No More Learning

We all desire Claudius as consul. 3 So acts he who loves the commonwealth, so acts he who loves the emperors, so acted the soldiers of old. Happy are you, Claudius, in the approval of princes, happy are you in your own valour, you our consul, you our p191 prefect! Long may you live, Valerius,83 and enjoy the love of your prince! "

4 It would be too long to set forth all the many honours that this man earned; one thing, however, I must not omit, namely, that both the senate and people held him in such affection both before his rule and during his rule and after his rule that it is generally agreed among all that neither Trajan nor any of the Antonines nor any other emperor was so beloved.

The Life of Aurelian
Part 1

1 1 [Legamen ad paginam Latinam] At the festival of the Hilaria1 — when, as we know, everything that is said and done should be of a joyous nature — when the ceremonies had been completed, Junius Tiberianus,2 the prefect of the city, an illustrious man and one to be named only with a prefix of deep respect, took me up into his carriage, that is to say, his official coach. 2 There his mind being now at leisure, relaxed and freed from law-pleas and public business, he engaged in much conversation all the way from the Palatine Hill to the Gardens of Varius,3 his theme being chiefly the lives of the emperors. 3 And when we had reached the Temple of the Sun,4 consecrated by the Emperor Aurelian, he asked me — for he derived his descent in some degree from him — who had written down the record of the life of that prince. 4 When I replied that I had read none in Latin, though several in p195 Greek, that revered man poured forth in the following words the sorrow that his groan implied: 5 "And so Thersites5 and Sinon6 and other such monsters of antiquity are well known to us and will be spoken of by our descendants; but shall the Deified Aurelian, that most famous of princes, that most firm of rulers, who restored the whole world to the sway of Rome, be unknown to posterity? God prevent such madness! 6 And yet, if I am not mistaken, we possess the written journal of that great man and also his wars recorded in detail in the manner of a history, and these I should like you to procure and set forth in order, adding thereto all that pertains to his life. 7 All these things you may learn in your zeal for research from the linen books,7 for he gave instructions that in these all that he did each day should be written down. I will arrange, moreover, that the Ulpian Library8 shall provide you with the linen books themselves. 8 It would be my wish that you write a work on Aurelian, representing him, to the best of your ability, just as he really was. " 9 I have carried out these instructions, my dear Ulpianus,9 I have procured the Greek books and laid my hands on all that I needed, and from these sources I have gathered together into one little book all that was worthy of mention. 10 You I should wish to think kindly of my work, and, if you are not content therewith, to study the Greeks and even to demand the linen books themselves, which the Ulpian Library will furnish you whenever you desire.

p197 2 1 Legamen ad paginam Latinam Now, when in the same carriage our talk had fallen on Trebellius Pollio,a who has handed down to memory all the emperors, both illustrious and obscure, from the two Philips10 to the Deified Claudius and his brother Quintillus, Tiberianus asserted that much of Pollio's work was too careless and much was too brief; but when I said in reply that there was no writer, at least in the realm of history, who had not made some false statement, and even pointed out the places in which Livy and Sallust, Cornelius Tacitus, and, finally, Trogus11 could be refuted by manifest proofs, he came over wholly to my opinion, and, throwing up his hands, he jestingly said besides: 2 "Well then, write as you will. You will be safe in saying whatever you wish, since you will have as comrades in falsehood those authors whom we admire for the style of their histories. "

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 3 1 So then — lest I become tiresome by weaving too many trifles into my preface — the Deified Aurelian12 was born of a humble family,13 at Sirmium14 according to most writers, but in Dacia Ripensis15 according to some. 2 I remember, moreover, having read one author who declared that he was born in Moesia; and, indeed, it often comes to pass that we are ignorant of the birthplaces of those who, born in a humble position, frequently invent a birthplace for themselves, that they may give their descendants a glamour derived from the lustre of the locality. 3 However, in writing of the deeds of a great emperor, the p199 chief thing to be known is not in what place he was born, but how great he was in the State. 4 Do we value Plato more highly because he was born at Athens than because he stands out illumined as the peerless gift of philosophy? 5 Or do we hold Aristotle of Stagira or Zeno of Elea16 or Anacharsis17 of Scythia in less esteem because they were born in the tiniest villages, when the virtue of philosophy has exalted them all to the skies?

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 4 1 And so — to return to the course of events — Aurelian, born of humble parents and from his earliest years very quick of mind and famous for his strength, never let a day go by, even though a feast-day or a day of leisure, on which he did not practise with the spear, the bow and arrow, and other exercises in arms. 2 As to his mother, Callicrates of Tyre,18 by far the most learned writer of the Greeks, says that she was a priestess of the temple of his own Sun-god19 in the village in which his parents lived; 3 she even had the gift of prophecy to a certain extent, for once, when she was quarrelling with her husband and reviling him for his stupidity and low estate, she shouted at him, "Behold the father of an emperor! " From which it is clear that the woman knew something of fate. 4 The same writer says also that there were the following omens of the rule of Aurelian: First of all, when he was a child, a serpent wound itself many times around his wash-basin, and no one was able to kill it; finally, his mother, who had seen the occurrence, refused to have the serpent killed, saying that it was a member p201 of the household. 20 5 Furthermore, it is said, the priestess made swaddling-clothes for her son from a purple cloak,21 which the emperor of the time had dedicated to the Sun-god. 6 This, too, is related, that Aurelian, while wrapped in his swaddling-clothes, was lifted out of his cradle by an eagle, but without suffering harm, and was laid on an altar in a neighbouring shrine which happened to have no fire upon it. 7 The same writer asserts that on his mother's land a calf was born of marvellous size, white but with purple spots, which formed on one side the word "hail," on the other a crown. Legamen ad paginam Latinam 5 1 I remember also reading in this same author much that has no importance; he even asserts that where Aurelian was born there sprang up in this same woman's courtyard roses of a purple colour, having the fragrance of the rose but a golden centre. 2 Later, when he was in military service, there were also many omens predicting, as events showed, his future rule. 3 For instance, when he entered Antioch in a carriage, for the reason that because of a wound he could not ride his horse, a purple cloak, which had been spread out in his honour, fell down on him in such a way as to cover his shoulders. 4 Then, when he desired to change to a horse, because at that time the use of a carriage in a city was attended with odium,22 a horse belonging to the emperor was led up to him, and in Thracia he mounted it. But when he discovered to whom it belonged, he changed to one of his own. 5 Furthermore, when he had gone as envoy to the Persians, he was presented with a sacrificial saucer, of the kind that the king of the Persians is wont to present to the emperor, on which was engraved the Sun-god in the same attire in which he was worshipped in the very temple where the mother p203 of Aurelian had been a priestess. 6 He was also presented with an elephant of unusual size, which he then gave to the emperor, and Aurelian was the only commoner of them all who ever owned an elephant. 23

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 6 1 But, to omit these and similar details, he was a comely man, good to look upon because of his manly grace, rather tall in stature, and very strong in his muscles; he was a little too fond of wine and food, but he indulged his passions rarely; he exercised the greatest severity and a discipline that had no equal, being extremely ready to draw his sword. 2 And, in fact, since there were in the army two tribunes, both named Aurelian, this man and another, who later was captured with Valerian, the soldiers gave him the nickname of "Sword-in‑hand,"24 so that, if anyone chanced to ask which Aurelian had done anything or performed any exploit, the reply would be made "Aurelian Sword-in‑hand," and so he would be identified.

