“Hercules be good to me!” cried Commodus. “Keep quiet!” she admonished him. “You’ll put me off.” She dipped up a ladleful of water, flirted half the water out, wiped the bottom of the ladle on her knee and brought it cautiously over the sieve, cautiously she lowered it until it nearly touched the shining disk of water, cautiously she tilted it, cautiously she let its contents flow over its lip. The disk of water spread. She repeated the process. The disk of water spread. Again and again she repeated the process. The disk of water became a film hiding nearly all the web of the sieve. Commodus noticed that, as she dipped up each ladleful of water, she watched the dipper out of the corner of her eye, as it were, with a sort of partial, sidelong glance, but that all the while her gaze was intent on the sieve. He noticed other details of her procedure. “You never pour twice in the same place,” he commented. Rigid as a statue, the sieve in her hand as unmoving as if clamped in a vise, Brinnaria spoke: “If I take my eyes off the sieve,” she rebuked him, “it will tilt in my hand and the water will run through. If you make me look round you’ll destroy me. You are not fair.” “I’m dumb,” said Commodus again, apologetically. As she poured in the next dipper-load, the film of water touched the rim of the sieve at one point. Commodus heard a sharp intake of Brinnaria’s breath. The next half-ladleful she poured near the spot where the water touched the sieve-rim. Round near the hoop she dribbled in half-ladleful after half-ladleful until the web of the sieve was entirely covered. She had moved slowly from the first dip into the river. But now, since she could not see any part of the web of the sieve, she moved yet more slowly. Commodus began to be impatient. “That is plenty of water,” he said. “Do you, as Pontifex Maximus,” she uttered, “certify that the water now in this sieve is as deep as you stipulated?” “I,” said Commodus in a loud voice, “as Emperor and as Pontifex Maximus, here certify before all men that the water now supported by the web of that sieve is enough to demonstrate the favor of Vesta towards you and your impeccable integrity.” “Back away,” said Brinnaria, “I’m going to stand up.” She thrust the handle of the ladle through her belt, brushed the towel from her knee and with her right hand also she grasped the sieve. Holding it now in both hands, her eyes on it, she very slowly, inch by inch, rose to her feet. When she was erect, she very slowly drew back her left foot until her two feet were close together. “Back away,” she repeated. “I’m going to turn round.” Slowly she pivoted on her firm feet until she was standing with her back to the river. Commodus at the top of the steps stared down at her.