Cato the Younger ‘ 5 .
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as next to be set upon, to make no resistance, lest hepms throw the state into civil war and confusion, but to giveway to the times, and thus become once more the preserver ofhis country. He himself sent forward Canidius, one of hisfriends, to Cyprus, to persuade Ptolemy to yield, without beingforced; which if he did, he should want neither riches nor“honour, for the Romans would give him the priesthood of the“goddess at Paphos. He himself stayed at Rhodes, making somepreparations, and expecting an answer from Cyprus. In themeantime, Ptolemy, King of Egypt, who had left Alexandria,upon some quarrel between him and his subjects, and was sailing_for Rome, in hopes that Pompey and Czsar would send troops_to restore him, in his way thither desired to see Cato, to whomhe sent, supposing he would come to him. Cato had takenpurging medicine at the time when the messenger came, andmade answer, that Ptolemy had better come to him, if he thoughtfit. And when he came, he neither went forward to meet him,‘nor so much as rose up to him, but saluting him as an ordinary‘person, bade him sit down. This at once threw Ptolemy intosome confusion, who was surprised to see such stern and haughty“tnanners in one who made so plain and unpretending an appear-‘ance; but afterwards, when he began to talk about his affairs,_he was no less astonished at the wisdom and freedom of his dis-‘course. For Cato blamed his conduct, and pointed out to himwhat honour and happiness he was abandoning, and what humi-liations and troubles he would run himself into; what bribery“he must resort to, and what cupidity he would have to satisfy“when he came to the leading men at Rome, whom all Egypt‘turned into silver would scarcely content. He therefore advised‘him to return home, and be reconciled to his subjects, offeringto go along with him, and assist him in composing the differences.And by this language Ptolemy being brought to himself, as itmight be out of a fit of madness or delirium, and discerning thetruth and wisdom of what Cato said, resolved to follow hisadvice; but he was again over-persuaded by his friends to thecontrary, and so, according to his first design, went to Rome.‘When he came there, and was forced to wait at the gate of oneof the magistrates, he began to lament his folly in havingrejected, rather, as it seemed to him, the oracle of a god thanthe advice merely of a good and wise man.In the meantime, the other Ptolemy, in Cyprus, very luckilyfor Cato, poisoned ‘himself. It was reported he had left greatBiches ; therefore, Cato designing to go first to Byzantium, sent en
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