Page:History of Greece Vol V.djvu/200

176 fflSTOKY OF GREECE. it at the feet of Pausanias, saying — " This is my pebble, where- with I give my vote not to run away from the strangers." Pau- sanias denounced him as a madman, — desiring the herald to repoi't the scene of embarrassment which he had just come to witness, and to entreat the Athenian generals not to commence their retreat until the Lacedasmonians should also be in march. In the mean time the dispute continued, and was even prolonged by the perverseness of Amompharetus until the morning began to dawn; when Pausanias, afraid to remain longer, gave the signal for retreat, — calculating that the refractory captain, when he saw His lochus really left alone, would probably make up his mind to follow. Having marched about ten furlongs, across the hilly ground which divided him from the island, he commanded a halt, — either to await Amompharetus, if he chose to follow, or to be near enough to render aid and save him, if he were rash enough to stand his ground single-handed. Happily the latter, seeing that his general had really departed, overcame his sci'u- ples, and followed him ; overtaking and joining the main body in its first halt near the river Moloeis and the temple of Eleusi- nian Demeter.' The Athenians, commencing their movement at the same time with Pausanias, got round the hills to the plain on the other side and proceeded on their march towards the island. When the day broke, the Persian cavalry were astonished to find the Grecian position deserted. They immediately set them- selves to the pursuit of the Spartans, whose march lay along the higher and more conspicuous ground, and whose progress had moreover been retarded by the long delay of Amompharetus : the Athenians on the contrary, marching without halt and being already behind the hills, were not open to view. To Mardonius, this retreat of his enemy inspired an extravagant and contemptu- ous confidence, which he vented in full measure to the Thessalian AleuadiK : " These are your boasted Spartans, who changed their place just now in the line, rather than fight the Persians, and have here shown by a barefaced flight what they are really worth !" With that, he immediately directed his whole army to pursue and attack, with the utmost expedition. The Persians crossed the Asopus, and ran after the Greeks at their best speed, ' Herodot. xi. 56, 57.