In
Gaul, as has been said already, he rode a remarkable horse, which he had
bred himself, and which would let no one but Caesar mount him. From his
boyhood it was observed of him that he was the truest of friends, that he
avoided quarrels, and was most easily appeased when offended. In manner he
was quiet and gentlemanlike, with the natural courtesy of high-breeding.
On an occasion when he was dining somewhere the other guests found the oil
too rancid for them. Caesar took it without remark, to spare his
entertainer's feelings. When on a journey through a forest with his friend
Oppius, he came one night to a hut where there was a single bed. Oppius
being unwell, Caesar gave it up to him, and slept on the ground.
In his public character he may be regarded under three aspects, as a
politician, a soldier, and a man of letters.
Like Cicero, Caesar entered public life at the bar. He belonged by birth
to the popular party, but he showed no disposition, like the Gracchi, to
plunge into political agitation. His aims were practical. He made war only
upon injustice and oppression; and when he commenced as a pleader he was
noted for the energy with which he protected a client whom he believed to
have been wronged. At a later period, before he was praetor, he was
engaged in defending Masintha, a young Numidian prince, who had suffered
some injury from Hiempsal, the father of Juba.
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