One of these daughters she married to Agrippa; and
the son married a daughter of Caesar's.
the son married a daughter of Caesar's.
Plutarch - Lives - v7
He had engaged
this servant to kill him, whenever he should think it
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? ANToNY.
necessary, and he now demanded that service. Eros
drew his sword, as if he designed to kill him; but,
suddenly turning about, he slew himself, and fell at
his master's feet! ' This, Eros, was greatly done,' said
Antony; ' thy heart would not permit thee to kill thy
master, but thou hast taught him what to do by thy
example. ' He then plunged his sword into his bowels,
and tbrew himself on a couch that stood by. The
wound, however, was not so deep as to cause immediate
death; and the blood stopping as he lay on the couch,
he came to himself, and intreated those who stood by
to put him out of his pain. They all fled nevertheless,
and left him to his cries and torments, till Diomedes,
secretary to Cleopatra, came with her request that he
would come to her in the monument. When Antony
found that she was still living, it gave him fresh spirits,
and he ordered his servants to take him up. Accord-
ingly they carried him in their arms to the door of the
monument. Cleopatra would not suffer the door to be
opened, but a cord being let down from a window,
Antony was fastened to it, and she, with her two wo-
men, all that were admitted into the monument, drew
him up. Nothing, as they who were present observed,
could possibly be more affecting than that spectacle.
Antony, covered with blood, and in the agonies of
death, hoisted up by the rope, and stretching out his
hands to Cleopatra, while he was suspended, for a con-
siderable time, in the air! for it was with the greatest
difficulty they drew him up, though Cleopatra herself
exerted all her strength, straining every nerve, and
distorting every feature with the violence of the effort;
while those who stood below endeavored to animate
and encourage her, and seemed to partake in all the
toil, and all the emotions that she felt. When she
had drawn him up, and laid him on a bed, as she stood
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PLUTARCH.
over him, she rent her clothes, beat and wounded her
breast, and wiping the blood from his disfigured coun-
tenance, she called him her lord, her emperor, her hus-
band! Her whole soul was absorbed in his misfor-
tunes; and she seemed totally to have forgot that she
had any miseries of her own. Antony endeavored to
soothe her as well as he was able, and called for wine;
either because he was thirsty, or because he thought it
might sooner put him out of his pain. When he had
drank, he advised her to consult her own affairs and
her safety, so far as might be consistent with honor, and
to place her confidence in Proculeius rather than in the
other friends of Caesar. As to himself, he said that
she ought rather to rejoice in the remembrance of his
past happiness, than to bewail his present misfortunes,
since in his life he had been illustrious, and was not
inglorious in his death. He had conquered like a Ro-
man, and it was only by a Roman that he was con-
quered. A little before he expired Proculeius arrived
from Caesar: for after Antony had stabbed himself,
and was conveyed to Cleopatra, Dercetaeus, one of his
guards, privately carried off his bloody sword, and
ahowed it to Caesar. When Caesar beheld this token
of Antony's death, he retired to the inner part of his
tent, and shed some tears in remembrance of a man
who had been his relation, his colleague in government,
and his associate in so many battles and important
affairs. He then called his friends together, and read
the letters which had passed between him and Antony;
wherein it appeared that, though Caesar had still
written in a rational and equitable manner, the an-
swers of Antony were insolent and contemptuous.
After this he despatched Proculeius with orders to
take Cleopatra alive, if it were possible, for he was
extremely solicitous to save the treasures in the monu-
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? ANToNY.
77
ment, which would only so greatly add to the glory
of his triumph. However, she refused to admit him
into the monument, and would only speak to him
through the holted gate. The suhstance of this con-
ference was, that Cleopatra made a requisition of the
kiugdom forherchildren, while Proculeius, on the other
hand, encouraged her to trust every thing to Caesar.
After he had reconnoitered the place, he sent an ac-
count of it to Caesar; on which Gallus was despatched
to confer with Cleopatra. The thing was thus con-
certed: Gallus went up to the gate of the monument,
and drew Cleopatra into conversation, while, in the
mean time, Proculeius applied a ladder to the window,
where the women had taken in Antony; and having
got in with two servants, he immediately made for
the place where Cleopatra was in conference with Gal-
lus. One of her women discovered him, and screamed
aloud, 'Wretched Cleopatra, you are taken alive! '
She turned ahout, and, seeing Proculeius, the same
instant attempted to stah herself; for to this intent she
always carried a dagger ahout with her. Proculeius,
however, prevented her, and, expostulating with her,
as he held her in his arms, he intreated her not to be
so injurious to herself or to Ca;sar; that she would not
deprive so humane a prince of the glory of his cle-
mency, or expose him hy her distrust to the imputa-
tion of treachery or cruelty. At the same time . be
took the dagger from her, and shook her clothes, lest
she should have poison concealed about her. Caesar
also sent his freedman Epaphroditus with orders to
treat her with the greatest politeness, but, by all means,
to bring her alive.
Caesar entered Alexandria conversing with Arius the
philosopher; and that he might do bim honor before
the people, he led him by the hand. When he entered
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PLUTARCH.
the gymnasium, he ascended a tribunal which had
been erected for him, and gave assurances to the citi-
zens, who prostrated themselves before him, that the
city should not be hurt. He told them he had different
motives for this. In the first place, it was built by
Alexander; in the next place, he admired it for its
beauty and magnitude; and, lastly, he would spare it,
were it but for the sake of his friend Arius, who
was born there. Caesar gave him the high honor of
this appellation, and pardoned many at his request.
Amongst these was Philostratus, one of the most acute
and eloquent sophists of his time. This man, without
any right, pretended to be a follower of the academics;
and Caesar, from a bad opinion of his morals, rejected
his petition; on which the sophist followed Arius up
and down in a mourning cloak, with a long white
beard, crying constantly,
* The wise, if really such, will save the wise. '
Caesar heard and pardoned him, not so much out of
favor, as to save Arius from the impertinence and envy
he might incur on his account.
Antyllus, the eldest son of Antony by Fulvia, was
betrayed by his tutor Theodorus, and put to death.
While the soldiers were beheading him the tutor stole
a jewel of considerable value, which he wore about
his neck, and concealed it in his girdle. When he was
charged with it, he denied the fact; but the jewel was
found on him, and he was crucified. Caesar appointed
a guard over Cleopatra's children and their governors,
and allowed them an honorable support. Caesario, the
reputed son of Caesar the dictator, had been sent by
his mother, with a considerable sum of money, through
Ethiopia into India. But Rhodon, his governor, a
man of the same principles with Theodorus, persuading
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? ANToNY.
him that Caesar would certainly make him king of
Egypt, prevailed on him to turn back. While Caesar
was deliberating how he should dispose of him, Arius
is said to have observed that there ought not, by any
means, to be too many Caesars. However, soon after
the death of Cleopatra he was slain.
Many considerable princes begged the body of An-
tony, that they might have the honor of giving it
burial; but Caesar would not take it from Cleopatra,
who interred it with her own hands, and performed
the funeral rites with great magnificence; for she was
allowed to expend what she thought proper on the oc-
casion. The excess of her affliction, and the inflamma-
tion of her breast, which was wounded by the blows
she had given it in her anguish, threw her into a fever.