3 Many of the remarkable deeds which he did as a commoner are still well known: For instance, he and three hundred men of his garrison alone destroyed the Sarmatians when they burst into Illyricum. 4 Theoclius,25 who wrote of the reigns of the Caesars, relate that in the war against the Sarmatians Aurelian with his own hand slew forty-eight men in a single day and that in the course of several days he slew over nine hundred and fifty, so that the boys even composed in his honour the following jingles and dance-ditties, to which they would dance on holidays in soldier fashion:

5 "Thousand, thousand, thousand we've beheaded now.
One alone, a thousand we've beheaded now.
He shall drink a thousand who a thousand slew.
So much wine is owned by no one as the blood which he has shed. "
p205 6 I perceive, indeed, that these verses are very trivial, but since the author mentioned before has included them in his writings, in Latin just as they are here, I have thought they ought not to be omitted. Legamen ad paginam Latinam 7 1 Likewise, when at Mainz as tribune of the Sixth Legion, the Gallican,26 he completely crushed the Franks, who had burst into Gaul and were roving about through the whole country, killing seven hundred of them and capturing three hundred, whom he then sold as slaves. 2 And so a song was again composed about him:

"Franks, Sarmatians by the thousand, once and once again we've slain.
Now we seek a thousand Persians. "
3 He was, moreover, so feared by the soldiers, as I have said before, that, after he had once punished offences in the camp with the utmost severity, no one offended again. 4 In fact, he alone among all commanders inflicted the following punishment on a soldier who had committed adultery with the wife of the man at whose house he was lodged: bending down the tops of two trees, he fastened them to the soldier's feet and then let them fly upward so suddenly that the man hung there torn in two27 — a penalty which inspired great terror in all.

5 There is a letter of his, truly that of a soldier, written to his deputy, as follows: "If you wish to be tribune, or rather, if you wish to remain alive, restrain the hands of your soldiers. None shall steal another's fowl or touch his sheep. None shall carry off grapes, or thresh out grain, or exact oil, salt, or firewood, and each shall be content with his own allowance. Let p207 them get their living from the booty taken for the enemy and not from the tears of the provincials. 6 Their arms shall be kept burnished, their implements bright, and their boots stout. Let old uniforms be replaced by new. Let them keep their pay in their belts and not spend it in public-houses. 7 Let them wear their collars, arm-rings,28 and finger-rings. Let each man curry his own horse and baggage-animal, let no one sell the fodder allowed him for his beast, and let them take care in common of the mule belonging to the century. 8 Let one yield obedience to another as a soldier and no one as a slave, let them be attended by the physicians without charge, let them give no fees to soothsayers, let them conduct themselves in their lodgings with propriety, and let anyone who begins a brawl be thrashed. "

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 8 1 I have recently found among the linen books in the Ulpian Library29 a letter, written by the Deified Valerian concerning the Emperor Aurelian, which I have inserted word for word, as seemed right:

2 From Valerian Augustus to Antoninus Gallus,30 the consul. You find fault with me in a personal letter for confiding my son Gallienus31 to Postumus rather than to Aurelian, on the ground, of course, that both the boy and the army should be entrusted to the sterner man. Of a truth you will continue to hold this opinion when once you have learned how stern Aurelian is; 3 for he is too stern, much too stern, he is harsh and his actions are not suited to those of our time. 4 Moreover, I call all to witness that I have even feared that he will act too sternly toward my son also, in case he does aught in behaving with too great frivolity — for he is naturally p209 prone to merry-making. " 5 This letter shows how great was his sternness, so that even Valerian said that he feared him.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 9 1 There is another letter by the same Valerian, sounding his praises, which I have brought out from the files of the city-prefecture. For when he came to Rome the allowance usually made to his rank was assigned to him. A copy of the letter:

2 'From Valerian Augustus to Ceionius Albinus,32 the prefect of the city. It had, indeed, been our wish to bestow on each and every man who has been loyal to the commonwealth a much larger recompense than his rank demands, but especially when his manner of life recommends him for honours — for there should be some other reward for merit than rank —, but the public discipline requires that none shall receive for the income of the provinces a greater sum than the grade of his position permits. 3 Wherefore we have now chosen Aurelian, a very brave man, to inspect and set in order all our camps, for, by the general admission of the entire army, both we ourselves and the whole commonwealth as well are so in his debt that a scarcely any rewards that are worthy of him, or, indeed, too great. 4 For what quality has he that is not illustrious? that cannot be compared with the Corvini33 and the Scipios? He is a liberator of Illyricum, saviour of the provinces of Gaul, and as a general a great and perfect example. 5 And yet there is nothing but this that I can bestow on such a man by way of reward for his services; 6 for a wise and careful administration of the commonwealth will not permit it. Wherefore your p211 Integrity, my dearest kinsman, will supply the aforesaid man, as long as he shall be in Rome, with sixteen loaves of soldiers' read of the finest quality, forty loaves of soldiers' bread of the quality used in camp, forty pints of table-wine, the half of a swine, two fowl, thirty pounds of pork, forty pounds of beef, one pint of oil and likewise one pint of fish-pickle, one pint of salt, and greens and vegetables as much as shall be sufficient. 7 And indeed, since something out of the ordinary must be allowed him, as long as he shall be in Rome, you will allow him fodder beyond the usual amount and for his own expenses, moreover, a daily grant of two aurei of Antoninus,34 fifty silver minutuli of Philip, and one hundred denarii of bronze. 35 All else will be furnished by the prefects of the treasury. "36

