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III
LI




Cbe Son of the $worbmater




0
I
I




I
II
I




II,ALL WAS STII i SAVE F(OR TIIE \VAR CHANT






The Son
of the
Swordmaker
4 Romance by
OPIE READ
AUTHOR OF
"' Turkey Egg' Grifn," " Th2e ilarkriders,"
"The Starbucks," "Old Ebenezer,"
"A K entucky Colonel,"
"A 7ennessee Jfuilge," "M y Younr AMaster,"
"Len Gansett," "T/he Jucklins,"
" The Colossus,"
Etc., Etc.
ILLUSTRATED
CHICAGO
LAIRD & LEE, PUBLISHERS


i


I -




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year i905,
BY WILLIAM H. LEE,
in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washinpton, D. C,


)
J




-^ a. c. -^
CONTENTS
PAGE
CHAPTER I. In the Eternal City,..            7
II. The Old Egyptian,......                18
4    III. Old Limprosus,.....                 31
" IV. A Sky of Rainbows,..               42
s     V. On the Homeward March,.  63
e    VI. Limprosus Tells of the Young Jew,.   72
VII. In Lodbig's Town,.......             80
VIII. The Storming of the Town,...  94
IX. In the Home of the Princess,..      108
X. In the Moonlight and the Briars,..122
XI. One Outran the Rest.... 133
XII. In the Town and On the Ship,...144
XIII. Across the Desert,.... 156
(  XIV. At the House of a Friend.. 176
XV. He Came Like a Dark Shadow,.           192
" XVI. On the Steps of the Ruined Portico,. 202
" XVII. He Comes in Potential Humility,.     215
" XVIII. Out in the Dark Night... 228
" XIX. Wrapped in a Faded Cloth,.... 244
XX. Out in the Mountains,... 255
"  XXI. Whom Ye Seek Ye Shall Find,..270
( XXII. In the Day to Come,.. 283
XXIII. The Great Kinsman of a Family,..294
XXIV. They Were Strong,.. 304
XXV. Echoing Throughout the World,..320
XXVI. Conclusion,....              326






A MAIDEN TALL AND SPLENDID.




The Son of the Swordmaker


CHAPTER I
In tbe Eternal CttV
*   WAS born in Rome. In that city my
father was a maker of swords. During
his earlier life he was a soldier, serving
in many parts of the world, and although
he was, as I firmly believe, a valiant fighter
for the Empire, yet he attained to no marked
degree of preferment. Under an act of the
Senate, a soldier who had served a certain
number of years was not only granted the
freedom of honorable retirement from the
army, but was presented with a grant of
land in some new-founded colony where, as a
citizen, he might spend the remainder of his
days. But such a life did not appeal to him.
Out of Rome was out of the world for a
Roman. One who had given the best years
of his life to the sword could not hope to rival
in business one who had been trained in those
affairs whereby men gather riches. As my
father had naught to look forward to save a
mere existence and an old age of rusted
7




' 8     abe i on'of tbe Sworbmaher


faculties, he took what money was coming to
him, turned his land grant into precious metal,
and making his way back to Rome, set up a
small forge for the making of swords.
In youth he had been apprenticed to a
maker of war weapons, and now, in the full
vigor of his mind, his skill soon returned to
him; and, as he was assisted by one of the
best workmen in the Empire, old Calo, who
better than any one else knew the secret of
tempering steel, the fame of his swords spread
abroad. Within a few years the shop had so
expanded as to be 'noted as one of the industrial features of Rome; but his ambition,
instead of finding satisfaction, constantly grew
beyond his attainment. It was not enough to
possess gold and slaves and to own a villa.
Social distinction and the Senate were still
denied him. To be a real lord of man's universe did not depend upon wealth alone. Out
of some brave and lucky chance in the army
one might arise from lowness to a triumph;
but it was for the most part the distinction of
family that set one man above another. My
father, however, married a patrician, though
the divorced wife of a Senator, and I was born
at a time when he was in the full tide of his
wealth, though he was as far as ever from
attaining his social aims; for, though my
mother could entertain him with the stories




In tbe Eternal Ctt9


9


of the great life from which she had been
thrust, she could not unchain a door for him
to enter.  That a man who had lived so
rugged a life should be so weak as to demand
the recognition and the flatteries of degenerates was resented by old Calo, the foreman
of the great factory, and often while he was
showing me the new swords and the bucklers,
he would rave and tell me that my father was
a fool.
Once he stood with me in his arms, while a
troop was passing, and he asked me if I were
going to make swords or use them, and when
I answered that I was going to be a soldier, he
hugged me close and in my ear he almost
shouted: "Yes, and to go into the Senate
with your sword in your hand; not to be of
these feeble wretches, but to cut their throats."
One of the workmen, a mean fellow and a
spy, overheard Calo, and straightway he went
to the authorities with a complaint. The old
man was arrested that day, and though my
father strove to save him, yet he was condemned to death. Just before he was led
forth to execution he asked that he might see
me, the only human being whom he loved; and
the request was granted, though we were not
to talk alone, lest he might say something to
poison my mind. I thought that he was going
to rail against the powers that were to shed




10    Ube Son of the 5worbfmaher


his blood, but he did not. He took me tenderly in his arms, and told me where he had
hidden a sword made especially for me; hilt
inlaid with gold and set with pearls. When I
began to weep he held me aloft so that he
might look up into my face, and said: "Little
Eradmus, you must not cry. Look down and
see how white my hair is, and know, then, that
they are to rob me of but little more than a
day. Can we not all afford to give a day to
them that crave it?"
Though Calo was so instrumental in my
father's prosperity, so far as I could see, there
was but little regret at his death.  On the
morning after the burning of the body, my
father, as was now his assumed custom, was
borne in his litter on the shoulders of his
slaves into the Forum, where he turned from
the great world market, where every conceivable thing was sold, to the places apart from
trade where the rhetoricians, both old and
young, came to listen to the music of their
own voices. Oratory was so essential that the
man who could not harangue was doomed to
be cheated of more than half his success in
life. Every ceremony and almost every service, no matter how simple, was prefaced with
a speech.  Generals and even centurions
harangued the soldiers, and masters made
speeches to their slaves, laying down their




In tbe Eternal Ctty


II


duties and telling them how thankful they
ought to be that the gods had so favored
them as to take from them their worthless
freedom and to permit them to become the
property of a Roman.
The patricians smiled at one another when
my father appeared, yet he would persist in
seeking to be among them. Sometimes he
essayed to speak, and he spoke well, telling of
the exploits of his legion; but it was rare that
he was favored with a kindly ear, for the
patricians sneered at his presumption and the
plebeians resented his rise from among them.
I think that it must have been the third day
after the death of Calo when my father, seeming to take pity on my grief, said that he had
designed to make me a present. I did not
inquire as to what it might be, but in obedience to his command I went with him to the
Forum. Here we passed through the great
mart where hoarse men were shouting their
bargains, and entered the Temple of Castor,
the human market, where upon scaffolds were
exposed for sale hundreds of women and children. We halted in front of a platform where
a burly auctioneer was crying the virtues of a
Greek boy, somewhat older than myself, a
handsome youth in whose sad eyes were pictures of a starry night in his native land. You
who read this must know that with the rest of




12     tbe Son of the Zworbmaker


my race, the great Roman public, I had no
real heart such as you may possess. I had
wept over Calo and I would have wept over
the loss of a dog, but I knew not the meaning
of human wretchedness. To look with dry
eye upon misery was a virtue. Power was a
gracious privilege extended by the gods to
the chosen ones of earth. Weakness was a
mark of the Fates' displeasure. I admired
the beautiful eyes of this boy, and his antics
beneath the sharp lashings of the auctioneer,
as he leaped about to show his agility, were a
source of amusement to me. He uttered a
Cry and the auctioneer shouted:
"Listen to the sweetness of that voice! Can
he not regale you with music at dinner? See
how he can jump! Did you ever behold such
activity?"
My father bought him, and when a small
chain had been put about his neck I led him
home in triumph. At the portals of all great
houses the janitor and a mighty mastiff were
chained, one on each side, both to remain
there until death, or to be sold with the house
or burnt with it in case of fire. When I
entered, leading the boy, the mastiff growled
and the old man sadly shook his head. The
little fellow could speak no Latin and I knew
no Greek, and together in my room we had
but a lonesome time of it. Poor little thing!


p




In the Eternal Ctts'


13


He watched where I had hidden his chain,
and one morning when I awoke he was dead,
having hanged himself with it.
As I now remember, it did not seem that
my mother was very tender toward me. She
was a sad woman, and in nothing did she
seem to find a pleasure. Stately and cold, she
presided at our feasts; and on the day of the
festival of Bona Dea she would give way to
fits of secret weeping, as it must have
reminded her of a time when she was the
wife of a real, not a pretended member of the
Senate.
I remember that in the dusk of one evening
we were sitting near the fountain. It had
been the day of Lupercal, and naked men had
shouted in the street.  My father, bestial
from wine, had coarsely berated her, and now
that he was in a drunken slumber she sat here
with me, apart from all the world. The fountain was lowly murmuring. She placed her
hand on my shoulder as I stood near her and
told me of a little boy that had died;
and, filled with jealous rage, I cried out that if
he had not died I would have killed him.
Young as I was, I had received lessons in military training, and this declaration sprang
from my first hardening toward all things
that might stand in my way. She pushed
me from her, and I believe that had I fallen




I4    'Zbe Zon of tbe f~worbmaher


into the pool she would have suffered me to
drown.
On the following morning a naked man was
found dead in the street, just beyond our door.
One of our slaves whispered to me that he
had been the slaughterer, and I was so much
enamored of his prowess that I brought him
sweetmeats and gave to him a steel mirror
that he might study the features of his valiant
countenance.
How keen a delight it was to go to the
Campus Martius and watch them fling the
javelin and gaze upon the strong men buffeting the waves of the Tiber! But I did not
care to hear the poets declaim, though they
sang of war, for it was all so tame compared
with the deed itself.  My father strove to
impress me with the truth that it was almost
as essential to tell of the deed as to do it; that
those who sing make weak men great; but I
S cared not for the poet nor for the orator, an
indifference that must have arisen from the
fact that I could not paint with words. It
must have been the discovery that I was not
akin to any of the intellectual graces that put
me out of favor with my mother. She was
from a race of orators as well as soldiers, and
it was her ambition that I should shine with
double luster. She said that I could never be
so distinguished as our cook, who had achieved




In tbe Eternal CitV


is


the distinction of preparing a pig so that it would
be boiled on one side and roasted on the other.
I recall an old soldier who gave me great
encouragement when he arose once in the
Forum and began by declaring that he was
rough and could ill use the phrases that had
made some men great; but from his fumbling
about for words he suddenly arose among the
very stars of expression and shamed me by
making a most eloquent speech.  It was a
trick they had, to declare that they were not
given to speech-making and then to astonish
every one with their power.
"He will learn arms anyway. Compel him
to know rhetoric," my father said to my
teacher, and as my lack of aptitude was often
mistaken for stubbornness I was sometimes
punished. I remember a severe chastisement
for a trifling offense. The great lumbering
chariots were drawn by oxen, and once
when I inquired of my father why they
were not drawn by horses, he flew off into a
harangue: "Don't you know that it would be
a sacrilege to draw a chariot with horses except
when consuls or other great men are going to
view the sacrifice, or for triumphs, or when the
chariots contain the images of the gods?"
And for this ignorance he beat me and sent
word to my teacher that he was remiss in his
duty toward me.




I6


6 be Son of tbe Sworbmafter


In Rome there was so much to remember
and it was so hard to remember everything;
but sometimes the want of a word branded
one as a plebeian, and this was what father
could not endure. As time passed he did not
improve. A man's disposition grows sweeter
or sourer as old age approaches; sweeter if he
be a philosopher and sourer if he be a man of
vanity; and my father's constant desire to be
taken for what he was not, proved him vain.
Gradually, too, the importance of his workshop began to decline. During the time when
Calo was alive whole legions had been armed
with our blades, but the secret of tempering
the steel had gone with him into ashes, and
our swords began to fall into disrepute. The
man who reported on Calo had told father
that he possessed the secret, but this was soon
proved to be not true, and I was not sorry
afterward to learn that this was the man who
had been found dead near our house, nor did
it lessen my father in my regard when I
learned that he was the cause of the assassination. Complaint was made against our
swords. One night a messenger came from
the Emperor. With great ceremony father
received him. He handed father a parchment
and departed. Mother came forward.
"It has come," said father.  Then he
ordered a slave to prepare the bath. Mother




In the Sternal Gftp


17


said nothing. She walked off a short distance
and I made bold to ask her what had happened. "Your father is under the imperial
frown," she whispered.- Just then he called
me to him. With bowed head I approached,
feeling that I was in the presence of death.
"Look up!" he commanded, and I obeyed
him. "I don't know how much will be left for
you when the government and the creditors
are satisfied, but whatever there is, take it and
spend it on your education."
Mother overheard him, but she said nothing. He had spoken no word of provision for
her, and glancing at her.1 saw her tremble,
but she did not speak.
"Yes, sir," I said.
"I want it to be your aim in life to shame
those who have stood in the path of my
advancement."
"Yes, sir," I answered, wondering if he were
going to leave instructions to my teacher to
beat me. He did not put his hand on my
head.  He did not touch me. The slave
came forth, groveling, and announced that
the bath was prepared. Mother approached
slowly. Father met her. They embraced
without a word and so they separated. One
of the servants took me out of the house.
We walked about the streets, and when we
returned they told me that father was dead.




CHAPTER II


tIbe 0>b;EQgptian
HERE was very little left after the
government and the creditors were
satisfied.  We removed to a small
house far from the triumphal entry
ways of Rome, and the shouts that reached us
seemed as the faint echoes of a world that
was gone forever. Here we lived with but
one servant, an Egyptian slave, a wise old
man, who looked like one of the mummies
taken from the mysterious caves of his country. Learned in most languages and in nearly
all things, he would assist me with my studies,
but with all this I was slow and it was with
difficulty that I could understand. The tasks
set for me, the great orations, almost split my
head, which in a frail boy would have been
natural enough; but I was large for my age
and so strong that my companions envied
me. I was a leader in all sorts of bodily
sports, and once when wrestling I threw a boy
older than myself and broke his neck. Of
course I could not be held in blame, especially
as the boy was of no family to speak of, but
18




tbe 01W Eyoptian


'9


instead of showing sorrow I was rather arrogant over my prowess.
It seemed that my mother was better contented after the death of my father, and I
remember that of a summer's evening she
would sit beneath the ilex tree, before our
humble door, and sing a strange, sweet song,
always the same; but she was not more affectionate toward me, appearing to regard me as
a link that bound her to a pretentious and
vulgar life which she had ever despised.
Sometimes when an idea would seem to reflect
a light upon the dark background of my
almost universal ignorance, she would smile
her approval, but never once did she stimulate
my pride by telling me that she expected me
to become a great man.
One afternoon when I returned from school
she met me at the door and, in a way strangely
confused for one of such self-command, she
asked me if I would not go somewhere else to
remain during the night. Just then, from
within the larger of the two rooms, I heard a
feeble voice calling her. Without saying a
word or without even casting another look
upon me, she turned about hastily and entered
the room; and I followed her, wondering, for
in our retirement there came no visitors.
Upon entering, I saw her supporting the
head of an old man that lay upon a couch.




20     tbe Son of tbe Swor)makfer


He was struggling for breath, and with wine
she was seeking to revive him. I stood there,
looking on, and when, after a time, she had
eased him down and was fanning him, I asked
her who he was, but she bade me keep silence.
I did so, for a long time, and when at last the
old man appeared to be in a natural sleep she
came to me and led me into the other room
and, looking hard into my eyes, she asked me
if I could keep a secret.
I told her that I had never been known to
tell things that ought not to be known; and,
thus assured, she told me that the old man
was her former husband, the Senator who had
divorced her. He had been disgraced and
banished and now he had stolen again to
Rome, to his only friend, the woman whom he
had abused, to die in her arms. She said that
if the authorities knew he had returned they
would drag him forth and murder him; and,
obeying her, I told the Egyptian that the old
man was my uncle who had returned from
Greece.
As the days passed, he so far regained his
strength as to sit up and to talk, and he talked
marvelously, that old orator, of the triumphs
he had won when he was a boy, and of the
first speech in the Senate that had made him
famous. When he related this my mother
apologized for me, as my face must have




tbe 01R ]Sorpttan


21


shown no sign of gladness at the recital, and
feeling the insult, for such it was to me, I
replied that I was as one who loved music but
could not chant. This pleased him, and he
said to her that she had nothing to fear for
my mind, which assured me that when I was
not present she had talked to him of my
stupidity.
One day when mother was gone out to make
some purchases I sat with him. He resented
the need of her going on so mean an errand,
but when I assured him that as much as we
trusted the Egyptian in ordinary things, we
could not with safety give him a commission
that involved the handling of money, he
smiled and declared it was that way with
nearly all peoples. He told me that some of
the most learned of the Greeks were dishonest, and that Demosthenes, whom our own
great Cicero had thought the greatest of
orators, gave himself not to justice but to the
side that paid over the most money. During
a long time I let him talk, for, like most old
men, he found in the sound of his own words
his greatest pleasure; and when he halted to
let his mind wander back into his earlier
days, I bluntly asked him why he had divorced
my mother. He pulled at his white beard as
if my question had annoyed him, but I
repeated it, wondering, and not without pity,




22    tbe Son of tbe wvorbmaker


how so frail a being could ever have summoned strength enough to be a power in the
Senate.
"Boy," said he, still pulling at his beard,
"you look somewhat like my son, your mother's son that died so long ago-but not so
bright, boy; not so bright, not so considerate.
He would not have asked such a question."
I stood looking at him, feeling now no pity
for his age, his feebleness, for when weakness
insults us we despise it. "He did not have a
chance to ask such a question, and you don't
know what he would have done, it was so long
ago and he was so little when he died."
"Yes, long ago," he mused, gazing through
the open door off toward one of the Seven
Hills. ' "Years and years ago when they
brought hay from Africa there were flower
seeds in the straw, and strange flowers began
to spring up where once but brownish grass
had grown. One seed came not from Africa,
but from the gods, and the flower bloomed,
but soon it perished. Boy, you wonder that
your mother does not love you more. She
cannot when you remind her that you are just
enough like her son to be different."
Chafing under the insults of his imbecile
mind, I told him that his son was a weakling
and that I had killed a boy older than myself;
and he cackled and seemed to spit dust out of




Zbe O1 Xgppttan


23


his dry mouth.  He leaned back and was
silent and, turning about, I was sharpening on
a stone a knife that the Egyptian had given to
me, when mother returned. I heard her enter
the room and then, as all was silent, I looked
about to see what she was doing, and I saw
her sitting on the stone floor with her hands
clasped over the old man's knees, looking up
into his dead face. I was glad that night
when the Egyptian took him out, stealthily, to
lay him in the street, for thus he was disposed
of, for we were too poor to offer any rite over
his body.
It was not long before my mother followed
him into the unknown world. I knelt beside
her during her last moments. She died with
no emotion toward me; she was cold, and this
was what in that day they called the virtue
and the strength of a Roman matron. Now
it was that I and Nebuces, the Egyptian, lived
all alone. No, I had one other companion,
the sword that had been made for me by
Calo. I slept with it, hugging it up close when
the wind blew hard. Nebuces thought that it
was because I was aifraid to sleep without a
weapon. Wise as one of the sages of the
Nile was this old man, but he did not know
everything.  If opportunity had fallen, I
believe that he would have stolen the sword,
to turn it into money for his own uses, but if




24     tbe ion of the Sworbmaler


he had, I would have killed him with the curious
knife that he had given me. He did not
appear to grow older as the slow years passed.
His leathery skin had long since received all
of the marks that time could put upon it. He
knew much about the stars, and could read
strange things from flat stones that he kept in
a box, but the Egyptians knew but ill the use
of arms, and as he could not teach me the art
of fighting, I cared naught for his wisdom.
It seemed, though, that in the past his people
had been great. It must have been that one
of the queens was beautiful, for Antony loved
her, he who shook the world with his tread.
Nebuces said that he had seen her, this
daughter of the warm Egyptian sun, and that
her idlest kisses must have been as kingdoms
and her love the universe of the gods. He
said that he had seen Antony, and all that
kept me from kissing his old eyes was the fear
that he might be a liar. He loved life, little
as it held for him, and I have often wondered
why it is that men who love life most are those
most inclined to falsehood.
In exchange for the' mysterious things
Nebuces read from the tablets of stone, I read
to him the book of all books, written by the
immortal Julius Caesar; and when came the
passage that "men fear most the evils which
are the furthest from them" the old man




Zibe OlDb Eg6pttan


25


rubbed his eyes and said: "It is because the
greatest evil of all, death, is put furthest
away in our minds; but we should not fear it,
for death is as much of a gift as life. It has
ever been held as the greatest evil, the extent
of punishment for crime; but do we punish the
thing that commits the crime? A man steals
into a house with a knife in his hand and
commits murder, and they put him to death;
but the real something that impels the hand
to strike the blow has not been touched. We
may say that it is the mind, but after his body
has moldered into dust there is as much mind
in the world as ever. All fire comes from the
sun, and, no matter how much fire you kindle
or put out, the sun is not weakened. It must
be, then, that there is one great mind and that
part of it which strays off and commits crime
is a vagrant fragment; and that when you kill
the body you but send the mind back to the
place where it originally belonged."
"Then you believe that a man lives more
than once," said I, and he smiled and
answered: "Man always has lived and always
must live. He is an expression of something
eternal."
"I don't believe it. Caesar knew that the
gods were only the playthings of man. No
wiser man ever lived than he."
Nebuces shook his head. "Caesar was a




26     tbe fon of tbe ZworamaIer


strong reflection of the Eternal mind, and he
dazzled the earth, but great as he was he may
not have known all truth. He was right in
not believing in the gods, for they are mere
trinkets set up by man; but man needed them
in order that he might develop the world.
From the worship of the gods arose the arts,
sculpture, architecture, music and poetry.
When Caesar came the gods had fulfilled
their missions."
"But will there come other gods to take
their places?"
"Perhaps not other gods. The Jews have
a God, great and invisible."
"But if he is invisible, how do they know
that they have him?"
"That which causes the tide is invisible, yet
we know that there must be a cause."
"But we do not worship the cause of the
tide.'
"We might, and with no shock to wellbalanced intellect; but you are not metaphysical. You are of the sword, material. Some
sleep with wisdom and dream of other worlds.
You sleep with steel and dream of man's blood."
"But, Nebuces," said I, "how can you talk so
and believe that there may be one great mind
and another life and yet at the same time be
so unworthy of trust? Why is it that you
would lie and steal?"




tbe 01b IX3Vpttan


He did not take this with offense.  He
smiled sadly and his old eyes gleamed. "We
may feel a suggestion of the truth and yet live
in error," he replied. "IVe may catch but a
glimpse until there may come a time when
with steady gaze we may contemplate the
whole truth."
He was becoming too vague for me, passing
not only beyond the limits of my reason but
of my interest as well, seeking to be mystical,
which has ever been a recourse of the weak,
of those who fear to risk life for glory. Truth,
which this old man pretended to see only in
glimpses,was revealed unto me-simple, proved
by the ages; and it was that man to be great
must conquer man. My argument, Rome's
argument, was this: "Of what use would be all
wisdom if the strong should come and set a
foot upon your neck?"
Thus I spoke to Nebuces and he waved his
hand out toward the great city, the palaces
and the temples of triumph, and said: "All as
unreal as the shadow cast by the branch of a
dead tree, in the mistiest moonlight. That
which you may behold, looking out over
Rome, is not the truth. Compared with the
real, it is no more fixed, no more eternal than
the ant hill. Eradmus, you believe in earthly
honor and glory, and reproach me with the
weakness of lying, and yet you lie."




28    t'be Son of tbe %worbmaker


Upon my couch lay my sword, and, springing
to my feet, I seized it. "You old dog," I cried,
"I will spread your black blood over the tablets that teach you such impudence."
He had been sitting on the box that contained his treasures; and now he arose like a
great serpent throwing itself upward. In a
voice that chilled me he commanded me to be
quiet. I waited, with the sword gripped tight
in my hand, but I could scarcely restrain
myself, for he smiled upon me, seeming to
feel that in some way he held me in his
power. "Listen to me but for a moment," he
said. "You called me' a liar and I was not
angry, for it was the truth; but when I tell a
truth you arise against my life. You told me
that the old man who died in this house was
your uncle, returned from Greece; but he was
of no relation to you, as you well knew, but
the former husband of your mother, and a
Senator who lived under penalty of death
should he return to Rome. I, this old error"and here he put his hand upon his breast'this old error said nothing, but obeyed the
orders that~were given to him, though he knew
that 'money waited for him if he should grovel
his way up to the Senate with the truth in his
mouth."
I threw my sword upon the couch, and the
old man sat down on his box of treasures.




'be 01)b   ogUptian


He indeed had me in his power-the
power of truth. "Nebuces, my mother was
the cause of that lie."
"Ah," he replied, "and something, some
interest is the cause of every lie." For a long
time he sat in silence and I stood there looking down upon him, wondering if I should be
better off if he were out of the world. Suddenly it seemed to dawn that all of his arguments came out of his opposition to the course
which I had chosen to adopt in life; and then
I said to him: "If you don't want me to be a
soldier, what is it you desire that I should
be?"
His face brightened. "Be a man and come
with me and look for the truth."
"But whither shall we go?"
"To Judea, where there is much wisdom."
"To drive'camels and sell grain? To throw
away the great heritage of a Roman and to
become a worshiper of gold? There is glory
in metal, Nebuces, but it is in polished steel.
In that metal alone is all of the wisdom worth
possessing on this earth."
He never sought to argue with.me long at
a time, and whenever our talk had reached a
certain stage, it seemed to me that a sort of
film came suddenly into his eyes, shutting off
his further interest in the sight of me. Once,
with my permission, he went away and was.!




30    tbe 5on of tbe SworbmaTer


gone a long time, and when I asked what he
had been doing he answered that under a man
possessed of great wisdom he had been seeking truth. While constantly with me he had
not noticed my growth, but now he marveled
at my stature, and when I told him of my feats
of strength on the Campus Martius he smiled
sadly, for he knew that my mind was still
bent upon the army. Indeed, so far from
having undergone any sort of change in this
respect, I had offered myself to my country,
and, within a few days, was to be admitted to
the ranks as a common soldier. There had
been a time, of course, when every Roman
youth was a soldier, but now the army was
becoming more of a special calling; and I
rejoiced at this, for it stamped me as different
from youths whom I knew, and who could not
leap into the ranks to steal the fame of other
men and then leap out to fatten and to thrive
upon it. Upon coming home one night I
brought the news that I had been sworn in, to
recruit one of the legions serving in Gaul or
Britain; and the old man shook his head.
"Then you- are to march as far as you can
from truth," he said. "In those rude lands all
is ignorance."




CHAPTER III


01~ limprosus
T WAS scarcely dawn and the cocks were
crowing when we. marched out from
sleeping Rome.    Upon leaving the
house, after the midnight hour, to go
to the camp, I did not arouse the old Egyptian; and so I left him possessed of the hovel
with its bare walls and its falling roof, through
which the rain had begun to beat. Once I
looked back to see the whitish rock ghastly in
the light of the early summer's lagging moon,
but no emotion came to hold me dearly to the
spot. I had lived there with no other thought
than to leave when manhood's prompting
strength should come, the full heritage of the
true soldier; and though the house was in
Rome, the envied of the world, yet I looked
upon it as the cracking shell that had held me
in banishment from a life which surely I
should love. When at the camp, in making
ready to march, I gathered up the accouterments of my trade, the weight, eighty pounds,
seemed as an addition to my own strength.
How great it was to feel myself in this strong
tide, a part of it, a tide that had overswept
31




32     'be %on of the SworbmaTer


the world! In the history of nations there had
been mighty armies, but no such soldiers as
these men, advanced beyond all precedent in
the military art. Silently we marched until
without the walls, and then as the sun threw
the spokes of his firewheel from behind a hill,
we broke forth with chanting and with merriment. But by the centurions this was soon
hushed, for no distance from any possible
enemy warranted a moment's relaxation from
strictest discipline. Every man had the same
privilege, the privilege to die for honor, and
surely this was worth all of the dreariness of
the dull school and the muscle strain that was
to temper one to the hardships of the march
and the toil of building roads over dangerous
precipices. Regulation demanded that with
this weight of eighty pounds-each soldier was
to march twenty miles, which, day in and day
out, will soon eat up the distance of' a long
road; but, of course, there were times when
an army was expected to throw away all encumbrances and to sweep across the country
like a storm.
Our first camp was in the hills, among olive
groves, and even here, though in Italy, the
night's resting place was fortified.  I shall
never forget my sensations as I stood upon a
knoll, looking out over the purple country.
During my life I had made but few excursions




Q00 2limnprosu3


33


beyond the walls of the city. The Roman
youth loved the streets better than nature, but
now all the world seemed as a part of me, of
the conquest of my sword, and I reveled in
flattered contemplation of it. Our small army,
not a full legion in numbers, was not all of
new recruits, but many old and tried soldiers
were placed judiciously among us to give
order and strength.  Companionships were
formed early, within an hour or two, and the
man whom I most admired was old Limprosus, who had rejoined the ranks after having
served his allotted time. -le came to me as I
was standing on the knoll, and, smiling
through his close and grizzled beard, he said:
"Youth, you remind me of myself when first
I marched from Rome; but those were the days
of glory."
"Is none of the glory left for me?" I
inquired.
"Pickings, perhaps-after the feast.'
"But the feast of Rome is eternal," I replied, and this seemed to please him. "But
tell mne, how are we to get into the country of
Britain?"
"We will march into Gaul and then in ships
will be sent across the choppiest of seas."
"You have been there?"
"My sword has sipped the thin blood of a
Druid."




34     tbe Son of tbe Sworbmalfer


"A Druid? What is that?"
"A priest of great power among those ignorant people."
"But I didn't know that Rome interfered
with the religion of the conquered."
"Not so long as the religion is harmless, but
the Druids offer up human sacrifice, and this,
except in games wherein the whole people
take interest and amusement, is contrary to all
moral law; but when you have traveled about
as much as I have, my son, you will find that
the world is still full of superstition. Rome
carries the torch, but sometimes the wind
blows it out. But the Druids! Though their
blood be thin, they are furious beasts, and can
excite their people to rush upon the swordmen and women alike.
"Ah, but the maidens of Britain! Their
blood is not thin, and of their gore my sword
has not taken a distasteful sip, but has been
gorged upon it. I see you feel that you would
not care to kill a woman; and neither should
I, if she were not a fiend. Some of those British maidens, as beautiful as they appear, as
soft of skin and as golden of hair, are very
devils when their war chant has made the oak
leaves tremble. Sometimes they are affectionate, with a tenderness, a sort of loving
weakness, almost unknown to other peoples.
One was, that I remember. She followed me




C1t XImpro3us


35


to the camp, carrying my buckler, my saw and
mattock. She swore that she would not go
back to her people. She cooked for me, and
washed my clothes, but when she heard the
war chant of her people she seized my sword
and strove with all her might to kill me, and
her might was not small. I knocked her
down and put my foot on her beautiful neck.
She swore that she would behave herself; but
when I let her up, out among the trees the
chant arose again, and once more she made at
me and I was forced to-see that flight of
birds off to the south. It looks like a part of
the dusk, wheeling away to join the dawn,
somewhere."
"Yes, but the British maid? You say you
were finally forced to —"
"Oh, yes, I killed her, and for a day or two
on the march life seemed heavier."
"With regret?"
"With the weight of my mattock and buckler."  He laughed grimly, this piece of
seasoned war timber. There on the knoll, in
the deepening of the night, we continued to
stand, I in my freshness and he, lingering as if
the place held associations for him, coming
back out of the past. In this surmise I was
not wrong, as presently I shall show. I asked
how it was that he, so valiant a soldier and
with so much of useful experience, had not been




36     Zbe ion of the $worrmakfer
advanced to a position of envied preferment,
and though in the deepened dusk I could not
mark the strong features of his rugged face,
yet I felt that he was smiling grimly.
"Hah," he said, "on account of a tenderness
that a soldier should not feel. Had I reenlisted immediately after I was free to leave
the army, I could have gone back as a centurion, but an interval fell between my putting
aside the sword and the act of taking it up
again. There was a threat of civil disturbance. My command had been withdrawn
from abroad and was camped in Italy. In a
small villa not far away lived a maid, with the
neck of a swan and with eyes that seemed as
robberies from the sky at night when the stars
are brightest. I first saw her as she walked in
a grove, in the cool of an evening, and I heard
her at the same moment, for she screamed
and turned to fly from a mad dog that had
leaped over a wall and was rushing upon her.
It took but a moment for me to leap between
her and the beast, and with a downward sweep
of my sword I cut his legs from under him,
and it made me laugh to see him fall, standing for a moment upon his bleeding stubs, so
sharp was my blade and so swift the stroke.
With another blow I cut off his head, and then,
with the bantering impudence of a soldier, I
took it by the ears and made pretense of




O1> %~improsu


37


presenting it to her as a trophy of the chase.
That was the beginning. I have now to tell
of the end.
"As a soldier I could not marry her, but my
time in the army was drawing to a close. In
mind I saw a colony in Gaul, a growing town
where refinements were springing up like
flowers. Here we could settle, and with the
advantages that come to one who has well
served his country, I could attain to a position
of some importance. The picture pleased her
and the day for the ceremonial of our marriage was appointed. I bade my companions
farewell, and quit the army. I went to her
home and was not only received as a welcome
guest, but as a near relation. But while I was
there, waiting for the preparations attendant
upon the coming feast, there came from the
city a frail fop, the son of a wine merchant.
He halted to find shelter from a storm of rain.
His jewels dazzled her and her beauty stirred
his feeble and degenerate heart. When the
storm was past he did not go, but remained
the night. On the morrow he lingered, and
it was then that she dismissed me, telling me
that her heart could never be mine. Foolish
romances were not countenanced in Italy, and
I turned to her father, expecting that he
would command her; but the thought of the
wine merchant's wealth had dazzled him, too,




38     tbe Aron of tbe 5worbmaher
and he bade me go. I went away, and on a
hill I looked back at the place where I had so
fondly hoped that my happiness was to be
found. The villa is over yonder, youth, and
this is the hill on which I stood."
I made some sort of careless reply. Of
what interest was it to me, this foolish love
for a maid, even though her neck were swanlike and her eyes robberies from the starry
heavens? There was only one true love, the
love for the sword; but I did not say so to
Limprosus. Though still a powerful man, he
was growing old, and I could see that to find
recompense for his lost youth he was reading
much, for it is in this way that the aged are
enabled to flatter themselves with a fanciedsuperiority over the lusty, the more fortunate
ones of earth.
The trumpet called us to our tents. On the
ground we lay, side by side, Limprosus and I,
and no word passed when the lights were out.
The morning broke like a scattering of rose
leaves. Early were we on the march,. and
though my training had been hard, to set my
muscles against fatigue, and though the day
before my eighty pounds, as evening came,
had grown but little more in weight, yet now a
soreness came with the dawn.  Limprosus
noticed it and pleasantly remarked that the
army found muscles that mere exercise could




01z) tmpros       3


39


never reach. At the close of this day's march
I did not stand about to view the country, but
was glad enough to drop down and to sleep.
On the morning that followed I was not quite
so sore, though stiff, but I was not sorry
when night came along the road to meet us.
After this, however, I was blithe and light
beneath my load. Now my longing was to
kill something, to red-temper my sword, this
maiden steel, envied of all. I asked Limprosus if we were likely soon to have a fight
in Britain, and he said not if we were stationed near the coast. Here young Sempre
spoke up, putting in phrase my own halfformed thought.
"But why is it the wish of Rome to send us
so far to make mere citizens of us? Are not
men in arms against us in the east? Are all
of the Parthians conquered?"
The grim old soldier shook his head as
stoutly he marched along.
"It is too early yet to rail against a quiet
time. Among those barbarians we never
know what is to chance, and before long
blood may be as plentiful as wine at an Athenian feast.  The British are not so well
trained, have more of individual initiative and
therefore are fiercer than the Gauls. The
time is growing apace since Julius Caesar
landed and dyed the waves with blood, but,




40o      be oion of the Sworbmafter


unlike Gaul, the country is almost as wild
as if civilization had never set foot on its
shores."
"But we desire to fight soldiers and not
savages," said Sempre. "Is it anything to go
into a slaughter pen and kill a steer?"
"Yes, if a steer should have brass horns and
know how to use them. Wait until you see
coming toward you, furious as the winds, a
chariot, with flashing scythes on each side to
mow men like grass. I warrant that you will
feel disposed to step out of the way. Since
the withdrawal of Caesar there have been no
determined attempts to conquer the island.
Incursions have been made, but no army
deserving of the name has penetrated the
interior. In fact, a small garrison is maintained there for a moral purpose, to keep the
Gauls from rising; for, seeing that the Britons
had been left unconquered, they themselves
would revolt and make a desperate strike for
liberty."
Any one who had ever faced steel was of
great and admiring interest to us, the young
legionaries. No distillation of the gods could
have seemed more precious to us than the
blood of an enemy. Limprosus told of a comrade who in Britain had been torn to pieces
by a great cave bear, but we looked not forward to adventure among animals. We did




~[b tiproptsus          41
not care to figure as the heroes of a fable; to
be imaged upon painted cloth; but to live in
bronze and in marble statues, such as they say
spouted blood on the wild night before great
Julius fell.
And that night I dreamed that the hour of
glory had come, that about me lay heaped up
breast high, a circle of headless enemies; and
when I awoke I was sitting up, with my sword
pressed to my lips.




CHAPTER IV


1i Shi? of iRainbows
'IHE march offered no interest until we
entered the provinces of a new country, where the civilizing forces of
Rome were quietly weaving the man
ties of a higher and a finer state. I did not
know much of country life, but it was a surprise to see how far agriculture had been
brought forward in Gaul. The wheat fields
were already a shame to those in Italy, and
hillsides which had run red with the blood of
the men who rallied round Vercingetorix,
were now green with the vine. Villas were
springing up where lately the country had
been wild, and in the towns through which we
passed there was industry and apparent contentment.
One night we camped near the site of a
town that had promised well, but not long
before, within a few months, a body of
mounted Franks, like a pack of howling
wolves, had swept down upon it, murdered
the small Roman garrison and put the defenseless people to the sword. How deeply
42




X Suhp of lRainbowz4


43


Sempre and I lamented that the wretches had
not deferred their visit until after our arrival,
that we might have sport with them! Again
old Limprosus shook his head.
"Together with all of the youngsters of
Rome, you boys imagine that nature has
endowed the Roman with the prowess to
overcome all men, one against five. There
was a time when this was more or less true,
but it is becoming harder and harder as the
barbarians learn from us.  The British are
fierce, but the Franks are even worse, and
with it all a wonderful skill in horsemanship;
and a legion of them, circling round and
round, can make it uncomfortable for a cohort
of Roman veterans."
At this we smiled, as all young soldiers
smile at the supposed feebleness of their
enemy.   Our spirits fell as the  country
through which we were passing became more
civilized and better protected, for we knew
that we were marching away from possible
opportunity to satisfy the thirst of our youthful swords. In some of the towns we were
entertained with music. Fair maidens came
forth to welcome us and to scatter flowers
before us, and so lovingly did they smile upon
us that I thought them the most gentle of
creatures, but Limprosus said that in their
hearts they hated us and would like to see us all




44     tbe 5on ot the %Sworbmaler


with our throats cut. Though we had set out
from Rome with nearly a complete legion, yet
at more than one town we left a cohort to
strengthen the garrison, so, when we came to
the sea that separated us from Britain, we
were short at least five cohorts, more than
half of our original number. But this made
no difference to Sempre or to me, for the
fewer the numbers the greater the glory.
Looking out over the boisterous water, I
pictured the crossing of Caesar's army, for it
was here that his ships had danced upon the
waves. So strong a gale was blowing that it
was not until the following day that we followed the gleaming eagles on board the vessels; and now for the first time in my life I
had a taste of sickness, for the motion of the
ship brought on a deathly nausea. Signals
had been given that all was well, and immediately upon landing we marched over the low
and sandy beach to the hill whereon a mere
handful of Romans held a fortified camp. It
was inky dark when we landed, and the rain
was falling hard and the air was raw and
penetrating. The remnant of Rome welcomed us. Mingling with the soldiers, we
found that they expressed themselves freely
concerning the condition of the country and
the futility qf keeping men stationed there,
since it did not seem to be the intention to




a ShI of IRainbows


make a complete conquest of the island.
They said that the climate for the most part
was abominable, which we were ready to
believe.
Nowhere was there a star. Out in the black
of the night the hungry wolves were howling,
and a soldier named Crapius told me this
story: A number of sheep had been sent
over from Gaul to afford the men a holiday
feast, and as their rations had been short they
were much pleased with the prospect, but, on
the night before the sheep were to be slaughtered, the wolves broke into the pen and carried them off, and now, every night, they
came to howl their impatience at the long
delay in furnishing them with another sheep
festival.
From what I overheard of the talk among
the officers, there was not going to be an early
attempt to colonize and to civilize Britain,
after the manner adopted in Gaul, but as
some sort of demonstration must be made,
the strength of the soldiers was to be expended in the building of roads, such being a
property not likely to be destroyed by the
barbarians.
The morning broke dull and heavy, and
though it was now slightly past the midsummer, yet the air was still raw. What struck
me most was the vivid greenness of the land.




