occasion of his visit to Antioch. Strabo tells
us that this was one of the largest cities in the world--little inferior
in extent to Alexandria and Seleucia. It was noted for its gaieties, and
seems now to have been the centre of fashion. The new religion had been,
at least nominally, adopted, and also the new costumes, as well as every
kind of luxury and dissipation. Chrysostom bears witness to the same
effect. The town was full of dancers, pipers, and players, camels
"adorned like brides" stalked through the porticos, and fish and poultry
had come to be considered as necessaries of life. There were here many
people of leisure and cultivation, fond of light and fanciful pursuits,
and among others of forming verbal conceits. Hence, we find that the
disciples were first called _Christians_ at Antioch, no doubt,
derisively,[30] and in Julian's time they had a cant saying that they
had suffered nothing from the X or the K (Christ or Constantius). A
celebrated school of rhetoric was established here, and no doubt some of
the effusions penned at this time, abounded with rich and epigrammatic
humour.

It must have been a rare sight for these polished and satirical
Christians of Antioch to behold Julian celebrating the festivals of the
pagan gods. To view the procession of Venus--a long line of all the
dissolute women in the town, singing loose songs--followed by the lean,
uncouth Roman Emperor, with his shaggy beard, and terminated by a
military train. No wonder they hooted him, and wrote lampoons upon him.
But Julian thought he was performing a solemn duty; he by no means
intended to countenance immorality. "Far from us," he says, "be all
licentious jests and scurrilous discourse--let no priest read
Archilochus or Hipponax." He gives an amusing account of his reception
at the celebrated grove of Daphnae, near Antioch, which he visited at
the time of the annual festival. He expected to see a profusion of
wealth and splendour. He pictured to himself the solemn pomp, the
victims, the libations, the dancers, the incense, the children in white
robes. When he entered the temple, full of such elevated thoughts, he
found there neither incense, cake, nor victims. Much surprised, he could
only suppose that the people were waiting at the gate, by way of
respect, for a signal from the sovereign Pontiff. He therefore asked the
priest what offering the city was about to make on this great
anniversary; to which he replied, "The city has fu