第8巻 第19章

Greek Τούτων δὲ τῶν βαρβάρων τότε πρὸς ἀλλήλους διαμαχομένων ᾗπέρ μοι εἴρηται, τοῦ τε κινδύνου σφίσι κατὰ τὴν ἀγωνίαν ἀκμάζοντος, εὐτυχίᾳ χρῆσθαι Ῥωμαίοις ξυνηνέχθη πολλῇ.

Dewing While these barbarians were fighting it out with each other in the manner described, and when the struggle was now at the most violent point, it so fell out that great good fortune came to the Romans.

Greek ὅσοι γὰρ αὐτῶν ὑπὸ Κουτριγούροις ἐν αἰχμαλώτων λόγῳ ὄντες ἐτύγχανον, ἐς μυριάδας, ὥς φασι, ξυνιόντες πολλάς, ἐν τῷ πόνῳ τούτῳ διαλαθόντες ἐνθένδε τε κατὰ τάχος ἐξαναστάντες οὐδενὸς σφίσιν ἐπισπομένου ἐς τὰ πάτρια ἤθη ἀφίκοντο, καὶ νίκης ἀλλοτρίας ἐν τοῖς ἀναγκαιοτάτοις ἀπώναντο.

Dewing For all those Romans who chanced to be among the Cutrigurs in the status of slaves, during this struggle departed hastily from there without being detected, and, since no one followed them up, they reached their native land, thus profiting by another nation's victory at the time of their sorest need.

Greek βασιλεὺς δὲ Ἰουστινιανὸς Ἀράτιον στρατηγὸν στείλας παρά τε Χινιαλὼν καὶ Οὔννους τοὺς ἄλλους, ἀγγεῖλαι μὲν ἐκέλευε τὰ σφίσιν ἐν γῇ τῇ σφετέρᾳ αὐτῶν ξυνενεχθέντα, χρήματα δὲ αὐτοῖς προϊέμενον πεῖσαι ἀπαλλάσσεσθαι ὅτι τάχιστα ἐκ Ῥωμαίων τῆς γῆς.

Dewing The Emperor Justinian now sent to Chinialon and the other Huns the general Aratius, bidding him announce to them what had befallen in their own land and, by offering them money, persuade them to depart with all possible speed from the territory of the Romans.

Greek οἱ δὲ τῶν τε Οὐτιγούρων τὴν ἔφοδον γνόντες καὶ χρήματα μεγάλα πρὸς τοῦ Ἀρατίου κεκομισμένοι ξυνέβησαν μήτε φόνον ἔτι ἐργάσεσθαι μήτε ἀνδραποδιεῖν Ῥωμαίων μηδένα μήτε τι ἄλλο ἄχαρι δράσειν, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀναχώρησιν ἅτε διὰ φίλων ποιήσεσθαι τῶν τῇδε ἀνθρώπων.

Dewing So these Huns, upon learning the inroad of the Utigurs and receiving at the same time a large sum of money from Aratius, made an agreement that they would commit no further bloodshed nor enslave any one of the Romans nor do any other harm, but would make their withdrawal, treating the people on the way as friends.

Greek ξυνέκειτο δὲ καὶ τοῦτο, ὥστε, εἰ μὲν δυνατοὶ εἶεν οἱ βάρβαροι οὗτοι ἐν γῇ τῇ πατρῴᾳ ἐπανιόντες ἱδρύεσθαι, μένειν τε αὐτοῦ καὶ πίστεως τῆς ἐς Ῥωμαίους τὸ λοιπὸν ἔχεσθαι· ἢν δέ γε αὐτοῖς ἐν ταύτῃ μένειν ἀδύνατα ᾖ, ἐπανιέναι μὲν αὖθις αὐτοὺς ἐς γῆν τὴν Ῥωμαίων, βασιλέα δὲ σφᾶς δωρήσασθαί τισι τῶν ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης χωρίων, ἐφ’ ᾧ ἐνταῦθα ἐνοικησάμενοι ἔνσπονδοί τε τὸν πάντα αἰῶνα Ῥωμαίοις ἔσονται καὶ τὴν χώραν ἐς τὸ ἀκριβὲς ξυμφυλάξουσιν ἐκ πάντων βαρβάρων.

Dewing And this also was agreed upon, that if, on the one hand, these barbarians should be able to return and settle in their own country, they would both remain there and hold fast for the future their allegiance to the Romans; but if, on the other hand, it should be impossible for them to remain in that land, they were to return once more to Roman territory, and the emperor would confer upon them some district in Thrace, to the end that they should establish their houses there and be for ever at peace with the Romans while they assisted in guarding the land carefully against all barbarians.

