The Emperor said that the Christians had already made such a thing impossible. “It is not,” he said, “as if we had ever forced a pious man to commit an impious action or to say a shameful thing. He would be quite right in that case to endure any tortures rather than do so. But it is quite a different thing when a man is ordered to celebrate the Sun or to sing a beautiful hymn in honour of Athene. These are merely outward forms of piety, and one cannot have too much piety.”
Here Ummidius Quadratus broke in and said that the Christians argued that it was a matter which concerned their conscience, which was no business of the State, and that they were perfectly ready to fulfil any duties, either civil or military, which had no religious character.
The Empress said she did not know anything about the ideas of the Christians, but she did think it was a disgraceful thing that in the present enlightened age people should be allowed to cover children with flour, to massacre them, and eat them.
I said I did not think the Christians did this. But the Empress said she knew it was true; she had heard it on the best authority; in fact, her maid knew some one who had seen them do it.
Here Ummidius Quadratus observed that some people in the best society had become Christians, and that he had even heard that—and here he mentioned the niece of a well-known patrician whose name I have forgotten—was one of them.
The Emperor drew himself up as though some dreadful solecism had been committed, and told his nephew that he had no right to say so shocking and so monstrous a thing at his table, especially before a stranger and a guest.
I will go on with my letter this evening, for a slave has just told me that we are to start for the picnic at once.
THE CAMELOT JOUSTS
Guinevere to King Arthur
Camelot, Monday.