The Historians' History of the World 05

“They left Trebonius at the gate to stop Antony under pretence of discoursing some business with him; and as soon as Cæsar was seated, the other conspirators surrounded him according to custom, as friends, having each his dagger concealed. At the same time Attilius Cimber standing before him began to entreat him to grant the return of his brother who was an exile; and upon his refusal, under pretence of begging it with more humility, he took him by the robe and drawing it to him, hung about his neck, crying out, ‘Why do you delay, my friends?’ Thereupon Casca first of all reaching over his head, thought to strike his dagger into his throat, but wounded him only in the breast. Cæsar having disengaged himself from Cimber, and caught hold of Casca’s hand, leaped from his seat, and threw himself upon Casca with a wonderful force; but being at handy grips with him, another struck his dagger into his side, Cassius gave him a wound in the face, Brutus struck him quite through the thigh, Bucolianus wounded him behind the head, and he, like one enraged, and roaring like a savage beast, turned sometimes to one and sometimes to another; till strength failing him after the wound received from Brutus, he threw the skirt of his robe over his face and suffered himself gently to fall before Pompey’s statue. They forebore not to give him many stabs after he was down; so that there were three and twenty wounds found in his body. And those that slew him were so eager that some of them through vehemence, without thinking of it, wounded each other.

“After this murder committed in a hallowed place, and on a sacred person, all the assembly took their flight, both within the palace and without in the city. In the crowd there were several senators wounded, and some killed: there were slain likewise other citizens and strangers; not with design, but without knowing the authors, as happens in a public tumult; for the gladiators, who were armed in the morning to give divertisement to the people, ran from the theatre to the senators’ houses; the spectators affrighted, dispersed as fast as their legs would carry them, the commodities exposed to sale were made plunder of, the gates were shut, and many got upon the roofs of their houses to secure themselves from violence. Antony fortified himself in his house, judging that they had a design upon his life as well as upon Cæsar’s; and Lepidus, general of the horse, hearing upon the place what had passed, made haste to the island in the river, where he had a legion; which he drew into the Field of Mars, that he might be in readiness to execute the orders of Antony; for he yielded to him, both in the quality of Cæsar’s friend and consul.

“The soldiers would very willingly have revenged Cæsar’s death so basely murdered, but that they feared the senate, who favoured the murderers, and expected the issue of things. Cæsar had no soldiery with him, for he loved not guards, but contented himself with ushers; besides, he was accompanied by a great number of people of the robe, and whole troops of as well citizens as strangers, with freedmen and slaves, followed him from his house to the palace; but in a moment all these crowds were vanished, there remained with him only three unhappy slaves; who putting him in his litter, and taking it upon their shoulders, carried him, who but a little before was master of both sea and land. The conspirators after the execution had a mind to have said something to the senate; but nobody staying to hear them, they twisted their robes about their left arms instead of bucklers, and with their bloody daggers in their hands ran through the streets, crying out, that they had slain the king and the tyrant; causing to march before them a man carrying a cap on the head of a pike, which is the badge of liberty; they exhorted likewise the people to the restoring of the commonwealth; putting them in mind of the first Brutus, and the oath wherein he had engaged the citizens, and with them their posterity.”g

FOOTNOTES

[123] Appiang says that Cæsar arrived in Spain from Rome in twenty-seven days, accompanied by a part of his army; Suetoniusi

that he reached the Further Province in twenty-four. Straboj seems to rely on the same authorities as Appian. From Rome to Corduba or Obulco is more than a thousand miles, a distance which it is utterly impossible for an army to accomplish in the longest of these periods. The author of the Commentary on the Spanish War

is contented with the expression celeri festinatione, and Dion Cassiusk prudently follows him.