838 HISTORY OF GKEECE. had still farther imposed upon the alarmed Syracusans. 1 Now, both the self-confidence and the religious impression had changed sides. Exhausted by their fruitless efforts, the Athenians fell back a short space to repose, when Gylippus tried to surround them by sending a detachment to block up the narrow road in their rear. This, however, they prevented, effecting their retreat into the open plain, where they passed the night, and on the ensuing day attempted once more the hopeless march over the Akrocan cliff. But they were not allowed even to advance so far as the pass and the barricade. They were so assailed and harassed by the cav- alry and darters, in flank arid rear, that, in spite of heroic effort and endurance, they could not accomplish a progress of so much as one single mile. Extenuated by fatigue, half-starved, and with numbers of wounded men, they were compelled to spend a third miserable night in the same fatal plain. As soon as the Syracusans had retired for the night to their camp, Nikias and Demosthenes took counsel. They saw plainly that the route which they had originally projected, over the Akracan cliff into the Sikel regions of the interior and from thence to Katana, had become impracticable, and that their unhappy troops would be still less in condition to force it on the morrow than they had been on the day preceding. Accordingly, they resolved to make off during the night, leaving numerous fires burning to mislead the enemy ; but completely to alter the di- rection, and to turn down towards the southern coast on which lay Kamarina and Gela. Their guides informed them that if they could cross the river Kakyparis, which fell into the sea south of Syracuse, on the southeastern coast of Sicily, or a river still farther on, called the Erineus, they might march up the right bank of either into the regions of the interior. Accordingly, they broke up in the night, amidst confusion and alai-rri ; in spite of which, the front division of the army under Nikias got into full march, and made considerable advance. By daybreak this division reached the southeastern coast of the island not far south of Syracuse, and fell into the track of the Helorine road, which they pursued until they arrived at the Kakyparis. Even here,
1 Thaoj-il. vi, 70.
