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had been assigned from of old, but he himself, so to speak, wrote everything else, and if it were ever necessary to direct the judges in the city as to how they should proceed to the 14.5 inquiry. For he did not permit anyone, at least in the Roman dominion, to cast their votes with an independent mind, but acting arrogantly with a certain irrational boldness, he himself regulated the future decisions after hearing the case from one of the litigants, and he would immediately and without examination reverse decisions already made, not led by any law or justice, 14.6 but openly overcome by shameful greed. For the emperor was not ashamed to take bribes, his insatiability having taken away all his sense of shame. 14.7 And often matters approved both by the senatorial council and by the emperor ended in some other 14.8 decision. For the senate sat like a picture, having authority neither over the vote nor over what was right, but assembled only for the sake of form and ancient custom, since it was not at all permitted for any of those gathered there to utter a sound; but both the emperor and his consort for the most part pretended to be at odds over the litigants, but the agreements made 14.9 between themselves regarding these matters prevailed. And if it seemed to someone that it was not safe to have won by breaking the law, this man, by giving some more gold to this emperor, would immediately secure a law that went against all 14.10 previous statutes. And if some other person should seek this very law that had been lost, the emperor in no way disdained to recall it again and re-establish it, and nothing stood firm in the certainty of power, but the scale of justice wandered, being carried about everywhere, wherever the greater weight of gold might be strong enough to pull it down; and these things lay in the public market from the Palace and bills of sale were put up not only for judicial but also for legislative power. 14.11 For those called referendarii, it was no longer enough to bring the petitions of supplicants to the emperor, and only to report to the magistrates, as was customary, whatever he might decide concerning the supplicant, but having gathered from all men the unjust argument, they would deceive Justinian with impostures and certain misleading arguments, since he was by nature susceptible to those who practice these things. 