The young men threw themselves upon the couches around the room
and, while slaves brought round wine, chatted lightly with each
other about horses, the play presented the day before, the respective
merits of the reigning beauties of Carthage, and other similar
topics, and Malchus, who was impressed with the serious nature of
the secret conspiracy which he had just sworn to aid, could not help
being surprised at the careless gaiety of the young men, although
engaged in a conspiracy in which they risked their lives.

It was not until some minutes after the slaves had left the apartment
that the light talk and banter ceased, as Giscon rose and said:

"Now to business. Malchus has told me that an old fisherman, who
took a lead in stirring up his fellows to declare for Hannibal,
has been decoyed away from his home and murdered; his body has been
found floating in the lake, strangled. This is the nineteenth in
the course of a week. These acts are spreading terror among the
working classes, and unless they are put a stop to we can no longer
expect assistance from them.

"That these deeds are the work of the officials of the tribunals
we have no doubt. The sooner we strike the better. Matters are
getting ripe. I have eight men sworn into my section among the
weavers, and need but two more to complete it. We will instruct
our latest recruit to raise a section among the fishermen. The
sons of the man just murdered should form a nucleus. We agreed
from the first that three hundred resolute men besides ourselves
were required, and that each of us should raise a section of ten.
Malchus brings up our number here to thirty, and when all the
sections are filled up we shall be ready for action.