by G. A. Henty
CHAPTER XIV: ROME IN FLAMES
All night the gladiators watched the ever widening area of fire.In the morning proclamations were found posted in every street,ordering all citizens to be under arms, as if expecting the attackof an enemy; each district was to be patrolled regularly, and allevildoers found attempting to plunder were to be instantly put todeath, the laws being suspended in face of the common danger. Allpersons not enrolled in the lists of the city guards were exhortedto lend their aid in transporting goods from the neighbourhood ofthe fire to a place of safety in the public gardens, and the mastersof the schools of gladiators were enjoined to see that their scholarsgave their aid in this work.
"Well, we may as well set to work," Scopus said. "There are someof my patrons to whom we may do a good service."
"Will you let me go with my comrades first to aid Norbanus,a magistrate who has done me service?" Beric said. "After I havehelped to move his things I will join you wherever you may appoint."
Scopus nodded. "Very well, Beric. I shall go first to the houseof Gallus the praetor, he is one of my best friends. After we aredone there we will go to the aid of Lysimachus the senator; so, ifyou don't find us at the house of Gallus, you will find us there."
Beric at once started with the four Britons to the house where hehad left Ennia. It was distant but half a mile from the point thefire had now reached, and from many of the houses round the slaveswere already bearing goods. Here, however, all was quiet. The doorkeeper, knowing Beric, permitted him and his companions to enterwithout question. Norbanus was already in his study. He looked upas Beric approached him. "Why, it is Beric!" he said in surprise."I heard that you were in one of the ludi and was coming to seeyou, but I have been full of business since I came here. I am gladthat you have come to visit me."
"It is not a visit of ceremony," Beric said; "it is the fire thathas brought me here."
"Lesbia tells me that it is still blazing," Norbanus saidindifferently. "She has been worrying about it all night. I tellher I am not praetor of the fire guard, and that it does not comewithin my scope of duty. I went down yesterday afternoon, but thesoldiers and citizens are all doing their work under their officers,and doubtless it will soon be extinguished."
"It is ever growing, Norbanus. It is within half a mile of yourhouse now, and travelling fast."
"Why, it was treble that distance last night," Norbanus said insurprise. "Think you that there is really danger of its coming thisway?"
"Unless a change takes place," Beric said, "it will assuredly behere by noon; even now sparks and burning flakes are falling in thestreet. The neighbours are already moving, and I would urge you tolose not a moment's time, but summon your slaves, choose all yourmost valuable goods, and have them carried up to a place of safety.If you come up to the roof you will see for yourself how pressingis the danger."
Norbanus, still incredulous, ascended the stairs, but directly helooked round he saw that Beric had not exaggerated the state ofthings.
"I have brought four of my tribesmen with me," Beric said, "and weare all capable of carrying good loads. There ought to be time tomake three journeys at least up to the gardens on the hill, wherethey will be safe. I should say, let half your slaves aid us incarrying up your library and the valuables that come at once tohand, and then you can direct the others to pack up the goods youprize most so that they shall be ready by our return."
"That shall be done," Norbanus said, "and I am thankful to you,Beric, for your aid."
Descending, Norbanus at once gave the orders, and then going up tothe women's apartments told Lesbia to bid the female slaves pack atonce all the dresses, ornaments, and valuables. The cases containingthe books were then brought out into the atrium, and there stackedin five piles. They were then bound together with sacking and cords.
"But what are you going to do with these great piles?" Norbanussaid as he came down from above, where Lesbia was raging at thenews that much of their belongings would have to be abandoned."Why, each of them is a wagon load."
"They are large to look at, but not heavy. At any rate we cancarry them. Is there anyone to whom we shall specially take them,or shall we place a guard over them?"
"My cousin Lucius, the senator, will, I am sure, take them forme. His house is surrounded by gardens, and quite beyond reach offire. His wife is Lesbia's sister, and Aemilia shall go up withyou."
The Britons helped each other up with the huge packets, four slaveswith difficulty raising the last and placing it on Beric's head.
"The weight is nothing now it is up," he said, "though I wish itwere a solid packet instead of being composed of so many of thesebook boxes."
