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suddenly rushed towards 1.13.27 them. But they, not withstanding the attack, drove back to the phalanx, and again those with Bouzes and Pharas were stationed 1.13.28 in their own position. In this action seven of the Persians fell, whose bodies the Romans took possession of, and for the rest 1.13.29 both sides remained quietly in their ranks. But one Persian, a young man, having ridden his horse very near the Roman army, challenged all, if anyone wished 1.13.30 to come to hands with him. And of the others no one dared to face the danger, but there was a certain Andreas among the retainers of Bouzes, not a soldier nor having ever practiced any of the arts of war, but a trainer of youths and 1.13.31 in charge of a certain wrestling-school in Byzantium. For this reason he was following the army, as he was the one who looked after Bouzes' body in the bath, and he was a Byzantine by birth. This man alone dared, with neither Bouzes nor anyone else ordering it, of his own accord to go out against the man for single combat. And anticipating the barbarian while he was still looking about to see where he should charge, 1.13.32 he strikes him beside the right breast with his spear. And he, unable to bear the blow of a very strong man, falls from his horse to the ground. And Andreas with a certain short knife sacrificed him as he lay on his back like a sacrificial victim, and an extraordinary shout was raised from both the rampart and the Roman army. 1.13.33 But the Persians, deeply vexed at what had happened, sent another horseman for the same task, a man brave and of fine physique, but not a youth, but even having some grey hairs 1.13.34 on his head. He came up to the enemy's army, and brandishing his whip for a long time, with which he was accustomed to strike his horse, called any Roman who wished to battle. 1.13.35 And when no one came out against him, Andreas again, eluding all, came into the middle, although it had been forbidden him by 1.13.36 Hermogenes. So both charged at each other with their spears, seized with great fury, and the spears, being thrust against their corselets, were terribly repulsed, and the horses, crashing their heads together, 1.13.37 both fell themselves and threw off their riders. And these two men, having fallen somewhere very near each other, both hurried with great haste to rise, but the Persian was not able to do this easily, since his size was against him, but Andreas, getting up first (for his practice in the wrestling-school gave him this advantage), struck him with his knee as he was rising and again, as he fell to the ground, 1.13.38 killed him. And a shout was raised from the wall and the Roman army, no less, if not even more; and the Persians, breaking their phalanx, withdrew to Ammodios, while the Romans, 1.13.39 singing a paean, entered the enclosure. For it was already growing dark. And so both bivouacked for that night. 