8. Mithrida'tes had been obliged by Lucul'lus to
take refuge in Lesser Armenia, and thither that general was preparing
to follow him, when his whole army abandoned him; so that it remained
for Pompey to terminate the war, which he effected with great ease and
expedition, adding a large extent of dominion to the Roman empire, and
returning to Rome in triumph at the head of his conquering army.
9. But the victories of Pompey rather served to heighten the glory
than to increase the power of Rome; they made it more a glaring object
of ambition, and exposed its liberties to greater danger. Those
liberties, indeed, seemed devoted to ruin on every side; for, even
while he was pursuing his conquests abroad, Rome was at the verge of
ruin from a conspiracy at home. 10. This conspiracy was projected and
carried on by Ser'gius Cat'iline, a patrician by birth, who resolved
to build his own power on the downfall of his country. 11. He was
singularly formed, both by art and nature, to conduct a conspiracy: he
was possessed of courage equal to the most desperate attempts, and of
eloquence to give a colour to his ambition: ruined in his
fortunes, profligate in his manners, vigilant in pursuing his aims, he
was insatiable after wealth, only with a view to lavish it on his
guilty pleasures.
Pages:
367
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391