Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 1.djvu/879

CORVUS. Ponipouius (Dig. 1. tit. 2. s. B. § 35), which has given occasion to much controversy. Me says that Coruncanius was the first who publicly pro- fessed law, since, before his time, jurists en- deavoured to conceal the jus civile, and gave their time, not to students, but to those who wanted their advice. The statement as to the early con- cealment of the law has been supposed to be fabulous (Puchta, Institutionen^ i. p. 301); but liere it is proper to distinguish between the rules applicable to ordinary dealings on the one hand, and the technical regulations of the ctilendar, of procedure and of religious rites, on the other. Schrader(in Hugo's C«-t/. Mag. v. p. 187) assumes that it was usual for jurists before Coruncanius to admit patrician students — those at least who were destined for the college of pontiffs — to learn law by being present at their consultations with their clients. He further thinks that Coruncanius did not profess to give any systematic or peculiar in- struction in the theory of law, and certainly there are passages which prove that such theoretic in- struction was not common in the time of Cicero. (Cic. Brut. 89, de Amic. 1, de Leg. i. 4, de Of. ii. 1 3.) Sohrader therefore comes to the conclusion, that Coruncanius first publicly professed law only in this sense, that he was the first to allow ple- Ijeians and patricians indiscriminately to learn law by attending his consultations. This interpreta- tion, though it is ingenious, and has found favour with Hugo (R. R. G. p. 460) and Zimmern (R. R. G. i. § 53), appears to us to be very strained, and we think Pomponius must have meant to con- vey, whether rightly or wrongly, first, that before Coruncanius, it was not usual for jurists to take pupils ; and, secondly, that the pupils of Corunca- nius were not left to gain knowledge merely by 8«?cing business transacted and hearing or reading the opinions given by their master to those who consulted him, but that they received special in- struction in the general doctrines of law. The two Coruncanii who were sent B. c. 228 as ambassadors from Rome to Teuta, queen of Illy- ricum, to complain of the maritime depredations of her subjects, aud one of whom at least was put to death by her orders, were probably the sons of the jurist. (Appian, de Rebus lllyr. 7 ; Polyb. ii. 8 ; Plin. H. N. xxxiv. 6.) By Polybius they are called Caius and Lucius ; by Pliny, P. Junius and Tiberius. Titus for I'iberius, and Coruncanus for Corun- canius, are ordinary corruptions of the jurist's name. (Rutilius, Vitue JCtorum^ c. 5 ; Heineccius, Hist. Jur. Civ. §118; Schweppe, R. R. G. § 127 ; L. A. WiirfFel, Epist. de Ti. Coruncnnio., Hal. 1740.) [J. T. G.] CORVUS, a snmame in the Aquillia and Va- leria gentes. In the latter, the lengthened fonn Corvinus was adopted after the time of M. Vale- rius Corvus. [See below. No. 3, and Corvinus.] 1 L. Aquillius Corvus, consular tribune in B. c. 388. (Liv. vi. 4.) 2. M. Valerius Cokvus, one of the most illus- trious men in the early history of the republic, was born about b. c. 371 in the midst of the strug- gles attending the Licinian laws. Boiiig a member of the great Valerian house, he had an early oppor- tunity of distinguishing himself, and we accord- ingly find him serving in B. c. 349 as military tri- bune in the army of the consul L. Furius Camillus in his campaign against the Gauls. His celebinted CORVUS. 801 exploit in this war, from which he obtained the surname of "Corvus," or "Raven," is, like many other of the achievements of the early Roman he- roes, mingled with fable. A Gallic warrior of gigantic size challenged to single combat any one of the Romans. 1 1 was accepted by Valerius after obtaining the consent of the consul, and as he was commencing the comlwit, a raven settled upon his helmet, and, as often as he attacked the Gaul, the raven flew at the face of the foe, till at length the barbarian fell by the sword of Valerius. A general battle then ensued, in which the Gauls were en- tirely defeated. The consul presented Valerius with ten oxen and a golden crown, and the grate- ful people elected him, in his absence, consul for the next year, though he was only twenty-three years of age. He was consul in B. c. 348 with L. Popillius Laenas. There was peace in that year both at home and abroad : a treaty was made with Carthage. (Liv. vii. 26, 27 ; Cell. ix. 11; Val. Max. viii. 15. § 5; Eutrop. ii. 6.) In B. c. 346 Corvus was consul a second time with C. Poetelius Libo. He carried on war against the Volsci, defeated them in battle, and then took Satricum, which he burnt to the ground with the exception of the temple of Mater Matuta. He obtained a triumph on his return to Rome. (Liv. vii. 27; Censorin. de Die Nat. 17.) In B. c. 343 Corvus was consul a third time with A. Cornelius Cossus Arvina. Young as he was, Corvus was already regarded as one of the very first generals of the republic, and the state therefore looked up to him to conduct the war against the Samnites, which had broken out in this year. His popularity with the soldiers was as great as his military talents, and he consequently possessed unbounded influence over his troops. He was distinguished by a kind and amiable disposi- tion, like the other members of his house ; and in the camp he was in the habit of competing with the common soldiers in the athletic games which amused their leisure hours. It was fortunate for the Romans that they had such a genei-al in the great struggle they were now entering upon. After a hard-fought and most bloody battle, Corvus en- tirely defeated the Samnites on mount Gaurua above Cumae : a battle which, as Niebuhr remarks, seldom as it is mentioned, is one of the most me- morable in the history of the world, since it was a presage of the result of the great contest which had tiien begun between Sabellians and Latins for the sovereignty of the world. Meanwhile the colleague of Corvus had been in the greatest danger in the mountain passes near Caudium, where the Romans met with such a disaster twenty-one years after- wards ; but the army was saved by the valour of P. Decius. Corvus seems to have joined his col- league shortly afterwards, and with their united forces, or with his own alone, he gained another brilliant victory over the Samnites near Suessula. Forty thousand shields of those who had been slain or had fled, and a hundred and seventy stan- dards are said to have been piled up before the consul. His triumph on his return to Rome was the most brilliant that the Romans had yet seen. Corvus gained these two great victories in his twenty-ninth year, and he is another instance of the fact which we so frequently find in history, that the greatest military talents are mostly deve- loped at an early age. (Liv. vii. 28 — 39 ; Appian, Samn. 1.)