[-19-]This was what Caesar did: Antony's experience with the barbarians was as follows. Publius Ventidius heard that Pacorus was gathering an army and was invading Syria, and became afraid, since the cities had not grown quiet and the legions were still scattered in winter-quarters, and so he acted as follows to delay him and make the assembling of an army a slow process. He knew that a certain prince Channaeus, with whom he enjoyed an acquaintance, was rather disposed to favor the Parthian cause. Ventidius, then, honored him as if he had his entire confidence and took him as an adviser in some matters where he could not himself be injured and would cause Channaeus to think he possessed his most hidden secrets. Having reached this point he affected to be afraid that the barbarians might abandon the place where they customarily crossed the Euphrates near where the city Zeugma is located, and use some other road farther down the river. The latter, he said, was in a flat district convenient for the enemy, whereas the former was hilly and suited _them_ best. He persuaded the prince to believe this and through the latter deceived Pacorus. The Parthian leader took the route through the flat district, where Ventidius kept pretending he hoped he would not go, and as this was longer than the other it gave the Roman time to assemble his forces. [-20-] So he met Pacorus when he had advanced to Cyrrestician Syria and conquered him. For he did not prevent them from crossing the river, and when they had got across he did not at once attack them, so that they imputed sloth and weakness to the Romans and therefore marched against the Roman fortification, although on higher ground, expecting to take it without resistance. When a sally was suddenly made, the attacking party, being cavalry, was driven back without effort down the slope. At the foot they defended themselves valiantly,--the majority of them were in armor,--but were confused by the unexpectedness of the onslaught and stumbling over one another were damaged most of all by the heavy-armed men and the slingers. The latter struck them, from a distance with powerful weapons and proved a very great annoyance. The fall of Pacorus at this critical juncture injured them most of all. As soon as they saw that their leader had perished, a few steadily contended over his body, but when these were destroyed all the rest gave way. Some of them desired to escape homeward across the bridge and were not able, being cut off and killed before they could reach it, and others fled for refuge to Antiochus in Commagene. Ventidius easily reduced the rest of the places in Syria, whose attitude had depended on the outcome of the war, by sending the monarch's head about through the different cities; their doubtful allegiance had been due to their extreme love for Pacorus because of his justness and mildness,--a love which had equaled that bestowed by them upon any previous sovereign.