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bu ted ali in one piece. Galba's Deedman Icelus, who had been imprisoned when the f1rst news came of the revolt and was now at liberto again, granted this indulgence. 3o. They laid Nero on his pyre, dressed in the gold-embroideredwhite robes which he had worn on I January. The funerat costa ooO gold pieces. Ecloge and Alexandria, his old nurses, helped Acte, his mistress, to carry the rematris to the Pincian His, whicli can beseen from the Campus Martius. His Cossin, of white porphyry, standsthere in the Domitian family tomb belliud a rati os Thasian stone and
uea. As a boy Nero read most of the usual school subjecis excepi philosophy whicli, Agrippina wamed him, was no proper study for afuture ruler. His tutor Seneca hid the works of the early rhetoricians from him, intending to be admired himself as long as possibie. SoNero turned his hand to poet , and would dasti off verses Without any effort. It is osten claimed that he published other people's workas his own: but nolebooks and loose pages have come into my posseS-sion, whicli contain sonae of Nero's best-known poems in his o handwriting, and have clearly been nei ther copied nor dictaled Many erasures and cancellations, as well as words substituted above the lines prove that he was thinhing things out for himself Nero also took more than an amateur's interest in palating and sculpture.
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24OΤΗΕ ΤWELVE CAESAR SI 3. His greatest wea esses were his thirst for populari ty and his jealousy of men who caught the public eye by any means WhatsoeVer. Because he had swept the board os ali public prietes offered for acting, and was also an enthusiastic wrestier - during his tour of Greece hel ad never missed a single athletic meeting - most peopte e ected his to take part in the Classical evenis at the nexi Olympiad. Ηe used to squat on the ground in the stadium, like the judges, and is any patros competitors worked away from the centre of the ring, would pusilinem back himself Because of this singing and chariot-driving he hadbeen compared to Phoebus Apollo; now, apparently, he planned tobecome a Hercules, for according to one story he had a lion so care- fully trained that he could sasely face it naed bes ore the entire amphitheatre: and then either kill it with his club or et se strangle it 34. Just be re the end Nero took a public oath that is he managedto keep his throne he would celebrate the victory with a music festivat, performing successively on water-organ, flute, and bagpipes: and when the last day came would dance the role of Turnus in Virgil's Aeneid. He was supposed to have hiped the actor Paris because heconsidered him a serious professionat rival. 55. Nero's inreasonabie craving for immortal fame made his change a number of wel known names in his own favour. The monti, of April, for instance, became Neroneus; and Rome Was onthe possit of being renamed 'Neropolis'. 56. He despi sed ali religious culis excepi that of Atargatis, the Syrian Goddess: and showed, one day, that he had changed his mindeven about her, by urinating on the divine image. Ηe had come, instead, to rest a superstitious bellef- the only one, as a matter of faci, to which he ever remat ned faithful - in the statuetie of a giri sent him
by an anonymous commoner as a Charm against conspiracies. It so
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24 Iflowers on his grave sor sonae years, and had statues made of him,
even continued to circulate his edicis, pretending he was stili alive and would soon return to con und his enen es. What is more, Κing Vologaesus of Parthia, on sending ambassadors to rati' his assiance Willi Rome, particularly requested the Senate to honour Nero's memory. In faci, menty years later, When I Was a young man, amysterious individual came forward cla ing to be Nero; and somagicat was the found of his name in the Parthians' ears that theysupported hi in to the best of their ability, and were most reluctantio concede Roman demands for his extradition.
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W1TH Nero the line of the Caesars became eXtrici. Among the many prophetic indications of this event two ouistanding onesare mentioned by historians. As Livia was returning to her home at Veii after mar ing Augustus,y an eagle flew by and dropped into her
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a. Galba succeeded Nero. Though not directly related to the Julians, he came from a very ancient aristocratic house, and used toamplisy the inscriptions on his own statues with the statement that Quintus Catulus Capitolinus was liis grea grandi ather; and even hada tabi et set up in the Palace forecouri, tracing his ancestry bach to Juppiter on tiae male, and to Pasiphae, Minos's wise, on the female fide. i3. It would be tiresome to reproduce this pedigree here in si ita
surname 'Galba' was first assumed by a Sulpician, and where it originaled, must rem in moot poesis. One suggestion is that after a
tediousty protracted siege of some Spanish town the Sulpicius inquestion set fire to it, using torches smeared with resin galbanum . Mother is that he resorted to galbeum, a tand of poestice, during a long illaess. Others are that he was very fat, the Gallic Word for whichis galba; or that, on the contrary, he was very smal l - like the galba, a creature which breeds in Oia trees. The Sulpicians acquired a certainlustre during the consulfhip of Servius Galba, described as the most
eloquent speaker of his time, and preserve a tradition that, whilegoverning Spatri as pro-Praetor, he massa red 3O,OOO Lusitanians - anact whicli provoked the war with Viriathus. Servius Galba's grantison, e aged when Julius Caesar, whose heuienant he had been in Gaul, passed him over for the consulfhip, joined the assasstas Brutus and Cassius, and was subsequently sentenced to death under the Pedian Law.λ The Emperor Galba's Ather and grandiather mere descended from this personage. The grandAther had a far higher
reputation as a scholar than as a statesman, never rising above the rank
of praetor but publishing a monumental, and not negligibie, historical work. The Liber, however, won a consul shψ; and although so squalas to be almost a hunchbach, and a poor speaker into the bargari, heproved indefatigabie in public bus ess. He married, frst Mummia Achaica, grand-daughter of Catulus and great-grand-daughter of the Lucius Mummius who sacked Corinth; and then Livia Ocellina, a tricli and beautiful woman, whose affections are said to have originalty been stirred by his rank, but afterwards even more by his franisess in reply to her bold advances he furtively stripped to the waist andreuealed his hvmp as a proos that he wished to hide nothing from her. Achaica bore him two sons: Gaius and Servius. Gaius, the elder, test '
