THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF ILLINOIS 
 LIBRARY 
 
 From the collection of 
 Julius Doerner, Chicago 
 Purchased, 1918. 
 
 930 
 
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 Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 in 2019 with funding from 
 
 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Alternates 
 
 
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■ 
 
 R ollinis Hitt orv 
 
THE 
 
 ► 
 
 ANCIENT HISTORY 
 
 THE EGYPTIANS, CARTHAGINIANS, ASSYRIANS, 
 BABYLONIANS, MEDES AND PERSIANS, 
 GRECIANS, AND MACEDONIANS. 
 
 BY M. ROLLIN, 
 
 LATE PRINCIPAL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PARIS, PROFESSOR OF ELOQUENCE IN THE ROYAL 
 COLLEGE, AND MEMBER OF THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF INSCRIPTIONS 
 AND BELLES-LETTRES. 
 
 TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH. 
 
 THE EIGHTEENTH EDITION, 
 
 REVISED, CORRECTED, AND ILLUSTRATED WITH MAPS. 
 
 / 
 
 IN SIX VOLUMES. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 PRINTED FOR THOMAS TEGG AND SON, CHEAP^IDE. 
 
 - MDCCCXXXIV. 
 
BUNGAY: 
 
 STEREOTYPED AND PRINTED BY J. R. AND C. CHILDS. 
 
TftrA f /s 
 
 yf'j f 
 
 is. <EL» 
 
 CONTENTS OF VOL. II. 
 
 BOOK IV. 
 
 THE FOUNDATION OF THE EMPIRE OF THE PERSIANS AND ML’DES, 
 
 BY CYRUS : CONTAINING THE REIGNS OF CYRUS, OF CAMBYSES* 
 
 AND SMERD1S THE M AG I AN. 
 
 Page 
 
 Chap. I. The history of Cyrus. 1 
 
 Art. I. The history of Cyrus from his infancy to the siege of 
 
 Babylon.2 
 
 Sect. I. Cyrus’s education.ib. 
 
 II. Cyrus’s journey to his grandfather Astyages, and his re¬ 
 
 turn into Persia.4 
 
 III. The first campaign of Cyrus, who goes to succour his 
 
 uncle Cyaxares against the Babylonians ... 7 
 
 IV. The expedition of Cyaxares and Cyrus against the Baby¬ 
 
 lonians. The first battle . . . . . .18 
 
 V. The battle of Thymbra, between Cyrus and Croesus . 31 
 
 VI. The taking of Sardis and of Croesus . . . .40 
 
 Art. II. The history of the besieging and taking of Babylon by 
 
 Cyrus.44 
 
 Sect. I. Predictions of the principal circumstances relating to the 
 siege and the taking of Babylon, as they are set down 
 in different places of the Holy Scriptures . . . ib. 
 
 1. The prediction of the Jewish captivity at Babylon, and 
 
 of the time of its duration ...... 45 
 
 2. The cause's of God’s wrath against Babylon . . ib. 
 
 3. The decree pronounced against Babylon. Prediction 
 
 of the calamities that were to fall upon her, and of 
 her utter destruction ....... 46 
 
 4. Cyrus called to destroy Babylon, and to deliver the 
 
 Jews.47 
 
 5. God gives the signal to the commanders, and to the 
 
 troops, to march against Babylon .... ib. 
 
 6. Particular circumstances set down relating to the siege 
 
 and the taking of Babylon ...... 48 
 
 Sect. II. A description of the taking of Babylon . . . .51 
 
 III. The completion of the prophecy which foretold the total 
 
 ruin and destruction of Babylon . . . . .55 
 
 IV. What followed upon the taking of Babylon . . .58 
 
 Art. III. The history of Cyrus, from the taking of Babylon to the 
 
 time of his death ........ 64 
 
 Sect. I. Cyrus takes a journey into Persia. At his return from 
 thence to Babylon, he forms a plan of government for 
 the whole empire. Daniel’s credit and power . . 65 
 
 II. The beginning of the united empire of the Persians and 
 Medes. The famous edict of Cyrus. Daniel’s pro¬ 
 
 phecies .......... 67 
 
 Reflections upon Daniel’s prophecies. . . . .63 
 
 III. The last years of Cyrus. The death of that prince . . 73 
 
 Character and Eulogy of Cyrus.75 
 
11 
 
 CONTENTS OF VOL. II. 
 
 Sect. IV. Wherein Herodotus and Xenophon differ in their ac¬ 
 counts of Cyrus. 
 
 Chap. II. The history of Cambyses . - . 
 
 III. The history of Smerdis the Magian .... 
 
 IV. The manners and customs of the Assyrians, Babylonians, 
 
 Lydians, Medes, and Persians. 
 
 Art. I. Of their government. 
 
 Sect. I. Their monarchical form of government. The respect they 
 paid their kings. The manner of educating their chil¬ 
 dren . 
 
 II. The public council, wherein the affairs of state were con¬ 
 sidered . 
 
 III. The administration of justice 
 
 IV. The care of the provinces . 
 
 V. Administration of the revenues . 
 
 Art. II. Of their war ..... 
 
 Sect. I. Their entrance upon military discipline 
 
 II. Their armour ..... 
 
 III. Chariots armed with scythes 
 
 IV. Their discipline in peace as well as war 
 V. Their order of battle .... 
 
 VI. Their manner of attacking and defending strong places 
 
 1. Their way of attacking places 
 
 2. Their manner of defending places . 
 
 VIT. The condition of the Persian forces after 
 
 Art. III. Arts and sciences 
 Sect. I. Architecture 
 
 II. 
 
 III. 
 
 IV. 
 
 V. 
 
 Art. IV, 
 
 Page 
 
 81 
 
 83 
 
 92 
 
 96 
 
 97 
 
 Cyrus 
 
 s time 
 
 ib. 
 
 Music 
 Physic 
 Astronomy 
 Judicial astrology 
 Religion . 
 
 Their marriages, and the manner of burying the dead 
 Art. V. The cause of the declension of the Persian empire, 
 of the change that happened in their manners 
 
 Sect. I. Luxury and magnificence. 
 
 II. The abject submission and slavery of the Persians . 
 
 III. The wrong education of their princes another cause of the 
 
 declension of the Persian empire . . . . . 
 
 IV. Their breach of faith and w ant of sincerity 
 
 and 
 
 100 
 
 102 
 
 106 
 
 113 
 
 115 
 
 116 
 ib. 
 117 
 
 119 
 
 120 
 122 
 ib. 
 1*23 
 124 
 126 
 127 
 ib. 
 129 
 131 
 133 
 136 
 141 
 
 143 
 
 144 
 146 
 
 150 
 
 152 
 
 BOOK V. 
 
 the history of the origin and first settlement of the 
 
 SEVERAL STATES AND GOVERNMENTS OF GREECE . . . 154 
 
 Art. I. A geographical description of ancient Greece . . . 155 
 
 Greece, properly so called ........ 156 
 
 The Grecian isles.ib. 
 
 Art. II. Division of the Grecian history into four several ages . 157 
 Art. III. The primitive origin of the Grecians .... 158 
 
 Art. IV. The different states into which Greece was divided . 161 
 Art. V. Colonies of the Greeks sent into Asia Minor . . . 165 
 
 The Grecian dialects ......... 167 
 
 Art. VI. The republican form of government almost generally 
 established throughout Greece ....... 168 
 
 Art. VII. The Spartan government. Laws established by Ly- 
 
 curgus.169 
 
 1. Institution. The senate.171 
 
CONTENTS OF VOL. II. 
 
 iii 
 
 Page 
 
 2. Institution. The division of the lands, and the prohibition 
 
 of gold and silver money.172 
 
 3. Institution. The public meals.173 
 
 4. Othei«ordinances.174 
 
 Reflections upon the government of Sparta, and upon the laws of 
 
 Lycurgus *.ISO 
 
 1. Things commendable in the laws of Lycurgus . . . ib. 
 
 2. Things blamable in the laws of Lycurgus .... 185 
 Art. VIII. The government of Athens. The laws of Solon. The 
 
 history of that republic from the time of Solon to the reign of 
 
 Darius the First.189 
 
 Art. IX. Illustrious men who distinguished themselves in arts and 
 
 sciences ........... 207 
 
 Of the seven wise men of Greece.215 
 
 BOOK VI. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF THE PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 Chap. I. The history of Darius intermixed with that of the Greeks 
 Sect. I. Darius’s marriages. The imposition of tributes. The 
 insolence and punishment of Intaphernes. The death 
 of Oretes. The story of Democedes a physician. The 
 Jews permitted to carry on the building of their temple. 
 The generosity of Syloson rewarded .... 
 
 IT. Revolt and reduction of Babylon ..... 
 
 TIL Darius prepares for an expedition against the Scythians. 
 A digression upon the manners and customs of that 
 nation ....... 
 
 A digression concerning the Scythians 
 IV. Darius’s expedition against the Scythians 
 Darius’s conquest of India 
 VI. The revolt of the lonians ... 
 
 VII. The expedition of Darius’s army against Greece 
 
 1. The state of Athens. The characters of Miltiades, 
 
 Themistocles, and Aristides . ... . 
 
 2. Darius sends heralds into Greece, in order to sound 
 
 the people, and to require them to submit 
 
 3. The Persians defeated at Marathon by Miltiades. The 
 
 melancholy end of that general ..... 
 
 VIII. Darius resolves to make war in person against Egypt 
 and against Greece : is prevented by death. Dispute 
 
 224 
 
 between two of his sons, 
 the crown. Xerxes is chosen king 
 
 concerning 
 
 the succession to 
 
 Chap. II. The history of Xerxes, connected with that of the Greeks 
 Sect. I. Xerxes, after having reduced Egypt, makes preparations 
 for carrying the war into Greece. He holds a council. The pru¬ 
 dent speech of Artabanes. War is resolved upon 
 Sect. II. Xerxes begins his march, and passes from Asia into 
 Europe, by crossing the straits of the Hellespont upon a bridge 
 of boats ........ ... 
 
 Sect. III. Enumeration of Xerxes’s forces. Demaratus delivers 
 his sentiments freely upon that prince’s enterprise 
 Sect. IV. The Lacedaemonians and Athenians send to their allies 
 to require succours from them, but to no purpose. The com¬ 
 mand of the fleet given to the Lacedaemonians . . . . 
 
 Sect. V. The battle of Thermopylae The death of Leonidas 
 Sect. VI. Naval battle near Artemisinin. 
 
 ib. 
 
 234 
 
 237 
 
 ib. 
 
 243 
 
 252 
 
 253 
 261 
 
 262 
 
 267 
 
 268 
 
 277 
 
 282 
 
 ib. 
 
 289 
 
 295 
 
 298 
 
 303 
 
 308 
 
IV 
 
 CONTENTS OF VOL. II. 
 
 Page 
 
 Sect. YII. The Athenians abandon their city, which is taken and 
 
 burnt by Xerxes.310 
 
 Sect. YIII. The battle of Salamis. Precipitate return of Xerxes 
 into Asia. Panegyric of Themistocles and Aristides. The defeat 
 
 of the Carthaginians in Sicily.313 
 
 Sect. IX. The battle of Plataeae.321 
 
 Sect. X. The battle near Mycale. The defeat of the Persians . 334 
 Sect. XI. The barbarous and inhuman revenge of Amestris, the 
 wife of Xerxes .......... 336 
 
 Sect. XII. The Athenians rebuild the walls of their city, notwith¬ 
 standing the opposition of the Lacedaemonians .... 338 
 
 Sect. XI1T. The black design of Themistocles rejected unani¬ 
 mously by the people of Athens. Aristides’s condescension to 
 
 the people.341 
 
 Sect. XIV. The Lacedaemonians lose the chief command through 
 the pride and arrogance of Pausanias ...... 343 
 
 Sect. XV. Pausanias’s secret conspiracy with the Persians. His 
 death ............ 345 
 
 Sect. XYI. Themistocles, being prosecuted by the Athenians and 
 Lacedaemonians, as an accomplice in Pausanias’s conspiracy, 
 
 Dies for shelter to king Admetus ....... 347 
 
 Sect. XVII. Aristides’s disinterested administration of the public 
 treasure. His death and eulogium ...... 350 
 
 Sect. XVIII. Death of Xerxes, who is killed by Artabanus. His 
 character ........... 355 
 
 BOOK VII. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 Sect. 1. Artaxerxes ruins the faction of Artabanus, and that of 
 Hystaspes his elder brother ........ 358 
 
 Sect. II. Themistocles takes refuge with Artaxerxes . . . 360 
 
 Sect. III. Cimon begins to make a figure at Athens. His first 
 achievements. A double victory gained over the Persians, near 
 the river Eurymedon. Death of Themistocles .... 363 
 
 Sect. IV. The revolt of the Egyptians against Persia, supported 
 by the Athenians .......... 371 
 
 Sect. V. Inarus is delivered up to the king’s mother, contrary to 
 the articles of the treaty. The affliction of Megabyzus, who 
 revolts ............ 374 
 
 Sect. VI. Artaxerxes sends Ezra, and afterwards Nehemiah, to 
 Jerusalem ........... 376 
 
 Sect. VII. Character of Pericles. The methods employed by him 
 to gain the affection of the people ...... 378 
 
 Sect. VIII. An earthquake in Sparta. Insurrection of the Helots. 
 Seeds of division between the Athenians and Spartans. Cimon 
 is sent into banishment 385 
 
 Sect. IX. Cimon is recalled. He establishes peace between the 
 two cities. He gains several victories, which reduce Artaxerxes 
 to the necessity of concluding a treaty highly honourable to the 
 Greeks. Cimon’s death ........ 387 
 
 Sect. X. Thucydides is opposed to Pericles. The envy raised 
 against the latter. He clears himself, and succeeds in procuring 
 the banishment of Thucydides ....... 390 
 
 Sect. XI. Pericles changes his conduct towards the people. His 
 prodigious authority. His disinterestedness .... 394 
 
CONTENTS OF VOL. II. 
 
 V 
 
 Page 
 
 Sect. XII. Jealousy and contests arise between the Athenians 
 and Lacedaemonians. A treaty of peace is concluded for thirty 
 
 years.397 
 
 Sect. XIII. New subjects of contention between the two nations, 
 occasioned by the Athenians laying siege to Samos ; by their 
 succouring the people of Corcyra, and besieging Potidaea; an 
 open rupture .......... 400 
 
 Sect. XIV. Troubles excited against Pericles. He determines 
 the Athenians to engage in war against the Lacedaemonians . 407 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 Transactions of the Greeks in Sicily and Italy .... 412 
 Sect. I. The Carthaginians are defeated in Sicily. Theron, tyrant 
 of Agrigentum. Reign of Gelon in Syracuse, and his two brothers. 
 Liberty is restored . . . . . . . . . ib. 
 
 Sect. II. Of some famous persons and citizens in Graecia Magna; 
 Pythagoras, Charondas, Zeleucus, Milo the athleta : Crotona, 
 Sybaris, and Thurium.. . 423 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 The war of Peloponnesus ........ 431 
 
 Sect. I. The siege of Plataeae by the Thebans. Alternate ravages 
 of Attica and Peloponnesus. Honours paid to the Athenians 
 who fell in the first campaign ....... 432 
 
 Sect. II. The plague makes dreadful havoc in Attica. Pericles is 
 divested of the command. The Lacedaemonians have recourse 
 to the Persians for aid. Potidaea is taken by the Athenians. 
 Pericles is restored to his employment. His death, and that of 
 Anaxagoras ........... 43 
 
 Sect. III. The Lacedaemonians besiege Plataeae. Mitylene is taken 
 by the Athenians. Plataeae surrenders. The plague breaks out 
 again in Athens .......... 447 
 
 Sect. IV. The Athenians possess themselves of Pylus, and are 
 afterwards besieged in it. The Spartans are shut up in the little 
 island of Sphacteria. Cleon makes himself master of it. Ar- 
 taxerxes dies .......... 460 
 
BOOK IV. 
 
 THE 
 
 FOUNDATION OF THE EMPIRE 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PERSIANS AND MEDES, 
 
 BY CYRUS: 
 
 CONTAINING THE REIGNS OF CYRUS, OF CAMBYSES, 
 AND SMERDIS THE MAGIAN. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF CYRUS. 
 
 The history of this prince is differently related by Herodotus 
 and Xenophon. I follow the latter, as judging him infinitely 
 more worthy of credit on this subject than the former; and as 
 to those facts wherein they differ, I shall think it sufficient 
 briefly to relate what Herodotus says of them. It is well known, 
 that Xenophon served a long time under the younger Cyrus, 
 who had in his troops a great number of Persian noblemen, with 
 whom undoubtedly this writer, considering how curious he was, 
 did often converse, in order to acquaint himself by that means 
 with the manners and customs of the Persians, with their con¬ 
 quests in general, but more particularly with those of the prince 
 who had founded their monarchy, and whose history he pro¬ 
 posed to write. This he tells us himself, in the beginning of his 
 Cyropaedia: Having always looked upon this great man as 
 worthy of admiration, I took a pleasure of informing myself 
 of his birth, his natural disposition, and the method of his 
 education, that I might know by what means he became so 
 great a prince ; and herein I advance nothing but what has 
 been told me. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 B 
 
2 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 As to what Cicero says, in liis first letter to his brother Quin¬ 
 tus, that Xenophon's design, in writing the history of Cyrus, 
 was not so much to follow truth, as to give a model of a just 
 government ; a this ought not to lessen the authority of that ju¬ 
 dicious historian, or make us give the less credit to what he 
 relates. All that can be inferred from thence is, that the design 
 of Xenophon, who was a great philosopher, as well as a great 
 captain, was not merely to write Cyrus’s history, but to repre¬ 
 sent him as a model and example to princes, for their instruction 
 in the arts of reigning, and of gaining the love of their subjects, 
 notwithstanding the pomp and elevation of their stations. 
 With this view he may possibly have lent his hero some thoughts, 
 some sentiments, or discourses, of his own. But the substance 
 of the facts and events he relates, is to be deemed true; and of 
 this their conformity with the holy Scripture is of itself a suffi¬ 
 cient proof. The reader may see the dissertation of the Abbe 
 Banier upon this subject in the Memoirs of the Academy of 
 Belles Lettres. b 
 
 For the greater perspicuity, I divide the history of Cyrus 
 into three parts. The first will reach from his birth to the siege 
 of Babylon : the second will comprehend the description of the 
 siege, and the taking of that city, with every thing else that re¬ 
 lates to that great event: the third will contain that prince’s 
 history, from the taking of Babylon to his death. 
 
 ARTICLE I. 
 
 The history of Cyrus from his Infancy to the siege of Babylon. 
 
 This interval, besides his education, and the journey he made 
 into Media to his grandfather Astyages, includes the first cam¬ 
 paigns of Cyrus, and the important expeditions subsequent to 
 them. 
 
 Sect. I. Cyrus’s Education. 
 
 Cyrus was the son of Cambyses, king of Per- 
 Ant/J. C 4 °599 anc ^ Mandane, daughter to Astyages, king 
 of the Medes. c He was born one year after his 
 uncle Cyaxares, the brother of Mandane. 
 
 The Persians were at this time divided into twelve tribes, 
 and inhabited only one province of that vast country which has 
 since born the name of Persia, and were not in all above 
 120,000 men. But this people having afterwards, through the 
 
 a Cyrus ille a Xenophonte, non ad historiae fidem scriptus, sed ad effigiem 
 justi imperii. b Vol. vi. p. 400. 
 
 c Xen. Cyrop. 1. i. p. 3. 
 

 CYRUS. 3 
 
 prudence and valor of Cyrus, acquired the empire of the East, 
 the name of Persia extended itself with their conquests and 
 fortune, and comprehended all that vast tract of country which 
 reaches, from east to west, from the river Indus to the Tigris ; 
 and from north to south, from the Caspian sea to the ocean. 
 And still to this day the country of Persia has the same extent. 
 
 Cyrus was beautiful in his person, and still more deserving of 
 esteem for the qualities of his mind; was of a very sweet dis¬ 
 position, full of good nature and humanity, and had a great 
 desire for learning, and a noble ardour for glory. He was never 
 afraid of any danger, or discouraged by any hardship or diffi¬ 
 culty, where honour was to be acquired. He was brought up 
 according to the laws &nd customs of the Persians, which were 
 excellent in those days with respect to education. 
 
 The public good, the common benefit of the nation, was the 
 only principle and end of all their laws/ 1 The education of chil¬ 
 dren was looked upon as the most important duty, and the most 
 essential part of government: it was not left to the care of fa¬ 
 thers and mothers, whose blind affection and fondness often 
 rendered them incapable of that office ; but the state took it 
 upon themselves. Boys were brought up in common, after one 
 uniform manner; where every thing was regulated, the place 
 and length of their exercises, the times of eating, the quality of 
 their meat and drink, and their different kinds of punishment. 
 The only food allowed either the children or the young men, was 
 bread, cresses, and water ; for their design was to accustom 
 them early to temperance and sobriety; besides, they consi¬ 
 dered, that a plain, frugal diet, without any mixture of sauces 
 or ragouts, would strengthen the body, and lay such a founda¬ 
 tion of health, as would enable them to undergo the hardships 
 and fatigues of war to a good old age. 
 
 Here boys went to school to learn justice and virtue, as they 
 do in other places to learn arts and sciences; and the crime 
 most severely punished amongst them was ingratitude. 
 
 The design of the Persians, in all these wise regulations, was 
 to prevent evil, being convinced that it is much better to prevent 
 faults than to punish them: and whereas in other states the le¬ 
 gislators are satisfied with enacting punishments for criminals, 
 the Persians endeavoured so to order it, as to have no criminals 
 amongst them. 
 
 Till sixteen or seventeen years of age the boys remained in 
 the class of children; and here it was they learned to draw the 
 bow, and to fling the dart or javelin; after which they were re¬ 
 ceived into the class of young men. In this they were more 
 narrowly watched and kept under than before, because that age" 
 
 cl Ibid. p. 3—8. 
 
 B 2 
 
 / 
 
4 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 requires the strictest inspection, and has the greatest need of 
 restraint. Here they remained ten years; during which time 
 they passed all their nights in keeping guard, as well for the 
 safety of the city, as to inure them to fatigue. In the day-time 
 they waited upon their governors, to receive their orders, attend¬ 
 ed upon the king when he went a hunting, or improved them¬ 
 selves in their exercises. 
 
 The third class consisted of men grown up; and in this they 
 remained five-and-twenty years. Out of these all the officers 
 that were to command in the troops, and all such as were to fill 
 the different posts and employments in the state were chosen. 
 When they were turned of fifty, they were not obliged to carry 
 arms out of their own country. 
 
 Besides these, there was a fourth or last class, from whence 
 men of the greatest wisdom and experience were chosen, for 
 forming the public council, and presiding in the courts of 
 judicature. 
 
 By this means every citizen might aspire to the chief posts in 
 the government; but no one could arrive at them till he had pass¬ 
 ed through all these several classes, and qualified himself for 
 them by all these exercises. The classes were open to all; but 
 generally such only as were rich enough to maintain their chil¬ 
 dren without working, sent them thither. 
 
 Cyrus himself was educated in this manner, and surpassed all 
 of his age, e not only in aptness to learn, but in courage and 
 address in executing whatever he undertook. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 Cyrus’s journey to his grandfather Astyages, and his return into Persia. 
 
 When Cyrus was twelve years old, his mother Mandane took 
 him with her into Media, to his grandfather Astyages, who, from 
 the many things he had heard said in favor of that young prince, 
 had a great desire to see him. In this court, young Cyrus found 
 very different manners from those of his own country. Pride, 
 luxury, and magnificence, reigned here universally. Astyages 
 himself was richly clothed, had his eyes coloured/ his face paint¬ 
 ed, and his hair embellished with artificial locks. For the 
 
 Cyrop. 1. i. p. 8—22. 
 
 f The ancients, m order to set off the beauty of the face, and to give more 
 life to their complexions, used to form their eye-brows into perfect arches, and 
 to colour them with black. .To give the greater lustre to their eyes, they 
 made their eye-lashes of the same blackness. This artifice was much in use 
 among the Hebrews. It is said of Jezebel, Depinocit oculos suos stibio , 2 Kings 
 dx. 30. This drug had an astringent quality, which shrunk up the eye-lids, 
 and made the eyes appear the larger, which at that time was reckoned a beau¬ 
 ty. Plin. 1. xxxiii. c. 6. From hence comes that epithet, which Homer so 
 often gives to his goddesses: (3ooj7rig "Hprj, great-eyed Juno. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 5 
 
 Medes affected an effeminate life, to be dressed in scarlet, and 
 to wear necklaces and bracelets ; whereas the habits of the Per¬ 
 sians were very plain and coarse. All this finery did not dazzle 
 Cyrus, who without criticising or condemning what he saw, was 
 contented to live as he had been brought up, and adhered to the 
 principles he had imbibed from his infancy. He charmed his 
 grandfather with his sprightliness and wit, and gained every 
 body’s favour by his noble and engaging behaviour. I shall 
 only mention one instance, whereby we may judge of the rest. 
 
 Astyages, to make his grandson unwilling to return home, 
 made a sumptuous entertainment, in which there was the utmost 
 plenty and profusion of every thing that was nice and delicate. 
 Ail this exquisite cheer and magnificent preparation Cyrus look¬ 
 ed upon with great indifference; and observing Astyages to be 
 surprised at his behaviour: The Persians, says he to the king, 
 instead of going such a round-about way to appease tlieir hun¬ 
 ger, have a much shorter to the same end; a little bread and 
 cresses with them answer the purpose. Astyages having allow¬ 
 ed Cyrus to dispose of all the meats as he thought fit, the latter 
 immediately distributed them to the king’s officers in waiting; 
 to one, because he taught him to ride; to another, because he 
 waited well upon his grandfather; and to a third, because he 
 took great care of his mother. Sacas, the king’s cup-bearer, 
 was the only person to whom he gave nothing. This officer, 
 besides the post of cup-bearer, had that likewise of introducing 
 those who were to have audience of the king; and as he 
 could not possibly grant that favour to Cyrus as often as he de¬ 
 sired it, he had the misfortune to displease the prince, who took 
 this occasion to show his resentment. Astyages testifying some 
 concern at this neglect shown to this officer, for whom he had a 
 particular regard, and who deserved it, as he said, on account 
 of the wonderful dexterity with which he served him: Is that 
 all, papa ? replied Cyrus; if that be sufficient to merit your 
 favour, you shall see I will quickly obtain it; for I will take 
 upon me to serve you better than he. Immediately Cyrus is 
 equipped as a cup-bearer, and advancing gravely with a serious 
 countenance, a napkin upon his shoulder, and holding the cup 
 nicely with three of his fingers, he presented it to the king, with 
 a dexterity and a grace that charmed both Astyages and Man- 
 dane. When he had done, he flung himself upon his grandfa¬ 
 ther’s neck, and kissing him cried out with great joy : O Sacas ! 
 poor Sacas! thou art undone ; I shall have thy place.* As¬ 
 tyages embraced him with great fondness, and said, I am 
 mighty well pleased, my dear child; nobody can serve me with 
 a better grace : but you have forgot ten one essential ceremony, 
 
 T Q 2««ra, ciKoXwXas' tK{3a\w ot rfjg Tifirjc. 
 
6 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 which is that of tasting. And indeed the cup-bearer was used 
 to pour some of the liquor into his left hand, and to taste it, 
 before he presented it to the king : No, replied Cyrus, it is not 
 through forgetfulness that I omitted that ceremony .— Why, 
 then, says Astyages, for ichat reason did you do it?—Because 
 I apprehended there ivas poison in the liquor. — Poison, child ! 
 Hoiv could you think so? Yes; poison, papa; for not long 
 ago, at an entertainment you gave to the lords of your 
 court, after the guests had drunk a little of that liquor, I 
 perceived all their heads were turned; they sung, made a noise, 
 and, tcdked they did not know what: you yourself seemed to 
 have forgotten that you were king, and they that they were 
 subjects; and when you would have danced, you could not 
 stand upon your legs. — Why, says Astyages, have you never 
 seen the same thing happen to your father?' — No, never, says 
 Cyrus. How is it with him when he drinks? — Why, when he 
 has drunk, his thirst is quenched, and thafs all. 
 
 We cannot too much admire the skill of the historian in giv¬ 
 ing such an excellent lesson of sobriety in this story : he might 
 have done it in a serious, grave way, and have spoken with the 
 air of a philosopher ; for Xenophon, warrior as he was, was no 
 less excellent a philosopher than his master Socrates. But in¬ 
 stead of that, he puts the instruction into the mouth of a child, 
 and conceals it under the veil of a story, which, in the original, 
 is told with all the wit and agreeableness imaginable. 
 
 Mandane being upon the point of returning to Persia, Cy¬ 
 rus joyfully complied with the repeated requests his grandfather 
 had made to him to stay in Media; being desirous, as he said, 
 to perfect himself in the art of riding, which he was not yet 
 master of, and which was not known in Persia, where the bar¬ 
 renness of his country, and its craggy, mountainous situation, 
 rendered it unfit for the breeding of horses. 
 
 During the time of his residence at this court, his behaviour 
 procured him infinite love and esteem. He was gentle, affable, 
 anxious to oblige, beneficent, and generous. Whenever the 
 young lords had any favour to ask of the king, Cyrus was their 
 solicitor. If the king had any subject of complaint against them, 
 Cyrus was their mediator; their affairs became his ; and he al¬ 
 ways managed them so well, that he obtained whatever he 
 desired. 
 
 When Cyrus was about sixteen years of age, the son of the 
 king of the Babylonians 11 [this was Evil-Merodach, son of Na- 
 buchodonoser], at a hunting match a little before his marriage, 
 
 h In Xenophon this people are always called Assyrians; and in truth they 
 are Assyrians, but Assyrians of Babylon, whom we must not confound with 
 those of Nineveh, wdiose empire, as we have seen already, ivas utterly de¬ 
 stroyed by the ruin of Nineveh, the capital thereof. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 7 
 
 thought fit, in order to show his bravery, to make an irruption 
 into the territories of the Medes; which obliged Astyages to 
 take the field, to oppose the invader. Here it was that Cyrus, 
 having followed his grandfather, served his apprenticeship in 
 war. He behaved himself so well upon this occasion, that the 
 victory which the Medes gained over the Babylonians was 
 chiefly owing to his valour. 
 
 The year after, his father recalling him, that 
 Anti j. c. 583 m ight complete his course in the Persian ex¬ 
 ercises, he departed immediately from the court 
 of Media, that neither his father nor his country might have any 
 room to complain of his delay. This occasion showed how much 
 he was beloved. At his departure he was accompanied by all 
 sorts of people, young and old. Astyages himself conducted him 
 a good part of his journey on horseback; and when the sad 
 moment came that they must part, the whole company were 
 bathed in tears. 
 
 Thus Cyrus returned into his own country, and re-entered the 
 class of children, where he continued a year longer. His com¬ 
 panions, after his long residence in so voluptuous and luxurious 
 a court as that of the Medes, expected to find a great change 
 in his manners : but when they found that he was content with 
 their ordinary table, and that, when he was present at any enter¬ 
 tainment, he was more sober and temperate than any of the 
 company, they looked upon him with new admiration. 
 
 From this first class he passed into the second, which is the 
 class of youths ; and there it quickly appeared that he had not 
 his equal in dexterity, address, patience, and obedience. 
 
 Ten years after, he was admitted into the men’s class, where¬ 
 in he remained thirteen years, till he set out at the head of the 
 Persian army, to go to the aid of his uncle Cyaxares. 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 The first campaign of Cyrus, who goes to aid his uncle Cyaxares against 
 
 the Babylonians. 
 
 Astyages, 1 king of the Medes, dying, was suc- 
 
 A. M. 3444. cee( j ec i py pi s son Cyaxares, brother to Cyrus’s 
 mother. Cyaxares was no sooner on the throne, 
 than he was engaged in a terrible war. He was informed that 
 the king of the Babylonians [Neriglissor] was preparing a pow¬ 
 erful army against him, and that he had already engaged several 
 princes on his side, and amongst others Croesus, king of Lydia ; 
 that he had likewise sent ambassadors to the king of India, to 
 
 ‘Cyrop. 1. i.p 22—37- 
 
8 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 give him bad impressions of the Medes and Persians, by repre¬ 
 senting to him how dangerous a closer alliance and union 
 between two nations already so powerful might be, since they 
 could in the end subdue all the nations around them, if a vigo¬ 
 rous opposition was not made to the progress of their power. 
 Cyaxares therefore despatched ambassadors to Cambyses, to 
 desire succours from him; and ordered them to bring it about, 
 that Cyrus should have the command of the troops his father was 
 to send. This was readily granted. As soon as it was known 
 that Cyrus was to march at the head of the army, the joy was 
 universal. The army consisted of 30,000 men, all infantry [for 
 the Persians as yet had no cavalry]; but they were all chosen 
 men, and such as had been raised after a particular manner. 
 First of all Cyrus chose out of the nobility 200 of the bravest 
 officers, each of whom was ordered to choose out four more of the 
 same sort, which made 1000 in all; and these were the officers 
 that were called ' Ofionfioi , k and who signalized themselves after¬ 
 wards so gloriously upon all occasions. Every one of this 
 thousand was appointed to raise among the people ten light¬ 
 armed pike-men, ten slingers, and ten bowmen; which amount¬ 
 ed in the whole to 31,000 men. 
 
 Before they proceeded to the choice, Cyrus thought fit to 
 make a speech to the 200 officers, whom, after having highly 
 praised them for their courage,he inspired with the strongest assur¬ 
 ance of victory and success. Do you know, says he to them, the 
 nature of the enemy you have to deal with ? They are soft, 
 effeminate, enervated men, already half conquered by their own 
 luxury and voluptuousness ; men not able to bear either hunger 
 or thirst; equally incapable of supporting either the toil of 
 war or the sight of danger ; whereas you, that are inured from 
 your infancy to a sober and hard way of living ; to you I say, 
 hunger and thirst are but the sauce, and the only sauce to your 
 meals ; fatigues are your pleasure, dangers your delight, and 
 the love of your country and of glory your only passion. 
 Besides the justice of your cause is another considerable advan¬ 
 tage. They are the aggressors. It is the enemy that attacks 
 us, and it is our friends and allies that require our end. Can 
 any thing be more just than to repel the injury they offer us? 
 Is there any thing more honourable than to fly to the assistance 
 of our friends ? But what ought to be the principal motive of 
 your confidence is, that I do not engage in this expedition with¬ 
 out having first consulted the gods, and implored their protec¬ 
 tion ; for you know it is my custom to begin all my actions, 
 and all my undertakings, in that manner. 
 
 k Men of the same dignity. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 9 
 
 A M 344 r Cyrus soon after set out without loss of time : 
 
 Ant. J. c. 559. ^ut before his departure lie invoked the gods of 
 the country a second time. For his great maxim 
 was, and he had it from his father, that a man ought not to 
 form any enterprise, great or small, without consulting the divi¬ 
 nity, and imploring his protection. Cambyses had often taught 
 him to consider, that the prudence of men is very short, and their 
 views very limited ; that they cannot penetrate into futurity ; 
 and that many times what they think must needs turn to their 
 advantage, proves their ruin ; whereas gods being eternal, know 
 all things, future as well as past, and inspire those they love to 
 undertake what is most expedient for them ; which is a favour 
 and a protection they owe to no man, and grant only to those 
 that invoke and consult them. 
 
 Cambyses accompanied his son as far as the frontiers of Per¬ 
 sia ; and in the way gave him excellent instructions concerning 
 the duties of the general of an army. Cyrus thought himself 
 ignorant of nothing that related to the business of war, after the 
 many lessons he had received from the most able masters of that 
 time. Have your masters, says Cambyses to him, given 
 you any instructions concerning economy, that is to say, 
 concerning the manner of supply ing an army with all necessary 
 jirovisions, of preventing sickness, and preserving the health of 
 the soldiers, of fortifying their bodies by frequent exercises, of 
 exciting a generous emulation amongst them, of making your¬ 
 self obeyed, esteemed, and beloved, by your soldiers? Upon 
 each of these points, and upon several others mentioned by the 
 king, Cyrus owned he had never heard one word spoken, and 
 that it was all entirely new to him. What is it then your mas¬ 
 ters have taught you ?—They have taught me to fence, replied 
 the prince, to draw the bow, to fling the javelin, to mark out a 
 camp, to draw the plan of a fortification, to range troops in 
 order of battle, to review them, to see them march, file off, and 
 encamp. Cambyses, smiling, gave his son to understand, that 
 they had taught him nothing of what was most material and 
 essential for a good officer and an expert commander to know : and 
 in one single conversation, which certainly deserves to be well 
 studied by all young gentlemen designed for the army, he taught 
 him infinitely more than all the celebrated masters had done, in 
 the course of several years. One short instance of this discourse 
 may serve to give the reader an idea of the rest. 
 
 The question was what are the proper means of making the 
 soldiers obedient and submissive ? The way to effect that, says 
 Cyrus, seems to be very easy, and very certain; it is only to 
 praise and reward those that obey, to punish and stigmatize 
 such as fail in their duty .— You say well, replied Cambyses, 
 that is the way to make them obey you by force; but the chief 
 
10 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 point is, to make them obey you willingly and freely. Now 
 the sure method of effecting this, is to convince those,you com¬ 
 mand, that you know better what is for their advantage than 
 they do themselves ; for all mankind readily submit to those of 
 whom they have that opinion. This is the principle, from 
 whence that blind submission proceeds which you see sick per¬ 
 sons pay to their physician, travellers to their guide, and a 
 ship’s company to the pilot. Their obedience is founded only 
 upon their per suasion, that the physician, the guide, and the 
 pilot, are all more skilful and better informed in their re¬ 
 spective callings than themselves.—But what shall a man do, 
 says Cyrus to his father, to appear more skilful and expert 
 than others ?—He must really be so, replied Cambyses ; and in 
 order to be so, he must apply himself closely to his profession, 
 diligently study all the rules of it, consult the most able and 
 experienced masters, neglect no circumstance that may con¬ 
 tribute to the success of his enterprise; and, above all, he 
 must have recourse to the protection of the gods, from whom 
 alone we receive all our wisdom, and all our success. 
 
 As soon as Cyrus had arived in Media, k and reached 
 Cyaxares, the first thing he did, after the usual compliments 
 had passed, was to inform himself of the quality and number 
 of the forces on both sides. It appeared by the compu¬ 
 tation made of them, that the enemy’s army amounted to 
 200,000 foot and 60,000 horse; and that the united armies of 
 the Medes and Persians scarce amounted to half the number 
 of foot; and as to the cavalry, the Medes had not so many 
 by a third. This great inequality put Cyaxares in terrible 
 fears and perplexities. He could think of no other expedient 
 than to send for another body of troops from Persia, more 
 numerous than that already arrived. But this expedient, be¬ 
 sides that it would have taken up too much time, appeared in 
 itself impracticable. Cyrus immediately proposed another, 
 more sure and more expeditious, which was, that his Persian 
 soldiers should change their arms. As they chiefly used the 
 bow and the javelin, consequently their manner of fighting 
 was at a distance, in which kind of engagement the greater 
 number was easily superior to the lesser, Cyrus was of opinion 
 that they should be armed with such weapons as should oblige 
 them to come to blows with the enemy immediately, and by that 
 means render the superiority of their numbers useless. This 
 project was highly approved, and instantly put into execution. 
 
 Cyrus established a wonderful order among the troops, 1 and 
 inspired them with a surprising emulation, by the rewards he 
 promised, and by his obliging and engaging deportment towards 
 all. He valued money only as it allowed him an opportunity 
 k Cyrop. 1. ii. p, 38—40. 1 Ibid. p. 44. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 11 
 
 of being generous. He was continually making presents to 
 one or other, according to their rank or their merit; to one a 
 buckler, to another a sword, or something of the same kind 
 equally acceptable. By this generosity, this greatness of soul, 
 and beneficent disposition, he thought a general ought to dis¬ 
 tinguish himself, and not by the luxury of his table, or the rich¬ 
 ness of his clothes, and still less by his haughtiness and impe¬ 
 rious demeanour. A commander could not, he said, give 
 actual jJroofs of his munificence to every hody, m and for that 
 very reason he thought himself obliged to convince every body 
 of his inclination and good-will: for though a prince might 
 exhaust his treasures by making presents, yet he could not in¬ 
 jure himself by benevolence and affability; by being sincerely 
 concerned in the good or evil that happens to others, and by 
 making it appear that he is so. 
 
 One day, 11 as Cyrus was reviewing his army, a messenger 
 came to him from Cyaxares, to acquaint him, that some ambas¬ 
 sadors being arrived from the king of the Indies, he desired 
 his presence immediately. For that purpose, says he, I have 
 brought you ci rich garment; for the king desires you would 
 appear magnificently dressed before the Indians, to do the 
 nation honour. Cyrus lost not a moment’s time, but instantly 
 set out with his troops, to wait upon the king; though without 
 changing his dress, which was very plain, after the Persian 
 fashion, and not (as the Greek text has it) polluted or spoiled 
 with any foreign ornament. 0 Cyaxares seemed at first a little 
 displeased at it; If I had dressed myself in purple, says Cyrus, 
 and loaded myself with bracelets and chains of gold, and with 
 all that had been longer in coming, should 1 have done you 
 more honour than I do now by my expedition, and the sweat of 
 my face, and by letting all the world see with what promptitude 
 and despatch your orders are obeyed l 
 
 Cyaxares, satisfied with this answer, ordered the Indian am¬ 
 bassadors to be introduced. The purport of their speech was, 
 that they were sent by the king their master to learn the cause 
 of the war between the Medes and the Babylonians, and that 
 they had orders, as soon as they had heard what the Medes 
 should say, to proceed to the court of Babylon, to know what 
 motives they had to allege on their part: to the end that the 
 king, their master, after having examined the reasons on both 
 sides, might take part with those who had right and justice on 
 their side. This is making a noble and glorious use of great 
 power; to be influenced only by justice, to seek no advantage 
 from tlifi division of neighbours, but declare openly against 
 
 m Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 207. n Ibid. 1. ii. p. 56. 
 
 0 ’Ev ry ritperi/cy aro\y ovSev ti vfipKr^fvy. A fine expression, but not to be 
 rendered into any other language with the same beauty. 
 
12 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 the unjust aggressor, in favour of the injured party. Cyaxares 
 and Cyrus answered, that they had given the Babylonians no 
 subject of complaint, and that they willingly accepted the me¬ 
 diation of the king of India. It appears in the sequel that he 
 declared for the Medes. 
 
 The king of Armenia,? who was a vassal of 
 Ant *C ^557 ^ ie Medes, looking upon them as ready to be 
 swallowed up by the formidable league formed 
 against them, thought fit to lay hold on this occasion to shake 
 off their yoke. Accordingly, he refused to pay them the ordi¬ 
 nary tribute, and to send them the number of troops he was 
 obliged to furnish in time of war. This highly embarrassed 
 Cyaxares, who was afraid at this juncture of bringing new 
 enemies upon his hands, if he undertook to compel the Arme¬ 
 nians to execute their treaty. But Cyrus, having informed 
 himself exactly of the strength and situation of the country, un¬ 
 dertook the affair. The important point was to keep his design 
 secret, without which it was not likely to succeed. He there¬ 
 fore appointed a great hunting-match on that side of the coun¬ 
 try ; for it was his custom to ride out that way, and frequently 
 to hunt with the king’s son, and the young noblemen of Arme¬ 
 nia. On the day appointed, he set out with a numerous reti¬ 
 nue. The troops followed at a distance, and were not to appear 
 till a signal was given. After some days’ hunting, when they 
 were come pretty near the palace where the court resided, 
 Cyrus communicated his design to his officers; and sent 
 Ciirysantas with a detachment, ordering them to make them¬ 
 selves masters of a certain steep eminence, where he knew 
 the king used to retire, in case of an alarm, with his family and 
 his treasure. 
 
 This being done, lie sends a herald to the king of Armenia, 
 to summon him to perform the treaty, and in the mean time 
 orders his troops to advance. Never was greater surprise, and 
 the perplexity was equally great. The king was conscious of the 
 wrong he had done ; and was now destitute of every resource. 
 However, he did what he could to assemble his forces together 
 from all quarters ; and, in the mean time, despatched his 
 youngest son, called Sabaris, into the mountains, with his wives, 
 his daughters, and whatever was most precious and valuable. 
 But when he was informed by his scouts, that Cyrus was com¬ 
 ing close after them, he entirely lost all courage, and all 
 thoughts of making a defence. The Armenians, following his 
 example, ran away, every one where he could, to secure what 
 was dearest to him. Cyrus, seeing the country covered with 
 people that were endeavouring to make their escape, sent them 
 word, that no harm should be done them if they stayed in their 
 p Cvrop. 1. ii. p. 58—Gl. 1. iii. p. 62—70. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 13 
 
 houses; but that as many as were taken running away, should 
 be treated as enemies. This made them all retire to their ha¬ 
 bitations, excepting a few that followed the king. 
 
 On the other hand, they that were conducting the princesses 
 to the mountains, fell into the ambush Chrysantas had laid for 
 them, and were most of them taken prisoners. The queen, the 
 king’s son, his daughters, his eldest son’s wife, and his treasures, 
 all fell into the hands of the Persians. 
 
 The king, hearing this melancholy news, and not knowing 
 what would become of him, retired to a little eminence ; where 
 he was presently invested by the Persian army, and soon obliged 
 to surrender. Cyrus ordered him, with all his family, to be 
 brought into the midst of the army. At the very instant arrived 
 Tigranes, the king’s eldest son, who was just returned from a 
 journey. At so moving a spectacle he could not forbear weep¬ 
 ing. Cyrus, addressing himself to him, said: Prince, you are 
 come very seasonably to be present at the trial of your father. 
 And immediately he assembled the captains of the Persians 
 and Medes ; and called in also the great men of Armenia. 
 Nor did he so much as exclude the ladies from this assembly, 
 who were then in their chariots, but gave them full liberty to hear 
 and see all that passed. 
 
 When all was ready, and Cyrus had commanded silence, he 
 began with requiring of the king, that in all the questions he 
 was going to propose to him, he would answer sincerely, be¬ 
 cause nothing could be more unworthy a person of his rank than 
 to use dissimulation or falsehood. The king promised he 
 would. Then Cyrus asked him, but at different times, propos¬ 
 ing each article separately and in order, whether it was not 
 true, that he had made war against Astyages, king of the 
 Medes, his grandfather; whether he had not been overcome in 
 that war, and in consequence of his defeat concluded a treaty 
 with Astyages; whether, by virtue of that treaty, he was not 
 obliged to pay a certain tribute, to furnish a certain number ol 
 troops, and not to keep any fortified place in his country. It 
 was impossible for the king to deny any of these facts, which 
 were all public and notorious. For what reason, then, con¬ 
 tinued Cyrus, have you violated the treaty in every article ?— 
 For no other, replied the king, than because I thought it a glo¬ 
 rious thing to shake off the yoke, to live free, and to leave my 
 children in the same condition. It is really glorious, answered 
 Cyrus, to fight in defence of liberty: but if any one, after he is 
 reduced to servitude, should attempt to run away from his mas¬ 
 ter, what would you do with him ? I must confess, says the 
 king, I would punish him. And if you had given a govern¬ 
 ment to one of your subjects, and he should be found to have 
 conducted himself amiss, would you continue him in his jyost ? 
 
14 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 — No, certainly; I would put another in his place.—And if he 
 had amassed yreat riches hy his unjust practices?—I woidd 
 strip him of them. — But, which is still worse, if he had held in¬ 
 telligence with your enemies, how would you treat him ?— 
 Though I should pass sentence upon myself, replied the king, 
 I must declare the truth: I would put him to death. At 
 these words, Tigranes tore his tiara from his head, and rent his 
 garments. The women burst out into lamentations and out¬ 
 cries, as if sentence had actually passed upon him. 
 
 Cyrus having again commanded silence, Tigranes addressed 
 himself to the prince to this effect : Great prince, can you 
 think it consistent with your prudence to put my father to 
 death, even against your own interest ?—How against my in¬ 
 terest ? replied Cyrus. — Because he ivas never so capable of 
 doing you service.—How do you make that appear ? Do the 
 faults we commit enhance our merit, and give us a new title to 
 consideration and favour ?—They certainly do, provided they 
 serve to make us wiser. For of inestimable value is wisdom : 
 are either riches, courage, or address, to be compared to it ? 
 Now it is evident, this single day's experience has infinitely 
 improved my father's wisdom . He knows how dear the violation 
 of his word has cost him. He has proved and felt how much 
 you are superior to him in all respects. He has not been able 
 to succeed in any of his designs ; but you have happily ac¬ 
 complished all yours ; and with that expedition and secrecy , 
 that he has j'ouncl himself surrounded, and taken, before 
 he expected to be attacked: and the very place of his re¬ 
 treat has served only to ensnare him.—But your father, 
 replied Cyrus, has yet undergone no sufferings that can 
 have taught him wisdom .— The fear of evils, answered 
 Tigranes, when it is so well founded as this is, has a much 
 sharper sting, and is 7nore capable of piercing the soul, 
 than the evil itself. Besides, pcr7iiit me to say, that gra¬ 
 titude is a stronger, and more prevailing 7notive, than any 
 whatever: and there can be no obligatioiis in the world of 
 a higher nature, than those you will lay 7ipon my father. 
 His fortune, liberty, sceptre, life, wives and children, all 
 restored to him with such a generosity; where can you 
 find, illustrious prince, in one-single person, so 7iiany strong 
 and powerf ul ties to attach him to your service ? 
 
 Well, then, replied Cyrus, turning to the king, if I should 
 7jield to your son's entreaties, with what number of men, and 
 what sum of money , will you assist us in the war against the 
 Babylonicms 1—My troops and treasures, says the Armenian 
 king, are no longer 77iine ; they are entirely yours. I can 
 raise 40,000 foot, and 8000 horse ; and as to 7no7iey, I reckon 
 that, including the treasure which my father left 7ne, 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 15 
 
 there are about 3000 talents ready money. All these are 
 wholly at your disposal. Cyrus accepted half the number 
 of the troops, and left the king the other half, for the defence 
 of the country against the Chaldeans,9 with whom he was at 
 war. The annual tribute which was due to the Medes he 
 doubled, and instead of fifty talents exacted 100, and bor¬ 
 rowed the like sum over and above in his own name. But what 
 would you give me, added Cyrus, for the ransom of your 
 wives ?—All that I have in the world, answered the king.— 
 And for the rajisom of your children ?—The same thing .— 
 From this time, then, you are indebted to me twice the value 
 of all your possessions. And you, Tigranes, at what price 
 would you redeem the liberty of your wife ? Now he had but 
 lately married her, and was passionately fond of her. At the 
 price, says he, of a thousand lives, if I had them. Cyrus 
 then conducted them all to his tent, and entertained them 
 at supper. It is easy to imagine what transports of joy there 
 must have been upon this occasion. 
 
 After supper, as they were discoursing upon various subjects, 
 Cyrus asked Tigranes, what was become of a governor he 
 had often seen hunting with him, and for whom he had a par¬ 
 ticular esteem. Alas! says Tigranes, he is no more ; and 
 I dare not tell you by what accident I lost him. Cyrus 
 pressing him to tell him; My father, continued Tigranes, 
 seeing I had a very tender affection for this governor, and 
 that I was extremely attached to him, conceived some suspicions 
 against him, and put him to death. But he was so worthy 
 a man, that, as he was ready to expire, he sent for me, and 
 spoke to me in these words: ( Tigranes, let not my death 
 
 occasion any disaffection in you towards the king your father. 
 What he has done to me clul not proceed fro7n malice, but 
 only from prejudice, and a false notion wherewith he was un¬ 
 happily blinded—O the excellent man! cried Cyrus, never for¬ 
 get the last advice he gave you. 
 
 When the conversation was ended, Cyrus, before they 
 parted, embraced them all, in token of a perfect reconciliation. 
 This done, they got into their chariots, with their wives, and 
 went home full of gratitude and admiration. Nothing but 
 Cyrus was mentioned the whole way; some extolling his wis¬ 
 dom, others his valour; some admiring the sweetness of his 
 temper, others praising the beauty of his person, and the ma¬ 
 jesty of his-mien. And you, says Tigranes, addressing himself 
 to his bride, what do you think of Cyrus s aspect and deport¬ 
 ment?—I did not observe him, replied the lady.— Upon what 
 
 Xenophon never calls the people of Babylonia, Chaldeans; hut Hero¬ 
 dotus, 1. vii. c. 63, and Strabo, 1. xvi. p. 739, style them so. The Chaldeans 
 meant in this place were a people adjoining to Armenia. 
 
16 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 object then did you fix your eyes?—Upon him that said he 
 would give a thousand lives as the ransom of my liberty. 
 
 The next day, the king of Armenia sent presents to Cyrus, 
 and refreshments for his whole army, and brought him double the 
 sum of money he was required to furnish. But Cyrus took 
 only what had been stipulated, and restored him the rest. The 
 Armenian troops were ordered to be ready in three days’ time, 
 and Tigranes desired to command them. 
 
 1 have thought proper, for several reasons, to give so cir¬ 
 cumstantial an account of this affair; though I have so far 
 abridged it, that it is not above a quarter of what we find it in 
 Xenophon. 
 
 In the first place, it may serve to give the reader a notion of 
 the style of that excellent historian, and excite his curiosity to 
 consult the original, the natural and unaffected beauties of 
 which are sufficient to justify the singular esteem which 
 persons of good taste have ever had for the noble simplicity of 
 that author. To mention but one instance; what an idea of 
 chastity and modesty, and at the same time what a wonderful 
 simplicity, and delicacy of thought, are there in the answer of 
 Tigranes’s wife, who has no eyes but for her husband ! 
 
 In the second place, those short, close, and pressing interro¬ 
 gatories, each of which demands a direct, precise answer from 
 the king of Armenia, discover the disciple and scholar of So¬ 
 crates, and show how well he retained the taste of his master. 
 
 Besides, this narrative will give us some idea of the judg¬ 
 ment that ought to be formed of Xenophon’s Cyropsedia; the 
 substance of which is true, though it is embellished with several 
 circumstances, added by the author, and introduced expressly 
 to grace his instructive lessons, and the excellent rules he lays 
 down concerning government. Thus much therefore in the 
 event we are treating of is real. The king of Armenia having 
 refused to pay the Medes the tribute he owed them, Cyrus at¬ 
 tacked him suddenly, and before he suspected any designs 
 against him, made himself master of the only fortress he had, 
 and took his family prisoners; obliged him to pay the usual tri¬ 
 bute, and to furnish his proportion of troops ; and after all, so 
 won upon him by his humanity and courteous behaviour, that, 
 he rendered him one of the faithfullest and most affectionate 
 allies the Medes ever had. The rest is inserted only by way of 
 embellishment, and is rather to be ascribed to the historian, than 
 to the history itself. 
 
 I should never myself have found out what the story of the 
 governor’s being put to death by Tigranes’s father signified, 
 though I was very sensible it had some enigmatical meaning in 
 this place. A person of quality/ one of the greatest wits and 
 
 r M. Le Comte de Tresvilles. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 17 
 
 finest speakers of the last age, who was perfectly well ac¬ 
 quainted with the Greek authors, gave me an explanation of it 
 many years ago, which I have not forgotten, and which I take 
 to be the true meaning of that enigma. He supposed that 
 Xenophon intended it as a picture of the death of his master 
 Socrates, of whom the state of Athens became jealous, on 
 account of the extraordinary attachment all the youth of the 
 city had to him; which at last gave occasion to that philoso¬ 
 pher’s condemnation and death, which he suffered without mur¬ 
 mur or complaint. 
 
 In the last place, I thought it proper not to miss this oppor¬ 
 tunity of pointing out such qualities in my hero as are not al¬ 
 ways to be met with in persons of his rank; and such as, by 
 rendering them infinitely more valuable than all their military 
 virtues, would most contribute to the success of their designs. 
 In most conquerors we find courage, resolution, intrepidity, a 
 capacity for martial exploits, and all such talents as make a 
 noise in the world, and are apt to dazzle by their glare: but an 
 inward stock of goodness, compassion, and gentleness towards 
 the unhappy, an air of moderation and reserve even in pros¬ 
 perity and victory, an insinuating and persuasive behaviour, 
 the art of gaining people’s hearts, and attaching them to him 
 more by affection than interest; a constant, unalterable care 
 always to have right on his side, and to imprint such a cha¬ 
 racter of justice and equity upon all his conduct, as his very 
 enemies are forced to revere; and, lastly, such a clemency, 
 as to distinguish those that offend through imprudence rather 
 than malice, and to leave room for their repentance, by giving 
 them opportunity to return to their duty: these are qualities 
 rarely found in the most celebrated conquerors of antiquity, 
 but which shone forth most conspicuously in Cyrus. 
 
 To return to my subject. Cyrus, s before he quitted the king 
 of Armenia, was willing to do him some signal service. This 
 king was then at war with the Chaldeans, a neighbouring war¬ 
 like people, who continually harassed his country by their 
 inroads, and by that means hindered a great part of his lands 
 from being cultivated. Cyrus, after having exactly informed 
 himself of their character, strength, and the situation of their 
 strong holds, marched against them. On the first intelligence 
 of his approach, the Chaldeans possessed themselves of the 
 eminences to which they were accustomed to retreat. Cyrus 
 left them no time to assemble all their forces there, but marched 
 to attack them directly. The Armenians, whom he had made 
 his advanced guard, were immediately put to flight. Cyrus 
 had expected this, and had only placed them there to bring the 
 enemy the sooner to an engagement. And indeed, when the 
 
 * Cyrop. 1. iii. p. 70— ^G. 
 
 C 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
18 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 Chaldeans came to blows with the Persians, they were not 
 able to stand their ground, but were entirely defeated. A great 
 number were taken prisoners, and the rest were scattered and 
 dispersed. Cyrus himself spoke to the prisoners, assuring them 
 that he was not come to injure them, or ravage their country, 
 but to grant them peace upon reasonable terms ; and he then 
 set them at liberty. Deputies were immediately sent to him, and 
 a peace was concluded. For the better security of both nations, 
 and with their common consent, Cyrus caused a fortress to be 
 built upon an eminence which commanded the whole country; 
 and left a strong garrison in it, which was to declare against 
 either of the two nations that should violate the treaty. 
 
 Cyrus, understanding that there was a frequent intercourse 
 and communication between the Indians and Chaldeans, de¬ 
 sired that the latter would send persons to accompany and 
 conduct the ambassador whom he was preparing to send to the 
 king of India. The purport of this embassy was, to desire some 
 succours in money from that prince, in behalf of Cyrus, who 
 wanted it for the levying of troops in Persia, and promised 
 that, if the gods crowned his designs with success, the king 
 should have no reason to repent of having assisted him. He 
 was glad to find the Chaldeans ready to second his request, 
 which they could do the more advantageously, by enlarging 
 upon the character and exploits of Cyrus. The ambassador 
 set out the next day, accompanied by some of the most con¬ 
 siderable persons of Chaldea, who were directed to act with all 
 the dexterity in their power, and to do Cyrus’s merit that justice 
 which it so well deserved. 
 
 The expedition against the Armenians being happily ended, 
 Cyrus left that country to rejoin Cyaxares. Four thousand 
 Chaldeans, the bravest of the nation, attended him; and the 
 king of Armenia, who was now delivered from his enemies, 
 augmented the number of troops he had promised him : *so that 
 he arrived in Media, with a great deal of money, and a much 
 more numerous army than he had when he left it. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 The expedition of Cyaxares and Cyrus against the Babylonians. 
 
 The first battle. 
 
 A M 3448 Both parties had been employed three years 
 Ant. j! C. 556. together, in forming their alliances, and making 
 preparations for ward Cyrus, finding the troops 
 full of ardour, and ready for action, proposed to Cyaxares to 
 lead them against the Assyrians. His reasons for it were, that 
 he thought it his duty to ease him, as soon as possible, of the 
 
 * Cyrop. 1. iii. p. 78—87. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 19 
 
 care and expense of maintaining two armies; that it were bet¬ 
 ter they should eat up the enemy’s country, than their own; that 
 so bold a step as that of going to meet the Assyrians, would 
 spread a terror in their army, and at the same time inspire their 
 own troops with the greater confidence; that, lastly, it was a 
 maxim with him, as it had always been with Cambyses, his fa¬ 
 ther, that victory did not so much depend upon the number, as 
 the valour, of troops. Cyaxares agreed to his proposal. 
 
 As soon therefore as the customary sacrifices were offered, 
 they began their march. Cyrus, in the name of the whole 
 army, invoked the tutelary gods of the empire; beseeching 
 them to be favourable to them in the expedition they had under¬ 
 taken, to accompany them, conduct them, fight for them, inspire 
 them with such a measure of courage and prudence as was ne¬ 
 cessary, and, in short, to bless their arms with prosperity and 
 success. In acting thus, Cyrus put in practice that excellent 
 advice his father had given him, of beginning and ending all 
 his actions, and all his enterprises, with prayer : and indeed he 
 never failed, either before or after an engagement, to acquit 
 himself, in the presence of the whole army, of this religious 
 duty. When they were arrived on the frontiers of Assyria, it 
 was still their first care to pay their homage to the gods of the 
 country, and to implore their protection and succour; after 
 which they began to make incursions into the country, and car¬ 
 ried off a great deal of spoil. 
 
 Cyrus, understanding that the enemy’s army was about ten 
 days’ journey from them, prevailed upon Cyaxares to advance 
 against them. When the armies came within sight, both sides 
 prepared for battle. The Assyrians were encamped in the open 
 country ; and, according to their custom, which the Romans 
 imitated afterwards, had encompassed and fortified their camp 
 with a large ditch. Cyrus, on the contrary, who was glad to 
 deprive the enemy, as much as possible, of the sight and know¬ 
 ledge of the smallness of his army, covered his troops with 
 several little hills and villages. For several days nothing was 
 done on either side, but looking at and observing one another. 
 At length a numerous body of the Assyrians moving first out of 
 their camp, Cyrus advanced with his troops to meet them. 
 But before they came within reach of the enemy, he gave the 
 word for rallying the men, which was, Jupiter protector arid 
 conductor . u He then caused the usual hymn to be sounded, in 
 honour of Castor and Pollux, to which the soldiers, full of reli¬ 
 gious ardour (0€o<7e/3uw), answered with a loud voice. There 
 was nothing in Cyrus’s army but cheerfulness, emulation, cou¬ 
 rage, mutual exhortations to bravery, and a universal zeal to 
 
 u I do not know whether Xenophon, in this place, does not call the Persian 
 gods by the name of the gods of his own country. 
 
20 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 execute whatever their leader should command. For it is ob¬ 
 servable, says the historian in this place, that on these occasions 
 those that fear the Deity most are the least afraid of men . 
 On the side of the Assyrians, the troops armed with bows, 
 slings, and darts, made their discharges before their enemies 
 were within reach. But the Persians, animated by the pre¬ 
 sence and example of Cyrus, came immediately to close tight 
 with the enemy, and broke through their first battalions. The 
 Assyrians, notwithstanding all the efforts used by Croesus and 
 their own king to encourage them, were not able to sustain so 
 rude a shock, but immediately fled. At the same time the ca¬ 
 valry of the Medes advanced to attack the enemy’s horse, which 
 was likewise presently routed. The former warmly pursued 
 them to their very camp, made a terrible slaughter, and the 
 king of the Babylonians (Neriglissor) was killed in the action. 
 Cyrus, not thinking himself in a condition to force their intrench- 
 ments, sounded a retreat. 
 
 The Assyrians/ in the mean time, their king being killed, 
 and the flower of their army lost, were in a dreadful consterna¬ 
 tion. As soon as Croesus found them in so great a disorder, he 
 fled/ and left them to shift for themselves. The other allies 
 likewise, seeing their affairs in so hopeless a condition, thought 
 of nothing but taking advantage of the night to make their 
 escape. 
 
 Cyrus, who had foreseen this, prepared to pursue them close¬ 
 ly. But this could not be effected without cavalry; and, as we 
 have already observed, the Persians had none. 
 
 He therefore went to Cyaxares, and acquainted him with his 
 design. Cyaxares was extremely averse to it, and represented 
 to him how dangerous it was to drive so powerful an enemy to 
 extremities, whom despair would probably inspire with cou¬ 
 rage ; that it was a part of wisdom to use good fortune with 
 moderation, and not lose the fruits of victory by too much viva¬ 
 city ; moreover, that he was unwilling to compel the Medes, or 
 to refuse them that repose to which their behaviour had justly 
 entitled them. Cyrus, upon this, desired his permission only to 
 take as many of the horse as were willing to follow him. Cyax¬ 
 ares readily consented to this, and thought of nothing else now 
 but of passing his time with his officers in feasting and mirth, 
 and enjoying the fruits of the victory he had just obtained. 
 
 The greatest part of the Median soldiers followed Cyrus, 
 who set out upon his march in pursuit of the enemy. Upon 
 the way he met some couriers, that were coming to him from 
 the Hyrcanians/ who served in the enemy’s army, to assure him, 
 
 x Cyrop. lib. iv. p. 87—104. y Ibid. 1. vi. p. 100. 
 
 z These are not the Hyrcanians by the Caspian Sea. From observing 
 Cyrus’s encampments in Babylonia, one would be apt to conjecture, that 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 21 
 
 that as soon as ever he appeared, those Hyrcanians would come 
 over to him; which in fact they did. Gyrus made the best 
 use of his time, and having marched all night, came up with 
 the Assyrians. Croesus had sent away his wives in the night¬ 
 time for coolness (for it was the summer-season), and followed 
 them himself with a body of cavalry. When the Assyrians 
 saw the enemy so near them, they were in the utmost confusion 
 and dismay. Many of those that ran away, being warmly 
 pursued, were killed ; all that stayed in the camp surrendered ; 
 the victory was complete, and the spoil immense. Cyrus re¬ 
 served all the horses that were taken in the camp for himself, 
 resolving now to form a body of cavalry for the Persian army, 
 which hitherto had none. The richest and most valuable part 
 of the booty he set apart for Cyaxares ; and as for the pri¬ 
 soners, lie gave them all liberty to go home to their own 
 country, without imposing any other condition upon them, than 
 that they and tlieir countrymen should deliver up their arms, 
 and engage no more in war; Cyrus taking it upon himself to 
 defend them against their enemies, and to put them into a 
 condition of cultivating their lands with entire security. 
 
 Whilst the Medes and the Hyrcanians were still pursuing 
 the remainder of the enemy, Cyrus took care to have a repast, 
 and even baths, prepared for them, that at their return they 
 might have nothing to do but to sit down and refresh them¬ 
 selves. He likewise thought fit to defer the distribution of 
 the spoil till then. It was on this occasion that this general, 
 whose thoughts nothing escaped, exhorted his Persian soldiers 
 to distinguish themselves by their generosity towards their allies, 
 from whom they had already received great services, and of 
 whom they might expect still greater. He desired they would 
 wait their return, both for their refreshments and for the division 
 of the spoil; and that they would show a preference of their 
 interests and conveniences before their own; giving them to 
 understand, that this would be a sure means of attaching the 
 allies to them for ever, and of securing new victories over 
 the enemy, which would procure them all the advantages they 
 could wish, and make them an ample amends for the voluntary 
 losses they might sustain, for the sake of winning the affection 
 of the allies. They all came into his opinion. When the Medes 
 and Hyrcanians were returned from pursuing the enemy, Cyrus 
 made them sit down to the repast he had prepared for them, 
 desiring them only to send some bread to the Persians, who 
 were sufficiently pro vided (he said) with all they wanted, either 
 for their ragouts, or their drinking. Hunger was their only 
 ragout, and water from the river tlieir only drink. For that 
 
 the Hyrcanians here meant were about four or five days’journey south of 
 Babylon. 
 
22 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 was the way of living to which they had been accustomed from 
 their infancy. 
 
 The next morning they proceeded to the division of the 
 spoils. Cyrus in the first place ordered the Magi to be called, 
 and commanded them to choose out of all the booty what was 
 most proper to be offered to the gods on this occasion. Then 
 he gave the Medes and Hyrcanians the honour of dividing all 
 that remained amongst the whole army. They earnestly desired, 
 that the Persians might preside over the distribution ; but the 
 Persians absolutely refused it; so they were obliged to accept 
 of the office, as Cyrus had ordered; and the distribution was 
 made to the general satisfaction of all parties. 
 
 The very night that Cyrus marched to pursue the enemy, a 
 Cyaxares had passed in feasting and jollity; and had made 
 himself drunk, with his principal officers. The next morning 
 when he awaked, he was strangely surprised to find himself 
 almost alone, and without troops. Immediately, full of resent¬ 
 ment and rage, he despatched an express to the army, with 
 orders to reproach Cyrus severely, and to bring back the 
 Medes without any delay. This unreasonable proceeding did 
 not dismay Cyrus, who in return wrote him a respectful let¬ 
 ter ; in which, however, with a generous and noble freedom, he 
 justified his own conduct, and put him in mind of the per¬ 
 mission he had given him, of taking as many Medes with him 
 as were willing to follow him. At the same time, Cyrus sent 
 into Persia for an augmentation of his troops, designing to push 
 his conquests still farther. 
 
 Amongst the prisoners of war whom they had taken, there 
 was a young princess of most exquisite beauty, b whom they 
 had reserved for Cyrus. Her name was Pantliea, the wife of 
 Abradates, king of Susiana. Upon the report made to Cyrus 
 of her extraordinary beauty, he refused to see her ; for fear (as 
 he said) such an object might engage his affection mo^e than he 
 desired, and divert him from the prosecution of the great de¬ 
 signs he had in view. This singular moderation in Cyrus was 
 undoubtedly an effect of the excellent education he had re¬ 
 ceived : c for it was a principle among the Persians, never to 
 speak before young people of any thing that had any reference 
 to love, lest their natural inclination to pleasure, which is so 
 strong and violent at that age of levity and indiscretion, should 
 be awakened and excited by such discourses, and should hurry 
 them into follies and debaucheries. Araspes, a young noble¬ 
 man of Media, who had the lady in his custody, had not the 
 same distrust of his own weakness, but pretended that a man 
 may be always master of himself. Cyrus committed the prin- 
 
 a Cyrop. 1. iv. p. 104—108. 
 
 b Lib. v. p. 114, 117* & 1. vi. p. 153, 155. c Cyrop. 1. i. p. 34. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 23 
 
 cess to his care, and at the same time gave him very prudent 
 admonition. I have seen a great many persons, says he, that 
 have thought themselves very strong, overcome by that violent 
 passion, in spite of all their resolution ; who have owned cifter- 
 ivards with shame and grief that their passion was a bondage 
 and slavery from which they had not the power to redeem 
 themselves: an incurable distemper, out of the reach of all re¬ 
 medies and human efforts ; a kind of bond or necessity , d more 
 difficult to force than the strongest chains of iron.—Fear no¬ 
 thing, replied Araspes, I am sure of myself, and I will answer 
 with my life that I shall do nothing contrary to my duty . 
 Nevertheless, his passion for this young princess increased, 
 and by degrees grew to such a height, that finding her invin¬ 
 cibly averse to his desires, he was upon the point of using 
 violence towards her. The princess at length made Cyrus 
 acquainted with his conduct, who immediately sent Arta- 
 bazus to Araspes, with orders to admonish and reprove 
 him in his name. This officer executed his orders in the 
 harshest manner, upbraiding him with his fault in the most bit¬ 
 ter terms, and with such a rigorous severity, as was enough to 
 throw him into despair. Araspes struck to the soul with grief 
 and anguish, burst into a flood of tears; and being overwhelm¬ 
 ed with shame and fear, thinking himself undone, remained 
 silent. Some days afterwards Cyrus sent for him. He went to 
 the prince in fear and trembling. Cyrus took him aside, and 
 instead of reproaching him with severity, as he expected, spoke 
 gently to him: acknowledging that he himself was to blame, for 
 having imprudently exposed him to so formidable an enemy. 
 By such an unexpected kindness the young nobleman recovered 
 both life and speech. But his confusion, joy, and gratitude, ex¬ 
 pressed themselves first in a torrent of tears. Alas, says he, now 
 lam come to the knowledge of myself, and find most plainly that 
 I have two soids ; one that inclines me to good, another that 
 incites me to evil. The former prevails, when you speak to 
 me, and come to my relief: when I am alone, and left to my¬ 
 self, I give way to, and am overpowered by, the latter. Araspes 
 made an advantageous amends for his fault, and rendered Cyrus 
 considerable service, by retiring among the Assyrians, under 
 the pretence of discontent, and by giving intelligence of their 
 measures and designs. 
 
 The loss of so brave an officer, e whom discontent was supposed 
 to have engaged on the enemy’s side, caused a great concern 
 in the whole army. Panthea, who had occasioned it, promised 
 Cyrus to supply his place with an officer of equal merit; she 
 meant her husband Abradates. Accordingly, upon her writing 
 
 d Ae$t[xtvcv£ \(T)(vpoTtpa tlvi uvdyKy r\ tl adrjpy IStStvTO. 
 e Cvrop. 1. vi. p. 155, 150. 
 
24 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 to him, he repaired lo the camp of the Persians with 2000 horse, 
 and was directly carried to Panthea’s tent, who told him, with 
 a flood of tears, how kindly and circumspectly she had been 
 treated by the generous conqueror. And how, cried out Abra- 
 dates, shall I he able to acknowledge so important a service ? — By 
 behaving towards him, replied Panthea, as he hath done to¬ 
 wards me. Whereupon he waited immediately upon Cyrus, and 
 grasping the hand of his benefactor: You see before you, says 
 he to him, the tenderest friend, the most devoted servant, and 
 the faithf idlest ally you ever had ; ivho, not being able otherwise 
 to acknowledge your favours, comes and devotes himself entirely 
 to your service. Cyrus received him with such a noble and 
 generous air, accompanied by so much tenderness and hu¬ 
 manity, as fully convinced him, that whatever Panthea had said 
 of the wonderful character of that prince, was abundantly short 
 of the truth. 
 
 Two Assyrian noblemen/ likewise, who designed, as Cyrus 
 was informed, to put themselves under his protection, rendered 
 him extraordinary service. The one was called Gobryas, an 
 old man, venerable both on account of his age and his virtue. 
 The king of Assyria, lately dead, who was well acquainted with 
 his merit, and had a very particular regard for him, had re¬ 
 solved to give his daughter in marriage to Gobryas’s son, and 
 for that reason had sent for him to court. This young noble¬ 
 man, at a match of hunting, to which he had been invited, hap¬ 
 pened to pierce a wild beast with his dart, which the king's 
 son had missed : the latter, who was of a passionate and savage 
 nature, immediately struck him with his lance through rage 
 and vexation, and laid him dead upon the spot. Gobryas be¬ 
 sought Cyrus to avenge so unfortunate a father, and to take 
 his family under liis protection ; and the rather, because he had 
 no children left now but an only daughter, who had long been 
 designed for a wife to the young king, but could not bear the 
 thought of marrying the murderer of her brother. This young 
 kins: was called Laborosoarchod : he reigned only 
 
 A TVT Qido o o t */ 
 
 A ~r t n Sr n i n e months, and was succeeded by Nabonidus, 
 Ant. J. L,. boo. n-ii-r i • J i 
 
 called also .Labymtus and Jielsliazzar, who reign¬ 
 ed seventeen years. 
 
 The other Assyrian nobleman was called Gadatas : s he 
 was prince of a numerous and powerful people. The king 
 then reigning had treated him in a very cruel manner, after 
 he came to the throne; because one of his concubines had 
 mentioned him as a handsome man, and spoken advantageously 
 of the happiness of that woman whom he should choose for 
 a wife. 
 
 The expectation of this double succour was a strong in- 
 f Cyrop. 1. iv. p. 111. 113. e Ibid. 1. v. p. 123, 124. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 25 
 
 ducement to Cyrus, 11 and made him determine to penetrate into 
 the heart of the enemy’s country. As Babylon, the capital 
 city of the empire he designed to conquer, was the chief object 
 of his expedition, he turned his views and his march that way, 
 not to attack that city immediately in form, but only to take a 
 view of it, and make himself acquainted with it: to draw off* as 
 many allies as he could from that prince’s party, and to make pre¬ 
 vious dispositions and preparations for the siege he meditated. 
 He set out therefore with his troops, and first marched to the 
 territories of Gobryas. The fortress he lived in seemed to 
 be an impregnable place, so advantageously was it situated, 
 and so strongly fortified on all sides. This nobleman came 
 out to meet him, and ordered refreshments to be brought for 
 his whole army. He then conducted Cyrus into his palace, 
 and there laid an infinite number of silver and golden cups, 
 and other vessels, at his feet, together with a multitude of purses, 
 full of the golden coin of the country : and then sending for 
 his daughter, who was of a majestic shape and exquisite beauty, 
 which the mourning habit she wore for her brother’s death 
 seemed still to enhance, he presented her to Cyrus, desiring 
 him to take her under his protection, and to accept those marks 
 of his acknowledgment, which he took the liberty to offer 
 him. I willingly accept your gold and silver , says Cyrus, 
 and I make a present of it to your daughter , to augment 
 her portion . Doubt not, but amongst the nobles of my court , 
 you will find a match suitable for her. It will neither be her 
 riches nor yours, which they will value. I can assure you, 
 there are many amongst them, that would make no account of cdl 
 the treasures of Babylon, if they were unattended with merit 
 and vir tue. It is their only glory, I dare affirm it of them, 
 as it is mine, to approve themselves faithful to their friends, 
 formidable to their enemies, and respectful to the gods. 
 Gobryas pressed him to take a repast with him in his house, 
 but he stedfastly refused it, and returned into his camp with 
 Gobryas, who stayed and ate with him and his officers. The 
 ground and the green turf that was upon it were all the 
 couches they had; and it is to be supposed the whole enter¬ 
 tainment was suitable. Gobryas, who was a person of good 
 sense, was convinced how much that noble simplicity was 
 superior to his vain magnificence; and declared, that the 
 Assyrians had the art of distinguishing themselves by pride, 
 and the Persians by merit; and above all things he admired the 
 ingenious vein of humour, and the innocent cheerfulness, that 
 reigned throughout the whole entertainment. 
 
 Cyrus, 1 always intent upon his great design, proceeded with 
 Gobryas towards the country of Gadatas, which was beyond 
 h Cyrop. p. 119. 123. ' Ibid. 1. v. p. 124—110. 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 Babylon. In the neighbourhood there was a strong citadel, 
 which commanded the country of the Sacae k and the Cadu- 
 sians, where a governor for the king of Babylon resided, to 
 keep those people in awe. Cyrus made a feint of attacking 
 the citadel. Gadatas, whose intelligence with the Persians 
 was not yet known, by Cyrus’s advice, made an offer to the 
 governor of it, to join with him in the defence of that impor¬ 
 tant place. Accordingly he was admitted with all his troops, 
 and immediately delivered it up to Cyrus. The possession of 
 this citadel made him master of the country of the Sacse and 
 the Cadusians ; and as he treated those people with great kind¬ 
 ness and lenity, they remained inviolably attached to his ser¬ 
 vice. The Cadusians raised an army of 20,000 foot and 
 4000 horse; and the Sacas furnished 10,000 foot and 2000 
 horse archers. 
 
 The king of Assyria took the field, in order to punish Ga¬ 
 datas for his rebellion. But Cyrus engaged and defeated him, 
 making a great slaughter of his troops, and obliging him to 
 retreat to Babylon. After which exploit the conqueror em¬ 
 ployed some time in ravaging the enemy’s country. His kind 
 treatment of the prisoners of war, in giving them all their 
 liberty to go home to their habitations, had spread the fame of 
 his clemency wherever he came. Numbers of people volun¬ 
 tarily surrendered to him, and very much augmented his army. 
 Then advancing near the city of Babylon, he sent the king of 
 Assyria a challenge, to terminate their quarrel by a single 
 combat: but his challenge was not accepted. In order to 
 secure the peace and tranquillity of his allies during his ab¬ 
 sence, he made a kind of truce, or treaty, with the king of 
 Assyria, by which it was agreed on both sides, that the hus¬ 
 bandmen should not be molested, but should have full liberty to 
 cultivate their lands, and reap the fruits of their labour. There¬ 
 fore, after having viewed the country, examined the situation 
 of Babylon, acquired a considerable number of friends and 
 allies, and greatly augmented his cavalry, he marched away on 
 his return to Media. 
 
 When he came near to the frontiers, 1 he sent a messenger to 
 Cyaxares, to acquaint him with his arrival, and to receive his 
 commands. Cyaxares did not think proper to admit so great 
 an army into his country; and an army, that was going to 
 receive a farther augmentation of 40,000 men, just arrived 
 from Persia. He therefore set out the next day with what 
 cavalry he had left, to join Cyrus ; who likewise advanced for¬ 
 wards to meet him with his cavalry, that was very numerous 
 and in good condition. The sight of these troops rekindled 
 the jealousy and dissatisfaction of Cyaxares. He received his 
 k Not the Sacseof Scythia. 1 Cyrop. 1. v. p. 141—147* 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 27 
 
 nephew in a very cold manner, turned away his face from him, 
 to avoid receiving his salute, and even wept through vexation. 
 Cyrus commanded all the company to retire, and entered into 
 an explanation with his uncle. He spoke to him with so much 
 temper, submission, and reason; gave him such strong proofs 
 of the rectitude of his heart, his respect, and inviolable attach¬ 
 ment to his person and interest, that in a moment he dispelled 
 all his suspicions, and perfectly recovered his favour and good 
 opinion. *They embraced one another, and tears were shed on 
 both sides. How great the joy of the Persians and Medes was, 
 who waited the event of this interview with anxiety and trem¬ 
 bling, is not to be expressed. Cyaxares and Cyrus immediately 
 remounted their horses ; and then all the Medes ranged them¬ 
 selves in the train of Cyaxares, according to the sign given them 
 by Cyrus. The Persians followed Cyrus, and the men of each 
 other nation their particular prince. When they arrived at the 
 camp, they conducted Cyaxares to the tent prepared for him. 
 He was presently visited by almost all the Medes, who came to 
 salute him, and to bring him presents; some of their own ac¬ 
 cord, and others by Cyrus’s direction. Cyaxares was extremely 
 touched at this proceeding, and began to find, that Cyrus had 
 not corrupted his subjects, and that the Medes had the same 
 affection for him as before. 
 
 Such was the success of Cyrus’s first expedition against 
 Croesus and the Babylonians.™ In the council, held the next 
 day in the presence of Cyaxares, and all the officers, it was re¬ 
 solved to continue the war. 
 
 Not finding in Xenophon any date that precisely fixes the 
 year wherein the several events he relates happened, I suppose 
 with Usher, though Xenophon’s relation does not seem to fa¬ 
 vour this notion, that between the two battles against Croesus 
 and the Babylonians several years passed, during which all ne¬ 
 cessary preparations were made on both sides for carrying on 
 the important war which was begun ; and within this interval I 
 place the marriage of Cyrus. 
 
 Cyrus, n then, about this time thought of making a tour into 
 his own country, about six or seven years after he had left it, 
 at the head of the Persian army. Cyaxares, on this occasion, 
 gave him a signal testimony of the value he had for his merit. 
 Having no male issue,' and but one daughter, he offered her in 
 marriage to Cyrus, 0 with an assurance of the kingdom of 
 
 m Cyrop. 1. v. p. 148—151. n Ibid. 1. viii. p. 228, 229. 
 
 0 Xenophon places this marriage after the taking of Babylon. But as Cyrus 
 at that time was above sixty years of age, and the princess not much less, and 
 as it is improbable that either of them should wait till that age before they 
 thought of matrimony, I thought proper to give this fact a more early date. 
 Beside, at that rate, Cambyses would have been but seven years old when he 
 came to the throne, and but fourteen or fifteen when he died; which cannot 
 
28 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 Media for her portion. Cyrus had a grateful sense of this ad¬ 
 vantageous offer, and expressed the warmest acknowledgments 
 of it; but thought himself not at liberty to accept it, till he had 
 gained the consent of his father and mother ; leaving therein a 
 rare example to all future ages, of the respectful submission 
 and entire dependence which all children ought to show to 
 their parents on the like occasion, of what age soever they be, 
 or to whatever degree* of power and greatness they may have 
 arrived. Cyrus married this princess on his return from 
 Persia. 
 
 When the marriage solemnity was over, Cyrus returned to 
 his camp, and improved the time he had to spare in securing 
 his new conquests, and taking all proper measures with his 
 allies for accomplishing the great design he had formed. 
 
 Foreseeing (says Xenophon) that the preparations for war 
 might take up a great deal of time,? he pitched his camp in 
 a very convenient and healthy place, and fortified it strongly. 
 He there kept his troops to the same discipline and exercise, 
 as if the enemy had been always in sight. 
 
 They understood by deserters, and by the prisoners brought 
 every day into the camp, that the king of Babylon was gone 
 into Lydia, and had carried with him vast sums of gold and 
 silver. The common soldiers immediately concluded that it 
 was fear’ which made him remove his treasures. But Cyrus 
 judged he had undertaken this journey only to raise up some 
 new enemy against him; and therefore he laboured with inde¬ 
 fatigable application in preparing for a second battle. 
 
 Above all things he applied himself to strengthen his Persian 
 cavalry, and to have a great number of chariots of war, built 
 after a new form, having found great inconveniences in the 
 old ones, the fashion of which came from Troy, and had con¬ 
 tinued in use till that time throughout all Asia. 
 
 In this interval, ambassadors arrived from the king of India, 
 with a large sum of money for Cyrus, from the king their 
 master, who had also ordered them to assure him, that he was 
 very glad he had acquainted him with what he wanted ; that 
 he was willing to be his friend and ally; and, if he still 
 wanted more money, he had nothing to do but to let him 
 know; and that, in short, he had ordered his ambassadors 
 to pay him the same absolute obedience as to himself. Cyrus 
 
 be reconciled with the expeditions he made into Egypt and Ethiopia, nor with 
 the rest of his history. Perhaps Xenophon might date the taking of Babylon 
 much earlier than we do ; but I follow the chronology of archbishop Usher. 
 I have also left out what is related in the Cyropajdia, (1. viii. p. 228,) that from 
 the time Cyrus was at the court of his grandfather Astyages, the young prin¬ 
 cess had said she would have no other husband than Cyrus. Her father 
 Cyaxares was then but thirteen years old. 
 
 p Cyrop. 1. vi. p. 151. n Ibid. p. I5G, 157. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 29 
 
 * 
 
 received these obliging offers with all possible dignity and 
 gratitude. He treated the ambassadors with the utmost regard, 
 and made them noble presents; and taking advantage of their 
 good disposition, desired them to depute three of their own 
 body to the enemy, as envoys from the king of India, on pre¬ 
 tence of proposing an alliance with the king of Assyria, but 
 in fact to discover his designs, and give Cyrus an account of 
 them. The Indians undertook this employment with joy, and 
 acquitted themselves of it with great ability. 
 
 I do not recognise in this last circumstance the upright 
 conduct and usual sincerity of Cyrus. Could he be ignorant that 
 it was an open violation of the law of nations, to send spies 
 to an enemy’s court under the title of ambassadors; which 
 is a character that will not suffer those invested with it to act so 
 mean a part, or to be guilty of such treachery ? 
 
 Cyrus prepared for the approaching battle/ like a man who 
 had nothing but great projects in view. He not only took 
 care of every thing that had been resolved in council, but 
 took pleasure in exciting a noble emulation amongst his officers, 
 who should have the finest arms, be the best mounted, fling 
 a dart ,or shoot an arrow the most dexterously, or who should 
 undergo toil and fatigue with the greatest patience. This 
 he brought about by taking them along with him a hunting, and 
 by constantly rewarding those that distinguished themselves most. 
 Wherever he perceived that the captains took particular care of 
 their men, he praised them publicly, and showed them all pos¬ 
 sible favour, in order to encourage them. When he made them 
 any feast, he never proposed any other diversions than military 
 exercises, and always gave considerable prizes to the conquerors, 
 by which means lie excited a surprising ardour throughout 
 his whole army. In a word, he was a general who, in repose 
 as well as action, nay, even in his pleasures, his conversations, 
 and walks, had his thoughts entirely bent on promoting the 
 good of the service. It is by such methods a man becomes an able 
 and complete warrior. 
 
 In the mean time/ the Indian ambassadors, being returned 
 from the enemy’s camp, brought word, that Croesus was chosen 
 generalissimo of their army ; that all the kings and princes in 
 their alliance had agreed to furnish the necessary sums of 
 money for raising the troops ; that the Thracians had already 
 engaged themselves ; that from Egypt a great reinforcement was 
 marching, consisting of 120,000 men ; that another army was ex¬ 
 pected from Cyprus, that the Cilicians, the people of the two Phry- 
 gias, the Lycaonians, Paphlagonians, Cappadocians, Arabians, 
 and Phoenicians, were already arrived ; that the Assyrians were 
 likewise come up together with the king of Babylon ; that the 
 r Cyrop. 1. vi. p. 157. 8 Ibid. 1. vi. p. 158. 
 
30 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 lonians, iEtolians, and most part of tlie Greeks living in Asia, 
 had been obliged to join them ; that Croesus had likewise sent 
 to the Lacedaemonians, to bring them in a treaty of alliance; 
 that the army was assembled near the river Pactolus, from 
 whence it was to advance to Thymbra, which was the place 
 of rendezvous for all the troops. This relation was confirmed 
 by the accounts brought in both by the prisoners and the 
 spies. 
 
 Cyrus’s army was discouraged by this news. 1 But that 
 prince having assembled his officers, and represented to them 
 the infinite difference between the enemy’s troops and theirs, 
 soon dispelled their fears and revived their courage. 
 
 Cyrus had taken all proper measures, 11 that his army should 
 be provided with all necessaries ; and had given orders, as well 
 for their march, as for the battle he was preparing to give; in 
 the doing of which he descended to an astonishing detail, which 
 Xenophon relates at length, and which reached from the chief 
 commanders down to the very lowest subaltern officers; for he 
 knew very well that upon such precautions the success of en¬ 
 terprises depends, which often miscarry through the neglect of 
 the smallest circumstances ; in the same manner, as it frequently 
 happens, that the playing or movement of the greatest ma¬ 
 chines is stopped through the disorder of one single wheel, 
 though never so small. 
 
 This prince knew all the officers of his army by their names ; x 
 and making use of a low, but significant comparison, he used 
 to say, he thought it strange that a workman should know the 
 names of all his tools, and a general should he so indifferent , 
 as not to know the names of all his captains , which are the in¬ 
 struments he must make use of in all his enterprises and ope¬ 
 rations. Besides, he was persuaded, that such an attention 
 had something in it more honourable for the officers, more en¬ 
 gaging, and more proper to excite them to do their duty, as it 
 naturally leads them to believe, that they are both known and 
 esteemed by their general. 
 
 When all the preparations were finished,y Cyrus took leave 
 of Cyaxares, who stayed in Media, with a third part of his 
 troops, that the country might not be left entirely defenceless. 
 
 Cyrus, who well knew how advantageous it is always to make 
 the enemy’s country the seat of war, did not wait for the Baby¬ 
 lonians coming to attack him in Media, but marched forwards 
 to attack him in their own territories, that he might both con¬ 
 sume their forage by his troops, and disconcert their measures 
 by his expedition and the boldness of his undertaking. After 
 a very long march he came up with the enemy at Thymbra, a 
 
 1 Cyrop. 1. vi. p. 159. 11 Ibid. p. 158—163. 
 
 - v Ibid. 1. v. p. 131, 132, y Ibid. 1. vi. p. 100, 161. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 31 
 
 city of Lydia, not far from Sardis, the capital of the country. 
 They did not imagine that this prince, with half the number of 
 forces they had, could think of coming* to attack them in their 
 own country: and they were strangely surprised to see him 
 come, before they had time to lay up the provisions necessary 
 for the subsistence of their numerous army, or to assemble all 
 the forces they intended to bring into the- field against him. 
 
 SECT. V. 
 
 The battle of Thymbra, between Cyrus and Croesus. 
 
 This battle is one of the most considerable events in anti¬ 
 quity, since it decided upon the empire of Asia between the 
 Assyrians of Babylon and the Persians. It was this considera¬ 
 tion that induced M. Freret, 2 one of my brethren in the Aca¬ 
 demy of Belles Lettres, to examine it with a particular 
 care and exactness; and the rather, because, as he observes, 
 it is the first pitched battle, of which we have any full or 
 particular account. I have assumed the privilege of making 
 use of the labours and learning of other persons, but without 
 robbing them of the glory, as also without denying myself the 
 liberty of making such alterations, as I judge necessary. I 
 shall give a more ample and particular description of this battle 
 than I usually do of such matters, because, as Cyrus is looked 
 upon as one of the greatest captains of antiquity, those of the 
 military profession may be glad to trace him in all his steps 
 through this important action. Moreover, the manner in which 
 the ancients made war, and fought battles, forms an essential 
 part of their history. 
 
 In Cyrus’s army the companies of foot consisted of 100 men 
 each, exclusively of the cap tain. a Each company was subdi¬ 
 vided into four platoons, which consisted of four-and-twenty 
 men each, not including the person that commanded. Each 
 of these divisions was again subdivided into two files, consisting 
 of twelve men. Every ten companies had a particular superior 
 officer to command them, which sufficiently answers to what we 
 call a colonel; and ten of those bodies had again another supe¬ 
 rior commander, which we may call a brigadier. 
 
 I have already observed, 11 that Cyrus, when he first came at 
 the head of the 30,000 Persians to the aid of his uncle Cyax- 
 ares, made a considerable change in the arms of his troops. 
 Two-thirds of them till then made use of javelins only, or 
 bows, and consequently could only fight at a distance from the 
 enemy. Instead of these, Cyrus armed the greatest part of 
 
 z Vol. vi. of the Memoirs of the Academy of Belles Lettres, p. 532. 
 
 a Cyrop. 1. vi. p. 107. b Ibid. 1. ii. p. 39, 40. 
 
32 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 them with cuirasses, bucklers, and swords, or battle-axes ; and 
 left few of his soldiers light-armed. 
 
 The Persians did not know at that time what it was to fight 
 on horseback. 0 Cyrus, who was convinced that nothing was of 
 so great importance towards the gaining of a battle as cavalry, 
 was sensible of the great inconvenience he laboured under in 
 that respect, and therefore took wise and early precautions to 
 remedy that evil. He succeeded in his design, and by little and 
 little, formed a body of the Persian cavalry, which amounted to 
 10,000 men, and were the best troops of his army. 
 
 I shall speak elsewhere of the other change he introduced, 
 with respect to the chariots of war. It is now time for us to 
 give the number of the troops of both armies, which cannot be 
 fixed but by conjecture, and by putting together several scat¬ 
 tered passages of Xenophon, that author having omitted the 
 material circumstance of acquainting us precisely with their 
 numbers ; which appears surprising in a man so expert in mili¬ 
 tary affairs as that historian was. 
 
 Cyrus’s army amounted in the whole to 196,000 men, horse 
 and foot. Of these there were 70,000 native Persians, viz . 
 10,000 cuirassiers of horse, 20,000 cuirassiers of foot, 20,000 
 pikemen, and 20,000 light armed soldiers. The rest of the 
 army, to the number of 126,000 men, consisted of 26,000 Me¬ 
 dian, Armenian, and Arabian horse, and 100,000 foot of the 
 same nation. 
 
 Besides these troops, 6 Cyrus had 300 chariots of war, armed 
 with scythes, each chariot drawn by four horses abreast, covered 
 with trappings that were arrow-proof; as were also the horses 
 of the Persian cuirassiers. 
 
 He had likewise ordered a great number of chariots to be 
 made of a larger size, e upon each of which was placed a tower 
 of about eighteen or twenty feet high, in which were lodged 
 twenty archers. Each chariot was drawn upon wheels by six¬ 
 teen oxen yoked abreast. 
 
 There was moreover a considerable number of camels/ upon 
 each of which were two Arabian archers, back to back; so that 
 one looked towards the head, and the other towards the tail of 
 the camel. 
 
 Croesus’s army was above twice as numerous as that of 
 Cyrus/ amounting in all to 420,000 men, of which 60,000 
 were cavalry. The troops consisted chiefly of Babylonians, 
 Lydians, Phrygians, Cappadocians, of the nations about the 
 Hellespont, and of Egyptians, to the number of 360,000, men. 
 The Egyptians alone made a body of 120,000. They had 
 bucklers that covered them from head to foot, very long pikes, 
 
 c Cyrop. 1. iv. p. 99, 100. and 1. v. p. 138. d Ibid. 1. vi. p. 152, 153. 157. 
 
 e Ibid. p. 156. f Ibid. p. 153. 158. £ Ibid. p. 158. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 33 
 
 and short swords, but very broad. The rest of the army was 
 made up of Phoenicians, Cyprians, Cilicians, Lycaonians, Papli- 
 lagonians, Thracians, and Ionians. 
 
 Croesus’s army was ranged in order of battle in one line, 11 the 
 infantry in the centre, and the cavalry on the two wings. All 
 his troops, both foot and horse, were thirty men deep : but the 
 Egyptians, who, as we have taken notice, were 120,000 in 
 number, and who were the principal strength of Croesus’s in¬ 
 fantry, in the centre of which they Avere posted, were divided into 
 tAvelve large bodies, or square battalions, of 10,000 men each, 
 which had 100 men in the front, and as many in depth, with 
 an interval between every battalion, that they might act and 
 fight independent of, and without interfering with, one another. 
 Croesus would gladly have persuaded them to range themselves 
 in less depth, that they might make the wider front. The 
 armies were in an immense plain, which gave room for the 
 extending of their wings to right and left: and the design 
 of Croesus, upon Avhich alone he founded his hopes of vic¬ 
 tory, was to surround and hem in the enemy’s army. Put 
 he could not prevail upon the Egyptians to change the order 
 of battle to which they had been accustomed. His army, as 
 it Avas thus drawn out into one line, took up near forty stadia, 
 or five miles in length. 
 
 Araspes, Avho under the pretence of discontent had retired 
 to Croesus’s army, and had had particular orders from Cyrus 
 to observe Avell the maimer of that general’s ranging his troops, 
 returned to the Persian camp the day before the battle. Cyrus, 
 in drawing up his army, governed himself by the disposition 
 of the enemy, of which that young Median nobleman had given him 
 an exact account. 
 
 The Persian troops had been generally used to engage four- 
 and-twenty men in depth, 1 but Cyrus thought fit to change that 
 disposition. It was necessary for him to form as Avide a front 
 as possible, Avithout too much Aveakening his battalions, to pre¬ 
 vent his army’s being enclosed and hemmed in. His infantry 
 Avas excellent, and most advantageously armed with cuirasses, 
 partisans, battle-axes, and swords; and provided they could 
 join the enemy in close fight, there Avas little reason to be¬ 
 lieve that the Lydian battalions, that were armed only with 
 light bucklers and javelins, could support the charge. Cyrus 
 therefore thinned the files of his infantry one half, and ranged 
 them only twelve men deep. The cavalry Avas draAvn out 
 on the two wings, the right commanded by Chrysantas, and 
 the left by Hystaspes. The Avhole front of the army took 
 up but thirty-two stadia, or four miles in extent: and con- 
 h Cyrop. 1. iv. p. 1GG. 1 Ibid. 1. vi. p. 1G/. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 D 
 
34 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 sequentlv was at each end near four stadia, or half a mile short of 
 the enemy’s front. 
 
 Behind the first line, at a little distance, Cyrus placed 
 the spearmen, and behind them the archers. Both the 
 one and the other were covered by soldiers in their front, over 
 whose head they could fling their javelins and shoot their arrows 
 at the enemy. 
 
 Behind all these he formed another line, to serve for the 
 rear, which consisted of the flower of his army. Their busi¬ 
 ness was to have their eyes upon those that were placed 
 before them, to encourage those that did their duty, to sustain 
 and threaten those that gave way, and even to kill those as traitors 
 that fled ; by that means to keep the cowards in awe, and make 
 them have as great a terror of the troops in the rear, as they could 
 possibly have of the enemy. 
 
 Behind the army were placed those moving towers which I 
 have already described. These formed a line equal and parallel 
 to that of the army, and did not only serve to annoy the enemy by 
 the perpetual discharges of the archers that were in them, 
 but might likewise be looked upon as a kind of movable 
 forts, or redoubts, under which the Persian troops might 
 rally, in case they were broken and pushed by the enemy. 
 
 Just behind these towers were two other lines, which also 
 were parallel and equal to the front of the army; the one 
 was formed of the baggage, and the other of the chariots which 
 carried the women, and such other persons as were unfit for 
 service. 
 
 To close all these lines, k and to secure them from the in¬ 
 sults of the enemy, Cyrus placed in the rear of all 2000 in¬ 
 fantry, 2000 horse, and the troop of camels, which was pretty 
 numerous. 
 
 Cyrus’s design in forming two lines of the baggage, &c. 
 was not only to make his army appear more numerous than 
 it really was, but likewise to oblige the enemy, in case they 
 were resolved to surround him, as he knew they intended, to 
 make the longer circuit, and consequently to weaken their line, 
 by stretching it out so far. 
 
 We have still the Persian chariots of war armed with scythes 
 to speak of. These were divided into three bodies of 100 each. 
 One of these bodies, commanded by Abradates, king of Susiana, 
 was placed in the front of the battle, and the other two upon 
 the two flanks of the army. 
 
 Such was the order of battle in the two armies, as they were 
 drawn out and disposed the day before the engagement. 
 
 The next day, very early in the morning, 1 Cyrus made a sa- 
 k Cyrop. 1. vi. p. 1G8. 1 Ibid. p. 1G9. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 35 
 
 crifice, during which time his army took a little refreshment; 
 and the soldiers, after having offered their libations to the gods, 
 put on their armour. Never was sight more beautiful and mag¬ 
 nificent : coat-armours, cuirasses, bucklers, helmets, one could 
 not tell which to admire most: men and horses all finely equip¬ 
 ped, and glittering in brass and scarlet. 
 
 When Abradates was just going to put on his cuirass, m 
 which was only of quilted linen, according to the fashion of his 
 country, his wife, Panthea, came and presented him with a hel¬ 
 met, bracers, and bracelets, all of gold, with a coat-armour of 
 his own length, plaited at the bottom, and with a purple-coloured 
 plume of feathers. She had got all this armour prepared with¬ 
 out her husband’s knowledge, that her present might be more 
 agreeable from surprise. In spite of all her endeavours to the 
 contrary, when she dressed him in this armour, she could not 
 refrain from shedding tears. But notwithstanding her tender¬ 
 ness for him, she exhorted him to die with sword in hand, 
 rather than not signalize himself in a manner suitable to his 
 birth, and the idea she had endeavoured to give Cyrus of his 
 gallantry and worth. Our obligations, says she, to that prince 
 are infinitely great. I was his prisoner, and as such was des¬ 
 tined for him; but when I came into his hands, I ivas neither 
 used like a captive, nor had any dishonourable conditions im¬ 
 posed on me for my freedom. He treated me as if I had 
 been his own brother s wife ; and in return I assured him you 
 would be capable of acknowledging such extraordinary good¬ 
 ness.—O Jupiter ! cried Abradates, lifting up his eyes towards 
 heaven, grant, that on this occasion I may approve myself a 
 husband worthy of Panthea, and a friend worthy of so gene¬ 
 rous a benefactor ! Having said this, he mounted his chariot. 
 Panthea, not being able to embrace him any longer, kissed the 
 chariot he rode in; and when she had pursued him with her 
 eyes as far as she possibly could, she retired. 
 
 As soon as Cyrus had finished his sacrifice, 0 given his officers 
 the necessary orders and instructions for the battle, and put 
 them in mind of paying the homage that is due to the gods, 
 every man went to his post. Some of his officers brought him 
 wine and victuals : p he ate a little without sitting down, and 
 caused the rest to be distributed amongst those that were about 
 him. He took a little wine likewise; and poured out a part 
 of it, as an offering to the gods, before he drank; and all the 
 company followed his example. After this he prayed again to 
 the god of his fathers, desiring he would please to be his guide, 
 and come to his assistance; he then mounted his horse, and 
 commanded them all to follow him. 
 
 As he was considering on which side he should direct his 
 
 m Cyrop. 1. vi. p. 169, 170. ° Ibid. p. 170. p Ibid. 1. vii. p. 172. 
 
 D 2 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 3G 
 
 march, he heard a clap of thunder on the right, and cried out. 
 Sovereign Jupiter, we follow thee . q And that instant he set 
 forwards, having Chrysantas on his right, who commanded the 
 right wing of the horse, and Arsamas on his left, who commanded 
 the foot. He warned them above all things to pay attention to 
 the royal standard, and to advance equally in a line. The 
 standard was a golden eagle at the end of a pike, with its 
 wings stretched out; and the same was ever after used by the 
 kings of Persia. He made his troops halt three times before 
 they arrived at the enemy’s army ; and after having marched 
 about twenty stadia, or two miles and a half, they came in view 
 of them. 
 
 When the two armies were within sight of each other, 
 and the enemies had observed how much tlieir front ex¬ 
 ceeded that of Cyrus, they made the centre of their 
 army halt, whilst the two wings advanced projecting to 
 the right and left, with design to enclose Cyrus’s army, 
 and to begin their attack on every side at the same time. 
 This movement did not at all alarm Cyrus, because he ex¬ 
 pected it. Having given the word for rallying the troops, 
 Jupiter leader and protector, he left his right wing, promis¬ 
 ing to rejoin them immediately and help them to conquer, if it was 
 the will of the gods. 
 
 He rode through all the ranks, to give his orders, and to 
 encourage the soldiers ; r and he, who on all other occasions was 
 so modest, and so far from the least air of ostentation, was 
 now full of a noble confidence, and spoke as if he was assured 
 of victory : Follow me, comrades, says he, the victory is cer¬ 
 tainly ours : the gods are for us. He observed that many 
 of his officers, and even Abradates himself, were uneasy at the 
 movement, which the two wings of the Lydian army made, in 
 order to attack them on the two flanks : Those troops alarm 
 you, says he ; believe me, those are the very troops that will 
 be the first routed; and to you, Abradates, I give that as a 
 signal of the time when you are to fall upon the enemy with 
 your chariots. In fact, the event happened just as Cyrus had 
 foretold. After Cyrus had given such orders as he thought 
 necessary every where, he returned to the right wing of his 
 army. 
 
 When the two detached bodies of the Lydian troops were 
 sufficiently extended,® Croesus gave the signal to the main 
 body to march up directly to the front of the Persian army, 
 whilst the two wings, that were wheeling round upon their flanks, 
 advanced on each side; so that Cyrus’s army was enclosed on 
 three sides, as if it had three great armies to engage with ; and, 
 
 ^ Tie had really a God for Ids guide, but very different from Jupiter. 
 r Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 173— \p>. s Ibid. 1. vii. p. 170. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 37 
 
 as Xenophon says, looked like a small square drawn within a 
 great one. 
 
 In an instant, on the first signal Cyrus gave, his troops 
 faced about on every side, keeping a profound silence in ex¬ 
 pectation of the event. The prince now thought it time to 
 sing the hymn of battle. The whole army answered to it 
 with loud shouts, and invocations of the god of war. Then 
 Cyrus, at the head of some troops of horse, briskly followed 
 by a body of foot, fell immediately upon the enemy’s forces 
 that were marching to attack the right of his army in flank : 
 and having attacked them in flank, as they intended to do him, 
 put them into great disorder. The chariots then driving 
 furiously upon the Lydians, completed their defeat. 
 
 In the same moment, the troops of the left flank, knowing 
 by the noise that Cyrus had begun the battle on the right, 
 advanced to the enemy. And immediately the squadron of 
 camels was made to advance likewise, as Cy rus had ordered. 
 The enemy’s cavalry did not expect this ; and their horses at 
 a distance, as soon as ever they were sensible of the approach 
 of those animals, (for horses cannot endure the smell of camels,) 
 began to snort and prance, to run foul upon, and overturn, one 
 another, throwing their riders, and treading them under their 
 feet. Whilst they were in this confusion, a small body of 
 horse, commanded by Artageses, pushed them very warmly, 
 to prevent them from rallying ; and the chariots armed with 
 scythes falling furiously upon them, they were entirely routed 
 with a dreadful slaughter. 
 
 This being the signal which Cyrus had given Abradates for 
 attacking the front of the enemy’s army, he drove like lightning 
 upon them with all his chariots .' 1 Their first ranks were not 
 able to stand so violent a charge, but gave way, and were 
 dispersed. Having broken and overthrown them, Abradates 
 came up to the Egyptian battalions, which being covered with 
 their bucklers, and marching in such close order that the chariots 
 had not room to pierce amongst them, gave him much more 
 trouble, and would not have been broken, but for the violence 
 of the horses that trod upon them. It was a most dreadful 
 spectacle to see the heaps of men and horses, overturned 
 chariots, broken arms, and all the direful effects of the sharp 
 scythes, which cut every thing in pieces that came in their 
 way. But Abradates’s chariot having the misfortune to be 
 overturned, he and his men Were killed, after they had sig¬ 
 nalized their valour in an extraordinary manner. The Egyptians 
 then marching forwards in close order, and covered with their 
 bucklers, obliged the Persian infantry to give way, and drove 
 
 them beyond their fourth line, as far as to their machines. 
 
 •/ 
 
 1 Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 177* 
 
38 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 There the Egyptians met a fresh storm of arrows and javelins, 
 that were poured upon their heads from the moving towers; 
 and the battalions of the Persian rear-guard advancing sword 
 in hand, hindered their archers and spearmen from retreating 
 any farther, and obliged them to return to the charge. 
 
 Cyrus in the mean time having put both the horse and foot 
 to flight on the left of the Egyptians, did not lose time in pur¬ 
 suing the fugitives." But, pushing on directly to the centre, 
 he had the mortification to find his Persian troops had been 
 forced to give way; and rightly judging, that the only means 
 to prevent the Egyptians from gaining farther ground, would 
 be to attack them behind, he did so, and fell upon their rear: 
 the cavalry came up at the same time, and the enemy was 
 pushed with great fury. The Egyptians, being attacked on all 
 sides, faced about every way, and defended themselves with 
 wonderful bravery. Cyrus liimself was in great danger; his 
 horse, which a soldier had stabbed in the belly, sinking under 
 him, he fell in the midst of his enemies. Here was an oppor¬ 
 tunity, says Xenophon, of seeing how important it is for a 
 commander to have the affection of his soldiers. Officers and 
 men, equally alarmed at the danger in which they saw their 
 leader, ran headlong into the thick forest of pikes, to rescue and 
 save him. He quickly mounted another horse, and the battle 
 became more bloody than ever. At length Cyrus, admiring the 
 valour of the Egyptians, and being concerned to see such brave 
 men perish, offered them honourable conditions, if they would 
 surrender, letting them know, at the same time, that all their 
 allies had abandoned them. The Egyptians accepted the con¬ 
 ditions ; and, as they prided themselves no less upon their 
 fidelity than their courage, they stipulated, that they should not 
 be obliged to carry arms against Croesus, in whose service they 
 had been engaged. From thenceforward they served in the 
 Persian army with inviolable fidelity. 
 
 Xenophon observes, x that Cyrus gave them the cities of La¬ 
 rissa and Cyllene, near Cumae, upon the sea-coast, as also other 
 inland places, which were inhabited by their descendants even 
 in his time; and he adds, that these places were called the 
 cities of the Egyptians. This observation of Xenophon’s, as 
 also many other in several parts of his Cyropaedia, in order to 
 prove the truth of what he advances, show plainly that he meant 
 that work as a true history of Cyrus, at least with respect to the 
 main substance of it, and the greatest part of the facts and 
 transactions. This judicious reflection Monsieur Freret makes 
 upon this passage. 
 
 The battle lasted till evening^ Croesus retreated, as fast as 
 he could, with his troops to Sardis. The other nations, in like 
 
 " Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 178. 
 
 Ibid. p. 170. y Ibid. p. 180 
 
 X 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 30 
 
 manner, that very night directed their course, each to their own 
 country, and made as long marches as they possibly could. The 
 conquerors, after they had eaten something, and posted the 
 guards, went to rest. 
 
 In describing this battle, I have endeavoured exactly to fol¬ 
 low the Greek text of Xenophon, the Latin translation of 
 which is not always faithful. Some military men, to whom I 
 have communicated this description, find a defect in the manner 
 in which Cyrus drew up his forces in order of battle ; as he 
 placed no troops to cover his flanks, to sustain his armed cha¬ 
 riots, and to oppose the two bodies of troops which Croesus had 
 detached to fall upon the flanks of Cyrus’s army. It is possible 
 such a circumstance might have escaped Xenophon in describ¬ 
 ing this battle. 
 
 It is allowed, that Cyrus’s victory was chiefly owing to his 
 Persian cavalry , 2 which was a new establishment, and entirely 
 the fruit of that prince’s care and activity in forming his peo¬ 
 ple, and perfecting them in a part of the military art, of which, 
 till his time, they had been utterly ignorant. The chariots 
 armed with scythes did good service, and the use of them was 
 ever after retained by the Persians. The camels, too, were 
 not unserviceable in this battle, though Xenophon makes no 
 great account of them ; and observes that in his time they made 
 no other use of them than for carrying the baggage. 
 
 I do not undertake to write a panegyric upon Cyrus, or to 
 magnify his merit. It is sufficient to take notice, that in this 
 affair we see all the qualities of a great general shine out in 
 him. Before the battle, in admirable sagacity and foresight 
 in discovering and disconcerting the enemy’s measures; an 
 infinite exactness in the detail of affairs, in taking care that his 
 army should be provided with every thing necessary, and all 
 his orders punctually executed at the times fixed; a wonderful 
 application to gain the hearts of his soldiers, and to inspire 
 them with confidence and ardour: in the heat of action, what 
 a spirit and activity ; what a presence of mind in giving orders 
 as occasion requires ; what courage and intrepidity, and at the 
 same time what humanity towards the enemy, whose valour he 
 respects, and whose blood he is unwilling to shed! We shall 
 soon see what use he made of his victory. 
 
 But what appears to me still more remarkable, and more 
 worthy of admiration, than all the rest, is the constant care he 
 took on all occasions, to pay that homage and worship to the 
 Deity, which he thought belonged to him. Doubtless the 
 reader has been surprised to see, in the relation I have given of 
 this battle, how many times Cyrus, in sight of all his army, 
 makes mention of the gods, offers sacrifices and libations to 
 
 z Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 100. 
 
40 
 
 HISTORY OF * 
 
 them, addresses himself to them, and implores their succour 
 and protection. But in this I have added nothing to the ori¬ 
 ginal text of the historian, who was also a military man him¬ 
 self, and who thought it no dishonour to himself or his pro¬ 
 fession to relate these particular circumstances. What a shame, 
 
 then, and a reproach would it be to a Christian officer or 
 general, if on a day of battle he should blush to appear as reli¬ 
 gious and devout as a pagan prince ; and if the Lord of hosts, 
 the God of armies whom he acknowledges as such, should make 
 a less impression upon his mind, than respect for the false deities 
 of paganism did upon the mind of Cyrus! 
 
 As for Croesus, he makes no great figure in this action ; not 
 one word is said of him in the whole engagement. But that 
 profound silence which Xenophon observes with regard to 
 him, seems, in my opinion, to imply a great deal, and gives us 
 to understand that a man may he a powerful prince, or a rich 
 potentate, without being a great w r arrior. 
 
 But let us return to the camp of the Persians.* It is easy 
 to imagine what must be the affliction and distress of Panthea, 
 when the news was brought her of Abradates’s death. Having 
 caused his body to be brought to her, and leaning her head 
 upon her knees, quite out of her senses, with her eyes stedfastly 
 fixed upon the melancholy object, she thought of nothing but 
 feeding her grief and indulging her misery with the sight of 
 that dismal and bloody spectacle. Cyrus being told what a 
 condition she was in, ran immediately to her, sympathized with 
 her affliction, and bewailed her unhappy fate with tears of com¬ 
 passion, doing all that he possibly could to give her comfort, 
 and ordering extraordinary honours to be shown to the brave 
 deceased Abradates. But no sooner was Cyrus retired, than 
 Panthea, overpowered with grief, stabbed herself with a dagger, 
 and fell dead upon the body of her husband. They were both 
 buried in one common grave upon the very spot, and a monu¬ 
 ment was erected for them, which was standing in the time of 
 Xenophon. 
 
 SECT. VI. 
 
 The taking of Sardis and of Croesus. 
 
 The next day in the morning Cyrus marched towards Sardis. b 
 If we may believe Herodotus, Croesus did not imagine that 
 Cyrus intended to shut him up in the city, and therefore march¬ 
 ed out with his forces to meet him, and to give him battle. 
 According to the historian, the Lydians were the bravest and 
 most warlike people of Asia. Their principal strength con- 
 a Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 184—18G. b Herod. 1. i. c. 78 — 84. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 41 
 
 sistecl in their cavalry. Cyrus, in order to render that the less 
 serviceable to them, made his camels advance first, of which 
 animals the horse could endure neither the sight nor the smell, 
 and therefore immediately retired on their approach. Upon 
 which the riders dismounted, and came to the engagement on 
 foot, which was very obstinately maintained on both sides ; but 
 at length the Lydians gave way, and were forced to retreat in¬ 
 to the city ; c which Cyrus quickly besieged, causing his engines 
 to be levelled against the walls, and his scaling-ladders to be 
 prepared, as if he intended to attack it by storm. But whilst 
 he was amusing the besieged with these preparations, the night 
 following he made himself master of the citadel, by a private 
 way that led thereto, which he was informed of by a Persian 
 slave, who had been a servant to the governor of that place. 
 At break of day he entered the city, where he met with no 
 resistance. His first care w as to preserve it from being plun¬ 
 dered ; for he perceived the Chaldeans had quitted their ranks, 
 and already begun to disperse themselves in all quarters. To 
 stop the rapacious hands of foreign soldiers, and tie them as it 
 were by a single command, in a city so abounding with riches as 
 Sardis was, is a thing not to be done but by so singular an autho¬ 
 rity as Cyrus had over his army. He gave all the citizens to 
 understand, that their lives should be spared, and neither their 
 wives nor children touched, provided they brought him all their 
 gold and silver. This condition they readily complied with; 
 and Croesus himself, whom Cyrus had ordered to be conducted to 
 him, set them an example, by delivering up all his riches and trea¬ 
 sures to the conqueror. 
 
 When Cyrus had given all necessary orders concerning 
 the city, d he had a private conversation with the king, of 
 whom he asked, among other things, what he now thought 
 of the oracle of Delphi, and of the answers given by the 
 god that presided there, for whom it was said, he had al¬ 
 ways a great regard l Croesus first acknowledged, that he 
 had justly incurred the indignation of that god, for having- 
 shown a distrust of the truth of his answers, and for having put 
 him to the trial by an absurd and ridiculous rjuestion; and 
 then declared, that notwithstanding all this, he still had no 
 reason to complain of him ; so that having consulted him, to 
 know what he should do in order to lead a happy life, the 
 oracle had given him an answer, which implied in substance, 
 that he should enjoy a perfect and lasting happiness when he 
 once came to the knowledge of himself. For want oj this 
 knowledge, continued he, and believing myself, through the ex¬ 
 cessive praises that ivere lavished upon me, to be something 
 very differentfrom what lam, I accepted the title of generalissimo 
 c Cvrop. t vii. p. 180. d Ibid, p 181—184. 
 
42 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 of the whole army, and unadvisedly engaged in a war against 
 a prince infinitely my superior in all respects. But now that 
 I am instructed by my defeat, and begin to know myself, I 
 believe I am going to begin to be happy; and if you prove 
 favourable to me, (for my fate is in your bands,) I shall cer¬ 
 tainly be so. Cyrus, touched with compassion at the misfortune 
 of the king, who was fallen in a moment from so great an eleva¬ 
 tion, and admiring his equanimity under such a reverse of 
 fortune, treated him with a great deal of clemency and kind¬ 
 ness, suffering him to enjoy both the title and authority of 
 king, under the restriction of not having the power to make 
 war ; that is to say, he discharged him (as Croesus acknow¬ 
 ledged himself) from all the burdensome part of regal power, and 
 truly enabled him to lead a happy life, exempt from all care and 
 disquiet. From thenceforward he took him with him in all his ex¬ 
 peditions, either out of esteem for him, or to have the benefit of his 
 counsel, or out of policy, and to be the more secure of his person. 
 
 Herodotus, and other writers after him, relate this story with 
 the addition of some very remarkable circumstances, which I 
 think it incumbent on me to mention, notwithstanding they seem 
 to be much more wonderful than true. 
 
 I have already observed/ that the only son Croesus had liv¬ 
 ing was dumb. This young prince, seeing a soldier, when the 
 city was taken, ready to give the king, whom he did not know, 
 a stroke upon the head with his scimitar, made such a violent 
 effort and struggle, out of fear and tenderness for the life of 
 his father, that he broke the string of his tongue, and cried out, 
 Soldier, spare the life of Crcesus. 
 
 Croesus being a prisoner, was condemned by the conqueror 
 to be burnt alive/ Accordingly, the funeral pile was prepared, 
 and that unhappy prince, being laid thereon, and just upon the 
 point of execution, recollecting the conversation he had formerly 
 had with Solon/ was wofully convinced of the truth of that 
 philosopher’s admonition, and in remembrance thereof, cried 
 aloud three times, Solon! Solon! Solon! Cyrus, who, with 
 the chief officers * of his court, was present at this spectacle, 
 was curious to know why Croesus pronounced that celebrated 
 philosopher’s name with so much vehemence in this extremity. 
 Being told the reason, and reflecting upon the uncertain state 
 of all sublunary things, he was touched with commiseration at 
 the prince’s misfortune, caused him to be taken from the pile, 
 and treated him afterwards, as long as he lived, with honour 
 and respect. Thus had Solon the glory, 11 with one single word, 
 
 e Herod. 1. i. c. 85. f Ibid. c. 8G—91. Plut. in Solon, 
 
 s This conversation is already related. 
 b K id d6£ai' o 2o\wi/ tvi Xoyy t'ov fitv ciocrag, tov t'f 7rrudtv<Jag tCov 
 
 j3a<ri\sujv. Plut. 
 
CYRUS. 43 
 
 to save the life of one king, and give a wholesome lesson of in¬ 
 struction to another. 
 
 Two answers in particular, given by the Delphic oracle, 
 had induced Croesus to engage in the war which proved so 
 fatal to him. The one was, that he was to believe himself in 
 danger when the Medes should have a mule to reign over them; 
 the other, that when he should pass the river Halys, to make 
 war against the Medes, he would destroy a mighty empire. 
 From the first of these oracular answers he concluded, consi¬ 
 dering the impossibility of the thing spoken of, that he had no¬ 
 thing to fear ; and from the second he conceived hopes of sub¬ 
 verting the empire of the Medes. When he found how things 
 had happened quite contrary to his expectations, with Cyrus’s 
 leave he despatched messengers to Delphi, with orders to make 
 a present to the god, in his name, of a golden chain, and at the 
 same time to reproach him for having so basely deceived him 
 by his oracle, notwithstanding the numberless presents and 
 offerings he had made him. The god was at no great pains 
 to justify his answers. The mule which the oracle meant was 
 Cy rus, who derived his extraction from two different nations, 
 being a Persian by the father’s side, and a Mede by the 
 mother’s; and as to the great empire which Croesus was 
 to overthrow, the oracle did not mean that of the Medes, but 
 liis own. 
 
 It was by such false and deceitful oracles, that the father of 
 lies, the devil, who was the author of them, imposed upon man¬ 
 kind, in those times of ignorance and darkness, always giving 
 his answers to those that consulted him, in such ambiguous and 
 doubtful terms, that, let the event be what it would, they con¬ 
 tained a relative meaning. 
 
 When the people of Ionia and iEolia were apprised of 
 Cyrus’s having subdued the Lydians,’ they sent ambassadors to 
 him at Sardis, to desire he would receive them as his subjects 
 upon the same conditions he had granted the Lydians. Cyrus, 
 who before his victory had solicited them in vain to embrace 
 his party, and was then in a condition to compel them to it by 
 force, answered them only by a fable of a fisherman, who hav¬ 
 ing played upon his pipe, in order to make the fish come to 
 him, in vain, found there was no way to catch them but by 
 throwing his net into the water. Failing in their hopes of suc¬ 
 ceeding this way, they applied to the Lacedaemonians, and de¬ 
 manded their succour. The Lacedaemonians thereupon sent 
 deputies to Cyrus, to let him know that they would not suffer 
 him to undertake any thing against the Greeks. Cyrus only 
 laughed at such a message, and warned them in his turn to 
 
 ‘ Herod. 1. i. c. 141. 152, 153. 
 
44 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 take care, and put themselves in a con dilion to defend their 
 own territories. 
 
 The nations of the isles had nothing to apprehend from 
 Cyrus, because he had not yet subdued the Phoenicians, and 
 the Persians had no shipping. 
 
 ARTICLE II. 
 
 The history of the besieging and taking of Babylon by Cyrus. 
 
 Cyrus stayed in Asia Minor, k till he had entirely reduced all 
 the nations that inhabited it into subjection, from the JEge an 
 sea to the river Euphrates. From thence he proceeded to 
 Syria and Arabia, which he also subjected. After which he 
 entered into Assyria, and advanced towards Babylon, the only 
 city of the east that stood out against him. 
 
 The siege of this important place was no easy enterprise. 
 The walls of it were of a prodigious height, and appeared to 
 be inaccessible, without mentioning the immense number of 
 people within them for their defence. Besides, the city was 
 stored with all sorts of provisions for twenty years. However, 
 these difficulties did not discourage Cyrus from pursuing his 
 design: but, despairing to take the place by storm or assault, 
 he made them believe his design was to reduce it by famine. 
 To which end he caused a line of circumvallation to be drawn 
 quite round the city, with a large and deep ditch; and, that his 
 troops might not be over-fatigued, he divided his army into 
 twelve bodies, and assigned each of them its month for guard¬ 
 ing the trenches. The besieged, thinking themselves out of 
 all danger, by reason of their ramparts and magazines, insulted 
 Cyrus from the top of their walls, and laughed at all his at¬ 
 tempts, and all the trouble he gave himself, as so much unpro¬ 
 fitable labour. 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 Predictions of the principal circumstances relating to the siege and the taking 
 of Babylon, as they are set down in different places of the Holy Scriptures. 
 
 As the taking of Babylon is one of the greatest events in 
 ancient history, and as the principal circumstances with which 
 it was attended were foretold in the Holy Scriptures many 
 years before it happened, I think it not improper, before I 
 give an account of wliat the profane writers say of it, briefly 
 to put together what we find upon the same head, in the sacred 
 pages, that the reader may be the more capable of comparing 
 the predictions and the accomplishment of them together. 
 k Herod. 1. i. c. 177* Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 18G—188. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 45 
 
 I. The Prediction of the Jewish Captivity at Babylon, and 
 
 of the Time of its Duration. 
 
 God Almighty was pleased not only to cause the captivity, 
 which his people were to suffer at Babylon, to be foretold a 
 long time before it came to pass, but likewise to set down the 
 exact number of years it was to last. The term he fixed for 
 it was seventy years, after which he promised he would deliver 
 them, by bringing a remarkable and irretrievable destruction 
 upon the city of Babylon, the place of their bondage and con¬ 
 finement. And these nations shall serve the kings of Babylon 
 seventy years. Jer. xxv. 11. 
 
 II. The Causes of God's Wrath against Babylon . 
 
 That which kindled the wrath of God against Babylon was, 
 1. her insupportable pride ; 2. her inhuman cruelty towards 
 the Jews; and 3. the sacrilegious impiety of her king. 
 
 1. Her pride. She believed herself to be invincible. 1 She 
 said in her heart, I am the queen of nations, and I shall re¬ 
 main so for ever. There is no power equal to mine. All other 
 powers are either subject or tributary to me, or in alliance with 
 me. I shall never know either barrenness or widowhood. 
 Eternity is written in my destiny, according to the observation 
 of all those that have consulted the stars to know it. 
 
 2. Her cy'uelty. It is God himself that complains of it. 
 I was willing, m says he, to punish my people, as a father chas- 
 tiseth his children. I sent them for a time into banishment 
 at Babylon, with a design to recall them, as soon as they were 
 become more thankfid and more faithful. But Babylon and 
 her prince have added to the paternal chastisement which I 
 inflicted, such cruel and inhuman treatment as my clemency 
 abhors. Their design has been to destroy ; mine teas to save. 
 The banishment they have turned into a severe bondage and cap¬ 
 tivity, and have shown no compassion or regard either to age, in¬ 
 firmity, or virtue. 
 
 3. The sacrilegious impiety of her king. To the pride and 
 cruelty of his predecessors Belshazzar added an impiety that was 
 peculiar to himself. He did not only prefer his false divinities 
 to the true and only God, but fancied that he had vanquished his 
 power, because he was possessed of the vessels which had be¬ 
 longed to his worship ; and, as if he meant it to affront him, 
 
 1 Dixisti, In sempiternum ero domina—Dicis in corde tuo, Ego sum, 
 et non est prseter me amplius: non sedebo vidua, et ignorabo sterilitatem, 
 Isa. xlvii. 7, 8. 
 
 m Iratus sum super populum meum, et dedi eos in manu tua, Babylon. 
 Non posuisti eis misericordiam : super senem aggravasti jugum tuuni valde. 
 Veniet super te malum. Isa. xlvii. 0. 
 
40 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 lie affected to apply those holy vessels to profane uses. This 
 was what completed the measure of God’s wrath. 
 
 III. The Decree pronounced against Babylon. Prediction 
 of the Calamities that were to fall upon her, and of her 
 utter Destruction. 
 
 Make bright the arrows, gather the shields, n saitli the 
 prophet, speaking to the Medes and Persians. The Lord hath 
 raised up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, for his device 
 is against Babylon, to destroy it, because it is the vengeance of 
 the Lord, the vengeance of his temple. 
 
 Howl ye, 0 for the day of the Lord is at hand,—a day cruel 
 both with wrath and fierce anger to lay the land desolate. 
 Behold ,p I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I 
 have punished the king of Assyria.^ 
 
 Shout against her round about.* Recompense her according 
 to her word; according to all that she hath done, do unto 
 her:—and spare not her young men; destroy ye utterly all 
 her host. Every one that is found shall be thrust through , s 
 and every one that is joined to them shall fall by the sword. 
 Their children also shall be dashed to pieces before their eyes, 
 their houses shall be spoiled, and their wives ravished. Be¬ 
 hold, I will stir up the Medes against them, who shall not 
 regard silver; and as for gold, they shall not delight in it. 
 Their bows also shall dash the young men to pieces, and they 
 shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb ; their eye shall 
 not spare children. O daughter of Babylon, t ivho art to be 
 destroyed, happy shall he be that rewardeth thee as thou hast 
 served us. Happy shall he be that taketli and dashetli thy little 
 ones against the stones. 
 
 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, and the beauty of 
 the Chaldees excellency, shall be as when God overthrew 
 Sodom and Gomorrah . u It shall never be inhabited ; neither 
 shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation ; neither 
 shall the Arabian pitch tent there; neither shall the shep¬ 
 herds make their fold there; but ivild beasts of the desert 
 shall lie there ; and their houses shall be full of doleful crea¬ 
 tures, and owls shall dwell there; and satyrs shall dance 
 there: And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in 
 their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces. 
 I ivill also make it a possession for the bittern, and j>ools of 
 water* and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, 
 saith the Lord of hosts. The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying, 
 
 n Jer. li. 11. 0 Isa. xiii. 6. 9. p Jer. 1. 18. 
 
 ^ In the destruction of Nineveh. r Jer. 1. 15. 29. and li. 3. s Isa. xiii. 15—18. 
 * Ps. cxxxvii. 8, 9. u Isa. xiii. 19—22. x Ibid. xiv. 23, 24. 
 
 X 
 
CYRUS. 47 
 
 Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass; and as I 
 have purposed, so shall it stand. 
 
 IV. Cyrus called to destroy Babylon, and to deliver 
 
 the Jews. 
 
 Cyrus, whom the Divine Providence was to make use of, 
 as an instrument for the executing his design of goodness and 
 mercy towards his people, was mentioned in the Scripture by 
 his name, above 200 years before he was born. And, that 
 the world might not be surprised at the marvellous rapidity 
 of his concpiests, God was pleased to declare, in very sublime 
 and remarkable terms, that he himself would be his guide; 
 and that in all his expeditions he would lead him by the hand, 
 and would subdue all the princes of the earth before him. 
 Thus saith the Lord to his anointedJ to Cyrus, whose right 
 hand I have holden to subdue nations before him; and I will 
 loose the loins of Icings, to open before him two-leaved gates, 
 and the gates shall not be shut. I will go before thee, and 
 make the crooked places straight. I will break in pieces the 
 gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron. And 
 I will give thee the treasures of darkness and hidden riches 
 of secret places, that thou mayest know, that I the Lord, which 
 call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel: For Jacob my 
 servant's sake, and Israel, mine elect, I have even called thee 
 by thy name : I have surnamed thee , though thou hast not 
 known me. 
 
 V. God gives the Signal to the Commanders, and to the Troops, 
 
 to march against Babylon. 
 
 Lift ye up a banner, saith the Lord, upon the high moun¬ 
 tain, 1 that it may be seen afar off, and that all they who are 
 to obey me may know my orders. Exalt the voice unto them 
 that are able to hear you. Shake the hand, as a signal to 
 hasten the march of those that are too far off to distinguish 
 another sort of command. Let the officers of the troops go 
 into the gates of the nobles, into the pavilions of their kings. 
 Let the people of each nation range themselves around their 
 sovereign, and make haste to offer him their service, and to go 
 unto his tent, which is already set up. 
 
 I have commanded my sanctified ones , a I have given my 
 orders to those whom I have sanctified for the execution of 
 my designs ; and these kings are already marching to obey me, 
 though they know me not. It is I that have placed them upon 
 the throne, that have made divers nations subject to them, in 
 order to accomplish my designs by their administration. I 
 
 y Isa. xlv. 1—4. 
 
 z Tl>ifl. xiii. 2. 
 
 a 
 
 Ibid. 3. 
 
48 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 have called my mighty ones for mine anger. b 1 have caused 
 the mighty warriors to come up, to be the ministers and ex¬ 
 ecutioners of my wrath and vengeance. From me they derive 
 their courage, their martial abilities, their patience, their wisdom, 
 and the success of their enterprises. If they are invincible, 
 it is because they serve me: every thing gives way, and trem¬ 
 bles, before them, because they are the ministers of my wrath 
 and indignation. They joyfully labour for my glory, they 
 rejoice in my highness. The honour they have of being 
 under my command, and of being sent to deliver a people 
 that I love, inspires them with ardour and cheerfulness: Be¬ 
 hold ! they triumph already in a certain assurance of victory. 
 
 The prophet, a witness in spirit of the orders that are 
 just given, is astonished at the swiftness with which they 
 are executed by the princes and the people. I hear already, 
 he cries out. The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like 
 as of a great jwojde ; a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of 
 nations gathered together. c The Lord of hosts mustereth 
 the host of the battle : d They come from a far country, from 
 the end of heaven, where the voice of God, their master and sove¬ 
 reign, has reached their ears. 
 
 But it is not with the sight of a formidable army, nor of 
 the kings of the earth, that I am now struck; it is God himself that 
 I behold; all the rest are but his retinue, and the ministers of his 
 justice. It is even the Lord, and the weapons of his indignation, 
 to destroy the whole land. 
 
 A grievous vision is declared unto me: e The impious Bel¬ 
 shazzar/ king of Babylon, continues to act impiously; the 
 treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler 
 spoileth. To put an end to these excesses, go up, thou prince 
 of Persia; go up, O Elam: And thou, prince of the Medes. 
 besiege thou Babylon: Besiege, O Media; all the sighing, 
 which she was the cause of, have I made to cease. That 
 wicked city is taken and pillaged : her power is at an end, and 
 my people is delivered. 
 
 VI. Circumstances relating to the siege and the taking of 
 
 Babylon, minutely detailed. 
 
 There is nothing, metliinks, better calculated to raise in us 
 a profound reverence for religion, and to give us a great idea 
 of the Deity, than to observe with what exactness he reveals 
 to his prophets the principal circumstances of the besieging 
 and taking of Babylon, not only many years, but several ages, 
 before it happened. 
 
 b Lat. vers, in irct med. ITeb. in irarn mcam. c Isa. xiii. 4. 
 
 ll lb. ver. 5. e lb. xxi. 2. f . This is the sense of the Hebrew words. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 49 
 
 1. We have already seen that the army by which Babylon 
 will be taken, is to consist of Medes and Persians, and to be 
 commanded by Cyrus. 
 
 2. The city shall be attacked after a very extraordinary 
 manner, in a way which she did. not at all expect: Therefore 
 shall evil come upon thee : thou slialt not know from whence it 
 riseth? She shall be all on a sudden and in an instant over¬ 
 whelmed with calamities, which she was not able to foresee: 
 Desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shall not 
 know. h In a word, she shall be taken, as it were in a net, be¬ 
 fore she perceiveth that any snares have been laid for her: I 
 have laid a snare for thee , and thou art also taken, O Baby¬ 
 lon, and thou wast not aware. 1 
 
 3. Babylon reckoned the Euphrates alone was sufficient to 
 render her impregnable, and triumphed in her being so advan¬ 
 tageously situated and defended by so deep a river: O thou 
 that dwellest upon many waters : k it is God himself who 
 points out Babylon under that description. And yet that very 
 river Euphrates shall be the cause of her ruin. Cyrus, by a 
 stratagem, (of which there had never been any example before, 
 nor has there been any thing like it since,) shall turn the course 
 of that river, shall lay its channel dry, and by that means open 
 himself a passage into the city: I will dry up her sea, and 
 make her springs dry J A drought is upon her waters, and 
 they shall he dried up. Cyrus shall take possession of the 
 quays of the river; and the waters which rendered Babylon 
 inaccessible, shall be dried up, as if they had been consumed 
 by fire: The passages are stopped, and the reeds they have 
 burnt with fire.™ 
 
 4. She shall be taken in the night-time, upon a day of feast¬ 
 ing and rejoicing, even whilst her inhabitants are at table, and 
 think upon nothing but eating and drinking: In their heat I 
 will make their feasts, and I will make them drunken, that 
 they may rejoice, and sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake , 
 saith the Lord. 11 It is remarkable, that it is God who does all 
 this, who lays a snare for Babylon; I have laid a snare for 
 thee ; 0 who drietli up the waters of the river ; I will dry up her 
 sea ; and who brings that drunkenness and drowsiness upon her 
 princes : I will make drunk her princes? 
 
 5. The king shall be seized in an instant with an incredible 
 terror and perturbation of mind: My loins are filled with 
 pain; pangs have taken hold upon me as the pangs of a wo¬ 
 man that travaileth : I was bowed down at the hearing of it : 
 I was dismayed at the seeing of it; my heart panted, fearful¬ 
 ness affrighted me : The night of my pleasure hath he turned 
 
 s Isa. xlvii. 11. h Ibid. * .Ter. 1. 24. k Id. li. 13. 1 Id. 1. 38. and li. 36. 
 
 “ Id. li. 32. n Id. li. 39. ° Id. 1. 24. p Id. li. 57- 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 E 
 
50 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 into fear unto me . q This is the condition Belshazzar was in, 
 when in the middle of the entertainment he saw a hand come 
 out of the wall, which wrote such characters upon it as none of 
 his diviners could either explain or read; but more especially 
 when Daniel declared to him, that those characters imported 
 the sentence of his death. Then, r says the Scripture, the 
 kings countenance teas changed, and his thoughts troubled him , 
 so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote 
 one against another. The terror, astonishment, fainting, and 
 trembling of Belshazzar, are here described and expressed 
 in the same manner by the prophet who was an eye-witness of 
 them, as they were by the prophet who foretold them 200 years 
 before. 
 
 But Isaiah must have had an extraordinary measure of di¬ 
 vine illumination, to be able to add, immediately after the de¬ 
 scription of Belshazzar’s consternation, the following words : 
 Prepare the table* watch in the watch-tower; eat, drink. 
 The prophet foresees, that Belshazzar, though dismayed arid 
 confounded at first, .shall recover his courage and spirits, 
 through the exhortations of his courtiers ; but more particularly 
 through the persuasion of the queen, his mother, who repre¬ 
 sented to him the unreasonableness of being affected with such 
 unmanly fears, and unnecessary alarms ; Let not thy thoughts 
 trouble thee / nor let thy countenance be changed. They will 
 exhort him therefore to make himself easy, to satisfy himself 
 with giving proper orders, and with the assurance of being ad¬ 
 vertised of every thing by the vigilance of the sentinels ; to 
 order the rest of the supper to be served, as if nothing had 
 happened ; and to recall that gaiety and joy which his excessive 
 fears had banished from the table : Prepare the table, watch in 
 the watch-tower; eat, drink. 
 
 6. But at the same time that men are giving their orders, 
 God on his part is likewise giving his ; Arise ye princes , u and 
 anoint the shield. It is God himself that commands the princes 
 to advance, to take their arms, and to enter boldly into a city 
 drowned in wine, or buried in sleep. 
 
 7. Isaiah acquaints us with two material and important cir¬ 
 cumstances concerning the taking of Babylon. The first is, 
 that the troops with which it is filled, shall not keep their 
 ground, or stand firm any where, neither at the palace nor the 
 citadel, nor any other public place whatsoever; that they shall 
 desert and leave one another, without thinking of any thing 
 but making their escape ; that in running away they shall dis¬ 
 perse themselves, and take different roads, just as a flock of 
 deer, or of sheep, is dispersed and scattered when they are 
 
 Isa. xxi. 3, 4. 
 3 Isa. xxi. 5. 
 
 1 Dan. v. 10. 
 
 r Dan. v. G. 
 u Isa. xxi. 5. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 51 
 
 affrighted : And it shall he as a chased roe , w and as a sheep that 
 no man taketh up. The second circumstance is, that the 
 greatest part of those troops, though they were in the Baby¬ 
 lonian service and pay, were not Babylonians ; and that they 
 shall return into the provinces from whence they came, without 
 being pursued by the conquerors : because the divine vengeance 
 was chiefly to fall upon the citizens of Babylon: They shall 
 turn every man to his own people* and flee every one into his 
 own land. 
 
 8. Lastly, not to mention the dreadful slaughter which is to 
 be made of the inhabitants of Babylon, where no mercy will be 
 shown either to old men, women, or children, or even to the 
 child that is still within its mother’s womb, as has been already- 
 noticed: the last circumstance, I say, which the prophet fore¬ 
 tells, is the death of the king himself, whose body is to have 
 no burial, and the entire extinction of the royal family; both 
 which calamities are described in the Scripture, in a manner 
 equally terrible and instructive to all princes. But thou art 
 cast out of thy graved like an abominable branch. Thou 
 shalt not be joined with them (thy ancestors) in burial, because 
 thou hast destroyed thy land, and slain thy people. That 
 king is justly forgotten, who has never remembered, that he 
 ought to be the protector and father of his people. lie that 
 has lived only to ruin and destroy his country, is unworthy of 
 the common privilege of burial. As he has been an enemy to 
 mankind, he ought to have no place amongst them. He was 
 like unto the wild beasts of the field, and like them he shall be 
 buried ; and since he had no sentiments of humanity himself, 
 he deserves to meet with no humanity from others. This is the 
 sentence which God himself pronounceth against Belshazzar: 
 and the malediction extends itself to his children, who were 
 looked upon as his associates in the throne, and as the source of 
 a long posterity and succession of kings, and were entertained 
 with nothing by the flattering courtiers, but the pleasing pros¬ 
 pects and ideas of their future grandeur. Prepare slaughter 
 for his children,' 1 for the iniquity of their fathers ; that they 
 do not rise nor possess the land. For I will rise up against 
 them, saith the Lord of hosts, and cut off from Babylon the 
 name and remnant, and son and nephew, saith the Lord. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 A description of the taking of Babylon. 
 
 After having seen the predictions of every thing that was to 
 
 w Isa. xiii. 14. 
 
 Ibid. y lb. xiv. 19, 20. z lb. 21, 22. 
 
 X 
 
52 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 happen to the impious Babylon, it is now time to come to the 
 accomplishment of those prophecies ; and to resume our narra¬ 
 tive of the taking of that city. 
 
 As soon as Cyrus saw that the ditch, which they had long' 
 worked upon, was finished, he began to think seriously upon 
 the execution of his vast design, which as yet he had commu¬ 
 nicated to nobody. Providence soon furnished him with as fit 
 an opportunity for this purpose as he could desire. He was 
 informed that in the city a great festival was to be celebrated; 
 and that the Babylonians, on occasion of that solemnity, were 
 accustomed to pass the whole night in drinking and debauchery. 
 
 Belshazzar himself was more concerned in this public rejoic¬ 
 ing than any other, a and gave a magnificent entertainment to 
 the chief officers of the kingdom, and the ladies of the court. 
 When flushed with wine, he ordered the gold and silver vessels, 
 which had been taken from the temple of Jerusalem, to be 
 brought out; and as an insult upon the God of Israel, he, his 
 whole court, and all his concubines, drank out of those sacred 
 vessels. God, who was provoked at such insolence and im¬ 
 piety, at the same instant made him sensible who it was that he 
 affronted, by a sudden apparition of a hand, writing certain 
 characters upon the wall. The king, terribly surprised and 
 frighted at this vision, immediately sent for all his wise men, 
 his diviners, and astrologers, that they might read the writing 
 to him, and explain the meaning of it. But they all came in 
 vain, not one of them being able to expound the matter, or 
 even to read the characters. b It is probably in relation to this 
 occurrence, that Isaiah, after having foretold to Babylon that 
 she shall be overwhelmed with calamities which she did not 
 expect, adds, Stand now with thine enchantments, and with 
 the multitude of thy sorceries. Let now the astrologers, the 
 star-gazers, the monthly prognosticators, stand up, and save 
 thee from these things that shall come upon thee. Is. xlvii. 12, 
 13. The queen-mother (Nitocris, a princess of great merit,) 
 coming upon the noise of this great prodigy into the banquet- 
 ing-room, endeavoured to compose the mind of the king her 
 son, advising him to send for Daniel, with whose abilities in 
 such matters she was well acquainted, and whom she had always 
 employed in the government of the state. 
 
 Daniel was therefore immediately sent for, and spoke to the 
 king with a freedom and liberty becoming a prophet. He 
 put him in mind of the dreadful manner in which God had 
 
 a Dan. v. 1—29. 
 
 b The reason why they could notread this sentence was, that it was written 
 in Hebrew letters, which are now called the Samaritan characters, and which 
 the Babylonians did not understand. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 53 
 
 punished the pride of his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar, and 
 the flagrant abuse he made of his power, 0 when lie ac¬ 
 knowledged no law but his own will, and thought himself 
 empowered to exalt and to abase, to inflict destruction and 
 death wheresoever he would, only because such was his will 
 and pleasure. And thou his son, says he to the king, hast not 
 humbled thine heart, though thou knowest all this, but hast 
 lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven ; and they have 
 brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou and thy 
 lords, thy wives and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them: 
 and thou hast praised the gods of silver and gold, of brass, 
 iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know : and 
 the God, in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy 
 ways, hast thou not glorified. Then was the part of the hand 
 sent from him, and this writing was written. And this is the 
 writing that was written, A Menu, Tekel, Upharsin. 0 This 
 is the interpretation of the thing: Mene, God hath numbered 
 thy kingdom, and finished it; Tekel, thou art weighed in 
 the balances, and art found wanting ; Peres, thy kingdom 
 is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians. This inter¬ 
 pretation, one would think, should have aggravated the conster¬ 
 nation of the company; but they found means to dispel their 
 fears, probably upon a persuasion, that the calamity was not de¬ 
 nounced as present or immediate, and that time might furnish them 
 with expedients to avert it. This however is certain, that for fear 
 of disturbing the general joy of the present festival, they put oft* 
 the discussion of serious matters to another time, and sat down 
 again to their banquet, and continued their revellings to a very 
 late hour. 
 
 Cyrus, 1 in the mean time, well informed of the con¬ 
 fusion that was generally occasioned by this festival, both 
 in the palace and the city, had posted a part of his troops 
 on that side where the river entered into the city, and 
 another part on that side where it went out; and had com¬ 
 manded them to enter the city that very night, by marching 
 along the channel of the river, as soon as ever they found it 
 fordable. Having given all necessary orders, and exhorted 
 his officers to follow him, by representing to them that he 
 marched under the guidance of the gods; in the evening he 
 made them open the great receptacles, or ditches, on both sides 
 the city, above and below, that the water of the river might 
 run into them. By this means the Euphrates was quickly 
 emptied, and its channel became dry. Then the two fore-men- 
 
 c Whom he would he slew, and Avhom he would he kept alive, and whom he 
 would he set up, and whom he would he put down. Dan. v. 19. 
 
 A These three words signify, number , weight , division. e Or Peres. 
 
 ! ' Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 189—192. 
 
54 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 tioned bodies of troops, according to their orders, went into the 
 channel, the one commanded by Gobryas, and the other by Ga- 
 datas, and advanced without meeting any obstacle. The in¬ 
 visible guide, who had promised to open all the gates to Cyrus, 
 made the general negligence and disorder of that riotous night 
 subservient to his design, by leaving open the gates of brass, 
 which were made to shut up the descents from the quays to 
 the river, and which alone, if they had not been left open, 
 were sufficient to have defeated the whole enterprise. Thus 
 did these two bodies of troops penetrate into the very heart 
 of the city without any opposition, and meeting together at the 
 royal palace, according to their agreement, surprised the guards, 
 and cut them to pieces. Some of the company that were 
 within the palace opening the doors to know what noise it was 
 they heard without, the soldiers rushed in, and quickly made 
 themselves masters of it; and meeting the king, who came up 
 to them sword in hand, at the head of those that were in the 
 way to succour him, they killed him, and put all those that at¬ 
 tended him to the sword. The first thing the conquerors did 
 afterwards, was to thank the gods for having at least punished 
 that impious king. These words are Xenophon’s, and are very 
 worthy of attention, as they so perfectly agree with what the 
 Scriptures have recorded of the impious Belshazzar. 
 
