Note 88 — Chapter XVII · THE BEGINNING OF CIVIL STRIFE

[Ihned says of him, “He had something of the noble enthusiasm of the Gracchi. Generous and free from all selfishness and meanness, but without political experience, adroitness, and knowledge of men, he aspired to a task which surpassed his strength.” Velleius Paterculuse calls him “a man of the noblest birth, the greatest eloquence, and the strictest purity of life; but who in all his undertakings was more distinguished by ability and good intention than by success.”]