Class j)£i-£- 
 Book i'^ qSL 
 
 COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT 
 
* 
 
YOUNG FOLKS 
 
 istory of Greece and Rome 
 
 Used in 7B Grad 
 
 CT 
 
 Indianapolis Public Schools 
 
 COMPUED BY 
 
 ELIZABETH J, COTTON 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 
 
 Chap. Copyright No._____„. 
 
 Shelf. 
 
 UNITED STATES' OF AMERICA. 
 
YOUNG FOLKS' 
 HISTORY OF GREECE AND ROME 
 
YOUNG FOLKS' 
 
 HISTORY OF GREECE AND ROME 
 
 USED IN 7B GRADE 
 INDIANAPOLIS PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
 
 COMPILED BY 
 
 ELIZABETH J. COTTON 
 
 *& 
 
 INDIANAPOLIS 
 
 THE BOWEN-MERRILL CO. 
 1898 
 

 14331 
 
 Copyright 1898 
 
 by 
 
 Elizabeth J. Cotton 
 
 CEIVEO. 
 189 
 
Uo Ueacbers 
 
 This work is intended to furnish materials 
 for the foundation of the study of the history 
 of Greece and Rome, and references for more 
 extended reading^^**^*^*^^^^*^ 
 
HISTORY OF GREECE. 
 
 THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE. 
 
 Physical Greece. — Ancient Greece, or Hell'as, was the 
 country of the Helle nes. It was not restricted to the 
 neninsula south of the Cambu nian Mountains and the 
 adjacent islands, but wherever the Hellenes settled, there 
 was Hellas. Even the Hellenic colonies in Asia Minor, 
 Italy, and the isles of the iEge'an and Mediterranean, 
 were styled "patches of Hellas." Taken as a whole, 
 Hellas was about the size of the state of Maine. 
 
 Greece, the peninsula, is separated by abrupt moun- 
 tain walls into a number of isolated districts, each of 
 which in ancient times became a state. Each valley de- 
 veloped its own peculiar life, hence the fragmentary 
 character of its political history. The Hellenic states 
 never coalesced to form a single nation. 
 
 " The peninsula is, by reason of deep arms and bays 
 of the sea, converted into what is in effect an archipel- 
 ago. No spot in Greece is forty miles from the sea. 
 Hence its people were easily tempted to a sea-faring life. 
 The islands, strewn with seeming carelessness through 
 the iEgean Sea, were 'stepping-stones' which invited the 
 earliest settlers of Greece to the delightful coast country 
 
 (3) 
 
of Asia Minor, and thus blended the life of the opposite 
 shores. Intercourse with the old civilization of Egypt 
 and Phoenicia stirred the naturally quick and versatile 
 Greek intellect to early and vigorous thought." 
 
 Again, the beauty of Grecian scenery, of the blue skies, 
 laughing rills, rugged mountains, and blue Mediterra- 
 nean, inspired many of the most striking passages of her 
 poets, making the Greeks a nation of artists. "The 
 scenery of Greece was in direct contrast to the tame feat- 
 ures of the Nile and Euphrates." The germs of culture 
 transmitted to the West from the East would have lain 
 dormant, or have developed into less perfect forms, with- 
 out the quickening power of the Greek genius. " It was 
 a case of good seed falling into good ground, and it 
 brought forth a hundred fold." — Compiled from Myers. 
 
 The Hellenes.— There were four tribes— Ionian, Dor- 
 ian, Achaean andiEolian — dwelling in these.little states, 
 and, though they often quarreled among themselves, yet 
 they claimed to be members of a single family; all were 
 descended, according to their fabled genealogy, from the 
 common progenitor, Hellen, the son of Deucalion, the 
 Grecian Noah. All those nations whose speech they did 
 not understand they called " barbarians." Through the 
 testimony of language, we do know that the Hellenes be- 
 longed to the great Aryan family; but their ancestors 
 and those of the Romans, after they had separated from 
 the other Aryan peoples, lived together a considerable 
 time before they parted company. Some think the home 
 where they lived as an undivided family was Phrygia 
 in the northwest corner of Asia Minor, and that from 
 that station successive bands of emigrants gradually 
 
5, 
 
 spread themselves over Greece and the shores and islands 
 of the iEgean. — Compiled from Myers. 
 
 Oriental Immigrants. — According to their own tradi- 
 tion they are indebted to Oriental immigrants for the 
 introduction of the arts and culture of the East. 
 
 From Egypt, legend affirms, came an Egyptian colony, 
 bringing with it the arts, learning, and priestly wisdom 
 of the Nile valley. Ce'crops, the leader of the colony, 
 is said to have founded Athens in 1556 B. C, and placed 
 it under the protection of an Egyptian goddess, whose 
 Greek name was Athena. "From the same land 
 Dan'aus is also said to have come with his fifty daughters 
 and to have built the city of Argos. (See Miss Yo7ige , s 
 Young Folks' History of Greece.) From Phoenicia, Cad- 
 mus brought the letters of the alphabet and founded the 
 city of Thebes." — Compiled from Myers. 
 
 (Read stories of Euro'pa and Cadmus in "Little Ar- 
 thur's History of Rome.") 
 
 About 1350 B. C, Pelops, the son of a king of Phry- 
 gia, a country in Asia Minor, settled in that part of 
 Greece which was afterwards called, for him, Pelopon- 
 nesus. There he married tire daughter of one of the 
 native princes, whom he succeeded to the throne. Aga- 
 memnon and Menelaus, heroes of the Trojan War, were 
 descended from this Phrygian adventurer. — Compiled 
 from S. G. Goodrich. ' ' 
 
 THE HEROIC AGE. 
 
 The Heroes. — "The Greeks believed that their ances- 
 tors were heroes of divine or semi-divine lineage. Every 
 
6 
 
 tribe, district, city, and village, even, preserved tradi- 
 tions of its heroes, whose wonderful exploits were com- 
 memorated in song and story. Among the most noted 
 of the heroes are Hercules, Theseus, king of Athens, and 
 Minos, king of Crete." — Myers. 
 
 (Read Francillon's " Gods and Heroes," Charlotte 
 Yonge's "Young Folks' History of Greece," "Greek 
 Stories," by Guerber, Church's "Stories of Homer," 
 Kingsley's "Greek Heroes.") 
 
 "Hercules, a Theban prince, was another of the de- 
 scendants of Pelops. The numerous and extraordinary 
 feats of strength and valor of Hercules excited the admi- 
 ration of his contemporaries, and, being afterwards exag- 
 gerated and embellished by the poets, caused him at 
 length to be regarded as a person endowed with super- 
 natural powers, and even to be worshiped as a god. 
 
 "According to the poets, Hercules was the son of the 
 god Jupiter, and of Alcmena, daughter of the king of 
 Mycenas. His mother married Amphitryon, king of 
 Thebes, by whom the infant Hercules was adopted as 
 his son. While yet a child in the cradle, he is fabled 
 to have crushed to death two snakes which the goddess 
 Juno had sent to destroy him. After he grew up he 
 performed many heroic and extraordinary actions, com- 
 monly called 'labors.' Among these was the destruc- 
 tion of a dreadful lion, by clasping his arms around its 
 neck and thus choking it to death. 
 
 "Another of the fabled labors of Hercules was his de- 
 stroying the hydra of Lerna. This was a monstrous 
 seven-headed serpent, which haunted the small lake of 
 Lerna in Argolis, and filled with terror the inhabitants 
 
7 - 
 
 of the whole of that part of the country. Hercules 
 dauntlessly. attacked it, and struck off several of its heads 
 with his club. But these wonderful heads were no 
 sooner beaten off than others grew out, so that it seemed 
 an impossibility to kill a monster whose injuries were so 
 quickly repaired. At last, one of the companions of 
 Hercules having, at the hero's request, seared with a 
 hot iron the necks o£ the hydra as fast as each decapita- 
 tion was accomplished, it was found that the heads did 
 not afterwards grow out again, and Hercules was thus 
 enabled to complete the destruction of the reptile." — S. 
 G. Goodrich. 
 
 (See Niebuhr and Miss Yonge.) 
 
 Argonautic Expedition. — ' ' During the life-time of Her- 
 cules, 1263 B. C, Jason, a prince of Thessaly, made a 
 voyage to Colchis, a country on the eastern side of the 
 Euxine or Black Sea. His enterprise was afterwards 
 greatly celebrated under the name of the Argonautic Ex- 
 pedition, from Argo, the vessel in which he sailed. This 
 ship is generally referred to by the ancients as the first 
 that ever ventured on a long voyage. It is uncertain 
 what was the real object of the expedition, although it 
 seems probable that, as Colchis was rich in mines of gold 
 and silver, Jason and his companions, among whom 
 were Hercules and several other persons of distinction, 
 were actuated by a desire to rob the country of some of 
 its valuable metals. The poets, however, tell us a dif- 
 ferent story. Phryxus and Helle, the son and daughter 
 of Athamas, king of Thebes, being compelled, according 
 to the poetic account, to quit their native country to 
 avoid the cruelty of their step-mother, mounted on the 
 
8 
 
 back of a winged ram with a fleece of- gold, and were 
 carried by this wonderful animal through the air to- 
 wards Colchis, where an uncle of theirs, named iEetes, 
 was king. Unfortunately, as they were passing over the 
 strait now called Dardanelles, which connected the iEge- 
 an Sea with the Propontis, or Sea of Marmora, Helle 
 became giddy, and, falling into the water, was drowned. 
 From her, says the fable, the strait was in future named 
 the Hellespont, or Sea of Helle. 
 
 "When Phryxus arrived in Colchis, he sacrificed his 
 winged ram to Jupiter, in acknowledgment of the divine 
 protection, and deposited its golden fleece in the same 
 deity's temple. He then married the daughter of iEetes, 
 but was afterwards murdered by that king, who wished 
 to obtain possession of the golden fleece. To avenge 
 Phryxus's death, Jason, who was his relation, undertook 
 the expedition to Colchis, where, after performing sev- 
 eral marvelous exploits, he not only obtained the golden 
 fleece, but persuaded Medea, another daughter of King 
 iEetes, to become his wife, and to accompany him back 
 to Greece." — S. G. Goodrich. 
 
 Theseus. — " In the year 1234 B. C, Theseus came to 
 the throne of Athens. He was one of the most renowned 
 characters in the heroic age of Greece, not only on ac- 
 count of his warlike achievements, but from his politi- 
 cal wisdom." — S, G. Goodrich. 
 
 ('See Bulfinch and Francillon.) 
 
 Homer. — The real history of Greece does not begin 
 before the eighth century B. C. All that lies back of 
 that belongs to the mythical or Heroic Age. Toward 
 the close of the Heroic Age there were a great many 
 
9 - 
 
 songs and verses composed, telling of the gods and he- 
 roes. Singers and poets were entertained by the kings, 
 and welcomed by all, as they chanted to the harp or the 
 lyre the stories of the great forefathers of their hosts. 
 Their favorite themes were the exploits of those heroes 
 whose adventures have been familiar in each succeeding 
 age to the youth of every civilized land, namely: "The 
 Twelve Labors of Hercules , " " The Argonautic Expedition 
 in Search of the Golden Fleece/' the "Hunt of the 
 Calydonian Boar," and the " Siege of Troy." 
 
 The greatest of these singers was the blind poet Ho- 
 mer, whose songs of the wrath of Achilles and the wan- 
 derings of Ulysses were loved and learned by every one. 
 "According to tradition, Homer was a schoolmaster 
 of Asia Minor, living in the 9th or 10th century, B. C. 
 Becoming weary of confinement he traveled widely, be- 
 came blind, but still wandered, singing his verses which 
 were to become immortal. Notwithstanding the verdict 
 of late authorities who consider the "Iliad' and 
 " Odyssey " to have been formed out of the fragmentary 
 verses of many bards, it is probable that the poems will 
 always be known as Homer's " Iliad " and " Odyssey." 
 His fame among his countrymen is attested by the well- 
 known Greek epigram which reads : — 
 
 " 'Several rival towns contend for Homer dead, 
 
 Through which the living Homer begged his bread.' " 
 
 — Compiled from Miss Yonge. 
 
 (Read Brook's Story of "Iliad" and "Odyssey," 
 Lamb's "Adventures of Ulysses." 
 
10 
 
 RELIGION OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 Gods and Goddesses. — The Greeks were not trained in 
 the knowledge of God like the Israelites, but originated 
 a religion for themselves. They made wonderful stories 
 of the powers of nature, the sky, sun, moon, stars, and 
 clouds, as if they were gods. They thought there were 
 twelve greater gods and goddesses who lived on Mount 
 Olympus and ruled the affairs of mortals. 
 
 Zeus, or Jupiter, the son of Saturn, was the chief of 
 them all, and the ruler of earth and heaven. 
 
 Neptune, or Poseidon, was the Lord of the ocean (that 
 is, the Mediterranean). Pluto, or Hades, was the lord 
 of the world of the spirits of the dead. "Jupiter was 
 always thought of by the Greeks as a majestic-looking 
 man, with thick hair and beard, and with lightnings in 
 his hand and an eagle by his side. The lightnings were 
 forged by his crooked son Vulcan, the god of fire, whose 
 smithies were in the volcanoes (so-called from his name), 
 and whose workmen were the Cyclops, or Round Eyes — 
 giants, each with one eye in the center of his forehead." 
 — Charlotte Yonge. 
 
 Athena. — " Once when Jupiter was hard-pressed by 
 the Titans, a horrible race of giants, a dreadful pain in 
 his head caused him to bid Vulcan strike it with his 
 hammer. Then out darted Heavenly Wisdom, his beau- 
 tiful daughter, Pallas Athena, or Minerva, fully armed. 
 By her counsels he cast down the Titans and heaped 
 their own mountains, Etna, Ossa, and Pelion, upon them. 
 Whenever there was an earthquake, it was thought to be 
 one of these giants struggling to be free. Pallas was 
 
11> 
 
 also goddess of all woman's works, of spinning, weaving, 
 and sewing." — Charlotte Yonge. 
 
 Juno was Jupiter's wife, the queen of the heavens. 
 
 (See stories of Gods and Goddesses. Bulfinch, Fran- 
 cillon and Cox. ) 
 
 "Mercury, or Hermes, really meant the morning 
 breeze. The story was told that he was born early in 
 the morning in a cave, and,' after he had slept a little 
 while in his cradle, he came forth, and, finding the 
 skull of a tortoise with the strings of the inwards 
 stretched across it, he at once began to play, and formed 
 the first lyre. He was so swift that he was the Messen- 
 ger of Jupiter, and he is always represented with wings 
 on his cap and sandals; but, as the wind not only makes 
 music but blows things away unawares, so Mercury came 
 to be viewed as the god of thieves." — Charlotte Yonge. 
 
 Iris. — Another messenger of the gods, belonging 
 chiefly to Juno, was Iris, the rainbow, a recollection of 
 the bow in the clouds. 
 
 Apollo and Diana. — The god and goddess of light were 
 the glorious twin brother and sister Phoebus Apollo, the 
 lord of the day, and Diana, queen of the night. The 
 beams or rays of light were their arrows, and so Diana 
 was a huntress, always in the woods with her nymphs. 
 The moon belongs to Diana, and is her car, the sun in like 
 manner to Apollo. "In the far East the lady Dawn, 
 Aurora or Eos, opened the gates with her rosy fingers, 
 and out came the golden car of the sun, with glorious 
 white horses driven by Apollo, attended by the Hours 
 strewing dew and flowers. It passed over the arch of 
 the heavens to the ocean again on the west, and there 
 
12 
 
 Aurora met it again in fair colors, took out the horses 
 and let them feed." 
 
 Phaeton. — Apollo had a son, named Phaeton, who 
 once begged to be allowed to drive the chariot of the sun 
 for just one day: "Apollo yielded, but poor Phaeton 
 had no strength or skill to guide the horses in the right 
 curve. At one moment they rushed to the earth and 
 scorched the trees; at another they flew up to heaven, 
 and would have burned Olympus had- not Jupiter cast 
 his thunderbolt at the rash driver and hurled him down 
 into a river, where he was drowned. His sisters wept 
 till they were changed into poplar trees, and their tears 
 hardened into amber drops." — Compiled from 31iss 
 Yonge. 
 
 Muses. — "Mercury gave his lyre to Apollo, who was 
 the true god of music and poetry, and under him were 
 nine nymphs — the Muses, daughters of. memory — who 
 dwelt on Mt. Parnassus, and were thought to inspire all 
 noble and heroic song, all poems in praise of the gods 
 and brave men." — Compiled from Miss Yonge. 
 
 Venus was the goddess of beauty. " She was said to 
 have risen out of the sea, as the sunshine touched the 
 waves, with her golden hair dripping with spray. Her 
 favorite home was in myrtle groves, where she drove her 
 car, drawn by doves, attended by the Graces, and by 
 multitudes of little winged children called Loves; but 
 there was generally said to be one special son of hers, 
 called Love — Cupid in Latin, Eros in Greek, — whose ar- 
 rows when tipped with gold made people fall in love, and 
 when tipped with lead made them hate one another. 
 Her husband was the ugly, crooked smith, Vulcan, — 
 
perhaps because pretty ornaments came of the hard work 
 of the smith; but she never behaved well to him, only 
 coaxed him when she wanted something his clever hands 
 could make. She was very fond of amusing herself with 
 Mars (Ares), the god of war; another of the evil gods, 
 for he was fierce, cruel, and violent. Where he went 
 slaughter and blood were sure to follow him and his hor- 
 rid daughter Bellona. His star was 'the red planet 
 Mars,' but Venus had the beautiful clear one, which is 
 the morning or evening star/' — Miss Yonge. 
 
 "Ceres was the grave, motherly goddess of corn and all 
 the fruits of the earth. Persephone, her daughter, was 
 the flowers and fruit."— Miss Yonge. 
 
 (See Cox's story of Demeter.) 
 
 Vulcan, Hebe, and Ganymede. — "The twelve greater 
 gods and goddesses had palaces on Olympus, and met 
 every day in Jupiter's court to feast on ambrosia, a food 
 of life which made them immortal. Their drink was 
 nectar, which was poured into their golden cups at fir^i 
 by Vulcan, but he stumbled and hobbled so with his 
 lame leg that they chose, instead, the fresh and graceful 
 Hebe, the goddess of youth, till she was careless, and 
 one day fell down, cup, nectar, and all. The gods 
 thought they must find another cup-bearer, and, looking 
 down, they saw a beautiful youth, Ganymede, watching 
 his flocks upon Mt. Ida, so they sent Jupiter's eagle 
 down to fly away with him and bring him to Mt. Olym- 
 pus. They gave him some ambrosia to make him im- 
 mortal and establish him as their cup-bearer. The gods 
 were also thought to feed on the smoke and smell of sac- 
 rifices people offered up to them on earth, and to favor 
 
14 
 
 those mortals who offered them most sacrifices of ani- 
 mals and incense." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 Early Civilization. — "The poems of Homer furnish us 
 with a pretty accurate picture of the political state of 
 Greece at the time of the Trojan War. Sparta and My- 
 cenae appear to have been the most powerful states; they 
 were both governed by princes of the Pelopid race, which 
 had just arrived at the height of its power. The differ- 
 ent tribes were ruled by hereditary chieftains, who com- 
 bined the offices of leader in war and judge in peace ; 
 but the authority possessed by the rulers does not appear 
 to have been despotic. 
 
 "The people dwelt in cities, but still were chiefly en- 
 gaged in cultivating the land and tending cattle ; com- 
 merce, however, had not been neglected, and the art of 
 navigation was rapidly advancing, especially among the 
 Greeks on the eastern coast. 
 
 "After a protracted siege of ten years, Troy fell; but 
 the captors had no great reason to rejoice in their suc- 
 cess ; some of their bravest warriors had fallen in the 
 contest, others perished in the voyage home; the greater 
 part of the remainder found, at their return, strangers 
 in possession of their throne, and either fell beneath the 
 daggers of the usurpers or were compelled to seek new 
 homes in a foreign land. But to Greece in general 
 this war produced at least one beneficial result : it kin- 
 dled one common national spirit, a spirit which, in spite 
 of feuds and dissensions, was never wholly extinguished. 
 From the time of the Trojan war downwards, the Hellenes 
 looked upon themselves as constituting one people. " — 
 Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
15 - 
 
 Dorian Migration. — About 1104 B. C, the Dorians, 
 who had been dwelling in the barren mountain region 
 of the north of Greece, sought new homes in the fertile 
 valleys of the Peloponnesus. They are said to have been 
 led by the Heracleidse, the descendants of Hercules, who 
 had been driven out of the Peloponnesus by the family 
 of Pelops. The invaders were everywhere successful, 
 conquering the Achseans and occupying the cities of Ar- 
 gos, Corinth and Sparta. 
 
 "Colonization. — "A part of the Achaeans fled north- 
 ward, dispossessing the Ionians, who crossed the iEgean 
 to Asia Minor." "Here and on the adjacent islands 
 they founded settlements, which grew into cities. Among 
 these cities was Ephesus, renowned for its temple of Di- 
 ana, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world." 
 
 "North of the Ionians, iEolian emigrants established 
 twelve towns, while the Dorians themselves settled the 
 southern coast and the adjacent island of Rhodes. 
 Rhodes was celebrated for its Colossus, an immense im- 
 age of Apollo, so placed as to bestride the entrance to 
 the harbor. The Colossus was over one hundred feet 
 high, and its thumb was so large that a man could not 
 clasp it with his arms. When, after lying on the ground 
 for centuries, it was removed, the metal that composed it 
 loaded nine hundred camels. 
 
 "The Greeks also peopled the shores of the Euxine 
 (Black Sea). They founded Byzantium (the modern 
 Constantinople) in the east, Massilia (Marseilles) in the 
 far west, and the rich Cyrene on the coast of Africa. 
 Many Greek colonies were planted in lower Italy and 
 Sicily, which received the name of Magna Grascia 
 
16 
 
 (Mag'naGre'-shea, Great Greece). The most important 
 of these were the luxurious Tarentum in south Italy, 
 and Syracuse on the island of Sicily." — Quackenbos. 
 
 Had it not been for the power of Carthage, a Phoeni- 
 cian city, the Greeks would have secured nearly the en- 
 tire shore and transformed the Mediterranean into a 
 " Grecian lake." 
 
 Wherever the Greek went he retained his individuality. 
 The Hellenic language, manners and civilization were 
 introduced by him into barbarian lands. The colonies 
 seemed to gain a new impulse of life and progressed more 
 rapidly than the mother country. 
 
 The Asiatic Greeks rapidly increased both in. wealth 
 and intelligence, while the history of the parent states 
 in this early age exhibited nothing but a succession of 
 petty wars. " In all the states except Epirus, hereditary 
 royalty was abolished and a republican form of govern- 
 ment adopted, which impressed upon the people a love 
 of political freedom. 
 
 " Even at this early age, we find that Sparta was con- 
 sidered the chief of the Dorian, and Athens of the Ion- 
 ian states. "— Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Sparta. — "After the subjugation of Laconia, the peo- 
 ple were divided into three classes: The Dorian con- 
 querors, who became known as Spartans, and alone 
 enjoyed political privileges; the Achseans or free inhabi- 
 tants of the rural districts, who were allowed by the 
 Spartans to occupy the worst of the lands, and to engage 
 in commerce or the trades; and the Helots, consisting of 
 captives and rebels reduced to slavery. The Helots were 
 employed in agricultural pursuits, and treated with great 
 brutality. They could even be put to death when they 
 
17. 
 
 became so numerous as to appear dangerous to the state. " 
 — Quackenbos. 
 
 Lacedsemon, called also Sparta from its grain fields 
 ( sown land ) , was the Spartan camp . ' ' The name Sparta 
 was strictly applicable only to the citadel erected on a 
 hill in the center of the city. Lacedsemon was a com- 
 mon name for the residences of the five Laconian tribes 
 which were erected round the citadel. It was one of 
 the largest cities in Greece, but being built in a strag- 
 gling manner, was not so populous as several others. 
 As the Spartans professed to despise the fine arts, their 
 city did not contain any edifice of importance. There is 
 nothing in the situation of Lacedsemon which would 
 lead us to anticipate the eminence at which it arrived. 
 The river Eurotas, on whose banks it stood, was cele- 
 brated for the clearness and salubrity of its waters, but 
 it was not a navigable stream, and afforded no facilities 
 for commerce. The fame of Sparta was owing to its po- 
 litical institutions, and not to its geographical position. " 
 — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 In this city the Spartans (only nine thousand strong 
 in the time of Lycurgus) lived in the midst of a hostile 
 population, "like soldiers on guard." 
 
 Government. — " Sparta was in the beginning ruled by 
 kings, but under the Heraclei'dse two kings governed 
 with equal authority. This change is said to have been 
 owing to the following circumstance.: One of the kings 
 had twin sons so very much alike that it was hardly pos- 
 sible to distinguish one from the other. The mother, 
 equally attached to both, was desirous of advancing both 
 
18 
 
 to the throne. The people therefore invested both with 
 sovereign power, and this form of government continued 
 to exist for centuries. 
 
 " It was during this latter period that the Helots, or 
 peasants of Sparta, were enslaved; for these people, hav- 
 ing taken up arms in order to vindicate their right to 
 the same privileges as the citizens enjoyed, were, after a 
 violent struggle, subdued. To prevent the repetition of 
 these and like disorders, to which this little state was 
 subject, Lycurgus instituted his celebrated body of laws, 
 which continued for a long time to render Lacedsemon 
 at once the terror and the umpire of the neighboring 
 kingdoms." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Lycurgus. — In the ninth century B. C, Lycurgus, a 
 member of the royal family, after carefully studying the 
 laws of foreign countries, framed for his own the consti- 
 tution which now bears his name. "He- traveled into 
 Crete and afterwards into Asia, where he is said to have 
 discovered the works of Homer. Thence he went into 
 Egypt, and having made himself acquainted with the 
 customs and institutions of the various countries through 
 which he passed, he at length returned home." 
 
 Lycurgus retained the double monarchy but limited 
 its power. Their authority was considerably diminished 
 by a Senate and the Court of the Eph'ori, consisting of 
 five members only, chosen annually from among the peo- 
 ple. These had the power to arrest and imprison even 
 the persons of their kings, if they acted in a manner un- 
 becoming their station. 
 
 " In order to reconcile the people to a government in 
 which they had no real share, Lycurgus adopted two ex- 
 
19- 
 
 p.edients. These were, to divide all the lands of the state 
 equally among the citizens and to abolish the use of 
 money. The latter he accomplished by ordering that 
 nothing but iron money should pass in exchange for any 
 commodity. This coin, also, he made so heavy, and 
 fixed at so low a rate, that a cart and two oxen were re- 
 quired to carry home a sum of twenty pounds sterling." 
 
 "To enforce the practice of temperance and sobriety, 
 Lycurgus ordained that all the men should eat together 
 in one common hall. Every one was obliged to send 
 thither his provisions monthly, consisting of one bushel 
 of flour, eight measures of wine, five pounds of cheese 
 and two pounds and one-half of figs. Black broth was 
 their favorite dish." Agis, a man of high rank, hav- 
 ing returned from a successful expedition, ventured to 
 send for his broth that he might partake of his meal at 
 home with his wife. For this foolish show of sentiment 
 he was punished by a heavy fine. — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 The Spartan Boy. — ' ' To accustom the youth to early 
 habits of discipline and obedience, Lycurgus took their 
 education out of the hands of the parents and committed 
 it to masters appointed by the state. 
 
 "So desirous was he of having a hardy and robust 
 race of citizens, that such children as were born with 
 any capital defect were not suffered to be brought up, 
 but were exposed to perish in a cavern near Mt. Tay- 
 getus, and such as, upon a public view, were deemed 
 sound and healthy, were adopted as children of the state, 
 and delivered to their parents to be nursed with rigor 
 and severity. 
 
20 
 
 "From their tenderest years they were accustomed to 
 make no choice in their eating ; not to be afraid in the dark, 
 or when left alone ; not to be peevish or fretful ; to walk 
 barefoot ; to lie on beds of rushes ; to wear the same clothes 
 summer and winter ; and to fear nothing from their 
 equals. 
 
 "At the age of seven they were taken from their par- 
 ents and delivered over to the classes for a public educa- 
 tion, where their discipline was yet more rigid and 
 severe. They were still obliged to go barefoot, their 
 heads were shaved, and they fought with one another 
 naked. 
 
 "To enable them the better to endure bodily pain with- 
 out complaining, they were annually whipped at the 
 altar of Diana, and the boy that bore this punishment 
 with the greatest fortitude was highly honored. 
 
 " In order to prepare them for the stratagems of war, 
 they were permitted to steal from one another, but if 
 they were caught in the act they were punished for their 
 lack of dexterity. Plutarch tells us of one, who, having 
 stolen a fox, and hid it under his coat, chose rather to 
 let the animal tear out his vitals than to discover the 
 theft. 
 
 "At twelve years of age they were removed into a 
 higher class, where their labor and discipline was still 
 more severe. They had now their skirmishes between 
 small parties, and their mock fights between larger 
 bodies. 
 
 "Such was the constant discipline of the minority, 
 which lasted till the age of thirty, before which time 
 
21 . 
 
 they were not permitted to marry, to enter the army or 
 to hear any office of state." — -Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Spartan Girl. — ' ' The discipline of the virgins was as 
 severe as that of the young men. They were inured to 
 a life of labor and industry till they were twenty years 
 old, before which time they were not considered as mar- 
 riageable. They had also their peculiar exercises. They 
 ran, wrestled and pitched the bar, and performed all 
 these feats before the whole body of the citizens. 
 • " So masculine an education did not fail to bestow upon 
 the Spartan women equal vigor of body and mind. They 
 were bold, hardy, and patriotic, rilled with a sense of 
 honor, and a love of military glory. 
 
 " Some foreign women, in conversation with the wife 
 of Leonidas, saying that the Spartan women alone knew 
 how to govern the men, she boldly replied: ' The Spar- 
 tan women alone are the mothers of men.' A mother 
 was known to give her son a shield when going to bat- 
 tle with this gallant advice: ' Return with it, or return 
 upon it.' " — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Disappearance of Lycurgus.— " In order to render his 
 law more lasting Lycurgus pretended that something was 
 still wanting to the completion of his plan, and that it 
 was necessary for him to go and consult the oracle at 
 Delphi. In the meantime he persuaded his countrymen 
 to take an oath for the strict observance of all his laws 
 till his return, and then left Sparta with a firm resolu- 
 tion of never seeing it more. 
 
 "When he arrived at Delphi, he inquired of the ora- 
 cle whether the laws he had made were sufficient to ren- 
 der the Lacedaemonians happy, and being told that they 
 
22 
 
 were, he sent his answer to Sparta, and then volunta- 
 rily starved himself to death. Others say that he died 
 in Crete, ordered his body to be burned and his ashes to 
 be thrown into the sea. 
 
 "Whichever of these was the case, he equally obliged 
 his countrymen, by the oath they had taken, to observe 
 his laws forever, which, indeed, they were sufficiently 
 inclined to do from a conviction of their real and intrin- 
 sic merit." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 THE SPARTAN'S MAKCH. I 
 
 FELICIA HEMANS. 
 
 [The Spartan considered himself too brave to need the inspiration 
 of martial music to impel him to the conflict. Thucydides says : 
 "The Spartans used not the trumpet in their march into battle, be- 
 cause they wished not to excite the rage of their warriors. Their 
 charging step was made to the ' Dorian mood of flutes and soft re- 
 corders.' "] 
 
 'Twas morn upon the Grecian hills, 
 
 Where peasants dressed the vines ; 
 Sunlight was on Cithseron's rills, 
 
 Arcadia's rocks and pines. 
 
 And brightly through his reeds and flowers 
 
 Eurotas wandered, by, 
 When a sound arose from Sparta's towers, 
 
 Of solemn harmony. 
 
 Was it the hunter's choral strain 
 
 To the woodland goddess poured? 
 Did virgin hands in Pallas' fane 
 
 Strike the full-sounding chord? 
 
 But helms were glancing on the stream, 
 
 Spears ranged in close array, 
 And shields flung back a glorious beam 
 
 To the morn of a fearful day. 
 
23 
 
 And the mountain echoes of the land 
 
 Swelled through the deep blue sky ; 
 While to soft strains moved forth a band 
 
 Of men that moved to die. 
 
 They marched, not with the trumpet blast, 
 
 Nor bade the horn peal out, 
 And the laurel groves, as on they passed, 
 
 Rung with no battle shout. 
 
 They asked no clarion's voice to fire 
 
 Their souls with an impulse high; 
 But the Dorian reed and the Spartan lyre 
 
 For the sons of liberty ! 
 
 And still sweet flutes their path around 
 
 Sent forth ^Eolian breath ; 
 They needed not a sterner sound 
 
 To marshal them to death. 
 
 So moved they calmly to the field, 
 
 Thence never to return, 
 Save bearing back the Spartan shield 
 
 Or on it proudly borne. 
 
 Athens. — "North of the Peloponnesus, jutting out 
 into the iEgean Sea, lay the rocky little Ionian State of 
 Attica, with its lovely city Athens." There was a story 
 that Neptune and Pallas Athene had striven [for the 
 guardianship of the city, and it was decided that the 
 one who should produce the most precious gift for it 
 should be its patron. "Neptune struck the earth with 
 his trident, and there appeared a war-horse; but Pallas 's 
 touch brought forth an olive tree, and this was judged 
 the most useful gift. The city bore her name; the tiny 
 Athenian owl was her badge; the very olive tree she had 
 bestowed was said to be the one which grew in the court 
 of the Acropolis, a sacred citadel on a rock above the 
 
24 
 
 city, and near at hand was the temple called the Par- 
 thenon, or Virgin's shrine. Not far off was the Areop'- 
 agus, a hill of Ar'es or Mars, the great place for hearing 
 causes, and doing justice; and below these there grew 
 up a city filled with men brave as. the Spartans, and far 
 more thoughtful and wise, besides having a most per- 
 fect taste and sense of beauty." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 Kings. — During the Heroic Age, Athens was ruled by 
 kings, like all the other Grecian cities. The most 
 noted were Theseus and Codrus. The following legend 
 is told of Codrus: At one time the Dorians invaded 
 Attica, but were told by an oracle that they would never 
 succeed if they slew the king of Athens. " Codrus heard 
 of this oracle and devoted himself for his country. He 
 found that in battle the Dorians always f orebore to strike 
 him, and he, disguising himself, went into the enemy's 
 camp, quarreled with a soldier there, and thus caused 
 himself to be killed so as to save his country. He was 
 the last king. The Athenians would not have any one 
 less noble sit in his seat, and appointed magistrates 
 called Archons instead of kings." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 Lawgivers. — "Soon the Athenians fell into a state of 
 misrule and disorder, and they called on a philosopher 
 named Draco to draw up laws for them. Draco's laws 
 were very strict, and for the least crime the punishment 
 was death. Nobody could keep them, so they were set 
 aside and forgotten, till a wise lawgiver, named Solon, 
 undertook to draw up a fresh code of laws for them." — 
 Miss Yonge. 
 
 " His first step was in favor of the poor, who had been 
 grievously oppressed by the rich. It was difficult for a 
 
25 . 
 
 poor freeman to earn his subsistence, where the labor 
 was principally performed by slaves; hence the poor 
 were deeply in debt, and, at Athens, insolvent debtors, 
 together with their wives and children, might be reduced 
 into slavery, unless they could find other means of satis- 
 fying their creditors. He lowered the rate of interest, 
 and took away the power over the person of the debtor. 
 
 "He divided the rich citizens into three classes and 
 gave to them the privilege of holding office under the 
 government. The poor were considered incapable of 
 holding any employment in the state, but were given a 
 right to vote in the assembly of the people. 
 
 "To counteract the influence of the popular assembly, 
 Solon gave greater weight to the court of Areopagus and 
 also instituted another council called the Senate, which 
 consisted of one hundred from each tribe. It was in- 
 creased to five hundred when the tribes were augmented 
 to ten, afterward to six hundred. 
 
 "The court of the Areopagus had supreme control over 
 the religion and morals of the state. The introduction of 
 new deities, the regulation of public worship, and the 
 education of youth, were objects of their peculiar care. 
 
 "To encourage industry he empowered the Areopagus 
 to inquire into every man's method of procuring a liveli- 
 hood, and to punish such as had no visible way of doing 
 so. He ordained that a son should not be obliged to 
 support his father in old age or necessity, if the latter 
 had neglected to give him some trade or calling." — Gold- 
 smith. 
 
 "At the head of the government were nine chief mag- 
 istrates, who were called archons, and who were changed 
 
26 
 
 every three years. To work with these there was the 
 Senate of four hundred aris'toi or nobles ; but when war 
 or peace was decided, the whole de'mos, or people, voted 
 according to their tribes. After having set things in 
 order, Solon is said to have been so annoyed by foolish 
 questions on his schemes, that he went again on his 
 travels. First he visited Mile'tus, in Asia Minor, then 
 he went on to Lydia. This was a kingdom of Greek 
 settlers in Asia Minor, where flowed that river Pactolus 
 whose sands contained gold-dust from King Midas 's 
 washing, as the story went. The king was Croesus, and 
 his capital was Sardis." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 Tyrants. — After Solon's departure Pisistratus, a nephew 
 of Solon, became absolute master of Athens. He headed 
 the democratic party, was a good general, a persuasive 
 orator and an able statesman. " Having presented him- 
 self in the market-place covered with blood, he assured 
 the people that his life had been attempted by the nobil- 
 ity on account of his affection for the multitude ; he 
 therefore entreated that he should be permitted to arm a 
 body-guard for his protection. This request being 
 granted, ere long he seized the Acropolis and became the 
 first tyrant of Athens." " The character of Pisistratus, 
 as a ruler, merits every praise, he was a great encour- 
 ager of learning, and during his administration Athens 
 first became a literary city. He arranged the poems of 
 Homer in their present order, from the detached portions 
 sung by the wandering minstrels, and ordered that these 
 sublime compositions should be publicly read at the 
 solemn festivals. 
 
 " The sons of Pisistratus, Hippias and Hipparchus sue- 
 
27. 
 
 ceeded to the authority of their father, and for some time 
 imitated his bright example. During their administra- 
 tion Athens first became remarkable for the splendor of 
 its public buildings, and for the diligent cultivation of 
 the fine arts. They erected Hermse, columns surmounted 
 with the head of Mercury, in the streets and squares, 
 and inscribed on them moral sentences for the instruc- 
 tion of the people. 
 
 "The poets Anac'reon and Simon'ides were invited to 
 their court, which was, indeed, the resort of all whom 
 learning and genius made illustrious in Greece. Their 
 reign, which lasted eighteen years, was justly termed ' the 
 golden age of literature.' 
 
 "But the possession of such unlimited power by one 
 family led to its abuse." Hipparchus, having offended 
 a noble family, was assassinated. "The murder of his 
 brother produced a great change in the character of Hip- 
 pias ; he became jealous, revengeful and cruel; in short, 
 a tyrant in the worst sense of the word. His person and 
 his government became alike odious. His enemies suc- 
 ceeded in having him denounced by the oracle at Del- 
 phi, and at length he was expelled by the assistance of 
 the Spartans after his family had governed Athens for 
 sixty-eight years." Hippias went over to the Persian 
 court, and was henceforth the declared enemy of his 
 native city, seeking aid in different quarters to re-estab- 
 lish his tyranny in Athens. — Br. Goldsmith. 
 
 Democracy Established. — Shortly after Hippias was 
 driven into exile the constitution was changed so as to 
 give the people additional privileges. Ostracism was 
 introduced, by which they banished obnoxious persons 
 
28 
 
 without trial. "If a man was thought to be dangerous 
 to the state, the de'mos or people might sentence him to 
 be banished. His name was written on an oyster shell, 
 or on a tile, by those who wished him to be driven away, 
 and these thrown into a great vessel. If they amounted 
 to a certain number, the man was said to be ostracized, 
 and forced to leave the city. This was sometimes done 
 unjustly, but it answered the purpose of sending away 
 rich men who became overbearing, and kept tyrants 
 from rising up." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 At this time ten new tribes were organized in order to 
 break up the four old ones. Fifty representatives were 
 sent from each tribe to the senate. Ten generals, one 
 from each tribe, commanded the army in daily turn. 
 All free inhabitants of Attica obtained citizenship and 
 met four times a month to deliberate and decide upon 
 public questions. The democracy of Athens was thus 
 established and in the words of Herodotus "the Athe- 
 nian then grew mighty, and it became plain that liberty 
 is a brave thing." 
 
