flame of liberty, and every piece of injustice had been so much fuel
heaped upon a smouldering fire. At the death of Sulla, the population
consisted of little else than those who had been beggared by a rapacious
soldiery, and the military desperadoes who had done the tyrant's work; a
melancholy combination of the victimisers and the victimised. The
Consuls were M. Æmilius Lepidus and Q. Lutatius Catulus; the former
having enriched himself by connexion with the dictator's party, but the
tide having turned, he turned with it, in the hope that it might again
lead on to fortune. Catulus, on the other hand, adhered to the policy of
Sulla; and there being reason to fear that the two Consuls would get up
a quarrel--in the course of which the lookers-on would be robbed--the
Senate made the Consuls swear that they would not take up arms against
each other. The oath was readily taken, and no less readily broken by
those republican chiefs, who came into violent collision near the very
gates of Rome; and Lepidus, having got the worst of it, fled to
Sardinia, where, having laid down his plans for the future, he laid down
himself, and died rather unexpectedly.
Several of the laws of Sulla were so manifestly unjust as to be
indefensible even by his own partisans; and many of them were repealed
under various consulships. Cn. Pompey, who had been a warm adherent of
the dictator, had a much warmer feeling for himself, and he courted
popular favour by the promise of many reforms which involved a
compromise of his former principles. The republic was, in fact, the
sport of a set of unprincipled men, who were trying, by every artifice
and crime, to get to the head of it. They cared nothing for the public
interests, but thought only of their own; which will be too often the
case when the chief power in the state is open to any who will make the
highest bid for it. Pompey had gone into the market with his abilities
when tyranny required tools; but perceiving that demagogues were now in
demand, he endeavoured to make a profit of popular principles. Others
had embarked on the same voyage, shifting their course with the breath
of public opinion, and having no rudder but self-interest. One of these
was L. Licinius Lucullus, a man of excessive wealth, which he used, or
rather abused, in excessive luxury. He employed art for the purpose of
opposing nature; and, among other pieces of prodigality, he endeavoured
to convert a portion of the sea into a private fish-pond. This he
attempted at his winter residence near Naples; where, by a cutting
through the rocks he formed an opening into the bay, and kept upon his
own premises a continual supply of fresh fish in a reservoir of salt
water. His tastes were not, however, limited to the pleasures of the
dinner-table; for he had not only studied the law, and had the Twelve
Tables at his fingers' ends, but he had collected a library of such vast
extent, that it comprehended a store of information far beyond the
comprehension of its owner.
M. Licinius Crassus was another candidate for power, which he sought
rather by means of his wealth, than his talents; for he had far more
money than wit; and Crassus often evinced signs of crass ignorance.
Almost the only illustrious man of the period was C. Julius Cæsar, who
could turn his hand, no matter what was in it, to anything. He was as
ready with the pen as with the sword; but the latter was not sharper
than his tongue; while his mind was so capacious and elastic, that it
could adapt itself to small or great things with equal facility. A very
little subject is often lost in the vast expanse of a very great
intellect; and a diminutive understanding cannot afford space for the
admission of a grand idea; but there was suitable accommodation for
either one or the other, or both at once, in the self-adapting mind of
Cæsar. He was an author without jealousy, a scholar without pedantry,
and a politician without quackery.
These, and other illustrious men, flourished in Rome about this time;
but Pompey, who had a natural love of pomp, possessed the art of
concentrating upon himself the rays reflected from the brilliant
personages who surrounded him; so that it was difficult to distinguish
at all times between him and the other men of distinction of the period.
During the lifetime of Sulla, Q. Sertorius had been serving, or rather
commanding, in Spain, where he held the post of prætor, and was engaged
in keeping the interests of his party--that of Marius--alive, by killing
all who were opposed to them. His professed object was to unite
Spaniards and Romans as one people; but his mode of reconciling any
differences was to put to the sword those who, after he had put their
opinions to the test, were found to disagree with him. Sulla had sent an
army, under C. Annius, to attack Sertorius in Spain, when Sertorius,
looking upon C. Annius as a mere deputy, with whom a deputy on his side
might deal, despatched Julius Salinator to meet the envoy. The result
proved that the prætor had done wisely in acting on his discretion,
rather than giving way to any sudden impulse of valour; for Salinator,
whom he had sent as a substitute for himself, was killed, when, in his
capacity of proxy, he approximated too closely to the enemy.
