d it was uncertain whether Tiberius had acted in the
interest of the people, or simply to have a pretext for having power
placed in his hands. For a year he was master of Rome; but when he
wished to be elected tribune of the plebs for the succeeding year, his
enemies protested, as this was contrary to custom. A riot followed.
Tiberius and his friends seized the Capitol; the partisans of the
Senate and their slaves, armed with clubs and fragments of benches,
pursued them and despatched them (133).

Ten years later Gaius, the younger of the Gracchi, elected tribune of
the plebs (123), had the agrarian law voted anew, and established
distributions[141] of corn to the poor citizens. Then, to destroy the
power of the nobles, he secured a decree that the judges should be
taken from among the knights. For two years Gaius dominated the
government, but while he was absent from the city conducting a colony
of Roman citizens to Carthage the people abandoned him. On his return
he could not be reelected. The consul armed the partisans of the
Senate and marched against Gaius and his friends who had fled to the
Aventine Hill. Gaius had himself killed by a slave; his followers were
massacred or executed in prison; their houses were razed and their
property confiscated.

=Marius and Sulla.=--The contests of the Gracchi and the Senate had
been no more than riots in the streets of Rome, terminating in a
combat between bands hastily armed. The strife that followed was a
succession of real wars between regular armies, wars in Italy, wars in
all the provinces. From this time the party chiefs were no other than
the generals.

The first to use his army to secure obedience in Rome was Marius. He
was born in Arpinum, a little town in the mountains, and was not of
noble descent. He had attained reputation as an officer in the army,
and had been elected tribune of the plebs, then praetor, with the help
of the nobles. He turned against them and was elected consul and
commissioned with the war against Jugurtha, king of Numidia, who had
already fought several Roman armies. It was then that Marius enrolled
poor citizens for whom military service became a profession. With his
army Marius conquered Jugurtha and the barbarians, the Cimbri and
Teutones, who had invaded the empire. He then returned to Rome where
he had himself elected consul for the sixth time and now exercised
absolute power. Two parties now took form in Rome who called
themselves the