occasion of some dispute between Fimbria and the
quaestor Flaccus threatened to send him back to Rome whether he liked
it or not, and when the other consequently made some abusive reply
deprived him of his command. Fimbria set out upon his return with the
worst possible will and on reaching the soldiers at Byzantium greeted
them as if he were upon the point of departure, asked for a letter,
and lamented his fate, pretending to have suffered undeservedly. He
advised them to remember the help he had given them and to be on their
guard; and his words contained a hidden reference to Flaccus, implying
that he had designs upon them. Finding that they accepted his story
and were well disposed toward him and suspicious of the general, he
went on still further and incited them to anger by accusing Flaccus of
various faults, finally stating that he would betray them for money;
hence the soldiers drove away Thermus, who had been assigned to take
charge of them. (Valesius, ib.)

4. (Par.) Fimbria destroyed many men not to serve the best ends of
justice nor to secure the greatest benefit to Rome but through bad
temper and lust of slaughter. A proof is that he once ordered many
crosses to be made, to which he was wont to bind them and wear out
their lives by cruel treatment, and then when these were found to
be many more than those who were to be put to death he commanded
some of the bystanders to be arrested and affixed to the crosses
that were in excess, that they might not seem to have been made in
vain. (Valesius, p. 653.)

5. (Par.) The same man on capturing Ilium despatched as many persons as
he could, sparing none, and all but burned the whole city to the ground.
He took the place not by storm but by guile. After bestowing some
praise on them for the embassy sent to Sulla and saying that it made
no difference with which one of the two they ratified a truce (for he
and Sulla were both Romans) he thereupon went in among them as among
friends and performed these deeds. (Valesius, ib.)

[Sidenote: FRAG. CII] [Sidenote: B.C. 85 (_a.u._ 669)] 1. (Par.)
Metellus after being defeated by Cinna went to Sulla and was of the
greatest assistance to him. For in view of his reputation for justice
and piety not a few who were opposed to Sulla's policy decided that it
was not without reason that Metellus had joined him but that he chose
what was really juster and more advantageous for the country, and hence
they went over to their side. (V