 The taking- of Babylon put an end to the Ba- 
 A nt j*c 538 bylonian empire, after a duration of 210 years 
 from the beginning of the reign of Nabonassar. 
 Thus was the power of that proud city abolished just fifty years 
 after she had destroyed the city of Jerusalem and her temple. 
 And herein were accomplished those predictions, which the 
 prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Daniel, had denounced against 
 her, and of which we have already given a particular account. 
 There is still one more, the most important and the most incre¬ 
 dible of them all, and yet the Scripture has set it down in the 
 strongest terms, and marked it out with the greatest exactness; 
 a prediction literally fulfilled in all its points ; the proof of 
 which still actually subsists, is the most easy to be verified, and 
 indeed of a nature not to be contested. What 1 mean is the 
 prediction of so total and absolute a ruin of Babylon, that not 
 the least remains or traces should be left of it. I think it may 
 not be improper to give an account of the perfect accomplish¬ 
 ment of this famous prophecy, before we proceed to speak of 
 what followed the taking of Babylon. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 The completion of the prophecy which foretold the total ruin and destruction 
 
 of Babylon. 
 
 This prediction we find recorded in several of the prophets, 
 but particularly in Isaiah, in the thirteenth chapter, from the 
 I9th to the 22d verses* and in the 23d and 24th verses of the 
 fourteenth chapter. I have already inserted it at large, page 
 46, &c. It is there declared, that Babylon shall be utterly 
 destroyed, as the criminal cities of Sodom and Gomorrah for¬ 
 merly were ; that she shall be no more inhabited ; that she shall 
 never be rebuilt; that the Arabs shall not so much as set up 
 their tents there ; that the shepherd shall not come thither even 
 to rest his flock; that it shall become a dwelling-place for the 
 wild beasts, and a retreat for the birds of night; that the place 
 where it stood shall be covered over with a marsh, so that no 
 trace shall be left to show where Babylon had been. It is God 
 himself who pronounced this sentence, and it is for the service 
 of religion to show how exactly every article of it has been suc¬ 
 cessively accomplished. 
 
 I. In the first place, Babylon ceased to be a royal city, the 
 kings of Persia choosing to reside elsewhere. They delighted 
 more in Susa, Ecbatana, Persepolis, or any other place; and 
 did themselves destroy a good part of Babylon. 
 
 II. We are informed by Strabo and Pliny, 
 Ant J 1 C 8 ]°24 that the Macedonians, who succeeded the Per¬ 
 sians, did not only neglect it, and forbear to em¬ 
 bellish or even repair it, but that moreover they built Seleucia 
 in the neighbourhood,£ on purpose to draw away its inhabitants, 
 and cause it to be deserted. Nothing can better explain what 
 the prophet had foretold; It shall not he inhabited. Its own 
 masters endeavour to make it desolate. 
 
 III. The new kings of Persia, who afterwards became mas¬ 
 ters of Babylon, completed the ruin of it, by building Ctesi- 
 phon, h which carried away all the remainder of the inhabitants; 
 so that from the time the curse was pronounced against that 
 city, it seems as if those very persons that ought to have pro¬ 
 tected her, were become her enemies; and had all thought it 
 their duty to reduce her to a state of solitude, though by indirect 
 means, and without using any violence ; that it might more ma- 
 
 s Partem urbis Perste diruerunt, partem tempus consumpsit et Macedonian 
 negligentia; maxime postquam Seleucus Nicator Seleuciam ad Tigrim condi- 
 dit, stadiis tantum trecentis a Babylone dissitam. Strab. 1. xvi. p. 73b. 
 
 In solitudinem rediit exhausts vicinitate Seleucice, ob id conditse aNicatore 
 intra nonagesimum (or quadragesimum) lapidem. Plin. 1. vi. c. 26. 
 
 h Pro ilia Seleuciam et Ctesipliontem urbes Persarum inclvtas fecerunt. 
 S. Hieron. in cap. xiii. Isa. 
 
5(3 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 A. D. 96. 
 
 nifestly appear to be the hand of God, rather than the hand of 
 man, which brought about her destruction. 
 
 IV. She was so totally forsaken, that nothing of her was 
 left remaining but the walls. And to this condition she was 
 
 reduced at the time when Pausanias wrote his 
 remarks upon Greece. 1 Ilia autem Babylon 
 omnium quas unquam sol aspexit urbium maxima, jam prccter 
 muros nihil habet reliqui. Paus. in Arcad. pag. 509. 
 
 V. The kings of Persia finding their place deserted, made a 
 park of it, in which they kept wild beasts for hunting. Thus 
 did it become, as the prophet had foretold, a dwelling-place for 
 ravenous beasts, that are enemies to man ; or for timorous ani¬ 
 mals, that flee before him. Instead of citizens, she was now 
 inhabited by wild boars, leopards, bears, deer, and wild asses. 
 Babylon was now the retreat of fierce, savage, deadly creatures, 
 that hate the light, and delight in darkness. Wild beasts of 
 the desert shall lie there , and dragons shall dwell in their plea¬ 
 sant palaces . k 
 
 A. D. 400. 
 
 St. Jerome has transmitted to us the following 
 
 valuable remark which he had from a Persian 
 monk, that he had himself seen what he related to him. Didi - 
 cimus a quodamfratre Elamita, qui de illis finibus egrecliens , 
 nunc Hierosolymis viiam exigit monachorum , venationes regias 
 esse in Baby lone, et omnis generis bestias murorum ejus ambit u 
 tantiim contineri. In cap. Isa. xiii. 22. 
 
 VI. But it was still too much that the walls of Babylon 
 were standing. At length they fell down in several places, 
 and were never repaired. Various accidents destroyed the re¬ 
 mainder. The animals, which were to be subservient to the 
 pleasure of the Persian kings, abandoned the place ; serpents 
 and scorpions remained, so that it became a dreadful place for 
 persons that should have the curiosity to visit, or search after, 
 its antiquities. The Euphrates, that used to run through the 
 city, having no longer a free channel, took its course another 
 way ; so that in Theodoret’s time there was nothing more than 
 a very small stream of water left, 1 which ran across the ruins, 
 and, not meeting with a slope or free passage, necessarily dege¬ 
 nerated into a marsh. 
 
 In the time of Alexander the Great, m the river had quitted 
 its ordinary channel, by reason of the outlets and canals which 
 Cyrus had made, and of which we have already given an ac¬ 
 count ; the outlets being badly stopped up, had occasioned a 
 great inundation in the country. Alexander, designing to fix 
 
 1 ITe wrote in the reign of Antoninus, successor to Adrian. k Isa. xiii. 21, 22. 
 
 1 Euphrates quondam urbem ipsam mediam dividebat; nund autem fluvius 
 conversusest in aliam viam, et per rudera minimus aquarum meatus fluit. 
 Theodor, in cap. 1. Jerem. ver. 38, 39. 
 
 ni Arrian, de exped. Alex. H. viii. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 57 
 
 the seat of his empire at Babylon, projected the bringing back 
 of the Euphrates into its natural and former channel, and had 
 actually set his men to work. But the Almighty, who watched 
 over the fulfilling of his prophecy, and who had declared he 
 would destroy even to the very remains and footsteps of Ba¬ 
 bylon, [J will cut off from Babylon the name and remnant, ] u 
 defeated this enterprise by the death of Alexander, which 
 happened soon after. It is easy to comprehend how, after this, 
 Babylon being neglected to such a degree as we have seen, 
 its river was converted into an inaccessible pool, which covered 
 the very place where that impious city had stood, as Isaiah 
 had foretold; I will make it jiools of water. 0 And this was 
 necessary, lest the place where Babylon had stood should be dis¬ 
 covered hereafter by the course of the Euphrates. 
 
 VII. By means of all these changes Babylon became an 
 utter desert, and all the country round fell into the same state 
 of desolation and horror ; so that the most able geographers 
 at this day cannot determine the place where it stood.? In 
 this manner God’s prediction was literally fulfilled : I ivill cut 
 off from Babylon the name—I will make it a possession for 
 the bittern, and jiools of water ; and I will sweep it with the 
 besom of destruction, saith the Lord of hosts . q I myself, saitfi 
 the Lord, will examine with a jealous eye, to see if there be 
 any remains of that city, which was an enemy to my name and to 
 J erusalem. I will thoroughly sweep the place where it stood, 
 and will clear it so effectually, by defacing every trace of the 
 city, that no person shall be able to preserve the memory of the 
 place chosen by Nimrod, and which I, the Lord, have abolished. 
 I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the Lord of 
 hosts. 
 
 VIII. God was not satisfied with causing all these alterations 
 to be foretold, but, to give the greater assurance of their certainty, 
 thought fit to seal the prediction of them by an oath. The Lord 
 of hosts hath sivorn, saying, Surely, as I have thought, so shall 
 it come to pass ; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand.* 
 But if we would take this dreadful oath in its full latitude, 
 we must not confine it either to Babylon or to its inhabitants, 
 or to the princes that reigned therein. The malediction relates to 
 the whole world : it is the general anathema pronounced against 
 the wicked ; it is the terrible decree, by which the two cities of 
 Babylon and Jerusalem shall be separated for ever, and an 
 eternal divorce be put between the saints and the reprobate. 
 The Scriptures that have foretold it, shall subsist till the day 
 of its execution. The sentence is written therein, and de- 
 
 n Isa. xiv. 22. 0 lb. xiv. 23. 
 
 *’ Nunc omnino destrueta, ita ut vix ejus supersint rudera. Baudrand. 
 f i Isa. xiv. 22, 23. r Ibid. xiv. 24. 
 
58 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 posited, as it were, in the public archives of religion. The Lord 
 of hosts hath sworn, saying, As I have thought, so shall it 
 come to pass ; and as I have purposed, so shall it stand . 
 
 What I have said of this prophecy concerning Babylon is 
 almost all entirely taken out of an excellent treatise upon Isaiah, 
 which is still in manuscript. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 What followed upon the taking of Babylon. 
 
 Cyrus, s having entered the city in the manner we have 
 described, put all to the sword that were found in the streets : 
 he then commanded the citizens to bring him all their arms, 
 and afterwards to shut themselves up in their houses. The 
 next morning, by break of day, the garrison which kept the 
 citadel being apprised that the city was taken, and their king 
 killed, surrendered themselves to Cyrus. Thus did this prince, 
 almost without striking a blow, and without any resistance, 
 find himself in peaceable possession of the strongest place in 
 the world. 
 
 The first thing he did was, to thank the gods for the success 
 they had given him. And then, having assembled his prin¬ 
 cipal officers, he publicly applauded their courage and prudence, 
 their zeal and attachment to his person, and distributed rewards 
 to his whole army. 1 After which he represented to them, 
 that the only means of preserving what they had acquired 
 was to persevere in their ancient virtue; that the proper end 
 of victory was not to give themselves up to idleness and plea¬ 
 sure ; that, after having conquered their enemies by force of 
 arms, it would be shameful to suffer themselves to be over¬ 
 come by the allurements of pleasure; that, in order to main¬ 
 tain their ancient glory, it behoved them to keep up amongst 
 the Persians at Babylon the same discipline they had ob¬ 
 served in their own country, and for that purpose, to take 
 a particular care to give their children a good education. 
 This (says he) will necessarily engage us daily to make 
 further advances in virtue, as it will oblige us to be diligent 
 and careful in setting them good examples : nor will it be 
 easy for them to be corrupted, when they shall neither hear 
 nor see any thing amongst us, but what excites them to 
 virtue, and shall be continually employed in honourable and 
 laudable exercises. 
 
 Cyrus committed the different parts and offices of his govern¬ 
 ment to different persons, according to their various talents 
 and qualifications ; 11 but the care of forming and appointing 
 6 Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 192. 1 Ibid. p. 197* 200. " Ibid. p. 202. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 59 
 
 general officers, governors of provinces, ministers and ambassa¬ 
 dors, lie reserved to himself, looking upon that as the proper 
 duty and employment of a king, upon which depended his 
 glory, the success of his affairs, and the happiness and tran¬ 
 quillity of his kingdom. His great talent was to study the 
 particular character of men, in order to place every one in 
 his proper sphere, to give them authority, in proportion to 
 their merit, to make their private advancement concur with 
 the public good, and to make the whole machine of the state 
 move in so regular a manner, that every part should have a de- 
 pendance upon, and mutually contribute to support each other; 
 and that the strength of one should not exert itself but for 
 the benefit and advantage of the rest. Each person had his 
 district, and his particular sphere of business, of which he 
 gave an account to another above him, and he again to a third, 
 and so on, till, by these different degrees, and regular sub¬ 
 ordination, the cognizance of affairs came to the king himself, 
 who did not remain idle in the midst of all this motion, but 
 was, as it were, the soul to the body of the state, which, by this 
 means, he governed with as much ease as a father governs his 
 private family. 
 
 When he afterwards sent governors, called salrapce , x into 
 the provinces under his subjection, he would not suffer the 
 particular governors of places, nor the commanding officers 
 of the troops maintained for the security of the country, to 
 be dependant upon those provincial governors, or to be sub¬ 
 ject to any one but himself; in order that, if any of these 
 satrapce, elate with his power or riches, made an ill use of his 
 authority, there might be found witnesses and censors of his 
 mal-administration within his own government. For there was 
 nothing he so carefully avoided, as the trusting of any one 
 man with absolute power, well knowing that a prince will 
 quickly have reason to repent his having exalted one person so 
 high, if all others are thereby abused and kept under. 
 
 Thus Cyrus established a wonderful order with respect to his 
 military affairs, his treasury, and civil government. In all the 
 provinces he had persons of approved integrity,y who gave 
 him an account of every thing that passed. He made it his 
 principal care to honour and reward all those that distinguished 
 themselves by their merit, or were eminent in any respect 
 whatever. He infinitely preferred clemency to martial courage, 
 because the latter is often the cause of ruin and desolation to whole 
 nations, whereas the former is always beneficent and useful. 
 He was sensible that good laws contribute very much to the 
 forming and preserving of good manners ; z but, in his opinion, 
 
 x Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 221 ). y Ibid. 20'J. z Ibid. 204. 
 
GO 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 the prince by his example was to be a living law to his people. 
 Nor did he think a man worthy to reign over others/ unless 
 he was more wise and virtuous than those he governed; he 
 was also persuaded, b that the surest means for a prince to gain 
 the respect of his courtiers, and of such as approached his 
 person, was to have so much regard for them, as never to do 
 or to say any thing before them, contrary to the rules of decency 
 and good manners. 
 
 Liberality he looked upon as a virtue truly royal ; c nor did 
 he think there was any thing great or valuable in riches, but 
 the pleasure of distributing them to others. I have prodigious 
 richest says he to his courtiers, I own, and I am glad the 
 world knows it; hut you may assure yourselves, they are as 
 much yours as mine. For to what end should I heap) up wealth l 
 For my own use, and to consume it myself? That would he 
 impossible, even if I desired it. No : the chief end I aim at 
 is to have it in my power to reward those who serve the pub¬ 
 lic faithfully, and to succour and relieve those that will 
 acquaint me with their wants and necessities. 
 
 Croesus one day represented to him, e that by continual largesses 
 he would at last make himself poor, whereas he might have 
 amassed infinite treasures, and have been the richest prince in 
 the world. And to what sum, replied Cyrus, do you think 
 those treasures might have amounted? Croesus named a certain 
 sum, which was immensely great. Cyrus thereupon ordered 
 a short note to be written to the lords of his court, in which 
 it was signified to them that he had occasion for money. Im¬ 
 mediately a much larger sum was brought to him than Croesus 
 had mentioned. Look here, says Cyrus to him, here are my trea¬ 
 sures ; the chests I keep my riches in, are the hearts and affec¬ 
 tion of my subjects. 
 
 But much as he esteemed liberality, he laid a still greater 
 stress upon kindness and condescension, affability, and humanity, 
 which are qualities still more engaging, and more apt to ac¬ 
 quire the affection of a people, which is properly to reign. For a 
 prince to be more generous than others in giving, when he is 
 infinitely more rich than they, has nothing in it so surprising or 
 extraordinary, as to descend in a manner from the throne, and to 
 put himself upon a level with his subjects. 
 
 But what Cyrus preferred to all other things, was the wor¬ 
 ship of the gods, and a respect for religion/ Upon this there¬ 
 fore he thought himself obliged to bestow his first and principal 
 care, as soon as he became more at leisure, and more master of 
 his time, by the conquest of Babylon. He began by esta¬ 
 blishing a number of Magi, to sing daily a morning service of 
 
 a Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 205. b Ibid. 204. c Ibid. 209. 
 
 d Ibid. 225. * Ibid. 210. f Ibid. 204. 
 
CYRUS. 61 
 
 praise to the honour of the gods, and to offer sacrifices; which 
 was always practised amongst them in succeeding' ages. 
 
 The prince’s disposition quickly became, as is usual, the pre¬ 
 vailing disposition among his people ; and his example became 
 the rule of their conduct. The Persians, who saw that Cyrus’s 
 reign had been but one continued chain and series of prosperity 
 and success, believed that by serving the gods as he did, they 
 should he blessed with the like happiness and prosperity: be¬ 
 sides, they were sensible it was the surest way to please their 
 prince, and to make their court to him successfully. Cyrus, 
 on the other hand, was extremely glad to find them have such 
 sentiments, being convinced, that whosoever sincerely fears and 
 worships God, will at the same time he faithful to his king, 
 and preserve an inviolable attachment to his person, and to the 
 welfare of the state. All this is excellent, but is only true and 
 real in the true religion. 
 
 Cyrus, being resolved to establish his chief residence at Ba¬ 
 bylon/ a powerful city, which could not be very well affected 
 to him, thought it necessary to be more cautious than he had 
 been hitherto, in regard to the safety of his person. The most 
 dangerous hours for princes within their palaces, and the most 
 likely for treasonable attempts upon their lives, are those of 
 bathing, eating, and sleeping. He determined therefore to 
 suffer nobody to be near him at those times, but such persons 
 on whose fidelity he could absolutely rely ; and on this account 
 he thought eunuchs preferable to all others ; because, as they 
 had neither wives, children, nor families, and besides were 
 generally despised on account of the meanness of their birth 
 and the ignominy of their condition, they were engaged by 
 every consideration to attach themselves solely to their masters, 
 on whose life their whole fortune depended, and on whose 
 account alone it was, that they possessed either wealth or con¬ 
 sequence. Cyrus therefore intrusted all the offices of his house¬ 
 hold to eunuchs : and this practice, which was not unknown 
 before his time, from thenceforth became the general custom of 
 all the eastern countries. 
 
 It is well known, that in after times it prevailed also amongst 
 the Roman emperors, with whom the eunuchs were the reign¬ 
 ing all-powerful favourites ; nor is it any wonder. It was very 
 natural for the prince, after having confided his person to their 
 care, and experienced their zeal, fidelity, and merit, to intrust 
 them also with the management of some public business, and 
 by degrees to give himself up to them. These expert courtiers 
 knew how to improve those favourable moments, when sove¬ 
 reigns, delivered from the weight of their dignity, which is a 
 
 £ Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 196. 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 62 
 
 burden to them, become men, and familiarize themselves with 
 their officers. And by this policy having got possession of 
 their masters’ minds and confidence, they came to possess great 
 influence at court, to have the administration of public affairs, 
 and the disposal of employments and honours, and to arrive 
 themselves at the highest offices and dignities of the state. 
 
 But the good emperors, 11 such as Alexander Severus, held 
 the eunuchs in abhorrence, looking upon them as creatures 
 sold and attached only to their fortune, and enemies by prin¬ 
 ciple to the public good; persons, whose sole view was to get 
 possession of the prince’s mind, to conceal the knowledge of 
 public business as much as possible from him, to preclude 
 access to him from any person of real merit, and to keep him 
 shut up and imprisoned, in a manner, within the narrow circle 
 of three or four officers, who had an entire ascendant and do¬ 
 minion over him: Claudentes principem suum, et agentes ante 
 omnia ne quid sciat. 
 
 When Cyrus had established his regulations in every thing 
 relating to the government, 1 he resolved to show himself pub¬ 
 licly to his own people, and to his newly-conquered subjects, in 
 a solemn, august ceremony of religion, by marching in a pom¬ 
 pous cavalcade to the places consecrated to the gods, in order 
 to offer sacrifices to them. In this procession Cyrus thought fit 
 to display all possible splendour and magnificence, to catch 
 and dazzle the eyes of the people. This was the first time that 
 prince ever aimed at procuring respect towards himself, not 
 only by the attractions of virtue, (says the historian,) but by 
 such an external pomp as was calculated to attract the multi¬ 
 tude, and worked like a charm or enchantment upon their 
 imaginations. 14 He ordered the superior officers of the Per¬ 
 sians and allies to attend him, and gave each of them a dress 
 after the Median fashion; that is to say, long robes, which 
 hung down to the feet. These were of various colours, all of 
 the finest and brightest dye, and richly embroidered with gold 
 and silver. Besides those that were for themselves, he gave 
 them others very splendid also, but less costly, to present to 
 the subaltern officers. It was on this occasion the Persians 
 first dressed themselves after the manner of the Medes, 1 and 
 began to imitate them in colouring their eyes, to make them 
 appear more sparkling, and in painting their faces, in order to 
 enliven their complexions. 
 
 When the day appointed for the ceremony was come, the 
 whole company assembled at the king’s palace by break of day. 
 Four thousand of the guards, drawn up four deep, placed them¬ 
 selves in front of the palace, and 2000 on the two sides of it 
 
 h Lamprid. in vita Alex. Sever. 1 Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 213. 220. 
 
 !v ’AA\d Kcii Karayoiynvtiv cotro ypijvat cwtovc. 1 Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 206. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 03 
 
 ranged in the same order. The whole cavalry were also drawn 
 out, the Persians on the right, and that of the allies on the left. 
 The chariots of war were ranged half on one side, and half 
 on the other. As soon as the palace gates were opened, a great 
 number of bulls of exquisite beauty were led out by four and 
 four: these were to be sacrificed to Jupiter and the other 
 gods, according to the ceremonies prescribed by the Magi. 
 Next followed the horses that were to be sacrificed to the Sun. 
 Immediately after them a white chariot, crowned with flowers, 
 the pole of which was gilt: this was to be offered to J upiter. 
 Then came a second chariot of the same colour, and adorned 
 in the same manner, to be offered to the Sun. After these 
 followed a third, the horses of which were caparisoned with 
 scarlet housings. Behind came the men who carried the sacred 
 fire on a large hearth. When all these were on their march, 
 Cyrus himself began to appear upon his car, with his upright 
 tiara upon his head, encircled with a royal diadem. Ilis under 
 tunic was of purple mixed with white, which was a colour 
 peculiar to kings. Over his other garments he wore a large 
 purple cloak. His hands were uncovered. A little below him 
 sat his master of the horse, who was of a comely stature, but 
 not so tall as Cyrus, for which reason the height of the latter 
 appeared still more advantageously. As soon as the people 
 perceived the prince, they all fell prostrate before him, and 
 worshipped him ; whether it was, that certain persons appointed 
 on purpose, and placed at proper distances, led others on by 
 their example, or that the people were moved to do it of their 
 own accord, being struck with the appearance of so much pomp 
 and magnificence, and with so many awful circumstances 
 of majesty and splendour. The Persians had never pros¬ 
 trated themselves in this manner before Cyrus, till on this 
 occasion. 
 
 When Cyrus’s chariot was come out of the palace, the 4000 
 guards began to march: the other 2000 moved at the same 
 time, and placed themselves on each side of the chariot. The 
 eunuchs, or great officers of the king’s household, to the num¬ 
 ber of 300, richly clad, with javelins in their hands, and mounted 
 upon stately horses, marched immediately after the chariot. 
 After them followed 200 led horses of the king’s stable, each 
 of them having embroidered furniture and bits of gold. Next 
 came the Persian cavalry, divided into four bodies, each con¬ 
 sisting of 10,000 men ; then the Median horse, and after those 
 the cavalry of the allies. The chariots of war, four abreast, closed 
 the procession. 
 
 When they came to the fields consecrated to the gods, they 
 ottered their sacrifices, first to Jupiter, and then to the Sun. 
 To the honour of the first were burnt bulls, and to the honour 
 
64 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 of the second horses. Tliey likewise sacrificed some victims 
 to the Earth, according to the appointment of the Magi ; 
 then to the demi-gods, the patrons and protectors of Syria. 1 " 
 
 In order to afford the people some recreation after this grave 
 and solemn ceremony, Cyrus thought fit that it should conclude 
 with games, and horse and cliariot-races. The place where 
 they were was large and spacious. He ordered a certain por¬ 
 tion of it to be marked out, about five stadia, 11 and proposed 
 prizes for the victors of each nation, which were to encounter 
 separately and among themselves. He himself won the prize 
 in the Persian horse-races, for nobody was so complete a horse¬ 
 man as he. The chariots ran but two at a time, one against 
 another. 
 
 This kind of procession continued a long time afterwards 
 amongst the Persians, except only that it was not always at¬ 
 tended with sacrifices. All the ceremonies being ended, they 
 returned to the city in the same order. 
 
 Some days after, 0 Cyrus, to celebrate the victory he had ob¬ 
 tained in the horse-races, gave a great entertainment to all the 
 chief officers, as well foreigners as Medes and Persians. They 
 had never yet seen any thing of the kind so sumptuous and 
 magnificent. At the conclusion of the feast he made every 
 one a noble present; so that they all went home with hearts 
 overflowing with joy, admiration, and gratitude: and all-pow¬ 
 erful as he was, master of all the East, and so many kingdoms, 
 he did not think it derogatory to his majesty to conduct the 
 whole company to the door of his apartment. Such were the 
 manners of those ancient times, when men understood how to 
 unite great simplicity with the highest degree of human 
 grandeur. 
 
 ARTICLE III. 
 
 The history of Cyrus, from the taking of Babylon to the time of his death. 
 
 Cyrus, finding himself master of all the East by the taking 
 of Babylon, did not imitate the example of most other con¬ 
 querors, who sully the glory of their victories by a voluptuous 
 and effeminate life; to which they fancy they may justly aban¬ 
 don themselves after their past toils, and the long course of 
 hardships they have gone through. He thought it incumbent 
 upon him to maintain his reputation by the same methods he 
 had acquired it, that is, by a prudent conduct, by a laborious 
 and active life, and a constant application to the duties of his 
 high station. 
 
 m Among the ancients, Syria is often put for Assyria. 
 u A little above half a mile. ° Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 220—224, 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 65 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 Cyrus takes a journey into Persia. At his return from thence to Babylon, 
 he forms a plan of government for the whole empire. Daniel’s credit and 
 power. 
 
 When Cyrus judged he had sufficiently regulated his affairs 
 at Babylon/ he thought proper to take a journey into Persia. 
 In his way thither he went through Media, to visit his uncle, 
 Cyaxares, to whom he carried very magnificent presents, telling 
 him at the same time that he would find a noble palace at Baby¬ 
 lon, all ready prepared for him, whenever he would please to 
 go thither; and that he was to look upon that city as his own. 
 Indeed Cyrus, as long as his uncle lived, held the empire only 
 in co-partnership with him, though he had entirely conquered 
 and acquired it by his own valour. Nay, so far 
 &nt J 1 C 4 °5 6 38 he carry his complaisance, that he let his 
 uncle enjoy the first rank. It is Cyaxares who 
 is called in Scripture Darius the Mede ; and we shall find, that 
 under his reign, which lasted but two years, Daniel had several 
 revelations. It appears that Cyrus, when he returned from 
 Persia, carried Cyaxares with him to Babylon. 
 
 When they were arrived there, they concerted together a 
 scheme of government for the whole empire. They divided 
 it into 120 pro vinces.^ And that the prince’s orders might 
 be conveyed with the greater expedition/ Cyrus caused post- 
 houses to be erected at proper distances, where the couriers, 
 that travelled day and night, found horses always ready, and 
 by that means performed their journeys with incredible despatch. 
 The government of these provinces was given to those per¬ 
 sons that had assisted Cyrus most/ and rendered him the great¬ 
 est service in the war. Over these governors were appointed 
 three superintendents/ who were always to reside at court, and 
 to whom the governors were to give an account from time to 
 time of every thing that passed in their respective provinces, 
 and from whom they were to receive the prince’s orders and 
 instructions ; so that these three principal ministers had the 
 superintendency over, and the chief administration of, the affairs 
 of the whole empire. Of these three, Daniel was made the 
 chief. He highly deserved such a preference, not only on ac¬ 
 count of his great wisdom, which was celebrated throughout 
 all the East, and had been displayed in a distinguished manner 
 at Belshazzar’s feast, but likewise on account of his great 
 age and consummate experience : for at that time it was full 
 sixty-seven years, from the fourth of Nabuchodonosor, that 
 
 p Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 227- 
 r Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 232. 6 Ibid. 230. 
 
 VOL. IT. F 
 
 q Dan. vi. 1. 
 
 1 Dan. vi. 2, 3. 
 
G6 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 lie had been employed as prime minister of the kings of 
 Babylon. 
 
 As this distinction made him the second person in the 
 empire, 11 and placed him immediately under the king, the 
 other courtiers conceived so great a jealousy of him, that 
 they conspired to destroy him. As there was no hold to 
 be taken of him,, unless it were on account of the law of 
 his God, to which they knew him inviolably attached, they 
 obtained an edict from Darius, whereby all persons were 
 forbidden to ask any thing whatsoever, for the space of 
 thirty days, either of any god or any man, save of the king; 
 and that upon pain of being cast into the den of lions. Now, 
 as Daniel was saying his usual prayers, with his face turned 
 towards Jerusalem, he was surprised, accused, and cast into 
 the den of lions. But being miraculously preserved, and coming 
 out safe and unhurt, his accusers were thrown in, and immediately 
 devoured by those animals. This event still augmented Daniel’s 
 credit and reputation. 
 
 Towards the end of the same year, x which was reckoned 
 the first of Darius the Mede, Daniel knowing by the com¬ 
 putation he made, that the seventy years of Judah’s cap¬ 
 tivity, determined by the prophet Jeremiah, were drawing to¬ 
 wards an end, prayed earnestly to God that he would vouch¬ 
 safe to remember his people, rebuild Jerusalem, and look with 
 an eye of mercy upon his holy city, and the sanctuary he had 
 placed therein. Upon which the angel Gabriel assured him 
 in a vision, not only of the deliverance of the Jews from their 
 temporal captivity, but likewise of another deliverance, much 
 more considerable, namely, a deliverance from the bondage of 
 sin and Satan, which God would procure to his church, and 
 which was to be accomplished at the end of seventy weeks, that 
 were to elapse from the time the order should be given for the 
 rebuilding of Jerusalem, that is, after the space of 490 years. 
 For, taking each day for a year, according to the language 
 used sometimes in Holy Scripture, those seventy weeks of years 
 made up exactly 490 years. 
 
 Cyrus,y upon his return to Babylon, had given orders for 
 all his forces to join him there. On the general review made 
 of them, he found they consisted of 120,000 horse, of 2000 
 chariots armed with scythes, and 600,000 foot. When he had 
 furnished the garrisons with so many of them as were necessary 
 for the defence of the several parts of the empire, he march¬ 
 ed with the remainder into Syria, where he regulated the affairs 
 of that province, and then subdued all those countries as far as 
 the Red Sea, and the coniines of Ethiopia. 
 
 It was probably in this interval of time, that Daniel was cast 
 u Han. vi. 4—27* x Ibid. ix. 1—27- y Cyrop. 1. viii. 233. 
 
CYRUS. 67 
 
 into the den of lions, and miraculously delivered from them, as 
 we have just now related. 
 
 Perhaps in the same interval also were those famous pieces 
 of gold coined, which are called Darics, from the name of Darius 
 the Mede, which for their fineness and beauty were for several 
 ages preferred to all other money throughout the whole East. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 The beginning of the united empire of the Persians and Medes. The famous 
 
 edict of Cyrus. Daniel’s prophecies. 
 
 Here, properly speaking, begins the empire of the Persians 
 and Medes united under one and the same authority. This 
 empire, from Cyrus, the first king and founder of it, to Darius 
 Codomannus, who was vanquished by Alexander the Great, 
 lasted for the space of 206 years, namely, from the year of the 
 world 3468 to the year 3674. But in this volume I propose to 
 speak only of the first three kings ; and little remains to be said 
 of the founder of this new empire. 
 
 Cyrus. Cyaxares dying at the end of two 
 
 A IVT Q4PQ * 
 
 Ant j c 53 g y ears > and Cambyses likewise ending his days 
 in Persia, Cyrus returned to Babylon, and took 
 upon him the government of the empire. 
 
 The years of Cyrus’s reign are computed differently/ Some 
 make it thirty years, beginning from his first setting out from 
 Persia, at the head of an army, to succour his uncle Cyaxares : 
 others make it to be but seven years, because they date it only 
 from the time, when, by the death of Cyaxares and Cambyses, 
 he became sole monarch of the whole empire. 
 
 In the first of these seven years precisely expired the seven¬ 
 tieth year of the Babylonish captivity, when Cyrus published 
 the famous edict whereby the J ews were permitted to return to 
 Jerusalem. There is no question but this edict was obtained 
 by the care and solicitations of Daniel, who possessed great in¬ 
 fluence at court. That he might the more effectually induce 
 the king to grant him this request, he showed him undoubtedly 
 the prophecies of Isaiah,* wherein, above 200 years before his 
 birth, he was marked out by name as a prince appointed by 
 God to be a great conqueror, and to reduce a multitude of na¬ 
 tions under his dominion ; and, at the same time, to be the deli¬ 
 verer of the captive Jews, by ordering their temple to be 
 rebuilt, and Jerusalem and Judea to be repossessed by their 
 ancient inhabitants. I think it may not be improper in this 
 place to insert that edict at length, which is certainly the most 
 glorious circumstance in the life of Cyrus, and for which, it may 
 be presumed, God had endowed him with so many heroic virtues, 
 
 z Cic. 1. i. de Div. n. 46. 
 
 Isa. xliv. xlv. 
 
 a 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 08 
 
 and blessed him witli such an uninterrupted series of glorious 
 victories and success. 
 
 In the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, that the word 
 of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fidfilled, the 
 Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus , king of Persia, that he 
 made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it 
 also in writing, saying, Thus saith Cyrus, king oj Persia, 
 The Lord Gocl of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of 
 the earth, and he hath charged me to build him a house at Je¬ 
 rusalem, which is in Judah. Who is there among you of all his 
 people ? his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, 
 which is in Judah, and build the house of the Lord God of 
 Israel, (he is the true God,) which is in Jerusalem. And who¬ 
 soever remaineth in any place where he sojourneth, let the men 
 of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, 
 and with beasts, beside the free-will ojfering for the house of 
 God that is in Jerusalem , b 
 
 Cyrus, at the same time, restored to the Jews all the vessels 
 of the temple of the Lord, which Nabuchodonosor had brought 
 from Jerusalem, and placed in the temple of his god. Shortly 
 after the Jews departed under the conduct of Zorobabel, to re¬ 
 turn into their own country. 
 
 The Samaritans, 0 who had long been the declared enemies of 
 the Jews, did all they possibly could to hinder the building of 
 the temple; and though they could not alter Cyrus’s decree, 
 yet they so far prevailed by bribes and underhand dealings 
 with the ministers and other officers concerned therein, as to 
 obstruct the execution of it; so that for several years the build¬ 
 ing went on very slowly. 
 
 It seems to have been through grief at seeing 
 Ant K 4 534 the execution of this decree so long retarded, d 
 that in the third year of Cyrus, in the first 
 month of that year, Daniel gave himself up to mourning and 
 fasting for three weeks together. He was then near the river 
 Ti gris in Persia. When this time of fasting was ended, he 
 saw the vision concerning the succession of the kings of Persia, 
 the empire of the Macedonians, and the conquest of the Ro¬ 
 mans. This revelation is related in the tenth, eleventh, and 
 twelfth chapters of the prophecies of Daniel, of which I shall 
 soon speak. 
 
 By what we find in the conclusion of the last chapter, e we 
 have reason to conjecture, that he died soon after; and, indeed, 
 his great age makes it unlikely that he could live much longer; 
 for at this time he must have been at least eighty-five years of 
 
 b Ezra, i. 1—4. _ c Ibid. iv. 1—5. d Dan. x. 1—3. 
 
 e But go tliou thy way till the end be; for thou shalt rest and stand in thy 
 lot at the end of the days. Dan. xii. 13. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 G9 
 
 age, if we suppose him to have been twelve when he was car¬ 
 ried to Babylon with the other captives ; and some suppose 
 him to have been eighteen years of age at that time : from that 
 early age lie had given proofs of wisdom, more than human, in 
 the judgment of Susannah. He was ever afterwards very much 
 esteemed by all the princes who reigned at Babylon, and was 
 always employed by them with distinction in the administration 
 of their affairs. 
 
 Daniel’s wisdom did not only reach to things divine and poli¬ 
 tical, but also to arts and sciences, and particularly to that of 
 architecture. Josephus f speaks of a famous edifice built by 
 him at Susa,£ in the manner of a castle, which he says still 
 subsisted in his time, finished with such wonderful art, that it 
 then seemed as fresh and beautiful as if it had been but newly 
 built. Within this palace the Persian and Parthian kings were 
 usually buried; and, for the sake of the founder, the keeping 
 of it was committed to one of the Jewish nation, even to the 
 time of Josephus. It was a common tradition in those parts 
 for many ages, that Daniel died in that city, h and there they 
 show his monument even to this day. It is certain, that he 
 used to go thither from time to time, and he himself tells us that 
 he did the kings business there? that is, was governor for the 
 king of Babylon. 
 
 Reflections upon Daniel’s Prophecies. 
 
 I have hitherto deferred making any reflections upon the 
 prophecies of Daniel, which certainly to any reasonable mind 
 are a convincing proof of the truth of our religion. I shall 
 not dwell upon that which personally related to Nebuchadnez¬ 
 zar, k and foretold in what manner, for the punishment of his 
 pride, he should be reduced to the condition of the beasts of 
 the field, and after a certain number of years restored again to 
 his understanding and to his throne. It is well known the 
 matter happened exactly according to Daniel’s prediction : the 
 king himself relates it in a declaration addressed to all the peo¬ 
 ple and nations of his empire. Was it possible for Daniel to 
 ascribe such a manifesto or proclamation to Nebuchadnezzar, 
 if it had not been genuine; to speak of it, as having been sent 
 into all the provinces, if nobody had seen it; and in the midst 
 of Babylon, that was full of both Jews and Gentiles, to publish 
 an attestation of such importance, and so injurious to the 
 
 f Antiq. 1. x. cap. 12. 
 
 ? So it ought to be read, according to St. Jerome, who relates the same 
 fact; Comm, in Dan. viii. 2. and not Ecbatana, as it is now read in the text 
 of* Josephus. 
 
 h Now called Tuster. ' Dan. viii. 27* k Ibid. iv. 
 
70 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 king, the falsehood of which must have been notorious to all 
 the world ! 
 
 I shall content myself with representing very briefly, and 
 under one and the same point of view, the prophecies of Daniel, 
 which designate the succession of the four great empires, and 
 which, for that reason, have an essential and necessary relation 
 to the subject-matter of this work, which is no other than the 
 history of those very empires. 
 
 The first of these prophecies has reference to the dream 
 which Nebuchadnezzar had, 1 of an image composed of different 
 metals, gold, silver, brass, and iron; which image was broken 
 in pieces, and beaten as small as dust by a little stone from the 
 mountain, which afterwards became of itself a mountain of ex¬ 
 traordinary height and magnitude. This dream I have already 
 recited at large." 1 
 
 About fifty years after," the same Daniel saw another vision, 
 very like that which I have just been speaking of: this was the 
 vision of the four large beasts which came out of the sea. The 
 first was like a lion, and had eagle’s wings ; the second was like 
 a bear ; the third was like a leopard, which had four heads ; 
 the fourth and last, still more strong and terrible than the others, 
 had great iron teeth; it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped 
 the residue with his feet. From the midst of the ten horns, which 
 this beast had, there came up a little one, which had eyes like 
 those of a man, and a mouth speaking great things, and this 
 horn became greater than the other : the same horn made war 
 with the saints, prevailed against them, until the Ancient of Days, 
 that is, the everlasting God, came, and sitting upon his throne, 
 surrounded with a thousand millions of angels, pronounced an 
 irreversible judgment upon the four beasts, whose time and dura¬ 
 tion he had determined, and gave the Son of Man power over 
 all the nations, and all the tribes, an everlasting power and 
 dominion which shall not pass away, and a kingdom which shall 
 not be destroyed. 
 
 It is generally agreed, that the different metals of which the 
 image was composed, and the four beasts that came out of the 
 sea, signified many different monarchies, which were to succeed 
 one another, were to be successively destroyed by each other, 
 and were all to give place to the eternal empire of Jesus Christ, 
 for whom alone they had subsisted. It is also agreed, that 
 these four monarchies were those of the Babylonians, of the 
 Persians and Medes united, of the Macedonians, and the 
 Romans. 0 This is plainly demonstrated by the very order of their 
 
 1 Dan. li. m Vol. i. p.289, 290. 
 
 n This was the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon. Dan. vii. 
 
 0 Some interpreters, instead of the Homans, substitute the kings of Syria 
 and Egypt, Alexander’s successors. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 71 
 
 succession. But where did Daniel see this succession and this 
 order ? Who could reveal the changes of empires to him, but He 
 only who is the master of times and monarchies, who has deter¬ 
 mined every thing by his own decrees, and who by a super¬ 
 natural revelation imparts the knowledge of them to whom he 
 pleases ?p 
 
 In the following chapter this prophet speaks with still 
 greater clearness and precision.^ For after having represented 
 the Persian and Macedonian monarchies under the figure of 
 two beasts, he thus expounds his meaning in the plainest man¬ 
 ner : The ram, which hath two unequal horns, represents the 
 king of the Medes and Persians ; the goat, which overthrows 
 and tramples him under his feet, is the king of the Grecians ; 
 and the great horn, which that animal has between his eyes, 
 represents the first king and founder of that monarchy. How 
 did Daniel see that the Persian empire should be composed of 
 two different nations, Medes and Persians ; and that this empire 
 should be destroyed by the power of the Grecians ? How did 
 he foresee the rapidity of Alexander s conquests, which he so 
 aptly describes, by saying, that he touched not the groundt 
 How did he learn, that Alexander should not have any successor 
 equal to himself, and that the first monarch of the Grecian 
 empire should be likewise the most powerful ? By what other 
 light than that of divine revelation could he discover/ that 
 Alexander would have no son to succeed him ; that his empire 
 would be dismembered and divided into four principal king¬ 
 doms ; and his successors would be of his nation, but not of his 
 blood; and that out of the ruins of a monarchy so suddenly 
 formed, several states would be established, of which some would 
 be in the east, others in the west, some in the south, and others 
 in the north ? 
 
 The particulars of the facts foretold in the remainder of the 
 eighth, and in the eleventh chapter, are no less astonishing. 
 How could Daniel, in Cyrus’s reign/ foretell, that the fourth of 
 Cyrus’s successors should gather together all his forces to attack 
 the Grecian states ?How could this prophet, who lived so 
 long before the time of the Maccabees, particularly describe all 
 
 p He changeth the times and the seasons; he removeth and setteth up 
 kings. He revealeth the deep and secret things; and the light dwelleth with 
 him. Dan. ii. 21, 22. i Dan. viii. 
 
 r And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great dominion: 
 and his kingdom shall be divided towards the four winds of heaven, and not 
 to his posterity, nor according to his dominion, which he ruled. Dan. xi. 
 3, 4—Four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power. 
 Dan. viii. 22. 
 
 s Behold, there shall stand up yet three kings in Persia, and the fourth 
 shall be far richer than they all; and by his strength through his riches 
 he shall stir up all against the realm of Grecia. Dan. xi. 2. 
 
 1 Xerxes. 
 
72 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 the persecutions which Antiochus would bring upon the Jews ; 
 the manner of his abolishing the sacrifices, which were daily of¬ 
 fered in the temple of Jerusalem ; the profanation of that holy 
 place, by setting up an idol therein ; and the vengeance which 
 God would inflict on him for it? How could he, u in the first year 
 of the Persian empire, foretell the war which Alexander’s suc¬ 
 cessors would wage with one another in the kingdoms of Syria 
 and Egypt, their mutual invasions of one another’s territories, 
 their insincerity in their treaties, and their alliances by marri¬ 
 age, which would only be made to cloak their fraudulent and 
 perfidious designs ? 
 
 I leave to the intelligent and religious reader to draw the con¬ 
 clusion which naturally results from these predictions of Daniel; 
 so clear and express, that Porphyry, vv a professed enemy of the 
 Christian religion, could find no other way of disputing the divine 
 original of them, than by pretending that they were written after 
 the events, and were rather a narration of things past, than a pre¬ 
 diction of things to come. 
 
 Before I conclude this article of Daniel’s prophecies, I must 
 desire the reader to remark, what an opposition the Holy Ghost 
 has put between empires of the world and the kingdom of 
 Jesus Christ. In the former every thing appears great, splendid, 
 and magnificent. Strength, power, glory, and majesty, seem 
 to be their natural attendants. In them we easily discern those 
 great warriors, those famous conquerors, those thunderbolts of 
 war, who spread terror every where, and whom nothing could 
 withstand. But then they are represented as wild beasts, as 
 bears, lions, and leopards, whose sole attribute is to tear in 
 pieces, to devour, and to destroy. What an image and picture 
 is this of conquerors! How admirably does it instruct us to 
 lessen the ideas we are apt to form, as well of empires as of 
 their founders or governors ! 
 
 In the empire of Jesus Christ it is quite otherwise. Let 
 us consider its origin and first rise, or carefully examine its 
 progress and growth at all times, and we shall find that weak¬ 
 ness and meanness, if I may be allowed to say so, have always 
 outwardly been its striking characteristics. It is the leaven, 
 the grain of mustard-seed, the little stone cut out of the moun¬ 
 tain. And yet, in reality, there is no true greatness but in this 
 empire. The eternal Word is the founder and the king there¬ 
 of. All the thrones of the earth come to pay homage to his, 
 and to bow themselves before him. The design of his reign 
 is to save mankind ; to make them eternally happy, and to 
 form to himself a nation of saints and just persons, who may 
 all of them be so many kings and conquerors. It is for their 
 sakes only that the whole world doth subsist; and when the 
 u Dan. xi« 5—45. w S. Hieron. in Prooem. ad Com. in Dan. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 73 
 
 number of them shall be complete. Then (says St. Paul) x com- 
 etli the end and consummation of all things, when Jesus Christ 
 shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father: 
 when he shall have put down all rule, and all authority and 
 power. 
 
 Can a writer, who sees in the prophecies of Daniel that the 
 several empires of the world, after having subsisted during 
 the time determined for them by the sovereign Disposer of king¬ 
 doms, do all terminate and centre in the empire of Jesus Christ; 
 can a writer, I say, amidst all these profane objects, forbear 
 turning his eyes now and then towards that great divine one, 
 and not have it always in view, at least at a distance, as the end 
 and consummation of all others. 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 The last years of Cyrus. The death of that prince. 
 
 Let us return to Cyrus. Being equally beloved by his own 
 natural subjects, y and by those of the conquered nations, he 
 peaceably enjoyed the fruits of his labours and victories. His 
 empire was bounded on the east by the river Indus, on the 
 north by the Caspian and Euxine seas, on the west by the 
 .Egean sea, and on the south by Ethiopia and the sea of 
 Arabia. He established his residence in the midst of all these 
 countries, spending generally seven months of the year at 
 Babylon in the winter-season, because of the warmth of that 
 climate; three months at Susa in the spring, and two months 
 at Ecbatana during the heat of the summer. 
 
 Seven years being spent in this state of tranquillity, Cyrus 
 returned into Persia, for the seventh time after his accession to 
 the whole monarchy; and this shows that he used to go regu¬ 
 larly into Persia once a year. Cambyses had been now dead 
 for some time, and Cyrus himself was grown pretty old, being 
 at this time about seventy years of age; thirty of which had 
 elapsed since his being first made general of the Persian forces, 
 nine from the taking of Babylon, and seven from his beginning 
 to reign alone after the death of Cyaxares. 
 
 To the very last he enjoyed a vigorous state of health, 2 
 which was the fruit of the sober and temperate life which he 
 had constantly led. And whereas they, who give themselves 
 up to drunkenness and debauchery, often feel all the infirmities 
 of age, even whilst they are young; Cyrus, on the contrary, at 
 
 x 1 Cor. xv. 24. y Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 233, &c. 
 
 z Cyrus quidem apud Xenophontem eo sermone, quem moriens habuit, 
 cum admodum senex esset, negat se unquam sensisse, senectutem suam imbe- 
 cilliorem factam, quam adolescentia fuisset. — Cic. de Senect. n. 3. 
 
74 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 a very advanced age, still enjoyed all the vigour and advantages 
 of youth. 
 
 When he perceived the time of his death to draw nigh, he 
 ordered his children, and the chief officers of the state, to be 
 assembled about him; and, after having thanked the gods for 
 all their favours towards him through the course of his life, and 
 implored the like protection for his children, his country, and 
 his friends, he declared his eldest son, Cambyses, his suc¬ 
 cessor, and left the other, whose name was Tanaoxares, several 
 very considerable governments. He gave them both excellent 
 instructions, by representing to them, that the main strength 
 and support of the throne was neither the vast extent of coun¬ 
 tries, nor the number of forces, nor immense riches ; but a due 
 respect for the gods, a good understanding between brethren, 
 and the art of acquiring and preserving true and faithful friends. 
 I conjure you, therefore, said he, my dear children, in the name 
 of the gods, to respect and love one another, if you mean to 
 retain any desire to please me in future. For I do not think 
 you will esteem me to he no longer any thing, because you will 
 not see me after my death. You never saw my soul to this in¬ 
 stant : you must have known, however, by its actions, that it 
 really existed. Do you believe, that honours would still be 
 paid to those whose bodies are now but ashes, if their souls had 
 no longer any being or power ? No, no, my sons, I coidd never 
 imagine, that the soul only lived whilst in a mortal body, and 
 died when separated from it. But if I mistake, and nothing 
 shall remain of me after death, at least fear the gods, who 
 never die, who see all things, and whose power is infinite. 
 Fear them, and let that fear prevent you from ever doing or 
 deliberating to do, any thing contrary to religion and justice. 
 Next to them, fear mankind, and the ages to come. The gods 
 have not buried you in obscurity, but have exposed you upon a 
 great theatre to the view of the whole universe. If your 
 actions are guiltless and upright, be assured they will augment 
 your glory and power. As to my body, my sons, when life has 
 forsaken it, enclose it neither in gold nor silver, nor any other 
 matter whatsoever. Restore it immediately to the 
 earth. Can it be more happy than in being blended, and in 
 a manner incorporated, with the benefactress and common 
 mother of human kind ? After having given his hand to be 
 kissed by all that were present, finding himself at the point of 
 death, he added these last words : Adieu, dear children ; may 
 your lives be happy: carry my last remembrance to your mother. 
 And for you, my faithf ul friends, as well absent as present, 
 
 receive this last farewell, and mau you live in 
 
 4 Ilf O (Hff %/ ^ J J 
 
 A ‘ t’p wa peace. After having said this, he covered his 
 
 Ant. J. L. oJ ' J . Jr ii i 1. i, i . . 
 
 lace and died, equallv lamented bv all his people. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 75 
 
 The order given by Cyrus to restore his body to the 
 earth, is, in my opinion, worthy of observation. He would 
 have thought it disgraced and injured, if enclosed in gold or 
 silver. Restore it to the earth, says he. Where 
 did that prince learn that it was from thence it derived its ori¬ 
 ginal ? Behold one of those precious traces of tradition as old 
 as the world. Cyrus, after having done good to his subjects 
 during his whole life, demands to be incorporated with the 
 earth, that benefactress of the human race, to perpetuate that 
 good, in some measure, even after his death. 
 
 Character and Eulogy of Cyrus. 
 
 Cyrus may justly be considered as the wisest conqueror, and 
 the most accomplished prince mentioned in profane history. 
 He was possessed of all the qualities requisite to form a great 
 man ; wisdom, moderation, courage, magnanimity, noble senti¬ 
 ments, a wonderful ability in managing men’s tempers and 
 gaining their affections, a thorough knowledge of all the parts 
 of the military art, as far as that age had carried it, a vast ex¬ 
 tent of genius and capacity for forming, and equal steadiness 
 and prudence for executing, the greatest projects. 
 
 It is very common for those heroes, who shine in the field, 
 and make a great figure in the time of action, to make but a 
 very poor one upon other occasions, and in matters of a dif¬ 
 ferent nature. We are astonished, when we see them alone 
 and without their armies, to find what a difference there is be¬ 
 tween a general and a great, man; to see what low sentiments 
 and mean actions they are capable of in private life ; how they 
 are influenced by jealousy, and governed by interest; how dis¬ 
 agreeable, and even odious, they render themselves by their 
 haughty department and arrogance, which they think necessary 
 to preserve their authority, and which only serve to make them 
 hated and despised. 
 
 Cyrus had none of these defects. He appeared always the 
 same, that is, always great, even in the slightest matters. 
 Being assured of his greatness, of which real merit was the 
 foundation and support, he thought of nothing more than to 
 render himself affable, and easy of access: and whatever he 
 seemed to lose by this condescending, humble demeanour, was 
 abundantly compensated by the cordial affection and sincere re¬ 
 spect it procured him from his people. 
 
 Never was any prince a greater master of the art of in¬ 
 sinuation, so necessary for those that govern, and yet so little 
 understood or practised. He knew perfectly what advantages 
 may result from a single word rightly timed, from an obliging 
 carriage, from a reason assigned at the same time that a com¬ 
 mand is given, from a little praise in granting a favour, and from 
 
76 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 softening a refusal with expressions of concern and good-will. 
 His history abounds with beauties of this kind. 
 
 He was rich in a sort of wealth which most sovereigns w ant, 
 who are possessed of every thing but faithful friends, and whose 
 indigence in that particular is concealed by the splendour and 
 affluence with which they are surrounded. Cyrus was beloved, a 
 because he himself had a love for others : for, has a man any 
 friends, or does he deserve to have any, when he himself is void 
 of friendship ? Nothing is more interesting than to see in 
 Xenophon the manner in which Cyrus lived and conversed with 
 his friends, always preserving as much dignity as was requisite 
 to keep up a due decorum, and yet infinitely removed from that 
 ill-judged haughtiness, which deprives the great of the most 
 innocent and agreeable pleasure in life, that of conversing 
 freely and sociably with persons of merit, though of an inferior 
 station. 
 
 The use he made of his friends may serve as a perfect model 
 to all persons in authority. His friends had received from him 
 not only the liberty, but an express command, to tell him what¬ 
 ever they thought. 15 And though he was much superior to all 
 his officers in understanding, yet he never undertook any thing 
 without asking their advice : and whatever was to be done, whe¬ 
 ther it was to reform any thing in the government, to make some 
 change in the army, or to form a new enterprise, he would 
 always have every man speak his sentiments, and would often 
 make use of them to correct his own : so different was he from 
 the person mentioned by Tacitus, 0 who thought it a sufficient 
 reason for rejecting the most excellent project or advice, that it 
 did not proceed from himself: Consilii, quamvis egregii quod 
 ipse non offer ret, inimicus. 
 
 Cicero observes/ that during the whole time of Cyrus’s 
 government, he was never heard to speak one rough or angry 
 word : Cujus summo in imperio nemo unquam verburn ullum 
 asperius audivit . What a great encomium for a prince is com¬ 
 prehended in that short sentence ! Cyrus must have been a very 
 great master of himself, to be able, in the midst of so much 
 agitation, and in spite of all the intoxicating effects of sovereign 
 power, always to preserve his mind in such a state of calmness 
 and composure as that no crosses, disappointments, or unforeseen 
 accidents, should ever ruffle its tranquillity, or provoke him to 
 utter any harsh or offensive expression. 
 
 But what was still greater in him, and more truly royal than 
 all this, was his steadfast persuasion, that all his labours and 
 endeavours ought to tend to the happiness of his people ; e and 
 
 a Habes amicos, quia amicus ipse es. Paneg. Trajan. 
 b Plat. 1. iii. de Leg. p. 604. c Hist. 1. i. c. 26. 
 
 d Lib. i. Epist. 2. ad Q. fratrem. e Cyrop. 1. i. p. 27. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 77 
 
 that it was not by the splendour of riches, by pompous equipages, 
 luxurious living, or a magnificent table, that a king ought to dis¬ 
 tinguish himself from his subjects, but by a superiority of merit 
 in every kind, and particularly by a constant, indefatigable care 
 and vigilance to promote their interests, and to secure to them 
 tranquillity and plenty. He said himself one day, as he was 
 discoursing with his courtiers upon the duties of a king/ that a 
 prince ought to consider himself as a shepherd^ (the image under 
 which both sacred and profane antiquity represented good kings); 
 and that he ought to have the same vigilance, care, and good¬ 
 ness. It is his duty, says he, to watch, that his people may 
 live in safety and quiet; to burden himself with anxieties and 
 cares, that they may he exempt from them : to choose whatever 
 is salutary for them, and remove what is hurtful and prejucli- 
 cial; to place his delight in seeing them increase and multi¬ 
 ply, and valiantly expose his own person in their defence and 
 protection. This, says he, is the natural idea, and the just 
 image of a good king. It is reasonable, at the same time, that 
 his subjects should render him all the service he stands in need 
 of; but it is still more reasonable, that he should labour to 
 make them happy; because it is for that very end that he is 
 their king, as much as it is the end and office of a shepherd to 
 take care of his flock. 
 
 Indeed, to be the guardian of the commonwealth, and to be 
 king ; to be for the people, and to be their sovereign, is but one 
 and the same thing. A man is born for others, when he is 
 born to govern, because the reason and end of governing others 
 is only to be useful and serviceable to them. The very 
 basis and foundation of the condition of princes is, not to 
 belong to themselves : the very characteristic of their great¬ 
 ness is, that they are consecrated to the public good. They 
 may properly be considered as light, which is placed on high, 
 only to diffuse and shed its beams on every thing below. Are 
 such sentiments as these derogatory to the dignity of the regal 
 state ? 
 
 It was by the concurrence of all these virtues that Cyrus 
 succeeded in founding such an extensive empire in so short a 
 time ; that he peaceably enjoyed the fruits of his conquests for 
 many years ; that he made himself so much esteemed and be¬ 
 loved, not only by his own natural subjects, but by all the na¬ 
 tions he had conquered ; that after his death he was universally 
 regretted as the common father of all the people. 
 
 We ought not to be surprised, that Cyrus was so accomplish¬ 
 ed in every virtue, (it will easily be understood, that I speak only 
 
 f Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 210. 
 
 s Thou shalt feed my people , said God to David, 2 Sam. v. 2. IIot/i£mXaa)v, 
 Homer, in many places. 
 
78 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 of pagan virtues,) because we know it was God himself, who 
 had formed him to be the instrument and agent of his gracious 
 designs towards his peculiar people. 
 
 When I say that God himself had formed this prince, I do 
 not mean that he did it by any sensible miracle, nor that he 
 immediately made him such, as we admire him in the accounts 
 we have of him in history. God gave him a happy disposi¬ 
 tion, and implanted in his mind the seeds of all the noblest 
 qualities, disposing his heart, at the same time, to aspire after 
 the most excellent and sublime virtues. But, above all, he took 
 care, that this happy genius should be cultivated by a good 
 education, and by that means be prepared for the great designs 
 for which he intended him. We may venture to say, without 
 fear of being mistaken, that the greatest excellences in Cyrus 
 were owing to the mode in which he was educated, which con¬ 
 founding him, in some sort, with the rest of the subjects, and 
 keeping him under the same subjection to the authority of his 
 teachers, served to eradicate that pride, which is so natural to 
 princes; taught him to hearken to advice, and to obey before 
 he came to command; inured him to hardship and toil; accus¬ 
 tomed him to temperance and sobriety ; and, in a word, rendered 
 him such as we have seen him throughout his whole conduct, 
 gentle, modest, affable, obliging, compassionate, an enemy to all 
 luxury and pride, and still more so to flattery. 
 
 It must be confessed, that such a prince is one of the most 
 precious and valuable gifts that Heaven can make to mortal 
 men. The infidels themselves have acknowledged this; nor 
 has the darkness of their false religion been able to hide these 
 two remarkable truths from their observation: That all good 
 kings are the gift of God alone, and that such a gift includes 
 many others ; for nothing can be so excellent as that which 
 bears the most perfect resemblance to the Deity; and the 
 noblest image of the Deity is a just, moderate, chaste, and vir¬ 
 tuous prince, who reigns with no other view than to establish 
 the reign of justice and virtue. This is the portrait which 
 Pliny has left us of Trajan, and which has a great resemblance 
 to that of Cyrus. Nullum est prcestabilius et jmlchrius Dei 
 munus erga mortales, qudm castus, et sanctus, et Deo similli- 
 mus , princeps. h 
 
 When I narrowly examine this hero’s life, there seems to me 
 to have been one circumstance wanting to his glory, which 
 would have enhanced it exceedingly, I mean that of having 
 struggled under some grievous calamity for some time, and of 
 having his virtue tried by some sudden reverse of fortune. I 
 know, indeed, that the emperor Galba, when he adopted Piso, 
 told him that the stings of prosperity were infinitely sharper 
 
 h Pancg. Traj. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 79 
 
 than those of adversity; and that the former put the soul to a 
 much severer trial than the latter: Fortunam adhuc tantum 
 adversam tulisii; 1 secundee res acrioribus stimulis explorant 
 animos. And the reason he gives is, that when misfortunes 
 come with their whole weight upon the soul, she exerts herself, 
 and summons all her strength to bear up against the burden ; 
 whereas prosperity, attacking the mind secretly or insensibly, 
 leaves it all its weakness, and insinuates a poison into it, by so 
 much the more dangerous, as it is the more subtle: Quia mi¬ 
 series tolerantur, felicitate corrumpimur. 
 
 However, it must be owned that adversity, when supported 
 with nobleness and dignity, and surmounted by an invincible 
 patience, adds a great lustre to a prince’s glory, and gives him 
 occasion to display many fine equalities and virtues, which would 
 have been concealed in the bosom of prosperity ; a greatness of 
 mind, independent of every thing without; an unshaken con¬ 
 stancy, proof against the severest strokes of fortune; an intre¬ 
 pidity of soul which is animated at the sight of danger; a 
 fruitfulness in expedients, improving even from crosses and 
 disappointments; a presence of mind, which views and pro¬ 
 vides against every thing ; and, lastly, a firmness of soul, that 
 not only suffices to itself, but is capable of supporting others. 
 
 Cyrus wanted this kind of glory. He himself informs us, k 
 that during the whole course of his life, which was pretty long, 
 the happiness of it was never interrupted by any unfortunate 
 accident; and that in all his designs the success had answer¬ 
 ed his utmost expectations. But he acquaints us, at the same 
 time, with another thing almost incredible, and which was the 
 source of all that moderation and evenness of temper so con¬ 
 spicuous in him, and for which he can never be sufficiently ad¬ 
 mired ; namely, that in the midst of his uninterrupted prosperity 
 he still preserved in his heart a secret fear, proceeding from 
 the apprehension of the changes and misfortunes that might 
 happen ; and this prudent fear was not only a preservative 
 against insolence, but even against intemperate joy. 1 
 
 There remains one point more to be examined, of great im¬ 
 portance in appreciating this prince’s reputation and character, 
 upon which however I shall touch but slightly ; I mean the 
 nature of his victories and conquests : for if these were founded 
 only upon ambition, injustice, and violence, Cyrus would be 
 so far from meriting the praises bestowed upon him, that lie 
 would deserve to be ranked only among those famous robbers of 
 the universe, those public enemies to mankind,™ who acknow- 
 
 ‘ Tac. Hist. lib. i. c. 15. k Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 234. 
 
 1 Ok tia jusya <ppov£iv, ovd ’ tvtypaivecrQai hc7r£7rTCifiev(oe. 
 ni Id in summit fortuna sequius quod validius. Et sua retinere, privatse do- 
 mus: dealienis certare, regiam laudem esse. Tacit. Annal. lib. xv. cap. 1. 
 
80 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 ledged no right but that of force; who looked upon the com¬ 
 mon rules of justice as laws which only private persons were 
 obliged to observe, and derogatory to the majesty of kings; 
 who set no other bounds to their designs and pretensions, 
 than their incapacity of carrying them to an equal extent with 
 their wishes ; who sacrificed the lives of millions to their particu¬ 
 lar ambition ; who made their glory consist in spreading desolation 
 and destruction, like an inundation or a conflagration ; and who 
 reigned as bears and lions would do, if they were masters. 11 
 
 This is indeed the true character of the greatest part of 
 those pretended heroes, whom the world admires ; and by such 
 ideas as these, we ought to correct the impressions made upon 
 our minds by the undue praises of some historians, and the 
 sentiments of many deceived by false images of grandeur. 
 
 I do not know whether I am not biassed in favour of 
 Cyrus; but he seems to me to have been of a very dif¬ 
 ferent character from those conquerors, whom I have just now 
 described. Not that I would justify Cyrus in every respect, 
 or represent him as exempt from ambition, which undoubtedly 
 was the soul of his undertakings ; but he certainly reverenced 
 the laws, and knew that there are unjust wars, in which who¬ 
 ever unseasonably engages, renders himself accountable for all 
 the blood that is shed. Now every war is of this sort, to 
 which the prince is induced by no other motive than that of 
 enlarging his conquests, of acquiring a vain reputation, or 
 rendering himself terrible to his neighbours. 
 
 Cyrus, 0 as we have seen, at the beginning of the war founded 
 all his hopes of success on the justice of his cause, and re¬ 
 presented to his soldiers, in order to inspire them with the 
 greater courage and confidence,, that they were not the ag¬ 
 gressors ; that it was the enemy that attacked them ; and 
 that therefore they were entitled to the protection of the gods, 
 who seemed themselves to have put arms into their hands, that 
 they might fight in defence of their friends and allies, unjustly 
 oppressed. If we carefully examine Cyrus’s conquests, we 
 shall find that they were all consequences of the victories he 
 obtained over Croesus, king of Lydia, who was master of the 
 greatest part of the Lesser Asia ; and over the king of Baby¬ 
 lon, who was master of all Upper Asia, and many other coun¬ 
 tries ; both which princes were the aggressors. 
 
 With good reason therefore is Cyrus represented as one of 
 the greatest princes recorded in history; and his reign justly 
 proposed as the model of a perfect government, which cannot 
 bt such, unless justice is the basis and foundation of it: Cyrus 
 d Xenojihonte scriptus cicl justi effigiem imperii .p 
 
 11 Quae alia vita esset, si leones ursique regnarent ? Sen. de Clem. lib. i. cap. 26. 
 
 0 Cyrop. 1. i. p. 25. p Cie. 1. i. Epist. 1. ad Q. fratrem. 
 
CYRUS. 
 
 81 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 Wherein Herodotus and Xenophon differ in their accounts of Cyrus. 
 
 Herodotus and Xenophon, who perfectly agree in what may 
 be considered as the ground-work and most essential part of 
 Cyrus’s history, and particularly in what relates to his expedi¬ 
 tion against Babylon, and his other conquests ; yet differ ex¬ 
 tremely in the accounts they give of several very important facts, 
 as the birth and death of that prince, and the establishment of 
 the Persian empire. I therefore think myself obliged to give a 
 succinct account of what Herodotus relates as to these points. 
 
 He tells us, as Justin does after him,^ that Astyages, king 
 of the Medes, being warned by a frightful dream, that the son 
 who was to be born of his daughter would dethrone him, did 
 therefore marry his daughter Mandane to a Persian of obscure 
 birth and fortune, whose name was Cambyses. This daughter 
 being delivered of a son, the king commanded Harpagus, one 
 of his principal officers, to destroy the infant. He, instead of 
 killing the child, put it into the hands of one of the king’s shep¬ 
 herds, and ordered him to leave it exposed in a forest. But 
 the child, being miraculously preserved, and secretly brought 
 up by the shepherd’s wife, was afterwards recognized by his 
 grandfather, who contented himself with banishing him to the 
 most remote parts of Persia, and vented all his wrath upon 
 the unfortunate Harpagus, whom he invited to a feast, and caused 
 him to feed on the flesh of his own son. Several years after, 
 young Cyrus, being informed by Harpagus who he was, and 
 being encouraged by his counsels and remonstrances, raised 
 an army in Persia, marched against Astyages, defeated him in 
 a battle, and so transferred the empire from the Medes to the 
 Persians. 
 
 The same Herodotus makes Cyrus die in a manner little 
 becoming so great a conqueror. 1 ' This prince, according to 
 him, carried his arms against the Scythians ; and, after having 
 attacked them, in the first battle pretended to fly, leaving a 
 great quantity of wine and provision behind him in the field. 
 The Scythians did not fail to seize the booty. When they had 
 drunk largely, and were asleep, Cyrus returned upon them, and 
 obtained an easy victory, taking a vast number of prisoners, 
 amongst whom was the son of the queen, named Tomyris, 
 who commanded the army. This young prince, whom Cyrus 
 refused to restore to his mother, being recovered from his 
 drunken fit, and not able to endure to see himself a prisoner, 
 
 <i Herod. 1. i. c. 107—130. Justin. 1. i. c. 4. 6. 
 r Herod. 1. i. c. 20S—214. Justin. 1. i. c. 8. 
 
 G 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
82 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 killed himself with his own hand. His mother Tomyris, ani¬ 
 mated with a desire of revenge, gave the Persians a second 
 battle, and feigning a flight, as they had done before, by that 
 means drew them into an ambush, and killed above 200,000 of 
 their men, together with their king, Cyrus. Then ordering 
 Cyrus’s head to be cut off, she flung it into a vessel full of 
 blood, insulting him at the same time with these opprobrious 
 words ; Now glut thyself with blood, in which thou hast al¬ 
 ways delighted, and of which thy thirst has always been in¬ 
 satiable . s j 
 
 The account given by Herodotus of Cyrus’s infancy and first 
 adventures, has much more the air of a romance than of a 
 history. And, as to the manner of his death, what proba¬ 
 bility is there, that a prince, so experienced in war, and 
 no less renowned for his prudence than for his bravery, 
 should so easily fall into an ambuscade laid by a woman 
 for him? What the same historian relates concerning his 
 impetuosity and passion/ and his childish revenge upon 
 the river, u in which one of his sacred horses was drowned, 
 and which he immediately caused to be cut by his army into 
 360 channels, is directly repugnant to the idea we have of 
 Cyrus, whose distinguishing characteristic was mildness and 
 moderation. Besides, x is it at all probable, that Cyrus, who 
 was marching to the conquest of Babylon, should so idly waste 
 his time when so precious to him, should spend the ardour 
 of his troops in such an unprofitable work, and miss the 
 opportunity of surprising the Babylonians, by amusing him¬ 
 self with a ridiculous war with a river, instead of carrying it 
 against his enemies ? 
 
 But what decides this point unanswerably in favour of 
 Xenophon, is the conformity we find between his narrative 
 and the Holy Scripture ; where we see that, instead of Cyrus’s 
 having raised the Persian empire upon the ruins of that of 
 the Medes, (as Herodotus relates,) those two nations attacked Ba¬ 
 bylon together, and united their forces, to reduce the formidable 
 power of the Babylonian monarchy. 
 
 From whence, then, could so great a difference between 
 these two historians proceed? Herodotus himself explains it 
 to us. In the very place where he gives the account of Cyrus’s 
 birth, and in that where he speaks of his death, he acquaints 
 us that, even at that time, those two great events were re¬ 
 lated different ways. Herodotus followed that which pleased 
 him best, for it appears that he was fond of extraordinary and 
 wonderful things, and readily gave credit to them. Xenophon 
 
 s Satia te, inquit, sanguine, quem sitisti, cujusque insatiabilis semper fuisti. 
 Justin. 1. i. c. 8. 
 
 1 Herod. 1. i. c. 189. 11 Gyndes. x Sen. 1. iii. 3. de Ira, c. 21. 
 
CAMBYSES. 
 
 83 
 
 was of a graver disposition, and less credulous ; and in the 
 very beginning of his history acquaints us, that he had taken great 
 care and pains to inform himself of Cyrus’s birth, education, and 
 character. 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF CAMBYSES. 
 
 As soon as Cambyses ascended the throne,? he 
 Ant. jf*C^529 reso ^ ve( i t° make war against Egypt, for a parti¬ 
 cular affront, which, according to Herodotus, he 
 pretended to have received from Amasis : but it is more pro¬ 
 bable that Amasis, who had submitted to Cyrus, and become 
 tributary to him, might draw this war upon himself, by refusing, 
 after Cyrus’s death, to pay the same homage and tribute to his 
 successor, and by attempting to shake off his yoke. 
 
 Cambyses, 2 in order to carry on the war with success, made 
 vast preparations both by sea and land. The Cypriots and 
 Phoenicians furnished him with ships. As for his land army, 
 he added to his own troops a great number of Grecians, lonians, 
 and yEolians, which made up the principal part of his forces. 
 But none was of greater service to him in this war, than 
 Fbanes of Halicarnassus, who being the commander of some 
 auxiliary Greeks, in the service of Amasis, and being some 
 way or other dissatisfied with that prince, came over to Cam¬ 
 byses, and gave him such intelligence concerning the nature of 
 the country, the strength of the enemy, and the state of his 
 affairs, as very much facilitated the success of his expedition. 
 It was particularly by his advice, that he contracted with an 
 Arabian king, whose territories bordered upon Palestine and 
 Egypt, to furnish his army with water during their march 
 through the desert that lay between these two countries: which 
 agreement that prince fulfilled, by sending the water on the 
 backs of camels, without which Cambyses could never have 
 marched his army that way. 
 
 Having made all these preparations, a he invaded Egypt in 
 the fourth year of his reign. When he arrived upon the fron¬ 
 tiers, he was informed that Amasis was just dead, and that 
 Psammenitus, his son, who succeeded him, was busy in gather¬ 
 ing all his forces together, to hinder him from penetrating into 
 his kingdom. Before Cambyses could open a passage into the 
 country, it was necessary he should render himselt master of 
 Pelusium, which was the key of Egypt on the side he invaded 
 v Herod. 1* iii. c. 1—3. z Ibid. c. 4—9. a Ibid. c. 10. 
 
84 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 it. Now Pelusium was so strong a place, that in all likelihood 
 it must have stopped him a great while. But, according to 
 Polyaenus, to facilitate the capture of this city, Cambyses in¬ 
 vented the following stratagem. b Being informed that the 
 whole garrison consisted of Egyptians, he placed in the front 
 of his army a great number of cats, dogs, sheep, and other ani¬ 
 mals, which were looked upon as sacred by that nation; and 
 then attacked the city by storm. The soldiers of the garrison 
 not daring either to fling a dart, or shoot an arrow that way, for 
 fear of hitting some of these animals, Cambyses became master 
 of the place without opposition. 
 
 When Cambyses had got possession of the city, c Psamme- 
 nitus advanced with a great army, to stop his progress ; and a 
 fierce battle ensued between them. But before they engaged, 
 the Greeks who were in Psammenitus’s army, in order to be 
 revenged of Phanes for his revolt, took his children, which he 
 had been obliged to leave in Egypt when he fled, and, in the 
 presence of the two armies, cut their throats and drank their 
 blood. This outrageous cruelty did not procure them the vic¬ 
 tory. The Persians, enraged at so horrid a spectacle, fell upon 
 them with such fury, that they quickly routed and overthrew 
 the whole Egyptian army, of which the greatest part were 
 killed upon the spot. Those that could save themselves escaped 
 to Memphis. 
 
 On occasion of this battle, 6 Herodotus takes notice of an 
 extraordinary circumstance, of which he himself was a wit¬ 
 ness. The bones of the Persians and Egyptians were still in 
 the place where the battle was fought, but separated from one 
 another. The skulls of the Egyptians were so hard, that a 
 violent stroke of a stone would hardly break them; and those 
 of the Persians so soft, that they might be pierced through with 
 the greatest ease imaginable. The reason of this difference 
 was, that the former, from their infancy, were accustomed to 
 have their heads shaved, and go uncovered, whereas the latter 
 had their heads always covered with their tiaras, which is one 
 of their principal ornaments. 
 
 Cambyses, having pursued the runaways to Memphis, e sent 
 a herald into the city, in a vessel of Mitylene, by the river 
 Nile, on which Memphis stood, to summon the inhabitants to 
 surrender. But the people, transported with rage, fell upon 
 the herald, and tore him to pieces, and all that were with him. 
 Cambyses, having soon after taken the place, fully revenged 
 the indignity, causing ten times as many Egyptians, of the 
 highest rank, as there had been persons massacred in the vessel, 
 to be publicly executed. Among these was the eldest son of 
 Psammenitus. As for the king himself, Cambyses was inclined 
 
 b Polyaen. 1. vii. c Herod. 1 iii. c. 11. d Ibid. c. 12. e Ibid. c. 13. 
 
OAMBYSES. 
 
 85 
 
 to treat him kindly. He not only spared his life, but appointed 
 him an honourable maintenance. But the Egyptian monarch, 
 little affected with this kind usage, endeavoured to raise new 
 troubles and commotions, in order to recover his kingdom; as 
 a punishment for which he was made to drink bull’s blood, and 
 died immediately. His reign lasted but six months ; after 
 which all Egypt submitted to the conqueror. On the news of 
 this success, the Libyans, the Cyrenians, and the Barceans, all 
 sent ambassadors with presents to Cambyses, to make their 
 submission. 
 
 From Memphis he went to the city of Sais, f which is the bury- 
 ing-place of the kings of Egypt. As soon as he entered the 
 palace, he caused the body of Amasis to be taken out of its 
 tomb; and, after having exposed it to a thousand indignities 
 in his own presence, he ordered it to be cast into the fire, and 
 to he burnt; which was a thing equally contrary to the customs 
 of the Persians and Egyptians. The rage which this prince 
 testified against the dead body of Amasis, shows to what a de¬ 
 gree he hated his person. Whatever was the cause of that 
 aversion, it seems to have been one of the chief motives that 
 induced Cambyses to carry his arms into Egypt. 
 
 The next year/ which was the sixth of his reign, he resolved 
 to make war in three different quarters ; against the Cartha¬ 
 ginians, the Ammonians, and the Ethiopians. The first of 
 these projects he was obliged to lay aside, because the Phoeni¬ 
 cians, without whose assistance he could not carry on that war, 
 refused to aid him against the Carthaginians, who were descend¬ 
 ed from them, Carthage being originally a Tyrian colony. 
 
 But, being determined to invade the other two nations, 11 he 
 sent ambassadors into Ethiopia, who, under that character, 
 w r ere to act as spies for him, and to learn the state and strength 
 of the country, and give him intelligence of both. They car¬ 
 ried presents along with them, such as the Persians were used 
 to make, as purple, golden bracelets, compound perfumes, and 
 wine. These presents, amongst which there was nothing use¬ 
 ful, or serviceable to life, except the wine, were despised by 
 the Ethiopians; neither did they make much more account of 
 his ambassadors, whom they took for what they really were, 
 that is, for spies. However, the king of Ethiopia was willing, 
 after his way, to make a present to the king of Persia; and, 
 taking a bow in his hands, which a Persian was so far from 
 being able to draw, that he could scarce lift it, he bent it in 
 presence of the ambassadors, and told them: This is the pre¬ 
 sent, and the counsel the king of Ethiopia gives the king of 
 Persia. When the Persians shall he able to use a how of this 
 bigness and strength, with as much ease as I have now bent it, 
 f Herod. 1. iii. c. 16 s Ibid. c. 17* 10. h Ibid. c. 20—24. 
 
86 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 then let them come to attack the Ethiopians, and briny more 
 troops with them than Cambyses is master of. In the mean 
 time , let them thank the yocls for not having put into the hearts 
 of the Ethiopians a wish to extend their dominions beyond 
 their own country. 
 
 This answer having enraged Cambyses,’ he commanded 
 his army to begin tlieir march immediately, without consider¬ 
 ing, that he neither had provisions nor any thing necessary for 
 such an expedition; but he left the Grecians behind him, in 
 his new-conquered country, to keep it in subjection during his 
 absence. 
 
 As soon as he arrived at Thebes, k in Upper Egypt, he de¬ 
 tached 50,000 of his men against the Annnonians, ordering 
 them to ravage the country, and to destroy the temple of Ju¬ 
 piter Ammon, which was situated there. But after several 
 days’ march in the desert, a violent wind blowing from the 
 south, brought such a vast quantity of sand upon the army, 
 that the men were all overwhelmed and buried under it. 
 
 In the mean time Cambyses marched forwards like a madman 
 against the Ethiopians, notwithstanding his being destitute of 
 all sorts of provisions ; which quickly caused a terrible famine 
 in his army. He had still time, says Herodotus, to remedy 
 this evil; but Cambyses would have thought it a dishonour 
 to have desisted from his undertaking, and therefore he pro¬ 
 ceeded in his expedition. At first his army was obliged to live 
 upon herbs, roots, and leaves of trees ; but coming afterwards 
 into a country entirely barren, they were reduced to the neces¬ 
 sity of eating their beasts of burden. At last they were 
 brought to such a cruel extremity, as to be obliged to eat 
 one another; every tenth man, upon whom the lot fell, being 
 doomed to serve as food for his companions; a food, says 
 Seneca, more cruel and terrible than famine itself: Decimum 
 quemque sortiti, alimentum habuerunt fame scevius} Not¬ 
 withstanding all this, the king still persisted in his design, or 
 rather in his madness, nor did the miserable desolation of his 
 army make him sensible of his error. But at length, beginning 
 to be afraid of his own person, he ordered them to return. 
 During all this dreadful famine among the troops (who would 
 believe it ?) there was no abatement of delicacies at his table, 
 and the camels were still reserved, which were loaded with 
 every thing that was requisite to set out a sumptuous table. 
 Servcibantur illi interim yenerosce aves, et instrumenta epu- 
 larum camelis vehebantur , cum sortirentur milites ejus quis 
 male periret, quis jjejus viveret. m 
 
 The remainder of his army, of which the greatest part was 
 
 1 Herod. 1. iii. c. 25. k Ibid. c. 25, 26. 1 De Ira, 1. iii. c. 20. m Ibid. 
 
CAMBYSES. 
 
 87 
 
 lost in his expedition, he brought back to Thebes; where he 
 succeeded much better in the war he declared against the gods/ 
 whom he found more easy to be conquered than men. Thebes 
 was full of temples, whose riches and magnificence were almost 
 incredible. All these Cambyses pillaged, and then set them 
 on fire. The wealth of these temples must have been vastly 
 great, since the very remains saved from the flames amounted 
 to an immense sum, 300 talents of gold, and 2300 talents of 
 silver. He likewise carried away at this time the famous circle 
 of gold that encompassed the tomb of king Osymandyas, 0 which 
 was 365 cubits in circumference, and in which were represented 
 all the, motions of the several constellations. 
 
 From Thebes he went back to Memphis, where he dis¬ 
 missed all the Greeks, and sent them to their respective homes ;P 
 but on his return into the city, finding it full of rejoicings, 
 he fell into a great rage, supposing this exultation to be on 
 account of the ill success of his expedition. He therefore called 
 the magistrates before him, to know the meaning of these public 
 rejoicings ; and upon their telling him, that it was because 
 they had found their god Apis, he would not believe them, 
 but caused them to be put to death, as impostors that insulted 
 him and his misfortunes. He then sent for the priests, who 
 made him the same answer: upon which he replied, that 
 since their god was so kind and familiar as to appear among 
 them, he would be acquainted with him, and therefore com¬ 
 manded him forthwith to be brought to him. But when in¬ 
 stead of a god, he saw a calf, he was strangely astonished, and 
 falling again into a rage, he drew out his dagger, and run it 
 into the thigh of the beast; and then upbraiding the priests 
 for their stupidity in worshipping a brute for a god, he ordered 
 them to be severely scourged, and all the Egyptians in Memphis, 
 that should be found celebrating the feast of Apis, to be slain. 
 The god was carried back to the temple, where he languished 
 of his wound for some time, and then died. 
 
 The Egyptians say/ that after this fact, which they reckon 
 to have been the highest instance of impiety that ever was com¬ 
 mitted among them, Cambyses grew mad. But his actions 
 showed him to have been mad long before, of which he con¬ 
 tinued to give various instances : among the rest are these fol¬ 
 lowing. 
 
 He had a brother/ the only son of Cyrus besides himself, 
 and born of the same mother: his name, according to Xe¬ 
 nophon, was Tanaoxares, but Herodotus calls him Smerdis, 
 and Justin, Mergis. He accompanied Cambyses in his 
 Egyptian expedition : but being the only person among 
 
 n Diod. Sic. 1. i. p. 43. 0 Ibid. p. 46. 
 
 p Herod. 1. iii. c. 27—29. Ibid. cap. 30. r Ibid. 
 
88 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 all the Persians that could draw the bow which had been 
 brought from the king of Ethiopia, Cambyses from hence con¬ 
 ceived, such a jealousy against him, that lie could bear him no 
 longer in the army, but sent him back into Persia. And not 
 long after, dreaming that a messenger had arrived to inform 
 him that Smerdis sat on the throne, he conceived a suspicion 
 that his brother aspired to the kingdom, and sent after him into 
 Persia Prexaspes, one of his chief confidants, with orders to 
 put him to death, which were accordingly executed. 
 
 This murder was the cause of another still more criminal. 8 
 Cambyses had with him in the camp his youngest sister, whose 
 name was Meroe. Herodotus acquaints us after what a strange 
 manner this sister became his wife. As the princess was ex¬ 
 ceedingly beautiful, Cambyses absolutely resolved to marry her. 
 To that end he called together all the judges of the Persian 
 nation, to whom belonged the interpretation of their laws, to 
 know of them whether there was any law that would allow a bro¬ 
 ther to marry a sister. The judges being unwilling on the one 
 hand directly to authorize such an incestuous marriage, and, 
 on the other, fearing the king’s violent temper, should they 
 contradict him, endeavoured to find out a salvo, and gave him 
 this crafty answer: That they had no law which permitted 
 a brother to marry his sister, but they had a law which allowed the 
 king of Persia to do what he pleased. And this answer serving 
 his purpose as well as a direct approbation, he solemnly mar¬ 
 ried her, and hereby gave the first example of that incest, 
 which was afterwards practised by most of his successors, and 
 by some of them carried so far as to marry their own daughters, 
 how repugnant soever it be to modesty and good order. This 
 princess he carried with him in all his expeditions, and from 
 her he gave the name of Meroe to an island in the Nile, between 
 Egypt and Ethiopia, so far he advanced in his wild march 
 against the Ethiopians. The circumstance that gave occasion 
 to his murdering this princess w r as as follows. One day Cam¬ 
 byses was diverting himself in seeing a combat between a 
 young lion and a young dog; the lion having the better, 
 another dog, brother to him that was engaged, came to his as¬ 
 sistance, and helped him to master the lion. This incident highly- 
 delighted Cambyses, but drew tears from Meroe, w ho being 
 obliged to tell her husband the reason of her weeping, con¬ 
 fessed, that this combat made her call to mind the fate of her 
 brother Smerdis, who had not the same good fortune as that 
 little dog. There needed no more than this to excite the rage 
 of this brutal prince, who immediately gave her, notwithstanding 
 her being with child, such a blow with his foot on the belly, 
 
 * Herod. 1. iii. c. 31, 32. 
 
CAMBYSES. 
 
 89 
 
 that she died of it' So abominable a marriage deserved no better 
 an end. 
 
 H e caused also several of the principal of his followers to 
 be buried alive, 1 and daily sacrificed some or other of them 
 to his wild fury. He had obliged Prexaspes, one of his prin¬ 
 cipal officers and his chief confidant, to declare to him what 
 his Persian subjects thought and said of him. They admire. 
 Sir, says Prexaspes, a yreat many excellent qualities which 
 they see in you, hut they are somewhat mortified at your immo¬ 
 derate love of wine.—I understand you, replied the king ; that 
 is, they pretend that wine deprives me of my reason. You 
 shall he judye of that immediately. Upon which he began to 
 drink excessively, pouring it down in larger quantities than 
 ever he had done at any time before. Then ordering Prex- 
 aspes’s son, who was his chief cup-bearer, to stand upright at 
 the end of the room, with his left hand upon his head, he took 
 his bow, and levelled it at him ; and declaring that he aimed at 
 his heart, let fly, and actually shot him in the heart. He then 
 ordered his side to be opened, and showing Prexaspes the 
 heart of his son, which the arrow had pierced, asked him in 
 an exulting and scoffing manner, if he had not a steady hand 1 
 The wretched father, who ought not to have had either voice or 
 life remaining after a stroke like this, was so mean-spirited as 
 to reply, Apollo himself could not have shot better. Seneca, 
 who copied this story from Herodotus, after having shown his 
 detestation of the barbarous cruelty of the prince, condemns 
 still more the cowardly and monstrous flattery of the father: 
 Sceleratius telum illud laudcitum est, quam missum. 
 
 AYlien Croesus took upon him to advise Cambyses against 
 his conduct, which disgusted every one, and laid before him the 
 ill consequences that might result from it, he ordered him to 
 be put to death. u And when those who received his orders, 
 knowing he w^ould repent of it the next day, deferred the exe¬ 
 cution, he caused them all to be put to death, because they had 
 not obeyed his commands, though at the same time he expressed 
 great joy that Croesus was alive. 
 
 It was about this time that Oretes, one of Cambyses’s satrapm, 
 who had the government of Sardis, after a very strange and 
 extraordinary manner brought about the death of Polycrates, 
 tyrant of Samos. The story of this Polycrates is of so singular 
 a nature, that the reader will not be displeased if I repeat it here. 
 
 This Polycrates waS a prince, x who through the whole course 
 of his life had been uniformly prosperous and successful in all 
 his affairs, and had never met with the least disappointment or 
 unfortunate accident to disturb his felicity. Amasis, king of 
 
 1 Hered. 1. iii. c. 34, 35. Sen. 1. iii. de Irft. c. 14. 
 
 Herod. 1. iii. c. 36. x Ibid. c. 39—43 
 
 U 
 
90 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 Egypt, liis friend and ally, thought himself obliged to send him 
 a letter of admonition upon that subject. He declared to him, 
 that he had alarming apprehensions concerning his condition ; 
 that such a long and uninterrupted course of prosperity was to 
 be suspected; that some malignant, invidious * god, who looks 
 upon the fortune of men with a jealous eye, would certainly 
 sooner or later bring ruin and destruction upon him; that, in 
 order to prevent such a fatal stroke, he advised him to procure 
 some misfortune to himself, by some voluntary loss, that he was 
 persuaded would prove a sensible mortification to him. 
 
 The tyrant followed this advice. Having an emerald ring, 
 which he highly esteemed, particularly for its curious workman¬ 
 ship, as he was walking upon the deck of one of his galleys 
 with his courtiers, he threw it into the sea without any one’s 
 perceiving what he had done. Not many days after, some fish¬ 
 ermen, having caught a fish of an extraordinary size, made a 
 present of it to Polycrates. When the fish came to be opened, 
 the king’s ring was found in the belly of it. His surprise was 
 very great, and his joy still greater. 
 
 When Amasis heard what had happened, he was very dif¬ 
 ferently affected with it. He wrote another letter to Polycrates, 
 telling him that, to avoid the mortification of seeing his friend 
 and ally fall into some grievous calamity, he from that time re¬ 
 nounced his friendship and alliance. A strange whimsical no¬ 
 tion this ! as if friendship was merely a name, or a title, desti¬ 
 tute of all substance and reality. 
 
 Be that as it will, the thing, however, did really happen as 
 the Egyptian king apprehended.^ Some years after, about the 
 time Cambyses fell sick, Oretes, who, as I said before, was his 
 governor at Sardis, not being able to bear the reproach which 
 another satrap had made him in a private quarrel, of his not 
 having yet conquered the isle of Samos, which lay so near his 
 government, and would be so commodious for his master; upon 
 this resolved at any rate to destroy Polycrates, that he might 
 get possession of the island. The way he took to effect his de¬ 
 sign was this. He wrote to Polycrates that, in consequence of 
 information upon which he could depend, Cambyses intended 
 to destroy him by assassination, he designed to withdraw to 
 Samos, and there to secure his treasure and effects ; for which 
 end he was determined to deposit them in the hands of Poly¬ 
 crates, and at the same time make him a present of one half 
 of it, which would enable him to conquer Ionia and the adjacent 
 islands, a project he had long had in view. Oretes knew the tyrant 
 loved money, and passionately coveted to enlarge his dominions. 
 He therefore laid that double bait before him, by which he 
 equally tempted his avarice and ambition. Polycrates, that he 
 
 y Herod. 1. iii, c. 120—125. 
 
CAMBYSES. 
 
 91 
 
 might not rashly engage in an affair of that importance, thought 
 it proper to inform himself more surely of the truth of the mat¬ 
 ter, and to that end sent a messenger of his own to Sardis. 
 Oretes had caused eight large chests to be filled with stones 
 almost to the top, but had covered the stones with pieces of gold 
 coin. These chests were packed up, and appeared ready to be 
 sent on board ship: but they were opened before the messen¬ 
 ger, on his arrival, and he supposed that they were filled with 
 gold. As soon as he was returned home, Polycrates, impatient 
 to go and seize his prey, set out for Sardis, contrary to the ad¬ 
 vice of all his friends ; and took along with him Democedes, a 
 celebrated physician of Crotona. Immediately on his arrival, 
 Oretes had him arrested, as an enemy to the state, and as such 
 caused him to be hanged : in such an ignominious and shameful 
 manner did he end a life which had been but one continued 
 series of prosperity and good fortune. 
 
 Cambyses, 2 in the beginning of the eighth year of his reign, 
 left Egypt in order to return into Persia. When he came into 
 Syria, he found a herald there, sent from Susa to the army, to 
 let them know that Smerdis, the son of Cyrus, had been pro¬ 
 claimed king, and to command them all to obey him. This 
 event had been brought about in the following manner : Cam¬ 
 byses, at his departure from Susa on his Egyptian expedition, 
 had left the administration of affairs during his absence in the 
 hands of Patisithes, one of the chief of the Magi. This Pati- 
 sithes had a brother extremely like Smerdis the son of Cyrus, 
 and who perhaps for that reason was called by the same name. 
 As soon as Patisithes was fully assured of the death of that 
 prince, which had been concealed from the public, knowing, 
 at the same time, that Cambyses indulged his extravagance to 
 such a degree that he was grown insupportable, he placed his 
 own brother upon the throne, giving out that he was the true 
 Smerdis, the son of Cyrus; and immediately despatched he¬ 
 ralds into all parts of the empire, to give notice of Smerdis’s 
 accession, and to require all the subjects thereof to pay him their 
 obedience. 
 
 Cambyses caused the herald, a that came with these orders 
 into Syria, to be arrested; and having strictly examined him 
 in the presence of Prexaspes, who had received orders to kill 
 his brother, he found that the true Smerdis was certainly dead, 
 and he who had usurped the throne, was no other than Smerdis 
 the Magian. Upon this he made great lamentations, that being 
 deceived by a dream, and the identity of the names, he had 
 been induced to destroy his own brother; and immediately 
 gave orders for his army to march, and cut off the usurper. 
 But, as he was mounting his horse for this expedition, his 
 5 Herod. 1. iii. c. Gl, a Ibid. c. G2—64i 
 
92 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 sword slipped out of its scabbard, and gave him a wound in 
 his thigh, of which he died soon after. The Egyptians, re¬ 
 marking that it was in the same part of the body where he had 
 wounded their god Apis, considered this accident as a just 
 judgment from Heaven, which thus avenged the sacrilegious 
 impiety of Cambyses. 
 
 While he was in Egypt, 0 having consulted the oracle of 
 Butos, which was famous in that country, he was told that he 
 should die at Ecbatana: understanding this of Ecbatana in 
 Media, he resolved to preserve his life by never going thither ; 
 but what he thought to avoid in Media, he found in Syria. For 
 the town where he lay sick of this wound, was of the same 
 name, being also called Ecbatana. Of which when he was in¬ 
 formed, taking it for certain that he must die there, he assembled 
 all the chief of the Persians together, and representing to them 
 the true state of the case, that it was Smerdis the Magian who 
 had usurped the throne, earnestly exhorted them not to submit 
 to that impostor, nor to suffer the sovereignty to pass from the 
 Persians again to the Medes, of which nation the Magian was, 
 but to take care to set up a king over them of their own people. 
 The Persians, thinking that he said all this merely out of hatred 
 to his brother, paid no regard to it; but upon his death quietly 
 submitted to him whom they found upon the throne, supposing 
 him to be the true Smerdis. 
 
 Cambyses reigned seven years and five months. 0 In Scrip¬ 
 ture he is called Ahasuerus. When lie first came to the crown, 
 the enemies of the Jews made an application directly to him, 
 desiring him to hinder the building of the temple; and their 
 application was not in vain. Indeed, he did not only revoke 
 the edict of his father Cyrus, perhaps out of some remains of 
 respect for his memory, but in a great measure frustrated its 
 intent, by the many discouragements under which he laid the 
 Jews; so that the work went on very slowly during his reign. 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF SMERDIS THE MAGIAN. 
 
 This prince is called in Scripture Artaxerxes. 
 AntM C. 522 . He reigned little more than seven months. As 
 soon as he was set upon the throne, by the death 
 of Cambyses, the inhabitants of Samaria wrote a letter to liim, d 
 setting fortli what a turbulent, seditious, and rebellious people 
 b Herod. 1. iii. c. 64—66. c Ezra, iv. 4. 6. d Ibid. 7—24. 
 
SMERDIS. 
 
 93 
 
 the Jews were. By virtue of this letter they obtained an order 
 from the king, prohibiting the Jews from proceeding any farther 
 in the rebuilding of their city and temple. So that the work 
 was suspended till the second year of Darius, for about the 
 space of two years. 
 
 The Magian, sensible how important it was for him, that the 
 imposture should not be discovered, affected, from the very be¬ 
 ginning of his reign, never to appear in public, but to live re¬ 
 tired in his palace, and there transact all his affairs by the 
 intervention of his eunuchs, without admitting any but his most 
 intimate confidants to his presence. 
 
 And, e the better to secure himself in the possession of the 
 throne he had usurped, he studied from his first accession to 
 gain the affections of his subjects, by granting them an ex¬ 
 emption from taxes, and from all military service for three 
 years; and did so many things for their benefit, that his death 
 was much lamented by most of the nations of Asia, except the 
 Persians, on the revolution that happened soon afterwards. 
 
 But these very precautions which he made use of to keep 
 himself out of the way of being discovered either by the nobility 
 or the people/ did but make it the more suspected that he was 
 not the true Smerdis. He had married all his predecessor’s 
 wives, and among the rest Atossa, a daughter of Cyrus, and Phe- 
 dyma, a daughter of Otanes, a noble Persian of the first quality. 
 This nobleman sent a trusty messenger to his daughter, to know 
 of her, whether the king was really Smerdis, the son of Cyrus, or 
 some other man. She answered that, having never seen 
 Smerdis, the son of Cyrus, she could not tell. He then 
 by a second message desired her to inquire of Atossa, (who 
 could not but know her own brother,) whether this were he 
 or not. Whereupon she informed him that the present king, 
 be he who he might, from the first day of his accession to 
 the throne, had lodged his wives in separate apartments, so that 
 they never could converse with one another, and that there¬ 
 fore she could not come at Atossa, to ask this question of her. 
 He sent her a third message, whereby he directed her, that 
 when he should next lie with her, she should take the opportunity 
 when he was fast asleep, to feel whether he had any ears or 
 not; for Cyrus having caused the ears of Smerdis, the Magian, 
 to be cut off for some crime, he told her that if the person 
 she lay with was Smerdis, the Magian, he was unworthy of 
 possessing either the crown or her. Phedyma, having receiv¬ 
 ed these instructions, took the next opportunity of making the 
 trial she was directed to, and finding the person she lay 
 with had no ears, she sent word to her father of it, whereby 
 the whole fraud was discovered. 
 
 e Herod. 1. iii. c. 67. f Ibid. c. 69. 
 
94 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 Otanes immediately entered into a conspiracy with five more 
 of the chief Persian nobility and Darius, an illustrious Persian 
 nobleman, whose father, Hystaspes, was governor of Persia, 11 
 coming very seasonably as they were forming their plan, was ad¬ 
 mitted into the association, and vigorously promoted the ex¬ 
 ecution. The affair was conducted with great secrecy, and the 
 very day fixed, lest it should be discovered. 
 
 While they were concerting their measures, 1 an extraordinary 
 occurrence, of which they had not the least expectation, 
 strangely perplexed the Magians. In order to remove all 
 suspicion, they had proposed to Prexaspes, and obtained a 
 promise from him, that he would publicly declare before the 
 people, who were to be assembled for that purpose, that the king 
 upon the throne was truly Smerdis, the son of Cyrus. When 
 the people were assembled, which was on the very same day, 
 Prexaspes spoke from the top of a tower, and to the great 
 astonishment of all present, sincerely declared all that had 
 passed; that he had killed with his own hand Smerdis, the 
 son of Cyrus, by Cambyses’ order '; that the person who now 
 possessed the throne was Smerdis, the Magian; that he begged 
 pardon of the gods and men for the crime he had committed 
 Toy compulsion and against his will. Having said this, he 
 threw himself headlong from the top of the tower, and broke 
 his neck. It is easy to imagine what confusion the news of 
 this accident occasioned in the palace. 
 
 The conspirators/ without knowing any thing of what had 
 happened, w r ere going to the palace at this juncture, and were 
 suffered to enter unsuspected. For the outer guard, knowing 
 them to be persons of the first rank at court, did not so much 
 as ask them any questions. But Avhen they came near the king’s 
 apartment, and found the officers there unwilling to give them 
 admittance, they drew their scimitars, fell upon the guards, and 
 forced their passage. Smerdis, the Magian, and his brother, 
 who were deliberating together upon the affair of Prexaspes, 
 hearing a sudden uproar, snatched up their arms, made the best 
 defence they could, and wounded some of the conspirators. One 
 of the two brothers being quickly killed, the other fled into a 
 distant room to save himself, but was pursued thither by Go- 
 bryas and Darius. Gobryas having seized him, held him fast in his 
 arms ; but, as it was quite dark, Darius was afraid to strike, 
 lest at the same time he should kill his friend. Gobryas, judging 
 what it was that restrained him, obliged him to run his sword 
 through the Magian’s body, though he should happen to kill 
 them both together. But Darius did it with so much dexterity 
 
 s Herod. 1. iii. c. 70—73. 
 * Herod. 1. iii. c. 74, 70. 
 
 h The province so called. 
 k Ibid. c. 76—78. 
 
SMERDIS. 95 
 
 and good fortune, that he killed the Magian without hurting his 
 companion. 
 
 In the same instant, 1 with their hands all smeared with blood, 
 they went out of the palace, exposed the heads of the false 
 Smerdis and his brother Patisithes to the eyes of the public, 
 and declared the whole imposture. Upon this the people grew 
 so enraged, that they fell upon the whole sect to which the 
 usurper belonged, and slew as many of them as they could 
 find. For which reason, the day on which this was done 
 thenceforward became , an annual festival among the Persians, 
 by whom it was celebrated with great rejoicings. It was called 
 The slaughter of the Magi; nor durst any of that sect appear 
 in public upon that festival. 
 
 When the tumult and disorder,™ inseparable from such an 
 event, were appeased, the lords who had slain the usurper 
 entered into consultation among themselves what sort of go¬ 
 vernment was most proper for them to establish. Otanes, 
 who spoke first, declared directly against monarchy, strongly 
 representing and exaggerating the dangers and inconveniences 
 to which that form of government was liable; chiefly flowing, 
 according to him, from the absolute and unlimited power an¬ 
 nexed to it, by which the most virtuous man is almost unavoid¬ 
 ably corrupted. He therefore concluded, by declaring for a 
 popular government. Megabyzus, who next delivered his opi¬ 
 nion, admitting all that the other had said against a monarchical 
 government, confuted his reasons for a democracy. He repre¬ 
 sented the people as a violent, fierce, and ungovernable animal, 
 that acts only by caprice and passion. A king, said he, at least 
 knows what he does ; hut the people neither know nor hear any 
 thing, and blindly give themselves up to those that know how to 
 manage them. He therefore declared for an aristocracy, wherein 
 the supreme power is confided to a few wise and experienced 
 persons. Darius, who spoke last, showed the inconveniences 
 of an aristocracy, otherwise called an oligarchy ; wherein reign 
 distrust, envy, dissensions, and ambition, the natural sources of 
 faction, sedition, and murder ; for which there is usually no 
 other remedy than submitting to the authority of one man; 
 and this is called monarchy, which of all forms of government 
 is the most commendable, the safest, and the most advan¬ 
 tageous : inexpressibly great being the good that can be done 
 by a prince, whose power is ecpial to the goodness of his in- 
 * clinations. In short, said he, to determine this point by a fact 
 which to me seems decisive and undeniable, to what form of 
 government is owing the present greatness of the Persian empire ? 
 Is it not to that which I am now recommending ? Darius’s 
 
 1 Herod. 1. iii. c. 70. 
 
 m 
 
 Ibid. c. 00—83. 
 
MANNERS OF TJIE 
 
 m 
 
 opinion was embraced by the rest of the lords ; and they re¬ 
 solved, that the monarchy should be continued on the same foot 
 whereon it had been established by Cyrus. 
 
 The next question was, to know which of them should be 
 king, and how they should proceed to the election. 11 This they 
 thought lit to refer to the gods. Accordingly they agreed to 
 meet the next morning by sun-rising, on horseback, at a certain 
 place in the suburbs of the city; and that he whose horse first 
 neighed, should be king. For the sun being the chief deity of 
 the Persians, they imagined, that taking this course, would be 
 giving him the honour of the election. Darius’s groom, hear¬ 
 ing of the agreement, made use of the following artifice to se¬ 
 cure the crown to his master. The night before he carried a 
 mare to the place appointed for their meeting the next day, 
 and brought to her his master’s horse. The lords assembling 
 the next morning at the rendezvous, no sooner was Darius’s 
 horse come to the place where he had smelt the mare, than he 
 fell a neighing; whereupon Darius was saluted king by the 
 others, and placed on the throne. He was the son of Hystas- 
 pes, a Persian by birth, and of the royal family of Acheemenes. 
 
 The Persian empire being thus restored and settled by the 
 wisdom and valour of these seven lords, 0 they were raised by 
 the new king to the highest dignities, and honoured with the 
 most ample privileges. They had access to his person when¬ 
 ever they would, and in all public affairs were allowed to deliver 
 their opinions the first. And whereas the Persians wore their 
 tiara or turban with the top bent backwards, except the king, 
 who wore his erect; these lords had the privilege of wearing 
 theirs with the top bent forwards, because, when they attacked 
 the Magi, they had bent theirs in that manner, the better to 
 know one another in the hurry and confusion. From that time 
 forwards, the Persian kings of this family always had seven 
 counsellors, honoured with the same privilege. 
 
 Here I shall conclude the history of the Persian empire, re¬ 
 serving the remainder of it for the following volumes. 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE ASSYRIANS, BABY¬ 
 LONIANS, LYDIANS, MEDES, AND PERSIANS. 
 
 I shall give in this place an account of the manners and 
 customs of all these severed nations conjointly, because they 
 Herod. 1. iii. c. 84—87. 0 Ibid. 
 
 n 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 97 
 
 agree in several points ; and if I was to treat them separately, 
 I should be obliged to make frequent repetitions; and, more¬ 
 over, excepting the Persians, the ancient authors say very little 
 of the manners of the other nations. I shall reduce what 1 have 
 to say of them to these four heads : 
 
 I. Their government. 
 
 II. Their art of Avar. 
 
 III. Their arts and sciences : and, 
 
 IV. Their religion. 
 
 After which I shall narrate the causes of the declension and 
 ruin of the great Persian empire. 
 
 ARTICLE I. 
 
 Of their Government. 
 
 After a short account of the nature of the government of 
 Persia, and themannerof educating the children of their kings, 
 I shall proceed to consider these four things: Their public 
 council, wherein the affairs of state were considered; the ad¬ 
 ministration of justice; their care of the provinces; and the 
 good order observed in their finances. 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 Their monarchical form of government. The respect they paid their kings. 
 
 The manner of educating their children. 
 
 Monarchical, or regal government, as Ave call it, is of all 
 others the most ancient, the most universal, the best adapted to 
 keep the people in peace and union, and the least exposed to 
 the revolutions and vicissitudes incident to states. For these 
 reasons the wisest writers among the ancients, as Plato, Aris¬ 
 totle, Plutarch, and, before them all, Herodotus, have been in¬ 
 duced to prefer decidedly this form of government to all others. 
 It is likewise the only form that Avas ever established among the 
 eastern nations; a republican government being utterly unknown 
 in that part of the world. 
 
 Those people paid extraordinary honours to the prince on 
 the throne ,p because in his person they respected the character 
 of the Deity, whose image and vicegerent he Avas with regard 
 to them, being placed on the throne by the hands of the su¬ 
 preme Governor of the world, and invested with his authority 
 and poAver, in order to be the minister of his providence, and 
 the dispenser of his goodness towards the people. In this man¬ 
 ner did the pagans themselves in old times both think and speak: 
 
 p Plin. in Themist. p. 125. Ad Princ. indoc. p. 7^0. 
 
 VOL. II. H 
 
08 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 Principem dat Deus, qui erga omne hominum genus vice sua 
 fungatur 
 
 These sentiments are very laudable and just. For certainly 
 the most profound respect and reverence are due to the supreme 
 power ; because it cometli from God, and is appointed entirely 
 for the good of the public : besides, it is evident, that an 
 authority which is not respected according to the full extent 
 of its commission, must thereby either become useless, or at 
 least very much limited in the good effects which ought to 
 flow from it. But in the times of paganism this honour and 
 homage, though just and reasonable in themselves, were often 
 carried too far; the Christian being the only religion that 
 has known how to keep within due bounds in this point. 
 We honour the emperor, said Tertullian in the name of all 
 the Christians : r but in such a manner, as is lawful for us, and 
 proper for him; that is, as a man, who is next after God in 
 rank and authority, from whom he has received all that he 
 is, and whatever he has, and who knows no superior but God 
 alone. For this reason he calls the emperor in another place 
 a second majesty, inferior to nothing but the first; Religio 
 secundce majestatis . s 
 
 Among the Assyrians, and more particularly among the 
 Persians, the prince used to be styled, The great king , the 
 king of kings. Two reasons might induce those princes to take 
 that ostentatious title: the one, because their empire was 
 formed of many conquered kingdoms, all united under one head ; 
 the other, because they had several kings, their vassals, either in 
 their court or dependent upon them. 
 
 The crown was hereditary among them, descending from father 
 to son, and generally to the eldest. 1 When an heir to the crown 
 was born, all the empire testified their joy by sacrifices, feasts, 
 and all manner of public rejoicings; and his birth-day was 
 thenceforward an annual festival and day of 
 Persians. 
 
 The manner of educating the future master of the empire is 
 admired by Plato, u and recommended to the Greeks as a perfect 
 model for a prince’s education. 
 
 He was never wholly committed to the care of a nurse, who 
 generally was a woman of mean and low condition: but 
 from among the eunuchs, that is, the chief officers of the 
 household, some of the most approved merit and probity 
 were chosen, to take care of the young prince’s person and 
 health, till he was seven years of age, and to begin to form 
 
 3 Plin. in Paneg. Trag. 
 
 r Colimus Imperatorem, sic, quomodo et nobis licet, et ipsi expedit; ut ho- 
 minem a Deo secundum, et quicquid est, a Deo consecutum, et solo Deo 
 minorem. Tertul. L. ad. Scap. s Apolog. c. 35. 
 
 1 Pint. in. Alcib. c. i. p. 121. " Ibid. t 
 
 solemnity for all the 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 99 
 
 his manners and behaviour. He was then taken from them, 
 and put into the hands of other masters, who were to con 
 tinue the care of his education, to teach him to ride as soon as his 
 strength would permit, and to exercise him in hunting. 
 
 At fourteen years of age, when the mind begins to attain 
 some maturity, four of -the wisest and most virtuous men of the 
 state were appointed to be his preceptors. The first, says 
 Plato, taught him magic, that is, in their language, the worship 
 of the gods according to their ancient maxims, and the laws of 
 Zoroaster, the son of Oromasdes ; he also instructed him in the 
 principles of government. The second was to accustom him 
 to speak truth, and to administer justice. The third was to 
 teach him not to suffer himself to be overcome by pleasures, 
 that he might be truly a king, and always free, master of him¬ 
 self and his desires. The fourth was to fortify his courage 
 against fear, which would have made him a slave, and to in¬ 
 spire him with a noble and prudent assurance, so necessary for 
 those that are born to command. Each of these governors ex¬ 
 celled in his way, and was eminent in that part of education 
 assigned to him. One was particularly distinguished for his 
 knowledge in religion, and the art of governing; another for 
 his love of truth and justice; this for his moderation and ab¬ 
 stinence from pleasures; that for a superior strength of mind, 
 and uncommon intrepidity. 
 
 I do not know whether such a diversity of masters, who, 
 without doubt, were of different tempers, and perhaps had dif¬ 
 ferent interests in view, was well calculated to answer the end 
 proposed; or whether it was possible, that four men should 
 agree together in the same principles, and harmoniously pursue 
 the same end. Probably the reason of having so many was, 
 that they apprehended it impossible to find any one person pos¬ 
 sessed of all the qualities they judged necessary for giving a 
 right education to the presumptive heir of the crown ; so great 
 an idea had they, even in those corrupt times, of the importance 
 of a prince’s education. 
 
 Be this as it will, all this care, as Plato remarks in the same 
 place, was frustrated by the luxury, pomp, and magnificence 
 with which the young prince was surrounded ; by the numerous 
 train of officers that waited upon him with a servile submission; 
 by all the appurtenances and equipage of a voluptuous and 
 effeminate life, in which pleasure, and the inventing of new di¬ 
 versions, seemed to engross all attention; dangers which the 
 most excellent disposition could never surmount. The corrupt 
 manners of the nation therefore quickly debauched the prince, 
 and drew him into the prevailing pleasures, against which no 
 education is a sufficient defence. 
 
 The education here spoken of by Plato, can relate only to 
 
 H 2 
 
100 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 the children of Artaxerxes, surnamed Longimanus, the son and 
 successor of Xerxes, in whose time lived Alcibiades, who is 
 introduced in the dialogue from whence this observation is 
 taken. For Plato, in another passage, which vve shall cite 
 hereafter, informs us, that neither Cyrus nor Darius ever 
 thought of giving the princes, their sons, a good education; 
 and what we find in history concerning Artaxerxes Longimanus, 
 gives us reason to believe, that he was more attentive than his 
 predecessors to the education of his children ; but was not much 
 imitated in that respect by his successors. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 The public council, wherein the affairs of state were considered. 
 
 Absolute as the regal authority was among the Persians, yet 
 was it, in some measure, kept within bounds by the establish¬ 
 ment of this council, appointed by the state; a council, which 
 consisted of seven of the princes or chief lords of the nation, 
 no less distinguished by their wisdom and abilities than by their 
 illustrious birth. We have already seen the origin of this esta¬ 
 blishment in the conspiracy of the seven Persian noblemen, 
 who entered into an association against Smerdis, the Magian, 
 and killed him. 
 
 The Scripture observes, that Ezra was sent into Judea, in 
 the name, and by the authority, of king Artaxerxes and his 
 seven counsellors : Forasmuch as thou art sent of the king ancl 
 of his seven counsellors . x 
 
 The same Scripture, a long time before this, in the reign 
 of Darius, otherwise called Ahasuerus, who succeeded the 
 Magian, informs us, that these counsellors were well versed in 
 the laws, ancient customs, and maxims of the state; that they 
 always attended the prince, who never transacted any thing, or 
 determined any affair of importance, without their advice. 
 Interrogavit (Assuerus) sajnentes, qui ex more regio ei semper 
 aderant, et illorum faciehat cuncta consilio, scientium leges cic 
 jura majorum . y 
 
 This last passage gives room for some reflections, which may 
 very much contribute to the knowledge of the genius and cha¬ 
 racter of the Persian government. 
 
 In the first place, the king there spoken of, that is, Darius, 
 was one of the most celebrated princes that ever reigned in 
 Persia, and one of the most deserving of praise, on account of 
 his wisdom and prudence : though he had his failings. It is to 
 him, as well as to Cyrus, that the greatest part of those ^excel¬ 
 lent laws are ascribed, which have ever since subsisted in that 
 
 x Ezra, vii. 14. y Esth. i. 13. according to the Vulgate translation. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 101 
 
 country, and have been the foundation and standard of their go¬ 
 vernment. Now this prince, notwithstanding' his extraordinary 
 penetration and ability, thought he stood in need of advice ; nor 
 did he apprehend, that the joining a number of assistants to 
 himself, for the determination of affairs, would be any discredit 
 to his own understanding; by which proceeding he really 
 showed a superiority of genius which is very uncommon, and 
 implies a great fund of merit. For a prince of slender talents 
 and a narrow capacity, is generally full of himself; and the less 
 understanding he has, the more obstinate and untractable he 
 generally is : he thinks it want of respect to offer to discover 
 any thing to him which he does not perceive ; and is affronted, 
 if you seem to doubt that he, who is supreme in power, is not 
 the same in penetration and understanding. But Darius had a 
 different way of thinking, and did nothing without counsel and 
 advice : Illorum faciebat cuncta consilio. 
 
 Secondly, Darius, however absolute he was, and how jealous 
 soever he might be of his prerogative, did not think he impaired 
 or degraded it when he instituted that council; for the council 
 did not at all interfere with the king’s authority of ruling and 
 commanding, which always resides in the person of the prince, 
 but was confined entirely to that of reason, which consisted in 
 communicating and imparting their knowledge and experience 
 to the king. He was persuaded that the noblest character of 
 sovereign power, when it is pure, and has neither degenerated 
 from its origin, nor deviated from its end, is to govern by the 
 laws ; 1 to make them the rule of his will and desire ; and to 
 think nothing allowable for him which they prohibit. 
 
 In the third place, this council, which every where accom¬ 
 panied the king, (ex more regio semper ei aclerant,) was a per¬ 
 petual standing council, consisting of the greatest men and the 
 best heads of the kingdom; who, under the direction of the so¬ 
 vereign, and always with a dependency upon him, were in a 
 manner the source of public order, and the principle of all the 
 wise regulations and transactions at home and abroad. To this 
 council the king transferred from himself several weighty cares, 
 with which he must otherwise have been overburdened; and 
 by them he likewise executed whatever had been resolved on. 
 It was by means of this standing council, that the great 
 maxims of the state were preserved ; the knowledge of its true 
 interests perpetuated; affairs carried on with harmony and 
 order; and innovations, errors, and oversights prevented. For 
 in a public and general council things are discussed by unsus¬ 
 pected persons ; all the ministers are mutual inspectors ol one 
 another; all their knowledge and experience in public matters 
 
 z Regimur a te, et subjecti tibi, sed quemadmodum legibus, sumus.— Plin. 
 Paneg. Traj. 
 
102 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 are united together; and they all become equally capable of 
 every part of the administration: because, though, as to the 
 executive part, they move only in one particular sphere of 
 business, yet they are obliged to inform themselves in all affairs 
 relating to the public, that they may be able to deliver their 
 opinions in a judicious manner. 
 
 The fourth and last reflection I have to make on this head is, 
 that we find it mentioned in Scripture, that the persons of which 
 this council consisted, were thoroughly acquainted with the 
 customs, laws, maxims, and rights of the kingdom, scientium 
 leges ac jura majorum. 
 
 Two things, which, as the Scripture informs us, were prac¬ 
 tised by the Persians, might very much contribute to instruct 
 the king and his council in the methods of governing with wis¬ 
 dom and prudence. The first was, their having public regis¬ 
 ters^ wherein all the prince’s edicts and ordinances, all the pri¬ 
 vileges granted to the people, and all the favours conferred upon 
 particular persons, were entered and recorded. The second 
 was, b the annals of the kingdom, in which all the events of 
 former reigns, all resolutions taken, regulations established, 
 and services done by any particular persons, were exactly and 
 circumstantially entered. These annals were carefully pre¬ 
 served, and frequently perused both by the kings and the 
 ministers, that they might acquaint themselves with times past; 
 might have a clear idea of the state of the kingdom ; avoid an 
 arbitrary, unequal, uncertain conduct; maintain a uniformity in 
 the conduct of affairs ; and, in short, acquire such light from 
 the perusal of these books, as should qualify them to govern the 
 state with wisdom. 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 The administration of justice. 
 
 To be king, and to be judge, is but one and the same thing. 
 The throne is a tribunal, and the sovereign power is the highest 
 authority for administering justice. God hath made you king 
 over his people, (said the queen of Sheba to Solomon,) to the 
 end that you should judge them, and render justice and judg¬ 
 ment unto them. God hath made every thing subject to 
 princes, to put them into a condition of fearing none but 
 him. His design, in making them independent, was to give 
 them the more inviolable attachment to justice. That they 
 might not excuse themselves on pretence of inability or want of 
 power, he has delegated his whole power unto them; he has made 
 
 * Ezra, v. 17. and vi. 2. 
 
 b Ezra, iv. 15. and Esth. vi. 1. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 103 
 
 them masters of all the means requisite for the restraining 
 injustice and oppression, that iniquity should tremble in their 
 presence, and be incapable of hurting any persons whatsoever. 
 
 But what is that justice which God hath intrusted to the 
 hands of kings, and whereof he hath made them depositories i 
 Why, it is nothing else but order; and order consists in ob¬ 
 serving a universal equity, and taking care that force do not 
 usurp the place of law; that one man’s property be not ex¬ 
 posed to the violence of another ; that the common ties of 
 society be not broken ; that artifice and fraud do not prevail 
 over innocence and simplicity ; that all things rest in peace 
 under the protection of the laws ; and the weakest among the 
 people find sanctuary in the public authority. 
 
 We learn from Josephus, 0 that the kings of Persia used 
 to administer justice in their own persons. And it was to 
 qualify them for the due discharge of this duty, that care was 
 taken to have them instructed, from their tenderest youth, in 
 the knowledge of the laws of their country; and that in their 
 public schools, as we have already mentioned in the history 
 of Cyrus, they were taught equity and justice, in the same 
 manner as rhetoric and philosophy are taught in other places. 
 
 These are the great and essential duties of the regal 
 dignity. Indeed it is reasonable, and absolutely necessarv, 
 that the prince be assisted in the execution of that august 
 function, as he is in others ; but to be assisted, is not to be 
 deprived, or dispossessed. He continues judge, as long as he 
 continues king. Though he communicates his authority, yet 
 does he not resign or divide it. It is therefore absolutely 
 necessary for him to bestow some time upon the study of 
 equity and justice; not that he need enter into the whole 
 detail of particular laws, but only acquaint himself with the 
 principal rules and maxims of the law of his country, that 
 he may be capable of doing justice, and of passing sentence 
 with precision, upon important points. For this reason, the 
 kings of Persia never ascended the throne till they had been 
 for some time under the care and instruction of the Magi, 
 who were to teach them that science, whereof they were the 
 only masters and professors, as well as of the religion of the 
 country. 
 
 Now since to the sovereign alone is committed the right 
 of administering justice, and that within his dominions there 
 is no other power of administering it than what is delegated 
 by him; how greatly does it behove him to take care into what 
 hands he commits a part of so valuable a trust; to know whether 
 those he places so near the throne, are worthy to partake of 
 his prerogative ; and industriously to keep all such at a dis- 
 
 c Anliq. Judaic. 1. xi. c, 3. 
 
104 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 tance from it, as he judges unworthy of that privilege ! We 
 find that in Persia their kings were extremely careful to have 
 justice rendered with integrity and impartiality. One of their 
 royal judges d (for so they called them) having suffered him¬ 
 self to be corrupted by a bribe, was condemned by Cambyses 
 to be put to death without mercy, and to have his skin put upon 
 the seat where he used to sit and give judgment, and where his 
 son, who succeeded him in his office, was to sit, that the very 
 place whence he gave judgment, should remind him continually of 
 liis duty. 
 
 Their ordinary judges were taken out of the class of old 
 men, e into which none were admitted till the age of fifty years: 
 so that a man could not exercise the office of a judge before 
 that age, the Persians being of opinion, that too much maturity 
 could not be required in an employment which decided upon 
 the fortunes, reputations, and lives of their fellow-citizens. 
 
 Amongst them, it was not lawful either for a private person 
 to put any of his slaves to death, 1 nor for the prince to inflict 
 capital punishment upon any of his subjects for the first offence; 
 because it might rather be considered as an effect of human 
 weakness and frailty, than of a confirmed malignity of mind. 
 
 The Persians thought it reasonable to put the good as well 
 as the evil, the merits of the offender, as well as his demerits, 
 into the scales of justice: nor was it just, in their opinion, 
 that one single crime should obliterate all the good actions a 
 man had done during his life. Upon this principle it was that 
 Darius had condemned a judge to death for some prevarication 
 in his office, g and afterwards calling to mind the important ser¬ 
 vice he had rendered both to the state and the royal family, re¬ 
 voked the sentence at the very moment of its going to be exe¬ 
 cuted, and acknowledged, that he had pronounced it with more 
 precipitation than wisdom. 1 ' 
 
 But one important and essential rule which they observed in 
 their judgments, was, in the first place, never to condemn any 
 person without confronting him with his accuser to his face, 
 and without giving him time, and all other means, necessary 
 for defending himself against the articles laid to his charge: 
 and, in the second place, if the person accused was found 
 innocent, to inflict the very same punishment upon the accuser, 
 as the other was to have suffered, had he been found guilty. 
 Artaxerxes gave a fine example of the just rigour which 
 ought to be exercised on such occasions.' One of the king’s 
 favourites, ambitious of getting a place possessed by one of 
 
 d Herod. 1. v. c. 25. e Xenoph. Cyrop. 1. i. p. 7* 
 
 f Herod. 1. i. c. 137- s Ibid. 1. vii. c. 194. 
 
 u rVoi>£ TcrxyTiQa civtoq y aocpurtpa IpyaGfikvoQ uij, ei\v<jt . 
 
 ‘ JDiod. 1. xv. p. 333—33C. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 105 
 
 his best officers, endeavoured to make the king suspect the fi¬ 
 delity of that officer ; and, to that end, sent informations to court 
 full of calumnies against him, persuading himself that the king, 
 from the great influence he had with liis majesty, would believe 
 the thing upon his bare word, without farther examination. 
 For such is the general character of calumniators. They are 
 afraid of evidence and light; they make it their business to bar 
 up from the innocent all access to the prince, and thereby put 
 it out of their power to vindicate themselves. The officer was 
 imprisoned ; but he desired of the king, before he was con¬ 
 demned, that his cause might be heard, and his accusers order¬ 
 ed to produce their evidence against him. The king did so, 
 and as there was no proof but the letters which his enemy had 
 written against him, he was cleared, and liis" innocence fully 
 justified by the three commissioners that sat upon his trial; and 
 all the king’s indignation fell upon the perfidious accuser, who 
 had thus attempted to abuse the favour and confidence of his 
 royal master. The prince, who was well informed, and knew 
 that one of the true signs of a wise government is to have the 
 subjects stand more in fear of the laws than of informers, k 
 would have thought, that to act otherwise than he did, would 
 have been a direct violation of the most common rules of natu¬ 
 ral equity and humanity ; it would have been opening a door to 
 envy, hatred, calumny, and revenge ; l it would have been ex¬ 
 posing the honest simplicity of good and faithful subjects to the 
 cruel malice of detestable informers, and arming the latter with 
 the sword of public authority ; in a word, it would have been 
 divesting the throne of the most noble privilege belonging to it, 
 namely, that of being a sanctuary for innocence and justice, 
 against violence and calumny. 
 
 There is upon record a still more memorable example of 
 firmness and love of justice, in another king of Persia, before 
 Artaxerxes ; m in him, I mean, whom the Scripture calls Aha- 
 suerus, and who is thought to be the same as Darius, the son of 
 Hystaspes, from whom Hainan had, by his earnest solicitations, 
 extorted that fatal edict, which was calculated to exterminate 
 the whole race of the Jews throughout the Persian empire in 
 one day. When God had, by the means of Esther, opened his 
 eyes, he made haste to make amends for his fault, not only by 
 revoking his edict, and inflicting an exemplary punishment 
 upon the impostor who had deceived him ; but, which is more, 
 by a public acknowledgment of his error, which should be a 
 pattern to all ages, and to all princes, and teach them, that far 
 from debasing their dignity, or weakening their authority tliere- 
 
 k Non jam delatores, sed leges timentur. Plin. in Paneg. Traj. 
 
 1 Princeps, qui delatores non castigat, irritat. Sneton. in vit. Domit. c. ix. 
 
 m Esth. iii. &c. 
 
106 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 by, they procure to them both the more respect. After declar¬ 
 ing, that it is but too common for calumniators to impose, by 
 their representations and craftiness, on the goodness of their 
 princes, whom their natural sincerity induces to judge favour¬ 
 ably of others ; he is not ashamed to acknowledge, that he had 
 been so unhappy as to suffer himself to be prejudiced by such 
 means against the Jews, who were his faithful subjects, and the 
 children of the most high God, to whose goodness he and his 
 ancestors were indebted for the throne. 
 
 The Persians were not only enemies of injustice, as we have 
 now shown ; but also abhorred lying, which always was deemed 
 amongst them a mean and infamous vice." What they esteem¬ 
 ed most pitiful, next to lying, was to live upon trust, or by bor¬ 
 rowing. Such a kind of life seemed to them idle, ignominious, 
 servile, and the more despicable, as it tends to make people liars. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 The care of the provinces. 
 
 It seems to be no difficult matter to maintain good order in 
 the metropolis of a kingdom, where the conduct of the magis¬ 
 trates and judges is closely inspected ; and the very sight of the 
 throne capable of keeping the subjects in awe. The case is 
 otherwise with respect to the provinces, where the distance 
 from the sovereign, and the hopes of impunity, may occasion 
 many misdemeanors on the part of the magistrates and officers, 
 as well as great licentiousness and disorder on that of the peo¬ 
 ple. In this the Persian policy exerted itself with the greatest 
 care ; and, we may also say, with the greatest success. 
 
 The Persian empire was divided into 127 governments, the 
 governors whereof were called satrapae. 0 Over them were ap¬ 
 pointed three principal ministers, who inspected their conduct, 
 to whom they gave an account of all the affairs of their several 
 provinces, and who were afterwards to make their report of the 
 same to the king. It was Darius the Mede, that is, Cyaxares, or 
 rather Cyrus in the name of his uncle, who put the government 
 of the empire into this excellent method. These satrapae were, 
 by the very design of their office, each in his respective district, 
 to have the same care and regard for the interests of the people, 
 as for those of the prince ; for it was a maxim with Cyrus, that 
 no difference ought to be admitted between these two interests, 
 which are necessarily linked together ; since neither the people 
 can be happy, unless the prince is powerful, and in a condition 
 
 n Herod. 1. i. c. 138. 
 
 ° Authors differ about the number of governments or provinces. Xenoph ♦ 
 Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 229. 232. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 107 
 
 to defend them ; nor the prince truly powerful, unless his people 
 be happy. 
 
 These satrapae being the most considerable persons in the 
 kingdom, Cyrus assigned them certain funds and revenues pro¬ 
 portioned to their station and the importance of their employ¬ 
 ments. He was willing they should live nobly in their respec¬ 
 tive provinces, that they might gain the respect of the nobility 
 and common people within their jurisdiction ; and that for that 
 reason their retinue, their equipage, and their table, should be 
 answerable to their dignity, yet without exceeding the bounds 
 of prudence and moderation. He himself was their model in 
 this respect, as he desired they should be likewise to all persons 
 of distinguished rank within the extent of their authority ; so 
 that the same order which reigned in the prince’s court, might 
 likewise proportionally be observed in the courts of the satrapae, 
 and in the noblemen’s families. And to prevent, as far as pos¬ 
 sible, all abuses which might be made of so extensive an autho¬ 
 rity as that of the satrapae, the king reserved to himself alone the 
 nomination of them, and chose that the governors of places, the 
 commanders of the troops, and other such like officers, should 
 depend immediately upon the prince himself; from whom alone 
 they were to receive their instructions, in order that, if the 
 satrapae were inclined to abuse their power, they might be sensi¬ 
 ble those officers were so many overseers and censors of their 
 conduct. And, to make this correspondence, by letters, the 
 more sure and expeditious, the king caused post-houses to be 
 erected throughout all the empire, and appointed couriers, who 
 travelled night and day, and made wonderful despatch. But I 
 shall speak more particularly on this article at the end of the 
 section, that I may not break in upon the matter in hand. 
 
 The care of the provinces, however, was not entirely left 
 to the satrapae and governors : the king himself took cognizance 
 of them in his own person, being persuaded, that the governing- 
 only by others, is but to govern by halves. An officer of the 
 household was ordered to repeat these words to the king every 
 morning, when he awakened him: Rise , Sir, and think of 
 discharging the duties for which Oromasdes has placed you 
 upon the throned Oromasdes was the principal god, anciently 
 worshipped by the Persians. A good prince, says Plutarch in 
 relating this custom, has no occasion for an officer to give him 
 this daily admonition: his own heart, and the love he has for 
 his people, are sufficient monitors. 
 
 The king of Persia thought himself obliged, according to 
 the ancient custom established in that country, from time to 
 time personally to visit all the provinces of his empire ; q being 
 persuaded, as Pliny says of Trajan, that the most solid glory, 
 p Plut. ad Princ. indoct. p. 780. ( i Xenoph. in Oeconom. p. 826. 
 
108 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 and the most exquisite pleasure, a good prince can enjoy, is 
 from time to time to let the people see their common father; 
 to reconcile the dissensions and mutual animosities of rival 
 cities ; r to calm commotions or seditions among the people, and 
 that not so much by the severity of power, as by the authority of 
 reason ; to prevent injustice and oppression in magistrates ; and 
 cancel and reverse whatever has been decreed against law and 
 equity: in a word, like a beneficent planet, to shed his salutary 
 influences universally, or rather, like a kind of divinity, to be 
 present every where, to see, to hear, and inspect every thing, 
 without rejecting any man’s petition or complaint. 
 
 When the king was not able to visit the provinces himself, 
 he sent, in his stead, some of the great men of the kingdom, 
 such as were the most eminent for wisdom and virtue. These 
 persons were generally called the eyes and ears of the prince, 
 because by their mgans he saw and was informed of every 
 thing. When these, or any others of his great ministers, or 
 the members of his council, were said to be the eyes and ears 
 of the prince, it was at once an admonition to the king, that 
 he had his ministers, as we have the organs of our senses, not 
 that he should lie still and be idle, but act by their means ; 
 and to the ministers, that they ought not to act for themselves, 
 but for the king their head, and for the advantage of the whole 
 body politic. 
 
 The particular detail of affairs, which the king, when he 
 went his progress in person, or the commissioners appointed 
 by him, entered into, is highly worthy of admiration, and shows 
 how well they understood, in those days, wherein the wisdom 
 and ability of governors consist. The attention of the king 
 and his ministers was not employed upon great objects alone, 
 as war, the revenue, justice, and commerce; but matters of 
 less importance, as the security and beauty of towns and 
 cities, the convenient habitation of the inhabitants, the repairs 
 of high roads, bridges, causeways, the keeping of woods and 
 forests from being laid waste and destroyed, and, above all, the 
 improvement of agriculture, and the encouraging and pro¬ 
 moting all sorts of trades, even to the lowest and meanest of 
 handicraft employments; every thing, in short, came within 
 the sphere of their policy, and was thought to deserve their 
 care and inspection. And, indeed, whatever belongs to the 
 subjects, as well as the subjects themselves, is a part of the 
 trust committed to the head of the commonwealth, and is en¬ 
 titled to his care, concern, and activity. His love for the 
 
 1 Reconciliare aemulas civitates, tumentesque populos non imperio magis 
 quamrationecompescere, intercedere iniquitatibus magistratuum, infectumque 
 reddere quicquid fieri non oportuerit; postremo velocissimi sideris more om¬ 
 nia inviseie, omnia audire, et undecumque invocatum, statim, velut numen, 
 adesse et adsistere. Plin. in Pancgyr. Traj. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 109 
 
 commonweal is universal. It extends itself to all matters, and 
 takes in every thing : 8 it is the support of private persons, as 
 well as of the public. Every province, every city, every family, 
 has a place in his heart and affections. Every thing in the 
 kingdom has a relation to, and concerns him; every thing 
 challenges his attention and regard. 
 
 I have already said/ that agriculture was one of the principal 
 objects on which the Persians bestowed their care and attention. 
 Indeed, one of the prince’s first cares was, to make husbandry 
 flourish ; and those satrapae, whose provinces were the best 
 cultivated, had the most of his favour. And as there were 
 offices erected for the regulation of the military part of the 
 government; so were there likewise for the inspecting their 
 rural labours and economy. For these two employments had a 
 near relation ; the business of the one being to guard the country, 
 and the other to cultivate it. The prince protected both almost 
 with the same degree of affection; because both concurred, 
 and were equally necessary, for the public good. For if the 
 lands cannot be cultivated without the aid and protection of 
 armies for their defence and security; so neither can the 
 soldiers, on the other hand, be fed and maintained without the 
 labour of the husbandmen who cultivate the ground. It was 
 with good reason, therefore, that the prince, since it was im¬ 
 possible for himself to see into every thing, caused an exact 
 account to be given him, how every province and district was 
 cultivated ; that he might know, whether each country brought 
 forth abundantly such fruits as it was capable of producing ; 
 that he descended so far into those particulars, as Xenophon 
 remarks of Cyrus the younger, as to inform himself, whether the 
 private gardens of his subjects were well kept, and yielded 
 plenty of fruit; that he rewarded the superintendents and over¬ 
 seers, whose provinces or districts were the best cultivated, 
 and punished the laziness and negligence of those idle persons, 
 who suffered their grounds to lie barren or untilled. Such a 
 care as this is by no means unworthy of a king, as it naturally 
 tends to propagate riches and plenty throughout his kingdom, 
 and to beget a spirit of industry amongst his subjects, which 
 is the surest means of preventing that increase of drones and 
 idle fellows, that are such a burden upon the public, and a dis¬ 
 honour to the state. 
 
 Xenophon, u in the next passage to this I have now cited, 
 puts into the mouth of Socrates, who is introduced as a speaker, 
 a very noble encomium upon agriculture, which he represents 
 as the employment of all others the most worthy of man, the 
 
 8 Is, eui curse sunt universoe, nullam non reip- partem tanquam sui nutrit. 
 Senec. lib. de Clem. c. xiii. 
 
 1 Xenoph. Oecon. p. 827—830. u Ibid. p. 830—833. 
 
110 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 most ancient, and the most suitable to his nature; as the most 
 common nurse of all ages and conditions of life; as the source 
 of health, strength, plenty, riches, and a thousand sober delights 
 and honest pleasures; as the mistress and school of sobriety, 
 temperance, justice, religion; and, in a word, of all kinds of 
 virtues both civil and military. After which he relates the fine 
 saying of Lysander, the Lacedaemonian, who, as he was walk¬ 
 ing at Sardis with the younger Cyrus, hearing from that prince’s 
 own mouth, that he himself had planted several of the trees he 
 was looking at, exclaimed, that the world had reason to extol 
 the happiness of Cyrus, whose virtue was as eminent as his for¬ 
 tune ; and who, in the midst of the greatest affluence, splendour, 
 and magnificence, had yet preserved a taste so pure and so con¬ 
 formable to right reason. Cum Cyrus respondisset , x Eyo istci 
 sum dimensus , mei sunt ordines, mea descriptio, multce etiam 
 istarum arborum mea manu sunt satce: turn Lysandrum , intu- 
 entem ejus purpuram , et nitorem corporis, ornatumque Persi- 
 cum multo auro multisque yemmis clixisse Recte vero te, 
 Cyre, beatum ferunt, quoniam virtuti tuje for- 
 TUNA CONJUNCTA est. How much it is to be wished, that 
 our young nobility, who in the time of peace do not know how 
 to employ themselves, had the like taste for planting and agri¬ 
 culture, which surely, after such an example as that of Cyrus, 
 should be thought no dishonour to their quality ; especially if 
 they would consider, that for several ages it was the constant 
 employment of the bravest and most warlike people in the 
 world! The reader may easily perceive, that I mean the ancient 
 Romans. 
 
 The Invention of Posts and Couriers. 
 
 I promised to give some account in this place of the inven¬ 
 tion of posts and couriers. This invention is ascribed to Cyrus ; z 
 nor, indeed, can I find any mention of such an establishment 
 before his time. As the Persian empire, after his last conquest, 
 was of a vast extent, and Cyrus required that all his governors 
 of provinces, and his chief commanders of his troops, should 
 write to him, and give an exact account of every thing that 
 passed in their several districts and armies; in order to render 
 that correspondence the more sure and expeditious, and to 
 enable himself to receive speedy intelligence of all occurrences 
 and affairs, and to send his orders thereupon with expedition, 
 he caused post-houses to be built, and messengers to be appoint¬ 
 ed, in every province. Having computed how far a good 
 
 x Cic. de senect. num. 59. 
 
 y In the original Greek there is a still greater energy. Aocatwc jwoi Soictig, 
 £j Kbps, tvdctLfioJV dvaC ayciOog yap iov avrjp tvdaipovtig. Thou art worthy, 
 Cyrus, of that happiness thou art possessed of; because, with all thy affluence 
 and prosperity, thou art also virtuous. Xen. Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 232. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 Ill 
 
 horse, with a brisk rider, could go in a day without being spoil¬ 
 ed, he had stables built in proportion, at equal distances from 
 each other, and had them furnished with horses, and grooms to 
 take care of them. At each of these places he likewise appoint¬ 
 ed a post-master, to receive the packets from the couriers as 
 they arrived, and give them to others ; and to take the horses 
 that had performed their stage, and to find fresh ones. Thus the 
 post went continually night and day, with extraordinary speed : 
 nor did either rain or snow, heat or cold, or any inclemency 
 of the season, interrupt its progress. Herodotus speaks of the 
 same sort of couriers in the reign of Xerxes. a 
 
 These couriers were called in the Persian language, ’'A77 apoi. h 
 The superintendency of the posts became a considerable em¬ 
 ployment. Darius, c the last of the Persian kings, had it before 
 he came to the crown. Xenophon takes notice, that this estab¬ 
 lishment subsisted still in his time ; which perfectly agrees with 
 what is related in the Book of Esther, concerning the edict 
 published by Ahasuerus in favour of the Jews; which edict was 
 carried throughout that vast empire with a rapidity that would 
 have been impossible, without these posts erected by Cyrus. 
 
 We are justly surprised to find, that this establishment 
 of posts and couriers, first invented in the east by Cyrus, 
 and continued so many ages afterwards by his successors, 
 especially considering of what usefulness it was to the govern¬ 
 ment, should never have been imitated in the west, particularly 
 by people so expert in politics as the Greeks and the Romans. 
 
 It is more astonishing, that, where this invention was put in 
 execution, it was not farther improved, and that the use of it was 
 confined only to alfairs of state, without considering the many 
 advantages the public might have reaped from it, by facilitating 
 a mutual correspondence, as well as the business of merchants 
 and tradesmen of all kinds ; by forwarding the affairs of private 
 persons ; the despatch of journeys which required haste; the 
 easy communication between families, cities, and provinces ; 
 and by the safety and conveniency of remitting money from one 
 country to another. It is well known what difficulty people at 
 a distance had then, and for many ages afterwards, to communi¬ 
 cate any news, or to treat of any affairs together ; being obliged 
 either to send a servant on purpose, which could not be done 
 without great charge and loss of time ; or to wait for the de¬ 
 parture of some other person, that was going into the province 
 
 a Her. 1. viii. c. 98. 
 
 b "A yyapoi is derived from a word which in that language signifies a ser> 
 vice rendered by compulsion. It is from thence the Greeks borrowed their verb 
 dyyaptveiv, compellere, cogere : and the Latins, angariare. According to Suidas 
 they were likewise called astendce. 
 
 c Plut. 1. i. de fortun. Alex. p. 326. et in vit. Alex. 674. ubi pro ’A ayavSrjgt 
 legendum ’AoTavSrjg. 
 
112 
 
 MANNERS OP THE 
 
 or country, whither they had letters to send; which method 
 was liable to numberless disappointments, accidents, and 
 delays. 
 
 At present we enjoy this general conveniency at a small ex¬ 
 pense ; but we do not thoroughly consider the advantage of 
 it: the want whereof would make us fully sensible of our hap¬ 
 piness in this respect. France is indebted fur it to the uni¬ 
 versity of Paris, which I cannot forbear observing here : I 
 hope the reader will excuse the digression. The university 
 of Paris, being formerly the only one in the kingdom, and 
 having great numbers of scholars resorting to her from all 
 the provinces, and even from the neighbouring kingdoms, did, 
 for their sakes and conveniency, establish messengers, whose 
 business was, not only to bring clothes, silver, and gold for the 
 students, but likewise to carry bags of law-proceedings, informa¬ 
 tions, and inquests ; to conduct all sorts of persons, indif¬ 
 ferently, to or from Paris, finding them both horses and diet; 
 as also to carry letters, parcels, and packets for the public, as 
 well as the university. 
 
 In the university registers of the Four Nations, as they are 
 called, of the faculty of arts, these messengers are often styled 
 Nuntii volcintes, to signify the great speed and despatch they 
 were obliged to make. 
 
 The state, then, is indebted to the university of Paris for 
 the invention and establishment of these messengers and letter 
 carriers. And it was at her own charge and expense that 
 she erected these offices ; to the satisfaction both of our kings 
 and the public. She has moreover maintained and supported 
 them since the year 1576, against all the various attempts of 
 the farmers, which has cost her immense sums. For there 
 never were any ordinary royal messengers, till Henry III. 
 first established them in the year 1576, by his edict of No¬ 
 vember, appointing them in the same cities as the university 
 had theirs in, and granting them the same rights and privi¬ 
 leges as the kings, his predecessors, had granted the messengers 
 of the university. 
 
 The university never had any other fund or support than 
 the profits arising from the post-office. And it is upon the 
 foundation of the same revenue, that king Louis XV., now 
 on the throne, by his decree of council of state, of the 14th 
 of April, 1719, and by his letters-patent, bearing the same 
 date, registered in parliament, and in the chamber of accompts, 
 has ordained, that in all the colleges of the said university 
 the students shall be taught gratis ; and has, to that end, for 
 the time to come, appropriated to the university an eight-and- 
 twentieth part of the revenue arising from the general lease 
 or farm of the posts and messengers of France ; which eight- 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 and-twentieth part amounted that year to the sum of 184,000 
 livres, or thereabouts. d 
 
 It is not therefore without reason, that the university, to 
 
 whom this regulation has restored a part of her ancient lustre, 
 
 reckons Louis XV. as a kind of new founder, whose bounty 
 
 «/ 
 
 has at length delivered her from the unhappy and shameful 
 necessity of receiving wages for her labours; which in some 
 measure dishonoured the dignity of her profession, as it was 
 contrary to that noble, disinterested spirit which becomes it. And 
 indeed, the labour of masters and professors, who instruct 
 others, ought not to be given for nothing ; but neither ought 
 it to be sold. Nec venire hac benejicium oporiet, nec perire . e 
 
 SECT. V. 
 
 » * 
 
 Administration of the revenues. 
 
 The prince is the sword and buckler of the state; by him 
 are the peace and tranquillity thereof secured. But to enable 
 him to defend it, be has occasion for arms, soldiers, arsenals, 
 fortified towns, and ships ; and all these things require great ex¬ 
 penses. It is moreover just and reasonable, that the king have 
 wherewithal to support the dignity of the crown, and the majesty of 
 the empire; as also to enable him to ensure reverence and 
 respect to his person and authority. These are the two 
 principal reasons that have given occasion for the exacting 
 of tribute and imposition of taxes. As the public advantage, 
 and the necessity of defraying the expenses of the state, have 
 been the first causes of these burdens, so ought they likewise 
 to be the constant standard of their use. Nor is there any 
 thing in the world more just and reasonable than such im¬ 
 positions ; since every private person ought to think himself 
 very happy, that he can purchase his peace and security at 
 the expense of so slender a contribution. 
 
 The revenues of the Persian kings consisted partly in the 
 levying of taxes imposed upon the people, f and partly in their 
 being furnished with several products of the earth in kind; as 
 corn, and other provisions, forage, horses, camels, or whatever 
 rarities each particular province afforded. Strabo relates, that 
 the satrap of Armenia sent regularly every year to the king of 
 Persia, his master, 20,000 young colts.s By this we may form a 
 judgment of the other levies in the several provinces. The tri¬ 
 butes, however, were only exacted from the conquered nations: for 
 the natural subjects, that is, the Persians, were exempt from all 
 ; mpositions. Nor was the custom of imposing taxes, and of 
 
 d About 8,500/ sterling. e Quintil. 1. xii. c. 7* 
 
 f Herod. 1. iii. c. 89—97. s Lib. xi. p. 530, 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 I 
 
114 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 determining the sums each province was yearly to pay, intro¬ 
 duced till the reign of Darius : at which time the pecuniary 
 impositions, as near as we can judge from the computation made 
 by Herodotus, which is attended with great difficulties, amount¬ 
 ed to near 44,000,000, French money. h 
 
 The place wherein was kept the public treasure, was called 
 in the Persian language Gaza.' There were treasures of this 
 kind at Susa, at Persepolis, at Pasargada, at Damascus, and 
 other cities. The gold and silver were there kept in ingots, 
 and coined into money, according as the king had occasion. 
 The money chiefly used by the Persians was of gold, and called 
 DaricJc, from the name of Darius, k who first caused them to 
 be coined, with his image on one side, and an archer on the 
 reverse. The Darick is sometimes called Stater aurceus, be¬ 
 cause the weight of it, like that of the Attic Stater, was two 
 drachms of gold, which were equivalent to twenty drachms of 
 silver, and consequently were worth ten livres of French money. 
 
 Besides these tributes, which were paid in money, 1 there was 
 another contribution made in kind by furnishing victuals and pro¬ 
 visions for the king’s table and household, grain, forage, and other 
 necessaries for the subsistence of his armies, and horses for the 
 remounting of his cavalry. This contribution was imposed 
 upon the six-score satrapies, or provinces, each of them fur¬ 
 nishing such a part as they were severally taxed at. Herodo¬ 
 tus observes, that the province of Babylon, the largest and 
 wealthiest of them all, did alone furnish the whole contribution 
 for the space of four months, and consequently bore a third part 
 of the burden of the whole imposition, whilst all the rest of 
 Asia together did but contribute the other two-thirds. 
 
