aracterised the closing centuries of the republic. The best families
in the state were not as ready as in the earlier days to devote their
daughters to the service, and thus the rank and consequently the
influence of the Vestals had to some extent declined. But now all this
was immediately changed, the outward honour and the insignia of the
Vestals were increased until they were allowed such privileges as not
even the emperors possessed. When they went through the street, they
were attended by a lictor as the higher officers of the state were, and
they were given special seats at the theatre. But the most
characteristic thing which Augustus did for them and that which helped
their cause the most was the emperor's declaration, made to be repeated
in public gossip, that if he had a grand-daughter of the proper age he
would unhesitatingly make her a Vestal virgin.

Toward the close of his life Augustus prepared a statement of what he
had accomplished during his reign, a sort of _compte rendu_ of his
stewardship. In a roundabout way almost all of this has been preserved
to us and it naturally forms the greatest source of our knowledge of
his activity. After reciting a large number of his religious reforms he
adds:--"The spoils of war I have consecrated to the gods in the
Capitoline temple, in the temple of the god Julius, in the temple of
Apollo, in the temple of Vesta, in the temple of Mars the Avenger."
These words give us a clue to the more especial religious interests of
Augustus, a clue which is all the more needed because of his apparently
catholic spirit, and his seemingly general interest in all the forms of
old Roman religion. No man who restored and in some cases entirely
rebuilt eighty-two temples to various deities could be accused of undue
partiality in emphasising certain phases of religion to the total
exclusion of others. But as a matter of fact underneath this general
interest there were present certain very specific interests, and this
passage in his own writing adds great strength to the other evidence as
to what these gods were. Naturally in every list of pre-eminent deities
Juppiter must be present, hence the mention of the Capitoline temple
first; as a matter of fact however Augustus's worship of Juppiter was
much more a matter of form than of real interest. His attitude was one
of graceful acceptance of the inevitable rather than of enthusiastic
homage. Juppiter was not adapted to his purpose, because