She was pleased to find an excuse in this for abstaining
from food, and hoped, by this means, to die without
interruption. The physician in whom she placed her
principal confidence was Olympus; and, according to
his short account of these transactions, she made use
of his advice in the accomplishment of her design.
Caesar, however, suspected it; and that he might pre-
vail on her to take the necessary food and physic, he
threatened to treat her children with severity. This had
the desired effect, and her resolution was overborne.
A few days after, Caesar himself made her a visit of
condolence and consolation. She was then in an un-
dress, and lying negligently on a couch; but when the
conqueror entered the apartment, though she had no-
thing on but a single bed-gown, she arose and threw
herself at his feet. Her face was out of figure, her
hair in disorder, her voice trembling, her eyes sunk,
and her bosom bore the marks of the injuries she had
done it. In short, her person gave you the image of
her mind; yet, in this deplorable condition, there
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PLUTARCH.
were some remains of that grace, that spirit and vi-
vacity which had so peculiarly animated her former
charms, and still some gleams of her native elegance
might be seen to wander over her melancholy coun-
tenance.
When Caesar had replaced her on her couch, and
seated himself by her, she endeavored to justify the
part she took against him in the war, alleging the ne-
cessity she was under, and her fear of Antony. But
when she found that these apologies had no weight
with Caesar, she had recourse to prayers and intreaties,
as if she had been really desirous of life; and, at the
same time, she put into his hands an inventory of her
treasure. Seleucus, one of her treasurers, who was
present, accused her of suppressing some articles in
the account; on which she started up from her couch,
caught him by the hair, and gave him several blows on
the face. Caesar smiled at this spirited resentment,
and endeavored to pacify her: 'But how is it to be
borne,' said she, ' Caesar, if while even you honor me
with a visit in my wretched situation, I must be af-
fronted by one of my own servants? Supposing that
I have reserved a few trinkets, they were by no means
intended as ornaments for my own person in these
miserable fortunes, but as little presents for Octavia
and Livia, by whose good offices I might hope to find
favor with you. ' Caesar was not displeased to hear
this, beeause he flattered himself that she was willing
to live. He therefore assured her that, whatever she
had reserved, she might dispose of at her pleasure;
and that she might, in every respect, depend on the
most honorable treatment. After this he took his
leave, in confidence that he had brought her to his
purpose; but she deceived him.
There was in Caesar's train a young nobleman, whose.
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? ANToNY.
81
name was Cornelius Dolabella. He was smitten with
the charms of Cleopatra, and having engaged to com-
municate to her every thing that passed, he sent her
private notice that Caesar was about to return into
Syria, and that, within three days, she would be sent
away with her children. When she was informed of
this, she requested of Caesar permission to make her
last oblations to Antony. This being granted, she was
conveyed to the place where he was buried; and kneel-
ing at his tomb, with her women, she thus addressed
the manes of the dead: 'It is not long, my Antony,
since with these hands I buried thee. Alas! they
were then free; but thy Cleopatra is now a prisoner,
attended by a guard, lest, in the transports of her
grief, she should disfigure this captive body, which is
reserved to adorn the triumph over thee. These are
the last offerings, the last honors she can pay thee ; for
she is now to be conveyed to a distant country. No-
thing could part us while we lived; but in death we
are to be divided. Thou, though a Roman, liest buried
in Egypt; and I, an Egyptian, must be interred in
Italy, the only favor I shall receive from thy country.
Yet, if the gods of Rome have power or mercy left,
(for surely those of Egypt have forsaken us,) let them
not suffer me to be led in living triumph to thy dis-
grace! No! --hide me, hide me with thee in the grave;
for life, since thou hast left it, has been misery to
me. '
Thus the unhappy queen bewailed her misfortunes;
and, after she had crowned the tomb with flowers, and
kissed it, she ordered her bath to be prepared. When
she had bathed, she sat down to a magnificent supper;
soon after which, a peasant came to the gate with a
small basket. The guards inquired what it contained;
and the man who brought it, putting by the leaves
PLUT. VOL. VII. F
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? 82
PLUTARCH.
which lay uppermost, showed them a parcel of figs.
As they admired their size and beauty, he smiled, and
bade them take some; but they refused, and, not sus-
pecting that the basket contained any thing else, it was
carried in. After supper Cleopatra sent a letter to
Cffisar, and, ordering every body out of the monu-
ment, except her two women, she made fast the door.
When Caesar opened the letter, the plaintive style in
which it was written, and the strong request that she
might be buried in the same tomb with Antony, made
him suspect her design. At first he was for hastening to
her himself, but he changed his mind, and despatched
others. Her death however was so sudden, that though
they who were sent ran the whole way, alarmed the
guards with their apprehensions, and immediately broke
open the doors, they found her quite dead, lying on
her golden bed, and dressed in all her royal ornaments.
Iras, one of her women, lay dead at her feet, and
Charmion, hardly able to support herself, was adjust-
ing her mistress's diadem. One of Caesar's messengers
said angrily, ' Charmion, was this well done? '--' Per-
fectly well,' said she, ' and worthy a descendant of the
kings of Egypt. ' She had no sooner said this than
she fell down dead.
It is related by some that an asp was brought in
amongst the figs, and hid under the leaves; and that
Cleopatra had ordered it so that she might be bit with-
out seeing it; that, however, on removing the leaves,
she perceived it, and said, ' This is what I wanted:' on
which she immediately held out her arm to it. Others
say that the asp was kept in a water-vessel, and that
she vexed and pricked it with a golden spindle till it
seized her arm. Nothing of this however could be
ascertained; for it was reported likewise that she car-
ried about with her a certain poison in a hollow bodkin
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? ANToNY,
8;?
that she wore in her hair; yet there was neither any
mark of poison on her body, nor was there any serpent
found in the monument, though the track of a reptile
was said to have been discovered on the sea-sands op-
posite to the windows of Cleopatra's apartment. Others,
again, have affirmed that she had two small punctures
on her arm, apparently occasioned by the sting of the
asp; and it is clear that Caesar gave credit to this; for
her effigy, which he carried in triumph, had an asp on
the arm. '
Such are the accounts we have of the death of Cleo-
patra; and though Caesar was much disappointed by
it, he admired her fortitude, and ordered her to be
buried in the tomb of Antony, with all the magnificence
due to her quality. Her women, too, were by his
orders interred with great funeral pomp. Cleopatra
died at the age of thirty-nine, after having reigned
twenty-two years, the fourteen last in conjunction with
Antony. Antony was fifty-three, some say fifty-six,
when he died. His statues were all demolished, but
Cleopatra's remained untouched; for Archibius, a
friend of hers, gave Caesar a thousand talents for their
redemption.
Antony left by his three wives seven children,8
whereof Antyllus, the eldest, only was put to death.
Octavia took the rest, and educated them with her
own. Cleopatra, his daughter by Cleopatra, was mar-
ried to Juba, one of the politest princes of his time1;
and Octavia made Antony, his son by Fulvia, so con-
1 This may be a matter of doubt. There would, of course,
be aa asp on the diadem of the effigy, because it was peculiar
to the kings of Egypt; and this might give rise to the report
of an asp being on the arm.
2 By Fulvia, he bad Antyllus and Antony; by Cleopatra, lie
had Cleopatra, Ptolemy, and Alexander; and by Octavia, An-
tonia, major and minor.
