VIII. (52) The unhappy man kept dinning suggestions of this kind into his ears in the hope of improving Gaius; but he, being a contentious and quarrelsome person, turned his mind in the directly opposite direction, as if he were exhorted to do exactly the contrary, and he conceived a most determined disgust for his monitor, so as never to behold him with a cheerful countenance; and sometimes when he saw him at a distance he would speak as follows to those near him: (53) “Here comes the teacher of one who has no longer any right to be looked upon as a pupil; -here comes the pedagogue of one who is no longer a child, the monitor of one who is wiser than himself, the man who thinks it proper that the emperor should obey his subject, who sets himself up as a man deeply versed by experience in the science of government, and as a teacher of it, though from whom he has learnt the principles of sovereign government I know not; (54) for from the moment that I left my cradle, I have had ten thousand instructors, fathers, brothers, uncles, cousins, and grandfathers, up to the very founders of my family, in fact every one related to me either on my father’s or my mother’s side, who had acquired absolute power for themselves, even without taking into consideration the fact that, by their being the authors of my being, they had implanted in me some degree of royal power and some natural aptitude for government. (55) For as similitudes of both body and soul exist both in the form, and position, and motions of men, and also as the inclinations, and dispositions, and actions of men are preserved in some degree of similitude through the principles of descent, so also is it probable that the very same principles should convey an outline of similitude in respect of one’s aptitude for government. (56) Shall any one, then, who is ignorant dare to instruct me who am the reverse of ignorant? me who, even before my birth, while I was yet in my mother’s womb, was fashioned as an emperor in the workshop of nature? For how can it be possible for persons, who but a short time before were private individuals, to contemplate as they should the intentions of an imperial soul? But some persons in their shameless audacity dare to put themselves forward as interpreters and perfecters of the principles of government, when in reality they scarcely ought to be enrolled among those who have any understanding whatever of the matter.” (57) And as he thus diligently laboured to alienate himself from Macro, he began also to invent false but plausible and specious grounds for blaming and accusing him; for passionate and irritable natures, especially when belonging to powerful men, are very ingenious at weaving plausibilities. Now, the pretexts which he made use of against him were of the following natures. (58) He said Macro thought thus: “Gaius is my work; the work of Macro. I am more truly, or at all events not less truly, his father than his own parents. He would have been destroyed, over and over again, by Tiberius, who thirsted for his blood, if it had not been for me and for my powers of persuasion. And moreover, when Tiberius was dead, I, who had under my command the whole force of the army, immediately placed him in the position which Tiberius had occupied, teaching him that the state had indeed sustained a loss of one man, but that the imperial authority continued unaltered, as entire as ever.” (59) And many people have given credit to these assertions of his as if they were true, not being acquainted with the false and crafty disposition of the speakers; for hitherto the dishonest and designing character of his disposition was not made manifest. But a few days afterwards the miserable man was put to death, with his wife, receiving the extremity of punishment as a reward for his exceeding good will towards his slayer. (60) This is the consequence of doing kindnesses to ungrateful people; for in return for the benefits which they have received, they inflict the greatest of injuries on those from whom they have received them. Accordingly, Macro, who had done everything in sincerity with the most earnest eagerness and zeal for the good of Gaius, in the first place in order to save him from death, and afterwards in order that he by himself might succeed to the imperial authority, received for his reward the fate which I have mentioned. (61) For it is said that the wretched man was compelled to kill himself with his own hand; and his wife, too, experienced the same misery, even though she indeed had at one time been believed to be on the most intimate terms of familiarity with Gaius; but they say that none of the allurements of love are stable and trustworthy because it is a passion which quickly breeds satiety.
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