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to have attended to this, he was again established at the guard post where he was accustomed to be, and having escaped everyone's notice he gave the letters to the enemy, which, when read to the multitude, still more 6.26.15 encouraged everyone, although they were pressed by famine. For this reason, they were by no means willing to surrender to Belisarius, who was making many gentle proposals. But again (for no army was reported to them to have come out from Ravenna and they were already exceedingly distressed by the lack of necessities) they sent Burcentius again, declaring this only in a letter, that for the remaining five days they would no longer be able to fight against the famine. And he returned to them again, having a letter from Vittigis which buoyed them up with similar hopes. 6.26.16 But the Romans, being no less distressed that they were conducting so long a siege in a deserted country, were at a loss, seeing that the barbarians were not surrendering to them in the midst of so many evils. 6.26.17 For this reason, Belisarius was eager to take alive one of the notable men among the enemy, so that he might learn for what reason, indeed, the barbarians were enduring these terrible things, and Valerian agreed that he would easily accomplish this for him. 6.26.18 For there were some of his followers from the nation of the Sclaveni, who were accustomed to hide under a small stone or any plant at hand 6.26.19 and to snatch up an enemy man. And they always demonstrate this along the Ister River, where they are settled, against both the Romans and the other barbarians. Belisarius was pleased with this proposal and ordered him to attend to the task with all speed. 6.26.20 Valerian, therefore, having selected one of the Sclaveni who was well-proportioned in respect to size of body and exceptionally active, commanded him to bring an enemy man, promising that he would have a large sum of money from Belisarius. 6.26.21 And he said that he would easily do this in the place where the grass happened to be. For the Goths had for a long time been feeding on this, from lack of necessities. 6.26.22 So the Sclavenian, coming very near the circuit-wall at early dawn, and covering himself in a certain bush and contracting his body into a small space, 6.26.23 hid himself near the grass. And at daybreak a Goth man came there and was gathering the herbs with speed, suspecting nothing unpleasant from the bush, but looking around frequently toward the enemy's camp, lest 6.26.24 someone should come against him from there. And the Sclavenian, falling upon him suddenly from behind, snatched him up, and squeezing the man tightly around the middle with both hands, he carried him to the camp and, bringing him, 6.26.25 handed him over to