on which he put the greatest trust, there were about four thousand five hundred mercenaries: he had also six hundred men as guards of his body. Now the cities easily maintained the rest of his army, excepting the mercenaries; for one of the cities enumerated before sent out half their men to their army, and retained the other half at home, in order to get provisions for them; insomuch that the one part went to the war, and the other part to their work and so those that sent out their corn were paid for it by those that were in arms, by that security which they enjoyed from them.

7. And when he had considered that Roman power became invincible, chiefly by their readiness in obeying orders, and the constant exercise of their arms, he despaired of teaching these his men the use of their arms, which was to be obtained by experience; but observing that their readiness in obeying orders was owing to the multitude of their officers, he made his partitions in his army more after the Roman manner, and appointed a great many subalterns. He also distributed the soldiers into various classes, whom he put under captains of tens, and captains of hundreds, and then under captains of thousands; and besides these he had commanders of larger bodies of men. He also taught them to give the signals one to another, and to call and recall the soldiers by the trumpets, how to expand the wings of an army, and make them wheel about; and when one wing hath had success, to turn again and assist those that were hard set, and to join in the defence of what had most suffered. He also continually instructed them in what concerned the courage of the soul and the hardiness of the body; and above all, he exercised them for war, by declaring to them distinctly the good order of the Romans, and that they were to fight with men who, both by the strength of their bodies and courage of their souls, had conquered in a manner the whole habitable earth. He told them that he should make trial of the good order they would observe in war, even before it came to any battle, in case they would abstain from the crimes they used to indulge themselves in, such as theft, and robbery, and rapine, and from defrauding their own countrymen, and never to esteem the harm done to those that were so near of kin to them to be any advantage to themselves; for that wars are then managed the best when the warriors preserve a good conscience; but that such as are ill men in private life, will not only have those for enemies which attack them, but God himself also for their antagonist.

8. And thus did he continue to admonish them. Now he chose for the war such an army as was sufficient, i. e. sixty thousand footmen, and two hundred and fifty horsemen ;* and besides these,

CHAPTER XXI.

STRATA GEMS AGAINST THE PLOTS JOHN LAID AGAINST HIM, AND RECOVERS CERTAIN CITIES WHICH HAD REVOLTED FROM HIM.

§ 1. Now, as Josephus was thus engaged in the administration of the affairs of Galilee, there arose a treacherous person, a man of Gischala, the son of Levi, whose name was John. His character was that of a very cunning, and very knavish person, beyond the ordinary rate of the other men of eminence there; and for wicked practices he had not his fellow anywhere. Poor he was at first, and for a long time his wants were a hinderance to him in his wicked designs. He was a ready liar, and yet very sharp in gaining credit to his fictions: he thought it a point of virtue to delude people, and would delude even such as were the dearest to him. He was a hypocritical pretender to humanity, but, when he had hopes of gain, he spared not the shedding of blood: his desires were ever carried to great things, and he encouraged his hopes from those mean wicked tricks which he was the author of. He had a peculiar knack at thieving; but in some time he got certain companions in his impudent practices: at first they were but few, but as he proceeded on in his evil course, they became still more and more numerous. He took care that none of his partners should be easily caught in their rogueries, but chose such out of the rest as had the strongest constitutions of body, and the greatest courage of soul, together with great skill in martial affairs; so he got together a band of four hundred men, who came principally out of the country of Tyre, and were vagabonds who had run away from its villages; and by the means of these he laid waste all Galilee, and irritated a considerable number, who were in great expectation of a war then suddenly to arise among them.

2. However, John's want of money had hitherto restrained him in his ambition after command, and in his attempts to advance himself; but when he saw that Josephus was highly pleased with the activity of his temper, he persuaded him, in the first place, to intrust him with the repairing of the walls of his native city [Gischala]; in which work he got a great deal of money from the rich citizens. He after that contrived a very shrewd trick, and pretending that the Jews who dwelt in Syria were obliged to make use of oil that was made by others than those of their own nation, he desired leave of Josephus to send oil to their borders; so he bought the value of four Attic drachmæ, and sold every four amphora with such Tyrian money as was of

those that had before threatened him, that they threw away their arms and ran away.