Greek Ἤδη δὲ καὶ Οὔννων τῶν ἡσσημένων ἐν τῇ ξυμβολῇ καὶ διαφυγόντων τοὺς Οὐτιγούρους δισχίλιοι ἦλθον ἐς Ῥωμαίων τὴν γῆν, παῖδάς τε καὶ γυναῖκας ἐπαγόμενοι·

Dewing By this time two thousand of the Huns who had been defeated in the battle and escaped the Utigurs had entered the Roman empire, bringing their wives and children;

Greek ἡγοῦντο δὲ αὐτῶν ἄλλοι τε καὶ Σιννίων, ὅσπερ ξὺν Βελισαρίῳ πολλῷ πρότερον ἐπί τε Γελίμερα καὶ Βανδίλους ἐστράτευσε· γίνονταί τε Ἰουστινιανοῦ βασιλέως ἱκέται. καὶ ὃς αὐτοὺς ὑπεδέξατο προθυμίᾳ τῇ πάσῃ, ἔν τε χωρίοις ἱδρύσασθαι τοῖς ἐπὶ Θρᾴκης ἐκέλευσεν.

Dewing and among their several leaders was Sinnion, who long before⁠ had marched with Belisarius against Gelimer and the Vandals, and they now made themselves suppliants of the Emperor Justinian. He received them with all kindness and bade them settle on Thracian soil.

Greek ἅπερ ἐπεὶ Σανδίλ, ὁ τῶν Οὐτιγούρων βασιλεύς, ἔμαθε, παρωξυσμένος τε καὶ περιωργισμένος, εἰ αὐτὸς μὲν Κουτριγούρους ὁμογενεῖς ὄντας ἀδικίας τῆς ἐς Ῥωμαίους τιννύμενος ἐξ ἠθῶν ἀναστήσειεν αὐτοὺς τῶν πατρίων, οἱ δὲ βασιλέως σφᾶς ἐνδεξαμένου ἐνοικησάμενοι ἐν Ῥωμαίων τῇ γῇ πολλῷ ἄμεινον βιοτεύσουσιν, ἔπεμψε πρέσβεις ἐς βασιλέα τὰ πεπραγμένα ὀνειδιοῦντας, οὐκ ἐπιστολὴν αὐτοῖς τινὰ ἐγχειρίσας ʽἐπεὶ γραμμάτων παντάπασιν Οὖννοι ἀνήκοοί τε καὶ ἀμελέτητοι ἐς τόδε εἰσὶ καὶ οὔτε γραμματιστήν τινα ἔχουσιν οὔτε τῳ περὶ τὰ γράμματα πόνῳ συναύξεται αὐτοῖς τὰ παιδίἀ, βαρβαρικώτερον δὲ ἅπαντα ἀποστοματιοῦντας ὅσα δὴ αὐτὸς ἐπιστείλειε σφίσιν.

Dewing But when Sandil, the king of the Utigurs, learned this, he was exasperated and filled with anger, seeing that, while he himself, by way of punishing the Cutrigurs who were his kinsmen for the wrong they had done the Romans, had driven them from their ancestral abode, they for their part had been received by the emperor, had settled in the land of the Romans, and were going to live much more comfortably; he accordingly sent envoys to the emperor to remonstrate at what had been done, not putting any letter into their hands (for the Huns are unacquainted with writing and unskilled in it up to the present time, and they neither have any writing-master nor do the children among them toil over their letters at all as they grow up), but instructing them rather to deliver by word of mouth in the barbarian fashion everything which he enjoined upon them.

Greek Ἀφικόμενοι οὖν οἱ πρέσβεις ἐς ὄψιν Ἰουστινιανῷ βασιλεῖ λέγειν οἱ ἔφασαν δι’ αὐτῶν ὡς ἐν ἐπιστολῇ τάδε βασιλέα Σανδίλ· “Παροιμίαν τινὰ ἐκ παιδὸς ἀκηκοὼς οἶδα, καὶ εἴ τι μὴ αὐτῆς ἐπιλέλησμαι,

Dewing So when these envoys came into the presence of the Emperor Justinian, they stated that their king Sandil spoke through them as by a letter as follows: "I know a certain proverb which I have heard from my boyhood, and if I have not forgotten it, the proverb runs somewhat as follows.

Greek τοιαύτη τις ἡ παροιμία τυγχάνει οὖσα. τὸ θηρίον ὁ λύκος τῆς μὲν τριχός, φασίν, ἴσως ἄν τι καὶ παραλλάξαι οὐκ ἀδύνατος εἴη, τὴν μέντοι γνώμην οὐ μεταστρέφει, οὐκ ἀφιείσης αὐτῷ μεθαρμοσαμένῳ ταύτην τῆς φύσεως.

Dewing That wild beast, the wolf, might, they say, possibly not be unable actually to change in some degree the colour of his fur, but his character he doth not transform, nature not permitting him to change this.

