1Vespasian was keen in soldiering: he would march at the head of the column, choose the site for the camp, and oppose the enemy night and day with his counsel and, if the situation demanded, with his own hand; he ate whatever food came to hand, and in dress and appearance scarcely differed from a common soldier; 1in short, had his avarice been absent, he would have been the equal of the generals of old. 1Mucianus, on the other hand, was raised high by his magnificence, his wealth and everything that went beyond the measure of a private citizen; 1he was readier in speech, and skilled in arranging and foreseeing civil affairs: it would have been an excellent blend for a principate if, with the vices of each removed, their virtues alone had been mixed.
1But the one in charge of Syria and the other of Judaea, at odds through jealousy because they governed neighbouring provinces, at last, on Nero's death, laid aside their hatreds and consulted together, at first through friends; then Titus, the chief pledge of their harmony, had ended their perverse quarrels for the common good, being formed by nature and art to win over even a character like Mucianus'. 1Tribunes, centurions and the mass of the soldiers were won over by diligence or by indulgence, by virtues or by pleasures, according to each man's character.