scarcely catch the sound of its motion, and scarcely see the track of its path: and that is what would have happened, if people could only have waited for the storm to pass. But for a while they stifled their sighs; then they began to groan aloud; and finally all set about airing their grievances at the top of their voices. And so our friend, being unused to unpopularity, and having always lived in an atmosphere of flattery and glory, disfigured in person and broken in spirit, does not know what to do with himself: he sees that to advance is dangerous, to retreat a confession of weakness: the respectable parties are his enemies, the very riff-raff not his friends.
Yet see how soft-hearted I am. I could not restrain my tears, when I saw him on the 25th of July delivering a speech on the subject of the edicts of Bibulus. He used to carry himself with such a lofty bearing, enjoying unbounded popularity and universal respect: and now, how humble he was, how cast down, and what discontent he aroused in himself as well as in his hearers! What a sight! Crassus may have enjoyed it, but no one else. For seeing that he had fallen from the stars, one could not but attribute his swift descent to accident rather than to voluntary motion. And, just as Apelles or Protogenes, if they had seen their Venus or Ialysus smeared with mud, would, I imagine, have been cut to the heart, so I myself could not but feel poignant grief at seeing the idol on whose adornment I had lavished all the colours of my art suddenly disfigured. For though no one looked on it as my duty to retain my friendship with him after the Clodian affair, my affection for him was such that no slight could extinguish
iniuria. Itaque Archilochia in illum edicta Bibuli populo ita sunt iucunda, ut eum locum, ubi proponuntur, prae multitudine eorum, qui legunt, transire nequeamus, ipsi ita acerba, ut tabescat dolore, mihi mehercule molesta, quod et eum, quem semper dilexi, nimis excruciant, et timeo, tam vehemens vir tamque acer in ferro et tam insuetus contumeliae ne omni animi impetu dolori et iracundiae pareat.
Bibuli qui sit exitus futurus, nescio. Ut nunc res se habet, admirabili gloria est. Qui cum comitia in mensem Octobrem distulisset, quod solet ea res populi voluntatem offendere, putarat Caesar oratione sua posse impelli contionem, ut iret ad Bibulum; multa cum seditiosissime diceret, vocem exprimere non potuit. Quid quaeris? sentiunt se nullam ullius partis voluntatem tenere. Eo magis vis nobis est timenda.
Clodius inimicus est nobis. Pompeius confirmat eum nihil esse facturum contra me. Mihi periculosum est credere, ad resistendum me paro. Studia spero me summa habiturum omnium ordinum. Te cum ego desidero, tum vero res ad tempus illud vocat. Plurimum consilii, animi, praesidii denique mihi, si te ad tempus videro, accesserit. Varro mihi satis facit. Pompeius loquitur divinitus. Spero nos aut certe cum summa gloria aut etiam sine molestia discessuros. Tu quid agas, quem ad modum te oblectes, quid cum Sicyoniis egeris, ut sciam, cura.
it. The result, is that now Bibulus’ scathing[[90]] edicts against him are so popular, that one can’t pass the place where they are posted up for the crowd of people reading them. Pompey finds them so distressing that he is wasting away with grief; and I myself am much annoyed with them, partly because they cause so much pain to a man whom I have always loved, and partly for fear that being so impulsive and ready to draw the sword, as well as so unused to abuse, he may give full reins to his indignation and wrath.
I don’t know what will be the end of Bibulus. As things stand at present his reputation is extraordinarily high. When he put off the elections till October, which generally annoys the populace, Caesar thought he could induce the people by a speech to attack Bibulus: but in spite of all his seditious talk, he could not ring a word out of anybody. In short they feel that they have lost the good-will of all parties: and so violent action on their part is all the more to be feared.
Clodius is hostile to me. Pompey assures me he will do nothing against me: but I am afraid to trust him and am getting ready for resistance. I hope I shall have very strong support from all classes. For your presence I have a longing myself and circumstances call for it to meet the crisis. If I see you in time, I shall feel it a great accession to my policy, my courage and my safety. Varro is very obliging; and Pompey talks like an angel. I hope that in the end I shall either be certain of a glorious victory, or even escape unmolested. Let me know what you are doing, how you are enjoying yourself, and what has happened as regards the Sicyonians.
[90]. Archilochus was a Greek poet of Paros, who wrote scathing iambic verses.