Institutio Oratoria |
Translator: Harold Edgeworth Butler
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| 913 |
Sed de singulis dicemus quaestionibus , cum tractare praecepta divisionis coeperimus . Hoc inter omnes convenit , in causis simplicibus singulos status esse causarum , quaestionum autem , quae velut subiacent his et ad illud , quo iudicium continetur , referuntur , saepe in unam cadere plures posse ;
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But I will speak of individual questions when I come to handle the rules for division. This much is agreed to by all writers, that one cause possesses one basis, but that as regards secondary questions related to the main issue of the trial, there may frequently be a number in one single cause. |
| 914 |
etiam credo aliquando dubitari , quo statu sit utendum , cum adversus unam intentionem plura opponuntur ; et sicut in colore dicitur narrationis , eum esse optimum , quem actor optime tueatur , ita hic quoque posse dici , eum statum esse faciendum , in quo tuendo plurimum adhibere virium possit orator ;
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I also think there is at times some doubt as to which basis should be adopted, when many different lines of defence are brought to meet a single charge; and, just as in regard to the complexion to be given to the statement of the facts of the case, that complexion is said to be the best which the speaker can best maintain, so in the present connexion I may say that the best basis to choose is that which will permit the orator to develop a maximum of force. |
| 915 |
ideoque pro Milone aliud Ciceroni agenti placuit aliud Bruto , cum exercitationis gratia componeret orationem , cum ille iure tanquam insidiatorem occisum et tamen non Milonis consilio dixerit , ille etiam gloriatus sit occiso malo cive :
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It is for this reason that we find Cicero and Brutus taking up different lines in defence of Milo. Cicero says that Clodius was justifiably killed because he sought to waylay Milo, but that Milo had not designed to kill him; while Brutus, who wrote his speech merely as a rhetorical exercise, also exults that Milo has killed a bad citizen. |
| 916 |
in coniunctis vero posse duos et tris inveniri vel diversos , ut si quis aliud se non fecisse , aliud recte fecisse defendat , vel generis eiusdem , ut si quis duo crimina neget .
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In complicated causes, however, two or three bases may be found, or different bases: for instance a man may plead that he did not do one thing, and that he was justified in doing another, or to take another similar class of case, a man may deny two of the charges. |
| 917 |
Quod accidit etiam , si de una re quaeratur aliqua sed eam plures petant , vel eodem iure ut proximitatis vel diverso , ut cum hic testamento , ille proximitate nitetur . Quotiens autem aliud alii petitori opponitur , dissimiles esse status necesse est , ut in illa controversia :
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The same thing occurs when there is a question about some one thing which is claimed by a number of persons, who may all of them rely on the same kind of plea (for instance, on the right of the next of kin), or may put in different claims, one urging that the property was left him by will, another that he is next of kin. Now whenever a different defence has to be made against different claimants, there must be different bases, as for example the well-known controversial theme: |
| 918 |
Testamenta legibus facta rata sint . Intestatorum parentium liberi heredes sint . Abdicatus ne quid de bonis patris capiat . Nothus ante legitimum natus legitimus filius sit , post legitimum nanus tantum civis . In adoptionem dare liceat . In adoptionem dato redire in familiam liceat , si paler naturalis sine liberis decesserit .
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" Wills that are made in accordance with law shall be valid. When parents die intestate, their children shall be the heirs. A disinherited son shall receive none of his father's property. A bastard, if born before a legitimate son, shall be treated as legitimate, but if born after a legitimate son shall be treated merely as a citizen. It shall be lawful to give a son in adoption. Every son given in adoption shall have the right to re-enter his own family if his natural father has died childless. |
| 919 |
Qui ex duobus legitimis alterum in adoptionem dederat , alterum abdicaverat , sustulit nothum ; institute herede abdicato decessit . Tres omnes de bonis contendunt . Nothum , qui non sit legitimus , Graeci vocant ; Latinum rei nomen , ut Cato quoque in oratione quadam testatus est , non habemus ideoque utimur peregrino . Sed ad propositum .
