banishment. This he did, sooner than stand his ground and listen to
the narration of his iniquities as it would be given by Cicero in the
full speech--the "perpetua oratio"--which would follow the examination
of the witnesses. "What the orator said before the examination of the
witnesses was very short. He had to husband his time, as it was a part
of the grand scheme of Hortensius to get adjournment after adjournment
because of certain sacred rites and games, during the celebration
of which the courts could not sit. All this was arranged for in the
scheme; but Cicero, in order that he might baffle the schemers, got
through his preliminary work as quickly as possible, saying all that
he had to say about the manner of the trial, about the judges,
about the scheme, but dilating very little on the iniquities of the
criminal. But having thus succeeded, having gained his cause in a
great measure by the unexpected quickness of his operations, then he
told his story. Then was made that "perpetua oratio" by which we have
learned the extent to which a Roman governor could go on desolating a
people who were intrusted to his protection. This full narration is
divided into five parts, each devoted to a separate class of iniquity.
These were never spoken, though they appear in the form of speeches.
They would have been spoken, if required, in answer to the defence
made by Hortensius on behalf of Verres after the hearing of the
evidence. But the defence broke down altogether, in the fashion thus
described by Cicero himself. "In that one hour in which I spoke"--this
was the speech which we designate as the Actio Prima contra Verrem,
the first pleading made against Verres, to which we shall come
just now--"I took away all hope of bribing the judges from the
accused--from this brazen-faced, rich, dissolute, and abandoned man.
On the first day of the trial, on the mere calling of the names of
the witnesses, the people of Rome were able to perceive that if
this criminal were absolved, then there could be no chance for the