'part, in which I have not confulted my own inclinations, ⚫ but the neceffities of my friends. It is fome comfort howSever, my Lords, that my prefent pleadings cannot fo properly be accounted an accufation, as a defence. For I defend a multitude of men, a number of cities, and the whole province of Sicily. If, therefore, I am under a neceffity of arraigning one, I ftill feem to act agreeably to my former character, without deviating from the patronage and defence ⚫ of mankind. But granting I could not produce fuch powerful, weighty, and urgent reafons; granting the Sicilians had * not folicited me to undertake their caufe; or that my con⚫nexion with them had not laid me under any obligations to comply; and that in this whole affair I should profess no other motive than the view of ferving my country, and of bringing to juftice a man, infamous for avarice, infolence, and villainy; whofe robberies and crimes have not been confined to Sicily alone, but are likewife notorious over all [ Achaia, Afia, Cilicia, Pamphylia, in fine at Rome before th eyes of all men; who, I defire to know, could object ether to my conduct or intentions?

Immortal Gods! What nobler service can I at this time render the commonwealth? What can I undertake more grateful to the people of Rome, more defireable to our allies and foreign • nations, or more calculated for the fafety and advantage of • mankind in general? The provinces are plundered, harrassed, • and utterly ruined. The allies and tributaries of the Roman people, overwhelmed with anguish and affliction, despair now of redrefs, and only folicit an alleviation of their calamities. They who are for having the administration of justice continue in the hands of the fenators, complain of the infufficiency of accufers. And they who are capable of acting as accufers, complain of the remiffness of the judges. • In the mean time the Roman people, though labouring under many hardships and difficulties, defire nothing so much as the revival of the ancient force and firmness of public ⚫ trials. Through their impatience for a vigorous adminiftration of justice, they have extorted the restoration of the tribunitian power. From the contempt into which our tribubunals are fallen, another order is demanded for the decifion • of causes. The infamy and corruption of the judges have

occafioned a defire to fee the cenforship re-established; an of-, *fice, which though formerly accounted fevere, is now become. 'popular and agreeable. Amidst these exorbitant oppreffions of guilty men, amidst the daily complaints of the Roman people, 'the infamy of our tribunals, and the odium conceived against. "the whole order of fenators, as there appeared no other remedy for these evils, but for men of ability and integrity, ⚫ to undertake the defence of the commonwealth and the laws : "I own I was prevailed upon, out of regard to the common. fafety, to endeavour at relieving the republic, in that part, where the feemed most to stand in need of help. And now ⚫ that I have laid before you the reafons by which I was determined to appear in this caufe, it remains that I fpeak to 'the point under debate, that in the choice of an accufer you ⚫ may the better fee whereon to ground your judgment. I apprehend, my Lord, when an information is brought against any one for extortion, if a difpute arifes about the perfon most proper to act as impeacher, that these two things are ' of principal moment; whom the parties aggrieved chiefly, • defire to have the management of their caufe; and whom ⚫ the person accused, dreads moft in that capacity.

Though I think both thefe points, my Lords, fufficiently. clear in the prefent caufe, yet I fhall speak particularly to each of them: And firft, of that which ought to have. the principal fway in this debate; I mean, the inclination of the fuffering parties, for whofe fake the present trial was 'granted. C. Verres is charged with having for three years • plundered the province of Sicily, rifled the cities, stripped. the private houses, and pillaged the temples. The Sicilians. in a body are prefent, to offer their complaints. They fly. ⚫ to my protection, of which already they have had long and ⚫ ample experience. By me they folicit redress from this court, and from the laws of the Roman people. They have chofen ⚫ me as their refuge against oppreffion, as the revenger of their, 'wrongs, the patron of their rights, and the fole manager of the prefent impeachment. Will you, Cæcilius, pretend, either that the Sicilians have not importuned me to ❝ undertake their caufe, or that the inclinations of our best and most faithful allies ought not to weigh with those ⚫ who compofe this court? If you dare affert what Verres, to F 2 ⚫ whom

*

whom you profess yourself an enemy, defires above all things should be believed, that the Sicilians have not applied ⚫ to me in this cafe; you will thereby do a fervice to the cause of your enemy, against whom not a prefumptive pretence only, but an abfolute judgment is already supposed to be given, from the notoriety that the Sicilians have unanimously • demanded an advocate for their rights against his oppreffions. If you, his enemy, difpute this fact, which he himself, tho' it makes directly against him, has not the face to deny, be'ware that you are not suspected of pushing your refentment with too gentle a hand. Befides, feveral of the most illuftrious men of the commonwealth, all whofe names it were needless to repeat, can witness the contrary. I fhall mention only fuch as are prefent, whom I would be very far from having the affurance to appeal to, were I conscious of advancing a falfhood. C. Marcellus, who fits upon the bench, knows the truth of what I affert : Cn. Lentulus Marcellinus, whom I fee in court, can likewife teftify the fame thing: Two perfons, on whofe protection and patronage the Sicilians have a principal dependence; that whole province being in a particular manner attached to the name of the Marcelli. These know, that I have been not only impor'tuned to undertake this affair, but fo frequently, and with "fo much earnestnefs, that I was under a neceffity of either charging myfelf with the cause, or renouncing the ties of relation between us. But what need after all of appealing to witnelles, as if the thing was doubtful, or obfcure? Men of the greatest quality in the whole province are here present, my Lords, who perfonally request and conjure you, that in appointing one to profecute their caufe, your fentiments may not be different from theirs. Commiffioners appear from every city in Sicily, except two; whofe deputies, if prefent, 'would confiderably weaken the force of two principal branches of the accufation, in which these cities were ac• complices

