A RAMBLE IN ROME
"Did you see a picturesque-looking shepherd, dressed in shaggy skins,
driving his flock through the square at midnight?"
Rafael asked the question at the breakfast table one morning, about
two weeks after their arrival in Rome.
"No, indeed!" Edith answered. "I was fast asleep. How could you see
what he wore?"
"It was bright moonlight," Rafael told her in reply. "I could see
plainly his sheepskin jacket and the long hair of his goatskin
leggins. He had a great white dog to help him guide the sheep, and
they entered the square and passed through it so silently that it
seemed almost like a dream."
"Perhaps it was a dream," said Edith; but Rafael shook his head, and
the girl went on, "Now I had a dream about the geese that saved Rome;
but you will no doubt tell me that if I had looked out of the window I
should have seen them following old Mother Goose through the square."
Rafael laughed. "I do not know your old Mother Goose," he said, and
left the table to telephone for the guide who was to take them to see
some of the famous ruins of ancient Rome.
In a short time the guide arrived, and they were ready to drive
through the city streets. This guide was Professor Gates, a man who
had lived in Rome over twenty-five years, studying its history and
ancient ruins, and he had already taken Rafael, with Edith and Mrs.
Sprague, to see many interesting places.
"Where are we going to-day?" Edith asked, as they took their seats in
the carriage.
"I want you to drive a little distance along the Appian Way," replied
their guide; "but we will look first at some of the arches of the old
aqueduct which was built by Appius Claudius, many years before the
birth of Christ, to bring water to the city from the mountains sixty
miles away."
It was a lovely morning for a drive, and Edith and Rafael saw many
sights to point out to each other. Near the foot of one of the arches
of the aqueduct they found a group of models picking flowers, and
Edith asked them to pose for a picture.
It was a pretty little group. The boy wore a conical hat adorned with
a feather, a red jacket, and sandals which were bound upon his feet
with red cords that were interlaced up the legs as far as the knees.
His mother and sister wore bright red skirts and green aprons, and
they all smiled at Edith as she tossed them some coins for posing.
"You will find such models all over the city," said Professor Gates.
"Like all-over embroidery," said Edith with a merry laugh; but no one
saw her little joke, so she asked more seriously, "How did the water
flow through the arches?"
"It did not flow through the arches, but through the aqueduct which
you see at the top," the guide explained. "If you remember your Latin
you will know that this word is formed from two others which mean
'water' and 'to lead.' In some places the aqueduct was laid upon the
ground, but here there was a valley to be crossed, as you see, and the
arches formed a bridge over which the pipe was laid."
From the aqueduct they drove to the old Appian Way.
"The Appian Way was named after Appius Claudius, who built a part of
it," Professor Gates explained. "It is three hundred miles long, and
crosses Italy to Brindisi, a seaport on the south-eastern coast."
"I thought you said that Appius Claudius built the aqueduct," said
Mrs. Sprague.
[Illustration: RUINS OF THE CLAUDIAN AQUEDUCT.
The arches were built to support the Aqueduct which is at the top.]
"So he did," replied the professor. "The road is called 'Appian'
after one of his names, and the aqueduct 'Claudian' after the other."
"Was he one of the kings of early Rome?" asked Edith, taking out her
note-book.
"No," he answered, "the kingdom came to an end more than two hundred
years before this road was begun. This is one of the great works of
the republic."
"What a glorious sight it must have been to see the Roman army come
marching home in triumph from some of its great victories," said
Rafael. "Think how thousands of soldiers, with spears and helmets
flashing in the sun, marched over this road, leading their prisoners
of war."
"Yes," said Edith, "and think how the Roman women came hurrying
through that old gate to meet them, shouting with joy at their
return."
The professor smiled at the children. He liked the way they had begun
to see pictures in their minds of the earlier days of Rome. He called
their attention to the ruins of tombs which are scattered along the
road on either side, and then pointed to three peasant children who
had been playing in the field, but had stopped to watch the strangers.
"There is ancient Rome and young Italy. You will find one quite as
interesting as the other," he said.
"Most of what you see is historic," he told them as they rode back
into the city. "There is a story about every ruin along the Appian
Way. I have told you the legends of the kings, but there are also
tales to tell of the days of the republic and of the glorious empire."
"Rafael likes those old kings," said Edith. "How did the kingdom
happen to come to an end?"
"One of the Kings was such a cruel tyrant that the people rose in
rebellion, under the leadership of a man named Brutus, and drove the
king and his followers from the city," replied the professor. "Brutus
then persuaded the Romans never again to be ruled by a king, so two
men were elected each year to govern the people, and the kingdom
became a republic. That was about five hundred years before the birth
of Christ.
