to be continued. Cato died with the advantage of having made Caesar say that he envied his death because it removed from him the opportunity to forgive him. I want Brutus to be envied for having been able to choose a wife brave enough to follow him to the grave. There, we will enjoy a freedom that we will never lose, while the Romans moan under the weight of their chains. But the day will come when Brutus' name will be venerated, when they will wish for a liberator they have refused and the blood of Cato and Brutus will fill them with shame. Yes, those Roman citizens who saw themselves as masters of the world, who had kings as subjects, whose glory was unsullied and whose power was only equal to that of the gods, will henceforth be contemptible slaves. Their serfdom will be so severe that they will no longer be masters of their own will. They will approve of all the mistakes of their tyrants, and Rome, once a school of integrity, will become a den of cowardly flatterers. Is it possible that the aspirations of such a great people could change in an instant? Those millions of men who fought on the plains of Pharsalus under the banner of Pompey, did they all perish in that battle or did they lose their courage when defeated? Those kings who hold their crowns from the authority of the Senate, are all ungrateful? Is there none among them who would have accepted Brutus to free him from his chains? Is the desire for freedom, so powerful among all creatures living on earth, extinguished in men? And is the blood of a dead tyrant without effect on the Romans? They want to honor his memory and mourn, but in doing so, they saddle themselves with chains for the rest of their lives, it is incomprehensible. 

Yes, all the Roman legions have lost their courage; all the governors are prostrating themselves before their tyrants; all the Romans prefer slavery to freedom; the ashes of Caesar are revered; and to top it all, Brutus has abandoned them. However, do not think, Volumnius, that he wished to leave me behind. It is true that when we parted in the city of Elea, he did not want me to stay by his side, even though I did everything to do so. He said that the trip would cause me too much pain and that I could be more useful in Rome than in his army. But in this situation, this is not the case. I know well that Brutus thought of me while dying, that he is waiting for me where he is and that he does not doubt that I have forgotten that Cato preferred to tear his own bowels rather than live under tyranny and that I, Porcia, having even stronger reasons pushing me, will follow the path that he has traced for me. When life can no longer be honorable or happy, it is extremely wise to leave it, knowing that it should be cherished only as long as it serves our glory or that of the fatherland. Thus, I no longer need to preserve my own. Yes, Volumnius, I owe my death to my own glory, to that of Cato, to that of Brutus and to that of Rome. But do not think that this death is a misfortune for me. I am going to a place where, without a doubt, ethics are known and rewarded. This terrifying spectre of death that Brutus encountered without being frightened near the city of Sardis, and later, near that of Philippi, does not appear to me. I only see the soul of my husband calling me and appearing eager for mine to join him. I see- 

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