158 JEMILIUS . PAULUS.

His first wife was* Papiria, the daughter of Maso, who had formerly been consul. With her he lived a consider- able time in wedlock, and then divorced her, though she had made him the father of noble children ; being mother of the renowned Scipio, and Fabius Maximus. The rea- son of this separation has not come to our knowledge ; but there seems to be a truth conveyed in the account of another Roman's being divorced from his wife, which may be applicable here. This person being highly blamed by his friends, who demanded, Was she not chaste ? was she not fair? was she not fruitful? holding out his shoe, asked them. Whether it was not new ? and well made ? Yet, added he, none of you can tell where it pinches me. Certain it is, that great and open faults have often led to no separation; while mere petty repeated annoyances, arising from unpleasantness or incongruity of character, have been the occasion of such estrangement as to make it impossible for man and wife to live together with any content. ^milius, having thus put away Papiria, married a second wife, by whom he had two sons, whom he brought up in his own house, transferring the two former into the greatest and most noble families of Rome. The elder was adopted into the house of Fabius Maximus, who was five times consul ; the younger, by the son of Scipio Afri- canus, his cousin-german, and was by him named Scipio. Of the daughters of JEmilius, one was married to the son of Cato, the other to ^lius Tubero, a most worthy man, and the one Roman who best succeeded in combi- ning liberal habits with poverty. For there were sixteen near relations, all of them of the family of the iElii, pos- sessed of but one farm, which sufl&ced them all, whilst one small house, or rather cottage, contained them, their numerous offspring, and their wives ; amongst whom was the daughter of our jEmilius, who, although her father had been twice consul, and had twice triumphed, was not