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Test Bank for Systems Analysis and Design, 9th Edition: Shelly
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Chapter 1 – Introduction to Systems Analysis and Design

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. In launching a new information system, the greatest risk occurs when a company ____.
a. begins by outlining its business models and identifying possible IT solutions
b. tries to decide how the system will be implemented before determining what the system is
supposed to do
c. considers implementation options after having a clear set of objectives
d. all of the above
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 7

2. ____ software controls the flow of data, provides data security, and manages network operations.
a. Enterprise c. Application
b. System d. Legacy
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 8

3. Examples of company-wide applications, called ____, include order processing systems, payroll
systems, and company communications networks.
a. enterprise applications c. operating applications
b. network operating systems (NOS) d. legacy systems
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 8

4. Over 40 years ago, a concept called Moore's Law accurately predicted that computer processing power
would double about every ____.
a. 2 months c. 24 months
b. 12 months d. 48 months
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 8

5. When planning an information system, a company must consider how a new system will interface with
older systems, which are called ____.
a. enterprise applications c. operating applications
b. network operating systems (NOS) d. legacy systems
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 9

6. For complex operations, analysts apply computer-based modeling tools that use a standard language
called ____.
a. electronic data interchange (EDI)
b. joint application development (JAD)
c. business process modeling notation (BPMN)
d. rapid application development (RAD)
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 10
 7. Systems analysts use a process called ____ to represent company operations and information needs.
a. JAD c. RAD
b. Scrum d. business process modeling
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 10

8. A business ____ is an overview that describes a company’s overall functions, processes, organization,
products, services, customers, suppliers, competitors, constraints, and future direction.
a. matrix c. index
b. profile d. glossary
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 10

9. Which of the following is one of the main sectors of e-commerce?

a. C2C c. C2B
b. B2C d. BBC
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 13

10. ____ enabled computer-to-computer transfer of data between companies, usually over private
telecommunications networks.
a. EDI c. TCH
b. ACH d. O-O
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 14

11. Transaction processing (TP) systems ____.

a. provide job-related information to users at all levels of a company
b. simulate human reasoning by combining a knowledge base and inference rules that
determine how the knowledge is applied
c. process data generated by day-to-day business operations
d. include e-mail, voice mail, fax, video conferencing, word processing, automated
calendars, database management, spreadsheets, and high-speed Internet access
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 15

12. Business support systems ____.

a. provide job-related information support to users at all levels of a company
b. simulate human reasoning by combining a knowledge base and inference rules that
determine how the knowledge is applied
c. process data generated by day-to-day business operations
d. include e-mail, voice mail, fax, video conferencing, word processing, automated
calendars, database management, spreadsheets, and high-speed Internet access
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 16

13. Knowledge management systems are called expert systems because they ____.
a. provide job-related information to users at all levels of a company
b. simulate human reasoning by combining a knowledge base and inference rules that
determine how the knowledge is applied
c. process data generated by day-to-day business operations
d. include e-mail, voice mail, fax, video conferencing, word processing, automated
calendars, database management, spreadsheets, and high-speed Internet access
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 16
14. User productivity systems ____.
a. provide job-related information to users at all levels of a company
b. simulate human reasoning by combining a knowledge base and inference rules that
determine how the knowledge is applied
c. process data generated by day-to-day business operations
d. include e-mail, voice mail, fax, video and Web conferencing, word processing, automated
calendars, database management, spreadsheets, desktop publishing, presentation graphics,
company intranets, and high-speed Internet access
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 17

15. In a typical company organizational model, top managers ____.

a. develop long-range plans, called strategic plans, which define the company’s overall
mission and goals
b. provide direction, necessary resources, and performance feedback to supervisors and team
leaders
c. oversee operation employees and carry out day-to-day functions, coordinating operational
tasks and people
d. include users who rely on TP systems to enter and receive the data they need to perform
their jobs
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 18

16. In a typical company organizational model, middle managers ____.

a. develop long-range plans, called strategic plans, which define the company’s overall
mission and goals
b. provide direction, necessary resources, and performance feedback to supervisors and team
leaders
c. oversee operation employees and carry out day-to-day functions, coordinating operational
tasks and people
d. include users who rely on TP systems to enter and receive the data they need to perform
their jobs
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 18

17. A ____, or requirements model, describes the information that a system must provide.
a. process model c. business model
b. data model d. network model
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 19

18. A(n) ____ describes the logic that programmers use to write code modules.
a. process model c. business model
b. object model d. network model
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 19

19. ____ is a systems development technique that produces a graphical representation of a concept or
process that systems developers can analyze, test, and modify.
a. Prototyping c. Scrum
b. Rapid application development d. Modeling
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 19

20. ____ is a systems development technique that tests system concepts and provides an opportunity to
examine input, output, and user interfaces before final decisions are made.
 a. Scrum c. Modeling
b. Prototyping d. Rapid application development
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 20

21. ____ methods include the latest trends in software development.

a. Object-oriented analysis c. Structured analysis
b. Agile/Adaptive d. Rapid application development
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 21

22. The ____ method of developing systems is well-suited to project management tools and techniques.
a. object-oriented analysis c. structured analysis
b. adaptive d. rapid application development
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 21

23. The ____ method of developing systems produces code that is modular and reusable.
a. object-oriented analysis c. structured analysis
b. adaptive d. rapid application development
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 21

24. The ____ method of developing systems stresses team interaction and reflects a set of community-
based values.
a. object-oriented analysis c. structured analysis
b. agile/adaptive d. rapid application development
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 21

25. Structured analysis is a traditional systems development technique that uses a series of phases, called
the ____, to plan, analyze, design, implement, and support an information system.
a. O-O c. MSF
b. SDLC d. RUP
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 22

26. Because it focuses on processes that transform data into useful information, structured analysis is
called a(n) ____ technique.
a. iterative c. inferred
b. process-centered d. empowered
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 22
27. In the ____, like that shown in the accompanying figure, the result of each phase, which is called a
deliverable or end product, flows sequentially into the next phase in the SDLC.
a. interactive model c. waterfall model
b. requirements model d. object model
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 22

28. In the model of the SDLC shown in the accompanying figure, the ____ usually begins with a formal
request to the IT department, called a systems request, which describes problems or desired changes in
an information system or a business process.
a. systems design phase c. systems support and security phase
b. systems planning phase d. systems analysis phase
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 23

29. In the model of the SDLC shown in the accompanying figure, the purpose of the ____ is to build a
logical model of the new system.
a. systems analysis phase c. systems design phase
b. systems implementation phase d. systems support and security phase
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 23

30. In the model of the SDLC shown in the accompanying figure, the purpose of the ____ is to create a
physical model that will satisfy all documented requirements for the system.
a. systems implementation phase c. systems analysis phase
b. systems planning phase d. systems design phase
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 24

31. In the model of the SDLC shown in the accompanying figure, during ____, the new system is
constructed.
 a. systems planning c. systems design
b. systems support and security d. systems implementation
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 24

32. In the model of the SDLC shown in the accompanying figure, during ____, the IT staff maintains,
enhances, and protects the system.
a. systems support and security c. systems analysis
b. systems implementation d. systems planning
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 24

33. Whereas structured analysis treats processes and data as separate components, ____ combines data and
the processes that act on the data into things called objects.
a. the MSF c. RUP
b. the SDLC d. O-O
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 24

34. In object-oriented programming, an object is a member of a(n) ____, which is a collection of similar
objects.
a. property c. message
b. class d. instance
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 24

35. In object-oriented design, built-in processes called ____ can change an object’s properties.
a. methods c. attributes
b. functions d. features
ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 25

36. Agile methods typically use a(n) ____model, which represents a series of iterations based on user
feedback.
a. gradual c. spiral
b. extreme d. evaluative
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 26

37. When building an information system, all of the following basic guidelines should be considered
except ____.
a. stick to an overall development plan
b. identify major milestones for project review and assessment
c. provide accurate and reliable cost and benefit information
d. ensure that users are not involved in the development process
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 27

38. The ____ group typically provides leadership and overall guidance, but the systems themselves are
developed by teams consisting of users, managers, and IT staff members.
a. Web support c. systems support
b. application development d. database administration
ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 28
 39. ____ provides vital protection and maintenance services for system software and hardware, including
enterprise computing systems, networks, transaction processing systems, and corporate IT
infrastructure.
a. User support c. Systems support and security
b. Database administration d. Network administration
ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 29

40. A systems analyst needs ____.

a. solid technical knowledge and good analytical ability
b. strong oral and written communication skills
c. an understanding of business operations and processes
d. all of the above
ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 30

