home, the prey of poverty and misery, and safer any where than in my own kingdom. "I was always of opinion, Conscript Fathers, as I had often heard my father observe, that those who cultivated your friendship might indeed have an arduous service to perform, but would be of all people the most secure. What our family could do for you, it has done; it has supported you in all your wars; and it is for you to provide for our safety in time of peace. Our father left two of us, brothers; a third, Jugurtha, he thought would be attached to us by the benefits conferred upon him; but one of us has been murdered, and I, the other, have scarcely escaped the hand of lawlessness. What course can I now take? Unhappy that I am, to what place, rather than another, shall I betake myself? All the props of our family are extinct; my father, of necessity, has paid the debt of nature; a kinsman, whom least of all men it became, has wickedly taken the life of my brother; and as for my other relatives, and friends, and connections, various forms of destruction have overtaken them. Seized by Jugurtha, some have been crucified, and some thrown to wild beasts, while a few, whose lives have been spared, are shut up in the darkness of the dungeon, and drag on, amid suffering and sorrow, an existence more grievous than death itself. "If all that I have lost, or all that, from being friendly, has become hostile to me, remained unchanged, yet, in case of any sudden calamity, it is of you that I should still have to implore assistance, to whom, from the greatness of your empire, justice and injustice in general should be objects of regard. And at the present time, when I am exiled from my country and my home, when I am left alone, and destitute of all that is suitable to my dignity, to whom can I go, or to whom shall I appeal, but to you? Shall I go to nations and kings, who, from our friendship with Rome, are all hostile to my family? Could I go, indeed, to any place where there are not abundance of hostile monuments of my ancestors? Will any one, who has ever been at enmity with you, take pity upon me? "Masinissa, moreover, instructed us, Conscript Fathers, to cultivate no friendship but that of Rome, to adopt no new leagues or alliances, as we should find, in your good-will, abundance of efficient support; while, if the fortune of your empire should change, we must sink together with it. But, by your own merits, and the favor of the gods, you are great and powerful; the whole world regards you with favor and yields to your power; and you are the better able, in consequence, to attend to the grievances of your allies. My only fear is, that private friendship for Jugurtha, too little understood, may lead any of you astray; for his partisans, I hear, are doing their utmost in his behalf, soliciting and importuning you individually, to pass no decision against one who is absent, and whose cause is yet untried; and saying that I state what is false, and only pretend to be an exile, when I might, if I pleased, have remained still in my kingdom. But would that I could see him, by whose unnatural crime I am thus reduced to misery, pretending as I now pretend; and would that, either with you or with the immortal gods, there may at length arise some regard for human interests; for then assuredly will he, who is now audacious and triumphant in guilt, be tortured by every kind of suffering, and pay a heavy penalty for his ingratitude to my father, for the murder of my brother, and for the distress which he has brought upon myself. "And now, O my brother, dearest object of my affection, though thy life has been prematurely taken from thee, and by a hand that should have been the last to touch it, yet I think thy fate a subject for rejoicing rather than lamentation, for, in losing life, thou hast not been cut off from a throne, but from flight, expatriation, poverty, and all those afflictions which now press upon me. But I, unfortunate that I am, cast from the throne of my father into the depths of calamity, afford an example of human vicissitudes, undecided what course to adopt, whether to avenge thy wrongs, while I myself stand in need of assistance, or to attempt the recovery of my kingdom, while my life or death depends on the aid of others. "Would that death could be thought an honorable termination to my misfortunes, that I might not seem to live an object of contempt, if, sinking under my afflictions, I tamely submit to injustice. But now I can neither live with pleasure, nor can die without disgrace. I implore you, therefore, Conscript Fathers, by your regard for yourselves, for your children, and for your parents, and by the majesty of the Roman people, to grant me succor in my distress, to arrest the progress of injustice, and not to suffer the kingdom of Numidia, which is your own property, to sink into ruin through villainy and the slaughter of our family."
