XLI
Secutus deinde est consulatus C. Caesaris, qui scribenti manum iniicit et quamlibet festinantem in se morari cogit. Hic nobilissima Iuliorum genitus familia et, quod inter omnis antiquitatis studiosos constabat, ab Anchise ac Venere deducens genus, forma omnium civium excellentissimus, vigore animi acerrimus, munificentia effusissimus, animo super humanam et naturam et fidem evectus, magnitudine cogitationum, celeritate bellandi, patientia periculorum Magno illi Alexandro, sed sobrio neque iracundo simillimus, qui denique semper et cibo et sommo in vitam, non in voluptatem uteretur, cum fuisset C. Mario sanguine coniunctissimus atque idem Cinnae gener, cuius filiam ut repudiaret nullo metu compelli potuit, cum M. Piso consularis Anniam, quae Cinnae uxor fuerat, in Sullae dimisisset gratiam, habuissetque fere duodeviginti annos eo tempore, quo Sulla rerum potitus est, magis ministris Sullae adiutoribusque partium quam ipso conquirentibus eum ad necem mutata veste dissimilemque fortunae suae indutus habitum nocte urbe elapsus est. Idem postea admodum iuvenis, cum a piratis captus esset, ita se per omne spatium, quo ab iis retentus est, apud eos gessit, ut pariter iis terrori venerationique esset, neque umquam aut nocte aut die (cur enim quod vel maximum est, si narrari verbis speciosis non potest, omittatur?) aut excalcearetur aut discingeretur, in hoc scilicet, ne si quando aliquid ex solito variaret, suspectus iis, qui oculis tantummodo eum custodiebant, foret.
[41] (1) Then followed the consulship of Gaius Caesar, who now lays hold upon my pen and compels, whatever my haste, to linger a while upon him. Sprung from the noble family of the Julii, and tracing his descent from Venus and Anchises, a claim conceded by all investigators of antiquity, he surpassed all his fellow-citizens in beauty of person. He was exceedingly keen and vigorous of mind, lavish in his generosity, and possessed a courage exceeding the nature, and even the credence, of man. In the magnitude of his ambitions, in the rapidity of his military operations, and in his endurance of danger, he closely resembled Alexander the Great, but only when Alexander was free from the influence of wine and master of his passions (2) for Caesar, in a word, never indulged in food or in sleep except as they ministered, not to pleasure, but to life. To Gaius Marius he was closely related by blood; he was also the son-in‑law of Cinna, whose daughter no consideration of fear would induce him to divorce, whereas Marcus Piso, a man of consular rank, had divorced Annia, who had been the wife of Cinna, in order to win Sulla’s favour. Caesar was only about eighteen years of age at the time of Sulla’s dictatorship; and when a search was made for him with a view to putting him to death, not, it is true, by Sulla himself, but by his minions and partisans, he escaped from the city at night by assuming a disguise which effectually concealed his rank. (3) Later, but when still quite a young man, he was captured by pirates and so conducted himself during the entire period of his detention as to inspire in them to an equal degree both fear and respect. Neither by day nor by night did he remove his shoes or loosen his girdle — for why should a detail of the greatest significance be omitted merely because it cannot be adorned in imposing language? — lest the slightest change in his usual garb might cause him to be suspected by his captors, who guarded him only with their eyes.
XLII
Longum est narrare, quid et quotiens ausus sit, quanto opere conata eius qui obtinebat Asiam magistratus populi Romani metu suo destituerit. Illud referatur documentum tanti mox evasuri viri: quae nox eam diem secuta est, qua publica civitatium pecunia redemptus est, ita tamen, ut cogeret ante obsides a piratis civitatibus dari, et privatus et contracta classe tumultuaria invectus in eum locum, in quo ipsi praedones erant, partem classis fugavit, partem mersit, aliquot navis multosque mortalis cepit; laetusque nocturnae expeditionis triumpho ad suos revectus est, mandatisque custodiae quos ceperat, in Bithyniam perrexit ad proconsulem Iuncum (idem enim Asiam eamque obtinebat) petens, ut auctor fieret sumendi de captivis supplicii: quod (cum) ille se facturum negasset venditurumque captivos dixisset (quippe sequebatur invidia inertiam), incredibili celeritate revectus ad mare, priusquam de ea re ulli proconsulis redderentur epistulae, omnes, quos ceperat, suffixit cruci.