The cases in which the Romans usually kept their books were aboutthe size and shape of hat boxes, but of far stronger make, and eachholding from six to ten rolls of vellum. A dozen slaves under thesuperintendence of the steward, and carrying valuable articles offurniture, followed the Britons, and behind them came Aemilia, withfour or five female slaves carrying on their heads great packagesof the ladies' clothing. The house of Lucius was but half a mileaway from that of Norbanus. Even among the crowd of frightened menand women hurrying up the hill the sight of the five Britons, withtheir prodigious burdens created lively astonishment and admiration.
"Twenty such men as those," one said, "would carry off a senator'svilla bodily, if there was room for it in the road."
"They are the Titans come to life again," another remarked. "Itwould take six Romans to carry the weight that one of them bears."
When they neared the villa of Lucius, Aemilia hurried on ahead withthe female slaves, and was standing at the door with the senatorwhen the Britons approached. The senator uttered an exclamation ofastonishment.
"Whence have you got these wonderful porters, Aemilia?"
"I know not," the girl said. "We were dressing, when our fathercalled out that we were to hurry and to put our best garmentstogether, for that we were to depart instantly, as the fire wasapproaching. For a few minutes there was terrible confusion. Theslaves were packing up our things, all talking together, and inan extreme terror. Our mother was terribly upset, and I think shemade things worse by giving fresh orders every minute. In the middleof it my father shouted to me to come down at once, and the slaveswere to bring down such things as were ready. When I got downI was astonished at seeing these great men quite hidden under theburdens they carried, but I had no time to ask questions. My fathersaid, 'Go with them to my cousin Lucius, and ask him to take inour goods,' and I came."
By this time the party had reached the house.
"Follow me," Lucius said, leading the way along the front of thehouse, and round to the storehouses in its rear. Aemilia accompaniedhim. The slaves deposited their burdens on the ground, and thenaided the Britons to lower theirs. Aemilia gave an exclamation ofastonishment as Beric turned round.
"Why, it is Beric the Briton!" she exclaimed.
"You did not recognize me, then?" Beric said smiling.
"I should have done so had I looked at you closely," she said, "inspite of your Roman garb; but what with the crowd, and the smoke,and the fright, I did not think anything about it after my firstwonder at seeing you so loaded. Where did you come from so suddenlyto our aid? Are these your countrymen? Ennia and I have asked ourfather almost every day since we came to Rome to go and find you,and bring you to us. He always said he would, but what with hisbusiness and his books he was never able to. How good of you tocome to our aid! I am sure the books would never have been savedif it had not been for you, and father would never have got overtheir loss."
"I knew where your house was," Beric said, "and was glad to beable to do something in gratitude for your father's kindness atMassilia. But I must not lose a moment talking; I hope to make twoor three more trips before the fire reaches your house. Your slaveshave orders to return with us. Will you tell your steward to guideus back by a less frequented road than that we came by, and then wecan keep together and shall not lose time forcing our way throughthe crowd."
By the time they reached the house of Norbanus the slaves leftbehind had packed up everything of value.
"I will go up," Norbanus said, "with all the slaves, male andfemale, if you will remain here to guard the rest of the thingstill we return. Several parties of ill favoured looking men haveentered by the door, evidently in the hopes of plunder, but leftwhen they saw we were still here. The ladies' apartments have beencompletely stripped, and their belongings will go up this time, sothat there will be no occasion for them to return. If the flamesapproach too closely before we come back, do not stay, Beric, nortrouble about the goods that remain. I have saved my library andmy own manuscripts, which is all I care for. My wife and daughtershave saved all their dresses and jewels. All the most valuable ofmy goods will now be carried up by my slaves, and if the rest islost it will be no great matter."
Beric and his companions seated themselves on the carved benches ofthe atrium and waited quietly. Parties of marauders once or twiceentered, for the area of the fire was now so vast that even thetroops and armed citizens were unable properly to guard the wholeneighbourhood beyond its limits; but upon seeing these five formidablefigures they hastily retired, to look for booty where it could beobtained at less risk.
