isguised as he was, into Fulvia's apartments, where he
handed her some pretended letters, which, he said, were from her
husband; and while Fulvia was opening them in great excitement and
trepidation, he threw off his disguise, and revealed himself to her by
clasping her in his arms and kissing her in the midst of her amazement.
Antony's marriage with Fulvia, besides being the means of reforming his
morals in some degree, softened and civilized him in respect to his
manners. His dress and appearance now assumed a different character. In
fact, his political elevation after Caesar's death soon became very
exalted, and the various democratic arts by which he had sought to raise
himself to it, being now no longer necessary, were, as usual in such
cases, gradually discarded. He lived in great style and splendor when at
Rome, and when absent from home, on his military campaigns, he began to
exhibit the same pomp and parade in his equipage and in his arrangements
as were usual in the camps of other Roman generals.
After the battle of Philippi, described in the last chapter,
Antony--who, with all his faults, was sometimes a very generous foe--as
soon as the tidings of Brutus's death were brought to him, repaired
immediately to the spot, and appeared to be quite shocked and concerned
at the sight of the body. He took off his own military cloak or
mantle--which was a very magnificent and costly garment, being enriched
with many expensive ornaments--and spread it over the corpse. He then
gave directions to one of the officers of his household to make
arrangements for funeral ceremonies of a very imposing character, as a
testimony of his respect for the memory of the deceased. In these
ceremonies it was the duty of the officer to have burned the military
cloak which Antony had appropriated to the purpose of a pall, with the
body. He did not, however, do so. The cloak being very valuable, he
reserved it; and he withheld, also, a considerable part of the money
which had been given him for the expenses of the funeral. He supposed
that Antony would probably not inquire very closely into the details of
the arrangements made for the funeral of his most inveterate enemy.
Antony, however, did inquire into them, and when he learned what the
officer had done, he ordered him to be killed.
The various political changes which occurred, and the movements which
took place among the several armies after the battle of Philippi, can
not be here
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