Civil Wars (2.4.30-2.5.34)

The persons who had been sent by Pompey to Cæsar to bring these legions spread many reports derogatory to Cæsar and repeated them to Pompey. They said that Cæsar's army was wasted by protracted service, that the soldiers longed for their homes and would change to the side of Pompey as soon as they should cross the Alps. They spoke in this way either from ignorance or because they were corrupted. In fact, every soldier was strongly attached to Cæsar and labored zealously for him, under the force of discipline and the influence of the gain which war usually brings to victors and which they received from Cæsar also; for he gave with ar lavish hand in order to mould them to his designs. They knew what his designs were, but they stood by him nevertheless. Pompey believed what was reported to him and collected neither soldiers nor apparatus suitable for so great a contest.[*] In the Senate the opinion of each member was asked and Claudius craftily divided the question and took the votes separately, thus: "Shall successors be sent to Cæsar?" and again, "Shall Pompey be deprived of his command?" The majority voted against the latter proposition, and it was decreed that successors to Cæsar should be sent. Then Curio put the question whether both should lay down their commands, and 22 senators voted in the negative while 370 went back to the opinion of Curio in order to avoid civil discord.[*] Then Claudius dismissed the Senate, exclaiming, "Enjoy your victory and have Cæsar for a master."

Suddenly a false rumor came that Cæsar had crossed the Alps and was marching on the city, whereupon there was a great tumult and consternation on all sides. Claudius moved that the army at Capua be turned against Cæsar as a public enemy. When Curio opposed him on the ground that the rumor was false he exclaimed, "If I am prevented by the vote of the Senate from taking steps for the public safety, I will take such steps on my own responsibility as consul." After saying this he darted out of the Senate and proceeded to the suburbs with his colleague, where he presented a sword to Pompey, and said, "I and my colleague command you to march against Cæsar in behalf of your country, and we give you for this purpose the army now at Capua, or in any other part of Italy, and whatever additional forces you yourself choose to levy." Pompey promised to obey the orders of the consuls, but he added, "unless we can do better," thus dealing in trickery and still making a pretence of fairness. Curio had no power outside of the city (for it was not permitted to the tribunes to go beyond the walls), but he publicly deplored the state of affairs and demanded that the consuls should make proclamation that nobody need obey the conscription ordered by Pompey. As he could accomplish nothing, and as his term of office as tribune was about expiring, and he feared for his safety and despaired of being able to render any further assistance to Cæsar, he hastily departed to join the latter.

Cæsar had lately recrossed the straits from Britain and, after traversing the Gallic country along the Rhine, had passed the Alps with 5000 foot and 300 horse and arrived at Ravenna, which was contiguous to Italy and the last town in his government. After embracing Curio and returning thanks for what he had done for him, he looked over the present situation. Curio advised him to bring his whole army together now and lead it to Rome, but Cæsar thought it best still to try and come to terms. So he directed his friends to make an agreement in his behalf, that he should deliver up all his provinces and soldiers, except that he should retain two legions and Illyria with Cisalpine Gaul until he should be chosen consul. This was satisfactory to Pompey, but the consuls refused. Cæsar then wrote a letter to the Senate, which Curio carried a distance of 1300 stades[*] in three days and delivered to the newly elected consuls as they entered the senate-house on the first [*] of the calends of January.[*] The letter embraced a calm [*] recital of all that Cæsar had done from the beginning of his career and a proposal that he would lay down his command at the same time with Pompey, but that if Pompey should retain his command he would not lay down his own, but would come quickly and avenge his country's wrongs and his own. When this letter was read, as it was considered a declaration of war, a vehement shout was raised on all sides that Lucius Domitius be appointed as Cæsar's successor. Domitius took the field immediately with 4000 of the new levies.

Since Antony and Cassius, who succeeded Curio as tribunes, agreed with the latter in opinion, the Senate became more bitter than ever and declared Pompey's army the protector of Rome, and that of Cæsar a public enemy. The consuls, Marcellus and Lentulus, ordered Antony and his friends out of the Senate lest they should suffer some harm, although they were tribunes. Then Antony sprang from his chair in anger and with a loud voice called gods and men to witness the indignity put upon the sacred and inviolable office of tribune, saying that while they (the tribunes) were expressing the opinion which they deemed conducive to the public interest, they were driven out with contumely though they had wrought no murder or other outrage. Having spoken thus he rushed out like one possessed, predicting war, slaughter, proscription, banishment, confiscation, and various other impending evils, and invoking direful curses on the authors of them. Curio and Cassius rushed out with him, for a detachment of Pompey's army was already observed standing around the senate-house. The tribunes made their way to Cæsar the next night with the utmost speed, concealing themselves in a hired carriage, and disguised as slaves. Cæsar showed them in this condition to his army, whom he excited by saying that his soldiers, after all their great deeds, had been stigmatized as public enemies and that distinguished men like these, who had dared to speak out for them, had been thus driven with ignominy from the city.[*]

The war had now been begun on both sides and already openly declared. The Senate, thinking that Cæsar's army would be slow in arriving from Gaul and that he would not rush into so great an adventure with a small force, directed Pompey to assemble 130,000 Italian soldiers, chiefly veterans who had had experience in war, and to recruit as many able-bodied men as possible from the neighboring provinces. They voted him for the war all the money in the public treasury at once, and their own private fortunes in addition if they should be needed for the pay of the soldiers. With the fury of party rage they levied additional contributions on the allied cities, which they collected with the greatest possible haste. Cæsar had sent messengers to bring his own army, but as he was accustomed to rely upon the terror caused by the celerity and audacity of his movements, rather than on the magnitude of his preparations, he decided to take the aggressive in this great war with his 5000 men and to anticipate the enemy by seizing the advantageous positions in Italy.