Mary Macgregor

“ If then that friend demand why Brutus rose against Cæsar, this is my answer:—Not that I loved Cæsar less, but that I loved Rome more.
‘As Cæsar loved me, I weep for him; as he was fortunate, I rejoice at it; as he was valiant, I honour him: but, as he was ambitious, I slew him. There is tears for his love; joy for his fortune; honour for his valour; and death for his ambition.’
With these and many other words Brutus so pleased the people, that it did not seem likely that they would care to listen to what Antony had to say. ”

“ Not a clod must be allowed to lie without the furrow. When the plough reached the different spots at which the gates of the city were to stand, it was carefully lifted over the spaces.
As he guided the plough, Romulus cried to his gods that his city might become strong and endure, and ever grow more powerful in the great world.
Out of a clear sky thunder crashed, lightning flashed over the hills as Romulus uttered his petitions, and the people believed that the storm was the answer of the god Jupiter to the prayers of their king. ”

“ In the evening, when the people’s patience was all but at an end, Marcus, one of the prætors, mounted the public platform and cried in a loud voice, ‘We are beaten, O Romans, in a great battle, our army is destroyed, and Flaminius the Consul is slain.’
At the words of Marcus the city became a scene of wild despair. Many men and women who had lost their husbands and sons called down the curses of the gods upon their enemy, others wept and prayed in the temples and forbore to curse, for all the bitterness of their loss. ”

“ Then the wise man consulted the gods, and they sent a flight of sacred birds as a sign that he should reign in Rome.
So Numa Pompilius set out with the ambassadors, and when he reached the city he called together the people to ask them if they were willing to obey his commands.
They, greeting him as ‘a holy king, and one beloved of the gods,’ promised to obey him in all things. Thus, almost against his will, the wise man became king. But being king, he was not the man to shirk the duties belonging to his royal state. ”

“ When they reached the spring that rises close to the temple of Vesta, they dismounted, and washed the foam from their horses, the stains from their clothes.
Men and women crowded around the strangers, eager to hear their tidings. Then the brothers told them of the glorious victory that had been won, after which they mounted their white steeds, and riding away, were seen no more.
When the Dictator returned to Rome, he told how he had prayed to the Divine Twins Castor and Pollux, and how he believed that they had indeed come to his aid. ”

“ With tears in his eyes he cried: ‘O my mother, thou hast saved Rome, but thou hast lost thy son.’
Then he led the Volscian army away from the city, and restored to the Romans the towns which the enemy had taken.
Some legends tell that the Volscians were so angry with Coriolanus for deserting them, that they slew him as a traitor; but others say that he lived in exile until he was an old man.
Weary of exile, he is said to have cried: ‘Only an old man knows how hard it is to live in a far country.’
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“O my mother, thou hast saved Rome, but thou hast lost thy son.” ”

“ Was he beaten, he could but die! So, despite the strict order of the Consuls, young Manlius accepted the challenge.
Groups of Roman and Latin soldiers watched the combat with the keenest interest, and when at length, after a gallant fight, Manlius slew his opponent, a shout of triumph arose from his comrades. But the Latins looked on, sullen and ashamed, while their champion was stripped of his arms.
Flushed with victory, and thinking that his father would forgive his disobedience, the youth hastened to the tent of Torquatus, and laid the arms he had taken from his foe at his father’s feet. ”

“ The soldiers, who had come from the warm and sunny climates of Africa and Spain, were unused to snow and frost, and they grumbled at every discomfort.
Hannibal soon roused them to a braver spirit. Calling them together he bade them look at the valley beneath. ‘That valley,’ he said, ‘is Italy. It leads us to our allies, the Gauls, and yonder is the way to Rome.’
After resting for ten days, the army began the descent, and although no hostile tribes added to the difficulties, the downward way proved even more dangerous than the ascent. ”

“ In their triumph at having taken the city the soldiers ran wild, plundering and slaying the wretched inhabitants, many of whom killed themselves rather than fall into the hands of their cruel conquerors.
Sulla looked on, heedless of the fate of the citizens, careless, too, of the destruction of the beautiful city. Only when two citizens, who had refused to give up their friendship with Rome, flung themselves at his feet and begged him to spare the city for the sake of her ancient renown and her famous Athenians, did he yield. ”

