er, he had recourse more readily to other kinds of killings.
The Caesarians and Messalina were really responsible for this. Whenever
they desired to obtain any one's death, they would terrify him, with the
result that they would be allowed to do everything they chose. Often,
when in a moment of sudden alarm his momentary terror had led him to
order some one's death, afterward, when he recovered and came to his
senses, he would search for the man and on learning what had happened
would be grieved and repent. He began this series of slaughters with
Gaius Appius Silanus. This man, who was of very noble family and at the
time was governor of Spain, he had sent for, pretending that he wanted to
see him about something, had married him to Messalina's mother, and had
for some time held him in honor among his dearest and closest friends.
Then he suddenly killed him. The reason was that Silanus had offended
Messalina, the most abandoned and lustful of women, in refusing to lie
with her, and by the slight shown the empress had alienated Narcissus,
the emperor's freedman. As they had no true charge to bring against him,
nor even one that would be believed, Narcissus invented a dream in which
he declared he had seen Claudius murdered by the hand of Silanus. So just
before dawn, while the emperor was still in bed, he came all of a tremble
to tell him the dream, and Messalina by expatiating on it made it worse.
Thus Silanus perished just because of a vision.

[-15-] After the latter's death the Romans at once lost confidence in
Claudius, and Annius Vinicianus with some others formed a plot against
him. The chief conspirator had been one of those proposed at the death of
Gaius for the imperial office, and it was partly fear inspired by this
fact that caused him to rebel. As he possessed no considerable force,
however, he sent to Furius Camillus Scribonianus, governor of Dalmatia,
who had a large body of native and foreign troops. Camillus, who was
inclined to the project of his own accord, was induced to revolt at the
same time, particularly because he had been spoken of for emperor. When
so much had been accomplished, many senators and knights joined the ranks
of Annius. They did him no good, however,[5] for the soldiers, because
Camillus proffered them the name of _populus_ and promised that he would
restore to them their ancient freedom, suspected that they should have
troubles and changes of government again and would therefore no l