On the Virtues and on the Office of Ambassadors. Adressed to Caius (56-60)

Shall any one, then, who is ignorant dare to instruct me who am the reverse of ignorant? me who, even before my birth, while I was yet in my mother’s womb, was fashioned as an emperor in the workshop of nature? For how can it be possible for persons, who but a short time before were private individuals, to contemplate as they should the intentions of an imperial soul? But some persons in their shameless audacity dare to put themselves forward as interpreters and perfecters of the principles of government, when

And as he thus diligently laboured to alienate himself from Macro, he began also to invent false but plausible and specious grounds for blaming and accusing him; for passionate and irritable natures, especially when belonging to powerful men, are very ingenious at weaving plausibilities. Now, the pretexts which he made use of against him were of the following natures.

He said Macro thought thus: "Caius is my work; the work of Macro. I am more truly, or at all events not less truly, his father than his own parents. He would have been destroyed, over and over again, by Tiberius, who thirsted for his blood, if it had not been for me and for my powers of persuasion. And moreover, when Tiberius was dead, I, who had under my command the whole force of the army, immediately placed him in the position which Tiberius had occupied, teaching him that the state had indeed sustained a loss of one man, but that the imperial authority continued unaltered, as entire as ever."

And many people have given credit to these assertions of his as if they were true, not being acquainted with the false I and crafty disposition of the speakers; for hitherto the dishonest and designing character of his disposition was not made manifest. But a few days afterwards the miserable man was put to death, with his wife, receiving the extremity of punishment as a reward for his exceeding good will towards his slayer.

This is the consequence of doing kindnesses to ungrateful people; for in return for the benefits which they have received, they inflict the greatest of injuries on those from whom they have received them. Accordingly, Macro, who had done everything in sincerity with the most earnest eagerness and zeal for the good of Caius, in the first place in order to save him from death, and afterwards in order that he by himself might succeed to the imperial authority, received for his reward the fate which I have mentioned.