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Shakespeare, in a familiar passage, describes a race between him and Julius Cæsar, Cassius being made the speaker: Macaulay, in one of his "Lays of Ancient Rome," describes the scene which followed after Horatius had been left alone to face the troops of Lars Porsena, his codefenders having escaped across the bridge: "Never, I ween, did swimmer, In such an evil case, Struggle through such a raging flood Safe to the landing place, But his limbs were borne up bravely, By the brave heart within, And our good father Tiber Bore bravely up his chin."
In haste the fathers gather great supplies of corn against a siege; credit and debt are forgotten; patrician and plebeian join hands as Porsena reaches Janiculum, and three heroic figures of romance stand forth from a host of heroes.
So far as true history can guess, the Romans really did have kings and drove them out, but there are signs that, though Porsena was a real king, the war was not so honorable to the Romans as they said, for he took the city and made them give up all their weapons to him, leaving them nothing but their tools for husbandry. But they liked to forget their misfortunes.
In a war against the Veientians and Tarquiniensians, he engages in single combat with Aruns the son of Tarquin the Proud, and expires at the same time with his adversary. The ladies mourn for him a whole year. The Capitol dedicated. Porsena, king of Clusium, undertakes a war in favour of the Tarquins. Bravery of Horatius Cocles, and of Mucius. Porsena concludes a peace on the receipt of hostages.
The others were mixed up with the fight, and were in considerable danger, when Aruns, Porsena's son, came to the rescue, put the enemy to the rout, and saved the Romans. When the girls were brought before Porsena, he asked which it was that had conceived the attempt to escape and encouraged the others.
"I won't mess, truly, Aunt Maria," and thankful at receiving even this grudging permission, she flew out into the tiny kitchen to the pleasant task of candy-making, reciting, as she rattled among the pots and pans: "Lars Porsena of Clusium, By the Nine Gods he swore That the great house of Tarquin Should suffer wrong no more.
Let us carry on the war in the same circumstances, and situations, in which we were before peace was mentioned. Let neither the Roman people blame the convention of the consuls, nor us the faith of the Roman people. Will ye never want an excuse for not standing to the compacts which ye make on being defeated? Ye gave hostages to Porsena: ye clandestinely withdrew them.
They called him Lars Porsena, for had he not fought gallantly? Then he was Gustavus Adolphus, for had he not come to the aid of the Protestants when they were in sore need? And then things got mixed and the "Royal Swede" was Lars Adolphus or Gustavus Porsena Viking all in one.
If the Etrurians possessed the same spirit which formerly Porsena and their ancestors once had, there was nothing to prevent their obliging the Romans, driven from all the lands on this side of the Tiber, to fight for their own existence, and not for the intolerable dominion which they assumed over Italy.
He put much water in our milk, to the furious disgust of Sabz Ali, and he failed to provide the coolies I had ordered; I therefore reported him to Chattar Singh, and sent my messengers forth, like another Lars Porsena, to catch coolies. This was early on Tuesday morning, and a sufficient number of ponies and coolies having been got together by 5.30, we started.
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