CHAPTER IV.

THE PROPHECY OF GAIUS.

Proceeding, therefore, with all diligence, not very many days afterward, the Bishop of Caesarea arrived at Nicomedia, and straightway, by the use of certain secret means of communication which were well known to all Christians, he found, and took up his abode with Eusebius of that city; and they together discussed at great length what means might be used to neutralize the naval power of the tyrant Licinius.

Eusebius of Caesarea had been absent for many months, and Constantine had begun to grow impatient at his long delay, during which he had received no tidings from the bishop personally, and had heard nothing concerning him, except that he was quietly residing in the city with the other Eusebius. And the emperor, who valued his bishop highly, and enjoyed his companionship more than that of any other man, began to fear that the revelation of his own real character and purposes, which he had made at their last memorable interview, had alienated his friend forever, and thereby deprived himself of the services which he deemed to be almost invaluable. It gave him unmingled pleasure, therefore, to receive upon a certain day a written message that "Eusebius, Bishop of Nicomedia, sent by his brother Eusebius Pamphilus, craves audience of the emperor." Constantine eagerly ordered that he be admitted, and, having dismissed all others, he gave the bishop a very cordial greeting, and then said, with greatest interest and solicitude: "Tell me first of all of thy brother, my friend the Bishop of Caesarea! Where now is the holy and able man? Is he well? What doeth he?"

The bishop was somewhat lacking in the courtly elegance that characterized his brother, but still had a certain ease born of good sense and honesty of purpose, and he answered in a straightforward and intelligent way that pleased Constantine, and enabled him instantly to "take the measure of the man," and value him at once at his full worth, a thing he was not always able to do with the other Eusebius.

"The bishop, my brother, fared well when I last saw him. We parted at Nicomedia--he to go unto Alexandria, 'upon the emperor's business,' he said; I to come hither by his desire. He sendeth love and reverence unto thee, 'the greatest of mankind,' as he saith; and hath sent me hither because he thought that the things which I am requested to tell thee ought not to be committed to writing, nor intrusted to any ordinary messenger. Whenever thou desirest to hear it, I will briefly narrate what hath happened at Nicomedia."

"I am alone with thee, bishop, to hear thy report. Proceed with thy narrative at once. But first be thou seated, and partake of such refreshments as thou wilt."

"Nay," answered the bishop, "I need naught except thine own attention."

"Then sit thou there, and count upon an eager listener."

"The business upon which thy bishop came unto me having been carefully unfolded by him, the delay therein was caused by the necessity of sending far beyond Antioch for a fitting person to accomplish that upon which we had agreed as necessary for thy service; but it hath been done. The great fleet of the Emperor Licinius hath been so far neutralized that not a ship thereof will cross the sea to molest thy coasts if there should be war. On that thou mayst implicitly rely."

"Tell me the means by which this most important work hath been accomplished; and spare thou no details of the business: my only wish now is to hear thee fully!"

"It happened more than a year ago," said the bishop, "that I received letters from a presbyter at Chalcis, far beyond Antioch in Syria, concerning a most singular youth of that village, who was an epileptic--a devout Christian, but of strange fancies and of extraordinary appearance. This lad, the presbyter informed me, during the paroxysms of his disease seemed to be possessed by some sort of a spirit of divination, and the Church there had vainly attempted to exorcise the spirit; for thaumaturgy hath recently been lost. But the presbyter himself had little faith in his prophetic powers, because he had discovered that it was possible, by strongly impressing the mind of the youth, before the paroxysms came upon him, with some peculiar and striking thought, to anticipate the subject, and often even the very words, of his supposed prophetic ravings. Now, when the bishop unfolded to me what he desired to attempt for thy service, I at once thought of this Syrian youth, and judged that he might be advantageously used therein. The sending of a messenger to Chalcis for him wrought some delay, and, when the messenger reached that place, the youth had gone elsewhere; and it was a work of time to discover him, and might, indeed, have been impossible, but for a certain notoriety bestowed upon him by the strange misfortune under which he labored. And, after we had received the youth at Nicomedia, it was a work of time, and care, and patience, to secure his entire confidence, and train him properly for the business we had undertaken. Do I state the matter too minutely for thy patience?"

"Nay," said Constantine; "it is wonderfully interesting. Thou need have no fear that thy narrative will weary me: I do desire to hear thee fully."

