the Roman troops had become inflamed with the desire to attack an enemy whom they saw constantly flying before them; and at length they broke into open murmurs against their general who, from sloth and timidity, they exclaimed, was restraining them from a glorious success. Belisarius strove to repress their ardour by urging that no fruitful victory was possible under the conditions present, whereas the enemy, if driven to desperation, might inflict a defeat which would restore to them their liberty of action, and be attended with disastrous consequences to the surrounding country. He also represented to his men that their strength was sapped by incessant marching, and especially by the fasts imposed on them by the season of Lent, through which they were passing; finally, that a portion of the army had not yet arrived. At last he was overborne by their clamours, in which many of his officers joined, and even expressed his confidence that a general could not fail to conquer when in command of troops so eager to be led into action.[1]
- [Footnote: a country then strange to the Greeks, but now become a part of their
native land. His description is familiar to those of the old school: "In this place the earth was smooth all over, like the sea, and full of worm-*wood. Every other kind of shrub or reed was sweet-smelling and of the class of aromatics, but there was nothing in the way of a tree. . . . With the Euphrates on the right we arrived at Pylae. In these stages many of the beasts of burden perished of hunger; for there was no grass, nor any sort of tree, but the whole country was bare," etc.; Anabasis, i, 5. He adds that the only occupation the inhabitants had was digging up mill-stones, which they took to Babylon for sale.]
- ↑ Hermogenes was also present at this time, but only through having fallen in with the army as he was on his way to Hierapolis, where Rufinus was constantly stationed as the most convenient post from which to open up diplomatic relations with Ctesiphon. Zachariah Myt. relates that Azarathes begged Belisarius to postpone the battle on account of the "Nazarenes and Jews" in the Persian army, who were also keeping the fast.
