receive the truths of a religion like this of Christianity. It will be
repulsive to them. You are right in believing that among the greater
part it will find no favor. But all are not such as I have described.
There are others different in all respects, who stand waiting the
appearance of some principles of philosophy or religion which shall be
powerful enough to redeem their country from idolatry and moral death as
well as raise themselves from darkness to light. Some of this sort are
to be found among the nobles and senators themselves,--a few among the
very dregs of the people, but most among those who, securing for
themselves competence and independence by their own labor in some of the
useful arts, and growing thoughtful and intelligent with their labor,
understand in some degree, which others do not, what life is for and
what they are for, and hail with joy truths which commend themselves to
both their reason and their affections. It is out of these, the very
best blood of Rome, that our Christians are made. They are, in
intelligence and virtue, the very bone and muscle of the capital, and of
our two millions constitute no mean proportion,--large enough to rule
and control the whole, should they ever choose to put forth their power.
It is among these that the Christian preachers aim to spread their
doctrines, and when they shall all, or in their greater part, be
converted, as, judging of the future by the past and present, will
happen in no long time, Rome will be safe and the empire safe. For it
needs, I am persuaded, for Rome to be as pure as she is great, to be
eternal in her dominion, and then the civilizer and saviour of the whole
world. O, glorious age!--not remote--when truth shall wield the sceptre
in Cæsar's seat, and subject nations of the earth no longer come up to
Rome to behold and copy her vices, but to hear the law and be imbued
with the doctrine of Christ, so bearing back to the remotest province
precious seed, there to be planted, and spring up and bear fruit,
filling the earth with beauty and fragrance.
* * * * *
These things, Fausta, in answer to the questions at the close of your
letter, which betray just such an interest in the subject which
engrosses me, as it gives me pleasure to witness.
I have before mentioned the completion of Aurelian's Temple of the Sun
and the proposed dedication. This august ceremony is appointed for
tomorrow, and this evening we are bidden to the gardens of Sallust,
where is to be all the rank and beauty of Rome. O that thou, Fausta,
couldst be there!
* * * * *
I have been, I have seen, I have supped, I have returned; and again
seated at my table beneath the protecting arm of my chosen divinity, I
take my pen, and, by a few magic flourishes and marks, cause you, a
thousand leagues away, to see and hear what I have seen and heard.
Accompanied by Portia and Julia, I was within the palace of the Emperor
early enough to enjoy the company of Aurelian and Livia before the rest
of the world was there. We were carried to the more private apartments
of the Empress, where it is her custom to receive those whose friendship
she values most highly. They are in that part of the palace which has
undergone no alterations since it was the residence of the great
historian, but shines in all the lustre of a taste and an art that
adorned a more accomplished age than our own. Especially, it seems to
me, in the graceful disposition of the interiors of their palaces, and
the combined richness and appropriateness of the art lavished upon
them, did the genius of the days of Hadrian and Vespasian surpass the
present. Not that I defend all that that genius adopted and
immortalized. It was not seldom licentious and gross in its conceptions,
however unrivalled in the art and science by which they were made to
glow upon the walls, or actually speak and move in marble or brass. In
the favorite apartment of Livia, into which we were now admitted,
perfect in its forms and proportions, the walls and ceilings are covered
with the story of Leda, wrought with an effect of drawing and color, of
which the present times afford no example. The well-known Greek,
Polymnestes, was the artist. And this room in all its embellishments is
chaste and cold compared with others, whose subjects were furnished to
the painter by the profligate master himself.
The room of Leda, as it is termed, is--but how beautiful it is I cannot
tell. Words paint poorly to the eye. Believe it not less beautiful, nor
less exquisitely adorned with all that woman loves most, hangings,
carpets and couches, than any in the palace of Gracchus or Zenobia. It
was here we found Aurelian and Livia, and his niece Aurelia. The
Emperor, habited in silken robes richly wrought with gold, the
inseparable sword at his side, from which, at the expense of whatever
incongruity, he never parts--advanced to the door to receive us, saying,
'I am happy that the mildness of this autumn day permits this pleasure,
to see the mother of the Pisos beneath my roof. It is rare nowadays that
Rome sees her abroad.'
