were emboldened to turn against the Assyrian garrisons stationed in their midst to preserve order.  Sennacherib’s vengeance fell first on Marduk-ushezib, who fled from his stronghold of Bittutu after sustaining a short siege.  Merodach-baladan, deserted by his accomplice, put the statues of his gods and his royal treasures on board his fleet, and embarking with his followers, crossed the lagoon, and effected a landing in the district of Nagitu, in Susian territory, beyond the mouth of the Ulai.** Sennacherib entered Bit-Yakin without striking a blow, and completed the destruction of the half-deserted town; he next proceeded to demolish the other cities one after the other, carrying off into captivity all the men and cattle who fell in his way.

* Three kings of Babylon at this period bore very similar names—­Marduk-ushezib, Nergal-ushezib, and Mushezib-marduk.  Nergal-ushezib is the elder of the two whom the texts call Shuzub, and whom Assyriologists at first confused one with another.

     ** Nagitu was bounded by the Nar-Marratum and the Ulai,
     which allows us to identify it with the territory south of
     Edrisieh.

The Elamites, disconcerted by the rapidity of his action, allowed him to crush their allies unopposed; and as they had not openly intervened, the conqueror refrained from calling them to account for their intrigues.  Babylon paid the penalty for all:  its sovereign, Belibni, who had failed to make the sacred authority of the suzerain respected in the city, and who, perhaps, had taken some part in the conspiracy, was with his family deported to Nineveh, and his vacant throne was given to Assur-nadin-shumu, a younger son of Sargon (699 B.C.).*

* Berosus, misled by the deposition of Belibni, thought that the expedition was directed against Babylon itself; he has likewise confounded Assur-nadin-shumu with Esar-haddon, and he has given this latter, whom he calls Asordancs, as the immediate successor of Belibni.  The date 699 B.C. for these events is indicated in Pinches’ Babylonian Chronicle, which places them in the third year of Belibni.

Order was once more restored in Karduniash, but Sennacherib felt that its submission would be neither sincere nor permanent, so long as Merodach-baladan was hovering on its frontier possessed of an army, a fleet, and a supply of treasure, and prepared to enter the lists as soon as circumstances seemed favourable to his cause.  Sennacherib resolved, therefore, to cross the head of the Persian Gulf and deal him such a blow as would once for all end the contest; but troubles which broke out on the Urartian frontier as soon as he returned forced, him to put off his project.  The tribes of Tumurru, who had placed their strongholds like eyries among the peaks of Nipur, had been making frequent descents on the plains of the Tigris, which they had ravaged unchecked by any fear of Assyrian power.  Sennacherib formed an entrenched camp at