A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

GRACCHUS. GRACCHUS. 29 1
of the aristocracy watched with fear and jealousy he felt that his work was too serious and importthe career of Tiberius, whose popularity was gain- ant to be undertaken without the advice and
ing fresh strength every day., assistance of others. His Greek friends, Diophanes
But the sympathy of Tiberius with the people and Blossius, and his mother, Cornelia, urged him
was excited much more by its distress than by the on; and he was supported by the counsel of the
demonstrations of its favour. His brother Caius most eminent men of the time, such as App. Claurelated in some of his works, that Tiberius, on his dius, his father-in-law, the consul and great jurist,
march to Spain, in B. c. 137, as he was passing Mucius Scaevola, and Crassus, the pontifex maxithrough Etruria, observed with grief and indigna- mus, all of whom were probably as much losers
tion the deserted state of that fertile countr by the measures which Gracchus was going to bring
thousands of foreign slaves in chains were employed forward as the Scipios and others who opposed
in cultivating the land and tending the flocks upon him. The first bill which he brought before the
tie- immense estates of the wealthy, while the people proposed, that the agrarian law of Licinius,
poorer das es.of Roman citizens, who were thus which had in fact never been abolished, should be
thrown out ofewaployment, had scarcely their daily renewed and enforced, with this modification, that
bread or a clod of ear*:ticall their own. He is said besides the 500 jugera allowed by that law, any
to have been roused through that circumstance to one might possess 2.50 jugera of the public land
exert himself inendeavouring to remedythis evil. C. for each of his sons. This clause, however, seems
Laelius had, before him entertained-hethtQught of to have been limited to two; so that a father of
interfering, but, for want of courage, had despaired two sons might occupy ] 000 jugera of public land.
of success. Had the Licinian law, which reguIatuI& The surplus was to be taken from them and distrithe amount of public land which a person might bted in small farms among the poor citizens. The
occupy, and the number of cattle he might keep on businet. of measuring and distributing the land
the public pastures, been observed, such a state was to b qatrusted to triumvirs, who were to be
of things could never have arisen. If Tiberius had elected as a permanent magistracy. He further
wished to enforce obedience to the letter of that enacted, that in, future the possession of public
law, he would have acted with perfect justice, and land should not be transferred by sale or purchase,
no one could have censured him for it, but the in order that the wealthy might not be able gragreedy aristocracy, who had enriched themselves dually to acquire again more a.d than the law
by the violation of the law, would have moved allowed. In the case of building geXcted on land
heaven and' earth to prevent such a measure. The which was to be thus given up, the possessors were
state of things, moreover, had, by a long-continued to be indemnified by a sum of money dietsmined
neglect of the law, become so complicated, that a by a fair valuation of the buildings. Theo rerenewal of the Licinian law, without any modifi- mains only one point in this agrarian law, fau
cation, would have been unfair towards a large class which the legislator is open to censure, not indeed
of the occupiers of public land, and it required the on the ground of injustice, but merely on that of
greatest care to act in the affair with prudence and unfairness. A considerable, though probably not a
moderation, and in a manner equitable and satis- very great number of those who had to give up a
factory towards all parties. Large tracts of public portion of their possessions, had acquired either the
land had passed from father to son, and no one whole or a part by purchase; andas they had to
ever seems to have thought of the possibility of their give up their surplus, like those who had not paid
being reclaimed by the state. Through this feeling for their land, those men were positive losers, just
of security many persons had erected buildings on as much as if Gracchus had taken from them their
their possessions, or had otherwise laid out large private property. To remove all complaints on
sums of money upon them; many also, who now this ground, Gracchus ought to have added a
possessed more than the five hundred jugera allowed clause, that such persons should receive from the
by the Licinian law, had acquired either the public treasury the sums for which they had bona
whole or part of their possession by purchase, and fide purchased the land, or else that the land thus
were accustomed to look upon it as real property, purchased should not come within the law, and
although a moment's consideration would have con- should be treated as private property, with which
vinced them that they were only precarious tenants the law had nothing to do. The state ought, at all
of the republic, which might at any time claim its events, to have made this sacrifice. The opposition
right of ownership. of the aristocracy would not indeed have been
Amid these clashing interests, Tib. Gracchus silenced by such a measure, but there would cerdetermined to remedy the evil by endeavouring to tainly have been no ground for that bitter exascreate an industrious middle class of agriculturists, peration which Gracchus now called forth. It is
and to put a check upon the unbounded avarice of ever to be lamented that Gracchus did not introthe aristocracy, whose covetousness, combined with duce into his law a clause of that description.
the disasters of the second Punic war, had com- The faction of the opposition, consisting of the
pletely destroyed the middle class of small land- senate and the aristocracy, was not numerous, but
owners. With this view, he offered himself as violent in the highest degree, and the thousands
a candidate for the tribuneship, and obtained it who were'to be benefited by the measure were
for the year B. C. 133. It should be observed, that ready to support Gracchus at any risk; the issue
at this period the tribunes were elected in the of the struggle, therefore, could not be doubtful,
month of June, the harvest time in Italy, but they and it would have been hopeless to oppose the
did not enter upon their office till the 10th of agrarian law in the ordinary constitutional way,
December., for as soon as the bill was passed by the tribes,
The people appear to have anticipated that it became law, the sanction of the senate not
Gracchus was going to undertake something on being required. The senatorial party, therefore, retheir behalf, for placards were seen in all parts of sorted to intrigues. A noble specimen of the
the city calling upon him to protect them; but deeply-felt and impressive eloquence with which
u 2