his
meteor glowed, inviting and guiding the mariners in; and both its
welcome and its guidance were doubly prized in those ancient days, when
there was neither compass nor sextant on which they could rely. In the
course of the contest with the Egyptians, Caesar took possession of the
Pharos, and of the island on which it stood; and as the Pharos was then
regarded as one of the seven wonders of the world, the fame of the
exploit, though it was probably nothing remarkable in a military point
of view, spread rapidly throughout the world.

[Sidenote: It is captured by Caesar.]

And yet, though the capture of a light-house was no very extraordinary
conquest, in the course of the contests on the harbor which were
connected with it Caesar had a very narrow escape from death. In all
such struggles he was accustomed always to take personally his full
share of the exposure and the danger. This resulted in part from the
natural impetuosity and ardor of his character, which were always
aroused to double intensity of action by the excitement of battle, and
partly from the ideas of the military duty of a commander which
prevailed in those days. There was besides, in this case, an additional
inducement to acquire the glory of extraordinary exploits, in Caesar's
desire to be the object of Cleopatra's admiration, who watched all his
movements, and who was doubly pleased with his prowess and bravery,
since she saw that they were exercised for her sake and in her cause.

[Sidenote: Situation of the Pharos.]
[Sidenote: Caesar's personal danger.]
[Sidenote: Caesar's narrow escape.]

The Pharos was built upon an island, which was connected by a pier or
bridge with the main land. In the course of the attack upon this bridge,
Caesar, with a party of his followers, got driven back and hemmed in by
a body of the enemy that surrounded them, in such a place that the only
mode of escape seemed to be by a boat, which might take them to a
neighboring galley. They began, therefore, all to crowd into the boat in
confusion, and so overloaded it that it was obviously in imminent danger
of being upset or of sinking. The upsetting or sinking of an overloaded
boat brings almost certain destruction upon most of the passengers,
whether swimmers or not, as they seize each other in their terror, and
go down inextricably entangled together, each held by the others in the
convulsive grasp with which drowning men always cling to whatever is
within their reach