e of the soil fairly
compelled the rest to imitate him. For this work he sent for a large
number of men from other nations as well.

[Sidenote:--17--] For this and other purposes he needed great sums of
money; and as he was a promoter of great enterprises and a liberal giver
and at the same time feared an attack from the persons of most influence
while he was thus engaged, he destroyed many excellent men. Of most of
these I shall omit any mention, merely saying that the stock complaint
under which all of them were brought before him was uprightness, wealth,
and family: all of them either killed themselves or were slaughtered by
others. I shall pause to consider only Corbulo and (of the Sulpicii
Scribonii) Rufus and Proculus. These two deserve attention because they
were in a way brothers and contemporaries, never doing anything separately
but united in purpose and in property as they were in family: they had for
a long time administered the affairs of the Germanies and had come to
Greece at the summons of Nero, who affected to want something from them. A
complaint of the kind which that period so prodigally afforded was lodged
against them. They could obtain no hearing on the matter nor even get
within sight of Nero; and as this caused them to be slighted by all
persons without exception, they began to long for death and so met their
end by slitting open their veins.--And I notice Corbulo, because the
emperor, after giving him also a most courteous summons and invariably
calling him (among other names) "father" and "benefactor," then, as this
general approached Cenchrea, commanded that he be slain before he had even
entered his presence. Some explain this by saying that Nero was about to
sing with zither accompaniment and could not endure the idea of being seen
by Corbulo while he wore the long ungirded tunic. The condemned man, as
soon as he understood the import of the order, seized a sword, and dealing
himself a lusty blow exclaimed: "Your due!" Now for the first time in his
career was he ready to believe that he had done ill both in sparing the
zither-player and in going to him unarmed.

[Sidenote:--18--] This is the substance of what took place in Greece. Does
it add much to mention that Nero ordered Paris the dancer killed because
he wished to learn dancing from him and was disappointed? Or that he
banished Caecina Tuscus, governor of Egypt, for bathing in the tub that
had been specially constructed for his coming