'Save to the palace of Aurelian,' replied my mother, I now, as is well
known, never move beyond the precincts of my own dwelling. Since the
captivity and death of your former companion in arms, my great husband,
Cneius Piso, the widow's hearth has been my hall of state, these widow's
weeds my only robes. But it must be more than private grief, and more
than the storms of autumn or of winter, that would keep me back when it
is Aurelian who bids to the feast.'
'We owe you many thanks,' replied the Emperor. 'Would that the loyalty
of the parents were inherited by the children;' casting towards me, as
he saluted me at the same time, a look which seemed to say that he was
partly serious, if partly in jest. After mutual inquiries and
salutations, we were soon seated upon couches beneath a blaze of light
which, from the centre of the apartment, darted its brightness, as it
had been the sun itself, to every part of the room.
'It is no light sorrow to a mother's heart,' said Portia, 'to know that
her two sons, and her only sons, are, one the open enemy of his country,
the other--what shall I term you, Lucius?--an innovator upon her ancient
institutions; and while he believes and calls himself--sincerely, I
doubt not--the friend of his country, is in truth, as every good Roman
would say--not an enemy, my son, I cannot use that word, but as it
were--an unconscious injurer. Would that the conqueror of the world had
power to conquer this boy's will!'
'Aurelian, my mother,' I replied, 'did he possess the power, would
hesitate to use it in such a cause. But it is easy to see that it would
demand infinitely more power to change one honest mind than to subdue
even the world by the sword.'
Aurelian for a brief moment looked as if he had received a personal
affront.
'How say you,' said he, 'demands it more power to change one mind than
conquer a world? Methinks it might be done with something less. My
soldiers often maintain with violence a certain opinion; but I find it
not difficult to cause them to let it go, and take mine in its place.
The arguments I use never fail.'
'That may be,' I replied, 'in matters of little moment. Even in these
however, is it not plain, Aurelian, that you cause them not to let go
their opinion, but merely to suppress it, or affect to change it? Your
power may compel them either to silence, or to an assertion of the very
contrary of what they but just before had declared as their belief, but
it cannot alter their minds. That is to be done by reason only, not by
force.'
'By reason first,' answered the emperor; 'but if that fail, then by
force. The ignorant, and the presumptuous, and the mischievous, must be
dealt with as we deal with children. If we argue with them, it is a
favor. It is our right, as it is better, to command and compel.'
'Only establish it that such and such are ignorant, and erroneous, and
presumptuous, and I allow that it would be right to silence them. But
that is the very difficulty in the case. How are we to know that they,
who think differently from ourselves, are ignorant or erroneous? Surely
the fact of the difference is not satisfactory proof.'
'They,' rejoined Aurelian, 'who depart from a certain standard in art
are said to err. The thing in this case is of no consequence to any,
therefore no punishment ensues. So there is a standard of religion in
the State, and they who depart from it may be said to err. But, as
religion is essential to the State, they who err should be brought back,
by whatever application of force, and compelled to conform to the
standard.'
'In what sense,' said Portia, 'can common and ignorant people be
regarded as fit judges of what constitutes, or does not constitute, a
true religion? It is a subject level scarce to philosophers. If, indeed,
the gods should vouchsafe to descend to earth and converse with men, and
in that manner teach some new truth, then any one, possessed of eyes and
ears, might receive it, and retain it without presumption. Nay, he could
not but do so; but not otherwise.'
'Now have you stated,' said I, 'that which constitutes the precise case
of Christianity. They who received Christianity in the first instance,
did it not by balancing against each other such refined arguments as
philosophers use. They were simply judges of matters of fact--of what
their eyes beheld, and their ears heard. God did vouchsafe to descend to
earth, and, by his messenger, converse with men, and teach new truth.
All that men had then to do was this, to see whether the evidence was
sufficient that it was a God speaking; and that being made plain, to
listen and record. And at this day, all that is to be done is to inquire
whether the record be true. If the record be a well-authenticated one of
what the mouth of God spoke, it is then adopted as the code of religious
truth. As for what the word contains--it requires no acute intellect to
judge concerning it--a child may understand it all.'
'Truly,' replied Portia, 'this agrees but ill with what I have heard and
believed concerning Christianity. It has ever been set forth as a thing
full of darkness and mystery, which it requires the most vigorous powers
to penetrate and comprehend.'
'So has it ever been presented to me,' added the Emperor. 'I have
conceived it to be but some new form of Plato's dreams, neither more
clear in itself, nor promising to be of more use to mankind. So, if I
err not, the learned Porphyrius has stated it.'
