Chilbudius.

The Prefect had undertaken the defence of all the gates on the right
bank of the Tiber; the new Porta Aurelia on the AElisian Bridge near the
Mausoleum, the Porta Septimiana, the old Aurelian Gate, which was now
named the Pancratian; and on the left bank, that of St. Paul.

The next gate to the east, the Ardeatinian, was again under the
protection of a Byzantine garrison, commanded by Chilbudius.

The besiegers and the besieged proved themselves equally indefatigable
and equally inventive in plans of attack and defence.

For a long time the only thing the Goths could attempt was to harass
the Romans before storming the walls. On their side, the Romans
prepared to defend them when attacked. The Goths--lords and masters in
the Campagna--sought to distress the besieged by cutting off all the
fourteen splendid aqueducts which supplied the city with water.

As soon as Belisarius learned this fact, he hastened to block the
mouths of the aqueducts within the city.

"For," Procopius had said to him, "since you, O great hero, Belisarius,
have crept into Neapolis through such a water-runnel, the same idea
might occur to the barbarians, and they would scarcely think it a shame
to crawl into Rome by a similar hero-path."

The besieged were now obliged to deny themselves the luxury of their
baths; the wells in the quarters of the city at a distance from the
river scarcely sufficed for drinking water.

But by cutting off the supply of water, the barbarians had also
deprived the Romans of bread.

At least it seemed so, for all the water-mills of Rome were stopped.

The garnered grain bought in Sicily by Cethegus, and that which
Belisarius had, by force, caused to be brought into Rome from all the
neighbouring country, in spite of the outcry of farmers and husbandmen,
could no longer be ground.

"Let the mills be turned by asses and oxen!" cried Belisarius.

"Most of the asses and oxen were too wise to allow themselves to be
shut up with us here, O Belisarius," said Procopius; "we have only as
many as we shall want for the shambles, and it is impossible that they
should first drive the mills and then be still fat enough to afford
meat to eat with the bread thus gained."

"Then call Martinus. Yesterday, as I stood by the Tiber counting the
Gothic tents, I had an idea----"

"Which Martinus must translate from the Belisarian into the possible!
Poor man! But I will go and fetch him."

But when, on the evenin