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they were greatly agitating the city, and they were annoying the emperor excessively about the matter, and they greatly reviled Leo and Malthanes with the most terrible threats. 29.34 And the emperor pretended to be no less enraged over what had been done. So he immediately wrote a letter, ordering both an inquiry and a punishment to be made of those 29.35 who had acted with Malthanes. But Leo, having offered him a great amount of gold, immediately stopped both his anger and his affection for the Venetians, and since the matter had remained uninvestigated, the emperor saw Malthanes when he came to him in Byzantium both with much 29.36 friendliness and held him in honor. But the Venetians, having watched for him as he was coming out from the emperor, inflicted blows upon him in the Palace and were about to kill him, if some of them had not prevented it, who in fact had already secretly received money 29.37 from Leo. And yet who would not call this government most pitiable, in which an emperor, having taken a bribe, left the charges uninvestigated, while rebels dared with no hesitation to rise up against one of the officials, while the emperor was in the Palace, and to lay unjust hands upon him? 29.38 However, no punishment on account of these things was inflicted either upon Malthanes or upon those who had risen against him. And from these things, if anyone should wish, let the character of the emperor Justinian be judged. 30.1 And if anyone takes any account of the public advantage, what was done by him regarding the public post and 30.2 the spies will make it clear. For the Roman emperors who lived in former times, having taken thought how everything might be reported to them most quickly and be subject to no delay—the things happening at the hands of the enemy in each country, and the calamities befalling the cities through sedition or some other unforeseen event, and the things done by the magistrates and all others everywhere in the Roman empire, and how those who conveyed the annual taxes might be kept safe from slowness and danger—established a certain swift public post in all directions 30.3 in the following way. For a day's journey for an unencumbered man, they established stations, in some places eight, in others fewer than these, but for the most part not less 30.4 than five. And up to forty horses were stabled in each station. And grooms in proportion to the number of horses 30.5 had been posted in all the stations. And those to whom this task was assigned, by always riding with frequent relays of the most approved horses, covering a journey of ten days, if it so happened, in a single day, accomplished all the things that