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Hippocrates after curing many diseases himself fell sick and died. The Chaldæi foretold the deaths of many, and then fate caught them too. Alexander, and Pompeius, and Caius Caesar, after so often completely destroying whole cities, and in battle cutting to pieces many ten thousands of cavalry and infantry, themselves too at last departed from life. Heraclitus, after so many speculations on the conflagration of the universe, was filled with water internally and died smeared all over with mud. And lice destroyed Democritus; and other lice killed Socrates. What means all this? Thou hast embarked, thou hast made the voyage, thou art come to shore; get out. If indeed to another life, there is no want of gods, not even there. But if to a state without sensation, thou wilt cease to be held by pains and pleasures, and to be a slave to the vessel, which is as much inferior as that which serves it is superior: for the one is intelligence and deity; the other is earth and corruption.

Take care that thou art not made into a Caesar, that thou art not dyed with this dye; for such things happen. Keep thyself then simple, good, pure, serious, free from affectation, a friend of justice, a worshipper of the gods, kind, affectionate, strenuous in all proper acts. Strive to continue to be such as philosophy wished to make thee. Reverence the gods, and help men. Short is life. There is only one fruit of this terrene life, a pious disposition and social acts. Do everything as a disciple of Antoninus. Remember his constancy in every act which was conformable to reason, and his evenness in all things, and his piety, and the serenity of his countenance, and his sweetness, and his disregard of empty fame, and his efforts to understand things; and how he would never let anything pass without having first most carefully examined it and clearly understood it; and how he bore with those who blamed him unjustly without blaming them in return; how he did nothing in a hurry; and how he listened not to calumnies, and how exact an examiner of manners and actions he was; and not given to reproach people, nor timid, nor suspicious, nor a sophist; and with how little he was satisfied, such as lodging, bed, dress, food, servants; and how laborious and patient; and how he was able on account of his sparing diet to hold out to the evening, not even requiring to relieve himself by any evacuations except at the usual hour; and his firmness and uniformity in his friendships; and how he tolerated freedom of speech in those who opposed his opinions; and the pleasure that he had when any man showed him anything better; and how pious he was without superstition. Imitate all this that thou mayest have as good a conscience, when thy last hour comes, as he had. (i. 16.)

When thou hast seen Satyron the Socratic, think of either Eutyches or Hymen, and when thou hast seen Euphrates, think of Eutychion or Silvanus, and when thou hast seen Alciphron, think of Tropaeophorus, and when thou hast seen Xenophon think of Crito or Severus, and when thou hast looked on thyself, think of any other Caesar, and in the case of every one do in like manner. Then let this thought be in thy mind, Where then are those men? Nowhere, or nobody knows where. For thus continuously thou wilt look at human things as smoke and nothing at all; especially if thou reflectest at the same time that what has once changed will never exist again in the infinite duration of time. But thou, in what a brief space of time is thy existence? And why art thou not content to pass through this short time in an orderly way? What matter and opportunity [for thy activity] art thou avoiding? For what else are all these things, except exercises for the reason, when it has viewed carefully and by examination into their nature the things which happen in life? Persevere then until thou shalt have made these things thy own, as the stomach which is strengthened makes all things its own, as the blazing fire makes flame and brightness out of everything that is thrown into it.

It is the life of Alexander the king, and of Caesar, who overthrew Pompey, that I am writing in this book, and the multitude of the deeds to be treated is so great that I shall make no other preface than to entreat my readers, in case I do not tell of all the famous actions of these men, nor even speak exhaustively at all in each particular case, but in epitome for the most part, not to complain.

As soon as Antony entered upon his office he was of great assistance to those who were managing affairs in the interests of Caesar. In the first place, when Marcellus the consul proposed to put under Pompey’s control the soldiers already collected, and to give him power to levy others, Antony opposed him by introducing a decree that the forces already assembled should sail for Syria and give aid to Bibulus, who was carrying on war with the Parthians, and that the troops which Pompey was then levying should not belong to him.

For Caius Caesar was not a pliable man, nor easily led by anger to act on impulse. Therefore, had he not long ago determined upon his course, he would not thus, on the spur of the moment, have made war upon his country, just because he saw that Antony, meanly clad, with Cassius, on a hired car, had come in flight to him;

In a word, Caesar’s power, which proved to be anything rather than a tyranny so far as his own course was concerned, was brought into odium by his friends; and of these Antony, who had the greatest power and was thought to be the greatest transgressor, incurred the most blame.

But Gabinius was afraid to make the voyage, which was difficult in the winter time, and started to lead his army a long way round by land. Antony, therefore, fearing for Caesar, who was hemmed in among numerous enemies, beat off Libo, who was blockading the harbour of Brundisium, by surrounding his galleys with a great number of small skiffs, and then, embarking eight hundred horsemen and twenty thousand legionaries, put to sea.

Suddenly, however, there blew from the bay a strong south-west wind, and the swell began to run from the land out to sea, so that he was able to reverse his course, and, as he sailed gallantly along, he saw the shore covered with wrecks. For there the wind had cast up the galleys which were in pursuit of him, and many of them had been destroyed. Antony took many prisoners and much booty, captured Lissus, and inspired Caesar with great confidence by arriving in the nick of time with so large a force.

And Caesar showed plainly what opinion he had of him. For when he was about to fight the last and all-decisive battle at Pharsalus, he himself took the right wing, but he gave the command of the left to Antony, as the most capable officer under him.

For it was thought a monstrous thing that, while Caesar himself was lodging under the skies outside of Italy and clearing away the remnants of the war at great toil and peril, his adherents, by virtue of his efforts, should revel in luxury and mock at their fellow citizens.

These things are also thought to have augmented the discord, and to have incited the soldiery to deeds of violence and rapacity. For this reason, too, when Caesar came back, he pardoned Dolabella, and, on being chosen consul for the third time, selected Lepidus as his colleague, and not Antony.

And it was Antony who also unwittingly supplied the conspirators with their most specious pretext. For at the festival of the Lycaea, which the Romans call Lupercalia, Caesar, arrayed in a triumphal robe and seated in the forum upon the rostra, was viewing the runners to and fro. Now, the runners to and fro are many noble youths and many of the magistrates, anointed with oil, and with leathern thongs they strike in sport those whom they meet.

This was done as planned, and Caesar fell in the senate-chamber. At once, then, Antony put on the dress of a slave and hid himself. But when he learned that the conspirators were laying hands upon nobody, but were merely assembled together on the Capitol, he persuaded them to come down by giving them his son as hostage; moreover, he himself entertained Cassius, and Lepidus entertained Brutus.

From such considerations as these, however, he was soon shaken by the repute in which he stood with the multitude, and he had hopes that he would surely be first in the state if Brutus were overthrown. Now, it happened that when Caesar’s body was carried forth for burial, Antony pronounced the customary eulogy over it in the forum. And when he saw that the people were mightily swayed and charmed by his words, he mingled with his praises sorrow and indignation over the dreadful deed, and at the close of his speech shook on high the garments of the dead, all bloody and tattered by the swords as they were,