ABSTRACT
The news that the Helvetian emigration was about to take place hastened Cæsar's departure from Rome. In the February of the preceding year the government of the two Gauls had fallen quite unexpectedly to his share. Since then he had had little chance of preparing for his new duties. During his Consulship he was so taken up with the struggles and intrigues of home politics that he had no time to inform himself about Gaul. He had neither read books of travel nor consulted the merchants and politicians who were in relations with the hinterland through the Narbonese province. Thus he went out to his duties without any definite ideas of policy and with the meagrest knowledge of the country and its inhabitants. No doubt he had a clear notion of his general line of conduct. He intended, so far as possible, to apply to Gaul the methods of Lucullus and Pompey in Asia, to let slip no real or imaginary pretext for military operations, to acquire the riches and reputation so easily picked up in the provinces, to demonstrate to his fellow-citizens that he was a skilful diplomatist and a brilliant general. But he had as yet no particular ideas as to the possibility of such a policy, nor of the risks and vicissitudes it might be likely to involve. He would make up his mind on the spot, when he was face to face with the situation. His attitude was characteristic of the debasement of Roman statesmanship both at home and abroad. Politics had now become little more than the art of framing happy improvisations. Cæsar in Gaul was but following the common law. He went out at his own risk; and he worked for his own ends. Lucullus had succeeded; Pompey had succeeded; why should not Cæsar succeed also?
