Page:History of Greece Vol VI.djvu/138

 n 6 mSTOR Y OF GREECE. Boeotian confederacy, that they should come forth and taks. lion as brethren in the armed ranks of the Thebans. And the Plataeans, suddenly roused from sleep by the astounding news that their great enemy was master of the town, supposed amidst the darkness that the number of assailants was far greater than the reality : so that in spite of their strong attachment to Athens, they thought their case hopeless, and began to open negotiations. But as they soon found out, in spite of the darkness, as the dis- cussion proceeded, that the real numbers of the Thebans were not greater than could be dealt with, they speedily took cour- age and determined to attack them ; establishing communication with each other by breaking through the walls of their private houses, in order that they might not be detected in moving about in the streets or ways, 1 and forming barricades with wagons across such of these ways as were suitable. A little before day- break, when their preparations were fully completed, they sallied forth from their houses to the attack, and immediately came to close quarters with the Thebans. The latter, still fancying them- selves masters of the town, and relying upon a satisfactory close to the discussions when daylight should arrive, now found themselves surprised in their turn, and under great disadvan- tages : for they had been out all night under a heavy rain, they were in a town which they did not know, with narrow, crooked, and muddy ways, such as they would have had difficulty in 3 Thucyd. ii, 3. edotcei ovv iTTixsipijTea dvai, nal fuve^eyovro fiiopiiaaovref Toiif KOivoi'C roi%ovf Trap' dA/^Act'C, omjf [j.r] 6tu TUV Muv fyavepol ucnv d^afaf <5e uvev TUV v~o^vyiuv if r<if odovf K.a'&iaraaav, lv' avrl y, KO.I rdAAa i^r/prvov, etc. I may be permitted to illustrate this by a short extract from the letter of M. Marrast, mayor of Paris, to the National Assembly, written during the formidable insurrection of June 25, 1848, in that city, and describing the proceedings of the insurgents : " Dans la plupart des rues longucs, etroites. et couvertes do barricades qui vont de 1'Hotel de Ville a la Rue St. Antoine, la garde nationale mobile, et la troupe de ligne, ont dA faire le siege de chaque maison ; et ce qui rendait I'reuvre plus perillcuse, c'est que les in- surges avaient etabli, de chaque maison & chaque maison, des communica- tions interieures qui rcliaient les maisons entrs ellcs, en sorte qu'ils pouvai- ent sc rendre, comme par une allec couvcrte, d'un point eloigne' jus qu'au centre d'une suite de barricades qui les prote'geaicnt." (Lcttrc di.ns le Journal, le National. June 26. 1848).