166 HISTORICAL TALES.

forces and Greek auxiliaries, and the hopes of Greece
still seemed but slight, thus outnumbered three to
one. But the Greeks fought for liberty, and were
inspired with the spirit of their recent victories ; the
Persians were disheartened and disunited: this dif-
ference of feeling went far to equalize the hosts.

And now, before bringing the waiting armies to
battle, we must tell what led to their meeting on the
Platwan plain. After the battle of Salamis a vote
was taken by the chiefs to decide who among them
should be awarded the prize of valor on that glorious
day. Hach cast two ballots, and when these were
counted each chief was found to have cast his first
vote for—himself! But the second votes were nearly
all for Themistocles, and all Greece hailed him as its
preserver. The Spartans crowned him with olive,
and presented him with a kingly chariot, and when
he left their city they escorted him with the honors
due to royalty.

Meanwhile Mardonius, who was wintering with his
army in Thessaly, sent to Athens to ask if its people
still proposed the madness of opposing the power of
Xerxes the king. “Yes,” was the answer; “while
the sun lights the sky we will never join in alliance
with barbarians against Greeks.”

On receiving this answer Mardonius broke up his
winter camp and marched again to Athens, which
he found once more empty of inhabitants. Its
people had withdrawn as before to Salamis, and left
the shell of their nation to the foe,

The Athenians sent for aid to Sparta, but the
people of that city, learning that Athens had defied