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of life he thought would befall him, if all did not keep vigil according to his standard and fight for the commonwealth, so that not only would the things that had once distinguished the Romans and had been utterly destroyed by the indolence of their predecessors be at stake, but that they might also take those of the enemy in addition. And so he subdued the Persians and Chosroes the unruly, first with gold, and then when he fought back, with iron; and against the Vandals, a Germanic nation, who were devouring Libya, by suddenly launching a war, in only two months he both conquered them and having taken them in war, subjected them to the empire, handing over Gelimer himself, along with the nobles of the nation whom the barbarians called Astingi, with his wife and children and vast wealth, just like the most useless household slaves, into servitude to the Romans. And as this seemed a small thing to him, he attacked the Getae who were tearing apart sacred Rome and all that was subject to her, and were insulting the ancient patricians of the Romans, and he seized them with all their households, and subjected them along with Vittiges the tyrant, and to Rome he restored the things of Rome. 56 And when he threatened to be vigilant also against the Sigambri, whom those around the Rhine and Rhone now call Franks after their leader, Chosroes again, as if nothing had just been done, unexpectedly poured into the Syrian provinces, while the Roman forces were fighting for Libya, as it was being shaken by the Maurusii, and for the whole West, as it was being thrown into confusion by the Getae, and for Colchis and the Caucasus, while the Scythians were causing trouble, and for Thrace, while countless beasts were harassing it. And the emperor was sufficient for all the wars, as if fighting against one, but the prefecture was beset by divinely-sent storms, with the subjects renouncing their real property on account of poverty, 220 and the tax collectors no longer being able to bring in the taxes to the rulers, since there were no taxpayers. But nevertheless, the prefect at the time was compelled to provide for such great and relentless expenses. Naturally, therefore, one after another succeeding to the office out of necessity in continuous and burdensome succession, tore it apart. And the staff, "of no account and of no number," had been completely destroyed; for when the containers are destroyed, it was likely that the contents would be destroyed. 