I felt almost myself.
Under the arcade we found Commodus explaining the merits of a new chariot made after his own design.

It was a beautiful specimen of the vehicle- maker's art, its pole tipped with a bronze lion's head exquisitely chased, the pole itself of ash, the axle and wheel-spokes of cornel-wood, all the woodwork gilded, the hubs and tires of wrought bronze, also gilded, the front of the chariot-body of hammered bronze, embossed with figures depicting two of the Labors of Hercules; every part profusely decorated and the whole effect very tasteful.
Commodus ignored all these beauties entirely and discoursed of its measurements.
"Come close, Hedulio," he commanded, "this is just what I wanted you for." The jockeys, athletes, acrobats and mimes about him made way for Tanno and me and some other gentlemen.
"I have always had very definite theories of chariot construction," Commodus went on.

"I hold that the popular makes are all bad; in fact I am positively of the opinion that the tendencies in chariot building have been all in the wrong direction for centuries.

They have followed and intensified the traditions from ancient days, when chariots were chiefly used for battle and only once in a while for racing.
"For battle purposes chariots, of course, were built for speed and quick turning, but after that, to avoid upsets.

When a man was going to drive a pair of half-wild stallions across trackless country, over gullies and boulders, through bushes, up and down hill, often along a gravelly hillside, he saw to it that his chariot would keep right side up no matter how it bounced and tilted and swerved.