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 10 1 These details may perhaps seem to someone to be paltry and over trivial, but research stops at nothing. 2 He held, then, very many commands as general and very many as tribune, and acted as deputy for generals or tribunes on about forty different occasions. p213 Indeed, he even acted as deputy for Ulpius Crinitus,37 who used to assert that he was of the house of Trajan — he was, in actual fact, a most brave man and very similar to Trajan —, who was painted together with Aurelian in the Temple of the Sun, and whom Valerian had planned to appoint to the place of a Caesar. He also commanded troops, restored the frontiers, distributed booty among the soldiers, enriched the provinces of Thrace with captured cattle, horses, and slaves, dedicated spoils in the Palace, and brought together to a private estate of Valerian's five hundred slaves, two thousand cows, one thousand mares, ten thousand sheep, and fifteen thousand goats. 3 At this time, then, Ulpius Crinitus gave thanks formally to Valerian as he sat in the public baths at Byzantium, saying that he had done him great honour in giving him Aurelian as deputy. And for this reason he determined to adopt Aurelian.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 11 1 It is of interest to know the letters that were written concerning Aurelian and also the account of his adoption itself. Valerian's letter to Aurelian: "If there were anyone else, my dearest Aurelian, who could fill the place of Ulpius Crinitus, I should be consulting with you in regard to his courage and industry. But now do you — since I could not have found any other — take upon yourself the war around Nicopolis,38 in order that the illness of Crinitus may cause us no damage. 2 Do whatever you can. I will be brief. The command of the troops will be vested in you. 3 You will have three hundred Ituraean bowmen, six hundred Armenians, one hundred and fifty p215 Arabs, two hundred Saracens, and four hundred irregulars from Mesopotamia; 4 you will have the Third Legion, the Fortunata,39 and eight hundred mounted cuirassiers. 40 You will also have with you Hariomundus, Haldagates, Hildomundus and Charioviscus. 41 5 The prefects have arranged for the needful supplies in all the camps. 6 Your duty it is, with the aid of your wisdom and skill, to place your winter and summer camps where you will lack nothing, and, furthermore, to ascertain where the enemy's train is, and to find out exactly how great his forces are and of what kind, in order that no supplies may be used in vain or weapons wasted, for on these depends all success in war. 7 I, for my part, expect as much from you, if the gods but grant their favour, as the commonwealth could expect from Trajan, were he still alive. And indeed, he, in whose place I have made you deputy, is no less great a man. 8 It is, therefore, proper that you should expect the consulship,42 with this same Ulpius Crinitus as colleague, for the following year, beginning on the eleventh day before the Kalends of June, to fill out the term of Gallienus and Valerian, and your expenses shall be paid from the public funds. 9 For we should aid the poverty of those men — and of none more than those — who after a long life in public affairs are nevertheless poor. " 10 This letter also shows how great a man Aurelian was — and truly great, indeed, for no one ever reached the highest place who did not from his earliest years climb up by the ladder of noble character.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 12 1 The letter about the consulship: "From Valerian Augustus to Aelius Xiphidius,43 the prefect p217 of the treasury. To Aurelian, whom we have named for the consulship, because of his poverty — in which he is great and greater than all others — you will supply for the performance of the races in the Circus three hundred aurei of Antoninus,44 three thousand silver minutuli of Philip, five million bronze sesterces, ten finely-woven tunics of the kind used by men, twenty tunics of Egyptian linen, two pairs of Cyprian table-covers, ten African carpets, ten Moorish couch-covers, one hundred swine, and one hundred sheep. 2 You will order, moreover, that a banquet shall be given at the state's expense to the senators and Roman knights, and that there shall be two sacrificial victims of major and four of minor size. "

3 And now, inasmuch as I have said in reference to his adoption that I would include certain things which concern so great a prince, 4 I ask you not to consider me too tedious or too wordy in the following statement, which I have thought I should introduce, for the sake of accuracy, from the work of Acholius,45 the master of admissions46 under the Emperor Valerian, in the ninth book of his records:

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 13 1 When Valerian Augustus had taken his seat in the public baths at Byzantium, in the presence of the army and in the presence of the officials of the Palace, there being seated with him Nummius Tuscus, the consul-regular,47 Baebius Macer,48 prefect of the guard, and Quintus Ancharius, governor of the East, and seated on his left hand Avulnius Saturninus, general in command of the Scythian frontier, Murrentius Mauricius, just appointed to Egypt, p219 Julius Trypho, general in command of the frontier of the East, Maecius Brundisinus, prefect of the grain-supply for the East, Ulpius Crinitus, general in command of the Illyrian and Thracian frontier, and Fulvius Boius, general in command of the Raetian frontier, Valerian Augustus spoke as follows: 2 "The commonwealth thanks you, Aurelian, for having set it free from the power of the Goths. Through your efforts we are rich in booty, we are rich in glory and in all that causes the felicity of Rome to increase. 3 Now, therefore, in return for your great achievements receive for yourself four mural crowns,49 five rampart crowns,50 two naval crowns,51 two civic crowns,52 ten spears without points,53 four bi-coloured banners, four red general's tunics, two proconsul's cloaks, a bordered toga, a tunic embroidered with palms,54 a gold-embroidered toga, a long under-tunic, and an ivory chair. 4 For on this day I appoint you consul, and I will write to the senate that it may vote you the sceptre of office55 and vote you also the fasces; for these insignia the emperor is not wont to give, but, on the contrary, to receive from the senate when he is created consul. " Legamen ad paginam Latinam 14 1 After this speech of Valerian's Aurelian arose and bending over the Emperor's hand, he expressed his thanks in words befitting a soldier, and these I have considered suitable and worthy of being quoted here. He spoke as follows: 2 "As for myself, my lord Valerian, Emperor and Augustus, it was with this end in view that I have done all that I did, have suffered wounds with patience, and have exhausted my horses and my p221 sworn comrades, namely, that I might win the approval of the commonwealth and of my own conscience. 3 You, however, have done more. Therefore, I am grateful for your kindness and I will accept the consulship which you offer me. May a god, and a god in whom we can put our trust, now grant that the senate shall form a like judgement concerning me. " 4 And so, when all who stood about expressed their thanks, Ulpius Crinitus arose and delivered the following speech: 5 "According to the custom of our ancestors, Valerian Augustus, — a custom which my own family has held particularly dear, — men of the highest birth have always chosen the most courageous to be their sons, in order that those families which either were dying out or had lost their offspring by marriage might gain lustre from the fertility of a borrowed stock. 6 This custom, then, which was followed by Nerva in adopting Trajan, by Trajan in adopting Hadrian, by Hadrian in adopting Antoninus, and by the others after them according to the precedent thus established, I have thought I should now bring back by adopting Aurelian, whom you, by the authority of your approval, have given to me as my deputy. 7 Do you, therefore, give the order that it may be sanctioned by law and that Aurelian may become the heir to the sacred duties, the name, the goods, and the legal rights of Ulpius Crinitus, already a man of consular rank, even as through your decision he is straightway to become a consular. " Legamen ad paginam Latinam 15 1 It would be too long to include every detail in full. For Valerian expressed his gratitude to Crinitus, and the adoption was carried out in the wonted form. 2 I remember having read in some Greek book what I have thought I ought not to omit, namely, that Valerian commanded p223 Crinitus to adopt Aurelian, chiefly for the reason that he was poor; but this question I think should be left undiscussed.

3 Now, inasmuch as I have previously inserted the letter in accordance with which Aurelian was furnished with the money needed for his consulship, I have thought I should tell why I inserted a detail apparently trivial. 4 We have recently beheld the consulship of Furius Placidus56 celebrated in the Circus with so much display that the chariot-drivers seemed to receive not prizes but patrimonies, for they were presented with tunics of part-silk, with embroidered tunics57 made of fine linen, and even with horses, while right-thinking men groaned aloud. 5 For it has come to pass that the consulship is now a matter of wealth, not of men, because, of course, if it is offered to merit, it ought not to impoverish the holder. 6 Gone are those former days of integrity, destined to disappear still further through the currying of popular favour. But this question, too, as is our wont, we shall leave undiscussed.