1.14.1 On the next day ten thousand soldiers, who had been summoned from the city of Nisibis, came to the Persians, and Belisarius and Hermogenes wrote the following to Mirranes: "The first good thing is peace, as is agreed by "all men who have even a little share of 1.14.2 "reason. Therefore, if anyone should become a breaker of it, "he would be most responsible for the evils not only for his neighbors, but "also for his own kinsmen. Now, that man is the best "general, who is able to bring about peace 1.14.3 "from war. But you, though matters are "well-disposed for both Romans and Persians, have decided to bring upon us a war that has no cause, even though "each of the kings is planning for peace, and ambass"adors are already present near us, who will before long resolve "the disputes by their conference with each other, unless something incurable resulting "from your attack should have the power to check this hope of ours. 1.14.4 "But lead your army away as quickly as possible into "Persian territory, and do not stand as an obsta"cle to the greatest goods, lest you be, as is likely, the cause for the Persians of the terrible things which are to come." 1.14.5 When Mirranes saw these things in the letter brought to him, he answered as follows: "I would have done "what you ask, persuaded by what is written, "if the letter had not happened to be from the Romans, for whom the

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αἰφνιδίου πρὸς 1.13.27 αὐτοὺς ὥρμησαν. οἱ δὲ οὐχ ὑποστάντες τὴν ἔφοδον ὀπίσω ἀπήλαυνον ἐς τὴν φάλαγγα, καὶ αὖθις οἵ τε ἀμφὶ Βούζην καὶ Φάραν ἐν χώρᾳ τῇ οἰκείᾳ ἐτά1.13.28 ξαντο. ἐν τούτῳ τῷ ἔργῳ Περσῶν ἑπτὰ ἔπεσον, ὧν δὴ τῶν σωμάτων Ῥωμαῖοι ἐκράτησαν, καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν 1.13.29 ἡσυχάζοντες ἐν τάξει ἑκάτεροι ἔμενον. εἷς δὲ ἀνὴρ Πέρσης νεανίας, ἄγχιστα τοῦ Ῥωμαίων στρατοῦ τὸν ἵππον ἐλάσας, προὐκαλεῖτο ἅπαντας, εἴ τίς οἱ βούλοιτο 1.13.30 ἐς χεῖρας ἰέναι. καὶ τῶν μὲν ἄλλων ὑποστῆναι τὸν κίνδυνον ἐτόλμα οὐδεὶς, Ἀνδρέας δὲ ἦν τις ἐν τοῖς Βούζου οἰκείοις, οὐ στρατιώτης μὲν οὐδέ τι ἀσκήσας τῶν κατὰ τὸν πόλεμον πώποτε, παιδοτρίβης δὲ καὶ 1.13.31 παλαίστρᾳ τινὶ ἐν Βυζαντίῳ ἐφεστηκώς. διὸ δὴ καὶ τῷ στρατῷ εἵπετο, ἅτε τοῦ Βούζου σώματος ἐν βαλανείῳ ἐπιμελούμενος, γένος δὲ Βυζάντιος ἦν. οὗτος ἐθάρσησε μόνος, οὔτε Βούζου οὔτε ἄλλου ὁτουοῦν ἐπαγγείλαντος, αὐτόματος τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ ἐς μονομαχίαν ἐπεξιέναι. φθάσας δὲ τὸν βάρβαρον ἔτι περισκοπούμενον ὅπη ὁρμήσεται, 1.13.32 παρὰ μαζὸν τὸν δεξιὸν τῷ δόρατι παίει. ὁ δὲ πληγὴν ἀνδρὸς ἰσχυροῦ λίαν οὐκ ἐνεγκὼν ἐκ τοῦ ἵππου ἐς ἔδαφος πίπτει. καὶ αὐτὸν Ἀνδρέας μαχαίρᾳ τινὶ βραχείᾳ ὥσπερ ἱερεῖον ὑπτίως κείμενον ἔθυσε, κραυγή τε ὑπερφυὴς ἔκ τε τοῦ περιβόλου καὶ τοῦ Ῥωμαίων στρατο1.13.33 πέδου ἤρθη. Πέρσαι δὲ τῷ γεγονότι περιαλγήσαντες ἕτερον εἰς τὴν αὐτὴν πρᾶξιν ἱππέα καθῆκαν, ἀνδρεῖον μὲν καὶ μεγέθους σώματος πέρι εὖ ἥκοντα, οὐ νεανίαν δὲ, ἀλλὰ καί τινας τῶν ἐν τῇ κεφαλῇ τριχῶν πολιὸν 1.13.34 ὄντα. ὃς δὴ παρὰ τὸ τῶν πολεμίων στράτευμα ἐπιὼν, ἐπὶ πλεῖστον δὲ τὴν μάστιγα σείων, ᾗ παίειν τὸν ἵππον εἰώθει, Ῥωμαίων τὸν βουλόμενον ἐς μάχην 1.13.35 ἐκάλει. οὐδενὸς δέ οἱ ἐπεξιόντος, Ἀνδρέας αὖθις ἅπαντας λαθὼν ἐς μέσον ἦλθε, καίπερ αὐτῷ πρὸς τοῦ 1.13.36 Ἑρμογένους ἀπειρημένον. ἄμφω γοῦν τοῖς δόρασιν ἐς ἀλλήλους θυμῷ πολλῷ ἐχόμενοι ὥρμησαν, καὶ τά τε δόρατα τοῖς θώραξιν ἐρεισθέντα δεινῶς ἀπεκρούσθη οἵ τε ἵπποι ἐς τὰς κεφαλὰς ἀλλήλοις συγκρούσαντες 1.13.37 ἔπεσόν τε αὐτοὶ καὶ τοὺς ἐπιβάτας ἀπέβαλον. τὼ δὲ ἄνδρε τούτω ἄγχιστά πη πεσόντε ἀλλήλοιν ἐξανίστασθαι σπουδῇ πολλῇ ἄμφω ἠπειγέσθην, ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν Πέρσης τοῦτο δρᾶν, ἅτε οἱ τοῦ μεγέθους ἀντιστατοῦντος, οὐκ εὐπετῶς εἶχεν, Ἀνδρέας δὲ προτερήσας (τοῦτο γὰρ αὐτῷ ἡ κατὰ τὴν παλαίστραν μελέτη ἐδίδου) τῷ τε γόνατι ἐξανιστάμενον αὐτὸν ἔτυψε καὶ αὖθις εἰς 1.13.38 τὸ ἔδαφος πεσόντα ἔκτεινε. κραυγή τε ἐκ τοῦ τείχους καὶ τοῦ Ῥωμαίων στρατοῦ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον, εἰ μὴ καὶ μᾶλλον, ἤρθη· καὶ οἱ μὲν Πέρσαι ἐς τὸ Ἀμμώδιος τὴν φάλαγγα διαλύσαντες ἀνεχώρησαν, οἱ δὲ Ῥωμαῖοι 1.13.39 παιανίσαντες ἐντὸς τοῦ περιβόλου ἐγένοντο. ἤδη γὰρ καὶ ξυνεσκόταζεν. οὕτω τε ἀμφότεροι τὴν νύκτα ἐκείνην ηὐλίσαντο. 1.14.1 Τῇ δὲ ὑστεραίᾳ Πέρσαις μὲν στρατιῶται μύριοι ἐκ Νισίβιδος πόλεως μετάπεμπτοι ἦλθον, Βελισάριος δὲ καὶ Ἑρμογένης πρὸς Μιρράνην ἔγραψαν τάδε «Πρῶτον ἀγαθὸν τὴν εἰρήνην εἶναι ὡμολόγηται παρὰ «πάντων ἀνθρώπων οἷς τι καὶ κατὰ τὸ βραχὺ λο1.14.2 «γισμοῦ μέτεστιν. ὥστε ἤν τις διαλυτὴς αὐτῆς γένοιτο, «τῶν κακῶν αἰτιώτατος ἂν οὐ τοῖς πέλας μόνον, ἀλλὰ «καὶ ὁμογενέσι τοῖς αὑτοῦ εἴη. στρατηγὸς μὲν οὖν «ἄριστος οὗτος ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν, ὃς δὴ ἐκ πολέμου εἰρήνην 1.14.3 «διατίθεσθαι ἱκανὸς πέφυκε. σὺ δὲ τῶν πραγμάτων «εὖ καθεστώτων Ῥωμαίοις τε καὶ Πέρσαις πόλεμον «ἐπάγειν ἡμῖν αἰτίαν οὐκ ἔχοντα ἔγνωκας, καίπερ «ἑκατέρου μὲν βασιλέως εἰρηναῖα βουλευομένου, πρέ»σβεων δὲ παρόντων ἡμῖν ἐν γειτόνων ἤδη, οἳ δὴ τὰ «διάφορα τῇ ἐς ἀλλήλους ὁμιλίᾳ οὐκ εἰς μακρὰν δια»λύσουσιν, ἢν μή τι ἀνήκεστον ἐκ τῆς σῆς ἐφόδου «ξυμβαῖνον ταύτην ἡμῖν ἀναστέλλειν τὴν ἐλπίδα 1.14.4 «ἰσχύσῃ. ἀλλ' ἄπαγε ὅτι τάχιστα τὸν στρατὸν ἐς τὰ «Περσῶν ἤθη, μηδὲ τοῖς μεγίστοις ἀγαθοῖς ἐμπο»δὼν ἵστασο, μή ποτε Πέρσαις, ὡς τὸ εἰκὸς, εἴης τῶν 1.14.5 «ξυμβησομένων δεινῶν αἴτιος.» ταῦτα ἐπεὶ Μιρράνης ἀπενεχθέντα τὰ γράμματα εἶδεν, ἀμείβεται ὧδε «Ἐποί»ησα ἂν τὰ αἰτούμενα, τοῖς γεγραμμένοις ἀναπεισθεὶς, «εἰ μὴ Ῥωμαίων ἡ ἐπιστολὴ ἐτύγχανεν οὖσα, οἷς τὸ «μὲν