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A father of two legitimate sons gave one in adoption, disinherited the other, and acknowledged a bastard, who was born to him later. Finally after making the disinherited son his heir he died. All three sons lay claim to the property. " Nothbus is the Greek word for a bastard; Latin, as Cato emphasized in one of his speeches, has no word of its own and therefore borrows the foreign term. But I am straying from the point. |
| 920 |
Heredi scripto opponitur lex , Abdicatus ne quid de bonis patris capiat ; fit status scripti et voluntatis , an ullo modo capere possit , an ex voluntate patris , an heres scriptus . Notho duplex fit quaestio , quod post legitimos natus sit et quod non sit ante legitimum natus .
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The son who was made heir by the will finds his way barred by the law "A disinherited son shall receive none of his father's property." The basis is one resting on the letter of the law and intention, and the problem is whether he can inherit by any means at all? can he do so in accordance with the intention of his father? or in virtue of the fact that he was made heir by the will? The problem confronting the bastard is twofold, since he was born after the two legitimate sons and was not born before a legitimate son. |
| 921 |
Prior syllogismon habet , an pro non natis sint habendi , qui a familia sunt alienati . Altera et scripti et voluntatis . Non esse enim hunc natum ante legitimum convenit , sed voluntate legis se tuebitur , quam dicet talem fuisse , ut legitimus esset nothus tum natus , cum alius legitimus in domo non esset .
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The first problem involves a syllogism: are those sons who have been cast out from their own family to be regarded as though they had never been born? The second is concerned with the letter of the law and intention. For it is admitted that he was not born before any legitimate son, but he will defend his claim by appealing to the intention of the law, which he will maintain to imply that the bastard, born when there was no legitimate son in the family, should rank as legitimate. |
| 922 |
Scriptum quoque legis excludet dicens , non utique , si postea legitimus natus non sit , notho nocere ; uteturque hoc argumento : Finge solum natum nothum , cuius condicionis erit ? Tantum civis ? atqui non erit post legitimum natus . An filius ? atqui non erit ante legitimos natus . Quare si verbis legis stari non potest , voluntate standum est .
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He will dismiss the letter of the law, pointing out that in any case the position of a bastard is not prejudiced by the fact that no legitimate son was born after him, and arguing as follows:— " Suppose that the only son is a bastard, what will his position be? Merely that of a citizen? and yet he was not born after any legitimate son. Or will he rank as a son in all respects? But he was not born before the legitimate sons. As it is impossible to stand by the letter of the law we must stand by its intentions. " |
| 923 |
Nec quemquam turbet , quod ex una lege duo status fiant ; duplex est , ita vim duarum habet Redire in familiam volenti dicitur ab altero primum , Ut tibi redire liceat , heres sum . Idem status , qui in petitione abdicati ; quaeritur enim , an possit esse heres abdicatus .
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It need disturb no one that one law should originate two bases. The law is twofold, and therefore has the force of two laws. To the son who desires to re-enter the family, the disinherited's first reply is, "Even though you are allowed to re-enter the family, I am still the heir." The basis will be the same as in the claim put forward by the disinherited son, since the question at issue is whether a disinherited son can inherit. |
| 924 |
Obiicitur communiter a duobus , Redire tibi in familiam non licet , non enim pater sine liberis decessit . Sed in hoc propria quisque eorum quaestione nitetur . Alter enim dicet abdicatum quoque inter liberos esse , et argumentum ducet ex ipsa , qua repellitur , lege ; supervacuum enim fuisse prohiberi patris bonis abdicatum , si esset numero alienorum ; Nunc quia filii iure futurus fuerit intestati heres , oppositam esse legem , quae tamen non id efficiat , ne filius sit , sed ne heres sit . Status finitivus , quid sit filius .
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Both the disinherited and the bastard will object, "You cannot re-enter the family, for our father did not die childless." But in this connexion each will rely on his own particular question. For the disinherited son will say that even a disinherited man does not cease to be a son, and will derive an argument from that very law which denies his claim to the inheritance; namely that it was unnecessary for a disinherited son to be excluded from possession of his father's property if he had ceased to be one of the family; but now, since in virtue of his rights as son he would have been his father's heir if he had died intestate, the law is brought to bar his claim; and yet the law does not deprive him of his position as son, but only of his position as heir. Here the basis is definitive, as turning on the definition of a son. |
| 925 |
Rursus nothus eisdem colligit argumentis , non sine liberis patrem decessisse , quibus in petitione usus est , ut probaret esse se filium . Nisi forte et hic finitionem movet , an liberi sint etiam non legitimi . Cadent ergo in unam controversiam vel specialiter duo legitimi status scripti et voluntatis et syllogismos et praeterea finitio , vel tres illi , qui natura soli sunt , coniectura in scripto et voluntate , qualitas in syllogismo , et , quae per se est aperta , finitio .