Sertorius, who had sent out Salinator as a sort of feeler--not exactly
expecting that the latter would have to feel his death-blow--perceived
there was little prospect of his own success; and he made his escape to
Africa. While in Mauritania, having no quarrel of his own, he interfered
in the quarrels of other people; and there being two claimants to the
Mauritanian crown, he supported one, and--by way of keeping his hand
in--picked the pocket of the other. His meddling having paid him
extremely well, he made up his mind and his luggage to retire into
private life, and an account he had heard of the Canary Islands tempted
him to deposit his well-feathered nest in that congenial locality.
The Lusitanians, however, who had been robbed by the Romans belonging to
Sulla's party, having a vague idea of the propriety of setting a thief
to catch a thief, entreated Sertorius to defend them against their
enemies. The engagement was entered into after some little delay as to
the terms; when Sertorius set to work with so much ardour, that he was
soon fighting four Roman generals at once; and, what was still more
remarkable, he was getting decidedly the best of it. His mode of warfare
was to pour down from one fastness to another with such speed, that his
foes never knew where to have him, until he had them in the most
unexpected manner. If they began to march, says Plutarch, he was upon
their heels,--if they sat still, he was upon their back,--and if they
invested a town, he turned the investment to his own profit by
intercepting all their convoys. The enemy had no resource against his
arms but their own legs, for flight was their sole safeguard.
Not satisfied with fighting the battles of the Spaniards, he began
regulating their civil domestic affairs, and endeavoured to translate
the Spanish into the Roman character. His object was to establish a
Roman republic in Spain; but it is difficult to manufacture a foreign
article of native materials. He appointed 300 persons as a senate; and,
though the greater part were Spaniards, he took as many proscribed
Romans as he could find, in the hope that they would serve as a sort of
Roman cement, to make it hold together. He established a school--a
classical academy--where Latin and Greek were taught, and where the
pupils wore boys' tunics, after the Roman fashion.
Sertorius was a general favourite with all classes, besides the classes
of the school; and happening to have a favourite fawn, which followed
him wherever he went, flattery declared the fawn was sent him by the
gods, as a mark of favour.
Fortune appeared to favour him in all he undertook; and even Q.
Metellus, with a large army, could produce no effect,--a failure that
was attributed to the age and imbecility of that illustrious veteran.
Sertorius was joined by Perperna, who, on the strength of the forces he
brought, expected to share in the command; but such is the influence of
success, that Perperna's men repudiated their own leader, and insisted
on having Sertorius as their general.
[Illustration: Sertorius and his young Friends.]
The constant arrival of unfavourable news at Rome, at length induced
Pompey to exclaim--"This will never do; I must go and settle the matter
myself;" for Pompey's conceit induced him to conceive that he should
easily conquer Sertorius. The latter was besieging Lauro, the modern
Liria, to which the former advanced for the purpose of relieving it.
There was, near the walls, a hill that it was important to possess, and
both parties tried for it; but Sertorius, setting his eye on the top,
was the first to get up to it. Pompey, with consummate vanity, expressed
his determination to dislodge the fellow forthwith, and sent a message
to the town, desiring the inhabitants to sit upon the walls, that they
might see how cleverly he would dispose of their enemy. Sertorius, on
hearing the boast, observed, smilingly, that "a general should watch
behind as well as before,"--an observation that Pompey, who did not see
behind him at the time, would often afterwards look back upon. Sertorius
had, in fact, a very considerable reserve, with which he hemmed the
besiegers in while he burned the inhabitants out, to the utter
astonishment of Pompey, who, though near enough to the flames to warm
his hands, could not interfere without burning his fingers.
