The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-09-18
STORE IN ANCIENT ROM E.
From the GIadiator.'
BY GAsKELL.

| b I GASKELL.
Brave Spartacus by gsllantry hath won
Reprieve from death: clouds gloomy AID
Now DIM obscure the heavens and fierce
strife
OF u ~ 'gainst man have ceased, for
wider life,
War Of element 'gsinst element began.
Ii gloou lnd Are, to pas sthwart IN
Whilst torrents fell aud o'e. the stree. :
| In tuFbid streams the rain, and wildly
fly,
The multitude, as though danger and
death were nigh.
He bold, alone, the victor Of that ring
Showed upright front-bold, as though <
king
'Mongst men, fearing not the wild, rag
| ing storm,
From which the people fed in blind
For in his bosom waged strife as dire
As that which played in lurid light
nings round
And from the clouds, in atmospheric fire,
Caused death and grim destruction to
abound,
Shauering palace and temple with hor-
rid sound.
A huge bolt struck the capitol, grand
home
OF Roman freedom and its polished come
Became as wax beneath its blazing fires,
The aged, hoary, reverend, sacred sires
OF Roman majesty fed in alright,
Before the wild anger Of heavens high
Whose deep displeasure had caused this
blight
To fail upon the city and thus bring
Dismsy to Roman hearts, reft souls
with anguish wiring.
But Spsrtscus beheld with grim delight
Each devastation, for the whitening blight
Fell net on him, but on his hated foes,
And every blow that thus CONCEALED and
The hearts blood of his tyrant, naughty
Rome,
Was the visitation Of his God, who
Thus avenged destruction Of his Dacian
The signs and tears of mothers-chil-
dFeD too
Who orphaned had become the slaves
ofthose who slew.
The angry Tiber rose-deep waters DER
Its banks rolled death upon the city
shore;
Swept houses from before its headlong
course,
From fount to distant sea. from cen IFS
source,
Cast hopes OF myriads beneath its waves;
Their aspirations, ambitions seeking
With all their joys of life, and in the
graves
Thus oped by ruthless waste, the gaudy |
spoil
Hath disappeared, no more to grace
the conq'ror's soil.
Thus the fond mothers heart tears of an
guish
Wept. while grosns from tortured souls
uprose-With
Trembling on her lips remained unspo-
ken,
Her offspring dead, weary, sad, heartbro-
ken,
She bowed beneath o'ermastering stroke
OF fate,
And sought herself to die; set COM
PEELED to live,
And living had yet to suffer. Though
great
Her country's power and fame-all, all
she'd give.
Aye more-to have children restored
and say, "they live"
He gazed on scenes OF woe with. heart
aglee-
Once had no friends to suffer too Flowed he
To view their misery, az caused by "a.
Romans cruel hand? He had seen them
diei
Had heard their frantic cries for mercy;
-e. heart
Once kind, turned to tempered steel
his fathers head t~
All silvcred Ger, was cleft by Roman
sword-the part
His mother bore was death-her help
less dread
Her age found moi compassion, but lay
with kindred dead.
For sport himself was spared. But o.!
how dresr
His destiny! No love, no hopes to cheer,
lie was waif, cen were he free. The
storm
Still darby brooded DER him-the bright
form
Of life VAS there, but essence, soul was
gonel
A jest, sport to .mock-a thing for
pleasure
he lived for uaught-yet still the des-
pissed one
That Others hste-and hate no stinted
measure
Melted ills out to him-sufering cen
LETT no leisure.
Flash on, ye lightning! Roll, We thun-
ders, roll!
Rome suffers! ye Gods, make heaven a
scroll,
Make skies in burning, brazen hues de-
scend,
To dry the rivers-dry seas that oft lend
Their bosoms to the use of man; destroy
Life, hope heaven, everything that is
that Rome
Escape not. OF 1 love this scene-epioy
Its misery-on Roman head it falls
on homo
Of hated ones-Fires! feed on palace
sad temple domepi