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to the best men, and having sent them out for winter quarters, he himself, lightly armed, arrived at the reigning city, and according to custom, through the patriarch, he received the crown of victory and from the people the victory odes. But with Tephrike already having withered away, the power of the Tarsians began to flourish and grow, and again by them the farthest reaches of the Roman borders were terribly pressed. Against them that Andrew the Stratelates from the Scythians often acted bravely, and he would destroy many of those running out for plunder and would take them captive; whom the emperor both honored with the rank of Patrician and promoted to the command of the Scholae. Then indeed Andrew, with greater authority and power, often drew up in open battle against both those from Melitene and those from Tarsus and was victorious. And once when the Emir of Tarsus sent letters to Andrew with arrogance, full of blasphemies, declaring "Let's see if the son of Mary and she who bore him 2.217 will help you, when I come out against you with the force around me," having received this abusive letter, he hung it before the icon of the Theotokos, saying, "Behold, O Mother of the Word and God, and you, her Son and God, what things this arrogant barbarian has reproached and boasted against you and your chosen people." And having said these things, he took up the Roman forces and went against Tarsus. And indeed, arriving at Podandos and there engaging with the enemy, he routed the multitude of the barbarians with great slaughter, their emir having fallen before him; and a few with difficulty escaped to Tarsus. And having buried his own men, and having gathered the enemies into one place, and having made a great mound as a monument for those who came after, he returned to his own lands with much booty and many captives. And he also wrote to the emperor, making known the victory. But as envy is accustomed to do, the wicked slandered the man to the emperor, saying that it was easy for him to take Tarsus, but that he had let the opportunity pass through delay and idleness. Persuaded by these things being said often, the emperor relieved the man of his command, and in his place appointed the one called Stypeiotes, who promised to take Tarsus and boasted many other things. Who, immediately taking command of the forces, led them against Tarsus, having considered nothing strategic nor worthy of good counsel. And coming near Tarsus, he encamped at a certain place which is called Chrysoboullon, having established neither a noteworthy trench nor 2.218 a fortified camp. Perceiving that he was disposed to carelessness, the Tarsians attacked him at night, using the following stratagem. For these men, being few in number from the defeat against Andrew and not being a match for open battle, gathered many horses and tied dry hides to their tails, and upon a single command, they let them loose against many parts of the Roman camp, and behind them they themselves, sounding the trumpets and drums, leaped into the middle of the palisade with drawn swords. So when confusion befell the Roman army, and both men and horses were thrown into disorder by fear and fell upon one another, it happened that the barbarians prevailed and worked infinite slaughter of the Romans, with most being ingloriously trampled and suffocated by their own men. And so the Tarsians, having prevailed unexpectedly and having cut down the Roman strength, raised a paean with barbaric shouts.

And so things were in the east, but the account will go on to speak of things in the west. For these things too, like the rest, having been greatly neglected during the reign of Michael, and with almost all of Italy that belongs to the empire of the Romans, and most of Sicily having been conquered by the power of the Carthaginians and made tributary to the barbarians, and furthermore also of those in Pannonia