6. But as for John, his envy grew greater [upon this escape of Josephus], and he framed a new plot against him; he pretended to be sick, and by a letter desired that Josephus would give him leave to use the hot baths that were at Tiberias, for the recovery of his health. Hereupon Josephus, who hitherto suspected nothing of John's plots against him, wrote to the governors of the city, that they would provide a lodging and necessaries for John; which favours, when he had made use of, in two days' time he did what he came about; some he corrupted with delusive frauds, and others with money, and so persuaded them to revolt from Josephus. This Silas, who was appointed guardian of the city by Josephus, wrote to him immediately, and informed him of the plot against him; which epistle, when Josephus had received, he marched with great diligence all night, and came early in the morning to Tiberias; at which time the rest of the multitude met him. But John, who suspected that his coming was not for his advantage, sent however one of his friends, and pretended that he was sick, and that being confined to his bed he could not come to pay him his respects. But as soon as Josephus had got the people of Tiberias together in the stadium, and tried to discourse with them about the letters that he had received, John privately sent some armed men, and gave them orders to slay him. But when the people saw that the armed men were about to draw their swords, they cried out; at which cry Josephus turned himself about, and when he saw that the swords were just at his throat, he marched away in great haste to the seashore, and left off that speech which he was going to make to the people, upon an elevation of six cubits high. He then seized on a ship which lay in the haven, and leaped into it, with two of his guards, and fled away into the midst of the lake.

7. But now the soldiers he had with him took up their arms immediately, and marched against the plotters, but Josephus was afraid lest a civil war should be raised by the envy of a few men, and bring the city to ruin; so he sent some of his party to tell them that they should do no more than provide for their own safety; that they should not kill any body, nor accuse any for the occasion they had afforded [of a disorder]. Accordingly these men obeyed his orders, and were quiet; but the people of the neighbouring country, when they were informed of this plot, and of the plotter, got together in great multitudes to oppose John. But he prevented their attempt, and fled away to Gischala, his native city, while the Galileans came running out of their several cities to Josephus ; and as they were now become many ten thousands of armed men, they cried out, that they were come against John, the common plotter against their interest, and would at the same time burn him, and that city which had received him. Hereupon Josephus told them that he took their good will to him kindly, but still he restrained their fury, and intended to subdue his enemies by prudent conduct, rather than by slaying them; so he excepted those of every city which had joined in this revolt with John, by name, who had readily been shown him by those that came from every city, and caused public proclamation to be made, that he would seize upon the effects of those that did not forsake John within five days' time, and would burn both their houses and their

families with fire. Whereupon three thousand o John's party left him immediately, who came to Josephus, and threw their arms down at his feet. John then betook himself, together with his two thousand Syrian runagates, from open attempts, to more secret ways of treachery. Accordingly he privately sent messengers to Jerusalem, to accuse Josephus, as having too great power, and to let them know that he would soon come as a tyrant to their metropolis, unless they prevented him. This accusation the people were aware of beforebard, but had no regard to it. However, some of the grandees, out of envy, and some of the rulers alse, sent money to John privately, that he might be able to get together mercenary soldiers, in order to fight Josephus; they also made a decree of themselves, and this for recalling him from his government, yet did they not think that decree sufficient; so they sent withal two thousand five hundred armed meu, and four persons of the highest rank amongst them; Joazar the son of Nomicus, and Ananias the son of Sadduk; as also Simon and Judas, the sons of Jonathan (all very able men in speaking), that these persons might withdraw the good-will of the people from Josephus. These had it in charge, that if he would voluntarily come away, they should permit him to [come and] give an account of his conduct; but if he obstinately insisted upon continuing in his government, they should treat him as an enemy. Now, Josephus's friends had sent him word that an army was coming against him, but they gave him no notice beforehand what the reason of their coming was, that being only known among some secret councils of his enemies and by this means it was that four cities revolted from him immediately, Sepphoris, and Gamala, and Gischala and Tiberias. Yet did he recover these cities without war; and when he had routed those four commanders by stratagems, and had taken the most potent of their warriors, he sent them to Jerusalem; and the people [of Galilee] had great indignation at them, and were in a zealous disposition to slay, not only these forces, but those that sent them also, had not these forces prevented it by running away.

8. Now John was detained afterward within the walls of Gischala, by the fear he was in of Josephus; but within a few days Tiberias revolted again, and the people within it invited king Agrippa [to return to the exercise of his authority there]; and when he did not come at the time appointed, and when a few Roman horsemen appeared that day, they expelled Josephus out of the city. Now, this revolt of theirs was presently known at Taricheæ ; and as Josephus had sent out all the soldiers that were with him to gather corn, he knew not how either to march out alone against the revolters, or to stay where he was, because he was afraid the king's soldiers might prevent him if he tarried, and might get into the city; for he did not intend to do any thing on the next day, because it was the Sabbath-day, and would hinder his proceeding. So he contrived to circumvent the revolters by a stratagem; and in the first place, he ordered the gates of Tariches to be shut, that nobody might go out and inform [those of Tiberias], for whom it was intended, what stratagem he was about; he then got together all the ships that were upon the lake, which were found to be two hundred and thirty, and in each of them he put no more than four ma riners. So he sailed to Tiberias with haste, and kept at such a distance from the city, that it was

