anks of the
Danube to those of the Euphrates. The armies soon encountered each other
in the plains of Mesopotamia, and two battles were fought with various
and doubtful success; but the third engagement was of a more decisive
nature; and the Roman army received a total overthrow, which is
attributed to the rashness of Galerius, who, with an inconsiderable body
of troops, attacked the innumerable host of the Persians. [64] But the
consideration of the country that was the scene of action, may suggest
another reason for his defeat. The same ground on which Galerius was
vanquished, had been rendered memorable by the death of Crassus, and the
slaughter of ten legions. It was a plain of more than sixty miles, which
extended from the hills of Carrhae to the Euphrates; a smooth and barren
surface of sandy desert, without a hillock, without a tree, and without
a spring of fresh water. [65] The steady infantry of the Romans, fainting
with heat and thirst, could neither hope for victory if they preserved
their ranks, nor break their ranks without exposing themselves to the
most imminent danger. In this situation they were gradually encompassed
by the superior numbers, harassed by the rapid evolutions, and destroyed
by the arrows of the barbarian cavalry.

The king of Armenia had signalized his valor in the battle, and acquired
personal glory by the public misfortune. He was pursued as far as the
Euphrates; his horse was wounded, and it appeared impossible for him to
escape the victorious enemy. In this extremity Tiridates embraced the
only refuge which appeared before him: he dismounted and plunged into
the stream. His armor was heavy, the river very deep, and at those
parts at least half a mile in breadth; [66] yet such was his strength and
dexterity, that he reached in safety the opposite bank. [67] With regard
to the Roman general, we are ignorant of the circumstances of his
escape; but when he returned to Antioch, Diocletian received him, not
with the tenderness of a friend and colleague, but with the indignation
of an offended sovereign. The haughtiest of men, clothed in his purple,
but humbled by the sense of his fault and misfortune, was obliged to
follow the emperor's chariot above a mile on foot, and to exhibit,
before the whole court, the spectacle of his disgrace. [68]

[Footnote 63: We may readily believe, that Lactantius ascribes to
cowardice the conduct of Diocletian. Julian, in his oration, says,
that he remained