The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-05-04
TODAY I'M HISTORY
Birthday Of JustInian, the Great.
WEDNESDAY,, MAY 4. 1910,

Birthday Of JustInian, the Great.
Tho Emperor Justinien was ono OF the
| most famous OF the rulers of the Eastern
Roman empire, although by birth he was
n barba rian. Historians give the date OF
| his birth as May 4. fs3. He took his
name from his uncle Justin. who had
| adopted him and started him on the road
| which finally led to success. OF his early
career there is very little known. When
stlll young man he received an exeel-
| lent education In Constantlnople, When
| his uncle ascended the throne. in the
year bis y. D.. the nephew became a
person OF great consequence. guiding,
| especially in church matters. the policy
| OF this aged childless and Ignorant mon
| arch. When Justin died. In 52T. Jus
tinian succeeded 10 the throne without
His reign was filled with great events.
| both at home and abroad. In peace and
| In war. u is as legislator ana sun
plficr Of law that his name is most Ia :
miliar 10 the modern world. He found
| the law of the empire in a state OF great
confusion II consisted OF Two masses
| named as the old law and the new law
| The writings were so numerous that no
complete collection Of them existed. I'M
mediately after his succession Just'nian
appointed a commission 10 revise the I'M
perial constitution.
The Codex constitution was formally
promulgated and enacted as one great
consolidating statute about one year ait
er Justinlan's succession. All imperial
ordinances. not included in IL were re
pealed at one stroke. The success OF this
experiment encouraged the emperor 10
attempt tho more difficult enterprise OF
simplifying and digesting the older law.
The work he did was consolidated ana
abridged He made extracts from exist.
Ing laws. preserving the old words and
merely cutting out rePetitons. removing
contradictions and retrenchius superiui 4.
ties so as 10 greatly reduce the bulk OF
the whole,
AS no foreign sovereign preceding
Justinlan had been so much interested
in church affairs so none seemed to have
shown so much activity as porescutor
of both athcn and hereto He re-
newcd. with additional stringenCy. the
laws against both these classes. The et-
forts directed against them resulted In
the forcible baptism OF 10000 persons in
Asia Minor alone.
Justinian. during his reign. was en-
gagged In three great foreign wars two
OF his own seeking and third legacy
that nearly every emperor had come into
for three Genturles-the secular strife OF
Rome and Persia.
Justinian, during the thirty eight years
of his reign, was a ruler OF high ability.
wonderful activity Of mind and tlreless
industry. He contrivcd schemes quickly
and pushed them with an eneqSy that
full OF self confidence. he was easily led
by those who knew how To influence
him. and particularly by his wife. Theo-
dora's influence over him was not for
good She seems to have been a wom-
an who. with all her gifts OF intelligence
and manner. had no principles and no
pity.
Justlnan Is credited with having had
an extraordinary power Of doing with
out sleep and food. He spent most Of
the night In reading and writing, and
would sometimes go for tweuty-four
hours with no food but few green
herbs.
On MAY I. in l47I. occurred the batue
of Tenksbury. Today In 1869 the Cruelty
TO Animals society was founded In Lon
don. In 1893 the express business was
first organized by ". r. Harnden, who
made a trip from Boston TO New York
as a public messenger. The IaYmsrket
riots In Chicago occurred in 1886 1t Is
the birthday OF Stephanus Van Cort-
landt the statesman G643): John James
Audubon. the ornithologst dIs0); VII
liam IL Prescott the historian 1I96);
Horace Mann. the educator G196), and
Richard Hovcy, the poet Gs64. II Is
the date on which Louis XIII. King OF
France. died. In 1913.