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PLUTARCH.
siderable with Caesar, that, after Agrippa and the sons
of Livia, he was generally allowed to hold the first
place in his favor. Octavia by her first husband Mar-
cellus had two daughters and a son named Marcellus.
One of these daughters she married to Agrippa; and
the son married a daughter of Caesar's. But as he died
soon after, and Octavia observing that her brother was
at a loss whom he should adopt in his place, she pre-
vailed on him to give his daughter Julia to Agrippa,
though her own daughter must necessarily be divorced
to make way for her. Caesar and Agrippa having
agreed on this point, she took back her daughter and
married her to Antony. Of the two daughters that
Octavia had by Antony, one was married to Domi-
tius jEnobarbus, and the other, Antonia, so much
celebrated for her beauty and virtue, married Drusus,
the son of Livia, and son-in-law to Caesar. Of this
line came Germanicus and Claudius. Claudius was
afterwards emperor; and so likewise was Caius the
son of Germanicus, who, after a short but infamous
reign, was put to death together with his wife and
daughter. Agrippina, who had Lucius Domitius by
jEnobarbus, was afterwards married to Claudius Cae-
sar. He adopted Domitius, whom he named Nero
Germanicus. This Nero, who was emperor in our
times, put his own mother to death, and, by the mad-
ness of his conduct, went near to ruin the Roman em-
pire. He was the fifth in descent from Antony.
DEMETRIUS AND ANTONY COMPARED.
As Demetrius and Antony both passed through a
variety of fortune, we shall consider, in the first place,
their respective power and celebrity. These were,
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? DEMETRIUS AND ANToNY CoMPARED. 85
hereditary to Demetrius; for Antigonus, the mQst
powerful of Alexander's successors, had reduced all
Asia during his son's minority. On the other hand,
the father of Antony was, indeed, a man of character,
but not of a military character; yet though he had no
public influence or reputation to bequeath to his son,
that son did not hesitate to aspire to the empire of Cae-
sar; and, without any title either from consanguinity
or alliance, he effectually invested himself with all that
he had acquired: at least, by his own peculiar weight,
after he had divided the world into two parts, he took
the better for himself. By his lieutenants he conquered
the Parthians, and drove back the barbarous nations
about Caucasus, as far as the Caspian sea. Even the
less reputable parts of his conduct are so many testi-
monies of his greatness. The father of Demetrius
thought it an honor to marry him to Phila the daughter
of Antipater, though there was a disparity in their
years; while Antony's connexion with Cleopatra was
considered as a degrading circumstance; though Cleo-
patra, in wealth and magnificence, was superior to all
the princes of her time, Arsaces excepted. Thus he
had raised himself to such a pitch of grandeur, that
the world in general thought him intitled even to more
than he wished.
In Demetrius' acquisition of empire there was no-
thing reprehensible. He extended it only to nations
inured to slavery, and desirous of being governed.
But the arbitrary power of Antony grew on the exe-
crable policy of a tyrant, who once more reduced to
slavery a people that had shaken off the yoke. Con-
sequently the greatest of his actions, his conquest of
Brutus and Cassius, is darkened with the inglorious
motive of wresting its liberty from Rome. Demetrius,
during his better fortunes, consulted the liberties of
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PLUTARCH.
Greece, and removed the garrisons from the cities;
while Antony made it his boast that he had destroyed
the assertors of his country's freedom in Macedonia.
Antony is praised for his liberality and munificence;
in which, however, Demetrius is so far his superior, that
he gave more to his enemies than the former did to his
friends. Antony was honored for allowing a magnifi-
cent funeral to Brutus; but Demetrius buried every
enemy he had slain, and sent back his prisoners to
Ptolemy, not only with their own property, but with
presents.
Both were insolent in prosperity, and fell with too
much ease into luxury and indulgence. But we never
find Demetrius neglecting his affairs for his pleasures.
In his hours of leisure, indeed, he had his Lamia;
whose office it was, like the fairy in the fable, to lull
him to sleep, or amuse him in his play. When he
went to war, his spear was not bound about with ivy;
his helmet did not smell of perfume; he did not come
in the foppery of dress out of the chambers of the wo-
men; the riots of Bacchus and his train were hushed;
and he became, as Euripides says, the minister of
Mars. In short, he never lost a battle through the
indulgence of luxury. This could not be said of An-
tony. As in the pictures of Hercules we see Omphale
stealing his club and his lion's skin, so Cleopatra fre-
quently disarmed Antony; and, while he should have
been prosecuting the most necessary expeditions, led
him to dancing and dalliance on the shores of Canopus
and Taphosiris. So, likewise, as Paris came from bat-
tle to the bosom of Helen, and even from the loss of
victory to her bed, Antony threw victory itself out of
his hands to follow Cleopatra.
Demetrius, being under no prohibition of the laws,
but following the examples of Philip and Alexander,
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? DEMETRIUS AND ANToNY CoMPARED. 87
Lysimachus and Ptolemy, married several wives, and
treated them all with the greatest honor. Antony,
though it was a thing unheard of amongst the Romans,
had two wives at the same time. Besides, he banished
her who was properly his wife, and a citizen, from his
house, to indulge a foreigner, with whom he could
have no legal connexion. From their marriages, of
course, one of them found no inconvenience; the other
suffered the greatest evils.
With regard to their behavior to their parents and
relations, that of Demetrius is irreproachable; but
Antony sacrificed his uncle to the sword of Caesar,
that he might be empowered in his turn to cut off
Cicero. A crime the latter was, which could never be
made pardonable, had Antony even saved, and not sa-
crificed an uncle by the means! They are both ac-
cused of perfidy; in that one of them threw Artabazus
into prison, and the other killed Alexander. Antony
however has some apology in this case; for he had
been abandoned and betrayed by Artabazus in Media.
But Demetrius was suspected of laying a false accusa-
tion against Alexander; and of punishing, not the of-
fender, but the injured.
There is this difference, too, in their military opera-
tions; that Demetrius gained every victory himself,
and many of Antony's laurels were won by his lieute-
nants.
Both lost their empire by their own fault, but by
different means. The former was abandoned by his
people; the latter deserted his, even whilst they were
fighting for him. The fault of Demetrius was, that
by his conduct he lost the affection of his army: the
fault of Antony, his desertion and neglect of that af-
fection. Neither of them can be approved in their
death; but Demetrius much less than Antony; for he
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? 88
PLUTARCH.
suffered himself to fall into the hands of the enemy,
and, with a spirit that was truly base, endured an im-
prisonment of three years. There was a deplorable
weakness, and many disgraceful circumstances attending
the death of Antony; but he effected it at last without
falling into the enemy's hands.
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? r
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? DION.
As we learn from Simonides, my dear Senecio, that
the Trojans were by no means offended at the Corin-
thians for joining the confederates in the Grecian war,
because the family of Glaucus, their own ally, was
originally of Corinth, so neither the Greeks nor the
Romans have reason to complain of the academy, which
has been equally favorable to both. This will appear
from the lives of Brutus and Dion; for, as one was
the scholar of Plato, and the other educated in his
principles, they came like wrestlers from the same
palaestra, to engage in the greatest conflicts. Both,
by their conduct, in which there was a great similarity,
confirmed that observation of their master, that 'power
and fortune most concur with prudence and justice to
effect any thing great in a political capacity:' but, as
Hippomachus the wrestler said, that he could distin-
guish his scholars at a distance, though they were only
carrying meat from the market; so the sentiments of
those who have had a polite education must have a
similar influence on their manners, and give a peculiar
grace and propriety to their conduct.
