ement on the part of the Five Cantons produced the
greatest confusion in Zurich. The commander elect, the head of the
board of war, was absent; the Councils were wavering and split into
factions, the majority of the people without confidence or sympathy;
and Zwingli, although calm, to the last moment true to the call of
duty, full of unshaken faith in the justice of his cause, and certain
that a better future would dawn upon his fatherland, had yet no hope
for the present; none for a speedy victory; none for himself. Four days
before his death, he said in the pulpit: "Our only true possession is
the friendship of God, from whom, neither death nor any earthly power
can sunder us;" and then again: "They achieve the most glorious
victory, who are actors and not spectators merely. Hence, courage amid
the perplexities and dangers through which the holy cause of the Gospel
must be upheld! May others enjoy the fruit of our labors! We will find
rest in Heaven."

In such a frame of mind, he was not surprised by the reports of his
friend Bullinger, abbot of Cappel, whom Lavater had sent to the Five
Cantons as a trusty spy. These were of the same tenor and spoke of the
fixed determination of the enemy, the first step already taken, and the
distress and prayers for help on the frontiers. At his request, or by
order, of the government, Lavater returned to Zurich on the 9th of
October; but just as the character of the news varied, an immediate
dispatch of troops was talked of in the Council, or its order already
communicated, recalled. Nothing was done that day, but to send several
members to Bremgarten and Cappel, to reconnoiter. A restless night was
passed; new warnings had arrived. On the morning of the 10th, the
pastor of Rifferschweil and the landlord of the Albis made their
appearance; the one an eyewitness of the flight of the people before
the invading Catholics, the other, a messenger from the deputies of the
government, with pressing entreaties to hasten the departure of the
army. The Small and Great Councils were called together, but the
meeting was by no means full. Perplexity, hesitation, and even secret
joy at the confused state of affairs kept a portion of the members at
home. Lavater had also summoned to the senate-house Zwingli, the
banneret Schweizer, William T[oe]nig and Hans Daeniker, to whom the
conduct of the baggage train was committed. They all agreed, that the
alarm should be sounded immediately, and first in