57 And somewhere the divine power again compels me, leading me to the recollection of countless evils. A certain John, hailing from Mazaca—the city Tiberius Caesar renamed Caesarea, after he had summoned Archelaus, king of the Cappadocians, to Rome by a trick and detained him there; and he first made Cappadocia, which was not so before, a tributary province for the Romans—this man, as I said, hailed from that place, and being numbered among the scriniarii of the magisterial office, craftily, as a Cappadocian would, he wormed his way in and became intimate with the emperor, and after promising to do things for the state beyond belief, he advanced to the logothetes. Then from there, as if by a stepping stone, having risen to the so-called illustres and not yet being known for what sort of person he was by nature, he was suddenly snatched up to the prefectural honor. For not even later did the emperor, being good and reasonable, endure entrusting the office to wicked rulers, having now learned and discovered by their deeds that "Cappadocians are always base, but having obtained a belt, they are baser; and for the sake of gain, they are basest; but if they should twice and thrice seize a great wagon, then indeed at last they are baser-than-basest." Thus then, as I have just said, the wicked Cappadocian, having seized public power, wrought disasters, first, by setting forth bonds and fetters and foot-shackles and irons, and by setting apart inside the 222 praetorian court a private prison in the dark for the punishments of those serving under him, like a cowardly Phalaris, very strong only against his slaves, and there he confined those being tortured, exempting no one of whatever fortune from his torments, and hanging up simply without investigation those who were merely accused of having gold, and releasing them either naked or dead. And of these things the people are a witness, but I know, having become a spectator and being present at the deeds; and how, I will tell. A certain Antiochus, already an old man in age, was reported to him to be the owner of some gold. Having therefore seized him with ropes

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ζωῆς ᾤετο συμβαίνειν αὐτῷ εἰ μὴ πάντες κατ' αὐτὸν ἀγρυπνοῖεν καὶ ὑπερμάχοιντο τῆς πολιτείας ὡς μὴ τὰ Ῥωμαίοις διενεγκόντα ποτέ, εἶτα ῥᾳστώνῃ τῶν ἔμπροσθεν ἐξολωλότα μόνα, ἀλλ' ἔτι καὶ τὰ πολεμίων πρὸς ἐκείνοις λαμβάνοιεν. καὶ Πέρσας μὲν οὖν καὶ Χοσρόην τὸν ἄτακτον χρυσίῳ μὲν πρῶτον, εἶτα παλιμμαχοῦντα καὶ σιδήρῳ κατέχωσεν· Βανδίλοις δέ, ἔθνει Γερμανικῷ, τὴν Λιβύην κατεσθίουσιν, πόλεμον ἐξαπίνης ἐπιχέων, ἐν μόναις δύο σελήναις εἷλέ τε αὐτοὺς καὶ πολέμῳ λαβὼν παρεστήσατο τῇ βασιλείᾳ, Γελίμερα αὐτὸν σὺν τοῖς ἐνδόξοις τοῦ ἔθνους οὓς ἐκάλουν Ἀστίγγους οἱ βάρβαροι γαμετῇ τε καὶ παισὶ καὶ πλούτῳ βαθεῖ, καθάπερ οἰκέτας ἀχρειοτάτους, πρὸς δουλείαν Ῥωμαίοις ἐκδούς. μικροῦ δὲ τούτου φανέντος αὐτῷ, Γέταις τήν τε ἱερὰν Ῥώμην καὶ πάντα ὅσα ὑπ' ἐκείνην ἐτέλει διασπῶσιν, Ῥωμαίων τε τοὺς ἀνέκαθεν εὐπατρίδας ὑβρίζουσιν ἐπελθὼν ἥρπασεν αὐτοὺς πανεστίους σύν τε Οὐϊττίγει τῷ τυράννῳ παρεστήσατο, τῇ δὲ Ῥώμῃ τὰ Ῥώμης ἀπέσωσεν. 