 By what has been already said on this subject, we see the 
 kings of Persia did not exact all their taxes and impositions in 
 money, but were content to levy a part of them in money, and 
 to take the rest in such products and commodities as the several 
 provinces afforded ; which is a proof of the great wisdom, mo¬ 
 deration, and humanity of the Persian government. Without 
 doubt they had observed how difficult it often is for the people, 
 especially in countries at a distance from commerce, to convert 
 their goods into money, without suffering great losses ; whereas 
 nothing can tend so much to render the taxes easy, and to 
 shelter the people from vexation and trouble as well as expense, 
 as the taking in payment from each country such fruits and 
 commodities as that country produces ; by which means the 
 contribution becomes easy, natural, and equitable. 
 
 h About 2,000,000 sterling. 1 Q. Curt. 1. iii. c. 12. 
 
 k Darius the Mede, otherwise called Cyaxares, is supposed to have been the 
 first who caused this money to be coined. 
 
 h Herod. 1. iii. c. 01—07 ; and 1. i. c. 102. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 115 
 
 There m were likewise certain districts assigned and set apart 
 for the maintaining of the queen’s toilet and wardrobe ; one for 
 her girdle, another for her veil, and so on for the rest of her 
 vestments ; and these districts, which were of a great extent, 
 since one of them contained as much ground as a man could walk 
 over in a day : these districts, I say, took their names from their 
 particular use, or part of the garments to which they were ap¬ 
 propriated ; and were accordingly called, one the queen’s girdle, 
 another the queen’s veil, and so on. In Plato’s time, the same 
 custom continued among the Persians. 
 
 The manner in which the king gave pensions in those days 
 to such persons as he had a mind to gratify, was exactly like 
 what I have observed concerning the queen. n We read that 
 the king of Persia assigned the revenues of four cities to The- 
 mistocles ; one of which was to supply him with wine, another 
 with bread, the third with meats for his table, and the fourth 
 with his clothes and furniture. Before that time, Cyrus had 
 acted in the same manner towards Pytharchus of Cyzicus, 0 
 for whom he had a particular consideration, and to whom he 
 gave the revenue of seven cities. In following times we find 
 many instances of a like nature. 
 
 ARTICLE II. 
 
 Of their War. 
 
 The people of Asia in general were naturally of a warlike dis¬ 
 position, and did not want courage; but in time they suffered 
 themselves to be enervated by luxury and pleasure. I must 
 however except the Persians, who even before Cyrus, and still 
 more during his reign, had the reputation of being a people of 
 a very military genius. The situation of their country, which 
 is rugged and mountainous, might be one reason of their hard 
 and frugal manner of living ; which is a point of no little import¬ 
 ance for the forming of good soldiers. But the good education 
 which the Persians gave their youth, was the chief cause of the 
 courage and martial spirit of that people. 
 
 With respect therefore to the manners, and particularly to 
 the article which I am now treating of, we must make some 
 distinction between the different nations of Asia. So that in 
 the following account of military affairs, whatever perfection 
 and excellence may be found in the rules and principles of war, 
 is to be applied only to the Persians, as they were in Cyrus’s 
 reign; the rest belongs to the other nations of Asia, the As¬ 
 syrians, Babylonians, Medes, Lydians, and to the Persians like- 
 
 1,0 Plut. in Alcib. i. p. 123. 
 
 n Plut. in Themis, p. 127- 0 A then. 1. i. p. 30. 
 
 i 2 
 
MANNERS OF THE 
 
 116 
 
 wise after they had degenerated from their ancient valour, 
 which happened not long after Cyrus, as will he shown in the 
 sequel. 
 
 I. Their Entrance upon Military Discipline. 
 
 The Persians were trained up to the service from their tender 
 years, by passing through different exercises . p Generally 
 speaking, they served in the armies from the age of twenty to 
 fifty years. And whether in peace or war, they always wore 
 swords, as our gentlemen do, which Avas never practised among 
 the.Greeks or the Romans. They Avere obliged to enlist them¬ 
 selves at the time appointed; and it Avas esteemed a crime to 
 desire to be dispensed with in that respect, as Avill be seen here¬ 
 after, by the cruel treatment given by Darius and Xerxes to 
 tAVo young noblemen, whose fathers had desired, as a favour, that 
 their sons might be permitted to stay at home, for a comfort to 
 them in their old age. q 
 
 Herodotus speaks of a body of troops appointed to be the king’s 
 guard/ who Avere called The immortals, because this body con¬ 
 sisted always of the same number, which was 10,000; for as 
 soon as any of the men died, another Avas immediately put into 
 his place. The establishment of this body probably began with 
 the 10,000 men sent for by Cyrus out of Persia to be his guard. 
 They Avere distinguished from all the other troops by the rich¬ 
 ness of their armour, and still more by their courage. Quintus 
 Curtius mentions also this body of men/ and another body be¬ 
 sides, consisting of 15,000, designed in like manner to be a 
 guard to the king’s person : the latter Avere called Doryphori , 
 or Spearmen . 
 
 II. Their A rmour. 
 
 The ordinary arms of the Persians were a sabre, or scymitar, 
 acinaces, as it is called in Latin ; a kind of dagger, which hung 
 in their belt on the right side ; a javelin, or half pike, having a 
 sharp pointed iron at the end. 
 
 It seems that they carried two javelins, or lances, one to fling, 
 and the other to use in close fight. They made great use of 
 the Ijoav, and of the quiver in which they carried their arroAvs. 
 The sling Avas not unknown amongst them ; but they did not set 
 much value upon it. 
 
 It appears from several passages in ancient authors, that the 
 Persians Avore no helmets, but only their common caps, Avhich 
 they call tiaras ; this is particularly said of Cyrus the younger, 
 and of his army . 1 And yet the same authors, in other places, 
 
 p Strab. 1. xv. p. 734. Am. Mar. 1. xxiii. sub finem. 
 
 ‘i Herod. 1. iv. vi. Sen. de Ira. 1. iii. c, lb, 17. 
 
 r Herod. 1. vii. c. 83. s Lib. iii. e. 3. * Xen. de Exped. Cyr. 1. i.p. 203. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 117 
 
 make mention of their helmets ; from whence we must conclude, 
 that this custom had changed according to the times. 
 
 The foot for the most part wore cuirasses made of brass, 
 which were so artificially fitted to their bodies, that they were 
 no impediment to the motion and agility of their limbs ; no more 
 than the vambraces, or greaves which covered the arms, thighs, 
 and legs of the horsemen. Their horses themselves, for the 
 most part, had their faces, chests, and flanks covered with brass. 
 These were what are called equi cataphracti, barbed horses. 
 
 Authors differ very much about the form and fashion of the 
 shields. At first they made use of very small and light ones, 
 made only of twigs of osier, gerrci. But it appears from seve¬ 
 ral passages, that they had also shields of brass, which were of 
 a great length. 
 
 We have already observed, that in the first ages the light¬ 
 armed soldiers, that is, the archers, and those who used missile 
 weapons, composed the bulk of the armies amongst the Per¬ 
 sians and Medes. Cyrus, who had found by experience, that 
 such troops were only fit for skirmishing, or fighting at a dis¬ 
 tance, and who thought it most advantageous to come directly 
 to close fight, made a change in his army, and reduced those 
 light-armed troops to a very few, arming the far greater num¬ 
 ber at all points, like the rest of the army. 
 
 III. Chariots armed with Scythes. 
 
 Cyrus introduced a considerable change likewise with respect 
 to the chariots of war. u These had been in use a long while 
 before his time, as appears both from Homer and the sacred 
 writings. These chariots had only two wheels, and were gene¬ 
 rally drawn by four horses abreast, with two men in each ; one 
 of distinguished birth and valour, who fought, and another who 
 was engaged only in driving the chariot. Cyrus thought this 
 method, which was very expensive, was but of little service ; 
 since for the equipping of 300 chariots, were required 1200 
 horses, and 600 men, of which there were but 300 who really 
 fought, the other 300, though all men of merit and distinction, 
 and capable of doing great service if otherwise employed, serv¬ 
 ing only as charioteers or drivers. To remedy this inconve¬ 
 nience, he altered the form of the chariots, and doubled the 
 number of the fighting men that rode in them, by enabling the 
 drivers also to fight as well as the others. 
 
 He caused the wheels of the chariots to be made stronger, 
 that they should not be so easily broken ; and the axletrees to 
 be made longer, to make them the more firm and steady. At 
 each end of the axletree he caused scythes to be fastened that 
 were three feet long, and placed horizontally ; and caused other 
 
 u Xen. Cop. 1. vi. p. 152. 
 
118 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 scythes to be fixed under the-same axletree, with their edges 
 turned to the ground, that they might cut in pieces men, or 
 horses, or whatever the impetuous violence of the chariots 
 should overturn. It appears from several passages in authors, x 
 that in after-times, besides all this, they added two long iron 
 spikes at the end of the pole, in order to pierce whatever came 
 in the way ; and that they armed the hinder part of the chariot 
 with several rows of sharp knives, to hinder any one from 
 mounting behind. 
 
 These chariots were in use for many ages in all the eastern 
 countries. They were looked upon as the principal strength 
 of the armies, as the most certain cause of the victory, and as 
 apparatus the most capable of all other to strike the enemy with 
 consternation and terror. 
 
 But in proportion as the military art improved, the incon¬ 
 veniences of them were discovered, and at length they were 
 laid aside. For, in order to reap any advantage from them, it 
 was necessary to fight in vast and extensive plains, where 
 the soil was very even, and where there were no rivulets, gul- 
 leys, woods, nor vineyards. 
 
 In after-times several methods were invented to render these 
 chariots absolutely useless. It was enough to cut a ditcli in 
 their way, which immediately stopped their course. Sometimes 
 an able and experienced general, as Eumenes in the battle which 
 Scipio fought with Antiochus, would attack the chariots with 
 a detachment of slingers, archers, and spearmen, who, spread¬ 
 ing themselves on all sides, would pour such a storm of stones, 
 arrows, and lances upon them, and at the same time fall a 
 shouting so loud with the whole army, that they terrified the 
 horses, and often made them turn upon their own forces. At 
 other times they would render the chariots useless and incapa¬ 
 ble of acting, 2 only by marching over the space, which sepa¬ 
 rated the two armies, with an extraordinarv swiftness, and ad- 
 vancing suddenly upon the enemy. For the strength and exe¬ 
 cution of the chariots proceeded from the length of their course, 
 which was what gave that impetuosity and rapidity to their 
 motion, without which they were but very feeble and insignifi¬ 
 cant. It was after this manner, that the Romans under Sylla, 
 at the battle of Chaeronasa, defeated and put to flight the 
 enemy’s chariots, raising loud peals of laughter, and crying out 
 to them, as if they had been at the games of the Circus, to 
 send more. 
 
 * Liv. 1. xxxvii. n. 41. 
 
 y Ibid. 
 
 2 Plut. in Syl. p. 463. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 119 
 
 IV. Their Discipline in Peace as well as War. 
 
 Nothing can be imagined more perfect than the discipline 
 and good order of the troops in Cyrus’s reign, whether in peace 
 or war. 
 
 The method used by that great prince in peace, as is fully 
 related in Xenophon’s Cyropceclia, in order to form his troops, 
 by frequent exercises, to inure them to fatigue by keeping them 
 continually employed in laborious works, to prepare them for 
 real battles by mock engagements, to fire them with courage 
 and resolution by exhortations, praises, and rewards : all this, 
 I say, is a perfect model for all who have the command of 
 troops, to which, generally speaking, peace and tranquillity be¬ 
 come extremely pernicious; for a relaxation of discipline, 
 which usually ensues, enervates the vigour of the soldiers; 
 and their inaction blunts that edge of courage, which the motion 
 of armies, and the approach of enemies, infinitely sharpen and 
 excite. A wise foresight of the future ought to make us pre¬ 
 pare in time of peace whatever may be needful in time of 
 war. a 
 
 Whenever the Persian armies marched, every thing was 
 ordered and carried on with as much regularity and exactness 
 as on a day of battle: not a soldier or officer daring to quit 
 his rank, or remove from the colours. It was the custom 
 amongst all the nations of Asia, whenever they encamped, 
 though but for a day or a night, to have their camp surrounded 
 with pretty deep ditches. This they did to prevent being sur¬ 
 prised by the enemy, and that they might not be forced to 
 engage against their inclinations. They usually contented 
 themselves with covering their camp with a bank of earth dug 
 out of these ditches ; b though sometimes they fortified them 
 with strong pallisadoes, and long stakes driven into the ground. 
 
 By what has been said of their discipline in time of peace, 
 and in the marching and encamping their armies, we may judge 
 of that which was preserved on a day of battle. Nothing can 
 be more deserving our admiration than the accounts we have of 
 it in the several parts of the Cyropaedia. No single family 
 could be better regulated, or pay a more speedy and exact 
 obedience to the first signal, than the whole army of Cyrus. 
 He had long accustomed them to that prompt obedience, on 
 which the success of all enterprises depends. For what avails 
 the best head in the world, if the arms do not act conformably, 
 and follow its directions ? At first he had used some severity, 
 which is necessary in the beginning, in order to establish good 
 
 a -Metuensque futuri, 
 
 In pace, ut sapiens, aptarit idonea bello. Hor. Satyr, ii. 1. 2. 
 
 b Diod. 1. i. p. 24, 25. 
 
120 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 discipline; but this severity was always accompanied with rea¬ 
 son, and tempered with kindness. The example of their 
 leader, c who was the first upon all duty, gave weight and autho¬ 
 rity to his injunctions, and softened the rigour of his commands. 
 The unalterable rule he laid down to himself, of granting nothing 
 but to merit only, and of refusing every thing to favour, was a 
 sure means of keeping all the officers attached to their duty, 
 and of making them perpetually vigilant and careful. For 
 there is nothing more discouraging to persons of that profession/ 1 
 even to those who love their prince and their country, than to 
 see the rewards, to which the dangers they have undergone, and 
 the blood they have spilt, entitle them, conferred upon others. 
 Cyrus had the art of inspiring even his common soldiers with a 
 zeal for discipline and order, by first inspiring them with a love 
 for their country, for their honour, and their fellow-citizens ; 
 and, above all, by endearing himself to them by his bounty and 
 liberality. These are the true and only methods of establishing 
 and supporting military discipline in its full force and vigour. 
 
 V. Their Order of Battle . 
 
 As there were but very few fortified places in Cyrus’s time, 
 all their wars were little else but field expeditions ; for which 
 reason that wise prince found out, by his own reflection and 
 experience, that nothing contributed more to decide a victory, 
 than a numerous and good cavalry; and the gaining of one 
 single pitched battle was often attended with the conquest of -a 
 whole kingdom. Accordingly we see, that having found the 
 Persian army entirely destitute of that important and necessary 
 succour, he turned all his thoughts towards remedying that 
 defect; and, by his great application and activity, succeeded 
 in forming a body of Persian cavalry, which became superior 
 to that of his enemies, in goodness at least, if not in number. 
 There were several breeds of horses in Persia and Media ; e but 
 in the latter province, those of a place called Nisea, were the 
 most esteemed ; and it was from thence the king’s stable was 
 furnished. We shall now examine what use they made of their 
 cavalry and infantry. 
 
 The celebrated battle of Thymbra may serve to give us a just 
 notion of the tactics of the ancients in the days of Cyrus, and 
 to show how far their ability extended, either in the use of arms, 
 or the disposition of armies. 
 
 They knew that the most advantageous order of battle was 
 
 c Dux, cultu levi, capite intecto, in agmine, in laboribus frequens adesse : 
 laudem strenuis, solatium invalidis, exemplum omnibus ostendere. Tacit. 
 Annal. 1. xiii. cap. 35. 
 
 (1 Cecidisse in irritum labores, si praemia periculorum soli assequantur, qui 
 periculis non affiierunt. Tacit. Hist. lib. iii. cap. 53. 
 
 e Herod. 1. vii. c. 40. Strab. 1. xi. p. 530. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 121 
 
 lo place the infantry in the centre, and the cavalry, which con¬ 
 sisted chiefly of the cuirassiers, on the two wings of the army. 
 By this disposition the flanks of the foot were covered, and the 
 horse were at liberty to act and extend themselves, as occasion 
 should require. 
 
 They likewise understood the necessity of drawing out an 
 army into several lines, in order to support one another; be¬ 
 cause otherwise, as one single line might easily be pierced 
 through and broken; it would not be able to rally, and conse¬ 
 quently the army would be left without resource. For which 
 reason they formed the first line of foot heavily armed, twelve 
 men deep/ who, on the first onset, made use of the half-pike; 
 and afterwards, when the fronts of the two armies came close 
 together, engaged the enemy body to body with their swords or 
 scymitars. 
 
 The second line consisted of such men as were lightly armed, 
 whose manner of fighting was to fling their javelins over the 
 heads of the first. These javelins were made of a heavy wood, 
 were pointed with iron, and were flung with great violence. 
 The design of them was to put the enemy into disorder, before 
 they came to close fight. 
 
 The third line consisted of archers, whose bows, being bent 
 with the utmost force, carried their arrows over the heads of 
 the two preceding lines, and extremely annoyed the enemy. 
 These archers were sometimes mixed with slingers, who slung 
 great stones with a terrible force ; but, in after time, the Rho¬ 
 dians, instead of stones, made use of leaden bullets, which the 
 slings carried a great deal farther. 
 
 A fourth line, formed of men armed in the same manner as 
 those of the first, formed the rear of the main body. This line 
 was intended for the support of the others, and to keep them to 
 their duty, in case they gave way. It served likewise for a rear¬ 
 guard, and a body of reserve to repulse the enemy, if they should 
 happen to penetrate so far. 
 
 They had besides moving towers, carried upon huge waggons, 
 drawn by sixteen oxen each, in which were twenty men, whose 
 business was to discharge stones and javelins. These were 
 placed in the rear of the whole army behind the body of reserve, 
 and served to support their troops, when they were driven back 
 by the enemy, and to favour their rallying when in disorder. 
 
 They made great use too of their chariots armed with scythes, 
 as we have already observed. These they generally placed in the 
 front of the battle, and some of them they occasionally stationed 
 on llie flanks of the army, when they had any reason to fear 
 their being surrounded. 
 
 This is nearly the extent to which the ancients carried their 
 f Before Cyrus’s time it was of twenty-four men. 
 
122 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 knowledge in the military art, with respect to their battles and 
 engagements. But we do not find they had any skill in choosing 
 advantageous posts, in seasonably possessing themselves of a 
 favourable spot, of bringing the war into a close country; of 
 making use of defiles and narrow passes, either to molest the 
 army in their march, or to cover themselves from their attacks ; 
 or laying in artful ambuscades; of protracting a campaign to a 
 great length by wise delays ; of not suffering a superior enemy 
 to force them to a decisive action, and of reducing him to the 
 necessity of preying upon himself through the want of forage and 
 provisions. Neither do we see, that they had much regard to 
 the defending of their right and left with rivqrs, marshes, or 
 mountains ; and by that means of making the front of a 
 smaller army equal to that of another much more numerous ;- 
 and of putting it out of the enemy’s power to surround or 
 take them in flank. 
 
 Yet, in Cyrus’s first campaign against the Armenians, and af¬ 
 terwards against the Babylonians, there seem to have been some 
 beginnings, some essays, as it were, of this art: but they were 
 not improved, or carried to any degree of perfection in those 
 days. Time, reflection, and experience, made the great com¬ 
 manders in after ages acquainted with these precautions and 
 subtilties of war; and we have already shown, in the w T ars of 
 the Carthaginians, what use Hannibal, Fabius, Scipio, and 
 other generals of both nations, made of them. 
 
 VI. Their manner of attacking and defending strong Places. 
 
 The ancients both devised and executed all that could be ex¬ 
 pected from the nature of the arms known in their days, as also 
 from the force and the variety of engines then in use, either for 
 attacking or defending fortified places. 
 
 1. Their way of attacking Places. 
 
 The first method of attacking a place was by blockade. They 
 invested the town with a wall built quite round it, and in which, 
 at proper distances, were made redoubts and places of arms ; 
 or else they thought it sufficient to surround it completely by a 
 deep trench, which they strongly fenced with pallisadoes, to 
 hinder the besieged from making a sally, as well as to prevent 
 succours or provisions from being brought in. In this manner 
 they waited till famine did what they could not effect by force 
 or art. From hence proceeded the length of the sieges related 
 in ancient history; as that of Troy, which lasted ten years 
 that of Azotus by Psammeticus, which lasted twenty-nine ; that 
 of Nineveh, where we have seen that Sardanapalus defended 
 himself for the space of seven. And Cyrus might have lain a long 
 
 & Homer makes no mention of the battering ram, or any warlike engine. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 123 
 
 time before Babylon, where they had laid in a stock of provisions 
 for twenty years, if he had not used a different method for taking it. 
 
 As they found blockades extremely tedious from their duration, 
 they invented the method of scaling, which was done by raising 
 a great number of ladders against the walls, by means whereof 
 a great many files of soldiers might climb up together, and 
 force their way in. 
 
 To render this method of scaling impracticable, or at least 
 ineffectual, they made the walls of their city extremely high, 
 and the towers, wherewith they were flanked, still considerably 
 higher, that the ladders of the besiegers might not be able to 
 reach the top of them. This obliged them to find out some 
 other way of getting to the top of the ramparts ; and this was 
 by building moving towers of wood, still higher than the walls, 
 and by approaching them with those wooden towers. On the top 
 of these towers, which formed a kind of platform, was placed a 
 competent number of soldiers, who, with darts, and arrows, and 
 the assistance of their balistm and catapultse, scoured the ram¬ 
 parts, and cleared them of the defenders; and then from a 
 lower stage of the tower, they let down a kind of draw-bridge, 
 which rested upon the wall, and gave the soldiers admittance. 
 
 A third method, which extremely shortened the length of 
 their sieges, was that of the battering-ram, by which they made 
 breaches in the walls, and opened themselves a passage into 
 the places besieged. This battering-ram was a vast beam of 
 timber, with a strong head of iron or brass at the end of it; 
 which was pushed with the utmost force against the walls. Of 
 these there were several kinds. 
 
 They had still a fourth method of attacking places, which 
 was, that of sapping and undermining ; and this was done two 
 different ways ; that is, either by carrying on a subterranean 
 path quite under the walls, into the heart of the city, and so 
 opening themselves a passage into it; or else, after they had 
 sapped the foundation of the wall, and put supporters under 
 it, by filling the space with all sorts of combustible matter, 
 and then setting that matter on fire, in order to burn down 
 the supporters, calcine the materials of the wall, and throw 
 down part of it. 
 
 2. Their Manner of defending Places. 
 
 With respect to the fortifying and defending of towns, the 
 ancients made use of all the fundamental principles and 
 essential rules now practised in the art of fortification. They 
 had the method of overflowing the country round about, to 
 hinder the enemy’s approaching the town; they made deep and 
 sloping ditches, and fenced them round with pallisadoes, to 
 make the enemy’s ascent or descent the more difficult; they 
 
 V 
 
124 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 made their ramparts very thick, and fenced them with stone or 
 brick-work, that the battering-ram should not be able to demo¬ 
 lish them ; and very high, that the scaling of them should be equally 
 impracticable ; they had their projecting towers, from whence 
 our modern bastions derive their origin, for the flanking of the 
 curtains ; they invented with much ingenuity different machines 
 for shooting of arrows, throwing of darts and lances, and hurl¬ 
 ing of great stones with vast force and violence ; they had their 
 parapets and battlements in the walls for the soldiers’ security, 
 and their covered galleries, which went quite round the walls, 
 and served as casements ; their intrenclnnents behind the 
 breaches and necks of the towers ; they made their sallies too, 
 in order to destroy the works of the besiegers, and to set their 
 engines on fire ; as also their countermines, to render useless the 
 mines of the enemy ; and, lastly, they built citadels, as places 
 of retreat in cases of extremity, to serve as the last resource to 
 a garrison upon the point of being forced, and to make the 
 taking of the town of no effect, or at least to obtain a more 
 advantageous capitulation. All these methods of defending 
 places against those that besieged them, were known in the art 
 of fortification as it was practised among the ancients; and 
 they are the very same as are now in use among the moderns, allow¬ 
 ing for such alteration as the difference of arms has occasioned. 
 
 I thought it necessary to enter into this detail, in order to 
 give the reader an idea of the ancient manner of defending for¬ 
 tified towns ; as also to remove a prejudice which prevails 
 among many of the moderns, who imagine, that because new 
 names are now given to the same things, the things them¬ 
 selves are therefore different in nature and principle. Since 
 the invention of gunpowder, cannon indeed have been substi¬ 
 tuted in the place of the battering-ram ; and musket-shot in 
 the room of balistae, catapultm, scorpions, javelins, slings, and ar¬ 
 rows. But does it therefore follow, that any of the fundamen¬ 
 tal rules of fortification are changed ? By no means. The 
 ancients made as much of the solidity of bodies, and the 
 mechanic powers of motion, as art and ingenuity would admit. 
 
 VII. The Condition of the Persian Forces after Cyrus s 
 
 tune. 
 
 I have already observed, more than once, that we must not 
 judge of the merit and courage of the Persian troops at all 
 times, by what we see of them in Cyrus’s reign. I shall con¬ 
 clude this article of war with a judicious reflection made by 
 Monsieur Bossuet, bishop of Meaux, on that subject. He 
 observes, that, after the death of that prince, the Persians, ge¬ 
 nerally speaking, were ignorant of the great advantages that 
 result from severity, discipline, skill in drawing up an army, 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 125 
 
 order in marching and encamping ; and, in short, that happiness 
 of conduct, which puts those great bodies in motion without 
 disorder or confusion. Full of a vain ostentation of their pow¬ 
 er and greatness, and relying more upon strength than prudence, 
 upon the number rather than the choice of their troops, they 
 thought they had done all that was necessary, when they had 
 drawn together immense numbers of people, who fought indeed 
 with resolution enough, but without order, and who found them¬ 
 selves encumbered with the vast multitudes of useless persons, 
 who formed the retinue of the king and his chief officers. For 
 to such a height Avas their luxury grown, that they would needs 
 have the same magnificence, and enjoy the same pleasures and 
 delights in the army, as in the king’s court; so that in their 
 Avars the kings marched accompanied with their Avives, their 
 concubines, and all their eunuchs. Their silver and gold plate, 
 and all their rich furniture, were carried after them in prodigious 
 quantities ; and, in short, all the equipage and utensils so 
 voluptuous a life requires. An army composed in this manner, 
 and already clogged Avith the excessive number of troops, was 
 overburthened with the additional load of vast multitudes of 
 such as did not fight. In this confusion, the troops could not 
 act in concert; their orders never reached them in time ; and 
 in action every thing Avent on at random, as it Avere, without the 
 possibility of any commander’s being able to remedy this disor¬ 
 der. Add to this, the necessity they Avere under of finishing an 
 expedition quickly, and of passing into an enemy’s country with 
 great rapidity ; because such a vast body of people, greedy not 
 only of the necessaries of life, but of such things also as Avere 
 requisite for luxury and pleasure, consumed every thing that 
 could be met Avith in a very short time ; nor indeed is it easy to 
 comprehend from whence lliey could procure subsistence. 
 
 However, with all this vast train, the Persians astonished these 
 nations, that were not better acquainted with military affairs 
 than themselves ; and many of those that were more expert, 
 Avere yet overcome by them, being either Aveakened by their 
 own dissensions, or overpowered by the numbers of the enemy. 
 And by this means Egypt proud as she Avas of her antiquity, 
 her wise institutions, and the conquests of Sesostris, became 
 subject to the Persians. Nor was it difficult for them to con¬ 
 quer the lesser Asia, and even such Greek colonies as the 
 luxury of Asia had corrupted. But Avhen they came to engage 
 with Greece itself, they found Avhat they had never met with 
 before, regular and well-disciplined troops, skilful and experi¬ 
 enced commanders, soldiers accustomed to temperance, Avhose 
 bodies were inured to toil and labour, and rendered both robust 
 and active, by wrestling and other exercises practised in that 
 country. The Grecian armies indeed were but small; but they 
 
126 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 were like strong, vigorous bodies, that seem to be all nerves and 
 sinews, and full of spirits in every part; at the same time they 
 were so well commanded, and so prompt in obeying the orders 
 of their generals, that one would have thought all the soldiers 
 had been actuated by one soul; so perfect a harmony was there 
 in all their motions. 
 
 ARTICLE III. 
 
 Arts and Sciences. 
 
 I do not pretend to give an account of the Eastern poetry, 
 of which we know little more than we find in the books of 
 the Old Testament. Those precious fragments are sufficient 
 to let us know the origin of poesy ; its true design ; the use 
 that was made of it by those inspired writers, namely, to celebrate 
 the perfections and sing the wonderful works of God, as also 
 the dignity and sublimity of style which ought to accompany 
 it, adapted to the majesty of the subjects on which it treats. 
 The discourses of Job’s friends, who lived in the East, as he 
 himself did, and who were distinguished among the Gentiles 
 as much by their learning as their birth, may likewise give us 
 some notion of the eloquence that prevailed in those early ages. 
 
 What the Egyptian priests said of the Greeks in general, 
 and of the Athenians in particular, according to Plato, 1 that 
 they were but children in antiquity, is very true with respect 
 to arts and sciences, the invention of which they have falsely 
 ascribed to chimerical persons, much posterior to the deluge. 
 The Holy Scripture informs us, k that before that epoclia, God 
 had discovered to mankind the art of tilling and cultivating 
 the ground ; of feeding their flocks and cattle, when their 
 habitation was in tents ; of spinning wool and flax, and weaving 
 it into stuffs and linen ; of forging and polishing iron and 
 brass, and rendering them subservient to numberless uses that are 
 necessary and convenient for life and society. 
 
 We learn from the same Scriptures, that very soon after the 
 deluge, human industry had made several discoveries very worthy 
 of admiration; as, 1. The art of spinning gold thread, and 
 of interweaving it with stuffs. 2. That of beating gold, and 
 with light thin leaves of it gilding wood and other materials. 
 3. The secret of casting metals; as brass, silver, or gold ; and 
 of making all sorts of figures with them in imitation of nature ; 
 of representing any kind of different objects; and of making 
 an infinite variety of vessels of those metals, for use and orna¬ 
 ment. 4. The art of painting, or carving upon wood, stone, 
 or marble: and, 5. to name no more, that of dying their silks 
 * In Timaeo, p. 22. k Gen. iv. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 127 
 
 and stuffs, and giving them the most exquisite and beautiful 
 colours. 
 
 As it was in Asia that men first settled after the delude, 
 
 Q / 
 
 it is easy to conceive that Asia must have been the cradle, as 
 it were, of arts and sciences, the remembrance of which had 
 been preserved by tradition ; and which were afterwards revived 
 again, and restored by means of men’s wants and necessities. 
 
 Sect. I. Architecture. 
 
 The building of the tower of Babel, and, shortly after, of those 
 famous cities Babylon and Nineveh, which have been looked 
 upon as prodigies ; the grandeur and magnificence of the palaces 
 of the kings and noblemen, divided into sundry halls and apart¬ 
 ments, and adorned with every thing that either decency or 
 conveniency could require; the regularity and symmetry of the 
 pillars and vaulted roofs, raised and multiplied one upon another ; 
 the noble gates of their cities ; the breadth and thickness of 
 their ramparts ; the height and strength of their towers ; the 
 convenience of their quays on the banks of the great rivers ; 
 and the boldness of the bridges thrown over them : all these 
 things, I say, with many other works of the like nature, show 
 to what a pitch of perfection architecture was carried in those 
 ancient times. 
 
 I know not, however, whether in those ages this art rose to 
 that degree of perfection, which it afterwards attained in Greece 
 and Italy; or whether those vast structures in Asia and 
 Egypt, so much boasted of by the ancients, were as remark¬ 
 able for their beauty and regularity, as they were for their 
 magnitude and extent. We hear of five orders in architecture, the 
 Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite; but we never 
 hear of an Asiatic or Egyptian order; which gives us reason 
 to doubt whether the symmetry, measures, and proportions of 
 pillars, pilasters, and other ornaments in architecture, were 
 exactly observed in those ancient structures. 
 
 Sect. II. Music. 
 
 It is no wonder, if, in a country like Asia, addicted to plea¬ 
 sure, to luxury, and to voluptuousness, music, which gives the 
 chief zest to such enjoyments, was in high esteem, and cultivated 
 with great application. The very names of the principal styles 
 of ancient music, which the modern has still preserved, namely, 
 the Doric, Phrygian, Lydian, Ionian, and jEolian, sufficiently 
 indicate the place where it had its origin ; or at least, where it 
 was improved and brought to perfection. We learn from Holy 
 Scripture, 1 that in Laban’s time instrumental music was much in 
 use in the country where he dwelt, that is, in Mesopotamia • 
 
 1 Gen. xxxi. 27. 
 
128 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 since, among the other reproaches lie makes to his son-in-law 
 Jacob, he complains, that, by his precipitate flight, he had put 
 it out of his power to conduct him and his family ivith mirth and 
 with songs, ivith tabret and with harp. Amongst the booty 
 that Cyrus ordered to be set apart for his uncle Cyaxares," 1 
 mention is made of two female musicians," very skilful in their 
 profession, who accompanied a lady of Susa, and were taken pri¬ 
 soners with her. 
 
 To determine to what degree of perfection music was carried 
 by the ancients, is a question which very much puzzles the 
 learned. It is the harder to be decided, because to determine 
 justly upon it, it seems necessary we should have several pieces 
 of music composed by the ancients with their notes, that we 
 might examine it both with our eyes and our ears. But, unhap¬ 
 pily, it is not with music in this respect as with ancient sculp¬ 
 ture and poetry, of which we have so many noble monuments 
 remaining ; whereas, on the contrary, we have not any one piece 
 of their composition in the other science, by which we can form 
 a certain judgment, and determine whether the music of the 
 ancients was as perfect as ours. 
 
 It is generally allowed, that the ancients were acquainted with 
 the triple symphony, that is, the harmony of voices, that of in¬ 
 struments, and that of voices and instruments in concert. 
 
 It is also agreed, that they excelled in what relates to the 
 rhythmus. What is meant by rhytlimus, is the assemblage or 
 union of various times in music, which are joined together with 
 a certain order, and in certain proportions. To understand 
 this definition, it is to be observed, that the music we are here 
 speaking of was always set and sung to the words of cer¬ 
 tain verses, in which the syllables were distinguished into 
 long and short; that the short syllable was pronounced as quick 
 again as the long; that therefore the former was reckoned to 
 make up but one time, whilst the latter made up two ; and con¬ 
 sequently the sound which answered to this, was to continue 
 twice as long as the sound which answered to the other ; or 
 which is the same thing, it was to consist of two times, or mea¬ 
 sures, whilst the other comprehended but one ; that the verses 
 which were sung consisted of a certain number of feet formed 
 by the different combination of these long and short syllables ; 
 and that the rhythmus of the song regularly followed the march 
 of these feet. As these feet, of what nature or extent soever, 
 were always divided into equal or unequal parts, of which the 
 former was called Upais, elevation or raising ; and the latter Oecns, 
 depression or falling : so the rhythmus of the song, which an¬ 
 swered to every one of those feet, was divided into two parts 
 equally or unequally, by what we now call a beat , and a rest or 
 
 m Cyrop. 1 . iv. p. 113. n Movuovpyovg dvo rag icpaTtcrrag. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 129 
 
 intermission. The scrupulous regard the ancients had to the 
 quantity of their syllables in their vocal music, made their rhyth- 
 mus much more perfect and regular than ours : for our poetry is 
 not formed upon the measure of long and short syllables ; but 
 nevertheless a skilful musician amongst us may in some sort ex¬ 
 press, by the length of their sounds, the quantity of every syllable. 
 This account of the rhythmus of the ancients I have copied from 
 one of the dissertations of Monsieur Burette ; which I have 
 done for the benefit of young students, to whom this little ex¬ 
 planation may be of great use for the understanding of several 
 passages in ancient authors. I now return to my subject. 
 
 The principal point in dispute among the learned, concerning 
 the music of the ancients, is to know whether they understood 
 music in several parts, that is, a composition consisting of seve¬ 
 ral parts, and in which all those different parts form each by 
 itself a complete piece, and at the same time have an harmonious 
 connection, as in our counter-point, whether simple or com¬ 
 pounded. 
 
 If the reader be curious to know more concerning this matter, 
 and whatever else relates to the music of the ancients, I refer 
 him to the learned dissertations of the above-mentioned M. 
 Burette, inserted in the 3d, 4th, and 5th volumes of the Me¬ 
 moirs of the Royal Academy cles Belles Lettres; which show 
 the profound erudition and exquisite taste of that writer. 
 
 Sect. III. Physic. 
 
 We likewise discover in those early times the origin of 
 physic, the beginnings of which, as of all other arts and sciences, 
 were very rude and imperfect. Herodotus, 0 and after him 
 Strabo, observe, that it was a general custom among the Baby¬ 
 lonians to expose their sick persons to the view of passengers, 
 in order to learn of them, whether they had been afflicted with 
 the same distemper, and by what remedies they had been cured. 
 From hence several people have pretended, that physic is nothing 
 else but a conjectural and experimental science, entirely re¬ 
 sulting from observations made upon the nature of different 
 diseases, and upon such things as are conducive or prejudicial 
 to health. It must be confessed, that experience will go a great 
 way ; but that alone is not sufficient. The famous Hippocrates 
 made great use of it in his practice, but he did not entirely 
 rely upon it. The custom in those days was,P for all persons 
 that had been sick, and were cured, to put up a tablet in the 
 temple of ^Hsculapius, wherein they gave an account of the 
 remedies that had restored them to their health. That cele - 
 
 0 Herod. 1. i. c. 197- Strab. 1. xvi. p. 746. 
 i 1 Plin. 1. xxix. c. i. Strab. 1. viii. p. 374.. 
 
 K 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
130 
 
 MANNERS OF THE » 
 
 V 
 
 1)ratecl physician caused all these inscriptions and memorials to 
 be copied out, and derived great advantage from them. 
 
 Physic was, even in the time of the Trojan war, in great use 
 and esteems iEsculapius, who flourished at that time, is 
 reckoned the inventor of that art, and had even then brought 
 it to great perfection by his profound knowledge in botany, by 
 his great skill in medicinal preparations and chirurgical opera¬ 
 tions ; for in those days these several branches were not sepa¬ 
 rated from one another, but were all included together under 
 one profession. 
 
 The two sons of AEsculapius/ Podalirius and Machaon, who 
 commanded a certain number of troops at the siege of Troy, 
 were no less excellent physicians than brave officers; and 
 rendered as much service to the Grecian army by their skill in 
 medicine, as they did by their courage and conduct in their 
 military capacity. Nor did Achilles himself, s nor even Alex¬ 
 ander the Great in after times, think the knowledge of this 
 science improper for a general, or beneath his dignity. On the 
 contrary, he learnt it himself of Chiron the centaur, and after¬ 
 wards instructed his friend Patroclus in it, who did not disdain to 
 exercise the art, in healing the wound of Eurypylus. This 
 wound he healed by the application of a certain root, which 
 immediately assuaged the pain and stopped the bleeding. 
 Botany, or that part of physic which treats of herbs and plants, 
 was very much known, and almost the only branch of the 
 science used in those early times. Virgil, speaking of a cele¬ 
 brated physician, 1 who was instructed in his art by Apollo 
 himself, seems to confine that profession to the knowledge of 
 simples : Scire potestates herbarnm usumque medencli maluit. 
 It was nature herself that offered those innocent and salutary 
 remedies, and seemed to invite mankind to make use of them. 
 Their gardens, 11 fields, and woods, supplied them gratuitously 
 with an infinite plenty and variety. As yet no use was made 
 of minerals, x treacles, and other compositions, since discovered 
 by closer and more inquisitive researches into nature. 
 
 Pliny says,y that physic, which had been brought by /Escu- 
 lapius into great reputation about the time of the Trojan war, 
 was soon after neglected and lost, and lay in a manner buried 
 in darkness till the time of the Peloponnesian war, then it was 
 revived by Hippocrates, and restored to its ancient honour and 
 credit. This may be true with respect to Greece; but in 
 Persia we find it to have been always cultivated, and conse¬ 
 quently held in great reputation. The great Cyrus, 2 as is ob¬ 
 served by Xenophon, never failed to take a certain number of 
 
 Diod. 1. v. p. 341. r Horn. Iliad. 1. x. v. 821—847- 
 
 9 Pint, in Alex. p. GG8. 1 JEn. 1. xii. v. 3GG. u Plin. 1. xxvi. c. 1. 
 
 * Plin. 1. xxiv. e. 1. y Lib. xxix. c. 9. z Cyrop. 1. i. p. 29, and 1. viii. p. 212. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 131 
 
 excellent physicians along with him in the army, rewarding 
 them very liberally, and treating them with particular regard. 
 He farther remarks, that in this Cyrus only followed a custom 
 that had been anciently established among their generals: and 
 he also informs us, that the younger Cyrus acted in the same 
 manner/ 
 
 It must nevertheless be acknowledged, that it was Hippo¬ 
 crates, who carried this science to its highest perfection. And 
 though it be certain that several improvements and new disco¬ 
 veries have been made since his time, yet is he still looked upon 
 by the ablest physicians, as the first and chief master of that 
 art, and as the person whose writings ought to be the chief study 
 of those that would distinguish themselves in that profession. 
 
 Men thus qualified, who, to the study of the most celebrated 
 physicians, as well ancient as modern, as also to the knowledge 
 they have acquired of the virtues of simples, the principles of 
 natural philosophy, and the constitution and contexture of human 
 bodies, have added a long practice and experience, together with 
 their own serious reflections ; such men as these, in a well-or¬ 
 dered state, deserve to be highly rewarded and distinguished, as 
 the Holy Spirit itself signifies to us in the sacred writings : The 
 skill of the physician shall lift up his head; and in the sight 
 of great men he shall he in admiration ,- b since all their labours, 
 lucubrations, and watchings, are devoted to the people’s health, 
 which of all human blessings is the dearest and most valuable. 
 And yet this blessing is what mankind are the least careful to 
 preserve. They do not only destroy it by riot and excess, but 
 through a blind credulity they foolishly intrust it with persons 
 of no credit or experience, c who impose upon them by their 
 impudence and presumption, or seduce them by their flattering 
 assurances of infallible recovery. 
 
 Sect. IV. Astronomy. 
 
 However desirous the Grecians were to be esteemed the au¬ 
 thors and inventors of all arts and sciences, they could never ab¬ 
 solutely deny the Babylonians the honour of having laid the 
 foundations of astronomy. The advantageous situation of Ba¬ 
 bylon/ which was built upon a wide, extensive plain, where no 
 mountains bounded the prospect; the constant clearness and 
 serenity of the air in that country, so favourable to the free 
 
 a De Exped. Cyr. 1. ii. p. 311. b Ecclus. xxxviii. 3. 
 
 c Palam est, ut quisque inter istos loquendo polleat, imperatorem lllico 
 vitae nostrae necisque fieri—Aded blanda est sperandi pro se cuique dulcedo. 
 Plin. 1. xxix. c. 1. 
 
 d Principio Assyrii propter planitiem magnitudinemque regionum quas in- 
 colebant, cum coelum ex omni parte patens et apertum intuerentur, trajec- 
 tiones motusque stellarum observaverunt. Cic. lib. i. de Divin. n. 2. 
 
 K 2 
 
132 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 contemplation of the heavens ; perhaps also the extraordinary 
 height of the tower of Babel, which seemed to be intended for 
 an observatory ; all these circumstances were strong motives to 
 engage this people to a more nice observation of the various 
 motions of the heavenly bodies, and the regular course of the 
 stars. The Abbe Renaudot,® in his dissertation upon the 
 sphere, observes, that the plain which in Scripture is called 
 Shinar, and in which Babylon stood, is the same as is called by 
 the Arabians Sinjar, where the caliph Almamon, the seventh of 
 the Habbassides, in whose reign the sciences began to flourish 
 among the Arabians, caused the astronomical observations to 
 be made, which for several ages directed all the astronomers of 
 Europe; and that the sultan Gelaleddin Melikscah, the third of 
 the Seljukides, caused similar observations to be made near 300 
 years afterwards in the same place : from whence it appears, 
 that this place was always reckoned one of the properest in the 
 world for astronomical observations. 
 
 The ancient Babylonians could not have carried theirs to any 
 great perfection for want of the help of telescopes, which are 
 of modern invention, and have greatly contributed of late years 
 to render our astronomical researches more perfect and exact. 
 Whatever they were, they have not come down to us. Epigenes, 
 a grave and credible author, according to Pliny, speaks of ob¬ 
 servations made for the space of 720 years/ and imprinted upon 
 squares of brick ; which, if it be true, must reach back to a 
 very early antiquity. Those of which Callisthenes/ a philoso¬ 
 pher in Alexander’s train, makes mention, and of which he gave 
 Aristotle an account, include 1903 years, and consequently must 
 commence very near the deluge, and the time of Nimrod’s 
 building the city of Babylon. 
 
 We are certainly under great obligations, which we ought to 
 acknowledge, to the labours and curious inquiries of those who 
 have contributed to the discovery or improvement of so useful a 
 science ; a science, not only of great service to agriculture and 
 navigation, by the knowledge it gives us of the regular course 
 of the stars, and of the wonderful, constant, and uniform pro¬ 
 portion of days, months, seasons, and years, but even to religion 
 itself; with which, as Plato shows, h the study of that science 
 has a very close and necessary connexion ; as it directly tends 
 to inspire us with great reverence for the Deity, who, with infi¬ 
 nite wisdom, presides over the government of the universe, and 
 is present and attentive to all our actions. But at the same 
 time we cannot sufficiently deplore the misfortune of those very 
 
 e Memoirs of the Academy des Belles Lettres, vol. 1. part ii. page 3. 
 
 f Plin. Hist. Nat. 1. vii. c. 56. 
 
 § Porphyr. apud Simplic. in 1. ii. de coelo. h In Epinom. p. 989—992. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 133 
 
 philosophers, who, although by their successful application and 
 astronomical inquiries,' they came very near the Creator, were 
 yet so unhappy as not to find him, because they did not serve 
 and adore him as they ought to do, nor govern their actions by 
 the rules and directions of that divine model. 
 
 Sect. v. Judicial Astrology. 
 
 As to the Babylonian and other Eastern philosophers, the 
 study of the heavenly bodies was so far from leading them, as it 
 ought to have done, to the knowledge of Him who is both their 
 Creator and Buler, that for the most part it carried them into 
 impiety, and the extravagances of judicial astrology. So we 
 term that deceitful and presumptuous science, which teaches to 
 judge of things to come by the knowledge of the stars, and to 
 foretell events by the situation of the planets, and by their dif¬ 
 ferent aspects ; a science justly looked upon as madness and 
 folly by all the most sensible writers among the pagans them¬ 
 selves. O delirationem increclibilem! cries Cicero, k in re¬ 
 futing the extravagant opinions of those astrologers, frequently 
 called Chaldeans, from the country that first gave rise to this 
 science ; who, in consequence of the observations made, as they 
 affirmed, by their predecessors upon all past events, for the 
 space only of 470,000 years, pretended to know assuredly, by 
 the aspect and combination of the stars and planets at the in¬ 
 stant of a child’s birth, what would be his genius, temper, man¬ 
 ners, the constitution of his body, his actions, and, in a word, 
 all the events and the duration of his life. He exposes a thou¬ 
 sand absurdities of this opinion, the very ridiculousness of which 
 should excite contempt; and asks, why of all that vast number 
 of children that are born in the same moment, and without 
 doubt exactly under the aspect of the same stars, there are not 
 two whose lives and fortunes resemble each other ? He puts 
 this farther question, whether that great number of men that 
 perished at the battle of Cannae, and died of one and the same 
 death, were all born under the same constellations ? 
 
 It is hardly credible, that so absurd an art, founded entirely 
 upon fraud and imposture, fraudulentissima artium, as Pliny 
 calls it, 1 should ever acquire so much credit as this has done, 
 throughout the whole world, and in all ages. AVhat has sup¬ 
 ported and brought it into so great vogue, continues that author, 
 is the natural curiosity men have to penetrate into futurity, and 
 to know beforehand the things that are to befall them: Nullo 
 non cwido fat lira de se sciendi; attended with a superstitious 
 
 1 Magna industria, magna solertia: sed ibi Creatorem scrutati sunt positum 
 non longe a se, et non invenerunt—quia qurerere neglexerunt. August, de 
 verb. Evan. Matth. Serm. lxviii. c. 1. 
 k Lib. ii. de Div. n. 87- 99. 
 
 1 Plin. Procem. lib. xxx. 
 
134 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 credulity, which finds itself agreeably flattered by the pleasing 
 and magnificent promises of which those fortune-tellers are 
 never sparing. Jta blandissimis desideratissimisque promissis 
 addulit vires religionis , ad qaas maxime etiamnum caligat hu- 
 manum genus. 
 
 Modern writers,™ and among others two of our greatest 
 philosophers, Gassendi and llohault, have inveighed against 
 the folly of that pretended science with the same energy, and 
 have demonstrated it to be equally void of principles and ex¬ 
 perience. 
 
 As for the principles. The heaven, according to the sysr 
 tern of astrologers, is divided into twelve equal parts ; which 
 parts are taken not according to the poles of the world, but 
 according to those of the zodiac. These twelve parts or por¬ 
 tions of heaven, have each of them its attribute, as riches, 
 knowledge, parentage, and so of the rest: the most important 
 and decisive portion is that which is next under the horizon, 
 and which is called the ascendant, because it is ready to ascend 
 and appear above the horizon, when a man comes into the 
 world. The planets are divided into the propitious, the malig¬ 
 nant, and the mixed: the aspects of these planets, which are 
 only certain distances from one another, are likewise either 
 happy or unhappy. I say nothing of several other hypotheses, 
 which are all equally fanciful; and I ask, whether any man of 
 common sense can accede to them upon the bare word of these 
 impostors, without any proofs, or even without the least sha¬ 
 dow of probability i The critical moment, and that on which 
 all their predictions depend, is that of the birth. And why not 
 as well the moment of conception ? Why have the stars no 
 influence during the nine months of pregnancy ? Or is it possi¬ 
 ble, considering the incredible rapidity of the heavenly bodies, 
 always to be sure of hitting the precise, determinate moment, 
 without the least variation of more or less, which is sufficient 
 to overthrow all ? A thousand other objections of the same kind 
 might be made, which are altogether unanswerable. 
 
 As for experience, they have still less reason to flatter them¬ 
 selves with having that on their side. This can only consist 
 in observations founded upon events that have always come to 
 pass in the same manner, whenever the planets were found in 
 the same situation. Now it is unanimously agreed by all 
 astronomers, that several thousands of years must pass, before 
 any such situation of the stars as they would imagine, can twice 
 happen: and it is very certain, that the state in which the 
 heavens will be to-morrow, has never yet been since the crea¬ 
 tion of the world. The reader may consult the two philoso¬ 
 phers above mentioned, particularly Gassendi, *who has more 
 m Gassendi Phys. sect. ii. 1. 6. Rohault Phys. part ii. cli. 27. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 135 
 
 copiously treated this subject. But such, and no better, are 
 the foundations upon which the whole structure of judicial astro¬ 
 logy is built. 
 
 But what is astonishing, and argues an absolute subversion 
 of all reason is, that certain freethinkers, who obstinately har¬ 
 den themselves against the most convincing proofs of religion, 
 and who refuse to believe even the clearest and most certain 
 prophecies upon the word of God, do sometimes give entire 
 credit to the vain predictions of these astrologers and impostors. 
 
 St. Austin, in several passages of his writings, informs 
 us, that this stupid and sacrilegious credulity is a just 
 chastisement from God, 11 who frequently punisheth the volun¬ 
 tary blindness of men, by inflicting a still greater blindness; 
 and who suffers evil spirits, that they may keep their servants 
 still faster in their nets, sometimes to foretell things which do 
 really come to pass, but of which the expectation very often 
 serves only to torment them. 
 
 God, who alone foresees future contingencies and events, 
 because he alone is the sovereign disposer and director of them, 
 does often in Scripture 0 laugh to scorn the ignorance of the 
 so-much-boasted Babylonish astrologers, calling them forgers 
 of lies and falsehoods. He moreover defies all their false gods 
 to foretell any thing whatsoever, and consents, if they do, that 
 they should be worshipped as gods. Then addressing himself 
 to the city of Babylon, he particularly declares all the circumstan¬ 
 ces of the miseries with which she shall be overwhelmed above 
 200 years after that prediction ; while none of her prognostica¬ 
 tors, who had flattered her with the assurances of her perpetual 
 grandeur, which they pretended to have read in the stars, 
 should be able to avert the judgment, or even to foresee the 
 time of its accomplishment. Indeed, how should they ? since 
 at the very time of its execution, when Belshazzar ,p the last king 
 
 of Babylon, saw a hand come out of the wall and write unknown 
 «/ 
 
 characters thereon, the Magi, the Chaldeans, the soothsayers, 
 and, in a word, all the pretended sages of the country, were 
 
 n His omnibus consideratis, non irnmerito creditur, cum astrologi mirabili- 
 ter multa vera respondent, occulto instinctu fieri spirituum non bonorum, 
 quorum cura est has falsas et noxias opiniones de astralibus fatis inserere hu- 
 manis mentibus atque firmare, non lioroscopi notati et inspecti aliqua arte, qute 
 nulla est. De Civ. Dei. 1, v. c. 7* 
 
 ° Therefore shall evil come upon thee, thou shalt not know from whence it 
 riseth : and mischief shall fall upon thee, thou shalt not be able to put it off: 
 and desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know. Stand 
 now with thine enchantments, and with the multitude of thy sorceries, where¬ 
 in thou hast laboured from thy youth ; if so be thou shalt be able to profit, if 
 so be thou mayest prevail. Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy coun¬ 
 sels. I.et now the astrologers, the star-gazers, the prognosticators, stand up, 
 and save thee from these things that shall come upon thee. Behold, they shall 
 be as stubble : the fire shall burn them : they shall not deliver themselves 
 from the power of the flame. Isa. xlvii. 11—14. p Dan. v. 
 
MANNERS OF THE 
 
 13 () 
 
 not able so much as to read the writing-. Here then we see 
 astrology and magic convicted of ignorance and impotence, 
 in the very place where they were most in vogue, and on an 
 occasion when it is certainly their interest to display all their 
 science and power. 
 
 ARTICLE IV. 
 
 Religion. 
 
 The most ancient and general idolatry in the world, was that 
 wherein the sun and moon were the objects of divine worship. 
 This idolatry was founded upon a mistaken gratitude ; which, in¬ 
 stead of ascending up to the Deity, stopped short at the veil 
 which concealed him, while it indicated his existence. With 
 the least reflection or penetration they might have discerned the 
 Sovereign who commanded, from the minister^ who did but obey. 
 
 In all ages mankind have been sensibly convinced of the ne¬ 
 cessity of an intercourse between God and man ; and adoration 
 supposes God to be both attentive to man’s desires, and capable 
 of fulfilling them. But the distance of the sun and of the moon 
 is an obstacle to this intercourse. Therefore foolish men en¬ 
 deavoured to remedy this inconvenience, by laying their hands 
 upon their mouths/ and then lifting them up to these false gods, 
 in order to testify that they would be glad to unite themselves 
 to them, but that they could not. This was that impious custom 
 so prevalent throughout all the east, from which Job esteemed 
 himself happy to have been preserved: When I beheld the sun 
 when it shined, or the moon walking in brightness ; my heart 
 hath not been secretly enticed, nor my mouth kissed my hand? 
 
 The Persians adored the sun, 1 and particularly the rising sun, 
 with the profoundest veneration. To him they dedicated a mag¬ 
 nificent chariot, with horses of the greatest beauty and value, 
 as we have seen in Cyrus’s stately cavalcade. (This same 
 ceremony was practised by the Babylonians ; from whom some 
 impious kings of Judah borrowed it, u and brought it into Pa¬ 
 lestine.) Sometimes they likewise sacrificed oxen to this 
 god, who was very much known amongst them by the name of 
 Mithra. 
 
 By a natural consequence of the worship they paid to the 
 sun, they likewise paid a particular veneration to fire, v always 
 invoked it first in their sacrifices, x carried it with great respect 
 
 9 Among the Hebrews, the ordinary name for the sun signifies minister. 
 
 r Superstitiosus vnlgus manum ori admovens , osculum labiis pressit. Minuc. p. 
 2. From thence is come the word adorare ; that is to say, ad os manum 
 admovere. 
 
 6 The text is in the form of an oath. If I beheld, &c. Job xxxi. 26, 27- 
 
 1 Herod. 1. i. c. 131. u 2 Kings xxiii. 11. Strab. 1- xv. p. 732. 
 
 v Ibid. x Xenoph. Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 215. Am. Mar. 1. xxiii. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 137 
 
 before the king in all his marches ; intrusted the keeping of 
 their sacred fire, which came down from heaven, as they pre¬ 
 tended, to none but the Magi; and would have looked upon it 
 as the greatest of misfortunes, if it had been suffered to go out. 
 History informs us,y that the emperor Heraclius, when he was 
 at war with the Persians, demolished several of their temples, 
 and particularly the chapel in which the sacred fire had been 
 preserved until that time, which occasioned great mourning and 
 lamentation throughout the whole country. The Persians 
 likewise honoured the water , 2 the earth, and the winds, as so 
 many deities. 
 
 The cruel ceremony of making children pass through the 
 fire, was undoubtedly a consequence of the worship paid to that 
 element; for this fire-worship was common to the Babylonians 
 and Persians. The scripture positively says of the people of 
 Mesopotamia, who were sent as a colony into the country of 
 the Samaritans, that they caused their children to pass through 
 the fire. It is well known how common this barbarous custom 
 became in many provinces of Asia. 
 
 Besides these, a the Persians had two gods of a very different 
 nature, namely, Oromasdes and Arimanius. The former they 
 looked upon as the author of all the blessings and good things 
 that happened to them ; and the latter as the author of all the 
 evils wherewith they were afflicted. I shall give a fuller ac¬ 
 count of these deities hereafter. 
 
 The Persians erected neither statues, nor temples, nor 
 altars, to their gods ; b but offered their sacrifices in the open 
 air, and generally on the tops of hills, or on high places. It was 
 in the open fields that Cyrus acquitted himself of that religious 
 dutv, c when he made the pompous and solemn procession al¬ 
 ready spoken of. It is supposed to have been through the ad¬ 
 vice and instigation of the Magi, d that Xerxes, the Persian 
 king, burnt all the Grecian temples, esteeming it injurious to the 
 majesty of the Deity to shut him up within walls, to whom all 
 things are open, and to whom the whole world should be 
 reckoned as a house or a temple. 
 
 Cicero thinks , 6 that in this the Greeks and Romans acted 
 more wisely than the Persians, in that they erected temples to 
 their gods within their cities, and thereby assigned them a resi¬ 
 dence in common with themselves, which was well calculated 
 
 y Zonar. Annal. vol. ii. z Herod. 1. i. c. 131. 
 
 a Plut. in lib. de Isid. et Osirid. p. 309. 
 b Herod. 1. l. c. 131. c Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 233. 
 
 d Auctoribus Magis Xerxes infiammasse templa Groecise dicitur, quod parie- 
 tibus includerent deos, quibus omnia deberent esse patentia ac libera, quorum- 
 que hie mundus omnis templum esset et domus. Cic. 1. ii. de Leyib. 
 
 e Melius Grceei atque nostri, qui ut augerent pietatem in deos; easdem illos 
 urbue, quas nos, incolere voluerunt. Adfertenim hsec opinio religionem utilem 
 civitatibus Ibid. 
 
138 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 1o inspire the people with sentiments of religion and piety. 
 Yarro was not of the same opinion (St. Austin has preserved 
 that passage of his works f ): After having observed, that the Ro¬ 
 mans had worshipped their gods without statues for above 170 
 years, he adds, that if they had still preserved their ancient 
 custom, their religion would have been the purer and freer from 
 corruption : Quod si cidhuc mansisset, castius dii observarentur ; 
 and he strengthens his opinion by the example of the J ewish 
 nation. 
 
 The laws of Persia suffered no man to confine the motive of 
 his sacrifices to any private or domestic interest. This was a 
 fine way of attaching all private individuals to the public good, 
 by teaching them that they Ought never to sacrifice for them¬ 
 selves alone, but for the king and the whole state, wherein every 
 man was comprehended with the rest of his fellow-citizens. 
 
 The Magi, in Persia, were the guardians of all the ceremo¬ 
 nies relating to divine worship : and it was to them the people 
 had recourse, in order to be instructed therein, and to know on 
 what day, to what gods, and after what manner, they were to 
 offer their sacrifices. As these Magi were all of one tribe, and 
 as none but the son of a priest could pretend to the honour of 
 the priesthood, they kept all their learning and knowledge, whe¬ 
 ther in religious or political concerns, to themselves and their 
 families; nor was it lawful for them to instruct any stranger in 
 these matters, without the king’s permission. It was granted 
 in favour of Themistocles,§ and was, according to Plutarch, a 
 particular effect of the prince’s great consideration for him. 
 
 This knowledge and skill in religious matters, which made 
 Plato define magic, or the learning of the Magi, the art of wor¬ 
 shipping the gods in a becoming manner, 6ewv Oepwrelav , gave 
 the Magi great authority both with the prince and people, who 
 could offer no sacrifice without their presence and ministration. 
 
 It was even requisite that the king, h before he came to the 
 crown, should have received instruction for a certain time from 
 some of the Magi, and have learned of them both the art of 
 reigning, and that of worshipping the gods after a proper man¬ 
 ner. Nor did he determine any important affair of the state, 
 when he was upon the throne, without first consulting them ; for 
 which reason Pliny says,’ that even in his time they were looked 
 upon in all the eastern countries, as the masters and directors 
 of princes, and of those who styled themselves the kings of 
 kings. 
 
 f Lib. vi. de Civ. Dei, n. 31. s In Them. p. 126. 
 
 h Nec quisquam rex Persarum potest esse, qui non ante Magorum disciplinam 
 scientiamque perceperit. Cic. dc Divin. 1. i. n. 91. 
 
 * In tantum lastigii adolevit (auctontas Magorum) ut hodieque etiam in 
 niagna parte gentium prsevaleat, et in oiiente regum regibus imperet. Plin. 
 1. xxx. c. 1. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 139 
 
 They were the sages, the philosophers, and men of learning, 
 in Persia; as the Gymnosophists and Brachmans were amongst 
 the Indians, and the Druids among the Gauls. Their great 
 reputation made people come from the most distant countries 
 to be instructed by them in philosophy and religion; and we 
 are assured it was from them that Pythagoras borrowed the 
 principles of that doctrine, by which he acquired so much vene¬ 
 ration and respect among the Greeks, excepting only the tenet 
 of transmigration, which he learned of the Egyptians, and by 
 which he corrupted and debased the ancient doctrine of the 
 Magi concerning the immortality of the soul. 
 
 It is generally agreed, that Zoroaster was the original author 
 and founder of this sect; but authors are considerably divided 
 in their opinions about the time in which he lived. What Pliny 
 says upon this head may reasonably serve to reconcile that 
 variety of opinions, 11 as is very judiciously observed by Dr. 
 Prideaux. We read in that author, that there were two per¬ 
 sons named Zoroaster, between whose lives there might be the 
 distance of 000 years. The first of them was the founder of the 
 Magian sect, about the year of the world 2900; and the latter, 
 who certainly flourished between the beginning of Cyrus’s reign 
 in the East, and the end of Darius’s, son of Hystaspes, was the 
 restorer and reformer of it. 
 
 Throughout all the Eastern countries, idolatry was divided 
 into two principal sects; that of the Sabians, who adored 
 images ; and that of the Magi, who worshipped fire. The for¬ 
 mer of these sects had its rise among the Chaldeans, who, from 
 their knowledge of astronomy, and their particular application 
 to the study of the seven planets, which they believed to be in¬ 
 habited by as many intelligences, who were to those orbs what 
 the soul of man is to his body, were induced to represent Saturn, 
 Jupiter, Mars, Apollo, Mercury, Venus, and Diana, or the 
 Moon, by so many images, or statues, in which they imagined 
 those pretended intelligences, or deities, were as really present 
 as in the planets themselves. In time, the number of their 
 gods considerably increased: this image-worship from Chaldea 
 spread itself throughout all the East; from thence passed into 
 Egypt; and at length came among the Greeks, who propagated 
 it through all the western nations. 
 
 To this sect of the Sabians was diametrically opposite that of 
 the Magi, which also took its rise in the same Eastern countries. 
 As the Magi held images in utter abhorrence, they worshipped 
 God only under the form of fire ; looking upon that, on account 
 of its purity, brightness, activity, subtilty, fecundity, and in¬ 
 corruptibility, as the most perfect symbol of the Deity. They 
 began first in Persia, and there and in India were the only 
 
 k Hist. Nat. 1. xxx. c. 1. 
 
140 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 places where this sect was propagated, and where they have 
 remained even to this day. Their chief doctrine was, that there 
 were two principles ; one the cause of all good, and the other 
 the cause of all evil. The former is represented by light, and 
 the other by darkness, as their truest symbols. The good god 
 they named Yazdan and Ormuzd, and the evil god Ahraman. 
 The former is by the Greeks called Oromasdes, and the latter 
 Arimanius. And therefore, 1 when Xerxes prayed that his ene¬ 
 mies might always resolve to banish their best and bravest citi¬ 
 zens, as the Athenians had Themistocles, he addressed his 
 prayer to Arimanius, the evil god of the Persians, and not to 
 Oromasdes, their good god. 
 
 Concerning these two gods, they had this difference of 
 opinion; that whereas some held both of them to have been 
 from all eternity ; others contended that the good god only was 
 eternal, and the other was created. But they both agreed in 
 this, that there will be a continual opposition between these 
 two, till the end of the world ; that then the good god shall 
 overcome the evil god, and that from thenceforward each of 
 them shall have his peculiar world ; that is, the good god, his 
 world with all the good ; and the evil god, his world with all 
 the wicked. 
 
 The second Zoroaster, who lived in the time of Darius, under¬ 
 took to reform some articles in the religion of the Magian sect, 
 which for several ages had been the predominant religion of the 
 Medes and Persians ; but which, since the death of Smerdis 
 who usurped the throne, and his chief confederates, and the 
 massacre of their adherents and followers, had fallen into great 
 contempt. It is thought this reformer made his first appearance 
 irn Ecbatana. 
 
 The chief reformation he made in the Magian religion was, 
 that whereas before they had held as a fundamental tenet the 
 existence of two supreme principles ; the first light, which was 
 the author of all good ; and the other darkness, the author of 
 all evil ; and that of the mixture of these two, as they were in a 
 continual struggle with each other, all things were made ; he 
 introduced a principle superior to them both, one supreme God, 
 who created both light and darkness ; and who out of these two 
 principles, made all other things according to his own will and 
 pleasure. 
 
 But, to avoid making God the author of evil, his doctrine 
 was, that there was one supreme Being, independent and self- 
 existing from all eternity : that under him there were two an¬ 
 gels ; one the angel of light, who is the author of all good ; and 
 the other the angel of darkness, who is the author of all evil ; 
 that these two, out of the mixture of light and darkness, made 
 
 1 Pint, ill Themist. p. 12G. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 141 
 
 all things that are; that they are in a perpetual struggle with each 
 other ; and that where the angel of light prevails, there good 
 reigns ; and that where the angel of darkness prevails, there 
 evil takes place : that this struggle shall continue to the end of 
 the world ; that then there shall be a general resurrection and 
 a day of judgment, wherein all shall receive a just retribution 
 according to their works ; after which the angel of darkness and 
 his disciples shall go into a world of their own, where they shall 
 suffer in everlasting darkness the punishment of their evil deeds; 
 and the angel of light and his disciples shall also go into a world 
 of their own, where they shall receive in everlasting light the 
 reward due unto their good deeds ; that after this they shall re¬ 
 main separate for ever, and light and darkness be no more mix¬ 
 ed together to all eternity. And all this the remainder of that 
 sect, which still subsists in Persia and India, do, without any 
 variation after so many ages, still hold even to this day. 
 
 It is needless to inform the reader, that almost all these tenets, 
 though altered in many circumstances, do in general agree with 
 the doctrine of the holy Scriptures; with which it plainly ap¬ 
 pears the two Zoroasters were well acquainted, it being easy 
 for both of them to have had an intercourse or personal ac¬ 
 quaintance with the people of God : the first of them in Syria, 
 where the Israelites had been long settled ; the latter at Baby¬ 
 lon, to which place the sam^,people were carried captive, and 
 where Zoroaster might have converse with Daniel himself, who 
 was in very great power and credit in the Persian court. 
 
 Another reformation made by Zoroaster in the ancient Ma- 
 gian religion, was, that he caused temples to be built, wherein 
 their sacred fire was carefully and constantly preserved ; which 
 he pretended himself to have brought down from heaven. Over 
 this the priests kept a perpetual watch night and day, to prevent 
 its being extinguished. 
 
 Whatever relates to the sect or religion of the Magians, the 
 reader will find very largely and learnedly treated in Dean Pri- 
 deaux’s Connexion of the Old and New Testament, &c. from 
 whence I have taken onjy a short extract. 
 
 Their Marriages, and the Manner of Burying the Dead. 
 
 Having said so much of the religion of the Eastern nations, 
 which is an article I thought myself obliged to enlarge upon, 
 because I look upon it as an essential part of their history, I 
 shall be forced to treat of their other customs with the greater 
 brevity. Amongst which, the marriages and burials are too 
 material to be omitted. 
 
 There is nothing more horrible, m or that gives us a stronger 
 idea of the profound darkness into which idolatry had plunged 
 
 ni Herod. 1. i. c. 199. 
 
142 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 mankind, than the public prostitution of women at Babylon, 
 which was not only authorized by law, but even commanded by 
 the religion of the country, upon a certain annual festival, cele¬ 
 brated in honour of the goddess Venus, under the name of My- 
 litta, whose temple, by means of this infamous ceremony, be¬ 
 came a brothel or place of debauchery. This wicked custom 
 was still in being, 11 and very prevalent, when the Israelites were 
 carried captive to that criminal city ; for which reason the pro¬ 
 phet Jeremiah thought fit to caution and admonish them against 
 so scandalous an abomination. 
 
 Nor had the Persians any better notion of the dignity and 
 sanctity of the matrimonial institution, than the Babylonians. 
 I do not mean only with regard to that incredible multitude of 
 wives and concubines, with which their kings filled their serag¬ 
 lios, 0 and of which they were as jealous as if they had had but 
 one wife, keeping them all shut up in separate apartments under 
 a strict guard of eunuchs, without suffering them to have any 
 communication with one another, much less with persons with¬ 
 out doors. It strikes one with horror to read how far they 
 carried their neglect and contempt of the most common laws 
 of nature.** Even incest with a sister was allowed amongst 
 them by their laws, or at least authorized by their Magi, those 
 pretended sages of Persia, as we have seen in the history of 
 Cambyses. Nor did even a father respect bis own daughter, 
 or a mother the son of her own body. We read in Plutarch/ 
 that Parysatis, the mother of Artaxerxes Mnemon, who strove 
 in all things to please the king her son, perceiving that he had 
 conceived a violent passion for one of his own daughters, called 
 Atossa, was so far from opposing his unlawful desire, that she 
 herself advised him to marry her, and make her his lawful wife, 
 and laughed at the maxims and laws of the Grecians, which 
 taught the contrary. For, says she to him, carrying her flattery 
 to a monstrous excess, are not you yourself set by God over 
 the Persians, as the only law and rule of what is becoming or 
 unbecoming , virtuous or vicious ? 
 
 This detestable custom continued til] the time of Alexander 
 the Great, who, being become master of Persia, by the over¬ 
 throw and death of Darius, made an express law to suppress it. 
 These enormities may serve to teach us from what an abyss the 
 Gospel has delivered us ; and how weak a barrier human wisdom 
 is of itself against the most extravagant and abominable crimes. 
 
 I shall finish this article by saying a word or two upon their 
 manner of burying their dead. It was not the custom of the 
 Eastern nations/ and especially of the Persians, to erect funeral 
 
 n Baruch, vi. 42, 43. 0 Herod. 1. i. c. 135. 
 
 p Philo, lib. de Special, leg. p. 770* Diog. Laer. in Prooem. p. G. 
 
 i In Artax. p. 1023. r Herod. 1. iii. c. 1G. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 143 
 
 piles for the dead, and to consume their bodies in the flames. 
 Accordingly s we find that Cyrus, 1 when he was at the point of 
 death, took care to charge his children to inter his body, and 
 to restore it to the earth; that is the expression he makes use 
 of; by which he seems to declare, that he looked upon the earth 
 as the original parent, from whence he sprung, and to which he 
 ought to return. And when Cambyses had offered a thousand 
 indignities to the dead body of Amasis, king of Egypt, 11 he 
 thought he crowned all by causing it to be burnt, which was 
 equally contrary to the Egyptian and Persian manner of treat¬ 
 ing the dead. It was the custom of the latter to wrap up their 
 dead in wax, x in order to keep them the longer from corruption. 
 
 I thought proper to give a fuller account in this place of the 
 manners and customs of the Persians, because the history of 
 that people will take up a great part of this work, and because 
 I shall say no more on that subject in the sequel. The treatise 
 of Barnabas Brisson,y president of the parliament of Paris, 
 upon the government of the Persians, has been of great use to 
 me. Such collections as these, when they are made by able 
 hands, save a writer a great deal of pains, and furnish him 
 with erudite observations, which cost him little, and yet often 
 do him great honour. 
 
 ARTICLE V. 
 
 The causes of the declension of the Persian Empire, and of the change that 
 
 happened in their manners. 
 
 When we compare the Persians, as they were before Cyrus 
 and during his reign, with what they were afterwards in the 
 reigns of his successors, we can hardly believe they were the 
 same people : and we see a sensible illustration of this truth, 
 that the declension of manners in any state is always attended 
 with that of empire and dominion. 
 
 Among many other causes that brought about the declen¬ 
 sion of the Persian empire, the four following may be looked 
 upon as the principal : Their excessive magnificence and 
 luxury ; the abject subjection and slavery of the people ; the 
 bad education of their princes, which was the source of all their 
 irregularities ; and their want of faith in the execution of their 
 treaties, oaths, and engagements. 
 
 6 Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 238. 
 
 1 Ac mihi quidem antiquissimum sepulturae genus id fuisse videtur, quo 
 apud Xenophontem Cyrus utitur. Redditur enim terroe corpus, et ita locatum 
 ac situm quasi operimento matris obducitur. Cic. lib. ii. de Leg. n. 56. 
 
 u Herod. 1. iii. c. 16. 
 
 x Condiunt Egyptii mortuos, et eos domi servant: Perssejam cerScircum- 
 litos condiunt, ut quam maxime permaneant diuturna corpoi'a. Cic. Tuscul. 
 Qucest. lib. i. n. 108. 
 
 y Barnab. Brissonius de regio Persarum principatu, &c. Argentorati , an. 
 
 1710. 
 
144 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 SECT. 1. 
 
 Luxury and magnificence. 
 
 What made the Persian troops in Cyrus’s time to be looked 
 upon as invincible, was the temperate and hard life to which 
 they were accustomed from their infancy, having nothing but 
 water for their ordinary drink, bread and roots for their food, the 
 ground, or something as hard, to lie upon, inuring themselves 
 to the most painful exercises and labours, and esteeming the 
 greatest dangers as nothing. The temperature of the country 
 where they were born, which was rough, mountainous, and woody, 
 might somewhat contribute to their hardiness; for which reason 
 Cyrus would never consent to the project of transplanting them 
 into a more mild and agreeable climate. 2 The excellent educa¬ 
 tion bestowed upon the ancient Persians, of which we have 
 already given a sufficient account, and which was not left to 
 the humours and caprice of parents, but was subject to the 
 authority and direction of the magistrates, and regulated upon 
 principles of the public good ; this excellent education pre¬ 
 pared them for observing, in all places and at all times, a most 
 exact and severe discipline. Add to this, the influence of the 
 prince’s example, who made it his ambition to surpass all his 
 subjects in regularity, was the most abstemious and sober in 
 his manner of life, the plainest in his dress, the most inured 
 and accustomed to hardships and fatigues, as well as the bravest 
 and most intrepid in the time of action. AAhat might not 
 be expected from soldiers so formed and so trained up ? By 
 them therefore we find Cyrus conquered a great part of the 
 world. 
 
 After all his victories he continued to exhort his army and 
 people not to degenerate from their ancient virtue, that they might 
 not eclipse the glory they had acquired, but carefully preserve 
 that simplicity, sobriety, temperance, and love of labour, which 
 were the means by which they had obtained it. But I do not 
 know, whether Cyrus himself did not at that very time sow 
 the first seeds of that luxury, which soon overspread and cor¬ 
 rupted the whole nation. In that august ceremony, which we 
 have already described at large, and on which he first showed 
 himself in public to his new-conquered subjects, he thought pro¬ 
 per, in order to heighten the splendour of his regal dignity, to 
 make a pompous display of all the magnificence and show that 
 was best calculated to dazzle the eyes of the people. Among 
 other things he changed his own apparel, as also that of his officers, 
 giving them all garments made after the fashion of the Medes, 
 
 z Plut. in Apophth. p. 172. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 145 
 
 richly shining with gold and purple, instead of their Persian 
 clothes, which were very plain and simple. 
 
 This prince seemed to forget how much the contagious ex¬ 
 ample of a court, the natural inclination all men have to value and 
 esteem what pleases the eye and makes a fine show, the anxiety 
 they have to distinguish themselves above others by false merit, 
 easily attained in proportion to the degrees of wealth and vanity 
 a man has above his neighbours ; he forgot how capable all this 
 together was of corrupting the purity of ancient manners, and of 
 introducing by degrees a general, predominant taste for extra¬ 
 vagance and luxury. 
 
 This luxury and extravagance rose in time to such an excess, 
 as was little better than downright madness. a The prince car¬ 
 ried all his wives along with him to the wars ; and with what 
 an equipage such a troop must be attended, is easy to judge. 
 All his generals and officers followed his example, each in pro¬ 
 portion to his rank and ability. Their pretext for so doing was, 
 that the sight of what they held most dear and precious in the 
 world, would encourage them to fight with the greater resolution ; 
 but the true reason was the love of pleasure, by which they were 
 overcome and enslaved, before they came to engage with the 
 enemy. 
 
 Another instance of their folly was, that even in the army 
 they carried their luxury and extravagance with respect to their 
 tents, chariots, and tables, to a greater excess, if possible, than 
 they did in their cities. The most exquisite meats, b the rarest 
 birds, and the costliest dainties, must needs be found for the 
 prince in what part of the world soever he was encamped. 
 They had their vessels of gold and silver without number; instru¬ 
 ments of luxury, c says a certain historian, not of victory, 
 proper to allure and enrich an enemy, but not to repel or defeat 
 him. 
 
 I do not see what reason Cyrus could have for changing his 
 conduct in the last years of his life. It must be owned, indeed, 
 that the station of kings requires a suitable grandeur and mag¬ 
 nificence, which may on certain occasions be carried even to 
 a degree of pomp and splendour. But princes possessed of a 
 real and solid merit, have a thousand ways of compensating what 
 they seem to lose by retrenching some part of their outward state 
 and magnificence. Cyrus himself had found by experience, 
 that a king is more sure of gaining respect from his people by 
 the wisdom of his conduct than by the greatness of his expenses ; 
 and that affection and confidence produce a closer attachment 
 to his person than a vain admiration of unnecessary pomp and 
 
 a Xenoph. Cyrop. 1. iv. p. 91—99. b Senec. 1. iii- de Ira, c. 20. 
 
 c Non belli sed luxuriae apparatum—Aciem Persarum auro purpuraque ful- 
 gentem intueri jubebat Alexander, praedam, non anna gestantem. Q. Curt. 
 
 VOL. II. L 
 
146 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 grandeur. Be this as it will, Cyrus’s last example became very 
 contagious. A taste for pomp and expense first prevailed at 
 court, then spread itself into the cities and provinces, and in a 
 little time infected the whole nation, and was one of the princi¬ 
 pal causes of the ruin of that empire, which he himself had 
 founded. 
 
 What is here said of the fatal effects of luxury, is not peculiar 
 to the Persian empire. The most judicious historians, the most 
 learned philosophers, and the profoundest politicians, all lay it 
 down as a certain, indisputable maxim, that whenever luxury 
 prevails, it never fails to destroy the most flourishing states and 
 kingdoms ; and the experience of all ages, and all nations, does 
 but too clearly demonstrate the truth of this maxim. 
 
 What then is that subtle, secret poison, that thus lurks under 
 the pomp of luxury and the charms of pleasure, and is capable 
 of enervating at the same time both the whole strength of the 
 body, and the vigour of the mind ? It is not very difficult to 
 comprehend why it has this terrible effect. When men are 
 accustomed to a soft and voluptuous life, can they be very 
 fit for undergoing the fatigues and hardships of war ? Are they 
 qualified for suffering the rigour of the seasons ; for enduring hun¬ 
 ger and thirst; for passing whole nights without sleep upon occa¬ 
 sion ; for going through continual exercise and action ; for facing 
 danger and despising death ? The natural effect of voluptuousness 
 and delicacy, which are the inseparable companions of luxury, 
 is to render men subject to a multitude of false wants and ne¬ 
 cessities, to make their happiness depend upon a thousand tri¬ 
 fling conveniences and superfluities, which they can no longer 
 be without, and to give them an unreasonable fondness for life, 
 on account of a thousand secret ties and engagements, that en¬ 
 dear it to them, and which, by stifling in them the great motives 
 of glory, of zeal for their prince, and love for their country, ren¬ 
 der them fearful and cowardly, and hinder them from exposing 
 themselves to dangers, which may in a moment deprive them of 
 all those things wherein they place their felicity. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 The abject submission and slavery of the Persians. 
 
 We are told by Plato, that this was one of the causes of the 
 declension of the Persian empire. And indeed what contributes 
 most to the preservation of states, and renders their arms victo¬ 
 rious, is not the number, but the vigour and courage of their ar¬ 
 mies ; and, as it was finely said by one of the ancients, d from the 
 
 d Horn. Odyss. P. v. 322. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 147 
 
 day a man loseth his liberty , lie loseth one half of his ancient 
 virtue. He is no longer concerned for tlie prosperity of the state, 
 to which he looks upon himself as an alien ; and having lost the 
 principal motives of his attachment to it, he becomes indifferent 
 to the success of public affairs, to the glory or welfare of his coun¬ 
 try, in which his circumstances allow him to claim no share, and 
 by which his own private condition is not altered or improved. It 
 may truly be said, that the reign of Cyrus was a reign of liberty. 
 That prince never acted in an arbitrary manner; nor did he 
 think, that a despotic power was worthy of a king ; or that there 
 was any great glory in ruling an empire of slaves. His tent 
 was always open ; and free access was allowed to every one 
 that desired to speak to him. He did not live retired, but was 
 visible, accessible, and affable to all; heard their complaints, 
 and with his own eyes observed and rewarded merit; invited to 
 his table not only the generals of his army, not only the princi¬ 
 pal officers, but even subalterns, and sometimes whole compa¬ 
 nies of soldiers. The simplicity and frugality of his table made 
 him capable of giving such entertainments frequently. 6 His 
 aim was to animate his officers and soldiers, to inspire them with 
 courage and resolution, to attach them to his person rather than 
 to his dignity, and to make them warmly espouse his glory, and 
 still more the interest and prosperity of the state. This is what 
 may truly be called the art of governing and commanding. 
 
 In reading Xenophon, we observe with pleasure, not only 
 those fine turns of wit, that justness and ingenuity in their an¬ 
 swers and repartees, that delicacy in jesting and raillery; but 
 at the same time that amiable cheerfulness and gaiety which 
 enlivened their entertainments, from which all pomp and luxury 
 were banished, and in which the principal seasoning was a decent 
 and becoming freedom, that prevented all constraint, and a kind 
 of familiarity which was so far from lessening their respect for 
 the prince, that it gave such a life and spirit to it, as nothing but 
 a real affection and tenderness could produce. I may venture 
 to say, that by such a conduct as this a prince doubles and tre¬ 
 bles his army at a small expense. Thirty thousand men of this 
 sort are preferable to millions of such slaves as these very Per¬ 
 sians became afterwards. In time of action, on a decisive day 
 of battle, this truth is most evident, and the prince is more sen¬ 
 sible of it than any body else. At the battle of Thymbra, when 
 Cyrus’s horse fell under him, Xenophon takes notice of what 
 importance it is to a commander to be loved by his soldiers. 
 The danger of the king’s person became the danger of the army; 
 and his troops on that occasion gave incredible proofs of their 
 courage and bravery. 
 
 e Tantas vires habet frugalitas Principis, ut tot impendiis, tot erogationibus 
 sola sufficiat. Plin. in Paneg. Traj. 
 
 L 2 
 
148 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 Things were not carried on in the same manner, under the 
 greatest part of his successors. Their only care was to 
 support the pomp of sovereignty. I must confess, their outward 
 ornaments and ensigns of royalty did not a little contribute to 
 that end. A purple robe richly embroidered, and hanging down 
 to their feet, a tiara, worn upright on their heads, and encircled 
 by a superb diadem, a golden sceptre in their hands, a magnificent 
 throne, a numerous and splendid court, a multitude of officers 
 and guards ; these things must needs conduce to heighten the 
 splendour of royalty; but all this, when this is all, is of little or 
 no value. What is that king in reality, who loses all his merit 
 and his dignity when he puts off* his ornaments ? 
 
 Some of the Eastern kings, conceiving that they should there¬ 
 by procure the greater reverence to their persons, generally 
 kept themselves shut up in their palaces, and seldom showed 
 themselves to their subjects. We have already seen that De- 
 joces, the first king of the Medes, at his accession to the throne, 
 introduced this policy, which afterwards became very common 
 in all the Eastern countries. But it is a great mistake, to ima¬ 
 gine that a prince cannot descend from his grandeur, by a sort 
 of familiarity, without debasing or lessening his greatness. 
 Artaxerxes did not think so ; and Plutarch observes/ that that 
 prince, and queen Statira his wife, took a pleasure in being vi¬ 
 sible and of easy access to their people; and by so doing were 
 but the more respected. 
 
 Among the Persians, no subject whatsoever was allowed to 
 appear in the king’s presence without prostrating himself before 
 him ; and this law, which Seneca with good reason calls a 
 Persian slavery, g Persicam servitutem , extended also to foreign¬ 
 ers. We shall find afterwards, that several Grecians refused 
 to comply with it; looking upon such a ceremony as derogatory to 
 men born and bred in the bosom of liberty. Some of them, 
 less scrupulous, did submit to it, but not without great reluc¬ 
 tance ; and we are told, that one of them, in order to cover the 
 shame of such a servile prostration, purposely let fall his ring 
 when he came near the king, h that he might have occasion to 
 bend his body on another account. But it would have been 
 criminal for any of the natives of the country to hesitate or 
 deliberate about a homage, which the kings exacted from them 
 with the utmost rigour. 
 
 What the Scripture relates of two sovereigns/ whereof the 
 one commanded all his subjects, on pain of death, to prostrate 
 themselves before his image; and the other, under the same pe¬ 
 nalty, suspended all acts of religion, with regard to all the gods in 
 
 f In Artax. p. 1013. s Lib. iii. de Benef. c. 12. et lib. iii. de Ira, c. 17« 
 
 h iElian. 1. i. Var. His tor. cap. xxi. 
 
 * Nebuchadnezzar, Dan. iii. Darius the Mede, Dan. vi. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 149 
 
 general, except to himself alone ; and on the other hand, of 
 the ready and blind obedience of the whole city of Babylon, 
 who ran altogether on the first signal to bend the knee before 
 the idol, and to invoke the king exclusively of all the powers of 
 heaven : all this shows to what an extravagant excess the 
 Eastern kings carried their pride, and the people their flattery 
 and servitude. 
 
 So great was the distance between the Persian king and his 
 subjects, that the latter, of what rank or quality soever, whether 
 satrapse, governors, near relations, or even brothers to the king, 
 were looked upon only as slaves ; whereas the king himself was 
 always considered, not only as their sovereign lord and absolute 
 master, but as a kind of divinity. In a word," the peculiar charac¬ 
 ter of the Asiatic nations, and of the Persians more particularly 
 than any other, was servitude and slavery ; which made Cicero 
 say, k that the despotic power which some were endeavouring to 
 establish in the Roman commonwealth, was an insupportable 
 yoke, not only to a Roman, but even to a Persian. 
 
 It was therefore this arrogant haughtiness of the princes on 
 one hand, and this abject submission of the people on the other, 
 which, according to Plato, 1 were the principal causes of the ruin 
 of the Persian empire, by dissolving all the ties wherewith a king 
 is united to his subjects, and the subjects to their king. Such a 
 haughtiness extinguishes all affection and humanity in the for¬ 
 mer ; and such an abject state of slavery leaves the people nei¬ 
 ther courage, zeal, nor gratitude. The Persian kings governed 
 only by threats and menaces, and the subjects neither obeyed 
 nor marched, but with unwillingness and reluctance. This is 
 the idea Xerxes, himself gives us of them in Herodotus, where 
 that prince is represented as wondering how the Grecians, who 
 were a free people, could go to battle with a good will and in¬ 
 clination. How could any thing great or noble be expected 
 from men, so dispirited and depressed by habitual slavery as the 
 Persians were, and reduced to such an abject servitude; which, 
 to use the words of Longinus, m is a kind of imprisonment, 
 wherein a man’s soul may be said in some sort to grow little and 
 contracted ? 
 
 I am unwilling to say it; but I do not know, whether the 
 great Cyrus himself did not contribute to introduce among the 
 Persians, both that extravagant pride in their kings, and that 
 abject submission and flattery in the people. It was in that 
 pompous ceremony, which I have several times mentioned, that 
 the Persians (till then very jealous of their liberty, and very far 
 from being inclined to make a shameful prostitution of it by 
 any mean behaviour or servile compliances,) first bent the knee 
 
 » Plut. in Apophth. p. 213. k Lib. x. Epist. ad Attic. 
 
 1 Lib. iii. de Leg. p. G97. m Cap. xxxv. 
 
150 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 before their prince, and stooped to a posture of adoration. Nor 
 was this an effect of chance; for Xenophon intimates clearly 
 enough, that Cyrus, n who desired to have that homage paid 
 him, had appointed persons on purpose to begin it; whose ex¬ 
 ample was accordingly followed by the multitude. In these 
 little tricks and stratagems, we no longer discern that noble¬ 
 ness and greatness of soul which had ever been conspicuous in 
 that prince till this occasion : and I should be apt to think, that 
 being arrived at the utmost pitch of glory and power, he could 
 no longer resist those violent attacks wherewith posterity is al¬ 
 ways assaulting even the best of princes, secundce res sapien- 
 tium animos faticjant;° and that at last pride and vanity, which 
 are almost inseparable from sovereign power, forced him, and in 
 a manner tore him, from himself and his own naturally good in¬ 
 clinations ; Vi dominationis convulsus et mutatus.v 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 The wrong education of their princes another cause of the declension of the 
 
 Persian Empire. 
 
 It is Plato still, o the prince of philosophers, who makes this 
 reflection ; and we shall find, if we narrowly examine the fact 
 in question, how solid and judicious it is, and how inexcusable 
 Cyrus’s conduct was in this respect. 
 
 Never had any man more reason than Cyrus to be sensible 
 how highly necessary a good education is to a young prince. 
 He knew the whole value of it with regard to himself, and had 
 found all the advantages of it by his own experience. What he 
 most earnestly recommended to his officers, r in that fine dis¬ 
 course which he made to them after the taking of Babylon, in 
 order to exhort them to maintain the glory and reputation they 
 had acquired, was to educate their children in the same manner 
 as they knew they were educated in Persia, and to preserve 
 themselves in the practice of the same manners as were observed 
 there. 
 
 Would one believe that a prince, who spoke and thought 
 in this manner, could ever have entirely neglected the education 
 of his own children? Yet this is what happened to Cyrus. 
 Forgetting that he was a father, and employing himself wholly 
 about his conquests, he left that care entirely to women, that is, 
 to princesses, brought up in a country where pomp, luxury, and 
 voluptuousness reigned in the highest degree ; for the queen 
 his wife was of Media. And in the same taste and manner 
 were the two young princes, Cambyses and Smerdis, educated. 
 Nothing they asked was ever refused them: all their desires 
 
 n Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 215. 0 Sallust. p Tacit. Annal. 1. vi. c. 48. 
 
 Lib. iii. de Leg. p. G94, 695. r Cyrop. 1. vii. p. 200. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 151 
 
 were anticipated. The great maxim was, that their attendants 
 should cross them in nothing, never contradict them, nor ever 
 make use of reproofs or remonstrances with them. No one 
 opened his mouth in their presence, but to praise and commend 
 what they said and did. Every one cringed, and stooped, and 
 bent the knee before them ; and it was thought essential to their 
 greatness to place an infinite distance between them and the 
 rest of mankind, as if they had been of a different species from 
 them. It is Plato that informs us of all these particulars ; for 
 Xenophon, probably to spare his hero, says not one word of the 
 manner in which these princes were brought up, though he 
 gives us so ample an account of the education of their father. 
 
 What surprises me the most is, that Cyrus did not, at least, 
 take them along with him in his last campaigns, in order to 
 draw them out of that soft and effeminate course of life, and to 
 instruct them in the art of war ; for they must needs have been 
 of sufficient years : but perhaps the women opposed his design, 
 and overruled him. 
 
 Whatever the obstacle was, the effect of the education of 
 these princes was such as might be expected from it. Camby- 
 ses came out of that school what he is represented in history, 
 an obstinate and self-conceited prince, full of arrogance and vanity, 
 abandoned to the most scandalous excesses of drunkenness and 
 debauchery, cruel and inhuman, even to the causing of his own 
 brother to be murdered in consequence of a dream ; in a word, 
 a furious, frantic madman, who by his ill conduct brought the 
 empire to the brink of destruction. 
 
 His father, says Plato, left him at his death vast provinces, 
 immense riches, with innumerable forces by sea and land: but 
 he had not given him the means of preserving them, by teaching 
 him the right use of such power. 
 
 This philosopher makes the same reflections with regard to 
 Darius and Xerxes. The former, not being the son of a king, 
 had not been brought up in the same effeminate manner as 
 princes were; but ascended the throne with a long habit of 
 industry, great temper and moderation, a courage little inferior 
 to that of Cyrus, by which he added to the empire almost as 
 many provinces as the other had conquered. But he was no 
 better a father than he, and reaped no benefit from the fault of 
 his predecessor in neglecting the education of his children. 
 Accordingly, his son Xerxes was little better than a second 
 Cambyses. 
 
 From all this, Plato, after having shown what numberless 
 rocks and quicksands, almost unavoidable, lie in the way of 
 persons bred in the arms of wealth and greatness, concludes, 
 that one principal cause of the declension and ruin of the Per- 
 sian empire was the bad education of their princes; because 
 
152 
 
 MANNERS OF THE 
 
 those first examples had an influence upon, and became a kind 
 of rule to, all their successors, under whom every thing still 
 degenerated more and more, till at last their luxury exceeded 
 all bounds and restraints. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 Their breach of faith and want of sincerity. 
 
 We are informed by Xenophon, s that one of the causes both 
 of the great corruption of manners among the Persians, and of 
 the destruction of their empire, was their want of public faith. 
 Formerly, says he, the king, and those that governed under 
 him, thought it an indispensable duty to keep their word, and 
 inviolably to observe all treaties into which they had entered, 
 with the solemnity of an oath; and that even with respect to 
 those that had rendered themselves most unworthy of such 
 treatment, through their perfidiousness and insincerity: and it 
 was by this sound policy and prudent conduct, that they gained 
 the absolute confidence, both of their own subjects, and of all 
 their neighbours and allies. This is a very great encomium 
 given by the historian to the Persians, which undoubtedly be¬ 
 longs chiefly to the reign of the great Cyrus; though Xenophon 
 applies it likewise to that of the younger Cyrus, 1 whose grand 
 maxim was, as he tells us, never to violate his faith upon any 
 pretence whatsoever, with regard either to any word he had 
 given, any promise made, or any treaty he had concluded. 
 These princes had a just idea of the regal dignity, and rightly 
 judged, that, if probity and truth were banished from the rest 
 of mankind, they ought to find a sanctuary in the heart of a 
 king; who, being the bond and centre, as it were, of society, 
 should also be the protector and avenger of faith engaged ; 
 which is the very foundation whereon the other depends. 
 
 Such sentiments as these, so noble, and so worthy of persons 
 born for government, did not last long. A false prudence, and 
 a spurious, artificial policy, soon succeeded in their place. In¬ 
 stead of faith, probity, and true merit, says Xenophon, u which 
 heretofore the prince used to cherish and distinguish, all the 
 chief offices of the court began to be filled with those pretended 
 zealous servants of the king, who sacrifice every thing to his 
 humour and supposed interests ; who hold it as a maxim, x that 
 falsehood and deceit, perfidiousness and perjury, if boldly and 
 artfully put in practice, are the shortest and surest expedients 
 
 8 Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 239. 
 
 * De Exped. Cyr. 1. i. p. 267. u Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 239. 
 
 x ’E7ri to icartpyaZeoOcu u)v E7n6vfioir], owTOHUTaryv odov weto eTvcii Sia rov 
 imopKElv te, Kal \pEvdEo9ai, icai EZcnraryv' to $e cnrXovv te leal aXyOtg, to ciuto 
 r<p r/XiQitp rfvai . De Exped. Cyr. 1. i. p. 292. 
 
ASSYRIANS, ETC. 
 
 153 
 
 to give success to his enterprises and designs ; who look upon a 
 scrupulous adherence in a prince to his word, and to the en¬ 
 gagements into which he has entered, as an effect of pusilla¬ 
 nimity, incapacity, and want of understanding; and whose 
 opinion, in short, is, that a man is unqualified for government, 
 if he does not prefer considerations of state, before the exact 
 observation of treaties, though concluded in never so solemn 
 and sacred a manner. 
 
 The Asiatic nations, continues Xenophon, soon imitated 
 their prince, who became their example and instructor in 
 double-dealing and treachery. They soon gave themselves up 
 to violence, injustice, and impiety : and from thence proceeds 
 that strange alteration and difference we find in their manners, 
 as also the contempt they conceived for their sovereigns, which 
 is both the natural consequence and usual punishment of the 
 little regard princes pay to the most sacred and awful solem¬ 
 nities of religion. 
 
 Surely the oaths by which treaties are sealed and ratified, 
 and the deity invoked not only as present, but as guarantee of 
 the conditions stipulated, is a most sacred and august ceremony, 
 very proper for the subjecting of earthly princes to the Supreme 
 Judge of heaven and earth, who alone is qualified to judge 
 them; and for the keeping of all human majesty within the 
 bounds of its duty, by making it appear before the majesty of 
 God, in respect of which it is as nothing. Now, if princes 
 will teach their people not to stand in fear of the Supreme 
 Being, how shall they be able to secure their respect and reve¬ 
 rence to themselves ? When once that fear comes to be extin¬ 
 guished in the subjects as well as in the prince, what will 
 become of fidelity and obedience, and on what foundation shall 
 the throne be established? Cyrus had good reason to say,? 
 that he looked upon none as good servants and faithful sub¬ 
 jects, but such as had a sense of religion, and a reverence for 
 the Deity: nor is it at all astonishing that the contempt which 
 an impious prince, who has no regard to the sanctity of oaths, 
 shows of God and religion, should shake the very foundations 
 of the firmest and best-established empires, and sooner or 
 later occasion their utter destruction. Kings, says Plutarch, 2 
 when any revolution happens in their dominions, are apt to 
 complain bitterly of their subjects’ unfaithfulness and disloyalty: 
 but they do them wrong; and forget that it was themselves 
 who gave them the first lessons of their disloyalty, by showing 
 no regard to justice and fidelity, which on all occasions they 
 sacrificed without scruple to their own particular interests. 
 
 y Cyrop. 1. viii. p. 204. z Plut. in Pyrrh. 390. 
 
BOOK V. 
 
 THE 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 ORIGIN AND FIRST SETTLEMENT 
 
 OF THE SEVERAL 
 
 STATES AND GOVERNMENTS 
 
 OF 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 Of all llie countries of antiquity none have been so highly 
 celebrated, or furnished history with so many valuable monu¬ 
 ments and illustrious examples, as Greece. In what light 
 soever she is considered, whether for the glory of her arms, the 
 wisdom of her laws, or the study and improvement of arts 
 and sciences, all these she carried to a high degree of perfec¬ 
 tion ; and it may truly be said, that in all these respects she 
 has in some measure been the school of mankind. 
 
 It is impossible not to be very much interested in the history 
 of such a nation; especially when we consider that it has been 
 transmitted to us by writers of the most consummate merit, 
 many of whom distinguished themselves as much by their swords 
 as by their pens; and were as great commanders and able 
 statesmen, as excellent historians. I confess, it is a vast advan¬ 
 tage to have such men for guides; men of exquisite judgment 
 and consummate prudence ; of a refined and perfect taste in 
 every respect; and who furnish not only the facts and thoughts, 
 as well as the expressions wherewith they are to be represented; 
 but, what is much more important, the proper reflections that 
 are to accompany those facts ; and which are the most useful 
 improvements resulting from history. These are the rich 
 sources from whence I shall draw all that I have to say, after I 
 have previously inquired into the first origin and establishment 
 of the Grecian states. As this inquiry must be dry, and not 
 capable of affording much delight to the reader, I shall be as 
 
HISTORY OF GREECE. 
 
 155 
 
 brief as possible. But before I enter upon that, I think it ne¬ 
 cessary to draw a- kind of short plan of the situation of the 
 country, and of the several parts that compose it. 
 
 ARTICLE I. 
 
 A geographical description of Ancient Greece. 
 
 Ancient Greece, which is now the south part of Turkey in 
 Europe, was bounded on the east by the ^Egean sea, now 
 called the Archipelago: on the south by the Cretan, or Can- 
 dian sea ; on the west by the Ionian sea ; and on the north by 
 Illyria and Thrace. 
 
 The constituent parts of ancient Greece are, Epirus, Pe¬ 
 loponnesus, Greece properly so called, Thessaly, and Mace¬ 
 donia. 
 
 Epirus. This province is situate to the west, and divided 
 from Thessaly and Macedonia by mount Pindus, and the Acro- 
 ceraunian mountains. 
 
 The principal inhabitants of Epirus are, the Molossians, 
 whose chief city is Dodona, famous for the temple and oracle 
 of Jupiter. The Ch AON IANS, whose principal city is Oricum. 
 The Thesprotians, whose city is Buthrotum, where was 
 the palace and residence of Pyrrhus. The Acarnanians, 
 whose city is Ambracia, which gives its name to the gulf. 
 Near to this stood Actium, famous for the victory of Augustus 
 Caesar, who built over-against that city, on the other side of the 
 gulf, a city named Nicopolis. There were two little rivers in 
 Epirus, very famous in fabulous story, Cocytus and Acheron. 
 
 Epirus must have been very well peopled in former times ; as 
 Polybius relates, a that Paulus iEmilius, after having defeated 
 Perseus, the last king of Macedonia, destroyed seventy cities in 
 that country, the greatest part of which belonged to the Mo¬ 
 lossians : and that he carried away from thence no less than 
 150,000 prisoners. 
 
 Peloponnesus. This is a peninsula, now called the Morea, 
 joined to the rest of Greece only by the isthmus of Corinth, that 
 is but six miles broad. It is well known, that several princes 
 have attempted in vain to cut through this isthmus. 
 
 The parts of Peloponnesus are, Achai A, properly so called, 
 whose chief cities are Corinth, Sicyon, Patrre, &c. Elis, in which 
 is Olympia, called also Pisa, seated on the river Alpheus, upon 
 the banks of which the Olympic games used to be celebrated. 
 Messenia, in which are the cities of Messene, Pylos, the birth¬ 
 place of Nestor and Corona. Arcadia, in which was Cyllene, 
 the mountain where Mercury was born, the cities of Tegea, 
 
 a Apud Strab. 1. vii. p. 322. 
 
156 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 Stymphalus, Mantinea, and Megalopolis, Polybius’s native 
 place. Laconia, wherein stood Sparta, or Lacedaemon, and 
 Amyclae ; mount Taygetus ; the river Eurotas, and the cape of 
 Tenarus. Argolis, in which was the city of Argos, called 
 also Hippium, famous for the temple of Juno ; Nemea, Mycenae, 
 Nauplia, Troezene, and Epidaurus, wherein was the temple of 
 ./Esculapius. 
 
 Greece, properly so called. The principal parts of this 
 country were, ^Etolia, in which were the cities of Chalcis, 
 Calydon, and Olenus. Doris. The Locri Ozol/E. Nau- 
 pactus, now called Lepanto, famous for the defeat of the Turks 
 in 1571. Piiocis. Anticyra. Delphi, at the foot of mount 
 Parnassus, famous for the oracles delivered there. In this 
 country also was mount Helicon. Bceotia. Mount Cithaeron. 
 Orchomenus. Thespia. Chaeronaea, illustrious as being Plu¬ 
 tarch’s native country. Plataeas, famous for the defeat of Mar- 
 donius. Thebes. Aulis, famous for its port, from whence the 
 Grecian army set sail for the siege of Troy. Leuctra, celebrated 
 for the victory of Epaminondas. Attica. Megara. Eleusis. 
 Decelia. Marathon, where Miltiades defeated the Persian 
 army. Athens, whose ports were Piraeeus, Munychia, and 
 Phalerus. The mountain Hymettus, famous for its excellent 
 honey. Locris. 
 
 Thessaly. The most remarkable towns of this province 
 were, Gomphi, Pharsalia, near which Julius Caesar defeated 
 Pompey. Magnesia. Methone, at the siege of which Philip 
 lost his eye. Thermopylae, a narrow strait, famous for the vi¬ 
 gorous resistance of 300 Spartans against Xerxes’s numerous 
 army, and for their glorious defeat. Phthia. Thebes. La¬ 
 rissa. Demetrias. The delightful valleys of Tempe, near the 
 hanks of the river Peneus. Olympus, Pelion, and Ossa, three 
 mountains celebrated in fabulous story for the battle of the 
 giants. 
 
 Macedonia. I shall mention only a few of the principal 
 towns of this country. Epidamnus, or Dyrracliium, now called 
 Durazzo. Apollonia. Pella, the capital of the country, and 
 the native place of Philip, and of his son Alexander the Great. 
 JEgse. Odessa. Pallene. Olynthus, from whence the 
 Olynthiacs of Demosthenes took their name. Torone. Acan¬ 
 thus. Thessalonica, now called Salonichi. Stagira, the place 
 of Aristotle’s birth. Amphipolis. Philippi, famous for the 
 victory gained there by Augustus and Antony over Brutus and 
 Cassius. Scotussa. Mount Atlios ; and the river Strymon. 
 
 The Grecian Isles. 
 
 There is a great number of islands contiguous to Greece, that 
 are very famous in history. In the Ionian sea, Corcyra, with 
 
157 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 a town of the same naipe, now called Corfu. Cephalene and 
 Zacyntlius, now Ceplialonia and Zante. Ithaca, the country of 
 Ulysses, and Dulichium. Near the promontory Malea, over- 
 against Laconia, is Cythera. In the Saronic gulf, are vEgina, 
 and Salamis, so famous for the sea-fight between Xerxes and 
 the Grecians. Between Greece and Asia lie the Sporades ; 
 and the Cyclades, the most noted of which are Andros, Delos, 
 and Paros, whence the finest marble was dug. Higher up in 
 the iEgean sea is Euboea, now Negropont, separated from the 
 main land by a small arm of the sea, called Euripus. The most 
 remarkable city of this isle was Chalcis. Towards the north is 
 Scyrus, and a good deal higher Lemnos, now called Stalimene ; 
 and still farther, Samothrace. Lower down is Lesbos, whose 
 principal city was Mitylene, from whence the isle has since 
 taken the name of Metelin. . Chios, now Scio, renowned for 
 excellent wine; and, lastly, Samos. Some of these last-men¬ 
 tioned isles are reckoned to belong to Asia. 
 
 The island of Crete, or Candia, is the largest of all the isles 
 contiguous to Greece. It has to the north the vEgean sea, or 
 the Archipelago ; and to the south the African ocean. Its 
 principal towns were, Gortyna, Cydon, Gnossus ; its mountains, 
 Dicte, Ida, and Corycus. Its labyrinth is famous over all the 
 world. 
 
 The Grecians had colonies in most of these isles. 
 
 They had likewise settlements in Sicily, and in part of Italy 
 towards Calabria, which places are for that reason called Graecia 
 Magna. b 
 
 But their grand settlement was in Asia Minor, and particu¬ 
 larly in iEolis, Ionia, and Doris. c The principal towns of 
 ^Eolis are Cumae, Phocaea, Elea. Of Ionia, Smyrna, Clazo- 
 menae, Teos, Lebedus, Colophon, and Ephesus. Of Doris, 
 Halicarnassus and Cnidos. 
 
 They had also a great number of colonies dispersed up and 
 down in different parts of the world, whereof I shall give some 
 account as occasion shall offer. 
 
 ARTICLE II. 
 
 Division of the Grecian History into four several ages. 
 
 The Grecian history may be divided into four different ages, 
 marked out by so many memorable epochas, all which together 
 include the space of 2154 years. 
 
 The first age extends from the foundation of the several petty 
 kingdoms of Greece (beginning with that of Sicyon, which is 
 the most ancient) to the siege of Troy, and comprehends about 
 b Strab. 1. vi. p. 253. c Plin. 1. vi. c. 2. 
 
158 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 1000 years, namely, from the year of the world 1820 to the year 
 2820/ 
 
 The second extends from the taking of Troy to the reign of 
 Darius, the son of Hystaspes, at which period the Grecian 
 history begins to be intermixed with that of the Persians, and 
 contains the space of 663 years, from the year of the world 2820 
 to the year 3483. 
 
 The third extends from the beginning of the reign of Darius 
 to the death of Alexander the Great, which is the finest part of 
 the Grecian history, and takes in the term of 198 years, from the 
 year of the world 3483 to the year 3681. 
 
 The fourth and last age commences from the death of Alex¬ 
 ander, at which time the Grecians began to decline, and con¬ 
 tinues to their final subjection by the Romans. The epocha of 
 the utter ruin and downfall of the Greeks may be dated, partly 
 from the taking and destruction of Corinth by the consul L. Mum- 
 mius, in 3858, partly from the extinction of the kingdom of the 
 Seleucidae in Asia by Pompey, in the year of the world 3939, 
 and of the kingdom of the Lagidag in Egypt by Augustus, 
 anno mun. 3974. This last age includes in all 293 years. 
 
 Of these four ages, I shall in this place only touch upon the 
 first two, in a very succinct manner, just to give the reader some 
 general notion of that obscure period ; because those times, at 
 least a great part of them, have more of fable in them than of 
 real history, and are wrapt up in such darkness and obscurity, 
 as are very hard, if not impossible, to penetrate; and I have 
 often declared already, that such a dark and laborious inquiry, 
 though very useful for those that are anxious to make deep re¬ 
 searches into history, does not come within the plan of my design. 
 
 ARTICLE III. 
 
 The primitive origin of the Grecians. 
 
 In order to arrive at any certainty with respect to the first 
 origin of the Grecian nations, we must necessarily have recourse 
 to the accounts we have of it in Holy Scripture. 
 
 Javan or Ion, (for in the Hebrew the same letters differently 
 pointed form these two different names,) d the son of Japheth, 
 and grandson of Noalq was certainly the father of all those na¬ 
 tions that went under the general denomination of Greeks, 
 though he has been looked upon as the father of the Ionians 
 only, which were but one particular nation of Greeks. But 
 the Hebrews, the Chaldeans, Arabians, and others, give no 
 other appellation to the whole body of the Grecian nations, than 
 that of Ionians. And for this reason Alexander, in the pre- 
 
 d Gen. x. 2. 
 
GREECE. 159 
 
 dictions of Daniel , 6 is mentioned under the name of the king- of 
 Javan. f 
 
 Javan had four sons, s Elishali, Tarshish, Chittim, and Doda- 
 nim. As Javan was the original father of the Grecians in 
 general, without doubt his four sons were the heads and 
 founders of the chief tribes and principal branches of that 
 nation, which became in succeeding ages so renowned for arts 
 and arms. 
 
 Elishali is the same as Ellas, as it is rendered in the Chaldee 
 translation, and the word l 'E\\ 97 ve 9 , which was used as the com¬ 
 mon appellation of the whole people, in the same manner as the 
 word was of the whole country, has no other derivation. 
 
 The very ancient city of Elis, in Peloponnesus, the Elysian 
 fields, the river Elissus, or Ilissus, have long retained the marks 
 of their being derived from Elishali, and have contributed more 
 to preserve his memory, than the historians themselves of the 
 nation, who were inquisitive after foreign affairs, and but little 
 acquainted with their own original; as they had little or no 
 knowledge of the true religion, and did not carry their inquiries 
 so high. Upon which account, they themselves derived the 
 words Hellenes and Iones from another fountain, as we shall 
 see in the sequel; for I think myself obliged to give some ac¬ 
 count of their opinions also in this respect. 
 
 Tarshish was the second son of Javan. He settled, as his 
 brethren did, in some part of Greece, perhaps in Acliaia, or 
 the neighbouring provinces, as Elishali did in Peloponnesus. 
 
 It is not to be doubted but that Chittim was the father of the 
 Macedonians, according to the authority of the first book of 
 the Maccabees , 11 in the beginning of which it is said, that 
 Alexander, the son of Philip the Macedonian, went out of 
 his country, which was that of Cettliim , 1 [or Chittim,] to make 
 war against Darius, king of Persia. And in the eighth chapter, 
 speaking of the Romans and their victories over the last kings 
 of Macedonia, Philip and Perseus, k the two last-mentioned 
 princes are called kings of the Chittims. 
 
 Dodanim. It is very probable, that Thessaly and Epirus 
 were the portion of the fourth son of Javan. The impious 
 worship of Jupiter of Dodona, as well as the city Dodona 1 
 itself, are proofs that some remembrance of Dodanim had 
 remained with the people, who derived their first establishment 
 and origan from him. 
 
 This is all that can be said with any certainty concerning the 
 origin of the Grecian nations. The Holy Scripture, whose 
 
 e Dan. viii. 21. 
 
 f Hircus caprarum rex Grcecice; in the Hebrew, rex Javan. 
 
 s Gen. x. 4. h 1 Macc. i. 1. 
 
 ‘ Egressus de terra Cethim. k Philippum et Perseum Cetheorum regem. Ver. 5. 
 
 1 A (lidwvrj and AojScjvov tov Aidg icai EvpMTrrjg. Stephanus. 
 
160 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 design is not to satisfy our curiosity, but to nourish and improve 
 our piety, after scattering these few rays of light, leaves us in 
 utter darkness concerning the rest of their history: which 
 therefore can be collected only from profane authors. 
 
 If we may believe Pliny, m the Grecians were so called from the 
 name of an ancient king, of whom they had but very uncertain 
 tradition. Homer, in his poems, calls them Hellenes, Danai, 
 Argives, and Achaians. It is observable, that the word Grce - 
 cus is not once used in Virgil. 
 
 The exceeding rusticity of the first Grecians would appear 
 incredible, if we could call in question the testimony of their 
 own historians upon that point. But a people so vain of their 
 origin as to adorn it by fiction and fables, would never think of 
 inventing any thing in its disparagement. Who would imagine 
 that the people, 11 to whom the world is indebted for all her 
 knowledge in literature and the sciences, should be descended 
 from mere savages, who knew no other law than force, were 
 ignorant even of agriculture, and fed on herbs and roots like 
 the brute beasts ? And yet this appears plainly to be the case 
 from the divine honours they decreed to the person 0 who 
 first taught them to feed upon acorns, as a more delicate and 
 wholesome nourishment than herbs. There was still a great 
 distance from this first improvement to a state of urbanity and 
 politeness. Nor did they indeed arrive at the latter, till after 
 a long process of time. 
 
 The weakest were not the last to understand the necessity of 
 living together in society, in order to defend themselves against 
 violence and oppression. At first they built single houses at 
 a distance from one another; the number of which insensibly 
 increasing, formed in time towns and cities. But the bare liv¬ 
 ing together in society was not sufficient to polish such a peo¬ 
 ple. Egypt and Phoenicia had the honour of doing this. Both 
 these nations contributed to instruct and civilize the Grecians,? 
 by the colonies they sent among them. The latter taught them 
 navigation, writing, and commerce ; the former, the knowledge 
 of their laws and polity, gave them a taste for arts and sciences, 
 and initiated them into her mysteries. 
 
 Greece, q in her infant state, was exposed to great commotions 
 and frequent revolutions ; because, as the people had no settled 
 correspondence, and no superior power to give laws to the rest, 
 every thing was determined by force and violence. The strongest 
 invaded the lands of their neighbours, which they thought more 
 fertile and delightful than their own, and dispossessed the law¬ 
 ful owners, who were obliged to seek new settlements elsewhere. 
 
 m Lib. iv. c. 7. n Pausan. 1. viii. p. 455, 456. 0 Pelasgus. 
 
 p Herod. 1. ii. c. 58.1. v. c. 58—60. Plin. 1. v. c. 12. 1. vii. c. 56. 
 
 9 Thucyd. lib. i. p. 2. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 1G1 
 
 As Attica was a dry and barren country, its inhabitants bad not 
 the same invasions and outrages to fear, and therefore conse¬ 
 quently kept themselves in possession of their ancient territo¬ 
 ries ; for which reason they took the name of avj6x0ove<?, that is, 
 men born in the country where they lived, to distinguish them¬ 
 selves from the rest of the nations, that had almost all trans¬ 
 planted themselves from place to place. 
 
 Such were in general the first beginnings of Greece. We 
 must now enter into a more particular detail, and give a brief 
 account of the establishment of the several different states 
 whereof the whole country consisted. 
 
 ARTICLE IV. 
 
 The different states into which Greece was divided. 
 
 In those early times kingdoms were but inconsiderable, and 
 of very small extent, the title of kingdom being often given to 
 a single city, with a few leagues of land depending upon it. 
 
 Sic yon. The most ancient kingdom of 
 a ^ Greece was that of Sicyon; whose beginning; is 
 
 placed by Eusebius r lolo years before the first 
 Olympiad. Its duration is believed to have been 1000 years. 
 
 Argos. The kingdom of Argos, inPelopon- 
 Ant ftTlIS. nesus > began 1080 years before the first Olympiad, 
 in the time of Abraham. The first king of it 
 was I\ A cues. His successors were, his son Phoroneus ; 
 Apis ; Argus, from whom the country took its name; and 
 after several others, Gelanor, who was dethroned and ex¬ 
 pelled his kingdom by Danaus, the Egyptian. 
 a ™^74 ^he successors of this last were Lynceus, the 
 son of his brother /Egyptus, who alone, of fifty 
 brothers, escaped the cruelty of the Danaides ; then Abas, 
 Proteus, and Acrisius. 
 
 Of Banae, daughter to the last, was born Perseus, who 
 having, when he was grown up, unfortunately killed his grand¬ 
 father, Acrisuis, and not being able to bear the sight of Argos, 
 where he committed that involuntary murder, withdrew to My¬ 
 cenae, and there fixed the seat of his kingdom. 
 
 Mycenae. Perseus then translated the seat of the kingdom 
 from Argos to Myceme. He left several sons behind him; 
 among others, Alcaeus, Sthenelus, and Electryon. Alcaeus 
 was the father of Amphitryon ; Sthenelus of Eurystheus ; and 
 Electryon of Alcmena. Amphitryon married Alcmena, upon 
 whom Jupiter begat Hercules. 
 
 Eurystheus and Hercules came into the world the same day ; 
 
 r Easeb. in Chron. 
 
 M 
 
 YOL. II. 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 162 
 
 but as the birtli of the former was by Juno’s management ante¬ 
 cedent to that of the latter, Hercules was forced to be subject 
 to him, and was obliged by his order to undertake the twelve 
 labours, so celebrated in fabulous history. 
 
 The kings who reigned at Mycenae, after Perseus, were, 
 Electryon, Stiienelus, Eurystheus. The last, after 
 the death of Hercules, declared open war against his descend¬ 
 ants, apprehending they might some time or other attempt to 
 dethrone him ; which, as it happened, was done by the Heracli- 
 dae ; for, having killed Eurystheus in battle, they entered vic¬ 
 torious into Peloponnesus, and made themselves masters of the 
 country. But, as this happened before the time determined by 
 fate, a plague ensued, which, with the direction of an oracle, 
 obliged them to cpiit the country. Three years after this, being 
 deceived by the ambiguous expression of the oracle, they made 
 a second attempt, which likewise proved fruitless. This was 
 about twenty years before the taking of Troy. 
 
 Atreus, the son of Pelops, uncle by the mother’s side to 
 Eurystheus, was the latter’s successor. And in this manner the 
 crown came to the descendants of Pelops, from whom Pelo¬ 
 ponnesus, which before was called Apia, derived its name. The 
 bloody hatred of the two brothers, Atreus and Thyestes, is known 
 to all the world. 
 
 Plisthenes, the son of Atreus, succeeded his father in the 
 kingdom of Mycenae, which lie left to his son AgamFTvinon, 
 who was succeeded by his son Orestes. The kingdom of 
 Mycenae was filled with enormous and horrible crimes, from the 
 time it came into the family of Pelops. 
 
 Tisimenes and Penthilus, sons of Orestes, reigned after 
 their father, and were at last driven out of Peloponnesus by the 
 Heraclidae. 
 
 Athens. Cecrops, a native of Egypt, was 
 
 Ant. J*’c. 4 i 556 ^ ie founder of this kingdom. Having settled in 
 Attica, he divided all the country subject to him 
 into twelve districts. He it was who established the Areopagus. 
 
 This august tribunal, in the reign of his successor Cranaus, 
 adjudged the famous difference between Neptune and Mars. 
 In his time happened Deucalion’s flood. The deluge of Ogy- 
 ges in Attica was much more ancient, and happened 1020 years 
 before the first Olympiad, and consequently in the year of the 
 world 2208. 
 
 Am phICTYON, the third king of Athens, procured a con¬ 
 federacy between twelve nations, which assembled twice a-year 
 at Thermopylae, there to offer their common sacrifices, and to 
 consult together upon their affairs in general, as also upon the 
 affairs of each nation in particular. This convention was called 
 the assembly of Ihe Amphictyons. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 163 
 
 The reign of Erechtheus is remarkable for the arrival of 
 Ceres in Attica, after the rape of her daughter Proserpine, as 
 also for the institution of the mysteries at Eleusis. 
 
 The reign of aEgeus, the son of Pandion, is 
 Ant C^l^84 the mos t illustrious period of the history of the 
 heroes. In his time are placed the expedition 
 of the Argonauts ; the celebrated labours of Hercules ; the war 
 of Minos, second king of Crete, against the Athenians; the 
 story of Theseus and Ariadne. 
 
 Theseus succeeded his father AEgeus. Ceerops had di¬ 
 vided Attica into twelve boroughs, or twelve districts, separated 
 from each other. Theseus brought the people to understand 
 the advantages of common government, and united the twelve 
 boroughs into one city or body politic, in which the whole 
 authority was united. 
 
 Courus was the last king of Athens; he devoted himself 
 to die for his people. 
 
 After him the title of king was extinguished 
 
 A TVT OQQJ . ^ o 
 
 AnT i among the Athenians. Me don, his son, was 
 
 Ant. J. U. 1070. o * ’ 
 
 set at the head ot the commonwealth, with the 
 title of Arclion, that is to say, president or governor. The 
 first Archontes were for life ; but the Athenians, growing weary 
 of a government which they still thought bore too great a re¬ 
 semblance to royal power, made their Archontes elective every 
 ten years, and at last reduced it to an annual office. 
 
 Thebes. Cadmus, who came by sea from the 
 
 A. M. 2549. coas {. 0 f Phoenicia, that is, from about Tvre and 
 bidon, seized upon that part ot the country, 
 which was afterwards called Boeotia. He built there the city 
 of Thebes, or at least a citadel, which from his own name he 
 called Cadmea, and there fixed the seat of his power and 
 dominion. 
 
 The fatal misfortune of Laius, one of his successors, and of 
 Jocasta his wife, of (Edipus their son, of Etocles and Polynices, 
 who were born of the incestuous marriage of Jocasta with 
 CEdipus, have furnished ample matter for fabulous narration 
 and theatrical representations. 
 
 Sparta, or Lacedaemon. It is supposed, that Lelex, 
 the first king of Laconia, began his reign about 1516 years 
 before the Christian sera. 
 
 Tyndarus, the ninth king of Lacedaemon, had, by Leda, 
 Castor and Pollux, who were twins, besides Helena, and Cly- 
 temnestra the wife of Agamemnon, king of Mycenae. Having 
 survived his two sons, the twins, he began to think of choosing 
 a successor, by looking out for a husband for his daughter 
 Helena. All the suitors to this princess bound themselves by 
 oath, to abide by, and entirely to submit to, the choice which 
 
m 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 the lady herself should make, who determined in favour of 
 Menelaus. She had not lived above three years with her hus¬ 
 band, before she was carried off by Alexander or Paris, son of 
 Priam, king' of the Trojans; which rape was the cause of the 
 Trojan war. Greece did not properly begin to know or expe¬ 
 rience her united strength, till the famous siege of that city, 
 where Achilles, the Ajaxes, Nestor, and Ulysses, gave Asia 
 sufficient reason to forebode her future subjection to their pos¬ 
 terity. The Greeks took Troy after a ten years’ siege, much 
 about the time that Jephthah governed the people of God ; that 
 is, according to Archbishop Usher, in the year of the world 
 2820, and 1184 years before Jesus Christ. This epocha is 
 famous in history, and should carefully be remembered, as well 
 as that of the Olympiads. 
 
 An Olympiad is the revolution of four complete years, from 
 one celebration of the Olympic games to the other. We have 
 elsewhere given an account of the institution of these games, 
 which were celebrated every four years, near the town of Pisa, 
 .otherwise called Olympia. 
 
 The common aera of the" Olympiads begins in the summer of 
 the year of the world 3228, 776 years before Jesus Christ, 
 from the games in which Corebus won the prize in the foot¬ 
 race. 
 
 Fourscore years after the taking of Troy, the Heraclidae 
 re-entered Peloponnesus, and seized Lacedaemon, where two 
 brothers, Eurysthenes and Procles, sons of Aristodemus, began 
 to reign together, and from their time the sceptre always con¬ 
 tinued jointly in the hands of the descendants of those two 
 families. Many years after this, Lycurgus instituted that body 
 of laws for the Spartan state, which rendered both the legislator 
 and republic so famous in history: I shall speak of them at 
 large in the secpiel. 
 
 Corinth. Corinth began later than the other 
 Ant J^C^1376 c ^i es I have been speaking of, to be governed 
 by kings of its own. It was at first subject to 
 those of Argos and Mycenae; at last, Sisyphus, the son of 
 iEolus, made himself master of it. But his descendants were 
 dispossessed of the throne by the Heraclidae, about 110 years 
 after the siege of Troy. 
 
 The regal power, after this, came to the descendants of 
 Bacchis, under whom the monarchy was changed into an aris¬ 
 tocracy, that is, the reins of the government were in the 
 hands of the elders, who annually chose from among themselves 
 a chief magistrate, whom they called Prytanis. At last Cyp- 
 selus, having gained the people, usurped the supreme authority, 
 which he transmitted to his son Periander; who held a dis¬ 
 tinguished rank among the Grecian sages, on account of the 
 
GREECE. 
 
 love he bore to learning, and the protection and encouragement 
 he gave to learned men. 
 
 Macedonia. It was a long time before the 
 * Greeks paid any great attention to Macedonia. 
 
 Her kings, living retired in woods and moun¬ 
 
 tains, seemed not to be considered as a part of Greece. They 
 pretended, that their kings, of whom CARANUS was the first, 
 were descended from Hercules. Philip, and his son Alex¬ 
 ander, raised the glory of this kingdom to,a very high pitch. 
 It had subsisted 471 years before the death of Alexander, and 
 continued 155 more, till Perseus was defeated and taken by 
 the Romans ; in all, 626 years. 
 
 ARTICLE V. 
 
 Colonies of the Greeks sent into Asia Minor. 
 
 We have already observed, that fourscore years after the 
 taking of Troy, the Heraclidae recovered Peloponnesus, after 
 having defeated the Pelopidm, that is, Tisamenes and Pen- 
 tliilus, sons of Orestes ; and that they divided the kingdoms 
 of Mycenae, Argos, and Lacedaemon, among themselves. 
 
 So great a revolution as this changed almost the whole face 
 of the country, and made way for several very famous trans¬ 
 migrations. To understand these the better, and to have the 
 clearer idea of the situation of many of the Grecian nations, 
 as also of the four dialects, or different idioms of speech, that 
 prevailed amongst them, it will be necessary to look a little 
 farther back into history. 
 
 Deucalion, s who reigned in Thessaly, and under whom hap¬ 
 pened the flood that bears his name, had by Pyrrha his wife 
 two sons, Hellen and Amphictyon. The latter, having driven 
 Cranaus out of Athens, reigned there in his place. Hellen, if 
 we may believe the historians of his country, gave the name of 
 Hellenes to the Greeks : he had three sons, 7Eolus, Dorns, 
 and Xuthus. 
 
 iEolus, who was the eldest, succeeded his father, and 
 besides Thessaly, had Locris and Boeotia added to his domi¬ 
 nions. Several of his descendants went into Peloponnesus 
 with Pelops, the son of Tantalus, king of Phrygia, from whom 
 Peloponnesus took its name, and settled themselves in La¬ 
 conia. 
 
 The country contiguous to Parnassus fell to the share of 
 Dorus, and from him was called Doris. 
 
 Xuthus, compelled by his brothers, upon some private 
 quarrel, to quit his country, retired into Attica, where he mar- 
 
 Strab. 1. viii. p. 303, &c. Pausan. 1. vii. p. 390, Ac. 
 
 S 
 
166 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 ried the daughter of Erechtheus, king of the Athenians, by 
 whom he had two sons, Achaeus and Ion. 
 
 An involuntary murder committed by Achseus, obliged him 
 to retire to Peloponnesus, which was then called Egialma, of 
 which one part was from him called Achaia. His descendants 
 settled at Lacedaemon. 
 
 Ion, having signalized himself by his victories, was invited 
 by the Athenians to govern their city, and gave his name to 
 the country; for the inhabitants of Attica were likewise called 
 Tonians. The number of the citizens increased to such a 
 degree, that the Athenians were obliged to send a colony of 
 lonians into Peloponnesus, who likewise gave their name to 
 the country they possessed. 
 
 Thus all the inhabitants of Peloponnesus, though composed 
 of different people, were united under the names of Acliaeans 
 and lonians. 
 
 The Heraclidae, fourscore years after the taking of Troy, re¬ 
 solved seriously to recover Peloponnesus, which, they imagined, 
 of right belonged to them. They had three principal leaders, 
 sons of Aristomachus, namely, Temenus, Cresphontes, and 
 Aristodemus : the last dying, his two sons, Eurysthenes and 
 Procles, succeeded him. The success of their expedition was 
 as happy as the motive was just, and they recovered the pos¬ 
 session of their ancient domain. Argos fell to Temenus, Mes- 
 senia to Cresphontes, and Laconia to the two sons of Aris¬ 
 todemus. 
 
 Such of the Achasans as were descended from .dEolus, and 
 had hitherto inhabited Laconia, being driven from thence by 
 the Dorians, who accompanied the Heraclidae into Pelopon¬ 
 nesus, after some wandering, settled in that part of Asia Minor 
 which from them took the name of iEolus, where they founded 
 Smyrna, and eleven other cities ; but the city of Smyrna came 
 afterwards into the hands of the lonians. The ^Eolians became 
 likewise possessed of several cities of Lesbos. 
 
 As for the Achaeans of Mycenae and Argos, being compelled 
 to abandon their country to the Heraclidae, they seized upon 
 that of the lonians, who dwelt at that time in a part of Pelo¬ 
 ponnesus. The latter fled at first to Athens, their original 
 country, from whence they some time afterwards departed 
 under the conduct of Nileus and Androcles, both sons of Co- 
 drus, and seized upon that part of the coast of Asia Minor 
 which lies between Caria and Lydia, and from them was named 
 Ionia ; here they built twelve cities, Ephesus, Clazomenae, Sa¬ 
 mos, &c. 
 
 The power of the Athenians , 1 who had then Codrus for their 
 king, being very much augmented by the great number of re- 
 
 1 Strab. p. 393. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 167 
 
 fugees that had fled into their country, the Heraclidae thought 
 proper to oppose the progress of their power, and for that rea¬ 
 son made war upon them. The latter were worsted in a battle, 
 but still remained masters of Megaris, where they built Megara, 
 and settled the Dorians in that country in the room of the 
 lonians. 
 
 One part of the Dorians continued in the country after the 
 death of Codrus, u another went to Crete ; the greatest number 
 settled in that part of Asia Minor which from them was called 
 Doris, where they built Halicarnassus, Cnidus, and other cities, 
 and made themselves masters of the island of Rhodes, Cos, &c. 
 
 The Grecian Dialects. 
 
 It will now be more easy to understand what we have to say 
 concerning the several Grecian dialects. These were four in 
 number : the Attic, the Ionic, the Doric, and the iEolic. They 
 were in reality four different languages, each of them perfect in 
 its kind, and used by a distinct nation ; but yet all derived from, 
 and grounded upon, the same original tongue. And this di¬ 
 versity of languages can no ways appear wonderful in a country 
 where the inhabitants consisted of different nations, that did not 
 depend upon one another, but had each its particular territories. 
 
 1. The Attic dialect is that which was used in Athens, and 
 the country round about. This dialect has been chiefly used by 
 Thucydides, Aristophanes, Plato, Isocrates, Xenophon, and 
 Demosthenes. 
 
 2. The Ionic dialect was almost the same with the ancient 
 Attic ; but after it had passed into several towns of Asia Minor, 
 and into the adjacent islands, which were colonies of the Athe¬ 
 nians, and of the people of Achaia, it received a sort of new 
 tincture, and did not come up to that perfect delicacy which the 
 Athenians afterwards attained. Hippocrates and Herodotus 
 wrote in this dialect. 
 
 3. The Doric was first in use among the Spartans, and the 
 people of Argos ; it passed afterwards into Epirus, Libya, Si¬ 
 cily, Rhodes, and Crete. Archimedes and Theocritus, both of 
 them Syracusans, and Pindar, followed this dialect. 
 
 4. The iEolic dialect was at first used by the Boeotians 
 and their neighbours, and then in /Eolis, a country in Asia 
 Minor, between Ionia and Mysia, which contained ten or 
 twelve cities, that were Grecian colonies. Sappho and Alcaeus, 
 of whose works very little remains, wrote in this dialect. 
 We find also a mixture of it in the writings of Theocritus, Pin¬ 
 dar, Homer, and many others. 
 
 u Strab. p. 053. 
 
1G8 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 ARTICLE VI. 
 
 The republican form of government almost generally established 
 
 throughout Greece. 
 
 The reader may have observed, in the little I have said about 
 the several settlements of Greece, that the primordial grounds 
 of all those different states was monarchical government, the 
 most ancient of all forms, the most universally received and 
 established, the most proper to maintain peace and concord ; 
 and which, as Plato observes/ is formed upon the model of 
 paternal authority, and of that gentle and moderate dominion, 
 which fathers exercise over their families. 
 
 Rut, as the state of things degenerated by degrees, through 
 the injustice of usurpers, the severity of lawful masters, the 
 insurrections of the people, and a thousand accidents and revolu¬ 
 tions, that happened in those states ; a totally different spi¬ 
 rit seized the people, which prevailed all over Greece, kin¬ 
 dled a violent desire of liberty, and brought about a general 
 change of government every where, except in Macedonia; so 
 that monarchy gave way to a republican government, which 
 however was diversified into almost as many various forms as 
 there were different cities, according to the different genius and 
 peculiar character of each people. However, there still re¬ 
 mained a kind of tincture or leaven of the ancient monarchical 
 government, which from time to time inflamed the ambition of 
 many private citizens, and made them desire to become masters 
 of their country. In almost every one of these petty states of 
 Greece, some private persons arose, who, without any right to 
 the throne, either by birth or election of the citizens, endea¬ 
 voured to advance themselves to it by cabal, treachery, and 
 violence ; and who, without any respect for the laws, or regard 
 to the public good, exercised a sovereign authority, with a 
 despotic empire and arbitrary sway. In order to support their 
 unjust usurpations in the midst of distrusts and alarms, they 
 thought themselves obliged to prevent imaginary, or to suppress 
 real conspiracies, by the most cruel proscriptions ; and to sacri¬ 
 fice to their own security all those whom merit, rank, wealth, 
 zeal for liberty, or love of their country, rendered obnoxious to 
 a suspicious and tottering government, which found itself hated 
 by all, and was sensible it deserved to be so. It was this cruel 
 and inhuman treatment that rendered these men so odious, 
 under the appellation of Tyrants/ and which furnished such 
 ample matter for the declamation of orators, and the tragical 
 representations of the theatre. 
 
 x Plat, de Leg. 1. iii. p. G80. 
 
 y This word originally signified no more than king, and was anciently the 
 title of lawful princes. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 IG9 
 
 All these cities and districts of Greece, that seemed so 
 entirely disjointed from one another by their laws, customs, 
 and interests, were nevertheless formed and combined into one 
 sole, entire, and united body ; whose strength increased to such 
 a degree, as to make the formidable power of the Persians 
 under Darius and Xerxes tremble ; and which even then, per¬ 
 haps, would have entirely overthrown the Persian greatness, 
 had the Grecian states been wise enough to preserve that union 
 and concord among themselves, which afterwards rendered 
 them invincible. This is the scene which I am now to open, 
 and which certainly merits the readers whole attention. 
 
 We shall see, in the following volumes, a small nation, con¬ 
 fined within a country not equal to the fourth part of France, 
 disputing for dominion with the most powerful empire then upon 
 the earth ; and we shall see this handful of men, not only 
 making head against the innumerable army of the Persians, 
 but dispersing, routing, and cutting them to pieces, and some¬ 
 times reducing the Persian pride so low, as to make them sub¬ 
 mit to conditions of peace, as shameful to the conquered, as glo¬ 
 rious for the conquerors. 
 
 Among the cities of Greece, there were two that particu¬ 
 larly distinguished themselves, and acquired an authority and 
 a kind of superiority over the rest, solely by their merit and 
 conduct: these two were Lacedaemon and Athens. As these 
 cities make a considerable figure, and act an illustrious part in 
 the ensuing history, before I enter upon particulars, I think 
 I ought first to give the reader some idea of the genius, cha¬ 
 racter, manners, and government, of their respective inhabitants. 
 Plutarch, in the lives of Lycurgus and Solon, will furnish 
 me with the greatest part of what I have to say upon this 
 head. 
 
 ARTICLE VII. 
 
 The Spartan government. Laws established by Lycurgus. 
 
 There is perhaps nothing in profane history better attested, 
 and at the same time more incredible, than what relates to 
 the government of Sparta, and the discipline established in it 
 by Lycurgus. This legislator was the son of Eunomus, 2 one 
 of the two kings who reigned together in Sparta. It would 
 have been easy for Lycurgus to have ascended the throne after 
 the death of his eldest brother, who left no son behind him ; and 
 in fact he was king for some days. Rut, as soon as his sister- 
 in-law was found to be with child, he declared that the crown 
 belonged to her son, if she had one; and from thenceforth he 
 
 z Plut. in vit. Lyc. p. 40. 
 
170 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 governed the kingdom only as his guardian. In the mean 
 time, the widow gave him secretly to understand, that if lie 
 would promise to marry her when he was king, she would destroy 
 the fruit of her womb. So detestable a proposal struck Lycurgus 
 with horror; however, he concealed his indignation, and amusing 
 the woman with different pretences, so managed it, that she 
 went her full time, and was delivered. As soon as the child 
 was born, he proclaimed him king, and took care to have him 
 brought up and educated in a proper manner. This prince, on 
 account of the joy which the people testified at his birth, was 
 named Charilaus. 
 
 The state was at this time in great disorder ; a the authority, 
 both of the kings and the laws, being absolutely despised and 
 disregarded. No curb was strong enough to restrain the auda¬ 
 ciousness of the people, which every day increased more and 
 more. 
 
 Lycurgus formed the bold design of making a thorough 
 reformation in the Spartan government; and to be the more 
 capable of making wise regulations, he thought fit to travel 
 into several countries, in order to acquaint himself with the dif¬ 
 ferent manners of other nations, and to consult the most able 
 and experienced persons in the art of government. He began 
 with the island of Crete, whose harsh and austere laws are 
 very famous; from thence lie passed into Asia, where quite 
 different customs prevailed ; and, last of all, he went into Egypt, 
 which was then the seat of science, wisdom, and good counsels. 
 
 His long absence only made his country the more desirous of 
 his return ; b and the kings themselves importuned him to that 
 purpose, being sensible how much they stood in need of his au¬ 
 thority to keep the people within bounds, and in some degree of 
 subjection and order. When he came back to Sparta, he un¬ 
 dertook to change the whole form of their government, being 
 persuaded, that a few particular laws would produce no great 
 effect. 
 
 But before he put this design into execution, he went to 
 Delphi, to consult the oracle of A pollo: where after having 
 offered his sacrifice, he received that famous answer, in which 
 the priestess called him a friend of the gods, and rather a god 
 than a man. And as for the favour he desired of being able 
 to frame a set of good laws for his country, she told him, the 
 god had heard his prayers, and that the commonwealth he was 
 going to- establish would be the most excellent state in the 
 world. 
 
 On his return to Sparta, the first thing he did was to bring 
 over to his designs the leading men of the city, whom he made 
 
 a Hut. in vit. Lyc. p. 41. 
 
 b Ibid. p. 42. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 171 
 
 acquainted with his views ; and when he was assured of their 
 approbation and concurrence, he went into the public market¬ 
 place, accompanied with a number of armed men, in order 
 to astonish and intimidate those who might desire to oppose 
 his undertaking. 
 
 The new form of government which he introduced into Sparta, 
 may be reduced to three principal institutions. 
 
 First Institution. The Senate. 
 
 ♦ 
 
 Of all the new regulations or institutions made by Lycurgus, 0 
 the greatest and most considerable was that of the senate; which, 
 by tempering and balancing, as Plato observes, the too absolute 
 power of the kings, by an authority of equal weight and in¬ 
 fluence with theirs, became the principal support and preserva¬ 
 tion of that state. For whereas before, it was ever unsteady, 
 and tending one while to tyranny, by the violent proceeding of 
 the kings; at other times towards democracy, by the excessive 
 power of the people : the senate served as a kind of counterpoise 
 to both, which kept the state in a due equilibrium, and preserved 
 it in a firm and steady situation ; the twenty-eight senators/ 1 of 
 which it consisted, siding with the kings, when the people were 
 grasping at too much power: and on the other hand espousing 
 the interests of the people, whenever the kings attempted to 
 carry their authority too far. 
 
 Lycurgus having thus tempered the government, those that 
 came after him thought the power of the thirty, that composed 
 the senate, still too strong and absolute; and therefore as a 
 check upon them, they devised the authority of the Ephori, e 
 about 130 years after Lycurgus. The Epliori were five in num¬ 
 ber, and remained but one year in office. They were all chosen 
 out of the people; and in that respect considerably resembled 
 the tribunes of the people among the Romans. Their autho¬ 
 rity extended to the arresting and imprisoning the persons of 
 their kings, as it happened in the case of Pausanias. The 
 institution of the Epliori began in the reign of Theopompus, 
 whose wife reproaching him, that he would leave to his children 
 the regal authority in a worse condition than he had received 
 it : on the contrary, said he, I shall leave it to them in a 
 much better condition, as it will be more permanent and lasting. 
 
 The Spartan government then was not purely monarchical. 
 The nobility had a great share in it, and the people were not 
 excluded. Each part of this body politic, in proportion as it 
 contributed to the public good, found in it their advantage: so 
 
 c Plut. in vit. Lycur. p. 42. 
 
 d This council consisted of thirty persons, including the two kings. 
 e The word signifies comptroller or inspector. 
 
172 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 that, in spite of the natural restlessness and inconstancy of 
 man’s heart which is always thirsting- after novelty and change, 
 and is never cured of its disgust to uniformity, Lacedaemon 
 persevered for many ages in the exact observance of her laws. 
 
 Second Institution. The Division of the Lands and the 
 Prohibition of Gold and Silver Money. 
 
 The second and the boldest institution of Lycurgus f was the 
 division of the lands, which he looked upon as absolutely neces¬ 
 sary for establishing peace and good order in the commonwealth. 
 The greater part of the people were so poor, that they had not 
 one inch of land of their own, whilst a small number of indi¬ 
 viduals were possessed of all the lands and wealth of the coun¬ 
 try ; in order therefore to banish insolence, envy, fraud, luxury, 
 and two other distempers of the state, still greater and more 
 ancient than those, I mean extreme poverty and excessive 
 wealth, he persuaded the citizens to give up all their lands to 
 the commonwealth, and to make a new division of them, that 
 they might all live together in a perfect equality, and that no 
 pre-eminence or honours should be given but to virtue and 
 merit alone. 
 
 This scheme, extraordinary as it was, was immediately ex¬ 
 ecuted. Lycurgus divided the lands of Laconia into 30,000 
 parts, which he distributed among the inhabitants of the country ; 
 and the territories of Sparta into 9000 parts, which he distributed 
 among an equal number of citizens. It is said, that some years 
 after, as Lycurgus was returning from a long journey, and pass¬ 
 ing through the lands of Laconia in the time of harvest, and 
 observing, as he went along, the perfect equality of the sheaves 
 of reaped corn, he turned towards those that were with him, 
 and said smiling, Does not Laconia look like the possession of 
 several brothers, who have just been dividing their inheritance 
 amongst them ? 
 
 After having divided their immoveables, he undertook like¬ 
 wise to make the same equal division of all their moveable 
 goods and chattels, that he might utterly banish from among 
 them all manner of inequality. But perceiving that this would 
 meet with more opposition if he went openly about it, he en¬ 
 deavoured to effect it by sapping the very foundations of ava¬ 
 rice. For first he cried down all gold and silver money, and 
 ordained that no other should be current than that of iron, which 
 he made so very heavy, and fixed at so low a rate, that a cart 
 and two oxen were necessary to carry home a sum of ten minoe, 8 
 and a whole chamber to keep it in. 
 
 The next thing he did was to banish all useless and super- 
 
 f Plut. in vit. Lyc. p. 44. 
 k Five hundred livres French, about 20/. English. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 173 
 
 fluous arts from Sparta. Eut if lie had not done this, most of 
 them would have sunk of themselves, and disappeared with the 
 gold and silver money; because the tradesmen and artificers 
 would have found no vent for their commodities; and this iron 
 money had no currency among any other of the Grecian states, 
 who were so far from esteeming it, that it became the subject 
 of their banter and ridicule. 
 
 Third Institution. The Public meals. 
 
 Lycurgus, being desirous to make war still more vigorously 
 upon effeminacy and luxury, and utterly to extirpate the love 
 of riches, made a third regulation, which was that of public 
 meals. That he might entirely suppress all the magnificence 
 and extravagance of expensive tables, 1 ’ he ordained, that all 
 the citizens should eat together of the same common victuals, 
 which were prescribed by law, and expressly forbade all private 
 eating at their own houses. 
 
 Ey this institution of public and common meals, and this fru¬ 
 gality and simplicity in eating, it may be said, that he made 
 riches in some measure change their very nature, by putting 
 them out of a condition of being desired or stolen,’ or of en¬ 
 riching their possessors ; for there was no way left for a man to 
 use or enjoy his opulence, or even to make any show of it; 
 since the poor and the rich ate together in the same place, and 
 none were allowed to appear at the public eating-rooms, after 
 having taken care to fill themselves with other diet; because 
 every body present took particular notice of any one that did 
 not eat or drink, and the whole company were sure to reproach 
 him with the delicacy and intemperance that made him despise 
 the common food and public table. 
 
 The rich were extremely enraged at this regulation ; and it 
 was upon this occasion, that in a tumult of the people, a young 
 man, named Alcander, struck out one of Lycurgus’s eyes. The 
 people, provoked at such an outrage, delivered the young man 
 into Lycurgus’s hands, who knew how to revenge himself in a 
 proper manner; for, by the extraordinary kindness and gentle¬ 
 ness with which he treated him, he made the violent and hot¬ 
 headed youth in a little time become very moderate and wise. 
 
 The tables consisted of about fifteen persons each ; where 
 none could be admitted without the consent of the whole com¬ 
 pany. Each person furnished every month a bushel of flour, 
 eight measures of wine, five pounds of cheese, two pounds and 
 a half of figs, and a small sum of money for preparing and 
 cooking the victuals. Every one, without exception ot per¬ 
 sons, was obliged to be at the common meal: and a long time 
 
 h Plut. in vit. Lyc. p. 45. 
 
 * Tov ttXovtov davXov, pdXXov de a&jXov, kcii d-xXovrov dmipyacjaro. Plut. 
 
174 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 after the making of these regulations, king Agis, at his return 
 from a glorious expedition, having taken the liberty to dispense 
 with that law, in order to eat with the queen his wife, was re¬ 
 primanded and punished. 
 
 The very children were present at these public tables, and 
 were carried thither as to a school of wisdom and temperance. 
 There they were sure to hear grave discourses upon government, 
 and to see nothing but what tended to their instruction and im¬ 
 provement. The conversation was often enlivened with inge¬ 
 nious and sprightly raillery ; but never intermixed with any 
 thing vulgar or disgusting ; and if their jesting seemed to make 
 any person uneasy, they never proceeded any farther. Here 
 their children were likewise trained up and accustomed to 
 great secrecy: as soon as a young man came into the dining¬ 
 room, the oldest person of the company used to say to him, 
 pointing to the door, Nothing spoken here, must ever go out 
 there. 
 