Accident, however, rather than design, gave a simi-
larity to the lives of these two great men; and both
were cut off by an untimely death, before they could
carry the purposes, which they had pursued with so
much labor, into execution. The most singular cir-
cumstance attending their death was, that both had a
divine warning of it, in the appearance of a frightful
spectre. There are those, indeed, who say, that no
man in his senses ever saw a spectre; that these are
the delusive visions of women and children; or of men
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PLUTARCH.
whose intellects are affected by some infirmity of the
body; and who believe that their absurd imaginations
are of divine inspiration. But if Dion and Brutus,
men of firm and philosophic minds, whose understand-
ings were not affected by any constitutional infirmity;
if such men could pay so much credit to the appear-
ance of spectres, as to give an account of them to their
friends, I see no reason why we should depart from
the opinion of the ancients, that men had their evil
genii, who disturbed them with fears, and distressed
their virtue, lest, by a steady and uniform pursuit of
it, they should hereafter obtain a happier allotment
than themselves. These things however I must refer
to another occasion; and in this twelfth book of pa-
rallel lives, of which Dion and Brutus are the subjects,
I shall begin with the more ancient.
After Dionysius the elder had seized the govern-
ment of Sicily he married the daughter of Hermo-
crates, a Syracusan. But as the monarchic power
was yet but ill established, she had the misfortune
to be so much abused by an outrageous faction, that
she put an end to her life. When Dionysius was
confirmed in his government he married two wives at
the same time. One was Doris, a native of Locris;
the other, Aristomache, the daughter of Hipparinus,
who was a principal person in Syracuse, and colleague
with Dionysius when he was first appointed general
of the Sicilian forces. It is said that he married these
wives on the same day. It is not certain which he
married first, but he was impartial in his kindness to
them; for both attended him at his table, and alter-
nately partook of his bed. As Doris had the disad-
vantage of being a foreigner, the Syracusans sought
every means of obtaining the preference for their coun-
trywoman; but it was more than equivalent to this
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? DIoN.
91
disadvantage that she had the honor of giving Diony-
sius his eldest son. Aristomache, on the contrary, was
a long time barren, though the king was extremely de-
sirous of having children by her; and put to death the
mother of Doris, on a supposition that she had pre-
vented her conceptions by potions.
Dion, the brother of Aristomache, was well received
at court; not only on her account, but from the regard
which Dionysius had for his merit and abilities: and
that prince. gave his treasurer an order to supply him
with whatever money he wanted; but, at the same
time, to keep an account of what he received.
But whatever the talents and the virtues of Dion
might be originally, it is certain that they received the
happiest improvement under the auspices of Plato.
Surely the gods, in mercy to mankind, sent that divine
philosopher from Italy to Syracuse, that, through the
humane influence of his doctrine, the spirit of liberty
might once more revive, and the inhabitants of that
country be rescued from tyranny.
Dion soon became the most distinguished of his
scholars. To the fertility of his genius, and the excel-
lence of his disposition, Plato himself has given testi-
mony ; and he did the greatest honor to that testimony
in his life: for though he had been educated in servile
principles under a tyrant, though he had been famili-
arised to dependence on the one hand, and to the in-
dulgence of pomp and luxury, as the greatest happi-
ness, on the other, yet he was no sooner acquainted
with that philosophy which points out the road to vir-
tue, than his whole soul caught the enthusiasm, and,
with the simplicity of a young man who judges of the
dispositions of others by his own, he concluded that
Plato's lectures would have the same effect on Diony-
sius: for this reason he solicited, and at length per-
suaded the tyrant to hear him. When Plato was
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? PLUTARCH.
admitted, the discourse turned on virtue in general.
Afterwards they came to fortitude in particular; and
Plato made it appear that tyrants have, of all men,
the least pretence to that virtue. Justice was the next
topic: and when Plato asserted the happiness of the
just, and the wretched condition of the unjust, the
tyrant was stung; and being unable to answer his ar-
guments, he expressed his resentment against those
who seemed to listen to him with pleasure. At last he
was extremely exasperated, and asked the philosopher
what business he had in Sicily. Plato answered, 'that
he came to seek an honest man. '--' And so, then,' re-
plied the tyrant, 'it seems you have lost your labor. '
Dion was in hopes that his anger would have ended
here; but while Plato was hastening to be gone he
conveyed him aboard a galley, in which Pollis, the
Lacedaemonian, was returning to Greece. Dionysius
urged Pollis either to put Plato to death in his pas-
sage, or, at least, to sell him as a slave: 'for, accord-
ing to his own maxim,' said he, 'this man cannot be
unhappy; a just man, he says, must be happy in a
state of slavery, as well as in a state of freedom. '
Pollis therefore carried him to . /Egina, and sold him
there: for the people of that place, being at war with
the Athenians, had made a decree, that whatever Athe-
nian was taken on their coast he should be sold. Dion,
notwithstanding, retained his interest with Dionysius,
had considerable employments, and was sent ambassa-
dor to Carthage. Dionysius had a high esteem for
him, and he therefore permitted him to speak his sen-
timents with freedom. An instance of this we have in
the retort he made on the tyrant's ridiculing the go-
vernment of Gelo: ' Gelo,' said Dionysius, 'is [g-eZoi]
the laughing-stock of Sicily. ' While others admired
and applauded this witticism, Dion answered, 'You
obtained the crown by being trusted on Gelo's ac-
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? DIoN.
93
count, who reigned with great humanity ; but you have
reigned in such a manner, that, for your sake, no man
will be trusted hereafter. Gelo made monarchy ap-
pear the best of governments; but you have convinced
us that it is the worst. ' Dionysius had three children
by Doris, and four by Aristomacbe ; whereof two were
daughters, Sophrosyne and Arete. The former of these
was married to his eldest son Dionysius; the latter to
his brother Thearides; and, after his death, to her un-
cle Dion. In the last illness of Dionysius, Dion would
have applied to him in behalf of the children of Ari-
stomache, but the physicians were beforehand with
him. They wanted to ingratiate themselves with his
successor; and when he asked for a sleeping-dose,
Timaeus tells us, they gave him so effectual a one, that
he awaked no more.
When his son Dionysius came to the throne, in the
first council that he held, Dion spoke with so much
propriety on the present state of affairs, and on the
measures which ought to be taken, that the rest ap-
peared to be mere children in understanding. By the
freedom of his counsels he exposed, in a strong light,
the slavish principles of those who, through a timorous
disingenuity, advised such measures as they thought
would please their prince, rather than such as might
advance his interest. But what alarmed them most
was the steps he proposed to take with regard to the
impending war with Carthage; for he offered either to
go in person to Carthage, and settle an honorable
peace with the Carthaginians, or, if the king were
rather inclined for war, to fit out and maintain fifty
galleys at his own expense.
