desired that they should establish Caïsus, the fugitive, as captain over
the Maddeni, and with a great army of their own people and of the
Maddene Saracens make an invasion into the land of the Persians. This
Caïsus was by birth of the captain's rank and an exceptionally able
warrior, but he had killed one of the relatives of Esimiphaeus and was a
fugitive in a land which is utterly destitute of human habitation. So
each king, promising to put this demand into effect, dismissed the
ambassador, but neither one of them did the things agreed upon by them.
For it was impossible for the Aethiopians to buy silk from the Indians,
for the Persian merchants always locate themselves at the very harbours
where the Indian ships first put in, (since they inhabit the adjoining
country), and are accustomed to buy the whole cargoes; and it seemed to
the Homeritae a difficult thing to cross a country which was a desert
and which extended so far that a long time was required for the journey
across it, and then to go against a people much more warlike than
themselves. Later on Abramus too, when at length he had established his
power most securely, promised the Emperor Justinian many times to invade
the land of Persia, but only once began the journey and then straightway
turned back. Such then were the relations which the Romans had with the
Aethiopians and the Homeritae.


XXI

Hermogenes, as soon as the battle on the Euphrates had taken place, came
before Cabades to negotiate with him, but he accomplished nothing
regarding the peace on account of which he had come, since he found him
still swelling with rage against the Romans; for this reason he returned
unsuccessful. And Belisarius came to Byzantium at the summons of the
emperor, having been removed from the office which he held, in order