Cyropaedia: The Education of Cyrus Part 16

"Nay," said he, "it is because I know myself that, if you depart, I am ruined utterly. And therefore it was that I took it upon me to speak with Hystaspas myself, and ask him if he knew what was in your mind about the disbanding of the army."

[4] And Cyrus said, "It would be unjust then, I suppose, to lay the blame on Hystaspas." "Yes, Cyrus, most unjust," said Hystaspas, "for I only said to Gadatas that it would be impossible for you to carry on the campaign, as your father wanted you home, and had sent for you."

[5] "What?" cried Cyrus, "you dared to let that be known whether I wished it or not?"

"Certainly I did," he answered, "for I can see that you are mad to be home in Persia, the cynosure of every eye, telling your father how you wrought this and accomplished that."

"Well," said Cyrus, "are you not longing to go home yourself?"

"No," said the other. "I am not. Nor have I any intention of going: here I shall stay and be general-in-chief until I make our friend Gadatas the lord and the a.s.syrian his slave."

[6] Thus half in jest and half in earnest they played with one another, and meanwhile Cyaxares had finished adorning himself and came forth in great splendour and solemnity, and sat down on a Median throne. And when all were a.s.sembled and silence was proclaimed, Cyaxares said:

"My friends and allies, perhaps, since I am present and older than Cyrus, it is suitable that I should address you first. It appears to me that the moment has come to discuss one question before all others, the question whether we ought to go on with the campaign or disband the army. Be pleased," he added, "to state your opinions on the matter."

[7] Then the leader of the Hyrcanians stood up at once and said:

"Friends and allies, I hardly think that words are needed when facts themselves show us the path to take. All of us know that while we stand together we give our enemy more trouble than we get: but when we stood alone it was they who dealt with us as they liked best and we liked least."

[8] Then the Cadousian followed.

"The less we talk," said he, "about breaking-up and going home separately the better; separation has done us anything but good, it seems to me, even on the march. My men and I, at any rate, very soon paid the penalty for private excursions; as I dare say you have not forgotten."

[9] Upon that Artabazus rode, the Mede who had claimed kins.h.i.+p with Cyrus in the old days.

"Cyaxares," said he, "in one respect I differ from those who have spoken before me: they think we should stay here in order to go on with the campaign, but I think I am always on campaign at home. [10] I was for ever out on some expedition or other, because our people were being harried, or our fortresses threatened, and a world of trouble I had, what with fears within and fighting without, and all too at my own expense. As it is now, I occupy the enemy's forts, my fear of them is gone, I make good cheer on their own good things, and I drink their own good wine. Since home means fighting and service here means feasting, I am not in favour myself," said he, "of breaking up the company."

[11] Then Gobryas spoke.

"Friends," said he, "I have trusted Cyrus' word and had no fault to find with him: what he promises that he performs: but if he leaves the country now, the a.s.syrian will be reprieved, he will never be punished for the wrongs he tried to inflict on you and did inflict on me: I shall be punished instead, because I have been your friend."

[12] At that Cyrus rose at last and said:

"Gentlemen, I am well aware that the disbanding of our forces must mean the decrease of our power and the increase of theirs. If some of them have given up their weapons, they will soon procure others; if some have lost their horses, the loss will soon be made good; if some have fallen in battle, others, younger and stronger, will take their place. We need not be surprised if they are soon in a condition to cause us trouble again. [13] Why, then, did I ask Cyaxares to put the question to debate?

Because, I answer, I am afraid of the future. I see opponents against us whom we cannot fight, if we conduct the campaign as we are doing now.

