Out of forty or fifty fire-ships which we had set afloat, two at last had run foul of one of the galleys, which was now in flames, and the terrified crew were fain to resort to the usual naval manœuvre of the Egyptians, and run their ship aground. The vessels that had started in pursuit of us were still at least two stadia in our rear, so that we had ample time to tackle with the single galley that remained ahead to bar our progress.
"Board her! board her! Let us board her!" shouted Hannibal, Hanno, and Chamai, with unanimous accord.
"We have no time, and she's not worth the trouble," I replied; "we will sink her."
"Down she goes, then, like a stone," cried Himilco.
The Cabiros, without meeting with any resistance beyond a few chance stones and straggling arrows, now slipped quietly under the very prow of the galley, and with unfurled sail was making off to sea. The Dagon was about to follow her, but at a signal from me, Hasdrubal bore down upon the galley's stern, whilst I simultaneously drove straight against her flank, and between us we literally cut her in two. Down sank the galley in a whirlpool of foam; and our last obstacle being thus removed, we hoisted our sails and rode out to sea, our trumpets sounding out a flourish of victory.
Behind us rose a discordant howl of maledictions. We were out of reach. It was utterly impossible for our enemies in their little nut-shells of vessels to follow where our victorious prows were now cleaving the foamy billows; and when we were fairly out at sea, steering due west, I could see, as I looked along the low flat coast, that the Egyptian masts were quite motionless. It was evident, therefore, that Bodmilcar had advised them to abandon their pursuit.
Fifteen of our men were wounded, nearly all of them slightly, and two had been killed; whilst the loss of the enemy, including those slain by the archers, burnt by the fire-ships, or drowned by the waters of their own sacred Nile, must have been nearly three hundred.
It did not take long to repair whatever damage we had sustained. Some broken oars on board the Ashtoreth, and a few more on board the Dagon, were replaced from the reserves; the decks were washed down, the stays strengthened, some broken ropes spliced, and the arrows that had lodged in the rigging and ship's sides removed. All our wounded had been carried below; and the bodies of the three Egyptians, having been stripped of any spoil of value, were thrown overboard. The bodies of our own two men were also committed to the waves with an invocation on their behalf to Menath, Hokk, and Rhadamath, the judges of the infernal regions[30]. In less than three hours everything was as much in order as though nothing had happened. Chryseis and Abigail, who had all along rendered what assistance they could, were rejoicing in their freedom; Hanno, whose nerve had never failed him, and Chamai fully sharing in their delight.
I sent for Hasdrubal to come on board, that he might join Himilco and myself in a council of war. When we were alone together, I said:
"Listen to me. There is no shadow of doubt that we shall be pursued. Ascending the eastern outlet of the river, the Egyptians will come down by the western; they may come either by the Canopic or Phanitic branch; and at both Pharos and Canope there is no question but that the King has ships in readiness. They can anticipate us there; couriers by land can arrive by early morning; we, with our utmost speed, could not arrive till long beyond midday. Somewhere or other we must of necessity put in to shore again; our supply of water is all but gone."