First, let me recommend Google Scholar as a search base with nice cross linkings, although the latter branch out so much that they are sometimes not relevant.
For the enquiring minds of lucky JSTOR readers: A. N. Sherwin-White discusses dating for Sulla's early doings in Asia and the sequence of events for Ariobarzanes in Ariobarzanes, Mithridates, and Sulla, The Classical Quarterly ,New Series, Vol. 27, No. 1 (1977), pp. 173-183, mainly in response to an article by Ernst Badian, which I could not find online:
Sherwin-White branches out into unreliable dating by Plutarch for Sulla (reportedly based on Sulla’s memoirs)
For those not so lucky: With regard to our current read, The Grass Crown, this gives me the occasion to copy excerpts here from Plutarch's biographies of Marius and Sulla in the narrow confines of our first chat on the book (on LacusCurtius):
But first: There is a brand new Penguin edition of Plutarch out that contains the lives of Marius, Sulla, Crassus, Pompey, Caesar, and Cicero: The Fall of the Roman Republic: Six Lives (Penguin Classics Paperback), by Plutarch (Author), Robin Seager (Author), Rex Warner (Translator)
Excerpts from LacusCurtius (Loebs):
The Life of Marius (32 and 33)
32 On returning to Rome, he built a house for himself near the forum, either, as he himself said, because he was unwilling that those who paid their respects to him should have the trouble of coming a long distance, or because he thought that distance was the reason why he did not have larger crowds at his door than others. The reason, however, was not of this nature; it was rather his inferiority to others in the graces of intercourse and in political helpfulness, which caused him to be neglected, like an instrument of war in time of peace. 2 Of all those who eclipsed him in popular esteem he was most vexed and annoyed by Sulla, whose rise to power was due to the jealousy which the nobles felt towards Marius, and who was making his quarrels with Marius the basis of his political activity. And when Bocchus the Numidian, who had been designated an ally of the Romans, set up trophy-bearing Victories on the Capitol, and by their side gilded figures representing Jugurtha surrendered by him to Sulla, Marius was transported with rage and fury to see Sulla thus appropriating to himself the glory of his achievements, and was making preparations to tear down the votive offerings. 3 But Sulla too was furious, and civil dissension was just on the point of breaking out, when it was stopped by the Social War, which suddenly burst upon the city.34 That is, the most warlike and most numerous of the Italian peoples combined against Rome, and came within a little of destroying her supremacy, since they were not only strong in arms and men, but also had generals whose daring and ability were amazing and made them a match for the Romans.
33 This war, which was varied in its events and most changeful in its fortunes, added much to Sulla's reputation and power, but took away as much from Marius. For he was slow in making his attacks, and always given to hesitation and delay, whether it was that old age had quenched his wonted energy and fire (for he was now past his sixty-sixth year), or that, as he himself said, a feeling of shame led him to go beyond his powers in trying to endure the hardships of the campaign when his nerves were diseased and his body unfit for work. 2 However, even then he won a great victory in which he slew six thousand of the enemy; and he never allowed them to get a grip upon him, but even when he was hemmed about with trenches bided his time, and was not unduly irritated by their insults and challenges. We are told that Publius Silo,35 who had the greatest authority and power among the enemy, once said to him, "If thou art a great general, Marius, come down and fight it out with us"; to which Marius answer, "Nay, but do thou, if thou art a great general, force me to fight it out with you against my will." 3 And at another time, when the enemy had given him an opportunity to attack them, but the Romans had played the coward, and both sides had withdrawn, he called an assembly of his soldiers and said to them: "I do not know whether to call the enemy or you the greater cowards; for they were not able to see your backs, nor you their napes." At last, however, he gave up his command, on the ground that his infirmities made him quite incapable of exercising it.
The Life of Sulla, with a digression on Timotheus and about Sulla’s “Fortune” ( 5 and 6)
5 Sulla now thought that the reputation which he had won in war was sufficient to justify political activities, and therefore at once exchanged military service for public life,6 offered himself as a candidate for the city praetorship, and was defeated. The responsibility for his defeat, however, he lays upon the populace. They knew, he says, about his friendship with Bocchus, and expected that if he should be made aedile before his praetorship, he would treat them to splendid hunting scenes and combats of Libyan wild beasts, and therefore appointed others to the praetorship, in order to force him into the aedileship. 2 But subsequent events would seem to show that Sulla does not confess the real reason for his failure. For in the following year he obtained the praetorship, partly because he was subservient to the people, and partly because he used money to win their support. And so it happened that, during his praetorship, when he angrily told Caesar7 that he would use his own authority against him, Caesar laughed and said: "You do well to consider the office your own, for you bought it."
3 After his praetorship, he was sent out to Cappadocia, ostensibly to reinstate Ariobarzanes, but really to check the restless activities of Mithridates, who was adding to his dominion and power fully as much as he had inherited. Accordingly, he took out with him no large force of his own, but made use of the allies, whom he found eager to serve him, and, after slaying many of the Cappadocians themselves, and yet more of the Armenians who came to their aid, he drove out Gordius, and made Ariobarzanes king again.
4 As he lingered on the banks of the Euphrates, he received a visit from Orobazus, a Parthian, who came as an ambassador from king Arsaces, although up to this time the two nations had held no intercourse with one another. This also is thought to have been part of Sulla's great good fortune, that he should be the first Roman with whom the Parthians held conference when they wanted alliance and friendship. On this occasion, too, it is said that he ordered three chairs to be set, one for Ariobarzanes, one for Orobazus, and one for himself, and that he sat between them both and gave them audience. 5 For this the king of Parthia afterwards put Orobazus to death; and while some people commended Sulla for the airs which he assumed with the Barbarians, others accused him of vulgarity and ill-timed arrogance. It is also recorded that a certain man in the retinue of Orobazus, a Chaldaean, after looking Sulla intently in the face, and studying carefully the movements of his mind and body, 6 and investigating his nature according to the principles of his peculiar art, declared that this man must of necessity become the greatest in the world, and that even now the wonder was that he consented not to be first of all men. When Sulla came back to Rome, however, Censorinus brought suit against him for bribery, alleging that he had collected large sums of money illegally from a friendly and allied kingdom. However, Censorinus did not put in an appearance at the trial, but dropped his impeachment.
