Ammianus Marcellinus, History

§ 25.2.4 And although for a moment he remained sunk in stupefaction, yet rising above all fear, he commended his future fate to the decrees of heaven, and now fully awake, the night being now far advanced, he left his bed, which was spread on the ground, and prayed to the gods with rites designed to avert their displeasure. Then he thought he saw a blazing torch of fire, like a falling star, which furrowed part of the air and disappeared. And he was filled with fear lest the threatening star of Mars had thus visibly shown itself.

§ 25.2.5 That fiery brilliance was of the kind that we call diasson, which never falls anywhere or touches the earth; for anyone who believes that bodies can fall from heaven is rightly considered a layman, or a fool. But this sort of thing happens in many ways, and it will be enough to explain a few of them.

§ 25.2.6 Some believe that sparks glowing from the ethereal force, are not strong enough to go very far and then are extinguished; or at least that beams of light are forced into thick clouds, and because of the heavy clash throw out sparks, or when some light has come in contact with a cloud. For this takes the form of a star, and falls downward, so long as it is sustained by the strength of the fire; but, exhausted by the greatness of the space which it traverses, it loses itself in the air, passing back into the substance whose friction gave it all that heat.

§ 25.2.7 Accordingly, before dawn the Etruscan soothsayers were hastily summoned, and asked what this unusual kind of star portended. Their reply was, that any undertaking at that time must be most carefully avoided, pointing out that in the Tarquitian books, under the rubric “On signs from heaven” it was written, that when a meteor was seen in the sky, battle ought not to be joined, or anything similar attempted.

§ 25.2.8 When the emperor scorned this also, as well as many other signs, the soothsayers begged that at least he would put off his departure for some hours; but even this they could not gain, since the emperor was opposed to the whole science of divination, but since day had now dawned, camp was broken.

§ 25.3.1 When we marched on from this place, the Persians, since their frequent losses made them dread regular battles with the infantry, laid ambuscades, and secretly attended us, from the high hills on both sides watching our companies as they marched, so that the soldiers, suspicious of this, all day long neither raised a palisade nor fortified themselves with stakes.

§ 25.3.2 And while the flanks were strongly protected and the army, as the nature of the ground made necessary, advanced in square formation, but with the battalions in open order, it was reported to the emperor, who even then unarmed had gone forward to reconnoitre, that the rear guard had suddenly been attacked from behind. Excited by the misfortune, he forgot his coat of mail, and merely caught up a shield in the confusion; but as he was hastening to bring aid to those in the rear, he was recalled by another danger the news that the van, which he had just left, was just as badly off.

§ 25.3.4 While he was hastening to restore order there without regard to his own peril, a Parthian band of mailed cavalry on another side attacked the centre companies, and quickly overflowed the left wing, which gave way, since our men could hardly endure the smell and trumpeting of the elephants, they were trying to end the battle with pikes and volleys of arrows.

§ 25.3.5 But while the emperor rushed hither and thither amid the foremost ranks of the combatants, our light-armed forces leaped forth upon them, and as the Persians turned in flight, they hacked at their legs and backs, and those of the elehants.

§ 25.3.6 Julian, careless of his own safety, shouting and raising his hands tried to make it clear to his men that the enemy had fled in disorder, and, to rouse them to a still more furious pursuit, rushed boldly into the fight. His guards, who had scattered in their alarm, were crying to him from all sides to get clear of the mass of fugitives, as dangerous as the fall of a badly built roof, when suddenly — no one knows whence — a cavalryman's spear grazed the skin of his arm, pierced his ribs, and lodged in the lower lobe of his liver.

§ 25.3.7 While he was trying to pluck this out with his right hand, he felt that the sinews of his fingers were cut through on both sides by the sharp steel. Then he fell from his horse, all present hastened to the spot, he was taken to camp and given medical treatment.

§ 25.3.8 And soon, as the pain diminished somewhat, he ceased to fear, and fighting with great spirit against death, he called for his arms and his horse in order by his return to the fight to restore the confidence of his men, and troubling nothing about himself, to show that he was filled with great anxiety for the safety of the others; with the same vigour, though under different conditions, with which the famous leader Epaminondas, when mortally wounded at Mantineia and carried from the field, took particular care to ask for his shield. And when he saw it near him, he died of his terrible wound, happy; for he who gave up his life without fear dreaded the loss of his shield.

