, he ascended the Capitol, and with all due
solemnity proclaimed that he adopted Trajan as his son.

The Senate confirmed the choice, and acknowledged the emperor's
adopted son as his successor. In a letter which Nerva sent at once to
Trajan, he quoted most significantly a line from the beginning of the
"Iliad," where Chryses, insulted by Achilles, prays to Apollo: "May
thy shafts afford me vengeance on the Greeks for my tears." After a
little hesitation Trajan accepted the position, which was marked by
the titles of Imperator, Caesar, and Germanicus, and by the tribunician
authority. He immediately proceeded to Lower Germany, to assure
himself of the fidelity of the troops in that province, and while at
Cologne he received news of Nerva's death (January, 98).

The authority of the new emperor was recognized at once all the Empire
over. The novel fact that a master of the Romans should have been born
on Spanish soil seems to have passed with little remark, and this very
absence of notice is significant. Trajan's first care as emperor was
to write to the Senate an assurance like that which had been given by
Nerva, that he would neither kill nor degrade any senator. He ordered
the establishment of a temple and cult in honor of his adoptive
father, but he did not present himself at Rome for nearly two years
after his accession. Possibly he had taken measures before Nerva's
death to secure the revenge which Nerva craved, but probably did not
live to see. In his dealings with the mutinous praetorians the strength
of the new emperor's hand was shown at once. He ordered a portion of
the force to Germany. They did not venture to disobey, and were
distributed among the legions there. Those who remained at Rome were
easily overawed and reformed. It is still more surprising that the
soldiers should have quietly submitted to a reduction in the amount of
the donative or gift which it was customary for them to receive from a
new emperor, though the civil population of the capital were paid
their largess (_congiarium_) in full. By politic management Trajan was
able to represent the diminution as a sort of discount for immediate
payment, while the civilians had to wait a considerable time before
their full due was handed to them.

The secret of Trajan's power lay in his close personal relations with
the officers and men of the army, and in the soldierly qualities which
commanded their esteem. He possessed courage, justice, and frankn