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nate ufed, of old, to confirm the plebiscita, the people did at laft, as they pleased, confirm or difannul the fenatufconfulta ‡.

Appius Claudius brought in a custom, of admitting to the fenate the fons of freed men, or of fuch who had once been' flaves; by which, and fucceeding alterations of the like nature, that great council degenerated into a moft corrupt and factious body of men, divided against itself; and its authority became despised.

The century and half following, to the end of the third Punic war, by the deftruction of Carthage, was a very bufy period at Rome; the intervals between every war being fo fhort, that the tribunes and people had hardly leisure or breath to engage in domeftic diffenfions: however, the little time they could fpare, was generally employed the fame way. So Terentius Leo, a tribune, is recorded to have bafely proftituted the privileges of a Roman citizen, in perfect fpight to the nobles. So the great African Scipio, and his brother, after all their mighty fervices, were impeached by an ungrateful commons.

However, the warlike genius of the people, and continual employment they had for it, ferved to divert this humour from running into a head, till the age of the Gracchi.

These perfons, entering the scene in the time of a full peace, fell violently upon advancing the power of the people, by reducing into practice, all those encroachments, which they had been fo many

Dionyf. Lib. 2.

many years gaining. There were at that time certain conquered lands to be divided, befide a great private eftate left by a king: these, the tribunes, by procurement of the elder Gracchus, declared, by their legislative authority, were not to be difpofed of by the nobles, but by the commons only. The younger brother purfued the fame defign; and befides, obtained a law, that all Italians fhould vote at elections, as well as the citizens of Rome: in fhort, the whole endeavours of them both, perpetually turned upon retrenching the nobles authority in all things, but efpécially in the matter of judicature. And though they both loft their lives in thofe purfuits, yet they traced out fuch ways, as were afterwards followed by Marius, Sylla, Pompey, and Cæfar, to the ruin of the Roman freedom and greatness.

For in the time of Marius Saturninus, a tribune procured a law, that the fenate fhould be bound by oath to agree to whatever the people would enact and Marius himfelf, while he was in that office of tribune, is recorded to have, with great industry, used all endeavours for depreffing the nobles, and raising the people, particularly for cramping the former in their power of judicature, which was their most ancient inherent right.

Sylla, by the fame measures, became abfolute tyrant of Rome: he added three hundred com. mons to the fenate, which perplexed the power of the whole order, and rendered it ineffectual; then, flinging off the mask, he abolished the office

of

of tribune, as being only a fcaffold to tyranny, whereof he had no further use.

As to Pompey and Cæfar, Plutarch tells us, that their union for pulling down the nobles (by their credit with the people) was the caufe of the civil war, which ended in the tyranny of the latter; both of them, in their confulfhips, having ufed all endeavours and occafions for finking the authority of the patricians, and giving way to all encroachments of the people, wherein they expected beft to find their own account.

From this deduction of popular encroachments in Rome, the reader will eafily judge, how much the balance was fallen upon that fide. Indeed, by this time, the very foundation was removed; and it was a moral impoffibility, that the républic could fubfift any longer: for the commons, having ufurped the offices of ftate, and trampled on the fenate, there was no government left but a dominatio plebis. Let us therefore examine how they proceeded in this conjuncture.

I think it is an univerfal truth, that the people are much more dexterous at pulling down and fetting up, than at preferving what is fixed; and they are not fonder of feizing more than their own, than they are of delivering it up again to the worst bidder, with their own into the bargain. For although, in their corrupt notions of divine worship, they are apt to multiply their gods; yet their earthly devotion is feldom paid to above one idol at a time, of their own creation, whofe oar they pull with less murmuring, and much more

skill,

skill, than when they share the lading, or even bold the helm.

The feveral provinces of the Roman empire were now governed by the great men of their state; those upon the frontiers, with powerful armies, either for conqueft or defence. Thefe governors, upon any defigns of revenge or ambition, were fure to meet with a divided power at home, and therefore bent all their thoughts and applications to close in with the people, who were now by many degrees the stronger party. Two of the greatest spirits that Rome ever produced, happened to live at the fame time, and to be engaged in the same pursuit; and this at a conjuncture the most dangerous for fuch a conteft: thefe were Pompey and Cæfar, two ftars of fuch a magnitude, that their conjunction was as likely to be fatal, as their oppofition.

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The tribunes and people, having now subdued all competitors, began the laft game of a prevalent populace, which is that of chufing themfelves a master; while the nobles forefaw, and ufed all endeavours left them to prevent it.. The people, at first, made Pompey their Admiral, with full power over all the Mediterranean; soon after, Captain-General of all the Roman forces, and Governor of Afia. Pompey, on the other fide, reftored the office of tribune, which Sylla had put down; and, in his Confulfhip, procured a law for examining into the miscarriages of men in office or command for twenty years paft. Many other examples of Pompey's popularity are left us on

record,

record, who was a perfect favourite of the people, and defigned to be more; but his pretenfions grew ftale, for want of a timely opportunity of introducing them upon the ftage. For Cæfar, with his legions in Gaul, was a perpetual check upon his defigns; and in the arts of pleafing the people, did foon after get many lengths beyond him. For he tells us himself, that the fenate, by a bold effort, having made fome fevere decrees against his proceedings, and against the tribunes, these all left the city, and went over to his party, and confequently, along with them, the affections. and interests of the people; which is further manifest from the accounts he gives us of the citizens in feveral towns mutinying against their commanders, and delivering both to his devotion. Befides, Cæfar's public and avowed pretensions for beginning the civil war, were to restore the tribunes and the people, oppreffed (as he pretended) by the nobles.

This forced Pompey, against his inclinations, upon the neceffity of changing fides, for fear of being forfaken by both; and of clofing in with the fenate and chief magiftrates, by whom he was chofen General against Cæfar.

Thus, at length, the senate, (at least the primitive part of them, the nobles) under Pompey, and the commons under Cæfar, came to a final decifion of the long quarrels between them. For, I think, the ambition of private men, did, by no means, begin or occafion this war; though civil diffenfions never fail of introducing and fpiriting

the

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