46'    tbe Son of tbe Sworbmaher


Nowhere in Italy could leaves be so bright or
grass so soft and velvety. I shall never forget the glorious pictures in the upper air when
the clouds broke. It was a sky made of rainbows. Great mist forms, like dragons, floated
low over the land, purple and bright yellow.
Far away a hilltop would seem to be aflame,
and then darkness would suddenly fall as if a
mantle had been thrown upon it. Here and
there gleamed small bodies of water, like mirrors set in the earth. Though the air was
raw, it brought with it an astonishing vigor,
and the men who had been stationed there
long wore roses, not upon their garments, but
in their cheeks. The natives near the camp
were friendly, and we walked about among
them, in the little mud-built town at the foot of
the hill where gushed forth a great spring of
delicious water. To gaze upon the forests of
oak was a never-tiring pleasure to me, and how
delicious the music when I stood among the
trees with the rain pattering about me!
In the village there was an old man who
had fought against Caesar. His life had been
spared and since then he had lived near the
Romans. He could speak enough Latin to
impress me with the belief that not always did
he utter the truth. We asked him, or I didwhen Sempre and I were in his house, where
he kept for sale a lot of trinkets and a bitter




El Shg of 1Raribows


47


liquor-if he had read Caesar's book. He
answered that he had seen him write a part
of it.
He said that during a fight, when Caesar
had dispatched a great British chieftain, an
idea for his book suddenly came to him, and
tucking his sword under one arm he took out
his tablets and began to write while the battle
was fierce about him. His men were greatly
outnumbered and gradually retired, leaving
Caesar busy with his writing. One of his men
ran back to apprise him of his danger, but he
did not look up until he had finished what he
had thought to put down, and then he grasped
his sword and, as was his custom, turned the
tide of battle.
This old man professed a lively interest in
the beauty of my sword, was never weary of
holding it in his hand; and this caused me to
think well of him until I discovered that his
admiration was centered about the gold laid
in the hilt. lie was so old that his teeth were
all of them gone, and it is a wonder he had
not told us that they had been knocked out by
Caesar himself, he was so fond of associating
himself with  the  world's  master.  He
could eat no solid food and lived upon the
product of a goat that looked almost as
ancient as himself. This animal he milked in
a sort of earthen pan, and he would frequently




48     tbe fon of the SwQrimafter


halt to drink before the process was complete.
Sometimes when we saw the goat coming
down the hill we would call out that here
came the old man's dinner. At his house one
day I drank so freely of his brown liquor that
on my way back to the stockade 1 fell down.
A centurion saw me, and the next day I was
forced to carry a log about the camp as a punishment.
On nearly every day it rained. There was
nothing to be done, no amusement of any
sort, and life began to pall upon me. Limprosus
strove to interest me in his books, of which he
had many, having picked them up whenever
he could; but scholarship was too tame to fit
in with my notion. From a slave he had
learned to read the great dramas in Greek,
and often he translated them to us. In the
fighting there was some little interest, but that
which he most loved, the poetry, was wearisome to me. Homer was all war, and I
thought that I should like this, but I soon found
that there was no thrill in the bravery of a
man who knew that at the moment he was
wounded unto death a god would come down
and fly away with him. A book which I think
he thought most of was Plato. To please him
I would listen, but to me nothing could have
been more devoid of truth or interest. It was
all an argument on nothing and leading to no




1 Shi of lRatnbows


49


end. It was the aim of Socrates, the hero, to
get some one cornered in an argument, to
make him acknowledge that a certain thing
was true and then prove to him that it was
not, and then go still further and show that it
was. It seemed that this Socrates possessed a
wife who had a wasp tail for a tongue, and this
tickled Limprosus, for from this he appeared
to find congratulation that he had not married, believing, as all of the Greek philosophers seemed to do, that, when opportunity
offered, all women were one and the same.
For Latin literature this old soldier had a
contempt. He said that Cicero could make a
speech and that Caesar could write a book,
but aside from these two there was nothing in
Latin worth reading. Sempre took issue with
him. They would argue by the hour.
"If Rome has no thought," said the young
man, "how is it that Rome has conquered the
world, since thought is the father of action?"
But this did not shake the faith that Limprosus had in his theory. "A tiger has most
graceful action, but no one can say that it has
graceful thought," he replied. "Rome rules
the world, but she never saw the day when
she was so great as Athens under Pericles.
The material influence of Rome may be swept
away, but the ideas born in Athens will always
abound. Power,eachcs its height and de



so   Itbe 5on of tbe 5worbmaher


lines. It weakens when shared by the many,
but thought is strengthened by diffusion, and
a multitude that thinks is stronger than one
man-than the one man that gave birth to the
thought."
"But," insisted Sempre, "of what good is
thought unless it establishes material power?
An emperor on his throne may civilize the
world, but how impotent is a philosopher in a
cell!"
"Ha, Sempre, you forget that civilization
is but the materializing of a thought. Behind
the material there must be the metaphysical."
"And I suppose," said Sempre, "that with a
little more reading of those Greek weaklings
you will be ready to believe with Socrates that
there is somewhere another life and perhaps
an invisible god."
"Why shouldn't I? May it not be true?"
Sempre scowled and thus replied: "If I
thought -so I would break my sword, get me
a goat and live like the old Briton in the mud
village."
"But that would not bring you in closer
relation with the future life. This God that
Socrates believed exists did not tell him that
he must live on the milk of a goat. I do not
say that I believe with Socrates. I simply
agree that possibly he may have been right.
Hie was wise."




E!ftV ot Vatnbows


5I


"But what has proved that he was a wise
man?"
"Time."
"Time-age; then second childhood must
be the earth's ripest wisdom."
"Sempre," said Limprosus, "one would
think that you had studied with the Sophists,
you are so quick to turn with a grain of sand
the current of an argument. When I said
that time had proved this man great, I meant
that what he said had withstood the ravages
and the cankers of time and must therefore
be woven of enduring substance. You speak
of Rome's greatness, and in material power it
is great, but let me say something that I
wish you to think over: When one nation
conquers another nation and adopts the literature and the refinements of the conquered,
then in time will the conquered prove greater
than the conqueror.
In this there might have been enough of foodthought for the youth's mind to nibble upon,
but without considering for a moment, he
replied: "As men grow old they sympathize
with the conquered, believing that they themselves are about to be conquered by Nature.
It is the affinity that lives between two weaknesses. It so chanced that my father was a
scholar and that I was brought up in the
almost stagnant atmosphere of the library.




52     Abe ~on of the Sworbmaker


Therefore I am more than to an ordinary
extent acquainted with the tricks of the
learned. One of these tricks was to pretend
a great wisdom among the old Greeks, but my
father did not think sO until he began to grow
old."
Limprosus did not show temper at this slur
at his age, except to say that as for himself he
was still in the vigor of his manhood, which
was more than attested by his endurance upon
the march. "But," said he, "does any man
really begin to think until time has led him
somewhat along the pathway of life? A
young man's thoughts lie in his blood, which
is hot, and therefore blind with brutish lust,
but an older man's meditations, which must
ever be cool and considerate, are in his brain,
out of the reach of his hotter blood."
Sempre walked up and down the hard
earthen floor of our quarters. How splendid
he was in the full flower of his youth, with his
black hair in many a ringlet curling about his
graceful head! I could imagine him firing an
army with an appealto the immortal glory of
his country. He was one of those whom, on
many a field of battle, out of sudden love and
admiration, men have elected to wear a crown.
Suddenly he turned and pointing to Limprosus said, in a sad and warning voice: "Comrade, it is such as you, stimulator of discussion,




a SIh? of 1Rainbow3


53


that finally disrupts armies, and sets them,
antagonistic bits, one fragment against another. The Roman soldier is permitted to
think as he may elect, so long as he is obedient to the outward forms of discipline. It
was not so under the old Republic. The army
was then all of one mind, one belief-in the
gods; but as adherents to an emperor, we
usurp, each one of us, some of the unwritten
privileges of the purple, and make license of
our individuality. There was a time, too,
when none save Romans were eligible to serve
in the army, but now money purchases exemption for the rich and mottles our ranks with
barbarians that have sworn fealty. Thus has
come an antagonism of ideas, which men,
sworn as they may have been,cannot help showing when sudden emergency arises."
We clapped our hands in applause of this
speech, and so did good-natured Limprosus,
but he was not as yet willing to give over, for,
drawing a new breath of controversy, he thus
replied: "But if it is the expression of thought
that is to destroy the Roman army, then you
must acknowledge that thought is at last
more powerful than the sword. Therefore, as
one of the great fathers of thought, Socrates
was more potent than an emperor."
It was not in human nature that these discussions could come to a satisfactory conclu



54     tbe $on of the Swortmaker


sion, and bearing with them until interest
lagged, we usually drowned them with a song.
On the present occasion a song had burst
forth, at the last remark of Limprosus, when
there came orders for a quick march into the
country. This was received with a shout of
genuine delight, but we were ordered to
keep quiet, which we of course were willing to
do, enjoying silently the prospect of some sort
of sport, a brightening of our rust. Two
cohorts of us were the favored ones. As we
marched forth through the gate our brothers
not included in the expedition looked with
envy upon us. The inhabitants of the village
came out of their huts to gaze at us as we
passed, and I noticed that a guard had been
thrown about the place to keep any of them
from stealing away from the town.  It was
shortly after the noon hour when we took up
our march, and pushing swiftly forward till
night-fall, we hastily fortified a camp on the top
of a hill. It was not until then that we had the
opportunity to inquire one of another as to
what was meant by this sudden move, but
enlightenment soon came, for there was no
disposition to keep us in the dark, Rome
believing that the more intelligent the men
the better the service rendered.
News had come that not far off in the country the Druids had arranged for a great sacri



la iS    of iRafnbows


55


fice of human beings, to commemorate a noted
day in their calendar, and our orders were to
smite and to take no prisoners. We were
piloted by a tall Briton, clad in skins. Limprosus, who understood a few words of his
rude tongue, was so favored by chance as to
talk to him, and freely he professed himself to
stand in disgust of the murderous ceremony
which the Romans had forbidden. His own
father had been offered up, with religious zeal
to all appearances, but in secret revenge, having brought upon himself the displeasure of a
priest. The sacred grove, where upon great
stone slabs the blood of the victims was to be
shed, was not more than two hours' march
from the camp on the hill, and the slaughter
was to begin with the rising of the sun.
Humorous Sempre vouched it as his opinion
that if the victims lived until the rising of a
British sun they might allof them die of old age.
Sleep fell upon me like the breath of a
bloom. The boy strives to hurry himself into
slumber, that the holiday shall perforce more
quickly come. With stubborn will I dulled
my senses, lying listless till I slept, and how
jocund was the summons that called me from
sweet nothing to blithesome consciousness!
There was a thrill in every sound of preparation; the subdued ring of steel against steel;
and in the hush of it all there was stealthy




6      Ztbe Son ot tbe $worbmnafter
charm, as silently we moved away like parts
of the blackened night fleeing from the coming of the dawn.
Limprosus was at the very head, the right
pivot of the advance column, and I marched
beside him. Between Sempre and me strode
the shaggy Briton. He had been so placed
by Malos, the centurion, who had said to
Sempre and to me, "If he prove treacherous,
strike him down." Over the hills and across
a noiseless stream we passed, and thence into
a-narrow valley, the end of which, the Briton
said, would bring us to the sacred grove. For
a wonder the air began to grow clear, and the
heavy fog, that seemed to have followed us
from the river, floated away. Soon we saw
the flush of the coming sun. With quicker
stride we hastened on, keying ourselves to shed
the first blood of the sacrifice.  Suddenly
from the hills on each side there came a wild
shout and down upon us rushed a horde of
savages; but in our ranks there was no confusion. Out rang the quick words of command, and there we were, bristled like, a
porcupine. There was but one little flurryt
It was when the Briton strove to break away.
I, who was nearest him, needed no other
authority than former warning and my own
impulse. He died with his heaving bowels
pressed against the hilt of my sword.




a Sftp of iRalnbows


57


"First blood for you," said Sempre, as I
pulled my purpled steel away. Then all was
silent save for the war chant ringing now
almost within our very ears. The hillsides
were of gentle slope, and the great stones
which the Britons had tried to roll down upon
us, gathered no speed, but halted harmless.
It was a stirring sight to see them coming,
those wild things, like great animals half
flayed of their hides, their skin coats flapping
with the violence of their lunges from side to
side. A flight of arrows darkened the air and
struck fire from our steel, where steel was
met; and, caught dull upon our bucklers,
sounded like a hundred war drums fiercely
beaten. And there we stood, with naught to
do but to wait and to receive, for the breaking
of our solid phalanx meant annihilation.
From what I could judge, they outnumbered
us more than twenty to one. Seeing that our
stand was firm, their onward rush was slackened. Off into maneuverings broke bodies
of their spearmen; but furiously onward came
a chariot with flashing scythes. In it was a
woman, bare of breast and with streaming
hair.  Broken from  all management, her
horses seemed to be running away, snorting
as they came, and it was glorious to see that
no man flinched when, rearing, they plunged
into the line. Men fell, knocked down, cut




58     'be Son of the!Bwortmaker


down by the scythes. But instantly the outward gap was closed, and a moment later the
horses were killed.
I saw one rearing high with blood streaming
from his throat, and then I saw the woman,
swinging her sword aloft, mighty figure of
defiance, and then she fell. Now from all
sides they closed in upon us, quavering the
air with their cries.
At me sprang a monster, hairy and red. I
remember noting his great spreading nostrils
as he panted. He missed me with his spear
and drove it through a neighbor's shield. On
he rushed with a sword nearly as broad as a
saw. I caught his blow and my sword cut into
his and together they stuck. And then came
the virtue of my training. I dropped upon
one knee, wrenched my blade free, and, coming up, buried it in the lower part of his body.
He seized it with both hands with monstrous
strength, though the agony of death was
spread upon his countenance, and pulling it
through his hands I toppled him over and cut
his head off almost at a blow.
The fight, not continuous on the part of the
enemy, was conducted in a series of rushes, to
be repulsed, and then to come on again at the
revival of courage or of fury inspired by the
Druids. The sun was high and we were panting with thirst. Our wounded were suffering




a $hip of 1Ratnbows9


59


frightfully, penned up where but little aid
could be given them. We dreaded the coming
of the night, for we knew not what means
those wretches might employ for our destruction. At last our general planned a charge,
seeing that the attitude of mere defense, no
matter how effective to repel, could never
extricate us from our desperate position.
Waiting until a large body had assembled on
the slope, ready to sweep down upon us with
a number of newly arrived chariots, we rushed
forward in all the remaining force of our vigor.
Thinking that at last they had us penned and
that we would not dare to break from our
position, they were at first thrown into confusion, but they rallied. For a time they fought
hard, trying to mow us with the scythe chariots, and some of our men were cut down; but
soon their horses were all dispatched and
then began a chase and a slaughter. Our
men became furious, and some of them, in
their eagerness to exterminate, followed so
far as never to return.
I was bounding along beyond the boundary
of judgment, straining to wreak vengeance
upon a priest, when out of a coppice rushed
two lusty warmen, fantastic as gods from a
barbaric temple. One of them was armed
with a great tin sword, as thick as a man's
hand, a most savage and formidable weapon




6o     Elbe $on of tbe $worbmaher


in the hands of the powerful.  The other
had a light spear. He threw it, and upon my
buckler I caught it. The staff shivered. He
wheeled to run, but I pinned him between the
shoulders with my javelin, and so he was done
for; but the one with the sword made fiercely
at me and we were hot at it when the priest
turned about to aid him. Just then I heard a
shout of encouragement behind me. Though
busy I saw the priest fly, but not for a long
distance. With fleet legs he was soon overtaken and cut down; and when from my sword
I was wiping the blood of the tin-armed monster, Sempre came walking back toward me,
for it was his voice that I had heard and he
it was who had slain the priest.
"If those religious devils were as good at
fighting as at running they might achieve
something," said he, smiling at the work I had
done. "But perhaps each one of them may
be a philosopher such as Limprosus delights
to prate about. The trumpet calls. Let us
hasten."
As we strode back to the place where the
golden eagles were gleaming in the sun, Sempre added: "But the old soldier was right
when he spoke of the fury of those devils.
At one time it looked bad for us. Ah, my
young comrade, how gallantly you have
acquitted yourself!"




a Si) of 1Rainbows


":And you, Sempre?"
"Oh, I am a Roman; but did you observe
old Limprosus? He went about it as methodically as if he were harvesting wheat."
Drawing near the standards, we came upon
Limprosus, walking leisurely beneath a tree,
reading a book, a small thing that he could
roll easily and carry with him.
"Limprosus," said Sempre, "I shall no more
make sport of your learning."
He took his eyes off the text, smiled and
replied: "How can you, when you cannot hide
that you are a man of education?"
"But it does not follow that a man of education is a man of books. In the course of his
enforced training a man may learn that which
he despises, and though the poets may have
taught us something of the softer and sometimes of the more heroic sides of life, yet I can
never help associating the ink horn with the
man of stealth and concealments."
They would here have entered into one of
their interminable discussions, had I not reminded them of their duty. I was eager to
'learn of our losses in killed and wounded, but
Limprosus did not concern himself, it being a
matter that lay beyond his province or his
care. But when he found that he was of the
detail to bury the dead, he took up his mattock and did his work with his accustomed




62    'abe Son of the $wortmafter
and unconscious thoroughness.  We had
suffered the loss of seventy-eight killed and
more than a hundred and fifty wounded. The
enemy's loss was not counted. It must have
been great. Their wounded were dispatched, t
a-nd we left them all where they had fallen.




CHAPTER V


On tbe 1bomewarb flDarcb
S WE had to convey our wounded on
litters, our return was much slower and
of course with far less of enthusiasm
than our advance had been. Now
there was nothing to look forward to except
to tell dull and seasoned ears of a mere
skirmish with barbarians. It was, however,
more than probable that we might be attacked
on our way to the camp, and, to acknowledge
truth, I did not tingle with my former delight
when I thought of it. I was disappointed, too,
to find that the general had taken no notice
of my valor. At the close of the fight I had
already imagined myself out in front of the
command, receiving words of praise, but soon
I found that I was almost an unnumbered part
of a machine. I no longer wondered why
Limprosus had not been promoted to high
command, since it was thought that every
man should be invincible, to be willing at all
times to die. Ah, it was of more renown to
have a Caesar snatch your idle sword and to
turn a battle with it than for you yourself to
63




64    tbe 5on ot tbe i5wormaker


lead a mighty charge; but what ears in Rome
were athirst to drink my praise? Stranger
than all was it that Limprosus had spoken not
a word in commendation of my skill. Sempre
was the only one that had noted it.
When we had made strong our camp that
evening, Limprosus took out his book to read
during the long twilight. I felt that I should
like to knock the book out of his hand and to
tear it to tatters. I asked him what it-was,
and from his answer I gathered that it was
something about frogs, written by one Aristophanes. I replied that surely he had chosen
a great subject, and the old veteran answered
that all of his subjects were great, since he
wrote of the foibles of man.
"But," said I, "did he know how to kill a
man nearly twice as big as himself?"
"With his pen he almost killed society, and
that was something worth," he answered.
"Limprosus, did you know that I killed a
giant to-day?"
"Yes, I saw you; a little crude, but withal a
fair piece of work. You might have saved a
man."
"Saved a man! How?"
"When the giant threw his spear, instead of
avoiding it wholly, you might have caught it
with a downward slant of your buckler and
turned it into the ground."




On the tlomewarb!iDarcb


"I didn't think of that."
"No, but you must think. And again, you
followed too far when the chase began. But
for a lucky chance you might have perished.
Let me tell you that in arms steadiness will
always count for more, and will better serve
your country than eagerness and fury. But a
young sword is hungryandwill sometimeseat to
disorder. You will know better the next time."'
He again turned to his book, though the
brown of night was settling. But I would not
have him read. "Tell me," said I, "that I did
well."
"You did, Eradmus. Old Calo, that made
your sword, would have been proud of its
metal."
"Calo, did you know him?"
"We served together in Africa, and it was
afterward, in the mountains, in winter quarters
that he experimented with steel and discovered the temper that made your father rich.
But little good it did him."
"And little good it did my father," I
answered. "It built him up a great trouble
and finally ended his life."
"That is true. But suppose that instead of
bringing to him the process of tempering
swords, Calo had brought the secret of a
library out of which he could have taken
books. Wouldn't his life —"




66     tbe Son of tbe Bworbmalher


Here Sempre broke in: "His life, whoseever it was, the Fates decreed, and it could
not have been different even had the sun
reversed his course and come up out of the
west."
"Sempre," said I, not wishing to enter into
a discussion with him nor to listen to one between him and Limprosus, "let me here offer
to you my tardy gratitude. You saved my life.
While in hot engagement with the painted
wretch the priest would have stabbed me but
for you."
"Ho," he laughed, "your tardy gratitude!
Why, my swift running was but the action of
my legs expressing their thanks to you, for
more than once in the close of the fight you
saved me."
"Is that true? I didn't know it."
Limprosus, rolling up his book to put it
away, laughed and said to me: "Didn't I tell
you that you were blind?"
"But not wholly," Sempre spoke, "for in the
midst of the fight it took an observation less
shrewd than mine own to see his eye light up
at sight of that mad but beautiful creature,
standing high in her chariot. And Limprosus,
if I mistake not, it was your dart that brought
her down."
"Mine among others," answered the old
warrior. "She offered a thrilling mark."




On tbe lbomewarb Carcb       67
Sempre laughed. "I did not aspire to such
luxury as to smite her bosom. With becoming modesty I killed her horse. The gods
reserve some of their favors for the frosty of
head, Limprosus. They permitted you to
caress her where her wild heart beat. But
tell me, how would you like to forswear
Rome, marry such a maid and live in a palace
of logs, plastered with mud, and to be king of
as much territory as you could behold, looking
up and down a sluggish stream? Imagine her
kindling a fire with your books to roast your
mutton. And if more frost should fall upon
your head and cause you to weary of her love,
she would cut off your ears as you slept."
"Your picture is too tame to offer inducement," said Limprosus. "But even should she
cut off my ears, to prove that she had not
lost interest in me, still she would be better
than many a Roman maid, who thinks herself
a virgin so long as she has not cut out a
heart."
"Ha, one would think that you had been
in close quarters there."
"I have looked upon a woman's treachery."
He arose and walked away, and I said to
Sempre: "You have the faculty of touching
him where he is most tender." Then briefly I
told the story of the maid who had turned
from Limprosus to inarry the son of the wine




68     tbe Son of tbe Siworbmafke


merchant. Sempre asked several questions
as to the exact location of the villa wherein
the woman lived and then he laughed with
bitterness in his tones.  "You must have
known her," said I. It was some time before
he spoke, sitting almost invisible in the dark.
I fancied that his face grew blacker than the
night as these words came from him:
"I am the son of the wine merchant, and the
bridegroom was my brother. But he was not
a degenerate, though of a delicate constitution,
and of such a nature, gentle and refined, as
would twine loving tendrils about a stronger
heart. I loved him close-gripped; to me he
was as brother and as sister, sweet-tempered
and soft of voice. He met her and his soul
was inflamed and he brought her home. In
our household she was as a princess, but she
proved a wanton, breaking his heart, and
stealing forth my sword he fell upon it and
ended his wretched life."
"What became of her?" I inquired.
"She drives a chariot in a'circus. Tiberius
has smiled upon her. And so it was she that
seared this old Roman soldier's heart, drove
him to beat the dust out of worm-eaten books;
but I cannot pity him. The boy knew no
better.  The man ought to have been
stronger."
After a time the lights were put out. We




On tbe tbomewarb fDarcb


69


stretched ourselves beside the old soldier, and
I lay a long time before I slept, listening to
the distant howling of the wolves and the
hooting of owls that seemed to perch upon
our standards.
The morning broke with rain. The tender,
sapful grass broke off and clung to our feet as
we strode along. Nowhere was there a road
leading toward the camp. From the hills we
descended into marsh-lands where we floundered about in danger of being submerged in
the bog. Several of the wounded died under
this hardship and we buried them, sometimes
in more water than in earth. We had departed from the camp with a guide, and of the
course but little note could have been taken.
The country was such a continuation of hill
and bog that it was not strange that we
should come again upon our own tracks,
made but a few hours before. News of the
disaster to the British had spread fast, and
sometimes we came to smoking villages, with
meat roasting, as if sudden fright had seized
the inhabitants. We did not, however, come
upon a native until late in the afternoon of
the third day from the battlefield. Then it
was that an old man with long white beard
stood out in front of us, making signs of submission. He fell prostrate as we approached.
When he had ceased his doleful lamentations,




70     abe Son of the Sworbmaher


Limprosus was told to speak to him and to
find out from him what he meant by his visit
to us.
Limprosus spoke to him and he replied that
what he wanted was peace; that his people
did not want war; that the Romans were the
avenging children of the gods. This was well
enough, but it meant nothing except to build
up another fabric of treachery.  Our commander inquired if he knew the way to, our
camp, and he answered that he did and that
he would be pleased to conduct us thither if
we would permit him to live in the village
along with his old brother and the goat. So
he was put in the van, with a chain about his
neck.  He said that there was no need of
camping for the night, that we were near
enough to the village to reach it within a few
hours, but, not trusting him, we spent another
black night on a hilltop. But he had spoken
-the truth, for early on the following morning
we saw the gleam of our standards and soon
we passed into the stockade.
The old man was not permitted to enter, as
it might have been his aim to spy upon the
strength or weakness of the fortification.
But again we found evidences of his sincerity,
for when his brother, the white-bearded sage
of the village, saw him he ran forward and
embraced him.




On tbe tlomewart IUarcb


71


The commander of the expedition delivered
his report and that was the end of it, with no
good accomplished except the killing of a
thousand or more of the British. If there
was to be no immediate conquest of the
island, what availed the mere spasmodic
shedding of blood? But stay, it had availed
something; it had stained with rich color the
lip of a maiden sword.
With all of its discipline there was much of
reveling in a Roman camp, and while the cup
was passing the youngsters who had not
accompanied the expedition pressed us to tell
of the fight, but the veterans, like old dogs,
looked with contempt upon this, the play of
puppies, though when Limprosus spoke they
listened to him. I shall not forget the gratitude that warmed my heart toward him when
he declared that it had been a combat of
spirit and of exceeding danger.
"Eradmus," spoke up a comrade who had
been forced to stay at home, "I thought that
you would bring back a red head on your
spear."
"He could have brought several," Limprosus answered, and at that moment I loved him
more than I had ever loved any one except
old Calo.




CHAPTER VI


Ximprosus 'ells of tbe Vouno 3ew
OW was there a return of the desperate
dreariness of camp life, with no prospect of activity, with no news from
Rome, and with winter slowly coming
on apace through the chill autumn drizzle.
Our fortress overlooked the snarly sea, but
often for more than a week at a time the fog
veils were so thick that we could not discern a
ship though it might pass within hailing distance of the shore. Week after week, and
there was but a single incident to mark one
day from another here on this the outer rim
of the world, and that was but poverty in its
lack of interest, the death of the old man who
lived at the udder of the goat. One morning
they found him lying dead in his straw. The
villagers set up a doleful wailing. They
buried him near the town.  Following the
corse, the goat turned aside and browsed
upon the shrubs until after the interment and
then afforded supper for the remaining
brother, the one who had served as our guide
across the bogs and through the wilderness.
72




XfmproSus tells of tbe &ouno Sew  73


One day shortly after the death of the old
man our quarters took fire. Gladly would we
have seen them burn, not that we despised the
habitation, but that we longed for episode.
We were not, however, permitted the luxury
of a conflagration. Obeying orders, we sullenly subdued the flames.
Winter came, the coldest remembered by
our old guide. In many places great drifts of
snow almost shut out the view of the dreary
forest. One morning, while a detail of us
were out after wood, two deer started up from
the snow. It was so deep as to whelm them,
and they leaped about, unable to run. That
night some of us had a feast of venison.
After a long time a crust formed on the snow,
sufficiently strong to bear the weight of a man.
Constructing rude sleds, we had sport with
sliding down the hills. This was sweetened
by the likelihood of attack from the roving
bands of wolves made desperate by hunger.
As the winter grew colder they became fiercer,
and sometimes at night they would howl
almost within the shadow of the stockade.
In the full of the moon a party of us sallied
out among them, yelling. Instead of scampering away, they gave us howl for howl and
awaited our coming. This was more than we
had counted on, but as no one would be the
first to halt or to turn back, we dashed in




74     Ube Ston of tbe Sworbmaher


among them. The fight was furious, and had
not our cries brought forth reinforcements,
the odds might not have been much in our
favor. Several of us were severely bitten, one
man dying a week later of-a wound in the
throat. Orders were therefore issued against
any more wolf fights; so we were reduced to
the very rear rank of stagnation. But this
life did not for a moment pall upon old
Limprosus.  He thumbed his books and
laughed over the bloodless jests of Greece.
He was much taken with a flint named Diogenes. It was he, if I mistake not, who, when
compelled to offer on the altar of Diana a
sacrifice of blood, took from his own body a
louse and cracked it on the stone.
Sempre, since he learned that the woman
who had wrecked his brother had also tortured the heart of the old soldier, was more
tolerant of him. Sometimes he talked pleasantly with him about his book. But the sacrifice of the philosopher was too much for him.'
With impatience he cried out, "Yes, they were
a clean lot," whereupon Limprosus replied,
"They did not bathe themselves into voluptuous senility."
"Ha, you may well say, and the readiness
with which your philosopher found a victim
for the sacrifice proves that he did not bathe
at all."




Ltmprosus   ells of tbe Lounn 3ew  75


And nothing daunted, Limprosus replied:
"The shell which he carried about and in
which he existed may not have been so clean
as the body of a female charioteer, perfumed
for the embraces of a licentious Senator, but
his soul may have been spotless."
"His what?" cried Sempre.
"I said his soul."
"Oh, that mystic something that lives after
death."
"That eternal something that cannot die,"
said Limprosus.
"Ah," replied Sempre, with a touch of sadness, "and have all of the great enlightening
forces of Rome so come to naught? Was it
not great Julius who refused the punishment
of death to an offender because he said that
his suffering would be short, that he must, at
the end of this life, sink down into nothingness? In him Rome found the culmination of
her greatness and her wisdom, and if such
wisdom scoffs at the notion of an after life,
then how low and superstitious are we to
believe in it! Wisdom banishes the gods.
Weak men call upon a hoped-for Power, unseen of mortal eye. Nature cries shame upon
a belief so contrary to her processes. Limprosus, if I believed as you do, I would feed
my impotent body to the -hungry wolves and
let my soul take its flight."




y6     tbe!on of tbe Swortmaher


The old soldier smiled grimly, the light of a
torch falling upon his grizzled beard. "There
is a difference, my son, between speculation
and belief. Beyond the black shadow called
death there is no certainty. It is true that it
is the more ignorant of Rome that believe in
the gods. It was the wisdom of Socrates that
disbelieved in them. Caesar's wisdom halted
with his unbelief. May not the wisdom of the
philosopher have gone further, being less
material-gone further and found a more
sublime form of deity?"
"Limprosus," said Sempre, "you remind me
of a man searching in the dark, by the roadside, for a golden coin which he supposes in
all probability some one must have lost. He
has no proof that the coin has been lost, and
his stimulus in searching for it arises from his
own poverty."
"Ah," Limprosus replied, "your figure is not
bad. It is the need of a god that causes us to
search for him."
"No, it is the vanity of man. It is his unwillingness to let the ash-heap be the end of
him. How often you hear a man wish that
he might see this world a thousand years
hence! Having accomplished but little, he
feels that he has lived in the wrong time.
Having done much, he is loath to leave his
great possessions."




Ltmprosus tPeIl of tbe V1oung 3eW    77


Limprosus was silent for a long time and
then he said: "Strange thoughts may come to
the most obscure of earth. Lightning may
miss a towering tree and strike a sapling; and
thus emboldened, I may say this: The world
has so advanced that I believe that in our day
something wonderful may happen."
Sempre scoffed.  "We needed no such
preparation for so commonplace a saying.
In all ages man has thought that something
was going to happen, and then when an age
has passed, men, in looking back, thought that
something wonderful had happened."
"But what difference can it make to us?" said
I. "Even though great things do take place
we shall know nothing about them, anchored
as we are in this sea of banishment. Is Rome
so easily glory-gorged as to stop feeding now?
Gaul has been tamed, but Germany still is
wild. The great thing which you predict,
Limprosus, must be the sacking of Rome."
Limprosus shook his head. "That might be
and yet not mean so much to man. The,something that I refer to might be in the
nature of the establishment of a god. When
I was in Britain the first time, there came on
a trading ship a young Jew named Milthias.
He read to me strange things out of a book,  that I could not read, mostly musical odes by
one called David, a king. He spoke of a god




78     tbe Son of tbe sworbmaJer


all wisdom, who had revealed himself only
unto the Jews because he had chosen them as
his especial people. In the temple, renowned
throughout Judea, there were no images of
brass or stone, but all the people worshiped
the invisible god. His promises unto them
were always kept. Many men from many
countries have imparted many strange things
to me, to while away the tedium of life, but
what this young man said remained with me,
coming back to me in my dreams."
"What became of him?" I inquired.
"He was captured by the Britons, carried
off and killed, perhaps. I should like to see
him again. I should like to go to his country. There they have a home life, so sweet
and so simple, so pure, so loving-where age
is held in such esteem  "
"Where they welcome gray beards with a
triumph," Sempre broke in. "And that is the
country for you, Limprosus."
"Such virtue stands as a shame to Rome,"
Limprosus replied. "I used to sit by the hour,
sweetly dreaming as he told me of his home
life. I did not pay much heed when he spoke
of the soldiers of his country, though they had
been brave and valiant. It was love-the
tenderness of it all-that charmed me. But
sometimes he would drift away into absurdity.
It is a belief held by all, that the nation is to




limprosus tells of tbe 1oung 3ew  79


be delivered from its enemies by a royal mniaster who is to appear mysteriously in glory and
full power. Ridiculous, I should say, but so
poetic and so full of faith that it is charming
to the ear. In this youth's country, so the
fable goes, there was a strong man named
Samson. On one occasion he wiped out a
multitude of his enemies with the jawbone of
an ass."
"I should like o have it to' throw at those
sleep-murdering wolves," said Sempre.
We all applauded this, and Limprosus
laughed in his good-natured way. "He told
me of many other men of note," Limprosus
continued, seeming to enjoy the vision of the
young Jew. "One of them, son of the poet
David, was the wisest man that ever lived. He
helped himself to' some three hundred wives."
"Whew!" Sempre whistled.    "Wise and
with so many wives? Was this a part of the
home life so loving, so sweet and so pure?"
Thus it was, night after night and day after
day, while the merciless winter slowly wore
on toward the spring. Once, far in the night,
Limprosus asked me if I were asleep, and
when assured that I was not, he said: "I have
been dreaming of Milthias, the young Jew."




CHAPTER VII


In Lobitg's town
W       E CHEERED    the coming of the
spring, though it was a mere season,
a name in the air rather than the
bringing forward of an occupation to
rub from us the rust of weariness and of sloth.
With the melting of the snow the wolves
departed from  the neighborhood.  In the
shortened night we heard no sound save the
hooting of owls and the lowing of our own
beef cattle. It has been said that in all ages
man has craved a newness, but here was a
newness, a raw edge of the world, made old
and contemptible by want of association.
Man must have new things among the old,
the old to offer the charm of history and the
new to lend the spice of novelty, but in the
ever fresh alone there is nausea.
Tiberius was a man of great bhsiness, but
our position must have been unknown to him.
Sometimes our supplies from Gaul ran short
and somewhere there was corruption, for no
attention was paid to complaints sent across
the channel. As there seemed to be no pros80




In 1Lo0tDb    town


pect of relief from this worse than useless
duty in Britain, and as our supply of grain
and especially of vegetables was uncertain,
our commander resolved upon laying out gardens and wheat-fields that we might supply our
Qwn wants. The land in the immediate vicinity of the stockade appeared to be thin and
unproductive.  Selection turned to a large
area several miles distant. A detachment
was set to the work of making a road. The
labor was hard enough, but I enjoyed it. In
even the idlest of men there is that which
applauds the accomplishment of the useful.
Some of the villagers had been impressed,
and though able-bodied, they were worthless,
slow and heavy as bog water. So far as we
knew, the tribes were all inclined toward
peace, or at least toward non-interference.
But late one afternoon, just about the time
the squad that I was with had turned homeward, the thickets on each side of the road
suddenly seemed alive with war-smeared savages. There was naught to do but to fight,
and we fought, fewer than fifty against what
appeared to be an innumerable horde.  I
know not how long the struggle lasted. I remember more than one bare bosom    that
spurted blood in my face. I recall one towering youth, magnificent in his rage, beating
upon my buckler with a spiked club. His lu



82     ~be ion of tbe Zworbmaler


minous eye grew suddenly dim, as if a shadow
had fallen upon it, and I knew that my sword
had reached a vital part. Then came a
shower of stones, impossible to ward off, and
then-darkness, nothingness. It seemed that
I was struggling to come back into consciousness, but meeting an obstacle, a something that clutched me and put a deadening
weight upon my head, I was restrained and
pressed down into the mire, to know nothing.
Time and time again this was repeated, and
then there came the dazzling of lights and,
with a feeble start, I was awake with the sun
in my eyes.
I was tied to a horse and was moving.
Soon afterward the motion of the horse
ceased. Some one seemed to be looking at
me. A hand was passed over my face, and
then I was loosed from the horse and taken
off, though my hands were still bound. I was
as yet too much dazed to take close note of
my surroundings, but I observed a maiden,
tall and splendid, after the form of the brave
creature that had stood so high in the chariot.
She bathed my head, where I had been struck
with a stone. Sharply she spoke to a man
who stood near me with a club, and I knew
that she was commanding him not to strike
and that she must have saved my life. She
was in some authority, for those that came




In Bobbti'e town


83


within the range of my fitful vision paid deference to her. The halt was short, but by the
time the journey was resumed I was so far
revived as to be able to sit upon the horse,
with my feet tied. There was no possible
chance to escape. There was naught to
do but to look about me as we crossed
hill after hill, going deeper into the wooded
country.
The woods were so thick that it was impossible in the dark to make way through them;
so when night was come the caravan halted.
Digging holes in the ground, they made fires
in them to cook the evening meal. They
untied my hands and I was eager enough to
eat of the coarse food which the maiden
brought to me. The flame from a smothered
fire burst through and lighted up her face, and
I thought of the slave market in the Temple
of Castor, where beautiful women, her sisters
in beauty and in race, were exposed for sale.
On my finger was a gold ring, the only relic of
my father's wealth, and taking it off I presented it to her with a bow. She took it,
smiling, and put it on her finger, trying one
after another to select the one which it fitted
best or adorned the most. She held up her
hand coquettishly to admire it. Whenever I
could observe a man's countenance in the dim
light I saw that he scowled at me, and I won



84   tbe 5ont of tbe 5worbnmaker


dered how long the maiden's authority could
prevail over their desire to end my life.
Early in the morning we set out again,
passing, as before, over hills and through
marshes. -Though my head was still dull and
painful with the wound, yet I felt strong and
my hand burned with a desire to seize myand then with a pang in the heart I wondered
what had become of my sword. There was
no way of finding out whether or not any of
our. men escaped. But so packed about with
a wall closing in upon them, it was out of
reason to hope that any of them had cut their
way through to liberty. Was I, then, the only
survivor?  There were no other prisoners.
But ours was only a fragment of the great
body of barbarians that engaged in the battle.
Then they were not all of one tribe anJ had,
after the massacre, divided the spoils. There
was no booty, save a number of spades and
picks, which the Briton must despise, and our
short swords, which he did not know how to
use.
During the entire day my captors pushed
forward. When night fell they did not halt
but continued their journey, which gave to me
the impression that we could not be far from
the permanent habitation of the woman whose
property I seemed to have become. This was
the truth, for soon I saw lights and heard the




In Tobbtbt' town


barking of watchdogs. We passed out of the
woods, slowly ascending a hill through what
appeared to be a field. A chant was raised,
and was answered from the hill. Out came
pouring men, women and children, eager to
learn the news of the expedition. When they
beheld me, tied helpless on the horse, they
shouted and clapped their hands. The village, as I could see by the fires burning here
and there, was surrounded by a rude wall of
stones, fallen trees and mud.  The place
within the walls was spacious, with stables for
horses and kennels for dogs. In the midst of
an open, which appeared to be a sort of forum
or market square, there was a large building,
low, but covering much ground, built of stone
and logs, of no form, but formidable to behold.
Spikes of tin and copper were driven into the
logs, and at the broad portals, one on each
side, were two war chariots, with horses har*      nessed to them, always ready for action. This
I supposed to be the royal palace, and so it
was.
Into this house, with a chain about my neck,
I was led by the maiden. There was but one
room, very large, with odd nooks here and
there. The walls were covered with skins.
There was a throne, set upon a platform of
hewed logs and covered with skins. On each
side of the throne, against the wall, stood




86d     be Son of the Sworbmaher


upright two stuffed cave bears, monstrous
things as big as a horse.
The king came from his closet, a place curtained off, and I thought that at the sight of
him all of the spectators-and there was a
crowd of them-would prostrate themselves,
but they did not. They held high their hands
and cheered. He was king because he was
their superior in arms, and they looked upon
him as their father, giving him not so much of
fear as of affection.
I was not compelled to show submission.
He fixed his eye upon me, as he sat on his
great oaken bench, his throne, covered also
with skins, and spoke for some time. When
he had ceased the spectators cheered. But I
could see that he was disappointed with the
result of the expedition, for he frowned when
the leader came forward and delivered his
report. This must have been concerning the
property, but when he spoke of the massacre,
which I understood by his gestures, the king's
face brightened. His daughter gave over to
him the chain which held me, and after a few
words he handed it back to her, her title to
me. She put her arms about his neck and
embraced him. Then I was led away to a
prison and as I passed along an open way or
street, boys came out slyly to leer at me, and
one of them made a motion across his neck,




In 1obbNi'S town


which meant that he would like to cut my
throat.
The prison was built entirely of stone and
appeared strong enough to withstand a siege.
There were two windows, nearly at the top of
the wall. On a ledge of rock, within reach,
an earthen lamp was burning. But this was
soon taken away, and so I was left in darkness. There were skins everywhere. My bed
was made of them, two wolf hides on the stone
floor. But after a season such as the one
through which I had passed, a stone was soft.
I fell instantly to sleep. But sometime in the
night I was aroused by the furious barking of
dogs and the war-cry of men. Could it be, I
wondered, that the Romans were coming? I
heard the clash of arms and words of command from one whom I took to be the king,
but after a time all was quiet again and I slept.
Early in the morning my breakfast was
brought by an old man, fierce-bearded but
not ungentle of manner, for he nodded his
head and smiled and with gestures made me
to understand that my eating would give him
pleasure. I spoke to him, but he shook his
head, understanding no word of the Latin
tongue. My windows were to the southeast
and I was grateful for the rays of the sun that
fell aslant through them. The old man, interpreting my look, smiled and with signs assured




88     tbe Son of the sworomaker
me that if he had his way he would make
them bigger. Something about him struck
me as being not unfamiliar, and while I was
wondering, striving to settle it as to whether
he were a vision seen in a dream or the
product of stable recollection, it flashed across
me that he was the brother of the owner of
the goat. I put my hands up to my head in
imitation of horns and bleated. He laughed
outright.  I remembered that once I had
given him a bit of bread, and he had not forgotten it, for with a gesture he drew a picture
of his gratitude. He would have remained
longer with me, but a gruff fellow, attendant
upon the door, called him forth, and he went
out, with a show of regret, halting a moment
before disappearing to smile and to nod at me.
I felt certain that for the present my life was
safe. It was my conjecture that the princess,
who must love finery, would demand a ransom
for me, led to suppose from the beauty and
richness of my sword that I was not merely a
common soldier but a man of position and
quality. This latter surmise, however, brought
me to.grief. I had hoped that some of our
men in escaping had taken my blade back
with them, where it might be kept by my
friends. At the least it had saved my life.'
The prison was not small and I walked
about, thankful for this great boon, the oppor



In 1obtie's tSown      89


89


tunity to take exercise, but lamenting when
the sun withdrew from the windows.
The Britons were gluttons, eating many
times during the day. I could hear them
without, feasting. Some wretch threw a bone
at my window. For a moment it clung to the
iron bars and then fell to the ground, to be
fought over by the great dogs. Twice during
the day the old man fed me, always smiling
and nodding. When he appeared late in the
evening he was accompanied by the princess.
The jailer put the lamp on its accustomed
ledge.  The woman stood surveying me.
With the most courteous manner I could summon, I offered my food to her, with which she
was much pleased. She accepted a small bit of
the rough cake, nibbled at it and then returned
it to me. When I pretended that her touch had
added to its savor, she laughed, her beautiful
white teeth gleaming in the lamplight.
Early on the following morning a blacksmith came in and locked a chain about my
ankles, so that I could not run had I been so
minded. I was then led forth to a small field
just beyond the walls and set to work
digging up stumps. The British, like all
barbarians, scorned labor, but the opening
of arable land was a constant question with
them, for as their numbers increased, neighboring game grew scarcer, rendering bread a




o90    tbe Son of tbe Swortmaher


more and more important factor of their diet.
It was not only bread, but grain for their rude
drink, that necessitated the clearing of the
land. This ner field where I worked was, as
I supposed, the property of the princess. She
came out to observe me, and was pleased at
the vigor of my strokes. I knew that sulkiness would avail nothing. My only hope lay
in obedience. Here and there about the field,
and indeed to be seen whichever way one
might look, were men armed with bows and
spears. I had not been working very long before I noticed a colaborer, a young man that
seemed also to be a Roman. He was digging a
trench to drain a stagnant pool. When this part
of his work was completed he came up to where
I was delving at the roots of a great oak stump.
I spoke to him and he answered in Latin.
"Don't appear too much pleased to talk," he
said.
"Roman?" I inquired.
"Jew," he answered.
"What is your name?"
"Milthias."
"Oh," I cried, "I have heard my old friend
Limprosus speak of you."
He looked up, without speaking, and his
black eyes danced with pleasure. "Appear
not to be much interested," he said. "Limprosus-tell me about him."




