Page:Bury J B The Cambridge Medieval History Vol 1 1911.djvu/303

Rh of Ambrose conquered, and Christian monks who had at Cailinicum destroyed a Jewish synagogue were at last freed from the duty of •making reparation; but even here the stubborn resistance of the Emperor shews the general principles which governed his administration. Though naturally merciful, so that contemporaries wondered at his clemency towards the followers of defeated rivals, yet when seized by some sudden outburst of passion he could be terrible in his ferocity. He himself was conscious of his great failing, and when his anger had passed, men knew that he was the readier to pardon: Praerogativa igno8cendi erat indignatum fuisse. But with every acknowledgment made of his weaknesses he served the Empire well; he brought the East from chaos into order; and even if it be on other grounds, posterity can hardly dispute the judgment of the Church or deny that the Emperor has been rightly styled “Theodosius the Great.”