not easy for the people to see the vessels, and ordered that the empty vessels should float up and down there, while himself, who had but seven of his guards with him, and those unarmed also, went so near as to be seen; but when his adversaries, who were still reproaching him, saw him from the walls, they were so astonished that they supposed all the ships were full of armed men, and threw down their arms, and by signals of intercession they besought him to spare the city.

9. Upon this, Josephus threatened them terribly, and reproached them, that when they were the first that took up arms against the Romans, they should spend their forces beforehand in civil dissensions, and do what their enemies desired above all things; and that besides, they should endeavour so hastily to seize upon him, who took care of their safety, and had not been ashamed to shut the gates of their city against him that built their walls; that, however, he would admit of any intercessors from them that might make some excuse for them, and with whom he would make such agreements as might be for the city's security. Hereupon ten of the most potent men of Tiberias came down to him presently, and when he had taken them into one of his vessels, he ordered them to be carried a great way off from the city. He then commanded that fifty others of their senate, such as were men of the greatest eminence, should come to him, that they also might give him some security on their behalf. After which, under one new pretence or another, he called forth others, one after another, to make the league between them. He then gave order to the masters of those vessels which he had thus filled, to sail away immediately for Taricheæ, and to confine those men in the prison there; till at length he took all their senate, consisting of six hundred persons, and about two thousand of the populace, and carried them away to Tariches.

10. And when the rest of the people cried out, that it was one Clitus that was the chief author of this revolt, they desired him to spend his anger upon him [only]; but Josephus, whose intention it was to slay nobody, commanded one Levius, belonging to his guards, to go out of the vessel, in order to cut off both Clitus's hands; yet was Levius afraid to go out by himself alone, to such a large body of enemies, and refused to go. Now Clitus saw that Josephus was in a great passion in the ship, and ready to leap out of it, in order to execute the punishment himself; he begged therefore from the shore that he would leave him one of his hands, which Josephus agreed to upon condition that he would himself cut off the other hand; accordingly he drew his sword, and with his right hand cut off his left, so great was the fear he was in of Josephus himself. And thus he took the people of Tiberias prisoners, and recovered the city again with empty ships* and seven of his guard. Moreover, a few days afterward he retook Gischala, which had revolted with the people of Sepphoris,

I cannot but think this stratagem of Josephus, which is related both here and in his Life, sect. 32, 33, to be one of the finest that ever was invented and executed by any warrior whatsoever.

and gave his soldiers leave to plunder it; yet did he get all the plunder together, and restored it to the inhabitants; and the like he did to the inhabitants of Sepphoris and Tiberias: for when he had subdued those cities, he had a mind, by letting them be plundered, to give them some good instruction, while at the same time he regained their goodwill by restoring them their money again.

CHAPTER XXII.

THE JEWS MAKE ALL READY FOR THE WAR; AND S:MON, THE SON OF GIORAS, FALLS TO PLUNDERING. § 1. AND thus were the disturbances of Galilee quieted, when, upon their ceasing to prosecute their civil dissensions, they betook themselves to make preparations for the war with the Romans. Now in Jerusalem the high-priest Ananus, and as many of the men of power as were not in the interest of the Romans, both repaired the walls, and made a great many warlike instruments, insomuch that, in all parts of the city, darts and all sorts of armour were upon the anvil. Although the multitude of the young men were engaged in exercises, without any regularity, and all places were full of tumultuous doing: yet the moderate sort were exceedingly sad; and a great many there were who, out of the prospect they had of the calamities that were coming upon them made great lamentations. There were also such omens observed as were understood to be forerunners of evils, by such as loved peace, but were by those that kindled the war interpreted so as to suit their own inclinations; and the very state of the city, even before the Romans came against it, was that of a place doomed to destruction. However, Ananus's concern was this, to lay aside, for a while, the preparations for the war, and to persuade the seditious to consult their own interest, and to restrain the madness of those that had the name of zealots: but their violence was too hard for him; and what end he came to we shall relate hereafter.