 The most exquisite of all their dishes was what they called 
 their black broth ,- k and the old men preferred it to every thing 
 that was set upon the table. Dionysius the tyrant, when he 
 was at one of these meals, was not of the same opinion; and 
 what was a ragout to them, was to him very insipid :—I do not 
 wonder at it, said the cook, for the seasoning is wanting.*— 
 What seasoning ? replied the tyrant.—Running, sweating, 
 fatigue, hunger, and thirst; these are the ingredients, says the 
 cook, with which we season all our food. 
 
 Other Ordinances. 
 
 When I speak of the ordinances of Lycurgus, 1 I do not mean 
 written laws ; he thought proper to leave very few of that kind, 
 being persuaded, that the most powerful and effectual means of 
 rendering communities happy, and people virtuous, is by the 
 good example, and the impression made on the mind by the 
 manners and practice of the citizens : for the principles thus 
 implanted by education remain firm and immoveable, as they 
 are rooted in the will, which is always a stronger and more 
 durable tie than the yoke of necessity; and the youth that have 
 been thus nurtured and educated, become laws and legislators 
 to themselves. These are the reasons why Lycurgus, instead 
 of leaving his ordinances in writing, endeavoured to imprint 
 and enforce them by practice and example. 
 
 He looked upon the education of youth as the greatest and 
 most important object of a legislator’s care. His grand princi¬ 
 ple was, that children belonged more to the state than to their 
 parents ; and therefore he would not have them brought up 
 according to their humours and caprice, but would have the 
 k Cic. Tusc. Quoest. lib. v. n. 98. 1 Plut. vifr. Lyc. n. 47. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 175 
 
 state intrusted with the care of their education, in order to have 
 them formed upon fixed and uniform principles, which might 
 inspire them betimes with the love of their country and of 
 virtue. 
 
 As soon as a hoy was born, the elders of each tribe visited 
 him ; m and if they found him well made, strong-, and vigorous, 
 they ordered him to be brought up, and assigned him one of 
 the 9000 portions of land for his inheritance ; n if, on the con¬ 
 trary, they found him to be deformed, tender, and weakly, so 
 that they could not expect that he would ever have a strong 
 and healthful constitution, they condemned him to perish, and 
 caused the infant to be exposed. 
 
 Children were early accustomed not to be nice or difficult in 
 their eating'; not to be afraid in the dark, or when they were 
 left alone ; not to give themselves up to peevishness and ill 
 humour, to crying and bawling; to walk barefoot, 0 that they 
 might be inured to fatigue ; to lie hard at nights ; to wear the 
 same clothes winter and summer, in order to harden them 
 against cold and heat. 
 
 At the age of seven years they were put into the classes ,p 
 where they were brought up altogether under the same disci¬ 
 pline. Their education/ properly speaking, was only an ap¬ 
 prenticeship of obedience: the legislator having rightly con¬ 
 sidered, that the surest way to have citizens submissive to the 
 law and to the magistrates, in which the good order and happi¬ 
 ness of a state chiefly consists, was to teach children early, and 
 to accustom them, from their tender years, to be perfectly obe¬ 
 dient to their masters and superiors. 
 
 While they were at table/ it was usual for the masters to in¬ 
 struct the boys by proposing them questions. They would ask 
 them, for example. Who is the most worthy man in the town ? 
 What do you think of such or such an action l The boys were 
 obliged to give a quick or ready answer, which was also to be 
 accompanied with a reason and a proof, both couched in few 
 words: for they were accustomed betimes to the laconic style, 
 that is, to a close and concise way of speaking and writing. 
 Lycurgus was for having the money bulky, heavy, and of little 
 value, and their language, on the contrary, very pithy and 
 short; and a great deal of sense comprised in few words. 
 
 As for literature, s they only learned as much as was neces- 
 
 m Plut. vit. L) r c. p. 49. 
 
 n I do not comprehend how they could assign to every one of these children 
 one of the 9000 portions, appropriated to the city, for his inheritance. Was 
 the number of citizens always the same ? Did it never exceed 9000 ? It is not 
 said in this case, as in the division of the holy land, that the portions allotted 
 to a family always continued in it, and could not be entirely alienated. 
 
 ° Xen. de Lac. rep. p. 677* v Plut. in Lyc. p. 50. 
 
 q ”Q<7rf rrjv Trcuddav tivcu [AtXk-njv tinruduag. r Plut. in Lyc. p. 51. 
 
 9 Plut. in Lyc. p. 52. 
 
176 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 sary. All the sciences were banished out of their country ; 
 their study tended only to know how to obey, to bear hardship 
 and fatigue, and to conquer in battle. The superintendent of 
 their education was one of the most honourable men of the city, 
 and of the first rank and condition, who appointed over every 
 class of boys masters of the most approved wisdom and probity. 
 
 There was one kind of theft only (and that too more a nominal 
 than a real one) which the boys were allowed, 1 and even ordered, 
 to practise. They were taught to slip, as cunningly and cle¬ 
 verly as they could, into the gardens and public halls, in order 
 to steal away herbs or meat: and if they were caught in the 
 fact, they were punished for their want of dexterity. We are 
 told that one of them, having stolen a young fox, hid it under 
 his robe, and suffered, without uttering a complaint, the animal 
 to gnaw into his belly, and tear out his very bowels, till he fell 
 dead upon the spot. This kind of theft, as I have said, was 
 but nominal, and not properly a robbery; since it was autho¬ 
 rized by the law and the consent of the citizens. The intent of 
 the legislator in allowing it, was to inspire the Spartan youth, 
 who were all designed for war, with greater boldness, subtilty, 
 and address ; to inure them betimes to the life of a soldier; to 
 teach them to live upon a little, and to be able to shift for them¬ 
 selves. But I have already treated this matter more at large 
 elsewhere. u 
 
 The patience and constancy of the Spartan youth most con¬ 
 spicuously appeared in a certain festival, x celebrated in honour 
 of Diana, surnamed Orthia, where the children, before the eyes 
 of their parents, and in presence of the whole city, y suffered 
 themselves to be whipped till the blood ran down upon the altar 
 of this cruel goddess, where sometimes they expired under the 
 strokes, and all this without uttering the least cry, or so much 
 as a groan or a sigh; and even their own fathers, when they saw 
 them covered with blood and wounds, and ready to expire, ex¬ 
 horted them to persevere to the end with constancy and resolu¬ 
 tion. Plutarch assures us, that he had seen with his own eyes 
 a great many children lose their lives at the celebration of these 
 cruel rites. Hence it is, that Horace gives the epithet of pa¬ 
 tient to the city of Lacedaemon , L Patiens Lciceclcemon ; and an¬ 
 other author makes a man who had received three strokes of a 
 stick without complaining, say, Tres playas Spartand nobilitale 
 concoxi. 
 
 The most usual occupation of the Lacedaemons was hunting, a 
 and other bodily exercises. They were forbidden to exercise 
 
 1 Plut. vit. Lyc. p. 50. Idem in institut. Lacon. p. 237- 
 
 u Of the method of teaching and studying the Belles Lettres, &c. vol. iii. 
 p. 471. 
 
 x Plut. p. 51. 
 
 7 - Ode vii. lib. 1. 
 
 y Cic. Tusc. Qusest. lib. ii. n. 31. 
 a Plut. in vit. Lvcurg. p. 51. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 177 
 
 any mechanic art. The Elotm, who were a sort of slaves, tilled 
 their land for them, and paid them a certain proportion of the 
 produce. 
 
 Lycurgus was willing that his citizens should enjoy a great 
 deal of leisure: b they had large common-halls, where the peo¬ 
 ple used to meet to converse together : and though their dis¬ 
 courses chiefly turned upon grave and serious topics, yet they 
 seasoned them with a mixture of wit and facetious humour, both 
 agreeable and instructive. They passed little of their time 
 alone, being accustomed to live like bees, always together, al¬ 
 ways about their chiefs and leaders. The love of their country 
 and of the public good was their predominant passion : they did 
 not imagine they belonged to themselves, but to their country. 
 Paedaretus, having missed the honour of being chosen one of 
 the 300 who had a certain rank of distinction in the city, went 
 home extremely pleased and satisfied, saying, He was overjoyed 
 there were 300 men in Sparta more worthy than himself. 
 
 At Sparta every thing tended to inspire the love of virtue 
 and the hatred of vice; c the actions of the citizens, their con¬ 
 versations, and even their public monuments and inscriptions. 
 It was hard for men, brought up in the midst of so many living 
 precepts and examples, not to become virtuous, as far as hea¬ 
 thens were capable of virtue. It was to preserve these happy 
 dispositions, that Lycurgus did not allow all sorts of persons to 
 travel, lest they should bring home foreign manners, and return 
 infected with the licentious customs of other countries, which 
 would necessarily create in a little time an aversion for the mode 
 of life and maxims of Lacedaemon. Neither would he suffer 
 any strangers to remain in the city, who did not come thither to 
 some useful or profitable end, but out of mere curiosity; being- 
 afraid they should bring along with them the defects and vices 
 of their own countries ; and being persuaded, at the same time, 
 that it was more important and necessary to shut the gates of a 
 city against depraved and corrupt manners, than against infec¬ 
 tious distempers. Properly speaking, the very trade and busi¬ 
 ness of the Lacedaemonians was war; every thing with them 
 tended that way: arms were their only exercise and employ¬ 
 ment : their life was much less hard and austere in the camp 
 than in the city ; and they were the only people in the world, to 
 whom the time of war was a time of ease and refreshment; be¬ 
 cause then the reins of that strict and severe discipline which pre¬ 
 vailed at Sparta, were somewhat relaxed, and the men were in¬ 
 dulged in a little more liberty. With them the first and most in¬ 
 violable law of war, d as Demeratus told Xerxes, was, never to 
 fly, or turn their backs, whatever superiority of numbers the ene¬ 
 my’s army might consist of; never to quit their posts ; never to 
 
 b Ibid. p. 55. c Ibid. p. 56. d Herod. 1. vii. cap. 104. 
 
 VOL. II. N 
 
178 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 deliver up their arms ; in a word, either to conquer or to die. 
 This maxim was so important and essential in their opinion, c 
 that when the poet Archilochus came to Sparta, they obliged 
 him to leave their city immediately; because they understood, 
 that in one of his poems he had said, It was better for a man to 
 throw down his arms , than to expose himself to be killed. 
 
 Hence it is/ that a mother recommended to her son, who 
 was going to make a campaign, that he should return either 
 with or upon his shield ; and that another, hearing that her son 
 was killed in fighting for his country, answered very coldly, I 
 brought him into the world for no other end 3 This temper of 
 mind was general among the Lacedaemonians. After the fa¬ 
 mous battle of Leuctra, which was so fatal to the Spartans, the 
 parents of those that died in the action, congratulated one ano¬ 
 ther upon it, and went to the temples to thank the gods that 
 their children had done their duty; whereas the relations of 
 those who survived the defeat, were inconsolable. If any of 
 the Spartans tied in battle, they were dishonoured and disgraced 
 for ever. They were not only excluded from all posts and em¬ 
 ployments in the state, from all assemblies and public diver¬ 
 sions ; but it was reckoned scandalous to make any alliances 
 with them by marriage : and a thousand affronts and insults were 
 publicly offered them with impunity. 
 
 The Spartans never went to fight without first imploring the 
 help of the gods by public sacrifices and prayers ; h and when 
 that was done they marched against the enemy with a perfect 
 confidence and expectation of success, as being assured of the 
 divine protection ; and, to make use of Plutarch’s expressions. 
 As if God were present with , and fought for them, to? t ov 
 
 Qeov avfnrapov'TO'z. 
 
 When they had broken and routed the enemy’s forces,’ they 
 never pursued them farther than was necessary to make them¬ 
 selves sure of the victory ; after which they retired, as thinking 
 it neither glorious, nor worthy of G reece, to cut in pieces and 
 destroy an enemy that yielded and fled. And this proved as 
 useful as it was honourable to the Spartans ; for their enemies, 
 knowing all who resisted them were put to the sword, and that 
 they spared none but those that fled, generally chose rather to 
 fly than to resist. 
 
 When the first institutions of Lycurgus were received and 
 confirmed by practice/ and the form of government he had es¬ 
 tablished seemed strong and vigorous enough to support itself ; 
 
 e Pint, in Lacon. institut. p. 239. 
 
 f "AWrj TrpoGctvadidovGa np naidi rpv av-izida, Kal 7rapaict\evoiJ.£vr]‘ T sm'ov 
 (eflrj) ij rav, 7 ) ini rag. Plut. Lacon. apophthegm, p. 241. Sometimes they 
 that were slain were brought home upon their shields. 
 
 s Cic. lib : i. Tusc. Qumst. n. 102. Plut. in vit. Ages. p. 012. 
 
 h Plut. in vit. Lycurg. p. 53. ' Ibid. p. 54. k Ibid. p. 57* 
 
GREECE. 
 
 179 
 
 as Plato says of God, 1 that after he had finished the creation of 
 the world, lie rejoiced, when he saw it revolve and perform its 
 first motions with so much justness and harmony ; so the Spar¬ 
 tan legislator, pleased with the greatness and beauty of its laws, 
 felt his joy and satisfaction redouble, when he saw them, as it 
 were, walk alone, and go forward so happily. 
 
 But desiring, as far as depended on human prudence, to render 
 them immortal and unchangeable, he signified to the people, 
 that there was still one point remaining to be performed, the 
 most essential and important of all, about which he would go 
 and consult the oracle of Apollo ; and in the mean time he made 
 them all take an oath, that till his return they would inviolably 
 maintain the form of government which he had established. 
 When he was arrived at Delphi, he consulted the god, to know 
 whether the laws he had made were good and sufficient to ren¬ 
 der the Lacedaemonians happy and virtuous. The priestess 
 answered, that nothing was, wanting to his laws ; and that, as 
 long as Sparta observed them, she would be the most glorious 
 and happy city in the world. Lycurgus sent this answer to 
 Sparta; and then, thinking he had fulfilled his ministry, he vo¬ 
 luntarily died at Delphi, by abstaining from all manner of sus¬ 
 tenance. His notion was, that even the death of great persons 
 and statesmen should not be useless and unprofitable to the state, 
 but a kind of supplement to their ministry, and one of their most 
 important actions, which ought to do them as much or more 
 honour than all the rest. He therefore thought, that in dying 
 thus he should crown and complete all the services which he 
 had rendered his fellow-citizens during his life; since his 
 death would engage them to a perpetual observation of his 
 institutions, which they had sworn to observe inviolably till 
 liis return. 
 
 Although I represent Lycurgus’s sentiments upon his own 
 death in the light wherein Plutarch has transmitted them to us, 
 I am very far from approving them; and I make the same de¬ 
 claration with respect to several other facts of the like nature, 
 which I sometimes relate without making any reflections upon 
 them, though I think them very unworthy of approbation. The 
 pretended wise men among the heathens had, as well concerning 
 this article as several others, but very faint and imperfect notions; 
 or to speak more properly, remained in great darkness and error. 
 They laid down this admirable principle, which we meet with 
 in many of their writings, that man, m placed in the world as in 
 
 1 This passage of Plato is in his Timseus, and gives us reason to believe that 
 this philosopher had read what Moses said of God when he created the world ; 
 Vidit Deus cuncta quce fecercit, et erant valde bona . Gen. 1 . 31. 
 
 m Vetat Pythagoi'as, injussu imperatoris, id est Dei, de prsesidio et statione 
 vitee decedere. Cic. de senect. n. 73. 
 
 Cato sic abiit e vita, ut causam moriendi nactuni se esse gauderet. Vetat 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 180 
 
 a certain post by bis general, cannot abandon it without the ex¬ 
 press command of him upon whom he depends, that is, of God 
 himself. At other times, they looked upon man as a criminal 
 condemned to a melancholy prison, from whence indeed he 
 might desire to be released, but could not lawfully attempt to be 
 so, but by the course of justice, and the order of the magistrate; 
 and not by breaking his chains, and forcing the gates of his 
 prison. These notions are beautiful, because they are true; 
 but the application they made of them was wrong ; by taking 
 that for an express order of the Deity, which was the pure effect 
 of their own weakness or pride, by which they were led to put 
 themselves to death, either that they might deliver themselves 
 from the pains and troubles of this life, or immortalize their 
 names, as was the case with Lycurgus, Cato, and a number of 
 others. 
 
 Reflections upon the Government of Sparta , and upon the 
 
 Laws of Lycurgus. 
 
 I. Things commendable in the Laws of Lycurgus. 
 
 There must needs have been (to judge only by the event) a 
 great fund of wisdom and prudence in the laws of Lycurgus ; 
 since, as long as they were observed in Sparta, (which was above 
 500 years,) it was a most flourishing and powerful city. It was 
 not so much (says Plutarch, speaking of the laws of Sparta) 
 ihe government and polity of a city, as the conduct and regular 
 behaviour of a wise man, who passes his whole life in the exer¬ 
 cise of virtue : or rather, continues the same author, as the poets 
 feign, that Hercules, with only his lion’s skin and club, went from 
 country to country to purge the world of robbers and tyrants; so 
 Sparta, with a slip of parchment 11 and an old coat, gave laws 
 to all Greece, which willingly submitted to her dominion ; sup¬ 
 pressed tyrannies and unjust authority in cities ; put an end to 
 wars as she thought fit, and appeased insurrections ; and all this 
 generally without moving a shield or a sword, and only by send- 
 
 enim dominans ille in nobis Deus injussu bine nos suo demigrare. Cum verb 
 causam justam Deus ipse dederit, ut tunc Socrati, nunc Catoni, saepe multis; 
 nse ille, medius fidius, vir sapiens, lcetus ex his tenebris in lucem illam exces- 
 serit. Nec tamen ilia vincula carceris ruperit; leges enim vetant: sed, tan- 
 quam a niagistratu aut ab aliqua potestate legitima, sic a Deo evocatus atque 
 emissus, exierit. Id. 1. Tusc. Qucest. n. 74* 
 
 11 This was what the Spartans called scytale , a thong of leather or parch¬ 
 ment, which they twisted round a staff in such a manner, that there was no 
 vacancy or void space left upon it. They wrote upon this thong, and when they 
 had written, they untwisted it, and sent it to the general for whom it was intend¬ 
 ed. This general, who had another stick of the same size with that on which the 
 thong was twisted and written upon, wrapped it round that staff in the same 
 manner, and by that means found out the connexion and arrangement of the 
 letters, which otherwise were so displaced and out of order, that there was no 
 possibility of their being read. Plut . in vit . Lyc. p. 414. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 181 
 
 ing a simple ambassador amongst them, who no sooner appeared, 
 than all the people submitted, and flocked about him like so 
 many bees about their monarch : so much respect did the justice 
 and good government of this city imprint upon the minds of all 
 their neighbours. 
 
 1. The nature of the Spartan government. 
 
 We find at the end of Lycurgus’s life a reflection made by 
 Plutarch, which of itself comprehends a great encomium upon 
 that legislator. He there says, that Plato, Diogenes, Zeno, 
 and all those who have treated of the establishment of a poli¬ 
 tical state of government, took their plans from the republic of 
 Lycurgus ; with this difference, that they confined themselves 
 wholly to words and theory: but Lycurgus, without dwelling 
 upon ideas and speculative projects, did really and effectually 
 institute an inimitable polity, and form a whole city of phi¬ 
 losophers. 
 
 In order to succeed in this undertaking, and to establish the 
 most perfect form of a commonwealth that could be, he melted 
 down, as it were, and blended together, what he found best in 
 every kind of government, and most conducive to the public 
 good ; thus tempering one species with another, and balancing 
 the inconveniences to which each of them in particular is sub¬ 
 ject, with the advantages that result from their being united 
 together. Sparta had something of the monarchical form of 
 government, in the authority of her kings; the council of 
 thirty, otherwise called the senate, was a true aristocracy; and 
 the power vested in the people, of nominating the senators, and 
 of giving sanction to the laws, resembled a democratical go¬ 
 vernment. The institution of the Ephori afterwards served 
 to rectify Avhat was amiss in those previous establishments, and 
 to supply what was defective. Plato, in more places than one, 
 admires Lycurgus’s wisdom in his institution of the senate, 
 which was equally advantageous both to the kings and the 
 people; because by this means, 0 the law became the only su¬ 
 preme mistress of the kings, and the kings never became tyrants 
 over the law. 
 
 2. Equal divisions of the lands : gold and silver banished from Sparta. 
 
 The design formed by Lycurgus of making an equal distri¬ 
 bution of the lands among the citizens, and of entirely banish¬ 
 ing from Sparta all luxury, avarice, law-suits, and dissensions, 
 by abolishing the use of gold and silver, would appear to us a 
 scheme of a commonwealth finely conceived in speculation, 
 but utterly impracticable in execution, did not history assure 
 
 ° No/.toc £7 Ttidr) KvpiOQ sysveTo (3a<yi\tvg twi> dvOpoJTTWV) d\\’ ovk dv0poJ7roi 
 T^avvoi vofiwv. Plat. Epist. viii. 
 
182 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 us, that Sparta actually subsisted in that condition for many 
 ages. 
 
 When I place the transaction I am now speaking of among 
 the laudable part of Lycurgus s laws, I do not pretend it to be 
 absolutely unexceptionable; for I think it can scarce be recon¬ 
 ciled with that general law of nature, which forbids the taking 
 away one man’s property to give it to another: and yet this is 
 what was really done upon this occasion. Therefore, in this 
 affair of dividing the lands, I consider only so much of it as 
 was truly commendable in itself, and worthy of admiration. 
 
 Can we possibly conceive, that a man could persuade the 
 richest and the most opulent inhabitants of a city to resign all 
 their revenues and estates, to level and confound themselves 
 with the poorest of the people; to subject themselves to a new 
 way of living, both severe in itself, and full of restraint; in a 
 word, to debar themselves of the use of every thing wherein 
 the happiness and comfort of life is thought to consist ? And 
 yet this is wliat Lycurgus actually effected in Sparta. 
 
 Such an institution as this Avould have been less wonderful, 
 had it subsisted only during the life of the legislator ; but we 
 know that it lasted many ages after his decease. Xenophon, 
 in the encomium he has left us of Agesilaus, and Cicero, in 
 one of liis orations, observe, that Lacedaemon was the only city 
 in the world that preserved her discipline and laws for so con¬ 
 siderable a term of years unaltered and inviolate. Soli, said 
 the latter, p speaking of the Lacedaemonians, toto orbe terra- 
 rum septingentos jam annos amplius unis moribus et nunquam 
 mutatis legibus vivunt . I believe, however, that in Cicero’s 
 time the discipline of Sparta, as well as her power, was very 
 much relaxed and diminished ; but all historians agree, that it 
 was maintained in all its vigour till the reign of Agis, under 
 whom Lysander, though incapable himself of being blinded or 
 corrupted with gold, filled his country with luxury and the love 
 of riches, by bringing into it immense sums of gold and silver 
 which were the fruit of his victories, and thereby subserving the 
 laws of Lycurgus. 
 
 But the introduction of gold and silver money was not the 
 first wound given by the Lacedaemonians to the institutions of 
 their legislator. It was the consequence of the violation of 
 another law still more fundamental. Ambition was the vice 
 that preceded, and made way for, avarice. The desire of 
 conquests drew on that of riches, without which they could not 
 propose to extend their dominions. The main design of Ly¬ 
 curgus, in the establishing his laws, and especially that which 
 prohibited the use of gold and silver, was, as Polybius 9 and 
 Plutarch have judiciously observed, to curb and restrain the 
 p Pro. Flac. nura. lxiii. t Polyb. 1. vi. p. 491. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 183 
 
 ambition of his citizens; to disable them from making- con¬ 
 quests, and in a manner to force them to confine themselves 
 within the narrow bounds of their own country, without carry¬ 
 ing- their views and pretensions any farther. Indeed, the go¬ 
 vernment which he established, was sufficient to defend the 
 frontiers of Sparta, but was not calculated for the raising her to 
 a dominion over other cities. 
 
 The design, then, of Lycurgus was not to make the Spartans 
 conquerors. 1. To remove such thoughts from his fellow-citi¬ 
 zens, he expressly forbid them, though they inhabited a country 
 surrounded with the sea, to meddle with maritime affairs ; to 
 have any fleets, or ever to fight upon the sea. They were re¬ 
 ligious observers of this prohibition for many ages, and even till 
 the defeat of Xerxes : but upon that occasion they began to 
 think of making themselves masters at sea, that they might be 
 able to keep so formidable an enemy at the greater distance. 
 But having soon perceived, that these maritime, remote com¬ 
 mands, corrupted the manners of their generals, they laid that 
 project aside without any difficulty, as we shall observe, when 
 we come to speak of king Pausanias. 
 
 When Lycurgus armed his fellow-citizens with shields and 
 lances, s it was not to enable them to commit wrongs and out¬ 
 rages with impunity, but only to defend themselves against the 
 invasions and injuries of others. He made them indeed a na¬ 
 tion of warriors and soldiers; but it was only that, under the 
 shadow of their arms, they might live in liberty, moderation, 
 justice, union, and peace, by being content with their own ter¬ 
 ritories, without usurping those of others, and by being per¬ 
 suaded, that no city or state, any more than individuals, can 
 ever hope for solid and lasting happiness but from virtue only. 
 Men of a depraved taste, (says Plutarch 1 farther on the same 
 subject,) who think nothing so desirable as riches and a large 
 extent of dominion, may give the preference to those vast em¬ 
 pires that have subdued and enslaved the world by violence ; 
 but Lycurgus was convinced, that a city had occasion for no¬ 
 thing of that kind, in order to be happy. His policy, which has 
 justly been the admiration of many ages, had no farther views 
 than to establish equity, moderation, liberty, and peace ; and 
 was an enemy to all injustice, violence, and ambition, and the 
 passion of reigning and extending the bounds of the Spartan 
 commonwealth. 
 
 Such reflections as these, which Plutarch agreeably inter¬ 
 sperses in his Lives, and in which their greatest and most essen¬ 
 tial beauty consists, are of infinite use towards the giving us 
 true notions, wherein consists the solid and true glory of a 
 
 r Plut. in moribus Laced, p. 239. 
 
 6 Ibid, in vit. Lvcurg. p. 59. 1 Ibid, et in vit. Agesil. p. 614. 
 
184 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 slate that is really happy ; as also to correct those false ideas 
 which we are apt to form of the vain greatness of those empires 
 which have swallowed up kingdoms, and of those celebrated 
 conquerors who owe all their fame and grandeur to violence and 
 usurpation. 
 
 3. The excellent education of their youth. 
 
 The long duration of the laws established by Lycurgus, is 
 certainly very wonderful: but the means he made use of to 
 succeed therein are no less worthy of admiration. The prin¬ 
 cipal of these was the extraordinary care he took to have the 
 Spartan youth brought up in an exact and severe discipline : 
 for (as Plutarch observes) the religious obligation of an oath, 
 which he exacted from the citizens, would have been a feeble 
 tie, had he not by education infused his laws, as it were, into 
 the minds and manners of the children, and made them suck 
 in almost with their mothers milk an affection for his institutions. 
 This was the reason why his principal ordinances subsisted 
 above 500 years, having sunk into the very temper and hearts 
 of the people, like a strong and good dye, u that penetrates 
 thoroughly. Cicero makes the same remark, and ascribes the 
 courage and virtue of Spartans, not so much to their own 
 natural disposition, as to their excellent education: Cujus 
 civitcitis spectcita ac nohilitata virtus, non solum natura 
 corroborota, verum etiam disciplind pulatur . x All this shows 
 of what importance it is to a state to take care that their youth 
 he brought up in a manner proper to inspire them with a love for 
 the laws of their country. 
 
 The great maxim of Lycurgus, which Aristotle repeats in 
 express terms,y was, that as children belong to the state, their 
 education ought to be directed by the state, and the views and 
 interests of the state only considered therein. It was for this 
 reason he enacted, that they should be educated all in com¬ 
 mon, and not left to the humour and caprice of their parents, 
 who generally, through a soft and blind indulgence, and a 
 mistaken tenderness, enervate at once both the bodies and minds 
 of their children. At Sparta, from their tenderest years, they 
 were inured to labour and fatigue by the exercises of hunting 
 and racing, and accustomed betimes to endure hunger and thirst, 
 heat and cold ; and, what is difficult to make mothers believe, 
 all these hard and laborious exercises tended to procure them 
 health, and make their constitutions the more vigorous and 
 robust; able to bear the hardships and fatigues of war, for 
 which they were all designed from their cradles. 
 
 11 ''Qcnrtp ficupijg cveparov Kal ia^vpag KaOa^afiEvtjg. Plat. Ep. iii. 
 x Orat. pro Flac. n. 03. y L. viii. Politic. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 185 
 
 4. Obedience. 
 
 But the most excellent thing- in the Spartan education, was 
 its teaching young people so perfectly well how to obey. It 
 is from hence the poet Simonides gives that city such a 
 magnificent epithpt,® which denotes that they alone knew how 
 to subdue the passions of men, and to render them pliant and 
 submissive to the laws, in that same manner as horses are taught to 
 obey the spur and the bridle, by being broken and trained while 
 they are young. For this reason, Agesilaus advised Xenophon 
 to send his children to Sparta, a that they might learn there the 
 noblest and greatest of all sciences, that is, how to command, 
 and how to obey!. 
 
 5. Respect towards the aged. 
 
 One of the lessons oftenest and most strongly inculcated 
 upon the Lacedaemonian youth, was to entertain great reverence 
 and respect to old men, and to give them proofs of it upon all 
 occasions, by saluting them, by making way for them, and 
 giving them place in the streets, b by rising up to show them 
 honour in all companies and public assemblies; but above 
 all, by receiving their advice, and even their reproofs, with 
 docility and submission : by these characteristics a Lace¬ 
 daemonian was known wherever he came; if he had be¬ 
 haved otherwise, it would have been looked upon as a reproach 
 to himself, and a dishonour to his country. An old man of 
 Athens going into the theatre once to see a play, none of his 
 own countrymen offered him a seat; but when he came near 
 the place where the Spartan ambassadors and their retinue 
 were sitting, they all rose up out of reverence to his age, and 
 seated him in the midst of them. Lysander therefore had 
 reason to say, c that old age had no where so honourable an 
 abode as in Sparta, and that it was an agreeable thing to grow 
 old in that city. 
 
 II. Things hlamahle in the laws of Lycurgus. 
 
 In order to perceive more clearly the defects in the laws of 
 Lycurgus, we have only to compare them with those of Moses, 
 which we know were dedicated by more than human wisdom. 
 But my design in this place is not to enter into a strict detail 
 of the particulars wherein the laws and institutions of Lycurgus 
 are faulty: I shall content myself with making only some slight 
 reflections, which probably the reader has already anticipated, 
 
 z Aap,aoipf3pOTog, that is to say. Tamer of men. 
 a MaOpcro^evog ratv p,a9rip,driov to KaWiorov, ctpxtcdai Kal dpx^v. 
 b Plut. in Lacon. Institut. p. 237- 
 
 c Lysandrum Lacedtemonium dicere aiunt solitum: I.acedsemonem esse 
 honestissimum domicilium senectutis. Cic. de sen. n. 63. ’Ev 
 KciWiora yppiucn. Plut. in Mor. p. 705. 
 
186 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 as he must have been justly disgusted by the mere recital of 
 some of those ordinances. 
 
 1. The choice made of the children that were either to be 
 brought up or exposed. 
 
 _ • 
 
 To begin, for instance, with that ordinance relating to the 
 
 choice they made of their children, which of them were to be 
 brought up, and which exposed to perish; who would not be 
 shocked at the unjust and inhuman custom of pronouncing 
 sentence of death upon all such infants as had the misfortune to 
 be bom with a constitution that appeared too weak and delicate 
 to undergo the fatigues and exercises to which the common¬ 
 wealth destined all her subjects ? Is it then impossible, and 
 without example, that children, who are tender and weak in 
 their infancy, should ever alter as they grow up, and become in 
 time of a robust and vigorous constitution ? Or suppose it were 
 so, can a man no way serve his country, but by the strength of 
 his body ? Is there no account to be made of his wisdom, pru¬ 
 dence, counsel, generosity, courage, magnanimity, and, in a 
 word, of all the qualities that depend upon the mind and the 
 intellectual faculties ? Omnino illud honestum, quod ex animo 
 excelso rnagnijicoque, qucerimus, animi efficitur, non corporis 
 viribus. A Did Lycurgus himself render less service, or do less 
 honour, to Sparta, by establishing his laws, than the greatest 
 generals did lay their victories ? Agesilaus was of so small a 
 stature, and so mean in person, that at the first sight of him the 
 Egyptians could not help laughing ; and yet, little as he was, 
 he made the great king of Persia tremble upon the throne of 
 half the world. 
 
 But what is yet stronger than all I have said, has any other 
 person a right or power over the lives of men, than He from 
 whom they received them, even God himself ? And does not a 
 legislator visibly usurp the authority of God, whenever he arro¬ 
 gates to himself such a power without his commission t That 
 precept of the decalogue, which was only a renewal of the law 
 of nature, Thou shalt not kill, universally condemns all those 
 among the ancients, who imagined they had a power of life 
 and death over their slaves, and even over their own children. 
 
 2. Their care confined only to the body. 
 
 The great defect in Lycurgus’s laws (as Plato and Aristotle 
 have observed) is, that they tended only to form a nation of 
 soldiers. All that legislator’s thoughts seemed wholly bent 
 upon the means of strengthening the bodies of the people, with¬ 
 out any concern for the cultivation of their minds. Why should 
 he banish from his commonwealth all arts and sciences, which, 
 
 d Cicer. 1. i. de offic. n. 70* Ibid. n. 76 . 
 
GREECE. 
 
 187 
 
 besides many other advantages/ have this most happy effect, 
 that they soften our manners, polish our understandings, im¬ 
 prove the heart, and render our behaviour civil, courteous, 
 gentle, and obliging; such, in a word, as qualifies us for com¬ 
 pany and society, and makes the ordinary intercourse of life 
 agreeable ? Hence it came to pass, that there was something 
 of a roughness and austerity in the temper and behaviour of the 
 Spartans, and many times even something of ferocity, a failing 
 that proceeded chiefly from their education, and that rendered 
 them disagreeable and offensive to all their allies. 
 
 4 
 
 • 3. Their barbarous cruelty towards their children. 
 
 It was an excellent practice in Sparta, to accustom their youth 
 betimes to suffer heat and cold, hunger and thirst, and by seve¬ 
 ral severe and laborious exercises to bring the body into subjec¬ 
 tion to reason/ whose faithful and diligent minister it ought to 
 be in the execution of all her orders and injunctions; which it 
 can never do, if it be not able to undergo all sorts of hardships 
 and fatigues. But was it rational in them to carry their seve¬ 
 rities so far, as the inhuman treatment we have mentioned ? and 
 was it not utterly barbarous and brutal in the fathers and mothers 
 to see the blood trickling from the wounds of their chil¬ 
 dren, nay, even to see them expiring under the lashes without 
 concern i 
 
 4. The mothers’ inhumanity. 
 
 Some people admire the courage of the Spartan mothers, 
 who could hear the news of the death of their children slain in 
 battle, not only without tears, but even with a kind of joy and 
 satisfaction. For my part I should think it much better that 
 nature should show herself a little more on such occasions, and 
 that the love of one’s country should not utterly extinguish the 
 sentiments of maternal tenderness. One of our generals in 
 France, who in the heat of battle was told that his son was 
 killed, spoke much more properly on the subject: Let us at pre¬ 
 sent think, said he, how to conquer the enemy : to-morrow I icill 
 mourn for my son. 
 
 5. Their excessive leisure. 
 
 Nor can I see what excuse can be made for that law, imposed 
 by Lycurgus upon the Spartans, which enjoined the spending 
 the whole of their time, except when they were engaged in war, 
 in idleness and inaction. He left all the arts and trades entirely 
 
 e Omnes artes quibus aetas puerilis ad humanitatem informari solet. Cic. 
 Orat. pro. Arch. 
 
 f Exercendum corpus, et ita afficiendum est, ut obedire consilio rationique 
 possit in exequendis negotiis et labore tolerando. Lib. i. de Offic. n. TO. 
 
188 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 to the slaves and strangers that lived amongst them, and put no¬ 
 thing into the hands of the citizens but the lance and the shield> 
 Not to mention the danger there was in suffering the number 
 of slaves that were necessary for tilling the land, to increase to 
 such a degree as to become much greater than that of their mas¬ 
 ters, which was often an occasion of seditions and riots among 
 them ; how many disorders must men necessarily fall into, that 
 have so much leisure upon their hands, and have no daily occu¬ 
 pation or regular labour ? This is an inconvenience even now 
 but too common among our nobility, and which is the natural 
 effect of their injudicious education. . Except in the time of 
 war, most of our gentry spend their lives in a most useless and 
 unprofitable manner. They look upon agriculture, arts, and 
 commerce, as beneath them, and derogatory to their gentility. 
 They seldom know how to handle any thing but their swords. 
 As for the sciences, they take but a very small tincture of them; 
 just so much as they cannot well be without; and many have not 
 the least knowledge of them, nor any manner of taste for books 
 or reading. AVe are not to wonder then, if gaming and hunting, 
 eating and drinking, mutual visits and frivolous discourse, make 
 up their whole occupation. AVhat a life is this for men that have 
 any parts or understanding! 
 
 C. Their cruelty towards the Helots. 
 
 Lycurgus would be utterly inexcusable if he gave occasion, 
 as he is accused of having done, for all the rigour and cruelty 
 exercised towards the Helots in his republic. These Helots were 
 slaves employed by the Spartans to till the ground. It was 
 their custom not only to make these poor creatures drunk, and 
 expose them before their children, in order to give them an ab¬ 
 horrence for so shameful and odious a vice, but they treated them 
 also with the utmost barbarity, and thought themselves at liberty 
 to destroy them by any violence or cruelty whatsoever, under 
 pretence of their being always ready to rebel. 
 
 Upon a certain occasion related by Thucydides/ 2000 of 
 these Helots disappeared at once, without any body’s knowing 
 what was become of them. Plutarch pretends, this barbarous 
 custom was not practised till after Lycurgus’s time, and that he 
 had no hand in it. 
 
 7- Modesty and decency entirely neglected. 
 
 Eut that wherein Lycurgus appears to be most culpable, 
 and what most clearly shows the prodigious enormities and gross 
 darkness in which the Pagans were plunged, is the little regard 
 he showed for modesty and decency, in what concerned the 
 education of girls, and the marriages of young women ; which 
 
 s Lib. iv. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 189 
 
 was without doubt the source of those disorders that prevailed 
 in Sparta, as Aristotle has wisely observed. When we compare 
 these indecent and licentious institutions of the wisest legislator 
 that ever profane antiquity could boast, with the sanctity and 
 purity of the evangelical precepts ; what a noble idea does it 
 give us of the dignity and excellence of the Christian religion! 
 
 Nor will it give us a less advantageous notion of this pre¬ 
 eminence, if we compare the most excellent and laudable part 
 of Lycurgus’s institutions with the laws of the Gospel. It is, 
 we must own, a wonderful thing, that a whole people should 
 consent to a division of their lands, which set the poor upon an 
 equal footing with the rich; and that by a total exclusion of 
 gold and silver, they should reduce themselves to a kind of 
 voluntary poverty. But the Spartan legislator, when he en¬ 
 acted these laws, had the sword in his hand ; whereas the 
 Christian Legislator says but a word, Blessed are the poor in spirit , 
 and thousands of the faithful through all succeeding generations, 
 renounce their goods, sell their lands and estates, and leave 
 all to follow Jesus Christ, their master, in poverty and want. 
 
 ARTICLE VIII. 
 
 The government of Athens. The laws of Solon. The history of that 
 republic from the time of Solon to the reign of Darius the first. 
 
 I have already observed, that Athens was at first governed 
 by kings. But they had little more than the name; for their 
 whole power being confined to the command of the armies, 
 vanished in time of peace. Every man was master in his own 
 house, where he lived in an absolute state of independence. 
 Codrus, the last king of Athens, having devoted himself to die 
 for the public good, his sons Medon and Nileous quarrelled 
 about the succession. The Athenians took this occasion to 
 abolish the regal power, though it did not much incommode 
 them; and declared, that Jupiter alone was king of Athens; 
 at the very same time that the Jews, 11 weary of the theocracy, 
 that is, of having the true God for their king, would absolutely 
 have a man to reign over them. 
 
 Plutarch observes, that Homer, when he enumerates the 
 ships of the confederate Grecians, gives the name ot'people to 
 none but the Athenians ; from whence it may be inferred, 
 that the Athenians even then had a great inclination to a demo- 
 cratical government, and that the chief authority was at that 
 time vested in the people. 
 
 In the place of their kings they substituted a kind of govern¬ 
 ors for life, under the title of Archons. But this perpetual 
 
 h Codrus was contemporary with Saul. 
 
190 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 magistracy appeared still, in the eyes of this free people, as 
 too lively an image of regal power, of which they were 
 desirous of abolishing even the very shadow ; for which reason, 
 they first reduced that office to the term of ten years, and then 
 to that of one : and this they did with a view of resuming the 
 authority the more frequently into their own hands, which they 
 never transferred to their magistrates but with regret. 
 
 Such a limited power as this was not sufficient to restrain those 
 turbulent spirits, who were grown excessively jealous of their 
 liberty and independence, very tender and apt to be offended 
 at any that seemed to encroach upon their equality, and always 
 ready to take umbrage at whatever had the least appearance of 
 dominion or superiority. From hence arose continual factions 
 and quarrels ; there was no agreement or concord among them, 
 either about religion or government. 
 
 Athens therefore continued a long time incapable of enlarg¬ 
 ing her power, it being very happy for her that she could pre¬ 
 serve herself from ruin in the midst of those long and frequent 
 dissensions, with which she had to struggle. 
 
 Misfortunes instruct. Athens learned, at length, that true 
 liberty consists in a dependence upon justice and reason. This 
 happy subjection could not be established, but by a legislator. 
 She therefore pitched upon Draco, a man of acknowledged 
 wisdom and integrity. It does not appear that 
 
 a ]\r ooon O J * 1 1 
 
 Ant. J C G°4 Greece had, before his time, any written laws. 
 
 He published some, whose rigour, anticipating, 
 as it were, the Stoical doctrine, was so great, that it punished 
 the smallest offence, as well as the most enormous crimes, 
 equally with death. These laws of Draco, written, says De- 
 mades, not with ink, but with blood, had the same fate as usually 
 attends all violent extremes. Sentiments of humanity in the 
 judges, compassion for the accused, whom they were wont to 
 look upon rather as unfortunate than criminal, and the appre¬ 
 hensions the accusers and witnesses were under of rendering 
 themselves odious to the people; all these motives, I say, con¬ 
 curred to produce a remissness in the execution of the laws ; 
 which by that means, in process of time, became as it were ab¬ 
 rogated through disuse: and thus an excessive rigour paved 
 the way for impunity. 
 
 The danger of relapsing into their former disorders, made 
 them have recourse to fresh precautions : for they were willing 
 to slacken the curb and restraint of fear, but not to break it. In 
 order therefore to find out mitigations, which might make 
 amends for what they took away from the letter 
 
 A 1\ T QAAA * %J 
 
 Art J C go4 the ^ aw ’ they cas t then* eyes upon one of the 
 wisest and most virtuous persons of his age, I 
 mean Solon ; whose singular qualities, and especially his great 
 
GREECE. 191 
 
 mildness, had acquired him the affection and veneration of the 
 whole city. 
 
 His chief application had been to the study of philosophy, 
 and especially to that part of it which we call politics, and 
 which teaches the art of government. His extraordinary merit 
 gave him one of the first ranks among the seven sages of Greece, 
 who rendered the age we are speaking of so illustrious. These 
 sages often paid visits to one another.' One day that Solon 
 went to Miletus to see Thales, the first thing he said to him was, 
 that he wondered why he had never chosen to have either wife 
 or children. Thales made him no answer then : but a few days 
 after he contrived that a stranger should come into their com¬ 
 pany, and pretend that he was just arrived from Athens, from 
 whence he had set out about ten days before. Solon asked 
 him, if there was no news at Athens when he came away. The 
 stranger, who had been taught his lesson, replied, that he had 
 heard of nothing but the death of a young gentleman, whose fu¬ 
 neral was attended by all the town ; because, as they said, he 
 was the son of the worthiest man in the city, who was then 
 absent.—Alas ! cried Solon, interrupting the man’s sto-ry ; how 
 much is the poor father of the youth to be pitied ! But pray, 
 what is the gentleman’s name ?—I heard his name, replied the 
 stranger, but I have forgotten it; I only remember, that the 
 people talked much of his wisdom and justice.-—Every answer 
 afforded new cause of anxiety and terror to the inquiring father, 
 who was so justly alarmed.—Was it not, said he at length, the 
 son of Solon ?—The very same, replied the stranger. Solon at 
 these words rent his clothes, and beat his breast, and, express¬ 
 ing his sorrow by tears and groans, abandoned himself to the 
 most sensible affection. Thales, seeing this, took him by the 
 hand, and said to him with a smile : Comfort yourself, my 
 friend ; all that has been told to you, is a mere fiction. Now 
 you see the reason why I never married ; it is because I am 
 unwilling to expose myself to such trials and afflictions. 
 
 Plutarch has given us a large refutation of Thales’s reason¬ 
 ing, which tends to deprive mankind of the most natural and 
 reasonable attachments in life, in lieu of which the heart of 
 man will not fail to substitute others of an unjust and unlawful 
 nature, which will expose him to the same pains and incon¬ 
 veniences. The remedy, says this historian, against the grief 
 that may arise from the loss of goods, of friends, or of children, 
 is not to throw away our estates, and reduce ourselves to po¬ 
 verty, to make an absolute renunciation of all friendship, or to 
 confine ourselves to a state of celibacy; but upon all such acci¬ 
 dents and misfortunes, to make a right use of our reason. 
 
 Athens, k after some interval of tranquillity and peace, which 
 
 1 Plut. in Solon, p. 81, 82. k Pint, in Solon, p. 85, 88. 
 
192 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 the prudence and courage of Solon had procured, who was as 
 great a warrior as lie was a statesman, relapsed into her former 
 dissensions about the government of the commonwealth, and 
 was divided into as many parties, as there were different sorts 
 of habitations in Attica. For those that lived upon the moun¬ 
 tains, were fond of popular government; those in the low-lands 
 were for an oligarchy ; and those that dwelt on the sea-coasts, 
 were for having a mixed government, compounded of those two 
 forms blended together ; and these hindered the other two con¬ 
 tending parties from getting any ground of each other. Beside 
 these, there was a fourth party which consisted only of the poor, 
 who were grievously harassed and oppressed by the rich, on 
 account of their debts, which they were not able to discharge. 
 This unhappy party was determined to choose themselves a 
 chief, who should deliver them from the inhuman severity of 
 their creditors, and make an entire change in the form of their 
 government, by making a new division of the lands. 
 
 In this extreme danger all the wise Athenians cast their eyes 
 upon Solon, who was obnoxious to neither party ; because he 
 had never sided either with the injustice of the rich, or the re¬ 
 bellion of the poor ; and they solicited him very earnestly to 
 take the management of affairs, and to endeavour to put an end 
 to these differences and disorders. He was very unwilling to 
 take upon him so dangerous a commission ; however, he was 
 at last chosen Arclion, and was constituted supreme arbiter and 
 legislator, with the unanimous consent of all parties; the lich 
 liking him, as he was rich; and the poor, because he was ho¬ 
 nest. He now had it in his power to make himself king : se¬ 
 veral of the citizens advised him to it; and even the wisest 
 among them, not thinking it was in the power of human reason 
 to bring about a favourable change consistent with the laws, 
 were not unwilling that the supreme power should be vested in 
 one man, who was so eminently distinguished for his prudence 
 and justice. But, notwithstanding all the remonstrances that 
 were made to him, and all the solicitations and reproaches of 
 his friends, who treated his refusal of the diadem as an effect of 
 pusillanimity and meanness of spirit, he was still firm and un¬ 
 changeable in his purpose, and thought only of settling a form 
 of government in his country, that should be the parent of a 
 just and reasonable liberty. Not venturing to meddle with 
 • certain disorders and evils which he looked upon as incurable, 
 he undertook to bring about no other alterations or changes, 
 than such as he thought he could persuade the citizens to com¬ 
 ply with, by the influence of reason ; or bring them into, by the 
 weight of his authority ; wisely mixing, as he himself said, au¬ 
 thority and power with reason and justice. Wherefore, when 
 one afterwards asked him, if the laws which he had made for 
 
GREECE. 193 
 
 the Athenians, were the best that could be given them ; Yes, 
 said he, the lest they were capable of receiving. 
 
 The soul of popular states is equality. But for fear of dis¬ 
 gusting the rich, Solon durst not propose any equality of lands 
 and wealth; whereby Attica, as well as Laconia, would have 
 resembled a paternal inheritance divided among a number of 
 brethren. However, he went so far as to put an end to the 
 slavery and oppression of these poor citizens, whose excessive 
 debts and accumulated arrears had forced them to sell their 
 persons and liberty, and reduce themselves to a state of ser¬ 
 vitude and bondage. An express law was made, which de¬ 
 clared all debtors discharged and acquitted of all their debts. 
 
 This affair drew Solon into a troublesome scrape, 1 which gave 
 him a great deal of vexation and concern. When he first de¬ 
 termined to cancel the debts, he foresaw, that such an edict, 
 which had something in it contrary to justice, would be ex¬ 
 tremely offensive. For which reason, he endeavoured in some 
 measure to rectify the tenor of it, by introducing it with a spe¬ 
 cious preamble, which set forth a great many very plausible pre¬ 
 texts, and gave a colour of equity and reason to the law, which 
 in reality it had not. But in order hereto, he first disclosed his 
 design to some particular friends, whom he used to consult in 
 all his affairs, and concerted with them the form and the terms 
 in which this edict should be expressed. Now, before it was 
 published, his friends, who were more interested than faithful, 
 secretly borrowed large sums of money of their rich acquaint¬ 
 ance, which they laid out in purchasing of lands, as knowing 
 they would not be affected by the edict. When the edict was 
 published, the general indignation, that was raised by such a 
 base and flagrant knavery, fell upon Solon, though in fact he 
 had no hand in it. But it is not enough for a man in office to 
 be disinterested and upright himself; all that surround and ap¬ 
 proach him ought to be so too ; wife, relations, friends, secre¬ 
 taries, and servants. The faults of others are charged to his 
 account: all the wrongs, all the rapine, that may be committed 
 either through his negligence or connivance, are justly imputed 
 to him ; because it is his business, and one of the principal 
 designs of his being put into such trust, to prevent those cor¬ 
 ruptions and abuses. 
 
 This ordinance at first pleased neither of the two parties ; it 
 disgusted the rich, because it abolished the debts : and dissatis¬ 
 fied the poor, because it did not ordain a new division of the 
 lands, as they had expected, and as Lycurgus had actually ef¬ 
 fected at Sparta. But Solon’s influence at Athens fell very 
 short of that which Lycurgus had acquired in Sparta; for he 
 had no other authority over the Athenians, than what the repu- 
 
 1 Plut. ill Solon, p. 87. 
 
 O 
 
 VOL. IT. 
 
194 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 tation of his wisdom, and the confidence of the people in his 
 integrity, had procured him. 
 
 However, in a little time afterwards, this ordinance was ge¬ 
 nerally approved, and the same powers as before were continued 
 to Solon. 
 
 He repealed all the laws that had been made by Draco, ex¬ 
 cept those against murder. The reason of his doing this, was 
 the excessive rigour of those laws, which inflicted death alike 
 upon all sorts of offenders ; so that they who were convicted of 
 sloth and idleness, or they that had stolen only a few herbs or 
 a little fruit out of a garden, were as severely punished as those 
 that were guilty of murder or sacrilege. 
 
 He then proceeded to the regulation of offices, employments, 
 and magistracies, all which he left in the hands of the rich ; 
 for which reason he distributed all the rich citizens into three 
 classes, ranging them according to the difference of their in¬ 
 comes and revenues, and according to the value and estimation 
 of each particular man’s estate. Those that were found to have 
 500 measures per annum , as well in corn as in liquids, were 
 placed in the first rank; those that had 300 were placed in the 
 second ; and those that had but 200 made up the third. 
 
 All the rest of the citizens, whose income fell short of 200 
 measures, were comprised in a fourth and last class, and were 
 never admitted into any employments." 1 But, in order to 
 make them amends for this exclusion from offices, he left them a 
 right to vote in the assemblies and judgments of the people; 
 which at first seemed to be a matter of little consequence, but in 
 time became extremely advantageous, and made them masters 
 of all the affairs of the city: for most of the law-suits and dif¬ 
 ferences were ultimately referred to the people, to whom an 
 appeal lay from all the judgments of the magistrates ; and in 
 the assemblies of the people the greatest and most important af¬ 
 fairs of the state relating to peace or war were also determined. 
 
 The Areopagus, so called from the place where its assem¬ 
 blies were held," had been a long time established. Solon re¬ 
 stored and augmented its authority, leaving to that tribunal, as 
 the supreme court of judicature, a general inspection and super¬ 
 intendency over all affairs, as also the care of causing the laws 
 (of which he made that body the guardian) to be observed 
 and put in execution. Before his time, the citizens of the great¬ 
 est probity and worth were made the judges of the Areopa¬ 
 gus. Solon was the first that thought it convenient that none 
 should be honoured with that dignity, except such as had passed 
 
 m Plut. in Solon, p. 88. 
 
 n This was a hill near the citadel of Athens, called Areopagus, that is to 
 say, the hill of Mars ; because it was there Mars had been tried for the murder 
 of Halirrothius, the son of Neptune. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 195 
 
 through the office of archon. Nothing was so august as this 
 senate :° and its reputation for judgment and integrity became 
 so very great, that the Romans sometimes referred causes, 
 which were too intricate for their own decision, to the determina¬ 
 tion of this tribunal. 
 
 Nothing was regarded or attended to here, but truth alone ; 
 and to the end that no external objects might divert the atten¬ 
 tion of the judges, their tribunal was always held at night, or 
 in the dark ; and the orators were not allowed to make use of 
 any exordium, digression, or peroration. 
 
 Solon, to prevent as much as possible the abuse which the 
 people might make of the great authority he left them, created a 
 second council, consisting of 400 men, 100 out of every tribe, and 
 ordered all causes and affairs to be brought before this council, 
 and to be maturely examined by them, before they were pro¬ 
 posed to the general assembly of the people ; to the judgment 
 of which the sentiments of the other were to submit, and to 
 which alone belonged the right of giving a final sentence and 
 decision. It was upon this subject that Anacharsis (whom the 
 reputation of the sages of Greece had brought from the heart of 
 Scythia) said one day to Solon, I wonder you shoidd empower 
 wise men only to deliberate and debate upon affairs, and leave 
 the determination and decision of them wholly to fools. 
 
 Upon another occasion, when Solon was conversing with him 
 upon some other regulations he had in view, Anacharsis, 
 astonished that he could expect to succeed in his designs of 
 restraining the avarice and injustice of the citizens by written 
 laws, answered him in this manner: Give me leave to tell you , 
 that these written laws are just like spiders webs: the weak 
 and small may be caught and entangled in them ; but the rich 
 and powerf ul will break through them and despise them. 
 
 Solon, who was an able and prudent man, was very sensible of 
 the inconveniences that attend a democracy, or popular govern¬ 
 ment : but, having thoroughly studied, and being perfectly well 
 acquainted with the character and disposition of the Athenians, 
 he knew it would be a vain attempt to take the sovereignty out 
 of the people’s hands ; and that if they parted with it at one 
 time, they would soon resume it at another by force and vio¬ 
 lence. He therefore contented himself with limiting their power 
 by the authority of the Areopagus and the council of Four Hun¬ 
 dred ; judging, that the state, being supported and strengthened 
 by these two powerful bodies, as by two good anchors, would not 
 be so liable to commotions and disorders as it had been, and 
 that the people would enjoy more tranquillity. 
 
 I shall mention only some of the laws which Solon made, by 
 which the reader may be able to form a judgment of the rest. 
 
 0 Val. Max. 1. viii. c. 1. Lucian in Hermot. p. 595. Quintal. 1. vi. c. I. 
 
 o 2 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 IDG 
 
 In the first place,' 1 every particular person was authorised to 
 espouse the quarrel of any one that was injured and insulted ; 
 so that the first comer might prosecute the offender, and bring 
 him to justice for the outrage he had committed. 
 
 The design of this wise legislator by this ordinance was, to 
 accustom his citizens to have a fellow-feeling of one another’s 
 sufferings and misfortunes, as they were all members of one and 
 the same body. 
 
 By another law, q those persons that in public differences and 
 dissensions did not declare themselves of one party or other, 
 but waited to see how things would go before they determined, 
 were declared infamous, condemned to perpetual banishment, 
 and to have all their estates confiscated. Solon had learnt, from 
 long experience and deep reflection, that the rich, the power¬ 
 ful, and even the wise and virtuous, are usually the most back¬ 
 ward to expose themselves to the inconveniences which public 
 dissensions and troubles produce in society ; and that their zeal 
 for the public good does not render them so vigilant and active 
 in the defence of it, as the passions of the factious render them 
 industrious to destroy it ; that the right side being thus aban¬ 
 doned by those that are capable of giving more weight, autho¬ 
 rity, and strength to it by their union and concurrence, becomes 
 unable to grapple with the audacious and violent enterprises of 
 a few daring innovators. To prevent this misfortune, which 
 may be attended with the most fatal consequences to a state, 
 Solon judged it proper to force the well affected, by the fear of 
 greater inconveniences to themselves, to declare at the very be¬ 
 ginning of any commotion, for the party that was in the right, 
 and to animate the spirit and courage of the best citizens by en¬ 
 gaging with them in the common danger. By this method of 
 accustoming the minds of the people to look upon that man al¬ 
 most as an enemy and a traitor, that should appear indifferent 
 to, and unconcerned at, the misfortunes of the public, he pro¬ 
 vided the state with a quick and sure resource against the sud¬ 
 den enterprises of wicked and profligate citizens. 
 
 Solon abolished the giving of portions in marriage with young 
 women, unless they were only daughters ; r and ordered that the 
 bride should carry no other fortune to her husband than three 
 suits of clothes, and some household goods of little value : for 
 he would not have matrimony become a traffic, and a mere com¬ 
 merce of interest ; but desired that it should be regarded as 
 an honourable fellowship and society, in order to raise subjects 
 to the state, to make the married pair live agreeably and harmo¬ 
 niously together, and to give continual testimony of mutual love 
 and tenderness to each other. 
 
 Before Solon’s time, the Athenians were not allowed to make 
 
 p Plut. in Solon, p. 88. Ibid. p. 89. r Ibid. p. 89. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 197 
 
 their wills ; the wealth of the deceased always devolved upon 
 his children and family. Solon’s law allowed every one that 
 was childless, to dispose of his whole estate as he thought fit; 
 preferring by that means friendship to kindred, and choice to 
 necessity and constraint, and rendering every man truly master 
 of his own fortune, by leaving him at liberty to bestow it where 
 he pleased. This law however did not authorize indifferently 
 all sorts of donations : it justified and approved of none but 
 those that were made freely and without any compulsion; with¬ 
 out having the mind distempered and intoxicated by potions or 
 charms, or perverted and seduced by the allurements and caress¬ 
 es of a woman ; for this wise lawgiver was justly persuaded, that 
 there is no difference to be made between being seduced and being 
 forced, looking upon artifice and violence, pleasure and pain, in 
 the same light, when they are made use of as means to impose upon 
 men’s reason, and to captivate the liberty of their understandings. 
 
 Another regulation he made was to lessen the rewards of the 
 victors at the Isthmian and Olympic games, s and to fix them at 
 a certain value, viz. 100 drachmas, which make about tw T o 
 pounds, for the first sort; and 500 drachmas, or about ten 
 pounds, for the second. He thought it a shameful thing, that 
 athletae and wrestlers, a sort of people not only useless, but 
 often dangerous to the state, should have any considerable re¬ 
 wards allotted them, which ought rather to be reserved for the 
 families of those persons who died in the service of their coun¬ 
 try ; it being very just and reasonable, that the state should sup¬ 
 port and provide for such orphans, who probably might come in 
 time to follow the good examples of their fathers. 
 
 In order to encourage arts, trades, and manufactures, the 
 senate of the Areopagus was charged with the care of inquiring 
 into the ways and means that every man made use of to gain his 
 livelihood, and of chastising and punishing all those who led an 
 idle life. Besides the fore-mentioned view of bringingarts and 
 trades into a flourishing condition, this regulation was founded 
 upon two other reasons still more important. 
 
 First, Solon considered, that such persons as have no fortune, 
 and make use of no methods of industry to gain their livelihood, 
 are ready to employ all manner of unjust and unlawful means 
 for acquiring money; and that the necessity of subsisting some 
 way or other, disposes them for committing all sorts of misde¬ 
 meanours, rapine, knaveries, and frauds ; from which springs 
 up a school of vice in the bosom of the commonwealth ; and 
 such a leaven gains ground, as does not fail to spread its in¬ 
 fection, and by degrees corrupt the manners of the public. 
 
 In the second place, the most able statesmen have always 
 looked upon these indigent and idle people as a troop of dan- 
 s Pint. p. 91. Diofc Laert. in Solon, p. 37- 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 198 
 
 gerous, restless, and turbulent spirits, eager after innovation and 
 change, always ready for seditions and insurrections, and inte¬ 
 rested in revolutions of the state, by which alone they can hope 
 to change their own situation and fortune. It was for all these 
 reasons, that in the law we are speaking of, Solon declared, 
 that a son should not be obliged to support his father in old age 
 or necessity, if the latter had not taken care to have his son 
 brought up to some trade or occupation. . All children that were 
 spurious and illegitimate, were exempted from the same duty : 
 for it is evident, says Solon, that whoever thus contemns the 
 dignity and sanctity of matrimony, has never had in view the 
 lawful end we ought to propose to ourselves in having children, 
 but only the gratification of a loose passion. Having then sa¬ 
 tisfied his own desires, he has no proper right over the persons 
 who may spring from this disgraceful intercourse, upon whose 
 lives, as well as births, he has entailed an indelible infamy and 
 reproach. 
 
 It was prohibited to speak any ill of the dead : l because reli¬ 
 gion directs us to account the dead as sacred, justice requires 
 us to spare those that are no more, and good policy should hin¬ 
 der hatred from becoming immortal. 
 
 It was also forbidden to affront or give ill language to any 
 body in the temples, in courts of judicature, in public assem¬ 
 blies, and in the theatres, during the time of representation : 
 for to be no where able to govern our passions and resentments, 
 argues too untractable and licentious a disposition ; as, on the 
 other hand, to restrain them at all times, and upon all occasions, 
 is a virtue beyond the strength of mere human nature, and a 
 perfection reserved for the evangelical law. 
 
 Cicero observes, that this wise legislator of Athens, whose 
 laws were in force even in his time, had provided no law 
 against parricide; and being asked the reason why he had not, 
 he answered : That to make laws against, and ordain punish¬ 
 ments for, a crime that hitherto had never been known or heard 
 of, was the way to introduce it, rather than to prevent it. n I 
 omit several of his laws concerning marriage and adultery, in 
 which there are remarkable and manifest contradictions, and a 
 great mixture of light and darkness, knowledge and error, which 
 we generally find even among the very wisest of the heathens, 
 who had no established principles. 
 
 After Solon had published his laws, and engaged the people 
 by public oath to observe them religiously, at least for the term 
 ot 100 years, he thought proper to remove from Athens, in order 
 
 1 Pint, in Solon, p. 89. 
 
 u Sapienter fecisse dicitur, cum de eo niliil sanxerit, quod antea commissum 
 non erat; ne, non tam prohibere, quam admonere, videretur. Pro. Rose. 
 Amer. n. 70. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 199 
 
 to give them time to take root, and to gather strength by cus¬ 
 tom ; as also to rid himself of the trouble and importunity of 
 those who came to consult him about the meaning of his laws, 
 and to avoid the complaints and ill-will of others : for, as he 
 said himself, in great undertakings it is hard (if not impossible) 
 to please all parties. He was absent ten years, in which inter¬ 
 val of time we are to place his journeys into Egypt, into Lydia, 
 to visit king Croesus, and into several other coun- 
 Ant J 1 C 4 559 tries. At his return he found the whole city in 
 commotion and trouble ; x the three old factions 
 were revived, and had formed three different parties. Lycur- 
 gus was at the head of the people that inhabited the low-lands ; 
 Megacles, son of Alcmaeon, was the leader of the inhabitants 
 upon the sea-coast; and Pisistratus had declared for the moun¬ 
 taineers, to whom were joined the handicraftsmen and labour¬ 
 ers who lived by their industry, and who were particularly hos¬ 
 tile to the rich ; of these three leaders the two latter were the 
 most powerful and considerable. 
 
 Megacles was the son of that Alcmaeon whom Croesus had 
 extremely enriched for a particular service which he had done 
 him.y He had likewise married a lady, who had brought him 
 an immense portion : her name was Agarista, the daughter of 
 Clisthenes, tyrant of Sicyon. This Clisthenes was the richest 
 and mo t opulent prince at this time in Greece. In order to 
 be able to choose a worthy son-in-law, and to know his temper, 
 manners, and character, from his own experience, Clisthenes 
 invited all the young nobleman of Greece to come and spend a 
 year with him at his house ; for this was an ancient custom in 
 that country. Several youths accepted the invitation, and came 
 from different parts, to the number of thirteen. Nothing was 
 seen every day but races, games, tournaments, magnificent en¬ 
 tertainments, and conversations upon all sorts of topics. One 
 of the gentlemen, who had hitherto surpassed all his compe¬ 
 titors, lost the princess, by having made use of some indecent 
 gestures and postures in his dancing, with which her father was 
 extremely offended. Clisthenes, at the end of the year, de¬ 
 clared for Megacles, and sent the rest of the noblemen away, 
 loaden with civilities and presents. Such was Megacles. 
 
 Pisistratus was a well-bred man, a of a gentle and insinuating 
 behaviour, ready to succour and assist the poor : b prudent and 
 moderate towards his enemies ; a most artful and accomplished 
 dissembler; and one who had all the exterior of virtue, even 
 beyond the most virtuous ; who seemed to be the most zealous 
 
 x Hut. in Solon, p. 94. y Herod, lib. vi. c. 125—131. 
 
 a Plut. in Solon, p. 95. 
 
 b "We are not here to understand such as begged or asked alms : for in those 
 times, says Isocrates, there was no citizen that died of hunger, or dishonoured 
 his city by begging. Oral. Areop. p. 309. 
 
200 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 stickler for equality among the citizens, and who absolutely de¬ 
 clared against all innovations and change. 
 
 It was not very hard for him to impose upon the people with 
 all this artifice and address. But Solon quickly saw through 
 his disguise, and perceived the drift of all his seeming virtue 
 and fair pretences ; however, he thought fit to observe measures 
 with him in the beginning, hoping, perhaps, by gentle methods, 
 to bring him back to his duty. 
 
 It was at that time c Thespis began to change the Grecian 
 tragedy : d I say change; because it was invented long before. 
 This novelty drew all the world after it. Solon went among the 
 rest for the sake of hearing Thespis, who acted himself, accord¬ 
 ing to the custom of the ancient poets. When the play was 
 ended, he called to Thespis, and asked him, Whether he was 
 not ashamed to utter such lies before so many people ? Thes¬ 
 pis made answer, That there was no harm in lies of that sort , 
 and in poetical fictions, which were made only for diversion .— 
 No, replied Solon, giving a great stroke with his stick upon the 
 ground ; but if we suffer and approve of lying for our own di¬ 
 version, it will quickly find its way into our serious engagements, 
 and all our business and affairs.^ 
 
 In the mean time Pisistratus still pushed on his point; and 
 in order to accomplish it, made use of a stratagem that succeed¬ 
 ed as well as he could expect. 11 He gave himself several 
 wounds ; e and in that condition, with his body all bloody, he 
 caused himself to be carried in a chariot into the market-place, 
 where he inflamed the populace, by giving them to understand 
 that his enemies had treated him in that manner, and that he was 
 the victim of his zeal for the public good. 
 
 An assembly of the people was immediately convened : and 
 there it was resolved, in spite of all the remonstrances Solon 
 could make against it, that fifty guards should be allowed Pisis¬ 
 tratus for the security of his peison. He soon augmented the 
 number as much as he thought fit, and by their means made 
 himself master of the citadel. All his enemies betook them¬ 
 selves to flight, and the whole city was in great consternation 
 and disorder, except Solon, who loudly reproached the Athe¬ 
 nians with their cowardice and folly, and the tyrant with his 
 treachery. Upon his being asked what it was that gave him so 
 much firmness and resolution? It is, said he, my old age. He 
 
 c Plut. in Solon, p. 95. 
 
 d Tragedy was in being a long time before Thespis; but it was only a 
 chorus of persons that sang, and said opprobrious things to one another. Thespis 
 was the first that improved this chorus by the addition of a character, who, in 
 order to give the rest time to take breath, and to recover their spirits, recited 
 an adventure of some illustrious person. And this recital gave occasion after¬ 
 wards for introducing the subjects of tragedies. 
 
 d v Herod. 1. i. c. 59— 64. e Pint, in Solon, p. 95, 9G. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 201 
 
 was indeed very old, and did not seem to risk much, as the end 
 of his life was very near : though it often happens, that men 
 grow fonder of life, in proportion as they have less reason and 
 right to desire it should be prolonged. But Pisistratus, after 
 he had subdued all, thought this conquest imperfect till he had 
 gained Solon; and as he was well acquainted with the means 
 that are proper to conciliate an old man, he spared no cares¬ 
 ses, omitted nothing that could tend to soften and win upon 
 him, and. showed him all possible marks of friendship and es¬ 
 teem, doing him all manner of honour, having him often about 
 his person, and publicly professing a great veneration for his 
 laws ; which in truth he both observed himself, and caused to 
 be observed by others. Solon, seeing it was impossible either 
 to bring Pisistratus by fair means to renounce this usurpation, 
 or to depose him by force, thought it a point of prudence not to 
 exasperate the tyrant by rejecting the advances he made him, 
 and hoped, at the same time, that by entering into his confidence 
 and counsels, he might at least be capable of conducting and 
 turning into a proper channel a power which he could not abo- 
 . lish, and of mitigating the mischief and calamity that lie had 
 not been able to prevent. 
 
 Solon did not survive the liberty of his country two years 
 complete : for Pisistratus made himself master of Athens, under 
 the Archon Comias, the first year of the 51st Olympiad ; and 
 Solon died the year following, under the Archon Hegestratus, 
 who succeeded Comias. 
 
 The two parties, the heads of which were Lycurgus and Me- 
 gacles, uniting, drove Pisistratus out of Athens. He was, how¬ 
 ever, soon recalled by Megacles, who gave him his daughter in 
 marriage. But a difference, that arose upon occasion of this 
 match, having embroiled them afresh, the Alcmseonidee had 
 the worst, and were obliged to retire. Pisistratus was twice 
 deposed, and twice found means to reinstate himself. His ar¬ 
 tifices acquired him his power, and his moderation maintained 
 him in it; and without doubt his eloquence/ which even in 
 Tully’s judgment was very great, rendered him very acceptable 
 to the Athenians, who were but too apt to be affected with the 
 charms of oratory, as it made them forget the care of their 
 liberty. An exact submission to the laws distinguished Pisis¬ 
 tratus from most other usurpers: and the mildness of his govern¬ 
 ment was such as might make many a lawful sovereign blush. 
 For which reason, the character of Pisistratus has been thought 
 worthy of being set in opposition to that of other tyrants. Ci- 
 
 f Pisistratus dicendo tantum valuisse dicitur, ut ei Atlienienses regium im- 
 perium oratione capti permitterent. Val. Max. 1. viii. c. 9. 
 
 Quis doctior iisdem teraporibus, aut cujus eloquentialiteris instructior fuisse 
 traditur, quara Pisistrati ? Cic. de Orat. I. iii. n. 137* 
 
202 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 cero, doubting what use Caesar would make of his victory at 
 Pharsalia, wrote to his dear friend Atticus, We do not yet know 
 whether the destiny of Rome will have us groan under a Pha- 
 laris, or live under a Pisistratus.^ 
 
 This tyrant, indeed, if we are to call him so, always showed 
 himself very popular and moderate; and had such a command 
 of his temper, 11 as to hear reproaches and insults with patience, 
 when he had it in his power to revenge them with a word. 
 His gardens and orchards were open to all the citizens in 
 which he was afterwards imitated by Cimon. It is said, he 
 was the first who opened a public library in Athens, k which after 
 his time was much augmented, and at last carried into Persia 
 by Xerxes, when he took the city. But Seleucus Nicanor, 
 a long time afterwards, caused it to be brought back to Athens. 
 Cicero 1 thinks also it was Pisistratus who first made the Athe¬ 
 nians acquainted with the poems of Homer; who arranged the 
 books in the order in which we now find them, whereas before 
 they were confused and not digested ; and who first caused 
 them to be publicly read at the feasts called Fanathenaea. Plato 
 ascribes this honour to his son Hipparchus." 1 
 
 Pisistratus died in tranquillity, 11 and transmitted to his sons the 
 sovereign power, which he had usurped thirty years before ; se¬ 
 venteen of which he had reigned in peace. 
 
 His sons were Hippias, and Hipparchus. 
 
 A^t "j C 520 Thucydides adds a third, whom he calls Thessa- 
 lus. They seem to have inherited from their 
 father an affection for learning and learned men. Plato, who 
 attributes to Hipparchus what we have said concerning the 
 poems of Horner, 0 adds, that he invited to Athens the famous 
 poet Anacreon, who was of Teos, a city of Ionia ; and that he 
 sent a vessel of fifty oars on purpose for him. He likewise en¬ 
 tertained at his house Simonides, another famous poet of the 
 isle of Ceos*, one of the Cyclades, in the ^dEgean sea, to whom 
 he gave a large pension, and made very rich presents. The 
 design of these princes in inviting men of letters to Athens 
 was, says Plato, to soften and cultivate the minds of the citizens, 
 and to infuse into them a relish and love for virtue, by giving 
 them a taste for learning and the sciences. Their care extended 
 even to the instructing of the peasants and country people, by 
 erecting not only in the streets of the city, but in all the roads 
 and highways, statues of stone, called Mercuries, with grave 
 sentences and moral maxims carved upon them ; in which 
 manner those silent monitors gave instructive lessons to all pas¬ 
 
 s' Incertum est Phalarimne, an Pisistratum, sit imitaturus. Ad Attic. 1. vii* 
 Ep. xix. h Val. Max. 1. v. c. 1. 
 
 1 Athen. 1. xii. p. 532. k Aul. Gel. 1. vi. c. 17. 
 
 1 Lib. iii. de Orat. n. 137. m In Hipparch. p. 228. 
 
 n Arist. lib. v. de Rep. c. 12. ° In Hip. p. 228, 229. 
 
 O 
 
GREECE. 
 
 203 
 
 sengers. Plato seems to suppose that Hipparchus had the au¬ 
 thority, or that the two brothers reigned together. But Thucy¬ 
 dides shows,? that Hippias, as the eldest of the sons, succeeded 
 his father in the government. 
 
 Be this as it may, the reign in the whole, after the death of 
 Pisistratus, was only of eighteen years’ duration : it ended in the 
 following manner: 
 
 Harmodius and Aristogiton, both citizens of Athens, had con¬ 
 tracted a very strict friendship.^ Hipparchus, angry with the 
 former for a personal affront he pretended to have received from 
 him, endeavoured to revenge himself upon his sister, by putting 
 a public affront upon her, obliging her shamefully to retire from 
 a solemn procession, in which she was to carry one of the sacred 
 baskets, alleging, that she was not in a fit condition to assist at 
 such a ceremony. Her brother, and still more his friend, being 
 stung to the quick by so gross and outrageous an affront, took from 
 that moment a resolution to attack the tyrants. And to do it 
 the more effectually, they waited for the opportunity of a festi¬ 
 val, which they judged would be very favourable for their pur¬ 
 pose : this was the feast of the Panathenaea, in which the cere¬ 
 mony required that all the tradesmen and artificers should be un¬ 
 der arms. For the greater security, they admitted only a very 
 small number of the citizens into their secret; conceiving, that 
 upon the first motion all the rest would join them. The day 
 being come, they went betimes into the market-place, armed with 
 daggers. Hippias came out of the palace, and went to the 
 Ceramicus, which was a place without the city, where the com¬ 
 pany of guards then were, to give the necessary orders for the 
 ceremony. The two friends having followed him thither, saw 
 one of the conspirators talking very familiarly with him, which 
 made them apprehend they were betrayed. They could have 
 executed their design that moment upon Hippias ; but were 
 willing to begin their vengeance upon the author of the affront 
 they had received. They therefore returned into the city, where, 
 meeting with Hipparchus, they killed him; but being imme¬ 
 diately apprehended, themselves were slain, and Hippias found 
 means to dispel the storm. 
 
 After this affair, he no longer observed any measures, and 
 reigned like a true tyrant, putting to death a vast number of ci¬ 
 tizens. To guard himself for the future against a like enter¬ 
 prise, and to secure a safe retreat for himself, in case of any 
 accident, ho endeavoured to strengthen himself by a foreign 
 support, and to that end gave his daughter in marriage to the 
 son of the tyrant of Lampsacus. 
 
 In the mean time/ the Alcmaeonidte, who from the beginning 
 
 p Lib. vi. p. 4-16*. q Thucvcl. 1. vi. p. 446—450. 
 
 r Herod. 1. v. c. 62—06. ' 
 
204 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 of the revolution had been banished from Athens by Pisistratus, 
 and who saw their hopes frustrated by the bad success of the 
 last conspiracy, did not however lose courage, but turned their 
 views another way. As they were very rich and powerful, they 
 got themselves appointed by the Amphictyons, who constituted 
 the general council of Greece, to superintend the rebuilding of 
 the temple of Delphi, for the sum of 300 talents, or 300,000 
 crowns. s As they were naturally generous, and had besides 
 their reasons for being so on this occasion, they added to this 
 sum a great deal of their own money, and made the whole front 
 of the temple all of Parian marble, at their particular expense; 
 whereas by the contract made with the Amphictyons, it was only 
 to have been made of common stone. 
 
 The liberality of the Alcmaeonidte was not altogether a free 
 bounty ; neither was their magnificence towards the god of 
 Delphi a pure effect of religion: policy was the chief motive. 
 They hoped by this means to acquire great influence in the 
 temple, and it happened according to their expectation. , The 
 money, which they plentifully poured into the hands of the 
 priestess, rendered them absolute masters of the oracle, and of 
 the pretended god who presided over it, and who for the future 
 becoming their echo, did no more than faithfully repeat the 
 words they dictated to him, and gratefully lent them the assist¬ 
 ance of his voice and authority. As often therefore as any 
 Spartan came to consult the priestess, whether upon his own 
 affairs or upon those of the state, no promise was ever made 
 him of the god’s assistance, but upon condition that the Lace¬ 
 daemonians should deliver Athens from the yoke of tyranny. 
 This order was so often repeated to them by the oracle, that 
 they resolved at last to make war against the Pisistratidae, 
 though they were under the strongest engagements of friend¬ 
 ship and hospitality with them : herein preferring the will of 
 God, says Herodotus, to all human considerations. 1 
 
 The first attempt of this kind miscarried ; and the troops 
 they sent against the tyrant were repulsed with loss. Notwith¬ 
 standing, a little time after they made a second, which seemed 
 to promise no better success than the first: because most of the 
 Lacedaemonians, seeing the siege they had laid before Athens 
 likely to continue a great while, retired, and left only a small 
 number of troops to carry it on. But the tyrant’s children, who 
 had been clandestinely conveyed out of the city, in order to he 
 put in a safe place, being taken by the enemy, the father, to re¬ 
 deem them, was obliged to come to an accommodation with the 
 Athenians, by which it was stipulated, that he should depart 
 
 s About 40 000/. sterling. 
 
 T a yap tov Oeov Trptafivrfpa Ittoiovvto, i) r« tojv dvfipiov. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 205 
 
 A. M. 349C. out of Attica in five days’ time. Accordingly, 
 Ant. J. C. 508. he actually retired within the time limited, and 
 settled at Sigaeum, a town in Phrygia, seated at the mouth of 
 the river Scamander. 
 
 Pliny observes, 11 that the tyrants were driven out of Athens 
 the same year the kings were expelled Rome. Extraordinary 
 honours were paid to the memory of Harmodius and Aristogi- 
 ton. Their names were infinitely respected at Athens in all 
 succeeding ages, and almost held in equal reverence with those 
 of the gods. Statues were forthwith erected to them in the 
 market-place, which was an honour that had never been con¬ 
 ferred on any man before. The very sight of these statues, ex¬ 
 posed to the view of all the citizens, kept up their hatred and 
 detestation of tyranny, and daily renewed their sentiments of 
 gratitude to those generous defenders of their liberty, who had 
 not scrupled to purchase it with their lives, and to seal it with 
 their blood. Alexander the Great, x who knew how dear the 
 memory of these men was to the Athenians, and how far they 
 carried their zeal in this respect, thought he did them a sensible 
 pleasure in sending back to them the statues of those two great 
 men, which he found in Persia after the defeat of Darius, and 
 which Xerxes had formerly carried thither from Athens. Pau- 
 sanias ascribes this action to Seleucus Nicanor, one of the suc¬ 
 cessors of Alexander ; and adds, that he also sent back to the 
 Athenians their public library, which Xerxes had carried off 
 with him into Persia. Athens/ at the time of her deliverance 
 from tyranny, did not confine her gratitude solely to the authors 
 of her liberty, but extended it even to a woman who had signa¬ 
 lized her courage on that occasion. This woman was a courte¬ 
 san, named Leaena, who l^y the charms of her beauty and skill 
 in playing on the harp, had particularly captivated Harmodius 
 and Aristogiton. After their death, the tyrant, who knew they 
 had concealed nothing from this woman, caused her to be put to 
 the torture in order to make her declare the names of the other 
 conspirators. But she bore all the cruelty of their torments 
 with an invincible constancy, and expired in the midst of them ; 
 showing the world that her sex is more courageous, and more 
 capable of keeping a secret, than some men imagine. The 
 Athenians would not suffer the memory of so heroic an action 
 to be lost; and, to prevent the lustre of it from being sullied by 
 the consideration of her character as a courtesan, they endea¬ 
 voured to conceal that circumstance, by representing her, in the 
 statue which they erected to her honour, under the figure of a 
 lioness without a tongue. 
 
 Plutarch in the life of Aristides, 2 relates a circumstance which 
 
 u Plin. 1. xxxiv. c. 4. x Plin. 1. xxxiv. c. 8. 
 
 y Id. 1. vii. c. 23. 1. xxxiv. c. 8. z Page 335. 
 
20 G 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 does great honour to the Athenians, and shows to what a pitch 
 they carried their gratitude to their deliverer, and their respect 
 for his memory. They had learned that the grand-daughter of 
 Aristogiton lived at Lemnos, in very mean and poor circum¬ 
 stances, nobody being willing to marry her upon account of her 
 extreme indigence and poverty. The people of Athens sent 
 for her, and, marrying her to one of the most rich and consider¬ 
 able men of their city, gave her an estate in land in the town of 
 Potamos for her portion. 
 
 Athens seemed, in recovering her liberty, to have also reco¬ 
 vered her pristine courage. During the reigns of her tyrants, 
 she had acted with indolence and indifference, as knowing 
 what she did was not for herself, but for them. But after her 
 deliverance from their yoke, the vigour and activity she exerted 
 was of a quite different kind ; because then her labours were 
 her own. 
 
 Athens, however, did not immediately enjoy a perfect tran¬ 
 quillity. Two of her citizens, Clisthenes, one of the Alcmaeo- 
 nidae, and Isagoras, who were men of the greatest power in the 
 city, by contending with each other for superiority, created two 
 considerable factions. The former, who had gained the people 
 on his side, made an alteration in the form of their establish¬ 
 ment, and instead of four tribes, whereof they consisted before, 
 divided that body into ten tribes, to which he gave the names of 
 the ten sons of Ion, whom the Greek historians make the father 
 and first founder of the nation. Isagoras, seeing himself 
 inferior in credit to his rival, had recourse to the Lacedaemo¬ 
 nians. Cleomenes, one of the two kings of Sparta, obliged 
 Clisthenes to depart from Athens, with 700 families of his ad¬ 
 herents. But they soon returned with their leader, and were 
 restored to all their estates and fortunes. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians, stung with spite and jealousy against 
 Athens, because she took upon her to act independant of their 
 authority; and repenting also that they had delivered her 
 from her tyrants upon the credit of an oracle of which they had 
 since discovered the imposture, began to think of reinstating 
 Hippias, one of the sons of Pisistratus ; and to that end sent 
 for him from Sigaeum, whither he had retired. They then com¬ 
 municated their design in an assembly of the deputies of their 
 allies, whose assistance and concurrence they were anxious to 
 secure in order to render their enterprise successful. 
 
 The deputy of Corinth spoke first on this occasion, and ex¬ 
 pressed great astonishment that the Lacedaemonians, who were 
 themselves avowed enemies of tyranny, and professed the great¬ 
 est abhorrence for all arbitrary government, should desire to es¬ 
 tablish it elsewhere : he exposed to their view, in the fullest 
 light, all the cruel and horrid effects of tyrannical government. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 207 
 
 which his own country, Corinth, had but very lately felt by 
 woful experience. The rest of the deputies applauded his dis¬ 
 course, and were of his opinion. Thus the enterprise came to 
 nothing-; and had no other effect than to discover the base 
 jealousy of the Lacedaemonians, and to cover them with shame 
 and confusion. 
 
 Hippias, defeated of his hopes, retired into Asia to Ar- 
 taphernes, governor of Sardis for the king of Persia, whom he 
 endeavoured by every method to engage in a war against 
 Athens; representing to him, that the taking of so rich and 
 powerful a city would render him master of all Greece. Arta- 
 phernes hereupon required of the Athenians that they would 
 reinstate Hippias in the government; to which they made no 
 other answer, than by a downright and absolute refusal. This 
 was the original ground and occasion of the wars between the 
 Persians and the Greeks, which will be the subject of the fol¬ 
 lowing volumes. 
 
 ARTICLE IX. 
 
 Illustrious men who distinguished themselves in the arts and sciences. 
 
 I begin with the poets, as the most ancient. 
 
 Homer, the most celebrated and illustrious of all the poets, 
 is he of whom we have the least knowledge, either with respect 
 to the country where he was born, or the time in which he lived. 
 Among the seven cities of Greece that contended for the honour 
 of having given him birth, Smyrna seems to have the best title 
 to that glorious distinction. 
 
 Herodotus tells us, a that Homer wrote 400 years 
 Ant Tc 16 8 0 44 before his time, that is, 340 years after the tak¬ 
 ing of Troy ; for Herodotus flourished 740 years 
 after that expedition. 
 
 Some authors have pretended that he was called Homer, be¬ 
 cause he was born blind. Velleius Paterculus rejects this story 
 with contempt. If any manf says he, believes that Homer 
 was born blind , lie must be so himself, and even have lost all 
 his senses. Indeed, according to the observation of Cicero, c 
 Homer’s works are rather pictures than poems, so perfectly 
 does he paint to the life, and set the images of every thing he 
 undertakes to describe before the eyes of the reader ; and he 
 seems to have been intent upon introducing all the most de¬ 
 lightful and agreeable objects that nature affords into his 
 writings, and making them in a manner pass in review before 
 his readers. 
 
 a Lib. ii. c. 53. 
 
 b Quern si quis coecum genitum putat, omnibus sensibus orbus est. Pa~ 
 fere. 1. i. c. 5. c Tuscul. Quoest. 1. v. n. 114. 
 
208 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 What is most astonishing in this poet is, d that being the first, 
 at least of those that are known, who applied himself to that 
 kind of poetry which is the most sublime and difficult of all, 
 he should however soar so high and with such rapidity, as to 
 carry it at once to the utmost perfection ; which seldom or 
 never happens in other arts, but by slow degrees and after a 
 long series of years. 
 
 The kind of poetry we are speaking of is the Epic Poem, 
 so called from the Greek word «fo?; because it is an action 
 related by the poet. The subject of this poem must be great, 
 instructive, serious, containing only one principal event, to 
 which all the rest must refer and be subordinate; and this 
 principal action must have passed in a certain space of time, 
 which must not exceed a year at most. 
 
 Homer has composed two poems of this kind, the Iliad and 
 the Odyssey ; the subject of the first is the anger of Achilles, 
 so pernicious to the Greeks, when they besieged Ilion, or Troy; 
 and that of the second is the voyages and adventures of Ulysses, 
 after the taking of that city. 
 
 It is remarkable, that no nation in the world, however learned 
 and ingenious, has ever produced any poems comparable to 
 his ; and that whoever have attempted any works of that kind, 
 have all taken their plans and ideas from Homer, borrowed all 
 their rules from him, made him their model, and have only 
 succeeded in proportion to their success in copying him. The 
 truth is, Homer was an original genius, and fit for others to be 
 formed upon : Fons incjeniorum Homer us . e 
 
 All the greatest men, and the most exalted geniuses, that 
 have appeared for these two thousand and five or six hundred 
 years in Greece, Italy, and elsewhere; those whose writings 
 we are still forced to admire; who are still our masters, and 
 who teach us to think, to reason, to speak, and to write; all 
 these, says Madame Dacier/ acknowledge Homer to be the 
 greatest of poets, and look upon his poems as the model on 
 which all succeeding poets should form their taste and judg¬ 
 ment. After all this, can there be any man so conceited of his 
 own talents, be they never so great, as reasonably to presume, 
 that his decisions should prevail against such a universal con¬ 
 currence of judgment in persons of the most distinguished 
 abilities and characters ? 
 
 So many testimonies, so ancient, so uniform, and so universal, 
 
 d Clarissimum deinde Homeri illuxit ingenium, sine exemplo maximum : 
 qui magnitudine operis, et fulgore carminum, solus appellari Poeta meruit. In 
 quo hoc maximum est, quod neque ante ilium quern ille imitaretur; neque 
 post ilium, qur imitari eum possit, inventus est: neque quenquam alium, 
 cujus operis primus auctor fuerit, in eo perfectissimum, praeter Homerum et 
 Arehilochum reperiemus. Veil. Paterc. 1. i. c. 5. e Plin. 1. xvii. c. 5. 
 
 f In Homer’s life, which is prefixed to her translation of the Iliad. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 209 
 
 entirely justify Alexander the Great’s favourable judgment of 
 the works of Homer, which he looked upon as the most excel¬ 
 lent and valuable production of the human mind: jiretiosissi- 
 mum humani animi opns.% 
 
 Quintilian, 11 after having made a magnificent encomium upon 
 Homer, gives us a just idea of his character and manner of 
 writing in these few words : Hunc nemo in magnis sublimitate , 
 in parvis proprietate superaverit. Idem Icetus ac pressus y 
 jucundus et gravis , turn copia turn brevitate mirabilis. In 
 great things, what a sublimity of expression; and in little, 
 what a justness and propriety ! Diffusive and concise, pleasant 
 , equally admirable both for his copiousness and his 
 
 II esiod. The most common opinion is, that he was con¬ 
 temporary with Homer. It is said, he was born at Cumae, a 
 town in iEolis, but that he was brought up at Ascra, a little 
 town in Boeotia, which has since passed for his native country. 
 Thus Virgil calls him the old man of Ascra. 1 We know little or 
 nothing of this poet, but by the few remaining poems which he 
 has left, all in hexameter verse ; which are, 1st, The Works 
 and Days ; 2dly, The Theogony , or the genealogy of the gods; 
 3dly, The Shield of Hercules: of which last some doubt whe¬ 
 ther it was written by Hesiod. 
 
 1. In the first of these poems, entitled, TheWorks and Days , 
 Hesiod treats of agriculture, which requires besides a great deal 
 of labour, a due observation of times, seasons, and days. This 
 poem is full of excellent sentences and maxims for the conduct 
 of life. He begins it with a short, but lively description of two 
 sorts of disputes ; the one fatal to mankind, the source of quar¬ 
 rels, discords, and wars ; and the other infinitely useful and 
 beneficial to men, as it sharpens their wits, excites a noble and 
 generous emulation among them, and prepares the way for the 
 invention and improvement of arts and sciences. He then 
 makes an admirable description of the four different ages of the 
 world ; the golden, the silver, the brazen, and the iron age. 
 The persons who lived in the golden age are those whom Jupiter 
 after their death turned into so many Genii or spirits, 14 and then 
 appointed them as guardians over mankind, giving them a com¬ 
 mission to go up and down the earth, invisible to the sight of 
 men, and to observe all their good and evil actions. 
 
 This poem was Virgil’s model in composing his Georgies, as 
 he himself acknowledges in this verse :— 
 
 Ascraeumque cano Romana per oppida carmen. 1 
 
 And sing the Ascrean verse to Roman swains. 
 
 The choice made by these two illustrious poets of this subject 
 
 8 Plin. 1. vii. c. 29. h Quin. 1. x. cap. 1- * Eclog. vi. v. 70. 
 
 k Aai/ioveg. 1 Geor. 1. ii. v. 176. 
 
 VOL. II. P 
 
 ana gra 
 brevity. 
 
210 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 for the exercise of their muse, shows in what honour the ancients 
 held agriculture, and the feeding of cattle, the two innocent 
 sources of the wealth and plenty of a country. It is much to 
 be deplored, that in after-ages a taste so agreeable to nature, 
 and so well adapted to the preservation of innocence of man¬ 
 ners, should have gone to decay. Avarice and luxury have 
 entirely depressed it. Nimirum alii subiere 1 'itus, circaque 
 alia mentes hominum delinentur, et avariliee tantum artes 
 coluntur. m 
 
 2. The Theogony of Hesiod, and the poems of Homer, may 
 be looked upon as the surest and most authentic archives and 
 monuments of the theology of the ancients, and of the opinion 
 they had of their gods. For we are not to suppose, that these 
 poets were the inventors of the fables which we read in their 
 writings. They only collected and transmitted to posterity the 
 traces of the religion which they found established, and which 
 prevailed in their time and country. 
 
 3. The Shield of Hercules is a separate fragment of a poem, 
 wherein it is pretended that Hesiod celebrated the most illus¬ 
 trious heroines of antiquity : and it bears that title, because it 
 contains, among other things, a long description of the shield of 
 Hercules, concerning whom the same poem relates a particular 
 adventure. 
 
 The poetry of Hesiod, in those places that are susceptible of 
 ornament, is very elegant and delightful, but not so sublime and 
 lofty as that of Homer. Quintilian 11 reckons him the chief in 
 the middle manner of writing. Datur ei palma in illo medio 
 dicendi genere. 
 
 Archilochus. The poet Archilochus, born 
 Ant K 28 p4 in Faros, inventor of the lambic verse, lived in 
 the time of Candaules, king of Lydia. He has 
 this advantage in common with Homer, according to Velleius 
 Paterculus, that he carried at once that kind of poetry which 
 he invented, to a very great perfection. The feet which gave 
 their name to these verses, and which at first were the only sort 
 used, are composed of one short and one long syllable. The 
 Iambic verse, such as it was invented by Archilochus, seems 
 very proper for a vehement and energetic style : accordingly we 
 see, that Horace, speaking of this poet, says, that it was his 
 anger, or rather his rage, that armed him with his Iambics, for 
 the exercising and exerting of his vengeance. 
 
 Arcliiloclium proprio rabies armavit Iambo. 0 
 
 And Quintilian says, p he had an uncommon force of expres- 
 
 m Plin. in Prooem. 1. xiv. n lab. i. c. 5. ° Art. Poet. 
 
 p Sumina in hoc vis elocutionis, cinn validfe turn breves vibrantesque sen- 
 tentiie, plurimum sanguinis atque'nervorum. Quin. 1. x. c. 1. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 211 
 
 sion, was full of bold thoughts, and of those strokes that are 
 concise, but keen and piercing ; in a word, his style was strong 
 and nervous. The longest of his poems were said to be the 
 best. 1 ! The world have passed the same judgment upon the 
 orations of Demosthenes and Cicero ; the latter of whom says 
 the same of his friend Atticus’s letters. 
 
 The verses of Archilochus were extremely biting and licen¬ 
 tious ; r witness those he writ against Lycambes, his father-in-law, 
 which drove him to despair. For this double reason, s his poetry, 
 how excellent .soever it was reckoned in other respects, was 
 banished out of Sparta, as being more likely to corrupt the 
 hearts and morals of young people, than to be useful in culti¬ 
 vating their understanding. We have only some very short 
 fragments remaining of this poet. Such a niceness in a hea¬ 
 then people, with regard to the quality of the books which they 
 thought young persons should be permitted to read, is highly 
 worth our notice, and will rise up in condemnation against many 
 Christians. 
 
 Hi pponax. This poet was of Ephesus, and signalized 
 himself some years after Archilochus, in the same kind of 
 poetry, and with the some force and vehemence. lie was 
 ugly, little, lean, and slender.* Two celebrated sculptors, who 
 were brothers, Bupalus and Athenis, (some call the latter An- 
 thermus,) diverted themselves at his expense, and represented 
 him in a ridiculous form. It is dangerous to attack satiric poets. 
 Hipponax retorted their pleasantry with such keen strokes of 
 satire, that they hanged themselves out of mortification ; others 
 say they only quitted the city of Ephesus, where Hipponax 
 lived. His malignant pen did not spare even those to whom he 
 owed his life. How monstrous was this ; Horace joins Hippo¬ 
 nax with Archilochus, and represents them as two poets equally 
 dangerous. 11 In the Anthologia there are three or four epi¬ 
 grams, x which describe Hipponax as terrible even after his 
 
 q Ut Aristophani Archilochi iambus, sic epistola longissima quaeque optima 
 videtur. Cic. Epist. xi. 1. 16. Ad Atticum. 
 
 r Hor. Epod. Od. vi. et Epist. xix. 1. i. 
 
 9 Lacedsemonii libros Archilochi e civitate sua exportari jusserunt, quod 
 eorum parum verecundam ac pudicam lectionem arbitrabantur. Nolueruut 
 enim ea liberorum suorum animos imbui, ne plus moribus noceret, quam 
 ingeniis prodesset. Itaque maximum poetam, aut certe summo proximum, 
 quia domum sibi invisum obscoenis maledictis laceraverat, carminum exilio 
 mulctarunt. Vel. Pat. 1. vi. c. 3. 
 
 . t ,Hjpponacti notabiiis vultus focditas erat; quamobrem imaginem ejus las- 
 civia jocorum ii proposuere ridentium circulis. Quod Hipponax indignatus 
 amaritudinem carminum distrinxit in tantum, ut credatur aliquibus ad la- 
 queum eos impulisse ; quod falsum est. Plin. 1. xxxvi. c. 5. 
 
 11 In malos asperrimus 
 Parata tollo cornua; 
 
 Qualis Lycambae spretus infido gener, 
 
 Aut acer hostis Bupalo. Epod. vi. 
 x Antliol. 1. iii. 
 p 2 
 
212 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 death. They admonish travellers to avoid his tomb, as a place 
 from whence a dreadful hail perpetually pours, t'ov 
 
 rdffrov, t'ov (fipucTov. Fucje grandinantem tumulurn , 
 horrendum. 
 
 It is thought he invented the Scazon verse, in which the 
 Spondee is used instead of the Iambus in the sixth foot of the 
 verse that bears that name. 
 
 Stesichorus. He was of Himeria, a city in Sicily, and ex¬ 
 celled in Lyric poetry, as did those other poets of whom we are 
 going to speak. Lyric poetry is that, the verses of which, di¬ 
 gested into odes and stanzas, were sung to the Lyre, or to other 
 such like instruments. Stesichorus flourished betwixt the 37ih 
 and 47th Olympiads. Pausanias,y after many other fables, relates, 
 that Stesichorus having been punished with the loss of sight for 
 his satirical verses against Helen, did not recover it till he had 
 retracted his invectives, by writing another ode contrary to 
 the first; which latter kind of ode is since called Palinodia. 
 Quintilian says, 2 that he sang of wars and illustrious heroes, 
 and that he supported upon the lyre all the dignity and majesty 
 of epic Doetry. 
 
 Alcman. He was of Lacedaemon, or, as some will have 
 it, of Sardis, in Lydia, and lived much about the same time 
 as Stesichorus. Some make him the first author of amorous 
 verses. 
 
 AlCtEUS. He was born at Mitylene, in Lesbos : it is from 
 him that the Alcaic verse derived its name. He was a professed 
 enemy to the tyrants of Lesbos, and particularly to Pittacus, 
 against whom he perpetually inveighed in his verses. It is said 
 of him, a that being once in a battle, he was seized with such 
 fear and terror, that he threw down his arms, and ran away. 
 Horace has thought fit to give us the same account of‘himself. b 
 Poets do not value themselves so much upon prowess as upon 
 wit. Quintilian says, c that the style of Alcaeus was close, 
 magnificent, and chaste; and to complete his character, adds, 
 that he very much resembled Homer. 
 
 Simonides. This poet was a native of Ceos, an island 
 11 the ^Lgean sea. He continued to flourish at the time of 
 Xerxes’s expedition. He excelled principally in elegy.* 3 The 
 
 v Paus. in Lacon. p. 200. 
 
 z Stesichorum, quam sit ingenio validus, materiae quoque ostendunt, maxima 
 bella et clarissimos canentern duces, et epici carminis onera lyra sustinentem. 
 L. x. c. 1. a Herod. 1. v. c. 95. 
 
 b Tecum Philippos et celerem fugam. 
 
 Sensi, relicta non bene parmula. Hor. Od. vii. 1. 2. 
 c In eloquendo brevis et magnificus et diligens, plerumque Homero similis. 
 d Sed me relictis, Musa procax, jocis 
 Ceae retractes munera naeniae. Horat. 
 
 Maestius lacrvmis Simonidis. Catul. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 213 
 
 invention of local memory is ascribed to him, of which I have 
 spoken elsewhere. e At twenty-four years of age he disputed 
 for, and carried, the prize of poetry. 
 
 The answer he gave a prince, who asked him, what God was, 
 is much celebrated. f That prince was Hiero, king of Syracuse. 
 The poet desired a day to consider the question proposed to 
 him. On the morrow lie asked two days ; and whenever he 
 was called upon for his answer, he still doubled the time. The 
 king, surprised at this behaviour, demanded his reason for it.— 
 It is, replied Simonides, because the more I consider the ques¬ 
 tion, the more obscure it seems : Quia quanto diutius con- 
 siclero , tanto mild res videtur obscurior. The answer was wise, 
 if it proceeded from the high idea which he conceived of the 
 Divine Majesty, which no understanding can comprehend, nor 
 any tongue express, s 
 
 After having travelled through many cities of Asia, h and 
 amassed a considerable wealth by celebrating, in his verses, the 
 praises of those who were capable of rewarding him well, he 
 embarked for the island of Ceos, his native country. The ship 
 was cast away. Every one endeavoured to save what they could. 
 Simonides did not encumber himself with any thing ; and when 
 he was asked the reason for it he replied,—I carry all I have 
 about me ; Mecum, inquit, mea sunt cuncta. Several of the 
 company were drowned, being overwhelmed by the weight of 
 the things they attempted to save, and those who got to shore 
 were plundered by thieves. All that escaped went to Clazo- 
 meme, which was not far from the place where the vessel was 
 lost. One of the citizens, who loved learning, and had read the 
 poems of Simonides with great admiration, was exceedingly 
 pleased, and thought it an honour to receive him into his house. 
 He supplied him abundantly with necessaries, whilst the rest 
 were obliged to beg through the city. The poet upon meeting 
 them, did not forget to observe how justly he had answered 
 them in regard to his effects : Dixi , inquit, mea mecum esse 
 cuncta ; vos quod rapuistis, perit. 
 
 He was reproached with having dishonoured poetry by his 
 avarice, in making his pen venal, and not composing any verses 
 till he had agreed on the price to be paid for them. In Aris¬ 
 totle, * we find a proof of this, which does him no honour. A 
 person who had won the prize in the chariot-races, desired Si- 
 
 e Method of teaching and studying the Belles Lettres. 
 f Cic. de Nat. Deor. 1. i. n. 15. 
 
 8 Certe hoc est Deus, quod et cum dicitur, non potest dici: cum aestimatur, 
 non potest aestimari ; cum comparatur, non potest comparari; cum definitur, 
 ipsa definitione crescit. S. Aug. serm. de temp. cix. 
 
 Nobis ad intellectum pectus angustum est. Et ideo sic eum (Deum) digne 
 sestimamus, dum finsestimabilem" dicimus. Eloquar quemadmodum sentio. 
 Magnitudinem Dei qui se putat nosse, minuit: qui non vult minuere, non 
 novit. Minut. Felix. h Phaedr. 1. iv. * Rhet. 1. iii. c. 2. 
 
214 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 monides to compose a song of triumph upon that subject. The 
 poet, not thinking the reward sufficient, replied, that he could 
 not treat it well. This prize had been won by mules, and he 
 pretended that animal did not afford the proper matter for 
 praise. Greater offers were made him, which ennobled the mule ; 
 and the poem was made. Money has long had power to be¬ 
 stow nobility and beauty. 
 
 Et genus et formam regina pecunia donat. 
 
 As this animal is generated between a she-ass and a horse, the 
 poet, as Aristotle observes, considered them at first only on the 
 base side of their pedigree. But money made him take them 
 in the other light, and he styled them illustidous foals of rapid 
 steeds : 'Kaipe t’ aeWoiroSivv Ovrympe 1 } i7nnvv. 
 
 Sappho. She was of the same place, and lived at the same 
 time, with Alcaeus. The sapphic verse took its name from her. 
 She composed a considerable number of poems, of which there 
 are but two remaining : these are sufficient to satisfy us that 
 the praises given her in all ages, for the beauty, pathetic soft¬ 
 ness, numbers, harmony, and infinite graces, of her poetry, are 
 not without foundation. As a farther proof of her merit, she 
 Avas called the Tenth Muse ; and the people of Mitylene en¬ 
 graved her image upon their money. It were to be wished, 
 that the purity of her manners had been equal to the beauty of 
 her genius; and that she had not dishonoured her sex by her 
 vices and irregularities. 
 
 Anacreon. This poet Avas of Teos, a city of Ionia. 
 He lived in the 72d Olympiad. Anacreon k spent a great part 
 of his time at the court of Polycrates, that fortunate tyrant of 
 Samos ; and not only shared in all his pleasures, but Avas of 
 his council. Plato tells us, 1 that Hipparchus, one of the sons 
 of Pisistratus, sent a vessel of fifty oars to Anacreon, and 
 wrote him a most obliging letter, entreating him to come to 
 Athens, where his excellent works would be esteemed and relish¬ 
 ed as they deserved. It is said, the only study of the poet was 
 joy and pleasure: and those remains Ave have of his poetry 
 sufficiently confirm it. We see plainly in all his verses, that 
 his hand Avrites what his heart feels and dictates. It is impos¬ 
 sible to express the elegance and delicacy of his poems ; no¬ 
 thing could be more estimable, had their object been more 
 noble. 
 
 Thespis. He Avas the first inventor of Tragedy. I defer 
 speaking of him, till I come to give some account of the tragic 
 poets. 
 
 k Herod. 1. iii. c. 121. 1 In Hippar. p. 228, 220. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 215 
 
 the seven wise men of Greece. 
 
 These men are too famous in antiquity to be omitted in this 
 present history. Their lives are written by Diogenes Laertius. 
 
 Thales, the Milesian . If Cicero ra is to be believed, Thales 
 was the most illustrious of the seven wise men. It was he that 
 laid the foundations of philosophy in Greece, and gave rise to 
 the sect called the Ionic sect; because he, the founder of it, 
 was of Ionia. 
 
 He held water to be the first principle of all things ; n and that 
 God was that intelligent being, by whom all things were form¬ 
 ed from water. The first of these opinions he had borrowed 
 from the Egyptians, who, seeing the Nile to be the cause of 
 the fertility of all their lands, might easily imagine from thence, 
 that water was the principle of all things. 
 
 He was the first of the Greeks that studied astronomy. He 
 had exactly foretold the time of the eclipse of the sun that 
 happened in the reign of Astyages, king of Media, of which 
 mention has been made already. 
 
 He was also the first tbat fixed the term and duration of the 
 solar year among the Grecians. By comparing the bigness of 
 the sun’s body with that of the moon, he thought he had dis¬ 
 covered, that the body of the moon was in solidity but the 
 720th part of the sun’s body, and consequently, that the solid 
 body of the sun was above 700 times bigger than the solid body 
 of the moon. This computation is very far from the truth ; as 
 the sun’s solidity exceeds, not only 700 times, but many mil¬ 
 lions of times, the moon’s magnitude or solidity. But we know, 
 that in all these matters, and particularly in that of which we 
 are now speaking, the first observations and discoveries were 
 very imperfect. 
 
 When Thales travelled into Egypt, 0 he discovered an easy 
 and certain method for taking the exact height of the pyramids, 
 by observing the time when the shadow of our body is equal in 
 length to the height of the body itself. 
 
 To show that philosophers were not so destitute, 11 as some 
 people imagined, of that sort of talents and capacity which is 
 proper for business; and that they would be as successful as 
 others in growing rich, if they thought fit to apply themselves 
 to that pursuit, he bought the fruit of all the olive-trees in the 
 territory of Miletus before they were in blossom. The pro¬ 
 found knowledge he had of nature had probably enabled him to 
 foresee that the year would be extremely fertile. It proved so 
 in fact; and he made a considerable profit by his bargain. 
 
 m Princeps Thales, unus e septera cui sex reliquos concessisse primas fe- 
 runt. Lib. iv. Acad. Quccst. n. 118. n Lib. i. tie Nat. Deor. n. 25. 
 
 ° Pirn. lib. xxxvi. cap. 12. p Cic. lib. i. de Divin. n. Ill, 
 
216 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 He used to thank the gods for three things: that he was 
 born a reasonable creature, and not a beast; a man, and not a 
 woman; a Greek, and not a Barbarian. Upon his mother’s 
 pressing him to marry when he was young, he told her, it was 
 then too soon ; and after several years were elapsed, he told 
 her it was then too late. 
 
 As he was one day walking, and very attentively contem¬ 
 plating the stars, he chanced to fall into a ditch.-—Ha! says a 
 good old woman that was by, how will you perceive what 
 passes in the heavens, and what is so infinitely above your 
 head, if you cannot see what is just at your feet, and before 
 your nose ? 
 
 He was born the first year of the 35th, and 
 A^t J* (J 4 547 died the y ear the 58th, Olympiad : con¬ 
 sequently, he lived to be above ninety years of 
 
 age. 
 
 Solon. His life has been already related at length. 
 
 Chilo. He was a Lacedaemonian: very little is related of 
 him. iEsop asking him one day, how J upiter employed him¬ 
 self? In humbling those , says he, that exalt themselves, and 
 exalting those that abase themselves. 
 
 He died of joy at Pisa, upon seeing his son win the prize at 
 boxing, in the Olympic games. He said when he was dying, 
 that he was not conscious to himself of having committed any 
 fault during the whole course of his life (an opinion well be¬ 
 coming the pride and blindness of a heathen philosopher); un¬ 
 less it was once, when he made use of a little dissimulation 
 and evasion, in giving judgment in favour of a friend : in which 
 action he did not know whether he had done well or ill. He 
 died about the 52d Olympiad. 
 
 Pittacus. He was of Mitylene, a city of Lesbos. Join¬ 
 ing with the brothers of Alcaeus, the famous Lyric poet, and 
 with Alcaeus himself, who was at the head of the exiled party, 
 lie drove the tyrant who had usurped the government out of 
 that island. 
 
 The inhabitants of Mitylene being at war with the Athe¬ 
 nians, gave Pittacus the command of the army. To spare the 
 blood of his fellow-citizens, he offered to fight Phrynon, the 
 enemy’s general, in single combat. The challenge was accepted. 
 Pittacus was victorious, and killed his adversary. The Mity- 
 lenians, out of gratitude, with unanimous consent, conferred 
 the sovereignty of the city upon him ; which he accepted, and 
 behaved himself with so much moderation and wisdom, that he 
 was always respected and beloved by his subjects. 
 
 In the mean time Alcaeus, who was a declared enemy to all 
 tyrants, did not spare Pittacus in his verses, notwithstanding the 
 mildness of his government and temper, but inveighed severely 
 
GREECE. 
 
 217 
 
 against him. The poet fell afterwards into Pittacus’s hands, 
 who was so far from taking revenge, that he gave him his 
 liberty, and showed, by that act of clemency and generosity, 
 that he was only a tyrant in name. 
 
 After having governed ten years with great equity and 
 wisdom, he voluntarily resigned his authority, and retired. He 
 used to say, 1 ! that the proof of a good government was to 
 engage the subjects, not to be afraid of their prince, but to be 
 afraid for him. It was a maxim with him, that no man should 
 ever give himself the liberty of speaking ill of a friend, or 
 even of an enemy. He died in the 52d Olympiad. 
 
 Bias. We know but very little of Bias. He obliged 
 Alyattes, king of Lydia, by a stratagem, to raise the siege of 
 Priene, where he was born. The city was hard pressed with 
 famine ; upon which he caused two mules to be fattened, and 
 contrived a way to have them pass into the enemy’s camp. The 
 good condition they were in astonished the king, who thereupon 
 sent deputies into the city upon pretence of offering terms of 
 peace, but really to observe the state of the town and people. 
 Bias, guessing their errand, had ordered the granaries to be 
 filled with great heaps of sand, and these heaps to be covered 
 with corn. When the deputies returned, and made report to 
 the king of the great plenty of provisions they had seen in the 
 city, he hesitated no longer, but concluded a treaty, and raised 
 the siege. One of the maxims Bias particularly taught and re¬ 
 commended was to do all the good we can, and ascribe all the 
 glory of it to the gods. r 
 
 Cleobulus. We know as little of him as of the former. 
 He was born at Lindos, a town in the isle of Rhodes ; or 
 as some will have it, in Caria. He invited Solon to come and 
 live with him, when Pisistratus had usurped the sovereignty of 
 Athens. 
 
 Periander. He is numbered among the wise men, though 
 he was a tyrant of Corinth. When he had first made himself 
 master of that city, he wrote to Thrasybulus, tyrant of Mile¬ 
 tus, to know what measures he should take with his new-acquired 
 subjects. The latter, without any other answer, led the mes¬ 
 senger into a field of wheat, where in walking along he beat 
 down with his cane all the ears of corn that were higher than the 
 rest. Periander perfectly well understood the meaning of this 
 enigmatical answer, which was a tacit intimation to him, that, 
 in order to secure his own life, he should cut off the most pow¬ 
 erful of the Corinthian citizens. But, if we may believe Plu¬ 
 tarch, 8 Periander did not relish so cruel advice. 
 
 9 Ei rovg vtt^koovq 6 ap-^wv TrctpavKtvdcrtit QofitlcOai /xr/ avrbv , a\\' vTrep avrov. 
 Plut. in Conv. sept. sap. p. 152. 
 
 r 'Oti civ dyaOov 7 rparryg, tig Stovg dvcnctinct, 8 In Conv. sept. sap. 
 
218 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 He wrote circular letters to all the wise men, 1 inviting them 
 to pass some time with him at Corinth, as they had done the 
 year before at Sardis with Croesus. Princes in those days 
 thought themselves much honoured, when they could have such 
 guests in their houses. Plutarch describes an entertainment 11 
 which Periander gave these illustrious guests ; and observes, 
 at the same time, that the decent simplicity of it, adapted to 
 the taste and character of the persons entertained, did him 
 much more honour than the greatest magnificence could have 
 done. The subject of their discourse at table was sometimes 
 grave and serious, and sometimes pleasant and gay. One of 
 the company proposed this question: Which is the most per¬ 
 fect popular government ?—That, answered Solon, where an 
 injury done to any private citizen is such to the whole body : * 
 —That, says Bias, where the law has no superior :—That, says 
 Thales, where the inhabitants are neither too rich nor too 
 poor:—That, says Anacharsis, where virtue is honoured, and 
 vice detested ;■—says Pittacus, Where dignities are always 
 conferred upon the virtuous, and never upon the wicked :— 
 says Cleobulus, Where the citizens fear blame more than 
 punishment:—says Chilo, Where the laws are more regarded, 
 and have more authority, than the orators. From all these 
 opinions, Periander concluded, that the most perfect popular 
 government would be that which came nearest to aristocracy, 
 where the sovereign authority is lodged in the hands of a few 
 men of honour and virtue. 
 
 Whilst these wise men were assembled together at Perian¬ 
 der’s court, a courier arrived from Amasis, king of Egypt, with 
 a letter for Bias, with whom that king kept a close corres¬ 
 pondence. The purport of this letter was to consult him how 
 lie should answer a proposal made him by the king of Ethiopia, 
 of his drinking up the sea ; in which case the Ethiopian king 
 promised to resign to him a certain number of cities in his do¬ 
 minions : but if he did not do it, then he, Amasis, was to give 
 up the same number of his cities to the king of Ethiopia. It 
 was usual in those days for princes to propound such enigmati¬ 
 cal and puzzling questions to one another. Bias answered him 
 directly, and advised him to accept the offer on the condition 
 that the king of Ethiopia would stop all the rivers that flow 
 into the sea: for the business was only to drink up the sea, and 
 not the rivers. We find an answer to the same effect ascribed 
 to yEsop. 
 
 I must not here forget to take notice, that these wise men, of 
 whom I have been speaking, were all lovers of poetry, and 
 composed verses themselves, some of them a considerable num- 
 
 ln Conv. sept. sap. 
 
 * Biog. Laert. in vit. Perianth 
 
 U 
 
219 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 ber upon subjects of morality and policy, which are certainly 
 topics well worthy of the muses. Solon, x however, is reproached 
 for having written some licentious verses ; which may teach us 
 what judgment we ought to form of these pretended wise men 
 of the pagan world. 
 
 Instead of some of these seven wise men, which I have men¬ 
 tioned, some people have substituted others ; as Anacharsis, 
 for example, Myso, Epimenides, Pherecydes. The first of these 
 is the most known in storv. 
 
 Anacharsis. Long before Solon’s time the Nomad Scy¬ 
 thians were in great reputation for their simplicity, frugality, 
 temperance, and justice. Homer calls them a very just nation.? 
 Anacharsis was one of these Scythians, and of the royal family. 
 A certain Athenian, once having reproached him with his 
 country :—My country, you think, replied Anacharsis, is no 
 great honour to me ; and you, sir, are no great honour to your 
 country.—His good sense, profound knowledge, and great 
 experience, made him pass for one of the seven wise men. 
 He wrote a treatise in verse upon the art military, and com¬ 
 posed another tract on the laws of Scythia. 
 
 He used to make visits to Solon. It was in conversation 
 with him that he compared laws to cobwebs, which entangle 
 only little flies, whilst wasps and hornets break through them. 
 
 Being inured to the austere and poor life of the Scythians, he 
 set little value upon, riches. Croesus invited him to come and 
 see him, and without doubt hinted to him, that he was able to 
 mend his fortune. I have no occasioti for your gold, said the 
 Scythian in his answer : I came into Greece only to enrich my 
 mind and improve my understanding ; I shall he very well sa¬ 
 tisfied, if I return into my own country, not with an addition 
 to my wealth, hut with an increase of knowledge and virtue. 
 However, Anacharsis accepted the invitation, and went to that 
 prince’s court. 
 
 We have already observed that yEsop was much surprised 
 and dissatisfied at the cold and indifferent manner in which So¬ 
 lon viewed the magnificence of the palace, and the vast trea¬ 
 sures of Croesus ; z because it was the master, and not the house, 
 that the philosopher wished to have reason to admire. Certainly, 
 says Anacharsis to iEsop on that occasion, you have forgotten 
 your own fable of the fox and panther. The latter, as her 
 highest merit, could only show her fine skin, beautif ully marked 
 and spotted with different colours : the fox's skin, on the con¬ 
 trary, was very plain, hutpontainecl within it a treasure of suh- 
 tilties and stratagems of infinite value. This very image, con¬ 
 tinued the Scythian, shows me your own character. You are 
 
 x Plut. in Solon, p. 79. . y Iliad, lib. N. v. 6. 
 
 1 Plut. in Conv. sept. sap. p. 155. 
 
220 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 affected with a splendid outside whilst you pay little or no re¬ 
 yard to what is truly the man, that is, to that which is in him, 
 and consequently properly his. 
 
 vEsop. I join yEsop with the wise men of Greece; not 
 only because he was often amongst them, a but because lie 
 taught true wisdom with far more art than they who teach it by 
 rules and definitions. 
 
 •yEsop was by birth a Phrygian. He had abundance of wit; 
 but was terribly deformed : he was short, hunch-backed, and 
 horridly ugly in face, having scarce the figure of a man; and for 
 a very considerable time almost without the use of speech. 
 As to his condition of life, he was a slave ; and the merchant 
 who had bought him, found it very difficult to get him off his 
 hands, so extremely were people shocked at his unsightly figure 
 and deformity. 
 
 The first master he had sent him to labour in the field ; 
 whether it was that he thought him incapable of any better em¬ 
 ployment, or only to remove so disagreeable an object out of his 
 sight. 
 
 He was afterwards sold to a philosopher named Xanthus. I 
 should never have done, should I relate all the strokes of wit, 
 the sprightly repartees, and the arch and humorous circum¬ 
 stances of his words and behaviour. One day his master, de¬ 
 signing to treat some of his friends, ordered yEsop to provide 
 the best of every thing he could find in the market. yEsop 
 bought nothing but tongues, which he desired the cook to serve 
 up with different sauces. When dinner came, the first and se¬ 
 cond courses, the side dishes and the removes, were tongues. 
 Hid I not order you, says Xanthus in a violent passion, to buy 
 the best victuals the market afforded ? And have I not obeyed 
 your orders ? says yEsop. Is there any thing better than a 
 tongue? Is not the tongue the bond of civil society, the key 
 of sciences, and the organ of truth and reason ? By means of 
 the tongue cities are built, and governments established and 
 administered : with that men instruct, persuade, and preside in 
 assemblies : it is the instrument by which we acquit ourselves 
 of the chief of all our duties, the praising and adoring the gods. 
 Well then, replied Xanthus, thinking to catch him, go to mar¬ 
 ket again to-morrow, and buy me the worst of every thing : the 
 same company will dine with me, and I have a mind to diversify 
 my entertainment. yEsop the next day provided nothing but 
 the very same dishes ; telling his master that the tongue was 
 
 a TEsopus ille e Phrygia fabulator, baud immerito sapiens existimatus est : 
 cum quae utilia monitu suasuque erant, non severe, non imperiose praecepit el 
 censuit, ut philosophis mos est, sed festivos delectabilesque apologos commen- 
 tus, res salubriter ac prospicienter animadversas, in mentes animosque homi- 
 num, cum audiendi quadam illecebra induit. Aut. Cell. Noct. Att. lib, ii. 
 cap. 20. 
 
GREECE. 
 
 221 
 
 the worst thing- in the world. It is, says he, the instrument of 
 all strife and contention, the fomenter of law-suits, and the 
 source of divisions and wars ; it is the organ of error, of lies, 
 calumny, and blasphemy. 
 
 JEsop found it very difficult to obtain his liberty. One of 
 the very first uses he made of it was to go to Croesus, who, on 
 account of his great reputation and fame, had been long de¬ 
 sirous to see him. The strange deformity of iEsop’s person 
 shocked the king at first, and much abated the good opinion he 
 had conceived of him. But the beauty of his mind soon shone 
 forth through the coarse veil that covered it; and Croesus found, 
 as ./Esop said on another occasion, that we ought not to con¬ 
 sider the form of the vessel, but the quality of the liquor it 
 contains. 
 
 He made several voyages into Greece, b either for pleasure, 
 or upon the affairs of Croesus. Being at Athens a short time 
 after Pisistratus had usurped the sovereignty and abolished the 
 popular government, and observing the Athenians bore this new 
 yoke with great impatience, he repeated to them the fable of 
 the frogs who demanded a king from Jupiter. 
 
 It is doubted whether the fables of ^Esop, such as we have 
 them, are all his, at least in regard to the expression. Great 
 part of them are ascribed to Planudes, who wrote his life, and 
 lived in the fourteenth century. 
 
 ./Esop is reckoned the author and inventor of this simple and 
 natural manner of conveying instruction by tales and fables ; 
 in which light Phredrus speaks of him : 
 
 ./Esopus auctor quam materiam reperit. 
 
 Hanc ego polivi versibus senariis. 
 
 But the glory of this invention is really due to the poet He¬ 
 siod ; c an invention which does not seem to be of any great 
 importance, or extraordinary merit, and yet bas been much es¬ 
 teemed and made use of by the greatest philosophers and ablest 
 politicians. Plato tells us, that Socrates/ a little before he 
 died, turned some of yEsop’s fables into verse ; and Plato him¬ 
 self earnestly recommends it to nurses to instruct their children 
 in it betimes, e in order to form their manners, and to inspire 
 them early with the love of wisdom. 
 
 Fables could never have been so universally adopted by all 
 nations, as we see they have, if there was not a vast fund of 
 useful truths contained in them, and agreeably concealed under 
 
 b Phaedr. 1. i. fab. 2. 
 
 c Illae quoque fabulae, quae, etiamsi originem non ab ./Esopo acceperunt, 
 (nam videtur earum primus auctor Hesiodus,) nomine tamen iEsopi maxime 
 celebrantur, ducere animos solent, prsecipue rusticorum et imperitorum ; qui 
 et simpliciixs quae ficta sunt audiunt, et capti voluptate facile iis quibus delec- 
 tantur consentiunt. Quintil. 1. v. c. 12. 
 
 d Plat, in Phaed. p. 60. e Lib. ii. de Rep. p. 376. 
 
222 
 
 HISTORY OF 
 
 that plain and negligent disguise, in which their peculiar cha¬ 
 racter consists. The Creator certainly designing to instruct 
 mankind, by the very prospect of nature, has endowed the brute 
 part of it with various instincts, inclinations, and properties, to 
 serve as so many pictures in miniature to man, of the several 
 duties incumbent upon him ; and to point out to him the good 
 or evil qualities he ought to acquire or avoid. Thus has he 
 given us, for instance, a lively image of meekness and innocence 
 in the lamb ; of fidelity and friendship in the dog ; and on the 
 contrary, of violence, rapaciousness, and cruelty, in the wolf, 
 the lion, and the tiger ;• and so of the other species of animals ; 
 and all this he has designed, not only as instruction, but as a 
 secret reproof to man if he should be indifferent about those 
 qualities in himself, which he cannot forbear esteeming or de¬ 
 testing, even in the brutes themselves. 
 
 This is a dumb language which all nations understand ; it is 
 a sentiment engraven in nature, which every man carries about 
 with him. iEsop was the first of all the profane writers who 
 laid hold of and unfolded it, made happy application of it, and 
 attracted men’s attention to this sort of simple and natural in¬ 
 struction, which is within the reach of all capacities, and 
 equally adapted to persons of all ages and conditions. He 
 was the first that, in order to give body and substance to vir¬ 
 tues, vices, duties, and maxims of society, did, by an ingenious 
 artifice and innocent fiction, invent the method of clothing 
 them with graceful and familiar images borrowed from nature, 
 by giving language to brute beasts, and ascribing sense and 
 reason to plants and trees, and all sorts of inanimate creatures. 
 
 The fables of iEsop are void of all ornament; but abound 
 with good sense, and are adapted to the capacity of children, 
 for whom they are more particularly composed. Those of 
 Phaedrus are in a style somewhat more elevated and diffused, 
 but at the same time have a simplicity and elegance, that very 
 much resemble the Attic spirit and style in the plain way of 
 writing, which was the finest and most delicate kind of compo¬ 
 sition in use among the Grecians. Monsieur de la Fontaine, 
 who was very sensible that the French tongue is not suscep¬ 
 tible of the same elegant simplicity, has enlivened his fables 
 with a sprightly and original turn of thought and expression 
 peculiar to himself, which no other person has yet been able to 
 imitate. 
 
 It is not easy to conceive f why Seneca asserts as a fact, that 
 the Romans in his time had never tried their pens in this kind of 
 composition. Were the fables of Phaedrus unknown to him? 
 
 f Non audeo te usque eo producere, ut fabellas quoque et iEsopeos logos in- 
 tentatum Romanis iNGENiis orus, solita tibi venustate eonnectas. Senec. 
 de Consol, ad Polyb. c 27- 
 
GREECE. 
 
 22 $ 
 
 Plutarch relates the manner of iEsop’s deaths He went to 
 Delphi with a great quantity of gold and silver, to offer, in the 
 name of Croesus, a great sacrifice to Apollo, and to give each 
 inhabitant a considerable sum. 11 A quarrel, which arose between 
 him and the people of Delphi, occasioned him, after the sacri¬ 
 fice, to send back the money to Croesus, and to inform him, 
 that those for whom it was intended had rendered themselves 
 unworthy of his bounty. The inhabitants of Delphi caused 
 him to be condemned as guilty of sacrilege, and to be thrown 
 down from the top of a rock. The god, offended by this action, 
 punished them with a plague and famine ; so that to put an 
 end to these evils, they caused it to be signified in all the as¬ 
 semblies of Greece, that if any one, for the honour of iEsop, 
 would come and claim vengeance for his death, they would give 
 him satisfaction. At the third generation, 1 a man from Samos 
 presented himself, who had no other relation to yEsop than 
 being descended from the persons who had bought that fabulist. 
 The Delphians made this man satisfaction, and thereby deli¬ 
 vered themselves from the pestilence and famine that distressed 
 them. 
 
 The Athenians, those excellent judges of true glory, erected 
 a noble statue to this learned and ingenious slave; to let all 
 the people know, says Phoedrus, k that the ways of honour were 
 open indifferentJv to all mankind, and that it was not to birth, 
 but merit, they paid so honourable a distinction. 
 
 iEsopo ingentem statuam posuere Attici, 
 
 Servumque collocarunt aeterni in basi, 
 
 Patere honoris scirent ut cuncti viam, 
 
 Necgeneri tribui, sed vertuti gloriam. 
 
 s De sera Numinis vindicta, p. 556, 557- 
 h Four minae, equal to 240 livres, or about 8/. 10s. 
 
 • Herod, lib. ii. cap. 134. k Ibid. lib. ii. 
 
BOOK VI. 
 
 THE 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF DARIUS, INTERMIXED WITH THAT 
 
 OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 Before Darius came to be king, a be was called Ochus. At 
 his succession he took the name of Darius, which, according to 
 Herodotus, in the Persian language signifies an Avenger, or a 
 man that defeats the schemes of another; probably because he 
 had punished and put an end to the insolence of the Magian 
 impostor. He reigned thirty-six years. 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 Darius’s marriages. The imposition of tributes. The insolence and punish¬ 
 ment of Intaphernes. The death of Oretes. The story of Democedes a 
 physician. The Jews permitted to carry on the building of their temple. 
 The generosity of Syloson rewarded. 
 
 Before Darius was elected king he had married the daughter 
 of Gobryas, whose name is not known. Artabarzanes, the 
 eldest of the three sons whom he had by her, afterwards dis¬ 
 puted the empire with Xerxes. 
 
 When Darius was seated in the throne, b the 
 Ant c* 521 better secure himself therein, he married two 
 of Cyrus’s daughters, Atossa, and Artistona. 
 The former had been wife to Cambyses, her own brother, and 
 afterwards to Smerdis the Magian, during the time he pos¬ 
 sessed the throne. Artistona was still a virgin when Darius 
 a Herod. 1. vi. c. 98. Yal. Max. 1. ix. c. 2. b Herod. 1. iii. c. 88. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 225 
 
 married her; and of all his wives was the person he most loved. 
 He likewise married Parmys, daughter of the true Smerdis, who 
 was Cambyses’s brother, as also Phedyma, daughter to Otanes, 
 by whose management the imposture of the Magian was dis¬ 
 covered. By these wives he had a great number of children of 
 both sexes. 
 
 We have already seen, that the seven conspirators who put 
 the Magian to death, had agreed among themselves, that he 
 whose horse, on a day appointed, first neighed, at the rising of 
 the sun, should be declared king ; and that Darius’s horse, by 
 an artifice of his groom, procured his master that honour. The 
 king, c desiring to transmit to future ages his gratitude for this 
 signal service, caused an equestrian statue to be set up, with 
 this inscription ; Darius , the son of Hystaspes , acquired the 
 kingdom of Persia hy means of his horse , (whose name was 
 inserted,) and of his groom, Oebares. There is in the in¬ 
 scription, in which we see the king is not ashamed to own 
 himself indebted to his horse and his groom for so tran- 
 scendant a benefaction as the regal diadem, when it was his 
 interest, one would think, to have it considered as the fruits 
 of a superior merit; there is, I say, in this inscription^ a sim¬ 
 plicity and sincerity strikingly characteristic of those ancient 
 times, and extremely remote from the pride and vanity of 
 our own. 
 
 One of the first cares of Darius, d when he was settled in the 
 throne, was to regulate the state of the provinces, and to put 
 his finances into good order. Before his time, Cyrus and Cam- 
 byses had contented themselves with receiving from the con¬ 
 quered nations such free gifts only as they voluntarily offered, 
 and with requiring a certain number of troops when they 
 had occasion for them. But Darius perceived that it was 
 impossible for him to preserve all the nations subject to him 
 in peace and security, without keeping regular forces ; and 
 equally impossible to maintain these forces, without assign¬ 
 ing them a certain pay ; or to be able punctually to give 
 them that pay, without laying taxes and impositions upon the 
 people. 
 
 In order therefore the better to regulate the administration 
 of his finances, he divided the whole empire into twenty dis¬ 
 tricts or governments, each of which was annually to pay a 
 certain sum to the satrap appointed for that purpose. The 
 natural subjects, that is, the Persians, were exempt from all 
 imposts. Herodotus gives an exact enumeration of these pro¬ 
 vinces, which may very much contribute to give us a just idea 
 of the extent of the Persian empire. 
 
 In Asia it comprehended all that now belongs to the Per- 
 
 c Herod. 1. iii. c. 88. d Ibid, c- 89—97* 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 Q 
 
226 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 sians and Turks ; in Africa, it took in Egypt and part of Nubia, 
 as also the coast of the Mediterranean as far as the kingdom 
 of Barca; in Europe, part of Thrace and Macedonia. But 
 it must be observed, that in this vast extent of country, there 
 were several nations which were only tributary, and not pro¬ 
 perly subjects to Persia; as is the case at this day with respect 
 to the Turkish empire. 
 
 History observes, 6 that Darius, in imposing these tributes, 
 showed great wisdom and moderation. He sent for the prin¬ 
 cipal inhabitants of every province; such as were best ac¬ 
 quainted with the condition and ability of their country, and 
 were interested in giving him a true and impartial account. 
 He then asked them, if such and such sums, which he proposed 
 to each of them for their respective provinces, were not too 
 great, or did not exceed what they were able to pay; his in¬ 
 tention being, as he told them, not to oppress his subjects, but 
 only to require such aids from them as were proportioned to 
 their incomes, and absolutely necessary for the defence of the 
 state. They all answered, that the sums he proposed were very 
 reasonable, and such as would not be burdensome to the people. 
 The king, however, was pleased to abate one half, choosing 
 rather to keep a great deal within bounds, than to risk a possi¬ 
 bility of exceeding them. 
 
 But notwithstanding this extraordinary moderation on the 
 king’s part, as there is something odious in all imposts, the Per¬ 
 sians, who had given the surname of Father to Cyrus, and of 
 Master to Cambyses, thought fit to characterize Darius by that 
 of Merchant/ 
 
 The several sums levied by the imposition of these tributes 
 or taxes, as far as we can infer from the calculation of Hero¬ 
 dotus, which is attended with great difficulties, amounted in 
 the whole to about 44,000,000 per annum French, or something 
 less than 2,000,000 English money. 
 
 After the death of Magian the impostor/ it was agreed, that 
 the Persian noblemen who had conspired against him, should, 
 besides several other marks of distinction, have the liberty of 
 free access to the king’s presence at all times, except when he 
 was alone with the queen. Intaphernes, one of those noble¬ 
 men, being‘refused admittance into the king’s apartment at a 
 time when the king and queen were in private together, in a 
 violent rage attacked the officers of the palace, abused them 
 outrageously, cutting their faces with his scymitar. Darius 
 highly resented so heinous an insult; and at first apprehended 
 
 e Plut. in Apophthegm, p. 172. 
 
 f Ka 7 Tt)\oQ signifies something still more mean and contemptible ; but I do 
 not know how to express it in our language. It may signify a broker or a re¬ 
 tailer, any one that buys to sell again. e Herod. 1. iii. c. 118, 119. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 *>07 
 
 it might be a conspiracy amongst the noblemen. But when he 
 was well assured of the contrary, he caused Intaphernes, with 
 his children, and all that were of his family, to be seized, and 
 had them all condemned to death, confounding, through a blind 
 excess of severity, the innocent with the guilty. In these un¬ 
 happy circumstances, the wife of the criminal went every day 
 to the gates of the palace, crying and weeping in the most la¬ 
 mentable manner, and never ceasing to implore the king’s cle¬ 
 mency with all the pathetic eloquence of sorrow and distress. 
 The king could not resist so moving a spectacle, and besides 
 her own, granted her the pardon of any one of her family 
 whom she should choose. This gave the unhappy lady great 
 perplexity, who desired, no doubt, to save them all. At last, 
 after a long deliberation, she determined in favour of her 
 brother. 
 
 This choice, wherein she seemed not to have followed the 
 sentiments which nature should dictate to a mother and a 
 wife, surprised the king; and when he desired she might be 
 asked the reason of it, she made answer, that by a second 
 marriage the loss of a husband and children might be retrieved ; 
 but that, her father and mother being dead, there was no possi¬ 
 bility of recovering a brother. Darius, besides the life of her 
 brother, granted her the same favour for the eldest of her 
 children. 
 
 I have already related, in this volume, 11 by what an instance 
 of perfidiousness Oretes, one of the king’s governors in Asia 
 Minor, brought about the death of Polycrates, tyrant of Samos. 
 So black and detestable a crime did not go unpunished. Darius 
 found out, that Oretes strangely abused his power, making no 
 account of the blood of those persons who had the misfortune to 
 displease him. This satrap carried his insolence so far, as to 
 put to death a messenger sent him by the king, because the 
 orders he had brought him were disagreeable. Darius, who did 
 not yet think himself well settled in the throne, would not ven¬ 
 ture to attack him openly ; for the satrap had no less than 1000 
 soldiers for his guard, not to mention the soldiers he was able 
 to raise from his government, which included Phrygia, Lydia, 
 and Ionia. The king therefore thought fit to proceed in a 
 secret manner to rid himself of so dangerous a servant. With 
 this commission he intrusted one of his officers, of approved fi¬ 
 delity and attachment to his person. The officer, under pre¬ 
 tence of other business, went to Sardis, where, with great dex¬ 
 terity, he sounded the dispositions of the people. To pave the 
 way to his design, he first gave the principal officers of ihe go¬ 
 vernor’s guard letters from the king, which contained nothing 
 but general orders. A little while after he delivered them other 
 
 Herod. 1. iii. c. 120. 128. 
 
 Q 2 
 
228 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 letters in which their orders were more express and particular. 
 And as soon as he found himself perfectly sure of the disposi¬ 
 tion of the troops, he then read them a third letter, wherein the 
 king- in plain terms commanded them to put the governor to 
 death ; and this order was executed without delay. All his ef¬ 
 fects were confiscated to the king; and all the persons belong¬ 
 ing to his family and household were removed to Susa. Among 
 the rest there was a celebrated physician of Crotona, whose 
 name was Democedes. This physician’s story is very sin¬ 
 gular, and happened to be the occasion of some considerable 
 events. 
 
 Not long after the fore-mentioned transaction,' Darius chanced 
 to have a fall from his horse in hunting, by which he wrenched 
 one of his feet in a violent manner, and put his heel out of joint. 
 The Egyptians were then reckoned the most skilful in physic; 
 for which reason the king had several physicians of that nation 
 about him. These undertook to cure the king, k and exerted all 
 their skill on so important an occasion ; but they were so 
 awkward in the operation, and in the handling and managing 
 the king’s foot, that they put him to incredible pain ; so that he 
 passed seven days and seven nights without sleeping. Demo¬ 
 cedes was mentioned on this occasion by some person, who had 
 heard him extolled at Sardis as a very able physician. He was 
 sent for immediately, and brought to the king in the condition 
 he was in, with his irons on, and a very poor apparel ; for he 
 was at that time actually a prisoner. The king asked him, 
 whether he had any knowledge of physic? At first he denied he 
 had, fearing, that if he should give any proofs of his skill, he 
 should be detained in Persia, and by that means be for ever de¬ 
 barred from returning to his own country, for which he had an 
 exceeding affection. Darius, displeased with his answer, or¬ 
 dered him to be put to the torture. Democedes found it was 
 necessary to own the truth ; and therefore offered his service to 
 the king. The first thing he did, was to apply gentle fomenta¬ 
 tions to the part affected. This remedy had a speedy effect; 
 the king recovered his sleep ; and in a few days was perfectly 
 cured, both of the sprain and the dislocation. To recompense 
 the physician, the king made him a present of two pair of golden 
 chains. Upon which Democedes asked him whether he meant 
 to reward the happy success of his endeavours by doubling his 
 misfortunes ? The king was pleased with that saying; and or¬ 
 dered his eunuchs to conduct Democedes to his wives, that they 
 might see the person to whom he was indebted for his recovery. 
 They all made him very magnificent presents ; so that in one 
 day’s time he became extremely rich. 
 
 * Herod. 1. iii. c. 129, 130. 
 
 K Anciently the same persons practised both as physicians and surgeons- 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 229 
 
 Democedes was a native of Crotona, 1 11 a city of Graecia Magna 
 in the lower Calabria in Italy, from whence he had been obliged 
 to fly, on account of the ill-treatment he received from his 
 father. He first went to iEgina,™ where, by several successful 
 cures, he acquired great reputation : the inhabitants of this 
 place settled on him a yearly pension of a talent. The talent 
 contained sixty minas, and was worth about 3000 livres French 
 money. Some time after he was invited to Athens ; where they 
 augmented his pension to 5000 livres per annum." After this 
 he was received into the family of Polycrates, tyrant of Samos, 
 who gave him a pension of 2000 crowns. 0 It redounds much 
 to the honour of cities or princes, by handsome pensions and 
 salaries, to engage such persons in their service as are of pub¬ 
 lic benefit to mankind ; and even to induce foreigners of worth 
 and merit to come and settle among them. The Crotonians 
 from this time had the reputation of having the ablest phy¬ 
 sicians ; and next after them, the people of Cyrene in Africa. 
 The Argives were at the same time reputed to excel in music. 
 
 Democedes ,p after performing this cure upon the king, was 
 admitted to the honour of eating at his table, and came to have 
 great influence at Susa. At his intercession, the Egyptian 
 physicians were pardoned, who had all been condemned to be 
 banged for having been less skilful than the Grecian physician ; 
 as if they were obliged to answer for the success of their reme¬ 
 dies, or that it was a crime not to be able to cure a king. This 
 is a strange abuse, though too common an effect of unlimited 
 power, which is seldom guided by reason or equity, and which, 
 being accustomed to see every thing give way implicitly to its 
 authority, expects that its commands, of what nature soever, 
 should be instantly performed. We have seen something of 
 this kind in the history of Nebuchadnezzar, who pronounced a 
 general sentence of death upon all his magicians, because they 
 could not divine what it was he had dreamed in the night, 
 which he himself had forgotten. Democedes procured also the 
 enlargement of several of those persons who had been imprison¬ 
 ed with him. He lived in the greatest affluence, and was in 
 the highest esteem and favour with the king. But he was at a 
 great distance from his own country, and his thoughts and de¬ 
 sires were continually bent upon Greece. 
 
 He had the good fortune to perform another cure, q which 
 contributed to raise his credit and reputation still higher. 
 Atossa, one of the king’s wives, and daughter to Cyrus, was 
 attacked with a cancer in her breast. As long as the pain was 
 moderate, she bore it with patience, not being able to prevail 
 
 1 Herod. 1. iii. c, 131. m An island between Attica and Peloponnesus. 
 
 11 100 minse. 0 Two talents. p Herod. 1. iii. c. 132. 
 
 Herod. 1. iii. c. 135. 137« 
 
230 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 on herself, out of modesty, to discover her disorder. But at 
 last she was constrained to it, and sent for Democedes ; who 
 promised to cure her, and at the same time requested that she 
 would be pleased to grant him a certain favour he should beg 
 of her, entirely consistent with her honour. The queen en¬ 
 gaged her word, and was cured. The favour desired by the 
 physician was to procure him a journey into his own country ; 
 and the queen was not unmindful of her promise* It is worth 
 while to take notice of such events/ which, though not very 
 considerable in themselves, often give occasion to the greatest 
 enterprises of princes, and are even the secret springs and dis¬ 
 tant causes of them. 
 
 As Atossa was conversing one day with Darius, she took oc¬ 
 casion to represent to him, that, as he was in the flower of his 
 age, and of a vigorous constitution, capable of enduring the 
 fatigues of war, and had numerous armies at command, it would 
 be for his honour to form some great enterprise, and let the 
 Persians see they had a man of courage for their king. . You 
 have hit my thoughts, replied Darius ; for I was meditating an 
 attack upon the Scythians. I had much rather, says Atossa, 
 you would first turn your arms against Greece. I have heard 
 great things said in praise of the women of Lacedaemon, of 
 Argos, Athens, and Corinth ; and should be very glad to have 
 some of them in my service. Besides, you have a person here 
 that might be very useful to you in such an enterprise, and 
 could give you a perfect knowledge of the country; the person 
 I mean is Democedes, who hath cured both you and me. This 
 was enough for the king, and the affair was resolved upon im¬ 
 mediately. Fifteen Persian noblemen were appointed to ac¬ 
 company Democedes into Greece, and to examine with him all 
 the maritime places as thoroughly as possible. The king 
 strictly charged these persons, above all things, to keep a 
 watchful eye upon the physician, that he did not give them the 
 slip, and to bring him back with them to the Persian court. 
 
 Darius, in giving such an order, plainly showed he did not 
 understand the proper methods for engaging men of abilities 
 and merit to reside in his dominions, and for attaching them to 
 his person. To pretend to do this by authority and compulsion, 
 is the sure way of suppressing all knowledge and industry, and 
 of driving away the liberal arts and sciences, which must be 
 free and unconfined, like the genius from whence they spring. 
 For one man of genius that will be kept in a country by force, 
 thousands will be driven away, who would probably have chosen 
 to reside in it, if they could enjoy their liberty and meet with 
 kind treatment. 
 
 r Non sine usa fuerit introspicere ilia primo aspectn levia, ex queis magna- 
 rum ssepe rerum motus oriuntur. Tac. i. iv e 32, 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 231 
 
 ✓ 
 
 When Darias had formed his design of sending into Greece, 
 he acquainted Democedes with it, laid open his views to him, 
 and told him the occasion he had for his service in conducting 
 the Persian noblemen thither, particularly to the maritime 
 towns, in order to observe their situation and strength : at the 
 same time earnestly desiring him, that when that was done, he 
 would return back with them to Persia. The king permitted 
 him to carry all his movables with him, and give them, if he 
 pleased, to his father and brothers, promising, at his return, to 
 give him as many of greater value ; and signified to him far¬ 
 ther, that he would order the galley in which he was to sail, to 
 be laden with very rich presents, for him to bestow as he 
 thought fit on the rest of his family. The king’s intention ap¬ 
 peared, by this manner of speaking, to be undisguised and with¬ 
 out artifice ; but Democedes was afraid it might be a snare 
 laid for him to discover whether he intended to return to Per¬ 
 sia or not ; and therefore, to remove all suspicion, he left his 
 own goods behind him at Susa, and only took with him the pre¬ 
 sents designed for his family. 
 
 The first place the commissioners landed at was Sidonin Phoe¬ 
 nicia, where they equipped two large vessels for themselves, 
 and put all they had brought along with them on board a trans¬ 
 port. After having passed through, and carefully examined, 
 the chief cities of Greece, they went to Tarentum in Italy. 
 Here the Persian noblemen were taken up as spies ; and De¬ 
 mocedes taking advantage of this arrest, made his escape from 
 them, and fled to Crotona. When the Persian lords had re¬ 
 covered their liberty, they pursued him thither, but could not 
 prevail upon the Crotonians to deliver up their fellow-citizen. 
 The city moreover seized the loaded vessel; and the Persians, 
 having lost their guide, laid aside the thoughts of going through 
 the other parts of Greece, and set out for their own country. 
 Democedes let them know, at their departure, that he was 
 going to marry the daughter of Milo, a famous wrestler of 
 Crotona, whose name was very well known to the king. This 
 voyage of the Persian noblemen into Greece, was attended with 
 no immediate consequence ; because, on their return home, they 
 found the king engaged in other affairs. 
 