“ Soldiers, will you suffer such an indignity? The Gauls are holding out their arms to us, inviting us to come to them and to assist them in revenging their manifold injuries. And the country which we shall invade, so rich in corn and wine and oil, so full of flocks and herds, so covered with flourishing cities, will be the richest prize that could be offered by the gods to reward your valour.’
“I carry here peace and war, choose, men of Carthage, which ye will.” ”

“ Still the battle raged, and only when night fell did the Romans retire, leaving the field strewn with the dead bodies of the Ambrones.
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But there was no rest for the Roman soldiers that night, nor did they dare to rejoice as though the barbarians were vanquished. For the Teutones were not yet beaten. Even then their wild cries and lamentations over the dead, mingled with threats against their enemy, reached the ears of the Romans. In the darkness the strong soldiers trembled, lest they should be attacked that night, while their camp was defended by neither trench nor rampart. ”

“ And when Augustus, the first Emperor of Rome, began to reign, part of Europe, Asia Minor, Egypt, Syria, and a large portion of Africa formed his kingdom.
Although the story was written in the quiet of your garden, little of its peace has stolen into the tale, and for that you boys may care for it the more.
As you read, fierce battle-cries will ring in your ears, andviii the clash of arms will startle you. You will hear the tramp of armies marching to new lands to conquer them and their treasures for Rome, the city of their love. ”

“ HANNIBAL OUTWITS FABIUS The Senate had restored some sense of confidence to the stricken people by its gravity and calmness. It had also reassured them by destroying the bridges by which the city could be approached and by strengthening her walls.
Soldiers who had been deemed too old to follow the army were now called together, and armed with weapons which had hung for years in the temples—trophies these from many a hard-fought field.
But most important of all, a Dictator was chosen to guide Rome in the crisis that had befallen her. ”

“ Their victories made the Teutones and Cimbri insolent and proud.
‘We can destroy the Roman legions,’ they said, ‘so it will be an easy task to plunder Italy, and destroy even Rome herself.’
The Senate and the people grew more and more alarmed, while those who had sought to belittle the fame of Marius repented. For was he not the only general who could save them now?
So Marius, although he was still in Africa, was elected Consul a second time.
It is true that the law forbade the election of any one who was absent from Rome. But necessity knows no law, said the Romans, and Marius was elected. ”

“ While he was still young, he was given a command in the army, and none was ever loved by his men as was he.
In battle, the young leader was always to be found at the point of danger, and every hardship, in the camp as on the field, he shared with his men. Nothing seemed able to daunt his spirit. In disaster as in success he remained cheerful and confident. And he complained of no trouble when it could help his cause.
Until he was twenty, Hannibal lived his hard and happy soldier life. Then young as he was, a great responsibility was laid upon him. ”

“ Marius himself stood by the side of his men, ready to fight where the danger was greatest.
Against the solid front of the Roman army the Teutones threw themselves in vain. They could not break its ranks.301 Slowly and in disorder they found themselves being pushed back toward the plain.
At length they were once more on level ground, and immediately they attempted to form their front ranks anew, meaning again to attack the enemy.
Suddenly those in front heard behind them wild cries of despair. Swords flashed in the air, javelins seemed to fall among their ranks as thickly as a storm of hail. ”

“ Sextus, however, escaped, and for many years was at the head of a fleet that caused great trouble along the coast of Italy.
When the hard-fought battle of Munda was won, Cæsar said to his friends, ‘I have often fought for victory, but this is the first time I have ever fought for life.’
At Rome the tidings of the victory was received with an outburst of enthusiasm. No honour was too great for the victor. He had already been made Dictator for ten years; he was now appointed Dictator for life.
The Romans could not do enough to show their affection and pride. ”

“ The conspirators were immediately seized and thrown into prison, while the slave was set free and made a citizen of Rome.
Among the prisoners were Titus and Tiberius, the sons of Brutus.
The brave Consul was dismayed to learn that his sons, whom he loved well, had been guilty of treason. How could he bear to pronounce judgment upon them as upon other traitors?
Yet soon he thrust aside his weakness. A true Roman must love his country better even than his own children. ”

