"I," he said, "was acquainted with neither you nor Niger, but as I found myself in his part of the world, I accepted the situation heartily, not with the idea of being hostile to you but with the purpose of deposing Julianus. I have, then, committed no wrong in this, since I labored originally for the same ends as you, nor should I be censured for failing to desert the master whom I had once secured by the will of Heaven and for not transferring my allegiance to you. You would not yourself have liked to have your intimate circle and fellow judges here betray your cause and go over to him. Examine therefore not our bodies nor our names but the events themselves. For in every point in which you condemn us you will be passing sentence upon yourself and your associates. However secure you may be from conviction in any suit or by any court finding, still, in the report of men, of which an eternal memory shall survive, you will be represented as making against yourself the same charges as have led to punishment [
] in the case of others."--Severus admired this man for his frankness and allowed him to keep half his property.
[Many who had never even seen Niger and had not cooperated with him were victims of abuse on the charge that they had been members of his party.]
A.D. 195 (a.u. 948)
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The Byzantines performed many remarkable deeds both during the life and after the death of Niger. This city is favorably located with reference both to the continents and to the sea that lies between them, and is strongly intrenched by the nature of its position as well as by that of the Bosporus. The town sits on high ground extending into the sea. The latter, rushing down from the Pontus with the speed of a mountain torrent assails the headland and in part is diverted to the right, forming there the bay and harbors. But the greater part of the water passes on with great energy past the city itself toward the Propontis. Moreover, the place had walls that were very strong. Their face was constructed of thick squared stones, fastened together by bronze plates, and the inner side of it had been strengthened with mounds and buildings so that the whole seemed to be one thick wall and the top of it formed a circuit betraying no flaws and easy to guard. Many large towers occupied an exposed position outside it, with windows set close together on every side so that those assaulting the fortification in a circle would be cut off between them. Being built at a short distance from the wall and not in a regular line, but one here and another there over a rather crooked route, they were sure to command both sides of any attacking party. Of the entire circuit the part on the land side reached a great height so as to repel any who came that way: the portion next to the sea was lower. There, the rocks on which it had been reared and the dangerous character of the Bosporus were effective allies. The harbors within the wall had both been closed with chains and their breakwaters carried towers projecting far out on each side, making approach impossible for the enemy. And, in fine, the Bosporus was of the greatest aid to the citizens. It was quite inevitable that once any person became entangled in its current he should willy-nilly be cast up on the land. This was a feature quite satisfactory to friends, but impossible for foes to deal with.
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