III.  On being appointed Quaestor to Marius in his first consulship, he sailed with him to Libya, to prosecute the war against Jugurtha.[167] In this campaign he showed himself a man of merit, and by availing himself of a favourable opportunity he made a friend of Bocchus, king of the Numidians.  Some ambassadors of Bocchus who had escaped from Numidian robbers were hospitably received by Sulla, and sent back with presents and a safe conduct.  Now Bocchus happened for some time to have disliked his son-in-law Jugurtha, whom he was also afraid of; and as Jugurtha had been defeated by the Romans and had fled to Bocchus, he formed a design to make him his prisoner and deliver him to his enemies; but as he wished Sulla to be the agent rather than himself, he invited Sulla to come and see him.  Sulla communicated the message to Marius, and, taking a few soldiers with him, ventured on the hazardous enterprise of putting himself in the hands of a barbarian who never kept his faith even with his friends, and this for the purpose of having another man betrayed to him.  Bocchus, having got both of them in his power, was under the necessity of being treacherous to one of them, and after great fluctuations in his resolution, he finally carried into effect his original perfidious design, and surrendered Jugurtha to Sulla.  Marius enjoyed the triumph for the capture of Jugurtha, but the honour of the success was given to Sulla through dislike of Marius, which caused Marius some uneasiness; for Sulla was naturally of an arrogant disposition, and as this was the first occasion, on which he had been raised from a mean condition and obscurity to be of some note among his fellow-citizens, and had tasted the sweets of distinction, he carried his pride so far as to have a seal-ring cut, on which the occurrence was represented, and he wore it constantly.  The subject represented was Bocchus surrendering and Sulla receiving the surrender of Jugurtha.

IV.  Though Marius was annoyed at this, yet as he still thought Sulla beneath his jealousy, he employed him in his campaigns—­in his second consulship in the capacity of legate, and in his third consulship as tribune;[168] and by his instrumentality Marius effected many important objects.  In his capacity of legate Sulla took Copillius, king of the Tectosages;[169] and when he was a tribune he persuaded the powerful and populous nation of the Marsi[170] to become friends and allies to Rome.  But now perceiving that Marius was jealous of him, and was no longer willing to give him the opportunity of distinguishing himself, but opposed his further rise, Sulla attached himself to Catulus, the colleague of Marius, who was an honest man, but inactive as a soldier.  Sulla being entrusted by Catulus with all matters of the greatest moment, thus attained both influence and reputation.  In his military operations he reduced a large part of the Alpine barbarians; and on one occasion, when there was a scarcity of provisions in the camp, he