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Again the bastard in his turn will urge that his father did not die childless, employing the same arguments that he had used in putting forward his claim that he ranked as a son; unless indeed he too has recourse to definition, and raises the question whether even bastards are not sons. Thus in one case we shall have either two special legal bases, namely the letter of the law and intention, with the syllogism and also definition, or those three which are really the only bases strictly so called, conjecture as regards the letter of the law and intention, quality in the syllogism, and definition, which needs no explanation. |
| 926 |
Causa quoque et iudicatio et continens est in omni genere causarum . Nihil enim dicitur , cui non insit ratio et quo iudicium referatur et quod rem maxime continent . Sed quia magis haec variantur in litibus et fere tradita sunt ab iis , qui de iudicialibus causis aliqua composuerunt , in illam partem differantur . Nunc , quia in tria genera causas divisi , ordinem sequar .
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Further every kind of case will contain a cause, a point for the decision of the judge, and a central argument. For nothing can be said which does not contain a reason, something to which the decision of the judge is directed, and finally something which, more than aught else, contains the substance of the matter at issue. But as these vary in different cases and are as a rule explained by writers on judicial causes, I will postpone them to the appropriate portion of my work. For the present I shall follow the order which I prescribed by my division of causes into three classes. |
| 927 |
Ac potissimum incipiam ab ea , quae constat laude ac vituperatione . Quod genus videtur Aristoteles atque eum secutus Theophrastus a parte negotiali , hoc est πραγματικῇ removisse totamque ad solos auditores relegasse , et id eius nominis , quod ab ostentatione ducitur , proprium est .
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VII. I will begin with the class of causes which are concerned with praise and blame. This class appears to have been entirely divorced by Aristotle, and following him by Theophrastus, from the practical side of oratory (which they call πραγματικῇ, ) and to have been reserved solely for the delectation of audiences, which indeed is shown to be its peculiar function by its name, which implies display. |
| 928 |
Sed mos Romanus etiam negotiis hoc munus inseruit . Nam et funebres laudationes pendent frequenter ex aliquo publico officio atque ex senatus consulto magistratibus saepe mandantur , et laudare testem vel contra pertinet ad momentum iudiciorum , et ipsis etiam reis dare laudatores licet , et editi in Competitores , in L . Pisonem , in Clodium et Curionem libri vituperationem continent et tamen in Senatu loco sunt habiti sententiae .
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Roman usage on the other hand has given it a place in the practical tasks of life. For funeral orations are often imposed as a duty on persons holding public office, or entrusted to magistrates by decree of the senate. Again the award of praise or blame to a witness may carry weight in the courts, while it is also a recognised practice to produce persons to praise the character of the accused. Further the published speeches of Cicero directed against his rivals in the election to the consulship, and against Lucius Piso, Clodius and Curio, are full of denunciation, and were notwithstanding delivered in the senate as formal expressions of opinion in the course of debate. |
| 929 |
Neque infitias eo , quasdam esse ex hoc genere materias ad solam compositas ostentationem , ut laudes deorum virorumque , quos priora tempora tulerunt . Quo solvitur quaestio supra tractata , manifestumque est errare eos , qui nunquam oratorem dicturum nisi de re dubia putaverunt .
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I do not deny that some compositions of this kind are composed solely with a view to display, as, for instance, panegyrics of gods and heroes of the past, a consideration which provides the solution of a question which I discussed a little while back, and proves that those are wrong who hold that an orator will never speak on a subject unless it involves some problem. |
| 930 |
An laudes Capitolini Iovis , perpetua sacri certaminis materia , vel dubiae sunt vel non oratorio genere tractantur ? Ut desiderat autem laus , quae negotiis adhibetur , probationem , sic etiam illa , quae ostentationi componitur , habet interim aliquam speciem probationis ;
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But what problem is involved by the praise of Jupiter Capitolinus, a stock theme of the sacred Capitoline contest, which is undoubtedly treated in regular rhetorical form? However, just as panegyric applied to practical matters requires proof, so too a certain semblance of proof is at times required by speeches composed entirely for display. |
| 931 |
ut qui Romulum Martis filium educatumque a lupa dicat , in argumentum caelestis ortus utatur his , quod abiectus in profluentem non potuerit exstingui , quod omnia sic egerit , ut genitum praeside bellorum deo incredibile non esset , quod ipsum quoque caelo receptum temporis eius homines non dubitaverint .
