reated Time, and debasing to the accidents of before and after that
Timeless and Eternal Generation, of which it is written, 'Thou art my
Son, this day have I begotten thee.' Still less could Ulfilas, or his
Goths, have known, that the natural human tendency to condition God by
Time, would be, in later ages, even long after Arianism was crushed
utterly, the parent of many a cruel, gross, and stupid superstition. To
them it would have been a mere question whether Woden, the All-father,
was superior to one of his sons, the Asas: and the Catholic faith
probably seemed to them an impious assumption of equality, on the part of
one of those Asas, with Woden himself.

Of the battle between Arianism and Orthodoxy I have said enough to shew
you that I think it an internecine battle between truth and falsehood.
But it has been long ago judged by wager of battle: by the success of
that duel of time, of which we must believe (as our forefathers believed
of all fair duels) that God defends the right.

So the Goths were to come over the Danube stream: but they must give up
their arms, and deliver their children (those of rank, one supposes), as
hostages, to be educated by the Romans, as Romans.

They crossed the fatal river; they were whole days in crossing; those set
to count them gave it up in despair; Ammianus says: 'He who wishes to
know their number,'

'Libyci velit aequoris idem
Discere quam multae Zephyro volvuntur arenae.'

And when they were across, they gave up the children. They had not the
heart to give up the beloved weapons. The Roman commissioners let them
keep the arms, at the price of many a Gothic woman's honour. Ugly and
foul things happened, of which we have only hints. Then they had to be
fed for the time being, till they could cultivate their land. Lupicinus
and Maximus, the two governors of Thrace pocketed the funds which Valens
sent, and starved the Goths. The markets were full of carrion and dogs'
flesh. Anything was good enough for a barbarian. Their fringed carpets,
their beautiful linens, all went. A little wholesome meat cost 10 pounds
of silver. When all was gone, they had to sell their children. To
establish a slave-trade in the beautiful boys and girls was just what the
wicked Romans wanted.

At last the end came. They began to rise. Fridigern, their king, kept
them quiet till the time was ripe for revenge. The Romans, trying to
keep the West Goths down, got so confused,