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girt about, was annoyed and vexed. He therefore considered it necessary to send Puzanus again with forces against Apelchasem, and at the same time to entrust to him a letter for the emperor concerning the same marriage alliance. And the letter was thus: “I have heard, O emperor, the things concerning you, and how, having assumed the rule of the empire, from the very beginning you have fallen into many struggles, and how, as you have just settled matters with the Latins, the Scythians are preparing against you, and that the Emir Apelchasem himself, having broken the treaties made with you by Solyman, is plundering Asia as far as Damalis itself. If, therefore, you wish Apelchasem to be driven from those parts, and Asia and Antioch itself to come under your hand, send me your daughter as a bride for my firstborn son. And for the future you shall have no obstacle, but it will be easy for you to accomplish all things with me assisting you not only in the east, but even as far as Illyricum and the entire west; through forces sent to you from us, there will be no one to stand against you in the future.” 6.12.2 So much for the Sultan of the Persians; but Puzanus, having reached Nicaea and having made an attempt on it not once, but many times, and having failed in his purpose because Apelchasem fought back bravely, having requested and received aid from the emperor, rushed to seize the remaining cities and towns, having withdrawn from there and pitched his tent by the Lampe; this is a river near Lopadium. And after his withdrawal, Apelchasem, having loaded onto fourteen mules as much gold as they could carry, went to the Sultan of the Persians, bringing him a gift so that he would not be deposed from his rule. And he found him encamped near Spacha. 6.12.3 But as the Sultan did not deign even to see him, he used mediators. And he, being troubled by them, said: “Since I have once and for all committed the authority to the Emir Puzanus, I do not wish to take it away from him. Let him therefore go to him and give him the money and say whatever he wishes. And what seems good to him will also be my will.” Therefore, having persevered there for a sufficient time and having toiled much and accomplished nothing, departing from there as if going to Puzanus, he met the two hundred select satraps sent against him by that man; for his departure from Nicaea had not escaped his notice. Who, having seized him and having twisted a noose from a bowstring, threw it around his neck and strangled him; but the whole thing was not Puzanus' doing, in my opinion, but the Sultan's, who had indicated that such things should be arranged against Apelchasem. 6.12.4 So much for Apelchasem; but the emperor, having read the Sultan's letters, was unwilling even to take the proposal into his mind. And how could he? For the royal daughter, whom the letter sought to be betrothed to the firstborn son of the barbarian, would have been unfortunate, as it seems, if she had gone up to Persia, partaking of a kingdom more miserable than any poverty. But neither did God permit this, nor was the emperor of a mind for these things to proceed thus, not even if his affairs had come to a dire strait. For immediately and at the first hearing of the letter, he laughed at the barbarian's desire, murmuring that "The demon put this into his mind." Thus the emperor felt about the marriage alliance; but considering it necessary to keep the Sultan's mind in suspense with empty hopes, having summoned Curticius with three others, he sent them as ambassadors with letters, through which he indicated that he welcomed peace and consented to what was proposed, while he himself at the same time demanded other things that would introduce a delay. The ambassadors sent from Byzantium had not yet reached Chorosan, and the of the

