Rome, the Greek World, and the East, Vol. 2 - Government, Society, and Culture in the Roman Empire

Trajan 37

dutieswhichpertaintomilitarydisciplinemustbecarriedoutevenonfestal
days:amongwhichtheinspectionoftheprisoners[custodiae]isalsoincluded.’’
TheoccasionmighthavebeeneitherwhenNataliswaslegatusinNumidiain
103–5orwhenhewaslegatusof PannoniaSuperiorin113onwards.^45 Other
rescriptsconcernedthephysicalandotherqualificationsformilitaryservice,
especiallywheredeliberatemutilationtoavoidservicehadoccurred,^46 while
a whole series of rescripts addressed to named individuals who were evi-
dentlygovernorslaiddownrulesfortheconductofcriminaljurisdiction—
forinstance,whetheraslavebelongingtoahusbandcouldbetorturedina
caserelatingtohiswife.^47
Buttheclosestandmostvividparalleltotheself-expressionofTrajan,as
itisvisibleinhisrepliestoPliny,iscertainlywhathesaysinarescriptad-
dressedtoDidiusSecundusontheproperhandlingofthegoodsofpersons
who had suffered the relatively mild form of exile known asrelegatio.The
second-centuryjuristPomponius,inhisfourthbookAdSabinum,quotesthe
followingclause(caput)fromtherescript:^48

Iamawarethat,bythegreed[avaritia]ofprevioustimes[thereignof

Domitian],theproperty[bona]ofpersonsrelegatedhasbeenclaimed

fortheimperialtreasury[fiscus].Butdifferentprincipleaccordswith

my clemency [clementia], and I, among the other steps by which the

purity [innocentia] of my times [is demonstrated], have cancelled this

practicealso.

Itisonlyrarelythat(aswithMiniciusNatalis)anycontemporarydocumen-
taryevidenceallowsevenahypotheticalidentificationofanaddresseenamed
inalegalsource,orofhiscurrentpost.Moreover,insomeothercasesofre-
scriptsattributedtoTrajan,noaddresseeisnamedatall.Alternatively,apro-
visionwhichmaywellinfacthavebeenembodiedinarescriptsentinreply
toanenquiryfromaprovincialgovernormaybedescribedneutrallyasan
enactment(constitutio).ThuswecomeverycloseagaintotheworldofPliny’s
exchangeswithTrajanwhenwereadthefollowingextractfromPomponius’
sixthbookofEpistulae et Variae Lectiones,preservedintheDigest:^49 ‘‘Ifany-
one,inconsiderationof hisownoranyoneelse’smagistracy,haspromised
thathewillconstructapublicbuildinginanycity,bytheenactmentofthe

45.Dig.2,12,9;seePIR^2 M619.

46.Dig.49,16,4pr.;4,5;4,12.

47.Dig.48,18,1,11(onthetortureofahusband’sslavein caput uxoris);12;19;21;19,5pr.

48.Dig.48,22,1.

49.Dig.50,12,14.