New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-03-10

I
simple and barren hope for Roman liberty. On
4 .be other hand there is no reason 10 suppose
tho, the words lust as Boithus wrote them
. .scanad the knowledge Of the King. Boethius
vas writing IN prison. subject to the inspection
( % his keepers r. they never read any other
treatise in philosophy they probably read the one
which he was writing What he would have said
- The Kings face. II the occasion mad warranted
hin, doing So he set forth for the perusai OF future
oo,or,tions There is thus plausible excuse
FOR Gibbons paraphrase Many a historian has
ventured a more hazardous conjecture without
being ensured II may he remarked In passing
that the name OF Boathius ls spelled In tines"
volumes with the first two voweis linked as A
diphthong II there is any authority FOR TINS II
has escaped the attention Of the writer Of the
present article.
II Is not so easy to defend Gibbon in another
Mace to which Gregorovius calls attention The
matter is one. however, which does not affect
seriously the recital OF the episode in which IT oc-
ours. Probably 1t would seem Of more inn
portance to a military expert than to any other
person After Belisarius the general of the I'M
pcrial code-maker, Justinian, finished success
fully his African campaign and reconquer'd
Sicily and Southern Italy from the Coins ne
hurried 20 Rome for the purpose or defenhihs
the city from the Goths. under NitlSes, al ia
VIENNA. The latter collected large army ana set
out for Rome by road which led nm past inc
towns of Peruga and Spoleto. ana the IorU'S'
of Narni. These names are of significance IN 'h'
outcome OF the narrative. and GioDon hiniseN i
authority for mentioning them. When the Goths
arrived at the Mjlvian Bridge they found the de-
fensiye tower empty the guard having fed IN
/ the night and were only prevented from enter
ing tie city at once 10y the personal EFFORTS OF
Belisarus at the head OF reconnoitr'ng parry
o. 1000 cavalry. According to Glnbon Inc
Byzantine general was taken completely Dy sur
nriso as he supposed mat the enemy was still
on the other side-that Is. the west side 81 III"
T,ber. But Gregorovus points out that the route
Of the Goths if they went by the fortified places
already named. must have brought them to the
cast side of the Tber Instead of approaching
the city by way OF the Milvian bridge. they were
advancing along the Salarian way. and so must
/ have crossed the Ano by the bridge which was
famed Of old I'm connection with Titus Maniius
Torouartus and known to later times as having
been destroyed by Tota and rebuilt by Narses.
Apparently there is no way for Giooon 10 escape
in this case. The topography Is all against MIN
But he might have consoled himself by ooserN-
| ing that he was not the first to make the MIS-
| take For once he followed Procopius too faith
! rul,v The latter seemed hardly to know that
the Tiber had any such tributary ms the Ahio'
| proconius must also be blamed for another mis-
apprehension into which Gibbon fell Gregor-
ovius's attempt TO correct the error leaves the
matter in a state of confusion The passage be-
longs to the account Of the siege Of Rome by
Totila Belisarlus was again In command OF the
defenders as he had been in the time of Vitiges.
7, their repeated incursions the Coths had broken
down the walls and had left city full Of houses
! and temnles and churches. but empty OF IN
| hahitants When Belsarius took possession the
people drifted back Rome being the only place
on earth where they could get living without
! having to work for It. Gbbon described the
efforts of Belisarius 10 put the city IN d"-
fensib,e condition The walls were repaired ne
said with whatever came 70 hand. the dltch was
restored the open gateways were guarded pF
! strong bodies of soldiery and iron spikes were
scattered in the highway to lame the eneih!
! horses BY iron spikes GiObon meant, as nc
/ showed in a note. the caltrops. which In one
/ form or another and under many names were
! familiar TO ancient warfare. Small Jumps or
! balls of metal set with sharp points thlcKlF scat
taro5 over a field where cavalry were To manocu-
yre. soon rendered the horses useess. They were
hardly less dangerous to a charging mass Of in
! fantry. Gibbon was misled by the Greek Word
"tribooi" Q.atin, "tribuli). common name for
]
as cited by Gregorovius, saw that PTocopIus
meant something very different. and he de-
ecrihed the machines of Besarius as chevaux de
frise GreeOrovius SAYS that they were wooden
machines supported on four stakes fastened at
r,ght-angles which could be twisted and turned
AZ will" II the reader will try to imagine the
soldiers OF Belisarius running about outside the
walls in the face Of the enemy twisting THESE
new-fangled engines. he Will get some aHuse-
rnent out OF Gregorovius which the author did
not intend TO give. Then. II he VIII take Mura-
tor,'s explanation with that Of Glbbon, he VIII
pet at something like the truth the invention
O, Reisarius was gigantic calrop which no
matter how 1t turned, as II was dropped oyer 'he
wall was sure TO settle in position wheTe II
presented a row Of pointed stakes toward inc
foe The ordinary caltrop was pad moae'' lot
(, was intended to wound from below But iou'
solid beams crossing each other at rlgh'-aheie7
,o,ld furnish q solid footing and four sharp
minis in the air. ChevauX de frise OF THIS sort
conld he made piece by piece within the walls
and Jet down TO the proper place IN the very face
of an enemy armed as the Goths were. On ii
.I,,a hotveen a wall and a fosse. the points o'
,yvo stakes n ca IN machine would be thrown odt
N a horizontal direction.
r.ba ava animation of these instances shows thai
,hare is small occasion to go over the ground ira
versed by Gibbon as long as the sources,oi intol'
nation remain the same. In fact Gregorovius IN
"a many words declined to enter the lists az Gib
hons rival But there is vast field. that OF
archaeological research. which was practically
unknown when THE Decline and Fall OF th'
Roman Empire" was written. II is In the chap
tors based on the studies and reports OF modern
oxcavators tina; Gregorovius has gone far beyond
the great master Of Roman history. In these
. chapters the condition and appearance o! the city
in the various stages II its decay are reproduced
with Photographic cxactness. The reader Is
taken to see first the city az it was in its perfec
ton. with its palaces and gardens, it's temples
/ fo,iin,s baths and theatres, It's population OF