MULTIPLE RESPONSE

Modified Multiple Choice

1. An example of a vertical system is a(n) ____.

a. inventory application c. payroll application
b. medical practice application d. database for a video chain
ANS: B, D PTS: 1 REF: 8

2. An example of a horizontal system is a(n) ____.

a. inventory application c. payroll application
b. application for a Web-based retailer d. medical practice application
ANS: A, C PTS: 1 REF: 8

3. A business process describes a specific set of ____.

a. transactions c. events
b. employees d. results
ANS: A, C, D PTS: 1 REF: 10

4. Product-oriented firms produced ____.

a. retail services c. computers
b. routers d. microchips
ANS: B, C, D PTS: 1 REF: 11

5. Database administration involves ____.

a. network administration c. data design
b. user access d. backup
ANS: B, C, D PTS: 1 REF: 29

MODIFIED TRUE/FALSE

1. System software consists of programs that support day-to-day business functions and provide users
with the information they require. _________________________
 ANS: F, Application

PTS: 1 REF: 8

2. Value-added services such as consulting, financing, and technical support can be more profitable than
hardware. _________________________

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 11

3. Rational Unified Process documents the experience of Microsoft’s own software development teams.
_________________________

ANS: F
Microsoft Solutions Framework
MSF

PTS: 1 REF: 27

4. Rapid application development focuses on team-based fact-finding. _________________________

ANS: F
Joint application development
Joint application development (JAD)
JAD
JAD (joint application development)

PTS: 1 REF: 27

5. User support provides users with technical information, training, and productivity support.
_________________________

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 29

TRUE/FALSE

1. Most firms give their IT budgets a low priority in bad economic times.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 4

2. A mission-critical system is one that is unimportant to a company’s operations.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 7

3. In an information system, data is information that has been transformed into output that is valuable to
users.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 7

4. In an information system, information consists of basic facts that are the system’s raw material.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 7

 5. The success or failure of an information system usually is unrelated to whether users are satisfied with
the system’s output and operations.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 10

6. Although the business-to-business (B2B) sector is more familiar to retail customers, the volume of
business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions is many times greater.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 14

7. TP systems are inefficient because they process a set of transaction-related commands individually
rather than as a group.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 16

8. In a knowledge management system, a knowledge base consists of logical rules that identify data
patterns and relationships.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 17

9. A knowledge management system uses inference rules, which consist of a large database that allows
users to find information by entering keywords or questions in normal English phrases.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 17

10. Most large companies require systems that combine transaction processing, business support,
knowledge management, and user productivity features.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 17

11. Because they focus on a longer time frame, middle managers need less detailed information than top
managers, but somewhat more than supervisors who oversee day-to-day operations.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 18-19

12. Many companies find that a trend called empowerment, which gives employees more responsibility
and accountability, improves employee motivation and increases customer satisfaction.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 19

13. CASE tools provide an overall framework for systems development and support a wide variety of
design methodologies, including structured analysis and object-oriented analysis.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 20

14. It is unusual for system developers to mix and match system development methods to gain a better
perspective.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 22

15. In the systems planning phase, a key part of the preliminary investigation is a feasibility study that
reviews anticipated costs and benefits and recommends a course of action based on operational,
technical, economic, and time factors.
 ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 23

16. In the systems analysis phase, the first step is requirements modeling, where business processes are
investigated and what the new system must do to satisfy users is documented.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 23

17. In object-oriented design, objects possess characteristics called properties, which the object inherits
from its class or possesses on its own.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 24

18. A scalable design can expand to meet new business requirements and volumes.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 24

19. In object-oriented design, a message requests specific behavior or information from another object.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 25

20. Microsoft offers a development approach called Microsoft Solutions Framework (MSF), which
documents the experience of its own software development teams.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 27

21. An IT group provides technical support, which includes application development, systems support and
security, user support, database administration, network administration, and Web support.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 28

22. Network administration includes hardware and software maintenance, support, and security.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 29

23. Companies typically require that systems analysts have a college degree in information systems,
computer science, business, or a closely related field, and some IT experience usually is required.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 32

24. The responsibilities of a systems analyst at a small firm are exactly the same as those at a large
corporation.

ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 33

25. A corporate culture is the set of beliefs, rules, traditions, values, and attitudes that define a company
and influence its way of doing business.

ANS: T PTS: 1 REF: 33

COMPLETION

1. _________________________ refers to the combination of hardware, software, and services that

companies use to manage, communicate, and share information.
 ANS:
Information technology (IT)
IT

PTS: 1 REF: 4

2. _________________________ is a step-by-step process for developing high-quality information

systems.

ANS: Systems analysis and design

PTS: 1 REF: 7

3. A(n) _________________________ combines information technology, people, and data to support

business requirements.

ANS: information system

PTS: 1 REF: 7

4. An IT department team includes _________________________ who plan, develop, and maintain

information systems.

ANS: systems analysts

PTS: 1 REF: 7

5. A(n) _________________________ is a set of related components that produces specific results, such
as routing Internet traffic, manufacturing microchips, and controlling complex entities like the Mars
Rover.

ANS: system

PTS: 1 REF: 7

6. In the accompanying figure showing the components of an information system,

_________________________ consist(s) of everything in the physical layer of the information
system.

ANS: hardware

PTS: 1 REF: 8
 7. In the accompanying figure showing the components of an information system,
_________________________ refer(s) to the programs that control the hardware and produce the
desired information or results.

ANS: software

PTS: 1 REF: 8

8. In the accompanying figure showing the components of an information system,

_________________________ is/are the raw material that an information system transforms into
useful information.

ANS: data

PTS: 1 REF: 9

9. In the accompanying figure showing the components of an information system,

_________________________ describe(s) the tasks and business functions that users, managers, and
IT staff members perform to achieve specific results.

ANS: processes

PTS: 1 REF: 9

10. In the accompanying figure showing the components of an information system, the people, called
_________________________, interact with an information system, both inside and outside the
company.

ANS:
users
end users

PTS: 1 REF: 10

11. The newest category of company is the _________________________ whose primary business
depends on the Internet rather than a traditional business channel.

ANS:
Internet-dependent firm
dot-com company
.com company

PTS: 1 REF: 12

12. Traditional companies sometimes are called _________________________ companies because they
conduct business primarily from physical locations.

ANS: brick-and-mortar

PTS: 1 REF: 12

13. Internet-based commerce is called _________________________ and includes two main sectors: B2C
(business-to-consumer) and B2B (business-to-business).
 ANS:
e-commerce
electronic commerce
I-commerce
Internet commerce

PTS: 1 REF: 13

14. _________________________ technology uses high-frequency radio waves to track physical object.

ANS:
RFID
Radio frequency identification
RFID (Radio frequency identification)
Radio frequency identification (RFID)

PTS: 1 REF: 16

15. A truck fleet dispatcher might run a series of _________________________ scenarios to determine
the impact of increased shipments or bad weather.

ANS: what-if

PTS: 1 REF: 16

16. _________________________ programs run on a company intranet and enable users to share data,
collaborate on projects, and work in teams.

ANS: Groupware

PTS: 1 REF: 17

17. The systems implementation phase of the SDLC includes an assessment, called a(n)
_________________________, to determine whether the system operates properly and if costs and
benefits are within expectation.

ANS: systems evaluation

PTS: 1 REF: 24

18. A(n) _________________________ uses various symbols and shapes to represent data flow,
processing, and storage.

ANS:
data flow diagram
DFD
data flow diagram (DFD)
DFD (data flow diagram)

PTS: 1 REF: 22

19. _________________________ design and construct Web pages, monitor traffic, manage hardware and
software, and link Web-based applications to a company’s information systems.
 ANS: Web support specialists

PTS: 1 REF: 29

20. Many hardware and software companies offer _________________________ for IT professionals,
which verifies that an individual demonstrated a certain level of knowledge and skill on a standardized
test.

ANS: certification

PTS: 1 REF: 32

MATCHING

Identify the letter of the choice that best matches the phrase or definition.
a. MIS f. team leaders
b. network model g. operational employees
c. object model h. supply chain management
d. fuzzy logic i. data model
e. ERP j. prototype
1. In many large companies, these kinds of systems provide cost-effective support for users and managers
throughout the company.
2. The name for new business support systems that produced valuable information, in addition to
performing manual tasks; their primary users were managers.
3. A B2B site that allows buyers, sellers, distributors, and manufacturer to offer products, submit
specifications, and transact business.
4. Many knowledge management systems use this technique, which allows inferences to be drawn from
imprecise relationships.
5. People who oversee operational employees and carry out day-to-day functions.
6. People who rely on TP systems to enter and receive data they need to perform their jobs.
7. Describes the design and protocols of telecommunications links.
8. Describes objects, which combine data and processes.
9. Describes data structures and design.
10. An early working version of an information system.

