During the months which Vespasian spent at Alexandria waiting for 81
the regular season of the summer winds[449] to ensure a safe voyage,
there occurred many miraculous events manifesting the goodwill of
Heaven and the special favour of Providence towards him.
the regular season of the summer winds[449] to ensure a safe voyage,
there occurred many miraculous events manifesting the goodwill of
Heaven and the special favour of Providence towards him.
Tacitus
It probably
now transported the Fourteenth and landed them at Boulogne.
[446] Cp. chap. 15.
[447] The narrative is resumed from this point in v. 14.
EVENTS IN ROME AND IN THE EAST
It was about this time that Mucianus gave orders for the murder of 80
Vitellius' son,[448] on the plea that dissension would continue until
all the seeds of war were stamped out. He also refused to allow
Antonius Primus to go out on Domitian's staff, being alarmed at his
popularity among the troops and at the man's own vanity, which would
brook no equal, much less a superior. Antonius accordingly went to
join Vespasian, whose reception, though not hostile, proved a
disappointment. The emperor was drawn two ways. On the one side were
Antonius' services: it was undeniable that his generalship had ended
the war. In the other scale were Mucianus' letters. Besides which,
every one else seemed ready to rake up the scandals of his past life
and inveigh against his vanity and bad temper. Antonius himself did
his best to provoke hostility by expatiating to excess on his
services, decrying the other generals as incompetent cowards, and
stigmatizing Caecina as a prisoner who had surrendered. Thus without
any open breach of friendship he gradually declined lower and lower in
the emperor's favour.
During the months which Vespasian spent at Alexandria waiting for 81
the regular season of the summer winds[449] to ensure a safe voyage,
there occurred many miraculous events manifesting the goodwill of
Heaven and the special favour of Providence towards him. At Alexandria
a poor workman who was well known to have a disease of the eye, acting
on the advice of Serapis, whom this superstitious people worship as
their chief god, fell at Vespasian's feet demanding with sobs a cure
for his blindness, and imploring that the emperor would deign to
moisten his eyes and eyeballs with the spittle from his mouth. Another
man with a maimed hand, also inspired by Serapis, besought Vespasian
to imprint his footmark on it. At first Vespasian laughed at them and
refused. But they insisted. Half fearing to be thought a fool, half
stirred to hopes by their petition and by the flattery of his
courtiers, he eventually told the doctors to form an opinion whether
such cases of blindness and deformity could be remedied by human aid.
The doctors talked round the question, saying that in the one case the
power of sight was not extinct and would return, if certain
impediments were removed; in the other case the limbs were distorted
and could be set right again by the application of an effective
remedy: this might be the will of Heaven and the emperor had perhaps
been chosen as the divine instrument. They added that he would gain
all the credit, if the cure were successful, while, if it failed, the
ridicule would fall on the unfortunate patients. This convinced
Vespasian that there were no limits to his destiny: nothing now seemed
incredible. To the great excitement of the bystanders, he stepped
forward with a smile on his face and did as the men desired him.
Immediately the hand recovered its functions and daylight shone once
more in the blind man's eyes. Those who were present still attest both
miracles to-day,[450] when there is nothing to gain by lying.
This occurrence deepened Vespasian's desire to visit the 82
holy-place and consult Serapis about the fortunes of the empire. He
gave orders that no one else was to be allowed in the temple, and then
went in. While absorbed in his devotions, he suddenly saw behind him
an Egyptian noble, named Basilides, whom he knew to be lying ill
several days' journey from Alexandria. He inquired of the priests
whether Basilides had entered the temple that day.
now transported the Fourteenth and landed them at Boulogne.
[446] Cp. chap. 15.
[447] The narrative is resumed from this point in v. 14.
EVENTS IN ROME AND IN THE EAST
It was about this time that Mucianus gave orders for the murder of 80
Vitellius' son,[448] on the plea that dissension would continue until
all the seeds of war were stamped out. He also refused to allow
Antonius Primus to go out on Domitian's staff, being alarmed at his
popularity among the troops and at the man's own vanity, which would
brook no equal, much less a superior. Antonius accordingly went to
join Vespasian, whose reception, though not hostile, proved a
disappointment. The emperor was drawn two ways. On the one side were
Antonius' services: it was undeniable that his generalship had ended
the war. In the other scale were Mucianus' letters. Besides which,
every one else seemed ready to rake up the scandals of his past life
and inveigh against his vanity and bad temper. Antonius himself did
his best to provoke hostility by expatiating to excess on his
services, decrying the other generals as incompetent cowards, and
stigmatizing Caecina as a prisoner who had surrendered. Thus without
any open breach of friendship he gradually declined lower and lower in
the emperor's favour.
During the months which Vespasian spent at Alexandria waiting for 81
the regular season of the summer winds[449] to ensure a safe voyage,
there occurred many miraculous events manifesting the goodwill of
Heaven and the special favour of Providence towards him. At Alexandria
a poor workman who was well known to have a disease of the eye, acting
on the advice of Serapis, whom this superstitious people worship as
their chief god, fell at Vespasian's feet demanding with sobs a cure
for his blindness, and imploring that the emperor would deign to
moisten his eyes and eyeballs with the spittle from his mouth. Another
man with a maimed hand, also inspired by Serapis, besought Vespasian
to imprint his footmark on it. At first Vespasian laughed at them and
refused. But they insisted. Half fearing to be thought a fool, half
stirred to hopes by their petition and by the flattery of his
courtiers, he eventually told the doctors to form an opinion whether
such cases of blindness and deformity could be remedied by human aid.
The doctors talked round the question, saying that in the one case the
power of sight was not extinct and would return, if certain
impediments were removed; in the other case the limbs were distorted
and could be set right again by the application of an effective
remedy: this might be the will of Heaven and the emperor had perhaps
been chosen as the divine instrument. They added that he would gain
all the credit, if the cure were successful, while, if it failed, the
ridicule would fall on the unfortunate patients. This convinced
Vespasian that there were no limits to his destiny: nothing now seemed
incredible. To the great excitement of the bystanders, he stepped
forward with a smile on his face and did as the men desired him.
Immediately the hand recovered its functions and daylight shone once
more in the blind man's eyes. Those who were present still attest both
miracles to-day,[450] when there is nothing to gain by lying.
This occurrence deepened Vespasian's desire to visit the 82
holy-place and consult Serapis about the fortunes of the empire. He
gave orders that no one else was to be allowed in the temple, and then
went in. While absorbed in his devotions, he suddenly saw behind him
an Egyptian noble, named Basilides, whom he knew to be lying ill
several days' journey from Alexandria. He inquired of the priests
whether Basilides had entered the temple that day.
