Dio's Rome, Volume 3: An Historical Narrative Originally Composed in Greek During The Reigns of Septimius Severus, Geta and Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus: and Now Presented in English FormCassius Dio Cocceianus
History
Dio's Rome, Volume 3: An Historical Narrative Originally Composed in Greek During The Reigns of Septimius Severus, Geta and Caracalla, Macrinus, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus: and Now Presented in English Form
Cassius Dio Cocceianus
Rome -- History
he might not cause an uprising. Yet not even then did he remain quiet,
but concocted more schemes of rebellion than ever, so that some of the
soldiers came to blows with one another and others started for Apollonia
after Antonius himself, in the intention of rescuing him. This, however,
they were unable to do: Brutus had learned in advance from some
intercepted letters what was to be done and by putting him into an
enclosed chair got him out of the way on the pretence that he was moving
a sick man. The soldiers, not being able to find the object of their
search, in fear of Brutus seized a point of high ground commanding the
city. Brutus induced them to come to an understanding, and by executing a
few of the most audacious and dismissing others from his service he set
matters in such a light that the men arrested and killed those sent away,
on the ground that they were most responsible for the sedition, and asked
for the surrender of the quaestor and the lieutenants of Antonius. [-24-]
Brutus did not give up any of the latter, but put them aboard boats with
the avowed intention of drowning them, and so conveyed them to safety.
Fearing, however, that when they should hear the next news of more
terrifying transactions in Rome they might change their attitude, he
delivered Antonius to a certain Gaius Clodius to guard, and left him at
Apollonia. Meanwhile Brutus himself took the largest and strongest part
of the army and retired into upper Macedonia, whence he later sailed to
Asia, to the end that he might remove his men as far as possible from
Italy and support them on the subject territory there. Among other allies
whom he won over at this time was Deiotarus, although he was of a great
age and had refused assistance to Cassius. While he was delaying here a
plot was formed against him by Gellius Poplicola, and Mark Antony sent
some men to attempt to rescue his brother. Clodius, accordingly, as
he could not guard his prisoner safely, killed him, either on his own
responsibility, or according to instructions from Brutus. For the story
is that at first the latter made his safety of supreme importance, but
later, learning that Decimus had perished, cared nothing more about it.
Gellius was detected, but suffered no punishment. Brutus released him
because he had always held him to be among his best friends and knew that
his brother, Marcus Messala, was on very close terms with Cassius. The
man had also attacked Cassius, but had suffered no evil in that case,
either. The reason was that his mother Polla learned of the plot in
advance, and being very fearful lest Cassius should be overtaken by his
fate (for she was very fond of him) and lest her son should be detected,
voluntarily informed Cassius of the plot herself beforehand, and received
the preservation of her son as a reward. His easy escapes, however, did
not improve him at all, and he deserted his benefactors to join Caesar
and Antony. [-25-] As soon as Brutus learned of the attempt of Mark
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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