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For instance, a speaker who tells how Romulus was the son of Mars and reared by the she-wolf, will offer as proofs of his divine origin the facts that when thrown into a running stream he escaped drowning, that all his achievements were such as to make it credible that he was the offspring of the god of battles, and that his contemporaries unquestionably believed that he was translated to heaven. |
| 932 |
Quaedam vero etiam in defensionis speciem cadent , ut si in laude Herculis permutatum cum regina Lydiae habitum et imperata , ut traditur , pensa orator excuset . Sed proprium laudis est res amplificare et ornare . Quae materia praecipue quidem in deos et homines cadit , est tamen et aliorum animalium , etiam carentium anima .
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Some arguments will even wear a certain semblance of defence: for example, if the orator is speaking in praise of Hercules, he will find excuses for his hero having changed raiment with the Queen of Lydia and submitted to the tasks which legend tells us she imposed upon him. The proper function however of panegyric is to amplify and embellish its themes. This form of oratory is directed in the main to the praise of gods and men, but may occasionally be applied to the praise of animals or even of inanimate objects. |
| 933 |
Verum in deis generaliter primum maiestatem ipsius eorum naturae venerabimur , deinde proprie vim cuiusque et inventa , quae utile aliquid hominibus attulerint .
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In praising the gods our first step will be to express our veneration of the majesty of their nature in general terms. next we shall proceed to praise the special power of the individual god and the discoveries whereby he has benefited the human race. |
| 934 |
Vis ostenditur , ut in Iove regendorum omnium , in Marte belli , in Neptuno maris ; inventa , ut artium in Minerva , Mercurio litterarum , medicinae Apolline , Cerere frugum , Libero vini . Tum si qua ab iis acta vetustas tradidit , commemoranda . Addunt etiam dis honorem parentes , ut si quis sit filius Iovis ; addit antiquitas , ut iis , qui sunt ex Chao ; progenies quoque , ut Apollo ac Diana Latonae .
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For example, in the case of Jupiter, we shall extol his power as manifested in the governance of all things, with Mars we shall praise his power in war, with Neptune his power over the sea; as regards inventions we shall celebrate Minerva's discovery of the arts, Mercury's discovery of letters, Apollo's of medicine, Ceres' of the fruits of the earth, Bacchus' of wine. Next we must record their exploits as handed down from antiquity. Even gods may derive honour from their descent, as for instance is the case with the sons of Jupiter, or from their antiquity, as in the case of the children of Chaos, or from their offspring, as in the case of Latona, the mother of Apollo and Diana. |
| 935 |
Laudandum in quibusdam quod geniti immortales , quibusdam quod immortalitatem virtute sint consecuti ; quod pietas principis nostri praesentium quoque temporum decus fecit . Magis est varia laus hominum .
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Some again may be praised because they were born immortal, others because they won immortality by their valour, a theme which the piety of our sovereign has made the glory even of these present times. |
| 936 |
Nam primum dividitur in tempora , quodque ante eos fuit quoque ipsi vixerunt ; in iis autem , qui fato sunt functi , etiam quod est insecutum . Ante hominem patria ac parentes maioresque erunt , quorum duplex tractatus est : aut enim respondisse nobilitati pulchrum erit aut humilius genus illustrasse factis .
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There is greater variety required in the praise of men. In the first place there is a distinction to be made as regards time between the period in which the objects of our praise lived and the time preceding their birth; and further, in the case of the dead, we must also distinguish the period following their death. With regard to things preceding a man's birth, there are his country, his parents and his ancestors, a theme which may be handled in two ways. For either it will be creditable to the objects of our praise not to have fallen short of the fair fame of their country and of their sires or to have ennobled a humble origin by the glory of their achievements. |
| 937 |
Illa quoque interim ex eo , quod ante ipsum fuit , tempore trahentur , quae responsis vel auguriis futuram claritatem promiserint , ut eum , qui ex Thetide natus esset , maiorem patre suo futurum cecinisse dicuntur oracula .