Pompey was, nevertheless, impatient to measure swords with Sertorius; an
operation which, though it seems indicative of coming to close
quarters, must always keep a soldier at arm's length, at least, from
his antagonist. Desirous of all the glory that might be obtained,
Pompey, hearing that Metellus was coming up with assistance, resolved on
precipitating a battle, and he accordingly commenced one rather late in
the afternoon, though he knew he might be quite in the dark as to the
issue. Sertorius and Pompey each advanced at the head of a division, but
by some accident they did not happen to meet; and each of them came back
to the main body of his army with the conviction that he had been
victorious. On the renewal of the conflict the generals met, the armies
knocked their two heads together, when Pompey, being stunned by the
blow, and having no one to advise him what to do, took to flight for the
purpose of consulting his own safety.
Though apparently invincible by his enemies, Sertorius was not safe from
his friends, for he was murdered at a dinner-party given to him by
Perperna. The cloth had not been removed, when Sertorius was startled by
a singular _entrée_, in the shape of a band of assassins, who set upon
him and slew him. So much was he respected by the Spaniards, that it is
said his death brought dying suddenly into fashion, and many killed
themselves at his funeral, for the purpose of taking Sertorius as their
pattern. Perperna immediately declared himself commander-in-chief, but
he was quite unfit for the place, and in his very first engagement he
was cut to pieces, with the whole of his army. Whether they were
literally cut to pieces, is a matter of doubt to us, though the account
is placidly adopted by the graver historians; but when we consider the
quantity of cutting and coming again of the same parties--as exemplified
particularly in the case of the Samnites--which we are continually
called upon to place faith in, we find belief rather difficult.
While these things were proceeding in Spain, the slaves were going on in
the most perplexing manner in Italy and its neighbourhood. Some of the
ablest of them had been trained in gladiatorial schools to afford
amusement in the Circus; but this outrage to humanity brought much
misery in its train to those who were the cause of it. The slaves were
exercised in the use of all sorts of weapons, and humanity was lowered
by hiring them out for shows on public occasions. Being skilled in the
employment of the sword, they began to think of wielding it against
their oppressors, instead of trying it upon each other, and about
seventy of them escaped under the leadership of a Thracian of their
body, named Spartacus. Being unprovided with arms, they plundered the
cook-shops, where they seized spits for spears, skewers for daggers,
carving knives for swords, dripping-pans for shields, and basting-spoons
for general purposes. They next entered the shops of the carpenters, and
seized the tools of the workmen, many of whom concealed the implements
of their industry; but, if a saw happened to show its teeth, it was
immediately captured. Their party, though at first small, was increased
by all the runaway debtors of the district; for it is a remarkable fact
that those who owe privately more than they can pay, are often foremost
among those who talk the loudest about what they owe to the public
interests. They took up their position on Mount Vesuvius--an appropriate
place for a breaking out--and their numbers having swelled to 10,000,
they poured themselves down, like a devastating stream of lava, on many
neighbouring towns, which were speedily laid in ashes. Spartacus pushed
forward as far as the foot of the Alps; but his followers were intent on
returning to Rome, in order to sack it, and add its contents to their
baggage. M. Licinius Crassus was sent after him; and having undertaken
to overtake him, came up with him in Lucania. The slaves fought like
lions, or, rather, with the ferocity of the brutes with whom they had
been taught to contend, and were, in some instances, victorious.
[Illustration: Armed Slave.]
Crassus had sent Mummius to keep the army in check, but the latter had
received particular directions not to fight; for the object of the
republican general was to take all the glory for himself, irrespective
of his country's interests. Mummius, however, had the same feeling, and
was desirous of winning a reputation, regardless of the orders of his
superior; for he knew that a military success, in the unstable condition
of the executive, would, however irregular, be passed over by the
people, and perhaps made a stepping-stone for himself to supreme power.
His men, who were not actuated by the same personal motives as himself,
saw the insufficiency of their force, and, being seized with a panic,
ran away, without stopping to draw their swords from their scabbards.
Spartacus formed the idea of passing into Sicily, and proceeded to
Rhegium, where he bargained with some pirates to supply him with
vessels; but after pretending much friend-ship, they never furnished him
with any ship at all, though he had paid the knaves the price of a small
navy.
