oth was Amulius when he heard this thing;
Rhea he made fast in prison, and the children he gave to certain of his
servants that they should cast them into the river. Now it chanced
that at this season Tiber had overflowed his banks, neither could the
servants come near to the stream of the river; nevertheless they did not
doubt that the children would perish, for all that the overflowing of
the water was neither deep nor of a swift current Thinking then that
they had duly performed the commandment of the King, they set down the
babes in the flood and departed. But after a while the flood abated, and
left the basket wherein the children had been laid on dry ground. And
a she-wolf, coming down from the hill to drink at the river (for the
country in those days was desert and abounding in wild beasts), heard
the crying of the children and ran to them. Nor did she devour them,
but gave them suck; nay, so gentle was she that Faustulus, the King's
shepherd, chancing to go by, saw that she licked them with her tongue.

[Illustration: The Wolf and the Twins 024]

This Faustulus took the children and gave them to his wife to rear; and
these, when they were of age to go by themselves, were not willing to
abide with the flocks and herds, but were hunters, wandering through the
forests that were in those parts. And afterwards, being now come to
full strength, they were not content to slay wild beasts only, but
would assail troops of robbers, as these were returning laden with their
booty, and would divide the spoils among the shepherds. Now there was
held in those days, on the hill that is now called the Palatine,
a yearly festival to the god Pan. This festival King Evander first
ordained, having come from Arcadia, in which land, being a land of
shepherds, Pan that is the god of shepherds is greatly honoured. And
when the young men and their company (for they had gathered a great
company of shepherds about them, and led them in all matters both of
business and of sport) were busy with the festival, there came upon them
certain robbers that had made an ambush in the place, being very wroth
by reason of the booty which they had lost. These laid hands on Remus,
but Romulus they could not take, so fiercely did he fight against them.
Remus, therefore, they delivered up to King Amulius, accusing him of
many things, and chiefly of this, that he and his companions had invaded
the land of Numitor, dealing with them in the fashion of an enemy