d in God to give us victory, on the
day of battle. He was our army. When He fought with us, we
conquered; when He abstained, we were beaten. He suffered us to
fall into the hands of the Romans and, instead of repenting of our
sins, we have sinned more and more.

"The news from Jerusalem is worse and worse. There is civil war in
its streets. Robbers are its masters. The worst of the people sit
in high places."

"That is so, my son. God's anger still burns fiercely, and the
people perish; yet it may be that He will be merciful, in the end."

"I hope so, father, for assuredly our hope is only in Him."

Early in the spring, Vespasian was joined by King Agrippa, with all
his forces; and they advanced to Ptolemais and, here, Titus joined
his father, having brought his troops from Alexandria by sea. The
force of Vespasian now consisted of the Fifth, Tenth, and Fifteenth
Legions. Besides these he had twenty-three cohorts; ten of which
numbered a thousand footmen, the rest, each, six hundred footmen
and a hundred and fifty horse. The allied force, contributed by
Agrippa and others, consisted of two thousand archers, and a
thousand horse; while Malchus, King of Arabia, sent a thousand
horse, and five thousand archers. The total force amounted to sixty
thousand regular troops, besides great numbers of camp followers--who
were all trained to military service, and could fight, in case of need.

Vespasian had encountered no resistance, on his march down to
Ptolemais. The inhabitants of the country through which he passed
forsook the villages and farms; and retired, according to the
orders they had received, to the fortified towns. There was no army
to meet the Romans in the field. The efforts at organization which
Josephus had made bore no fruit, whatever. No sooner had the
invader entered the country, than it lay at his mercy; save only
the walled cities into which the people had crowded.

In the range of mountains stretching across Upper Galilee were
three places of great strength: Gabara, Gischala, and Jotapata. The
last named had been very strongly fortified, by Josephus himself;
and here he intended to take up his own position.

"It is a pitiful sight, truly," Joab remarked to John, as they saw
the long line of fugitives--men, women, and children--with such
belongings as they could carry on their own backs, and those of
their beasts of burden. "It is a pitiful sight, is it not?"

"It is a pitiful sight, Joab, and one t