56 Ὡς δὲ καὶ Συγάμβροις ἐπαγρυπνεῖν ἠπείλει Φράγγους αὐτοὺς ἐξ ἡγεμόνος καλοῦσιν ἐπὶ τοῦ παρόντος οἱ περὶ Ῥῆνον καὶ Ῥοδανόν, αὖθις Χοσρόης, ὡς μηδενὸς ἄρτι πραχθέντος, ἐπὶ τὰς Συρίας ἀπροόπτως ἐξεχύθη, τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν δυνάμεων Λιβύης τε πρὸς Μαυρουσίων σειομένης καὶ τῆς ἑσπέρας πρὸς Γετῶν ὅλης ταραττομένης ὑπερμαχουσῶν, Κόλχους τε καὶ τὸν Καύκασον Σκυθῶν καὶ τὴν Θρᾴκην μυρίων ὅσων θηρίων ἐνοχλούντων. καὶ ὁ μὲν βασιλεὺς ἤρκει πρὸς πάντας τοὺς πολέμους, ὡς εἰ πρὸς ἕνα μαχόμενος, ἡ δὲ ἐπαρχότης θεηλάτοις συνείχετο θυέλλαις, τῶν μὲν ὑπηκόων ταῖς ἀκινήτοις κτήσεσι δι' ἔνδειαν 220 ἀπολεγόντων, τῶν δὲ πρακτόρων μηκέτι τοὺς φόρους εἰσάγειν, οὐκ ὄντων ὑποτελῶν, τοῖς κρατοῦσιν ἰσχυόντων. ὑπουργεῖν δὲ ὅμως ταῖς δαπάναις τοσαύταις οὔσαις καὶ οὕτως ἀνενδότοις ὁ κατὰ καιρὸν ὕπαρχος συνωθεῖτο. εἰκότως οὖν ἄλλος ἐξ ἄλλου συνεχεῖς ὁμοῦ καὶ βαρεῖς ἐξ ἀνάγκης διαδεχόμενοι τὴν ἀρχὴν διέσπασαν. ἡ δὲ τάξις «οὐδ' ἐν λόγῳ οὐδ' ἐν ἀριθμῷ,» ἀπωλώλει δὲ παντελῶς· τῶν γὰρ περιεχόντων ἀπολλυμένων, εἰκὸς ἦν ἀπολέσθαι τὰ περιεχόμενα. 57 Καί πού μέ τ' αὖ τὸ δαιμόνιον συνωθεῖ πρὸς ἀνάμνησιν ἐξάγον μυρίων κακῶν. Ἰωάννης τις ἐκ Μαζάκων ὁρμώμενος Καισάρειαν τὴν πόλιν Τιβέριος Καῖσαρ μετωνόμασεν, Ἀρχέλαον τῶν Καππαδοκῶν βασιλέα δόλῳ μεταστειλάμενος ἐν τῇ Ῥώμῃ καὶ κατασχὼν ἐν αὐτῇ· τὴν δὲ Καππαδοκίαν, οὐκ οὖσαν ἄνωθεν, πρῶτος ἐπαρχίαν Ῥωμαίοις ὑπόφορον ἀπέφηνεν-οὗτος ὥρμητο μέν, ὡς ἔφην, ἐξ ἐκείνης, τοῖς δὲ τῆς στρατηγίδος ἀρχῆς σκρινιαρίοις συναριθμούμενος, δολερῶς, οἷα Καππαδόκης, παρεισδὺς οἰκειοῦται τῷ βασιλεῖ καὶ κρείττονα πίστεως ἐπαγγειλάμενος πρᾶξαι ὑπὲρ τῆς πολιτείας εἰς λογοθέτας προῆλθεν. εἶτ' ἐκεῖθεν, ὥσπερ κατ' ἐπιβάθραν, ἐπὶ τοὺς λεγομένους ἰλλουστρίους ἀνελθὼν καὶ μήπω γνωσθεὶς ὁποῖός τίς ἐστι τὴν φύσιν ἀθρόως εἰς τὴν ὕπαρχον ἀνηρπάσθη τιμήν. οὐδὲ γὰρ ὕστερον ὑπέμενεν ὁ βασιλεύς, καλὸς καὶ ἐπιεικὴς τυγχάνων, πονηροῖς ἄρχουσι καταπιστεῦσαι τὴν ἀρχήν, ἤδη μαθὼν καὶ τοῖς ἔργοις εὑρὼν ὡς «Καππαδόκαι φαῦλοι μὲν ἀεί, ζώνης δὲ τυχόντες φαυλότεροι· κέρδους δ' εἵνεκα φαυλότατοι· ἢν δ' ἄρα δὶς καὶ τρὶς μεγάλης δράξωνται ἀπήνης, δή ῥα τότ' εἰς ὥρας φαυλεπιφαυλότεροι.» οὕτως οὖν ὡς ἔφθην εἰπών, ὁ πονηρὸς Καππαδόκης, δυνάμεως ἐπιλαβόμενος δημοσίας, ἀπηργάσατο συμφοράς, πρῶτον μὲν δεσμὰ καὶ πέδας καὶ ποδοκάκας καὶ σίδηρα προθείς, ἔνδον τῆς 222 πραιτωρίας αὐλῆς ἰδιωτικὴν ἐν σκότῳ φυλακὴν ἀφορίσας ταῖς ποιναῖς τῶν ὑπ' αὐτῷ τελούντων, Φάλαρις ὥσπερ ἄνανδρος καὶ μόνοις τοῖς δούλοις ἰσχυρότατος, ἐκεῖ τε ἐνείργων τοὺς πιεζομένους, οὐδένα τύχης οἵας οὖν ἐξαιρούμενος τῶν αἰκισμῶν, ἀναρτῶν τε ἁπλῶς ἀζητήτως τοὺς μόνον ἔχειν χρυσίον διαβαλλομένους καὶ ἢ γυμνοὺς ἢ νεκροὺς ἀπολύων. καὶ τούτων μάρτυς μὲν ὁ δῆμος, ἐγὼ δὲ οἶδα θεωρὸς γενόμενος καὶ παρὼν τοῖς πραττομένοις· καὶ ὅπως, ἐρῷ. Ἀντίοχός τις, ἤδη γέρων τὴν ἡλικίαν, ἐμηνύθη αὐτῷ χρυσίου δεσπότης εἶναί τινος. συσχὼν οὖν αὐτὸν καλῳδίοις