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the 24 letters on dust, and having placed on each letter a grain of wheat, they released a rooster onto the letters, and the rooster took the grain on the theta, then the one on the epsilon and omicron and the one on the delta. And their divination became doubtful; for such are the deceptions of such things. Learning this, Valens punished many Theodosiuses and Theodotuses and Theodores and those whose names similarly began with these letters, without cause. But Iamblichus, in fear, drank poison and died. And 1.549 Valens, learning about the Goths in Antioch, came to Constantinople. And the Byzantines insulted him as unmanly and a shirker of battle. And as he was going out to the war of the Goths, a certain Isaac, one of the great monks, seizing the rein of Valens' horse, said to him, "Where are you going, emperor, campaigning against God and having God as your adversary?" Valens, angered at him, handed him over to the guard, threatening death if he should return. And before his death, he saw in a dream a certain man saying to him, "Quickly go to Mimas the great, where a terrible fate will seize you, wretched one." Having awakened, therefore, he asked who Mimas is, and summoning one of the wise men, he inquired from him who Mimas is. And he said to him, "It is, my lord, a very great mountain of Asia, approaching the sea, near the island of Chios; of which Homer also makes mention, saying in the Odyssey 'by windy Mimas.'" And the emperor said, "What need have I of the mountain of Mimas, that I should go there and die?" This is a deception of demons, and a dream of deceitful idols. And after a short time he went out from Thrace to fight the Scythians. And engaging them and being completely defeated, he flees to a certain place, and entering a barn with his companions, he hid. So when the Scythians, in ignorance of those hidden, threw fire, all who had taken refuge in the building were burned to ashes, having become victims of fire. And later, after the departure of the 1.550 enemy, when some were searching for the body of the emperor, there was found in the building where he was hiding the tomb of some ancient man, inscribed thus: "Here lies Mimas, a Macedonian general." But the divine Isaac, being in prison, perceived the stench by the purity of his soul, and said, "Thus the wretched Valens is now being burned." Which was confirmed by those who returned afterwards. And Valens was of middle age, arrogant in manner and proud and most ready for the shedding of blood, having a mind unsympathetic and foreign to all mercy, his reason being darkened by severity and devoid of all education. And his wife was Domnica, a fiery Arian.