In 1obbts town          9'


9I


I was pleased to talk, and I told him all that
I knew, that his words and what he had read
from his book had remained with the old soldier. Then I asked him to tell me about himself. For several years, he did not know how
many, but surely as many as five, he had been
prisoner to King Lodbig, whose kingdom was
so small as really to have no name. His territory was marked off with pictures cut upon
the oak trees or by poles set up in the marsh.
His subjects, all told, did not number more
than fifteen hundred, and all of them lived in
this one town. The princess that owned me
was his only remaining child, her sister having
been killed in battle with the Romans not
long before. It was she who had driven the
chariot into our ranks. It seemed impossible
for any of the tribes to become great, there
were such jealousies, for when one king began
to show progress and ability, others combined
against him.
There had been a great union of powers to
oppose the Romans, and desperately they had
disputed the landing of Caesar, but dissensions had afterward rendered their numbers
less potent.  Lodbig ruled over one of the
smallest kingdoms, as the larger ones lay
nearer to the sea; but he was ambitious as
well as brave, and had set the trap for the
Romans at the time when my sword first




92     'Qbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


tasted blood. I asked Milthias why it was
that a king, even though a barbarian of so
rude an order, would permit his daughters to
fight the same as the men. He answered that
it was not true of the women in general, but
that those who stood in the line of succession
to a throne must fight to win and retain the
love and admiration of their subjects. My
princess was named Vloden. Ordinarily she
was kind-hearted, said Milthias, but in a rage
she was worse than a devil. Not long before
the first battle with the Romans, the time
when her sister had fallen, Vloden had
espoused the hand of a young noble, had
selected him for his manly beauty, but as he
proved himself timid in the face of the enemy,
a petty tribe to the east with which her father
was then at war she killed him with her own
hand.
I inquired whether the old man had brought
the word that we were making the road, and
Milthias answered that he must have done so,
as he came a few days before the force was
organized to march against us. News had
come that the Romans were starving, that
they were so weakened as to be unable to
fight. Detachments from three tribes had
formed the attacking party, and all of our
men, with the exception of myself, had been
killed. When I told Milthias that I was but a




In Loobbt's town


93


common soldier, he was surprised, having
heard of my sword. He confirmed my conjecture that old Calo's workmanship had
saved my life. He advised me, however, not
to let the truth be known; and this counsel I
was determined to act upon, though I knew
that no large sum would ever be paid for my
ransom.
"My father in Jerusalem is a rich man and
would pay a large sum for me," said Milthias,
"but the distance is so great that it is impossible to reach him. I have striven many a
time to make the old king understand, but he
believes in the riches and the power of none
but the Romans."
A spearman came near us and we ceased to
talk, but when he had gone away, to a corner
of the field, Milthias said: "It is a lucky
chance that has thrown us together. I was
not until this morning the property of
Vloden. This is her birthday and her father
presented me to her. And I have news for
you: You are no longer to be confined within
those grim stone walls, but with me you are
to share a hut, near the center of the village.
They despise manual labor, but they know
the value of it, and to keep us strong they
will feed us that we may be of worth to them.
Here comes our mistress, the daughter of the
king."




CHAPTER VIII


tbe Stormtng of the town
IKE a child, a girl fond of viewing her dolls
and her play-house, the Princess
Vloden came out to behold us working for her.  The envious briars
scratched at her bare, brown ankles. A lover
of fresh air and inured to the damp, she wore
her raiment loose upon her, two lamb-skins
opening wide upon her bosom, laced across
with narrow strips cut from the hide of a deer.
About her head was a burnished copper band
which held in some show of submission her
wondrous rebellion of hair. In the majesty of
her strength and the freshness of her wildwood beauty, how she would have put shame
upon the bathed, steamed and anointed maid
of Rome! Somewhere in a flower, a yellowish
blue, I must have seen the color of her eyes.
Could it be that this broad and voluptuous,
this honey-holding mouth had with grimness
set itself when with her own hand she had
killed the man upon whom her heart in its
passion had poured forth a wealth of sensuous
favors?
94




tbe Stormtno of tbe town


95


We stood with heads hung low, and Milthias,
who had learned her tongue, spoke words
which seemed to imply our meek submission.
She answered, making music of barbaric utterance. Then Milthias said to me:
"She desires that I shall serve as interpreter
between her and you." I bowed, and she
spoke: "You are not tall, but you seem to be
of wonderful strength."
"The strength of the oak is not in its
height."
"That is true," she said. I thought that she
looked at me with admiration in her eyes.
Was she pleased with her piece of property?
"You fought hard and you killed at least six
of our men," she said.
"I was fighting to keep them from killing
me."
"But you came to their land. They did not
go to yours."
"The obedient go whither they are sent."
"That is true. What is your name and
rank?"
"My name is Eradmus, and I am not the
commander of our forces."
"Will you teach me to speak your language?"
"I would rather that you teach me yours," I
replied.
"You are a flatterer. But Milthias shall




96     tbe Sonu of tbe SworbmaIer


teach you. You will not find it hard. He
learned it easily." She looked about and then
added: "You have done much work."
"The incentive has been strong. I desire to
please the Princess Vloden."
She had spoken of flattery, but she knew
not the meaning of fawning. My remark
pleased her. She said that she would treat
me kindly, in so far as my conduct warranted
confidence, but that if I tried to escape I
should be cut to pieces and fed to the dogs.
I replied that if I ever showed ingratitude I
should not be fit for the dogs. I was fearful
that this might prove too strong for her, but
she was simple. I looked down at my chain
and told her that with the removal of those
links of restraint I could be of more service.
"Even if I were so minded it would be useless
to attempt to escape," I said. "The Roman
camp is many miles distant, and if I should
break my bonds and go free into the woods, I
should starve or be eaten by the wolves before
reaching there. For all the good I might be
doing Rome, I may as well be here. I have
fought hard and have received no word of
praise." This was an appeal to her reason,
and it did not fall wholly short of its aim.
She called one of the spearmen, spoke to him
and sent him away. The blacksmith came
and took off my chains. She read gratitude




tbe Storming of tbe tovwn


97


in my eyes and this seemed to give her more
confidence than my argument had done,
though my reasoning was sincere, for I knew
that escape was impossible. In the idle gossip of the soldiers at the camp there had been
wafted about the opinion that the emperor
might withdraw all interest from Britain. If
this were true, I, like Milthias, was to be left a
slave until death should release me. No hope
lay in ransom, and after the recent slaughter,
if demands should be sent by Lodbig, his
emissaries would be put to death. I spoke of
this when Vloden had withdrawn from us, and
Milthias said that surely there was no hope
for me, just as surely as there had been none
for him. And so my dream of glory was thus
to end, in slavery. My sword, so thirsty for
the blood of man, had drunk of it. But now,
worse off than the noisy rioter for bread in
the streets of Rome, I was the slave of a
woman.
That night and for many nights thereafter
Milthias and I lay upon the floor of a log hut,
near the house which, for convenience' sake, I
shall call the palace.  Stretched upon wolf
hides in the dark, I remembered what Limprosus had said, and I requested my fellow slave
to entertain me with stories from his mystic
country, and this he was willing enough to do,
for, like the most of men who love poetry, he




98     tbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker
found a pleasure in the past. When he had
talked a long time, telling me many things
that I could not believe, he asked me to tell
him of my childhood, amidst the cold glitter
of Rome. He could not understand why I
had not loved my father and mother, but little
he knew of the unsympathetic life in the city
of all cities. I described the little Greek boy
that my father had bought for me, and gave a
picture as best I could of his hanging from a
hook in the wall, a chain about his neck. The
moon was shining through an opening in the
roof and I saw Milthias rise up from his oaken
pillow and sit upon the floor.
"And yet," he said, "your ownership of that
poor little being was just as abhorred of God
as your own enslavement by these barbarians.
One is of a piece with the other. In both
instances it was power."
But I could not bring myself thus to level
privileges. I was a Roman, and Rome was
born to rule the world. "But," said I, "you
speak of God. You mean the gods."
"No, not idols, but the one, the living God."
"Ah, then you have offended him that he
thus permits you to drudge away your life.
If he is a god and is your god, why does he
not release you and take you back to your
people?"
He lay down again, and I thought that I




tbe Stormtn( of tbe town


99


had vanquished him, but after a time he said:
"We are not to question God's mysterious
ways. The sparrow does not fall without his
knowledge, and -"
"But if he does not help the sparrow, what
good is it to know that he falls?" I interrupted
him.
"It is not in reason that I can make you to
understand," he replied.
"No, not in reason unless with reason.
There is no god, Milthias, and there are no,
mysteries except the hidden ways of naturesy
and they are in mystery only because they are
hidden from us."
"But behind nature-what?"
"Storms that wreck towns and sink ships.
If the storm is the breath of a god, then his
breath is evil.  I believe as Julius Caesar
believed."
"But he was called to his account, and at a
time when he thought that his power was
greatest. But when his time came he was as
weak as the lambs that were killed to make a
garment for Vloden. In the eye of the Lord
he was not greater than your little slave that
hanged himself."
For this speech I could have killed him.
In my heart I believed that he was deserving
of death, but he was my fellow slave and I
liked to hear the sound of his voice, though




00oo     be Son of the Sworbmalfer


his Latin was not good.   Limprosus and
Sempre had taught me that argument was of
no use, and for a long time I lay in silence.
Then I requested him to tell to me stories
from the strange book of fables which he
called the Scriptures. He did so, and there
was such power in his recital, such vividness
in his pictures, that I wished to know the language of his country. He said that the tongue
was now for the most part Greek, there had
been such commerce with the Greek people,
but that the household words were still
Hebrew and that he would willingly teach me
in so far as he was capable, but that it was
hard to learn, though when once learned its
richness and beauty would more than repay
all of the cost. So, that very night, I began
to take lessons of him, and how much easier
it was to learn thus than from a book!
Under tuition of a most skillful master in
Rome, I had shuddered at Greek, and had
4ound all lessons hard enough, but now I
learned easily and discovered in it a pleasure.
Milthias reminded me of my promise to the
princess, that I would learn her tongue, and
that to please her I must do so. "It sounds
harsh," said he, "but rugged words are sometimes more easily remembered than smooth
ones, with their monotony of mellowness.
These barbarians, having few ideas, have but




tbe %tormtno of tbe town


tot


a brief language, mostly the names of things.
Yet there is a rough poetry in it, especially in
their war chants. I said that they have few
ideas, but they have thoughts, especially when
they overeat and are in gloom. At such times
their words seem as black as fragments out of
a midnight sky. You must have heard a disturbance and a call to arms last night. A
large deputation from a neighboring kingdom
had come to demand a tribute which they
swore was due to their kcing; but old Lodbig
set his bristles and refused to pay. I was near
enough to hear his speech. He stood in the
glare of a torch, not far from the door of this
hut. You might have thought that in his
wrath he was borrowing peals of thunder, and
was paying them back with interest into the
skies. But let us sleep. To-morrow's work
will be hard enough, a tribute which we do
not owe, but, unlike oldX Lodbig, we cannot
refuse it."
Sound sleep makes a quick dawn. It did
not seem more than a moment after Milkhias
had ceased to speak when I was aroused by
the rude shake of a spearman. As I was no
longer a prisoner but a slave, my food was not
prepared for me. For lack of a better name
I shall call the open space a forum. Here,
where log fires were kept constantly burning,
Milthias and I cooked our morning meal,




102    Ube Son or tbe 5worbmaker


fighting at -the dogs that sneaked about to
snatch at our broiling meat. Rain was falling,
but the fires were protected by thatches of
straw, supported by poles. By the time broad
daylight came, the rain had ceased and everything was steaming in the summer air. From
the hillside field I saw the struggling sun arise,
firing dull vapors into gorgeous sheets of
flame. Was not this gold and crimson spectacle enough to reestablish, even within the
breast of a slave, a belief in the immortal gods?
Sometime along toward the middle of the
day a boy brought some food to us, but in the
evening we prepared our supper. The night
was sbft with a great yellowish moon. How
little like the moon that in dazzle of burnished
silver I had so often seen as old Calo held
me in his arms!
The people of the town were not ill-natured,
and into the forum they came to witness feats
of strength in the light of the great fires. One
of them, an old and white-bearded man,
plucked the coarse strings of a rude harp, and
sang of the prowess of his fathers. Lodbig
walked leisurely about among his subjects and
there was -no fawning, such as might be seen
in a higher state of society. At no time dur-.
ing the day had I caught sight of the princess,
but now she came forth, with the copper
circlet gleaming on her head.   She ap



tbe Storming of the town


103


proached, and through Milthias spoke to me.
"You are not grieving for your friends?"
"No more than my friends are grieving for
me, which cannot be much."
"It would be of no use for you to_ grieve, for
you will never see them more."
"It remained for your words to make me
feel this, fair princess, more than I did."
She waved her hand. "Is not this a goodly
sight, to see so many people happy? And
could you not in time so far forget all that
has been as to be contented here?"
How simple was her mind thus to indulge
such a fancy! "When fortune has played
ambitious man false," said I, "there is nothine
left for him but to make contentment if I
cannot find it."
"My father, the king, would speak wit'i
you." Lodbig came with slow and measured
stride. I could have laughed at his garb, but
hot at him, for though well past his prime he
looked a man that might well be feared in the
1arena. I made obeisance with all of the grace
JI could command, and so pleased was he that
he commanded me to do it again. Then he
asked me how many Romans there were in,the stockade. To flatter him, I answered:
"Not so many as could with advantage to'
themselves meet you in battle."
'But there are many over the sea in Gaul."




1o4   Zbe Son of tbe SworbmaIter


"Yes, very many."
"The Gauls are more easily conquered than
the Britons?"
"They are not so strong and therefore cannot fight so well."
At this he did not smile, but nodded, giving
me credit for having discovered a fact.
"Would your commander meet me in single
combat?" he inquired.
"He would be unequal to you." This he also
accepted as a fact. Then I remarked that if
he chose to send me with a challenge I should
be pleased to bear it. They say that savages
have no sense of humor, but he smiled at this.
"Ah," he said, "and he would come back with
you to drink a horn of ale with me." After a
few moments, and when he had become serious again, he said: "My father fought against
the great man that first came from your
people. He killed many of our men, but did
not conquer us. Tell me about your country
and your town."
I told him of Rome, but saw that he did not
believe me. He was about to speak when a
shouting at the gate distracted him. Instantly
all was confusion. The gate was opened and
in rushed a party of Lodbig's men, looking as
if spent with hard chase. Then arose a loud
call to arms. The king hastened to arm himself, and the princess fled toward the palace,




tbe Storming of tbe Cown


105


the nation's armory. I leaped up at this whiff
of excitement in the air, longing for my sword;
but I seized a war club and sprang forward to
join the ranks that hastily were forming near
the gate. There was such commotion that no
one gave heed to me. Milthias was at my
side, and out of the loud voices he caught the
information that the king who had demanded
tribute of Lodbig was coming in force to compel his demands. Drums made of hollow logs
were fiercely beaten, and the war chariots
were driven out, to reap a swath up and down
the walls should the enemy succeed in scaling
the battlements. I was afraid that it was a
false alarm, it takes so little to excite barbarians, but it was not, for soon there arose
wild cries without. Then came a thunderous
battering at the gate. Stones came over
in a shower, and one of them, striking a
man who stood not far from me, felled him;
and snatching up his sword, I rushed toward
the gate, which now was yielding to the
besiegers.
The gate fell, and in dtny usned, yelling
like furies. The sword was too long, but I
soon caught clever use of it. I snatched a
rude shield, which I well knew how to manage to best advantage, and never within sight
of inspiring eagles did I fight harder, knowing
that by this means I should not only purchase




io6    Ube 5on of tbe $worlnakfter


exemption from slavish toil, but perhaps win
my freedom. The chariots did not have room
to operate, and they were worse than useless,
their scythes sometimes tripping our own men.
Old Lodbig towered in the thickest of the
fight, and I saw the princess urging the men
to greater daring. Now over the wall the
enemy poured. Lodbig was falling back.
Suddenly the princess flew to me, with my
own sword and buckler, and I seized them
and fought my way through a horde and
rescued the king. Then together we fought,
furiously as the numbers increased, and Lodbig's men, thus encouraged by our example,
rallied and found new strength. The tide was
turned. The enemy was beaten back, and
out into the dark we followed them. A number of Lodbig's soldiers were killed and
wounded, and it was a sad sight to behold the
grief of those unschooled women, the widows
of the combat. Among the wounded I found
Milthias, severely bruised upon the head, a
blow something like the one which had not
long before deprived me of my senses. I
carried him to our hut, and. while kindly
hands held torches, 1 bathed his head and
dressed it with a bit of rough cloth brought
by one of the women. Nowhere now did
I see the princess, and  as I had   no
interpreter I could not inquire concerning




Ub4e Storming of tbe tovwn


10o7


her. I felt in honor bound to return to her
my sword.
There was not much rest that night, for the
wailing of the women and the groans of the
wounded drove sleep away. Milthias soon
regained consciousness, and he sat up, pale in
the light of the torch that had been left with
us., He told me that I had saved his life, but
I did not remember having seen him after the
fight became interesting.,When morning was come I went forth to
find the princess. The palace was free to all,
) and I entered. She was there, helping to take
care of the injured, those whose bravery had
been so noted as to warrant such a hospital.
She smiled upon me as I came forward. I
bowed and presented my sword and shield.
She took them, and, disappointed that she did
not bid me keep them as a reward for my
services, the savifig of her father's life, I went
out, but not into the field to dig among the
stumps.  Men who had smiled to see me
degraded now saluted me, and a grim old
warrior offered me of his meat and handed to
me a horn of ale.




CHAPTER IX


ln tbe lbome of the 1Princess
LL during the day the forum was full
of Lodbig's subjects, the men to boast,
the women to admire and the children
to wonder at bravery and at greatness.
The women had been as brave and as determined as the men, but woman is willing to
share her worth with man and then to glorify
his half of it. I could never see why a man
should be accounted valiant simply for fighting for his life, more than a cornered rat,
both having the same instinct; but the king
was elevated to the shoulders of strong men
and carried about the town.  When he
touched earth again he called for me, and he
hooked a copper trinket on my breast, but
the princess, who stood near him, did not
give me back my sword Milthias was still in
our hut and I could not understand what was
said to me, but the speeches must have been
warm and eloquent, for the men, women and
children clapped their hands and shouted.
It looked as if they were about to give me
back my liberty, but when they had beaten
108




In tbe lbome of tbe Princess


IO9


their hollow logs and chanted a few more
compliments to their own greatness and
doubtless to their good fortune in possessing
me, they turned to, as was ever in order, and
began to eat and drink. No restraint was put
upon my actions until, to satisfy curiosity with
experiment, I made as if I would walk forth
through the gate, and then I was warned to
stay within the walls.
Trade makes a man sharp, and Milthias had
been a trader. When we were lying on our
skin couches, the night after I had been decorated, he told me that we were not now to be
worn out with hard labor, but would be utilized not only as defenders of the town, but,
under certain restrictions, employed in sallies
against the towns of enemies. "It would not
be in nature that the princess should be ignorant of her own charms," said he.
"Leading to what?" I inquired.
"To another sort, but to a more complete
slavery of you. She will make you her
Antony. She may marry you."
"Is her heart no more genuine than that?"
"The barbaric heart, like the heart of
Rome, is for power. Did you ever see a
more gorgeous animal? Would not a saint
turn aside from his meditative walk to gaze
upon her? Is there not in her smile something
that bubbles the blood and sets on fire the




IIO  ~  be Son of tbe fworbmaker


temple of the senses? Could she not trip the
confident legs of the judgment and sprawl it
on the ground?"
"She may be all that you. say and, ordinarily, can perhaps accomplish all that your
fancy is wont to picture, but as for me I would
choose my sword and buckler. You may look
into the temple of Janus, which is never closed
except at a time of peace, and therein you will
not find the statues of the Graces."
"Ha," he said, "but you will find the statue
of the two-faced Janus; and may not one of
his faces look toward love while the otherlooks toward his own interest?"
"I am afraid that my figure was not a happy
one," said I. "The two faces mean not so
much the-looking in different directions as the
presenting of different countenances at the
same time."
"True," he said, "and can you not present
the countenance of love-toward her, while
your other face looks toward liberty?"
"Oh, I am thick of head. You mean that I
should deceive her, that I must pretend."
"Unless you should in truth love her, and
then-to be all that she desires of you. In
this, Eradmus, I am not unselfish, for my own
hope, which I thought was dead, has begun to
throb again with life.  In the liberating of
yourself you are to be my liberator."




In tbe ibome of tbe 1prfncess


I Il


"Let us wait," said I, not to discourage him
and yet to put a caution upon his hope lest it
might bound 'too high and kill itself with
falling. "It does not seem, Milthias, that I
was born to be shot through by Cupid, the
boy archer. As much as possible the Roman
youth, intended for the army, is trained away
from all dangers attendant upon such shafts.
My first playthings were the scraps of war, in
my father's factory; and the first jewels that
dazzled my eyes were the sparks that flew
from the forge. My manners are the gestures
of war. I am not gifted with those wooing
graces which a woman, though a barbarian
and herself a sharer in the fight, must demand
of one whom she would enslave with passion."
He said that my argument against myself
was not good. Lying there in the dark, he
strove to put me in the light of favor with
myself. Strength was itself a grace, and this
he said I possessed. In valor he placed me
high, and these qualities must always prevail.
In my bravery and skill there lay an avowal
of love for Vloden, she would believe, and I
needed only to smile upon her, stealthily at
first, as if I were robbing her of her sweetness.
To hear him speak thus was amusement to
me, and I laughed, and though I confessed it
not unto myself, yet was I flattered.




112   ate 5on of tbe fworbmaher


"But would she not rather like more of
boldness?" I inquired.     1
"No. Bravery in battle must be humble
when of such a woman it would seek her love;
but there must never be indifference. You
must appear to tremble when she approaches,
not in awe of her position as a princess, but in
the blinding dazzle of her beauty. She is a
woman."
"Ah," said I, "and being such, she is a
stranger unto me. I had no sister. No girl
was ever the companion of my youth. My
mother was cold with a treasured grief, and
my earliest nurse, a slave woman, sighed cool
air upon me. Surely, Milthias, it was not the
sailing of a merchant ship that gave you such
knowledge of woman."
"In my country," he replied, "women and
men mingle together in the ordinary affairs of
life and in the temple where all come to worship Jehovah."
"Your god of war?"
"Our God of the universe."
"But have the women no goddess that they
may more easily persuade to their purposes?"
'There is, as I have said unto you, but one
God."
And so it was that no matter what we began
to discourse upon, we as ever came suddenly to
his one God. But surely this enslaved young


















DECORATED WITH TRINKETS OF COPPER.






In tbe bome of tbe Prtncess


113


Jew was wise, for early on the morrow, while
we were in the forum, the princess came
coquettishly toward me, decorated with trinkets of copper and of tin that a slave in Rome
would have scorned. I acted as if her beauty
blinded me and this pleased her, for she
laughed upon me, and in her voice there was
music sweeter than all the hymns sung to the
gods. She spoke, and I looked to Milthias to
convey her meaning to me. "You must soon
learn my words that I may give commands to
you," she said.
"I can learn but few of them at a time, for,
being so sweet, they would cloy me."
It was not easy for Milthias to make her
understand this, but when he had succeeded
she frowned upon me in rebuke. But her
eyes were smiling. I asked her what was it
her pleasure that I should do, how to bestow
myself to serve her. I said that digging up
stumps or killing enemies would be of equal
delight to me. This lie gave her pleasure.
When was it that woman ever demanded the
truth except as it might be pleasing? She
smiled upon me and said that my first duty
must be to learn of Milthias. Then she withdrew herself, and at once I set forth with
Milthias, walking about the town, so that he
might tell me the names of the different
objects. Round and round we went? repeating




II4    Zbe Son of tbe Swortmaker


my lesson. How much easier it was than
study in a real school. At night, in our hut
by the light of a torch, he put down words for
me, on strips of bark, marking with a charred
twig; but these represented not things, but
ideas, and were not so easy to keep in my
mind.
The old king, though friendly enough, was
never sociable, but once when he was drunk
he struck me a blow on the breast, almost to the
force of felling me, but this was an outbreak
of his good-fellowship, and as such his men
took it, for some of them looked upon me
with envy. Every day there was a sort of
muster and a drill at arms in the forum, awkward and worse than rude, but exhibitive of
strength and determination. Before long it
was plain that Lodbig's ambition was about to
lead him abroad against his enemies. If the
expedition were to be mounted it would offer
us a chance to escape, and I so expressed
myself to Milthias, but he shook his head and
replied that they would never set us on
horses, that if we went we must go afoot.
"But some of those on horses may be slain,"
said I. "Then what is to prevent our getting
away on the horses left riderless?"
Trade, which had made him sharp, had
made him also cautious. "Every one of them
would flee from even a victory to overtake us




In tbe lbome of the Prtncess


I I 5


and to kill us for our treachery," said he.
"Our freedom must come of a more gradual
emancipation. We must grow old in their
confidence."
I reminded him that he had been there
many years and remarked that I could not see
that he had attained to such a growth. "But
not until recently did I have opportunity to
prove that I would fight for them," said he.
"And besides," he added, "all conditions are
now to be changed by the love which the
princess must feel for you. You say that you
are unacquainted with woman, and in truth it
is impossible to know her in all of her moods,
but the experience that I have had of the sex
teaches me to guess, and some of my guesses
are not wrong. She is in love with you."
Why should this put upon me, not a strength,
but a sort of sweet and delicious weakness?
The thought of settling down to a life there
was abhorrent, and yet to feel that she loved
me made me warm in the breast.
One morning I approached Lodbig, and with
my broken words - Milthias not being with
me-asked him to let me drill his men; but he
frowned upon me for my impudence, or my
ignorance not to know that his way was
superior to mine. Perhaps it was, or at least
I so far persuaded myself into this belief as to
beg his pardon and to acknowledge that he




II6   Zbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


was right. I do not know whether it was my
rashness on this occasion or whether it was
his general suspicion, but when the time came
for the sallying forth of the forces, neither
Milthias nor I was included in the muster roll.
I complained to the princess, but she turned
me off with the remark that my strong arm
was needed to protect the town in the event
that the enemy might divide his forces and
seek to capture and destroy the place. I
asked her if she herself were going, and she
shook her head. Milthias remarked to me,
shortly afterward, that the reason of our not
going was because she was not to go, that she
wanted me near her. I could have cursed
myself for being soothed by this, and I
blushed, I know, in shame for my weakness, but
I mused over it during the day and there
seemed to be something sweet in the air.
When night had fallen I walked about in the
light of the fires, hoping to meet her, but she
did not show herself. While Milthias and I
were lying on the floor I asked him if he were
in earnest, and he said that he was and that
he could not be mistaken. Many times during the night she came to me in my dreams.
Early on the following day the march
against the enemy was set on foot. Lodbig
led in person. The people cheered him,
Milthias and I among the rest. Now the




In tbe lbome of the princess


I17


town seemed almost deserted.  But there
remained the soul of it, the princess. If she
desired that I should be near her, why did she
not come out into the forum? I resumed with
Milthias the study of her language, but she
did not come near me to encourage me with
a smile. I was making progress. Was love
so great a schoolmaster?
I had never seen the inside of her habitation. The outside was of no pretense.  It
was low, and its richness consisted in the
bigness of the logs that composed it. An
armed man stood constantly before the door,
for, unlike the palace, this was not a part of
the public domain.
It was near the noon hour when the princess
sent for me.  I wondered if the summons
included Milthias, but when I bade him come
with me the bearer of the command said that
I was to go alone. I was glad that of late,
with study day and night, I had made such
progress toward the acquisition of this
woman's tongue.  I found her sitting in a
spacious room with two maids attendant
upon her, serving her with meat and drink.
She was seated on an oak chair, large enough
for a throne  Had I been invited to dine
with her? She did not invite me even to be
seated. She took no notice of me as I stood
there before her, bowing time and again to




II8    Zbe Son of tbe Sworcmaker


attract her attention. I waited a long time,
stung to see the maids exchange mischievous
glances at my expense. Finally she put by
everything and turned to me. "Would you
rather be here or with my father?" she
inquired.
"Your Highness, on all occasions and under
all circumstances I should rather be with you."
1 had to repeat this several times before I
could make myself understood.
"But," she said, "you were disappointed
when told that you were not to go."
"It is true, your Highness, and for the reason
that I thought you were going."
When this remark, as a half-formed thought,
entered my mind I fancied it an unmixed lie,
and as such I uttered it, but coming forth in
words, acting upon my ear and then seeming
to sink into my consciousness, it was so much
of a truth as to cause me to wonder at it and
to feel ashamed of myself. I wanted to tell
her to dismiss her maids, for, seeming to steal
an embarrassment from me, they would toss
it between them.  The princess began to
speak and the maids stood as solemn as if
never in their lives had they thought to smile.
"If you had gone and had found means to
escape, would you have run away-from me?"
"No, not from you. I would rather be a
slave with you than free without —"




In tbe ibome of tbe princess


I 19


She stamped her foot and cried: "Out with
you, liar. Put him out at the door."
I was thrust out, and now in disgrace I went
to find Milthias to tell him that all hope was
lost, murdered by my own awkwardness; but
before I had gone far, and when I had not
yet come within sight of my friend, one of the
maids came running after me and, touching me
upon the arm, bade me return to the presence
of her mistress. Thrilled to the marrow, I
hastened back to the abode of the princess.
The guard at the door pulled aside the great
bull-hide hanging there to let me pass in.
The princess was still sitting on her oak chair,
with her hands listless in her lap, looking
down as if in deep thought. She did not
hear me as I entered. I stood for a time, and
as she did not look up I cleared my throat,
and she started almost to her feet. "I have
summoned you back to make you acknowledge that you are a liar," she bluntly said.
"But you would have me acknowledge
something that I am not."
She arose and walked about the room,
tingling me as she came near to me-delighting me with her beauty, a beauty that came at
times in a flash, like the reflection of a sunray from a pool, almost blinding. She came
close and gazed into my eyes, and I must have
seemed weak to her, for I felt myself shrink



120    'be Son of tbe Sworbmater


ing. "How do I know that you are telling me
the truth?"
"We know best that which we feel and yet
which we do not know," I replied, and again
I had to say it over many times; but finally
she understood, but a frost-fall of suspicion
nipped the budding smile into which her lips
were about to burst. "But you are a Roman,
and the Romans are liars."
"For the most part, your Highness. younow
speak the truth. The Romans are educated,
and education teaches one the necessity of
lying." She shook her head. I could" not
make her understand what education meant.
Suddenly she seemed to dame like a torch.
"Go out," she said. "Doin' come near me or
meet me anywhere, in the form or the street,
until I send for you."
Sad of heart, I went away, thinking that she
was displeased with me, but when I found
Milthias and told him of all that had occurred,
he grasped my hand. "She is fighting against
her own love," he said. "Do not fear to be
extravagant, for that is what she demands of
you, though she is afraid of it whel it comes;
but modest assertion would be as tame to her
as the feather of a dull-colored bird.?
I waited during the remainder of the day,
hoping that she might summon me again, but
she did not. When night was come and




In tbe bome of tbe lPrtncess  121
Milthias and I had gone into our hut, I lay,
thrilled with each footstep that passed our
door.
"She will send in the morning," said Milthias. But morning came, and so did the
noon hour fall down almost straight before us,
and still she did not send for me.




CHAPTER X


Fn tbe Mfoonli0bt ant the J1riars
ON THE      evening, as I walked about in
the light of the log fires, I saw the princess coming toward me. I turned back,
but soon I was overtaken by her footman. He summoned me to appear before
her. Again the bull-hide was held apart from
the door for me to enter.  The place was
lighted with a glare of torches. The princess
was moodily in state, on her oaken throne.
She gazed at me as I entered.  Her eyes
snapped, and quickly too, for eyes so large.
Evidently she had not commanded my presence that she might grant to me the boon of
her pardon. She banished her maids. We
were alone in the great room. Did she wish
me to kneel to her? I did not, but stood,
waiting for her to speak.
She spoke. "Why have you kept out of my
way?" were her first words. This surprised
me. It might not have astonished Milthias,
who had traded in ships, and who had sold
finery to women and who got at their whims
and their natures in this way, but I was almost
122




In tbe MlEoonltobt ant the 3rtars  123


astounded. Why, she had commanded me to
keep out of her way. I said as much, and she
frowned upon me.
"Why did you not break my command-to
come to me? You gave me to know that you
would brave anything for me. Again you
have lied to me. How am I ever to believe you?"
Then Milthias was wrong. He had told me
that with all of his boldness in fight, a man
must sometimes be tremulous in the presence
of a woman whose love he would win.
She arose from her chair and came toward
me. She looked into my eyes, and I did not
shrink from her. My anger was rising. It
was impossible to please her. She gazed at
me for a moment and then she said: "Do you
know what I did with a man that was timid?"
"You killed a man who would not fight, but
you cannot bring that charge against me."
"But you have humbled me into sending for
you, and this came from your timidity."
"It came from my desire to obey your commands."
"Bah, you are weak."
I felt my anger rising. Who was she but a
barbarian, little removed from a cannibal, thus
to talk to me? "You would better let me go,"
I said. "It is not well for you to remain alone
with me. I might be forced to lay rude hands
upon you.




124     Ube,,, Son oT tbe ZworbmaIter


She slapped me on the cheek, and I seized
her and choked her-tripped her, pulled her
to her feet again, and slappedher as she had
slapped me. Then I hurled her from me.
She made no outcry. She did not summon
assistance, but, red and panting, more beautiful than when in repose, she sank upon her
chair and sobbed, this wild thing, but still a
woman; and, stricken to the heart, I dropped
upon my knees at her feet, and without a word
she took my head in her lap and bent over
me, her warm breath upon my neck. I know
not with what words it would have ended, with
what whims and reproachnes on her part, for
suddenly there came a clamor from the outside, the clash of arms and the trampling of
horses. I rushed forth without looking back
at her; and there, pouring into the forum,
were old Lodbig's men, returned from their
expedition.
The march against the enemy had been
fruitless. He was found to be so well prepared that attack upon him was deemed unwise, and so there was naught to do but to
return.
I felt that Vloden would not be so attentive
to me, with either favor or anger, when her
father was in the town, and such proved to be
true, for she paid but indifferent heed to me,
passing me in the street without even so much




In tbe!Doonlf1lbt and tbe  rttars  125


as giving me a look. This state of affairs
could not long endure, and in this belief I
expressed myself to Milthias when he came in
late one night from a feast. He told me to
wait.  But he brought news that was not
agreeable. No matter how often a woman
might have been married she was, if a widow,
still the care of her father, and it seemed that
Lodbig had selected a husband for her, a sort
of prime minister, a powerful and shrewd
man, looking fierce enough to frighten a
legion. I had noticed, too, of late, that I was
not treated in the forum with the courtesy
that had been shown to me after my defense
and rescue of the king, and it was accounted
for by what Milthias told me. Once when the
king sat in state to receive ambassadors from
a neighboring power, I entered the presence
chamber with a number of others, all being
free to witness the ceremonies, and I thought
that Lodbig might select me for the favor
of a nod or a smile, but he did not. The
prime minister frowned upon me.
A close watch seemed to be kept on the
princess, and I could see that no matter which
way she might turn or whatever she might be
engaged in, spies were peeping about to note
her acts, and I knew that eavesdroppers were
alert to catch her words. It was not of wonder, then, that she took no notice of me.




126    tbe 5on of tbe 5wortmaiter


Thus the time was wont to drag, pulling back,
it seemed, with nothing for me to do, no fighting, no alarms; and the season sobered and
winter came. One night, when a swirling
snowstorm had driven all within doors and
when the log fires were suffered to die out, I
was aroused by a tapping at the corner of my
house. Looking out, I saw some one, muffled
up.  A voice came as still as a whisper.
I went out, approaching nearer to this timid
thing, whatever it might be, and was soon
enlightened with the thrill that it was one of
Vloden's maids. It seems that the princess
had outwitted the sentinels stationed about
her house, had come forth through the snowstorm, and was waiting for me in a dark corner
of the forum. The maid directed me, and
with my heart beating fast I stole the way,
and there she was, hiding, that glorious creature. She gathered me to her, and about me
she put her robes, covering us both from the
cold and the snow as we stood against a wall.
Her breath was of the spring in its sweetness
and her words were as spoken kisses. She
was a barbarian and strong, but I was a
Roman and stronger, and I gathered her unto
me, in my turn, and she was as a child, soft
and warm in my arms. The maid hid not fat
apart from us, to give the alarm if any one
should approach, and soon she came running




In the fIoonlitbt anb tbe 3Briars   127


with a smothered cry, and the princess fled
fMom me. I went back to my dark hut, but v
the world was illumined.
Milthias was asleep. He had not known
when I went out, and in the morning I did not
tell him. It was too sweet to share, too modest
to be spoken of; and I lay in the glowing
dawn, thinking about her, feeling her breath
upon my cheek. Milthias, arising and looking
out, said that it was still snowing, but to me
the dawn was rosy, for my heart shed a light
over all the world.
I do not know how many days passed, all
was now so full of dream, when along toward
morning, after a clear night which blew shivers upon the town, a spearman came to me in
the hut and bade me follow him. I refused.
How did I know but that I was to watlk into
some trap set for me? But he said that Vloden was waiting for me. Still suspicious, I
asked him why the little maid had not come,
and he said that it was because other work,
aside from bearing a message, was to be done,
that he was to fight for the princess if necessary, that the maid, if seen, would be suspected, but that as he was known to be one of
the sentinels stationed about her house, he
was not thought to be in her service. We had
spoken low and Milthias was still asleep.
Treachery was so apparent that I continued




128    Ube Son of the iworbmalfer


to hesitate, but while still debating I heard a
voice that made me quake. The princess herself was at the door. I sprang to her, and
would have caught her into my arms, but she
bade me to stand off from her. She carried
something wrapped in cloth. The moon was
shining. The air blew cold. She shivered.
I hastened back into the room and gathered
up the skins of my bed to wrap them about
her, but she commanded me to keep them for
myself, that I should have need of them; and
sweetly she said that it was not the frosty air
that made her shiver. Then she bade me
follow her, and I did, the tall spearman stalking behind us. We scaled the wall by means
of a ladder made of tall poles, and now,
with no word uttered, we went silently into the
woods. For a time we walked, and after
going through thick brushwood into an open
space she halted, and turning to the spearman
told him to go farther away, that she would
let him know when he was wanted. When
the spearman had disappeared Vloden began
to unwrap her bundle, and then I saw a flash
in the moonlight, my sword and buckler. She
presented them to me.
"I have kept them as a part of your heart,"
she said, "but now I must give them back to
you. There is a conspiracy to kill you Nothing but your own flight can save you. At last




In tbe IDoonU0l bt an& tbe IBrtars  129


my father, so long argued with, has given his
consent to Blahn, the prime minister, and he
will see that the sentence of death is executed.
My faithful man, Canock, the one who has
just left us, will bring two horses, one for you
and one for himself; and when he has conducted you to the Roman fort he will return to
me and tell me of your safety. I will call him."
"Wait," I said, and she looked at me, strong
and beautiful, the rays of the full moon falling
on her face. "But if I go, what will they
think? What will they do with you?"
"They will not know that I have had a hand
in it."
"But if my sword is gone they will know
that you gave it me."
"My father thinks that I gave it long ago.
He does not know that I took it back from
you. There, you must go."
"And leave you to marry that brute? I will
not go."
Something gleamed and fell, a tear. She
was weeping, but with no sound. For a time
she said nothing. But soon she was strong,
and then she spoke. "You kept one of my
commands, and you must keep this one. I will
never marry Blahn. When you are gone\my
father will not force. me."
And then with bitterness I said: "You mar
ried once and killed-him."'




