This  rests  on  the  authority  of  Sulpicius
Severus,  who,  while  he  mentions  neither  their
names  nor  their  sees,  adds  a  statement  which
throws  some  light  upon  the  financial  position
of  the  British  Church  at  that  time — namely,
that  '  there  were  three  bishops  from  Britain,
who,  because  they  lacked  private  means,
made  use  of  the  public  bounty,  refusing
contributions  offered  to  them  by  the  rest.'
The  public  bounty  refers  to  the  provision  for
their  entertainment  which  the  Emperor  had
ordered  to  be  offered  at  the  public  expense
(Hist.  Sac,  ii.  41).
Fifth  century. — A  British  bishop  whose
name,  and  but  little  else,  has  come  down  to
us,  but  who  must  be  assigned  to  this  century,
is  Riocatus.  He  made  two  journeys  from
Britain  to  Gaul  to  see  Faustus,  a  Breton  if
not  a  Briton,  and  Bishop  of  Riez,  oh.  c.  492,
and  carried  certain  works  of  Faustus  back  to
Britain.  Another  British  bishop  of  whom
we  know  little  more  than  the  name  is  Fasti-
dius.  He  wrote  a  book,  or  possibly  two
books,  to  a  widow  named  Fatalis  in  the  first
half  of  the  fifth  century.  His  writings  have
been  accused  of  semi-Pelagianism,  but  his
semi-Pelagian  tendency  is  of  the  slightest
possible  character.  There  is  no  authority  for
the  conjecture  associating  him  with  the  see
of  London.
