Page:Secret History of the Court of the Emperor Justinian 1674.djvu/39

 and effeminate, and without courage; he was young, impertinent, angry with the whole World, and insupportably proud. But having married the Neice of Antonina, Wife to Bellisa­rius, the Empress would not suffer him to be questioned, nor permit her Husband to turn him out of his Government of Africk, though it was visible enough, his affairs in that Province were in danger of ruine. She obtained likewise, that the Emperor dismissed and pardoned his young Brother Salomon for the murder of Paga­sius, which hapned as follows.

Pagasius having redeemed Salomon, paid his ransom to the Lencathians, and brought the Barbarians home, returned to Carthage with Salomon, and a few Soldiers in his company. By the way he remonstrated to Salomon the wrong he had done, in having committed so great an offence, and that he ought to remember, That he was delivered out of the hands of his ene­mies by a particular providence. Salomon con­ceiving he had reproached him as a slave, and being exasperated, killed him upon the place, to requite what he had done for him in saving his life; and when he came to Constantinople, the Emperor discharged him of the fact, and gave him his pardon in writing. As soon as he was cleared of that danger, Salomon departed to see his friends in the East; but by an evident punishment inflicted by Divine Justice, he died by the way.

This being the passage betwixt Pagasius and Salomon, I shall return now to Theodora and Justianian,