Page:History of Greece Vol VI.djvu/365

 ATTACK UPON SPHAKTERIA. 342 iirection the pursuit was commenced, had the advantage of difficult ground, redoubled their annoyance against the rear of the pursuers as soon as the latter retreated to resume their place in the ranks, and always took care to get round to the rear of the hoplites. After some experience of the inefiicaey of Lacedaemonian pur- suit, the light-armed, becoming far bolder than at first, closed upon them nearer and more universally, with arrows, javelins, and stones, raising shouts and clamor that rent the air, render- ing the word of command inaudible by the Lacedaemonian sol- diers, who at the same time were almost blinded by the thick clouds of dust, kicked up from the recently spread wood-ashes. 1 Such method of fighting was one for which the Lykurgean drill made no provision, and the longer it continued the more painful did the embarrassment of the exposed hoplites become : their repeated efforts to destroy or even to reach nimble and ever- returning enemies, all proved abortive, whilst their own numbers were incessantly diminished by wounds which they could not return. Their only offensive arms consisted of the long spear and short sword usual to the Grecian hoplite, without any missile weapons whatever ; nor could they even pick up and throw back the javelins of their enemies, since the points of these javelins commonly broke off and stuck in the shields, or sometimes even in the body which they had wounded. Moreover, the bows of the archers, doubtless carefully selected before starting from Athens, were powerfully drawn, so that their arrows may sometimes have pierced and inflicted wounds even through the shield or the hel- met, but at any rate, the stuffed doublet, which formed the only defence of the hoplite on his unshielded side, was a very inadequate protection against them. 2 Under this trying distress 1 Thucyd. ir, 34 : compare with this the narrative of the destruction of the Lacedaemonian mora near Lechaeum, by Iphikrates and the Peltastae (Xenophon. Hellen. iv, 5, 11). QioraTO ovre yap ol mhot eareyov rii Tot-EVfiara, dopuria re h iTroK.EKf.aaTO ffaAtopevov, d%ov 6s ov6ev aiaiv avrolf xpfjaaa&ai, aTTOKeirt.rifievoi p,ev rjj tyeL TOV irpoopav, iiirb 6e r^f ftsi^ovof /3o^f TUV Trofapiuv TU iv aiiroif irapay- re^ Kivdvvov 6e iravTu^o&ev irepieaTUTOC, not oin ' o, -i %pf) C'/tvvouevovf audfjvai.
 * Thucyd. iv, 34. To re epyov tvravda ^aXeTrdv roic AaKsfvipovioif *ca-