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THOSE in every city who maintained the Nicene doctrine now began
to take courage, and more particularly the inhabitants of Alexandria
in Egypt. Peter had returned thither from Rome with a letter from
Damasus, confirmatory of the tenets of Nicaea and of his own
ordination; and he was installed in the government of the churches in
the place of Lucius, who sailed away to Constantinople after his
eviction. The Emperor Valens very naturally was so distracted by
other affairs, that he had no leisure to attend to these transactions.
He had no sooner arrived at Constantinople than he incurred the
suspicion and hatred of the people. The barbarians were pillaging
Thrace, and were even advancing to the very suburbs, and attempted to
make an assault on the very walls, with no one to hinder them. The
city was indignant at this inertness; and the people even charged the
emperor with being a party to their attack, because he did not sally
forth, but delayed offering battle. At length, when he was present
at the sports of the Hippodrome, the people openly and loudly accused
him of neglecting the affairs of the state, and demanded arms that they
might fight in their own defense. Valens, offended at these
reproaches, immediately undertook an expedition against the
barbarians; but he threatened to punish the insolence of the people on
his return, and also to take vengeance on them for having formerly
supported the tyrant Procopius.
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