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8After this he fell sick, but instead of dying himself he caused the death of Tiberius, who had assumed the toga virilis, had been given the title of Princeps Iuventutis, and finally had been adopted into his family. The complaint made against the lad was that he had prayed and expected that Gaius would die; and he destroyed many others, too, on this same charge. 2Thus it came about that the same ruler who had given Antiochus, the son of Antiochus, the district of Commagene, which his father had held, and likewise the coast region of Cilicia, and had freed Agrippa, the grandson of Herod, who had been imprisoned by Tiberius, and had put him in charge of his grandfather’s domain, not only deprived his own brother, or, in fact, his son, of his paternal inheritance, but actually caused him to be murdered, and that without sending any communication about him to the senate. Later he took similar action in numerous other cases. 3So Tiberius perished on suspicion of having been watching his chance to profit from the emperor’s illness. On the other hand, Publius Afranius Potitus, a plebeian, perished, because in a burst of foolhardy servility he had promised not only of his own free will but also under oath that he would give his life if only Gaius should recover; and likewise a certain Atanius Secundus, a knight, because he had announced that in the same event he would fight as a gladiator. For these men, instead of the money which they hoped to receive from him in return for offering to give their lives in exchange for his, were compelled to keep their promises, so as not to be guilty of perjury. 4Such, then, was the cause of these men’s deaths. Again, Gaius’ father-in -law, Marcus Silanus, though he had made no promise and taken no oath, nevertheless took his own life because his virtue and his relationship made him displeasing to the emperor and subjected him to extreme insult. 5Tiberius, it seems, had held him in such honour that he always refused to try a case on an appeal from his decision and referred all such cases back to him again; but Gaius heaped all manner of abuse upon him, even though he had such a high opinion of him that he called him a “golden sheep.” 6Now Silanus on account of his age and his rank had been accorded by all the consuls the honour of casting his vote first; and to prevent his doing so any longer, Gaius abolished the custom whereby some of the ex-consuls vote first or second according to the pleasure of those who put the question, and established the principle that such persons like the rest should cast their votes in the order in which they had held office. 7He furthermore put away Silanus’ daughter and married Cornelia Orestilla, whom he had actually seized during the marriage festival which she was celebrating with her betrothed, Gaius Calpurnius Piso. Before two months had elapsed he banished them both, claiming that they were maintaining illicit relations with each other. 8He permitted Piso to take with him ten slaves, and then, when he asked for more, allowed him to employ as many as he liked, merely remarking, “You will have just so many soldiers, too, with you.”
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