receive an annual salary. On his return to Rome he made an address to the
people; and while he was saying, among other things, that he had been
absent many years, they cried out: "Eight!" and indicated this also with
their hands, in order that they might receive an equal number of gold
pieces for a banquet. He smiled and himself uttered the word "Eight."
After that he distributed to them two hundred denarii apiece, more than
they had ever received before.--In addition to doing this, he forgave all
persons all their debts to the imperial and to the public treasury for a
space of forty-six years, outside of the sixteen granted by Hadrian. And
all the documents relating to these debts he ordered burned in the Forum.
[Sidenote: A.D. 177 (a.u. 930)]--He gave money to many cities, one of them
being Smyrna, that had suffered terribly by an earthquake; he also
assigned the duty of building up this place to an ex-praetor of senatorial
rank. Therefore I am surprised at the censures even now passed upon him to
the effect that he was not a man of large calibre. For, whereas in
ordinary matters he was really quite frugal, he never demurred at a single
necessary expenditure (though, as I have said, [Footnote: The reference
here made by Dio may very possibly be to a passage reproduced by Zonaras
(XII, 1), regarding the authenticity of which Boissevain is nevertheless
somewhat doubtful. For the sake of completeness a translation is here
given ([Greek: oumaen [Lacuna] ebiasato]):

"Yet he was not thereby induced to secure money from the subject
nations. On one occasion, indeed, with wars impending, he had come short
for funds and still did not devise any new tax nor endure to ask money
from any one. Instead, he exposed in the Forum all the heirlooms of the
palace, even down to this or that piece of finery belonging to his wife,
and solicited their purchase by any person so disposed. This brought him
a store of coin, which he distributed to the soldiers. By success in the
war he gained many times the amount in question, and he issued a
proclamation to the effect than any one so disposed among the purchasers
of the imperial property might return the article purchased and receive
its value. Some did so, but the majority declined. And nobody was
compelled to restore any object thus acquired."]

he hurt no one by levies), and he necessarily laid out very large sums
beyond the ordinary requirements.

[Sidenote:--33--