 In the third year of this king’s reign, s which 
 Ant c* 519 was but the second according to the Jewish 
 computation, the Samaritans gave the Jews new 
 trouble. In the preceding reigns, they had procured an order 
 to prohibit the Jews from proceeding any farther in building of 
 the temple of Jerusalem. But upon the earnest exhortation 
 of the prophets, and the express order of God, the Israelites 
 had lately resumed the work, which had been interrupted for 
 
 8 Ezr. c. v. 
 
232 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 several years, and carried it on with great vigour. The Sa¬ 
 maritans had recourse to their ancient practices, to prevent 
 them. To this end they applied to Tatnai, whom Darius had 
 made governor of the provinces of Syria and Palestine. They 
 complained to him of the audacious proceeding of the Jews,who 
 of their own authority, and in defiance to the prohibitions to 
 the contrary, presumed to rebuild their temple; which must 
 necessarily be prejudicial to the king’s interests. Upon this 
 representation of theirs, the governor thought fit to go himself 
 to Jerusalem. And being a person of great equity and mode¬ 
 ration, when he had inspected the work, he did not think pro¬ 
 per to proceed violently, and to put a stop to it without any 
 farther deliberation; but inquired of the Jewish elders what 
 license they had for entering upon a work of that nature. The 
 Jews hereupon producing the edict of Cyrus, he would not of 
 himself ordain any thing in contradiction to it, but sent an ac¬ 
 count of the matter to the king, and desired to know his plea¬ 
 sure. He gave the king a true representation of the matter, 
 acquainting him with the edict of Cyrus, which the Jews al¬ 
 leged in their justification, and desired him to order the regis¬ 
 ters to be consulted, to know whether Cyrus had really pub¬ 
 lished such an edict, and to be pleased to send him instructions 
 how he was to act in the affair. Darius having commanded 
 the registers to be examined, 1 the edict was found atEcbatana, 
 in Media, the place where Cyrus was at the time of its being 
 granted. Now Darius having a great respect for the memory 
 of that prince, confirmed his edict, and caused another to be 
 drawn up, wherein the former was referred to, and ratified. 
 This motive of regard to the memory of Cyrus, had there been 
 nothing else to influence the king, would be very laudable : 
 but the Scripture informs us, that it was God himself who in¬ 
 fluenced the mind and heart of the king, and inspired him with 
 a favourable disposition to the Jews. The truth of this appears 
 pretty plain from the edict itself. In the first place it ordains, 
 that all the victims, oblations, and other expenses of the tem¬ 
 ple, be abundantly furnished the Jews, as the priests should 
 require: in the second place it enjoins the priests of Jerusa¬ 
 lem, when they offered their sacrifices to the God of heaven, 
 to pray for the preservation of the life of the king and the 
 princes his children; and lastly, it goes so far as to denounce 
 imprecations against all princes and people, that should hinder 
 the carrying on of the building of the temple, or that should at¬ 
 tempt to destroy it: by all which Darius evidently acknow¬ 
 ledges, that the God of Israel is able to overturn the kingdoms 
 of the world, and to dethrone the most mighty and powerful 
 princes. 
 
 1 Ezr. c. vi. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 233 
 
 By virtue of this edict, the Jews were not only authorized 
 to proceed in the building of their temple, but all the expenses 
 thereof were also to be furnished to them out of the taxes and 
 imposts of the province. What must have become of the 
 Jews, when the crimes of disobedience and rebellion were laid 
 to their charge, if at such a juncture their superiors had only 
 hearkenecj to their enemies, and not given them leave to justify 
 themselves ! 
 
 The same prince, some time after, gave a still more signal 
 proof of his love for justice, and of his abhorrence of informers, 
 a detestable race of men, by their very nature and condition 
 enemies to all merit and all virtue. It is pretty obvious that I 
 mean the famous edict, published by this prince against Ha- 
 man, in favour of the Jews, at the request of Esther, whom the 
 king had taken to his bed in the room of Vashti, one of his 
 wives. According to Archbishop Usher, this Vashti is the same 
 person as is called by profane writers Atossa; and the Ahasue- 
 rus of the Holy Scriptures the same as Darius ; but according 
 to others, it is Artaxerxes. The fact is well known, being re¬ 
 lated in the sacred history : I have given, however, a brief ac¬ 
 count of it in this volume. 
 
 Such actions of justice do great honour to a prince’s memo¬ 
 ry : as do also those of gratitude, of which Darius, on a certain 
 occasion, gave a very laudable instance. Syloson, u brother to 
 Polycrates tyrant of Samos, had once made Darius a present of 
 a suit of clothes, of a curious red colour, which extremely 
 pleased Darius’s fancy, and would never suffer him to make 
 any return for it. Darius at that time was but a private gen¬ 
 tleman, an officer in the guards of Cambyses, whom he accom¬ 
 panied to Memphis, in his Egyptian expedition. When Darius 
 was on the throne of Persia, Syloson went to Susa, presented 
 himself at the gate of his palace, and caused himself to be an¬ 
 nounced as a Grecian, to whom his majesty was under some 
 obligation. Darius, surprised at such a message, and curious 
 to know the truth of it, ordered him to be brought in. When 
 he saw him, he remembered him, and acknowledged him to 
 have been his benefactor: and was so far from being ashamed 
 of an adventure which might seem not to be much for his honour, 
 that he ingenuously applauded the gentleman’s generosity, 
 which proceeded from no other motive than that of doing a 
 pleasure to a person from whom he could have no expectations; 
 and then proposed to make him a considerable present of gold 
 and silver. But money was not the thing Syloson desired : the 
 love of his country was his predominant passion. The favour he 
 required of the king was, that he would settle him at Samos, 
 without shedding the blood of his citizens, by driving out the 
 
 u Herod. 1. iii. c. 139. 149. 
 
234 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 person that had usurped the government since the death of his 
 brother. Darius consented, and committed the conduct of the 
 expedition to Otanes, one of the principal lords of his court, 
 who undertook it with joy, and performed it with success. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 4 
 
 Revolt and reduction of Babylon. 
 
 In the beginning of the fifth year of Darius, 
 AntC**51*6 Babylon revolted, and could not be reduced till 
 after a twenty months’ siege. This city, formerly 
 mistress of the East, grew impatient of the Persian yoke, espe¬ 
 cially after the removing of the imperial seat to Susa, which 
 very much diminished Babylon’s wealth and grandeur. The 
 Babylonians, taking advantage of the revolution that happened 
 in Persia, first on the death of Cambyses, and afterwards on the 
 massacre of the Magians, made secretly, for four years together, 
 all kinds of preparations for war. When they thought the city 
 sufficiently stored with provisions for many years, they set up 
 the standard of rebellion ; which obliged Darius to besiege them 
 with all his forces. Now God continued to accomplish those 
 terrible threatenings he had denounced against Babylon : that 
 he would not only humble and bring down that proud and im¬ 
 pious city, but depopulate and lay it waste with fire and blood, 
 utterly exterminate it, and reduce it to an eternal solitude. In 
 order to fulfil these predictions, God permitted the Babylonians 
 to rebel against Darius, and by that means to draw upon them¬ 
 selves the whole force of the Persian empire : and they them¬ 
 selves were the first to put these prophecies in execution, by 
 destroying a great number of their own people, as will be seen 
 presently. It is probable that the Jews, of whom a considerable 
 number remained at Babylon, went out of the city before the 
 siege was formed, as the prophets Isaiah y and Jeremiah had 
 exhorted them long before, and Zechariah very lately, in the 
 following terms : Thou Zion, that dwellest with the daughter 
 of Babylon, jlee from the country, and save thyself. 
 
 The Babylonians, to make their provisions last the longer, 
 and to enable them to hold out with the greater vigour, took the 
 most desperate and barbarous resolution that ever was heard 
 of; which was, to destroy all such of their own people as were 
 unserviceable on this occasion. For this purpose they assem¬ 
 bled together all their wives and children, and strangled them. 
 Only every man was allowed to keep his best beloved wife, and 
 one servant-maid to do the business of the family. 
 
 x Herod. 1. in. c. 150—160. 
 y Isa. xlviii. 20. Jer. 1. 8. li. G. 9. 45. Zech. ii. 6—9. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 235 
 
 After this cruel execution, the unhappy remainder of the in¬ 
 habitants, thinking themselves out of all danger, both on account 
 of their fortifications, which they looked upon as impregnable, 
 and the vast quantity of provisions they had laid up, began to 
 insult the besiegers from the tops of their walls, and to provoke 
 them with opprobrious language. The Persians, for the space 
 of eighteen months, *did all that force or stratagem was capable 
 of, to make themselves masters of the city ; nor did they forget 
 to make use of the same means as had so happily succeeded 
 with Cyrus some years before ; I mean that of turning the 
 course of the river. But all their efforts were fruitless ; and Da¬ 
 rius began almost to despair of taking the place, when a stra¬ 
 tagem, till then unheard of, opened the gates of the city to him. 
 He was strangely surprised one morning to see Zopyrus, one 
 of the chief noblemen of his court, and son of Megabyzus, who 
 was one of the seven lords that made the association against the 
 Magians : to see him, I say, appear before him all over blood, 
 with his nose and ears cut off, and his whole body disfigured 
 with wounds. Starting up from his throne, he cried out, Who 
 is it, Zopyrus, that has dared to treat you thus ?■—You your¬ 
 self, O king, replied Zopyrus. The desire I had of rendering 
 you service has put me into this condition. As I was fully 
 persuaded that you necer would have consented to this method, 
 I took counsel alone of the zeal which I have for your service. 
 He then opened to him his design of going over to the enemy ; 
 and they settled every thing together that was proper to be done. 
 The king could not see him set out upon this extraordinary 
 project without the utmost affliction and concern. Zopyrus 
 approached the walls of the city ; and having told them who he 
 was, was soon admitted. They then carried him before the 
 governor, to whom he laid open his misfortune, and the cruel 
 treatment he had met with from Darius, for having dissuaded 
 him from continuing any longer before a city which it was im¬ 
 possible for him to take. He offered the Babylonians his ser¬ 
 vice, which could not fail of being highly useful to them, since 
 he was acquainted with all the designs of the Persians, and 
 since the desire of revenge would inspire him with fresh courage 
 and resolution. His name and person were both well known at 
 Babylon : the condition in which he appeared, his blood and his 
 wounds, testified for him ; and, by proofs not to be suspected, 
 confirmed the truth of all he advanced. They therefore placed 
 implicit confidence in whatsoever he told them, and gave him 
 moreover the command of as many troops as he desired. In 
 the first sally he made he cut off 1000 of the besiegers : a few 
 days after he killed double the number ; and on the third time, 
 4000 of their men lay dead upon the spot. All this had been 
 before agreed upon between him and Darius. Nothing was 
 
236 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 now talked of in Babylon but Zopyrus ; the whole city strove 
 who should extol him most, and they had not words sufficient to 
 express their high value for him, and how happy they esteemed 
 themselves in having gained so great a man. He was now de¬ 
 clared generalissimo of their forces, and intrusted with the care 
 of guarding the walls of the city. Darius approaching with his 
 army at the time agreed on between them, Zopyrus opened the 
 gates to him, and made him by that means master of a city, 
 which he never could have been able to take either by force or 
 famine. 
 
 As powerful as this prince was, he found himself inca¬ 
 pable of making a sufficient recompense for so great a service; 
 and he used often to say, that he would with pleasure sa¬ 
 crifice 100 Babylonians, if he had them, to restore Zopyrus 
 to the condition he was in before he inflicted that cruel 
 treatment upon himself. He settled upon him, during life, 
 the whole revenue of this opulent city, of which he alone had 
 procured him the possession, and heaped all the honours upon 
 him that a king could possibly confer upon a subject. JYIega- 
 byzus, who commanded the Persian army in Egypt against the 
 Athenians, was the son to this Zopyrus ; and that Zopyrus 
 who went over to the Athenians as a deserter, was his grandson. 
 
 No sooner was Darius in possession of Babylon, than he or¬ 
 dered the 100 gates to be pulled down, and all the walls of that 
 proud city to be entirely demolished, that she might never be 
 in a condition to rebel more against him. If he had pleased 
 to make use of all the rights of a conqueror, he might upon this 
 occasion have exterminated all the inhabitants. But he contented 
 himself with causing 3000 of those who were principally con¬ 
 cerned in the revolt to be impaled, and granted a pardon to all 
 the rest. And, in order to hinder the depopulation of the city, 
 he caused 50,000 women to be brought from the several pro¬ 
 vinces of his empire, to supply the place of those whom the in¬ 
 habitants had so cruelly destroyed at the beginning of the siege. 
 Such was the fate of Babylon ; and thus did God execute his 
 vengeance on that impious city, for the cruelty she had exercised 
 towards the Jews, in falling upon a free people without any 
 reason or provocation ; in destroying their government, laws, 
 and worship ; in forcing them from their country, and trans¬ 
 porting them to a strange land, where they imposed a most 
 grievous yoke of servitude upon them, and made use of all their 
 power to crush and afflict an unhappy nation, favoured how¬ 
 ever by God, and having the honour to be styled his peculiar 
 people. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 237 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 Darius prepares for an expedition against the Scythians. A digression upon 
 the manners and customs of that nation. 
 
 After the reduction of Babylon, 2 Darius made 
 Ant C^5l*4. g rea t preparations for war against the Scythians, 
 who inhabited that large tract of land which lies 
 between the Danube and the Tanais. His pretence for under¬ 
 taking this war was, to be revenged of that nation for the in¬ 
 vasion of Asia by their ancestors : a a very frivolous and sorry 
 pretext; and a very ridiculous ground for reviving an old quar¬ 
 rel, which had ceased 120 years before. 
 
 Whilst the Scythians were employed in that irruption, which 
 lasted eight-and-twenty years, the Scythians’ wives married 
 their slaves. When the husbands were on their return home, 
 these slaves went out to meet them with a numerous army, and 
 disputed their entrance into their country. After some battles 
 fought with nearly equal loss on both sides, the masters, con¬ 
 sidering that it was doing too much honour to their slaves to put 
 them upon the foot of soldiers, marched against them in the 
 next encounter with whips in their hands, to make them re¬ 
 member their proper condition. This stratagem had the in¬ 
 tended effect: for not being able to bear the sight of their 
 masters thus armed, they all ran away. 
 
 I design in this place to imitate Herodotus, who in writing of 
 this war takes occasion to give an ample account of all that 
 relates to the customs and manners of the Scythians. But I 
 shall be much more brief in my account of this matter than he is. 
 
 A Digression concerning the Scythians. 
 
 Formerly there were Scythians both in Europe and Asia, 
 most of them inhabiting those parts that lie towards the North. 
 I design now chiefly to treat of the first, namely, of the European 
 Scythians. 
 
 Historians, in the accounts they have left us of the manners 
 and character of the Scythians, relate things of them that are 
 entirely opposite and contradictory to one another. One while 
 they represent them as the justest and most moderate people 
 in the world ; another while they describe them as a fierce and 
 barbarous nation, which carried its cruelty to such excesses, 
 as are shocking to human nature. This contrariety is a mani¬ 
 fest proof, that those different characters are to be applied to 
 different nations in that vast and extensive tract of country ; 
 and that, though they were all comprehended under one and 
 
 z Herod. 1. iv. c 1. Justin. 1. ii. c. 5. 
 a Mention is made of this before, in chap. iii. &e. of this vol. 
 
238 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 the same general denomination of Scythians, we ought not to 
 confound them or their characters together. 
 
 Strabo b has quoted authors, who mention some Scythians 
 dwelling upon the coast of the Euxine sea, that cut the throats 
 of all strangers who came amongst them, fed upon their flesh, 
 and made pots and drinking vessels of their sculls, when they 
 had dried them. Herodotus, c in describing the sacrifices 
 which the Scythians offered to the god Mars, says, they used 
 to offer human victims. Their manner of making treaties, d 
 according to this author’s account, was very strange and par¬ 
 ticular. 
 
 They first poured wine into a large earthen vessel, e and then 
 the contracting parties, cutting their arms with a knife, let 
 some of their blood run into the wine, aad stained likewise 
 their armour therein ; after which they themselves, and all that 
 were present, drank of that liquor, uttering the heaviest impre¬ 
 cations against the person that should violate the treaty. 
 
 But what the same historian relates/ concerning the ceremo¬ 
 nies observed at the funeral of their kings, is still more extra¬ 
 ordinary. I shall only mention such of those ceremonies, as 
 may serve to give us an idea of the cruel barbarity of this peo¬ 
 ple. When their king died, they embalmed his body, and 
 wrapped it up in wax; this done, they put it into an open 
 chariot, and carried it from city to city, exposing it to the view 
 of all the people under his dominion. When this circuit was 
 finished, they laid the body down in the place appointed for the 
 burial of it, and there they made a large grave, in which they 
 interred the king, and with him one of his wives, his chief 
 cup-bearer, his great chamberlain, his master of horse, his 
 chancellor, his secretary of state, who were all put to death for 
 that purpose. To these they added several horses, a great 
 number of drinking vessels, and a certain part of all the furni¬ 
 ture belonging to their deceased monarch : after which they 
 filled up the grave, and covered it with earth. This was not 
 all. . When the anniversary of his interment came, they cut the 
 throats of fifty more of the dead king’s officers, and of the same 
 number of horses, and, having first prepared their bodies for 
 the purpose, by embowelling them and stuffing them with 
 straw, they placed the officers on horseback round the king’s 
 tomb, probably to serve him as guards. These ceremonies in 
 all appearance took their rise from a notion they might have of 
 their king’s being still alive ; and upon this supposition they 
 judged it necessary that he should have his court and ordinary 
 
 b Strabo, 1. vii. p. 298. c Herod. 1. iv. c. 62. 
 
 d This custom was still practised by the Iberians, who were originally Scy¬ 
 thians, in the time of Tacitus, who makes mention of it. Ann. 1. xii. c. 47- 
 e Herod. 1. iv. c. 70. f Herod, c. 71, 72. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 239 
 
 officers still about him. Whether employments, which termi¬ 
 nated in this manner, were much sought after, I will not de¬ 
 termine. 
 
 It is now time to pass to the consideration of their manners 
 and customs, milder and more humane ; though possibly in 
 another sense they may appear to be equally savage. The ac¬ 
 count I am going to give of them is chiefly taken from Justin.s 
 According to this author, the Scythians lived in great innocence 
 and simplicity. They were ignorant indeed of all arts and sci¬ 
 ences, but then they were equally unacquainted with vice. 
 They did not make any division of their lands amongst them¬ 
 selves, says Justin: it would have been in vain for them to 
 have done it; since they did not apply themselves to cultivate 
 them. Horace, in one of his odes, of which I shall insert a 
 part by and by, tells us, that some of them did cultivate a 
 certain portion of land allotted to them for one year only, at 
 the expiration of which they were relieved by others, who suc¬ 
 ceeded them on the same conditions. They had no houses, nor 
 settled habitation; but wandered continually with their cattle 
 and their flocks from country to country. Their wives and 
 children they carried along with them in waggons, covered 
 with the skins of beasts, which were all the houses they had to 
 dwell in. Justice 11 was observed and maintained amongst 
 them through the natural temper and disposition of the people, 
 and not by any compulsion of laws, with which they were 
 wholly unacquainted. No crime was more severely punished 
 among them than theft: and that with good reason. For 
 their herds and flocks, in which all their riches consisted, being 
 never shut up, how could they possibly subsist, if theft had not 
 been most rigorously punished l They coveted neither silver 
 nor gold, like the rest of mankind; and made milk and honey 
 their principal diet. They were strangers to the use of linen 
 or woollen manufactures ; and to defend themselves from the 
 violent and continual cold of their climate, they made use of 
 nothing but the skins of beasts. 
 
 I said before, that these manners of the Scythians might ap¬ 
 pear to some people very wild and savage. And indeed, what 
 can be said for a nation that has lands, and yet does not culti¬ 
 vate them ; that has herds of catt le, of which they content them¬ 
 selves with eating the milk, and neglect the flesh \ The wool of 
 their sheep might supply them with warm and comfortable 
 clothes, and yet they use no other raiment than the skins of 
 animals. Bat that which is the greatest demonstration of their 
 ignorance and savageness, according to the general opinion of 
 mankind, is their utter neglect of gold and silver, which have 
 always been had in such great request in all civilized nations. 
 
 s Lib. ii. c. ii. h Justitia gentis ingeniis culta, non legibus. 
 
240 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 But, oh ! how happy was this ignorance; how vastly prefer¬ 
 able this savage state to our pretended politeness ! This con¬ 
 tempt of all the conveniences of life, says Justin, 1 was attended 
 with such an honesty and uprightness of manners, as hindered 
 them from ever coveting their neighbours’ goods. For the desire 
 of riches can only take place where riches can be made use of. 
 And would to God, says the same author, we could see the 
 same moderation prevail among the rest of mankind, and the 
 like indifference to the goods of other people ! The world 
 would not then have seen wars perpetually succeeding one an¬ 
 other in all ages, and in all countries : nor would the number of 
 those that are cut off by the sword exceed that of those who 
 fall by the irreversible decree and law of nature. 
 
 Justin finishes his character of the Scythians with a very ju¬ 
 dicious reflection. It is a surprising thing, says he, k that a 
 happy natural disposition, without the assistance of education, 
 should have inspired the Scythians with such a wisdom and 
 moderation, as the Grecians could not attain to, neither by the 
 institutions of their legislators, nor the rules and precepts of 
 all their philosophers ; and that the manners of a barbarous 
 nation should be preferable to those of a people so much im¬ 
 proved and refined by the polite arts and sciences. So much 
 more happy effects were produced by the ignorance of vice in 
 the one, than by the knowledge of virtue in the other! 
 
 The Scythian fathers 1 thought with good reason that they 
 left their children a valuable inheritance, when they left them 
 in peace and union with one another. One of their kings, 
 whose name was Scylurus, finding himself draw near his end, 
 sent for all his children, and giving to each of them one after an¬ 
 other a bundle of arrows tied fast together, desired them to break 
 them. Each used his endeavours, but was not able to do it. 
 Then untying the bundle, and giving them the arrows one by 
 one, they were very easily broken.—Let this image, says the 
 father, be a lesson to you of the mighty advantage that results 
 from union and concord. In order to strengthen and enlarge 
 these domestic advantages,™ the Scythians used to admit their 
 friends into the same terms of union with them as their 
 relations. Friendship was considered by them as a sacred and 
 
 ‘ Hoec continentia illis morum quoque justitiam indidit, nihil alienum con- 
 cupiscentibus. Quippe ibidem divitiarum cupido esi, ubi et usus. Atque 
 utinam reliquis mortalibus similis moderatio et abstinentia alieni foret ! pro- 
 fecto non tantum bellorum per omnia secula terris omnibus continuaretur; 
 neque plus hominum ferrum et arma, quam naturalis fatorum conditio raperet. 
 
 k Prorsus ut admirabile videatur, hoc illis naturam dare, quod Grseci long& 
 sapientium doctrina praeceptisque philosophorum consequi nequeunt, cultos- 
 que mores incultae barbarioe collatione superari. Tanto plus in illis proficit 
 Titiorum ignoratio, quam in his cognitio virtutis ! 
 
 1 Plut. de garrul. p. 511. m Lucian, in Tex. p. 51. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 241 
 
 inviolable alliance, which differed but little from that which 
 nature has put between brethren, and which they could not in¬ 
 fringe without being guilty of a heinous crime. 
 
 Ancient authors seemed to have vied with each other who 
 should most extol the innocence of manners, that reigned among 
 the Scythians, by magnificent encomiums. That of Horace I 
 shall transcribe at large. That poet does not confine it entirely 
 to the Scythians, but joins the Getae with them who were theii 
 near neighbours. It is in that beautiful ode, where he inveighs 
 against the luxury and irregularities of the age in which he 
 lived. After having told us, that peace and tranquillity of mind 
 is not to be procured either by immense riches, or sumptuous 
 buildings, he adds, A hundred times happier are the Scythians , n 
 ivho roam about in their itinerant houses, their waggons ,* and 
 happier even are the frozen Getce. With them the earth, 
 without being divided by land-marks, produceth her fruits, 
 which are gathered in common. There each mans tillage is 
 but of one year’s continuance; and when that term of his 
 labour is expired, he is relieved by a successor, who takes his 
 place, and manures the ground on the same conditions. There 
 the innocent step-mothers form no cruel designs against the 
 lives of their husbands’ children by a former wife. The wives 
 do not pretend to domineer over their husbands on account of 
 their fortunes , nor are to be corrupted by the insinuating 
 language of spruce adulterers. The greatest portion of the 
 maiden, is her father’s and mother’s virtue, her inviolable at¬ 
 tachment to her husband, and her perfect disregard of all 
 other men. They dare not be unfaithful, because they are 
 convinced that infidelity is a crime, and its reward is death. 
 
 When we consider the manners and character of the Scy¬ 
 thians without prejudice, can we possibly forbear to look upon 
 them with esteem and admiration ? Does not their manner of living, 
 as to the exterior part of it at least, bear a great resemblance 
 to that of the patriarchs, who had no fixed habitation ; who did 
 
 n Campestres melius Scjthse, 
 
 Quorum plaustra vagas rite trahunt domos, 
 
 Vivunt, et rigidi Getoe ; 
 
 Immetata quibus jugera liberas 
 Fruges et Cererem ferunt! 
 
 Nee cultura placet longior annua, 
 
 Defunctumque laboribus 
 iEquali recreat sorte vicanus. 
 
 Illic matre carentibus 
 Privignis mulier temperat innocens': 
 
 Nec dotata regit virum 
 Conjux, nec nitido fidit adultero. 
 
 Dos est magna parentium 
 Virtus, et metuens alterius viri 
 Certo foedere castitas: 
 
 Et peccare nefas, aut pretium est mori. 
 
 Hor. Lib. iii. Od. 24. 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
 R 
 
242 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 not till the ground ; who had no other occupation than that of 
 feeding their flocks and herds ; and who dwelt in tents ? Can 
 we believe this people were much to be pitied, for not under¬ 
 standing, or rather for despising, the use of gold and silver ? Is 
 it not to be wished that those metals had for ever lain buried in 
 the bowels of the earth, 0 and that they had never been dug from 
 thence to become the causes and instruments of almost every 
 crime? What advantage could gold or silver be of to the Scy¬ 
 thians, who valued nothing but what the necessities of men actually 
 require, and who took care to set narrow bounds to those neces¬ 
 sities ? It is no wonder, that, living as they did, without houses, 
 they should make no account of those arts that were so highly 
 valued in other places, as architecture, sculpture, and painting ; 
 or that they should despise fine clothes and costly furniture, 
 since they found the skins of beasts sufficient to defend them 
 against the inclemency of the seasons. After all, can we truly 
 say, that these pretended advantages contribute to the real hap¬ 
 piness of life ? Were those nations that had them in the great¬ 
 est plenty, more healthful or robust than the Scythians? Did they 
 live to a greater age than they ? Or did they spend their lives 
 in greater freedom and tranquillity, or a greater exemption 
 from cares and troubles ? Let us acknowledge, to the shame of 
 ancient philosophy ; the Scythians, who did not particularly 
 apply themselves to the study of wisdom, carried it however to 
 a greater height in their practice, than either the Egyptians, 
 Grecians, or any other civilized nation. They did not give the 
 name of goods or riches to any thing, but what, humanly speak¬ 
 ing, truly deserved that title; as health, strength, courage, the 
 love of labour and liberty, innocence of life, sincerity, an abhor¬ 
 rence of all fraud and dissimulation, and, in a word, all such 
 qualities as render a man more virtuous and more valuable. If 
 to These happy dispositions we could add the knowledge and 
 love of the true God and of our Redeemer, without which the 
 most exalted virtues are of no value, they would have been a 
 perfect people. 
 
 When we compare the manners of the Scythians with those 
 of the present age, we are tempted to believe, that the pencils 
 which drew so beautiful a picture, were not free from partiality 
 and flattery ; and that both Justin and Horace have decked 
 them with virtues that did not belong to them. But all anti¬ 
 quity agrees in giving the same testimony of them ; and Homer 
 in particular, whose opinion ought to be of great weight, calls 
 them the most just and upright of men. 
 
 ° Aurum irrepertum, et sic melius situm 
 Cum terra celat, spernere fbrtior, 
 
 Quam cogere humanos in usus 
 
 Omne sacrum rapiente dextra. Hor. Lib. iii. Od. 3, 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 243 
 
 But at length (who could believe it l) luxury, which might 
 be thought to thrive only in an agreeable and delightful soil, 
 penetrated into this rough and uncultivated region ; and break¬ 
 ing down the fences, which the constant practice of several 
 ages, founded in the nature of the climate and the genius of the 
 people, had set against it, did at last effectually corrupt the 
 manners of the Scythians, and bring them, in that respect, 
 upon a level with the other nations, where it had long been pre¬ 
 dominant. It is Strabo p that acquaints us with this particular, 
 which is very worthy of our notice: he lived in the time of 
 Augustus and Tiberius. After having greatly commended the 
 simplicity, frugality, and innocence, of the ancient Scythians, 
 and their extreme aversion to all deceit and dissimulation, he 
 owns, that their intercourse in later times with other nations, 
 had extirpated those virtues, and planted the contrary vices in 
 their stead. One would think, says he, that the natural effect 
 of such an intercourse with civilized and polite nations, would 
 only have been that of rendering them more humanized and 
 courteous, by softening that air of savageness and ferocity 
 which they had before : but, instead of that, it introduced a total 
 ruin of their ancient manners, and transformed them into quite 
 different creatures. It is undoubtedly with reference to this 
 change that Athenaeus says, o the Scythians abandoned them¬ 
 selves to voluptuousness and luxury, at the same time that they 
 suffered self-interest and avarice to prevail amongst them. 
 
 Strabo, in making the remark I have been mentioning, does 
 not deny, but that it was to the Romans and Grecians this fa¬ 
 tal change of manners was owing. Our example, says he, has 
 perverted almost all the nations of the world : by carrying the 
 refinements of luxury and pleasure amongst them, we have 
 taught them insincerity and fraud, and a thousand kinds of 
 shameful and infamous arts to get money. It is a miserable 
 talent, and a very unhappy distinction for a nation, through its 
 ingenuity in inventing modes, and refining upon every thing 
 that tends to nourish and promote luxury, to become the cor¬ 
 rupter of all its neighbours, and the author, as it were, of their 
 vices and debauchery. 
 
 It was against these Scythians, but at a time when they were 
 yet uncorrupted, and in their utmost vigour, that Darius turned 
 Ids arms. This expedition I am now going to relate. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 Darius’s expedition against the Scythians. 
 
 I have already observed* r that the pretence used by Darius 
 for undertaking this war against the Scythians, was the irrup- 
 
 p Lib. vii. p. 301. i Lib. xii. p. 524. r Herod. 1. iv. c. 83—96. 
 
 R 2 
 
244 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 tiou formerly made by that people into Asia ; but in reality he 
 had no other end than to satisfy his own ambition, and to ex¬ 
 tend his conquests. 
 
 His brother Artabanes, for whom he had a great regard, 
 and who, on his side, had no less zeal for the true interests of 
 the king his brother, thought it his duty on this occasion to 
 speak his sentiments with all the freedom that an affair of such 
 importance required. Great prince, says he to him, 8 they who 
 form any great enterprise, ought carefully to consider, whe¬ 
 ther it will he beneficial or prejudicial to the state; whether the 
 execution of it will he easy or difficult ; whether it he likely to 
 augment or diminish their glory ; and lastly, ivhether the 
 thing designed he consistent with, or contrary to, the rules of 
 justice. For my own part, I cannot perceive, sir, even though 
 you were sure of success, what advantage you can propose to 
 yourself in undertaking a war against the Scythians. Con¬ 
 sider the vast distance between them and you ; and the prodi¬ 
 gious space of land and sea that separates them from your do¬ 
 minions ! besides, they are a people that dwell in wild and un¬ 
 cultivated deserts ; that have neither towns nor houses ; that 
 have no fixed settlement, or place of habitation ; and that are 
 destitute of cdl manner of riches. What have your troops to 
 gain from such an expedition ? or, to speak more properly , 
 what have they not rather to lose ? 
 
 Accustomed as the Scythians are to remove from country to 
 country, if they should think proper to fly before you, not out 
 of cowardice or fear, for they are a very courageous and war¬ 
 like people, hut only with a design to harass and ruin your 
 army by continual and fatiguing marches ; what will become of 
 us in such an uncultivated, barren, and naked country, where 
 we shall neither find forage for our horses, nor provision for 
 our men ? I am afraid, sir, that through a false notion of 
 glory, and the insinuations of flatterers , you may be hurried 
 into a war, which may turn to the dishonour of the nation. 
 You now enjoy the sweets of peace and tranquillity in the 
 midst of your people, where you are the object of their admira¬ 
 tion, and the author of their happiness. You are sensible the 
 gods have placed you upon the throne to be ilieir coadjutor , 
 or, to speak more q^operly, to be the dispenser of their boun¬ 
 ty, rather than the minister of their power. You pride your¬ 
 self upon being the protector, the guardian, and the father of 
 your subjects: and you often declare to us, because you really 
 believe so, that you look upon yourself as invested with sove¬ 
 reign poiver, only to make your people happy. What exquisite 
 
 * 
 
 R Omnes qui magnarum rerum consilia suscipiunt, aestimare debent, an, 
 quod inchoatur, reipublicae utile, ipsis gloriosum, aut promptum efFeetu, aut 
 certe non arduum sit. Tacit. Hist. 1. ii. c. 7G. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 245 
 
 joy must it be to so great a prince as you are, to be the source 
 of so many blessings : and under the shadow of your name to 
 preserve such infinite numbers of people in so desirable a tran¬ 
 quillity ! Is not the glory of a king who loves his subjects, and 
 is beloved by them ; icho, instead of waging ivar against neigh¬ 
 bouring or distant nations, makes use of his grower to keep them 
 in peace and amity with each other ; is not such a glory infi¬ 
 nitely preferable to that of ravaging and spoiling a country, 
 of filling the earth with slaughter and desolation, with horror, 
 consternation, and despair ? But there is one motive more, 
 which ought to have a greater influence upon you than all 
 others ; I mean that of justice. Thanks to the gods, you are 
 not of the number of those princes, who acknowledge no other 
 law than that of force , 1 and who imagine that they have a 
 peculiar privilege annexed to their dignity, which private 
 qiersons have not, of invading other mens properties. You 
 do not make your greatness consist in being able to do ivhat- 
 ever you will, u but in willing only what may be done without 
 infringing the laws, or violating justice. To speak plain, 
 shall one man be reckoned unjust, and a robber, for seizing 
 on a few acres of his neighbour s estate ; and shall another be 
 reckoned just and great, and have the title of hero, because he 
 seizes upon and usurps whole provinces ? Permit me, sir, to 
 ask you, what title have you to Scythia ? What injury have 
 the Scythians done you? What reason can you allege for de¬ 
 claring war against them ? The war, indeed, in which you 
 have been engaged against the Babylonians, was at the same 
 time both just and necessary : the gods have accordingly crown¬ 
 ed your arms with success. It belongs to you, sir, to judge, 
 whether that which you are now going to undertake, be of the 
 same nature. 
 
 Nothing- but the g-encrous zeal of a brother, truly concerned 
 for the glory of his prince and the good of his country, could 
 inspire such a freedom: as, on the other hand, nothing but a 
 perfect moderation in the prince could make him capable of 
 bearing with it. Darius, x as Tacitus observes of another 
 great emperor, had the art of reconciling two things which are 
 generally incompatible, the sovereignty and liberty. Far from 
 being offended at the freedom used by his brother, he thanked 
 him for his good advice, though he did not follow it; for he 
 had taken his resolution. He departed from Susa at the head 
 
 1 Id in summa fortuna sequius, quod validius: et sua retinere, privatse 
 domus: de alicnis certare, regiam laudein esse. Tacit. Annal. 1. xxv. c. 1. 
 
 u Ut felicitatis est quantum velis posse, sic magnitudinis velle quantum 
 possis. Plin. in Panegyr. Traj. 
 
 x Nerva Caesar res olim dissociabiles miscuit, principatum et libertatem. 
 Tacit, in vit. Agric. cap. iii. 
 
246 
 
 HISTORY OF TIIE 
 
 of an army of 700,000 men ; and liis fleet, consisting of 600 
 ships, was chiefly manned with lonians, and other Grecian 
 nations that dwelt upon the sea-coasts of Asia Minor and the 
 Hellespont. He marched his army towards the Thracian Bos¬ 
 phorus, which he passed upon a bridge of boats : after which, 
 having made himself master of all Thrace, he came to the 
 banks of the Danube, otherwise called the Ister, where he had 
 ordered his fleet to join him. In several places on his march 
 he caused pillars to be erected with magnificent inscriptions, 
 in one of which he suffered himself to be called the best and 
 handsomest of all men living. What vanity ! what a littleness 
 of soul was this ! 
 
 And yet if this prince’s faults had terminated only in senti¬ 
 ments of pride and vanity, perhaps they would appear more 
 excusable than they do, at least they would not have been so 
 pernicious to his subjects. But how shall we reconcile Darius’s 
 disposition,y which seemed to be so exceeding humane and 
 gentle, with his barbarous and cruel behaviour towards Oebazus, 
 a venerable old man, whose merit, as well as quality, entitled 
 him to respect? This nobleman had three sons, who were all 
 preparing themselves to attend the king in this expedition 
 against the Scythians. Upon Darius’s departure from Susa, 
 the good old father begged as a favour of him, that he would 
 please to leave him one of his sons at home, to be a comfort 
 to him in his old age. One, replied Darius, will not he sufficient 
 for you ; I will leave you all the three : and immediately he 
 caused them all to be put to death. 
 
 When the army had passed the Danube upon a bridge of 
 boats, 2 the king was for having the bridge broken down, that 
 his army might not be weakened by leaving so considerable a 
 detachment of his troops as was necessary to guard it. But one 
 of his officers represented to him, that it might be proper to 
 keep that as a necessary resource, in case the war with the 
 Scythians should prove unfortunate. The king acquiesced, 
 and committed the guarding of the bridge to the care of the 
 lonians, who built it; giving them leave, at the same time, 
 to go back to their own country, if he did not return in the 
 space of two months : he then proceeded on his march to 
 Scythia. 
 
 As soon as the Scythians were informed that Darius was 
 marching against them, a they immediately entered into con¬ 
 sultation upon the measures necessary to be taken. They 
 were very sensible that they were not in a condition to resist 
 by themselves so formidable an enemy. They applied therefore 
 to all the neighbouring nations, and desired their assistance, 
 
 y Herod. 1. iv. c. 84. Senec. de Ira, c. 16. 
 
 3 Herod. 1. iv. c. 99. 101. a Ibid. e. 102. 118. 119. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 247 
 
 alleging, that the clanger was general, and concerned them all, 
 and that it was their common interest to oppose an enemy, 
 whose views of conquest were not confined *to one nation. 
 Some returned favourable answers to their demand ; others 
 absolutely refused to enter into a war which, they said, did 
 not regard them ; but they had soon reason to repent their 
 refusal. 
 
 One wise precaution taken by the Scythians, 1 * was to place 
 their wives and children in safety, by sending them in carriages 
 to the most northern parts of the country ; and with them 
 likewise they sent all their herds and flocks, reserving nothing 
 to themselves but what was necessary for the support of their 
 army. Another precaution of theirs was to fill up all their 
 wells, and stop up their springs, and to consume all the forage 
 in those parts through which the Persian army was to pass. 
 This done, they marched, in conjunction with their allies, 
 against the enemy, not with a view of giving him battle, for 
 they were determined to avoid that, but to draw him into such 
 places as suited best their interest. Whenever the Persians 
 seemed disposed to attack them, they still retired farther up 
 into the country ; and thereby drew them on, from place to 
 place, into the territories of those nations that had refused 
 to enter into alliance with them, whose lands became a prey 
 to the two armies of the Persians and Scythians. 
 
 Darius, c weary of these tedious and fatiguing pursuits, sent 
 a herald to the king of the Scythians, whose name was Inda- 
 thy rsus, with this message in his name :— Prince of the Scythi¬ 
 ans, wherefore dost thou continually fly before me? Why dost 
 thou not stop somewhere or other, either to give me battle, if 
 thou believest thyself able to encounter me, or, if thou thinkest 
 thyself too weak, to acknowledge thy master, by presenting 
 him with earth and water ? The Scythians were a high- 
 spirited people, extremely jealous of their liberty, and pro¬ 
 fessed enemies to all slavery. Tndathyrsus sent Darius the 
 following answer :■— If I fly before thee, prince of the Persiatis, 
 it is not because I fear thee: what I do now, is no more 
 than what l am used to do in time of peace. We Scythians 
 have neither cities nor lands to defend: if thou hast a mincl 
 to force us to come to an engagement, come and attack the 
 tombs of our fathers, and thou shalt find what manner of 
 men we are. As to the title of master, which thou assum- 
 est, keep it for other nations than the Scythians. For my 
 part, I acknowledge no other master than the great Jupiter, one 
 of my own ancestors, and the goddess Vesta. 
 
 The farther Darius advanced into the country/ the greater 
 hardships his army was exposed to. Just when it was reduced 
 b Herod, c. 120. 125. <= Ibid. 1. iv. c. 12G, 127- d Ibid. c. 128. 132. 
 
HISTORY OF THE 
 
 248 
 
 to the last extremity, there came a herald from the Scythian 
 prince, who was commissioned to present to Darius a bird, a 
 mouse, a frog, and five arrows. The king desired to know the 
 meaning of those gifts. The messenger answered, that his 
 orders were only to deliver them, and nothing more ; and that 
 it was left to the Persian king to find out the meaning. Darius 
 concluded at first, that the Scythians thereby consented to de¬ 
 liver up the earth and water to him, which were represented by 
 the mouse and frog ; as also their cavalry, whose swiftness was 
 represented by the bird ; together with their own persons and 
 arms, signified by the arrows. But Gobryas, one of the seven 
 lords that had deposed the Magian impostor, expounded the 
 enigma in the following manner: Know, says he to the Per¬ 
 sians, that unless you can fly in the air like birds, or hide 
 yourselves in the earth like mice, or dive under the water 
 , you shall in nowise be able to avoid the arrows of the 
 Scythians. 
 
 And, e indeed, the whole Persian army, marching in a vast 
 uncultivated and barren country, completely destitute of water, 
 was reduced to so deplorable a condition, that they had nothing- 
 before their eyes but inevitable ruin : nor was Darius himself 
 exempt from the common danger. He owed his preservation 
 to a camel, which was loaded with water, and followed him 
 with great difficulty through that wild and desert country. The 
 king afterwards did not forget this benefactor; to reward him 
 for the service he had done him, and the fatigues he had under¬ 
 gone, on his return to Asia, he settled a certain district of his 
 own upon him for his peculiar use and subsistence, for which 
 reason the place was called Gaugamela, that is, in the Persian 
 tongue, the Camel’s habitation. It was near the same place 
 that Darius Codomanus received a second overthrow by Alex^ 
 ander the Great. 
 
 Darius deliberated no longer, f finding himself under an ab¬ 
 solute necessity of quitting his rash enterprise. He began then 
 to think in earnest of returning home; and saw but too plainly, 
 that there was no time to be lost. As soon therefore as night 
 came, the Persians, to deceive the enemy, lighted a great num¬ 
 ber of fires as usual ; and leaving the old men and the sick be¬ 
 hind them in the camp, together with all their asses, which 
 made a sufficient noise, they set out upon their march, in order 
 to reach the Danube. The Scythians did not perceive they 
 were gone till the next morning ; whereupon they imme¬ 
 diately sent a considerable detachment to the Danube. This 
 detachment being perfectly well acquainted with the roads of 
 the country, arrived at the bridge a great while before the Per- 
 
 Strabo, 1. vii. p. 305. 1. xvi. p. 737- 
 
 e 
 
 f Herod. 1. iv. c. 134. 140. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 24 <> 
 
 sians. The Scythians had sent expresses before-hand to 
 persuade the Ionians to break the bridge, and to return to 
 their own country ; and the latter had promised to do it, but 
 without designing to execute their promise. The Scythians now 
 pressed them to it more earnestly, and represented to them, 
 that the time prescribed by Darius for staying there was 
 elapsed ; that they were at liberty to return home, without 
 either violating their word or their duty ; that they now had it 
 in their power to throw off for ever the yoke of their subjection, 
 and make themselves a happy and free people ; and that the 
 Scythians w T ould render Darius incapable of forming any more 
 enterprises against any of his neighbours. 
 
 The Ionians entered into consultation upon the affair. Mil- 
 tiades the Athenian, who was prince, or as the Greeks call it, 
 tyrant, of the Chersonesus of Thrace, at the mouth of the 
 Hellespont, was one of those that accompanied Darius, and fur¬ 
 nished him with ships for his enterprise. Having the public 
 interest more at heart than his private advantage, g he was of 
 opinion that they should comply with the request of the Scy¬ 
 thians, and embrace so favourable an opportunity of recover¬ 
 ing the liberty of Ionia : all the other commanders acquiesced 
 in his sentiments, except Hystiaeus, the tyrant of Miletus. 
 When it came to his turn to speak, he represented to the Ionian 
 generals, that their fortune was linked with that of Darius ; 
 that it was under that prince’s protection that each of them 
 was master in his own city ; and if the power of the Persians 
 should sink or decline, the cities of Ionia would not fail to de¬ 
 pose their tyrants, and recover their freedom. All the other 
 chiefs were influenced by his opinion ; and, as is usual in most 
 cases, the consideration of private interest prevailed over the 
 public good. They resolved therefore to wait for Darius : but, 
 in order to deceive the Scythians, and hinder them from under¬ 
 taking any thing, they declared to them, that they had resolved 
 to retire, pursuant to their request; and, the better to carry on 
 the fraud, they actually began to break one end of the bridge, 
 exhorting the Scythians at the same time to do their part, to 
 return speedily back to meet the common enemy, to attack and 
 defeat them. The Scythians being too credulous, retired, and 
 were deceived a second time. 
 
 They missed Darius, h who had taken a different route from 
 that in which they expected to come up with him. He arrived 
 by night at the bridge over the Danube ; and, finding it broken 
 down, he no longer doubted but the Ionians were gone, and 
 that consequently he should be ruined. He made his people 
 call out with a loud voice for Hystiaeus, the Milesian, who at 
 
 8 Amicior omnium libertati quam suse dominationi fuit. Corn. Nep . 
 
 11 Herod. 1. iv. c. 141. 144. 
 
250 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 last answered, and put the king out of his anxiety. They en¬ 
 tirely repaired the bridge ; so that Darius repassed the Danube, 
 and came back into Thrace. There he left Megabyzus, one 
 of his chief generals, with part of his army, to complete the 
 conquest of that country, and entirely reduce it to his obedience. 
 After which he repassed the Bosphorus with the rest of his 
 troops, and went to Sardis, where he spent the winter and the 
 greatest part of the year following, in order to refresh his army, 
 which had suffered extremely in that ill-concerted and unfor¬ 
 tunate expedition. 
 
 Megabyzus continued some time in Thrace ; 1 whose inha¬ 
 bitants, according to Herodotus, would have been invincible, 
 had they had the discretion to unite their forces, and to choose 
 one chief commander. Some of them had very particular cus¬ 
 toms. In one of their districts, when a child came into the 
 world, all the relations expressed great sorrow and affliction, 
 bitterly weeping at the prospect of the misery which the new¬ 
 born infant had to experience. While, on the other hand, on 
 the death of any of their family, they all rejoiced, because they 
 looked upon the deceased person as happy only from that mo¬ 
 ment wherein he was delivered for ever from the troubles and 
 calamities of this life. In another district, where polygamy was 
 in fashion, when a husband died, it was a great dispute among 
 his wives which of them was best beloved. She in whose 
 favour the contest was decided, had the privilege of being sa¬ 
 crificed by her nearest relation upon the tomb of her husband, 
 and of being buried with him ; whilst all the other wives envied 
 her happiness, and thought themselves in some sort dishonoured. 
 
 Darius, k on his return to Sardis, after his unhappy expedition 
 against the Scythians, having learnt for certain that he owed 
 both his own safety and that of his whole army to Hystiaeus, 
 who had persuaded the Ionians not to destroy the bridge on the 
 Danube, sent for that prince to his court, and desired him freely 
 to ask any favour in recompense of his service. Hystiaeus 
 hereupon desired the king to give him Mircina of Edonia, a 
 territory upon the river Strymon in Thrace, together with the 
 liberty of building a city there. His request was readily 
 granted ; and he returned to Miletus, where he caused a fleet 
 of ships to be equipped, and then set out for Thrace. Having 
 taken possession of the territory granted him, lie immediately 
 set about the execution of his project in building a city. 
 
 Megabyzus, 1 who was then governor of Thrace for Darius, 
 immediately perceived how prejudicial that undertaking would 
 be to the king’s affairs in those quarters. He considered, that 
 this new city stood upon a navigable river ; that the country 
 round about it abounded in timber fit for building of ships ; 
 
 * Herod. 1. v. c. 1. k Ibid. 1. v. c. 11. 23. 1 Ibid, 1. v. c, 23. 25. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 251 
 
 that it was inhabited by different nations, both Greeks and Bar¬ 
 barians, who were able to furnish great numbers of men for 
 land and sea service ; that, if once those people were under the 
 guidance of a leader so skilful and enterprising- as Hystiaeus, 
 they might become so powerful both by sea and land, that it 
 would be no longer possible for the king to keep them in sub¬ 
 jection ; especially considering that they had a great many gold 
 and silver mines in that country, which would enable them to 
 carry on any project they might think fit to form. At his re¬ 
 turn to Sardis, he represented all these things to the king, who 
 was convinced by his reasons, and therefore sent for Hystiseus 
 to come to him at Sardis, pretending to have some great de¬ 
 signs in view, wherein he wanted the assistance of his counsel. 
 When he had brought him to his court by this means, he carried 
 him to Susa, making him believe that he set an extraordinary 
 value upon a friend of such fidelity and understanding ; two 
 qualifications that rendered him very dear to him, and of which 
 he had given such memorable proofs in the Scythian expedi¬ 
 tion : giving him to understand, at the same time, that he 
 should be able to find something for him in Persia, which would 
 make him ample amends for all that he could leave behind him. 
 Hystiaeus, pleased with so honourable a distinction, and finding 
 himself likewise under a necessity of complying, accompanied 
 Darius to Susa, and left Aristagoras to govern Miletus in his 
 room. 
 
 Whilst Megabyzus was still in Thrace, m he sent several 
 Persian noblemen to Ainyntas, king of Macedonia, to require 
 him to give earth and water to Darius his master; this was the 
 usual form of one prince’s submitting to another. Amyntas 
 readily complied with that request, and paid all imaginable ho¬ 
 nours to the envovs. Towards the end of an entertainment 
 which he made for them, they desired that the ladies might be 
 brought in, which was a thing contrary to the custom of the 
 country : however, the king would not venture to refuse them. 
 The Persian noblemen, being heated with wine, and thinking 
 they might use the same freedom as in their own country, did 
 not observe a due decorum towards those princesses. The 
 king’s son, whose name was Alexander, could not see his mo¬ 
 ther and sisters treated in such a manner, without great resent¬ 
 ment and indignation. Wherefore, upon some pretence or 
 other, he contrived to send the ladies out of the room, as if they 
 were to return again presently, and had the precaution to get 
 the king, his father, also out of the company. In this interval 
 he caused some young men to be dressed like women, and to 
 be armed with poniards under their garments. These pretended 
 ladies came into the room instead of the others ; and when the 
 
 ra Herod. 1. v. e. 17- 21. 
 
252 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Persians began to treat them as they had before treated the prin¬ 
 cesses, they drew out their poniards, fell violently upon them, 
 and killed, not only the noblemen, but every one of their attend¬ 
 ants. The news of this slaughter soon reached Susa ; and the 
 king appointed commissioners to take cognizance of the mat¬ 
 ter : but Alexander, by the power of bribes and presents, stifled 
 the affair, so that nothing came of it. 
 
 The Scythians, 11 to be revenged of Darius for invading their 
 country, passed the Danube, and ravaged all the part of Thrace 
 that had submitted to the Persians, as far as the Hellespont. 
 Miltiades, to avoid their fury, abandoned the Chersonesus : but 
 after the enemy retired, he returned thither again, and was re¬ 
 stored to the same power he had before over the inhabitants of 
 the country. 
 
 SECT. V. 
 
 Darius’s conquest of India. 
 
 About the same time, that is, in the thirteenth 
 Ant c^^608 y ear Darius’s reign, this prince having an am¬ 
 bition to extend his dominion eastwards, first re¬ 
 solved, in order to facilitate his conquests, to get a proper know¬ 
 ledge of the country. To this end,° he caused a fleet to be 
 built and fitted out at Caspatyra, a city upon the Indus, and 
 did the same at several other places on the same river, as far as 
 the frontiers of Scythia .p The command of this fleet was given 
 to Scylax, q a Grecian of Caryandia, a town of Caria, who was 
 perfectly well versed in maritime affairs. His orders were to 
 sail down that river, and get all the knowledge he possibly could 
 of the country on both sides, quite down to the mouth of the 
 river ; to pass from thence into the Southern Ocean, and to 
 steer his course afterwards to the west, and so return back that 
 way to Persia. Scylax, having exactly observed his instructions, 
 and sailed quite down the river Indus, entered the Red Sea by 
 the Straits of Babelmandel; and after a voyage of thirty months 
 from the time of his setting out from Caspatyra, he arrived in 
 Egypt at the same port from whence Necho, r king of‘ Egypt, 
 had formerly sent the Phoenicians, who were in his service, with 
 orders to sail round the coasts of Africa. Very probably this 
 was the same port where now stands the town of Suez, at the 
 farther end of the Red Sea. From thence Scylax returned to 
 
 11 Herod. 1. vi. c. 40. ° Ibid. 1. iv. c. 44. 
 
 p Asiatic Scythia is meant. 
 
 q There is a geographical treatise entitled IIfpi 7 r\ouc, and composed by one 
 Scylax of Caryandia, who is thought to be the same person spoken of in this 
 place. But that opinion is attended with some difficulties, which have given 
 occasion to many learned dissertations. r Herod. 1. iv. c. 42. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 253 
 
 
 Susa, where he gave Darius an account of all his discoveries. 
 Darius afterwards entered India with an army, and subjected 
 all that vast country. The reader will naturally expect to be 
 informed of the particulars of so important a war. But He¬ 
 rodotus says not one word about it : he only tells us, that 
 India made the twentieth province, 8 or government, of the Per¬ 
 sian empire, and that the annual revenue accruing from hence 
 to Darius was 360 talents of gold, which amount to near 
 11,000,000 livres French money, something less than 500,000/. 
 sterling. 
 
 SECT. VI. 
 
 The revolt of the Ionians. 
 
 Darius 1 after his return to Susa from his Scy- 
 Ant J 1 C 5 °504 *hian expedition, had given his brother Arta- 
 phernes the government of Sardis, and made 
 Otanes commander in Thrace, and the adjacent countries along 
 the sea-coast, in the room of Megabyzus. 
 
 From a small spark, u kindled by a sedition at Naxus, a 
 great flame arose, which gave occasion to a considerable war. 
 Naxus was the most important island of the Cyclades in the 
 .ZEgean sea, now called the Archipelago. In this sedition the 
 principal inhabitants having been overpowered by the populace, 
 who were the greater number, many of the richest families 
 were banished out of the island. Hereupon they fled to Mile¬ 
 tus, and implored the assistance of Aristagoras, to reinstate 
 them in their native place. He was at that time governor of 
 that city, as lieutenant to Hystiaeus, to whom he was both ne¬ 
 phew and son-in-law, and whom Darius had carried along with 
 him to Susa. Aristagoras promised to give these exiles the 
 assistance they desired. 
 
 But not being powerful enough himself to execute what he 
 had promised, he went to Sardis, and communicated the affair 
 to Artaphernes. He represented to him that this was a very 
 favourable opportunity for reducing Naxus under the power of 
 Darius ; that if he were once master of that island, all the rest 
 of the Cyclades would fall of themselves into his hands, one 
 after another: that in consequence the isle of Euboea, (now 
 Negropont,) which was as large as Cyprus, and lay very near 
 them, would be easily conquered, which would give the king a 
 free passage into Greece, and the means of subjecting all that 
 country ; and in short, that 100 ships would be sufficient for 
 the effectual execution of this enterprise. Artaphernes was so 
 pleased with the project, that instead of 100 vessels, which 
 6 Lib. iii. c. 9L 1 Lib. v. c. 25. u Ibid. c. 28. 34. 
 
254 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Aristagoras required, he promised him 200, in case he obtained 
 the king’s consent to the expedition. 
 
 The king, charmed with the mighty hopes with which he 
 was llattered, very readily approved the enterprise, though 
 founded only upon injustice and a boundless ambition, as also 
 upon perfidiousness on the part of Aristagoras and Artaphernes. 
 No consideration gave him a moment’s pause. The most in¬ 
 jurious project is formed and accepted without the least reluct¬ 
 ance or scruple: motives of advantage and convenience solely 
 determine. The isle lies convenient for the Persians ; this is 
 conceived a sufficient title, and a warrantable ground to reduce 
 it by force of arms. And, indeed, most of the other expedi¬ 
 tions of this prince had no better principle. 
 
 As soon as Artaphernes had obtained the king’s consent to 
 this project, he made the necessary preparations for executing 
 it. The better to conceal his design, and to surprise the peo¬ 
 ple of Naxus, he spread a report that his fleet was going to¬ 
 wards the Hellespont; and the spring following he sent the 
 number of ships he had promised to Miletus under the com¬ 
 mand of Megabates, a Persian nobleman of the royal family of 
 Achaemenes. But being directed in his commission to obey 
 the orders of Aristagoras, the high-spirited Persian could not 
 bear to be under the command of an Ionian, especially one 
 who treated him in a haughty and imperious manner. This 
 pique occasioned a breach between the two generals, which 
 rose so high, that Megabates, to be revenged of Aristagoras, 
 gave the Naxians secret intelligence of the design formed 
 against them. Upon which they made such preparations for 
 their defence, that the Persians, after having spent four months 
 in besieging the capital of the island, and consumed all their 
 provisions, were obliged to retire. 
 
 This project having thus miscarried/ Megabates threw all 
 the blame upon Aristagoras, and entirely ruined his credit with 
 Artaphernes. The Ionian instantly foresaw that this accident 
 would be attended not only with the loss of his government, but 
 with his utter ruin. The desperate situation to which he was 
 reduced, made him think of revolting from the king, as the only 
 expedient whereby he could possibly save himself. No sooner 
 had he formed this design, than a messenger came to him from 
 Hystiaeus, who gave him the same counsel. Hystimus, who 
 had now been some years at the Persian court, being disgusted 
 with the manners of that nation, and having an ardent desire to 
 return to his own country, thought this the most likely means 
 of accomplishing his wish, and therefore gave Aristagoras that 
 counsel. He flattered himself, that in case any troubles arose 
 in Ionia, he could prevail with Darius to send him thither to 
 
 Herod. 1. v. c. 35, 36- 
 
 X 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 255 
 
 appease them; and, in fact, the thing' happened according to 
 his expectation. As soon as Aristagoras found his design 
 seconded by the orders of Hystiaeus, he imparted them to the 
 principal persons of Ionia, whom he found extremely well dis¬ 
 posed to enter into his views. He therefore deliberated no 
 longer, but being determined to revolt, applied himself wholly 
 in making preparations for it. 
 
 The people of Tyre, having been reduced to 
 Ant cf 502 . sIaver y when their city was taken by Nebuchad¬ 
 nezzar, had groaned under that oppression for 
 the space of seventy years. But after the expiration of that 
 term, they were restored, according to Isaiah’s prophecy,y to 
 the possession of their ancient privileges, with the liberty of 
 having a king of their own ; which liberty they enjoyed till the 
 time of Alexander the Great. It seems probable, that this 
 favour was granted them by Darius, in consideration of the ser¬ 
 vices he expected to receive from that city (which was so 
 powerful by sea) in reducing the Ionians to their ancient sub¬ 
 jection. This was in the nineteenth year of Darius’s reign. 
 
 The next year Aristagoras, 2 in order to engage the Ionians 
 to adhere the more closely to him, reinstated them in their 
 liberty, and in all their former privileges. He began with Mi¬ 
 letus, where he divested himself of his power, and resigned it 
 into the hands of the people. He then made a journey through 
 all Ionia, where, by his example, his influence, and perhaps by 
 the fear that they would be forced to it whether they would or 
 no, he prevailed upon all the other tyrants to do the same in 
 every city. They complied the more readily, as the Persian 
 power, since the check it received in Scythia, was the less able 
 to protect them against the Ionians, who were naturally fond of 
 liberty and a state of independence, and professed enemies to 
 all tyranny. Having united them all in this manner in one 
 common league, of which he himself was declared the head, he 
 set up the standard of rebellion against the king, and made 
 great preparations by sea and land for supporting a war against 
 him. 
 
 To enable himself to carry on the war with more vigour, a 
 Aristagoras went in the beginning of the following year to La¬ 
 cedaemon, in order to bring that city into his interest, and en¬ 
 gage it to furnish him with succours. Cleomenes was at this 
 time king of Sparta. He was the son of Anaxandrides by a 
 second wife, whom the Ephori had obliged him to marry, be¬ 
 cause he had no issue by the first. He had by her three sons 
 besides Cleomenes, namely, Borimus, Leonidas, and Cleom- 
 
 y And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, that the Lord 
 will visit Tyre, and she shall turn to her hire. Isa. xxiii. 17- 
 
 z Herod. 1. v. c. 37, 38. a Ibid. 1. v. c. 38. 41. 49. 51. 
 
256 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 brotus, the two last of which ascended the throne of Lacedaemon 
 in their turns. Aristagoras then addressed himself to Cleo¬ 
 menes, and the time and place for an interview between them 
 being agreed on, he waited upon him, and represented to him, 
 that the Ionians and Lacedaemonians were countrymen ; that 
 Sparta being the most powerful city of Greece, it would be for 
 her honour to concur with him in the design he had formed of 
 restoring the Ionians to their liberty ; that the Persians, their 
 common enemy, were not a warlike people, but extremely rich, 
 and consequently would become an easy prey to the Lacedae¬ 
 monians ; that, considering the present spirit and disposition 
 of the Ionians, it would not be difficult for them to carry their 
 victorious arms even to Susa, the metropolis of the Persian 
 empire, and the place of the king’s residence: he showed him, 
 at the same time, a plan of all the nations and towns through 
 which they were to pass, engraved upon a little plate of brass 
 which he had brought along with him. Cleomenes desired three 
 days’ time to consider of his proposals. That term being ex¬ 
 pired, he asked the Ionian how far it was from the Ionian sea to 
 Susa, and how much time it required to go from the one place 
 to the other. Aristagoras, without considering the effect his 
 answer was likely to have upon Cleomenes, told him, that from 
 Ionia to Susa was about three months’ journey. b Cleomenes 
 was so amazed at this proposal, that he immediately ordered 
 him to depart from Sparta before sun-set. Aristagoras never¬ 
 theless followed him home to his house, and endeavoured to win 
 by arguments of another sort, that is, by presents. The first 
 sum he offered him was only ten talents, which were equivalent 
 to 30,000 livres of French money; that being refused, he still 
 rose in his offers, till at last he proposed to give him fifty 
 talents. Gorgo, a daughter of Cleomenes, about eight or nine 
 years of age, whom her father had not ordered to quit the room, 
 as apprehending nothing from so young a child, hearing the 
 proposals that were made, cried out: Fly, father, fly, this 
 stranger will corrupt you. Cleomenes laughed, but yet ob¬ 
 served the child’s admonition, and actually retired : Aristagoras 
 left Sparta. 
 
 From hence he proceeded to Athens, 0 where he found a 
 more favourable reception. He had the good fortune to arrive 
 there at a time when the Athenians were extremely well dis- 
 
 % i ^-'— 
 
 b According to Herodotus’s computation, who reckons the parasanga, a 
 Persian measure, to contain 30 stadia, the distance from Sardis to Susa is 450 
 parasangas, or 13,500 stadia, which make 675 French leagues (for 20 stadia are 
 generally reckoned to one of our common leagues). So that by travelling 150 
 stadia per day, which make seven leagues and a half, French measure, it is 
 ninety days’journey from Sardis to Susa. If they set out from Ephesus, it 
 would require about four days more; for Ephesus is 540 stadia from Sardis. 
 
 c Herod. 1. v. c 55. 96, 97* 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 257 
 
 posed to hearken to any proposals that could he made to them 
 against the Persians, with whom they were highly offended cn 
 the following occasion. Hippias, d the son of Pisistratus, tyrant 
 of Athens, who, about ten years before, had been banished, after 
 having tried in vain abundance of methods for his re-establish¬ 
 ment, at last went to Sardis, and made his application to Arta- 
 phernes. He insinuated himself so far into the good opinion 
 of that governor, that he gave a favourable ear to all he said, 
 to the disadvantage of the Athenians, and became extremely 
 prejudiced against them. The Athenians, having intelligence 
 of this, sent an ambassador to Sardis, and desired of Arta- 
 phernes not to give ear to what any of their outlaws should in¬ 
 sinuate to their disadvantage. The answer of Artaphernes to 
 this message was, that if they desired to live in peace, they 
 must recall Hippias. When this haughty answer was brought 
 back to the Athenians, the whole city were violently enraged 
 against the Persians. Aristagoras, coming thither just at this 
 juncture, easily obtained all he desired. Herodotus remarks 
 on this occasion, how much easier it is to impose upon a mul¬ 
 titude, than upon a single person : and so Aristagoras found 
 it; for he prevailed witli 30,000 Athenians to come to a re¬ 
 solution, into which he could not persuade Cleomenes alone. 
 They engaged immediately to furnish twenty ships to assist 
 him in his design; and it may be truly said, that this little 
 fleet was the original source of all the calamities in which 
 both the Persians and Grecians were afterwards involved. 
 
 In the third year of this war, the Xonians, 
 Avrt J 1 *C 5 °500 collected all their forces together, and 
 
 being reinforced with the twenty vessels fur¬ 
 nished by the city of Athens, and five more from Eretria, 
 in the island of Euboea, set sail for Ephesus, and leaving their 
 ships there, they marched by land to the city of Sardis : 
 finding the place in a defenceless condition, they soon made 
 themselves masters of it; but the citadel, into which Arta¬ 
 phernes retired, they were not able to force. As most of the 
 houses of this city were built with reeds, and consequently 
 were very combustible, an Ionian soldier having set fire to one 
 house, the flames soon spread and communicated to the rest, 
 and reduced the whole city to ashes. Upon this accident, the 
 Persians and Lydians assembling their forces together for 
 their defence, the Ionians judged it was time for them to think 
 of retreating ; and accordingly they marched back with all 
 possible diligence, in order to rc-embark at Ephesus : but 
 the Persians arriving there almost as soon as they, attacked 
 them vigorously and destroyed a great number of their men. 
 
 d This fact has been before treated at large in this volume. 
 e Herod. 1. v. c. 99. 103. 
 
 S 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
258 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 The Athenians, after the return of their ships, would never en¬ 
 gage any more in this war, notwithstanding the urgent solici¬ 
 tations of Aristagoras. 
 
 Darius being informed of the burning of Sardis/ and of the 
 part the Athenians took in that affair, he resolved from that 
 very time to make war upon Greece: and that he might 
 never forget this resolution, he commanded one of his officers 
 to cry out to him with a loud voice every night, when he was 
 at supper: Sir , remember the Athenians. In the burning of 
 Sardis it happened that the temple of Cybele, the goddess of 
 that country, was consumed with the rest of the city. This 
 accident served afterwards as a pretence to the Persians to 
 burn all the temples they found in Greece : to which they were 
 likewise induced by a religious motive, which I have explained 
 before. 
 
 As Aristagoras,» the head manager of this 
 Ant j* c°499 revo ^> was Hystimus’s lieutenant at Miletus, 
 Darius suspected that the latter might probably 
 be the contriver of the whole conspiracy : for which reason he 
 entered into a free conference with him upon the subject, and 
 acquainted him with his thoughts, and the just grounds he had 
 for his suspicion. Hystiaeus, who was a crafty courtier, and 
 an expert master in the art of dissembling, appeared extremely 
 surprised and afflicted; and speaking in a tone that at once 
 expressed both sorrow and indignation, Is it then possible, sir? 
 said he to the king, for your majesty to have entertained so 
 injut'ious a suspicion of the most faithful and ?nost affectionate 
 of your servants ? I concemiecl in a rebellion against you! 
 Alas! what is there in the world that could te?npt me to it ? 
 Do I want any thing here ? A?n I not already raised to one 
 of the highest stations in your court ? And besides the honour 
 1 have of assisting at your councils, do I not daily receive new 
 proofs of your bounty, by the numberless favours you heap upon 
 me ? After this he insinuated, that the revolt in Ionia proceeded 
 from his absence and distance from the country ; that they had 
 waited for that opportunity to rebel; that if he had stayed at 
 Miletus, the conspiracy would never have been formed ; that 
 the surest way to restore the king’s affairs in that province, 
 would be to send him thither to quell the insurrection ; that he 
 promised him, on the forfeiture of his head, to deliver Arista¬ 
 goras into his hands ; and engaged, besides all this, to make 
 the large island of Sardinia tributary to him. h The best princes 
 are often too credulous ; and when they have once taken a sub- 
 
 f Herod. 1. v. c. 105. s Ibid. c. 105. 107- 
 
 h This island is very remote from Ionia, and could have no relation to it. 
 I am therefore apt to believe it must be an error that has crept into the text 
 of Herodotus. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 259 
 
 ject into their confidence, it is with difficulty they withdraw it 
 from him; nor do they easily undeceive themselves. Darius, 
 imposed upon by the air of sincerity with which Hystiaeus spoke 
 on this occasion, believed him on his own word, and gave him 
 leave to return to Ionia, on condition he came back to the Per¬ 
 sian court as soon as he had executed what he promised. 
 
 The revolters 1 in the mean time, though 
 
 ; ; deserted by the Athenians, and notwithstanding 
 
 Ant. J. C/. 4 yo. . J ill 11 • i • 
 
 the considerable check they had received in 
 
 Ionia, did not lose courage, but still pushed on their point with 
 resolution. Their fleet set sail towards the Hellespont and the 
 Propontis, and reduced Byzantium, with the greater part 
 of the other Grecian cities in that quarter. After which, as 
 they were returning back again, they obliged the Carians to 
 join with them in this war, as also the people of Cyprus. 
 The Persian generals, having divided their forces among them¬ 
 selves, marched three different ways against the rebels, and 
 defeated them in several encounters, in one of which Aristago- 
 ras was slain. 
 
 When Hystiaeus was arrived at Sardis, k his intriguing tem¬ 
 per induced him to form a plot against the government, into 
 which he drew a great number of Persians. But perceiving, by 
 some discourse he had with Artaphernes, that the part he had 
 had in the revolt of Ionia was not unknown to that governor, he 
 thought it not safe for him to stay any longer at Sardis, and re¬ 
 tired secretly the night following to the isle of Chios ; from 
 thence he sent a trusty messenger to Sardis, with letters for 
 such of the Persians as he had gained to his party. This mes¬ 
 senger betrayed him, and delivered his letters to Artaphernes, 
 by which means the whole plot was discovered, all his accom¬ 
 plices put to death, and his project utterly defeated. But still 
 imagining that he could bring about some enterprise of import¬ 
 ance, if he were once at the head of the Ionian league, he made 
 several attempts to get into Miletus, and to be admitted into 
 the confederacy by the citizens : but none of his endeavours 
 succeeded, and he was obliged to return to Chios. 
 
 There, 1 being asked why he had so strongly urged Aristago- 
 ras to revolt, and by that means involved Ionia in such calami¬ 
 ties, he made answer, that it was because the king had resolved 
 to transport the Ionians into Phoenicia, and to plant the Phoe¬ 
 nicians in Ionia. But all this was a mere story and fiction of 
 his own inventing, Darius having never conceived any such 
 design. The artifice however served his purpose extremely 
 well, not only for justifying him to the Ionians, but also for en¬ 
 gaging them to prosecute the war with vigour. For being 
 alarmed at the thoughts of this transmigration, they came to a 
 ' Herod. 1. v. c. 103, 104. TOO. 122. k Ibid. 1. vi. c. 1—5. 1 Ibid. c. 3„ 
 
230 
 
 HISTORY OF TH E 
 
 firm resolution to defend themselves against the Persians to the 
 last extremity. 
 
 Artaphernes and Otanes, m with the rest of the 
 Ant C °497 P ers i an generals, finding that Miletus was the 
 centre of the Ionian confederacy, resolved to 
 march thither with all their forces ; concluding that, if they 
 could carry that city, all the rest would submit of course. The 
 Xonians, having intelligence of their design, determined in a 
 general assembly to send no army into the field, but to fortify 
 Miletus, and to furnish it to the utmost of their power with pro¬ 
 visions, and all things necessary for enduring a siege ; and to 
 unite all their forces to engage the Persians at sea, their dexte¬ 
 rity in maritime affairs inducing them to believe that they should 
 have the advantage in a naval battle. The place of their ren¬ 
 dezvous was Lade, a small isle over against Miletus, where they 
 assembled a fleet of 353 vessels. At the sight of this fleet, the 
 Persians, though stronger by one half with respect to the num¬ 
 ber of their ships, were afraid to hazard a battle, till by their 
 emissaries they had secretly corrupted the greatest part of the 
 confederates, and engaged them to desert: so that when the 
 two fleets came to engage, the ships of Samos, of Lesbos, and 
 several other places, sailed off, and returned to their own coun¬ 
 try, and the remaining fleet of the confederates did not consist 
 of above 100 vessels, which were all quickly overpowered by 
 numbers, and almost entirely destroyed. After this, the city 
 of Miletus was besieged, and became a prey to the conquerors, 
 who utterly destroyed it. This happened six years after Aris- 
 tagoras’s revolt. All the other cities, as well on the continent 
 as on the sea coast and in the isles, returned to their duty soon 
 after, either voluntarily or by force. Those persons that stood 
 out were treated as they had been threatened before-hand. The 
 handsomest of the young men were chosen to serve in the king’s 
 palace ; and the young women were all sent into Persia ; the 
 cities and temples were reduced to ashes. These were the 
 effects of the revolt, into which the people were drawn by the 
 ambitious views of Aristagoras and Hystiaeus. 
 
 The latter of these two had his share also in the general cala¬ 
 mity : u for that same year he was taken by the Persians, and 
 carried to Sardis, where Artaphernes caused him to be imme¬ 
 diately hanged, without consulting Darius, lest that prince’s af¬ 
 fection for Hystiaeus should incline him to pardon him, and by 
 that means a dangerous enemy should be left alive, who might 
 create the Persians new troubles. It appeared by the sequel, 
 that Artaphernes’s conjecture was well grounded : for when 
 Hystimus’s head was brought to Darius, he expressed great 
 dissatisfaction at the authors of his death, and caused the head 
 m Herod. 1. vi. c. G—10. 31. 33. n Ibid. c. 29, 30. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 261 
 
 to be honourably interred, as being the remains of a person to 
 whom he had infinite obligations, the remembrance whereof was 
 too deeply engraven on his mind ever to be effaced by the great¬ 
 ness of any crimes he had afterwards committed. Hystiseus 
 was one of those restless, bold, and enterprising spirits, in 
 whom many good qualities are joined with still greater vices ; 
 with whom all means are lawful and good that promote the end 
 they have in view ; who look upon justice, probity, and sin¬ 
 cerity, as mere empty names : who make no scruple to employ 
 lying or fraud, Ireachery or even perjury, when it is to serve 
 their turn ; and who reckon the ruin of nations, or even their 
 own country, as nothing, if necessary to their own elevation. His 
 end was worthy his sentiments, and such as is common enough 
 to these irreligious politicians, who sacrifice every thing to 
 their ambition, and acknowledge no other rule of their actions, 
 and hardly any other God, than their interest and fortune. 
 
 SECT. VII. 
 
 The expedition of Darius’s army against Greece. 
 
 Darius, 0 in the twenty-eighth year of his reign, 
 Ant j 1 ' c°494 h av i n © recalled all his other generals, sent Mar- 
 donius the son of Gobryas, a young lord of an il¬ 
 lustrious Persian family, who had lately married one of the 
 king’s daughters, to command in chief throughout all the mari¬ 
 time parts of Asia, with a particular order to invade Greece, 
 and to revenge the burning of Sardis upon the Athenians and 
 Eretrians. The king did not show much wisdom in this choice, 
 by which he preferred a young man, because he was a favourite, 
 to all his oldest and most experienced generals ; especially in 
 so difficult a war, the success of which he had very much at 
 heart, and wherein the glory of his reign was infinitely concern¬ 
 ed. His being son-in-law to the king was a quality, indeed, 
 that might augment his influence, but added nothing to his real 
 merit, or his capacity as a general. 
 
 Upon his arrival in Macedonia, into which he had marched 
 with his land forces after having passed through Thrace, the 
 whole country, terrified by his power, submitted. But his fleet 
 attempting to double mount Athos, (now called Capo Santo,) in 
 order to gain the coasts of Macedonia, was attacked by so vio¬ 
 lent a storm, that upwards of 300 ships, with above 20,000 men, 
 perished in the sea. His land army met at the same time with 
 no less fatal a blow. For, being encamped in a place of no secu¬ 
 rity, the Thracians attacked the Persian camp by night, made 
 a great slaughter, and wounded Mardonius himself. All this ill 
 success obliged him shortly after to return into Asia, with grief 
 
 Herod. 1. vi. c. 43. 45. 
 
 O 
 
262 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 and confusion at his having miscarried both by sea and land in 
 this expedition. 
 
 Darius perceiving, too late, that Mardonius’s youth and in¬ 
 experience had occasioned the defeat of his troops, recalled him, 
 and put two other generals in his place, Datis, a Mede, and 
 Artaphernes, son of his brother Artiphanes, who had been gover¬ 
 nor of Sardis. The king’s thoughts were earnestly bent upon 
 putting in execution the great desire he had long had in his 
 mind, which was, to attack Greece with all his forces, and par¬ 
 ticularly to take a signal vengeance on the people of Athens 
 and Eretria, whose enterprise against Sardis was perpetually 
 in his thoughts. 
 
 1. The state of Athens. The characters of Miltiacles , The- 
 
 mistocles, and Aristides. 
 
 Before we enter upon this war, it will be propel* to refresh 
 our memories with a view of the state of Athens at this time, 
 which alone sustained the first shock of the Persians at Mara¬ 
 thon, as also to form some idea before-hand of the great men 
 who shared in that celebrated victory. 
 
 Athens, just delivered from that yoke of servitude which she 
 had been forced to bear for above thirty years, under the ty¬ 
 ranny of Pisistratus and his children, now peaceably enjoyed 
 the advantages of liberty, the sweetness and value of which 
 were only heightened and improved by that short privation. 
 Lacedaemon, which was at this time the mistress of Greece, and 
 had contributed at first to this happy change in Athens, seemed 
 afterwards to repent of her good offices : and growing jealous 
 of the tranquillity she herself had procured for her neighbours, 
 she attempted to disturb it, by endeavouring to reinstate Ilip- 
 pias, the son of Pisistratus, in the government of Athens. But 
 all her attempts were fruitless, and served only to manifest her 
 ill-will, and her grief to see Athens determined to maintain its 
 independence even of Sparta itself. Hippias hereupon had re¬ 
 course to the Persians. Artaphernes, governor of Sardis, sent 
 the Athenians word, as we have already mentioned, that they 
 must re-establish Hippias in his authority, unless they chose ra¬ 
 ther to draw the whole power of Darius upon them. This 
 second attempt succeeded no better than the first, and Hippias 
 was obliged to wait for a more favourable juncture. We shall 
 see presently that he served as a conductor or guide to the Per¬ 
 sian generals sent by Darius against Greece. 
 
 Athens, from the time of the recovery of her liberty, was 
 quite another city than under her tyrants, and displayed a very 
 different kind of spirit. Among the citizens ,p Miltiades dis¬ 
 tinguished himself most in the war with the Persians, which we 
 p Herod. 1. vi. c. 34. 41. Corn. Nep. in Mil. cap. i—iii. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 263 
 
 are going to relate. He was the son of Cimon, an illustrious 
 Athenian. This Cimon had a half-brother by the mother’s side, 
 whose name was likewise Miltiades, of a very ancient and noble 
 family in /Egina, who had lately been received into the number 
 of the Athenian citizens. He was a person of great credit even 
 in the time of Pisistratus ; but, as he could not endure the yoke 
 of a despotic government, he joyfully embraced the offer made 
 him, of going to settle with a colony in the Thracian Cherso- 
 nesus, whither he was invited by the Delonci, the inhabitants 
 of that country, to be their king, or, according to the language 
 of those times, their tyrant. He, dying without children, left 
 the sovereignty to Stesagoras, his nephew, the eldest son of his 
 brother Cimon ; and Stesagoras dying also without issue, the 
 sons of Pisistratus, who then ruled the city of* Athens, sent his 
 brother Miltiades, the person we are now speaking of, into that 
 country to be his successor. He arrived there, and established 
 himself in the government in the same year that Darius under¬ 
 took his expedition against the Scythians. He attended that 
 prince with some ships as far as the Danube ; and it was lie 
 who advised the Ionians to destroy the bridge, and to return 
 home without waiting for Darius. During his residence in the 
 Chersonesus, he married Hegesipyla,^ daughter of Olorus, a 
 Thracian king in the neighbourhood, by whom he had Cimon, 
 the famous Athenian general, of whom a great deal will be said 
 in the sequel. Miltiades, having for several reasons abdicated 
 his government in Thrace, embarked, and took all that he had 
 on board five ships, and set sail for Athens. There he settled 
 a second time, and acquired great reputation. 
 
 At the same time two other citizens/ younger than Miltiades, 
 began to distinguish themselves at Athens, namely, Aristides 
 and Themistocles. Plutarch observes, that the former of these 
 two had endeavoured to form himself upon the model of Clis- 
 thenes, one of the greatest men of his time, and a zealous de¬ 
 fender of liberty, who had greatly contributed to the restoring 
 it at Athens, by expelling the Pisistratidm out of that city. It 
 was an excellent custom among the ancients, and which it were 
 to be wished might prevail amongst us, that the young men, 
 ambitious of public employments, particularly attached them¬ 
 selves to such aged and experienced persons s as had distin¬ 
 guished themselves most eminently therein ; and who, both by 
 their conversation and example, could teach them the art of 
 conducting themselves, and governing others, with wisdom and 
 
 i After the death of Miltiades, this princess had by a second husband a son, 
 who was called Olorus, after the name of his grandfather, and who was the 
 father of Thucydides the histoiian. Herod. 
 
 r Plut. in Arist. p. 319, 320; et in Them. p. 112, 113. An seni sit ger. 
 Itesp. p. 790, 791. 
 
 s Discere a peritis, sequi optimos. Tacit, in Ayric. 
 
264 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 discretion. Thus, says Plutarch, did Aristides attach himself 
 to Clisthenes, and Cimon to Aristides ; and he enumerates se¬ 
 veral others, and among the rest Polybius, whom we have 
 mentioned so often, and who in his youth was the constant dis¬ 
 ciple, and faithful imitator, of the celebrated Philopoemen. 
 
 Themistocles and Aristides were of very different dispositions ; 
 but they both rendered great services to the commonwealth. 
 Themistocles, who naturally inclined to popular government, 
 omitted nothing that could contribute to render him agreeable 
 to the people, and to gain him friends ; behaving himself with 
 great affability and complaisance to every body, always ready 
 to do service to the citizens, every one of whom he knew by 
 name ; nor was he very nice about the means he used to oblige 
 them. Somebody talking with him once on this subject, 1 told 
 him he would make an excellent magistrate, if his behaviour 
 towards the citizens was more impartial, and if he was not 
 biassed in favour of one more than another : God forbid , replied 
 Themistocles, I should ever sit upon a tribuncd , where my 
 friends should find no more credit or favour than strangers. 
 Cleon, who appeared some time after at Athens, observed a 
 quite different conduct, but yet such as was not wholly exempt 
 from blame. When he came into the administration of public 
 affairs, he assembled all his friends, and declared to them that 
 from that moment he renounced their friendship, lest it should 
 prove an obstacle to him in the discharge of his duty, and 
 cause him to act with partiality and injustice. This was doing 
 them very little honour, and entertaining no very high opinion 
 of them. But as Plutarch savs, it was not his friends but his 
 passions that he ought to have renounced. 
 
 Aristides had the discretion to observe a just medium between 
 these two vicious extremes. Being a favourer of aristocracy 
 in imitation of Lycurgus, whom he greatly admired, he in a 
 manner struck out a new path of his own ; not endeavouring to 
 oblige his friends at the expense of justice, and always ready to 
 do them service when consistent with it. He carefully avoided 
 making use of his friends’ recommendations for obtaining em¬ 
 ployments, lest it should prove a dangerous obligation upon him, 
 as well as a plausible pretext for them to require the same 
 favour from him on the like occasion. He used to say, that 
 the true citizen, or the honest man, ought to make no other use 
 of his credit and power, than upon all occasions to practise what 
 was honest and just, and engage others to do the same. 
 
 Considering this contrariety of principles and humours, we 
 are not to wonder, if, during the administration of these great 
 men, there was a continual opposition between them. Themrs- 
 tocles, who was bold and enterprising, was sure almost always 
 1 Cic. tie Senect. Plut. An seni sit gcr. Itesp. p. 800, 807. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 265 
 
 to find Aristides against him, who thought himself obliged to 
 thwart the other’s designs, even sometimes if they were just and 
 beneficial to the public, lest he should gain too great an as¬ 
 cendant and authority, which might become pernicious to the 
 commonwealth. One day, having got the better of Themistocles, 
 who had made some proposal really advantageous to the 
 state, he could not contain himself, but cried aloud as he 
 went out of the assembly, that the Athenians would never pros¬ 
 per, till they threw them both into the Barathrum ; the Bara¬ 
 thrum was a pit, into which malefactors condemned to die were 
 thrown. But notwithstanding this mutual opposition, when the 
 common interest was at stake, they were no longer enemies: 
 and whenever they were to take the field, or engage in any ex¬ 
 pedition, they agreed together to lay aside all differences on 
 leaving the city, and to be at liberty to resume them on their 
 return, if they thought fit. 
 
 The predominant passion of Themistocles was ambition and 
 the love of glory, which discovered itself from his childhood. 
 After the battle of Marathon, of which we shall speak presently, 
 when the people were every where extolling the valour and 
 conduct of Miltiades, who had won it, Themistocles generally 
 appeared very thoughtful and melancholy : he spent whole 
 nights without sleep, and was never seen at public feasts and 
 entertainments as usual. When his friends, astonished at 
 this change, asked him the reason of it, he made answer, that 
 Miltiades s trophies would not let him sleep. These were a 
 kind of spur, which never ceased to goad and animate his am¬ 
 bition. From this time Themistocles addicted himself wholly 
 to arms ; and the love of martial glory wholly engrossed him. 
 
 As for Aristides, the love of the public good was the great 
 spring of all his actions. What he was most particularly ad¬ 
 mired for, was his constancy and steadiness under the un¬ 
 foreseen changes to which those who have the administration 
 of public affairs are exposed : for he was neither elevated with 
 the honours conferred upon him, nor cast down at the contempt 
 and disappointments he sometimes experienced. On all occa¬ 
 sions he preserved his usual calmness and temper, being per¬ 
 suaded, that a man ought to give himself up entirely to his 
 country, and to serve it with a perfect disinterestedness, as 
 well with regard to glory as to riches. The general esteem in 
 which he was held for the uprightness of his intentions, the 
 purity of his zeal for the interests of the state, and the since¬ 
 rity of his virtue, appeared one day in the theatre, when one of 
 iEschylus’s plays was acting. For when the actor had repeat¬ 
 ed that verse which describes the character of Amphiaraus, 
 He does not desire to seem an honest and virtuous man, but 
 
 u Rut. Apophthegm, p. 186. 
 
266 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 really to be so, the whole audience cast their eyes upon Aristides, 
 and applied the eulogium to him. 
 
 Another thing related of him with respect to a public em¬ 
 ployment, is very remarkable. He was no sooner made trea¬ 
 surer-general of the republic, than he made it appear that his 
 predecessors in that otlice had cheated the state of vast sums of 
 money, and, among the rest, Themistocles in particular ; for 
 this great man, with all his merit, was not irreproachable on that 
 head. For which reason, when Aristides came to pass his ac¬ 
 counts, Themistocles raised a powerful faction against him, ac¬ 
 cused him of having embezzled the public treasure, and prevailed 
 so far as to have him condemned and fined. But the princi¬ 
 pal inhabitants, and the most virtuous part of the citizens, rising 
 up against so unjust a sentence, not only the judgment was re¬ 
 versed, and the fine remitted, but he was elected treasurer for 
 the year ensuing. He then seemed to repent of his former ad¬ 
 ministration ; and, by showing himself more tractable and in¬ 
 dulgent towards others, he found out the secret of pleasing all 
 that plundered the commonwealth. For as he neither reproved 
 them, nor narrowly inspected their accounts, all those plunder¬ 
 ers, grown fat with spoil and rapine, now extolled Aristides to 
 the skies. It would have been easy for him, as we perceive, to 
 have enriched himself in a post of this nature, which seems, as 
 it were, to invite him to it, by the many favourable opportunities 
 it lays in his way; especially as he had to do with officers, who, 
 for their part, were intent upon nothing but robbing the public, 
 and would have been ready to conceal the frauds of the trea¬ 
 surer their master upon condition he did them the same favour. 
 
 These very officers now made interest with the people to 
 have him continued a third year in the same employment. 
 But when the time of election was come, just as they were 
 upon the point of electing Aristides unanimously, he rose up, 
 and warmly reproved the Athenian people : What , says he, 
 when I managed your treasure with all the fidelity and dili¬ 
 gence an honest man is cajoable of, I met with the most cruel 
 treatment, and the 7nost mortifying return ; and now that I 
 have abandoned it to the mercy of all these robbers of the public, 
 I am an admirable man, and the best of citizens! I cannot help 
 declaring to you that I am more ashamed of the honour you do 
 me this day, than I ivas of the condemnation you passed against 
 me this time twelvemonth ; and with grief I find that it is more 
 glorious with us to be complaisant to knaves, than to save the 
 treasures of the republic. By this declaration he silenced 
 the public plunderers, and gained the esteem of all good men. 
 
 Such were the characters of these two illustrious Athenians, 
 who began to display the extent of their merit, when Darius 
 turned his arms against Greece. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 267 
 
 II. Darius sends heralds into Greece , in order to sound the 
 people , and to require them to submit. 
 
 Before this prince would directly engage in 
 Ant ^J* cf 49*3 enterprise, he judged it expedient, first of 
 all, to sound the Grecians, and to know in what 
 manner the different states stood affected towards him. With 
 this view he sent Ueralds into all parts of Greece, to require 
 earth and water in his name: this was the form used by the 
 Persians when they exacted submission from those they were 
 desirous of bringing under subjection. On the arrival of these 
 heralds, many of the Grecian cities, dreading the power of tiie 
 Persians, complied with their demands ; and among these were 
 the inhabitants of iEgina, ajittle isle, over against and not far 
 from Athens. This proceeding of the people of ^Lgina was 
 looked upon as a public treason. The Athenians represented 
 the matter to the Spartans, who immediately sent Cleomenes, 
 one of their kings, to apprehend the authors of it. The people 
 of /Egina refused to deliver them, under pretence that he came 
 without his colleague. This colleague was Demaratus, who had 
 himself suggested that excuse. As soon as Cleomenes was 
 returned to Sparta, in order to be revenged on Demaratus for 
 that affront, he endeavoured to get him deposed, as not being 
 of the royal family; and succeeded in his attempt by the assist¬ 
 ance of the priestess of Delphi, whom he had suborned to 
 give an answer favourable to his designs. Demaratus, not 
 being able to endure so gross an affront, banished himself from 
 his country, and retired to Darius, who received him with open 
 arms, and gave him a considerable establishment in Persia. 
 He was succeeded in the throne by Leutichides, who joined 
 his colleague, and went with him to .ZEgina, from whence they 
 brought away ten of the principal inhabitants, and committed 
 them to the custody of the Athenians, their declared enemies. 
 Cleomenes dying not long after, and the fraud he had com¬ 
 mitted at Delphi being discovered, the Lacedaemonians endea¬ 
 voured to oblige the people of Athens to set those prisoners at 
 liberty ; but they refused. 
 
 The Persian heralds that went to Sparta and Athens/ were 
 not so favourably received as those that had been sent to the 
 other cities. One of them was thrown into a well, and the 
 other into a deep ditch, and were bid to take thence earth and 
 water. I should be less surprised at this unworthy treatment, 
 if Athens alone had been concerned in it. It was a pro¬ 
 ceeding suitable enough to a popular government, rash, impe¬ 
 tuous, and violent; where reason is seldom heard, and every 
 x Herod. 1. vi. c. 49—86. y Ibid. 1. vii. c. 133. 138. 
 
268 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 thing determined by passion. But I do not here recognize the 
 Spartan equity and gravity. They were at liberty to refuse 
 what was demanded; but to treat public officers in such a 
 manner, was an open violation of the law of nations. If what 
 historians say on this head be true, 2 the crime did not remain 
 unpunished. Talthybius, one of Agamemnon’s heralds, was 
 honoured at Sparta as a god, and had a temple there. He 
 revenged the indignities done to the heralds of the king of 
 Persia, and made the Spartans feel the effects of his wrath, by 
 bringing many terrible accidents upon them. In order to 
 appease him, and to expiate their offence, they sent afterwards 
 several of their chief citizens into Persia, who voluntarily offered 
 themselves as victims for their country. They were delivered 
 into the hands of Xerxes, who would not let them suffer, but 
 sent them back to their own country. As for the Athenians, 
 Talthybius executed his vengeance on the family of Miltiades, 
 who was principally concerned in the outrage committed upon 
 Darius’s heralds. 
 
 III. The Persians defeated at Marathon by Miltiades. 
 
 The melancholy end of that general. 
 
 Darius immediately sent away Datis and Ar- 
 
 » "Tl S O f? 1 A %J 
 
 Ant j c 490 taphernes, whom lie had appointed generals in 
 the room of Mardonius. Their instructions were 
 to give up Eretria and Athens to be plundered, to burn all the 
 houses and temples therein, to make all the inhabitants of both 
 places prisoners, and to send them to Darius; for which pur¬ 
 pose they went provided with a great number of chains and 
 fetters. They set sail with a fleet of 5 or 600 ships, 1 and an 
 army of 500,000 men. After having made themselves masters 
 of the isles in the AEgean sea, which they did without difficulty, 
 they turned their course towards Eretria, a city of Euboea, 
 which they took after a siege of seven days by the treachery of 
 some of the principal inhabitants: they reduced it entirely to 
 ashes, put all the inhabitants in chains, and sent them to Persia. 
 Darius, b contrary to their expectation, treated them kindly, 
 and gave them a village in the country of Cissia for their 
 habitation, which was but a day’s journey from Susa, where 
 Apollonius Tyanasus found some of their descendants 600 
 years afterwards. 0 
 
 After this success at Eretria, d the Persians advanced towards 
 Attica. Hippias conducted them to Marathon, a little town by 
 
 z Ibid. 1. vii. c. 135, 136. Paus. in Lacon. p. 182, 183. 
 a Plut. in Moral, p. 829. b Herod. 1. vi. c. 119. 
 
 c Philostr. 1. i. c. 17- 
 
 d Herod. 1. vi. c. 102—120. Cor. Nep. in Milt. c. iv.—vi. Justin. 1. ii. c. 3. 
 Plut. in Aristid. p. 321. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 269 
 
 the sea-side. They took care to acquaint the Athenians with 
 the fate of Eretria ; and to let them know, that not an inhabit¬ 
 ant of that place had escaped their vengeance, in hopes that 
 this news would induce them to surrender immediately. The 
 Athenians had sent to Lacedaemon, to desire succours against 
 the common enemy, which the Spartans granted them instantly, 
 and without deliberation ; but which could not set out till some 
 days after, on account of an ancient custom and a superstitious 
 maxim amongst them, that did not admit them to begin a march 
 before the full of the moon. Not one of their other allies pre¬ 
 pared to succour them, so great terror had the formidable army 
 of the Persians spread on every side. The inhabitants of Pla- 
 taeae alone furnished them with 1000 soldiers. In this extremity 
 the Athenians were obliged to arm their slaves, which had never 
 been done there before this occasion. . 
 
 The Persian army commanded by Datis consisted of 100,000 
 foot and 10,000 horse : that of the Athenians amounted in all 
 but to 10,000 men. It was headed by ten generals, of whom 
 Miltiad es was the chief; and these ten were to have the com¬ 
 mand of the whole army, each for a day, one after another. 
 There was a great dispute among these generals whether they 
 should hazard a battle, or expect the enemy within their walls. 
 The latter opinion had a great majority, and appeared very 
 reasonable. For, what appearance of success could there be 
 in facing with a handful of soldiers so numerous and formidable 
 an army as that of the Persians ? Miltiades, however, declared 
 for the contrary opinion, and showed that the only means to 
 exalt the courage of their own troops, and to strike a terror 
 into those of the enemy, was to advance boldly towards them 
 with an air of confidence and intrepidity. Aristides strenuous¬ 
 ly defended this opinion, and brought some of the other com¬ 
 manders into it ; so when the suffrages came to be taken, they 
 were equal on both sides of the question. Hereupon Miltiades 
 addressed himself to Callimachus, who was then Polemarch, e 
 and had a right of voting as well as the ten commanders. He 
 very warmly represented to him, that the fate of their country 
 was then in his hands ; and that his single vote was to determine 
 whether Athens should preserve her liberty, or be enslaved ; 
 and that he had it in his power by one word to become as fa¬ 
 mous as Harmodius and Aristogiton, the authors of that liberty 
 which the Athenians enjoyed. Callimachus pronounced that 
 word in favour of Miltiades’s opinion ; and accordingly a battle 
 was resolved upon. 
 
 Aristides, reflecting that a command which changes every 
 
 e The polemarch at Athens was both an officer and a considerable magis¬ 
 trate, equally employed to command 'in the army and to administer justice. 
 I shall give a larger account of this officer in another place. 
 
270 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 day must necessarily be feeble, unequal, not of a piece, often 
 contrary to itself, and incapable either of projecting or exe¬ 
 cuting any uniform design, was of opinion, that their danger 
 was both too great and too pressing for them to expose their 
 affairs to such inconveniences. In order to prevent them, he 
 judged it necessary to vest the whole power in one single per¬ 
 son ; and to induce his colleagues to act conformably, he him¬ 
 self set the first example of resignation. When the day come 
 on which it was his turn to take upon him the command, he re¬ 
 signed it to Miltiades, as the more able and experienced gene¬ 
 ral. The other commanders did the same, all sentiments of 
 jealousy giving way to the love of the public good ; and by this 
 day’s behaviour we may learn that it is almost as glorious to ac¬ 
 knowledge merit in other persons, as to have it in one’s self. 
 Miltiades, however, thought fit to wait till his own day came. 
 Then, like an able captain, he endeavoured by the advantage 
 of the ground to gain what he wanted in strength and number. 
 He drew up his army at the foot of a mountain, that the enemy 
 should not be able either to surround him, or charge him in the 
 rear. On the two sides of the army he caused large trees to be 
 thrown, which were cut down on purpose, in order to cover his 
 flanks, and render the Persian cavalrv useless. Datis, their 
 commander, was very sensible that the place was not advanta¬ 
 geous for him ; but, relying upon the number of his troops, 
 which was infinitely superior to that of the Athenians, and, be¬ 
 sides, not being willing to stay till the reinforcement of the 
 Spartans arrived, he determined to engage. The Athenians 
 did not wait for the enemy’s charging them. As soon as the 
 signal of battle was given, they ran against the enemy with all 
 the fury imaginable. The Persians looked upon the first step 
 of the Athenians as a piece of madness, considering their army 
 was so small, and utterly destitute both of cavalry and archers; 
 but they were quickly undeceived. Herodotus observes, that 
 this was the first time the Grecians began an engagement by 
 running in this manner; which may seem somewhat astonish¬ 
 ing. And, indeed, was there not reason to apprehend that 
 their running would in some measure weaken the troops, and 
 blunt the edge of their first impetuosity ? and that the soldiers, 
 having quitted their ranks, might be out of breath, exhausted, 
 and in disorder, when they came up to the enemy, who, wait¬ 
 ing to receive them in good order, and without stirring, ought, 
 one would think, to be in a condition to sustain their charge ad¬ 
 vantageously ? This consideration engaged Pompey/ at the 
 battle of Pharsalia, to keep his troops steady, and to forbid them 
 making any movement till the enemy made the first attack ; but 
 
 f Coes. in, Bell. Civil. 1. iii. 
 
 s Plut. in romp. p. 65C. in Coes. p. 719* 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 271 
 
 Caesar 11 blames Pompey’s conduct in this respect, and gives this 
 reason for it: that the impetuosity of an army’s motion in run¬ 
 ning to engage, inspires the soldiers with a certain enthusiasm 
 and martial fury, gives an additional force to their blows, and 
 increases and inflames their courage, which, by the rapid move¬ 
 ment of so many thousand men together, is blown up and 
 kindled, if I may use that expression, like (lames by the wind. 
 I leave it to military men to decide the point between those two 
 great captains, and return to my subject. 
 
 The battle was very fierce and obstinate. Miltiades had 
 made the wings of his army exceeding strong, but had left the 
 main body more weak, and not so deep ; the reason of which 
 seems manifest enough. Having but 10,000 men to oppose 
 to such a multitude of the enemy, it was impossible for him 
 either to make an extensive front, or to give an equal depth to 
 his battalions. He was obliged therefore to take his choice ; 
 and he imagined that he could gain the victory no otherwise 
 than by the efforts he should make with his two wings, to break 
 and disperse those of the Persians ; not doubting but, when his 
 wings were once victorious, they would be able to attack the 
 enemy’s main body in flank, and complete the victory without 
 much difficulty. This was the same plan as Hannibal followed 
 afterwards at the battle of Cannae, which succeeded so well with 
 him, and which indeed can scarce ever fail of succeeding. The 
 Persians then attacked the main body of the Grecian army, and 
 made their greatest effort particularly upon their front. This 
 was led by Aristides and Themistocles, who supported the at¬ 
 tack a long time with an intrepid courage and bravery, but 
 were at length obliged to give ground. At that very instant 
 came up their two victorious wings, which had defeated those of 
 the enemy, and put them to flight. Nothing could be more sea¬ 
 sonable for the main body of the Grecian army, which began to 
 be broken, being quite borne down by the number of the Persians. 
 The scale was quickly turned, and the Barbarians were entirely 
 routed. They all betook themselves to flight, not towards the 
 camp, but to their ships, that they might make their escape. 
 The Athenians pursued them thither, and set many of their ves¬ 
 sels on fire. It was on this occasion that Cymegirus, the brother 
 of the poet yEschylus, who had laid hold of one of the ships, 
 in order to get into it with those that fled, had his right hand 
 
 j 
 
 h Quod nobis quidem nulla ratione factum a Pompeio videtur: propterea 
 quod est qusedam incitatio atque alacritas naturaliter innata omnibus, quae 
 studio pugnse incenditur. Hanc non reprimere, sed augere imperatores de¬ 
 bent. Cues. 
 
 Kaicrap irepi tovto biapiapralv cprjcri rbv Tlo/jnT7']iov, dyvorjaavra, rr/v /isra Spo- 
 fiov Kai (poflepav iv apxy yivopevrjv avppa^iv, tvrs tcuq 7 r\r]yalg (3iav 7rpo0Ti- 
 0t](Ti) mi avvtKKa'iti roi> Svpov £k 7 rcivriov dvappnnZbptvov. Pint, in Ckcs. 
 
272 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 cut off,' and fell into the sea and was drowned. The Athenians 
 took seven ships. They had not above 200 men killed on their 
 side in this engagement; whereas on the side of the Persians 
 about 0000 were slain, without reckoning those who fell into the 
 sea as they endeavoured to escape, or those that were consumed 
 with the ships set on fire. 
 
 Hippias was killed in the battle. That ungrateful and per¬ 
 fidious citizen, in order to recover the unjust dominion usurped 
 by his father Pisistratus over the Athenians, had the baseness 
 to become a servile courtier to a barbarian prince, and to im¬ 
 plore his aid against his native country. Urged on by hatred 
 and revenge, he suggested all the means he could invent to load 
 his country with chains ; and even put himself at the head of 
 its enemies, to reduce that city to ashes to which he owed his 
 birth, and against which he had no other ground of complaint, 
 than that she would not acknowledge him for her tyrant. An 
 ignominious death, together with everlasting infamy entailed 
 upon his name, was the just reward of so black a treachery. 
 
 Immediately after the battle, k an Athenian soldier, still reeking 
 with the blood of the enemy, quitted the army, and ran to 
 Athens to carry his fellow-citizens the happy news of the vic¬ 
 tory. When he arrived at the magistrates’ house, he only ut¬ 
 tered two words, Rejoice, the victory is ours, ] and fell down dead 
 at their feet. 
 
 The Persians had thought themselves so sure of victory, m 
 that they had brought marble to Marathon, in order to erect a 
 trophy there. The Grecians took this marble, and Caused a 
 statue to be made of it by Phidias in honour of the goddess 
 Nemesis, n who had a temple near the place where the battle 
 was fought. 
 
 The Persian fleet, instead of sailing by the islands, in order 
 to re-enter Asia, doubled the cape of Sunium, with the design 
 of surprising Athens before the Athenian forces should arrive 
 there to defend the city. But the latter had the precaution to 
 march thither with nine tribes to secure their country, and per¬ 
 formed their march with so much expedition, that they arrived 
 there the same day. The distance from Marathon to Athens is 
 about forty miles, or fifteen French leagues. This was a great 
 exertion for an army that had just undergone a long and severe 
 battle. By this means the designs of the Persians miscarried. 
 
 ‘ Justin adds, that Cynsegirus, having first had his right and then his left 
 hand cut off with an axe, laid hold of the vessel with his teeth, and would not 
 let go, so violent was his rage against the enemy. This account is utterly 
 fabulous, and has not the least appearance of truth. 
 
 k Plut. de glor. Athen. p. 347- 
 
 1 Xcripere, Xaipop,Ev. I could not render the liveliness of the Greek expres¬ 
 sion in our language. m Paus. 1. i. p. 62. 
 
 n This was the goddess whose business it was to punish injustice and op¬ 
 pression. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 273 
 
 Aristides, the only general that staid at Marathon with his 
 tribe, to take care of the spoil and prisoners, acted suitably 
 to the good opinion that was entertained of him. For, though 
 gold and silver were scattered about in abundance in the 
 enemy’s camp, and though all the tents as well as galleys that 
 were taken, were full of rich clothes and costly furniture, and 
 treasure of all kinds, to an immense value, he not only was not 
 tempted to touch any of it himself, but hindered every body 
 else from touching it. 
 
 „ As soon as the day of the full moon was over, the Lacedae¬ 
 monians began their march with 2000 men ; and having travel¬ 
 led with all imaginable expedition, arrived in Attica alter three 
 days’ forced march ; the distance from Sparta to Attica being- 
 no less than 1200 stadia, or 150 English miles. The battle 
 was fought the day before they arrived :° however, they pro¬ 
 ceeded to Marathon, where they found the fields covered with 
 dead bodies and riches. After having congratulated the Athe¬ 
 nians on the happy success of the battle, they returned to their 
 own country. 
 
 They were hindered by a foolish and ridiculous superstition 
 from having a share in the most glorious action recorded in 
 history. For it is almost without example, that such a hand¬ 
 ful of men, as the Athenians were, should not only make head 
 against so numerous an army as that of the Persians, but should 
 entirely rout and defeat them. One is astonished to see so 
 formidable a power attack so small a city and miscarry ; and 
 we are almost tempted to question the truth of an event that 
 appears so improbable, which nevertheless is very certain. 
 This battle alone shows what wonderful things may be per¬ 
 formed by an able general, who knows how to take his advan¬ 
 tages ; by the intrepidity of soldiers that are not afraid of death : 
 by a zeal for one’s country; the love of liberty; a hatred and 
 detestation of slavery and tyranny ; which were sentiments na¬ 
 tural to the Athenians, but undoubtedly very much augmented 
 and inflamed by the very presence of Hippias, whom they 
 dreaded to have again for their master, after all that had passed 
 between them. 
 
 Plato, p in more places than one, makes it his business to 
 extol the battle of Marathon, and is desirous that action should 
 be considered as the source and original cause of all the victo¬ 
 ries that were gained afterwards. It was undoubtedly this 
 victory that deprived the Persian power of that terror which 
 had rendered them so formidable, and had made every tiling- 
 stoop before them : it was this victory that taught the Gre¬ 
 cians to know their own strength, and not to tremble before an 
 
 0 Isocr. in Panegyr. p. 113. 
 
 p In Mencx. p. 239, 240. Et lib. iii. de Leg. p- G98, G99. 
 
 VOL. II. T 
 
274 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 enemy terrible only in name; that made them find by experi¬ 
 ence, that victory does not depend so much upon the number 
 as the courage of troops; that set before their eyes, in a most 
 conspicuous light, the glory there is in sacrificing one’s life in 
 defence of our country, and for the preservation of liberty; and 
 lastly, that inspired them, through the whole course of succeed¬ 
 ing ages, with a noble emulation and warm desire to imitate 
 their ancestors, and not to degenerate from their virtue. For, 
 on all important occasions, it was customary among them to put 
 the people in mind of Miltiades and his invincible troop, that 
 is, of that little army of heroes, whose intrepidity and bravery 
 had done so much honour to Athens. 
 
 Those that were slain in the battle q had all the honour im¬ 
 mediately paid to them that was due to their merit. Illustrious 
 monuments were erected to them all, in the very place where 
 the battle was fought; upon which their own names and that 
 of their tribes were recorded. There were three distinct sets 
 of monuments separately erected, one for the Athenians, ano¬ 
 ther for the Flatmans, and a third for the slaves whom they 
 had admitted among their soldiers on that occasion. Miltiades’s 
 tomb was erected afterwards in the same place. 
 
 The reflection Cornelius ISTepos 1 ' makes upon what the Athe¬ 
 nians did to honour the memory of their general, deserves to 
 be taken notice of. Formerly, says he, speaking of the Ro¬ 
 mans, our ancestors rewarded virtue by marks of distinction, 
 neither pompous nor magnificent, which however was rarely 
 granted, and for that very reason were highly esteemed ; where¬ 
 as now they are so profusely bestowed, that little or no value is 
 set upon them. The same thing happened, adds he, among 
 the Athenians. All the honour that was paid to Miltiades, the 
 deliverer of Athens and of all Greece, was, that in a picture 
 of the battle of Marathon, drawn by order of the Athenians, he 
 was represented at the head of the ten commanders, exhorting 
 the soldiers, and setting them an example of their duty. Rut 
 this same people in later ages, being grown more powerful, 
 and corrupted by the flatteries of their orators, decreed 300 
 statues to Demetrius Phalereus. 
 
 \ Plutarch makes the same reflection, 8 and wisely observes, 
 
 that the honour 1 which is paid to great men ought not to be 
 looked upon as the reward of their illustrious actions, but only 
 as a mark of the esteem in which they are held, the remem¬ 
 brance whereof such monuments are intended to perpetuate. 
 Tt is not then the stateliness or magnificence of public monu- 
 
 Pans, in Attic, p. GO, 61. r Cor. Nep. in Milt. c. vi. 
 
 8 In praec. de rep. ger. p. 820. 
 
 1 Ov yap piaQov tlvai bii rfjg 7 rpa^fiog, d\\a cvpfioKov, tt) v Tifit) v, "n>ct icat 
 Suifikvy tto\vi> ypovov. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 275 
 
 ments which gives them their value, or makes them durable, 
 but the sincere gratitude of those that erect them. The 300 
 statues of Demetrius Phalereus were all thrown down even in 
 his own life-time, but the picture in which Miltiades’s courage 
 was represented was preserved many ages after him. 
 
 This picture was kept at Athens in a gallery adorned and 
 enriched with different paintings, u all excellent in their kind, 
 and done by the greatest masters ; which, for that reason, was 
 called Poecile, from the Greek word 7toikI\7], signifying varied 
 and diversified. The celebrated Polygnytus, a native of the 
 isle of Thasos, and one of the finest painters of his time, painted 
 this picture, or at least the greatest part of it; and, as he valued 
 himself upon his reputation, and was more attached to glory 
 than interest, he did it gratuitously, and would not receive any 
 recoin pence for it. The city of Athens therefore rewarded him 
 with a sort of coin that was more acceptable to his taste, by 
 procuring an order from the Amphyctions which assigned him 
 a public lodging in the city, where he might live during his own 
 pleasure. 
 
 The gratitude of the Athenians towards Miltiades was of no 
 very long duration.* After the battle of Marathon, he had 
 desired and obtained the command of a fleet of seventy ships, 
 in order to punish and subdue the islands that had favoured the 
 Barbarians. Accordingly he reduced several of them ; but 
 having had ill success in the isle of Paros, and, upon a false 
 report of the arrival of the enemy’s fleet, having raised the siege 
 which he had laid to the capital, wherein he had received a 
 very dangerous wound, he returned to Athens with his fleet; 
 and was there impeached by a citizen, called Xanthippus, who 
 accused him of having raised the siege through treachery, and 
 in consideration of a great sum of money given him by the king 
 of Persia. Little probability as there was in this accusation, it 
 nevertheless prevailed over the merit and innocence of Miltiades, 
 He was condemned to lose his life,y and to be thrown into the 
 Barathrum ; a sentence passed only upon the greatest criminals 
 and malefactors. The magistrate opposed the execution of so 
 unjust a condemnation. All the favour shown to this preserver 
 of his country, was to have the sentence of death commuted into 
 a penalty of fifty talents, or 50,000 crowns French money, 
 being the sum to which the expenses of the fleet, that had been 
 equipped upon his solicitation and advice, amounted. Not 
 being rich enough to pay this sum, he was put into prison, 
 where he died of the wound he had received at Paros. Cimon, 
 his son, who was at this time very young, signalized his piety 
 
 u Plin. 1. xxxv. c. 9. 
 
 x Herod. 1. vi. c. 132. 136. Cor. Nep. in Milt. e. vii. viii» 
 y Plat, in Gorg. p. 516. 
 
276 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 on this occasion, as we shall find hereafter, he signalized his cou¬ 
 rage. He purchased the permission of burying his father’s 
 body, by paying the fine of 50,000 crowns, in which he had 
 been condemned ; which sum the young man raised, as well as 
 he could, bv the assistance of his friends and relations. 
 
 Cornelius ISepos observes, that what chiefly induced the 
 Athenians to act in this manner with regard to Miltiades, was 
 his very merit and great reputation, which made the people, 
 who were but lately delivered from the yoke of slavery under 
 Pisistratus, apprehend that Miltiades, who had formerly been 
 tyrant of the Chersonesus, might affect the same at Athens. 
 They therefore chose rather to punish an innocent person, 7 than 
 to be under perpetual apprehensions of him. To this same 
 principle was the institution of the ostracism at Athens owing. 
 I have elsewhere a given an account of the most plausible rea¬ 
 sons upon which the ostracism could be founded : but I do not 
 see how we can fully justify so strange a policy, to which all 
 merit becomes suspected, and virtue itself appears criminal. 
 
 This appears plainly in the banishment of Aristides. b His 
 inviolable attachment to justice obliged him on many occasions 
 to oppose Themistocles, who did not pique himself upon his 
 delicacy in that respect, and who spared no intrigues and cabals 
 to engage the suffrages of the people, for removing a rival who 
 always opposed his ambitious designs. In this instance it was 
 evident, 0 that a person may be superior in merit and virtue, 
 without being so in influence. The impetuous eloquence of 
 Themistocles prevailed over the justice of Aristides, and occa¬ 
 sioned his banishment. In this kind of trial the citizens gave 
 their suffrages by writing the name of the accused person upon 
 a shell, called in Greek oarpcucov , from whence came the term 
 Ostracism. On this occasion a peasant, who could not write, 
 and did not know Aristides, applied to him, and desired him to 
 put the name of Aristides upon his shell. Has he done you any 
 wrong , says Aristides, that you are for condemning him in 
 this manner ? No, replied the other, I do not so much as know 
 him ; hut I cun quite tired and angry with hearing every body 
 call him the Just. Aristides, without saying a word more, 
 calmly took the shell, wrote his name in it, and returned it. He 
 set out for his banishment, imploring the gods that no accident 
 might befall his country, to make it regret him. The great 
 
 z Hsec populus respiciens maluit eum innocentem plecti, quam se diutius 
 esse in timore. a Method of teaching, &c. vol. iii. p. 407- 
 
 b Plut. in Arist. p. 322, 323. 
 
 c In his cognitum est, quanto antistaret eloquentia innocentue- Quan- 
 quani enim adeo excellebat Aristides abstinentia, et unus post hominum 
 memoriam, quod quidem nos audierimus, cognomine Justus sit appellatus ; 
 tamen a Themistocle collabefactus testula ilia exilio decern annorum multatus 
 est. Cor. Nep. in Arist. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 277 
 
 Camillus, c in a like case, did not imitate his generosity, and 
 prayed to a quite different effect, desiring the gods to force his 
 ungrateful country, by some misfortune, to have occasion for his 
 aid, and to recall him as soon as possible. 
 
 O fortunate republic, exclaims Valerius Maximus/ speak¬ 
 ing of Aristides’s banishment, which, after having so basely 
 treated the most virtuous man it ever produced, was yet able to 
 find citizens zealously and faithfully attached to her service ! 
 Felices Athenas , quce post illius exilium invenire ciliquem aut 
 virum bonum , aut amantem sui civem potuerunt; cum quo tunc 
 ipsa sanctitas migravit! 
 
 SECT. VIII. 
 
 Darius resolves to make war in person against Egypt and against Greece; is 
 
 prevented by death. Dispute between two of his sons concerning the suc¬ 
 cession to the crown. Xerxes is chosen king. 
 
 When Darius received the news of the defeat of his army 
 at Marathon/ he was violently enraged ; and that bad success 
 was so far from discouraging or diverting him from carrying on 
 the war against Greece, that it only served to animate him to 
 pursue it with the greater vigour, in order to be revenged at the 
 same time for the burning of Sardis, and for the dishonour in¬ 
 curred at Marathon. Being thus determined to march in person 
 with all his forces, he despatched orders to all his subjects in 
 the several provinces of his empire to arm themselves for this 
 expedition. 
 
 After having- spent three years in making the 
 
 A 1YT O 1 J CD 
 
 Ant J C 487 necessary preparations, he had another war to 
 carry on, occasioned by the revolt of Egypt. It 
 seems from what we read in Diodorus Siculus/ that Darius 
 went thither himself to quell it, and that he succeeded. That 
 historian relates, that upon this prince’s desiring to have his 
 statue placed before Sesostris, the chief priest of the Egyp¬ 
 tians told him he had not yet equalled the glory of that con¬ 
 queror ; and that the king, far from being offended at the Egyp¬ 
 tian priest’s freedom, made answer, that lie would endeavour to 
 surpass it. Diodorus adds farther, that Darius, detesting the im¬ 
 pious cruelty which his predecessor Cambyses had exercised 
 in that country, expressed great reverence for their gods and 
 temples, that lie had several conversations with the Egyptian 
 priests upon matters of religion and government; and that, 
 having learnt of them with what gentleness their ancient kings 
 
 c In exilium abiit, precatus ab diis immortalibus, si innoxio sibi ea injuria 
 fieret, priino quoque tempore desiderium sui civitati ingratse facerent. Liv. 
 1. v. n. 32. d Val. Max. 1. v. c. 3. 
 
 f Lib. i. p. 54. 85. 
 
 e Herod. 1. vii. c. I 
 
278 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 used to treat their subjects, he endeavoured, after his. return 
 into Persia, to form himself upon their model. But Hero¬ 
 dotus,^ more worthy of belief in this particular than Diodorus, 
 only observes, that this prince, resolving at once to chastise 
 his revolted subjects, and to be avenged of his ancient ene¬ 
 mies, determined to make war against both at the same time, 
 and to attack Greece in person with the main body of his 
 army, whilst the rest of.it was employed in the reduction of 
 Egypt. 
 
 According- to the ancient custom among the 
 
 A *1\ T or 1 q O O 
 
 Ant J C 485 P ers i aiis > h their king was not allowed to go to 
 war without having first named the person that 
 should succeed him in the throne ; a custom wisely established 
 to prevent the state’s being exposed to the troubles which gene¬ 
 rally attend the uncertainty of a successor, to the inconve¬ 
 niences of anarchy, and to the cabals of various pretenders. 
 Darius, before he undertook his expedition against Greece, 
 thought himself the more obliged to observe this rule, as he was 
 already advanced in years, and as there was a dispute between 
 two of his sons on the subject of succeeding to the empire, 
 which might occasion a civil war after his death, if he left it un¬ 
 determined. Darius had three sons by his first wife, the 
 daughter of Gobryas, all three born before their father came to 
 the crown ; and four more by Atossa, the daughter of Cyrus, 
 who were all born after their father’s accession to the throne : 
 Artabazanes, called by Justin, Artamenes, was the eldest of the 
 former, and Xerxes of the latter. Artabazanes alleged in his 
 own behalf, that as he was the eldest of all the brothers, the 
 right of succession, according to the custom and practice of all 
 nations, belonged to him in preference to all the rest. Xerxes’s 
 argument was, that as he was the son of Darius by Atossa, the 
 daughter of Cyrus, who founded the Persian empire, it was 
 more just that the crown of Cyrus should devolve upon one of 
 his descendants than upon one that was not. Demaratus, the 
 Spartan king, who had been unjustly deposed by his subjects, 
 and was at that time in exile at the court of Persia, secretly 
 suggested to Xerxes another argument to support his preten¬ 
 sions : that Artabazanes was indeed the eldest son of Darius, 
 but he, Xerxes, was the eldest son of the king ; and therefore, 
 Artabazanes being born when his father was but a private per¬ 
 son, all he could pretend to, on account of his seniority, was 
 only to inherit his private estate ; but that he, Xerxes, being 
 the first-born son of the king, had the best right to succeed to 
 the crown. He farther supported this argument by the exam¬ 
 ple of the Lacedaemonians, who admitted none to inherit the 
 kingdom but those children that were born after their father’s 
 s Liv. vi. c. 2. h Herod. 1. vi. c. 2, 8. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 279 
 
 accession. The right of succession was accordingly determined 
 in favour of Xerxes. 
 
 Justin' and Plutarch place this dispute after Darius’s decease. 
 They both take notice of the prudent conduct of these two bro¬ 
 thers in a point of so much delicacy. According to their 
 manner of relating this fact, Artabazanes was absent when the 
 king died ; and Xerxes immediately assumed all the marks, 
 and exercised all the functions, of the sovereignty. But upon 
 his brother’s return, he quitted the diadem and the tiara, which 
 he wore in such a manner as only suited the king, went out 
 to meet him, and showed him all imaginable respect. They 
 agreed to make their uncle Artabanes the arbitrator of their 
 difference, and without any farther appeal, to acquiesce in his 
 decision. 11 All the while this dispute lasted, the two brothers 
 showed one another all the demonstrations of a truly fraternal 
 friendship, by keeping up a continual intercourse of presents 
 and entertainment, from whence their mutual esteem and con¬ 
 fidence for each other banished all fears and suspicions on both 
 sides; and introduced an unconstrained cheerfulness and a 
 perfect security. This is a spectacle, says Justin, highly wor¬ 
 thy of our admiration : to see, whilst most brothers are at dag- 
 gers-drawing with one another about a small patrimony, with 
 what moderation and temper both waited for a decision, which 
 was to dispose of the greatest empire then in the universe. 
 When Artabanes gave judgment in favour of Xerxes, Artaba¬ 
 zanes the same instant prostrated himself before him, acknow¬ 
 ledging him for his master, and placed him upon the throne with 
 his own hand ; by which proceeding he showed a greatness of soul 
 truly royal, and infinitely superior to all human dignities. This 
 ready acquiescence in a sentence so contrary to his interests, 
 was not the effect of an artful policy, that knows how to dissem¬ 
 ble upon occasion, and to derive honour to itself from what it 
 could not prevent; no ; it proceeded from a real respect for the 
 laws, a sincere affection for his brother, and an indifference for 
 that which so warmly inflames the ambition of mankind, and 
 so frequently arms the nearest relations against each other. 
 For his part, during his whole life he continued firmly attached 
 to the interests of Xerxes, and prosecuted them with so much 
 ardour and zeal, that he lost his life in his service at the battle 
 of Salamis. 
 
 To whatever time this dispute is to be placed, 1 it is certain 
 
 1 Justin. 1. ii. c. 10. Plut. de frat. amore, p. 488. 
 
 k Adeb fraterna contentio fuit, ut nec victor insultaverit, nec victus dolu- 
 erit: ipsoque litis tempore invicem munera miserint; jucunda quoque inter 
 se non solum, sed credula convivia habuerint; judicium quoque ipsum sine 
 arbitris, sine convitio fuerit. Tanto moderatius turn fratres inter se regna 
 maxima dividebant, quam nunc exigua patrimonia partiuntur. Justin. 
 
 1 Herod. 1. vi. c. 4. 
 
280 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 that Darius could not carry into execution the double expedition 
 he was meditating against Egypt and Greece, and that he was 
 prevented by death from pursuing that project. He had 
 reigned thirty-six years. The epitaph m of this prince, which 
 contains a boast that he could drink much without disordering 
 his reason, proves that the Persians actually thought that cir¬ 
 cumstance for their glory. We shall see in the sequel, that 
 Cyrus the Younger ascribes this quality to himself, as a perfec¬ 
 tion that rendered him more worthy of the throne than his elder 
 brother. Who in these times would think of annexing this 
 merit to the qualifications of a good prince ? 
 
 Darius had many excellent qualities, but they were attended 
 with great failings ; and the kingdom felt the effects both of 
 the one and the other. For such is the condition of princes," 
 that they never act nor live for themselves alone. Whatever 
 they do, either as to good or evil, they do it for their people ; 
 and the interests of the one and the other are inseparable. 
 Darius had a great fund of gentleness, equity, clemency, and 
 kindness for his people : he loved justice, and respected the 
 laws : he esteemed merit, and was careful to reward it: he was 
 not jealous of his rank or authority, so as to exact a forced 
 homage, or to render himself inaccessible; and notwithstanding 
 his own great experience and abilities in public affairs, he 
 would hearken to the advice of others, and reap the benefit of 
 their counsels. It is of him the Holy Scripture 0 speaks, where 
 it says, that he did nothing without consulting the wise men of 
 his court. He was not afraid of exposing his person in battle, 
 and was always cool even in the heat of action : he said of him¬ 
 self ,p that the most imminent and urgent danger served only to 
 increase his courage and his prudence. In a word, there have 
 been few princes more expert than he in the art of governing, 
 or more experienced in the business of war.. Nor was the glory 
 of being a conqueror, if indeed it be glory, wanting to his cha¬ 
 racter. For he not only restored and entirely confirmed the 
 empire of Cyrus, which had been very much shaken by the ill 
 conduct of Cambyses and the Magian impostor ; but he like¬ 
 wise added many great and rich provinces to it, and particularly 
 India, Thrace, Macedonia, and the isles contiguous to the 
 coasts of Ionia. 
 
 But sometimes these good qualities of his gave way to fail¬ 
 ings of a quite opposite nature. Do we see any thing like 
 Darius’s usual gentleness and good-nature in his treatment of 
 that unfortunate father, who desired the favour of him to leave 
 
 m ’ Edvim/xtiv Kai olvov tc'ivhv ttoXvv, Kai tovtov 0spf iv kuXCjq. Athen. 1. x. 
 p. 434. 
 
 n Ita nati estis, lit bona malaque vestra ad remp. pertineant. Tacit. 1. iv. c. 8* 
 ° Esth. i. 13. p Plut. in Apoph. p. 172. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 281 
 
 him one of his three sons at home, while the other two followed 
 the king in his expedition ? AYas there ever an occasion where¬ 
 in he had more need of counsel, than when he formed the design 
 of making war upon the Scythians ? And could any one give 
 more prudent advice than what his brother gave him upon that 
 occasion? But he would not follow it. D oes there appear in 
 that whole expedition any mark of wisdom or prudence ? What 
 do we see in all that affair, but a prince intoxicated with his 
 greatness, who fancied there is nothing in the world that can 
 resist him ; and whose weak ambition to signalize himself by 
 an extraordinary conquest, had stifled all the good sense, judg¬ 
 ment, and even military knowledge, he formerly displayed ? 
 
 AYhat constitutes the solid glory of Darius’s reign is, his 
 being chosen by God himself, as Cyrus had been before, to be 
 the instrument of his mercies towards his people, the declared 
 protector of the Israelites, and the restorer of the temple at 
 Jerusalem. The reader may see this part of history in the book 
 of Ezra, and in the writings of the prophets Haggai and 
 Zechariah. 
 
 ! 
 
 
BOOK VI. 
 
 THE 
 
 HISTORY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF XERXES, CONNECTED WITH THAT 
 
 OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 Xerxes’s reign lasted but twelve years, but it abounds with 
 great events. 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 Xerxes, after having reduced Egypt, makes preparations for carrying the war 
 into Greece. He holds a council. The prudent speech of Artabanes. War 
 is resolved upon. 
 
 Xerxes having ascended the throne, a em- 
 
 Ant. J.'c?485. P lo y ed the first year of his reign in carrying 
 on the preparations begun by his father, for the 
 reduction of Egypt. He also confirmed to the Jews at Jeru¬ 
 salem all the privileges granted them by his father, and parti¬ 
 cularly that which assigned to them the tribute ot Samaria, for 
 the supplying them with victims for the service of the temple 
 of God. 
 
 In the second year of his reign b he marched 
 
 A "1\/T O (T O/A 
 
 t against the Egyptians, and having defeated and 
 
 subdued those rebels, he made the yoke ot their 
 subjection more heavy; then giving the government of that 
 province to his brother Achaemenes, lie returned about the 
 latter end of the year to Susa. 
 
 a Herod. 1. vii. c. 5. Joseph. An tup 1. xi. c. 5, b Herod. 1. vii. c. 7- 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 283 
 
 Herodotus, 0 the famous historian, was born this same year 
 at Halicarnassus in Caria. For he was fifty-three years old 
 when the Peloponnesian war was first began. 
 
 Xerxes, d puffed up with his success against 
 
 A *j\ t o r cy | i i O 
 
 Ant JC 483 ^ ie Egyptians, determined to make war against 
 the Grecians. (He did not intend, 0 he said, to 
 have the figs of Attica, which were very excellent, brought for 
 him any longer, because he would eat no more of them till he 
 was master of the country.) But before he engaged in an en¬ 
 terprise of that importance, he thought proper to assemble his 
 council, and take the advice of all the greatest and most illus¬ 
 trious persons of his court. He laid before them the design 
 he had of making war against Greece, and acquainted them with 
 his motives ; which were, the desire of imitating the example 
 of his predecessors, who had all of them distinguished their 
 names and reigns by noble enterprises; the obligation he 
 was under to revenge the insolence of the Athenians, who 
 had presumed to fall upon Sardis, and reduce it to ashes ; the 
 necessity he was under to avenge the disgrace his country 
 had received at the battle of Marathon; and the prospect 
 of the great advantages that might be reaped from this war, 
 which would be attended with the conquest of Europe, the 
 most rich and fertile country in the universe. He added 
 farther, that this war had been resolved on by his father Darius, 
 and consequently that he only followed and executed his in¬ 
 tentions ; he concluded with promising ample rewards to 
 those who should distinguish themselves by their valour in the 
 expedition. 
 
 Mardonius, the same person that had been so unsuccessful in 
 Darius’s reign, grown neither wiser nor less ambitious by his 
 ill success, and extremely anxious to obtain the command of 
 the army, was the first who gave his opinion. He began by 
 extolling Xerxes above all the kings that had gone before or 
 should succeed him. He endeavoured to show the indispen¬ 
 sable necessity of avenging the dishonour done to the Persian 
 name : he disparaged the Grecians, and represented them as a 
 cowardly, timorous people, without courage, without forces, or 
 experience in war. For a proof of what he said, he mentioned 
 his own conquest of Macedonia, which he exaggerated in a 
 very vain and ostentatious manner, as if that people had sub¬ 
 mitted to him without any resistance. He presumed even to 
 affirm, that not any of the Grecian nations would venture to 
 come out against Xerxes, who would march with all the forces 
 of Asia; and that if they had the temerity to present themselves 
 before him, they would learn to their cost, that the Persians 
 were the bravest and most warlike nation in the world. 
 c Aul.«Gel. 1. xv. c. 23. d Herod. 1. vii. c. 8—18. e Plut. in Apoph. p. 173 . 
 
284 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 The rest of the council, perceiving that this flattering dis¬ 
 course was extremely agreeable to the king, were afraid to 
 contradict it, and all kept silence. This was almost an una¬ 
 voidable consecpience of Xerxes’s manner of proceeding. A 
 wise prince, when he proposes an affair in council, and really 
 desires that every one should speak his true sentiments, is ex¬ 
 tremely careful to conceal his own opinion, that he may put no 
 constraint upon that of others, but leave them entirely at liber¬ 
 ty. Xerxes, on the contrary, had openly discovered bis own 
 inclination, or rather resolution, to undertake the war. When 
 a prince acts in this manner, he will always find artful flatterers, 
 who, being eager to insinuate themselves into favour and to 
 please, and ever ready to comply with his inclinations, will not 
 fail to second his opinion with specious and plausible reasons ; 
 whilst those that would be capable of giving good council are 
 restrained by fear ; there being very few courtiers who love their 
 prince well enough, and have sufficient courage to venture to dis¬ 
 please him by disputing what they know to be his taste or opinion. 
 
 The excessive praises given by Mardonius to Xerxes, which 
 is the usual language of flatterers, ought to have made the king 
 mistrust him, and apprehend, that under an appearance of zeal 
 for his glory, that nobleman endeavoured to cloak his own am¬ 
 bition, and the violent desire he had to command the army. 
 But these sweet and flattering words, which glide like a serpent 
 under flowers, are so far from displeasing princes, that they 
 captivate and charm them. They do not consider that men 
 flatter and praise them, because they believe them weak and 
 vain enough to suffer themselves to be deceived by commenda¬ 
 tions that bear no proportion to their merit and actions. 
 
 This behaviour of the king made the whole council mute. 
 In this great silence, Artabanes, the king’s uncle, a prince very 
 venerable for his age and prudence, had the courage to make 
 the following speech : Permit me, great prince, says he, ad¬ 
 dressing himself to Xerxes, to deliver my sentiments to you on 
 this occasion with a libertij suitable to my age and your inter¬ 
 est. When Darius, your father and my brother, first thought 
 of making war against the Scythians, I used all my endeavours 
 to divert him from it. I need not tell you what that enter¬ 
 prise cost, or whcit was the success of it. The people you are 
 going to attack are infinitely more formidable than the Scy¬ 
 thians. The Grecians are esteemed the very best troops in the 
 world, either by land or sea. If the Athenians alone were 
 able to defeat the numerous army commanded by Daiis and 
 Artaphernes, what ought we to expect from all the states of 
 Gt 'eece uiutecl together? You design to pass from Asia into 
 Europe by laying a bridge over the sea. And what will be¬ 
 come of us, if the Athenians, proving victorious, should 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 285 
 
 advance to this bridge with their fleet, and break it down ? I 
 still tremble when l consider, that in the Scythian expedition, the 
 life of the king your father, and the safety of all his army, were 
 reduced to depend upon the fidelity of one single man ; and that 
 if Hystceus the Milesian had, in compliance with the urgent 
 suggestions made to him, consented to break down the bridge which 
 had been laid over the Danube, the Persian empire had been 
 entirely ruined. Do not expose yourself, sir, to the like dan¬ 
 ger, especially since you are not obliged to do it. Take time 
 at least to reflect upon it. When we have maturely deliber¬ 
 ated upon an affair, whatever happens to be the success of it, 
 we have no blame to impute to ourselves. Precipitation , be¬ 
 sides its being imprudent, is almost always unfortunate, and 
 attended with fatal consequences. Above all, do not suffer 
 yourself, great prince, to be dazzled with the vain splendour of 
 imaginary glory, or with the pompous appearance of your 
 troops. The highest and most lofty trees have the most reason 
 to dread the thunder. As God alone is truly great, he is an 
 enemy to pride , f and takes pleasure in humbling every thing 
 that ex alt eth itself; and very often the most numerous armies 
 fly before a handful of men, because he inspires the one with 
 courage, ancl scatters terror among the others. 
 
 Artabanes, after having spoke thus to the king, turned him¬ 
 self towards Mardonius, and reproached him with his want of 
 sincerity or judgment, in giving the king a notion of the Gre¬ 
 cians so directly contrary to truth ; and showed how extremely 
 he was to blame for desiring rashly to engage the nation in a 
 war, which nothing but his own views of interest and ambition 
 could tempt him to advise. If war be resolved upon, added he, 
 let the king, whose life is dear to us all, remain in Persia ; and 
 do you, since you so ardently desire it, march at the head of 
 the ?nost numerous army that can be assembled. In the mean 
 time, let your children and mine be given up as a pledge, to 
 answer for the success of the war. If the issue of it be fa¬ 
 vourable, I consent that mine be put to death:* but if it prove 
 otherwise, as 1 well foresee it will, then I desire that your 
 children, and you yourself, on your return, may be treated in 
 such a manner as you deserve, for the rash counsel you have 
 given your master. 
 
 Xerxes, who was not accustomed to have his sentiments 
 contradicted in this manner, fell into a rage. Thank the gods, 
 says he to Artabanes, that you are my father s brother; were 
 it not for that, you should this moment suffer the just reward 
 of your audacious behaviour. But I ivill punish you for it in 
 
 f <J>iXea 6 9tog ra vizipk-^ovra jrdvra ko\ovhv — ov yap tq (])poveeiv a\\ov .piya 
 o S't og, r] kuiVTOv. 
 
 s Why should the children be punished for their'father’s faults ? 
 
286 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 another manner , by leaving you here among the women, whom 
 you too much resemble in your , cowardice and fear, whilst I 
 march at the head of my troops, where my duty and glory 
 call me. 
 
 Artabanes had expressed his sentiments in very respectful 
 and moderate terms : Xerxes nevertheless was extremely of¬ 
 fended. It is the misfortune of princes , 11 spoiled by flattery, 
 to look upon every thing' as dry and austere, that is sincere jmd 
 ingenuous, and to regard all counsel delivered with a generous 
 and disinterested freedom, as a seditious presumption. They 
 do not consider that even a good man never dares to tell them 
 all he thinks, nor discover the whole truth, especially in things 
 that may be disagreeable to them; and that what they stand 
 most in need of, is a sincere and faithful friend, that will con¬ 
 ceal nothing from them. A prince ought to think himself very 
 happy, if in his whole reign he finds but one man born with that 
 degree of generosity, who certainly ought to be considered as 
 the most valuable treasure of the state, as he is, if the expres¬ 
 sion may be admitted, both the most necessary, and at the same 
 time the most rare, instrument of government . 1 
 
 Xerxes himself acknowledged this upon the occasion we 
 are speaking of. When the first emotions of his anger were 
 over, and he had had time to reflect on his pillow upon the dif¬ 
 ferent counsels that had been given him, he confessed he had 
 been to blame to give his uncle such harsh language, and was 
 not ashamed to confess his fault the next day in open council; 
 ingenuously owning, that the heat of youth, and his w 7 ant of 
 experience, had made him negligent in paying the regard due 
 to a prince so worthy of respect as Artabanes, both for his age 
 and wisdom; and declaring, at the same time, that he w r as 
 come over to his opinion, notwithstanding a dream he had had 
 in the night, wherein a phantom had appeared to him, and 
 warmly exhorted him to undertake that war. All who com¬ 
 posed the council were delighted to hear the king speak in this 
 manner; and to testify their joy, they fell prostrate before him, 
 striving who should most extol the glory of such a proceeding; 
 nor could their praises on such an occasion be at all suspected. 
 For it is no hard matter to discern, k whether the praises given 
 to princes proceed from the heart, and are founded upon truth, 
 or whether they drop from the lips only as an effect of mere 
 flattery and deceit. That sincere and humiliating acknowledg¬ 
 ment made by the king, far from appearing as a weakness in 
 
 h Ita formatis principum auribus, ut aspera quae utilia, nec quicquam nisi 
 jucundum et lsetum accipiant. Tacit. Hist. 1. iii. c. 5G\ 
 
 1 Nullum majus boni imperii instrumentum quam bonus amicus. Tacit. 
 Hist. 1. iv. c. 7* 
 
 k Nec occultum est quando ex veritate, quando adumbrata laetitia, facta 
 imperatorum celebrantur. Tacit. Annal. 1. iv. c. 31. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 287 
 
 him, was looked upon by them as the effort of a great soul, 
 which rises above its faults, in bravely confessing them, by way 
 of reparation and atonement. They admired the nobleness of 
 this procedure the more, as they knew that princes educated 
 like Xerxes, in a vain haughtiness and false glory, are never 
 disposed to own themselves in the wrong, and generally make 
 use of their authority to justify, with pride and obstinacy, what¬ 
 ever faults they have committed through ignorance or impru¬ 
 dence. We may venture, I think, to say, that it is more glo¬ 
 rious to rise in this manner, than it would be never to have fallen. 
 Certainly there is nothing greater, and at the same time more 
 rare and uncommon, than to see a mighty and powerful prince, 
 and that in the time of his greatest prosperity, acknowledge 
 his faults, when he happens to commit any, without seeking 
 pretexts or excuses to cover them; pay homage to truth, even 
 when it is against him and condemns him; and leave other 
 princes, who have a false delicacy concerning their grandeur, 
 the shame of always abounding with errors and defects, and of 
 never owning that they have any. 
 
 The night following', the same phantom, if we may believe 
 Herodotus, appeared again to the king, and repeated the same 
 solicitations, with new menaces and threatenings. Xerxes 
 communicated what passed to his uncle ; and, in order to find 
 out whether this vision proceeded from the gods or not, entreat¬ 
 ed him earnestly to put on the royal robes, to ascend the throne, 
 and afterwards to take his place in his bed for the night. Ar- 
 tabanes hereupon discoursed very sensibly and rationally with 
 the king upon the vanity of dreams ; and then coming to what 
 personally regarded him, I look upon it, 1 says he, almost 
 equally commendable to think well ones self, and to hearken 
 with docility to the yood counsels of others. You have both 
 these qualities, yreat prince ; and if you followed the natural 
 bent of your own temper, it would lead you solely to sentiments 
 of wisdom and moderation. You never take any violent mea¬ 
 sures or resolutions, but ivhen the arts of evil counsellors urge 
 you into them, or the poison of flat tery misleads you ; in the 
 same manner as the ocean, of itself calm and serene, is never 
 disturbed but by the extraneous impulse of other bodies. What 
 afflicted me in the answer you made me the other day, ivhen J 
 delivered my sentiments freely in council, was not the personal 
 affront, to me, but the injury you did yourself, by makiny so 
 wrong a choice between the different counsels that were offered; 
 rejecting that which led you to sentiments of moderation and 
 
 1 This thought is in Hesiod. Opera et dies , v. 293. Cic. pro Cluent. n. 84. 
 et Tit. Liv. 1. xxii. n. 19. Scepe ego audivi , milites , eum primum esse viram , 
 qui ipse consulat quid in rem sit; secundum eum , qui bene monenti obediat: qui 
 nee ipse considere , nee alteri parere sciat , eum extremi ingenii esse. 
 
2SS 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 equity; and embracing the other, which, on the contrary, 
 tended only to nourish pride, and to inflame ambition. 
 
 Artabanes, through complaisance, passed the night in the 
 king’s bed, and had the same vision which Xerxes had before; 
 that is, in his sleep he saw a man, who severely reproached 
 him, and threatened him with the greatest misfortunes, if he 
 continued to oppose the king’s intentions. This so much af¬ 
 fected him, that became over to the king’s first opinion, believ¬ 
 ing that there was something divine in these repeated visions ; 
 and the war against the Grecians w r as resolved upon. These 
 circumstances I relate as I find them in Herodotus. 
 
 Xerxes in the sequel did but ill support this character of 
 moderation. We shall find in him only transient rays of wisdom 
 and reason, which shine forth but for a moment, and then give 
 way to the most culpable and extravagant excesses. We may 
 judge, however, even from thence, that he had very good natu¬ 
 ral parts and inclinations. But the most excellent qualities 
 are soon spoiled and corrupted by the poison of flattery, and 
 the possession of absolute and unlimited pow er : Vi domina¬ 
 tion^ convulsus. m 
 
 It is a fine sentiment in a minister of state, to be less affect¬ 
 ed with an affront to himself, than with the wrong done his 
 master by giving him evil and pernicious counsel. 
 
 Mardonius’s counsel was pernicious ; because, as Artabanes 
 observes, it tended only to nourish and increase that spirit of 
 haughtiness and violence in the prince, which was but too pre¬ 
 valent in him already, v(3piv av%ovar)<s\ and" because it dis¬ 
 posed and accustomed his mind still to carry his views and 
 desires beyond his present fortune, still to be aiming at some¬ 
 thing farther, and to set no bounds to his ambition. This" is 
 the predominant passion of those men whom we usually call 
 conquerors, and whom, according to the language of the holy 
 Scripture, we might call with great propriety robbers of nations, p 
 If you consider and examine the whole succession of Persian 
 kings, says Seneca, will you find any one of them that ever 
 stopped his career of his own accord ; that was ever satisfied with 
 his past conquests; or that was not forming some new project 
 or enterprise, when death surprised him? Nor ought we to be 
 astonished at such a disposition, adds the same author ; for 
 ambition is a gulf and a bottomless abyss, wherein every thing 
 
 m U’omf 
 
 ° Nec hoc Alexandri tantum vitiura fuit, quem per Liberi Herculisque 
 vestigia felix temeritas egit; seel omnium, quos fortuna irritavit implendo. 
 Totum regni Persici stemma pereense: quem invenies, cui modum imperii 
 satietas fecerit ? qui non vitam in aliqua ulteriiis procedendi cogitatione 
 finierit? Nec id mirum est. Quicquid cupiditati contigit, penitus hauritur 
 et conditur: nec interest quantum eo, quod inexplebile est, congeras. Senec. 
 
 1. vii. de benef. c. 3. 
 
 p Jer. iv. 7- 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 289 
 
 is lost that is thrown in, and where, though you were to heap 
 province upon province, and kingdom upon kingdom, you 
 would never be able to fill up the mighty void. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 Xerxes begins his march, and passes from Asia into Europe, by crossing 
 the Straits of the Hellespont upon a bridge of boats. 
 
 The war being resolved upon, Xerxes, that 
 Ant J C 481 om it nothing which could contribute to 
 
 the success of his undertaking, entered into a 
 confederacy with the Carthaginians, who were at that time the 
 most potent people of the West, and made an agreement with 
 them, that whilst the Persian forces should attack Greece, the 
 Carthaginians should fall upon the Grecian colonies that were 
 settled in Sicily and Italy, in order to hinder them from coming 
 to the aid of the other Grecians. The Carthaginians made 
 Amilcar their general, who did not content himself with raising 
 as many troops as he could in Africa, but with the money that 
 Xerxes had sent him, engaged a great number of soldiers out 
 of Spain, Gaul, and Italy, in his service ; so that he collected 
 an army of 300,000 men, and a proportionate number of ships, 
 in order to execute the projects and stipulations of the league. 
 
 Thus Xerxes, agreeably to the prophet Daniel’s q prediction, 
 having through his great power and his great riches stirred up 
 all the nations of the then known world against the realm of 
 Greece , that is to say, of all the west under the command of 
 Amilcar, and of all the east under his own banner, set out from 
 Susa, r in order to enter upon this war, in the fifth year of his 
 reign, which was the tenth after the battle of Marathon, and 
 marched towards Sardis, the place of rendezvous for the whole 
 land army, whilst the fleet advanced along the coasts of Asia 
 Minor towards the Hellespont. 
 
 Xerxes s had given orders to have a passage cut through 
 mount Athos. This is a mountain in Macedonia, a province of 
 Turkey in Europe, which extends a great way into the Archi¬ 
 pelago, in the form of a peninsula. It is joined to the land only 
 by an isthmus of about half a league over. We have already 
 taken notice, that the sea in this place was very tempestuous, 
 and occasioned frequent shipwrecks. Xerxes made this his 
 pretext for the orders he gave for cutting through the mountain : 
 but the true reason was the vanity of signalizing himself by an 
 extraordinary enterprise, and by doing a thing that was ex¬ 
 tremely difficult; as Tacitus says of Nero : Erat incredibilium 
 cupitor. Accordingly Herodotus observes, that this under- 
 
 *1 Dan. xi. 2. “ Herod. I. vii. c. 26. 
 
 VOL. II. U 
 
 5 Ibid. c. 21. 24. 
 
290 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 taking was more vain-glorious than useful, since he might with 
 less trouble and expense have had his vessels carried over the 
 isthmus, as was the practice in those days. The passage he 
 caused to be cut through the mountain was broad enough to let 
 two galleys with three banks of oars each pass through it abreast. 
 Th is prince/ who was extravagant enough to believe, that all 
 nature and the very elements were under his command, in con¬ 
 sequence of that opinion, wrote a letter to mount Athos in the 
 following terms : Athos, thou proud and aspiring mountain, 
 that liftest up thy head unto the heavens, I advise thee not to 
 he so audacious as to put rocks and stones, which cannot he 
 cut, in the way of my workmen. If thou givest them that op¬ 
 position, I will cut thee entirely down, and throw thee headlong 
 into the sea. At the same time u he ordered his labourers to 
 be scourged, in order to make them carry on the work the faster. 
 
 A traveller x who lived in the time of Francis the First, and 
 who wrote a book of Latin concerning the singular and remark¬ 
 able things he had seen in his travels, doubts the truth of this 
 fact; and takes notice, that as he passed near mount Athos, he 
 could perceive no traces of the work we have been speaking of. 
 
 Xerxe's,y as we have already related, advanced towards Sar¬ 
 dis. Having left Cappadocia, and passed the river Halys, he 
 came to Celaenae, a city of Phyrgia, near which is the source of 
 Maeander. Pythius, a Lydian, had his residence in this city, 
 and next to Xerxes was the most opulent prince of those times. 
 He entertained Xerxes and his whole army with an incredible 
 magnificence, and made him an offer of all his wealth towards 
 defraying the expenses of his expedition. Xerxes, surprised 
 and charmed at so generous an offer, had the curiosity to in¬ 
 quire to what sum his riches amounted. Pythius made answer, 
 that with the design of offering them to his service, he had 
 taken an exact account of them, and that the silver he had by 
 him amounted to 2000 talents ; z (which make 6,000,000 French 
 money;) and the gold to 4,000,000 of daricks, a wanting 7000 
 (that is to say, to 40,000,000 of livres, wanting 70,000, reckon¬ 
 ing ten livres French money to the darick). All this money 
 he offered him, telling him, that his revenues were sufficient for 
 the support of his household. Xerxes made him very hearty 
 acknowledgments, entered into a particular friendship with 
 him, and, that he might not be outdone in generosity, instead of 
 accepting his offers, obliged him to accept as a present the 7000 
 daricks which were wanting to make up his gold a round sum 
 of 4,000,000. 
 
