JULIUS CAESAR. 157 



Rome, gave lustre to the name of one great commander, and 

 raised him to high influence in the State, strengthened by his 

 relation to the ruling aristocracy of the City. The yet greater 

 rival of Cneius Pompeius had no such early harvest of glory. 

 Though his descent was ancient and distinguished, and his 

 talents always conspicuous, yet was he chiefly known during 

 the first period of his life in city profligacy or party conflicts ; 

 and gave little certain augury of that wonderful career of 

 victory which made him master of the Roman world, and 

 rendered even his assassination ineffectual to annul the 

 sovereignty he had created. 



Our author's second and third chapters are chiefly occupied 

 with the conspiracy of Catiline, and with sketches of the 

 character and early life of the two illustrious rivals just 

 noticed, and of others who played an eminent part in the 

 great drama of Roman revolution now approaching to its 

 crisis. Of what relates to Julius Caesar we shall have occasion 

 to speak afterwards. As respects Pompeius (or we may 

 be pardoned for adhering to Pompey&s the name naturalised 

 with us) the estimate Mr. Merivale forms of his character and 

 public conduct is probably just on the whole; though we 

 think he commits the error of defining too absolutely the 

 course of thought and policy which led to his public career. 

 It may be that Pompey saw and felt what our author affirms 

 he did; but there are several circumstances which inspire 

 great doubt on the subject. Energetic and successful in mili- 

 tary action, his political course, where not actually feeble, 

 was tortuous and uncertain even to his friends and confede- 

 rates. Adopted the successor to Sylla as leader of the aris- 

 tocratic party, he was often lukewarm, sometimes a traitor to 

 their interests. His accession to the triumvirate comes closely 

 under the latter interpretation. His permission of the violent 

 and flagitious acts of Clodius when he might have prevented 

 them, can hardly be explained, still less vindicated ; and his 



