CHRISTMAS
"Mother," said Lucy, one day late in December, "Tessa says she never gets presents on Christmas Day. Those always come on Twelfth Night in Italy. What a queer idea! But she says there are processions in the churches, and all sorts of beautiful sights. Will father take us to Saint Peter's then, do you think?"
Lucy had only been in Italy six months and there were many interesting things she had not seen yet.
"Certainly," answered her mother. "Your father and I have been thinking of asking both Tessa and Beppo to spend Christmas week with us. You will enjoy the sights allthe more if you have them with you. What do you think?"
Lucy was so pleased she jumped up and down in delight.
"You good, kind mother," she cried. "Of course, it will be lovely."
That very night Tessa's father was asked if he would be willing his children should visit the artist's family. The good man's face beamed with pride. Oh, yes, he was only too glad they should have such an honour and pleasure. He knew his wife would also rejoice.
There was to be no trouble about the clothes. A new suit was already waiting for Beppo, while the artist's wife had herself made two pretty dresses for Tessa.
"You are too kind," cried the peasant. His hands seemed to say this as well as his voice. What would an Italian do without hands to help him in talking? Sometimes they seem to express more than his voice.
In this way it came to pass that Tessa and Beppo bade good-bye to the little village on the hillside for nearly two weeks. They must be home at Twelfth Night, however, to bring presents to mother and Francesca. Oh, yes, there was no doubt of that.
But in the meantime it was to be a holiday. The children were not to sit as models for one minute. The artist would let his brushes rest and go about the city with his family and their young visitors.
Christmas Eve came at last, although the hours before it arrived seemed like weeks to the excited children.
A carriage drove up to the palace door. They were all to drive to a beautiful church called Santa Maria Maggiore, where the Pope himself would be that night.
"Why is he such a great man, and why do the people give him such reverence?" asked Arthur.
Tessa heard the question. Her pretty face flushed. "Why, Arthur, he is the head of our church, the Catholic Church," she answered, quickly. "It is not only here in Italy, but all over the world that we Catholics honour him!"
The little girl was ignorant about many things in her own city that Lucy and Arthur could explain to her, but she had been taught from birth to think of the Pope as the most holy person in the world.
But why was the Pope to be present in the church Christmas Eve? The children had already been told that on this occasion a piece of the cradle in which Jesus had lain was to be carried through the church. At least, Tessa and her brother and all good Catholics believed it to be a part of his cradle. They thought that by some miracle it had been saved for nineteen hundred years, and was now cared for sacredly in their loved city.Any one who wished, might look upon it at Christmas time.
The peasant children believed it could do great wonders. Why, if they were sick, and even dying, it might save their lives if they were allowed to touch it.
Tessa whispered this to Lucy as they mixed with the people entering the church. They passed along between two rows of beautiful marble columns. They were obliged to move slowly because the crowd was so great. But Lucy's father soon led them to the doorway of a small chapel, where they could stand while the procession passed up to the altar. The sacred cradle was carried first, and behind it followed the Pope with the cardinals and other high officers of the church.
The Pope was carried in a chair above the heads of the people and, as he passed along, he held out his hands to bless them as they knelt before him.
Tessa and Beppo had never looked upon him before. Indeed, they were scarcely able to see him or any other part of the procession now, because of the great crowd. But they knew he was there and that they were near him. This was enough to satisfy their pious little hearts. Lucy and Arthur were most pleased to think that these Italian friends were made so happy.
"Is that all, father?" Lucy whispered. "It is hot and close here. Can't we go home now and have our Christmas tree?"
Her father said that he was quite willing to go, for he saw that his wife was as tired as his little daughter.
An hour afterward they were in the great drawing-room at home. Many candles gave a soft and pleasant light to the room; for gas and electricity were not used in many Roman houses.
A curtain was drawn, and there stood abeautiful Christmas tree,—not of pine or balsam, such as Lucy and Arthur would have in America. It was of laurel.