The Life of Tacitus

1 1 [Legamen ad paginam Latinam] A certain measure adopted after the departure of Romulus,1 during the infancy of Rome's power, and recorded by the pontiffs, the duly authorized writers of history, — namely, the proclamation of a regency for the interval in which one good prince was being sought for to succeed another2 — was also adopted after the death of Aurelian for the space of six whole months,3 while the senate and the army of Rome were engaged in a contest, one that was marked not by envy and unhappiness but rather by good feeling and sense of duty. 2 This occasion, however, differed in many ways from that former undertaking. For originally, when the regency p297 was proclaimed after the reign of Romulus, regents were actually created, and that whole year was divided up among the hundred senators for periods of three, or four, or five days apiece,4 in such a way that there was only one single regent who held the power. 3 From this it resulted that the regency remained in force for even more than a year, in order that there might be no one of those equal in rank who had not held the rule at Rome. 4 To this must be added that also in the time of the consuls and the military tribunes vested with consular power,5 whenever a regency was proclaimed there were always regents, and never did the Roman commonwealth so entirely lack this office that there was not some regent created, though it might be for only two or three days. 6 5 I perceive, indeed, that the argument can be brought up against me that for the space of four years7 during the time of our ancestors there were no curule magistrates in the commonwealth. There were, however, tribunes of the plebs vested with the tribunician power, which is the most important element of the power of a king. 8 6 Even so, it is nowhere stated that there were no regents in that time; and indeed it has been declared on the authority of more reliable historians that consuls9 were later created by regents for the purpose of conducting the election of the other magistrates.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 2 1 And so the senate and people of Rome passed through an unusual and a difficult situation, namely, p299 that for six months, while a good man was being sought, the commonwealth had no emperor. 2 What harmony there was then among the soldiers! What peace for the people! How full of weight the authority of the senate! Nowhere did any pretender arise, and the judgement of the senate, the soldiers and the people of Rome guided the entire world; it was not because they feared any emperor or the power of a tribune that they did righteously, but — what is the noblest thing in life — because they feared themselves.

3 I must, however, describe the cause of a delay so fortunate and an instance of unselfishness which should both receive special mention in the public records and be admired by future generations of the human race, in order that those who covet kingdoms may learn not to seize power but to merit it. 4 After Aurelian had been treacherously slain, as I have described in the previous book,10 by the trick of a most base slave and the folly of the officers (for with these any falsehood gains credence, provided only they hear it when angry, being often drunken and at best almost always devoid of counsel), when all returned again to sanity and the troops had sternly put down those persons, the question was at once raised whether any one of them all should be chosen as emperor. 5 Then the army, which was wont to create emperors hastily, in their anger at those who were present, sent to the senate the letter of which I have already written in the previous book,11 asking it to choose an emperor from its own numbers. 6 The senate, however, knowing that the emperors it had chosen were not acceptable to the soldiers, referred the matter back to them. And while this was being done a number of times the space of six months elapsed. 12

p301 3 1 Legamen ad paginam Latinam It is important, however, that it should be known how Tacitus13 was created emperor. 2 On the seventh day before the Kalends of October, when the most noble body had assembled in the Senate-house of Pompilius,14 Velius Cornificius Gordianus the consul spoke as follows: 3 "We shall now bring before you, Conscript Fathers, what we have often brought before you previously; you must choose an emperor, because it is not right for the army to remain longer without a prince, and at the same time because necessity compels. 4 For it is said that the Germans have broken through the frontier beyond the Rhine15 and have seized cities that are strong and famous and rich and powerful. 5 And even if we hear nothing now of any movement among the Persians, reflect that the Syrians are so light-minded that rather than submit to our righteous rule they desire even a woman to reign over them. 6 What of Africa? What of Illyricum? º What of Egypt and the armies of all these regions? How long, do we suppose, can they stand firm without a prince? 7 Wherefore up, Conscript Fathers, and name a prince. For the army will either accept the one you name or, if it reject him, will choose another. "

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 4 1 Thereupon when Tacitus, the consular whose right it was to speak his opinion first, began to express some sentiment, it is uncertain what, the whole senate acclaimed him:16 2 "Tacitus Augustus, may God keep you! We choose you, we name you prince, to your care we commit the commonwealth and the world. 3 Now take the imperial power by authority of the senate, for by reason of your rank, your life and your mind you deserve it. Rightfully is the prince of the senate created Augustus, rightfully is the man whose privilege it is to speak his opinion first created our p303 emperor. 4 Who can rule more ably than a man of authority? Who can rule more ably than a man of letters? May it prove happy, auspicious, and to the general welfare! Long haveº you been a commoner. You know how you should rule, for you have been subject to other princes. You know how you should rule, for on other princes you have rendered judgement. "

5 Tacitus, however, replied: "I marvel, Conscript Fathers, that in the place of Aurelian, a most valiant emperor, you should wish to make an aged man your prince. 6 Behold these members, which should be able to cast a dart, to hurl a spear, to clash a shield, and, as an example for instructing the soldiery, to ride without ceasing. Scarce can I fulfill the duties of a senator, scarce can I speak the opinions to which my position constrains me. 7 Observe with greater care my advanced age, which you are now sending out from the shade of the chamber into the cold and the heat. And think you that the soldiers will welcome an old man as their emperor? 8 Look you lest you give the commonwealth a prince whom you do not really desire and lest men begin to raise this as the sole objection against me, namely, that you have chosen me unanimously. "

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 5 1 Thereupon there were the following acclamations from the senate: "Trajan also came to power when an old man. " This they said ten times. "Hadrian also came to power when an old man. " This they said ten times. "Antoninus also came to power when an old man. " This they said ten times. "You yourself have read, 'And the hoary beard of a Roman king. ' "17 This they said ten times. "Can any one rule more ably than an old man? " This they said ten times. "We are choosing you as an emperor, p305 not as a soldier. This they said twenty times. 2 "Do you but give commands, and let the soldiers fight. " This they said thirty times. "You have both wisdom and an excellent brother. " This they said ten times. "Severus said that it is the head that does the ruling and not the feet. "18 This they said thirty times. "It is your mind and not your body that we are choosing. " This they said twenty times. "Tacitus Augustus, may the gods keep you! "

3 Then all were asked their opinions. In addition, Maecius Faltonius Nicomachus,19 a senator of consular rank, whose place was next to Tacitus', addressed them as follows: Legamen ad paginam Latinam 6 1 "Always indeed, Conscript Fathers, has this noble body taken wise and prudent measures for the commonwealth, and from no nation in the whole world has sounder wisdom ever been awaited. At no time, however, has a more wise or more weighty opinion been voiced in this sacred place. 2 We have chosen as prince a man advanced in years, one who will watch over all like a father. From him we need fear nothing ill-considered, nothing over hasty, nothing cruel. All his actions, we may predict, will be earnest, all dignified, and, in fact, what the commonwealth herself would command. 3 For he knows what manner of prince he has ever hoped for, and he cannot show himself to us as other than what he himself has sought and desired. 4 Indeed, if you should wish to consider those monsters of old, a Nero, I mean, an Elagabalus, a Commodus — or rather, always, an Incommodious — you would assuredly find that their vices were due as much to their youth as to the men themselves. 5 May the gods forfend that we should give the title of prince to a child or of Father of his Country to an immature boy, whose hand a schoolmaster must p307 guide for the signing of his name and who is induced to confer a consulship by sweetmeats or toys or other such childish delights. 6 What wisdom is there — a plague upon it! — in having as emperor one who has not learned to care for fame, who knows not what the commonwealth is, who stands in dread of a guardian, who looks to a nurse, who is in subjection to the blows or the fear of a schoolmaster's rod, who appoints as consuls or generals or judges men whose lives, whose merits, whose years, whose families, whose achievements he knows not at all? 7 But why, Conscript Fathers, do I proceed farther. Let us rejoice that we have an elder as our prince, rather than recall again those times which appear more than tearful to those who endured them. 8 And so I bring and offer thanks to the gods in heaven in behalf, indeed, of the entire commonwealth, and I appeal to you, Tacitus Augustus, asking and entreating and openly demanding in the name of our common fatherland and our laws that, if Fate should overtake you too speedily, you will not name your young sons as heirs to the Roman Empire, or bequeath to them the commonwealth, the Conscript Fathers, and the Roman people as you would your farm, your tenants, and your slaves.
9 Wherefore look about you and follow the example of a Nerva, a Trajan, and a Hadrian. 20 It is a great glory to a dying prince to love the commonwealth more than his own sons. "

