vour resentment against Tigranes1 on account of the recent war, and the unfortunate state of my affairs, will appear, if you but take a just view of the matter, the greatest incentives to induce you to join me. Tigranes, ready to submit to you, will consent to whatever terms you please; for myself, Fortune, who has taken much from me, has given me experience to advise others; and, what is beneficial for those prosperous as yourself, I, who am fallen from the height of power, afford you an example for the better conduct of your affairs.

The Romans have constantly had the same cause, a cause of the greatest antiquity, for making war upon all nations, people, and kings, the insatiable desire of empire and wealth. Prompted by this incentive, they first took up arms against Philip, king of Macedonia; but, being pressed by the Carthaginians, they assumed the mask of friendship2, and, at the same time, artfully diverted Antiochus, who was coming to his aid, by the concession of Asia3. Soon after, when they had made Philip their slave1, Antiochus was despoiled of all his dominions on this side Mount Taurus, and ten thousand talents. As for Perses, the son of Philip, when, after many and various contests, he had received from them a pledge of

1 Resentment against Tigranes, &c.] "Tigranes, several years before, had been given as a hostage to the Parthians (see Justin., xxxviii., 3), and had been restored by them to his father's kingdom; but compelled, at the same time, to give up seventy valleys of the Armenian territory as the price of his restoration. (Strab., xi.) Some time afterwards, when his courage was roused by his alliance with Mithridates, he resumed possession of his land, and threw off the yoke of the Parthians altogether. Hence the anger of Arsaces. De Brosses, v. 2." Burnouf.

2 Assumed the mask of friendship] Amicitiam simulantes. "Friendship namely, for Philip. And as they pretended friendship for Philip while the Punic war continued, so they pretended friendship for Antiochus as long as the war with Philip continued." Burnouf.

Concession of Asia] Concessione Asia. "It nowhere appears that the R mans, at that time, made any formal cession of any part of Asia to Antiochus. I ut we find from Livy, xxxiii., 39, that Antiochus, when Philip was fighting for the Romans, took the opportunity of seizing on several cities belonging to Nhat prince, and that the Romans, at the time, took no notice of the matter. Burnouf.

Made Philip their slave] Tracto Philippo. "Sc. in servitutem, under the name of an ally; for Philip fought on the side of the Romans against Antiochus, Livy, xxxvi., 8." Burnonf

faith before the gods of Samothrace, these crafty devisers of treachery, who had given him life by the articles of their agreement, killed him by depriving him of sleep1. Eumenes, of whose friendship they ostentatiously boast, they at first betrayed to Antiochus, as the price of a peace with him. Attalus, the guardian of a captured territory2, they reduced, by pecuniary exactions and insults, from a monarch to the most wretched of slaves; and then, having forged an unnatural3 will in his name, they led his son Aristonicus, for having attempted the recovery of his father's kingdom, in triumph like a conquered enemy. Asia was next occupied by their troops, and at length, on the death of Nicomedes1, they seized and ravaged the whole of Bithynia, though there was undoubtedly a son born of Nusa, whom they had recognised as queen. What shall I say of myself? I was on every side separated, by kingdoms and provinces, from their dominions, yet, as I was reported to be rich and averse to slavery, they provoked me to war by setting Nico

1 Depriving him of sleep] When Perses was defeated by Paullus Æmilius, and driven from Macedonia, he fled to the island of Samothrace, and took refuge in a temple. Octavius, the commander of the Roman fleet, persuaded him to quit it, and trust himself to the faith of the Romans. Vell. Paterc., i, 9. Liv., xliv., xlv. Having been led in triumph, he was allowed to reside, at the intercession of Emilius, under guard at Alba, where he is said by most authors to have died by abstaining from food. Plutarch, however, in his Life of Paullus Æmilius, c. 37, relates that the soldiers by whom he was guarded, having for some reason taken a dislike to him, and not daring to offer him violence, used means to prevent him from sleeping, by which he died. See also Diodor. Sic. lib., xxxi.

2 Guardian of a captured territory] Custodem agri captivi. "He insinuates that the kingdom of Attalus, even during his life, was but a province of the Romans." Burnouf.

