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ledged by everybody, and my affection for you, far away as you are, by your friends on the spot. Were there any sense of honour in those in whom, above all others, it should be found, there would be no difficulties in our way. Farewell.
II
To the same
Rome, January 15, 56 B.C.
1 Nothing was settled in the Senate on January 13, because a great part of the day was taken up with a dispute between the consul Lentulus[1] and the tribune Caninius. I, too, spoke a good deal on that day, and appeared to make a great impression on the Senate by insisting on your goodwill towards it. So on the following day we resolved to be brief in expressing our opinions, for it seemed that the Senate had again become favourably inclined to us; of this I had assured myself not only in the course of my speech, but when I appealed to individual members, and asked for their support. And so when Bibulus's motion "that three commissioners should restore the king" was first read out for discussion, and then, Hortensius's, "that you should restore him, but without an army," and thirdly Volcatius's, "that Pompey should restore him," a demand was made that Bibulus's motion should be submitted in two parts.[2] As long as he confined himself to the religious argument, which could no longer be opposed, he met with agreement; but on the question of the three commissioners, a large majority voted against him."[3]
- ↑ Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Marcellinus, referred to as Marcellinus in the preceding letter. He was consul in 56 with Lucius Marcius Philippus.
- ↑ Viz. (1) Shall the army be eliminated, in accordance with the oracle? (2) Shall three commissioners be sent?
- ↑ Lit. "voted for anything else in the world."