there he punished, and men felt
that both pardon and punishment were just. He was not yet strong enough
to fight against the rebel Maximus, as he would have liked to do, but he
determined that, cost what it might, he would never forsake the young
Valentinian. Maximus had snatched at some excuse to invade Milan, which
on his entrance he had found abandoned by its chief men, save only
Ambrose, who treated him with contempt and went his own way. The
intruder's efforts to buy support by conciliation failed miserably, and
in a few weeks there came the news that Theodosius was preparing to meet
him on the borders of Hungary, or Pannonia. Then Maximus assembled
what forces he could, and set out across the pass of the Brenner.

Two battles were lost, for the legions of Maximus were but half-hearted;
in the third he was taken prisoner and brought before the emperor.
Theodosius was a merciful man, but his heart was hard towards the
murderer of Gratian. 'Let him die!' he said, and without delay the order
was carried out.

[Illustration: 'Let him die!' he said.]

Now that Maximus was dead the legions were quite ready to return to
their rightful emperor, and as soon as he had settled matters Theodosius
went on to Milan. There he and Ambrose became great friends; the bishop
was much the cleverer of the two, but they were both honest and
straightforward, with great common-sense, and it must have been a relief
to Ambrose, who did not in the least care for being an important person,
to feel that he could at last mind his own business, and leave affairs
of state to the emperor.

It was while all seemed going so smoothly that the supreme crisis in the
lives of both men took place--the event which has linked the names of
Ambrose and Theodosius for evermore.

Thessalonica, the chief town of Macedonia, was a beautiful city, and its
Governor, Count Botheric, a special friend of the Emperor, who
constantly went to pay him a visit when wearied out with the cares of
state, which pressed on him so heavily in Constantinople. The people
were gay and light-hearted, loving shows and pageants of all sorts, but
more especially the games of the circus. In order to celebrate the
defeat of Maximus, Botheric had arranged a series of special displays,
and in the chariot races most of the prizes were carried off by one man,
who became the idol of the moment. Furious, therefore, was the
indignation which ran through the city when, immediately after the