Greek ταῦτα μέν,” παροιμιαζόμενός φησιν ὁ Σανδίλ, “τῶν πρεσβυτέρων ἀκήκοα, πλαγίῳ τινὶ παραδηλούντων τὰ ἀνθρώπινα λόγῳ. οἶδα δέ τι καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς πείρας μαθών, οἷα εἰκὸς ἦν ἀγροικιζόμενον βάρβαρον ἐκμαθεῖν·

Dewing This proverb," says Sandil, "have I heard from my elders, who thus hinted at the ways of men by means of a dark saying.⁠ And I know something also which I have learned from experience, one of those things which it would be natural that a rough barbarian should learn:

Greek τοὺς κύνας οἱ ποιμένες ἐπιτιτθίους ὄντας ἀναιρούμενοι οὐκ ἀπημελημένως οἴκοι ἐκτρέφουσιν, εὔγνωμον δὲ τοῖς σιτίζουσι ζῷον ὁ κύων καὶ τὰ ἐς χάριν μνημονικώτατον. πράσσεται οὖν ταῦτα τοῖς ποιμέσι τούτου δὴ ἕνεκα, τοῦ τῶν λύκων ἐπιόντων ποτὲ διακρούεσθαι τὰς ἐκείνων ἐφόδους τοὺς κύνας παραστάτας τε καὶ σωτῆρας τοῖς προβατίοις καθισταμένους. καὶ ταῦτα ἐν γῇ τῇ πάσῃ γίνεσθαι οἴομαι.

Dewing the shepherds take dogs when they are still suckling and rear them with no lack of care in the house, and the dog is an animal grateful to those who feed it and most mindful of kindness. Now this is obviously done by the shepherds with this purpose, that when the wolves attack the flock at any time, the dogs may check their attacks, standing over the sheep as guardians and saviours. And I think this takes place throughout the whole world.

Greek τεθέαται γὰρ τῶν πάντων οὐδεὶς οὔτε ποίμνῃ κύνας ἐπιβουλεύσαντας οὔτε λύκους ἀμυνομένους αὐτῆς πώποτε, ἀλλ’ ὥσπερ τινὰ τοῦτον ἡ φύσις θεσμὸν κυσί τε καὶ προβάτοις καὶ λύκοις νομοθετήσασα ἔθετο.

Dewing For no man in the world has at any time seen dogs attacking a flock nor wolves defending it, but nature as a law‑maker has established this as a kind of ordinance, as it were, for dogs and sheep and wolves.

Greek οἶμαι δὲ κἀν τῇ βασιλείᾳ τῇ σῇ, οὗ δὴ πραγμάτων ἐκ τοῦ ἐπὶ πλεῖστον ἁπάντων, τάχα δέ που καὶ τῶν ἀμηχάνων, περιουσίαν ξυμβαίνει εἶναι, παράλλαξιν τούτων τινὰ οὐδαμῆ γίγνεσθαι.

Dewing And I think that even in your empire, where practically everything is found in abundance, including doubtless even impossible things, there is not the slightest variation from this rule.

Greek ἢ γοῦν τοῖς πρέσβεσι τοῖς ἐμοῖς δείξατε ὅπως ἄν τι καὶ τῶν οὐκ εἰωθότων ἐπὶ γήραος οὐδῷ μάθοιμεν· εἰ δὲ ἀραρότως ταῦτα πανταχῆ πέφυκεν, οὐ καλόν σοί ἐστι Κουτριγούρων τὸ γένος ξεναγεῖσθαι, οἶμαι, τεθολωμένον ἐπαγαγομένῳ γειτόνημα, καὶ οὓς ὄντας ὑπερορίους οὐκ ἤνεγκας, τανῦν ἐνδήμους πεποιημένῳ.

Dewing Otherwise make a demonstration to my envoys in order that on the threshold of old age we may actually learn something to our experience. But if these things are by nature everywhere fixed, it is not, I think, a fair thing for you to receive hospitably the nation of the Cutrigurs, inviting in a foul set of neighbours, and making people at home with you now whom you have not endured beyond your boundaries.

Greek αὐτοί τε γὰρ τρόπον ἐς Ῥωμαίους τὸν οἰκεῖον ἐνδείξονται οὐ πολλῷ ὕστερον, καὶ τούτου χωρὶς οὔτε πολέμιος ἐπιλείψει διαφθείρων τὴν Ῥωμαίων ἀρχήν, ἐλπίδι τοῦ ἡσσηθεὶς ἀμείνων ἔσεσθαι παρὰ σοί, οὔτε φίλος περιέσται Ῥωμαίοις, ἐμπόδιός ποτε τοῖς καταθέουσι γῆν τὴν ὑμετέραν ἐσόμενος, δέει τοῦ μή, ἐπειδὰν φέρηται παρὰ τῆς τύχης τὰ κράτιστα, τοὺς ἡσσημένους ἐπιδεῖν ἐπιφανέστερον αὑτοῦ παρ’ ὑμῖν πράσσοντας, εἴ γε ἡμεῖς μὲν ἐν χώρᾳ ἐρήμῳ τε καὶ ἄλλως ἀγόνῳ τὰ διαιτητήρια ἔχομεν, τοῖς δὲ Κουτριγούροις σιτωνεῖν τε καὶ τοῖς οἰνῶσι κατακραιπαλᾶν ἐν ἐξουσίᾳ ἐστὶ καὶ παροψίδας αἱρεῖσθαι πάσας.

