Page:The age of Justinian and Theodora (Volume 2).djvu/159

 moored in the Mandracium, the patency of which had been discovered accidentally through the temerity and disobedience of one of the subordinate officers. The soldiers were received into quarters throughout the town, while Belisarius, with his staff, ascended the Byrsa and established himself in the royal palace. The same evening a banquet was spread for the Romans by the servants of Gelimer, when the victorious general occupied the throne of the defeated king.

Belisarius now applied himself energetically to restoring the fortifications of Carthage, which had fallen into a ruinous condition, as he felt assured that before long he would have to defend his conquest against a siege. In an incredibly short time he repaired all the breaches in the walls, and surrounded the city with a fosse protected by a stout palisade. His foresight was amply justified, and it was soon found that the outlying districts were beset by the adherents of Gelimer to such an extent that no Byzantines could venture outside the city without the certainty of being cut off by some hostile band.

In a few weeks the Vandal king had collected a force