Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-04-10

A New Version, with Some HEOderi
All.Ilai ons a.sa I.nprore.nenas.-

--seatel. the comics III the arena and /
Ito listen with awe and veneratiOn |
to the infirm and decrepit ring
Jokes.
The shouts of revelry had died /
away The last loiterer haa rstifegi
from The free-lunch counter, at.d |
the lights i'm the palace of the victor
were -extinguished. The moon,
piercing the tissue Of heecy clouds,
tipped the dark waters of the Tiher
with wstvy, tremulOus light. The
dark brOwed Roman soldier moved
on his homeward way, the sidewalk
occasionally flying up and hitting
him in the back.
No sound was heard save the low
sob of some retiring wave, rs it told
its story to the smooth pebbles of
the beach, or the unrelenting boot
jack struck the high board fence in
the back yard, just missing the Ro-
man TOmcat in its mad flight. end
then an was still as the breast when
the spirit has departed Anon the
Roman snOre would steal in upon
the deathly silence and then die
away like the sOugh of summer
breeze.
In the green-r0om Of the amphi-
4heater a little band of gladiators
I'd were Assem- bed. The foam of con-
flict yet fingered on their lips, the
scOwl of battle yet hung upon their
brows, and the large knobs on their
classic profiles indicated that il had
been busy day with them.
There was an embarrassing silence
of between five minutes, when
Spartacus, borrowing a chew of to-
bacco of Trifoliafum Aurelius, slept
forth, and thus addressed them:
Mr.. Chairman, ladies and gen
tlemen: We call me chief, and We
do well to call him chief who for
twelve long years has met in the
arena every shape Of man or beast
the broad Empire of Rome could
furnish and yet has never lowered
his arm. do not say this to brag,
however, but simply to show that /
am the star thumper of the whole
outfit
"If there be one among you who
can say that ever in public fight or
private brawl my actions did belle
my words, let him stand forth and
say il, and will spread him around
over the arena till the Coroner will
have to gather him up with a blot
ting-paper. If there he three in all
your company dare face me on the
bloody sands let them come, and /
will construct upon their physiog-
Monty such euD0las and royal cor
nices and Corinthian capitals and
entablatures, that their own moth
eTs would pass them by in the broad
light of high Icon unrecogHized.
''And yet / was not always thus,
a hired butcher-the savage chief of
still moro savage war.
- my ancestors came from old
~ ,F
Aurelius county, and settled among
the vine-clad hills and cotton groves
of Syrsilla. Nv early life ran quiet
as the clear brook by which we
spOrted. Aside from the gentle
patter of the maternal slipper on my
Over-alls, everything moved along
with me like the silent oleaginOus
flow OF the ordinary go0se-grease.
My boyhOOd was one long happy
summer day. We stole the Roman
muskmelOn, and put split sticks on
the tail of the Roman dog, and life
was one continuous hallelujah.
"When at noon l led the sheep
beneath the shade and played the
Sweet By-and-By on my shepherds
flute, there was another Spartan
youth, the son of a neighbOr, to join
me in the pastime. We led our
gether picked the large red ants out
of our indestructibIe sandwiches.
Zone evening, after the sheep had
been driven into the corral and we
were all seated beneath the persim-
mon tree that shaded our humble
cottage, my grandsire, an old man,
was telling of Marathon, and Leuc-
ira, and George Francis Train, and
Or. Mary Walker, and other great
men, and how little band of Spar
tans, under Gen. Howard, had
withstOOd the entire regular army.
/ did not then know what war was,
but my cheek burned, | knew not
why, and 1 thought what a glorious
thing il would be to leave the reser-
walton and go on the war-path.
"But my mother kissed my thrOb-
bling temples, and babe me go and
soak my head and think no more Of
those old tales and savage wars.
That very night the Romans land
ed on our coasts. They pillaged the
whole country, burned the agency
buildings, demolished the ranch,
rode off the stock, tore down the
SmOke-hOuSe, and rode their war
horses over the cucumber vines.
"TO-day ] killed man in the
arena, and, when | broke his patent
clasps and looked upon him, be
hold! he was my friend. The same
sweet smile was on his face that
had known when in adventurous
bOyhoOd we bathed in the CLASSY
lake by our Spartan home, and he
had tied my shirt into !, 1852 danger
Gus and difficult knots.
"He knew me, smiled some more,
said 'Ta ia and assembled the gold
en- stair. l begged of the pretor
that I might be allowed to bear
away the body and have it packed
in ice and shipped to his friends
near Syrsilla, but he couldn't see
see il.
"Aye, upon my Bonded knees,
amidst the dust and blood OF the
e. arena, begged this poor boon, and
the pretor answered: Let the car
riOn rot. There are no noble men
but Romans aud Ohio men. Let
the show go on. Bring in the bob
tail lion from Abyssinia.' And
the assembled maids and matrOns
and the rabhle shouted in derision
and told me to Brace up, and Have
some style about my Clothes and
tGive it to us easy with other Ro-
man filings which do not now call
to mind.
And so must you, fellow-gladia-
tors, and 50 must ], die like dogs.
Tomorrow we are billed to APP
pear at the Coliseum at Rome, and
reserved seats are being sold at the
corner of Third and COrso streets
for our moral and instructive per-
fOrmance while | ann speaking to
you.
Eye stand here like giants as We
are, but tomorrow some Roman
Adonis with a sealskin cap will pat
your red Drawn and bet his sester- (
CeS upon your blood.
80 Rome! Rome! Thou hast
been, indeed, a tender nurse to me. /
Thou hast given to that gentle tim (
i'll shepherd lad, who never knew a /
harsher tone than a flute-nOte, mus /