No More Learning

At the age of ten he succeeded to the estate and title of his granduncle William, fifth Lord Byron. He was educated"at Harrow and Cambridge, and in 1807 published his first volume of poems, Hours of Idle ness. " After a tour through eastern Europe he brought out two cantos of " Childe Harold," which met with instantaneous success, and soon after he mar ried the heiress Miss Millbanke. The union proving unfortunate, Byron left England, and passed several years in Italy. In 1823 he joined the Greek insur gents in Cephalonia, and later at Missolonghi, where he died of a fever April 19, 1824. His chief poetical works are: "Childe Harold," "Don Juan," "Manfred," "Cain," "Marino Faliero," " Sardanapalus," "The Giaour," "Bride of Abydos," "The Corsair," "Lara," and "Mazeppa. "]
The isles of Greece ! The isles of Greece ! Where burning Sappho loved and sung, —
Where grew the arts of war and peace, Where Delos rose and Phoebus sprung !
Eternal summer gilds them yet, — But all, except their sun, is set.
The Scian and the Teian muse,
The hero's harp, the lover's lute,
Have found the fame your shores refuse ; Their place of birth alone is mute
To sounds that echo further west
Than your sires' " Islands of the Blest. "
The mountains look on Marathon, And Marathon looks on the sea ;
And musing there an hour alone,
I dreamed that Greece might still be free ;
For, standing on the Persian's grave, I could not deem myself a slave.
A king sat on the rocky brow
That looks o'er sea-born Salamis ;
And ships by thousands lay below, And men in nations — all were his !
He counted them at break of day —
And when the sun set, where were they ?
THE ISLES OF GREECE.
And where are they ? and where art thou, My country ? On thy voiceless shore
The heroic lay is tuneless now — The heroic bosom beats no more !
And must thy lyre, so long divine, Degenerate into hands like mine ?
'Tis something in the dearth of fame, Though linked among a fettered race,
To feel at least a patriot's shame, Even as I sing, suffuse my face,
For what is left the poet here ?
For Greeks a blush — for Greece a tear.
Must we but weep o'er days more blessed ? Must we but blush ? — Our fathers bled.
Earth! render back from out thy breast A remnant of our Spartan dead !
Of the three hundred grant but three, To make a new Thermopylae !
What! silent still? and silent all? Ah ! no ; the voices of the dead Sound like a distant torrent's fall,
And answer, " Let one living head, But one, arise — we come, we come ! " 'Tis but the living who are dumb.
In vain — in vain ; strike other chords : Fill high the cup with Samian wine !
Leave battles to the Turkish hordes, And shed the blood of Scio's vine !
Hark ! rising to the ignoble call, How answers each bold Bacchanal !
You have the Pyrrhic dance as yet — Where is the Pyrrhic phalanx gone ?
Of two such lessons, why forget The nobler and the manlier one ?
You have the letters Cadmus gave — Think ye he meant them for a slave ?
THE ISLES OF GREECE.
Fill high the bowl with Samian wine !
We will not think of themes like these !
It made Anacreon's song divine :
He served — but served Polycrates —
A tyrant ; but our masters then Were still at least our countrymen.
The tyrant of the Chersonese
Was freedom's best and bravest friend ;
That tyrant was Miltiades !
Oh ! that the present hour would lend
Another despot of the kind !
Such chains as his were sure to bind.
Fill high the bowl with Samian wine ! On Suli's rock and Parga's shore
Exists the remnant of a line
Such as the Doric mothers bore ;
And there, perhaps, some seed is sown The Heracleidan blood might own.
Trust not for Freedom to the Franks — They have a king who buys and sells;
In native swords and native ranks, The only hope of courage dwells ;
But Turkish force and Latin fraud Would break your shield, however broad.
Fill high the bowl with Samian wine ! — I Our virgins dance beneath the shade
see their glorious black eyes shine : But, gazing on each glowing maid, My own the burning tear drop laves,
To think such breasts must suckle slaves.
Place me on Sunium's marble steep — Where nothing, save the waves and I,
May hear our mutual murmurs sweep : There, swanlike, let me sing and die :
A land of slaves shall ne'er be mine — Dash down yon cup of Samian wine !
200 ANACREONTICS.
ANACREONTICS. School of Anacbeon.
[Ahacreon flourished in the sixth century b. c, and was the chief orna ment for a while of the court of Polycrates, tyrant of Samos. He was ranked first in his age for the lyric of wine and women, and what we now call the "Horatian" philosophy of life; but his manner was so easy to imitate that his own effusions are lost in the swarm of copies. ]
(The first three following translations are by Abraham Cowley. ) Drinking.
The thirsty earth soaks up the rain,
And drinks, and gapes for drink again. The plants suck in the earth and are, With constant drinking, fresh and fair. The sea itself, which one would think Should have but little need of drink, Drinks ten thousand rivers up,
So filled that they o'erflow the cup.
The busy sun (and one would guess
By his drunken, fiery face no less)
Drinks up the sea, and when he 'as done, The moon and stars drink up the sun. They drink and dance by their own light, They drink and revel all the night. Nothing in Nature's sober sound,
But an eternal health goes round.
Fill up the bowl, then, fill it high,
Fill all the glasses there, for why
Should eVry creature drink but I ?
Why, men of morals, tell me why ?
Gold.
A mighty pain to love it
And 'tis pain that pain to miss; But of all pain the greatest pain It to love, but love in vain. Virtue now, nor noble blood,
Nor wit, by love understood; Gold alone does passion move, Gold monopolizes love
is !
is
a
is,
ANACREONTICS.
A curse on her, and on the man,
Who this traffic first began !
A curse on him who found the ore !
A curse on him who digged the store ! A curse on him who did refine it !