Dionysius was pleased with the magnificence of his
spirit; but the courtiers felt that it made them appear
little. They agreed that, at all events, Dion was to be
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PLUTARCH.
crushed, and they spared no calumny that malice could
suggest. They represented to the king that he cer-
tainly meant to make himself master by sea, and by
that means to obtain the kingdom for his sister's chil-
dren.
this servant to kill him, whenever he should think it
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? ANToNY.
necessary, and he now demanded that service. Eros
drew his sword, as if he designed to kill him; but,
suddenly turning about, he slew himself, and fell at
his master's feet! ' This, Eros, was greatly done,' said
Antony; ' thy heart would not permit thee to kill thy
master, but thou hast taught him what to do by thy
example. ' He then plunged his sword into his bowels,
and tbrew himself on a couch that stood by. The
wound, however, was not so deep as to cause immediate
death; and the blood stopping as he lay on the couch,
he came to himself, and intreated those who stood by
to put him out of his pain. They all fled nevertheless,
and left him to his cries and torments, till Diomedes,
secretary to Cleopatra, came with her request that he
would come to her in the monument. When Antony
found that she was still living, it gave him fresh spirits,
and he ordered his servants to take him up. Accord-
ingly they carried him in their arms to the door of the
monument. Cleopatra would not suffer the door to be
opened, but a cord being let down from a window,
Antony was fastened to it, and she, with her two wo-
men, all that were admitted into the monument, drew
him up. Nothing, as they who were present observed,
could possibly be more affecting than that spectacle.
Antony, covered with blood, and in the agonies of
death, hoisted up by the rope, and stretching out his
hands to Cleopatra, while he was suspended, for a con-
siderable time, in the air! for it was with the greatest
difficulty they drew him up, though Cleopatra herself
exerted all her strength, straining every nerve, and
distorting every feature with the violence of the effort;
while those who stood below endeavored to animate
and encourage her, and seemed to partake in all the
toil, and all the emotions that she felt. When she
had drawn him up, and laid him on a bed, as she stood
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PLUTARCH.
over him, she rent her clothes, beat and wounded her
breast, and wiping the blood from his disfigured coun-
tenance, she called him her lord, her emperor, her hus-
band! Her whole soul was absorbed in his misfor-
tunes; and she seemed totally to have forgot that she
had any miseries of her own. Antony endeavored to
soothe her as well as he was able, and called for wine;
either because he was thirsty, or because he thought it
might sooner put him out of his pain. When he had
drank, he advised her to consult her own affairs and
her safety, so far as might be consistent with honor, and
to place her confidence in Proculeius rather than in the
other friends of Caesar. As to himself, he said that
she ought rather to rejoice in the remembrance of his
past happiness, than to bewail his present misfortunes,
since in his life he had been illustrious, and was not
inglorious in his death. He had conquered like a Ro-
man, and it was only by a Roman that he was con-
quered. A little before he expired Proculeius arrived
from Caesar: for after Antony had stabbed himself,
and was conveyed to Cleopatra, Dercetaeus, one of his
guards, privately carried off his bloody sword, and
ahowed it to Caesar. When Caesar beheld this token
of Antony's death, he retired to the inner part of his
tent, and shed some tears in remembrance of a man
who had been his relation, his colleague in government,
and his associate in so many battles and important
affairs. He then called his friends together, and read
the letters which had passed between him and Antony;
wherein it appeared that, though Caesar had still
written in a rational and equitable manner, the an-
swers of Antony were insolent and contemptuous.
After this he despatched Proculeius with orders to
take Cleopatra alive, if it were possible, for he was
extremely solicitous to save the treasures in the monu-
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? ANToNY.
77
ment, which would only so greatly add to the glory
of his triumph. However, she refused to admit him
into the monument, and would only speak to him
through the holted gate. The suhstance of this con-
ference was, that Cleopatra made a requisition of the
kiugdom forherchildren, while Proculeius, on the other
hand, encouraged her to trust every thing to Caesar.
After he had reconnoitered the place, he sent an ac-
count of it to Caesar; on which Gallus was despatched
to confer with Cleopatra. The thing was thus con-
certed: Gallus went up to the gate of the monument,
and drew Cleopatra into conversation, while, in the
mean time, Proculeius applied a ladder to the window,
where the women had taken in Antony; and having
got in with two servants, he immediately made for
the place where Cleopatra was in conference with Gal-
lus. One of her women discovered him, and screamed
aloud, 'Wretched Cleopatra, you are taken alive! '
She turned ahout, and, seeing Proculeius, the same
instant attempted to stah herself; for to this intent she
always carried a dagger ahout with her. Proculeius,
however, prevented her, and, expostulating with her,
as he held her in his arms, he intreated her not to be
so injurious to herself or to Ca;sar; that she would not
deprive so humane a prince of the glory of his cle-
mency, or expose him hy her distrust to the imputa-
tion of treachery or cruelty. At the same time . be
took the dagger from her, and shook her clothes, lest
she should have poison concealed about her. Caesar
also sent his freedman Epaphroditus with orders to
treat her with the greatest politeness, but, by all means,
to bring her alive.
Caesar entered Alexandria conversing with Arius the
philosopher; and that he might do bim honor before
the people, he led him by the hand. When he entered
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PLUTARCH.
the gymnasium, he ascended a tribunal which had
been erected for him, and gave assurances to the citi-
zens, who prostrated themselves before him, that the
city should not be hurt. He told them he had different
motives for this. In the first place, it was built by
Alexander; in the next place, he admired it for its
beauty and magnitude; and, lastly, he would spare it,
were it but for the sake of his friend Arius, who
was born there. Caesar gave him the high honor of
this appellation, and pardoned many at his request.
Amongst these was Philostratus, one of the most acute
and eloquent sophists of his time. This man, without
any right, pretended to be a follower of the academics;
and Caesar, from a bad opinion of his morals, rejected
his petition; on which the sophist followed Arius up
and down in a mourning cloak, with a long white
beard, crying constantly,
* The wise, if really such, will save the wise. '
Caesar heard and pardoned him, not so much out of
favor, as to save Arius from the impertinence and envy
he might incur on his account.
Antyllus, the eldest son of Antony by Fulvia, was
betrayed by his tutor Theodorus, and put to death.
While the soldiers were beheading him the tutor stole
a jewel of considerable value, which he wore about
his neck, and concealed it in his girdle. When he was
charged with it, he denied the fact; but the jewel was
found on him, and he was crucified. Caesar appointed
a guard over Cleopatra's children and their governors,
and allowed them an honorable support. Caesario, the
reputed son of Caesar the dictator, had been sent by
his mother, with a considerable sum of money, through
Ethiopia into India. But Rhodon, his governor, a
man of the same principles with Theodorus, persuading
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? ANToNY.
him that Caesar would certainly make him king of
Egypt, prevailed on him to turn back. While Caesar
was deliberating how he should dispose of him, Arius
is said to have observed that there ought not, by any
means, to be too many Caesars. However, soon after
the death of Cleopatra he was slain.
Many considerable princes begged the body of An-
tony, that they might have the honor of giving it
burial; but Caesar would not take it from Cleopatra,
who interred it with her own hands, and performed
the funeral rites with great magnificence; for she was
allowed to expend what she thought proper on the oc-
casion. The excess of her affliction, and the inflamma-
tion of her breast, which was wounded by the blows
she had given it in her anguish, threw her into a fever.
She was pleased to find an excuse in this for abstaining
from food, and hoped, by this means, to die without
interruption. The physician in whom she placed her
principal confidence was Olympus; and, according to
his short account of these transactions, she made use
of his advice in the accomplishment of her design.
