fore the wind.
Thus none of his kinsmen or friends had the least confidence in his
stability, but, in the execution of his purpose, his opinion
perpetually changed with the greatest rapidity. Being, as I have said,
an easy object of attack for the sorcerers, he in like manner readily
fell a victim to Theodora, who, for this reason, entertained the
highest affection for Peter as one devoted to the study of these arts.

The Emperor only succeeded with great difficulty in depriving him of
his office, and, at the pressing entreaty of Theodora, soon afterwards
appointed him chief of the treasury, and deprived John of these
functions, although he had only been invested with them a few months
previously. This John was a native of Palestine, a good and gentle
man, who did not even know how to find out the means of increasing his
private fortune, and had never done injury to a single individual. The
more decided the affection of the people for him, the less he met with
the approval of Justinian and his partner, who, as soon as they found
amongst their agents, contrary to expectation, a good and honourable
man, were quite dumbfounded, showed their indignation, and endeavoured
by every possible means to get rid of him with the least delay. Thus
Peter succeeded John as chief of the royal treasury, and was one of
the chief causes of great misery to all the inhabitants of the Empire.
He embezzled the greater part of the fund, which, in accordance with
an ancient custom, was annually distributed by the Emperor to a number
of families by way of assisting them. Part of this public money he
sent to the Emperor, and kept part for himself, whereby he acquired
ill-gotten wealth. Those who were thus deprived of this money lived in
a pitiable state. He did not even coin the same amount of gold as
before, but less--a thing which had never been done before. Such was
the manner in which Justinian dealt with the magistracies.

CHAPTER XXIII

I will now relate how he everywhere ruined the possessors of estates,
although, to show their misery, it would really be sufficient to refer
to what has been said, just before this, concerning the governors
dispatched to all the provinces and cities, for it was they who
plundered those who possessed landed estates, as before related.

It had long been an established custom that the Roman Emperor should,
not only once, but on several occasions, remit to his subjects all the
arrears that were owing