A curse on him who first did coin it ! A curse, all curses else above,
On him who used it first in love !
Gold begets in brethren hate,
Gold in families, debate ;
Gold does friendship separate,
Gold does civil wars create ;
These the smallest harms of it !
Gold, alas ! does love beget.
The Gbasshoppeb.
Happy insect ! what can be
In happiness compared to thee ?
Fed with nourishment divine, —
The dewy Morning's gentle wine ! Nature waits upon thee still,
And thy verdant cup does fill ;
'Tis filled wherever thou dost tread, Nature's self's thy Ganymede.
Thou dost drink, and dance, and sing, Happier than the happiest king.
All the fields which thou dost see,
All the plants, belong to thee ;
All that summer hours produce,
Fertile made with early juice ;
Man for thee does sow and plow; Farmer he, and landlord thou !
Thou dost innocently joy,
Nor does thy luxury destroy.
The shepherd gladly heareth thee,
More harmonious than he.
Thee country hinds with gladness hear, Prophet of the ripened year !
Thee Phoebus loves, and does inspire ; Phoebus is himself thy fire.
To thee of all things upon earth,
Life is no longer than thy mirth. Happy insect ! happy thou,
Dost neither age nor winter know ;
ANACREONTICS.
But when thou'st drunk, and danced, and sung Thy fill, the flow'ry leaves among,
(Voluptuous, and wise withal,
Epicurean animal ! )
Sated with thy summer feast, Thou retir'st to endless rest.
(The four following are translated by Thomas Moore. ) Drink while we Mat.
I care not for the idle state
Of Persia's king, the rich, the great !
I envy not the monarch's throne,
Nor wish the treasured gold my own.
But oh ! be mine the rosy braid,
The fervor of my brows to shade ;
Be mine the odors, richly sighing,
Amidst my hoary tresses flying.
To-day I'll haste to quaff my wine,
As if to-morrow ne'er should shine !
But if to-morrow comes, why then —
I'll haste to quaff my wine again.
And thus while all our days are bright,
Nor time has dimmed their bloomy light, Let us the festal hours beguile
With mantling cup and cordial smile ;
And shed from every bowl of wine
The richest drop on Bacchus' shrine !
For death may come with brow unpleasant, May come when least we wish him present, And beckon to the sable shore,
And grimly bid us — drink no more !
"Anttthing that Touches Thee. "
The Phrygian rock, that braves the storm, Was once a weeping matron's form;
And Progue, hapless, frantic maid,
Is now a swallow in the shade.
Oh ! that a mirror's form were mine, To sparkle with that smile divine ; And, like my heart, I then should be Reflecting thee, and only thee !
Or were I, love, the robe which flows O'er every charm that secret glows,
ANACREONTICS.
In many a lucid fold to swim,
And cling and grow to every limb !
Oh ! could I as the streamlet's wave,
Thy warmly mellowing beauties lave,
Or float as perfume on thine hair,
And breathe my soul in fragrance there ! I wish I were the zone that lies
Warm to thy breast, and feels its sighs !
Or like those envious pearls that show So faintly round that neck of snow ; Yes, I would be a happy gem,
Like them to hang, to fade like them. What more would thy Anacreon be ? Oh ! anything that touches thee. — Nay, sandals for those airy feet
Thus to be pressed by thee were sweet !
"Begone, Dull Care. "
I know that Heaven ordains me here To run this mortal life's career ;
The scenes which I have journeyed o'er Beturn no more — alas ! no more !
And all the path I've yet to go
I neither know nor ask to know.
Then surely, Care, thou canst not twine Thy fetters round a soul like mine ; No, no, the heart that feels with me Can never be a slave to thee !
And oh ! before the vital thrill,
Which trembles at my heart, is still, I'll gather joy's luxurious flowers,
And gild with bliss my fading hours ; Bacchus shall bid my winter bloom, And Venus dance me to the tomb !
The Progress op Venus.
And whose immortal hand could shed Upon this disk the ocean's bed ?
And, in a frenzied flight of soul, Sublime as Heaven's eternal pole, Imagine thus, in semblance warm, The Queen of Love's voluptuous form, Floating along the silvery sea
In beauty's naked majesty ?
204
ANACREONTICS.
Oh ! he has given the raptured sight A witching banquet of delight ;
And all those sacred scenes of Love, Where only hallowed eyes may rove, Lie faintly glowing, half concealed, Within the lucid billows veiled.
Light as the leaf that summer's breeze Has wafted o'er the glassy seas,
She floats upon the ocean's breast, Which ondulates in sleepy rest,
And stealing on, she gently pillows
Her bosom on the amorous billows.
Her bosom, like the humid rose,
Her neck, like dewy-sparkling snows, Illume the liquid path she traces,
And burn within the stream's embraces ! In languid luxury soft she glides, Encircled by the azure tides,
Like some fair lily, faint with weeping, Upon a bed of violets sleeping ! Beneath their queen's inspiring glance, The dolphins o'er the green sea dance, Bearing in triumph young Desire,
And baby Love with smiles of fire ! While, sparkling on the silver waves, The tenants of the briny caves Around the pomp in eddies play,
And gleam along the watery way.
(Translated by Thomas Stanley. ) Beauty.
Horns to bulls wise Nature lends ; Horses she with hoofs defends ;
Hares with nimble feet relieves ; Dreadful teeth to lions gives ;
Fishes learn through streams to slide ; Birds through yielding air to glide ; Men with courage she supplies ;
But to women these denies.
What then gives she ? Beauty, this Both their arms and armor is :
She, that can this weapon use,
Fire and sword with ease subdues.
Venus.
Photogravure from the painting by J. K. Wegneli
THE STORY OF CRCESUS. 205
THE STORY OF CRG3SUS. By HERODOTUS.
