Page:Secret History of the Court of the Emperor Justinian 1674.djvu/61

 beauty, an immaculate Virgin, and in brief, one that had been accomplished in the highest perfection. Nevertheless, he chose rather to take upon himself the common infamy of all Men, as not being ashamed, nor making any scruple to admit to his Bed a Woman, who be­sides other crimes, was guilty of the death of so many Children by her artificial Miscarriages and Abortions. I suppose there wants nothing in my description of Justinian.

This marriage is sufficient to discover his tem­per. In effect, He who after the Commission of so many ill actions, apprehends not the dis­grace, and is not concerned at what people say, nor at the contempt they have of him, does questionless believe there is no crime, but he may boldly commit, and undertakes the most detestable things with great impudence and au­dacity. There was not one of the Senators who opposed his designes, though they saw his marriage would inevitably be the ruine of the Empire: On the contrary, they disposed them­selves to give Theodora the respect of a Diety. There was not one of the Prelates which ex­pressed any regret for being obliged to call her their Soveraign: And those who not many years before, had seen her upon the stage, addressed themselves to her as her slaves, and held up their hands to her in token of their humility, when they came with any Petition: The Army made no difficulty to expose it self for Theodora to all the perils, and incommodities of War. In short, there was no man in the whole Empire, Rh