wisdom," answered Petronius.

But Vinicius inquired with affected calmness, "What dost thou bring?"

"The first time I came I brought thee hope, O lord; at present, I bring
certainty that the maiden will be found."

"That means that thou hast not found her yet?"

"Yes, lord; but I have found what that sign means which she made. I
know who the people are who rescued her, and I know the God among whose
worshippers to seek her."

Vinicius wished to spring from the chair in which he was sitting;
but Petronius placed his hand on his shoulder, and turning to Chilo
said,--"Speak on!"

"Art thou perfectly certain, lord, that she drew a fish on the sand?"

"Yes," burst out Vinicius.

"Then she is a Christian and Christians carried her away." A moment of
silence followed.

"Listen, Chilo," said Petronius. "My relative has predestined to thee
a considerable sum of money for finding the girl, but a no less
considerable number of rods if thou deceive him. In the first case thou
wilt purchase not one, but three scribes; in the second, the philosophy
of all the seven sages, with the addition of thy own, will not suffice
to get thee ointment."

"The maiden is a Christian, lord," cried the Greek.

"Stop, Chilo. Thou art not a dull man. We know that Junia and Calvia
Crispinilla accused Pomponia Graecina of confessing the Christian
superstition; but we know too, that a domestic court acquitted her.
Wouldst thou raise this again? Wouldst thou persuade us that Pomponia,
and with her Lygia, could belong to the enemies of the human race, to
the poisoners of wells and fountains, to the worshippers of an ass's
head, to people who murder infants and give themselves up to the foulest
license? Think, Chilo, if that thesis which thou art announcing to us
will not rebound as an antithesis on thy own back."

Chilo spread out his arms in sign that that was not his fault, and then
said,--"Lord, utter in Greek the following sentence: Jesus Christ, Son
of God, Saviour." [Iesous Christos, Theou Uios, Soter.]

"Well, I have uttered it. What comes of that?"

"Now take the first letters of each of those words and put them into one
word."

"Fish!" said Petronius with astonishment. [Ichthus, the Greek word for
"fish."]

"There, that is why fish has become the watchword of the Christians,"
answered Chilo, proudly.

A moment of silence followed. But there was something so striking in the
conclusions of the Greek that the two friends could