Rabirius, who had avowedly taken part in the attack on Saturninus, and who, as his accusers asserted (though he seems to have proved the contrary), had actually struck the fatal blow. For the purpose of this trial an imposing though somewhat childish display of constitutional antiquarianism was provided. On the one side there was furbished up the "rugged formula of the old law,"[1] which was said to have been invented by King Tullus Hostilius for the trial of that Horatius who stabbed his sister for lamenting her lover, the fallen champion of Alba. On the other side an equally obsolete contrivance enabled the prætor Metellus Celer to break up the assembly by striking the red flag on the Janiculum, which in old times was the sign that the Etruscans were at the gates, and that the burghers must run to arms. Cicero spoke to the people on behalf of Rabirius; but the proceedings were not intended to be very serious; the assembly was allowed to disperse, and Labienus and Cæsar, though they might have brought on the case again another day, let the matter quietly drop.
Only two legislative measures bore the superscription of Cicero's name as consul. The first was a law heightening the penalties for corrupt practices at elections. An opposing advocate once wittily suggested that Cicero must have passed it "in order to furnish his perorations with more touching appeals to the feelings of the jurors."[2] The second measure relates to honorary or, as they were called, "free
