[Sidenote:--13--] This Cleander, who had soared to so exalted a height, himself fell suddenly and perished in dishonor. It was not the soldiers that killed him, as they had Perennis, but the populace. There occurred a real and pressing famine, which was increased to the utmost severity by Papirius Dionysius, the grain commissioner, in order that Cleander, whose thefts would seem as much responsible for it as any cause, might both incur hatred and suffer destruction at the hands of the Romans. So it fell out. There was a horse-race on, and as the horses were about to contend for the seventh time a crowd of children ran into the race course, at their head a tall and sturdy maiden. As a result of what subsequently happened she was deemed by people to have been a divinity. The children shouted many wild words of complaint, which the people took up again and began to bawl anything that came into their heads. Finally, the throng jumped down and started to find Commodus (who was then in the Quintilian suburb), invoking many blessings on his head but many curses upon Cleander. The latter sent some soldiers against them, who wounded and killed a few, but encouraged by their numbers and the strength of the Pretorians they became still more urgent. They drew near to Commodus before information reached him from any source of what was going on. Then the famous Marcia, wife of Quadratus, brought him the news. And Commodus was so terrified,--he was always the veriest coward,--that he at once ordered Cleander to be slain and also his child, who was in Commodus's hands to be reared. The child was dashed to the earth and perished, and the Romans, taking the body of Cleander, dragged it away and abused it and carried his head all about the city on a pole. They also wounded some other men who had possessed great power during his ascendancy. [Sidenote:--14--] Commodus, taking a respite from his lusts and sports, developed a taste for blood and proceeded to compass the death of distinguished men. Among these was Julianus the prefect, whom he used to embrace and caress in public and saluted as "father." Another was Julius Alexander, who was executed for having brought down a lion by a lucky cast of his javelin while on horseback. [Footnote: Boissevain suggests that the "Roman Hercules" perhaps feared that Alexander might diminish his glory.] This victim, on becoming aware of the presence of his assassins, murdered them by night and likewise put out of the way all his own enemies at Emesa, his native town. After doing this he mounted a horse and started toward the barbarians; and he would have escaped, had he not carried a favorite along with him. He was himself a most excellent horseman, but he would not think of abandoning the lad, who was tired out, and so when he was being overtaken he killed both the boy and himself. Dionysius, too, the grain commissioner, met his death by the orders of Commodus.