So remember, Volumnius, that even if all Romans have shown themselves ungrateful towards<hr>
him, he has never ceased to do everything for them. And when these cowards tolerated not one, but<hr>
three tyrants, he felt more compassion for the Romans than resentment towards their<hr>
ingratitude. And despite their opposition, he did everything to make them happy. But these enemies<hr>
of morality are so accustomed to slavery that they regard their chains as their<hr>
most precious treasures. After Brutus broke them, they carefully reattached them themselves.<hr>
Rome, which once commanded the entire world, now voluntarily submits<hr>
to tyranny. Cato, Brutus… who would have believed it? And who would have thought that the gods<hr>
would protect crime and oppress innocence? However, I see why heaven discredits us.<hr>
       The death of Brutus, the savior of the Republic, is Rome's punishment and it is the greatest<hr>
misfortune that has ever befallen this city. It is undoubtedly to punish the Romans<hr>
that the gods allowed him to kill himself. For Brutus, his grief is his reward, the ingratitude of<hr>
the Romans serves his glory, and his very death exhibits such wisdom that I am almost ashamed<hr>
to shed tears for him. Hence, I may be mourning his absence more than I<hr>
grieved his death. At the time, my grief was boundless, and my mind wavered between hope<hr>
and fear. Weeping gave me some relief. But today, with nothing left<hr>
to lose, and seeing a way to end my misery, my soul is more at peace. Even though<hr>
my suffering is the most intense ever experienced, I bear it with impatience, for I know<hr>
it will soon end. Don’t think that I must live to preserve the memory of<hr>
Brutus. The act he carried out is so great and noble that it will endure in memories. He will<br>
always be regarded as the best and worst of the Romans, and even the tyrants who will reign<hr>
after him will help preserve his glorious memory. As long as there are kings in Rome, they will<hr>
remember that the ancient Brutus drove them out, and when the last king dies to save the<hr>
freedom that the first had acquired, they will also remember him. Do not doubt, Rome<hr>
will always be enslaved. It is certain that if she could regain her freedom one day, Brutus would<hr>
have returned it to her. But having been unable to do so, he had at least the glory of dying without being a<hr>
slave. His glory would not be complete if I were cowardly enough to live in captivity.<hr>
Something would be missing from my own glory if I were to forget his. Our fate is intertwined, for I<hr>
shared in his conspiracy by knowing his plans before their execution. It is, therefore, only right that I<hr>
follow Brutus' destiny. Volumnius, know that a person brave enough to inflict a hr>
stab wound upon herself, endure the pain, and hide it to prove to her husband that she<hr>
knows how to keep a secret will not easily change her decision to die. The image of Cato and<hr>
that of my dear Brutus are so present in my mind that I see nothing else.<hr>
Their death and mine inspire such a longing in me that I consider it the greatest<hr>
good that could happen to me.<hr>
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                                                    54<hr>