"Oh! Oh! Oh!" exclaimed Beppo. He had never seen anything like it before, for his people are not used to this custom of having Christmas trees. And Tessa's eyes sparkled, too, as she drew one long sigh of happiness. What beauty met her eyes! Was it indeed fairy-land,—these tiny lights shining on every twig of the tree; gilded oranges hanging from the branches; and toys, so many she was sure she could not count them.
Could it be true that this lovely wax doll was her very own? Lucy's father had said so, but she was afraid she might rub her eyes and wake, and find it all a dream.
As for Beppo, he was equally delighted to find himself the owner of a jack-knife with four blades, a fine ball with which he could teach the American children his favouritegame of pallone, in which he was very skilful.
There were neither skates nor sleds. They would be of no use in Italy, the land of sunny skies, where snow is unknown except on the high mountain-tops.
The evening was a merry one, but it came to an end at last.
"To bed, to bed, children," Lucy's mother cried at length. "To-morrow there will be more sights, and you must not get sick over your good time."
Christmas morning dawned bright and clear.
The children waked early and did not seem any the worse for sitting up so late the night before. Soon after breakfast, an open carriage appeared at the door of the palace and they all rode off to visit the greatest church in the world.
"At last we are on our way to Saint Peter's," said Arthur. "Tessa, you may well be proudwhen you think of the people who come here from all parts of the world to see the grand buildings."
Tessa was proud. This was her Italy, her Rome, her Saint Peter's. She, a poor little peasant maiden, felt richer at this moment than the owner of a million dollars.
The party had to ride over a bridge before they could reach the church.
"Do you know the name of the river over which this bridge is built?" Arthur asked his sister.
"The Tiber, the yellow Tiber," she answered gaily. "You ought to remember, Arthur, that father read us the poem a few days ago about the guarding of the bridge. It made a shiver creep down my back when I thought of the three men holding the bridge against the army of their enemies. It stretched across this very river."
"It was hundreds of years ago," Lucy wenton, turning toward Tessa, "that those brave men saved the city. They kept the enemy from entering until the bridge was cut down. The last one stood on guard until he felt the supports give way. Then he cried out to the river:
"'O Tiber, Father Tiber, to whom the Romans pray,A Roman's life, a Roman's arms take thou in charge this day.'
"An instant afterward he jumped into the rushing stream and swam with all his might back to his people and the city he had saved."
"Did he escape?" Beppo asked. "I should think his enemies would have killed him before he was able to get out of the reach of their weapons."
"They admired his bravery so much they had mercy on him and did not try to hit him after he jumped into the water. Then they turned away, for they could not reach Rome now that the bridge was destroyed."
As Lucy finished the story she could not help saying to herself, "I do hope Tessa and Beppo will be able to go to school and study about this grand country of theirs. They love it as dearly as I love America, but they do not know as much of the history of its great men as I do now."
Her father was thinking at the same time, "What a pity it is there are so many poor and ignorant people in Italy. How I wish the children of to-day could grow up and make the country what it was once."
The sun was shining so brightly by this time that the girls had to raise their parasols to shade their eyes as they looked along the crowded street. It was filled with carriages all going in the same direction as themselves. The sidewalks, too, were packed closely. There were all kinds of people; lords and ladies, priests in their shovel hats, cardinals in their elegant robes. All would soon enter thegreat church. Their faces looked happy and full of joy.
"Shall we not be crowded worse than we were last night?" asked Mrs. Gray. She looked a little bit worried.
"O no, you need have no fear about that," her husband replied. "Forty thousand people can easily gather in Saint Peter's and then it will not be full, by any means."
The carriage stopped in front of a long covered archway built of marble. They stepped down and, entering it, soon found themselves in the court in front of the church.
The church itself is built in the shape of an immense cross, and where the four lines of the cross meet, there is a huge dome overhead.
"I can see the dome of Saint Peter's from my home on the mountain," Tessa said to Lucy. "If I were far away in another part of the world, I am sure I should picture it in my mind whenever I thought of Rome."
