However, he
admitted his wife and his horse to that honour; and to give a
finishing stroke to his absurdities, became a priest to himself. 25.
His method of assuming the manners of a deity was not less ridiculous;
he often went out at full moon, and courted it in the style of a
lover. He employed many inventions to imitate thunder, and would
frequently defy Jupiter, crying out with a speech of Homer, "Do you
conquer me, or I will conquer you." He frequently pretended to
converse in whispers with the statue of Jupiter, and usually seemed
angry at its replies, threatening to send it back into Greece, whence
it came. Sometimes, however, he would assume a better temper, and seem
contented that Jupiter and he should dwell together in amity.
26. Of all his vices, prodigality was the most remarkable, and that
which in some measure gave rise to the rest. The luxuries of former
emperors were simplicity itself when compared to those which he
practised. He contrived new ways of bathing, when the richest oils and
most precious perfumes were lavished with the utmost profusion.
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