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28.7 For this reason, we spent that entire night keeping vigil, blaming ourselves for none of the things that had happened; 28.8 for we came to such a point of courage that even the leader of the barbarians himself was amazed and considered it of great importance to learn later the reason, how we resisted each assault so bravely, and, concerning what he had heard about us, how the opposite turned out, with his hope having been overturned. 29.1 But when dawn, the herald of the second day of the war, arrived, and things more terrible than what had already been done had been devised against us by the barbarians, the generals were weary again with their cares, rousing the spirit of each man and contributing their own readiness. 29.2 So, when the sun's ray lit up the air, the barbarians, having disembarked from their ships, again rushed at the wall, scattered and having divided themselves into phalanxes in certain places, but converging more at the gateways of the gates, they set in motion their entire panoply against us. 29.3 For some of them used bows, while others used the man-made thunder of stones; others, positioned at the stone-throwers, sent those exceedingly large hailstorms of rocks soaring. 29.4 And the slaughter threatened against us was of many kinds, and falling from all sides, it made the ordeal terrible for those who encountered it. 29.5 For against the aforementioned gate alone they set up seven stone-throwers, fenced in on all sides, which they had prepared beforehand for such a need while passing by Thasos. 29.6 And indeed, having brought some ladders made of wood up to the wall opposite these, they attempted to ascend by them, maintaining their safety with the stones being launched from the stone-throwers; 29.7 for those machines, operating continuously, did not allow anyone to look out from the high wall unharmed. 29.8 And indeed their plan would have come to fruition, since they had already hoisted the ladder to the battlements of the outwork, if a divine power had not strengthened some brave men to leap down to the spot, who, wounding the barbarians with their spears, hurled them backwards down the precipice along with the ladder. 29.9 And so, when they saw that this plan too had come to nothing and they took to flight so as to even leave the ladder behind, we reached such a point of courage that we even laughed at them, and more eagerly than on the other day we used both the arrows and the stones from the stone-throwers, and no longer allowed them to approach the wall even for a short time, even though they, inflamed to a greater madness, gnashed their teeth like wild boars and, if it were at all possible, wished to