The fire was but a few hundred yards away, and clouds of sparksand blazing fragments were falling round the house when Norbanusand his slaves returned. These were sufficient to carry up theremaining parcels of goods without assistance from the Britons,who, however, acted as an escort to them on their way back. Theirthroats were dry and parched by the hot air, and they were glad ofa long draught of the good wine that Lucius had in readiness fortheir arrival. Beric at first refused other refreshment, beinganxious to hasten away to join Scopus, but the senator insistedupon their sitting down to a meal.
"You do not know when you may eat another," he said; "there willbe little food cooked in this part of Rome today."
As Beric saw it was indeed improbable that they would obtain otherfood if they neglected this opportunity, he and the others sat downand ate a good, though hasty, meal.
"You will come and see us directly the fire is over," Norbanus saidas they rose to leave. "Remember, I shall not know where to findyou, and I have had no time to thank you worthily for the servicethat you have rendered me. Many of the volumes you have saved wereunique, and although my own manuscripts may be of little value tothe world, they represent the labour of many years."
Hurrying down to the rendezvous Scopus had given him, Beric foundthat both villas had already been swept away by the fire. He thenwent up to the spot where their goods were deposited, but the twogladiators in charge said that they had seen nothing whatever ofScopus.
"Then we will go down and do what we can," Beric said. "ShouldScopus return, tell him that we will be here at nightfall."
For another two days the conflagration raged, spreading wider andwider, and when at last the wind dropped and the fury of the flamesabated, more than the half of Rome lay in ashes. Of the fourteendistricts of the city three were absolutely destroyed, and inseven others scarce a house had escaped. Nero, who had been absent,reached Rome on the third day of the fire. The accusation that hehad caused it to be lighted, brought against him by his enemiesyears afterwards, was absurd. There had been occasional fires inRome for centuries, just as there had been in London before theone that destroyed it, and the strong wind that was blowing wasresponsible for the magnitude of the fire.
There can, however, be little doubt that the misfortune which appearedso terrible to the citizens was regarded by Nero in a differentlight. Nero was prouder of being an artist than of being an emperor.Up to this time Rome, although embellished with innumerable templesand palaces, was yet the Rome of the Tarquins. The streets werenarrow, and the houses huddled together. Mean cottages stood nextto palaces. There was an absence of anything like a general plan.Rome had spread as its population had increased, but it was acollection of houses rather than a capital city.
Nero saw at once how vast was the opportunity. In place of therambling tortuous streets and crowded rookeries, a city should risestately, regular, and well ordered, with broad streets and noblethoroughfares, while in its midst should be a palace unequalledin the world, surrounded by gardens, lakes, and parks. There wasample room on the seven hills, and across the Tiber, for all thepopulation, with breathing space for everyone. What glory wouldthere not be to him who thus transformed Rome, and made it a worthycapital of the world! First, however, the people must be attendedto and kept in good humour, and accordingly orders were at onceissued that the gardens of the emperor's palaces should be thrownopen, and the fugitives allowed to encamp there. Such magazinesas had escaped the fire were thrown open, and food distributed toall, while ships were sent at once to Sicily and Sardinia for largesupplies of grain for the multitude.
While the ruins were still smoking the emperor was engaged withthe best architects in Rome in drawing out plans for laying outthe new city on a superb scale, and in making preparations for thecommencement of work. The claims of owners of ground were at oncewiped out by an edict saying, that for the public advantage it wasnecessary that the whole of the ground should be treated as publicproperty, but that on claims being sent in other sites would begiven elsewhere. Summonses were sent to every town and districtof the countries under the Roman sway calling for contributionstowards the rebuilding of the capital. So heavy was the drain, andso continuous the exactions to raise the enormous sums required topay for the rebuilding of the city and the superb palaces for theemperor, that the wealth of the known world scarce sufficed forit, and the Roman Empire was for many years impoverished by thetremendous drain upon its resources.
The great mass of the Roman population benefited by the fire.There was work for everyone, from the roughest labourer to the mostskilled artisan and artist. Crowds of workmen were brought fromall parts. Greece sent her most skilful architects and decorators,her sculptors and painters. Money was abundant, and Rome rose againfrom her ruins with a rapidity which was astonishing.
