Through this admonition Urticinus regained such courage, that he joyfully prepared for death, and, having of his own accord offered his neck to the ax, he thus, through the separation of his head from the body, came to a godly and noble end. See concerning this, _A. Mell., 1st book, van de Hist. der Vervolg., fol. 18, col. 3_ and _4_, according _Venant. Fortunat., lib. 4. Vitæ S. Martini. Hieronym. Rub. Hist. Raven., lib. 1. Beda, Usuard. Ado. Vincent, Spec. Hist., lib. 9, cap. 50. Volateran. in Antrhopal. Pet. Dam., in Serm. de S. S. Vitali and Valeria._ VITALUS, BURIED ALIVE AT RAVENNA FOR THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST; AND HIS WIFE BEATEN TO DEATH WITH STICKS, AT MILAN, ABOUT A. D. 99. [Illustration: VITALIUS BURIED ALIVE AT RAVENNA.] Vitalus, before his conversion, was a Roman knight and citizen of Milan. He had come to Ravenna with Paulinus, the judge; but when he perceived the bloodthirstiness of his lord, whom he had hitherto served faithfully according to the manner of the world, he bravely left him, and straightway enrolled himself under the banner of Christ, but was very soon apprehended by the enemies of truth. For Paulinus, his lord, not knowing why he had left him, but having learned that he had encouraged Urticinus--who had just before been beheaded with the ax, for the faith--when the latter wavered, and that he had restrained him from sacrificing to the gods; likewise, that he had buried him after his death, conceived a suspicion that he also must be a Christian. Upon this suspicion, and through the accusations of others, he had the pious Vitalus apprehended, and having found from his own confession, that he was really a Christian, he caused him to be put on the rack, to try him whether he would not apostatize from Christ. Thereupon Vitalus addressed Paulinus, the criminal judge, in these words: “You must certainly be deprived of your reason, to think that I should be deceived by you, and brought to eternal suffering in soul and body, while I have sought to deliver others from the danger of delusion.” A wicked heathen priest, perceiving that he adhered firmly to Christ, and would in no wise do honor to the gods, advised Paulinus to bury Vitalus alive. Paulinus, following the evil suggestion of this priest, had a deep pit dug down to the water, at the place where the Christians were usually executed--called _ad Palmam_ because a palm tree stood there--and had Vitalus buried in it, up to the middle (of his body), and then covered up with stones and earth.