Page:Plutarch's Lives (Clough, v.4, 1865).djvu/308

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300
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300 CESAR. last battle on Ca3sar's side, to the number of a thousand, turned away, covered his face, and shed tears. But every one else upbraided Pompey for being reluctant to fight, and tried to goad him on by such nicknames as Aga- memnon, and king of kings, as if he were in no hurry to lay down his sovereign authority, but was pleased to see so many commanders attending on him, and paying their attendance at his tent. Favonius, who affected Cato's free way of speaking his mind, complained bitterly that they should eat no figs even this year at Tusculum, be- cause of Pompey's love of command. Afranius, who was lately returned out of Spain, and on account of his ill success there, labored under the suspicion of having been bribed to betray the army, asked why they did not fight this purchaser of provinces. Pompey was driven, against his own will, by this kind of language, into offering bat- tle, and proceeded to follow Caesar. Caesar had found great difficulties in his march, for no country would sup- ply him with provisions, his reputation being very much fallen since his late defeat. But after he took Gomphi, a town of Thessaly, he not only found provisions for his army, but physic too. For there they met with plenty of wine, which they took very freely, and heated with this, sporting and revelling on their march in bacchana- lian fashion, they shook off the disease, and their whole constitution was relieved and changed into another habit. When the two armies were come into Pharsalia,* and both encamped there, Pompey's thoughts ran the same way as they had done before, against fighting, and the more because of some unlucky presages, and a vision he had in a dream.f But those who were about him were

  • " Into Pharsalia," is properly the translation by the name, as the
  • into the territory of the town of Romans used it, of Pharsalia, the

Pharsalus," and in other passages Greek is Pharsalus. where the battle is mentioned in f Here follow the words, " He