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

B04 EXERCITUS. EXERCITUS.
a law of Rutilius Rufus. (Liv. vii. 5; Pseud. son to believe that any such tribunes existed even
Ascon. in Vern. Act. i. 30; Festus, s. v. Rufuli.) so late as Hadrian; for:llyginus, in his minnute
That all tribunes were not upon an equality is description of a camp, and of the accommodation
clear from the expression of Livy (xlIi. 3.), L.' required for the officers, makes no mention of them.
Atius, tribunus primus secundae legionis;" and, It is true that we read in Caesar (B.. ii. 20),
from the Cornelian law quoted by Cicero (Pro and in Pliny (rEp. iii. 9; comp. Juv. i. 58; Stat.
Cluent. 54), where the tribunes of the first four Sylv. v. 96) of tribunes who commanded cohorts;
legions are evidently regarded as superior to others. but those in Caesar were not legionary but auxiHow this precedence was regulated, whether by liary cohorts, and such, in all probability, was the
seniority, by the mode of election, or by some cohort alluded to by Pliny.
other principle we cannot determine. Under Augustus and his successors Tribunus was
We have seen from Polybius that no one was} employed with reference to many military offices.
eligible to the office of tribune who had not served Thus Velleius Paterculus tells us (ii. 104), that he
for ten years in the infantry or five in the cavalry. discharged the duties of Tribunus Castrorum, and
This rule admitted of exceptions, for we find that in inscriptions we meet With Triiunus Praetorianus
the elder Scipio Africanus was tribune of the (Orell. 1133), Tribunus Fabrmla Navalinm (Orell.
soldiers at the battle of Cannae (Liv. xxii. 53),'al-' 3140), and many others.
though certainly not twenty years old; and Her- Centuriones. — Next in rank to the Tribunus
tensius rose to the samle rank in his second cam- was the Centurio, who, as the name implies, compaign. Augustus introduced certain regulations manded a century; and the century, being termed
altogether new. He permitted the sons of senators also ordo, the centurions were frequently designated
to wear the tunicas laticlavia as soon as they as- ordinum dzuctores (hence, adimere ordines, oqffsre
sumed the manly gown, -and to commence their ordines, ordines iszmpetrare, &c.), words represented
military career as tribunes, or as commanders in the Greek historians by EcarovTadpXys or ra(praefEcti) of cavalry (Suet. Octav. 38). Such VlapXor, and more rarely by XoXayos. The
persons were the Tribuni Laticlavuii (Sueton. Dom. number of centurions in a legion was sixty, that
10), whom we find frequently commemorated in being at all epochs the number of centuries.
the inscriptions of the empire (Orelli, n. 133, 1665, (Dionys. ix. 107; Tac. Ann. i. 32.)
2379, 3113, 3143, 3441), and to these we observe The moral qualities desired in a centurion are
allusions in Horace (Sat. i. 6. 25), and in Statius described by Polybius (vi. 24), who tells us that
(Syilv. v. 1. 97). We find also,:in one passage at those regarded as best adapted for the office were
least, the phrase Tribtsunzs A s4gusticlavins (Suet.Otbh. persons not so much remarkable for daring valour'
10)..Te can scarcely suppose'that raw youths as for calmness and sagacity; men not eager to
entering the army for the first time were actually begin a battle at all hazards, but who would keep
allowed to exercise the -authority which the name their ground although overwhelmed by a superior
implies; and hence we may conclude that in their force, and die rather than quit their post. Their
case it was a mere honorary title. By the later chief ordinary duties were to drill the soldiers, to
emperors, tribuneships were bestowed without re- inspect their arms, clothing, and food, to watch the
gard to the birth of the individual; and, in order execution of the toils imposed, to visit the centinels,
that they might have an opportunity of obliging a and to regulate the conduct of their men, both in
greater number of applicants, the post was fre- the camp and in the field. They sat as judges
quently conferred for six months only. Hence, we also in minor offences, and had the power of in-'
read in Pliny (Ep. iv. 4. 1), " Hunc rogo semestri flicting corporal punishment, whence their badge
tribunatze splendidiorem facias," and in Juvenal, of office was a vine sapling, and thus vitis is fre"C Semestri vatuns digitos circumligat aulro," where quently used to denote the office itself. (Tac. Ann.
there is ans allusion to the gold ring which formed i. 23; Plin. H. X. xiv. 1; Martial. x. 26; comp.
one of their insignia. Juv. viii. 247, xiv. 193, vilem posce libello; Spar-'
Tribunes were, from a very early period, distin- tian. Hadrian. 10.)
guished by their dress from the common soldiers According to the system described by Polybius,
(Liv. vii. 34), and their equipments and rations the centurions were chosen according to merit by the
in the middle of the third century may be seen tribunes (diTEXeea, raetcipXous a&ptT*rS',v), subject,
from a curious letter written by Valerian, when he however, it is evident, to the control of the consuls
bestowed the command of certain battalions of (see Liv. xlii. 33, 34); during the decline of the reSaracens on Probus. (Vopisc. Prob. 4.) Under public, it was notorious that these posts were made
the empire they were attended by a certain num- an object of mercenary traffic (Quess enimn possumus
ber of apjparitores, or of soldiers who walked be- imnperatorem aliqzuo in nunzeropuotare, cuius in exerfore them (Lamprid. Alex. Sev. 52), by a Vicaries, citu veneant.centuriatus et venierint? Cic. pro Leg.
or aide-de-camp (Vopisc. Aurelian. 7. 10), and by Manil. 13. Quid? centuriatus palam vensditos? Cic.
a person termed Corsicularius Tribuni (Val. Max. in Pison. 36); and under the empire, the greatest
vi. 1; Frontin. iii. 14; Orelli, Inscripp. Lat. 3465), corruption prevailed (Tac. Hist. i. 52, iii. 49;
who was probably a sort of fugle-man who gave Plin. Ep. vi. 25), although many laws, as may be
certain signals according to the orders which the seen upon reference to the codes, were promulofficers wished to communicate - thus we meet gated from time to time to remedy such disorders.
with the Cornicularius of a centurion (Val. Max. The regular pay of the centurions is considered
vi. 1. ~ 11), of a propraetor (Orell.'3486), and nmderanother head [STIPENDIUM]; but, in additiomn
others. (Orell. 3487, 3522, comp. 1251, comp. to this, their income was increased by the money
Suet. Donm. 17.) which they received from the soldiers for leave
Tribuni Cohosrtium.-It has been maintained by of absence, exemption from fatiguing or disagreesome critics, that in addition to the six tribunes of able duties, and other indulgences. Thisabuse, so
the legions tihere were ten inferior tribunes, each subversive of all discipline, probably arose during
of whom comlanded a cohort. VWe have no rea- the confusion of the civil wars, and gradually be