The Xanthians were now subjected to close siege. Brutus attacked them now with battering-rams against the walls, now by assaults upon the gates with foot-soldiers, whom he kept changing continually. The defenders, although fatigued by being always pitted against fresh soldiers, and all wounded, nevertheless held out as long as their parapets remained. When these were battered down and the towers broken through, Brutus, foreseeing what would happen, ordered those who were attacking the gates to withdraw. The Xanthians, thinking that the enemy's works were deserted and unguarded, darted out by night to set fire to the machines. Suddenly the Romans attacked them as ordered, and they again fled to the gates, the guards of which closed them before they entered, fearing lest the enemy should rush in with them -- in consequence of which there was around the gates a great slaughter of the Xanthians who were shut out.
Soon afterwards the remainder made a fresh sally about midday, and as the besiegers withdrew again, they burned all the machines. As the gates were left open for them on account of the former calamity, about 2000 Romans broke in with them. While others were pushing in at the entrance the portcullis suddenly fell upon them, either by the design of the Xanthians or the accidental breaking of the ropes, so that some of the Romans who were forcing their way in were crushed and the others found their retreat cut off, as they could not raise the portcullis without the hoisting apparatus. Pelted by missiles hurled upon them by the Xanthians from the roofs in the narrow streets, they forced their way with difficulty till they came to the forum, which was near by, and there they overcame the forces which were at close quarters with them, but, being under a heavy volley of arrows and having themselves neither bows nor javelins, they took refuge in the temple of Sarpedon to avoid being surrounded. The Romans who were outside the walls were excited and anxious for those inside, and tried every means [to effect an entrance], Brutus meantime darting hither and thither, but they were not able to break the portcullis, which was protected with iron, nor could they procure ladders or towers since their own had been burned. Nevertheless some of them made extemporized ladders, and others pushed trunks of trees against the walls to serve in place of ladders. Still others fastened iron hooks to ropes and hurled them up to the walls, and whenever one of them caught fast they climbed up.
The Œnandians, who were neighbors of the Xanthians, and who had formed an alliance with Brutus by reason of their enmity to the latter, clambered up by way of a precipice. When the Romans saw them they toiled up after them. Many fell off, but some scaled the wall and opened a small gate, defended with a very dense palisade, and admitted the most daring of the assailants, who swung themselves over the palings. Being now more numerous they began to chop down the portcullis, which was not protected with iron on the inside, while others outside chopped in conjunction with them, and coöperated to the same end. While the Xanthians, with loud cries, were rushing upon the Romans who were at the temple of Sarpedon, the Romans within and without who were demolishing the portcullis, fearful for their comrades, struggled with frantic zeal. Finally they broke it down and rushed through in crowds about sunset, with a loud shout intended as a signal to those in the temple.
When the city was taken the Xanthians ran to their houses and killed those
dearest to them, all of whom willingly offered themselves to the slaughter.
Upon hearing cries of lamentation, Brutus thought that plundering was going
on, and he gave orders to the army to stop it; but when he knew what the
facts were he commiserated the freedom-loving spirit of the citizens, and
sent messengers to offer them terms. They hurled missiles at the messengers,
and, after destroying their own families, placed the bodies on funeral
piles, which they had previously erected in their houses, set fire to them,
and slew themselves on the same. Brutus saved such of the temples as he
could, but he captured only the slaves of the Xanthians; and of the citizens
a few free women and hardly 150 men. Thus the Xanthians perished the third
time by their own hands on account of their love of liberty; for when the
city was besieged by Harpagus, the Mede, the general of Cyrus the Great,
they destroyed themselves in like manner rather than be enslaved, and the
city, shut up by Harpagus,
Brutus went from Xanthus down to Patara, a city which was something like a seaport of the Xanthians. He surrounded it with his army and ordered the inhabitants to obey him in everything, under penalty of meeting the fate of the Xanthians. Certain Xanthians were brought to them who lamented their own misfortunes and advised them to adopt wiser counsels. As the inhabitants of Patara made no sort of answer to the Xanthians, Brutus gave them the remainder of the day to consider the matter, and went away. The next morning he moved his troops forward. The Patarans cried out from the walls that they would obey all his commands, and opened their gates. He came in, but he neither killed nor banished anybody; but he ordered them to deliver to him whatever gold and silver the city possessed, and each citizen to bring in his private holdings under the same penalties and rewards to informers as those proclaimed by Cassius at Rhodes. They obeyed his order. One slave testified that his master had concealed his gold, and showed it to a centurion who was sent to find it. All the parties were brought before the tribunal. The master remained silent, but his mother, who had followed in order to save her son, cried out that she had concealed the gold. The slave, although not interrogated, disputed her, saying that she lied and that his master had concealed it. Brutus approved of the young man's silence and sympathized with his mother's grief. He allowed them both to depart unharmed and to take their gold with them, and he crucified the slave for superserviceable zeal in accusing his superiors.
At the same time Lentulus, who had been sent to Andriace, the seaport of the Myreans, broke the chain which closed the harbor and ascended to Myra. As the inhabitants obeyed his commands, he collected money in the same way as at Patara and returned to Brutus. The confederation of Lycia sent ambassadors to Brutus promising to form a military league with him and to contribute what money they could. He imposed taxes on them and he restored the free Xanthians to their city. He ordered the Lycian fleet, together with his own ships, to set sail for Abydus, where he would rendezvous with his land forces and await Cassius, who was coming from Ionia, so that they might cross over to Sestus together. When Murcus, who was at Peloponnesus lying in wait for Cleopatra, learned that her fleet had been damaged by a storm on the Libyan coast, and saw the wreckage borne by the waves as far as Laconia, and knew that she had returned home with difficulty and in ill health, he sailed for Brundusium in order that he might not be idle with so great a fleet. He came to anchor at the island lying opposite the harbor, and prevented the remainder of the enemy's army and supplies from passing over to Macedonia. Antony fought him with the few war-ships that he had, and with towers mounted on floats, whenever he sent out detachments of his army on transports and was favored by a strong wind from the land, in order that they might not be captured by Murcus. As he fared badly he called for help from Octavius, who was contending on the water with Sextus Pompeius along the coast of Sicily for possession of that island.