§ 25.3.9 But since Julian's strength was not equal to his will, and he was weakened by great loss of blood, he lay still, having lost all hope for his life because, on inquiry, he learned that the place where he had fallen was called Phrygia. For he had heard that it was fate's decree that he should die there.

§ 25.3.10 But when the emperor had been taken to his tent, the soldiers, burning with wrath and grief, with incredible vigour rushed to avenge him, clashing their spears against their shields, resolved even to die if it should be the will of fate. And although the high clouds of dust blinded the eyes, and the burning heat weakened the activity of their limbs, yet as though discharged by the loss of their leader, without sparing themselves, they rushed upon the swords of the enemy.

§ 25.3.11 On the other hand, the exulting Persians sent forth such a shower of arrows that they prevented their opponents from seeing the bowmen. Before them slowly marched the elephants, which with their huge size of body and horrifying crests, struck terror into horses and men. Further off, the trampling of the combatants, the groans of the falling, the panting of the horses, and the ring of arms were heard, until finally both parties were weary of inflicting wounds and the darkness of night ended the battle.

§ 25.3.13 On that day fifty Persian grandees and satraps fell, besides a great number of common soldiers, and among them the distinguished generals Merena and Nohodares were slain. The boastfulness of antiquity may view with amazement the twenty battles of Marcellus in various places; it may add Sicinius Dentatus, honoured with a multitude of military crowns; it may besides admire Sergius, who (they say) was wounded twenty-three times in different battles, and whose last descendant Catiline tarnished the glorious renown of these victories with an indelible stain. Yet the joy in our success was marred by sorrow.

§ 25.3.14 For while the fight went on everywhere after the withdrawal of the leader, the right wing of the army was exhausted, and Anatolius, at that time chief marshal of the court, was killed. Salutius, the prefect, was in extreme danger, but was saved by the help of his adjutant, and by a fortunate chance escaped death, while Phosphorius, a councillor who chanced to be at his side, was lost. Some of the court officials and soldiers, amid many dangers, took refuge in a neighbouring fortress, and were able to rejoin the army only after three days.

§ 25.3.15 While all this was going on, Julian, lying in his tent, addressed his disconsolate and sorrowful companions as follows: “Most opportunely, friends, has the time now come for me to leave this life, which I rejoice to return to Nature, at her demand, like an honourable debtor, not (as some might think) bowed down with sorrow, but having learned from the general conviction of philosophers how much happier the soul is than the body, and bearing in mind that whenever a better condition is severed from a worse, one should rather rejoice than grieve. Thinking also of this, that the gods of heaven themselves have given death to some men of the greatest virtue as their supreme reward.

§ 25.3.16 But this gift, I know well, was given to me, that I might not yield to great difficulties, nor ever bow down and humiliate myself; for experience teaches me that all sorrows overcome only weaklings, but yield to the steadfast.

§ 25.3.17 I do not regret what I have done, nor does the recollection of any grave misdeed torment me; either when I was consigned to the shade and obscurity, or after I attained the principate, I have preserved my soul, as taking its origin from relationship with the gods, stainless (in my opinion), conducting civil affairs with moderation, and making and repelling wars only after mature deliberation. And yet success and well-laid plans do not always go hand in hand, since higher powers claim for themselves the outcome of all enterprises.

§ 25.3.18 Considering, then, that the aim of a just rule is the welfare and security of its subjects, I was always, as you know, more inclined to peaceful measures, excluding from my conduct all license, the corrupter of deeds and of character. On the other hand, I depart rejoicing that, so often as the state, like an imperious parent, has exposed me deliberately to dangers, I have stood four-square, accustomed as I am to tread under foot the storms of fate.

§ 25.3.19 And I shall not be ashamed to admit, that I learned long ago through the words of a trustworthy prophecy, that I should perish by the sword. And therefore I thank the eternal power that I meet my end, not from secret plots, nor from the pain of a tedious illness, nor by the fate of a criminal, but that in the mid-career of glorious renown I have been found worthy of so noble a departure from this world. For he is justly regarded as equally weak and cowardly who desires to die when he ought not, or he who seeks to avoid death when his time has come.

