volume one

IIISTOIIY OF THE CEUSADES. 133
away tlie pavilions and tents ; moisture relaxed the bows
and rust gnawed into both lances and swords. The greater
part of the soldiers Avere without clothes ; and contagious
diseases carried off both men and animals. Eains, cold,
famine, epidemic diseases, made such ravages, that, according
to the report of William of Tyre, the Crusaders had not
either time or space to bury their dead.*
In the midst of the general distress, Bohemond and
the duke of Normandy were commissioned to go and scour
the country in search of provisions. In the course of
their incursion they defeated several detachments of Saracens,
and returned to the camp Avith a considerable booty.
But the provisions they brought could not be sufficient to
support a large army for any length of time ; every da}^ they
made fresh incursions, and every day were less successful.
All the country of Upper Syria had been ravaged by the
Turks and Christians. The Crusaders Avho were sent on
these foraging parties often put the infidels to flight; but victory,
which was almost always their only resource in moments
of want, could not bring back abundance to their camp.
To fill up the measure of their miseries, all communication
was stopped with Constantinople ; the fleets of the Pisans
and Genoese no longer coasted the countries occupied by
the Crusaders. The port of St. Simeon, situated at three
leagues from Antioch, saw no vessel now arrive from either
Greece or the West. The Flemish pirates, who had taken
up the cross at -Tarsus, after possessing themselves of Laodicea,
had been surprised by the Greeks, and Avere detained
prisoners during several Aveeks. The darkest future lay
before the Christians ; they no longer talked of anything but
of the losses they had sustained, and of the evils with Avhich
they Avere threatened ; each day the most afflicting intelligence
was spread through the array.
It Avas said that the son of Savcuo, king of Denmark,
Avho had assumed the cross, and was leading fifteen hundred
horsemen to the holy Avar, had been surprised by the Turks
* We have taken the details of the siege of Antioch from the following
authors : William of Tyre, Albert d'Aix, Baudry, Robert, Tudebode,
Raymond d'Agiles, Guibert, Raoul de Caen, Foiicher de Chartres,
Oderic-Vital, Paul Emile, Bernard Thesaurius, Accolti, Duchat, Mailly,
De Guignes, Albufaradge, &c. &c.
;