[For biographical sketch see page 125. ]
Cbossus was a Lydian by birth ; son of Alyattes, and sover eign of the nations on this side the river Halys. He was the first barbarian we know of that subjected some of the Greeks to the payment of tribute, and formed alliances with others. He subdued the Ionians and iEolians, and the Dorians in Asia, and formed an alliance with the Lacedaemonians. Before the reign of Croesus all the Greeks were free ; for the incursion of the Cimmerians into Ionia was not for the purpose of subject ing states, but an irruption for plunder.
The government, which formerly belonged to the Heraclidae, passed in the following manner to the family of Croesus, who were called Mermnadae. Candaules was tyrant of Sardis, and a descendant of Hercules. He was enamored of his own wife, and thought her by far the most beautiful of women. Gyges, one of his bodyguard, happened to be his especial favorite ; and to him Candaules confided his most important affairs, and moreover extolled the beauty of his wife in exaggerated terms. At last (for he was fated to be miserable) he addressed Gyges as follows: "Gyges, as I think you do not believe me when I speak of my wife's beauty (for the ears of men are natu rally more incredulous than their eyes), you must contrive to see her naked. " "
But he, exclaiming loudly, answered :
Sire, what a shock ing proposal do you make, bidding me behold my queen
naked ! With her clothes a woman puts off her modesty. Wise maxims have been of old laid down by men; from these it is our duty to learn : among them is the following : —
" ' Let every man look to the things that concern himself. ' I am persuaded that she is the most beautiful of her sex, but I entreat of you not to require what is wicked. "
Saying thus, Gyges fought off the proposal, dreading lest some harm should befall himself ; but the king answered : " Gyges, take courage, and be not afraid of me, as if I desired to make trial of you by speaking thus ; nor of my wife, lest any harm should befall you from her : for I will so contrive that she shall not know she has been seen by you. I will place you behind the open door of the apartment in which we
206 THE STORY OF CRCESUS.
sleep : as soon as I enter, my wife will come to bed. There stands by the entrance a chair ; on this she will lay her gar ments one by one as she takes them off, and then she will give you an opportunity to look at her at your leisure : but when she steps from the chair to the bed, and you are at her back, be careful that she does not see you as you are going out by the door. "
Gyges therefore, rinding he could not escape, prepared to obey. And Candaules, when it seemed to be time to go to bed, led him to the chamber, and the lady soon afterward appeared, and Gyges saw her enter and lay her clothes on the chair : when he was at her back, as the lady was going to the bed, he crept secretly out, but she saw him as he was going away. Perceiv ing what her husband had done, she neither cried out through modesty, nor appeared to notice purposing to take vengeance on Candaules for among the Lydians and almost all the bar barians, deemed great disgrace even for man to be seen naked.
At the time, therefore, having shown no consciousness of what had occurred, she held her peace and as soon as was day, having prepared such of her domestics as she knew were most to be trusted, she sent for Gyges. He, supposing that she knew nothing of what had happened, came when he was sent for, for he had been before used to attend whenever the queen sent for him. When Gyges came, the lady thus addressed him " Gyges, submit two proposals to your choice either kill Candaules and take possession of me and of the Lydian kingdom, or expect immediate death, so that you may not, from your obedience to Candaules in all things, again see what you ought not. It necessary that he who planned this, or that you who have seen me naked, and have done what not decorous, should die. "
Gyges for time was stunned at what he heard but after ward he implored her not to compel him to make such choice. He could not persuade her, however, but saw the necessity imposed on him either to kill his master Candaules or die him self by the hands of others he therefore chose to survive, and made the following inquiry " Since you compel me to kill my master against my will, tell me how we shall lay hands on him. "
She answered " The assault shall be made from the very spot whence he showed me naked the attack shall be made on him while asleep. "
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THE STOKY OF CRCESUS.
207
On the approach of night he followed the lady to the cham ber; then (for Gyges was not suffered to depart, nor was there any possibility of escape, but either he or Candaules must needs perish) she, having given him a dagger, concealed him behind the same door; and after this, when Candaules was asleep, Gyges crept stealthily up and slew him, possessing himself both of the woman and the kingdom. . . .
After he had reduced the Grecians in Asia to the payment of tribute, he formed a design to build ships and attack the Islanders. But when all things were ready for the building of ships, Bias of Priene (or, as others 6ay, Pittacus of Mitylene), arriving at Sardis, put a stop to his shipbuilding by making this reply, when Croesus inquired if he had any news from Greece : " O king, the Islanders are enlisting a large body of cavalry, with intention to make war upon you and Sardis. "
Croesus, thinking he had spoken the truth, said : " May the gods put such a thought into the Islanders as to attack the sons of the Lydians with horse. " The other, answering, said : "Sire, you appear to wish above all things to see the Islanders on horseback upon the continent ; and not without reason. But what can you imagine the Islanders more earnestly desire, after having heard of your resolution to build a fleet in order to attack them, than to catch the Lydians at sea, that they may revenge on you the cause of those Greeks who dwell on the continent, whom you hold in subjection ? " Croesus was much pleased with the retort, put a stop to the shipbuilding, and made an alliance with the Ionians that inhabit the islands.
In course of time, when nearly all the nations that dwell within the river Halys, except the Cilicians and Lycians, were subdued, and Croesus had added them to the Lydians, all the other wise men of that time, as each had opportunity, came from Greece to Sardis, which had then attained to the high est degree of prosperity : and among them Solon, an Athenian, who, having made laws for the Athenians at their request, absented himself for ten years, having sailed away under pre tense of seeing the world, that he might not be compelled to abrogate any of the laws he had established ; for the Athenians could not do it themselves, since they were bound by solemn oaths to observe for ten years whatever laws Solon should enact for them.