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Other topics to be drawn from the period preceding their birth will have reference to omens or prophecies foretelling their future greatness, such as the oracle which is said to have foretold that the son of Thetis would be greater than his father. |
| 938 |
Ipsius vero laus hominis ex animo et corpore et extra positis peti debet . Et corporis quidem fortuitorumque cum levior , tum non uno modo tractanda est . Nam et pulchritudinem interim roburque prosequimur honore verborum , ut Homerus in Agamemnone atque Achille , et interim confert admirationi multum etiam infirmitas , ut cum idem Tydea parvum sed bellatorem dicit fuisse .
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of the individual himself will be based on his character, his physical endowments and external circumstances. Physical and accidental advantages provide a comparatively unimportant theme, which requires variety of treatment. At times for instance we extol beauty and strength in honorific terms, as Homer does in the case of Agamemnon and Achilles ; at times again weakness may contribute largely to our admiration, as when Homer says that Tydeus was small of stature but a good fighter. |
| 939 |
Fortuna vero tum dignitatem adfert , ut in regibus principibusque ( namque est haec materia ostendendae virtutis uberior ) , tum quo minores opes fuerunt , maiorem bene factis gloriam parit . Sed omnia , quae extra nos bona sunt quaeque hominibus forte obtigerunt , non ideo laudantur , quod habuerit quis ea , sed quod iis honeste sit usus .
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Fortune too may confer dignity as in the case of kings and princes (for they have a fairer field for the display of their excellences) but on the other hand the glory of good deeds may be enhanced by the smallness of their resources. Moreover the praise awarded to external and accidental advantages is given, not to their possession, but to their honourable employment. |
| 940 |
Nam divitiae et potentia et gratia , cum plurimum virium dent , in utramque partem certissimum faciunt morum experimentum , aut enim meliores sumus propter haec aut peiores . Animi semper vera laus , sed non una per hoc opus via ducitur .
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For wealth and power and influence, since they are the sources of strength, are the surest test of character for good or evil; they make us better or they make us worse. |
| 941 |
Namque alias aetatis gradus gestarumque rerum ordinem sequi speciosius fuit , ut in primis annis laudaretur indoles , tum disciplinae , post hoc operum id est factorum dictorumque contextus ; alias in species virtutum dividere laudem , fortitudinis , iustitiae , continentiae ceterarumque , ac singulis adsignare , quae secundum quamque earum gesta erunt .
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Praise awarded to character is always just, but may be given in various ways. It has sometimes proved the more effective course to trace a man's life and deeds in due chronological order, praising his natural gifts as a child, then his progress at school, and finally the whole course of his life, including words as well as deeds. At times on the other hand it is well to divide our praises, dealing separately with the various virtues, fortitude, justice, self-control and the rest of them and to assign to each virtue the deeds performed under its influence. |
| 942 |
Utra sit autem harum via utilior , cum materia deliberabimus , dum sciamus gratiora esse audientibus , quae solus quis aut primus aut certe cum paucis fecisse dicetur , si quid praeterea supra spem aut exspectationem , praecipue quod aliena potius causa quam sua .
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We shall have to decide which of these two methods will be the more serviceable, according to the nature of the subject; but we must bear in mind the fact that what most pleases an audience is the celebration of deeds which our hero was the first or only man or at any rate one of the very few to perform: and to these we must add any other achievements which surpassed hope or expectation, emphasising what was done for the sake of others rather than what he performed on his own behalf. |
| 943 |
Tempus , quod finem hominis insequitur , non semper tractare contingit ; non solum quod viventes aliquando laudamus , sed quod rara haec occasio est , ut referri possint divini honores et decreta et publice statuae constitutae .
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It is not always possible to deal with the time subsequent to our hero's death: this is due not merely to the fact that we sometimes praise him, while still alive, but also that there are but few occasions when we have a chance to celebrate the award of divine honours, posthumous votes of thanks, or statues erected at the public expense. |
| 944 |
Inter quae numeraverim ingeniorum monumenta , quae saeculis probarentur . Nam quidam , sicut Menander , iustiora posterorum quam suae aetatis iudicia sunt consecuti . Adferunt laudem liberi parentibus , urbes conditoribus , leges latoribus , artes inventoribus nec non instituta quoque auctoribus , ut a Numa traditum deos colere , a Publicola fasces populo summittere .
