"Let us despise it all, and in contempt resign ourselves. Human
stupidity can never hurt the gods!"
So saying the "Divine" Iamblicus took an enormous faggot from the
hands of the Christian and cast it into the fire. At first Julian
could scarcely believe his eyes. The now-smiling spies stared at him,
with a curious fixity.
Then weakness, and his own habitual hypocrisy for his own sake and for
the sake of others, won the day. He went to the heap of wood, chose
the largest log, and, after Iamblicus, threw it into the blaze in
which the mutilated body of the goddess was already melting. He
clearly saw drops of silver rolling on her face as in a death-sweat,
and the lips still keeping their invincible smile.