2. But as for the Acrabbene toparchy, Simon, the son of Gioras, got a great number of those that were fond of innovations together, and betook himself to ravage the country; nor did he only harass the rich meu's houses, but tormented their bodies, and appeared openly and beforehand to affect tyrauny in his government. And when an army was sent against him by Ananus, and the other rulers, he and his band retired to the robbers that were at Masada, and staid there, and plundered the country of Idumea with them, till both Ananus and his other adversaries were slain; and until the rulers of that country were so afflicted with the multitude of those that were slain, and with the continual ra vage of what they had, that they raised an army, and put garrisons into the villages, to secure them from these insults. And in this state were the affairs of Judea at that time.

CHAPTER I.

VESPASIAN IS SENT INTO SYRIA BY NERO TO MAKE WAR WITH THE JEWS.

§ 1. WHEN Nero was informed of the Romans' ill success in Judea, a concealed consternation and terror, as is usual in such cases, fell upon him; although he openly looked very big, and was very angry, and said, that what had happened was rather owing to the negligence of the commander than to any valour of the enemy: and as he thought it fit for him who bare the burden of the whole empire, to despise such misfortunes, he now pretended so to do, and to have a soul superior to all such sad accidents whatsoever. Yet did the disturbance that was in his soul plainly appear by the solicitude he was in [how to recover his affairs again].

2. And as he was deliberating to whom he should commit the care of the east, now it was in so great a commotion, and who might be best able to punish the Jews for their rebellion, and might prevent the same distemper from seizing upon the neighbouring nations also, he found no one but Vespasian equal to the task, and able to undergo the great burden of so mighty a war, seeing he was growing an old man already in the camp, and from his youth had been exercised in warlike exploits: he was also a man that had long ago pacified the west, and made it subject to the Romans, when it had been put into disorder by the Germans: he had also recovered to them Britain by his arms, which had been little known before; whereby he procured to his father Claudius to have a triumph bestowed on him without any sweat or labour of his own.

3. So Nero esteemed these circumstances as fa

vourable omens, and saw that Vespasian's age gave him sure experience, and great skill, and that he had his sons as hostages for his fidelity to himself, and that the flourishing age they were in would make them fit instruments under their father's prudence. Perhaps also there was some interposition of Providence, which was paving the way for Vespasian's being himself emperor aftewards. Upon the whole, he sent this man to take upon him the command of the armies that were in Syria; but this not without great encomiums and flattering compellations, such as necessity required, and such as might mollify him into complaisance. So Vespasian sent his son Titus from Achaia, where he had been with Nero, to Alexandria, to bring back with him from thence the fifth and tenth legions,

• Take the confirmation of this in the words of Suetonius, here produced by Dr. Hudson :---"In the reign of Claudius," says he, " Vespa

§ 1. Now the Jews, after they had beaten Cestius, were so much elevated with their unexpected success, that they could not govern their zeal, but, like people blown up into a flame by their good fortune, carried the war to remoter places. Accordingly they presently got together a great multitude of all their most hardy soldiers, and marched away for Ascalon. This is an ancient city that is distant from Jerusalem five hundred and twenty furlongs, and was always an enemy to the Jews; on which account they determined to make their first effort against it, and to make their approaches to it as near as possible. This excursion was led on by three men, who were the chief of them all, both for strength and sagacity: Niger, called the Peraite, Silas of Babylon, and besides them, John the Essene. Now Ascalon was strongly walled about, but had almost no assistance to be relied on [near them], for the garrison consisted of one cohort of footmen, and one troop of horsemen, whose captain was Antonius.

2. These Jews, therefore, out of their anger, marched faster than ordinary, and, as if they had come but a little way, approached very near the city, and were come even to it; but Antonius, who was not unapprised of the attack they were going to make upon the city, drew out his horsemen beforehand, and being neither daunted at the multitude nor at the courage of the enemy, received their first attacks with great bravery; and when they crowded to the very walls, he beat them off. Now the Jews were unskilful in war, but were to fight with those who were skilful therein; they were footmen to fight with horsemen; they were in disorder, to fight with those that were united together; they were poorly armed, to fight those that were completely so; they were to fight more by their rage than by sober counsel, and were exposed to soldiers that were exactly obedient, and did every thing they were bidden upon the least intimation. So they were easily beaten; for as soon as ever their first ranks were once in disorder,

Gerinany. Thence he removed into Britain, and fought thirty battles with the enemy." In Vesp. sect. 4. We may here also note from Josephus, that Claudius the emperor, who triumphed for the conquest of Britain, was enabled so to do by Vespasian's conduct and bravery, and that he is here styled "the Father of Vespasian."

those of them that came behind such as crowded to the wall, fell upon their own party's weapons, and became one another's enemies; and this so