3.13
Over and above the
general exasperation, one charge in particular
weighed heavily against him. M. Volscius Fictor, who
had some years previously been tribune of the plebs,
had come forward to give evidence that not long
after the epidemic had visited the City, he had met
some young men strolling in the Suburra. A quarrel
broke out and his elder brother, still weak from
illness, was knocked down by a blow from Caeso's
fist, and carried home in a critical condition, and
afterwards died, he believed, in consequence of the
blow. He had not been allowed by the consuls, during
the years that had elapsed, to obtain legal redress
for the outrage. Whilst Volscius was telling this
story in a loud tone of voice, so much excitement
was created that Caeso was very near losing his life
at the hands of the people. Verginius ordered him to
be arrested and taken to prison. The patricians met
violence by violence. T. Quinctius called out that
when the day of trial has been fixed for any one
indicted on a capital charge and is near at hand,
his personal liberty ought not to be interfered with
before the case is heard and sentence given. The
tribune replied that he was not going to inflict
punishment upon a man not yet found guilty; but he
should keep him in prison till the day of the trial,
that the Roman people might be in a position to
punish one who has taken a man's life. The other
tribunes were appealed to, and they saved their
prerogative by a compromise; they forbade him to be
cast into prison, and announced as their decision
that the accused should appear in court, and if he
failed to do so, he should forfeit a sum of money to
the people. The question was, what sum would it be
fair to fix? The matter was referred to the senate,
the accused was detained in the Assembly whilst the
senators were deliberating. They decided that he
should give sureties, and each surety was bound in
3000 "ases" It was left to the tribunes to decide
how many should be given; they fixed the number at
ten. The prosecutor released the accused on that
bail. Caeso was the first who gave securities on a
state trial. After leaving the Forum, he went the
following night into exile amongst the Tuscans. When
the day for the trial came, it was pleaded in
defence of his non-appearance that he had changed
his domicile by going into exile. Verginius,
nevertheless, went on with the proceedings, but his
colleagues, to whom an appeal was made, dismissed
the Assembly. The money was unmercifully extorted
from the father, who had to sell all his property
and live for some time like a banished man in an
out-of-the-way hut on the other side of the Tiber.