received they give letters from the Tarquins, and confer with them about
admitting the royal family into the city secretly by night.

4. The matter was first intrusted to brothers of the name of Vitellii
and those of the name of Aquilii. A sister of the Vitellii had been
married to Brutus the consul, and the issue of that marriage were young
men, Titus and Tiberius; these also their uncles admit into a
participation of the plot: several young noblemen also were taken in as
associates, the memory of whose names has been lost from distance of
time. In the mean time, when that opinion had prevailed in the senate,
which recommended the giving back of the property, and the ambassadors
made use of this as a pretext for delay in the city, because they had
obtained from the consuls time to procure modes of conveyance, by which
they might convey away the effects of the royal family; all this time
they spend in consulting with the conspirators, and by pressing they
succeed in having letters given to them for the Tarquins. For otherwise
how were they to believe that the accounts brought by the ambassadors on
matters of such importance were not idle? The letters, given to be a
pledge of their sincerity, discovered the plot; for when, the day before
the ambassadors set out to the Tarquins, they had supped by chance at
the house of the Vitellii, and the conspirators there in private
discoursed much together concerning their new design, as is natural, one
of the slaves, who had already perceived what was going on, overheard
their conversation; but waited for the occasion when the letters should
be given to the ambassadors, the detection of which would prove the
transaction; when he perceived that they were given, he laid the whole
affair before the consuls. The consuls, having left their home to seize
the ambassadors and conspirators, crushed the whole affair without any
tumult; particular care being taken of the letters, lest they should
escape them. The traitors being immediately thrown into chains, a little
doubt was entertained respecting the ambassadors, and though they
deserved to be considered as enemies, the law of nations however
prevailed.

5. The question concerning the restitution of the tyrants' effects,
which the senate had formerly voted, came again under consideration. The
fathers, fired with indignation, expressly forbad them either to be
restored or confiscated. They were given to be rifled by the people,
that after