tear us apart alive with them. 29.10 For what a terrible thing it was to hear them raging against us! How they made a show of their excessive anger, whenever they gnashed their teeth from deep within and their demonic nature was displayed by the foam sent forth from their mouths, 29.11 not even wishing to take food throughout that entire day, but to be insatiable for war in such a scorching heat, and not at all perceiving that they were clothed in bodies that are subdued by toil and burned by the sun overhead, but having this alone as their concern: either to sack the city and satisfy their anger against us, or, if this did not succeed, to give up on life and kill themselves with their own weapons. 29.12 For barbaric anger, once ignited, would not cease from its irrational impulse that moves it, until it sees the shedding either of its own blood or of that of its opponent. 30.1 But since it was not without danger for them to approach the wall, they entrusted everything to their arrows and their stone-throwers. 30.2 For having arranged themselves in ranks, and standing at such a distance that their missiles would fall upon the city with their momentum not yet having slackened, and having fenced themselves in with their shields and becoming wholly devoted to the struggle, they stood just like some statues made of bronze or some other harder material, having bodies compacted together, with some countless and indescribable

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28.7 τούτου ἕνεκεν πᾶσαν ἐκείνην ἐπαγρυπνοῦντες ἐτελοῦμεν τὴν νύκτα, οὐδὲν ἑαυτοὺς τῶν προηγωνισμένων μεμφόμενοι· 28.8 πρὸς τοσοῦτον γὰρ ἤλθομεν θάρσος ὡς καὶ αὐτὸν τὸν καθηγούμενον τῶν βαρβάρων ἐν θαύματι γεγονέναι καὶ περὶ πολλοῦ ποιεῖσθαι μαθεῖν ὕστερον τὴν αἰτίαν, πῶς πρὸς ἑκάστην προσβολὴν οὕτως ἀνδρείως ἀντέστημεν, καὶ ὧν περὶ ἡμῶν ἠκηκόει, πῶς τὰ ἐναντία ἐξέβη, τῆς ἐλπίδος αὐτοῦ περιτραπείσης. 29.1 Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ κῆρυξ ἦν ἐπιστὰς ὁ ὄρθρος τῆς δευτέρας τοῦ πολέμου ἡμέρας, καὶ τῶν πραχθέντων ἤδη χαλεπώτερα καθ' ἡμῶν ὑπὸ τῶν βαρβάρων ἐπινενόητο, ἔκαμνον πάλιν οἱ στρατηγοὶ ταῖς φροντίσι τὸν ἑκάστου θυμὸν διεγείροντες καὶ τὸ καθ' ἑαυτοὺς πρόθυμον εἰσηγούμενοι. 29.2 τῆς ἡλιακῆς οὖν ἀκτῖνος τὸν ἀέρα περιλαμψάσης ἐφώρμησαν καὶ αὖθις τῶν νηῶν ἐκβάντες οἱ βάρβαροι τῷ τείχει, διασπαρέντες καὶ κατά τινας τόπους ταῖς φάλαγξιν ἑαυτοὺς διελόμενοι, κατὰ δὲ τὰς διεξόδους τῶν πυλῶν μᾶλλον συρρεύσαντες ὅλην ἐκίνουν τὴν καθ' ἡμῶν αὐτῶν πανοπλίαν. 29.3 οἱ μὲν γὰρ αὐτῶν τοῖς τόξοις, ἕτεροι δὲ χειροποιήτῳ βροντῇ τῶν λίθων ἐκέχρηντο· ἄλλοι τοῖς πετροβόλοις ἐγκαθήμενοι τὰς ὑπερμεγέθεις ἐκείνας τῶν πετρῶν χαλάζας μετεωρίζοντες ἔπεμπον. 29.4 καὶ πολυειδής τις ἦν ὁ καθ' ἡμῶν ἀπειλούμενος φόνος, καὶ πανταχόθεν προσπίπτων φοβερὰν ἐποίει τὴν πεῖραν τοῖς προστυγχάνουσι. 