“Very good, then I will question him myself; I foresee great results. Go now, Antinous; my head whirls with a multiplicity of wonderful possibilities. Claudius, Afranius, Thrax, Euterpe--you must watch them all with the eye of an Argus.” “My lord, your confidence in me makes me vain. You have only to command, and I will obey. I will climb the Capitol like the invading Gauls[288]; I will dive to the depths of the sea and bring you a message from Thetis.[289] But then, do not forget your promise.” “I will keep it,” replied Stephanus, stroking the lad’s cheek. “Freedom and gold are the charms, that give wings to your services.” “You are the kindest master[290] in the whole Roman Empire! Farewell.” He nodded to Stephanus with saucy familiarity, danced across the room with a graceful step, leaped lightly over one of the broad couches, and slipped out of the door like an eel. “Hail, all hail to thee, Quintus!” Stephanus muttered mockingly. “This is a better beginning, than I dared to hope for. And if Fortune continues to favor me, I will raise on this foundation such a structure as you need not disdain to take your pleasure in.” FOOTNOTES: [286] THE CRAFTINESS OF ULYSSES. Ulysses, Ulixes, (Odysseus,) the hero of the Homeric Odyssey, was considered in tradition, after Homer’s day, as the type of craft and cunning, while Homer presents him in a more ideal light. [287] GREEK BLOOD FLOWS IN YOUR VEINS. Among the Romans, the Greeks had the reputation of resembling in character the Ulysses described after Homer’s day. Next to the Orientals, they were the most hated of all the dwellers in the provinces. [288] I WILL CLIMB THE CAPITOL LIKE THE INVADING GAULS. The (unsuccessful) attempt to take the beleaguered Capitol by storm, made by the Gauls, as is well known, in the year 389 B.C. after they had defeated the Roman army at the little river Allia. [289] THETIS, daughter of Nereus, lived with her sisters, the Nereids, in the depths of the ocean. She personified the friendly character of the sea, as Poseidon did its destructive and terrible one. [290] YOU ARE THE KINDEST MASTER. The epithet “kind” (_dulcis_) is often used in this application to superiors and those in higher position. Thus Horace in the well-known first ode of the first book addresses Maecenas: _O et praesidium et dulce decus meum_.... CHAPTER XVI.