Valerian. To him, upon his inquiring in whom the Goths trusted and what security they had that they were so unwilling to surrender to them, but were voluntarily enduring the most terrible things, the barbarian told the whole story concerning Burcentius and, when he was brought before him, 6.26.26 identified him. And Burcentius, when he perceived that he was now discovered, concealed nothing of what had been done. For this reason, Belisarius handed him over to his retainers to do with him whatever they wished, and they soon burned him alive, while the enemy watched what was being done. Thus Burcentius reaped the reward of his avarice. 6.27.1 But Belisarius, seeing that the barbarians were no less holding out against their hardship, planned to set a plot concerning the water, thinking that in this way he would capture the enemy more easily and 6.27.2 with less trouble. And, for there was a certain spring of Auximum to the north in a precipitous place, distant from the circuit-wall about a stone's throw, which sent forth its stream very sparingly into a certain cistern that had been there from of old, and the cistern, having become full from this small inflow, allowed the people in Auximum to draw water with no trouble, a thought occurred to Belisarius that, if the water did not collect there, the barbarians, being shot at by the enemy, would never be able to fill their jars over a long period of time from 6.27.3 the inflow. Desiring, therefore, to destroy the cistern, he devised the following. Having armed his whole army, and having drawn it up in a circle around the circuit-wall as if for battle, he gave the enemy the impression that he was about to attack the fortification from all sides at that very moment. 6.27.4

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τοῦτο ἐσχολακέναι, κατέστη μὲν αὖθις ἐς τὴν φυλακὴν ᾗπερ εἰώθει, λαθὼν δὲ ἅπαντας τοῖς πολεμίοις τὰ γράμματα ἔδωκεν, ἅπερ ἐς τὸ πλῆθος ἀναγνωσθέντα ἔτι μᾶλλον 6.26.15 ἅπαντας, καίπερ τῷ λιμῷ πιεζομένους, ἐπέρρωσε. διὸ δὴ προσχωρεῖν Βελισαρίῳ πολλὰ τιθασσεύοντι οὐδαμῆ ἤθελον. αὖθις δὲ (οὐδὲ γὰρ σφίσι στράτευμα ἐκ Ῥαβέννης ἐξεληλυθὸς ἠγγέλλετο καὶ τῶν ἀναγκαίων τῇ ἀπορίᾳ ὑπερφυῶς ἤδη ἤχθοντο) Βουρκέντιον πάλιν πέμπουσι, τοῦτο ἐν γράμμασι δηλώσαντες μόνον, ὡς πέντε ἡμερῶν οὐκέτι τὸ λοιπὸν οἷοί τέ εἰσι τῷ λιμῷ μάχεσθαι. ὁ δὲ αὐτοῖς ἐπανῆκεν αὖθις, Οὐιττίγιδος ἐπιστολὴν ἔχων ταῖς ὁμοίαις ἐλπίσιν αὐτοὺς ἀναρτῶσαν. 