Caesar, however, suspected it; and that he might pre-
vail on her to take the necessary food and physic, he
threatened to treat her children with severity. This had
the desired effect, and her resolution was overborne.
A few days after, Caesar himself made her a visit of
condolence and consolation. She was then in an un-
dress, and lying negligently on a couch; but when the
conqueror entered the apartment, though she had no-
thing on but a single bed-gown, she arose and threw
herself at his feet. Her face was out of figure, her
hair in disorder, her voice trembling, her eyes sunk,
and her bosom bore the marks of the injuries she had
done it. In short, her person gave you the image of
her mind; yet, in this deplorable condition, there
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PLUTARCH.
were some remains of that grace, that spirit and vi-
vacity which had so peculiarly animated her former
charms, and still some gleams of her native elegance
might be seen to wander over her melancholy coun-
tenance.
When Caesar had replaced her on her couch, and
seated himself by her, she endeavored to justify the
part she took against him in the war, alleging the ne-
cessity she was under, and her fear of Antony. But
when she found that these apologies had no weight
with Caesar, she had recourse to prayers and intreaties,
as if she had been really desirous of life; and, at the
same time, she put into his hands an inventory of her
treasure. Seleucus, one of her treasurers, who was
present, accused her of suppressing some articles in
the account; on which she started up from her couch,
caught him by the hair, and gave him several blows on
the face. Caesar smiled at this spirited resentment,
and endeavored to pacify her: 'But how is it to be
borne,' said she, ' Caesar, if while even you honor me
with a visit in my wretched situation, I must be af-
fronted by one of my own servants? Supposing that
I have reserved a few trinkets, they were by no means
intended as ornaments for my own person in these
miserable fortunes, but as little presents for Octavia
and Livia, by whose good offices I might hope to find
favor with you. ' Caesar was not displeased to hear
this, beeause he flattered himself that she was willing
to live. He therefore assured her that, whatever she
had reserved, she might dispose of at her pleasure;
and that she might, in every respect, depend on the
most honorable treatment. After this he took his
leave, in confidence that he had brought her to his
purpose; but she deceived him.
There was in Caesar's train a young nobleman, whose.
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? ANToNY.
81
name was Cornelius Dolabella. He was smitten with
the charms of Cleopatra, and having engaged to com-
municate to her every thing that passed, he sent her
private notice that Caesar was about to return into
Syria, and that, within three days, she would be sent
away with her children. When she was informed of
this, she requested of Caesar permission to make her
last oblations to Antony. This being granted, she was
conveyed to the place where he was buried; and kneel-
ing at his tomb, with her women, she thus addressed
the manes of the dead: 'It is not long, my Antony,
since with these hands I buried thee. Alas! they
were then free; but thy Cleopatra is now a prisoner,
attended by a guard, lest, in the transports of her
grief, she should disfigure this captive body, which is
reserved to adorn the triumph over thee. These are
the last offerings, the last honors she can pay thee ; for
she is now to be conveyed to a distant country. No-
thing could part us while we lived; but in death we
are to be divided. Thou, though a Roman, liest buried
in Egypt; and I, an Egyptian, must be interred in
Italy, the only favor I shall receive from thy country.
Yet, if the gods of Rome have power or mercy left,
(for surely those of Egypt have forsaken us,) let them
not suffer me to be led in living triumph to thy dis-
grace! No! --hide me, hide me with thee in the grave;
for life, since thou hast left it, has been misery to
me. '
Thus the unhappy queen bewailed her misfortunes;
and, after she had crowned the tomb with flowers, and
kissed it, she ordered her bath to be prepared. When
she had bathed, she sat down to a magnificent supper;
soon after which, a peasant came to the gate with a
small basket. The guards inquired what it contained;
and the man who brought it, putting by the leaves
PLUT. VOL. VII. F
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PLUTARCH.
which lay uppermost, showed them a parcel of figs.
As they admired their size and beauty, he smiled, and
bade them take some; but they refused, and, not sus-
pecting that the basket contained any thing else, it was
carried in. After supper Cleopatra sent a letter to
Cffisar, and, ordering every body out of the monu-
ment, except her two women, she made fast the door.
When Caesar opened the letter, the plaintive style in
which it was written, and the strong request that she
might be buried in the same tomb with Antony, made
him suspect her design. At first he was for hastening to
her himself, but he changed his mind, and despatched
others. Her death however was so sudden, that though
they who were sent ran the whole way, alarmed the
guards with their apprehensions, and immediately broke
open the doors, they found her quite dead, lying on
her golden bed, and dressed in all her royal ornaments.
Iras, one of her women, lay dead at her feet, and
Charmion, hardly able to support herself, was adjust-
ing her mistress's diadem. One of Caesar's messengers
said angrily, ' Charmion, was this well done? '--' Per-
fectly well,' said she, ' and worthy a descendant of the
kings of Egypt. ' She had no sooner said this than
she fell down dead.
It is related by some that an asp was brought in
amongst the figs, and hid under the leaves; and that
Cleopatra had ordered it so that she might be bit with-
out seeing it; that, however, on removing the leaves,
she perceived it, and said, ' This is what I wanted:' on
which she immediately held out her arm to it. Others
say that the asp was kept in a water-vessel, and that
she vexed and pricked it with a golden spindle till it
seized her arm. Nothing of this however could be
ascertained; for it was reported likewise that she car-
ried about with her a certain poison in a hollow bodkin
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? ANToNY,
8;?
that she wore in her hair; yet there was neither any
mark of poison on her body, nor was there any serpent
found in the monument, though the track of a reptile
was said to have been discovered on the sea-sands op-
posite to the windows of Cleopatra's apartment. Others,
again, have affirmed that she had two small punctures
on her arm, apparently occasioned by the sting of the
asp; and it is clear that Caesar gave credit to this; for
her effigy, which he carried in triumph, had an asp on
the arm. '
Such are the accounts we have of the death of Cleo-
patra; and though Caesar was much disappointed by
it, he admired her fortitude, and ordered her to be
buried in the tomb of Antony, with all the magnificence
due to her quality. Her women, too, were by his
orders interred with great funeral pomp. Cleopatra
died at the age of thirty-nine, after having reigned
twenty-two years, the fourteen last in conjunction with
Antony. Antony was fifty-three, some say fifty-six,
when he died. His statues were all demolished, but
Cleopatra's remained untouched; for Archibius, a
friend of hers, gave Caesar a thousand talents for their
redemption.
Antony left by his three wives seven children,8
whereof Antyllus, the eldest, only was put to death.
Octavia took the rest, and educated them with her
own. Cleopatra, his daughter by Cleopatra, was mar-
ried to Juba, one of the politest princes of his time1;
and Octavia made Antony, his son by Fulvia, so con-
1 This may be a matter of doubt. There would, of course,
be aa asp on the diadem of the effigy, because it was peculiar
to the kings of Egypt; and this might give rise to the report
of an asp being on the arm.
2 By Fulvia, he bad Antyllus and Antony; by Cleopatra, lie
had Cleopatra, Ptolemy, and Alexander; and by Octavia, An-
tonia, major and minor.