SAINT PETER'S
Thechildren now entered the great building. What a glory of colour was around them. There was a blaze of gold and purple and crimson. The windows were set with glass of all the beautiful tints of the rainbow. The floors were laid in small pieces of marble in exquisite patterns.
"Oh, Lucy, Lucy," whispered Tessa, "look at the walls and pillars! Gems such as your mother wears are shining there. And how beautifully they are carved."
Lucy's only answer was, "Look overhead, Tessa, and see the paintings. There are the figures of the apostles. They appear as large as life, although we are so far below them."
inside cathedralIN ST. PETER'S
Just then her father told her to notice the pen in St. Luke's hand.
"I have been told that it is seven feet in length," he said, "yet it is so far away it seems only as long as the one you use at home, Lucy."
Soft music was now heard pealing from the organ, and they moved slowly along to the seats Mr. Gray had engaged for them.
"Look, look, Lucy!" whispered Tessa, a few minutes after. "He is coming, and we can see him to-day, I am sure."
It was the Pope, of course. Two enormous fans could be seen waving at the other end of the great building. The procession of priests and cardinals, in their purple robes, moved slowly and grandly along. The Pope was behind them in a chair carried on poles by twelve bearers. The fans were kept waving on each side of the great man.
As he passed onward between the rows ofsoldiers in their gorgeous uniforms, they knelt before him.
"He holds out only two fingers of his hand over the bent heads of the people. That is all there is of the blessing, I suppose," said Arthur. "But he smiles pleasantly, and has a kind face."
At last the procession reached the altar. The Pope stood up before the people, and they could see he was robed in white. He chanted the service, after which a choir of beautiful voices began to sing. The balcony where the singers stood was richly gilded.
When the service was ended, Mr. Gray told the children to wait quietly where they were.
"When most of the people have passed out," he said, "we will walk about and examine this beautiful cathedral more carefully. There is a great deal you have not seen yet."
In a few minutes the building was nearlyempty, and Mr. Gray led the way from one part of it to another. He opened the door into one of the chapels at the side.
"Look within," he said. "This chapel is as large as an ordinary church. Yet there are a number just like it which lead from the main part of the cathedral. They seem tiny beside it, though."
Tessa and Beppo loved to stop at the different shrines where the figures of Jesus and his mother, Mary, were always found. They were beautifully carved and sparkled with rich jewels.
"Now let us visit the statue of St. Peter himself," said Mr. Gray. "Some say it was never meant for that good man, but is really the likeness of a heathen emperor. But nearly every one who worships here does not wish to believe that. And so many visitors have come here to give him honour that one toe of the statue is a good deal worn off."
"Why, what do you mean, father?" asked Lucy.
"Just what I said, my dear. It is thought to be quite proper to kiss the toe of the statue of St. Peter. I don't know how the fashion started, but, at any rate, I believe thousands upon thousands of people have knelt before the statue and done that very thing. You can see the marks of it for yourself."
After St. Peter had been duly examined, Mr. Gray proposed that a visit should be made to the wonderful dome.
"But there are a good many stairs to climb. Do you think, wife, that you will be able to mount them?"
"If the little girls can do it, I am sure that I can," replied Mrs. Gray, as she turned to Tessa and Lucy. It was quite easy to see by their smiles and nods that they were eager to try it.
"Then let us start at once," said herhusband, beckoning to a guide to show the way.
They passed through a door in the side of the church, and entered a passage which wound round and round, yet up and still up, till they reached a balcony around the foot of the dome. The stairway by which they had come was so broad and rose so gradually that one could easily mount it on horseback.
"Many a person has ridden to the top on a donkey," the guide told the children, which amused them very much.
As they looked down from the balcony, the people in the body of the church seemed like tiny dolls, they were so far below.
"But this is not all," said Mr. Gray. "As soon as you stop panting, we will go higher yet."
"All ready, father," said Lucy, after a five minutes' rest. "I'm sure we are equal to another climb now."
The next flight of stairs was very narrow. It led to another balcony around the top of the dome.