The people were housed far better than they had ever been before;the rich had now space and convenience for the construction of theirhouses, and although most of them had lost the greater portion oftheir valuables in the fire, they were yet gainers by it. All sharedin the pride excited by the new city, with its broad streets andmagnificent buildings, and the groans of the provincials, at whosecost it was raised, troubled them not at all. It was true that Nero,in his need for money, seized many of the wealthier citizens, and,upon one pretext or other, put them to death and confiscated theirproperty; but this mattered little to the crowd, and disturbed nonesave those whose wealth exposed them to the risk of the same fate.
Beric saw nothing of these things, for upon the very day after thefire died out Scopus started with his scholars to a villa on theAlban Hills that had been placed at his disposal by one of hispatrons. There were several other schools in the neighbourhood, asthe air of the hills was considered to be far healthier and morestrengthening than that of Rome. In spite of the public calamityNero continued to give games for the amusement of the populace, otherrich men followed his example, and the sports of the amphitheatrewere carried on on an even more extensive scale than before.
Scopus took six of his best pupils to the first games that weregiven after the fire. Four of them returned victorious, two weresorely wounded and defeated. Their lives had, however, been spared,partly on account of their skill and bravery, partly because theemperor was in an excellent humour, and the mass of the spectators,on whom the decision of life or death rested, saw that the signalfor mercy would be acceptable to him.
The Britons greatly preferred their life on the Alban Hills tothat in Rome; for, their exercises done, they could wander aboutwithout being stared at and commented upon.
The pure air of the hills was invigorating after that of the greatcity; and here, too, they met ten of their comrades whose ludihad been all along established on the hills. Plans of escape weresometimes talked over, but though they coul
d not resist the pleasureof discussing them, they all knew that it was hopeless. Thoughaltogether unwatched and free to do as they liked after the workof the day was over, they were as much prisoners as if immured inthe strongest dungeons. The arm of Rome stretched everywhere; theywould be at once followed and hunted down wherever they went. Theirheight and complexion rendered disguise impossible, and even ifthey reached the mountains of Calabria, or traversed the lengthof Italy successfully and reached the Alps--an almost hopelessprospect--they would find none to give them shelter, and wouldere long be hunted down. At times they talked of making their wayto a seaport, seizing a small craft, and setting sail in her; butnone of them knew aught of navigation, and the task of traversingthe Mediterranean, passing through the Pillars of Hercules, andnavigating the stormy seas beyond until they reached Britain, wouldhave been impossible for them.
News came daily from the city, and they heard that Nero had accusedthe new sect of being the authors of the conflagration, that themost rigid edicts had been issued against them, and that all whorefused to abjure their religion were to be sent to the wild beastsin the arena.
Beric had not seen Norbanus since the day when he had saved hislibrary from the fire; but a few days after they had establishedthemselves in the hills he received a letter from him saying thathe had, after much inquiry, learned where Scopus had establishedhis ludus; he greatly regretted Beric had left Rome without hisseeing him, and hoped he would call as soon as he returned. Hisfamily was already established in a house near that of Lucius.After that Beric occasionally received letters from Aemilia, whowrote sometimes in her father's name and sometimes in her own. Shegave him the gossip of Rome, described the wonderful work that wasbeing done, and sent him letters from Pollio to read.
One day a letter, instead of coming by the ordinary post, wasbrought by one of the household slaves.
"We are all in terrible distress, Beric," she said. "I have toldyou about the severe persecution that has set in of the Christians.A terrible thing has happened. You know that our old nurse belongedto that sect. She often talked to me about it, but it did not seemto me that what she said could be true; I knew that Ennia, who isgraver in her disposition than I am, thought much of it, but I didnot think for a moment that she had joined the sect. Two nightsago some spies reported to one of the praetors that some persons,believed to be Christians, were in the habit of assembling one ortwo nights a week at a lonely house belonging to a freedman. A guardwas set and the house surrounded, and fifty people were found there.Some of them were slaves, some freedmen, some of them belonged tonoble families, and among them was Ennia.