 After such a conduct as this, who would not think that Py- 
 
 1 Plut. de ira cohib. p. 455. " Plut. de amm. tranq. p. 470. 
 
 x Bellon. singul. rer. observ. p. 78. y Herod. 1. vii. c. 26. 20. 
 
 1 About 255,000/. sterling. a About 1,700,000/. sterling. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 291 
 
 thius’s b peculiar characteristic and particular virtue had been 
 generosity, and a noble contempt of riches ? And yet he was 
 one of the most penurious princes in the world ; and who, be¬ 
 sides his sordid avarice with regard to himself, was extremely 
 cruel and inhuman to his subjects, whom he kept continually 
 employed in hard and fruitless labour, always digging in the 
 gold and silver mines, which he had in his territories. When 
 he was absent from home, his subjects went with tears in their 
 eyes to the princess his wife, laid their complaints before her, 
 and implored her assistance. Commiserating their condition, 
 she made use of a very extraordinary method to work upon her 
 husband, and to give him a clear notion and a palpable demon¬ 
 stration of the folly and injustice of his conduct. On his re¬ 
 turn home, she ordered an entertainment to be prepared for 
 him, very magnificent in appearance, but what in reality was no 
 entertainment. All the courses and services were of gold and 
 silver ; and the prince, in the midst of all these rich dishes and 
 splendid rarities, could not satisfy his hunger. He easily di¬ 
 vined the meaning of this enigma, and began to consider, that 
 the end of gold and silver was not merely to be looked upon, 
 but to be employed and made use of; and that to neglect, as 
 he had done, the business of husbandry and the tilling of land, 
 by employing all his people in digging and working of mines, 
 was the direct way to bring a famine both upon himself and his 
 country. For the future, therefore, he only reserved a fifth 
 part of his people for the business of mining. Plutarch has 
 preserved this fact in a treatise, wherein he has collected a 
 great many others to prove the ability and industry of ladies. 
 We have the same disposition of mind noticed in fabulous story, 
 in the example of a prince, 0 who reigned in this very country, 
 for whom every thing that he touched was immediately turned 
 into gold, according to the request which he himself had made 
 to the gods, and who by that means was in danger of perishing; 
 with hunger. 
 
 The same prince, d who had made such obliging offers to 
 Xerxes, having desired as a favour of him some time afterwards, 
 that out of his five sons who served in his army, he would be 
 pleased to give him the eldest, in order to be a support and 
 comfort to him in his old age; the king was so enraged at the 
 proposal, though so reasonable in itself, that he caused the 
 eldest son to be killed before the eyes of his father, giving him 
 to understand, it was a favour that he spared the lives of him 
 and the rest of his children ; and then causing the dead body 
 to be cut in two, and one part to be placed on the right, and the 
 
 b Plutarch calls him Pythis. Plut. de virt. mulier. p. 262. 
 c Midas, king of Phrygia. 
 d Herod. 1. vii. c. 38, 39. Sen. de ira, 1. iii. c. 17« 
 
 u 2 
 
292 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 other on the left, lie made the whole army pass between them, 
 as if he meant to purge and purify it by such a sacrifice. What 
 a monster in nature is a prince of this kind ! How is it possible 
 to have any dependence upon the friendship of the great, or to 
 rely upon their warmest professions and protestations of grati¬ 
 tude and service ? 
 
 From Phrygia e Xerxes marched to Sardis, where he spent 
 the winter. From hence he sent heralds to all the cities of 
 Greece, except Athens and Lacedaemon, to require them to give 
 him earth and water, which, as we have taken notice of before, 
 was the way of exacting and acknowledging submission. 
 
 As soon as the spring of the year came on, he left Sardis, and 
 directed his march towards the Hellespont. Being arrived 
 there/ he wished to have the pleasure of seeing a naval en¬ 
 gagement. A throne was erected for him upon an eminence ; 
 and in that situation, seeing all the sea crowded with his vessels, 
 and the land covered with his troops, he at first felt a secret 
 joy diffuse itself through his soul, in surveying with his own 
 eyes the vast extent of his power, and considering himself as 
 the most happy of mortals ; but reflecting soon afterwards, that 
 of so many thousands, in a hundred years’ time there would not 
 be one living soul remaining, his joy was turned into grief, and 
 he could not forbear weeping at the uncertainty and instability 
 of human things. He might have found another subject of re¬ 
 flection, which would have more justly merited his tears and afflic¬ 
 tion, had he turned his thoughts upon himself, and considered 
 the reproaches he deserved for being the instrument of short¬ 
 ening that fatal term to millions of people whom his cruel 
 ambition was going to sacrifice in an unjust and unnecessary war. 
 
 Artabanes, who neglected no opportunity of making .himself 
 useful to the young prince, and of instilling into him sentiments 
 of goodness for his people, took advantage of this moment, in 
 which he found him touched with a sense of tenderness and hu¬ 
 manity, and led him into farther reflections upon the miseries 
 with which the lives of most men are attended, and which ren¬ 
 der them so painful and unhappy-; endeavouring at the same 
 time to make him sensible of the duty and obligation of princes, 
 who, not being able to prolong the natural life of their subjects, 
 ought at least to do all that lies in their power to alleviate the 
 troubles and allay the bitterness of it. 
 
 In the same conversation Xerxes asked his uncle if he still 
 persisted in his first opinion, and if he would still advise him not 
 to make war against Greece, supposing he had not seen the 
 vision, which occasioned him to change his sentiments. Arta¬ 
 banes owned he still had his fears ; and that he was very uneasy 
 concerning two things. What are those two things ? replied 
 e Herod. 1. vii. c. 30—32. f Ibid. c. 44. 4G- 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 2t>3 
 
 Xerxes. The land and the sea, says Artabanes : the land, be¬ 
 cause there is no country that can feed and maintain so numerous 
 an army ; the sea, because there are no ports capable of re¬ 
 ceiving such a multitude of vessels. The king* was very sensi¬ 
 ble of the strength of this reasoning; but as it was now too late 
 to go back, he made answer, that in great undertakings, men 
 ought not so narrowly to examine all the inconveniences that 
 may attend them ; that if they did, no signal enterprises would 
 ever be attempted : and that if his predecessors had observed 
 so scrupulous and timorous a rule of policy, the Persian em¬ 
 pire would never have attained its present height of greatness 
 and glory. 
 
 Artabanes gave the king another piece of very prudent ad¬ 
 vice, which he no more thought fit to follow than he had the 
 former: this was, not to employ the Ionians in his service 
 against the Grecians, from whom they were originally descend¬ 
 ed, and on which account he ought to suspect their fidelity. 
 Xerxes, however, after these conversations with his uncle, 
 treated him with great friendship, paid him the highest marks of 
 honour and respect, sent him back to Susa, to take the care 
 and administration of the empire upon him during his own ab¬ 
 sence, and to that end invested him with his whole authoritv. 
 
 •/ 
 
 Xerxes, & at a vast expense, had caused a bridge of boats 
 to be built upon the sea, for the passage of his forces from 
 Asia into Europe. The space that separates the two conti¬ 
 nents, formerly called the Hellespont, and now called the straits 
 of the Dardanelles, or of Gallipoli, is seven stadia in breadth, 
 which is near an English mile. A violent storm arose on a 
 sudden, and broke down the bridge. Xerxes hearing this 
 news on his arrival, fell into a transport of rage; and in order 
 to avenge himself for so cruel an affront, commanded two pair 
 of chains to be thrown into the sea, as if he meant to shackle 
 and confine it, and his men to give it 300 strokes of a whip, 
 addressing it in this manner : Thou troublesome and unhappy 
 element , thus does thy master chastise thee for having affron ted 
 him ivithout reason. Know , that Kerxes will easily find 
 means to pass over the waters, in spite of all thy billows and 
 resistance. The extravagance of this prince did not stop here ; 
 but, making the undertakers of the work answerable for events 
 which do not in the least depend upon the power of man, he or¬ 
 dered all those persons to have their heads struck olf, that had 
 been charged with the direction and management of that un¬ 
 dertaking, 
 
 Xerxes h commanded two other bridges to be built, one 
 for the army to pass over, and the other for the baggage and 
 beasts of burden. He appointed workmen more able and ex- 
 e HerocL 1. vii. c. 33—3G. h Ibid. 1. vii. c. 36. 
 
294 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 pert than the former, who went about it in this manner;—they 
 placed 360 vessels across, some of them having three hanks of 
 oars, and others fifty oars a-piece, with their sides turned towards 
 the Euxine sea ; and on the side that faced the ^Egean sea, 
 they put 314. They then cast large anchors into the water on 
 both sides, in order to fix and secure all these vessels against 
 the violence of the winds, and against the current of the water. 1 
 On the east side they left three passages or vacant spaces be¬ 
 tween the vessels, that there might be room for small boats to 
 go and come easily, as there was occasion, to and from the 
 Euxine sea. After this, upon the land on both sides, they 
 drove large piles into the earth, with huge rings fastened to 
 them, to which were tied six vast cables, which went over each 
 of the two bridges ; two of which cables were made of hemp, 
 and four of a sort of reeds called /3//3\os, which Were made use 
 of in those times for the making of cordage. Those that were 
 made of hemp must have been of an extraordinary strength 
 and thickness, since every cubit of those cables weighed a ta¬ 
 lent. k The cables laid over the whole extent of the vessels 
 lengthwise, reached from one side to the other of the sea. 
 When this part of the work was finished, quite over the ves¬ 
 sels from side to side, and over the cables we have been speak¬ 
 ing of, they laid the trunks of trees, cut purposely for that use, 
 and planks again over them, fastened and joined together to 
 serve as a kind of floor or solid bottom ; all which they covered 
 over with earth, and added rails or battlements on each side, that 
 the horses and cattle might not be frightened at seeing the sea 
 in their passage. This was the mode of constructing those fa¬ 
 mous bridges built by Xerxes. 
 
 When the whole work was completed, a day was appointed 
 for their passing over. And as soon as the first rays of the 
 sun began to appear, sweet odours of all kinds were abundantly 
 spread over both of the bridges, and the way was strewed with 
 myrtle. At the same time Xerxes poured out libations into 
 the sea, and turning his face towards the sun, the principal 
 object of the Persian worship, he implored the assistance of 
 that god in the enterprise he had undertaken, and desired the 
 continuance of his protection till he had made the entire con¬ 
 quest of Europe, and had brought it into subjection to his power; 
 this done, he threw the vessel which he had used in making his 
 libations, together with a golden cup and a Persian scimitar, 
 into the sea. The army was seven days and seven nights in 
 passing over these straits; those who were appointed to con- 
 
 ' Polybius remarks, that there is a current of water from the lake Mceotis 
 and the Euxine sea into the /figean sea, occasioned by the rivers which emptj 
 themselves into those two seas. Pol. 1. iv. p. 307, 308. 
 
 k A talent in weight consisted of GO minse, that is to say, of 42 pounds of 
 our weight; and the mina consisted of 100 drachms. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 295 
 
 duct the march, lashing the poor soldiers all the while with 
 whips, in order to quicken their speed, according to the custom 
 of that nation, which, properly speaking, was only a huge as¬ 
 sembly of slaves. 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 Enumeration of Xerxes’s forces. Demaratus delivers his sentiments freely 
 
 upon that prince’s enterprise. 
 
 Xerxes, 1 directing his march across the Thracian Chersone- 
 sus, arrived at Doriscus, a city standing at the mouth of the 
 Hebrus, in Thrace; where, having encamped his army, and 
 given orders for his fleet to follow him along the shore, he re¬ 
 viewed them both. 
 
 He found the land army, which he had brought out of Asia, 
 consisted of 1,700,000 foot and 80,000 horse, which, with 
 20,000 men that were absolutely necessary at least for conduct¬ 
 ing and taking- care of the carriages and the camels, made in 
 all 1,800,000 men. When he had passed the Hellespont, the 
 nations that submitted to him made an addition to his army of 
 300,000 men, which made all his land forces together amount 
 to 2,100,000 men. 
 
 His fleet, when it set out from Asia, consisted of 1207 
 vessels of war, all of three banks of oars. Each vessel carried 
 200 men, natives of the country that fitted them out, besides 
 thirty more, that were either Persians or Medes, or of the 
 Sacae ; which made in all 277,610 men. The European nations 
 augmented his fleet with 120 vessels, each of which carried 
 200 men ; in all, 24,000: these, added to the others, amounted 
 together to 301,610 men. 
 
 Besides this fleet, which consisted all of large vessels, the 
 small galleys of thirty and fifty oars, the transport ships, the 
 vessels that carried the provisions, and that were employed in 
 other uses, amounted to 3000. If we reckon but eighty men 
 in each of these vessels, one with another, that made in the 
 whole 240,000 men. 
 
 Thus, when Xerxes arrived at Thermopylae, his land and 
 sea forces together made up the number of 2,641,610 men, 
 without including servants, eunuchs, women, sutlers, and other 
 people of that sort, which usually follow an army, and whose 
 number at this time was equal to that of the forces : so that the 
 whole number of those that followed Xerxes in this expedition, 
 amounted to 5,283,220. This is the computation which He¬ 
 rodotus makes of them, and in which Plutarch and Isocrates 
 agree with him. Diodorus Siculus, Pliny, ./Elian, m and others, 
 
 1 Herod. 1. vii. c. 5G—99. 184—187- 
 m Diod. 1. xi. p. 3. Plm. 1. xxxiii. c. 10. /Elian. 1. xiii. c. 3. 
 
296 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 fall very short of this number in their calculation; but their 
 accounts of the matter appear to be less authentic than that of 
 Herodotus, who lived in the same age in which this expedition 
 was made, and who repeats the inscription engraved by the 
 order of the Amphictyons upon the monument of those Gre¬ 
 cians who were killed at Thermopylae, which expressed that 
 they fought against 3,000,000 of men. 
 
 For the sustenance of all these persons," there must be every 
 day consumed, according to Herodotus’s computation, above 
 110,340 medimni of flour, (the medimnus was a measure which, 
 according to Budaeus, was equivalent to six of our bushels,) 
 allowing for every head the quantity of a choenix, which was 
 the daily allowance that masters gave their slaves among the 
 Grecians. We have no account in history of any other army 
 so numerous as this. And amongst all these millions of 
 men, there was not one that could vie with Xerxes in point of 
 beauty, either for the comeliness of his face, or the tallness of 
 his person. But this is a poor merit or pre-eminence for a 
 prince, when attended with no other. Accordingly Justin, 
 after he has mentioned the number of these troops, adds, that 
 this vast body of forces wanted a chief: Huic tanto cigmini 
 dux defuit. 
 
 We should hardly be able to conceive how it was possible to 
 find a sufficient quantity of provisions for such an immense 
 number of persons, if the historian 0 had not informed us, that 
 Xerxes had employed four whole years in making preparations 
 for this expedition. We have seen already how many vessels 
 of burden there were, that coasted along continually to attend 
 upon, and supply, the land army ; and doubtless there were 
 fresh ones arriving every day, that furnished the camp with a 
 sufficient plenty of all things necessary. 
 
 Herodotus p acquaints us with the method of which they 
 made use to calculate these forces, which were almost innume¬ 
 rable. They assembled 10,000 men in a particular place, and 
 ranked them as close together as was possible ; after which, 
 they described a circle quite round them, and erected a little 
 wall upon that circle, about half the height of a man’s body : 
 when this was done, they made the whole army successively 
 pass through this space, and thereby knew to what number it 
 amounted. 
 
 Herodotus gives us also a particular account of the different 
 armour of all the nations that constituted this army. Besides 
 the generals of every nation, who each of them commanded the 
 troops of their respective country, the land army was under the 
 command of six Persian generals ; viz. Mardonius, the son of 
 Gobryas ; Tirintatechmes, the son of Artabanes, and Smer- 
 n Herod. 1. vii. c. 187. ° Ibid. 1. vii. c. 20. v Ibid. c. GO. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 297 
 
 dones, son to Otanes, both near relations to the king ; Masistes, 
 son of Darius and Atossa ; Gergis, son of Ariazes ; and Me- 
 gabyzus, son of Zopyrus. The 10,000 Persians, who were 
 called the Immortal Band, were commanded by Hydarnes. The 
 cavalry had its particular commanders. 
 
 There were likewise four Persian generals who commanded 
 the fleet. In Herodotus q we have a particular account of all 
 the nations by which it was fitted out. Artemisia, queen of 
 Halicarnassus, who since the death of her husband governed 
 the kingdom for ^er son, that was still a minor, brought but five 
 vessels along with uer ; but they were the best equipped, and 
 the lightest ships in the whole fleet, next to those of the Sido- 
 nians. This princess distinguished herself in this war by her 
 singular courage, and still more by her prudence and conduct. 
 Herodotus observes, that among all the commanders in the ar¬ 
 my, there was not one who gave Xerxes so good advice and 
 such wise counsel as this queen ; but he was not prudent enough 
 to profit by it. 
 
 When Xerxes had numbered his whole forces by land and 
 sea, he asked Demaratus if he thought the Grecians would dare 
 to wait for him. I have already taken notice, that this Dema¬ 
 ratus was one of the two kings of Sparta, who, being exiled by 
 the faction of his enemies, had taken refuge at the Persian 
 court, where he was entertained with the greatest marks of ho¬ 
 nour and beneficence. As the courtiers were one day express¬ 
 ing their surprise/ that a king should suffer himself to be ba¬ 
 nished, and desired him to acquaint them with the reason of it. 
 It is, says he, because at Sparta the law is more powerful than 
 the Icings. This prince was very much esteemed in Persia ; 
 but neither the injustice of the Spartan citizens, nor the kind 
 treatment of the Persian king, could make him forget his coun¬ 
 try/ As soon as he knew that Xerxes was making prepara¬ 
 tions for the war, he found means to give the Grecians secret 
 intelligence of it. And now, being obliged on this occasion to 
 speak his sentiments, he did it with such a noble freedom and 
 dignity, as became a Spartan, and a king of Sparta. 
 
 Demaratus/ before he answered the king’s question, desired 
 to know whether it was his pleasure that he should flatter him, 
 or that he should speak his thoughts to him freely and sincerely. 
 Xerxes having declared, that he desired him to act with the ut¬ 
 most sincerity, Great prince, says Demaratus, since it is agree¬ 
 able to your pleasure and commands, I shall deliver my senti¬ 
 ments to you with the utmost truth and sincerity. It must be 
 confessed , that from the beginning of time Greece has been 
 
 i Herod. 1. vii. c. 89. 99. r Plut. in Apoph. Lacon. p. 220. 
 
 * Amicior patrije post fugam quam regi post beneficia Justin. 
 
 1 Herod. 1. vii. c. 101. 105. 
 
298 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 trained up and accustomed to poverty : but then she has in¬ 
 troduced and established virtues within her territories, which 
 wisdom cultivates, and the vigour of her laws maintains. And 
 it is by the use ivhich Greece knows how to make of this virtue, 
 that she defends herself equally against the inconveniences of 
 poverty and the yoke of servitude. But, to speak only of the 
 Lacedcemonians, my particular countrymen, you may assure 
 yourself, that as they are born and bred up in liberty, they will 
 never hearken to any proposals that tend to slavery. Though 
 they were deserted and abandoned by all the other Grecians, 
 and reduced to a band of a thousand men, or even to a more 
 inconsiderable number, they will still come out to meet you, and 
 not refuse to give you battle. Xerxes, upon hearing this dis¬ 
 course, fell a-laughing ; and as he could not comprehend how 
 men in such a state of liberty and independence as the Lace¬ 
 daemonians were described to enjoy, who had no master to force 
 and compel them to it, could be capable of exposing themselves 
 in such a manner to danger and death ; Demaratus replied, The 
 Spartans u indeed are free, and under no subjection to the will 
 of any man ; but at the same time they have laws, to which they 
 are subject, and of which they stand in greater awe than your 
 subjects do of your majesty. Now by these laws they are for¬ 
 bidden ever to fly in battle, let the number of their enemies be 
 never so superior ; and are commanded, by abiding firm in their 
 2lost, either to conquer or to die. 
 
 Xerxes was not offended at the liberty wherewith Demaratus 
 spoke to him, and continued his march. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians and Athenians send to their allies to require succours 
 from them, but to no purpose. The command of the fleet given to the 
 Lacedaemonians. 
 
 Lacedaemon and Athens, x which were the two most power¬ 
 ful cities of Greece, and those against which Xerxes was most 
 exasperated, were not indolent or asleep whilst so formidable 
 an enemy was approaching. Having received intelligence long 
 before of the designs of this prince, they had sent spies to Sardis, 
 in order to gain more exact information as to the number and 
 quality of his forces. These spies were seized, and, as they were 
 just going to be put to death, Xerxes countermanded it, and 
 gave orders that they should be conducted through his army, 
 and then be sent back without any harm being done them. At 
 their return, the Grecians understood what they had to appre¬ 
 hend from so potent an enemy. 
 
 They sent deputies at the same time to Argos, into Sicily to 
 Herod. 1. vii. c. 104. * Ibid. 1. vii. c. 145,146. 
 
 U 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 299 
 
 Gelon, tyrant of Syracuse, to the isles of Corcyra and Crete, to 
 desire succours from them, and to form a league against the 
 common enemy. 
 
 The people of Argos offered a very considerable succour,y 
 on condition that they should have an equal share of the au¬ 
 thority and command with the Lacedaemonians. The latter con¬ 
 sented that the king of Argos should have the same authority 
 as either of the two kings of Sparta. This was granting them 
 a great deal : but into what errors and mischiefs are not men 
 led by a mistaken point of honour, and a foolish jealousy of 
 command ! The Argives were not contented with this offer, and 
 refused to assist the allied Grecians, without considering, that 
 if they suffered them to be destroyed, their own ruin must in¬ 
 evitably follow that of Greece. 
 
 The deputies proceeded from Argos to Sicily, 2 and addressed 
 themselves to Gelon, who was the most potent prince at that 
 time among the Greeks. He promised to assist them with 
 200 vessels of three benches of oars, with an army of 20,000 
 foot and 200 horse, 2000 light-armed soldiers, and the same 
 number of bowmen and slingers, and to supply the Grecian 
 army with provisions during the whole war, on condition they 
 would make him generalissimo of all the forces both by land 
 and sea. The Lacedaemonians were highly offended at such 
 a proposal. Gelon then abated somewhat in his demands, and 
 promised the same, provided he had at least the command 
 either of the fleet or of the army. • This proposal was strenu¬ 
 ously opposed by the Athenians, who made answer, that they 
 alone had a right to command the fleet, in case the Lacedae¬ 
 monians were willing to give it up. -Gelon had a more 
 substantial reason for not leaving Sicily unprovided with 
 troops, which was the approach of the formidable army of the 
 Carthaginians, commanded by Amilcar, that consisted of 300,000 
 men. 
 
 The inhabitants of Corcyra, a now called Corfu, gave the 
 envoys a favourable answer, and immediately put to sea with a 
 fleet of sixty vessels. But they advanced no farther than the 
 coasts of Laconia, pretending they were hindered by contrary 
 winds, but in reality waiting to see the success of an engage¬ 
 ment, that they might afterwards range themselves on the side 
 of the conqueror. 
 
 The people of Crete, b having consulted the Delphic oracle, 
 to know what resolution they were to take on this occasion, ab¬ 
 solutely refused to enter into the league. 
 
 Thus were the Lacedaemonians and Athenians left almost to 
 themselves, c all the rest of the cities and nations having sub- 
 
 y Herod. L vii. c. 148. 152. z Ibid. c. 153—1G1. 
 
 a Ibid. 1. vii. c. 188. *> Ibid. c. 181—171. c Ibid. c. 132. 
 
800 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 mitted to the heralds that Xerxes had sent to require earth 
 and water of them,excepting-the people of Thespia and of Pla- 
 toeae. In so pressing a danger/ their first care was to put an 
 end to all discord and division among themselves ; for which 
 reason the Athenians made peace with the people of Hilgina, 
 with whom they were actually at war. 
 
 Their next care was to appoint a general : e for there never 
 was any occasion wherein it was more necessary to choose one, 
 who was capable of so important a trust, than in the present 
 conjuncture, when Greece was upon the point of being attacked 
 by the forces of all Asia. The most able and experienced cap¬ 
 tains, terrified at the greatness of the danger, had taken the re¬ 
 solution of not presenting themselves as candidates. There 
 was a certain citizen at Athens, whose name was Epicydes, that 
 had some eloquence, but in other respects was a person of no 
 merit, was in disreputation for his want of courage, and noto¬ 
 rious for his avarice. Notwithstanding all which it was appre¬ 
 hended, that in the assembly of the people the votes would run 
 in his favour. Themistocles, who was sensible that f in calm 
 weather almost any mariner may be capable of conducting a 
 vessel, but that in storms and tempests the most able pilots are 
 at a loss, was convinced that the commonwealth was ruined, 
 if Epicydes was chosen general, whose venal and mercenary 
 soul gave them the justest reason to fear, that he was not proof 
 against the Persian gold. There are occasions, when, in order 
 to act wisely, (I had almost said regularly,) it is necessary to dis¬ 
 pense with and rise above all rule. Themistocles, who knew 
 very well that in the present state of affairs lie was the only 
 person capable of commanding, did for that reason make no 
 scruple of employing bribes and presents to remove his compe¬ 
 titor ; and s having found means to make the ambition of Epi¬ 
 cydes amends, by gratifying his avarice, he got himself elected 
 general in his stead. We may here, I think, very justly apply 
 to Themistocles what Livy says of Fabius on a like occasion. 
 This great commander finding, when Hannibal was in the heart 
 of Italy, that the people were going to make a man of no merit 
 consul, employed all his own influence, as well as that of his 
 friends, to be continued in the consulship, without being con¬ 
 cerned at the clamour that might be raised against him; and he 
 succeeded in the attempt. The historian adds, 11 The conjunc- 
 
 d Herod, c. 145. e Plut. in Themist. p. 114. 
 
 f Quilib.et nautarum vectorumque tranquillo mari gubernare potest: ubi 
 orta sseva tempestas est, ac turbato mari rapitur vento navis, turn viro et gu- 
 bernatore opus est. Liv. 1. xxiv. n. 8. 
 
 s Xpi'macn ti)v (piXon/xiav l^vrfcraro 7rapa tov 'Y^tukv^ov. 
 h Tempus ac necessitas belli, ac discrimen summse rerum, faciebant ne quis 
 aut in exemplum exquireret, aut suspectum cupiditatis imperii consulem 
 haberet. Quin laudabant potius magnitudinem animi, quod cum summo im- 
 
301 
 
 PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 lure of affairs, and the extreme danger to which the common¬ 
 wealth was exposed, were arguments of such weight, that they pre¬ 
 vented any one from being offended at a conduct which might 
 appear to be contrary to rule, and removed all suspicion of Fa- 
 biuss having acted from any motive of interest or ambition . On 
 the contrary, the public admired his generosity and greatness 
 of soul in that, as he knew the commonwealth had occasion 
 for an accomplished general, and could not be ignorant or 
 doubtful of his own singular merit in that respect, he had 
 chosen rather in some sort to hazard his own reputation, 
 and perhaps expose his character to the reproaches of envious 
 tongues, than to be wanting in any service he could render his 
 country . 
 
 The Athenians also passed a decree to recall home all their 
 people that were in banishment.* They were afraid lest Aris¬ 
 tides should join their enemies, and lest his authority should 
 carry over a great many others to the side of the barbarians. 
 But they were very little acquainted with their citizen, who 
 was infinitely remote from such sentiments. Be that as it 
 may, they thought fit to recall him, and Themistocles was so 
 far from opposing the decree for that purpose, that he pro¬ 
 moted it with all his influence and authoritv. The hatred and 
 division of these great men had nothing of that implacable, 
 bitter, and outrageous spirit which prevailed among the Homans 
 in the later times of the republic. The danger of the state 
 was the cause of their reconciliation, and when their services 
 were necessary to the preservation of the public, they laid 
 aside all their jealousy and rancour : and we shall see by the 
 sequel, that Aristides was so far from secretly thwarting his 
 former rival, that he zealously contributed to the success of his 
 enterprises, and to the advancement of his glory. 
 
 The alarm increased in Greece, in proportion as they re¬ 
 ceived advice that the Persian army advanced. If the Athe¬ 
 nians and Lacedmmonians had been able to make no other re¬ 
 sistance than with their land forces, Greece had been utterly 
 ruined and reduced to slavery. This exigence taught them 
 how to set a right value upon the prudent foresight of Themis¬ 
 tocles, who upon some other pretext had caused 100 galleys 
 to be built. Instead of judging like the rest of the Athenians, 
 who looked upon the victory of Marathon as the end of the 
 war, he on the contrary considered it rather as the beginning, 
 and as the signal of still greater battles, for which it was neces¬ 
 sary to prepare the Athenian people : and from that very time 
 he began to think of raising Athens to a superiority over Sparta, 
 
 peratore esse opus reip. sciret, seque euni haud dubie esse, minoris invidiam 
 suam, si qua ex re oriretur, quam utilitatem reip. fecisset. Liv. 1. xxiv. n. 9. 
 
 Plut. in Arist. p. 322, 328. 
 
302 
 
 HISTORY OF TIIE 
 
 which for a long time had been the mistress of all Greece. 
 With this view he judged it expedient to direct all the strength 
 of Athens entirely towards naval affairs, perceiving very plain¬ 
 ly that as she was so weak by land, she had no other way to 
 render herself necessary to her allies or formidable to her ene¬ 
 mies. His advice prevailed in spite of the opposition of Mil- 
 tiades, whose difference of opinion undoubtedly arose from the 
 little probability there was, that a people entirely unacquainted 
 with fighting at sea, and who were capable of fitting out and 
 arming only very small vessels, should be able to withstand so 
 formidable a power as that of the Persians, who had both a 
 numerous land army, and a fleet of above 1000 ships. 
 
 The Athenians had some silver mines in a part of Attica 
 called Laurium, k the whole revenues and product of which 
 used to be distributed amongst them. Themistocles had the 
 courage to propose to the people that they should abolish these 
 distributions, and employ that money in building vessels with 
 three benches of oars, in order to make war upon the people of 
 HSgina, against whom he endeavoured to rekindle their ancient 
 jealousy. No people are ever willing to sacrifice their private 
 interests to the general utility of the public : for they seldom 
 have so much generosity or public spirit, as to purchase the 
 welfare of the state at their own expense. The Athenian 
 people, however, did it upon this occasion; moved by the ear¬ 
 nest remonstrances of Themistocles, they consented, that the 
 money which arose from the product of the mines, should be 
 employed in the building of 100 galleys. Against the arrival 
 of Xerxes they doubled the number, and to that fleet Greece 
 owed its preservation. 
 
 When they came to the point of naming a general for the 
 command of the navy, 1 the Athenians, who alone had furnished 
 two-thirds of it, laid claim to that honour as appertaining to 
 them, and their pretensions were certainly just and well- 
 grounded. It happened, however, that the suffrages of the 
 allies all concurred in favour of Eurybiades, a Lacedaemonian. 
 Themistocles, though very aspiring after glory, thought it in¬ 
 cumbent upon him on this occasion to neglect his own interests 
 for the common good of the nation: and giving the Athenians 
 to understand, that, provided they behaved as valiant men, all 
 the Grecians would quickly desire to confer the command upon 
 them of their own accord, he persuaded them to consent, as he 
 would do himself, to give up that point at present to the 
 Spartans. It may justly be said, that this prudent moderation 
 in Themistocles was another means of saving the state. For 
 the allies threatened to separate themselves from them, if they 
 
 k Pint, in Themist. p. 113. 
 
 1 Herod. 1. viii. c. 213. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS, 303 
 
 refused to comply ; and if that had happened, Greece must have 
 been inevitably ruined. 
 
 SECT. V. 
 
 T he battle of Thermopylae. The death of Leonidas. 
 
 The only thing that now remained to be dis- 
 Ant J^*cP480 cussec l> rn was to know in what place they should 
 resolve to meet the Persians, in order to dispute 
 their entrance into Greece. The people of Thessaly repre¬ 
 sented, that as they were the most exposed, and likely to be 
 the first attacked by the enemy, it was but reasonable that their 
 defence and security, on which the safety of all Greece so much 
 depended, should first be provided for ; without which they 
 should be obliged to take other measures, that would be 
 contrary to their inclinations, but yet absolutely necessary, in 
 case their own country was left unprotected and defenceless. 
 It was hereupon resolved, that 10,000 men should be sent to 
 guard the passage which separates Macedonia from Thessaly 
 near the river Peneus, between the mountains Olympus and 
 Ossa. But Alexander, the son of Amyntas, king of Macedonia, 
 having given them to understand, that if they waited for the 
 Persians in that place they must inevitably be overpowered by 
 their numbers, they retired to Thermopylae. The Thessalians 
 finding themselves thus abandoned, without any farther deliber¬ 
 ation submitted to the Persians. 
 
 Thermopylae is a strait or narrow pass of mount (Eta, n be¬ 
 tween Thessaly and Phocis, only twenty-five feet broad, which 
 therefore might be defended by a small number of forces, and 
 which was the only way through which the Persian land army 
 could enter Achaia, and advance to besiege Athens. This was 
 the place where the Grecian army thought fit to wait for the 
 enemy ; the person who commanded it was Leonidas, one of the 
 two kings of Sparta. 
 
 Xerxes in the mean time was upon his march :° he had given 
 orders for his fleet to follow him along the coast, and to regu¬ 
 late their motions according to those of the land army. Where- 
 ever he came he found provisions and refreshment prepared 
 before-hand, pursuant to the orders he had sent ; and every 
 city he arrived at gave him a magnificent entertainment, which 
 cost immense sums of money. The vast expense of these treats 
 gave occasion to a witty saying of a certain citizen of Abdera 
 in Thrace, who, when the king was gone, said, they ought to 
 thank the gods, that he ate but one meal a day. 
 
 m Herod. 1. vii. c. 172, 173. 
 
 n Ibid. 1. vii. c. 175. 177- 0 Ibid. c. 108. 132. 
 
304 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 In the same country of Thrace p there was a prince who 
 showed an extraordinary greatness of soul on this occasion : it 
 was the king of the Bisaltm. Whilst all the other princes ran 
 into servitude, and basely submitted to Xerxes, he proudly 
 refused to receive his yoke or to obey him. Not being in a 
 condition to resist him with open force, he retired to the top of 
 the mountain Rhodope, into an inaccessible place, and forbade 
 all his sons, who were six. in number, to carry arms against 
 Greece. But they, either through fear of Xerxes, or through 
 a curiosity to see so important a war, followed the Persians, in 
 contradiction to their father’s injunction. On their return 
 home, their father, to punish so direct a disobedience, con¬ 
 demned all his sons to have their eyes put out. Xerxes con¬ 
 tinued his march through Thrace, Macedonia, and Thessaly, 
 every thing giving way before him till he came to the strait of 
 Thermopyke. 
 
 One cannot see, without the utmost astonishment,^ what a 
 handful of troops the Grecians opposed to the innumerable army 
 of Xerxes. We find a particular account of their numbers in 
 Pausanias. All their forces joined together, amounted only to 
 11,200 men ; of which number 4000 only were employed at 
 Thermopylae to defend the pass. But these soldiers, adds the 
 historian, were all determined to a man either to conquer or 
 die. And what is it that such an army cannot effect l 
 
 When Xerxes advanced near the straits of Thermopylae/ he 
 was strangely surprised to find that they were prepared to dis¬ 
 pute his passage. He had always flattered himself, that on the 
 first hearing of his arrival, the Grecians would betake them¬ 
 selves to flight; nor could he ever be persuaded to believe, 
 what Demaratus had told him from the beginning of his pro¬ 
 ject, that at the first pass he came to, he would find his whole 
 army stopped by a handful of men. He sent out a spy before 
 him to view the enemy. The spy brought him word, that he 
 found the Lacedaemonians out of their intrenchments, and that 
 they were diverting themselves with military exercises, and 
 combing their hair : this was the Spartan manner of preparing 
 themselves for battle. 
 
 Xerxes still entertaining some hopes, waited four days on 
 purpose to give them time to retreat. And in this interval of 
 time he used his utmost endeavours to gain Leonidas/ by 
 making him magnificent promises, and assuring him that he 
 would make him master of all Greece, if he would come over 
 to his party. Leonidas rejected his proposal with scorn and 
 indignation. Xerxes having afterwards written to him to de- 
 
 p Herod. 1. viii. c. 116. 'i Pans. 1.x. p. 045. 
 
 r Herod. 1. vii. c. 207—231. Diod. 1. xi. p. 5. 10. 
 s Plut. in Lacon. Apoph. p. 225. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 305 
 
 liver up his arms, Leonidas, in a style and spirit truly laconical, 
 answered him in two words ; Come and take them} Nothing 
 remained but to prepare to engage the Lacedaemonians. 
 Xerxes first commanded his Median forces to march against 
 them, with orders to take them all alive and bring them to him. 
 The Medes were not able to stand the charge of the Grecians; 
 and being shamefully put to flight, they showed, says Herodo¬ 
 tus, 1 11 that Xerxes had a great many men, but few soldiers. 
 The next that were sent to face the Spartans, were those Per¬ 
 sians called the Immortal Band, which consisted of 10,000 
 men, and were the best troops in the whole army. But these 
 had no better success than the former. 
 
 Xerxes, despairing of being able to force his way through 
 troops so determined to concjuer or die, was extremely perplex¬ 
 ed, and could not tell what resolution to take; when an inha¬ 
 bitant of the country came to him, and discovered a secret 
 path, x leading to an eminence, which overlooked and command¬ 
 ed the Spartan forces. He quickly despatched a detachment 
 thither, which, marching all night, arrived there at the break 
 of day, and possessed themselves of that advantageous post. 
 
 The Greeks were soon apprised of this misfortune ; and 
 Leonidas, seeing that it was now impossible to withstand the 
 enemy, obliged the rest of the allies to retire, but stayed him¬ 
 self with his 300 Lacedaemonians, all resolved to die with their 
 leader, who being told by the oracle, that either Lacedaemon 
 or her king must necessarily perish, determined, without the 
 least hesitation, to sacrifice himself for his country. The Spar¬ 
 tans lost all hopes either of conquering or escaping, and looked 
 upon Thermopylae as their burying-place. The king, exhorting 
 his men to take some nourishment, and telling them at the same 
 time, that they should sup together with Pluto, they set up a 
 shout of joy as if they had been invited to a banquet, and full 
 of ardour advanced with their king to battle. The shock was 
 exceedingly violent and bloody. Leonidas was one of the first 
 that fell. The endeavours of the Lacedaemonians to defend his 
 dead body were incredible. At length, not vanquished, but 
 oppressed by numbers, they all fell, except one man, who 
 escaped to Sparta, where he was treated as a coward and trai¬ 
 tor to his country, and nobody would keep company or converse 
 with him ; but soon afterwards he made a glorious amends for 
 his fault at the battle of Plataem, where he distinguished him- 
 
 1 ' Avrky{7cnpe, MoXwv Xa/3s. 
 
 11 "On TroXXoi p,kv dv9pw7roi dtv, oXtyoi Sk avopsg. 
 
 Quod multi homines essent, pauci autem viri. 
 x When the Gauls, 200 years after this, came to invade Gi'eece, they pos¬ 
 sessed themselves of the straits of Thermopylae by means of the same bv-path., 
 which the Grecians had still neglected to secure. Pausan. 1. i. p. 7, 8. 
 
 VOL. II. X 
 
306 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 self in an extraordinary manner. Xerxes,y enraged to the last 
 degree against Leonidas for daring to make head against him, 
 caused his dead body to be hung on a gallows ; and while he 
 intended .dishonour to his enemy, covered himself with disgrace. 
 
 Some time after these transactions, by order of the Amphic- . 
 tyons, a magnificent monument was erected at Thermopylae in 
 honour of these brave defenders of Greece; and upon the 
 monument were two inscriptions ; one of which was general, 
 and related to all those that died at Thermopylae, importing, 
 that the Greeks of Peloponnesus, to the number only of 4000, 
 had made head against the Persian army, which consisted of 
 3,000,000 of men: the other related to the Spartans in par¬ 
 ticular. It was composed by the poet Simonides, and is very 
 remarkable for its simplicity. It is as follows: 
 
 Q %eiv, ayyu\ov Acuctdcu/iovioiQ , on ryde 
 
 K rciiQ KHVltiV TTBlQofJieVOl VO[XlfiOig. z 
 
 That is to say ; Go, passenger, and tell at Lacedcemon, that 
 we died here in obedience to her sacred laws. Forty years af¬ 
 terwards, Pausanias, who obtained the victory of Platajoe, 
 caused the bones of Leonidas to be carried from Thermopylae 
 to Sparta, and erected a magnificent monument to his memory ; 
 near which was likewise another erected for Pausanias. Every 
 year at these tombs was a funeral oration pronounced in honour 
 of these heroes, and public games celebrated, at which none 
 but Lacedaemonians had a right to be present; in order to show, 
 that they alone were concerned in the glory obtained at Ther¬ 
 mopylae. 
 
 Xerxes in that affair lost above 20,000 men, a among whom 
 were two of the king’s brothers. He was very sensible that so 
 great a loss, which was a manifest proof of the courage of their 
 enemies, was capable of alarming and discouraging his soldiers. 
 In order therefore to conceal the knowledge of it from them, he 
 caused all his men that were killed in that action, except 1000, 
 whose bodies he ordered to be left upon the field, to be thrown 
 together into large holes, which were secretly made, and co¬ 
 vered over afterwards with earth and herbs. This stratagem 
 succeeded very ill: for when the soldiers in his fleet, being cu¬ 
 rious to see the field of battle, obtained leave to come thither for 
 that purpose, it served rather to discover his own littleness of 
 soul, than to conceal the number of the slain. 
 
 Dismayed with a victory that had cost him so dear, b he asked 
 
 y Herod. 1. vii. c. 238. 
 
 1 Pari animo Lacedaemonii in Thermopylis oceiderunt, in quos Simonides; 
 Die, hospes, Spartae nos te hie vidisse jacentes, 
 
 Dum sanctis patriae leg.ibus obsequimur. 
 
 Cic. Tusc. Qiicest. 1. i. n. 101. 
 Herod. 1. viii. c. 24, 25. b Ibid. 1. vii. c. 134. 137- 
 
 a 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 307 
 
 Demaratus, if the Lacedaemonians had yet many such soldiers. 
 That prince told him, that the Spartan republic had a great 
 many cities belonging to it, of which all the inhabitants were 
 exceedingly brave ; but that those of Lacedaemon, who were 
 properly called Spartans, and who were about 8000 in number, 
 surpassed all the rest in valour, and were all of them such as 
 those who had fought under Leonidas. 
 
 I return for an instant to the battle of Thermopylae, the issue 
 of which, fatal in appearance, might make an impression upon 
 the minds of the readers to the disadvantage of the Lacedae¬ 
 monians, and occasion their courage to be looked upon as the 
 effect of a presumptuous temerity, or a desperate resolution. 
 
 That action of Leonidas, with lhs 300 Spartans, was not the 
 effect of rashness or despair, but was a wise and noble conduct, 
 as Diodorus Siculus c has taken care to observe, in his magni¬ 
 ficent encomium upon that famous engagement, to which he 
 ascribes the success of all the ensuing campaigns. Leonidas, 
 knowing that Xerxes was marching at the head of all the forces 
 of the East, in order to overwhelm and crush a little country 
 by the dint of numbers, rightly conceived, from the superiority 
 of his genius and understanding, that if they pretended to make 
 the success of that war consist in opposing force to force, and 
 numbers to numbers, all the Grecian nations together would ne¬ 
 ver be able to equal the Persians, or to dispute the victory with 
 them: that it was therefore necessary to point out to Greece 
 another means of safety and preservation, whilst she was under 
 these alarms ; and that they ought to show the whole universe, 
 who had ail their eyes upon them, what may be done, when 
 greatness of mind is opposed to force of body, true courage and 
 bravery against blind impetuosity, the love of liberty against ty¬ 
 rannical oppression, and a few disciplined veteran troops against 
 a confused multitude, though never so numerous. These brave 
 Lacedaemonians thought it became them, who were the choicest 
 soldiers of the chief people of Greece, to devote themselves to 
 certain death, in order to make the Persians sensible how diffi¬ 
 cult it is to reduce free men to slavery, and to teach the rest of 
 Greece, by their example, either to conquer or to perish. 
 
 These sentiments do not originate from my own invention, 
 nor do 1 ascribe them to Leonidas without foundation : they are 
 plainly comprised in that short answer, which that worthy king 
 of Sparta made to a certain Lacedaemonian ; who, being asto¬ 
 nished at the generous resolution the king had taken, spoke to 
 him in this manner : Is it possible then , sir, A that you can 
 think of marching with a handful of men against such a mighty 
 and innumerable army ?—If ice are to reckon upon numbers, 
 replied Leonidas, all the people of Greece together would not 
 c Lib. xi. p. 9. d Plut. in Lacon. Apoph. p. 225. 
 
 x 2 
 
308 
 
 III STORY OF THE 
 
 be sufficient , since a small part of the Persian army is equal to 
 all her inhabitants: but if we are to reckon upon valour, my 
 little troop is more than sufficient. 
 
 The event showed the justness of this prince’s sentiments. 
 That illustrious example of courage astonished the Persians, 
 and gave new spirit and vigour to the Greeks. The lives then 
 of this heroic leader and his brave troop were not thrown away, 
 but usefully employed ; and their death was attended with a 
 double effect more great and lasting than they themselves had 
 imagined. On one hand, it was in a manner the seed of their 
 ensuing victories, which made the Persians for ever after lay 
 aside all thoughts of attacking Greece; so that during the seven 
 or eight succeeding reigns, there was neither any prince who 
 durst entertain such a design, nor any flatterer in his court who 
 durst propose the plan to him. On the other hand, such a sig¬ 
 nal and exemplary instance of intrepidity made an indelible im¬ 
 pression upon all the rest of the Grecians, and left a persuasion 
 deeply rooted in their hearts, that they were able to subdue the 
 Persians, and subvert their vast empire. Cimon was the man 
 who made the first attempt of that kind with success. Agesi- 
 laus afterwards pushed that design so far, that he made the 
 great king tremble in his palace at Susa. Alexander at last ac¬ 
 complished it with incredible facility. He never had the least 
 doubt, any more than the Macedonians who followed him, or 
 the whole country of Greece that chose him general in that ex¬ 
 pedition, but that with 30,000 men he could overturn the Persian 
 empire, since 300 Spartans had been sufficient to check the 
 united forces of the whole East. 
 
 SECT. VI. 
 
 Naval battle near Artemisium. 
 
 The very same day on which the glorious action at Thermo¬ 
 pylae took placed there was also an engagement at sea between 
 the two fleets. That of the Grecians, exclusive of the little 
 galleys and small boats, consisted of 271 vessels. This fleet 
 had lain by near Artemisium, a promontory of Euboea upon the 
 northern coast towards the straits. That of the enemy, which 
 was much more numerous, was near the same place, but had 
 lately suffered in a violent tempest, that had destroyed above 
 400 of their vessels. Notwithstanding this loss, as it was still 
 vastly superior in number to that of the Grecians, which they 
 were preparing to attack, they detached 200 of their vessels 
 with orders to wait about Euboea, to the end that none of the 
 enemy’s vessels might be able to escape them. The Grecians 
 e Hercd. 1. viii. c. 1—18. -Diod. 1. xi. p. 10, 11. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 309 
 
 having got intelligence of this, immediately set sail in the night, 
 in order to attack that detachment at day-break the next morn¬ 
 ing. But not meeting with it, they went towards the evening 
 and fell upon the bulk of the enemy’s fleet, which they treated 
 very roughly. Night coming on, they were obliged to separate, 
 and both parties retired to their post. But the very night that 
 parted them, proved more pernicious to the Persians than the 
 engagement which preceded, from a violent storm of wind, 
 accompanied with rain and thunder, which distressed and ha¬ 
 rassed their vessels till break of day : and the 200 ships also, 
 that had been detached from their fleet, were almost all cast 
 away upon the coasts of Euboea ; it being the will of the gods, 
 says Herodotus, that the two fleets should become very near 
 equal. 
 
 The Athenians having the same day received a reinforcement 
 of fifty-three vessels, the Grecians, who were apprised of the 
 wreck that had befallen part of the enemy’s fleet, fell upon the 
 ships of the Cilicians at the same hour they had attacked the 
 fleet the day before, and sunk a great number of them. The 
 Persians, being ashamed to see themselves thus insulted by an 
 enemy that was so much inferior in number, thought fit the 
 next day to appear first in a disposition to engage. The 
 battle was very obstinate, and the success pretty near equal 
 on both sides, excepting that the Persians, who were incom¬ 
 moded by the largeness and number of their vessels, sustained 
 much the greater loss. Both parties however retired in good 
 order. 
 
 All these actions/ which passed near Artemisium, were not 
 absolutely decisive, but contributed very much to animate the 
 Athenians, as they were convinced, by their own experience, 
 that there was nothing really formidable, either in the number 
 and magnificent ornaments of the vessels, or in the barbarians’ 
 insolent shouts and songs of victory, to men that know how to 
 come to close engagement, and that have the courage to fight 
 with steadiness and resolution : and that the best way of deal¬ 
 ing with such an enemy, is to despise all that vain appearance, 
 to advance boldly up to them, and to charge them briskly and 
 vigorously without ever giving ground. 
 
 The Grecian fleet having at this time had intelligence of what 
 had passed at Thermopylae, resolved upon the course they were 
 to take without any farther deliberation. They immediately 
 sailed away from Artemisium, and advancing towards the heart 
 of Greece, they stopped at Salamis, a little isle very near and 
 over-against Attica. Whilst the fleet was retreating, Themis- 
 tocles passed through all the places where the enemy must neces¬ 
 sarily land, in order to take in fresh water or other provisions, 
 r Plut. in Themist. p. 115. 117. Herod. 1. viii. c. 21, 22. 
 
310 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 •and ill large characters engraved upon the rocks and the stones 
 the following words, which he addressed to the Ionians ; Be of 
 out • side, people of Ionia : come over to the party of your 
 fathers, who expose their own lives for no other end than to 
 maintain your liberty: or if you cannot possibly do that, at 
 least do the Persians all the mischief you can, when we are 
 engaged with them, and put their army into disorder and 
 confusion. By this means Themistocles hoped either to bring 
 the Ionians really over to their party,s or at least to render them 
 suspected to the barbarians. We see this general had his 
 thoughts always intent upon his business, and neglected nothing 
 that could contribute to the success of his designs. 
 
 SECT. VII. 
 
 The Athenians abandon their city, which is taken and burnt by Xerxes. 
 
 Xerxes in the mean time had entered into the country of 
 Phocis by the upper part of Doris, and was burning and plun¬ 
 dering the cities of the Fhocians. The inhabitants of Pelopon¬ 
 nesus having no thoughts but to save their own country, had 
 resolved to abandon all the rest, and to bring all the Grecian 
 forces together within the isthmus, the entrance of which they 
 intended to secure by a strong wall from one sea to the other, 
 a space of near five miles English. The Athenians were highly 
 provoked at so base a desertion, as they saw themselves ready 
 to fall into the hands of the Persians, and likely to bear the 
 whole weight of their fury and vengeance. Some time before 
 they had consulted the oracle of Delphi, which had given 
 them for answer, that* 1 there would be tio way of saving the 
 city but by wooden walls. The sentiments of the people were 
 much divided about this ambiguous expression ; some thought 
 it was to be understood to mean the citadel, because heretofore 
 it had been surrounded with wooden palisadoes. But The¬ 
 mistocles gave another sense to the words, which was much 
 more natural, understanding it to mean shipping ; and de¬ 
 monstrated that the only plan they had to adopt was to leave 
 their city empty, and to embark all the inhabitants. But this 
 was a resolution the people would not at all give ear to, as 
 thinking they thereby relinquished every hope of victory, and see¬ 
 ing no method of saving themselves, when once they had aban¬ 
 doned the temples of their gods and the tombs of their an¬ 
 cestors. Here Themistocles had occasion for all his address and 
 all his eloquence to work upon the people. After he had repre¬ 
 sented to them that Athens did not consist either of its walls 
 or its houses, but of its citizens, and that the saving of these 
 * Herod. 1. viii. c. 40, 41. h Ibid. 1. vii. c. 139—143. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 311 
 
 was the preservation of the city, he endeavoured to persuade 
 them, by the argument most capable of making an impression 
 upon them, in the unhappy, afflicted, and dangerous condition 
 they were then in, I mean that of the divine authority ; giving 
 them to understand, by the very words of the oracle, and by 
 the prodigies which had happened, that their removing for a 
 time from Athens was manifestly the will of the gods. 
 
 A decree was therefore passed,’ by which, in order to soften 
 what appeared so hard in the resolution of deserting the citv, 
 it was ordained, that Athens should he given up in trust into 
 the hands, and committed to the keeping and protection, of 
 Minerva, patroness of the Athenian people ; that all such in¬ 
 habitants as were able to hear arms, should go on ship-hoard; 
 and that every citizen should provide, as well as he could, for 
 the safety and security of his wife, children, and slaves. 
 
 The extraordinary behaviour of Cimon, k who was at this 
 time very young, was of great weight on this singular oc¬ 
 casion. Followed by his companions with a gay and cheerful 
 countenance, he went publicly along the street of Ceramicus 
 to the citadel, in order to consecrate a bit of a bridle, which 
 he carried in his hand, in the temple of Minerva, designing to 
 make the people understand by this religious and affecting 
 ceremony, that they had no farther business with land forces, 
 and that it behoved them now to betake themselves entirely to 
 the sea. After he had made an offering of this bit, he took one 
 of the shields that hung upon the wall of the temple, paid his 
 devotions to the goddess, went down to the water-side, and was 
 the first who by his example inspired the generality of the peo¬ 
 ple with confidence and resolution, and encouraged them to 
 embark. 
 
 The greater part of them sent their fathers and mothers, 
 that were old, together with their wives and children, to the 
 city of Troezene , 1 the inhabitants of which received them with 
 great humanity and generosity. For they made an ordinance, 
 that they should be maintained at the expense of the public, 
 and assigned for each person’s subsistence two oboli a day, 
 which were worth about two-pence English money. Besides 
 this, they permitted the children to gather fruit wherever they 
 pleased, or wherever they came, and settled a fund for the 
 payment of the masters, who had the care of their education. 
 How beautiful is it to see a city, exposed as this was to the 
 greatest dangers and calamities, extend her care and generosity, . 
 in the very midst of such alarms, even to the education of other 
 people’s children! 
 
 * Herod. 1. viii. c. 51—54. Plut. in Themisl. p. 117* 
 
 k Plut. in Cim. p. 481. 1 This was a small city situate upon 
 
 the sea-side, in that part of the Peloponnesus called Argolis. 
 
312 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 When the whole city came to embark, so moving and melan¬ 
 choly a spectacle drew tears from the eyes of all that were pre¬ 
 sent, and at the same time occasioned great admiration of the 
 steadiness and courage of those men, who sent their fathers and 
 mothers another way and to other places, and who, without 
 being moved either at their grief or lamentations, or at the ten¬ 
 der embraces of their wives and children, passed over with so 
 much firmness and resolution to Salamis. But that which ex¬ 
 tremely raised and augmented the general compassion, was the 
 great number of old men whom they were forced to leave in 
 the city on account of their age and infirmities, and of whom 
 many voluntarily remained there, through religious motives, 
 believing the citadel to be the thing meant by the oracle in the 
 fore-mentioned ambiguous expression of wooden walls. There 
 was no creature, (for history has judged this circumstance 
 worthy of being remembered,) there was no creature, I say, even 
 to the very domestic animals, but what took a part in this 
 public mourning ; nor was it possible for a man to see these 
 poor creatures run howling and crying after their masters, who 
 were going on board ship, without being touched and affected. 
 Among all the rest of these animals, particular notice is taken 
 of a dog belonging to Xanthippus, the father of Pericles, 
 which, not being able to endure to see himself abandoned by 
 his master, jumped into the sea after him, and continued swim¬ 
 ming as near as he could to the vessel his master was on board 
 of, till he landed quite spent at Salamis, and died the moment 
 after upon the shore. In the same place, even in Plutarch’s 
 time, they used to show the spot wherein this faithful animal 
 was said to be buried, which was called the dog's burying- 
 ground. 
 
 Whilst Xerxes was continuing his march ,” 1 some deserters 
 from Arcadia came and joined his army. The king having 
 asked them what the Grecians were then doing, was extremely 
 surprised when he was told, that they were employed in seeing 
 the games and combats then celebrating at Olympia: and his 
 surprise was still increased, when he understood that the vic¬ 
 tor’s reward in those engagements was only a crown of olive. 
 What men must they be, cried one of the Persian nobles with 
 great wonder and astonishment, who are influenced only by- 
 honour, and not by money ! 
 
 Xerxes had sent off a considerable detachment of his army 
 to plunder the temple at Delphi , 11 in which he knew there were 
 immense treasures, being resolved to treat Apollo with no more 
 favour than the other gods, whose temples he had pillaged. If 
 we may believe Herodotus and Diodorus Siculus, as soon as 
 ever this detachment advanced near the temple of Minerva, 
 m Herod. I. viii. c. 20. 11 Ibid. c. 35—39. Diod. 1. xi. p. 12. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 313 
 
 surnamed the Provident, the atmosphere grew dark on a sud¬ 
 den, and a violent tempest arose, accompanied with impetuous 
 winds, thunder, and lightning; and two huge rocks having- 
 severed themselves from the mountain, fell upon the Persian 
 troops, and crushed the greatest part of them. 
 
 The other part of the army marched towards the city of 
 Athens , 0 which had been deserted by all its inhabitants, except 
 a small number of citizens who had retired into the citadel, 
 where they defended themselves with incredible bravery, till 
 they were killed, and would hearken to no terms of accommo¬ 
 dation whatsoever. Xerxes having stormed the citadel, re¬ 
 duced it to ashes. He immediately despatched a courier to 
 Susa, to carry the agreeable news of his success to Artabanes 
 his uncle; and at the same time sent him a great number of 
 pictures and statues. Those of Harmodius and Aristogiton,** 
 the ancient deliverers of Athens, were sent with the rest. One 
 of the Antiochuses, king of Syria, (I do not know which of 
 them, nor at what time it was,) returned them to the Athenians, 
 being persuaded he could not possibly make them a more ac¬ 
 ceptable present. 
 
 SECT. VIII. 
 
 The battle of Salamis. Precipitate return of Xerxes into Asia. Panegyric 
 of Themistocles and Aristides. The defeat of the Carthaginians in Sicily. 
 
 At this time a division arose among the commanders of the 
 Grecian fleet ; q and the confederates, in a council of war which 
 was held for that purpose, were of very different sentiments 
 concerning the place for engaging the enemy. Some of then), 
 and indeed the greater part, at the head of whom was Eurvbi- 
 ades, the generalissimo of the fleet, were for having them ad¬ 
 vance near the isthmus of Corinth, that they might be nearer 
 the land army, which was posted there to guard that pass un¬ 
 der the command of Cleombrotus, Leonidas’s brother, and more 
 ready for the defence of Peloponnesus. Others, at the head 
 of whom was Themistocles, alleged, that it would be betraying 
 their country to abandon so advantageous a post as that of Sa¬ 
 lamis. And as he supported his opinion with abundance of 
 warmth, Eurybiades lifted up his cane in a menacing manner: 
 Strike, says the Athenian, unmoved at the insult, but hear me; 
 and, continuing his discourse, he proceeded to show of what 
 importance it was to the fleet of the Grecians, whose vessels 
 were lighter, and much fewer in number than those ot the Per¬ 
 sians, to engage in such a strait as that of Salamis, which would 
 render the enemy incapable of using a great part of their forces. 
 
 0 Herod. 1. viii. c. 50—54. p Pausan. 1. i. p. 14. 
 
 Herod. 1. viii. c. 5G—G5. Pint, in Themist. p. 117. 
 
314 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Eurybiades, who could not help being surprised at the modera¬ 
 tion of Themistocles, acquiesced in his reasons, or at least com¬ 
 plied with his opinion, for fear the Athenians, whose ships 
 made up above one half of the fleet, should separate themselves 
 from the allies, as their generals had taken occasion to in¬ 
 sinuate. 
 
 A council of war was also held on the side of the Persians/ 
 in order to determine whether they should hazard a naval en¬ 
 gagement ; Xerxes himself was come to the fleet, to take the 
 advice of his captains and officers, who were all unanimous for 
 the battle, because they knew it was agreeable to the king's in¬ 
 clination. Queen Artemisia was the only person who opposed 
 that resolution. She represented the dangerous consequences 
 of coming to blows with people much more conversant and more 
 expert in maritime affairs than the Persians ; alleging, that the 
 loss of a battle at sea would be attended with the ruin of their 
 land army; whereas, by protracting the war, and approach¬ 
 ing Peloponnesus, they would create jealousies and divisions 
 among their enemies, or rather augment the division which al- 
 ready was very prevalent amongst them ; that the confederates 
 in that case would not fail to separate from one another, in order 
 to return and defend their respective countries ; and that then 
 the king, without difficulty, and almost without striking a stroke, 
 might make himself master of all Greece. This wise advice 
 was not followed, and a battle was resolved upon. 
 
 Xerxes, imputing the ill success of all his former engage¬ 
 ments at sea to his own absence, was resolved to be witness of 
 this from the top of an eminence, where he caused a throne to 
 be erected for that purpose. This might have contributed in 
 some measure to animate the forces ; but there is another much 
 more sure and effectual mode of doing it, I mean, the prince’s 
 actual presence and example, when he himself shares in the 
 danger, and thereby shows himself worthy of being the soul and 
 head of a brave and numerous body of men ready to die for his 
 service. A prince who has not this sort of fortitude, which no¬ 
 thing can shake, and which even takes new vigour from danger, 
 may nevertheless be endued with other excellent qualities, but 
 is bv no means proper to command an army. Xo qualification 
 whatsoever can supply tho want of courage in a general ; and 
 the more he labours to show the appearance of it/ when he has 
 not the reality, the more he discovers his cowardice and fear. 
 There is, it must be owned, a vast difference between a general 
 officer and a common soldier. Xerxes ought not to have ex¬ 
 posed his person otherwise than became a prince ; that is to 
 
 r Herod. 1. viii. c. 67—70. 
 
 5 Quanto magis occultare ac abdere pavorem nitebantur. nianifestiiis pav di. 
 Tacit. Hist. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 315 
 
 
 say, as the bead, not as the hand ; as he whose business it is to 
 direct aid give orders, not as those who are to put them in ex¬ 
 ecution. But to keep himself entirely at a distance from dan¬ 
 ger, and to act no other part than that of a spectator, was reallv 
 renouncing the quality and office of a general. 
 
 Themistocles , 1 knowing that some of the commanders in the 
 Grecian fleet still entertained thoughts of sailing towards the 
 isthmus, contrived to have notice given covertly to Xerxes, that 
 as the Grecian allies were now assembled together in one place, 
 it would be an easy matter for him to subdue and destroy them 
 altogether; whereas, if they once separated from one another, 
 as they were going to do, he might never meet with another 
 opportunity so favourable. The king gave in to this opinion ; 
 and immediately commanded a great number of his vessels to 
 surround Salamis by night, in order to make it impracticable 
 for the Greeks to escape from that post. 
 
 Xobody among the Grecians perceived that their army was 
 surrounded in this manner . 11 Aristides came that night from 
 -Egina, where he had some forces under his command, and with 
 very great danger passed through the whole fleet of the enemy. 
 V> hen he came up to Themistocles's tent, he took him aside, 
 and spoke to him in the following manner : If we are wise, 
 Themistocles, we shall from henceforward lay aside that vain 
 and childish dissensioti that has hitherto divided us, and strive, 
 with a more noble and useful emulation, which of us shall ren¬ 
 der the best service to his country, you by commanding and 
 doing the duty of a wise and able captain, and I by obeying 
 your orders, and by assisting you with my person and advice. 
 He then informed him of the army’s being surrounded with the 
 ships of the Persians, and warmly exhorted him to give them 
 battle without delay. Themistocles, extremely astonished at 
 such a greatness of soul, and such a noble and generous frank¬ 
 ness, was somewhat ashamed that he had suffered himself to be 
 so much excelled by his rival ; but, without being ashamed to 
 own it, he promised Aristides, that he would henceforward imi¬ 
 tate his generosity, and even exceed it, if it were possible, in 
 the whole of his future conduct. Then, after having imparted 
 to him the stratagem he had contrived to deceive the barbarian, 
 he desired him to go in person to Eurybiades, in order to con¬ 
 vince him that there was no other means of safety for them, 
 than to engage the eneinv bv sea at Salamis : which commission 
 Aristides executed with pleasure and success, for he possessed 
 much influence over that general. 
 
 Both sides, therefore, prepared themselves for the battle. s 
 
 * Herod. 1. viii. 74—78. 
 
 " Plut. in Arist. p. 323. Herod. 1. viii. c. 78—82. 
 
 x Her. 1 viii. c. 84—1>6. 
 
310 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 The Grecian fleet consisted of 380 sail of ships, which in every 
 thing followed the direction and orders of Theraistocles. As 
 nothing escaped his vigilance, and as, like an able commander, 
 he knew how to improve every circumstance and incident to 
 advantage, before he would begin the engagement he waited 
 till a certain wind, which rose regularly every day at a certain 
 hour, and which was entirely contrary to the enemy, began to 
 blow. As soon as this wind rose, the signal was given for 
 battle. The Persians, who knew that their king had his eyes 
 upon them, advanced with such courage and impetuosity, as 
 were capable of striking an enemy with terror. But the heat 
 of the first attack quickly abated when they came to be engaged. 
 Every thing was against them; the wind, which blew directly 
 in their faces ; the height and the heaviness of their vessels, 
 which could not move nor turn without great difficulty ; and 
 even the number of their ships, which was so far from being of 
 use to them, that it only served to embarrass them in a place so 
 strait and narrow as that in which they fought: whereas, 
 on the side of the Grecians, every thing was done with 
 good order, and without hurry or confusion; because every 
 thing was directed by one commander. The lonians, whom 
 Themistocles had warned, by characters engraven upon stones 
 along the coasts of Euboea, to remember from whom they 
 derived their original, were the first that betook themselves 
 to flight, and were quickly followed by the rest of the fleet. 
 Artemisia distinguished herself by incredible efforts of resolu¬ 
 tion and courage; so that Xerxes, who saw in what manner she 
 had behaved herself, cried out, that the men had behaved like 
 women in this engagement, and that the women had shown the 
 courage of men. y The Athenians, being enraged that a wo¬ 
 man had dared to appear in arms against them, had promised 
 a reward of 10,000 drachmas to any one that should be able to 
 take her alive; but she had the good fortune to escape their 
 pursuit. If they had taken her, she could have deserved no¬ 
 thing from them but the highest commendations, and the most 
 honourable and generous treatment. 
 
 The manner z in which that queen escaped ought not to be 
 omitted. a Seeing herself warmly pursued by an A thenian ship. 
 
 * 'Oi n'tv dvfipeg yeyovacn jjlol yvvaiKsg, ai de yvvaliceg, dvdptg. 
 
 Artemisia inter primos duces helium acerrime ciebat. Quippe, ut in viro 
 muliebrem timorem, ita in muliere virilem audaciam .cerneres. Justin. 1. ii. 
 c. 12. 1 Herod. 1. viii. c. 87, 88. Polyaen. 1. viii. c. 53. 
 
 a It appears that Artemisia valued herself no less upon stratagem than cou¬ 
 rage, and at the same time was not very delicate in the choice df the measures 
 she used. It is said, th^t being desirous of seizing Latmus, a small city of 
 Caria, that lay very commodiously for her, she laid her troops in ambush, and, 
 under pretence of celebrating the feast of the mother of the gods, in a wood 
 consecrated to her near that city, she repaired thither with a great train of 
 eunuchs, women, drums, and trumpets. The inhabitants ran in throngs to 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 317 
 
 from which it seemed impossible for her to escape, she hung 
 out Grecian colours, and attacked one of the Persian vessels, 
 on board of which was Damasithymus, king of Calynda, b with 
 whom she had had some quarrel, and sunk it. This made her 
 pursuers believe that she was one of the Grecian fleet, and 
 they gave over the chase. 
 
 Such was the success of the battle of Salamis, one of the 
 most memorable actions related in ancient history, and which 
 has rendered the name and courage of the Grecians famous 
 for ever. A great number of the Persian ships were taken, 
 and a much greater sunk upon this occasion. Many of their 
 allies, who dreaded the king’s cruelty no less than the enemy, 
 made the best of their way into their own country. 
 
 Themistocles, in a secret conversation with Aristides, pro¬ 
 posed to his consideration, in order to sound him and to leftm 
 his real sentiments, whether it would not be proper for them to 
 send some vessels to break down the ’bridge which Xerxes had 
 caused to be built, to the end, says he, that we may take Asia 
 in Europe; but though he made this proposal, he was far from 
 approving it. Aristides, believing him to be in earnest, argued 
 very warmly and strenuously against any such project, and 
 represented to him how dangerous it was to reduce so power¬ 
 ful an enemy to despair, from whom it was their business to 
 deliver themselves as soon as possible. Themistocles seemed 
 to acquiesce in his reasons; and in order to hasten the king’s 
 departure, contrived to have him secretly informed, that the 
 Grecians designed to break down the bridge. The point The¬ 
 mistocles seems to have had in view bv this false confidence, 
 
 %> * 
 
 was to strengthen himself with Aristides’s opinion, which was 
 of great weight, against that of the other generals, in case they 
 inclined to go and break down the bridge. Perhaps too he 
 might aim at guarding himself by this means against the ill-will 
 of his enemies, who might one day accuse him of treason 
 before the people, if ever they came to know that he had been 
 the author of that secret advice to Xerxes. 
 
 This prince, c being frightened at such news, made the best 
 use he could of his time, and set out by night, leaving Mardo- 
 nius behind him, with an army of 300,000 men, in order to 
 reduce Greece, if he was able. The Grecians, who expected 
 that Xerxes would have come to another engagement the next 
 day, having learnt that he was fled, pursued him as fast as they 
 could, but to no purpose. They had destroyed 200 of the 
 enemy’s ships, besides those which they had taken/ 1 The re¬ 
 mainder of the Persian fleet, after having suffered extremely 
 
 see that religious ceremony; and in the mean time Artemisia’s troops took 
 possession of the place. Polycen. Stratag. 1. viii. c. 53. 
 b A city of Lycia. c Herod. 1. viii. c. 115—120. d Ibid. c. 130. 
 
318 
 
 HISTORY OF TIIE 
 
 by the winds in their passage, retired towards the coast of Asia, 
 and entered into the port of Cumae, a city of JEtolia, where 
 they passed the winter, without daring afterwards to return into 
 Greece. 
 
 Xerxes took the rest of his army along with him, and marched 
 towards the Hellespont. As no provisions had been prepared 
 for them before-hand, they underwent great hardships during 
 their whole march, which lasted five-and-forty days. After 
 having consumed all the fruits they could find, the soldiers were 
 obliged to live upon herbs, and even upon the bark and leaves 
 of trees. This occasioned a great sickness in the army; and 
 great numbers died of fluxes and the plague. 
 
 The king, through eagerness and impatience to make his 
 escape, had left his army behind him, and travelled on before 
 witfi a small retinue, in order to reach the bridge with the 
 greater expedition : but when he arrived at the place, he found 
 the bridge broken down by the violence of the waves, during 
 a great tempest that had happened, and was reduced to the 
 necessity of passing the strait in a fishing-boat. This was a 
 spectacle 6 well calculated to show mankind the mutability of 
 all earthly things, and the instability of human greatness ; a 
 prince, whose armies and fleets the land and sea were scarce 
 able to contain a little while before, now stealing away in a 
 small boat almost without any servants or attendants ! Such was 
 the event and success of Xerxes’s expedition against Greece. 
 
 If we compare Xerxes with himself at different times, and 
 on different occasions, we shall hardly know him for the same 
 man. When affairs were under consideration and debate, no 
 person could show more courage and intrepidity than this prince : 
 he is surprised and even offended if any one foresees the least 
 difficulty in the execution of his projects, or shows any appre¬ 
 hension concerning the issue of them. But when he comes to 
 the point of execution, and to the hour of danger, he flies like a 
 coward, and thinks of nothing but saving his own life and per¬ 
 son. Here we have a sensible and evident proof of the differ¬ 
 ence between true courage, which is never destitute of prudence, 
 and temerity,-which is always blind and presumptuous. A wise 
 and prudent prince weighs every thing, and examines all cir¬ 
 cumstances, before he enters into a war/ of which he is not 
 afraid, but at the same time does not desire ; and when the 
 time of action is come, the sight of danger serves only to 
 
 e Erat res spectaculo digna et sestimatione sortis humanoe, rerum varietate 
 miranda, in exiguo latentem videre navigio, quern paulo ante vix cequor omne 
 capiebat; carentem etiam onmi servorum ministerio, cujus exercitus, propter 
 multitudinem, terris graves erant. Justin. 1. ii. c. 13. 
 
 f Non times bella, non provocas. Plin. de Traj. 
 
 Fortissimus in ipso discrimine, qui ante discrimen quietissimus. Tacit. 
 Hist. 1. i. c. 14. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 319 
 
 animate his courage. Presumption inverts this order. When 
 she has introduced assurance and boldness, s where wisdom and 
 circumspection ought to preside, she admits fear and despair, 
 where courage and intrepidity ought to be exerted. 
 
 The first care of the Grecians, 11 after the battle of Salamis, 
 was to send the first fruits of the rich spoil they had taken to 
 - Delphi. Cimon, who was then very young, signalized himself 
 in a particular manner in that engagement, and performed 
 actions of such distinguished valour, as acquired him a great 
 reputation, and made him be considered from henceforth as a 
 citizen that would be capable of rendering the most important 
 services to his country on future occasions. 
 
 But Themistocles carried off almost all the honour of this 
 victory, 1 which was the most signal that ever the Grecians ob¬ 
 tained over the Persians. The force of truth obliged even 
 those who were most envious of his glory to render him this tes¬ 
 timony. It was a custom in Greece, that after a battle, the of¬ 
 ficers should declare who had distinguished themselves most, by 
 writing in a paper the names of the man who had merited the 
 first prize, and of him who had merited the second. On this 
 occasion, by a decision which shows the good opinion it is natural 
 for every man to have of himself, each officer adjudged the first 
 rank to himself, and allowed the second to Themistocles ; which 
 was indeed giving him the preference to them all. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians having carried him to Sparta, in order 
 to pay him the honours due to his merit, decreed to their gene¬ 
 ral Eurybiades the prize of valour, and to Themistocles that of 
 wisdom, which was a crown of olive for both of them. They 
 also made a present to Themistocles of the finest chariot in the 
 city; and on his departure sent 300 young men of the most 
 considerable families to wait upon him to the frontiers : an ho¬ 
 nour they had never shown to any person whatsoever before. 
 
 But that which gave him a still more sensible pleasure, were 
 the public acclamations he received at the first Olympic games 
 that were celebrated after the battle of Salamis, where all the 
 people of Greece were met together. As soon as he appeared, 
 the whole assembly rose up to do him honour: nobody regarded 
 either the games or the combats ; Themistocles was the only 
 spectacle. The eyes of all the company were fixed upon him, 
 and every body was eager to show him and point him out with 
 the hand to the strangers that did not know him. He acknow¬ 
 ledged afterwards to his friends, that he looked upon that day 
 as the happiest of his life ; that he had never tasted any joy so 
 sweet and so transporting: and that this reward, the genuine 
 fruit of his labours, exceeded all his desires. 
 
 & Ante discrimen feroces, in periculo pavidi. Ibid. c. 68. 
 h Herod. 1. viii. c. 122. 125. > Plut. in Themist. p. 120. 
 
320 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 The reader has undoubtedly observed in Themistocles two or 
 three principal strokes of his character, which entitle him to be 
 ranked amongst the greatest men. The design which he form¬ 
 ed and executed, of making the whole force of Athens maritime, 
 showed him to have a superior genius, capable of the highest 
 views, penetrating into futurity, and judicious in seizing the de¬ 
 cisive point in great affairs. As the territory belonging to 
 Athens was barren and of small extent, he rightly conceived, 
 that the only way that city had to enrich and aggrandize her¬ 
 self, was by sea. And indeed that scheme may justly be looked 
 upon as the source and cause of all those great events, which raised 
 the republic of Athens, in the sequel, to so flourishing a condition. 
 
 But in my opinion, this wisdom and foresight is infinitely 
 less meritorious than that uncommon temper and moderation 
 which Themistocles showed on two critical occasions, when 
 Greece had been utterly undone if he had listened to the dic¬ 
 tates of an ill-judged ambition, and had piqued himself upon a 
 false point of honour, as is usual among persons of his age and 
 profession. The first of these occasions was, when, notwith¬ 
 standing the flagrant injustice that was committed, both in refer¬ 
 ence to the republic, of which he was a member, and to his own 
 person, in appointing a Lacedaemonian generalissimo of the 
 fleet, he exhorted and prevailed with the Athenians to desist 
 from their pretensions, though never so justly founded, in order 
 to prevent the fatal effects with which a division among the 
 confederates must have been necessarily attended. And how 
 worthy of admiration was that presence of mind and coolness 
 of temper which he displayed, when the same Eurybiades not 
 only affronted him with harsh and offensive language, but lifted 
 up his cane at him with a menacing gesture ! Let it be re¬ 
 membered, at the same time, that Themistocles was then but 
 young ; that he was full of an ardent ambition for glory ; that 
 he was commander of a numerous fleet; and that he had right 
 and reason on his side. How would our young officers behave 
 on a similar occasion ! Themistocles took all patiently, and 
 the victory of Salamis was the fruit of his patience. 
 
 As to Aristides, I shall have occasion in the sequel to speak 
 more extensively upon his character and merit. He was, pro¬ 
 perly speaking, the man of the commonwealth : provided that 
 was well and faithfully served, he was very little concerned by 
 whom it was done. The merit of others, so far from offending 
 him, became his own by the approbation and encouragement 
 which he gave to it. We have seen him make his way through 
 the enemy’s fleet at the peril of his life, in order to give The¬ 
 mistocles some intelligence and good advice : and Plutarch k 
 
 k n dvTCl (JVVZTCpaTTE Hal (JVVEfiovXtVEV, f vfioZoTClTOV £7Tt (UOTrjp'Hjji KOIVy 7 roi&p 
 
 t6v tx&oroiA In vit. Arist. p. 323. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 321 
 
 takes notice, that during all the time the latter had the com¬ 
 mand, Aristides assisted him on all occasions with his counsel 
 and credit, notwithstanding he had reason to look upon him not 
 only as his rival, but his enemy. Let us compare this noble¬ 
 ness and greatness of soul with the little-spiritedness and mean¬ 
 ness of those men, who are so nice, punctilious, and jealous in 
 whatever respects the subject of command ; who are incapable 
 of acting in concert with their colleagues, and solely intent upon 
 engrossing the glory of every thing to themselves ; always 
 ready to sacrifice the welfare of the public to their own private 
 interests, or to suffer their rivals to commit blunders, that they 
 themselves may reap advantage from them. 
 
 On the very same day that the action of Thermopylae 1 hap¬ 
 pened, the formidable army of Carthaginians, which consisted 
 of 300,000 men, was entirely defeated by Gelon tyrant of Sy¬ 
 racuse. Herodotus places this battle on the same day with 
 that of Salamis. The circumstances of that victory in 
 have related in the history of the Carthaginians. 
 
 After the battle of Salamis, m the Grecians being returned 
 from pursuing the Persians, Themistocles sailed to all the islands 
 that had declared for them, to levy contributions, and exact 
 money from them. The first he began with was that of Andros, 
 from whose inhabitants he required a considerable sum, speaking 
 to them in this manner : I come to you accompanied with two 
 powerful divinities, Persuasion and Force. The answer they 
 made him was : We also have two other divinities on our 
 side, no less powerful than yours, and which do not permit us 
 to yive the money you demand of us, Poverty and Despair. » 
 Upon this refusal he made a feint of besieging them, and 
 threatened that he would entirely ruin their city. He dealt in 
 the same manner with several other islands, which durst not re¬ 
 sist him as Andros had done, and drew great sums of money 
 from them without the privity of the other commanders ; for he 
 was esteemed a lover of money, and desirous of enriching 
 himself. 
 
 SECT. IX. 
 
 The battle of Plataeae. 
 
 Mardonius," who had stayed in Greece with a 
 Ant 'j C?479 body of 300,000 men, let his troops pass the 
 winter in Thessaly, and in the spring following 
 
 1 Herod. 1. vii. c. 165. 167- 
 m Id. 1. viii. c. Ill, 112. Plut. in Themist. p. 122. 
 n Herod. 1. viii. c. 113—131. 136—140. 144. Plut. in Arist. p. 324. Diod. 
 1. xi. p. 22, 23. Plut. de Orac. Defec. p. 412. 
 
 VOL. II. Y 
 
322 
 
 HISTORY OK THE 
 
 led them into Boeotia. There was a very famous oracle in this 
 country, the oracle of Lebadia, which he thought proper to 
 consult, in order to know what would be the success of the 
 war. The priest, in his enthusiastic fit, answered in a language 
 which nobody that was present understood, as much as to in¬ 
 sinuate that the oracle would not deign to speak intelligibly to 
 a barbarian. At the same time, Mardonius sent Alexander, 
 king of Macedonia, with several Persian noblemen, to Athens, 
 and by them, in the name of his master, made very advanta¬ 
 geous proposals to the Athenian people, to detach them from the 
 rest of their allies. The offers he made him were, to rebuild 
 their city, which had been burnt down, to supply them with a 
 considerable sum of money, to suffer them to live according to 
 their own laws and customs, and to give them the government 
 and command of all Greece. Alexander exhorted them in his 
 own name, as their ancient friend, to lay hold on so favourable 
 an opportunity for re-establishing their affairs, alleging that 
 they were not in a condition to withstand a power so formidable 
 as that of the Persians, and so much superior to Greece. On 
 the first intelligence of this embassy, the Spartans also, on their 
 side, sent deputies to Athens, in order to hinder it from taking 
 effect. These were present when the others had their audi¬ 
 ence ; where, as soon as Alexander had finished his speech, 
 they began, in their turn, to address themselves to the Atheni¬ 
 ans, and strongly exhorted them not to separate themselves from 
 their allies, nor to desert the common interest of their country ; 
 representing to them, at the same time, that union in the pre¬ 
 sent situation of their affairs formed their whole strength, and 
 would render Greece invincible. They added farther, that the 
 Spartan commonwealth was very sensibly moved with the 
 melancholy state which the Athenians were in, who were des¬ 
 titute both of houses and retreat, and who for two years toge¬ 
 ther had lost all their harvests ; that in consideration of that 
 calamity, she would engage herself, during the continuance of 
 the war, to maintain and support their wives, their children* 
 and their old men, and to furnish a plentiful supply for all their 
 wants. They concluded by animadverting on the conduct of 
 Alexander, whose discourse, they said, was such as might be 
 expected from one tyrant who spoke in favour of another ; but 
 that he seemed to have forgotten, that the people to whom he 
 addressed himself had showed themselves, on all occasions, the 
 most zealous defenders of the common liberty of their country. 
 
 Aristides was at this time in office, that is to say, the princi¬ 
 pal of the Archons. As it was therefore his business to answer, 
 he said, that as to the barbarians, who made silver and gold the 
 chief objects of their esteem, he forgave them for thinking they 
 could corrupt the fidelity of a nation by large promises ; but 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 323 
 
 that lie could not help being- surprised and affected with some 
 sort of indignation, to see that the Lacedaemonians, regarding 
 only the present distress and necessity of the Athenians, and 
 forgetting their courage and magnanimity, should come to per¬ 
 suade them to persist in fighting nobly for the common safety 
 of Greece from motives of gain, and by proposing to give them 
 victuals and provision ; he desired them to acquaint their re¬ 
 public, that all the gold in the world was not capable of tempt¬ 
 ing the Athenians, or of making them desert the defence of 
 their common liberty; that they were duly sensible of the kind 
 offers which Lacedaemon had made them ; but that they would 
 endeavour to manage their affairs so as not to be a burden to 
 any of their allies. Then, turning himself towards the ambas¬ 
 sadors of Mardonius, and pointing with his hand to the sun, Be 
 assured , says he to them, that as long as that luminary shall 
 continue his course , the Athenians will he mortal enemies to 
 the Persians, and will not cease to take vengeance of them for 
 ravaging their lands and burning their houses and temples. 
 After which, he desired the king of Macedonia, if he was in¬ 
 clined to be truly their friend, not to make himself any more 
 the bearer of such proposals to them, which would only serve 
 to reflect dishonour upon him, without ever producing any other 
 effect. 
 
 Aristides was not satisfied with having made this plain and 
 peremptory declaration. But that he might excite a still 
 greater horror for such proposals, and for ever prohibit all man¬ 
 ner of intercourse with the barbarians through a principle of 
 religion, he ordained, that the priests should denounce curses 
 and execrations upon any person whatsoever, that should pre¬ 
 sume to propose the making of an alliance with the Persians, 
 or the breaking of their alliance with the rest of the Grecians. 
 
 When Mardonius had learned, 11 by the answer which the 
 Athenians had sent him, 0 that they were not to be prevailed 
 upon by any proposals or advantages whatsoever to sell their 
 liberty, he marched with his whole army towards Attica, wast¬ 
 ing and destroying whatever he found in his way. The Athe¬ 
 nians, not being in a condition to withstand such a torrent, had 
 retired to Salamis, and a second time abandoned their city. 
 Mardonius, still entertaining hopes of bringing them to some 
 terms of accommodation, sent another deputy to them to make 
 the same proposals as before. A certain Athenian, called Ly- 
 cidas, being of opinion that they should hearken to what he had 
 to offer, was immediately stoned, and the Athenian women 
 running at the same time to his house, did the same execution 
 
 “ Herod. 1. ix. c. 1—11. Plut. in Arist. p. 324. Diod. lib. xi. p. 23. 
 
 ° Posteaquam nullo pretio libertatem his videt venalem, &c. Justin. 1. ii, 
 
 c. II. 
 
 Y 2 
 
324 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 upon his wife and children; so detestable a crime did it appear 
 to them to propose a peace with the Persians. But notwith¬ 
 standing’ this, they paid respect to the character wherewith the 
 deputy was invested, and sent him back without offering- him 
 any indignity or ill treatment. Mardonius now found that there 
 was no peace to be expected with them. He therefore enter¬ 
 ed Athens, and burnt and demolished every thing that had es¬ 
 caped their fury the preceding year. 
 
 The Spartans, instead of conducting their troops into Attica, 
 according to their engagement, thought only of keeping them¬ 
 selves shut up within the Peloponnesus for their own security, 
 and with that view had begun to build a wall over the isthmus, 
 in order to hinder the enemy from entering that way, by which 
 means they reckoned they should be safe themselves, and should 
 have no farther occasion for the assistance of the Athenians. 
 The latter hereupon sent deputies to Sparta, in order to com¬ 
 plain of the slowness and neglect of their allies But the 
 Epliori did not seem to be much moved at their remonstrances; 
 and as that day was the festival of Hyacinthus, p they spent it 
 in feasts and rejoicing, and deferred giving the deputies their an¬ 
 swer till the next day. And still procrastinating the affair as much 
 as they could, on various pretexts, they gained ten days’ time, 
 during which the building of the wall was completed. They 
 were on the point of dismissing the Athenian convoys in a scandal¬ 
 ous manner, when a private citizen expostulated with them, and 
 represented to them, how base it would be to treat the Atheni¬ 
 ans in such a manner, after all the calamities and voluntary 
 losses they had so generously suffered for the common defence 
 of liberty, and all the important services they had rendered 
 Greece in general. This opened their eyes, and made them 
 ashamed of their perfidious design. The very next night fol¬ 
 lowing they sent off, unknown to the Athenian deputies, 5000 
 Spartans, who had each of them seven helots or slaves to 
 attend him. On the following morning the deputies renewed 
 their complaints with great warmth and earnestness, and were 
 extremely surprised when they were told that the Spartan suc¬ 
 cours were on their march, and by this time were not far from 
 Attica. 
 
 Mardonius had left 4ttica at this time/ and was on his return 
 into Boeotia. As the latter was an open and flat country, he 
 thought it would be more convenient for him to fight there than 
 
 p Amongst the Lacedaemonians the feast of Hyacinthus continued three 
 days; the first and the last of which were days of sorrow and mourning for 
 the death of Hyacinthus; but the second was a day of rejoicing, which was 
 spent in feasting, sports, and spectacles, and all kinds of diversions. This 
 festival was celebrated every year in the month of August, in honour of 
 Apollo and Hyacinthus. 
 
 r Herod. 1. ix. c. 12— J6. Plut. in Arist. p. 325—330. Diod. 1. ix. p. 24. 20. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 325 
 
 in Attica, which was uneven and rugged, full of hills and narrow 
 passes, and which for that reason would not allow him space 
 enough for drawing up his numerous army in battle-array, nor 
 leave room for his cavalry to act. When he came back into 
 Boeotia, he encamped by the river Asopus. The Grecians 
 followed him thither under the command of Pausanias, king of 
 Sparta, and of Aristides, general of the Athenians. The 
 Persian army, according to Herodotus, consisled of 300,000, 
 or, according to Diodorus, of 500,000 men. That of the Gre¬ 
 cians did not amount to 70,000; of which there were but 5000 
 Spartans; but, as these were accompanied by 35,000 helots, viz. 
 seven for each Spartan, they made up together 40,000; the 
 latter of these were light-armed troops. The Athenian forces 
 consisted but of 8000, and the troops of the allies made up the 
 remainder. The right wing of the army was commanded by 
 the Spartans, and the left by the Athenians, an honour which 
 the people of Tegaea pretended to, and disputed with them, but 
 in vain. 
 
 Whilst all Greece was in suspense, 8 expecting a battle that 
 should determine their fate, a secret conspiracy, formed in the 
 midst of the Athenian camp by some discontented citizens, who 
 intended either to subvert their popular government, or to 
 deliver up Greece into the hands of the Persians, gave Aris¬ 
 tides a great deal of perplexity and trouble. On this emer¬ 
 gency he had occasion for all his prudence: not knowing ex¬ 
 actly how many might be concerned in this conspiracy, he 
 contented himself with having eight of them taken up; and of 
 those eight, the onlv two whom he caused to be accused, be- 
 cause they had the most laid to their charge, made their escape 
 out of the camp, while their trial was preparing. There is 
 no doubt but Aristides favoured their escape, lest he should be 
 obliged to punish them, and their punishment might occasion 
 some tumult and disorder. The others that were in custody he 
 released, leaving them room to believe that he had found no¬ 
 thing against them, and telling them, that the battle with the 
 enemy should be the tribunal where they might fully justify 
 their characters, and show the world how unlikely it was that 
 they had ever entertained a thought of betraying their country. 
 This well-timed and wise dissimulation, which opened a door for 
 repentance, and avoided driving the offenders to despair, ap¬ 
 peased all the commotion, and quashed the whole affair. 
 
 Mardonius, in order to try the Grecians, sent out his cavalry, 
 in which he was strongest, to skirmish with them. The Me- 
 garians, who were encamped in the open country, suffered ex¬ 
 tremely by them; and in spite of all the vigour and resolution 
 with which they defended themselves, they were upon the point 
 
 * Plut. in Arist. p. 32 6. 
 
326 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 of giving way, when a detachment of 300 Athenians, with 
 some troops armed with missive weapons, advanced to their 
 succour. Masistius, the general of the Persian horse, and one 
 of the most considerable noblemen of his country, seeing them 
 advance towards him in good order, made his cavalry face about 
 and attack them. The Athenians stood their ground, and 
 waited to receive them. The shock was very fierce and violent, 
 both sides equally endeavouring to show, by the issue of this 
 encounter, what would be the success of the general engage¬ 
 ment. The victory was a long time disputed ; but at last Ma- 
 sistius’s horse, being wounded, threw his master, who was in¬ 
 stantly killed ; upon which the Persians immediately fled. As 
 soon as the news of his death reached the barbarians, their 
 grief was excessive. They cut oft* their hair, as also the manes 
 of their horses and mules, filling the camp with their cries and 
 lamentations, having lost, in their opinion, the bravest man of 
 their army. 
 
 After this encounter with the Persian cavalry, the two armies 
 were a long time without coming to action ; because the sooth¬ 
 sayers, upon inspecting the entrails of the victims, foretold 
 equally to both parties, that they should be victorious, provided 
 they acted only upon the defensive ; whereas, on the other hand, 
 they threatened them equally with a total overthrow, if they 
 acted offensively, or made the first attack. 
 
 They passed ten days in this manner, in view of each other. 
 But Mardonius, who was of a fiery, impatient temper, grew 
 very uneasy at so long a delay. Besides, he had only a few 
 days’ provisions left for his army; and the Grecians grew 
 stronger every day by the addition of new troops, that weie 
 continually coming to join them. He therefore called a council 
 of war, in order to deliberate whether they should give battle. 
 Artabazus, a nobleman of singular merit and great experience, 
 was of opinion, that they should not hazard a battle, but that 
 they should retire under the walls of Thebes, where they would 
 be in a condition to supply the army with provisions and forage. 
 He alleged, that delays alone would be capable of diminishing 
 the ardour of the allies; that they would thereby have time to 
 tamper with them, and might be able to draw some of them off 
 by gold and silver, which they would take care to distribute 
 among the leaders, and among such as had the greatest sway 
 and authority in their several cities : and that, in short, this 
 would be both the easiest and surest method of subjecting 
 Gi *eece. This opinion was very wise, but was overruled by 
 Mardonius, whom the rest had not courage to contradict. The 
 result, therefore, of their deliberations was, that they should 
 give battle the next day. Alexander, king of Macedonia, who 
 was on the side of the Grecians in his heart, came secretly about 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 327 
 
 midnight to their camp, and informed Aristides of all that had 
 passed. 
 
 Pausanias forthwith gave orders to the officers to prepare 
 themselves for battle, and imparted to Aristides the design he 
 had formed of changing his order of battle, by placing the Athe¬ 
 nians in the right wing, instead of the left, in order to oppose 
 them to the Persians, with whom they had been accustomed to 
 engage. Whether it was fear or prudence that induced Pau¬ 
 sanias to propose this new disposition, the Athenians accepted 
 it with pleasure. Nothing was heard among them but mutual 
 exhortations to acquit themselves bravely, bidding each other 
 remember, that neither they nor their enemies were changed 
 since the battle of Marathon, unless it were, that victory had 
 increased the courage of the Athenians, and had dispirited the 
 Persians. We do not tight, said they, as they do, for a country 
 only, or a city, but for the trophies erected at Marathon and at 
 Salamis, that they may not appear to be the work jonly of Mil- 
 tiades and of Fortune, but the work of the Athenians. Encou¬ 
 raging one another in this manner, they went with all the 
 alacrity imaginable to change their post. But Mardonius, upon 
 the intelligence he received of this movement, having made the 
 like change in his order of battle, both sides ranged their troops 
 again according to their former disposition. The whole day^ 
 passed in this manner, without their coming to action. 
 
 In the evening the Grecians held a council of war, in which 
 it was resolved, that they should decamp from the place they 
 were in, and march to another, more conveniently situated for 
 water. Night being come, and the officers endeavouring, at 
 the head of their companies, to push forward to the camp 
 marked out for them, great confusiou arose among the troops, 
 some going one way, and some another, without observing any 
 order or regularity in their march. At last they halted near the 
 little city of Plataeae. 
 
 On the first news of the Grecians having decamped, Mardo¬ 
 nius drew his whole army into order of battle, and pursued them 
 with the hideous shouting and howling of his barbarian forces, 
 who thought they were marching, not so much to fight, as to 
 strip and plunder a flying enemy: and their general, likewise, 
 making himself sure of victory, proudly insulted Artabazus, re¬ 
 proaching him with his fearful and cowardly prudence, and with 
 the false notion he had conceived of the Lacedaemonians, who 
 never fled, as he pretended, before an enemy ; whereas here 
 w'as an instance of the contrary. But the general quickly found 
 this was no false or ill-grounded notion. He happened to fall 
 in with the Lacedaemonians, who were alone, and separated from 
 the body of the Grecian army, to the number of 50,000 men, 
 together with 3000 of the Tegeans. The encounter was ex- 
 
328 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 ceeding fierce : on both sides the men fought with the courage 
 of lions ; and the barbarians perceived that they had to do with 
 soldiers, who were determined to conquer or die in the field. 
 The Athenian troops, to whom Pausanias had sent an officer, 
 were already upon their march to aid them: but the Greeks, 
 who were on the side of the Persians, to the number of 50,000 
 men, went out to meet them, and hindered them from proceeding 
 any farther. Aristides with his little body of men bore up 
 firmly against them, and withstood their attack, letting them see 
 how insignificant a superiority of numbers is against true cou¬ 
 rage and bravery. 
 
 The battle being thus divided into two, and fought in two 
 different places, the Spartans were the first who broke in upon 
 the Persian forces and put them into disorder. Mardonius, 
 their general, falling dead of a wound he had received in the 
 engagement, all his army betook themselves to flight; and 
 those Greeks, who were engaged against Aristides, did the 
 same, as soon as they understood the barbarians were defeated. 
 The latter had taken shelter in their former camp, where they 
 had fortified themselves with an inclosure of wood. The Lace- 
 dagmonians pursued them thither, and attacked them in their 
 intrenchment; but this they did weakly and irresolutely, like 
 people that were not much accustomed to sieges, and to storm 
 walls. The Athenian troops, having advice of this, left off 
 pursuing their Grecian adversaries, and marched to the camp 
 of the Persians, which after several assaults they carried, and 
 made a horrible slaughter of the enemy. 
 
 Artabazus, who from Mardonius’s imprudent management 
 had but too well foreseen the misfortune that befell them, after 
 having distinguished himself in the engagement, and given all 
 possible proofs of his courage and intrepidity, made a timely 
 retreat with the 40,000 men he commanded ; and preventing 
 his flight from being known by the expedition of his march, 
 arrived safe at Byzantium, and from thence returned into Asia. 
 Of all the rest of the Persian army, not 4000 men escaped that 
 day’s slaughter; all were killed and cut to pieces by the Gre¬ 
 cians, who by that means delivered themselves at once from all 
 farther invasions from that nation, no Persian army having ever 
 appeared after that time on this side the Hellespont. 
 
 This battle was fought on the fourth day of 
 Ant. J 1 C. 5 479. ^ ie mon ^ 1 Beodromion, 1 according to the Athe¬ 
 nian manner of reckoning. Soon after, the allies, 
 as a testimony of their gratitude to Heaven, caused a statue of 
 Jupiter to be made at their joint and common expense, which 
 they placed in his temple at Olympia. The names of the se- 
 
 * This day answers to the nineteenth of our September. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 329 
 
 veral nations of Greece, 11 that were present in the engagement, 
 were engraven on the right side of the pedestal of the statue; the 
 Lacedaemonians first, the Athenians next, and all the rest in 
 order. 
 
 One of the principal citizens of ^Egina came and addressed 
 himself to Pausanias, x exhorting him to avenge the indignity 
 that Mardonius and Xerxes had shown to Leonidas, whose 
 dead body had been hung upon a gallows by their order, and 
 urging him to use Mardonius’s body in the same manner. As 
 a farther motive for doing so, he added, that by thus satisfying 
 the manes of those that were killed at Thermopylae, he would 
 be sure to immortalize his own name throughout all Greece, 
 and make his memory precious to the latest posterity. Carry 
 thy base counsel elsewhere , replied Pausanias. Thou must 
 have a very wrong notion of true glory, to imagine, that the 
 way for me to acquire it is by resembling the barbarians. If 
 the esteem of the people of JPgina is not to be purchased but 
 by such a proceeding, I shall be content with preserving that 
 of the Lacedcemonians alone, amongst whom the base and unge¬ 
 nerous pleasure of revenge is never put in competition with that 
 of showing clemency and moderation to their enemies, and espe¬ 
 cially after their death. As for the manes of my departed coun¬ 
 trymen, they are sufficiently avenged by the death of the many 
 thousand Persians slain upon the spot in the last engagement. 
 
 A dispute^ which arose between the Athenians and Lace¬ 
 daemonians, to ascertain which of the two nations should have 
 the prize of valour adjudged to them, as also which of them 
 should have the privilege of erecting a trophy, had like to have 
 sullied all the glory, and imbittered the joy, of their late victory. 
 They were just on the point of carrying things to the last extre¬ 
 mity, and would certainly have decided the dispute with their 
 swords, had not Aristides prevailed upon them, by the strength 
 of his arguments, to refer the determination of the matter to the 
 judgment of the Grecians in general. This proposition being 
 accepted by both parties, and the Greeks being assembled upon 
 the spot to decide the contest, Theogiton of Megara, speaking 
 upon the question, gave it as his opinion, that the prize of va¬ 
 lour ought to be adjudged neither to Athens nor to Sparta, but 
 to some other city ; unless they desired to kindle a civil war, of 
 more fatal consequences than that to which they had just put an 
 end. After he had finished his speech, Cleocritus of Corinth 
 rising up, nobody doubted but he was goingto claim that honour 
 for the city of which he was a member and a native ; for Corinth 
 was the chief city of Greece in power and dignity after those 
 of Athens and Sparta. But every body was agreeably deceived 
 when they found, that all his discourse tended to the praise of 
 u Pausan. 1. v. p. 532. x Herod. 1. ix. e. 77, 78. y Plut. in Arist. p. 331- 
 
330 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 the Plataeans, and that the conclusion he made from the whole 
 was, that in order to extinguish so dangerous a contention, they 
 ought to adjudge the prize to them only, against whom neither 
 of the contending parties could have any grounds of anger or 
 jealousy. This discourse and proposal were received with a ge¬ 
 neral applause by the whole assembly. Aristides immediately 
 assented to it on the part of the Athenians, and Pausanias on 
 the part of the Lacedaemonians. 
 
 All parties being thus agreed, 2 before they began to divide 
 the spoil of the enemy, they put fourscore talents a aside for the 
 Plataeans, who laid them out in building a temple to Minerva, 
 in erecting a statue to her honour, and in adorning the temple 
 with curious and valuable paintings ; which were still in being 
 in Plutarch’s time, that is to say, above 600 years afterwards, 
 and which were then as fresh as if they had lately come out 
 of the hands of the painters. As for the trophy, which had 
 been another article of the dispute, the Lacedaemonians erected 
 one for themselves in particular, and the Athenians another. 
 
 The spoil was immense ; in Mardonius’s camp they found 
 prodigious sums of gold and silver, besides cups, vessels, beds, 
 tables, necklaces, and bracelets of gold and silver, not to be 
 valued or numbered. It is observed by a certain historian, b that 
 these spoils proved fatal to Greece, by becoming the instru¬ 
 ments of introducing the love of riches and luxury among her 
 inhabitants. According to the religious custom of the Grecians, 
 before they divided the treasure, they appropriated the tenth 
 part of the whole to the use of the gods. The rest was distri¬ 
 buted equally among the cities and nations that had furnished 
 troops ; and the chief officers who had distinguished themselves 
 in the field of battle were likewise distinguished in this distri¬ 
 bution. They sent a present of a golden tripod to Delphi, in 
 the inscription upon which Pausanias caused these words to be 
 inserted ; That he had defeated the barbarians at Platcecef 
 and that in acknowledgment of that victory he had made this 
 present to Aj)ollo. 
 
 This arrogant inscription, wherein he ascribed the honour 
 both of the victory and the offering to himself alone, offended 
 the Lacedaemonian people, who, in order to punish his pride in 
 the very point in which he thought to exalt himself, and at the 
 same time to do justice to their confederates, caused his name 
 to be rased out, and that of the cities which had contributed to 
 the victory to be put in the stead of it. Too ardent a thirst after 
 glory on this occasion did not give him leave to consider, that 
 
 z Herod. 1. ix. c. 79, 80. 
 
 a Eighty thousand crowns French, about 18,000/. sterling. 
 b Yicto Mardonio, castra referta regalis opulentiae capta, unde primum 
 Grsecos, diviso inter se auro Persico, divitiarum luxuria cepit. Justin. 1. ii. 
 c. 14. e Cor. Nep. in Pausan. c. 1. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 331 
 
 a man loses nothing by a discreet modesty, which forbears the 
 setting too high a value upon one’s own services, and which, by 
 screening a man from envy, serves really to enhance his reputa¬ 
 tion^ 
 
 Pausanias gave amore advantageous specimen of the Spartan 
 temper ana disposition, at an entertainment which he gave a 
 few days after the engagement; where one of the tables was 
 costly and magnificent, and displayed all the variety of delicacies 
 and dainties that used to be served at Mardonius’s table; and 
 the other was plain and frugal, after the manner of the Spartans. 
 Then comparing the two together, and causing his officers, 
 whom he had invited on purpose, to observe the difference of 
 them ; What madness , says he, was it in Mardonius, who 
 was accustomed to such a luxui'ious diet, to come and attack 
 a people like us, that know how to live without any such 
 superfluities. 
 
 All the Grecians sent to Delphi e to consult the oracle con¬ 
 cerning the sacrifice it was proper to offer. The answer they 
 received from the god was, that they should erect an altar to 
 Jupiter the Deliverer ; but that they should take care not to 
 offer any sacrifice upon it, before they had extinguished all the 
 fire in the country, because it had been polluted and profaned by 
 the barbarians; and that they should come as far as Delphi to 
 fetch pure fire, which they were to take from the altar, called the 
 common altar. 
 
 This answer being brought to the Grecians from the oracle, 
 the generals immediately dispersed themselves throughout the 
 whole country, and caused all the fires to be extinguished : and 
 Euchidas, a citizen of Platasae, having taken upon himself to 
 go and fetch the sacred fire with all possible expedition, made 
 the best of his way to Delphi. On his arrival he purified him¬ 
 self, sprinkled his body with consecrated water, put on a crown of 
 laurel, and then approached the altar, from whence, with great 
 reverence, he took the holy fire, and carried it with him to PlataeaB, 
 where he arrived before the setting of the sun, having travelled 
 1000 stadia (which make 125 miles English) in one day. As soon 
 as he came back he saluted his fellow-citizens, delivered the 
 fire to them, fell down at their feet, and died in a moment after¬ 
 wards. His countrymen carried away his body, and buried it 
 in the temple of Diana, surnamed Eucleia, which signifies of 
 good renown, and put the following epitaph upon his tomb, in 
 the compass of one verse : Here lies Euchidas, who went from 
 hence to Delphi, and returned hack the same day. 
 
 In the next general assembly of Greece, which was held not 
 long after this occurrence, Aristides proposed the following 
 
 d Ipsa dissimulatione famse famani auxit. Tacit. 
 e Plut. in Arist. p. 331, 332. 
 
332 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 decree: That all the cities of Greece should every year send 
 their respective deputies to Plataeee, to offer sacrifices to Jupiter 
 the Deliverer, and to the gods of the city (this assembly was 
 still regularly held in the time of Plutarch); that every five 
 years there should be games celebrated there, which should 
 be called the games of liberty ; that the several states of Greece 
 together should raise a body of troops, consisting of 10,000 
 foot and 1000 horse, and should equip a fleet of 100 ships, 
 which should be constantly maintained for making war against 
 the barbarians ; and that the inhabitants of Plataeae, solely de¬ 
 voted to the service of the gods, should be looked upon as sacred 
 and inviolable, and be concerned in no other function than that 
 of offering prayers and sacrifices for the general preservation 
 and prosperity of Greece. 
 
 All these articles being approved of and passed into a law, 
 the citizens of Platmae took upon them to solemnize, every year, 
 the anniversary festival in honour of those persons that were 
 slain in the battle. The order and manner of performing this 
 sacrifice was as follows: The sixteenth day of the month Mai- 
 macterion, f which answers to our month of December, at day¬ 
 break, they walked in a solemn procession, which was preceded 
 by a trumpet that sounded to battle. Next to the trumpet 
 marched several chariots, filled with crowns and branches of 
 myrtle. After those chariots, was led a black bull, behind which 
 marched a company of young persons, carrying pitchers in 
 their hands full of wine and milk, the ordinary libations offered 
 to the dead, and phials of oil and perfumes. All these young 
 persons were free-men; for no slave was allowed to have any 
 part in this ceremony, which was instituted for men who had 
 lost their lives for liberty, In the rear of this procession fol¬ 
 lowed the arch on, or chief magistrate of the Flatmans, for whom 
 it was unlawful at any other time even so much as to touch 
 iron, or to wear any other garment than a white one. But 
 upon this occasion, being clad in purple raiment, having a 
 sword by his side, and holding an urn in his hands, which he 
 took from the place where they kept their public records, he 
 marched through the city to the place where the tombs of his 
 countrymen were erected. As soon as he came there, he drew 
 water with his urn from the fountain, washed with his own 
 hands the little columns that belonged to the tombs, rubbed 
 them afterwards with essence, and then killed the bull upon a 
 pile of wood prepared for that purpose. After having offered 
 up prayers to the terrestrial Jupiter & and Mercury, he invited 
 
 1 Three months after that in which the battle of Platseae was fought. Pro¬ 
 bably these funeral rites were not at first performed till the enemy were 
 entirely gone, and the country was free. 
 
 e The terrestrial Jupiter is no other than Pluto; and the same epithet of 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 333 
 
 those valiant souls deceased to come to their feast, and to par¬ 
 take of their funeral libations ; then taking a cup in his hand, 
 and having filled it with wine, he poured it out on the ground, 
 and said with a loud voice :—I present this cup to those va¬ 
 liant men, who died for the liberty of the Grecians . These 
 ceremonies were annually performed even in the time of 
 Plutarch. 
 
 Diodorus adds, 11 that the Athenians in particular embellished 
 the monuments of their citizens, who died in the war with the 
 Persians, with magnificent ornaments, instituted funeral games 
 to their honour, and appointed a solemn panegyric to be pro¬ 
 nounced over them, which in all probability was repeated every 
 year. 
 
 The reader will be sensible, without my observing it, how 
 much these solemn testimonies and perpetual demonstrations of 
 honour, esteem, and gratitude for soldiers who had sacrificed 
 their lives in the defence of liberty, conduced to enhance the 
 merit of valour, and of the services they rendered their coun¬ 
 try, and to inspire the spectators with emulation and courage ; 
 and how exceedingly well calculated all this was to cultivate 
 and perpetuate a spirit of bravery in the people, and to make 
 their troops victorious and invincible. 
 
 The reader, no doubt, will be as much struck at seeing how 
 wonderfully careful and exact these people were to acquit 
 themselves on every occasion of the duties of religion. The 
 great event which I have just been relating, viz. the battle of 
 Plataem, affords us very remarkable proofs of this, in the annual 
 and perpetual sacrifice they instituted to Jupiter the Deliverer , 
 which was still continued in the time of Plutarch; in the care 
 they took to consecrate the tenth part of all their spoil to the 
 gods; and in the decree proposed by Aristides to establish a 
 solemn festival for ever, as an anniversary commemoration of 
 that success. It is a delightful thing, methinks, to see pagan 
 and idolatrous nations thus publicly confessing and declaring, 
 that all their expectations centre in the Supreme Being; that 
 they think themselves obliged to ascribe the success of all their 
 undertakings to him; that they look upon him as the Author 
 of all their victories and prosperities, as the sovereign ruler and 
 disposer of states and empires, as the source from whence all 
 salutary counsels, wisdom, and courage, are derived ; and as 
 entitled, on all these accounts, to the first and best part of their 
 spoils, and to their perpetual acknowledgments and thanks¬ 
 givings for such distinguished favours and benefits. 
 
 terrestrial was also given to Mercury ; because it was believed to be his office 
 to conduct departed souls to the infernal regions. h Lib. xi. p. 26. 
 
334 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 SECT. X. 
 
 The battle near Mycale. The defeat of the Persians. 
 
 On the same day that the Greeks fought the battle of Pla¬ 
 ta?^, 5 their naval forces obtained a memorable victory in Asia 
 over the remainder of the Persian fleet. For whilst that of the 
 Greeks lay at iEgina, under the command of Leotychides, one 
 of the kings of Sparta, and of Xanthippus the Athenian, am¬ 
 bassadors came to those generals from the Ionians to invite them 
 into Asia to deliver the Grecian cities from their subjection to 
 the barbarians. On this invitation they immediately set sail 
 for Asia, and steered their course by Delos. While they 
 continued there, other ambassadors arrived from Samos, and 
 brought them intelligence, that the Persian fleet, which had 
 passed the winter at Cumae, was then at Samos, where it would 
 lee an easy matter to defeat and destroy it, earnestly pressing 
 them at the same time not to neglect so favourable an opportu¬ 
 nity. The Greeks hereupon sailed away directly for Samos. 
 But the Persians, receiving intelligence of their approach, re¬ 
 tired to Mycale, a promontory of the continent of Asia, where 
 their land army, consisting of 100,000 men, who were the re¬ 
 mainder of those that Xerxes had carried back from Greece 
 the year before, was encamped. Here they drew their vessels 
 ashore, which was a common practice among the ancients, and 
 surrounded them with a strong rampart. The Grecians fol¬ 
 lowed them to the very place, and with the help of the Ionians, 
 defeated their land army, forced their rampart, and burnt all 
 their vessels. 
 
 The battle of Plataete was fought in the morning, and that of 
 Mycale in the afternoon on the same day: and yet all the 
 Greek writers pretend that the victory of Plataeae was known 
 at Mycale before the latter engagement was begun, though 
 the whole ^Egean sea, which requires several days’ sailing to 
 cross it, was between those two places. But Diodorus Siculus 
 explains to us this mystery. He tells us, that Leotychides, 
 observing his soldiers to be much dejected for fear their coun¬ 
 trymen at Plataeas should sink under the numbers of Mardo- 
 nius’s army, contrived a stratagem to reanimate them ; and that, 
 therefore, when he was just upon the point of making the first 
 attack, he caused a rumour to be spread among his troops, k 
 that the Persians were defeated at Plataese, though at that time 
 he had no manner of knowledge of the matter. 
 
 * Herod. 1. ix. c. 89—105. Uiod. 1. xi. p. 26—28. 
 k What we are told also of Paulus iEmilius’s victory over the Macedonians, 
 which was known at Rome the very day it was obtained, without doubt hap¬ 
 pened in the same manner. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS, 
 
 335 
 
 Xerxes, 1 hearing the news of these two great overthrows, 
 left Sardis with as much haste as he had formerly quitted 
 Athens, after the battle of Salamis, and retired with great pre¬ 
 cipitation into Persia, in order to put himself, as far as he pos¬ 
 sibly could, out of the reach of his victorious enemies. But 
 before he set out, m he gave orders to burn and demolish 
 all the temples belonging to the Grecian cities in Asia : which 
 order was so far executed, that not one escaped, except the 
 temple of Diana at Ephesus. He acted in this manner at the in¬ 
 stigation of the Magi, 11 who were professed enemies to temples 
 and images. The second Zoroaster had thoroughly instructed 
 him in their religion, and made him a zealous defender of it. 
 Pliny informs us, ° that Ostanes, the head of the Magi, and the 
 patriarch of that sect, who maintained its maxims and interests 
 with t.he greatest violence, attended Xerxes upon this expedi¬ 
 tion into Greece. This prince, p as he passed through Babylon 
 on his return to Susa, destroyed also all the temples in that 
 city, as he had done those of Greece and Asia Minor; doubt¬ 
 less through the same principle, and out of hatred to the sect 
 of the Sabaeans, who made use of images in their divine wor¬ 
 ship, which was a thing utterly detested by the Magi. Per¬ 
 haps, also, the desire of making himself amends for the ex¬ 
 penses incurred in his Grecian expedition by the spoil and 
 plunder of those temples, might be another motive that induced 
 him to destroy them : for it is certain, he found immense riches 
 and treasure in them, which had been amassed through the 
 superstition of princes and people during a long series of ages. 
 
 The Grecian fleet, after the battle of Mycale, set sail towards 
 the Hellespont, in order to possess themselves of the bridges 
 which Xerxes had caused to be laid over that narrow passage, 
 and which they supposed were still entire : but finding them 
 broken down by tempestuous weather, Leotychides and his Pe¬ 
 loponnesian forces returned towards their own country. As for 
 Xanthippus, he stayed with the Athenians and their Ionian 
 confederates, and they made themselves masters of Sestus and 
 the Thracian Chersonesus, in which places they found great 
 booty, and took a vast number of prisoners. After which, on 
 the approach of winter, they returned to their own cities. 
 
 From this time all the cities of Ionia revolted from the Per¬ 
 sians, and having entered into a confederacy with the Grecians, 
 most of them preserved their liberty during the time that empire 
 subsisted. 
 
 1 Diod. 1. xi. p. 28. 111 Strab. 1. xiv. p. C34. n Cic. 1. ii. de Leg. n. 29. 
 
 ' ° Plin. 1. xxx. c. 1. p Arrian. 1. vii. 
 
336 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 SECT. XI. 
 
 The barbarous and inhuman revenge of Amestris, the wife of Xerxes. 
 
 D uring the time that Xerxes resided at Sar- 
 Ant J C°*479 dis, q conce i v ed a violent passion for the wife 
 of his brother Masistes, who was a prince of ex¬ 
 traordinary merit, had always served the king with great zeal 
 and fidelity, and had never done any thing to disoblige him. 
 The virtue of this lady, her great affection and fidelity to her hus¬ 
 band, made her inexorable to all the king’s solicitations. How¬ 
 ever, he still flattered himself, that by a profusion of favours and 
 liberalities he might possibly gain upon her ; and among other 
 favours which he conferred upon her, he married his eldest son 
 Darius, whom he intended for his successor, to Artainta, this 
 princess’s daughter, and ordered that the marriage should be 
 consummated as soon as he arrived at Susa. But Xerxes find¬ 
 ing the lady still no less impregnable, in spite of all his tempta¬ 
 tions and attacks, immediately changed his object, and fell pas¬ 
 sionately in love with her daughter, who did not imitate the 
 glorious example of her mother’s constancy and virtue. Whilst 
 this intrigue was carrying on, Amestris, wife to Xerxes, pre¬ 
 sented him with a rich and magnificent robe of her own making. 
 Xerxes, being extremely pleased with this robe, thought fit to 
 put it on upon the first visit he afterwards made to Artainta ; 
 and in conversation pressed her to let him know what she 
 desired he should do for her, assuring her, at the same time, 
 with an oath, that he would grant her whatever she asked of 
 him. Artainta, upon this, desired him to give her the robe he 
 had on. Xerxes,foreseeing the ill consequences that would ne¬ 
 cessarily ensue upon his making her this present, did all that 
 he could to dissuade her from insisting upon it, and offered her 
 any thing in the world in lieu of it. But not being able to prevail 
 upon her, and thinking himself bound by the imprudent promise 
 and oath he had made to her, he gave her the robe. The lady 
 no sooner received it, than she put it on, and wore it publicly 
 by way of trophy. 
 
 Amestris being confirmed in the suspicion she had enter¬ 
 tained by this action, was enraged to the last degree. But 
 instead of letting her vengeance fall upon the daughter, who 
 was the only offender, she resolved to wreak it upon the mother, 
 whom she looked upon as the author of the whole intrigue, 
 though she was entirely innocent of the matter. For the better , 
 executing of her purpose, she waited until the grand feast, 
 which was every year celebrated on the king’s birth-day, and 
 which was not far off; on which occasion the king, according 
 
 q Herod. 1. ix. c. 107—112. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 337 
 
 to the established custom of the country, granted her what¬ 
 ever she demanded. This day then being come, the thing 
 which she desired of his majesty was, that the wife of Ma- 
 sistes should be delivered into her hands. Xerxes, who ap¬ 
 prehended the queers design, and who was struck with horror 
 at the thoughts of it, as well out of regard to his brother, as 
 on account of the innocence of the lady, against whom he per¬ 
 ceived his wife was violently exasperated, at first refused her 
 request, and endeavoured all he could to dissuade her from it. 
 But not being able either to prevail upon her, or to act with 
 steadiness and resolution himself, he at last yielded, and was 
 guilty of complaisance equally weak and cruel, making the 
 inviolable obligations of justice and humanity give way to the 
 arbitrary laws of a custom, that had been established solely to 
 give occasion for the doing of good, and for acts of beneficence 
 and generosity. In consequence then of this compliance, the 
 lady was apprehended by the king’s guards, and delivered to 
 Amestis, who caused her breasts, tongue, nose, ears, and lips, 
 to be cut off, ordered them to be cast to the dogs in her own 
 presence, and then sent her home to her husband’s house in that 
 mutilated and miserable condition. In the mean time Xerxes 
 had sent for his brother, in order to prepare him for this melan¬ 
 choly and tragical adventure. He first gave him to understand 
 that he should be glad he would put away his wife ; and, to in¬ 
 duce him thereto, offered to give him one of his daughters in mar¬ 
 riage in her stead. But Masistes, who was passionately fond of 
 his wife, could not prevail upon himself to divorce her; where¬ 
 upon Xer.xes in great wrath told him that since he refused 
 his daughter, he should neither have her nor his wife, and that 
 he would teach him not to reject the offers his master had made 
 him ; and with this inhuman reply dismissed him. 
 
 This strange proceeding threw Masistes into the greatest 
 anxiety, thinking he had reason to apprehend the worst; he 
 made all the haste he could home to see what had passed there 
 during his absence. On his arrival he found his wife in that 
 deplorable condition we have just been describing. Being en¬ 
 raged thereat to the degree we may naturally imagine, he as¬ 
 sembled all his family, his servants and dependants, and set out 
 with all possible expedition for Bactriana, whereof he was go¬ 
 vernor, determined, as soon as he arrived there, to raise an 
 army and make war against the king, in order to avenge him¬ 
 self for his barbarous treatment. But Xerxes being informed 
 of his hasty departure, and from thence suspecting his design, 
 sent a party of horse to pursue him ; which, having overtaken 
 him, cut him in pieces, together with his children and all his re¬ 
 tinue. I do not know whether a more tragical example of revenge 
 than that which I have now related, is to be found in history. 
 
 VOL. II. z 
 
338 
 
 HISTORY OF TI1E 
 
 There is still another action/ no less cruel nor impious than 
 the former, related of Amestris. She caused fourteen children 
 of the best families in Persia to be burnt alive, as a sacrifice to 
 the infernal gods, out of compliance with a superstitious custom 
 practised by the Persians. 
 
 Masistes being dead/ Xerxes gave the government of Bac- 
 triana to his second son Hystaspes, who being by that means 
 obliged to live at a distance from the court, gave his youngest 
 brother Artaxerxes the opportunity of ascending the throne to 
 his disadvantage, after the death of their father, as will be seen 
 in the sequel. 
 
 Here ends Herodotus’s history, viz. at the battle of Mycale, 
 and the siege of the city of Sestos by the Athenians. 
 
 SECT. XII. 
 
 The Athenians rebuild the walls of their city, notwithstanding the opposition 
 
 of the Lacedsemonians. 
 
 The war, commonly called the war of Media/ 
 Ant c? 2 478 w ^ich had lasted but two years, being terminated 
 in the manner we have mentioned, the Athenians, 
 on their return to their own country, sent for their wives and 
 children, whom they had committed to the care of their friends 
 during the war, and began to think of rebuilding the city, which 
 had been almost entirely destroyed by the Persians, and of 
 surrounding it with strong walls, in order to secure it from 
 future violence. The Lacedaemonians having intelligence of 
 this, conceived a jealousy, and began to apprehend, that if 
 Athens, which was already very powerful by sea, should go on 
 to increase her strength by land also, she might take upon her 
 in time to give laws to Sparta, and to deprive the latter of that 
 authority and pre-eminence, which she had hitherto exercised 
 over the rest of Greece. They therefore sent an embassy to 
 the Athenians, the purport of which was to represent to them, 
 that the common interest of Greece required, that there should 
 be no fortified city out of the Peloponnesus, lest, in case of a 
 second irruption, it should serve for a place of arms for the 
 Persians, who would be sure to settle themselves in it, as they 
 had done before at Thebes, and who from thence would be able 
 to infest the whole country, and to make themselves masters of 
 it very speedily. Themistocles, who since the battle of Salamis 
 was greatly considered and respected at Athens, easily pene¬ 
 trated into the real design of the Lacedsemonians, though it 
 was gilded over with the specious pretext of the public good : 
 but, as the latter were able, with the assistance of their allies, 
 
 r Herod. 1. vu. c. 114. 8 Diod. 1. xi. p. 53. 
 
 1 Thucyd. 1. i. p. 59—G2. Diod. 1. xi. p. 30, 31. Just. 1. ii. c. 3. 15. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 339 
 
 to hinder the Athenians, by force, from carrying on the work, 
 in case they should positively and absolutely refuse to comply 
 with their demands, he advised the senate to make use of cun¬ 
 ning and dissimulation as well as the Lacedaemonians. The 
 answer therefore they made the envoys was, that they would 
 send an embassy to Sparta, to satisfy the commonwealth with 
 respect to their apprehensions and suspicions. Themistocles 
 caused himself to be nominated one of the ambassadors, and 
 warned the senate not to let his colleagues set out along with 
 him, but to send them one after another, in order to gain time 
 for carrying on the work. The matter was executed pursuant 
 to his advice; and he accordingly went alone to Lacedaemon, 
 where he let a great many days pass without waiting upon the 
 magistrates, or applying to the senate. And, upon their press¬ 
 ing him to do it, and asking him the reason why he deferred it 
 so long', he made answer, that he waited for the arrival of his 
 colleagues, that they might all have their audience of the senate 
 together, and seemed to be very much surprised that they were 
 so long in coming. At length they arrived ; but all came 
 singly, and at a good distance of time one from another. Dur¬ 
 ing all this interval, the work was carried on at Athens with 
 the utmost industry and vigour. The women, children, stran¬ 
 gers, and slaves, were all employed in it: nor was it interrupted 
 night or day. The Spartans were not ignorant of the matter, 
 and made great complaints of it to Themistocles, who positively 
 denied the fact, and pressed them to send other deputies to 
 Athens, in order to inform themselves better on the subject, 
 desiring them not to give credit to vague and flying reports 
 without foundation. At the same time he secretly advised the 
 Athenians to detain the Spartan envoys as so many hostages, 
 until lie and his colleagues were returned from their embassy, 
 fearing, not without good reason, that they themselves might 
 be served in the same manner at Sparta. At last, when all his 
 colleagues were arrived, he desired an audience, and declared, 
 in full senate, that it was really true that the Athenians had 
 resolved to fortify their city with strong walls ; that the work 
 was almost completed ; that they had judged it to be absolutely 
 necessary for their own security, and for the public good of the 
 allies ; telling them, at the same time, that after the great ex¬ 
 perience they had had of the Athenian people’s behaviour, they 
 could not well suspect them of being wanting in zeal for the 
 common interest of their country ; that, as the condition and 
 privileges of all the allies ought to be equal, it was just the 
 Athenians should provide for their own safety by all the methods 
 they judged necessary, as well as the other confederates; that 
 they had thought of this expedient, and were in a condition to 
 defend their city against whosoever should presume to attack 
 
340 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 it; and that as for the Lacedaemonians, 11 it was not much for 
 their honour that they should desire to establish their power . 
 and superiority rather upon the weak and defenceless condition 
 of their allies, than upon their own strength and valour. The 
 Lacedaemonians were extremely displeased with this discourse: 
 but either out of a sense of gratitude and esteem for the Athe¬ 
 nians, who had rendered such important services to the coun¬ 
 try, or out of a conviction of their inability to oppose their en¬ 
 terprise, they dissembled their resentment; and the ambassa¬ 
 dors on both sides, having all suitable honours paid them, re¬ 
 turned to their respective cities. 
 
 Themistocles, x who had always his thoughts fixed upon rais¬ 
 ing and augmenting the power and glory of the Athenian com¬ 
 monwealth, did not confine his views to the walls of the city. 
 He went on with the same vigorous application to finish the 
 building and fortifications of the Piraeeus; for, from the time 
 that he had entered into office, he had begun that great work. 
 Before his time they had no other port at Athens than that of 
 Phalerus, which was neither very large nor commodious, and 
 consequently not capable of answering the great designs of 
 Themistocles. For this reason he had cast his eye upon the 
 Piraeeus, which seemed to invite him by its advantageous situ¬ 
 ation, and by the conveniency of its three spacious havens, 
 that were capable of containing above 400 vessels. This under¬ 
 taking was prosecuted with so much diligence and vivacity, that 
 the work was considerably advanced in a very little time. The¬ 
 mistocles likewise obtained a decree, that every year they should 
 build twenty vessels for the augmentation of their fleet; and 
 in order to engage a greater number of workmen and sailors to 
 resort to Athens, he caused particular privileges and immu¬ 
 nities to be granted in their favour. His design was, as I have 
 already observed, to make the whole force of Athens maritime; 
 in which he followed a very different scheme from what had 
 been pursued by their ancient Jungs, who, endeavouring all they 
 could to alienate the minds of the citizens from seafaring business 
 and from war, and to make them apply themselves wholly to 
 agriculture and to peaceable employments, published this fable: 
 that Minerva, disputing with Neptune to know which of them 
 should be declared patron of Attica, and give their name to 
 the city newly built, she gained her cause by showing her 
 judges the branch of an olive-tree, the happy symbol of peace 
 and plenty, which she had planted : whereas Neptune had made 
 a fiery horse, the symbol of war and confusion, rise out of the 
 earth before them. 
 
 11 Graviter castigat eos, quod non virtute, sed imbecillitate socioruin poten- 
 tiam quoererent. Justin. 1. ii. c. 15. 
 
 x Thucyd. p. 62, 63. Diod. 1. xi. p. 32, 33. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 341 
 
 SECT. XIII. 
 
 The black design of Themistocles rejected unanimously by the people of 
 Athens. Aristides’s condescension to the people. 
 
 Themistocles,y who had conceived in his breast the design 
 of supplanting the Lacedaemonians, and of taking the govern¬ 
 ment of Greece out of their hands, in order to put it into those 
 of the Athenians, kept his eye and his thoughts continually 
 fixed upon that great project. And as he was not very nice or 
 scrupulous in the choice of his measures, whatever tended 
 towards the accomplishing of the end he had in view, he looked 
 upon as just and lawful. On a certain day, then, he declared 
 in a full assembly of the people, that he had planned a very 
 important design, but that he could not communicate it to the 
 people; because, in order to ensure success, it was necessary 
 that it should he carried on with the greatest secrecy : he there¬ 
 fore desired they would appoint a person to whom he might ex¬ 
 plain himself upon the matter in question. Aristides was unani¬ 
 mously pitched upon by the whole assembly, and they referred 
 themselves entirely to his opinion of the affair; so great a 
 confidence had they both in his probity and prudence. The¬ 
 mistocles, therefore, having taken him aside, told him, that the 
 design he had conceived was to burn the fleet belonging to the 
 rest of the Grecian states, which then lay in a neighbouring 
 port, and that by this means Athens would certainly become 
 mistress of all Greece. Aristides hereupon returned to the , 
 assembly, and only declared to them, that indeed nothing could 
 be more advantageous to the commonwealth than Themistocles’ 
 project; but that, at the same time, nothing could be more 
 unjust. All the people unanimously ordained, that Themisto¬ 
 cles should entirely desist from his project. We see, in this 
 instance, that it was not without some foundation that the title 
 of Just was given to Aristides, even in his lifetime; a title, 
 says Plutarch, infinitely superior to all those which conquerors 
 pursue with so much ardour, and which in some measure ap¬ 
 proximates a man to the Divinity. 
 
 I know not whether all history can afford us a fact more 
 worthy of admiration than this. It is not a company of phi¬ 
 losophers (to whom it costs nothing to establish fine maxims 
 and sublime notions of morality in the schools) who determine 
 on this occasion, that the consideration of profit and advantage 
 ought never to prevail in preference to what is honest and just. 
 
 It is an entire people, who are highly interested in the proposal 
 made to them, who are convinced that it is of the greatest im¬ 
 portance to the welfare of the state, and who notwithstanding 
 y Plut. in Themist. p. 121, 122. In Arist. p. 332. 
 
342 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 reject it with unanimous consent, and without a moment’s hesi¬ 
 tation, and that for this only reason, that it is contrary to justice. 
 How black and perfidious, on the other hand, was the design 
 which Themistocles proposed, of burning the fleet of their 
 Grecian confederates, at a time of entire peace, solely to ag¬ 
 grandize the power of the Athenians ! Had he a hundred 
 times the merit that is ascribed to him, this single action would 
 be sufficient to sully all the brilliancy of his glory. For it is 
 the heart, that is to say, integrity and probity, that constitute 
 true merit. 
 
 I am sorry that Plutarch, who generally judges of things 
 with great justness, does not seem, on this occasion, to con¬ 
 demn Themistocles. After having spoken of the works he had 
 constructed in the Piraeus,he goes on to the fact in question, 
 of which he says, Themistocles projected something STILL 
 greater, for the augmentation of their maritime power . c 
 
 The Lacedaemonians having proposed, in the council of the 
 Amphictyons, that all the cities which had not taken arms 
 against Xerxes should be excluded from that assembly, The¬ 
 mistocles, who was apprehensive that, if the Thessalians, the 
 Argives, and the Thebans were excluded that council, the 
 Spartans would by that means become masters of the suffrages, 
 and consequently determine all affairs according to their plea¬ 
 sure, made a speech in behalf of the cities whose exclusion 
 was proposed, and brought the deputies that composed the as¬ 
 sembly over to his sentiments. He represented to them, that 
 v the greatest part of the cities that had entered into the confe¬ 
 deracy, which were but one-and-thirty in the whole, were very 
 small and inconsiderable; that it would therefore be a very 
 strange, as well as a very dangerous proceeding, to deprive all 
 the other cities of Greece of their votes and places in the grand 
 assembly of the nation, and by that means suffer the august 
 council of the Amphictyons to fall under the direction and in¬ 
 fluence of two or three of the most powerful cities, which for 
 the future would give law to all the rest, and would subvert 
 and abolish that equality of power, which was justly regarded 
 as the basis and soul of all republics. Themistocles, by this 
 plain and open declaration of his opinion, drew upon himself 
 the hatred of the Lacedaemonians, who from that time became 
 his professed enemies. He had also incurred the displeasure 
 of the rest of the allies, by the rigorous and rapacious manner 
 in which he had exacted contributions from them. 
 
 When the city of Athens was entirely rebuilt, d the people, 
 finding themselves in a state of peace and tranquillity, endea¬ 
 voured by every method to get the government into their own 
 hands, and to make the Athenian state an absolute democracy. 
 c M«T %ov ri dievo7]0> Plut. in Themist. p. 122. d Plut. in Arist. p. 332. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 343 
 
 This design of theirs, though planned with the utmost secrecy, 
 did not escape the vigilance and penetration of Aristides, who 
 saw all the consequences with which such an innovation would 
 be attended. But, as he considered, on one hand, that the 
 people were entitled to some regard, on account of the valour 
 they had shown in all the battles which had been lately gained ; 
 and, on the other, that it would be no easy matter to curb and 
 restrain a people, who still in a manner had their arms in their 
 hands, and who were grown more insolent than ever from their 
 victories ; on these considerations, he thought it proper to ob¬ 
 serve measures with them, and to find out some medium to sa¬ 
 tisfy and appease them. He therefore passed a decree, by 
 which it was ordained, that the offices of government should 
 be open to all the citizens, and that the Archons, who were the 
 chief magistrates of the commonwealth, and who used to be 
 chosen only out of the richest of its members, viz . from amongst 
 those only who received at least 500 medimni of grain as the 
 produce of their lands, should for the future be elected indiffer¬ 
 ently from the general body of the Athenians, without distinc¬ 
 tion. By thus giving up something to the people, he prevented 
 all dissensions and commotions, which might have proved fatal, 
 not only to the Athenian state, but to all Greece. 
 
 SECT. XIV. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians lose the chief command, through the pride and 
 
 arrogance of Pausanias. 
 
 The Grecians, e encouraged by the happy suc- 
 Ant^J C 5 476 cess which had every where attended their victori¬ 
 ous arms, determined to send a fleet to sea, in or¬ 
 der to deliver such of their allies as were still under the yoke of 
 the Persians, out of their hands. Pausanias was the command¬ 
 er of the fleet for the Lacedaemonians ; and Aristides, and Ci- 
 mon, the son of Miltiades, commanded for the Athenians. 
 They first directed their course to the isle of Cyprus, where they 
 restored all the cities to their liberty; then, steering towards 
 the Hellespont, they attacked the city of Byzantium, of which 
 they made themselves masters, and took a vast number of pri¬ 
 soners, a great part of whom were of the richest and most con¬ 
 siderable families of Persia. 
 
 Pausanias, who from this time conceived thoughts of betraying 
 his country, judged it proper to make use of this opportunity to 
 g£iin the favour of Xerxes. To this end* he caused a report to 
 be spread among his troops, that the Persian noblemen, whom 
 he had committed to the guard and care of one of his officers, 
 had made their escape by night, and were fled ; whereas he 
 
 e Thucyd. 1. i. p. 63. 84. 86. 
 
344 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 had set them at liberty himself, and sent a letter by them to 
 Xerxes, wherein he offered to deliver the city of Sparta, and all 
 Greece, into his hands, on condition he would give him his 
 daughter in marriage. The king did not fail to give him a fa¬ 
 vourable answer, and to send him very large sums of money 
 also, in order to win over as many of the Grecians as he should 
 find disposed to enter into his designs. The person he ap¬ 
 pointed to manage this intrigue with him was Arlabazus ; and 
 in order to enable him to transact the matter with the greater 
 ease and security, he made him governor of all the sea coasts 
 of Asia Minor. 
 
 Pausanias/ who was already dazzled with the prospect of his 
 future greatness, began from this moment to change his whole 
 conduct and behaviour. The poor, modest, and frugal way of 
 living at Sparta ; the subjection to rigid and austere laws, which 
 neither spared nor respected any man, but were altogether as 
 inexorable and inflexible to the greatest as to those of the 
 meanest condition ; all this became insupportable to Pausanias. 
 He could not bear the'thoughts of going back to Sparta, after 
 having possessed such high commands and employments, to re¬ 
 turn to a state of equality, that would confound him with the 
 meanest of the citizens; and this was his inducement to enter 
 into a treaty with the barbarians. He entirely laid aside the 
 manners and behaviour of his country ; assumed both the dress 
 and haughtiness of the Persians, and imitated them in all their 
 expensive luxury and magnificence. He treated the allies with 
 insufferable rudeness and insolence ; never spoke to the officers 
 but with menaces and arrogance ; required extraordinary ho¬ 
 nours to be paid to him, and by his whole behaviour rendered 
 the Spartan dominion odious to all the confederates. On the 
 other hand, the courteous, affable, and engaging deportment of 
 Aristides and Cimon ; an infinite remoteness from all imperious 
 and haughty airs, which tend only to alienate the affections ; a 
 gentle, kind, and beneficent disposition, which showed itself in 
 all their actions, and which served to temper the authority of 
 their commands, and to render it both easy and amiable; the 
 justice and humanity, conspicuous in every thing they did ; the 
 great care they took to offend no person whatsoever, and to do 
 kind offices to all about them : all this hurt Pausanias exceed¬ 
 ingly, by the contrast of their opposite characters, and increased 
 the general discontent. At last this dissatisfaction publicly 
 broke out; and all the allies deserted him, and put themselves 
 under the command and protection of the Athenians. Thus 
 did Aristides, says Plutarch, by the prevalence of that huma¬ 
 nity and gentleness which he opposed to the arrogance and 
 roughness of Pausanias, and by inspiring Cimon his colleague 
 
 f Plut. in Arist. p. 332, 333. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 3 45 
 
 with the same sentiments, insensibly draw off the minds of the 
 allies from the Lacedaemonians without their perceiving it, and 
 at length deprived them of the command ; not by open force, 
 or by sending out armies and fleets against them, and still less 
 by making use of any artifice or perfidious practices ; but bv 
 the wisdom and moderation of his conduct, and by rendering 
 the government of the Athenians amiable. 
 
 It must be confessed, at the same time, that the Spartan 
 people on this occasion showed a greatness of soul, and a spirit 
 of moderation, that can never be sufficiently admired : for when 
 they were convinced that their commanders grew haughty and 
 insolent from their too great authority, they willingly renounced 
 the superiority which they had hitherto exercised over the rest 
 of the Grecians, and forbore sending any more of their generals 
 to command the Grecian armies, choosing rather, adds the his¬ 
 torian, to have their citizens wise, modest, and submissive to 
 the discipline and laws of the commonwealth, than to maintain 
 their pre-eminence and superiority over all the other Grecian 
 states. 
 
 SECT. XV. 
 
 Pausanias’s secret conspiracy with the Persians. His death. 
 
 Upon the repeated complaints which the Spar- 
 Ant. J. C °475 tan commonwea lth received on all hands against 
 Pausanias,^ they recalled him home to give an 
 account of his conduct. But not having sufficient evidence to 
 convict him of having carried on a correspondence with Xerx¬ 
 es, they were obliged to acquit him on his first trial; after 
 which he returned of his own private authority, and without the 
 consent and approbation of the republic, to the city of Byzan¬ 
 tium, from whence he continued to carry on his secret practices 
 with Artabazus. But as he was still guilty of many violent and 
 unjust proceedings whilst he resided there, the Athenians 
 obliged him to leave the place ; from whence he retired to Co- 
 lonae, a small city of the Troad. There he received an order 
 from the Ephori to return to Sparta, on pain of being declared, 
 in case of disobedience, a public enemy and traitor to his coun¬ 
 try. He complied with the summons, and went home, hoping 
 he should still be able to bring himself off by dint of money. On 
 his arrival he was committed to prison, and was soon afterwards 
 brought again upon his trial before the judges. The charge 
 brought against him was supported by many suspicious circum¬ 
 stances and strong presumptions. Several of his own slaves 
 confessed that he had promised to give them their liberty, in 
 s Thucyd. 1. i. p. 86—89. Diod. 1. xi. p. 34—36. Cor. Nep. in Pausan. 
 
346 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 case they would enter into his designs, and serve him with fide¬ 
 lity and zeal in the execution of his projects. But as it was 
 the custom for the Ephori never to pronounce sentence of death 
 against a Spartan without a full and direct proof of the crime 
 laid to his charge, they looked upon the evidence against him as 
 insufficient; and the more so, as he was of the royal family, 
 and was actually invested with the administration of the regal 
 office ; for Pausanias exercised the function of king as being 
 the guardian and nearest relation to Plistarchus, the son of 
 Leonidas, who was then in his minority. He was therefore 
 acquitted a second time, and set at liberty. 
 
 Whilst the Ephori were thus perplexed for want of clear and 
 plain evidence against the offender, a certain slave who was call¬ 
 ed the Argilian, came to them, and brought them a letter, 
 written by Pausanias himself to the king of Persia, which the 
 slave was to have carried to Artabazus. It must be observed, 
 by the way, that this Persian governor and Pausanias had agreed 
 together, immediately to put to death all the couriers they mu¬ 
 tually sent to one another, as soon as their packets or messages 
 were delivered, that there might be no possibility left of tracing 
 out or discovering their correspondence. The Argilian, who saw 
 none of his fellow-servants, that had been sent, return back 
 again, had some suspicion; and when it came to his turn to go, 
 he opened the letter he was intrusted with, in which Artabazus 
 was positively desired to kill him as soon as he delivered it. 
 This was the letter the slave put into the hands of the Ephori ; 
 who still thought even this proof insufficient in the eye of the 
 law, and therefore endeavoured to corroborate it by the testi¬ 
 mony of Pausanias himself. The slave, in concert with them, 
 withdrew to the temple of Neptune at Taenarus, as to a secure 
 asylum. Two small closets had been purposely made there, 
 in which the Ephori and some Spartans hid themselves. The 
 instant Pausanias was informed that the Argilian had fled to 
 this temple, he hasted thither, to inquire the reason. The 
 slave confessed that he had opened the letter ; and that finding 
 by the contents of it he was to be put to death, he had fled 
 to that temple to save his life. As Pausanias could not deny 
 the fact, he made the best excuse he could ; promised the 
 slave a great reward, and obliged him to engage not to mention 
 what had passed between them to any person whatsoever. Pau¬ 
 sanias then left him. 
 
 Pausanias’s guilt was now but too evident. The moment 
 he was returned to the city, the Ephori were resolved to seize 
 him. From the aspect of one of those magistrates, and from a 
 signal which he made him, he plainly perceived that some 
 evil design was meditated against him, and therefore he ran 
 with the utmost speed to the temple of Pallas, called Chal- 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 347 
 
 ciaecos, near that place, and got into it before the pursuers could 
 overtake him. The entrance was immediately stopped up with 
 great stones : and history informs us, that the criminal’s mother 
 was the first who brought one. They also took off the roof 
 of the chapel, and, as the Ephori did not dare take him out of 
 it by force, because this would have been a violation of that sa¬ 
 cred asylum, they resolved to leave him exposed to the incle¬ 
 mencies of the weather, and accordingly he was starved to 
 death. However, a few minutes before he died, they drew him 
 out of the temple. His corpse was buried not far from that 
 place : but the oracle of Delphi, which they consulted soon 
 after, declared, that to appease the anger of the goddess, who 
 was justly olfended on account of the violation of her temple, 
 two statues must be set up there in honour of Pausanias, which 
 was done accordingly. 
 
 Such was the end of Pausanias, whose wild ambition had 
 stifled in him all sentiments of probity, honour, love of his coun¬ 
 try, zeal for liberty, and of hatred and aversion for the barba¬ 
 rians ; sentiments which in some measure* were innate in all 
 the Greeks, and particularly in the Lacedaemonians. 
 
 SECT. XVI. 
 
 Themistocles, being prosecuted by the Athenians and Lacedaemonians as an 
 accomplice in Pausanias’s conspiracy, flies for shelter to king Admetus. 
 
 Themistocles was also implicated in the charge 
 
 A AT OKQ | _ A C) 
 
 Ant j c° 473 brought against Pausanias. h He was then in 
 
 exile. A passionate thirst of glory, and a strong 
 desire of arbitrary power, had made him odious to his fellow-ci¬ 
 tizens. He had built, very near his house, a temple dedicated 
 to Diana, under the title of Diana Aristobula, that is to say, 
 the giver of good counsel; as hinting to the Athenians, that 
 he had given good council to their city and to all Greece; and 
 he also placed his statue in it, which was standing in Plutarch’s 
 time. It appeared, says he, from this statue, that his physiog¬ 
 nomy was as heroic as his valour. Finding that men listened 
 with pleasure to all the calumnies which his enemies spread against 
 him, in order to silence them, he was for ever expatiating, in all 
 public assemblies, on the services he had done his country. 
 As they were at last tired with hearing him repeat the same 
 thing so often. How ! says he to them, are you weary of having 
 good offices frequently done you by the same persons ? He did 
 not consider, that putting them so often in mind of his services, 1 
 
 h Thucyd. 1. i. p. 89, 90, Plut. in Themist. p. 123, 124. Corn. Nep. in 
 Themist. c. viii. 
 
 ‘ Hoc molestum est. Nam isthaec commemoratio quasi exprobratio est 
 immemoris beneficii. Terent in Andr. 
 
348 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 was in a manner reproaching them with their having forgotten 
 them, which was not very civil ; and he seemed not to know, 
 that the surest way to acquire applause, is to leave the bestow¬ 
 ing of it to others, and to resolve to do such things only as are 
 praiseworthy ; and that a frequent mention of one’s own virtue 
 and exalted actions, is so far from appeasing envy, that it only 
 inflames it. 
 
 Themistocles, k after having been banished from Athens by 
 the ostracism, withdrew to Argos. He was there when Pau- 
 sanias was prosecuted as a traitor who had conspired against 
 his country. He had at first concealed his machinations from 
 Themistocles, though he was one of his best friends ; but as 
 soon as he saw that he was expelled his country, and highly 
 resented that injury, he disclosed his projects to him, and 
 pressed him to join in them. To induce him to comply, he 
 showed him the letters which the king of Persia wrote to him ; 
 and endeavoured to animate him against the Athenians, by 
 painting their injustice and ingratitude in the strongest colours. 
 However, Themistocles rejected with indignation the proposals 
 of Pausanias, and refused peremptorily to take any part in his 
 schemes : but then he concealed what had passed be'tween 
 them, and did not discover the enterprise he had formed ; whe¬ 
 ther it was that he imagined Pausanias would renounce it of 
 himself, or was persuaded that it would be discovered some 
 other way ; it not being possible for so dangerous and ill-con¬ 
 certed an enterprise to be successful. 
 
 After Pausanias’s death, several letters and other things were 
 found among his papers, which excited violent suspicions of 
 Themistocles. The Lacedaemonians sent deputies to Athens 
 to accuse and have sentence of death passed upon him ; and 
 such of the citizens who envied him joined these accusers. 
 Aristides had now a fair opportunity of revenging himself on 
 his rival, for the injurious treatment he had received from him, 
 had his soul been capable of so cruel a satisfaction ; but he 
 refused absolutely to join in so horrid a combination ; being as 
 little inclined to delight in the misfortunes of his adversary, as 
 he had before been to regret his successes. Themistocles an¬ 
 swered by letters all the calumnies with which he was charged ; 
 and represented to the Athenians, that as he had ever been fond 
 of ruling, and his temper was such as would not suffer him 
 to be lorded over by others, it was highly improbable that he 
 should have a design to deliver up himself, and all Greece, 
 to enemies and barbarians. 
 
 In the mean time, the people, wrought upon by his accusers, 
 sent some persons to seize him and bring him home, that he 
 might be tried by the council of Greece. Themistocles, hav- 
 
 k Plut. in Themist. p. 112. 
 