1. ANS: E PTS: 1 REF: 15

2. ANS: A PTS: 1 REF: 16
3. ANS: H PTS: 1 REF: 14
4. ANS: D PTS: 1 REF: 17
5. ANS: F PTS: 1 REF: 19
6. ANS: G PTS: 1 REF: 19
7. ANS: B PTS: 1 REF: 19
8. ANS: C PTS: 1 REF: 19
9. ANS: I PTS: 1 REF: 19
10. ANS: J PTS: 1 REF: 20

ESSAY
1. Explain what a knowledge worker is, and why this kind of worker is required by successful
companies.

ANS:
Knowledge workers include professional staff members such as systems analysts, programmers,
accountants, researchers, trainers, and human resource specialists. Knowledge workers also use
business support systems, knowledge management systems, and user productivity systems. Knowledge
workers provide support for the organization's basic functions. Just as a military unit requires logistical
support, a successful company needs knowledge workers to carry out its mission.

PTS: 1 REF: 19 TOP: Critical Thinking

2. What are the disadvantages of each of the three system development methods?

ANS:
With structured analysis, changes can be costly, especially in later phases. Requirements are defined
early, and can change during development. Users might not be able to describe their needs until they
can see examples of features and functions. With object-oriented analysis, this somewhat newer
method of development might be less familiar to development team members. Also, the interaction of
objects and classes can be complex in larger systems. With agile/adaptive methods, team members
need a high level of technical and communications skills. Lack of structure and documentation can
introduce risk factors. Finally, the overall project might be subject to scope change as user
requirements change.

PTS: 1 REF: 21 TOP: Critical Thinking

3. Discuss the five basic systems development guidelines.

ANS:
Develop a Plan
Prepare an overall project plan and stick to it. Complete the tasks in a logical sequence. Develop a
clear set of ground rules and be sure that everyone on the team understands them clearly.

Involve Users and Listen Carefully to Them

Ensure that users are involved in the development process, especially when identifying and modeling
system requirements. When you interact with users, listen closely to what they are saying.

Use Project Management Tools and Techniques

Try to keep the project on track and avoid surprises. Create a reasonable number of checkpoints — too
many can be burdensome, but too few will not provide adequate control.

Develop Accurate Cost and Benefit Information

Managers need to know the cost of developing and operating a system, and the value of the benefits it
will provide. You must provide accurate, realistic cost and benefit estimates, and update them as
necessary.

Remain Flexible
Be flexible within the framework of your plan. Systems development is a dynamic process, and
overlap often exists among tasks. The ability to react quickly is especially important when you are
working on a system that must be developed rapidly.