"Do not think this is all," said Mr. Gray. "We can go higher yet, for we have not reached the lantern."
After much puffing and gasping for breath, and the climbing of more narrow stairs, they found themselves in a large room inside the lantern. As they looked out of the windows in that lofty place, a wonderful view was spread before their eyes. Below was the square, and leading out from it were many archways with curved tops, like the one through which the children first entered the church. The palace of the Pope was at hand, with its wonderful library and art treasures.
Beyond, across the Tiber, lay the great city, with its palaces, fountains, temples, and the ruins of the greatest and finest buildings in the world; some of them two thousand years old.
"I can look far out upon the sea that Columbus first sailed," exclaimed Arthur. "Indeed, it seems as if I could almost see Spain, where he went to get help. You know the story of Columbus, don't you, Beppo?"
The Italian lad shook his head. No, but he wished to hear it. Would Arthur tell him the story some day?
Arthur said he would be glad to do so, for, although Columbus was an Italian, he felt that he belonged to America. Where would he be now, if Columbus had not discovered the new world? Who should say?
"Look straight down at the roof of the church below us," cried Lucy. "Did you ever hear of anything so odd? There is a little cottage! The idea of a house built on the roof of a church! What can be the reason for its being there?"
"It is only a room made for the workmen," said the guide. "They are busy allthe time repairing the church in one part or another."
"Now let us go home and have the Christmas dinner," said Mr. Gray, after they had rested a few moments longer.
An hour afterward the children were gathered around the great dining-table. But there was no Christmas turkey in the middle. There was a dish of larks instead!
"Poor little birds," said Lucy. "It is too bad to kill tiny things like you, that we may have something nice to eat."
"What is the bird of your country, Beppo?" asked Arthur.
"I don't know, but I think it ought to be the nightingale," the little Italian answered. "Ah! I love to hear him, he sings so sweetly." The boy's face lighted up as he said this. "And what is the bird of America, Arthur?" he asked.
"The eagle has been chosen, but I think itought to be the turkey, for my country gave that glorious fowl to the world."
Mr. and Mrs. Gray laughed at Arthur's words, but a moment after his father said:
"I quite agree with you, my boy. The turkey truly belongs to us, while the eagle is not only found in many other lands, but it has been the national emblem of several countries."
The Christmas holidays passed only too quickly, and the day before Twelfth Night soon arrived. The shops were full of things suitable for presents, and a great fair was held in the city, around which crowds of Italians were busy buying their gifts. Beppo and Tessa wandered up and down with their American friends.
They were perplexed as to what they should get for their dear ones at home. There were many things from which to choose. They felt as though they had quite a little fortune to spend, for Mr. Gray had given each ofthem what would be equal to a dollar in our money.
They had never had so much money before, and they turned from one thing to another before they finally decided upon a dress and a big gilt brooch for their mother, a new hat for their father, and little red kid shoes for Francesca.
"She never had any shoes in her life," Tessa told Lucy. "I never had any either, till your mother gave me these."
When the peasant called at the palace to take the children home, he brought great news.
"We have a new baby," he said. "It is a beautiful boy just a day old. And now we must have a christening as soon as Twelfth Night is over. We will ask the kind artist and his wife, as well as our own friends, to come."
THE CHRISTENING
Tessaand Beppo were so eager to see the precious baby, they could hardly wait to get home. They were even a little cross with Pietro when he stopped to nibble choice bits of grass by the roadside. But what could a poor stupid donkey be expected to care about a baby only a day old?
Home was reached at last, however, and the children bounded into the dark room where their mother lay watching for them. A small basket cradle stood beside the curtained bed; in it was the sweetest, tiniest baby.
"He is sound asleep, mamma," said Tessa, after kissing her mother at least a dozen times. "How I wish he would wake."
"I do believe he looks like me, the darling little boy," she exclaimed, when the baby's eyes opened at last.
