n of twenty-one years and
eleven months.

11. Titus Antoni'nus, his successor, was born at Lavin'ium, near Rome,
but his ancestors came originally from Nismes, in Gaul. His father was
a nobleman, who had enjoyed the highest honours of the empire.

[Sidenote: U.C. 891]

At the time of his succeeding to the throne he was above fifty years
old, and had passed through many of the most important offices of the
state with great integrity and application. 12. His virtues in private
life were no way impaired by his exaltation, as he showed himself one
of the most excellent princes for justice, clemency, and moderation;
his morals were so pure, that he was usually compared to Numa, and was
surnamed the Pious, both for his tenderness to his predecessor
A'drian, when dying, and his particular attachment to the religion of
his country.

13. He was an eminent rewarder of learned men, to whom he gave large
pensions and great honours, collecting them around him from all parts
of the world. 14. Among the rest, he sent for Apollo'nius, the famous
stoic philosopher, to instruct his adopted son, Mar'cus Aure'lius.
Apollo'nius being arrived, the emperor desired his attendance; but the
other arrogantly answered, that it was the scholar's duty to wait upon
the master, not the master upon the scholar. 15. To this reply,
Antoni'nus only returned with a smile, "That it was surprising how
Apollo'nius, who made no difficulty of coming from Greece to Rome,
should think it hard to walk from one part of Rome to another;" and
immediately sent Mar'cus Aure'lius to him.[8] 16. While the good
emperor was thus employed in making mankind happy, in directing their
conduct by his own example, or reproving their follies by the keenness
of rebuke, he was seized with a violent fever, and ordered his friends
and principal officers to attend him. 17. In their presence he
confirmed the adoption of Mar'cus Aure'lius; then commanding the
golden statue of Fortune, which was always in the chamber of the
emperors, to be removed to that of his successor, he expired in the
seventy-fourth year of his age, after a prosperous reign of
twenty-two years and almost eight months.[9]

[Sidenote: U.C. 914.]

18. Mar'cus Aure'lius, though left sole successor to the throne, took
Lu'cius Ve'rus as his associate and equal, in governing the state. 19.
Aure'lius was the son of An'nius Ve'rus, of an ancient and illustrious
family, which claimed its origin from Nu'ma. Lu'cius Ve