PTS: 1 REF: 27 TOP: Critical Thinking

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“It is of little importance,” said Sejanus, closely watching Gannon’s
face. “Hereafter every communication carried to or from me must
bear a seal. The failure to observe this rule will cost more than a
dismissal. Go to thy room. Speak to no one. Wait until I send for
thee.”
Gannon walked slowly from the room. A sudden impulse came over
him to return and confess to Sejanus that he had read the letter; but
at that moment he was prevented by the entrance of another
secretary, who handed a letter to Sejanus. With a heavy heart
Gannon went along the corridor outside of the office, and slowly
mounted the flight of steps that led to his room. When he arrived
there, he threw himself upon his couch and buried his face in his
hands.
Sejanus had spoken harshly to him. “The order to go to my room
was given in anger,” Gannon said to himself. He now felt sure that
Livilla’s reply was more important than Sejanus had admitted. “What
did he mean when he said that hereafter the failure to have letters
sealed would mean more than a dismissal?” he thought. “Could he
mean imprisonment, or, worse, could he mean death?” The thought
of being imprisoned without being able to communicate with his
parents tortured the lad’s very soul.
This was his first trouble, and in facing it he realized his own
weakness. A window in his room looked out upon a large courtyard
where the soldiers practised their manoeuvres. Leaving his couch, he
watched them in their various formations. But the words, “Lygdus is
a good man to do the deed,” were constantly recurring to his mind.
“What would Sejanus do if he thought I had read Livilla’s reply?” he
asked himself. “Would he see that my tongue is forever hushed?”
Gannon shook with fear. He felt that he must communicate with his
family, but how? He sat down and wrote a letter, but that he
destroyed. “Who would carry it to them?” he asked himself. His
handsome face had grown haggard with anxiety. His young heart
was burdened with the consciousness of his deceit. Finally a plan for
communicating with his family occurred to him, like a thought of
hope to a despairing soul. Taking up a scrap of cloth, he wrote upon
it in the smallest possible Greek characters the following words:
“Have done wrong. Read a letter from L to S about Lygdus.” This he
sewed to the under side of his tunic. Then, more contented, he
threw himself upon his couch and waited to be called. He waited
many hours.
 Chapter II
AELIUS SEJANUS, commander of the Praetorians, was a tall and
robust man, with a fine commanding head, set upon a coarse thick
neck. He had a bold, hard, and evil face, which could at times
appear weak, gentle, and friendly. His light-gray eyes were
commanding and yet kind; his large mouth was voluptuous, yet firm.
In fact, his nature was so complex and deceptive that he could
instantly change from love to hate, from proud authority to fawning
servility, from dignified sincerity to unctuous flattery. He was a man
and yet a beast; an honest friend, a brave soldier, and a detestable
villain. He was a living lie.
Years before, the Divine Augustus had been satisfied to distribute his
guards among the surrounding towns of Rome; but the cowardly
Tiberius had built a huge camp of bricks and marble, and in it he
placed his soldiers, so that he could mobilize them more quickly in
case of need. Over the soldiers he stationed his faithful minister,
Sejanus, whom he trusted as he did no other man. Money had been
so lavishly expended upon the building that it resembled a palace
more than a guard-house. Its spacious rooms, polished-marble
corridors, grand, imposing stairways, and courtyards surrounded by
beautiful columns with finely wrought capitals, were elaborately
adorned with carved candelabra, tables of variegated marbles,
statues, and fountains. At one end of a spacious corridor stood the
statue of Tiberius. At the other end, by the emperor’s order, one of
Sejanus had recently been erected. A soldier, commenting upon this
arrangement, said, “Sejanus watches the emperor day and night.”
Though of low origin, Sejanus had succeeded in attaching himself,
some years before, to Caius Caesar, the grandson of the Divine
Augustus. When Livia, the mother of Tiberius, had accomplished the
death of that heir, Sejanus sold himself to the greatest epicure and
spendthrift of the time, Apicius. In order that the flame of literature
might not become extinct during the inglorious reign of Tiberius,
Apicius composed a cook-book! His wealth was enormous; yet,
fearing that he might some day die penniless, he committed suicide.
With money dishonorably obtained by pandering to the low tastes of
Apicius, Sejanus bought the friendship of the dissolute men who
circled around Tiberius. At this time the emperor was beginning to
cast his evil shadow over the city. With infernal ingenuity Sejanus so
endeared himself to Tiberius that the emperor withdrew his favor
from the other satellites and made Sejanus his adviser and minister.
Like a serpent, Sejanus would coil himself around his victim, and if
the victim proved too strong to crush, he would use his poisoned
fangs. Like a panther, he would crouch in the vilest holes; and when
he saw his prey unguarded, he would steal upon it with padded feet,
spring upon it, and strike it down. Like a huge tarantula, he would
suck the life-blood of some wealthy man; but, less merciful than the
tarantula, he allowed his victim to live on and suffer.
At present he was captain of the guards, chief officer of the most
important military body in the empire. Moreover, he was the
associate and particular friend of the emperor. He was yet more,—
the confidant and principal adviser of the emperor. In all the
emperor’s shameless pleasures, fiendish intrigues, and atrocious
villanies, Sejanus was an abettor and a panderer. Step by step he
had risen; and although these steps were stained with vice, robbery,
and murder, he had reached the eminence of being the second man
in Rome. In this rise to power Sejanus had not abandoned his old
associates; but as he mounted higher, he drew them with him.
Neither did he allow the halo of influence to dazzle and bewilder
him. On the contrary, like the eagle, the higher he soared, the better
view he took of his surroundings. He was always easy of access, and
by his servility to the emperor and by his graciousness to those
below him he had gathered about him a cordon of friends, so that
whenever he walked through the streets he was greeted with
cheers.
Such was his versatile nature that he was equally at ease in the
palaces of the most refined and in the camp with his soldiers over
their cups. He could talk the airy nothings of social gossip to the
flippant ladies of the city, and then join the noble matrons and
converse on serious subjects. He was the friend of virtuous senators
and of vicious profligates, of pure aristocrats and learned
philosophers, of foul vermin of the under strata and of vulgar
voluptuaries. Cruelty was another trait of his character. When he
beat his little son so hard that he broke a limb, he watched the
sufferings of the child without raising a helping hand. He could look
at one of his slaves—punished for some trivial offence—writhing
under the lash, and smile even when the welts were sweating blood.
Without a gleam of pity he would torture a man to swear to a lie
until the flame of his victim’s life was nearly extinct. As he found that
his wife and children weighed heavily upon him and prevented him
from progressing, he abandoned them. With all his servility,
graciousness, and dissimulation, there was only one idea that ruled
him,—ambition.
He had made Livilla, the wife of Drusus, believe that he loved her,
and had even penetrated to her chamber and so compromised her
that an exposure of her indiscretion would have meant death or exile
to them both. The letter that Gannon had carried from Livilla
contained her acquiescence to a foul and terrible deed. Sejanus
believed that Gannon had not read the letter; but doubt on a
question so important made him ill at ease. After having sent
Gannon to his room, he went to see Livilla.
Livilla and her little twin sons were playing with some gold-fish in a
fountain when Sejanus was announced. She left the little boys in
charge of their nurse and retired to her room.
Sejanus greeted her like an ardent lover; she received him with a
nervous reserve. She trembled slightly when he asked, “Where is
Drusus?”
“He has gone to Bovilla.”
“When will he return?”
“At sundown.”
“Shall we, then, be alone until sundown, O my Livilla?”
“Ay, my Sejanus. But I wish to talk with thee concerning Lygdus.”
“The eunuch will be here to-morrow morning,” replied Sejanus.
“Art thou sure of him?” she asked anxiously.
“He is like the second half of my heart, my Livilla.”
“But is he trustworthy and silent?” she persisted.
“In important transactions his lips are as silent as those of the dead.”
“I sometimes fear—” she began.
“What!” he interrupted. “Art thou beginning to fear at this time?”
“Ay, my Sejanus.”
“Hearken unto me, O daughter of Antonia. The plans that Sejanus
makes never miscarry.”
“But I hesitate at this last step,” she faltered.
“Ah, Livilla,” said Sejanus, fervently, “thou rulest my life, my heart,
my very soul, but I cannot now defer action. A plan may be well
formed, but hesitation brings disaster.”
“But is there no other way?” she pleaded.
“There is no other way,” he replied impressively. “But why fearest
thou? Be strong. Be brave. Trust in me. Tullia took this course to find
happiness with Tarquinius. Clytemnestra gave up Agamemnon for
Aegisthus. Art thou weaker than they were? In thy veins flows the