I30    tbe Son of the rworbmaher


"I did not marry him. The ceremony was
not. 'I was to marry him, in the evening, but
early in the day there was an attack by the
enemy. He took fright and broke from a
position which he was commanded to hold,
and as he ran, I threw a dart that brought him
to earth."
"Vloden, it is not your killing of him that
weighs upon me. He ought to have died. It
is that you would have married him-that
you loved him."
"Do not speak words to make me weak,
Eradmus. Let me be strong, for I shall need
strength. How did I know not to love him
when I had not seen you? He was comely
and I was younger than I am now, and I
thought of him for a husband; but-but my
heart was not touched by him. Now you
must go."
"I will not. I will not unless you go with
me."
"That cannot be. You must obey. If you
do not, they will slay you, and then shall I
slay myself."
Within me arose a mighty resolve. I would
come with the legions and capture the town;
but as I would not make her a party to this
sedition against her father, I held my peace,
though I told her that if I did go I should
soon see her again. She said nothing, but




in rtoe fiIc'onltbt ano tbc ji3rars      131


stood with her head bowed. 1 held forth my
arms and she sprang into them, and long we
were there, her warm cheek against mine; but
suddenly she broke out of my embrace. "The
day will soon break. You must go, and yet I
would hold you with my own hesitation. I
will call Canock."
"Wait. Not yet. Tell me again that no
one has possessed your heart."
She caught up a handful of snow and held it
out to me. The moon fell upon it and it
gleamed. "This is me toward man," she said,
and I understood her. And now it was time
for me to go, but suddenly Milthias came into
my mind.   It gave me another excuse to
tarry with her. "Milthias?" I said. "What
will become of him?"
"They will not kill him. They will make
him work."
"He will be a slave again, as he was when I
came?"
"Yes, even the same."
"I will not go without him. I cannot desert
a friend. I shall obey your command, for I
know that soon I will come —" I came near
telling her of my purpose. "I shall obey your
command as far as it will not be treachery to
a friend. Surely you would not ask me to
prove unworthy of a man's friendship."
She called Canock, and I thought that she




132    tbe   oion of tbe %worbmaher


would command him to conduct me upon my
journey, but she surprised me by saying to
him: "Steal into the town, awake Milthias,
tell him to bring the wolf hides and to follow
you."
Canock hastened away, and again I folded
her in my arms, but not without a struggle,
for she declared that I would make her weak.
Suddenly she grew cold toward me. "Is there
a woman in Rome- "
"Nowhere on this earth is there a woman
but here," I cried, and a bird fluttered and
flew out of a tree near by. Then I took her
in my arms again and on my bosom she wept,
but when we heard footsteps she stood back
from me and was strong again. Milthias and
the spearman came into the open space, and,
without speaking again, Vloden ran away
through the snow. Her long hair caught in
the underbrush and I sprang to her, thankful
for these friendly and helpful thorns, and
once more I kissed her; but she struggled
loose from me and again she ran, sobbing as
she went. I followed, running as fast as I
could in the entanglement, but, knowing the
way better than I did, she outstripped me, and
so I lost her.




CHAPTER XI


One Outran tbe lRest
WANDERED about in the briars, hoping that she might be found again entangled, but she was gone. Reason told
me that the only way to win her was to
fight for her, and that the only way to fight
was with help.
Soon I heard Milthias calling me. I came
upon him and the spearman, leading two
horses. I mounted one, with Milthias behind
me, and Canock, mounting the other, led the
way out through the thicket into a road. Day
was breaking.
Our guide had brought dried meat, and
along toward noon we halted to refresh ourselves. The weather was growing warmer
and the snow had begun to melt. This rerdered progress slower, as the horses' feet were
inclined to clog; but we made many miles
before night, and then we camped. Not daring to kindle a fire, we rolled ourselves in the
wolf hides and slept. As soon as it was light
we again took up our journey, and Milthias,
knowing why I was silent, did not question
133




134    Zbe Son of tbe sworbmaher


me. It seemed that every step that brought
me nearer to what once would have been
liberty, now conveyed me deeper into slavery,
and, but for the belief that our commander
could be easily set with his forces against the
town of old Lodbig, I should have found
no consolation.  I had not forgotten my
duty to Rome. But there is in all men something stronger than duty. It is love. One
may discharge every duty and still be a weakling. It is going beyond all sense of duty that
has made man great, that has made common
man happy. It is rebellion in man that moves
man to achievement. Honor isa great word,
the eagle word of Roman life, and yet honor
is called constantly to serve the dishonorable.
My present state was quite enough to be parent of such musings.
I spoke to Milthias as to what it was my
intention to accomplish, and he said: "Then
you really love her. I had thought it was
merely to gain your liberty."
"And so had I at first, but now I find that
with the heart in prison there is no liberty. If
the commander will not send a force, and me
with it, against the town, I shall not answer
for my conduct. Milthias, I would rather be
a slave with that woman's love-but I must
not draw such pictures. They affright me."
"Ah' he said, musing for a time, "and if you




One Outran tbe 1Reot


135


were to desert and go back to the town they
would kill you. Then of what avail would be
your love? And your return might bring such
reproach upon her as to rob her of life. They
would kill her. The king is growing old, and
as he has no sons the prime minister may
succeed him."
"But Vloden will at his death be queen," I
replied, a rat with cold teeth gnawing at my
heart.
"Yes, if there should not be a rebellion,"
said Milthias. And then after a time he
added: "No, you must not think of going
back. It would be self-murder. Besides, if
your expedition against the town should be
formed and were to achieve success, you could
not even then as a common soldier marry her,
could you?"
"Not under custom, but it would not be
against the law."
"You would be less valued as a soldier."
This was a truth that I could not dispute.
Sitting so close to me, he must have felt me
droop upon the horse, for he thought to console me by saying: "This passion may not
endure. Great fires do not rage long; and
besides, she herself may change."
It was some time before I spoke again. My
fingers ached to clutch him and to hurl him
from the horse; but even in violent love there




136    Ibe ion of tbe fworOmaker


is that something which forgives, and I held
my peace, though it was rough and hard to
hold. Now, as day grew dark with the sullen
approach of misty night, we came within
the neighborhood of the Roman stockade,
for with listening close we could hear the
lowing of cattle. Not long afterward Canock
drew his horse to a halt and said that he did
not deem it wise for him to go nearer to the
stockade. We urged him with the promise of
kind treatment in the camp, with meat and
wine, but he said that he had no cause to trust
the Roman word. "And the Roman may not
be all," he said. "The inhabitants of the village might lay hands on me, for, being in a
way split off from Lodbig, they are not friendly
with him. So, here will I turn back and tell
the princess that I saw you safely arrived at
home."
It would have been rude and ungrateful to
compel one who so faithfully had executed his
mission, so there was naught to do but to dismount and to turn our horse over to Canock.
This we did, but before he left us there on a
hill, curtained about now with a thick night, I
felt that I must talk to him, apart from all
ears save our own; and, following him a short
distance, leading the horse myself, in fear that
he might not halt when I requested him, I told
him that we were *now far enough. Blut even




One Outran tbe lRest


I37


now I did not know what to say. The thought
in my mind could not well be drawn forth in
words, though finally I said that it was of the
princess I desired to speak. Then boldly I
said: "You have seen by her acts that she
acknowledges her love for me."
He must have nodded assent, but, as I could
not see him, he spoke after a time, saying:
"Yes, all could see that."
"But will she change her mind? That is
what I burn to know."
"How can any one tell? She is a woman."
"Grim dog," I muttered, "don't say that, or
the horses may wander home without you."
"I thought you wanted the truth."
"I do.  But did you ever know her to
change?"
"Sometimes she is kind, and sometimes she
beats me, She is not always of one mind."
"Boar, would you deny me one sweet word?"
He did not know how to soothe, to flatter,
and so I suffered him to depart. Milthias
was stamping the ground to warm his feet, or
was it impatience to break through this final
crust of slavery, back once more into civilized
light? Buoyant of heart, he hastened in
advance of me down the hill, into a pasture
land; and now, nearer the sea, there was no
snow and we walked fast. I said to him that
in his eagerness he might lead me wrong, and




i38'     be Son of the Sworbmaleer


he slackened his hungry pace. I told him
what I had said to Canock and was disappointed that he did not call him a fool. "But
you, Milthias-you do not believe she will forget me."
"Eradmus, is it that you love her or love
your power over her? Will there not soon
come a time when, forgetting her, you will be
unmoved to feel that she has forgotten you?"
I bit my cold lip. From no source could
there come a word of comfort. Should I
reproach him with the truth that I had refused
to leave the town unless freedom were likewise granted him? He saved me that trouble.
Canock had told him as they were stealing
through the thicket, ott to the open place
where I stood with Vloden. Now he spoke
of it. He said that man might not know the
one God and yet be possessed of a great soul.
"And perhaps it is not mere passion, but your
soul that loves her," he said. "It may have
been at this time that both of your souls were
born, since God himself is love; Arid if you
feel that it is your soul enkindled by her own,
or hers awakened by yours, then can there
never come a death to such a love, though
time might level all the monuments reared to
human glory."
I put my arm about him, and onward we
walked in silence. Now across the grazing




One Outran tbe lRest


139


land and along the slope we saw lights flashing, but they were to the right of the fort and
were from fires in the village. But they gave
the location of the camp, and onward with
more of vigor we pushed. I was warm to
grasp old Limprosus by the hand and to tell
him that I had brought back his friend. But
why was all so dark and so quiet? A half wild
dog ran past us, snapping his steel-like teeth.
My heart began to grow heavy as we ascended
the hill, and then I could have dropped upon
the ground, for there was no fort, only the
ruins, broken palisades and huts unroofed and
echoless of life. The Romans were gone.
Milthias sobbed aloud, but suddenly a great
lightness of heart seized upon me. Come
what might, I would go back to Lodbig's town.
But toward this sorrowing youth I must keep
unborn my determination.
"Come," said I, "experience has taught us
that it is of no use to weep. Let us go dowr
to the village and learn what we can of our
friends."
I led the way and he followed me in silence.
His eagerness was all of it gone, and he who
had been so light of foot now seemed lame.
The hour was still early and we could see
men and women in the street, roasting meat
in the fires. We caught the incense of their
venison. As we drew near, the dogs set up a




140    Zbe Son of the 5wor'maher


furious barking, and instantly there was a call
to arms. They saw the shine of my steel, and,
crying "Romans! Romans!" some of the bolder
ones rushed toward us, throwing their spears
as they ran. Swifter than their spears came
the truth that to Rome they acknowledged no
allegiance. If we stood to fight, we should be
surrounded and killed. If we surrendered,
death would be our fate. So we ran, as fast
as legs could carry us, into the forest. The
villagers did not follow us far, and we felt
reasonably safe until daylight should discover
us to our enemies. No matter which way we
might go, they could, with their horses, soon
overtake us, so, giving up all hope of reaching
Lodbig's town, I thought it wise to work our
way around to the sea and there to hide
beneath the cliffs until perchance a ship
might, in passing, heed our signals of distress.
Milthias agreed that it was about all that we
could do; so we stole through the forest, out
upon the bluffs and then down upon the sands
of the sea. It was all I could do to keep
Milthias from shouting when he heard the
roar of the breakers. The wave had been his
home. Here on the wet sands we spent a bad
night, and when morning broke there was
some little cheer to find that the day was
wrapped in mist. We were now without food.
With no hope of escape could we look toward




One Outran tbe 1Rest


I41


the forest. Our only chance lay out upon the
shaking quilt of the sea. Broader day revealed that we were not far from the village.
We could hear the barking of the dogs.
"Gods, if they should scent us!" I muttered
deep.
"God, you mean," my friend replied. "Let
us commend ourselves to Him."
"Let us, dying, kill as many as we can. But
you have no sword. Gather up those larger
pebbles. Some of them are big enough to
crush a skull."
"I will. So David was armed, but he had a
sling."
We hidingly crept along the beach, to get
further away from the village. Suddenly we
both of us halted at once. Coming toward us
were a band of Britons. Hoping that as yet
we were unseen, we turned about, bold to
make trial of sneaking along the base of the
cliffs and to pass the town.  We turned a
sharp ledge of whitish rock that slowly was
yielding to the battering ram of the sea, and,
stumbling over fragments that lately had been
broken off by the waves, we were pushing forward when I heard Milthias, almost beneath
his breath, speak the name of his deity. He
clutched my arm and pointed. The sight was
thrilling. In a cove, eaten far into the
sand, several boats   were  at  anchor.




I42    tbe  oion of tMe Zworbmaher


Ignorant as to whether or not they were
guarded, not caring in truth, since here was
offered a sight of freedom, we ran as fast as
we could.- The band discovered us, and from
throats that seemed of brass arose a mighty
yell. I looked back and saw that one giant
fellow outstripped the rest.
There was no way to elude his fleetness.
He would overhaul us before we could possibly reach the cove wherein the boats were
anchored. So, telling Milthias to run as fast
as he could and to make the boat ready while
I hung back to give entertainment to this
bounding buck from the forest, I halted and
faced about. He made a great leap and flung
his spear, and catching it with my buckler, I
turned it down into the sand, but pretending
to have received a mortal stroke, I drooped
and fell. On he came with a shout, and catching up his spear I arose with it and planted it
in his breast. He fell forward upon the spear
and the point pierced through him. The
other barbarians were yet some distance
behind, and turning again to flight, I ran to
where Milthias was making ready to shove a
boat out into deeper water. He was in the
craft and was working with the bull-hide sail
when I reached the brink of the cove. Without
halting, I leaped into the boat, and out it shot
under the force of so violent a shove. The




One Outran tbe IRest


143


wind that had blown away the thick mist
served us well, for over the waves the boat
lightly danced, lapping like a thirsty dog; but
the chase did not end here. Our pursuers
leaped into boats and sped out after us, but
one of them, being overloaded, was soon
swamped. One boat that was left gained on
us for a time, but Milthias was a fine sailor,
seeming with graceful knack to skim along
the swift-flowing valleys of the sea; and so we
sped from our pursuers, seeing them last as
their spears gleamed on the crest of a billow.
But the sea grew so rough that we
were in danger of a death in brine. Sometimes it would seem that our bark could live
but a moment longer, and more than once I
gave myself over for lost, but onward we continued to skim and to plunge. That which
threatened us most, the quick, short plunges
of the sea, came from one of our surest promises of life and liberty, the narrowness of this
goose-pimpled thigh of the ocean. And, in
the dark of the night, we struck upon the
sands of Gaul. All was lonesome along the
shore, but we saw the glimmer of lights hot
far away, and thitherward we bent our weary
steps, soon reaching a small town, a mixture
of all nations; and here we were given food
and a place to rest.




I


CHAPTER XII
ln the town anb on the Sbip
N THIS town we learned that the Roman
cohorts had been withdrawn from Britain
some three or four months before, and
that they had marched doubtless to garrison a fort somewhere along the German
frontier. I said to Milthias that it was of no
use for him to tramp across the country merely
to bear me company, that on some trading
vessel he could work his way back to his
native land; but he would not hear to this,
declaring that he would see me safe with my
own company before turning his face homeward. This was noble of him, though useless;
but no amount of argument could dissuade
him. So we set out on another journey, not
knowing whither we were to go. The weather
in Gaul was much more temperate than in
Britain, and soon we came into a country
where vineyards were turning green beneath
the touch of spring. Here and there were
stationed small bodies of Romaft troops, but
mostly old soldiers that had served their
time and who were to settle down as
144




In tbe Zowti ant) on tbe Sbtp


145


citizens. But nowhere did we come upon the
track of my division; but after changing directions a number of times we arrived at a garrisoned town where I received news. The
cohort to which I belonged had been sent to
far-off Jerusalem. To me this had a most
appalling sound, for now it seemed that every
step that made greater the distance between
me and Lodbig's town was heavy and sore.
But Milthias was delighted. "As for myself, I
could not have hoped for anything better," he
said. "And since you know that it is impossible to go back to Vloden, you might better
be in Judea, that land of culture and refinement, of the earth's greatest wisdom, than to
be here among half-civilized people. If there
should come a war in that part of the country
it would be one —" But he checked himself.
"There cannot soon be a war between the
Jews and the Romans. Our people are thoroughly conquered, so far as the sword of man
can conquer them,-but there is coming One
whose sword will be as a flaming wrath, One
who will deliver us from our bondage."
"I cannot remain here now, even if I should
choose," said I. "The commander of this
post will order me to join my legion."
And such proved to be true. I presented
myself to him, in his spacious quarters, where!he looked more like a gentleman of leisure




I46    tbe ion of tbe Sworbma~er


than a soldier; and though his ear had long
grown dull, he requested me to tell my story.
I knew that he desired it to be brief, and I
made it brief. But he asked me many questions concerning the people of interior Britain,
and into my breast there flew the hope that he
might be thinking of planning an expedition
against Lodbig; and to this end I made bold
to question him, but he shook his head. He
knew, by looking at me, that I -had a long time
still to serve, and he said that I must report to
my centurion at Jerusalem. "With all of her
richness and her power, Rome can spare none
of her trained soldiers," he went on, looking
upon me admiringly, I thought; and then,
inquiring my name, he turned to his secretary
and commanded him to write. The result of
this command was an order, which was folded
and given to me, a passport which he said
would procure me 'passage and accommodation on any ship owing allegiance to the
emperor. Then I told him about Milthias,
that he and I had been slaves together, that
we had fought-that it was his management
of the ship to which I owed my life, and I
requested that a passport be also written out
for him. This did not strike the commander
with favor.  He said that Milthias was a
trader and had never borne arms for Rome.
That was true, and had not the officer been




In tbe town anb on tbe Sbip


x47


kindly this would have ended it, but I saw by
his countenance that he was inclined to stretch
a privilege, and I began to plead with him.
He cut me short by turning again to his secretary; and so the order for Milthias was written. He grappled me to him when I gave him
the parchment.
Now we retraced our steps toward the
sea, veering off in the direction of a town
where touched ships from all parts of the
world.
"Is not your heart growing lighter?" Milthias
inquired of me as we walked along a pleasant
road.
"It is not lighter and can never be," I
answered.  "Ah, what a blessing never to
have known!   I cannot drive her from my
mind. I can see her now as she looked when
she first came out to the field, the briars
catching at her brown ankles.  In all the
world there is not such beauty, such grace."
"Wait until you have seen the black-eyed
maidens of Judea," he replied.
"But I have heard that a barrier is set up
between them and strangers who do not profess their barbaric faith. It must have been
an old Egyptian that told me."
Milthias did not reply immediately, and I
knew that I had struck upon a fact. After a
time, however, he said: "You are not blind to




I48    tbe Son of tbe 5worbmaher


truth, and perhaps you may see the truth of
their faith."
"But if I should embrace it they would
always suspect me. In their sight I am but a
heathen, and in my eye they must ever remain
ignorant of the greatest of all truths, that all
superstition is unworthy of credence since
Julius Caesar put forth his private dictum
against it."
"Eradrius, you should read the Scriptures;
and this reminds me that of late you have
been a truant to my language, preferring to
study a tongue which promised and which gave
more immediate sweetness of reward. But
when we are on board ship you must take up
the study of Hebrew, and as you learn to read
the word of God  -"
"All gods have had their words," I cut him
off. "And what has been written about them
in Rome and in Greece would freight a ship.
But I will study your language."
Sometimes we walked for miles without
talking, except to speak in brief comment on
the scenery or the birds that flew up as we
passed along. At one place we found much
excitement attendant upon the rumor of a
Frankish raid. But with the coming of daylight we pushed on.
While the day was still young we saw a
great cloud of dust far out over the country,




In tbe trown anb on tbe bibtp


149


and it seemed to be floating toward us. Soon
we heard lamentations and saw frightened
people fleeing from a small village. Off on
the horizon a mighty storm seemed to be
coming thundering; and knowing that we
too, should be slaughtered, we fled with the
rest, though descrying no place of safety in
the direction of our flight. But after a time
we came to a ruined villa. The ruin was
level with the ground, with grass covering the
most of the stones that lay scattered by. Into
the thick weeds and the mold of the cellar we
leaped, and here crouched down. Nor had
we long to wait, for the thundering came
nearer and nearer, and with a sly peep I
could see the wild and fearful Franks sweeping past.
We lay there a long time, fearing a belated
fragment of this storm, and when night had
come we stole forth to resume our journey.
But the country was the most of it laid waste,
and though weak for the want of food, we
continued to struggle onward, hoping soon to
pass out clear of this Frank-swept territory.
Along toward dawn, in the fading light of the
moon, we came to a deserted habitation that
had been set on fire but which had not burned;
and here, when day broadened, we found
fragments of food scattered  about.  So
pressing was the need of sleep that we rested




I50o    be Son of tbe Sworbmalker


until late in the afternoon, when our journey
was taken up again. In the evening we came
to the timbered wall of a small town, and
after hammering hard upon the gate we were
questioned and then admitted. Here were
native troops, commanded by Roman officers
who looked with suspicion upon their men.
A lieutenant told me that as the Frankish
raids had thrown the country into a state of
unrest, no confidence could be placed in the
Gauls; and he thought that it might be well
for me to remain until some fifty legionaries
should arrive from a neighboring town. This
was a compliment, but not an order, and I had
only to remind him of my duty, which in all
expedition should draw me to a distant place.
So, while the day was still fresh with the
dews of the morning, we again took up our
march.
Milthias taught me Hebrew as he had taught
me the language of Vloden, by pointing out
objects and giving their names; and these
were easy to remember, but mere words were
hard. Some of them, though, were full of a
wild music, ringing like the clang of a spear
struck against a shield of brass; but they all
of them sooner or later led to the national
superstition, God and the prophets.  But
nowhere in Greek, and surely not in Latin,
were there such sonorous poems as some that




In tbe town anb on tbe Sbtp


15I


he recited. I thought it strange that men possessing such war cries did not all of them die
rather than to bow to the conqueror, but
Milthias again reminded me that when the real
sword of the Jews should be drawn, all opposing weapons of steel would crumble into rust.
From a hilltop we saw the sea, and near it
a town, red and gray in the mist of the dying
day. Again the scenes were of peace, with
vines on the hills and with cattle grazing in
the valleys. We reached the town before the
gates were closed, and here was life in the
activity of trade. In the streets were crowds
of people, bent upon enjoyment after the
tasks of the day, and the wine houses rang
with merriment. During all the time of his
captivity Milthias had managed shrewdly to
keep a little money, and now we went into a
place, half theater and half wine house, to
refresh ourselves. On a sort of stage a Gaul
was roaring the bravery of his race, and
sitting with great wine cups before them were
Roman soldiers, quietly laughing at him.
Milthias and I bore in our appearance no air
of importance, and we were neglected by the
underlings who served the guests, till, with a
loud knock upon the table, I brought one of
them, dancing in his haste. Some of the soldiers invited us to join them, and soon we
were in good fellowship, with song and story,




152    tbe ion of the $worbmaher


The most of the Romans were new men, who
had never seen steel bite steel except in the
friendly nibble of play; and when I had
related an experience in Britain they urged
me to give them more.
In this place we had the fortune to meet the
master of a ship that soon was to sail for
Gaza, and this was of so happy a circumstance
that Milthias beamed with pleasure.  We
showed him our passports, this Phoenician,
and he said that while he was not in any sort
of obligation held to obey, yet we were
free to go with him. I suspected that this
meant hard work for us, and such was true,
for on the following day I learned that he
had disposed of the services of two of his men.
Our cargo consisted mostly of timber, of
grain and of wool, and on a day when the
wind was strong we set sail. There was not
now much work to be done, but of such as
there was I performed my part of-it cheerfully,
and so did Milthias. Knowing all about the
sea, he was given a responsible place among
the crew, and, apologizing for myself, I said to
the master that my most important service
would be the defense of the ship against
pirates. He took this in grim earnestness,
replying that hard work in that line might be
demanded of me. But the days passed and
nowhere was there the sight of a sail. Some



In tbe Cown anb on tbe Sbtp


153


times in a calm, when our ship nodded beneath
the stars, Milthias would ply me with my lessons in Hebrew. All objects within range had
been pointed out and named, and now there
remained only words, and what words some of
them were, so long and hard to pronounce!
But he was a patient teacher and I was eager
to learn. Once he heard me talking to myself, in the tongue of Vloden, and he said:
"Ah, you have not forgotten."
"The mind cannot well forget itself, and she
is my mind," I replied.
"Her language, I mean," said he.
"No, I cannot forget that, for it is a part of
her."
"But is she as vivid in your mind as she
was?"
"Gold does not change its color, and she is
gold," I answered; and the master, who was
standing near and who had heard our talk,
said that if we were talking about British
maids he could tell us something about them.
Once, when his ship had nosed up into a cove
for water, his men had captured a British maid
and had brought her on board. She was so
comely that he thought to realize a good price
for her. She appeared to be docile; but when
a liberty was granted her, she leaped into the
sea and was drowned. "They are a worthless
lot," he said.




154    tbe %uon of tbe Oworbma1er


"Worthless for the purposes of barter whet,
dead," I replied. "However, you could but
think more of her after she had drowned
herself."
"I could but think of what I had lost in the
drowning. She would have been a fit waiting
maid for an empress."
I could have told him of one that would
have made a fit 'empress, but to me Vloden's
name was too sacred to mention in his presence. As I mused upon her, of the possibility
of her captivity and enslavement, the system
of reducing a human being to a chattel became
odious to me, but I knew that it was love and
not justice that so inspired me. And how far
from love is justice, and the more powerful of
the twain is after all but a glorified selfishness.
For a long time the weather was fair and
the sea favorable for progress, but about the
middle of the fourth week a violent storm
arose and we were likely to be wrecked. As
for me, I was afflicted with such nausea that
death would have been welcomed as a relief.
Good weather soon came again, however, and
onward our ship sailed, appearing none the
worse for the cracking of her joints. Not at
set times, but every day, I took lessons of
Milthias and I was now able to talk to him
fairly well in his own language. It is not the
man of deepest mind that learns a new lan



In tbe 'Town anb on tbe Sbip


I55


guage the easiest. Though no such attempt
was made, yet at school never could a philosopher have been made of me. Oratory,
thought to be one of the essentials of a successful soldier, was one of my failures, but the
readiness with which I grasped at a language
was somewhat of a marvel to me, though, as
I have hitherto observed, I could not have
learned thus easily from a book. And I believe that if Milthias had held a book in his
hand it would have chilled me.
The master and the crew were mortally
afraid of pirates, dreading every day and every
night an overhauling by them, but I rather
looked forward to such a diversion, though
Milthias warned me that they were more to be
shunned than barbarians on the land. But
the days passed and the weather grew hot, in
this the summer time, and still, with the
exception of a squall now and then, there
occurred nothing to disturb our course. One
day there were whispers of a mutiny, but this
little breeze of excitement fell into a calm and
left to us nothing. The master was a shrewd
navigator, and whenever he caught a good
look at the shore, he could tell where we
were. One night when the sky was clear he
came to me, and pointing off at a reddening
in the low sky, said that there lay the city of
Gaza.




CHAPTER XIII


across tbe Desert
T WAS near the noon hour of the following day when we disembarked. The
master of the ship was angered when I
told him that I could not remain to
assist in unloading his cargo, I reminded him
that I was a Roman soldier, that work except
for the empire was degrading. He replied
that he had brought me from Gaul, without
pay, and that he was under nQ obligation to
Rome. I assured him, as quietly as I could,
that he owed not only the privilege of sailing
the seas but his life itself to Rome, and that if
he further persisted in his attempt to degrade
me, I should be pleased to go to the garrison
and report the fact that I had slain him. He
apologized, saying that he had. drunk too
much wine, and besides, was worried with the
insolence of the laborers about the wharves,
who, celebrating some sort of holiday, were
loath to work. I told him that his apology was
none too soon and that it fell short in humbleness. "What would the people think to see a
soldier, though his clothes are old, unloading
a ship?"
156




Stcross tbe Vesert


157


He answered that he had not expected me
to carry a load, but to superintend the work
for him, that many a soldier had private cargoes of his own. "The soldiers of the empire
are not all of them above trade when there is
money in sight," said he. Then he turned to
Milthias, but before he could say anything my
friend presented to him a bill for services as
sailing master. At this he made violent
gesture, being too dumfounded to speak.
"Come," said I, "you must pay the amount
demanded. This man has served you well."
He swore that he would not, and I looked
at Milthias, expecting him to yield, thinking
that all he desired was exemption from the
work of unloading the ship, but he insisted
upon his due. "Make him pay it," he whispered, coming close to me. "We shall have
need of money for food and drink before we
reach Jerusalem. Remember that we are in a
civilized country now."
"You will have to pay," I said to the master.
"For my services I ask nothing, remember."
"Ah," he growled, "and I remember, also,
that he demands enough for both of you."
"Will you pay, or shall I report you for not
honoring our passports?"
This brought him to the good sense of yielding. So, with mauy mutterings, he told out
the money. There was no need of my report



I58    Cbe Son of tbe Sworbmafter


ing to the commander of the garrison, as to
how I should now bestow myself. My duty as
a soldier was plain, and that was to make all
possible haste to Jerusalem. This met with
the enthusiastic acceptance of my companion,
who now, near the home which dearly he
loved and from which he had so long been
absent, urged that we should join a caravan
that was already forming. So, early on the
following day, we set out across a hot and
dusty country. We did not aspire to ride a
camel, but we could with comparative ease
keep pace, and though we were in no wise
accommodated except as to company and
protection from the possible attack of marauders, yet the Arab who conducted the caravan
demanded money of us. He said that times
were hard and that the appetite of his camels
seemed to increase with their growing years.
He respected my sword and the marks of
Rome upon me, but he looked with less favor
upon Milthias, who he knew was a trader
and therefore in a way his rival. We paid
him, and from being solicitous he became
arrogant, and sometimes refused to answer
questions, particularly if they were asked by
Milthias.
My friend was now in a land of tradition,
holy to him, and sometimes he would walk
along for hours, deeply musing. Here and




THE ARAB DEMANDED MONEY


'I C




I




across tbe Mesert


I 59


there an old well, walled about with stones, or
a rock set upon end, was enough to cause him
to break forth in Hebrew verse, the most of
which I could not understand. The straggling
groves of olive, mean compared with those of
Italy, were a delight to his vision. He caught
up a handful of sand, and, uttering strange
lamentations, let it slowly sift down upon him.
I asked him why he did it, and he said: "Over
this blessed earth the feet of prophets have
trod."
"It does not seem very blessed now," I
replied. "It has not the greenness of Britain
or the bright flowers of Italy. To me the land
appears to have been cursed."
"Ah, yes, with invasion; with the irreverent
foot of the stranger."
When we camped the first night out I
thought that he would lament the whole dark
hours through. There was no moon and all
was black, save for the stars above and
vagrant fires scattered over the distant plain.
"Nowhere are they so near," he said, lying
on his back, gazing upward. "Are they really
the same stars that I saw far away in my
grinding captivity?"
"Are they the same I saw, looking up from
my garden of the gods?" I replied, and gently
he warned me not to blaspheme.
"But you are going to do something worse




I6o 0 be on ot tbe iworvmalet


than to blaspheme by word of mouth," said
he. "Ah, my friend, saver of my life and
noble as you are, on Mount Zion you will scent
the incense burnt to Jupiter-on this the
sacred rock of David. There you will revel
with your friends, ignorant of God."
"If any man wishes to burn incense to Jupiter, let him burn it," said I. "It is no more
than burning a handful of straw to an undiscovered star, a myth. If any one wishes to
burn incense to your David —"
"You must not say that.  David was a
sacred king, but we offer sacrifice to the Lord
alone."
"What sort of sacrifice?"
"Blood upon the altar."
"But does not Rome prevent the shedding
of blood for religious rites?"
"Not the blood of animals. We offer up
bullocks and sheep."
"Does your God so desire the blood of his
dumb creatures?"
''You cannot understand," he said. "Wait
until you have read the Scriptures."
"The Scriptures may teach me much," I
admitted, "but I cannot see how I shall be
taught to believe that a god, all-powerful as
you say yours is, should desire to be propitiated with the smoke of burnt blood. In the
arena there is death, but it is the death of




Scros tbe Desert


bravery, of combat, of manliness; and besides,
it affords amusement to thousands, and not
alone to a few priests." He turned over from
me and would not talk, and I lay there, gazing
at the stars until I sank into sleep, to dream
of Vloden.
We had paid the Arab for the privilege of
walking on the road, but meals were extra,
and for food he charged us outrageously. One
would have thought that the entire country
was afflicted with a famine and that he held
all of the food.
Here and there were neglected tombs,
crumbling beneath the continuous touch of
time. Among them prowled fierce-looking
dogs.  Milthias said that in these wildernesses of the dead lived outlaws and robbers.
"Then I can see a future asylum for our
genial host, the Arab," said I; and the fellow's
sharp ears caught my words.
"You are like the rest of your race," he
replied. "You have no sympathy for the weak
and defenseless."
After this he charged us more for food. I
told Milthias that I would submit to one more
advance in price and then I would appeal to
my sword. Again the Arab overheard me,
and, turning upon me a sad countenance, he
asked if I would commit murder. I replied




162    abe Son of tbe iworbmaker


that under certain conditions I would, most
cheerfully; and he must have believed me; for
he invited us to take our evening meal with
him. We did so, and no gentleman in Rome
could have dispensed his favors with a kindlier
show of hospitality. With commanding grace
he broke bread for us and poured for us the
sweetest milk, and when hunger had been
satisfied he urged us to eat more, begging us
not to despise his humble fare.
"You see now, my children," he said as
Milthias and I stretched ourselves on the
ground, "that I have a soft and generous
heart. Into my nature these qualities were
instilled by my father, who is an old and
afflicted man. I am striving in my weak way
to make him comfortable in Jerusalem, but he
longs to return to Alexandria, the city of his
birth, but I am not able to maintain him there
at present, though I shall as soon, 0 my good
children, as I can. Will you not therefore
help me? Will you not of your rich store
donate to so worthy a purpose?"
So he robbed us again, or at least he robbed
me of what little I had, but Milthias held out
against him, giving him so little that he returned it with a sigh. When he had gone to
his own bed, beyond hearing of us, Milthias
said to me: "Eradmus, in many things you are
strong, but in some others you are like a




across the Desert


i63


child. Is it possible that the Arab could hide
from you so plain a villainy?"
"When I am not ready to fight a man I am
in a position to be robbed," I answered.  His
change of tone was so complete that I did not
know but that it might be a change of nature."
"The leopard that cannot change his spots
is as changeable of nature as the Arabs" Milthias replied. "Even his hospitality is theft.
He cannot be honest; and yet he may live in
the city of honesty and honor. Ah, and within
those sacred walls you will meet men of integrity-the chosen of the Lord."
The nearer we drew unto the city which he
really believed was built by inspired hands,
the more fervent he became. Even a bird
flying from one dwarfed olive tree to another,
awoke his awe, his interest, as if it were the
especial sparrow which could not fall without
the notice of his Deity. "But the doves that
are sacrificed at the altar?" said I, when he
had again reminded me of the divine care
taken of the birds. "Are they not as sacred
as the sparrow? Have you not told me about
a dove that was sent forth during a time of
great flood to search for dry land? And now,
to atone for your sins, you sacrifice the dove.
In what way did your people so sin as to be
under such constant contribution of blood?"
But as he had ever done, he told me that I




164    tbe Son of the SworbmaJer


did not understand. How could I enter into
the atmosphere of his belief and his reverence? With alien eyes I looked upon the
plains and upon these valleys green with verdure here and there. A pool which to him
was holy and which, in the ages past, would
have healed the sickand restored sight to the
blind, was no more to me than a muddy pond
in Italj where geese were wont to swim. I
said that I should like to admire the great
men of his country, but that history gave unto
me no cause, since it was all so mixed with
the erring fervor of religion.
"Does not your history teach you that the
founders of your city of Rome were suckled
by a she-wolf, and do you not believe it?" he
said in a sad voice, halting for a moment to
gaze at an ancient and rough-hewed rock,
planted in the ground.
"History may tell me so, and yet will I not
believe it. And even should I deem it true,
would it be seemly then for me to revere all
wolves?"
He strode on without replying, looking
about for more objects to venerate; and when
we had come near a great heap of stones, he
gathered up a stone and hurled it upon the
pile. I asked him why he did it, and moodily
he said that I could not comprehend the spirit
with which it had been done; and believing




Mcrosn tbe Desert


i65


that there must lie here some enemy of his
race, I also cast a stone to show that I took
sides with him, even though the enemy might
have been a Roman.
Some time before coming within sight of the
city we met a caravan, and ours halted while
the two leaders conversed in Greek. Though
I could get no intelligible meaning out of their
talk, I saw by their gestures that it did not
alone concern the price of commodities in the
market. Milthias, who understood, was much
interested, and when again we had set on, he
said that they had been speaking about a
famous robber named Barabbas, who, though
he pretended to rise in sedition solely against
Roman authority, robbed caravans and helped
himself to goods wherever he could lay hands
upon them. The Arab dragged his pace to
suffer me to overtake him, and when I had, he
said: "If we should soon come upon any of the
Roman troops, will you not beg of them to
give me safe conduct to the city? I am much
in fear of a famous robber, Barabbas." -
With a wink at Milthias, I replied: "That
will not be necessary. The robber you mention is a friend of mine, and although he hates
the Romans in general, he is beholden to me
for saving his life several years gone by, not
far from Jericho."
On this the sacred rround of the world and




i66   Ube 5on ot tbe $worbmaher


of all time, it was but natural that Milthias
should frown upon so evident a lie.  He
clutched my arm and looked into my face, but
I winked him into keeping silent. I mentioned Jericho because it was one of the few
towns the names of which I could command,
and I did not know that this city lay within
the territory of the famous robber's exploits,
but I was soon relieved of all doubt by the
Arab, who said in surprise: "Then you are not
approaching Jerusalem for the first time? I
thought that you said you were a stranger."
"I have never been in the city of Jerusalem,
but was once stationed in Jericho."
Again Milthias clutched my arm, but I whispered him to remain quiet. "I should like to
meet Barabbas again," I continued, observing
by the Arab's countenance, now turned toward
me, that he had begun to give to me not only
his kindest regard but his affections.
"Remember, my son, that I spread a banquet for you," he said, beaming upon me with
tenderness. Ah, how strange it is that those
most given to falsehood are sometimes the
most credulous. The Arab believed me. And
Milthias, now falling into the humor of the
joke, said that Barabbas would sometimes
attack a caravan beneath the very walls of a
city.
"The bolder the safer," said I.




a1cross tbe   eseert


"My sons," said the Arab, "within the midst
of yonder grove is a well of living water.
There shall we halt and feast."
Sons long abroad and just returned to a loving father could not have been served with
more of solicitous grace. The Arab brought
forth sweets of most delicious flavor, and with
them a skin of wine which, when poured, perfumed the air as if those glowing drops had
been distilled from the very scent of the vine
in bloom. And while the meal was still in
progress the Arab returned to me the money
which I had contributed toward the comfort
of his father. When, with a show of hesitation, I held back my hand from taking it, he
urged me not to rob myself for one whom age
and decrepitude had placed beyond all earthly
aid.
When we came within sight of the city,
Milthias smote his breast and uttered a poetic
lamentation. On the spurs of the hills it sat,
holding for him all true history, but to me it
was but a Roman garrison.     Its towers
gleamed in the slanting sun, and from it arose
a white heat, a dazzle; but I could descry no
triumphal arches beneath which had marched
home the conquerors of the world. I wondered why a city had been built there at all, in
that almost sterile place. There were green
valleys, but they were small and few. The




i68    tbe Son of the Sworbmakter


grain fields were remote, and provisions, for
the most part, had to be brought long distances on camels. How could this place ever
have withstood a siege by starvation? No
Roman, with his practical mind, would have
laid out a city on a spot so destitute of all
advantages save one, the firmness of foundation. I was disappointed, but Milthias continued to murmur his admiration. Ah, how
could I blame him? For him the world was
within those walls, just as the world of my
heart was surrounded with logs and mud in
Britain.
Over every hill, and rising up as if out of
the ground, were caravans wending toward
the gates. The Arab had been mounted that
he might better scan the country, but now,
realizing that there was no cause for uneasiness, he dismounted and came back to me
with insolent repentance in his manner and
his looks.
"We have not met your friend," he said.
"Possibly he did not know that I was
coming."
"Did you observe that I held a moment's
converse with a man, just now, a man coming
from the city?"
I had not observed it, but did not dispute
him.  "He brought me news," said the
Arab.




Scross tbe Vesert


169


"Not the news that my friend has been
taken, I hope."
His sharp eyes stabbed at me as he replied:
"No. But the news that my father is much
better. He will now be able to stand the
journey to Alexandria. Would you be so
kind, therefore, as to return the donation so
generously given before?'
"I am afraid that it might tempt him to
make trial of the journey and that he might
die on the road."
"You have eaten of my food and have drunk
of my wine."
"And am willing to recommend your goods
to customers."
"No, not that, but you are willing to rob
me."
Here Milthias interposed, requesting him,
in a kindly way, to observe more care; but it
does not seem to be given to the Arabian
character to distinguish the difference between
kindliness and timidity. So he replied thus to
Milthias: "When I stand in need of your
counsel I will call upon you. Soldier, are you
going to return my father's money or shall I
tell him that you are a robber?"
"Tell him that I am a robber in league with
Barabbas."
"I have come now to believe that you know
him not."




