The Reign Of A Glutton

The death of Nero cut all the reins of order in Rome. Until now, as

stated in a preceding tale, some form of hereditary succession had been

followed, the emperors being of the family of Caesar, though not his

direct descendants. Now confusion reigned supreme. The army took upon

itself the task of nominating the emperor, and within less than two

years four emperors came in succession to the royal seat, each the

general f one of the armies of Rome.



Galba, who headed the revolt against Nero, and succeeded him on the

throne, reigned but seven months, being overthrown by Otho, who

conspired against him with the Praetorian guards. The new emperor reigned

only three months. The army of Germany proclaimed their

general--Vitellius--emperor, marched against Otho, and defeated him. He

ended the contest by committing suicide. Vitellius reigned less than a

year. The army of the East rebelled against him, proclaimed their

general--Vespasian--emperor, and a new civil war broke out, which was

closed by the speedy downfall of Vitellius. It is the story of this man,

emperor for less than a year, which we have here to describe.



The three men named were alike unfit to reign over Rome. Galba was very

old and very incompetent, Otho was a declared profligate, and Vitellius

was a glutton of such extraordinary powers that his name has become a

synonyme for voracity. He had by his arts and his skill as a courtier

made himself a favorite with four emperors of widely differing

character,--Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, and Nero. The suicide of Otho

had now made him emperor himself, and he gave way without stint to the

peculiar vice which has made his name despicable, that of inordinate

love of the pleasures of the table.



After the death of Otho, says Tacitus, "Vitellius, sunk in sloth, and

growing every day more contemptible, advanced by slow marches towards

the city of Rome. In all the villas and municipal towns through which he

passed, carousing festivals were sufficient to retard a man abandoned to

his pleasures. He was followed by an unwieldy multitude, not less than

sixty thousand men in arms, all corrupted by a life of debauchery. The

number of retainers and followers of the army was still greater, all

disposed to riot and insolence, even beyond the natural bent of the

vilest slaves.



"The crowd was still increased by a conflux of senators and Roman

knights, who came from Rome to greet the prince on his way; some

impelled by fear, others to pay their court, and numbers, not to be

thought sullen or disaffected. All went with the current. The populace

rushed forth in crowds, accompanied by an infamous band of pimps,

players, buffoons, and charioteers, by their utility in vicious

pleasures all well known and dear to Vitellius.



"To supply so vast a body with provisions the colonies and municipal

cities were exhausted; the fruits of the earth, then ripe and fit for

use, were carried off; the husbandman was plundered; and his land, as if

it were an enemy's country, was laid waste and ruined."






The followers of Vitellius were many of them Germans and Gauls, so

savage of aspect as to create consternation in Rome. "Covered with the

skins of savage beasts, and wielding large and massive spears, the

spectacle which they exhibited to the Roman citizens was fierce and

hideous." They were as savage as they looked, and many conflicts took

place both outside and inside of Rome, in which numbers of citizens were

slaughtered. In fact, the march of Vitellius to Rome was almost like

that of a conqueror through a captive province.



The conduct of Vitellius and his army in Rome was an abhorrent spectacle

of sloth and licentiousness. All discipline vanished. The Germans and

Gauls entered into the vilest habits of the city, and by their

disorderly lives brought on an epidemic disease which swept thousands of

them away. Vitellius, lost in sluggishness and gluttony, wasted the

funds of the state on his pleasures, and laid severe taxes to raise new

funds. "To squander with wild profusion," says Tacitus, "was the only

use of money known to Vitellius. He built a set of stables for the

charioteers, and kept in the circus a constant spectacle of gladiators

and wild beasts; in this manner dissipating with prodigality, as if his

treasury overflowed with riches."



While the Vitellian army was indulging in riot, bloodshed, and vice,

and the populace was kept amused by the frightful gladiatorial shows,

the emperor spent his days in a sloth and gluttony that stand unrivalled

in imperial records. We may quote from Whyte-Melville's romance of "The

Gladiators" a sketch of a Vitellian banquet whose characteristic

features are taken from exact history:



"A banquet with Vitellius was no light and simple repast. Leagues of sea

and miles of forest had been swept to furnish the mere groundwork of the

entertainment. Hardy fishermen had spent their nights on the heaving

wave, that the giant turbot might flap its snowy flakes on the emperor's

table broader than its broad dish of gold. Many a swelling hill, clad in

the dark oak coppice, had echoed to ringing shout of hunter and

deep-mouthed bay of hound, ere the wild boar yielded his grim life by

the morass, and the dark, grisly carcass was drawn off to provide a

standing dish that was only meant to gratify the eye. Even the peacock

roasted in its feathers was too gross a dainty for epicures who studied

the art of gastronomy under Caesar; and that taste would have been

considered rustic in the extreme which could partake of more than the

mere fumes and savor of so substantial a dish. A thousand nightingales

had been trapped and killed, indeed, for this one supper, but brains and

tongues were all they contributed to the banquet; while even the wing of

a roasted hare would have been considered far too coarse and common food

for the imperial board.



"It would be useless to go into the details of such a banquet as that

which was placed before the guests of Caesar. Wild boar, pasties, goats,

every kind of shell-fish, thrushes, beccaficoes, vegetables of all

descriptions, and poultry, were removed to make way for the pheasant,

the guinea-hen, the capon, venison, ducks, woodcocks, and turtle-doves.

Everything that could creep, fly, or swim, and could boast a delicate

flavor when cooked, was pressed into the service of the emperor; and

when appetite was appeased and could do no more, the strongest

condiments and other remedies were used to stimulate fresh hunger and

consume a fresh supply of superfluous dainties."