Solon therefore, having gone abroad for these reasons, and for the purposes of observation, arrived in Egypt at the court of Amasis, and afterward at that of Croesus at Sardis. On his
208 THE STORY OF CR(ESUS.
arrival he was hospitably entertained by Croesus, and on the third or fourth day, by order of the king, the attendants con ducted him round the treasury, and showed him all their grand and costly contents ; and when he had seen and examined everything sufficiently, Croesus asked him this question : " My Athenian guest, your great fame has reached even to us, as well of your wisdom as of your travels, how that as a philosopher you have traveled through various countries for the purpose of
I am therefore desirous of asking you, who is the most happy man you have seen ?
observation ; "
He asked this question, because he thought himself the most happy of men. But Solon, speaking the truth freely, without any flattery, answered, "Tellus the Athenian. " "
He replied : " Tellus, in the first place, lived in a well-gov erned commonwealth ; had sons who were virtuous and good ; and he saw children born to them all, and all surviving : in the next place, when he had lived as happily as the condition of human affairs will permit, he ended his life in a most glorious manner; for, coming to the assistance of the Athenians in a battle with their neighbors of Eleusis, he put the enemy to flight, and died nobly. The Athenians buried him at the public charge in the place where he fell, and honored him greatly. "
When Solon had roused the attention of Croesus by relating many and happy circumstances concerning Tellus, Croesus, expecting at least to obtain the second place, asked whom he had seen next to him.
" Cleobis," said he, " and Biton ; for they, being natives of Argos, possessed a sufficient fortune, and had withal such strength of body, that they were both alike victorious in the public games. Moreover, the following story is told of them : when the Argives were celebrating a festival of Juno, it was necessary that their mother should be drawn to the temple in a chariot ; but the oxen did not come from the field in time : the young men therefore, being pressed for time, put themselves beneath the yoke, and drew the car in which their mother sat ; and having conveyed it forty -five stadia
[eight miles], they reached the temple. After they had done this in sight of the assembled people, a most happy termination was put to their lives ; and in them the Deity clearly showed that it is better for a man to die than to live. For the men of
Croesus, astonished at his answer, eagerly asked him, On what account do you deem Tellus the happiest ? "
THE STORY OF CRCESUS. 209
Argos, who stood round, commended the strength of the youths, and the women blessed her as the mother of such sons ; but the mother herself, transported with joy both on account of the action and its renown, stood before the image, and prayed that the goddess would grant to Cleobis and Biton, her own sons, who had so highly honored her, the greatest blessing man could receive. After this prayer, when they had sacrificed and par taken of the feast, the youths fell asleep in the temple itself, and never awoke more, but met with such a termination of life. Upon this the Argives, in commemoration of their piety, caused their statues to be made and dedicated at Delphi. "
Thus Solon adjudged the second place of felicity to these youths. But Croesus, being enraged, said : " My Athenian friend, is my happiness, then, so slighted by you as nothing worth, that you do not think me of so much value as private men? " "
Croesus, do you inquire of me concerning
He answered :
human affairs — of me, who know that the Divinity is always jealous, and delights in confusion ? For in lapse of time men are constrained to see many things they would not willingly see, and to suffer many things. Now I put the term of man's life at seventy years ; these seventy years, then, give twenty- five thousand two hundred days [360 to a year], without includ ing the intercalary month ; and if we add that month to every other year, in order that the seasons arriving at the proper time may agree, the intercalary months will be thirty-five more in the seventy years, and the days of these months will be one thousand and fifty. Yet in all this number of twenty-six thou sand two hundred and fifty days that compose these seventy years, one day produces nothing exactly the same as another. Thus, then, Croesus, man is altogether the sport of fortune. You appear to me to be master of immense treasures, and king of many nations ; but as relates to what you inquire of me, I cannot say till I hear you have ended your life happily. For the richest of men is not more happy than he that has a suffi ciency for a day, unless good fortune attend him to the grave, so that he ends his life in happiness. Many men who abound in wealth are unhappy ; and many who have only a moderate competency, are fortunate. He that abounds in wealth, and is yet unhappy, surpasses the other only in two things ; but the other surpasses the wealthy and the miserable in many things. The former indeed is better able to gratify desire, and
vol. in. — 14
210 THE STORY OF CR(ESUS.
to bear the blow of adversity. But the latter surpasses him in this : he is not indeed equally able to bear misfortune or satisfy desire, but his good fortune wards off these things from him ; and he enjoys the full use of his limbs, he is free from disease and misfortune, he is blessed with good children and a fine form, and if, in addition to all these things, he shall end his life well, he is the man you seek, and may justly be called happy : but before one dies we ought to suspend our judgment, and not pronounce him happy, but fortunate. Now it is impossible for any one man to comprehend all these advantages : as no one country suffices to produce everything for itself, but affords some and wants others, and that which affords the most is the best ; so no human being is in all respects self-sufficient, but possesses one advantage, and is in need of another : he there fore who has constantly enjoyed the most of these, and then ends his life tranquilly, this man, in my judgment, O king, deserves the name of happy. We ought therefore to consider the end of everything, in what way it will terminate ; for the Deity having shown a glimpse of happiness to many, has after ward utterly overthrown them. "
When he spoke thus to Croesus, Croesus did not confer any favor on him, and holding him in no account, dismissed him ; since he considered him a very ignorant man, because he over looked present prosperity, and bade men look to the end of everything.