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PLUTARCH.
siderable with Caesar, that, after Agrippa and the sons
of Livia, he was generally allowed to hold the first
place in his favor. Octavia by her first husband Mar-
cellus had two daughters and a son named Marcellus.
One of these daughters she married to Agrippa; and
the son married a daughter of Caesar's. But as he died
soon after, and Octavia observing that her brother was
at a loss whom he should adopt in his place, she pre-
vailed on him to give his daughter Julia to Agrippa,
though her own daughter must necessarily be divorced
to make way for her. Caesar and Agrippa having
agreed on this point, she took back her daughter and
married her to Antony. Of the two daughters that
Octavia had by Antony, one was married to Domi-
tius jEnobarbus, and the other, Antonia, so much
celebrated for her beauty and virtue, married Drusus,
the son of Livia, and son-in-law to Caesar. Of this
line came Germanicus and Claudius. Claudius was
afterwards emperor; and so likewise was Caius the
son of Germanicus, who, after a short but infamous
reign, was put to death together with his wife and
daughter. Agrippina, who had Lucius Domitius by
jEnobarbus, was afterwards married to Claudius Cae-
sar. He adopted Domitius, whom he named Nero
Germanicus. This Nero, who was emperor in our
times, put his own mother to death, and, by the mad-
ness of his conduct, went near to ruin the Roman em-
pire. He was the fifth in descent from Antony.
DEMETRIUS AND ANTONY COMPARED.
As Demetrius and Antony both passed through a
variety of fortune, we shall consider, in the first place,
their respective power and celebrity. These were,
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? DEMETRIUS AND ANToNY CoMPARED. 85
hereditary to Demetrius; for Antigonus, the mQst
powerful of Alexander's successors, had reduced all
Asia during his son's minority. On the other hand,
the father of Antony was, indeed, a man of character,
but not of a military character; yet though he had no
public influence or reputation to bequeath to his son,
that son did not hesitate to aspire to the empire of Cae-
sar; and, without any title either from consanguinity
or alliance, he effectually invested himself with all that
he had acquired: at least, by his own peculiar weight,
after he had divided the world into two parts, he took
the better for himself. By his lieutenants he conquered
the Parthians, and drove back the barbarous nations
about Caucasus, as far as the Caspian sea. Even the
less reputable parts of his conduct are so many testi-
monies of his greatness. The father of Demetrius
thought it an honor to marry him to Phila the daughter
of Antipater, though there was a disparity in their
years; while Antony's connexion with Cleopatra was
considered as a degrading circumstance; though Cleo-
patra, in wealth and magnificence, was superior to all
the princes of her time, Arsaces excepted. Thus he
had raised himself to such a pitch of grandeur, that
the world in general thought him intitled even to more
than he wished.
In Demetrius' acquisition of empire there was no-
thing reprehensible. He extended it only to nations
inured to slavery, and desirous of being governed.
But the arbitrary power of Antony grew on the exe-
crable policy of a tyrant, who once more reduced to
slavery a people that had shaken off the yoke. Con-
sequently the greatest of his actions, his conquest of
Brutus and Cassius, is darkened with the inglorious
motive of wresting its liberty from Rome. Demetrius,
during his better fortunes, consulted the liberties of
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PLUTARCH.
Greece, and removed the garrisons from the cities;
while Antony made it his boast that he had destroyed
the assertors of his country's freedom in Macedonia.
Antony is praised for his liberality and munificence;
in which, however, Demetrius is so far his superior, that
he gave more to his enemies than the former did to his
friends. Antony was honored for allowing a magnifi-
cent funeral to Brutus; but Demetrius buried every
enemy he had slain, and sent back his prisoners to
Ptolemy, not only with their own property, but with
presents.
Both were insolent in prosperity, and fell with too
much ease into luxury and indulgence. But we never
find Demetrius neglecting his affairs for his pleasures.
In his hours of leisure, indeed, he had his Lamia;
whose office it was, like the fairy in the fable, to lull
him to sleep, or amuse him in his play. When he
went to war, his spear was not bound about with ivy;
his helmet did not smell of perfume; he did not come
in the foppery of dress out of the chambers of the wo-
men; the riots of Bacchus and his train were hushed;
and he became, as Euripides says, the minister of
Mars. In short, he never lost a battle through the
indulgence of luxury. This could not be said of An-
tony. As in the pictures of Hercules we see Omphale
stealing his club and his lion's skin, so Cleopatra fre-
quently disarmed Antony; and, while he should have
been prosecuting the most necessary expeditions, led
him to dancing and dalliance on the shores of Canopus
and Taphosiris. So, likewise, as Paris came from bat-
tle to the bosom of Helen, and even from the loss of
victory to her bed, Antony threw victory itself out of
his hands to follow Cleopatra.
Demetrius, being under no prohibition of the laws,
but following the examples of Philip and Alexander,
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? DEMETRIUS AND ANToNY CoMPARED. 87
Lysimachus and Ptolemy, married several wives, and
treated them all with the greatest honor. Antony,
though it was a thing unheard of amongst the Romans,
had two wives at the same time. Besides, he banished
her who was properly his wife, and a citizen, from his
house, to indulge a foreigner, with whom he could
have no legal connexion. From their marriages, of
course, one of them found no inconvenience; the other
suffered the greatest evils.
With regard to their behavior to their parents and
relations, that of Demetrius is irreproachable; but
Antony sacrificed his uncle to the sword of Caesar,
that he might be empowered in his turn to cut off
Cicero. A crime the latter was, which could never be
made pardonable, had Antony even saved, and not sa-
crificed an uncle by the means! They are both ac-
cused of perfidy; in that one of them threw Artabazus
into prison, and the other killed Alexander. Antony
however has some apology in this case; for he had
been abandoned and betrayed by Artabazus in Media.
But Demetrius was suspected of laying a false accusa-
tion against Alexander; and of punishing, not the of-
fender, but the injured.
There is this difference, too, in their military opera-
tions; that Demetrius gained every victory himself,
and many of Antony's laurels were won by his lieute-
nants.
Both lost their empire by their own fault, but by
different means. The former was abandoned by his
people; the latter deserted his, even whilst they were
fighting for him. The fault of Demetrius was, that
by his conduct he lost the affection of his army: the
fault of Antony, his desertion and neglect of that af-
fection. Neither of them can be approved in their
death; but Demetrius much less than Antony; for he
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PLUTARCH.
suffered himself to fall into the hands of the enemy,
and, with a spirit that was truly base, endured an im-
prisonment of three years. There was a deplorable
weakness, and many disgraceful circumstances attending
the death of Antony; but he effected it at last without
falling into the enemy's hands.
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? r
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? DION.
As we learn from Simonides, my dear Senecio, that
the Trojans were by no means offended at the Corin-
thians for joining the confederates in the Grecian war,
because the family of Glaucus, their own ally, was
originally of Corinth, so neither the Greeks nor the
Romans have reason to complain of the academy, which
has been equally favorable to both. This will appear
from the lives of Brutus and Dion; for, as one was
the scholar of Plato, and the other educated in his
principles, they came like wrestlers from the same
palaestra, to engage in the greatest conflicts. Both,
by their conduct, in which there was a great similarity,
confirmed that observation of their master, that 'power
and fortune most concur with prudence and justice to
effect any thing great in a political capacity:' but, as
Hippomachus the wrestler said, that he could distin-
guish his scholars at a distance, though they were only
carrying meat from the market; so the sentiments of
those who have had a polite education must have a
similar influence on their manners, and give a peculiar
grace and propriety to their conduct.
