The Gracchi Marius and Sulla #265058

IT would be scarcely possible for anyone writing on the period embraced in this volume, to perform his task adequately without making himself familiar with Mr. Long's 'history of the Decline of the Roman Republic' and Mommsen's 'history of Rome.' To do over again (as though the work had never been attempted) what has been done once for all accurately and well, would be mere prudery of punctiliousness. But while I acknowledge my debt of gratitude to both these eminent historians, I must add that for the whole period I have carefully examined the original authorities, often coming to conclusions widely differ ing from. Those of Mr. Long. And I venture to hope that from the advantage I have had in being able to compare the works of two writers, one of whom has well-nigh exhausted the theories as the other has the facts of the subject, I have succeeded in giving amore consistent and faithful account of the leaders and legislation of the revolutionary era than has hitherto been written. Certainly there could be no more in.v1.