Page:Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (1827) Vol 2.djvu/419

CHAP. XIX.

beloved Lutetia^[1], where the amusements of the theatre were unknown or despised. He indignantly contrasted the effeminate Syrians with the brave and honest simplicity of the Gauls ; and almost forgave the intemperance, which was the only stain of the Celtic character^[2] If Julian could now revisit the capital of France, he might converse with men of science and genius, capable of understanding and of instructing a disciple of the Greeks; he might excuse the lively and graceful follies of a nation, whose martial spirit has never been enervated by the indulgence of luxury; and he must applaud the perfection of that inestimable art, which softens and refines and embellishes the intercourse of social life.

1. (Greek characters). Julian, in Misopogon. p. 340. Leucetia, or Lutetia, was the ancient name of the city which, according to the fashion of the fourth century, assumed the territorial appellation of Parisii.
2. Julian, in Misopogon. p. 359, 360.