angels joining the armies of the
rebels on Earth. But no one lent an ear to the odious rumours, and
stress was laid on the news of victory which ran from lip to lip, each
statement readily finding confirmation. The high places resounded with
hymns of joy; the Seraphim celebrated on harp and psaltery Sabaoth, God
of Thunder. The voices of the elect united with those of the angels in
glorifying the Invisible and at the thought of the bloodshed that the
ministers of holy wrath had caused among the rebels, sighs of relief and
jubilation were wafted from the Heavenly Jerusalem towards the Most
High. But the beatitude of the most blessed, having swelled to the
utmost limit before due time, could increase no more, and the very
excess of their felicity completely dulled their senses.

The songs had not yet ceased when the guards watching on the ramparts
signalled the approach of the first fugitives of the divine army;
Seraphim on tattered wing, flying in disorder, maimed Kerubs going on
three feet. With impassive gaze, Michael, prince of warriors, measured
the extent of the disaster, and his keen intelligence penetrated its
causes. The armies of the living God had taken the offensive, but by one
of those fatalities in war which disconcert the plans of the greatest
captains, the enemy had also taken the offensive, and the effect was
evident. Scarcely were the gates of the citadel opened to receive the
glorious but shattered remnants of the three armies, when a rain of fire
fell on the Mountain of God. Satan's army was not yet in sight, but the
walls of topaz, the cupolas of emerald, the roofs of diamond, all fell
in with an appalling crash under the discharge of the electrophores. The
ancient thunderclouds essayed to reply, but the bolts fell short, and
their thunders were lost in the deserted plains of the skies.

Smitten by an invisible foe, the faithful angels abandoned the ramparts.
Michael went to announce to his God that the Holy Mountain would fall
into the hands of the demon in twenty-four hours, and that nothing
remained for the Master of the Heavens but to seek safety in flight. The
Seraphim placed the jewels of the celestial crown in coffers. Michael
offered his arm to the Queen of Heaven, and the Holy Family escaped from
the palace by a subterranean passage of porphyry. A deluge of fire was
falling on the citadel. Regaining his post once more, the glorious
archangel declared that he would never capitulate, and straig