[51] Caesar’s aunt, Julia, who died in 68 B.C., was the wife of the great C. Marius (Plut., Caes., 1, 1).
15.[52] Caesar, not the senate, declared Octavius a patrician. L. Cassius, tribune in 44 B.C. (Cic., Phil., 3, 23), introduced a special decree whereby the senate granted Caesar the power of declaring persons of his choice to be patricians (Tac., Ann., 11, 25; Suet., Caes., 41; Dio 43, 47, 3). One of those chosen thus was Octavius (Suet., Aug., 2; Dio 45, 2, 7); see E. Meyer, Caesars Monarchie, etc. Stuttgart 1919, p. 464.
[53] Excerptor’s note.
16.[54] Apollonia. According to Nicolaus, Octavius left Rome in December, and was therefore in Apollonia for 3 months before the murder of Caesar. This is at variance with App. 3, 9, where Octavius is said to have been in Apollonia for 6 months. In the latter case he would have had to leave Rome immediately after his return from Spain, which is not very probable in view of the plausible details given by Nicolaus in the preceding chapter.
The use of the word ἐνταυθοῖ (Müller), ἐνταῦθα (Dindorf) with reference to Apollonia, gives the impression that Nicolaus wrote the ‘Life of Augustus’ at that place. Chapters 16 and 17 are written with considerable detail concerning the behavior of the inhabitants just prior to Octavius’ departure, and the account is, among the historians, unique with Nicolaus. The city was one of importance (Cic., Phil., 11, 11, 26), and a favorite stopping point for travellers between Asia and Rome via Brundisium. See O. E. Schmidt, Jahrb. für Class. Philol. [Sup.] 13, p. 685.
[55] Octavius was accompanied to Apollonia by his friends M. Agrippa and Q. Salvidienus Rufus (Suet., Aug., 94; [Vell.] 2, 59, 5). His instructor in rhetoric was the famous Apollodorus of Pergamum (Suet., Aug., 89; Strabo 13, 4, 3; Quint. 3, 1, 17). Caesar sent his nephew to Apollonia to be trained in military tactics in anticipation of an expedition against the Parthians (Suet., Aug., 8; App. 3, 9; Dio 45, 3; Plut., Brut., 22; Cic., 43; Ant. 16; Vell. 2, 59, 4; Liv., Epit., 117).
[56] Codex, Αἰμίλιος. Müller has suggested that M. Aemilius Scaurus is the individual here referred to. He was, however, banished by Pompey in 52 B.C. (App., 2, 24; Cic., Off., 1, 38; Q. Fr., 3, 8, 4), and little is known of his subsequent actions. His son, of the same name, was with Antony at Actium (Dio 51, 2; 56, 38). The only other contemporaneous Aemilii were L. Aemilius Paullus and his son L. Aemilius Lepidus Paullus. The former was in Rome in April, 44 B.C. (Cic., Att., 14, 7, 1; 14, 8, 1) thus precluding a command in Macedonia; the latter accompanied Octavian against Sextus Pompeius in Sicily, 42-36 B.C. (Suet., Aug., 16). E. Schwartz, Hermes 33, p. 182, would emend Μάρκος Αἰμίλιος to Μάνιος Ἀκίλιος on the basis of Cic., Fam., 7, 30, 3, ‘Acilius, qui in Graeciam cum legionibus missus est.’ The date of the letter is January, 44 B.C. It is to be noted that Cicero gives no praenomen in the letter; elsewhere, the MS readings are divided between ‘Manius’ and ‘Marcus’ (Caes., B. C., 3, 15; 3, 16; 3, 39; Dio 42, 12). Inasmuch as Nicolaus has written the praenomen ‘Marcus’ without abbreviation, an alteration to ‘Manius’ is scarcely justifiable in view of the other MS tradition. Marcus Acilius Caninus is the proper designation. See Klebs, P. W. [Real-Encycl]., 1, p. 251, Acilius 15. He was a ‘legatus’ of Caesar and was at Oricum in 48 B.C. (Caes., B. C., loc. cit.). See also App. 3, 10.
17.[57] Ἀλέξανδρος is the reading of the codex, and is retained in the editions of Müller and Dindorf. No associate of Octavius bearing this name is elsewhere mentioned, and since the statement is here made that he returned to his home at Pergamum, Müller suggests that Apollodorus is here intended to be represented. See note [55], chap. 16 with appended references. Piccolos has altered the reading to Ἀπολλόδωρος (see his note, Nicolas de Damas, Vie de César, Paris 1850, p. 85). It is possible that Nicolaus, through the use [of] Augustus’ memoirs, actually came upon some such name as Alexander; if not, the reading ‘Alexander’ is attributable to an error of the excerptor. Apollodorus is described as being old at the time of the trip to Apollonia by Suet., Aug., 89.
[58] Four years earlier Caesar had been amicably received by the inhabitants of Apollonia. Hence the appropriate application of the term ‘friendly city’ even though their action had been possibly influenced as much by expediency as by conviction in 48 B.C. (Caes., B. C., 3, 10-13; App. 2, 54-55; Dio 41, 45, 1; 41, 47, 1).
[59] Strabo 7, C. 316, πόλις εὐνομωτάτη as applied to Apollonia, is reminiscent of Nicolaus’ expression, εὐδαίμονα τὴν πόλιν ἐν τοῖς μάλιστα ποιήσας.