14.12 And immediately getting outside and having cornered the adversaries of those who had dealt with them, they would exact without scrutiny, with no one to defend them, as much money as would be sufficient 14.13 for them. And the soldiers who held the guard in the Palace, coming into the royal portico among the judges 14.14, would introduce the cases with a violent hand. And all, so to speak, abandoning their own station, were then traveling by their own authority on roads that were previously impassable and untrodden for them, and all affairs were conducted discordantly, not partaking of any proper name, and the state 14.15 resembled the game of "king" played by children. But I must pass over the other matters, as I said at the beginning of this account. But it shall be told what man first persuaded this emperor to take bribes while judging. 14.16 There was a certain Leo, a Cilician by birth, who was demonically zealous for avarice. This Leo became the best of all flatterers, and the sort of man to suggest an opinion to the minds of the ignorant 14.17. For he had a certain persuasiveness which worked with the tyrant's stupidity for the ruin of mankind. This man first persuaded Justinian to sell judicial decisions for money 14.18. And when this man learned to steal in the manner described, he no longer let up, but this evil, proceeding on its way, grew to a great size; and whoever was eager to bring an unjust suit against some decent person, would go straight to Leo, and having agreed that a certain portion of the disputed property would be set aside for both the tyrant and himself, would immediately depart from the Palace as the victor, improperly. 14.19 And Leo, for his part, was able to acquire very great sums of money from this source, and he became master of much land; but for the Romans, he became most responsible for bringing the state to its knees 14.20. And there was no safeguard for what had been agreed upon, not law, not oath, not documents, not an established penalty, not anything else at all

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ἀνέκαθεν ἐτετάχατο, ἀλλὰ τά τε ἄλλα ἔγραφεν αὐτὸς ὡς εἰπεῖν ἅπαντα καὶ εἴ που διατάσσειν τοὺς διαιτῶντας ἐν πόλει δεήσειεν, ὅπη ποτὲ αὐτοῖς τὰ ἐς τὴν 14.5 γνῶσιν ἰτέον εἴη. οὐ γὰρ εἴα τινὰ ἔν γε τῇῬωμαίων ἀρχῇ γνώμῃ αὐτονόμῳ τὰς ψήφους διδόναι, ἀλλὰ αὐθαδιζόμενος ἀλογίστῳ τινὶ παρρησίᾳ κρίσεις τε αὐτὸς τὰς ἐσομένας ἐρρύθμιζεν ἀκοῆς λόγον πρός του τῶν διαφερομένων λαβὼν καὶ ἀνάδικα εὐθὺς ἀβασανίστως τὰ δεδικασμένα ἐποίει οὐ νόμῳ τινὶ ἢ δικαίῳ ἠγμένος, 14.6 ἀλλ' ἀπαρακαλύπτως αἰσχροκερδείᾳ ἡσσώμενος. δωροδοκῶν γὰρ ὁ βασιλεὺς οὐκ ᾐσχύνετο, πᾶσαν αὐτοῦ τὴν αἰδῶ τῆς ἀπληστίας ἀφελομένης. 14.7 Πολλάκις δὲ τά τε τῇ συγκλήτῳ βουλῇ καὶ τῷ αὐτοκράτορι δεδοκιμασμένα ἐς ἑτέραν τινὰ ἐτελεύτησε 14.8 κρίσιν. ἡ μὲν γὰρ βουλὴ ὥσπερ ἐν εἰκόνι ἐκάθητο, οὔτε τῆς ψήφου οὔτε τοῦ καλοῦ κυρία οὖσα, σχήματος δὲ μόνου καὶ νόμου ξυνειλεγμένη παλαιοῦ εἵνεκα, ἐπεὶ οὐδὲ φωνὴν ἀφεῖναί τινα ὁτῳοῦν τῶν ἐνταῦθα ξυνειλεγμένων τὸ παράπαν ἐξῆν, ἀλλ' ὅ τε βασιλεὺς καὶ ἡ σύνοικος ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον διαλαγχάνειν μὲν ἀλλήλοιν τῶν διαφερομένων ἐσκήπτοντο, ἐνίκα δὲ τὰ 14.9 ἐν σφίσιν αὐτοῖς ὑπὲρ τούτων ξυγκείμενα. ἢν δέ τῳ δόξειεν οὐκ ἐν ἀσφαλεῖ εἶναι παρανενομηκότι νενικηκέναι, ὅδε καὶ ἄλλο τι χρυσίον τῷ βασιλεῖ τούτῳ προέμενος νόμον εὐθὺς διεπράττετο ἀπ' ἐναντίας ἁπάντων 14.10 ἐλθόντα τῶν πρόσθεν κειμένων. ἢν δὲ καί τις ἕτερος τοῦτον δὴ τὸν νόμον τὸν ἀπολωλότα ἐπιζητοίη, αὖθις αὐτὸν μετακαλεῖν τε καὶ ἀντικαθιστάναι αὐτοκράτωρ οὐδαμῆ ἀπηξίου, οὐδέν τε ἐν τῷ τῆς δυνάμεως βεβαίῳ εἱστήκει, ἀλλ' ἐπλανᾶτο περιφερομένη πανταχόσε ἡ τῆς δίκης ῥοπὴ ὅπη ἂν αὐτὴν βαρήσας ὁ πλείων χρυσὸς ἀνθέλκειν ἰσχύοι ἔκειτό τε ἐν τῷ δημοσίῳ τῆς ἀγορᾶς καὶ ταῦτα ἐκ Παλατίου καὶ προὐτίθετο οὐ δικαστικῆς μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ νομοθετικῆς πωλητήρια. 14.11 Τοῖς δὲ ῥεφερενδαρίοις καλουμένοις οὐκέτι ἀπέχρη ἀνενεγκεῖν εἰς τὸν βασιλέα τὰς τῶν ἱκετευόντων δεήσεις, ἐς δὲ τὰς ἀρχὰς ἀναγγεῖλαι μόνον, ᾗπερ εἰώθει, ὅ τι ἂν αὐτῷ ἀμφὶ τῷ ἱκέτῃ δοκῇ, ἀλλὰ ξυμφορήσαντες ἐκ πάντων ἀνθρώπων τὸν ἄδικον λόγον, φενακισμοῖς μὲν τὸνἸουστινιανὸν καὶ παραγωγαῖς τισιν ἐξηπάτων, τοῖς ταῦτα ἐπιτηδεύουσιν ὑποκείμενον φύσει. 14.12 ἔξω δὲ αὐτίκα γενόμενοι καὶ τῶν σφίσιν ὡμιληκότων τοὺς ἀντιδίκους καθείρξαντες χρήματα οὐδενὸς ἀμυνομένου ἀνεξελέγκτως ἐπράσσοντο ὅσα ἂν αὐτοῖς διαρκῆ 14.13 εἴη. καὶ στρατιῶται οἱ τὴν ἐν Παλατίῳ φρουρὰν ἔχοντες ἐν τῇ βασιλείῳ στοᾷ παρὰ τοὺς διαιτῶντας 14.14 γενόμενοι βιαίᾳ χειρὶ τὰς δίκας ἐσῆγον. πάντες τε ὡς εἰπεῖν τὴν αὑτῶν ἐκλιπόντες τάξιν ὁδοὺς τότε κατ' ἐξουσίαν ἐβάδιζον ἀπόρους τε καὶ ἀστιβήτους σφίσι τὰ πρότερα οὔσας, καὶ τὰ πράγματα πλημμελῶς πάντα ἐφέρετο, οὐδὲ ὀνόματός τινος ἰδίου μεταλαχόντα, ἐῴκει 14.15 τε ἡ πολιτεία βασιλίδι παιζόντων παιδίων. ἀλλὰ τὰ μὲν ἄλλα μοι παριτέον, ὥσπερ τοῦδε ἀρχόμενος τοῦ λόγου ὑπεῖπον. λελέξεται δὲ ὅστις ἀνὴρ πρῶτος δικάζοντα δωροδοκεῖν τὸν βασιλέα τοῦτον ἀνέπεισε. 14.16 Λέων ἦν τις, Κίλιξ μὲν γένος, ἐς δὲ φιλοχρηματίαν δαιμονίως ἐσπουδακώς. οὗτος ὁ Λέων κράτιστος ἐγένετο κολάκων ἁπάντων, καὶ οἷος ταῖς τῶν ἀμαθῶν 14.17 διανοίαις τὸ δόξαν ὑποβαλέσθαι. πειθὼ γάρ οἵ τινα ξυναιρομένην ἐς τοῦ τυράννου τὴν ἀβελτερίαν ἐπὶ φθόρῳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων εἶχεν. οὗτος ἀνὴρ πρῶτοςἸουστινιανὸν ἀναπείθει ἀπεμπολεῖν χρημάτων τὰς δί14.18 κας. ἐπειδή τε κλέπτειν ὅδε ὁ ἀνὴρ τρόπῳ τῷ εἰρημένῳ ἔγνω, οὐκέτι ἀνίει, ἀλλ' ὁδῷ προϊὸν τὸ κακὸν τοῦτο ἐπὶ μέγα ἐχώρει, ὅστις τε δίκην λαχεῖν ἄδικον τῶν τινι ἐπιεικῶν ἐν σπουδῇ εἶχεν, εὐθὺς παρὰ τὸν Λέοντα ᾔει, καὶ μοῖραν τῶν ἀντιλεγομένων τινὰ ὁμολογήσας τῷ τε τυράννῳ καὶ αὐτῷ κείσεσθαι, αὐτίκα νενικηκὼς, οὐ δέον, ἀπηλλάσσετο ἐκ τοῦ Παλατίου. 14.19 καὶ Λέων μὲν χρήματα ἐνθένδε περιβαλέσθαι μεγάλα κομιδῆ ἴσχυσε, χώρας τε πολλῆς κύριος γέγονε,Ῥωμαίοις δὲ τὴν πολιτείαν αἰτιώτατος γέγονεν ἐς γόνυ 14.20 ἐλθεῖν. ἦν τε οὐδὲν τοῖς ξυμβεβηκόσιν ὀχύρωμα, οὐ νόμος, οὐχ ὅρκος, οὐ γράμματα, οὐ ποινὴ ξυγκειμένη, οὐκ ἄλλο τῶν πάντων