have just been described by me; and in addition, the owners of the lands everywhere, especially if their lands happened to be in the interior, were most especially prosperous because 30.6 of them. For by selling to the state each year their surplus produce for the maintenance of the horses and grooms, 30.7 they gained great sums of money. And so it happened that the state on the one hand always received the taxes assessed on each one, and on the other hand, it immediately paid these out in turn to those who furnished supplies, and the necessary services were rendered to the commonwealth. 30.8 So matters stood formerly in this way. But this emperor, first abolishing the post from Chalcedon as far as Dacibiza, forced everyone to sail, not at all willingly, straight from Byzantium as far as Helenopolis. 30.9 Sailing, then, in certain small boats, such as they are accustomed to use for crossing here, if it so happened that a storm fell upon them, they proceed into great danger. For since they are under pressure of necessary haste, it is impossible for them both to watch for a favorable time and to await an approaching 30.10 calm. Then, while he allowed the post on the road leading to Persia to be on its former footing, in all the rest of the East as far as Egypt he established only one station for a day's journey, not of horses, however, 30.11 but of a few donkeys. Wherefore indeed the events in each country, being reported with difficulty and late and after the fact, are likely to receive no relief, and those who own the lands

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τὴν πόλιν πολλῷ εἴχοντο, καὶ βασιλέα μὲν ἀμφὶ τῷ πράγματι ἠνώχλουν ἄγαν, Λέοντα δὲ καὶ τὸν Μαλθάνην ξὺν δεινοτάταις ἀπειλαῖς πολλὰ 29.34 ἐδυσφήμουν. καὶ αὐτοκράτωρ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον ἀγριαίνεσθαι ἐπὶ τοῖς πεπραγμένοις ἐσκήπτετο. γράμμα οὖν εὐθὺς ἔγραψε, ζήτησίν τε καὶ τίσιν τῶν τῷ Μαλ29.35 θάνῃ πεπολιτευμένων κελεύων γενέσθαι. ἀλλὰ Λέων αὐτῷ χρυσίου προέμενος πλῆθος τοῦ τε θυμοῦ αὐτίκα καὶ τῆς ἐς τοὺς Βενέτους στοργῆς ἔπαυσε, τοῦ τε πράγματος ἀνεξετάστου μενενηκότος Μαλθάνην βασιλεὺς ἐς Βυζάντιον παρ' αὐτὸν ἥκοντα ξύν τε πολλῇ 29.36 φιλοφροσύνῃ εἶδε καὶ ἐν τιμῇ ἔσχεν. ἐξιόντα δὲ οἱ Βένετοι ἐκ βασιλέως τηρήσαντες πληγὰς αὐτῷ προσετρίψαντο ἐν Παλατίῳ καὶ διαχρήσασθαι ἔμελλον, εἰ μὴ αὐτῶν τινες διεκώλυσαν, οἵ γε πρὸς Λέοντος χρή29.37 ματα ἤδη κεκομισμένοι λάθρα ἐτύγχανον. καίτοι τίς οὐκ ἂν ταύτην τὴν πολιτείαν ἐλεεινοτάτην καλοίη, ἐν ᾗ βασιλεὺς μὲν δωροδοκήσας ἀνεξέταστα κατέλειψε τὰ ἐγκλήματα, στασιῶται δὲ βασιλέως ἐν Παλατίῳ ὄντος ἐπαναστῆναι τῶν τινι ἀρχόντων οὐδεμιᾷ ὀκνήσει ἐτόλ29.38 μησαν, ἀδίκων τε χειρῶν ἐπ' αὐτὸν ἄρξαι; τίσις μέντοι τούτων δὴ ἕνεκα οὐδεμία οὔτε εἰς τὸν