Meanwhile Nepos had brought his proposals concerning Pompeius before the burgesses.  On the day of voting Cato and his friend and colleague, Quintus Minucius, interposed their veto.  When Nepos did not regard this and continued the reading out, a formal conflict took place; Cato and Minucius threw themselves on their colleague and forced him to stop; an armed band liberated him, and drove the aristocratic section from the Forum; but Cato and Minucius returned, now supported likewise by armed bands, and ultimately maintained the field of battle for the government.  Encouraged by this victory of their bands over those of their antagonist, the senate suspended the tribune Nepos as well as the praetor Caesar, who had vigorously supported him in the bringing in of the law, from their offices; their deposition, which was proposed in the senate, was prevented by Cato, more, doubtless, because it was unconstitutional than because it was injudicious.  Caesar did not regard the decree, and continued his official functions till the senate used violence against him.  As soon as this was known, the multitude appeared before his house and placed itself at his disposal; it was to depend solely on him whether the struggle in the streets should begin, or whether at least the proposals made by Metellus should now be resumed and the military command in Italy desired by Pompeius should be procured for him; but this was not in Caesar’s interest, and so he induced the crowds to disperse, whereupon the senate recalled the penalty decreed against him.  Nepos himself had, immediately after his suspension, left the city and embarked for Asia, in order to report to Pompeius the result of his mission.

Retirement of Pompeius

Pompeius had every reason to be content with the turn which things had taken.  The way to the throne now lay necessarily through civil war; and he owed it to Cato’s incorrigible perversity that he could begin this war with good reason.  After the illegal condemnation of the adherents of Catilina, after the unparalleled acts of violence against the tribune of the people Metellus, Pompeius might wage war at once as defender of the two palladia of Roman public freedom—­ the right of appeal and the inviolability of the tribunate of the people—­against the aristocracy, and as champion of the party of order against the Catilinarian band.  It seemed almost impossible that Pompeius should neglect this opportunity and with his eyes open put himself a second time into the painful position, in which the dismissal of his army in 684 had placed him, and from which only the Gabinian law had released him.  But near as seemed the opportunity of placing the white chaplet around his brow, and much as his own soul longed after it, when the question of action presented itself, his heart and his hand once more failed him.  This man, altogether ordinary in every respect excepting only his pretensions, would doubtless gladly have placed himself beyond the law, if only he could have