Civil Wars

There was a certain Lucius Cocceius, a friend of both, who had been sent, in company with Cæcina, by Octavius, the previous summer, to Antony in Phœnicia, and had remained with Antony after Cæcina returned. This Cocceius, seizing his opportunity, pretended that he had been sent for by Octavius for the purpose of a friendly greeting. When Antony allowed him to go he asked, by way of testing his disposition, whether Antony would like to write any letter to Octavius which he could convey. Antony replied: "What can we write to each other, now that we are enemies, except mutual recrimination? I wrote letters in reply to his of some time ago, which I sent by the hand of Cæcina. Take copies of those if you like." This he said by way of jest, but Cocceius would not yet allow him to call Octavius an enemy after his generous behavior toward Lucius and Antony's other friends. But Antony replied: " He has shut me out of Brundusium and taken my provinces and the army of Calenus from me. He is kind only to my friends, and evidently not to keep them friendly, but to make them enemies to me by his benefactions." Cocceius, after hearing these complaints, did not care to irritate further a naturally passionate disposition, but proceeded to make his visit to Octavius.

When Octavius saw him he expressed astonishment that he had not come sooner. "I did not save your brother," he exclaimed, "in order that you should be my enemy."[*](Schweighäuser understood the words "your brother" to refer to Lucius Antonius as though Octavius were addressing Cocceius as Antony's legate. Mendelssohn shows by a reference to Borghesi that the person referred to was M. Cocceius Nerva, Antony's proquæstor.) Cocceius replied, "How is it that you, who make friends out of enemies, call your friends enemies and take from them their armies and provinces?" "It was not fitting," replied Octavius, "that after the death of Calenus such large resources should be left in the hands of such a stripling as Calenus' son while Antony was still far distant. Lucius was excited to frenzy by them and Asinius and Ahenobarbus, who were near by, were about to use them against us. So, too, I took sudden possession of the legions of Plancus, in order that they might not join the Pompeians. His cavalry have actually gone to Sicily." "These matters have been told differently," said Cocceius; "but Antony did not credit the statements made to him until he was shut out of Brundusium as an enemy." "I gave no order on that subject," replied Octavius, "nor did I know beforehand that he was coming, nor did I anticipate that he would come here with enemies. The Brundusians themselves and the præfect, who had been left with them on account of the raids of Ahenobarbus, of their own motion excluded Antony, who was in league with the common enemy, Pompeius, and was bringing in Ahenobarbus, one of my father's murderers, who has been condemned by vote of the Senate, by judgment of the court, and by the proscription, who besieged Brundusium after the battle of Philippi, and is still blockading the Adriatic coast, who has burned my ships and plundered Italy."

"But it was agreed between you," said Cocceius, "that you might treat with whomsoever you chose. Yet Antony has not made a treaty with any of the murderers, and he holds your father in no less honor than you do. Ahenobarbus was not one of the murderers. The vote was cast against him on account of personal animosity, for he had no share whatever in the plots of those days.[*](ou)de\ ga\r th=s boulh=s pw to/te metei=xen. Casaubon was of the opinion that this should be rendered: "for he was not 'then a member of the Senate." It all depends upon the interpretation of th=s boulh=s, and it must be said that Appian does not generally use boulh/ for plot, or conspiracy, but does almost invariably use it for the Senate. Suetonius (Nero, 3) says that this Domitius Ahenobarbus, although condemned by the Pedian Law, among those who were privy to the murder of Cæsar, was innocent of that crime.) If we consider him unpardonable because he was a friend of Brutus, are we not in a fair way to be bitter against almost everybody? Antony made an agreement with Pompeius, not to make an aggressive war with him, but either to secure his help in case of an attack by you, or to bring him into good relations with you, since he has done nothing which should make him irreconcilable. You are the one to blame for these things, for if there had been no war in Italy those men would not have ventured to send ambassadors to Antony." Octavius repeated his accusations, saying, " Manius and Fulvia and Lucius brought war against Italy, and against me as well as Italy; and Pompeius, who did not attack before, now makes descents upon the coast, encouraged by Antony." Cocceius replied, "Not encouraged by Antony, but directed by him; for I will not conceal from you the fact that the rest of Italy, which is destitute of naval defences, will be attacked by a powerful fleet unless you agree to peace." Octavius, who gave due weight to this artful suggestion, reflected a moment, and then said, "But Pompeius will have the worst of it. He has just been repulsed from Thurii as he deserves." Then Cocceius, having gone over the whole controversy, led the conversation up to the death of Fulvia and the manner of it, saying that she fell sick because she could not bear the anger of Antony and wasted away with grief because he would not see her when she was ill, and that he was in a manner the cause of his wife's death. "Now that she is dead," he continued, "it only remains for you to tell each other frankly what your suspicions are."

