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

RUPILIA GENS. RUSIUS. 679
favour of the people, but who now exhibited un- ingly Glandorp, in his Onomasticon, does not admit
equivocal signs of having deserted his former the Rupilii at all, but inserts all the persons of the
friends and united himself to the aristocracy. The name under Rutilius.
latter would expect their new champion, as consul, RUPI'LIUS. 1. P. RUPILIUS, P. F. P. N., was
to show the sincerity of his conversion by opposing consul B. c. 132 with C. Popillius Laenas, the year
the popular measure with all the powers of his after the murder of Tib. Gracchus. In conjunction
oratory; and thus he would of necessity lose much with his colleague, he prosecuted with the utmost
of the influence which he still possessed with the cruelty all the adherents and friends of the fallen
people. tribune. In the same year he was sent into Sicily
Rullus entered upon his office with the other against the slaves, and brought the servile war to
tribunes on the 10th of December, B. C. 64, and a conclusion, for which he obtained a triumph on
immediately brought forward his agrarian law, in his return to Rome. He remained in the island as
order that the people might vote upon it in the fol- proconsul in the following year, B. C. 131; and,
lowing January. Cicero, who entered upon his con- with ten commissioners appointed by the senate,
sulship on the I st of January, B.c. 6 3, lost no time in he made various regulations for the government of
showing his zeal for his new party, and accordingly the province, which were known by the name of
on the first day of the year opposed the law in the Lex Rupilia, though it was not a lex proper.
senate in the first of the orations which have come (Vell. Pat. ii. 7; Cic. Lael. 11; Liv. Epit. 59;
down to us. But as his eloquence did not deter Oros. v. 9; Val. Max. ii. 7. ~ 3, vi. 9. ~ 8, ix. 12.
Rullus from persevering in his design, Cicero ad- ~ 1; Cic. Verr. iii. 54, iv. 50, ad Ati. xiii. 32,
dressed the people a few days afterwards in the Verr. ii. 13, 15, 16.) Rupilius was condemned,
second of the speeches which are extant. Rullus along With his colleague in the tribunate of C.
did not venture upon a public reply, but he spread Gracchus, B. C. 123, on account of his illegal and
the report that Cicero only opposed the law in cruel acts in the prosecution of the friends of Tib.
order to gratify those who had received grants of Gracchus (Vell. Pat. i. c.). He was an intimate
land from Sulla. To justify himself from this as- friend of Scipio Africanus the younger, who obpersion, Cicero again called the people together, tained the consulship for him, but who failed in
and delivered the third oration which we have, in gaining the same honour for his brother Lucius.
which he retorts the charge upon Rullus, and shows He is said to have taken his brother's failure so
that his law, far from depriving the Sullan colo- much to heart as to have died in consequence;
nists of their lands, expressly confirmed them in but as it probably happened about the same time
their possessions. Meantime the aristocracy had as his own condemnation, the latter indignity may
gained the tribune L. Caecilius Rufus to put his veto have had more share in causing his death. (Cic.
upon the rogation, if it should be put to the vote; Lael. 19, 20, 27, Tusc. iv. ]7.)
but there was no occasion for this last resort; for 2. L. RUPILIUS, the brother of the preceding,
Rullus, probably on the advice of Caesar, thought already spoken of.
it more prudent to withdraw the measure alto- 3. RUPILIUS, an actor whom Cicero had seen
gether. (Drumann, Geschiichte Romes, vol. iii. pp. in his boyhood (de Off. i. 31).
147-159.) 4. A. RUPILIUs, a physician employed by OppiFrom this time the name of Rullus does not anicus (Cic. pro Cluent. 63).
occur again till B. C. 41, in which year we read of 5. P. RUPILIUS MENENIA, a Roman eques,
L. Servilius Rullus as one of the generals of Octa- the magister of the company of the publicani, who
vian in the Perusinian war (Dion Cass. xlviii. 28; farmed the public revenues in Bithynia (Cic. ad
Appian, B. C. v. 58.) He may have been the Fam. xiii. 9).
same person as the tribune mentioned above, but C. RUPILIUS, an artist in silver (argentawas more probably his son. rins) whose name occurs in a Latin inscription.
RUMI'LIA, RUMI'NA, or RU'MIA, are (Reines. cl. xi. No. lxxxv. p. 639; R. Rochette,
all connected with the old Latin word ruma, the Lettre a' M. Schorn, p. 399, 2d ed.) [P. S.]
breast, and are names for a divinity worshipped RU'PIUS. [RuFIUS.]
by the Romans as the protectress of infants (Varro. RUS, M. AUFI'DIUS, occurs only on coins,
ap. Noniuzm, p. 167; Donat. ad Terent. Phorm. i. a specimen of which is annexed. On the obverse
1. 14; Plut. Romul. 4). The sacrifices offered to is a head of Pallas, and on the reverse Jupiter in
her and Cunina consisted of libations of milk, and a quadriga. Rus does not occur elsewhere as a
not of wine. Ruminus, " the nourishing," was cognomen, and it may therefore probably be a conalso a surname of Jupiter. (August. de Civ. Dei, traction of Rusticus. (Eckhel, vol. v. p. 147.)
vii. 11.) [L. S.]
RUMINA. [CUBA.]
RUNCINA was probably only a surname of
Ops, by which he was invoked by the people of
Italy, to prevent the growth of weeds among the
corn, and promote the harvest. (August. de Ci.
Dei, iv. 8; Arnob. iv. 7.) [L. S.] -
RUPA, a freedman of C. Curio (Cic. ad Farnm.
ii. 3).
RUPI'LIA GENS, plebeian, is rarely men- COIN OF AUFIDIUS RUS.
tioned. It produced only one person of importance, namely, P. Rupilius, consul B. C. 132. None RUSCA, PINA'RIUS. [PosCA.]
of the Rupilii bear any surnames, and the name RU'SCIUS CAE'PIO, a contemporary of Dodoes not occur on coins. Instead of Rupilius, we mitian (Suet. Dom. 9).
frequently find the better known name of Rutilius C. RU'SIUS, an accuser mentioned by Cicero
in many editions of the ancient writers. Accord- (Brut. 74).
xx 4