"She had gone accompanied by that wretched old woman. All who hadbeen questioned boldly avowed themselves to be Christians, andthey were taken down and thrown into prison. Imagine our alarm inthe morning when we found that Ennia was missing from the house,and our terrible grief when, an hour later, a messenger came fromthe governor of the prison to say that Ennia was in his charge. Myfather is quite broken down by the blow. He does not seem to careabout Ennia having joined the new sect--you know it is his opinionthat everyone should choose their own religion--but he is chieflygrieved at the thought that she should have gone out at night attendedonly by her nurse, and that she should have done this secretly andwithout his knowledge. My mother, on the other hand, is most ofall shocked that Ennia should have given up the gods of Rome for areligion of slaves, and that, being the daughter of a noble house,she should have consorted with people beneath her.
"I don't think much of any of these things. Ennia may have donewrong, but that is nothing to me. I only think of her as in terribledanger of her life, for they say that Nero will spare none of theChristians, whether of high or low degree. My father has gone outthis morning to see the heads of our family and of those alliedto us by kinship, to try to get them to use all their influence toobtain Ennia's pardon. My mother does nothing but bemoan herselfon the disgrace that has fallen upon us. I am beside myself withgrief, and so, as I can do nothing else, I write to tell you ofthe trouble that has befallen us. I will write often and tell youthe news."
Beric's first emotion was that of anger that Ennia should, after thepromise she had given him, have again gone alone to the Christiangathering. Then he reflected that as he was away from Rome, shewas, of course, unable to keep that promise. He had not seen hersince that night, for she had passed straight through the atriumwith her mother while he was assisting the slaves to take up theirburdens.
He could not help feeling an admiration for her steadfastness inthis new Faith that she had taken up. By the side of her liveliersister he had regarded her as a quiet and retiring girl, and wassure that to her these midnight outings by stealth must have beenvery terrible, and that only from the very strongest sense of dutywould she have undertaken them. Now her open avowal of Christianity,when she must have known what were the penalties that the confessionentailed, seemed to him heroic.
"It must be a strange religion that could thus influence a timidgirl," he said to himself. "My mother killed herself because shewould not survive the disaster that had fallen upon her people andher gods; but her death was deemed by all Britons to be honourable.Besides, my mother was a Briton, strong and firm, and capable ofheroic actions. This child is courting a death that all who belongto her will deem most dishonourable. There is nothing of the heroinein her disposition; it can only be her Faith in her religion thatsustains her. As soon as I return to Rome I will inquire more intoit."
It was now ten months since Beric had entered the school of Scopus.He was nearly twenty years old, and his constant and severe exerciseshad broadened him and brought him to well nigh his full strength.Scopus regarded him with pride, for in all the various exercisesof the arena he was already ahead of the other gladiators. Hisactivity was as remarkable as his strength, and he was equallyformidable with the trident and net as with sword and buckler;while in wrestling and with the caestus none of the others couldstand up against him. He had been carefully instructed in the mostterrible contest of all, that against wild beasts, for Scopus deemedthat, being a captive of rank and importance, he might be selectedfor such a display.
A Libyan, who had often hunted the lion in its native wilds, haddescribed to him over and over again the nature of the animal'sattack, and the spring with which it hurls itself upon its opponent,and Scopus having obtained a skin of one of the animals killed inthe arena, the Libyan had stuffed it with outstretched paws; andScopus obtained a balista, by which it was hurled through the air asif in the act of springing. Against this Beric frequently practised.
"You must remember," the Libyan said, "that the lion is like a greatcat, and as it springs it strikes, so that you must avoid not onlyits direct spring, but its paws stretched to their full extent asit passes you in the air. You must be as quick as the animal itself,and must not swerve till it is in the air. Then you must leap asidelike lightning, and, turning as you leap, be ready to drive yourspear through it as it touches the ground. The inert mass, although itmay pass through the air as rapidly as the wild beast, but poorlyrepresents the force and fierceness of the lion's spring. WeLibyans meet the charge standing closely together, with our spearsin advance for it to spring on, and even then it is rarely we killit without one or two being struck down before it dies. Bulls arethought by some to be more formidable than lions; but as you arequick, you can easily evade their rush. The bears are ugly customers.They seem slow and clumsy, but they are not so, and they are veryhard to kill. One blow from their forepaws will strip off the fleshas readily as the blow of a tiger. They will snap a spear shaftas easily as if it were a reed. They are all ugly beasts to fight,and more than a fair match for a single man. Better by far fightthe most skilled gladiator in the ring than have anything to dowith these creatures. Yet it is well to know how to meet them, sothat if ill fortune places you in front of them, you may know howto do your best."
