The governor as benefactor in Late Antiquity

Upon his arrival in Edessa as the new governor of Osrhoene in the year 497, Alexander (PLRE II, Alexander 14) launched his term of office with a series of benefactions, as Joshua the Stylite tells us in his Syriac Chronicle. 1 Alexander cleaned up the mess in the streets of the city. He put up a wooden 'suggestion' box in front of his residence in which people could drop him a note with a request in case they did not feel comfortable expressing their wish in public. 2 Every Friday he would settle lawsuits free of charge, and even uninvestigated cases going back more than fifty years would be brought before him and settled. In addition, he built a walkway at one of the city's gates, and began the construction of a public hall, which apparently had already been in the planning for many years. These measures give the impression that Alexander took his office as governor very seriously and cared a great deal for his subjects. What did they think of all of this? Did Alexander do more than they hoped for? Were his efforts beyond their expectations? And, from Alexander's point of view, what did he gain from his endeavors

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