Res Gestae

The envoys, however, he dismissed at once, and only ordered his quaestor Leonas to proceed at rapid pace to Gaul with a letter which he had given him for Julian, in which he declared that he accepted none of the changes, but charged him, if he had any regard for his own life and that of his friends, to drop his swelling pride and keep within the bounds of a Caesar’s power.

And to the end that fear of his threats might bring this about the more easily, as an indication of confidence in his great strength in place of Florentius he promoted Nebridius, who was then quaestor of the aforesaid Caesar, to the rank of praetorian prefect, and the secretary Felix to that of master of the officies,[*](By this disregard of Julian’s wishes as to appointments (see 8, 14, and 9, 8, below) he hoped to intimidate his rival.) besides making some other appointments. And indeed Gomoarius had been advanced to the rank of commander-in-chief, as successor to Lupicinus, before Constantius knew anything of this kind.

Accordingly, Leonas,[*](See § 4, above.) having entered Paris, was received as an honoured and discreet person, and on the following day, when the prince had come to the field with a great number of soldiers and townsmen, whom he had purposely summoned, and was standing aloft on a tribunal in order to be more conspicuous from a high position, he ordered the letter to be handed to him. And after unrolling the scroll of the edict which had been sent, he began to read it from the beginning. And when he had come to

Julianus Augustus, as was decreed by authority of the province, the soldiers, and the state—a state restored indeed, but still fearful of renewed raids of the savages.

On hearing this, Leonas returned in safety, with a letter of Julian to the same purport, and Nebridius alone was admitted to the prefecture; for Caesar in his letter had openly said that such an appointment[*](I.e. the appointment of a praetorian prefect; not of Nebridius, as appears from xxi. 5, 11, 12, below.) would be in accordance with his wishes. As to the master of the offices, he had long before chosen for that office Anatolius, who previously had answered petitions, and some others, in accordance with what seemed to him expedient and safe.