Gratian, the son of Valentinian, a heretic, reigned alone for 3 years and with Theodosius for another 3; for from Byzantium envoys were sent to Gratian as he was coming down into Pannonia, that an emperor might be given to them, and the great Theodosius was given to them, having been proclaimed emperor, and he ruled for 17 years, 5 months, and 4 days. In the time of Gratian an earthquake occurred in Alexandria of such a magnitude that the sea receded a great distance and the ships stood on dry land. And when a great crowd had run together at the extraordinary sight, when the waters rushed back suddenly, fifty thousand people were drowned; and that very many parts of Crete and Achaia and Boeotia and Epirus and Sicily were 1.551 destroyed, the sea having risen and flooded them, so that even on the mountains ships were cast up to a hundred stades away. But a certain Maximian, a Briton, because Gratian had made Theodosius emperor while he himself had received no honor, stirred up those in Britain to rise against Gratian. And he sends Andragathius against him. And he entered in a covered litter, spreading a rumor that it was the wife of Gratian returning from Britain, and Gratian, overcome by his love for her, approached the litter; and uncovering it he sees the

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τὰ κδʹ γράμματα ἐπὶ κόνεως, καὶ ἐπιθέντες καθ' ἕκαστον γράμμα κόκ κον σίτου, ἀπέλυσαν ἀλέκτορα ἐπὶ τὰ γράμματα, καὶ ἔλαβεν ὁ ἀλέκτωρ τὸν ἐν τῷ θ κόκκον, ἔπειτα τὸν ἐν τῷ ε καὶ ο καὶ τὸν ἐν τῷ δ. καὶ ἐγένετο ἡ τούτων μαντεία ἀμφίβολος· τοιαῦτα γὰρ τὰ τῶν τοιούτων ἀπατηλά. τοῦτο μαθὼν Οὐάλης πολλοὺς Θεο δοσίους καὶ Θεοδότους καὶ Θεοδώρους καὶ τοὺς ὁμοίως ἐγκειμέ νους τοῖς γράμμασι τούτοις ἀπὸ τῶν ὀνομάτων ἀναιτίως ἐκόλασεν. Ἰάμβλιχος δὲ φοβηθεὶς φάρμακον πιὼν ἀπέθανε. μαθὼν δὲ ἐν 1.549 Ἀντιοχείᾳ Οὐάλης περὶ τῶν Γότθων ἦλθεν εἰς Κωνσταντινούπολιν. ὕβριζον δὲ αὐτὸν οἱ Βυζάντιοι ὡς ἄνανδρον καὶ φυγοπόλεμον. ἐξερχομένου δὲ αὐτοῦ πρὸς τὸν τῶν Γότθων πόλεμον, Ἰσαάκιός τις μοναχὸς τῶν μεγάλων κρατήσας τοῦ χαλινοῦ τοῦ ἵππου Οὐάλεντος ἔφη πρὸς αὐτόν "ποῦ ἐξέρχῃ, βασιλεῦ, κατὰ θεοῦ στρατευόμε νος καὶ θεὸν ἔχων ἀντίπαλον;" τοῦτον ὀργισθεὶς Οὐάλης φρουρᾷ παρέδωκεν, ἀπειλήσας θάνατον εἰ ἐπανέλθοι. πρὸ δὲ τῆς αὐτοῦ τελευτῆς, ἐθεάσατο κατ' ὄναρ ἄνδρα τινὰ λέγοντα αὐτῷ "τάχος βάδιζε πρὸς Μίμαντα τὸν μέγαν, ἔνθα μόρος σε δεινὸς ἁρπάσει τάλαν." διυπνισθεὶς οὖν ἠρώτα τίς ἐστι Μίμας, προσκαλεσά μενος