electing

* * *

cŏm-ĭtĭum, ii, n. [locus a coëundo, id est insimul veniendo, est dictus, Paul. ex Fest. p. 38, 12 Müll.; cf. Varr. L. L. 5, § 155 id.: comitium ab eo quod coibant eo comitiis curiatis, et litium causā].

In sing., the place for the assembling of the Romans voting by the curiœ situated near the Forum, and separated from it by the ancient Rostra, but sometimes considered as a part of the Forum in a more extended sense (hence, in Dion. Halic. ho kratistos and o epiphanestatos tês agoras topos: IN COMITIO AVT IN FORO, XII. Tab. ap. Auct. Her. 2, 13, 20; Cic. Sest. 35, 75; id. Verr. 2, 1, 22, § 58; id. Brut. 84, 289; Liv. 1, 36, 5; 27, 36, 8; 10, 24, 18; Plaut. Curc. 4, 1, 9 et saep.; cf. Dict. of Antiq.—

Transf., any place of assembly out of Rome;

so of the Ephoreum at Sparta,

Nep. Ages. 4, 2.—

Trop.:

quod (es) esset animi vestibulum et orationis janua et cogitationum comitium,

App. Mag. 7, p. 278, 1; so, sacri pectoris, Mam. Grat. Act. ad Jul. 15.—

Plur.: cŏmĭtĭa (access. form cŏmĭtĭae, Fratr. Arval. ap. Marin. p. 43; Gloss. Labb. p. 33), the assembly of the Romans for electing magistrates, etc., the comitia. —The comitia were of three kinds.

Comitia curiata, the most ancient, voting by curiæ, held in the comitium (v. I.), gradually restricted by,

The Comitia centuriata, the proper assembly of the populus Romanus, voting by centuries, instituted by Servius Tullius, continuing through the whole time of the republic, commonly held in the Campus Martius (not in the comitium, as is asserted by many from the similarity of the name; cf.

campus, II.),

Gell. 15, 27, 2 sqq.; Cic. Agr. 2, 11, 27; id. Dom. 14, 38; Liv. 5, 52, 15; cf. Cic. Leg. 3, 19, 44.—

Comitia tributa, voting by tribes, and commonly held in the Forum, but in choosing magistrates, freq. in the Campus Martius, convened for the first time in the trial of Coriolanus, two years after the introduction of the office of tribune of the people. In them the inferior magistrates (ædiles, tribunes of the people, quæstors), and, later, the Pontifex Maximus also, were chosen, Cic. Leg. 3, 19, 45; id. Agr. 2, 11, 27; Liv. 2, 58, 1; 2, 60, 4; Gell. 15, 27, 3; cf.

Dict. of Antiq.—Upon the comitia calata, v. 1, calo.—The usual t. t. for holding such comitia is: comitia habere,

Cic. Div. 2, 18, 43; freq. in all periods;

they were designated according to the magistrates who were to be chosen in them, as consularia,

Cic. Verr. 1, 6, 17; id. Mur. 18, 38:

praetoria,

Liv. 10, 22, 8:

tribunicia,

Cic. Att. 1, 1, 1; Liv. 6, 39, 11:

militaria,

Liv. 3, 51, 8:

quaestoria,

Cic. Fam. 7, 30, 1; cf.

also: comitia consulum,

Liv. 3, 20, 8; and:

comitia fiunt regi creando,

id. 1, 35, 1:

edicere comitia consulibus creandis,

id. 3, 37, 5:

comitia conficere,

Cic. Fam. 10, 36, 12:

differre,

Liv. 6, 37, 12:

dimittere,

Cic. Att. 1, 14, 5:

ducere,

id. ib. 4, 15, 7:

inire,

Suet. Vesp. 5.—

Transf., of other elections, out of Rome, Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 52, § 129; Liv. 42, 43, 7; Tab. Heracl. v. 24 sq.—

Trop.:

ibo intro, ubi de capite meo sunt comitia, i. e.,

where my fate is deciding, Plaut. Aul. 4, 7, 20:

Pseudulus mihi centuriata capitis habuit comitia,

id. Ps. 4, 7, 134:

meo illic nunc sunt capiti comitia,

id. Truc. 4, 3, 45.

crĕātĭo, ōnis, f. [id.] (very rare).

