,

the barbarians call it. But the emperor, having heard of what had happened, appointed Romanus guardian of the war. Therefore the general, having come to Colchis, which the common tongue renamed Lazica, and having conferred with the hierarch there, set out from there and encamped in Albania itself. 3.7.1 But Baram, learning of the Roman presence, was delighted; for he was eager for a Roman 3.7.2 battle, thinking that fortune always somehow smiled on him. For this very reason, having crossed the neighboring river, he made his retreat to Ganzak, drawing the Romans as if 3.7.3 into the interior of Persia. Romanus, at any rate, perceiving this, became eager to return, devising what was expedient over eagerness. But as the multitude was murmuring and becoming indignant and eager for a forward charge, the general calmed the swellings of the soldiers' 3.7.4 audacity with prudent words. And he sent fifty hoplites to scout the movements of the enemy. These encountered two Persian spies wearing Roman clothing. But they deceived their captors and averted the danger by affirming that they were Romans. 3.7.5 And as proof of their word, they proposed to show the enemy encamped unguarded at night by means of a certain unknown path. 3.7.6 So they, welcoming their destruction and deceived by the promise, were captured by the Persian, and being taken alive and making their replies to the questions under torture, they made everything clear to Baram, how Romanus did not dare to set foot on Persian land, and 3.7.7 the small size of the fighting force with him. At any rate, when these had been captured, three in number who had escaped reported the misfortune to Romanus. So Baram swam across the river and once more ravaged the land of the Romans, while the one in charge of the 3.7.8 Roman army returned back. Perceiving this, the barbarians attacked the Roman contingents. But the general, having gathered an army from Colchis, was testing how the Roman contingents were disposed in mind, and whether they had 3.7. manly souls for battle. Therefore, as the Roman host was being incited to war, the Roman general separated the most valiant from the more inactive, and he took the fighting men under his own command, but the picked troops 3.7.10 he arranged to guard the palisade. Therefore, as the fighting <force> was seen to be ten thousand, the general ordered two [units] of the hoplites to run forward; which, encountering the vanguard phalanx of the Persian army, bravely destroyed it all, as a cliff happened to be there and made the means of escape unattainable for the bar- 3.7.11 -barians. And as the pursuit became manifest and advanced up to the barbarian palisade, so that even Baram was astounded at the composition of the drama, the vanguard 3.7.12 force of the Roman host returned. And when these things became clear to the Roman general, and as the Roman battle-line was straining to engage with the Medes, Romanus embraced unwarlike quietness out of fear of the countless multitude of the barbarians. collection. But since he was not able to restrain his subordinate, who was fired up by the recent deeds of valor, he armed the forces for battle. And the barbarian also advanced to meet them. 3.7.13 At any rate, both forces encamped on a plain of Albania, which a certain steep-banked tributary coming from the Araxes river separated from battle. So the hosts, encamped on the banks of the intervening water, both gave 3.7.14 and received words. And on the third day, a messenger from the Persian came to Romanus, demanding the battle, and that either the Romans should provide room for the crossing to the Persians, or the barbarian to the armies of the Romans 3.7.15. And so the one with command of the Roman