'A good fact,' here interposed Julia, 'is worth more in this argument
than the learning of the most learned. Is it not sufficient proof,
Aurelian, that Christianity is somewhat sufficiently plain and easy,
that women are able to receive it so readily? Take me as an unanswerable
argument on the side of Piso.'
'The women of Palmyra,' replied the Emperor, 'as I have good reason to
know, are more than the men of other climes. She who reads Plato and the
last essays of Plotinus, of a morning, seated idly beneath the shadow of
some spreading beech, just as a Roman girl would the last child's story
of Spurius about father Tiber and the Milvian Bridge, is not to be
received in this question as but a woman, with a woman's powers of
judgment. When the women of Rome receive their faith as easily as you
do, then may it be held as an argument for its simplicity. But let us
now break off the thread of this discourse, too severe for the occasion,
and mingle with our other friends, who by this must be arrived.'
So, with these words, we left the apartment where we had been sitting,
the Emperor having upon one side Portia, and on the other Livia, and
moved toward the great central rooms of the palace, where guests are
entertained, and the imperial banquets held.
The company was not numerous; it was rather remarkable for its
selectness. Among others not less distinguished, there were the
venerable Tacitus, the consul Capitolinus, Marcellinus the senator, the
prefect Varus, the priest Fronto, the generals Probus and Mucapor, and a
few others of the military favorites of Aurelian.
Of the conversation at supper, I remember little or nothing, only that
it was free and light, each seeming to enjoy himself and the companion
who reclined next to him. Aurelian, with a condescending grace, which no
one knows how better to assume than he, urged the wine upon his friends,
as they appeared occasionally to forget it, offering frequently some new
and unheard of kind, brought from Asia, Greece, or Africa, and which he
would exalt to the skies for its flavor. More than once did he, as he is
wont to do in his sportive mood, deceive us; for, calling upon us to
fill our goblets with what he described as a liquor surpassing all of
Italy, and which might serve for Hebe to pour out for the gods, and
requiring us to drink it off in honor of Bacchus, Pan, or Ceres, we
found, upon lifting our cups to drain them, that they had been charged
with some colored and perfumed medicament more sour or bitter than the
worst compound of the apothecary, or than massican overheated in the
vats. These sallies, coming from the master of the world, were sure to
be well received; his satellites, of whom not a few, even on this
occasion, were near him, being ready to die with excess of
laughter,--the attendant slaves catching the jest, and enjoying it with
noisy vociferation. I laughed with the rest, for it seems wise to
propitiate, by any act not absolutely base, one, whose ambitious and
cruel nature, unless soothed and appeased by such offerings, is so prone
to reveal itself in deeds of darkness.
When the feast was nearly ended, and the attending slaves were employed
in loading it for the last time with fruits, olives, and confections, a
troop of eunuchs, richly habited, entered the apartment to the sound of
flutes and horns, bearing upon a platter of gold an immense bowl or vase
of the same material, filled to the brim with wine, which they placed in
the centre of the table, and then, at the command of the Emperor, with a
ladle of the same precious material and ornamented with gems, served out
the wine to the company. At first, as the glittering pageant advanced,
astonishment kept us mute, and caused us involuntarily to rise from our
couches to watch the ceremony of introducing it, and fixing it in its
appointed place. For never before, in Rome, had there been seen, I am
sure, a golden vessel of such size, or wrought with art so marvellous.
The language of wonder and pleasure was heard, on every side, from every
mouth. Even Livia and Julia, who in Palmyra had been used to the goblets
and wine-cups of the Eastern Demetrius, showed amazement, not less than
the others, at a magnificence and a beauty that surpassed all
experience, and all conception. Just above where the bowl was placed,
hung the principal light, by which the table and the apartment were
illuminated, which, falling in floods upon the wrought or polished metal
and the thickly strewed diamonds, caused it to blaze with a splendor
which the eyes could hardly bear, and, till accustomed to it, prevented
us from minutely examining the sculpture, that, with lavish profusion
and consummate art, glowed and burned upon the pedestal, the swelling
sides, the rim and handles of the vase, and covered the broad and golden
plain upon which it stood. I, happily, was near it, being seated
opposite Aurelian, and on the inner side of the table, which, as the
custom now is, was of the form of a bent bow, so that I could study at
my leisure the histories and fables that were wrought over its whole
surface. Julia and Livia, being also near it on the other side of the
table, were in the same manner wholly absorbed in the same agreeable
task.