Accounts came almost daily to the hills of the scenes in the arena,and the Romans, accustomed though they were to the fortitude withw
hich the gladiators met the death stroke, were yet astonished atthe undaunted bearing of the Christians--old men and girls, slavesand men of noble family, calmly facing death, and even seeming torejoice in it.
One evening a slave brought a note from Aemilia to Beric. Itcontained but a few words:
"Our efforts are vain; Ennia is condemned, and will be handedto the lions tomorrow in the arena. We have received orders to bepresent, as a punishment for not having kept a closer watch overher. I think I shall die."
Beric went to Scopus at once.
"You advised me several times to go to the arena, Scopus, inorder to learn something from the conflicts. I want to be presenttomorrow. Porus and Lupus are both to fight."
"I am going myself, Beric, and will take you with me. I shall starttwo hours before daybreak, so as to be there in good time. As theirlanista I shall enter the arena with them. I cannot take you there,but I know all the attendants, and can arrange for you to be downat the level of the arena. It may not be long before you have toplay your part there, and I should like you to get accustomed tothe scene, the wall of faces and the roar of applause, for thesethings are apt to shake the nerves of one unaccustomed to them."
Beric smiled. "After meeting the Romans twenty times in battle,Scopus, the noise of a crowd would no more affect me than the roarof the wind over the treetops. Still I want to see it; and more,I want to see how the people of this new sect face death. Britishwomen do not fear to die, and often slay themselves rather thanfall into the hands of the Romans, knowing well that they will gostraight to the Happy Island and have no more trouble. Are theseChristians as brave?"
Scopus shrugged his shoulders. "Yes, they die bravely enough. Butwho fears death? Among all the peoples Rome has conquered where hasshe met with cowards? Everywhere the women are found ready to fallby their husbands' swords rather than become captives; to leap fromprecipices, or cast themselves into blazing pyres. Is man anywherelower than the wild beast, who will face his assailants till thelast? I have seen men of every tribe and people fight in the arena.If conquered, they raise their hand in order to live to conqueranother day; but not once, when the thumbs have been turned down,have I seen one flinch from the fatal stroke."
"That is true enough," Beric said; "but methinks it is one thingto court death in the hour of defeat, when all your friends havefallen round you, and all hope is lost, and quite another to standalone and friendless with the eyes of a multitude fixed on you.Still I would see it."
The next day Beric stood beside Scopus among a group of guards andattendants of the arena at one of the doors leading from it. Above,every seat of the vast circle was crowded with spectators. In thecentre of the lower tier sat the emperor; near him were the membersof his council and court. The lower tiers round the arena werefilled by the senators and equities, with their wives and daughters.Above these were the seats of officials and others having a rightto special seats, and then came, tier above tier to the uppermostseats, the vast concourse of people. When the great door of thearena opened a procession entered, headed by Cneius Spado, thesenator at whose expense the games were given. Then, two and two,marched the gladiators who were to take part in it, accompanied bytheir lanistae or teachers. Scopus, after seeing Beric well placed,had left him to accompany Porus and Lupus.
The gladiators were variously armed. There were the hoplomachi,who fought in complete suits of armour; the laqueatores, who useda noose to catch their adversaries; the retiarii, with their netand trident, and wearing neither armour nor helmet; the mirmillones,armed like the Gauls; the Samni, with oblong shields; and theThracians, with round ones. With the exception of the retiariiall wore helmets, and their right arms were covered with armour,the left being protected by the shield. The gladiators salutedthe emperor and people, and the procession then left the arena,the first two matched against each other again entering, eachaccompanied by his lanista. Both the gladiators were novices, themen who had frequently fought and conquered being reserved for thelater contests, as the excitement of the audience became roused.One of the combatants was armed as a Gaul, the other as a Thracian.