 THE GILECO-PERSIAN WARS. 
 
 Cause. — "About the beginning of the fifth century B. 
 C, the Ionian cities of Asia Minor rebelled against 
 Darius, the Persian king, who had made them a part of 
 his empire. Athens, the mother city, sent a fleet to aid 
 them. This interference aroused the resentment of the 
 Persian monarch, who, that he might be continually 
 reminded of the insult, required a servant each day at 
 dinner to exclaim three times, ' Master, remember the 
 Athenians!' 
 
29* 
 
 "In 492 B. C, Darius dispatched an expedition to 
 Greece, but it ingloriously failed. Before making a 
 second attempt he sent envoys to demand from the sev- 
 eral states earth and water, the usual tokens of submis- 
 sion. Many of the cities yielded ; but Athens and Sparta 
 answered by throwing the Persian heralds into pits and 
 wells, and bidding them there find earth and water. 
 These rival states now laid aside their jealousies, and 
 prepared to meet the common foe." — Quackenbos. 
 
 Battle of Marathon. — "On came the army of Darius, 
 commanded by his ablest generals, with directions to 
 conquer Greece and bring back the Athenians in chains. 
 Not dreaming of defeat, they took with them great blocks 
 of marble to raise a monument in commemoration of 
 their victory. After some successes in the iEgean sea, 
 the Persians disembarked on the coast of Attica. Ad- 
 vancing to the plain of Marathon, 120,000 strong, they 
 found an army of 10,000 Athenians drawn up to meet 
 them. (490 B. C.) 
 
 "An urgent message had been sent to the Spartans 
 for assistance. They at once prepared to aid their allies, 
 but as their religious scruples prevented them from start- 
 ing till the moon was full, they arrived too late to take 
 part in the engagement. The honor of the day, how- 
 ever, was shared by the city of Plataea, which promptly 
 sent all its fighting men to the support of the Athenians. 
 The Greeks, under Miltiades, advanced to the charge at 
 a quick pace; the Persians, withstanding their attack 
 for a short time only, were soon in headlong flight. 
 Six thousand of their number were left dead on the field, 
 
30 
 
 and the survivors returned to Asia in such of their gal- 
 leys as escaped destruction. 
 
 "Miltiades became for a time the idol of the Athenians. 
 But because of his failure in a subsequent expedition 
 the ungrateful people cast him into prison, where he 
 died of a wound." — Quackenbos. 
 
 (See Guerber's Greek Stories.) 
 
 EUCLES ANNOUNCING THE VICTORY OF MARATHON. 
 
 LETITIA LANDON. 
 
 [Eucles, the swiftest runner in Greece, ran with the tidings, and, 
 reaching Athens, had breath only to tell the news when he fell dead 
 in the street.] 
 
 He cometh from the purple hills, 
 
 Where fight has been to-day ; 
 He bears the standard on his hand,— 
 
 Shout round the victor's way ! 
 The sunset of a battle won 
 Is round his steps from Marathon. 
 
 Gather the myrtles near, 
 
 And fling them on his path ; 
 Take from her braided hair 
 
 The flowers the maiden hath, 
 A welcome to the welcome one 
 "Who hastens now from Marathon. 
 
 They crowd around his steps, 
 
 Rejoicing, young and old ; 
 The laurel branch he bears, 
 
 His glorious tale hath told, 
 The Persian's hour of pride is done ; 
 Victory is on Marathon. 
 
 She cometh with brightened cheek, 
 
 She who all day hath wept 
 The wife and mother's tears 
 
 Where her youngest infant slept ; 
 The heart is in her eyes alone, — 
 What careth she for Marathon? 
 
31 
 
 But down on his threshold, down 
 
 Sinks the warrior's failing breath; 
 The tale of that mighty field 
 /Is left to be told by Death. 
 'Tis a common tale, — the victor's sun 
 Sets in tears and blood o'er Marathon. 
 
 Ostracism of Aristides. — "Aristides the Just, and 
 Themistocles, an aspiring statesman, now became prom- 
 inent in Athens. But political differences sprang up be- 
 tween them, and through the intrigues of his rival Aris- 
 tides was ostracised. While the people were voting, a 
 stranger to Aristides, unable to write, handed him an 
 oyster shell and asked him to place on it the name of 
 Aristides. 'What harm has he done you?' said the 
 honest patriot, complying with the request. ' None/ 
 the man replied; 'but I am tired of hearing him called 
 Aristides the Just.' 
 
 "Aristides left his country praying that nothing might 
 happen which would make the Athenians regret his ab- 
 sence. His hopes, however, were not realized, for he 
 was soon recalled to aid Themistocles in repelling a for- 
 midable Persian invasion. 'Themistocles,' he said, 
 when they first met, 'let us be rivals, but let our strife 
 be which best may serve our country.' " — Qudckenbos. 
 
 Expedition of Xerxes. — "Xerxes, son of Darius, had 
 long been raising a great army from all parts of the Per- 
 sian Empire. It is stated that his forces numbered 
 over two million of soldiers, besides slaves and attend- 
 ants, and they drank rivers dry on their march. 
 
 "To reach Greece, the Persians had to cross the Hel- 
 lespont. The first bridge constructed for their passage 
 was broken up by a violent storm, which so enraged 
 
32 
 
 Xerxes that he beheaded the workmen who had engaged 
 in its erection, ordered the sea to be scourged with a 
 monstrous whip, and had heavy chains thrown into it 
 as symbols of its subjection to his control. Another 
 bridge was soon built, and over it, for seven days and 
 nights without cessation, poured the living throng, glit- 
 tering with the wealth of the East — the largest army 
 ever raised by man." — Quackenbos. 
 
 Battle of Thermopylae (480 B. C.).— "Athens, mean- 
 while, under the direction of Themistocles, had prepared 
 for the approaching struggle by equipping a powerful 
 fleet. Sparta and many of the other states, forgetting 
 their internal differences, united with her for the com- 
 mon defense. 
 
 "At the Pass of Thermopylae, a narrow defile leading 
 from Thessaly into Lower Greece, the Persian myriads 
 were confronted by a handful of three hundred Spar- 
 tans, under their king Leonidas, supported by about six 
 thousand allies from the other states. Xerxes scornfully 
 bade them give up their arms. 'Come and take them,' 
 was the undaunted reply." — Quackenbos. 
 
 "And when it was observed that the Persian forces 
 were so numerous that their very arrows would darken 
 the sun, 'Then/ replied a Spartan, 'we shall fight in 
 the shade.' 
 
 " Xerxes, provoked at these sarcasms, resolved to be- 
 gin the attack immediately. The first assault was in- 
 stantly repulsed with great slaughter. A body of ten 
 thousand Persians, commonly known as the immortals, 
 made another attempt to dislodge the Grecians, but with 
 no better success." In a word, the Greeks maintained 
 
33 . 
 
 their ground against the whole power of the Persian 
 army for two days, and the terrified Persians had to be 
 driven to the assault with whips. On the third day a 
 traitor conducted a body of twenty thousand Persians 
 through a by-path across a mountain that overhung the 
 straits. 
 
 " Leonidas, seeing the enemy in this situation, advised 
 his allies to retire. 'As for myself and my fellow-Spar- 
 tans/ said he, 'we are obliged by our laws not to fly : I 
 owe a life to my country, and it is now my duty to fall 
 in her defense.' Seven hundred Thespians gallantly re- 
 solved to share the fate of the Spartans. When the rest 
 had retired, Leonidas exhorted his followers, in the most 
 cheerful manner, to prepare for death. 'Come, my fel- 
 low-soldiers/ said he, 'let us dine cheerfully here, for 
 to-night we shall sup with Pluto.' His men, upon hear- 
 ing his determined purpose, set up a loud shout, as if 
 they had been invited to a banquet, and resolved every 
 man to sell his life as dearly as he could. 
 
 "The night began now to advance, and this was 
 thought the most glorious opportunity of meeting death 
 in the enemy's camp, as the darkness, by concealing 
 thesmallness of theirnumbers, would fill the Persians with 
 greater consternation. Thus resolved, they made di- 
 rectly to the Persian tents, and in the silence of night 
 had almost penetrated to the royal pavilion, with hopes 
 of surprising the king. The Persians, incapable of dis- 
 tinguishing friend from foe, fell furiously upon each 
 other, and rather assisted than opposed the Greeks. 
 Thus success seemed likely to crown their bold but rash 
 
34 
 
 enterprise, had not morning dawn discovered the small- 
 ness of their numbers. They retreated back to the 
 straits, and four times repulsed their Persian pursuers, 
 but, while the victory was yet doubtful, the Persian de- 
 tachment in their rear was seen descending from the 
 hills. Nothing now remained but to sell their lives as 
 dearly as possible ; abandoning, therefore, outer lines of 
 defense, they formed themselves into a square and 
 awaited the approach of their enemies. The Greeks 
 were assailed on every side, yet not a man swerved from 
 his post. The spears of the Greeks were blunted and 
 shivered in the protracted contest. Leonidas, their 
 leader, had fallen in the attack on the Persian camp, 
 but his body, placed in the center of the diminished 
 band was the rallying point of his exhausted soldiers. 
 They sank at last beneath a mountain of darts, which 
 formed the proudest testimony of their valor, and their 
 most suitable monument. Of all the band, two only es- 
 caped whose names were Aristodemus and Panites. 
 They were treated, in consequence, with such contempt 
 on their return to Sparta, that Panites killed himself in 
 despair, but Aristodemus bore it with fortitude, and re- 
 covered his honor by his gallant behavior on the battle 
 of Platsea. The loss of the Persians at Thermopylae is 
 supposed to have amounted to twenty thousand men, 
 among whom were two of the king's brothers. 
 
 "To perpetuate the memory of this wonderful exer- 
 tion of valor two monuments were erected. The inscrip- 
 tion on one commemorated the brave resistance made by 
 a handful of Greeks against millions of Persians. The 
 
35 . 
 
 other was peculiar to the Spartans, and bore these words 
 written bv Simonides:" — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 " Go, stranger, and to Lacedaeruon tell 
 That here, obeying her behests, we fell." — Barnes. 
 
 THE DEATH OF LEONIDAS. 
 
 GEOEGE CEOLY. 
 
 It was the wild midnight, a storm was on the sky ; 
 The lightning gave its light, and the thunder echoed by. 
 The torrent swept the glen, the ocean lashed the shore ; 
 Then rose the Spartan men, to make their bed in gore. 
 
 Swift from the deluged ground three hundred took the shield ; 
 Then, in silence, gathered round the leader of the field ! 
 All up the mountain's side, all down the woody vale, 
 All by the rolling tide waved the Persian banners pale. 
 
 And foremost from the pass, among the slumbering band, 
 Sprang King Leonidas, like the lightning's living brand. 
 Then double darkness fell, and the forest ceased its moan ; 
 But there came a clash of steel, and a distant dying groan. 
 
 Anon, a trumpet blew, and a fiery sheet burst high, 
 
 That o'er the midnight threw a blood-red canopy, 
 
 A host glared on the hill, a host glared by the bay ; 
 
 But the Greeks rushed onward still, like leopards in their play. 
 
 The air was all a yell, and the earth was all a flame, 
 Where the Spartan's bloody steel on the silken turbans came ; 
 And still the Greek rushed on where the fiery torrent rolled, 
 Till, like a rising sun shone Xerxes' tent of gold. 
 
 They found a royal feast, his midnight banquet there ; 
 And the treasures of the East lay beneath the Doric spear. 
 Then sat to the repast the bravest of the brave, 
 That feast must be their last, that spot must be their grave. 
 
36 
 
 Up rose the glorious rank, to Greece one cup poured high, 
 Then hand in hand they drank, " To immortality !" 
 Fear on King Xerxes fell, when, like spirits from the tomb, 
 With shout and trumpet knell, he saw the warriors come. 
 
 But down swept all his power, with chariot and with charge ; 
 Down poured the arrow's shower, till sank the Spartan targe. 
 Thus fought the Greek of old! thus will he fight again. 
 Shall not the self-same mould bring forth the self-same men? 
 
 Desertion of Athens. — "Xerxes, however, having now 
 passed the straits, found nothing capable of opposing 
 his progress in the open country ; he therefore directed 
 his march towards Athens, on which he was determined 
 to take signal vengeance. 
 
 "Themistocles, seeing little hope of defending the city 
 against the innumerable host of Xerxes, sent to consult 
 the oracle of Apollo, at Delphos. The answer he re- 
 ceived was, 'Athens can be saved only by wooden walls.' 
 This he interpreted to mean ships, and aeted according- 
 ly. A decree was therefore passed, by which it was or- 
 dained, that Athens for awhile should be given up in 
 trust to the gods, and all the inhabitants, whether in 
 freedom or slavery, should go on board the fleet. The 
 young and adventurous set sail for the neighboring 
 island of Salamis ; the old, the women and children, 
 took shelter at Troeze'ne, the inhabitants of which 
 generously offered them an asylum. But in this deser- 
 tion of the city, that which raised the compassion of all 
 was the great number of old men they were obliged to 
 leave in the place, on account of their age and infirmi- 
 ties. Many also voluntarily remained behind, believing 
 that the citadel, which they had fortified with wooden 
 walls, was what the oracle pointed out for general 
 
37 
 
 safety. To heighten this scene of distress, the matrons 
 were seen clinging with fond affection to the places 
 where they had so long resided ; the women filled the 
 streets with lamentations; and even the domestic ani- 
 mals seemed to take part in the general concern. It was 
 impossible to see those poor creatures run howling and 
 crying after their masters, who were going on shipboard, 
 without being strongly affected. Amongst these, the 
 faithfulness of a particular dog is recorded, which 
 jumped into the sea, and continued swimming after the 
 vessel that contained his master. The faithful animal 
 landed at Salamis, and died, the moment after, upon the 
 shore. " — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Destruction of Athens. — "The few inhabitants that 
 remained behind retired into the citadel, where, literally 
 interpretating the oracle, they fortified it as well as they 
 could, and patiently awaited the approach of the invader. 
 Nor was it long before they saw him arrive at their gates 
 and summon them to surrender. This, however, they 
 refused to do, or even to listen to any terms he proposed 
 to them. The place was, therefore, taken by assault, 
 all who were found in it were put to the sword, and the 
 citadel reduced to ashes. 
 
 " But though the Greeks had been thus obliged to 
 abandon Athens to the fury of the enemy, they were by 
 no means disposed to let them outrun the whole country. 
 They took possession of the Peloponnesus, built a wall 
 across the isthmus that joined it to the continent, and 
 committed the defense of that important post to the 
 brother of Leonidas. In adopting this measure they 
 were unanimous in regarding it as the most prudent 
 
38 
 
 that could be embraced, but this was not the case with 
 regard to the operations of the fleet." 
 
 Battle of Salamis. — ' ' In spite of opposition Themis- 
 tocles maintained that it would be the height of folly to 
 abandon so advantageous a post as that of Salamis, where 
 they were now stationed. They were now, he said, in 
 possession of the narrow seas, where the number of the 
 enemy's ships could never avail them. At last his op- 
 ponents yielded to him, and resolved to await the ene- 
 my's fleet at Salamis. Fearful, however, that the con- 
 federates might change their mind, Themistocles had 
 recourse to stratagem. He contrived to have it privately 
 intimated to Xerxes, that the Greeks were now assembled 
 at Salamis, preparing for fight, and that it would be an 
 easy matter to attack and destroy them. The artifice 
 succeeded. Xerxes gave order to his fleet to block up 
 Salamis by night, in order to prevent an escape of the 
 Greeks. 
 
 " Aristides, who commanded a small body of troops at 
 iEgina, no sooner heard of the apparent danger of The- 
 mistocles than he ventured in a small boat by night 
 through the whole fleet of the enemy. Upon landing 
 he repaired to the tent of Themistocles, and addressed 
 him in the following manner: ' If we are wise, Themis- 
 tocles, we shall henceforth lay aside all those frivolous 
 dissensions which have hitherto divided us. One strife, 
 and a noble one it is, now remains to us, which of us 
 shall be most serviceable to our country. It is yours to 
 command as a general, it is mine to obey as a subject, 
 and happy shall I be if my advice can any way contrib- 
 ute to yours and my country's glory.' He then informed 
 
39 
 
 him of the fleet's real situation, and warmly exhorted 
 him to give battle without delay. Themistocles felt all 
 that gratitude which so generous and disinterested a con- 
 duct deserves, ,and eager to make a proper return, he im- 
 mediately let him into his schemes and projects, partic- 
 ularly this last, of suffering himself to be blocked up. 
 After this they exerted their joint influence with the 
 other commanders to persuade them to engage, and ac- 
 cordingly both fleets prepared for battle. 
 
 "The Grecian fleet consisted of three hundred and 
 eighty ships, that of the Persians more than a thousand 
 vessels. But whatever advantage they had in numbers 
 and the size of their vessels, they fell infinitely short of 
 the Greeks in naval skill, and in the acquaintance with 
 the seas where they fought. Themistocles, knowing that 
 a periodical wind, which would be favorable, would soon 
 set in, delayed the attack till that time, and this had no 
 sooner arisen than the signal was given for battle, and 
 the Grecian fleet sailed forward in exact order. 
 
 "As the Persians now fought under the eye of their 
 sovereign, who beheld the action from a neighboring 
 promonotory, they exerted themselves for some time 
 with great spirit, but their courage abated when they 
 came to a closer engagement. The wind blew directly in 
 their faces, the height and heaviness of their vessels ren- 
 dered them unwieldy and almost useless, and even the 
 number of their ships only served to embarrass and per- 
 plex them in that narrow sea. 
 
 " The Ionians, mindful of their Hellenic descent, were 
 far from being anxious for a victory that would enslave 
 the land of their fathers ; in the very first onset many of 
 
40 
 
 them fled, while others deserted to the Greeks. The 
 Phoenician galleys being thus disordered, and their 
 flanks exposed, dashed against each other, and crowded 
 into a confused mass, deprived of all power of action. 
 The Athenians with skill increased the confusion by 
 forcing fresh hostile ships into the narrow space in which 
 the Phoenicians were entangled. And thus, as the poet 
 iEscbylus, who personally shared in the battle, declares, 
 the whole Persian fleet ' was caught and destroyed like 
 fish in a net.' 
 
 "Nothing could repair the disorder that had now 
 taken place in the Persian fleet. They fled on all sides ; 
 some of them were sunk, and more taken ; above two 
 hundred were burnt, and all the rest entirely dispersed. 
 
 " Such was the issue of the battle of Salamis, in which 
 the Persians received a more severe blow than any they 
 had hitherto experienced from Greece. Themistocles is 
 said to have been so elated with this victory that he 
 proposed breaking down the bridge over the Hellespont, 
 and thus cutting off the retreat of the enemy ; but from 
 this he was dissuaded by Aristides, who represented the 
 danger of reducing so powerful an army to despair." — 
 Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Flight of Xerxes. — "Xerxes, however, seems to have 
 been so apprehensive of this step being taken that 
 after leaving about three hundred thousand of his best 
 troops behind him, under Mardonius, not so much with 
 a view of conquering Greece as in order to prevent a 
 pursuit, he hastened back with the rest to the Helle- 
 spont, where, finding the bridge broken down by the 
 waves, he was obliged to pass over in a small boat. His 
 
41 - 
 
 manner of leaving Europe, when compared with his os- 
 tentatious entry, rendered his disgrace the more poign- 
 ant and afflicting." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Triumph of Themistocles. — ''Nothing could exceed 
 the joy of the Greeks upon the victory they had obtained 
 at Salamis. Themistocles was not only honored by his 
 own countrymen, but was carried in triumph to Sparta. 
 They crowned him with olive, presented him with a 
 rich chariot and conducted him with three hundred 
 horse to the confines of their state. 
 
 " When he appeared at the Olympic games (see pages 
 115, 186, Barnes), before all the states of Greece assem- 
 bled, the spectators received him with uncommon accla- 
 mations. As soon as he appeared the whole assembly 
 rose to do him honor, nobody regarded either the games 
 or the combatants ; Themistocles was the only object 
 worthy of their attention. Struck with such flattering 
 honors he could not help exclaiming that he had that 
 day reaped the fruit of all his labors." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 THE BATTLE OF SALAMIS. 
 
 JESCHYLUS. 
 
 • 
 
 The Persian chief, 
 
 Little dreaming of the wiles of Greece . 
 
 And gods averse, to all the naval, leaders 
 
 Gave his high charge : " Soon as yon sun shall cease 
 
 To dart his radiant beams, and darkening night 
 
 Ascends the temple of the sky, arrange 
 
 In three divisions your well-ordered ships, 
 
 And guard each pass, each outlet of the seas : 
 
 Others enring around this rocky isle 
 
 Of Salamis. Should Greece escape her fate, 
 
42 
 
 And work her way by secret flight, your heads 
 Shall answer the neglect." This harsh' command 
 He gave, exulting in his mind, nor knew 
 What fate designed. With martial discipline 
 And prompt obedience, snatching a repast, 
 Each mariner fixed well his ready oar. 
 
 Soon as the golden sun was set, and night 
 
 Advanced, each, trained to ply the dashing oar, 
 
 Assumed his seat; in arms each warrior stood, 
 
 Troop cheering troop through all the ships of war. 
 
 Each to the appointed station steers his course, 
 
 And through the night his naval course each chief 
 
 Fixed to secure the passes. Night advanced 
 
 But not by secret flight did Greece attempt 
 
 To escape. The morn, all beauteous to behold, 
 
 Drawn by white steeds, bounds o'er the lightened earth. 
 
 At once from every Greek, with glad acclaim, 
 
 Burst forth the song of war, whose lofty notes, 
 
 The echo of the island rocks returned, 
 
 Spreading dismay through Persia's host, thus fallen 
 
 From their high hopes ; no flight this solemn strain 
 
 Portended, but deliberate valor bent 
 
 On daring battle ; while the trumpet's sound 
 
 Kindled the flames of war. But when their oars 
 
 (The paean ended) with impetuous force 
 
 Dashed the surrounding surges, instant all 
 
 Rushed on in view ; in orderly array 
 
 The squadron of the right first led ; behind 
 
 Rode their whole fleet ; and now distinct was heara 
 
 From every part this voice of exhortation : 
 
 "Advance, ye sons of Greece, from thralldom save 
 Your country — save your wives, your children save, 
 The temples of your gods, the sacred tomb 
 Where rest your honored ancestors ; this day 
 The common cause of all demands your valor." 
 Meanwhile from Persia's hosts the deepening shout 
 Answered their shout ; no time for cold delay ; 
 But ship 'gainst ship its brazen beak impelled. 
 
First to the charge a Grecian galley rushed ; 
 
 111 the Phoenician bore the rough attack, 
 
 Its sculptured prow all shattered. Each advanced, 
 
 Daring an opposite. The deep array 
 
 Of Persia at the first sustained the encounter ; 
 
 But their thronged numbers, in the narrow seas 
 
 Confined, want room for action; and, deprived 
 
 Of mutual aid, beaks clash with beaks, and each 
 
 Breaks all the other's oars ; with skill disposed, 
 
 The Grecian navy circled them around 
 
 In fierce assault ; and, rushing from its height, 
 
 The inverted vessel sinks. 
 
 The sea no more 
 Wears its accustomed aspect, with foul wrecks 
 And blood disfigured ; floating carcasses 
 Roll on the rocky shores ; the poor remains 
 Of the barbaric armament to flight 
 Ply every oar inglorious ; onward rush 
 The Greeks amid the ruins of the fleet, 
 As through a shoal of fish caught in the net, 
 Spreading destruction ; the wide ocean o'er 
 Wailings are heard, and loud laments, till night, 
 With darkness on her brow, brought grateful truce. 
 Should I recount each circumstance of woe, 
 Ten times on my unfinished tale the sun 
 Would set ; for be assured that not one day 
 Could close the ruin of so vast a host. 
 
 " Mardonius, having passed the winter in Thessaly, 
 led his forces in the spring into the province of Boeo'tia. 
 Before attacking Attica he sent tempting proposals to 
 the Athenians, offering to rebuild their city, to present 
 them with a considerable sum of money, hoping by this 
 means to detach them from the general interests of 
 Greece. The Athenians rejected with scorn this tempt- 
 ing offer, and at the same time they entreated their allies 
 to join them as speedily as possible, in order to repel a 
 
44 
 
 second invasion of Attica. Messenger after messenger 
 was sent to claim the promised aid of Sparta, but all in 
 vain; that state, with the selfishness which characterizes 
 and disgraces its entire history, neglected every sum- 
 mons. They had completed the fortifications of the 
 Corinthian isthmus, and having thus provided, as they 
 believed, for the security of the Peloponnesus, they 
 abandoned northern Greece to the vengeance of the 
 Persians. 
 
 "Deserted a second time by the confederates, the 
 Athenians again retired to Salamis, and witnessed from 
 its shores the flames that consumed their houses and 
 temples. Everything that had been spared in the first 
 invasion was destroyed in the second. 
 
 " The deputies from Platsea and Megara united with 
 the ambassadors from Athens in reproaching the Spar- 
 tans for their disgraceful abandonment of the common 
 cause. The Spartans for some time turned a deaf ear to 
 their complaints, until at length the Athenians hinted 
 the probability of their being compelled to accept the 
 offers of Mardonius, and pointed out to the Spartans how 
 vain would be the wall across the isthmus when the Per- 
 sian fleet, united with that of Athens, would triumph- 
 antly sweep the seas, and harass the coast of the Pelo- 
 ponnesus. They immediately resolved to take the field ; 
 the different southern states were summoned to send in 
 their contingents, and Pausanias, one of the Macedse- 
 monian kings, was appointed to the command of the 
 combined forces." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Battle of Platsea. — " The Grecian army now numbered 
 seventy thousand men. Of these five thousand were 
 
45 - 
 
 Spartans, attended by thirty-five thousand Helots. The 
 Athenians amounted to eight thousand, and the troops 
 of the allies made up the rest. With this army the 
 Greeks resolved to oppose Mardonius, though at the head 
 of no less than three hundred thousand men. 
 
 "The two armies continued in sight of each other for 
 the space of ten days, both equally eager for battle, and 
 yet both afraid to strike the first blow. It was during 
 this interval that a mutiny had nearly arisen in the 
 Grecian army about the post of honor. All parties 
 allowed the Spartans the command of the right wing, 
 but the command of the left was a. position of dispute 
 between Athens and her allies. This dissension might 
 have produced very fatal effects had it not been for the 
 moderation and magnanimity of Aristides, who com- 
 manded the Athenians, and who addressed himself to 
 the Spartans and the rest of the confederates in the fol- 
 lowing manner : f It is not now a time, my friends, to 
 dispute about the merits of past services, for all boasting 
 is vain in the day of danger. Let it be the brave man's 
 pride to own that it is not the post or station which gives 
 courage, or which can take it away. I head the Athe- 
 nians. Whatever post you shall assign us we will main- 
 tain it, and will endeavor to make our station, wherever 
 we are placed, the post of true honor and military glory. 
 We are come hither not to contend with our friends, but 
 to fight with our enemies ; not to boast of our ancestors, 
 but to imitate them. This battle will distinguish the 
 merit of each city, and the lowest sentinel will share 
 with his commander the honor of the day.' This speech 
 determined the council of war in favor of the Athenians, 
 
46 
 
 who thereupon were allowed to maintain their former 
 station. 
 
 " Meanwhile the Grecians, beginning to be straitened 
 for want of water, resolved to retreat to a place where 
 they might be more plentifully supplied with that nec- 
 essary article. As their removal was in the night much 
 disorder ensued, and in the morning Mardonius, con- 
 structing their retreat into a flight, immediately pursued 
 them, and coming up with them near the little city of 
 Plataea, attacked them with great impetuosity. His ar- 
 dor, however, was soon checked by the Spartans, who 
 brought up the rear of the Grecian army, and who, 
 throwing themselves into a phalanx, stood impenetrable 
 and immovable against all the assaults of the enemy. 
 At the same time the Athenians, being informed of the 
 attack quickly returned, and, after defeating a body of 
 Greeks in Persian pay, came to the assistance of the 
 Spartans, just as these last had completed the overthrow 
 of the enemy. For Mardonius, enraged at seeing his 
 men give way, rushed into the thickest of the ranks in 
 order to restore the battle, and was killed by a Spartan. 
 Upon this, the whole army betook themselves to flight. 
 A body of forty thousand men fled towards the Helle- 
 spont. The rest retreated to the camp, and there endeav- 
 ored to defend themselves with wooden ramparts, but 
 these being quickly broken down, the Greeks rushed in 
 upon them with irresistible fury, and, eager to rid the 
 country of such terrible invaders, sternly refused them 
 quarter, putting upwards of a hundred thousand of them 
 to the sword." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 ''The whole Persian camp was sacked. Wagon-loads 
 
47 - 
 
 of silver and gold vessels were to be seen ; collars, brace- 
 lets, and rich armor and the manger of Xerxes' horses 
 which he had left behind and which was of finely 
 worked brass. A tenth of the spoils was set apart for 
 the temple of Apollo at Delphi." /'The same day a vic- 
 tory was gained at Myc'ale, Asia Minor, over the Persian 
 forces in Ionia." — Miss Yonge and Quackenbos. 
 
 " Thus ended the invasion of Greece by the Persians, 
 nor ever after was an army from Persia seen to cross the 
 Hellespont." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 THE TOMBS OF PLAT.EA. 
 
 MRS. HEMANS. 
 
 And there they sleep — the men who stood 
 
 In arms before the exulting sun, 
 And bathed their spears in Persian blood, 
 
 And taught the earth how freedom might be won. 
 
 They sleep ! The Olympic wreaths are dead, 
 i The Athenian lyres are hushed and gone ; 
 The Dorian voice of song is fled, — 
 
 Slumber, ye mighty ! slumber deeply on ! 
 
 They sleep, and seems not all around 
 
 As hallowed unto Glory's tomb? 
 Silence is on the battle-ground, 
 
 The heavens are loaded with a deathless gloom. 
 
 And stars are watching on their height, 
 But dimly seen through mist and cloud, 
 
 And still and solemn is the light 
 "Which folds the plain as with a glimmering shroud. 
 
 And thou, pale night-queen ! here thy beams 
 
 Are not as those the shepherd loves ; 
 Nor look they down on shining streams, 
 
 By Naiads haunted, in their laurel groves: 
 
48 
 
 Thou seest no pastoral hamlet sleep 
 
 In shadowy quiet midst its vines ; 
 No temple gleaming from the steep, 
 
 Midst the gray olives on the mountain pines : 
 
 But o'er a dim and boundless waste 
 Thy rays, e'en like a tomb-lamp's, brood, 
 
 Where man's departed steps are traced 
 But by his dust amid the solitude. 
 
 And be it thus ! What slave shall tread 
 
 O'er Freedom's ancient battle-plains? 
 Let deserts wrap the glorious dead, 
 
 Where their bright land sits weeping o'er her chains 
 
 Here, where their Persian clarion rang, 
 
 And where the Spartan sword flashed high, 
 
 And where the paean strains were sung, 
 From year to year swelled on by liberty ! 
 
 Here should no voice, no sound, be heard, 
 
 Until the bonds of Greece be riven, 
 Save of the leader's charging word, 
 
 Or the shrill trumpet, pealing up through heaven! 
 
 Eest in your silent homes, ye brave ! 
 
 No vines festoon your lonely tree ! 
 No harvest o'er your war-folds wave, 
 
 Till rushing winds proclaim, 
 The land is free ! 
 
 THE ISLES OF GREECE. 
 
 BYEON. 
 
 The isles of Greece, the isles of Greece ! 
 
 Where burning Sappho loved and sung, 
 Where grew the arts of war and peace, — 
 
 Where Delos rose, and Phoebus sprung! 
 Eternal summer gilds them yet, 
 But all, except their sun, is set. 
 
49 
 
 The Scian and the Teian muse, 
 The hero's harp, the lover's lute, 
 
 Have found the fame your shores refuse ; 
 Their place of birth alone is mute 
 
 To soiind which echo further west 
 
 Than your sires' "Islands of the Blest." 
 
 The mountains look on Marathon — 
 And Marathon looks on the sea ; 
 
 And musing there an hour alone, 
 I dreamed that Greece might still be free ; 
 
 For, standing on the Persians' grave, 
 
 I could not deem myself a slave. 
 
 A king sat on the rocky brow 
 Which looks o'er sea-born Salamis; 
 
 And ships, by thousands, lay below, 
 And men in nations ;— all were his! 
 
 He counted them at break of day — 
 
 And when the sun set, where were they? 
 
 And where are they? and where art thou, 
 My country? On thy voiceless shore 
 
 The heroic lay is tuneless now — 
 The heroic bosom beats no more ! 
 
 And must thy lyre, so long divine, 
 
 Degenerate into hands like mine? 
 
 'Tis something, in the dearth of fame, 
 Though linked among a fettered race, 
 
 To feel at least a patriot's shame, 
 Even as I sing, suffuse my face ; 
 
 For what is left the poet here? 
 
 For Greeks ablush, — for Greece a tear. 
 
 Must we but weep o'er days more blest? 
 
 Must we but blush?— Our fathers bled. 
 Earth ! render back from out thy breast 
 
 A remnant of our Spartan dead ! 
 Of the three hundred grant but three, 
 To make a new Thermopylae ! 
 
50 
 
 What, silent still? and silent all? . 
 
 Ah ! no ;— the voices of the dead 
 Sound like a distant torrent's fall, 
 
 And answer, "Let one living head, 
 But one arise, — we come, we come!" 
 'Tis but the living who are dumb. 
 
 Athenian Supremacy. — Athens was quickly rebuilt 
 and its walls fortified and extended, with a view to 
 greater security in the future. This excited the jealousy 
 of the Lacedaemonians, who sent ambassadors to dis- 
 suade them from the undertaking. Themistocles skill- 
 fully delayed treating with them until the works were 
 completed and then sent back a defiant answer. 
 
 This spirited conduct ended the trouble for a time, 
 and instead of drawing their swords against each other 
 they fitted out a powerful fleet to establish the Grecian 
 dominion on the islands and shores of the iEgean. Pau- 
 sanias commanded the Spartans ; the Athenians were 
 conducted by Aristides, and Cimon, the son of Miltiades. 
 
 Byzantium was taken and plundered. A great num- 
 ber of prisoners were captured, many of whom were of 
 the richest and noblest families of Persia. " But what- 
 ever the Greeks gained upon this occasion in fame and 
 authority, they lost in purity and simplicity of their 
 manners. The deluge of wealth poured in upon them 
 from this quarter naturally tended to corrupt their 
 minds ; and from this time forward neither the magis- 
 trates nor the people valued themselves, as formerly, on 
 their personal merit, but merely on account of their 
 riches and possessions." — Br. Goldsmith. 
 
 Fate of Pausanias. — The Athenians were not so soon 
 demoralized by this prosperity, but it proved the ruin of 
 
51 - 
 
 Pausanias, who was led by his ambitious schemes to 
 play the part of a cowardly traitor to his country. " He 
 offered to deliver up Sparta, and even all of Greece, to 
 Xerxes, provided that prince would give him his daugh- 
 ter in marriage." The Spartan magistrates became ac- 
 quainted with his designs and ordered his arrest. "He 
 took refuge in the temple of Minerva, where the sanctity 
 of the place prevented him from being dragged forth. 
 The people blocked up the entrance with stones, and 
 tearing off the roof, left him to die of cold and hunger. 
 Thus perished the man who had led on the troops of 
 Greece to victory in the battle of Platsea." — Dr. Gold- 
 smith. 
 
 Themistocles Exiled. — The fate of Pausanias soon after 
 involved that of Themistocles. He was thought to have 
 favored the designs of Pausanias, a crime of which it 
 afterward appeared he was altogether guiltless. The 
 fact that he gained great wealth while in office influenced 
 his countrymen to accuse him of obtaining it by illegit- 
 imate means. He also built near his house a temple in 
 honor of Diana, bearing the inscription, "To Diana, the 
 goddess of good counsel," intimating thereby "that he 
 had given the best counsel, not only to the Athenians 
 but to all Greece. For this presumption he had been 
 banished by the Athenians, but now the Spartans, his 
 old enemies, accused him of being an accomplice of Pau- 
 sanias, and the Athenians, who had been envious of his 
 former popularity, joined in the charge against him. 
 The people were so engraged that they clamored for his 
 death. Officers were sent to seize him and bring him 
 
52 
 
 for trial before a counsel of Greeks; but having timely 
 notice of it he fled. 
 
 After various wandering, he at last reached Sardis, 
 and prostrating hinself before the Persian king, boldly 
 declared his name, his country and his misfortunes. "I 
 have done my ungrateful country services more than 
 once," said he, "and I am now come to offer those serv- 
 ices to you. My life is in your hands; you may now 
 exert your clemency or display your vengeance. By the 
 former you will preserve a faithful suppliant, by the 
 latter you will destroy the greatest enemy of Greece." 
 
 The king was highly pleased with his eloquence and 
 boldness. His admiration for Themistocles led him to 
 confer the most distinguished honors upon him, and 
 gave him the revenues of three cities for the support of 
 himself and family who had followed him into exile. 
 
 But nothing could erase from the breast of Themisto- 
 cles the love he entertained for his country, though the 
 ingratitude of his countrymen had hardened his heart 
 for awhile. "When Artaxerxes, therefore, proposed fit- 
 ting out an expedition against Athens, and intrusting 
 the command of it Themistocles, that patriot, rather 
 than carry arms against the place of his nativity, put an 
 end to his own life by poison." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Eule of Aristides. — In the meantime, Aristides con- 
 tinued every day to win a larger share of the esteem and 
 veneration of his countrymen by his integrity and love 
 of justice. So great was his character in this respect 
 that he was considered the only person in the country 
 to be intrusted with the public treasure. Implicit con- 
 fidence was placed in him, for while his friends rolled 
 
53 . 
 
 in luxury and affluence, he remained' in poverty. Aris- 
 tides died (375 B. C.) greatly honored, though he was 
 so poor that he did not have enough money to pay his 
 funeral expenses, but a monument was raised to him by 
 the state, and his family were supported by pensions. 
 Only one other Athenian name w r as held to be as pure 
 and noble as that of Aristides. 
 
 Cimon. — "The first man who began to make a figure 
 at Athens after the death of Themistocles and Aristides 
 was Ci'mon, the son of Milti'ades. In his earlier years 
 he had led a very dissolute life; but Aristi'des, perceiv- 
 ing in him, amidst all his dissipation, the seeds of many 
 great and good qualities, advised him to change his con- 
 duct, and to raise his mind from the pursuit of low and 
 ignoble pleasures to the ambition of directing the affairs 
 of the state. He did so, and in a short time, became 
 equal to his father in courage, to Themistocles in sagac- 
 ity, and not much inferior to his instructor himself in 
 integrity." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Under the leadership of Cimon the Greeks achieved 
 many brilliant successes over the Persians, and, in 450 
 B. C, concluded a treaty, with Artaxerxes I, on terms the 
 most honorable to Greece. "It was stipulated that all 
 the Greek cities in Asia should be free, and that no Per- 
 sian army should come within three days' march of the 
 coast, and that no Persian vessel should set sail on the 
 ^Egean sea. Such was the conclusion of this memora- 
 ble war, which, without interruption, had lasted for half 
 a century. The same magnanimous republic that first 
 dared to brave the resentment of the greatest empire of 
 
54 
 
 the world had the honor of prescribing the condition of 
 peace." 
 