After the departure of Solon, the indignation of the gods fell heavy upon Croesus, probably because he thought himself the most happy of all men. A dream soon after visited him while sleeping, which pointed out to him the truth of the misfortunes that were about to befall him in the person of one of his sons. For Croesus had two sons, of whom one was grievously afflicted, for he was a mute ; but the other, whose name was Atys, far surpassed all the young men of his age. Now the dream inti mated to Croesus that he would lose this Atys by a wound inflicted by the point of an iron weapon : he, when he awoke, and had considered the matter with himself, dreading the dream, provided a wife for his son ; and though he was accus tomed to command the Lydian troops, he did not ever after send him out on that business ; and causing all spears, lances, and such other weapons as men use in war, to be removed from the men's apartments, he had them laid up in private chambers, that none of them, being suspended, might fall upon his son.
THE STORY OF CR(ESUS. 211
While Croesus was engaged with his son's nuptials, a man oppressed by misfortune and whose hands were polluted, a Phrygian by birth and of royal family, arrived at Sardis. This man, having come to the palace of Croesus, sought permission to obtain purification according to the custom of the country. Croesus purified him (the manner of expiation is nearly the same among the Lydians and the Greeks) ; and when he had performed the usual ceremonies, inquired whence he came, and who he was ; speaking to him as follows : " Stranger, who art thou, and from what part of Phrygia hast thou come as a sup" pliant to my hearth ? and what man or woman hast thou slain ?
The stranger answered : " Sire, I am the son of Gordius, son of Midas, and am called Adrastus; having unwittingly slain my own brother, and being banished by my father and deprived of everything, I am come hither. "
Croesus answered as follows : " You are born of parents who are our friends, and you are come to friends among whom, if you will stay, you shall want nothing ; and by bearing your misfortune as lightly as possible, you will be the greatest gainer. " So Adrastus took up his abode in the palace of Croesus.
At this same time a boar of enormous size appeared in Mysian Olympus, and rushing down from that mountain, rav aged the fields of the Mysians. The Mysians, though they often went out against him, could not hurt him, but suffered much from him. At last deputies from the Mysians having come to Croesus, spoke as follows : " O king, a boar of enor mous size has appeared in our country, and ravages our fields : though we have often endeavored to take him, we cannot. We therefore earnestly beg that you would send with us your son, and some chosen youths with dogs, that we may drive him from the country. "
Such was their entreaty ; but " Croesus, remembering the warning of his dream, answered : Make no further mention of my son ; for I shall not send him with you, because he is lately married, and that now occupies his attention: but I will send with you chosen Lydians, and the whole hunting train, and will order them to assist you with their best endeavors in driving the monster from your country. "
Such was his answer ; and when the Mysians were content with this, the son of Croesus, who had heard of their request, came in ; and when Croesus refused to send him with them,
212 THE STORY OF CR(ESUS.
the youth thus addressed him : " Father, in time past I was permitted to signalize myself in the two most noble and becom ing exercises of war and hunting ; but now you keep me excluded from both, without having observed in me either cowardice or want of spirit. How will men look on me wheu I go or return from the forum ? What kind of man shall I appear to my fellow-citizens ? What to my newly married wife ? What kind of man will she think she has for a partner? Either suffer me, then, to go to this hunt, or convince me that it is better for me to do as you would have me. "
" My son," answered Croesus, " I act thus, not because I have seen any cowardice, or anything else unbecoming in you ; but a vision in a dream appearing to me in my sleep warned me that you would be short-lived, and would die by the point of an iron weapon. On account of this vision, therefore, I hastened your marriage, and now refuse to send you on this expedition ; taking care to preserve you, if by any means I can, as long as I live : for you are my only son ; the other, who is deprived of his hearing, I consider as loBt. "
The youth answered : " You are not to blame, my father, if after such a dream you take so much care of me ; but it is right for me to explain that which you do not comprehend, and which has escaped your notice in the dream. You say the dream signified that I should die by the point of an iron weapon. But what hand or what pointed iron weapon has a boar, to occasion such fears in you ? Had it said I should lose my life by a tusk, or something of like nature, you ought then to have done as you now do ; whereas it said by the point of a weapon : since, then, we have not to contend against men, let me go. "
" You have surpassed me," replied Croesus, " in explaining the import of the dream ; therefore, being overcome by you, I change my resolution, and permit you to go to the chase. "
Croesus, having thus spoken, sent for the Phrygian Adras- tus, and, when he came, addressed him as follows : "Adrastus, I purified you when smitten by a grievous misfortune, which I do not upbraid you with, and have received you into my house, and supplied you with everything necessary. Now, therefore (for it is your duty to requite me with kindness, since I have first conferred a kindness on you), I beg you would be my son's guardian, when he goes to the chase, and take care that no skulking villains show themselves in the way
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to do him harm. Besides, you ought to go for your own sake, where you may signalize yourself by your exploits ; for this was the glory of your ancestors, and you are, besides, in full vigor. "
Adrastus answered : " On no other account, sire, would I have taken part in this enterprise ; for it is not fitting that one in my unfortunate circumstances should join with his pros perous compeers, nor do I desire to do so ; and indeed I have often restrained myself. Now, however, since you urge me, and I ought to oblige you (for I am bound to requite the bene fits you have conferred on me), I am ready to do as you desire ; and rest assured that your son, whom you bid me take care of, shall, as far as his guardian is concerned, return to you uninjured. "
When Adrastus had made this answer to Croesus, they went away, well provided with chosen youths and dogs ; and having arrived at Mount Olympus, they sought the wild beast, and having found him and encircled him around, they hurled their javelins at him. Among the rest, the stranger, the same that had been purified of murder, named Adrastus, throwing his javelin at the boar, missed him, and struck the son of Croesus ; thus he, being pierced by the point of the lance, fulfilled the warning of the dream. Upon this, some one ran off to tell Croesus what had happened, and having arrived at Sardis, gave him an account of the action, and of his son's fate.
