Page:The age of Justinian and Theodora (Volume 1).djvu/228

 to this legislator every governor was bound to abide within his province in some public and accessible place for fifty days after the expiration of his term of office. Thus detained within the reach of his late constituents when divested of his authority, it was hoped that they would be emboldened to come forward and call him to account for his misdeeds. The reiteration of the law at no great intervals of time sufficiently proves that it was promulgated only to be disregarded.

Without legitimate protectors from whom they might seek redress, the wretched tributaries either tried to match their oppressors in craft, or yielded abjectly to all their demands. Some parted with whatever they possessed, and finally sold their sons and daughters into slavery or prostitution; others posted their holdings against the visits of the surveyors with notices designating them as the property of some influential neighbour. Such local magnates, who maintained, perhaps, a guard of Isaurian bandits, were wont to bid defiance to