"During the time of the republic, which lasted nearly five hundred
years, the Romans were waging constant warfare with other tribes and
nations, to gain wealth and power. One war followed another in rapid
succession, and there were many famous warriors who fought bravely for
the glory of Rome."
"Horatius was one of those old warriors," said Rafael.
"Yes," said Edith, "Horatius, who held back the army of the enemy from
crossing the bridge over the River Tiber. I learned a poem about it
once."
"The bridge was a wooden one which crossed the river at a spot near
here," said the guide. "We will drive around to see the place where it
stood."
They soon reached the bend of the river where Horatius called for
volunteers to aid him in defending the city.
"Let me hear the story again," said Edith, "right here where he once
stood," and Rafael told it with shining eyes.
"Horatius was a brave soldier who had already lost an eye in the
service of Rome," he began; "and now he was ready to lose his life if
need be. He crossed the bridge with two companions, and called for men
to come forward from the ranks of the enemy and fight.
"While they fought, the Roman soldiers were cutting down the bridge
behind them. The two companions of Horatius turned and saw that, at
last, the bridge was about to fall, so they ran back to safety. But
Horatius was so brave that he remained alone, fighting until the
bridge crashed down.
"Then there was no way for the enemy to cross the river and enter
Rome, so he jumped into the water with all his armor on, and swam
safely to the other side, where he was received with great
rejoicing." Edith jotted a few words down in her note-book, murmuring
as she did so:--
"Still is the story told,
How well Horatius kept the bridge
In the brave days of old."
"Another hero of the days of the republic was Cincinnatus," said
Professor Gates. "He was an old soldier who was plowing in his fields
when he was called upon to lead a small company of brave men to aid
the Roman army, which was surrounded by the enemy and could not fight
its way out.
"After Cincinnatus conquered the enemy and rescued the army, he
returned to Rome, where he was given a grand triumph."
"I suppose our city of Cincinnati was named after him," said Edith,
and then without waiting for an answer, she asked, "What was a grand
triumph?"
"Those triumphs were often granted to famous victors, and were times
of great rejoicing," the professor said. "The day was made a holiday,
the houses were decorated with garlands, the streets were filled with
throngs of people, and there was music and feasting throughout the
city.
"Magnificent processions passed through the streets. Beautiful maidens
scattered flowers before the victor, who looked very fine, clad in
purple robes and riding in a triumphal car.
"The prisoners of war followed the victor's chariot, to make his
triumph more of a spectacle, and soldiers carrying booty taken from
the conquered cities marched beside them singing hymns of victory,
while the shouts of the Roman populace called down blessings and
praises upon the head of their hero.
"The procession passed through the Forum, and at the foot of the hill
the victor turned to the left to go to the Capitol, where
thank-offerings were made to the gods, while the prisoners turned to
the right and were led away to prison.
"It must have been a magnificent sight, even in those old days of
splendor," he added, and turned to lead the way back to their
carriage.
"Those triumphs must have cost a great deal of money," said Mrs.
Sprague.
"There were enormous fortunes in old Rome, and the people spent
extravagant sums on amusements and public celebrations," their guide
told her. "One of the greatest of all the triumphs was given in honor
of Julius Cæsar, when he returned from conquering the Gauls. He wrote
an account of his wars with those barbarians which has been read by
many thousands of school children."
"Is it in Latin?" Edith asked.
"Yes," replied the professor. "That was the language of the Roman
people."
"I have read it then," said the girl; and she sighed as she thought of
the tears she had shed over her Latin lessons and Cæsar's accounts of
his wars with the Gauls.
"Julius Cæsar was one of the greatest generals the world has ever
known," said Professor Gates. "He was a powerful leader and ruler of
men, and it was this great power that made him ambitious to be called
Emperor of Rome, and to make the republic an empire.
"Some of his friends feared he would be successful in this attempt,
and, joining his enemies, they assassinated him. They loved the
freedom of their country more than they did Cæsar.
"His body was burned in the Roman Forum," added the professor. "But
not long after his death the republic did actually become an empire."
"Tell us about the empire," begged Rafael, who always wished to know
everything at once.
"Not to-day," said Mrs. Sprague, looking at her watch. "It is time for
luncheon and our afternoon rest."
"That is true," said the professor, looking at the sun. "Some other
day, with Mrs. Sprague's permission, I will take you to the Colosseum
and then we will hear about the empire."