The kind neighbour who had come in to look after the family for a few days lifted the baby tenderly and placed him in Tessa's arms. He was so swaddled in clothes and blankets it didn't seem as though he could be hurt, even if the little girl should drop the precious bundle. But there was no fear of that. She was used to babies, and had taken almost all the care of Francesca since that little girl was a month old.
But where was Francesca now? The little tot was holding fast to her sister's dress. She wanted to be as near as possible to this wonderful new brother. When he began to cry, she said:
"Baby wants the candle; baby wants the candle." She thought he had already begun to notice things about the room, and waslonging for the lighted candle. Everybody laughed.
"He is hungry; that is all, you foolish Francesca. You are only a baby yourself," said Beppo.
After the baby had been put back in the cradle, Tessa went to the bedside of her mother and told her of her lovely visit to the grand home of the Americans.
"To-morrow, when you are not so tired, I will tell you more about it. But after all home is the best place in the world. Now that I can look at you, I don't care if I can't see the procession to-morrow. Just think! babbo says that an image of the Holy Child is carried up and down the aisles of one of the churches. It is richly dressed in silks and jewels. After awhile it is placed on a stage with wax figures of the Virgin and Joseph and the Three Wise Men. There is even a manger there, and a big cow or ox. It must be very beautiful."
"When you are older, we will go together," said the mother, softly. "I went to Rome on Twelfth Day several times when I was younger. But many things have happened to prevent it lately." She sighed as she thought of the sickness and the hard work of the last few years.
All the next day Francesca was so happy with the bright red shoes that she did not need to be watched. Every one, except the dear mother lying quietly behind the snowy bed-curtains, was busy preparing for the christening.
A bright fire was kept burning, and the odour of onions and garlic filled the kitchen. There must be all sorts of nice dishes at the morrow's feast, and the good neighbour was cooking from morning till night.
Among other things, she prepared some wonderful cakes. Tessa thought they wereamong the greatest dainties in the world. There were olives and pistachio-nuts and garlic in them, I am sure. Tessa would have to tell you the rest, for she helped in making them.
Every one was awake bright and early the next morning, and a crowd of the village people went with the father and baby to the little village church. Tessa and Beppo kept as near as possible to their new brother.
Mr. and Mrs. Gray, with Lucy and Arthur, arrived in a carriage just as the party was entering the church door. The children had begged so hard to come that their parents could not refuse.
Tessa and Lucy hugged and kissed each other as though they had been apart for a long time.
When all had entered the church, the baby was carried to the font and was baptized by the kind-faced priest.
What was his name now, you ask? It was Angelo, after his proud father, who handed him around among his friends as soon as the baptism was over. Every one must have a chance to kiss him. As he was passed from one to another, a piece of money was tucked away in his clothes by each one.
No matter how poor the person was, some little bit was given with a right good will. It was but a symbol of the love and friendship of these simple peasants for each other.
When Mr. Gray's turn came, he hid in the baby's dress a piece of money so big as to make his mother's eyes open with delight when it was shown her afterward. She had never before seen a gold coin worth ten dollars in her life.
The christening party now turned back to the house, where the mother lay waiting for them. The feast was all spread and the visitors gathered around the table with goodappetites. Lucy and Arthur and their parents stayed, for Tessa's father looked quite hurt when they spoke of going home.
"Not stop to share our feast!" he cried. "Ah! that is sad! sad!"
And so they remained and took part in the merrymaking. Some of the villagers played on their bagpipes. Tessa performed a very pretty dance, and Beppo sang two songs with his rich, soft voice.
"We have had a lovely time," said Lucy, as the beautiful colours began to light the sunset sky, and her father bade her get ready to leave. "But we wish Tessa and Beppo to come home and stay with us another week. Don't we, father?"
Mr. Gray answered, "Yes, we should like it very much. After my holiday, I must paint quite steadily, and I wish to finish the picture of Tessa and Beppo at once. It would not be easy for you to bring the children to meevery day now that your wife is sick. So please let them go back with us."
This was how Tessa and Beppo came to go back to Rome with the family of the artist. The carriage was a little crowded, but no one cared. All were so busy laughing and talking that it seemed only a few minutes before they drew near the city gates.
