d her because
of thy faith, and so that not all the lips which profess His name should
grow silent." And evidently he was thinking then of those thousands of
his children torn by wild beasts, of those crosses with which the arena
had been filled, and those fiery pillars in the gardens of the "Beast";
for he spoke with great sadness. Vinicius and Lygia noticed also that
his hair had grown entirely white, that his whole form was bent, and
that in his face there was as much sadness and suffering as if he had
passed through all those pains and torments which the victims of Nero's
rage and madness had endured. But both understood that since Christ had
given Himself to torture and to death, no one was permitted to avoid
it. Still their hearts were cut at sight of the Apostle, bent by years,
toil, and pain. So Vinicius, who intended to take Lygia soon to Naples,
where they would meet Pomponia and go to Sicily, implored him to leave
Rome in their company.

But the Apostle placed his hand on the tribune's head and answered,--

"In my soul I hear these words of the Lord, which He spoke to me on the
Lake of Tiberias: 'When thou wert young, thou didst gird thyself,
and walk whither thou wouldst; but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt
stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee
whither thou wouldst not.' Therefore it is proper that I follow my
flock."

And when they were silent, not knowing the sense of his speech, he
added,

"My toil is nearing its end; I shall find entertainment and rest only in
the house of the Lord."

Then he turned to them saying: "Remember me, for I have loved you as
a father loves his children; and whatever ye do in life, do it for the
glory of God."

Thus speaking, he raised his aged, trembling hands and blessed them;
they nestled up to him, feeling that to be the last blessing, perhaps,
which they should receive from him.

It was destined them, however, to see him once more. A few days
later Petronius brought terrible news from the Palatine. It had been
discovered there that one of Caesar's freedmen was a Christian; and on
this man were found letters of the Apostles Peter and Paul, with letters
of James, John, and Judas. Peter's presence in Rome was known formerly
to Tigellinus, but he thought that the Apostle had perished with
thousands of other confessors. Now it transpired that the two leaders
of the new faith were alive and in the capital. It was determined,
therefore,