Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 2.djvu/155

A N T A N T escape the importunity of his creditors; and at length, after a short time spent in attendance on the philosophers at Athens, found an occasion for displaying some of the better features of his character in the wars that were being carried on by Gabinius again.st Aristobulus in Palestine, and in support of Ptolemy Auletes in Egypt. A new chapter in his life was opened by the visit which he made to Julius Caesar in Gaul (54 B.C.) Welcomed by the vic torious general as a valuable assistant in his ambitious designs, and raised by his influence to the offices of quaestor, augur, and tribune of the plebs, he displayed admirable boldness and activity in the maintenance of his patron s cause, in opposition to the violence and intrigues of the oligarchical party. At length his antagonists prevailed, and expelled him from the curia; and the political contest became a civil war. The Rubicon was crossed; Caesar was victorious, and Antony shared in his triumph. Deputy-governor of Italy during Caesar s absence in Spain (49), second in command in the decisive battle of Pharsalia (48), and again deputy -governor of Italy while Caesar was in Africa (47), Antony was now inferior in power only to the dictator himself, and eagerly seized the opportunity of indulging in the most extravagant excesses of luxurious licentiousness, excesses which Cicero depicted in the Philippicsvfith all the elaborate eloquence of political hatred. In 46 he seems to have taken offence at Caesar, because he insisted on payment for the property of Pornpey which Antony professedly had purchased, but had merely appro priated. But the estrangement was not of long continu ance; for we find Antony meeting the dictator at Karbo the following year, and rejecting the advances of Trcbonius, who endeavoured to discover if there was any h ope of getting Antony to join in the conspiracy that was already on foot. In 44 he was consul along with Cassar, and seconded his ambition by the famous offer of the crown on the 15th of February, thus unconsciously preparing the way for the tragedy of the 15th of March. To the sin cerity of his adherence to Coesar the conspirators them selves bore witness on that memorable day, by the care which they took to keep him engaged without while the daggers were doing their work within. This was the oo o second great epoch in Antony s life. A brighter prospect than ever was then opened to his ambition. By his eloquence a hereditary gift he managed to stir up the minds of the populace against the assassins of Caesar, and drove them from the city. He made peace with the remaining repre sentatives of the senatorial party, and almost seemed to have succeeded to the power and position of his unfortunate patron. But the youthful Octavius, whom Caesar had adopted as his son, arrived from Illyria, and claimed the inheritance of his " father." Agreement was impossible, and war ensued. Octavius obtained the support of the senate and of Cicero; and the veteran troops of the dic tator flocked to his standard. Antony was denounced as a public enemy; and the city gave its loudest applause to the tirades of his most eloquent accuser. His cause gradu ally lost ground, and at last seemed to be totally ruined when his army was defeated in the siege of Mutina (43 B.C.) But escaping to Cisalpine Gaul, he formed a junc tion with Lepidus, and they marched towards Home Avith 17 legions and 10,000 cavalry. The wily Octavius now 1 etrayed his party, and entered into terms with Antony and Lepidus. It was agreed that they three should adopt the title so beautifully ironical of Triumviri reipublicte constitiiendw, and share the power and the provinces among them. Gaul was to be Antony s; Spain fell to the lot of Lepidus , and Africa, Sardinia, and Sicily were to belong to Octavius. A conjunct proscription followed, each of the partners in the villanous design bartering the life of his friends for the pleasure of destroying his foes. The detested author of the Philippics was given up to Antony s revenge; and, according to Appian, the number of the victims amounted to 300 senators and 2000 knights. In the following year Antony and Octavius proceeded against the conspirators Cassius and Brutus, who still maintained themselves in Macedonia; and, in the battles of Philippi, stamped out the last embers of republican Rome. While Octavius returned to Italy, Antony proceeded to Greece, and thence to Asia Minor, for the sake of recruiting his funds, completing the subjugation of the eastern provinces) and obtaining satisfaction about the conduct of the Egyp tian queen during the recent contest. On his passage through Cilicia in 41 he was visited by Cleopatra, who came to answer the charges in person. She sailed up the Cydnus in a gorgeous bark, with a fantastic and brilliant equipage, and brought all her allurements to bear on the heart of the voluptuous Roman. Her success was com plete; and he who was to have been her judge, was led captive to Alexandria as her slave. All was forgotten in the fascination and delight of the passing hour; and feast ing and revelry found perpetual and ever-varying renewal. At length Antony was aroused by the Parthian invasion of Syria, and the report of an outbreak between Fulvia his wife and Lucius his brother on the one hand and Octavius on the other. On arriving in Italy he found that the war was over, and Octavius the victor; and the chief cause of disagreement being soon after removed by the death of Fulvia, a reconciliation was speedily effected between tho triumvirs, and cemented by the marriage of Antony with Octavia, the sister of his colleague. A new division of the Roman world was agreed on at Brundusium, Lepidua receiving Africa, Octavius the west, and Antony the east. Returning to his province, Antony was for a time success ful; his general, Veutidius, beating the Parthians, and Socius capturing Jerusalem and conquering Antigonus. But after another visit to Italy, during which the trium virate was prolonged for five years, Antony sent away his wife, yielded himself completely to the evil influence of Cleopatra, indulged not only in licentiousness, but in tyranny, and allowed his affairs to be neglected or delayed. An expedition against the Parthians was a failure; but for this his success against Artavasdes, the Armenian king, in some measure compensated. Octavius at length deter mined to get rid of Antony, and had little need of invention to bring charges sufficient against him. About two years were spent in preparations and delays on both sides, and it was not till the year 31 that the fate of Antony was decided by the battle of Actium. Defeated and deserted, he once more sought refuge and repose in the society of Cleopatra, but was followed even there by his relentless rival. At first he made a gallant effort to defend himself, and partially succeeded. But convinced of the hopeless ness of his position, and assured of the suicide of his mis tress, he followed the example which he was falsely in formed she had given (30 B.C.) Antony had been married in succession to Fadia, Antouia, Fulvia, and Octavia, and left behind him a number of children. A short but vivid sketch of Antony is given by DC Quincey in his " Essay on the Caesars," see his Works, ix. 57-59. ANTOXOMASIA (dvrovo/iao-ta) is, in rhetoric, the sub stitution of any epithet or phrase for a proper name; as "Pelidcs," or " the son of Peleus," for Achilles; "the Stagy- rite-" for Aristotle ; " the author of Paradise Lost " for Milton; "the little corporal" for Napoleon the First; " Macedonia s madman " for Alexander the Great, <tc. &e. Besides gratifying the taste for variety, it aflbrds the op portunity of bringing indirectly into view facts or feelings that it is not considered desirable or expedient to express distinctly by themselves. The opposite substitution of a

proper name for some generic term is also sometimes called