[42] (1) It would take too long to tell of his many bold plans for the punishment of the pirates, or how obstinately the timid governor of Asia refused to second them. The following story, however, may be told as a presage of his future greatness. (2) On the night following the day on which his ransom was paid by the cities of Asia — he had, however, compelled the pirates before payment to give hostages to these cities — although he was but a private citizen without authority, and his fleet had been collected on the spur of the moment, he directed his course to the rendezvous of the pirates, put to flight part of their fleet, sank part, and captured several ships and many men. (3) Well satisfied with the success of his night expedition he returned to his friends and, after handing his prisoners into custody, went straight to Bithynia to Juncus, the proconsul — for the same man was governor of Bithynia as well as of Asia — and demanded his sanction for the execution of his captives. When Juncus, whose former inactivity had now given way to jealousy, refused, and said that he would sell the captives as slaves, Caesar returned to the coast with incredible speed and crucified all his prisoners before anyone had had time to receive a dispatch from the consul in regard to the matter.
XLIII
Idem mox ad sacerdotium ineundum (quippe absens pontifex factus erat in Cottae consularis locum, cum paene puer a Mario Cinnaque flamen dialis creatus victoria Sullae, qui omnia ab iis acta fecerat irrita, amisisset id sacerdotium) festinans in Italiam, ne conspiceretur a praedonibus omnia tunc obtinentibus maria et merito iam infestis sibi, quattuor scalmorum navem una cum duobus amicis decemque servis ingressus effusissimum Adriatici maris traiecit sinum. Quo quidem in cursu conspectis, ut putabat, piratarum navibus cum exuisset vestem alligas setque pugionem ad femur alterutri se fortunae parans, mox intellexit frustratum esse visum suum arborumque ex longinquo ordinem antemnarum praebuisse imaginem. Reliqua eius acta in urbe, nobilissima Cn. Dola bellae accusatio et maior civitatis in ea favor, quam reis praestari solet, contentionesque civiles cum Q. Catulo atque aliis eminentissimis viris celeberrimae, et ante praeturam victus in maximi pontificatus petitione Q. Catulus, omnium confessione senatus princeps, et restituta in aedilitate adversante quidem nobilitate monumenta C. Marii, simulque revocati ad ius dignitatis proscriptorum liberi, et praetura quaesturaque mirabili virtute atque industria obita in Hispania (cum esset quaestor sub Vetere Antistio, avo huius Veteris consularis atque pontificis, duorum consularium et sacerdotum patris, viri in tantum boni, in quantum humana simplicitas intellegi potest) quo notiora sunt, minus egent stilo.
[43] (1) Not long afterwards he was hastening to Italy to enter upon the priestly office of pontifex to which he had been elected in his absence in place of the ex-consul Cotta. Indeed, while still little more than a boy he had already been made priest of Jupiter by Marius and Cinna, but all their acts had been annulled in consequence of Sulla’s victory, and Caesar had thus lost this priesthood. On the journey just mentioned, wishing to escape the notice of the pirates who then infested all the seas and by this time had good reasons for being hostile to him, he took two friends and ten slaves and embarked in a four-oared boat, and in this way crossed the broad expanse of the Adriatic Sea. (2) During the voyage, sighting, as he thought, some pirate vessels, he removed his outer garments, bound a dagger to his thigh, and prepared himself for any event; but soon he saw that his eyes had deceived him and that the illusion had been caused by a row of trees in the distance (3) which looked like masts and yards.
As for the rest of his acts after his return to the city, they stand in less need of description, since they are better known. I refer to his famous prosecution of Gnaeus Dolabella, to whom the people showed more favour than is usually exhibited to men under impeachment; to the well-known political contests with Quintus Catulus and other eminent men; to his defeat of Quintus Catulus, the acknowledged leader of the Senate, for the office of pontifex maximus, before he himself had even been praetor; (4) to the restora
tion in his aedileship of the monuments of Gaius Marius in the teeth of the opposition of the nobles; to the reinstatement of the children of proscribed persons in the rights pertaining to their rank; and to his praetorship and quaestorship passed in Spain, in which he showed wonderful energy and valour. He was quaestor under Vetus Antistius, the grandfather of our own Vetus, the consular and pontiff, himself the father of two sons who have held the consulship and the priesthood and a man whose excellence reaches our highest conception of human integrity.
XLIV
Hoc igitur consule inter eum et Cn. Pompeium et M. Crassum inita potentiae societas, quae urbi orbique terrarum nec minus diverso cuique tempore ipsis exitiabilis fuit. Hoc consilium sequendi Pompeius causam habuerat, ut tandem acta in transmarinis provinciis, quibus, ut praediximus, multi obtrectabant, per Caesarem confirma rentur consulem, Caesar autem, quod animadvertebat se cedendo Pompei gloriae aucturum suam et invidia communis potentiae in illum relegata confirmaturum vires suas, Crassus, ut quem principatum solus adsequi non poterat, auctoritate Pompei, viribus teneret Caesaris, adfinitas etiam inter Caesarem Pompeiumque contracta nupt¸s, quippe Iuliam, filiam C. Caesaris, Cn. Magnus duxit uxorem. In hoc consulatu Caesar legem tulit, ut ager Campanus plebei divideretur, suasore legis Pompeio. Ita circiter viginti milia civium eo deducta et ius urbis restitutum post annos circiter centum quinquaginta duos quam bello Punico ab Romanis Capua in formam praefecturae redacta erat. Bibulus, collega Caesaris, cum actiones eius magis vellet impedire quam posset, maiore parte anni domi se tenuit. Quo facto dum augere vult invidiam collegae, auxit potentiam. Tum Caesari decretae in quinquennium Galliae.