δέ τινα τῶν σοφῶν ἐπυνθάνετο παρ' αὐτοῦ τίς ἐστι Μίμας. ὁ δὲ ἔφη αὐτῷ "ὄρος ἐστί, δέσποτα, μέγιστον τῆς Ἀσίας, προσεγ γίζον τῇ θαλάσσῃ, πλησίον τῆς νήσου Χίου· οὗ τινὸς καὶ Ὅμηρος μέμνηται, φάσκων ἐν Ὀδυσσείᾳ "παρ' ἠνεμόεντα Μίμαντα." καὶ ὁ βασιλεύς "τίς ἐμοὶ χρεία πρὸς τὸ τοῦ Μίμαντος ὄρος, ἵνα ἐκεῖ τελευτήσω ἀπελθών;" τοῦτο πλάνη δαιμόνων, καὶ εἰδώλων ἀπατηλῶν ὄνειρος. καὶ μετὰ μικρὸν ἐξῆλθε τῆς Θρᾴκης πολε μήσων τοῖς Σκύθαις. καὶ συμβαλὼν αὐτοῖς καὶ ἡττηθεὶς κατὰ κράτος φεύγει ἔν τινι χωρίῳ, καὶ εἰσελθὼν ἐν ἀχυρῶνι μετὰ τῶν συνόντων ἐκρύπτετο. τῶν οὖν Σκυθῶν πῦρ ἐμβαλόντων ἀγνοίᾳ τῶν κεκρυμμένων, πάντες οἱ ἐν τῷ οἰκήματι προσπεφευγότες ἀπε τεφρώθησαν, γεγονότες πυρίκαυστοι. ὕστερον δὲ μετὰ τὴν τῶν 1.550 πολεμίων ἀναχώρησιν ἀναζητούντων τινῶν τὸ σῶμα τοῦ βασιλέως, εὑρέθη ἐν ᾧ ἐκρύπτετο οἰκήματι τάφος ἀρχαίου τινὸς ἐπιγεγραμ μένος οὕτως "ἐνταῦθα κεῖται Μίμας Μακεδὼν στρατηγέτης." ὁ δὲ θεῖος Ἰσαάκιος ἐν τῇ φρουρᾷ ὢν τῆς δυσωδίας ἀντελάβετο τῇ τῆς ψυχῆς καθαρότητι, καὶ ἔφη "οὕτως ὁ ἄθλιος Οὐάλης ἄρτι κατακαίεται." ὅπερ διὰ τῶν μετὰ ταῦτα ἐπανελθόντων ἐβεβαιώθη. ἦν δὲ Οὐάλης τὴν ἡλικίαν διμοιραίαν ἔχων, αὐθά δης τὸν τρόπον καὶ ὑπερήφανος καὶ πρὸς αἱμάτων χύσεις ἑτοιμό τατος, ἔχων τὰς φρένας ἀσυμπαθεῖς καὶ παντὸς ἐλέους ἀλλοτρίας, αὐστηρίᾳ τὸν λογισμὸν σκοτιζόμενος καὶ πάσης παιδείας ἀμέτοχος. γυνὴ δὲ τούτου ∆ομνίκα, Ἀρειανὴ διάπυρος.

Γρατιανὸς ὁ υἱὸς Οὐαλεντινιανοῦ, αἱρετικός, ἐβασίλευσε μόνος ἔτη γʹ καὶ μετὰ Θεοδοσίου ἕτερα γʹ· ἀπὸ γὰρ τοῦ Βυζαν τίου ἐπέμφθησαν πρέσβεις πρὸς Γρατιανὸν ἐν Πανονίᾳ κατερχό μενον, δοθῆναι αὐτοῖς βασιλέα, καὶ ἐδόθη αὐτοῖς ὁ μέγας Θεο δόσιος ἀναγορευθεὶς βασιλεύς, καὶ ἐκράτησεν ἔτη ιζʹ μῆνας εʹ ἡμέρας δʹ. ἐπὶ Γρατιανοῦ σεισμὸς ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ γέγονεν ἐπὶ τοσοῦτον ὡς ἐπὶ πολὺ ὑποχωρῆσαι τὴν θάλασσαν καὶ τὰ πλοῖα ἐπὶ ξηρᾶς ἑστάναι. πλήθους δὲ πολλοῦ ἐπὶ τῷ παραδόξῳ θεά ματι συνδεδραμηκότος, τῶν ὑδάτων ἀθρόως ἐκδραμόντων πέντε μυριάδες ἀνθρώπων κατεποντίσθησαν· καὶ τῆς Κρήτης δὲ καὶ Ἀχαΐας καὶ Βοιωτίας Ἠπείρου τε καὶ Σικελίας πλεῖστα μέρη ἀπο 1.551 λέσθαι, τῆς θαλάσσης ἀνελθούσης καὶ ἐπικλυσάσης αὐτά, ὡς καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ὀρέων ἀπορριφῆναι πλοῖα ἄχρι σταδίων ἑκατόν. Μαξιμιανὸς δέ τις Βρεττανός, ὅτι τὸν Θεοδόσιον ὁ Γρα τιανὸς βασιλέα ἐποίησεν αὐτοῦ μηδεμιᾶς τυχόντος τιμῆς, διήγειρε τοὺς ἐν Βρεττανίᾳ ἀντᾶραι Γρατιανῷ. καὶ ἀποστέλλει Ἀνδραγά θιον κατ' αὐτοῦ. ὁ δὲ εἰσῆλθεν ἐν φορείῳ καταστέγῳ, φημίζων τὴν γυναῖκα Γρατιανοῦ εἶναι ἐκ Βρεττανίας ἐπανήκουσαν, ἧς τῇ ἀγάπῃ Γρατιανὸς κρατηθεὶς τῷ φορείῳ προσῆλθε· καὶ ἀνακαλύ ψας βλέπει τὸν