the meat, but even they turned away in horror when she
uncovered the remains of her own little child, whom she had been eating.
At last the Roman engines broke down the walls of the lower city, and
with desperate struggling the Romans entered, and found every house full
of dead women and children. Still they had the Temple to take, and the
Jews had gathered there, fancying that, at the worst, the Messiah would
appear and save them. Alas! they had rejected Him long ago, and this was
the time of judgment. The Romans fought their way in, up the marble
steps, slippery with blood and choked with dead bodies; and fire raged
round them. Titus would have saved the Holy Place as a wonder of the
world, but a soldier threw a torch through a golden latticed window, and
the flame spread rapidly. Titus had just time to look round on all the
rich gilding and marbles before it sank into ruins. He took a terrible
vengeance on the Jews. Great numbers were crucified, and the rest were
either taken to the amphitheatres all over the empire to fight with wild
beasts, or were sold as slaves, in such numbers that, cheap as they
were, no one would buy them. And yet this wonderful nation has lived on
in its dispersion ever since. The city was utterly overthrown and sown
with salt, and such treasures as could be saved from the fire were
carried in the triumph of Titus--namely, the shew-bread table, the
seven-branched candlestick, and the silver trumpets--and laid up as
usual among the spoils dedicated to Jupiter. Their figures are to be
seen sculptured on the triumphal arch built in honor of Titus, which
still stands at Rome.

[Illustration: ARCH OF TITUS.]

These Flavian Caesars were great builders. Much had to be restored at
Rome after the two great fires, and they built a new Capitol and new
Forum, besides pulling down Nero's Golden House, and setting up on part
of the site the magnificent baths known as the Baths of Titus. Going to
the bath, to be steamed, rubbed, anointed, and perfumed by the slaves,
was the great amusement of an idle Roman's day, for in the waiting-rooms
he met all his friends and heard the news; and these rooms were splendid
halls, inlaid with marble, and adorned with the statues and pictures
Nero had brought from Greece. On part of the gardens was begun what was
then called the Flavian Amphitheatre, but is now known as the Colosseum,
from the colossal statue that stood at its door--a wonderful place, with
a succession o