3 Unnatural] Impio. Because Attalus, by such a will, set aside his own children. Justin., xxxvi., 4, intimates that Attalus was never very sound in mind. Porphyrio, on Hor. Od., ii., 18, Neque Attali Ignotus hæres regiam occupavi, says that the expression hæres occupavi "conveys a suspicion, from which we suppose that the Romans claimed this inheritance by a forged will:" Suspicionem dat, quâ existimamus falso testamento Romanos hanc sibi hæreditatem vindicâsse. Mithridates, therefore, seems not to have been the only one that suspected the Romans of unfair dealing in the matter.

Nicomedes] He also left his dominions to the Romans by will. See Liv. Epit., xciii.; Vell. Pat. ii., 4.

5 Seized and ravaged] Diripuere.

• Provinces] Trarchiis. See on Cat., c. 20.

medes upon me1; I being, indeed, perfectly aware of their evil intentions, and having declared with regard to the Cretans, then the only free people in the world, and king Ptolemy, that that would happen which has since come to pass. My wrongs I avenged; I expelled Nicomedes from Bithynia; I recovered Asia, the spoil of king Antiochus2; I took the heavy yoke of servitude from Greece. It was only the baseness of Archelaus3, that vilest of slaves, in betraying my army, that prevented my progress. And those whom cowardice, or the wretched policy of resting their security on my efforts, withheld from taking arms in my behalf, pay the severest penalties for their folly; Ptolemy is buying off war, from day to day, with money; and the Cretans5, who have

1 By setting Nicomedes upon me] Per Nicomedem. "He makes the same complaint in Justin., xxxviii., 5. Nicomedes had been expelled, by the arms, indeed, of his brother, but by the secret instigation of Mithridates, from his kingdom; and the senate, by sending legates, effected his restoratiou.

But the Roman

generals, who hoped for rich spoils from a war, incited Nicomedes to invade the dominions of Mithridates. Of this aggression Mithridates made bitter complaints, but finding no redress, thought it time to commence hostilities. This was the origin of the war with Mithridates, who had previously, in name at least, been the ally of the Romans. See Appian, De Bell. Mithrid." Burnouf.

2 Asia, the spoil of king Antiochus] Asiamque spolium regis Antiochi. "He calls it a spoil, because it had been taken from Antiochus by the Romans. See above, Antiochus omni cis Taurum agro-spoliatus est: 'Antiochus was despoiled of all his dominions on this side Mount Taurus.'" Cortius.

3 Archelaus "General of the army of Mithridates, who, having lost Athens, and suffered defeats at Charonea and Orchomenus, made peace, in the name of Mithridates, with Sylla, to which the king, after some delay, gave his sanction. But extraordinary honours being paid to Archelaus by Sylla, Mithridates began to suspect him of having acted treacherously, both in the field and with regard to the peace; and his suspicions were increased, when, being sent to the legions of Fimbria, who had expressed some intention of deserting to Mithridates, he himself was taken prisoner by them, and his attendants slain. Having afterwards recovered his liberty, but dreading the wrath of his master, he fled, with his wives and children, to the Romans, to whom he ever after continued faithful. See Plutarch, Vit. Syll. and Appian de Bell. Mithrid." Burnouf.

With money] Pretio. "A force d'argent." De Brosses. "He perhaps refers to those large presents made by Ptolemy to Lucullus. Plutarch in Lucull." Cortius.

5 The Cretans, &c.] "The Cretan war, if we would but admit the truth, we ourselves occasioned, solely from the desire of subduing that noble island. It was thought to have favoured Mithridates, and we resolved to take vengeance for this offence by force of arms."-Florus, iii., 7.

already been once attacked, will see no end of hostilities til. they are utterly subjugated.

