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THE SECOND FIRE. 325 long. lie might, probably, easily be deposed. Provided that young Alexis would do what was wanted, the designs of Bon- iface and of Philip might yet not miscarry. With the object partly of recovering his lost influence and partly of prevent- ing his falling under that of the popular leaders within the city, Boniface and a portion of the army agreed to go with Alexis to Adrianople, in order to pursue the late emperor, Alexis the Third, who had fled to that city, and to help, also, young Alexis to reduce his subjects to submission. Boniface probably recalled the influence which he had obtained at Corfu and in the islands of the ^gean, while accompanying Alexis as guardian. It might be hoped that again he would have the youth entirely in his power, and that thus the design of Philip to obtain either direct sovereignty over the empire, immedi- ately or at some later period, could be carried into effect. Ac- cordingly the proposition to accompany Alexis was accepted, by the advice, says Yillehardouin, of the Greeks and the French. Baldwin of Flanders remained behind in command of the re- mainder of the army. During the absence of Alexis a second fire, more destruc- tive than the first, broke out within the city. The A second fire n -, it i i • • • i in constauti- fire dcserves to take rank among the great historical conflagrations of the world. Even Constantinople, which has always been particularly liable to great fires, never saw its like. In the value of the wealth consumed, in the in- fluence of the fire in striking terror into the population and ex- asperating them against the invaders, and in thus influencing the fate of the empire, few similar disasters can compare w^ith it in interest. The circumstances attending it are also remark- able, as throwing light on the relations existing during the joint reign of Isaac and Alexis the Fourth between the citi- zens and foreign invaders. Shortly after the arrival of the Crusaders, the mob attacked the wealthy Pisan quarter within Constantinople and on the shores of the Horn. It was not surprising that they should have done so. Nicetas says that the untaught masses did not distinguish between friend and foe. They knew that the invaders were all Latins — that is, members of the Western Church — that the fleet which was