contest,” carried on by children of the nobility, which added to his glory.  While he was so engaged Sextus crossed over into Italy and remained there carrying on marauding expeditions until Agrippa arrived.  Then, after leaving a garrison at certain points, he sailed back again.—­Caesar had formerly tried, as has been described, to get possession of Gaul through others, but had not been able on account of Calenus and the rest who followed Antony’s fortunes.  But now he occupied it in person, for he found Calenus dead of a disease and acquired his army without difficulty.  Meanwhile, seeing that Lepidus was vexed at being deprived of the office that belonged to him, he sent him to Africa; for he proposed, by being the sole bestower of that position, instead of allowing Antony to share in the appointment, to gain in a greater degree Lepidus’s attachment.

[B.C. 44 (a. u. 710)]

[-21-] As I have remarked, [42] the Romans had two provinces in that part of Libya.  The governors, before the union of the three men, were Titus Sextius over the Numidian region, and Cornificius with Decimus Laelius over the rest; the former was friendly to Antony, the latter two to Caesar.  For a time Sextius waited in the expectation that the others, who had a far larger force, would invade his domain, and prepared to withstand them there.  When they delayed, he began to disdain them; and he was further elated by a cow, as they say, that uttered human speech bidding him lay hold of the prize before him, and by a dream in which a bull that had been buried in the city of Tucca seemed to urge him to dig up its head and carry it about on a spear-shaft, since by this means he should conquer.  Without hesitation, then, especially when he found the bull in the spot where the dream said it was, he invaded Africa first himself.

[B.C. 43 (a. u. 711)]

At the beginning he occupied Adrymetum and some few other places, taken by surprise at his sudden assault.  Then, while in an unguarded state because of this very success, he was ambushed by the quaestor, lost a large portion of his army, and withdrew into Numidia.  His misfortune had happened to occur when he was without the protection of the bull’s head, and he therefore ascribed his defeat to that fact and made preparations to take the field again.  Meantime his opponents anticipated him by invading his domain.  While the rest were besieging Cirta, the quaestor with the cavalry proceeded against him, overcame him in a few cavalry battles, and won over the other quaestor.  After these experiences Sextius, who had secured some fresh reinforcements, risked battle again, conquered the quaestor in his turn, and shut up Laelius, who was overrunning the country, within his fortifications.  He deceived Cornificius, who came to the defence of his colleague, making him believe that the latter had been captured, and after thus throwing him into a state of dejection defeated him.  So Cornificius met his death in battle, and Laelius, who made a sally with the intention of taking the enemy in the rear, was also slain.