The siege was now pressed with great vigour, and repeated assaults were made, but in vain. Muza saw at length that the walls were too high to be scaled, and the gates too strong to be burst open without the aid of engines; and he desisted from the attack until machines for the purpose could be constructed. The governor suspected from this cessation of active warfare, that the enemy flattered themselves to reduce the place by famine; he caused, therefore, large baskets of bread to be thrown from the wall, and sent a messenger to Muza to inform him that if his army should be in want of bread, he would supply it, having sufficient corn in his granaries for a ten years’ siege.[41] The citizens, however, did not possess the undaunted spirit of their governor. When they found that the Moslems were constructing tremendous engines for the destruction of their walls, they lost all courage, and, surrounding the governor in a clamorous multitude, compelled him to send forth persons to capitulate. The ambassadors came into the presence of Muza with awe; for they expected to find a fierce and formidable warrior in one who had filled the land with terror: but, to their astonishment, they beheld an ancient and venerable man, with white hair, a snowy beard, and a pale emaciated countenance. He had passed the previous night without sleep, and had been all day in the field: he was exhausted, therefore, by watchfulness and fatigue; and his garments were covered with dust. “What a devil of a man is this,” murmured the ambassadors one to another, “to undertake such a siege when on the verge of the grave! Let us defend our city the best way we can; surely we can hold out longer than the life of this greybeard.” They returned to the city, therefore, scoffing at an invader who seemed fitter to lean on a crutch than wield a lance; and the terms offered by Muza, which would otherwise have been thought favourable, were scornfully rejected by the inhabitants. A few days put an end to this mistaken confidence. Abdalasis, the son of Muza, arrived from Africa, at the head of his reinforcement: he brought seven thousand horsemen, and a host of Barbary archers; and made a glorious display as he marched into the camp. The arrival of this youthful warrior was hailed with great acclamations; so much had he won the hearts of the soldiery by the frankness, and suavity, and generosity of his conduct. Immediately after his arrival, a grand assault was made upon the city; and several of the huge battering engines being finished, they were wheeled up, and began to thunder against the walls.