"We found by frequent experiments," continued Eusebius, "that the paroxysms of the youth's disease were not strictly periodical, but that any sudden, strong emotion was liable to bring on an attack. We found that when we had made him memorize certain words beforehand, he was liable, on the increment of his disease, to repeat just those words in a sort of chanting tone, the melody and manner of which were very impressive, even when the words themselves were unmeaning. We found that he was ready to do or suffer anything if persuaded that it would be for the good of the Church. We kept the youth in safe retreat, carefully secluded, so that he might remain entirely unknown in Nicomedia. We then constantly assured him that God was able to accomplish his own designs by using even the most humble agencies, and that no man had the right to look upon himself as a being too insignificant to work for the glory of his Creator; and that even he, although sorely afflicted, by zeal and faithfulness might be able some time to perform a great service to the persecuted Church. He eagerly inquired how that might be, and was manifestly ready to seek for martyrdom if that had been the duty enjoined upon him. But we carefully impressed upon him that all that was required of him was to memorize and constantly repeat a certain form of words that we dictated to him; to meditate upon them day and night; to suffer nothing else to occupy his thoughts; and to wait in faith and hope the result of this discipline. We instructed him that, if any one should ask him about the words he might utter when the fit was on him, to say nothing, except that he was moved so to speak; if any should ask him whom he knew in Nicomedia, he was to answer, 'Eusebius the bishop'; and that in answer to every question put to him he should tell the exact truth. We soon found that, whenever he suffered under a paroxysm of his malady, he would fall to the ground and presently repeat in that sad, wailing chant that seemed to be natural to him, the very words which we had dictated to him, and no others."

"What words were these?" asked Constantine.

"The words," replied Eusebius, "were as follows: 'Joy to the land of Syria! Joy to the holy ones of Egypt! for their deliverer cometh! When the great ships shall cross the middle sea, the tyrant's power shall fail, and a holy emperor shall add the East unto his Western Empire! Joy to Syria and to Egypt, when the great ships shall cross the middle sea!'

"Having experimented with the lad until it seemed to be morally certain that, under the influence of a paroxysm of his disease, he would chant these words only, we directed him to go daily to the gate which opened into the grounds surrounding the imperial palace at Nicomedia, until he might see the Emperor Licinius about to come forth, and that then he should boldly force his way through the gates, at any hazard, without offering salutations or explanation to any one. This the youth promised faithfully to do; and it happened that, the first time he went thither, he saw one whom he supposed to be the emperor, coming forth accompanied by a throng of attendants, and he rushed forward so impetuously that the emperor was compelled to give place to him; and then a soldier knocked down the poor lad with the pole of his pike. Licinius stopped to ascertain the meaning of an intrusion so bold and unusual, and the pain of the blow and the excitement of the situation brought upon the youth one of his strange attacks, and while he lay writhing and twisting about upon the paving-stones, in a loud, weird voice, whose unearthly melody filled all the place, he chanted the words that had been taught to him: 'Joy to the land of Syria! Joy to the holy ones of Egypt! for their deliverer cometh! When the great ships shall cross the middle sea, the tyrant's power shall fail, and a holy emperor shall add the East unto his Western Empire! Joy to Syria and to Egypt, when the great ships shall cross the middle sea!' Then a centurion sprang forward, and would have slain the youth with his sword, but Licinius waved him off, and stood looking upon the singular lad with interest and wonder. And the youth flopped up off of the ground like a fish, and fell back heavily, and almost immediately resumed his wild, sweet chanting of the self-same words; and a profound silence obtained until his song was ended. And very soon that paroxysm passed off, and the lad arose, and looked about him, as if he knew not where he was nor how he came to be there."

Constantine laughed a low, joyous, almost boyish laugh, exclaiming: "A superb performance, indeed! A masterly thing! But continue thy most welcome narrative!"

"Then the Emperor Licinius, whose features are bronzed, and hard, and cruel, looked steadily upon the abashed young man, saying in a stern, imperious voice, 'Who art thou?'

"And the lad answered, 'I am Gaius, a poor youth of Chalcis in Syria!'

"'Knowest thou to whom thou art speaking?'

"'Nay, verily,' answered Gaius, 'but I suppose thee to be the emperor!'

"'What is thy business in Nicomedia?'

"'I have no business anywhere,' said the lad. 'I am diseased, an invalid, an epileptic, and am incapacitated for business. Verily I came unto Nicomedia hoping to be cured of this fearful malady.'

"'What brought thee unto our palace-gates?'

