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FRAGMENTA i Augustus gave this reason for divorcing his first wife, Scribonia: "Morum perversitatem eius pertaesus sum." (Suetonius, Augustus, 62) 2 Letter to his wife, Livia Collocutus sum cum Tiberio, ut mandastl, mea Livia, quid nepoti tuo Tiberio faciendum esset ludls Martialibus. Consentit autem uterque nostrum semel nobls esse statuendum,quod consilium in illo sequamur. Nam si est artius, ut ita dlcam, holocleros, quid est quod dubitemus, quin per eosdem articulos et gradus producendus sit, per quos frater eius productus sit? Sin autem T|\aTT(Ji>cr6ai [to be wanting] sentlmus eum et pepAa9cu KOtl eis T7]v TOU CTwjjiaTos Kal eis TTJV TT^S ila'xi nTaTe [most conscientious], vale. (Suetonius, Tiberius, 21) 12 Letter to Tiberius Ordinem aestivorum tuorum ego vero laudo, ml Tiberi, et inter tot rerum difficulties Kai Toaavririv airo(h)|xCav TWV crTpaTevojjLevwv [and 26 FRAGMENTA such lack of zeal on the part of those taking part in the campaign] non potuisse quemquam prudentius gerere se quam tu gesseris, existimo. II quoque qul tecum fuerunt omnes confitentur versum ilium in te posse did: unus homo nobis vigilando restituit rem. (Suetonius, Tiberius, 21) 13 Letter to Tiberius Sive quid incidit de quo sit cogitandum dlligentius, slve quid stomachor , valde medius Fidius Tiberium meum desidero succurritque versus ille Homericus [Iliad, x, 246-7]: TOVTOU "y' ea-TTOfjievoio Kod EK irupos aiOofjtevoio a(j,4>w vocrrijcrounev, f^f^ Trepioi8e vofjaau. [If he be my comrade, even from blazing fire We both should return, for he knows good counsel.] (Suetonius, Tiberius, 21) 14 Letter to Tiberius Attenuatum te esse continuatione laborum cum audio et lego, dl me perdant nisi cohorrescit corpus meum; teque oro ut parcas tibi ne, si te languere audierimus, et ego et mater tua explremus et summa imperi sul populus R. periclitetur. (Suetonius, Tiberius, 21) 15 Letter to Tiberius Nihil interest valeam ipse necne, si tu non valebis. (Suetonius, Tiberius, 21) 16 Letter to Tiberius Deos obsecro ut te nobis conservent et valere nunc et semper patiantur, si non p. R. perosl sunt. (Suetonius, Tiberius, 21) 17 Letter to his daughter, Julia MIsi tibi denarios ducentos qulnquaginta, quos singulls convlvls dederam , si vellent inter se inter cenam vel tails vel par impar ludere. (Suetonius, Augustus, 71) f F R A G M E N T A 27 18 Julia's hair began to turn prematurely, and her imperial father once surprised her while her maids were pulling out the gray hairs, though he at first pretended not to have noticed. He finally turned the conversation to the subject of age and asked her, "Utrum post aliquot annos cana esse mavis an calva?" She answered, "Ego, pater, cana esse malo," and Augustus replied: "Quid ergo istae te calvam tam cito faciunt?" (Macrobius, Saturnalia, ii, 5, 7) 19 Augustus at first rather prided himself upon Julia's high spirits and gaiety which, while rather extreme, he considered were nevertheless pardonable . And so he once said to his friends: "Duas habeo fflias delicatas, quas necesse habeo ferre, rem publicam et luliam." (Macrobius, Saturnalia, ii, 5, 4) 20 At a gladiatorial show Livia and Julia had been accompanied, the former by numerous men of dignity, the latter by a group of young bloods. Whereupon Augustus sent his daughter a note of rebuke, which contained the following: "Vide quantum inter duas principes feminas intersit." To this the disrespectful young lady made the apt reply: "Et hi mecum senes fient." (Macrobius, Saturnalia, ii, 5, 6) 21 A puritanical parent, Augustus insisted upon strait-laced conduct on the part of his daughter and granddaughters. On one occasion he wrote to Lucius Vinicius, a young man of distinguished family: "Parum modeste fecistl quod flliam meam Baias salutatum venisti." (Suetonius, Augustus, 64) 22 When Julia's immoral conduct could no longer be ignored, Augustus exiled her, and, carried away by his anger, made public the details of her misconduct. Later, overcome by shame and regret, he often exclaimed : "Horum mihi nihil accidisset, si aut Agrippa aut Maecenas vixisset." (Seneca, De Beneficiis, vi, 32) ' 28 FRAGMENTA 23 Upon the downfall and disgrace of Julia, a freedwoman named Phoebe, one of her accomplices, hanged herself. When Augustus heard of this he said: "Maluissem Phoebes pater esse." (Suetonius, Augustus, 65) 24 At every mention of Agrippa Postumus or of the Julias (his daughter and granddaughter), Augustus would groan and paraphrase Homer's Iliad , iii, 40: al6' 6c|>e\ov cryafjuSs T' c|xevou or/ovos T' diroXeaOaL [Would that I had been unwed or had died without...

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