[-41-] After this Antony gave an entertainment to the Alexandrians, and in the assemblage had Cleopatra and her children sit by his side:  also in the course of a public address he enjoined that she be called Queen of Monarchs, and Ptolemy (whom he named Caesarion) King of Kings.  He then made a different distribution by which he gave them Egypt and Cyprus.  For he declared that one was the wife and the other the true son of the former Caesar and he made the plea that he was doing this as a mark of favor to the dead statesman,—­his purpose being to cast reproach in this way upon Octavianus Caesar because he was only an adopted and not a real son of his.  Besides making this assignment to them, he promised to give to his own children by Cleopatra the following lands,—­to Ptolemy Syria and all the region west of the Euphrates as far as the Hellespont, to Cleopatra Libya about Cyrene, and to their brother Alexander Armenia and the rest of the districts across the Euphrates as far as the Indi.  The latter he bestowed as if they were already his.  Not only did he say this in Alexandria, but sent a despatch to Rome, in order that it might secure ratification also from the people there.  Nothing of this, however, was read in public.

[B.C. 32 (a. u. 722)]

Domitius and Sosius were consuls by that time and being extremely devoted to him refused to accede to Caesar’s urgent demands that they should publish it to all.  Though they prevailed in this matter Caesar won a victory in turn by not having anything that had been written about the Armenian king made known to the public.  He felt pity for the prince because he had been secretly in communication with him for the purpose of injuring Antony, and he grudged the latter his triumph.  While Antony was engaged as described he dared to write to the senate that he wished to give up his office and put all affairs into the hands of that body and of the people:  he was not really intending to do anything of the kind, but he desired that under the influence of the hopes he roused they might either compel Caesar, because on the spot, to give up his arms first, or begin to hate him, if he would not heed them.

[-42-] In addition to these events at that time the consuls celebrated the festival held in honor of Venus Genetrix.  During the Feriae, prefects, boys and beardless youths, appointed by Caesar and sprung from knights but not from senators, directed ceremonies.  Also Aemilius Lepidus Paulus constructed at his own expense the so-called Porticus Pauli and dedicated it in his consulship; for he was consul a portion of that year.  And Agrippa restored from his own purse the so-called Marcian water-supply, which had been cut off by the destruction of the pipes, and carried it in pipes to many parts of the city.  These men, though rivals in the outlay of their private funds, still dissembled the fact and behaved sensibly:  others who were holding even some most insignificant office strove to get a triumph voted to themselves, some through Antony and some through Caesar; and on this pretext they levied large sums upon foreign nations for gold crowns.