﻿THE AGE OF PETRONIUS ARBITER. 103 



" vita probrosus," of an impure, dissolute life. It is precisely a person of this character 

 who, in the pursuit of his vile, low pleasures, would so far demean himself as to asso- 

 ciate with, and be the guest of, such a person as Trimalchio, a low, vulgar, but rich 

 upstart. Another circumstance is to be noticed which is not without weight in inter- 

 preting this passage. M. Annseus Seneca, the father of the philosopher, (in Suas. 2.) 

 states that with Mam. jEmilius Scaurus the family became extinct. Taking all these 

 circumstances into consideration, the supposition that the Scaurus of Petronius is Mam. 

 ^milius Scaurus, who, under Tiberius, committed suicide in 34 A. D. (787 U. C.) 

 acquires, to say the least, a high degree of probability. If the statement of Seneca is 

 to be relied upon, we need not look, as far as the ^Emilii Scauri are concerned, for a 

 later member of that family as the person here mentioned. And if no \a\id argument 

 can be adduced against the supposition that the Scaurus of Petronius and the Ma- 

 mercus vEmilius Scaurus of Tiberius's times are the same person, the composition of 

 the book cannot be placed later than the year 34 A. D., because Trimalchio speaks of 

 him as still living, — and it may be placed as much earlier as other considerations may 

 render advisable. 



26. C. 78. 7 : " Vigiles." Watchmen existed in Rome at an early period. If we may 

 believe a scholion to Juv. 13. 157: " quae custos Gallicus"; "nomen praefecti vigUum, 

 qui insti tutus est, postquam Galli Capitolium paene ceperunt"; they were instituted 

 after the taking of Pome by the Gauls, and their attempt to possess themselves of the 

 Capitolium. This institution, like almost every other, received under Augustus a new 

 and more efficient organization. Until then, the means, partly public, partly private, 

 of guarding against fires and acts of violence, Avere more or less imperfect. An instance 

 of the employment of private watchmen for the extinguishing of fires is mentioned as 

 late as 22 B. C. (732 U. C.) by Vellejus Paterculus (2. 91). After mentioning the 

 consxiiracy of Licinius Mureena and Fannius Csepio against Augustus, — Avhich was, as 

 is well known, detected and punished in that year, — Vellejus goes on to say: " Neque 

 multo post Pufus Egnatius, per omnia gladiatori quam senatori propior, collecto in 

 aedilitate favore populi, quem exstinguendis privata familia iucendiis in dies auxerat, 

 in tantum quidem, ut ei praeturam continuaret, mox etiam consulatum petere ausus," 

 etc. It is easy to see that priA-ate establishments, like that of Pufus Egnatius, however 

 useful in single instances, must lack that unity and concert of action Avhich alone can 

 afford protection to a large city. This led naturally to the re-organization of the 

 "Vigiles" by Augustus. Cf. Dio Cass. 55. 26: 'EiretB^ re Iv tw xp°^V tovtm -n-oXKa t^? 



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