this, when we will commit none of our private affairs to any one before,
he has reached such an age? After they have served as quæstors and
ædiles, or tribunes, let them be prætors, when they have attained their
thirtieth birthday. These offices and that of consul are the only ones at
home which I maintain you ought to recognize; and that is for the sake of
remembrance of ancestral customs and in order not to seem to be changing
the constitution altogether. Do you, however, yourself choose all who are
to hold them and not put any of these offices longer in charge of the
rabble or the populace,--for they will surely quarrel,--nor in charge of
the senate, for its members will contend for the prize. Moreover, do
not keep up the ancient powers of these positions, for fear history
may repeat itself, but preserve the honor attached while abating the
influence to such an extent as will enable you to deprive each place of
none of its esteem but to forestall any desire of insubordination. This
can be done if you require the incumbents to stay in town, and do not
permit any of them to handle arms either during their period of office or
immediately afterward, but only after the lapse of some time, as much
as you think sufficient in each instance. In this way none of them will
rebel, because they become to an extent by their title masters of armies,
and their irritation will be assuaged by their faring as private citizens
for a time. Let these magistrates conduct such of the festivals as would
naturally belong to their office, and let them all individually try cases
save those of homicide, during their tenure of office in Rome. Courts
should also be made up of the senators and knights, but the final appeal
should be to the aforesaid officials.

[-21-] "Let a præfectus urbi be appointed from the ranks of the prominent
men and from such as have previously passed through the necessary
offices. His duties should not be to govern when the consuls are
somewhere out of town, but to exercise at all times a general supervision