He would have been attacked as he was leaving the senate-house, had not the tribunes very opportunely appointed him a day for trial:  thereupon their rage was suppressed, every one saw himself become the judge, the arbiter of the life and death of his foe.  At first Marcius listened to the threats of the tribunes with contempt, saying that it was the right of affording aid, not of inflicting punishment that had been conferred upon that office:  that they were tribunes of the commons and not of the senators.  But the commons had risen with such violent determination, that the senators felt themselves obliged to sacrifice one man to arrive at a settlement.  They resisted, however, in spite of opposing odium, and exerted, collectively, the powers of the whole order, as well as, individually, each his own.  At first, an attempt was made to see if, by posting their clients [42] in several places, they could quash the whole affair, by deterring individuals from attending meetings and cabals.  Then they all proceeded in a body—­one would have said that all the senators were on their trial—­earnestly entreating the commons that, if they would not acquit an innocent man, they would at least for their sake pardon, assuming him guilty, one citizen, one senator.  As he did not attend in person on the day appointed, they persisted in their resentment.  He was condemned in his absence, and went into exile among the Volscians, threatening his country, and even then cherishing all the resentment of an enemy.[43] The Volscians received him kindly on his arrival, and treated him still more kindly every day, in proportion as his resentful feelings toward his countrymen became more marked, and at one time frequent complaints, at another threats, were heard.  He enjoyed the hospitality of Attius Tullius, who was at that time by far the chief man of the Volscian people, and had always been a determined enemy of the Romans.  Thus, while long-standing animosity stimulated the one and recent resentment the other, they concerted schemes for bringing about a war with Rome.  They did not readily believe that their own people could be persuaded to take up arms, so often unsuccessfully tried, seeing that by many frequent wars, and lastly, by the loss of their youth in the pestilence, their spirits were now broken; they felt that in a case where animosity had now died away from length of time they must proceed by scheming, that their feelings might become exasperated under the influence of some fresh cause for resentment.

It happened that preparations were being made at Rome for a renewal of the great games.[44] The cause of this renewal was as follows:  On the day of the games, in the morning when the show had not yet begun, a certain head of a family had driven a slave of his through the middle of the circus while he was being flogged, tied to the fork:[45] after this the games had been begun, as if the matter had nothing to do with any religious difficulty.  Soon afterward