frenzy.

While the men talked together, Sergius sought the praefect of the new
detachment, a Hostilian of the family of Mancinus, whom he recalled among
the young hot-heads that formed the party of the master-of-the-horse, and
declaimed against the policy of Fabius as cowardly and base. He found
him in the best possible humour, laughing and making coarse jests amid a
circle of decurions and optios--as rude a Roman as marched with the
standards, yet able, when occasion demanded, to play the man of fashion
who had spent a year at Athens. The latter mood fell upon him when he
descried Sergius. He came forward to meet him.

"Health to you, my Lucius!" he cried, "Surely the gods have held you in
especial favour this day. I am told you have cut up a few squadrons of
this African offal."

"With your timely aid," replied Sergius, bowing.

"I but made the hares double to your coursing," said Hostilius,
carelessly; "and they tell me you have won both the spolia opima and a
civic crown. That is a great deal for one day--and under a peaceful
dictator."

Sergius flushed.

"I shall not claim them," he said. "Doubtless, Decius would have both
slain the fellow and saved himself had I not come up--"

"No modesty! no modesty!" cried Hostilius, gayly. "I assure you it is
even less Greek than Roman in these days. Lo! now, I myself will claim
both for you at Rome, if only to show that I do not grudge you your share
of the carrion. Perhaps such honours will not prejudice you in a certain
house on the Palatine," he added, slyly. "But come! you and I shall join
our forces and raid together. We have sent two hundred to Acheron since
we left the camp, and birds have been singing on our left all the
morning."

"Where is the dictator now?" asked Sergius.

"In his tent, of course," replied the other, scornfully. "And no one
cares where that may be."

"And you?"

"Oh! he was persuaded at last to risk a scouting party, and, at the
request of the brave Minucius, he gave the command to me with strict
injunctions to use only my eyes. Well, I have used them so sharply that
my hands, too, have been full," and Hostilius laughed. "There are some
five hundred of the cross-food that have evaded me thus far. We shall
catch them now, though, and, together, it will be easy for us to prevail."

Sergius was silent. To make a dash from the heights in defence of allies
dying in his sight, was one thing; to deliberately join this
insub