 Jealousy of the Greeks. — "The war between Greece 
 and Persia had checked without destroying the mutual 
 jealousies between the leading states, and now Sparta, 
 Argos, and Thebes began to look with envy on the glory 
 that Athens had obtained by her immortal victories. 
 The Spartans in particular were enraged with themselves 
 for having withdrawn so early from a war so productive 
 of fame and profit to their rivals. They were still more 
 indignant because the maritime states had chosen Athens 
 as their guardian and their head. Twenty years before 
 the peace with Persia the Spartans had determined to 
 make war on the Athenians, but unexpected calamities 
 engaged their attention at home and brought their state 
 to the very brink of destruction."— Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Revolt of the Helots. — "Laconia was. laid waste by 
 one of the most dreadful earthquakes recorded in his- 
 tory (469 B. C). The city of Sparta was tumbled into 
 ruins, and twenty thousand of the inhabitants were de- 
 stroyed. The Helots, believing that the moment for re- 
 covering their liberty was arrived, took possession of a 
 strong fortress and spread terror through all Laconia. 
 This revolt compelled the Spartans, much against their 
 will, to solicit the assistance of the Athenians, who were 
 considered the most skillful of all the Greeks in conduct- 
 ing sieges. Their request was granted, but the strength 
 of the besieged baffled their united efforts, and the aux- 
 iliaries were sent home. This war continued ten years, 
 and must have greatly exhausted the Spartan state, since 
 at its conclusion very favorable terms were granted to 
 
55 , 
 
 the insurgents. It was stipulated that they should be 
 allowed to depart with their wives, children and prop- 
 erty, unmolested from the Peloponnesus. The Athe- 
 nians received the exiles with great kindness, and be- 
 stowed on them the city Naupactus, a seaport on the 
 Crissean gulf. The fugitives repaid the generosity of 
 Athens by the most devoted attachment, nor had that 
 city a more faithful ally than Naupactus during the sub- 
 sequent wars." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 • Age of Pericles. — " Cimon, during his lifetime, used 
 every exertion to restore and preserve peace between 
 Athens and Sparta; he was at the head of the nobility, 
 whose assistance, added to his own, military glory, made 
 him at first the most influential man in the state. (See 
 Barnes, page 136.) But he soon met with a formidable 
 rival in Pericles, the greatest statesman of antiquity. 
 Though descended from an illustrious family, he placed 
 himself at the head of the popular party, and, by his su- 
 perior eloquence, wielded at will that fierce democracy. 
 Though his military fame did not equal that of Cimon, 
 he was second only to that illustrious general in the art 
 of war; but in political skill Pericles was unequalled, 
 and even had sufficient influence to procure the tempo- 
 rary banishment of his rival." — Dr. Goldsmith.- 
 
 His aim was to make Athens the seat of art and refine- 
 ment and procure for her the supremacy of Greece. As 
 the leader of the democracy he sought to make the peo- 
 ple all powerful in Athens. This he accomplished by 
 introducing the custom of military pay, by attaching 
 salaries to all civil offices so that the poorest citizen might 
 aspire to the highest magistracy. In this manner the 
 
56 
 
 power of the court of Areopagus, the stronghold of aris- 
 tocracy, was broken. In order that the people might 
 become qualified to exert their influence in government 
 he secured the payment of citizens who served on the jury 
 or attended the meetings of the- popular assembly. To 
 gain their favor as well as to promote their education free 
 tickets to the theaters and other places of amusement were 
 supplied. Never before had any people enjoyed such 
 perfect political liberty nor obtained so intimate a knowl- 
 edge of public affairs. 
 
 "Athens, thus ruled, became a great imperial city, ex- 
 tending protection to the less powerful states and exact- 
 ing from them in return obedience and tribute. Her fleet 
 became mistress of the eastern Mediterranean; wealth 
 flowed into her treasury, and most of the islands of the 
 iEgean, with many colonies and conquered territories, 
 acknowledged her sway/' — Quackenbos. . 
 
 The riches that Pericles obtained were faithfully laid 
 out in increasing the navy and ornamenting the city of 
 Athens. His enemies accused him of appropriating 
 money from the common treasury to adorn Athens " as 
 a vain woman decks herself out with jewels." Pericles 
 replied that the money was contributed by the league 
 for protection against the Persians, "and so long as the 
 Athenians kept the enemy at a distance they had a right 
 to use the money as they pleased." It was his design 
 that the arts and crafts at home should be employed and 
 have their share of the public moneys as well as those 
 maintained in the armaments abroad. 
 
 The summit of the Acropolis, a level plain eight hun- 
 dred feet in length and nearly four hundred in breadth, 
 
57 • - 
 
 was chosen as the site for those masterpieces of archi- 
 tecture which were erected by Pericles and other states- 
 men to be the glory of their own age and the admiration 
 of posterity. Here were erected the unrivaled Parthe- 
 non, the entrance to the citadel or Propylaaa, the treas- 
 ury, and the courts. At the foot of the Acropolis were 
 the Odeum, where musical contests were celebrated, and 
 the theater of Bacchus, where the great tragedies were 
 acted in honor of that deity. (See page 165, Barnes.) 
 
 The lower city itself contained no structures worthy of 
 mention, since the Athenians were forbidden by law to 
 use any display in the construction of their own private 
 dwellings. The Athenian Agora or market-place was 
 surrounded by porticos ornamented by busts and statues, 
 by such paintings as the burning of Troy and the battle 
 of Marathon, and by moral sentences written for the in- 
 struction of the people. It was under the shade of one 
 of these porticos that Zeno taught his disciples, whence 
 his followers were called Stoics, from a Greek word 
 (stoa), signifying a porch. 
 
 The only temple in the lower city was the temple of 
 Theseus, a beautiful structure. It was erected in mem- 
 ory of Theseus, who had ever been the protector of the 
 distressed, and therefore had the privilege of being a 
 sanctuary for slaves and all men of the lower ranks who 
 dreaded persecution. 
 
 As a part of his maritime policy Pericles built the 
 Long Walls connecting Athens with its port Piraeus. 
 "The Long Walls were each between four and five miles 
 in length and sixty feet high. They were defended by 
 numerous towers, which, when Athens became crowded, 
 
58 
 
 were used as shops and private dwellings. The walls 
 were employed as highways, the top being wide enough 
 to allow two chariots to pass conveniently. The founda- 
 tion of the northern wall now forms in part the road-bed 
 of the railroad running from Piraeus to Athens." ''With 
 her communication at sea thus secured, and with a 
 powerful army at her command, Athens could bid defi- 
 ance to her foes on sea and land."— Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 The Age of Pericles, though it embraced less than the 
 lifetime of a single generation, gave birth to more great 
 men — poets, artists, statesmen and philosophers — than 
 all the world besides has produced in any period of 
 equal length. Yet among all these great names that of 
 Pericles ranks pre-eminent, for his commanding states- 
 manship, his persuasive eloquence, and almost universal 
 genius. 
 
 Strength and Weakness of the Athenian Empire. — 
 Athens had become the most powerful naval state in the 
 world, but she had reached the summit of her greatness. 
 The Persian wars had checked the power of Persia. Rome 
 had not yet risen to prominence, and Carthage was only 
 able to contend with the Greek cities of Sicily. Indis- 
 putably the Hellenes were at this moment the predomi- 
 nant race of the world, and Athens was the real head of 
 Hellas. Never before had there been such a union of 
 the material and intellectual elements of civilization at 
 the seat of empire. " Literature and art had been car- 
 ried to the utmost perfection possible to human genius," 
 yet the Athenian empire rested upon a foundation of 
 sand. The spirit of freedom lived not only in Athens 
 but was smouldering in all her subject cities. The so- 
 
59 ' 
 
 called confederates were the slaves of Athens. "To her 
 they paid tribute. To her courts they were dragged for 
 trial." She was the hateful tyrant whose yoke they 
 were impatient to throw off. If Athens had but known 
 how to retain her rivals as co-workers and fellow-coun- 
 trymen what might not have been the future of the Hel- 
 lenes ! 
 
 Another deep-rooted evil had been planted in the 
 bosom of the democracy itself. Pericles himself had 
 sown the seed. A system which provides payment for 
 the smallest public service and establishes the wholesale 
 distribution of public gifts can not fail to produce a fawn- 
 ing, improvident, idle people. 
 
 The results of this erroneous policy soon became evi- 
 dent in the struggle between Athens and Sparta called 
 the Peloponnesian war. — Adapted from Myers. 
 
 GREEK ART. 
 
 First Grecian Temples. — "In the earliest times the 
 Greeks had no temples save the forests. The statues of 
 the gods were first placed beneath the shelter of a tree 
 or within its hollow trunk. After a time a building 
 rudely constructed of the trunks of trees, and shaped 
 like the habitations of men, marked the first step in ad- 
 vance. Then stone took the place of the wooden frame. 
 With the introduction of a durable material the artist 
 was encouraged to spend more care and labor on his 
 work. Thus architecture began to make rapid strides, 
 and by the century following the age of Solon at Athens, 
 
GO 
 
 there were many beautiful temples in different parts of 
 the Hellenic world." — Myers. 
 
 The Greek Sense of Beauty. — ' ' The Greeks were artists 
 by nature. They possessed an organism that was most 
 exquisitely sensitive to impressions of the beautiful. As 
 it has been expressed, ugliness gave them pain like a 
 blow. Everything they made, from the shrines of their 
 gods to the meanest utensils of domestic use, was beauti- 
 ful. Beauty they placed next to holiness; indeed they 
 almost, or quite, made beauty and moral right the same 
 thing. It is said that it was noted by the Greek as 
 something strange and exceptional that Socrates was 
 good, notwithstanding he was ugly in feature. 
 
 "The first maxim in Greek art, as well as morality, 
 was: ' Nothing in excess.' The Greek eye was offended 
 at any lack of symmetry or proportion in an object. 
 The proportions of the Greek temple are perfect. Clear- 
 ness of outline was another requirement of Greek taste. 
 It is possible that nature itself taught the Greeks these 
 first principles of art. Nature in Greece never goes to 
 extremes. The Grecian mountains and islands are never 
 over large. The climate is never excessively cold nor 
 oppressively hot. And Nature here seems to abhor vague- 
 ness. The singular transparency of the atmosphere 
 lends a remarkable clearness of outline to every object. 
 The Parthenon seems modeled after the hills that lie 
 with such absolute clearness of form against the Attic 
 sky." — Myers. 
 
61 
 
 FOREST HYMN. 
 
 BRYANT. 
 
 The groves were God's first temples. Ere man learned 
 
 To hew the shaft, and lay the architrave, 
 
 And spread the roof above them — ere he framed 
 
 The lofty vault, to gather and roll back 
 
 The sound of anthems ; in the darkling wood, 
 
 Amidst the cool and silence, he knelt down 
 
 And offered to the Mightiest, solemn thanks 
 
 And supplication. For his simple heart 
 
 Might not resist the sacred influences, 
 
 Which, from the stilly twilight of the place, 
 
 And from the gray old trunks that high in heaven 
 
 Mingled their mossy boughs, and from the sound 
 
 Of the invisible breath that swayed at once 
 
 All their green tops, stole over him, and bowed 
 
 His spirit with the thought of boundless power 
 
 And inaccessible majesty. Ah, why 
 
 Should we, in the world's riper years, neglect 
 
 God's ancient sanctuaries, and adore 
 
 Only among the crowd, and under roofs 
 
 That our frail hands have raised? Let me, at least 
 
 Here, in the shadow of this aged wood, 
 
 Offer one hymn— thrice happy, if it find 
 
 Acceptance in his ear. 
 
 Orders of Architecture. — "Before speaking of the most 
 noted temples of Hellas, we must first name the three 
 styles or orders of Grecian architecture. These are the 
 Doric, the Ionic, and the Corinthian. They are distin- 
 guished from one another chiefly by differences in the 
 proportions and ornamentation of the column. 
 
 "The Doric column is without a base, and has a sim- 
 ple and massive capital. The prototype of this order 
 may be seen at Beni Hassan, in Egypt. At first the 
 Doric temples of the Greeks were almost as massive as 
 the Egyptian temples, but later they became more refined. 
 
62 
 
 "The Ionic column is characterized by the spiral 
 volutes of the capital. This form was borrowed from 
 the Assyrians, and was principally employed by the 
 Ionians, whence its name. 
 
 "The Corinthian order is distinguished by its rich 
 capital, formed of acanthus leaves. This type is made 
 up of Egyptian, Assyrian and Grecian elements. The 
 bell shape of the capital is in imitation of the Egyptian 
 style. The addition of the acanthus leaves is said to 
 have been suggested to the artist by the pretty effect of 
 a basket surrounded by the leaves of an acanthus plant, 
 upon which it had accidentally fallen. This order was 
 not much employed in Greece before the time of Alex- 
 ander the great." — Myers. 
 
 The Parthenon. — The finest specimen of Greek archi- 
 tecture is the Parthenon, or temple of Pallas Athena, on 
 the Acropolis. It was built in the Doric order of purest 
 Pentelic marble, embellished by the sculptures of Phid- 
 ias, and by bright colorings. The color is not seen now 
 except in odd fragments dug from the ground, but all is 
 a beautiful gold brown transformed by the Attic dust of 
 ages. (See page 147, Mahaffy.) The renown of this 
 masterpiece of architecture is not due to its vastness but 
 to its marvelous symmetry, and the perfection of even 
 the invisible parts. This extraordinary finish, which 
 can only be seen from the roof, or by opening a wall, 
 proves that the builders wrought for the glory of their 
 god, and not for the praise of man. Longfellow has 
 skillfully woven this thought into his poem of "The 
 Builders: " 
 
63 
 
 " In the elder days of art 
 
 Builders wrought with greatest care 
 Each minute and unseen part, 
 For the gods are everywhere." 
 
 (Page 97, Indiana Fifth Reader.) 
 
 "The temple contained three statues of Minerva or 
 Pallas Athena, one of olive wood so ancient that it was 
 said to have fallen from heaven, one of marble and one 
 of gold and ivory, the work of Phidias, and deemed, next 
 to his statue of the Olympic Jupiter, the greatest triumph 
 of sculpture." — Dr. Goldsmith. (See page 181, Barnes.) 
 
 The wonderful frieze which ornamented the temple 
 was also the work of Phidias. It represented a proces- 
 sion of youths in an Athenian festival, which was cele- 
 brated every four years in honor of the patron goddess 
 of Athens. 
 
 "After standing for more than two thousand years as 
 a pagan temple, a Christian church and a Mohammedan 
 mosque, it finally was made to serve as a Turkish pow- 
 der magazine in a war with the Venetians in 1687. Dur- 
 ing the progress of this contest a bomb fired the maga- 
 zine, and more than half of this masterpiece of ancient 
 art was shivered into fragments. The front is still quite 
 perfect, and is the most prominent feature of the Acrop- 
 olis at the present day. The larger part of the frieze is 
 now. in the British museum, the Parthenon having been 
 despoiled of its coronal of sculptures by Lord Elgin." — 
 Myers . 
 
 Temple of Diana. — "The temple of Diana at Ephesus 
 was one of the oldest, as well as one of the most famous, 
 of the sacred edifices of the Greeks. Crcesus gave lib- 
 erally of his wealth to ornament the shrine. It was 
 
64 
 
 known far and wide as one of the Seven Wonders of the 
 World. Alexander placed within the shrine his own 
 portrait, worth $30,000. The value of the gifts to the 
 temple was beyond all calculation; kings and states vied 
 with one another in splendid donations. Painters and 
 sculptors were eager to have their masterpieces assigned 
 a place within its walls, so that it became a great national 
 gallery of paintings and statuary. The Grecian temples 
 were, in a certain sense, banks of deposit. They con- 
 tained special chambers or vaults for the safe-keeping of 
 valuables . ' ' — -Myers . 
 
 " Temple at Olympia was built of porous stone, the 
 roof being tiled with Pentelic marble. It stood on the 
 banks of the Alpheus, in a sacred grove of plane and 
 olive trees. The statue of Jupiter, by Phidias, was so 
 superstitiously venerated that not to have seen it was con- 
 sidered a real calamity. The statue, sixty feet high, was 
 seated on an elaborately sculptured throne of cedar, in- 
 laid with gold, ivory, ebony and precious stones; like the 
 statue of Athena in the Parthenon, the face, feet and 
 body were of ivory; the eyes were brilliant jewels and 
 the hair and beard pure gold. The drapery was beaten 
 gold, enameled with flowers. One hand grasped a scep- 
 ter, composed of precious metals and surmounted by an 
 eagle; in the other, like Athena, he held a golden statue 
 of victory. The statue was so high, in proportion to the 
 building, that the Greeks were wont to say that ' if the 
 god should attempt to rise he would burst open the roof.' 
 The effect of its great size was to impress the beholder 
 with the pent-up power and majesty of the greatest of the 
 gods. A copy of the head of this statue is in the Vati- 
 
65 . 
 
 can. The statue itself, removed to Constantinople by the 
 Emperor Theodosius I, was lost in the disastrous fire 
 (A. D. 475) which destroyed the library in that city. At 
 the same time perished the Venus of Cnidos by Praxiteles, 
 which the ancients ranked next to the Phidian Zeus and 
 Athena . ' ' — Myers . 
 
 DECLINE OF GREECE. 
 
 "The Peloponnesian Wars (431-404 B. C), is the 
 name given to that long struggle between the two great 
 representatives of aristocracy and democracy — Sparta 
 and Athens." A league including the most powerful 
 states of continental Greece was formed to humble the 
 power of the Athenians. "A slight cause sufficed to 
 provoke hostilities." A dispute having arisen between 
 Corinth and one of her island colonies — Cocyra, Athens 
 favored the latter, and sent a fleet against the Corinth- 
 ians. " Corinth complained to the Peloponnersian al- 
 liance at Sparta. Other states brought charges against 
 Athens and finally war was declared. 
 
 11 A Spartan army was soon overrunning Attica, but 
 Pericles gathered the people within the walls of Athens 
 and confined himself to naval operations on the Pelop- 
 onnesian coasts. He would not risk an engagement 
 with the Spartans, replying to those who demanded to be 
 led against the enemy, ' Trees cut down may shoot 
 again, but men are not to be replaced.' 
 
 " The crowded condition of the city brought on a pes- 
 tilence, which carried off the inhabitants by thousands, 
 and among them Pericles himself (429 B. C.) His 
 
66 
 
 death left Athens in the hands of demagogues, who were 
 ready to sacrifice the public interests to their own selfish 
 purposes." Still Athens triumphed for a while. — 
 Quackenbos. 
 
 At the end of twenty-seven years of almost constant 
 warfare, 404 B. C, the proud city was doomed. " Her 
 treasury was empty, ber allies had forsaken her, Persian 
 gold lent weight to the Lacedaemonian sword. Sparta 
 having captured the Athenian squadron, blockaded the 
 city itself. Famine threatened, and the imperial city 
 surrendered 404 B.C. Her fortifications were destroyed 
 and the Long Walls were demolished amid the insulting 
 triumphs of music. 
 
 Thus ended the supremacy of Athens as a naval 
 power, but she still remained "mistress of Greece in art 
 and literature." 
 
 Oppressive Rule of Sparta. — Sparta had assumed the 
 character of Liberator of Greece, but the cities found 
 that they had simply exchanged masters. "Instead, 
 however, of the rule of a polished state they now must 
 submit to the harsh, rapacious laws of Sparta." 
 
 "At Athens the democratic constitution was abolished 
 and the government placed in the hands of thirty aristo- 
 crats called the Thirty Tyrants." These men ruled with 
 such notorious injustice and cruelty that their terror was 
 quickly ended and the democracy re-established, 403 
 B. C. — Quackenbos. 
 
 Socrates. — "The unjust doom of the philosopher Soc- 
 rates darkens the next page of Athenian history. He 
 was the most enlightened of heathen sages, taught the 
 immortality of the soul, and looked above the absurd 
 
67 . 
 
 mythology of his native land for something higher and 
 purer to believe. Charged with setting up new deities 
 and corrupting the young, he was sentenced to drink the 
 fatal hemlock.' In vain his friends provided means of 
 escape and besought him to fly. He firmly refused to 
 violate the laws, and calmly drained the cup of poison 
 in the midst of his weeping associates." — Quackenbos. 
 
 (Page 175, Barnes ; chapter xxiii, Miss Yonge's Y. 
 Folks' H.) 
 
 Xenophon and Plato were two of his distinguished dis- 
 ciples. (See Retreat of the Ten Thousand, chapter xxii, 
 Miss Yonge ; Guerber's Greek Stories.) 
 
 Theban Rule.— (See Guerber and Miss Yonge.) When 
 the oppressive rule of Sparta was at its height there arose 
 in Thebes a great general Epaminondas, who made the 
 Theban army the best in all Greece. "The famous vic- 
 tory of Leuctra (371 B. C), in which four thousand 
 Lacedaemonians, together with their king, were slain, 
 secured for Thebes the sovereignty of Greece." On this 
 famous field the Spartans were beaten for the first time 
 in history. Epaminondas drew up his troops in a column 
 fifty men deep, with which he dashed at the middle of 
 the Spartan army, which was only three lines deep. The 
 plan succeeded perfectly. The Spartan king was carried 
 dying from the field, and Epaminondas had won the 
 most difficult victory ever won by a Greek. So far from 
 being uplifted by it, he only replied that his greatest 
 pleasure was in thinking how it would gratify his father 
 and mother. (See page 147, Barnes.) 
 
 When the defeat became known in Sparta the fathers 
 
68 
 
 and relations of those who had fallen in battle went to 
 the temples to thank the gods and congratulate each 
 other upon their glory and good fortune, whilst the rela- 
 tions of those who had escaped were overwhelmed with 
 grief and affliction. 
 
 The law of the Spartans condemned the survivors of a 
 defeat to be degraded from all honor. They were to ap- 
 pear publicly in mean, dirty and patched garments, and 
 to go half shaved, and whoever met them in the streets 
 might insult and beat them without their daring to make 
 any resistance. On this occasion such numbers had in- 
 curred the penalties of the law, many of whom were of 
 the best families, that they feared the execution of it 
 might excite some public commotion. The king was 
 urged to abolish the law, but not wishing to do that, he 
 made a public declaration that the law should lie dor- 
 mant for that single day, and thus saved the citizens 
 from infamy. 
 
 Epaminondas, the victorious general of the Thebans, 
 now sought to restore the freedom of the enslaved states 
 of Greece and form a union against the further tyranny 
 of Sparta. Athens at first aided him, and then, jealous 
 of his success, sided with the Lacedsemons. 
 
 A battle was fought at Mantinea, 362 B. C, and in 
 the very moment of victory, Epaminondas fell pierced 
 by a javalin. " The weapon remained in his breast, nor 
 would his friends remove it, knowing that he would die 
 the instant it was withdrawn. The Theban chief bore 
 the agony of his wound until assured that his triumph 
 was complete. 'Then, all is well,' he said, and drawing 
 out the fatal spear-head, breathed his last. In answer 
 
69 - 
 
 to the sorrowing spectators who lamented that so great a 
 man should die childless Epaminondas exclaimed, 'I 
 leave you two fair daughters — -Leuctra and Mantinea.' " 
 —Adapted from Goldsmith. 
 
 " Epaminondas was a pure, unselfish patriot, a refined, 
 moral, and generous citizen. Cicero calls him the great- 
 est man Greece ever produced. 
 
 "The battle of Mantinea, which all Greece watched in 
 suspense, was indecisive in its results. Thebes, the 
 head of Greece while Epaminondas lived, now sank to 
 her former level. The glory of Hellas had departed. 
 Exhausted by these struggles, and torn by the social and 
 sacred wars that followed, she rapidly declined. Her 
 ruin was due to the mutual jealousies of the several states. 
 Disunited and demoralized Greece at last lay prostrate 
 and ready for the spoiler — -and in Philip, of Macedon, 
 the spoiler was soon to appear.'' — Quackenbos. 
 
 THE AGES. 
 
 BRYANT. 
 
 And virtue can not dwell with slaves, nor reign 
 G'er those who cower to take a tyrant's yoke: 
 
 She left the down-trod nations in disdain, 
 And flew to Greece, when liberty awoke, 
 
 New-born, amid those beautiful vales, and broke 
 Scepter and chain with her fair, youthful hands, 
 
 As the rock shivers in the thunder-stroke. 
 And lo! in full-grown strength, an empire stands 
 Of leagued and rival states, the wonder of the lands. 
 
70 
 
 O Greece, thy flourishing cities were a spoil 
 
 Unto each other ; thy hard hand oppressed 
 And crushed the helpless ; thou didst make thy soil 
 
 Drunk with the blood of those that loved thee best ; 
 And thou didst drive, from thy unnatural breast, 
 
 Thy just and brave to die in distant climes ; 
 Earth shuddered at thy deeds, and sighed for rest 
 
 From thine abominations ; after times 
 
 That yet shall read thy tale, will tremble at thy crimes. 
 
 Yet there was that within thee which has saved 
 
 Thy glory and redeemed thy blotted name ; 
 The story of thy better deeds, engraved 
 
 On fame's unmoldering pillar, puts to shame 
 Our chiller virtue ; the high art to tame 
 
 The whirlwind of the passions was thine own ; 
 And the pure ray that from thy bosom came, 
 
 Far over many a land and age has shone, 
 
 And mingles with the light that beams from God's own throne. 
 
 THE MACEDONIAN EMPIRE. 
 
 Macedonia was a mountainous country north of Thes- 
 saly. Its early history is uncertain, but though the 
 Macedonians themselves spoke a rude language and were 
 deemed by the Greeks as almost barbarians, their kings 
 claimed to have descended from Hercules, and were per- 
 mitted to take part in the Olympic games. 
 
 Philip of Macedon. — During the period of Theban su- 
 premacy in Greece there were rival competitors who 
 claimed the throne of Macedonia and the country was 
 distracted by civil wars. The Thebans sent an army into 
 Macedonia to support the cause of the rightful heirs, and 
 Philip, then a boy, was sent as a hostage to Thebes. 
 
71 . 
 
 At the death of his brother, Philip became king. He 
 was twenty-four years of age and had received a consid- 
 erable part of his education under Epaminondas at The- 
 bes. "There 'he became acquainted with the military 
 system of the Thebans, studied the Greek character, and 
 acquired that diplomacy which afterward gained him 
 many a bloodless victory." 
 
 Formation of Phalanx. — His first care in taking up 
 the reins of government was to gain the affections of his 
 people and to raise their spirits, for they had become 
 very much disheartened by heavy losses in battle. " His 
 next step was to train and exercise them and reform 
 their discipline." "Philip improved on the Theban 
 tactics by instituting the Macedonian phalanx, a body of 
 16,000 heavily armed foot soldiers." Each soldier car- 
 ried a shield and a spear twenty-four feet long. When 
 they advanced, thej r were taught to lock their shields to- 
 gether, so as to form a wall, and they stood in ranks, one 
 behind the other, so that the front row had four spear 
 points projecting before them. (See page 149, Barnes.) 
 
 Philip also formed a guard of honor at his court com- 
 posed of the sons of the nobles. Thus there grew up in 
 his service a trusty band of followers who were his com- 
 rades, his friends, and his officers. 
 
 ' ■ In less than two years he triumphed over the enemies 
 in his own kingdom and was ready to enlarge its boun- 
 daries. He availed himself of the quarrels of the Greeks 
 to seize their colonial cities, conquered Thessaly, and took 
 possession of the rich gold mines of Thrace. Through 
 the folly of the Thebans he was invited to interfere in 
 the so-called sacred war, and as a victor he was rewarded 
 
72 
 
 by a seat in the Am-phic-ty-on'-ic Council." (See page 
 115, Barnes. ) 
 
 Thus he gained a footing which forwarded his scheme 
 for subjugating the entire peninsula. 
 
 "The Athenians, meanwhile", the only people that 
 might have checked Philip's career, were cajoled by the 
 crafty king and remained inactive. There was one at 
 Athens, however, that saw through Philip's wiles — the 
 eloquent Demosthenes, who, for years, struggled nobly 
 against him in defense of Grecian liberty." — Compiled 
 from Goldsmith and Quackenbos. (See page 262, Miss 
 Yonge. ) 
 
 Cheer one' a. — Roused at last by the burning eloquence 
 of Demosthenes, Athens and Thebes made a desperate 
 stand at Chaeronea, in Bceotia, against the Macedonian 
 monarch, who had passed Thermopylce and was occupy- 
 ing the cities of Greece. But the charge of the phalanx 
 proved irresistible. The allies were totally defeated ; 
 and while Demosthenes, brave as he had been in words, 
 fled from the field, the Sacred Band of Epaminondas was 
 cut down to a man, thus gloriously dying with the inde- 
 pendence of Hellas, 338 B. C. Philip thus became 
 master of Greece, and, by a council of all the states ex- 
 cept Sparta, was appointed to lead their united forces 
 against Persia. But before the preparations for the ex- 
 pedition were completed, Philip met his death by the 
 dagger of an assassin when celebrating his daughter's 
 nuptials, 336 B. C. 
 
 (See anecdotes of Philip: Barnes, Miss Yonge, Guer- 
 ber. ) 
 
 Alexander the Great. — Philip's son, known in history 
 
73 * 
 
 as Alexander the Great, succeeded to the throne when 
 he was but twenty years old. Certain noted events 
 transpiring on the day of his birth, namely, the victory 
 gained by Philip's chief general, and the winning of the 
 prize at the Olympic games, also the burning the tem- 
 ple of Diana at Ephesus, were considered, in that super- 
 stitious age, premonitions of future greatness. 
 ! In order to insure the accomplishment of these predic- 
 tions, Philip obtained for his son the best masters, and 
 at the age of fifteen placed him under the care of Aris- 
 totle, pupil of Plato, and one of the greatest and best of 
 philosophers. Alexander was an apt and attentive stu- 
 dent, and easily mastered not only sciences but polite 
 literature also. " He was greatly delighted with Homer's 
 Iliad, and, it is thought, modeled himself upon the war- 
 like heroes of that poem." The character of Achilles, 
 said to have been his own ancestor, he considered most 
 worthy of his imitation. 
 
 " In early life Alexander gave proof of his military 
 genius. He excelled in all manly sports, and when very 
 young subdued a fiery steed called Buceph'alus, or Bull- 
 head, because of a white mark like a bull's face on its 
 forehead." The horse was so strong and restive that 
 nobody could manage it, and Philip was sending it away, 
 when Alexander begged leave to try. " First he turned 
 his head to the sun, having perceived that its antics 
 were caused by fear of its own shadow ; then stroking 
 and caressing it as he held the reins, he gently dropped 
 his fluttering mantle and leaped on its back, sitting 
 firm through all its leaps and bounds, but using neither 
 whip nor spur nor angry voice, till at last the creature 
 
74 
 
 was brought to perfect obedience. This gentle courage 
 and firmness so delighted Philip that he embraced the 
 boy with tears of joy, and gave him the horse. Buceph- 
 alus afterwards carried his master through many cam- 
 paigns, but never allowed any other to mount him." — 
 Miss Yonge. 
 
 "At an early age Alexander was introduced by his 
 father into public life. He received the Persian ambas- 
 sadors when not quite sixteen, and astonished them by 
 his pertinent inquiries respecting the political condition 
 and revenues of Persia. Soon after he was appointed 
 regent of Macedon, while his father was besieging By- 
 zantium. Two years after he commanded the left wing 
 of the Macedonian army at the battle of Chserone'a,. and 
 cut down the sacred Theban band." — Goldsmith. 
 
 "As soon as Alexander was proclaimed king he 
 marched to Corinth, and the assembled states of Greece 
 were again compelled to recognize the supremacy of 
 Macedon, while they made him commander-in-chief of 
 the Grecian forces in the projected enterprise against the 
 Persians." 
 
 Before leaving for Persia, however, he determined to 
 put his own country into a secure condition ; so he turned 
 northward to subdue the wild tribes in Thrace. He was 
 gone four months, "and the Thebans, misled by a false 
 report of the young prince's death, rebelled. Suddenly 
 Alexander appeared before the city, carried it by storm, 
 and razed it to the ground, sparing only the house of the 
 poet Pindar. The Thebans that survived were sold 
 into slavery, and all Greece, terror-stricken by this fear- 
 
75 
 
 ful example, abjectly submitted to the conqueror." — 
 Quackenbos. ( Story of Diogenes, page 275, Miss Yonge. ) 
 
 Invasion of Persia. — "Being desirous to consult the 
 oracle at Delphi as to his expedition into Asia, Alexander 
 visited the temple of Apollo. But as it was an unlucky 
 day, the priestess refused to approach the shrine. The 
 king grasped her arm and drew her forward. ' Ah! my 
 son,' said she, ' you are irresistible/ l Enough,' ex- 
 claimed Alexander, 'I desire no other response.' 
 
 " Having completed his preparations and made his 
 father's councilor governor of Macedon in his absence, 
 Alexander started for the East, 334 B. C." With the 
 small army of but 30,000 foot and 5,000 cavalry, he was 
 hoping to subdue a country "that stretched from the 
 iEgean to Scythia and from the Euxine to the African 
 deserts. Such was his liberality in gifts before he went 
 away, that when he was asked what he had left for him- 
 self, he answered, 'my hopes.' His intentions were not 
 merely to conquer that great world, but to tame it, bring 
 it into order, and teach the men there the wisdom and 
 free spirit of the great world; for he had learned from 
 Aristotle that to make men true, brave, virtuous and free 
 was the way to be god-like. It was in his favor that the 
 direct line of Persian kings had failed and that there had 
 been wars and factions all through the last reign ."— M iss 
 Yonge. 
 
 . Alexander Crosses the Hellespont. — Alexander steered 
 his own vessel across the Hellespont and was the first to 
 leap ashore. He first visited the plain of Troy and all 
 the scenes described in the Iliad and then offered sacri- 
 fices at the mound, said to be the tomb of Achilles. 
 
76 
 
 The Persian forces gave battle to the Greeks on the 
 banks of the river Granicus, a stream flowing into the 
 Euxine. "Alexander wore a white plume in his helm it 
 so that all might know him. It was a grand victory, 
 though not without much hard fighting. Alexander was 
 once in great danger, but was saved by Clitus, the son of 
 his nurse. The Persian army was so entirely routed that 
 no army was left in Asia Minor, and the satrap killed 
 himself in despair. Alexander forbade his troops to 
 plunder the country, telling them that it was his own, 
 and that the people were as much his subjects as they 
 were. Sardis and Ephesus fell into his hands without 
 a blow; and to assist in rebuilding the great temple of 
 Diana, he granted all the tribute hitherto paid to the 
 great king." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 "On the approach of winter, leave of absence was 
 given to the Macedonians to visit their families; and they 
 on their return spread the fame of their victories through 
 all Greece. Alexander did not spend the winter in idle- 
 ness; he extended his conquest over several minor prov- 
 inces, arranged the government of those already sub- 
 dued, and removed his headquarters to Gordium, a 
 central city of Asia Minor." 
 
 "Gordium was celebrated as the residence of king 
 Midas, and the line of Phrygian kings descended from 
 him." Here he was shown the famous Gordian knots, 
 which, it was said, no one could untie except the one 
 destined to be the conqueror of Asia. "How the king 
 effected his purpose is uncertain. Some say that he cut 
 the knot with his sword, others, that he really solved 
 the difficulty; certain it is they believed him to have 
 
77 
 
 fulfilled the conditions of the oracle, and to be conse- 
 quently the destined lord of Asia." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 " In the spring he dashed down through the Taurus 
 mountains, to take possession of the city of Tarsus." 
 By this rapid march Memnon, the Persian general, was 
 prevented from carrying out his plan for devastating 
 the country. "The fatigue of the march and the heat 
 of the weather overpowered the young king; hoping to 
 refresh himself, he imprudently plunged into the cold 
 waters of the Cnidus, a mountain stream, and was in- 
 stantaneously seized with violent fever, which threatened 
 fatal consequences. While suffering under this disease, 
 Alexander exhibited a noble example of intrepid courage 
 and generous confidence. He received a letter, denounc- 
 ing his physician Philip as a traitor, who had been bribed 
 to take him off by poison, at the very moment that the 
 physician stood by his bedside with the medicinal 
 draught. The king, presenting the letter to Phillip, un- 
 hesitatingly drank off the portion; his confidence was 
 amply repaid, for the medicine brought about- a favor- 
 able change, and in a short time he was restored to his 
 anxious army." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 Battle of Issus. — Darius, the Persian king, was now 
 advancing with a large army, "in which was a band of 
 Spartans, who hated the Persians less than they did the 
 Macedonians. The Persian march was a splendid sight. 
 The army never marched until sunrise, when silver altars 
 bearing the sacred fire were carried first, attended by a 
 band of youths, one for each day in the year ; then fol- 
 lowed the chariot of the sun drawn by white horses, 
 after which came a horse consecrated to the sun, and led 
 
78 
 
 by white-robed attendants. " The king himself sat in a 
 high, richly adorned chariot, wearing a purple mantle, 
 encrusted with precious stones and encompassed with his 
 immortal band, in robes adorned with gold, and carry- 
 ing silver-handled lances. In covered chariots were his 
 mother, his wives and children, their baggage occupy- 
 ing six hundred mules and three hundred camels, all 
 protected by so enormous an army every one thought 
 the Macedonians must be crushed." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 Nevertheless Alexander attacked them at Issus and 
 gained a great victory. "When Darius saw his immor- 
 tals giving way he fled from the field with so much ra- 
 pidity that his chariot, bow, and royal mantle fell into 
 the hands of the victors. " His army, even to the cav- 
 alry, imitated his example. "The Persian camp, with 
 all its enormous wealth, was the immediate result of the 
 victory. Among the captives were the mother, queen, 
 and daughters of Darius, whom Alexander treated with 
 the greatest kindness and generosity." — Dr. Goldsmith. 
 
 "He showed the mother of Darius special kindness 
 and respect, even more than she had ever received from 
 her own kindred. He never grieved her but once, and 
 that was when he showed her a robe spun, woven, and 
 worked by his mother and sisters for himself, and offered 
 to have her grandchildren taught to make the like. She, 
 however, thought he meant to make slaves of them, as 
 Persian ladies were not brought up to work; so that he 
 had to reassure her, and tell her that the distaff, loom, 
 and needle were held to give honor to Greek ladies." — 
 Miss Yonge. 
 
 Siege of Tyre. — Darius had fled beyond the rivers and 
 
79 - 
 
 Alexander thought it best to reduce the western part of 
 the empire before following him. The greater part of 
 Syria and Phoenicia submitted to Alexander without 
 opposition. Tyre alone closed her gates against him. 
 
 The city was built on an island, half a mile from 
 shore and was fortified by lofty walls, their foundations 
 secured by butresses projecting into the sea. The in- 
 habitants relying upon the security of their situation 
 set him at defiance. 
 
 Alexander immediately made preparations to besiege 
 the town, but soon found the task the most difficult one 
 he had undertaken. It was accomplished by the aid of 
 the Sidonian fleet after a siege of seven months. He 
 constructed a causeway two hundred feet wide and half 
 a mile long over which he rolled his ponderous machines 
 and breached the wall, thus carrying the place by 
 desperate assault. "Eight thousand of the inhabitants 
 were slain and thirty thousand sold into slavery, a terri- 
 ble warning to those cities that should dare to close their 
 gates against the Macedonian." — Myers. 
 
 Jerusalem .—-" From Phoenicia, Alexander marched to 
 Palestine and found no town to resist his progress but 
 Gaza, which was bravely defended by the governor." 
 It was finally taken by storm, and a cruel slaughter was 
 made of the citizens. "Alexander next approached 
 Jerusalem expecting another tedious siege. Instead of 
 this, he beheld a long procession in white' bordered with 
 blue coming out of the gates to meet him. All the 
 Priests and Levites, in their robes, came forth, headed by 
 Jaddua, the High Priest, in his beautiful raiment with 
 the golden mitre on his head inscribed with the name 
 
80 
 
 'Holiness unto the Lord.' When. Alexander beheld 
 the sight, he threw himself from his horse, and adored 
 the name on the mitre. He told his officers that before 
 he set out from home, when he was considering his journey, 
 just such a form as he now beheld had come and bidden 
 him fear not for he should be led into the East and all Persia 
 should be delivered to him. Then the High Priest took 
 him to the outer court of the temple and showed him 
 the very prophecies of Daniel and Zechariah where his 
 own conquests were foretold." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 "Judea now belonged to Alexander, but he treated 
 the people well, allowing them to retain their own relig- 
 ion and laws. He excused the payment of tribute once 
 in seven years, that they might obey the law of Moses, 
 in letting the land lie idle every seventh year. They 
 had only exchanged masters, and Alexander treated 
 them, perhaps, more kindly than the Persians had 
 done." — Edith Ralph. 
 
