, they laid siege to the
city, proposing to the inhabitants that they should give up those who
were guilty of the murder of Arkesilaos: but as all their people had
taken a share in the guilt, they did not accept the proposals. Then they
besieged Barca for nine months, both digging underground passages which
led to the wall and making vigorous attacks upon it. Now the passages
dug were discovered by a worker of bronze with a shield covered over
with bronze, who had thought of a plan as follows:--carrying it round
within the wall he applied it to the ground in the city, and whereas
the other places to which he applied it were noiseless, at those places
where digging was going on the bronze of the shield gave a sound; and
the men of Barca would make a countermine there and slay the Persians
who were digging mines. This then was discovered as I have said, and the
attacks were repulsed by the men of Barca.

201. Then as they were suffering hardship for a long time and many were
falling on both sides, and especially on that of the Persians, Amasis
the commander of the land-army contrived as follows:--perceiving that the
Barcaians were not to be conquered by force but might be conquered by
guile, he dug by night a broad trench and over it he laid timber of no
great strength, and brought earth and laid it above on the top of the
timber, making it level with the rest of the ground: then at daybreak he
invited the men of Barca to a parley; and they gladly consented, and
at last they agreed to make a treaty: and the treaty they made with one
another was taken over the hidden trench, namely that so long as this
earth should continue to be as it was, so long the oath should remain
firm, and that the men of Barca should promise to pay tribute of due
amount to the king, and the Persians should do no further violence to
the men of Barca. 182 After the oath the men of Barca trusting to these
engagements both went forth themselves from their city and let any who
desired it of the enemy pass within their walls, having opened all the
gates; but the Persians first broke down the concealed bridge and then
began to run inside the city wall. And the reason why they broke down
the bridge which they had made was that they might keep their goats,
since they had sworn to the men of Barca that the oath should remain
firm continually for so long time as the earth should remain as it then
was, but after that they had broken it down, the oath no longer