170   Zbe Son of the i5worbmaTer


"Yes, you come into safety and bold beliefs
at the same time."
"Shall I be forced to raise a cry that you
have robbed me?"
"You may raise one cry, but not two. After
the first one you might wonder what had
become of your head; and my friends in the
citadel, yonder, might say, 'Why did you bring
us that lump of desert sand? Ah, it is the
head of an Arab.' Would it look well of me
to go through the streets of this sacred city
carrying such a burden?"
"I shall remember you."
"And commend me to your father."
He mounted his camel, paying no further attention to me, and when, just before entering the gate, I waved him a: farewell, he shut his eyes that he might not see
me.
It was good to behold again a Roman soldier, in arms and on duty; and at the gate I
seized the sentinels by their willing hands and
pressed them hard. Few were the words we
spoke, for well these men could understand.
And now, in the crowded, narrow streets,
there were tides of eager life, not such as one
might view in Rome, broad and free, but
pinched and anxious with care and the constant strife of trade. The Jews themselves
were quiet, the most of them sad with the




across tbe Desert


17I


dignity of suppressed humiliation, but one
who had studied men could see that in their
breasts there was a mastered rage, biding the
time of their deliverance from the stranger
and the pagan. Faith in the coming of some
miracle lent them strength and graced them
with a sort of majesty. One feature of their
intercourse, and which I could not but
observe, was the respect they paid to age.
There was no need to cry, "Make way for this
old man." Way was already made. All eyes
seemed at once to catch revered sight of a
gray beard. Age was wisdom. Wisdom was
closely akin to the prophets, and the prophets
promised deliverance. Arabs, Greeks, men
from the Nile were shouting, quarreling and
sometimes fighting as one blocked the way of
the other, but the Jews were silent.  The
Arabs laughed, the Greeks were sometimes
jolly and the men from the Nile might sing a
song, but the Jews were silent.
Now I had to hasten to keep pace with
Milthias. And he, too, was silent. He had
been gone a long time, and in the throng he
met no acquaintance. Though eager to reach
his home, he lingered for a moment now and
then, at a landmark of his faith, a pillar, a
tablet, to mutter and to muse. After a long
time, halting before turning into another
street, he said to me: "Eradmus, our ways




172   Zbe Don of the $wortmaher


part here; there lies your path, toward the
Tower of Antonia. Mine lies-homeward.
My father's house is not far from here," and
now he was seized with a trembling. "It is
not given to me to know whether they are all
alive and well, my father, mother and sister,
but always in my heart there has been a
prayer for them. Eradmus, though no Roman has ever crossed our threshold, yet out
of gratitude you shall be welcome there. And
may I make a request of you?"
"Speak it, Milthias."
"I fear that you will laugh at me. You have
made light of my faith, of my love for God.
I took it in good part, for I have seen something of the world. But my parents and my
sister have not seen the world, though my
father is a learned man. Will you give unto
their faith the respect of silence?"
"I will say nothing that you do not wish me
to say."
"And if my father should.say that the Romans worship idols, still will you hold your
peace?"
"Yes, unless it is to agree with him. The
Romans do worship idols.    All worship,
whether of the visible or the invisible,"'is of
idols."
He smiled upon me compassionately, as one
smiles upon pitiable ignorance; but into his




Scross tbe Mtesert


I73


eyes there came a look of sudden tenderness,
for he must have thought of the night, in the
thicket, when I had sworn to Vloden that I
would not go and leave him; and I believe
that he would have embraced me had he not
feared the censure of the Jews who were now
wagging their beards, to see us talking so
closely together. I left him, telling him that
I hoped to see him again soon, and turned in
the direction of the Temple, built by Solomon.
The evening was come. The sun was setting.
Suddenly there came the loud peal of trumpets, and from the Temple arose a cloud of
smoke. It was the hour of sacrifice, of prayer
that was supposed to ascend unto heaven in
the smoke from the blood of animals, a service conducted both night and morning. Now,
as I looked downward upon the city, gazing
along the steep streets that looked like
trenches cut in rock, it seemed that the whole
of the inhabitants had been suddenly lifted
from the ground to the tops of the houses, all
with their eyes turned toward the Temple.
It was impressive, speaking as it did of a
devoted state of the human mind, but solemn
as it was, with its almost breathless stillness,
it was in the eye of a soldier more than half
contemptible.  To one born and reared in
Rome, there was really no magnificent spectacle away from his city, and in these low




174    tbe Son of tbe!iworOmaker


houses of whitish rock there was neither
grandeur nor grace. On further up was the
Temple, originally built by King Solomon, but
restored and made grander by Herod the
Great, I had learned from Milthias; and just
north of this was the Tower of Antonia, the
Roman Citadel, frowning with its square and
seemingly impregnable walls. As may be
known of me by this time, I had no reverence
for a building dedicated to ignorance and
fanaticism, but upon this Temple, this pile of
marble, no one could look without an emotion
of wonder and of pleasure. Ah, and now I
was on ground sacred also to me, for here
great Pompey had taught the Jews that
Roman skill and valor could overcome a wild
religious zeal.  Prophecies are but words
written in the dust, to be blown away; appeals
to the god of battle are but as breaths sighed
out in the darkness of a stormy night. All
are vain against the strength and the precision
of the legions of Rome, a human machine
organized by the mind of man. Thus I mused
as onward I went, now hastening to meet my
friends. At the gate of the fortress the sentinel knew me. On the wall above my name
was spoken. There was no surprise, no
word louder than an ordinary tone. All
things that came into the soldier's life came
without marvel, his victories, his defeats, his




across tbe Uesert        I75
escapes. Over the stones of the courtyard I
strode, at home again beneath the eagles; and
I entered a mess-room and there were Limprosus and Sempre, in the midst of an argument. Silently they looked at me, still catching at each other's phrases, loth to leave off.
They did not seem to realize that I had come
back to them.




CHAPTER XIV
Ett the lbouse of a JfrienD
Y S WELL might they have expected a
return of one from the dead; but there
I  vwas no outspoken astonishment. They
embraced me with the strength of soldiers, and each one, fearing that he might forget the point he wished to make, turned again
to argument. "But I have seen him," said
Limprosus. "I have heard him speak, and if
he has not the words of all wisdom, then
never was wisdom known to man."
"He may have much wisdom, but you have
called him a god," Sempre replied. "And I
have seen you pay heed to idlers who talk as
carelessly as the wind lists; and these idlers
say that he heals the sick and restores sight to
the blind. If you do not believe them, why
do you give to them the ear of encouragement?"
"I have not said that I do not believe them,
Limprosus made haste to reply, uttering his
words in a deep and solemn voice.
"But will you say to me now that you do
believe them?" Sempre insisted; and I looked
176




l1t tbe lbouie of a frtenb)


I77


at Limprosus, expecting to see his countenance
deny sooner than he could with words the
imputation that he had parted company with
his reason. But his countenance underwent
no change, except to become graver, and we
waited in silence for him to speak.
"I will say to you now that I do not disbelieve them. Do you remember an old blind
man that sat about the castle gate? We found
him when we came, and I was told that such
had been his daily custom for many years.
Not long ago his son went down to the harvest, in the fields that lie out toward Jericho.
One day he returned in haste, and, mounting
his father on an ass, led him out into the
country. And when the old man returned, he
could see. I talked to him. I saw him no
longer ago than yesterday-and he was at
work, and I questioned him closely, so that I
might not misunderstand his words; and he
said that the god-man had healed him."
"A good physician," said Sempre.
"But he employed no medicines. He spoke
-told him that he could see and instantly he
could see. Was not that a miracle?"
"A miracle of credulity.  But you have
seen this man that calls himself the son of a
god?"
"No, he does not call himself the son of a
god, but the Son of God."




178    bte Son of tbe iwotrmaker


"Very well. You simply emphasize the
absence of a difference. This, however, is
what I wish to say: You saw him and you
heard him speak, but did you see him speak
vision into the eyes of the blind, hearing into
the ears of the deaf, strength into the legs of
the cripple? Or did you listen, blunting your
reason, believing him when he told of the
wonderful things that he had performed?"
"He tells of nothing that he has done. But
did I see him with my own eyes do any of the
things that are attributed to him? No, I did
not. A small squadron of us were returning
from a village where there had been a riot.
Along in the afternoon we halted in a small
town to refresh ourselves and our horses.
Near a public fountain were gathered a number of people, Jews and Greeks, Arabs-men
of all the countries hereabout. The gathering was orderly and the centurion paid no
attention; but while the horses were resting
I walked toward the assembly, looking for
some sort of diversion; and the moment I
came within hearing of the One who was
speaking I felt my heart beat quicker, with
the sound of his voice, even before I understood his quiet words. I saw that he was a
Jew, and I did not know but that he might
cease to talk when I came near, but he did
not, nor did he cast upon me a silent reproach




St tbe louse of a frten '


179


for my coming. In truth, he looked upon me
with the kindliest eyes I have ever seen.
Some of the people were in tears. Others
seemed to be angry, and I observed that
these latter were Jews above the ordinary
station in life. One of them, a man that wore
rich raiment and his black beard flowing
down upon his breast, spoke to me.
"'Why is it,' said he, 'that this man who
insults every Jew by calling himself the King
of the Jews-why is it that he is permitted to
preach such sedition against Tiberius, and
that, too, within the hearing of the soldiers of
the empire?'
"'I have heard him preach no sedition,' I
answered, 'but if you will not seek to draw
my attention from him I may hear what he
has to say.' He went away muttering, and I
gave my willing ear to the man whose name
they say is Jesus. I have always believed that
true wisdom  was simple.  I could never
accept a man as being great because he was
girdled about with gold. This man??
"But what did he say that was so simple and
so wise?" Sempre broke in, impatiently.
"Surely you can remember something. I am
not trying to confuse you. I desire to know."
"Sempre, it seems that I felt rather than
heard what he said. Indeed, the most of what
he uttered was a wisdom which not without




I8o0     be SBon of the iwoormaker


much marring can be respoken. That which
to Socrates was misty and uncertain, was to
this man clear as day. But we are showing
but little respect to our friend. And "now,
Eradmus, if we have not too far offended you
with our seeming carelessness of your return,
tell us your story."
"Yes," said Sempre, "from the time you
were carried away; but. first let me give our
brief recital. We received no message of the
massacre. Night came, and when the detachment did not return, we were marshaled forth,
through the dark. And then, by the dull
torches, we beheld a bloody sight, there in the
new road, in the forest. Carefully the mutilated bodies were counted, and when we did
not find you among them, we thought that
you must have escaped; but when the days
passed and you did not return, we thought
that you were taken and killed or that you
had been devoured by the wolves. There was
talk of a march against the Britons, but soon
there came an order for our withdrawal from
the island. Now you may tell your story."
I told it, in as few words as I could, with
guarded mention of Vloden.  Like children
they listened, with never an interruption until I
mentioned the name of Milthias. For a long
time I held his name for a surprise, referring
to him not even as a Jew, but as my fellow




Bt tbe Ibouse of a irfent)


slave; and when at last I said that he was a
Jew and that his name was Milthias, Limprosus showed more of surprise than I. supposed
him  capable of feeling.  His countenance
lighted with pleasure, and he said: "I am
thankful that you saved him. Of course he
came with you to Jerusalem? You told him
that you were acquainted with me? Then he
will soon be here, in this room; and when I
talk to him about the man Jesus, he will
understand."
We sat up that night as long as we were
permitted to, stealing even a moment or two
that we might talk. When we had lain down
in the dark, Sempre, who was near me, waited
until he thought Limprosus was asleep and
then he said, in a tone but little above a whisper, lest the sentry making his rounds should
hear: "They call this the land of wisdom, but
it is the country of fanaticism, of narrowness
and of greed." He waited, and now assured
that Limprosus was not awake, he added: "I
believe that the old man is losing his mind.
Whenever he hears anything that he cannot
understand, he believes it to be wisdom. So
much has the foolish study of Plato done for
him. He is no longer a good soldier. He
has begun to talk about feeling and heart.
This is the beginning of decay. Even in an
argument he is more patient than he was, and




182    Zbe ion of the $wortmafter


this means the gradual death of spirit. Here
comes a man, without an army, without followers except the lowly and the ignorant, and
calls himself a king. It should provoke a
smile of pity, if anything at all. Limprosus
listens, cannot tell what the man said, but half
believes in his claim. You remember the
woman that broke my brother's pride and
caused him to fall upon his sword? Well, she
is here, living no one knows how, no longer
fit to drive a chariot. Limprosus is almost in
the humor to forgive her. Twice she has
come to see him. He was surprised to find
that I knew her. When I told him that my
brother was the son of the wine merchant
and that she had caused his death, he said
nothing. It made no impression on him.
In his eyes she stood forgiven.  The old
man is losing his mind. She tells him that
she loves him and he believes her. Could
there be better proof that his faculties are
ebbing?"
It was still early in the forenoon of the following day when word was brought to Limprosus and to me that Milthias was without
the gate. Our centurion gave permission for
him to enter. The meeting of these old
friends was quiet. They embraced, and in the
eyes of the Jew there were tears, but Limprosus, though losing his faculties, was still a




at the Iouse of a frtenb


I83


soldier. Milthias put his hand on my shoulder
and said:
"I owe my life here."
"I 'have thanked him," spoke Limprosus.
Sempre was introduced and he bowed with
coldness. He hated all Jews. They were the
enemies of his country. But after a time,
remembering that Milthias and I had suffered
together, this Roman youth looked with less
of chilliness upon my friend. On the couches
we sat and were soon at ease, one with another, but Milthias could not conceal his sadness. It was here that his people had fought
to maintain the honor and the independence
of the Jewish nation. On those stone slabs,
which now served for couches, their blood
had been shed. Pompey and Herod came
thundering down from the north. The Jews
died bravely, some of them at least. There
was naught else to do. Fate had called for
their blood.
Before long, however, Limprosus began to
talk of his wise man. Sempre arose and
walked away. I was glad that there was now
to be no argument. Here were two men who
were likely to agree. I would hold my peace.
But soon I saw that there was to be no agreement. Milthias opposed the claims of the
philosopher. He said that such a man could
not be the king of the Jews Where was his




184    tbe Son of tbe Swortmaher


power? How was he to deliver Judea? How
was he to prove that he was a descendant of
David? "My father saw him in Bethany,"
said Milthias. "He is an impostor, a false
prophet, and in this land there have been many
of them. Centuries have passed since Israel
had a true prophet.  The true ones have
always been venerable men, learned in the
laws of our fathers; but this man would
destroy the very law of Moses."
"Wait until you have heard him," said Limprosus.
"But I tell you that my father has seen him
and has heard him. Is not that sufficient?"
"No, not sufficient. Every man must see
and hear for himself. But tell me, my friend,
did you not say that your great book promised to your people a Son of God?"
"Yes, but the son of all power will not be as
a beggar upon his own earth. He would not
suffer insults at the hands of invaders. At
his command the stones themselves would rise
up as soldiers, armed to fight his battles. It
is strange, Limprosus, that a Roman soldier
should be so ready to believe. There are two
minds that believe with singular readinessthe mind that is ignorant and the mind that is
cultivated. One is too weak to defend itself
against assertion, and the other, having
become spiritualized, is sometimes ready to




Ett tbe ibouse of a jfrtent8


i85


accept the unreasonable and the absurd. Of
what use to Judea would be a pauper king?
Suppose that he should be a wise man, a
philosopher. Wisdom does not necessarily
inherit a scepter, nor is philosophy the fulfillment of prophecy. God has promised a king,
to rule over the Jews, to make them all-powerful throughout the world. When he appears,
the gates of Rome cannot prevail against him.
But come, let me conduct you to my father's
house, where we may eat of the bread that he
blesses for us. Come, Eradmus, he is anxious
to see you."
Leave was granted us and we accompanied
Milthias, but not before I had been provided
with.new raiment. After bathing and arraying myself afresh in the habiliments of my
calling, how new I felt! The air was pleasant.  From  afar off came the perfume of
flowers. After all, the neighborhood was not
such a desert. From the height which we
were now slowly descending, I could see far
out over the country. Here and there were
cool, green and inviting valleys. But the
scene did not remind one of Rome, the center
of the world-of villas, one of which was as
rich as a principality.
Milthias was bright and cheerful. He said
that during the evening and the most of the
night, his father's house had been a house of




I86    tbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


prayer.  There assembled the fathers of
families, with tears glistening on their white
beards. His father was loved and honored of
all.
The house was plain, but of goodly size, the
dwelling place of a successful man, but there
was no attempt at display, no ceremony. We
were met and made to feel that we were welcome. The father was not very old, but
looked venerable. The mother was a lovable,
tender woman, with a voice as sweet as an
evening hymn. And who was this shy young
woman, whose black eyes were so large and
so bright? It was the sister, Amana. The
father's name was Leboac. The mother was
Lamela, daughter of a wise man who had
stood high among the people. Milthias had
told my story, and he had not omitted to
mention Vloden; and that name, now uttered
by Amana, the beautiful girl, thrilled me,
made my heart stand motionless and then
beat wildly.
"Tell me about her," said the girl. The
mother, the father and Limprosus were now
talking. The girl was granting her countenance and her ears to me. Not knowing how
much of my heart she might be able to guess
from what Milthias had told her, I was at
something of a loss, but soon she enlightened
me with the knowledge that the princess was




tt tbe lbouse of a frtenb


I87


enamored of me and that I humored her to
win my liberty. Now it was easier, and I
talked to her a long time. Her manner was
free, her voice warm and cordial, and yet
there was a restraint which came not alone
from the fact that we had met for the first
time. I could not discover by word or tone
that she was hiding any part of her nature
from me. Her shyness vanished and she was
frank and outspoken, and yet I felt that there
was a mountain between us. It was not alone
that Rome held Judea in bondage and that I
was a Roman. It was something that meant
more to her than this. It was that I did not
acknowledge her God. As I say, nothing had
been said, and yet I knew. She asked me
many questions concerning Rome and my
early life, and she was moved with pity when
I made her feel how cold it had been. She
could not understand why mothers and fathers
did not love their children except-. H'ere
she broke off suddenly and her face grew
scarlet. I urged her to continue, but still she
hesitated. I told her that I was glad of her
confusion, that nothing the like of it in beauty
had I seen since Vloden stood glowing before me. "For this sight I am indebted to
a cause and I should like to know what that
cause is," said I. "You need not be afraid of
offending me. You can see no reason why




i88    tbe Son of tbe Swootmaker


parents do not love their children excepts
what?"
"Except that they know not God," she
said. I could have told her that in Rome
there was many a beautiful love, of parents
for children and of children for parents; I
could have said what I believed, that love was
a temperament and not a religion; but I was
under promise to Milthias not, to dispute with
her, though how was it possible to talk to
these people and ignore their belief?
She was surprised that I spoke Hebrew so
well, though she knew that her brother was a
good teacher; and then she lamented that her
language was slowly dying. She said that in
its original purity it was now rarely heard,
except among members of the older families.
The Greek and the Latin were driving it from
the streets, from the market places; but it was
still the language of devout prayer. From
Milthias I had heard time and again the Jewish story of the world's creation, of the garden
where man was commanded not to eat of a
fruit and then so tempted that he did eat, but
I requested her to tell it me. She told it as if
she believed it, as if her eyes had seen the
flaming sword that kept man from entering
the garden again. Yet she was an educated
girl, spoke Greek and could read Latin. But
for all this she was ignorant of the most im



ISt the 1bouse of a ifrenb


I89


portant thing that man is given to know-that
he is ignorant of the origin of things. I could
not see wherein her forefathers were so different from mine. Both owned slaves, and for
the purposes of their religion they offered up
human beings. The main point was that her
God was not represented by stone, brass or
gold; and yet, from what I had been able to
gather, constant watch had to be maintained
to keep them from worshiping idols. Milthias acknowledged that a great man, named
Aaron, had made a calf out of gold and that
the people wanted to worship it, even though
some of them had seen the real God and knew
that he must be still alive. After a time she
asked me what I thought of the city of Jerusalem, and frankly I told her that compared
with Rome it was mean.
"Your people do not seem to know how to
make a place beautiful," said I. "You have
had great soldiers, but I see no evidence in
marble or bronze that they have lived. Your
city has no statues in the public places, so far
as I have seen, though I confess that I have
been over but a small part of it. Surely
among so many poets there must have been
sculptors."
During this speech she looked at me with
pity in her eyes. "It is contrary to our law to
make graven images," she said.




Igo    abe Son of the Sworbmafer


"May I ask why, since they might be beautiful?"
"But it is wrong to worship beauty, to look
upon it with an idolatrous eye; and that is
what the people might do. The lawmakers
were wise."
I did not wish to pursue this subject; but I
liked to hear her talk, her voice was so soft
and sweet; so I inquired about her school.
She told me of her studies, but soon we were
back among the prophets, for they were the
pillars of all learning. I knew that the inner
life of the city was warm and affectionate, and
I talked to her about her home, of her parents
and of her brother; and when I described our
slavery among the Britons, her eyes glowed.
She said that it was noble of me not to leave
Milthias there in those cruel wilds; and as I
looked upon her I counted him fortunate in
the love of such a sister: Now we joined the
others, having withdrawn a little apart from
them; and I was pleased, for Mfthias was
smiling and Limprosus was in good humor.
Leboac was a learned man.  He had not
halted with mastering the traditions and the
narrow history of his country, but was able to
meet Limprosus on the familiar ground of
Greek philosophy. He had spent much time
at Alexandria, where men discourse upon
many things; and I wondered why these wise




'Bt tbe bouse of a Irten   '


I9I


men had not devised some weapon with which
they might go forth and exterminate the
Romans; but it seems that wisdom contents
itself largely with the knowledge that it is
wise.
Lamela was interested in the talk, for, companion of her husband, she kept genial pace
with him, reading the books that he read; but
it was not to be expected that she should
acquire a judgment so deep. They all of
them were too learned for me. Looking back,
I regret the waste of these, the opportunities
that were thrown in my way, for had I seized
upon them with thankfulness, I should now tell
my story with more of smoothness and of grace.
But I was ignorant, unable to look forward
and to see the coming of a time when words
should be counted for more, when spoken
with sincerity, than all the swords that ever
flashed in the sun.


N1 -



CHAPTER XV


ibe Came ifte a t)artk ibabow
t  MADE free to visit this family as unrestrainedly as my garrison life would permit. With them all I was on terms of
friendship. I was in the midst of them
of a morning, of an evening, when bread was
broken.  I stood upon the housetop with
them, the girl beside me, and gazed at the
cloud of smoke arising from the bosom of the
temple. I was with them in the hallway of
the fountain when they drew together with
affection to sing their hymns or to read the
book of the prophets. I heard their prayers,
their laughter, their words of love, one to
another. I knew that they looked upon me
not only with exceeding kindness, but in gratitude. And still I was compelled always to feel
and to know that between us there lay a
colder sea than that which in winter lapped the
icy shores between Gaul and Britain. Among
the scholars of all countries there seems to be
a brotherhood.  They meet upon ground
sacred not alone to sects but to the human
mind.
192




Tbe Came   iftke a IDarhk  babow


I93


Between Limprosus and Leboac there was
close sympathy. In a way their minds were
attuned as two strings, adjusted by a correct
ear. But between them, too, there was that
cold gulf. Men who talk much together must
strike differences, or with constant and expected agreements they grow weary of one
another. Limprosus and Leboac found their
differences every time they met, in the interpretations of a Greek text, in the drama or in
philosophy, though never was there an impatient word or an ungentle look. But in his
heart Leboac was as a stranger. Not so with
Limprosus.  In his bosom  there lived no
secret prejudices of race or condition. In war
he had shed man's blood, but in peace I
believe that he had repented of it. I know
that he strove to win the complete confidence,
the unreserved friendship of the father of
Milthias, and I know that he failed.
At this time there were stationed in Jerusalem not so many as a legion of Romans. It
has been said that the roster did not show
more than a thousand men. In all quarters
of the world Rome's needs were urgent, but
how unwise it was to keep so small a force in
so important.a city! I was not a soldier of
much experience, nor was I learned enough in
public affairs to be a man of much estimation,
but I did not see how any man could shut his




194    Cbe $on of the 5wortmaher


eyes to the danger of an uprising of the
peop le. Toward this end the smallness of the
garrison was a temptation.
I understood that the Procurator, Pilate, was
somewhat of a favorite at Rome. Limprosus
said that he had at least been advanced
beyond his deservings; but be that as it may,
he could have had more troops had he petitioned for them. His official residence was at
Caesarea, but he spent much of his time in
Jerusalem, living while here in the magnificent
palace of Herod the Great. You cannot
judge well of the character or the temperament of a man when you see him in a chariot;
and it was thus that I first saw Pilate, proceeding through a street well swept by a troop of
horse. But the observation I had of him gave
to me the impression that he was, if not a
voluptuary, still a man given much to the table
and to wine. There was no sort of demonstration as he passed along. All was quiet,
save for the clatter of the hoofs of the horses
and the rumble of the chariot wheels. It is
said that the leaders among the Jews avowed
to him that their people would remain passive
so long as they were suffered to observe the
rites of their religious faith. This appeared
to be true, but throughout the land there were
occasional riots that sometimes threatened to
broaden into an insurrection.




e Came llike a 2Parh Sbabow


I95


A man who had called himself the king of
the Jews had been put to death and a number
of his followers destroyed. Some of those
who were suspected merely of sympathizing
with him had suffered. The Jews believed
that their Savior was to come, and that, too,
at a time when he was most needed, when
Judea was most humiliated. But they scoffed
at all evidences of poverty and of weakness.
David had been strong, and they worshiped
strength. Milthias, while walking about the
Tower grounds with Limprosus and with me,
had said: "If the Jews permit a man to arise
and to call himself a prophet in their name,
they all of them lay themselves liable to the
penalty of extermination. I tell you, Limprosus, that when the true king comes, he will
need no proof from fishermen and paupers.
He will wear a crown."
"It is true that all must know when a king
shall come," Limprosus replied. "But it was
not of a king nor of a man of visible power
that I was considering. I have seen kings in
plenty.  I have seen them die with their
impotent crowns on their heads. I was thinking of a man who might bring evidence of an
actual, a living God."
"My dear friend," said Milthias, "such proof
has always existed. You may say that it has
not existed for you, that it has not been made




I96    cbe Son of tbe iworbntaker


plain to you; but all that is required of you is
to exercise your reason and to accept the
truth. Down through the ages-down to me
has come the word of the men who have seen
God. We have the Scriptures. You have
read them. What further evidence do you
need?"
"Milthias, it is easy enough to convince a
man if you begin with him in his cradle," Limprosus replied. "Yea, if you begin with the
cradle of his race. Your race and my race
did not share the same cradle."
"No," Milthias rejoined, "that is true; but
they did not find it necessary to go to your
cradle to convince you that the Nazarene
Jesus is a representative of that God of whose
existence you demand proof."     *
It seemed to 'me that to this there was no
answer, but without hesitation Limprosus
spoke: "If there be a God, he must be the
God of wisdom. If this man Jesus possesses
more wisdom than a Plato, he must be in close
kinship with that God. You who have been
crushed are looking for power. I who have
crushed am looking for wisdom."
Ah, it seemed that for Limprosus there was
nothing but argument. There was no one to
agree with him. Of what avail was it to read
books? Knowledge brings company, but disputatious company. Ignorance soon settles its




be Came Xthe a    )arh Sbabow


197


differences. The stronger rules. Ignorance
is never in doubt as to whom to pay court.
One evening Limprosus and I were at the
house of Leboac when there came a kinsman
of the family. His name was Belthius. He
lived near the shore of the Lake of Galilee.
When he arrived we were sitting in the small
courtyard, where the air was cooled by a fountain. In the soft light of the lamp he came
like a great dark shadow. He was of powerful build. How fair a price he would have
brought in the Temple of Castor! A legion
of such men, well trained, would have been
worth more to the Jews than all of their
beliefs in prophets, of mysterious forces that
were to set them free from bondage. He
scowled at Limprosus and me, and Leboac,
upon introducing us, made haste to explain
that we were the friends of his son and had
in the wilds of a far-off country saved his life.
Belthius thanked us. In blood relationship
he and Milthias were not close, but this stood
for naught. These Jews claimed and rejoiced
in kinship to a degree that would have -'een
ridiculous in Rome, except where the lowly
claim the distinction of being of the same
blood as the great. Here, however, humiliation and the misfortunes of race brought them
closer to one another's love.
When Leboac asked for tidings from the




198    tbe Son of tbe Zworomaker


country, Belthius answered that the land
was much excited over the man Jesus. Whenever he made his appearance in a town the
multitude became so great that it was hard
for one to pass along the street. "But," Belthius added, bowing to Limprosus and to me,
"with all respect to your friends and the
power which they represent, I see no deliverance in mobs that spend themselves with gazing and with listening.  But, Leboac, you
yourself have seen him."
"Yes, while his fortunes, or perhaps his misfortunes, were as yet small," Leboac replied.
"It should seem that the Procurator would
have put him down before this. It is because,
however, that our rulers reject him as their
prince. If we should accept him it would
mean rebellion and, of course, soon come to
naught, with much suffering on the part of our
people. But tell me, Belthius, are any men of
note following him?"
"Some of them wear the raiment of good
station, but for the most part his adherents are lowly. I heard one man say that
they would arm themselves and go forth
to fight, but that their master forbade all
force."
"Then why does he invite followers?"
Leboac spoke up. "Does he think that he
can persuade the Romans to withdraw from




tbe Came Xthe a Darh Sbabow


I99


Judea? Will he by mere talk attempt to reestablish the throne of David?"
Limprosus could not stand clear of an argument, though I touched him to keep him quiet.
He said that perhaps the prophecies were
wrongly interpreted. It might be that the Son
of God would choose to come with persuasion
rather than with the sword.
The eyes of Amana, the daughter of the
household, were turned with a sort of pity
upon my friend. How could a Roman speak
thus? She seemed to feel ashamed for him.
She gave to me a look which I felt meant that
I should follow her. She arose and went over
to the fountain where the water, in the light,
looked like spouting wine. I followed her.
What was it that she would say to me? I was
soon enlightened.
"My brother Milthias is becoming restless,"
she said, turning her great dark eyes upon
me. There was no pity in them for me.
Sometimes they sparkled with mischief, but
now they were aglow. I bowed, waiting for
her to proceed. "He would again go forth in
a ship to trade," she said, "and I wish you
to persuade him to remain at home. My
mother is deeply anxious, but father, as much
as he loves my brother, does not seem to
grasp the distress of his going away again.
Alas, can our people think of nothing but to




200    tbe Son of tbe Sworbmaler


trade? It was the eagerness to buy and to sell
that took Israel's thoughts away from God,
and then they were left to their enemies."
"Fair sister," I replied, "I should not like to
see him go away, but as he is not in love with
idleness, what is there left for him but trade?
Your religion robs him of the arts. In Rome
one may paint and carve, but here the finer
feelings are imprisoned, serving an eternal
sentence. If they find expression, it must be
in prayer. An emotion addressed to an
unseen deity is not of the noblest. Man's best
thoughts must be addressed to man. A statue
of a god is only great because it pleases the
eye of man. Whether or not it delights a
deity must be imagined. Let your brother go
to Rome."
In her eyes there was no pity for me, but
there was scorn. "You would have him
become an idolater." She turned about and
looked toward Limprosus, now in an
argument with Belthius.  "Your friend is
ready to believe everything but the truth, and
you are ready to believe nothing."
Just at this moment Limprosus called me,
warning me that we must take our leave.
But I took the time to apologize to the
maiden. I told her that I had no intention of
tainting her brother with idolatry and that if
I could I would persuade him to remain at




the Came Lite a 2Darh Sbabow   201
home. She thanked me with her eyes and
with words that were as soft and as sweet as
the murmur of the fountain.
Even after we had taken leave, Limprosus
showed a disposition to linger, to have one
more word with Belthius. Surely it was as
Sempre had said. The old man was losing
his mind, or, if not that, he was acquiring a
mind that could be of no use to him.




CHAPTER XVI


On tbe Steps of the 1RutneD Portico
HE small garrison was wanting in cavairy, and frequently the infantry was
mounted to perform special service.
The school through which the most of
us had gone enabled us to change without
inconvenience from one branch of the service
to another. This gave to me an opportunity
to make excursions into the country.  In
parts of the territory of Judea, of Samaria and
of Idumea, all under Pilate, the presence of
troops was almost constantly demanded.
Sometimes they were sent from one garrison
and sometimes from another, to suit the
occasion of nearness. On the morning after
my latest visit to the house of Leboac, I was
one of a small squadron ordered to make all
possible haste to quell a riot out somewhere
on the road to Jericho.
It was pleasant to be out in the country,
astride a mettled horse. It was early when
we cantered forth through the Jericho gate.
The air was sweet with the dews of the night.
As far as I could see, were camels bringing
202




On tbe Steps of tbe 1RuineZ Portico 203


their burdens into the city; and doubtless
somewhere among the Arabs, shrewd masters
of the humpbacked beasts, was that dutiful
son who, by ceaseless industry, was striving to
acquire money enough to send his aged father
to Alexandria, but I was not likely to meet
him on this road. I might, however, come
upon Barabbas, and I mused that should I have
the opportunity to talk to him, I would tell
him of the caravan master who lived in such
fear of him, and of the advantage I derived
from having claimed him as my friend. The
road was not a Roman road, smooth and
straight wherever it could be made so, but was
crooked and in places rough with stones. The
rocks about which the way was compelled to
wind were not removed for the reason that
over them the prophets had passed; and to
have broken them and taken the fragments
away would, no doubt, have been regarded in
the light of a sacrilege. I wished for Milthias, that he might point out the objects of
interest. Not that they would have interested
me, but that it would have given him pleasure. A picture of his sister arose in my mind.
Again I could see her look of scorn. I would
keep my word with her. I would urge Milthias not to return with his ship to barbarian
waters; but if he should go he might touch
upon Britain. He might see Vloden. Yes, I




204     tbe Son of thbe 5worbmaher


would urge him not to go, but did I hope that
he would not?
We scouted the country round about,
passed through several villages, but nowhere
came we upon a place that appeared to have
been the scene of a late disturbance; but on
the following day we saw numerous people
crossing the fields and thronging the highways. There was a village not far distant,
and the centurion, supposing that this was the
meeting place, urged onward; and soon we
came into the one street that led through the
hamlet. Here the people were gathered in a
great mass, but there was no sign of an uprising against authority. About halfway down
the thoroughfare there was a widening, a sort
of plaza, almost as broad as a small field. To
this plaza the people were flocking. The centurion ordered them to make way. This they
did without the slightest show of resistance.
In the midst of the plaza there was a well, /
and near it a ruined porch, the crumbling
portal of some ancient temple. On the steps
of this ruin stood'a man. He was delivering
an oration. Close about him were gathered
a small number of his more especial followers.
We drew rein and waited, though not within
easy hearing of the speaker; but all was quiet.
There was not a sound except the low tones
of his oration and the deep breathing of the




On tbe Steps of the 1Ruineb Porttco 205
multitude. A space was cleared about our
troop. Out from the throng, to the left of us,
came a man who wore some sort of a badge
to distinguish him. He alone of all whom I
saw appeared to be excited. He saluted,the
centurion. "What is it you desire?" the centurion inquired.
"I would ask, sir, why this man, who calls
himself the King of the Jews, is permitted to
disturb the affairs of the community and to
render it impossible to conduct the business of
the day. I ask you to disperse this mob and
to place that man under arrest."
"Who is he?"
"He is one Jesus and he calls himself the
King of the Jews."
"What harm is he doing? I cannot understand him very well, but he seems to be
preaching meekness, obedience and love,
rather than sedition. Under the law of Rdcme
are not you and all the rest granted the freedom of speech, and the right to exercise your
religious functions? This man is holding
some sort of religious service, for see, those
that can best hear him are in tears. Hark
you, whoever you are, you are causing, and
are likely to cause, more trouble with your
noisy complaint than he with his oration. See
that you yourself observe better order."
When the man Jesus had ceased to speak




206    tbe ion of the Sworamaker


the crowd began to disperse, but he continued
for a time to stand on the step of the porch,
conversing with those who pressed forward to
obtain a closer view of him. Slowly our
troop moved forward, now in broken order,
to water the horses at the well. It was then
that I had a close view of the man. He
looked in no way like a god, unless it were a
god stricken with grief. About him there was
not the bearing of one who would seek to be a
king. He was of goodly height. His brown
hair fell upon his shoulders. In everything he
suggested gentleness and in nothing physical
strength. He' looked toward me and I saw
that his eyes were tender, clear and soft.
They called him a Jew, but his face was not
characteristic of any race that I had ever seen.
Surely no triumph had ever brought his prototype to Rome. The features of grief may not
be handsome, but they are never devoid of a
sort of nobleness, for they show character,
without which no face may be strong enough
to remain in our memory. I knew that much
curiosity often discovers a fictitious interest.
I knew that it required reason to separate
notoriety from greatness. But about this man
the idlest and most indifferent eye could have
seen a strange force, a power in humility.
A word from my commanding officer would,
of course, have essayed me to cut him down.




O'n the Steps of tbe Kutneb I)ortIco 207


Had he declared himself a king to resist the
authority of Rome he would have been my
enemy, but as I gazed upon him now he
seemed the enemy of nothing that lived.
Have you stood upon a hilltop when the glare
of the day was gone and all the world was at
peace? He was the embodiment of such a
peace. When the music of a hymn has been
hushed, have you heard a music sweeter than
the softest sound?  He was the essence of
such a music. And yet I was a soldier, ready
to shed his blood, yea, though he were the
statue of the god of grief, come to life. But
he was human, the most human of all humanity. I did not believe that he possessed miraculous power. Whence could come such a
power, save from the gods? And they were
myths. But the people-and many still lingered upon the scene-expected some wonderful demonstration.  They were there to
demand physical proof of a spiritual force.
But it appeared to me that while many of
them wished to be convinced, others were
prepared to disbelieve in the man, no matter
what he might do. The lovers of traditions
are sometimes the enemies of those who
would overturn them, even though it might be
to reveal a truth. With many, the desire to
believe is an evidence of the truth.
Near by stood an old man, a priest, consult



208     Zbe ion of the Swortmaker


ing a roll of the prophets and then anon scanning the face and the bearing of Jesus, to
determine whether or not he were the one
spoken of by the writer of the ancient book.
After a time he shook his head and cried out:
"False, falsel He comes not as the promised
one."
Sempre, who sat on his horse near me and
nearer to the priest than I was, touched him
with his spear and said: "He may be nothing
that he claims to be, and yet is he not so false
as yourself. You would stir up trouble, and if
you do, let me assure you that my spear will
single you out. Roll up your barbaric war
songs and away with you."
He went his way, muttering and wagging
his head. Suddenly there was a commotion
about the stone steps. A cry arose that a
miracle had been performed. I saw a woman
throw her arms about a young man. I heard
some one say that he had been possessed of
devils and that Jesus had cast them out. He
was doubtless insane, and something about
Jesus, his quiet air and his low and commanding words, had spoken peace to the madman's
troubled mind.  But to me that was no
miracle, other than the power of mind. How
did they know that the youth was possessed
of devils? No one saw the devils that were
cast out of him. No one could prove that




On tbe Steps of tbe 1Ruineb 1orttco 209


devils existed; but the young man was cured
of his mental distemper and the people
shouted. Then appeared again the priest who
had searched the roll of the prophets. "Beware of him," he cried. "He is under the
authority of Beelzebub."
"Who in the name of Mars is he?" Sempre
inquired, laughing. "But no matter whose
authority he is under, the work seems to be
good. Remember that if any trouble should
arise, my first fling is at you."
We now proceeded on our return to Jerusalem. Crossing a wooded hill, to make shorter
the road, we came upon a wretch hanging
upon a cross, crucified under the law. We
halted for a moment or two to look at him, it
being for the most of us a novel sight. He
was conscious, though we learned that he had
already hung for two days upon the cross. He
looked down upon us and begged us most
piteously to dispatch him. "Why. were you
'crucified?" the centurion inquired, and he
answered that he had. been accused and convicted of stealing, but that he was not guilty.
"Take me down," he moaned, "and let me be
your slave." He begged for water, but we
passed on and left him.
"If he were a murderer he might have
arisen to the dignity and the favor of having
his head cut off," said Sempre, who rode




2IO     Zbe Son of the oworbmafter


beside me. "If a man is going to be a criminal, how unwise to be a small one. It is, Eradmus, as we have often agreed. No power
respects weakness. That is the reason the
Jews can find no wisdom in the man Jesus.
They construe his gentleness into lack of
strength, but if there be strength in self-possession he is strong. I do not now wonder
that Limprosus was impressed."
"I have heard that everywhere he makes
more of an intellectual impression upon the
Roman than on the Jew," I replied. "And I
heard, though I do not recall who told me,
that it makes no difference in what tongue he
may speak, every one hears him or at least
understands him in his own language. But
do you remember what language he spoke in
just now?"
"Greek," Sempre answered.
"No, that cannot be, for when his voice was
high enough I understood his words, but I am
almost a stranger to Greek."
"It is possible that he employed first one
language and then another," said Sempre.
"But it is not the command of many tongues
that renders him impressive to me. It is his
godlike calmness." And after a time, as if
he were seriously thinking about this strange
man, he added: "But none of his attributes
can lead him to any good except to the set



On tbe Steps of tbe 1Rutneb Portico 211


ting up of a school. I should think that Rome
would be a better field for him. I do not
believe he is a Jew. He has not the eager
face of these people. Ah, I was wondering
what notice the Roman authority will be compelled to take of his growing influence."
"What notice can be taken of him if his
influence be not against the government?" I inquired, also musing deeply, for I was interested.
"But," said Sempre, "all movements that
excite the people must in time come under the
censure of authority. Being so gentle, he will
perhaps desist when warned not to deliver his
orations. I wish that Limprosus could have
come with us. It is unfortunate that his age
is withdrawing him from active duty. I have
heard that he has been granted the liberty to
quit the service whenever he shall be so
inclined. It will please him when we deliver
our reports of the strange man. There will,
however, arise a difference in the views we
take of him. One look and one hearing of
him have brought you and me to the very
limit of our faith in him. We know that he is
but a man, since it is not given to one on earth
to be more. But in his weakness, or rather in
that condition of a decaying mind which
grasps feebly about for some new and sustaining force, Limprosus will ascribe to him, more
and more, a power beyond that of man. He




212    tbe Son of tbe iworbmnaker


is looking for a god. He is striving to create
for himself a soul, to inhabit his breast with a
spirit that shall live after his body shall have
turned to dust. This is an enfeeblement put
upon him by Plato. Perhaps if his god-man
can cast out devils which do not exist, he can
cast off age which does exist. It may be that
this is the hope of our old friend. It may be
that he would be young again. He cannot,
however, get such a hope from Plato. Not
even the Jews, who believe that all things are
possible with their God, find a promise that
old age shall again become youth."
When we returned to the Tower of Antonia,
Limprosus was not there. He was practically
his own master now. He could come and go
as he saw fit. The guards at the gate did not
question him. He had drained the veins of
many an enemy of Rome, and was venerated.
Soon, however, he returned to the citadel,
from a visit to the house of Leboac. The
argument must have been spirited and he
must, in consequence, have enjoyed himself,
for his old eyes were aglow. When Sempre
said that we had seen the god-man, the old
soldier sat down on a stone couch and waited
for an opinion. Sempre waited also, and I
was silent. After a time Limprosus spoke.
"Tell me what you have been compelled to
believe," said he,




On the Steps of tbe lRutneb Portico 213


"How do you know that we have been compelled to believe otherwise than that the
strange man is simply strange?"
"Ah, you could not say that and look as you
do. He has shown you that there is a power
that does not belong to the sword."
"But," said Sempre, "he has not shown us
that we ought to worship him."
"Ah, that would not be possible," replied
Limprosus. "It is not given to you to worship
wisdom; but he has had an influence. The
sight of a Caesar would invite you to admire.
The sight of this man inspires you to think,
but what your thoughts are you cannot tell.
That makes him all the more mysterious. I
have again held discourse with Belthius. He
has seen the strange man since the time when
Eradmus and I were last together at the house
of Leboac, and more than ever he is violent in
condemnation of him. He says that if Pilate
does not have him dealt with, a petition will
be framed and taken to Tiberius. Rome has
granted to the Jews the right to enjoy their
religion, but here comes a man who, more than
a Roman army, would overturn it. I told him
that if this were a peaceful conquest, his
religion ought to fall-being unable to meet
wisdom with wisdom. Belthius did not deny
to him a sort of power, but said that it was
the power of a wizard and came from an




4
214    Zbe Son of tbe SworOmaker
evil source. I asked him if Jesus had ever
employed this power for bad purposes, and he
could not answer me, except to swear that
good or apparent good might at times be
wrought out of the forces of Satan. Then he
explained who Satan was or is, since he appears
to be a living entity in the Jewish faith. He
must have been created by the God of all,
and yet he is the enemy of God. Once there
was a mighty war and Satan was overthrown.
Since then it does not seem that he has been
able to muster an army, but he goes about
doing mischief."
We talked until the lights were put out, and
then for a long time I lay with the picture of
the strange man in my mind.




