Page:The Fall of Constantinople.djvu/303

 THE PLOT. 285 In the middle of December Boniface had arrived at Zara. Boniface I^ ^hc account of Robcrt do Clari is to be trusted, reaches Zara. gQniething like a comcdy was arranged between him and Dandolo. The latter saw that the pilgrims were uneasy. The leaders were aware that they had not provisions enough for an expedition to Egypt or to Syria, and they had given out that even if they had they could do nothing when they reached either of these two countries. Dandolo, therefore, said to them : " Sirs, in Greece' there is a bountiful su])ply of all things. If we can find a reasonable occasion to go there and to take provisions and other things, then we can easily manage to go outre-merP Then uprose Boniface, Marquis of Montferrat, and explained that at Christmas time he had been in Germany at the court of Philip, where he had seen young Alexis, whose father had been treacherously driven from his throne. " Whoever," said Boniface, " has this young man can go into the land of Constantinople and take provisions and what is needed."' Hence, according to Robert, the messen- gers were sent to Alexis in order that by inducing him to come the Crusaders might have hoine acoison, rasnauvle ocai- sio7i, to go to Constantinople. On New Year's Day, 1203, the messengers returned from Philip, accompanied by those whom that king had sent. Henceforward it was impossible to keep the object of their mission secret. The organization of the Crusaders for the purpose of taking a decision was not unlike that which prevailed throughout most European states.^ Substitute the leaders and the great barons for the king, the lesser barons of the army and the knights for the lords, and the whole army for the commons, and the parallel will be complete. The leaders took the initi- ative. Then the parliament of lesser barons and knights had the proposition submitted to them, and lastly the commons of the army had to give their approval. The leaders had been ' Greece ond Romauia are used as synonymous terms by many of the Western wi iters. 2 Robert de Clari, c. 17. ^ " Eclaircissemeuts a Yillehardouin," p. 4G3, par M. de Wailly. This writer suggests that the form was specially copied from that of Venice.