Alexander : a history of the origin and growth of the art of war from ...

THE END APPROACHING. 337remes — started for the scene of action. The mole had nowso nearly reached the city walls that he was compelled tomake the entire circuit of the island in order to reach theplace opposite the Sidonian harbor, where the Tyrian shipswere committing such dangerous havoc.His direction would,however, enable him to take them in the rear. Seeing thedanger of their vessels from Alexander's manoeuvre, — andIlls men rowed fast, as fast as an average steamer of to-day,— the Tyrians signaled from the walls to their vessels toreturn; but before these, deafened with the noise of battleand excited with unwonted success, understood the meaningof these signals and essayed to escape, Alexander was uponthem. The Tyrian vessels at once made off, but the kingdamagedmany- beyond use and captured two, one with fiveand one with four rows of oars. The mariners mostlyescaped by swimming. Alexander had shown himseK to bean admiral.This victory was the beginning of the end. The loss ofthe sea was to the Tyrians much like the loss of the glacisofa fort.Alexander blockaded the harbors so as to confine theTyrian fleet within them, and was thus at liberty to try hisengines upon the walls.Alexander had accomplished a goodly part of his labors.He had advanced his mole to a point from which he couldattack the walls ;he had secured a safe anchorage for his vessels; he had cleared the channel so as to enable his enginebearingships to reach the walls ; he had driven the Tyrianfleet into its harbors, and held it there. Nothing remainedto be done but to break down and carry by assault the citywalls. But just this was the gravest task of all. The desperationofthe Tyrians grew with the danger.Despite all his trouble, Alexander found that he was unableto make any impression on the wall next to the mole, it being