[29]
I see, O judges, that you, as becomes your feelings of humanity, are violently moved at
these enormous crimes now briefly related by me. What do you think must have been their
feelings who had not only to hear of these wicked deeds, but also to sit in judgment on them?
You are hearing of a man, in whose case you are not the judges,—of a man whom you do
not see,—of a man whom you now can no longer hate, —of a man who has made
atonement to nature and to the laws, whom the laws have punished with banishment, nature with
death. You are hearing of these actions, not from any enemy, you are hearing of them without
any witnesses being produced; you are hearing of them when those things which might be
enlarged upon at the greatest length are stated by me in a brief and summary manner. They were
hearing of the actions of a man with reference to whom they were bound to deliver their
judgment on oath,—of a man who was present, whose infamous and hardened countenance
they were looking upon,—of a man whom they hated on account of his
audacity,—of him whom they thought worthy of every possible punishment. They were
hearing the relation of these crimes from his accusers; they were hearing the statements of
many witnesses; they were hearing a serious and long oration on each separate particular from
Publius Canutius, a most eloquent man.
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