The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1892-11-25
WHY NERO BURNT ROME
MASSACRE OF THE
BRoTHERHOODS.
From the National Waterman.

writings. inscriptions and stone lodgings
of which / have been in search, am
now able to chronicle something inter.
esting if not startln g and new, about
Nero. He was the emperor who burnt
up the Eternal City. They say he
fiddled while il Burned They also
impute to him no method in the doing
of it, except the unexplainable methods
of the devil. They are mistaken for
he had jealousy blind method in all
his diabolical acts, couched with the
notion of his own originality and i'm
portapce. 1t is reported of him that
he once coveted an invention of one OF
his slaves, but had him murdered before
he understood how to make or work the
contrivance, and the whole thing was
lost. The same blind Jealousy actuated
his confagration of Rome.
The fact is that Rome, especially in
the quarters covered by that fire, was
'infested" with all sorts of brother
hoods, the degenerate relics Of the great
ancient trade and labor unions. This
is established.
1t may be best to start out by enum-
Grating some Of these brotherhoods,
noting the places that were "infested''
by them and it should be remembered
that Nero committed this horror only
thirty.nine years after Christ's cruel
ixion, which shows the rapidity of the
spread of Nero doctrines in the already
mellow soil of the ancient but now
desplsed and impoverished brotherhoods
of Rome. In the "hive' or working
mems abodos, were the headquarters OF
the coasters and big ship unions. the
oil grinders, the tax collectors, the wine
smokers, five or six kinds of smiths and
metal workers, as many more of wood
workers, the perfumemakers, shoe
makers, cobblers, patchpiecers, rag
pickers and many others. Suetonius
says that in Nero's time they we're call.
ed burners, or incendiaries, and that he
made this his excuse for burning the
city, charging the crime to them. lie
also drove the Jews out Of Rome, accus.
ing them Of being in league with the
same brotherhoods. Nero had all bis
plans well concocted, evidently some
time before the fire was ignited.
Although both Suetonius and Tacitu.
agree that he shirked the responsibility
of that vast conhagration upon these
three eiements-the unions, the chris
tians and the Jews, swooping them all
into one category as the I" burners he
did even this methodically; for he wal
backed up and sympathized with BY
the great and rich who, seeing the rapid
growth of the Old enemy, supposed te
have been annihilated by Caesars con-
spiracy laws, greatly feared that they
might become as powerful as in former
times. Nero swore that he would clear
out this filth. Dion says, quoting from
poem now not extant, that Nero, the
meanest of mother-murderers, descend
ant of the line of 4Eueas, was persuaded
by the evil spirit. or led to it by the
crowd. to clean out the place by fumi.
cation, SO that with smoke and fire il
should become cleansed, purified, AMI
restored to the gods" 1t is plain tina
he thought the city had become polluted
by combination of the old brother
hoods with the new sect, and that b.
had determined to restore it to the gods
by this hallowing publication. Sane
all this" continues Dion. "to the end
, that the great Julian line, which haG
its origin in Eueas, might become thu
supreme power.'' Suetonius declares
that Nero burnt Rome on purpose, and
that his determination was to rid it Of
the deformity of the streets, caused BY
their crooks and narrow curves and
passages, which were very ancient.
The fire broke out among the un-
slightly taberne, where were the booths
of the cobblers, mechanics, ragmen and
small traders and it is curious to note
that these SO called dens of the desti-
tute occupied the site Of the gardens
where now stands the Vatican and St.
Peters cathedral, the home Of the Pope
and most celebrated religious institu-
ton in the world. Should the facts be
scanned, it would be found that the
great Vatican was founded here on the
traditional memories Of that catastrophe.
The sodales and collegia, or brother
hoods aud schools, were the ancient
names Of the trades unions, and it was
they who suffered most. There is
another remarkable event TO he men-