15	Postquam rex finem loquendi fecit , legati Iugurthae largitione magis quam causa freti paucis respondent : Hiempsalem ob saevitiam suam ab Numidis interfectum , Adherbalem ultro bellum inferentem , postquam superatus sit , queri , quod iniuriam facere nequiuisset . Iugurtham ab senatu petere , ne se alium putarent ac Numantiae cognitus esset , neu verba inimici ante facta sua ponerent . Deinde utrique curia egrediuntur . Senatus statim consulitur . Fautores legatorum , praeterea senatus magna pars gratia deprauata Adherbalis dicta contemnere , Iugurthae virtutem extollere laudibus ; gratia , voce , denique omnibus modis pro alieno scelere et flagitio , sua quasi pro gloria , nitebantur . At contra pauci , quibus bonum et aequum divitiis carius erat , subueniendum Adherbali et Hiempsalis mortem seuere vindicandam censebant , sed ex omnibus maxime Aemilius Scaurus , homo nobilis impiger factiosus , auidus potentiae honoris divitiarum , ceterum vitia sua callide occultans . Is postquam videt regis largitionem famosam impudentemque , veritus , quod in tali re solet , ne polluta licentia invidiam accenderet , animum a consueta libidine continuit .	When the prince had concluded his speech, the embassadors of Jugurtha, depending more on their money than their cause, replied, in a few words, " that Hiempsal had been put to death by the Numidians for his cruelty; that Adherbal, commencing war of his own accord, complained, after he was defeated, of being unable to do injury; and that Jugurtha entreated the senate not to consider him a different person from what he had been known to be at Numantia, nor to set the assertions of his enemy above his own conduct." Both parties then withdrew from the senate-house, and the senate immediately proceeded to deliberate. The partisans of the embassadors, with a great many others, corrupted by their influence, expressed contempt for the statements of Adherbal, extolled with the highest encomiums the merits of Jugurtha, and exerted themselves as strenuously, with their interest and eloquence, in defense of the guilt and infamy of another, as they would have striven for their own honor. A few, however, on the other hand, to whom right and justice were of more estimation than wealth, gave their opinion that Adherbal should be assisted, and the murder of Hiempsal severely avenged. Of all these the most forward was Æmilius Scaurus, a man of noble birth and great energy, but factious, and ambitious of power, honor, and wealth; yet an artful concealer of his own vices. He, seeing that the bribery of Jugurtha was notorious and shameless, and fearing that, as in such cases often happens, its scandalous profusion might excite public odium, restrained himself from the indulgence of his ruling passion.
16	Vicit tamen in senatu pars illa , quae vero pretium aut gratiam anteferebat . Decretum fit , uti decem legati regnum , quod Micipsa obtinuerat , inter Iugurtham et Adherbalem dividerent . Cuius legationis princeps fuit L . Opimius , homo clarus et tum in senatu potens , quia consul C . Graccho et M . Fuluio Flacco interfectis acerrime victoriam nobilitatis in plebem exercuerat . Eum Iugurtha tametsi Romae in amicis habuerat , tamen accuratissime recepit , dando et pollicendo multa perfecit , uti fama , fide , postremo omnibus suis rebus commodum regis anteferret . Relicuos legatos eadem via aggressus plerosque capit , paucis carior fides quam pecunia fuit . In divisione , quae pars Numidiae Mauretaniam attingit , agro virisque opulentior , Iugurthae traditur ; illam alteram specie quam usu potiorem , quae portuosior et aedificiis magis exornata erat , Adherbal possedit .	Yet that party gained the superiority in the senate, which preferred money and interest to justice. A decree was made, "that ten commissioners should divide the kingdom, which Micipsa had possessed, between Jugurtha and Adherbal." Of this commission the leading person was Lucius Opimius, a man of distinction, and of great influence at that time in the senate, from having in his consulship, on the death of Caius Gracchus and Marcus Fulvius Flaccus, prosecuted the victory of the nobility over the plebeians with great severity. Jugurtha, though he had already counted Scaurus among his friends at Rome, yet received him with the most studied ceremony, and, by presents and promises, wrought on him so effectually, that he preferred the prince's interest to his own character, honor, and all other considerations. The rest of the commissioners he assailed in a similar way, and gained over most of them; by a few only integrity was more regarded than lucre. In the division of the kingdom, that part of Numidia which borders on Mauretania, and which is superior in fertility and population, was allotted to Jugurtha; of the other part, which, though better furnished with harbors and buildings, was more valuable in appearance than in reality, Adherbal became the possessor.
17	Res postulare videtur Africae situm paucis exponere et eas gentis , quibuscum nobis bellum aut amicitia fuit , attingere . Sed quae loca et nationes ob calorem aut asperitatem , item solitudines minus frequentata sunt , de iis haud facile compertum narrauerim . Cetera quam paucissimis absoluam . In divisione orbis terrae plerique in parte tertia Africam posuere , pauci tantummodo Asiam et Europam esse , sed Africam in Europa . Ea finis habet ab occidente fretum nostri maris et Oceani , ab ortu solis decliuem latitudinem , quem locum Catabathmon incolae appellant . mare saevum , importuosum ; ager frugum fertilis , bonus pecori , arbori infecundus ; caelo terraque penuria aquarum . genus hominum salubri corpore , velox , patiens laborum ; ac plerosque senectus dissoluit , nisi qui ferro aut bestiis interiere , nam morbus haud saepe quemquam superat ; ad hoc malefici generis plurima animalia . Sed qui mortales initio Africam habuerint quique postea accesserint aut quo modo inter se permixti sint , quamquam ab ea fama , quae plerosque obtinet , diuersum est , tamen , uti ex libris Punicis , qui regis Hiempsalis dicebantur , interpretatum nobis est utique rem sese habere cultores eius terrae putant , quam paucissimis dicam . Ceterum fides eius rei penes auctores erit .	My subject seems to require of me, in this place, a brief account of the situation of Africa, and of those nations in it with whom we have had war or alliances. But of those tracts and countries, which, from their heat, or difficulty of access, or extent of desert, have been but little visited, I can not possibly give any exact description. Of the rest I shall speak with all possible brevity. In the division of the earth, most writers consider Africa as a third part; a few admit only two divisions, Asia and Europe, and include Africa in Europe. It is bounded, on the west, by the strait connecting our sea with the ocean; on the east, by a vast sloping tract, which the natives call the Catabathmos." The sea is boisterous, and deficient in harbors; the soil is fertile in corn, and good for pasturage, but unproductive of trees. There is a scarcity of water both from rain and from land-springs. The natives are healthy, swift of foot, and able to endure fatigue. Most of them die by the gradual decay of age, except such as perish by the sword or beasts of prey; for disease finds but few victims. Animals of a venomous nature they have in great numbers. Concerning the original inhabitants of Africa, the settlers that afterward joined them, and the manner in which they intermingled, I shall offer the following brief account, which, though it differs from the general opinion, is that which was interpreted to me from the Punic volumes said to have belonged to King Hiempsal, and which the inhabitants of that country believe to be consistent with fact. For the truth of the statement, however, the writers themselves must be responsible.