blood of the mighty Marc Antony. Did thy noble ancestor tremble at
the death of his enemies? Tullia and Clytemnestra were dissolute.
Thou art an outraged woman.”
“Not so loud, O my love,” she whispered cautiously. “We may be
overheard.”
“Where is thy servant Marcia?” he asked.
“She is within calling distance. Have a care,” she warned him.
He softened his tone as he poured out his passion. “I can no longer
live apart from thee, O my love,” he exclaimed. “I love thee! oh, how
I love thee! The gods alone understand a love that cannot be told. If
all the openings in this room were ears, if all the sparkling objects
were eyes, they would hear and see that I love thee. A dangerous
love, sayest thou? Ay; but if death be the ultimate reward, I will be
content if I have obtained thy love.”
As a sleeping child is wooed by the whisper of a mother’s voice, so
Livilla succumbed to the loving words of Sejanus. They affected her
like a narcotic. Her objections gave way, her nervousness
disappeared, and her fear completely vanished. Her face, which at
first was overspread with an unnatural pallor, gradually became
flushed. Her eyes lost their frightened stare, and grew soft and
dreamy. Her quivering mouth became firm and composed. Observing
the change that was passing over her, Sejanus approached and took
her in his arms.
“I love thee, O Sejanus!” exclaimed Livilla, abandoning herself to his
caresses. Suddenly, as if struck by a happy inspiration, she asked,
“Could we not leave Rome and live together in a foreign country?”
“Ah, but what corner of the empire could long hide the daughter of
Antonia and the minister of Tiberius?” he asked.
“But, O my love, I cannot here in Rome become thy wife,” she cried.
“Thy love is impotent if so thy feelings are ruled. That is not like the
love I bear thee. O my Livilla, I have sacrificed wife, children,
friends, for thee. Ay, for thee I would even sacrifice my power. What
more can a man do?”
His passionate words overcame her fear. She yielded and said, “I
consent.” Then she whispered: “Send Lygdus to me. Complete thy
plans. I will share everything with thee, bear everything with thee.”
“Of a truth, thou canst not desire to live longer with the man who
abuses thee worse than his slaves,” said Sejanus. “Gamblers,
drunkards, unscrupulous and dissolute men and women, are his
friends. He loves the mute statues on these walls more than he loves
thee. He would not sacrifice a cup of wine to make thee happy.”
Sejanus again placed his arms around her, and with his lips near
hers he continued: “I love thee, O my Livilla, with all the strength of
my nature. In the very marrow of my bones I long for thee always.
True love is no crime. The gods have so loved. Forsake Drusus, who
insults thee. Come to the arms of one who adores thee.”
“May the gods forgive me if it be a sin; but I love thee, O my
Sejanus, I love thee!”
As Livilla spoke these words, he covered her mouth with kisses. He
led her to a couch, and seating himself beside her, said: “I have
never seen thee more beautiful than thou art now. This struggle has
made thy lovely face more radiant than that of Eos. Be not gloomy!
A bird sings louder and more joyously when freed from its cage.
Love’s flame burns brighter when fed by pure oil. Thy beautiful
hands will never be stained with my crimes. Let me kiss thy fingers!
Let me kiss thy mouth! Let me love thee now.”
The splash of the water in the fountain, the happy voices of the little
twins at play, a joyful song from the lips of Julia, Livilla’s daughter,
were the only sounds that entered through the curtained door while
the wicked lovers sat locked in each other’s arms. Livilla started
when she thought of the time, and said, “The day is fleeting, O my
love; thou must now depart.”
“Tell me, before I go,” asked Sejanus, loosening his embrace, “was
the letter sealed which thou didst send me this morning?”
“Ay, my Sejanus. Never do I send a letter without a seal.”
“Gannon gave it me unsealed.”
“I like not thy Gannon,” she said, frowning. “He is impertinent. He
angered me this morning. I wrote the letter hastily, but I am sure I
did not forget the seal.”
“Have I been so mistaken in the boy?” questioned Sejanus. “He told
me he did not read the reply.”
“Hast thou such faith in him?” she asked. Then in a warning tone
she said: “Beware, O Sejanus! Trust him not. But go! Send Lygdus
to-morrow morning! Come to me after the dinner to-morrow night!”
The shameless lovers then embraced and separated.
Sejanus, with his few followers, had hardly left the entrance to the
palace, when Drusus, highly indignant, arrived there with a crowd of
clients, freedmen, and slaves. The cause of his indignation was that
the guards had refused to obey an order which he had given them,
basing their refusal upon the ground of a contrary order from
Sejanus. This exhibition of effrontery was very humiliating to Drusus,
especially since it had taken place before his followers. But such
clashing of authority had become of frequent occurrence of late.
These daily conflicts kept the jealous Drusus continually in a state of
ill-humor. He dismissed his friends and walked up the path that led
to the palace, cursing the author of his troubles.
Drusus had inherited the vices of his father, Tiberius, and none of
the virtues of his mother, Vipsania. He had a bloated, sullen face,
with a large Roman nose and bloodshot eyes, overshadowed by a
brow that always frowned. His mouth was large, with thick,
voluptuous lips. He looked upon life gloomily, and seldom found
anything worth a smile. His drinking was excessive, his behavior
dissolute. His impressionable nature bore the imprints of his wicked
associates, who, believing that he was to be their next emperor,
pandered to all his vicious passions.
But he had not always been sullen and profligate. His star of good
fortune once shone brightly. He had successfully waged war against
the Illyrians and Pannonians. However, on his return to Rome after
his brilliant campaigns, although he was the son of an emperor, he
had little authority. The empty, high-sounding titles bestowed upon
him by his father humiliated more than they elated him. He was
disappointed, enraged, to see favors, wealth, and honors showered
upon Sejanus and his friends, while he, the emperor’s son, and his
retainers, received no substantial recognition. The insults he daily
experienced, the opposition, and the ridicule,—all these things had
so embittered his nature that he had become indifferent to
everything except the gratification of his desires and pleasures.
The visits of Sejanus, and the knowledge that letters passed
between his wife and Sejanus, excited him to violent anger. He
doubted Livilla’s fidelity, but sufficient proofs of her wrongdoing were
lacking. Being informed by a servant that Sejanus had just left the
palace, he broke into a towering passion and sent for Livilla.
“Sejanus has been here again!” he bellowed, when she appeared.
“He has, my lord,” she replied. “On his way to the Palatine Hill he
called to pay his respects.”
“His respects,” sneered Drusus. “Let him be more respectful to his
family; ay, more respectful to me!”
“He came to say that he would not be at dinner to-morrow night,”
she ventured, with forced composure.
“Thou liest, O wicked woman!” he shrieked. “’Tis not true! He came
to insult me, to tell thee that I am a brute, to try to turn thee
against me!”
“Nay, my lord; he—”
“Have done with thy deceit!” he interrupted. “Has he written thee
also to-day?”
“He has, my lord,” she fearlessly replied.
“What mean these meetings, O deceitful woman? What is in these
letters he sends thee? Where didst thou see him?”
“In my room—”
“Alone?” he bawled. “In thy room with that villain! Thou hast the
insolence to tell me that?”
“We were not alone. My servants were with me.”
“Thou liest!” he shrieked. “There is no truth in thee. Thy face is fair,
thy heart evil!” cried the infuriated man, pacing up and down the
room.
Neither spoke for some time. Suddenly Drusus stopped walking, and
roared a command that the servant Marcia should be brought before
him. When the trembling maid appeared, he asked her, “Where wert
thou when Sejanus was here?”
The poor woman knew not how to reply. She looked beseechingly at
Livilla.
“Strip her and lash her until her tongue is loosened,” ordered
Drusus, breathing heavily.
At the sight of her favorite maid being brutally handled by the
servants of Drusus, Livilla became infuriated. Rushing between
them, her eyes flashing fire, she cried: “Canst thou not believe a
truthful wife, O son of Tiberius, without questioning her servants? I
have told thee that Sejanus came here to say that he would not be
at the dinner to-morrow evening.”
Taking this cue from her mistress, the woman now easily answered
the questions of Drusus.
When the ordeal was over and Drusus and Livilla were left alone, he
said: “Marcia must be dismissed. One of my selection will take her
place. And now, O Livilla, never again must that man see thee in thy
room. I hate him. No hatred can be more intense. He hates me too.
He would have preferred to see my father without an heir, for then
there would have been one obstacle less between him and his
coveted goal. He is a thorn in my side. So continually does he
torment me that my only solace is in the cup.”
He clapped his hands, and a servant appeared.
“Thou shalt remain with me, O Livilla,” he commanded.
“Nay, my lord. I wish to be alone,” she replied, as she proudly
walked from the room.
“I will not be alone!” he cried to his servant. “Go! Seek some friends!
Tell them that Drusus will drink to-night. Tell them that Bacchus will
rule on the Esquiline. Go, boy!”

