backs, to be killed afterwards by their own countrymen, and the battle, therefore, between them and the Jews became very furious. Indeed the Jews, though they had not equal skill, were so desperate, that the Romans could no longer keep their ground.

Titus, who stood upon the tower of Antonia, watching the fight, reproached his soldiers for allowing the Jews to put their camp in danger: he then went round with a body of chosen troops, and fell upon the flank of the enemy, who turned immediately to defend themselves.

The two armies were now so mixed together, and the dust they raised was so great, that friends could no longer distinguish friends, and the Jews fought without knowing who they were killing. They fought, indeed, from utter despair, for they had no hope of ever reaching the city again. The Romans fought with equal bravery, for the love of glory; knowing, too, that Titus was present, to see and to reward their valour; notwithstanding which, the Jews made their way back into the city, and the Romans despaired more than ever of tak

ing a city, defended by so desperate a set of men.

"Well, my dear Anne," said Aunt Jane, "I thank you, and I think we must now give over reading for a short time; and as the morning is cool, what say you to a batch of weeding? My strawberry beds are sadly smothered."

Anne was very ready and Fanny eagerly pressed Aunt Mary to take that opportunity of examining with her a variety of very pretty wild flowers and heaths, which she had gathered the preceding evening on Moucaup. Withering's Botany was soon put upon the table, in the room of Anne's maps, and the parties dispersed till the afternoon.

CHAPTER IX.

NOTHING happened after dinner to prevent our party from sitting down to their work and going on with their book. Fanny had made great addition to her botanical list, by the flowers she had brought with her from Moucaup, which were now consigned to the large leaves of her blotting paper book, and placed under a press.

The rug had made so good a progress during this week's work, that Aunt Mary was vastly pleased, and even thought she should have it ready to put down by the next Dorcas meeting.

Anne opened her book, and with a sigh at seeing it so near its end, she went on reading.

Titus now called a council of war, to consult what was to be done. Some of the boldest of the chiefs advised that the whole army should

attack Jerusalem at once, while the more cautious ones were for raising banks first.

But Titus did not quite approve of either of these plans. He was anxious, for his own glory, that the Romans should undertake some great work, and at the same time he wished the siege to be quickly finished: he therefore proposed to build a wall round the whole of the city of Jerusalem, which would either drive the citizens to despair, by cutting off all means of escape, or would reduce it more completely by famine.

These reasons were agreed to by his officers; and Titus, after dividing his own men into bodies, set them to work to build the wall. Each soldier was ambitious to please, and therefore the work got on. The wall was about five miles in length, and strengthened by thirteen buildings for garrisons. It is almost incredible to relate, that the whole was completed in three days.

Titus himself went round the wall on the first watch of the night, to see that the guards did their duty; and two of his friends did the same at the other two watches.

Now all escape was really cut off from the

poor Jews, and famine hastened its steps, and devoured whole families. The upper rooms of every house were filled by dying women and children, while the lanes of the city were strewed with the bodies of the aged. The young men wandered about the market places like shadows, and fell down dead in the streets.

Few were buried: for the sick were not strong enough to perform that office for their friends; and those who still were healthy, were frightened by the numbers they should have to bury, if they began. No lamentations were heard, for those who saw others die, expected themselves the same fate soon.

A deep silence was kept in the city; nor did any one move about, except robbers, who were even more frightful to the citizens than death itself. The seditious at last gave orders that the dead bodies should be thrown over the city wall into the vallies below.

As Titus was one night going his usual rounds, he passed the vallies full of dead bodies, and the sight made him groan. He lifted up his hands to Heaven, and prayed that this might not be his doing.