Sicily, then, lies towards Southern Italy very much in
the same relative position as the
Peloponnese does to the rest
of
Greece. The only difference is that the one is an island,
the other a peninsula; and consequently in the former case
there is no communication except by sea, in the latter there is
a land communication also. The shape of
Sicily is a triangle,
of which the several angles are represented by promontories:
that to the south jutting out into the Sicilian Sea is called
Pachynus; that which looks to the north forms the western
extremity of the Straits of
Messene and is about twelve
stades from
Italy, its name is Pelorus; while the third
projects in the direction of
Libya itself, and is conveniently
situated opposite the promontories which cover
Carthage, at a
distance of about a thousand stades: it looks somewhat south
of due west, dividing the Libyan from the Sardinian Sea, and
is called
Lilybaeum. On this last there is a city of the same
name. It was this city that the Romans were now besieging.
It was exceedingly strongly fortified: for besides its walls there
was a deep ditch running all round it, and on the side of the
sea it was protected by lagoons, to steer through which into
the harbour was a task requiring much skill and practice.
The Romans made two camps, one on each side of the
town, and connected them with a ditch,
stockade, and wall. Having done this, they
began the assault by advancing their siege-works
in the direction of the tower nearest the sea, which commands
a view of the Libyan main. They did this gradually, always
adding something to what they had already constructed; and
thus bit by bit pushed their works forward and extended them
laterally, till at last they had brought down not only this tower,
but the six next to it also; and at the same time began battering all the others with battering-rams. The siege was carried
on with vigour and terrific energy: every day some of the
towers were shaken and others reduced to ruins; every
day too the siege-works advanced farther and farther, and
more and more towards the heart of the city. And though
there were in the town, besides the ordinary inhabitants, as
many as ten thousand hired soldiers, the consternation and
despondency became overwhelming. Yet their commander
Himilco omitted no measure within his power. As fast
as the enemy demolished a fortification he threw up a new
one; he also countermined them, and reduced the assailants
to straits of no ordinary difficulty. Moreover, he made
daily sallies, attempted to carry or throw fire into the siegeworks, and with this end in view fought many desperate
engagements by night as well as by day: so determined was
the fighting in these struggles, that sometimes the number of
the dead was greater than it ordinarily is in a pitched battle.