CHAPTER XVII


tbe Comes inn otetatial 1bumilitp
s OME time elapsed before I saw Milthias
again, but one morning when I had
walked out to breathe the early air, I
came upon him and his sister as they
were passing out of the Temple. They had
gone thither to attend the sacrifice and to
worship, after the manner of their fathers.
Amana wore a thick veil, but through its
meshes her dark eyes were gleaming. I would
have walked along with them, and Milthias
appeared to be willing enough that I should,
but the maiden drew off from me. I was a
heathen and she was afraid of opinion. I
bowed to her, telling her that I did not hold
her action ill; and she blushed, the color of
her cheeks showing like a sunrise through a
mist. In her gentleness she spoke words of
apology, but they were as censures softly
uttered. I turned about and was leaving
them, when Milthias called me. He said that
his sister must hasten home, but that he and I
would walk together. And this we did, behind
her, in the direction of their house. I did not
215




2I6    tbe Son of tbe Swotbmaker


feel free to cross the threshold at so early an
hour, but Milthias urged that it was in keeping
to enter at any time when invited. Amana
was standing within the door. When I entered
she was cordial. She begged that I would not
think that she had been" rude in her bearing
toward me near the Templeo I told her that
religion was a matter of opinion and that
opinion must be respected. She spoke up that
religion was a matter not of opinion but of
principle, existing between man and God.
How ready all of them were! How earnest!
And it was their earnestness that rendered
them so formidable. She said that I should
break fast with them, and her manner changed.
Suddenly all of their geniality and their kindness returned to them, and now I was not a
pagan, but one who had saved the life of the
son, the brother. When the meal had been
served by the slaves of Leboac, a most solemn
and prayerful ceremony, as if to eat were a sorrowful event rather than a cheerful necessity as
in Rome, Milthias, Belthius and I repaired to
the cool hallway that opened into the courtyard
where the fountain was playing. Leboac had
affairs that required his attention, and went
forth into the busy marts of the city. The
mother and the daughter were occupied with
their household duties, for I observed that no
matter how many slaves a Jewish family might




ibe Comes in Potenttal 1umilitt  217


possess, certain obligations devolved upon the
female members of the household. It was a
Jewish woman's first care not to show accomplishments to her husband, but to prove to him
her worth by keeping his home in order.
When we had seated ourselves Milthias
turned to me and said: "I have been away on
a short journey."
"To prepare your ship for sailing back into
the waters of the barbarians?" I inquired,
remembering what the sister had said, and
mindful of the request that she had made of
me.
"No, I have given up that resolve, if the
notion ever hardened into one. I went on a
mission aside from the demands of all trade.
With my cousin Belthius I went into the
country to see the man who calls himself the
Messiah."
"The what?" I asked, for the name Messiah
was new to me.
"The man who calls himself the Christ.
We heard him preach to a great concourse of
people; and he speaks well, with shrewdness
and with music in his voice, but he is not the
king of the Jews, neither is he in anywise a
savior of man.  And were it not for the
encouragement that he receives from the
aliens, he would ere this have withdrawn himself in shame and disappointment from the




218    tbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


public gaze. In this land there have been
many false prophets, and some of them have
spoken with a wiser tongue than this man
possesses. If it be intended that he is to save
the Jews, why is it that they are the slowest
to accept him? If he be so wise, why is it that
the ignorant more than all others comprehend
his wisdom? Wisdom invites and welcomes
wisdom. I have heard that some of our
learned men have interpreted the Scriptures
in his favor, but I cannot find them or learn
their names. A certain part of this man's
power lies in vague rumor. My father, as you
must know, is a wise man, and he denounces
him as an impostor. I have heard that some
of the Romans, other than our friend Limprosus, have acknowledged that this Jesus is
more than a common man, more, indeed, than
an uncommon man. If this be true, it is sympathy with him in order to humiliate us. But
is it true? I wish to learn. Do you know of
any soldiers that have been impressed by himaside from Limprosus?"
"Yes, two," I answered. "Sempre and
myself."
He looked at me as if I had smote him on
the cheek. And then he bowed his head.
But the eyes of Belthius were,fixed upon me.
He said nothing. He arose and slowly
walked away, leaving me alone with Milthias.




AMANA WAS STANDING WITHIN.




Ir




Te Comes In 1otenttaI 1bumtftvp    219


It was some time before my friend raised his
eyes, and when he did there was in them an
expression of sorrow. I said to him that he
had asked for truth, that I had given it to him
and had pained him. "It were better to
worship your idols," he said. "It were better
to burn incense to Jupiter, for that could not
hurt the true cause of God; and He in his own
time could teach the error of it."
"But how can the simple acknowledgment
that this man is a man of wisdom hurt any
true cause?"
"By giving countenance to a bad cause," he
answered. Suddenly his countenance changed.
"But how is it, Eradmus, that you who have
so often avowed your own ignorance of all
learning-how is it that you are so ready to
pronounce upon wisdom?"
"Perhaps it is the newness of having heard
it for the first time that makes it so impressive."
"But what did this man say that so convinced you that he is a man out of the
ordinary?"
It was now my time to hang my head, for I
could not recall what the man Jesus had said.
"It may not have been his words but his
appearance," said I, his sorrowful countenance
fresh in my mind.
Milthias shook his head. "It is to humiliate




220    'be Son of the Sworbmaker


the Jews," he spoke. "If our rulers were to
embrace him as their leader-if they should
fall at his feet, you Romans would fall upon
him with the sword. I have read to you, out
of the book, wisdom directly from Jehovah
himself, and yet you would not believe. You
said that to believe required an education in
our faith. Who educated you to believe in
this Nazarene?"
"My own eye. But with you and with me
the word and the act of belief are of different
meaning. To you, to believe is necessarily to
worship. I do not worship this man. I
believe that he is a good man. Can there be
any crime in that?"
"But do you believe him when he says that
he can raise the dead?"
"I have not heard him say that."
"But do you believe it possible for him to
perform such a miracle?"
"No more than I believe that your invisible
God can do or does do such a thing."
"Take care, Eradmus, you blaspheme. You
would insult the All-powerful, and in this
house. Take care."
He was becoming ridiculous, and I would
have told him so but that I had for him a
strong and abiding friendship.
"I do not desire to utter a word that might
possibly bring distress upon your house," said




be Comes in jotenttal 1bumtittg 221


I. "But in a way you have challenged me to
defend myself. To do so I must employ the
only weapon within reach-the weapon of
reason. You persist in misunderstanding me.
You seek to make it appear that I believe this
man to be immortal, when firmly I tell you
that I do not. Again must I remind you that
Julius Caesar did not have faith in the existence of things immortal. You must agree
that Julius Caesar was the greatest man that
has ever lived."
"I do not believe that," he replied. "Moses
was a greater man than Julius Caesar, and if
this man Jesus were the man that had been
promised to us, he would come with the power
of Moses-a king."
"Milthias," said I, arising to take my leave
of him, "I am a man of the world, a soldier.
You have sailed about the world, but you have
never been able to sail out beyond your creed.
The Greek slave and the slave from barbarian
lands may be set free, but the slave to Jewish
tradition must be a slave for all time."
He went with me to the door, but we parted
in silence.
It was not long before it was noised about
that the man Jesus was expected to appear in
the city. He had preached in the Temple, it
was said, but no one seemed to remember
when. It was natural that Pilate, who was in




222    Tbe Son of the Swornmaher


Jerusalem at the time, should feel anxious.
So he sent out scouting parties to investigate
the manner of the prophet's coming, whether
it were as a religious entry or in the nature of
a rebellious force. Word was brought that
the philosopher was coming without any sort
of demonstration, that he had been seen walking with a few followers, in the dust of the
road. Some of the leaders among the Jews,
however, requested that he should not be
permitted to enter the gates. This order was
denied them; but with all of the quiet of the
wise man's approach there threatened to be a
tumult. Without the walls there were loud
shouts. I was one of the troop of several
hundred horse assigned to duty that day. Jews
who at first had seemed so silent were now in
an uproar. Toward the Romans they might
preserve the attitude of humility, but toward
the prophet they were demonstrative of their
violence and their hatred. Vehemence, however, was not shown so much by the common
people. They seemed to look upon the wise
man as one of themselves, inspired. He had
told the lowly that he had come to bring peace
unto them. The rulers did not want peace.
They desired war.
When Jesus entered the city it seemed that
every house and workshop had poured forth
their human contents into the streets. It was




be Comes in Potenttal 1bumtitt   223


as much as the cavalry could do to keep the
way clear. The weak were trod to the ground
and there were wild cries. A blacksmith with
his hammer in his hand raised his arm and
shouted defiance. I was nearest him as he
stood just without the door of his shop. With
the point of my. spear I touched his hairy
breast and ordered him to drop his weapon.
Sullenly he obeyed. This was the only man
whom I saw bearing the aspect of sedition.
But the rich Jews were constantly crying that
the prophet was commanding the people to
arm themselves against the Romans. Looking
back over my shoulder, I could see him coming
slowly along. It had been rumored that he
was going to the Temple, and toward this
edifice the Roman cavalry proceeded, clearing
the way. Never walked one with a step so
free from pride. Never upon a multitude did
man look with such compassion. How unlike
a conqueror! Instead of fulfilling the expectation of prophecy, as the rich man read the
book, he came as a quiet and a gentle rebuke
to those who assumed power. To me his
bearing was a study. It was the first time
that I had ever seen potential meekness. It
was something new to the Roman world.
As we were ascending the hill, toward the
gate that opened into the Temple court, I
espied Belthius amid the throng. Pushing his




224    tbe ~on of tbe Oworbmaker


way to the edge of the crowd, he walked along
beside my horse. "What are they going to
do with him?" he asked, gazing eagerly up
into my face.
"What has he done that we should do anything?" I replied.
"What has he done? Do you not see that
we are in the midst of an insurrection?"
"I see a number of the leading Jews striving
to create one; but the masses of the people
are peaceable. Those shouts you hear are
their shouts of joy."
"Joy!" he repeated contemptuously. "They
are insults from those too degraded to feel
their own degradation."
I suppose that I must have felt kindly
toward Jesus, perhaps not so much on account
of his appearance or his reputed wisdom as
for the reason that the rich Jews were desperately set against him. I could see that if
he brought a new religion he brought it for
the poor. It could not have been other
than an insult, since the streets of the Jewish
heaven were said to be paved with gold. This
man's feet, shod with worn and dusty sandals,
could not, in the opinion of the wealthy, walk
with grace upon those resplendent bricks.
At the Temple gate the squadron halted,
and, in open order, permitted Jesus and as
much of the crowd as could, to enter the




be Comes in Potential lbumflttp   225


Temple. Some one cried out, "Stone him."
But no stone was cast. It was impossible,
however, to keep order among the people, for
the crowd without was greater than the throng
that had gained entrance. As for myself, I
should have welcomed a riot. There was
many a fanatic that I should have liked to
trample into the ground. For a long time
all within the Temple was quiet, but suddenly
there arose a mighty uproar, and outward the
people came pouring.  We charged upon
them, lest they should excite a stampede
among the great multitude in the streets
below. The out-rush was stopped. A priest
whose vestments had been torn demanded
that the soldiers expel the usurper.
"What has he done?" questioned the
centurion.
"He is driving the people from the Temple.
Can you not see?"
"But whence comes his power?"
"He has no power. The people are fools."
"Then why should we not arrest them for
being fools? It is the fool that is dangerous
in a crowd."
"But he has threatened to destroy the
Temple."
"If he possesses no power, how can he?'
"But he assumes to have power. He not
only threatens to destroy the Temple, but




226    xbe ion of tbe Sworomaher


says that in three days he will build it up
again."
"And if he does, you will not have sustained
much of a loss," said the centurion.
After a long time quiet was restored.
Belthius, whose strength had enabled him to
force his way in, came out and spoke to me as
I sat on my horse. "This man Jesus has passed
beyond all bounds. He says that he is the
Son of God-the living God."
"If the God is living, is it not possible for
him to have a son?" I replied, not that I
regarded such a thing as possible but that it
was my desire to goad this Jew. He scowled
at me. "You heathens are enemies of your
own law," he said. "You counsel insurrection.
Is it because you are looking for an excuse to
murder the people?"
"In your hatred of this quiet and inoffensive
man there is murder, Belthius," said I. "You
would have the people tear him limb from
limb."
I showed impatience and he thought it wise
to move away from me, but before he went he
looked hard at me and said: "To favor a
stranger and an impostor, you would turn
against your friends. Milthias, who loves you,
is stricken with grief at the course you have
taken. In his father's house all are sad, for
they feel that no longer can you find com



be Comes in Potential bummtlitt  227
panionship within those walls. -Argument and
reason-the book of the Lord might convert
even a Roman, a heathen, a worshiper of
idols, but the acknowledgment of the claims of
a man such as is now trampling upon every
honest Jew's faith puts you beyond all hope."
"But it does not put me beyond all reason,"
I replied, and he sneered at me. "Reason is
a god-given quality. The Lord has given to
the Romans-"
"Power," I broke in, motioning him to stand
off.
"The promise of eternal darkness. That
is the Lord's promise to you," he said, and
turning about he went his way.




CHAPTER XVIII


Out in tbe Markt ligbt
THE evening came with the accustomed
blast of trumpets from the Temple, and
the tops of the houses were dark with
people. Night fell, and with the
exception of the broiling and roistering of
men in places where wine had been drunk,
there was no disturbance. Until the hour
was late we, the cavalry, sped up and down
many of the streets. We saw no place where
it would seem that Jesus had taken up his
quarters. It was near the dawn when we were
ordered to return to the Tower, but at the gate
I found Milthias. He said that he had been
waiting for me. I obtained leave to remain
for a time with him. At that hour he was not
permitted to enter the citadel. The moon
was shining. Within sight of the sentinels
on the towers we walked about. It was some
time before he made known the object of
his unseasonable visit. Finally we sat down
upon a ruined wall.
"It has been a hard day," I said.
"Yes, not alone for you, Eradmus, but for
228




Out in tbe Dark tltgbt


229


the most of us-for Jerusalem." From among
the stones he plucked out a piece of the plastering and for a time sat crumbling it in silence.
Then he said: "Belthius has told me what he
said to you. Not from me nor from any
member of our household had he the authority
to say it. We grieve, it is true, that you take
sides against us; there can never come a time
when we all of us shall cease to be grateful to
you. But for you my father, mother and
sister would never have seen me again. They
cannot forget.'
"Milthias, you needed not have come at such
an hour to tell this to me. It was something
else that you desired to say. Speak it."
But it was hard for him to speak. He plucked
out more of the plaster and sat crumbling it.
After a time he said: "You know that I have
an affection for you;"
"Yes, know it so well that I do not demand
any proof."
"But we have neighbors and kinsfolk who
are aggrieved when they know that you have
broken bread with us. They speak about it,
some of them rudely, and with it they reproach
my father. It is not only because they know
that you are a Roman and therefore in their
opinion a worshiper of idols, but because they
have heard that you give countenance to one
who keeps company not only with publicans




d


230    Mbe Son of tbe Swortmaher
and sinners, but who chooses his closest
friends from among them."
"And therefore, Milthias, you would request
me to stay away from your house?"
"No," he said, brushing the plaster dust
from his hands and taking me by the arm, "I
cannot make such a request."
"You do not need to, Milthias. Your
distress is a command."
"Eradmus, I owe my life to you."
"And I owe mine to you. Without your
help I could not have escaped from Britain.
I could not have sailed the boat. The villagers
would have killed me. This should make us
closer in regard than if obligation were all on
one side. But to your father you owe more of
a duty than you possibly could to me, though
I might have saved your life a hundred times.
You owe your existence to him. Therefore
obey his wishes though he may not have
expressed them to you. Keep clear of my
company. I shall take it nothing ill. And
when these unquiet times are passed into
remembrance only, then again shall we be
brothers."
He embraced me. He said that I was noble.
I knew his position, and I would not make it
harder for him. But I dreaded the time when
I should not be at liberty to go to him. He
was a link between Vloden and me. With his




Out in tbe 2arfk 1tgbt


231


hand on my bare arm, did he feel that I was
thinking of her? "Is she still as much as ever
in your mind?" he asked. I did not pretend
to misunderstand him. I said that she could
never be less alive, less vivid.
"I do not believe that she has forgotten
you," he said. "Such a heart could not forget."
"There is a gentleness in even a fierce love,"
I said. "And it must be her love that at times
makes me feel more kindly toward the world,
the members of this great, rude household.
I shall never see her again, it is true, but
more than old Limprosus' philosophy she
almost convinces me that there is a-a —"
"A soul," said Milthias.
"Yes, a soul. The birth and the life of love
is as marvelous as a living God. It may be
that one creates the other. Love must be the
creator. Love is older than your God."
But Milthias could not abide this. He
gripped my arm. "Eradmus," he said, "you
light a candle, but instead of looking about
you in the light thereof, you blow it out."
He arose to take his leave of me, but it was in
sadness and not in offense at anything that I
had said. Without another word we parted.
Strange-that, lying on my couch this morning,
my love for Vloden should seem so much
stronger than ever before. I had possessed a
love, and now that love possessed me. Having




232    Cbe U5on of tbe!5worbmaher


had so limited an experience with women,
you might say, none at all, I wondered when
first I beheld that flashing Jewess if she possessed the power to rob the barbarian of my
heart. But soon I knew that she did not.
Soul! What was it that now lived within me
and which had not lived before?
The day broke with rumbling thunder
and with rain. From the battlements I looked
down upon the city. Into the market places
the camels were bringing their loads of fruits
and of grain. Limprosus came up and stood
beside me. Off on excursions into the country
and on duty in the city, I had of late found no
opportunity to talk with him.  The rain
ceased. A dome-shaped cloud stood gilded
and resplendent in the sky. Some time we
stood together before either of us spoke. It
was not because there lay between us a cause
for embarrassment, but that each was disposed
to silence. I was the first to speak.
"Did you see the man Jesus?"
"Yes, I was in the Temple when he drove
out the multitude. I doffed my soldier
raiment so that I might be near to him, but the
press was too great."
"How did he drive them from the Temple?"
"It seemed to me that he had caught up a
sunbeam and had made a lash of it. But
when he threw it down it was a mere cord."




Out in the I)arh lRtgbt


233


"Your willing fancy did much for him," I
replied. Limprosus shook his head. "My
fancy could not have aided him to frighten the
people and to drive them out. The Jews,
some of them, fled from their money. Was
that the power of fancy? Have I not seen
them stand over their gold until they were
speared to death?  He called them thieves,
or said that they had made of the Temple a
den of thieves. The doves for the sacrifice
were cooing. One of them, a white bird,
escaped and circled round and round his
head-smaller and smaller the circle until it
appeared but a wreath about his brow. I
did not flee when the others fled. I stood
with bowed head as slowly he came
walking toward me. I raised my eyes, and
something within me said, 'Master.'
"'Thou hast much faith and with little cause.
Peace be unto you,' he said to me, and upon
my heart there poured a great warmth. I had
thought him the disciple of wisdom. I found
in him the Son of God. Oh, it is true, Eradmus.
I-le has come with a wisdom that the world
has never known before. The rich may scoff
at him and the scholars may seek to pick flaws
in his teachings, but never was there a philosopher so wise as he. I listened when he
rebuked the rulers. I was thrilled with
gladness when he turned upon me his forgiv



234    bte Son of tbe Sworbmaker


ing look; thrilled, for I knew that the better
part of me was a soul, and that this soul had
been pardoned, that I was no longer a spiller
of man's blood. You cannot understand.
Neither can I; but it seemed to me that I
had lived all of my life for that look of forgiveness."
More than ever did I now believe that
Limprosus was losing his mind. I was willing
to agree that in the man Jesus there was no
harm. I was willing to acknowledge him
wise, but in my heart I could not read that
there was a God. Then how could I look
upon him as the Son of God? In the atmosphere there were strange influences at work.
I had been so softened by my love for a
woman as almost to believe that there might
be such a thing, condition or essence as
soul. Men died; ideas lived, and might not
he idea be the. evidence of soul?  But
suddenly my reason arose and I said: "I
cannot believe with you, Limprosus. This is
a material world. If there be a God, and if
the welfare of the soul is his especial care,
why did he not make himself known to the
great men that are gone? Why was Julius
Caesar ignorant of this God?  Why did he
make himself known only to the cattle-raising
and rattle-stealing Jews of the plains? If he
cLeated all, and all were his children, why did




O~ut tn the VIarh Vtobt


235


he reveal himself to a Moses and not to an
Alexander? And if he knew that he was to
send his son upon the earth, why did he wait
so long, until all of the greatest ones of the
earth had passed away?"
"I will not attempt to answer your questions,
Eradmus."
"Ah, that is the trouble. No one can answer
them."
"But I will say that in the history of God's
world there has as yet been but a speck of
time." And then after asilence, during which
he stood looking out over the city, he said:
"You marvel at my faith, and so do I. Faith
is ever a marvel unto itself. But if it comes
of no reason and no experience, whence comes
it? I have read with the Jew Leboac the book
that tells about their God, but it was mere
poetry. I desired fact. I read Plato again
and again, but here were the surmises of a great
and restless mind; but Jesus convinces me with
one word, with one look, that there is a God
and that he himself is the Savior of man.
With you, however, argument is of no use,
for in your mind I stand not upon a rock but
float on a cloud. To feel is stronger than
merely to think. To know without knowing
why, is mysticism; but in mystery there may
be hidden the profoundest truth. Reason is
materialism striving for spirituality. Intuition




236     tbe Son of the iworbmaRer


is a thought born not of the brain but of the
spirit. You ask why God did not reveal himself to the greater men of all nations? Perhaps
he did when they became greater-when
blinding flesh fell from about their souls.
Eradmus, within a few days I shall quit the
army. My freedom has been offered me.
No longer am I to fight for the empire of
man. Never again will I shed man's blood."
"But what are you going to do?" I inquired.
"You are too far along in life to enter with
success into a new. calling. You have no
money. How can you live?"
He smiled upon me. "There was a time
when I dreaded the infirmit of age," said he,
"but that time is gone. Life has opened up
anew. And if I am to live but a day, I shall
look forward to it with happiness. That which
is to come must come without ill to me. Not
far from here, in a poor quarter of the city,
lives an old man. I must conduct you to his
house."
"But perhaps 1 do not care to go with you,
Limprosus. I should find him full of arguments against common sense."
"When you have seen him you will be pleased
and you will thank me."
I should have gone with him that day, but
permission to leave the citadel was denied me.
To the eye and to the ear the city was peace



Out In tbe Mark Figbt


237


able and quiet, but within the walls there were
still whirlwinds of yesterday's storm. So far
as was known, the Prophet had not as yet
taken his departure. In the evening, Sempre,
who had been on guard at the Palace of Herod,
said that a deputation from the leadinsg Jews,
the priests of the Temple, had called on Pilate
with a request that Jesus be expelled from the
city; but so far as Sempre was able to determine, the request had been refused. A
number of days passed, and though it was
certain that the Prophet was still in Jerusalem,
yet I did not see him. Concerning him there
were many rumors and but few of them were
worthy of belief. One old maip, standing at
the gate of the Tower, cried out that Jesus
had commanded the people not to pay tribute
to Tiberius. A soldier, speaking from the
wall, inquired if that were not the sort of
counsel the Jews desired.
"It is the sort that will shed our blood and
enwrap the Temple in fire," the old man
replied.
I do not know how many days went by when
certain news came that the Prophet Was no
longer in Jerusalem.
One evening Limprosus came to me with
word that I had, upon his request, been
granted permission to accompany him. I was
waiting. As we passed down near the portals


i




238     0be Son of the iSwormaker


of the Temple, he halted for a few moments
to gaze upward and to muse. On other subjects his mind was strong enough, but when
speaking of the man from Galilee he showed
a childlike readiness to believe everything
that unto him attributed power and mystery.
The streets were dark, no moon, no stars,
for the sky was cast over with clouds. Losing
our way, we turned into a stone-cutter's yard,
where we were likely to bruise ourselves, but
the stone-cutter heard us and came out with a
lantern. Seeing that we were Romans, he
seemed to regret having shown to us such a
kindness, and walking in front of us with his
light obscured, he was about to leave us again
in darkness when Limprosus said to him: "We
would do you no harm.  Peace be unto you."
He turned about and held his lantern up,
revealing himself in the light, an old man with
white beard. "You speak of peace," he
replied as we came nearer to him. "Where
is it to be found?"
"In the heart," Limprosus answered.
"You have said," he rejoined, lowering his
light now that we were within a few feet of
him. We were about to pass him when he
put his lantern on a stone and said that if we
were not in too much haste he would like to
hold converse. "With you," he added, speak-.ing to Limprosus. "Whom seek ye?"




Out in tbe t)ark 1Rtibt


239


"A friend that lives down among the poor,
but who is rich."
"Rich, and living among the poor?"
"Rich in the greatest and most enduring of
all riches-in the belief that the man from
Galilee has brought the promise of eternal
life." The stone-cutter stroked his beard and
for a time said nothing. He took up his
lantern as if he would go away, but put it
down again. "Are you a believer in him?"
he inquired, his eyes fixed upon Limprosus.
The old Roman answered, "I am."
"Will you tell me why you believe?"
"That is something I may not be able to do,"
said Limprosus. "My belief comes from a
faith and this faith was born within me."
"Then you have seen him?"
"I have spoken to him, and he bade my
heart be at peace, and it is."
The old man looked at him a long time.
"I went from my work to see him, but the
multitude was so great that I could not," hesaid. "But one of my workmen was in the
Temple at the time the people were driven
out. He returned with the word that Jesus
was not the king of the Jews as we expected a
king to come, but that he was the true
Messiah."
"He is to make all people as one," said
Limprosus. "When the time comes there will




240   tbe Son of the Swortmaher


be neither Jew nor Roman nor Barbarian, but
all will be souls."
The old man invited us to go into his house
to break bread with him, but we told him that
we could not spare the time. So we thanked
him and passed on. How quiet the city was,
almost like one great tomb! Here and there
was a light, shining dimly through a lattice
darkly veiled, or shooting from under a door
like quick thrusts of a spear. Remote from
the more busy thoroughfares, there was no
one stirring abroad from his habitation. From
some of the houses, from the meaner ones,
too, it seemed, there came a murmur as of
prayer.
Limprosus reproached himself for not having
brought a torch or lantern. It was my impression that we had come many miles and I
thought that we were lost,, when my friend
halted and knocked upon a door. In the
house a light was burning. Soon the door
was opened, and a voice bade us enter. We
did so, and when we had come where it was
light hI cried out in surprise: "Nebuces!"
It was the old Egyptian, mummied reminder
of my life in Rome. But he did not look
older. He looked different; his shrewdness of
countenance had given place to a softness, a
gentleness. He embraced me. In his eyes
there were tears. In his voice when he spoke




~ut in tbe  arkh 1Rtfbt


241


there was music as if from an old and
mellowed instrument. He said that he had
been waiting for Limprosus to bring me to his
house. I could scarcely say anything. I was
astonished at his appearance. I remembered
him as a liar and a thief. Now he appeared
like a saint. He laughed gently at my surprise, when we had seated ourselves upon
cushions which he had brought forward for
us. Knowing that this old man had sought
wisdom, even during the time when his
Egyptian nature was so strong within him as
to induce him to lie and to steal, I inquired of
him whether he had found that which he had
sought. He answered: "I have found all
wisdom, Eradmus. I have been baptized."
"Baptized! What is that?"
He explained to me and it seemed foolish,
but I did not controvert him. I permitted
him to tell his story. He had been taken
down into the water, his sins had been washed
from him, and he had become a member of the
Prophet's great and growing household.
There had been a time when I could not have
believed in his reformation. Now I knew that
he told the truth.  I could see it.  He
told me of miracles that he had seen Jesus
perform, and now I could not believe him, for
it was against my reason. I began to wonder
as some of the rich Jews wondered. Why




242    tbe $on of tbe S3wormnaIer


was it that Jesus addressed himself to the
despised, the liar and the thief? But I did not
come to argue. I let Nebuces tell his story.
He had not remained long in Rome after I
left him. My departure having emancipated
him, he turned toward Judea, the land where
true wisdom was to be found. The old
Children of Israel had brought it from Egypt.
Nebuces settled in Jerusalem, going forth at
certain times to work in the vineyards. He
put aside the Egyptian tablets and took up
the Jewish book. He began to get glimpses
of true wisdom, but his nature was not much
amended. He was not a man of truth, and he
did not steal because he was afraid of the
law. These traits were born within him and
he did not deem it possible ever to feel that
they were gone out of him; but he was born
again, and this time his nature was pure. His
second birth was his belief, his baptism. On
the edge of the desert he had met the Prophet
when there were but few with-him. In the shade
of the evening he sat himself down at the feet
of this regenerator of man, and listened to his
words of wisdom. On the following day he
saw a great multitude fed with a few loaves.
But even before this he had been convinced.
He said that the apparent miracle alone could
not have convinced him. The change had to
come from the heart outward, and not through




Out In tbe 2Dar 1RtfObt


243


the eye, inward. He had seen Egyptians
perform wonderful feats, but they spoke no
word that made him know that within him
there was a soul possessed of eternal life.
Now he was happy, waiting for the time when
he should yield up his soul and be done with
this world. He was quiet, but I knew that he
was a fanatic. "And Limprosus and I will live
here together," said he. "We will work in the
vineyards. We shall be happy, knowing that
we are useful to man. If we should be called
upon, we will go forth to spread the work of
redemption."
I desired a change of subject. As I said
before, I believed that the man Jesus was wise,
and that in his way he could be of service to
the world. But I was not of his world. My
soldier instinct began to live again. I was
becoming weary of this eternal talk of peace.
Out of peace I could evolve nothing but
weariness. Out of war there might come glory.
It was well enough for Limprosus, for he was
old and his course was well-nigh spent; but I
was young, and this man Jesus, as a preacher
of peace, was after all my enemy. While
thus I sat, musing, there came a knocking at
the outer door.




CHAPTER XIX


'1Irappeb in a fabeb Clotb
IEBUCES went to the door that opened
out upon the street, and when he
returned a young woman came with
him. Before I had time to take note
of her, Limprosus spoke her name, Eine; and
arising, he placed her upon the cushion and
stood looking down upon her. This was all
done in a moment. Then he presented me to
her. She was the woman who was to have
been his wife, who married the son of the
wine-merchant, who became the charioteer.
But now she did not look as if her ears had
ever found sweet the shout of a vulgar multitude. Her eyes were clear and her countenance bespoke a girlish innocence. She was
not only fair; she was radiant. Limprosus at
once noticed the change in her and the tears
began to gather in his eyes; and while he was
looking down upon her, she sank upon the
floor at his feet and clasped him about the
knees. He sought to lift her up, but she
begged him to suffer her to remain at his feet
244




Wlrappet in a fabeb Clotb


245


until she should tell him something that lay
warm against her heart.
"I have sought you for several days," she
said; "and this evening I went to the Tower
and inquired for you, and as you were not
there I thought you must be here, for it was
into this house I saw you enter not long ago.
The last time I came to you I begged money
of you, telling you that I must have wine.
You gave me all you had, though you had
cause to despise me. I went away to drink at
a place where there were wine and women, and
men who are worse than the beasts of the field.
In the early morning I came away, and as I
walked along I met a number of people, and
among them was Jesus, the Savior of men.
Some one seized me and dragged me contemptuously before him, and said to him that
as he found his companions among the outcasts, to take me, the vilest of the city, with
him. And oh, the look that he turned upon
me! But not in anger, for he could but see
how wretched I was. He spoke to me. He told
me to go and sin no more, and I arose into
a new life, and out of my heart went all bitterness, all vileness, and I was free from evil.
The tears gushed out of my eyes and I could
not see, for a time; but when I could see
again, the world was different. Jesus was
gone. No one told me his name, but I knew.




246   t~be Son of tbe Zworbmaker


He was gone, but I could see him in my poor
heart that had been so bitter. I could see him
whichever way I turned, and then, Limprosus,
I went to find you. Let me kneel but a
moment more. I am not supplicating to you,
but am rejoicing that I have found you. And
now I have a favor to ask of you. You are
growing old and will soon be unable to work.
Let me work for you. I will go singing to the
harvest fields. I will be your wife, if you will
take me, and during all the time that you live
I will care for you, and when you are unable
to go about I will nurse you, for I am made
new and am young and strong."
Limprosus sank down and together they
knelt with their arms about each other. I
looked at the old Egyptian and the tears were
streaming down his face. Then upon the
floor he knelt and prayed as I had never
heard one pray before; and though I could
not comprehend all that he said, the figures
that he employed, yet it all was impressed
upon me.
Now I reminded Limprosus that it was
time for me to return to the Tower. He arose
to go with me, but I urged him to remain, as
he was no longer under regulations, and that
I could make my way alone. After much
persuasion on my part, he yielded. So, out
into the dark streets I went alone, but some



Iralrappeb in a 1fabeb Clotb


247


how in the darkness there seemed to be a light,
the light of that poor but beautiful creature's
love for old Limprosus.
Early on the following morning, as Sempre
and I were in the mess-room, I told him of
what I had seen the night before. He scowled
and said that he did not believe there was
water enough in the sea to wash that woman
clean.
"They must have enslaved your mind with
some sort of Magianism," said he. "And here
I must warn you. Do not permit old age and
fanaticism to steal your soldier heart and
soften it into foolish meekness. We are in a
country of mysticism. They will tell you of a
star that hung above the child Jesus, as he lay
in a manger, but you must not believe it. In
all ages these Jews have had something that
could not have existed in other parts of the
world. They do not as a people accept this
man as their Christ, whatever that may mean,
but they may in time, as soon as they can
surround him with a sufficient number of
fables. We were both of us impressed by him
and acknowledged it. That ought to have
been enough for Limprosus, but it was not.
He must go further and take farewell of his
reason. If he marries this woman-but surely
he will not. She is trying to work some sort
of trick upon him."




248    Zbe 9on of the Sworbmafter


"In the main I agree with you, Sempre.
But I believe that the woman is sincere."
"What! Do you believe that she can love
that old man?"
"As an atonement for a wrong that she
did him, yes. And I believe that in caring for
him she will find true happiness. I do not
base this upon any reason, other than something that I saw in her face."
"Her face!" he repeated. "Nothing could
be more bloated and repulsive."
"But there is where the marvel lies," said I.
"Did I not tell you that she was beautiful, like
a young and innocent girl? What could have
brought about such a change?"
"The spell that they threw over you," he
answered. "It came of the darkness without,
the lamp within-the   silence everywhere.
Though we may think ourselves strong in
health, we are affected by the man that is ill.
At a time of plague, no man is well. We are
in the midst of an intellectual plague. Resist
it, or you may become afflicted. Do not let
them take the temper out of your sword."
I felt that he spoke wisely.  My sword
temperless, and I should be left without a
career. The world showered its favors upon
bravery and the achievements of strength.
Mere wisdom meant gray hairs and ultimate
neglect. "It must have been the darkness




Tl.rappeb tn a Ia~beO Clotb


249


without, the lamp within and the silence everywhere," I said. "We are in the midst of a
great plague and I was threatened with disease.
I will throw it off. It was the darkness and
the lamp."
And yet I knew that it was not. There
was freshness and the beauty of purity about
that woman whom they had called a wanton.
In her voice there was the sweet music of sincerity, but I agreed that it was the darkness
and the lamp.
"And the old Egyptian," said Sempre.
"You have come away in the belief that he is
honest. If man is created by a god, why does
that god wish to make him a liar and a thief
and then, to prove his own power, consecrate
him to truth and honesty?"
As I agreed to all that he said, there could be
no argument.
Several days passed and with each night I
expected Limprosus, but he did not come.
So one morning I set out to find the house
wherein I had left him. This was not easy
to do. I knew the direction and but little
more than that. It was not long, however,
before I came to the stone-cutter's yard. The
old man and a young giant were hewing
a stone.  I halted to 3peak  with them.
They were working slowly, and as I approached  I caught the   name   of the




250    Zbe Son of the iSworomafer


Prophet. No matter what men might be
doing, they were all of them talking on the
same subject, with the same name on their
lips. The old man's back was toward me.
The giant saw me as I approached, and
stepped back and folded his arms across his
great, bare chest, leaving the hammer lying on
the stone. In his attitude there was dignity
and no defiance. The old man turned about
and looked at me. In the features of mere
youth there is nothing to mark the memory.
and he did not appear to recall me. I saluted
him, reminded him of the night when he had
shown kindness to Limprosus and to me, and
he remembered. I asked him whether he
knew where was situated the house of
Nebuces, the Egyptian. Hereupon the giant
said that he would show me the place. I said
that I did not wish to take him from his work.
He smiled, that same quiet smile that the
Galilean seemed ever to inspire, and said
that it would be a pleasure to him. Some of
the Jews that stood amid their merchandise
scowled at us as we passed along. The shops
'here were for the poor, but some of the
keepers were misers, were rich and therefore
hated the sight of a Roman and a Hebrew
walking together, believing that so ill-assorted
an association must be inspired by the man
who recognized no race, no creed, no station.




trappeb in a fabea Clotb


25t


But this man, the hewer of rock, did not shrink
from contemptuous gaze, neither did he give
scowl for scowl. Upon whomever he looked
it was with a kindly eye. I asked him whether
he knew the Egyptian and he answered that
he had knelt with him in prayer. Soon he
pointed out the house, and with a kindly word
he turned about and left me.
Nebuces opened the door. He stood where
the sunlight fell upon him. There was now
no darkness, no lamp, and no silence everywhere, for Arab fruit venders were shouting
in the street. No mystery-noontide-and yet
in the old man's face there was no sign of
shrewdness, of that Nile serpent wisdom which
his countenance had shown me in my own
home. Years may make a man gentle or they
may make him crafty. Losing strength, he
may acquire slyness and the knowledge to use
it, like a fox, but to wear a mask in the sun is
to show that it is a mask. But this man did
not seek to wear other than what nature would
herself have sworn to as his natural face, and
yet in every feature it spoke forgiveness, truth,
every virtue which the face that I had known,
the face of the Nebuces in Rome, did not
possess. Quietly he welcomed me, doing me
the office of his most gracious courtesy; and
when we had entered the room wherein I had
sat before, he bade me sit down. When I had




252    tbe Son of the Sworbmaker


done so he brought water in a basin, and, with
gentle though commanding gesture waving my
objections aside, he took off my sandals and
bathed my feet. When he had wiped them
with a cloth as white as the stone-cutter's
marble he placed food before me, and when I
had eaten, he took away the vessels and then
came back with something wrapped about in
cloth that was faded. He bade me take it, and
it was small but heavy in my hand.
"What is it?" I inquired.
"Before I came away from Rome to search
for wisdom I sold the things that you left with
me, and this is silver and gold, the price that
they brought."
"But what I left I gave to you. This gold
and silver cannot be mine. If I should take
it I should feel low and mean. Besides, I
think that you must have added to it.
Remember, Nebuces, I still have my sword,
and it alone shall bring me fortune.  I
know that you are true and that your heart is
kind. You have persuaded me that you have
found some sort of strange wisdom. You have
shown me that you do not wear a mask.
Your voice, which once was harsh, is now as
soft as the notes of the wind instrument.
Your eyes, which once were wont to pierce
like steel, are now softer than the light shed by
pure gold. I know that you would not willfully




Wrappeb tn a VfaWet Clotb


253


counsel me to debase myself, and yet if I
should bestow upon my own purposes that
which you have brought me, I should feel that
my honor had been bought and that in slavery
it had died."
He bowed and said: "Then, my son, accept
it from me, your former slave, as a gift. In
Rome you could have sold me, but you gave
to me my freedom, and that is more worth
than all the gold."
"Then do not seek to buy it with gold."
He felt this rebuke. He bowed low and
said that he had deserved it. Then he took
the gold and put it by, and said that he would
give it here and there to the poor, wherever
he could use it to relieve hunger, but this
seemed unwise, in that the poor was a multitude. So I said to him: "Give it to
Limprosus."
At this moment the woman Eine came
into the room. "Give it to her," I said. "She
deserves it, for she is going to take care of
Limprosus when he shall have grown too old
to care for himself."
She spoke to me and her voice was sweet.
She looked upon me, standing where a bright
light fell, and I saw that she was fresh and
handsome. No lamp to make deceitful
shadows, and yet was she a girl in the freshness of early life. She inquired what was it




254    Zbe Son of the iSworbmatke


that I desired she should have, and when
Nebuces had told her she drew back from his
outstretched hand and shook her head. "It
is not gold that has been defiled," Nebuces
said to her. "It is the gold of gratitude and
therefore must be pure." But she drew back
from it. I told her that if it were mine I
ought to have the right and the pleasure of
bestowing it upon my friend. Limprosus was
my friend. When I mentioned his name her
face brightened and she said: "If it is for
him we will wrap it in his mantle. Come with
me.
There was still another room, and into it
Nebuces and I followed her. Here all was of
comfort and cheer, made so by her hands; and
so when she had brought Limprosus' mantle I
wrapped it about the money and Eine put it
by for him. Then she told me that Limprosus had taken her to wife and that never
before had she known what happiness was.
Limprosus had gone forth to talk to the poor,
she said. They liked to hear him, for he
brought unto them the words of comfort.
I took my leave while the sun was shining
and they came with me to the door, but out
into the glare of the street they brought their
own mysterious light, soft and warm. When
I had returned to the Tower, Sempre said
that again they had thrown a spell upon me.




