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BRIBERY
CHAP. IX.
Similar specimens of enormous expenditurein procuring votes for different public offices, aswell as for acting as spies on public bodies orindividuals, are to be found in the ancientauthors. Thus Milo, who proposed himself forconsul, gave to each of the voters 32/. 8^. 10 d . 1Sabinus Nymphidius promised to each soldierof the provincial legions who would support thechoice of Galba as emperor 40/. 7 s. 3d . 2 Clau-dius promised to each soldier 113/. for his vote 3 ,and Julian 201/. 16s. 4 Otho promised to theassassins of Galba a reward of 403/. 12s. each,and paid them in advance 80/. 14s. 5 ; and bribedone of his servants with 8072/. 18s. 6 Thebribes given in the courts of law to influencethe decisions were enormous, and there is rea-son to believe of frequent and usual occur-rence.
This large expenditure, and the power of
1 Asconius Pedianus. 2 Plutarch in Galba.
9 Philippus, lib. iii. 4 Dio.
6 Sallust. In stating the amount of the sums in the text theestimation of Arbuthnot in his tables of ancient coins hasbeen implicitly adopted. If subsequent writers have shownthat all of them are not minutely accurate, yet nothing hastended to prove any such deviation from exactness as canaffect the view intended to be exhibited here, of the largemasses of coin which must have been accumulated in thehands of a few of the most wealthy families.