that it would have been far better to have
thrown open the gates, when Titus appeared before them--in which
case the great proportion, at least, of those within would have
been spared, and the Temple and the city itself would have escaped
destruction. He even regretted that he had marched down to take
part in the defense Had he known how entirely exhausted were the
granaries, he would not have done so. He had thought that, at
least, there would have been sufficient provisions for a siege of
some months, and that the patience of the Romans might have been
worn out.

He felt, now, that the sacrifice had been a useless one; but
although he, himself, would now have raised his voice in favor of
surrender, he was powerless. Even his own men would not have
listened to his voice. Originally the most fervent and ardent
spirits of his band, they were now inspired by a feeling of
desperate enthusiasm, equal to that which animated Simon and John
of Gischala; and his authority would have been at once overthrown,
had he ventured to raise his voice in favor of surrender.

Already, he had once been made to feel that there were points as to
which his influence failed to have any effect, whatever. He had,
the morning after they retired to the upper city, spoken to his men
on the subject of their store of grain. He had urged on them the
horrors which were taking place before their eyes--that women and
children were expiring in thousands, and that the inhabitants were
suffering the extreme agonies of starvation--and had concluded by
proposing that their store should be distributed among the starving
women. His words had been received in silence, and then one of the
captains of the companies had risen.

"What you say, John, of the sufferings which the people are
undergoing is felt by us all; but I, for one, cannot agree to the
proposal that we should give up our store of food. Owing to the
number of us that have fallen, there are still well-nigh fifty
pounds a man left, which will keep us in health and strength for
another two months. Were we to give it out, it would not suffice
for a single meal, for a quarter of the people assembled here, and
would delay their death but a few hours; thus it would profit them
nothing, while it will enable us to maintain our strength--and
maybe, at a critical moment, to hurl back the Romans from the very
gates of the Temple.

"It would be wickedness, not charity, to part with our store. It
would defe