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 7 1 By this speech Tacitus himself was greatly moved and the whole senatorial order was deeply affected, and at once they shouted, "So say we all of us, all of us. "

2 Thereupon they proceeded to the Campus Martius, where Tacitus mounted the assembly-platform. There Aelius Cesettianus,21 the prefect of the city, spoke as p309 follows: 3 "You have now, most venerated soldiers, and you, most revered fellow-citizens, an emperor chosen by the senate at the request of all the armies, Tacitus, I mean, the most august of men, who, as he has in the past benefited the commonwealth by his counsels, will now benefit it by his commands and decrees. " 4 The people then shouted, "Tacitus Augustus, most blessed, may the gods keep you! " and all else that it is customary to say.

5 At this point I must not leave it unmentioned that many writers have recorded that Tacitus, when named emperor, was absent and residing in Campania;22 6 this is indeed true, and I cannot dissemble. For when the rumour spread that he was to be made emperor, he withdrew and lived for two months at his house at Baiae. 7 But after being escorted back from there he took part in this decree of the senate, as though actually a commoner and one who in truth would refuse the imperial power. Legamen ad paginam Latinam 8 1 And now, lest any one consider that I have rashly put faith in some Greek or Latin writer, there is in the Ulpian Library,23 in the sixth case, an ivory book, in which is written out this decree of the senate, signed by Tacitus himself with his own hand. 2 For those decrees which pertained to the emperors were long inscribed in books of ivory.

3 He proceeded thence to the troops. Here also, as soon as he mounted the platform Moesius Gallicanus,24 the prefect of the guard, spoke as follows: 4 "The senate has given you, most venerated fellow-soldiers, the emperor you sought; and that most noble order has carried out the instructions and the wishes of the men of the camps. More I may not say, for the emperor is now present with you. Do you, then, as p311 he speaks, listen to him with all respect, for his duty it is to watch over us. " 5 Thereupon Tacitus Augustus spoke: "Trajan also came into power in his old age, but he was chosen by a single man, whereas I have been judged worthy of this title, first by you, most venerated fellow-soldiers, and then by the most noble senate. Now I will endeavour and make every effort and do my utmost that you may have no lack, if not of brave deeds, at least of counsels worthy of you and of your emperor. "

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 9 1 After this he promised them their pay and the customary donative, and then he delivered his first speech to the senate as follows: "So surely may it be granted me, Conscript Fathers, to rule the empire in such a way that it will be apparent that I was chosen by you, as I have determined to do all things by your will and power. Yours it is, therefore, to command and enact whatsoever seems worthy of yourselves, worthy of a well-ordered army, and worthy of the Roman people. " 2 In this same speech he proposed that a golden statue of Aurelian be set up in the Capitolium, likewise a silver one in the Senate-house, in the Temple of the Sun,25 and in the Forum of the Deified Trajan. 26 The golden one, however, was never set up and only the silver ones were ever dedicated. 3 In the same oration he ordained that if any one, either officially or privately, alloyed silver with copper, or gold with silver, or copper with lead, it should be a capital offence, involving confiscation of property. 4 In the same speech he ordained that slaves should not be questioned against their master when on trial for his life,27 not even in a prosecution for treason. 5 He added the further command that every man should have a p313 painting of Aurelian, and he ordered that a temple to the deified emperors28 be erected, in which should be placed the statues of the good princes, so that sacrificial cakes might be set before them on their birthdays, the Parilia,29 the Kalends of January, and the Day of the Vows. 30 6 In the same speech he asked for the consulship for his brother Florian,31 but this request he did not obtain for the reason that the senate had already fixed all the terms of office for the substitute consuls. 32 It is said, moreover, that he derived great pleasure from the senate's independence of spirit, because it refused him the consulship which he had asked for his brother. Indeed he is said to have exclaimed, "The senate knows what manner of prince it has chosen. "

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 10 1 He presented to the state the private fortune which he had in investments, amounting to two hundred and eighty million sesterces, and the money which he had accumulated in his house he used for the payment of the soldiers. He continued to wear the same togas and tunics that he had worn while a commoner. 2 He forbade the keeping of brothels in the city — which measure, indeed, could not be maintained for long. He gave orders that all public baths should be closed before the hour for lighting the lamps,33 that no disturbance might arise during the night. 3 He had Cornelius Tacitus, the writer of Augustan history,34 placed in all the libraries, claiming him as a relative;35 p315 and in order that his works might not be lost through the carelessness of the readers he gave orders that ten copies of them should be made each year officially in the copying-establishments and put in the libraries. 4 He forbade any man to wear a garment made wholly of silk. 36 He gave orders that his house should be destroyed and a public bath erected on the site at his own expense. 5 To the people of Ostia he presented from his own funds one hundred columns of Numidian marble,37 each •twenty-three feet in height, and the estates which he owned in Mauretania he assigned for keeping the Capitolium in repair. 6 The table-silver which he had used when a commoner he dedicated to the service of the banquets to be held in the temples, 7 and all the slaves of both sexes whom he had in the city he set free, keeping the number, however, below one hundred in order not to seem to be transgressing the Caninian Law. 38

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 11 1 In his manner of living he was very temperate, so much so that in a whole day he never drank a pint of wine, and frequently less than a half-pint. 2 Even at a banquet there would be served a single cock, with the addition of a pig's jowl and some eggs. In preference to all other greens he would indulge himself without stint in lettuce, which was served in large quantities, for he used to say that he purchased sleep by this kind of lavish expenditure. He especially liked the more bitter kinds of food. 3 He took baths rarely and was all the stronger in his old age. He delighted greatly in varied and elaborate kinds of glassware. He never ate bread unless it was dry, but he flavoured it with salt and other condiments. 4 He was very skilled in the handicrafts, fond of marbles, truly senatorial in his elegance and devoted to hunting. p317 5 His table, indeed, was supplied only with country produce, and he never served pheasants39 except on his own birthday and on those of his family and on the chief festivals. He always brought back home the sacrificial victims and bade his household eat them. 6 He did not permit his wife to use jewels and also forbade her to wear garments with gold stripes. In fact, it is said that it was he who impelled Aurelian to forbid the use of gold on clothing and ceilings and leather. 40 7 Many other measures of his are related, but it would be too long to set them all down in writing, and if anyone desires to know everything about this man, he should read Suetonius Optatianus,41 who wrote his life in full detail. 8 Though he was an old man, he could read very tiny letters to an amazing degree and he never let a night go without writing or reading something except only the night following the day after the Kalends.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 12 1 It must not be left unmentioned, and if it should become widely known, that so great was the joy of the senate that the power of choosing an emperor had been restored to this most noble body,42 that it both voted ceremonies of thanksgiving and promised a hecatomb and finally each of the senators wrote to his relatives, and not to his relatives only by also to strangers, and letters were even despatched to the provinces, all in the following vein: "Let all the allies and all foreign nations know that the commonwealth has been restored to its ancient condition, and that the senate now creates the ruler, nay rather the senate itself has been created ruler, and henceforth p319 laws must be sought from the senate, barbarian kings bring their entreaties to the senate, and peace and war be made by authority of the senate. " 2 In fact, in order that nothing may be lacking to your knowledge, I have placed many letters of this sort at the end of the book,43 to be read, as I think, with enjoyment, or at least without aversion.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 13 1 His first care after being made emperor was to put to death all who had killed Aurelian, good and bad alike, although he had already been avenged. 44 2 Then with wisdom and courage he crushed the barbarians — for they had broken forth in great numbers from the district of Lake Maeotis. 45 3 The Maeotidae, in fact, were flocking together under the pretext of assembling by command of Aurelian for the Persian War,46 in order that, should necessity demand it, they might render aid to our troops. 4 Now Cicero declares47 that it is rather a matter for boasting to tell how one has conducted, rather than how one has obtained, the consulship; in the case of Tacitus, however, it was a noble achievement that he obtained the imperial power with such glory to himself, but by reason of the shortness of his reign he performed no great exploit. 5 For in the sixth month of his rule, he was slain,48 according to some, by a plot among the troops, though according to others he died of disease. 49 p321 It is, nevertheless, agreed among all that, crushed by plots, he grew weak both in mind and in spirit. 6 He likewise gave command that the month of September should be called Tacitus, for the reason that in that month he was not only born but also created emperor. 50