 "Egypt next attracted the attention of Alexander and 
 thither he led his victorious army, but the Egyptians 
 never had been very faithful subjects of the Persians, by 
 whom their country had been oppressed and their relig- 
 ion insulted. They, therefore, submitted to Alexander, 
 and this important country was acquired without the 
 loss of a single man or the shedding of a drop of blood. 
 Ever anxious to forward the interests of commerce, Al- 
 exander selected the site of Alexandria as the best place 
 for a commercial city. The wisdom of his choice soon 
 appeared, for the new city in a very few years became 
 one of the most prosperous commercial marts in the 
 world. 
 
81 * 
 
 "The fame of the temple of Jupiter Ammon, situated in 
 the oasis of the great desert, induced Alexander to pay a 
 visit to this celebrated oracle. He accordingly made his 
 way thither with a chosen band. The Macedonians were 
 astonished at beholding the fertility of the oasis, which 
 seemed like a green island in the sandy ocean." — Dr. 
 Goldsmith. 
 
 Eighty priests, with maidens dancing about them, 
 came to meet him, bearing the emblem of their god, a 
 golden disc adorned with precious stones and placed in 
 a huge golden ship. Alexander was taken alone to the 
 innermost shrine, where he must have heard much to 
 exalt himself , forever after this he wore ram's horns on 
 his helmet, which were the sign of the god, and seemed 
 to consider himself no mere man, but the son of Jupiter, 
 like Bacchus or Hercules of old. — Compiled from Miss 
 Yonge. 
 
 ' 'Alexander then returned across the desert to Mem- 
 phis, and having provided for the future government of 
 Egypt, brought his army back to Syria." — Goldsmith. 
 
 Battle of Arbe'la. — The next summer he set out for 
 the East to encounter the Persian army under Darius. 
 "A bridge was thrown across the Euphrates, but the 
 Tigris was forded by the foot soldiers, holding their 
 shields above their heads out of the water." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 On the other side Darius was waiting with an army 
 over " a million strong, besides being provided with ele- 
 phants and chariots, armed with scythes. But this army 
 was an inert mass, without spirit or energy, ready to 
 
82 
 
 fight, indeed, for their sovereign but as ready to fly when 
 he fell or retreated. 
 
 "Alexander came in sight of the enemy at too late an 
 hour, and both armies spent the night on the field of 
 battle. The Macedonians, not' being formed in line, 
 were permitted to sleep, but Darius, fearing that if his 
 ranks were disturbed it would be impossible to reorgan- 
 ize such a mighty host, compelled his men to stand to 
 their arms all night." — Goldsmith. 
 
 "Alexander's general, Parmenio, wished him to take 
 advantage of the darkness and attack the Persians at 
 once; but he only answered, ' it would be base to steal a 
 victory.' When Parmenio came in the morning to say 
 that all was ready, he found his master fast asleep, and 
 asked him how he could rest so calmly with one of the 
 greatest battles in the world before him. ' How could we 
 not be calm,' replied Alexander, 'since the enemy is 
 coming to deliver himself into our hands.'" — Miss 
 Yonge. 
 
 " Alexander wore in this battle a short coat girt close 
 around him; over that a breast-plate of linen strongly 
 quilted, which he had taken in the battle of Issus. His 
 helmet was of polished iron, and shone like silver. To 
 this was fixed a gorget, set with precious stones. His 
 sword was light and of the finest temper. The belt he 
 wore was superb and was given him by the Rhodians as 
 a mark of respect. In reviewing and exercising he spared 
 Bucephalus, but he rode him in battle, and when he 
 mounted his back it was always a signal for the onset." 
 — Goodrich. 
 
 Darius intended to fold the wings of his army around 
 
83 * 
 
 the Greeks, " but Alexander, foreseeing this, had warned 
 his men to be ready to face about on any side. He then 
 drew them up in shape of a wedge, and broke into the 
 very heart of the Immortal band, and was on the point 
 of taking Darius prisoner when he was called off to assist 
 Parmenio, whose division had been broken, so that the 
 camp was threatened. Alexander's presence soon made 
 the victory complete. Darius, however, had time to es- 
 cape and was galloping on a swift horse to the Armenian 
 mountains. ' ' — Miss Yonge. 
 
 He was soon afterwards treacherously slain by his own 
 satraps, who were endeavoring to escape from the pursu-. 
 ing Macedonians. " Darius w r as in the last agony of 
 death when a Macedonian soldier came up and brought 
 him a little water to cool his raging thirst; he expressed 
 great anxiety to see his generous conqueror, and thank 
 him in person for the kindness that had been shown to 
 his mother and family, but before Alexander came up he 
 expired." — Goldsmith. "Alexander caused his body to 
 be embalmed and buried in the sepulchers of the Persian 
 kings . ' ' — Miss Yonge . 
 
 Entrance into Babylon. — "Alexander was now declared 
 king of all Asia, and, though this might seem the sum- 
 mit of his glory, it was the point at which his char- 
 acter begins to decline. "He, however, continued his 
 conquests." — Goodrich. " He marched in through the 
 brazen gates of Babylon, when the streets were strewn 
 with flowers, and presents of lions and leopards borne 
 forth to greet the conqueror. The great temple of Bel 
 had been partly ruined by the fire-worshiping Persians, 
 and Alexander greatly pleased the Babylonians by de- 
 
84 
 
 ereeing that they might restore it with his aid." — Miss 
 Yonge. 
 
 Susa and Persepolis. — " After staying thirty days in 
 Babylon, he went on to Susa, where he found the brazen 
 statues which Xerxes had carried away from the sack of 
 Athens. He sent them home again to show the Greeks 
 he had avenged their cause." — Miss Yonge. "He also 
 seized incredible quantities of gold and silver ($57,000,- 
 000 it is said), the treasure of the Great King. From 
 Susa his march was to Persepolis, where he secured a 
 treasure twice as great. Here he wreaked vengeance, for 
 all Greece had suffered at the hands of the Persians. 
 Many of the inhabitants were massacred and others sold 
 into slavery; while the palaces of the Persian king were 
 given to the flames. Alexander now assumed the pomp 
 and state of an Oriental monarch, and required the most 
 obsequeous homage from all who approached him." — 
 Myers. 
 
 The Greeks now wished to return home and keep all 
 of the empire subject to them; but this was not Alexan- 
 der's plan. His ambition was to spread Greek wisdom 
 and training over all the world, and to rule Persians as 
 well as Greeks for their own good. He permitted the 
 Greeks to return home with pay, rewards, and honors, 
 but he retained his Macedonians. The adoption of the 
 Persian dress and customs, and conferring marks of 
 honor on Persian nobles aroused the jealousy of several 
 of his captains. "There were murmurs and Parmenio 
 was accused of being engaged in a conspiracy and was 
 put to death. It was the first sad stain on Alexander's 
 life, and he fell into a fierce angry mood, being fretted 
 
85 . 
 
 by the murmurs of the Macedonians and harrassed by 
 the 'difficulties of the wild mountainous countries on the 
 border of Persia where he went to hunt down the last 
 Persians who held out against him." — Miss Yonge. 
 
 Conquest in Aryan Home. — '-'After subduing many tribes 
 that dwelt about the Caspian Sea and among the moun- 
 tainous region of what is now Afghanistan, he boldly 
 conducted his soldiers over the snowy and dangerous 
 passes of the Hindu Kush, and descended into the region 
 described as the first home of the Aryan people." — 
 Myers . 
 
 "A mountain-fortress on a steep rock surrounded with 
 snow, for a time delayed his progress, its defenders when 
 summoned to yield, tauntlingly asking whether he had 
 winged soldiers." " Irritated by this taunt, Alexander 
 offered large sums to those who would scale the cliff." 
 "Three hundred picked men, driving iron spikes into 
 the ice-bound face of the rock and drawing themselves 
 up with ropes, made the ascent under cover of the night, 
 and at dawn the barbarians surrendered. Among the 
 captives was the Princess Roxana, ' the Pearl of the 
 East,' who became the bride of Alexander." — Quacken- 
 bos. 
 
 Soon after this exploit he was foolish enough to in- 
 dulge in a wine-drinking banquet, where a quarrel arose 
 between himself and Clitus, his dearest friend, and the 
 favorite companion, who had saved his life at the battle 
 of Gran'icus. Both were flushed with wine, and when 
 Clitus, jealous of the fawning flattery of his Persian sub- 
 jects, taunted the king of "his inferiority to his father 
 and ascribed the victories to the valor of himself and 
 
86 
 
 his brother soldiers, Alexander, stung to madness, 
 seized a javelin and laid the injudicious censurer dead 
 at his feet. Scarcely, however, had he perpetrated the 
 crime when he was seized with remorse; his attendants 
 could with difficulty prevent him from laying violent 
 hands on himself; he was hurried to his chamber, where 
 he remained for three days inconsolable; and it was not 
 without difficulty that his mind was again restored to its 
 wonted composure." — Goldsmith. i 
 
 Alexander in India. — "After having established nu- 
 merous cities in this remote region and peopled them 
 with captives and followers who had become weary of 
 war, he recrossed the mountains and led his army down 
 upon the rich plains. of India." — Myers. " Here he re- 
 ceived the submission of thirty-five cities, and founded 
 two more, one of which he named Bucephalus, in honor 
 of his noble horse, which died in the midst of battle 
 without a wound." — Miss Yonge. " Porus, an Indian 
 monarch of gigantic size and strength, mounted on his 
 elephant, bravely disputed the march of the invaders. 
 Being captured and brought before Alexander he was 
 asked what he desired. 'To be treated as a king,' he 
 replied." — Quackenbos. Alexander granted his request, 
 restored his dominions, making him, however, one of 
 his tributaries. , 
 
 They had now reached the banks of the Hy'phasis, a 
 branch of the Indus, and the conqueror wished to push 
 on to the Ganges, but his Macedonians absolutely re- 
 fused to go on further, so he was forced to return. 
 
 Instead of going directly back he built boats and de- 
 scended the Indus, At the head of the delta he founded 
 
87 
 
 a city called Alexandria, which " was to be to the trade 
 of India what Alexandria on the Nile was to that of 
 Egypt." — Myers. Then proceeding to the mouth of the 
 river he and' his companions rejoiced to find the sea, 
 though they were amazed at -the ebbing and flowing of 
 the tides, never having seen any in their own Mediterra- 
 nean. 
 
 Re-discovery of Sea Route. — " He now dispatched his 
 trusty admiral, Nearchus, with a considerable fleet, to 
 explore the sea, and to determine whether it communi- 
 cated with the Euphrates. At the same time he resolved 
 to return to Persia along the sea coast, both for the pur- 
 pose of keeping up a connection with his fleet and sub- 
 duing the intervening nations. His march thus lay 
 through the ancient Gedrosia, now Beloochistan, a re- 
 gion frightful with burning deserts." — Myers. "Their 
 sufferings from thirst, the heat of the sun, and the burn- 
 ing sand exceeded anything they had hitherto experi- 
 enced, but the sight of their sovereign sharing in their 
 toils, and submitting to equal privations without a mur- 
 mur, cheered them to fresh exertions." — Goldsmith. At 
 length they reached the shores of the Persian Gulf, and 
 to Alexander's unbounded joy, "he was joined by Near- 
 chus, who had made the voyage from the Indus success- 
 fully, and thus rediscovered one of the most important 
 maritime routes of the world, the knowledge of which, 
 among the Western nations, was never again to be lost." 
 — Myers . 
 
 Return March. — The march of the army through Per- 
 sia was a triumphal procession, and at Susa "he made 
 a nuptial feast for the newly-married people, and nine 
 
88 
 
 thousand persons sat down to the entertainment. Each 
 one was honored with a golden cup." — Goodrich 
 
 Death at Babylon. — "On his return to Babylon Alex- 
 ander determined to make that place his capital and res- 
 idence, and set about various plans for carrying this into 
 effect." — Goodrich. Before he could accomplish them, 
 and just before setting out upon a new expedition into 
 Arabia, he was seized by a fever, brought on, doubtless, 
 by the unhealthy climate and his own excesses, and died, 
 323 B. C, in the thirty-second year of his age. "His 
 body was carried to Alexandria, Egypt, and there en- 
 closed in a golden coffin, over which was raised a splen- 
 did mausoleum." — Myers. 
 
 Character of Alexander. — "Thus perished prematurely 
 this extraordinary chieftain in the vigor of manhood and 
 in the midst of ambitious plans. During his short reign 
 of a dozen years he made Macedonia the mistress of half 
 the world. Yet, though lord of this immense empire, 
 he was slave to his own passions. He surrendered him- 
 self to dissipation, and in the heat of anger committed 
 deeds that he remembered with remorse. 
 
 "Occasionally Alexander displayed unusual greatness 
 of soul, many examples of which have been given. It 
 is told that a cup of water was once offered to him in the 
 desert, but seeing his soldiers gaze upon it with eager- 
 ness, he poured it on the ground, lest the sight of his 
 thirst should aggravate the suffering of his men." — 
 Quackenbos. 
 
 Results of Alexander's Conquests. — "Other invaders 
 have passed over the plains of Asia, both in ancient and 
 modern times, but their career has been like the poison 
 
89 
 
 wind of the desert; traceable only by the ruin and deso- 
 lation that marked their progress. The march of Alex- 
 ander was not wholly attended by evil, for every in- 
 vading army must cause calamity, but the monuments 
 of his glorious career were seventy cities founded under 
 his auspices, commercial marts established on all the 
 principal rivers, and improved systems of agriculture 
 and social life taught to wandering tribes." — Goldsmith. 
 (See Myers. ) As Alexander's son was a helpless infant, 
 the vast dominions were divided among his generals. 
 They soon quarreled, and sanguinary wars desolated the 
 empire. 
 
 Greece and Macedonia. — The Greek cities continued to 
 be under the control of the Macedonian kings, but they 
 were never loyal subjects. When the Roman power 
 arose the Macedonians sent aid to Carthage, thus incur- 
 ring the anger of Rome, which resulted in the subjection 
 to the Italian power (148 B. C). "The dissensions 
 among the Hellenic people led them to become in the 
 hands of intriguing Rome, weapons first for crushing 
 Macedonia, and then for grinding each other to pieces." 
 Myers. Corinth, at this time the most splendid city of 
 all Greece, was taken by the Roman army, and laid in 
 ashes (146 B. C. ). Its commercial superiority was trans- 
 ferred to the islands of Rhodes and Delos, and the won- 
 derful works of art, which beautified the city, were car- 
 ried to Italy. 
 
 Thus Ancient Greece expired. Henceforth it was sim- 
 ply a Roman province. 
 
 Alexandria, the seaport of Egypt, situated on the Ro- 
 setta, mouth of the Nile, was founded by Alexander the 
 
90 
 
 Great just after his conquest of Tyre in (332 B. C). The 
 wisdom of the choice soon became evident for in a few 
 years Alexandria became the meeting place of the East 
 and the West and one of the most prosperous commercial 
 marts of the world. 
 
 When Alexander's empire was divided among his gen- 
 erals Egypt fell to the lot of Ptolemy. He was a wise, 
 clear-headed man, with much of Alexander's spirit of 
 teaching and improving the people under him. The 
 new city of Alexandria was his capital, and here he 
 founded a flourishing Greek kingdom. The Egyptians, 
 protected in their ancient religion, laws, and customs, 
 became faithful subjects. (Having conquered Syria, 
 Phoenicia, and a few other neighboring countries, Ptol- 
 emy transported one hundred thousand Jews to Alexan- 
 dria. ) Finding many of their brethren there they readily 
 made themselves at home in Egypt. They had a temple 
 similar to the one at Jerusalem, and for their use the 
 Old Testament was translated into Greek (275-250 B. C. ) 
 for even Jews spoke Greek. Thus the Greeks for the 
 first time heard of the true God, and Alexander's dream 
 of blending the races of the East and the West had come 
 to be realized. 
 
 Under the rule of the Ptolemies Alexandria became 
 the great emporium of exchange between Asia and Eu- 
 rope. A superb light-house, known as one of the Seven 
 Wonders of the World, stood at the entrance of the har- 
 bor to guide the ships of the world, and a canal to the 
 Red Sea facilitated trade with Arabia and India. 
 
 That Alexandria might also be an intellectual center, 
 Ptolemy founded' the famous museum or college which 
 
91 . 
 
 became the University of the East, and almost as famous 
 as Athens, and established the Alexandrian library. 
 Poets, artists and philosophers were encouraged to settle 
 at Alexandria, and at one time there were as many as 
 fourteen thousand persons iir attendance at the Univer- 
 sity. While wars shook Europe and Asia, scholars of 
 all departments of learning found quiet and safety upon 
 the peaceful banks of the Nile. Greek architects had 
 also contributed to the beauty of the city. Temples, 
 palaces, obelisks and theaters adorned it, and, centrally 
 located in the midst of gardens and fountains, stood the 
 mausoleum erected as Alexander's shrine. 
 
 Following the first three Ptolemies were ten weak- 
 minded successors, under whose rule Alexandria com- 
 menced to decline. After the death of Cleopatra, the 
 last of the Ptolemies, Egypt became a province of Rome. 
 Alexandria remained a seat of learning during the best 
 days of Rome. 
 
 In the seventh century, A. D., it was captured by the 
 Arabs, who brought it under the Mohammedan rule. It 
 is said that "the flames of its four thousand baths were 
 fed for six months with the priceless manuscripts from 
 the library of the Ptolemies." It is now, like all Moham- 
 medan cities, of very little importance in the world, 
 though its harbor is next to Marseilles in size. 
 
PART II. 
 
 HISTORY OF ROME. 
 
 THE GOLDEN AGE. 
 
 Physical Italy. — Italy is a southern peninsula of Eu- 
 rope, lying between the Tuscan and Adriatic seas, and 
 separated from the countries on the north by the Alps, 
 the highest range of mountains in Europe. " These 
 mountains form a semicircle, coming down quite to the 
 sea on the west, thus separating Italy from Gaul, as well 
 as Germany, by a barrier of great difficulty; but on the 
 east they open by low and easy passes to the valleys of 
 the Save and the Danube. 
 
 "The great mountain chain of Italy is that of the 
 Apennines, extending southeasterly the whole extent of 
 the peninsula. The mountains of Sicily are a continu- 
 ation of this chain. This island was, no doubt, a part 
 of the mainland, but was torn from it by some convul- 
 sion of nature. 
 
 "Italy differs from the other peninsula of Europe, 
 being long and narrow in shape. It stretches into the 
 
 (93) 
 
94 
 
 sea in a general southeasterly direction, at its extremity 
 bending sharply to the south, so as to present, rudely, 
 the shape of a boot, the heel of which is turned toward 
 Greece." The great basin between the Alps and the 
 northern Apennines is drained by the Po, and is one of 
 the most fertile valleys of Europe. 
 
 " In Italy proper there are west of the Apennines three 
 principal river systems, the seat in modern times of the 
 three great cities of Florence, Rome, and Naples." The 
 fertile soil of these valleys, combined with the mild cli- 
 mate, influenced by the mountain barriers and the prox- 
 imity of the ocean, led the early people of Italy to become 
 cultivators of the soil, though the care of cattle was a 
 leading part of their industry. "Barley and spelt were 
 their principal crops ; they cultivated the vine at a very 
 early date and received the olive from the Greeks." 
 
 "The coast of Italy was not, like Greece, indented 
 with deep bays, hence the people were not originally 
 seamen." The situation of Rome is an admirable one 
 for commerce, and it was from that industry that Rome 
 gained its first impulse to greatness. — -Compiled from 
 Allen. 
 
 Contrast between Greece and Italy. (See page 204; 
 Barnes. ) 
 
 Founding of Rome. — "There were more than twenty 
 different accounts of the way in which Rome was found- 
 ed, but they all agree in representing its founder and 
 first king as Romulus, who was believed to be a son of 
 the god Mars." — Allen; Barnes' Gen. His., page 205. 
 
 "The original city was on the Palatine Hill. This 
 city was called Roma Quadrata, or Square Rome. Some 
 
95 . 
 
 massive walls of this early town have been discovered in 
 recent years. By degrees the town outgrew its walls and 
 spread over the surrounding heights, and then united 
 with a Sabine city on the Quirinal. In the valley be- 
 tween the Palatine and the Quirinal, swampy and sub- 
 ject to overflow, was the Forum or market-place. Beside 
 it, upon a spot somewhat more elevated, a space was en- 
 closed called the Comitium, for assemblies. The citadel 
 of the new city was upon a spur of the Quirinal called 
 the-Capitoline." — Allen. 
 
 Conquest by Etruscans. — The rising city was in its 
 turn conquered by the Etruscans, a people who lived be- 
 tween the Arno and the Tiber, in the country now called 
 Tuscany. These people were great builders, and were 
 skilled in the arts. The rulers which the Etruscans 
 placed upon the throne were called the Tarquins. They 
 added the adjacent heights to the growing capital and 
 enclosed, its seven hills within walls that lasted nearly 
 eight centuries. Nearly all the rest of Latium was con- 
 quered by them and made tributary to Rome. 
 
 The Public Works of the Tarquins. — Rome was for the 
 first time adorned with splendid temples and other pub- 
 lic works. The most important were three in number. 
 First, the temple of Jupiter, upon the Capitoline Hill, 
 which was known as the Capitolium. 
 
 "As this temple was the central seat of the Roman re- 
 ligion and nationality and was frequently used for meet- 
 ings of the Senate, the name capitol has come to be 
 applied very generally to buildings which are the seat of 
 government. Secondly, a magnificent set of sewers, the 
 principal of which was the one which drained the marshy 
 
96 
 
 valley between the hills and rendered the ground fit for 
 the purposes of the Forum and Comitium. In this 
 structure the principle of the arch was employed, which 
 was in use in other parts of Italy also at this early period. 
 These sewers are still in use. • Thirdly, the city walls 
 which were now for the first time made to include both 
 the Sabine and the Roman towns." — Allen. 
 
 Servius Tullius. — These walls were the work of Servius 
 Tullius, the greatest of the Tarquins and one of the most 
 noted of the seven fabled kings of Rome. He was a 
 friend of the common people, or Plebeians, as they were 
 called. "That these might not be oppressed by the sen- 
 atorial families, or the Patricians, he caused a law to be 
 enacted that the senate could not make a decree without 
 the consent of the Comitia, or the assemby of the people. 
 This was the first step toward that republican liberty 
 which afterwards became the glory of . Rome and the 
 world." 
 
 Tullius also advocated a plan by which the people 
 should yearly chose their own rulers. " This so angered 
 the house of Tarquin and the Patricians that one of the 
 Tarquins struck Servius dead and was rewarded by being 
 made king. He is known as Tarquinius Superbus, or 
 Tarquin the Proud. He was a hard king, and the people 
 mourned for the good Servius, who had made himself a 
 martyr to their cause, and wished that his days would 
 return." 
 
 Some distinguished citizens of Rome sent, as a present 
 to Abraham Lincoln, one of the stones from the wall of 
 Servius. "President Lincoln, it is said, from a modest 
 feeling, hid the stone in a cellar of the White House. 
 
97 - 
 
 He little dreamed that his own history, which so far had 
 resembled that of Servius Tullius, would also end like 
 that noble Roman's." The stone has since been placed 
 in Lincoln's tomb at Springfield, Illinois. — Butterworth. 
 
 RISE OF THE REPUBLIC. 
 
 Brutus, First Consul. — Tarquin the Proud was so un- 
 just and oppressive that the Romans, headed by a noble 
 Roman named Brutus, rose up and drove Tarquinius 
 and his family without the walls. The republic was 
 then established, 509 B. C, a year after Hippias was 
 driven out of Athens. Two chief magistrates or consuls 
 were chosen every year, and these consuls must be pa- 
 tricians. Brutus, who distinguished himself in expell- 
 ing the royal family, was chosen one of the first two con- 
 suls. The constitution of Servius was adopted, and the 
 senate was restored to its original three hundred, by the 
 addition of members chosen from the richest of the 
 knights (equites), several of whom were plebians. 
 
 "The early republic required its consuls or presidents 
 to be men of simple habits and living. When one of 
 the praetors built a costly and pretentious house, the 
 people compelled him to pull it down. They said it in- 
 dicated an ambition to live in a style above them and 
 would end in royalty.." — Butterworth. 
 
 During the rule of Brutus, the Tarquins sought to 
 come back again, and many of the Patrician families, 
 not liking the simple freedom of the republic, favored 
 their return. A conspiracy was formed to restore the 
 
98 
 
 Tarquins. "The plot was discovered and the consuls 
 were obliged to condemn the traitors to death." When 
 they were brought before the consuls it was found that 
 the two sons of Brutus were among the number. Would 
 the President condemn his own sons ? 
 
 When asked what defense they had to make, they only 
 stood and wept in silence. 
 
 The senators had compassion on them and cried out : 
 "Let them be banished." 
 
 But the father sternly replied, "Executioners, do your 
 office." The officers led out the two sons and scourged 
 and beheaded them before their father's eyes. Thus to 
 disregard his own affections when public interest was 
 concerned was considered a great virtue in the early days 
 of Greece and Rome. 
 
 Brutus died righting the Etruscans, and was mourned 
 a whole year by the matrons of Rome. 
 
 Invasion by Lars Porsenna. — Soon after the death of 
 Brutus, a powerful army of Etruscans, under Lars Por- 
 senna, king of Clusium, came to the Tiber to restore the 
 banished Tarquins. "Porsenna defeated the Roman 
 army, and was about to cross the Tiber and occupy the 
 city, when Hora'tius Co'cles took his post on the bridge, 
 and with two brave companions faced the Etruscans. 
 While the three held the opposing host in check, their 
 countrymen hewed down the bridge. — Qnackenbos. 
 
 HORATITJS AT THE BRIDGE. 
 
 Lars Porsenna of Clusium — by the Nine Gods he swore 
 That the great house of Tarquin should suffer wrong no more. 
 By the Nine Gods he swore it, and named a trysting day, 
 And bade his messengers ride forth, to summon his array. 
 
99 . 
 
 East and west and south and north the messengers ride fast, 
 And tower and town and cottage have heard the trumpet's blast. 
 Shame on the false Etruscan who lingers in his home 
 When Porsenna of Clusium is on the march for Rome. 
 
 The horsemen and the footmen are pouring in amain, 
 From many a stately market-place; from many a fruitful plain; 
 From many a lonely hamlet, which, hid by beech and pine. 
 Like an eagle's nest, hangs on the crest of purple Apennine. 
 
 The harvests of Arretium, this year, old men shall reap; 
 This year, young boys in Umbro shall plunge the struggling sheep ; 
 And in the vats of Luna, this year, the must shall foam 
 Round the white feet of laughing girls whose sires have marched to 
 Rome. 
 
 And now hath every city sent up her tale of men ; 
 
 The foot are fourscore thousand, the horse are thousands ten. 
 
 Before the gates of Sutrium is met -the great array, 
 
 A proud man was Lars Porsenna upon the trysting day. 
 
 But by the yellow Tiber was tumult and affright; 
 
 From all the spacious campaign to Rome men took their flight. 
 
 A mile around the city, the throng stopped up the ways, 
 
 A fearful sight it was to see, through two long nights and days. 
 
 Now from the rock Tarpeian could the wan burghers spy 
 
 The line of blazing villages red in the midnight sky, 
 
 The Fathers of the city, they sat all night and day, 
 
 For every hour some horseman came with tidings of dismay. 
 
 I wis, in all the Senate, there was no heart so bold, 
 
 But sore it ached, and fast it beat, when that ill news was told. 
 
 Forthwith up rose the Consul, up rose the Fathers ajl ; 
 
 In haste they girded up their gowns, and hied them to the wall. 
 
 They held a council standing before the River-Gate ; 
 
 Short time was there, ye may well guess, for musing or debate. 
 
 Out spoke the Counsel roundly : "The bridge must straight go down ; 
 
 For since Janiculum is lost, naught else can save the toWn." 
 
100 
 
 Just then a scout came flying, all wild with haste and fear: 
 "To arms ! to arms ! Sir Consul ; Lars Porsenna is here." 
 On the low hills to westward, the Consul fixed his eye. 
 And saw the swarthy storm of dust rise fast along the sky. 
 
 But the Consul's brow was sad and the Consul's speed was low. 
 
 And darkly looked he at the wall, and darkly at the foe. 
 
 "Their van will be upon us before the bridge goes down ; 
 
 And if they once may win the bridge, what hope to save the town?" 
 
 Then out spake Horatius, the captain of the gate: 
 " To every man upon this earth death cometh, soon or late. 
 And how can man die better than facing fearful odds, 
 For the ashes of his fathers and the temples of his gods ? 
 
 "Hew down the bridge. Sir Consul, with all the speed ye may; 
 I, with two more to help me, will hold the foe in play. 
 In yon straight path a thousand may well be stopped by three. 
 Now, who will stand on either hand, and keep the bridge with me? " 
 
 Then out spake Spurius Lartius — a Ramnian proud was he, — 
 "Lo, I will stand at thy right hand, and keep the "bridge with thee." 
 And out spake strong Herminius — of Titian blood was he,-^- 
 "I will abide on thy left side, and keep the bridge with thee." 
 
 " Horatius," quoth the Consul, "as thou sayest, so let it be." 
 And straight against that great array forth went the dauntless three. 
 For Romans in Rome's quarrel spared neither land nor gold. 
 Nor son nor wife, nor limb nor life, in the brave days of old. 
 
 Now while the three were tightening their harness on their backs, 
 The Consul was the foremost man to take in hand an axe ; 
 And Fathers mixed with Commons seized hatchet, bar, and crow, 
 And smote upon the planks above, and loosed the props below. 
 
 The three stood calm and silent, and looked upon the foes, 
 
 And a great shout of laughter from all the vanguard rose ; 
 
 And forth three chiefs came spurring before that deep array ; 
 
 To earth they sprang, their swords they drew to win the narrow way. 
 
101 
 
 Stout Lartius hurled down Annus into the stream beneath ; 
 
 Herminius struck at Seius, and clove him to the teeth ; 
 
 At Picus brave Horatius darted one fiery thrust ; 
 
 And the proud Umbrian's gilded arms clashed in the bloody dust. 
 
 But all Etruria's noblest felt tbeir hearts sink to see 
 On the earth the bloody corpses, in the path the dauntless three. 
 And from the ghastly entrance, where those bold Romans stood, 
 The bravest shrank like boys who rouse an old bear in the wood. 
 
 But meanwhile axe and lever have manfully been plied, 
 And now the bridge hangs tottering above the boiling tide. 
 "Come back, come back, Horatius!" loud cried the Fathers all; 
 "Back, Lartius! back, Herminius! back, ere the ruin fall!" 
 
 Back darted Spurius Lartius; Herminius darted back; 
 
 And, as they passed, beneath their feet they felt the timbers crack ; 
 
 But when they turned their faces, and on the farther shore 
 
 Saw brave Horatius stand alone, they would have crossed once more. 
 
 But, with a crash like thunder, fell every loosened beam, 
 And, like a dam, the mighty wreck lay right athwart the stream; 
 And a long shout of triumph rose from the walls of Rome, 
 As to the highest turret tops splashed the yellow foam. 
 
 And, like a horse unbroken when first he feels the rein, 
 
 The furious river struggled hard, and tossed his tawny mane, 
 
 And burst the curb, and bounded, rejoicing to be free, 
 
 And battlement, and plank, and pier, whirled headlong to the sea. 
 
 Alone stood brave Horatius, but constant still in mind ; 
 Thrice thirty thousand foes before, and the broad flood behind. 
 "Down with him!" cried false Sextus, with a smile on his pale face, 
 "Now yield thee," cried Lars Posenna, "now yield thee to ourgrace." 
 
 Round turned he, as not deigning those craven ranks to see ; 
 Naught spake he to Lars Porsenna, to Sextus naught spake he ; 
 But he saw on Palatinus the white porch of his home, 
 And he spake to the noble river that rolls by the towers of Rome. 
 
102 
 
 "O Tiber! Father Tiber! to whom the Romans pray, 
 A Roman's life, a Roman's arms, take thou in charge this day !" 
 So he spake, and, speaking, sheathed the good sword by his side, 
 And, with his harness on his back, plunged headlong in the tide. 
 
 No sound of joy or sorrow was heard from either bank ; 
 
 But friends and foes, in dumb surprise," stood gazing where he sank; 
 
 And when above the surges they saw his crest appear, 
 
 Rome shouted, and e'en Tuscany could scarce forbear to cheer. 
 
 But fiercely ran the current, swollen high by months of rain ; 
 And fast his blood was flowing; and he was sore in pain, 
 And heavy with his armor, and spent with changing blows, 
 And oft they thought him sinking — but still again he rose. 
 
 Never, I ween, did swimmer, in such an evil case, 
 Struggle through such a raging flood safe to the landing place ; 
 But his limbs were borne up bravely by the brave heart within, 
 And our good Father Tiber bare bravely up his chin. 
 
 "Curse on him?" quoth false Sextus; "will not the villain drown? 
 But for his stay, ere close of day we should have sacked the town !" 
 "Heaven help him! " quote Lars Porsenna, " and bring him safe to 
 
 shore ; 
 For such a gallant feat of arms was never seen before." 
 
 And now he feels the bottom — now on dry earth he stands ; 
 Now round him throng the Fathers to press his gory hands. 
 And, now with shouts and clapping, and noise of weeping loud, 
 He enters through the River-Gate, borne by the joyous crowd. 
 
 They gave him of the corn-land that was of public right 
 
 As much as two strong oxen could plough from morn till night; 
 
 And they made a molten image, and set it up on high, 
 
 And there it stands unto this day to witness if I lie. 
 
 It stands in the Comitium, plain for all folk to see ; 
 
 Horatius in his harness, halting upon one knee ; 
 
 And underneath is written, in letters all of gold, 
 
 How valiantly he kept the bridge in the brave days of old. 
 
 — Maeaulay. 
 
10 
 
 o 
 
 Lars Porsenna continued the siege until the Romans 
 suffered from hunger, nevertheless the} T refused to yield. 
 A youth by the name of Caius Marius asked permission 
 to go to the enemy's camp. There he sought to kill 
 Lars Porsenna, but mistaking one of the counselors for 
 the king, struck him dead. He was seized and brought 
 before Lars Porsenna. When asked why he committed 
 the deed he replied, that Rome might be free. "Torture 
 hira," was the command. Without hesitation he walked 
 up. to the fire and unflinchingly held his bare hand in 
 the flames until the flesh was consumed. To the aston- 
 ished Etruscans he said that Rome was full of men as 
 brave as himself. He was allowed to return to Rome, 
 and Lars Porsenna soon after made a treaty of peace 
 with the Romans and Tarquin died in exile. 
 
 Early Days of the Republic. — We now pass from the 
 Golden Age of tradition and fable to the real life of the 
 Roman Republic. In the early days the two consuls or 
 presidents, who were elected yearly, had the supreme 
 power. The senate at first could give counsel only ; it 
 was not till a later time that it became a law-making 
 body. The consuls wore all the insignia of royalty 
 which they had adopted from the Etruscans, with the 
 exception of the crown. They performed the duties of 
 their office while seated on a throne, dressed in purple 
 robes and bearing ivory scepters surmounted by golden 
 eagles. They made the laws, led the people in war, and 
 judged them in peace. When acting as judges they 
 were attended by twelve lictors, who bore on their shoul- 
 ders as a symbol of authority an ax tied in a bundle of 
 rods. The consuls were elected by the patricians, and 
 
104 
 
 were not allowed to serve a second term without waiting 
 a number of years. It was the custom for a person who 
 was seeking a high public office to dress in white, hence 
 our word candidate, from the Latin Candidus (white). 
 
 The Struggle between the Plebeians and the Patri- 
 cians. — The plebeians or common people were those who 
 were not descendants of the first settlers of Rome. They 
 tilled the lands and paid enormous taxes to the patri- 
 cians, served in the army without pay, yet were for- 
 bidden the rights of citizens, and not allowed to inter- 
 marry with the patricians. While absent in the wars, their 
 farms remained 1 untilled, or were plundered by the 
 enemy. When they returned, they were forced to bor- 
 row money to buy seed, tools, and food, thus becoming 
 debtors to the patricians. If they did not meet their 
 payments, they could be sold as slaves, or thrown into 
 the debtor's prison."' 
 
 An aged prisoner once escaped from prison and ap r 
 peared before the people. His venerable aspect and 
 pitiable condition demanded the attention of all. His 
 clothes were ragged and his face pallid from long con- 
 finement and meager diet. Nevertheless the people 
 knew him as one who had won military distinction, and 
 who had once held the rank of centurion. They were 
 touched with pity and recounted his brave deeds, won- 
 dering at his forlorn condition. He bared his breast and 
 showed the scars of many a battle-field. When a crowd 
 had gathered round, and demanded why he appeared 
 thus, he told his pitiful story. He» had served in the 
 Sabine wars. His farm was plundered by the enemy, 
 his cattle driven off, his house burned and his crops de- 
 
105 - 
 
 stroyed, everything of value was gone. The taxes be- 
 came due, debts were contracted which were multiplied 
 by the exorbitant interest. He fell a victim to the inhu- 
 manity of his creditors. He was cast into prison, not an 
 ordinary prison, but a dungeon, only relieved by the 
 hard labor of the work-house. In proof of his state- 
 ments he exhibited the marks of recent scourging on his 
 back. 
 
 The people listened with horror, becoming so enraged, 
 that at last they marched off in a body to the Sacred 
 Mount, and threatened to build a new city for them- 
 selves. 
 
 At this time news came that a tribe of people called 
 Volscians were on their way to attack Rome. The patri- 
 cians were now alarmed, and not without cause, for the 
 plebeians were ready to join the enemy. The senate sent 
 summons; the people knew their power and refused to 
 fight. 
 
 Menenius Agrippa. — There was at this time in Rome a 
 very wise man named Agrippa, who was loved and re- 
 spected by all. When asked his opinion concerning the 
 struggle between the patricians and plebeians, he recited 
 to them this fable: 
 
 '■ Once upon a time the different organs of the body 
 had a discussion as to their work. The head, heart, 
 hands, and feet, all thought that they were working to 
 support the stomach in idleness. The head complained 
 that it had to think to feed it ; the hands, that they had 
 to labor for it ; the feet, that they must carry it. They 
 agreed to cease their labors and no more associate 1 with 
 an organ so lowly. The hands refused to labor ; the 
 
106 
 
 feet would not move ; the teeth would not chew the 
 food ; but they soon found out their mistake. Their 
 strength went from them ; they became poor and help- 
 less. Thus they found how much they were dependent 
 upon the stomach. 
 
 " So," said the wise man, " society is made up of dif- 
 ferent ranks, each necessary to the welfare of the others; 
 all must have the respect and honor due to them." 
 
 Tribunes of the People. — Both parties were touched by 
 the story and were willing to make concessions. It was 
 agreed that there should be two tribunes of the people 
 who should be 'present outside of the assembly to guard 
 the rights of the common people. If any unjust law 
 should be passed, the tribunes could shout their veto 
 through the open door. Their persons were to be sacred 
 and their houses were to stand open day -and night, as 
 places of refuge for all the oppressed. 
 
 The Decemvirs. — The tribunes being ignorant of the 
 laws, were often unable to fulfill the duties of their of- 
 fice. They, therefore, demanded that the laws be made 
 public. Ten men, called decemvirs, were appointed, 
 whose duty it should be to revise and publish a code of 
 laws, also to govern in place of the consuls and tribunes. 
 
 The Laws of the Twelve Tables. — The decemvirs com- 
 piled twelve tables of laws, which formed the basis of all 
 legislation for many centuries. They were written on 
 tablets of brass and hung up in the forum, where all 
 could read them. Every school-boy, as late as Cicero's 
 time, learned them by heart. 
 