Croesus, exceedingly distressed by the death of his son, lamented it the more bitterly because he fell by the hand of one whom he himself had purified from blood ; and vehemently deploring his misfortune, he invoked Jove the Expiator, attest ing what he had suffered by this stranger. He invoked also the same deity, by the name of the god of hospitality and private friendship : as the god of hospitality, because, by re ceiving a stranger into his house, he had unawares fostered the murderer of his son ; as the god of private friendship, because, having sent him as a guardian, he found him his greatest enemy.
After this, the Lydians approached, bearing the corpse, and behind it followed the slayer. He, having advanced in front of the corpse, delivered himself up to Croesus, stretching forth his hands and begging of him to kill him upon it ; then relat ing his former misfortune, and how, in addition to that, he had destroyed his purifier, and that he ought to live no longer. When Croesus heard this, though his own affliction was so
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great, he pitied Adrastus, and said to him : " You have made me full satisfaction by condemning yourself to die. But you are not the author of this misfortune, except as far as you were the involuntary agent, but that god, whoever he was, that long since foreshadowed what was about to happen. "
Croesus therefore buried his son as the dignity of his birth required ; but Adrastus, son of Gordius, son of Midas, who had been the slayer of his own brother, and the slayer of his purifier, when all was silent round the tomb, judging himself the most heavily afflicted of all men, killed himself on the tomb. But Croesus, bereaved of his son, continued disconsolate for two years.
Some time after, the overthrow of the kingdom of Astyages son of Cyaxares, by Cyrus son of Cambyses, and the growing power of the Persians, put an end to the grief of Croesus ; and it entered into his thoughts whether he could by any means check the growing power of the Persians before they became formidable. After he had formed this purpose, he determined to make trial as well of the oracles in Greece as of that in Libya ; and sent different persons to different places, with the following orders : that, computing the days from the time of their departure from Sardis, they should consult the oracles on the hundredth day, by asking what Croesus, son of Alyattes and king of the Lydians, was then doing; and that they should bring him the answer of each oracle in writing. Now, what were the answers given by the other oracles is mentioned by none ; but no sooner had the Lydians entered the temple of Delphi to consult the god, and asked the question enjoined them, than the Pythian thus spoke in hexameter verse : " I know the number of the sands, and the measure of the sea ; I understand the dumb, and hear him that does not speak ; the savor of the hard-shelled tortoise boiled in brass with the flesh of lamb strikes on my senses ; brass is laid beneath it, and brass is put over it. "
The Lydians, having written down this answer of the Pythian, returned to Sardis. And when the rest, who had been sent to other places, arrived bringing the answers, Croesus, having opened each of them, examined their con tents ; but none of them pleased him. When, however, he heard that from Delphi, he immediately adored it and ap proved of it, being convinced that the oracle at Delphi alone was a real oracle, because it had discovered what he had done.
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For when he had sent persons to consult the different oracles, watching the appointed day, he had recourse to the following contrivance : having thought of what it was impossible to dis cover or guess at, he cut up a tortoise and a lamb, and boiled them himself together in a brazen caldron, and put on it a cover of brass.
Such, then, was the answer given to Croesus from Delphi : as regards the answer of the oracle of Amphiaraus, I cannot say what answer it gave to the Lydians, who performed the accustomed rites at the temple ; for nothing else is related than that he considered this also to be a true oracle.
After this he endeavored to propitiate the god at Delphi by magnificent sacrifices ; for he offered three thousand head of cattle of every kind fit for sacrifice, and having heaped up a great pile, he burned on it beds of gold and silver, vials of gold, and robes of purple and garments, hoping by that means more completely to conciliate the god ; he also ordered all the Lydians to offer to the god whatever he was able. When the sacrifice was ended, having melted down a vast quantity of gold, he cast half -bricks from it ; of which the longest were six palms in length, the shortest three, and in thickness one palm : their number was one hundred and seventeen : four of these, of pure gold, weighed each two talents and a half ; the other half -bricks of pale gold weighed two talents each. He made also the figure of a lion of fine gold, weighing ten talents.
Croesus, having finished these things, sent them to Delphi, and with them two large bowls, one of gold, the other of silver, and four casks of silver ; and he dedicated two lustral vases, one of gold, the other of silver ; at the same time he sent many other offerings : among them some round silver covers ; and more over, a statue of a woman in gold three cubits high, which the Delphians say is the image of Croesus' baking woman ; and to all these things he added the necklaces and girdles of his wife.
These were the offerings he sent to Delphi ; and to Amphia raus, having ascertained his virtue and sufferings, he dedicated a shield all of gold, and a lance of solid gold, the shaft as well as the points being of gold ; and these are at Thebes, in the temple of Ismenian Apollo.
To the Lydians appointed to convey these presents to the temples, Croesus gave it in charge to inquire of the oracles whether he should make war on the Persians, and if he should unite any other nation as an ally. Accordingly, when the
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Lydians arrived at the places to which they were sent, and had dedicated the offerings, they consulted the oracles, saying : "Croesus, king of the Lydians and of other nations, esteem ing these to be the only oracles among men, sends these presents in acknowledgment of your discoveries ; and now asks whether he should lead an army against the Persians, and whether he should join any auxiliary forces with his own. " Such were their questions : and the opinions of both oracles concurred, foretelling " that if Croesus should make war on the Persians, he would destroy a mighty empire ; " and they advised him to engage the most powerful of the Grecians in his alliance.
When Croesus heard the answers that were brought back, he was beyond measure delighted with the oracles ; and fully expecting that he should destroy the kingdom of Cyrus, he again sent to Delphi, and having ascertained the number of the inhabitants, presented each of them with two staters of gold. In return for this, the Delphians gave Croesus and the Lydians the right to consult the oracle before any others, and exemption from tribute, and the first seats in the temple, and the privilege of being made citizens of Delphi to as many as should desire it in all future time.
