al force of the Athenians threw a stockade across the
isthmus and remained quiet at Thapsus, the land army immediately went on
at a run to Epipolae, and succeeded in getting up by Euryelus before
the Syracusans perceived them, or could come up from the meadow and the
review. Diomilus with his six hundred and the rest advanced as quickly
as they could, but they had nearly three miles to go from the meadow
before reaching them. Attacking in this way in considerable disorder,
the Syracusans were defeated in battle at Epipolae and retired to the
town, with a loss of about three hundred killed, and Diomilus among the
number. After this the Athenians set up a trophy and restored to the
Syracusans their dead under truce, and next day descended to Syracuse
itself; and no one coming out to meet them, reascended and built a fort
at Labdalum, upon the edge of the cliffs of Epipolae, looking towards
Megara, to serve as a magazine for their baggage and money, whenever
they advanced to battle or to work at the lines.

Not long afterwards three hundred cavalry came to them from Egesta, and
about a hundred from the Sicels, Naxians, and others; and thus, with the
two hundred and fifty from Athens, for whom they had got horses from
the Egestaeans and Catanians, besides others that they bought, they now
mustered six hundred and fifty cavalry in all. After posting a garrison
in Labdalum, they advanced to Syca, where they sat down and quickly
built the Circle or centre of their wall of circumvallation. The
Syracusans, appalled at the rapidity with which the work advanced,
determined to go out against them and give battle and interrupt it; and
the two armies were already in battle array, when the Syracusan generals
observed that their troops found such difficulty in getting into line,
and were in such disorder, that they led them back into the town, except
part of the cavalry. These remained and hindered the Athenians from
carrying stones or dispersing to any great distance, until a tribe of
the Athenian heavy infantry, with all the cavalry, charged and routed
the Syracusan horse with some loss; after which they set up a trophy for
the cavalry action.

The next day the Athenians began building the wall to the north of the
Circle, at the same time collecting stone and timber, which they kept
laying down towards Trogilus along the shortest line for their works
from the great harbour to the sea; while the Syracusans, guided by their
generals,