The augur, undisturbed by the mockery of the king, consulted the sacred birds. Yes, the omens were good. The thought in the mind of the king could be put into action.
Tarquinius pointed to a whetstone which lay before him, and said: ‘Can you then cut this whetstone in twain with a razor?’
Undismayed, Attius at once seized a razor, and with one stroke the stone was split in two.
Then the king was afraid, and dared not disregard the wisdom of the augur. So the number of tribes ordained by Romulus was left unchanged.
But Tarquinius doubled the nobles in each tribe, and also increased the companies of knights.
CHAPTER XVI
A SLAVE BECOMES A KING
Among the slaves of the king was a young boy named Servius Tullius. One day the lad fell fast asleep in the doorway of the palace.
As he slept, it chanced that Tanaquil, the queen, came out to walk in the palace grounds. When she saw Servius she would have roused him, save that a flame of fire was playing around his head, yet doing him no hurt.
But the attendants of the queen also saw this strange sight, and at once rushed off in search of water with which to put out the flame.