ndour of Eutharic's year of office was
enhanced by the fact that he had the then reigning Emperor, Justin, for
his colleague. As for the _Senate,_ it too was still in appearance what
it had ever been,--the highest Council in the State, the assembly of
kings which overawed the ambassador of Pyrrhus, the main-spring, or, if
not the main-spring, at any rate the balance-wheel, of the
administrative machine. This it was in theory, for there had never been
any formal abolition of its existence or abrogation of its powers. In
practice it was just what the sovereign, whether called Emperor or King,
allowed it to be. A self-willed and arbitrary monarch, like Caligula or
Domitian, would reduce its functions to a nullity. A wise and moderate
Emperor, like Trajan or Marcus Aurelius, would consult it on all
important state-affairs, and, while reserving to himself both the power
of initiation and that of final control, would make of it a real Council
of State, a valuable member of the governing body of the Empire. The
latter seems to have been the policy of Theodoric. Probably the very
fact of his holding a somewhat doubtful position towards the Emperor at
Constantinople made him more willing to accept all the moral support
that could be given him by the body which was in a certain sense older
and more august than any Emperor, the venerable Senate of Rome. At any
rate, the letters in which he announces to the Senate the various acts,
especially the nomination of the great officials of his kingdom, in
which he desires their concurrence, are couched in such extremely
courteous terms, that sometimes civility almost borders on servility.
Notwithstanding this, however, it is quite plain that it was always
thoroughly understood who was master in Italy, and that any attempt on
the part of the Senate to wrest any portion of real power from Theodoric
would have been instantly and summarily suppressed.

I have said that it was only by the aid of officials, trained in the
service of the Empire that Theodoric, or indeed any of the new barbarian
sovereigns, could hope to keep the machine of civil government in
working order. We have, fortunately, a little information as to some of
these officials, and an elaborate self-drawn picture of one of them.

_Liberius_ had been a faithful servant of Odovacar; and had to the last
remained by the sinking vessel of his fortunes. This fidelity did not
injure him in the estimation of the conqueror. When all wa