History of The Peloponnesian War - Book VII   

told with the greater effect through its being a steep one, and unable
to force the passage, retreated again and rested. Meanwhile occurred
some claps of thunder and rain, as often happens towards autumn, which
still further disheartened the Athenians, who thought all these things
to be omens of their approaching ruin. While they were resting,
Gylippus and the Syracusans sent a part of their army to throw up
works in their rear on the way by which they had advanced; however,
the Athenians immediately sent some of their men and prevented them;
after which they retreated more towards the plain and halted for the
night. When they advanced the next day the Syracusans surrounded and
attacked them on every side, and disabled many of them, falling back
if the Athenians advanced and coming on if they retired, and in
particular assaulting their rear, in the hope of routing them in
detail, and thus striking a panic into the whole army. For a long
while the Athenians persevered in this fashion, but after advancing
for four or five furlongs halted to rest in the plain, the
Syracusans also withdrawing to their own camp.
During the night Nicias and Demosthenes, seeing the wretched
condition of their troops, now in want of every kind of necessary, and
numbers of them disabled in the numerous attacks of the enemy,
determined to light as many fires as possible, and to lead off the
army, no longer by the same route as they had intended, but towards
the sea in the opposite direction to that guarded by the Syracusans.
The whole of this route was leading the army not to Catana but to
the other side of Sicily, towards Camarina, Gela, and the other
Hellenic and barbarian towns in that quarter. They accordingly lit a
number of fires and set out by night. Now all armies, and the greatest
most of all, are liable to fears and alarms, especially when they
are marching by night through an enemy's country and with the enemy
near; and the Athenians falling into one of these panics, the
leading division, that of Nicias, kept together and got on a good
way in front, while that of Demosthenes, comprising rather more than
half the army, got separated and marched on in some disorder. By
morning, however, they reached the sea, and getting into the
Helorine road, pushed on in order to reach the river Cacyparis, and to
follow the stream up through the interior, where they hoped to be
met by the Sicels whom they had sent for. Arrived at the river, they
found there also a Syracusan party engaged in barring the passage of
the ford with a wall and a palisade, and forcing this guard, crossed
the river and went on to another called the Erineus, according to
the advice of their guides.
Meanwhile, when day came and the Syracusans and allies found that
the Athenians were gone, most of them accused Gylippus of having let
them escape on purpose, and hastily pursuing by the road which they
had no difficulty in finding that they had taken, overtook them
about dinner-time. They first came up with the troops under
Demosthenes, who were behind and marching somewhat slowly and in
disorder, owing to the night panic above referred to, and at once
attacked and engaged them, the Syracusan horse surrounding them with
more ease now that they were separated from the rest and hemming
them in on one spot. The division of Nicias was five or six miles on
in front, as he led them more rapidly, thinking that under the
circumstances their safety lay not in staying and fighting, unless
obliged, but in retreating as fast as possible, and only fighting when
forced to do so. On the other hand, Demosthenes was, generally
speaking, harassed more incessantly, as his post in the rear left
him the first exposed to the attacks of the enemy; and now, finding
that the Syracusans were in pursuit, he omitted to push on, in order
to form his men for battle, and so lingered until he was surrounded by
his pursuers and himself and the Athenians with him placed in the most
distressing position, being huddled into an enclosure with a wall
all round it, a road on this side and on that, and olive-trees in
great number, where missiles were showered in upon them from every
quarter. This mode of attack the Syracusans had with good reason