“You heard Simon the Zealot say that he had put his gold where no Roman could touch it; what place did he mean if not the sanctuary of the temple?--a sanctuary to which even Cæsar himself is denied access. I warrant that the escaped Zealot will find asylum there, for before he took to the mountains he was known to be the friend of Eleazar, the captain of the temple, an officer whom you know to be outspoken in his hatred of Rome. But to return from individuals to the nation. When they deem the occasion ripe, they will of themselves declare war, a war certain to begin at the passover time; for, on the pretext of coming up to the feast, the Jews and their proselytes can be conveniently summoned from every quarter of the empire. Rome hath never liked these gatherings, and with reason. Their numbers grow year by year: at the last passover the pilgrims swelled the population of Jerusalem to the number of three hundred myriads. Ye gods! Think of it! Three million fanatics all burning with a hatred of Rome allowed to assemble in a city, said to be the strongest in the world! What can the Senate be thinking of? Why should we wait till this nation be grown more powerful? Even now there are rumors of alliances with nations outside the borders of the empire--with Parthians beyond the Euphrates, and with the Arabs of the desert. Every year increases _their_ strength, and _our_ peril. But let their city and their temple be given to the flames--which is what must happen in the event of war--and their religion comes to an end; the day of proselytism is over; the pilgrimages cease, for who will have faith in a deity powerless to protect his temple? ‘The gods of Rome,’ ’twill be said, ‘are more potent than he of Judæa.’ Judaism once destroyed, the empire is safe. It is in your power, Florus, to do this, and I----” “_Satis!_” cried the procurator. “You have said enough to convince me that the destroying of this nation is a patriotic and righteous deed.” But Polemo had still another argument left, more powerful than any other. He had purposely kept it to the last. He drew forth a small roll of parchment notes, which Florus recognized as his own monetary acknowledgments. “On the day that the Jews declare war, I shall burn these without asking for repayment.” CHAPTER VII THE JOURNEY TO JERUSALEM The first rays of morning sunlight were gilding the stately towers of Cæsarea as the soldiers of the Italian Cohort filed through the southern gate of the city. They were marching on foot to Jerusalem, a journey of some sixty miles, marching by the military road made by the Romans themselves, a highway so well and durably paved that portions of it still remain after the lapse of nearly two thousand years. A little in advance of these troops, and justly proud of their fine and martial appearance, rode the tribune Terentius Rufus, and at his side was Crispus, mounted likewise upon a curveting steed.