 Appius Claudius. — The Historian Livy tells how the 
 decemvirs fell into dishonor. At first they governed 
 
107 - 
 
 well, but when they were chosen for the second term, 
 Appius Claudius was the only one re-elected. All was 
 now changed ; tyranny reigned. Two new tables of 
 oppressive laws were added to the former tables. At the 
 end of the year, no new election was called, for the de- 
 cemvirs ruled in defiance of the senate and people. Many 
 leading citizens feared for their lives and fled from the 
 city. 
 
 One day as Appius Claudius passed through the forum 
 he saw the beautiful daughter of Virginius, a plebeian 
 and officer of the army. Upon inquiring, he learned 
 that her name was Virginia, and that she was engaged 
 to marry a young plebeian. Charmed with her beauty, 
 he resolved to make her his own. He directed his client 
 to abduct her, claiming that she was a child of one of 
 his slaves and not the true daughter of Virginius. 
 
 The case came before the decemvirs for trial, Claudius, 
 of course, deciding in favor of his client. Upon hear- 
 ing the fate of his child, Virginius drew her to one side, 
 as if to bid her farewell. Suddenly seizing a butcher's 
 knife from a booth near by, he stabbed her to the heart, 
 crying, ''Thus only can I make thee free." 
 
 Appius ordered Virginius to be seized; but he was pro- 
 tected by his friends, who escorted him to the city gates. 
 He escaped to the camp, and aroused the soldiers to 
 vengeance. 
 
 Once again the plebeians rose against' the patricians 
 and the decemvirs were forced to resign. The former 
 government of consuls and tribunes was renewed. Ap- 
 pius, in despair, killed himself. 
 
 Triumph of the Plebs. — The strife between the pa- 
 
108 
 
 tricians and plebeians continued through many centuries, 
 marked by only a few bloody contests, but by continual 
 gain on the part of the people. Step by step they 
 pushed their demands for equal privileges with the 
 patricians, until in 300 B. C.', nearly two centuries 
 after the republic was established, Rome possessed a 
 democratic government, the highest offices being open to 
 the plebeians. Civil concord brought with it a period of 
 civic virtue and heroic greatness, when "To be a Roman 
 was greater than to be a king." 
 
 Foreign Wars. — We have already referred to the for- 
 eign wars which disturbed Rome during the struggle for 
 political freedom. Many beautiful legends are connected 
 with these wars, which possess all the dignity if not all 
 the truth of history. 
 
 Coriolanus. — In the war with the Volscians, a patri- 
 cian youth named Caius Marcius gained- great renown. 
 When the Romans were besieging the city of Carioli, the 
 Volscians made a sally, but were driven back by Mar- 
 cius, who pursued them within the walls. He hewed 
 his way out of the gates and admitted the Romans, thus 
 winning the city. 
 
 All bleeding from his wounds, he was brought before 
 the consul, who placed a crown upon his head, and said : 
 "Henceforth thou shalt be called Coriolanus." The 
 consul then offered him his share of the spoils in slaves. 
 He chose but one, and then, to the astonishment of all, 
 gave him his liberty. 
 
 But Coriolanus was not popular, for he was no friend 
 to the plebeians. Soon after, in a time of famine, when 
 grain was brought from Sicily, he refused to sell any to 
 
109 - 
 
 the plebeians unless they would submit to the patricians. 
 The tribunes, indignant, sought to bring him to trial, 
 but he fled from the city, leaving his mother, wife, and 
 children, and took refuge with the despised Volscians. 
 
 Rousing the Volscians, he returned at the head of an 
 army and besieged Rome. The city was in great peril. 
 As a last resort the mothers of Rome resolved to appeal 
 to him. Dressed in the deepest mourning, they passed 
 out of the city gates, headed by the mother and wife of 
 Coriolanus and his own little ones. When they reached 
 the camp, his mother prostrated herself at his feet, say- 
 ing, "If you come to destroy Rome, begin with me." 
 The appeal touched his heart, and he exclaimed, "Mother, 
 thou hast saved Rome, but lost thy son." 
 
 His words were fulfilled. Having ordered a retreat, 
 he is said to have been slain by the angry Volscians. 
 
 Cinciimatus. — Another noted patrician living at this 
 time was Cincinnatus, so named because of his curly 
 hair. He lived in a simple way on his farm of four 
 acres, but was known and respected even by the plebe- 
 ians as a man of sound and just judgment. 
 
 One day news came that the consul and his army 
 were surrounded in a deep valley by the iEquians, a 
 neighboring tribe. The people met in council. Who 
 should deliver them in this hour of great peril ? Who 
 had sufficient wisdom and prudence ? Alas ! there 
 seemed to be no one. At last some one' proposed the 
 name of Cincinnatus for dictator. It was received with 
 great approval, and messengers immediately summoned 
 him. They found him plowing, assisted by his wife. 
 
11.0 
 
 We are told that he washed his face, donned his toga, 
 and started in a boat towards Rome. 
 
 There he took the lead of a volunteer army, bidding 
 every man carry twelve wooden stakes. That very night 
 he surrounded the enemy's camp with a palisade. Mi- 
 nucius, the consul, hearing the Roman war-cry, renewed 
 the attack with vigor. When morning dawned, the 
 iEquians perceived they had been surrounded and all 
 was lost. " They were forced to surrender and pass un- 
 der the yoke." 
 
 Cincinnatus had saved his country ; all honors await- 
 ed him. He was awarded a golden crown. Refusing 
 all, he resigned his dictatorship and went back to his 
 little farm on the Tiber. 
 
 Marcus Camillus. — " We now come to the most inter- 
 esting story of the palmy days of the republic.' ' En- 
 couraged by the successes in subduing -the neighboring 
 tribes, the Romans determined to rid themselves of their 
 most formidable rival, the Etruscan city of Veii. The 
 siege lasted, with varying fortunes, for ten years, when 
 it was at last concluded by dictator Marcus Camillus, by 
 mining under its walls. The most cruel revenge was 
 then taken upon the inhabitants. The men were put to 
 death; the women and children sold into slavery; noth- 
 ing was left but the bare walls and deserted buildings of 
 the once nourishing city. 
 
 Wishing to punish the city of Falerii, which had aided 
 the Veientes, Camillus appeared before that city. Now 
 it happened that there was an ambitious schoolmaster 
 who had in his charge the sons of the chief families of 
 Falerii. One day, pretending to give them exercise, he 
 
Ill 
 
 took the boys without the gates and conducted them to 
 the Roman camp. Carnillus was so enraged at this 
 treachery that he scorned to take advantage of it. Tying 
 the hands of the schoolmaster behind his back, he gave 
 the boys whips and bade them flog their master back to 
 the city. The Falerians, moved by such a display of 
 honor on the part of the Romans, surrendered. The 
 triumph of Camillus was complete, and he entered Rome 
 in all the splendor of a god. His face was covered with 
 vermilion and he was borne in a chariot drawn by four 
 white horses. 
 
 Forgetful of the offering to the gods, which must al- 
 ways be a tenth part of the booty, he incurred the dis- 
 trust of the people. He was accused of pride and appro- 
 priating to himself the bronze gates of the city of Veii. 
 The tribunes impeached him and he departed from the 
 city into voluntary exile, praying that Rome might yet 
 need his help. 
 
 The Gallic Invasion. — The time soon came. "Five' 
 years later a great alarm came to Rome. There was a 
 barbarian nation in the north called the Gauls. They 
 had blue eyes, yellow hair, and strong arms ; they went 
 naked down to the waist, and their bands or armies were 
 fearful to look upon. They had driven the Etruscans 
 away from the fertile lands of the Po, and had crossed 
 the Apennine Mountains and were facing Rome. They 
 came like a hurricane, and nothing could withstand 
 them. The Roman senators, true to their city, resolved 
 to die in their seats." — Butterworth. They dressed 
 themselves in their robes of state and sat down like so 
 many statues in their ivory chairs of magistracy to await 
 
112 
 
 death. The barbarians, hurrying through the deserted 
 streets, at length came to the forum. For a moment 
 they stood amazed at the sight of those solemn faces, so 
 like unto gods in the magnificence of their attire and 
 the majesty of their looks. One- of the Gauls put out his 
 hand reverently to stroke the white beard of an aged sen- 
 ator, when the indignant Roman smote him with his 
 ivory staff. The spell was broken and the senators were 
 ruthlessly massacred. The city was then pillaged and 
 burned. 
 
 A Roman force still held the capitol, which was be- 
 sieged by the Gauls for some months. One night a 
 party of Gauls stealthily clambered up the steep ascent 
 of the Capitoline Hill, one of them reaching the highest 
 ledge, when the cackling of the sacred geese in the 
 temple of Juno gave the alarm. Marcus Manlius, a 
 brave patrician, was aroused by the noise, and rushed 
 out just in time to dash the foremost Gaul over the pre- 
 cipice. Other Romans rallied to the aid of Manlius, and 
 the invaders were repulsed. Thus it came to be a pro- 
 verb that " Rome was saved by the cackling of a 
 goose ! " 
 
 This attempt having failed the Gauls began to weary 
 of the siege and agreed to accept a ransom of a thousand 
 pounds of gold. The money was collected with great 
 difficulty by taking the treasures of the temples and the 
 jewels contributed by the Roman women. When the 
 Romans complained of the scales being false, Brennus, 
 the Gallic chief, flung his sword among the weights, 
 insolently exclaiming, " Woe to the vanquished ! " 
 
 Meanwhile a messenger had been to Camillus, the 
 
113 . 
 
 exiled dictator, offering him the dictatorship and be- 
 seeching him to come to the rescue of the city. Hastily 
 gathering together an army, he is said to have arrived 
 just in season ' to seize the treasures about to be deliv- 
 ered to the Gauls, and bid defiance to Brennus and his 
 host, saying, " Rome is to be bought with iron, not 
 gold." 
 
 The Gauls, dismayed by so formidable an enemy, 
 retired from the city. Camillus pursued them, and not 
 a man escaped to tell how low the city had fallen on 
 that eventful day. 
 
 Rome Rebuilt. — Camillus was named the second 
 founder of Rome. He it was who persuaded them to 
 rebuild their city on the hills made glorious by their 
 ancestors, rather than to forsake their sacred altars to 
 occupy the well-built city of Veii. "As soon as it was 
 decided that they should remain in their old home, 
 they energetically went to work with bricks, which were 
 provided by the city without cost, and the stone ob- 
 tained from the dismantled city of Veii. So little care 
 was observed in regard to the course of streets and sew- 
 ers, that Rome was a network of very narrow, crooked 
 streets, with high houses, and remained so until after 
 the great fire in the time of Nero. — Allen. 
 
 Camillus's Speech to the Romans. — (By Livy.) — "My 
 countrymen, we hold a city founded under auspices and 
 with solemn inauguration ; there is no spot within its 
 walls that is not full of a divine presence and hallowed 
 associations. The days on which our great sacrifices 
 recur are not more strictly fixed than the places where 
 
114 
 
 they are to be offered. Will you desert all these objects 
 of adoration, public and private, my fellow-citizens ? 
 
 " Some will say, perhaps, that we can fulfill these sa- 
 cred duties at Veii, or send our own priests from thence 
 to perform them here. Neither can be done without 
 breaking our religious obligations. What shall I say of 
 the eternal Fire of Vesta, and of that image of Pallas, 
 which iEneas brought from Troy, preserved in the guar- 
 dianship of her temple as the pledge of our empire ? 
 What of your sacred shields, great Mars and Father 
 Quirinus ? Is it your will to forsake and leave to 
 desecration all those hallowed symbols, old as the city 
 herself, some even older than her foundation? 
 
 "If in this whole city no better or more commodious 
 dwelling could be erected than that hut in which our 
 founder lived, — were it not better to live in huts like 
 shepherds and peasants, amidst your own shrines and 
 household gods, than go into this national exile ? . . . 
 Does our affection or our native place depend on walls 
 and beams ? For mine own part, when I was late in 
 exile, I confess that as often as my native city came into 
 my thoughts, there rose before my eyes all this, — these 
 hills, these plains, yon Tiber, and the scene so familiar 
 to my sight, and the bright sky under which I was born 
 and brought up. Roman countrymen ! rather let 
 these things move you now by the love you bear them, 
 to stay where you are, than wring your hearts with re- 
 gret for them hereafter ! Not without cause did gods 
 and men fix on this spot to found a city : health-giving 
 hills, a river nigh at hand, to bring in food from all in- 
 
115 . 
 
 land places, to receive supplies by sea; the sea itself 
 handy for commerce, yet not so near as to expose the city 
 to hostile fleets ; a spot central to all Italy, adapted be- 
 yond all others for the growth of a great state." 
 
 " Camillus was six times made dictator, and proved 
 himself superior to all of his enemies, and died in honored 
 old age." — Butterworth. 
 
 Several important military reforms are believed to 
 have been the work of Marcus Camillus, the great com- 
 mander of his age. Heretofore, the Roman army had 
 been a militia, serving without pay ; now it became a 
 body of paid troops. 
 
 "The early Roman army, like that of the Greeks, was 
 a phalanx, that is, a compact body forming a continuous 
 line without breaks or intervals. An army drawn up in 
 this order and armed with long spears, was almost in- 
 vincible in defense ; but it could not move with ease or 
 precision, except upon level ground, and was unsuited 
 to attack." The legion, which is thought to have been 
 introduced by Camillus, was the opposite of the phalanx, 
 being flexible instead of compact. The army was 
 formed into three ranks, the companies of one standing 
 behind the spaces of that in front ; by this it was possi- 
 ble to withdraw the front line and advance those in the 
 rear through the spaces between those in front. — Allen. 
 
 Rome was now mistress of Central Italy, and was con- 
 sidered the common defender of the neighboring nations. 
 
 War with Pyrrhus. — A few years later nearly all the 
 Greek cities of Southern Italy had acknowledged the 
 growing power of the imperial city. Tarentum, how- 
 
116 
 
 ever, a commercial city of great wealth and enterprise, 
 now made a last effort to check the dominion of Rome. 
 The Tarentines, wishing to keep the field of traffic to 
 themselves, required the Romans to keep their ships of 
 war away from the southern coast. In direct violation 
 of a treaty to that effect, a Roman fleet appeared off the 
 harbor of Tarentum. War followed and the Tarentines, 
 too lazy to defend themselves, applied to Pyrrhus, king 
 of Epirus, one of the ablest and most ambitious princes 
 since the time of Alexander. Pyrrhus, overjoyed at the 
 prospect of conquering the Western world, sailed with a 
 large army and, what proved of more importance than 
 any other part of the army, a troop of twenty elephants. 
 The compact phalanx of the Greeks was at first more 
 than a match for the Roman legion and the unwonted 
 sight of the elephants threw the Roman cavalry into 
 confusion. Thus Pyrrhus won two hard fought battles, 
 but he is reported to have said, " Another such a victory 
 would compel me to return to Epirus alone." As he 
 surveyed the field of carnage after his first triumph and 
 beheld the stalwart forms of the dead Romans with their 
 resolute features and not a single wound behind he ex- 
 claimed, "Had I such soldiers, how easily could I be- 
 come master of the world." He realized the impossibil- 
 ity of conquering such a nation of heroes and accord- 
 ingly sent his friend Cineas, an ambassador, who was 
 famous for his powers of persuasion, to arrange terms of 
 peace. So successful was he with his honeyed speech, 
 the senate were about to yield when the aged and blind 
 Appius Claudius caused himself to be led into the assem- 
 bly and declared that Rome should never treat for peace 
 
117 • 
 
 so long as a foreign enemy stood upon the soil of Italy. 
 The presents sent to the senators and their families after 
 the Greek custom of commencing negotiations were 
 haughtily refused by the Roman wives. Cineas on return- 
 ing told Pyrrhus that Rome was like a great temple, and 
 the Roman senate an assembly of kings. Soon after this 
 event an embassy of the Romans headed by Caius Fabri- 
 cius Luscinus was sent to Pyrrhus to treat concerning 
 the exchange of prisoners. Fabricius had long been a 
 pattern to his countrymen for his contentment amid 
 poverty. To try his integrity Pyrrhus offered him pres- 
 ents ; but they were refused. Then the king resolved to 
 break his lofty spirit. " He summoned Fabricius to' a 
 conference in the royal tent which was divided into two 
 parts by a curtain. 
 
 "As they were conversing, the curtain suddenly 
 dropped, and an enormous elephant that had been hid- 
 den behind it raised his trunk over the Roman's head 
 and trumpeted. 
 
 "But Fabricius was not to be thus frightened. He 
 turned to the king and said : ' I am not to be bribed by 
 your gold nor frightened by your beast.' " — Butterworth. 
 
 Pyrrhus was gratified to find so much integrity and 
 courage in a barbarian, as he called the Roman, and, as 
 a mark of his regard, he released all the Roman prison- 
 ers without ransom. 
 
 Fabricius was chosen consul the next year. In the 
 next campaign, while the two armies were approaching 
 each other, a letter was brought to Fabricius from the 
 physician of Pyrrhus, offering to poison the king for a 
 proper reward. The honest old Roman was indignant 
 
118 
 
 at such a wicked proposal, and sent off the messengers 
 at once to inform Pyrrhus of the plot against his life. 
 Pyrrhus, filled with admiration at the nobility and gen- 
 erosity of Fabricius and his friends, gave up all thought 
 of continuing the struggle and "retired into Sicily to de- 
 fend the Greek city of Syracuse against the Carthagini- 
 ans. At first he was everywhere successful; but finally 
 fortune turned against him, and in desperation he re- 
 turned to Italy to engage in a final struggle with the 
 Romans. When marching at night to attack the Rom- 
 ans, his army lost their way in a dense forest, and it was 
 broad day when they came in sight of the Roman force. 
 Wearied as they were, they were obliged to join battle at 
 once, thus giving the Romans the advantage. The ele- 
 phants, their last hope, were sent into the thick of the 
 combat, but this time the Romans were prepared for 
 them and showered them with arrows headed with blaz- 
 ing tow. The huge animals, maddened with pain and 
 terror, turned and trampled on their masters, who, pan- 
 ic-stricken, took to flight. The rout was complete, and 
 soon afterwards Pyrrhus, collecting his shattered forces, 
 returned to Epirus, leaving only a small garrison at Ta- 
 rentum. "He had scarcely embarked before Tarentum 
 surrendered to the Romans (272 B. C). This ended 
 the struggle for the mastery of Italy. Rome was now 
 mistress of all the peninsula south of the Arnus and the 
 Rubicon." It was now her care to make a strong union 
 of her possessions by a perfect network of colonies and 
 military roads. 
 
 The Roman Government. — The city of Rome was the 
 center of all executive authority and alone possessed the 
 
119 * 
 
 power to declare war, make peace, and coin money. The 
 cities of the conquered territory, as a rule, retained 
 their right of local self-government, but must furnish 
 their quota of troops for the Roman army. Beyond 
 this requirement no tribute or tax was demanded. 
 
 There were three classes of people in this vast com- 
 monwealth : first, Roman citizens ; second, Latins ; 
 third, Italians or allies. The Roman citizens included, 
 at first, the free inhabitants of the territory of Rome 
 proper and were divided into thirty-three tribes. To 
 them alone belonged the right of meeting in the forum 
 to enact laws and vote for consuls, etc. Included in 
 this class were the Roman colonists, who were sent to 
 found new Romes in every conquered state, and whose 
 sole military duty it was to protect the sea-coast. The 
 Latins, or second class, embracing the people of many 
 of the conquered towns, were allowed to govern them- 
 selves in local concerns, but not to take part in the pub- 
 lic affairs of Rome. The Italians, or allies, were the 
 people of those cities who had bound themselves by 
 treaty to contribute regular contingents to the Roman 
 army, but were otherwise independent. 
 
 The period which we have now reached is the 
 grandest one in Roman history. Roman peasants still 
 lived' on their little farms of three or four acres, just as 
 their ancestors had done, and their frugal industry had 
 converted many a barren field into a fruitful garden. 
 Roman citizenship, at this time, had a might and a 
 meaning, which, as the Roman power extended, was 
 eagerly sought for by every person and city. It was 
 constantly held out as a reward for faithful service to 
 
120 
 
 the republic. (Acts XXII, 25; XXIII, 27; XXV, 11 
 -21. 
 
 Only those Roman citizens of the city of Rome itself 
 and the vicinity were enabled to exercise the right of 
 suffrage in the Roman assemblies. The modern system 
 of representation, by which other cities could take part 
 in the government of the republic, was never conceived 
 of by the Romans. They knew no form of government 
 except the free city and the despotic empire of the 
 Orient; and when the city government fell they could 
 do nothing but establish the empire. 
 
 Military Roads. — During this period, that system of 
 military roads was commenced which united all parts of 
 Italy and, eventually, the most distant provinces by an 
 easy and familiar intercourse. The primary object of 
 these roads, however, was to facilitate the marches of 
 the legions. "They ran in a direct line from one city 
 to another, with very little respect for the obstacles 
 either of nature or private property. Mountains were 
 perforated and bold arches thrown over the most rapid 
 of the streams. The middle part of the road was raised 
 into a terrace, which commanded the adjacent country, 
 consisted of several strata of sand, gravel, and cement, 
 and was paved with large stones, or, in some places near 
 the capital, with granite. Such was the solid construc- 
 tion of the Roman highways, whose firmness has not en- 
 tirely yielded to the effort of fifteen centuries. 
 
 "The advantage of receiving the earliest intelligence 
 and of conveying their orders with celerity, induced the 
 emperors of a later time to establish posts on all the 
 roads. Houses were everywhere erected at a distance 
 
- 121 - 
 
 only of five or six miles ; each of them was constantly 
 provided with forty horses, and by the help of these re- 
 lays, it was easy to travel a hundred miles in a day along 
 the Roman roads." — Gibbon. 
 
 The most celebrated of these ancient roads is the Ap- 
 pian Way, which extends from the Roman forum into 
 Southern Italy, a distance of three hundred and fifty 
 miles. Its foundations were laid 312 B. C. by Appius 
 Claudius, the blind. 
 
 THE PUNIC WARS. 
 
 We now come to the struggle between Rome and Car- 
 thage, called the " Punic Wars ' ' from Poeni, meaning 
 Phoenicians. In this struggle of more than one hundred 
 years the Aryan and Semitic races contended for the 
 mastery of the world. When Rome completed her con- 
 quest of Southern Italy she stood face to face with Car- 
 thage. Pyrrhus is said to have exclaimed as he left 
 Sicily: "What a beautiful field we leave for the Ro- 
 mans and Carthaginians." 
 
 Carthage, the rival city of Rome, was situated ten miles 
 from the present city of Tunis. It was one of those col- 
 onies established by the Phoenicians long before Rome 
 was founded. When Phoenicia lost its importance Car- 
 thage became a second Tyre. Utica, Cadiz, and other 
 Phoenician cities of Africa and Spain acknowledged her 
 leadership, and at the time Rome became " Mistress of 
 Italy" the colonies and fortresses of Carthage were scat- 
 tered over the islands and shores of the Western Mediterra- 
 nean. Her war galleys swept over the seas, and so com- 
 
122 
 
 plete was the dominion of the proud city that she boasted 
 " that the Romans should not be permitted even to 
 wash their hands in the Mediterranean." 
 
 Comparison of Eome and Carthage (See Allen and 
 Myers) — Origin of the First Punic War. — The islands of 
 Sardinia, Corsica, and the Balearic Isles were under the 
 power of Carthage, and for centuries the Carthaginians 
 and Greeks had contended for the possession of Sicily. 
 The Romans had never set foot on the island. A slight 
 pretext now served to involve them in the struggle. A 
 horde of Italian pirates had seized Messana. " The king 
 of Syracuse threatened to expel them, and they appealed 
 to Rome for help. The Romans hesitated, but when 
 they saw that the Carthaginian power in Sicily was a 
 menace to their own coast they resolved to possess 
 Sicily as a protection against invasion.' ' — Butterworth. 
 
 The Greeks and Carthaginians at first -united to expel 
 the insolent newcomers, but the Romans were every- 
 where successful, and obtained a sure foothold on the 
 island. The king of Syracuse rinding that he was on 
 the losing side hastened to make friends with the Ro- 
 mans, and continued their ally for a quarter of a cen- 
 tury. Soon after this the Romans became masters of 
 the entire island except a few maritime ports which they 
 could not conquer as long as the Carthaginian navy had 
 command of the sea. 
 
 Rome's First Fleet. — The Roman senate, not content 
 with a partial success, was determined to rule the sea as 
 well as the land. Rome must have a fleet. A stranded 
 Phoenician vessel was taken as a model, and in sixty days' 
 time one hundred and thirty vessels were built by the 
 
123 * 
 
 Romans. The ships were provided with draw-bridges, 
 so that their disciplined soldiers could rush upon the 
 enemy's deck and come at once to a hand-to-hand con- 
 test. In four years' time the Romans had established 
 their supremacy on the sea by two great naval victories 
 over the Carthaginians. 
 
 Romans Cross the Sea. — A few years later the senate 
 sent an army into Africa led by the consul Regulus. 
 For a time he carried all before him and Carthage 
 seemed about to fall when a Spartan took command 
 and overthrew the Roman army with great slaughter, 
 taking Regulus prisoner. 
 
 The Romans were forced to evacuate Africa, and, for 
 several years, the war dragged on, with a few successes 
 on the island of Sicily, but disaster after disaster on the 
 sea. Four Roman fleets had been destroyed, three of 
 them being shattered by storms. At last Hamilcar 
 took command of the Carthaginian forces on the island 
 of Sicily and conducted the war with such skill that 
 Rome trembled for the safety of her Italian possessions. 
 A fleet of two hundred vessels was hastily built and 
 equipped by private subscription. A naval battle was 
 fought which resulted in the overwhelming defeat of 
 the Carthaginians. They now sued for peace, the con- 
 ditions of which were the cession of Sicily to Rome and 
 the payment of 3,200 talents (about $4,000,000) as 
 war indemnity. Thus ended the First Punic War 
 (241 B. C), after a period of twenty-four years. 
 
 The temple of Janus was now closed for the first time 
 since the days of Numa. 
 
 Story of Reg'ulus. — In this war a remarkable exam- 
 
124 
 
 pie of Roman honor was added to the- grand tales of old. 
 Like Cincinnatus, Regulus was a plain man with great 
 good sense and strength of character. He also tilled his 
 simple farm and did not seek for a high office. He was 
 respected by all classes of people, and at the time of the 
 first Punic war was made consul. His office compelled 
 him to assume command of the army. He enlarged the 
 Roman fleet to more than three hundred war vessels, 
 defeated the Carthaginians and landed his army on the 
 Carthaginian shore. 
 
 As he was about to advance on Carthage a messenger 
 from Rome came to him and said : 
 
 "Your family are suffering and need you; a slave 
 has run away w T ith the farm tools, and your wife and 
 children know not what to do." 
 
 Regulus asked to be relieved of his command that he 
 might return to their assistance, but the senate ordered 
 him to proceed, promising to care for his family. Reg- 
 ulus met with continued success, and would have con- 
 quered Carthage had not the Carthaginians been rein- 
 forced by a large body of Greek soldiers. This time the 
 Greek general placed one hundred elephants in the van, 
 and again the Roman army was thrown into a panic, as 
 the elephants rushed upon them. A complete defeat 
 followed, and Regulus himself was taken prisoner. 
 
 After being kept in confinement a long time, he was 
 selected to carry proposals of peace to the Romans. They 
 asked him : 
 
 "Will you swear to return if the senate refuse to 
 make peace ? " 
 
 ' * I will pledge you my honor to return, ' ? said Regulus. 
 
125 * 
 
 When Regulus reached Rome he refused to enter the 
 gates of the city. " I am no longer a Roman citizen," 
 he said, " but a Carthaginian slave. I am an old man, 
 and am not worth exchanging as a prisoner." 
 
 He stated the terms of the proposed peace, but, to the 
 amazement of all, he urged that they be rejected as un- 
 worthy of the glory and honor of Rome. Then, without 
 visiting his home, he turned his back on the walls of 
 Rome forever, and passed away from the shadows of the 
 Seven Hills, admired by all who held honor more sacred 
 than life. A cruel death awaited him at the hands of 
 the enraged Carthaginians. So perished this martyr to 
 his word and his country, but his name is enrolled with 
 Rome's undying heroes. 
 
 REGULUS BEFORE THE SENATE. 
 
 Urge me no more ; your prayers are vain 
 
 And even the tears ye shed ; 
 When I can lead to Rome again 
 
 The bands that once I led ; 
 When I can raise your legions slain 
 On swarthy Libya's fatal plain, 
 
 To vengeance from the dead ; 
 Then will I seek once more a home, 
 And lift a freeman's voice in Rome ! 
 
 Accursed moment ! when I awoke 
 From faintness all but death, 
 
 And felt the coward conqueror's yoke * 
 Like venomed serpents wreath 
 
 Round every limb ; if lip and eye 
 
 Betrayed no sign of agony, 
 Inly I cursed my breath ; 
 
 Wherefore, of all that fought, was I 
 
 The only wretch that could not die? ' 
 
126 
 
 To darkness and to chains consigned, 
 
 The captive's fighting doom 
 I recked not ; could they chain the mind, 
 
 Or plunge the soul in gloom? 
 And there they left me, dark and lone, 
 Till darkness had familiar grown; 
 
 Then from that living tomb 
 They led me forth, I thought, to die ; 
 Oh ! in that thought was ecstasy ! 
 
 But no ! kind Heaven had yet in store 
 
 For me, a conquered slave, 
 A joy I thought to feel no more, 
 
 Or feel but in the grave. 
 They deemed, perchance, my haughtier mood 
 Was quelled by chains and solitude ; 
 
 That he who once was brave — 
 Was I not brave ? — had now become 
 Estranged from honor as from Rome. 
 
 They bade me to my country bear 
 
 The offers these have borne ; 
 They would have trained my lips to swear, 
 
 Which never yet have sworn. 
 Silent their base commands I heard, 
 At length I pledged a Roman's word, 
 
 Unshrinking to return. 
 I go, prepared to meet the worst, 
 But I shall gall proud Carthage first. 
 
 They sue for peace ; I bid you spurn 
 
 The gilded bait they bear; 
 I bid you still, with aspect stern, 
 
 War — ceaseless war — declare. 
 Fools as they were, could not mine eyes, 
 Through their dissembled calmness, sp)^ 
 
 The struggles of despair ? 
 Else had they sent this wasted frame 
 To bribe you to your country's shame ? 
 
127 
 
 Your land — (I must not call it mine; 
 
 No country has the slave ; 
 His father's name he must resign, 
 
 And even his father's grave — 
 But this not now) — beneath her lies 
 Proud Carthage and her destinies ; 
 
 Her empire o'er the wave 
 Is yours ; she knows it well, and you 
 Shall know, and make her feel it, too. 
 
 Ah, bend your brows, ye ministers 
 
 Of coward hearts, on me ; 
 Ye know no longer it is hers, 
 
 The empire of the sea ; 
 
 Ye know her fleets are far and few ; 
 Her bands a mercenary crew ; 
 
 And Eome, the bold and free, 
 Shall trample on her prostrate towers, 
 Despite your weak and wasted powers. 
 
 One path alone remains for me ; 
 
 My vows were heard on high ; 
 Thy triumphs, Rome, I shall not see, 
 
 For I return to die. 
 Then tell me not of hope or life ; 
 I have in Rome no chaste, fond wife, 
 
 No smiling progeny ; 
 One word concentres for the slave — 
 Wife, children, country, all — the €lrave. 
 
 — Bev. Thomas Dale. 
 
 Rome's First Provinces. — Sicily now became Rome's 
 first province. The seizure of Sardinia and Corsica was 
 soon after accomplished, and that system of provincial 
 government established which in time made every dis- 
 trict in Europe, Asia, and Africa, lying within reach of 
 the Roman legions, become tributary to Rome. Accord- 
 ing to this provincial s}'stem the people outside of Italy 
 
128 
 
 were held strictly as subjects. Their lands were not 
 considered their own, but as belonging to Rome. A 
 Roman governor, with absolute power, was appointed to 
 rule over each province, and a heavy tribute was exacted. 
 It can be easily understood that' as the Roman character 
 fell from its ideal of honor, that the province soon be- 
 came an object of plunder and profit to the governor and 
 his friends. 
 
 During the peace of twenty-three years between the 
 First and Second Punic Wars, Rome was engaged in 
 subduing the pirates of the Adriatic and the Gauls, who 
 had again begun their ravages. This time the well- 
 trained legions defeated the Gauls with great slaughter, 
 and all northern Italy to the foot of the Alps submitted 
 to the Roman authority. At this time Greece entered 
 into an alliance with the Romans and extended an invi- 
 tation for them to participate in the Isthmian games. 
 The Athenians hailed the people of the West as kinsmen 
 and heroes, and gave them the freedom of the city. This 
 was the beginning of the intercourse of Rome with the 
 nations of the East. 
 
 Second Punic War. — While the Romans were thus ex- 
 tending their sway in Italy and its neighborhood, the 
 Carthaginians were equally active in strengthening their 
 power in the West. Hamilcar was sent into Spain to 
 conquer the peninsula. For nine years he devoted his 
 genius to organizing the native tribes and to developing 
 the gold and silver mines in southern Spain. Hamil- 
 car's son, Hannibal, a boy nine years old, had accompa- 
 nied his father to Spain. Before leaving Carthage, his 
 
129 * 
 
 father had led him to the altar and made him swear eter- 
 nal hatred to the Roman race. 
 
 When twenty-six years old, Hannibal became com- 
 mander-in-chief of the Carthaginian armies (220 B. C.) 
 and at once began preparations for war with Rome. 
 His first act was to attack the Greek city of Saguntum, 
 which had for years been allied to Rome, and thus pre- 
 cipitated hostilities with the hated republic. Then as- 
 sembling an army of 90,000 foot, 12,000 horse, and 
 thirty-seven elephants, he committed the government of 
 Spain to his brother, Hasdrubal, and marched towards 
 the Alps, determined to carry the war into Italy. 
 
 When he reached the Rhone he found a large army 
 of Gauls drawn up on the opposite bank to dispute his 
 passage. This enemy was defeated by a skillful ma- 
 neuvre. A detachment of troops was sent to cross the 
 stream higher up, under cover of the night, with orders 
 to attack the Gauls in the rear, on a signal being given. 
 " Everything being prepared he began to cross the 
 stream. The Gauls rushed down to oppose him, but 
 soon saw their camp behind them in flames, and after a 
 short resistance, turned and fled. The Roman army 
 then crossed the Rhone " — Goodrich. 
 
 The elephants, dreading the water, could not be com- 
 pelled to enter boats ; they were, therefore, conveyed 
 across by floats or rafts of timber covered with earth. 
 " The animals, deceived by their appearance, took 
 them for firm ground and suffered themselves to be 
 led upon them." — Goodrich. 
 
 The great army now marched on up the valley of the 
 
130 
 
 Rhone, obtaining supplies on the way from a Celtic 
 chief, till sheer in front of them, loftier than the Pyre- 
 nees, rose the Alpine peaks. " Nature and man joined 
 to oppose the passage." The tremendous height and 
 steepness of the mountains, capped with snow, that 
 seemed to rest among the clouds, the mountaineers, of 
 barbarous and fierce aspect, dressed in skins, presented a 
 scene that would have daunted a less bold and deter- 
 mined leader. Added to all these horrors " the season 
 was now far advanced, it was October, and snow was 
 falling on the higher portion of the trail." Hannibal 
 seized the first pass at night while the mountaineers 
 were resting. Thus gaining the advantage, the army 
 pushed on up the steep ascent though often attacked by 
 the hostile tribes who rolled down great rocks upon 
 them from the precipices. "At times the crack of a 
 whip would bring down an avalanche from the impend- 
 ing heights." In places the narrow way must be cut 
 wider for the monstrous bodies of the elephants. Vast 
 numbers of men, horses, and elephants were lost before 
 the army escaped from these dangers. On the ninth day 
 they reached the summit of the Alps, where they halted 
 two days to rest. Here a great fall of snow, and the 
 prospect of further difficulties, disheartened the soldiers ; 
 but Hannibal aroused them by the inspiring words, 
 "Ye stand upon the Acropolis of Italy; yonder lies 
 Rome." 
 
 With renewed spirits they commenced the toilsome 
 descent. The difficulties now increased ; the new-fallen 
 snow had covered up the paths, and they lost their way. 
 Along the edge of narrow precipices which went sheer 
 
131 * 
 
 down into unseen depths they had to creep with careful 
 steps ; the least slip and none could save them. Often 
 new roads must be cut with hands benumbed w T ith cold. 
 
 Finally the path grew easier and the valleys more fer- 
 tile. "Gradually from the land of everlasting snows 
 they came down into the soft warmth of the Italian 
 plains." "Fifteen days in all were spent in crossing 
 the Alps ; the route w T as probably the pass now known 
 as Mont Cenis," though it has generally been said to be 
 the Little St. Bernard. 
 
 This is the greatest march known in ancient times, 
 but it was accomplished with a fearful sacrifice of life. 
 "Of the fifty thousand and more with which Hannibal 
 had begun the passage, barely half that number had sur- 
 vived the march, and these looked more like phantoms 
 than men.' 5 Hannibal, however, w T as confident that he 
 could gain the Gauls as auxiliaries, and in this he was 
 not deceived. After recruiting his exhausted soldiers, 
 he twice routed the Roman armies. He gained the good- 
 will of the Gauls by sparing their possessions and plun- 
 dering only those of the Romans. They flocked to his 
 standard and became a constant and reliable part of his 
 army throughout his Italian campaigns. 
 
 The skillful generalship of Hannibal w r as constantly 
 displayed, and the Roman consuls were no match for 
 him. This fact was well illustrated in the battle of Tre- 
 bia. The wily Carthaginian, knowing the impetuosity 
 of the Romans, provoked them to a battle. It was a 
 cold winter morning, and the Romans had been roused 
 from their sleep to fight without having breakfasted. 
 The Carthaginian cavalry, feigning a panic, fled to the 
 
132 
 
 river Trevia. The Romans pursued them across the 
 stream, which was swollen by a heavy fall of rain. 
 ' ' The water was icy cold and almost up to their necks ; 
 they were hungry as well as chilled to the bone. They 
 could not maintain their ground" against fresh troops of 
 the enemy, and were completely routed, the greater part 
 of them perishing in the river and on its banks." 
 
 The following spring Hannibal led his army, now re- 
 cruited by many Gauls, across the Apennines and south- 
 ward through the flooded region of the Arno. Four 
 days and three nights were consumed in wading through 
 the marshes. The men suffered every hardship ; Han- 
 nibal lost one of his eyes by acute inflammation, and, it 
 was said, that his life was saved by his last remaining 
 elephant. Notwithstanding these misfortunes he soon 
 afterwards entrapped the Roman army in a mountain 
 pass where they were bewildered by the- fog and com- 
 pletely defeated. During this battle a dreadful earth- 
 quake occurred, which destroyed many cities, overturned 
 mountains, and turned rivers from their courses; but such 
 was the fury of the combatants that this great convul- 
 sion of nature passed unobserved. 
 
 " Rome was now saved by the prudence of Fabius, 
 who was made dictator." "He saw that the only way 
 of obtaining advantage over the enemy was by harrass- 
 ing and fatiguing them without coming to a decisive 
 battle." "Whenever they moved he watched their 
 movements, straitened their quarters, and cut off their 
 provisions. The soldiers began to murmur and called 
 him Cunctator or 'the Delayer.' He was even accused 
 of treachery, but nothing moved him from his course; 
 
133 . 
 
 thus lie gained time for the fitting out of new arma- 
 ments." 
 
 By the next summer a large army had been raised, 
 and disciplined, much superior to that of Hannibal, ^but 
 commanded by two consuls who did not work well to- 
 gether. Varro, who had nothing to recommend him ex^ 
 cept wealth and self-conceit, gave the signal for battle 
 without asking advice of his colleague. The Romans at- 
 tempted to break through the center of the enemy's lines. 
 Hannibal, observing this, ordered part of these troops to 
 give way and allow the Romans to advance until they 
 were surrounded. A chosen body of cavalry then fell 
 upon their flanks and a horrible massacre occurred. 
 Twenty-one tribunes, eighty senators, and from fifty to 
 seventy thousand men were slain. This was the great- 
 est defeat the Romans ever sustained. "Thousands of 
 rings gathered from the hands of nobles wdio lay dead 
 upon the field were sent as trophies to Carthage." 
 
