[14] Thereupon his mother's anxiety was changed to joy, and she embraced him as the only one worthy of Cæsar. She checked his speaking and urged him to prosecute his designs with the favor of fortune. She advised him, however, to use art and patience rather than open boldness. Octavius approved of this policy and promised to adopt it in action, and forthwith sent around to his friends the same evening, asking them to come to the forum early in the morning and bring a crowd with them. There presenting himself to Gaius Antonius, the brother of Antony, who was the city prætor, he said that he accepted the adoption of Cæsar; for it is a Roman custom that adoptions are confirmed by witnesses before the prætors. When the public scribes had taken down his declaration, Octavius went from the forum straightway to Antony. The latter was in the gardens that Cæsar had given to him, that had formerly been Pompey's. As Octavius was kept waiting at the vestibule for some time, he interpreted the fact as a sign of Antony's displeasure. When he was admitted there were greetings and mutual questionings proper to the occasion. When the time came to speak of the business in hand, Octavius said: --
The Civil Wars. Appian. Horace White. London. MACMILLAN AND CO., LTD. 1899.
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