The Portland daily press., 1891-05-16

IorlouS PERSIAN center. The discomfifad
Greek center, seeingthis, rallied and renew
ea tne ngnt. Thecompact formation was
the one Tor the new emergency, and Greek
discipline enabled Miltiades to varv his
tactics In the heat OF. action.
The solid rankssof thes1nitet ,c,olunnns
OF the Greeks and their heavy aruaor
ana superior equipment for fighting at
close quarters defeated every effort of
the Asiatics, and finallythe whole Persian
host was in rout. And at this time, the
proper moment, the spirit of carnage that
had come upon the Greeks by reasoned
their successful blows was givenifull play,
and they pursued.the shattered masses. to
the waters edge, andcut themdownin the
ships drawn upon the. beach for embarka-
tion. Many ships were boarded and fired,
and the Asiatics who had thetemerity to
offer resistance were drowned or slaugh-
tered. The Greek loss was mainly sustained
on the beach. Callimachus fell there, and
also one of the ten generals. Seven, Per-
sian galleys were burned, and the rest
quickly pushed off ! bearing awaySa vast
army, so far as numbers went, despite the
enormous loss in battle.
But Miltiades' work was not ended.
Athens was still exposed to treachery, and
to the craft Of Dariusfable general, Datis.
Hippias had been killed ains the battle, but
his emissaries might sunwittfnCty betray
the scantily garrisoned city tosthe Persians
If summoned to do so while the Athenian
army was at distance. The.hero of Mar
athon did not sit down on his laurels, but
left guard over the fabulous spoils of the
field, and before daylight on the morning
after the battle mustered his weary SOL
diers on the heights above the city, where,
to the amazement of the Persiansleader,
they lay in full view of his feet asit,en-
tered the harbor of Athens after a, rapid
nights sail
The victory was complete. The. Persians
withdrew, and the moral effect was such
that Grecian courage never quailed. and
never yielded before the monster hordessof
the Orient.
The Persian dead on the field were over
six thousand and great numbers were
drowned in the sea or burned in the ships
The Athenian dead nufnberingl only 192,
were exceptionally honored by interment
upon the battlefield, where a mound was
raised over their bones, and ten columns
were erected to commemorate the fallen of
the ten tribes which took part in the bat
tile. The Spartan re-enforcements to the
number of 1900 made. forced march of
$50 miles in three days, but were too late
to share in the glory. The tactics of Mil
tiades at Marathon have been study for
military men ever since. Had he adhered
to Grecian custom and spread, his; men in a
uniform line they would not have been
able to strike telling blow at any given
point, and could have been broken with
ease. Had he sent them in at slow pace
the Persians would have had time to form
and offer stout resistance. The formation
in heavy wings and weak center was bet
ter than strong center and light wings,
because the center, even though success
full, could have been flanked by the Per
SLAMS with their ample forces and the IA
vorable open ground on either side. Yet
for all this it was the steadiness of the
Greek wings in stopping the pursuit at the
proper time and in reforming to assail the
Persian center that carried the day.
The Persian cavalry, believed to have
been 10000 strong, seems not to have put
in blow, although the Persians selected
the plains of Marathon as a-spot especially
adapted for this arm Of service, of which
the Greeks had none.
G. L. K.