6.26.16 Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον ἀχθόμενοι, ὅτι δὴ ἐν χώρᾳ ἐρήμῳ μακρὰν οὕτω προσεδρείαν πεποίηνται, διηποροῦντο, οὐκ ἐνδιδόντας σφίσιν ἐν τοσούτοις κακοῖς 6.26.17 τοὺς βαρβάρους ὁρῶντες. διὸ δὴ Βελισάριος ἐν σπουδῇ ἐποιεῖτο ζῶντά τινα τῶν ἐν τοῖς πολεμίοις δοκίμων λαβεῖν, ὅπως ἂν γνοίη ὅτου δὴ ἕνεκα τὰ δεινὰ καρτεροῦσιν οἱ βάρβαροι, καί οἱ Βαλεριανὸς τὸ τοιοῦτον 6.26.18 ὑπουργήσειν εὐπετῶς ὡμολόγει. εἶναι γάρ τινας τῶν οἱ ἑπομένων ἐκ τοῦ Σκλαβηνῶν ἔθνους, οἳ κρύπτεσθαί τε ὑπὸ λίθῳ βραχεῖ, ἢ φυτῷ τῳ παρατυχόντι, εἰώθασι 6.26.19 καὶ ἀναρπάζειν ἄνδρα πολέμιον. τοῦτό τε ἀεὶ παρὰ ποταμὸν Ἴστρον, ἔνθα ἵδρυνται, ἔς τε Ῥωμαίους καὶ τοὺς ἄλλους βαρβάρους ἐνδείκνυνται. ἥσθη τῷ λόγῳ Βελισάριος καὶ τοῦ ἔργου ἐπιμελεῖσθαι κατὰ τάχος 6.26.20 ἐκέλευε. Βαλεριανὸς οὖν ἀπολέξας τῶν Σκλαβηνῶν ἕνα σώματός τε μεγέθους πέρι εὖ ἥκοντα καὶ διαφερόντως δραστήριον, ἄνδρα πολέμιον ἄγειν ἐπέστελλε, χρήματά οἱ μεγάλα πρὸς Βελισαρίου ἰσχυρισάμενος 6.26.21 ἔσεσθαι. δράσειν δὲ τοῦτο αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ χωρίῳ εὐπετῶς ἔφασκεν, οὗπερ ἡ πόα τυγχάνει οὖσα. χρόνου γὰρ πολλοῦ ταύτῃ τοὺς Γότθους ἀπορίᾳ τῶν ἀναγκαίων 6.26.22 σιτίζεσθαι. ὁ μὲν οὖν Σκλαβηνὸς ὄρθρου βαθέος ἄγχιστα τοῦ περιβόλου γενόμενος, ἐν θάμνῳ τινὶ ἐγκαλυψάμενός τε καὶ τὸ σῶμα ἐς ὀλίγον ξυναγαγὼν 6.26.23 ἀμφὶ τὴν πόαν ἐκρύπτετο. ἅμα δὲ ἡμέρᾳ Γότθος ἀνὴρ ἐνταῦθα ἥκων τὰς βοτάνας κατὰ τάχος ξυνέλεγεν, ἐκ μὲν τοῦ θάμνου ὑποτοπάζων οὐδὲν ἄχαρι, συχνὰ δὲ περισκοπῶν ἐς τὸ τῶν ἐναντίων στρατόπεδον, μή 6.26.24 τις ἐνθένδε ἐς αὐτὸν ἴοι. καί οἱ ἐπιπεσὼν ὄπισθεν ὁ Σκλαβηνὸς ἐκ τοῦ αἰφνιδίου ἀνάρπαστον ἐποιήσατο, σφίγγων τε μέσον καρτερῶς χερσὶν ἀμφοτέραις τὸν ἄνθρωπον, ἔς τε τὸ στρατόπεδον ἤνεγκε καὶ φέρων 6.26.25 Βαλεριανῷ ἐνεχείρισεν. ᾧ δὴ πυνθανομένῳ, ὅτῳ ποτὲ 6.26.25 Γότθοι πιστεύοντες καὶ τί τὸ ἐχυρὸν ἔχοντες ἥκιστα ἐθέλουσι προσχωρεῖν σφίσιν, ἀλλ' ἑκούσιοι τὰ δεινότατα ἐγκαρτεροῦσι, τὸν πάντα λόγον ἀμφὶ τῷ Βουρκεντίῳ ὁ βάρβαρος ἔφρασε καὶ αὐτόν οἱ ἐς ὄψιν ἥκοντα 6.26.26 ἤλεγχεν. ὁ δὲ Βουρκέντιος, ἐπεὶ ἔκπυστος ἤδη γεγονὼς ᾔσθετο, οὐδὲν τῶν πεπραγμένων ἀπέκρυψε. διὸ δὴ Βελισάριος μὲν τοῖς ἑταίροις αὐτὸν ὅ τι βούλοιντο παρέδωκε χρῆσθαι, οἱ δὲ αὐτὸν ζῶντα οὐκ ἐς μακρὰν ἔκαυσαν, θεωμένων τὰ ποιούμενα τῶν πολεμίων. Βουρκέντιος μὲν οὕτω τῆς φιλοχρηματίας ἀπέλαυσε. 6.27.1 Βελισάριος δὲ οὐδέν τι ἧσσον ἀντέχοντας τῇ ταλαιπωρίᾳ τοὺς βαρβάρους ὁρῶν ἐς τοῦ ὕδατος καθίστασθαι τὴν ἐπιβουλὴν διενοεῖτο, ταύτῃ ῥᾷόν τε καὶ 6.27.2 εὐπορώτερον αἱρήσειν τοὺς πολεμίους οἰόμενος. καὶ, ἦν γάρ τις κρήνη Αὐξίμου πρὸς βορρᾶν ἄνεμον ἐν χώρῳ κρημνώδει, τοῦ περιβόλου ἀπέχουσα ὅσον λίθου βολὴν, κατὰ βραχὺ μάλιστα τὸν ῥοῦν ἀφιεῖσα ἔς τινα δεξαμενὴν αὐτόθι ἐκ παλαιοῦ οὖσαν, ἥ τε δεξαμενὴ πλήρης γεγενημένη ἐκ ταύτης δὴ τῆς ὀλίγης ἐπιρροῆς παρείχετο πόνῳ οὐδενὶ τοῖς ἐν Αὐξίμῳ ὑδρεύεσθαι, ἔννοιά τις Βελισαρίῳ ἐγένετο ὡς, ἢν μὴ τὸ ὕδωρ ἐνταῦθα ξυσταίη, οὐ μή ποτε οἷοί τε ὦσιν οἱ βάρβαροι πρὸς τῶν πολεμίων βαλλόμενοι ἐν χρόνῳ πολλῷ ἀπὸ 6.27.3 τῆς ἐπιρροῆς τοὺς ἀμφορέας ἐμπλήσασθαι. διαφθεῖραι γοῦν ἐθέλων τὴν δεξαμενὴν ἐπενόει τάδε. ἐξοπλίσας τὸ στράτευμα ὅλον, κύκλῳ τε αὐτὸ ἀμφὶ τὸν περίβολον ὡς ἐς μάχην ταξάμενος, δόκησιν τοῖς ἐναντίοις παρείχετο ὡς τῷ τειχίσματι προσβαλεῖν αὐτίκα δὴ μάλα 6.27.4 πανταχόθεν μέλλοι.