"'I came hither to look upon the emperor, having never seen so great a man; but some cowardly brute did strike me down with a pike!'

"'Why didst thou chant such things as thou hast done even in mine own presence?'

"'What things did I chant? I know not, for the hard blow brought upon me an attack of the epilepsy, and while it continueth I know not what I say, but speak only as I am moved to speak!'

"'What, then, moveth thee to chant at all?'

"'I know not, nor do I even know that I have done so, unless some one who hath heard me informeth me thereof!'

"'Whom knowest thou in my city of Nicomedia?'

"'None save the Bishop Eusebius!'

"'Art thou, then, a Christian?'

"'Yea! Thanks to the boundless mercy of our Lord!'

"Then said the emperor: 'Let immediate search be made for this Eusebius, and let him be straightway brought before me. Keep ye this boy in strictest prison, but use him kindly; for it may be that he hath a demon!'

"I did not choose to be found upon that day, although the city was sifted well for that purpose. And upon the next day, Licinius caused the lad Gaius to be brought before him, and he spoke kindly unto him, saying: 'Thou art a strange and interesting youth, and I desire to take thee into my service, and to attach thee unto myself, and to care for thee well. Hast thou memory good enough to keep in thy mind for me a catalogue of more than three hundred ships?'

"'I know not,' said the lad. 'At school I learned rapidly and retained well all that I acquired; but I fear that the malady wherewith I am afflicted hath injured both mind and body.'

"'Let me test thy memory somewhat to ascertain thy capacity for the service I would have thee render. Canst thou name the stations and distances upon the road from Chalcis unto Antioch, and thence unto the sea?'

"And the boy gave the whole itinerary correctly. And the emperor asked of him a great many questions with exceeding affability, and finally said unto him: 'Thou hast a fine, retentive memory, and I will make a man of thee. See, now, how much thou canst remember of the song which thou didst twice chant on yesterday!'

"But the lad said: 'I know not the words at all, and know not that I did chant at all. All that occurreth when the fit is upon me is blankness and darkness, so that I know nothing, and suffer not, and if fire were put upon me, I would not feel any pain so long as the paroxysm continueth!'

"Then the emperor gave way to wrath, and shouted furiously: 'Thou liest, villain! Thou seekest to deceive me! Repeat thy chant instantly, or I will put thee to torture to extract the truth!'

"Then the boy grew very pale, and trembled, but he only answered: 'Thou demandest of me that which is impossible! I do not know the words, and can not repeat them, though thou shouldst slay me!'

"Then cried out the emperor, 'Bring thumb-screws hither, and torment this wretch!'

"Then one put upon his thumb that cruel screw, and twisted hard upon it, and the boy shrieked with pain. Then the fit came upon him, and he fell headlong upon the floor, and the torturer removed the screw. And immediately the boy began, in a clear, sweet voice that filled the great hall with music, to chant the same words again: 'Joy to the land of Syria! Joy to the holy ones of Egypt!'--and the emperor sprang forward, and with the point of a dagger he tore up a finger-nail of the boy, watching his face intently; but the lad's countenance changed not, and he continued his chant evenly and serenely. And the emperor commanded that fire be brought to him in a brazier, and he laid a coal thereof upon the boy's naked breast, and blew upon it until the burned flesh smelled all about, but the boy showed no consciousness of pain, and continued to chant sweetly until his song was ended. And for a short space the lad lay as one dead, and then a strong convulsion contorted his limbs, and lifted him from the floor, and violently cast him down again; and then once more he chanted the same words, and the emperor listened and watched him with fear and wonder. And when the attack had passed away, Licinius said: 'Let this boy be guarded carefully, but let him be treated with the greatest kindness; for surely, beyond any doubt, he hath a demon!'

"And the lictors with great astonishment and fear led the boy away.

"And having been fully informed of all these things on the same night, by a Christian whom we had allowed to sacrifice and so retain his place in the palace, for the good of the Church, upon the next morning went I up to the gates and boldly demanded admission, declaring to the centurion on duty who I was, and that I had been informed that the emperor was seeking me throughout the city; and speedily they brought me into the presence of Licinius, and he said, 'Art thou Eusebius, the Bishop of Nicomedia?'

"'Yea, I am he!'

"'And like all of thy treasonable sect, that lurk within my city of Nicomedia, thou art still offering up prayers for the Emperor Constantine?'

"'Yea, doubtless!'

