The specific passage you are referring to is found in Livy’s Ab Urbe Condita (History of Rome), Book 40, Chapter 43, Section 3. It details the mass poisoning investigation (quaestio veneficii) in 180 BCE led by the praetor Gaius Maenius. [1, 2, 3, 4]

The original Latin text and its English translation regarding this overwhelming task are provided below:

Latin Text (Original)

"C. Maenius, cui Sardinia provincia evenerat, et addita incommodo erat veneficii quaestio ultra decimum lapidem per fora conciliabulaque, litteras misit se iam tria milia hominum condemnasse, et crescere sibi levamento eam quaestionem indicis magis in dies"

English Translation (Loeb Classical Library)

"A letter was also brought from the praetor Gaius Maenius, to whom Sardinia had been allotted as his province, but who had been given the further responsibility of investigating cases of poisoning that occurred more than ten miles from the city, through the rural markets and settlements. He wrote that he had already condemned three thousand people, and that his investigation was assuming ever larger proportions by reason of the evidence received." [1, 2, 3]

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Context of the Passage

• The Burden: Maenius was so overwhelmed by informants coming forward with new names that the investigation began to take over his entire term. [1]
• The Scale: He actually had to write to the Roman Senate to explain that the case was expanding exponentially and delaying his departure to his main military command in Sardinia. [1, 2]
• Historical Impact: This period marked a massive wave of public panic in ancient Rome regarding secret crimes and poisonings. [1]

If you are researching this specific era, let me know if you would like to explore the political aftermath of these trials or examine the other concurrent poisoning investigations happening inside Rome's city walls.[1]

but did he ask to be relieved of the full task?

Yes, Gaius Maenius explicitly asked the Senate to either relieve him of the poisoning investigation or let him give up his military province. He presented the Senate with a strict, formal ultimatum because the two tasks had become entirely incompatible. [1, 2]

The exact Latin phrase detailing this ultimatum (which follows directly after the text quoted previously) is:

"...aut eam sibi esse deserendam aut provinciam dimittendam." [1]

The English Translation of the Ultimatum

"...[he wrote that] he must either abandon the investigation or give up his province." [1, 2]

Why He Pushed the Issue

• The Conflict of Duties: As a Roman praetor, Maenius had been allotted Sardinia as his military command (provincia). However, the Senate added the special judicial task (quaestio) of tracking down poisoners in the Italian countryside. [1, 2]
• The Logistical Nightmare: Because the poisoning case was growing exponentially due to a flood of informers, Maenius was completely trapped in Italy. He could not physically sail to Sardinia to command his troops while simultaneously running trials across the rural markets and settlements of Italy. [1, 2, 3, 4]

By forcing the Senate's hand with this letter, Maenius effectively demanded that they choose which duty was more critical to the Republic: cleaning up the poisoning panic at home, or securing the province of Sardinia.[1, 2]

Would you like to know how the Senate responded to his ultimatum, or would you like to explore how his predecessor, Quinctius Naevius, faced the exact same problem the year before? [1]

and what did senate resolve?

Livy does not provide the Senate's final resolution, as the text immediately moves on to a different topic. [1]

Right after Gaius Maenius delivers his ultimatum ("he must either abandon the investigation or give up his province"), Livy's narrative abruptly cuts to the return of Quintus Fulvius Flaccus from Spain and the upcoming consular elections: [1]

"...aut eam sibi esse deserendam aut provinciam dimittendam. Q. Fulvius Flaccus ex Hispania rediit Romam cum magna fama gestarum rerum..." [1]

What Historians Infer

Because Livy left a gap regarding the political resolution, historians analyze the broader context of Roman administration to determine what likely happened:

• The Priority of the Trials: The year prior (181 BCE), the praetor Quinctius Naevius was given the exact same dual mandate (Sardinia and the poisoning trials). The Senate explicitly forced Naevius to stay in Italy to finish the trials, delaying his departure to Sardinia by several months. It is highly probable the Senate forced Maenius to do the same, as the mass poisoning panic was considered an active, existential threat to the Roman Republic. [1]
• The "Diabolical Synergy" of Informants: Historical analysis indicates that these special courts (quaestiones) relied entirely on public informers (indices). Because Maenius had already condemned 3,000 people, the sheer momentum of citizens settling old scores or trying to save themselves meant the Senate could not easily shut the trials down without causing further panic. [1]

If you are tracking the history of Roman law, this administrative nightmare is precisely why the dictator Sulla eventually formalized the court system decades later—permanently separating provincial military commands from standard criminal investigations