232 . The Republic. ROME. The Republic. 
and, regardless either of the approbation of the senate or the 
people, resolved to continue themselves, against all order, in 
the decemvirate. A conduct so notorious produced dis¬ 
contents , and these were as sure to produce fresh acts of 
tyranny. The city was become almost a desert, with re¬ 
spect to all who had any thing to lose; and the decemvirs’ 
rapacity was then only discontinued, when they wanted 
fresh objects to exercise it upon. In this state of slavery, 
proscription, and mutual distrust, not one citizen was found 
to strike for his country’s freedom; these tyrants continued 
to rule without controul, being constantly guarded, not with 
their lictors alone, but a numerous crowd of dependents, 
clients, and patricians, whom their vices had confederated 
round them. 
In this gloomy situation of the state, the iEqui and Volsci, 
those constant enemies of the Romans, undertook their 
incursions, resolved to profit by the intestine divisons of the 
people, and advanced within about 10 miles of Rome. 
But the decemviri, being put in possession of all the 
military as well as of the civil power, divided their army 
into three parts; whereof one continued with Appius in 
the city, to keepjtin awe; the other two were commanded 
by his colleagues, and were led, one against the iEqui, and 
the other against the Sabines. The Roman soldiers suffered 
themselves to be vanquished in the field, and shamefully 
abandoned their camp upon the approach of the enemy. 
Never was the news of a victory more joyfully received at 
Rome than the tidings of this defeat: the generals, as is always 
the case, were blamed for the treachery of their men: some 
demanded that they should be deposed; others cried out for 
a dictator to lead troops to conquest: but among the rest, 
old Sicinius Dentatus, the tribune, spoke his sentiments with 
his usual openness; and treating the generals with contempt, 
showed all the faults of their discipline in the camp, and of 
their conduct in the field. Appius, in the mean time, was 
not remiss in observing the disposition of the people. Den¬ 
tatus, in particular, was marked out for vengeance, and 
under pretence of doing him particular honour, he was 
appointed legate, and put at the head of the supplies which 
were sent from Rome to reinforce the army. The office of 
legate was held sacred among the Romans, as in it were 
united the authority of a general, with the reverence due 
to the priesthood. Dentatus, no way suspecting his design, 
went to the camp with alacrity, where he was received with 
all the external marks of respect. But the generals soon 
found means of indulging their desire of revenge. He was 
appointed at the head of 100 men to go and examine a more 
commodious place for encampment, as he had very candidly 
assured the commanders that their present situation was 
wrong. The soldiers, however, who were given as his at¬ 
tendants, were assassins; wretches y ho had long been minis¬ 
ters of the vengeance of the decemviri, and who now en¬ 
gaged to murder him, though witL all those apprehensions 
which his reputation, as he was called the Roman Achilles, 
might be supposed to inspire. With these designs, they led 
him from the way into the hollow bosom of a retired moun¬ 
tain, where they began to set upon him from behind. Den¬ 
tatus, now too late, perceived the treachery of the decemviri, 
and was resolved to sell his life as dearly as he could; he 
therefore put his back to a rock, and defended himselfagainst 
those who pressed most closely. Though now grown old, 
he had still the remains of his former valour, and killed no 
less than 15 of the assailants, and wounded 30. The assas¬ 
sins now therefore, terrified at his amazing bravery, shower¬ 
ed in their javelins upon him at a distance; all which he 
received in his shield with undaunted resolution. The com¬ 
bat, though so unequal in numbers, was managed for some 
time with doubtful success, till at length his assailants be¬ 
thought themselves of ascending the rock against which he 
.stood, and thus poured down stones upon him from above. 
This succeeded; the old soldier fell beneath their united 
efforts, after having shown by his death that he owed it to 
his fortitude, and not his fortune, that he had come off 
S.o many tunes victorious. The decemviri pretended to 
join in the general sorrow for so brave a man,' and decreed 
him a funeral, with the first military honours: but the great¬ 
ness of their apparent distress, compared with their known 
hatred, only rendered them still more detestable to the 
people. 
But a transaction, still more atrocious than the former, 
served to inspire the citizens with a resolution to break all 
measures of obedience, and at last to restore freedom. 
Appius, who still remained at Rome, sitting one day on 
his tribunal to dispense justice, saw a maiden of exquisite 
beauty, and aged about 15, passing to one of the public 
schools, attended by a' matron, her nurse. Conceiving a 
violent passion for her, he resolved to obtain the gratification 
of his desire, whatever should be the consequence, and found 
means to inform himself of her name and family. Her 
name was Virginia, the daughter of Virginius a centurion, 
then with the army in the field; and she had been 
contracted to Icilius, formerly a tribune of the people, 
who had agreed to marry her at the end of the present 
campaign. Appius, at first, resolved to break this match, 
and to espouse her himself: but the laws- of the Twelve 
Tables had forbidden the patricians to intermarry with the 
plebeians; and he could not infringe these, as he was the 
enacter of them. Nothing therefore remained but a criminal 
enjoyment; which, as he was long used to the indulgence 
of his passions, he resolved to obtain. After having vainly 
tried to corrupt the fidelity or her nurse, he had recourse to 
another expedient, still more guilty. He pitched upon one 
Claudius, who had long been the minister of his pleasures, 
to assert the beautiful maid was his slave, and to refer the 
cause to his tribunal for decision. Claudius behaved exactly 
according to his instructions; for entering into the school, 
where Virginia was playing among her female companions, 
he seized upon her as his property, and was going to drag 
her away by force, but was prevented by the people drawn 
together by her cries. At length, after the first heat of 
opposition was over, he led the weeping virgin to the 
tribunal of Appius, and there plausibly unfolded his pre¬ 
tensions. He asserted, that she was bom in his house, of a 
female slave, who sold her to the wife of Virginius, who 
had been barren; that he had several credible evidences 
to prove the truth of what he said; but that, until they 
could come, together, it was but reasonable the slave should 
be delivered into his custody; being her proper master. 
Appius seemed to be struck with the justice of his claims. 
He observed, that if the reputed father himself were present, 
he might indeed be willing to delay the delivery of the 
maiden for some time’; but that it was not lawful for him, 
in the present case, to detain her from her master. He 
therefore adjudged her to Claudius, as his slave, to be 
kept by him till Virginius should be able to prove his 
paternity. This sentence was received with loud clamours 
and reproaches by the multitude: the women, in particular, 
came round Virginia, as if walling to protect her from the 
judge’s fury; while Icilius, her lover, boldly opposed the 
decree, and obliged Claudius to take refuge under the 
tribunal of the decemvir. All things now threatened' an 
open insurrection ; when Appius, fearing the event, thought 
proper to suspend his judgment till the arrival of Virgi¬ 
nius, who was then about 1] miles from Rome, with the 
army. The day following was fixed for the trial; and, 
in the mean time, Appius' sent letters to the generals to 
confine Virginius, as his arrival in town might only serve 
to kindle sedition among the people. These letters, how¬ 
ever, were intercepted by the centurion’s friends, who sent 
him down a full relation of the design laid against his 
honour. Virginius, upon this, pretending the death of a 
near relation, got permission to leave the camp, and flew 
to Rome, inspired with indignation and revenge. Ac- 
cordingly, the next day he appeared before the tribunal, 
to the astonishmeut of Appius, leading his weeping daughter 
by the hand, both habited" in the deepest mourning. 
Claudius, the accuser, was also there, and began by making 
his demand. Virginius next spoke in turn: he represented 
that 