He was succeeded in the imperial power by his brother Florian,51 about whom a few things must now be related.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 14 1 Florian was own brother to Tacitus, and after his brother's death he seized the imperial power, not by authorisation of the senate but on his own volition, just as though the empire were an hereditary possession, and although he knew that Tacitus had taken oath in the senate that when he came to die he would appoint as emperor not his own sons but some excellent man. 52 2 Finally, after holding the imperial power for scarce two months53 he was slain at Tarsus by the soldiers,54 who heard that Probus, the choice of the whole army, was now in command. 3 So great, moreover, was Probus in matters of war that the senate desired him, the soldiers elected him, and the Roman people itself demanded him by acclamations. 55 4 Florian was also an imitator of his brother's ways, though not p323 in every respect. For the frugal Tacitus found fault with his lavishness, and his very eagerness to rule showed him to be of a different stamp from his brother.

5 So then there arose two princes from one house, of whom the one ruled for six months and the other for scarce two — merely regents, so to speak, between Aurelian and Probus, and themselves named princes after a regency.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 15 1 Their two statues, made of marble and •thirty feet in height, were set up at Interamna,56 for there cenotaphs were erected to them on their own land; but these were struck by lightning and so thoroughly broken that they lay scattered in fragments. 2 On this occasion the soothsayers foretold that at some future time there would be a Roman emperor from their family,57 descended through either the male or the female line, who would give judges to the Parthians and the Persians, subject the Franks and the Alamanni to the laws of Rome, drive out every barbarian from the whole of Africa, establish a governor at Taprobane,58 send a proconsul to the island of Iuverna,59 act as judge to all the Sarmatians, make all the land which borders on the Ocean his own territory by conquering all the tribes, but thereafter restore the power to the senate and conduct himself in accordance with the ancient laws, being destined to live for one hundred and twenty years60 and to die without an heir. 3 They declared, moreover, that he would come one thousand years from the day when the lightning struck and shattered the statues. 4 It showed no great skill, indeed, on the soothsayers' part to declare that such a prince would come after an interval of one thousand years, for their promise applied to p325 a time when such a story will scarce be remembered, whereas, if they had said one hundred years, their falsehood could perhaps be detected. 5 All this, nevertheless, I thought should be included in this volume for the reason that someone who reads me might think that I had not read.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 16 1 Tacitus scarcely gave a largess61 to the Roman people in six months' time. 2 His portrait was placed in the house of the Quintilii,62 representing him in five ways on a single panel, once in a toga, once in a military cloak, once in armour, once in a Greek mantle, and once in the garb of a hunter. 3 Of this picture, indeed, a writer of epigrams made mock, saying: "I do not recognise the old man in the armour, I do not recognise the man in the military cloak," and so forth, "but I do recognise the man in the toga. " 4 Both Florian and Tacitus left many children, whose descendants, I suppose, are awaiting the coming of the thousandth year. About them many epigrams were written, ridiculing the soothsayers who made the promise of the imperial power. 5 This is all that I remember learning about the lives of Tacitus and Florian that is worthy of record.

6 Now we must take up Probus, a man of note both at home and abroad, and one to be preferred to Aurelian, to Trajan, to Hadrian, to the Antonines, to Alexander, and to Claudius, for the reason that, while they had various virtues, he had all combined and to a surpassing degree. 63 He was made emperor after Tacitus by the vote of all good men, and he ruled a world to which he had brought perfect peace by destroying barbarian tribes and by destroying also the very many pretenders who arose in his time, and about him it was said that he was worthy to be called p327 Probus64 even if that had not been his name. Many, indeed, declare that he was even foretold by the Sibylline books, and had he but lived longer the world would contain no barbarians. 7 These statements about him I thought should be given in the life of others as a foretaste, lest the day, the hour, and the moment should put forth some claim against me because my fate is destined, and I should die without mention of Probus. 8 Now, since I have for the time satisfied my zeal, I will bring this book to a close, believing that I have given satisfactory expression to my devotion and my desire.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 17 1 The omens that predicted the rule of Tacitus were the following: A certain madman in the Temple of Silvanus65 was seized with a stiffening of the limbs and shouted out, "There is tacit purple, there is tacit purple," and so on for seven times; and this, indeed, was later regarded as an omen. 2 The wine, moreover, with which Tacitus was about to pour a libation in the Temple of Hercules Fundanius,66 suddenly turned purple, 3 and a vine, which had previously borne white Aminnian grapes,67 in the year in which he gained the imperial power bore grapes of a purple colour. Very many other things, too, turned purple. 4 Now the omens predicting his death were these: His father's tomb burst its doors asunder and opened of its own accord. His mother's shade appeared in the daytime as though alive to Tacitus and to Florian as well — it is said, indeed, that they had different fathers. 68 All the gods in their private chapel fell down, overthrown either by an earthquake or by some mischance. 5 The p329 statue of Apollo, worshipped by them both, was found removed from the top of its pedestal and laid on a couch, all without the agency of any human hand. But to what end shall I proceed further? There are others to relate these things; let us save ourselves for Probus and for Probus' famous deeds.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 18 1 Now since I have promised69 to quote some of the letters which showed the joy of the senate when Tacitus was created emperor, I will append the following and then make an end of writing.