Livia, being quite carried out of herself by this sudden and unexpected
splendor--having evidently no knowledge of its approach--like a girl as
she still is, in her natural, unpremeditated movements, rose from her
couch and eagerly bent forward toward the vase, the better to scan its
beauties, saying, as she did so,
'The Emperor must himself stand answerable for all breaches of order
under circumstances like these. Good friends, let all, who will, freely
approach, and, leaving for a moment that of Bacchus, drink at the
fountain of Beauty.' Whereupon all, who were so disposed, gathered round
the centre of the table.
'This,' said Varus, 'both for size, and the perfect art lavished upon
it, surpasses the glories fabled of the buckler of Minerva, whose fame
has reached us.'
'You say right; it does so,' said the Emperor 'That dish of Vitellius
was inferior in workmanship, as it was less in weight and size than
this, which, before you all I here name "THE CUP OF LIVIA." Let us fill
again from it, and drink to the Empress of the world.'
All sprang in eager haste to comply with a command that carried with it
its own enforcement.
'Whatever,' continued the Emperor, when our cups had been drained, 'may
have been the condition of art in other branches of it, in the time of
that Emperor, there was no one then whose power over the metals, or
whose knowledge of forms, was comparable with that of our own Demetrius;
for this, be it known, is the sole work of the Roman--and yet, to speak
more truly, it must be said the Greek--Demetrius, aided by his brother
from the East, who is now with him. Let the music cease; we need that
disturbance no more; and call in the brothers Demetrius. These are men
who honor any age, and any presence.'
The brothers soon entered; and never were princes or ambassadors greeted
with higher honor. All seemed to contend which should say the most
flattering and agreeable thing. 'Slaves,' cried the Emperor, 'a couch
and cups for the Demetrii.'
The brothers received all this courtesy with the native ease and dignity
which ever accompany true genius. There was no offensive boldness, or
presuming vanity, but neither was there any shrinking cowardice nor
timidity. They felt that they were men, not less distinguished by the
gods, than many or most of those, in whose presence they were, and they
were sufficient to themselves. The Roman Demetrius resembles much his
brother of Palmyra, but, in both form and countenance, possesses beauty
of a higher order. His look is contemplative and inward; his
countenance pale and yet dark; his features regular and exactly shaped,
like a Greek statue; his hair short and black; his dress, as was that of
him of Palmyra, of the richest stuffs, showing that wealth had become
their reward as well as fame.
'Let us,' cried the Emperor, 'in full cups, drawn from the Livian fount,
do honor to ourselves, and the arts, by drinking to the health of
Demetrius of Palmyra, and Demetrius of Rome.' Every cup was filled, and
drained. 'We owe you thanks,' then added Aurelian, 'that you have
completed this great work at the time promised; though I fear it has
been to your own cost, for the paleness of your cheeks speaks not of
health.'
'The work,' replied the Roman Demetrius, 'could not have been completed
but for the timely and effectual aid of my Eastern brother, to whose
learned hand, quicker in its execution than my own, you are indebted for
the greater part of the sculptures, upon both the bowl and dish.'
'It is true, noble Emperor,' said the impetuous brother, 'my hand is the
quicker of the two, and in some parts of this work, especially in
whatever pertains to the East, and to the forms of building or of
vegetation, or costume seen chiefly or only there, my knowledge was
perhaps more exact and minute than his; but, let it be received, that
the head that could design these forms and conceive and arrange these
histories, and these graceful ornaments--to my mind more fruitful of
genius than all else--observe you them? have you scanned them
all?--belongs to no other than Demetrius of Rome. In my whole hand,
there resides not the skill that is lodged in one of his fingers;--nor,
in my whole head, the power that lies behind one of his eyes.'
The enthusiasm of the Eastern brother called up a smile upon the faces
of all, and a blush upon the white cheek of the Roman.
'My brother is younger than I,' he said, 'and his blood runs quicker.
