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[179]
On this account it was that Eutychus could not obtain a bearing,
but was kept still in prison. However, some time afterward, Tiberius came
from Capreae to Tusculanum, which is about a hundred furlongs from Rome.
Agrippa then desired of Antonia that she would procure a hearing for Eutychus,
let the matter whereof he accused him prove what it would. Now Antonia
was greatly esteemed by Tiberius on all accounts, from the dignity of her
relation to him, who had been his brother Drusus's wife, and from her eminent
chastity;
for though she was still a young woman, she continued in her widowhood,
and refused all other matches, although Augustus had enjoined her to be
married to somebody else; yet did she all along preserve her reputation
free from reproach. She had also been the greatest benefactress to Tiberius,
when there was a very dangerous plot laid against him by Sejanus, a man
who had been her husband's friend, and wire had the greatest authority,
because he was general of the army, and when many members of the senate
and many of the freed-men joined with him, and the soldiery was corrupted,
and the plot was come to a great height. Now Sejanus had certainly gained
his point, had not Antonia's boldness been more wisely conducted than Sejanus's
malice; for when she had discovered his designs against Tiberius, she wrote
him an exact account of the whole, and gave the letter to Pallas, the most
faithful of her servants, and sent him to Caprere to Tiberius, who, when
he understood it, slew Sejanus and his confederates; so that Tiberius,
who had her in great esteem before, now looked upon her with still greater
respect, and depended upon her in all things. So when Tiberius was desired
by this Antonia to examine Eutychus, he answered, "If indeed Eutychus
hath falsely accused Agrippa in what he hath said of him, he hath had sufficient
punishment by what I have done to him already; but if, upon examination,
the accusation appears to be true, let Agrippa have a care, lest, out of
desire of punishing his freed-man, he do not rather bring a punishment
upon himself." Now when Antonia told Agrippa of this, he was still
much more pressing that the matter might be examined into; so Antonia,
upon Agrippa's lying hard at her continually to beg this favor, took the
following opportunity: As Tiberius lay once at his ease upon his sedan,
and was carried about, and Caius, her grandson, and Agrippa, were before
him after dinner she walked by the sedan, and desired him to call Eutychus,
and have him examined; to which he replied, "O Antonia! the gods are
my witnesses that I am induced to do what I am going to do, not by my own
inclination, but because I am forced to it by thy prayers." When he
had said this, he ordered Macro, who succeeded Sejanus, to bring Eutychus
to him; accordingly, without any delay, he was brought. Then Tiberius asked
him what he had to say against a man who had given him his liberty. Upon
which he said, "O my lord! this Caius, and Agrippa with him, were
once riding in a chariot, when I sat at their feet, and, among other discourses
that passed, Agrippa said to Caius, Oh that the day would once come when
this old fellow will dies and name thee for the governor of the habitable
earth! for then this Tiberius, his grandson, would be no hinderance, but
would be taken off by thee, and that earth would be happy, and I happy
also." Now Tiberius took these to be truly Agrippa's words, and bearing
a grudge withal at Agrippa, because, when he had commanded him to pay his
respects to Tiberius, his grandson, and the son of Drusus, Agrippa had
not paid him that respect, but had disobeyed his commands, and transferred
all his regard to Caius; he said to Macro, "Bind this man." But
Macro, not distinctly knowing which of them it was whom he bid him bind,
and not expecting that he would have any such thing done to Agrippa, he
forbore, and came to ask more distinctly what it was that he said. But
when Caesar had gone round the hippodrome, he found Agrippa standing: "For
certain," said he, "Macro, this is the man I meant to have bound;"
and when he still asked, "Which of these is to be bound?" he
said "Agrippa." Upon which Agrippa betook himself to make supplication
for himself, putting him in mind of his son, with whom he was brought up,
and of Tiberius [his grandson] whom he had educated; but all to no purpose;
for they led him about bound even in his purple garments. It was also very
hot weather, and they had but little wine to their meal, so that he was
very thirsty; he was also in a sort of agony, and took this treatment of
him heinously: as he therefore saw one of Caius's slaves, whose name was
Thaumastus, carrying some water in a vessel, he desired that he would let
him drink; so the servant gave him some water to drink, and he drank heartily,
and said, "O thou boy! this service of thine to me will be for thy
advantage; for if I once get clear of these my bonds, I will soon procure
thee thy freedom of Caius who has not been wanting to minister to me now
I am in bonds, in the same manner as when I was in my former state and
dignity." Nor did he deceive him in what he promised him, but made
him amends for what he had now done; for when afterward Agrippa was come
to the kingdom, he took particular care of Thaumastus, and got him his
liberty from Caius, and made him the steward over his own estate; and when
he died, he left him to Agrippa his son, and to Bernice his daughter, to
minister to them in the same capacity. The man also grew old in that honorable
post, and therein died. But all this happened a good while later.
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