Spartacus found himself blockaded in Rhegium; and Crassus, cutting a
trench all round, thought to prevent all egress from the place; but
neither Crassus nor his trench proved deep enough to answer the purpose
proposed, for Spartacus filled up a portion of the ditch, and walked
over it. Crassus, now fearing that his cause was lost, sent to Rome for
the assistance of Pompey, who, priding himself on his previous
victories, and mentally ejaculating, "I'm the only man; they 're always
obliged to send for me," proceeded to meet Spartacus. No sooner had
Crassus sent for help, than he recovered from his panic, and sent to say
he should require no aid; but he had calculated in the absence of the
host, for when the host of Spartacus appeared, Crassus found it no easy
matter to contend with them. The latter, however, grown too confident of
success, determined on running the chance of striking or receiving a
decisive blow, notwithstanding the misgivings of their leader.
[Illustration: Spartacus.]
Spartacus commenced the day by sending for his horse, and killing it, to
the utter astonishment of the spectators, and the intense bewilderment
of the unfortunate animal. "If I win the day," said he, "I shall have
many better horses; but if I lose it, the poor creature would be useless
to me in my very humble walk of life, or my more probable walk out of
it." Such was his only mode of accounting for an act, which none who
pitied the suffering of an equine animal could regard with equanimity.
On the day of the battle, Spartacus was soon wounded, but falling on his
knees, he continued to fight in that uneasy position. Being at last
overpowered, he fell, with 40,000 of his men, who, according to the
authorities, were sent to destruction; but though there is no
hesitation in saying where they went, the question where they came from,
is one which the grave historians have paid no attention to. Of the
whole 40,000 who are said to have been found dead upon the field, it is
asserted that two only had their backs to the foe; but we suspect that
if there had been time for the defeated to have turned themselves round,
there would have been many more in the same position.
Crassus marched towards Rome, expecting to be received with enthusiasm;
but Pompey who had met and exterminated 3000 Thracians, sent a letter
home, declaring that "what Crassus had done was all very well, but that
he (Pompey) had really put an end to the war by his act of determined
butchery." Knowing the value attached by a military republic to a
sanguinary act, he was sanguine enough to expect the office of Consul.
This he obtained in conjunction with his rival Crassus, who laid himself
out, and laid out a considerable sum of money as well, for the purchase
of mob popularity. He gave the people corn for nothing, and invited them
to dinner-parties of 10,000 at a time; but his prodigality only proves
the extent of his plunder, for nothing could have gone into the public
mouth, but that which had in some shape or other come out of the public
pocket. Pompey, on the other hand, practised the profession of humility,
which perhaps answered better in a double sense; for it was certainly
cheaper, and possibly somewhat more effective, than ostentatious
prodigality. He used to lead his own horse in a procession, to show that
he was a simple _eques_, on a footing of equality with other citizens.
When his consulship was at an end, he retired into a private station,
where he lived like a prince--a style that seems to be much in favour
with those who preach the doctrine of perfect equality.
It was impossible for such an active participator in public affairs to
remain wholly idle; and the alarming spread of piracy soon gave him an
opportunity for really honourable distinction. The pirates were becoming
a scourge to Rome, but Rome had richly deserved it, for it had been her
own injustice that had called into existence these dangerous enemies to
humanity. They consisted, in the first instance, of men ruined by Roman
extortion, who took to the mountains and the sea, where the true
excitement of the ups and downs of life may be most vividly experienced.
These men had in time been joined by the once rich and noble, some of
whom, having sold the wives and families they could no longer keep,
began to plough the ocean as the only field of enterprise. Piracy thus
became a regular business of man, just as in more civilised times it has
become a regular part of the business of bookselling. Towns were
plundered, the cattle were carried off, and the inhabitants walked off
to captivity. The rich were frequently kidnapped on the roads, and
nothing but a handsome ransom would obtain their liberty.