18	Africam initio habuere Gaetuli et Libyes , asperi incultique , quis cibus erat caro ferina atque humi pabulum uti pecoribus . Ii neque moribus neque lege aut imperio cuiusquam regebantur : uagi palantes quas nox coegerat sedes habebant . Sed postquam in Hispania Hercules , sicuti Afri putant , interiit , exercitus eius , compositus ex variis gentibus , amisso duce ac passim multis sibi quisque imperium petentibus brevi dilabitur . Ex eo numero Medi , Persae et Armenii nauibus in Africam transuecti proximos nostro mari locos occupauere , sed Persae intra Oceanum magis , iique alueos nauium inversos pro tuguriis habuere , quia neque materia in agris neque ab Hispanis emendi aut mutandi copia erat : mare magnum et ignara lingua commercio prohibebant . Ii paulatim per conubia Gaetulos secum miscuere et , quia saepe temptantes agros alia , deinde alia loca petiuerant , semet ipsi Numidas appellauere . Ceterum adhuc aedificia Numidarum agrestium , quae mapalia illi vocant , oblonga , incuruis lateribus , tecta quasi nauium carinae sunt . Medis autem et Armeniis accessere Libyes — nam ii propius mare Africum agitabant , Gaetuli sub sole magis , haud procul ab ardoribus —, iique mature oppida habuere ; nam freto divisi ab Hispania mutare res inter se instituerant . Nomen eorum paulatim Libyes corrupere , barbara lingua Mauros pro Medis appellantes . Sed res Persarum brevi adoleuit , ac postea nomine Numidae , propter multitudinem a parentibus digressi , possedere ea loca , quae proxima Carthagine Numidia appellatur . Deinde utrique alteris freti finitimos armis aut metu sub imperium suum coegere , nomen gloriamque sibi addidere , magis ii , qui ad nostrum mare processerant , quia Libyes quam Gaetuli minus bellicose . Denique Africae pars inferior pleraque ab Numidis possessa est , victi omnes in gentem nomenque imperantium concessere .	Africa, then, was originally occupied by the Getulians and Libyans, rude and uncivilized tribes, who subsisted on the flesh of wild animals, or, like cattle, on the herbage of the soil. They were controlled neither by customs, laws, nor the authority of any ruler; they wandered about, without fixed habitations, and slept in the abodes to which night drove them. But after Hercules, as the Africans think, perished in Spain, his army, which was composed of various nations, having lost its leader, and many candidates severally claiming the command of it, was speedily dispersed. Of its constituent troops, the Medes, Persians, and Armenians, having sailed over into Africa, occupied the parts nearest to our sea. The Persians, however, settled more toward the ocean, and used the inverted keels of their vessels for huts, there being no wood in the country, and no opportunity of obtaining it, either by purchase or barter, from the Spaniards; for a wide sea, and an unknown tongue, were barriers to all intercourse. These, by degrees, formed intermarriages with the Getulians; and because, from constantly trying different soils, they were perpetually shifting their abodes, they called themselves NUMIDIANS. And to this day the huts of the Numidian boors, which they call mapalia, are of an oblong shape, with curved roofs; resembling the hulls of ships. The Medes and Armenians connected themselves with the Libyans, who dwelled near the African sea; while the Getulians lay more to the sun," not far from the torrid heats; and these soon built themselves towns, as, being separated from Spain only by a strait, they proceeded to open an intercourse with its inhabitants. The name of Medes the Libyans gradually corrupted, changing it, in their barbarous tongue, into Moors. Of the Persians the power rapidly increased; and at length, the children, through excess of population, separating from the parents, they took possession, under the name of Numidians, of those regions bordering on Carthage which are now called Numidia. In process of time, the two parties, each assisting the other, reduced the neighboring tribes, by force or fear, under their sway; but those who had spread toward our sea, made the greater conquests: for the Lybians are less warlike than the Getulians. At last nearly all lower Africa/un> was occupied by the Numidians; and all the conquered tribes were merged in the nation and name of their conquerors.