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Vince, committed sui cide. 4. On 24 December 3 B.C., while Messala and Lentulus were
Consuis, Servius Galba, the Empero to-be, was bom in a hillsideliouse beside the road whicli links Terracina with Fundi. To please his si mollier Livia Ocellina, who had adopted him, he took the nanae
Livius, the surname Ocellus, and even the forenanae Lucius, intilbecoming Emperor. According to some writers Augustus Once
inan, grunted: 'Very well, let him live in peace: the news does notconcern me in the least.' One day, as Galba's grand&ther was invoking sacrificiat lighining, an eagle suddenly snalched the victim's intestines out of his hands and carried them Osf to an Oak-tree laden with acorns. A bystander suggested that this sigia portended great hono for the family. 'ris, yes, perhaps so,' the old man agreed, smiling, 'on the day that a mule ais ' When Galba later launched his rebellion, what encouraged him most was the news that a mule had, in faci, aled. Although everyone else considered this a disastrous omen, Galba remembered the sacrifice and his grandfather's quip, and interpreted it in precisely the opposite senSe. He had atready dreamed that the Goddess Fortime visited him toannounce that she was tired of watting oulside his door and would heplease let her in quickly or she would be Lir game for the nexi passe by. He awohe, opened the door, and found on the landing a bronge image of the Goddess, more than a cubit tali. This Ee carried lovinglyto Tusculum, his summer home, and consecrated a private chapel to Fortune; Worshipping her with monthly sacrifices and an annual
Even as a yoting man he Diti Sully observed the national custom, at ready obsolescent, os summoning his household flaves twice a dayto wish him good-morning and good-night, one aster the Other. S. Galba was a conscientious student of public affairs, and particularly shised in law. He took marriage seriousty but, on losing his wise Livia and the two sons she had borne him, remat ned single forthe rest of his lise. Nobody could interest him in a second malch, not
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amount was e ressed in figures, not words, Tiberius, as her eXecutor, reduced it to a mere 3,OOo; and Galba never handled even that modest
6. Ηe won his first public appotniment while stili under age. Aspraetor in charge of the Floral Games he introduced the spectacular novelty of tightrope-walhing elephanis. Then he governed the province of Aquitania for nearly a year, and nexi held a consulfhip forsiX monilis. Curio ly enough, Galba succeeded Nero's fallier, Gnaeus Domitius, and preceded Salvius Otho, sester of Otho - a restiadowing of the time when he should reign belween these two Constas' sons. At Caligula's orders Galba replaced Gaetulicus asGOVerno generes of Greater Germany. The day after tising up his Command he put a stop to manual applause at a religious festivat, byposting a notice to the effect that 'hands will be kept inside uniformcloas on est occasions.' Uery soon the following doggeret went the
I. Although strongly urged to proclaim himself Emperor after Caligula's murder, Galba held back, thus earning Claudius's heartiali gratitude. Claudius, indeed, considered Galba so close a friend that,
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postponed on his account. Later, Galba became proconsul in Africa for two years, with instructions to suppress the disturbance caused there by domestic rivalries and a native revolt. He executed his commission somewhat rusti sty, it is true, but showed scrupulous attention to justice. Discovering, for instance, that while rations were
goes of iis own accord. That man will be the owner.'8. For these achievemenis in Africa and his previous successes in
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Galba was holding assiges at New Carthage when news reachedhim of the revolt in Celtic Gaul. It came in the form os an appeat sorhelp sent by the Roman Governo generat of Aquitatae, which was followed by another from Gaius Julius Vindex asking, would he tiae the lead in rescing humani from Nero ρ He accepted the suggestion,
dentalty come across Nero's secret orders for his own assassination; iand took heari stom certain very favourabie signs and portentsespecialla the predictions os a nobi born giri whicli saccording to Juppiter's priest at Clunia) malched the prophecies spoken in a trance by another giri two centuries bes re - the priest had just found a record of these in the Temple vaest, following directions given him in a dream. The gist of these prophecies was that the lord and master of the world would some day arise in Spain. Io. Accordiugly, Galba took his place on the Tribunal, as thoughgoing about the business of freeing flaves, but be re hina wereranged statues and pictures of Nero 's prominent victims. A youngaristocrat, recalled from exile in the nea by Balearic Isiands for this occasion, stood near while Galba deplored the present state of the Empire. Galba was at once hailed as Commander Chies, and accepted the honour; announcing that he would now govem ali Spala in the name of the Roman Senate and people. He closed thecouris, and began raising regular troops and militia from the native population to increase lais existing command of one legion, two squadrons os cavalry, and three unattached infantry battalions. N i, he cliose the most distinguished and intelligent Spaniards wasableas members of a provinciat senate, to whicli matters of State import-
ance could always be referred. Fle also picked certain young knighis, instead os ordinary troops to guard his fleeping quarters, and althoughthese ranked as volunteer infantrymen they still wore the gold rings proper to their condition. Then he called upon ali Spanisli provinciaisto unite energeticalla in the common cause of rebellion. At about this time a ring of ancient design was discovered in the fortifications of the city that he had chosen as his headquarters; the engraved gemrepresented Victor rai sing a tropi . Soon afterwards an AleXandrianship drisited into Tortosa, loaded with arms, but nei ther heimsman, CreW, nor passengers were found aboard her - whicli test no doubi in anyone's miud that this must be a just and righteous war, favoured by the godS.