the town or found all his resources exhausted.  His artillery, his foot, and his elephants were all employed in turn or together; he allowed the garrison no rest.  Not content with directing the operations, he himself took part in the supreme struggle, exposing his own person freely to the enemy’s weapons, and losing many of his attendants.  After the contest had lasted three continuous days from morn to night, fortune at last favored him.  One of the inner mounds, raised by the besieged behind their wall, suddenly gave way, involving its defenders in its fall, and at the same time filling up the entire space between the wall and the mound raised outside by the Persians.  A way into the town was thus laid open, and the besiegers instantly occupied it.  It was in vain that the flower of the garrison threw itself across the path of the entering columns—­nothing could withstand the ardor of the Persian troops.  In a little time all resistance was at an end; those who could quitted the city and fled—­the remainder, whatever their sex, age, or calling, whether armed or unarmed, were slaughtered like sheep by the conquerors.

Thus fell Amida after a siege of seventy-three days.  Sapor, who on other occasions showed himself not deficient in clemency, was exasperated by the prolonged resistance and the losses which he had sustained in the course of it.  Thirty thousand of his best soldiers had fallen; the son of his chief ally had perished; he himself had been brought into imminent danger.  Such audacity on the part of a petty town seemed no doubt to him to deserve a severe retribution.  The place was therefore given over to the infuriated soldiery, who were allowed to slay and plunder at their pleasure.  Of the captives taken, all belonging to the five provinces across the Tigris, claimed as his own by Sapor, though ceded to Rome by his grandfather, were massacred in cold blood.  The Count Elian, and the commanders of the legions who had conducted the gallant defence, were barbarously crucified.  Many other Romans of high rank were subjected to the indignity of being manacled, and were dragged into Persia as slaves rather than as prisoners.

The campaign of A.D. 359 terminated with this dearly bought victory.  The season was too far advanced for any fresh enterprise of importance; and Sapor was probably glad to give his army a rest after the toils and perils of the last three months.  Accordingly he retired across the Tigris, without leaving (so far as appears) any garrisons in Mesopotamia, and began preparations for the campaign of A.D. 360.  Stores of all kinds were accumulated during the winter; and, when the spring came, the indefatigable monarch once more invaded the enemy’s country, pouring into Mesopotamia an army even more numerous and better appointed than that which he had led against Amida in the preceding year.  His first object now was to capture Singara, a town of some consequence, which was, however, defended by only two Roman legions and