On a sumptuous couch in a gorgeously furnished apartment of the

Praetorian Camp Sejanus proudly reclines. It is midnight. The room
is lighted by a bronze lamp, shaped like a satyr’s face. It rests on a
slender bronze pedestal with a base of three cloven feet. Carved
figures of fauns, sylphs, and nereids in graceful poses come out of
the shadows like dancing sprites. Red and yellow oriental silks,
carelessly thrown over the chairs, look in the sallow light like
tongues of flame. In a bronze tripod, ornamented with naked sylphs
and satyrs, burns perfumed charcoal. An odor of incense pervades
the room. The light seems to be a reflection from the lower world.
Everything suggests an incantation.
Sejanus is happy. His face, in the yellow light, looks like that of a
leering demon. As he reclines there, he is building huge and lofty
castles in the air. He looks into the future. He sees a man seated on
a curule chair, imperiously making laws and rendering decisions.
That man is Sejanus. Again he sees a man clad in triumphal robes of
purple adorned with gold. He is standing in a chariot of silver, drawn
by four white horses abreast. In his right hand he carries a laurel
branch; in his left, an ivory sceptre. Behind him a slave holds a
golden crown over his head. The Forum is thronged with people,
dressed in soft white togas and crowned with shining leaves or
bright flowers. Songs of boys and girls, chants of priests and
priestesses, war songs of the legions, joyful notes poured from long
golden trumpets, and acclamations of the people, all rend the air.
The glad tumult echoes from pillar to pillar of the pure white temples
garlanded with flowers, as the Victor rides along the Via Sacra
towards the Capitoline Hill. That Victor is Sejanus. Again he sees,
seated on a throne, a man before whom senators, ambassadors, and
kings of nations prostrate themselves, all anxiously, breathlessly,
waiting to hear the words that fall from his lips. That emperor is
Sejanus. Once more he looks into the future, and he sees a statue of
a man placed amongst those of the gods. He sees the people falling
down and worshipping it, as they do those of the Divine Julius and
the Divine Augustus. He sees a body of priests and priestesses
chanting litanies and making sacrifices to this new god. That new
god is SEJANUS.
However, these dreams of self-advancement and self-glorification are
far from being assured facts; for between him and the
consummation of his dreams are many obstacles. There is Drusus,
the son of Tiberius; there are the twins, sons of Drusus and Livilla;
there are the sons of Germanicus,—Drusus, Nero, and Caligula,—
these last being real princes of the blood of the Divine Augustus;
there is the emperor himself.
But to this man, who can compass seeming impossibilities, nothing is
too difficult. With such immense odds against him, he does not
falter. Murder, the infamous tool that Livia and Tiberius had wielded
to cement their power, is understood equally well by him. The five
atrocious murders in the family of the Divine Augustus had sown in
the heart of Sejanus seeds that have matured into deadly fruit.
He had recently executed a murder for the emperor in a peculiarly
skilful and satisfactory manner. In gratitude for this service the
emperor decreed that wherever one of his own statues stood, a
statue of Sejanus should be erected beside that of his royal master.
With this supreme honor conferred upon him, with the flattery of
senate, soldiers, and common people, and with the conquest of
Livilla’s heart, and her consent to his ambitious and murderous
schemes, he feels well content with himself as he lies there. He is an
emperor in everything except the name. But one thing must be done
before he can feel absolutely secure. He calls a soldier, and gives an
order, after which he takes up a silver cup and with an evil smile
slowly sips his wine.
While Sejanus lies there dreaming, Gannon is pondering over his
troubles. The poor lad patiently awaits some sign that can be
construed as a hope of pardon. He has seen no one except a
servant, who carried him some supper. The time passes slowly, and
the monotony of silence is broken only by the soldiers as they call
out the hours for changing the watch. He is sleepy, and decides to
go to bed. Just then he is startled by hearing footsteps in the
corridor. He hears his name called, and receives an order to appear
on the roof. Joyfully he springs from his couch, for he thinks he is
now pardoned. Yet the command is an unusual one. What can it
mean? With his young heart bounding with hope, he mounts the
steps lightly, taking care not to stumble in the darkness. When he
reaches the last step, the soldier, who had shortly before received an
order from Sejanus, catches him by the throat, another seizes his
body, and before the poor boy can collect his thoughts, he is carried
to the railing that borders the edge of the roof, and is thrown into
the street below.
As he strikes the ground, a pitiful groan is heard. A spasmodic
tremor passes through his body, and then all is still.
 Chapter III
WHILE Gannon was anxiously considering how he could
communicate with his family, they were safe and happy at home.
The evening meal was finished, and they were seated in the atrium
of their one-storied house of four rooms. On a wooden table burned
a small terra-cotta lamp, which shed a dim light through the room.
Psyche and her mother were seated together. Alcmaeon lay on a
couch near them.
“Hast thou finished rehearsing for the celebration, O daughter?”
asked Alcmaeon.
“On the afternoon of the morrow the last rehearsal will take place, O
my father,” she replied.
Psyche was a charming maiden, eighteen years old. She had an
exquisite face, with large soulful eyes, like a young doe’s, a mouth
like that of a sculptured Aphrodite, and pretty nose, cheeks and
forehead like those of the beautiful daughter of Zeus and Leda. All
her features blended so harmoniously with the refined sinuous lines
and curves of her body that she formed a perfect figure of beauty.
Like the beloved of Eros, whose name she bore, she would have
been persecuted by the jealous Venus if she had not had, like that
other Psyche, a devoted protector.
When a little girl, she had taken part in religious processions. As she
grew older and her beauty developed, she led these processions.
Instinctively, while taking part in them, she learned so easily to
portray the pure emotions by her pose, gait, and dance, that she
had been drawn gradually into theatrical spectacles. At first
Alcmaeon objected to Psyche’s dancing in public; but her graceful
movements so pleased him, and her success in pleasing others was
so pronounced, that he finally consented.
It was marvellous what force she could put into her movements. By
her grace of action alone, she could represent the tragic Iocasta, the
majestic Clytemnestra, and the pleading Penelope. Whether she
were delineating the happy Aspasia, the outraged Lucretia, or the
proud Cornelia, she budded and bloomed in the attentive air of her
audience like a soft flower of feminine grace. She could so adjust her
costume that she appeared like a butterfly floating about the stage,
trembling in her pauses as if she were hovering over a flower. Her
greatest characterizations were those of the inquisitive and mournful
Psyche, the nimble and fleeting Daphne, and the tearful and grief-
stricken Niobe. In these representations she was an embodied
thought of a Phidias or Praxiteles.
At the games to be given by Nero, Agrippina’s son, on his arrival at
the manly age, she was to portray the character of Niobe at
Pompey’s Theatre.
“Art thou not sorry that this dance will be thy last, my daughter?”
asked Hera.
“Ay, my mother.”
“The wife of Gyges must lead a more serious life than that of a
dancing-girl,” said Alcmaeon.
“Dost thou yet know where thy new home is to be?” asked Hera.
“Nay, my mother. Gyges wishes to surprise me.”
“Wherever it be, O daughter, thy home will be a pleasant one,” said
Alcmaeon. “Gyges is a good and noble son of Greece. He inherits his
father’s mild temper and goodness. He is wealthy. Thy new home
will contain more luxuries than thy old one. But hearts cannot beat
with love for thee more than ours do, my daughter.”
“As the wife of Gyges, I am no less the daughter of Alcmaeon. When
I wed, thou losest not a daughter, thou gainest another son,” said
Psyche, sweetly.
“Oh that Gannon were here to-night!” said Hera. “Does not thy heart
yearn for our son, my Alcmaeon?”
“Ay, my Hera. ’Twas I who allowed him to go to the camp. Would
that I had found him another position!”
“But he is paid well for his services,” said the mother.
“I would rather that he received less and were home more. I like not
Sejanus,” said Alcmaeon, thoughtfully.
“Hast thou seen Gannon to-day, my father?” asked Psyche.
“I saw him only yesterday.”
“Said he naught of us?” questioned the mother.
“Ay, O Hera. He asked for thee, and thee, too, Psyche. He said only
a few words; but they were happy ones. After he had gone, they
seemed to me to have come from the smiling lips of his soul. Ah! if it
would not break his heart, I would take him away from the camp.”
“When he next comes home, let us ask him to leave the camp,” said
Hera.
“Dost thou remember, O my Hera, the night he told us of his
promotion? Then he spoke with difficulty; joy choked his words. His
handsome young face was as radiant as that of Apollo, who drives
the sun on its daily course. To have stemmed the flood of his
enthusiasm at that time would have been an outrage. In his roseate
view of the future he had us all transported back to the country of
our fathers,—back to Corinth, to the city that was the glory of the
Hellenes.”
“Verily he shall accomplish his purpose!” exclaimed Psyche, her face
flushing with the reflection of her father’s deep emotion.
“Ay, few boys are as buoyant and hopeful as Gannon,” replied
Alcmaeon. “He is a thorough Greek. He knows well the history, the
language, and the religion of our beloved country. He is a true son of
the Iliad.”
“Ay, my Alcmaeon, a true son of the Iliad, and a true son of our
ancestors,” added Hera.
“With joy I shall welcome the day when I go to Corinth,” said
Psyche, with enthusiasm.
“When shalt thou go?” asked Alcmaeon.
“I know not; but I have the promise of Gyges to go there with me
some day. Thou knowest that his ancestors were also of Corinth.”
“Before I married thy mother, O Psyche,” said Alcmaeon, “my father
took me to Corinth. A desire had always burned in me to see that
glorious city. A relation having died, we went to collect a legacy. We
sailed from Brundusium. The boat was crowded with passengers.
Never shall I forget the day when we sailed from the Ionian Sea into
the Corinthian Gulf, between the islands Zacynthus and Cephallenia.
As we floated into the heart of the Iliad, my feelings were
preternatural. It seemed as if my heart were like a sail which, being
swollen by the breath of religion, drew my soul into a haven of
peace.
“It was near sundown,” continued Alcmaeon. “The sea was calm.
The bireme seemed to float quickly along, like a bird skimming the
surface of the water. The oar-tortured waves grew white with foamy