A creating, producing, begetting:

liberorum,

Dig. 1, 7, 15, § 2.— Absol.:

non hujus creationis,

i. e. not of man's building, Vulg. Heb. 9, 11.—

An electing to an office, a choice:

magistratuum,

Cic. Leg. 3, 3, 10:

tutoris,

Dig. 26, 7, 39, § 6.

sĕnātus, ūs ( gen. senati, Plaut. Cas. 3, 2, 6; id. Ep. 2, 2, 5; Sisenn. ap. Non. 484, 18; Cic. Div. in Caecil. 5, 19; also cited ap. Charis. p. 116 P.; Sall. C. 30, 3; 36, 5; 53, 1. acc. to Non. 484, 15; Charis. p. 10 P.; Don. Ter. Hec. 3, 2, 21; Prisc. p. 712 P.; id. Fragm. ap. Don. Ter. And. 2, 2, 28; also Cic. Fam. 2, 7, 4, acc. to the pr. man. of the Cod. Medic.; cf. Quint. 1, 6, 27.—Another form of the gen. senatuis, C. Fann. ap. Charis. p. 116 P.; Sisenn. ap. Non. 484, 19; also,

as it seems,

Varr. ib. 484, 19, yet the passage itself is wanting.—In old orthog. SENATVOS, S. C. de Bacch.; dat. senato, Quint. 1, 6, 27), m. [senex; like gerousia from gerôn; cf. Cic. Rep. 2, 28, 51; id. Sen. 6, 19], the council of the elders, the Senate, the supreme council in Rome, concerning whose origin, constitution, powers, etc., v. senator; cf. Momms. Hist. of Rome, 1, 113 sqq.; 1, 406 sqq. Am. ed.; Becker, Antiq. 2, 1, p. 339 sq.; 2, 2, p. 385 sq.; 2, 3, p. 210 sq.;

and the authors there cited: quae (consilium, ratio, sententia) nisi essent in senibus, non summum consilium majores nostri appellassent senatum. Apud Lacedaemonios quidem ii, qui amplissimum magistratum gerunt, ut sunt sic etiam nominantur senes,

Cic. Sen. 6, 19:

Romuli senatus, qui constabat ex optimatibus,

id. Rep. 2, 12, 23:

(Majores nostri) senatum rei publicae custodem collo caverunt,

id. Sest. 65, 137:

senatus rem pu blicam tenuit, ut pleraque senatūs auctori tate gererentur,

id. Rep. 2, 32, 56:

ut potentia senatus atque auctoritas minueretur,

id. ib. 2, 34, 59:

cum potestas in populo, auctoritas in senatu sit,

id. Leg. 3, 12, 28:

nec per senatum solvi hac lege possumus,

id. Rep. 3, 22, 33.—Freq. in the phrase: senatus populusque Romanus (often written S. P. Q. R.), the Senate and people of Rome, i.e. the State, the republic, Cic. Planc. 37, 90; id. Phil. 6, 2, 4;

very rarely in reverse order: populus et senatus Romanus,

Sall. J. 41, 2:

populi Romani senatusque verbis,

Liv. 7, 31, 10; 24, 37, 7; Vitr. praef. 1, 1: senatus (senati, senatuis, v. supra) consultum, a decree of the Senate (v. consulo, P. a. III.); senatūs auctoritas, the same (v. auctoritas, 4.): censuit senatus, the Senate resolved; v. censeo, 3. b. (cf. also decerno, I. A., and decretum, s. v. decerno fin.):

senatum convocare,

Cic. Sull. 23, 65; id. Cat. 2, 6, 12: senatus [p. 1669] est continuo convocatus frequensque convenit, id. Fam. 10, 12, 3; cf.:

senatus frequens vocatu Drusi in curiam venit,

id. de Or. 3, 1, 2:

vocare senatum,

Liv. 3, 38:

cito cogere,

Cic. Fam. 5, 2, 3; Suet. Caes. 16; id. Tib. 23:

habere senatum,

Cic. Fam. 1, 4, 1; id. Q. Fr. 2, 13, 3; Suet. Aug. 29:

agere,

id. Caes. 88; id. Aug. 35:

eo die non fuit senatus neque postero,

no session of the Senate, Cic. Fam. 12, 25, a, 1:

eodem die Tyriis (legatis) est senatus datus frequens,

i. e. gave audience, id. Q. Fr. 2, 13, 2 sq.; so,

dare senatum (legatis),

Sall. J. 13, 9; Nep. Hann. 7, 6; Liv. 41, 6 et saep.:

senatu dimisso,

Cic. Lael. 3, 12:

dimittere senatum,

id. Verr. 2, 4, 65, § 146:

mittere,

id. Q. Fr. 2, 1, 1:

multa ejus (Catonis) et in senatu et in foro vel provisa prudenter vel acta constanter ferebantur,

in the meetings of the Senate, id. Lael. 2, 6; cf.:

(Catilina) etiam in senatum venit,

id. Cat. 1, 1, 2: ad senatum adduci, in senatu poni, id. Fragm. ap. Quint. 9, 3, 50:

ad senatum in Capitolio stare,

Cic. Ac. 2, 45, 137: in senatu sedere, to sit among the senators, on the senatorial seats (in the theatre), Suet. Claud. 25 fin.; cf.:

in orchestram senatumque descendit,

id. Ner. 12:

in senatum venire,

to become a senator, Cic. Fl. 18, 42:

de senatu cooptando,

nominating, electing, id. Verr. 2, 2, 49, § 122; Liv. 23, 3:

de senatu movere,

Cic. Clu. 43, 122:

senatu movere,

Sall. C. 23, 1 Dietsch; and:

senatu emovere,

Liv. 45, 15, 8:

ex or de senatu eicere,

Cic. Sen. 12, 42; id. Clu. 42, 119; 48, 135; Liv. 40, 51; 41, 27; 43, 15 al. (v. 1. lego and eicio): seminarium senatus, i. e. the order of Knights, from which new senators were elected, Liv. 42, 61, 5.—Also of the Senate of other nations: senatus (Gaditanus), Asin. ap. Cic. Fam. 10, 32, 2:

Aeduorum,

Caes. B. G. 1, 31, 6:

Venetorum,

id. ib. 3, 16 fin. et saep.:

Judaeorum,

Vulg. 2 Macc. 11, 27.—

Trop., a council, i. e. consultation (mostly ante-class.):

de re argentariā senatum convocare in corde consiliarium,

Plaut. Ep. 1, 2, 56:

sibi senatum consili in cor convocare,

id. Most. 3, 1, 158; 5, 1, 8; id. Mil. 2, 6, 111:

deūm,

Mart. Cap. 6, § 582.

tăbella, ae ( nom. plur. TABELAI, S. C. de Bacch. Corp. I. R. 196). f. dim. [tabula].

In gen., a small board, a little table or tablet (rare and mostly poet. and in post-Aug. prose):

liminis,

i. e. the door-sill, Cat. 32, 5:

tabella aerea,

a brass plate, Plin. 33, 1, 6, § 19: hos (libellos) eme, quos artat brevibus membrana tabellis, little tablets, i. e. small pages, Mart. 1, 3, 3:

parva tabella capit ternos utrimque lapillos,

small gamingboards, Ov. A. A. 3, 365; id. Tr. 2. 481:

pistor multiplices struit tabellas,

i. e. thin cakes, Mart. 11, 31, 9.—Of the basket or cradle in which Romulus and Remus were exposed:

heu quantum fati parva tabella vehit,

the little bark, Ov. F. 2, 408.—

In partic. (class.).

