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BRITANNICUS AND HIS SONG 179
words. She had read the beautiful passage about obeying the
ordinances of man for the Lord's sake, and putting to silence
by well-doing the ignorance of foolish men. And pausing
there, she asked ' whether Octavia was interested in it, and
whether she should continue.'
'Yes, Tryphseua,' she said, 'continue this strange letter.
How different it is from the treatise of Seneca which you
were reading to me the other day ! There rings through it
I know not what accent of elevation and sincerity.'
The girl then read the noble advice to slaves, and Octavia
no longer wondered that Christian slaves so invariably deserved
the comprehensive epithet offrugi. How well would
it be if the worthless multitude of the slave population the
cunning veteratores, the impudent vernce, the abject coprece
the pampered minions of luxury, the frivolous Greeklings
could act in the spirit of such exhortations !
Then she read the duty of husbands towards their wives,
and of wives towards their husbands. Octavia bowed her
head. She thought of all the numberless divorces ;
of the
ladies who reckoned their years by the number of their husbands
;
of the scandals caused by the women who stooped to
court gladiators and charioteers ;
of the fires of hell which
Nero's unfaithfulness had kindled on her own hearth. She
could think of the home of Psetus Thrasea as happy; but
scarcely of another except that of Pomponia and Pomponia
was a Christian.
Tryphsena had just begun the following passage :
'
Finally, be ye all like-minded
'
when Britannicus entered. He did not know what was being
read, and Octavia put her finger on her lip,
and made a sign
to him to sit down and listen.
The slave-girl continued
'Finally, be ye all like-minded, compassionate, loving as brethren, tenderhearted,
humble-minded ;
not rendering evil for evil, or reviling for reviling ;
but contrariwise blessing ;
for hereunto were ye called, that ye should inherit
a blessing. For,
He that would love life,
And see good days,
Let him refrain his tongue from evil,
And his lips that they speak no guile
:
And let him turn away from evil, and do good ;
Let him seek peace, and pursue it.'