§ 25.3.20 So much it will be enough to say, since my vital strength is failing. But as to the choice of an emperor, I am prudently silent, lest I pass over some worthy person through ignorance, or if I name someone whom I consider suitable, and perhaps another is preferred, I may expose him to extreme danger. But as an honourable foster-child of our country, I wish that a good ruler may be found to succeed me.”

§ 25.3.21 After having spoken these words in a calm tone, wishing to distribute his private property to his closer friends, as if with the last stroke of his pen, he called for Anatolius, his chief court-marshal. And when the prefect Salutius replied “He has been happy,” he understood that he had been slain, and he who recently with such courage had been indifferent to his own fate, grieved deeply over that of a friend.

§ 25.3.22 Meanwhile, all who were present wept, whereupon even then maintaining his authority, he chided them, saying that it was unworthy to mourn for a prince who was called to union with heaven and the stars.

§ 25.3.23 As this made them all silent, he himself engaged with the philosophers Maximus and Priscus in an intricate discussion about the nobility of the soul. Suddenly the wound in his pierced side opened wide, the pressure of the blood checked his breath, and after a draught of cold water for which he had asked, in the gloom of midnight he passed quietly away in the thirty-second year of his age. Born in Constantinople, he was left alone in childhood by the death both of his father Constantius (who, after the decease of his brother Constantinus, met his end with many others in the strife for the succession to the throne) and of his mother Basilina, who came from an old and noble family.

§ 25.4.1 He was a man truly to be numbered with the heroic spirits, distinguished for his illustrious deeds and his inborn majesty. For since there are, in the opinion of the philosophers, four principal virtues, moderation, wisdom, justice, and courage and corresponding to these also some external characteristics, such as knowledge of the art of war, authority, good fortune, and liberality, these as a whole and separately Julian cultivated with constant zeal.

§ 25.4.2 In the first place, he was so conspicuous for inviolate chastity that after the loss of his wife it is well known that he never gave a thought to love: bearing in mind what we read in Plato, that Sophocles, the tragic poet, when he was asked, at a great age, whether he still had congress with women, said no, adding that he was glad that he had escaped from this passion as from some mad and cruel master.

§ 25.4.3 Also, to give greater strength to this principle, Julian often repeated the saying of the lyric poet Bacchylides, whom he delighted to read, who declares that as a skilful painter gives a face beauty, just so chastity gives charm to a life of high aims. This blemish in the mature strength of manhood he avoided with such care, that even his most confidential attendants never (as often happens) accused him even of a suspicion of any lustfulness.

§ 25.4.4 Moreover, this kind of self-restraint was made still greater through his moderation in eating and sleeping, which he strictly observed at home and abroad. For in time of peace the frugality of his living and his table excited the wonder of those who could judge aright, as if he intended soon to resume the philosopher's cloak. And on his various campaigns, he was often seen partaking of common and scanty food, sometimes standing up like a common soldier.

§ 25.4.5 As soon as he had refreshed his body, which was inured to toil, by a brief rest in sleep, he awoke and in person attended to the changing of the guards and pickets, and after these serious duties took refuge in the pursuit of learning.

§ 25.4.6 And if the nightly lamps amid which he worked could have given oral testimony, they would certainly have borne witness that there was a great difference between him and some other princes, since they knew that he did not indulge in pleasure, even to the extent which nature demanded.

§ 25.4.7 Then there were very many proofs of his wisdom, of which it will suffice to mention a few. He was thoroughly skilled in the arts of war and peace, greatly inclined to courtesy, and claiming for himself only so much deference as he thought preserved him from contempt and insolence. He was older in virtue than in years. He gave great attention to the administration of justice, and was sometimes an unbending judge; also a very strict censor in regulating conduct, with a calm contempt for riches, scorning everything mortal; in short, he often used to declare that it was shameful for a wise man, since he possessed a soul, to seek honour from bodily gifts.

§ 25.4.8 By what high qualities he was distinguished in his administration of justice is clear from many indications: first, because taking into account circumstances and persons, he was awe-inspiring but free from cruelty. Secondly, because he checked vice by making examples of a few, and also because he more frequently threatened men with the sword than actually used it.

