The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-01-29

hatred their guards bore FOR then and others would
| not take any when II was given them.n Here IL,
indeed, frightlu picture OF the excuses OF bar
| barous age.
Jerusalem was again taken by the Persians in the
year Ola and by the Saracols under hhalf Omar who
built the mosque that bears his name, in 6s7. once
more In 1O99 IL was besieged-ths time ny the Crusa
ders under Godfrey de Bouillon. Pilgrims TO the Holy
Cty si trace out the camps OF the Christian army
The siese was begun the eth OF June anu lasted
| forty days The defence was in the hands OF the
| Callphs lieutenant Aladdin, who displayed signal
Hrapans. The force Of the Crusaders was TOO small
10 completely invest the city, and the attack was
therefore confined TO the northern and western
the fifth day OF the siege, but the Chris
tans were, repulsed with terrible slaughter.
TWO movable turrets were then constructed by
some Genoese engineers, and taken to the most
neglected part OF the walls. One tower was burned
and on the 18th OF July the cross supplanted the
crescent on the walls OF the Holy City. The next
discriminate slaughter Of the Moslems, 10000 OF
whom were sacrificed to the lanatca fury or their
later, by saladin was happily marked by no such
atrocities Several times subsequently the city has
changed masters but the foregoing are the principal
seges II has had TO endure.
ROME,
another holy city, and which for nearly twenty
five centuries has been either the military or ecce
sascal mistress Of the world, has also suffered FREE
guent seges. The first deserving notice took place
IN the infancy OF the republic when the Gauls made
their first ncursion into Italy, under Brennus The
Roman army in spite OF Its superior weapons aud dis
cipne, was sgnally defeated some eleven miles from
Rome on the banks Of the ALA, bv the barbarian
invaders The people of the city were seized with
the greatest CONSERVATION, and lost tnat presence
OF mind which forms the only means Of escape from
grave national disasters. The Senators. however,
While the able-bodied men FASTENED to the citadel
which they resolved to defend to the last these aged
Romans, eighty In number calmly waited IN their
arrival Of the Gauls. The latter. when they first
entered the chamber, were astonished beyond mea-
sure and seriously thought that the immortal gods
had themselves descended In human form to inter.
fere In behalf OF the city. One OF the chiefs how.
how v.rtoc Do hut haora
the indignant Roman struck him with his ivory
Official sceptre, and the entire Senate persisted IN
the city, and, having set it on fire, invested the
| CITADEL which was built on the summit OF a
that could he easily defended Roman army Was VAS
however, slowly mustered under the lead Of Camll-
Of Sv souS ne G
difficulty communication was opened by Camillus
with the beeaguered garrison but the tracks OF the
the same path. Tue assailants silently climbed up
the cn III the middle or the night, but just as the
foremost was crossing the rampant the cackling
OF some sacred geese awoke the sleeping garrison.
| Marcus Manlius rushed al the Gaul and hurled him
the precipce In his tail he carried down the
| rest OF his comrades: The garrison however, were
| soon reduced to the last extremity of hunger and
forced to eat up the soles OF their shoes and
| the thongs OF their shields. But In order that the
| lected every atom OF flour they could scrape
together, and having baked 1t into loaf
| With a show OF plenty. At last Brennus concluded
terms of negotiation With the besieged garrison 1t
was agreed thar he should receive q thousand
| pounds weight Of gold. In weighing out the trea-
sure fresh difficulty occurred. Brennus threw his
sword into the weight pan and insolenty exclaimed,
Tne vanQuished ought TO suffer-. w nile the dispute
| on this head was raging Canillus entered the city
with the army he mad gathered together He at
torted to the Gaul, 1--WE Romans buy our ransom
with steel, ana moi with gold" great battle
| After this Rome enjoyed centuries OF secury IN
deed, the next time sne had to endure the humilia-
| ton OF seeing foreign Toe encamped beneath her
| walls was in the reign oil the Emperor Honorius,
| when Alarlc, the King OF the Vsigoths invaded
these fierce barbarlans. Twice she escaped by pay
| ing ransom, but the third time, in the
year 40 Aialic refused to accept anything
trembling Senate did their best TO avert this crown
| ing disnonor, but IN vain. secret conspiracy was
formed among the slaves and dOmestics, nearly all
OF whom were akin In blood TO The invaders, ana at
midnight the salarian gate was thrown open, and,
| as Gibson says the Romans "were awakened by the
| tremendous sound OF the Gothic trumpet" Aarc
did not very grossly abuse his power. He handed
over the riches OF the city 10 his troops as lalry
| earned reward OF vaor but his soldiers, some or
| whom were themselves believers IN Jesus Christ
uniformly respected the possessions Of the Christian
| churches ana the persons or Christian priests and
| nuns. But a cruel massacre OF thousands oil TO
| mans followed the victory, and the streets were
filed with corpses, which lay unburied Tor several
| days. This, however, was less the work OF the
| soldiers OF Alaric than OF the $4,000 Gothic slaves
! wnom he nal liberated, and Wno now found an OPP
portunty TO revenge themselves upon their masters
Tor the accumulated indlgnities or years of
| Virgins fell u prey TO the lawless desires OF
The victois, but history records also several
| stances OF marked moueration IN TINS respect and
| doubtless, as Glbbon again says, '.the want OF
youth, beauty, chastity, projected che greatest
/ lart OF the Roman women from rape.' The Goths
only stayed SIX days In the captured city, and tne.
/ departed, laden with treasures OF almost fabulous
a prey TO Genserc, King OF the Nandais who hav-
] ing made himself master OF Africa and plundered
southern laly, struck at The lmperia! city The
rest OF the story Of this SIEGE and the curious Tact
| that the spoils taken from hone by Geaseric were
removed by him to Carthage Is well Tod and III
ELglish heXameters, tool In the following ilnes-
When at las, to the gates be come,
Loud he xn9sSea % Inn Ms nefoe iron fist And full
"w6o is il that knocKeth iondp Get thee hence Let
eThou art Genseric. "openl His name
| that hath is Fate
Rome gave him her glorious things:
| she had wiested from kings;
And denter,c them away into Carthage, avenged
In after times the city OF the Seven Hills was many
times forced to endure capture al the hands OF ner
foes, bur only two OF her many subsequent sleges
need be mentioned The first s OF course. the famous
siege by the Constable de Bourbon, IN 1871, the
head OF the troops OF Charles v, the seIstyled E-
| peror OF the Romans, when
| The black bands
The Alps and their
they crossed the wide Po
After q severe siege Rome fell into the hands
| OF the most terrible foes she had ever meta
| hinged horde OF adventures, of whom,
born the children OF the Church. had thrown OF
nsr au.l h anu uengn'eu 10 hui i ana
| and perverted form Professionalism, burned with
| anabaptlst zeal TO purify her affairs with blood and
ire. The Constable de BourDoA was SLAIN in the
assault which gained the city. His followers, how
ever remained nine months In Rome, and
| abandoned themselves with scarcely any re-
| straint to every dark temptation Of cruelty,
lust and rapine. full description OF these horrors
| is given in RObertsonB "Chalies W.
The last siege OF Rome was in 1s49, when the
French troops under General 0ndinot marched the
rescue OF the Holy Father from the Garlbadians.
| Tie reQS3 prepared Tor vigorous defence. The
French invested the city on The Sd June and began
the attack by an energetic assault, In which 500 Ro
| mans were killed. Toe assailant5 were, however,
| repulsed and the city held out with unfnchlng
patriotism until the 50th June. when some breaches
made by the attacking batteries rendered II longer
| tenable. The French did not, however, enter Rome
| In until and l.arihaidi