All that he says, though it be a picture of the truest heart ever lodged
in man, is yet to be taken with abatement. But for him, this work would
have been far below its present merit. Let me ask you especially to mark
the broad border, where is set forth the late triumph, and ambassadors,
captives, and animals of all parts of the earth, especially of the East,
are seen in their appropriate forms and habits. That is all from the
chisel of my brother. Behold here'--and rising he approached the vase,
and vast as it was, by a touch, so was it constructed, turned it
round--'behold here, where is figured the Great Queen of--'; in the
enthusiasm of art, he had forgotten for a moment to whom he was
speaking; for at that instant his eye fell upon the countenance of
Julia, who stood near him,--while hers at the same moment caught the
regal form of Zenobia, bent beneath the weight of her golden chains--and
which he saw cast down by an uncontrollable grief. He paused, confused
and grieved--saying, as he turned back the vase, 'Ah me! cruel and
indiscreet! Pardon me, noble ladies! and yet I deserve it not.'
'Go on, go on, Demetrius,' said Julia, assuming a cheerful air. 'You
offend me not. The course of Empire must have its way; individuals are
but emmets in the path. I am now used to this, believe me. It is for
you rather, and the rest, to forgive in me a sudden weakness.'
Demetrius, thus commanded, resumed, and then with minuteness, with much
learning and eloquence, discoursed successively upon the histories, or
emblematic devices, of this the chief work of his hands. All were sorry
when he ceased.
'To what you have overlooked,' said Aurelian, as he paused, 'must I call
you back, seeing it is that part of the work which I most esteem, and in
which at this moment I and all, I trust, are most interested--the
sculptures upon the platter; which represent the new temple and
ceremonies of the dedication, which to-morrow we celebrate.'
'Of this,' replied Demetrius, 'I said less, because perhaps the work is
inferior, having been committed, our time being short, to the hands of a
pupil--a pupil, however, I beg to say, who, if the Divine Providence
spare him, will one day, and that not a remote one, cast a shadow upon
his teachers.'
'That will he,' said the brother; 'Flaccus is full of the truest
inspiration.'
'But to the dedication--the dedication,' interrupted the hoarse voice of
Fronto.
Demetrius started, and shrunk backward a step at that sound, but
instantly recovered himself, and read into an intelligible language many
of the otherwise obscure and learned details of the work. As he ended,
the Emperor said,
'We thank you, Demetrius, for your learned lecture, which has given a
new value to your labors. And now, while it is in my mind, let me
bespeak, as soon as leisure and inclination shall serve, a silver
statue, gilded, of Apollo, for the great altar, which to-morrow will
scarce be graced with such a one as will agree with the temple and its
other ornaments.'
Demetrius, as this was uttered, again started, and his countenance
became of a deadly paleness. He hesitated a moment, as if studying how
to order his words so as to express least offensively an offensive
truth. On the instant, I suspected what the truth was; but I was wholly
unprepared for it. I had received no intimation of such a thing.
'Great Emperor,' he began, 'I am sorry to say--and yet not sorry--that I
cannot now, as once, labor for the decoration of the temples and their
worship. I am--'
'Ye gods of Rome!--' cried Fronto.
'Peace,' said the Emperor; 'let him be heard. How say you?'
'I am now a Christian; and I hold it not lawful to bestow my power and
skill in the workmanship of gods, in whom I believe not, and thus become
the instrument of an erroneous faith in others.'
This was uttered firmly, but with modesty. The countenance of the
Emperor was overclouded for a moment. But it partially cleared up again,
as he said, 'I lay not, Demetrius, the least constraint upon you. The
four years that I have held this power in Rome have been years of
freedom to my people in this respect. Whether I have done well in that,
for our city and the empire, many would doubt. I almost doubt myself.'
'That would they, by Hercules,' said the soft voice of Varus just at my
ear, and intended chiefly for me.
'My brother,' said Demetrius, 'will be happy to execute for the Emperor,
the work which he has been pleased to ask of me. He remains steadfast in
the faith in which he was reared; the popular faith of Athens.'
'Apollo,' said Demetrius of Palmyra 'is my especial favorite among all
the gods, and of him have I wrought more statues in silver, gold, or
ivory, or of these variously and curiously combined, than of all the
others. If I should be honored in this labor, I should request to be
permitted to adopt the marble image, now standing in the baths of
Caracalla, and once, it is said, the chief wonder of Otho's palace of
wonders, as a model after which, with some deviations, to mould it. I
think I could make that, that should satisfy Aurelian and Rome.'