Publius Clōdius

, a Roman descended from an illustrious family, and remarkable for his licentiousne , avarice, and ambition. He committed incest with his three sisters, and introduced himself in women’s clothes into the house of Julius Cæsar, whilst Pompeia, Cæsar’s wife, of whom he was enamoured, was celebrating the mysteries of Ceres, where no man was permitted to appear. He was accused for this violation of human and divine laws; but he corrupted his judges, and by that means screened himself from justice. He descended from a patrician into a plebeian family to become a tribune. He was such an enemy to Cato, that he made him go with pretorian power in an expedition against Ptolemy king of Cyprus, that, by the difficulty of the campaign, he might ruin his reputation, and destroy his interest at Rome during his absence. Cato, however, by his uncommon succe , frustrated the views of Clodius. He was also an inveterate enemy to Cicero; and by his influence he banished him from Rome, partly on pretence that he had punished with death, and without trial, the adherents of Cat i line. He wreaked his vengeance upon Cicero’s house, which he burnt, and set all his goods to sale; which, however, to his great mortification, no one offered to buy. In spite of Clodius, Cicero was recalled, and all his goods restored to him. Clodius was some time after murdered by Milo, whose defence Cicero took upon himself. Plutarch , Cicero .— Appian on Cicero , bk. 2 .— Cicero , for Milo & On his House .— Dio Ca ius. ――A certain author, quoted by Plutarch .――Licinius, wrote a history of Rome. Livy , bk. 29 , ch. 22 .――Quirinalis, a rhetorician in Nero’s age. Tacitus , Histories , bk. 1 , ch. 7 .――Sextus, a rhetorician of Sicily, intimate with Marcus Antony, whose preceptor he was. Suet on i us , Lives of the Rhetoricians .— Cicero , Philippics .