The History of Rome, Books I to VIII | Page 7

surprising to men ignorant of every art; but more
highly respected on account of the supposed divinity of his mother
Carmenta, whom these nations had admired as a prophetess, before the
coming of the Sibyl into Italy. This prince, alarmed by the concourse of
the shepherds hastily crowding round the stranger, whom they charged
with open murder, after he heard the act and the cause of the act,
observing the person and mien of the hero to be larger, and his gait
more majestic, than human, asked who he was? As soon as he was
informed of his name, his father, and his native country, he said, "Hail!
Hercules! son of Jupiter, my mother, a truth-telling interpreter of the
gods, has revealed to me, that thou shalt increase the number of the
celestials; and that to thee an altar shall be dedicated here, which some
ages hence the most powerful people on earth shall call Ara Maxima,
and honour according to thy own institution." Hercules having given
him his right hand, said, "That he accepted the omen, and would fulfil
the predictions of the fates, by building and consecrating an altar."
There for the first time a sacrifice was offered to Hercules of a chosen
heifer, taken from the herd, the Potitii and Pinarii, who were then the
most distinguished families that inhabited these parts, having been
invited to the service and the entertainment. It so happened that the
Potitii were present in due time, and the entrails were set before them;
when they were eaten up, the Pinarii came to the remainder of the feast.
From this time it was ordained, that while the Pinarian family subsisted,
none of them should eat of the entrails of the solemn sacrifices. The
Potitii, being instructed by Evander, discharged this sacred function as
priests for many ages, until the office, solemnly appropriated to their
family, being delegated to public slaves, their whole race became
extinct. This was the only foreign religious institution which Romulus
adopted, being even then an abettor of immortality attained by merit, to

which his own destinies were conducting him.
[Footnote 12: According to Cato, Rome was founded on the day of the
Palilia, the 11th of the Calends of May, in the first year of the 7th
Olympiad, and 751 B.C. This is two years short of Varro's
computation.]
[Footnote 13: He taught the Italians to read and write.]
8. The duties of religion having been duly performed, and the multitude
summoned to a meeting, as they could be incorporated into one people
by no other means than fixed rules, he gave them a code of laws, and
judging that these would be best respected by this rude class of men, if
he made himself dignified by the insignia of authority, he assumed a
more majestic appearance both in his other appointments, and
especially by taking twelve lictors to attend him. Some think that he
chose this number of officers from that of the birds, which in the
augury had portended the kingdom to him. I do not object to be of the
opinion of those who will have it that the apparitors (in general), and
this particular class of them,[14] and even their number, was taken
from their neighbours the Etrurians, from whom were borrowed the
curule chair, and the gown edged with purple; and that the Etrurians
adopted that number, because their king being elected in common from
twelve states, each state assigned him one lictor. Meanwhile the city
increased by their taking in various lots of ground for buildings, whilst
they built rather with a view to future numbers, than for the
population[15] which they then had. Then, lest the size of the city
might be of no avail, in order to augment the population, according to
the ancient policy of the founders of cities, who, after drawing together
to them an obscure and mean multitude, used to feign that their
offspring sprung out of the earth, he opened as a sanctuary, a place
which is now enclosed as you go down "to the two groves."[16] Hither
fled from the neighbouring states, without distinction whether freemen
or slaves, crowds of all sorts, desirous of change: and this was the first
accession of strength to their rising greatness. When he was now not
dissatisfied with his strength, he next sets about forming some means of
directing that strength. He creates one hundred senators, either because

that number was sufficient, or because there were only one hundred
who could name their fathers. They certainly were called Fathers,
through respect, and their descendants, Patricians.[17]
[Footnote 14: Apparitores hoc genus. There is something incorrect in
the language of the original here. In my version I have followed
Drakenborch. Walker, in his edition, proposes to read ut for et; thus,
quibus ut