* Pulling your resentment, &c.] Videto (fays Tully) ne nimium familiariter inimicitias exercere videare. The tranflator by dropping the word familiariter, has greatly weaken'd the intended farcasm, as the orator apparently meant to glance at the connivance between Verres and Cæcilius, which is afterwards more openly explained, befides that the words pushing and gentle are contradictory. But it requires great nicety in a tranflator to render passages of this nature with elegance and propriety.

• complices with Verres. But why do they apply chiefly to me, for protection? If the fact itself was doubtful, I might perhaps explain the reafons of this application. But as it is a cafe fo evident, that you may judge of it by what you fee, I know no reason why an objection from my being chofen, • preferable to all others, ought to affect me. But, my Lords, I arrogate no fuch diftinction to myfelf, and am fo far from claiming it in what I now offer to your confideration, that I 'fhould be forry if it entered into the imagination of any ⚫ perfon whatsoever, that I was preferred to all other patrons. "Tis by no means fo: But regard is had to every one's circumstances, health, and abilities. My inclinations and fentiments always were, that any one capable of managing • the cause should undertake it, rather than myself; but my• felf rather than none.

Since then it is evident, that the Sicilians have befought me to charge myself with their defence; it now remains that we enquire, whether this ought to have any influence ⚫ in the prefent debate; whether the allies of the Roman peo•ple, applying in a suppliant manner for a redress of grievances, ⚫ought not to have great weight in fwaying your determinations? But why do I dwell upon this fubject? as if it was not apparent, that the whole fyftem of laws relating to extortion, were established for the fake of the allies alone. When citizens defraud one another, they may have recourse to a civil action, and the municipal laws of the state. This law is wholly focial; 'tis the peculiar right of foreign nations they have this fortrefs, fomewhat weakened indeed, and lefs able to protect them than formerly; yet ftill, if any hope remains, to chear the hearts of our allies, it is wholly founded on this law. A law, which not only the people of Rome, but the remoteft nations, long to fee under the care of rigorous guardians. Who then can deny that a law ought to • take its course according to the inclination of those in favour of "whom it was enacted? Could all the people of Sicily speak with one voice, they would fay, You, Verres, have robbed and plundered us of all the gold, filver, and ornaments, that ⚫ were in our cities, houfes, or temples; you have vioHated every privilege we enjoyed by the friendship of the fe

terces.

nate and people of Rome; and on that account we have ⚫ brought an action against you, of an hundred million of sesI fay, could the whole province speak with one tongue, this would be its language, But, as that is impoffible, they have made choice of fuch an advocate, as they thought beft for their purpose. Shall any one therefore, in an affair of this kind, have the affurance to thrust himself into another's cause, contrary to the inclination of those who are immediately concerned?

Should the Sicilians speak thus to you, Cæcilius, We know you not; we are ftrangers to your character; we never faw you before; fuffer us to commit the defence of our for tunes to a man, whofe integrity we have experienced ; would they not fay, what all the world muft approve? Now they even tell you, that they know us both; that they exprefsly defire the one for their advocate, and will have nothing to do with the other. Were they filent as to the reasons of this refufal, it would be no hard matter to divine them: but they are by no means filent. Will you then 'force yourself upon them, against their inclination? Will you speak in a caufe, in which you have no concern? Will you charge yourfelf with the defence of thofe, who chufe rather to fee themfelves abandoned by all the world, than ⚫ truft their defence in your hands? Will you engage to protect a people, who are perfuaded you have neither inclination nor power to serve them? Why would you deprive them of the finall hopes of relief they have still left, in the equity of the laws and judges? Why would you interpofe, in oppo-. fition to the will of those, for whofe benefit the law was 'chiefly defigned? Why do you aim at entirely fubverting the ⚫ fortunes of a people, to whom you had rendered yourself fo very obnoxious in the province? Why are you for divesting them of the power, not only of profecuting their rights, but even of deploring their misfortunes? For which of them, do you imagine, would attend the trial under your manage-. ment, when you know they are labouring, not to punish another by your help, but, by means of another, to avenge. the wrongs they have received from you?

But this proves only, that the Sicilians chiefly defire me. for their advocate, The other point, whom Verres most

⚫ dreads