Durango semi-weekly herald., 1902-03-20

l
had neither wit. imagination nor elo-
ton and plain common sense. and
was determined to be master OF the
world. which actually happened. He
did what his great uncle could not
accomplish. He established order in
Rome and brought about peace
Throughout the world. He was never
called tyrant or a dictator, and ex-
ercised autocratic authority with such
tact and gentleness that nobody felt
the grip of iron under the velvet glove.
There was a good deal of dema-
gogue about Augustus. for. notwith-
standing his enormous wealth and
power, which surpassed that ever
welded by human being before or
since. he affected "Jeffersouian sim
plicity" refused all titles and told the
people that he wanted to be called
only by his own name, Caius julius
Octavius Augustus. being nothing but
a simple, humble Roman citizen, to
whom was confined the care of the re-
public. He slept on soldiers bed.
wore homespun clothing woven by
Livia his wife. and stockings that
were knit by his naughty daughter
Julia, who afterward gave him so
much trouble. He used to go around
town elbowing the common people
and taking off his hat to them as if
they We're kings and he subject.
When the senate saluted him as
father of his country" he shed tears
and told the conscript fathers with
impressive pathos that he had got all
that any man could ever want in the
way of honors.
Augustus showed himself to be one
of the shrewest politicians that ever
lived He kept the people busy hav-
ing good time while he was pulling
wires and setting up jobs to extend
his power He gave them exciting
games, soul thrilling encounters in
the Coliseum with boa constructors,
rhinoceroses. tigers and other wild
beasts. so that they forgot all about
politics and allowed the silent. modest
man who gratited their craving for
amusement to do whatever he liked
with the government. When he re
covered from an Illness they actually
| erected IL statute 10 lllt NOtIbl lutil
cured him.
But although Augustus was able to
rule the world he could not manage
his own household He was strong
enough to resist the enticements of
Cleopatra. b ut fell in love with Livia
the 20-year-old wife of Claudius Nero
Il woman of extraordinary beauty, and
was so ardent that he divorced Scri-
bonia. his own wife. and abducted the
object of his alteration. The gossips
of Rome. the sonscript fathers, the
senate, the statesmen and the soldiers
of the empire. stood by and saw their
sovereign engage in the shameful in
trgue for a. woman without losing
their respect for him. but, as often
occurs, he got his punishment before
death. and the ULYSSES in petticoats.'
as Caligula called her, often made
him very tired. She lived until she
was Sc years old and queened it like
a real empress. Her sumptuous
baths in the palace on the Palatine
still remain, the faded tracery of the
gilded frescoes yet clinging to the
damp walls. There was no 'Jeffer-
sonian simplicity" about Livia She
played her part for all it was worth,
and, although she worked at a loom
in public to make the garments her
husband wore and knit his stockings
on the front piazza of the matrons of
Rome, she made up for it behind the
portiers. She kept a slave named
Aurelia, who did nothing but look af-
ter her dogs, all of which is engraved
upon Aurelia's tomstone.
| Tiberius, who was the son of Liyia,
was an unmitigated monster. There
| is only one bright spot during the
twenty three years that he reigned
over Rome. That was his remon-
STRANGE and his sorrow when, by com
mand of Augustus he was compelled
to divorce Agrippina, the love of his
youth, and marry Julia, brilliant
woman without conscience or soul.
At first Tiberius was slow and awk-
ward, and the people gave him the
nickname of Callipedes, famous
Greek, who was always running yet
tory of mankind But all the his
tory of mankind does not show
more extraordinary political phenom-
enon than the abject submission of
the Roman people to this miserable
old fiend, whose manners were cold
and repulsive, and who lived like
wild beast in den at Capri. from
which he issued orders that were i'm
plicitly obeyed no matter whose
fame or fortune or life were sacrificed.
Tiberius was smothered by Macron,
soldier of the Pretorian guard, who
at the request of Caligula, casually
threw mattress over the old man
as he lay in bed and then climbed up
and sat upon it until he was salts
fed that the business was accom-
lplished.
Caligula, his nephew, was cheer
ful cut-throat, who used to joke with
his victims before he murdered them.
One day, as the consuls of Rome were
reclining at his side at dinner he sud
denly burst out laughing. When
they inquired the cause OF his mirth