[27] Chap. iii. 13.

[28] Chap. iii. 30, iv. 17 ff.

VII

But meantime, while the emperor was engaged in these negotiations and
these envoys were travelling to Italy, the Goths, under command of
Asinarius and Gripas and some others, had come with a great army into
Dalmatia. And when they had reached the neighbourhood of Salones,
Mauricius, the son of Mundus, who was not marching out for battle but,
with a few men, was on a scouting expedition, encountered them. A
violent engagement ensued in which the Goths lost their foremost and
noblest men, but the Romans almost their whole company, including their
general Mauricius. And when Mundus heard of this, being overcome with
grief at the misfortune and by this time dominated by a mighty fury, he
went against the enemy without the least delay and regardless of order.
The battle which took place was stubbornly contested, and the result was
a Cadmean victory[29] for the Romans. For although the most of the enemy
fell there and their rout had been decisive, Mundus, who went on killing
and following up the enemy wherever he chanced to find them and was
quite unable to restrain his mind because of the misfortune of his son,
was wounded by some fugitive or other and fell. Thereupon the pursuit
ended and the two armies separated. And at that time the Romans recalled
the verse of the Sibyl, which had been pronounced in earlier times and
seemed to them a portent. For the words of the saying were that when
Africa should be held, the "world" would perish together with its
offspring. This, however, was not the real meaning of the oracle, but
after intimating that Libya would be once more subject to the Romans, it
added this statement also, that when that time came Mundus would perish
together with his son. For it runs as follows: "Africa capta Mundus cum
nato peribit."[30] But since "mundus" in the Latin tongue has the force
of "world," they thought that the saying had reference to the world. So
much, then, for this. As for Salones, it was not entered by anyone. For
the Romans went back home, since they were left altogether without a
commander, and the Goths, seeing that not one of their nobles was left
them, fell into fear and took possession of the strongholds in the
neighbourhood; for they had no confidence in the defences of Salones,
and, besides, the Romans who lived there were not very well disposed
towards them.

When Theodatus heard this, he took no account of the e