Dewing For they will, after no long delay, shew their own true character toward the Romans, and apart from this, neither will an enemy be lacking who will prey upon the Roman domain in the hope that, if defeated, he will be better off at your hands, nor will a friend be left the Romans who some day will stand in the way of those who would overrun your land, through fear lest, when he gains the mastery by the gift of fortune, he may see the vanquished faring more splendidly than himself at your hands, seeing that while we eke out our existence in a deserted and thoroughly unproductive land, the Cutrigurs are at liberty to traffic in cornº and to revel in their wine-cellars and live on the fat of the land.

Greek πάντως δέ πη καὶ βαλανείων αὐτοῖς μέτεστι, καὶ χρυσοφοροῦσιν οἱ πλανῆται καὶ ἱματίων οὐκ ἀμοιροῦσι λεπτῶν τε καὶ πεποικιλμένων καὶ καταληλειμμένων χρυσῷ. καίτοι Κουτρίγουροι μὲν Ῥωμαίων

Dewing And doubtless they have access to baths too and are wearing gold — the vagabonds — and have no lack of fine clothes embroidered and overlaid with gold.

Greek ἀνάριθμα πλήθη ἐξηνδραποδικότες τὰ πρότερα μετήνεγκαν ἐς γῆν τὴν σφετέραν.

Dewing Yet another point: the Cutrigurs had previously enslaved thousands of Romans and carried them off to their own land.

Greek οἷς δὴ τὰ ἀνδραποδώδη πάντα ἐπέχειν οὐ πάρεργον τοῖς καταράτοις ἐγίνετο, ἀλλὰ καὶ μάστιγας οὐχ ἡμαρτηκόσιν ἐντεῖναι καὶ θανατοῦν ἴσως πρόχειρον ἦν, καὶ ὅσα ἄλλα δεσπότῃ βαρβάρῳ ὅ τε τρόπος καὶ ἡ ἐξουσία ἐφίησιν.

Dewing And these cursed rascals have been at no slight pains to impose all the indignities of slavery upon these victims, for they were doubtless ever ready even to apply the lash to those who had done no wrong or to put them to death, and they practised such other cruelties as natural inclination and opportunity suggest to a barbarian master.

Greek ἡμεῖς δὲ πόνοις τε ἡμετέροις καὶ κινδύνοις ἐς ψυχὴν φέρουσι τύχης αὐτοὺς ἀπαλλάξαντες τῆς τότε κρατούσης τοῖς γειναμένοις ἀπέδομεν, διαπονήματα ἡμῖν τοῦ πολέμου γεγενημένους.

Dewing We, on the other hand, by our struggles and perils which involved our lives in danger, delivered them from the fate which then enchained them and restored them to their parents, so that they came to represent for us the object, it proves, of all our labours in the war.

Greek ὧν δὴ τὰς ἀμοιβὰς πρὸς ὑμῶν ἀπ’ ἐναντίας ἑκάτεροι κεκομίσμεθα, εἴ γε ἡμεῖς μὲν ἀπολαύομεν ἔτι τῶν πατρίων κακῶν, οἱ δὲ τοῖς δι’ ἀρετὴν ἡμετέραν ἀποφυγοῦσι τὴν αὐτῶν δούλωσιν χώρας τῆς ἐκείνων ἰσομοιροῦντες

Dewing And for these things we and they have each of us received from you for these different actions rewards of an opposite nature, if it is true that we, on the one hand, still partake of our ancestral woes, but they are allotted an equal share in the land of those who by our valour escaped from being their slaves."

Greek διαλαγχάνουσι.” τοσαῦτα μὲν Οὐτιγούρων οἱ πρέσβεις εἶπον. βασιλεὺς δὲ αὐτοὺς πολλὰ τιθασσεύσας καὶ δώρων πλήθει παρηγορήσας οὐκ ἐς μακρὰν ἀπεπέμψατο. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν τῇδε ξυνηνέχθη γενέσθαι.

Dewing Thus spoke the envoys of the Utigurs. But the emperor, after wheedling them with many words and comforting them with a quantity of gifts, sent them away not long afterward. Such was the course of these events.