44.28
Seeing
how his schemes had miscarried, Perseus sent his two naval commanders,
Antenor and Calippus, with forty swift ships and five cutters to Tenedos to
protect the corn ships which were making their way to Macedonia through
the scattered groups of the Cyclades. The ships took the water at
Cassandrea, in the two harbours under Mount Athos, and from there sailed
to Tenedos in a calm sea. Some undecked vessels belonging to Rhodes were
lying in the harbour and Eudamus, their commander, was allowed to take
them away unharmed, as though they were friends. On learning that fifty of
his transports on the other side of the island were blockaded by the
war-galleys of Eumenes which were stationed at the entrance to the harbour,
Antenor promptly sailed round and the enemy ships made off on his
appearance. Ten swift ships were told off to escort the transports to
Macedonia, and when they had seen them safe they were to return to
Tenedos. Eight days afterwards they rejoined the fleet which was now
anchored off Sigeum. From here they sailed to Sabota, an island situated
between Elaea and Chios. The day after they arrived, thirty-five vessels
called "hippagogi," carrying Gaulish horses and troopers, happened to be on
their way from Elaea to Phanae, a headland in Chios, intending to sail from
there to Macedonia. They were sent to Attalus by Eumenes. When Antenor
received a signal that these ships were at sea, he started for Sabota and met
them in the narrowest part of the channel between the headland of Erythrae
and Chios. The last thing that Eumenes's officers expected was the
appearance of a Macedonian fleet cruising in those waters. They first
thought that they were Romans and then that it was Attalus or some that had
been sent back by Attalus from the Roman camp and were on their way to
Pergamum. But when the build of the approaching vessels could no longer
be mistaken and the prows steering straight for them at increasing speed
revealed the approach of an enemy, there was great alarm. The clumsy
nature of their ships and the difficulty of keeping the Gauls quiet, destroyed
all hope of resistance. Some of those who were nearer to the mainland swam
to Erythrae; others crowded on all sail and ran their ships aground in Chios,
and, abandoning the horses, fled in wild disorder towards the city. But the
Macedonian vessels, taking a shorter course, landed their marines nearer the
city and some of the Gauls were cut down as they fled along the road, others
outside the city gate. The Chians had closed their gates, not knowing who
were fleeing and who were pursuing. Nearly 800 Gauls were killed and 200
made prisoners. Some of the horses in the wrecked ships were drowned;
others were hamstrung by the Macedonians on the beach. There were twenty
horses of exceptional beauty, and Antenor gave orders for the ten vessels
which he had previously sent to carry these and the prisoners to Thessalonica
and return as soon as possible; he should wait for them at Phanae. The fleet
lay off Chios for three days and then sailed to Phanae. The ten ships returned
sooner than was expected; the whole fleet then put out to sea and sailed
across the Aegean to Delos.