Plutarch: Lives of the noble Grecians and Romans
to Cyprus, to persuade Ptolemy to yield, without being forced;
which if he did, he should want neither riches nor honor, for the
Romans would give him the priesthood of the goddess at Paphos.
He himself stayed at Rhodes, making some preparations, and
expecting an answer from Cyprus. In the meantime, Ptolemy, king
of Egypt, who had left Alexandria, upon some quarrel between him
and his subjects, and was sailing for Rome, in hopes that Pompey
and Caesar would send troops to restore him, in his way thither
desired to see Cato, to whom he sent, supposing he would come to
him. Cato had taken purging medicine at the time when the
messenger came, and made answer, that Ptolemy had better come to
him, if he thought fit. And when he came, he neither went
forward to meet him, nor so much as rose up to him, but saluting
him as an ordinary person, bade him sit down. This at once threw
Ptolemy into some confusion, who was surprised to see such stern
and haughty manners in one who made so plain and unpretending an
appearance; but afterwards, when he began to talk about his
affairs, he was no less astonished at the wisdom and freedom of
his discourse. For Cato blamed his conduct, and pointed out to
him what honor and happiness he was abandoning, and what
humiliations and troubles he would run himself into; what bribery
he must resort to and what cupidity he would have to satisfy,
when he came to the leading men at Rome, whom all Egypt turned
into silver would scarcely content. He therefore advised him to
return home, and be reconciled to his subjects, offering to go
along with him, and assist him in composing the differences. And
by this language Ptolemy being brought to himself, as it might be
out of a fit of madness or delirium and discerning the truth and
wisdom of what Cato said, resolved to follow his advice; but he
was again over-persuaded by his friends to the contrary, and so,
according to his first design, went to Rome. When he came there,
and was forced to wait at the gate of one of the magistrates, he
began to lament his folly, in having rejected, rather, as it
seemed to him, the oracle of a god, than the advice merely of a
good and wise man.
In the meantime, the other Ptolemy, in Cyprus, very luckily for
Cato, poisoned himself. It was reported he had left great
riches; therefore Cato designing to go first to Byzantium, sent
his nephew Brutus to Cyprus, as he would not wholly trust
Canidius. Then, having reconciled the refugees and the people of
Byzantium, he left the city in peace and quietness; and so sailed
to Cyprus, where he found a royal treasure of plate, tables,
precious stones and purple, all which was to be turned into ready
money. And being determined to do everything with the greatest
exactness, and to raise the price of everything to the utmost, to
this end he was always present at selling the things, and went
carefully into all the accounts. Nor would he trust to the usual
customs of the market, but looked doubtfully upon all alike, the
officers, criers, purchasers, and even his own friends; and so in
fine he himself talked with the buyers, and urged them to bid
high, and conducted in this manner the greatest part of the
sales.
This mistrustfulness offended others of his friends, and, in
particular, Munatius, the most intimate of them all, became
almost irreconcilable. And this afforded Caesar the subject of
his severest censures in the book he wrote against Cato. Yet
Munatius himself relates, that the quarrel was not so much
occasioned by Cato's mistrust, as by his neglect of him, and by
his own jealousy of Canidius. For Munatius also wrote a book
concerning Cato, which is the chief authority followed by
Thrasea. Munatius says, that coming to Cyprus after the other,
and having a very poor lodging provided for him, he went to
Cato's house, but was not admitted, because he was engaged in
private with Canidius; of which he afterwards complained in very
gentle terms to Cato, but received a very harsh answer, that too
much love, according to Theophrastus, often causes hatred; "and
you," he said, "because you bear me much love, think you receive
too little honor, and presently grow angry. I employ Canidius on
account of his industry and his fidelity; he has been with me
from the first, and I have found him to be trusted." These
things were said in private between them two; but Cato afterwards
told Canidius what had passed; on being informed of which,
Munatius would no more go to sup with him, and when he was
invited to give his counsel, refused to come. Then Cato
threatened to seize his goods, as was the custom in the case of
those who were disobedient; but Munatius not regarding his
threats, returned to Rome, and continued a long time thus
discontented. But afterwards, when Cato was come back also,
Marcia, who as yet lived with him, contrived to have them both
invited to sup together at the house of one Barca; Cato came in
last of all, when the rest were laid down, and asked, where he
should be. Barca answered him, where he pleased; then looking
about, he said, he would be near Munatius, and went and placed
himself next to him; yet he showed him no other mark of kindness,
all the time they were at table together. But another time, at
the entreaty of Marcia, Cato wrote to Munatius, that he desired
to speak with him. Munatius went to his house in the morning,
and was kept by Marcia till all the company was gone; then Cato
came, threw both his arms about him, and embraced him very
kindly, and they were reconciled. I have the more fully related
this passage, for that I think the manners and tempers of men are
more clearly discovered by things of this nature, than by great
and conspicuous actions.
