hole company of this
sect. Marcus, on hearing this, made an appeal to them to pray to their
God. And when they had prayed, the God immediately gave ear, hurling a
thunderbolt upon the enemy and encouraging the Romans with rain. Marcus
was astounded at what happened and honored the Christians by an official
decree, while the legion he named "The Thunderbolt." It is said also that
there is a letter of Marcus extant on this matter. But the Greeks, though
they know that the company was called "Thunderbolt" and bear witness to
the fact themselves, make no statement whatever about the reason for the
appellation.

[Sidenote:--10--] Dio goes on to say that when the rain poured down at
first all bent their faces upwards and received it in their mouths. Then
some held their shields and their helmets as pails, and they themselves
took fullmouthed draughts of it and gave their horses to drink. The
barbarians making a charge upon them, they drank and fought at the same
time; and some who were wounded gulped down together the water and the
blood that flowed into their helmets. The most of them had given so much
attention to drinking that they would have suffered some great damage from
the enemy's onset had not a violent hail and numbers of thunderbolts
fallen upon the latter's ranks. In the same spot one might see water and
fire descending from Heaven at the same time: the one side was being
drenched and drinking, the other was being burned with fire and dying. The
fire did not touch the Romans, but if it fell anywhere among them it was
straightway extinguished. On the other hand, the shower did the barbarians
no good, but like oil served rather to feed the flames that fed on them,
and they searched for water while in the midst of rain. Some wounded
themselves in the attempt to put out the fire with blood, and others ran
over to the side of the Romans, convinced that they alone had the saving
water. Marcus finally took pity on them. He was for the seventh time
saluted as imperator by the soldiers. And although he was not wont to
accept any such honor before the senate voted it, [Footnote: Cp. Mommsen,
_Staatsrecht_, 12, p. 123 (or 13, p. 124); also III, p. 1108.]
nevertheless this time he took it under the assumption that it was
bestowed from Heaven, and he sent a despatch to that effect to the
senate.--Moreover Faustina was named "Mother of the Legions."

[Sidenote:--11--] [Marcus [Antoninus] remained in Pannonia in order to
transa