Narrative in Eighth Book of the " Gallic War" 33 



The latter recognized in Caesar a long time advocate of their ad- 

 vancement to full citizenship.^''^ That Caesar should have slighted 

 them in his triumphal progress through the province, is, in the 

 light of all the circumstances, incredible. Hirtius (c. 50, 3fif.) 

 clearly meant that Caesar visited both the Cispadane and Trans- 

 padane towns. 



At the moment when Caesar learned of Antonius's triumph over 

 Domitius he was still outside the bounds of Italy. Counting only 

 from the Little St. Bernard, an itinerary including these towns 

 along the main roads of Cisalpine Gaul would involve something 

 like 1,050 ;//. p. of travel: Eporedia-Vercellae-Novaria-Mediola- 

 nium-Comum - Bergomum - Brixia - Verona - Vicetia - Patavium- 

 Concordia-Aquileia-Ateste-Hostilia - Mantua-Cremona-Placentia- 

 Bononia - Pistoria - Luna - Genoa-Dertona-Augusta Taurinorum. 

 The purpose and circumstances of the journey make it improb- 

 able that Caesar traveled rapidly. Although the distance traveled 

 may have been less than 1,050 in. p., it is altogether likely that 

 the time consumed was the greater part of a month. The neces- 

 sity of allowing time, perhaps as much as for the tour of the 

 province, for Caesar's stay with his army after the review, pre- 

 ceding his second trip to Italy, renders it practically impossible to 

 date the augural election as late as August 18, and points rather 

 to July as the month in which the election was held. 



But the conclusion reached above raises a difficulty. It has 

 been demonstrated by Sternkopf that Fam. VIII, 14, was almost 

 certainly one of the letters which Acastus carried from Rome 

 September 23.^°® Furthermore, the first section of the letter gives 

 the unmistakable impression of having been written soon after 

 the augural election, when that event was yet very fresh in the 

 writer's mind, while the estimate of time for the items in Hirtius's 

 narrative tends to push the election back into July. The solution 

 of this difficulty lies ready to hand. In Fam. VIII, 12, 4, ,Caelius 

 writes: Contnrbat me mora servi huiiis, qui tibi litteras attulit; 

 nam acceptis prioribus litteris ampHus dies qiiadraginta mansit. 



Sueton., lul. 8. 

 ' P. 297. 



325 



