Institutio Oratoria

Arguments from unlikes present great variety, for they may turn on kind, manner, time, place, etcetera, almost every one of which Cicero employs to overthrow the previous decisions that seemed to apply to the case of Cluentius, [*](pro Cluent. xxxii. sqq. ) while he makes use of argument from contraries when lie minimises [*](ib. xlviii. 134. The accused was a knight: the retention of his horse implied that he retained his status. ) the importance of the censorial stigma by praising Scipio Africanus, who in his capacity of censor allowed one whom he openly asserted to have committed deliberate perjury to retain his horse, because no one had appeared as evidence against him, though he

promised to come forward himself to bear witness to his guilt, if any should be found to accuse him. I have paraphrased this passage because it is too long to quote.

A brief example of a similar argument is to be found in Virgil, [*](Aen. ii. 540. )

1. But he, whom falsely thou dost call thy father,
2. Even Achilles, in far other wise
3. Dealt with old Priam, and Priam was his foe.

Historical parallels may however sometimes be related in full, as in the pro Milone [*](pro Mil. iv. 9. ) :

When a military tribune serving in the army of Gaius Marius, to whom he was related, made an assault upon the honour of a common soldier, the latter killed him; for the virtuous youth preferred to risk his life by slaying him to suffering such dishonour. And yet the great Marius acquitted him of all crime and let him go scot free.

On the other hand in certain cases it will be sufficient merely to allude to the parallel, as Cicero does in the same speech [*](ib. iii. 8. ) :

For neither the famous Servilius Ahala nor Publius Nasica nor Lucius Opimius nor the Senate during my consulship could be cleared of serious guilt, if it were a crime to put wicked men to death.

Such parallels will be adduced at greater or less length according as they are familiar or as the interests or adornment of our case may demand.