§ 25.4.9 Finally, to be brief, it is well known that he was so merciful towards some open enemies who plotted against him, that he corrected the severity of their punishment by his inborn mildness.

§ 25.4.10 His fortitude is shown by the great number of his battles and by his conduct of wars, as well as by his endurance of excessive cold and heat. And although bodily duty is demanded from a soldier, but mental duty from a general, yet he once boldly met a savage enemy in battle and struck him down, and when our men gave ground, he several times alone checked their flight by opposing his breast to them. When destroying the kingdoms of the raging Germans and on the burning sands of Persia he added to the confidence of his soldiers by fighting among the foremost.

§ 25.4.11 There are many notable evidences of his knowledge of military affairs: the sieges of cities and fortresses, undertaken amid the extremest dangers, the varied forms in which he arranged his lines of battle, the choice of safe and healthful places for camps, the wisely planned posting of frontier guards and field pickets.

§ 25.4.12 His authority was so well established that, being feared as well as deeply loved as one who shared in the dangers and hardships of his men, he both in the heat of fierce battles condemned cowards to punishment, and, while he was still only a Caesar, he controlled his men even without pay, when they were fighting with savage tribes, as I have long ago said. And when they were armed and mutinous, he did not fear to address them and threaten to return to private life, if they continued to be insubordinate.

§ 25.4.13 Finally, one thing it will be enough to know in token of many, namely, that merely by a speech he induced his Gallic troops, accustomed to snow and to the Rhine, to traverse long stretches of country and follow him through torrid Assyrians to the very frontiers of the Medes.

§ 25.4.14 His success was so conspicuous that for a long time he seemed to ride on the shoulders of Fortune herself, his faithful guide as he in victorious career surmounted enormous difficulties. And after he left the western region, so long as he was on earth all nations preserved perfect quiet, as if a kind of earthly wand of Mercury were pacifying them.

§ 25.4.15 There are many undoubted tokens of his generosity. Among these are his very light imposition of tribute, his remission of the crown-money, the cancellation of many debts made great by long standing, the impartial treatment of disputes between the privy purse and private persons, the restoration of the revenues from taxes to various states along with their lands, except such as previous high officials had alienated by a kind of legal sale; furthermore, that he was never eager to increase his wealth, which he thought was better secured in the hands of its possessors; and he often remarked that Alexander the Great, when asked where his treasures were, gave the kindly answer, “in the hands of my friends.”

§ 25.4.16 Having set down his good qualities, so many as I could know, let me now come to an account of his faults, although they can be summed up briefly. In disposition ho was somewhat inconsistent, but he controlled this by the excellent habit of submitting, when he went wrong, to correction.

§ 25.4.17 He was somewhat talkative, and very seldom silent; also too much given to the consideration of omens and portents, so that in this respect he seemed to equal the emperor Hadrian. Superstitious rather than truly religious, he sacrificed innumerable victims without regard to cost, so that one might believe that if he had returned from the Parthians, there would soon have been a scarcity of cattle; like the Caesar Marcus, of whom (as we learn) the following Greek distich was written: “We the white steers do Marcus Caesar greet. Win once again, and death we all must meet.”

§ 25.4.18 He delighted in the applause of the mob, and desired beyond measure praise for the slightest matters, and the desire for popularity often led him to converse with unworthy men.

§ 25.4.19 But yet, in spite of this, his own saying might be regarded as sound, namely, that the ancient goddess of Justice, whom Aratus raised to heaven because of her impatience with men's sins, returned to earth again during his rule, were it not that sometimes he acted arbitrarily, and now and then seemed unlike himself.

§ 25.4.20 For the laws which he enacted were not oppressive, but stated exactly what was to be done or left undone, with a few exceptions, For example, it was a harsh law that forbade Christian rhetoricians and grammarians to teach, unless they consented to worship the pagan deities.

§ 25.4.21 And also it was almost unbearable that in the municipal towns he unjustly allowed persons to be made members of the councils, who, either as foreigners, or because of personal privileges or birth, were wholly Exempt from such assemblies.

