History of the Peloponnesian War

The shouting with which the Athenians accompanied their charge caused consternation among the Lacedaemonians, who were unaccustomed to this manner of fighting; and the dust from the newly-burned forest rose in clouds to the sky, so that a man could not see what was in front of him by reason of the arrows and stones, hurled, in the midst of the dust, by many hands.

And so the battle began to go hard with the Lacedaemonians; for their felt cuirasses afforded them no protection against the arrows, and the points of the javelins broke off and clung there when the men were struck. They were, therefore, quite at their wits' end, since the dust shut off their view ahead and they could not hear the word of command on their own side because the enemy's shouts were louder. Danger encompassed them on every side and they despaired of any means of defence availing to save them.

At last when they saw that their men were being wounded in large numbers because they had to move backwards and forwards always on the same ground, they closed ranks and fell back to the farthermost fortification on the island, which was not far distant, and to their own garrison stationed there.