. Then he laughed
his laugh that was not a laugh. "What would you do if you were a handful
of oats being crushed between the upper and lower stones of a mill?"

'"I'm Pertinax, not a riddle-guesser," said Pertinax.

'"You're a fool," said Allo. "Your Gods and my Gods are threatened by
strange Gods, and all you can do is to laugh."

'"Threatened men live long," I said.

'"I pray the Gods that may be true," he said. "But I ask you again not to
forget me."

'We climbed the last hot hill and looked out on the eastern sea, three or
four miles off. There was a small sailing-galley of the North Gaul pattern
at anchor, her landing-plank down and her sail half up; and below us,
alone in a hollow, holding his pony, sat Maximus, Emperor of Britain! He
was dressed like a hunter, and he leaned on his little stick; but I knew
that back as far as I could see it, and I told Pertinax.

'"You're madder than Allo!" he said. "It must be the sun!"

'Maximus never stirred till we stood before him. Then he looked me up and
down, and said: "Hungry again? It seems to be my destiny to feed you
whenever we meet. I have food here. Allo shall cook it."

'"No," said Allo. "A Prince in his own land does not wait on wandering
Emperors. I feed my two children without asking your leave." He began to
blow up the ashes.

'"I was wrong," said Pertinax. "We are all mad. Speak up, O Madman called
Emperor!"

'Maximus smiled his terrible tight-lipped smile, but two years on the Wall
do not make a man afraid of mere looks. So I was not afraid.

'"I meant you, Parnesius, to live and die an Officer of the Wall," said
Maximus. "But it seems from these," he fumbled in his breast, "you can
think as well as draw." He pulled out a roll of letters I had written to
my people, full of drawings of Picts, and bears, and men I had met on the
Wall. Mother and my sister always liked my pictures.

'He handed me one that I had called "Maximus's Soldiers." It showed a row
of fat wine-skins, and our old Doctor of the Hunno hospital snuffing at
them. Each time that Maximus had taken troops out of Britain to help him
to conquer Gaul, he used to send the garrisons more wine--to keep them
quiet, I suppose. On the Wall, we always called a wine-skin a "Maximus."
Oh, yes; and I had drawn them in Imperial helmets!

'"Not long since," he went on, "men's names were sent up to Caesar for
smaller jokes than this."

'"True, Caesar," said Pertinax; "but you forget that was befo