Note 2 — SUNDAY READINGS.

“Pompey’s Amphitheater.” The first permanent stone theater was erected in Rome by Pompey, B. C. 55. It contained seats for 40,000, and was adorned with a profusion of gold, marble and precious stones, such as the western world had never before witnessed. That such magnificence might not seem to be lavished upon a mere luxury, a temple was attached to it dedicated to Venus the Conqueror, so placed that the seats of the theater might serve as a flight of steps to the sacred edifice. At the dedication of this famous theater Pompey treated the people to all sorts of games. There was a combat in which five hundred lions were slain; but above all, the battle of the elephants was a spectacle full of horror. Eighteen elephants were made to fight with trained bands of gladiators, and the cries of these half-reasoning beasts were such that they moved even that hardened populace to pity, and thus dampened the excitement of the day.