Section 407
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376 ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY. things, and the manner of those that lived there, communicated the whole to the emperor, and wrote against them whatever slanders he thought proper. After this, being appointed as su perintendent of the mines, he divided, as if by imperial orders, the multitude of confessors into different bodies, and sent some to inhabit Cyprus, some to Libanus. Others he scattered into seve ral parts of Palestine, and commanded them all to labour in dif ferent works. Then selecting those that appeared to be pre-emi nent among them, he sent them away to the commander of the forces there. Of these, two were Egyptians, bishops Peleus and Nilus, another was a presbyter, and a fourth added to these named Patermuthius, well known to all for his great benevolence toward all. These the commander, after demanding a renuncia tion of their religion, and not succeeding, committed to be consumed by the flames. Others again, had their lot cast there, in a separate place by themselves, as many of the confessors, as whether from age, or blindness, or other infirmities of body, were exempt from performing labour. Of these, the chief was Silvanus, a bishop from Gaza, who presented a venerable example of genuine Christianity. This man, one might say, was eminent for his con fessions from the very first day of the persecution, through the whole time, in a variety of conflicts, and was reserved until that time, that this might be as the last seal of the whole conflict in Palestine. With him were associated many from Egypt, among whom also was John, who in the excellence of his memory sur passed all of our time. He, indeed, had already before been de prived of his eyes, and had his foot destroyed with burning irons, like the others, on account of his confessions, yet although his sight was already destroyed, he had the red hot iron nevertheless applied to him ; the butchers aiming at every display of cruelty, and inhumanity, and whatever was savage and brutal. And as this man was such, one has no cause to wonder at his philosophi cal life and habits, as he appeared not so wonderful on this ac count, as from the excellence of his memory. He had whole books of the sacred Scriptures written, as the apostle says, not on tables of stone, neither on skins of animals, nor papers destroyed by moths and time, but on the tables of flesh, in the heart, in an