erly.

"War! war, King Witichis!" cried both men with one voice.

"What! Belisarius refuses the sacrifice I offered him? Hast thou
communicated my proposal to him in a friendly and earnest manner?"

Duke Guntharis stepped forward and answered:

"I met the commander in the Capitol, as the guest of the Prefect, and I
said to him: 'The Gothic King, Witichis, sends thee greeting. In thirty
days he will march before these walls with a hundred and fifty thousand
valiant Goths, and there will be a strife and struggle for this
venerable city, such as her bloodstained soil has not witnessed for a
thousand years. The King of the Goths loves peace even more than
victory, and he swears to yield the island of Sicilia to the Emperor
Justinian, and stand by him in every war with thirty thousand Goths, if
you will at once evacuate Rome and Italy, which belong to us by right
of conquest, as well as according to the treaty with Emperor Zeno, who
conceded them to Theodoric when he had overthrown Odoacer.' Thus I
spoke, according to thy command. But Belisarius laughed, and cried:
'Witichis is very kind to yield to me the island of Sicilia, which
belongs to me already, and is no more his. I will give him instead the
island of Thule! No. The treaty of Theodoric with Zeno was a forced
one, and as to the right of conquest--well, that speaks now for us. No
peace except upon these conditions: that the whole Gothic army lay down
their arms, and the entire nation march over the Alps, sending their
King and Queen as hostages to Byzantium.'"

A murmur of indignation ran through the tent.

"Without making any reply to such a proposition," continued Guntharis,
"we turned our backs angrily and departed. 'We shall meet again in
Ravenna!' Belisarius cried after us."

"Then I turned," added Hildebad, "and cried: 'We shall meet again
before Rome!' Up, King Witichis! to arms! Thou hast done thine utmost
for peace, and hast only reaped humiliation. Up, then! Long enough hast
thou lingered and prepared; lead us now to battle!"

Just then a flourish of trumpets was heard in the camp, followed by the
sound of the hoof-beats of approaching horses.

Presently the curtain of the tent was lifted, and Totila entered in his
shining armour, his white mantle floating round him.

"Hail, my King and my Queen!" he said, bowing, "My mission is
fulfilled, I bring you the friendly greeting of the Frank King. He had
an army ready for the service of Byzantium, and p