His ruddy cheeks had turned very pale, as had those of Iasus.
"What has happened ?" thundered Valeria, in a tone that showed that a sorry scene was impending.
The slaves fell on their knees; cowered, in fact, on the rugs at the lady's feet.
"_A! A! A!_ Lady! Mercy!" they all began in a breath.

"The murrhina vase! It is broken!" "Who broke it ?" cried their mistress, casting lightning glances from one to another.
Now the truth had been, that while Agias was coming through a door covered with a curtain, carrying the vase, Iasus had carelessly blundered against him and caused the catastrophe.

But there had been no other witnesses to the accident; and when Iasus saw that his mistress's anger would promptly descend on somebody, he had not the moral courage to take the consequences of his carelessness.

What amounted to a frightful crime was committed in an instant.
"Agias stumbled and dropped the vase," said Iasus, telling the truth, but not the whole truth.
"Send for Alfidius the _lorarius_,"[43] raged Valeria, who, with the promptness that characterizes a certain class of women, jumped at a conclusion and remained henceforth obstinate.

"This shall not happen again! Oh! my vase! my vase! I shall never get another one like it! It was one of the spoils of Mithridates, and"-- here her eye fell on Agias, cringing and protesting his innocence in a fearful agony.
[43] Whipper; many Roman houses had such a functionary, and he does not seem to have lacked employment.
"Stand up, boy! Stop whining! Of course you broke the vase.