1Mithridates, however, devoted all the time that remained not to forgetting the old war but to preparing a new one. 1Afterwards, when he had built and equipped very large fleets, had gathered very great armies from whatever nations he could, and was pretending to make war on his neighbours the Bosporans, he sent envoys and letters all the way to Spain to the leaders with whom we were then at war, so that, with war being waged on land and sea in two places very far apart and quite opposite, by two enemy forces acting on a single plan, you might fight for your empire torn by a struggle on two fronts.
10Yet the danger on the one side, the Sertorian and Spanish, which had far more stability and strength, was averted by the inspired strategy and singular merit of Pompey; 10on the other side, affairs were so managed by Lucullus, an outstanding man, that those great and glorious beginnings of his achievements seem attributable not to his good luck but to his merit, while these last events, which happened recently, seem attributable not to his fault but to fortune. 10But of Lucullus I shall speak elsewhere, and I shall speak in such a way, citizens, that no true praise will seem to have been taken from him by my speech, nor any false praise invented for him; 11as for the dignity and glory of your empire, since that is where my speech began, consider what attitude you think you must adopt.