and
enjoyed corresponding wealth and influence. He was charmed by the bold
and frank nature of Marcellus, and the two young men had become firm
friends. The intimate knowledge of the capital which Lucullus possessed
enabled him also to be of service to his friend, and the scene which has
been described in the preceding chapter was one of the first visits
which Marcellus had made to the renowned Coliseum.

The Pretorian camp was situated close to the city wall, to which it was
joined by another wall which inclosed it. The soldiers lived in rooms
like cells made in the wall itself. They were a numerous and finely
appointed body of men, and their situation at the capital gave them a
power and an influence so great that for ages they controlled the
government of the capital. A command among the Pretorians was a sure
road to fortune, and Marcellus could look forward with well-grounded
prospects of future honors.

On the morning of the following day Lucullus entered his room. After the
usual salutation he spoke of the fight which they had witnessed.

"Such scenes are not to my taste," said Marcellus. "They are cowardly. I
like to see two well-trained men engage in a fair combat, but such
butchery as you have in the Coliseum is detestable. Why should Macer be
murdered? He was a brave man, and I honor his courage. And why should
old men and young children be handed over to wild beasts?"

"It is the law. They are Christians."

"That is always the answer. What have the Christians done? I have seen
them in all parts of the world, but have never known them to be engaged
in disturbances."

"They are the worst of mankind."

"So it is said, but what proof is there?"

"Proof? It is too well known. Their crime is that they plot in secret
against the laws and the religion of the state. So intense is the hatred
which they bear toward our institution, that they will die rather than
offer sacrifice. They own no king or monarch but the crucified Jew who
they believe is alive now. And they show their malevolence to us by
asserting that we shall all hereafter be tortured in Hades for ever."

"This may be true. I know not. I know nothing at all about them."

"The city is swarming with them; the empire is overrun. And mark this.
The decline of our empire, which all see and lament; the spread of
weakness and insubordination, the contraction of our boundaries, all
this increases as the Christians increase. To what else are these evils