ἀποκαλοῦσιν οἱ βάρβαροι. ὁ δ' αὐτοκράτωρ τῶν συμβεβηκότων ἀκηκοὼς ῾Ρωμανὸν τοῦ πολέμου κηδεμόνα καθίστησιν. γενόμενος οὖν ἐν τῇ Κολχίδι ὁ στρατηγός, ἣν Λαζικὴν ἡ συνήθης μετωνόμασε γλῶττα, καὶ τῷ ἐκεῖσε ἱεραρχοῦντι κοινολογησάμενος, ἀπάρας ἐντεῦθεν στρατοπεδεύεται ἐπὶ τὴν ᾿Αλβανίαν αὐτήν. 3.7.1 ὁ δὲ Βαρὰμ πυθόμενος τὴν ῾Ρωμαϊκὴν παρουσίαν ἐγεγήθει· ἤρα γὰρ ῾Ρωμαϊκῆς 3.7.2 παρατάξεως ἀεί πως αὐτῷ γελᾶν τὴν τύχην οἰόμενος. διά τοι τοῦτο διαπεραιωσάμενος τὸν γείτονα ποταμὸν ἐπὶ τὸ Κάνζακον τὴν ὑποχώρησιν ἐπεποίητο ἐφελκόμενος ὥσπερ 3.7.3 ἐπὶ τὰ ἐνδότερα τῆς Περσίδος ῾Ρωμαίους. τούτων γοῦν ὁ ῾Ρωμανὸς ὑπαισθανόμενος φιλυπόστροφος γίνεται τὸ συνοῖσον τῇ προθυμίᾳ πραγματευόμενος. ὑποτονθορύζοντος δὲ τοῦ πλήθους καὶ διαγανακτοῦντος καὶ τῆς πρὸς τὸ πρόσω ἐφιεμένου φορᾶς, λόγοις ἐχέφροσι κατηύναζεν ὁ στρατηγὸς τὰ τοῦ 3.7.4 στρατιωτικοῦ θράσους οἰδήματα. ἐπεπόμφει δὲ καὶ ὁπλίτας πεντήκοντα ἀνερευνᾶσθαι τὰ τῶν πολεμίων κινήματα. οὗτοι ἐντυγχάνουσι δύο κατασκόποις τοῦ Περσικοῦ ῾Ρωμαϊκὴν περιβαλομένοις ἐσθῆτα. οἱ δὲ τοὺς ἑλόντας ἀποβουκολίζουσι ἀποσκευάζονταί τε τὸν κίνδυνον εἶναι ῾Ρωμαῖοι βεβαιωσάμενοι. 3.7.5 καὶ πίστιν τοῦ λόγου προυτίθεσαν διὰ ξένης τινὸς ἀτραποῦ νυκτὸς παραδεικνύειν ἀφύλακτον στιβαδευόμενον τὸ πολέμιον. 3.7.6 οἱ μὲν οὖν τὸν ὄλεθρον ἀσμενίσαντες καὶ παρακρουσθέντες ὑπὸ τῆς ὑποσχέσεως ἥλωσαν ὑπὸ τοῦ Περσικοῦ, ζωγρηθέντες τε καὶ μετὰ στρεβλώσεων τὰς ἀποκρίσεις πρὸς τὰς πεύσεις ποιούμενοι κατάδηλα πάντα τῷ Βαρὰμ ἐποιήσαντο, ὅπως ὁ ῾Ρωμανὸς τῆς Περσικῆς ἐπιβαίνειν οὐ τεθάρρηκε γῆς, τό τε 3.7.7 ὀλιγοστὸν τῆς περὶ αὐτὸν μαχίμου δυνάμεως. τούτων γοῦν ἑαλωκότων, τρεῖς τὸν ἀριθμὸν περισωθέντες ἀναγγέλλουσι τῷ ῾Ρωμανῷ τὸ δυστύχημα. ὁ μὲν οὖν Βαρὰμ τὸν ποταμὸν διενήξατο καὶ αὖθις τὴν ῾Ρωμαίων κεραΐζεται γῆν, ὁ δὲ τοῦ 3.7.8 ῾Ρωμαϊκοῦ προεστὼς εἰς τοὐπίσω παλιννοστεῖ. τοῦτο διεγνωκότες οἱ βάρβαροι ἐπετίθεντο τοῖς ῾Ρωμαίων συντάγμασιν. ὁ δὲ στρατηγὸς τῆς Κολχίδος στρατιὰν ἀθροίσας ἐσύκαζεν ὅπως ἔχει γνώμης τὰ τῶν ῾Ρωμαίων συντάγματα, καὶ εἰ ἀρρενικὰς 3.7. ἔχουσι τὰς ψυχὰς πρὸς παράταξιν. τῆς ῾Ρωμαϊκῆς τοίνυν πληθύος παροτρυνομένης πρὸς πόλεμον, ὁ ῾Ρωμαίων στρατηγὸς τοὺς ἀλκιμωτάτους ἀπὸ τῶν ἀδρανεστέρων διέκρινεν, καὶ τὸ μὲν μάχιμον ὡς ἑαυτὸν ἀνελάμβανεν, τὸ δὲ ἀπόλεκτον 3.7.10 περιφρουρεῖν τὸν χάρακα διεκόσμησεν. εἰς δέκα τοίνυν χιλιάδας τῆς μαχίμου ὁρώσης <δυνάμεως>, δύο προθέειν τοῦ ὁπλιτικοῦ ὁ στρατηγὸς διετάξατο· αἳ τῇ προτρεχούσῃ τῆς Περσικῆς στρατιᾶς συναντήσασαι φάλαγγι γενναίως πᾶσαν διώλεσαν, κρημνοῦ συγκυρήσαντος καὶ τετυχότος τοῖς βαρ3.7.11 βάροις τὰ τῆς διαφυγῆς ἀνεπίτευκτα. τῆς δὲ καταδιώξεως ἐμφανοῦς γενομένης καὶ μέχρι τοῦ βαρβαρικοῦ χάρακος λαβούσης τὴν πρόοδον, ὡς καὶ τὸν Βαρὰμ καταπλαγῆναι ἐπὶ τῇ συντάξει τοῦ δράματος, ἐπανῆκεν ἡ προτρέχουσα 3.7.12 δύναμις τῆς ῾Ρωμαίων πληθύος. καὶ τούτων καταφανῶν τῷ ῾Ρωμαίων στρατηγῷ γενομένων, καὶ τῆς ῾Ρωμαϊκῆς ἐκτάξεως ὀργώσης συμπλακῆναι τοῖς Μήδοις, ὁ ῾Ρωμανὸς τὴν ἀπόμαχον ἠρεμίαν ἠσπάζετο δέει τῆς ἀπειροπλασίου τῶν βαρβάρων. ἀθροίσεως. ἐπεὶ δ' οὐχ οἷός τε ἦν χαλιναγωγεῖν τὸ ὑπήκοον τοῖς ἔναγχος ἀνδραγαθήμασι ζωπυρούμενον, πρὸς παράταξιν τὰς δυνάμεις καθώπλιζεν. συνήντα δὲ καὶ τὸ βάρβαρον. 3.7.13 στρατοπεδεύονται γοῦν ἑκάτεραι δυνάμεις ἐν πεδίῳ τῆς ᾿Αλβανίας, ἃς διεῖργε τῆς παρατάξεως ἀπορρώξ τις ἀγχιβαθὴς ἐκ τοῦ ᾿Αράξου ποταμοῦ προερχόμενος. τὰ μὲν οὖν πλήθη ἐπὶ ταῖς ὄχθαις ἐναυλιζόμενα τοῦ μεσιτεύοντος ὕδατος ἐδίδοσάν 3.7.14 τε καὶ ἀντελάμβανον λόγους. τρίτη δ' ἡμέρα, καὶ ἄγγελος ἀπὸ τοῦ Περσικοῦ πρὸς τὸν ῾Ρωμανὸν παραγίνεται τὸν πόλεμον ἐξαιτούμενος, χώραν τε τῇ διαβάσει ἢ ῾Ρωμαίους Πέρσαις παρέχεσθαι ἢ τὸ βάρβαρον τοῖς τῶν ῾Ρωμαίων 3.7.15 στρατεύμασιν. καὶ οὖν ὁ τοῦ ῾Ρωμαϊκοῦ τὴν ἐπιστασίαν