§ 25.4.22 The figure and proportion of his body were as follows. He was of medium stature. His hair lay smooth as if it had been combed, his beard was shaggy and trimmed so as to end in a point, his eyes were fine and full of fire, an indication of the acuteness of his mind. His eyebrows were handsome, his nose very straight, his mouth somewhat large with a pendulous lower lip. His neck was thick and somewhat bent, his shoulders large and broad. Moreover, right from top to toe he was a man of straight well-proportioned bodily frame and as a result was strong and a good runner.

§ 25.4.23 And since his detractors alleged that he had stirred up the storms of war anew, to the ruin of his country, they should know clearly through the teachings of truth, that it was not Julian, but Constantine, who kindled the Parthian fires, when he confided too greedily in the lies of Metrodorus, as I explained fully some time ago.

§ 25.4.24 This it was that caused the annihilation of our armies, the capture so often of whole companies of soldiers, the destruction of cities, the seizure or overthrow of fortresses, the exhaustion of our provinces by heavy expenses, and the threats of the Persians which were soon brought into effect, as they claimed everything as far as Bithynia and the shores of the Propontis.

§ 25.4.25 But in Gaul, where barbarian arrogance grew apace, as the Germans swarmed through our territories, and the Alps were on the point of being forced with the resulting devastation of Italy, after the inhabitants had suffered many unspeakable woes, nothing was left save tears and fears, since the recollection of the past was bitter and the anticipation of what threatened was sadder still: all this that young man, sent to the western region, a Caesar in name only, wholly corrected with almost incredible speed, driving kings before him like common slaves.

§ 25.4.26 And in order to restore the Orient with similar energy, he attacked the Persians, and he would have won from them a triumph and a surname, if the decrees of heaven had been in accord with his plans and his splendid deeds.

§ 25.4.27 And although we know that some men thoughtlessly laugh at experience to such an extent that they sometimes renew wars when defeated, and go to sea again after shipwreck, and return to meet difficulties to which they have often yielded, there are some who blame a prince who had been everywhere victorious for trying to equal his past exploits.

§ 25.5.1 After this there was no time for laments or tears. For after caring for Julian's body as well as the means at hand and the circumstances allowed, in order that he might be laid to rest in the place which he had previously chosen, at dawn of the following day, which was the twenty-seventh of June, with the enemy swarming about us on every side, the generals of the army assembled, and having called in the commanders of the legions and of the squadrons of cavalry, they consulted about choosing an emperor.

§ 25.5.2 They were divided into turbulent factions, for Arintheus and Victor, with the other survivors of the palace officials of Constantius, looked around for a suitable man from their party; on the other hand, Nevitta and Dagalaifus, as well as the chiefs of the Gauls, sought such a man among their fellow-soldiers.

§ 25.5.3 After some discussion, all by general agreement united on Salutius, and when he pleaded illness and old age, one of the soldiers of higher rank, perceiving Salutius' determined opposition, said: “What would you do if the emperor (as often happens) had in his absence committed to you the conduct of this war? Would you not put aside everything else and save the soldiers from the threatening dangers? Do that now, and if we are permitted to see Mesopotamia, the united votes of both armies will decide upon a lawful emperor.”

§ 25.5.4 During this delay, which was slight considering the importance of the matter, before the various opinions had been weighed, a few hot-headed soldiers (as often happens in an extreme crisis) chose an emperor in the person of Jovianus, commander of the household troops, who had claims for some slight consideration because of the services of his father. For he was the son of Varronianus, a well-known count, who not long since, after ending his military career, had retired to a quieter life.

§ 25.5.5 Now Jovian, as soon as he had been clothed in the imperial robes and suddenly brought out from his tent, already hastening through the ranks of the soldiers, who were getting ready to march.

§ 25.5.6 And since the army extended for four miles, those in the van, on hearing some men shouting “ Jovianus Augustus,” repeated the same sounds much more loudly; for struck by the near relationship of the name, since it differed in only one letter, they thought that Julian had recovered and was being brought out amid the usual great acclaim. But when Jovianus a taller and bent men was seen advancing, they suspected what had happened, and all burst into tears and lamentation.

§ 25.5.7 But if any onlooker of strict justice with undue haste blames such a step taken in a moment of extreme danger, he will, with even more justice, reproach sailors, if after the loss of a skilled pilot, amid the raging winds and seas, they committed the guidance of the helm of their ship to any companion in their peril, whoever he might be.

