Horatius in his anger and impatience
thrust her through with his sword, saying: "So perish every Roman woman
who shall mourn an enemy?" For this act, the victorious young man was
condemned to death, but he appealed to the people, and they mitigated
his sentence in consequence of his services to the state.
Another war followed, with the Etruscans this time, and the Albans not
behaving like true allies, their city was demolished and its
inhabitants removed to Rome, where they were assigned to the Coelian
Hill. Some of the more noble among them were enrolled among the
Patricians, and the others were added to the Plebs, who then became for
the first time an organic part of the social body, though not belonging
to the Populus Romanus (or Roman People), so called. On another
occasion Tullus made war upon the Sabines and conquered them, but
finally he offended the gods, and in spite of the fact that he
bethought himself of the good Numa and began to follow his example,
Jupiter smote him with a thunder-bolt and destroyed him and his house.
Again an interregnum followed, and again a king was chosen, this time
Ancus Marcius, a Sabine, grandson of the good Numa, a man who strove to
emulate the virtues of his ancestor. It is to be noticed that the four
kings of Rome thus far are of two classes, the warlike and peaceful
alternating in the legends.
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