"I believe it was not far from here that Agrippa told the people the fable so often repeated since that time."
The painter was looking out of the carriage over the Campagna.
"I wish I knew the exact spot," he said, half to himself.
"Tell us about it; do, please, father," said Lucy. "What was the fable, and who was Agrippa, and why did he come out on this dreary place to tell a story?"
"It was a long time ago; even long before the birth of Jesus," Mr. Gray replied. "Itwas when Rome was a powerful city. There were two great classes of the people,—the patricians, who were rich and owned most of the land, and the plebeians, who had little power and were mostly poor.
"The patricians ruled the city to suit themselves and did not treat the plebeians justly. At last, when they could not stand this unfair treatment any longer, they came together and marched out of the city.
"'We will claim our rights,' they said, and made ready to attack the patricians, who remained in Rome.
"It was a time of danger for the city, since there was a greater number of the poor than of the rich. What should be done? A very wise man named Agrippa was chosen to go out on the Campagna and reason with the plebeians. When he drew near to them, he said:
"'I have a fable which I wish to tell you. It is this:
"'Once upon a time all the limbs of a man's body became provoked because they had to work for the stomach. The legs and feet were obliged to carry it about; the hands had to get food for it; the mouth ate for it; the throat swallowed for it; the head thought for it; and so on. They said it was a shame they had to work so hard for that one organ. What use was it, indeed!
"'They agreed to do nothing more for it at all. They stopped their work, but, strange to say, they began to grow weak and helpless. At last they said to each other, "We shall all starve and die unless we go back to our old work. The stomach has seemed useless to us before, but now we see that we were mistaken."'
"After he had ended his story, Agrippa went on to say that all classes of people depended on each other, and that all would perish unless they worked together.
"Both the poor and the rich seemed tothink that this was good advice. The plebeians marched back into the city and took up their old work, while the patricians promised to be fairer in their dealings.
"Thus peace was made and Rome was saved."
As Mr. Gray finished the story the carriage drew up in front of their home.
"What a short ride it seemed," said Tessa. "It must have been because of the story you told us, Mr. Gray. I shall never forget it."
THE TWINS
"Tessaand Beppo are two of the best models I ever had," said Mr. Gray. "They were perfectly quiet and did just what I wished. My picture is finished and you must all come up and look at it."
It was a sunny afternoon nearly a week after the christening of Tessa's baby brother. Lucy and Arthur were in the drawing-room with their mother when Mr. Gray opened the door with these words.
There was a great scampering over the stairs as the two children tried to see who could reach the studio first.
"Oh, how lovely, how lovely!" cried Lucy, who was the winner of the race. She was standing in front of the canvas.
And what do you think she saw? A little flower-girl out on the Campagna. She sat on the back of a donkey that certainly looked much like Pietro. The girl's bare feet were almost hidden by two great bags of fruit hanging from the donkey's sides.
In her lap was a basket of flowers that she would sell in the city to-day. A boy who was the very image of Beppo held the donkey's bridle.
"How beautiful you have made Tessa's curls," said Lucy. "But they are not a bit lovelier than hers really are. Look at the feather in Beppo's pointed hat, Arthur, and the gaiters buttoned up to the knees. And see the brown cloak thrown over his shoulders. It's the very way he wears it."
"But you haven't noticed the herd of oxen in the distance," said the modest little Tessa. She was quite abashed by the attention given to the figures of her brother and herself."They are going back to the hillside for the night. What a lovely soft gray they are painted. I love these dear gentle creatures. They could do great harm with their large, spreading horns, but they are too kind for that."
"Yes, and see the shepherds standing in that field of daisies," said Beppo. "More than once my father and I have stayed all night in just such a place when the storm overtook us and we could not get home."
"How I love the mountains, far away in the soft light," said Mrs. Gray. "They make a beautiful background for the rest of the picture."
"When you have admired it as much as you like, I think we had better take a half-holiday and see some of the sights," proposed Mr. Gray. "It is only two o'clock now; how soon can you all be ready?"