6 Moreover, Sulla's quarrel with Marius broke out afresh on being supplied with fresh material by the ambition of Bocchus, who, desiring to please the people at Rome, and at the same time to gratify Sulla, dedicated on the Capitol some images bearing trophies, and beside them gilded figures representing Jugurtha being surrendered by Bocchus to Sulla. 2 Thereupon Marius was very angry, and tried to have the figures taken down, but others were minded to aid Sulla in opposing this, and the city was all but in flames with their dispute, when the Social war,8 which had long been smouldering, blazed up against the city and put a stop for the time being to the quarrel. In this war, which proved of the greatest moment and most varied fortunes, and brought innumerable mischiefs and the gravest perils upon the Romans, Marius was unable to render any great service, and proved that military excellence requires a man's highest strength and vigour. Sulla, on the other hand, did much that was memorable, and achieved the reputation of a great leader among his fellow-citizens, that of the greatest of leaders among his friends, and that of the most fortunate even among his enemies. 3 But he did not feel about this as Timotheus the son of Conon did, who, when his adversaries ascribed his successes to Fortune, and had him represented in a painting as lying asleep, while Fortune cast her net about the cities, was rudely angry with those who had done this, because, as he thought, they were robbing him of the glory due to his exploits, and said to the people once, on returning from a campaign in which he was thought to have been successful: "In this campaign, at least, men of Athens, Fortune has no share." Upon Timotheus, then, who had shown himself so covetous of honour, the deity is said to have requited his youthful petulance, so from that time on he did nothing brilliant, but miscarried in all his undertakings, gave offence to the people, and was finally banished fromº the city; whereas Sulla not only accepted with pleasure such felicitations and admiration, but actually joined in magnifying the aid of Heaven in what he did, and gave the credit of it to Fortune, either out of boastfulness, or because he had such a belief in the divine agency. 5 For in his Memoirs he writes that, of the undertakings which men thought well-advised, those upon which he had boldly ventured, not after deliberation, but on the spur of the moment, turned out for the better. And further, from what he says about his being well endowed by nature for Fortune rather than for war, he seems to attribute more to Fortune than to his own excellence, and to make himself entirely the creature of this deity, since he accounts even his concord with Metellus, a man equal in rank, and a relative by marriage, a piece of divine felicity; for whereas he expected much annoyance from him as a colleague in office, he found him most obliging. 6 And still further, in the dedication of his Memoirs to Lucullus, he advises him to deem nothing so secure as what the divine power enjoins upon him in his dreams. And he relates that when he was dispatched with an army to the Social war, a great chasm in the earth opened near Laverna, from which a great quantity of fire burst forth and a bright flame towered up towards the heavens; 7 whereupon the soothsayers declared that a brave man, of rare courage and surpassing appearance, was to take the government in hand and free the city from its present troubles. Sulla says that he himself was this man, for his golden head of hair gave him a singular appearance, and as for bravery, he was not ashamed to testify in his own behalf, after such great and noble deeds as he had performed. So much, then, regarding his attitude towards the divine powers.
In others he seems to have been of very uneven character, and at variance with himself; he robbed much, but gave more; bestowed his honours unexpectedly, as unexpectedly his insults; fawned on p343those he needed, but gave himself airs towards those who needed him; so that one cannot tell whether he was more inclined by nature to disdain or flattery. 8 For as regards the irregularity of his punishments, cudgelling to death as he did on any chance grounds, and again gently submitting to the greatest wrongs; readily open to reconciliation after the most irreparable injuries, but visiting small and insignificant offences with death and confiscation of goods; here one might decide that he was naturally of a stern and revengeful temper, but relaxed his severity out of calculating regard for his interests. 9 In this very Social war, for example, when his soldiers with clubs did to death a legate, a man of praetorian dignity, Albinus by name, he passed over without punishment this flagrant crime, and solemnly sent the word about that he would find his men more ready and willing for the war on account of this transgression, since they would try to atone for it by their bravery. To those who censured the crime he paid no heed, but purposing already to put down the power of Marius and, now that the Social war was thought to be at an end, to get himself appointed general against Mithridates, he treated the soldiers under him with deference.
10 When he returned to the city, he was appointed consul with Quintus Pompeius,9 in the fiftieth year of his age, and made a most illustrious marriage with Caecilia, the daughter of Metellus, the Pontifex Maximus. On the theme of this marriage many verses were sung in ridicule of him by the common people, and many of the leading men were indignant at it, deeming him, as Livy says,10 unworthy of the woman although they had judged him worthy of the consulship. 11 And this was not the only woman whom he married, but first, when he was still a stripling, he took Ilia to wife, and she bore him a daughter; than Aelia, after her; and thirdly, Cloelia, whom he divorced for barrenness, honourably, and with words of praise, to which he added gifts. But since he married Metella only a few days afterwards, he was thought to have accused Cloelia unfairly. 12 To Metella, however, he always showed great deference in all things, so that the Roman people, when it longed for the restoration of the exiled partisans of Marius, and Sulla refused it, in its need called upon Metella for aid. It was thought also that when he took the city of Athens, he treated its people more harshly because they had scurrilously abused Metella from the walls. But this was later.11
