[Sidenote:  A.D. 217 (a.u. 970)] [Sidenote:—­3—­] When the Parthians and the Medes, greatly enraged at the treatment they had received, equipped a large body of troops, he fell into an ecstasy of terror.  He was very bold in threats and very reckless in daring, but very cowardly in following a slow course involving danger, and very weak in hard labor.  He could no longer bear either great heat or armor, and consequently wore sleeved tunics made in such a shape as more or less to resemble breastplates.  Thus having the appearance of armor without its weight he could be safe from plots and also arouse admiration.  He often used these garments when not in battle.  He wore also a cavalry cloak, now all purple, now purple with white threads, and again of white with purple threads, and also red.  In Syria and in Mesopotamia he used Celtic clothing and shoes.  He furthermore invented a costume of his own by cutting out cloth and stitching it up, barbaric fashion, into a kind of cloak.  He himself wore it very constantly, so that it led to his being called Caracalla, [Footnote:  A word of Celtic origin, signifying a long, ulster-like tunic plus a hood.  This was a Gallic dress.] and he prescribed it by preference as the dress for the soldiers.  The barbarians saw what sort of person he was and also heard that his men were enervated through their previous luxury; for, to give an instance of their behavior, the Romans passed the winter in houses, making use of everything belonging to their entertainers as if it were their own. [They further perceived that their opponents had become so physically worn and so dejected in spirit by their toils and by the hardships which they were now undergoing that they no longer heeded the presents which they kept receiving from their commander.] Elated, therefore, to think that they should find them rather helpers than foes, they made ready to attack. [Footnote:  The last five words are a conjecture of Bekker’s.]

[Sidenote:—­4—­] Antoninus made preparations in his turn, but it did not fall to his lot to enter upon the war:  he was struck down in the midst of his soldiers, whom he most honored and in whom he reposed vast confidence.  A seer in Africa had declared (in such a way that it became noised abroad) that both Macrinus the prefect and his son Diadumenianus [Footnote:  His full name was M. Opellius Diadumenianus.] must reign.  Macrinus, sent to Rome, had revealed this to Flavius Maternianus, who at the time commanded the soldiers in the city, and he had at once sent word to Antoninus.  It happened that this letter was diverted to Antioch and came to [his mother] Julia, since she had been given orders to read over everything that arrived and thus prevent a mass of unimportant letters being sent to him while in a hostile country.  Another letter written by Ulpius Julianus, who then had charge of appraisements, went by other carriers straight to Macrinus and informed him of the state of the case.  It was in this way that the letter to the emperor suffered