The pirates had been often reduced, but had never been rooted out; and
the tribune, A. Gabinius, proposed, therefore, that Pompey should be
called upon to do extraordinary things with extraordinary powers. He was
to have supreme command for three years, during which period he was to
have whatever was asked, and to order everybody or everything that he
required. He took his own measures extremely well, and took the measure
of the pirates also with such effect, that he soon drove them from all
their fastnesses, with a speed quite marvellous.
Though his extraordinary powers had been conferred upon him for three
years, he had such still more extraordinary power over himself, that he
made a voluntary surrender of the former, when the object for which they
had been entrusted to him was accomplished. Everything was achieved in
three months, during which period he had taken several towns, none of
which he had kept to himself, though one of them, in Cilicia, called
Soli, he made a solitary exception of, by giving it the name of
Pompeiopolis. The people of Soli talked a mixed dialect of Asiatic and
Greek, which caused such a confusion of speech, that a great deal of
confounded nonsense was the result; and it is said that the word
solecism, as applied to an inaccuracy of speech, is derived from the
name of the place alluded to.
That the Romans should have been hostile to piracy is somewhat
inconsistent with the principle, or rather the want of principle, on
which they acted themselves, for they pirated almost everything. Their
literature was mere piracy from the Greeks; and according to some
authorities, the Romans pirated even from the pirates themselves; for
the former are said to have pirated from the latter the idea of the
system of the Zodiac.
The pirates carried on their lawless trade with such success, that they
had a fleet of more than 1000 galleys, many of them being handsomely
gilded--a fact that glossed over in the eyes of many the iniquity of the
means by which such wealth had been acquired. A dash of gaiety is said
to have pervaded the enormities of these lawless depredators; and when
among their prisoners they captured a Roman of high rank, they would
politely request him to walk into the sea; for "to enslave one of the
lords of the earth was an act they could not think of being guilty of."
Young Julius Cæsar, who fell into their hands when a mere boy, on his
voyage to Rhodes, appears to have met them more than half way in their
sallies of humour. They asked twenty talents for his ransom, when he
offered them fifty; and even then was so little anxious to leave them,
that he remained thirty-eight days after having paid his money and
become entitled to his quittance. During his stay among them he wrote
satirical verses on their barbarous mode of life, and parried off their
swords by the still keener weapons of ridicule. The pirates were amused
by the sallies of their prisoner, who conveyed to them all the bluntness
of truth in all the sharpness of epigram. They were sorry enough to part
with him, when the money for his ransom arrived; but they had reason to
be still more sorry when they met him again; for when he did so, it was
only to capture them and carry them to Pergamus.
CHAPTER THE TWENTY-EIGHTH.
THE THIRD MITHRIDATIC WAR. DEPOSITION AND DEATH OF MITHRIDATES.
While Pompey had been busy in punishing the pirates, Rome had something
to fear from another quarter; for Mithridates had been everywhere
beating up for recruits to beat down the Commonwealth. He was extremely
rich, and had an army of 150,000 men; for the trade of war is unhappily
one of those in which there is never any lack of hands ready to wage
war, when their wages can be relied upon.
Bithynia was one of the first objects of the attack of Mithridates, who
was opposed by the Consul, M. Cotta; but the place was burned to the
ground, and the ashes of poor Cotta were found in the condition of terra
cotta among the ruins. Lucullus, the colleague of Cotta, was sent into
Asia with a great army, which attacked Mithridates with such effect,
that the king only saved his own life by emptying his pockets of all the
money he had about him, and making a scramble of it among the hostile
soldiers. The mercenaries, in fighting with each other for the loose
silver, forgot to make sure of the sovereign. Mithridates fled to his
son-in-law Tigranes, who, having named the metropolis Tigranocerta,
after himself, had established himself as King of Armenia. Lucullus
proceeded across the Tigris, and required that Mithridates should be
given up; but Tigranes, looking at his venerable though determined
father-in-law, referred the legate for an answer to the old gentleman.
The King of Pontus answered by requesting that the enemy would come and
take him, which the Romans were actually about to do, when Mithridates
and Tigranes thought it safer to run for their lives; Tigranes
ingloriously taking his crown from his head, and putting it in his
pocket, to avoid being recognised.