§ 25.5.8 When this had been done as described, as if by the blind decree of fortune, the standard-bearer of the Joviani, formerly commanded by Varronianus, who was at odds with the new emperor even when he was still a private citizen, just as he had been a persistent critic of his father, fearing danger from an enemy who had now risen above the ordinary rank, deserted to the Persians. And as soon as he had the opportunity of telling what he knew to Sapor, who was already drawing near, he informed the king that the man whom he feared was dead, and that an excited throng of camp-followers had chosen a mere shadow of imperial power in the person of Jovian, up to that time one of the bodyguard, and a slothful, weak man. On hearing this news, for which he had always longed with anxious prayers, the king, elated by the unexpected good fortune, added a corps of the royal cavalry to the army opposed to us and hastened on, ordering an attack upon the rear of our army.

§ 25.6.1 While these arrangements were being made on both sides, in Jovian's behalf victims were killed, and when the entrails were inspected it was announced that he would ruin everything, if he remained within the rampart of his camp (as he thought of doing), but would be victor if he marched out.

§ 25.6.2 But when we accordingly were just beginning to leave, the Persians attacked us, with the elephants in front. By the unapproachable and frightful stench of these brutes horses and men were at first thrown into confusion, but the Joviani and Herculiani, after killing a few of the beasts, bravely resisted the mail clad horsemen.

§ 25.6.3 Then the legions of the Jovii and the Victores came to the aid of their struggling companions and slew two elephants, along with a considerable number of the enemy. On our left wing some valiant warriors fell, Julianus, Macrobius and Maximus, tribunes of the legions which then held first place in our army.

§ 25.6.4 Having buried these men as well as the pressing conditions allowed, when towards nightfall we were coming at rapid pace to a fortress called Sumere, we recognized the corpse of Anatolius lying in the road, and it was hastily committed to the earth. Here, too, we recovered sixty soldiers with some court officials, who (as I have related above) bad taken refuge in a deserted stronghold.

§ 25.6.5 On the next day we pitched our camp in the best place we could find, a broad plain in a valley; it was surrounded as if by a natural wall, and had only one exit, which was a wide one, and all about it we set stakes with sharp ends like the points of swords.

§ 25.6.6 On seeing this, the enemy from the wooded heights assailed us with weapons of all kinds and with insulting language, as traitors and murderers of an excellent prince. For they also had heard from the mouths of deserters, in consequence of an unfounded rumour, that Julian had been killed by a Roman weapon.

§ 25.6.7 Finally, some troops of horsemen meanwhile ventured to break through the praetorian gate and to come near the very tent of the emperor, but with the loss of many killed and wounded they were vigorously driven back.

§ 25.6.8 Then we set out on the following night and took possession of the place called Charcha; here we were safe because there were mounds along the banks, constructed by men's hands to prevent the Saracens from continually making raids on Assyrians, and no one harassed our lines, as had been done before this.

§ 25.6.9 And from here, having completed a march of thirty stadia, on the first of July we reached a city called Dura. Our horses were tired, and their riders, who marched on foot and fell to the rear, were surrounded by a throng of Saracens, and would at once have perished, had not some squadrons of our light-armed cavalry brought help to them in their distress.

§ 25.6.10 We found these Saracens hostile for the reason that they had been prevented by Julian's order from receiving pay and numerous gifts, as in times past, and when they complained to him, had received the simple reply that a warlike and watchful emperor had steel and not gold.

§ 25.6.11 In this place the persistence of the Persians delayed us for four days. For when we began to march, they followed us, and by frequent onsets forced us to turn back; if we halted to do battle with them, they little by little retired and harassed us by continual delays. But now (since to those who are in fear of the worst even false reports are commonly welcome) the rumour was circulated that the frontiers of our possessions were not far distant; whereupon the army, with mutinous bluster, demanded that they be allowed to cross the Tigris.

§ 25.6.12 The emperor, as well as the generals, opposed them, and pointing to the river, which was in flood, since the dog -star had already risen, begged them not to trust themselves to the dangerous currents, declaring that very many could not swim, and adding that scattered bands of the enemy had beset the banks of the swollen stream in various places.