Cato got together little less than seven thousand talents of
silver; but apprehensive of what might happen in so long a voyage
by sea, he provided a great many coffers, that held two talents
and five hundred drachmas apiece; to each of these he fastened a
long rope, and to the other end of the rope a piece of cork, so
that if the ship should miscarry, it might be discovered
thereabout the chests lay under water. Thus all the money,
except a very little, was safely transported. But he had made
two books, in which all the accounts of his commission were
carefully written out, and neither of these was preserved. For
his freedman Philargyrus, who had the charge of one of them,
setting sail from Cenchreae was lost, together with the ship and
all her freight. And the other Cato himself kept safe, till he
came to Corcyra, but there he set up his tent in the
market-place, and the sailors being very cold in the night, made
a great many fires, some of which caught the tents, so that they
were burnt, and the book lost. And though he had brought with
him several of Ptolemy's stewards, who could testify to his
integrity, and stop the mouths of enemies and false accusers, yet
the loss annoyed him, and he was vexed with himself about the
matter, as he had designed them not so much for a proof of his
own fidelity, as for a pattern of exactness to others.
The news did not fail to reach Rome, that he was coming up the
river. All the magistrates, the priests, and the whole senate,
with great part of the people, went out to meet him; both the
banks of the Tiber were covered with people; so that his entrance
was in solemnity and honor not inferior to a triumph. But it was
thought somewhat strange, and looked like willfulness and pride,
that when the consuls and praetors appeared, he did not
disembark, nor stay to salute them, but rowed up the stream in a
royal galley of six banks of oars, and stopped not till he
brought his vessels to the dock. However, when the money was
carried through the streets, the people much wondered at the vast
quantity of it, and the senate being assembled, decreed him in
honorable terms an extraordinary praetorship, and also the
privilege of appearing at the public spectacles in a robe faced
with purple. Cato declined all these honors, but declaring what
diligence and fidelity he had found in Nicias, the steward of
Ptolemy, he requested the senate to give him his freedom.
Philippus, the father of Marcia, was that year consul, and the
authority and power of the office rested in a manner in Cato; for
the other consul paid him no less regard for his virtue's sake,
than Philippus did on account of the connection between them.
And Cicero now being returned from his banishment, into which he
was driven by Clodius, and having again obtained great credit
among the people, went, in the absence of Clodius, and by force
took away the records of his tribuneship, which had been laid up
in the capitol. Hereupon the senate was assembled, and Clodius
complained of Cicero, who answered, that Clodius was never
legally tribune, and therefore whatever he had done, was void,
and of no authority. But Cato interrupted him while he spoke,
and at last standing up said, that indeed he in no way justified
or approved of Clodius's proceedings; but if they questioned the
validity of what had been done in his tribuneship, they might
also question what himself had done at Cyprus, for the expedition
was unlawful, if he that sent him had no lawful authority: for
himself, he thought Clodius wee legally made tribune, who, by
permission of the law, was from a patrician adopted into a
plebeian family; if he had done ill in his office, he ought to be
called to account for it; but the authority of the magistracy
ought not to suffer for the faults of the magistrate. Cicero
took this ill, and for a long time discontinued his friendship
with Cato; but they were afterwards reconciled.
Pompey and Crassus, by agreement with Caesar, who crossed the
Alps to see them, had formed a design, that they two should stand
to be chosen consuls a second time, and when they should be in
their office, they would continue to Caesar his government for
five years more, and take to themselves the greatest provinces,
with armies and money to maintain them. This seemed a plain
conspiracy to subvert the constitution and parcel out the empire.
Several men of high character had intended to stand to be consuls
that year, but upon the appearance of these great competitors,
they all desisted, except only Lucius Domitius, who had married
Porcia, the sister of Cato, and was by him persuaded to stand it
out, and not abandon such an undertaking, which, he said, was not
merely to gain the consulship, but to save the liberty of Rome.
In the meantime, it was the common topic among the more prudent
part of the citizens, that they ought not to suffer the power of
Pompey and Crassus to be united, which would then be carried
beyond all bounds, and become dangerous to the state; that
therefore one of them must be denied. For these reasons they
took part with Domitius, whom they exhorted and encouraged to go
on, assuring him, that many who feared openly to appear for him,
would privately assist him. Pompey's party fearing this, laid
wait for Domitius, and set upon him as he was going before
daylight, with torches, into the Field. First he that bore the
light next before Domitius, was knocked down and killed; then
several others being wounded, all the rest fled, except Cato and
Domitius, whom Cato held, though himself were wounded in the arm,
and crying out, conjured the others to stay, and not while they
had any breath, forsake the defense of their liberty against
those tyrants, who plainly showed with what moderation they were
likely to use the power, which they endeavored to gain by such
violence. But at length Domitius also, no longer willing to face
the danger, fled to his own house, and so Pompey and Crassus were
declared consuls.
Nevertheless, Cato would not give over, but resolved to stand