Well then, let the old tales revive of bringing the Medic hordes to Greece; for while they describe the bridging of the Hellespont, the quest of a sea at the foot of Mount Athos by a kind of mechanical severing,I.e., cutting a canal through the isthmus of the peninsula on which the mountain stands. and the numbering of the armies by squadrons at Doriscus,Because they were too numerous to be counted as individuals, an enclosure which would hold 10,000 closely packed men was built; see Hdt. vii. 60. later times have unanimously regarded all this as fabulous reading.

For after the countless swarms of nations were poured through the provinces, spreading over a great extent of plain and filling all regions and every mountain height, by this new evidence the trustworthiness also of old stories was confirmed. First Fritigern and Alavivus were received, and the emperor gave orders that they should be given food for their present needs and fields to cultivate.

During this time, when the barriers of our376 f. A.D. frontier were unlocked and the realm of savagery was spreading far and wide columns of armedAmmianus seems to forget that the Goths were required first to hand over their weapons; but this order was frequently evaded through the negligence of the imperial officials. men like glowing ashes from Aetna, when our difficulties and imminent dangers called for military reformers who were most distinguished for the fame of their exploits: then it was, as if at the choice of some adverse deity, that men were gathered together and given command of armies who bore stained reputations. At their head were two rivals in recklessness: one was Lupicinus, commanding general in Thrace, the other Maximus, a pernicious leader.

Their treacherous greed was the source of all our evils. I say nothing of other crimes which these two men, or at least others with their permission, with the worst of motives committed against the foreign new-comers, who were as yet blameless; but one melancholy and unheard-of act shall be mentioned, of which, even if they were their own judgesCic., 2, 4, nemo enimfere est, qui sui periculi iudex, non sibi se aequiorem quam reo praebeat. of their own case, they could not be acquitted by any excuse.

When the barbarians after their crossing were harassed by lack of food, those most hateful generals devised a disgraceful traffic; they exchanged every dog that their insatiability could gather from far and wide for one slave each, and among these were carried off also sons of the chieftains.

During these days also Vithericus,He was a young boy; cf. xxxi. 3, 3, where the name is given as Viderichus. king of the Greuthungi, accompanied by Alatheus and Saphrax, by whose will he was ruled, and also by Farnobius, coming near to the banks of the Danube, hastily sent envoys and besought the emperor that he might be received with like kindness.

When these envoys were rejected, as the interests of the state seemed to demand, and were in doubt what course to take, Athanarichus, fearing a like fate, departed, remembering that he had some time before treated Valens with contempt when they were making a treaty of friendship, declaring that he was prevented by conscientious scruples from ever setting foot on Roman soil; and by this excuse he had forced the emperor to conclude peace in the middle of the river.Cf. xxvii. 5, 6. Fearing that the grudge caused by this still endured, Athanaricus withdrew with all his followers to Caucalanda, a place inaccessible because of high mountains and deep forests, from which he first drove out the Sarmatians.

But now the Theruingi, who had long since been permitted to cross, were still roaming about near the banks of the river, detained by a twofold obstacle, both because, through the ruinous negligenceFor this meaning of dissimulatio, cf. xxviii. 4, 5. of the generals, they were not supplied with the necessaries of life, and also because they were purposely held back by an abominable kind of traffic.See 4, 11. The meaning is, in order that the Roman generals might carry the practice on longer.

When this became clear to them, they muttered that they were being forced to disloyalty as a remedy for the evils that threatened them, and Lupicinus, fearing that they might soon revolt, sent soldiers and compelled them to move outThat is, into the interior of the country more quickly.

The Greuthungi took advantage of this favourable opportunity, and when they saw that our soldiers were busy elsewhere, and that the boats that usually went up and down the river and prevented them from crossing were inactive, they passed over the stream in badly made craft and pitched their camp at a long distance from Fritigern.

But he with his natural cleverness in foresight protecting himself against anything that might happen, in order to obey the emperor’s commands and at the same time join with the powerful Gothic kings, advanced slowly and in leisurely marches arrived late at Marcianopolis. There another, and more atrocious, thing was done, which kindled the frightful torches that were to burn for the destruction of the state.

Having invited Alavivus and Fritigern to a dinner-party, Lupicinus posted soldiers against the main body of the barbarians and kept them at a distance from the walls of the town; and when they asked with continual entreaties that they might, as friendly people submissive to our rule, be allowed to enter and obtain what they needed for food, great wrangling arose between the inhabitants and those who were shut out, which finally reached a point where fighting was inevitable. Whereupon the barbarians, becoming wildly excited when they perceived that some of their kindred were being carried off by force, killed and despoiled a great troop of soldiers.

When the aforesaid Lupicinus learned by a secret message that this had happened, while he had long been reclining at the prodigalCf. Suet., , 37, 1, nepotatus sumptibus (nepotinus, codd. P.Q.). table amid noisy entertainments and was drowsy and half drunk, guessing what the outcome would be, he put to death all the attendants of the two leaders, who as a guard of honour and to ensure their safety, were waiting for them before the general’s quarters.

When the people who were besieging the walls heard this news, in their resentment they gradually increased their number to avenge their kings, who, as they thought, had been detained by force; and they uttered many savage threats. And since Fritigern was quickwitted and feared that he might be held with the rest as a hostage, he cried out that they would have to fight with heavy loss of life, unless he himself were allowed to go out with his companions to quiet the people, who, believing that their leaders had been slain under pretence of friendly entertainment, had blazed out into turbulence. And when this request was granted,According to Jordanes, Fritigern cut his way through to his men. they all departed. They were received with applause and rejoicing, and mounting horses hastened away, to set in motion the various incitements that lead to wars.