siderable loss--to
withdraw his troops through it.

The Jews at once manned the wall, and formed in close order behind
the breach. Titus led his heavy-armed troops against it, but John
and Simon defended it with the greatest valor and, for three days
and nights, beat back the continued attacks of the Roman soldiers;
but at the end of that time they were utterly exhausted, while the
Romans incessantly brought up fresh troops. Even Simon--who had
fought desperately at the head of his men, and had performed
prodigies of valor--could no longer continue the struggle and,
slowly and in good order, the defenders of the breach fell back to
the upper city, and the lower town remained in the possession of
the Romans.

In order to avoid a recurrence of the disaster which had befallen
them, Titus ordered a considerable portion of the second wall to be
leveled; so that the troops could, if necessary, pour in or out
without difficulty. But Simon had no thought of repeating his
sortie. A large number of his best men had already fallen, and he
determined to reserve his force for the defense of the almost
impregnable position of the upper city.

Two hundred of John's band had fallen round the breach, he himself
had received several wounds, and the fighting strength of his band
was now but one-half of what it was at the commencement of the
siege. He had, before the Romans first entered the inner town, had
the remainder of his store of grain removed to the building in the
upper town which Simon had assigned to his band. It had as yet been
but little trenched upon, as Simon had ordered that rations,
similar to those issued to his own men, from the few granaries
which had escaped destruction, should be given to John's band.

"What do you think, now, of the prospect?" Simon asked, as John and
he stood together on the Tower of Phasaelus, on the day after the
Romans had taken possession of the lower town.

"I think, as I did at first," John said, "that nothing but a
miracle can save the Temple."

"But the difficulties that the Romans have overcome," Simon said,
"are as nothing to those still before them."

"That is quite true," John agreed, "and, had we but a good supply
of food, I believe that we might hold out for months; but the grain
is already nearly exhausted, and cannot support even the fighting
men much longer, while the inhabitants are dying from hunger. Well
and strong, we might resist every attack that the Romans can make