349 
 
 PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 ing timely notice of it, went into the island of Corcyra, to whose 
 inhabitants he formerly had done some service : however, not 
 thinking himself safe there, he fled to Epirus; and finding 
 himself still pursued by the Athenians and Lacedaemonians, in 
 despair he adopted a very dangerous plan, which was, to fly to 
 Admetus, king of the Molossians, for refuge. This prince 
 having formerly desired the aid of the Athenians, and being- 
 refused with ignominy by Themistocles, who at that time pre¬ 
 sided in the government, had retained the deepest resentment 
 on that account, and declared that he would revenge himself, 
 should a favourable opportunity ever occur. But Themisto¬ 
 cles, imagining that in the unhappy situation of his affairs the 
 recent envy of his fellow-citizens was more to be feared than 
 the ancient grudge of that king, was resolved to run the ha¬ 
 zard of it. When he came into the palace of that monarch, 
 upon being informed that he was absent, he addressed himself 
 to the queen, who received him very graciously, and instructed 
 him in the manner in which it was proper for him to make his 
 request. Admetus being returned, Themistocles takes the king’s 
 son in his arms, seats himself on his hearth amidst his house¬ 
 hold gods, and there, telling him who he was, and the cause 
 why he fled to him for refuge, he implores his clemency, owns 
 that his life is in his hand, entreats him to forget the past, and 
 represents to him, that no action can be more worthy of a great 
 king than to exercise clemency. Admetus, surprised and 
 moved with compassion in seeing at his feet, in so humble a 
 posture, the greatest man of all Greece, and the conqueror of 
 all Asia, raised him immediately from the ground, and pro¬ 
 mised to protect him against all his enemies. Accordingly, 
 when the Athenians and Lacedaemonians came to demand him, 
 he refused absolutely to deliver up a person who had taken 
 refuge in his palace, in the firm persuasion that it would be a 
 sacred and inviolable asylum. 
 
 Whilst he was at the court of this prince, one of his friends 
 found an opportunity to carry off his wife and children from 
 Athens, and to send them to him ; for which that person was 
 some time after seized and condemned to die. With regard 
 to Themistocles’s effects, his friends secured the greatest part 
 of them for him, which they afterwards found an opportunity to 
 remit to him in his retirement; but all that could be discovered, 
 which amounted to 100 talents, 1 was carried to the public trea¬ 
 sury. When he entered upon the administration of the republic, 
 he was not worth three talents. I shall leave this illustrious 
 exile for some time in the court of king Admetus, to resume 
 the sequel of this history. 
 
 1 A hundred thousand crowns French, about 22,500/. sterling. 
 
350 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 SECT. XVII. 
 
 Aristides’s disinterested administration of the public treasure. His death and 
 
 eulogium. 
 
 I have before observed, that the command of Greece had 
 passed from Sparta to the Athenians.™ Hitherto the cities 
 and nations of Greece had indeed contributed some sums of 
 money towards carrying on the expense of the war against the 
 barbarians ; but this assessment had always occasioned great 
 feuds, because it was not made in a just or equal proportion. 
 It was thought proper, under this new government, to lodge in 
 the island of Delos the common treasure of Greece ; to enact 
 new regulations with regard to the public moneys ; and to lay 
 such a tax as might be regulated according to the revenue of 
 each city and state ; in order that the expenses being equally 
 borne by the several members who composed the body of the 
 allies, no one might have reason to murmur. The great point 
 was, to lind a person capable of discharging faithfully an em¬ 
 ployment of such delicacy, and attended with such danger and 
 difficulty, the due administration of which so nearly concerned 
 the public welfare. All the allies cast their eyes on Aristides ; 
 accordingly they invested him with full powers, and appointed 
 him to levy a tax on each of them, relying entirely on his wis¬ 
 dom and justice. 
 
 They had no cause to repent of their choice. He presided 
 over the treasury with the fidelity and disinterestedness of a 
 man," who looks upon it as a capital crime to embezzle the 
 smallest portion of another’s property; with the care and ac¬ 
 tivity of a father of a family, who manages his own estate; and 
 with the caution and integrity of a person, who considers the 
 public money as sacred. In fine, he succeeded in what is 
 equally difficult and extraordinary, viz. in acquiring the love of 
 all, in an office in which he that escapes the public odium gains 
 a great point. Such is the glorious character which Seneca 
 gives of a person charged with an employment of almost the 
 same kind, and the noblest eulogium that can be given of such 
 as administer the public revenues. It is the exact picture of 
 Aristides. He discovered so much probity and wisdom in the 
 exercise of this office, that no man complained ; and those 
 times were considered ever after as the golden age, that is, 
 the period in which Greece had attained its highest pitch of 
 virtue and happiness. And, indeed, the tax which he had 
 
 m Plut. in Arist. p. 333, 334. Diod. 1. xi. p. 36. 
 
 n Tu quidem orbis terrariim rationes administras; tam abstinenter quam 
 alienas, tam diligenter quam tuas, tam religiose quam publicas. In officio 
 amorem consequeris, in quo odium vitare difficile est. Senec. lib. de Iirevit. 
 Vit. cap. xviii. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 351 
 
 fixed, in the whole, at 460 talents, 0 was raised by Pericles to 
 600, and soon after to 1300 talents: not that the expenses of 
 the war were increased, but because the treasure was employed 
 to very useless purposes, in manual distributions to the Athe¬ 
 nians, in solemnizing of games and festivals, in building of tem¬ 
 ples and public edifices ; not to mention, that the hands of those 
 who superintended the treasury were not always so clean and 
 uncorrupt as those of Aristides. This wise and equitable con¬ 
 duct secured him, to the latest posterity, the glorious surname 
 of the Just. 
 
 Nevertheless, Plutarch relates an action of Aristides, which 
 shows that the Greeks (and the same may be said of the Ro¬ 
 mans) had a very narrow and imperfect idea of justice. They 
 confined the exercise of it to the interior, as it were, of civil 
 society ; and acknowledged that individuals were bound to ob¬ 
 serve strictly its several maxims in their intercourse with each 
 other : but with regard to their country, to the republic, (their 
 great idol, to which they referred every thing,) they thought in 
 a quite different manner, and imagined themselves obliged to 
 sacrifice to it, through principle, not only their lives and pos¬ 
 sessions, but even their religion and the most sacred engage¬ 
 ments, in contempt of the most solemn oaths. This will appear 
 evidently in what I am now going to relate. 
 
 After the assessment of the contributions, of which I have 
 just spoken ,p Aristides, having settled the several articles of 
 the alliance, made the confederates take an oath to observe 
 them punctually, and he himself swore in the name of the Athe¬ 
 nians ; and when denouncing the curses which always accom¬ 
 panied the oaths, he threw into the sea, pursuant to the usual 
 custom, large bars of red-hot iron. But the ill state of the 
 Athenian affairs forcing them afterwards to infringe some of 
 those articles, and to govern a little more arbitrarily, he en¬ 
 treated them to transfer those curses on him, and exonerate 
 themselves thereby of the punishment due to such as had for¬ 
 sworn themselves, and who had been reduced to it by the un¬ 
 happy situation of their affairs. Theophrastus tells us, that in 
 general (these words are borrowed from Plutarch) Aristides, 
 who, in all matters relating to himself or the public, prided 
 himself upon displaying the most impartial and rigorous justice, 
 used to act, during his administration, in several instances, ac¬ 
 cording as the exigency of affairs and the welfare of his country 
 might require ; it being his opinion, that a government, in or¬ 
 der to support itself, is, on some occasions, obliged to have re¬ 
 course to injustice, of which he gives the following example. 
 One day, as the Athenians were debating in their council 
 
 ° The talent is worth a thousand French crowns; or about 225/. sterling. 
 
 p Plut. in Arist. p. 333, 334. 
 
352 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 about bringing to their city, in opposition to the articles of the 
 treaty, the common treasures of Greece which were deposited 
 in Delos : the Samians having opened the debate ; when it 
 was Aristides’s turn to speak, he said, that the removal of 
 the treasure was an unjust action, but useful, and made this 
 opinion take place. This incident shows with how great ob¬ 
 scurity and error the pretended wisdom of the heathens was 
 overspread. 
 
 It was scarce possible to have a greater contempt for riches 
 than Aristides had. Themistocles, who was not pleased with 
 the encomiums bestowed on other men, hearing Aristides ap¬ 
 plauded for the noble disinterestedness with which he managed 
 the public treasures, did but laugh at it: and said, that the 
 praises bestowed upon him showed that he possessed no great¬ 
 er merit than that of a strong box, which faithfully preserves 
 all the moneys that are shut up in it, without retaining any. 
 This low sneer was by way of revenge for a stroke of raillery 
 that had stung him to the quick. Themistocles one day saying*, 
 that, in his opinion, the greatest qualification a general could 
 possess, was to be able to foresee the designs of an enemy: 
 This qualification, replied Aristides, is necessary ; hut there is 
 another no less noble ancl worthy of a general,—that is, to 
 have clean hands, and a soul superior to venality and views oj 
 interest. Aristides might very justly answer Themistocles in 
 this manner, since he was really very poor, though he had pos¬ 
 sessed the highest employments in the state. He seemed to 
 have an innate love for poverty ; and so far from being asham¬ 
 ed of it, he thought it reflected as much glory on him, as all 
 the trophies and victories he had won. History gives us a 
 shining instance of this. 
 
 Callias, who was a near relation of Aristides, and the most 
 wealthy citizen in Athens, was cited to appear before the 
 judges. The accuser, laying very little stress on the cause it¬ 
 self, reproached him especially with permitting Aristides, and 
 his wife and children, to live in poverty, at a time when he 
 himself rolled in riches. Callias, perceiving that these re¬ 
 proaches made a strong impression on the judges, summoned 
 Aristides to declare before them, whether he had not often 
 pressed him to accept of large sums of money, and whether he 
 had not obstinately refused to accept of his offer, giving for an¬ 
 swer, that he had more reason to boast of his poverty than Cal¬ 
 lias of his riches: that many persons were to be found who 
 made a good use of their wealth, but that there were few who 
 bore their poverty with magnanimity and even with joy; and 
 that none had cause to blush at their condition, but such as had 
 reduced themselves to it by their idleness, their intemperance, 
 their profusion, or dissolute conduct. Aristides declared that 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 353 
 
 his kinsman had told nothing but the truth ; q and added, that 
 a man whose frame of mind is such, as to suppress every wish 
 for superfluities, and who confines the wants of life within the 
 narrowest limits; besides its freeing him from a thousand im¬ 
 portunate cares, and leaving him so much master of his time, as 
 to devote it entirely to the public ; it approximates him, in some 
 measure, to the Deity, who is wholly void of cares or wants. 
 There was no man in the assembly, but, at his leaving it, would 
 have chosen to be Aristides, though so poor, rather than Cal- 
 lias with all his riches. 
 
 Plutarch gives us, in a few words, Plato’s glorious testimony 
 to Aristides’s virtue, for which he looks upon him as infinitely 
 superior to all the illustrious men who were his contemporaries. 
 Themistocles, Cimon, and Pericles, (says lie,) filled indeed their 
 city with splendid edifices, with porticoes, statues, rich orna¬ 
 ments, and other vain superfluities of that kind; but Aristides 
 did all that lay in his power to enrich every part of it with virtue: 
 now to raise a city to true happiness, it must be made virtuous, 
 not rich. 
 
 Plutarch takes notice of another circumstance in Aristides’s 
 life, which, though of the simplest kind, reflects the greatest 
 honour on him, and may serve as an excellent lesson. It is in 
 that beautiful treatise/ in which he inquires, whether it is pro¬ 
 per for old men to concern themselves with affairs of govern¬ 
 ment; and where he points out admirably well the various 
 services they may do the state, even in an advanced age. We 
 are not to fancy, says he, that in order to render services to one’s 
 fellow-citizens, it is necessary to make great exertions, to ha¬ 
 rangue the people, to preside in the government, or to head 
 armies : an old man, whose mind is informed with wisdom, may, 
 without going from his house, exercise a kind of magistracy in 
 it, which, though secret and obscure, is not therefore the less 
 important; and that is, in training up youth, by good counsel, 
 teaching them the various springs of policy, and the path they 
 ought to pursue in the management of public affairs. Aristides, 
 adds Plutarch, was not always in office, but was always of ser¬ 
 vice to his country. His house was a public school of virtue, 
 wisdom, and politics. It was open to all young Athenians who 
 were lovers of virtue, and these used to consult him as an oracle. 
 He gave them the kindest reception, heard them with patience, 
 instructed them with familiarity : and endeavoured, above all 
 things, to animate their courage, and inspire them with confi¬ 
 dence. It is observed particularly, that Cimon, afterwards so 
 famous, was obliged to him for this important service. 
 
 Plutarch divided the life of statesmen into three ages. s In 
 
 q Plut. in compar. Arist. et Caton. p. 355. r Pag. 795. 797* 
 
 * He applies on this occasion the custom used in Rome, where the Vestals 
 
 VOL. II. 2 A 
 
354 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 the first, he would have them learn the principles of government ; 
 in the second, reduce them to practice ; and in the third, in¬ 
 struct others. 
 
 History does not mention the exact time when, 1 nor place 
 where, Aristides died ; but then it pays a glorious testimony to 
 his memory, when it assures us, that this great man, who had 
 possessed the highest employments in the republic, and had the 
 absolute disposal of its treasures, died poor, and did not leave 
 money enough to defray the expenses of his funeral; so that the 
 government was obliged to bear the charge of it, and to main¬ 
 tain his family. His daughters were married, and Lysimachus 
 his son was subsisted at the expense of the Prytaneum ; which 
 also gave the daughter of the latter, after his death, the pension 
 with which those were honoured who had been victorious at the 
 Olympic games. Plutarch relates, on this occasion, the libe¬ 
 rality of the Athenians in favour of the posterity of Aristogiton 
 their deliverer, who had fallen to decay ; and he adds, that even 
 in his time (almost 600 years after) the same goodness and libe¬ 
 rality still subsisted. It is glorious for a city to have preserved 
 for so many centuries its generosity and gratitude ; and a strong 
 motive to animate individuals, who were assured that their chil¬ 
 dren would enjoy the rewards which death might prevent them¬ 
 selves from receiving. It was delightful to see the remote 
 posterity of the defenders and deliverers of the commonwealth, 
 who had inherited nothing from their ancestors but the glory of 
 their actions, maintained for so many ages at the expense of the 
 public, in consideration of the services which their families, had 
 rendered the state. They lived in this manner with much more 
 honour, and called up the remembrance of their ancestors with 
 much greater splendour, than a multitude of citizens, whose fa¬ 
 thers had been anxious only to leave them great estates, which 
 generally do not long survive those who raised them, and often 
 leave to their posterity nothing but the odious remembrance of 
 the injustice and oppression by which they were acquired. 
 
 The greatest honour which the ancients have done to Aris¬ 
 tides, is the having bestowed on him the glorious title of the 
 Just. He gained it, not by one particular occurrence of his 
 life, but by the whole tenor of his conduct and actions. Plu¬ 
 tarch makes a reflection on this occasion, which, being very 
 remarkable, I think it incumbent on me not to omit. 
 
 Among the several virtues of Aristides, says this judicious 
 author,’ 1 that for which he was most renowned was his justice; 
 because this virtue is of most general use; its benefits extend 
 
 spent the first ten years in learning their office, and this was a kind of novi¬ 
 ciate ; the next ten years they employed in the exercise of their functions . 
 and the last ten in instructing the young novices in them. 
 
 1 Plut. in Arist. p. 331, 335. 11 Plut. in vit. Arist. p. 321, 322. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 355 
 
 to a greater number of persons; and it is the foundation, and 
 in a manner the soul, of every public office and employment. 
 Hence it was that Aristides, though in low circumstances, and 
 of mean extraction, merited the title of Just; a title, says 
 Plutarch, truly royal, or rather truly divine; but one of which 
 princes are seldom ambitious, because they are ignorant of its 
 beauty and excellency. They choose rather to be called the 
 takers of cities, x the thunderbolts of war, victors and con¬ 
 querors, and sometimes even eagles and lions; preferring the 
 vain honour of pompous titles, which convey no other idea than 
 violence and slaughter, to the solid glory of those expressive 
 of goodness and virtue. They do not know, continues Plu¬ 
 tarch, that of the three chief attributes of the Deity, of whom 
 kings boast themselves the image, I mean, immortality, power, 
 and justice; that of these three attributes, the first of which 
 excites our admiration and desire, the second fills us with dread 
 and terror, and the third inspires us with love and respect; 
 this last is the only one truly and personally communicated to 
 man, and the only one that can conduct him to the other two; 
 it being impossible for man to become truly immortal and 
 powerful, but by being just. 
 
 Before I resume the sequel of this history, it 
 
 A A/f ocon ■> */ 7 
 
 A Rom 302 ma y ll °^ i m P ro P er t° observe, that it was about 
 this period that the fame of the Greeks, who 
 were still more renowned for the wisdom of their polity than 
 the glory of their victories, induced the Romans to have recourse 
 to their lights and knowledge. Rome, formed under kings, 
 was in want of such laws as were necessary for the good go¬ 
 vernment of a commonwealth. For this purpose the Romans 
 sent deputies to copy the laws of the cities of Greece/ and 
 particularly those of Athens, which were still better adapted 
 to the popular government that had been established after the 
 expulsion of the kings. On this model, the ten magistrates, 
 called Decemviri , who were invested with absolute authority, 
 digested the laws of the Twelve Tables, which are the basis of 
 the Roman law. 
 
 SECT. XVIII. 
 
 Death of Xerxes, who is killed by Artabanus. His character. 
 
 A. M. 3531. The ill success of Xerxes in his expedition 
 
 Ant. J C. 473 . against the Greeks, and which continued after- 
 
 x Poliorcetes, Ceraunus, Nicator. 
 
 y Missi legati Athenas, jussique inclytas leges Solonis describere, et aliarum 
 Gnecise civitatum instituta, mores, juraque noscere. Decern tabularum leges 
 perlatse sunt (quibus adjectse postea dux) qui nunc quoque in hoc immenso 
 aliarum super alias privatarum legum cumulo, fons omnis publici privatique 
 est juris. Liv. 1. iii. n. 3L et 34. 
 
 2 A 2 
 
35(3 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 wards, at length discouraged him. 2 Renouncing all thoughts 
 of war and conquest, he abandoned himself entirely to luxury 
 and ease, and was studious of nothing but his pleasures. Ar¬ 
 tabanus, 1 a native of Hyrcania, captain of his guards, who had 
 long been one of his chief favourites, found that his dissolute 
 conduct had drawn upon him the contempt of his subjects. 
 He therefore imagined that this would be a favourable op¬ 
 portunity to conspire against his sovereign ; and he carried 
 his ambitious views so far as to flatter himself with the hopes 
 of succeeding him in the throne. 13 It is very likely that he 
 was excited to the commission of this crime from another mo¬ 
 tive. Xerxes had commanded him to murder Darius, his 
 eldest son, but for what cause history is silent. As this order 
 had been given at a banquet, and when the company was heated 
 with wine, he did not doubt but that Xerxes would forget it, 
 and therefore was not in haste to obey it; however, he was mis¬ 
 taken, for the king complained of his disobedience, which made 
 Artabanus dread his resentment, and therefore he resolved to 
 prevent him. Accordingly he prevailed upon Mithridates, one 
 of the eunuchs of the palace, and high-chamberlain, to engage 
 in his conspiracy : and by his means entered the chamber where 
 the king lay, and murdered him in his sleep. He then went 
 immediately to Artaxerxes, the third son of Xerxes. He in¬ 
 formed him of the murder, charging Darius his eldest brother 
 with it; as if impatience to ascend the throne had prompted him 
 to that execrable deed. He added, that to secure the crown 
 to himself, he was resolved to murder him also, for which reason 
 it would be absolutely necessary for him to keep upon his 
 guard. These words having made the impression on Artax¬ 
 erxes, who was still a youth, which Artabanus desired, he went 
 immediately into his brother’s apartment, where, being assisted 
 by Artabanus and his guards, he murdered him. Hystaspes, 
 Xerxes’s second son, was next heir to the crown after Darius; 
 but as he was then in Bactriana, of which he was governor, 
 Artabanus seated Artaxerxes on the throne, with the design of 
 suffering him to enjoy it no longer than till he had formed a 
 faction strong enough to drive him from it, and ascend it him¬ 
 self. His great authority had gained him a multitude of de¬ 
 pendants ; besides this, he had seven sons, who were tall, hand¬ 
 some, strong, courageous, and raised to the highest employments 
 in the empire. The aid he hoped to receive from them, was 
 the chief motive of his raising his views so high. But whilst 
 he was attempting to complete his design, Artaxerxes being 
 informed of this plot by Megabyzus, who had married one of 
 
 z Ctes. c. ii. Diod. 1. xi. p. 52. Justin. 1. iii. c. 1. 
 a This was not Artabanus the uncle of Xerxes. 
 b Arist. Polit. 1. v. c. 10. p. 404. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 357 
 
 his sisters, endeavoured to anticipate him, and killed him 
 before he had an opportunity of putting- his treason in execu¬ 
 tion. His death established this prince in the possession of 
 the kingdom. 
 
 Thus we have seen the end of Xerxes, who was one of the 
 most powerful princes that ever lived. It would be needless 
 for me to anticipate the reader, with respect to the judgment 
 he ought to form of him. We see him surrounded with what¬ 
 ever is greatest and most brilliant in the opinion of mankind ; 
 the most extensive empire at that time in the world ; immense 
 treasures, and forces both by land and sea, whose number ap¬ 
 pears incredible. All these things, however, are round him, 
 not in him, and add no lustre to his natural qualities: but, by a 
 blindness too common to princes and great men, born in the 
 midst of abundance, heir to boundless power, and a lustre that 
 had cost him nothing, he had accustomed himself to judge of his 
 own talents and personal merit from the exterior of his exalted 
 station and rank. He disregards the wise counsels of Artaba- 
 nus his uncle, and of Demaratus, who alone had courage 
 enough to speak truth to him; and he abandons himself to 
 courtiers, the adorers of his fortune, whose whole study it was 
 to soothe his passions. He proportions, and pretends to regu¬ 
 late, the success of his enterprises by the extent of his power. 
 The slavish submission of so many nations no longer soothes his 
 ambition; and, disgusted with too easy an obedience, he takes 
 pleasure in exercising his power over the elements, in cutting 
 his way through mountains, and making them navigable ; in 
 chastising the sea for having broken down his bridge, and in 
 foolishly attempting to shackle the waves, by throwing fetters 
 into them. Puffed up with a childish vanity and a ridiculous 
 pride, he looks upon himself as the arbiter of nature : he 
 imagines, that not a nation in the world will dare to wait his 
 arrival; and fondly and presumptuously relies on the millions 
 of men and ships which he drags after him. But when, after the 
 battle of Salamis, he beholds the sad ruins, the shameful re¬ 
 mains, of his numberless troops scattered over all Greece ; c he 
 then is sensible of the wide difference between an army and a 
 crowd of men. In a word, to form a right judgment of Xerxes, 
 we need but contrast him with a plain citizen of Athens, a Mil- 
 tiades, Themistocles, or Aristides. In the latter we find all the 
 , good sense, prudence, ability in war, valour, and greatness of 
 soul ; in the former we see nothing but vanity, pride, obstinacy ; 
 the meanest and most grovelling sentiments, and sometimes 
 the most horrid barbarity. 
 
 c Stratusque per totam passim Grseciam Xerxes intellexit, quantum ab 
 exercitu turba distaret. Seaec. de Benef. 1. vi. c. 32. 
 
BOOK VII. 
 
 THE 
 
 ANCIENT HISTORY 
 
 OF THB 
 
 PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 CHAP. I. 
 
 This chapter includes the history of the Persians and Greeks 
 from the beginning' of the reign of Artaxerxes to the Pelopon¬ 
 nesian war, which began in the 42d year of that king’s reign. 
 
 i 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 Artaxerxes ruins the faction of Artabanus, and that of Hystaspes his elder 
 
 brother. 
 
 The Greek historians give this prince the sur- 
 
 A T\T qroi O 1 
 
 Ant. J C 473 name of Longimanus. Strabo says, a it was be¬ 
 cause his hands were so long that when he stood 
 upright he could touch his knees with them; but according to 
 Plutarch, b it was because his right hand was longer than his 
 left. Had it not been for this blemish, he would have been the 
 most graceful man of his age. He was still more remarkable 
 for his goodness and generosity. He reigned about forty-nine 
 years. 
 
 Although Artaxerxes, c by the death of Artabanus, was deli¬ 
 vered from a dangerous competitor, there still were two obsta¬ 
 cles in his way, before he could establish himself in the quiet 
 possession of his throne ; one of which was his brother Hystas¬ 
 pes, governor of Bactriana ; and the other, the faction of Ar¬ 
 tabanus. He began by the latter. 
 
 Artabanus had left seven sons, and a great number of parti- 
 a Lib. xv. p. 735. b In Artax. p. 1011. c Ctes. c. xxx. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 359 
 
 sans, who soon assembled to revenge his death. These and the 
 adherents of Artaxerxes, fought a bloody battle, in which a 
 great number of Persian nobles lost their lives. Artaxerxes 
 having at last entirely defeated his enemies, put to death all 
 who had engaged in this conspiracy. He took an exemplary 
 vengeance of those who were concerned in his father’s murder, 
 and particularly of Mithridates the eunuch, who had betrayed 
 him : he made him suffer the punishment of the Troughs , which 
 was executed in the following manner : He was laid on his 
 back in a kind of horse-trough, and strongly fastened to the four 
 corners of it. d Every part of him, except his head, his hands, 
 and feet, which came out at holes made for that purpose, was 
 covered with another trough. In this horrid situation victuals 
 were given him from time to time ; and in case of his refusal 
 to eat, they were forced down his throat: honey mixed with 
 milk was given him to drink, and all his face was smeared with 
 it, which by that means attracted a numberless multitude of flies, 
 especially as he was perpetually exposed to the scorching rays 
 of the sun. The worms which bred in his excrements preyed 
 upon his bowels. The criminal lived fifteen or twenty days in 
 inexpressible torments. 
 
 Artaxerxes having crushed the faction of Artabanus, 6 was 
 powerful enough to send an army into Bactriana, which had de¬ 
 clared in favour of his brother, but he was not equally success¬ 
 ful on this occasion. The two armies engaging, Hystaspes stood 
 his ground so well, that if he did not gain the victory, he at least 
 sustained no loss ; so that both armies separated with equal 
 success; and each retired to prepare for a second battle. Ar¬ 
 taxerxes having raised a greater army than his brother, and 
 having besides the whole empire in his favour, defeated him 
 in a second engagement, and entirely ruined his party. By 
 this victory he secured to himself the quiet possession of the 
 empire. 
 
 To maintain himself on the throne/ he removed from their 
 employment all such governors of cities and provinces as he 
 suspected of holding a correspondence with either of the fac¬ 
 tions he had overcome, and substituted others on whom he 
 could rely. He afterwards applied himself to reform the 
 abuses and disorders which had crept into the government. By 
 this wise conduct and zeal for the public good, he soon acquired 
 great reputation and authority, together with the love of his 
 subjects, the strongest support of sovereign power. 
 
 d Plut. in Artax. p. 1019. e Ctes. c. xxxi. 
 
 ' Diod. 1. xi. p. 54. 
 
HISTORY OF THE 
 
 3ti0 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 Themistocles takes refuge with Artaxerxes. . 
 
 According to Thucydides, Themistocles fled 
 At if 47 ^ to this prince in the beginning of his reign : but 
 ' other authors, as Strabo, Plutarch, Diodorus, 
 fix this incident under Xerxes his predecessor. Dean Pri- 
 deaux is of the latter opinion ; he likewise thinks, that the Ar- 
 taxerxes in question is the same who is called Ahasuerus in 
 Scripture, and who married Esther : but we suppose, with the 
 learned archbishop Usher, that it was Darius the son of Hys- 
 taspes who espoused this illustrious Jewess. I have already 
 declared more than once, that I would not engage in contro¬ 
 versies of this kind ; and therefore, with regard to this flight of 
 Themistocles into Persia, and the history of Esther, I shall 
 follow the opinion of the learned Usher, my usual guide on these 
 occasions. 
 
 We have seen that Themistocles had fled to Admetus, s king 
 of the Molossi, and had met with a gracious reception from 
 him; but the Athenians and Lacedaemonians would not suffer 
 him to remain there in peace, and required that prince to deli¬ 
 ver him up ; threatening, in case of refusal, to carry their arms 
 into his country. Admetus, who was unwilling to draw such 
 formidable enemies upon himself, and much more to deliver up 
 the man who had fled to him for refuge, informed him of the 
 great danger to which he was exposed, and favoured his flight. 
 Themistocles went as far by land as Pydna, a city of Macedo¬ 
 nia, and there embarked on board a merchant-ship which was 
 bound to Ionia. None of the passengers knew him. A storm 
 having carried this vessel near the island of Naxos, then be¬ 
 sieged by the Athenians ; the imminent danger to which The- 
 mistocles was exposed, obliged him to discover himself to the 
 pilot and master of the ship ; after which, by entreaties and 
 menaces, he forced them to sail towards Asia. 
 
 Themistocles might on this occasion call to mind an expres¬ 
 sion which his father had made use of, h when he was very 
 young, in order to warn him to lay very little stress on the fa¬ 
 vour of the common people. They were then walking together 
 in the harbour. His father pointing to some rotten galleys 
 that lay neglected on the strand, Look there, says he, son , 
 pointing to them, thus do the yeojde treat their governors , 
 when theycan do them no farther service. 
 
 He arrived at Cumae, a city of ^Eolia in Asia Minor. The 
 
 s Thucyd. 1. i. p. 90, 91. Plut. in Themist. p. 125. 127- Diod. 1. xi. p. 
 42. 44. Corn. Nep. in Themist. c. viri. x. h Plut. in Themist. p. 112. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 361 
 
 king* of Persia had set a price upon his head, and promised 
 200 talents' to any person who should deliver him up. The 
 whole coast was covered with people, who were watching for 
 him. He fled to ^Egae, a little city of iEolia, where no one 
 knew him except Nicogenes, at whose house he lodged. He 
 was the most wealthy man in that country, and very intimate 
 with all the lords of the Persian court. Themistocles was 
 concealed some days in his house, till Nicogenes sent him, 
 under a strong guard, to Susa, in one of those covered chariots 
 in which the Persians, who were extremely jealous, used to 
 carry their wives ; those who conducted him telling every body 
 that they were carrying a young Greek lady to a courtier of 
 great distinction. 
 
 Being come to the Persian court, he waited upon the cap¬ 
 tain of the guards, and told him, that he was a Grecian by birth, 
 and begged the king would admit him to audience, as he had 
 matters of great importance to communicate to him. The offi¬ 
 cer informed him of a ceremony which he knew was offensive to 
 some Greeks, but without which none were allowed to speak to 
 the king ; and this was, to fall prostrate before bim. Our laws , 
 says he, command us to honour the king in that manner , and 
 to worship him as the living image of the immortal god, who 
 maintains and preserves all things. Themistocles promised to 
 comply. Being admitted to audience, he fell on his face 
 before the king after the Persian manner; and afterwards 
 rising up, Great king , k says he by an interpreter, 1 am The¬ 
 mistocles the Athenian, who, having been banished by the 
 Greeks, am come to your court in hopes of finding an asylum. 
 I have indeed brought many calamities on the Persians ; but, 
 on the other side, I have done them no less services, by the sa¬ 
 lutary advice I have given them more than once; and I am 
 now able to do them more important services than ever. My 
 life is in your hands. You may now exert your clemency, or 
 display your vengeance : by the former you will preserve your 
 suppliant; and by the latter you will destroy the greatest 
 enemy of Greece. 
 
 The king made him no answer at this audience, though he 
 was struck with admiration at his great sense and boldness ; 
 but history informs us, that in company of his friends, he con¬ 
 gratulated himself upon his good fortune, and considered The- 
 mistocles’s arrival as a very great happiness ; that he implored 
 his god Arimanius always to inspire his enemies with such 
 thoughts, and to prompt them to banish, and thus to deprive 
 themselves of, their most illustrious personages. It is added, 
 
 * Two hundred thousand crowns, or about 45,000/. sterling. 
 
 k Thucydides attributes to him very near the same words ; but as forming 
 a letter which he wrote to the king before he was introduced to him. 
 
362 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 that when this king was asleep, he started up three times 
 through excess of joy, and cried, I have got Themistocles the 
 Athenian ! 
 
 The next morning, at day-break, he sent for the greatest lords 
 of his court, and commanded Themistocles to be brought before 
 him, who expected nothing but destruction ; especially after 
 what one of his guards, upon hearing his name, had said to him 
 the night before, even in the presence-chamber, just as he had 
 left the king. Thou serpent of Greece, thou compound offraud 
 and malice, the good genius of our prince brings thee hither ! 
 However, the serenity which appeared in the king’s face seem¬ 
 ed to promise him a favourable reception. Themistocles was 
 not mistaken ; for the king began by making him a present of 
 200 talents, 1 which sum he had promised to any one who should 
 deliver him up, which consequently was his due, as Themis¬ 
 tocles had brought him his head, by surrendering himself to 
 him. He afterwards desired him to give an account of the 
 affairs of Greece. But as Themistocles could not express his 
 thoughts to the king without the assistance of an interpreter, 
 he desired time might be allowed him to learn the Persian 
 tongue; hoping he then should be able to explain those things 
 which he was desirous of communicating to him, better than ho 
 could by the aid of a third person. It is the same, says he, with 
 the speech of a man, as with a piece of tapestry, which must be 
 spread out and unfolded, to show the figures and beauty of the 
 work. His request being granted, Themistocles, in the space 
 of twelve months, made so great a progress in the Persian lan¬ 
 guage, that he spoke it with greater elegance than the Persians 
 themselves, and consequently could converse with the king 
 without the help of an interpreter. This prince treated him 
 with uncommon marks of friendship and esteem ; he made him 
 marry a lady descended from one of the noblest families in Per¬ 
 sia ; gave him a palace and an equipage suitable to it, and 
 settled a noble pension on him. He used to carry him abroad 
 on his parties of hunting, and invited him to every banquet and 
 entertainment; and sometimes conversed privately with him, 
 so that the lords of the court grew jealous and uneasy upon that 
 account. He even presented him to the princesses, who ho¬ 
 noured him with their esteem, and received his visits. It is 
 observed as a proof of the peculiar favour showed him, that by 
 the king’s special order, Themistocles w r as admitted to hear the 
 lectures and discourses of the Magi, and was instructed by them 
 in all the secrets of their philosophy. 
 
 Another proof of his great influence is related. Demaratus 
 of Sparta, who w r as then at court, being commanded by the 
 king to ask any thing of him, he desired that he might be suf- 
 1 Two hundred thousand French crowns; or about 45,000/. sterling. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 363 
 
 fered to make his entry on horseback into the city of Sardis, 
 with the royal tiara on his head : a ridiculous vanity ! equally 
 unworthy of the Grecian grandeur, and the simplicity of a La¬ 
 cedaemonian ! The king, exasperated at the insolence of his 
 demand, expressed his disgust in the strongest terms, and 
 seemed resolved not to pardon him ; but Themistocles having 
 interceded, the king restored him to favour. 
 
 In fine, the credit and influence of Themistocles was so great, 
 that under the succeeding reigns, in which the affairs of Persia 
 were still more mixed with those of Greece, whenever the kings 
 were desirous of engaging any Greek in their service, they used 
 to declare expressly in their letters, that he should be in 
 greater favour with them than Themistocles had been with 
 Artaxerxes. 
 
 It is said also that Themistocles, when in his most flourish¬ 
 ing condition in Persia, honoured and esteemed by all the world, 
 who were emulous in making their court to him, said one day, 
 when his table was covered magnificently : Children , we should 
 have been ruined, if we had not been ruined. 
 
 But at last, as it was judged necessary for the king’s interest 
 that Themistocles should reside in some city of Asia Minor, 
 that he might be ready on any occasion which should present 
 itself; he was accordingly sent to Magnesia, situated on the 
 Meander; and besides the whole revenues of that city, (which 
 amounted to fifty talents m every year,) he had those of Myus 
 and Lampsacus assigned him for his maintenance. One of the 
 cities was to furnish him with bread, another with wine, and a 
 third with other provisions. Some authors add two more, viz. 
 for his furniture and clothes. Such was the custom of the an¬ 
 cient kings of the East: instead of settling pensions on persons 
 whom they rewarded, they gave them cities, and sometimes 
 even provinces, which under the name of bread, wine, &c. 
 were.to furnish them abundantly with all things necessary for 
 supporting, in a magnificent manner, their household establish¬ 
 ment. Themistocles lived for some years in Magnesia in the 
 utmost splendour, till he came to his end in the manner which 
 will be related hereafter. 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 Cimon begins to make a figure at Athens. His first achievements. A double, 
 victory gained over the Persians, near the river Eurymedon. Death of 
 Themistocles. 
 
 The Athenians having lost one of their most 
 Ant J 1 (? 5 471 distinguished citizens," as well as ablest generals, 
 by the banishment of Themistocles, endeavoured 
 
 m Fifty thousand crowns: or about 11,250/. sterling. 
 n Diod. 1. xi. p. 45. Plut. in Cim. p. 482, 483. 
 
364 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 to retrieve that loss, by bestowing- the command of the armies 
 on Cimon, who was not inferior to him in merit. 
 
 He spent his youth in such excesses as did him no honour, 
 and presaged no good with regard to his future conduct. The 
 example of this illustrious Athenian, 0 who passed his juvenile 
 years in so dissolute a manner, and afterwards rose to so ex¬ 
 alted a pitch of glory, shows, that parents must not always 
 despair of a son, when wild and irregular in his youth ; espe¬ 
 cially when nature has endued him with genius, goodness of heart, 
 generous inclinations, and an esteem for persons of merit. Such 
 was the character of Cimon. The ill reputation he had drawn 
 upon himself having prejudiced the people against him, he at 
 first was very ill received by them ; when, being discouraged 
 by this repulse, he resolved to lay aside all thoughts of con¬ 
 cerning himself with public business. But Aristides perceiv¬ 
 ing, through all his faults, that he possessed many fine quali¬ 
 ties, consoled him, inspired him with hope, pointed out the 
 path he should take, instilled good principles into him, and 
 did not a little contribute, by the excellent instructions he 
 gave him, and the affection he expressed for him on all occasions, 
 to make him the man he afterwards appeared. What more im¬ 
 portant service could he have done his country ? 
 
 Plutarch observes ,p that after Cimon had laid aside his ju¬ 
 venile extravagance, his conduct was in every respect great 
 and noble : and that he was not inferior to Miltiades either in 
 courage and intrepidity, nor to Themistocles in prudence and 
 sense ; but that he was more just and virtuous than either of 
 them ; and that without being at all inferior to them in military 
 excellence, he far surpassed them in the practice of the moral 
 virtues. 
 
 It would be of great advantage to a state, if those who excel 
 in particular professions would take pleasure, and make it 
 their duty, to fashion and instruct such youths as are remark¬ 
 able for the pregnancy of their parts and goodness of disposi¬ 
 tion. They would thereby have an opportunity of serving their 
 country even after their death, and of perpetuating', in the per¬ 
 son of their pupils, a taste and inclination for true merit, and 
 the practice of the wisest maxims. 
 
 The Athenians, a little after Themistocles had left his coun¬ 
 try, having put to sea a fleet under the command of Cimon the 
 son of Miltiades, took Eion, on the banks of the Strymon, Am- 
 phipolis, and other places of Thrace; and as this was a very 
 fruitful country, Cimon planted a colony in it, and sent 10,000 
 Athenians thither for that purpose. 
 
 The fate of Eion is too singular to be omitted here. q Boges r 
 
 0 Plut. in Cim. p. 400. p Ibid. p. 484. i Herod. 1. vii. c. 107. Plut. p.482. 
 
 r Plutarch calls him Butis. Herodotus seems to place this history under 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 365 
 
 was governor of it under the king of Persia, and acted with 
 such a zeal and fidelity for his sovereign, as have few examples. 
 When besieged by Cimon and the Athenians, it was in his 
 power to have capitulated upon honourable terms, and to have 
 returned to Asia with his family and all his effects. However, 
 being persuaded he could not do this with honour, he resolved 
 to die rather than surrender. The city was assaulted with 
 the utmost fury, and he defended it with incredible bravery. 
 Being at last in the utmost want of provisions, he threw from 
 the walls into the river Strymon all the gold and silver in the 
 place; then caused fire to be set to a pile, and having killed his 
 wife, his children, and his whole family, he threw them into the 
 midst of the flames, and afterwards rushed into them himself. 
 The king of Persia could not but admire, and at the same time 
 bewail, so surprising an example of generosity. The heathens, 
 indeed, might give this name to what is rather savage ferocity 
 and barbarity. 
 
 Cimon made himself master also of the island of Scyros, 
 where he found the bones of Theseus, the son of ^Egeus, who 
 had fled from Athens to that city, and there ended his days. 
 An oracle had commanded that search should be made after 
 his bones. Cimon put them on board his galley, adorned them 
 magnificently, and carried them to his native country, near 800 
 years after Theseus had left it. The people received them 
 with the highest expressions of joy ; and, to perpetuate the re¬ 
 membrance of this event, they instituted games in which the 
 tragic poets were to try their skill, which became very famous, 
 and contributed exceedingly to the improvement of the drama, 
 by the wonderful emulation it excited among the tragic poets, 
 whose pieces were represented on the stage. For Sophocles, 
 who was then a young man, having brought his first play on the 
 stage, the Arclion, who presided at these games, observing there 
 was a strong faction among the spectators, prevailed with 
 Cimon and the rest of the generals his colleagues (who were 
 ten in number, and chosen one out of each tribe) to sit as 
 judges. The prize was adjudged to Sophocles, which so 
 deeply afflicted yEschylus, who till then had been considered 
 as the greatest dramatic poet, that Athens became insupport¬ 
 able to him, and he withdrew to Sicily, where he died. 
 
 The confederates had taken a great number of barbarian 
 prisoners in Sestus and Byzantium ; s and, as a proof of the high 
 regard they had for Cimon, entreated him to distribute the 
 booty. Accordingly, Cimon placed all the captives (stark 
 naked) on one side, and on the other all their riches and spoils. 
 The allies complained of this partition as too unequal ; but 
 
 Xerxes; but it is more probable that it happened under Artaxerxes his 
 successor. s Plut. in Cim. p. 484. 
 
366 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Cimon giving them the choice, they immediately took the riches 
 which belonged to the Persians, and left the prisoners for the 
 Athenians. Cimon therefore set out with his portion, and was 
 considered very little qualified to settle the distribution of 
 prizes : for the allies carried oft* a great number of chains, 
 necklaces, and bracelets of gold ; a large quantity of rich habits, 
 and fine purple cloaks ; whilst the Athenians had for their 
 share only a multitude of human creatures, quite naked, and 
 unfit for labour. However, the relations and friends of these 
 captives came soon after from Phrygia and Lydia, and pur¬ 
 chased them all at a very high price ; so that, with the money 
 arising from their ransom, Cimon had enough to maintain his 
 fleet four months ; besides a great sum of money which was 
 put into the public treasury, not to mention what he had him¬ 
 self for his own share. He afterwards used to take exceeding 
 pleasure in relating this adventure to his friends. 
 
 He made the best use of his riches , t as Gorgias the rhetori¬ 
 cian has happily expressed it in few, but strong and elegant, 
 words. Cimon , says he, u amassed riches only to use them; 
 and he employed them so as to acquire esteem and honour. 
 We may here perceive (by the way) what was the scope and 
 aim of the most exalted actions of the heathens ; and with what 
 justice Tertullian defined a Pagan, how perfect soever he might 
 appear, a vain-glorious animal, animal ylorice. The gardens 
 and orchards of Cimon were always open, by his order, to the 
 citizens in general ; who were allowed to gather whatever fruits 
 they pleased. His table was daily covered in a frugal but po¬ 
 lite manner. It was entirely different from those delicate and 
 sumptuous tables, to which only a few persons of great distinc¬ 
 tion are admitted ; and which are covered to display a vain 
 magnificence or elegance of taste. That of Cimon was plain, 
 but abundant; and all the poor citizens were received at it 
 without distinction. In thus banishing from his entertainments 
 whatever had the least air of ostentation and luxury, he reserved 
 to himself an inexhaustible fund, not only for the expenses of 
 his house, but for the wants of his friends, his domestics, and a 
 very great number of citizens ; demonstrating, by this con¬ 
 duct, that he knew much better than most rich men the true use 
 and value of riches. 
 
 He was always followed by some servants, who were ordered 
 to slip privately a piece of money into the hands of such poor as 
 they met, and to give clothes to those who were in want of them. 
 He often buried such persons as had not left money enough be¬ 
 hind them to defray the expenses of their funeral ; and what is 
 worthy of admiration, and which Plutarch does not fail to ob- 
 
 1 Plut. in Cim. p. 481. Cornel. Nep. in Cim. c. iv. Athen. 1. xii. p. 533. 
 
 11 top Ki/xiova ra %p /uara KraaQai /xkv ojg %P W ~ T0 > XP^ c7 ^ al &£ Ti/x(j)TO. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 367 
 
 serve, he did not act in this manner to gain credit among the 
 people, nor to purchase their voices ; since we find him, on all 
 occasions, declaring for the contrary faction, that is, in favour 
 of such citizens as were most considerable for their wealth or 
 authority. 
 
 Although he saw all the rest of the governors of his time en¬ 
 rich themselves by the plunder and oppression of the public, x 
 he was always incorruptible, and his hands were never stained 
 with extortion, or the smallest present ; and he continued, 
 during his whole life, not only to speak, but to act gratuitously, 
 and without the least view of interest, whatever he thought 
 might be of advantage to the commonwealth. 
 
 To a great number of other excellent qualities, Cimon united 
 sound sense, extraordinary prudence, and a profound knowledge 
 of the genius and characters of men. The allies, besides the sums 
 of money in which each of them was taxed, were to furnish a 
 certain number of men and ships. Several among them, who, 
 ever since the retreat of Xerxes, were studious of nothing but 
 their ease, and applied themselves entirely to the cultivation of 
 their lands, in order to free themselves from the toils and dangers 
 of war, chose to furnish their quota in money rather than in men, 
 and left to the Athenians the care of manning with soldiers and 
 rowers the ships they were obliged to furnish. The other gene¬ 
 rals, who had no forecast and penetration into the future, gave 
 such of the allies as acted in this manner some uneasiness at 
 first, and were for obliging them to observe the treaty literally. 
 But Cimon when in power acted in a quite different manner, 
 and suffered them to enjoy the tranquillity they chose; plainly 
 perceiving, that the allies, instead of being, as formerly, war¬ 
 like in the field, would insensibly lose their martial spirit, and 
 be fit for nothing but husbandry and trade ; whilst the Athe¬ 
 nians, by exercising the oar, and having arms in their hands 
 perpetually, would be more and more inured to the fatigues of 
 war, and daily increase in power. What Cimon had foreseen 
 happened ; these very people purchased themselves masters at 
 their own expense ; so that they who before had been com¬ 
 panions and allies, became in some measure the subjects and 
 tributaries of the Athenians. 
 
 No Grecian general ever gave so great a blow 
 Ant j c 470 the pride and haughtiness of the Persian mo¬ 
 narch as Cimon.y After the barbarians had been 
 driven out of Greece, he did not give them time to take breath ; 
 but sailed immediately after them with a fleet of upwards of 
 200 ships, took their strongest cities, and brought over all their 
 allies ; so that the king of Persia had not one soldier left in 
 
 x Pint, in Cim. p. 485. 
 
 y Ibid. p. 485—487* Thueyd. 1. i. p. 0f». Diod. 1. xi. p. 45— 47 . 
 
368 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Asia, from Ionia to Pamphylia. Still pursuing his point, lie 
 had the boldness to attack the enemy’s fleet, though much 
 stronger than his own. It lay near the mouth of the river 
 Eurymedou, and consisted of 350 sail of ships, supported by 
 the land army on the coast. It was soon put to flight, and more 
 than 200 sail were taken, besides those that were sunk. A 
 great number of the Persians had left their ships, and leaped 
 into the sea, in order to join the land army, which lay on the 
 shore. It was very hazardous to attempt a descent in sight of 
 the enemy ; and to lead on troops, which were already fatigued 
 by their late battle, against fresh forces much superior in num¬ 
 ber. However Cirnon, finding that the whole army was eager 
 to engage the barbarians, thought proper to take advantage of 
 the ardour of the soldiers, who were greatly animated with their 
 first success. Accordingly he landed, 2 and marched them di¬ 
 rectly against the barbarians, who waited resolutely for their 
 coming up, and sustained the first onset with much valour ; how¬ 
 ever, being at last obliged to give way, they fled. A great 
 slaughter ensued, and an infinite number of prisoners and im¬ 
 mensely rich spoils were taken. Cimon having, in one day, 
 gained two victories, which almost equalled those of Salamis 
 and Plataeae; to crown all, sailed out to meet a reinforcement 
 of eighty-four Phoenician ships, which were coming from Cyprus 
 to join the Persian fleet, and knew nothing of what had passed. 
 They were all either taken or sunk, and most of the soldiers 
 were killed or drowned. 
 
 Cimon, after those glorious exploits, returned in triumph to 
 Athens, and employed part*of the spoils in fortifying the har¬ 
 bour, and in beautifying the city. The riches which a general 
 amasses in the field, are applied to the noblest uses when they 
 are disposed of in this manner, and reflect infinitely greater ho¬ 
 nour upon him, than if he expended them in building magnifi¬ 
 cent palaces for himself, which must one time or other devolve 
 to strangers ; whereas works built for public use are his pro¬ 
 perty, in some measure, for ever, and transmit his name to the 
 latest posterity. It is well known that such embellishments in 
 a city give infinite pleasure to the people, 1 who are always 
 struck with works of this kind ; and this, as Plutarch observes 
 in the life of Cimon, is one of the surest, and at the same time the 
 most lawful, methods of acquiring their friendship and esteem. 
 
 The year following, b this general sailed to- 
 
 A IVT ocop' * ^ . 
 
 A \ T c 4CQ war ds the Hellespont; and having driven the 
 Persians out of the Thracian Chersonesus, of 
 
 1 We do not find that the ancients made use of long-boats in making a 
 landing; the reason of which perhaps was, that as their galleys were fiat-bot¬ 
 tomed, they ran in to shore without any difficulty. 
 
 a Plut. de gerend. rep. p. 818. 
 
 b Plut. in Cim. p. 487* Thucvd. 1. i. p. 66, 67- Diod. 1. xi. p. 53. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 369 
 
 which they had made themselves masters, he conquered it in 
 the name of the Athenians, though he himself had more right to 
 it, as Miltiades his father had been its sovereign. He after¬ 
 wards attacked the people of the island of Thrasus, who had 
 revolted from the Athenians, and defeated their fleet. They 
 maintained their revolt with an almost unparalleled obstinacy 
 and fury. As if they had been in arms against the most cruel 
 and barbarous enemies, 0 from whom they had the worst of evils 
 to fear, they made a law, that the first man who should only 
 mention the Concluding a treaty with the Athenians, should be 
 put to death. The siege was carried on three years, during 
 which the inhabitants suffered all the calamities of war with the 
 same obstinacy. The women were no less inflexible than the 
 men ; d for when the besieged wanted ropes for their military 
 engines, all the women cut off* their hair with the greatest readi¬ 
 ness, and applied it to that purpose. The city being reduced 
 to the utmost distress by famine, which daily swept away a 
 great number of the inhabitants, Hegetorides, a Thracian, 
 deeply afflicted with seeing such multitudes of his fellow-citi¬ 
 zens perish, resolutely determined to sacrifice his life for the 
 preservation of his country. Accordingly, he put a halter round 
 liis neck, and presenting himself to the assembly, Countrymen , 
 says he, do with me as you please, and do not spare me, if you 
 judge proper ; but let my death save the rest of the people, 
 and prevail with you to abolish the cruel law you have enacted, 
 so contrary to your welfare. The Thracians, struck with 
 these words, abolished the law, but would not suffer it to cost 
 sd generous a citizen his life. They surrendered themselves to 
 the Athenians, who spared their lives, and only dismantled their 
 city. 
 
 After Cimon had landed his troops on the shore opposite to 
 Thrace, he seized on all the gold-mines in that quarter, and 
 subdued every part of that country as far as Macedonia. He 
 might have attempted the conquest of that kingdom ; and, in 
 all probability, could have easily possessed himself of part of 
 it, had he thought fit to improve the opportunity. And indeed, 
 for his neglect in this point, on his return to Athens he was 
 prosecuted, as having been bribed’ by the money of the Ma¬ 
 cedonians, and of Alexander, their king. But Cimon had a 
 soul superior to all temptations of that kind, and proved his 
 innocence in the clearest light. 
 
 The conquests of Cimon e and the power of 
 Ant "j"' cf*466 ^ ie Athenians, which increased every day, gave 
 Artaxerxes great uneasiness. To prevent the 
 
 c Polyaen. Str. 1. li. d Polyaen. 1. via. 
 
 e Thucyd. 1. i p. 92; Plut. m Themist. p. 127. 
 
 VOL. II. 2 u 
 
370 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 consequences, he resolved to send Themistocles into Attica with 
 a great army, and accordingly proposed it to him. 
 
 Themistocles was in great perplexity on this occasion. On 
 one side, the remembrance of the favours which the king had 
 heaped upon him; the positive assurances he had given that 
 monarch, to serve him with the utmost zeal on all occasions: 
 the urgency of the king, who claimed his promise; all these 
 considerations would not permit him to refuse the commission. 
 On the other side, the love of his country, which the injustice 
 and ill treatment of his fellow-citizens could not banish from 
 his mind ; his strong reluctance to sully the glory of his former 
 laurels and mighty achievements by so ignominious a step ; 
 perhaps, too, the fear of being unsuccessful in a war, in which 
 he should be opposed by excellent generals, and particularly by 
 Cimon, who hitherto had been as successful as valiant; these dif¬ 
 ferent reflections would not suffer him to declare against his 
 country, in an enterprise which, whether successful or not, could 
 not but reflect shame on himself. 
 
 To rid himself at once of all these inward struggles, he re¬ 
 solved to put an end to his life/ as the only method he could, 
 devise not to be wanting in the duty which he owed his country, 
 nor to the promises he had made the prince. He therefore 
 prepared a solemn sacrifice, to which lie invited all his friends ; 
 when, after embracing them all, and taking a last farewell of 
 them, he drank bull’s blood ; or according to others, swallowed 
 a dose of poison, and died in this manner at Magnesia, aged 
 threescore and five years, the greatest part of which he had 
 spent either in the government of the republic, or the com¬ 
 mand of the armies. When the king was told the cause and 
 manner of his deaths he esteemed and admired him still more, 
 and continued his favour to his friends and domestics. But the 
 unexpected death of Themistocles proved an obstacle to the 
 design that he meditated of attacking the Greeks. The Mag- 
 nesians erected a splendid monument to the memory of that 
 general in the public square, and granted peculiar privileges 
 and honours to his descendants. They continued to enjoy 
 them in Plutarch’s time, that is, near 600 years after, and 
 his tomb was still standing. 
 
 Atticus/ in the beautiful dialogue of Cicero, entitled Brutus, 
 refutes, in an agreeable and ingenious manner, the tragical 
 end which some writers ascribe to Themistocles, as related 
 above; pretending that the whole is a fiction, invented by rhe¬ 
 toricians, who, on a bare rumour that this great man died by 
 poison, had of themselves added all the other particulars to em¬ 
 bellish the story, which otherwise would have been very dry 
 
 f The wisest heathens did not think a man was allowed to lay violent hands 
 on himself. s Cic. de Senec. n. 72. h Brut. n. 42, 43. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 371 
 
 and uninteresting. He appeals for this to Thucydides, that 
 judicious historian, who was an Athenian, and almost con¬ 
 temporary with Themistocles. This author indeed owns, that 
 a report had prevailed, that this general had poisoned himself; 
 however, his opinion was, that he died a natural death, and 
 that his friends conveyed his bones secretly to Athens, where, 
 in Pausanias’s' time, his mausoleum was standing near the 
 great harbour. This account seems much more probable than 
 the other. 
 
 Themistocles was certainly one of the greatest men that 
 Greece ever produced. He had a great soul, and invincible 
 courage, which was even inflamed by danger ; was fired with 
 an incredible thirst for glory, which sometimes his patriotism 
 would temper and allay, but which sometimes carried him too 
 far ; his presence of mind was such, k that it immediately sug¬ 
 gested whatever course it was most necessary to pursue: in 
 fine, he had a sagacity and penetration that revealed to him, 
 in the clearest light, the most secret designs of his enemies; 
 and caused him to adopt, long before-hand, the several measures 
 which were requisite to disconcert them, and inspire him with 
 great, noble, bold, extensive views with regard to the honour 
 of his country. The most essential qualities of the heart were, 
 however, wanting in him; I mean, probity, sincerity, equity, 
 and good faith ; nor was he altogether free from suspicions of 
 avarice, which is a great blemish in the character of a states¬ 
 man. 
 
 Nevertheless, 1 a noble sentiment as well as action is related 
 of him, which speak a great and disinterested soul. His 
 daughter being asked of him in marriage, m he preferred an 
 honest poor man to a rich one of an indifferent character ; and 
 gave for his reason, That in the choice of a son-in-law, he would 
 much rather have merit without riches, than riches without 
 merit. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 The revolt of the Egyptians against Persia, supported 
 by the Athenians. 
 
 The Egyptians, n in the mean time, to free 
 Ant K 5 460 tl iemse ^ ves from a foreign yoke which was in¬ 
 supportable to them, revolted from Artaxerxes, 
 
 * Lib. i. p. 1. 
 
 k De instantibus, ut ait Thucydides, verissime judicabat, et de futuris calli- 
 dissirae conjiciebat. Corn. Nep. in Themist. c. i. 
 
 1 Plut. in Themist. p. 121. 
 
 m Themistocles, cum consuleretur utrum bono viro pauperi, an minus pro- 
 bato diviti filiam collocaret : Ego vero, inquit, malo virum aui pecuria 
 
 EGEAT, QUAM PECUNIAM UTJiE VIRO. Cic. de Offic. 1. ii. C. 7L 
 
 n Thucyd. 1. i. p. G8. et 7b 72. Ctes. c. 32—35. Diod. 1. xi. p. 54—59. 
 
 2 b 2 
 
372 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 and made Inarus, prince of the Libyans, their king. They 
 called in to their assistance the Athenians, who having at that 
 time a fleet of 200 ships at the island of Cyprus, accepted the 
 invitation with pleasure, and immediately set sail for Egypt; 
 judging this a very favourable opportunity to weaken the power 
 of the Persians, by driving them out of so great a kingdom. 
 
 Advice being brought Artaxerxes of this re- 
 
 Ant cf 459 v0 ^’ ra ^ se< ^ an army of 300,000 men, and re¬ 
 solved to march in person against the rebels. 
 But his friends advising him not to venture himself in that ex¬ 
 
 pedition, he gave the command of it to Achaemenes, one of his 
 brothers. The latter being arrived in Egypt, encamped his 
 great army on the banks of the Nile. During this interval, 
 the Athenians having defeated the Persian fleet, and either de¬ 
 stroyed or taken fifty of their ships, went up that river, landed 
 their forces under the command of Charitimis their general, 
 and having joined Inarus and his Egyptians, they charged 
 Achaemenes, and defeated him in a great battle, in which that 
 Persian general and 100,000 of his soldiers were slain. Those 
 who escaped fled to Memphis, whither the conquerors pursued 
 them, and immediately made themselves masters of two quar¬ 
 ters of the city : but the Persians having fortified themselves 
 in the third, called the white wall, which was the largest and 
 strongest of the three, they were besieged in it near three years, 
 during which they made a most vigorous defence, till they were 
 at last delivered by the forces sent to their aid. 
 
 Artaxerxes, hearing of the defeat of his army, 
 
 A ~T\ /T Of "A C* ' J * 
 
 Ant j C 458 anc ^ how muc h the Athenians had contributed to 
 it; in order to make a diversion of their forces, 
 and hinder them from acting against him, sent ambassadors to 
 the Lacedaemonians, with a large sum of money, to engage them 
 to proclaim war against the Athenians. But the Lacedaemo¬ 
 nians having rejected the offer, their refusal did not abate his 
 ardour, and accordingly he gave Megabyzus and 
 Ant/j. C? 4 457. Artabazus the command of the forces destined 
 against Egypt. These generals immediately 
 raised an army of 300,000 men in Cilicia and Phoenicia. 
 
 They were obliged to wait till the fleet was 
 Ant. J. C 54 456. e q ui PP ec ^ which was not till the next year. Ar¬ 
 tabazus then took upon him the command of it, 
 and sailed towards the Nile, whilst Megabyzus, at the head of 
 the land army, marched towards Memphis. He raised the 
 siege of that city, and afterwards fought Inarus. All the forces 
 on both sides engaged in this battle, in which Inarus was en¬ 
 tirely defeated ; but the Egyptians, who had rebelled, suffered 
 most in this slaughter. 
 
 After this defeat, Inarus, though wounded by Megabyzus, 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 373 
 
 retreated with the Athenians, and such Egyptians as were w’ll- 
 ing to follow him; and reached Eyblos, a city in the island of 
 Prosopitis, which is surrounded by two arms of the Nile, both 
 of which are navigable. The Athenians ran their fleet into 
 one of these arms, where it was secured from the attacks of 
 the enemy, and held out a siege of a year and a half in this 
 island. 
 
 After the battle, all the rest of Egypt submitted to the con¬ 
 queror, and was re-united to the empire of Artaxerxes, except 
 Amyrteus, who had still a small party in the fens, where he 
 long supported himself, through the difficulty the Persians 
 found in penetrating far enough to reduce him. 
 
 The siege of Prosopitis was still carrying on. 
 
 A 1VT q , i j rj 
 
 Ant I C 454 ^ ie P ers * ans finding that they made no progress 
 by the usual methods of attack, because they had 
 to deal with persons who were not deficient either in courage 
 or skill to defend themselves, had recourse to an extraordinary 
 expedient, which soon produced what force had not been able 
 to effect. They turned the course by different canals of that 
 arm of the Nile in which the Athenians lay, and by that means 
 opened themselves a passage for their whole army to enter the 
 island. Inarus, seeing that all was lost, capitulated with Me- 
 gabyzus for himself, for all his Egyptians, and about fifty Athe¬ 
 nians, and surrendered upon condition that their lives should 
 be spared. The remainder of the auxiliary forces, which formed 
 a body of 6000 men, resolved to hold out longer; and for this 
 purpose they set fire to their ships, and drawing up in order of 
 battle, resolved to die sword in hand, and sell their lives as 
 dear as they could, in imitation of the Lacedaemonians, who 
 refused to yield, and were all cut to pieces at Thermopylae. 
 The Persians hearing they had taken so desperate a resolution, 
 did not think it advisable to attack them. A peace was there¬ 
 fore offered them, with a promise that they should all be per¬ 
 mitted to leave Egypt, and have free passage to their native 
 country either by sea or land. They accepted these conditions, 
 put the conquerors in possession of Byblos and of the whole 
 island, and went by land to Cyrene, where they embarked for 
 Greece: but most of the soldiers who had served in this ex¬ 
 pedition perished in it. 
 
 But this was not the only loss the Athenians sustained on 
 this occasion. Another fleet of fifty ships, which they sent to 
 the aid of their besieged countrymen, sailed up one of the arms 
 of the Nile (just after the Athenians had surrendered) to dis¬ 
 engage them, not knowing what had happened. But the in¬ 
 stant they entered, the Persian fleet, which kept out at sea, fol¬ 
 lowed them and attacked their rear, whilst the army discharged 
 showers of darts upon them from the banks of the river; only 
 
374 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 a few ships escaped, which opened themselves a way through 
 the enemy’s fleet, and all the rest were lost. Thus ended the 
 fatal war carried on by the Athenians for six years in Egypt, 
 which kingdom was now united again to the Persian empire, 
 and continued so during the rest of the reign of 
 Ant J c 454 Artaxerxes, of which this is the twentieth year. 
 
 But the prisoners who were taken in this war met 
 with the most unhappy fate. 
 
 SECT. V. 
 
 Inarus is delivered up to the king’s mother, contrary to the articles of the 
 treaty. The affliction of Megabyzus, who revolts. 
 
 Artaxerxes, 0 after having for five years re- 
 
 A H/T y » 
 
 Ant j C 448 ^ usec ^ to gratify the request of his mother, who 
 daily importuned him to put Inarus and the 
 Athenians who had been taken with him into her hands, in 
 order that she might sacrifice them to the manes of Achtemenes 
 her son, at last yielded to her solicitations. But how blind, 
 how barbarously weak, must this king have been, to break 
 through the most solemn engagements merely through complai¬ 
 sance ; who (deaf to remorse) violated the law of nations, solely 
 to avoid offending a most unjust mother. This inhuman 
 princess,^ 1 without regard to the faith of the treaty, caused Ina¬ 
 rus to be crucified, and beheaded all the rest. Megabyzus was 
 in the deepest affliction on that account; for as he had pro¬ 
 mised that no injury should be done them, the dishonour re¬ 
 flected principally on him. He therefore left the court, and 
 withdrew to Syria, of which he was governor; and his discon¬ 
 tent was so great, that he raised an army and revolted openly. 
 
 The king sent Osiris, who was one of the 
 Ant.^J C? 5 447 g rea test lords of the court, against him with an 
 army of 200,000 men. Megabyzus engaged 
 Osiris, wounded him, took him prisoner, and put his army to 
 flight. Artaxerxes sending to demand Osiris, Megabyzus 
 generously dismissed him, as soon as his wounds were cured. 
 
 The next year Artaxerxes sent another army 
 Ant. J. C. 446 . ‘ l g a i ns t him, the command of which he gave to 
 Menostanes, son to Atarius the king’s brother, 
 and governor of Babylon. This general was not more fortunate 
 than the former. He also was defeated and put to flight, and 
 Megabyzus gained as signal a victory as the former. 
 
 Artaxerxes, finding he could not reduce him by force of arms, 
 sent his brother Artarius and Amytis his sister, who was the wife 
 of Megabyzus, with several other persons of the first quality, to 
 persuade him to return to his allegiance. They succeeded in 
 ° Ctes. c. xxxv—xl. v Thucyd. 1. i. p. 72. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. * 375 
 
 their negotiation ; the king pardoned him, and he returned to 
 court. 
 
 One day as they were hunting, a lion raising himself on his 
 hinder feet, was going to rush upon the king, when Megabyzus 
 seeing the danger he was in, and fired with zeal and affection 
 for his sovereign, hurled a dart at the lion, which killed him. 
 But Artaxerxes, upon pretence that he had affronted him, in 
 darting at the lion first, commanded Megabyzus’s head to be 
 struck off. Amytis the king’s sister, and Amestris his mother, 
 with the greatest difficulty prevailed upon the king to change 
 his sentence into perpetual banishment. Megabyzus was there¬ 
 fore sent to Cyrta, a city on the Red Sea, and condemned to 
 end his days there : however, five years after, disguising him¬ 
 self like a leper, he made his escape and returned to Susa, 
 where, by the assistance of his wife and mother-in-law, he was 
 restored to favour, and continued so till his death, which hap¬ 
 pened some years after, in the seventy-sixth year of his age. 
 Megabyzus was extremely regretted by the king and the whole 
 court. He was a man of the greatest abilities in the kingdom, 
 and at the same time the best general. Artaxerxes owed both 
 his crown and life to him : q but it is of dangerous consequence 
 for a subject, when his sovereign is under too many obligations 
 to him. This was the cause of all the misfortunes of Me¬ 
 gabyzus. 
 
 It is surprising that so judicious a prince as Artaxerxes 
 should have been so imprudent, as to be fired with jealousy 
 against a nobleman of his court, merely because, in a party of 
 hunting, he had wounded the beast they were pursuing before 
 him ! Can any thing be so weak ? And is this placing the point 
 of honour in a manner worthy a king ? Nevertheless, history 
 furnishes us with many instances of this kind. I am apt to 
 believe, from some expressions of Plutarch/ that Artaxerxes 
 was ashamed of the wild fury to which this false delicacy had 
 raised him, and that he made some kind of public atonement 
 for it: for, according to this author, he published a decree, im¬ 
 porting, that any man who was hunting with the king, should 
 be allowed to throw his javelin first at the beast, if opportunity 
 should offer ; and he, according to Plutarch, was the first Per¬ 
 sian monarch who granted such a permission. 
 
 Beneficia eo usque beta sunt, dum videntur exsolvi posse; ubi multum 
 anteverlere, pro gratia odium redditur. Tacit. Annal. 1. iv. c. 18. 
 
 r Plut. in Apophthegm, p. 173. 
 
376 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 SECT. VI. 
 
 Artaxerxes sends Ezra, and afterwards Nehemiah, to Jerusalem. 
 
 Before I proceed in the history of the Persians and Greeks, 
 
 I shall relate, in few words, what events happened among the 
 people of God, during the first twenty years of Artaxerxes, 
 which is an essential part of the history of that prince. 
 
 In the seventh vear of the reign of Artax- 
 
 * A *1\/T oro^y J n 
 
 Ant j c 467 erxes > 8 Ezra obtained of the king and his seven 
 counsellors, an ample commission, empowering 
 him to return to Jerusalem with all such Jews as would follow 
 him thither, in order to re-establish the Jewish government and 
 religion, and to regulate both agreeably to their own laws. 
 Ezra was descended from Saraia, who was high-priest of Jeru¬ 
 salem, at the time when it was destroyed by Nabuchodonosor, 
 and was put to death by his command. Ezra was a very learn¬ 
 ed and pious man, and was chiefly distinguished from the rest 
 of the Jews, by his great knowledge in the Scriptures ; on ac¬ 
 count of which it is said of him. That he was very ready in the 
 law of Moses that was given by the God of Israel J He set 
 out from Babylon with the gifts and offerings which the king, 
 his courtiers, and such Israelites as had stayed in Babylon, had 
 put into his hands for the service of the temple, and which he 
 gave to the priests upon his arrival in Jerusalem. It appears 
 by the commission which Artaxerxes gave him, that this prince 
 had a high veneration for the God of Israel, as, in commanding 
 his officers to furnish the Jews with all things necessary for 
 their worship, he adds, Let all things be performed after the 
 law of God diligently , unto the most high God, that wrath 
 come not upon the kingdom of the king and his son . u This 
 commission, as I observed, empowered him to settle the re¬ 
 ligion and government of the Jews, pursuant to the law of 
 Moses ; to appoint magistrates and judges to punish evil-doers, 
 not only by imprisoning their persons and confiscating their 
 possessions, but also by sending them into banishment, and 
 even sentencing them to death, according to the crimes they 
 should commit. Such was the power with which Ezra was 
 invested, and which he exercised faithfully during 
 Ant I C 454 thirteen years, till Nehemiah brought a new com¬ 
 mission from the Persian court. 
 
 Nehemiah was also a Jew, x of distinguished merit and piety, 
 and one of the cup-bearers to king Artaxerxes. This was a 
 very considerable employment in the Persian court, because of 
 
 • Ezra, vii. &c. 
 
 u Ibid. viii. 22. 
 
 1 1 Esdras, viii. 3. 
 Nehem. i. et ii. 
 
 X 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 377 
 
 the privilege annexed to it, of being often near the king’s per¬ 
 son, and of being allowed to speak to him in the most favourable 
 moments. However, neither this exalted station, nor the set¬ 
 tlement of his family in that land of captivity, could obliterate 
 from his mind the country of his ancestors, nor their religion : 
 neither his love for the one, nor his zeal for the other, was 
 abated ; and his heart was still in Zion. Some Jews who were 
 come from Jerusalem having informed him of the sad state of 
 that city, that its walls lay in ruin, its gates were burnt down, 
 and the inhabitants thereby exposed to the insults of their ene¬ 
 mies and the scorn of their neighbours ; the affliction of his bre¬ 
 thren, and the dangers with which they were menaced, made 
 such an impression on his mind, as might naturally be expected 
 from one of his piety. One day as he was waiting upon the 
 king, the latter observing an unusual air of melancholy in Ne- 
 hemiah’s countenance, asked him the cause of it: a proof that 
 this monarch had a tenderness of heart rarely found in those of 
 his high rank, which nevertheless is much more valuable than 
 the most shining qualities. Nehemiah took this opportunity to 
 acquaint him with the calamitous state of his country ; owned 
 that to be the subject of his grief; and humbly entreated that 
 leave might be given him to go to Jerusalem, in order to repair 
 the fortifications of it. The kings of Persia his predecessors 
 had permitted the Jews to rebuild the temple, but not the walls 
 of Jerusalem. But Artaxerxes immediately caused a decree 
 to be drawn up, that the walls and gates of Jerusalem should 
 be rebuilt; and Nehemiah, as governor of Judea, was ap¬ 
 pointed to put this decree in execution. The king, to do him 
 the greater honour, ordered a body of horse, commanded by an 
 officer of distinction, to escort him thither. He likewise writ 
 to all the governors of the provinces on this side the Euphrates, 
 to give him all the assistance possible in forwarding the work 
 for which he was sent. This pious Jew executed every part 
 of his commission with incredible zeal and activity. 
 
 It is from this decree,y enacted by Artaxerxes in the 
 twentieth year of his reign for the rebuilding of the walls of Je¬ 
 rusalem, that we date the beginning of the seventy weeks men¬ 
 tioned in the famous prophecy of Daniel, after which the 
 Messiah was to appear, and to be put to death. I shall here 
 insert the whole prophecy, but without giving the explication 
 of it, as it may be found in other writers, and is not a part of 
 this history. 
 
 Thou art greatly helovecl, therefore understand the matter, 
 and consider the vision , z Seventy weeks are determined upon 
 thy people, and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, 
 and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for 
 y Dan. ix. 23—37. 1 Ibid. 
 
378 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal 
 up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy. 
 Know therefore, and understand, that from the going 
 FORTH OF THE COMMANDMENT TO RESTORE AND TO 
 
 build Jerusalem, unto the Messiah the Prince, shall be 
 seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks : the street shall 
 be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And af¬ 
 ter threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not 
 for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come, shall 
 destroy the city and the sanctuary, and the end thereof 
 shall be with a flood ; and unto the end of the war desolations 
 are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many 
 for one week ; and in the midst of the week he shall cause 
 the sacrifice and the oblation to cease ; and for the overspread¬ 
 ing of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the con¬ 
 summation, and that determined shall be poured upon the de¬ 
 solate. 
 
 When Ezra was in power, a as his chief view was to restore 
 religion to its ancient purity, he arranged the books of Scrip¬ 
 ture in their proper order, revised them all very carefully, and 
 collected the ancient documents relating to the people of God, 
 in order to compose out of them the two books of Chronicles, 
 to which he added the history of his own times, which was finish¬ 
 ed by Nehemiah. With their books ends the long history 
 which Moses had begun, and which the writers who came after 
 him continued in a regular series, till the repairing of Jerusa¬ 
 lem. The rest of the sacred history is not written in that un¬ 
 interrupted order. Whilst Ezra and Nehemiah were compil¬ 
 ing the latter part of that great work, Herodotus, whom pro¬ 
 fane authors call the father of history, began to write. Thus 
 we find that the latest authors of the books of Scripture flourish¬ 
 ed about the same time with the first author of the Grecian his¬ 
 tory ; and when it began, that of God’s people, to compute on¬ 
 ly from Abraham, included already fifteen centuries. Herod¬ 
 otus made no mention of the Jews in his history ; for the 
 Greeks desired to be informed of such nations only as were fa¬ 
 mous for their wars, their commerce, and grandeur ; so that as 
 Judea was then but just rising from its ruins, it did not excite 
 the attention of that people. 
 
 SECT. VII. 
 
 Character of Pericles. The methods employed by him to gain the 
 
 affection of the people. 
 
 I now return to Greece. Since the banishment of Themis- 
 tocles, and the death of Aristides, (the exact time of which is 
 
 a Bossuet’s Universal History. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 379 
 
 not known,) two citizens, Cimon and Pericles, divided all in¬ 
 fluence and authority in Athens. Pericles was much younger 
 than Cimon, and of a quite different character. As he will 
 make a very considerable figure in the following history, it is of 
 importance to the reader to know who he was, in what manner 
 he had been educated, and his scheme and method of govern¬ 
 ment. 
 
 Pericles descended, 13 by the mother’s as well as father’s side, 
 from the greatest and most illustrious families of Athens. 
 His father Xantippus, who defeated at Mycale the king of 
 Persia’s lieutenants, married Agarista, niece to Clisthenes, who 
 expelled the Pisistratidte, or descendants of Pisistratus the ty¬ 
 rant, and established a popular government in Athens. Pe¬ 
 ricles had long prepared himself for the design he had formed 
 of engaging in state affairs. 
 
 He was brought up under the most learned men of his age, 
 and particularly Anaxagoras of Clazomene, surnamed the In¬ 
 telligence , from his being the first as we are told who ascribed 
 human events, as well as the formation and government of the 
 universe, not to chance, as some philosophers, nor to a fatal ne¬ 
 cessity, but to a superior Intelligence, who disposed and go¬ 
 verned all things with wisdom. This tenet, or opinion, subsist¬ 
 ed long before his time ; but he perhaps set it in a stronger 
 light than all others had done, and taught it methodically and 
 from principles. Anaxagoras thoroughly instructed his pupil 
 in that part of philosophy which relates to nature, and which is 
 therefore called physics. 0 This study gave him a strength and 
 greatness of soul, which raised him above an infinite number of 
 vulgar prejudices and vain practices, generally observed in his 
 time ; which in affairs of state, and military enterprises, often 
 disconcerted the wisest and most necessary measures, or defeat¬ 
 ed them by scrupulous delays, authorized and covered with the 
 specious veil of religion. These were sometimes dreams or 
 auguries, at other times dreadful phenomena, as eclipses of the 
 sun or moon, or else omens and presages ; not to mention the 
 wild chimeras of judiciary astrology. The knowledge of nature, 
 free from the grovelling and weak superstition to which igno¬ 
 rance gives birth, inspired him, says Plutarch, with a well- 
 grounded piety towards the gods, attended with a strength of 
 mind that was immovable, and a calm hope of the blessings to 
 be expected from them. Although he found infinite charms in 
 this study, he did not however devote himself to it as a philoso¬ 
 pher, but as a statesman ; and he had so much power over him- 
 
 b Plut. in vit. Pericl. p. 153—15C. 
 
 „ c The ancients, under this name, comprehended what we call physics and 
 metaphysics ; the latter of which implies the knowledge of spiritual things, as 
 God and spirits ; and the former, that of bodies. 
 
380 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 self (a very difficult thing) as to prescribe to himself limits in 
 the pursuit of knowledge. 
 
 But the talent which he cultivated with the greatest care, be¬ 
 cause he looked upon it as the most necessary instrument of all 
 to those who are desirous of conducting and governing the peo¬ 
 ple, was eloquence. And indeed, those who possessed this ta¬ 
 lent in a free state like that of Athens, were sure of reigning in the 
 assemblies, engrossing suffrages, determining affairs, and exercis¬ 
 ing a kind of absolute power over the hearts and minds of the 
 people. He therefore made this his chief object, and the mark 
 to which all his other improvements, as well as whatsoever he 
 had learnt from Anaxagoras, were directed ; d suffusing, to bor¬ 
 row Plutarch’s expression, over the study of philosophy the 
 dye of rhetoric ; the meaning of which is, that Pericles, to 
 embellish and adorn his discourse, heightened the strength and 
 solidity of reasoning with the colouring and graces of eloquence. 
 
 He had no cause to repent his having bestowed so much time 
 on this study, for his success far exceeded his utmost hopes. 
 The poets, e his contemporaries, used to say, that he lightened, 
 thundered, and agitated all Greece ; so powerful was his elo¬ 
 quence. It had those piercing and lively strokes/ that reach 
 the inmost soul ; and his discourse left always an irresistible in¬ 
 centive, a kind of spur, behind it in the minds of his auditors. 
 Pie had the art of uniting beauty with strength ; and Cicero 
 observes, that at the very time he opposed with the greatest te¬ 
 naciousness the inclinations and desires of the Athenians, he 
 had the art to make even severity itself, and the kind of harsh¬ 
 ness with which he spoke against the flatterers of the people, 
 popular. There was no resisting the solidity of his arguments, 
 or the sweetness of his words ; whence it was said, that the 
 goddess of persuasion, with all her graces, resided on his lips. 
 And indeed, as Thucydides/ his rival and adversary, was one 
 day asked, whether he or Pericles was the best wrestler : 
 Whenever, says he, I have given him a fall, he affirms the con¬ 
 trary, in such strong and forcible terms, that he persuades all 
 the spectators, that I did not throw him, though they them¬ 
 selves saw him on the ground. Nor was he less prudent and 
 reserved, than strong and vehement in his speeches ; and it is 
 related that he never spoke in public, till after he had besought 
 the gods not to suffer any expression to drop from him, either 
 
 d B acpy ry pyTopucy ryv cf)vaio\oyiav viro\(.6p.EvoQ. 
 
 e Ab Aristophane poeta fulgurare, tonare, permiscere Graeciam dictus est. 
 Cic. in orat. n. 29. 
 
 f Quid Pericles ? De cujus dicendi copia sic accepimus, ut, cum contra vo- 
 luntatem Atheniensium loqueretur pro salute patria severius tamen id ipsum, 
 quod ille contra populares homines diceret, populare omnibus et jucundum 
 videretur: cujus in labris veteres comici—leporem habitasse dixerunt: tan- 
 tamque vim in eo fuisse, ut in eorum mentibus, qui audissent, quasi aculeos 
 quosdam relinqueret. Cic. lib. iii. de Orat. n. 138. £ Not the historian. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 381 
 
 incongruous to his subject, or offensive to the people. When¬ 
 ever he was to appear in the assembly, 1 ' before he came out of 
 his house he used to say to himself; Remember, Pericles, that 
 thou art going to speak to men born in the arms of liberty : 
 to Greeks, to Athenians. 
 
 The uncommon endeavours which Pericles, according to his¬ 
 torians, used, in order to improve his mind by the study of the 
 sciences, and to attain to a perfection in eloquence, are an ex¬ 
 cellent lesson to such persons as are one day to fill the impor¬ 
 tant offices of state ; and a just censure of those,' who, disre¬ 
 garding whatever is called study and learning, bring into those 
 employments (upon* which they enter without knowledge or ex¬ 
 perience) nothing but a ridiculous self-sufficiency, and a rash 
 boldness in deciding. Plutarch, k in a treatise where he shows, 
 that it is to statesmen that a philosopher ought chiefly to attach 
 himself preferably to any other class of men, (because in in¬ 
 structing them, he at the same time teaches whole cities and 
 republics,) verifies his assertion from the example of the great¬ 
 est men both of Greece and Italy, who derived this help from 
 philosophy. Pericles, of whom we now write, was taught by 
 Anaxagoras ; Dion of Syracuse by Plato ; many princes of 
 Italy by Pythagoras ; Cato, the famous censor, travelled to the 
 place where Athenodorus lived, for the same purpose ; and 
 lastly the famous Scipio, the destroyer of Carthage, always 
 kept Panmtius the philosopher near his person. 
 
 One of the chief endeavours of Pericles also was, to study 
 thoroughly the genius and disposition of the Athenians, that he 
 might discover the secret springs which were to be employed 
 in order to set them in motion, and the manner in which it 
 was proper to act for acquiring their confidence; for it was in 
 that principally that the great men among the ancients used to 
 make their skill and politics consist. 1 He found by the reflec¬ 
 tions he had made on the several transactions of his time, that 
 the predominant passions of this people were, a violent aversion 
 to tyranny, and a strong love of liberty, which inspired them 
 with sentiments of fear, jealousy, and suspicion, of all such 
 citizens as were too conspicuous for their birth, their personal 
 merit, their own credit and authority, or that of their friends. 
 He not only was very like Pisistratus, with regard to the sweet¬ 
 ness of his voice and fluency of expression, but he also resem¬ 
 bled him very much in the features of his face, and his whole 
 
 h Plut. in Symp. lib. i. p. 620. 
 
 * Nunc contra plerique ad honores adipiscendos, et ad remp. gerendam, 
 nudi veniunt et inermes, nulla cognitione rerum, nulla scientia ornati. Cic. 
 lib. iii. de Oral. n. 136. k Plut. p. 777* 
 
 1 Olim noscenda vulgi natura, et quibus modis temperanter haberetur: 
 senatusque et optimatium ingenia qui maxime perdidicerant, callidi temporum 
 et sapientes habebantur. Tacit. Annal. lib. iv. cap. 33. 
 
382 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 air and manner : and he observed that the oldest of the Athe¬ 
 nians who had seen the tyrant, were prodigiously struck at the 
 resemblance. Besides, he was very rich, was descended from 
 an illustrious family, and had very powerful friends. To pre¬ 
 vent, therefore, his being obnoxious to the suspicion and 
 jealousy of the people, he at first shunned public business, 
 which required a constant attendance in the city ; and was 
 solely intent upon distinguishing himself in war and dangers. 
 
 But when he saw Aristides dead, Themistocles banished, 
 and Cimon engaged almost continually in foreign wars, and 
 absent from Greece; he began to appear in public with greater 
 confidence than before, and entirely devoted himself to the 
 party of the people, but not out of inclination, for he was 
 far from affecting popular power, but to remove all suspicions 
 of his aspiring to the tyranny, and still more, to raise a strong 
 bulwark against the influence and authority of Cimon, who 
 had joined with the nobles. 
 
 At the same time, he quite changed his conduct and way of 
 life; and assumed, in all things, the character of a statesman, 
 wholly busied in affairs of government, and entirely devoted to 
 the service of his country. He was never seen in the streets, 
 except when he was going either to the assembly of the peo¬ 
 ple, or to the council. He on a sudden left off going to ban¬ 
 quets, assemblies, and other diversions of that kind, which he 
 had used to frequent; and during the many years that he 
 presided in the administration, he was never seen to go to 
 supper with his friends, except once at the nuptials of a near 
 relation. 
 
 He knew that the people, m who are naturally fickle and in¬ 
 constant, n commonly disregard those who are always in their 
 sight: and that too strong a desire to please them grows at 
 last tiresome and importunate; and it was observed that such 
 a behaviour was very prejudicial to Themistocles. To avoid 
 this error, he used to go very rarely to the assemblies; and 
 never appeared before the people but at intervals, in order to 
 make himself desired : and to preserve such an ascendant over 
 their minds as might be always new, and not worn and in a 
 manner withered by an over-great assiduity; wisely reserving 
 himself for great and important occasions. Hence it was said 
 that he imitated Jupiter, 0 who, in the government of the 
 world, according to some philosophers, busied himself in great 
 events alone ; and left the direction of those of less importance 
 to subaltern deities. And indeed, Pericles used to transact 
 
 m Plut. de sui laude, p. 441. 
 
 n Ista nostra assiduitas, Servi, nescis quantum interdum afferat hominibus 
 
 fastidii, quantum satietatis-Utrique nostrum desiderium nihil profuisset. 
 
 Cic. pro Mur. n. 21. 0 Plut. de ger. rep. p. 811. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 383 
 
 all petty affairs by his friends, and by certain oracles, that were 
 entirely devoted to him, among whom was Ephialtes. 
 
 Pericles employed his whole industry and application to 
 gain the favour and esteem of the people, p in order to coun¬ 
 terbalance the fame and influence of Cimon. However, he 
 could not equal the magnificence and liberality of his rival, 
 whose immense riches gave him an opportunity of bestowing 
 such largesses as appear to us almost incredible,' so much do 
 they differ from our customs in that respect. Finding it im¬ 
 possible for him to rival Cimon in this particular, he had re¬ 
 course to another expedient, (in order to gain the love of the 
 populace,) no less effectual, perhaps, but certainly not so legiti¬ 
 mate and honourable. He was the first who caused the con¬ 
 quered lands to be divided among the citizens ; who distributed 
 among them the public revenues for the expense of their games 
 and shows, and annexed pensions to all public employments; 
 so that certain sums were bestowed on them regularly, as well 
 to procure them a place at the games, as for their attendance 
 in the courts of justice, and the public assemblies. It is im¬ 
 possible to say how fatal this unhappy policy was to the repub¬ 
 lic, and how many evils it drew after it. For these new regu¬ 
 lations, besides draining the public treasury, gave the people a 
 fondness for expense and a dissolute turn of mind ; whereas 
 they before were sober and modest, and contented themselves 
 with getting a livelihood by their sweat and labour. 
 
 By such arts as these Pericles had gained so great an as¬ 
 cendant over the minds of the people, ^ that he may be said to 
 have attained a monarchical power under a republican form of 
 government; moulding the citizens into what shape he pleased, 
 and presiding with unlimited authority in all their assemblies. 
 And indeed, Valerius Maximus makes scarce any other differ¬ 
 ence between Pisistratus and Pericles, than that the one exer¬ 
 cised a tyrannical power by force of arms, and the other by the 
 strength of his eloquence, in which he made a very great pro¬ 
 gress under Anaxagoras. 
 
 This credit and authority, enormous as it was, could not yet 
 restrain the comic writers from throwing out against him many 
 very severe strokes of satire in the theatres ; and it does not 
 appear that any of the poets who censured Pericles with so 
 much boldness, were ever punished, or even called to account 
 for it by the people. Perhaps it was through prudence and 
 policy that he did not attempt to curb this licentiousness of the 
 
 p Plut. in Pericl. p. 156. 
 
 9 Pericles felicissimus naturae increments, sub Anaxagora praeceptore 
 summo studio perpolitus et inltructus, liberis Athenarum cervicibus jugum 
 servitutis imposuit: egit enim ille urbem et versavit arbitrio suo—Quid inter 
 Pisistratum et Periclem intermit, nisi quod ille armatus, hie sinearmis tyran- 
 nidem exercuit ? Val. Max. 1. viii. c. 9. 
 
384 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 stage, nor to silence the poets; that he might amuse and con¬ 
 tent the people by this vain shadow of liberty, and prevent their 
 discovering that they really were enslaved. 
 
 Pericles/ the more to strengthen his own influence, engaged 
 in a design no less hazardous than bold. He resolved to weaken 
 the authority of the tribunal of the Areopagus, of which he was 
 not a member, because he had never been elected either Archon/ 
 Thesmotheta, king of the sacrifices, nor Polemarch. These 
 were different employments in the republic, which from time 
 immemorial had been given by lot; and none but those who 
 had behaved uprightly in them, were allowed a seat in the Areo¬ 
 pagus. Pericles, taking advantage of Cimon’s absence, set 
 Ephialtes, who was his creature, at work clandestinely; and at 
 last succeeded in lessening the power of that illustrious body, in 
 which the chief strength of the nobility consisted. The people, 
 emboldened and supported by so powerful a faction, subverted 
 all the fundamental laws and ancient customs ; took from the 
 senate of the Areopagus the cognizance of the greater part of 
 the causes that used to be brought before it, leaving it very few, 
 and such only as were of little consequence, and made them¬ 
 selves absolute masters of all the tribunals. 
 
 Cimon, on his return to Athens, was afflicted to see the dig¬ 
 nity of the senate trampled under foot, and therefore set every 
 engine at work to restore it to its pristine authority, and to re¬ 
 vive the aristocracy, in the same form as it had been established 
 under Clisthenes. But now his enemies began to exclaim and 
 excite the people against him ; reproaching him, among many 
 other things, for his strong attachment to the Lacedaemonians. 
 Cimon had himself given some room for this reproach, by his 
 not paying sufficient regard to the Athenian delicacy; for, in 
 speaking to them, he would for ever extol Lacedaemonia ; and 
 whenever he censured their conduct on any occasion, he used 
 to cry, The Spartans do not act in this manner. Such expres¬ 
 sions as these drew upon him the envy and hatred of his fellow- 
 citizens ; but an event, in which he nevertheless had no share, 
 made him the object of their utmost detestation. 
 
 r Plut. in Pericl. p. 157. In Cim. p. 488. 
 
 8 After some changes had been made in the form of the Athenian govern¬ 
 ment, the supreme authority was at last invested in nine magistrates, called 
 Archons, and lasted but one year. One was called Rex, another Polemarchus, 
 a third Archon, and this magistrate was properly at the head of the rest, and 
 gave his name to the year; and six Thesmothetse, who presided immediately 
 over the laws and decrees. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 385 
 
 SECT. VIII. 
 
 An earthquake in Sparta. Insurrection of the Helots. Seeds of division 
 between the Athenians and Spartans. Cimon is sent into banishment. 
 
 In the fourth year of the reign of Archida- 
 Amt^T mus ’ t th ere happened the most dreadful earth¬ 
 
 quake in Sparta that had ever been known. In 
 several places the counky was entirely swallowed up ; Tayge- 
 tus and other mountains were shaken to their foundations; many 
 of their summits being torn away, came tumbling down ; and 
 the whole city was laid in ruins, five houses only excepted. To 
 heighten the calamity, the Helots, who were slaves to the La¬ 
 cedaemonians, looking upon this as a favourable opportunity to 
 recover their liberty, flew up and down every part of the city, 
 to murder such as had escaped the earthquake : but finding 
 them under arms, and drawn up in order of battle, by the pru¬ 
 dent foresight of Archidamus, who had assembled them round 
 him, they retired into the neighbouring cities, and commenced 
 that very day open war, having entered into alliance with seve¬ 
 ral of the neighbouring nations, and being strengthened by the 
 Messenians, who at that time were engaged in a war with the 
 Spartans. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians in this extremity sent to Athens to im¬ 
 plore succours; but this was opposed by Ephialtes, who de¬ 
 clared that it would be no way advisable to assist them, nor to 
 rebuild a city that was the rival of Athens, which, he said, ought 
 to be left in its ruins, and the pride of Sparta thereby humbled 
 for ever. But Cimon, being struck with horror at these poli¬ 
 tics, did not hesitate a moment to prefer the welfare of the La¬ 
 cedaemonians to the aggrandizing of his country ; declaring, in 
 the strongest terms, that it was absolutely improper to leave 
 Greece lame of one of its legs, and Athens without a counter¬ 
 poise : the people came in to his opinion, and accordingly a suc¬ 
 cour was voted. Sparta and Athens might indeed be consider¬ 
 ed as the two limbs on which Greece stood ; so that if one of 
 them was destroyed, Greece would inevitably be crippled. It 
 is also certain, that the Athenians w r ere so elate with their 
 grandeur, and were become so proud and enterprising, that they 
 wanted a curb to check their impetuosity; and none was so 
 proper as Sparta, that state being the only one that was capable 
 of being a counterpoise to the headstrong disposition of the 
 Athenians. Cimon therefore marched to the aid of the Lace¬ 
 daemonians with 4000 men. 
 
 We have here an example of the powerful influence which a 
 man of fine talents and abilities has in a state, when a great 
 
 * Plut. in Cim. p. 488, 489. 
 
 2 c 
 
 VOL. II. 
 
386 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 fund of merit is united in his person, with a well-established re¬ 
 putation for probity, disinterestedness, and zeal for the good of 
 his country. Cimon, with very little difficulty, succeeds in in¬ 
 spiring the Athenians with noble and magnanimous sentiments, 
 which in outward appearance interfered with their interest; and 
 this in spite of the suggestions of a secret jealousy, which never 
 fails to show itself in the most sensible manner on these occa¬ 
 sions. By the ascendant and authority which his virtue gives 
 him, he raises them above the grovelling and unjust (though too 
 common) political views, that prompt the people to consider the 
 calamities of their neighbours as an advantage, which the inter¬ 
 est of their own country permits and even enjoins them to lay 
 hold of. The counsels of Cimon were perfectly wise and equit¬ 
 able ; but it is surprising how he could prevail so far as to make 
 a whole people approve them, since this is all that could be 
 expected from an assembly of the wisest and gravest senators. 
 
 Some time after , 11 the Lacedaemonians again implored the 
 aid of the Athenians against the Messenians and Helots, who 
 had seized upon Ithome. But these forces being arrived under 
 the command of Cimon, the Spartans began to dread their in¬ 
 trepidity, their power, and great fame; and affronted them so 
 far, as to send them back, upon suspicion of their harbouring 
 ill designs, and of intending to turn their arms against them. 
 
 The Athenians being returned full of anger and resentment, 
 they declared themselves, from that very day, enemies to all 
 who should favour the Lacedaemonian interest; for which rea¬ 
 son they banished Cimon by the ostracism, on the first, oppor¬ 
 tunity that presented itself for that purpose. This is the first 
 time that the misunderstanding between these two nations, which 
 afterwards increased through mutual discontent, displayed itself 
 in so strong a manner. It was nevertheless suspended for some 
 years, by truces and treaties, which prevented its consequences ; 
 but it at last broke out in the most violent manner in the Pelo- 
 
 i * 
 
 ponnesian war. 
 
 Those who had shut themselves up in Ithome, after making a 
 ten years’ defence in it, surrendered at last to the Lacedtemo- 
 nians, who gave them their lives upon condition that they should 
 never return to Peloponnesus. The Athenians, to exasperate 
 the Lacedaemonians, received them with their wives and chil¬ 
 dren, and settled them in Naupactus, of which they had just 
 before possessed themselves. The inhabitants of Megara at 
 the same time went over from the Spartans to the Athenians.* 
 In this manner several leagues were concluded on both sides, 
 and many battles were fought; the most famous of which was 
 that of Tanagra in Boeotia, which Diodorus equals with those 
 
 u Plut. in Cim. Thucyd. 1. i. p. (>7, f>8. 
 
 Thucyd. 1. i. p. 69. 71 • l)iod. 1. xi. p. f>9—65. 
 
 X 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 387 
 
 of Marathon and Platmte, and in which Myronides the Athe¬ 
 nian defeated the Spartans, who came to the aid of the Thebans. 
 
 It was on this occasion that Cimon,y thinking 
 Ant^J C ° 4 456 himself dispensed from his proscription, repaired 
 in arms with some soldiers to his tribe to serve 
 his country, and to fight in the Athenian army against the La¬ 
 cedaemonians : but his enemies caused him to be ordered to 
 retire. However, before he went away, he exhorted his com¬ 
 panions, who were no less suspected than himself of favouring 
 the Lacedaemonians, to exert themselves to the utmost, and 
 fight with the greatest courage, to prove their innocence; and 
 if possible, to efface from the minds of their citizens a sus¬ 
 picion so injurious to them all. Accordingly, those brave sol¬ 
 diers, who were 100 in number, fired by his words, requested 
 him to give them his whole armour, which they placed in the 
 centre of their little battalion, in order to have him in a manner 
 present and before their eyes. They fought with so much 
 valour and fury, that they were all cut to pieces, to the great 
 regret of the Athenians, who deeply repented their having ac¬ 
 cused them so unjustly. 
 
 I omit several events of little importance. 
 
 SECT. IX. 
 
 Cimon is recalled. He establishes peace between the two cities. He gains 
 several victories, which reduce Artaxerxes to the necessity of concluding 
 a treaty highly honourable to the Greeks. Cimon’s death. 
 
 The Athenians, 2 perceiving the great occasion they had for 
 Cimon, recalled him from banishment, in which he had spent 
 five years. It was Pericles himself who proposed and drew 
 up that decree; so moderate in those times, says Plutarch, 
 were feuds and animosities, and so easy to be appeased when 
 the public welfare required it; and so happily did ambition, 
 which is one of the strongest and most lively passions, yield to 
 the necessity of the times, and comply with the occasions of 
 the public. 
 
 The instant Cimon returned, a he stifled the 
 
 Ant^J C?°450 s P ar ^ s war which were going to break out 
 among the Greeks, reconciled the two cities, and 
 prevailed with them to conclude a truce for five years. And 
 to prevent the Athenians, who were grown haughty in conse¬ 
 quence of the many victories they had gained, from having an 
 opportunity, or harbouring a design, to attack their neighbours 
 or allies, he thought it advisable to lead them at a great distance 
 from home against the common enemy : thus endeavouring, in 
 
 v Plut. in Cim. p. 489. z Ibid. p. 490. 
 
 a Plut. ibid. Diod. 1. xii. p. 73, 74. 
 
 2 c 2 
 
388 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 an honourable way, to inure the citizens to war, and enrich them 
 at the same time. Accordingly, he put to sea with a fleet of 
 200 sail. He sent sixty of these into Egypt to the aid of 
 Amyrteus, and himself sailed with the rest against the island 
 of Cyprus. Artabazus was at that time in those seas with a 
 fleet of 300 sail, and Megabyzus, the other general of Artax- 
 erxes, with an army of 300,000 men, on the coast of Cilicia. 
 As soon as the squadron which Cimon had sent into Egypt had 
 joined his fleet, he sailed and attacked Artabazus, and took 100 
 of his ships. He sunk many of them, and chased the rest as 
 far as the coast of Phoenicia. And as if this victory had been 
 only a prelude to a second, he made a descent on Cilicia in his 
 return, attacked Megabyzus, defeated him, and cut to pieces a 
 prodigious number of his troops. He afterwards returned to 
 Cyprus with this double triumph, and laid siege to Citium, a 
 strong city of very great importance. His design, after he had 
 completed the conquest of that island, was to sail for Egypt, 
 and again embroil the affairs of the barbarians ; for he had very 
 extensive views, and meditated no less a project than that of 
 entirely subverting the mighty empire of Persia. The rumours 
 which prevailed, that Themistocles was to command against 
 him, added fresh fire to his courage; and, almost assured of 
 success, he was infinitely pleased with the occasion of trying 
 his strength against that general. But we have already seen 
 that Themistocles laid violent hands on himself about this time. 
 
 Artaxerxes, b tired with a war in which he had sustained such 
 great losses, resolved, with the advice of his council, to put an 
 end to it. Accordingly, he sent orders to his generals to con¬ 
 clude a peace with the Athenians, upon the most advantageous 
 conditions they could. Megabyzus and Artabazus sent ambas¬ 
 sadors to Athens to propose an accommodation. Plenipoten¬ 
 tiaries were chosen on both sides, and Callas was at the head 
 of those of Athens. The conditions of the treaty were as fol¬ 
 low : 1. That all the Grecian cities of Asia should enjoy their 
 liberty, with such laws and forms of government as they should 
 think fit to choose. 2. That no Persian ship of war should be 
 allowed to enter the seas between the Cyanean and Chelido- 
 nian islands, that is, from the Euxine sea to the coast of Parn- 
 phylia. 3. That no Persian general should advance any troops 
 within three days’ march of those seas. 4. That the Atheni¬ 
 ans should not invade any part of the dominions of the king of 
 Persia. These articles being ratified by both parties, peace 
 was proclaimed. 
 
 A. M. 3555. Thus ended this war, which, from the burning 
 Ant. J. C. 449. of Sardis by the Athenians, had lasted fifty-one 
 
 b Diod. p. 74, 75. 
 
 4 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 389 
 
 years complete, and in which infinite numbers of Persians as 
 well as Greeks had perished. 
 
 Whilst this treaty was negociating, 0 Cimon died, either of 
 sickness, or of a wound he had received at the siege of 
 Citium. When he was near his end, he commanded his officers 
 to sail with the fleet immediately for Athens, and to conceal 
 his death with the utmost care. Accordingly it was executed 
 with so much secrecy, that neither the enemy nor the allies once 
 suspected it: and they returned safe to Athens, still under the 
 conduct and auspices of Cimon, though he had been dead above 
 thirty days. 
 
 Cimon was universally regretted ; d which is no wonder, since 
 he was possessed of all those qualities that dignify the soul; a 
 most tender son ; a faithful friend; a citizen zealous for the 
 good of his country ; a great politician; an accomplished general; 
 modest when raised to the highest employments and most dis¬ 
 tinguished honours ; liberal and beneficent almost to profusion ; 
 simple, and averse to ostentation of every kind, even in the 
 midst of riches and abundance ; in fine, so great a lover of the 
 poor citizens, as to share his whole estate with them, without 
 being ashamed of such companions of his fortune. History 
 mentions no statues or monuments erected to his memory, nor 
 any magnificent obsequies celebrated after his death ; but the 
 greatest honour that could be paid him was the sighs and 
 tears of the people ; these were permanent and lasting statues, e 
 which are not obnoxious to the inclemencies of weather, or 
 the injuries of time, and endear the memory of the good and 
 virtuous to the remotest ages. For the most splendid mauso¬ 
 leums, the works of brass and marble, that are raised in honour 
 of wicked great men, are despised by posterity, as sepulchres 
 which enclose nothing but vile dust and putrefaction. 
 
 What followed proved more strongly the loss which Greece 
 had sustained by his death; for Cimon was the last of all the Gre¬ 
 cian generals who did any thing considerable or glorious against 
 the barbarians. Excited by the orators, who gained the strongest 
 ascendant over the minds of the people, and sowed the seeds 
 of division in their public assemblies, they turned their ani¬ 
 mosity against each other, and at last proceeded to open 
 war, the fatal consequences of which no one endeavoured to 
 prevent; a circumstance that was of great advantage to the 
 king of Persia, and of the utmost prejudice to the affairs of 
 Greece. 
 
 c Plut. in Cini. p. 491. 
 
 d Sic se gerendo, minime est mirandum, si et vita ejus fuit secura, et mors 
 acerba. Corn. Nep. in Cim. c. iv. 
 
 e Hae pulcherrimae effigies et mansurae. Nam, quae saxa struuntur, si judi¬ 
 cium posterorum in odium vertit, pro sepulchris spernuntur. Tacit. Annul. 
 lib. iv. c. 38. 
 
390 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 SECT. X. 
 
 Thucydides is opposed to Pericles. The envy raised against the latter. He 
 clears himself, and succeeds in procuring the banishment of Thucydides. 
 
 The nobles of Athens seeing Pericles raised to the highest 
 degree of power/ and far above all the rest of the citizens, re¬ 
 solved to oppose to him a man who, in some measure, might 
 make head against him, and prevent his authority from growing 
 up to monarchy. Accordingly they opposed to him Thucy¬ 
 dides, Cimon’s brother-in-law, a man who had displayed his 
 wisdom on numberless occasions. He did not indeed possess 
 the military talents of Pericles ; but then he had as great in¬ 
 fluence over the people; shaping their opinions, and directing 
 their assemblies, as he pleased : and as he never stirred out of 
 the city, but continually combated Pericles in all his designs, 
 he soon restored things to an equilibrium. On the other side, 
 Pericles was solicitous of pleasing the people on all occasions, 
 and slackened the rein more than ever; entertaining them as 
 often as possible with shows, festivals, games, and other di¬ 
 versions. 
 
 He found means to maintain, during eight months in the year, 
 a great number of poor citizens, by putting them on board a 
 fleet consisting of threescore ships, which he fitted out every 
 year ; and thereby did his country an important service, by 
 training up a great number of excellent seamen for its defence. 
 He also planted several colonies in Chersonesus, in Naxos, in 
 Andros, and among the Bisaltas in Thrace. He sent a very 
 numerous one to Italy, of which we shall soon have occasion to 
 speak, and which built Thurium. Pericles had various views 
 in settling those colonies, besides the particular design he might 
 have of gaining the affections of the people by that means. 
 His chief motives were to clear the city of a great number of 
 idle persons, who were ever ready to disturb the government; 
 to relieve the wants of the lowest class of people, who before 
 were unable to maintain themselves ; in fine, to awe the allies, 
 by settling native Athenians among them, as so many garrisons, 
 which might prevent their engaging in any measures contrary 
 to the interest of that people. The Romans acted in the same 
 manner ; and it may be said, that so wise a policy was one of 
 the most effectual methods used by them to secure the tran¬ 
 quillity of the state. 
 
 Rut the circumstance which did Pericles the greatest honour 
 in the opinion of the people, was his adorning the city with 
 magnificent edifices and other works, which raised the admira¬ 
 tion and astonishment of all foreigners, and gave them a grand 
 
 f Pint, in Peric. p. 158—161. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 391 
 
 idea of the power of the Athenians. It is surprising-, that in so 
 short a space so many works of architecture, sculpture, en¬ 
 graving, and painting, should be performed ; and at the same 
 time be carried to the highest perfection ; for it is generally 
 found, that edifices, raised in haste, boast neither a solid and dur¬ 
 able grace, nor the regular accuracy of perfect beauty. Com¬ 
 monly, nothing but length of time, joined to assiduous labour, 
 can give them such a strength as may preserve, and make them 
 triumph over ages; and this raises our wonder still more in 
 regard to the works of Pericles, which were finished with so 
 much rapidity, and have nevertheless subsisted through so 
 great a length of time. For each of these works, the very in¬ 
 stant it was finished, had the beauty of an antique ; and at this 
 very day, says Plutarch, above 500 years after, they retain a 
 freshness and youth as if just come out of the artist’s hands ; so 
 happily do they preserve the graces and charms of novelty, 
 which will not suffer time to diminish their lustre; as if an 
 ever-blooming spirit, and a soul exempt from age, were diffus¬ 
 ed into every part of those works. 
 
 But that circumstance, which excited the admiration of the 
 whole world, raised the jealousy of the people against Pericles. 
 His enemies were for ever crying aloud in the assemblies, that 
 it was dishonourable to the Athenians to appropriate to them¬ 
 selves the bank of all Greece, which he had sent for from De¬ 
 los, where it had been deposited ; that the allies must necessa¬ 
 rily consider such an attempt as a manifest tyranny, when they 
 found that the sums which had been extorted from them upon 
 pretence of their being employed in the war, were laid out by 
 the Athenians in gilding and embellishing their city, in making 
 magnificent statues, and raising temples that cost millions. 
 They did not exaggerate on these occasions ; for the temple 
 of Minerva, called the Parthenon, had alone cost 3,000,000 
 livres.s 
 
 Pericles, on the contrary, remonstrated to the Athenians, 
 that they were not obliged to give the allies an account of the mo¬ 
 neys they had received from them ; that it was enough they 
 defended them from, and repulsed the barbarians, whilst the al¬ 
 lies furnished neither soldiers, horses, nor ships ; and were ex¬ 
 cused for some sums of money, which, from the instant they 
 were paid in, were no longer the property of the donors, but 
 of those who received them, provided they performed the con¬ 
 ditions agreed upon, and in consideration of which they were 
 received. He added, that as the Athenians were sufficiently 
 provided with all thiugs necessary for war, it was but just that 
 they should employ the rest of their riches in edifices and 
 other works, which, when finished, would give immortal glory 
 
 8 About 145,000/. sterling. 
 
392 
 
 HISTORY Or THE 
 
 to the city, and which, during* the whole time they were carry¬ 
 ing on, diffused a general plenty, and gave bread to an infi¬ 
 nite number of citizens ; that they themselves had all kinds of 
 materials, as timber, stone, brass, ivory, gold, ebony, and cy¬ 
 press wood ; and all sorts of artificers capable of working them, 
 as carpenters, masons, smiths, stone-cutters, dyers, goldsmiths, 
 artificers in ebony, painters, embroiderers, and turners ; men 
 fit to convey these materials by sea, as merchants, sailors, and 
 experienced pilots ; others, for land carriage, as Cartwrights, 
 waggoners, carters, rope-makers, stone-hewers, paviours, and 
 miners. That it was for the advantage of the state to employ 
 these different artificers and workmen, who, as so many sepa¬ 
 rate bodies, formed, when united, a kind of peaceable and do¬ 
 mestic army, whose different functions and employments dif¬ 
 fused gain and increase throughout all sexes and ages : lastly, 
 that whilst men of robust bodies, and of an age fit to bear arms, 
 whether soldiers or mariners, and those who were in the differ¬ 
 ent garrisons, were supported with the public moneys ; it was 
 but just that the rest of the people who lived in the city 
 should also be maintained in their way ; and that as all were 
 members of the same republic, they all ought to reap the same 
 advantages, by doing it services, which, though of a different 
 kind, did however all contribute either to its security or ornament. 
 
 One day, as the debates were growing warm, Pericles offer¬ 
 ed to defray all the expense of these buildings, provided it 
 should be declared in the public inscriptions, that he alone had 
 been at the charge of them. At these words, the people, either 
 admiring his magnanimity, or fired with emulation, and deter¬ 
 mined not to let him engross that glory, cried, with one voice, 
 that he might take out of the public treasury all the sums ne¬ 
 cessary for his purpose. 
 
 Phidias the celebrated sculptor presided over all these works 
 as director-general. It was he in particular who formed the 
 statue of Pallas, which was so highly valued by all the judges 
 of antiquity. It was made of gold and ivory, h and was twenty- 
 six cubits, or thirty-nine feet, in height. There arose an in¬ 
 credible ardour and emulation among the several artificers, who 
 all strove to excel each other, and immortalize their names by 
 masterpieces of art. 
 
 The Odeon, or music-theatre, which had a great number of 
 rows of seats and columns within it, and whose roof grew nar¬ 
 rower by degrees, and terminated in a point, was built, as his¬ 
 tory informs us, after the model of king Xerxes’s tent, accord¬ 
 ing to the direction of Pericles. It was at that time he pro¬ 
 posed, with great warmth, a decree, by which it was ordained, 
 
 h Non Minervae Athenis factae amplitudine utemur, cum ea sit cubitorum 
 xxvi. Ebore hacc et auro constat. Plin. 1. xxxvi. c. 5. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS« 
 
 393 
 
 that musical games should be celebrated on the festival called 
 Panathenaea; and having been chosen the judge and distributor 
 of the prizes, he regulated the manner in which musicians 
 should play on the flute and the lyre, as well as sing. From 
 that time, the musical games were always exhibited in this 
 theatre. 
 
 I have already taken notice, that the more the beauty and 
 splendpur of these works were admired, the greater envy and 
 clamour were raised against Pericles. The orators of the op¬ 
 posite faction were eternally exclaiming against him ; accusing 
 him of squandering the public moneys, and laying out very un¬ 
 seasonably the revenues of the state in edifices, whose magnifi¬ 
 cence was of no use. At last, the rupture between him and 
 Thucydides rose to such a height, that one or other of them 
 must necessarily be banished by the ostracism. He got the 
 better of Thucydides ; prevailed to have him banished; crushed 
 by that means the faction which opposed him, and obtained a 
 despotic authority over the city and government of Athens. 
 He now disposed at pleasure of the public moneys, troops, and 
 ships. The islands and sea were subject to him ; and he reign¬ 
 ed singly and alone in that wide domain, which extended not 
 only over the Greeks, but the barbarians also, and which was 
 cemented and strengthened by the obedience and fidelity of the 
 conquered nations, by the friendship of kings, and treaties con¬ 
 cluded with various princes. 
 
 Historians highly extol the magnificent edifices and other 
 works with which Pericles adorned Athens, and I have related 
 faithfully their testimony ; but I do not know whether the com¬ 
 plaints and murmurs raised against him were so very ill-ground¬ 
 ed. Was it, indeed, just in him to expend, in superfluous 
 buildings and vain decorations, the immense sums intended as 
 a fund tor carrying on the war ?' and would it not have been 
 better to have eased the allies of part of the contributions, 
 which, in Pericles’s administration, were raised to a third part 
 more than before ? Cicero k considers only such edifices and 
 other works worthy of admiration, as are of use to the public, 
 as aqueducts, city walls, citadels, arsenals, sea-ports ; and 
 among these we must rank the work made by Pericles to join 
 Athens to the port of Piraeeus. But Cicero observes, at the 
 same time, that Pericles was blamed for squandering away the 
 public treasure, merely to embellish the city with superfluous 
 ornaments. Plato, 1 who formed a judgment of things, not 
 from their outward splendour, but from truth, observes, (after 
 his master Socrates,) that Pericles, with all his grand edifices 
 and other works, had not improved the mind of one of the citi- 
 
 * They amounted to upwards of 10,000,000 French money. 
 
 k Lib. ii. Offic. n. 60. 1 In Gorg. p. 515. In Alcib. c. i. p. 119. 
 
394 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 zens in virtue, but rather corrupted the purity and simplicity of 
 their ancient manners. 
 
 SECT. XI. 
 
 Pericles changes liis conduct towards the people. His prodigious 
 authority. His disinterestedness. 
 
 When Pericles saw himself thus invested with the whole 
 authority, m he began to change his behaviour. He now was 
 not so mild and affable as before, nor did he submit or abandon 
 himself any longer to the whims and caprice of the people, 
 as to so many winds ; but, drawing in, says Plutarch, the reins 
 of this too loose, popular government, in the same manner as 
 we screw up the strings of an instrument when too slack, he 
 changed it into an aristocracy, or rather a kind of monarchy, 
 without departing however from the public good. Choosing 
 always what was most expedient, and becoming irreproachable 
 in all things, he gained so mighty an ascendant over the minds 
 of the people, that he turned and directed them at pleasure. 
 Sometimes, by his bare advice, and by persuasive methods, he 
 would win them over gently to his will, and gain their assent 
 spontaneously ; at other times, when he found them obstinate, 
 he would in a manner drag them forward against their will, to 
 those measures which were most expedient; imitating in this 
 respect a skilful physician, who, in a tedious and stubborn 
 disease, knows at what time it is proper for him to indulge his 
 patient in innocent things that are pleasing to him ; at what 
 time afterwards he must administer medicines of a strong and 
 violent nature, which indeed put him to pain, but are alone 
 capable of restoring his health. 
 
 And, indeed, it is manifest that the utmost skill and abilities 
 were required to manage and govern a populace haughty from 
 their power and exceedingly capricious ; and in this respect 
 Pericles succeeded wonderfully. He used to employ, accord¬ 
 ing to the different situation of things, sometimes hope and at 
 other times fear, as a double helm, either to check the wild 
 transports and impetuosity of the people, or to raise their 
 spirits when dejected and desponding. By this conduct he 
 showed that eloquence, as Plato observes, is only the art of 
 directing the minds of people at will ; and that the chief excel¬ 
 lency of this art consists in moving, seasonably, the various 
 passions, whether gentle or violent; which being to the soul, 
 what strings are to a musical instrument, need only to be touch¬ 
 ed by an ingenious and skilful hand to produce their effect. 
 
 It must nevertheless be confessed, that the circumstance 
 which gave Pericles this great authority, was, not only the 
 
 ri Plut. in Pericl. p. 161. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 395 
 
 force of his eloquence ; but, as Thucydides observes, the reputa¬ 
 tion of his life, and great probity. 
 
 Plutarch points out in Pericles one quality which is very 
 essential to statesmen; 11 a quality well adapted to win the es¬ 
 teem and confidence of the public, and which supposes a great 
 superiority of mind ; and that is, for a man to be fully per¬ 
 suaded that he wants the counsels of others, and is not able to 
 manage and direct all things alone; to associate with himself 
 in his labours persons of merit, to employ each of these accord¬ 
 ing to his talents ; and to leave to them the management of 
 small matters, which only consume time, and deprive him of 
 that liberty of mind, which is so necessary in the conduct of 
 important affairs. Such a conduct, says Plutarch, is produc¬ 
 tive of two great advantages. First, it extinguishes, or at 
 least deadens, the force of envy and jealousy, by dividing, in 
 some measure, a power which is grating and offensive to our 
 self-love when we see it united in one single person, as if all 
 merit centred in him alone. Secondly, it forwards and facili¬ 
 tates the execution of affairs, and makes their success more 
 certain. Plutarch, the better to explain his thought, employs 
 a very natural and beautiful comparison. The hand, says he, 
 from its being divided into five fingers, is so far from being 
 weaker, that it is the stronger, the more active, and better 
 adapted to motion, on that very account. It is the same with 
 a statesman, who has the skill to divide his cares and functions 
 in a proper manner, and who by that means makes his autho¬ 
 rity more active, more extensive, and decisive : whereas, the 
 indiscreet eagerness of a narrow-minded man, who takes umbrage 
 at, and wishes to engross, every thing, serves to no other pur¬ 
 pose but to set his weakness and incapacity in a stronger 
 light, and to disconcert his affairs. But Pericles, says Plu¬ 
 tarch, did not act in this manner. Like a skilful pilot, who, 
 though he stand almost motionless himself, however puts every 
 thing in motion, and will sometimes seat subaltern officers at 
 the helm ; so Pericles was the soul of the government ; and, 
 seeming to do nothing of himself, he actuated and governed all 
 things ; employing the eloquence of one man, the credit and in¬ 
 terest of another, the prudence of a third, and the bravery and 
 courage of a fourth. 
 
 To what has been here related, 0 we may add another quality, 
 which is no less rare and valuable; I mean, a noble and disin¬ 
 terested soul. Pericles was so averse to the receiving of gifts, 
 had such an utter contempt for riches, and was so far above all 
 rapaciousness and avarice, that though he had raised Athens to 
 the richest and most flourishing state; though his power sur¬ 
 passed that of many tyrants and kings ; though he had long dis- 
 
 n I 1 lut. in prsec. de rep. ger. p. 01 . 
 
 Pint, in vit. Pericl. p. 101, 10 . 
 
 O 
 
396 
 
 HISTORY OK THE 
 
 posed in an absolute manner of the treasures of Greece, he did 
 not, however, add a single drachma to the estate he inherited 
 from his father. This was the source, the true cause, of the 
 supreme authority of Pericles in the republic ; the just and 
 deserved fruit of his integrity and perfect disinterestedness. 
 
 It was not only for a few short moments, nor during the first im¬ 
 pressions of rising favour, which are generally short-lived, that 
 he preserved this authority. He maintained it forty years, not¬ 
 withstanding the opposition of Cimon, of Tolmides, of Thucy¬ 
 dides, and many others, who had all declared against him ; and 
 of these forty years he spent the last fifteen without a rival, from 
 the time of Thucydides’s banishment, and disposed of all affairs 
 with absolute power. ' Nevertheless, in the midst of this supreme 
 authority, which he had rendered perpetual and unlimited in 
 his own person, his soul was always superior to the charms and 
 allurements of wealth, though he never neglected improving his 
 estate to the utmost of his power. For Pericles did not act 
 like those rich men, who, notwithstanding their immense reve¬ 
 nues, either through negligence or want of economy, or pomp¬ 
 ous and absurd expenses, are always poor in the midst of their 
 riches; unable and unwilling to do the least service to their 
 virtuous friends, or their faithful and zealous domestics ; and 
 at last die overwhelmed with debts, leaving their name and 
 memory to the detestation of their unfortunate creditors, of 
 whose ruin they have been the cause. I shall not expatiate on 
 another extreme, to which this negligence and want of economy 
 generally lead, I.mean rapine, a love of gifts, and exactions ; 
 for here, as well as in the management of the public moneys, the 
 maxim of Tacitus holds good/ viz. that when a man has squan¬ 
 dered away his estate, he then makes it his whole study to re¬ 
 trieve the loss of it by all sorts of methods, not excepting the 
 most criminal. 
 
 Pericles knew much better the use which a statesman ought 
 to make of riches. Fie was sensible that he ought to expend 
 them in the service of the public, in procuring of able men to 
 assist him in the administration; in relieving good officers, who 
 too often are destitute of the favours of fortune ; in rewarding 
 and encouraging merit of every kind, and a thousand such 
 things ; to which doubtless, either on account of the exquisite 
 joy they give or the solid glory that results from them, no one will 
 be so thoughtless as to compare the expenses lavished away in 
 entertainments, equipages, or gaming. In this view, Pericles 
 managed his own estate with the utmost economy; having him¬ 
 self taught one of his old servants to take care of his domestic 
 concerns ; and he always had the account brought him, at 
 
 p Si ambitione aerarium exhauserimus, per scelera supplendum erit. Tacit. 
 Annal. 1. ii. c. 38. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS, 
 
 39? 
 
 stated times, of all sums that had been received as well as ex¬ 
 pended ; confining himself and his family to a decent subsist¬ 
 ence (from which he banished severely all superfluities of a 
 vain and ostentatious kind) suitable to his estate and condition. 
 This way of life, indeed, did by no means please his children 
 when they were come to years of maturity, and much less his 
 wife. They thought Pericles djd not live at a sufficient 
 expense for persons of their rank ; and murmured at that 
 low and sordid economy, as they called it, which carried no air 
 of the plenty which generally reigns in houses where riches and 
 authority are united. However, Pericles paid little regard to 
 these complaints, and directed his conduct by far superior views. 
 
 I believe we may apply, on this occasion, a very just remark 
 of Plutarch, in his parallel of Aristides and Cato. After say¬ 
 ing, that political virtue, or the art of governing cities and 
 kingdoms, is the greatest and most perfect that man can acquire, 
 he adds, that economy is not one of the least considerable 
 branches of this virtue. And indeed, as riches are one of the 
 means which may most contribute to the security or ruin of a 
 state, the art that teaches to dispose and make a good use of 
 them, and which is called economy, is certainly a branch of 
 politics ; and not one of the least considerable branches of it, 
 since great wisdom is required in order to the observing of a 
 just medium on these occasions, and to the banishing poverty 
 and too great opulence from a country. It is this art, which, 
 by avoiding industriously all trifling and needless expenses, 
 prevents a magistrate from being forced to overburden a peo¬ 
 ple with taxes ; and keeps always in reserve, in the public 
 coffers, moneys sufficient for the supporting a war that may break 
 out, or for providing against any unforeseen emergency. Now 
 what is said of a kingdom or a city, may be said also of indi¬ 
 viduals. For a city which is composed of an assemblage of 
 houses, and which forms a whole of several parts united, is 
 either powerful or weak in the aggregate, in proportion as all 
 the members of which it consists are powerful or weak. Peri¬ 
 cles certainly acquitted himself well with regard to that part 
 of this science which relates to the government of a family : 
 but I do not know' whether the same may be said of his ad¬ 
 ministration of the public revenues. 
 
 SECT. XII. 
 
 Jealousy and contests arise between the Athenians and Lacedaemonians. A 
 treaty of peace is concluded for thirty years. 
 
 Such was the conduct of Pericles with respect to his domes¬ 
 tic concerns : q and his administration of public affairs is no less 
 worthy of admiration. The Lacedaemonians beginning to grow 
 
 Pint, in Pericl. p. 1C2. 
 
398 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 jealous of the prosperity of the Athenians, and to take umbrage 
 at it; Pericles, to inspire his citizens with courage and magna¬ 
 nimity, published a decree, importing, that notice should be 
 sent to all the Greeks inhabiting either Europe or Asia, and 
 to all the cities great or small, to send immediately deputies to 
 Athens, to debate on the means of rebuilding the temples that 
 had been burnt by the barbarians ; and of performing the 
 sacrifices which they had engaged themselves to offer up, for 
 the preservation and safety of Greece, when war was carrying- 
 on against them ; as also, to consider the necessary expedients 
 for establishing such an order and discipline in their navy, that 
 all ships might sail in safety, and the Greeks live in peace one 
 with another. 
 
 Accordingly, twenty persons were chosen for this embassy, 
 each of whom was upwards of fifty years of age. Five of these 
 were sent to the Ionians and Dorians of Asia, and the inhabit¬ 
 ants of the islands as far as Lesbos and Rhodes ; five to the 
 countries of the Hellespont and Thrace, as far as Byzantium. 
 Five were ordered to go to Boeotia, to Phocis, and Pelopon¬ 
 nesus ; and from thence, by the country of the Locrians, to pro¬ 
 ceed to the several cities of the upper continent as far as Acar- 
 nania and Ambracia. The last five were ordered to cross Euboea, 
 and to go to the people of mount GLta, and those of the gulf of 
 Malea, and to the inhabitants of Phthiotis, of Achaia, and of 
 Thessaly; to induce the several nations to come to the assembly 
 convened at Athens, and to assist at the debates which should be 
 there carried on concerning peace and the general affairs of 
 Greece. I judged it necessary to enter into this detail, as it 
 shows how far the power of the Greeks extended, and the au¬ 
 thority which the Athenians enjoyed among them. 
 
 But all these solicitations were in vain ; as the cities did not 
 send their deputies, which, according to historians, was owing 
 to the opposition made by the Lacedaemonians, a circumstance 
 we are not to wonder at. They were sensible that Pericles’s 
 design was to have Athens acknowledged as mistress and so¬ 
 vereign of all the other Grecian cities ; and Lacedaemon was 
 far from allowing it that honour. A secret leaven of dissension 
 had for some years begun to disturb the tranquillity of Greece ; 
 and we shall find by the sequel, that this discord augmented 
 continually. 
 
 Pericles had acquired great fame for the wisdom with which 
 he formed and conducted his enterprises. The troops reposed 
 the highest confidence in him, and followed him with full assur¬ 
 ance of success. His chief maxim in war was, never to ven¬ 
 ture a battle unless he were almost certain of victory, and not 
 to lavish the blood of the citizens. He used to say frequently, 
 that were it in his power they should be immortal; that trees 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 399 
 
 when felled shoot to life again in a little time, but when once 
 men die they are lost for ever. A victory that was only the 
 effect of fortunate temerity, appeared to him little worthy of 
 praise, though it often was much admired. 
 
 His expedition into the Thracian Chersonesus did him great 
 honour, and was of great advantage to all the Greeks of that 
 country ; for he not only strengthened the Grecian cities of that 
 peninsula, by the colonies of Athenians which he carried thi¬ 
 ther, but also shut up the isthmus with a strong wall, with forts 
 at proper distances from sea to sea ; securing by that means the 
 whole country from the perpetual incursions of the Thracians, 
 who were very near neighbours to it. 
 
 He also sailed with 100 ships round Peloponnesus, spreading 
 the terror of the Athenian arms wherever he came, the success 
 of which was not once interrupted on this occasion. 
 
 He advanced as far as the kingdom of Pontus with a large, 
 well-manned, and magnificent fleet; and granted the Grecian 
 cities all they thought fit to ask of him. At the same time he 
 displayed to the barbarian nations in that neighbourhood, to 
 their kings and princes, the greatness of the power of the 
 Athenians ; and proved to them, by the security with which he 
 sailed to all parts, that they possessed the empire of the seas 
 without a rival. 
 
 But so constant and shining a fortune began to dazzle the 
 eyes of the Athenians. 1, Intoxicated with the idea of their 
 power and grandeur, they now revolved nothing but the boldest 
 and most lofty projects. They were for ever talking of new 
 attempts upon Egypt; of attacking the maritime provinces of 
 the great king ; of carrying their arms into Sicily (a fatal and 
 unhappy design, which at that time did not take effect, though 
 it was revived soon after); and of extending their conquests to¬ 
 wards Hetruria on one side, and Carthage on the other. Peri¬ 
 cles was far from giving in to such idle views, or supporting 
 them with his credit and approbation. On the contrary, his 
 whole study was to damp that restless ardour, and check an 
 ambition which no longer knew either bounds or measure. It 
 was his opinion, that the Athenians ought to employ their forces 
 for the future, only in securing and preserving their present ac¬ 
 quisitions ; and he thought he had gained a great point in re¬ 
 straining the power of the Lacedaemonians, the reducing of 
 which he always meditated ; and this was particularly seen in 
 the Sacred War. 
 
 This name was given to the war which was raised on account 
 of Delphi. s The Lacedaemonians having entered armed into 
 the country where that temple is situated, had dispossessed the 
 people of Phocis of the superintendence of that temple, and 
 r Plut. in Pericl. p. 164. 0 Ibid. 
 
400 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 bestowed it on the Delphians. As soon as they had left it, 
 Pericles went thither with an army and restored the Phocians. 
 
 Euboea having rebelled at the same time, Pericles was 
 obliged to march thither with an army. He was no sooner 
 arrived there, than news was brought that the inhabitants of 
 Megara had taken up arms, and that the Lacedaemonians, 
 headed by Plistonax their king, were on the frontiers of Attica. 
 This obliged him to quit Euboea, and to go with all possible 
 expedition to defend his country. The Lacedaemonian army 
 being retired, he returned against the rebels, and again sub¬ 
 jected all the cities of Euboea to the Athenians. 
 
 After this expedition, 1 a truce of thirty years 
 Am Y C° 44 G was conc ^ u ^ cc ^ between the Athenians and Lace¬ 
 daemonians. This treaty restored tranquillity for 
 the present; but as it did not descend to the root of the evil, 
 nor cure the jealousy and enmity of the two nations, this calm 
 was not of long duration. 
 
 SECT. XIII. 
 
 New subjects of contention between the two nations, occasioned by the Athe¬ 
 nians’ laying siege to Samos; by their succouring the people of Corcyra, and 
 besieging Potidoea. An open rupture ensues. 
 
 The Athenians, 11 six years after, took up arms 
 Ant j 'c 440 a » a i ns t Samos in favour of Miletus. These two 
 cities were contesting for that of Priene, to which 
 each claimed a right. It is pretended, that Pericles kindled 
 this war to please a famous courtezan, of whom he was very 
 fond ; her name was Aspasia, a native of Miletus. After seve¬ 
 ral events and battles, Pericles besieged the capital of the 
 island of Samos. It is said, that this was the first time he used 
 military engines, as battering rams and tortoises, invented by 
 Artemon the engineer, who was lame, and therefore was always 
 carried in a chair to the batteries, whence he was surnamed 
 Periphoretus. The use of these machines had been long known 
 in the East. The Samians, after sustaining a nine months’ 
 siege, surrendered ; Pericles razed their walls, dispossessed 
 them of their ships, and demanded immense sums to defray the 
 expenses of the war. Part of these sums they paid down, 
 agreed to disburse the rest at a certain time, and gave hostages 
 by way of security for the payment. 
 
 After the reduction of Samos, Pericles, being returned to 
 Athens, in a splendid manner celebrated the obsequies of those 
 who had lost their lives in this war, and pronounced in person 
 the funeral oration over their graves. This custom, which he 
 
 1 Thucyd. 1. i. p. 75. Diod. p. 87- 
 
 u Thucyd. 1. i. p. 75, 76. Diod. 1. xii. p. 88, 89. Pint, in Pericl. p. 165—-167. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 401 
 
 first introduced, was afterwards regularly observed. The 
 senate of the Areopagus always appointed the orator on these 
 occasions. He was chosen, ten years after, for the like cere¬ 
 mony in the beginning of the Peloponnesian war. 
 
 Pericles, x who foresaw that a rupture would 
 
 A. M. 3 o 72 . soon ensue between the Athenians and Lacedae- 
 
 Ant. J. C. 432. . 1 . _ i-i 
 
 monians, advised the tormer to send aid to the 
 
 people of Corcyra, whom the Corinthians had invaded ; and 
 to win over to their interest that island, which was so very formi¬ 
 dable at sea. foretelling them, that they would shortly be attack¬ 
 ed by the nations of the Peloponnesus. The occasion of the 
 quarrel between the people of Corcyra and Corinth, which gave 
 rise to the Peloponnesian war, one of the most considerable events 
 in the Grecian history, was as follows : 
 
 Epidamnum,y a maritime city of Macedonia among the Tau- 
 lantii, was a colony of Corcyreans, founded by Phalius of Co¬ 
 rinth. This city having become in process of time very popu¬ 
 lous and powerful, divisions arose in it, and the common people 
 expelled the most wealthy inhabitants, who went over to the 
 neighbouring nations, and infested them greatly by their incur¬ 
 sions. In this extremity they first had recourse to the Corcy¬ 
 reans, and being refused by them, they addressed the Corinth¬ 
 ians, who took them under their protection, sent succours to 
 them, and settled other inhabitants in their city. But they did 
 not continue long unmolested there, the Corcyreans besieging it 
 with a large fleet. The people of Corinth hastened to its aid, 
 but having been defeated at sea, the city surrendered that very 
 day, upon condition that the foreigners should be slaves, and 
 the Corinthians prisoners till farther orders. The Corcyreans 
 erected a trophy, murdered all their prisoners except the Co¬ 
 rinthians, and laid waste the whole country. 
 
 The year after the battle, the Corinthians raised a greater 
 army than the former, and fitted out a new fleet. The people 
 of Corcyra, finding it would be impossible for them to make 
 head alone against such powerful enemies, sent to the Athenians 
 to desire their alliance. The treaty of peace concluded between 
 the states of Greece, left such Grecian cities as had not de¬ 
 clared themselves on either side, the liberty of joining whom 
 they pleased, or of standing neuter. This the Corcyreans had 
 hitherto done, judging it their interest not to espouse any party; 
 in consequence of which they had hitherto been without allies. 
 They now sent for this purpose to Athens ; and the Corinthians 
 hearing of it, sent deputies thither also on their part. The 
 affair was debated with great warmth in the presence of the 
 people, who heard the reasons on both sides, and it was twice 
 
 * Thucyd. 1. i. p. 17—37> Diod. 1. xii. p. 90—93. Plut. in Pericl. p. 167. 
 y This city was afterwards called Dyrrachium. 
 
 VOL. II. 2 D 
 
402 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 discussed in the assembly. The Athenians declared the first 
 time in favour of the Corinthians; but afterwards changing 
 their opinion, (doubtless in consequence of the remonstrances 
 of Pericles,) they received the Corcyreans into their alliance. 
 However, they did not go so far as to conclude a league offen¬ 
 sive and defensive with them, (for they could not declare war 
 against Corinth without breaking at the same time with all Pe¬ 
 loponnesus,) but only agreed to succour each other mutually, 
 in case they should be attacked, either in their own person or 
 in that of their allies. Their real design was, to set those two 
 states, which were very powerful by sea, at variance; and after 
 each should have exhausted the other by a tedious war, to tri¬ 
 umph over the weakest: for at that time there were but three 
 states in Greece who possessed powerful fleets ; and these were 
 Athens, Corinth, and Corcyra. They also had a design on 
 Italy and Sicily, which their taking the island of Corcyra would 
 very much promote. 
 
 On this plan they concluded an alliance with the Corcyreans, 
 and accordingly sent them ten galleys, but with an order for 
 them not to engage the Corinthians, unless they should first 
 invade the island of Corcyra, or some other place belonging to 
 their allies; this precaution was used, in order that the articles 
 of the truce might not be infringed. 
 
 But it was very difficult to obey these orders. A battle was 
 fought between the Corcyreans and the Corinthians, near the 
 island of Sybota, opposite to Corcyra: it was one of the most 
 considerable, with regard to the number of ships, that was ever 
 fought between the Greeks. The advantage was nearly equal 
 on both sides. About the end of the battle, as night was draw¬ 
 ing on, twenty Athenian galleys came up. The Corcyreans, 
 with this reinforcement, sailed next day by day-break towards 
 the port of Sybota, whither the Corinthians had retired, to see 
 if they would venture a second engagement. However, the 
 latter contented themselves with sailing out in order of battle, 
 without fighting. Both parties erected a trophy in the island 
 of Sybota, each ascribing the victory to themselves. 
 
 From this war arose another, 2 which occasioned an open rup¬ 
 ture between the Athenians and Corinthians, and afterwards 
 the war of Peloponnesus. Potidaea, a city of Macedonia, was 
 a colony belonging to the Corinthians, who sent magistrates thi¬ 
 ther annually ; but it was dependent at that time on Athens, 
 and paid tribute to it. The Athenians fearing this city would 
 revolt, and prevail with the rest of the Thracian allies to join 
 them, commanded the inhabitants to demolish their walls on the 
 side next Pallene; to deliver hostages to them as sureties for 
 their fidelity ; and to send back the magistrates which Corinth 
 z Thucvd. 1. i. p. 37—42. Diod. 1. xii. p. 93, 94. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 403 
 
 had given them Demands of so unjust a nature only hastened 
 the revolt. The Potidaeans declared against the Athenians, a 
 and several neighbouring cities followed their example. Both 
 Athens and Corinth took up arms and sent forces thither. The 
 two armies engaged near Potidma, and that of the Athenians 
 had the advantage. Alcibiades, who was then very young, and 
 Socrates his master, signalized themselves on this occasion. It 
 is something very singular, to see a philosopher put on his coat 
 of mail: as well as to consider his behaviour and conduct in a 
 battle. There was not a soldier in the whole army who so reso¬ 
 lutely supported all the toils and fatigues of the campaign as 
 Socrates. Hunger, thirst, and cold, were enemies he had long 
 accustomed himself to despise and subdue with ease. Thrace, 
 the scene of this expedition, was a frozen region. Whilst the 
 other soldiers, covered with thick clothes and warm furs, lay 
 close in their tents, and scarce ever dared to stir out of them ; 
 Socrates used to come into the open air clad as usual, and bare¬ 
 footed. His gaiety and wit were the life of the table ; and in¬ 
 duced others to put the glass round cheerfully, though he him¬ 
 self never drank wine to excess. When the armies engaged, 
 he performed his duty wonderfully well. Alcibiades having 
 been thrown down and wounded, Socrates placed himself before 
 him, defended him valiantly, and, in sight of the whole army, 
 prevented him and his arms from being taken by the enemy. 
 The prize of valour was justly due to Socrates ; but as the ge¬ 
 nerals seemed inclined to decree it to Alcibiades, on account of 
 his illustrious birth, Socrates, who only sought for opportunities 
 to inflame him with desire of true glory, contributed more than 
 any other person, by the noble eulogium he made on his courage, 
 to cause the crown and complete suit of armour (which was the 
 prize of valour) to be adjudged to Alcibiades. 
 
 Notwithstanding the loss which the Corinthians had sustain¬ 
 ed in the battle, the inhabitants of Potidma did not change their 
 conduct. The city was therefore besieged. The Corinthians, b 
 fearing to lose a place of so much importance, addressed their 
 allies in the strongest terms ; who all, in conjunction with 
 them, sent a deputation to Lacedaemon to complain of the A- 
 thenians, as having infringed the articles of peace. The Lace¬ 
 daemonians admitted them to audience in one of their ordinary 
 assemblies. The people of iEgina, though very much disgust¬ 
 ed at the Athenians, did not send a deputation publicly 
 thither, for fear of giving umbrage to a republic to which 
 they were subject, but they acted in secret as strenuously 
 as the rest. The people of Megara complained vehemently a- 
 gainst the Athenians, that (contrary to the law of nations, and 
 
 a Plut. in Conviv. p. 219, 220. Plut. in Alcib. p. 194. 
 b Thucyd. 1. i. p. 43—59. 
 
 2 d 2 
 
404 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 in prejudice to the treaty concluded between the Greeks) they 
 had prohibited them by a public decree from access to their 
 fairs and markets, and excluded them from all the ports depen¬ 
 dent on them. % that decree, 0 according to Plutarch/ the 
 Athenians declared an eternal and irreconcileable hatred a- 
 gainst Megara ; and ordained that all Megarians should be put 
 to death that set foot in Athens ; and that all the Athenian ge¬ 
 nerals, when they took the usual oath, should swear express¬ 
 ly, that they would send a body of soldiers twice a-year, to lay 
 waste the territories of that hostile city. 
 
 The chief complaints were made by the Corinthian ambassa¬ 
 dor, who spoke with the utmost force and freedom. He re¬ 
 presented to the Lacedaemonians, that as they themselves never 
 swerved from the most inviolable integrity, either in public or 
 private transactions, they, for that very reason, were less inclin¬ 
 ed to suspect the probity of others ; and that their own mode¬ 
 ration prevented their discovering the ambition of their enemies : 
 that instead of flying with readiness and activity to meet dan¬ 
 gers and calamities, they never attempted to remedy them, till 
 they were quite crushed by them : that by their indolence and 
 supineness, they had given the Athenians an opportunity of 
 attaining, by insensible degrees, tbeir present height of gran¬ 
 deur and power : that it was quite different with regard to the 
 Athenians : that this active, vigilant, and indefatigable peo¬ 
 ple, were never at rest themselves, nor would suffer any other 
 nation to be so. Employed, says he, wholly in their projects, 
 and they form none but such as are great and bold, their de¬ 
 liberations are speedy, and their execution the same. One 
 enterprise serves only as a step to a second. Whether they 
 are successful or unfortunate, they turn every thing to their 
 advantage, and never stop in their career, nor are discouraged. 
 But you, who are opposed by such formidable enemies, are lulled 
 asleep in a fatal tranq uillity ; and do not reflect that it is not 
 sufficient for a man who desires to live at ease, merely to for¬ 
 bear injuring others, he must also hinder any one from injuring 
 him ; and that justice consists, not only in forbearing to com¬ 
 mit evil ourselves, but in avenging that done to us by others. 
 Shcdl I be so free as to say it l Your integrity is of too an¬ 
 tique a cast for the present state of affairs. It is necessary 
 for men in politics, as well as in all other things, to conform 
 
 c Plut. in Pericl. p. 168. 
 
 d According to Plutarch, some persons pretended that Pericles had caused 
 this decree to be enacted, to revenge the private injury done to Aspasia, from 
 whose house the people of Megara had carried off two courtezans ; and he 
 cites some verses of Aristophanes, who, in a comedy entitled the Acharnanians , 
 reproaches Pericles with this action. But Thucydides, a contemporary au¬ 
 thor, who was very well acquainted with all the transactions of Athens, does 
 not say a word of this affair; and he is much more worthy of belief than a 
 poet who was a professed slanderer and satirist. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 405 
 
 always to times and circumstances. When a people are at 
 peace, they may follow their ancient maxims ; hut when they 
 are involved in a variety of difficulties, they must try new ex¬ 
 pedients, and set every engine at work to extricate themselves. 
 It is by these arts that the Athenians have increased their 
 power so much. Had you imitated their activity, they 
 would not have dispossessed us of Corcyra, and would not now 
 he laying seige to Potidcea. Follow, at least on this occasion, 
 their example, by succouring the Poiidceans, and the rest of 
 your allies, as your duty obliges you ; and do not force your 
 friends and neighbours, by forsaking them, to have recourse, 
 through despair , to other poivers. 
 
 The Athenian ambassador, who was come to Sparta upon 
 other affairs, and was in the assembly, did not think it advis¬ 
 able to let this speech go unanswered. He put the Lacedae¬ 
 monians in mind of the still recent services that the republic, 
 by which he was sent, had done to all Greece, which (he said) 
 merited some regard ; and that therefore it ought not to be 
 envied, much less should endeavours be used to lessen its pow¬ 
 er : that the Athenians could not be charged with having usurp¬ 
 ed an empire over Greece ; since it was merely at the entreaty 
 of their allies, and in some measure with the consent of Sparta, 
 that they had been forced to take the abandoned helm : that 
 those who murmured, did it without grounds ; and only from 
 the aversion which mankind in general have to dependence and 
 subjection, though of the gentlest and most equitable kind ; 
 that he exhorted them to employ a sufficient time in deliberat¬ 
 ing, before they came to a resolution ; and not involve them¬ 
 selves and all Greece in a war, which would necessarily be 
 attended with the most fatal consequences : that gentle methods 
 might be found for terminating the differences of the allies, 
 without breaking at once into open violence. However, that 
 the Athenians, in case of an invasion, were able to oppose force 
 with force ; and would prepare for a vigorous defence, after 
 having invoked against Sparta the deities who take vengeance 
 of those that forswear themselves, and violate the faith of 
 treaties. 
 
 The ambassadors being withdrawn, and the affair debated, 
 the majority were for war. But before the final resolution was 
 passed, Archidainus king of Sparta, setting himself above those 
 prejudices which so strongly biassed the rest, and directing his 
 views to futurity, made a speech in which he set forth the 
 dreadful consequences of the war in which they were going to 
 embark ; showed the strength and resources of the Athenians : 
 exhorted them first to try gentle methods, which they them¬ 
 selves had seemed to approve ; but to make, in the mean time, 
 the necessary preparations for carrying on so important an en- 
 
400 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 terprise, and not to be under any apprehensions, that their 
 moderation and delays would be branded with the name of cow¬ 
 ardice, since their past actions secured them from any suspicion 
 of that kind. 
 
 But, notwithstanding all these wise expostulations, a war 
 was resolved. The people caused the allies to return into the 
 assembly, and declared to them, that in their opinion the Athe¬ 
 nians were the aggressors ; but that it would be expedient first 
 to assemble all who were in the alliance, in order that peace or 
 war might be agreed upon unanimously. This decree of the 
 Lacedmmonians was made the fourteenth year of the truce ; and 
 was not owing so much to the complaint of the allies, as to the 
 jealousy of the Athenian power, which had already subjected a 
 considerable part of Greece. 
 
 Accordingly, the allies were convened a second time. e They 
 all gave their votes, in their several turns, from the greatest city to 
 the least, and war was resolved by general consent. However, 
 as they had not yet made any preparations, it was judged ad¬ 
 visable to begin them immediately ; and while this was doing, 
 in order to gain time, and observe the necessary formalities, to 
 send ambassadors to Athens, to complain of the violation of the 
 treaty. 
 
 The first who were sent thither, reviving an old complaint, 
 required of the Athenians to expel from their city the descend¬ 
 ants of those who had profaned the temple of Minerva in the 
 affair of Cylon. f As Pericles was of that family by the mother’s 
 side, the view of the Lacedaemonians, in making this demand, 
 was, either to procure his banishment, or lessen his authority. 
 However, it was not complied with. The second ambassadors 
 required, that the siege of Potidaea should be raised, and the 
 liberty of vEgina restored ; and above all, that the decree 
 against the Megarians should be repealed ; declaring, that 
 otherwise no accommodation could take place. In fine, a third 
 embassy came, who took no notice of any of these particulars, 
 but only said, that the Lacedaemonians were for peace : but that 
 this could never be, except the Athenians should cease to in¬ 
 fringe the liberties of Greece. 
 
 e Thucyd. 1. i. p. 77—84. 93. 
 
 f This Cylon had seized on the citadel of Athens above 100 years before. 
 Those who followed him, being besieged in it, and reduced to extreme famine, 
 tied for shelter to the temple of Minerva, from whence they afterwards were 
 taken out by force and cut to pieces. Those who advised this murder were 
 declared guilty of impiety and sacrilege, and as such banished. However, 
 they were recalled some time after. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 407 
 
 SECT. XIV. 
 
 Troubles excited against Pericles. He determines the Athenians to engage 
 
 in war against the Lacedaemonians. 
 
 Pericles opposed all these demands with great vigour,s and 
 especially that relating to the Megarians. He had great in¬ 
 fluence at Athens, but at the same time had many enemies. 
 Not daring to attack him at first in person, they cited his most 
 intimate friends, and those for whom he had the greatest esteem, 
 as Phidias, Aspasia, and Anaxagoras, before the people; and 
 their design in this was, to sound how the people stood affected 
 towards Pericles himself. 
 
 Phidias was accused of having embezzled considerable sums 
 in the forming the statue of Minerva, which was his masterpiece. 
 The prosecution having been carried on with the usual forms, 
 before the assembly of the people, not a single proof of Phi¬ 
 dias’s pretended embezzlement appeared : for that artist, from 
 the time of his beginning that statue, had, by Pericles’s advice, 
 contrived the workmanship of the gold in such a manner, that 
 all of it might be taken off and weighed; which accordingly 
 Pericles bid the informers do in presence of all the spectators. 
 But Phidias had witnesses against him, the truth of whose evi¬ 
 dence he could neither dispute nor silence ; these were the fame 
 and beauty of his works, the ever-existing causes of the envy 
 which attacked him. The circumstance which they could least 
 forgive in him was, his having represented to the life (in the 
 battle of the Amazons, engraved on the shield of the goddess) 
 his own person, and that of Pericles : h and, by an imperceptible 
 art, he had so blended and incorporated these figures with the 
 whole work, that it was impossible to erase them, without dis¬ 
 figuring and taking to pieces the whole statue. Phidias was 
 therefore dragged to prison, where he came to his end, either 
 by the common course of nature, or by poison. Other authors 
 say, that he was only banished, and that after his exile he made 
 the famous statue of Jupiter at Olympia. It is not possible to 
 excuse, in any manner, the ingratitude of the Athenians, in thus 
 making a prison or death the reward of a masterpiece of art; 
 nor their excessive rigour, in punishing, as a capital crime, an 
 action that appears innocent in itself; or which, to make the 
 worst of it, was a vanity very pardonable in an artist. 
 
