outs of thousands.

[* The inhabitants of Italy were freed from military service by
Augustus, in consequence of which the so-called cohors Italica,
stationed generally in Asia, was composed of volunteers. The pretorian
guards, in so far as they were not composed of foreigners, were made up
of volunteers.]

In the crowd was the Apostle Peter, who wished to see Caesar once in
life. He was accompanied by Lygia, whose face was hidden by a thick
veil, and Ursus, whose strength formed the surest defence of the young
girl in the wild and boisterous crowd. The Lygian seized a stone to be
used in building the temple, and brought it to the Apostle, so that by
standing on it he might see better than others.

The crowd muttered when Ursus pushed it apart, as a ship pushes waves;
but when he carried the stone, which four of the strongest men could not
raise, the muttering was turned into wonderment, and cries of "Macte!"
were heard round about.

Meanwhile Caesar appeared. He was sitting in a chariot drawn by six white
Idumean stallions shod with gold. The chariot had the form of a tent
with sides open, purposely, so that the crowds could see Caesar. A number
of persons might have found place in the chariot; but Nero, desiring
that attention should be fixed on him exclusively, passed through the
city alone, having at his feet merely two deformed dwarfs. He wore a
white tunic, and a toga of amethyst color, which cast a bluish tinge
on his face. On his head was a laurel wreath. Since his departure from
Naples he had increased notably in body. His face had grown wide; under
his lower jaw hung a double chin, by which his mouth, always too near
his nose, seemed to touch his nostrils. His bulky neck was protected, as
usual, by a silk kerchief, which he arranged from moment to moment with
a white and fat hand grown over with red hair, forming as it were bloody
stains; he would not permit epilatores to pluck out this hair, since
he had been told that to do so would bring trembling of the fingers and
injure his lute-playing. Measureless vanity was depicted then, as at all
times, on his face, together with tedium and suffering. On the whole, it
was a face both terrible and trivial. While advancing he turned his head
from side to side, blinking at times, and listening carefully to the
manner in which the multitude greeted him. He was met by a storm of
shouts and applause: "Hail, divine Caesar! Imperator, hail, conqueror!
hail, incomparable!