P. 174.—“Havelock.” (1795-1857.) A British soldier who in 1823 was
sent to India. He served in the Burmese war, in the Ava campaign, in
two invasions of Afghanistan, and in 1856 in a war with Persia. On his
return to Bombay he was sent to Calcutta to aid the British in the
Sepoy rebellion. After raising the siege of Cawnpore, he started toward
Lucknow, where the garrison was closely beset. Havelock was two months in
fighting his way to the city, and when there, the relievers and garrison
had to stand a siege until the arrival of Campbell with forces. Havelock,
however, lived only a few days after succor came, being worn out by
sickness and hardships. The arrival of Campbell has been celebrated in a
touching and popular poem—“The Relief of Lucknow.”
P. 177.—“Ardennes.” See “Notes” on page 185 of THE CHAUTAUQUAN for
December.
P. 180.—“Hector.” The chief hero of the Trojans in the war with the
Greeks, the eldest son of Priam, king of Troy. Having slain Patroclus,
the friend of Achilles, the latter was aroused to revenge, and came out
to fight. Hector remained bravely without the walls until he saw his
enemy, when he took to flight, but he was finally pierced with Achilles’
spear, and his body dragged into the camp of the Greeks. Hector was the
stay of the Trojans. He is represented by Homer as a man of all virtues,
and is claimed to be the noblest conception of the “Iliad.”
P. 184.—“Boll of grain.” The Scotch formerly used a measure called the
bōll, or _bole_. Its capacity varied with the article measured. A boll of
wheat or beans held four bushels; of oats or potatoes, six bushels.
“Cevennes,” sā-venˈ. A mountain range of France, separating the valleys
of the Garonne and the Loire from those of the Saone and the Rhone.
P. 187.—“Santa Scala,” or the holy staircase, called also Pilate’s
staircase, is a flight of twenty-eight marble steps in a little chapel of
Rome. They are said to be the steps which Christ passed up and down in
going before Pilate, and that, like the Holy House at Loreto, they were
transported by angels to their present position. Multitudes of pilgrims
crawl up this staircase, kissing each step as they go. It is related
of Luther that wishing to obtain the indulgence promised by the pope
for this devout act, he was slowly ascending the steps when he suddenly
heard a voice exclaiming, “The just shall live by faith alone.” He was so
terrified by his superstitious folly that he at once fled from the place.
P. 190.—“Aulus,” auˈlus hirˈti-us.
P. 194.—“Protagonist,” pro-tăgˈo-nĭst. The first or leading actor in a
drama.
P. 196.—“Obsolescence,” ŏb-so-lĕsˈcence. The going out of style, becoming
old, obsolete.
P. 202.—“Lucius Catilina,” lūˈci-ŭs catˈi-liˌna.
P. 205.—“Spurius Mælius,” spuˈri-us mæˈli-us. A rich plebeian who in the
famine at Rome in B. C. 440 bought up corn to distribute to the poor.
His liberality won him the favor of the plebeians, but the hatred of
the patricians. In the following year he was accused of a conspiracy
against the government. Having refused to appear before the tribunal when
summoned, Ahala, the master of the horse, rushed out with an armed band
and slew him.
“Opimius.” A patrician, the leader of his party in the proceedings
against Caius Gracchus in 120 B. C. Through his violence some three
hundred people were slain after the death of Gracchus.
“Saturnius.” A demagogue who in B. C. 102 was elected tribune of the
plebs. He allied himself with Marius and his party and won much favor by
his popular measures. He was twice reëlected, but the third time it was
feared that his colleague, Glaucia, who had held office during each of
his tribunates, would be defeated. The friends had the rival candidate
murdered. This act caused a reaction against Saturnius, and the senate
ordered that he and his associates should be slain. Marius endeavored
to save his friend, but the mob pulled the tiles from the senate house,
where the parties were concealed, and pelted them to death.
P. 220.—“Minucian Colonnade.” A portico built about 100 B. C. by the
consul Minucius, in memory of the triumph which he received after waging
a successful war against the Thracians.
“Pan.” In Grecian mythology, a god who watched over flocks and herds; was
the patron of hunters, bee-keepers and fishermen, and the inventor of a
shepherd’s flute. He is represented with horns, goat’s beard, feet and
tail, and often as playing on the flute. The Romans worshiped him under
the name of Faunus.
P. 221.—“Lupercalia,” lūˈper-cä-li-a. Lupercus was a name applied to
Pan, and a feast given in honor of the god by the Romans was called
_Lupercalia_.
“Tarquinius,” tar-quinˈi-us. Surnamed _Superbus_, was the last of the
Roman kings. Though he was cruel and tyrannical, he is said to have
greatly increased the power of the city. Brutus, his nephew, was aroused
against the royal family because of an outrage committed upon his wife
by Tarquin’s son. He stirred up popular feeling against the king,
and succeeded in driving him from Rome. Consular government was then
substituted for the monarchy.
“Spurius Cassius,” spuˈri-us casˈsi-us. A famous Roman of the fifth
century. He was three times consul. In his last consulship he passed a
law which provided that the patricians should receive only a portion
of the public lands, and that the rest should be divided among the
plebeians. The next year he was accused of aiming at regal power and was
put to death.
“Manlius.” Consul in 392 B. C. In 395 he defended the plebeians against
the higher classes, but was accused of aiming at kingly power, and
was thrown into prison. The plebs showed such indignation at this that
Manlius was liberated. He only became bolder in his support of the
people, and in the following year was accused of treason, condemned, and
thrown from the Tarpeian rock.