§ 25.6.13 But when these warnings, though several times repeated, had no effect, and the loud shouts of the excited soldiers threatened violence, Jovian reluctantly consented that the Gauls, mingled with the northern Germans, should enter the river first of all, to the end that if these were swept away by the force of the stream, the obstinacy of the rest might be broken down; or if they accomplished their purpose without harm, the rest might try to cross with greater confidence.

§ 25.6.14 For this attempt the most skilful men were chosen, who from early childhood were taught in their native lands to cross the greatest of all rivers. and as soon as the quiet of night gave an opportunity for concealment, as if starting all together in a race, they gained the opposite bank more quickly than could have been expected, and after trampling under foot and killing a great number of the Persians, who had been posted to guard the places, but from a feeling of security were buried in quiet sleep, they raised their hands and waved their mantles, to show that their bold attempt had succeeded.

§ 25.6.15 When this was seen from afar, the soldiers, now eager to cross, were delayed only by the promise of the pontoon builders to make bridges of bladders from the hides of slain animals.

§ 25.7.1 While these vain attempts were being made, King Sapor, both when far away and when he had come near, learned from the true accounts of scouts and deserters of the brave deeds of our men and the shameful defeats of his army, accompanied by a greater loss of elephants than he had ever known in his reign; also that the Roman army, inured to constant hardship after the loss of their glorious leader, were looking out (as they said), not for their safety, but for revenge, and would end the difficulties of their situation by either a decisive victory or a glorious death.

§ 25.7.2 This news filled his mind with fear for many reasons: for he knew by experience that the troops scattered in great numbers through the provinces could easily be assembled by one little ticket, and he was aware that his own subjects, after the loss of so many men were in a state of extreme panic, and, besides, that in Mesopotamia a Roman army had been left which was not much smaller.

§ 25.7.3 More than all, it dulled his anxious mind that five hundred men together in one swim had crossed unharmed the swollen river, had slain his guards, and had roused their comrades who had remained behind to similar boldness.

§ 25.7.4 Meanwhile our men, since the raging waters prevented bridges from being made, and everything edible had been used up, passed two days in wretchedness, deprived of everything useful; excited by hunger and wrath, they were in a state of frenzy and eager to lose their lives by the sword rather then by starvation, the most shameful kind of death.

§ 25.7.5 However, the eternal power of God in heaven was on our side, and the Persians, beyond our hopes, took the first step and sent as envoys for securing peace the Surena and another magnate, being themselves also low in their minds, which the fact that the Roman side was superior in almost every battle shook more and more every day.

§ 25.7.6 Nevertheless, they offered conditions which were difficult and involved, for they pretended that from feelings of humanity the most merciful of kings would allow the remnants of the army to return, if the emperor and his most distinguished generals would comply with his demands.

§ 25.7.7 In reply to this Arintheus was sent to him with the prefect Salutius, but, while a deliberate discussion was going on as to what ought to be determined, four days passed by, full of torments from hunger and worse than any death.

§ 25.7.8 If the emperor, before letting these envoys go, had used this space of time to withdraw gradually from the enemy's territories, he could surely have reached the protection of Corduena, a rich region belonging to us, and distant only a hundred miles from the spot where all this took place.

§ 25.7.9 Now the king obstinately demanded the lands which (as he said) were his and had been taken from him long ago by Maximianus; but, in fact, as the negotiations showed, he required as our ransom five provinces on the far side of the Tigris: Arzanena, Moxona, and Zabdicena, as well as Rehimena and Corduena with fifteen fortresses, besides Nisibis, Singara and Castra Maurorum, a very important stronghold.

§ 25.7.10 And whereas it would have been better to fight ten battles than give up any one of these, the band of flatterers pressed upon the timid emperor, harping upon the dreaded name of Procopius, and declaring that if he returned on learning of the death of Julian, he would with the fresh troops under his command easily and without opposition make himself emperor.

§ 25.7.11 Jovian, inflamed by these dangerous hints too continually repeated, without delay surrendered all that was asked, except that with difficulty he succeeded in bringing it about that Nisibis and Singara should pass into control of the Persians without their inhabitants, and that the Romans in the fortresses that were to be taken from us should be allowed to return to our protection.