The official letters:
2 "From the most noble senate to the council of Carthage, greeting. May it prove happy, auspicious, of good omen, and to the welfare of the commonwealth and of the Roman world! The right of conferring the imperial power, of naming an emperor, and of entitling him Augustus has been restored to us. 3 To us, therefore, you will now refer all matters of importance. Every appeal shall now be made to the prefect of the city,70 but it shall come up to him from the proconsuls and the regular judges. 4 And herein, we believe, your authority also has been restored to its ancient condition, for this body is now supreme, and in recovering its own power it is preserving the rights of others as well. "
5 Another letter:
"From the most noble senate to the council of the Treviri. 71 We believe that you are rejoicing that you are free and have ever been free. The power to create the emperor has been restored to the senate, p331 and at the same time the prefect of the city has been authorized to hear all appeals. "
6 After the same manner letters were written to the people of Antioch, of Aquileia, of Milan, of Alexandria, of Thessalonica, of Corinth, and of Athens.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 19 1 The private letters, moreover, were as follows:
"From Autronius Tiberianus to Autronius Justus72 his father, greeting. Now at last it is fitting, my revered father, for you to be present in the most noble senate, and now to speak your opinion, for so greatly has the authority of that noble body increased that, now that the commonwealth has been restored to its ancient position, we name the princes, we create the emperors, we, in fine, give the Augusti their title. 2 Now look to it that you grow strong, ready to be present once more in the ancient Senate-house. We have recovered the proconsular command, and to the prefect of the city have been restored the appeals from every office and from every rank. "
3 Likewise another letter:
"From Claudius Sapilianus to Cereius Maecianus his uncle, greeting. We have obtained, revered sir, what we have always desired; the senate has been restored to its ancient position. We now create the emperors and in our body is vested every power. 4 All thanks to the Roman army, aye, Roman in truth! It has restored to us the power which we always held. 5 Now away with retirement to Baiae and Puteoli! Present yourself in the city, present yourself in the Senate-house. Happy is Rome, happy the entire commonwealth. We name the emperors, we create the princes; and we who have begun to create are also able to depose. To the wise a word is sufficient. "
p333 6 It would be too long to include all the letters that I have found and read. I will say only this much, that all the senators were so carried away by joy that they all in their houses sacrificed white victims, uncovered everywhere the portraits of their ancestors, sat arrayed in white garments, served more sumptuous banquets, and supposed that the ancient times had been restored.

The Life of Probus

1 1 [Legamen ad paginam Latinam] It is true — as Sallustius Crispus and the historians Marcus Cato and Gellius1 have put into their writings as a sort of maxim — that all the virtues of all men are as great as they have been made to appear by the genius of those who related their deeds. 2 Hence it was that Alexander the Great of Macedonia, as he stood at the tomb of Achilles, said with a mighty groan, "Happy are you, young man, in that you found such a herald of your virtues,"2 making allusion to Homer, who made Achilles outstanding in the pursuit of virtue in proportion as he himself was outstanding in genius.

3 "But to what does all this apply," you may perhaps p337 be inquiring, my dear Celsinus. 3 It means that Probus,4 an emperor whose rule restored to perfect safety the east, the west, the south, and the north, indeed all parts of the world, is now, by reason of a lack of writers, almost unknown to us. 4 Perished — shame be upon us! — has the story of a man so great and such as is not to be found either in the Punic Wars or in the Gallic terror, not in the commotions of Pontus or the wiles of the Spaniard. 5 But I will not permit myself — I who at first sought out Aurelian alone, relating the story of his life to the best of my powers, and have since written of Tacitus and Florian also — to fail to rise to the deeds of Probus, purposing, should the length of my life suffice, to tell of all who remain as far as Maximian and Diocletian. 6 No fluency or elegance of style can I promise, but only the record of their deeds, which I will not suffer to die.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 2 1 I have used, moreover — not to deceive in any respect your friendly interest which I hold most dear — chiefly the books from the Ulpian Library5 (in my time in the Baths of Diocletian) and likewise from the House of Tiberius,6 and I have used also the registers of the clerks of the Porphyry Portico7 and the transactions of the senate8 and of the people; 2 and since in collecting the deeds of so great a man I have received most aid from the journal of Turdulus Gallicanus,9 a most honourable and upright man, I ought not to leave unmentioned the kindness of this aged friend.

p339 3 Who, pray, would know of Gnaeus Pompey, resplendent in the three triumphs that he won by his war against the pirates, his war against Sertorius, and his war against Mithradates, and exalted by the grandeur of his many achievements, had not Marcus Tullius and Titus Livius brought him into their works? 4 And as for Publius Scipio Africanus, or rather all the Scipios, whether called Lucius10 or Nasica,11 would they not lie hidden in darkness, had not historians, both famous and obscure, arisen to grace their deeds? 5 It would, indeed, be too long to enumerate all the cases which might be brought up by way of example of this sort of thing, even if I were silent. 6 I do but wish to call to witness that I have also written on a theme which anyone, if he so desire, may narrate more worthily in loftier utterance. 7 As for me, indeed, it has been my purpose, in relating the lives and times of the emperors, to imitate, not a Sallust, or a Livy, or a Tacitus, or a Trogus,12 or any other of the most eloquent writers, but rather Marius Maximus,13 Suetonius Tranquillus, Fabius Marcellinus,14 Gargilius Martialis,15 Julius Capitolinus, Aelius Lampridius, and the others who have handed down to memory these and other such details not so much with eloquence as with truthfulness. 8 For I am now an investigator — I cannot deny it — incited thereto by you, who, though you know much already, are desirous of learning much more besides. 9 And now, lest I speak at too great length concerning all that has to do with p341 my plan, I will hasten on to an emperor great and illustrious, the like of whom our history has never known.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 3 1 Probus was a native of Pannonia, of the city of Sirmium,16 his mother was of nobler birth than his father, his private fortune was modest, and his kindred unimportant. Both as commoner and as emperor he stood forth illustrious, famed for his virtues. 2 His father, so some have said in their writings, was a man named Maximus, who, after commanding in the ranks17 with honour and winning a tribuneship, died in Egypt, leaving a wife, a son, and a daughter. 3 Many aver that Probus was a relative of Claudius,18 that most excellent and venerated prince, but this, because it has been stated by only one of the Greek writers, we shall leave undiscussed. 4 This one thing I will say, however, which I remember reading in the journal, namely, that Probus was buried by a sister named Claudia. 19 5 As a youth Probus became so famed for his bodily strength that by approval of Valerian he received a tribuneship almost before hisº beard was grown. 6 There is still in existence a letter written by Valerian to Gallienus, in which he praises Probus, then still a youth, and holds him up for all to imitate. 7 From this it is clear that no man has ever in his maturity attained to the sum of the virtues except one who, trained in the nobler nursery of the virtues, had as a boy given some sign of distinction.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 4 1 Valerian's letter:
"From Valerian the father to Gallienus the son, an Augustus to an Augustus. Following out the opinion which I have always held concerning Probus from his early youth, as well as that held by all good men, p343 who say that he is a man worthy of his name, I have appointed him to a tribuneship, assigning six cohorts of Saracens and entrusting to him, besides, the Gallic irregulars along with that company of Persians which Artabassis20 the Syrian delivered over to us. 2 Now I beg of you, my dearest son, to hold this young man, whom I wish all the lads to imitate, in the high honour that his virtues and his services call for in view of what is owed him by reason of the brilliance of his mind. "
3 Another letter about him, written to the prefect of the guard with an order for rations:
"From Valerian Augustus to Mulvius Gallicanus,21 prefect of the guard. You may perhaps wonder why it is that contrary to the ruling of the Deified Hadrian22 I have appointed as tribune a beardless youth. You will not, however, wonder much if you consider Probus; 4 he is a young man of probity indeed. 23 For never, when I consider him myself, does aught suggest itself to me but his name, which, were it not his name already, he might well receive as a surname. 5 Therefore, since his fortune is but a modest one, that his rank may be enhanced by an additional remuneration, you will order him to be supplied with two red tunics, two Gallic cloaks provided with clasps, two under-tunics with bands of embroidery,24 a silver platter, polished to reflect the light, to weigh ten pounds, one hundred aurei of Antoninus,25 one thousand silver pieces of Aurelian, and ten thousand copper coins of Philip; 6 likewise for his daily rations, . . . pounds of beef, six pounds of pork, ten pounds of goat's meat, one fowl every second day, one pint of oil every second day, ten pints of old wine every day, and a sufficient quantity of bacon, biscuit, cheap wine, salt, greens, p345 and firewood. 7 You will order, furthermore, that quarters be assigned to him as they are to the tribunes of the legions. "
Legamen ad paginam Latinam 5 1 The foregoing details are attested by the letters. Now as to what I have been able to gather from the journal: Whereas during the Sarmatian war, while holding the rank of tribune, he had crossed the Danube and performed many brave exploits, he was formally presented in an assembly with four spears without points,26 two rampart-crowns, one civic crown,27 four white banners, two golden arm-bands,28 one golden collar, one sacrificial saucer weighing five pounds. 2 At this same time, indeed, he delivered out of the hands of the Quadi Valerius Flaccinus,29 a young man of noble birth and a kinsman of Valerian's, and it was for this reason that Valerian presented him with the civic crown. 3 The words of Valerian spoken before the assembly were: "Receive these rewards, Probus, from the commonwealth, receive this civic crown from a kinsman. " 4 At this time, too, he added the Third Legion to his command, with a testimonial as follows.

