crowns which he had won, the thousands of competitors whom he had
vanquished. The world seemed to be one orgy of buffoonery and blood; but
at the same time the opinion was fixed that virtue and deeds of dignity
had ceased, that the time of dancing and music, of profligacy, of blood,
had come, and that life must flow on for the future in that way. Caesar
himself, to whom rebellion opened the road to new robberies, was not
concerned much about the revolt of the legions and Vindex; he even
expressed his delight on that subject frequently. He did not wish to
leave Achaea even; and only when Helius informed him that further delay
might cause the loss of dominion did he move to Naples.

There he played and sang, neglecting news of events of growing danger.
In vain did Tigellinus explain to him that former rebellions of legions
had no leaders, while at the head of affairs this time was a man
descended from the ancient kings of Gaul and Aquitania, a famous and
tried soldier. "Here," answered Nero, "the Greeks listen to me,--the
Greeks, who alone know how to listen, and who alone are worthy of my
song." He said that his first duty was art and glory. But when at last
the news came that Vindex had proclaimed him a wretched artist, he
sprang up and moved toward Rome. The wounds inflicted by Petronius, and
healed by his stay in Greece, opened in his heart anew, and he wished to
seek retribution from the Senate for such unheard-of injustice.

On the road he saw a group cast in bronze, representing a Gallic warrior
as overcome by a Roman knight; he considered that a good omen, and
thenceforward, if he mentioned the rebellious legions and Vindex, it was
only to ridicule them. His entrance to the city surpassed all that had
been witnessed earlier. He entered in the chariot used by Augustus in
his triumph. One arch of the Circus was destroyed to give a road to the
procession. The Senate, knights, and innumerable throngs of people went
forth to meet him. The walls trembled from shouts of "Hail, Augustus!
Hail, Hercules! Hail, divinity, the incomparable, the Olympian, the
Pythian, the immortal!" Behind him were borne the crowns, the names
of cities in which he had triumphed; and on tablets were inscribed
the names of the masters whom he had vanquished. Nero himself was
intoxicated with delight, and with emotion he asked the Augustians who
stood around him, "What was the triumph of Julius compared with this?"
The idea that any mortal shoul