THE DECLINE AND FALL

154

CHAP.

XVIII.

dermined the throne, ofVetranio. The chiefs,who had secretly embraced the party of Cor*-stantius, prepared in his favour a public spec-tacle, calculated to discover and inflame thepassions of the multitude.* The united armieswere commanded to assemble in a large plainnear the city. In the centre, according to therules of ancient discipline, a military tribunal,or rather scaffold, was erected, from whencethe emperors were accustomed, on solemn andimportant occasions, to harangue the troops.The well-ordered ranks of Romans and barba-rians, with drawn swords, or with erected spears,the squadrons of cavalry, and the cohorts ofinfantry, distinguished by the variety of theirarms and ensigns, formed an immense circleround the tribunal; and the attentive silencewhich they preserved was sometimes interrupt-ed by loud bursts of clamour or of applause.In the presence of this formidable assembly, thetwo emperors were called upon to explain thesituation of public affairs; the precedency ofrank was yielded to the royal birth of Constan-tius; and though he was indifferently skilledin the arts of rhetoric, he acquitted himself, un-der these difficult circumstances, with firmness,dexterity, and eloquence. The first part of hisoration seemed to be pointed only against thetyrant of Gaul; but wdiile he tragically lament-ed the cruel murder of Constans , he insinuated,that none, except a brother, could claim a right

k See the two first orations of Julian, particularly p. 31 $ and Zoti-mns, 1. ii, p. 122. The distinct narrative of the historian serves to il-lustrate the diffi se, but vague, descriptions of the orator.