The plays of Plautus and Terence were acted on temporary wooden
stages. The first stone theatre was built by Pompey in 55 B. C., near
the Campus Martius. It was a fine building, with a seating capacity of
forty thousand. The seats were arranged in a semicircle, as at
present, the orchestra being reserved for the Senators and other
distinguished persons. Then came fourteen rows of seats for the
Equites, and behind these sat the ordinary crowd.

The CIRCUS MAXIMUS. between the Palatine and Aventine Hills, was built
for chariot races, boxing, and gymnastic contests. It was an immense
structure, with galleries three stories high, and a canal called
Eurípus, and it accommodated one hundred thousand spectators. In the
centre Caesar erected an obelisk one hundred and thirty-two feet high,
brought from Egypt. The seats were arranged as in the theatre. Six
kinds of games were celebrated: 1st, chariot racing; 2d, a sham-fight
between young men on horseback; 3d, a sham-fight between infantry and
cavalry; 4th, athletic sports of all kinds; 5th, fights with wild
beasts, such as lions, boars, etc.; 6th, sea fights. Water was let
into the canal to float ships. The combatants were captives, or
criminals condemned to death, who fought until one party was killed,
unless saved by the kindness of the Emperor.


A TRIUMPHAL PROCESSION.

The Imperator, when he returned from a successful campaign, was
sometimes allowed to enjoy a triumphal procession, provided he had
been Dictator, Consul, or Praetor. No one desiring a triumph ever
entered the city until the Senate decided whether or not he deserved
one. When a favorable decision was reached, the temples were all