permitted. Thus we passed through the city of Leptis and Hadrumetum and
reached the place called Grasse, three hundred and fifty stades distant
from Carthage. In that place was a palace of the ruler of the Vandals
and a park the most beautiful of all we know. For it is excellently
watered by springs and has a great wealth of woods. And all the trees
are full of fruit; so that each one of the soldiers pitched his tent
among fruit-trees, and though all of them ate their fill of the fruit,
which was then ripe, there was practically no diminution to be seen in
the fruit.

But Gelimer, as soon as he heard in Hermione that the enemy were at
hand, wrote to his brother Ammatas in Carthage to kill Ilderic and all
the others, connected with him either by birth or otherwise, whom he was
keeping under guard, and commanded him to make ready the Vandals and all
others in the city serviceable for war, in order that, when the enemy
got inside the narrow passage at the suburb of the city which they call
Decimum,[52] they might come together from both sides and surround them
and, catching them as in a net, destroy them. And Ammatas carried this
out, and killed Ilderic, who was a relative of his, and Euagees, and all
the Libyans who were intimate with them. For Hoamer had already departed
from the world.[53] And arming the Vandals, he made them ready,
intending to make his attack at the opportune moment. But Gelimer was
following behind, without letting it be known to us, except, indeed,
that, on that night when we bivouacked in Grasse, scouts coming from
both armies met each other, and after an exchange of blows they each
retired to their own camp, and in this way it became evident to us that
the enemy were not far away. As we proceeded from there it was
impossible to discern the ships. For high rocks extending well into the
sea cause mariners to make a great circuit, and there is a projecting
headland,[54] inside of which lies the town of Hermes. Belisarius