Republic. On the second day his friends and advocates had not only
lost all hope of gaining their cause, but all relish for going on with
it. The third day so paralyzed the man himself that he had to bethink
himself not what sort of reply he could make, but how he could escape
the necessity of replying by pretending to be ill."[98] It was in this
way that the trial was brought to an end.

But we must go back to the beginning. When an accusation was to be
made against some great Roman of the day on account of illegal public
misdoings, as was to be made now against Verres, the conduct of the
case, which would require probably great labor and expense, and would
give scope for the display of oratorical excellence, was regarded as a
task in which a young aspirant to public favor might obtain honor and
by which he might make himself known to the people. It had, therefore,
come to pass that there might be two or more accusers anxious to
undertake the work, and to show themselves off as solicitous on behalf
of injured innocence, or desirous of laboring in the service of the
Republic. When this was the case, a court of judges was called upon to
decide whether this man or that other was most fit to perform the work
in hand. Such a trial was called "Divinatio," because the judges had
to get their lights in the matter as best they could without the
assistance of witnesses--by some process of divination--with the aid
of the gods, as it might be. Cicero's first speech in the matter of
Verres is called In Quintum Caecilium Divinatio, because one Caecilius
came forward to take the case away from him. Here was a part of the
scheme laid by Hortensius. To deal with Cicero in such a matter would
no doubt be awkward. His purpose, his diligence, his skill, his
eloquence, his honesty were known. There must be a trial. So much was
acknowledged; but if the conduct of it could be relegated to a man who
was dishonest, or who had no skill, no fitness, no special desire for