5 The letter concerning the Third Legion:
"Your exploits, my dear Probus, are causing me to appear too tardy in assigning you larger forces, and yet I will assign them with haste. 6 So take under your faithful care the Third Legion, the Fortunate,30 which as yet I have not entrusted to any save one well advanced in years; it was entrusted to me, moreover, at an age when he who entrusted it, along with congratulations, beheld my grey hairs. 7 In your case, however, I shall not wait for age, for your virtues are now illustrious and your character is strong. 8 I have given command to supply you with three sets p347 of garments, I have ordered you double rations, and I have assigned you a standard-bearer. "
Legamen ad paginam Latinam 6 1 It would be a lengthy task, were I to enumerate all the exploits of so great a man, which he performed as a commoner under Valerian, under Gallienus, under Aurelian, and under Claudius, how many times he scaled a wall, tore down a rampart, slew the enemy in a hand-to‑hand fight, won the gifts of emperors, and by his valour restored the commonwealth to its ancient condition. 2 Gallienus' letter, addressed to the tribunes, shows what manner of man was Probus:

"From Gallienus Augustus to the tribunes of the armies in Illyricum. Even if the destined fate of the Persian war has taken away my father,31 I have still my kinsman Aurelius Probus, through whose efforts I may be free from care. Had he been present, never would that pretender, whose name even should not be mentioned, have dared to usurp the imperial power. 3 Wherefore, it is my wish that all of you should obey the counsels of one who has been approved by the judgement both of my father and of the senate. "

4 It may seem perhaps that the judgement of Gallienus, so weak an emperor, is not worth much, but at least it cannot be denied that no one, not even a weakling, entrusts himself to the protection of a man unless he believes that his virtues will profit him. 5 But be it so! Let Gallienus' letter be set aside. What will you say to the judgement of Aurelian? For he handed over to Probus the soldiers of the Tenth Legion, the bravest of his army, with whom he himself had done mighty deeds, giving him the following testimonial:

6 From Aurelian Augustus to Probus, greetings. In p349 order that you may know how much I think of you, take the command of my Tenth Legion, which Claudius entrusted to me. For these are soldiers who know as commanders none but those destined to be emperors — an assurance, as it were, of favourable fortune. "

7 From this it was seen that Aurelian had in mind, in case anything serious befell him, which he well knew was to be such, was to make Probus emperor.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 7 1 Now the judgement of Claudius concerning Probus and that of Tacitus also it would be too long to include; but it is reported that Tacitus said in the senate, when offered the imperial power, that Probus should be chosen as emperor. 32 But the senate's decree itself I have not been able to find.

2 Tacitus himself, moreover, sent to Probus his first letter as emperor in the following vein:
3 From Tacitus Augustus to Probus. I, it is true, have been made emperor by the senate in conformity with the wishes of our sagacious army. You, however, must know that it is on your shoulders that the burden of the commonwealth has now been laid more heavily. What sort of man and how great you are we all have learned, and the senate also knows. And so aid us in our need and, as is your custom, look upon the commonwealth as a part of your own household. 4 We have voted to you the command of the entire East, we have granted you five-fold rations, we have doubled your military insignia, we have appointed you consul33 for the coming year as colleague to ourselves; for by reason of your virtues, the palm-embroidered tunic from the Capitolium34 awaits you. "
5 Some relate that Probus regarded it as an omen of imperial power that Tacitus should have written, "The palm-embroidered tunic from the Capitolium awaits p351 you," but as a matter of fact this expression was always used in writing to every consul.

Legamen ad paginam Latinam 8 1 The soldiers' love for Probus was always unbounded. Never, indeed, did he permit any of them to commit a wrong. Moreover, he often prevented Aurelian from some act of great cruelty. 2 He visited each maniple and inspected its clothing and boots, and whenever there was plunder he divided it so as to keep naught for himself but weapons and armour. 3 Once, indeed, when a horse was found among the booty taken from the Alani35 or some other nation — for this is uncertain — which, though not handsome or especially large, was reputed, according to the talk of the captives, to be able to run •one hundred miles in a day and to continue for eight or ten days, all supposed that Probus would keep such a beast for himself. But first he remarked, "This horse is better suited to a soldier who flees than to one who fights," 4 and then he ordered the men of the put their names into an urn, that the one drawn by lots should receive the horse. 5 Then, since there were in the army four other soldiers named Probus, it so chanced that the name of Probus appeared on the lot that first came forth, though the general's name had not been put into the urn. 6 And when the four soldiers strove with one another, each maintaining that the lot was his, he ordered the urn to be shaken a second time. But a second time, too, the name of Probus came forth; and when it was done for the third and the fourth time, on the fourth time also there leaped forth the name of Probus. 7 Then the entire army set apart that horse for Probus their general, and even those very soldiers whose names had come forth from the urn desired it thus.

p353 9 1 Legamen ad paginam Latinam He also fought with great bravery against the Marmaridae36 in Africa and defeated them too, and from Libya he passed over to Carthage and saved it from rebels. 2 And he fought a single combat in Africa against a certain Aradio37 and overcame him, and because he had seen that he was a valiant and resolute man, he honoured him with a mighty tomb, still standing on a mound of earth •two hundred feet high piled up by the soldiers, whom he never allowed to be idle. 3 There are still to be seen in many cities in Egypt public works of his, which he caused to be built by the soldiers. On the Nile, moreover, he did so much that his sole efforts added greatly to the tithes of grain. 4 He constructed bridges and temples, porticos and basilicas, all by the labour of the soldiers, he opened up many river-mouths, and drained many marshes,38 and put in their place grain-fields and farms.