Institutio Oratoria

Well, then, is everyone who fails to appear in defence of his father to be disinherited? Are there no exceptions to the rule? At this point the following arguments will spontaneously suggest themselves.

Is an infant liable to the law?

For we may imagine a case where the son is an infant and has failed to appear in his father's support. Again

does the law apply to a man who was away from home or absent on military service or on an embassy?

We have gained a considerable amount of ground; for we have established the fact that a man may fail to appear for his father and still inherit.

Our declaimer, who has thought out this line of argument, must now pass over like a Latin flute-player, as Cicero says, [*](Pro Mur. xii. 26. The flute-player went from one actor to another, according as each required accompaniment. ) to the side of the eloquent son and reply,

Granted, but you are not an infant, you were not away from home nor absent on military service.

Is there any answer to this except the previous reply,

I am an uneducated man

?

But to this there is the obvious retort,

Even if you could not actually plead, you might have supported him by your presence,

which is no more than the simple truth. The uneducated son must therefore return to the intention of the legislator.

He wished to punish unfilial conduct, but I am not unfilial.

To this the eloquent son will reply,

The action whereby you deserved disinheritance was unfilial, although penitence or desire for display may have subsequently led you to choose this as your reward. Further, it was owing to you that our father was condemned, since by absenting yourself you appeared to imply that you thought him guilty.

The uneducated son replies,

Nay, you contributed to his condemnation, for you had given offence to many and made our family unpopular.

These arguments are based on conjecture, as also will be the excuse put forward by the uneducated son to the effect that his father advised his absence, as he did not wish to emperil his whole family. All these arguments are involved in the preliminary question as to the letter and the intention of the law.