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τοῖς ἀριστεῦσι, καὶ πρὸς παρα χειμασίαν ἐκπέμψας, αὐτὸς εὔζωνος πρὸς τὴν βασιλεύουσαν ἔφθα σε, καὶ κατὰ τὸ εἰωθὸς διὰ τοῦ πατριάρχου τὸν τῆς νίκης ἐδέ ξατο στέφανον καὶ παρὰ τοῦ πλήθους τὰς ἐπινικίους ᾠδάς. Ἤδη δὲ τῆς Τεφρικῆς ἀπομαρανθείσης ἡ τῶν Ταρσιτῶν ἰσχὺς θάλλειν καὶ αὐξάνεσθαι ἤρχετο, καὶ πάλιν ἀπὸ τούτων αἱ τῶν Ῥωμαϊκῶν ὁρίων ἐσχατιαὶ δεινῶς ἐπιέζοντο. καθ' ὧν Ἀνδρέας ἐκεῖνος ὁ στρατηλάτης ὁ ἐκ Σκυθῶν πολλάκις ἠνδρίσατο, καὶ πολλοὺς τῶν εἰς προνομὴν ἐκτρεχόντων ἀνῄρει καὶ αἰχμαλώτους ἐλάμβανεν· ὃν ὁ βασιλεὺς πατρικιότητί τε ἐτίμησε καὶ εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν τῶν σχολῶν προβιβάζει. τότε δὴ μᾶλλον ὁ Ἀνδρέας ἀπὸ μείζονος ἐξουσίας τε καὶ δυνάμεως ἐμφανέσι μάχαις πολλάκις πρός τε τοὺς ἀπὸ Μελιτηνῆς καὶ τοὺς ἀπὸ Ταρσοῦ παρετάξατο καὶ νενί κηκε. καί ποτε μετὰ φρυάγματος γράμματα πέμψαντος τῷ Ἀν δρέᾳ τοῦ ἀμηρεύοντος τῆς Ταρσοῦ, βλασφημίας ἀνάπλεα, δη λοῦντα ὡς ἴδω εἴ σε ὁ τῆς Μαρίας ὠφελήσει υἱὸς καὶ ἡ τοῦτον 2.217 τεκοῦσα, ὅταν ἐξέλθω κατά σου μετὰ τῆς περὶ ἐμὲ δυνάμεως, τὸ λοίδορον γραμμάτιον οὗτος δεξάμενος τῇ εἰκόνι τῆς θεομήτορος ἀπεκρέμασεν, εἰπών "ἴδε ὦ μῆτερ τοῦ λόγου τε καὶ θεοῦ, καὶ σὺ ὁ ταύτης υἱός τε καὶ θεός, οἷα ὠνείδισε καὶ ἐφρυάξατο κατὰ σοῦ καὶ τοῦ σοῦ περιουσίου λαοῦ ὁ βάρβαρος οὗτος καὶ ἀλαζών." ταῦτα δὲ εἰπών, ἄρας τὰς Ῥωμαϊκὰς δυνάμεις ἐπῄει κατὰ Ταρ σοῦ. καὶ δὴ κατὰ τὸ Ποδανδὸν γενόμενος κἀκεῖ τοῖς ἐναντίοις συμμίξας τρέπεται φόνῳ πολλῷ τὸ τῶν βαρβάρων πλῆθος, πρό τερον αὐτοῦ πεσόντος τοῦ ἀμηρᾶ· ὀλίγοι δέ τινες μόγις πρὸς Ταρσὸν ἀποσώζονται. θάψας δὲ τοὺς οἰκείους, καὶ τοὺς πολε μίους εἰς ἕνα χῶρον συναγαγών, καὶ μέγαν ποιησάμενος κολωνὸν εἰς στήλην καὶ τοῖς μετέπειτα, πρὸς τὰ οἰκεῖα ὑπέστρεψε μετὰ λαφύρων καὶ αἰχμαλωσίας πολλῆς. ἔγραψε δὲ καὶ τῷ βασιλεῖ δηλοποιήσας τὴν νίκην. οἷα δὲ φιλεῖ ποιεῖν ὁ φθόνος, διαβάλ λουσιν οἱ πονηροὶ τὸν ἄνδρα πρὸς βασιλέα, καὶ ῥᾴδιόν οἱ κατα σχεῖν λέγοντες τὴν Ταρσόν, ὁ δὲ μελλήσει καὶ ῥᾳθυμίᾳ προήκατο τὸν καιρόν. ὑφ' ὧν πολλάκις λεγομένων ἀναπεισθεὶς ὁ βασιλεὺς παραλύει τῆς ἀρχῆς τὸν ἄνδρα, καὶ ἀντ' ἐκείνου προβάλλεται τὸν Στυπειώτην λεγόμενον, τήν τε Ταρσὸν ἐξελεῖν ὑπισχνούμενον καὶ ἄλλα πολλὰ φρυαττόμενον. ὃς αὐτίκα παραλαβὼν τὰς δυνάμεις ἦγε κατὰ Ταρσοῦ, μηδὲν στρατηγικὸν ἐννοήσας μηδὲ εὐβουλίας ἐπάξιον. πλησίον δὲ γενόμενος τῆς Ταρσοῦ αὐλίζεται κατά τινα τόπον ὃς Χρυσόβουλλον λέγεται, μήτε τάφρον ἀξιόλογον μήτε 2.218 στρατοπεδείαν ὀχυρὰν προστησάμενος. ὃν κατανοήσαντες οἱ Ταρσεῖς ἀμελῶς διακείμενον ἐπιτίθενται τούτῳ νυκτὸς στρατηγήματι χρησάμενοι τοιούτῳ. ὀλιγανδροῦντες γὰρ οἱ τοιοῦτοι ἐκ τῆς πρὸς Ἀνδρέαν ἥττης καὶ μὴ ὄντες ἀξιόμαχοι πρὸς παράταξιν, ἵππους συναγαγόντες συχνοὺς καὶ βύρσας ξηρὰς ἐξάψαντες ἀπὸ τῶν ἱπ πείων οὐρῶν, ὑφ' ἓν παράγγελμα κατὰ πολλὰ τοῦ Ῥωμαϊκοῦ στρατοπέδου ἐπαφιᾶσι μέρη, ὄπισθεν δὲ αὐτοὶ ταῖς σάλπιγξι καὶ τοῖς τυμπάνοις ἐπιδουπήσαντες μέσον τοῦ χάρακος γυμνοῖς τοῖς ξίφεσιν εἰσεπήδησαν. ταραχῆς οὖν συμπεσούσης τῷ τῶν Ῥωμαίων στρατεύματι, καὶ δειλίᾳ συνταραχθέντων ὁμοῦ καὶ τῶν ἀνδρῶν καὶ τῶν ἵππων καὶ ἀλλήλοις περιπιπτόντων, συνέβη τοὺς βαρβά ρους κρατῆσαι καὶ φόνον ἄπειρον ἀπεργάσασθαι τῶν Ῥωμαίων, τῶν πλείστων δυσκλεῶς συμπατουμένων καὶ συμπνιγομένων ὑφ' ἑαυτῶν. οὕτω δὲ παραδόξως κρατήσαντες οἱ Ταρσεῖς καὶ τὴν Ῥωμαϊκὴν ἰσχὺν κατακόψαντες βαρβαρικοῖς ἀλαλαγμοῖς ἐπαιάνιζον.

Καὶ τὰ μὲν πρὸς ἀνίσχοντα ἥλιον οὕτως εἶχε, τὰ δὲ πρὸς ἑσπέραν ἄπεισι λέξων ὁ λόγος. καὶ τούτων γάρ, ὁμοίως τοῖς λοι ποῖς, ἐπὶ πλέον ἀμεληθέντων ἐπὶ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ Μιχαήλ, καὶ πάσης σχεδὸν ὅση τῇ βασιλείᾳ Ῥωμαίων ἀνήκει Ἰταλίας, καὶ τῶν πλείστων τῆς Σικελίας ὑπὸ τῆς τῶν Καρχηδονίων δυνάμεως κατα πολεμηθείσης καὶ ὑποφόρου τοῖς βαρβάροις γενομένης, ἔτι δὲ καὶ τῶν ἐν Παννονίᾳ