These were divided among the soldiers with their lands and buildings, as
conquered towns. Among the number were Capua, Rhegium, Venusia, Beneventum,
Nuceria and Vibo. Thus the most beautiful part of Italy became the prey of
the soldiers."
Dion Cassius, Suetonius and Velleius Paterculus all mention these
assignments. After the battle of Philippi and the defeat and death of
Brutus and Cassius, 170,000 men were provided for, in accordance with these
promises, out of the goods of the proscribed and the lands confiscated to
the state. The lands of the towns mentioned in Appian were taken under the
form of a forced sale, but the purchase money was never paid owing to the
bankrupt condition of the treasury.
If we examine into the nature of these agrarian laws since the death of
Julius Caesar, we shall find that they differ in all respects from previous
enactments:
1. They were executed at the expense not only of public domains but also of
private property.
2. They were the work of one man and not of the entire people.
3. The name of the people was never mentioned in these laws; they were
enacted wholly for the profit of the soldiery.
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