ear at Rome, among the friends of Cinna and Marius, at
the prospect of Sulla's return. A fire broke out in the Capitol, and
this added to their terror, for the Books of the Sybil were burnt, and
all her prophecies were lost. Cinna tried to oppose Sulla's landing, but
was killed by his own soldiers at Brundusium.

Sulla, with his victorious army, could not be stopped. Sertorius fled to
Spain, but Marius' son tried, with the help of the Samnites, to resist,
and held out Praeneste, but the Samnites were beaten in a terrible battle
outside the walls, and when the people of the city saw the heads of the
leaders carried on spear points, they insisted on giving up. Young
Marius and a Samnite noble hid themselves in a cave, and as they had no
hope, resolved to die; so they fought, hoping to kill each other, and
when Marius was left alive, he caused himself to be slain by a slave.

Sulla marched on towards Rome, furious at the resistance he met with,
and determined on a terrible vengeance. He could not enter the city till
he was ready to dismiss his army and have his triumph, so the Senate
came out to meet him in the temple of Bellona. As they took their seats,
they heard dreadful shrieks and cries. "No matter," said Sulla; "it is
only some wretches being punished." The wretches were the 8000 Samnite
prisoners he had taken at the battle of Praeneste, and brought to be
killed in the Campus Martius; and with these shocking sounds to mark
that he was in earnest, the purple-faced general told the trembling
Senate that if they submitted to him he would be good to them, but that
he would spare none of his enemies, great or small.

And his men were already in the city and country, slaughtering not only
the party of Marius, but every one against whom any one of them had a
spite, or whose property he coveted. Marius' body, which had been buried
and not burnt, was taken from the grave and thrown into the Tiber; and
such horrible deeds were done that Sulla was asked in the Senate where
the execution was to stop. He showed a list of eighty more who had yet
to die; and the next day and the next he brought other lists of two
hundred and thirty each. These dreadful lists were called proscriptions,
and any one who tried to shelter the victims was treated in the same
manner. The property of all who were slain was seized, and their
children declared incapable of holding any public office.

Among those who were in danger was the nephew of Marius