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but the majority, including Labienus and Afranius, who had no hope in Caesar,—the one because he had deserted him, and the other because after having been pardoned by him he had again made war on him,—went to Cato, put him at their head, and continued the war.

Calenus had been sent by Caesar into Greece before the battle, and he captured among other places the Piraeus, owing to its being unwalled. Athens he had been unable to take, in spite of a great deal of damage he did to its territory, until the defeat of Pompey.

The inhabitants then came over to him voluntarily, and Caesar, cherishing no resentment, let them go unharmed, merely remarking that in spite of their many offences they were saved by the dead. This remark signified that it was on account of their ancestors and on account of their glory and excellence that he spared them.

The latter, however, did not accept their appointment with his whole heart, but seeing the uncertainty of events and looking for them to turn out either way, he played a double game, taking a neutral attitude in all that he said and did, so that whether Caesar or Pompey should prevail he might seem to have fought for the victor in either case.

He went on in this way until Caesar actually conquered, and though at the moment he incurred his anger and was banished, yet later he was restored and honoured. Longinus, however, being denounced by the Spaniards through an embassy, was deprived of his office, and while on his way home perished near the mouths of the Iberus.

But privately the talk and actions of those who detested Caesar and preferred Pompey’s side were the very opposite of their public expressions. Hence, as both sides received the various reports in the light of their own advantage, they were inspired sometimes with fear and sometimes with boldness, and inasmuch as many diverse rumours would often be going about on the same day and at the same hour, their position was a most trying one; for they were pleased and distressed, bold and fearful, all within the briefest space of time.

When the battle of Pharsalus was announced, they were long incredulous. For Caesar sent no despatch to the government, hesitating to appear to rejoice publicly over such a victory, for which reason also he celebrated no triumph; and furthermore the event was clearly very improbable in view of the relative equipment of the two forces and the hopes entertained.

and many also, fearing that Pompey might renew the strife, regarded this as quite enough for Caesar and expected that it would be a fairly simple matter to placate Pompey on account of it. Even when he had died, they did not believe it for a long time, not, in fact, until they saw his seal-ring that had been sent; it had three trophies carved on it, as had that of Sulla.

So when he was really dead, at last they openly praised the victor and abused the vanquished, and proposed that everything in the world which they could devise should be given to Caesar. And not only in this respect was there great rivalry among practically all the foremost men, who were eager to outdo one another in fawning upon him, but also in voting such measures.

By their shouts and by their gestures they all, as if Caesar were present and looking on, showed the very greatest zeal and thought that in return for it they would get immediately—as if they were doing it to please him at all and not from necessity—one an office, another a priesthood, and a third some pecuniary reward.

I shall omit those honours which had either been voted to some others previously—images, crowns, front seats, and things of that kind—or which, while novel and proposed now for the first time, were not confirmed by Caesar, for fear that I might become wearisome, were I to enumerate them all.

All the elections except those of the plebs now passed into his hands, and for this reason they were delayed till after his arrival and were held toward the close of the year. In the case of the governorships in subject territory the citizens pretended to allot themselves those which fell to the consuls, but voted that Caesar should give the others to the praetors without the casting of lots; for they had gone back to consuls and praetors again contrary to their decree.

And they also granted another privilege, which was customary, to be sure, but in the corruption of the times might cause hatred and resentment: they decreed that Caesar should hold a triumph for the war against Juba and the Romans who fought with him, just as if he had been the victor, although, as a matter of fact, he had not then so much as heard that there was to be such a war.

In this way these measures were voted and ratified. Caesar entered upon the dictatorship at once, although he was outside of Italy, and chose Antony, although he had not yet been praetor, as his master of horse; and the consul proposed the latter’s name also, although the augurs very strongly opposed him, declaring that no one might be master of the horse for more than six months.

Marcus Caelius actually lost his life because he dared to set aside the laws established by Caesar regarding loans, assuming that their author had been defeated and had perished, and because as a result he stirred up Rome and Campania.