'Happy the commonwealth which boasts the guidance of such a mistress. It was not enough that already liberty and convenience were combined for the multitude[639]: her merits have secured the fitting reverence for the person of the Sovereign. In obeying her we obey all the virtues. I, too, with such a counsellor, fear not the weight of the crown; and I know that whatever is strange to me in my new duties I shall learn from her as the safest of teachers.
'Acknowledge, noble Sirs, that all my power of increased usefulness to the State comes from this our most wise Lady, from whom I may either gain wisdom by asking questions, or virtue by following her example.
'Live happily: live in harmony by God's help, and emulate that grace of concord which you see prevailing between your Sovereigns.'
[5.] King Theodahad to his Man Theodosius[640].
The followers of the new King must live justly.
'By my accession to the throne I have become lord of the whole nation and guardian of the general welfare. I therefore command that all who belong to my private household shall vindicate their rights only in the courts of law, and shall abstain from all high-handed modes of obtaining redress. Only that man must henceforward be called mine who can live quietly subject to the laws. My new dignity has changed my purpose; and if before I have defended my rights with pertinacity, I shall now temper all my acts with clemency[641]; since there is nothing exceptional about a Sovereign's household, but wheresoever, by the grace of God, our rule extends, there, as we fully confess, is something which it is our duty to defend. Augment therefore my renown by your patience, and let me hear praises rather than complaints of the actions of my servants.'
[6.] King Theodahad to Patricius, Vir Illustris and Quaestor.
Patricius appointed Quaestor.
'In conferring upon you the office of Quaestor we look first to character, and we find in you that love of justice which is all important in a representative of the Prince. Then we look at the qualities of your intellect, and we find in you that flow of eloquence which among all mental accomplishments we value most highly. What does it profit to be a philosopher, if one cannot worthily set forth the results of one's investigations? To discover is natural to man; but to set forth one's discoveries in noble language, that is indeed a desirable gift. Therefore we bestow on you for this thirteenth Indiction[642] the fasces of the Quaestorship, desiring you to consecrate your time to the study of the laws and the responsa prudentum, and to spread abroad our fame by the eloquent manner in which you shall communicate our decrees to the Cities and Provinces under our sway, and speak in our name to the representatives of foreign nations.'