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5Sejanus was so great a person by reason both of his excessive haughtiness and of his vast power, that, to put it briefly, he himself seemed to be emperor and Tiberius a kind of island potentate, inasmuch as the latter spent his time on the island of Capreae. 2There was rivalry and jostling about the great man’s doors, the people fearing not merely that they might not be seen by their patron, but also that they might be among the last to appear before him; for every word and every look, especially in the case of the most prominent men, was carefully observed. 3Those, now, who hold a prominent position as the result of native worth are not much given to seeking signs of friendship from others, and if such manifestations are wanting on the part of these others, they do not tax them with it, inasmuch as they know full well that they are not being looked down upon; but those, on the other hand, who enjoy an adventitious splendour seek very eagerly all such attentions, feeling them to be necessary to render their position complete, and if they fail to obtain them, are as vexed as if they were being slandered and as angry as if they were being insulted. 4Consequently the world is more scrupulous in the case of such persons than in the case of the emperors themselves, one might almost say; since for the latter it counts as a virtue to pardon anyone in case of an offence, but by the former such conduct is thought to argue their weakness, whereas to attack and to exact vengeance is considered to furnish proof of great power.
5Now on a New Year’s day, when all were assembling at Sejanus’ house, the couch that stood in the reception room utterly collapsed under the weight of the throng seated upon it; and, as he was leaving the house, a weasel darted through the midst of the crowd. 6After he had sacrificed on the Capitol and was now descending to the Forum, the servants who were acting as his body-guard turned aside along the road leading to the prison, being unable by reason of the crowd to keep up with him, and while they were descending the steps down which condemned criminals were cast, they slipped and fell. Later, as he was taking the auspices, not one bird of good omen appeared, but many crows flew round him and cawed, then all flew off together to the jail and perched there.
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