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38Besides these events in the year of Acilius and Piso, a law directed at men convicted of bribery in seeking office was framed by the consuls themselves, to the effect that any such person should neither hold office nor be a senator, and should incur a fine besides. 2For now that the power of the tribunes had been restored to its ancient status, and many of those whose names had been stricken off the list by the censors were aspiring to regain the rank of senator by one means or another, a great many factions and cliques were being formed aiming at all the offices. 3Now the consuls did not take this course because they were displeased at the practice; in fact they themselves were shown to have conducted a vigorous canvass, and Piso had actually been indicted on this charge, but had escaped being brought to trial by bribing one man after another; it was rather because they were forced to it by the senate. 4The reason for this was that one Gaius Cornelius while tribune undertook to lay very severe penalties upon those guilty of bribery, and the populace adopted them. The senate, however, realizing that while excessive punishments have some deterrent force as threats, yet men are not then easily found to accuse or condemn those on trial, since the latter will be in desperate danger, 5whereas moderation encourages many to accusations and does not prevent condemnations, was desirous of modifying his proposition somehow, and bade the consuls frame it as a law.
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