ong the crowd;
to such lengths of madness and angry cruelty was the Alexandrian mob
sometimes driven.

In the meanwhile some of the women called to mind that Philammon, who
had been employed in the murder of Arsinoe, had within those three days
come to Alexandria, and they made a rush at his house. The doors quickly
gave way before their blows, and he was killed upon the spot by clubs
and stones; his little son was strangled by these raging mothers, and
his wife dragged naked into the street, and there torn to pieces. Thus
died Agathocles and all his family; and the care of the young king then
fell to Sosibius, and to Aristomenes, who had already gained a high
character for wisdom and firmness.

While Egypt was thus without a government, Philip of Macedonia and
Antiochus of Syria agreed to divide the foreign provinces between them;
and Antiochus marched against Coele-Syria and Phoenicia. The guardians
of the young Ptolemy sent against him an army under Scopas, the AEtolian,
who was at first successful, but was afterwards beaten by Antiochus at
Paneas in the valley of the Jordan, three and twenty miles above the
Lake of Tiberias, and driven back into Egypt. In these battles the Jews,
who had not forgotten the ill treatment that they had received from
Philopator, joined Antiochus, after having been under the government of
Egypt for exactly one hundred years; and in return Antiochus released
Jerusalem from all taxes for three years, and afterwards from one-third
of the taxes. He also sent a large sum of money for the service of the
temple, and released the elders, priests, scribes, and singing men from
all taxes for the future.

The Alexandrian statesmen had latterly shown themselves in their foreign
policy very unworthy pupils of Ptolemy Soter and Philadelphus, who had
both ably trimmed the balance of power between the several successors of
Alexander. But even had they been wiser, they could hardly, before the
end of the second Punic war, have foreseen that the Romans would soon be
their most dangerous enemies. The overthrow of Hannibal, however, might
perhaps have opened their eyes; but it was then too late; Egypt was too
weak to form an alliance with Macedonia or Syria against the Romans.
About this time, also, the Romans sent to Alexandria, to inform the
king that they had conquered Hannibal, and brought to a close the second
Punic war, and to thank him for the friendship of the Egyptians during
that long and doubtf