for the settlement of their difficulty. He decreed that both should disband their armies and appear before him for an adjudication of the difficulty, and submit to his sentence. This was an affront to Egypt, as being an interference with the royal dignity of Egypt, an independent kingdom. But Cæsar replied that he only acted by virtue of their father, Auletes, who had, by his will, put his children under the guardianship of the senate and people of Rome, the whole authority of which was vested in his person, as consul; that, as guardian, he had a right to arbitrate between them.

The affair was brought before him, and advocates appointed to plead the cause.

"But Cleopatra, who knew Cæsar's foible, be lieved that her presence would be more persuasive than any advocate she could employ with her judge. She caused him to be told, that she perceived that those whom she employed in her behalf betrayed her, and demanded his permission to appear in person. Plutarch says it was Cæsar himself who pressed her to come and plead her cause. "That princess took nobody with her, of all her friends, but Apollodorus the Sicilian; got into a little boat, and arrived at the bottom of the walls of the citadel of Alexandria, when it was quite dark night. Finding that there were no means of entering without being known, she thought of this stratagem. She laid herself at length in the midst of a bundle of clothes. Apollodorus wrapped it up in a cloth, tied up with a thong, and in that manner carried it through the gate of the citadel to Cæsar's apartment, who was far from being displeased with the stratagem. The

first sight of so beautiful a person, had all the effect upon him she had desired."[Rollin, vol. VIII., pp. 118, 119.]

Being thus charmed with Cleopatra, he at length decreed, as guardian and abitrator, that Ptolemy and Cleopatra should reign jointly, according to the intent of the will. Pothinus, the chief minister of state, and who had been the principal agent in expelling Cleopatra from the throne, fearing the result of her restoration, began at once to excite jealousy in the public mind, and renewed hostilities against Cæsar; alleging that the Romans had only placed the brother and sister on the throne through fear of the populace, but that the true design was, as soon as it could be done, to set Cleopatra alone on the throne. Achillas, at the head of 20,000 men, advanced to drive Cæsar out of Alexandria. But Cæsar so disposed his small body of men in the streets and avenues, that he found no difficulty in resisting the attack. The Egyptians then attempted to take his fleet; but he defeated them by burning theirs, and possessing himself of the tower of Pharos and garrisoning it. By this conflagration of the fleet, the vessels driving so near the quay, some of the houses took fire, and the famous Alexandrian library was burned, containing near 400,000 volumes.

Cæsar, seeing so dangerous a war on his hands, sent into all the neighboring countries for help. A large fleet came from Asia Minor, an army under Mithridates, which had been raised by him in Syria and Cilicia; Antipater, the Idumean, joined him with 3000 Jews, [upright ones] and had engaged several neighboring cities to send him help. The Jews, who had possession of the

passes into Egypt, gave them up for the passage of the army without interruption, without which the whole plan must have miscarried. The arrival of this army decided the contest. A battle was fought near the Nile, which proved decisive; the victory turning in favor of Cæsar. Ptolemy, attempting to escape in an open boat, was drowned in the Nile. Alexandria and all Egypt submit

ted to the victor.

"And upright ones with him." The Jews, without whose assistance Cæsar must have fallen; but by whose assistance, Egypt fell into his hands, B. C. 47.

He shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her." Cleopatra, after being corrupted by Cæsar, was placed alone, virtually, on the throne of Egypt, as the creature of Cæsar.

"Cæsar returned to Alexandria about the middle of our January; and not finding any further opposition to his orders, gave the crown of Egypt to Cleopatra, in conjunction with Ptolemy her other brother. This was, in effect, giving it to Cleopatra alone; for that young prince was only eleven years old. The passion which Cæsar had conceived for that princess, was properly the sole cause of his embarking in so dangerous a war. He had by her one son, called Cæsarion, whom Augustus caused to be put to death when he became master of Alexandria. His affection for Cleopatra kept him much longer in Egypt than his affairs required. For though everything was settled in that kingdom by the end of January, he did not leave it till the end of April, according to Appian, who says he stayed there nine months. Now he

had arrived there only about the end of July the year before.

"Cæsar passed whole nights in feasting with Cleopatra. Having embarked with her upon the Nile, he carried her through the whole country with a numerous fleet, and would have penetrated into Ethiopia, if his army had not refused to follow him. He had resolved to bring her to Rome, and to marry her; and intended to have caused a law to pass in the assembly of the people, by which the citizens of Rome should be permitted to marry such and as many wives as they thought fit. Helvius Cinna, the tribune of the people, declared, after his death, that he had prepared a harangue, in order to propose that law to the people, not being able to refuse his assistance upon the earnest solicitation of Cæsar."-[Rollin, vol. VIII., p. 124.]

"She shall not stand, neither be for him." She afterwards devoted herself to Antony, the enemy of Augustus Cæsar, and lent her whole power against Rome, as we shall see hereafter.

Verse 18: "After this shall he turn his face unto the isles and shall take many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn upon him."

"What at length made him quit Egypt, was the war with Pharnaces, king of the Cimmerian Bosphorus, and son of Mithridates, the last king of Pontus. He fought a great battle with him near the city of Zela, defeated his whole army, and drove him out of the kingdom of Pontus. To denote the rapidity of his conquest, in writing to one of his friends, he made use of only these

three words, Veni, vidi, vici; that is to say, I came, I saw, I conquered."-[Rollin, vol. VIII., p. 125.]

Verse 19: "Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but he shall stumble, and fall, and not be found."

After the conquest of the Cimmerian Bosphorus, he returned to Rome, the fort of his own land, where, on his being elected by the senate to imperial power, he was murdered in the senate chamber, by Brutus and Cassius, with other conspirators. He stumbled and fell, and was not found.

Verse 20: "Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory of the kingdom; but within those days he shall be destroyed, neither in anger, nor in battle."

The successor of Julius Cæsar, was Augustus Cæsar. He was nephew of Julius Cæsar; and had been ADOPTED by him as his successor. On hearing of his uncle's death, at the age of 19 he placed himself at the head of an army and marched to Rome; combining with Mark Antony and Lepidus, to avenge the death of Cæsar, they formed what is called the Triumvirate government. He publicly announced his adoption by Julius, and took his uncle's name, to which he added that of Octavianus. He soon found himself firmly established in the empire, and the senate gave him the title of Augustus.-[See Rollin's Hist., and Durivage's Cyclopedia of History, article Augustus.]

At the time of the birth of Christ, there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.-[Luke ii. 1. Josephus, Ant., book 17, chap. 5, sec. 2.]