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Among such themes of panegyric I would mention monuments of genius that have stood the test of time. For some great men like Menander have received ampler justice from the verdict of posterity than from that of their own age. Children reflect glory on their parents, cities on their founders, laws on those who made them, arts on their inventors and institutions on those that first introduced them; for instance Numa first laid down rules for the worship of the gods, and Publicola first ordered that the lictors' rods should be lowered in salutation to the people. |
| 945 |
Qui omnis etiam in vituperatione ordo constabit , tantum in diversum . Nam et turpitudo generis opprobrio multis fuit , et quosdam claritas ipsa notiores circa vitia et invisos magis fecit , et in quibusdam , ut in Paride traditum est , praedicta pernicies , et corporis ac fortunae quibusdam mala contemptum , sicut Thersitae atque Iro , quibusdam bona vitiis corrupta odium attulerunt , ut Nirea imbellem , Plisthenen impudicum a poetis accepimus .
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The same method will be applied to denunciations as well, but with a view to opposite effects. For humble origin has been a reproach to many, while in some cases distinction has merely served to increase the notoriety and unpopularity of vices. In regard to some persons, as in the story of Paris, it has been predicted that they would be the cause of destruction to many, some like Thersites and Irus have been despised for their poverty and mean appearance, others have been loathed because their natural advantages were nullified by their vices: the poets for instance tell us that Nireus was a coward and Pleisthenes a debauchee. |
| 946 |
Et animo totidem vitia , quot virtutes sunt , nec minus quam in laudibus duplici ratione tractantur . Et post mortem adiecta quibusdam ignominia est , ut Maelio , cuius domus solo aequata , Marcoque Manlio , cuius praenomen e familia in posterum exemptum est ;
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The mind too has as many vices as virtues, and vice may be denounced, as virtue may be praised, in two different ways. Some have been branded with infamy after death like Maelius, whose house was levelled with the ground, or Marcus Manlius, whose first name was banished from his family for all generations to come. |
| 947 |
et parentes malorum odimus ; et est conditoribus urbium infame contraxisse aliquam perniciosam ceteris gentem , qualis est primus Iudaicae superstitionis auctor ; et Gracchorum leges invisae ; et si quod est exemplum deforme posteris traditum , quale libidinis vir Perses in muliere Samia instituere ausus dicitur primus .
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The vices of the children bring hatred on their parents; founders of cities are detested for concentrating a race which is a curse to others, as for example the founder of the Jewish superstition; the laws of Gracchus are hated, and we abhor any loathsome example of vice that has been handed down to posterity, such as the criminal form of lust which a Persian is said to have been the first to practise on a woman of Samos. |
| 948 |
Sed in viventibus quoque iudicia hominum velut argumenta sunt morum , et honos aut ignominia veram esse laudem vel vituperationem probat .
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And even in the case of the living the judgment of mankind serves as a proof of their character, and the fairness or foulness of their fame proves the orator's praise or blame to be true. |
| 949 |
Interesse tamen Aristoteles putat , ubi quidque laudetur aut vituperetur . Nam plurimum refert , qui sint audientium mores , quae publice recepta persuasio , ut illa maxime quae probant esse in eo , qui laudabitur , credant , aut in eo , contra quem dicemus , ea quae oderunt . Ita non dubium erit iudicium , quod orationem praecesserit .
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Aristotle however thinks that the place and subject of panegyrics or denunciations make a very considerable difference. For much depends on the character of the audience and the generally received opinion, if they are to believe that the virtues of which they approve are pre-eminently characteristic of the person praised and the vices which they hate of the person denounced. For there can be little doubt as to the attitude of the audience, if that attitude is already determined prior to the delivery of the speech. |
| 950 |
Ipsorum etiam permiscenda laus semper , nam id benevolos facit ; quotiens autem fieri poterit , cum materiae utilitate iungenda . Minus Lacedaemone studia litterarum quam Athenis honores merebuntur , plus patientia ac fortitudo . Rapto vivere quibusdam honestum , aliis cura legum . Frugalitas apud Sybaritas forsitan odio foret , veteribus Romanis summum luxuria crimen .
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It will be wise too for him to insert some words of praise for his audience, since this will secure their good will, and wherever it is possible this should be done in such a manner as to advance his case. Literature will win less praise at Sparta than at Athens, endurance and courage more. Among some races the life of a freebooter is accounted honourable, while others regard it as a duty to respect the laws. Frugality might perhaps be unpopular with the Sybarites, whilst luxury was regarded as a crime by the ancient Romans. |