ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING 371 



who, being educated by his father for the priesthood, after 

 ward renounced, followed his own inclination, and appeared 

 in a military character. 



Let a third consideration be, how a man stands compared 

 with his equals and rivals, who may also probably be his 

 competitors in his fortune, and let him hold that course of 

 life in which there is the greatest want of eminent men, and 

 wherein it is most likely that himself may rise the highest, 

 as Caesar did, who was first an orator, a pleader, and scarce 

 anything more than a gownman; but when he found that 

 Cicero, Hortensius, and Catullus bore away the prize of elo 

 quence, and that none had greatly signalized themselves in 

 war, except Pompey, he quitted the gown, and taking a 

 long farewell of civil power, went over to the arts of the 

 general and the emperor, whereby he rose to the top pin 

 nacle of sovereignty. 



Let the fourth consideration be, to regard one s own 

 nature and temper in the choice of friends and dependants; 

 for different men require different kinds of friends some 

 those that are grave and secret, others such as are bold and 

 ostentatious, etc. It is worth observing of what kind the 

 friends of Julius Caesar were; viz., Antony, Hirtius, Bal- 

 bus, Dolobella, Pollio, etc., who usually swore to die that 

 he might live; 78 thereby expressing an infinite affection for 

 Caesar, but an arrogance and contempt toward everybody 

 else. And they were all men diligent in business, but of 

 no great fame and reputation. 



Let a fifth consideration be, to beware of examples, and 

 not fondly square one s self to the imitation of others, as if 

 what was achieved by them must needs be achieved by us, 

 without considering the difference there may be between our 

 own disposition and manners compared with theirs we pro 

 pose to imitate. Pompey manifestly fell into this error, 

 who, as Cicero writes of him, had these words often in his 

 mouth &quot;Sylla could do this, why shall not I?&quot; 77 In 



76 Ita vivente Caesare moriar. &quot; Epist. Atticus, ix. Ep. 10. 