[14] Winter is advancing against us, and though we may have shelter for ourselves we have nothing, heaven knows, for our horses and our servants and the great ma.s.s of our soldiery, without whom we cannot even think of a campaign. As to provisions, up to the limits of our advance and because of that advance they have been exhausted; and beyond that line, owing to the terror we inspire, the inhabitants will have stowed their supplies away in strong places where they can enjoy them and we cannot get them. [15] Where is the warrior, stout of heart and strong of will, who can wage war with cold and hunger? If our style of soldiering is to be only what it has been, I say we ought to disband at once of our own accord, and not wait to be driven from the field against our will by sheer lack of means. If we do wish to go forward, this is what we must do: we must detach from the enemy all the fortresses we can and secure all we can for our own: if this is done, the larger supply will be in the hands of those who can stow away the larger store, and the weaker will suffer siege. [16] At present we are like mariners on the ocean: they may sail on for ever, but the seas they have crossed are no more theirs than those that are still unsailed. But if we hold the fortresses, the enemy will find they are living in a hostile land, while we have halcyon weather. [17] Some of you may dread the thought of garrison duty far from home; if so, dispel your doubts. We Persians, who must, as it is, be exiles for the time, will undertake the positions that are nearest to the foe, while it will be for you to occupy the land on the marches between a.s.syria and yourselves and put it under tillage.

[18] For, if we can hold his inner line, your peace will not be disturbed in the outlying parts: he will scarcely neglect the danger at his door to attack you out in the distance."

[19] At this the whole a.s.sembly rose to express their eagerness and a.s.sent, and Cyaxares stood up with them. And both Gadatas and Gobryas offered to fortify a post if the allies wished, and thus provide two cities of refuge to start with.

[20] Finally Cyrus, thus a.s.sured of the general consent to his proposals, said, "If we really wish to carry out what we have set ourselves, we must prepare battering-rams and siege engines, and get together mechanics and builders for our own castles." [21] Thereupon Cyaxares at once undertook to provide an engine at his own expense, Gadatas and Gobryas made themselves responsible for a second, Tigranes for a third, and Cyrus himself promised he would try to furnish two.

[22] That done, every one set to work to find engineers and artisans and to collect material for the machines; and superintendents were appointed from those best qualified for the work.

[23] Now Cyrus was aware that all this would take some time, and therefore he encamped his troops in the healthiest spot he could find and the easiest to supply, strengthening, wherever necessary, the natural defences of the place, so that the detachment left in charge for the time should always be in complete security, even though he might be absent himself with the main body of his force. [24] Nor was this all; he questioned those who knew the country best, and, learning where he would be rewarded for his pains, he would lead his men out to forage, and thus procure as large supplies as possible, keep his soldiers in the best of health and strength, and fix their drill in their minds.

[25] So Cyrus spent his days, and meanwhile the deserters from Babylon and the prisoners who were captured all told the same story: they said that the king had gone off to Lydia, taking with him store of gold and silver, and riches and treasures of every kind. [26] The ma.s.s of the soldiers were convinced that he was storing his goods away from fear, but Cyrus knew that he must have gone to raise, if possible, an opponent who could face them, and therefore he pushed his preparations forward vigorously, feeling that another battle must be fought. He filled up the Persian cavalry to its full complement, getting the horses partly from the prisoners, partly from his own friends. There were two gifts he would never refuse, horses and good weapons. [27] He also procured chariots, taking them from the enemy or wherever he could find them.

The old Trojan type of charioteering, still in use to this day among the Cyrenaeans, he abolished; before his time the Medes, the Syrians, the Arabians, and all Asiatics generally, used their chariots in the same way as the Cyrenaeans do now. [28] The fault of the system to his mind was that the very flower of the army, if the picked men were in the chariots, could only act at long range and so contribute little after all to the victory. Three hundred chariots meant twelve hundred horses and three hundred fighting-men, besides the charioteers, who would naturally be men above the common, in whom the warriors could place confidence: and that meant another three hundred debarred from injuring the enemy in any kind of way. [29] Such was the system he abolished in favour of the war-chariot proper, with strong wheels to resist the shock of collision, and long axles, on the principle that a broad base is the firmer, while the driver's seat was changed into what might be called a turret, stoutly built of timber and reaching up to the elbow, leaving the driver room to manage the horses above the rim. The drivers themselves were all fully armed, only their eyes uncovered. [30] He had iron scythes about two feet long attached to the axles on either side, and others, under the tree, pointing to the ground, for use in a charge.