I


_ _L __ __


Aii


i


- -L   5rt
- - AndZ


C -    - --
THEY CAME WITH ME TO THE DOOR.
N'
/1~t
N.)r




I(
iI




CHAPTER XX


Out in tbe fEountafns
TWHEY have given unto you their own
eyes and have compelled you to look
throught them," said  my   friend.
"You may ask whence comes their
power, and I may ask it, too. It is that we
concede a power where truly none exists.
As I said before, we saw the man Jesus. We
said that he was good, whatever that may be,
but Limprosus saw him in the Temple 'flash
out ferocious glory from his eyes as if to storm
the throne of Zeus.' We have been in a
theater and the play has stolen a part of our
keener senses and returned them to us with
edges turned. Let us whet them with
reason." And, as before, I knew that he was
right.
Now had the city returned to its buying and
selling, with no sign of the storm that had
swept through the streets at the coming of the
Prophet. Whither he was gone no one
seemed to know, but sometimes there came
word from the land far out toward the Jordan
or the sea that with his disciples lhe walked
255




256    tbe Son of the    woortmaker


abroad, performing miracles in the open light.
Now also came for me an uneventful life.
Sometimes there were rumors that the Jews
were about to rise against us, and more than
once we watched throughout the long night,
waiting for them, the younger ones among us
hoping that they would come; but the days
and the weeks passed by and nothing fell to
relieve our life of dullness. Limprosus did
not come often to the Tower. When he did
he came to preach to Sempre and to me, and
this grew tiresome. Once in the mess-room
he talked to all that would listen, and he
talked well, as one grappled about by strong
convictions; but he could not tie my reason
wit h his silver cord. In gratitude he accepted
the money that I had left for him; he said that
it should be well laid out, among the poor; and
I knew that he spoke the truth. I shall not
forget the farewell that he took of his sword.
It was night, and the rays of a brazen lamp
fell upon the blade as it lay unsheathed upon
a couch. He did not speak to it with that
teniderness which I should have expected to
come of long association.
HEe,said to the sword: "Thou error of man,
thou sustainer of false pride, insensate glutton
of death, I take my leave of thee. In thy
double teges, thy two sexes, thou art the
father c r ambitions and the mother of dust.




Out in tbe flDountatns


257


Thy drink is blood and thy music is a groan.
Thou art almost as old as human evil. Thy
flatterers have kissed thee even to the cutting
of their lips. Thrown into the air, thou
knowest no favor, and would fall upon friend
and  foe  alike.  Where thou hast.been
unsheathed once for liberty thou hast flashed
a thousand times that man might be made a
slave. I have given unto thee the strengthful
years of my life, that others might die, that the
rich man might be richer, that a mob in Rome
might cry welcome to a heartless conqueror.
The tears of the widows and the orphans that
thou hast made would submerge thee in a
wave, but rust will dull thy edge and eat thee
up. Thy brothers may live throughout many
ages to come, but a love that was born in
Nazareth will outlast them all. I take my
leave of thee."
Some of the legionaries laughed, Sempre
among them, but as Limprosus had spoken
quietly and seemingly from the heart, I
respected him. He asked me to come with
him as far as the outer gate, and when we had
reached the wicket he said: "In the twilight,
on a knoll, we looked out over the country.
Now in the dark we look out over a city, but
in the darkness of this city there is a light that
shall illumine the world. God be with you."
And so he took his departure. I knew that




253    Zbe Son of the!BworbmaIer


never would he come again to the Tower.
He had told Sempre that he had taken Eine
to wife, and I think that this was the reason
that Sempre laughed at him when he took
leave of his sword.
One morning when it seemed that no longer
could I endure this dullness, when I felt that
with the sword of Limprosus I had fallen
under the curse and was to be eaten up with
rust, there came news of a rebellion that had
arisen in the hill country not far from the
village of Nain. Our garrison was called upon
for as many men as could be spared.
Through the streets we swept, out into the
country, and the air rushed by, tingling my
nerves. It was well enough for an old man to
bid farewell to his sword. So did misers bid
farewell to their gold, when death outstared
them, but to myself I said, "As for me, let me
hew a pathways up the mountain or sink with
my sword in the valley."
In Nain we halted. The town was in a state
of emotion. It could scarcely be called excitement. It was said that Jesus had just performed a miracle. A man whom I conversed
with would have sworn that a widow's son had
been raised from the dead. What he said
made no impression on me. I ascribed it all
to hallucination. I did not question him; the
supporters of the man Jesus had gone too far,




Ouit in tbe fIMountatno2


259


and I no longer felt an interest in him.
Sempre and I had gone to this man to get hay
for the horses. He believed in miracles, but
he charged us full price for the hay. He said
that a poor man must live. Sempre replied:
"But he needs not live always on the sale of
one truss of hay."
"If it be not worth all that you have paid,
your money shall be returned. Rome knows
the price of provender."
"Not when some of the consuls buy it," said
Sempre. Then to me he added: "We came
out to put down a rebellion and we are told
of a miracle. In proper season we should
have heard of it in Jerusalem. It will be
blown like the seeds of thistles."
"But I saw the miracle," said the man. "I
saw the widow's son that was dead, arise and
walk."
"Very likely. But have you any wine in
your house?"
"I have none. But are we not all of us
forbidden to give wine to the soldiers?"
We did not answer him.
The report of the miracle was in the air.
It hung on every lip. Our centurion said that
we might be compelled to fight an army raised
up from the dead and armed with the swords
of the ancient kings. Sempre said to him that
at one time I was like to become a believer in




260    tabe   on of tbe $worbmahter


those unreasonable stories, and I had to
defend myself against this charge. The
soldiers laughed at me. One of them, scoffing, remarked: "When this king shall be
crowned, mayhap he will invite you to be
present at the ceremony. But I wonder what
they will crown him with. The Jews will not
part with so much gold as would encircle his
brow."
In the night there came news that promised
us something to do. A robber chief, not my
old friend Barabbas, but one named Hebdul,
an Arab, was frightening the mountains with
his band. Early in the morning we mounted
and rode until evening was nearly come, and
met no one save peaceable folk that were
eager to hear news of the Prophet. But as
we were going through a valley there fell a
complete surprise. We were suddenly surrounded by a horde as fierce as the Britons.
Some of our undisciplined horses took fright,
and this caused confusion. We were ordered
to dismount. The ground was rough. The
enemy, Arabs, Greeks, Jews, came shouting
down upon us, but ah, how glorious it was
again to fight, to give drink to a thirsty sword!
It was like a thrilling game. And what a joy
to feel a great strength leap into the arm! But
though wild and unorganized, the wretches
fought with unexpected intelligence. They




Out in tbe Mountains


26i


fell upon the men detailed to hold the horses
and butchered them. Now we were surrounded. The centurion fell. I was by his
side, and I fought over his body. The lieutenant fell, and in a loud voice I shouted the
words of command. I seemed to have been
inspired. The men obeyed me. Hand to
hand I closed with Hebdul. I caught his
spear and shivered the staff. He attacked me
furiously with his dagger. It was all I could
do to keep him off. A horrible grin overspread his countenance. He must have felt
that he was to kill me. Upon my buckler I
caught a fierce thrust. The dagger hung.
He strove to pull it out, but I turned the
buckler about to hold the blade between the
lips of the wound in the tough bull's hide.
He staggered. I tripped him and he fell, and
with my sword I pinned him to the ground.
I cut off his head and held it high. His men
were seized with panic. They fled, and then
the Roman sport began. It was dark when
the men were recalled. Every officer had
been slain. I was the logical commander, and
my breast was full of pride.
Early on the following morning we summoned men from the vineyards not far away
and compelled them to assist us with the bury.
ing of the dead. The horses had not many of
them been killed. The wounded men were




262   EUbe   on of tbe Sworbmaker


conveyed to Nain. Then began our home,
ward journey. We had suffered greatly, but
the band had been wiped out.
"Your career has dawned!" said Sempre, as
we rode along, he and I, at the head of the
column.
"I have been fortunate," I answered.
"You have been strong," he said. And we
rode along in silence, and in my heart I knew
that he was not envious of me. Now with
new interest was everything endowed. To
taste of glory makes the whole world bright.
Now did it seem that kindly fate, with fingers
rosy tipped, would for a moment hold aside
the veil that hid the life to come, and show to
me the figure of a conqueror, the son of a
maker of swords. The forestalling quickness
with which I had seized the favors of an
opportunity, thrown alike to all, set forth
the proof beyond a doubt that I was born
to be, not a persuader, but a commander of
men.
"As you were swiftly dealing the blows of
death you looked like an avenging god,"
Sempre said to me; and still in his heart there
was no envy, for his eyes were bright with
admiration.
"I fought without thinking how I-looked," I
made reply to him. "But there was a time
when in the thickness of a fight I was impatient




Out tn the fmountatn2


263


of the praise that I thought must come. And
afterward I hungered almost in vain for a
word from an old soldier-Limprosus. But
about him he wrapped the worn and faded
mantle of indifference."
"And now," said Sempre, "he has wrapped
about him the glaring mantle of a woman's
scarlet life. Once since he took forensic leave
of his sword I met him in the street, and I
said: 'How now, Limprosus, swear you yet
with Prometheus, by the winged dog of Jupiter
when things go wrong?' And he answered,
'Youth, you ought to know that I swear not at
all.'
"'Neither by the dog of Egypt, the dog of
Socrates that had no wings?' And he said, 'I
swear not by things on earth or in heaven.'
'But,' said I, 'you parted with your sword and
took up a weapon that may stab you-a
woman. Was it not your old Diogenes who
threw away a dish of olives and seized a tart?
He gathered up something sharper and so
have you, Limprosus, and you are old.' 'I am
old,' he said, 'but with Job I may believe that
with aged men is wisdom, and in the length of
days understanding.'"
"With Jove, did he say?" I asked, interrupting him.
"No, with one Job, the ancient dramatist of
the Jews. I thought, too, that he spoke of




264    tbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


Jove, but he corrected me. Why I came to
speak of our old and now almost senile friend
was this: With all of his years in the army
he never seized upon a chance such as you
have. He never turned the garment of defeat
inside out to display the silken lining of
victory. The dust of the book-shelf blinded
his soldier eye."
"But was not great Julius a man of books?"
I said, to make a show of warding off his
pleasant flattery.
"He did not make himself heavy and dull
with the reading of them. He wrote books
with his sword. Ah, glance back at the men,
Eradmus. How fondly they look upon you!
Your way is now clear. Your advancement
will be swift."
But I knew that he had spoken out of his
unselfish desire. The ears of men in high
places are dull. It is hard to shout from the
plain up to the top of the mountain. In the
Roman Senate there was no one to speak a
word for me. Merit is a slow traveler, and
my achievement might lag in weariness and
perish before it reached the threshold of the
mighty. I gave words to this fear, and Sempre was silent, and a bitterness came into my
heart. But after a while he cheered me. He
said that my deservings would shout with a
loud voice.




utt in tbe tDountatns


265


When we returned to the Tower there was
sadness in this, the household of war. Men
looked in vain for the coming of their friends,
and the loss of so many officers was a crippling
blow. The commander sent for me. I had
waited. It was night. Soft lamps shed their
luster amid the rich hangings of his room. I
bowed low.
"Is your name Eradmus?"
"It is," I answered, meeting his eye.
"Who was or is your father?"
"My father was Capimentius."
"Ah, the swordmaker? Did he not die ---"
"Under the frown of the Emperor," I interrupted him.
"Ah, so I thought. But you will retrieve his
name. It may take time, but I will see to it
that your interests are advanced. For the
present, serve as you have served.  Your
name is already inscribed on the roll of
honor."
Feeling that I was mounting the stairway to
quick promotion, I withdrew. Hope, born of
man, is sometimes stronger than man himself. It may buoy him, or in its intensity may
give to him a fever. And thus was I afflicted
that night, with a fever, a burning impatience,
the haste of hope. On the morrow the men
who had looked so fondly on me, believing
that my quickness and my valor had saved




266   'Zbe Son of tbe Sworbmaher


them from destruction, again were companions
with me, regarding me simply as one of themselves.
The days passed, the weeks came and slowly
melted away, and I was still the same, a
common soldier ready to risk his life. One
day in a small market place I came upon
Milthias. I would have let him pass without
speaking to him, but he halted and drew me
aside beneath an ancient and almost ruined
porch. Rain had begun to fall. I inquired
about his father, his mother and his sister, and
he said that they all of them were well. I
asked him whether he had of late seen
Limprosus, and it was with a sad smile that
he answered:
"Ah, we thought to make him welcome to
our house, for he cast off all of the vestiges of
idolatry and embraced the Jewish faith. But
he went too far. He acknowledges publicly
that Jesus is the Christ. You remember my
cousin Belthius? Strange to say it, but he also
has become affected. Recently he came with
a marvelous story. In the village of Nain he
has an aunt, and this aunt a son. The son
was stricken and died. Belthius was not there
at the time of the death of the youth, but
arrived in season for the burial. All preparations had been made. Suddenly Jesus appeared
and raised the son from the dead. When




Out in the fIountatns


267


Belthius told this story, I looked at him in
wonder. I asked him if he did not know that
it might be a trick, set to catch the ignorant?
Once to cross him meant a dark frown, but
now he turned upon me a lightsome countenance, as thus he made answer: 'When my
aunt wept over her son as the breath was
going out of his body, she knew that this
suffering and this departure of the loved one
was not a trick. There was no trickery when
with tender hands he was prepared for the
tomb. They took him forth to bury him.
Jesus met them. He spoke the word of life
to the boy and he lives. Can that be a trick?'
Then we all of us sat there in silence. Any
one could see that a great change had taken
place in Belthius, that he was gentler in
manner and that his eyes were softer. He
had been proud of his physical strength, and
although a Jew and a believer in God, he had
not always restrained his passion. We looked
at one another and then at Belthius, and then
again at one another, not knowing what to
say. No one, it seemed, was desirous of
taking the lead in what must end in a long
and tiresome discussion. So, after a time, we
looked to the head of the household. My
father arose and walked up and down in
silence. Then he called for the roll of the
prophets, which he well knew by heart.




268    tbe Son of tbe!worbmaker


When my sister had brought the book, father
took it and sat down. But he did not read.
He turned to Belthius and said: 'You know
this book.' 'Yea,' Belthius answered. 'Have
you not read of those that were stoned to
death?' 'Yea,' answered Belthius. 'Then
read it again and ponder over it.' Belthius
arose and said that he would depart, and he
went his way. Since then the name of our
kinsman has not been spoken in the house
where until lately he was welcome. You may
ask what I thought. I must tell you that he
has lost a part of his mind. I knew where he
was lodged for the night, after he left our
house, and I went to him. I wanted to find
out what peculiar part of his mind he had lost.
He received me as kindly as if he had not with
looks been thrust from our door. I said to
him that I did not come as a reminder of a
misunderstanding, but as one seeking to
understand.
During the life of no man is the world
ready to receive a prophet,' said he. 'The
prophet must have come long years ago, or is
to come far in the future, when, all of the men
that are now living shall have passed away.
The fact that you are living is proof to you
that Jesus is not a prophet of the Lord. Yet
you believe that Elijah was a prophet, because
he came a long time ago. Jesus is the king




Out in tbe MIountains


269


promised to us. His crown is eternal life and
his kingdom is love.'
"I asked whether he had learned all this
simply by looking upon a miracle, and he said
that he had heard Jesus preach and that he
had talked with him. But, Eradmus," Milthias
broke off suddenly, "you do not appear to be
as much interested as you were the last time
we were together. Have you changed?"
"I was never interested to the extent of
believing in the impossible," I replied.
"Power   impresses  me. The   conqueror
impresses me. The man Jesus, stirring Jerusalem to its Arabic and Greek dregs, impressed me, but I can never care anything for
religions or for men who represent them."
The rain ceased and we parted. He said
nothing of my achievement in the mountains.
Perhaps he had not heard of it. O ambition,
there are never voices enough to shout thy
demands!
As I passed through a crowd, on my way to
the Tower, I heard men say that the Prophet
was in the city




CHAPTER XXI


tbom We feeht De $ball fjinb
f KOW there was no sign of a riot, and the
troops were not ordered out on extra
duty. I heard it said that some of the
Jews had hired men to slay the
Prophet; that the wretches had tried; that he
had spoken but a word and that they had fallen
on the ground and for a time lay there as if
dead. The old man that once had stood at the
Tower gate, shouting against Jesus, came and
shouted again. A crowd of idlers gathered and
stood about him, and he delivered to them an
oration of hate and vengeance. I was ordered
to go out and command him to depart. I
pushed through the throng and came to where
he stood, in the midst of men that did not
look as if they would stop short of murder. I
told him that he must go away, and he scowled
upon me. "Does the empire of Rome so
despise the Jews that it would send an order
by one man?" he cried.
"Depart, or I will smite you to the ground."
The ruffians made way for him and he went
away, muttering against the Romans. This
270




T1lbom   WLe ~eeIt  ~e aball finb


27I


was a trifling incident, but it came near costing
me my life. Later in the day, while I was
walking in a lonesome part of the city, I was
attacked by some of these same ruffians, set
on by the murderous old dotard. Stones were
cast at me and I was forced to fly; but later I
returned with several of my friends and for a
long time we stood about, but could find none
of the miscreants. As we were returning I
saw the Prophet going into the house of a
poor man. At the threshold he turned about
and looked at me; and again I felt his
mysterious power. "Whom ye seek ye shall
find," he said. None of us spoke a word,
and he passed on into the house. We came
away, wondering what he meant; and we had
arrived nearly at the gate when before us
there appeared an old man, bowing low with
humbleness. It was the same old man that
had set the ruffians upon me. He was alone.
To smite him, gray and submissive as he was,
would have been the act of a coward. "I beg
your forgiveness," he said. "Peace be unto
you."
"Why have you so changed toward me?" I
inquired.
"A man may change in the twinkling of an
eye, not only toward one man but toward the
whole world," he answered. He looked at me
and the hate was gone out of his eyes. He




272   Xbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


spoke again and we stood to listen. "With
evil in my heart I denounced Him and cried
aloud for H is blood; but even then, while I was
preaching, He suddenly appeared in the midst
of the throng and commanded peace. My
old knees gave way beneath me, and I sank
upon the ground, frothing at the mouth; but
He said 'Arise,' and when I arose, He was not
there, but I saw as if by a new lamp, freshly
trimmed, and in my heart there was no
hate."
We came our way and suffered him to go
his way; and when we were in the citadel,
in the mess-room, Sempre said to me: "In
trickery the Jews are the masters of the
Egyptians. We ought to have punished him
with a lash. He saw that he was in our power,
and that was his way of getting out."
"But," said I, "how did the Galilean
know whom we sought and that we should
find him?"
"On his part it was a shrewd guess. Once
an old woman told my fortune and I marveled
at her wisdom. Those who make it their
business to guess, sometimes guess well. But
why should we, Romans of the world, engage
in an almost ceaseless discussion of this man,
denizen of a hamlet? I am weary of hearing of
him! From Rome there came to me a long letter, and I read it over and over again, not




Wbom Ve Seek ie $iball tin2b


273


because it was of so much interest, but because
it did not mention him, this man likely to come
upon us at all times from the desert, where to
utter the one word,'Behold!' is construed into
wisdom. A conqueror comes to Rome, and the
trumpets peal forth his glory, and behind his
chariot a queen is chained, The people shout,
corn is given to them; and the flowers wither,
and the theater is hushed, and the fountain
plays alone in the moonlight. The noise of
the triumph has passed away.  But the triumph of this man Jesus is in men's whispersnever ending day nor night. It is here, among
these soldiers, in the mind of the man as he
scours his brass or patches up a spear rent in
his shield."
"There was a tumult when He came at first,"
I said.
"Yes, a shout of surprise, but now it is the
tumult of men's eyes. It is in looking and
sometimes in saying not a word. I am weary
of it all. I would rather be in Britain, listening at night to the howling of hungry wolvesrather than to hear the eternal whisper here.
A soothsayer, keeping silent his Ides of March,
he looks at you and in his eye is the sorrowful shadow of some great calamity. He smiles
faintly, and in the smile is the end of man.
You remember the day when they said that he
had cast out devils? I believe that he casts




274    Abe Son of tbe Sworbmakfer


them in, for when he looks at me my heart
stands still; and then I hear that eternal
whisper, whisper of the men about me. A
man to fight must have strength, but he robs
me of it. A man to dispute-must have words,
but in his presence I am dumb. What is it
that he would have me acknowledge? That
he is the Son of 'God? Let him prove that
there is a God. He is my enemy, and I cannot put up my shield against him. Through
my brass his eye pierces, searching for my
heart. He is a menace unto Rome, the world.
Let them order me to cut him down. Let
me see if he can ward off steel!"
Was this the Sempre that had ever been so
cool? He strode about the room with his
sword in his hand. With his blade he struck
the couch whereon Limprosus had slept.
"Here is where the old man took final leave
of his senses and his sword," he said. "Who
could blame him? The whispering always in
the air had robbed him of his mind, Ah,
silent and eternal mystery, how much louder
in men's hearts than a triumph!"
Some one whispered that Sempre had been
drinking, and he caught the sound though not
the words. "Whisper, whisper eternally," he
said. "Whisper me to death. I am weary of
it all."
He lay down, and after a time he slept, but




'Ilbom je Seek ee iball jfinb


275


it was long before sleep came to balm my
senses. I was working for ungrateful masters.
My reward had not come. A man, a politician, a fellow new to arms, had been
appointed to fill the gap left by one who died
when I had saved the day; but I was neglected. What was my ultimate aim? To hear
the shout of Rome? To conquer Britain! To
possess Vloden! After all, then, it was love
itself, and not love for glory.
Sempre looked weary when early in the
morning he awoke. I thought that he would
now storm at himself for having railed the night
before, but he did not. He went about his
duties in a quiet way; and while we were
breaking our fast he said to me: "I do not
like these dark Jerusalem nights. This air
wherein men worship age makes man old. If
I had a beard it would soon turn gray. What
did you think of me last night?"
"I thought that you were much disturbed."
"I was, and the cause is not yet removed,
but it is worse in the night.  Something
strange has taken hold of me, and fighting
hard against it has worn upon my nerves."
"You need a physician," I said.
"Yes, a physician with an undiscovered
medicine. There is a disease that is not of
man, but that afflicts man. It is the disease of
a day-dream that cannot be put into words.




276 v  tbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


There comes that state of mind when substances seem as shadows, shadows substances;
and the very air itself becomes as cliffs of
rock, grudgingly parting to let one pass
between. I have begun to remember again
the hated books that I was compelled to read
to my father in his library, mystic absurdities
from the pens of the dreamers at Alexandria.
Ah, and this reminds me that yesterday or
the day before I came upon your old Egyptian,
preaching to some dozen men in a stone.
cutter's yard. I halted for a moment to listen.
I should not have known who he was but that
he mentioned your name. He said that you,
a Roman, the son of a swordmaker, were
yielding to the spirit of Galilee, and that you
would soon proclaim it to the world. 'By one
of your own gods,' I cried, 'by the fox-headed
Anubis, you lie!' And without anger he
replied: 'There are no Egyptian deities, O
youth. There is but one God, and in sandals
his Son walks now upon the irreverent earth,
for the earth is ignorant.' Then came those
whispers from other men that were gathered
about; and so I left them. But, Eradinus, will
you rest in silence beneath his accusation?"
"No. But why did you not tell me this
before, so that I might go to him and compel
him to swallow back those spewed-up words?"
He put his hand to his head, and for a time




Wbom     e SeeIk Ve $ball lin2b


277


he thought. "Things pass out of my mind," he
said. "I see and I hear, and when the days
have gone, I remember that I have seen and
heard. If what he says of you is to be bruited
about, reaching the ear of Roman authority,
it will deafen it to your deservings and poison
your promotion."
I was angered, and I said that I would go to
the house of the Egyptian; and I went down
from the Tower while the day was still young.
The stone-cutter and the giant were hewing a
rock, but I did not stay to speak to them, for
Sempre was a man of truth and I needed not
their testimony. Coming to the Egyptian's
house, I heard the words of prayer from within. I knocked loud upon the door, but the
prayer was not broken, and I knocked louder
than before. Now there was silence, and then
the sounds of light footsteps. The door was
opened, not by the Egyptian, but by Eine, the
wife of Limprosus. Upon seeing me her
countenance lighted with a smile, and she
bade me enter. Nebuces was there and so
was Limprosus, but the storm that had arisen
within me wyas still, and without a word I stood,
looking upon them. Quietly they bade me
welcome, but with no word on my lips I turned
about and left them. And returning to the
Tower, I was ashamed to meet Sempre. I
strove to arouse the storm in my breast, that




278     Cbe Son of tbe %worOmaker


I might hasten again to the Egyptian and
chastise him, but the only feeling that arose
within me was one of humiliation. All during
the day I stood off clear from Sempre; but in
the night, as I sat where the lamp was dim, he
came to me and took a seat beside me on the
couch.
"Did you make the old wizard grovel at
your feet?"
"No," I answered.
"Then he was not at home?"
"He was at home, and Limprosus and the
woman were with him."
"And in their presence you made him to
humble himself?"
"In their presence I spoke not a word, but
turned away and left them!"
"You did not even charge him with the lie
he has told?"
"I charged him with nothing."
"Will you tell me why you said nothing, why
you stood silent in their presence, as if their
dignity made you dumb?"
"I did not myself understand."
"Eradmus, it is time that we too should take
leave of our swords, Draw forth your steel
and see if it has not blushed for you. The
hour will come when at these gates the mob
will roar, not with the outcry of impotent
voices alone, but with battering iron and




- — I

WHERE THE LAMP WAS DIM.
I)f9\




InI




W/lbom le Fee~t ~e ~ball Tfnb


279


avenging sword. May this fury not come at
a time when such as you and I are to uphold
the name of Rome. The agile strength of the
Campus Martius has departed from the muscles
of our right arms, and unto our knees has come
the weakness of Galilee. It is a spell. Let us
throw it off!"
And in our determination we threw it off,
and up and down we walked hard upon the
stone floor, like men in the theater, playing an
emergency. While we were yet walking,
growing stronger at the end of each slow
moment, there came an order from headquarters. Barabbas had robbed a caravan not
many miles from the city, had overcome the
escort, cut off the head of an army paymaster,
and had made off with the silver and gold.
We were to speed forth at once; and for us it
was pleasant news. But in the hasty preparation a bitterness came upon me. I was to
serve and not to command. The new centurion, the politician Nelius, was to lead. But
it was useless to show or to feel resentment.
Down through the stone streets rang the
iron of-our horses. Luna arose, and the
valley of the Kedron was ripe for a harvest of
moonbeams. Out in the thrill of the air my
spirits lifted. The night is the mother of
mysticism, and now, in her very bosom, I was
so much a part of her as to comprehend her




280     tbe Son of the Sworbmaker


secrets. The old Egyptian was an agent of
the night. The Prophet, they had said, was
born beneath a star that hung low above him;
and he, too, was of the night.
Out among the ancient tombs the wild dogs
were howling. The clang of our brass was
loud in the stillness. We passed over a hill,
through  an olive grove.  The wavering
branches sifted the moon down upon us, snowflakes of the heavens. Out into the open
again, across a brook, the horses striking fire
from the stones. In the hut of a vineyard
worker a light was burning. As we passed
near the door we heard the sounds of prayer,
low and trustful. He mentioned the name of
God, the Prophet's father. Surely this laborer
was unacquainted with the secrets of the
night. Why did he not open his door and let
the darkness show to him that it was all
mysticism? Afar off the stars hung low above
a hill. The dogs ceased their howling. All
among the ancient tombs was as quiet as the
dust beneath them. If there were souls,
whence had fled the souls that once inhabited
that dust?
In the level road we hastened onward with
greater speed. The horses were glad to be
out beneath the stars. Wild asses started up
and sped away, the moonlight glinting upon
their bristly backs. They kicked up their




lEIbom We Seekt     e 2ball fftnb     281


heels, but they could not throw off their riders,
the moonbeams. The hours passed. The
horses were slower. The day began to break.
The sun flushed the east. The shadows flew
away, faster than the wild asses; and the
envious moon died in the heavens. And now
the dewy glades flashed like great crystals
shattered on the ground. The day is the
father of reason. My brain was clear. I
thought no more of the old Egyptian. I was
a Roman soldier.
Our troop, consisting of not more than thirty
men, was divided into three companies, that
we might better scout the country. I was at
the head of one company. Along about the
middle of the afternoon a potter came out of
his shop, with clay on his hands. He asked
me if the robber had been taken. He said
that early in the morning Barabbas had been
seen not far from this place. There were a
number of fierce-looking men with him. Now
it seemed that the track was warm. The
country was broken, with here and there a
thicket of stunted trees. Out from one of
these thickets there came a sudden rush,
Barabbas and his men. Barabbas rode like
the spirit of darkness breaking a barbaric
steed. But his men, seeing that we were ready
to receive them, wheeled about and fled.
Their shouts had ceased and the robber knew




282!be Son of the iworbmakler


that he was left alone. But he was now so
near us that he could not wheel his horse; and
so he grazed us on the right, like a stone,
glancing. He did not throw his spear. He
bent low and sped as fast as his swift horse
could leap the air. I was nearest him and I
gave chase, but he was better mounted and he
gained on me. But coming to a rough place
where the ground had been washed by the
rains, the horse made a great leap, and his feet
seeming to tangle, he fell. Barabbas arose
upon the instant and he threw his spear, but it
passed me harmlessly; and then I was upon him.
But he was determined, and desperately he
fought with his sword. I could have killed
him, for he had not been trained, but it was
my desire to take him alive. And, catching
quick at the chance, I struck him upon the
head with the flat of my sword and felled him.




CHAPTER XXII


In tbe a9p to Come
OW    loud the trumpet screamed, and
from far across the hills an answer
came. Soon Sempre's troop had galloped up, while on a hill-top not far
away the centurion's company urged their
horses, speeding fast to join us. The robber
was bruised, but not badly hurt. One of his
men had been killed, and the others had fled,
leaving the hollow-sounding winds behind
them. The horse of Barabbas was crippled
by his fall, and we ended his wild days with
the thrust of a spear. The robber was tied
upon the back of one of our own horses, and
then we turned our faces toward Jerusalem. I
was not now listening for praise, but I looked
for credit, to further my promotion; but the
centurion said naught, and I knew that he was
not going to speak in my behalf. It is true
that my taking of the robber was due more to
his misfortune than to my valor, but it is also
true that had I been less skillful he might have
slain me and escaped.
283




284    tbe Son of the %worbmaher


We halted to refresh ourselves, and it was
not until the forenoon of the following day
that we entered the city. When it became
known that the robber had been taken and
brought prisoner to Jerusalem, there was great
excitement in the streets, and amid the throng
that pressed forward to look upon him I
recognized the Arab with whom I had traveled
from Gaza.
When Barabbas had been shut up in a
strong prison I went to the Tower to tell the
story of his capture. Long ago I had learned
that in the army there was one quality that
availed nothing-the quality of modesty.
The commander received me in his curtained
room. On a table were the remnants of a
feast. His face was red with wine. "Why
have you come to deliver a report?" he
demanded. "Where is your centurion? Is he
killed? Do all officers die when they go out
with you?"
"Sir, you have asked me more questions
than I can answer," I declared myself unto
him, bowing over the table almost to the level
thereof. "But if you will permit me I shall be
pleased to tell the story of the capture of the
robber Barabbas."
Then I told him my story, and he listened
with impatience, moving about restlessly
as I was delivering it. "Well," he said, "and




In tbe Vag to Come


285


you were afraid that the credit would not be
given to you. I have forwarded your name,
and that is all I can do. I have not forgotten
you. You have been granted extra privilegesto come and go as you see fit. Does that
count for nothing?"
He began to soften toward me. He was
yielding to the mood of the wine. "You are
a brave man, a good soldier, and when Rome
knows that of one in her service, what else is
there to know?"
He dismissed me, and as I was going out I
met the centurion coming in. I stepped aside,
saluting him, but he took no notice of me.
Out in the courtyard I came upon Sempre.
With words that were not unkind the commander had atoned for his indifference, and of
him I said nothing to my friend, but I spoke
of the centurion's discourtesy, and Sempre
replied: "What could you expect of a politician that fancies himself in favor? When he
was in the ranks he did not know how to be
respectful to his superiors; he was servile.
And now that he has risen, he does not know
how to be dignified, but must be arrogant.
Think nothing more of him. Is it not beautiful up there?" he said, pointing to the stars.
"But they are a mystery, and perhaps they are
whispering about a prophet that has appeared
among them. And doubtless this prophet star




286    tbe Son of tbe Swortmaker


calls himself direct offspring of the sun, The
moon might be laid claim upon as mother, but
these prophets never set store on that side of
the house. They do not seem to have
mothers. This Galilean, they say, is the son
of David, who lived in the remote ages, but
they do not mention David's wife. With the
assistance of Solomon, his son, I should think
that David's offspring should be numerous,
for it was Solomon who possessed wives and
concubines enough to have supplied Aeschylus
with a dozen choruses."
"Still thinking about the Prophet!" I said.
"I thought that you and I were resolved to
withdraw our minds from him."
"The throne of. the mind is set in the noontide, in the blaze of the sun. Then reason
stands forth, a challenger. But every night
is a mystery, and when the challenge rings
forth, for answer a shadow falls. Where the
wolf howls in the forest there is no mystery,
for that is the voice of hunger, the voice of
the material. We understand and marvel not:
but here in the night, when the murmur of
trade has died, there is silence, and out of its
depths comes a voice that you do not hear,
but which deafens your heart with its temr
pestuous stillness. I have written to my
father, begging him to purchase my exemption
from the army. I am young, but I feel heavy




In tbe Vap to Come


287


with years. Barbarians and even civilized
nations have poisoned their wells, that an
invading army might drink unto death, but
these dews have poisoned the air. They have
discovered a poison for the mind. A year ago
I could not in a dream have visioned myself
as I now am. You may say that it is due to ill
health, but my strength will dispute that. It
is my spirit that is heavy with years. I seem
to have lived a thousand ages ago. But what
is my spirit? A soul? Then, if I have a soul,
Limprosus was wise. In Rome I could return
to the superstitious and find relief in burning
incense to the gods. But here I look upon
such rites with the eyes of a Jew, as idolatrous.
Our religion was a joy, a festival. The Jew
worships sorrow, makes terror his God and
grief his prophet. I mean the Jews that
accept Jesus. The others still worship at the
shambles. They must smell the burnt blood
of the bull. I do not wish to worship sorrow.
I do not wish to believe that in a long face
there lies all virtue. I hear that the ruling
Jews are making stronger and stronger their
appeal against Jesus, to have him brought
forward on a charge that may involve his life.
I trust that they may succeed. In no way
do I acknowledge him as the son of a god or
as a prophet possessing powers beyond mortal
man- But in some way he is a poisoner of the




288     Tbe Son of tbe $worbmafer


atmosphere of men's minds, and as such he is
an evil unto the state."
"In this nursery of old men we are children,"
said I. "In this land the youth imitates the
aged. There are no games, no sports, no
theaters. Here every one must live in the
past, and the past was dark and full of superstition. I know the feeling that has come
upon you, for, as you could but see, I have not
myself escaped from it; but our distemper will
soon pass away. You must not leave the
army. You have been educated for it, and
outside of it you are a stranger unto all the
ffairs of life. A man of your bravery and
intelligence must eventually win fame. You
remember the resolve we made. Let us make
it again, stronger than before."
While I was speaking, a legionary came to
me and inquired if I had received the word
left for me that Limprosus was sick, and nigh
unto death? The news had been brought
near the noon hour. No one had told me.
And now, forgetful of all except that I still
loved the old soldier, I hastened to the house
of the Egyptian; and when I arrived I found
Belthius standing in front of the door.
"How is it with Limprosus?" I inquired,
when I saw who it was, and he answered: "It is
well with him." His words smote my heart,
for I felt that the old Roman had not taken




In tbe Map to Come


289


leave only of his sword, but of the world as
well; and with halting step I passed on into
the chamber wherein Nebuces was wont to sit.
And there was Limprosus, talking low and
smiling upon his friends. He arose to meet
me, and eagerly I ran to him; and he struck
hands with me, after the vigorous manner of
soldiers.
"They told me that you were sick unto
death, and even now, at the door, I believed
you dead!" I cried. Upon my shoulder he
placed a strong hand; and feeling its weight
I gazed into his countenance, and saw therein
a health-hue and a youthfulness that never
had he shown me before. Then I looked
about me, and realized that there were present
not only the Egyptian and the wife of
Limprosus, and Belthius, who had followed
me, but my friend Milthias. They all of them
greeted me in a quiet way, but expressive of
happiness; and in good humor I said that it
was not seemly of them thus to lure a soldier
from his duty.
"I thought that I was coming," said I, "to
look upon a face cold in death, and which with
its stillness would reproach me with the truth
that I had not always been patient with a
great heart beating no more. But I have
come instead to look upon a festival of smiles.
Limprosus, did you lend a hand to this?"




290    tbe Son of tbe 5worbmater


"Sit you down," said Limprosus, and when
I had obeyed him, he, too, seated himself, and
then came Eine, and sat on the floor at his
feet, clasping her hands over his knee. He
began to speak. "Eradmus, they spoke truly
when they said that I was sick unto death
But at the moment when they stood weeping
over me, Jesus came and unto me He said:
'Limprosus, arise. Thou art not sick.' And
then I knew that I was not; and I arose, and
new blood was in my veins, and in my heart
a new strength.  We all of us fell upon
our knees to give thanks, and when we
looked up, He was gone from the midst of
us.
He ceased to speak, and I sat there, feeling
that they were bending their looks upon me.
It was not hard to find my tongue, for it was
ready enough to speak in ridicule of what I
had heard, but these were my friends, and
while I pitied their weakness, I did not wish
to show contempt for it. So after a time I
said: "Milthias, you were here?" and looking
straight into my eyes, he said that he was. "I
had come," said he, "to see Limprosus die,
and at the very moment when he seemed
dead, I saw him live anew!"
Rebellion arose in my heart, though the
lamp was within and the darkness without and
mysticism everywhere. "And do you believe,




In the Vas to Come


291


Milthias, that the man Jesus did heal
Limprosus?"
"I speak of what I beheld with mine eyes,
Eradmus. And now I must speak what I
believe-that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of
God."
"But where is this God, the Father?" I cried.
"Why was it necessary for him to send his son
to walk wearily in the dust of the earth? Why
would he make his own a wanderer? Why
would he set up against him a host of enemies
that daily seek his life? And if this son be
powerful enough to heal the sick and to raise
the dead, as I have heard, why does he not
raise a temple for himself, grander than the
one which he has threatened to destroy? If
he heals as a proof of his claim that he is the
son of God, why does he not go among men
of influence? If there be a God, all of the
greatness as well as all of the weakness of the
world belongs to him. God must be wisdom,,
but if a man seek only the company of the
humble and the impotent, no one disputes us if
we say he is not wise."
"Eradmus," said Milthias, "it is not for us to
question."
"But it is for us to question," I replied.
"Reason and a desire to know the truth are
the parents of question. God ought to be the
source of reason and of truth And when the




292


Z9be Son of tbe wvorbmaker


Prophet passes away, how can the. distant
world believe in him, since he gives only to
the humble the testimony of his life and his
work?"
"Still I say," said Milthias, "that it is not for
us to question."
During this time the Egyptian had sat
enwrapped in silence, not grim, as was the
wont of his race, but bright as if from the glow
of a lamp within him. Now he spoke:
'O son of that mighty error, Rome," he
said, "would it not be in keeping with the ways
of earth to despise the meek and to pay court
to the great? But there is coming a time
when men that are greater than any Caesar,
looking back across the vast sweep of the
years, shall see this day, this city, hung about
with an imperial purple that the ages shall be
powerless to dim, with a glory that cannot
fade! And these great men shall feel that to
have lived now, in this hour-to have been
permitted to bathe with their grateful tears
the feet that are now covered with the dust
of the weary road-feel and know that it was
a privilege blessed beyond all comparison!
Reason, O my generous youth, you who gave
to me my freedom-reason may come with its
question, but faith alone can inspire the
answer. You may tell us that faith is born of
ignorance, of shortness of sight, of a readiness




In tbe Map to Come


293


to believe in the spirituality of things which
the eye cannot understand, and then we must
tell you that faith is a wisdom that comes not
out of man's knowledge, but comes he knows
not whence. Faith is the inspiration of the
heart. It may come unto a child or be denied
to a sage. When it knocks at the door there
are some that are deaf. Listen with thine
ears, 0 son."
Rebellion was strong within me. Reason
was whetting the edge of its blade. Old
women might tell such stories and children
might believe them. And so I arose to
depart, to go out from the light of the lamp,
into the dark, into the bosom of the night, but
Milthias bade me stay.
"No," said Limprosus, speaking in kindly
tones, "suffer him to go the way that now
seems marked out for him, the roads that
wind him in and about, in the night of his
heart and in the darkness of his soul; for the
day will soon break and the sun will rise, and
in the upward and the straight pathway shall
he track the earth, joyfully toward redemption. Let him go."
And so I went out from among them, and
the eyes of the heavens looked they all of
them upon me, and yet was I in the dark.




