338 THE HISTORY OF THE ORDER OF [book r.

peerless corps charged the Saracens once again withsuch determined valour, that it succeeded as before,and they were the sole large body of soldiery thatescaped from that bloody field. Nor was it duplicityin Tripoli, as pretended, nor from any leniency in theSaracens, but as their own Moslem commander con-fessed afterwards, he saw resolute despair in theChristian looks and whole demeanour, and to avoidit, made his men divide and leave them a free passage.Some other individuals cut their road to liberation;but they were very few. Tripoli’s were the onlyparty forming anything like a regular body, and withthem the count retreated to Tripoli, his capital, andin a few days died of grief. The army of Franksscarce any longer existed. The picked guards,who retreated with the cross to the right horn ofthe Hill of Iiattim , 1 being for the most part killed,their sacred deposit was taken. It is not in a spiritof hate that Mahometans neglect the cross; butthey think the real Jesus returned to heaven, andthat an angel was sent down to suffer and be cruci-fied in his place . 2 After fearful struggles, the king

1 Rex (Guy), victus cum majoribus Tyronem. Hatti ascendit,ubi comprehensus est cum princibus suis et aliis, et in captivita-tcm ductus.—Oliveri Scho. Chron.—Bib. Crois., iii. 137.

2 Arab. Chron., 195. Note.