The combat was not a long one. The men fought for a short timecautiously, and then closing exchanged fierce and rapid blowsuntil one fell mortally wounded. A murmur of discontent rose fromthe spectators, there had not been a sufficient exhibition of skillto satisfy them. Eight or ten pairs of gladiators fought one afterthe other, the excitement of the audience rising with each conflict,as men of noted skill now contended. The victors were hailedwith shouts of applause, and the vanquished were spared, a proofthat the spectators were in a good temper and satisfied with theentertainment. Beric looked on with interest. In the age in whichhe lived feelings of compassion scarcely existed. War was the normalstate of existence. Tribal wars were of constant occurrence, andthe vanquished were either slain or enslaved. Men fought out theirprivate quarrels to the death; and Beric, being by birth Britonand by education Roman, felt no more compunction at the sight ofblood than did either Briton or Roman.
To him the only unnatural feature in the contest was that thereexisted neither personal nor tribal hostility between the combatants,and that they fought solely for the amusement of the spectators.Otherwise he was no more moved by the scenes that passed beforehis eyes than is a Briton of the present day by a friendly boxingmatch. He was more interested when Porus entered the arena, accompaniedby Scopus. He liked Porus, who, although quick and fiery in temper,was good natured and not given to brawling. He had often practisedagainst him, and knew exactly his strength and skill. He wasclever in the management of his net, but failed sometimes from hiseagerness to use his trident. He was received with loud applausewhen he entered, and justified the good opinion of the spectatorsby defeating his antagonist, who was armed as a Samnite, thespectators expressing their dissatisfaction at the clumsiness ofthe latter by giving the hostile signal, when the Gaul--for thevanquished belonged to that nationality--instead of waiting forthe approach of Porus, at once stabbed himself with his own sword.
The last pair to fight were Lupus and one of the Britons. He hadnot been trained in the school of Scopus, but in one of the otherludi, and as he was the first of those brought over by Suetoniusto appear in the arena, he was greeted with acclamation as loud asthose with which Lupus was received. Tall as Lupus was, the Britonfar exceeded him in stature, and the interest of the spectatorswas aroused by the question whether the strength of the newcomerwould render him a fair match for the well known skill of Lupus. Abuzz went round the amphitheatre as bets were made on the result.Beric felt a thrill of excitement, for the Briton was one of theyoungest and most active of his followers, and had often foughtside by side with him against the Romans.
How well he had been trained Beric knew not, but as he knew thathe himself was superior in swordmanship to Lupus, he felt that hiscountryman's chances of success were good. It was not long, however,before he saw that the teaching the Briton had received had beenvery inferior to that given at the school of Scopus, and althoughhe twice nearly beat Lupus to the ground by the sheer weight ofhis blows, the latter thrice wounded him without himself receivinga scratch. Warned, however, of the superior strength of the BritonLupus still fought cautiously, avoiding his blows, and trying totire him out. For a long time the conflict continued, then, thinkingthat his opponent was now weakened by his exertions and by loss ofblood, Lupus took the offensive and hotly pressed his antagonist,and presently inflicted a fourth and more severe wound than thosepreviously given.
A shout rose from the spectators, "Lupus wins!" when the Briton,with a sudden spring, threw himself upon his opponent. Their shieldsclashed together as they stood breast to breast. Lupus shortened hissword to thrust it in below the Briton's buckler, when the lattersmote with the hilt of his sword with all his strength full uponhis assailant's helmet, and so tremendous was the blow that Lupusfell an inert mass upon the ground, while a tremendous shout rosefrom the audience at this unexpected termination of the contest.Scopus leaned over the fallen man. He was insensible
but breathed,being simply stunned by the weight of the blow. Scopus held up hisown hand, and the unanimous upturning of the thumbs showed thatthe spectators were well satisfied with the skill and courage withwhich Lupus had fought.