Deep drinking followed, merely to stimulate fresh hunger. The disgusting

story is even told that the imperial glutton was in the habit of taking

an emetic to empty his stomach, that he might begin a fresh course of

gluttony.



Certain artists in the preparation of original dishes employed

themselves in devising new and appetizing compounds of food for the

table of Vitellius. They were sure of an ample reward if they should

succeed in pleasing the imperial palate. Failure, however, was attended

by a severe penance. The artist was not permitted to eat any food but

his own unsuccessful dish until he had atoned for his failure by a

success.



While Vitellius was thus sunk in sloth and gluttony his destiny was on

its march. A terrible and disgraceful retribution awaited him. He had

never been emperor of all the Roman empire. The army of Syria had

declared for Vespasian, its general; and while Vitellius had been

wasting his means and ruining his army by permitting it to indulge in

every vice and excess, his rival in the East was carefully laying his

plans to insure success. He finally seized Alexandria, thus being able

at will to starve Rome, by cutting off its food-supply; and sent

Antonius Primus, his principal general, with a strong force to Italy.



The progress of Antonius in Italy was rapid. City after city fell into

his hands. The fleet at Ravenna declared for Vespasian. The general of

Vitellius sought to carry his whole army over to Antonius, but found his

men more faithful than himself. The Vitellians were defeated in two

battles; Cremona was taken and destroyed; all was at risk; and yet

Vitellius remained absorbed in luxury. "Hid in the recess of his garden,

he indulged his appetite, forgetting the past, the present, and all

solicitude about future events; like those nauseous animals that know no

care, and, while they are supplied with food, remain in one spot, torpid

and insensible."



At length awakened from his stupor, Vitellius took some steps for

defence. He was too late. His men deserted their ranks; the army of

Antonius steadily advanced. Filled with terror, the emperor called an

assembly of the people and offered to resign. The people in violent

uproar refused to accept his resignation. He then proposed to seek a

retreat in his brother's house. This the populace also opposed and

forced him to return to the palace.



This attempted abdication brought civil war into the city. Sabinus, the

brother of Vespasian, raised a force and took possession of the

Capitol. He was besieged here, and in the conflict that ensued the

Capitol was set on fire and burned to the ground. It was the second time

this venerable edifice had been consumed by the flames. Sabinus was

taken prisoner, and was murdered by the mob.



News of this revolt and its disastrous end hastened the march of

Antonius. Once more, as in the far-off days of the Gaulish invasion,

Rome was to be attacked and taken by a hostile army. It was assailed at

three points, each of which was obstinately defended. Finally an

entrance was made at the Collinian gate, and the battle was transferred

to the open streets, in which the Vitellians defended themselves as

obstinately as before.



And now was seen an extraordinary spectacle. While two armies--one from

the East, one from the North--contended fiercely for the possession of

Rome, the populace of that city flocked to behold the fight, as if it

was a gladiatorial struggle got up for their diversion, and nothing in

which they had any personal interest. Tacitus says,--



"Whenever they saw the advantage inclining to either side, they favored

the contestants with shouts and theatrical applause. If the men fled

from their ranks, to take shelter in shops or houses, they roared to

have them dragged forth and put to death like gladiators for their

diversion. While the soldiers were intent on slaughter, these miscreants

were employed in plundering. The greatest part of the booty fell to

their share. Rome presented a scene truly shocking, a medley of savage

slaughter and monstrous vice; in one place war and desolation; in

another bathing, riot, and debauchery. The whole city seemed to be

inflamed with frantic rage, and at the same time intoxicated with

bacchanalian pleasures. In the midst of rage and massacre, pleasure knew



no intermission. A dreadful carnage seemed to be a spectacle added to

the public games."



It was a spectacle certainly without its like in the history of nations.



The battle ended in the complete overthrow of the army of Vitellius. The

camp was taken, and all that defended it were slain. And now took place

a scene which recalls that of the last days of Nero. Vitellius, seeing

that all was lost, was in an agony of apprehension. He left the palace

by a private way to seek shelter in his wife's house on the Aventine.

Then irresolution brought him back to the palace, which he found

deserted. The slaves had fled. The dead silence that reigned filled him

with terror. All was solitude and desolation. He wandered pitiably from

room to room, and finally, weary and utterly wretched, sought a humble

hiding-place. Here he was discovered and dragged forth.



And now the populace, who had lately refused his deposition, turned upon

him with the bitterest insults and contumely. With his hands bound

behind him and his garment torn, the obese old glutton was dragged

through crowds who treated him with scoffs and words of contempt, not a

voice of pity or sympathy being heard. A German soldier struck at him

with his sword, and, missing his aim, cut off the ear of a tribune. He

was killed on the spot.



As Vitellius was thus dragged onward, his captors, with swords pointed

at his throat, forced him to raise his head and expose his bloated face

to scorn and derision. They made him look at his statues, which were

being tumbled to the ground. They pointed out to him the place where

Galba had perished. They pricked his body with their weapons. With

endless contumely they brought him to the public charnel, where the body

of Sabinus had been thrown among those of the vilest malefactors.



A single expression is recorded as coming from his lips. "And yet," he

said, to a tribune who insulted his misery, "I have been your

sovereign."



His torment soon ended. The rabble fell on him with swords and clubs and

he died under a multitude of wounds. Even after his death those who had

worshipped him in the height of his power continued to shower marks of

rage and contempt upon his remains. Thus perished one of the most

despicable of all the emperors who disgraced Rome, to make room for one

whose wisdom and virtue would make still more contemptible the excesses

of his gluttonous predecessor.