 "The road lay open to Rome. 'Let me advance in- 
 stantly with the horse,' urged the commander of the 
 cavalry, ' and in four days thou shalt sup in the capitol.' 
 Hannibal refused. 'Alas,' said the disappointed officer, 
 'thou knowest how to gain a victory, but not how to use 
 one.' " — Quackenbos. 
 
 Great was the consternation at Rome. One-fifth of all 
 the citizens able to bear arms had fallen in the disastrous 
 campaign and every house was in mourning. In this 
 hour of despair the senate stood calm and firm. Hanni- 
 bal sent an embassy to offer terms of peace, the Senate 
 would not permit the ambassadors to enter the gates. 
 Hannibal withdrew his army to wealthy Capua, which 
 
134 
 
 opened its gates without resistance and became the win- 
 ter quarters of the army. Southern Italy generally de- 
 clared for the victor and Macedon and Syracuse also 
 joined the Carthaginian, but the Latin cities never 
 swerved for a moment from their loyalty. 
 
 The Roman Empire in Italy stood firm as a rock, and, 
 maintaining war not only in Italy but in Spain, began 
 slowly to win back what it had lost. 
 
 Siege of Syracuse, — After a siege of eight months Syr- 
 acuse was captured by the Romans under Marcellus. It 
 had been defended chiefly by the ingenuity of the famous 
 mathematician, Archimedes. "He contrived stupen- 
 dous engines which discharged masses of stone, and 
 huge iron grapples that seized the Roman ships when 
 they approached the walls, raised them in the air, and 
 dashed them into the water. He is also said to have set 
 fire to the hostile fleet by means of mirrors, and so terri- 
 fied the Romans with his machines that at the sight of a, 
 rope or a stick on the walls they fled in dismay." 
 - — Quackenbos. 
 
 At length, during a festival of Diana, the city was 
 taken (212 B. C.) and given up to pillage. Treasures of 
 Grecian art, paintings and sculpture, which adorned this 
 famous colony of ancient Hellas, were now removed to 
 Rome. During the confusion of the pillage Archimedes 
 perished. " He was engaged in study, when a Roman 
 soldier rushed upon him and bade him follow to Mar- 
 cellus. ' Wait,' said the Philosopher, l till I have fin- 
 ished this problem ' ; whereupon the soldier, incensed at 
 the delay, drew his sword and killed him." Syracuse 
 
135 „ 
 
 never recovered from the blow inflicted upon her at this 
 time by the relentless Romans. 
 
 Close of the war. — Meanwhile their luxurious city 
 quarters were enervating the soldiers of Hannibal, and 
 when called again into the field thej were no longer 
 equal to the fatigues of the war. 
 
 Before the fall of Syracuse the Romans laid siege to 
 Capua. Hannibal hastened to the relief of the city, but 
 not succeeding in breaking the lines of the besiegers he 
 attempted to frighten them away by making a bold dash 
 on Rome. In this he was disappointed, for the city was 
 provided with defenders. It is said that Hannibal rode 
 up to the very walls and discharged a javelin into the 
 city. Fearing to undertake the siege of Rome, he re- 
 treated into Southern Italy, leaving Capua to her fate. 
 It was soon taken and " paid the penalty that Rome 
 never failed to inflict on an unfaithful ally." Its chief 
 citizens were put to death, and great numbers of the in- 
 habitants sold as slaves. The city was reduced to the 
 rank of a village, being deprived of all political rights. 
 
 In the year following, Tarentum was taken and, as a 
 last resource, Hannibal looked eagerly for assistance 
 from his brother in Spain. Here Hasdrubal had de- 
 feated and killed two Roman generals, and then leaving 
 the conduct of the war to others, followed about the same 
 route formerly taken by Hannibal. 
 
 In 207 B. C. he descended the Alps upon the plain of 
 Northern Italy, while Hannibal moved northward to 
 meet him. "But the junction was never effected, for 
 Hasdrubal's army was cut to pieces and its leader slain. 
 His disfigured head flung into the camp was brought to 
 
136 
 
 Hannibal, who cried out on beholding it, ' Ah ! Car- 
 thage, I see thy doom.' " — Quackenbos. 
 
 11 Somewhat later the Romans sent an army into 
 Africa, and Hannibal (after an absence of nineteen 
 years, fifteen of which were occupied in Italy) was re- 
 called to defend his country from Scipio, but without 
 success. The battle of Zama, 202 B. C. (see Allen's his- 
 tory) annihilated the last hope of Carthage, and forced 
 her to submit to a disgraceful peace. Thus ended the 
 second Punic war. In honor of his great victories, 
 Scipio was surnamed Africanus." : — Quackenbos. 
 
 Death of Hannibal. — Hannibal now proved himself as 
 capable in the field of administration as in the conduct 
 of war. "The reforms instituted by him in his native 
 city enabled his countrymen not only to pay the indem- 
 nity demanded by the Romans but rapidly to regain 
 their former prosperity." — Allen. The Romans, be- 
 holding his work with jealous eye, demanded his sur- 
 render. He fled to the court of Antiochus, who ruled 
 the kingdom from the iEgean sea beyond the Tigris. 
 When that king submitted to the Romans he sought ref- 
 uge in an adjoining country. Still finding himself pur- 
 sued by the vindictive Romans he ended his life by 
 taking poison which he carried in a hollow ring. Thus 
 perished one of the greatest captains of antiquity in the 
 sixty-eighth year of his life (183 B. C). 
 
 Third Punic war. — In a little more than half a cen- 
 tury Rome, by successful campaigns in Greece and Asia 
 Minor, had obtained her first Asiatic province of Perga- 
 mus, as well as the provinces of Greece and Macedonia. 
 (See Grecian history.) The same year that saw the fall 
 
137 
 
 of Corinth witnessed also the destruction of Carthage. 
 This city had again become wealthy and prosperous. 
 Ships crowded her harbors and the country for miles 
 around was a beautiful garden. The jealousy of Rome 
 was aroused. Marcus Cato was sent as an ambassador 
 to Africa, and on his return he is said to have presented 
 a bunch of figs to the senate, saying "They are yet 
 fresh. They came from Carthage. So near to us are 
 our enemies, Delenda est Carthago!" (Carthage must be 
 destroyed. ) 
 
 The senate at last was moved by the constant denun- 
 ciations of Cato, who never rose to speak or vote on any 
 subject without adding the words, " I also think that 
 Carthage should be destroyed.' ' They soon found a 
 pretext and issued a decree for the destruction of 
 Carthage, permitting the inhabitants to build another 
 city not nearer to the sea than ten miles. 
 
 " This was too much, even for a conquered people; 
 they preferred a hopeless resistance. All classes labored 
 incessantly to strengthen the fortifications of the city ; 
 prisoners were set free, and their chains forged into 
 weapons ; statues, vases — even gold and silver — were 
 melted down for the same purpose, and the women 
 braided their flowing locks into bow-strings." — Quack- 
 enbos. . (Their arms and military stores had a short time 
 before been surrendered to the Romans. ) 
 
 In spite of these efforts, Scipio, the adopted son of 
 Scipio Africanus, took the city after a three-years' siege, 
 and burned it to the ground. A plough was driven over 
 the site and a dreadful curse invoked upon any one who 
 should attempt to rebuild it. The territory possessed by 
 
138 
 
 ''Carthage at the time of its fall was made the province 
 of Africa, with Utica as its capital." 
 
 Scipio, surveying the ruins of the city he had con- 
 quered, could not refrain from tears. The thought that 
 such might some time be the fate of his own city came 
 to his mind, and. he sadly repeated the words of Homer : 
 
 "Yet come it will, the day decreed by fate, 
 The day when thou, imperial Troy, must bend, 
 And see thy warriors fall, thy glories end." 
 
 (See character of Scipio. Page 144, Myers.) 
 Decay of the Republic— The Roman power by means 
 of two or more centuries of conquest had obtained pos- 
 session first of Italy, then of nearly all the countries 
 bordering on the Mediterranean. The Roman Repub- 
 lic was now "mistress of the civilized world," but she had 
 reached the summit of her greatness. She became proud 
 and cruel. Her unjust wars for the sake of glory robbed 
 her of her old time virtue, which had been her strength. 
 The provinces were the principal source of corruption. 
 The revenues extorted from them were enough to sup- 
 port Rome in idleness. The people of the provinces had 
 no redress from the cruelties practiced upon them, for 
 their own courts of justice had no authority over their 
 conquerors. It is related that Flaminius, when com- 
 manding an army in Cisalpine Gaul, caused a noble 
 Gaul to be beheaded for the amusement of his favorite of- 
 ficers. The man was guilty of no offense, but the pleas- 
 ing spectacle of his death was to compensate for the 
 gladiatorial shows at Rome which they had missed. 
 Flaminius was removed from the senate by the censors, 
 but the courts had no power to punish him. 
 
139 • 
 
 Cato was known for the severity with which he dis- 
 charged his duty as censor of the public morals. For 
 nearly half a century he was the leading politician of 
 Rome. He contended against luxurious living and de- 
 basement of character and set an example by the purity 
 and simplicity of his own life. Though he was a model 
 in personal integrity, energy, and ability in war and in 
 statesmanship, he was devoid of generosity and nobility 
 of character. The indirect influence of his teachings 
 was to emphasize what was selfish and ungenerous in 
 Roman policy. It. was he who urged the destruction of 
 Carthage and the extension of the mischievous provin- 
 cial system. He thought the degeneracy of character 
 due to the fashionable Greek culture of the day. It 
 must be admitted that the Greeks were not what they 
 had been, and their art, literature, and philosophy at this 
 age possessed no elevating or ennobling power. The doc- 
 trines of the Greek Epicurus were eagerly embraced by 
 the* Romans of the empire. Epicurus said : " Be vir- 
 tuous because virtue will bring the greatest amount of 
 happiness." The disciples of this corrupt age carried 
 the teachings of their master to an excess he would have 
 been first to condemn. Their whole philosophy was ex- 
 pressed in the proverb : " Let us eat, drink, and be 
 merry, for tomorrow we die.'" 
 
 "As a result of the many wars, slaves had multiplied 
 to an alarming extent. Numbers of these were trained 
 as gladiators. Others cultivated the public lands, while 
 the poor freeman could scarcely make a living." — 
 Quackenbos. The simple peasant no longer cultivated 
 his small farm. When Hannibal swept through the 
 
140 
 
 country with fire and sword he destroyed all these rural 
 homes and reduced great districts to a condition where 
 they fell an easy prey to speculators. These wealthy 
 land-owners had transformed Italy into a country of 
 great landed estates cultivated by slaves. As free labor 
 can never exist by the side of slave labor, the peas- 
 ants nocked to the city to be fed, amused, and humored 
 by office-seekers who wished their votes. It was cus- 
 tomary for a candidate to amuse the people with costly 
 games and the governors of provinces kept the Roman 
 populace in good humor by sending back gifts of grain. 
 There was no substantial industry or commerce as at 
 the present time, and no means were taken to enlighten 
 and refine the community by science, literature, or reli- 
 gion. It is no wonder that they sank into a mere mob 
 that threatened the destruction of their country. 
 
 A great change, had also taken place in the army. 
 The soldier no longer retired to his little farm when he 
 had fought his country's battles, but was a soldier by 
 profession. He fought for plunder and glory, not for 
 love of country and for the protection of his own fire- 
 side. 
 
 The days of Fabricius were forgotten ; presents from 
 foreign kings were now received at Rome and generals 
 and statesmen demanded money everywhere. The Ro- 
 mans became cruel and unjust, thus bringing about a 
 century of civil strife which ended the republic. Never- 
 theless six great names were connected with the ensuing 
 centuries ; and, through the influence of those great 
 leaders, the earliest years of the empire became the 
 palmiest in Roman history. These names are : The 
 
141 * 
 
 Gracchi, Marius, Cicero, Caesar and Octavian. — -Adopted 
 from Allen, Barnes and Myers. 
 
 THE CIVIL WARS. 
 
 The Reforms of the Gracchi. — Moved by the distress 
 that prevailed among the lower classes, Tiberius and 
 Cams Gracchus became noted champions in the cause 
 of the people. They were grandsons of Scipio Africanus, 
 and had been carefully and wisely brought up by their 
 mother, Cornelia, a noble Roman lady. She had re- 
 fused an offer of marriage with the king of Egypt in or- 
 der that she might devote herself to the education of her 
 sons. 
 
 The following story is a familiar one to all readers of 
 history : 
 
 A rich lady friend was once exhibiting to Cornelia a 
 casket of rare gems. When asked what her jewels were, 
 the mother called in her two sons, saying, "These are 
 my jewels." 
 
 The Gracchi, as they were called, became the most 
 popular orators that Rome ever produced. They boldly 
 proclaimed the rights of the people. 
 
 Tiberius first became tribune and secured the passage 
 of a law directing the division of the public lands into 
 homesteads for the needy. Attalus, king of Pergamus, a 
 country in Asia Minor, bequeathed his vast riches to the 
 Roman people. Tiberius proposed that, as the poorer 
 classes had just been allotted small portions of land, the 
 money should be divided amongst them, in order that 
 they might stock their farms and build houses. "Be- 
 
142 
 
 fore this plan could be carried out ; his year of office ex- 
 pired, and unwilling to see the good he had begun left 
 unfinished, he offered himself for re*-election, though 
 this was contrary to law." — Mary Ford. On the day 
 when the election was held, the nobles aroused a mob, 
 who attacked Tiberius and his friends. There in the 
 Roman Forum he and three hundred of his followers 
 were killed and their bodies thrown into the Tiber. 
 Never before had the forum been disgraced by such a 
 scene of violence and bloodshed. 
 
 The fate of his brother Tiberius did not prevent Caius 
 Gracchus from pursuing a similar course in the interest 
 of the people. The Senate, fearing him, had appointed 
 him magistrate in. Sardinia for three years. Returning 
 to Rome before that time he was summoned before the 
 Senate to be publicly rebuked and expelled; "but he 
 appealed to the people in a stirring speech. Caius had 
 given years of study to attain perfection in the art of or- 
 atory ; indeed, he was so careful in the modulation of 
 his voice that a slave, standing behind him with a flute, 
 gave him the proper note on which to begin, and the 
 result was soon seen in the effect he produced on his 
 audiences. The people were charmed with his elo- 
 quence, and when he put himself up for election as 
 tribune, they thronged in such numbers to vote for 
 him that even the house-tops were crowded. His brother 
 Tiberius had been very dear to him, and in all his 
 speeches he bitterly reproached the plebeians for allow- 
 ing him to be slain." — Mary Ford. 
 
 Caius was chosen tribune in 123 B. C. He was par- 
 ticularly anxious for the distribution of the public lands 
 
 i 
 
143 * 
 
 and the sale of corn at a low price among the poor. The 
 latter was a very unwise measure, for it was not long be- 
 fore the people were living in vicious indolence and 
 feeding at the public expense. As the public lands of 
 Italy had been mostly taken up, he proposed to establish 
 twelve colonies in the provinces, and himself carried a 
 body of settlers to the abandoned site of Carthage. 
 
 Other measures favored by Caius were bitterly op- 
 posed by the nobles, and the influence of Gracchus de- 
 pending upon the support of a fickle people, he lost his 
 election and became a private citizen. Such an intense 
 excitement occurred when the senate attempted to repeal 
 the laws that Caius had made that the two parties came 
 into collision. Caius sought death at the hands of a 
 faithful slave to prevent capture by his enemies. 
 
 "Cornelia survived her sons for many years. When 
 she died, her early hope was fulfilled, and on the bronze 
 statue raised to her memory in the forum were carved 
 the words : ' Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi.' " — 
 Mary Ford. 
 
 With the Gracchi perished the real freedom of the re- 
 public, henceforth the power of the state was wielded by 
 a corrupt and insolent aristocracy. 
 
 Marius and Sulla. — Soon after the death of Gracchi 
 there arose two Roman leaders named Marius and Sulla. 
 "They were ambitious not for the welfare of their fel- 
 low-men, and for right, honor, and noble deeds, but for 
 themselves." 
 
 Sulla was a patrician and Marius was a representative 
 of the plebeians. Marius was the son of a poor villager 
 and passed his early life in the labors of the field. " His 
 
144 
 
 manners were boorish, his countenance frightful and his 
 stature gigantic ; his only virtue appears to have been 
 personal bravery and military talent." Sulla on the 
 contrary was " elegant, refined, and accomplished to the 
 finger tips," and though younger than Marius soon be- 
 came his rival in military exploits. In the war with 
 Jugurtha, a prince who had taken violent possession of 
 all Numidia, on the northern coast of Africa, Marius 
 was consul and conducted the campaign ; Sulla was a 
 young officer under his command. 
 
 By his own desire Sulla was sent on a dangerous er- 
 rand to accomplish the treacherous seizure of Jugurtha. 
 His success in this attempt emboldened him to claim 
 himself as victor and to have a ring made representing 
 Jugurtha's surrender to him, though the Consul Marius 
 received all the honors at Rome. Henceforth Marius 
 and Sulla were bitter rivals. — Adapted 'from Butterworth, 
 Goodrich, Mary Ford, Allen, and Myers. 
 
 The Cimbri and Teutones.— (113-110 B. C.)— While 
 half of the Roman army was in Africa, an invasion from 
 the barbaric tribes of the north swept over the new prov- 
 ince of Transalpine Gaul and threatened Italy. Two 
 German tribes called the Cimbri and Teutones had left 
 their forests and were seeking new homes in the south. 
 They traveled in wagons, bringing with them their prop- 
 erty, wives, and children. The Celtic tribes were no 
 match for this multitude of gigantic savages and fled be- 
 fore them as they advanced. Several Roman armies 
 were cut to pieces in Gaul and the senate in despair ap- 
 pealed to Caius Marius as the only man who could save 
 the state. For two or three successive years, while the 
 
145 * 
 
 victorious Germans roamed through Gaul and Spain, 
 Marius was again and again reinstated consul. It was 
 contrary to law but the safety of the state demanded it. 
 
 At last the invaders again set their faces towards 
 Italy, and Marius, accompanied by Sulla, as one of his 
 most skillful lieutenants, hastened into northern Italy. 
 The barbarians having divided, he hurried over the 
 Alps, met the Teutons not far from Marseilles and al- 
 most annihilated the entire host. The Cimbri, in the 
 meantime, had entered Italy by the eastern Alps and 
 were ravaging the rich plains of the Po. They were 
 met the following year, 101 B. C, by Marius and his 
 colleague. The lines of the barbarians were drawn up 
 in a body nearly three miles square, the men of the 
 outer ranks being linked together by chains passed 
 through their belts. This proved their ruin, for the 
 Romans hewed their way through to the wagons, which 
 were placed in the center. There the women, assisted 
 by the dogs, fought as desperately as the men, but were 
 soon overpowered by the trained legions. None could 
 escape and the few who survived were sold as slaves in 
 the Roman markets. Great were the rejoicings at Rome 
 over these two great victories, and Marius was hailed 
 as " Savior of his country " and " third founder of the 
 city." For the present, indeed, Rome was saved, but 
 this horde of barbarians that had been slaughtered was 
 but the vanguard of those northern hosts that, five hun- 
 dred years later, spread desolation throughout the em- 
 pire and broke it into fragments. — Adapted. 
 
 Servile and Social Wars. — The popularity of Marius 
 was now at its height, and five times running he was 
 
146 
 
 elected consul. Scarcely was the war with the barbar- 
 ians at an end, before a second uprising of the slaves 
 took place in Sicily. As before, the slaves chose a for- 
 tune-teller for their leader. The rebellion was soon 
 crushed, and a number of the slaves were brought to 
 fight as gladiators in the Roman theatre ; there, one by 
 one, they killed each other, till the last man fell upon 
 his own sword. 
 
 "Marius now put himself up for election as consul 
 for the sixth time, and there being no necessity for this 
 illegal proceeding, the people suspected him of wanting 
 to get all the power of the state into his own hands, and 
 his popularity began to decline." — -Mary Ford. 
 
 The important question at Rome was now that of the 
 Italian allies, who were more and more impatient to ob- 
 tain Roman citizenship. At last, when hopeless of suc- 
 cess by legislation, the Italians attempted to gain their 
 rights by violence. This contest, called the Social War, 
 was kept up for two years, with successes on both sides. 
 " Marius obtained two great victories over the others, 
 though his soldiers fought very unwillingly, recognizing 
 in the opposite ranks many of their own friends and 
 kinsmen." — Mary Ford. 
 
 After thousands of lives had been sacrificed and plan- 
 tations laid waste the senate granted what it had so 
 churlishly refused at the begining of the war, namely, 
 the citizenship of the Italian states. At a later time, in the 
 days of the empire, this franchise was extended to all the 
 free inhabitants of the provinces beyond the confines of 
 Italy. 
 
 First Mithridatic War. — Just before the close of the 
 
147 • 
 
 social war, news came to Rome that Mithrida'tes the 
 Great, king of Pontus, had proclaimed himself deliverer 
 of Asia Minor from the Roman yoke. The Romans ap- 
 pointed Sulla to conduct the war against the king. Ma- 
 rius was very angry, and by unscrupulous means man- 
 aged to wrest the command from his rival. Sulla now 
 led his legions to Rome, and, for the first time since the 
 founding of Rome, civil war existed within the walls of 
 the city. 
 
 • Marius, deserted by a large number of his men, was 
 obliged to take to flight. After many adventures he at 
 last crossed the Mediterranean and reached the ruins of 
 Carthage. "Here he lived in a hut. He was an old 
 man now — over seventy years old — and one would have 
 thought that his exile would have softened his heart and 
 led him to long for the virtues that bring peace to the 
 soul. He once said to a messenger from Rome, ' Go tell 
 your master that you have seen Caius Marius sitting an 
 exile amid the ruins of Carthage.' " — Butterworth. 
 
 "Meanwhile Sulla's career in the East was a series of 
 victories. Athens, which had revolted to Mithrida'tes, 
 was taken by storm. Greece and Asia Minor were con- 
 quered, and the king submitted to a humiliating peace. " 
 — QuackeriboS: 
 
 Return of Marius. — -After Sulla's departure Marius 
 was recalled from exile by his friends at Rome. He 
 now took a fearful revenge for all he had suffered. He 
 closed the gates of the city and caused all whom he con- 
 sidered his enemies to be slaughtered. "Finally, the 
 monster had himself declared consul for the seventh 
 
148 
 
 time." " Was lie happy? Amid his cruel triumph he 
 fell sick. His sufferings were terrible. He imagined 
 himself Sulla, and at the head of the army in Asia. 
 'Mithridates ! ' he was heard to cry. He shouted orders 
 to the imaginary army of Sulla/ and so warring in his 
 dreams he became exhausted by frenzy, and sunk into 
 the sleep of death." — Butterworth. 
 
 Eeturn of Sulla. — Sulla returned and soon all Italy 
 lay prostrate before him. The plebeians and friends of 
 Marius now had cause for fear. Again the streets of 
 Rome ran red with blood. "The massacres of Marius, 
 however, were kind and gentle compared with the pro- 
 scriptions of Sulla; every day he published new lists of 
 those condemned to die, until the number of victims 
 could be reckoned by thousands." — Mary Ford. "The 
 possession of property was a sufficient offense. 'Alas ! ' 
 exclaimed one who read his name among the doomed, 
 'my villa is my destruction.' Even whole states of It- 
 aly which had sided with Marius were depopulated to 
 make room for colonies of Sulla's legions." — Quackenbos. 
 
 "When Sulla had taken possession of the supreme 
 power in Rome, and was looking over the list of public 
 men, in order to arrange a new system of government, 
 his eye met a name which caused him to hesitate. It 
 was Julius Caesar. He was born July 12, 100 B. C." — 
 Butterworth. 
 
 " It was a name of destiny. Julius Csesar was to con- 
 quer the world for Rome, and Rome for himself, and 
 well might Sulla pause at that name. Caesar was a 
 young man then. He was a patrician by birth, a de- 
 scendant from a long line of noble families, related by 
 
149 * 
 
 marriage to Marius. Though a patrician, his heart had 
 turned to the popular party. 
 
 " Sulla was about to place Caesar's name on the pro- 
 scribed list, when his many powerful friends interceded 
 in his behalf. Sulla suspended judgment, but ordered 
 Csesar to give up his wife, who was a daughter of Cinna, 
 a partisan of Marius. 
 
 "Csesar refused to be false to his wife and friends, 
 and fled from the city. Then Sulla proscribed him, and 
 deprived him of his offices and titles, and treated him as 
 one of the enemies of Rome." 
 
 "Csesar had studied Greek, and was a master of rhet- 
 oric and history. His heart was given to the prepara- 
 tion for a public career. In his exile he went to Rhodes, 
 where he met a former preceptor, and continued his 
 studies, wishing to become a master of oratory. Sulla 
 died, and Csesar cautiously returned to Rome." — Butter- 
 worth. 
 
 (See description of forum, "Little Arthur's History 
 of Rome," page 102.) 
 
 "He appeared in the forum as an orator and a cham- 
 pion of the people. His oratory carried the popular 
 feeling ; he soon found himself a hero, and his power 
 grew. Here Csesar delivered two funeral orations over 
 members of his own family, and in them pleaded the 
 cause of the rights of the people. 
 
 "He was elected to office, and he rose from one posi- 
 tion of influence to another, until he was made qusestor, 
 and was finally elected consul. 
 
 " His rise was not altogether honorable. He spent 
 his wealth in entertainments and public shows, to in- 
 
150 
 
 fluence the people for political ends. He studied the 
 art of pleasing the people for his own advancement. 
 But he was a patrician who had espoused the cause of 
 the people, and for this reason he became the idol of 
 Rome. Wherever he went, the streets shouted ; wher- 
 ever he sat down, he was the head of the festal table. 
 His ambition grew ; like Alexander, he must have the 
 earth — nothing less would content him. — Adapted. 
 
 " But before we go further, we must tell you some- 
 thing in regard to his great rival, Pompey. This hero 
 conquered the East, while Caesar subdued the West. 
 (To be continued.) — Butterworth. 
 
 Pompey the Great. — " Caius Pompeius Magnus, or 
 Pompey the Great, was born 106 B. C. He was a par- 
 tisan of Sulla and was bred to the life of a soldier. He 
 took a prominent part in the civil wars, and, becoming 
 a popular hero, was elected consul. He left the aristo- 
 cratic party and became a leader and voice of the people. 
 
 11 In 67-66 he drove the pirates from the Mediter- 
 ranean ; in 65-62 he conquered Mithridates, and Anti- 
 ochus, king of Syria. He subdued the Jewish nation, 
 captured Jerusalem, entered the Holy of Plolies in the 
 Jewish temple, and made Palestine a province of Rome. 
 He entered Rome in triumph in 61 B. C. He became a 
 friend of Caesar, and the united heroes joined with them 
 in their political schemes, Crassus, a man of great 
 wealth and influence in Rome. The three were called 
 the First Triumvirate." — Butterworth. 
 
 Julius Caesar (Continued). — Caesar's first province 
 was Spain. Before going to take possession of it, he 
 was obliged to apply to Crassus to satisfy those creditors 
 
151 * 
 
 who were most uneasy and would not be put off any 
 longer. In his journey, as he was crossing the Alps 
 and passing by a small village of the barbarians, with 
 but few inhabitants and those wretchedly poor, he re- 
 marked, "For my part, I had rather be the first man 
 among these fellows than the second man in Rome." 
 
 The military life of this wonderful commander had at 
 last begun, when he was forty years old. His friends 
 once found him in tears while reading the history of 
 Alexander. When asked why he wept, he said, " Do 
 you think I have not just cause to weep when I con- 
 sider that Alexander, at my age, had conquered so many 
 nations, and I have, all this time, done nothing that is 
 memorable." 
 
 Caesar found Spain in a very rebellious state, but with 
 great energy and skill he soon reduced it to submission 
 and established a just and firm rule. "By this wise 
 management he was able to leave his province with a 
 fair reputation ; being rich himself and having enriched 
 his soldiers and received from them the honorable name 
 of Imperator." 
 
 In less than a year he returned to Rome, and, being 
 doubly supported by Pompey and Crassus, was pro- 
 moted to the consulship. 
 
 The days of Roman liberty were now at an end. 
 Henceforth the government was in the hands of ambi- 
 tious leaders. Three great men were now at the head of 
 affairs in Rome — Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus. Caesar 
 was, however, the master as well of the senate as of the 
 people. By his influence, an agrarian law was passed, 
 for the division of some public lands among the poorer 
 
152 
 
 citizens. The best and most honorable of the senators 
 opposed it, but this gave him a pretext to appeal to the 
 people and convince them of his devotion to their cause. 
 Everything now gave way to Csesar ; even Cicero, whose 
 opposition they feared, was banished. (See stories of 
 Cato and Cicero, " Little Arthur's History of Rome.") 
 Caesar's desire now was to have an arm}^ at his com- 
 mand ; this he obtained, being appointed to the charge 
 of the provinces of Gaul, both Cisalpine and Transal- 
 pine, for five years. — Adapted from Plutarch, Goodrich, 
 and Allen. 
 
 Physical Gaul. — Gaul (Gallia) was the name given by 
 the ancients to that country which extended from the 
 Pyrenees to the Alps and the Rhine, embracing modern 
 France and Belgium, with part of Holland and Switzer- 
 land and a small part of Germany. 
 
 The surface of France exhibits, in general, an advan- 
 tageous succession of highland and lowland. Less level 
 than Poland, northern Germany, and European Russia, 
 it is on the whole less mountainous than Spain and 
 Italy, and may with great propriety be compared with 
 England. In France the mountainous districts are in 
 the south and east, and may be said to be to that coun- 
 try what Wales and Scotland are to Great Britain. 
 
 The region in which the olive tree is cultivated is lim- 
 ited by a line from the Garonne to Lyons, on the Rhone ; 
 the region of the vine from the mouth of the Loire to 
 Sedan; and the northern region is characterized by the 
 apple tree. 
 
 The cultivation of grain has always been the chief 
 business of French agriculturists. The quantity of 
 
153 * 
 
 wheat produced in France, large as it is, does not at 
 present meet the wants of the population, and great 
 quantities are every day imported from Russia, Prussia, 
 Roumania, Egypt, and America. 
 
 France is but inadequately supplied with harbors, her 
 long tract of coast, washed by the Atlantic and the Bay 
 of Biscay, has scarcely three or four good seaports, and 
 those on the southern shore of the channel form a strik- 
 ing contrast to the spacious inlets on the English side. 
 Cal'ais, one of the best harbors in the north, is not to be 
 compared with Dover. Le Havre De Grace, at the 
 mouth of the Seine, is the best mercantile harbor in the 
 north of France. Brest, in Brittany, is the great mari- 
 time port on the Atlantic for the navy. Bordeaux is sit- 
 uated on the Garonne, where the river is nearly equal in 
 width to the Thames in London. Nantes, at the mouth 
 of the Loire, is now connected with Liverpool by a reg- 
 ular service of steamers. On the Mediterranean, France 
 has the ports of Marseilles, the most spacious and secure 
 on the coast, Nice, and the great maritime port, arsenal 
 and dock-yard of Toulon. — Compiled from Britannica. 
 
 Ancient People of Gaul. — "The history of France may 
 well begin with the words which open Caesar's famous 
 chronicle: 'Gaul is divided into three parts.' The 
 southwest part was inhabited by a people of darker com- 
 plexion, less sociable, less bright, and not of Aryan race. 
 The descendants of these people still dwell amid the fast- 
 nesses of the Pyrenees, in the Basque provinces of Spain, 
 and differ alike from the Spaniards and Frenchmen. In 
 the north, some German tribes had crossed the Rhine, 
 
154 
 
 but with these exceptions the inhabitants were of the 
 Celtic race, called Celts or Gauls." — Britannica. 
 
 Description of Ancient Gauls. — (See p. 371, Barnes.; 
 
 Csesar Enters Gaul. — At the time Caesar was appointed 
 governor of Gaul, the Romans had possession of the col- 
 ony of Nar'bonen'sis, the territory between the Pyrenees 
 and the Alps, except that which belonged to the Greek 
 republic of Massilia. " West of the Rhone the province 
 was separated from free Gaul by the Cevennes Mount- 
 ains ; east of these mountains the Rhone and its tribu- 
 tary, the Saone, afforded a direct passage into the heart 
 of Europe. It was by this natural route that Caesar ad- 
 vanced in his schemes of conquest." — Allen. 
 
 When Csesar entered Gaul, he found the natives in a 
 half -barbarous state, split up into about sixty clans, each 
 with its elected chieftain, its Druids or priests, and its 
 bodies of warriors or horsemen. 
 
 (See Life of Caesar, Plutarch.) 
 
 Csesar in Gaul. — Thus far we have followed Caesar's 
 actions before the war with Gaul. After this he seems 
 to begin his course afresh, and to enter upon a new life 
 and scene of action. 
 
 "His first war in Gaul was against the Helvetians, 
 who inhabited modern Switzerland. Dissatisfied with 
 their rugged country they burned their own towns, 
 twelve in number, and four hundred villages, and pro- 
 posed to migrate across the country to the shores of the 
 Bay of Biscay. He considered their restlessness a 
 menace to the Roman province of Gaul, and, conse- 
 quently marched against them. These people were not 
 inferior in courage to the Cimbri and Teutons. After 
 
155 
 
 a lon^ and severe combat he drove the main armv out 
 of the field, but found the hardest work at their car- 
 riages and ramparts, where not only the men stood and 
 fought, but the women, also, and children, defended 
 themselves till they were cut to pieces. Gathering to- 
 gether those who had escaped out of the battle he 
 obliged them to re-occujDy the country which they had 
 deserted and the cities which they had burned. This 
 he did for fear the Germans should pass it and possess 
 themselves of the land while it lay uninhabited. 
 
 " His second war was in defense of the Gauls against 
 the Germans. But, finding his officers timorous, Caesar 
 called them together and advised them to march off, 
 and not run the hazard of a battle against their incli- 
 nations, since they had such weak and unmanly feel- 
 ings. ' I will take only the tenth legion and march 
 against the barbarians whom I do not expect to find 
 more formidable than the Cimbri, nor shall they find 
 me a general inferior to Marius.' Upon this the tenth 
 legion sent their acknowledgments and thanks, and the 
 other legions blamed their officers, with great vigor and 
 zeal, followed him many days' journey till they en- 
 camped within two hundred furlongs of the enemy." 
 — Plutarch. 
 
 The defeat of these Germans under Ariovistus, which 
 soon took place, was an event of great moment in the 
 history of the world, for by it the onward movement of 
 the Germans was arrested, and held in check for nearly 
 five hundred years. " After this action Caesar left his 
 army at their winter quarters in Gaul, and, in order to 
 attend to affairs at Rome, stationed himself in Cisal- 
 
156 
 
 pine Gaul, in the valley of the Po. There he sat down 
 and employed himself in courting the tavor of the 
 people ; great numbers coming to him continually, and 
 always rinding their requests answered ; for he never 
 failed to dismiss all with pleasant pledges of his kind- 
 ness in hand, and further hopes for the future." 
 
 Narrow Escape in the Belgian Forests. — (See Plu- 
 tarch.) 
 
 Conquests in Germany and Britain. — " Csesar was am- 
 bitious of the honor of being the first man that should 
 pass the Rhine with an army. Early in the spring of 
 55 B. C, he constructed a bridge across the Rhine and 
 led his legions against the Germans in their native 
 woods and swamps." When he had burned the enemies' 
 country, and encouraged those who embraced the Roman 
 interest, he went back into Gaul, after eighteen days' 
 stay in Germany. But his expedition into Britain was 
 the most famous testimony of his courage. For he was 
 the first who brought a navy into the western ocean or 
 who sailed into the Atlantic with an army to make war ; 
 and by invading an island whose existence was even 
 questioned at that time, he might be said to have carried 
 the Roman Empire beyond the limits of the known 
 world. He passed thither twice from that part of Gaul 
 which lies over against it, and in several battles which 
 he fought did more hurt to the enemy than service to 
 himself, for the islanders were so miserably poor that 
 they had nothing worth being plundered of. When he 
 found himself unable to put such an end to the war as he 
 wished, he was content to take hostages from the king, 
 
157 * 
 
 and to impose a tribute, and then quitted the island." — 
 Plutarch. 
 
 Character of Csesar. — " The period of the conquest of 
 Gaul and Britain shows Caesar to have been a soldier and 
 general not the least inferior to any of the greatest and 
 most admired commanders who had ever appeared at the 
 head of armies. 
 
 "Such was the affection of his soldiers, and their at- 
 tachment to his person, that they, who, under other 
 commanders, were nothing above the common rate of 
 men, became invincible when Caesar's glory was con- 
 cerned, and met the most dreadful dangers with a cour- 
 age which nothing could resist. 
 
 " This courage, and this great ambition, were culti- 
 vated and cherished, in the first place, by the generous 
 manner in which Caesar rewarded his troops, and the 
 honors which he paid them. His whole conduct showed 
 that he did not accumulate riches to minister to luxury, or 
 to serve any pleasures of his own, but that he considered 
 himself no farther rich than he was in a condition to do 
 justice to the merit of his soldiers. 
 
 "Another thing that contributed to make them invinci- 
 ble was their seeing Caesar always take his share of the 
 danger, and never desire any exemption from labor and 
 fatigue. As for his exposing his person to danger, they 
 were not surprised, for they knew his passion for glory, 
 but they were astonished at his patience under toil, so 
 far, in all appearance, above his bodily powers, for he 
 was of a slender make, fair, of a delicate constitution, 
 and subject to violent headaches and epileptic fits. He 
 did not, however, make these disorders a pretense for 
 
158 
 
 indulging himself. On the contrary, he sought in war 
 a remedy for his infirmities, endeavoring to strengthen 
 his constitution by long marches, by simple diet, by sel- 
 dom coming under cover. Thus he contended against 
 his distemper, and fortified himself against its attacks. 
 
 "When he slept it was commonly upon a march, 
 either in a chariot or a litter, that rest might be no hin- 
 drance to the business. In daytime he visited the 
 castles, cities, and fortified camps with a servant at his 
 side, and with a soldier behind who carried his sword. 
 He drove so rapidly that when he first left Rome he ar- 
 rived at the river Rhone within eight days. He had 
 been an expert rider from his childhood, for it was usual 
 with him to sit with his hands joined behind his back, 
 and so, to put his horse to its full speed. And in this 
 war, he disciplined himself so far as to be able to dictate 
 letters from on horseback, and to give directions to two 
 who took notes at the same time, or as Oppius says, ' to 
 more.' " 
 
 Thus he dictated his famous commentaries which fur- 
 nish us a faithful and graphic account of his marches, 
 battles, and sieges, besides being admired for their ele- 
 gance and style. 
 
 " Caesar remained nine years in Gaul. During that 
 time he took eight hundred cities by assault, conquered 
 three hundred nations, and fought pitched battles at dif- 
 ferent times with three million of men, one million of 
 which he slaughtered and made another million pris- 
 oners . ' ' — Plutarch . 
 
 Result of Csesar's Conquests. — "The newly con- 
 quered territory was divided into three districts, the 
 
159 - 
 
 northern, southwestern, and central, the latter of which 
 took its name from the city at the junction of the Rhone 
 and Saone, Lugdu'um (Lyons). The conquest of Gaul 
 was perhaps the most important the Romans had yet 
 made outside of their natural boundaries. It was not a 
 large source of revenue, and that was well, but it was a 
 broad, fertile land, occupied by a people who readily 
 adopted Roman institutions and civilization, and who 
 speedily became Romanized. Gaul became a seat of 
 flourishing trade and of well-conducted schools. Its sit- 
 uation, giving access at once to Britain and to Germany, 
 made it, in the latter empire, the center of civilization 
 and power in Western Europe." — Allen. 
 