A writing-tablet:

tabellis pro chartis utebantur antiqui, quibus ultro citro, sive privatim sive publice opus erat, certiores absentes faciebant, unde adhuc tabellarii dicuntur: et tabellae missae ab imperatoribus,

Fest. p. 359 Müll.:

tabellae Imponere manus,

Ov. P. 4, 2, 27:

abiegnae,

id. A. A. 3, 469:

litteras tabellae insculpere,

Quint. 1, 1, 27:

fecit et Libyn puerum tenentem tabellam,

Plin. 34, 8, 19, § 59.—

Hence, transf., in plur., a writing, written composition, letter, contract, will, etc.:

tabellas proferri jussimus... Recitatae sunt tabellae in eandem fere sententiam,

Cic. Cat. 3, 5, 10:

allatae sunt tabellae ad eam a Stratippocle, eum argentum sumpsisse,

Plaut. Ep. 2, 2, 68:

ex tabellis jam faxo scies,

id. Ps. 1, 1, 47:

tabellas consignare,

id. Curc. 2, 3, 86:

tu quidem tabellis obsignatis agis mecum,

with sealed writings, Cic. Tusc. 5, 11, 33:

publicae Heracleensium,

public records, id. Arch. 4, 9; cf. Liv. 43, 16, 13:

tabellae quaestionis plures proferuntur,

minutes of evidence, Cic. Clu. 65, 184:

cur totiens video mitti recipique tabellas?

Ov. Am. 3, 14, 31:

rasae,

id. A. A. 1, 437:

nuptiis tabellas dotis ipse consignavit,

the marriage contract, Suet. Claud. 29:

falsas signare tabellas,

forged wills, Juv. 8, 142:

laureatae,

a letter announcing a victory, Liv. 45, 1, 8.— Sing. (rare):

testimonium per tabellam dare,

in writing, Tac. Or. 36: ex tabellā pronuntiare sententiam, Suet. Claud. 15.—

A tablet for voting, a ballot.

In the comitia, used in electing a magistrate or deciding upon the acceptance of a proposed law: in the former case the elector wrote down the name of a candidate; in the latter, each voter received two tablets, on one of which were the letters U. R., i. e. uti rogas, denoting approval;

on the other, A., i. e. antiquo (for the old law), denoting rejection: me universa civitas non prius tabellā quam voce priorem consulem declaravit,

Cic. Pis. 1, 3:

an ego exspectem, dum de te quinque et septuaginta tabellae dirimantur?

id. ib. 40, 96:

tabella modo detur nobis, sicut populo data est,

id. Phil. 11, 8, 19; cf.:

si populo grata est tabella, quae frontis aperit hominum,

id. Planc. 6, 16. —

In courts of justice; here each judge usually received three tablets; one of which, inscribed A., i. e. absolvo, denoted acquittal; another, with C., i. e. condemno, written on it, denoted condemnation;

and the third, with N. L., i. e. non liquet (it is not clear), left the case undecided: cum tabella vobis dabitur, judices, non de Flacco dabitur solum: dabitur de bonis omnibus,

Cic. Fl. 39, 99:

huic judicialis tabella committetur?

id. Verr. 2, 2, 32, § 79:

de quibusdam etiam imperitus judex dimittere tabellam potest,

give his vote, Sen. Ben. 3, 7, 5:

quamlibet austeras de me ferat urna tabellas,

Prop. 4 (5), 11, 49; Caes. B. C. 3, 83; cf. Suet. Aug. 33. —

A painted tablet, a small picture or painting:

ea (exhedria) volebam tabellis ornare,

Cic. Fam. 7, 23, 3:

priscis sparsa tabellis Porticus,

Ov. A. A. 1, 71:

inveniat plures nulla tabella modos,

id. ib. 2, 680:

comicae tabellae,

Plin. 35, 10, 37, § 114; cf.:

cubicula tabellis adornavit,

Suet. Tib. 43:

Tyrrhena sigilla, tabellas, Sunt qui non habeant,

Hor. Ep. 2, 2, 180:

Pausiaca,

id. S. 2, 7, 95.—

A votive tablet, hung up in a temple, and on which one acknowledged by writing or painting the favor or aid he had received from a deity:

nunc, dea, nunc succurre mihi, nam posse mederi, Picta docet templis multa tabella tuis,

Tib. 1, 3, 28:

et posita est meritae multa tabella deae,

Ov. F. 3, 268:

votiva,

Hor. S. 2, 1, 33; so Juv. 12, 27:

memores,

Ov. M. 8, 744. —

A fan:

quos (ventos) faciet nostrā mota tabella manu,

Ov. Am. 3, 2, 38.