Page:Plutarch's Lives (Clough, v.5, 1865).djvu/214

 206 ANTONY. A quarrel presently happened between the king of Media and Phraates of Partliia, beginning, it is said, about the division of the booty that was taken from the Ro- mans, and creating great apprehension in the Median lest he should lose his kingdom. He sent, therefore, ambassa- dors to Antony, with offers of entering into a confederate war against Phraates. And Antony, full of hopes at being thus asked, as a favor, to accept that one thing, horse and archers, the want of which had hindered his beating the Parthians before, began at once to prepare for a return to Armenia, there to join the Medes on the Araxes, and be- gin the war afresh. But Octavia, in Rome, being desu-ous to see Antony, asked Caesar's leave to go to him ; which he gave her, not so much, say most authors, to gratify his sister, as to obtain a fair pretence to begin the war upon her dishonorable reception. She no sooner arrived at Athens, but by letters from Antony she was informed of his new expedition, and his will that she should await him there. And, though she were much displeased, not being ignorant of the real reason of this usage, yet she wrote to him to know to what place he would be pleased she should send the things she had brought with her for his use ; for she had brought clothes for his soldiers, baggage, cattle, money, and presents for his friends and officers, and two thousand chosen soldiers sumptuously armed, to form praetorian cohorts. This message was brought from Octavia to Antony by Niger, one of his friends, who added to it the praises she deserved so well. Cleopatra, feeling lier rival already, as it were, at hand, was seized with fear, lest if to her noble life and her high alliance, she once could add the charm of daily habit and affectionate inter- course, she should become irresistible, and be his absolute mistress for ever. So she feigned to be dying for love of Antony, bringing her body down by slender diet ; when he entered the room, she fixed her eyes upon him in a