Page:Secret History of the Court of the Emperor Justinian 1674.djvu/98

 without any hesitation, she delivered him into the hands of one of her executioners; but what became of the poor Creature, no body could tell, for he was never seen since, no not when his Mother was dead.

Under the Reign of this cruel Princess, there was scarce a Woman which did not lie under some scandal, and indeed most of them were as bad as they were reported, having all possible liberty to transgress against their Husbands, and come off always unpunished as oft as they were prosecuted for adultery: Their way was to apply to the Empress, who would be sure to take care their sentence should be quite con­trary to what it ought, the Women sent home acquitted of their crimes, their Husbands taken into custody for false accusations, which they were unable to prove, and condemned to pay sometimes twice as much as ever they had with them; and where that was not to be had, cor­poral punishment was inflicted, and they con­tinued not only in prison, but in irons, as long as they lived; which to consummate their sor­rows, they were permitted to see their unchast Wives, in the embraces of their rivals, who as a reward for their crimes, received offices and preferments from the Empress. Hereupon many who feared that kind of usage, and had no fond­ness for her stripes, and her tortures, connived at the incontinence of their Wives; and that they might not be publickly surprised, they gave them all opportunity they could desire.

  Theodora