ars and exceedingly shrewd. This Cabaon, upon
learning that the Vandals were marching against him, did as follows.
First of all he issued orders to his subjects to abstain from all
injustice and from all foods tending towards luxury and most of all from
association with women; and setting up two palisaded enclosures, he
encamped himself with all the men in one, and in the other he shut the
women, and he threatened that death would be the penalty if anyone
should go to the women's palisade. And after this he sent spies to
Carthage with the following instructions: whenever the Vandals in going
forth on the expedition should offer insult to any temple which the
Christians reverence, they were to look on and see what took place; and
when the Vandals had passed the place, they were to do the opposite of
everything which the Vandals had done to the sanctuary before their
departure. And they say that he added this also, that he was ignorant of
the God whom the Christians worshipped, but it was probable that if He
was powerful, as He was said to be, He should wreak vengeance upon those
who insulted Him and defend those who honoured Him. So the spies came to
Carthage and waited quietly, observing the preparation of the Vandals;
but when the army set out on the march to Tripolis, they followed,
clothing themselves in humble garb. And the Vandals, upon making camp
the first day, led their horses and their other animals into the temples
of the Christians, and sparing no insult, they acted with all the
unrestrained lawlessness natural to them, beating as many priests as
they caught and lashing them with many blows over the back and
commanding them to render such service to the Vandals as they were
accustomed to assign to the most dishonoured of their domestics. And as
soon as they had departed from there, the spies of Cabaon did as they
had been directed to do; for they straightway cleansed the sanctuaries
and took away with great care the filth and whatever other unholy thing
lay in them, and they lighted all the lamps and bowed down before the
priests with great reverence and saluted them with all friendliness; and
after giving pieces of silver to the poor who sat about these
sanctuaries, they then followed after the army of the Vandals. And from
then on along the whole route the Vandals continued to commit the same
offences and the spies to render the same service. And when they were
coming near the Moors, the spies anticipated the