It outnumbered Caesar's, and the Alexandrians were
the best seamen in the Mediterranean. If they came out, they might cut his
communications. Without hesitation he set fire to the docks; burnt or
disabled the great part of the ships; seized the Pharos and the mole which
connected it with the town; fortified the palace and the line of houses
occupied by his troops; and in this position he remained for several
weeks, defending himself against the whole power of Egypt. Of the time in
which legend describes him as abandoned to his love for Cleopatra, there
was hardly an hour of either day or night in which he was not fighting for
his very life. The Alexandrians were ingenious and indefatigable. They
pumped the sea into the conduits which supplied his quarters with water,
for a moment it seemed with fatal effect. Fresh water was happily found by
sinking wells. They made a new fleet; old vessels on the stocks were
launched, others were brought down from the canals on the river. They made
oars and spars out of the benches and tables of the professors' lecture
rooms. With these they made desperate attempts to retake the mole. Once
with a sudden rush they carried a ship, in which Caesar was present in
person, and he was obliged to swim for his life.[3] Still, he held on,
keeping up his men's spirits, and knowing that relief must arrive in time.
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