om
they found to the westward of Milan, near Vercellae, searching for the
Teutones, of whose destruction they had not yet heard. The Cimbri met
with the same fate as the Teutones; the whole nation was annihilated;
and the women, like those of the Tentones, put an end to their lives.
Marius was hailed as the savior of the state; his name was coupled with
the gods in the libations and at banquets; and he received the title of
third founder of Rome. He celebrated his victories by a brilliant
triumph, in which, however, he allowed Catulus to share.

During the brilliant campaigns of Marius, Sicily had been exposed to the
horrors of a second Servile War. The insurrection broke out in the east
of the island, where the slaves elected as their king one Salvius, a
soothsayer. He displayed considerable abilities, and in a short time
collected a force of 20,000 foot and 2000 horse. After defeating a Roman
army he assumed all the pomp of royalty, and took the surname of
Tryphon, which had been borne by a usurper to the Syrian throne. The
success of Salvius led to an insurrection in the western part of the
island, where the slaves chose as their leader a Cilician named Athenio,
who joined Tryphon, and acknowledged his sovereignty. Upon the death of
Tryphon, Athenio became king. The insurrection had now assumed such a
formidable aspect that, in B.C. 101, the Senate sent the Consul M.
Aquillius into Sicily. He succeeded in subduing the insurgents, and
killed Athenio with his own hand. The survivors were sent to Rome, and
condemned to fight with wild beasts; but they disdained to minister to
the pleasures of their oppressors, and slew each other with their own
hands in the amphitheatre.

[Illustration: Fasces. (From the original in the Capitol at Rome.)]

[Footnote 65: This canal continued to exist long afterward, and bore the
name of _Fossa Mariana_.]

[Illustration: Tomb of Metella Caecilia.]

CHAPTER XXIV.

INTERNAL HISTORY OF ROME FROM THE DEFEAT OF THE CIMBRI AND TEUTONES TO
THE SOCIAL WAR. B.C. 100-91.

The career of Marius had hitherto been a glorious one, and it would have
been fortunate for him if he had died on the day of his triumph. The
remainder of his life is full of horrors, and brings out into prominent
relief the worst features of his character. As the time for the consular
elections approached, Marius became again a candidate for the
Consulship. He wished to be first in peace as well as in war, and to