led, because of prowess displayed in past campaigns,
to the appellation of "Victorious," selected the equivalent of a cohort
apiece to unite into a deputation representing the soldiery of Britain
collectively, to proceed to Rome, reveal to the Emperor his danger, save
him, foil Perennis, and see to it that he was put to death. In pursuance
of this plan the six centuries chosen by the Thirteenth Legion, about five
hundred men, had set out southward from the Wall on the day before the
Ides of January. Accomplishing the march of a hundred and thirty-five
miles to Eburacum, in spite of deep snow and heavy snow-storms, in
fourteen days, there they foregathered with the main body of the Sixth
Legion and were joined by their six selected centuries. The twelve, some
thousand picked men, accomplished the march of eighty-five miles to Deva
in nine days, though hampered by terrible weather. There they were joined
by the delegates of the Twentieth Legion. Together the fifteen hundred
deputies made the march of two hundred and eighty miles to Ritupis by way
of Londinium, in twenty-eight days. At Ritupis they took part in the
festival of Isis, by which navigation was declared open for the year and
navigation blessed. Next day, on the day before the Nones of March, they
had sailed for Gaul and made the crossing in ten hours, without any
hindrance from headwinds or bad weather.

From Gessoriacum they had tramped across Gaul, inducing to join them such
kindred spirits as they encountered among the squads of recent levies
being drilled at each large town preparatory to being forwarded to
reinforce the frontier garrisons. These inexperienced recruits they had
organized into centuries under sergeants elected by the recruits
themselves from among themselves, which elective centurions had handily
learnt their novel duties from instructions given by one or two veterans
detailed to aid in drilling each new century. Before they reached Vapincum
they had associated with them fresh comrades equalling themselves in
number, equipped from town arsenals. With these they had crossed into
Italy through the Cottian Alps.

At Segusio they had been told that, under the misrule of Perennis, the
_ergastula_ of Italy were filled, not half with runaway slaves, petty
thieves, rascals, ruffians and outlaws, but mainly with honest fellows who
had committed no crime, but had been secretly arrested and consigned to
their prisons merely because they had incurred th