 Rivalry between Caesar and Pompey. — " Caesar had 
 long ago resolved upon the overthrow of Pompey as had 
 Pompey upon his. For Crassus, the fear of whom had 
 hitherto kept them in peace, having now been killed in 
 Parthiaj the one who wished to make himself the great- 
 est man in Rome had onlv to overthrow the other." — 
 
 %j 
 
 Plutarch. " Caesar became more and more a favorite of 
 the people and .Pompey went over to the patrician or ar- 
 istocratic party, and endeavored to deprive Caesar of his 
 offices and honors." — Butterworlh. (See Myers.) 
 
 11 The senate, coming under the influence of the peace 
 party, ordered both Caesar and Pompey to lay down 
 arms. Caesar declared that he was ready to do this, if 
 Pompey would do the same ; but Pompey stubbornly re- 
 fused." The next year the war party ordered Caesar to 
 give up his command. Mark Antony and Cassius, who 
 supported Caesar, were driven from the senate. They 
 
160 
 
 fled to Caesar's camp, in Cisalpine Gaul, and demanded 
 protection." — Allen. 
 
 March upon Rome. — " Caesar at once marched upon 
 Rome. ' The die is cast.' So Caesar is reported to have 
 said on crossing the Rubicon. The river was in Cisal- 
 pine Gaul, on the boundary of the Roman Empire. 
 Caesar crossed the stream in disobedience to the senate, 
 and to the Roman law, which forbade a general to ap- 
 proach Rome with his army, after a foreign war, except 
 when invited to a triumph. The Rubicon was a small 
 stream, and the territory around it of little worth ; but 
 when Caesar crossed the boundary, the Roman republic 
 fell, after an existence of nearly five hundred years." — 
 Butterworth. 
 
 " Caesar's prompt action threw his opponents into dis- 
 traction and panic. Though Pompey had boasted that 
 with one stamp of his foot, an army would spring from 
 the ground, he now fled to Greece without striking a 
 blow. In sixty days, Caesar made himself master of all 
 Italy without bloodshed. He was made dictator and 
 the ambitious dreams of his youth seemed fulfilled." 
 — Butterworth. 
 
 Before following his enemy into the East, Caesar 
 brought Italy, Gaul, and Spain under his authority. 
 He also procured the passage of an important act giving 
 the citizenship to the inhabitants of Cisalpine Gaul. 
 
 " Caesar with a small army now crossed the sea to 
 meet Pompey. His soldiers were so full of faith in the 
 destiny of their leader, and so confident of victory, that 
 no ordinary force could withstand them. 
 
 "'Friends,' said Caesar, on the stormy waters, as he 
 
161 - 
 
 went before his little army, one dark windy night, on a 
 slender ship — ' friends, you have nothing to fear. You 
 are carrying Caesar ! ' " — Butterworth. 
 
 Conquest of Pompey.— <l The two armies met on the 
 plain of Pharsalia. Pompey had the larger army, Caesar 
 had better trained legions. Each felt certain of victory. 
 The disciplined legions of Caesar were soon masters of the 
 field. Pompey fled from the red field to his camp, and 
 sunk down in his tent a ruined man. His star had set 
 after thirty years. The soldiers of Caesar appeared be- 
 fore his tent, and he mounted his horse and fled again. 
 He sought refuge in Egypt, in the land of the Ptolemies. 
 There he was assassinated by the friends of Caesar, and his 
 body was burned on a funeral pyre. His dissevered 
 head was the first sight that greeted Caesar when he ar- 
 rived at Alexandria in pursuit." — Butterworth. 
 
 It is said that Caesar wept bitter tears, and directed 
 that an. honorable burial be given to the remains. 
 
 Other Conquests. — A few months were spent by Caesar 
 in ordering affairs in Egypt, where he restored Cleopatra 
 to her throne and suppressed a dangerous revolt. He 
 then marched into Asia against the son of Mithridates. 
 The speedy overthrow of this prince he announced in the 
 brief sentence, " Veni, vidi, vici ' ("I came, I saw, I 
 conquered "). 
 
 Cato and other republican leaders had assembled a 
 great force in Africa, whereupon Caesar hurried his con- 
 quering legions forward and a decisive battle was fought 
 (B. C. 46) fatal to the republic. 
 
 (See Life of Cato, " Little Arthur's History of 
 Rome.") 
 
162 
 
 Caesar' s Triumph. — On his return to Rome Caesar cel- 
 ebrated a four-days' triumph for his victories in Gaul, 
 Egypt, and Asia ; patriotism was still too strong in the 
 Roman mind to permit him a triumph over fellow-citi- 
 zens. 
 
 " In the triumphal procession were led captive princes 
 from all parts of the world. Beneath his standards 
 marched soldiers gathered out of almost every country 
 beneath the heavens. Seventy-five million dollars of 
 treasure were displayed. Splendid games and tables at- 
 tested the liberality of the conqueror. Sixty thousand 
 couches were set for the multitudes. The shows of the 
 theater and the combats of the arena followed one an- 
 other in an endless round. 
 
 " The senate made Caesar perpetual dictator, and con- 
 ferred upon him the powers of censor, consul, and tri- 
 bune, with the title of Pontifex Maximus and Impera- 
 tor (whence emperor). He was to sit in a golden chair 
 in the senate-house, and his statue was placed in the 
 capitol opposite to that of Jupiter." — Myers. 
 
 Caesar's Government. — Caesar now showed as great 
 ability as a statesman as he had before displayed as a 
 soldier. Order and justice were restored, and great re- 
 forms projected. To gratify his army, he sent out colo- 
 nies to all the different provinces, the most remarkable 
 of which were those sent to rebuild Corinth and Car- 
 thage. The provinces were governed with greater wis- 
 dom, and some of them, including Gaul, were given Ro- 
 man citizenship. Most important of all of his achieve- 
 ments was the revision of the calendar by the addition 
 of the extra day of the leap year. This brought the fes- 
 
163 . 
 
 tivals once more in their proper seasons. The calendar 
 then formed is known as the Julian Calendar, and with 
 some slight improvements is in use to-day. (See Barnes). 
 
 Caesar's Assassination. — " But all the genius of Caesar, 
 and all the wisdom and clemency which marked his ex- 
 ercise of power, could not compensate in the minds of 
 his countrymen for the crime of elevating himself on the 
 ruins of the republic. ' ' It was rumored that he designed 
 to assume the title of king, a name that was odious to 
 the Roman people. At a festival Mark Antony offered 
 him a crown. The murmurs of the multitude compelled 
 him to refuse it, but he seemed to thrust it aside reluc- 
 tantly. At length a conspiracy was formed for his de- 
 struction. Brutus and Cassius, the leaders, resolved to 
 put the plot into execution in the senate-house, on the 
 ides of March. "The augurs had foretold that this day 
 would be fatal to Caesar." His wife, Calpurnia, dreamed 
 on the night previous that she saw him assassinated, and 
 endeavored to detain him, but failed. On his way to 
 the senate-house a paper was placed in his hands con- 
 taining an account of the plot, but he gave it no atten- 
 tion. 
 
 As he entered the assembly chamber he recognized the 
 soothsayer, and remarked to him, " The ides of March 
 have come," to which he received the reply, " Yes, but 
 not gone." "As soon as Caesar had taken his place the 
 conspirators approached under pretense of Saluting him . ' * 
 At a given signal their daggers were drawn and they 
 rushed upon him. He defended himself at first with 
 great vigor, but seeing his loved and trusted Brutus 
 
164 
 
 among his assailants, he exclaimed,' " Et tu, Brute!" 
 (And thou, too, Brutus !) and, covering his face with his 
 toga, sank dead at the foot of Pompey 's statue. — Compiled 
 from Goodrich. 
 
 Results. — The conspirators expected to be applauded 
 by the people as liberators of their country, but they 
 were doomed to disappointment. The senate rushed 
 horror-stricken to their homes. The people were silent 
 and their faces grew pale as they recalled the proscrip- 
 tions of Sulla. Mark Antony, the trusted friend and 
 secretary of Caesar, planned a scheme for seizing upon 
 the chief authority. He obtained possession of Caesar's 
 papers and money and upon the day set for the funeral 
 ceremonies he delivered the usual funeral oration. " He 
 first read them Caesar's will, in which he made Octavius, 
 his sister's grandson, his heir, permitting him to take 
 the name of Caesar with three-fourths of -his private for- 
 tune. To the people of Rome were left the gardens he 
 possessed on the other side of the Tiber, and to every 
 citizen three hundred sesterces or about eleven dollars 
 and a quarter." — Goodrich. He rehearsed the great 
 deeds of Caesar and the honor he had brought to the Ro- 
 man name, and finally held up Caesar's rent and bloody 
 toga. The people excited by this artful eloquence could 
 no longer restrain their indignation against the conspir- 
 tors. Brutus and Cassius sought refuge in Greece. The 
 next year they were pursued and the issue decided on 
 the field of Philippi. " Brutus and Cassius were de- 
 feated and, in despair, committed suicide." The Roman 
 world was again in the hands of two masters, Antony in 
 the East, and Octavius in the West. 
 
165 * 
 
 Death of Antony and Cleopatra. — After a disgraceful 
 career in Egypt Antony ended his life with his own 
 hand. Cleopatra, the last of the Ptolemies was made 
 captive ; and, resolved not to be taken to Rome to grace 
 the triumph of Octavius, she applied an asp to her arm, 
 thus terminating her guilty career. 
 
 "Egypt now became a Roman province and the enor- 
 mous wealth of that country was seized by Octavius and 
 transported to Rome." 
 
 • "Caesar Octavius was now undisputed master of the 
 civilized world." After his return to Italy the senate 
 saluted him with the name of Augustus. "This title 
 was at first only personal, but afterwards it was assumed 
 by the Roman emperors on attaining the dignity of the 
 purple. " — Goodrich. 
 
 Establishment of the Empire. — The Senate had con- 
 ferred upon Augustus the entire authority of the govern- 
 ment, but he flattered the people by a show of republican 
 forms. " To the Senate he gave the chief power in the 
 administration of his government, while he secured the 
 fidelity of the people and the army by donations and acts 
 of favor. By these means he caused the odium of sever- 
 ity to fall upon the Senate, while the popularity of par- 
 don was solely his own." "The various offices of state 
 were continued, but he engrossed them all." "He was 
 consul, tribune, censor, pontifex maximus (superintend- 
 ent of religious matters), and imperator (commander-in- 
 chief) . " " Every ten years he went through the farce of 
 laying down his rank as chief of the army." "The 
 people believed themselves restored to their former free- 
 
16G 
 
 dom, and the Senate imagined their- ancient power re- 
 established.' ' — Goodrich . 
 
 Rome Under Augustus. — "The architectural splendor 
 of Rome properly dates from the reign of Augustus, who 
 boasted that he ' found it of brick and left it in marble.' 
 Among the chief ornamental structures was the capitol. 
 This was built on the Capitoline Hill, the highest in the 
 city, and was ascended from the forum by a flight of one 
 hundred steps. The gates were of brass overlaid with 
 gold, and the whole building was so plentifully adorned 
 in this manner that it acquired the name of the ' Golden 
 Capitol.' The Senate House was the grand legislative 
 hall of the nation. It was decorated with the statues of 
 eminent warriors and statesmen. The Pantheon, or 
 temple of all the gods, built in the reign of Augustus by 
 his son-in-law Agrippa, is now a Christian church, and 
 is the best preserved ancient building in Rome. It is 
 universally admired for its fine dome and portico." The 
 noble form of the dome had been developed from the 
 arch, the distinctive feature of Roman architecture. 
 
 "In the valley between the Palatine and Capitoline 
 Hills was the forum, or place of public assembly, and 
 great market. It was surrounded with halls for the ad- 
 ministration of justice, temples, and public officers. It 
 was also adorned with statues of eminent Romans, and 
 various trophies from conquered nations. Among these 
 memorials of conquest were several rostra or prows of 
 ships, taken from the Carthaginians. These were used 
 to ornament the pulpits from which the magistrates and 
 public officers harangued the general assemblies of the 
 
167 . 
 
 people. Thus originated the phrase, 'to mount the 
 rostrum.' 
 
 "The porticos or piazzas were very numerous at 
 Rome ; these' were covered colonnades, adorned with 
 statues, and were designed as places for the citizens to 
 meet for business or walk for pleasure. The city was 
 adorned with triumphal arches, having statues and 
 various sculptured ornaments." Some of these were 
 very magnificent, being built of the finest marble. The 
 most noted of these monuments were built by Titus and 
 Constantine, both of which are still standing. (See 
 Myers and Barnes.) 
 
 "Augustus, himself, enumerated twelve temples 
 which he had built, besides repairing eighty-two which 
 had fallen to decay, and building or restoring aque- 
 ducts, theatres, and porticos." "The people were not 
 taxed or oppressed any way for these improvements, 
 which were made at the expense of Augustus himself 
 and the wealthy nobles, who were stimulated by his 
 example." "The works of Augustus were directed to- 
 wards the general embellishment of the city, rather than 
 the erection of any particular edifice ; and the Campus 
 Martius, till then an open space, began to be covered 
 with elegant buildings ; but there was no royal palace, 
 for the emperor resided in a private house and his style 
 of living was not different from that of the rich citizen." 
 It is said that his toga was woven by his wife and her 
 maidens. 
 
 "The city of Rome, during the prosperous days of 
 the empire, contained four hundred and twenty temples, 
 besides theaters, amphitheaters, circuses, and public 
 
168 
 
 baths of vast extent. Some of the baths were con- 
 structed of marble, and were sufficiently large to accom- 
 modate three thousand bathers at once. Aqueducts of 
 enormous size conveyed a copious supply of water from 
 the neighboring country into Rome, and kept in play 
 a prodigious number of fountains, many of which were 
 remarkable for their architectural beauty. 
 
 ' Thirty-one great roads centered in Rome. Augustus 
 erected a gift pillar in the middle of the forum, from 
 which the distances on the various roads were reckoned. 
 There were thirty gates to the city, and eight bridges 
 crossed the Tiber." — Goodrich. 
 
 Roman Civilization was now spreading through the 
 empire. Learning was cultivated to such an extent that 
 this period of Roman literature is known as the "Golden 
 Ageof the Poets" or the "Augustan Age." "Augustus was 
 a literary man, and his principal adviser, Maecenas, 
 was a lover of poetry and art. It was the ambition of 
 the emperor to glorify Rome in history, poetry, and art, 
 and he admitted to his friendship men of genius and lit- 
 erary tastes, however humble may have been their birth. " 
 — Bulterworth. Every man of rank had a library, and 
 among the many distinguished writers of this age were 
 Horace, Virgil, Ovid, and Livy. (See Barnes and "Little 
 Arthur's History of Rome.") The Latin language be- 
 came the universal bond of intercourse throughout the 
 empire, though the Greek still prevailed in the East. 
 
 " The books were made of sheets of papyrus pasted to- 
 gether in a length and rolled on a stick. The writing was 
 in columns with a space between. These rolls, called 
 volumes, were kept in cases in the libraries. There were 
 
109 * 
 
 many book-sellers at Rome, and most of them employed 
 people to make copies of the books they had on sale, of 
 which, a list was usually hung up on the shop door. 
 
 " Wherever the Roman dominion was firmly estab- 
 lished, many opulent families went to reside, and as they 
 were the superior people, the natives of the higher 
 classes adopted their dress, language, and manners. Vil- 
 las and ornamental gardens were constructed, roads 
 made, and the people taught many useful arts of which 
 before they were ignorant. 
 
 ' ' They greatly improved the agriculture and horticult- 
 ure of Europe, by introducing into the provinces the 
 flowers and fruits of the East, and the cultivation of flax 
 from Egypt. 
 
 Manufactures. — "It was in the time of Augustus, 
 when Egypt became a Roman province, that linen began 
 to be used among the Romans, a manufacture for which 
 the Egyptians were particularly famous. Glass was also 
 manufactured at Alexandria, and sent to Rome, which 
 was the greatest market at this period for the richest pro- 
 ductions of every country. Many manufactures were 
 carried on in various parts of Italy, the slaves doing the 
 work. One of them was paper made from the papyrus 
 of Europe. Tapestry was made at Padua, and steel goods 
 of all kinds at Como." 
 
 Commerce. — "The Roman succeeded in Asia to the 
 great commercial marts of the Phoenicians, Greeks, and 
 Egyptians, and acquired in Africa the ancient trading- 
 stations of the Carthaginians. Yet they made .little or 
 no effort to encourage traffic, and opened no new routes 
 
170 
 
 for trade. The principal trade was in grain and other 
 provisions for the use of the capital. 
 
 "The inhabitants of Rome were, generally speaking, 
 plentifully supplied with the luxuries, as well as the 
 necessaries, from different parts of the empire. Ice and 
 excellent cheese were sent from the Alpine districts ; 
 pork, geese, and salt, in large quantities, from Gaul ; 
 spices, perfumes, and precious stones, from the East, as 
 well as many beautiful manufactured articles ; and they 
 also received an abundance of gold, and silver, and iron, 
 as tribute from various nations. Among the commodi- 
 ties obtained by the Romans from distant parts of the 
 world was manufactured silk, which they purchased of 
 a people who came to their eastern dominions from some 
 unknown country beyond ; but whether they were Tar- 
 tars, Chinese, or Indians is uncertain. 
 
 "The Romans were totally unacquainted with the na- 
 ture of silk. They did not know how or where it was 
 produced ; but they were willing to give any price for it 
 because it was rare and beautiful. It was so scarce, that 
 they made their slaves unweave the thick eastern silks, 
 to manufacture slighter ones, so that they might have 
 two or three yards for one. 
 
 "At this early period it was worn only by the ladies 
 of the highest rank; but in the course of time, the fine 
 gentlemen of Rome used silk in their attire either in the 
 form of a toga, a scarf, or a loose kind of a robe ; for it 
 was about this time that the toga began to be left off.' 5 
 Goodrich. 
 
 Roman Customs. — (See Goodrich's Roman History 
 and Barnes'. ) 
 
171 ' 
 
 Judea and the Birth of Christ. — After the rule of Ptol- 
 emy, "the Jews found that their new rulers were not 
 so kind as Alexander the Great had been, for they were 
 ill-treated by them because they would not worship hea- 
 then gods. So bad did matters become that at last the 
 city of Jerusalem was besieged and captured by the 
 Greek king of Syria, the temple overthrown, and thou- 
 sands of Jews killed. A brave family called the Macca- 
 bees, under the leadership of Judas, revolted against 
 this governor. After several years of hard righting, 
 they got the mastery of the Greeks and rebuilt the tem- 
 ple. Later on, the High Priest, who was ruler of the 
 nation, took the title of 'king.' Quarrels arose between 
 different parties among themselves, which led to fight- 
 ing, and some of them asked help of Rome against their 
 brethren. Pompey came with an army to restore peace. 
 Many priests were killed before the altar, and the High 
 Priest was deprived of the title of 'king/ and lost much 
 of his kingdom. 
 
 '"Some years after, the temple was plundered by the 
 Roman general, and, at last, an Edomite, by the name 
 of Herod, was put on the ancient throne of David. This 
 king was called 'The Great/ because of the splendid 
 buildings he ordered to be made, one of which was the 
 magnificent temple where Jesus walked and talked. It 
 was much grander than the one built by Solomon. 
 Herod also built bridges and cities, and improved the 
 country in many ways ; but although he tried to please 
 the people, yet, his being an Edomite, and the quarrels 
 and murders in his own household, made him hated and 
 
172 
 
 feared by his Jewish subjects." — Compiled from Edith 
 Ralph's Bible Stories. 
 
 Judea was now a province of Rome, and Csesar Au- 
 gustus was the emperor. "Augustus wished to make a 
 census to enroll all the people- of the Roman empire, 
 that he might better divide the vast domain into prov- 
 inces." — Butterworth. 
 
 (See "Little Arthur's History of Rome," pages 141, 
 142, 143 ; St. Luke, Bible ; Ben Hur : Wise Men, Holy 
 Night.) 
 
 sl Rome rules the European world, and Augustus has 
 but to speak and the nations will hear and obey from 
 the Mediterranean to the Baltic. In this period of con- 
 cord, an event happened which transcends the glory of 
 Rome, the thoughts of the philosophers, or the music of 
 the poets. There was One who was to preach the broth- 
 erhood of man, the rebirth of the soul, -the conscious- 
 ness of God and immortal life, and who was to estab- 
 lish an invisible kingdom in the spirits of men, that 
 should rule all nations and forever endure. The record 
 of this event, as recorded in St. Luke, is one of the 
 most beautiful and transcendent pages of all history. 
 
 " The Emperor Augustus, it is said, ' found Rome of 
 brick, and left it in marble.' He found it almost with- 
 out a literature, and left it heroic with poetry, eloquence, 
 and song, but it is probable that he never so much as 
 heard of this event in the far Syrian province, for he 
 died A. D. 14. Yet His birth in a manger was to top- 
 ple over all the temples of Rome, and the events of 
 Rome in the future will be dated from it. The works of 
 Augustus have faded and gone, and the birth of the 
 
173 . 
 
 Christ Child gives thern the past days of 1898 years. 
 — Butterworth. Learn song, " Holy Night." 
 
 THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST. 
 
 ANONYMOUS. 
 
 He came not in his people's day 
 
 Of miracle and might, 
 When awe-struck nations owned their sway, 
 
 And conquest crowned each fight; 
 When Nature's self with wonder saw 
 Her ancient power, her boasted law, 
 To feeble man give way*— 
 The elements of earth and heaven 
 Israel stayed — for Judah riven ! 
 
 Pillar and cloud, Jehovah gave, 
 
 High emblems of his grace ; 
 And clove the rock and smote the wave, 
 
 Moved mountains from their place ; 
 But justice was with mercy blent — 
 In thunder was the promise sent — 
 
 Fierce lightning veiled his face; 
 The jealous God, the burning law, 
 Were all the chosen people saw. 
 
 Behold them, pilgrim tribes no more — 
 
 The promised land their own ; 
 And blessings theirs of sea and shore, 
 
 To other realms unknown : 
 From age to age a favored line 
 Of mighty kings and seers divine, 
 
 A temple and a throne ; 
 Not then, but in their hour of shame, ■ 
 Woe, want, and weakness — then he came. 
 
 Not in the earthquake's rending force, 
 
 Not in the blasting fire ; 
 Not in the strong wind's rushing course, 
 
 Came He, their soul's desire ! 
 
174 
 
 Forerunners of His coming these, 
 Proclaiming over earth and seas 
 
 As God, His might and ire ; 
 The still, small voice, the hovering dove, 
 Proved Him Messiah, spoke Him "Love! " 
 
 Of life the way, of light the spring 
 
 Eternal, undenled ; 
 Redeemer, Prophet, Priest, and King — 
 
 Yet came he as a child ! 
 And Zion's favored eye, grown dim, 
 Knew not her promised Lord in Him, 
 
 The lowly and the mild ! 
 She saw the manger and the tree, 
 And scornful cried, " Can his be He? " 
 
 HEALING THE LEPER. 
 
 N. P. WILLIS. 
 
 It was noon ; 
 
 And Helon knelt beside a stagnant pool 
 In the lone Wilderness, and bathed his brow, 
 Hot with the burning leprosy, and touched 
 The loathsome water to his fevered lips, 
 Praying that he might be so blessed— to die ! 
 Footsteps approached, and with no strength to flee, 
 He drew the covering closer on his lip, 
 Crying, "Unclean! unclean! " and in the folds 
 Of the coarse sackcloth shrouding up his face, 
 He fell upon the earth till they should pass. 
 
 Nearer the stranger came, and bending o'er 
 
 The leper's prostrate form, pronounced his name — 
 
 "Helon!" The voice was like the master-tone 
 Of a rich instrument — most strangely sweet ; 
 And the dull pulses of disease awoke, 
 And for a moment beat beneath the hot 
 And leprous scales with a restoring thrill. 
 
 "Helon! arise!" and he forgot his curse, 
 And rose and stood before him. 
 
175 * 
 
 Love and awe 
 Mingled in the regard of Helon's eye, 
 As he beheld the stranger. He was not 
 In costly raiment clad, nor on his brow 
 The symbol of a princety lineage wore ; 
 No followers at his back, nor in his hand 
 Buckler, or sword, or spear; yet in his mien, 
 Command sat throned serene, and if he smiled, 
 His eye was blue and calm, as is the sky. 
 A kingly condescension graced his lips 
 The lion would have crouched to in his lair. 
 
 His garb was simple, and his sandals worn ; 
 His statue modeled with a perfect grace ; 
 His countenance the impress of a god, 
 Touched with the opening innocence of a child ; 
 His eye was blue and calm, as is the sky 
 In the serenest noon; his hair unshorn 
 Fell to his shoulders ; and his curling beard 
 The fullness of perfected manhood bore. 
 
 He looked on Helon earnestly awhile, 
 
 As if his heart were moved, and stooping down, 
 
 He took a little water in his hand 
 
 And laid it on his brow, and said, "Be clean." 
 
 And lo! the scales fell from him, and his blood 
 
 Coursed with delicious coolness through his veins, 
 
 And his dry palms grew moist, and on his brow 
 
 The dewy softness of an infant stole. 
 
 His leprosy w r as cleansed ; and he fell down 
 
 Prostrate at Jesus' feet, and worshiped Him. 
 
 Extent of the Roman Empire. — The domains over 
 which Augustus held sway stretched from the Atlantic 
 to the Euphrates, and from the Rhine, Danube, and Eux- 
 ine on the north to the unexplored deserts of Africa and 
 Arabia on the south. The Roman Empire thus included 
 the fairest portions of the known world, surrounding the 
 Mediterranean Sea. More than one hundred millions of 
 
176 
 
 people dwelt in these countries, embracing every variety 
 of race, condition, and culture, from the rough barbarian 
 of Gaul to the refined and polished Athenian. 
 
 It was by the advice of Augustus that the Romans de- 
 voted their energies to the development of the territory 
 already acquired and made few attempts to acquire more. 
 That the same wise policy was continued by those who 
 succeeded him, we may judge from the fact that the em- 
 pire was limited by nearly the same frontiers from the 
 time of Augustus to that of Constantine. 
 
 In the time of Augustus a standing army exceeding 
 one hundred and seventy thousand men guarded the 
 frontiers. " Eight legions were stationed on the Rhine, 
 four on the Danube, three in Spain, two in Dalmatia, 
 eight in Asia and Africa. A body of these troops, known 
 as the Praetorian Guard, and comprising nine thousand 
 men, were stationed in Italy as a body-guard to the em- 
 peror. A thousand more performed the duties of a city 
 guard in the capital. " — Goodrich. 
 
 "In the succeeding reign this body of soldiers was 
 given a permanent camp alongside the city walls. It 
 soon became a formidable power in the state, and made 
 and unmade emperors at will." — Myers. 
 
 Revolt of the Germans. — It was the great work of 
 Augustus to establish a frontier on the north as secure 
 and permanent as those in the other directions. In the 
 course of twenty years, the supremacy of Rome was ac- 
 knowledged in all that part of Germany between the 
 Elbe and the Rhine ; but it was not firmly established. 
 " The Germans then consisted of many different nations, 
 all of a warlike character, and not more civilized than 
 
177 . 
 
 the ancient Gauls. They had no towns but lived on 
 their lands which were cultivated by serfs. The country 
 was covered with dense forests, through which were no 
 roads, making it difficult to carry on war there. The 
 Romans had never cared to possess so unattractive a 
 country, but they found it necessary to establish legions 
 on the frontiers and hold the Germans in subjection that 
 they might not make inroads into the empire." — Good- 
 rich. In the year 9 A. D., the governor of Germany 
 was Lucius Varus, a brave man and good officer, but 
 wholly incompetent to govern a liberty-loving people 
 like the Germans. When he attempted to introduce the 
 Roman language and laws, a brave chief whom the Ro- 
 mans called Arminius raised a rebellion. " Varus had 
 something of the contempt for the irregular warfare of the 
 Germans that General Braddock had for that of the 
 American Indians." Arminius enticed the Roman 
 Army into the wilds of the Teutoberg Forest and there 
 took a dreadful revenge for the wrongs his people had 
 suffered. The Romans were assaulted by an unseen en- 
 emy and completely annihilated. This defeat ended the 
 Roman dominion in Germany, though Germanicus, a 
 Roman general, invaded these regions, six years later, to 
 inflict vengeance for the disaster. (See Myers.) 
 
 Great was the dismay when the direful news reached 
 Rome. "The loss of so many of his best soldiers was 
 indeed a sad blow to the emperor, as it was no easy mat- 
 ter, at this period, to raise new legions, for the people in 
 general were unwilling to serve in the armies ; so that it 
 had become necessary to emancipate numbers of slaves, 
 
178 
 
 and make soldiers of them. The reason of this great dis- 
 like for army life was that the soldiers were stationed 
 along the frontiers in fortified camps and were obliged 
 to remain there until they were old men, so that they 
 were completely exiled from their country." — Goodrich. 
 
 " The aged emperor was broken down by so terrible a 
 reverse at the close of his life, suffered his beard and hair 
 to grow — a mark of mourning — and cried again and 
 again, ' Quintilius Varus, give me back my legions.' 
 He died five years afterwards, asking his friends, in his 
 last moments, whether he had not played his part well 
 in the comedy of life." — Allen. 
 
 "We now come to the time of the Ten Caesars, whose 
 reigns cover a long epoch of splendor, vice, tragedy /and 
 decay, and embrace some of the darkest pages of human 
 history. ' ' — Butterworth. 
 
 Nero (54 A. D.).— Nero, the last of the emperors at 
 all connected with Augustus, is known as the most 
 wicked of kings. For five years he ruled with justice 
 and clemency, then, putting aside his wise counselors, 
 he entered upon a career filled with crimes which have 
 made his name infamous through all the ages. Among 
 his victims were his mother, his wife, and his step- 
 brother. 
 
 In the tenth year of his reign a conflagration destroyed 
 the greater part of Rome. Nero was suspected of having 
 kindled it in order to enjoy the spectacle. He is report- 
 ed to have enjoyed a view from a lofty tower, while he 
 chanted the " Sack of Troy" to the music of his lyre. 
 To secure himself, he ascribed the conflagration to the 
 Christians, who, at this time, were a small sect, mostly 
 
179 . 
 
 of the lower classes. The persecution that followed was 
 one of the most cruel recorded in the history of the 
 church. St. Paul and St. Peter, according to tradition, 
 were martyred at this time. 
 
 When Rome was destroyed by the Gauls, more than 
 four hundred years before, it was hurriedly built up 
 without system or order (see Invasion of Gauls); now 
 broad avenues were substituted for winding lanes, and 
 handsome stone buildings took the place of unsightly 
 piles of brick or wood. 
 
 "Rome arose from her ashes as quickly as Athens 
 after the Persian wars, and the conflagration seemed to 
 have been a blessing in disguise."- — Compiled from My- 
 ers and Allen. (Nero's "Golden House"; see Good- 
 rich and Allen. ) 
 
 Flavins Vespasian (A. D. 69-79). — The reign of Ves- 
 pasian was rendered famous by important military 
 achievements abroad and stupendous architectural works 
 at Rome. After one of the most distressing sieges re- 
 corded in history, Jerusalem was taken by Titus, son of 
 Vespasian. In the island of Britain the Roman com- 
 mander, Agricola, subdued or crowded back the native 
 tribes until he had extended the frontiers of the empire 
 into Scotland. 
 
 Capture of Jerusalem (A. D. 70). — The independent 
 spirit of the Jews could no longer submit to the tyranny 
 of the Roman officials. They rose in rebellion and Ves- 
 pasian, during his three years' command in Judea, re- 
 duced the whole country into his power, except the cap- 
 ital. When he became emperor his son, Titus, attacked 
 Jerusalem "and reduced it after a siege of over five 
 
180 
 
 months, attended by the unutterable horrors of blood- 
 shed, famine, and conflagration. The fanatic party 
 among the Jews confronted the invader with relentless 
 obstinacy. At first they intrenched themselves within 
 the temple, and when this was captured and burned, 
 they withdrew to the heights of Mount Zion, where they 
 continued the defense of the holy city. When this, too, 
 fell, and its buildings were destroyed by fire, Jerusalem 
 had ceased to exist. In the course of time the survivors 
 returned to their old home and built for themselves 
 humble dwellings among its ruins." — Allen. 
 
 THE DESTRUCTION OF JERUSALEM. 
 
 LORD BYRON. 
 
 From the last hill that looks on thy once holy dome, 
 I beheld thee, O Zion, when rendered to Rome; 
 ' Twas the last snn went down, and the flames of thy fall 
 Flashed back on the last glance I gave to thy wall. 
 
 I looked for thy temple, I looked for my home, 
 
 And forgot for a moment my bondage to come ; 
 
 I beheld but the death-fire that fed on thy fane, 
 
 And the fast-fettered hands that made vengeance in vain. 
 
 On many an eve, the high spot whence I gazed 
 Had reflected the last beam of day as it blazed ; 
 While I stood on the height and beheld the decline 
 Of the rays from the mountain that shone on thy shrine. 
 
 And now on that mountain I stood on that day, 
 But I marked not the twilight beam melting away ; 
 Ob ! would that the lightning had glared in its stead, 
 And the thunderbolt burst on the conqueror's head! 
 
 But the gods of the Pagan shall never profane 
 The shrine where Jehovah disdained not to reign ; 
 And scattered and scorned as Thy people may be, 
 Our worship, Father! is only for Thee. 
 
181 * 
 
 " On his return to Rome, Titus celebrated a triumph 
 for his hard-won victory ; and a few years later a tri- 
 umphal arch was built upon the highest spot in the Sa. 
 creel Way, on the walls of which was carved — still to be 
 seen — a representation of that sacred candlestick of the 
 Jewish temple which had been carried among the troph- 
 ies of his triumph. 
 
 " The greatest architectural work of this reign was the 
 Flavian Amphitheater, better known as the Colosseum, 
 to this day the most magnificent of the remains of 
 ancient Rome." — Allen. 
 
 (See page 205, " Little Arthur's History of Rome.") 
 
 Reign of Titus. — "In his short reign of two years 
 Titus won the title, the "Delight of Mankind." He 
 had his father's military gifts, with a milder and more 
 kindly disposition." Having let a day pass by without 
 some act of kindness performed he is said to have ex- 
 claimed reproachfully, " I have lost a day." 
 
 The only event of importance in the reign of Titus 
 was the greatest eruption of Vesuvius that has ever been 
 known, causing the destruction of the cities of Hercu- 
 laneum and Pompeii. " The cities were buried beneath 
 showers of cinders, ashes, and streams of volcanic sand. 
 Pliny the Elder, the great naturalist, venturing too near 
 the mountain to investigate the phenomenon, lost his 
 life." — Myers. "His nephew, Pliny the Younger, has 
 given a most interesting account of this event in one of 
 his letters." (See Goodrich's "History of Rome"; 
 " Lit-tle Arthur's History" Supplementary Readers; 
 " Last Days of Pompeii," by Bulwer.) 
 
 The Five Good Emperors. — After the death of the 
 
182 
 
 last of the Caesars, the senate claimed the right of elect- 
 ing the rulers. Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus 
 Pius, and Marcus Aurelius, by their wise administra- 
 tions, brought the government to a humane and equita- 
 ble standing. The morals of" the people steadily 
 improved and there was less vice at this period than 
 one hundred or two hundred years before. 
 
 "Marcus Aurelius, the last of the five good emperors, 
 was the noblest of all the characters of later Roman 
 history. When a mere child he preferred study to the 
 splendors of the court. At the age of twelve he took 
 the philosophic mantle as an indication of his chosen 
 pursuits. He accepted the principles of the Stoics, 
 adopted their habits,. and found his delight in denying 
 himself for the sake of the good of his soul. (See page 
 115 and 116, " Little Arthur's History of Rome.") 
 Though heir to the grandest throne in the world, 
 he overcame pride, and maintained simple habits, 
 and in an age of fiery passions he acquired a serene 
 disposition and became an example of beauty as well as 
 simplicity of character. His judgment became so clear 
 that Antoninus Pius, his father-in-law, associated him 
 in the government many years before he died." — Butter- 
 worth. 
 
 " It was a hard fate which associated this upright and 
 conscientious prince with the most disturbed and calam- 
 itous events of the century, and made his reign a critical 
 moment in the downfall of the empire." — Allen. After 
 the long period of quiet and prosperity .under Hadrian 
 and Antoninus Pius the empire was suddenly invaded by 
 swarms of Northern barbarians. "Aurelius was a man 
 
183 • 
 
 of peace, but he was obliged to carry on defensive wars, 
 and led his army in person, enduring the lot of a com- 
 mon soldier. 
 
 "He was so much of a Stoic as to be blind to Chris- 
 tianity, and opposed to it, although he has surpassed 
 most Christian kings in living the principles of the 
 Christian faith. He seems to have thought Christianity 
 to be an immoral superstition, as it was then called, and 
 if it be good that his philosophy yet transcended it. In 
 one of his campaigns against the German tribes on the 
 Danube, he was shut up in a barren defile where there 
 was no water, and his army seemed about to perish with 
 thirst, when a Christian legion in his army knelt down 
 and prayed. A cloud arose followed by a deluge of rain. 
 The Christians attributed the rain to their faith, but Au- 
 relius to Jupiter. The scene is represented in art in a 
 very dramatic way, the soldiers catching the water as it 
 fell on their shields. The Christian soldiers who thus 
 called on God became known as the Thundering Legion. 
 
 " The reign of Aurelius was troubled by plague, earth- 
 quake and famine, but amid it all, like a Roman Job, 
 he held that all things that happened were for the good 
 of all, and that the Divine wisdom was to be praised in 
 the darkest events of life. His strength of character 
 grew with years, and he sacrificed self for the good of 
 others until Rome looked upon him as a divinity." He 
 died at Vienna in the prime of life while still engaged in 
 protecting his country from invasion. 
 
 "At his death the empire went into sincere mourning. 
 The senate voted him a god, Rome set up his images for 
 
184 
 
 veneration and the world lias never ceased to hold his 
 character in high esteem. 
 
 " But it is by his published works, written in Greek, 
 that he now lives in influence. Except in the teachings 
 of the gospel, perhaps no man ever saw truth in a clearer 
 light, or wrote more sublime precepts for the guidance of 
 mankind. Extracts from the ' Meditations/ of Marcus 
 Aurelius : 
 
 "I. ■ The whole world is one commonwealth.' 
 
 "II. ' That which is not for the interest of the whole 
 is not for the interest of one.' 
 
 ' ' III . ' Cease your complaint and you are not injured . ' 
 
 " IV. ' No man can injure thee unless he makes thy 
 character worse.' 
 
 " V. 'A thing is neither better or worse for being 
 praised. No virtues stand in need of any good word, or 
 are worse for a bad one. An emerald will shine, though 
 the world be silent.' 
 
 "VI. ' Be always doing something serviceable to man- 
 kind . ' ' ' — Butterworth. 
 
 (See " Little Arthur's History.") 
 
 New Causes of the Decline of the Empire.— We have 
 already noted in the Decay of the Republic the principal 
 sources of decline ; such as the degradation of free in- 
 dustry by slave labor. In the reign of Aurelius new 
 causes of decline seemed to be added. A destructive 
 inundation of the Tiber was followed by distress and fam- 
 ine. A few years after this the eastern army brought the 
 plague with it from Asia and the infection was communi- 
 cated to every province through which the legions 
 
 
185 - 
 
 passed. The violence of the pestilence did not abate for 
 several years. 
 
 To the panic of the plague was added the terror of the 
 barbarian invasion. With diminishing population and 
 diminishing resources, the devoted Aurelius checked the 
 inroads of the barbarians but he could not subdue them. 
 — Adapted from Allen. 
 
 Persecution of the Christians. — The people thought 
 that these repeated calamities — war, inundation, famine, 
 pestilence, barbarian inroads — must have been sent by 
 the gods as a punishment for some national guilt. As 
 the Christians deserted the temples and refused to wor- 
 ship the gods under whose protection the state had pros- 
 pered, they were accused of angering the gods. Accus- 
 tomed as they were to holding their meetings at night, 
 and often in secret, they were looked upon as enemies of 
 the state and persecuted even by the best rulers, Trajan, 
 Marcus Aurelius, and Diocletian. — /adapted from Allen 
 and Myers. 
 
