History of the Peloponnesian War

But anon after, the Athenians thought not fit by longer dallying to overcome themselves with their own labour, but rather to fight as soon as they could, and thereupon at once with a joint shout charged the enemy, and the fight began.

The Syracusians received [and resisted] their charge, and fighting, as they had before determined, with their galleys head to head with those of the Athenians, and provided with beaks for the purpose, brake the galleys of the Athenians very much between the heads of the galleys and the oars. The Athenians were also annoyed much by the darters from the decks, but much more by those Syracusians who, going about in small boats, passed under the rows of the oars of the enemy's galleys, and coming close to their sides, threw their darts at the mariners from thence.

The Syracusians, having fought in this manner with the utmost of their strength, in the end gat the victory; and the Athenians, between the [two] ships, escaped into their harbour.

The Syracusian galleys chased them as far as to those ships; but the dolphins hanging from the masts over the entrance of the harbour forbade them to follow any further.

Yet there were two galleys, which upon a jollity after victory approached them, but both were lost, of which one with her men and all was taken.

The Syracusians, after they had sunk seven galleys of the Athenians and torn many more, and of the men had taken some alive and killed others, retired, and for both the battles erected trophies, and had already an assured hope of being far superior by sea, and also made account to subdue the army by land. And they prepared to assault them again in both kinds.