Emperors at Work 21AristidespraisesthegrammarianAlexanderofCotiecum,teacherofthechil-
drenofMarcusAurelius,forusinghispositiontoshowerbenefitsoncities
andindividuals—andneveraskingforcashinreturn.^122
Itmayseemincrediblethatemperorscouldhavedealtpersonallywithall
thebusinessthatcametothem.Thosewhowereconscientiousdidindeed
work very hard.They might, like Augustus or Hadrian or Marcus Aure-
lius,goongivingjudgementthroughthenight;^123 theycontinuedtohold
cognitiones, to receive embassies and write letters when at their villas,^124 on
journeys,andoncampaign.Ontheotherhand,iftheydidnotwishtodo
business,itwasnotdone.ThecasesofTiberiusonCapriandofPhilo’slong
pursuitof,andvainconfrontationwith,Caligulaarewellknown.Onhear-
ingthenewsofVindex’srevoltNeroissuednoordersorrescriptsforeight
days;^125 aboutthattimeVespasianadvisedAgrippaIItosendamantoNero
forjudgement—butwhentheprisonergottherehefoundtheEmperorpre-
occupied, so he simply returned.^126 Trajan (so theHistoria Augustaalleges)
neveransweredlibellionprinciple;^127 Commodusgavealmostnolegalrul-
ings;Caracallawaslazyaboutholdingcognitiones,andwhenheproposedto
do so, he might keep his senatorialamiciwaitingatthedoorfromdawn
tilldusk.^128
Itispossible,ofcourse,thatthepictureoursourcesprovideoftheem-
perordealingpersonallywithpeopleandcommunicationsis,whiletruein
itself,ultimatelytotallymisleading,inthatvastrangesofimperialbusiness
werehandledbythebureaux,inprivate,systematicallyconcealedfromthe
viewofourliterarysources.Inthenatureofthecasenosuchpropositioncan
everbeconclusivelyrefuted.Itcanonlybestated,firstly,thatalltheevidence
wehavepointsinthesamedirection;and,secondly,thatthereisevidence
thatitwasnotmerelyanobservablefactbutaprinciplethatemperorsshould
composetheirownpronouncements,whetherwrittenorverbal.Forwefind
FrontowritingtoLuciusVerusabouttheJulio-Claudianemperors:‘‘Which
ofthemcouldaddressthepeopleortheSenateinaspeechofhisown?Which
coulddrawupanedictoraletterinhisownwords?’’^129 Asregardsspeeches
- AeliusAristides,Or.12(Dindorf32Keil,15–16).
- Suet.,Div. Aug.33;Dio69,18,2–4;71,6,1.
- Seeesp.Fronto,de feriis Alsiensibus3(Naber224–25;LoebII,4–5;VanDenHout
212–13). - Suet.,Nero40.
- Jos.,Vita408–9.Cf.JRS56(1966):159(chapter11involumeI).
127.HA,Macrinus13,1.
128.Dio77,17. - Fronto,ad Verum3,7(Naber124;LoebII,138;VanDenHout117).