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περιζωσάμενος, ἠνιᾶτο καὶ ἤσχαλλε. ∆εῖν οὖν ἐλογίσατο τὸν Πουζάνον αὖθις μετὰ δυνάμεων κατὰ τοῦ Ἀπελχασὴμ ἀποστεῖλαι, ἅμα δὲ καὶ πρὸς τὸν αὐτοκράτορα γραφὴν περὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ κήδους διαλαμβάνουσαν αὐτῷ ἐγχειρίσαι. Εἶχε δὲ τὰ γράμματα οὕτως· «Ἠκηκόειν, ὦ βασιλεῦ, τὰ κατὰ σὲ καὶ ὅπως τὴν τῆς βασιλείας ἀναδησάμενος ἀρχὴν ἐκ προοιμίου πολλοῖς ἀγῶσιν ἐμπέπτωκας καὶ ὡς ἄρτι τὰ κατὰ τοὺς Λατίνους κατευνάσαντος οἱ Σκύθαι κατὰ σοῦ ἑτοιμάζονται καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Ἀμὴρ Ἀπελχασὴμ τὰς μετὰ σοῦ τοῦ Σολυμᾶ σπονδὰς καταλύσας μέχρις αὐτῆς ∆αμάλεως τὴν Ἀσίαν λῄζεται. Εἰ γοῦν βούλει καὶ τὸν Ἀπελχασὴμ τῶν αὐτόθι μερῶν ἀπελαθῆναι καὶ τὴν Ἀσίαν καὶ αὐτὴν δὴ τὴν Ἀντιόχειαν ὑπὸ τὴν σὴν γενέσθαι χεῖρα, ἀπόστειλόν μοι τὴν σὴν θυγατέρα εἰς νύμφην ἐμὴν τῷ πρωτοτόκῳ τῶν ἐμῶν υἱῶν. Καὶ τοῦ λοιποῦ οὐδέν σοι σκῶλον ἔσεται, ἀλλὰ πάντα ῥᾳδίως ἐξέσται σοι ἀνύειν ἐμοῦ σοι ἐπαρήγοντος οὐ κατὰ τὴν ἕω μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ μέχρις Ἰλλυρικοῦ καὶ τῆς ἑσπέρας ἁπάσης· διὰ δυνάμεων ἀποστελλομένων σοι παρ' ἡμῶν καὶ ὁ ἀντικαθιστάμενός σοι τοῦ λοιποῦ οὐκ ἔσεται.» 6.12.2 Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν τὰ κατὰ τὸν τῶν Περσῶν σουλτάν· ὁ δὲ Πουζά νος μέχρι Νικαίας καταλαβὼν καὶ ἀπόπειραν ταύτης οὐχ ἅπαξ, ἀλλὰ καὶ πολλάκις ποιησάμενος καὶ διαμαρτὼν τοῦ σκοποῦ τοῦ Ἀπελχασὴμ γενναίως ἀνταγωνιζομένου, ἐξαι τησαμένου καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ βασιλέως βοήθειαν καὶ λαβόντος, πρὸς τὴν τῶν λοιπῶν πόλεών τε καὶ πολιχνίων κατάσχεσιν ὥρμησεν ἐκεῖθεν ὑποχωρήσας τὴν σκηνὴν κατὰ τὴν Λάμ πην πηξάμενος· ποταμὸς οὗτος περὶ Λοπάδιον. Μετὰ δὲ τὴν τούτου ὑποχώρησιν ἑνδεκατέσσαρσιν ἡμιόνοις χρυσίον ἐπισάξας ὁ Ἀπελχασὴμ ὁπόσον φέρειν ἠδύναντο ἀπέρχε ται πρὸς τὸν Περσῶν σουλτὰν δῶρον αὐτῷ κομίζων ἐφ' ᾧ μὴ παραλυθῆναι τῆς ἀρχῆς. Καταλαμβάνει δὲ τοῦτον περὶ τὸ Σπαχᾶ αὐλιζόμενον. 6.12.3 Ὡς δὲ οὐδὲ θεάσασθαι τοῦτον ὁ σουλτὰν ἠξίου, μεσίταις ἐχρῆτο. Ὁ δὲ ὀχλούμενος ὑπ' αὐτῶν ἔφη· «Ἐπεὶ καθάπαξ τὴν ἐξουσίαν τῷ Ἀμὴρ Πουζάνῳ ἀνεθέμην, οὐκέτι ταύτην ἐξ αὐτοῦ ἀφαιρήσεσθαι βούλομαι. Ἐπιδότω τοίνυν τὰ χρήματα ἀπελθὼν πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ πᾶν ὃ βούλεται εἰπάτω. Καὶ τὸ δόξαν αὐτῷ καὶ ἐμὸν ἔσεται θέλημα.» Ἐφ' ἱκανὸν οὖν ἐγκαρτερήσας ἐκεῖσε καὶ πολλὰ μογήσας καὶ μηδὲν ἠνυκὼς ἀπάρας ἐκεῖθεν ὡς πρὸς τὸν Πουζάνον ἀπερχόμενος συναντᾷ τοῖς ἐξ ἐκείνου κατ' αὐτοῦ ἀποσταλεῖσι διακοσίοις ἐκκρίτοις σατράπαις· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἡ ἐκείνου τῆς Νικαίας ἐξέλευσις τοῦτον διέλα θεν. Οἳ καὶ κατασχόντες αὐτὸν καὶ βρόχον ἐκ νευρᾶς ἐπικλώσαντες τῷ τραχήλῳ τούτου περιβαλόντες ἀπέπνι ξαν· τὸ δὲ ὅλον οὐ τοῦ Πουζάνου ἦν κατ' ἐμὸν λόγον, ἀλλὰ τοῦ σουλτὰν ἐκείνου τοιαῦτ' οἰκονομῆσαι κατὰ τοῦ Ἀπελ χασὴμ δηλώσαντος. 6.12.4 Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν τὰ κατὰ τὸν Ἀπελχασήμ· ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς τὰς τοῦ σουλτὰν ὑπαναγνοὺς γραφὰς οὐδ' εἰς νοῦν τὸ δηλούμενον βαλεῖν ἤθελε. Καὶ πῶς γάρ; Τὸ γὰρ βασιλικὸν θυγάτριον, ὅπερ τὸ γράμμα ἐζήτει κατεγγυηθῆναι τῷ πρωτοτόκῳ υἱῷ τοῦ βαρβάρου, ἦν ἄρα δυστυχές, ὡς ἔοικεν, εἰ ἀνεληλύθει εἰς Περσίδα βασιλείας μετεσχηκὸς ἁπάσης κακοδαιμονεστέρας πενίας. Ἀλλ' οὔτε ὁ Θεὸς τοῦτο ἐπέτρεπεν οὔτε ὁ βασιλεὺς εἶχε γνώμης οὕτω ταῦτα προβῆναι, οὐδ' ἂν εἰς στενὸν κατην τήκει αὐτῷ τὰ πράγματα. Εὐθὺς γὰρ καὶ κατὰ πρώτην ἀκοὴν τοῦ γράμματος τῆς τοῦ βαρβάρου κατεγέλασεν ὀρέ ξεως ὑποφθεγξάμενος ὅτι «Ὁ δαίμων τοῦτο εἰς νοῦν αὐτοῦ ἀνεβίβασε». Περὶ μὲν τοῦ κήδους οὕτως ἔσχεν ὁ αὐτοκρά τωρ· ἐλπίσι δὲ κεναῖς τὸν τοῦ σουλτὰν λογισμὸν ἀπαιωρεῖν δεῖν λογισάμενος μεταπεμψάμενος τὸν Κουρτίκιον μεθ' ἑτέρων τριῶν ἀποστέλλει τούτους πρέσβεις καὶ γράμ ματα, δι' ὧν τὴν εἰρήνην ἐνέφαινεν ἀσπάζεσθαι καὶ πρὸς τὰ μηνυθέντα κατανεύειν, ἀπαιτῶν ἅμα καὶ αὐτὸς ἄλλα τινὰ χρόνου παράτασιν εἰσάγοντα. Οὔπω οἱ ἐκ τοῦ Βυζαντίου πεμφθέντες πρέσβεις τὸν Χορο σὰν κατέλαβον, καὶ τὴν τοῦ