In this way Cocceius won the confidence of Octavius and passed the day as his guest, and begged him to write to Antony as the younger man to the older. Octavius said that he would not write to one who was still waging war against him, because Antony had not written to him, but that he would make complaint to Antony's mother, because, although a relative and held in the highest honor by Octavius,[*](Plutarch informs us that Antony's mother, Julia, was of the family of the Cæsars and the equal in virtue and amiability of the most exemplary women of her time. (Life of Antony, 2.) Her father, Lucius Cæsar, had been consul in the year 664 and her brother of the same name had held that office in 690.) she had fled from Italy, as though she could not have obtained everything from him as from her own son. This was his artful way of opening a correspondence

by writing to Julia. As Cocceius was going away from the camp many of the higher officers advised him of the purpose of the army, and he communicated this and other things he had learned to Antony, so that he might know that they would fight against him because he did not come to an agreement. So he advised Antony that Pompeius should be called back from his ravaging to Sicily, and that Ahenobarbus should be sent somewhither until a treaty of peace should be made. Antony's mother besought him to the same purpose, for she belonged to the Julian gens. Antony apprehended that if the negotiations should fail he would be put to the shame of calling on Pompeius for assistance again, but his mother encouraged him to believe that they would not fail, and Cocceius confirmed her, intimating that he knew more than he had told. So Antony yielded, and ordered Pompeius back to Sicily, implying that he would take care of their mutual concerns, and sent Ahenobarbus away as governor of Bithynia.

When Octavius' soldiers learned these facts they chose deputies and sent the same ones to both commanders. They took no notice of accusations because they had been chosen, not to decide a controve sy, but to restore peace. Cocceius was added to their number as she common friend of both, together with Pollio from" Antony's party and Mæcenas from that of Octavius. It was determined that there should be amnesty between Antony and Octavius for the past and friendship for the future. Moreover, as Marcellus, the husband of Octavius' sister Octavia, had recently died, the umpires decided that her brother should betroth her to Antony, which he did immediately. Then Antony and Octavius embraced each other. Thereupon shouts went up from the soldiers and congratulations were offered to each of the generals, without intermission, through the entire day and night.

Now Octavius and Antony made a fresh partition of the whole Roman empire between themselves, the boundary line being Scodra, a city of Illyria which was supposed to be situated about midway up the Adriatic gulf.[*](So that a line drawn through it from east to west would divide the Adriatic into two equal parts.) All provinces aid islands east of this place, as far as the river Euphrates, were to belong to Antony and all west of it to the ocean to Octavius. Lepidus was to govern Africa, as Octavius had given it to him. Octavius was to make war against Pompeius unless they should come to some agreement, and Antony was to make war against the Parthians to avenge their treachery toward Crassus. Octavius was to make the same agreement with Ahenobarbus that Antony had already made. Both of them might freely enlist soldiers in Italy in equal numbers. These were the last conditions of peace between Octavius and Antony. Straightway each of them sent his friends to attend to urgent business. Antony despatched Ventidius to Asia against the Parthians and against Labienus, the son of Labienus, who, with the Parthians, had made a hostile incursion into Syria and had advanced as far as Ionia during the late troubles.[*](Dion Cassius (xlviii, 24) says that this Labienus, the son of Cæsar's lieutenant in the Gallic war, " while serving in the army with Brutus and Cassius was sent to Orodes, the king of the Parthians, before the battle of Philippi, to solicit aid. He was treated disdainfully and kept waiting a long time by this prince, who hesitated to comply, yet feared to refuse. When the news came that Brutus and Cassius were defeated and that the victors were not likely to spare any of their antagonists, he remained with the barbarians, preferring life with them to death at home. This Labienus, when he heard of Antony's indolence, of his passion for Cleopatra, and his departure for Egypt, persuaded the Parthians to attack the Romans." They were soon afterward crushed by Ventidius.) What Labienus and the Parthians did and suffered I will show in my Parthian history.

In the meantime Helenus, a lieutenant of Octavius, who had repossessed Sardinia by a sudden onset, was driven out again by Menodorus, the lieutenant of Pompeius. Octavius was so exasperated by this that he rejected Antony's endeavors to bring him to an agreement with Pompeius. They proceeded to Rome together and celebrated the marriage. Antony put Manius to death because he had excited Fulvia by his accusations against Cleopatra and had been the cause of so many evils. He also revealed to Octavius the fact that Salvidienus, who was in command of Octavius' army on the Rhone, had had the intention of deserting him, and had sent word to that effect to Antony while he was besieging Brundusium. This secret Antony revealed, not with universal approbation, but because of his frankness and eagerness to show his good-will. Octavius instantly summoned Salvidienus to Rome, pretending that he had some private communication to make to him, and that he should send him back to the army. When he came Octavius confronted him with proofs of his treachery and put him to death, and gave his army to Antony, as he considered it untrustworthy.