,

making for the armies. Therefore, after two days the commanders of the regiments met the general as if from three points of the palisade, and indeed also all 3.1.7 of the battle-line. An old custom was approved in the camp: for the one who was about to assume the reins of generalship, whenever the troops should meet him, to dismount from his horse and proceed through the middle of the infantry and to greet 3.1.8 the army with salutations. Since Priscus did not do this, but rather utterly spurned this very ancient law, the army did not bear the insult moderately. Therefore, on the first day of the festival 3.1. the general remained peacefully. When the third day had passed, and the reduction of the soldiers' rations was no longer a secret but had become known to the entire multitude, a surge of anarchy made headway, and the crowds rushed towards the general's tent, some carrying stones, others even swords, as opportunity assisted each one. The general became an earwitness of the tumult 3.1.10 and inquired about the cause. But when they answered nothing to his inquiry except, "The harmony of all order has been overturned, as the camp happens to be without a leader," the commander Priscus was drenched in sweat and was constricted with great fear, his soul being at a loss as to what he should do 3.1.11. So, uncovering the God-man image, he gave it to Hilifredas (the Romans call this acheiropoieton, or not made by hands), ordering him to carry it around the army, so that by reverence for the sacred object their anger might be humbled and their disorderliness 3.1.12 might be changed toward discipline. But since the crowd was in no way brought to its senses by this, but even pelted the holy object with stones, the general, reasonably, chancing upon a horse of one of the emperor's bodyguards, gave himself over to flight and by some unexpected deliverance escaped the danger. 3.1.13 Therefore he converses with the horse-herds who were pasturing the army's horses, and after escaping their hands with the greatest dangers he enters the gates of the city of Constantina, having just left the region of Monocarton. 3.1.14 Therefore, a tumult also entered the city with the general. So the inhabitants of Constantina remained astounded in their souls at what had happened, while the general through messengers inscribed letters to the governors of the cities and to those in charge of the forts, not to deprive the armies of any of their customary supplies, nor to let their souls 3.1.15 be terrified by the sudden course of events; and he also requested that the skill of a physician be shown to him to apply remedies to the wounds on his calf; for he was suffering terribly from the bruises which the volley of stones had dealt him. 3.2.1 So the matters of the sedition were being reported throughout the camp. For the general's tent was torn down, and Priscus was stripped of his property by the crowd, and the leaders of the regiments also fled, 3.2.2 and the evils of anarchy grew to a great extent. Not long after, the general sent the bishop of Constantina to the camp as an envoy, asserting that he would soothe the army's grievances, and that the emperor Maurice had changed his mind, and that an imperial letter was being brought commanding the restoration of the soldiers' 3.2.3 allowances to the customary level. But Priscus the general blamed Philippicus and was spreading the rumor that he was the father of the disorder, as he had been the one who proposed to Maurice the reduction of the soldiers' allowances. But Priscus was stringing these things together at random. 3.2.4 So the priest, the ambassador, journeyed as he had been ordered; but the armies assembled and were resolving to elect a general. For this reason, having summoned Germanus and having brought him into the council chamber, 3.2.5 they demanded to entrust the generalship to him

