The largest crowd had gathered around the Senate House and there was an air of expectation as Caesar and his men approached the steps to the entrance. Marcus had been assigned to watch to the left while Festus kept his gaze to the right. The faces surrounding Caesar and his men had mixed expressions. Most were cheering his name and waving. But others were booing and shaking their fists, and Marcus watched closely, looking for the glint of a blade.
The crowd slowed the pace of the small column and it seemed a long time before Caesar and his entourage reached the entrance to the building, away from the danger of the gangs outside. Most of the bodyguards and lictors waited outside the entrance, but Marcus, Festus and Lupus joined the small body of clerks behind the dais upon which the consuls’ chairs stood. While the clerks sat on stools and prepared their waxed slates and pens to record the proceedings, Festus and Marcus watched the senators for any sign of the red cloth that the plotters had agreed as the signal for their assassin. Most of the senators had already taken their places on the benches that arced round the dais. While many wore fine togas of white, a few of their number, mostly the younger senators, wore bright colours. Some, like Cato, wore plain brown togas, deliberately chosen to make them appear in keeping with Rome’s strait-laced traditions.
As had been the case since earlier that year, Bibulus’s chair was empty, and Caesar ignored it as he took his own seat and called the house to order. Marcus took little interest in the usual rituals of prayers and announcement of the agenda. Only when the debate began did he pay close attention to the contributions and reactions of the senators. While Caesar’s followers and those of Pompeius and Crassus gave their backing to Caesar’s amendment to the Land Bill, the other senators listened in stony silence. At last, Cato raised his hand to request permission to speak. Caesar regarded him coldly and then nodded his assent. ‘Be sure not to talk at too much length,’ he warned Cato.
Cato rose to his feet and adjusted his toga, looking around at the expectant faces in the chamber. Then he began.
‘Those in this House represent the will of the Roman people. But they do more. It is their sacred duty to uphold the traditions that have kept our great republic free from the tyranny of kings, and those men who would be kings. Therefore it is the duty of every man here to vote against the proposal put forward by Caesar. His amendment will make it a crime for any of us to oppose the Land Bill. It would seem that the choice open to us today is to either support Caesar or be declared an enemy of Rome. .’
Marcus knew that Cato and his allies were fighting to preserve the rights of the rich and powerful, but he couldn’t help wondering if Cato was right to warn his audience about Caesar’s ambitions. He himself knew that Caesar would stop at nothing to get his own way.
There were angry mutters from the men on the benches surrounding Cato. He let their comments die down before he continued. ‘This measure is an insult to everything that this House holds dear. It is worse than an insult. It is a direct attack on the freedom of every one of us. Since when has it been a crime to disagree with the consul of the day? When was it ever a crime to vote against a measure you disagreed with? I tell you now, if we give way to Caesar today, then we pave the way for tyranny tomorrow. It may not be Caesar who presses his boot on our throats, but it will be a man like him. The choice before us is simple. If we value our freedom we will vote against Caesar. If we are little more than craven dogs to sniff at his heels and beg for scraps, then we will vote for Caesar.’ He turned to the consul and arched an eyebrow. ‘I trust that was brief enough for you. It may well be the last free speech anyone ever hears in this House
Cato sat down and those around him cheered loudly as they tried to drown out the jeers and howls of protest from Caesar’s supporters. Marcus scanned the faces of the senators, but could see no glimpse of the red cloth that was the sign at which Caesar’s enemies had agreed to strike. It seemed the attempt would not take place within the Senate House itself, Marcus decided.
The chief clerk rose from his seat and banged his staff on the marble floor to restore order. When the senators were quiet he turned and bowed to Caesar. Marcus saw his master compose himself before he responded.
‘My thanks to Senator Cato for sparing us his usual tactic of boring us to death before a vote. His newfound brevity is a welcome relief. ’
Caesar’s supporters laughed and he smiled as he waved a hand to quieten them. ‘I would not need to include such an amendment if there were not so many members of this House who are prepared to oppose a perfectly reasonable, fair and necessary proposal to provide our soldiers, to whom we owe so much, with a decent reward for their efforts. Why should those who have shed their blood for us be denied a small plot of land on which to farm and raise a family? Are we so ungrateful that we would deny them this? We all know why Senator Cato and his companions are opposed to the Bill. They have fine estates built up from the cheap land they purchased when those families the soldiers left behind could no longer work their farms and were forced to sell them.’ He paused and his expression became cold. ‘That, I find objectionable. I wonder how those who oppose this proposal can sleep at night? But since they can, and I have exhausted every avenue of reasonable debate I am left with only one means of ensuring that our veterans have the meagre reward they deserve. I move that we call a vote at once.’ Caesar turned in his chair. ‘Clerks, prepare to take the tally.’
There was uproar as the senators realized there would be no further debate, and it took a while before they calmed down sufficiently for the vote to be called.
‘Those in favour of Caesar’s proposal?’ the senior clerk intoned, and his assistants counted the hands raised and agreed the total.
‘Those against?’
The number was taken and the clerks conferred before the chief clerk stepped forward to give the result.
‘Those in favour of the amendment, two hundred and eighty-five. Those against. . two hundred and eighty-one. The amendment has passed.’
At once there was a deafening cheer from Caesar’s supporters. Caesar stood and stretched his arms out to draw the attention of the senators. Cato and his companions looked on, furious.
‘That concludes proceedings for today. The Senate will meet again in two days’ time to vote on the Land Bill. Good day to you, and I thank you on behalf of our brave veterans.’
As Caesar turned away, Marcus saw him smile with cool satisfaction. Around him, the scribes and clerks scrambled to their feet. Marcus felt a tug at his sleeve and turned to see Lupus, grinning. ‘It’s over then. The master has got his way.’
‘Not yet. There’s the other vote.’
Lupus shook his head. ‘That’s a formality. If they passed this proposal, then they’ll pass the Land Bill. Then it will be over. The street gangs won’t have anything to fight about, at least not for a while. We’ll have peace on the streets.’
Marcus turned his gaze towards Cato again. There was no disguising the hatred in the senator’s eyes. Marcus couldn’t believe Caesar’s opponents would give up so easily.
‘Come on,’ said Festus. ‘We must escort the master back home.’
As Caesar emerged from the entrance to the Senate House there was a thunderous explosion of applause and cheering from the crowd outside. Many of the people supporting Caesar were clearly veterans themselves, judging from their grizzled expressions and the scars on their face and arms. For many others, the vote represented a victory for the poor and down-trodden over the aristocrats who had grown rich from the spoils of the campaigns fought by General Pompeius’s soldiers. Caesar paused to bask in their acclaim.