“ Hannibal had ambitions beyond the wildest imaginations of the Romans, and before they had sent an army to Spain, he had left the country to invade Italy, for this was his great ambition.
In order to reach Italy, he determined to lead his army across the Alps, a feat that no one without the genius and the daring of the Carthaginian general could have ever hoped to accomplish.
The Gauls, who had so lately been at war with Rome, promised to join Hannibal’s forces. When he was assured of the help of the barbarians, Hannibal called his soldiers together and told them his plans. ”

“ POMPEY GOES TO WAR WITH MITHRIDATES When the Romans heard that the pirates had been scattered and forced to submit to Pompey their joy knew no bounds.
No longer need they live in dread of the sudden appearance of the ships with scarlet sails and silver oars along the Italian coasts, no longer need they fear the sudden capture of their corn. And this was due to Pompey! In Rome at this time no one was so popular as he.
His success determined the Senate to send him to take command of the war that was going on in the East, against Mithridates. ”

“ Little by little the frenzy of the rabble died away, and then senators and people met, and with one voice declared that they would die in defence of their city, rather than give her into the hands of their enemy.
It is true that they had no allies to help them, no arms, no ships. Yet it was better far to die within the walls of Carthage than to live in exile. ”

“ Only a remnant of the army reached Rome, for most of the fugitives who escaped took refuge at Veii.
The Gauls themselves were astonished at their easily won victory, for the fame of the Roman legions had reached even these barbarous tribes.
In Rome the Battle of Allia was henceforth a name of ill omen, nor would the Romans ever undertake a new adventure on the 18th of July, lest it should be doomed to failure, by the evil influence of that fatal day. For many long years, the Romans, who feared no other foe, trembled at the name of the barbarians. ”

“ Figs, larger than the Romans had ever seen, grew in abundance; harvests, more plentiful than they had deemed possible, waved golden in the fields. Houses, surrounded by vineyards, oliveyards and rich pasture land, roused the envy as well as the delight of the soldiers.
Over this beautiful country the Roman army was soon scattered to plunder and to destroy. Houses were burned, fields were trampled down, cattle was stolen, and it is said that 20,000 persons, many of whom had lived in comfort all their lives, were now captured and sold as slaves. ”

“ Women ran about the streets crying aloud to their gods and shrieking in terror. At any moment, they believed, the Samnites might enter their city.
Then, just when hope of relief was faintest, a large company of cavalry was seen approaching the gates. It was the vanguard of Sulla’s army, and he himself was close behind with the main body of his troops.
For the time a feeling of immense relief was felt in the city. At least the Samnites would not enter Rome now unopposed.
Sulla’s officers begged him to allow his troops to rest before attacking the enemy. ”

“ Suppose Pompey should do as Sulla had done, and bring his army to Rome! Suppose he should make himself Dictator, and destroy his enemies!
But these fears proved groundless, for no sooner had Pompey reached Italy than he disbanded his army, bidding his soldiers to go home until he recalled them to grace his triumph.
He was at once elected Consul, while his colleague was the wealthy Crassus. The two Consuls did not agree well, for Pompey’s sympathies were, in these days, with the people, while Crassus was anxious to please the Optimates. ”

“ The people in their joy never stayed to think that Hannibal was still alive, and in their land unconquered.
Hannibal, indeed, stayed in Italy four years longer, yet he fought no more great battles there. The towns, too, that he had won were, one after another, gradually reconquered by Rome.
After the defeat of Hasdrubal, Hannibal withdrew to Lacinium with his troops. They remained loyal to their great leader in his misfortune as in his prosperity.
Claudius and Livius, to whom the great victory was due, were both given a triumph. ”

“ This was a signal that the Consul meant to fight, and Hannibal at once ordered his men to prepare for battle.
As the wind at the time was blowing violently, carrying with it a cloud of dust, the Carthaginians took up their position with their backs to the storm, so that the dust swept harmlessly past them. But it dashed into the faces of the Roman legions, wellnigh blinding them.
In the centre of his army, and a little in advance, Hannibal had placed the soldiers on whom he could least depend. The bravest and most loyal men were in the wings. ”