Chapter 27

65 Has such stupor overwhelmed you—or, to speak more truly, such madness—that, first, although you are a buyer of confiscated estates, born to the rank you were, and second, although the estate you bought was Pompey’s, you do not know that the Roman people curses you, that it abhors you, that all the gods, all human beings, are and will remain your enemies? And with what instant insolence that glutton swooped upon the fortune of the man whose valor had made the Roman people more formidable to foreign nations, whose justice had made it dearer! Having suddenly gorged himself on that man’s wealth, he leaped for joy like a character in a mime: penniless a moment ago, rich in an instant. But, as some poet says, “What is ill-gotten is ill-spent.”

66 It is incredible, something like a prodigy, how he poured out so much in so few—not months, I say, but days. There was an immense store of wine, a vast weight of the finest silver, costly clothing, and a great abundance of splendid furniture in many places—not the furnishings of a luxurious man, certainly, but of a wealthy one. Within a few days none of it remained. What Charybdis was ever so ravenous?

67 Charybdis, do I say? If she ever existed, she was a single creature. By the god of good faith, Ocean itself could hardly, I think, have swallowed so quickly so many things, so widely scattered and kept in places so far apart. Nothing was locked up, nothing sealed, nothing entered in an inventory. Whole wine cellars were given away to the most worthless men; male mimes snatched one thing, female mimes another. The house was crammed with gamblers, full of drunkards; drinking went on all day, and in several places at once. His gambling deficits, too, were often made good—for this fellow did not always win. You could have seen beds in slaves’ rooms spread with Gnaeus Pompey’s purple coverlets. Stop wondering, then, that all this was consumed so quickly. Such depravity could swiftly have devoured not only one man’s estate, however ample, as that one was, but cities and kingdoms. And this same man took the house and gardens too.

65 Has such complete stupidity overwhelmed you? Or, more accurately, such complete madness? You come from a family like yours, yet you buy confiscated property. And you buy Pompey’s property, at that. Don’t you know the Roman people curse and detest you? Don’t you know every god and human hates you now and will hate you afterward? That glutton immediately pounced on the man’s wealth with such arrogance! That man’s courage had made foreign nations fear the Roman people more. His fairness had made them love the Roman people more. Antony suddenly gorged himself on that man’s riches. Then he jumped for joy, like someone in a comic play. A moment ago he’d been poor. Suddenly he was rich. But some poet or other says, “Wrongly gained wealth gets badly squandered.”

66 It’s unbelievable, almost a freak of nature. How did he pour away so much in so little time? I’m not talking about months, but days. There was an enormous supply of wine. There was a huge weight of the finest silver. There were expensive clothes and lots of fine furniture, magnificent furnishings spread among many places. These weren’t the belongings of a man given to luxury. But they were a wealthy man’s belongings. Within a few days, none of them remained. Could any Charybdis swallow that much?

67 Why am I talking about Charybdis? If she existed, she was just one creature. Even the Ocean, I swear, could hardly have swallowed so much so fast. The things were so scattered, in places so far apart. Nothing was locked up, sealed, or listed. Whole storerooms were given away to complete scoundrels. Actors snatched some things; actresses snatched others. The house was packed with gamblers and full of drunks. People drank all day, in several places at once. They often had to cover gambling losses, too. His luck wasn’t always good. You could see beds in the slaves’ rooms covered with Gnaeus Pompey’s bedspreads, dyed purple from shellfish. So stop wondering how everything disappeared so quickly. Such wicked behavior could soon have swallowed more than one man’s fortune, however large—and that one was large. It could have swallowed cities and kingdoms. And this same man had the house and gardens, too.