ποιούμενος τοῖς στρατεύμασιν. μετὰ τοίνυν ἡμέρας δύο οἱ ταγματάρχαι ἀπήντων τῷ στρατηγῷ ὡς ἀπὸ τριῶν σημείων τοῦ χάρακος, ναὶ μὴν καὶ οἱ 3.1.7 τῆς ἐκτάξεως ἅπαντες. ἔθος δὲ γεγηρακὸς ἐνευδοκίμει τῷ στρατοπέδῳ, τὸν μέλλοντα τὰς στρατηγίδας περιβαλέσθαι ἡνίας, ὁπηνίκα αὐτῷ τὰ στρατεύματα ὑπαντήσωσιν, ἀποβαίνειν τοῦ ἵππου καὶ διὰ μέσου χωρεῖν τοῦ ὁπλιτικοῦ καὶ φιλο3.1.8 φρονεῖσθαι τοῖς ἀσπασμοῖς τὸ στρατόπεδον. ὃ δὴ μὴ πεποιηκότος τοῦ Πρίσκου, ἀλλὰ καὶ πάνυ μὲν οὖν τοῦτον δὴ τὸν πρεσβύτην ἀποσκορακίσαντος νόμον, οὐ μετρίως ἔφερε τὴν ὕβριν τὸ στράτευμα. τῇ τοίνυν πρώτῃ τῆς πανηγύρεως ἡμέρᾳ 3.1. εἰρηναίως ὁ στρατηγὸς διετέλεσεν. τρίτης δ' ἡμέρας παρῳχηκυίας, καὶ τῆς τῶν στρατιωτικῶν σιτήσεων ἀπομειώσεως οὐκέτι ἐν παραβύστοις ἀλλ' ἐς τὸ φανερὸν γενομένης τῷ πλήθει παντί, ἀναρχίας ἀκμὴ λαμβάνει τὴν πρόοδον, καὶ πρὸς τῇ σκηνῇ τοῦ στρατηγοῦ τὰ πλήθη συρρέουσιν, ἃ μὲν λίθους ἐπιφερόμενα, ἃ δὲ καὶ ξίφη, ὡς ἑκάστῳ καθυπούργησεν ὁ καιρός. τοῦ δὲ ταράχου ὁ στρατηγὸς αὐτήκοος γέγονε 3.1.10 καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν διεπυνθάνετο. τῶν δὲ πρὸς τὴν πεῦσιν μηδὲν ἀποκρινομένων αὐτῷ πλὴν ἢ "ἀνατέτραπται πάσης τάξεως ἁρμονία, τοῦ στρατοπέδου ἀνηγεμονεύτου τυγχάνοντος," ἱδρῶτι περιερρεῖτο ὁ πολέμαρχος Πρίσκος καὶ φόβῳ πολλῷ συνεστέλλετο, διαπορουμένης αὐτῷ τῆς ψυχῆς ὅ τι καὶ 3.1.11 δράσειεν. τῷ μὲν οὖν Εἰλιφρέδᾳ τὸ θεανδρικὸν ἴνδαλμα παραγυμνώσας ἐδίδου (ἀχειροποίητον δὲ τοῦτο ῾Ρωμαῖοι κατονομάζουσιν), περινοστεῖν προστάξας τὸ στράτευμα, ὅπως αἰδοῖ τοῦ σεβάσματος ταπεινωθείη μὲν ὁ θυμός, τὰ δὲ τῆς ἀκο3.1.12 σμίας πρὸς τὸ σῶφρον τὴν μεταβολὴν ἀπενέγκοιτο. τοῦ δὲ πλήθους μηδὲν ἐντεῦθεν σωφρονιζομένου, ἀλλὰ καὶ βάλλοντος τὸ ἀπόρρητον λίθοις, εἰκότως ὁ στρατηγός, ἵππου τινὸς τῶν σωματοφυλάκων τοῦ βασιλέως περιτυχών, πρὸς φυγὴν ἐκδοὺς ἑαυτὸν παραδόξῳ σωτηρίᾳ τινὶ τὸν κίνδυνον παρεκρούσατο. 3.1.13 ἱπποφορβοῖς τοιγαροῦν προσομιλεῖ τοῖς τὰς ἵππους τὰς στρατιωτικὰς περιβόσκουσιν, κἀκείνων μετὰ μεγίστων κινδύνων τὰς χεῖρας διαφυγὼν τῶν Κωνσταντίνης πόλεως ἐπιβαίνει πυλῶν, ἄρτι τὰς διατριβὰς τοῦ Μονοκάρτων ἀπολιπών. 3.1.14 συνενδημεῖ τοιγαροῦν μετὰ τοῦ στρατηγοῦ τῇ πόλει καὶ θόρυβος. οἱ μὲν οὖν τῆς Κωνσταντίνης οἰκήτορες ἐπὶ τοῖς γεγονόσιν ἐκπεπληγμένοι τὰς ψυχὰς διετέλουν, ὁ δὲ στρατηγὸς τοῖς ἡγεμόσι τῶν πόλεων τοῖς τε τῶν φρουρίων ἐφεστηκόσι δι' ἐπιστολέων ἐνεχάραττε γράμματα, μηδὲν τῶν συνήθων ἀποστερεῖν τὰ στρατεύματα, μήτε δὲ καταπλαγῆναι 3.1.15 τὰς ψυχὰς τῇ ἀθρόᾳ τῶν γεγενημένων παρόδῳ· ἐξῄτει δὲ καὶ ἰατροῦ τέχνην ἐπιφανεῖσαν αὐτῷ φάρμακα τοῖς περὶ τὴν γαστροκνήμην ἕλκεσιν ἐπιτίθεσθαι· ἐδεινοπάθει γὰρ ἐπὶ τοῖς μώλωψιν, οὓς αὐτῷ ἡ τῶν λίθων φορὰ διενείματο. 3.2.1 Τὰ μὲν οὖν τῆς στάσεως τῷ στρατοπέδῳ διεμηνίετο. περισχίζεται γὰρ τὸ τοῦ στρατηγοῦ σκηνοπήγιον, λωποδυτεῖται δὲ παρὰ τοῦ πλήθους καὶ τὰ τῆς περιουσίας ὁ Πρίσκος, ἀποδιδράσκουσι δὲ καὶ οἱ τῶν συνταγμάτων ἡγεμονεύοντες, 3.2.2 καὶ ἐς μέγα κακοῦ τὰ τῆς ἀναρχίας ηὐξάνετο. μετ' οὐ πολὺ δὲ τὸν τῆς Κωνσταντίνης πρόεδρον ὁ στρατηγὸς εἰς τὸ στρατόπεδον πρεσβευτὴν διεπέμπετο κατισχυριζόμενος τὰ τῆς στρατιωτικῆς λύπης παρηγορεῖν, καὶ ὡς μετέθετο τὴν γνώμην ὁ αὐτοκράτωρ Μαυρίκιος, καὶ βασιλικὸν ἐπιφέρεται γράμμα ἐγκελευόμενον ἀναζευγνύναι πρὸς τὸ σύνηθες τὰς στρατιω3.2.3 τικὰς ἐπιδόσεις. ἐπεμέμφετο δὲ Φιλιππικῷ Πρίσκος ὁ στρατηγὸς καὶ τῆς ἀταξίας αὐτὸν διεθρύλει γεγονέναι πατέρα, ὡς εἰσηγητὴν τῆς μειώσεως τῶν στρατιωτικῶν ἐπιδόσεων Μαυρικίῳ γενόμενον. ταῦτα δ' εἰκῇ διερραψῴδει ὁ Πρίσκος. 3.2.4 ὁ μὲν οὖν ἱερεὺς ὁ πρέσβις ὡδοιπόρει καθὼς προσετέτακτο· τὰ δὲ στρατεύματα συναθροίζεται καὶ στρατηγὸν χειροτονεῖν ἐδοκίμαζεν. διά τοι τοῦτο μετάκλητον τὸν Γερμανὸν ποιησάμενοι καὶ εἰσαγώγιμον εἰς τὸ βουλευτήριον ἐνεγκάμενοι 3.2.5 ἠξίουν ἐγχειρίζειν αὐτῷ τὰς στρατηγίδας