"Good God! I'd rather be

A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;

So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,

Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;

Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea,

Or hear old Triton blow his wreathéd horn."

Chapter VIII.

The Religion of Rome.

§ 1. Origin and essential Character of the Religion of Rome.