The martyr of the catacombs

THE MARTYR OF THE CATACOMBS
A TALE OF ANCIENT ROME
If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not?--ST. PAUL
ILLUSTRATED
NEW YORK: HUNT & EATON
CINCINNATI: CRANSTON & CURTS
CONTENTS.
Illustrations.
THE COLISEUM.
Butchered to make a Roman holiday.
It was a great festival day in Rome. From all quarters vast numbers of people came pouring forth to one common destination. Over the Capitoline Hill, through the Forum, past the Temple of Peace and the Arch of Titus and the imperial palace; on they went till they reached the Coliseum, where they entered its hundred doors and disappeared within.
There a wonderful scene presented itself. Below, the vast arena spread out, surrounded by the countless rows of seats which rose to the top of the outer wall, over a hundred feet. The whole extent was covered with human beings of every class and every age. So vast an assemblage gathered in such a way, presenting to view long lines of stern faces, ascending far on high in successive rows, formed a spectacle which has never elsewhere been equaled, and which was calculated beyond all others to awe the soul of the beholder. More than one hundred thousand people were gathered here, animated by one common feeling, and incited by one single passion. It was the thirst for blood which drew them hither, and nowhere can we find a sadder commentary on the boasted civilization of ancient Rome than this her own greatest spectacle.