of Titus and afterwards to

The Roman Forum.

The Sacred Way, it seems, was about 3/8 of a mile in length and extended
from the Arch of Constantine or the northern end of the Colosseum near
by, to the Capitol. Near the Capitol stands the Triumphal Arch of
Septimius Severus, 75 feet high and 82 feet wide, with three passages. It
was erected in honor of that emperor and his two sons Caracalla and Geta
in A.D. 203, to commemorate victories. It was once surmounted by a brazen
chariot with six horses, on which stood Severus, crowned by Victory. The
pavement of the Forum, which has been laid bare by recent diggings, lies
some twenty feet lower than the level of the street which now passes at
the side of the diggings. Near the northern end stands the Column of
Phocas, 54 feet high, which was erected in 608 in honor of the tyrant
Phocas, of the Eastern Empire. All around the Forum stand what remains of
the ancient temples, once dedicated to the deities which it was believed
presided over the destinies of Rome, before the advent of Christianity.
The broken pillars of ruined temples are seen on every side.

The Tabularium.

The only relics still extant of the ancient Capitol of Rome are the ruins
of the Tabularium, erected B.C. 78, by the consul Q. Lutatius Catulus for
the reception of the state archives. The modern Capitol covers a part of
it. The Tarpeian Rock, from which the condemned used to be thrown by the
ancient Romans, is close by this edifice, _if_ the _Rupe Tarpeia_ still
pointed out is the veritable one.

Adjoining the Tabularium is the _Schola Xantha_, "With the _Colonnade of
the Twelve Gods_, whose images Vettius Agorius Praetextatus, the praefectus
urbi, and one of the principal champions of expiring paganism, erected
here in A.D. 367." The _Twelve Gods_ stand in base relief, on a beautiful
vase in the corridor of the Capitoline Museum, in the following order:
Jupiter, Juno, Minerva, Hercules, Apollo, Diana, Mars, Venus, Vesta,
Mercury, Neptune and Vulcan. It is a remarkable coincidence(?), that there
are: First, _Twelve_ Lunations in a year; Second, _Twelve_ Months in a
year; Third, _Twelve_ Constellations in the heavens; Fourth, _Twelve_ Gods
in the ancient mythology; Fifth, _Twelve_ Labors of Hercules; Sixth, see
Law of the _Twelve_ tables(?), Encyclopaedia Britannica on Burying;
Seventh, _Twelve_ Sons of Jacob; Eighth, _Twelve_ Tribes of Israel; Ninth,
_Twelve_ Apostles of Christ; Tenth, _Twelv