"Aye, a Roman citizen Paul has devised some scheme of fraud to be-- Gross profanation of a sacred right Perverted to asylum thus from crime! Paul is a master mind--no need to swear Falsely that he is not; wise Seneca Was not so much to blame for being deceived In him, so upright-seeming, plausible. Their best man, sagest, subtlest of them all, The Jewish councillors picked out to send Hither with Paul to make his sentence sure. Alas, the culprit was too deep for him. One night on shipboard in the voyage hither He sought to bribe the soldier guarding him To make away with this Jew Shimei By tossing him in darkness overboard. That plot did not succeed; but Paul contrived To hoodwink the centurion and make him Believe the scheme to murder was not his, Paul's, against Shimei, but Shimei's against Paul! So Shimei was thrown into chains, while Paul Stalked the deck free, though for form's sake still watched. This lasted, till the very gods in heaven Had pity on poor Shimei and with stroke Of lightning set him free from men by death." "So, is a stroke of lightning pity then, Sometimes," said Nero, "with the gods in heaven? A piquant way to pity! We, my dear"-- The emperor with a frolic feline look That made Poppæa shiver turned to her-- "When we are gods on earth, may imitate Those our facetious cousins in the skies With many a stroke of lightning launched in pity!" An almost boyish blithesomeness lit up The handsome face of Nero saying this; Had it not been for frightful lightning strokes Too frequent sent in deadly earnest down From that Olympus of imperial power, All might have seemed but pranksome playfulness. Drusilla--with profound obeisance bowed-- After due deferent pause if it should please His majesty to be facetious farther, Her weaving at her loom of lies resumed: "Thou wouldst in vain, O emperor, inquire Of that centurion Julius for the truth; He himself fell a helpless prey to Paul. Why, on the wretched island where our ship Was stranded, lost, and where all winter we Were cooped up waiting for reluctant spring, Day after day did that oblivious man Attend upon his prisoner and a crew, That prisoner's dupes about him clustering ever, To hear long tales which seemed to cast a spell On whoso heard them and bewitch his sense. I grieve to say a Roman knight was found There, Sergius Paulus, to lend countenance-- A name proconsular so much defiled! Yea, and the Roman governor of the isle, Publius, fell openly into Paul's snare.