"'And thou dost not pray for me, nor propitiate God for me, thine own lawful emperor, at all?'

"'Yea, daily I pray God for thee that he would soften thy flinty heart, and turn thee from the devices of wickedness unto the wisdom of the just!'

"'But thou prayest not for my prosperity, and for the glory and perpetuity of mine empire?'

"'Nay, verily. I have no faith to pray for the triumph of the cruel and of the wicked!'

"Then said he, 'Dost thou know the boy Gaius of Chalcis?'

"'Yea! He was with me at my house until the third day past, but he hath disappeared, and I am anxious concerning him.'

"'Is there anything peculiar about the boy?'

"'He hath a peculiar and terrible malady called epilepsy!'

"And then attentively regarding me with his hard and searching eyes, he said, 'Doth the boy prophesy?'

"'When he hath a paroxysm of his disease he customarily chanteth strange things which some esteem to be prophecies; but whether his sayings be truly prophetic or not I can not inform thee.'

"'Perhaps thou dost remember the words of some of his pretended prophecies?'

"'Yea, verily! For since he hath been with me he hath hardly ever chanted anything but a certain song which I have heard him repeat very often when the disease taketh him.'

"'Repeat thou those words!'

"Then with a certain show of exultation I chanted the same words that Gaius had uttered, and, when I had finished, Licinius cried out fiercely, 'Thou dost believe, indeed, that the words of Gaius are a sure prophecy, and thou dost rejoice at my threatened overthrow!'

"I looked smilingly upon the emperor, but made no answer; and thereupon he fell into a great rage and said unto me, grimly enough: 'Thou art a tall man, bishop! Verily, I think thou art fully a head too tall, and this day I will reduce thee to a more proper stature by cutting off thy head'; and when he saw that I was unterrified by this threat, he added, 'And the boy's head also!'

"Then gazing fixedly upon him, I did say: 'Surely thou mayst do so, for thou art a blood-soaked, merciless tyrant enough for any crime. But this deed would make thee contemptible; for it would prove that thou art not only a tyrant, but also a fool!'

"Then turning almost livid with suppressed wrath, he cried out, 'What dost thou mean, thou insolent?'

"'I mean that some years ago when the bold and eloquent preaching of the brave and righteous presbyter, Arius the Libyan, did operate to save for thee a large part of thy fleet, thou didst order that he should never be molested in the public discharge of the duties of his sacred office; wherefore, even the Christians, who knew thee to be a bloody tyrant, and a desecrator of the sacrament of marriage by an infamous law, and a violator of all the sanctities and decencies of life, still did give thee credit for intelligence. But if now thou shalt murder those who, even unintentionally, have given thee warning in time to save thy whole navy, all men will regard thee as an idiot.'

"'How save my whole navy?'

"'By keeping the ships thereof upon thine own side of the Mediterranean; for the words are, "_when_ the great ships shall cross the middle sea," and perhaps it may signify not until _then_?'

"'By Jupiter Stator,' he answered, vehemently, 'I think that thou art right! And that accursed "when" shall never happen. For this honest saying of thine, thou mayst go hence free, and take the lad Gaius with thee!'

"And thereupon I withdrew; but I am certainly advised that his purpose holds good never to send his fleet across the Mediterranean."

"How dost thou know that?" asked Constantine, eagerly.

"We waited many weeks," replied Eusebius, "to obtain some reliable indications of his purposes; but the Emperor Licinius is a great commander, and men drilled in military services talk cautiously even when drunk, as he frequently is, so that we got nothing. Finally, a centurion came one night to mine abode, which I had caused to be publicly known, and with great courtesy informed me that the emperor had sent him to bring me into his presence. Having dismissed all others, as if the matter were most secret, he said: 'I know ye Christian bishops love not me, and that ye offer prayers for Constantine; yet I do not think that thou wouldst lie to me. I therefore tell thee that, since thou wert last before me, I sent an embassy secretly unto the oracle at Delphi, with many costly gifts, asking of the oracle what success I would have if I should send my navy against the Western Empire; and I desire thee to read and to construe the answer of the god.' Then he gave unto me a parchment on which was written, 'When the navy of the Emperor Licinius shall pass over the sea to war with the Emperor Constantine, his empire shall be overthrown.' I read the oracle, and laughed. Then said I unto him: 'Like all of the pretended oracles of the heathen, it is simply an evasion. Of course, if two great emperors engage in war, one of them must be overthrown. This oracle saith not which of them. If the Western Empire be defeated, the priests will say, "We foretold that." But if the Eastern Empire shall be subverted, they will just as truly say, "We foretold that."'