 The rising faith, however, was only strengthened by 
 opposition. The heroism of the martyrs extorted the 
 admiration of their enemies and won multitudes to the 
 persecuted faith. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, exclaimed, 
 when brought before the tribunal and urged to curse 
 Christ, ' Eighty-six years have I served Him, and He 
 has done me nothing but good ; how could I curse Him, 
 my Lord and Savior!" As the flames rose around hdm 
 he thanked God that he was deemed worthy of such a 
 death. In the times of dread and distress which accom- 
 panied the downfall of the empire, the Gospel alone 
 
186 
 
 brought the consolation that satisfied men's souls. The 
 triumph of Christianity was near at hand. 
 
 Decline of the Empire (180 to 284 A. D.).— Assailed 
 by vice, corruption, and disease within and fierce bar- 
 barians without, the empire no longer recovered from 
 the attacks. The army became the governing power 
 and the emperor its servant. The Praetorian guard put 
 up the imperial power at auction and sold it to the 
 highest bidder. The people had become so debased 
 that they were willing to close their eyes to the vices of 
 the emperors, and even to participate therein. They 
 w T ere content if they were fed daily from the public 
 granaries and amused by the cruel sports of the arena. 
 "The emperor Valerian was taken prisoner by the Per- 
 sian king, who carried him about in chains and used 
 him as a footstool in mounting his horse." After nearly 
 a century of disorder and misrule, the. barbarians had 
 passed the frontiers and were occupying the provinces. 
 The empire seemed on the point of falling when it was 
 restored for a time by five energetic rulers, who suc- 
 ceeded each other. — Adapted. 
 
 Reforms of Diocletian (A. D. 284). — A new method 
 of government was introduced by Diocletian. He ob- 
 served that the empire was too large and too varied in 
 nationality to be successfully governed by one emperor. 
 The empire was therefore divided so it could be ruled 
 from two centers : Milan became the western capital 
 and Nicomedia the eastern. Each emperor received the 
 title of Augustus and associated with himself a general 
 or Caesar, who succeed him to the throne. The govern- 
 ment now became absolute, all authority and law ema- 
 
187 • 
 
 natiug from the emperor. An oriental monarchy had 
 taken the place of the Empire of the Caesars. By the 
 wise administration of Diocle'tian new vigor was awak- 
 ened in all parts of the empire. "War waged at once 
 in Persia, Egypt, Britain, and Germany, but the Roman 
 eagles conquered every foe." 
 
 "After the joint reign of Diocle'tian and Maxim'ian 
 had for about nineteen years restored the glory of Rome, 
 they of their own accord gave up the purple, leaving 
 the imperial power to the two Caesars. Diocle'tian con- 
 tentedly passed the evening of his life in rural occupa- 
 tions. To Maximian, who tried to induce him to re- 
 assume the scepter, the old monarch wrote, ' Could you 
 but see the cabbages I raise, you would no longer talk 
 to me of empire ! ' " — Quackenbos. 
 
 The Catacombs. — The growth of the city of Rome led 
 to the formation of immense quarries under the streets, 
 suburbs, and immediate neighborhood. The stone 
 taken from these quarries was used for building pur- 
 poses and the caverns grew with the demand for ma- 
 terial. These caverns or subterranean rooms and 
 galleries were called catacombs. They became the hid- 
 ing-place of persecuted people, outlaws, and criminals." 
 — Butterworth. In the second and third centuries the 
 Christians sought refuge in the catacombs. "Here 
 they buried their dead, and on the walls of the cham- 
 bers sketched rude symbols of their confident faith. 
 It was in the darkness of these subterranean abodes that 
 Christian art had its beginnings. " — Myers. The last and 
 severest of the persecutions of the church took place in 
 the reign of Diocletian. 
 
188 
 
 Constaiitine the Great. — The succession planned by 
 Diocletian was disregarded after his successor died. Con- 
 staiitine, the Caesar in Britain, was made sole emperor 
 by his troops. But it was not until after eighteen years 
 had passed that he succeeded in- overthrowing his many 
 rivals and became the supreme ruler (324 A. D.). 
 
 During the campaign against one of these he is said 
 to have been miraculously converted to Christianity. 
 According to the legend the scene of the event was near 
 Rome, which city Constaiitine was approaching to en- 
 gage in battle with the rival emperor, Maxentius. It 
 was the afternoon of the 27th of October. Constantine 
 was invoking the gods for the success of his cause. Sud- 
 denly there appeared a pillar of light in the sky in the 
 form of a cross, and beneath it the inscription: li In 
 hoc signo vinees," "In this sign thou shalt conquer." 
 
 The standard adopted was made thus :- 
 
 "A long spear plated with gold, with a transverse 
 piece at the top in the form of a cross, to which was 
 fastened a four-square purple banner embroidered with 
 gold and beset with precious stones. Above the cross 
 was a crown overlaid with gold and gems, within whicli 
 was placed the sacred symbol, the first two letters of the 
 name of Christ in Greek. 
 
 " Under this^ banner Constantine, having overcome 
 Maxentius, entered Rome in triumph, and was hailed by 
 the Christian population with great rejoicing. 
 
 *' Thus the waning autumn of 312 witnessed the begin- 
 ning of the end of the heathen rites of more than a thou- 
 sand years, and the advent of the faith that has come to 
 possess the civilized world. We may credit or not the 
 
189 * 
 
 vision of the cross, the event of the downfall of ancient 
 gods and the acceptance of the gospel of Christ is certain. 
 The ancient Rome vanished, a new Rome came. 
 
 "The master of the Roman World, having become a 
 Christian, aspired to found a city which should be ded- 
 icated to the enlightened faith from the beginning." 
 Rome was hallowed by the divine presence and sacred 
 associations of the heathen deities. Many of the inhab- 
 itants, still devoted to the ancient faith, strongly opposed 
 this abandonment of the old national deities. (See 
 speech of Camillus, by Livy. ) Rome had for a long 
 time been too far remote from the center of population, 
 wealth, and culture to be the capital of this wide extended 
 empire. After long and careful deliberation, Byzantium 
 was chosen by Constantine as the site for a new Rome 
 that should be a worthy rival of the old. His wisdom 
 in the selection of this commanding situation has been 
 universally recognized. Byzantium occupied the trian- 
 gular space between the Golden Horn, an inlet of the 
 Bosporus, and the Propontis. The walls of the new city 
 were laid out at a distance of two miles outside of those 
 of the old. The presence of the court and the commer- 
 cial advantages of the situation contributed to the build- 
 ing up of the city when the empire did not flourish. 
 Enormous sums were spent in embellishing the new 
 metropolis with a capitol, amphitheater, splendid pal- 
 aces, and churches, the chief of which was the St. Sophia. 
 This new capital, called Constantinople, from its founder, 
 was to defy the barbarians and endure a thousand years 
 after Rome had fallen. 
 
 "After Constantine had fixed his residence in the new 
 
190 
 
 capital, he adopted oriental manners-. He affected the 
 gorgeous attire of the Persian monarchs, and wore a dia- 
 dem covered with pearls and gems. He substituted flow- 
 ing robes of silk embroidered with flowers, for the au- 
 stere garb of Rome, or the unadorned purple of the first 
 emperors. He filled his palaces with spies and parasites, 
 and lavished the wealth of the empire upon stately archi- 
 tecture." — Goodrich and Butterworth. 
 
 The First General Council of the Church. — " By a de- 
 cree issued from Milan, A. D. 313, Christianity was 
 made the state religion, and in A. D. 325 a General 
 Council of the church was held at Nicsea, in Asia Minor. 
 The doctrine of Arius, who denied the divinity of Christ, 
 was denounced, and. a formula of Christian faith adopt- 
 ed, which is known as the Nicene Creed." — Myers. 
 
 ROMAN CONQUEST OF GREAT BRITAIN. 
 
 Physical Features. — (See geography.) 
 
 Earliest Glimpses of British History. — Several hun- 
 dred years before the Christian era it is supposed that 
 the Phoenicians visited England. Their chief object was 
 to obtain tin, which was procured from the mines of 
 Cornwall. Hence the Casterides, or Tin Isles, was the 
 ancient designation of the British Isles. 
 
 Britons. — "The original inhabitants of England, Ire- 
 land, and Scotland seem to have been of the same Celtic 
 stock which first peopled France and Spain, though they 
 were divided into numerous tribes." These people were 
 called Britons, and their country was known as Britain. 
 " A few among the more southern tribes practiced agri- 
 
191 • 
 
 culture in a rude way, and wore artificial cloths for 
 dress. They had also war-chariots in great numbers." — 
 Goodrich. " These chariots were not quite breast high 
 in front and open at the back, contained one man to 
 drive and two or three others to fight, all standing up. 
 The horses which drew them were so well trained, that 
 they would tear at full gallop, over the most stony 
 ways, and even through the woods, dashing down their 
 master's enemies beneath their hoofs, and cutting them 
 to pieces with the blades of swords , or scythes, which 
 were fastened to the wheels and stretched out beyond the 
 car on each side, for that cruel purpose. In a moment 
 while at full speed, the horses would stop at the driv- 
 er's command. The men within would leap out, deal 
 blows about them with their swords like hail, leap on the 
 horses or spring back into the chariots, and, as soon as 
 they were safe, the horses tore away again." — Dickens. 
 
 "The women, like those of the American Indian, 
 were practiced in basket-making, the material being the 
 twigs of willows. They also sewed together the skins of 
 animals for dress, their thread being made of leather or 
 vegetable fibers, and their needles of pieces of bone." — 
 Goodrich. 
 
 Condition of Country. — " The whole country was cov- 
 ered with forests and swamps. The greater part of it 
 was very misty and cold. There were no roads, no 
 bridges, no streets, no houses, that you would think de- 
 serving of the name. A town was nothing but a collec- 
 tion of straw-covered huts hidden in a thick wood, with 
 a ditch all around and a low wall, made of mud, or the 
 trunks of trees placed one upon another." — Dickens. 
 
192 
 
 '•' Such was the condition of the country and people 
 when Julius 'Caesar, having completed the subjugation of 
 Gaul, began to think of adding the island of Britain to 
 his conquests. The white chalk cliffs of Dover, from 
 which Britain had also the name of Albion, could be 
 seen from the coast of Gaul, and as Caesar's ambition 
 knew no bounds, he doubtless thought that this strange 
 country invited him to its conquest. 
 
 Caesar's Invasion. — -"Having decided to undertake an 
 expedition against it, he assembled the merchants 
 who had traded with the Britons for hides and tin, 
 and made inquiries respecting the manners, customs, 
 and power of the people of Britain. We may sup- 
 pose that Caesar had little dread of meeting such a sav- 
 age people as the Britons with his well-disciplined 
 troops. He probably learned, too, that the people were 
 divided into many small tribes, governed by indepen- 
 dent rulers, who did not agree very well among them- 
 selves. 
 
 "He embarked his troops at Calais, and in a few 
 hours reached the coast of Britain near Dover. The 
 Britons had heard of his coming, and were assembled to 
 prevent his landing. Their painted bodies gave them a 
 most terrific appearance, and their savage yells made 
 even the Romans hesitate to attack them. 
 
 "At last a standard-bearer jumped into the sea, and 
 advanced with the eagle, which was the Roman standard, 
 towards the enemy, crying aloud, ' Follow me, soldiers, 
 unless you will betray the Roman eagle into the hands of 
 the enemy. I, at least, will discharge my duty to Caesar 
 and to my country.' Animated by this speech, and ex- 
 
193 
 
 cited by his example, the soldiers plunged into the sea, 
 and waded to the land, in spite of all the Britons could 
 do. Caesar remained about three weeks on the island, 
 during which he gained many battles. He then granted 
 a peace to the Britons, upon condition that they should 
 pay tribute to the Romans. 
 
 Second Invasion (54 B. C. ). — " The Britons neglected 
 to perform their engagements, and in the year 54 B. C. 
 Caesar again invaded the island. Landing, as before, at 
 Deal, he advanced into the country. The Britons had 
 now united their forces under one chief named Cassive- 
 launus. Still they were defeated in every battle. Hav- 
 ing brought the people to submission, and compelled 
 them to give him many of their chief men as hostages, 
 Caesar returned to Rome. As no troops were left in 
 Britain to maintain the authority of Rome, the Britons 
 soon threw off all marks of subjection, and the tribute 
 remained unpaid. The civil dissensions among the Ro- 
 mans themselves long prevented their taking any meas- 
 ures to compel the payment. 
 
 Civilization. — "An intercourse was, however, kept up 
 with Rome. Many of the chief persons of Britain visited 
 that city, and some of the young men were educated 
 there. By this means the Britons began to improve in 
 their manners and habits. The mantle of skins was re- 
 placed by one of cloth, and close trousers were intro- 
 duced. They likewise adopted a vest, a tunic, fitting 
 tight to the body and reaching just below the waist. 
 Their shoes were still made of the skins of some animal 
 with their hair outwards. 
 
 They soon began to coin money. When metals were 
 
 a r \ 
 
194 
 
 first introduced as money, their value was determined 
 by weight. The seller having agreed to accept a certain 
 quantity of gold or silver for his goods, the buyer cut 
 off that quantity from the piece of that metal in his 
 possession, and, having weighed it, delivered it to the 
 seller, and received the goods. 
 
 "The invasion of the Romans had made the Britons 
 acquainted with the use of tools ; and stout galleys took 
 the place of frail boats made of osiers and the flexible 
 branches of trees, covered with skins of oxen, in which 
 they had hitherto navigated the stormy seas around 
 their islands. 
 
 Third Invasion. — "At length, in the year 43 A. D., 
 being 97 years from the first invasion by Caesar, the 
 Romans determined to make another attempt to conquer 
 Britain. An army of 50,000 men was collected and sent 
 into the island, under the command of Aulus Plautius. 
 The Britons fought bravely for their liberty, but could 
 not withstand the Roman discipline. Their principal 
 chief, named Caractacus, and his family, were taken 
 prisoners. They were all sent to Rome, and the king 
 and his wife and two daughters were made to walk 
 through the streets loaded with chains. Observing the 
 splendor of the great city he could not forbear exclaim- 
 ing, 'Alas ! how is it possible that people possessed of 
 such magnificence at home should envy me my humble 
 cottage in Britain.' " 
 
 "Notwithstanding their victories, the Romans made 
 little progress in the conquest of the island. Suetonius 
 Paulinus, one of their most skillful generals, resolved 
 to adopt a new method. He observed that the Druids 
 
195* 
 
 were the most inveterate enemies of the Romans, and 
 that it was their influence which kept up the spirit of 
 the people. 
 
 Druids. — "The Druids were the priests and law-givers 
 of the Britons. The chiefs commanded the forces in 
 time of war, but all other power was in the hands of the 
 Druids. The laws of the Britons were composed in 
 verse, and the only record of them was in the memory 
 of the Druids. The old taught them to the young, and 
 thus the knowledge of them was kept up from one gen- 
 eration to another. 
 
 ".So great was the veneration in which they were held 
 that, when two hostile armies, witrr daggers drawn and 
 spears extended, were about to engage in battle, the 
 request of the Druids was sufficient to calm their rage, 
 and to induce them to shield their daggers, and sepa- 
 rate in peace. 
 
 "The Druids believed that it was displeasing to the 
 Deity to worship within walls, or under roofs. They 
 worshiped, therefore, in the open air in groves of particu- 
 lar trees. The favorite was the strong and spreading 
 oak, and in all their ceremonies they were crowned with 
 garlands of its leaves. In the center of the grove was 
 the rude altar of stones upon which sacrifices were of- 
 ferred. The victims were not sheep and oxen alone, but 
 the prisoners taken in war were considered as a most ac- 
 ceptable offering. 
 
 " The principal residence of the Druids was in the lit- 
 tle island of Anglesea. Suetonius resolved to make him- 
 self master of this stronghold. The Britons endeavored 
 to prevent the landing of their troops. The women and 
 
196 
 
 priests mingled with the soldiers on the shore, and run- 
 ning about with burning torches in their hands and 
 tossing their long hair, they terrified the astonished Ro- 
 mans more by their shrieks and howlings, than by the 
 appearance of the armed forces. But the' Romans soon 
 recovered their spirits, and, marching boldly forward, 
 speedily put an end to all resistance. Meanwhile the 
 Britons took advantage of the absence of Suetonius. 
 Headed by Boadicea, a brave queen, they attacked and 
 destroyed the Roman settlements. There were many of 
 these which were quite flourishing. London, which at 
 the first invasion was a forest, had now become a rich 
 and populous city. 
 
 Boadicea Defeated.—" Suetonius was obliged to aban- 
 don this place to the fury of the Britons. It was entire- 
 ly destroyed, and more than 70,000 Romans and other 
 strangers were put to death. But he soon had a most 
 cruel revenge ; with his little army of 10,000 men, he 
 attacked the Britons and left 80,000 of them dead upon 
 the field of battle. Boadicea, in despair at this defeat, 
 poisoned herself. (See poem.) 
 
 Agricola in Britain. — " The Romans now easily estab- 
 lished themselves all over Britain, and built towns and 
 castles, and were entire masters of the country. Julius 
 Agricola, one of their generals, was a very good, as well 
 as a brave man. He endeavored to reconcile the Brit- 
 ons to the Roman government by introducing their arts, 
 and sciences. He encouraged them to engage in agri- 
 culture, which the Romans considered the most honora- 
 ble employment. He also persuaded them to learn the 
 Latin language. He succeeded so well in his endeavors 
 
197 - 
 
 that the Britons soon began to esteem it a privilege to be 
 a part of the Roman empire. Indeed, they derived oth- 
 er advantages besides the increase of comfort which a 
 knowledge of the Roman arts had brought them. The 
 northern part of the island, called Caledonia, and now 
 Scotland, was inhabited by the Scots and Picts, a wild 
 and warlike people, who made incursions into the coun- 
 try of Britain, and, after destroying everything that 
 came in their way, retired into their bleak and barren 
 mountains. 
 
 Whenever they ventured to stand a battle in the open 
 field they were defeated by the Romans ; but they seldom, 
 did this. They generally retired as the Roman troops 
 advanced. As soon as the latter were withdrawn from 
 their neighborhood they again commenced their depre- 
 dations. Agricola caused a line of forts to be built 
 across Scotland, thus shutting out the marauders. The 
 country now remained at peace for many years, during 
 which the Romans occupied themselves in making 
 roads, many of which are still remaining, and in build- 
 ing strong and massive castles, the ruins of which are 
 still to be seen. 
 
 Wall between Scotland and England. — " But the forts 
 did not prove a sufficient defense against the Picts and 
 Scots, who renewed their incursions upon the more cul- 
 tivated parts of the island. The Emperor Hadrian, who 
 visited Britain, caused a rampart of earth to be erected. 
 This, however, proved too weak, and in the year 207 
 A. D. the Emperor Severus came to Britain with a de- 
 termination to conquer Caledonia. The nature of the 
 country and the bravery of the people prevented his sue- 
 
198 
 
 ceeding; so he contented himself with building an im- 
 mense stone wall, twelve feet high and eight feet thick, 
 quite across the country, from the river Tyne to Solway 
 Firth, many parts of which are still to be seen. 
 
 Introduction of Christianity.—' ' For a long time ev- 
 erything went on so quietly that little mention is made 
 of the affairs of this island by any historian. The peo- 
 ple were governed by Roman officers, and Christianity 
 was introduced, making considerable progress, it is be- 
 lieved, before the end of the first century. About the 
 year 448, the Romans were compelled to withdraw their 
 troops from the distant provinces, and, among the rest, 
 from Britain, to defend their city against the barbarous 
 tribes of the north of Europe. \ 
 
 The Romans Abandon Britain. — ' ' Before the Romans 
 left the island, they repaired the wall built by Sev- 
 erus. But as walls are of very little use without 
 brave and well-armed men to defend them, the Roman | 
 general instructed the Britons in the art of making and ' 
 of using the several kinds of weapons. He then departed 
 with his troops, telling the people that, as they would 
 never again have assistance from the Romans, they had 
 better learn to take care of themselves. Thus the Rom- 
 ans departed from the island, after having had posses- 
 sion of it nearly five hundred years, if we reckon from 
 the first invasion of Julius Csesar." — Goodrich. 
 
 BOADICEA. 
 
 COWPER. 
 
 When the British warrior queen, 
 Bleeding from the Roman rods, 
 
 Sought, with an indignant mien, 
 Counsel of her country's gods, 
 
199 
 
 Sage beneath the spreading oaR., 
 Sat the Druid, hoary chief; 
 
 Every burning word he spoke 
 Full of rage and full of grief. 
 
 " Princess ! if our aged eyes 
 
 Weep upon thy matchless wrongs, 
 'Tis because resentment ties 
 All the terrors of our tongues. 
 
 " Rome shall perish — write that word 
 In the blood that she has spilt ; 
 Perish, hopeless and abhorr'd, 
 Deep in ruin as in guilt. 
 
 " Rome, for empire far renown'd, 
 Tramples on a thousand states ; 
 Soon her pride shall kiss the ground — 
 Hark ! the Gaul is at her gates ! 
 
 " Other Romans shall arise, 
 
 Heedless of a soldier's name, 
 Sounds, not arms, shalt win the prize, 
 Harmony the path to fame. 
 
 " Then the progeny that springs 
 From the forests of our land, 
 Arm'd with thunder, clad with wings, - 
 Shall a wider world command. 
 
 " Regions Caesar never knew 
 Thy posterity shall sway ; 
 "Where his eagles never flew, 
 None invincible as they." 
 
 Such the bard's prophetic words, 
 Pregnant with celestial fire, . 
 
 Bending as he swept the chords 
 Of his sweet but awful lyre. 
 
 She, with all a monarch's pride, 
 Felt them in her bosom glow ; 
 
 Rush'd to battle, fought, and died ; 
 Dying hurl'd them at the foe. 
 
200 
 
 Ruffians, pitiless as proud, 
 
 Heaven awards the vengeance due 
 Empire is on us bestow'd, 
 
 Shame and ruin wait for j^ou." 
 
 FALL OF ROME. 
 
 Barbarian Invasions (Character of Germans) (See 
 Emerton's History). — "In the latter part of the fourth 
 century a host of savage Huns burst into Europe. The 
 Huns were a people, surely not of German stock, nor 
 even of the Aryan race. They came from the north of 
 Asia, beyond the great wall of China, passed through 
 the 'gateway of nations,' between the Caspian Sea and 
 the Ural Mountains, and fell upon the distant settlements 
 of the East-Goths in the valley of the Don. (Story of 
 Goths. See page 25, Emerton's "Introduction to Study 
 of Middle Agejs.") . 
 
 "The Huns were frightful little men, living almost 
 wholly on horseback, sweeping over the country like a 
 whirlwind and leaving only destruction behind them. 
 They had the olive skins of the Orientals, their hair was 
 worn long and tied into a knot behind. Their noses 
 were so much turned up that the frightened Romans fan- 
 cied that they had nothing but two holes in the middle 
 of their faces. They seemed hardly to deserve the name 
 of human beings ; nothing could resist them. The East- 
 Goths surrendered and were forced to join the Huns in 
 in their attack upon the West-Goths. 
 
 Visigoths. — " These latter, in their despair, begged the 
 Roman Emperor Valens to give them shelter, and were 
 allowed to come over and settle in Mcesia, south of the 
 
201 
 
 Danube. It was understood that the Romans should 
 furnish them with weapons and supplies, for which they 
 should pay by defending the river against any new at- 
 tack. The West-Goths seem, to have kept their part of 
 the agreement, but the Roman officers were careless in 
 their treatment of the barbarians. One trouble led to 
 another, until finally the Germans broke out into open 
 revolt. The Emperor Valens, without waiting for any 
 help from the West, gave battle near Adrianoj^le, in 
 Thrace, and was utterly defeated. He himself was 
 killed in the retreat, and the Visigoths found themselves 
 suddenly within the empire, with no army to oppose 
 them, and, as it seemed, the promise of endless plunder. 
 ' ' The battle of Adrianople was one of the decisive bat- 
 tles of the world. It taught the Germans that they could 
 beat the legions in open fight, and that henceforth it was 
 for them to name the price of peace. It broke once for 
 all the Rhine-Danube frontier. Swarms of fighting men, 
 Ostrogoths as well as Visigoths, came pouring into the 
 empire. At the death of Valens, who had been ruler of 
 the East, his nephew Gratian was left as ruler of the 
 West. He had sense enough to see that he could not 
 hope to govern the whole of the great Roman empire, 
 and called upon Theodosius, a Spaniard, and a man of 
 well-proven ability, to take the government of the East. 
 He saw that it was hopeless to think of driving out the 
 Germans, and that the best way to manage them was to 
 keep them quarreling with each other. He made treat- 
 ies by which the Visigoths were given lands in Thrace, 
 and the Ostrogoths in Pannonia, between the Mur and 
 the Danube. They were to receive regular pay in money 
 
202 
 
 and were to defend the frontier. Their vanity was tick- 
 led with the fine-sounding name of 'allies/ and their 
 leaders were placed in the highest positions in the state. 
 The confidential minister of Theodosius was a German, 
 a Vandal named Stilicho, son of a chieftain who had 
 served with his ■■ chestnut-haired squadrons/ in the arm- 
 ies of Valens. But the Gothic warriors were not long to 
 be bound with paper chains. There were always 
 some among them who despised the service of Rome, 
 and longed to be masters instead of servants. This rest- 
 less ambition for conquest brought forward the greatest 
 leader of the Visigothic name, the famous Alaric. With 
 him for their leader the nation took up its inarch once 
 more, with the fixed purpose of finding lands in the very 
 heart of the empire, where they might settle once for all. 
 Their taste of Roman ways seems only to have made 
 them want more, and they were already losing some- 
 thing of the wildness they had brought from their North- 
 ern home. The great Theodosius died just as Alaric 
 was chosen leader of the Visigoths. His empire was di- 
 vided between his sons, Arcadius, in the East, and Hon- 
 orius, in the West, and was never to be united again. 
 The sons were a wretched pair. With ruin staring him 
 in the face, Honorius shut himself up in Ravenna amidst 
 the marshes of the Po, and left the defense of the empire 
 to Stilicho. 
 
 "Alaric at first fixed his attention upon Greece, and 
 moved his army southward into the center of the Pelo- 
 ponnesus. Arcadius, the Eastern emperor, had no force 
 strong enough to resist the assault, and Greece was only 
 saved by a brilliant exploit of Stilicho, who crossed the 
 
203 - 
 
 Adriatic Sea and shut Alaric up within the province of 
 Arcadia. He dared not risk a battle, however, and was 
 glad to purchase the retreat of Alaric by a renewed com- 
 mission as defender of Illyria. Nothing could have been 
 better for Alaric. He gave up Greece only to be quartered 
 in a rich and defenseless province close upon the borders 
 of Italy. Every step of the Visigothic conquerors shows 
 them to be emerging more and more from the condition 
 of mere fighters, and becoming, in a truer sense of the 
 word, a nation. 
 
 " Their new quarters sufficed for them only about 
 three years. Again the nation in arms moved forward 
 into the rich valley of the Po. The empire was now 
 fully alarmed. From all the most distant frontiers the 
 legions were summoned in hot haste to Rome, and formed 
 by Stilicho into a great army, with which he waited for 
 Alaric near Pollentia, on the river Tanarus. A terrific 
 battle was fought here, in which Alaric. was, if not badly 
 beaten, at least turned back in his career. He was driven 
 out of Italy, and sought shelter in Pannonia. The 
 government actually believed that the barbarians were 
 disposed of forever. It had no conception of the masses 
 of men waiting their opportunity to pour through the 
 breach of the defenseless frontier. Honorius kept on 
 amusing himself at Ravenna. Until now he had shown 
 for Stilicho the respect and confidence due to the savior 
 of Rome. Stilicho had married the niece and adopted 
 daughter of Theodosius, and had given his own two 
 daughters successively in marriage to Honorious. It 
 seemed as if his fortunes were bound up with the very 
 life of the imperial family. But now, at the very mo- 
 
204 
 
 merit when the only man who could hold a Roman army 
 against the barbarians was more needed than ever, the 
 mad folly, which was destroying the empire more surely 
 than her outward enemies, drove Honorious to cause the 
 murder of his faithful servant. -Some jealous rival had 
 made him believe that so much power was dangerous to 
 his tottering throne. 
 
 "Alaric, away up in Illyria, knew better how to value 
 the only man who had ever defeated him. The 
 death of Stilicho was a signal for a new invasion. The 
 Gothic leader, Christian though he was, believed him- 
 self to be in the hands of Destiny. A voice, it was said, 
 had come to him out of the sacred grove, saying, ' You 
 will reach the city,' and he knew that the * city ' could 
 be none other than Rome. The Goths, strengthened by 
 their six years of rest, swept rapidly southward past 
 Ravenna, where Honorius still kept his useless self, 
 marched straight to Rome and began a regular siege. 
 It was the first time for eight hundred years that Rome 
 had seen a foreign enemy before her walls. The citi- 
 zens could not yet believe that the holy city was in 
 danger. Not until hunger and pestilence began to do 
 their awful work did they send to ask terms of Alaric. 
 
 "'Give me all your gold, all your silver, all your 
 movables and all your barbarian slaves, or the siege 
 goes on.' ? What, then, will you leave us?' 'Your 
 lives.' 
 
 " But perhaps Alaric was only in a sort of grim hu- 
 mor, making fun of the half-starved ambassadors. He 
 finally agreed to accept a fixed sum in gold, silver, 
 silken tunics, scarlet hides, and pepper, together with 
 
205 
 
 ample lands in the north of Italy. The mad young 
 emperor at Ravenna, putting on a show of courage 
 when it was' too late, refused to agree to these terms. 
 Alaric promptly renewed the siege, but this time in 
 quite a different fashion. It is as if a strange awe at 
 the name of Rome held him back from actual violence. 
 He was in constant negotiation with the citizens, and 
 even went so far as to set up and maintain, for a few 
 months, a rival emperor. He now proposed still more 
 moderate terms, which. Honorius again refused. And 
 the third assault on Rome began. A vigorous attack 
 made a breach in the walls, and the city was in the 
 hands of the enemy. It is curious to see, how, in the 
 course of his long negotiation with the Romans, Alaric 
 had come to be half a Roman himself. He was no 
 longer a mere barbarian chieftain, eager only for a fight 
 and careless of the future. He was the conqueror of 
 Rome, and felt himself somehow to be thus a part of 
 the wonderful civilization he saw about him. He com- 
 manded his followers to respect the churches and their 
 property. We have no reason to believe that the build- 
 ings of the city suffered very greatly. What the Ger- 
 mans wanted was movable plunder, and laden with this, 
 they set out for the south of Italy. Rome, after all 
 these months of famine and pestilence, was anything 
 but an agreeable residence. 
 
 " Besides, the Germans had not yet learned to live in 
 cities. Their object, as shown by the frequent treaties, 
 was to secure a permanent home, when they should find 
 a country suited to their mind. The later historian of 
 their race says that Alaric meant to conquer Sicily and 
 
20G 
 
 sail over to Africa. Certainly he gathered ships at 
 Rhegium, and is said to have been prevented only by a 
 storm from crossing to Messina. 
 
 " Before he could renew his preparations he died 
 suddenly, the first great barbarian victim to the deadly 
 climate of Italy, which was to be her best defense against 
 the Northern invader. The Visigoths forced their 
 Roman captives to turn the channel of the river 
 Busentum, dug their leader's grave in the dry bed of 
 the stream, let the waters flow back and murdered all 
 who had done the work, that the burial place of Alaric 
 might ever remain a mystery. 
 
 " The capture of Rome made a deep impression upon 
 the men of that day. They had been so accustomed to 
 think of it as a sacred place, that the fall of the city 
 seemed to them like the end of the world. 
 
 " How much the Emperor Honorius cared for Rome 
 we may judge from a story, which, whether true or not, 
 shows what was thought of him at that time. An officer 
 rushed into his presence, and told him that Rome had 
 perished. ' What ! ' cried the Emperor, l she was feed- 
 ing from my hand an hour ago.' He was much re- 
 lieved when told that it was not his favorite hen 
 ' Roma,' but only the capital of his empire that had per- 
 ished. 
 
 " Alaric is to be remembered as the man who pointed 
 out the way which so many others of his race were to 
 follow. He was a great military genius, whose equal 
 was not found among the man}' leaders who built upon 
 his plans. We may believe that upon this last expedi- 
 tion the great bulk of the property of the Visigoths had 
 
207 
 
 been left behind with the women and children some- 
 where in the Alpine country, and it may have been this 
 which led them now to give up the African plan, and 
 under the lead of Adolf, brother-in-law of Alaric, to 
 march out of Italy as they had come in. 
 
 " More and more, the distinction between Roman and 
 barbarian disappears. The sister of Honorius, the beau- 
 tiful and learned Placidia, taken captive in Rome, mar- 
 ries the Gothic leader. Adolf brings the Visigoths back 
 into the service of the empire. They pass over into 
 Gaul, and thence across the Pyrenees into Spain. Al- 
 ready parts of various German tribes had taken the same 
 road, and were helping themselves to the lands of the 
 empire on both sides of the mountains. Under Wallia, 
 the successor of Adolf, the Visigoths, serving as the al- 
 lies of Rome, subdued the rival invaders, and brought 
 back the country for a time to the Roman allegiance. 
 
 The Kingdom of Visigoths. — " The price of this serv- 
 ice was a new and final grant of land in Spain and the 
 South of Gaul, extending from the river Loire beyond 
 the Pyrenees and over the greater part of the peninsula. 
 Here the wanderings of the Visigoths came to an end. 
 They made use of what they had learned from Rome to 
 found a great and prosperous kingdom, with Toulouse as 
 its capital. It was to last entire until the beginning of 
 the sixth century, when the growth of the all-conquering 
 Franks on the northern border reduced its Gallic portion 
 to a Frankish province. The Spanish portion kept up an 
 independent life, until, in the early part of the eighth 
 century, the storm of the Mohammedan invasion from 
 the south swept it out of existence." — Emerton. 
 
208 
 
 (Stories of Vandals, Huns, and Burgundians. See 
 Emerton's History, "Introduction to Middle Ages.") 
 
 Sack of Rome by the Vandals. — The Vandals, another 
 German tribe from the Baltic, had found their way 
 across the Strait of Gibraltar into Africa. Gen'seric, 
 their leader, founded an empire at Carthage, and they 
 became a race of bold, successful pirates. They were a 
 common terror to all the nations on the Mediterranean, 
 plundering and destroying everywhere they went. Since 
 their day, wanton destruction of property has been called 
 "Vandalism." In 455 Gen'seric's ships cast anchor in 
 the Tiber "and came swooping down upon the city of 
 Rome from the port of Ostia, expecting to be met by an 
 army of Roman youth. Instead of this there issued from 
 the gates a procession of venerable clergy, led by Bishop 
 Leo. The barbarian conqueror promised to spare the 
 unresisting people, but for fourteen days the city was 
 given over to pillage, and all that remained of Roman 
 wealth, of public or private treasure, the gems of maid 
 and matron, the holy decorations of the temples and al- 
 tars, the crown, the purple, and the insignia of state, all 
 were transported to the vessels of Gen'seric. 
 
 "So Rome, that had robbed the world, was robbed by 
 the world in the weakness begotten by the spoils of na- 
 tions. The measure that she had meted was meted out 
 to her again." The Roman spirit had decayed in the 
 years of riches, triumph, and so-called glory. In the 
 year 490, the last phantom monarch of Rome, Romulus 
 Augustulus, laid down his useless scepter at the com- 
 mand of Odoacer, the barbarian, who was now king of 
 
209 
 
 the land of JEneas, of Romulus, Tullius, Cincinnatus, 
 Regulus, and Aurelius. 
 
 ct Prosperity bad proved fatal to Roman virtue, and 
 the loss of character was a loss of spirit, and honor, and 
 valor. The hardy giants of the northern lands held her 
 at their mercy, and the Queen of Empires, after all her 
 triumphs, grovelled now at the barbarians' chariot 
 wheels . ' ' — Buttemvorth . 
 
 ROME. 
 
 LORD BYROX. 
 
 The Niobe of nations ! there she stands, 
 
 Childless and crownless, in her voiceless woe, 
 An empty urn within her withered hands, 
 
 Whose holy dust was scattered long ago : 
 The Scipios' tomb contains no ashes now, 
 
 The very sepulchers lie tenantless 
 Of their heroic dwellers : dost thou flow, 
 
 O Tiber, through a marble wilderness ? 
 
 Rise, with thy yellow waves, and mantle her distress. 
 
 The Goth, the Christian, Time, War, Flood, and Fire, 
 Have dealt upon the seven-hilled city's pride ; 
 
 She saw her glories star by star expire, 
 
 And up the steep barbarian monarchs ride, 
 
 Where the car climbed the Capitol ; far and wide 
 Temple and tower went down, nor left a site: — 
 
 Chaos of ruins! who shall trace the void, 
 O'er the dim fragments cast a lunar light, 
 And say, " here was, or is," where all is doubly night ? 
 
 The double night of ages, and of her, 
 
 Night's daughter, Ignorance, hath wrapt and wrap 
 All round us ; we but feel our way to err : 
 
 The ocean hath his chart, the stars their map, 
 
210 
 
 And Knowledge spreads them on her ample lap; 
 But Rome is as the desert, where we steer 
 
 Stumbling o'er recollections; now we clap 
 Our hands, and cry " Eureka! " it is clear — 
 When but some false mirage of ruin rises near. 
 
 Alas ! the lofty city ! and alas ! 
 
 The trebly hundred triumphs ! and the day 
 When Brutus made the dagger's edge surpass 
 
 The conqueror's sword, in bearing Fame away! 
 Alas, for Tully's voice aud Virgil's \ay, 
 
 And Livy's pictured page! — but these shall be 
 Her resurrection ; all beside — decay, 
 
 Alas for Earth, for never shall we see 
 
 That brightness in her eye she bore when Rome was free ! 
 
 
LIST OF WORKS 
 
 Which, by kind* permission of the publishers or authors (where copyright 
 is in force), are quoted from or referred to in this work. 
 
 Lew Wallace's " Ben Hur," published by Harper & Brothers. 
 P. U. N. Myers' "'Eastern Countries and Greece" and "Ancient His- 
 tory," published by Ginn & Co. 
 Charlotte Yonge's " Young Folks' History of Greece/' by Estes and 
 
 Lauriat. 
 S. G. Goodrich's "English History," by E. H. Butler & Co. 
 W. C. Bryant's poems of "The Ages" and "Forest Hymn," by D. 
 
 Appleton & Co. 
 Allen's "Short History of the Roman People," by Ginn & Co. 
 Butterworth's " Little Arthur's History of Rome," by Thomas Y. 
 
 Crowell & Co. 
 Emerton's " Introduction to Middle Ages," by Ginn & Co. 
 Dr. Goldsmith's "History of Greece," by Thomas Cowperthwait & 
 
 Co. 1841. 
 Quackenbos' " School History of the World," by D. Appleton & Co. 
 
 1876. 
 "Plutarch's Lives." 
 
 Edith Ralph's "Step by Step Through the Bible." 
 Gibbon's " Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire." 
 Goodrich's "Roman History." 
 Charles Dickens' "Child's History of England." 
 Mary Ford's " Child's History of Rome." 
 Peter Parley's " Cabinet Library." (1849.) 
 Barnes' "General History." 
 Mahaffy's " History of Civilization." 
 Niebuhr's " Stories of Greece." 
 Bulfinch's Mythology. 
 Guerber's "Greek Stories." 
 Francillon's "Gods and Heroes." 
 Brook's "Iliad" and "Odyssey." 
 Lamb's "Adventure of Ulysses." 
 Cox's Mythology. . . 
 
 Church's "Stories of Homer." 
 Kingsley's "Greek Heroes." 
 
 Butterworth's "Zigzag Journeys," by Estes & Lauriat. 
 Lydia Hoyt Farmer's " Boys' Book "of Famous Rulers," by T. Y. 
 
 Crowell & Co. 
 Henry A. Ford's "Poems of History." 
 Poems from Bvroii, Bryant, Macaulay, Cowper 
 " Life of Paul," from Bible. 
 Encyclopedia Britannica. 
 
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