[44] (1) But to resume. It was in Caesar’s consulship that there was formed between himself, Gnaeus Pompeius and Marcus Crassus the partnership in political power which proved so baleful to the city, to the world, and, subsequently at different periods to each of the triumvirs themselves. (2) Pompey’s motive in the adoption of this policy had been to secure through Caesar as consul the long delayed ratification of his acts in the provinces across the seas, to which, as I have already said, many still raised objections; Caesar agreed to it because he realized that in making this concession to the prestige of Pompey he would increase his own, and that by throwing on Pompey the odium for their joint control he would add to his own power; while Crassus hoped by the influence of Pompey and the power of Caesar he might achieve a place of pre-eminence in the state which he had not been able to reach single-handed. (3) Furthermore, a tie of marriage was cemented between Caesar and Pompey, in that Pompey now wedded Julia, Caesar’s daughter.
(4) In this consulship, Caesar, with Pompey’s backing, passed a law authorizing a distribution to the plebs of the public domain in Campania. And so about twenty thousand citizens were established there, and its rights as a city were restored to Capua one hundred and fifty-two years after she had been reduced to a prefecture in the Second Punic War. Bibulus, Caesar’s colleague, with the intent rather than the power of hindering Caesar’s acts, confined himself to his house for the greater part of the year. By this conduct, whereby he hoped to increase his colleague’s unpopularity, he only increased his power. At this time the Gallic provinces were assigned to Caesar for a period of five years.
XLV
Per idem tempus P. Clodius, homo nobilis, disertus, audax, quique neque dicendi neque faciendi ullum nisi quem vellet nosset modum, malorum propositorum executor acerrimus, infamis etiam sororis stupro et actus incesti reus ob initum inter religiosissima populi Romani sacra adulterium, cum graves inimicitias cum M. Cicerone exerceret (quid enim inter tam dissimiles amicum esse poterat?) et a patribus ad plebem transisset, legem in tribunatu tulit, qui civem Romanum indemnatum interemisset, ei aqua et igni interdiceretur: cuius verbis etsi non nominabatur Cicero, tamen solus petebatur. Ita vir optime meritus de re publica conservatae patriae pretiurn calamitatem exil¸ tulit. Non caruerunt suspicione oppressi Ciceronis Caesar et Pompeius. Hoc sibi contraxisse videbatur Cicero, quod inter viginti viros dividendo agro Campano esse noluisset. Idem intra biennium sera Cn. Pompei cura, verum ut coepit intenta, votisque Italiae ac decretis senatus, virtute atque actione Annii Milonis tribuni plebis dignitati patriaeque restitutus est. Neque post Numidici exilium aut rediturn quisquam aut expulsus invidiosius aut receptus est laetius. Cuius domus quam infeste a Clodio disiecta erat, tam speciose a senatu restituta est. Idem P. Clodius in tribunatu sub honorificentissimo ministerii titulo M. Catonem a re publica relegavit: quippe legem tulit, ut is quaestor cum iure praetorio, adiecto etiam quaestore, mitteretur in insulam Cyprum ad spoliandum regno Ptolemaeum, omnibus morum vitiis eam contumeliam meritu. Sed ille sub adventum Catonis vitae suae vim intulit. Unde pecuniam longe sperata maiorem Cato Romam retulit. Cuius integritatem laudari nefas est, insolentia paene argui potest, quod una cum consulibus ac senatu effusa civitate obviam, cum per Tiberim subiret navibus, non ante iis egressus est, quam ad eum locum pervenit, ubi erat exponenda pecunia.