Such was the type of chariot invented by Cyrus, and it is still in use to-day among the subjects of the Great King. Beside the chariots he had a large number of camels, collected from his friends or captured from the enemy. [31] Moreover, he decided to send a spy into Lydia to ascertain the movements of the king, and he thought that the right man for this purpose was Araspas, the officer in charge of the fair lady from Susa. Matters had gone ill with Araspas: he had fallen pa.s.sionately in love with his prisoner, and been led to entreat her to be his paramour. [32] She had refused, faithful to her husband who was far away, for she loved him dearly, but she forbore to accuse Araspas to Cyrus, being unwilling to set friend at strife with friend. [33] But when at length Araspas, thinking it would help him in his desires, began to threaten her, saying that if she would not yield he would have his will of her by force, then in her dread of violence she could keep the matter hid no longer, and she sent her eunuch to Cyrus with orders to tell him everything. [34] And when Cyrus heard it he smiled over the man who had boasted that he was superior to love, and sent Artabazus back with the eunuch to tell Araspas that he must use no violence against such a woman, but if he could persuade her, he might do so. [35] But Artabazus, when he saw Araspas, rebuked him sternly, saying that the woman was a sacred trust, and his conduct disgraceful, impious, and wicked, till Araspas burst into tears of misery and shame, and was half dead at the thought of what Cyrus would do. [36] Learning this, Cyrus sent for him, saw him alone, and said to him face to face:

"Araspas, I know that you are afraid of me and in an agony of shame.

Be comforted; we are told that the G.o.ds themselves are made subject to desire, and I could tell you what love has forced some men to undergo, men who seemed most lofty and most wise. Did I not pa.s.s sentence on myself, when I confessed I was too weak to consort with loveliness and remain unmoved? Indeed it is I who am most to blame in the matter, for I shut you up myself with this irresistible power."

[37] But Araspas broke in on his words:

"Ah, Cyrus, you are ever the same, gentle and compa.s.sionate to human weaknesses. But all the rest of the world has no pity on me; they drown me in wretchedness. As soon as the tattlers got wind of my misfortune, all my enemies exulted, and my friends came to me, advising me to make away with myself for fear of you, because my iniquity was so great."

[38] Then Cyrus said, "Now listen: this opinion about you may be the means by which you can do me a great kindness and your comrades a great service." "Oh, that it were possible!" said Araspas, "for me ever to be of service to you!" [39] "Well," said the other, "if you went to the enemy, feigning that you had fled from me, I think they would believe you." "I am sure they would," said Araspas, "I know even my own friends would think that of course I ran away." [40] "Then you will come back to us," Cyrus went on, "with full information about the enemy's affairs; for, if I am right in my expectation, they will trust you and let you see all their plans, so that you need miss nothing of what we wish to know." "I will be off this moment," said Araspas; "it will be my best credential to have it thought I was just in time to escape punishment from you."

[41] "Then you can really bring yourself to leave the beautiful Pantheia?"

"Yes, Cyrus," he answered, "I can; for I see now that we have two souls.

This is the lesson of philosophy that I have learnt from the wicked sophist Love. If we had but a single soul, how could she be at once evil and good? How could she be enamoured at once of n.o.bleness and baseness, or at once desire and not desire one deed and the same? No, it is clear that we have two souls, and when the beautiful soul prevails, all fair things are wrought, and when the evil soul has the mastery, she lays her hand to shame and wickedness. But to-day my good soul conquers, because she has you to help her."

[42] "Well," said Cyrus, "if you have decided on going, it is thus you had better go. Thus you will win their confidence, and then you must tell them what we are doing, but in such a way as to hinder their own designs. It would hinder them, for example, if you said that we were preparing an attack on their territory at a point not yet decided; for this would check the concentration of their forces, each leader being most concerned for the safety of his own home. [43] Stay with them," he added, "till the last moment possible: what they do when they are close at hand is just what is most important for us to know. Advise them how to dispose their forces in the way that really seems the best, for then, after you are gone and although it may be known that you are aware of their order, they will be forced to keep to it, they will not dare to change it, and should they do so at the last moment they will be thrown into confusion."

[44] Thereupon Araspas took his leave, called together his trustiest attendants, said what he thought necessary for the occasion, and departed.