bubbles. A poet’s eye could have seen in those waters the breasts
and happy faces of wandering nereids. Across the water the shadow
of Ithaca’s crags extended over the ship. Through that shadow, as
through a violet mist, I saw the glory of Odysseus.
“That night,” he continued, “we anchored at Patros. I did not sleep.
So enveloped was I in the glory of the past that the present lost its
identity. I did not live; I dreamed. In the morning the surface of the
sea trembled. The morning star reflected in the waters, like the
smile of Eos. We raised anchor and proceeded along the coast.”
As Alcmaeon described his voyage, Hera and Psyche gazed fixedly at
the pale light on the table. They felt moved by so strange an
emotion that their natural sight was dimmed. As sorrowful eyes see
solace through tears, so Hera and Psyche saw cheer and a new
pleasure in Alcmaeon’s words. In the intonation with which he
pronounced the old names of towns, heroes, and gods, they heard,
as if floating on a river of melody, a Parthenic song.
“The bow of the boat cleaved the water like a swan’s breast,”
continued Alcmaeon. “The historic shores of the gulf unfolded scene
after scene, picture after picture,—all so beautiful in the dawn that
they seemed to be glimpses into Elysium. The boat seemed to be
drawn by an invisible force; the air seemed to vibrate with emotion;
our hearts beat faster, when suddenly, like a lightning flash, directly
in front, there sparkled a glorious mountain. The captain shouted,
‘Parnassus! Parnassus!’ I became as one transfixed; for in that
mountain I saw the flaming celestial face of the god of the Sun,
Apollo. The weight of humanity burdened me. I wished to fly to the
mountain-tops. Oh! to have been like the eagle, which from the
heights of heaven flies along the windy ways towards its nest!
“Soon after, I beheld Aegira, Sicyon, and finally the home of my
ancestors, Corinth. I saw the Acrocorinthus, and I became lost in an
oblivion of joy. O my Hera! O my Psyche! above all earthly music,
above the song of the Iliad, there floated to me from that glorious
place the cradle-song of my forefathers.”
At this part of the description Alcmaeon paused. He smoothed his
brow with his hand. Hera and Psyche bestowed upon him fond
glances, showing their intense sympathy with his emotion. He
continued in a trembling voice: “We disembarked. We climbed
towards the city. We reached the walls. O ye gods! we gazed upon
the mutilated remains of the once proud town. The Romans under
Mummius and his swine made of that once glorious city a trough.
Our ancestors were sold into slavery. Our branch of the family was
redeemed.”
Again Alcmaeon paused. The last words he had uttered were full of
irony. He passed his hand over his eyes and continued: “But these
are bitter recollections. Sing an Homeric song, O Hera, and thou too,
Psyche. Let our dreams float away from the iron city of Rome to the
celestial cities of the Iliad.”
Hera began to sing an old cradle-song that had been sung in her
family from generation to generation. It was the same sweet song
which, like gentle fingers, had closed the eyelids of Gannon and
Psyche in the slumber of childhood. Taking her mother’s hand in hers
and smoothing it, Psyche also sang. Alcmaeon softly added his deep
bass voice to theirs. On the spirit of the song they were drawn into
the land of happy reveries. From songs they changed to hymns. So
moved was Alcmaeon that he rose from the couch and seated
himself between Hera and Psyche, with an arm thrown about each
of them. In the sacredness of the words and music they were
supremely happy. Their souls were melted in religious fervor.
While they were thus singing, they heard a scratching at the door.
The noise sounded like a cat trying to enter. Alcmaeon opened the
door, and saw on the threshold a poor humpbacked girl who was
trembling and weeping.
“What has happened to thee, Lupa?” he asked.
When Lupa’s name was spoken, Psyche hastened to the door. So
rough and unmannerly were the neighbors of Alcmaeon that they
were almost entirely ignored by Alcmaeon and his family. Lupa was
the only exception. The poor deformed child of eleven was the
youngest of six children. She was cruelly treated by her family, who
looked upon her deformity as a crime. Psyche was the only one in
the neighborhood who took an interest in the sad, misshapen, but
good-natured girl. In reply to Alcmaeon’s question, Lupa said, “They
have beaten me.”
“Enter and tell us why, O Lupa,” said Psyche, gently.
“They gave me a jar of water to carry,” replied the poor child. “It
was too heavy. I let it fall. To punish me, they beat me, and put me
out of the house for the night.”
“Thou canst rest here. Weep no more. Art thou hungry?” asked
Psyche.
The deformed girl timidly nodded her head.
After arranging a couch for her, Psyche brought her some bread, and
said: “Eat and sleep in peace, O unhappy Lupa. No one shall hurt
thee here.”
At noon on the following day Alcmaeon’s house was deserted. Poor
Lupa had gone back to her cheerless home; Alcmaeon was at
school; and Psyche and Hera had gone to the rehearsal at Pompey’s
Theatre.
Of all the celebrations that were to be given the people by Nero on
his arriving at the manly age, the dancing at Pompey’s Theatre
would be the least exciting. The taste of most Romans dwelt on
vulgarity, on obscene comedy, and on exciting gladiatorial combat
and horse-races. Still, many delighted in watching the evolutions of
the dance. Psyche was to portray Niobe,—a sad but beautiful
impersonation. As all the dancers knew their different rôles, the
rehearsal required little repetition. Hera remained only a short time.
Having met Gyges, whom she playfully called Eros, she left Psyche
under his watchful eyes. These she thought were better guardians
than her own.
Gyges was no golden-winged, heaven-descended god, like the
mythical protector of the goddess Psyche, but a rich young
charioteer, twenty-two years old. He was a Greek, and a perfect
specimen of manly strength and symmetry. He had an oval face,
with a pair of sharp, quick black eyes, a bold nose and forehead, and
a small mouth, with lips that were thick and gracefully curved,—
especially the short upper one, which was shaped like the bow of
Eros. His rich, black curly hair was cut short. His body was graceful,
lithe, and muscular. He was a living counterpart of the Hermes of
Praxiteles at Olympia. At the races he always wore the green color;
and as that color was the favorite, the betting odds changed
whenever he drove. His intrepid and daring appearance, as he stood
in the chariot, with the reins strapped around his body, his right foot
resting on the chariot shield in front of him, his body bent back, his
eyes flashing with fire, his clear voice shouting to his horses,
inspired the spectators with wild enthusiasm. The excitement and
rush of the chariots, as they rounded the last turn, with the finish
line dead ahead of them,—on, on, in breathless anxiety, on to
victory,—so thrilled the multitudes that they rose to their feet and
rent the air with cheers.
The parents of Gyges, like those of Psyche, had been aristocratic
Greeks; but having lost their property, they had moved to Rome to
retrieve their fortune. Both were now dead. The mother died when
Gyges was but a child; the father but recently. An old freed slave
named Nana took care of the home of Gyges. She had been a
second mother to him. By her tender care, and through the excellent
education and training given him by his father, he had developed
into worthy and successful manhood. At the age of sixteen he had
mastered the art of wrestling; but liking horses, and preferring the
excitement of a charioteer’s life, he had taken racing as a profession.
So successful had he become that he had accumulated a neat
fortune of a million sesterces. On this day Gyges had left his horses
and had come to the rehearsal to watch Psyche in her fascinating
movements. So delighted was he by her grace and charm that he
frequently broke out with applause. When the rehearsal was over,
and Psyche had received congratulations from the instructor and the
other dancing-girls, Gyges said to her, “Truly, O Psyche, never have I
seen thee dance so well.”
“’Tis the character I love best to portray,” answered Psyche.
“Dost thou feel too tired to walk along the Via Sacra?”
“All weariness flees at the sight of thee, O Gyges,” replied Psyche. “I
could walk until evening.”
In order to reach the Via Sacra, they passed the Flaminian Circus,
walked in the beautiful pillared porticos of Philippus and Octavia,
passed the Theatre of Marcellus, went through the Porta
Triumphalis, in the Servian wall, and entered the Forum near the
Basilica Julia. The Forum was crowded. The lovers worked their way
through the busy and noisy throng, and were soon among the shops
that bordered the Via Sacra.
“What shall I buy thee, O Psyche?” asked Gyges, when they stopped
before a jeweller’s shop.
“Nothing, my Gyges. I wish only to look at the beautiful objects
displayed here.”
“But buying a jewel hinders thee not from regarding it with
admiration.”
“True, O Gyges,” said Psyche, smiling; “but there are many things for
which I have no use. Look at that chain with the small gold links and
the hyacinth stones in the centre! Is not that graceful?”
“It may be.”
“Why ‘may be,’ O Gyges?”
“I am no judge of ornament, O Psyche,” replied Gyges, “unless it be
a decoration for harness or chariot. Sculpture interests me more.
Thine enthusiasm, however, pleases me more than the jewelry. Of a
truth, dost thou like the chain with the hyacinth stones?”
“’Tis beautiful. Thinkest thou it is very costly?”
“Shall I ask?” he suggested.
“Nay, nay,” returned Psyche, with a smile. “Raise not the jeweller’s
hopes. What heavy ear-rings are being worn now! Wouldst thou not
think that they would tear the ear? Jewelry is not adornment when it
disfigures. Dost thou not think so?”
“Ear-rings please me not,” said Gyges. “Are not those hair-nets and
bands pretty?”
“Ay, my Gyges. But look!” she added quickly. “There is a ring like the
one thou didst buy me. Dost thou remember the day we saw a
similar one in a shop in the Suburra? Thou didst ask the price. Was
not the amount one-half what thou didst pay here? Thou wert angry
that day.”
“Truly, not angry!” he protested.
“Perchance thou wert provoked,” she playfully remarked. “Truly,
however, we know that no inferior jewelry is sold here. Thou wilt
never know how proud I was when I heard that my ring was bought
here,—in this shop which senators and wealthy men patronize. Look
there, Gyges! What a beautiful set of jewels is being shown that—”
“Softly, my Psyche,” interrupted Gyges. “The purchaser of those
jewels is Nero.”
“What! Nero, who is soon to assume the manly habit?”
“Ay, my Psyche. Wouldst thou like to have a set like that?”
“Ornament does not make people happy, my Gyges,” said Psyche, as
they left the jeweller’s shop. “I am happier dressed in plain clothes,
with no ornament, than the women who recline amidst soft
cushions, and who are so loaded with jewels that they have to be
assisted when they walk. But look yonder! What a quantity of silk
that matron has bought! Doubtless a daughter is to be wed.”
Gyges greatly enjoyed Psyche’s light chatter. He allowed her to
