throughout all Italy, was sold at the sixth part of an _as_.
They contracted for the supply of it at Rome at the same price, at a
higher price in the country towns and markets, and at different
prices in different places. They felt well convinced that this tax
was invented by one of the censors, out of resentment to the people
because he had formerly been condemned by an unjust sentence, and that
in fixing the price of salt, those tribes had been most burdened by
whose means he had been condemned. Hence Livius derived the surname
of Salinator. The closing of the lustrum was later than usual, because
the censors sent persons through the provinces, that a report might be
made of the number of Roman citizens in each of the armies. Including
these, the number of persons returned in the census was two hundred
and fourteen thousand. Caius Claudius Nero closed the lustrum. They
then received a census of the twelve colonies, which had never been
done before, the censors of the colonies themselves presenting it,
in order that there might appear registers among the public records,
stating the extent of their resources, both in respect of furnishing
soldiers and money. The review of the knights then began to be made,
and it happened that both the censors had a horse at the public
expense. When they came to the Pollian tribe, in which was the name
of Marcus Livius, and the herald hesitated to cite the censor himself,
Nero said, "Cite Marcus Livius;" and whether it was that he was
actuated by the remains of an old enmity, or that he felt a ridiculous
pride in this ill-timed display of severity, he ordered Marcus Livius
to sell his horse, because he had been condemned by the sentence of
the people. In like manner, when they came to the Narnian tribe, and
the name of his colleague, Marcus Livius ordered Caius Claudius to
sell his horse, for two reasons; one, because he had given false
evidence against him; the other, because he had not been sincere in
his reconciliation with him. Thus a disgraceful contest arose, in
which each endeavoured to asperse the character of the other, though
not without detriment to his own. On the expiration of the office,
when Caius Claudius had taken the oath respecting the observance of
the laws, and had gone up into the treasury, he gave the name of
his colleague among the names of those whom he left disfranchised.
Afterwards, Marcus Livius came into the treasury, and excepting only
the Maecian tribe, wh