on, he issued his commands, at Alexandria,
in Egypt for a general massacre. From a secure post in the temple of
Serapis, he viewed and directed the slaughter of many thousand citizens,
as well as strangers, without distinguishing the number or the crime
of the sufferers; since as he coolly informed the senate, allthe
Alexandrians, those who perished, and those who had escaped, were alike
guilty.

The wise instructions of Severus never made any lasting impression on
the mind of his son, who, although not destitute of imagination and
eloquence, was equally devoid of judgment and humanity. One dangerous
maxim, worthy of a tyrant, was remembered and abused by Caracalla.
"To secure the affections of the army, and to esteem the rest of his
subjects as of little moment." But the liberality of the father had been
restrained by prudence, and his indulgence to the troops was tempered by
firmness and authority. The careless profusion of the son was the
policy of one reign, and the inevitable ruin both of the army and of
the empire. The vigor of the soldiers, instead of being confirmed by
the severe discipline of camps, melted away in the luxury of cities.
The excessive increase of their pay and donatives exhausted the state to
enrich the military order, whose modesty in peace, and service in war,
is best secured by an honorable poverty. The demeanor of Caracalla was
haughty and full of pride; but with the troops he forgot even the
proper dignity of his rank, encouraged their insolent familiarity, and,
neglecting the essential duties of a general, affected to imitate the
dress and manners of a common soldier.

It was impossible that such a character, and such conduct as that of
Caracalla, could inspire either love or esteem; but as long as his
vices were beneficial to the armies, he was secure from the danger of
rebellion. A secret conspiracy, provoked by his own jealousy, was
fatal to the tyrant. The Praetorian praefecture was divided between
two ministers. The military department was intrusted to Adventus,
an experienced rather than able soldier; and the civil affairs were
transacted by Opilius Macrinus, who, by his dexterity in business, had
raised himself, with a fair character, to that high office. But his
favor varied with the caprice of the emperor, and his life might depend
on the slightest suspicion, or the most casual circumstance. Malice or
fanaticism had suggested to an African, deeply skilled in the knowledge
of futu