Cato the Younger

When he thought that he was old enough to marry,—and up to that time he had consorted with no woman,—he engaged himself to Lepida, who had formerly been betrothed to Metellus Scipio, but was now free, since Scipio had rejected her and the betrothal had been broken. However, before the marriage Scipio changed his mind again, and by dint of every effort got the maid.

Cato was greatly exasperated and inflamed by this, and attempted to go to law about it; but his friends prevented this, and so, in his rage and youthful fervour, he betook himself to iambic verse, and heaped much scornful abuse upon Scipio, adopting the bitter tone of Archilochus, but avoiding his license and puerility.

And he married Atilia, a daughter of Serranus. She was the first woman with whom he consorted, but not the only one, as was true of Laelius, the friend of Scipio Africanus; Laelius, indeed, was more fortunate, since in the course of his long life he knew but one woman, the wife of his youth.

When the servile war was in progress,[*](In 73-71 B.C. Cf. the Crassus, viii. ff.) which was called the war of Spartacus, Gellius[*](Lucius Gellius Publicola, consul in 72 B.C. with Cornelius Lentulus Clodianus. Both consuls were defeated by Spartacus.) was commander, while Cato took part in his campaign as a volunteer, for the sake of his brother; for his brother Caepio was a military tribune. Here he had not the opportunity to employ as much as he wished his zeal and discipline in virtue, because the war was not well conducted; but notwithstanding, amidst the great effeminacy and luxury of those who took part in that campaign, he displayed such good discipline, self-control, courage in all emergencies, and sagacity, that men thought him not one whit inferior to the elder Cato.

Moreover, Gellius assigned to him prizes of valour and distinguished honours; but Cato would not take them nor allow them, declaring that he had done nothing worthy of honours. And so, in consequence of this, he was thought to be a strange creature. For instance, a law was passed forbidding candidates for office to be attended by nomenclators,[*](Attendants whose duty it was to tell the candidate the names of those whom he was going to meet, that he might appear to be acquainted with them.) and in his canvass for the military tribune-ship he was the only one who obeyed the law. He made it his business to salute and address without help from others those who met him on his rounds, but he did not avoid giving offence even to those who praised his course; for the more clearly they saw the rectitude of his practice, the more distressed were they at the difficulty of imitating it.