in the
consternation of the moment. Having thus admonished them, not, he felt,
as he would, but as he could, Nicias withdrew and led the troops to the
sea, and ranged them in as long a line as he was able, in order to aid
as far as possible in sustaining the courage of the men afloat; while
Demosthenes, Menander, and Euthydemus, who took the command on board,
put out from their own camp and sailed straight to the barrier across
the mouth of the harbour and to the passage left open, to try to force
their way out.

The Syracusans and their allies had already put out with about the same
number of ships as before, a part of which kept guard at the outlet, and
the remainder all round the rest of the harbour, in order to attack the
Athenians on all sides at once; while the land forces held themselves in
readiness at the points at which the vessels might put into the shore.
The Syracusan fleet was commanded by Sicanus and Agatharchus, who had
each a wing of the whole force, with Pythen and the Corinthians in the
centre. When the rest of the Athenians came up to the barrier, with the
first shock of their charge they overpowered the ships stationed there,
and tried to undo the fastenings; after this, as the Syracusans and
allies bore down upon them from all quarters, the action spread from the
barrier over the whole harbour, and was more obstinately disputed than
any of the preceding ones. On either side the rowers showed great zeal
in bringing up their vessels at the boatswains' orders, and the helmsmen
great skill in manoeuvring, and great emulation one with another; while
the ships once alongside, the soldiers on board did their best not to
let the service on deck be outdone by the others; in short, every man
strove to prove himself the first in his particular department. And as
many ships were engaged in a small compass (for these were the largest
fleets fighting in the narrowest space ever known, being together little
short of two hundred), the regular attacks with the beak were few, there
being no opportunity of backing water or of breaking the line; while the
collisions caused by one ship chancing to run foul of another, either
in flying from or attacking a third, were more frequent. So long as a
vessel was coming up to the charge the men on the decks rained darts and
arrows and stones upon her; but once alongside, the heavy infantry tried
to board each other's vessel, fighting hand to hand. In many quarters
it happened,