For my own part, perceiving that war against me was rather delayed by the Romans (on account of their troubles at home), than peace secured to me, I resumed hostilities; though Tigranes, who now too late approves my counsels, refused to join me; though you were at a great distance; and though all the neighbouring powers were under submission to my enemies. I routed Marcus Cotta, the Roman general, in a battle by land at Chalcedon; and despoiled him of a fine fleet by sea. But being delayed, at the head of a vast army, by a long siege at Cyzicus, I suffered from want of provisions; for no one assisted me by land, and the winter prevented all relief by sea. Compelled, therefore, though not by any force of the enemy, to return to my hereditary dominions, I had the misfortune to lose, by shipwrecks at Parium1 and Heraclea, my fleet and the flower of my troops. I recruited my army, however, at Cabira2; but, after various encounters with Lucullus, a second scarcity affected both of But he had the kingdom of Ariobarzanes3, still uninjured by the war, for a resource; whilst I, finding all the country round me wasted, retired to Armenia; the Romans pursuing, not me, but their own plan of subverting every kingdom; and because they were enabled, from the narrowness of the pass through which we marched, to prevent us from coming fairly to action, they attribute what was the consequence of Tigranes' imprudence, to the successful efforts of their own arms.

us.

I intreat you then to consider, whether, if I am subdued, you will find yourself better able to resist the Romans, or more likely to see an end put to the war. I know indeed that you have abundance of troops, arms, and treasure; on which accounts you are sought by me as an ally, and by

Parium] "A town on the coast of Mysia Minor, not far from Cyzicus. See Cellar., iii., 3." Cortius. Heraclea was in Pontus.

2 Cabira] "A city of Pontus, bordering on Armenia, afterwards named Diopolis by Pompey." Cortius.

3 Ariobarzanes] King of Cappadocia.

Pursuing, not me, but their own plan] Secuti non me, sed morem suum. Of such a play on a word, I believe that there is no other instance in Sallust.

them as a prey. And what remains best for you1 to determine, is, while the kingdom of Tigranes is still flourishing, and while I am in possession of troops inured to war, to bring the contest to a termination at a distance from home, and with little labour, by the efforts of our own soldiers; since Tigranes and myself can neither conquer nor be conquered without hazard to you.

Are you ignorant that the Romans had spread themselves westward until the ocean stopped their progress, before they turned their arms against us? And that they have had nothing, from the very commencement of their being, neither home, nor wives, nor lands, nor rule, but what they have gained by rapine? Originally a herd of fugitives, without a country, without any known parents, they founded an empire by the destruction of mankind, and are restrained, neither by human nor divine obligations, from ravaging and oppressing all, whether friends or allies, near or remote, weak or strong. Every power that does not become their slave, and regal powers most of all, they regard as an enemy. Few states wish for liberty3; but most prefer just monarchs on which account they detest us, as their rivals in power, and likely to be the avengers of the cause of mankind. For

1 And what remains best for you, &c.] Cæterum consilium est, Tigranis regno integro, &c. This is the reading of Burnouf, whose interpretation I have followed, but without feeling sure that it is right. Cortius points the words consilium est Tigranis, regno, &c., a mode which Gerlach advocates in his notes, but gives the other method in his text. He justly calls the passage locus difficillimus.

2 Without any known parents] Sine parentibus. "Sans parens." De Brosses. Cortius takes parentes, in this passage, in the sense of subjects, saying that, in the miscellaneous multitude that formed the origin of Rome, there were neither imperantes nor parentes, neither governors nor subjects; but this interpretation is justly condemned by Gerlach, who cites from Sen. Ep., 108, Anci pater nullus, and from Hor. Sat. i., 6, 10, Viros nullis majoribus ortos. He might have added what is said of Servius Tullius in Livy, Patre nullo, matre servâ.

3 Few states wish for liberty] Pauci libertatem-volunt. "He speaks with regard to the character of the Asiatics, who neither knew liberty by experience, nor had any due conception of it; referring especially to the case of the Cappadocians, who, when the last of the family of their king Ariarathes, who had been killed by Mithridates, died, were made free by their own senate at the direction of Mithridates himself; but they soon declared that a nation could not exist without a monarch, and chose Ariobarzanes for their king, with the approbation of their senate. Justin., xxxviii., 2. 'Liberty,' says Montesquieu, has appeared insupportable to people who have not been accustomed to enjoy it; as a pure air is sometimes hurtful to such as have lived in marshy districts.' Spirit of Laws, xix., 2." Burnouf