ought the first
incoherent account of its defeat. Every one who attempted to tell the
tale of this unaccountable panic and dispersion was as if bewildered by
the broken recollection of some frightful dream. He knew not how or why
it came to pass. He talked of a battle in the night, among rocks and
precipices, by the glare of bale-fires; of multitudes of armed foes in
every pass, seen by gleams and flashes; of the sudden horror that seized
upon the army at daybreak, its headlong flight, and total dispersion.
Hour after hour the arrival of other fugitives confirmed the story of
ruin and disgrace.

In proportion to their recent vaunting was the humiliation that now fell
upon the people of Granada. There was a universal burst, not of grief,
but indignation. They confounded the leader with the army--the deserted
with those who had abandoned him, and El Zagal, from being their idol,
became suddenly the object of their execration. He had sacrificed the
army; he had disgraced the nation; he had betrayed the country. He was a
dastard, a traitor; he was unworthy to reign.

On a sudden one among the multitude shouted, "Long live Boabdil el
Chico!" The cry was echoed on all sides, and every one shouted, "Long
live Boabdil el Chico! long live the legitimate king of Granada! and
death to all usurpers!" In the excitement of the moment they thronged
to the Albaycin, and those who had lately besieged Boabdil with arms now
surrounded his palace with acclamations. The keys of the city and of
all the fortresses were laid at his feet; he was borne in state to the
Alhambra, and once more seated with all due ceremony on the throne of
his ancestors.

Boabdil had by this time become so accustomed to be crowned and
uncrowned by the multitude that he put no great faith in the duration of
their loyalty. He knew that he was surrounded by hollow hearts, and
that most of the courtiers of the Alhambra were secretly devoted to his
uncle. He ascended the throne as the rightful sovereign who had been
dispossessed of it by usurpation, and he ordered the heads of four
of the principal nobles to be struck off who had been most zealous in
support of the (9) usurper. Executions of the kind were matters of course
on any change in Moorish government, and Boabdil was lauded for his
moderation and humanity in being content with so small a sacrifice.
The factions were awed into obedience; the populace, delighted with any
change, extolled Boabdil to the skies; a