uneasiness, and considering that he
should find no slight obstacle in Cato, if he did not make him his
friend, he sent for Munatius,[700] an intimate of Cato, and as Cato
had two marriageable nieces, he asked for the elder for his own wife,
and the younger for his son. Some say that the suit was not for the
nieces, but the daughters of Cato. When Munatius made the proposal to
Cato and his wife and sisters, the women were delighted above measure
at the prospect of the alliance by reason of the greatness and
reputation of the man; but Cato, without pause or deliberation, with
passion forthwith replied, "Go, Munatius, go, and tell Pompeius, that
Cato is not to be caught by approaching him through the women's
chamber, but that he is well content to have the friendship of
Pompeius, and if Pompeius will act rightly, Cato will show him a
friendship more sure than any marriage connection, but he will not
give up hostages to the reputation of Pompeius contrary to the
interests of his country." The women were vexed at these words, and
Cato's friends blamed his answer as both rude and insolent. The next
thing, however, was that Pompeius while trying to secure the
consulship for one of his friends, sent money for the tribes, and the
bribery[701] was notorious, the money being counted out in his
gardens. Accordingly when Cato observed to the women, that he who was
connected with Pompeius by marriage, must of necessity participate in
such measures and be loaded with the disgrace of them, they admitted
that he had judged better in rejecting the alliance of Pompeius. But
if we may judge by the result, Cato appears to have made a complete
mistake in not accepting the proposed alliance with Pompeius, and
allowing him to turn to Caesar and to contract a marriage, which, by
uniting the power of Pompeius and Caesar, nearly overthrew the Roman
state and did destroy the constitution, nothing of which probably
would have happened if Cato had not, through fear of the small errors
of Pompeius, overlooked the greatest, which was the allowing him to
increase the power of another.

XXXI. These things, however, were still in the future. Now when
Lucullus was engaged in a contest with Pompeius respecting the
arrangements made in Pontus, for each of them wished his own
arrangements to be confirmed, and Cato gave his aid to Lucullus, who
was manifestly wronged, Pompeius being worsted in the Senate and
seeking to make himself popular, proposed a divisi