39.45
The
consuls elected for the next year were M. Claudius Marcellus and Q. Fabius
Labienus. On the day they entered upon office -March 15 -they brought
before the senate the question of their provinces. Liguria was assigned to
both consuls with the armies which their predecessors had had. When the
new praetors balloted for their provinces, the two Spains were reserved for
the praetors of the year before who retained their armies. C. Valerius, the
Flamen, who had been an unsuccessful candidate the year before, was in any
case to have one of the two jurisdictions in Rome; he drew the alien
jurisdiction. The other provinces went as follows: the civic jurisdiction to
Sisenna Cornelius, Sicily to Sp. Postumius, Apulia to L. Pupius, Gaul to L.
Julius, Sardinia to Cnaeus Sicinius. L. Julius was required to hasten his
departure. The transalpine Gauls, who, as stated above, had descended into
Italy by a hitherto unknown mountain road, were building a town in the
territory which now belongs to Aquileia. The praetor received instructions to
prevent their doing this, without war if he could; if they had to be restrained
by force of arms he was to inform the consuls, and one of them was to lead
the legions against the Gauls. At the end of the preceding year there was an
election of an augur to fill the place of Cnaeus Cornelius Lentulus who had
died. Sp. Postumius Albinus was elected.