Croesus, having made these presents to the Delphians, sent a third time to consult the oracle ; for after he had ascertained the veracity of the oracle, he had frequent recourse to it. His demand now was, whether he should long enjoy the kingdom ? to which the Pythian gave this answer : " When a mule shall become king of the Medes, then, tenderfooted Lydian, flee over pebbly Hermus, nor tarry, nor blush to be a coward. "
With this answer, when reported to him, Croesus was more than ever delighted, thinking that a mule should never be king of the Medes instead of a man, and consequently that neither he nor his posterity should ever be deprived of the kingdom. In the next place, he began to inquire carefully who were the most powerful of the Greeks whom he might gain over as allies ; and on inquiry, found that the Lacedaemonians and Athenians excelled the rest, the former being of Dorian, the latter of Ionic descent ; for these were in ancient time the most distinguished, the latter being a Pelasgian, the other an Hellenic nation.
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Croesus then prepared to invade Cappadocia, hoping to over throw Cyrus and the power of the Persians. While Croesus
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was preparing for his expedition against the Persians, a certain Lydian, who before that time was esteemed a wise man, and on this occasion acquired a very great name in Lydia, gave him advice in these words (the name of this person was Sandanis) : " O king, you are preparing to make war against a people who wear leather trousers, and the rest of their garments of leather ; who inhabit a barren country, and feed not on such things as they choose, but such as they can get. Besides, they do not habitually use wine, but drink water ; nor have they figs to eat, nor anything that is good. In the first place, then, if you should conquer, what will you take from them, since they have nothing? On the other hand, if you should be conquered, consider what good things you will lose ; for when they have tasted of our good things, they will become fond of them, nor will they be driven from them. As for me, I thank the gods that they have not put it into the thoughts of the Persians to make war on the Lydians. " In saying this, he did not persuade Croesus.
Croesus invaded Cappadocia for the following reasons : as well from a desire of adding it to his own dominions, as, espe cially, from his confidence in the oracle, and a wish to punish Cyrus on account of Astyages ; for Cyrus son of Cambyses had subjugated Astyages son of Cyaxares, who was brother-in- law of Croesus and king of the Medes. He had become brother- in-law to Croesus in the following manner : —
A band of Scythian nomads having risen in rebellion, with drew into Media. At that time Cyaxares son of Phraortes, grandson of Deioces, ruled over the Medes ; he at first received these Scythians kindly, as being suppliants ; so much so that, esteeming them very highly, he intrusted some youths to them to learn their language and the use of the bow. In course of time, it happened that these Scythians, who were constantly going out to hunt, and who always brought home something, on one occasion took nothing. On their returning empty- handed, Cyaxares (for he was, as he proved, of a violent temper) treated them with most opprobrious language. The Scyth ians, having met with this treatment from Cyaxares, and con sidering it undeserved by them, determined to kill one of the youths that were being educated under their care ; and having prepared the flesh as they used to dress the beasts taken in hunting, to serve it up to Cyaxares as if it were game, and then to make their escape immediately to Alyattes son of Sadyattes,
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at Sardis. This was accordingly done, and Cyaxares and his guests tasted of this flesh ; and the Scythians, having done this, became suppliants to Alyattes.
After this (for Alyattes refused to deliver up the Scythians to Cyaxares when he demanded them), war lasted between the Lydians and the Medes for five years ; during this period the Medes often defeated the Lydians, and often the Lydians defeated the Medes ; and during this time they had a kind of nocturnal engagement. In the sixth year, when they were carrying on the war with nearly equal success, on occasion of an engagement, it happened that in the heat of the battle day was suddenly turned into night. This change of the day Thales the Milesian had foretold to the Ionians, fixing beforehand this year as the very period in which the change actually took place. The Lydians and Medes seeing night succeeding in the place of day, desisted from fighting, and both showed a great anxiety to make peace. Syennesis the Cilician, and Labynetus the Babylonian, were the mediators of their reconciliation : these were they who hastened the treaty between them, and made a matrimonial connection ; for they persuaded Alyattes to give his daughter Aryenis in marriage to Astyages son of Cyaxares : for without strong necessity, agreements are not wont to remain firm. These nations in their federal contracts observe the same ceremonies as the Greeks ; and in addition, when they have cut their arms to the outer skin, they lick up one another's blood.
Cyrus had subdued this same Astyages, his grandfather by the mother's side, for reasons which I shall hereafter relate. Croesus, alleging this against him, sent to consult the oracle if he should make war on the Persians ; and when an ambiguous answer came back, he, interpreting it to his own advantage, led his army against the territory of the Persians. When he arrived at the river Halys, Croesus transported his forces, as I believe, by the bridges which are now there. But the common opinion of the Grecians is, that Thales the Milesian procured him a passage ; for, while Croesus was in doubt how his army should pass over the river (for they say that these bridges were not at that time in existence), Thales, who was in the camp, caused the stream, which flowed along the left of the army, to flow likewise on the right ; and he contrived it thus : having begun above the camp, he dug a deep trench, in the shape of a half-moon, so that the river, being turned into this from its old
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channel, might pass in the rear of the camp pitched where it then was, and afterward, having passed by the camp, might fall into its former course ; so that as soon as the river was divided into two streams, it became fordable in both. Some say that the ancient channel of the river was entirely dried up : but this I cannot assent to ; for how then could they have crossed it on their return ?