[45] (1) About the same time Publius Clodius, a man of noble birth, eloquent and reckless, who recognized no limits either in speech or in act except his own caprice, of ill-repute as the debaucher of his own sister, and accused of adulterous profanation of the most sacred rites of the Roman people, having conceived a violent hatred against Marcus Cicero — for what friendship could there be between men so unlike? — caused himself to be transferred from a patrician into a plebeian family and, as tribune, proposed a law that whoever put to death a Roman citizen without trial should be condemned to exile. Although Cicero was not expressly named in the wording of the bill, it was aimed at him alone. (2) And so this man, who had earned by his great services the gratitude of his country, gained exile as his reward for saving the state. Caesar and Pompey were not free from the suspicion of having had a share in the fall of Cicero. Cicero seemed to have brought upon himself their resentment by refusing to be a member of the commission of twenty charged with the distribution of lands in Campania. (3) Within two years Cicero was restored to his country and to his former status, thanks to the interest of Gnaeus Pompeius — somewhat belated, it is true, but effective when once exerted — and thanks to the prayers of Italy, the decrees of the senate, and the zealous activity of Annius Milo, tribune of the people. Since the exile and return of Numidicus no one had been banished amid greater popular disapproval or welcomed back with greater enthusiasm. As for Cicero’s house, the maliciousness of its destruction by Clodius was now compensated for by the magnificence of its restoration by the senate.
(4) Publius Clodius in his tribunate also removed Marcus Cato from the state, under the pretence of an honourable mission. For he proposed a law that Cato should be sent to the island of Cyprus in the capacity of quaestor, but with the authority of a praetor and with a quaestor as his subordinate, with instructions to dethrone Ptolemaeus, who by reason of his unmitigated viciousness of character well deserved this humiliation. (5) However, just before the arrival of Cato, Ptolemy took his own life. Cato brought home from Cyprus a sum of money which greatly exceeded all expectations. To praise Cato’s integrity would be sacrilege, but he can almost be charged with eccentricity in the display of it; for, in spite of the fact that all the citizens, headed by the consuls and the senate, poured out of the city to meet him as he ascended the Tiber, he did not disembark and greet them until he arrived at the place where the money was to be put ashore.
XLVI
Cum deinde inmanis res vix multis voluminibus explicandas C. Caesar in Gallia gereret nec contentus plurimis ac felicissimis victoriis innumerabilibusque caesis et captis hostium milibus etiam in Britanniam traiecisset exercitum, alterum paene imperio nostro ac suo quaerens orbem, vetus par consulum, Cn. Pompeius et M. Crassus, alterum iniere consulatum, qui neque petitus honeste ab iis neque probabiliter gestus est. Caesari lege, quam Pompeius ad populum tulit, prorogatae in idem spatium temporis provinciae, Crasso bellum Parthicum iam animo molienti Syria decreta. Qui vir cetera sanctissimus immunisque voluptatibus neque in pecunia neque in gloria concupiscenda aut modum norat aut c
apiebat terminum. Hunc proficiscentem in Syriam diris cum ominibus tribuni plebis frustra retinere conati. Quorum execrationes si in ipsum tantummodo valuissent, utile imperatoris damnum salvo exercitu fuisset rei publicae. Transgressum Euphraten Crassum petentemque Seleuciam circumfusus inmanibus copiis equitum rex Orodes una cum parte maiore Romani exercitus interemit. Reliquias legionum C. Cassius, atrocissimi mox auctor facinoris, tum quaestor, conservavit Syriamque adeo in populi Romani potestate retinuit, ut transgressos in eam Parthos felici rerum eventu fugaret ac funderet.
[46] (1) Meanwhile, in Gaul, Gaius Caesar was carrying on his gigantic task, which could scarcely be covered in many volumes. Not content with his many fortunate victories, and with slaying or taking as prisoners countless thousands of the enemy, he even crossed into Britain, as though seeking to add another world to our empire and to that which he had himself won. Gnaeus Pompeius and Marcus Crassus, who had once been consuls together, now entered upon their second consulship, which office they not only won by unfair means, but also administered without popular approval. (2) In a law which Pompey proposed in the assembly of the people, Caesar’s tenure of office in his provinces was continued for another five years, and Syria was decreed to Crassus, who was now planning to make war upon Parthia. Although Crassus was, in his general character, entirely upright and free from base desires, in his lust for money and his ambition for glory he knew no limits, and accepted no bounds. On his departure for Asia the tribunes of the people made ineffectual efforts to detain him by the announcement of baleful omens. (3) If the curses which they called down upon him had affected Crassus alone, the loss of the commander would not have been without advantage to the state, had but the army been saved. (4) He had crossed the Euphrates and was now marching toward Seleucia when he was surrounded by King Orodes with his innumerable bands of cavalry and perished together with the greater part of his army. Remnants of the legions were saved by Gaius Cassius — (he was later the perpetrator of a most atrocious crime, but was at that time quaestor) — who not only retained Syria in its allegiance to the Roman people, but succeeded, by a fortunate issue of events, in defeating and putting to rout the Parthians when they crossed its borders.
Complete Works of Velleius Paterculus Page 50