As to the people, he had them of a long time ready to comply with his
proposals; but as to the fighting men, this humanity of his seemed a
mark of his weakness, and they imagined that he made these proposals
because he was not able to take the rest of the city. They also
threatened death to the people, if they should any one of them say a
word about a surrender. They, moreover, cut the throats of such as
talked of a peace, and then attacked those Romans that were come within
the wall. Some of them they met in the narrow streets, and some they
fought against from their houses, while they made a sudden sally out at
the upper gates, and assaulted such Romans as were beyond the wall, till
those that guarded the wall were so affrighted that they leaped down
from their towers and retired to their several camps: upon which a great
noise was made by the Romans that were within, because they were
encompassed round on every side by their enemies; as also by them that
were without, because they were in fear for those that were left in the
city. Thus did the Jews grow more numerous perpetually, and had great
advantages over the Romans, by their full knowledge of those narrow
lanes; and they wounded a great many of them, and fell upon them, and
drove them out of the city.
Now these Romans were at present forced to make the best resistance they
could, for they were not able, in great numbers, to get out at the
breach in the wall, it was so narrow. It is also probable that all those
that were gotten within had been cut to pieces, if Titus had not sent
them succors, for he ordered the archers to stand at the upper ends of
these narrow lanes, and he stood himself where was the greatest
multitude of his enemies, and with his darts he put a stop to them; as
with him did Domitius Sabinus also, a valiant man, and one that in this
battle appeared so to be. Thus did Cæsar continue to shoot darts at the
Jews continually and to hinder them from coming upon his men, and this
until all his soldiers had retreated out of the city.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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