29.5 καὶ γὰρ κατὰ μόνης τῆς ῥηθείσης πύλης ἑπτὰ παρέστησαν πετροβόλους πάντοθεν περιπεφραγμένους, οὓς διερχόμενοι τὴν Θάσον πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην χρείαν προπαρεσκεύασαν. 29.6 καὶ μὴν ξυλοσυνθέτους τινὰς κλίμακας ἀντικρὺ τούτων τῷ τείχει προσπελάσαντες ἀνιέναι δι' αὐτῶν ἐπειρῶντο, τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν πετροβόλων ἀφιεμένοις λίθοις τὸ ἀσφαλὲς ἑαυτοῖς συντηρούμενοι· 29.7 οὐ γὰρ εἴων ἐνδελεχῶς ἐνεργοῦντες ἐκεῖνοι προκύπτειν ἀβλαβῶς τοῦ μετεώρου τείχους τινά. 29.8 καὶ δὴ εἰς ἔργον αὐτοῖς ἔφθασεν ἂν τὰ βεβουλευμένα, ἤδη τὴν κλίμακα ταῖς ἐπάλξεσι τοῦ προτειχίσματος ἀνελκύσασιν, εἰ μὴ θεία τις δύναμις ἄνδρας τινὰς τολμηροὺς καταπηδῆσαι τῷ τόπῳ ἐνίσχυσεν, οἳ καὶ δόρασι τρώσαντες τοὺς βαρβάρους πρὸς τοὐπίσω σὺν τῇ κλίμακι τούτους ἐναπεκρήμνισαν. 29.9 οὕτω δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐπίνοιαν ταύτην εἰς μηδὲν προβᾶσαν ἑωρακότων φυγῇ τε χρησαμένων ὡς καὶ τὴν κλίμακα καταλιπεῖν, εἰς τοσοῦτον ἡμεῖς ἤλθομεν θάρσος ὡς καὶ γελᾶν κατ' αὐτῶν, καὶ προθυμότερον τῆς ἄλλης ἡμέρας τοῖς τε βέλεσι χρῆσθαι καὶ τοῖς ἀπὸ τῶν πετροβόλων λίθοις, καὶ μηκέτι συγχωρεῖν αὐτοῖς κἂν πρὸς βραχὺ προσιέναι τῷ τείχει, κἂν ὅτι πρὸς μανικώτερον ἐξαφθέντες καὶ αὐτοὶ δίκην συῶν ἀγρίων τοὺς ὀδόντας παρέθηγον, καὶ εἴ πως ἐνῆν, ζῶντας ἐθέλειν ἡμᾶς ἐν αὐτοῖς διαρρήξασθαι. 29.10 οἷον γὰρ ἦν αὐτῶν φοβερὸν ἀκούειν καθ' ἡμῶν μεμηνότων! πῶς τῆς ὑπερβαλλούσης ὀργῆς ἐποιοῦντο τὴν ἔνδειξιν, ὁπότε βύθιον ἔβρυχον καὶ τοῖς ἐκ τοῦ στόματος πεμπομένοις ἀφροῖς τὸ δαιμονιῶδες αὐτῶν παρεδείκνυτο, 29.11 οὐδὲ τροφῆς μεταλαβεῖν διὰ πάσης ἐκείνης τῆς ἡμέρας βουλόμενοι, ἀλλ' ἀκορέστως ἔχειν τοῦ πολέμου ἐν οὕτω λαβροτάτῳ καύματι, καὶ μηδ' ὅτι σώματα περίκεινται καὶ καμάτῳ δαμαζόμενα καὶ τῷ ὑπὲρ κεφαλῆς ἡλίῳ καυσούμενα παντελῶς αἰσθανόμενοι, τοῦτο δὲ μόνον διὰ φροντίδος ἔχοντες, ἢ πορθῆσαι τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὸν καθ' ἡμῶν ἀναπλῆσαι θυμόν, ἢ μὴ προβαίνοντος τούτου καὶ τῆς ζωῆς ἀπειπεῖν καὶ ἑαυτοὺς τοῖς ὅπλοις διαχειρίσασθαι. 29.12 θυμὸς γὰρ ἅπαξ βαρβαρικὸς ἐξαφθεὶς οὐ πρότερον τῆς κινούσης αὐτὸν ἀλογίστου ὁρμῆς ἀπολήξειε, μέχρις ἂν ἢ τοῦ οἰκείου αἵματος ἢ τοῦ ἐξ ἐναντίας ἀντιπράττοντος ἴδῃ τὴν ἔκχυσιν. 30.1 Ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ τὸ προσπελάζειν αὐτοὺς τῷ τείχει οὐκ ἀκίνδυνον ἦν, πάντα τοῖς βέλεσι καὶ τοῖς πετροβόλοις ἐπέτρεπον. 30.2 στιχηδὸν γὰρ ἑαυτοὺς κατατάξαντες, καὶ τοσοῦτον ἀποστάντες ὅσον τὰς βολὰς αὐτῶν μήπω τῆς ὁρμῆς ὑπενδιδούσης τῇ πόλει προσπίπτειν, ταῖς ἀσπίσι τε φραξάμενοι καὶ ὅλοι τῆς ἀγωνίας γενόμενοι, ἵσταντο καθάπερ τινὲς ἀνδριάντες ἐκ χαλκοῦ ἤ τινος ἄλλης στερροτέρας ὕλης συμπεπηγότα ἔχοντες σώματα, μυρίῳ τινὶ καὶ ἀνεκδιηγήτῳ