to be of good heart, and they
urged one another to stay and keep close together and not to betray
their liberty and the man who was contending in defence of it.

XXVIII. The clerk now produced the law, but Cato would not let him
read it, and when Metellus took it and began to read, Cato snatched
the writing from him; and when Metellus who knew the law by heart was
beginning to declare it orally, Thermus held his mouth with his hand
and stopped his voice, till at last Metellus seeing that the men were
making an opposition which he could not resist and that the people
were beginning to give way to what was best and to change, he ordered
armed men to hurry thither from his house[697] with threats and
shouts. This being done, and all having been dispersed except Cato,
who stood there, though he was pelted with stones and pieces of wood
from above, Murena, who had been brought to trial and prosecuted by
Cato, did not remain indifferent, but holding his toga in front of him
and calling out to those who were throwing missiles, to stop, and
finally persuading Cato himself and taking him in his arms, led him
off to the temple of the Dioscuri. Now when Metellus saw that all was
clear about the Rostra, and that his opponents were flying through the
Forum, being quite confident that he had got the victory, he ordered
the armed men to go away, and coming forward in an orderly manner he
attempted to conduct the proceedings about the law. But his opponents
quickly recovering themselves from their rout again advanced with loud
and confident shouts, so that the partizans of Metellus were seized
with confusion and fear, for they thought that their opponents were
falling on them with arms which they had provided themselves with from
some place or other, and not one of them stood his ground, but all ran
away from the Rostra. When they were thus dispersed, and Cato coming
forward partly commended and partly encouraged the people, the people
prepared themselves to put down Metellus by every means, and the
Senate assembling declared anew that they would support Cato and
resist the law, which they considered to be introducing discord and
civil war into Rome.

XXIX. Metellus himsalf was unmoved from his purpose and still bold,
but seeing that his partizans were struck with great terror at Cato,
and considered him invincible and that it was impossible to overpower
him, he suddenly hurried out to the Forum, and assembling the people
he said ma