« Sal. Cat. 28 | Sal. Cat. 29 | Sal. Cat. 30 | About This Work »
29When these events were reported to Cicero, he was greatly disturbed by the twofold peril, since he could no longer by his unaided efforts protect the city against these plots, nor gain any exact information as to the size and purpose of Manlius’s army; he therefore formally called the attention of the senate to the matter, which had already been the subject of popular gossip. 2Thereupon, as is often done in a dangerous emergency, the senate voted “that the consuls should take heed that the commonwealth suffer no harm.” 3The power which according to Roman usage is thus conferred upon a magistrate by the senate is supreme, allowing him to raise an army, wage war, exert any kind of compulsion upon allies and citizens, and exercise unlimited command and jurisdiction at home and in the field; otherwise the consul has none of these privileges except by the order of the people.
« Sal. Cat. 28 | Sal. Cat. 29 | Sal. Cat. 30 | About This Work »