 Aspasia, a native of Miletus in Asia, had settled in Athens, 
 where she had become very famous, not so much for the charms 
 of her person, as for her vivacity and the solidity of her wit, 
 and her great knowledge. All the illustrious men in the city 
 thought it an honour to frequent her house. Socrates himself 
 
 « Tlut. in Pericl. p. 1G8, 1G9. h Aristot. in tractat. de mund. p. G13. 
 
408 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 used to visit her constantly ;’ and was not ashamed to pass 
 for her pupil, and to own that he had learnt rhetoric from her. 
 Pericles declared also that he was indebted to Aspasia for 
 his eloquence, which so greatly distinguished him in Athens ; 
 and that it was from her conversation he had imbibed the prin¬ 
 ciples of the art of policy, for she was exceedingly well versed 
 in the maxims of government. Their intimacy was owing to 
 still stronger motives. Pericles did not love his wife : he re¬ 
 signed her very freely to another man, and supplied her place 
 with Aspasia, whom he loved passionately, though her reputa¬ 
 tion was more than suspicious. Aspasia was accused of im¬ 
 piety and a dissolute conduct; and it was with the utmost dif¬ 
 ficulty that Pericles saved her, by his entreaties, and by the com¬ 
 passion he raised in the judges, by shedding abundance of tears 
 whilst her cause was pleading : a behaviour little consistent 
 with the dignity of his character, and the rank of supreme head 
 of the most powerful state of Greece. 
 
 A decree had passed, by which informations w r ere ordered 
 to be laid against all such persons as denied what was as¬ 
 cribed to the ministry of the gods ; k or those philosophers and 
 others who gave lessons on the more abstruse points of physics, 
 and the motions of the heavens, topics which were considered 
 injurious to the established religion. The scope and aim ol 
 this decree was, to make Pericles suspected with regard to 
 these matters, because Anaxagoras had been his master. This 
 philosopher taught, that one only Intelligence had modified the 
 chaos, and disposed the universe in the beautiful order in which 
 we now see it; which tended directly to depreciate the gods of the 
 pagan system. Pericles thinking it would be impossible lor him 
 to save his life, sent him out of the city to a place of safety. 
 
 The enemies of Pericles seeing that the people approved 
 and received with pleasure all these accusations, impeached 
 that great man himself, and charged him with embezzling the 
 public moneys during his administration. A decree was 
 made, by which Pericles was obliged to give in immediately 
 his accounts ; was to be tried for peculation and rapine ; and 
 the cause to be adjudged by 1500 judges. Pericles had no 
 real cause for fear, because in the administration of the public 
 affairs his conduct had always been irreproachable, especially 
 on the side of interest: he could not however but be under 
 some apprehensions from the ill-will of the people, when he 
 considered their great levity and inconstancy. One day when 
 
 * Plat, in Menex. p. 235. 
 
 k Td Stela firj Topi^ovTag, r) \6yovg 7repi rw v fieTapa'uov Siddcrvovrag. Anax¬ 
 agoras teaching, that the divine Intelligence alone gave a regular motion to 
 all the parts of nature, and presided in the government of the universe; 
 destroyed, by that system, the plurality of gods, their powers, and all the 
 peculiar functions which were ascribed to them. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 409 
 
 Alcibiades (then very young) went to visit Pericles, be was told 
 that he was not to be spoken with, because of some affairs of 
 great consequence in which he was then engaged. Alcibiades 
 inquiring what these mighty affairs were, was answered, that 
 Pericles was preparing to give in his accounts. He ought 
 rather , says Alcibiades, to think liow he may avoid giving them 
 in: and indeed this was what Pericles at last resolved. To 
 allay the storm, he made a resolution to oppose the inclination 
 the people discovered for the Peloponnesian war no longer, 
 preparations for which had been long carrying on, firmly per¬ 
 suaded that this would soon silence all complaints against 
 him ; that envy would yield to a more powerful motive; 
 and that the citizens, when in such imminent danger, would not 
 fail of throwing themselves into his arms, and submit implicitly 
 to his conduct, from his great power and exalted reputation. 
 
 Tliis is what some historians have related ; 1 and the comic 
 poets, in the lifetime, and under the eye, as it were, of Peri¬ 
 cles, spread a report in public, to sully, if possible, his reputa¬ 
 tion and merit, which drew upon him the envy and enmity of 
 many. Plutarch, on this occasion, makes a reflection which 
 may be of great service, not only to those in the administra¬ 
 tion of public affairs, but to all sorts of persons, as well as of 
 advantage in the ordinary intercourse of life. He thinks it 
 strange, when actions are good in themselves, and as far as 
 can be judged from external appearance, laudable in all re¬ 
 spects, that men, purely to discredit illustrious personages, 
 should pretend to dive into their hearts ; and from a spirit of the 
 vilest and most abject malignity, should ascribe such views 
 and intentions to them, as they probably never so much as 
 imagined. He, on the contrary, wishes, when the motive is 
 obscure, and the same action may be considered in different 
 lights, that men r would always view it in the most favourable, 
 and incline to judge candidly of it. He applies this maxim to 
 the reports which had been spread concerning Pericles, as the 
 fomenter of the Peloponnesian war, merely for private and in¬ 
 terested views; whereas, the whole tenor of his past conduct 
 ought to have convinced every body, that it was wholly from 
 reasons of state, and for the good of the public, that he at last 
 acquiesced in an opinion, which he had hitherto thought it in¬ 
 cumbent on him to oppose. 
 
 Whilst this affair was carrying on at Athens, m the Lacedae¬ 
 monians sent several embassies thither, one after another, to 
 make the various demands above mentioned. At last the af¬ 
 fair was debated in the assembly of the people, and it was re¬ 
 solved they should first deliberate upon all the articles, before 
 
 1 Plut. de Herod, malign, p. 855, 856. 
 m Tliucyd. 1. i. p. 93—99. JJiod. 1. xii. p. 95—97- 
 
410 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 they gave a positive answer. Opinions, as is usual in these 
 cases, were divided ; and some were for abolishing the decree 
 enacted against Megara, which seemed the chief obstacle to a 
 peace. 
 
 Pericles spoke on this occasion with a force of eloquence 
 which his view to the public welfare, and the honour of his 
 country, rendered more vehement and triumphant than it had 
 ever appeared before He showed, in the first place, that the 
 decree relating to Megara, on which the greatest stress was 
 laid, was not of so little consequence as they imagined : that 
 the demand made by the Lacedaemonians on that head was 
 merely to sound the disposition of the Athenians, and to try 
 whether it would be possible to encroach upon them by fright¬ 
 ening them ; that should they recede on this occasion, it would 
 betray fear and weakness : that the affair was of less import¬ 
 ance than the giving up to the Lacedasmonians the empire which 
 the Athenians had possessed during so many years, by their 
 courage and resolution ; that should the Athenians give way on 
 this point, the Lacedaemonians would immediately prescribe 
 new laws to them, as to a people seized with dread ; whereas, 
 if they made a vigorous resistance, their opponents would be 
 obliged to treat them at least on the foot of equals : that with 
 regard to the present matters in dispute, arbiters might be 
 chosen, in order to adjust them in an amicable way ; but that 
 it did not become the Lacedaemonians to command the Athe¬ 
 nians, with a magisterial air, to quit Potidaea, to free HSgina, 
 and revoke the decree relating to Megara : that such imperi¬ 
 ous behaviour was directly contrary to the treaty, which de¬ 
 clared in express terms, That should any disputes arise among 
 the allies, they should he decided by pacific methods, AND 
 WITHOUT ANY PARTY’S BEING OBLIGED TO GIVE UP ANY 
 
 part of what they possessed : that the surest way to 
 prevent a government from being eternally contesting about 
 its possessions, is to take up arms, and dispute its rights 
 sword in hand : that the Athenians had just reason to believe 
 they would gain their cause this way ; and to give them a 
 stronger idea of this truth, he set before them a most brilliant 
 description of the present state of Athens, giving a very par¬ 
 ticular account of its treasures, revenues, fleets, land as well as 
 sea forces, and those of its allies ; contrasting these several 
 resources with the poverty of the Lacedaemonians, who (he 
 said) had no money, which is the sinews of war, not to mention 
 the poor condition of their navy, on which success in war most 
 depended. And indeed, n there were at that time in the public 
 treasury, which the Athenians had brought from Delos to their 
 city, 9600 talents, which amount to about 1,200,000/, sterling. 
 
 n Piod. 1. xii. p. 96, 97* 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 411 
 
 The annual contributions of the allies amounted to 4G0 talents, 
 that is, to near 1,400,000 French livres. In cases of necessi¬ 
 ty, the Athenians would find infinite resources in the ornaments 
 of the temples, since those of the statue of Minerva alone 
 amounted to fifty talents of gold, that is, 1,500,000 French 
 livres, which might be taken from the statue without spoiling 
 it, and be afterwards fixed on again in more auspicious times. 
 With regard to the land forces, they amounted to very near 
 30,000 men, and the fleet consisted of 300 galleys. Above all, 
 he advised them not to venture a battle in their own country 
 against the Peloponnesians, whose troops were superior in 
 number to theirs ; not to regard the laying waste of their lands, 
 as they might easily be restored to their former condition ; but 
 to consider the loss of their men as highly important, because 
 irretrievable : to make their whole policy consist in defending 
 their city, and preserving the empire of the sea, which would 
 certainly one day give them the superiority over their enemies. 
 He laid down the plan for carrying on the war, not for a single 
 campaign, but during the whole time it might last; and enu¬ 
 merated the evils they had to fear, if they deviated from that 
 system. Pericles, after adding other considerations, taken 
 from the character and internal government of the two repub¬ 
 lics ; the one uncertain and fluctuating in its deliberations, and 
 rendered still slower in the execution, from its being obliged to 
 wait for the consent of its allies ; the other speedy, determinate, 
 independent, and mistress of its resolutions, which is no indif¬ 
 ferent circumstance with regard to the success of enterprises ; 
 Pericles, I say, concluded his speech, and gave his opinion as 
 follows : We have no more to do hut to dismiss the ambassa¬ 
 dors, and to give them this answer : That we permit those of 
 Megara to trade with Athens, upon condition that the Lace¬ 
 demonians do not prohibit either us, or our allies, to trade 
 with them. With regard to the cities of Greece, we shall leave 
 those free who were so at the time of our agreement, provided 
 they shall do the same with regard to those dependent on them. 
 We do not refuse to submit the decision of our differences to 
 arbitration, and will not commit the first hostilities : however, 
 in case of being attached, we shall make a vigorous defence. 
 
 The ambassadors were answered as Pericles had dictated. 
 They returned home, and never came again to Athens ; soon 
 after which the Peloponnesian war broke out. 
 
412 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 TRANSACTIONS OF THE GREEKS IN SICILY AND ITALY. 
 
 As the Peloponnesian war is a great event of considerable 
 duration, before I enter upon the history of it, it may be proper 
 to relate, in a few words, the most considerable transactions 
 which had happened in Grascia Major, to the time we now 
 speak of, whether in Sicily or Italy. 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 The Carthaginians are defeated in Sicily. Theron, tyrant of Agrigen turn. 
 
 Reign of Gelon in Syracuse, and his two brothers. Liberty is restored. 
 
 1. Gelon. 
 
 We have seen that Xerxes, ° whose project 
 Ant^J C°*484 tended to no less than the total extirpation of the 
 Greeks, had prevailed with the Carthaginians to 
 make war against the people of Sicily. They crossed over 
 thither with an army of above 300,000 men, and a fleet of 2000 
 ships, and upwards of 3000 transports. Hamilcar, the ablest 
 of the Carthaginian generals at that time, w as charged with this 
 expedition. However, the success was not answerable to 
 these mighty preparations ; the Carthaginians were entirely 
 defeated by Gelon, who at that time had the chief authority in 
 s y racuse. 
 
 This Gelon was born in a city of Sicily ,p situated on the 
 southern coast between Agrigentum and Camarina, called Gelas, 
 whence perhaps he received his name. He had signalized him¬ 
 self very much in the wars which Hippocrates, tyrant of Gela, 
 carried on against the neighbouring powers, most of whom he 
 subdued, and w 7 as very near taking Syracuse. After the death 
 of Hippocrates, Gelon, upon pretence of defending the rights 
 and succession of the tyrant’s children, took up arms against his 
 own citizens, and having overcome them in a battle, possessed 
 himself of the government in his own name. Some time after he 
 made himself master also of Syracuse, by the assistance of some 
 exiles whom he had caused to return into it, and who had en¬ 
 gaged the populace to open the gates of that city to him. He 
 then gave Gela to Hiero his brother, and applied himself wholly 
 in extending the limits of the territory of Syracuse, and soon 
 rendered himself very powerful. We may form a judgment of 
 Diod. 1. xi. p. 1. et 1G—22. p Herod. 1. vii. c. 153—1G7* 
 
 O 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 413 
 
 this from the army which he offered the Grecian ambassadors/* 
 who came to desire his aid against the king of Persia; and by 
 his demand of being appointed generalissimo of their forces, 
 which however they refused. The fear he was in at that time, 
 of being soon invaded by the Carthaginians, was the chief oc¬ 
 casion of his not succouring the Greeks. He showed himself 
 to be a crafty politician by his conduct; and when news was 
 brought him of Xerxes’s having crossed the Hellespont, he sent 
 a trusty person with rich presents, and ordered him to wait the 
 issue of the first battle, and in case Xerxes should be victorious, 
 to pay homage to him in his name, otherwise to bring back the 
 money. 1 now return to the Carthaginians. 
 
 They had landed in Sicily at the earnest solicitations of Te- 
 rillus, formerly tyrant of Himera, but dethroned by Theron, 
 another tyrant, who reigned at Agrigentum. The family of the 
 latter was one of the most illustrious of all Greece, as he was 
 descended in a direct line from Cadmus. He married into the 
 family which at that time ruled at Syracuse, and which consisted 
 of four brothers, Gelon, Hiero, Polyzelus, and Thrasybulus. 
 He married his daughter to the first, and himself married the 
 daughter of the third. 
 
 Hamilcar having landed at Panormus, began by laying 
 siege to Himera. Gelon hasted with a great army to the suc¬ 
 cour of his father-in-law ; when uniting, they defeated the Car¬ 
 thaginians. This was perhaps the most complete victory ever 
 gained. 
 
 The battle was fought the same day with that of Thermopylae/ 
 the circumstances of which I have related in the history of the 
 Carthaginians. s One remarkable circumstance in the condi¬ 
 tions of the peace/ which Gelon prescribed to the conquered, 
 was, that they should cease to sacrifice their children to the god 
 Saturn ; which shows, at the same time, the cruelty of the Car¬ 
 thaginians, and the piety of Gelon. 
 
 The spoils won on this occasion were of immense value. 
 Gelon allotted the greatest part of them for the ornament of 
 the temples in Syracuse. They also took an incredible num¬ 
 ber of prisoners. These he shared, with the utmost equity, 
 with his allies, who employed them, after putting irons on their 
 feet, in cultivating their lands and in building magnificent edi¬ 
 fices, as well for the ornament as the utility of the cities. Seve- 
 
 a He promised to furnish 200 ships and 30,000 men. 
 
 r Herodotus says, that this battle was fought the same day with that of 
 Salamis, which does not appear so probable. For the Greeks, informed of 
 Gelon’s successes, entreated him to succour them against Xerxes, which they 
 would not have done after the battle of Salamis, which exalted their cou¬ 
 rage so much, that after this battle they imagined themselves strong enough 
 to resist their enemies, and to put an end to the war, to their own advan¬ 
 tage, without the assistance of any other power. 
 
 8 Yol. i. 1 Plut. in Apophth. p. 175. 
 
414 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 ral of the citizens of Agrigentum had each 500 for his own 
 share. 
 
 Gelon, after so glorious a victory, far from 
 Ant J 1 C° 2 479 £ row i n g more proud and haughty, behaved with 
 greater affability and humanity than ever towards 
 the citizens and his allies. Being returned from the campaign, 
 he convened the assembly of the Syracusans, who were ordered 
 to come armed into it. However, he himself came unarmed 
 thither ; declared to the assembly every circumstance of his 
 conduct, the uses to which he had applied the several sums 
 with which he had been intrusted, and in what manner he had 
 employed his authority ; adding, that if they had any complaints 
 to make against him, his person and life were at their disposal. 
 All the people, struck with so unexpected a speech, and still 
 more with the confidence he reposed in them, answered by ac¬ 
 clamations of joy, praise, and gratitude ; and immediately, with 
 one consent, invested him with the supreme authority, and the 
 title of king. And to preserve to latest posterity the remem¬ 
 brance of Gelon’s memorable action, 11 who had come into the 
 assembly, and put his life into the hands of the Syracusans, 
 they erected a statue in honour of him, wherein he was repre¬ 
 sented in the ordinary habit of a citizen, ungirded, and unarmed. 
 This statue met afterwards with a very singular fate, and wor¬ 
 thy of the motives which had occasioned its being set up. Ti- 
 moleon, above 130 years after, having restored the Syracusans 
 to their liberty, thought it advisable, in order to erase all traces 
 of tyrannical government, and at the same time to assist the 
 wants of the people, to sell publicly by auction all the statues 
 of those princes and tyrants who had governed it till that time. 
 But first he brought them to a formal trial, as so many crimi¬ 
 nals ; hearing the depositions and witnesses upon each of them. 
 They all were condemned unanimously, the statue of Gelon only 
 excepted, which found an eloquent advocate and defender in 
 the warm and sincere gratitude which the citizens retained for 
 that great man, whose virtue they revered as if he had been still 
 alive. 
 
 The Syracusans had no cause to repent their having intrusted 
 Gelon with unlimited power and authority. This made no addi¬ 
 tion to his known zeal for their interests, but only enabled him 
 to do them more important services. For, x by chance till then 
 unheard of, and of which Tacitus since found no example ex¬ 
 cept in Vespasian/ he was the first whom the sovereignty made 
 the better man. He made upwards of 10,000 foreigners, who 
 had served under him, denizens. His views were, to people 
 the capital, to increase the power of the state, to reward the 
 
 u Plut. in Timol. p. 247- ./Elian. 1. xiii. c. 37- x Diod. 1. xi. p. 55. 
 
 y Solus omnium ante se principum in melius mutatus est. Hist. 1. i. c. 50. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 415 
 
 services of these brave and faithful soldiers, and to attach them 
 more strongly to Syracuse, from the sense of the advantageous 
 settlement they had obtained in being incorporated with the 
 citizens. 
 
 He prided himself particularly upon his inviolable sincerity, 2 
 truth, and fidelity to his engagements; a quality very essential 
 to a prince, the only one capable of gaining him the love and 
 confidence of his subjects and of foreigners, and which there¬ 
 fore ought to be considered as the basis of all just policy and 
 good government. Having occasion for money to carry on an 
 expedition he meditated, (this, very probably, was before he had 
 triumphed over the Carthaginians,) he addressed the people in 
 order to obtain a contribution from them: but finding the Sy¬ 
 racusans unwilling to be at that expense, he told them, that he 
 asked nothing but a loan, and that he would engage to repay it 
 as soon as the war should be over. The money was advanced, 
 and repaid punctually at the promised time. How happy is 
 that government where such justice and equity are exercised ; 
 and how mistaken are those ministers and princes, who violate 
 them in the slightest degree ! 
 
 One of the chief objects of his attention/ in which his suc¬ 
 cessor imitated him, was to make the cultivation of the lands 
 be considered as an honourable employment. It is well known 
 how fruitful Sicily was in corn; and the immense revenues 
 which might be produced from so rich a soil when industriously 
 cultivated. He animated the husbandmen by his presence, and 
 delighted in appearing sometimes at their head, in the same 
 manner as on other occasions he had marched at the head 
 of armies. His intention, says Plutarch, was not merely to 
 make the country rich and fruitful, but also to exercise his 
 subjects, to accustom and inure them to toils, and by that 
 means to preserve them from a thousand disorders, which 
 inevitably follow a soft and indolent life. There are few 
 maxims (in point of policy) on which the ancients have insisted 
 more strongly, than on that relating to the cultivation of their 
 lands ; a manifest proof of their great wisdom, and the profound 
 knowledge they had of what constitutes the strength and solid 
 support of a state. Xenophon in a dialogue, entitled IIiero, b 
 the subject of which is government, shows the great advantage 
 it would be to a state, were the king studious to reward those 
 who excel in husbandry, and in whatever relates to the cultiva¬ 
 tion of lands. He says the same of war, of trade, and of all 
 the arts; on which occasion, if honours were paid to all those 
 who should distinguish themselves on them, it would give uni¬ 
 versal life and motion; would excite a noble and laudable 
 
 z Flat, in Apophth. p. 175. 
 
 a Ibid. 
 
 b P. 916, 917. 
 
416 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 emulation among the citizens, and give rise to a thousand in¬ 
 ventions for the improvement and perfection of those arts. 
 
 It does not appear that Gelon had been educated in the 
 same maimer as the children of the rich among the Greeks, 
 who were taught music and the art of playing on instruments 
 with great care. Possibly this was a consequence of his mean 
 birth, or rather was owing to the little value he set on those 
 kind of exercises. One day at an entertainment/ when, accord¬ 
 ing to the usual custom, a lyre was presented to each of the 
 guests ; when it v r as Gelon’s turn, instead of touching the in¬ 
 strument as the rest had done, he caused his horse to be brought, 
 mounted him with wonderful agility and grace, and showed 
 that he had learned a nobler exercise than playing on the lyre. 
 
 Since the defeat of the Carthaginians in Sicily/ the several 
 cities enjoyed a profound peace, and Syracuse was particularly 
 happy in its tranquillity, under the auspicious government of 
 Gelon. He was not born in Syracuse, and yet all the inhabit¬ 
 ants of that city, though so extremely jealous of their liberty, 
 had forced him in a manner to be their king. Though an alien, 
 the supreme power went in search of him, not courted on his 
 part with any art or inducement but those of merit. Gelon 
 was thoroughly acquainted with all the duties of the regal office, 
 as well as its great weight; and he accepted it with no other 
 view but the good of his people. He thought himself king 
 only for the defence of the state, to preserve the good order of 
 society, to protect innocence and justice, and to exhibit to all 
 his subjects, in his simple, modest, active, and regular life, a 
 pattern of every civil virtue. The whole of royalty that he as¬ 
 sumed was the toils and cares of it, a zeal for the public wel¬ 
 fare, and the sweet satisfaction which results from making 
 millions happy by his cares; in a word, he considered the so¬ 
 vereignty as an obligation, and a means to procure the felicity 
 of a greater number of men. He banished from it pomp, os¬ 
 tentation, licentiousness, and impunity for crimes. Pie did not 
 affect the appearance of reigning, but contented himself with 
 making the laws reign. He never made his inferiors feel that 
 he was their master, but only inculcated into them that both 
 himself and they ought to submit to reason and justice. To 
 induce their obedience, he employed no other methods but per¬ 
 suasion and a good example, which are the weapons of virtue, 
 and alone produce a sincere and uninterrupted obedience. 
 
 A revered old age, a name highly dear to all his subjects, a 
 reputation equally diffused within and without his kingdoms ; 
 these were the fruits of that wisdom wdiich he retained on the 
 throne to the last gasp. His reign was short, and only just 
 showed him in a manner to Sicily, to exhibit in his person an 
 
 c Pint, in Apophthegm, p. 175. d Diod. 1. xi. p. 29, 30. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 417 
 
 example of a great, good, and true king. He died, after hav¬ 
 ing reigned only seven years, to the infinite regret of all his 
 subjects. Every family imagined itself deprived of its best 
 friend, its protector and father. The people erected without 
 the city, in the place where his wife Demarata had been buried, 
 a splendid mausoleum, surrounded with nine towers of sur¬ 
 prising height and magnificence; and decreed those honours to 
 him, which were then paid to the demigods or heroes. The 
 Carthaginians afterwards demolished the mausoleum, and Aga- 
 thocles the. towers : but, says the historian, neither violence, 
 envy, nor time, which destroys all grosser things, could destroy 
 the glory of his name, or abolish the memory of his exalted 
 virtues and noble actions, which love and gratitude had en¬ 
 graved in the hearts of the Sicilians. 
 
 II. Hiero. 
 
 After Gelon’s death, the sceptre continued 
 
 4nt^T C °472 near twelve years in his family. He was suc¬ 
 ceeded by Hiero, his eldest brother. 
 
 It will be necessary lor us, in order to reconcile the authors 
 who have written concerning this prince, some of whom repre¬ 
 sent him as a good king, and others a detestable tyrant; it will 
 be necessary, I say, to distinguish the periods. It is very pro¬ 
 bable that Hiero, dazzled, in the beginning of his reign, by the 
 glitter of sovereign power, and corrupted by the flattery of his 
 courtiers, studiously endeavoured to deviate from that path 
 which his predecessor had pointed out to him, and in which he 
 had found himself so happy. This young prince was avaricious, e 
 headstrong, unjust, and studious of nothing but the gratification 
 of his passions, without ever endeavouring to acquire the esteem 
 and affection of the people ; who, on the other side, had the 
 utmost aversion for a prince, whom they looked upon as a ty¬ 
 rant over them, rather than as a king ; and nothing but the ve¬ 
 neration they had for Gelon’s memory, prevented it from 
 breaking out. 
 
 Some time after he had ascended the throne/ he entertained 
 violent suspicions of Polyzelus, his brother, whose great influ¬ 
 ence among the citizens made him fear that he had a design to 
 depose him. In order to rid himself without noise of an enemy 
 whom he fancied very dangerous, he resolved to put him at the 
 head of some forces he was going to send to the succour of the 
 Sybarites against the Crotoniatoe, hoping that lie would perish 
 in the expedition. « His brother’s refusal to accept this com¬ 
 mand made him the more violent against him. Theron, who 
 had married Polyzelus’s daughter, joined with his father-in- 
 law. This gave rise to great differences of long duration be- 
 
 e Diod. 1. xi. p. 51. f Id. 1. xi. p. 56. 
 
 VOL. II. 2 E 
 
418 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 tween the kings of Syracuse and Agrigentum; however, they 
 at last were reconciled by th judicious mediation of Simonides 
 the poet;£ and to make their reconciliation lasting, they 
 cemented it by a new alliance, Hiero marrying Theron’s sister; 
 after which the two kings always lived in good intelligence with 
 each other. 
 
 At first, 11 an infirm state of health, which was increased by 
 repeated illnesses, gave Hiero an opportunity of thinking se¬ 
 riously ; after which he resolved to draw around him men of 
 learning, who might converse agreeably with him, and furnish 
 him with useful instructions. The most famous poets of the 
 age came to his court, as Simonides, Pindar, Bacchylides, and 
 Epicharmus ; and it is affirmed, that their delightful conversa¬ 
 tion did not a little contribute to soften the cruel and savage 
 disposition of Hiero. 
 
 Plutarch 1 relates a noble saying of his, which shows an ex¬ 
 cellent disposition in a prince. He declared, that his palace 
 and his ears should be always open to every man who would tell 
 him the truth, and that without disguise or reserve. 
 
 The poets above mentioned not only excelled in poetry, but 
 were also possessed of a great fund of learning in other branches, 
 and were respected and consulted as the sages of their times. 
 This is what Cicero k says of Simonides in particular. He had 
 a great ascendant over the king; and the only use he made of 
 it was, to incline him to virtue. 
 
 They often used to converse on philosophical subjects. 1 I 
 observed on another occasion, that Hiero, in one of these con¬ 
 versations, asked Simonides his opinion with regard to the na¬ 
 ture and attributes of the Deity. The latter desired one day’s 
 time to consider of it: the next dav he asked two, and went on 
 increasing in the same proportion. The prince pressing him to 
 give his reasons for these delays ; he confessed, that the subject 
 was above his comprehension, and that the more he reflected, 
 the more obscure it appeared to him. 
 
 Xenophon has left us an excellent treatise on the art of 
 governing well, entitled Hiero, and written in the form of a 
 dialogue ;between this prince and Simonides. Hiero under¬ 
 takes to prove to the poet, that tyrants and kings are not so 
 happy as is generally imagined. Among the great number of 
 proofs alleged by him, he insists chiefly on their unhappiness 
 in being deprived of the greatest comfort and blessing in this 
 life, viz. the enjoyment of a true friend, to whose bosom they 
 may safely confide their secrets and afflictions ; who may share 
 with them in their joy and sorrow ; in a word, a second self, 
 
 g Schol. in. Pind. h TElian. 1. iv. c. 15. ' In Apophth. p. 175* 
 
 k Simonides, non poeta solum suavis, verum etiam creteroqui doctus sa- 
 piensque traditur. Lib. i. cle nat. deor. n. 60. 1 Cic.,1. i. de nat. deor. n. 60. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 419 
 
 who may form but one heart, one soul with them. Simonides, 
 on the other side, lays down admirable maxims with respect 
 to the duties of a sovereign. He represents to him, that a 
 king is not so for himself, but for others : that his grandeur con¬ 
 sists not in building magnificent palaces for his own residence, 
 but in erecting temples, and fortifying and embellishing his 
 cities : that his glory consists not in his people’s fearing him, 
 but in their being afraid for him : that a truly royal care is, not 
 to enter the lists with the first comer at the Olympic games, 
 (for the princes of that age were passionately fond of them, and 
 especially Hiero,) m but to contend with the neighbouring kings, 
 who should succeed best in diffusing wealth and abundance 
 throughout his dominions, and in endeavouring to secure the 
 felicity of the people. 
 
 Nevertheless, another poet (Pindar) praises this same Hiero 
 for the victory he had won in the horse-race. • This prince, says 
 he in his ode, who governs , with equity , the inhabitants of 
 opulent Sicily , has gathered the fairest flower of every virtue. 
 He takes a noble delight in the most exquisite performances of 
 poetry and music. He loves melodious airs, such as it is cus¬ 
 tomary for us to play at the banquets given us by our dearest 
 friends. Rouse then thyself, take thy lyre, and raise it to the 
 Doric pitch. If thou feelest thyself animated by a glorious 
 fire in favour of Pisa n and Pherenice ; if they have waked the 
 sweetest transports in thy breast, when that generous courser 
 (without being quickened by the spur) flew along the banks 
 of the Alpheus, and carried his royal rider to a glorious vic¬ 
 tory : O sing the king of Syracuse, the ornament of the Olym¬ 
 pic course! 
 
 The whole ode, translated by the late Mr. Massieu, is in the 
 sixth volume of the Memoirs of the Academy of Inscriptions 
 and Belles Lettres, from which I have made the short extract 
 above. I was very glad to give the reader some idea of Pin¬ 
 dar, from this little specimen. 
 
 The next ode to this was composed in honour of Theron, 
 king of Agrigentum, victorious in the chariot-race. The dic¬ 
 tion of it is so sublime, the thought so noble, and the moral so 
 pure, that many look upon it as Pindar’s masterpiece. 
 
 I cannot say how far we may depend on the rest of the 
 praises which Pindar gives to Hiero, for poets do not always 
 pride themselves upon their sincerity in the eulogiums they 
 bestow on princes ; however, it is certain that Hiero had made 
 
 m It is said that Themistocles, seeing him arrive at the Olympic games with 
 a splendid equipage, would have had him forbidden them, because he had not 
 succoured the Greeks against the common enemy, any more than Gelon his 
 brother ; which motion did honour to the Athenian general. JElian. 1. ix. c. 5. 
 
 n Pisa was the city, near which the Olympic games were solemnized: and 
 Pherenice was the name of Hiero’s courser, signifying the gainer of victory. 
 
 2 e 2 
 
420 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 his court the resort of all persons of wit and genius ; and that 
 he had invited them to it by his affability and engaging beha¬ 
 viour, and much more by his liberality, which is a great merit 
 in a king. 
 
 We cannot bestow on Hiero’s court the eulogium which 
 Horace 0 gives the house of Maecenas, in which a character 
 prevailed rarely found among scholars, and nevertheless infi¬ 
 nitely preferable to all their erudition. This amiable house, 
 says Horace, was an utter stranger to the mean and grovelling 
 sentiments of envy and jealousy; and men saw, in those who 
 shared in their master’s favour, a superior merit or credit with¬ 
 out taking the least umbrage at it. But it was far otherwise 
 in the court of Hiero or of Theron.P It is said that Simonides, 
 and Bachyllides his nephew, employed all kinds of criticism, 
 to lessen the esteem which those princes had for Pindar’s works. 
 The latter by way of reprisal, ridicules them very strongly in 
 his ode of Theron, in comparing them to ravens , who croak in 
 vain against the divine bird of Jove. But modesty was not the 
 virtue which distinguished Pindar. 
 
 Hiero,i having driven the ancient inhabitants of Catana and 
 Naxos from their country, settled a colony of 10,000 men there, 
 half of whom were Syracusans, and the rest Peloponnesians. 
 This induced the inhabitants of those cities to appoint, after his 
 death, the same solemnities in his honour, as were bestowed 
 on heroes or demigods, because they considered him as their 
 founder. 
 
 Pie showed great favour to the children of Anaxilaus/ for¬ 
 merly tyrant of Zancle, and a great friend to Gelon his brother. 
 As they were arrived at years of maturity, he exhorted them to 
 take the government into their own hands ; after Micythus, their 
 tutor, should have perfectly informed them of the state of it, 
 and how he himself had behaved in the administration. The 
 latter, having assembled the nearest relations and most inti¬ 
 mate friends of the young princes, gave, in their presence, so 
 good an account of his guardianship, that the whole assembly 
 (in perfect admiration) bestowed the highest encomiums on his 
 prudence, integrity, and justice. Matters were carried so far, 
 
 0 -Non isto vivimus illic, 
 
 Quo tu rere, modo. Domus hac nec purior ulla est, 
 
 Nec magis his aliena malis. Nil mi officit. unquam, 
 
 Ditior hie, aut est quia doctior. Est locus uni, 
 
 Cuique suus. Hor. lib. i. sat. 9. 
 
 Sir, you mistake, that’s not our course of life, 
 
 We know no jealousies, no brawls, no strife ; 
 
 From all those ills our patron’s house is free. 
 
 None, ’cause more learned or wealthy, troubles me; 
 
 We have our stations, all their own pursue, &c. 
 
 Creech. 
 
 p Scholiast. Pind. 9 Diod. 1. xi. p. 37. r Ibid. p. 50. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 421 
 
 that the young princes were extremely urgent with him to con¬ 
 tinue to preside in the administration, as he had hitherto done. 
 However, the wise tutor, preferring the sweets of ease to the 
 splendour of authority, and persuaded, at the same time, that it 
 would he for the interest of the state, if the young princes took 
 the government into their own hands, resolved to retire from 
 business. Hiero died after having reigned eleven years. 
 
 III. Thrasybulus. 
 
 He was succeeded by Thrasybulus his brother, s who, by his 
 evil conduct, contributed very much to the making him be re¬ 
 gretted. Swelled with pride and a brutal haughtiness, he con¬ 
 sidered men as mere worms ; vainly fancying they were created 
 for him to trample upon, and that he was of a quite different na¬ 
 ture from them. He abandoned himself implicitly to the flat¬ 
 tering counsels of the giddy young courtiers who surrounded 
 him. He treated all his subjects with the utmost severity ; 
 banishing some, confiscating the possessions of others, and put¬ 
 ting great numbers to death. So severe a slavery soon grew 
 insupportable to the Syracusans, and therefore they implored 
 the succour of the neighbouring cities, whose interest it was 
 also to throw off the tyrant’s yoke. Thrasybulus was besieged 
 even in Syracuse, the sovereignty of part of which he had re¬ 
 served to himself, viz. Achradina, and the island, which was 
 very well fortified ; but the third quarter of the city, called Ty- 
 che, was possessed by the enemy. After making a feeble re¬ 
 sistance, and demanding to capitulate, he left the city, and 
 withdrew into banishment among the Locrians. He had reign¬ 
 ed but a year. In this manner the Syracusans recovered 
 their liberty. They also delivered the rest of the cities of Si¬ 
 cily from tyrants ; established a popular government in all 
 places, and maintained that form by themselves during threescore 
 vears, till the reign of Dionysius the tyrant, who again enslaved 
 them. 
 
 After Sicilv had been delivered from the go- 
 
 A 1\/r * < —' 
 
 Ant jc 460 vernmen t of tyrants, 1 and all the cities of it were 
 restored to their liberty ; as the country was ex¬ 
 tremely fruitful in itself, and the peace which all places enjoyed 
 gave the inhabitants of this island an opportunity of cultivating 
 their lands, and feeding their flocks ; the people grew very 
 powerful, and amassed great riches. To perpetuate to latest 
 posterity the remembrance of the happy day in which they had 
 thrown off the yoke of slavery, by the banishment of Thrasybu¬ 
 lus, it was decreed in the general assembly of the nation, that a 
 colossal statue should be set up to Jupiter the Deliverer ; that 
 on the anniversary of this day a festival should be solemnized, 
 8 Diod. 1. xi. p. 51, 52. 1 Ibid. p. 55, &c. 
 
422 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 by way of thanksgiving, for the restoration of their liberty : and 
 that there should be sacrificed, in honour of the gods, 450 bulls, 
 with which the people should be entertained at a common feast. 
 
 There nevertheless lay concealed in the minds of many, a 
 certain secret leaven of tyranny, which frequently disturbed 
 the harmony of this peace, and occasioned several tumults and 
 commotions in Sicily, the particulars of which I shall omit. 
 To prevent the evil consequences of them, u the Syracusans 
 established the Petalism, which differed very little from the 
 Athenian Ostracism; and was so called from the Greek 7re7a\ov, 
 signifying a leaf, because the votes were then given on an olive- 
 leaf. This judgment was put in force against those citizens 
 whose great power made the people apprehensive that they 
 aspired at the tyranny, and it banished them for ten years; 
 however, it did not long continue in force, and was soon 
 abolished; because the dread of falling under its censure, 
 having prompted the most virtuous men to retire, and renounce 
 the government, the chief employments were now filled by such 
 citizens only as had the least merit. 
 
 Deucetius, according to Diodorus, x was chief over the people 
 who were properly called Sicilians. Having united all (the 
 inhabitants of Hybla excepted) into one body, he became very 
 powerful, and formed several great enterprises. It was he who 
 built the city Palica, near the temple of the gods called Palici. 
 This temple was very famous on account of some wonders 
 which are related of it; and still more from the sacred nature 
 of the oaths which were then taken, the violation whereof was 
 said to be always followed by a sudden and exemplary punish¬ 
 ment. This was a secure asylum for all persons who were 
 oppressed by superior power; and especially for slaves who 
 were unjustly abused, or too cruelly treated by their masters. 
 They continued in safety in this temple, till certain arbiters and 
 mediators had made their peace; and there was not a single 
 instance of a masters having ever broken the promise he had 
 made of pardoning his slaves; so famous were the gods who 
 presided over this temple, for the severe vengeance they took 
 on those who violated their oaths. 
 
 This Deucetius, after having been successful on a great many 
 occasions, and gained several victories, particularly over the 
 Syracusans, saw his fortune change on a sudden by the loss of 
 a battle, and was abandoned by the greatest part of his forces. 
 In the consternation and despondency into which so general 
 and sudden a desertion threw him, he formed such a resolution 
 as despair only could suggest. He withdrew in the night to 
 Syracuse, advanced so far as the great square of the city, and 
 there falling prostrate at the foot of the altar, abandoned his 
 Diod. 1. xi. p. 65. x Ibid. p. 67—76* 
 
 U 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 423 
 
 life and dominions to the mercy of the Syracusans, that is, to 
 his professed enemies. The singularity of this spectacle at¬ 
 tracted great numbers of people. The magistrates immediately 
 convened the people, and debated on the affair. They first 
 heard the orators, whose business was generally to address the 
 people with great violence; and these animated them against 
 Deucetius, as a public enemy, whom providence seemed to 
 throw into their way, to revenge and punish, by his death, all 
 the injuries he had done the republic. A speech of this tend¬ 
 ency struck all the virtuous part of the assembly with horror. 
 The most ancient and wisest of the senators represented, That 
 they were not now to consider what punishment Deucetius de¬ 
 served, hut how it behoved the Syracusans to act on that occa¬ 
 sion ; that they ought not to look upon him any lonyer as an 
 enemy, hut as a suppliant, a character by which his person 
 ivas become sacred and inviolable. That there was a goddess 
 (Nemesis) who took vengeance of crimes, especially of cruelty 
 and impiety, who doubtless would not suffer that to go un¬ 
 punished: that besides the baseness and inhumanity there is in 
 insulting the unfortunate, and in crushing those who are cdready 
 under ones foot; it was worthy the grandeur and good-nature 
 of the Syracusans, to exert their clemency even to those who 
 least deserved it. All the people came into this opinion, and 
 with one consent spared Deucetius’s life. He was ordered to 
 reside in Corinth, the mother city and foundress of Syracuse; 
 and the Syracusans engaged to furnish Deucetius with all things 
 necessary for his subsisting honourably there. What reader, 
 who compares these two different opinions, does not perceive 
 which of them was the noblest and most generous ! 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 Of some famous persons and cities in Grsecia Magna. Pythagoras, Charondas, 
 Zaleucus, Milo the Athleta ; Crotona, Sybaris, and Thurium. 
 
 I. Pythagoras. 
 
 In treating of what relates to Graecia Magna 
 
 A I\/f" Q ^ 
 
 Ant T C 524 I must not omit Pythagoras, who was 
 
 the glory of it. He was born in SamosJ After 
 having travelled into a great many regions, and enriched his 
 mind with much uncommon and excellent learning, he returned 
 to his native country, but did not make a long stay in it, be¬ 
 cause of the tyrannical government which Polycrates had 
 established in it, who however had the highest regard for him, 
 and showed him all the esteem due to his rare merit. But the 
 study of the sciences, and particularly of philosophy, is by no 
 means compatible with slavery, though of the mildest and most 
 
 y Diog. Laert. in vit. Pythag. 
 
424 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 honourable kind. He therefore went into Italy, and resided 
 usually either at Crotona, Metapontum, Heraclea, or Taren- 
 tum. Servius Tullius, 2 or Tarquinius Superbus, reigned in 
 Rome at that time ; which absolutely refutes the opinion of those 
 who imagined that Numa Pompilius, the second king of the 
 Romans, who lived upwards of 100 years before, had been Py¬ 
 thagoras’s disciple ; an opinion that very probably was grounded 
 on the resemblance of their manners, disposition, and principles. 
 
 The whole country soon felt very happy effects from the pre¬ 
 sence of this excellent philosopher. 11 An inclination for study, 
 and a love of wisdom, diffused themselves almost universally in 
 a very short time. Multitudes flocked from all the neighbour¬ 
 ing cities to get a sight of Pythagoras, to hear him, and to pro¬ 
 fit by his salutary counsels. The several princes of the country 
 took a pleasure in inviting him to their courts, which they 
 thought honoured by his presence ; and all were delighted with 
 his conversation, and glad to learn from him the art of governing 
 nations with wisdom. His school became the most famous that 
 had ever been till that age. He had no less than 4 or 500 dis¬ 
 ciples. Before he admitted them in that quality, he kept them 
 in a state of noviciate, as it were, and probation for five years, 
 during which time he obliged them to keep the strictest silence ; 
 thinking it proper for them to be instructed, before they should 
 attempt to speak. It is well known that the metempsychosis 
 or transmigration of souls was one of the chief of his tenets. 
 H is disciples had the greatest reverence for every word he 
 uttered ; and, if he did but barely aver a thing, that alone, with¬ 
 out farther examination, was sufficient to gain credit to his 
 assertion : and to confirm the truth of any thing, they used to 
 express themselves in this manner, The inaster said it . b How¬ 
 ever, the disciples carried their deference and docility too far, 
 in thus waving all inquiry, and in sacrificing implicitly their 
 reason and understanding ; a sacrifice that is due only to the 
 divine authority, which is infinitely superior to our reason and 
 all our knowledge ; and which, consequently, is authorized to 
 prescribe laws to us, and dictate absolute obedience. 
 
 The school of Pythagoras bred a great number of illustrious 
 disciples, who did infinite honour to their master; as wise legis¬ 
 lators, great politicians, persons skilled in all the sciences, and 
 capable of governing states, and being the ministers of the 
 greatest princes. A long time after his death, 0 that part of 
 
 z Liv. 1. i. n. 18. 
 
 a Pythagoras, cum in Italiam venisset, exornavit earn Graeciam, quae magna 
 dicta est, et privatim et publice, praestantissimis et institutis, et artibus. Cic. 
 Tuscul. Quceat. 1. v. n. 10. b Avtoq t(pa. 
 
 c Pythagoras tenuit magnam illam Graeciam cum honore, et disciplina, turn 
 etiam auctoritate, multaque secula postea sic viguit Pythagoreorum nomen, 
 ut nulli alii docti viderentur. Tusc. Quaes1. 1. i. n. 38. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 425 
 
 Italy which he had cultivated and improved by his instructions, 
 was still considered as the nursery and seat of men skilled in 
 all kinds of literature, and maintained that glorious character 
 for several ages. The Romans certainly entertained a high 
 opinion of Pythagoras’s virtue and merit/ since the oracle of 
 Delphi having commanded that people, during the war with the 
 Samnites, to erect two statues in the most conspicuous part of 
 Rome, the one to the wisest, and the other to the most valiant 
 among the Greeks, they accordingly set up two in the place 
 where the Comitia were held, representing Pythagoras and 
 Themistocles. We have no certain information with respect 
 to the time and place of Pythagoras’s death. 
 
 II. Crotona. Sybctris. Thurium. 
 
 Crotona was founded by Myscellus/ chief of 
 Ant J^C^'oo ^ ie Achaeans, th e third year of the seventeenth 
 Olympiad. This Myscellus being come to Delphi 
 to consult the oracle of Apollo about the spot on which he 
 should build his city, met Archias the Corinthian there, who 
 was arrived upon the same account. The god gave them a 
 favourable audience : and after having determined them with 
 regard to the place that would best suit their new settlements, 
 he proposed different advantages to them, and left them, among 
 other particulars, the choice of riches or health. The offer 
 of riches struck Archias, but Myscellus desired health ; and, 
 if history is to be credited, Apollo performed his promise 
 faithfully to both. Archias founded Syracuse, which soon 
 became the most opulent city of Greece. Myscellus laid the 
 foundations of Crotona/ which became so famous for the long 
 life and innate strength of its inhabitants, that its name was 
 used proverbially to signify a very healthy spot, whose air was 
 extremely pure. The natives of this city signalized themselves 
 in a great number of victories in the Grecian games ; and 
 Strabo relates that, in one and the same Olympiad, seven 
 Crotonians were crowned in the Olympic games, and carried off 
 all the prizes of the stadium. 
 
 Svbaris was ten leagues (200 stadia) from Crotona/ and had 
 also been founded by the Achaeans, but before the other. This 
 city became afterwards very powerful. Four neighbouring 
 states, and twenty-five cities, were subject to it, so that it 
 was alone able to raise an army of 300,000 men. The opu¬ 
 lence of Sybaris was soon followed by luxury, and such a dis¬ 
 soluteness of manners as is scarcely credible. The citizens 
 employed themselves in nothing but banquets, games, shows, 
 
 d Plin. 1. xxxiv. c. 6. 
 
 e Strab. 1. vi. p. 262 et 269. Dionys. Halicarn. Antiq. Rom. 1. ii. p. 121. 
 
 * K| ootojvoq vyuGTepoQ' s Strab. 1. vi. p. 263. Athen. 1. xii. p. 518—520. 
 
426 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 parties of pleasure, and carousals. Public rewards and marks 
 of distinction were bestowed on those who gave the most mag¬ 
 nificent entertainments ; and even to such cooks as were best 
 skilled in the important art of making new discoveries in dressing 
 dishes, and invented new refinements to please the palate. The 
 Sybarites carried their delicacy and effeminacy to such a height, 
 that they carefully removed from their city all such artificers 
 whose work was noisy ; and would not suffer any cocks in it, 
 lest their shrill piercing crow should disturb their balmy slumbers. 
 
 All these evils were heightened bv dissension 
 
 A l\/f Q A OA O V 
 
 Ant J C 590 anc ^ discord, h which at last proved their ruin. 
 
 Five hundred of the wealthiest persons in the 
 city having been expelled by the faction of one Telys, fled to 
 Crotona. Telys demanded to have them surrendered to him ; 
 and, on the refusal of the Crotonians to deliver them up, (who 
 were prompted to this generous resolution by Pythagoras, who 
 then lived among them,) war was declared. The Sybarites 
 marched 300,000 men into the field, and the Crotonians only 
 100,000; but then they were headed by Milo, the famous 
 champion, (of whom we shall soon have occasion to speak,) 
 over whose shoulders a lion’s skin was thrown, and himself 
 armed with a club, like another Hercules. The latter gained a 
 complete victory, and made a dreadful havoc of those who fled, 
 so that very few escaped, and their city was depopulated. About 
 threescore years after, some Thessalians came and settled in it; 
 however, they did not long enjoy peace, being driven out by 
 the Crotonians. Being thus reduced to the most fatal extremity, 
 they implored the succour of the Lacedaemonians and Athenians. 
 The latter, moved with compassion at their deplorable condi¬ 
 tion, after causing proclamation to be made in Peloponnesus, 
 that all who were willing to join that colony were at liberty to 
 do it, sent the Sybarites a fleet of ten ships, under the com¬ 
 mand of Lampon and Xenocrates. 
 
 They built a city near the ancient Sybaris and 
 Ant.^J. C 5 °444. ca ^ ec ^ it Thurium. 1 Two men greatly renowned 
 for their learning, the one an orator, and the 
 other an historian, settled in this colony. The first was Lysias, 
 at that time but fifteen years of age. He lived in Thurium till 
 the ill fate which befell the Athenians in Sicily, and then went 
 to Athens. The second was Herodotus. „ Though he was born 
 in Halicarnassus, a city of Caria, he was, however, considered 
 as a native of Thurium, because he settled there with that 
 colony. 
 
 Divisions soon broke out in the city, on occasion of the new 
 inhabitants, whom the rest were desirous to exclude from all 
 
 h Diod. 1. xxi. p. 76—95. 
 
 1 Dionvs. Halicarn. in vit. Lys. p. 82. Strab. 1. xiv. p. 656. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 427 
 
 public employments and privileges. But as these were much 
 more numerous, they expelled all the ancient Sybarites, and 
 got the sole possession of the city. Being supported by the al¬ 
 liance they made with the people of Crotona, they soon grew 
 vastly powerful; and having settled a popular form of govern¬ 
 ment in their city, they divided the citizens into ten tribes, 
 which they called by the names of the different nations whence 
 they sprung. 
 
 III. Charondas, the legislator. 
 
 They now bent their whole thoughts to the strengthening of 
 their government by wholesome laws, for which purpose they 
 made choice of Charondas, who had been educated in Pytha¬ 
 goras’s school, to digest and draw them up. I shall quote some 
 of them in this place. 
 
 1. He excluded from the senate, and all public employments, 
 all such as should marry a second wife, in case any children by 
 their first were living : being persuaded, that a man who was 
 so regardless of his children’s interest, would be equally so of 
 his country’s, and be as worthless a magistrate as he had been 
 a father. 
 
 2. He sentenced all false accusers to be carried through 
 every part of the city crowned with heath or broom, as the vilest 
 of men ; an ignominy which most of them were not able to sur¬ 
 vive. The city, thus delivered from these pests of society, was 
 restored to its former tranquillity. And indeed, k from calumni¬ 
 ators generally arise all feuds and contests, whether of a public 
 or private nature; and yet, according to Tacitus’s observation, 
 they are too much tolerated in most governments. 
 
 3. He enacted a new kind of law against another species of 
 pests, which is generally the first occasion of the depravity of 
 manners in a state ; by suffering all those to be prosecuted who 
 should form a correspondence, or contract a friendship, with 
 wicked men, and by laying a heavy fine upon them. 
 
 4. He required all children of the citizens to be educated in 
 polite literature ; the effect of which is to soften and civilize the 
 minds of men, inspiring them with gentleness of manners, 
 and inclining them to virtue : all which constitute the felicity of 
 a state, and are equally necessary to citizens of all conditions. 
 In this view he appointed salaries (paid by the state) for masters 
 and preceptors ; in order that learning, by being communicated 
 gratuitously, might be acquired by all. He considered igno¬ 
 rance as the greatest of evils, and the source whence all vices 
 flowed. 
 
 5. He made a law with respect to orphans which appears suf- 
 
 k Delatores, genus hominum publico exitio repertum. et poenis quidem nun- 
 quam satis coercitum. Tacit. Annal. 1. iv. c. 30. 
 
HISTORY OF THE 
 
 428 
 
 t 
 
 ficiently judicious, by intrusting the care of their education to 
 their relations by the mother’s side, as their lives would not be 
 in danger from them ; and the management of their estates to 
 their paternal relations, it being the interest of the latter to make 
 the greatest advantage of them, since they would inherit them, 
 in case of the demise of their wards. 
 
 6. Instead of putting deserters to death, and those who quit¬ 
 ted their ranks and fled in battle, he only sentenced them to 
 make their appearance during three days in the city, dressed in 
 the habit of women, imagining, that the dread of so ignominious 
 a punishment would be equally efficacious with putting to 
 death; and being, at the same time, desirous of giving such 
 cowardly citizens an opportunity of atoning for their fault. 
 
 7. To prevent his laws from being too rashly or easily abro¬ 
 gated, he imposed a very severe and hazardous condition on all 
 persons who should propose to alter or amend them in any 
 manner. They were to appear in the public assembly with 
 a halter about their necks ; and in case the alteration propos¬ 
 ed did not pass, they were to be immediately strangled. There 
 were but three amendments ever proposed, and all of them 
 admitted. 
 
 Ckarondas did not long survive his own laws. Returning 
 one day from pursuing some thieves, and finding a tumult in 
 the city, he came armed into the assembly, though he himself 
 had prohibited this by an express law. A certain person ob¬ 
 jected to him in severe terms, that he violated his own laws ; 
 I clo not violate them, says he, hut thus seal them with my hlood; 
 saying which, he plunged his sword into his bosom, and expired. 
 
 IV. Zaleucus , another lawgiver. 
 
 At the same time there arose among the Locrians another 
 famous legislator, 1 Zaleucus by name, who, as well as Charon- 
 das, had been Pythagoras’s disciple. There is now scarce any 
 thing extant of his, except a kind of preamble to his laws, 
 which gives a most advantageous idea of them. He requires, 
 above all things, of the citizens, to believe and be firmly per¬ 
 suaded, that there are gods ; and adds, that the bare casting 
 up our eyes to the heavens, and contemplating their order and 
 beauty, are sufficient to convince us, that it is impossible so 
 wonderful a fabric could have been formed by mere chance or 
 human power. As the natural consequence of this belief, he 
 exhorts men to honour and revere the gods, as the authors of 
 whatever is good and just among mortals ; and to honour them, 
 not merely by sacrifices and splendid gifts, but by a circum¬ 
 spect conduct, and by purity and innocence of manners ; these 
 
 Diod. 1. xii. p. 79—85. 
 
PERSIANS AND 'GRECIANS. 429 
 
 being infinitely more grateful to the deities than all the sacri¬ 
 fices that can be offered. 
 
 After this exordium, so pregnant with religion and piety, in 
 which he describes the Supreme Being as the primary source 
 whence all laws flow, as the chief authority which commands 
 obedience to them, as the most powerful motive for our faith¬ 
 ful observance of them, and as the perfect model to which man¬ 
 kind ought to conform : he descends to the particulars of those 
 duties which men owe to one another ; and lays down a pre¬ 
 cept which is very well adapted to preserve peace and unity 
 in society, by enjoining the individuals who compose it not to 
 make their hatred and dissensions perpetual, which would 
 evince an unsociable and savage disposition ; but to treat their 
 enemies as men who would soon be their friends. This is car¬ 
 rying morality to as great a perfection as could be expected 
 from heathens. 
 
 With regard to the duty of judges and magistrates, after re¬ 
 presenting to them, that in pronouncing sentence they ought 
 never to suffer themselves to be biassed by friendship, hatred, 
 or any other passion ; he only exhorts them to avoid carefully 
 all haughtiness or severity towards the parties engaged in law, 
 since such are but too unhappy in being obliged to undergo all 
 the toils and fatigues inseparable from lawsuits. The office 
 indeed of judges, how laborious soever it may be, is far from 
 giving them a right to vent their ill-humour upon the contend¬ 
 ing parties; the very condition and essence of their employ¬ 
 ment require them to behave with impartiality, and to do jus¬ 
 tice on all occasions ; and when they distribute this even with 
 mildness and humanity, it is only a debt they pay, and not a 
 favour they grant. 
 
 To banish luxury from his republic, which he looked upon 
 as the certain destruction of a government, he did not follow 
 the practice established in some nations, where it is thought 
 sufficient, for the restraining it, to punish, by pecuniary mulcts, 
 such as infringe the laws ; but he acted, says the historian, in 
 a more artful and ingenious, and at the same time more effec¬ 
 tual, manner. He prohibited women from wearing rich and 
 costly stuffs, embroidered robes, jewels, ear-rings, necklaces, 
 bracelets, gold rings, and such-like ornaments ; excepting none 
 from this law but common prostitutes. He enacted a similar 
 law with regard to the men; excepting, in the same manner, 
 from the observance of it, such only as were willing to pass for 
 debauchees and infamous wretches. By these regulations he 
 easily, and without violence, preserved the citizens from the 
 least approach to luxury and effeminacy. 111 For no person was 
 
 m More inter veteres recepto, qui satis poenarum adversus impudicas in 
 ipsa professione flagitii credebant. Tacit. Annul. 1. ii. c. 85. 
 
430 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 so lost to all sense of honour, as to be willing to wear the 
 badges of his shame, under the eye, as it were, of all the citizens ; 
 since this would make him the public laughing-stock, and re¬ 
 flect eternal infamy on his family. 
 
 V. Milo , the champion. 
 
 We have seen him at the head of an army obtain a great 
 victory. However, he was still more renowned for his athletic 
 strength than for his military bravery. He was surnamed the 
 Crotonian, from Crotona, the place of his birth. It was his 
 daughter, whom, as was before related, Democedes the famous 
 physician, and Milo’s countryman, married, after he had 
 escaped from Darius’s court to Greece, his native country. 
 
 Pausanias relates, 11 that Milo was seven times victorious at 
 the Pythian games, once when a child ; that he won six vic¬ 
 tories (at wrestling) in the Olympic games, one of which was 
 also gained in his childhood ; and that challenging a seventh 
 time (in Olympia) any person to wrestle with him, he could not 
 engage for want of an opponent. He would hold a pome¬ 
 granate in such a manner, that, without breaking it, he would 
 grasp it so fast in his hand, that no one, however strong, could 
 possibly wrest it from him. He would stand so firm on a 
 discus, 0 which had been oiled to make it the more slippery, that 
 it was impossible to push him off. He would bind his head 
 with a cord, after which holding his breath strongly, the veins 
 of his head would swell so prodigiously as to break the rope. 
 When Milo, fixing his elbow on his side, stretched forth his 
 right hand quite open, with his fingers held close one to the 
 other, his thumb excepted, which he raised, the utmost strength 
 of man could not separate his little finger from the other three. 
 
 All this was only a vain and puerile ostentation of bis 
 strength. Chance, however, gave him an opportunity of 
 making a much more laudable use of it. One day,P as he was 
 attending the lectures of Pythagoras, (for he was one of his 
 most constant disciples,) the pillar which supported the ceiling 
 of the school in which the pupils were assembled, being shaken 
 by some accident, Milo supported it by his single strength, 
 gave the auditors time to get away, and having provided for 
 their safety, he afterwards escaped himself. 
 
 What is related of the voracious appetite of the athletae is 
 almost incredible. Milo’s appetite was scarce satiated with 
 twenty minas (pounds) of meat, the same quantity of bread, 
 and three congii ^ of wine every day. r Athenaeus relates, that 
 this champion having run the whole length of the stadium, with 
 
 n Lib. vi. p. 369, 370. ° This discus was a kind of quoit, fiat and round. 1 
 
 p Strab. 1. vi. p. 263. i Thirty pounds, or eighteen pints. 
 
 r Athen. 1. x. p. 412. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 431 
 
 a bull four years old on his shoulders, he afterwards knocked 
 him down with one stroke of his fist, and ate the whole beast 
 that very day. I will take it for granted, that all the other par¬ 
 ticulars related of Milo are true ; but is it in the slightest de¬ 
 gree probable, that one man could devour a whole ox in so 
 short a time ? 
 
 We are told that Milo, s when advanced to a very great age, 
 seeing the rest of the champions wrestling, and gazing upon 
 his own arms, which once were so vigorous and robust, but 
 were then very much enfeebled by time, burst into tears, and 
 cried, Alas! these arms are now dead. 
 
 And yet he either forgot or concealed his weakness from 
 himself; 1 and the confident persuasion he entertained of his 
 own strength, and which he preserved to the last, proved fatal 
 to him. Happening to meet, as he was travelling, an old oak, 
 which had been opened by some wedges that were forced into 
 it, he undertook to split it in two by his bare strength. But 
 after forcing out the wedges by the exertion he made, his arms 
 were catched in the trunk of the tree, by the violence with 
 which it closed ; so that being unable to disengage his hands, he 
 was devoured by wolves. 
 
 An author has judiciously observed, 11 that this surprisingly ro¬ 
 bust champion, who prided himself so much on his bodily 
 strength, was the weakest of men with regard to a passion, 
 which often subdues and captivates the strongest ; a courtezan 
 having gained so great an ascendant over Milo, that she ty¬ 
 rannized over him in the most imperious manner, and made him 
 obey whatever commands she laid upon him. 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 THE WAR OF PELOPONNESUS. 
 
 The Peloponnesian war, which I am now en- 
 
 Ant C°^43l terin S* u P on > began about the end of the first year 
 of the eighty-seventh Olympiad, and lasted twen¬ 
 ty-seven years. Thucydides has written the history of it to the 
 twenty-first year inclusively. He gives us an accurate account 
 of the several transactions of every year, which he divides into 
 campaigns and win ter-quarters. However, I shall not be so 
 minute, and shall only extract such parts of it as appear most 
 entertaining and instructive. Plutarch and Diodorus Siculus 
 will also be of great assistance to me on this occasion. 
 
 8 Cic. de Senect. n. 27. 1 Pausan. 1. vi. p. 370. u JEIian. 1. ii. c. 24. 
 
432 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 SECT. I. 
 
 The siege of Plataeae by the Thebans. Alternate ravages of Attica and Pe¬ 
 loponnesus. Honours paid to the Athenians who tell in the first campaign. 
 
 The first year of the war. 
 
 The first act of hostility by which the war begun, x was com¬ 
 mitted by the Thebans, who besieged Plataeae, a city in Boeotia, 
 in alliance with Athens. They were introduced into it by 
 treachery ; but the citizens falling upon them in the night, kill¬ 
 ed them all, with the exception of about 200, who were taken 
 prisoners, and who a little after were put to death. The Athe¬ 
 nians, as soon as the news was brought of the action at Plataeae, 
 sent succours and provisions thither, and cleared the city of all 
 persons who were incapable of bearing arms. 
 
 The truce being evidently broken, both sides prepared openly 
 for war ; and ambassadors were sent to all places to strength¬ 
 en themselves by the alliance of the Greeks and barbarians. 
 Every part of Greece was in motion, some few states and cities 
 excepted, which continued neuter, till they should see the event 
 of the war. The majority were for the Lacedaemonians, as be¬ 
 ing the deliverers of Greece, and espoused their interest very 
 warmly, because the Athenians, forgetting that the moderation 
 and gentleness with which they commanded over others had 
 procured them many allies, had afterwards alienated the great¬ 
 est part of them by their pride and the severity of their govern¬ 
 ment, and incurred the hatred, not only of those who were then 
 subject to them, but of all such as were apprehensive of becom¬ 
 ing their dependents. In this temper of mind were the Greeks 
 at that time. The confederates of each of those two states 
 were as follow. 
 
 All Peloponnesus, Argos excepted, which stood neuter, had 
 declared for Lacedaemonia. The Achaeans, the inhabitants of 
 Pellene excepted, were neuter at first, but at length insensibly 
 engaged in the war. Out of Peloponnesus were the people of 
 Megara, Locris, Boeotia, Phocis, Ambracia, Leucadia, and 
 Anactorium on the side of the Lacedaemonians. 
 
 The confederates of the Athenians were, the people of Chios, 
 Lesbos, Plataeae, the Messenians of Naupactus, the greatest 
 part of the Acarnanians, Corcyreans, Ccphalenians, and Za- 
 cynthians, besides the several tributary countries, as maritime 
 Caria, Horia, that lies near it, Ionia, the Hellespont ; and the 
 cities of Thrace, Chalcis and Potidaea excepted, all the islands 
 between Crete and Peloponnesus eastward ; and the Cyclades, 
 Melos and Thera excepted. 
 
 Immediately after the attempt on Plataeae, the Lacedaemo- 
 1 Thucyd. 1. ii. p. 99—122. Diod. 1. xii. p. 97—100. Plut. in Pericl. p. 170. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 433 
 
 mans had ordered forces to be levied both within and without 
 Peloponnesus ; and made all the preparations necessary for en¬ 
 tering- the enemy’s country. All things being ready, two-thirds 
 of the troops marched to the isthmus of Corinth, and the rest 
 were left to guard the country. Archidamus, king of Lacedae- 
 monia, who commanded the army, assembled the generals and 
 chief officers, and calling to their remembrance the great actions 
 performed by their ancestors, and those they themselves had 
 done, or been eye-witnesses to, he exhorted them to support, 
 with the utmostefforts of their valour, the pristine glory of their 
 respective cities, as well as their own fame. He represented to 
 them, that the eyes of all Greece were upon them ; and that, in 
 expectation of the issue of a war which would determine their 
 fate, they were incessantly addressing heaven in favour of a peo¬ 
 ple, who were as dear to them as the Athenians were become 
 odious; that, however, he could not deny that they were going 
 to march against an enemy, who, though greatly inferior to them 
 in numbers and in strength, were nevertheless very powerful, 
 warlike, and daring ; and whose courage would doubtless be still 
 more intlamed by the sight of danger, and the laying waste of 
 their territories : that therefore they must exert themselves to 
 the utmost, 2 to spread an immediate terror in the country they 
 were going to enter, and to inspire the allies with confidence. 
 The whole army answered with the loudest acclamations of joy, 
 and repeated assurances that they would do their duty. 
 
 The assembly breaking up, Archidamus, ever zealous for the 
 welfare of Greece, and resolving to neglect no expedient that 
 might prevent a rupture, the dreadful consequences of which he 
 foresaw, sent a Spartan to Athens, to endeavour, before they 
 should come to hostilities, to prevail, if possible, with the Athe¬ 
 nians to lay aside their designs ; now that they saw an army 
 ready to march into Attica. But the Athenians, so far from ad¬ 
 mitting him to audience, or hearing his reasons, would not so 
 much as suffer him to come into their city : Pericles having pre¬ 
 vailed with the people to make an order, that no herald or am¬ 
 bassador should be received from the Lacedaemonians till they 
 had first laid down their arms. In consequence of this, the 
 Spartan was commanded to leave the country that very day; 
 and an escort was sent to guard him to the frontiers, and to 
 prevent his speaking to any person by the way. At his taking 
 leave of the Athenians, he told them, that day would be the 
 beginning of the great calamities that would ensue to all Greece. 
 Archidamus, seeing no hopes of a reconciliation, marched for 
 Attica, at the head of 60,000 chosen troops. 
 
 Pericles, before the Lacedaemonians had entered the country, 
 
 1 Gnarus primis eventibus metum aut fiduciam gigni. Tacit. Annal. 1. 
 xiii. c. 31. 
 
 VOL. II. 2 F 
 
HISTORY OF THE 
 
 434 
 
 declared to the Athenians, that should Archidamus, when he 
 was laying waste their territories, spare bis (Pericles’s) lands, 
 either on account of the rites of hospitality which subsisted be¬ 
 tween them, or to furnish his enemies, and those who envied 
 him, with a handle to slander him, as holding intelligence with 
 him, he, from that day, made over ail his lands and houses to 
 the city of Athens. He demonstrated to the Athenians, that 
 the welfare of the state depended upon consuming the enemy’s 
 troops, by protracting the war; and that for this purpose they 
 must immediately remove all their effects out of the country, 
 retire to the city, and shut themselves up in it without ever ha¬ 
 zarding a battle. The Athenians, indeed, had not forces 
 enough to take the field and oppose the enemy. Their troops, 
 exclusive of those in garrison, amounted but to 13,000 heavy¬ 
 armed soldiers ; and 16,000 inhabitants, including the young 
 and old, the citizens as well as others, who were appointed to . 
 defend Athens : aud besides these, 1200 troopers, including the 
 archers who rode on horseback, and 1600 foot archers. This 
 was the whole army of the Athenians. But their chief strength 
 consisted in a fleet of 300 galleys, part of which were ordered 
 to lay waste the enemy’s country, and the rest to awe the allies, 
 on whom contributions were levied, without which the Athenians 
 could not defray the expenses of the war. 
 
 The Athenians, animated by the ardent exhortations of Peri¬ 
 cles, brought from the country their wives, their children, their 
 furniture, and all their effects, after which they pulled down 
 their houses, and even carried off the timber. With regard to 
 the cattle of all kinds, they conveyed them into the island 
 of Euboea and the neighbouring isles. However, they were 
 deeply afflicted at this sad and precipitate migration, and it drew 
 plentiful tears from their eyes. From the time that the Persians 
 had left their country, that is, for near fifty years, they had en¬ 
 joyed the sweets of peace, wholly employed in cultivating their 
 lands, and feeding their flocks. But now they were obliged to 
 abandon every thing. They took up their habitations in the 
 city, as conveniently as they could, in the midst of such con¬ 
 fusion ; retiring either to their relations or friends; and some 
 withdrew even to the temples and other public places. 
 
 In the mean time, the Lacedaemonians, being set out upon 
 their march, entered the country, and encamped at CEnoe, which 
 is the first fortress towards Boeotia. They employed a long 
 time in preparing for the attack, and raising the batteries ; for 
 which reason complaints were made against Archidamus, as if 
 he carried on the war indolently, because he had not approved 
 of it. He was accused of being too slow in his marches, and 
 of encamping too long near Corinth. He was also charged 
 with having been too dilatory in raising the army, as if he had 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 435 
 
 desired to give the Athenians opportunity to carry off all their 
 effects out of the country; whereas had he marched speedily 
 into it, all they had might have been plundered and destroyed. 
 His design, however, was to engage the Athenians, by these 
 delays, to agree to an accommodation, and to prevent a rupture, 
 the consequences of which he foresaw would be pernicious to 
 all Greece. Finding, after making several assaults, that it 
 would be impossible for him to take the city, he raised the siege, 
 and entered Attica in the midst of the harvest. Having laid 
 waste the whole country, he advanced as far as Acharnas, one 
 of the greatest towns near Athens, and but 1500 paces from 
 the city. He there pitched his camp, in hopes that the Athe¬ 
 nians, exasperated to see him advanced so near, would sally out 
 to defend their country, and give him an opportunity of coming 
 to a battle. 
 
 It indeed was not without much difficulty that the Athenians 
 (haughty and imperious as they were) could endure to be brav¬ 
 ed and insulted in this manner by an enemy whom they did not 
 think superior to themselves in courage. They were eye-wit¬ 
 nesses of the dreadful havoc made of their lands, and saw all 
 their houses and farms in a blaze. They could no longer bear 
 this sad spectacle, and therefore demanded fiercely to be led out 
 against the Lacedaemonians, be the consequence what it would. 
 Pericles saw plainly that the Athenians would thereby hazard 
 every thing, and expose their city to certain destruction, should 
 they march out to engage, under the walls of their city, an army 
 of 60,000 fighting men, composed of the choicest troops at that 
 time in Boeotia and Peloponnesus. Besides, he had made it his 
 chief maxim to spare the blood of the citizens, since that was an 
 irreparable loss. Pursuing inflexibly, therefore, the plan he 
 had laid down, and studious of nothing but how he might check 
 the impatience and ardour of the Athenians, he was particularly 
 careful not to assemble either the senate or the people, lest they 
 should form some fatal resolution, in spite of all the opposition 
 in his power. His friends used every effort imaginable to 
 make him change his conduct. His enemies, on the other 
 side, endeavoured to stagger him by their menaces and slander¬ 
 ous discourses. They strove to sting him by songs and satires, 
 in which they aspersed him as a man of a cowardly, unfeeling 
 disposition, who basely gave up his country to the sword of the 
 enemy. But no man showed so much rancour against Pericles 
 as Cleon. a He was the son of a currier, and also followed that 
 trade himself. He had raised himself by faction, and probably 
 by a species of merit which those must possess who would rise 
 in popular governments. He had a thundering and overbear- 
 
 a It is he whom Aristophanes has inveighed so much against in several of 
 his comedies. 
 
436 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 ing voice ; and possessed, besides, in a wonderful manner, the 
 art of gaining- the people, and engaging them in his interest. 
 It was he who enacted a law, that three oboli (not two as be¬ 
 fore) should be given to each of the 6000 judges. The cha¬ 
 racteristics which more immediately distinguished him, were 
 an unbounded self-conceit, a ridiculous arrogance of his uncom¬ 
 mon merit, and a boldness of speech, which he carried to the 
 highest pitch of insolence and effrontery, and spared no man. 
 But none of these things could move Pericles. b His invincible 
 strength of mind raised him above low, vulgar clamours. Like 
 a good pilot in a raging storm, who, after he has given out the 
 proper orders, and taken all the precautions necessary, is studi¬ 
 ous of nothing but how to make the best use of his art, without 
 suffering himself to be moved by the tears or entreaties of 
 those whom fear has distracted ; Pericles, in like manner, after 
 having put the city in a good posture of defence, and posted 
 guards in all places to prevent a surprise, followed those coun¬ 
 sels which his prudence suggested, entirely regardless of the 
 complaints, the taunts, and licentious invectives of the citizens; 
 from a firm persuasion, that he knew much better than they in 
 what manner they were to be governed. It then appeared 
 evidently, says Plutarch, 0 that Pericles was absolute master of 
 the minds of the Athenians, since he prevailed so far (at such a 
 juncture as this) as to keep them from sallying out of the city ; d 
 as if he had kept the keys of the city in his own possession, and 
 fixed on their arms the seal of his authority, to forbid their mak¬ 
 ing use of them. Things happened exactly as Pericles had 
 foretold : for the enemy, finding the Athenians were deter¬ 
 mined not to stir out of their city, and having advice that the 
 enemy’s fleet were carrying fire and sword into their territories, 
 they raised their camp, and after making dreadful havoc in the 
 whole country through which they marched, they returned to 
 Peloponnesus, and retired to their several homes. 
 
 It might here be asked, why Pericles acted, on this occasion, 
 in a quite different manner from what Themistocles had done 
 about fifty years before, when, at Xerxes’s approach, he made 
 the Athenians march out of their city, and abandon it to the 
 enemy. But a little reflection will show, that the circum¬ 
 stances differed widely. Themistocles, being invaded by all 
 the forces of the East, justly concluded that it would be im¬ 
 possible for him to withstand, in a single city, those millions 
 of barbarians who would have poured upon it like a delude, 
 and deprived him of all hopes of being succoured by his allies. 
 
 b Spernendis rumoribus validus. Tacit. 
 c Plut. An. Seni ger. sit. resp. p. 784. 
 
 d Aick(o\v<tb, hovoq tcl 07r\a rov drj/uov Kai rag k\uq twv -KvXCjv ajrooQpayi- 
 afxtvog. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 437 
 
 This is the reason given by Cicero. Fluctum enim totius Bar- 
 bariceferre urbs una non poterat. It was therefore prudent in 
 him to retire for some time, and to let the confused multitude 
 of barbarians consume and destroy one another. But Pericles 
 was not engaged in so formidable and oppressive a war. The 
 odds were not very great, and he foresaw it would allow him 
 intervals in which he might breathe. Thus, like a judicious man 
 and an able politician, he kept close in Athens, and could not 
 be moved either by the remonstrances or murmurs of the citizens. 
 Cicero, writing to his friend Atticus, e condemns absolutely the 
 resolution which Pompey formed and executed, of abandoning 
 Rome to Caesar; whereas he ought, in imitation of Pericles, to 
 have shut himself up in it with the senate, the magistrates, and 
 the flower of the citizens who had declared in his favour. 
 
 After the Lacedaemonians were retired, the Athenians put 
 troops into all the important posts both by sea and land, pur¬ 
 suant to the plan they intended to follow, as long as the war 
 continued. They also came to a resolution to keep always 
 1000 talents in reserve/ and 100 galleys; and never to use 
 them, except the enemy should invade Attica by sea; at the 
 same time making it death for any man to propose the employ¬ 
 ing them any other way. 
 
 The galleys which had been sent into Peloponnesus made 
 dreadful havoc there, which consoled the Athenians, in some 
 measure, for the losses they had sustained. One day, as the 
 forces were going on board, and Pericles was entering his own 
 ship, a sudden and total eclipse of the sun ensued, and the 
 earth was overspread with the deepest gloom. This pheno¬ 
 menon filled the minds of the Athenians with the utmost terror; 
 who were wont, through superstition, and the ignorance of 
 natural causes, to consider such events as fatal omens. Pericles 
 seeing the pilot who was on board his ship astonished, and 
 incapable of managing the helm, threw his cloak over his face, 
 and asked him whether he saw: the pilot answering, that the 
 cloak hindered him; Pericles then gave him to understand, that 
 a like cause, viz. the interposition of the vast body of the 
 moon between his eyes and the sun, prevented his seeing its 
 splendour. 
 
 The first year of the war of Peloponnesus being now elapsed,s 
 the Athenians, during the winter, solemnized public funerals, 
 according to ancient custom, (a custom conformable to the dic¬ 
 tates of humanity and gratitude,) in honour of those who had 
 lost their lives in that campaign, a ceremony which they con¬ 
 stantly observed, during the whole course of that war. For 
 this purpose, they set up, three days before, a tent, in which 
 the bones of the deceased citizens were exposed, and every 
 
 e Lib. vii. Epist. 11. f About 140,000^. & Thucyd. 1. ii. p. 122—130. 
 
438 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 person strewed flowers, incense, perfumes, and other things of 
 the same kind, upon those remains. They afterwards were 
 put on carriages, in coffins made of cypress-wood, every tribe 
 having its particular coffin and carriage; but in one of the 
 latter a large empty coffin h was carried in honour of those 
 whose bodies had not been found. The procession marched 
 with a grave, majestic, and religious pomp ; a great number of 
 inhabitants, both citizens and foreigners, assisted at this mourn¬ 
 ful solemnity. The relations of the deceased officers and sol¬ 
 diers stood weeping at the sepulchre. These bones were car¬ 
 ried to a public monument, in the finest suburb of the city, 
 called the Ceramicus; where were buried, in all ages, those 
 who lost their lives in the field, except the warriors of Marathon, 
 who, to immortalize their rare valour, were interred in the field 
 of battle. Earth was afterwards laid over them, and then one 
 of the citizens of the greatest distinction pronounced their fune¬ 
 ral oration. Pericles was now appointed to exercise this ho¬ 
 nourable office. When the ceremony was ended, he went from 
 the sepulchre to the tribunal, in order to be the better heard, 
 and spoke the oration, the whole of which Thucydides has trans¬ 
 mitted to us. Whether it was really composed by Pericles, or 
 by the historian, we may affirm that it is truly worthy the repu¬ 
 tation of both those great men, as well for the noble simplicity 
 of the style, as for the just beauty of the thoughts, and the 
 grandeur of the sentiments which pervade every part of it. 
 After having paid,’ in so solemn a manner, this double tribute 
 of tears and applauses to the memory of those brave soldiers 
 who had sacrificed their lives to defend the liberties of their 
 country : the public, who did not confine their gratitude to 
 empty ceremonies and tears, maintained their widows, and all 
 their infant orphans. This was a powerful incentive to animate 
 the courage of the citizens ; k for great men are formed where 
 merit is best rewarded. 
 
 About the close of the same campaign, the Athenians con¬ 
 cluded an alliance with Sitalces, king of the Odrysians in 
 Thrace ; and, in consequence of this treaty, his son was ad¬ 
 mitted a citizen of Athens. They also came to an accommoda¬ 
 tion with Perdiccas, king of Macedonia, by restoring to him 
 the city of Thermae, after which they joined their forces, in 
 order to carry on the war in Chalcis. 
 
 h Those are called Cenotaphia. * Thucyd. 1. ii. p. 130. 
 
 k 'AQAa ydp o Ig icti-ai aptrrjg ptyicrra, Toig fie kcu avdotg apurroi ttoXitivovci. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 SECT. II. 
 
 The plague makes dreadful havoc in Attica. Pericles is divested of the com¬ 
 mand. The Lacedaemonians have recourse to the Persians for aid. Potidaea 
 is taken by the Athenians. Pericles is restored to his employments. His 
 death, and that of Anaxagoras. 
 
 Second and third years of the War. 
 
 In the beginning* of the second campaign, 1 the 
 Ant^T C^430 enem y made an incursion into the country as be¬ 
 fore, and laid it waste. But the plague made a 
 much greater devastation in Athens ; the like having never 
 been known. It is related, that it began in Ethiopia, whence 
 it descended into Egypt, from thence spread over Libya, and a 
 great part of Persia; and at last broke at once, like a flood, 
 upon Athens. Thucydides, who himself was seized with that 
 distemper, has described very minutely the several circum¬ 
 stances and symptoms of it, in order, says he, that a faithful and 
 exact relation of this calamity may serve as an instruction to 
 posterity, in case the like should ever again happen. Hippo¬ 
 crates,™ who was employed to visit the sick, has also described 
 it as a physician, and Lucretius 11 as a poet. This pestilence 
 baffled the utmost efforts of art; the most robust constitutions 
 were unable to withstand its attacks ; and the greatest care and 
 skill of the physicians were a feeble kelp to those who were in¬ 
 fected. The instant a person was seized, he was struck with 
 despair, which quite disabled him from attempting a cure. The 
 assistance that was given them was ineffectual, and proved mor¬ 
 tal to all such of their relations or friends as had the courage to 
 approach them. The quantity of baggage, which had been re¬ 
 moved out of the country into the city, proved very noxious. 
 Most of the inhabitants, for want of lodging, lived in little cot¬ 
 tages, in which they could scarce breathe, during the raging 
 heat of the summer, so that they were seen either piled one 
 upon the other, (the dead as well as those who were dying,) or 
 else crawling through the streets; or lying along by the side of 
 fountains, to which they had dragged themselves, to quench the 
 raging thirst which consumed them. The very temples were 
 filled with dead bodies, and every part of the city exhibited a 
 dreadful image of death ; without the least remedy for the pre¬ 
 sent, or the least hopes with regard to the time to come. 
 
 The plague, 0 before it spread into Attica, had made great ra¬ 
 vages in Persia. Artaxerxes, who had been informed of the high 
 reputation of Hippocrates of Cos, the greatest physician of that 
 
 1 Tliucvd. 1. ii. p. 130—147- Diod. p. 101, 102. Plut. in Peric. p. 171. 
 m Epidem. 1. iii. § 3. 54 Lib. vi. 0 Hippocrat. in Epist. 
 
440 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 or any other age, caused his governors to write to him to invite 
 him into his dominions, in order that he might prescribe to 
 those who were infected. The king made him the most advan¬ 
 tageous offers ; setting no bounds to his rewards on the side of 
 interest, and, with regard to honours, promising to make him 
 equal with the most considerable persons in his court. The 
 reader has already been told the prodigious regard which was 
 shown to the Grecian physicians in Persia; and, indeed, can 
 services of such importance be too well rewarded ? However, 
 all the glitter of the Persian riches and dignities was not able 
 to tempt Hippocrates : nor stifle the hatred and aversion which 
 was become natural to the Greeks for the Persians, ever since 
 the latter had invaded them. This great physician therefore sent 
 no other answer than this,—That he was free from either wants 
 or desires; that all his cares were due to his fellow-citizens 
 and countrymen ; and that he was under no obligation to bar¬ 
 barians, the declared enemies of Greece. Kings are not used 
 to denials. Artaxerxes, therefore, in the highest transports of 
 rage, sent to the city of Cos, the native place of Hippocrates, 
 and where he was at that time; commanding them to deliver 
 up to him that insolent wretch in order that he might be brought 
 to condign punishment; and threatening, in case they refused, 
 to lay waste their city and island in such a manner, that not the 
 least footsteps of it should remain. However, the inhabitants 
 of Cos were not under the least terror. They made answer, 
 that menaces of Darius and Xerxes had not been able in former 
 times to prevail with them to give them earth and water, or to 
 obey their orders ; that Artaxerxes’s threats would be equally 
 impotent: that, let what would be the consequences, they would 
 never give up their fellow-citizen; and that they depended on 
 the protection of the gods. 
 
 Hippocrates had said in one of his letters, that his services 
 were due entirely to his countrymen. And, indeed, the instant 
 he was sent for to Athens he went thither, and did not once stir 
 out of the city till the plague was quite ceased. He devoted 
 himself entirely to the service of the sick ; and to multiply 
 himself, as it were, he sent several of his disciples into all parts 
 of the country ; after having instructed them in what manner 
 to treat their patients. The Athenians were struck with the 
 deepest sense of gratitude for this generous care of Hippo¬ 
 crates. They therefore ordained, by a public decree, that Hip¬ 
 pocrates should be initiated in the greater mysteries, in the same 
 manner as Hercules the son of Jupiter; that a crown of gold 
 should be presented him, of the value of 1000 staters, ° amount¬ 
 ing to 500 pistoles French money ; and that the decree by 
 
 0 The Attic stater was a gold coin weighing two drachms. It is in the 
 original ^puerwv ^ i\iojv. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 441 
 
 which it was granted him, should be read aloud by a herald in 
 the public games, on the solemn festival of Panathensea : that 
 the freedom of the city should be given him, and himself be main¬ 
 tained at the public charge, in the Prytaneum, all his life-time, 
 in case he thought proper: in fine, that the children of all 
 the people of Cos, whose city had given birth to so great a man, 
 might be maintained and brought up in Athens, in the same 
 manner as if they had been born there. 
 
 In the mean time the enemy having marched into Attica, 
 came down towards the coast, and advancing still forward, laid 
 waste the whole country. Pericles resolutely adhering to the 
 maxim he had established, not to expose the safety of the state 
 to the hazard of a battle, would not suffer his troops to sally out 
 of the city : however, before the enemy left the open country, 
 he sailed to Peloponnesus with 100 galleys, in order to hasten 
 their retreat by so powerful a diversion ; and after having made 
 a dreadful havoc, (as he had done the first year,) he returned into 
 the city. The plague was still there as well as in the fleet, and 
 it spread to those troops that were besieging Potidaga. 
 
 The campaign being thus ended, the Athenians, who saw their 
 country depopulated by two great scourges, war and pestilence, 
 began to despond, and to murmur against Pericles ; considering 
 him as the author of all their calamities, as he had involved them 
 in that fatal war. They therefore sent a deputation to Lace- 
 daemonia, to obtain, if possible, an accommodation by some 
 means or other, firmly resolved to make whatever concessions 
 should be demanded of them: however, the ambassadors re¬ 
 turned back without being able to obtain any terms. Com¬ 
 plaints and murmurs now broke out afresh ; and the whole city 
 was in such a trouble and confusion, as seemed to prognosticate 
 the worst of evils. Pericles, in the midst of this universal con¬ 
 sternation, could not forbear assembling the people : and en¬ 
 deavoured to soften, and at the same time to encourage them, 
 by justifying himself. The reasons , says he, which induced you 
 to undertake this war, and which you all approved at that time , 
 are still the same ; and are no t changed by the alteration of cir¬ 
 cumstances, which neither you nor myself could foresee. Had 
 it been left to your option to make choice of peace or war, the 
 former would certainly have been the most eligible ? but as 
 there was no other means for preserving your liberty, but by 
 drawing the sword, was it possible for you to hesitate i If we 
 are citizens who truly love our country, ought our private mis¬ 
 fortunes to make us neglect the common welfare of the state ? 
 Every man feels the evil which afflicts himself, because it is pre¬ 
 sent ; but no one is sensible of the good which will result from 
 it, because it is not come. Have you forgotten the strength and 
 grandeur of your empire ? Of the two parts which form this 
 
442 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 (jlohe of ours, viz. the land and sea, you have absolute q^osses- 
 sion of the latter ; and 710 king, nor any other power, is able to 
 oppose your fleets. The question now is, whether you will pre¬ 
 serve this glory and this e?npire, or resign it for ever. Be 
 not therefore grieved because you are deprived of a few coun¬ 
 try-houses and gardens, which ought to be considered no othei'- 
 wise than as the frame of the picture, though you would seem 
 to make them the picture itself. Consider, that if you do but 
 preserve your liberty, you will easily recover them ; but that 
 should you sufl'er yourselves to be deprived of this blessing, you 
 will lose every valuable possession with it. Do not show less 
 generosity than your ancestors, who, for the sake of presetting 
 it, abandoned even their city ; and who, though they had not 
 inherited such a glory from their ancestors, yet suffered the 
 ivorst of evils, and engaged in the most perilous enterprises, to 
 transmit it to you. I confess that your present calamities are 
 exceedingly grievous, and I myself am duly sensible and deeply 
 afllictedfor them. But is it just in you to exclaim against your 
 general, for an accident that was not to be diverted by all the 
 prudence of man ; and to 7/iake him responsible for an event, in 
 which he has not the least concern ? We must submit patiently 
 to those evils which Heaven inflicts upon us, and vigorously op¬ 
 pose such as arise from our fellow-creatures. As to the hatred 
 and jealousy which attend on your prosperity, they are the 
 usual lot of cdl ivho believe themselves worthy of commanding. 
 Hoivever, hatred and envy are not long-lived, but the glory 
 that accompanies exalted actions is immortal. Revolve there¬ 
 fore perpet7ially in your minds, how shameful and ignominious 
 it is for men to bow the neck to their enemies, and how glorious 
 it is to triumph over them ; and then, animated by this double 
 reflection, march on to dariger with joy and intrepidity, and 
 do not crouch so tamely in vain to the Lace deem 0 n i a ns; 
 and ccdl to mind, that those who display the greatest bra¬ 
 very and resolution in dangers, acquire the most esteeni and 
 applause. 
 
 The motives of honour and fame, the remembrance of the 
 great actions of their ancestors, the grateful title of sovereigns 
 of Greece, and above all, jealousy against Sparta, the ancient 
 perpetual rival of Athens, were the usual motives which Peri¬ 
 cles employed to influence and animate the Athenians, and 
 they had hitherto never failed of success. But on this occasion, 
 the sense of present evils prevailed over every other considera¬ 
 tion, and stifled all other thoughts. The Athenians indeed did 
 not design to sue to the Lacedaemonians any more for peace, but 
 the mere sight and presence of Pericles was insupportable to 
 them. They therefore deprived him of the command of the 
 army, and sentenced him to pay a fine, which, according to 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 443 
 
 some historians, amounted to fifteen talents, and, according to 
 others, iifty.P 
 
 However, this public disgrace of Pericles was not to be very 
 lasting. The anger of the people was appeased by this first 
 effort, and had spent itself in this injurious treatment of him, 
 as the bee leaves its sting in the wound. But he was not now 
 so happy with regard to his domestic evils ; for, besides his 
 having lost a great number of his friends and relations by the 
 pestilence, feuds and divisions had long reigned in his family. 
 Xanthippus his eldest son, who himself was extremely profuse, 
 and had married a young wife no less extravagant, could not 
 bear his father’s exact economy, who allowed him but a very 
 small sum for his pleasures. This made him borrow money in 
 his father’s name. When the lender demanded his debt of 
 Pericles, he not only refused to pay, but even prosecuted him 
 for it. Xanthippus was so enraged, that he inveighed in the 
 strongest terms against his father, exclaiming against him in all 
 places, and ridiculing openly the assemblies he held at his 
 house, and his conferences with the Sophists. He did not 
 know that a son, though treated unjustly, (which was far other¬ 
 wise in his case,) ought to submit patiently to the injustice of 
 his father, as a citizen is obliged to suffer that of his country. 
 
 The plague carried off Xanthippus. At the same time Pe¬ 
 ricles lost his sister, with many of his relations and best friends, 
 whose assistance he most wanted in the administration. But 
 he did not sink under these losses ; his strength of mind 
 was not shaken by them ; and he was not seen to weep or show 
 the usual marks of sorrow at the grave of any of his relations, 
 till the death of Paralus, the last of his legitimate children. 
 Stunned by that violent blow, he did his utmost to preserve 
 his usual tranquillity, and not show any outward symptoms of 
 sorrow. But when he was to put the crown of flowers upon the 
 head of his dead son, he could not support the cruel spectacle, 
 nor stifle the transports of his grief, which forced its way in 
 cries, in sobs, and a flood of tears. 
 
 Pericles, misled by the principles of a false philosophy, ima¬ 
 gined, that bewailing the death of his relations and children, 
 would betray a weakness inconsistent with that greatness of 
 soul which he had ever shown; and that on this occasion, the 
 sensibility of the father would sully the glory of the conqueror. 
 How gross an error ; how childish an illusion ; which either 
 makes heroism consist in wild and savage cruelty ; or, leaving 
 the same grief and confusion in the mind, assumes a vain out¬ 
 side of constancy and resolution, merely to be admired. But 
 does martial bravery extinguish nature ? Is a man dead to all 
 feeling, because he makes a considerable figure in the state ? The 
 p Fifteen or fifty thousand French crowns. 
 
444 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 emperor Antoninus had a much juster way of thinking-, when, on 
 occasion of Marcus Aurelius’s lamenting the death of the person 
 who had brought him up, he said; Suffer him to he a man, for 
 neither philosophy nor sovereignty renders us insensible .» 
 
 Fickleness and inconstancy were the prevailing characteris¬ 
 tics of the Athenians ; and as these carried them on a sudden to 
 the greatest excesses, they soon brought them back again with¬ 
 in the bounds of moderation and gentleness. It was not long 
 before they repented the injury they had done Pericles, and 
 earnestly wished to see him again in their assemblies. By dint 
 of suffering, they began to be in some measure inured to their 
 domestic misfortunes, and to be fired more and more with a 
 zeal for their country’s glory ; and in their ardour for reinstat¬ 
 ing its affairs, they did not know any person more capable of 
 effecting it than Pericles. He at that time never stirred out 
 of his house, and was in the utmost grief for the loss he had 
 sustained. However, Alcibiades and the rest of his friends en¬ 
 treated him to go abroad, and show himself in public. The 
 people asked him pardon for their ungrateful usage to him ; 
 and Pericles, moved with their entreaties, and persuaded that 
 it did not become a good citizen to harbour the least resent¬ 
 ment against his country, resumed the government. 
 
 About the end of the second campaign, some ambassadors 
 
 had set out from Lacedaemon, commissioned to solicit the king 
 
 of Persia’s alliance, and engage him to furnish a sum of money 
 
 for maintaining the fleet : this step was most disgraceful to the 
 
 Lacedaemonians, who called themselves the deliverers of Greece, 
 
 since they thereby retracted or sullied the glorious actions they 
 
 had formerly achieved in her defence against Persia. They 
 
 went by way of Thrace, in order to disengage Sitalces from the 
 
 alliance of the Athenians, and prevail with him to succour Poti- 
 
 daea. But they here met with some Athenian ambassadors, who 
 
 caused them to be arrested, as disturbers of the public peace, 
 
 and afterwards to be sent to Athens, where, without suffering 
 
 them to be heard, they were put to death the same day ; and 
 
 their bodies thrown on a dunghill, by way of reprisal on the 
 
 Lacedasmonians, who treated all who were not of their party in 
 
 the same inhuman manner. It is scarce possible to conceive 
 
 how two cities, which, a little before, were so strongly united, 
 
 and ought to have prided themselves upon showing a mutual 
 
 civilitv and forbearance towards each other, could contract so in- 
 •/ 
 
 veterate a hatred, and break into such cruel acts of violence, as 
 infringed all the laws of war, humanity, and nations; and 
 prompt them to exercise greater cruelties upon one another, 
 than if they had been at war with barbarians. 
 
 9 Permitte illo, ut homo sit; neque enim vel philosophia vel imperium 
 tollit affectus. Jill. Capitol, in vit. Antonini Pii. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 445 
 
 Potidaea had now been besieged almost three years ; when 
 the inhabitants, reduced to extremity, and in such want of pro¬ 
 visions that some fed on human flesh, and not expecting any 
 succours from the Peloponnesians, whose attempts in Attica 
 had all proved abortive, surrendered on conditions. The cir¬ 
 cumstances which made the Athenians treat them with lenity, 
 were, the severity of the weather, which exceedingly annoyed 
 the besiegers : and the prodigious expense of the siege, s which 
 had already cost 2000 talents. 1 They, therefore, came out of 
 the city with their wives and children, as well citizens as 
 foreigners, with each but one suit of clothes, and the women 
 two, and carried off nothing but a little money to procure them 
 a settlement. The Athenians blamed their generals for granting 
 this capitulation without their order ; because, otherwise, as 
 the citizens were reduced to the utmost extremities, they would 
 have surrendered at discretion. They sent a colony thither. 
 
 The first thing- Pericles did after his being re- 
 
 A 1VT o o 
 
 Ant J C 429 e l ec t e d generalissimo, was to propose the abro¬ 
 gating of that law which he himself had caused 
 to be enacted against bastards, when he had some legitimate 
 children. It declared, that such only should be considered as 
 native and legitimate Athenians, whose fathers and mothers 
 were both natives of Athens; and it had been executed just 
 before with the utmost rigour. For the king of Egypt u having 
 sent to Athens a present of 40,000 measures of corn to be dis¬ 
 tributed among the people, the bastards, on account of this 
 new law, were involved in a thousand law-suits and difficulties, 
 till then unpractised, and which had not been so much as 
 thought of. Near 5000 of them were condemned and sold as 
 slaves, whilst 14,040 citizens were confirmed in their privileges, 
 and recognized as true Athenians. It was thought very 
 strange, that the author and promoter of this law should him¬ 
 self desire to have it repealed. But the Athenians were moved 
 to compassion at the domestic calamities of Pericles ; so that 
 they permitted him to enrol his bastard in the register of the 
 citizens of his tribe, and to let him bear his own name. 
 
 A little after he himself was infected with the 
 
 Ant^J 0**428 P es t^ ence - Being extremely ill, and ready to 
 breathe his last, the principal citizens, and such 
 of his friends as had not forsaken him, discoursing together in 
 
 8 The army which besieged Potidaea consisted of 3000 men, exclusive of the 
 1600 who had been sent under the command of Phormio. Every soldier re¬ 
 ceived (daily) two drachms, or twenty pence (French,) for master and man; 
 and those of the galleys had the same pay. Thucyd. 1. iii. p. 182. 
 
 1 About 280,000/. 
 
 u Plutarch does not name this king. Perhaps it was Inarus, son to Psam- 
 metichus king of Libya, who had caused part of the Egyptians to take up arras 
 against Artaxerxes, and to whom the Athenians, above thirty years before, 
 had sent succours against the Persians. Thucyd. 1. i. p. 68. 
 
446 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 his bed-chamber about his rare merit, they ran over his exploits, 
 and computed the number of his victories : for whilst he was ge¬ 
 neralissimo of the Athenians, he had erected for the glory of 
 their city nine trophies, in memory of as many battles gained 
 by him. They did not imagine that Pericles heard what they 
 were saying, because he seemed to have lost his senses ; but it 
 was far otherwise, for not a single word of their discourse had 
 escaped him ; when, breaking suddenly from his silence, I am 
 surprised, says he, that you should treasure up so well in your 
 memories, and extol so highly, a series of actions in which for¬ 
 tune had so great a share, and which are common to me with so 
 many other generals ; and at the same time should forget the 
 most glorious circumstance in my life,—I mean, my never hav¬ 
 ing caused a single citizen to put on mourning. A fine saying ! 
 which very few in high stations can declare with truth. The 
 Athenians were deeply afflicted at his death. 
 
 The reader has doubtless observed, from what has been said 
 of Pericles, that in him were united most qualities which consti¬ 
 tute the great man ; as those of the admiral, by his skill in 
 naval affairs ; of the great captain, by his conquests and victo¬ 
 ries ; of the financier, by his excellent regulations of the public 
 revenue ; of the great politician, by the extent and justness of 
 his views, by his eloquence in public deliberations, and by the 
 dexterity and address with which he transacted affairs ; of a 
 minister of state, by the methods he employed to increase trade, 
 and promote the arts in general ; in fine, of father of his coun¬ 
 try, by the happiness he procured to every individual, and which 
 he always had in view, as the true scope and end of his ad¬ 
 ministration. 
 
 But I must not omit another characteristic which was pe¬ 
 culiar to him. He acted with so much wisdom, moderation, 
 disinterestedness, and zeal for the public good ; he discovered, 
 in all things, so great a superiority of talents, and gave so ex¬ 
 alted an idea of his experience, capacitv, and integrity, that he 
 acquired the confidence of all the Athenians ; and fixed, (in his 
 own favour,) during forty years that he governed the Athenians, 
 their natural fickleness and inconstancy. He suppressed that 
 jealousy, which an extreme fondness for liberty had made them 
 entertain against all citizens distinguished by their merit and 
 great authority. But the most surprising circumstance is, he 
 gained this great ascendant merely by persuasion, without em¬ 
 ploying force, mean artifices, or any of those arts which a com¬ 
 mon politician excuses in himself, upon the specious pretence, 
 that the necessity of the public affairs, and the interests of the 
 state, require them. 
 
 Anaxagoras died the same year as Pericles. x Plutarch re- 
 
 x Plut. in Pericl. p. 1G2. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 447 
 
 iates a circumstance concerning- him, that happened some time 
 before, which must not be omitted. He says that this philoso¬ 
 pher, who had voluntarily reduced himself to excessive poverty, 
 in order that he might have the greater leisure to pursue his 
 studies ; finding himself neglected in his old age by Pericles, 
 who, in the multiplicity of the public affairs, had not always 
 time to think of him; wrapped his cloak about his head/ and 
 threw himself on the ground, in the fixed resolution to starve 
 himself. Pericles, hearing of this accidentally, ran with the ut¬ 
 most haste to the philosopher’s house, in the deepest affliction. 
 He conjured him, in the strongest and most moving terms, not 
 to throw his life away ; adding, that it was not Anaxagoras but 
 himself that was to be lamented, if he was so unfortunate as to 
 lose so wise and faithful a friend ; one who was so capable of 
 giving him wholesome counsels, in the pressing emergences of 
 the state. Anaxagoras then, uncovering a little his head, spoke 
 thus to him : Pericles, those who need the light of a lamp talce 
 care to feed it with oil. This was a gentle, and at the same time 
 a keen and piercing, reproach. Pericles ought to have sup¬ 
 plied his wants unasked. Many lamps are extinguished in this 
 manner in a country, by the criminal negligence of those who 
 ought to supply them. 
 
 SECT. III. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians besiege Platsem. Mitylene is taken by the Athenians. 
 
 Platsese surrenders. The plague breaks out again in Athens. 
 
 Fourth and fifth years of the War. 
 
 The most memorable transaction of the fol- 
 And ^ ow ^ n & years, 2 was the siege of Plataeae by the 
 
 Lacedaemonians. This was one of the most 
 famous sieges of antiquity, on account of the vigorous efforts 
 of both parties ; but especially for the glorious resistance made 
 by the besieged, and their bold and industrious stratagem, by 
 which several of them got out of the city, and by that means 
 escaped the fury of the enemy. The Lacedaemonians besieged 
 this place in the beginning of the third campaign. As soon as 
 they had pitched their camp round the city, in order to lay waste 
 the surrounding country, the Plataeans sent deputies to Archi- 
 damus, who commanded on that occasion, to represent that he 
 could not attack them with the least shadow of justice, because 
 that, after the famous battle of Plataeas, Pausanias, the Grecian 
 general, offering up a sacrifice in their city to Jupiter the Deli¬ 
 verer, in presence of all the allies, had given them their freedom, 
 
 y It was the custom for those to cover their .heads with their cloaks, who 
 were reduced to despair, an-d resolved to die. 
 
 z Thucyd. 1. ii. p. 147—151- Diod. 1. xii. p. 102—109. 
 
448 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 to reward their valour arid zeal; and therefore, that they ought 
 not to be disturbed in their enjoyment of their liberties, since 
 it had been granted them by a Lacedaemonian. Archidamus 
 answered, that their demand would be very reasonable, had 
 they not joined with the Athenians, the professed enemies to 
 the liberty of Greece; but that, if they would disengage them¬ 
 selves from their present alliance, or at least remain neuter, 
 they then should be left in the full enjoyment of their privileges. 
 The deputies replied, that they could not possibly come to any 
 agreement, without the cognizance of Athens, whither their 
 wives and their children were retired. The Lacedaemonians 
 permitted them to send thither; when the Athenians promising 
 solemnly to succour them to the utmost of their power, the 
 Plataeans resolved to suffer the last extremities rather than sur¬ 
 render ; and accordingly they informed the Lacedaemonians, 
 from their walls, that they could not comply with what was 
 desired. 
 
 Archidamus then, after calling upon the gods to witness that 
 he did not first infringe the alliance, and was not the cause of 
 the calamities which might befall the Plataeans, for having 
 refused the just and reasonable conditions offered them, pre¬ 
 pared for the siege. He surrounded the city with a circum- 
 vallalion of trees, which were laid long-ways, very close toge¬ 
 ther, with their boughs interwoven, and turned towards the city, 
 to prevent any person from going out of it. He afterwards 
 threw up a platform to set the batteries on; in hopes that, as 
 so many hands were employed, they should soon take the city. 
 He therefore caused trees to be felled on mount Cithaeron, and 
 interwove them with fascines, in order to support the terrace 
 on all sides ; he then threw into it wood, earth, and stones; in 
 a word, whatever, could help to fill it up. The whole army 
 worked night and day, without the least intermission, during 
 seventy days ; one half of the soldiers reposing themselves, 
 whilst the rest were at work. 
 
 The besieged observing that the work began to rise, threw 
 up a wooden wall upon the walls of the city, opposite to the plat¬ 
 form, in order that they might always out-top the besiegers ; 
 and filled the hollow of this wooden wall with the bricks they 
 took from the rubbish of the neighbouring houses ; so that the 
 beams of timber served in a manner as a defence to keep the 
 wall from falling, as it was carrying up. It was covered, on 
 the outside, with hides, both raw and dry, in order to shelter 
 the works and the workmen from the fires discharged against 
 it. In proportion as it rose, the platform was raised also, 
 which in this manner was carried to a great height. But 
 the besieged made a hole in the opposite wall, in order to 
 carry off the earth that sustained the platform ; which the 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 449 
 
 besieged perceiving, they pat baskets of reeds filled with mortar 
 in the place of the earth which had been removed, ‘because 
 these could not be so easily carried off. The besieged, there¬ 
 fore, finding their first stratagem defeated, made a mine under 
 ground as far as the platform, in order to work under cover, 
 and to remove from it the earth and other materials of which 
 it was composed, and which they gave from hand to hand, as 
 far as the city. The besiegers were a considerable time without 
 perceiving this, till at last they found that their work did not 
 go forward, and that the more earth they laid on, the lower it 
 sunk. But the besieged, judging that the superiority of num¬ 
 bers would at length prevail, without wasting their time any 
 longer on this work, or carrying the wall higher on the side to¬ 
 wards the battery, contented themselves with building another 
 within, in the form of a half-moon, both ends of which joined to the 
 wall; in order that they might retire behind it when the first wall 
 should be forced ; and so oblige the enemy to make fresh works. 
 
 In the meantime the besiegers having set up their machines, 
 (doubtless after they had filled up the ditch, though Thucydides 
 does not say this,) shook the city wall in a very terrible manner, 
 which, though it alarmed the citizens very much, did not how¬ 
 ever discourage them. They employed every art that their 
 imagination could suggest against the enemy’s batteries. They 
 prevented the effect of the battering-rams by ropes, a which 
 turned aside their strokes. They also employed another artifice ; 
 the two ends of a great beam were made fast by long iron 
 chains to two large pieces of timber, supported at due distance 
 upon the walls in the nature of a balance: so that whenever 
 the enemy played their machine, the besieged lifted up this 
 beam, and let it fall on the head of the battering-ram, which 
 quite deadened its force, and consequently made it of no effect. 
 
 The besiegers finding the attack did not go on successfully, 
 and that a new wall was raised against their platform, despaired 
 of being able to storm the place, and therefore changed the 
 siege into a blockade. However, they first endeavoured to set 
 fire to it, imagining the town might easily be burnt down, as 
 it was so small, whenever a strong wind should rise : for they 
 employed all the artifice imaginable, to make themselves masters 
 of it as soon as possible, and with little expense. They there¬ 
 fore threw fascines into the intervals between the walls of the 
 city and the intrenchment with which they had surrounded 
 them ; and filled these intervals in a very little time, because 
 of the multitude of hands employed by them ; in order to set 
 fire, at the same time, to different parts of the city. They then 
 
 a The lower end of these ropes formed a variety of slip-knots, with which 
 they eatched the head of the battering-ram, which they raised up by the help 
 of the machine. 
 
 VOL. II. 2 G 
 
450 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 lighted the fire with pitch and sulphur, which in a moment made 
 such a prodigious blaze, that the like was never seen. This 
 invention was very near carrying the city, which had baffled 
 all others ; for the besieged could not make head at once against 
 the fire and the enemy in several parts of the town ; and had 
 the weather favoured the besiegers, as they flattered themselves 
 it would, it had certainly been taken : but history informs us, 
 that an exceeding heavy rain fell, which extinguished the fire. 
 
 This last effort of the besiegers having been defeated as suc¬ 
 cessfully as all the rest, they now turned the siege into a block¬ 
 ade, and surrounded the city with a brick wall, strengthened 
 on each side with a deep ditch. The whole army was en¬ 
 gaged successively in this work, and when it was finished, they 
 left a guard over half of it, the Boeotians offering to guard 
 the rest; upon which the Lacedaemonians returned to Sparta, 
 about the month of October. There were now in Plataeae 
 but 400 inhabitants, and fourscore Athenians, with 110 women 
 to dress their victuals, and no other persons, whether free¬ 
 man or slave ; all the rest having been sent to Athens before 
 the siege. 
 
 During the campaign, some engagements were fought both 
 by sea and land, which I omit as being of no importance. 
 
 The next summer, b which was the fourth year of the war, 
 the people of Lesbos, the citizens of Methymna excepted, re¬ 
 solved to break their alliance with the Athenians. Thev had 
 
 •/ 
 
 designed to rebel before the war was declared, but the Lace¬ 
 daemonians would not receive them at that time. The citizens 
 of Methymna sent advice of this to the Athenians, assuring 
 them, that if immediate succour was not sent, the island would 
 be inevitably lost. The dejection of the Athenians, who had 
 sustained great losses by the war and the plague, was greatly 
 increased, when news was brought of the revolt of so consider¬ 
 able an island, whose forces, which were hitherto unimpaired, 
 would now join the enemy, and reinforce them on a sudden by 
 the addition of a powerful fleet. The Athenians therefore im¬ 
 mediately sent forty galleys designed for Peloponnesus, which 
 accordingly sailed for Mitylene. The inhabitants, though in 
 great consternation, because they were quite unprepared, yet 
 put on the appearance of bravery, and sailed out of the port 
 with their ships; however, being repulsed, they proposed an 
 accommodation, which the Athenians listened to, from an ap¬ 
 prehension that they were not strong enough to reduce the 
 island to their allegiance. A suspension of arms was therefore 
 agreed upon, during which the Mityl^neans sent ambassadors 
 to Athens. The fear of not obtaining their demands, made 
 them send others to Lacedaemonia, to desire succours. This 
 b Thucyd. 1. iii. p. 174—207. Diod. 1. xii. p. 108, 109. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 451 
 
 was not ill-judged, the Athenians sending them an answer 
 which they had no reason to interpret in their favour. 
 
 The ambassadors of Mitylene, after a dangerous voyage, 
 being arrived in Lacedaemonia, the Spartans deferred giving 
 them audience till the solemnization of the Olympic games, in 
 order that the allies might hear the complaints they had to make. 
 I shall repeat their whole speech on that occasion, as it may 
 serve, at once, to give a just idea of Thucydides’s style, and of 
 the disposition of the several states towards the Athenians and 
 Lacedaemonians. We are sensible, said the ambassadors, that 
 it is usual to treat deserters well at first, because of the ser¬ 
 vices they do those whom they fly to; but to despise them af¬ 
 terwards as traitors to their country and friends. This is 
 far from being unjust, when they have no inducement to such 
 a change : when the same union subsists , and the same aids are 
 reciprocally granted. But it is far otherwise between us and 
 the Athenians: and ice entreat you not to be prejudiced 
 against us, because, after having been treated mildly by the 
 Athenians during the peace, we now renounce their alliance 
 when they are unfortunate. For, since we are come hither to 
 demand admittance into the number of your friends and allies , 
 we ought to begin our own justification, by showing the justice 
 and necessity of our procedure ; it being impossible for a true 
 friendship to be established between individuals, or a solid 
 alliance between cities, unless both are founded on virtue, and 
 uniformity of principles and sentiments. 
 
 To come to the point: The treaty we concluded with the 
 Athenians, was not to enslave Greece, but to free it from the 
 yoke of the barbarians: and it teas concluded from the retreat 
 of the Persians , when you renounced the command. We ad¬ 
 hered to it with pleasure, so long as the Athenians continued 
 to entertain just designs ; but when we saw that they discon¬ 
 tinued the war which they were carrying on against the enemy, 
 merely to oppress the allies, we could not but suspect their 
 conduct. And as it ivas extremely difficult, in so great a di¬ 
 versity of interests and opinions, for all to continue in strict 
 union ; and still harder to make head against them, when alone 
 and separated; they have subjected, by insensible degrees, all 
 the allies, except the inhabitants of Chios, and our people; 
 and used our own forces for this end. For, at the same time 
 that they left us seemingly at our liberty, they obliged us to 
 follow them ; though we could no longer rely on their word, 
 and had the strongest reason to fear the like treatment. And, 
 indeed, what probability is there, after their enslaving all the 
 other states, that they should show a regard to us only, and 
 admit us upon the foot of equals, if they may become our mas¬ 
 ters whenever they please ; especially as their power increases 
 
 2 G 2 
 
452 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 daily, in proportion as ours lessens ? A mutual fear between 
 confederates is a strong motive to make an alliance lasting, 
 and to prevent unjust and violent attempts, by keeping all 
 things in an equilibrium. If they left us the enjoyment of our 
 libei ties, it was merely because they could not intrench upon 
 them by open force, but only by that equity and specious mode¬ 
 ration they have shown us. First, they pretended to prove, 
 from their moderate conduct in regard to us, that as we are 
 free, we should not have marched in conjunction with them 
 against the other allies, had they not given them just grounds 
 for complaint. Secondly, by attacking the weakest first, and 
 subduing them one after another, they enabled themselves, by 
 their ruin, to subject the most powerful without difficulty, who 
 at last would be left alone, and without support: whereas, had 
 they begun by invading us, at the time that the allies were pos¬ 
 sessed of all their strength, and were able to make some stand , 
 they could not so easily have completed their design. Besides, 
 as we had a large fleet, which would strengthen considerably 
 whatever party we should declare for, this was a check upon 
 them. Add to this, that the high regard we have always shown 
 for their republic, and the endeavours we have used to gain the 
 favour of those who commanded it, have suspended our ruin. 
 But we had been undone, had not this war broken out ; and of 
 this the fate of others leaves no room to doubt. 
 
 What friendship, then, what lasting alliance, can be con¬ 
 cluded with those who never are friends and allies, but when 
 force is employed to make them continue such ? For, as they 
 were obliged to pay court to us during the war, to prevent our 
 joining with the enemy ; we were constrained to treat them 
 with the same regard in time of peace, to prevent their falling 
 upon us. That which love produces in other places was with 
 us the effect of fear. It was this circumstance that made an al¬ 
 liance subsist some time, which both parties were determined to 
 break upon the very first favourable occasion ; let therefore 
 no one accuse us for the advantage we now take. We had not 
 always the same opportunity to save ourselves, as they had to 
 ruin us ; but were under a necessity of waiting a favourable 
 juncture, before we could venture to declare ourselves. 
 
 Such are the motives which now oblige us to solicit your al¬ 
 liance : motives, the equity and justice of which appear very 
 strong to us, and consequently call upon us to provide for our 
 safety : we should have claimed your protection before, had you 
 been sooner inclined to afford it us ; for we offered ourselves to 
 you, even before the war broke out: we are now come, at the 
 persuasion of the Boeotians, your allies, to disengage ourselves 
 from the oppressors of Greece, and join our arms with those of 
 its defenders ; and to provide for the security of our state, 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 453 
 
 which is now in imminent clanger. If any thing can he objected 
 to our conduct, it is, our declaring so precipitately, with more 
 generosity than prudence, and without having made the least 
 preparations. But this also ought to engage you to he the 
 more ready in succouring us ; that you may not lose the oppor¬ 
 tunity of protecting the oppressed, and avenging yourselves 
 on your enemies. There never ivas a more favourable conjunc¬ 
 ture than that which now offers itself: a conjuncture, when war 
 and pestilence have consumed their forces and exhausted their 
 treasure: not to mention that their jleet is divided, by which 
 means they ivill not be in a condition to resist you, should you 
 invade them at the same time by sea and land. For, they either 
 will leave us to attack you, and give us an opportunity of suc¬ 
 couring you; or they will oppose us all together, and then you 
 will have but half their forces to deal with. 
 
 As to what remains, let no one imagine that you will expose 
 yourselves to dangers for a people incapable of doing you ser¬ 
 vice. Our country indeed lies at a, considerable distance from 
 you, but our aid is near at hand. For the war ivill be car¬ 
 ried on, not in Attica, as is supposed, but in that country whose 
 revenues are the support of Attica, and we are not far from it. 
 Consider, also, that in abandoning us, you willincrease the power 
 of the Athenians by the addition of ours; and that no state 
 will then dare to revolt against them. But in succouring us , you 
 will strengthen yourselves with a fleet which you so much want; 
 you will induce many other people, after our example, to join 
 you ; and you will take off the reproach cast upon you, of aban¬ 
 doning those who have recourse to your protection, which will be 
 no inconsiderable advantage to you during the course of the war. 
 
 We therefore implore you, in the name of Jupiter Olympius, 
 in whose temple we now are, not to frustrate the hopes of the 
 Greeks, nor reject suppliants, whose preservation may be highly 
 advantageous, and whose ruin may be infinitely pernicious to 
 you. Show yourselves such now, as the idea entertained of 
 your generosity, and the extreme danger to which we are re¬ 
 duced, demand ; that is, the protectors of the afflicted, the de¬ 
 liverers of Greece. 
 
 The allies, struck with these reasons, admitted them into the 
 alliance of Peloponnesus. An immediate incursion into the 
 enemy’s country was resolved, and that the allies should rendez¬ 
 vous at Corinth with two-thirds of their forces. The Lacedae¬ 
 monians arrived first, and prepared engines for transporting the 
 ships from the gulf of Corinth into the sea of Athens, in order 
 to invade Attica both by sea and land. The Athenians were no 
 less active on their side , but the allies, being employed in their 
 harvest, and beginning to grow weary of the war, were a long 
 time before they met. 
 
454 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 During* this interval, the Athenians, who perceived that all 
 these preparations were made against them, from a supposition 
 that they were very weak ; in order to undeceive the world, and 
 show that they were able to furrfish a fleet without calling in 
 any of their ships from before Lesbos, put to sea a fleet of 100 
 sail, which they manned with citizens as well as foreigners ; not 
 exempting a single citizen, except such only as were obliged to 
 serve on horseback, or whose revenue amounted to 500 mea¬ 
 sures of corn. After having showed themselves before the isth¬ 
 mus of Corinth, to make a display of their power, they made 
 descents into whatever parts of Peloponnesus they pleased. 
 
 They never had had a finer fleet. They guarded their own 
 country, and the coasts of Euboea and Salamis, with a fleet of 
 100 ships : they cruised round Peloponnesus with another fleet 
 of the like number of vessels, without including their fleet before 
 Lesbos and other places. The whole amounted to upwards of 
 250 galleys. The expenses of this powerful armament entirely 
 exhausted their treasure, which had been very much drained 
 before by those incurred by the siege of Potidasa. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians, greatly surprised at so formidable a 
 fleet, which they no ways expected, returned with the utmost 
 expedition to their own country, and only ordered forty galleys 
 to be fitted out for the succour of Mitylene. The Athenians 
 had sent a reinforcement thither, consisting of 1000 heavy¬ 
 armed troops, by whose assistance they made a contravallation, 
 with forts in the’most commodious places; so that it was block¬ 
 ed up both by sea and land, in the beginning of winter. The 
 Athenians were in such great want of money for carrying on 
 this siege, that they were reduced to assess themselves, which 
 they had never before, and by this means 200 talents c were 
 . sent to it. 
 
 The people of Mitylene being in want of all 
 AntJ. cf^427 things, and having waited to no purpose for the 
 succours which the Lacedaemonians had promised 
 them, surrendered, upon condition that no person should be put 
 to death or imprisoned, till the ambassadors, whom they should 
 send to Athens, were returned ; and that, in the mean time, the 
 troops should be admitted into the city. As soon as the Athe¬ 
 nians had got possession of the city, such of the factious Mity- 
 leneans as had fled to the altars for refuge, were conveyed to 
 Tenedos, and afterwards to Athens. There the affair of the 
 Mityleneans was debated. As their revolt had greatly exas¬ 
 perated the people, because it had not been preceded by any ill 
 treatment, and seemed a mere effect of their hatred for the 
 Athenians, in the first transports of their rage they resolved to 
 put all the citizens to death indiscriminately, and to make all the 
 c Two hundred thousand crowns, about 45,000/. sterling. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 455 
 
 women and children slaves; and immediately they sent a galley 
 to put the decree in execution. 
 
 But night gave them leisure to reflect. This severity was 
 judged too cruel, and carried beyond its due bounds. They 
 imagined to themselves the fate of that unhappy city, entirely 
 abandoned to slaughter, and repented their having involved the 
 innocent with the guilty. This sudden change of the Athenians 
 gave the Mitylenean ambassadors some little glimmerings of 
 hope; and they prevailed so far with the magistrates, as to have 
 the affair debated a second time. Cleon, who had suggested 
 the first decree, a man of a fiery temper, and who had great in¬ 
 fluence over the people, maintained his opinion with much ve¬ 
 hemence and heat. He represented, that it was unworthy a 
 wise government to change with every wind, and to annul in the 
 morning what they had decreed the night before; and that it 
 was highly important to take an exemplary vengeance on the 
 Mityleneans, in order to awe the rest of their allies, who were 
 every where ready to revolt. 
 
 Diodorus, who had contradicted Cleon in the first assembly, 
 now opposed his arguments more strongly than before. After 
 describing, in a tender and pathetic manner, the deplorable 
 condition of the Mityleneans, whose minds (he said) must ne¬ 
 cessarily be tortured with anxiety and suspense, whilst they 
 were expecting a sentence that was to determine their fate; he 
 represented to the Athenians, that the fame of their mildness 
 and clemency had always reflected the highest honour on them, 
 and distinguished them gloriously from all other nations. He 
 observed, that the citizens of Mitylene had been drawn invo¬ 
 luntarily into the rebellion ; a proof of which was, their surren¬ 
 dering the city to them the instant it was in their power to do 
 it: they, therefore, by this decree, would murder their benefac¬ 
 tors, and consequently be both unjust and ungrateful, as they 
 would punish the innocent with the guilty. He observed far¬ 
 ther, that supposing the Mityleneans in general were guilty, it 
 would however be for the interest of the Athenians to dissemble, 
 in order that the rigorous punishment they had decreed might 
 not exasperate the rest of the allies ; and that the best way to 
 put a stop to the evil, would be, to leave room for repentance, 
 and not plunge people into despair, by the absolute and irrevo¬ 
 cable refusal of a pardon. His opinion therefore was, that 
 they should examine very deliberately the cause of those fac¬ 
 tious Mityleneans who had been brought to Athens, and pardon 
 all the rest. 
 
 The assembly was very much divided, so that Diodorus car¬ 
 ried it only by a few votes. A second galley was therefore im¬ 
 mediately fitted out. It was furnished with every thing that 
 might accelerate its course; anil the ambassadors of Mitylene 
 
456 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 promised a great reward to the crew, provided they arrived in 
 time. They therefore made extraordinary exertions, and did 
 not quit their oars even when they took sustenance, but ate and 
 drank as they rowed, and took their rest alternately ; and very 
 happily for them the wind was favourable. The first galley 
 had got a day and night’s sail before them; but as those on 
 board carried ill news, they did not make great haste. Its ar¬ 
 rival before the city had spread the utmost consternation in 
 every part of it: but this consternation was increased infinitely, 
 when the decree, by which all the citizens were sentenced to 
 die, was read in a full assembly. Nothing now was heard in 
 all places but cries and loud laments. The moment that the 
 sentence was going to be put in execution, advice came that a 
 second galley was arrived. Immediately the cruel massacre 
 was suspended. The assembly was again convened ; and the 
 decree which granted a pardon was listened to with such 
 silence and joy, as is much easier conceived than expressed. 
 
 All the factious Mityleneans who had been taken, though 
 upwards of 1000, were put to death. The city was afterwards 
 dismantled, the ships delivered up, and the whole island, the 
 city of Methymna excepted, was divided into 3000 parts, 300 
 of which were consecrated to the service of the gods ; and the 
 rest divided by lot among such Athenians as were sent thither, 
 to whom the natives of the country gave a revenue of two 
 min£e d for every portion; on which condition they were per¬ 
 mitted to keep possession of the island, but not as proprietors. 
 The cities which belonged to the Mityleneans on the coast of 
 Asia were all subjected l}y the Athenians. 
 
 During the winter of the preceding campaign, 45 the inhabit¬ 
 ants of Plataeas, having lost all hopes of succour, and being in 
 the utmost want of provisions, formed a resolution to escape 
 through the enemy : but half of them, struck with the greatness 
 of the danger and the boldness of the enterprise, entirely lost 
 their courage when they came to the execution ; but the rest 
 (who were about 220 soldiers) persisted in their resolution, and 
 escaped in the following manner. 
 
 Before I begin the description of their escape, it will be 
 proper to inform my readers in what sense T use certain ex¬ 
 pressions which I shall employ in it. In strictness of speech, 
 the line of fortification which is made round a city when be¬ 
 sieged, to prevent sallies, is called contravallation; and that 
 which is made to prevent any succours from without, is named 
 circumvallation. Both these fortifications were used in this 
 siege; however, for brevity’s sake, I shall use only the former 
 term. 
 
 d The Attic mina was worth 100 drachms, that is, fifty French livres. 
 
 e Thueyd. 1. iii. p. 185—188. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 457 
 
 The contravallation consisted of two walls, at sixteen feet 
 distance one from the other. The space between the two walls 
 being a kind of platform or terrace, seemed to be but one single 
 building, and composed a range of cazerns or barracks, where 
 the soldiers had their lodgings. Lofty towers were built around 
 it at proper distances, extending from one wall to the other, in 
 order that they might be able to defend themselves at the same 
 time against any attack from within and without. There was 
 no going from one cazern to another without crossing those 
 towers ; and on the top of the wall was a parapet on both sides, 
 where a guard was commonly kept; but in rainy weather, the 
 soldiers used to shelter themselves in the towers, which served 
 as guard-houses. Such was the contravallation, on both sides 
 of which was a ditch, the earth of which had been employed in 
 making the bricks of the wall. 
 
 The besieged first ascertained the height of the wall by 
 counting the rows of bricks which composed it; and this they 
 did at different times, and employed several men for that pur¬ 
 pose, in order that they might not mistake in the calculation. 
 This was the easier, because, as the wall stood at a small dis¬ 
 tance, every part of it was very visible. They then made 
 ladders of a proper length. 
 
 All things being now ready for executing the design, the 
 besieged left the city one night when there was no moon, in 
 the midst of a storm of wind and rain. After crossing the 
 first ditch, they drew near to the wall undiscovered, through the 
 darkness of the night; not to mention that the noise made by 
 the rain and wind prevented their being heard. They marched 
 at some distance from one another, to prevent the clashing of 
 their arms, which were light, in order that those who carried 
 them might be the more active; and one of their legs was naked, 
 to keep them from sliding so easily in the mire. Those who 
 carried the ladders laid them in the space between the towers, 
 where they knew no guard was posted, because it rained. 
 That instant twelve men mounted the ladders, armed with only 
 a coat of mail and a dagger, and marched directly to the towers, 
 six on each side. They were followed by soldiers armed only 
 with javelins, that they might mount the easier; and the shields 
 were carried after them to be used in the conflict. 
 
 When most of them were got to the top of the wall they 
 were discovered by the falling of a tile, which one of their 
 comrades, in taking hold of the parapet to keep himself steady, 
 had thrown down. The alarm was immediately given from the 
 towers, and the whole camp approached the wall without dis¬ 
 covering the occasion of the outcry, from the gloom of the 
 night and the violence of the storm. Besides which those 
 who had stayed behind in the city beat an alarm at the same 
 
458 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 time in another quarter, to make a diversion: so that the 
 enemy did not know which way to turn themselves, and were 
 afraid to quit their posts. But a body of reserve of 300 
 men, who were kept for any unforeseen accident that might 
 happen, quitted the contravallation, and ran to that part where 
 they heard the noise; and torches were held up towards Thebes, 
 to show that they must run that way. But those in the city, 
 to render that signal of no use, held up others at the same time 
 in different quarters, having prepared them on the wall for that 
 purpose. 
 
 In the mean time, those who had mounted first having pos¬ 
 sessed themselves of the two towers which flanked the interval 
 where the ladders were set, and having killed those who guarded 
 them, posted themselves there to defend the passage, and keep 
 off the besiegers. Then setting ladders from the top of the 
 wall against the two towers, they caused a good number of their 
 comrades to mount, in order to keep off, by the discharge of 
 their arrows, as well those who were advancing to the foot of 
 the wall, as others who were hastening from the neighbouring 
 towers. Whilst this was doing, they had time to set up several 
 ladders, and to throw down the parapet, that the rest might 
 come up with greater ease. As fast as they came up, they 
 went down on the other side, and drew up near the ditch on the 
 outside, to shoot at those who appeared. After they were 
 passed over, the men who were in the towers came down last, 
 and made to the ditch to follow after the rest. 
 
 That instant the guard of 300, with torches, came up. How¬ 
 ever, as the Plataeans saw their enemies by this light better 
 than they were seen by them, they took a surer aim, by which 
 means the last crossed the ditch without being attacked in 
 their passage : but this was not done without difficulty, be¬ 
 cause the ditch was frozen over, and the ice would not bear, 
 on account of the thaw and heavy rains. The violence of the 
 storm was of great advantage to them. 
 
 After all were passed over, they took the road towards Thebes, 
 the better to conceal their retreat; because it was not likely 
 that they would flee towards a city of the enemy’s. And ac¬ 
 cordingly they perceived the besiegers, with torches in their 
 hands, pursuing them in the road that led to Athens. After 
 keeping that towards Thebes about six or seven stadia/ they 
 turned short towards the mountain, and resumed the road to¬ 
 wards Athens, whither 212 arrived out of 220 who had quitted 
 the place; the rest having returned back through fear, one archer 
 excepted, who was taken on the side of the ditch of contravalla¬ 
 tion. The besiegers, after having pursued them to no purpose, 
 returned to their camp. 
 
 f Upwards of a quarter of a league. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 459 
 
 In the mean time, the Plataeans who remained in the city 
 supposing that all their companions had been killed, (because 
 those who returned, to justify themselves, affirmed they were,) 
 sent a herald to demand the dead bodies ; but being told the 
 true state of the affair, he withdrew. 
 
 About the end of the following campaign,s which is that 
 wherein Mitylene was taken, the Plataeans being in absolute 
 want of provisions, and unable to make the least defence, sur¬ 
 rendered, upon condition that they should not be punished till 
 they had been tried by the due forms of justice. Five commis¬ 
 sioners came for this purpose from Lacedaemon ; and these, 
 without charging them with any crime, barely asked them, 
 whether they had done any service to the Lacedaemonians and 
 the allies in this war ? The Plataeans were much surprised, as 
 well as embarrassed, by this question ; and were sensible that 
 it had been suggested by the Thebans, their professed enemies, 
 who had vowed their destruction. They therefore put the La¬ 
 cedaemonians in mind of the services they had done to Greece 
 in general, both at the battle of Artemisium, and that of Pla- 
 taeae: and particularly in Lacedaemonia, at the time of the 
 earthquake, which was followed by the revolt of their slaves. 
 The only reason (they declared) of their having joined the Athe¬ 
 nians afterwards, was, to defend themselves from the hostilities 
 of the Thebans, against whom they had implored the assistance 
 of the Lacedemonians to no purpose : that if it was imputed to 
 them for a crime, which was only their misfortune, it ought not 
 however entirely to obliterate the remembrance of their former 
 services. Cast your eyes, said they, on the monuments of your 
 ancestors which you see here, to whom ice annually pay all the 
 honours which can he rendered to the manes of the dead. You 
 thought fit to intrust their bodies icith us, as we were eye-wit¬ 
 nesses of their bravery: and yet you will now give up their 
 ashes to their murderers, in abandoning us to the Thebans , who 
 fought against them at the battle of Platcece. Will you en¬ 
 slave a province where Greece recovered its liberty ? Will you 
 destroy the temples of those gods, to whom you are indebted for 
 victory ? Will you abolish the memory of their founders, who 
 contributed so greatly to your safety ? On this occasion, we 
 may venture to say, our interest is inseparable from your 
 glory : and you cannot deliver up your ancient friends and 
 benefactors to the unjust hatred of the Thebans, without over¬ 
 whelming yourselves with eternal infamy. 
 
 One would conclude, that these just remonstrances should 
 have made some impression on the Lacedaemonians; but they 
 were biassed more by the answer the Thebans made, which was 
 expressed in the most haughty and bitter terms against the 
 s Thucyd. 1. iii. p. 203—220. Diod. 1. xii. p. 109. 
 
460 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Plataeans; and besides, they had brought their instructions 
 from Lacedaemon. They adhered therefore to their first ques¬ 
 tion, whether the Platceans had done them any service since the 
 war ? and making them pass one after another, as they seve¬ 
 rally answered No, they were immediately butchered, and not 
 one escaped. About 200 were killed in this manner ; and 
 twenty-five Athenians, who were among them, met with the 
 same unhappy fate. Their wives, who had been taken prisoners, 
 were reduced to slavery. The Thebans afterwards peopled 
 their city with exiles from Megara and Plataeae ; but the year 
 after they demolished it entirely. It was in this manner that 
 the Lacedaemonians, in the hopes of reaping great advantages 
 from the Thebans, sacrificed the Plataeans to their animosity, 
 ninety-three years after their first alliance with the Athenians. 
 
 In the sixth year of the war of Peloponnesus 
 Arrt C°426 ^he P^ a & ue broke out anew in Athens, 11 and again 
 swept away great numbers. 
 
 SECT. IV. 
 
 The Athenians possess themselves of Pylus, and are afterwards besieged in 
 it. The Spartans are shut up in the little island of Sphacteria. Cleon 
 makes himself master of it. Artaxerxes dies. 
 
 The sixth and seventh years of the War. 
 
 I pass over several particular incidents of the succeeding 
 campaigns, which differ very little from one another; the Lace¬ 
 daemonians making regularly every year incursions into Attica 
 and the Athenians into Peloponnesus: I likewise omit some 
 sieges in different places: that of Pylus, 1 a little city of Mes- 
 senia, only 400 furlongs k from Lacedaemon, was 
 one of the most considerable. The Athenians, 
 headed by Demosthenes, had taken that city, and 
 fortified themselves very strongly in it; this was the seventh 
 year of the war. The Lacedaemonians left Attica immediately 
 in order to go and recover that place, and accordingly they at¬ 
 tacked it both by sea and land. Brasidas, one of their leaders, 
 signalized himself here by the most extraordinary acts of 
 bravery. Opposite to the city was a little island called Sphac¬ 
 teria, from whence the besieged might be greatly annoyed, and 
 the entrance of the harbour shut up. They therefore threw a 
 chosen body of Lacedaemonians into it; making, in all, 420, 
 exclusive of the Helots. A battle was fought at sea, in which 
 the Athenians were victorious, and accordingly erected atrophy. 
 They surrounded the island ; and set a guard over every part of 
 
 h Thucyd. 1. viii. p. 232. 
 
 ‘ Thucyd. 1. iv. p. 253—280. Diod. 1. xii. p. 112—114. 
 k Twenty French leagues. 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 461 
 
 it, to prevent any of the inhabitants from going out, or any pro¬ 
 visions being brought in to them. 
 
 The news of the defeat being come to Sparta, the magistrate 
 thought the affair of the utmost importance, and therefore came 
 himself upon the spot, in order that he might be better able to 
 take proper measures ; when, concluding that it would be impos¬ 
 sible for him to save those who were in the island, and that they at 
 last must necessarily be starved out, or be taken by some other 
 means, he proposed an accommodation. A suspension of arms 
 was concluded, in order to give the Lacedaemonians time to send 
 to Athens ; but upon condition that in the mean time they 
 should surrender up all their galleys, and not attack the place 
 either by sea or land, till the return of the ambassadors ; that 
 if they complied with these conditions, the Athenians would 
 permit them to carry provisions to those who were in the island, 
 at the rate of so much for the master , 1 and half for the servant; 
 and that the whole should be done publicly, and in sight of both 
 armies : that, on the other side, the Athenians should be allow¬ 
 ed to keep guard round the island, to prevent any thing from 
 going in or out of it, but should not attack it in any manner: 
 that in case this agreement should be infringed in the least, the 
 truce would be broken ; otherwise, that it should continue in 
 full force till the return of the ambassadors, whom the Atheni¬ 
 ans obliged themselves, by the articles,, to convey and bring 
 back ; and that then the Lacedtemonians should have their ships 
 restored in the same condition in which they had been delivered 
 up. Such were the articles of the treaty. The Lacedaemonians 
 began to put it in execution, by surrendering about threescore 
 ships ; after which they sent ambassadors to Athens. 
 
 Being admitted to audience before the people, they began by 
 saying, that they were come to the Athenians to sue for that 
 peace which they themselves were, a little before, in a condition 
 to grant; that it depended only upon them to acquire the glory 
 of having restored the tranquillity of all Greece, as the Lacedae¬ 
 monians consented to their being arbitrators in this treaty : that 
 the danger to which their citizens were exposed in the island, 
 had determined them to take such a step as could not but be very 
 grating to Lacedaemonians : however, that their affairs were far 
 from being desperate, and therefore, that now was the time to 
 establish, between the two republics, a firm and solid friendship; 
 because the affairs of both were still fluctuating, and fortune had 
 not yet declared absolutely in favour of either : that the gods 
 frequently abandoned those whom success makes proud, by 
 shifting the scene, and rendering them as unfortunate as they 
 
 1 For the masters, two Attic choenices of flour, making about four pounds 
 and a half, two cotyles, or half pints, of wine, and a piece of meat; with halt 
 this quantity for the servants. 
 
462 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 before had been happy : that they ought to consider, that the 
 fate of arms is very uncertain ; and that the means to establish 
 a lasting peace, is not to triumph over an enemy by oppressing 
 him, but to agree to a reconciliation on just and reasonable 
 terms : for then, conquered by generosity and not by violence, 
 his future thoughts being all employed, not on revenge, but on 
 gratitude, he makes it both his pleasure and his duty to observe 
 his engagements with inviolable fidelity. 
 
 The Athenians had now a happy opportunity for terminating 
 the war, by a peace which would have been no less glorious to 
 them than advantageous to all Greece. But Cleon, who had a 
 great ascendant over the people, prevented so important a be¬ 
 nefit. They therefore answered, by his advice, that those who 
 were in the island should first surrender at discretion, and after¬ 
 wards be carried to Athens, on the condition of being sent back 
 from it, as soon as the Lacedaemonians should have restored 
 the cities which the Athenians had been forced to give up by the 
 last treaty ,• and that these things being done, a firm and last¬ 
 ing peace should be concluded. The Lacedaemonians demand¬ 
 ed that deputies should be appointed, and that the Athenians 
 should engage to ratify what they should conclude. But Cleon 
 exclaimed against this proposal, and said, it was plain they did 
 not deal fairly, since they would not negociate with the people, 
 but with individuals, whom they might easily bribe; and that, if 
 they had any thing to offer, they should do it immediately. The 
 Lacedaemonians, finding there was no possibility for them to 
 treat with the people without advising with their allies, and that 
 if any thing were to be granted by them to their prejudice they 
 must be responsible for it, went away without concluding any 
 thing; fully persuaded that they must not expect equitable 
 treatment from the Athenians, in the present state of their affairs, 
 and disposition occasioned by their prosperity. 
 
 As soon as they were returned to Pylus, the suspension 
 ceased ; but when the Lacedaemonians came to demand back 
 their ships, the Athenians refused to give them up, upon pretence 
 that the treaty had been infringed in some particulars of little 
 consequence. The Lacedaemonians inveighed strongly against 
 this ref usal, as being a manifest perfidy ; and immediately pre¬ 
 pared for war with greater vigour and animosity than before. 
 A haughty carriage in success, and want of faith in the observ¬ 
 ance of treaties, never fail, at last, to involve a people in great 
 calamities. This will appear by the sequel. 
 
 The Athenians continued to keep a strict guard round the 
 island, to prevent any provisions from being brought into it, and 
 hoped that they should soon be able to starve out the enemy. 
 But the Lacedaemonians engaged the whole country in their in¬ 
 terest by the views of gain, by affixing a high price upon provi- 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 463 
 
 sions, and giving such slaves their freedom as should convey 
 any into it. Provisions were therefore now brought (at the ha¬ 
 zard of men’s lives) from all parts of Peloponnesus. There 
 were even divers who swam from the coast to the island, oppo¬ 
 site to the harbour, and drew after them goat-skins filled with 
 pounded linseed, and poppy-seed mixed with honey. 
 
 Those who were besieged in Pylus were reduced to almost 
 the like extremities, being in want both of water and provisions. 
 When advice was brought to Athens that their countrymen, so 
 far from reducing the enemy by famine, were themselves almost 
 starved ; it was feared that as it would not be possible for the 
 fleet to subsist during the winter on a desert coast which be¬ 
 longed to the enemy, nor to lie at anchor in so dangerous a 
 road, the island must by that means be less securely guarded, 
 which would give the prisoners an opportunity of escaping. 
 But the circumstance they chiefly dreaded, was, lest the Lace¬ 
 daemonians, after their countrymen were once extricated from 
 their danger, should refuse to hearken to any conditions of 
 peace ; so that they now repented their having refused it when 
 offered them. 
 
 Cleon saw plainly that these complaints would all fall upon 
 him. He therefore began by asserting, that the report of the 
 extreme want of provisions to which the Athenians both within 
 and without Pylus were said to be reduced, was absolutely false. 
 He next exclaimed in presence of the people, against the su¬ 
 pineness and inactivity of the leaders who besieged the island, 
 pretending, that were they to exert the least vigour and bravery, 
 they might soon make themselves masters of it : and that had 
 he the command, he would soon take it. Upon this, he was 
 immediately appointed to command the expedition ; Nicias, 
 who was before elected, resigning voluntarily that honour to 
 him, either through \yeakness, for he was naturally timid, or out 
 of a political view, in order that the ill success, which it was 
 generally believed Cleon would meet with in this enterprise, 
 might lose him the favour of the people. Cleon was greatly 
 surprised as well as embarrassed ; for he did not expect that 
 the Athenians would take him at his word, he being a finer 
 talker than soldier, and much more able with his tongue than his 
 sword. He for some time desired leave to wave the honour 
 they offered him, for which he alleged several excuses ; but 
 finding that the more he declined the command the more they 
 pressed him to accept it, he changed his note : and supplying 
 his want of courage with rodomontade, he declared before the 
 whole assembly with a firm and resolute air, that he would 
 bring in twenty days those of the island prisoners, or lose his 
 life. The whole assembly, on hearing these words, set up a 
 laugh : for they knew the man. 
 
4G4 
 
 HISTORY OF THE 
 
 Cleon, however, contrary to the expectation of every body, 
 made good his words. He and Demosthenes (the other chief) 
 landed in the island, attacked the enemy with great vigour, 
 drove them from post to post, and gaining ground perpetually, 
 at last forced them to the extremity of the island. The Lace¬ 
 daemonians had gained a fort that was thought inaccessible. 
 There they drew up in battle-array, faced about to that side 
 where alone they could be attacked, and defended themselves 
 like so many lions. As the engagement had lasted the greatest 
 part of the day, and the soldiers were oppressed with heat and 
 weariness, and parched with thirst : the general of the Messe- 
 nians, directing himself to Cleon and Demosthenes, said, that 
 all their efforts would be to no purpose, unless they charged the 
 enemy’s rear : and promised, if they would give him but some 
 troops armed with missive weapons, that he would by some 
 means or other find a passage. Accordingly, he and his follow¬ 
 ers climbed up certain steep and craggy places which were not 
 guarded, when coming down unperceived into the fort, he ap¬ 
 peared on a sudden at the backs of the Lacedaemonians, which 
 entirely damped their courage, and afterwards completed their 
 overthrow. They now made but a very feeble resistance : and 
 being oppressed with numbers, attacked on all sides, and de¬ 
 jected through fatigue and despair, they began to give way; 
 but the Athenians seized on all the passes to cut off their retreat. 
 Cleon and Demosthenes finding that should the battle continue 
 not a man of them would escape, and being desirous of carrying 
 them alive to Athens, they commanded their soldiers to desist; 
 and caused proclamation to be made by a herald, for them to 
 lay down their arms and surrender at discretion. At these 
 words, the greatest part lowered their shields, and clapped their 
 hands in token of approbation. A kind of suspension of arms 
 was agreed upon ; and their commander desired leave might 
 be granted him to despatch a messenger to the camp, to know 
 the resolution of the generals. This was not allowed, but they 
 called heralds from the coast ; and after several messages, a 
 Lacedaemonian advanced forward, and cried aloud, that they 
 were permitted to treat with the enemy, provided they did not 
 submit to dishonourable terms. Upon this, they held a confer¬ 
 ence ; after which they surrendered at discretion, and were 
 kept till the next 'day. The Athenians then raising a trophy, 
 and restoring the Lacedaemonians their dead, embarked for 
 their own, country, after distributing the prisoners among the 
 several ships, and committing the guard of them to the captain 
 of the galleys. 
 
 In this battle 128 Lacedaemonians fell, out of 420, which 
 was their number at first; so that there survived not quite 300, 
 120 of whom were Spartans, that is, inhabitants of the city of 
 
PERSIANS AND GRECIANS. 
 
 465 
 
 Sparta. The siege of the island (computing from the be¬ 
 ginning of it, and including the time employed in the truce) 
 had lasted threescore and twelve days. They all now left 
 Pylos; and Cleon’s promise, though so vain and rash, was 
 found literally fulfilled. But the most surprising circum¬ 
 stance was, the capitulation that had been made ; for it was 
 believed that the Lacedaemonians, so far from surrendering 
 their arms, would die sword in hand. 
 
 Being come to Athens, it was decreed that they should 
 remain prisoners till a peace was concluded, provided the 
 Lacedaemonians did not make any incursions into their coun¬ 
 try, for that then they should all be put to death. They 
 left a garrison in Pylus. The Messenians of Naupactus, 
 who had formerly possessed it, sent thither the flower of 
 their youth, who very much infested the Lacedaemonians by 
 their incursions; and as these Messenians spoke the lan¬ 
 guage of the country, they prevailed with a great number 
 of slaves to join them. The Lacedaemonians, dreading a 
 greater evil, sent several deputations to Athens, but to no 
 purpose; the Athenians being too much elated with their 
 prosperity, and especially their late success, to listen to any 
 terms. 
 
 In the seventh year of the Peloponnesian war, ra Artax- 
 erxes sent to the Lacedaemonians an ambassador named 
 Artaphernes, with a letter written in the Assyrian language, 
 in which he said, that he had received many embassies from 
 them, but the purport of them all differed so widely, that 
 he could not comprehend what it was they requested: that 
 in this uncertainty, he had thought proper to send a Per¬ 
 sian to acquaint them, that if they had any proposal to make, 
 they had only to send a person in whom they could confide 
 along with him, from whom he might be exactly informed 
 of what they desired. This ambassador, arriving at Eion 
 on the river Strymon in Thrace, was there taken prisoner, 
 about the close of this year, by one of the admirals of the 
 Athenian fleet, who sent him to Athens. He was treated 
 with the utmost civility and respect; the Athenians being 
 extremely desirous of recovering the favour of the king his 
 master. 
 
 The year following, as soon as the season would permit, 
 the Athenians to put to sea, they sent the ambassador back 
 in one of their ships at the public expense ; and appointed 
 some of their citizens to wait upon him to the court of Persia, 
 in quality of ambassadors. Upon landing at Ephesus, they 
 
 m 
 
 VOL. IE 
 
 Thucyd. 1. iv. p. 285, 286. 
 2 H 
 
466 
 
 HISTORY, ETC. 
 
 were informed that Artaxerxes was dead; whereupon the 
 Athenian ambassadors, thinking- it not advisable to proceed 
 farther after this news, took leave of Artaphernes, and re¬ 
 turned to their own country. 
 
 END OF VOL. II. 
 
 BUNGAY: 
 
 STEREOTYPED AND PRINTED BY J. R., AND C, CHILDS.