Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

CEN-SOlR. CENSOR. *263
of the censors; but oni one occasion the censors, as one which caused their office to be the most rea punishment, compelled a person to pay eight per vered and the most dreaded in the Roman state.
thousand (octupicato censu, Liv. iv. 24). It naturally grew out of the right which they posA person, who voluntarily absented himself sessed of excluding unworthy persons from the
from the census, and thus became incensus, was lists of citizens; for, as has been well remarked,
subject to the severest punishment. Servius Tullius " they would, in the first place, be the sole judges
is said to have threatened the incensus with im- of many questions of fact, such as whether a
prisonment and death (Liv. i. 44); and in the re- citizen had the qualifications required by law or
publican period he might be sold by the state as a custom for the rank which he claimed, or whether
slave. (Cic. pro Caecin. 34.) In the later tinmes Ie had ever incurred any judicial sentence, which
of the republic a person who was absent from the rendered him infamous: but from thence the tranusicensus, might be represented by another, and thus tion was easy, according to Itoman notions, to the
be registered by the censors. (Varr. L. L. vi. 86.) decision of questions of right; such as whether a
Whether the soldiers who were absent on service citizen was really worthy of retaining his rank,
had to appoint a representative, may be questioned. whether he had not committed some act as justly
In ancient times the sudden breaking otit of a degrading as those which incurred the sentence of
war prevented the census from being taken (Liv. the law." In this manner the censors gradually be.
vi. 31), because a large number of the citizens came possessed of a complete superintendence over
would necessarily be absent. It is supposed from the whole public and private life of every citizen.
a passage in Livy (xxix. 37), that in later times They were constituted the conservators of public
the censors sent commissioners into the provinces and private virtue and morality; they were not
with fsull powers to take the census of the Roman simply to prevent crime or particular acts of imsoldiers there; but this seems to have been only a morality, but their great object was to maintain
special case. It is, on the contrary, probable from the old Roman character and habits, the osos
the way in which Cicero pleads the absence of m1ajosru?. The proper expression for this branch
Archias from Rome with the army under Lucullus, of their power was regime726 2oru07 (Cic. de Leg.
as a sufficient reason for his not having been en- iii. 3; Liv. iv. 8, xxiv. 18, xl. 46, xli. 27, xlii.
rolled in the census (pro Arsci. 5), that service in 3; Suet. Asty. 27), which was called in the times
the army was a valid excuse for absence. of the empire curc or pratefeclstura mzorus1. The
After the censors had received the names of all punishment inflicted by the censors in the exercise
the citizens with the amount of their property, they of this branch of their duties was called Nrota or
then had to make out the lists of the tribes, and IVctctio, or Annimadrersio Censoica. In inflicting it
also of the classes and centuries; for by the legis- they were guided only by their conscientious conlation of Servius Tullius the position of each citizen victions of duty; they had to take an oath that they
in the state was determined by the amount of his would act neither through partiality nor favour;
property. [COMITIA CENTURIATA.] These lists and, in addition to this, they were bound in every
formed a most important part of the Tabulle Cen- case to state in their lists, opposite the name of the
sosiet, under which name were included all the guilty citizen, the cause of the punishment inflicted
documents connected in any way with the discharge on him, - Subscriptio censoria. (Liv. xxxix. 42
of the censors' duties. (Cic. de Leg. iii. 3; Liv. Cic. pro Cluent. 42-48; Gell. iv. 20.)
xxiv. 18; Plut. Cat. Mleaj. 16; Cic. de Leg. Agn. This part of the censors' office invested them
i. 2.) These lists, as far at least as they were con- with a peculiar kind of jurisdiction, Which in many
nected with the finances of the state, were deposited respects resembled the exercise of public opinion
in the aerarium, which was the temple of Saturn in modern times; for there are innumerable
(Liv. xxix. 37); but the regular depositary for all actions which, though acknowledged by every one
the archives of the censors was in earlier times the to be prejudicial and immoral, still do not colme
Atrium Libertatis, near the Villa publica (Liv. within the reach of the positive laws of a country.
xliii. 16, xlv. 15), and in later times the temple of Even in cases of real crimes, the positive laws frethe Nymphs. (Cic. Fpro MAl. 27.) quently punish only the particular offence, while
Besides the arrangement of the citizens into in public opinion the offender, even after he has
tribes, centuries, and classes, the censors had also undergone punishmentl is still incapacitated for
to make out the lists of the senators for the en- certain honours and distinctions which are granted
suing lustrum, or till new censors were appointed; only to peisons of unblemished character. Hence
striking out the names of such as they considered the Roman censors might brand a man with their
unworthy, and making additions to the body from nota censoria in case he had been convicted of a
those who were qualified. This important part of crime in an ordinary court of justice, and had
their duties is explained under SENATUS. In the already suffered punishmeint for it. The. conse.
same manner they held a reviewv of the equites quence of such a nota was only ianos2nizic and not
equo publico, and added and removed names as infamnia (Cic. de Rep. iv. 6) [INFAaMI'A], anmd the
they judged proper. [EQUITES.] censorial verdict was not a juzdicihusz or res jusliAfter the lists had been completed, the number cata (Cic. pro Cluent. 42),. for its effects were not
of citizens was counted up, and the sum total an- lasting, but might be removed by the following cennounced; and accordingly we find that, in the sots, or by a, lex. A nota censoria was moreover not
account of a census, the number of citizens is like- valid, unless both censors agreed. The ignomimmia
awise usually given. They are in such cases spoken was thus only a transitory capitis diminutio, which
of as capita, sometimes with the addition of the does not even appear to have deprived a magisword civium, and sometimes not; and hence to be trate of his office (Liv. xxiv. 18), and certainly
registered in the census was the same thing as did not disqualify persons labouring under it for
capumt habere. [CAPUT.] obtaining a magistracy, for being appointed as
II. RESImEN: MouoRir. This was the most judices by the praetor, or for serving in the Roman
impiortant branch of the censors' duties, and the armies. Main. Aemilius was thus, notwithstands 4