his every need. And consider that at that time thy fleet had no other
place at which to put in from the sea except Sicily, and that without
the supplies bought there it could not go on to Libya. Therefore thou
art indebted to us for the chief cause of thy victory; for the one who
provides a solution for a difficult situation is justly entitled also to
the credit for the results which flow from his help. And what could be
sweeter for a man, O Emperor, than gaining the mastery over his enemies?
And yet in our case the outcome is that we suffer no slight
disadvantage, in that we do not, in accordance with the custom of war,
enjoy our share of the spoils. And now thou art also claiming the right
to despoil us of Lilybaeum in Sicily, which has belonged to the Goths
from ancient times, a lone rock, O Emperor, worth not so much as a piece
of silver, which, had it happened to belong to thy kingdom from ancient
times, thou mightest in equity at least have granted to Atalaric as a
reward for his services, since he lent thee assistance in the times of
thy most pressing necessity." Such was the message which Amalasuntha
wrote openly to the emperor; but secretly she agreed to put the whole
of Italy into his hands. And the envoys, returning to Byzantium,
reported everything to the Emperor Justinian, Alexander telling him the
course which had been decided upon by Amalasuntha, and Demetrius and
Hypatius all that they had heard Theodatus say, adding that Theodatus
enjoyed great power in Tuscany, where he had become owner of the most of
the land and consequently would be able with no trouble at all to carry
his agreement into effect. And the emperor, overjoyed at this situation,
immediately sent to Italy Peter, an Illyrian by birth, but a citizen of
Thessalonica, a man who was one of the trained speakers in Byzantium, a
discreet and gentle person withal and fitted by nature to persuade men.

FOOTNOTES:

[11] Book IV. v. 11 ff.

[12] Near modern Mitrowitz.

[13] Cf. Book III. xiv. 5, 6.

IV

But while these things were going on as I have explained, Theodatus was
denounced before Amalasuntha by many Tuscans, who stated that he had
done violence to all the people of Tuscany and had without cause seized
their estates, taking not only all private estates but especially those
belonging to the royal household, which the Romans are accustomed to
call "patrimonium." For this reason the woman called Theodatus to an
investigation, an