[-34-] Brutus overcame in battle the public army of the Lycians which confronted him near the borders, and entering the citadel at the same time as the fugitives captured it at a single stroke; the majority of the cities he brought to his side, but Xanthus he shut up in a state of siege. Suddenly the inhabitants made a sortie, and themselves rushed in with them, and once inside arrows and javelins at once rendered his position very dangerous. He would, indeed, have perished utterly, had not his soldiers pushed their way through the very fire and unexpectedly attacked the assailants, who were light-armed. These they hurled back within the walls and themselves rushed in with them, and once inside cast some of the fire on several houses, terrifying those who saw what was being done, and giving those at a distance the impression that they had simply captured everything. The result was that the natives of their own accord helped set fire to the rest, and most of them slew one another. Next Brutus came to Patara and invited the people to conclude friendship; but they would not obey, for the slaves and the poorer portion of the free population, who had received in advance for their services the former freedom, the latter remission of debts, prevented any compact being made. So at first he sent them the captive Xanthians, to whom many of them were related by marriage, in the hope that through these he might bring them to terms. When they yielded none the more, in spite of his giving to each man gratuitously his own kin, he erected a kind of salesroom in a safe spot under the very wall, where he led each one of the prominent men past and auctioned him off, to see if by this means at least he could gain the Patareans. They were as little inclined as ever to make concessions, whereupon he sold a few and let the rest go. When those within saw this, they no longer were stubborn, but forthwith attached themselves to his cause, regarding him as an upright man; and they were punished only in a pecuniary way. The people of Myra took the same action when after capturing their general at the harbor he then released him. Similarly in a short time he secured control of the rest.