Hist. 1.30.1"Nihil adrogābō mihi nōbilitātis aut modestiae;'I shall claim for myself no nobility or modesty; Hist. 1.30.1neque enim relātū virtūtum in comparātiōne Othōnis opus est.for there is no need to recount virtues in comparison with Otho. Hist. 1.30.1Vitia, quibus sōlīs glōriātur, ēvertere imperium, etiam cum amīcum imperātōris ageret.His vices, the only things he boasts of, overturned the empire, even when he was playing the emperor's friend. Hist. 1.30.1Habitūne et incessū an illō muliebrī ōrnātū merērētur imperium?Was it by his bearing and gait, or by that womanish finery of his, that he would deserve the empire? Hist. 1.30.1Falluntur quibus luxuria speciē līberālitātis impōnit: perdere iste sciet, dōnāre nesciet.They are deceived on whom extravagance imposes under the guise of generosity: he will know how to squander, he will not know how to give. Hist. 1.30.1Stupra nunc et cōmissātiōnēs et fēminārum coetūs volvit animō: haec prīncipātūs praemia putat, quōrum libīdō ac voluptās penes ipsum sit, rubor ac dēdecus penes omnīs;Debauchery now, and revels, and gatherings of women are what he turns over in his mind: these he thinks the rewards of the principate, whose lust and pleasure would be his alone, the shame and disgrace everyone's; Hist. 1.30.1nēmō enim umquam imperium flāgitiō quaesītum bonīs artibus exercuit.for no one has ever exercised by good means an empire sought by crime.
Hist. 1.30.1Galbam cōnsēnsus generis hūmānī, mē Galba cōnsentientibus vōbīs Caesarem dīxit.The consent of the human race named Galba Caesar, and Galba, with your consent, named me. Hist. 1.30.1Sī rēs pūblica et senātus et populus vacua nōmina sunt, vestrā, commīlitōnēs, interest nē imperātōrem pessimī faciant.If the state, the senate and the people are empty names, it is still your concern, fellow soldiers, that the worst men should not make the emperor. Hist. 1.30.1Legiōnum sēditiō adversus ducēs suōs audīta est aliquandō: vestra fidēs fāmaque inlaesa ad hunc diem mānsit.A mutiny of legions against their commanders has been heard of at times: your loyalty and reputation have remained unharmed to this day. Hist. 1.30.1Et Nerō quoque vōs dēstituit, nōn vōs Nerōnem.Even Nero deserted you, not you Nero. Hist. 1.30.1Minus trīgintā trānsfugae et dēsertōrēs, quōs centuriōnem aut tribūnum sibi ēligentīs nēmō ferret, imperium adsignābunt?Are fewer than thirty turncoats and deserters, whom no one would tolerate choosing a centurion or tribune for themselves, to assign the empire? Hist. 1.30.1Admittitis exemplum et quiēscendō commūne crīmen facitis?Do you admit the precedent, and by keeping quiet make the crime common to all?
Hist. 1.30.1Trānscendet haec licentia in prōvinciās, et ad nōs scelerum exitūs, bellōrum ad vōs pertinēbunt.This licence will spread to the provinces, and the outcome of the crimes will fall on us, that of the wars on you. Hist. 1.30.1Nec est plūs quod prō caede prīncipis quam quod innocentibus datur, sed proinde ā nōbīs dōnātīvum ob fidem quam ab aliīs prō facinore accipiētis."Nor is more given for the murder of an emperor than to the innocent; rather, you will receive from us a donative for loyalty just as from others for the crime.'