Accident, however, rather than design, gave a simi-
larity to the lives of these two great men; and both
were cut off by an untimely death, before they could
carry the purposes, which they had pursued with so
much labor, into execution. The most singular cir-
cumstance attending their death was, that both had a
divine warning of it, in the appearance of a frightful
spectre. There are those, indeed, who say, that no
man in his senses ever saw a spectre; that these are
the delusive visions of women and children; or of men
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? 90
PLUTARCH.
whose intellects are affected by some infirmity of the
body; and who believe that their absurd imaginations
are of divine inspiration. But if Dion and Brutus,
men of firm and philosophic minds, whose understand-
ings were not affected by any constitutional infirmity;
if such men could pay so much credit to the appear-
ance of spectres, as to give an account of them to their
friends, I see no reason why we should depart from
the opinion of the ancients, that men had their evil
genii, who disturbed them with fears, and distressed
their virtue, lest, by a steady and uniform pursuit of
it, they should hereafter obtain a happier allotment
than themselves. These things however I must refer
to another occasion; and in this twelfth book of pa-
rallel lives, of which Dion and Brutus are the subjects,
I shall begin with the more ancient.
After Dionysius the elder had seized the govern-
ment of Sicily he married the daughter of Hermo-
crates, a Syracusan. But as the monarchic power
was yet but ill established, she had the misfortune
to be so much abused by an outrageous faction, that
she put an end to her life. When Dionysius was
confirmed in his government he married two wives at
the same time. One was Doris, a native of Locris;
the other, Aristomache, the daughter of Hipparinus,
who was a principal person in Syracuse, and colleague
with Dionysius when he was first appointed general
of the Sicilian forces. It is said that he married these
wives on the same day. It is not certain which he
married first, but he was impartial in his kindness to
them; for both attended him at his table, and alter-
nately partook of his bed. As Doris had the disad-
vantage of being a foreigner, the Syracusans sought
every means of obtaining the preference for their coun-
trywoman; but it was more than equivalent to this
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? DIoN.
91
disadvantage that she had the honor of giving Diony-
sius his eldest son. Aristomache, on the contrary, was
a long time barren, though the king was extremely de-
sirous of having children by her; and put to death the
mother of Doris, on a supposition that she had pre-
vented her conceptions by potions.
Dion, the brother of Aristomache, was well received
at court; not only on her account, but from the regard
which Dionysius had for his merit and abilities: and
that prince. gave his treasurer an order to supply him
with whatever money he wanted; but, at the same
time, to keep an account of what he received.
But whatever the talents and the virtues of Dion
might be originally, it is certain that they received the
happiest improvement under the auspices of Plato.
Surely the gods, in mercy to mankind, sent that divine
philosopher from Italy to Syracuse, that, through the
humane influence of his doctrine, the spirit of liberty
might once more revive, and the inhabitants of that
country be rescued from tyranny.
Dion soon became the most distinguished of his
scholars. To the fertility of his genius, and the excel-
lence of his disposition, Plato himself has given testi-
mony ; and he did the greatest honor to that testimony
in his life: for though he had been educated in servile
principles under a tyrant, though he had been famili-
arised to dependence on the one hand, and to the in-
dulgence of pomp and luxury, as the greatest happi-
ness, on the other, yet he was no sooner acquainted
with that philosophy which points out the road to vir-
tue, than his whole soul caught the enthusiasm, and,
with the simplicity of a young man who judges of the
dispositions of others by his own, he concluded that
Plato's lectures would have the same effect on Diony-
sius: for this reason he solicited, and at length per-
suaded the tyrant to hear him. When Plato was
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? PLUTARCH.
admitted, the discourse turned on virtue in general.
Afterwards they came to fortitude in particular; and
Plato made it appear that tyrants have, of all men,
the least pretence to that virtue. Justice was the next
topic: and when Plato asserted the happiness of the
just, and the wretched condition of the unjust, the
tyrant was stung; and being unable to answer his ar-
guments, he expressed his resentment against those
who seemed to listen to him with pleasure. At last he
was extremely exasperated, and asked the philosopher
what business he had in Sicily. Plato answered, 'that
he came to seek an honest man. '--' And so, then,' re-
plied the tyrant, 'it seems you have lost your labor. '
Dion was in hopes that his anger would have ended
here; but while Plato was hastening to be gone he
conveyed him aboard a galley, in which Pollis, the
Lacedaemonian, was returning to Greece. Dionysius
urged Pollis either to put Plato to death in his pas-
sage, or, at least, to sell him as a slave: 'for, accord-
ing to his own maxim,' said he, 'this man cannot be
unhappy; a just man, he says, must be happy in a
state of slavery, as well as in a state of freedom. '
Pollis therefore carried him to . /Egina, and sold him
there: for the people of that place, being at war with
the Athenians, had made a decree, that whatever Athe-
nian was taken on their coast he should be sold. Dion,
notwithstanding, retained his interest with Dionysius,
had considerable employments, and was sent ambassa-
dor to Carthage. Dionysius had a high esteem for
him, and he therefore permitted him to speak his sen-
timents with freedom. An instance of this we have in
the retort he made on the tyrant's ridiculing the go-
vernment of Gelo: ' Gelo,' said Dionysius, 'is [g-eZoi]
the laughing-stock of Sicily. ' While others admired
and applauded this witticism, Dion answered, 'You
obtained the crown by being trusted on Gelo's ac-
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? DIoN.
93
count, who reigned with great humanity ; but you have
reigned in such a manner, that, for your sake, no man
will be trusted hereafter. Gelo made monarchy ap-
pear the best of governments; but you have convinced
us that it is the worst. ' Dionysius had three children
by Doris, and four by Aristomacbe ; whereof two were
daughters, Sophrosyne and Arete. The former of these
was married to his eldest son Dionysius; the latter to
his brother Thearides; and, after his death, to her un-
cle Dion. In the last illness of Dionysius, Dion would
have applied to him in behalf of the children of Ari-
stomache, but the physicians were beforehand with
him. They wanted to ingratiate themselves with his
successor; and when he asked for a sleeping-dose,
Timaeus tells us, they gave him so effectual a one, that
he awaked no more.
When his son Dionysius came to the throne, in the
first council that he held, Dion spoke with so much
propriety on the present state of affairs, and on the
measures which ought to be taken, that the rest ap-
peared to be mere children in understanding. By the
freedom of his counsels he exposed, in a strong light,
the slavish principles of those who, through a timorous
disingenuity, advised such measures as they thought
would please their prince, rather than such as might
advance his interest. But what alarmed them most
was the steps he proposed to take with regard to the
impending war with Carthage; for he offered either to
go in person to Carthage, and settle an honorable
peace with the Carthaginians, or, if the king were
rather inclined for war, to fit out and maintain fifty
galleys at his own expense.
Dionysius was pleased with the magnificence of his
spirit; but the courtiers felt that it made them appear
little. They agreed that, at all events, Dion was to be
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PLUTARCH.
crushed, and they spared no calumny that malice could
suggest. They represented to the king that he cer-
tainly meant to make himself master by sea, and by
that means to obtain the kingdom for his sister's chil-
dren.
