ague of the Protestants.--
Desolating War.--Defeat of the King of Denmark.--Energy of
Wallenstein.--Triumph of Ferdinand.--New Acts of Intolerance.--
Severities in Bohemia.--Desolation of the Kingdom.--Dissatisfaction of
the Duke of Bavaria.--Meeting of the Catholic Princes.--The Emperor
Humbled.
The citizens of Prague were indignant at the pusillanimity of Frederic.
In a body they repaired to the palace and tried to rouse his feeble
spirits. They urged him to adopt a manly resistance, and offered to
mount the ramparts and beat off the foe until succor could arrive. But
Frederic told them that he had resolved to leave Prague, that he should
escape during the darkness of the night, and advised them to capitulate
on the most favorable terms they could obtain. The inhabitants of the
city were in despair. They knew that they had nothing to hope from the
clemency of the conqueror, and that there was no salvation for them from
irretrievable ruin but in the most desperate warfare. Even now, though
the enemy was at their gates, their situation was by no means hopeless
with a leader of any energy.
"We have still," they urged, "sufficient strength to withstand a siege.
The city is not invested on every side, and reinforcements can enter by
some of the gates. We have ample means in the city to support all the
troops which can be assembled within its walls. The soldiers who have
escaped from the disastrous battle need but to see the Bohemian banners
again unfurled and to hear the blast of the bugle, to return to their
ranks. Eight thousand troops are within a few hours' march of us. There
is another strong band in the rear of the enemy, prepared to cut off
their communications. Several strong fortresses, filled with arms and
ammunition, are still in our possession, and the Bohemians, animated by
the remembrance of the heroic deeds of their ancestors, are eager to
retrieve their fortunes."
Had Frederic possessed a tithe of the perseverance and energy of
Ferdinand, with these resources he might soon have arrested the steps of
the conqueror. Never was the characteristic remark of Napoleon to Ney
better verified, that "an army of deer led by a lion is better than an
army of lions led by a deer." Frederic was panic-stricken for fear he
might fall into the hands of Ferdinand, from whom he well knew that he
was to expect no mercy. With ignominious haste, abandoning every thing,
even the coronation regalia, at midnight, surrounded
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