[45] Now Pantheia, when she heard that Araspas had fled, sent a messenger to Cyrus, saying:

"Grieve not, Cyrus, that Araspas has gone to join the foe: I will bring you a far trustier friend than he, if you will let me send for my husband, and I know he will bring with him all the power that he has. It is true that the old king was my husband's friend, but he who reigns now tried to tear us two asunder, and my husband knows him for a tyrant and a miscreant, and would gladly be quit of him and take service with such a man as you."

[46] When Cyrus heard that, he bade Pantheia send word to her husband, and she did so. Now when Abradatas saw the tokens from his wife, and learnt how matters stood, he was full of joy, and set out for Cyrus'

camp immediately, with a thousand hors.e.m.e.n in his train. And when he came to the Persian outposts he sent to Cyrus saying who he was, and Cyrus gave orders that he should be taken to Pantheia forthwith. [47] So husband and wife met again after hope had well-nigh vanished, and were in each other's arms once more. And then Pantheia spoke of Cyrus, his n.o.bleness, his honour, and the compa.s.sion he had shown her, and Abradatas cried:

"Tell me, tell me, how can I repay him all I owe him in your name and mine!" And she answered:

"So deal with him, my husband, as he has dealt with you."

[48] And thus Abradatas went to Cyrus, and took him by the hand, and said:

"Cyrus, in return for the kindness you have shown us, I can say no more than this: I give myself to you, I will be your friend, your servant, and your ally: whatever you desire, I will help you to win, your fellow-worker always, so far as in me lies."

[49] Then Cyrus answered:

"And I will take your gift: but for the moment you must leave me, and sup with your wife: another day you will let me play the host, and give you lodging with your friends and mine."

[50] Afterwards Abradatas perceived how much Cyrus had at heart the scythe-bearing chariots and the cavalry and the war-horses with their armour, and he resolved to equip a hundred chariots for him out of his own cavalry force. [51] These he proposed to lead himself in a chariot of his own, four-poled and drawn by eight horses, all the eight protected by chest-plates of bronze. [52] So Abradatas set to work, and this four-poled chariot of his gave Cyrus the idea of making a car with eight poles, drawn by eight yoke of oxen, to carry the lowest compartment of the battering engines, which stood, with its wheels, about twenty-seven feet from the ground. [53] Cyrus felt that he had a series of such towers brought into the field at a fair pace they would be of immense service to him, and inflict as much damage on the enemy.

The towers were built with galleries and parapets, and each of them could carry twenty men. [54] When the whole was put together he tested it and found that the eight yoke of oxen could draw the whole tower with the men more easily than one yoke by itself could manage the ordinary weight of baggage, which came to about five-and-twenty talents apiece, whereas the tower, build of planks about as thick as the boards for a stage, weighed less than fifteen for each yoke. [55] Thus, having satisfied himself that the attempt was perfectly possible, he arranged to take the towers into action, believing that in war selfishness meant salvation, justice, and happiness.

[C.2] About this time amba.s.sadors came to Cyrus from India with gifts of courtesy and a message from their king, saying:

"I send you greeting, Cyrus, and I rejoice that you told me of your needs. I desire to be your friend and I offer you gifts; and if you have need of anything more, I bid you say the word, and it shall be yours. I have told my men to do whatever you command."

[2] Then Cyrus answered:

"This, then, is my bidding: the rest of you shall stay where you have pitched your tents; you shall guard your treasures and live as you choose: but three of you shall go to the enemy and make believe that you have come to him about an alliance with your king, and thus you shall learn how matters stand, and all they say and all they do, and so bring me word again with speed. And if you serve me well in this, I shall owe you even more than I could owe you for these gifts. There are some spies who are no better than slaves, and have no skill to find out anything more than is known already, but there are men of another sort, men of your stamp, who can discover plans that are not yet disclosed."

[3] The Indians listened gladly, and for the moment made themselves at home as the guests of Cyrus: but the next day they got ready and set off on their journey, promising to find out as much as they could of the enemy's secrets and bring him word again with all possible speed.