§ 25.7.12 To these conditions there was added another which was destructive and impious, namely, that after the completion of these agreements, Arsaces, our steadfast and faithful friend should never, if he asked it, be given help against the Persians. This was contrived with a double purpose, that a man who at the emperor's order had devastated Chiliocomum might be punished, and that the opportunity might be left of presently invading Armenia without opposition. The result was that later this same Arsaces was taken alive, and that the Parthians amid various dissensions and disturbances seized a great tract of Armenia bordering on Media, along with Artaxata.

§ 25.7.13 When this shameful treaty was concluded, lest anything contrary to the agreements should be done during the truce, distinguished men were given on both sides as hostages: from our side Nemota, Victor, and Bellovaedius, tribunes of famous corps, and from the opposite party Bineses, one of the distinguished magnates, and three satraps besides of no obscure name.

§ 25.7.14 And so a peace of thirty years was made and consecrated by the sanctity of oaths; but we returned by other routes, and since the places near the river were avoided as rough and uneven, we suffered from lack of water and food.

§ 25.8.1 But the peace which was granted under pretence of humanity caused the destruction of many, who, tormented by hunger up to their last breath, and so going ahead unnoticed by the army, were either, being unskilled in swimming, swallowed up in the depths of the river, or if they mastered the power of the stream and reached the opposite bank, were seized by the Saracens or Persians (who, as I said shortly before, had been routed by the Germans), and were either cut down like so many cattle, or led off farther inland to be sold.

§ 25.8.2 But as soon as the trumpets' blast openly gave the signal for crossing the river, it was remarkable with what great eagerness and haste they rushed into all kinds of danger. Each man strove to outstrip all others and hastened to save himself from so many terrors; some used the hastily constructed rafts, holding to their horses as they swam here and there, others seated themselves on bladders, still others under the pressure of necessity found various other helps and rushed in an oblique direction into the waves of the onrushing waters.

§ 25.8.3 The emperor himself with a few others crossed in the small boats, which, as I have said, survived the burning of the fleet, and ordered the same craft to go back and forth, until we were all transported. At last all of us (except those who were drowned) reached the opposite bank, saved from danger by the favour of the supreme deity after many difficulties.

§ 25.8.4 While the fear of impending disasters oppressed us, we learned from the report of our scouting cavalry, that the Persians, too far off to be seen, were making a bridge, in order that when all hostilities should cease after the conclusion of the treaty of peace, and our men were marching carelessly, they might attack the sick and the animals which had long been exhausted; but when they found that they were discovered, they gave up their wicked design.

§ 25.8.5 Relieved now from this anxiety and hastening on by forced marches, we approached Hatra, an old city lying in the midst of a desert and long since abandoned. The warlike emperors Trajan and Severus tried at various times to destroy it, but almost perished with their armies; I have related these acts also in telling of their careers.

§ 25.8.6 Here we learned that on a plain extending for seventy miles through dry regions only water that was salt and ill-smelling could be found, and nothing to eat except southernwood, wormwood, dragonwort and other plants of the most wretched sort. Therefore the vessels which we carried with us were filled with fresh water, and by killing camels and other pack animals we provided ourselves with food, unwholesome though it was.

§ 25.8.7 And after completing a march of six days and finding not even grass as the solace of their extreme necessity, Cassianus, the duke commanding the army in Mesopotamia, and the tribune Mauricius (who had been sent long before for the purpose) came to a Persian stronghold called Ur and brought food from the supplies which the army left with Procopius and Sebastianus had saved by frugal living.

§ 25.8.8 From here another Procopius, a state-secretary, and the military tribune Memoridus were sent to the lands of Illyricum and Gaul, to announce the death of Julian, and the elevation of Jovian (after Julian's decease) to Augustan rank.

§ 25.8.9 To them the emperor had also given instructions to hand his father-in-law Lucillianus, who after his dismissal from the army had retired to a life of leisure and was then living at Sirmium, the commission as commander of the cavalry and infantry which he had delivered to them, and urge him to hasten to Milan, in order to attend to any difficulties there, or if (as was now rather to be feared) any new dangers should arise, to resist them.

§ 25.8.10 To these instructions the emperor had added a secret letter, in which he also directed Lucillianus to take with him some men selected for their tried vigour and loyalty, with the view of making use of their support as the condition of affairs might suggest.