OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

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licence of the atrocious murder of Pertinax had chap.reached Antioch , the wishes of Asia invited Ni-,ger to assume the imperial purple, and revengehis death. The legions of the eastern frontierembraced his cause; the opulent but unarmedprovinces from the frontiers of Ethiopia 2 to theHadriatic, cheerfully submitted to his power;and the kings beyond the Tygris and the Eu-phrates congratulated his election, and offeredhim their homage and services. The mind ofNiger was not capable of receiving this suddentide of fortune ; he flattered himself that his ac-cession would be undisturbed by competition,and unstained by civil blood; and whilst heenjoyed the vain pomp of triumph, he neglectedto secure the means of victory. Instead of en-tering into an effectual negociation with thepowerful armies of the West, whose resolutionmight decide, or at least must balance, themighty contest; instead of advancing withoutdelay towards Rome and Italy , where his pre-sence was impatiently expected, 2 Niger trifledaway, in the luxury of Antioch , those irretriev-able moments which were diligently improvedby the decisive activity of Severus. b

1 A king of Thebes, in Egypt , is mentioned in the Augustan historyas an ally, and, indeed, as a personal friend, of Niger. If Spartianus is not, as I strongly suspect, mistaken, he has brought to light a dy-nasty of tributary princes totally unknown to history.

a Dion, 1. Ixxiii, p. 1238. Herod 1 . ii, p. 67. A verse in every one’smouth at that time, seems to express the general opinion of the threerivals: Optimus est Niger , bonus Afer, pessimus Albu$, Hist. August,p. 75.

b Herodian, 1. ii, p. 71.