Horatii and the three Alban Curiatii_.
It was agreed between Tullus king of Rome, and Metius king of Alba,
that the nation whose champions were victorious in combat should rule
over the other. The three Alban Curiatii were slain; one of the Roman
Horatii survived. Whereupon the Alban king with all his people became
subject to the Romans. The surviving Horatius returning victorious to
Rome, and meeting his sister, wife to one of the dead Curiatii,
bewailing the death of her husband, slew her; and being tried for this
crime, was, after much contention, liberated, rather on the entreaties
of his father than for his own deserts.
Herein three points are to be noted. _First_, that we should never
peril our whole fortunes on the success of only a part of our forces.
_Second_, that in a well-governed State, merit should never be allowed
to balance crime. And _third_, that those are never wise covenants
which we cannot or should not expect to be observed. Now, for a State
to be enslaved is so terrible a calamity that it ought never to have
been supposed possible that either of these kings or nations would rest
content under a slavery resulting from the defeat of three only of
their number. And so it appeared to Metius; for although on the victory
of the Roman champions, he at once confessed himself vanquished, and
promised obedience; nevertheless, in the very first expedition which he
and Tullus undertook jointly against the people of Veii, we find him
seeking to circumvent the Roman, as though perceiving too late the rash
part he had played.
This is enough to say of the third point which I noted as deserving
attention. Of the other two I shall speak in the next two Chapters.