"In five minutes, can't we, mother?" saidLucy, who was always delighted to have her father's company. He was usually so busy he could not often go anywhere with them.
"Yes," said Mrs. Gray. "We will not delay. Get your hats, children; we can come here to-morrow to enjoy the picture again."
This time they decided to walk, that the children might stop wherever they wished.
"What is this show? Oh, do look!" cried Tessa, as they came to a big box set up on the side of the street. A man could be seen partly hidden behind the curtain. He was making some puppets act out a little play. He changed his voice so as to represent first one, then another.
"That is a Punch and Judy show," said Arthur. "You may watch it while I go over to that little flower-girl's stand. I am going to buy a bunch of pansies for mother. I think that is the girl's grandfather standing by her side. He must be lame, for he has a crutch.I suppose they are very poor. Perhaps that child supports them both."
After Arthur had bought his flowers, they walked on till they came to a shrine set up against the wall. It was a picture of Saint Mary and the infant Jesus in a rough wooden frame.
Tessa and Beppo knelt before it and were very quiet for a minute or two.
"They are repeating some prayers," whispered Lucy to her brother, as they passed slowly on. "When we rode back from Tessa's home the other night, I noticed she suddenly stopped talking and shut her eyes when we passed one of those shrines out on the Campagna."
"She is a good little Catholic."
"Arthur, look at that poor donkey. You can't see anything but his legs and his nose. He is carrying such a big load of hay that the rest of his body is out of sight."
Their father came up to them at this moment, and said: "How would you like to take a carriage now and visit the Coliseum? We still have plenty of time, and I have never been there with you."
"Good! good!" cried the children.
While they were waiting for the carriage they bought some of the big Italian chestnuts at a stand where a boy stood roasting them for the passers-by.
They had not ridden far before they came upon a crowd of people around a fire.
"What are they doing?" asked Lucy.
"I think I know," Tessa answered. "They are heating pine-cones so as to get the seeds. Did you ever eat them, Lucy? I am very fond of them."
"What a queer idea! But then, your pine-trees are different from any I have seen growing at home. I don't doubt they are very nice."
When they drove up in front of the Coliseum, they saw before them one of the grandest ruins in the world. It was built when Rome was still a great city, and was made to hold eighty thousand people.
"Why do you speak of it as a 'sacred ruin,' father?" asked Arthur.
"Whenever we look at it we think of the Christians who suffered terrible deaths there because of what they believed," Mr. Gray answered. "The Coliseum was finished about seventy years after the birth of Jesus. It was the place where the public games went on and where the wild beast shows and fights were held.
"You can see that one side of the great wall of the building is still standing in pretty good condition. It was made in the shape of an oval, as you also see. Now, imagine an open space, or arena, in the middle, and all around it rows on rows of seats, built one above the other.
"Listen! Can't you imagine you hear the roars of wild beasts that were once kept in vaults beneath the building? When they were needed they were drawn up in their cages into the arena.
"After the spectators had taken their seats, a signal was given and the doors of the cages were flung open. The furious beasts would rush out and frightful scenes would follow. The creatures were either set against each other or against men who had been sentenced to death."
"And would people go to see such terrible things for their own pleasure?" asked Tessa. Her face was full of pain at the idea.
"Yes, my dear. It showed that the city was in a bad state when the Romans could take delight in seeing other creatures suffer, whether they were men or beasts," was the answer.
"But I told you that we of to-day hold the place sacred to the Christians. That is becausein those sad times they were cruelly put to death here. One good bishop, I remember, was killed by lions in this very spot. But he went to his death cheerfully,—he was glad to be a martyr to his faith."
"It looks bright and pleasant now," said Mrs. Gray. "It is hard to believe that such dreadful things ever took place here. See the pretty vines growing out between the stones in the wall; and listen to the shouts of those boys as they run and jump among the ruins."
As the children seemed ready for a change, Mr. Gray proposed that they should visit the Capitol, where they could see many beautiful statues; after which, they must go home, for the afternoon was nearly gone.
