. History of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia and Assyria . was spent in useless skirmishes; the city offered anenergetic and obstinate resistance, and as the walls werethick and the garrison determined, it would not havesuccumbed had not the supply of provisions finally raged in the city, and the inhabitants devouredeven their own children, while pestilence spreading amongthem mowed them down by thousands. The Arab auxihariesat this juncture deserted the cause of the defenders, andtheir sheikhs surrendered to Assur-bani-pal, who receivedand pardoned them; but the Babylonians the
. History of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia and Assyria . was spent in useless skirmishes; the city offered anenergetic and obstinate resistance, and as the walls werethick and the garrison determined, it would not havesuccumbed had not the supply of provisions finally raged in the city, and the inhabitants devouredeven their own children, while pestilence spreading amongthem mowed them down by thousands. The Arab auxihariesat this juncture deserted the cause of the defenders, andtheir sheikhs surrendered to Assur-bani-pal, who receivedand pardoned them; but the Babylonians themselves,knowing that they could expect no mercy, held out sometime longer: at length, their courage and their strengthexhausted, they rose against their chiefs, whose ambitionor patriotic pride had brought them to such a pass, anddetermined to capitulate on any terms. Shamash-shumukin,not wishing to fall alive into the hands of his brother, shuthimself up in his palace, and there immolated himself ona funeral pyre with his wives his children, his slaves,. A TERRIBLE SPECTACLE 231 and his treasures at the moment when his conquerorswere breaking down the gates and penetrating into thepalace precincts.^ The city presented a terrible spectacle,and shocked even the Assyrians, accustomed as they wereto horrors of this sort. Most of the numerous victims topestilence or famine lay about the streets or in the publicsquares, a prey to the dogs and swine; such of the in-habitants and of the soldiery as were comparatively stronghad endeavoured to escape into the country, and onlythose remained who had not suflBcient strength left todrag themselves beyond the walls. Assur-bani-pal pursuedthe fugitives, and, having captured nearly all of them,vented on them the full fury of his vengeance. Hecaused the tongues of the soldiers to be torn out, andthen had them clubbed to death. He massacred thecommon folk in front of the great winged bulls whichhad already witnessed a similar butchery half a ce
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