llowed Belisarius to disencumber himself
of many useless consumers of food by sending the women, the children,
and the slaves out of the City. His attention was disturbed by feigned
attacks, when the reinforcements, which were tardily sent by Justinian,
and the convoys of provisions, which had been collected by the wife of
Belisarius, the martial Antonina, were to be brought within the walls.
And, lastly, when at length, about the ninth month of the siege, he
proposed a truce and the reopening of negotiations with Constantinople,
he did not even insert in the conditions of the truce any limit to the
quantity of supplies which under its cover the Imperialists might
introduce into the City. Thus he played the game of his wily antagonist,
and abandoned all the advantages--and they were not many--which the nine
months of blockade had won for him.

The parleyings which preceded this truce have an especial interest for
us, whose forefathers were at this very time engaged in making England
their own. The Goths, after complaining that Justinian had broken the
solemn compact made between Zeno and Theodoric as to the conquest of
Italy from Odovacar, went on to propose terms of compromise. "They were
willing", they said, "for the sake of peace to give up Sicily, that
large and wealthy island, so important to a ruler who had now become
master of Africa". Belisarius answered with sarcastic courtesy: "Such
great benefits should be repaid in kind. We will concede to the Goths
the possession of the whole island of Britain, which is much larger than
Sicily, and which was once possessed by the Romans as Sicily was once
possessed by the Goths". Of course that country, though much larger than
Sicily, was one the possession of which was absolutely unimportant to
the Emperor and his general. "What mattered it", they might well say,
"who owned that misty and poverty-stricken island. The oysters of
Rutupiae, some fine watch-dogs from Caledonia, a little lead from the
Malvern Hills, and some cargoes of corn and wool--this was all that the
Empire had ever gained from her troublesome conquest. Even in the world
of mind Britain had done nothing more than give birth to one second-rate
heretic.[148] The curse of poverty and of barbarous insignificance was
upon her, and would remain upon her till the end of time".

[Footnote 148: Pelagius.]

The truce, as will be easily understood, brought no alleviation to the
sufferings of the Goths, who were now