That evening Lucy took her place on one arm of her father's chair and told Tessa to take the other.
"Now, boys," said she, "stop talking andbe quiet, and perhaps father won't be too tired to tell us about the building of Rome. Will you, father dear?"
Mr. Gray could never refuse his little daughter when she spoke like that. And if this had not been enough, there were Tessa's great soft eyes looking at him. They seemed to say, "Oh, do, please, tell us," although Tessa herself was too shy to ask him with her voice.
"About Rome, you say. All right.
"Once upon a time there were two little boys—"
"But when was this 'once upon a time?'" interrupted Arthur. "You began the story of Æneas with the very same words."
"It was quite a while after Æneas settled in Italy. The two boys were his great-great-great-grandchildren; thirteen times great, I believe. Their mother was a vestal virgin,—that is, she was a maiden who tended the sacredfire in the temple of the goddess Vesta. Such maidens were treated with great honour, but they were not allowed to marry.
"So the people were very angry when the young girl claimed that the god Mars was her husband, and that the two baby boys were his and her children. So the poor girl was buried alive, while the helpless babies were put in a trough and set afloat on the river Tiber."
"Poor little things! Were they drowned?" asked Beppo.
"No, for if they had been, there would be no more story to tell," said Mr. Gray.
"It happened that the river was very high at that time and had overflowed its banks, just as it sometimes does nowadays. The water settled down soon afterward and the two boys were left high and dry on the bank.
"And now what do you suppose came along and saw the children?"
"Some bad men," answered Arthur.
"The boys' mother, who had escaped from her grave," guessed Beppo.
"No. It was a mother wolf, who carried them home to her lair and fondled and nursed them," was the answer.
"After a while a shepherd discovered the babies with their adopted mother. He was a good man, with a kind heart, and took them home to his wife. She gave them the names Romulus and Remus, and brought them up to be shepherds like her husband."
"Oh, father, do you suppose all this was really true?" asked Lucy.
"No more than the story of Æneas. I think it is a legend handed down by the people for thousands of years. But listen, for I have not finished, and it spoils the story to be all the time wondering whether it is true or not.
"When the twin brothers grew up, they fought in a battle that took place betweenthe shepherds of the boys' grandfather, who ought to have been king, and those of the wrongful ruler of the country.
"Romulus and Remus did such brave deeds that they were noticed and taken before their grandfather. After many questions, he discovered who they really were. They gathered an army together, and marching out to battle, seized the country in their grandfather's name.
"They must build a city now for themselves, they thought. They looked over the seven hills on which Rome now stands. They said the city must be on one of these hills, but which hill should it be? Romulus chose one, and Remus another. They could not agree. Their grandfather said, 'Watch for a sign from the gods.' So Romulus took his place on the hill he had chosen, and Remus on his.
"Remus was the first to see any sign from heaven. It was six vultures flying. ButRomulus soon saw twelve of these birds, and so the right was given him to found the city on the Palatine Hill. The people chose him king.
"But Remus was angry. He thought he should have been given the right to found the city, as he had been the first to see birds.
"As the mud walls were being built around the place where the city was to stand, he leaped over them in scorn. His brother looked upon this as an insult, and killed him on the spot, saying, 'Every one who leaps over the walls of my city shall perish even as you do.'
"After this sad deed the work went on. Romulus marked out his city in the shape of a square. It is said that he did this with a plough. He said, 'I will call my city Rome.'
"He lived here in a hut made of mud, with a thatched roof.
"That was the beginning of this wonderful city, so the people will tell you."
Tessa nodded her head; she and Beppo had heard the story before, and fully believed it to be true.
"How long ago do they say all this happened, father?" asked Lucy.
"They claim that Rome was built 753 years before the birth of Christ. If it is now 1,903 years since his birth, how many years old is Rome?"
"Let me see: 753 and 1,903 are 2,656. It was 2,656 years ago. Whew! what a long time," said Arthur. "Many things have happened since then."