Honoratus and Urban, the bishops, said: This was commanded to us in word, that because it had been decreed in the Council of Hippo that each province should be visited in the time of the council, that ye also deign that this year or next, according to the order ye have drawn up, you should visit the province of Mauritania.

Aurelius, the bishop, said: Of the province of Mauritania because it is situated in the confines of Africa, we have made no decree, for they are neighbours of the barbarians; but God grant (not however that I make any rash promise of doing so), we may be able to come to your province. For ye should consider, brethren, that this same thing our brethren of Tripoli and of the Arzuges region [454] could demand also, if occasion offered.

Notes.

Ancient Epitome of Canon LII.

As the Synod at Hippo decreed, every province should be visited in an annual Synod.

This canon is the last part of canon iv. of the Council of Carthage, August 28th, a.d.397.

Johnson.

The manner of visiting provinces, and that annually; and the persons by whom this visitation was performed, can scarce now be discovered; only it appears, by the words of Aurelius, that the Bishop of Carthage was one, if not the only visitor; but it was impossible that he could visit all the provinces in Africa personally every year, he must use delegates.

[454] Vide Corripus (Partsch's ed.) Johannid in Mon. Germ. Hist. (in the Series Auctores Antiquissimi), Proem, p. xiv. It seems from Orosius that the same province was called Tripolitana and Regio Arzugum, and that Arzuges was a race name of wider application.