Epistle V. To Voconius Romanus.
by
the Same. [Mr. Pelham.]
[_]
He gives a Character of Marcus Regulus the Lawyer, who, having injured
Him, in Nero and Domitian's Times was now seeking to be reconciled to him.
Have you ever seen any one more timorous and abject than Marcus Regulus,
since Domitian's Death? His Crimes were not less in his Time, than in
Nero's, tho' more secret. He began to be afraid, that I was angry with him,
nor was he in the wrong. He had encouraged the Prosecution against
Arulenus Rusticus, and triumphed at his Death to that Degree, that he published a Piece full of Invectives against him,
wherein he calls him the Ape of the Stoicks, and adds, that he was infamous by the Scar he was marked with on the Account of
Vitellius. You are acquainted with the usual Eloquence of Regulus,
he fell upon Herennius Senecio, so very immoderately, that
Metius Carus said to him, What have You to do with my dead Men? Don't I let
Crassus and Camerinus alone, whom you know Regulus had informed against in
Nero's Time?
Regulus believed I resented those Things, and therefore he did not invite me to the Rehearsal of his Piece.
Besides, he remembred how sharply he had set upon me my self before the Centumvirate.
I appeared there for
Arionilla, the Wife of
Timon, at the Request of
Arulenus Rusticus.
Regulus was on the other side. In one part of the Cause,
we relied upon the Sentence, that had been given against
Metius Modestus,
an excellent Man, whom
Domitian had Banished. Now to shew you
Regulus: I question you, says he to me, what you think of
Modestus?
You see the Danger of answering, I think well of him, and the Baseness of saying the contrary.
I can't help thinking that the Gods assisted me then, in a particular manner.
I will tell you, said I, what I thought of him, if the Judges were now to determine about it:
Whereupon he replies again, Nay, but what do you think of
Modestus?
To which I answered, Witnesses are used to be examined against Men accused,
not against those already condemned. He attacked me the third Time,
I only ask you then, what you think of the Loyalty of
Modestus?
You ask me, said I, what I think of it? And I think it a Crime to make any Question of that which is already judicially determined.
This silenced him. I was praised and congratulated upon my Escape, as having neither injured my Character,
by an Answer, which in me
would have been base, however useful it might have been to my Cause; nor fallen into the Toils which he had prepared for me,
by his ensnaring Questions. But to return to
Regulus, now that his Conscience terrifies him,
he first flies to
Cæcilius Celer, and immediately after to
Fabius Justus, and begs of them to use their Interests, to reconcile me to him;
and not content with that, he applies to
Spurinna, I humbly beg of you says
Regulus to him, (for Fear makes him most abjectly humble) that you will not fail to go to
Pliny to Morrow Morning, but pray let it be early enough, and prevail with him on any Terms,
to forgive me; for I can no longer bear the Uneasiness I am under. I had watched all that Night,
when in comes a Messenger from
Spurinna to tall me he was coming to me.
I sent him Word that I would wait on him; as we were going to each other,
we met in
Livia's Portico; he told me what Directions he had Received
from
Regulus, adding such intreaties of his own, as became one of the best of Men, to use for one of the worst.
You expect, said I, my Answer, I must not deceive you, I wait the Arrival of
Mauricus, who was not yet returned from Banishment: Therefore I can say nothing to it,
one way or other, having resolved to do whatever he shall think fit, for he has a Right to command me intirely in this Affair.
Some few Days after,
Regulus himself meets me in the
Pretors Court, where he had followed me about, sometime, 'till he had found me alone.
He told me he was afraid, that something he had formerly said the the Court of the Centumvirate,
might have given me some uneasiness, when in answering me and
Satrius Rufus,
he had said;
Satrius and
he who vies it with
Cicero,
and who is not satisfied with the Eloquence of our Age. I answered him,
that I now perceived those Words were spoken with a Design to expose me,
since he himself confessed it, but that otherwise, they would admit of a different Construction;
for I do, said I, vie with
Cicero, nor am I satisfied with the Eloquence of our Age,
having always thought it great Folly, to propose to one's Imitation, any thing short of the best.
But you, who remember this Cause so well, how came you to forget your asking me,
in another Cause, my Opinion of the Loyalty of
Metius Modestus.
Hereupon he grew considerably paler, than he naturally is, and answered me in a great deal of
Confusion, That he did not do it to hurt me, but
Modestus, (you see the Cruelty of the Wretch,
who could not dissemble his Intention to hurt a banished Man) and he added an extraordinary Reason for it,
saying, That in one of
Modestus's Letters which was read before
Domitian, there was this Expression,
Regulus, the most wicked of all Creatures;
nor had
Modestus said any thing by the Truth. Here
we ended, for I avoided going farther, that I might keep my self at Liberty till
Mauricus's Return. Besides, I considered that
Regulus is a Man,
not easy to be overthrown. For he is Rich, considerable in his Party,
respected by many, Feared by more; which last Passion, is generally stronger than Love.
Tho' when once the Shock comes, all these may fail, for the Favour of bad Men is as faithless as they themselves are.
But, as I have said before, I wait for
Mauricus, who is grave,
prudent experienced, and able to provide for future Events by the just Observations he has made of past Ones.
And I shall stir in the Affair or lie still, as he shall direct. I have given you this Account,
because you have a Right from our mutual Friendship, to know, not only all my Actions,
and Words, but also my very purposes.
Farewel.
