Quo Vadis by Henryk Sienkiewicz (ebook reader macos TXT) 📕

WHEN they alighted in front of the arbiter’s house, the chief of the

atrium answered them that of slaves sent to the gates none had returned

yet. The atriensis had given orders to take food to them, and a new

command, that under penalty of rods they were to watch carefully all who

left the city.

“Thou seest,” said Petronius, “that they are in Rome, beyond doubt, and

in that case we shall find them. But command thy people also to watch

at the gates,—those, namely, who were sent for Lygia, as they will

recognize her easily.”

“I have given orders to send them to rural prisons,” said Vinicius, “but

I will recall the orders at once, and let them go to the gates.”

And writing a few words on a wax-covered tablet, he handed it to

Petronius, who gave directions to send it at once to the house of

Vinicius. Then they passed into the interior portico, and, sitting on a

marble bench, began to talk. The golden-haired Eunice and Iras pushed

bronze footstools under their feet, and poured wine for them into

goblets, out of wonderful narrow-necked pitchers from Volaterræ and

Cæcina.

“Hast thou among thy people any one who knows that giant Lygian?” asked

Petronius.

“Atacinus and Gulo knew him; but Atacinus fell yesterday at the litter,

and Gulo I killed.”

“I am sorry for him,” said Petronius. “He carried not only thee, but

me, in his arms.”

“I intended to free him,” answered Vinicius; “but do not mention him.

Let us speak of Lygia. Rome is a sea-”

“A sea is just the place where men fish for pearls. Of course we shall

not find her to-day, or tomorrow, but we shall find her surely. Thou

hast accused me just now of giving thee this method; but the method was

good in itself, and became bad only when turned to bad. Thou hast heard

from Aulus himself, that he intends to go to Sicily with his whole

family. In that case the girl would be far from thee.”

“I should follow them,” said Vinicius, “and in every case she would be

out of danger; but now, if that child dies, Poppæa will believe, and

will persuade Cæsar, that she died because of Lygia.”

“True; that alarmed me, too. But that little doll may recover. Should

she die, we shall find some way of escape.”

Here Petronius meditated a while and added,—“Poppæa, it is said,

follows the religion of the Jews, and believes in evil spirits. Cæsar

is superstitious. If we spread the report that evil spirits carried off

Lygia, the news will find belief, especially as neither Cæsar nor Aulus

Plautius intercepted her; her escape was really mysterious. The Lygian

could not have effected it alone; he must have had help. And where

could a slave find so many people in the course of one day?”

“Slaves help one another in Rome.”

“Some person pays for that with blood at times. True, they support one

another, but not some against others. In this case it was known that

responsibility and punishment would fall on thy people. If thou give

thy people the idea of evil spirits, they will say at once that they saw

such with their own eyes, because that will justify them in thy sight.

Ask one of them, as a test, if he did not see spirits carrying off Lygia

through the air, he will swear at once by the ægis of Zeus that he saw

them.”

Vinicius, who was superstitious also, looked at Petronius with sudden

and great fear.

“If Ursus could not have men to help him, and was not able to take her

alone, who could take her?”

Petronius began to laugh.

“See,” said he, “they will believe, since thou art half a believer

thyself. Such is our society, which ridicules the gods. They, too,

will believe, and they will not look for her. Meanwhile we shall put

her away somewhere far off from the city, in some villa of mine or

thine.”

“But who could help her?”

“Her co-religionists,” answered Petronius.

“Who are they? What deity does she worship? I ought to know that

better than thou.”

“Nearly every woman in Rome honors a different one. It is almost beyond

doubt that Pomponia reared her in the religion of that deity which she

herself worships; what one she worships I know not. One thing is

certain, that no person has seen her make an offering to our gods in any

temple. They have accused her even of being a Christian; but that is

not possible; a domestic tribunal cleared her of the charge. They say

that Christians not only worship an ass’s head, but are enemies of the

human race, and permit the foulest crimes. Pomponia cannot be a

Christian, as her virtue is known, and an enemy of the human race could

not treat slaves as she does.”

“In no house are they treated as at Aulus’s,” interrupted Vinicius.

“Ah! Pomponia mentioned to me some god, who must be one powerful and

merciful. Where she has put away all the others is her affair; it is

enough that that Logos of hers cannot be very mighty, or rather he must

be a very weak god, since he has had only two adherents,—Pomponia and

Lygia,—and Ursus in addition. It must be that there are more of those

adherents, and that they assisted Lygia.”

“That faith commands forgiveness,” said Vinicius. “At Acte’s I met

Pomponia, who said to me: ‘May God forgive thee the evil which thou hast

done to us and to Lygia.’”

“Evidently their God is some curator who is very mild. Ha! let him

forgive thee, and in sign of forgiveness return thee the maiden.”

“I would offer him a hecatomb tomorrow! I have no wish for food, or

the bath, or sleep. I will take a dark lantern and wander through the

city. Perhaps I shall find her in disguise. I am sick.”

Petronius looked at him with commiseration. In fact, there was blue

under his eyes, his pupils were gleaming with fever, his unshaven beard

indicated a dark strip on his firmly outlined jaws, his hair was in

disorder, and he was really like a sick man. Iras and the golden-haired

Eunice looked at him also with sympathy; but he seemed not to see them,

and he and Petronius took no notice whatever of the slave women, just as

they would not have noticed dogs moving around them.

“Fever is tormenting thee,” said Petronius.

“It is.”

“Then listen to me. I know not what the doctor has prescribed to thee,

but I know how I should act in thy place. Till this lost one is found I

should seek in another that which for the moment has gone from me with

her. I saw splendid forms at thy villa. Do not contradict me. I know

what love is; and I know that when one is desired another cannot take

her place. But in a beautiful slave it is possible to find even

momentary distraction.”

“I do not need it,” said Vinicius.

But Petronius, who had for him a real weakness, and who wished to soften

his pain, began to meditate how he might do so.

“Perhaps thine have not for thee the charm of novelty,” said he, after a

while (and here he began to look in turn at Iras and Eunice, and finally

he placed his palm on the hip of the golden-haired Eunice). “Look at

this grace! for whom some days since Fonteius Capiton the younger

offered three wonderful boys from Clazomene. A more beautiful figure

than hers even Skopas himself has not chiselled. I myself cannot tell

why I have remained indifferent to her thus far, since thoughts of