"'Art thou certain that the language bears one construction as naturally and grammatically as it does the other?'

"'Assuredly so! The Latin infinitive mood with the accusative case possesses a wonderful facility for such a construction as may signify either one thing or the other.'

"Then he gave way to sudden wrath, and cried aloud: 'Curses on the lying, cheating oracles by which so many mighty men have been lured into destruction!' And, fixing his eyes upon me, he continued, 'Was there any such ambiguity in what thy boy Gaius chanted?'

"'Nay, verily,' I answered. 'He said, "A holy emperor shall add the East unto his Western Empire." Thou canst not add the East unto anything, although thou mightest add something to the East; but canst add nothing to the Western Empire, which is not thine own, and thou art not a "holy emperor!"'

"'It is only a cursed trick of the oracle to lure me on to ruin!' he exclaimed. 'The Emperor Constantine hath bribed the god to influence me so that he may invade and overthrow mine empire while my fleet is far away. I will keep mine own coasts safe with wooden walls henceforth, and not a ship shall cross the middle sea.'

"Then he said unto me: 'Thou seem'st an honest and fair-minded man, and henceforth thou may'st practice thy religion publicly in my city of Nicomedia without fear or molestation. So fare thee well.'

"I think that this completeth my account, except I should add that from the very beginning of this matter the Emperor Licinius hath zealously endeavored to keep it all profoundly secret, so that it is known to very few."

Then said Constantine unto the bishop: "What didst thou mean by saying to the emperor, 'The Christians who knew thee to be a bloody tyrant, and the desecrator of the sacrament of marriage by an infamous law'? What law was that?"

And Eusebius answered: "He hath revived the former law of Maximin, that 'no woman of rank should marry without the emperor's consent,' and for the same infamous purpose, _ut ipse in omnibus nuptiis proegustator esset_; and this licentiousness hath done more to set the Church against the emperor than even the murder of the bishops."

"How strange," said Constantine, "that men should think themselves fit to govern an empire who can not even govern their own brutal passions!"

Then the great emperor indulged in long-continued laughter, not loud nor vociferous, but quiet, hearty, joyous, and exultant. But, soon resuming his usual equanimity, he said unto the bishop: "Thou art the most welcome messenger that hath ever come unto me since thy brother of Caesarea did first visit me in Gaul before the overthrow of Maxentius. Tell me what great favor worthy of Rome's emperor I can do for thee."

Then Eusebius, with glowing countenance, bent low, and seizing the emperor's hand he kissed it fervently, exclaiming, "Stretch forth thy mighty hand, Augustus, and free the persecuted churches of the East!"

Constantine was deeply moved, and answered: "It shall be done, bishop! Trust me, it shall be done! But I have given order for thy fitting entertainment, and while thou shalt rest and refresh thyself, think of some personal favor I can do for thee."

Eusebius bowed gravely and withdrew.

The emperor was alone, seated, buried in profoundest meditation. For a long time he was silent, and then his deep thought found utterance in murmured words: "A wonderful faith, truly, that can bind the heart and intellect of even able men like the Eusebii in absolute slavery to an idea, so that Christ and the Church are first in all their thoughts and purposes; and ease, comfort, wealth, and power, and even life and death, are trifling things compared therewith! If any God exists, these Christians surely have discovered him in Jesus. But I am sufficient for myself, and need no Deity."

Then he was silent again for some time longer. But suddenly he gave way to jubilant merriment, murmuring amid his laughter: "It was a superb farce, that prophecy of Gaius! Better than the _Legio Fulminea_. Better even than the Labarum! Surely the fine, Grecian hand of my Eusebius hath only acquired a more delicate touch with his advancing years!" And the great emperor continued to laugh merrily.

But neither pain nor pleasure ever interfered with the grand game of empire; and before midnight orders had been framed and issued by which the veteran legions of Hispania, Gaul, and Germany were to be gradually replaced by more recent levies; by which the brave and hardy Goths were put upon the most rigid military discipline; and by which all the chosen troops, upon whose skill and valor the unconquerable leader would be willing to stake the sovereignty of the world, were slowly concentrated to the eastward of Milan by a quiet, steady, unostentatious military movement that consumed months in its accomplishment and scarcely excited the suspicions of even the vigilant and intelligent agents of the Emperor Licinius.