Chares and Clearchus aroused more curiosity as they rode through the narrower streets of the commercial quarter, where they were forced to proceed more slowly because of the throngs. They were soon recognized as of the race of the enemy.
"See the Greeks!" cried a bare-legged urchin in a shrill voice.
"By Ormazd, that is a big one!" said a soldier in a lounging group, pointing to Chares.
"Granicus! Granicus! Kill the Greeks!" a woman screamed from the top of one of the flat-roofed houses.
Her imprecation caused a stir among the idlers, who pressed forward to learn what was the matter and to obtain a better view. The rumor ran that there was to be fighting, and customers poured out of booth and bazaar to see it. They came good-naturedly, but in such numbers that they quickly blocked the way and brought the troop to a halt. Some mischievous boys began to pelt the horses with pebbles, causing them to rear and plunge. One of the animals kicked a man in the crowd, who struck at the rider with his staff. The Arab lunged back with the butt of his lance. The crowd drew out of the way, jeering and laughing.
Meanwhile the woman on the roof continued her cry. "Kill the Greeks!" she screamed. "Slay them! Remember the Granicus, where they slew my son!"
Her words were taken up and repeated by other women who leaned from the house-tops on either side of the street. The crowd continued to gather, those behind pushing the foremost against the plunging horses. Several were trampled upon.
"Go away," commanded the lieutenant. "Stand back, you hounds; these are prisoners for the king."
"Prisoners!" howled the mob. "Kill the prisoners! Burn the murderers! They would assassinate the king!"
The crowd showed signs of becoming inflamed. Some of the bolder spirits made a rush for the horsemen, seeking to pull them down and break the circle that the Arabs had formed about the two Greeks. The impact swept the little party into an angle between two houses, from which there was no escape save through the multitude. The women began to shower sticks and tiles upon them from the roofs. It became necessary for them to raise their shields to protect their heads from the missiles.