[Sidenote: B.C. 214 (_a.u._ 540)] Philip had progressed as far as
Corcyca with the intention of sailing to Italy, but on learning that
Laevinus was already at Brundusium he returned home. When Laevinus had
sailed as far as Corcyca, Philip set out against the Roman allies; he
had captured Oricum and was besieging Apollonia. Laevinus made an
expedition against him anew, recovered Oricum and rescued Apollonia.
Then Philip after burning the ships which he had used retired
homewards overland.

[Footnote 30: Zonaras consistently spells this name _Lavinius_.]

The people of Rome chose Fabius and Marcellus consuls. Hannibal was
then traveling about in what is called Calabria and in adjacent
regions, and they assigned the care of him to Gracchus, who had held
office before them. The latter routed Hanno (who had come from
Bruttium and confronted him near Beneventum), and then going on he
watched Hannibal closely, kept ravaging the possessions of rebels and
won some cities safely back. The consuls themselves turned their steps
toward Campania, for they were anxious to subdue it and so leave no
element of hostility behind their backs when they should march against
Hannibal. They then divided forces. Fabius overran the districts of
Campania and Samnium. Marcellus crossed into Sicily and proceeded to
besiege Syracuse. The town had submitted to him, but then had revolted
again through the treachery of some men by the use of a false message.
He would have subdued it very speedily,--for he assaulted the wall by
both land and sea at once,--had not Archimedes with his inventions
enabled the citizens to resist an extremely long time. By his devices
he suspended stones and heavy-armed soldiers in the air whom he would
let down suddenly and soon draw up again. Even ships that carried
towers he would dash one upon another; he would pull them up and
[Sidenote: (FRAG. 56^31?)] LIFTING THEM HIGH WOULD LET GO ALL IN A
MASS so that when they fell into the water they were sunk by the
impact. At last in an incredible manner he destroyed the whole Roman
fleet by conflagration. By tilting a kind of mirror toward the sun he
concentrated the sun's beams on it; and as the thickness and
smoothness of the mirror cooeperated to ignite the air from these beams
he kindled a great flame, all of which he directed upon the ships that
lay at anchor in the path of the fire, and he consumed them all.
Marcellus, therefore, despairing of capturing the city on accoun