CHAPTER XXIII


Zbe Great fkinsman of a jfamIh?
EMPRE was asleep, and I did-not awake
him, though I longed for his strength
to give aid to the rebellion within me.
After a long time I slept, and I dreamed
the whole night through; and always I saw
the man from Galilee, with a few of his chosen
ones, walking in the dust; and far away, over
the lonely road, came Vloden, following him.
When the visions of the night departed,
Sempre was sitting on his couch looking at
me; and when I showed that no longer was I
asleep, he inquired after Limprosus.
"He is well, and younger than I ever knew
him before."
"Then he was not sick?"
"His friends that were gathered about him
said that he was sick unto death. And his
word have I also. He was lying between life
and death, and his friends were weeping, for
they knew that his time was come, when
suddenly the man Jesus appeared in the midst
of them, and with a word called him back to
health!"
294




1bbe Great Kitnsman of a familn   295


He looked at me as if he would force
me to say what I believed.  But I said
nothing, and he spoke again: "You saw him
well, but you did not see him sick. They are
all of them mad. The Prophet and his agent,
the Egyptian, have robbed them of their
senses and filled their minds with moonbeams
harvested in the valley of the Kedron. They
have been deceived, and they in turn deceived
you."
"But," said I, "Milthias was there, and he
testified also."
"Milthias! Then he is mad, too. They have
held his head beneath the downpour of beams
from the moon. Ha! they tell you of their
faith, but why must it ever be revived and
strengthened, day after day, by tricks to catch
and bewilder the eye? But tell me, have they
made you weak with their belief? Have they
netted your brain about with the strands of
raveled moonbeams? Are they to make
mad this fragment of an army, and in our
idiocy are we to straggle out, refusing to do
our duty, and give over the citadel to the cold
and sane Jew, the merchant of the Temple? I
shall have none of it. The nightmare came
upon me, mysticism came upon me, weakness
came upon me; but with the strength of a
Roman I threw them all off, and now I am a
man, a soldier again. Come, remember our




296    Cbe fon of tbe %worbmaher


resolve. I have sent another letter to my
father; I have told him that I wish to remain
in the army. I have shown the strength of
my resolve. Now show yours."
I was prepared to show my resolve, and I
did. My promotion lagged, but my hope was
born anew, and in the discharge of my duties
I felt strong, As the time wore on, neither in
the day nor in the night did I go near the
house of the old Eygptian. And long after I
had crossed that threshold, the coming and
the going of a season, Milthias came one
morning to the Tower. He sent a messenger
to tell me that he was in the courtyard, and it
was there that I met him. He requested me
to go with him out beyond the gate, and when
I had done so, but not willingly, he conducted
me to the ruined wall whereon we had sat
the time when he had given me to know
that I was no longer free to visit his
father's house. Here we seated ourselves. I
waited for him to speak, and he spoke with
readiness.
"I have come, Eradmus, to say that for you
there is a welcome waiting in our house."
His voice was cordial and his manner was
affectionate, but his words were as wasps and
they stung me. Before I spoke I waited for
the stinging to pass, and then I thus replied:
"I did nothing that should have excluded me,




'Ibe Great 1kinsman of a Iamtln     297


and I have done nothing that should invite
my return."
His hand lay warm upon my bare arm.
"Eradmus," he said, 'the judgment of a father
that loves his family deemed it best that you
should not come.  But there is something
that is above all judgment-the brotherhood
of man. Then there were Jews and Gentiles,
but now, in the love of the Son of David, there
is to be no Jew, no Gentile, for all are the
family of God. Eradmus, our household has
been converted to Christ. And so has my
uncle, Nicodemus. He is a very learned man,
and is proud, but some time ago he went
secretly to discourse with Jesus and came
away converted. So, you see, his friends are
not alone among the poor and the humble."
'"But wherefore do you tell me this, and
why do you seek to give it strength by speaking of your uncle? I have not been converted
to anything but my sword, my old and honored
deity. And since it is you and yours alone
that have embraced a new faith, why should
I come to your house? You have bridged a
chasm, but your timbers are too light to bear
me over."
Gently he pressed my arm, and he spoke in
low and earnest tones of the obligation which
his family felt was lying on the house in
my behalf; and over and again he said that




298   'abe   on of tbe Sworbmaher


but for me the wilds of Britain had always been
the place of his wretched abode.
"Ah,' said I, "instead of this carpenter from
Galilee, this Christ, I am your savior! He
never would have gone to find you in old
Lodbig's town. He is therefore a savior by
courtesy of opportunity."
With the ending of my last word he snatched
his hand from my arm, and sat back from me,
and I knew that in his ever-ready judgment I
had been guilty of blasphemy; but his friendship for me was such that even in the severity
of his creed, new or old, he forgave me, though
he said not a word, and I did not turn my
face toward him, but looked out over the city,
down through the grim and cheerless streets.
And it appeared that now   there was an
unwonted stir among the people and a jostling
of camels. From afar off, over hills and
out of the valleys, strangers were coming, and
I could discern that they were arrayed not in
the coarse raiment of trade, but were clothed,
many of them, in apparel that appeared to be
rich. I inquired of Milthias whether he knew
the cause of this, the assembling of such a
multitude, and he answered that they were
come to the feast of the Passover. I was
still in ignorance, but supposed it to be some
sort of ancient Jewish festival, in which a
Roman could take no interest, and I therefore




'be Great fkinsman of a jjamiIp  299


questioned him no further. But I waited for
him to say more, not in explanation of the
Passover, but relative to his coming to see
me, and as he did not, I arose as if to dismiss
him. Now it was that he looked so sad as he
sat there that I had not the heart to turn away
from him. I thought of the time when he had
come walking up to me in Vloden's field,
when I wore a chain about my ankles, when
wild men were in readiness to throw spears
through my body. And I was about to speak
when he said:
"You are impatient with me now, Eradmus,
and in your mind the cause is alive, but the
time is coming when in the love of the
Galilean we shall be closer than brothers."
"But I do not desire to become brother if I
must first become all Jew and no Roman," I
replied, still moved by the sadness of his face,
it was true, but remembering that I was always
the one who must conform. "You frame your
own belief and say to me: 'Accept of it and
then I will accept of you.' And when you
change your principles, I must change also.
Would it not be more brotherly to accept of
a part of that which I offer, and mingle it with
the part which you have to offer me?"
He answered with a smile, saying that
brothers would not remain long apart if they
were generous enough to meet half-way.




300o   'be Son of tbe mworbmaher


Then he arose and embraced me, and I heard
the laughter of a soldier on the battlement,
and I felt ashamed that a Roman should see
me, even as Milthias and his sister had been
ashamed to walk with me when the ruling
Jews were looking at them.
He asked me if I would not come again to
his father's house, to meet my friends, Limprosus and the Egyptian, who came in the
evening to hold discourse there?  And I
answered that I would come. So I went with
him, and we sat, all of us, Limprosus, his wife
and Nebuces, by the fire, for the weather was
cold. The discourse was not indeed a discourse, but orations on the Prophet, delivered
by one and then the other; and while we were
thus sitting in the light of the fire, there came
Nicodemus, the brother of Leboac But when
he saw that a Roman soldier was present, he
was loath to join with the company, but Milthias
went to him and talked in a low tone to him,
and then he came forward and made one of
us there about the fire. He was a man of
shrewd intelligence, and spoke with much
caution, weighing his words, and looking about
him lest some one not of the company should
hear him and misinterpret his words. A man
of less learning could have said in a short
time what it took him a long time to say.
His words did not mean more than the words




be reat -1kinsman o a  vam
'be Great lkinman ot a 1amilI


30o


of other men, but he seemed to think that they
did, for he spoke them as if he were giving
them a new and more important birth. He
asked me what I as a Roman thought of the
Jewish Prophet, and I answered him that I
was not there as an advocate of the man Jesus,
but to visit my friend Milthias. He appeared
to like my caution, which was not caution but
the outspoken truth, and he stroked his silken
beard and looked wise. After the coming of
the great man the rest of the company was not
given much to talk, preferring to listen to
him, but I should have listened with more of
interest to Amana, the daughter of the house,
for her words, like buds, burst out each one in
the proper place. Leboac was cautious, too;
but I wondered at Limprosus, who had always
been so ready with argument, and at Nebuces,
who was, I well knew, much wiser than
Nicodemus. They were all ready, for the
most part, to call man brother, but the shadow
of authority was still hanging above them,
though it was the self-importance of Nicodemus that rendered him great.
I made bold to inquire as to his own impressions of the Prophet, and he looked about him
and stroked his beard. They all of them bent
their eyes upon him, wondering, no doubt,
whether he would say something stronger
than before, for it was evident that Leboac




302    tbe $on of the Sworbmaher


and his wife desired to reinforce their own
convictions with encouragements that he
might give to them. He said that it was easier
to believe than not to believe. "You must
know, youth," he said to me, "that we have
expected a king. That we do not find him in
the Prophet is a disappointment, but that we
have a prophet at all, after so many years,
when it seemed that Jehovah had forgotten
Israel, ought to be a cause for great rejoicing.
I do not lay such store upon His miracles, for
possibly they might be wrought by peculiar
agencies, but I was well pleased with His
answers to certain questions, proving 'to me
that he was a man of deep meditation."
The old Roman and the Egyptian looked at
each other. Limprosus spoke.
"You are a wise man, Nicodemus. You
have garnered the prophecies of the men of
old. You have been careful to obey the law.
You have not permitted your white vestures
to be specked by the world. You have feared
the Lord. And -when the Prophet came, you
searched your book and then demanded proof
of Him. That was well. It was in accordance
with your life and the lives of your fathers.
With me it was not the same. I was the
servant of the sword. You were the servant
of the book. My light was the glint of steel.
You carried a lamp. I read philosophers,




tbe Great ktinsman of a familt  303


Plato and the rest, and I found that the wisdom which vaguely the philosophers guessed
at, Jesus made clear. From a godless source,
I came swiftly to the truth. There were
no entanglements. You were beset with
doctrines, and the truth appeared too simple.
I became as a child. You wished to remain
as a doctor. You expected that the Prophet
of God would speak in thunder. He spoke in
gentle breezes."
Nicodemus stood up. We all stood up.
Nicodemus sat down and so did we. Did I
say all? Limprosus and the Egyptian did not
arise. I arose because my friend, in whose
house I was a guest, arose to do honor to his
uncle. I would honor my friend. We all of
us expected that Nicodemus would deliver to
Limprosus a frown in words, but he bent his
not unkindly eyes on him and said: "There
is much truth in what you have said."
I did not remain long after this. I bade
them farewell and took my course to the
Tower. From the desert a raw wind was
blowing. The streets were thronged with
strangers. They were making ready for the
feast of the Passover.




CHAPTER XXIV


tCbe l Wlere Strong
*T was not long after I saw Nicodemus at
the house of Leboac, surely not more than
a day and a night, when my commission
as centurion was given to me. It was
evening when the honor was conferred. I was
arrayed in the garb of my office and into my
hand was given the rod, wound about with a
golden vine. The soldiers applauded, for
they knew that I had earned the honor, and
Sempre, whom we all of us felt was in the line
of promotion, seized me by the hand, and into
my ear he spoke: "Remember our resolve!"
I smiled upon him in my happiness, telling
him that I remembered; and he said that
he had with pleasure observed my strength.
Without a feeling of disrespect I withdrew
from every one and went forth upon the
battlements, to be alone and to muse over
Vloden, for, now she seemed near unto me.
Down the vista of speculation I could
see myself, still further honored with promotion, marching with a legion toward old
Lodbig's town.
304




TO BE ALONE AND TO MUSE OVER VLODEN.


OF
3^








Zbeg? W1ere Strono


305


From the desert the wind blew cold, but I
stood strong against it, looking, as I supposed,
toward Britain; and in the glowing of a light,
off in some distant vacant place, I saw the
gleaming of the moon on the handful of snow
that the wondrous maiden of the woods had
held out to me. Suddenly my musing and
my pictures, gathered in the dark and made
light in my own bosom, were driven away by
noises in the streets, the shouting and the
hooting of a great mob. Hundreds of torches
and lanterns glowed and swayed in the air.
Surely there must be an insurrection; and
in this belief, I hastened to the commander of the citadel to apprise him;
but at the door I was met by an officer
who said that he had just delivered a report
that the man Jesus had been arrested by the
Jews. I went below and stood without the
wall, but seeing no one, I went farther down
toward the city. Now I could hear occasional
outbursts from the mob, more savage than the
yells of the Britons, more heartless than the
howl of Rome. Farther down I halted again,
for at such a time, when every man might be
needed, I did not dare to go beyond an
emergency call from the citadel. Here I
stood, waiting for I knew not what, for
Limprosus, yea, for him to appeal to the
Romans. He had not heard that I was a




l3o6   Zbe Son of tbe iworOmaker


centurion, that my honors were as a new leat
upon me. If I could only see him, and go
with him before the commander to put his
appeal with my own, he might essay again to
seize his sword. The heartless wretches
roared and roared again, and how I yearned
to charge them with the men whom I had
commanded in the mountains, men who would
singe the very beard of death! But no one
came. All was quiet save in that one fury
pot, boiling not so far away, near indeed, but
too remote while with my men I could not
reach it. I returned into the citadel and
talked with the commander, and he answered
that Pilate was in the city and that if I wished
to kill Jews I must appeal to him.
"It is not so much that I desire to kill Jews
as it is to save an innocent man," said I. And
taking up a book that he had been reading,
which I should have thought was the art of
quieting rather than of exciting soldiers to
deeds of valor, he said: "I admire your zeal;
I admire the zeal and the spirit of all young
men, but it is not wise to become embroiled
with those Jews. Beware of the man when he
fears that his god has forsaken him. But you
need have no fear of them putting this man to
death. They may try him by such law as is
left unto them, and may turn him out of the
Synagogue-a frightful calamity to contem



tbetp 'Were!Strong


307


plate," he added with a smile, "but they cannot condemn him to death. And, besides, if
he is a prophet and has all power, why should
you be alarmed?  Can he not scatter his
enemies as if they were winter leaves?"
Now was I ashamed that I had appealed to
him. I did not wish to be classed among the
supporters of the Prophet. My resolution was
strong. I was to be the conqueror of Britain.
Therefore I bowed, and begged the commander not to think me the adherent of any
men other than the rulers of Rome. And so I
went out from his presence. But I was
wrought upon, and did not feel that there was
sleep for me that night. I thought of Limprosus and of the old Egyptian. I wondered
whether the repentant woman who now loved
the old soldier would fall off in her regard and
her reformation when she should know that
the One who brought the change upon her
heart could, like a common criminal, be
dragged about the streets. Again I went out
and stood for a long time, and now all was
quiet. I saw a man coming up the hill, toward
the gate. He halted and seemed, with hands
clasped, to be gazing at the Temple. He came
nearer and I spoke to him. He stood still and
I went to him. The sky was not dark. I saw
his white beard. He spoke, and I recognized
Nicodemus.




308    'obe fon of the %worbmaTer


"iHis friends are all of them scattered like
sheep when beset by the wolves," he said.
"Judas, his disciple, betrayed him. Some of
them have sworn that they did not know him."
"What have they done with him?" I
inquired.
"They are preparing to take him before
Pilate. They demand his life. They spit on
his friends. They beat the Master and revile
him. It was an awful, a shameful sight, there
at the house of Caiaphas, the high priest.
They brought witness against him, and in the
meshes of their own falsehood they entangled
themselves. Those who shouted when he
came into the city, riding an ass, now hooted
and cried for his blood. May it well have
been said, '0 ye generation of vipers.' But
youth, I must not be seen here. I must be
seen nowhere, for some of them may think
that I gave him my countenance."
He turned away, looking upward at the
Temple, and so I left him.
Early in the morning, I was ordered to
report to Pilate with a detail of men. This I
proceeded immediately to do, selecting Sempre
as one of the legionaries. "Remember our
resolve," I said, as we were filing through the
gate, and he looked at me with a smile and
thus replied: "I am not a mystic; I am a
Roman."




Z2bes g Were Sjtrong


309


Before we arrived at the Palace the prisoner,
Jesus, had been taken into the Hall of Judgment. The Jews were crowded about the
door. They believed that to enter the place
would defile them. How careful man is of the
appearance of his robe! Pilate had evidently
found it difficult, on account of the fear of this
defilement, to bring forward witnesses. As
the soldiers were about to enter, the Procurator came to the door.  I saluted him,
reporting for duty. He waved his hand, the
ruffians who, bolder than the rest, were in the
entrance, made way and I filed the soldiers
into the hall. For a time the Procurator
stood, expostulating with the angry mob, urging the fanatics to specify the crime that the
man had committed; and they cried out that
he was a disturber of the peace, an enemy of
the people.
"But what has he done?" Pilate demanded.
"He has brought shame upon us! He has
called himself our king!"
Then, returning into the hall, Pilate commanded Jesus to answer such questions as he
should put to him; and Jesus, who stood there,
worn and sorrowful, looked at him in meekness, but in his countenance there was no fear.
All about him was sadness, his garments, his
sandals, his brown hair falling on his shoulders,
in which there were tangles made by rude




3 Io   abe Son of the Sworbmaker


hands-all a weight of grief that appeared to
be bearing him slowly to the earth. And yet
he was not bowed. It was his spirit that
drooped. But now I could not search my
heart for pity. He was to be tried, if tried at
all, not to answer to the charge of having
violated some visionary text of the Jewish
creed, but to defend himself against a more
serious accusation, that of having broken the
Roman law. For a moment Pilate looked at
him, seeming to feel sorry for him, and as if
he knew not a vital question to ask, inquired
of him if he were the king of the Jews. He
must have known that such a charge, if not
ridiculous, was full of pity, the man was so
worn, so weak, so pale, so sorrowful-with no
man to defend him, not indeed with a sword,
but with even a word. But Pilate put the
question, and I did not catch the full answer,
there was such an uproar without, but I understood Jesus to answer question with question
inquiring of Pilate whether he himself supposed him a king or had been told so by
others?
Some one touched me-Limprosus.    He
was not one to fear defilement. His face
looked as I had seen it when we fought the
Britons, hard-set and grim I cautioned him
not to speak. We both of us listened, for
Jesus was saying that his kingdom was not of




tbev Were S~trono


311


this earth, and Limprosus whispered: "With
a simple truth he has overturned all that his
enemies have set up against him. And mark
you, Eradmus, do you this for me: When
Pilate shall have liberated him, grant him
escort out beyond the gates of the city, for his
enemies, in their disappointment, will stone
him."
"But where is his miraculous power?" I
inquired of Limprosus.
And the old soldier, with grimness on his
lips, but with tenderness in his eyes, thus
answered me: "He will not put it forth to
save himself. Listen. He says that he is a
king, and when he has said this, there are
some of us who understand-that his kingdom is of the soul. Pilate goes out again.
He can find no fault in him."
And thus it was that the Procurator spoke
to the foaming throng without, that in the
man there was no evil. But the Jews cried
aloud, and I could hear them as, in their rage,
they stamped upon the ground. Some one
shouted the name of Galilee; and Pilate,
inquiring whether Jesus were a Galilean, and
receiving answer that he was, ordered that he
be taken before Herod, who, by some sort of
courtesy, was called king. And Pilate called
me to him, and in a low tone said: "By good
fortune Herod is in Jerusalem. Go you with




312    'be Son of the Sworbmaker


your soldiers and see to it that this man is
safely delivered to him."
It was of no need to command him, for
Jesus obeyed at once, meekly doing all that he
was told to do; and when he appeared, walking in the midst of the soldiers, the ruffians
rent the very clouds with the fury of their
cries, and but for the soldiers they would
have torn him to pieces. I looked about for
Limprosus, fearing that he might be recognized as a friend of the Prophet and stoned,
but nowhere was he to be seen, so great was
the writhing multitude, tangling like bearded
wheat in a whirlwind. The streets were so
thronged that it was with hard effort that we
could pass through. The tops of the houses
were packed with people, some of them
uttering wild and bloodthirsty cries, but some
moaned aloud and smote their breasts. The
distance was not great, but it was some time
before we reached the palace wherein Herod
had taken up his almost mimic court. He was
exceedingly pleased that Pilate, his enemy,
should have conferred so great an honor upon
him, and he spoke with merriment in his voice,
saying that he had heard much concerning
Jesus, and that he would now amuse his
friends with miracles wrought by him. Then,
still further moved by the spirit of jest, he
began to ply Jesus with questions, but the




Ubep WI~ere Strono


313


prisoner answered him never a word. He
seemed to be looking afar off; and in his eyes
there was a sorrowful dreaminess. With
this unconcern was Herod wroth, and he
reviled Jesus, saying to him: "Where is your
skill now, Nazarene? Canst thou heal a
broken vow or call back to life a jest that is
dead?" But Jesus answered not a word. "Ah,
will you offer no entertainment to the company? You would rather stand silent in your
pale reproach! Centurion, return with him to
Pilate, and present to the Procurator the
assurances of my friendship."
Now the fanatics were more enraged than
before, and as we were conducting Jesus out
into the street, one of them shook his clenched
hand in Sempre's face and cried out: "Are
we children thus to be played with?" And as
he should have known that this was in no wise
a current to be turned at will by a common
soldier, I ordered Sempre to strike him to the
ground, which would have been done with keen
relish had not the wretch escaped in the crowd.
During all of this time Jesus had not seemed
to look at me, as he had done when he
stood on the steps of the ruined porch, far
out in the country; but of this I was not
regretful, for his eyes were so stricken with
grief that I did not wish to have them turned
full into my own.




314     Cbe Son of tbe Sworbmaker


As we drew near unto the palace the mob
roared louder, as if to intimidate Pilate into
granting the demands of the people, whatever
they might be; and an officious black-beard,
well clothed but of evil countenance, pushed
forward with the branch of a tree in his hand,
and cried out that he would belabor Jesus into
the judgment hall; but one of the soldiers
struck the branch out of his hand.
"Our resolve is still strong," Sempre said to
me. And I answered: "My resolve is Britain,
and you are to go with me."
Now when we came back to Pilate he was
much cast down, nor did the compliments and
good wishes sent by Herod raise his spirits,
though he pretended to be pleased. Again
he  addressed  himself to the  heartless
people, declaring that he had found no
fault in the man, and that Herod, with
perhaps a better understanding of the
nature of the offense, had been unable
to see aught in him worthy of punishment.
Therefore Pilate announced that, as there was
no cause for severe measures, he would
chastise the prisoner and let him go. Hereupon the fury broke out afresh, and for a time
it looked as if my men would be forced to
restore order with their spears.
It was a custom, why observed or why instituted I know not, that at the feast the Proc



ZSbep   W~Lere   Sitrono


315


urator should release unto the people any
prisoner whom they desired, and now they
began to call for Barabbas. Pilate knew that
this man had given us great trouble, that he
was not only a robber, but an insurrectionist
as well; and I was surprised that he listened
with any degree of patience to their lawless
demands; but he did listen, even as he sat
upon  the  judgment-seat. While he was
medittting, a message came from Procla, his
wife, entreating him not to sentence Jesus,
that in her dreams she had suffered on his
account. Sempre moved over nearer to me,
taking the place of another soldier, and found
occasion briefly to whisper:
"She has heard that Caesar's wife had a
dream."
"But the two dreams are not akin," I replied.
"One was of the ruler of the earth. The
other-not ruler of even the dust on his
sandals."
Again I heard the robber's name, and loud
arose the cry that Barabbas should be released,
and Pilate, moving uneasily in his judgmentseat, inquired as to what he should do with
Jesus, and in a wild roar the people demanded
that he should be crucified. It was of no avail
to reason with them. Every mouth was open
and every ear was closed. I thought that the
Procurator was wanting in firmness, and the




316     hbe ion of the Ziworbmtaker


shrewd Jews, feeling his weakness, pressed
him hard when he wavered. Suddenly he
turn'ed about, as if he had reached a decision,
and then astonished me by calling for a basin
of water; and when it had been brought he
washed his hands and declared himself innocent of the blood of this just man. But was
washing his hands clearing his skirts? Could
he not see that the prisoner was in need of his
protection? The people raved. They swore
that they were the ones to wash their hands, if
need be. They assumed all responsibility for
the blood, be it innocent or guilty. They and
their children would bear the odium of the
blood of this "king of the Jews." Pilate then
ordered the release of Barabbas. Jesus was
scourged, still the god of grief, but the god of
silent grief, for no- sound did he utter. And
then I ordered the soldiers to close in about
him, and we took him into the common hall.
Now it was a pastime and a sport with the
soldiers, for Jesus was a Jew, and between the
Romans and the Jews the racial hatred was
growing daily stronger. I let them have their
way; in the liberality of my fresh authority I
was presenting to them a new game, here in
this saddened land, where there were no
amusements. They stripped him and arrayed
him in an old scarlet robe, in mockery of his
royalty, and they laughed to see so sorrowful




Ubetg WPere Stron7


317


a king. Then Sempre came to me with a
crown of thorns in his hand that hastily he
had plaited, and holding it out toward me, he
said: "Is your resolve still strong? Remember the weakness that came out of the mystic
night. Here is the king of the lamp within
and the darkness without. Dare you crown
him?"
A cold shudder seized me. In my heart all
pity died, frozen to death; and I took the
crown and, going to Jesus, said to him that the
hour for his coronation was come, and he said
never a word, and neither did he look at me.
And I placed the crown on his head, and he
moved not; and I pressed down upon the
thorns, and he looked at me-looked into my
eyes, and my God, I heard the groaning of my
heart within me! It was a look so tender, so
full of pity, of forgiveness, that I shut my eyes
and moved back from him, but still I saw that
soft and forgiving look, and blood coming up
about a thorn, and something within me was
almost bursting.,I heard the wild roar of the
Jews, but louder still was that cry from within,
and my knees smote one against the other,
and it seemed that the world could hear them,
and in my ears was a great rushing of water; I
heard the winds of Britain, but above all was
that wild cry within!
Sempre put his hand upon me, and I stag



3I8     abe Son of tbe Swortmaker


gered, but I struggled and stood still. "Look
ye," he cried, as if in a frenzy; "look ye, I
have delivered unto him his scepter." And I
saw that he had put a reed into the hand of
Jesus; and now the soldiers bowed before him
and called him the King of the Jews. "But
why do you not hail to the king you have
crowned?" Sempre cried, but I answered him
not, so hard was the something within me
striving to burst my bosom. But soon within
me fell a silence, broken only by the midnight
howling of a wolf, on the shores of a wild
country. Was it:he death-gasping of a soul?
I heard Pilate speak. He had come again to
question the doomed man; and my duty as a
Roman arose before me, and I would do it,
trample as I might upon my own soul; but as
the Procurator came near to me, I said to
him: "The man is innocent."
"Yea, of any charge whatsoever," Pilate
replied, "but the Jews are mad and know not
the meaning of justice. Our force is small."
"But valiant," I replied.
"True, but we should be overpowered, and
the cause of Rome would suffer."
I realized this, and I was resolved to do my
duty. The loud cry within me, the howling of
the wolf, was no more. All was cold silence
now.
Pilate talked with Jesus, but I stood apart




tbev Wllere Strong


319


from them and did not hear what was said.
Outside there arose a shout for Caesar, and I
looked at the Procurator and saw that his face
was pale. Jesus was now taken into the hall
of the Pavement, and I did not dare to look
into his eyes, trembling in dread lest again I
should see that pity-for me. When Pilate
had sat down, he said unto the people:
"Jews, behold your king." And they clamored
for his blood. They cried out that they had
no king but Caesar. Pilate leaned his head
upon his hand and meditated. But he was
not willing to risk the life of every man in the
garrison; so he yielded and gave over Jesus to
be crucified under the Roman law, and the
crowd burst forth in an exultant shout. As I
was passing out at the head of my troop of
soldiers, to conduct Rome's part of the pitiable
execution, some one plucked me by the sleeve.
It was Barabbas.




CHAPTER XXV


1Ecbofn tCbrou0bout the WlIorib
LOOKED at the robber, and in my eye he
must have read a warning to keep beyond
the limit of my reach. Rome had liberated him, the insurrectionist, the murderer; and over me, his captor, he now would
triumph with insolence and leers. The strong,
the exculpated that another might suffer, it
was small justice that he should bear the cross
for the frail and the innocent; and I had it in
mind thus to force him, but in the great press
of the crowd he escaped.
When we arrived at the place where the
crosses were to be taken up, two thieves, who
had been condemned, were strong under their
wood, but the shame-intended tree, the cross
on which innocence was to die, proved too
great a burden. Against the exhaustion, the
fainting, the sublime collapse of patience, a
heart of common stone might not have stood,
but unmoved were the hearts of those whose
flint-bosomed creed in madness howled for
blood. But strong shoulders were impressed.
Onward up the hill on whose summit death
320




]cbotn( Zbrouobout tbe torlb  321


in all his horror sat enthroned. The multitude
of sorrow, anguish and of madmen, seemed to
shake the outraged fabric of the earth; and
down the valley the rumble echoed-down
throughout all time, in ceaseless waves, to roll
across the ocean of eternity. And as the ages
pile one upon another, this story shall be writ
with pens plucked from a golden eagle's wing;
yea, and more, it shall be told by the lowly
heart of man. Rudely must I give my own
impressions.
I heard the mourning of women, the sobbing
of men; and there was one sob that seemed
never-ending-the grim, silent sob within myself. I saw the cross put down; I heard the
rattle of the nails. I turned away, but I heard
the first blow of the hammer-I heard the
echo, rumbling down the valley-rumbling
throughout the world. I saw the cross as it
was lifted, yet I did not look up into that Face;
I heard the soldiers casting dice for the
raiment; I heard them shout the name of the
winner. A gentle, sorrowing arm  encircled
me, and I knew that old Limprosus was there.
The time passed and there was a hush, save
for the mourning of women and the cry of a
little child held in the arms of its mother. I
looked about to find Limprosus, and I saw
him, not far away, holding his wife by the
hand. A Jewish ruler, fine in new linen, came




322    tbe Con of tbe Sworbmaker


to me, and objected to an inscription which
Pilate had written, and which now for the first
time I noticed had been placed above the head
of Jesus.
"Go to Pilate," I said to him.
"But would it not be better to modify the
statement?" he insisted. "Let it be altered so
as to read that he called himself the King of
the Jews."
"Go to Pilate," I repeated, and he hastened
away, and I saw him no more.
Just before darkness fell I looked up into
those eyes, and there was in them the same
look of pity and forgiveness. I bowed my
head low and waited for'the end, which came
soon, for Jesus cried out in a loud voice and
was dead; and something within me also cried
out so that all might hear: "Truly we have
crucified the Son of God." And as a shudder
seemed to shake the earth, I saw Limprosus
start toward me; and with him came a man.
My poor old grief-stricken friend said to me:
"Eradmus, this is Joseph of Arimathea, an
honorable man, who begs the body of Jesus
that he may entomb it."
"Sir," I said, speaking to Joseph, "I cannot
without authority grant your request, but I
will go with you to Pilate and intercede for
you.
He thanked me, and said that we should go




Icbotna tbrouabout tbe!Ilorlb  323


at once; and as we turned about, Limprosus
came after me. "Eradmus," he said, "I have
seen many a crucifixion, and I know that it is
the custom to break the arms and the legs of
a victim taken from the cross. Will you order
that this shall not be wrought upon the body
of Jesus?"
And so I gave orders to a lieutenant, but he
said: "I beg pardon for offering a suggestion,
sir, but the law demands that the condemned
shall be dead. Shall we, therefore, thrust the
god-man with a spear?"
"Do as the law requires, but see that no
bones shall be broken," I replied. "Attend
you to it."
As we were entering the palace, some one
drew me aside, but Joseph, halting not, went
forward to make his request. Pilate, seeing
me, called me, and when I had presented myself, he appeared to be surprised that the end
had come so soon, and he inquired: "Has he
been any while dead?" And when I assured
him that life had surely departed some time
before, he granted the body to the man
Joseph.
"Hold a moment," the Procurator said to
me, and when Joseph was gone, and when
Pilate for a time had walked up and down as
if his mind was troubled, he came near and
said:




324    11be Son of the Sworomaher


"You saw him die?"
"Yes, your excellency."
"How died he?"
"Like a god."
He turned away, but I stood waiting, for
nothing that I expected, but in a cold
irresolution that had  settled upon  me.
The Procurator spoke again: "You are the
young man that saved the day in the mountains out near Nain, are you not?"
I bowed to him.
He regarded me closely. "You have a
career waiting in the future for you. You will
stand upon a hill-top and look out over
victory. You will command armies."
He said nothing more, and I thanked him
and withdrew. My work was done. My duty
had called upon me to see that a noble life
should end, and now all nature seemed to have
been changed. The city was silent. The
mad cries were all of them hushed. Frenzy
had supped on blood, and, gorged to sluggishness, had stretched itself in bestial sleep.
Weary and worn, with a heart dead except
for its aching, I went to my quarters in the
Tower. The brazen lamp was lighted andin it I saw that look, that soft light of pity.
Nowhere was there a sound; the world was
wrapped in mournfulness. I had need of a
friend, and I thought of Limprosus, of




Ecboing tbrouobout tbe IlorIb  325


Milthias. Ah, I wondered what had become
of Milthias? But there was Sempre, not far
away-strong in his resolve, no doubt, a
Roman. But I was not strong, not a Roman;
I was outcast. I sent an orderly to request
Sempre to come to me. He came, and his
face was white, and his eyes looked as if he
were dead.
"We were strong," he gasped, as he sat
down beside me, and took my cold hand.
"We were strong enough to murder a god."
I said nothing; I sat looking at the soft light
of the lamp.
"We were forced to do our duty as soldiers,"
he said. "But, 0 my friend, we were not
forced to go beyond that-to mock Him, to
crown Him with thorns."
The light of the lamp was soft. It was as
soft as a smile of forgiveness. "It is that smile
of forgiveness," I cried. And Sempre clutched
my arm, bowed his head, and wept.




CHAPTER XXVI


Conclusion
T    HE days were slow and heavy. My
duties were irksome, and when not
engaged, I sat alone, going rarely out
into the city, now so hung with gloom.
But once I went to the home of Milthias, and
though I knocked hard upon the portals, yet
came there no sound from within. The
Egyptian's house was closed. Limprosus was
gone. Sometimes I walked in a garden, out
beyond the walls; and once I passed near the
tomb where the man Joseph had sealed in
rock the body of the innocent and the forgiving. I saw the gleam of the Roman spears;
I heard a sad bird sound its note. A legionary
saluted, and I passed on, a war-man seeking
peace. I thought of what Pilate had said, that
I should on a hill-top stand and view a victory.
But the eagle had shed the feathers of his
glory, and gaunt as a famine he perched upon
the very name of Rome. But I must on.
They had taught me how to kill, and
slaughter was my trade.
326




Conclusion


327


Another day. I longed for Limprosus, and
thinking that surely he must have returned, I
walked forth toward his house. Ah, but what
was this strange whispering? The Jews were
wagging their heads, and were muttering, but
hushed as I drew near. I saw a woman whose
face was lighted with joy. I saw an old man
sink upon his knees; and, holding up his
trembling hands, he cried, "The Son of Man
doth live." Some one seized me by the handBelthius. He was striving to control himself.
But had his eyes been able to speak, they
would have shouted.
"What   means   this, Belthius?  Yonder
kneeling pacriarch speaks of the Son of Manthat he lives. Did they not call Jesus the Son
of Man? And is it not to the shame of Rome
that I saw hint die?"
"You saw him die, but he lives again,"
Belthius replied. "He has arisen."
"Belthius, why do you say such things?
Did I not see the tomb where he was sealed
up?"
"Have you seen the soldiers that were on
guard  there?"  Belthius inquired.  "Seek
them."
I returned to the Tower and inquired for
the officer of the guard that had been set to
watch the tomb. He came to me. He said
that he had reported to the commander. I




328    'be Son of the Sworbmafter


asked him to tell me what he had seen, and
he said that just before daylight there had
come a flash as if out of the sky. "I and all
the rest of us fell as if struck by lightning,"
said he. "And when we awoke as if from
a deep sleep, the stone was rolled away and
the tomb was empty. That is all I know,
sir."
"But did you see any men? Did you hear
any voices? Are you sure that you were not
blinded by some sort of light so that the body
might be stolen away?"
"I was blinded by a light, sir, and I fell
senseless. I heard nothing until I came to."
"And then what did you hear?"
"The murmuring of the soldiers about me,
sir. That was all."
'Then what did you do?"
"We hastened away."
4'You tell a strange story."
I dismissed the officer and again I set forth
to find Limprosus. Gods may be slain, but I
asked myself how could gods arise from the
dead?
In the Egyptian's house I found Limprosus,
his wife and Milthias. The old soldier arose
and saluted me. "We were blind," he said.
"We could not understand him. It was not
given to us-it was not our fault-not your
fault, Eradmus."




Conclusion


329


"But, ah," I said bitterly, "it was my fault
that I pressed the crown of. thorns upon his
head."
"No," said Limprosus, "it was not your fault.
What has been, had to be. It was so ordered.
Now all is as plain as day." He put his arms
about me and once more gave me a soldier's
embrace. "Now I must bid you farewell. I
know my duty. I am a soldier, not of the
sword, but of the cross, the redemption of
man."
He took his wife by the hand. She looked
up at him with a smile. "I am ready," she
said. I asked him whither he was going, and
he gestured with a sweep of his hand.
"Throughout the world. The Egyptian is
gone to preach the word to downtrodden
man. A candle has been lighted where there.was darkness-darkness and poverty. The
poor at last have a friend, for the first time in
the history of the world. You saw him diebut he has arisen. I have seen him. Eradmus, my brother, farewell."
I urged him to stay, to tell me more of Jesus,
if he had been seen alive, but he shook his
head. "He liveth. This is all that I must say
to you. I must hasten to take the word to
those who have never seen him. Milthias,
farewell."
He led his wife away. She looked back




330:be Son of tbe Sworbmalker


and smiled upon us. "Milthias," said I, "what
do you believe?"
"Ah, and has it come again to that, Eradmus? Let us not now walk with our eyes
closed. I was blind and you were blind, but
now we ought to see alike. Let us view the
truth."
"But," said I, "if you regard the report that
he has arisen as the truth, it is harder than
ever to believe. I agree that he was a God,
the son of your God, but I cannot believe that
he is alive. It is against nature."
"No more against nature than for him to
be a god and die," Milthias replied. "But the
time for all argument is past."
"But your father and mother-your uncle?
Do they believe?"
"They went out into the country on the day
of the crucifixion and have not returned.
Shall we go now? I must lock this house and
take the key to the owner."
We went out and he locked the door. His
way turned in an opposite direction from mine,
and I did not go with him; I went to the
Tower, found the officer of the watch and
again I talked to him, but could learn nothing
except that a light had flashed from the sky.
In the evening I went out beyond the walls,
to walk in the garden, alone. The sky was




Concluston


331


dark. The soft air was moaning amid
the leaves. Suddenly I saw a light, softer
than the lamp. I looked up and it was in the
air, above me-a small circle, a nimbus-and
in this soft radiance was that same smile of
forgiveness-those eyes. And down I sank
upon my knees, and over I bowed until my
head touched the earth. And I heard a Voice:
"Eradmus, son of the swordmaker, put aside
thy sword and follow me."
I arose, and the light was not in the air-it
was in my heart; anf now with a love for all
the world, I hastened to the Tower, feeling
that a thousand suns were rising. Upon a
piece of parchment I wrote, and hastened into
the commander's room and handed it to him.
He looked up in surprise. "Is it possible
that you would resign now-when so much is
promised you?" he said. "You know not what
you do."
"I resign because so much is promised me.
I must bid you farewell."
I left him looking at the parchment, as if he
knew not what to make of it; and I hastened
into my own quarters. Then I took my
sword, the sword made for me by old Calo,
and I wrapped it in a scarlet cloth and went
out into the courtyard, searching for Sempre.
I found him near the gate. "I know," he said.
"I know."




332    'be Son of the SworbmaIer


v  "My resolve is strong," I spoke, and he put
his arms about me. "Eradmus, I shall follow
on when the time comes." And so, I left him.
I found a lantern and lighted it, and then I
went forth again, through the gate, bidding
the poor sentry good-bye. And into the
garden I walked again, looking for the place
where I had knelt upon the ground. When I
had found the spot, I hung the lantern on the
broken branch of a tree and unwrapped the
scarlet cloth from about the sword, and with
the sword I dug its own grave. Then I
enshrouded the sword again in the scarlet
cloth and placed it in the grave and raked in
the earth, pressing it down hard. "So may all
hate be buried," I said as I arose. And there
stood some one in the light of the lantern-a
woman-Vloden. I cried aloud with joy, and
took her in my arms, and my lips were pressed
against her lips, there in the garden, in the
soft light. But I could not understand how
she had come there. "I threw away my
kingdom to follow you, 0 my heart," she said.
"I took the gold that was mine, and with
three slaves I came away, telling them that if
I found you, they should have their liberty.
We went to Gaul, and it was a long time
before we found out whither you had gone;
but finally they told us; and I came on a ship
and then across the desert. And even now,




Conclusion


333


as we were coming along the road, my faithful
slaves and I, we saw you come in through the
garden gate. And I gave the gold, what was
left, to the slaves, and told them that they
were free." She pressed her cheek against
mine, and sweet was the music when she said:
"O my heart, I have given my kingdom for
this moment!"
She did not know what it was to doubt me,
and the world was one great sunrise. Then
I told her that I was no longer a Roman
soldier. "There is another Master now," I
said, "the Master of tenderness and of love."
And with her arms about my neck she said:
"Your Master shall be mine, 0 Eradmus."
And by the hand I took her, even as old
Limprosus had taken his wife by the hand;
and out of the garden I led her, out into the
highway, out into the world of God!


THE END






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