Μαλθάνην ἐγένετο οὔτε εἰς τοὺς αὐτῷ ἐπαναστάντας. ἐκ τούτων δὲ εἴ τις βούλοιτο τὸἸουστινιανοῦ τοῦ βασιλέως τεκμηριούσθω ἦθος. 30.1 Εἰ δέ τινα καὶ τοῦ τῆς πολιτείας ξυμφόρου ποιεῖται λόγον, τὰ ἐς δρόμον τε αὐτῷ τὸν δημόσιον 30.2 καὶ τοὺς κατασκόπους εἰργασμένα δηλώσει. οἱ μὲν γὰρῬωμαίων αὐτοκράτορες ἐν τοῖς ἄνω χρόνοις γεγενημένοι, προνοήσαντες ὅπως ἅπαντά τε σφίσιν ἐπαγγέλλοιτο τάχιστα καὶ μηδεμιᾷ διδῷτο μελλήσει, τά τε πρὸς τῶν πολεμίων ἐν χώρᾳ ἑκάστῃ ξυμπίπτοντα καὶ ταῖς πόλεσι κατὰ στάσιν ἢ ἄλλο τι ἀπρόοπτον συμβαίνοντα πάθος τά τε πρὸς τῶν ἀρχόντων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ἁπάντων πανταχόθι πρασσόμενα τῆςῬωμαίων ἀρχῆς, ὅπως τε οἱ τοὺς φόρους παραπέμποντες τοὺς ἐπετείους διασώζοιντο βραδυτῆτός τε καὶ κινδύνου χωρὶς, δημόσιον ὀξύν τινα πανταχόσε πεποίηνται δρό30.3 μον τρόπῳ τοιῷδε. ἐς ἡμέρας ὁδὸν εὐζώνῳ ἀνδρὶ σταθμοὺς κατεστήσαντο, πὴ μὲν ὀκτὼ, πὴ δὲ τούτων ἐλάσσους, οὐ μέντοι ἧσσον ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ἢ 30.4 κατὰ πέντε. ἵπποι δὲ ἵσταντο ἐς τεσσαράκοντα ἐν σταθμῷ ἑκάστῳ. ἱπποκόμοι δὲ κατὰ λόγον τοῦ τῶν 30.5 ἵππων μέτρου ἐτετάχατο ἐν πᾶσι σταθμοῖς. συχναῖς δὲ ἵππων δοκιμωτάτων ὄντων διαδοχαῖς ἐλαύνοντες ἀεὶ οἷσπερ ἐπίκειται τὸ ἔργον τοῦτο, δέκα τε, ἂν οὕτω τύχοι, ὁδὸν ἡμερῶν ἀμείβοντες ἐν ἡμέρᾳ μιᾷ ἔπρασσον ἅπαντα ὅσα μοι ἀρτίως δεδήλωται· πρὸς δὲ καὶ οἱ τῶν χωρίων πανταχῆ κύριοι, ἄλλως τε κἂν ἐν μεσογείοις τὰ χωρία ὄντα ἐτύγχανεν, εὐδαιμονέστατοι ἐπ' 30.6 αὐτοῖς ἐν τοῖς μάλιστα ἦσαν. τοὺς γὰρ ὄντας ἐκ τοῦ περιόντος σφίσι καρποὺς ἵππων τε καὶ ἱπποκόμων τροφῆς ἕνεκα τῷ δημοσίῳ ἀνὰ πᾶν ἔτος ἀποδιδόμενοι, 30.7 χρήματα μεγάλα ἐφέροντο. ξυνέβαινέ τε διὰ ταῦτα τῷ δημοσίῳ δέχεσθαι μὲν ἀεὶ τοὺς ἐγκειμένους ἑκάστῳ φόρους, ἀντιπαραδέχεσθαι δὲ αὐτοὺς τοῖς ἐσκομίζουσιν αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα, καὶ προσῆν τὸ γεγενῆσθαι τῇ πολιτείᾳ τὰ δέοντα. 30.8 Τὰ μὲν οὖν πρότερα ταύτῃ πη εἶχεν. ὁ δὲ αὐτοκράτωρ οὗτος πρῶτα μὲν τὸν ἐκ Καλχηδόνος ἄχρι ἐς ∆ακίβιζαν καθελὼν δρόμον ἠνάγκασε πάντας ἐκ Βυζαντίου εὐθὺς ἄχρι ἐς τὴνἙλενούπολιν οὔτι ἐθελου30.9 σίους ναυτίλλεσθαι. πλέοντες οὖν ἐν ἀκάτοις βραχείαις τισὶν, οἵαις διαπορθμεύεσθαι τῇδε εἰώθασι, χειμῶνος, ἂν οὕτω τύχοι, ἐπιπεσόντος, ἐπὶ μέγα κινδύνου χωροῦσι. τῆς γὰρ ἀναγκαίου σπουδῆς ἐγκειμένης σφίσι καιροφυλακεῖν τε καὶ προσδέχεσθαι μέλλουσαν τὴν 30.10 γαλήνην ἀδύνατά ἐστιν. ἔπειτα δὲ κατὰ μὲν τὴν ἐπὶ Πέρσας ὁδὸν φέρουσαν τὸν δρόμον ἐπὶ σχήματος τοῦ πρόσθεν ὄντος εἴασεν εἶναι, ἐς δὲ τὴν λοιπὴν ξύμπασαν ἕω μέχρι ἐς Αἴγυπτον ἐν ἡμέρας ὁδῷ σταθμὸν ἕνα κατεστήσατο μόνον, οὐχ ἵππων μέντοι, 30.11 ἀλλ' ὄνων ὀλίγων. διὸ δὴ τὰ μὲν ξυμβαίνοντα ἐν χώρᾳ ἑκάστῃ μόλις τε καὶ ὀψὲ τοῦ καιροῦ καὶ ὀπίσω τῶν πραγμάτων ἐσαγγελλόμενα ἐπικουρίας οὐδεμιᾶς τυγχάνειν εἰκὸς, οἱ δὲ τοὺς ἀγροὺς