continue unchecked in her girlish enthusiasm. Every store they
passed brought forth exclamations of pleasure from Psyche. She was
so busily engaged looking at some sandals that she did not observe
the disappearance of Gyges. He quickly returned to the jewelry
shop, made a purchase, and was again at Psyche’s side almost as
soon as she missed him.
“Where hast thou been?” she asked.
“I wished to look once more at a jewel,” he replied.
“And therefore, my Gyges, I have been speaking to myself.”
“What didst thou say?”
“I was admiring those sandals of colored leather.”
“Dost thou like them too, O Psyche?” asked Gyges, laughing. “Surely
the Via Sacra is thy celestial path. Thou standest more patient and
more wrapped in contemplation than in a temple to a god. But
come, let us to the art dealer. Let us admire the prettiest thing on
earth,—the human form.”
“Behold that small copy of the Faun of Praxiteles,” said Gyges, when
they had arrived before the sculptor’s shop. “Yonder is a copy of the
Venus of Cnidus and the Hermes of the same sculptor. But look at
this Ares! What a creation of beauty!”
“Oh, what grace, what action!” exclaimed Psyche.
“Ay,” assented Gyges, “’tis full of life. How alive and quick are the
legs and arms! What sensuous grace, what soft outlines! Yet how
heroic! ’Twas carved by a Greek. The Romans carve only fortunes
and kingdoms.”
“But tell me, why is it not sold?” asked Psyche.
“I know not. Three months have I seen it there, begging its price.
But tastes have changed, O Psyche. Busts of the Divine Augustus
are now sought. Then, too, the statues of Tiberius when he was a
lad are in demand; for his now hideous face was once handsome.
Didst thou ever see the emperor, my Psyche?”
“Not closely, my Gyges. Gannon says he is ugly.”
“The emperor may despise the games at the circus and the
gladiatorial combats,” said Gyges, “but ’twould have been better if
he had loved them more. Probably his face would not now show the
results of his dissolute life. The stories about him that are slyly
circulated in the circus are terrible, though we are not allowed to
speak of him disrespectfully. Only yesterday my stable-boy, Aldo, a
lad only fifteen years old, was lashed ten times for using the name
of Tiberius in an oath. Times have changed, O Psyche,—but we are
happy. In a few days thou shalt be the mistress of a new home. Tell
me, what dost thou wish most for a present?”
“Ah, my Gyges, thou understandest thy horses better than thou dost
a woman’s heart. Joy is lost in knowing beforehand what gift will be
received.”
“Be it as thou wilt, O Psyche. Some days ago I told thee that I
bought a house. To-day that house is ready to receive its mistress.
Shall we go there now?”
“O my lover, I have been burning with curiosity since that day!
Nothing would be more pleasing than to go there now,” said Psyche,
trembling with joy at the prospect of seeing her future home.
They left the Forum, walked around the Palatine Hill, and turned
down a narrow street near the Porta Capena. Here they stopped
before a small house.
“This is our new home, O Psyche,” said Gyges, as he knocked at the
door.
The door was opened by Nana, who gladly welcomed them.
“I have brought the bird for the new cage, O Nana,” said Gyges.
“Wilt thou make of me a prisoner, my Gyges?” asked Psyche, with a
shy smile.
“The door of this cage will always be open,” replied Gyges, laughing
merrily.
Psyche behaved like a child with a new gift. Her face was radiant. As
each newly furnished room was shown her, she burst into
exclamations of pleasure. The house consisted of a peristyle, around
which opened five small rooms. In the centre of the peristyle played
a small fountain, bordered by blooming flowers. At one end a stone
bench, large enough for only two, invitingly held open its arms.
Nana wisely left the happy lovers alone amid the flowers, and
retired.
“How happy we shall be here, O Gyges!” said Psyche, throwing her
arms around Gyges’ neck and kissing him.
“Dost thou now wonder, O my love,” he responded, “why the gods
and goddesses left the heavens and came to earth to love mortals?”
The lovers seated themselves on the marble bench and watched the
playing fountain. Borne on the perfumed breath of the flowers, the
splashing sound of the water affected the lovers with an
indescribable sense of joy. The dancing drops fell now on one side
and then on the other side of the basin, according as the wind blew
against the spouting jet. In their happy meditations the lovers saw in
the jet of water a life of pleasure breaking into drops of joy, and
reflecting, after it fell into the basin, the radiant heavens. Everything
about them was cheerful, bright, and sunny. The lovers remained
quiet and thoughtful. They built mental pictures on the peaceful
background of their new home. Gyges broke the silence by saying,
as he kissed her hand, “What beautiful hands thou hast, O my love!”
“They are no less finely moulded than thine are, O my lover. But thy
fingers and wrists are strong as iron; mine are more supple.”
“Ay, my love; thine can be broken like a tender flower. These hands
must never grow hard and coarse. Nana will do all the hard work.
Then thou must find some one to help thee.”
“Thou wilt spoil me, O Gyges. Nana and I can do everything.”
“Why canst thou not bring Lupa here? She would have a happy
home with us.”
“Poor unfortunate child!” said Psyche. “Last night she was beaten
and put out of her home. We cared for her. Canst thou, O Gyges,
provide for so many people?”
“Ay, my love,” said Gyges, cheerfully. “Charioteers are well paid. I am
doubly fortunate in being a favorite with the people. When we tire of
this house, we can buy another better, larger, grander.”
“Shall we end by living on the Palatine Hill, O my lover?” laughed
Psyche.
“Not so high are my ambitions,” said Gyges, with a smile. “I must
always see my Psyche beautiful, free from care and trouble. I must
always see on her cheek the rosy bloom which I shall try to brush
away with kisses. Lay thy head on my shoulder. My lips thirst for
kisses, O my love. Let me press thine eyes with my lips. Let me
press thy lips with mine. Are we not happy?”
“Never was the beloved of Eros happier than I am with thee now, O
my lover.”
“For the wish to kiss lips like thine, O my love, the Trojan war was
fought. The desire for a kiss changed Arethusa into a fountain,
Daphne into the aromatic laurel-tree, Adonis into the tremulous
flower of the wind. A kiss, my love, is the knot that unites the cords
of love, and therefore completes the circle of happiness.”
While Psyche rested on her lover’s bosom, Gyges slyly placed in her
hand the package which he had carried from the jeweller’s. Feeling
the object in her hand, Psyche started.
“What is that, O my lover?” she asked.
“Thou didst not like the ear-rings, my love. Perhaps thou wilt like a
golden hair-net.”
“Whilst I looked at the sandals thou didst buy a present?” she asked,
as she carefully opened the package.
“Ay, my love. A golden hair-net will require to—”
“A golden hair-net! Why, ’tis the necklace with the hyacinth stones!”
she cried with delight. “O my lover, thou art too, too good to me!”
She seated herself on his knees and mutely expressed her thanks in
the kisses she gave him.
They relapsed into silence, the happy medium in which the hearts of
lovers beat. ’Tis in silence that the leaves whisper their secrets to
the gentle zephyrs. ’Tis in silence that the butterflies tell their
thoughts to the flowers. The blossoms pour their mysterious
perfume on the wings of the air in silence. It was in silence that
Aphrodite stole the slumbering Ascanius from his home. She laid him
on a bank of violets shaded by bushes covered with luxuriant roses,
bent in reverence before his beauty.
Psyche and Gyges, silently clasped in each other’s arms, had become
transcendent beings. Sacred reveries filled their souls. The bridge
over which they walked from the past to the future was one of gold.
The stream that flowed beneath was one of crystal joy. The sun that
filled their lives was at its zenith. They seemed to hear an Hellenic
song. It was the music of their souls, singing the song of beatific
love.
Long they sat there, lost in happiness. Gyges suddenly gave a start,
and exclaimed: “Look, O my love! The fountain has stopped playing.”
They hastened to the fountain to see why the water had ceased
flowing. Gyges found a small fish caught in the opening. The little
fish was dead.
“What means this omen?” he asked, in a tone of sadness.
There flashed upon his mind that so, too, the spontaneous flow of
their happiness, which he had so lately likened to the play of the
fountain, might be checked by death.
“Is the fish dead?” she asked, affrighted.
“Ay, my love.” Then, after a long silence, he added with an air of sad
conviction, “Some one whom we love is dead.”
“Say not so, O lover,” cried Psyche. “This cannot mean anything to
us. But look! Even the sun has left us.”
“Evening is drawing near,” he sadly responded.
“Come, let us go home,” said Psyche, tearfully.
Silently they took a last look at their new home, said farewell to
Nana, went out into the street, and proceeded along the Via Appia.
When they reached the street that led to Psyche’s home, they
concluded to walk farther and view the Campagna and the hills
beyond, lit up by the setting sun.
 Chapter IV
WHEN Hera left Pompey’s Theatre, she went directly home. On the
way pleasant recollections of her children filled her mind. She
recalled Psyche as a little child. Once more she heard with the ear of
imagination difficult Greek words childishly syllabled on Psyche’s lips.
She heard again her childish voice strained with excessive happiness,
singing an old Greek song. She recalled her childish expressions of
joy and of sorrow. She thought of the small wooden doll that Psyche
had loved like a mother; of the toys and household objects endeared
to the whole family by association with Psyche’s childhood. She
thought of Psyche in the religious festivals,—a little child, clad in
pure white, her face suffused with holy zeal. She thought of her
later, when Psyche led the chorus of youths and maidens, all
carrying garlands of roses and daisies, and singing sacred melodies
to Maia, goddess of spring.
But when Psyche ceased to take part in the festivals, when
maidenhood dimmed the radiance of childhood, that was the first
vapor which veiled the sun of Hera’s happiness. However, this
waning light of childhood merged almost imperceptibly into the
silvery light of Psyche’s public career. Now even this was to be
shadowed; for womanhood, like a semi-transparent shade of
alabaster, would forever obscure the light of maidenhood.
As she walked along, she was so occupied in contemplation that she
passed a shrine of Apollo without offering a prayer. When she
became aware of this omission, she was filled with anxious
forebodings. To omit praying at Apollo’s shrine was a bad omen.
But again her thoughts reverted to her children. Her heart’s love
belonged to them. This time she thought especially of Gannon. Once
again she followed him through all the changes of his young life. The
first smile, the little outstretched hands, the first trembling footsteps,