of the tribunes against the person who
had freed him, asking and securing thus a helper in his cause. Both the
man in question and those associated with him in the proceedings were
punished; and the emperor further forbade rendering assistance to persons
in this way against their former masters, on pain of being deprived of
the right to bring suit against others. Per contra, people were vexed at
seeing him so much the slave of his wife and freedmen. This feeling was
especially marked on an occasion when Claudius himself and all the rest
were anxious to kill Sabinus (former governor of the Celtae in the reign
of Gains) in a gladiatorial fight, but the latter approached Messalina
and she saved him. They were also irritated at her having withdrawn
Mnester from the theatre and keeping him with her. But whenever any talk
about his not dancing sprang up among the people, Claudius would appear
surprised and make various apologies, taking oath that he was not at his
house. The populace, believing him to be really ignorant of what was
going on, was grieved to think that he alone was not cognizant of what
was being done in the imperial apartments,--behavior so conspicuous
that news of it had already traveled to the enemy. They were unwilling,
however, to reveal to him the state of affairs, partly through awe of
Messalina and partly to spare Mnester. For he pleased the people as much
by his skill as he did the empress by his beauty. With his abilities in
dancing he combined great cleverness of repartee, so that once when the
crowd with mighty enthusiasm begged him to perform a famous pantomime, he
dared to come to the front of the stage and say:

"To do this, friends, I may not try;
Orestes' bedfellow am I."

This, then, was the relation of Claudius to these matters.

As the number of lawsuits was now beyond reckoning and persons summoned
would now no longer put in an appearance because they expected to be
defeated, he gave written notice that by a given day he should decide the
case against them, by default, so that they would lose it even if absent.
And there was no deviation from this rule.

Mithridates king of the Iberians[8] undertook to rebel and was engaged
in preparations for a war against the Romans. His mother,
however, opposed him and since she could not win him over by persuasion,
determined to take to flight: he then became anxious to conceal
his project, and so, while himself continuing preparations,