A Source Book for Ancient Church History - Mirrors

165the rank of the venatores. And they, indeed, rejoiced that theyshould have incurred any one of their Lord's passions.But He who had said, “Ask and ye shall receive,” gave to them,when they asked, that death which each one had desired. Forwhen they had been discoursing among themselves about theirwish as to their martyrdom, Saturninus, indeed, had professedthat he wished that he might be thrown to all the beasts; doubtlessthat he might wear a more glorious crown. Therefore, in thebeginning of the exhibition he and Revocatus made trial of the [147]leopard, and, moreover, upon the scaffold they were harassed bythe bear. Saturus, however, held nothing in greater horror thana bear; but he thought he would be finished by one bite of aleopard. Therefore, when a wild boar was supplied, it was thehuntsman who had supplied that boar, and not Saturus, who wasgored by that same beast and who died the day after the shows.Saturus only was drawn out; and when he had been bound on thefloor near to a bear, the bear would not come forth from his den.And so Saturus for the second time was recalled, unhurt.Moreover, for the young women the devil, rivalling their sexalso in that of the beasts, prepared a very fierce cow, providedespecially for that purpose contrary to custom. And so, strippedand clothed with nets, they were led forth. The populace shudderedas they saw one young woman of delicate frame, andanother with breasts still dropping from her recent childbirth. So,being recalled, they were unbound. Perpetua was first led in.She was tossed and fell on her loins; and when she saw her tunictorn from her side, she drew it over her as a veil for her thighs,mindful of her modesty rather than of her suffering. Then shewas called for again, and bound up her dishevelled hair; for it wasnot becoming for a martyr to suffer with dishevelled hair, lestshe should appear to be mourning in her glory. She rose up, andwhen she saw Felicitas crushed she approached and gave her herhand and lifted her up. And both of them stood together; and thebrutality of the populace being appeased, they were recalled to