31.
[67]
About this time a little later than he himself would approve, Cnaeus
Pompeius, greatly against the will of those men who by their own
contrivances and by false alarms had turned away the inclination of that
most virtuous and gallant man from the defence of my safety, awakened again
that habit which he had of devotion to the cause of the good government of
the republic, which had been, I will not say lulled asleep, but a little
checked and blasted by some sort of suspicion. That man, who
by his virtuous valour had subdued the most wicked of citizens, and the most
active of foreign enemies, and the mightiest nations, and kings, and savage
and hitherto unheard-of tribes, and a countless host of pirates, and also
the slaves; who, having put a happy end to every war by land and sea, had
made the boundaries of the empire of the Roman people co-equal with the
extent of the world; would not allow that republic to be overturned by the
wickedness of a few men, which, he himself had repeatedly saved, not only by
his counsels, but even by his own blood; he came to the succour of the
public cause; he resisted the remainder of those men's measures by his
authority; he addressed to the authorities complaints as to what had already
happened.
[68]
Some inclination towards a
better state of things appeared to arise. The senate, in a full house,
passed a decree respecting my return, on the first of June, without a single
dissenting voice, on the motion of Lucius Ninnius, whose good faith and
virtue never wavered in my cause. Somebody of the name of Ligus, some
obscure fellow, some contemptible addition to my enemies, interposed his
veto. The affair and our cause were now in such a state that we seemed to
look up, and to be coming to life again. Whoever had had the slightest
participation in the wickedness of Clodius as connected with my sufferings,
wherever he came, or in whatever trial he appeared, was sure to be
condemned. Not a man was found who would admit that he had given a vote
against me. My brother had departed from Asia, with every appearance of mourning, but with far
deeper grief at his heart. As he came towards the city, the whole city went
forth to meet him with tears and groans. The senate was speaking with
unusual freedom. The Roman knights were constantly meeting. That excellent
man Piso, my son-in-law,1 who was not allowed time to receive
the reward of his affection, either from me or from the Roman people, kept
beseeching his relation to give him back his father-in-law. The senate
refused to entertain any proposition whatever till the consuls had made a
motion concerning me.
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1 He was dead.
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