Pompey and other enemies of Caesar were determined to prevent this. They induced the Roman Senate to send a command to Caesar to leave his army in Gaul and come at once to Rome.“If you do not obey this command,” said the Senate, “you shall be considered an enemy to the republic.”
Caesar knew what that meant. If he went to Rome alone, his enemies would make false accusations against him; they would try him for treason; they would not permit him to be elected consul.
He therefore called the soldiers of his favorite legion together and told them of the plot that had been made for his ruin. The war-loving veterans who had followed him through so many perils, and had helped him to win so many victories, declared they would not leave him; they would go with him to Rome and see that he received the rewards that were his due; they would serve without pay; they would even share with him the expenses of the long march. In all the legion there was only one man who proved false to Caesar.
The march to Italy was begun. The soldiers were even more enthusiastic than Caesar himself. They climbed mountains, waded rivers, endured fatigue, faced all kinds of danger for the sake of their great leader.
At last they came to a little river called the Rubicon. It was the boundary line of Caesar’s province of Gaul; on the other side of it was Italy. Caesar pau