However, Croesus, having passed the river with his army, came to a place called Pteria, in Cappadocia. (Now Pteria is the strongest position of the whole of this country, and is situ ated over against Sinope, a city on the Euxine Sea. ) Here he encamped, and ravaged the lands of the Syrians, and took the city of the Pterians, and enslaved the inhabitants ; he also took all the adjacent places, and expelled the inhabitants, who had given him no cause for blame. But Cyrus, having assembled his own army, and having taken with him all who inhabited the intermediate country, went to meet Croesus. But before he began to advance, he sent heralds to the Ionians, to persuade them to revolt from Croesus : the Ionians, however, refused. When Cyrus had come up and encamped opposite Croesus, they made trial of each other's strength on the plains of Pteria ; but when an obstinate battle took place, and many fell on both sides, they at last parted on the approach of night, neither having been victorious. In this manner did the two armies engage.
But Croesus laying the blame on his own army on account of the smallness of its numbers, for his forces that engaged were far fewer than those of Cyrus — laying the blame on this, when on the following day Cyrus did not attempt to attack him, he marched back to Sardis, designing to summon the Egyptians according to treaty, for he had made an alliance with Amasis, king of Egypt, before he had with the Lacedaemonians ; and to send for the Babylonians (for he had made an alliance with them also, and Labynetus at this time reigned over the Baby lonians), and to require the presence of the Lacedaemonians at a fixed time : having collected these together, and assembled his own army, he purposed, when winter was over, to attack the Persians in the beginning of the spring. With this design, when he reached Sardis, he dispatched ambassadors to his dif ferent allies, requiring them to meet at Sardis before the end of five months ; but the army that was with him, and that had fought with the Persians, which was composed of mercenary
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troops, he entirely disbanded, not imagining that Cyrus, who had come off on such equal terms, would venture to advance upon Sardis.
While Croesus was forming these plans, the whole suburbs were filled with serpents ; and when they appeared, the horses, forsaking their pastures, came and devoured them. When Croesus beheld this, he considered it to be, as it really was, a prodigy, and sent immediately to consult the interpreters at Telmessus : but the messengers having arrived there, and learned from the Telmessians what the prodigy portended, were unable to report it to Croesus ; for before they sailed back to Sardis, Croesus had been taken prisoner. The Telmessians had pronounced as follows: "That Croesus must expect a foreign army to invade his country, which, on its arrival, would subdue the natives ; because, they said, the serpent is a son of the earth, but the horse is an enemy and a stranger. " This answer the Telmessians gave to Croesus when he had been already taken, yet without knowing what had happened with respect to Sardis or Croesus himself.
But Cyrus, as soon as Croesus had retreated after the battle at Pteria, having discovered that it was the intention of Croesus to disband his army, found, upon deliberation, that it would be to his advantage to march with all possible expedition on Sardis, before the forces of the Lydians could be a second time assembled ; and when he had thus determined, he put his plan into practice with all possible expedition ; for having marched his army into Lydia, he brought this news of his own enter prise to Croesus. Thereupon Croesus, being thrown into great perplexity, seeing that matters had turned out contrary to his expectations, nevertheless drew out the Lydians to battle ; and at that time no nation in Asia was more valiant and warlike than the Lydians. Their mode of fighting was from on horse back ; they were armed with long lances, and managed their horses with admirable address.
Cyrus, alarmed at the cavalry, had recourse to the following stratagem: having collected together all the camels that followed his army with provisions and baggage, and caused their burdens to be taken off, he mounted men upon them equipped in cavalry accouterments ; and having furnished them, he ordered them to go in advance of the rest of his army against the Lydian horse, commanded his infantry to follow the camels, and placed the whole of his cavalry behind the infantry. When all were drawn
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up in order, he charged them not to spare any of the Lydians, but to kill every one they met; but on no account to kill Croesus, even if he should offer resistance when taken. He drew up the camels in the front of the cavalry for this reason: a horse is afraid of a camel, and cannot endure either to see its form or to scent its smell. Accordingly, when they joined battle, the horses no sooner smelt the camels and saw them, than they wheeled round, and the hopes of Croesus were de stroyed. Nevertheless, the Lydians were not therefore dis couraged, but when they perceived what had happened, leaped from their horses and engaged with the Persians on foot; at last, when many had fallen on both sides, the Lydians were put to flight, and being shut up within the walls, were besieged by the Persians.
On the fourteenth day after Croesus had been besieged, Cyrus sent horsemen throughout his army, and proclaimed that he would liberally reward the man who should first mount the wall : upon this, several attempts were made, and as often failed ; till, after the rest had desisted, a Mardian, whose name was Hyroeades, endeavored to climb up on that part of the citadel where no guard was stationed, because there did not appear to be any danger that it would be taken on that part, for on that side the citadel was precipitous and impracticable. This is the quarter of the city that faces Mount Tmolus. Now this Hyroe ades the Mardian, having seen a Lydian come down this preci pice the day before for a helmet that was rolled down, and carry it up again, noticed it carefully, and reflected on it in his mind : he thereupon ascended the same way, followed by divers Per sians; and when great numbers had gone up, Sardis was thus taken, and the whole town plundered.
The following incidents befell Croesus himself. He had a son, of whom I have before made mention, who was in other respects proper enough, but dumb. Now, in the time of his former prosperity, Croesus had done everything he could for him, and among other expedients had sent to consult the oracle of Delphi concerning him ; but the Pythian gave him this answer : " O Lydian born, king of many, very foolish Croesus, wish not to hear the longed-for voice of thy son speaking within thy palace : it were better for thee that this should be far off ; for he will first speak in an unhappy clay. "
When the city was taken, one of the Persians, not knowing Croesus, was about to kill him. Croesus, though he saw him
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approach, from his present misfortune took no heed of him, nor did he care about dying by the blow ; but this speechless son of his, when he saw the Persian advancing against him, through dread and anguish burst into speech, and said, " Man, kill not Croesus. " These were the first words he ever uttered ; but from that time he continued to speak during the remainder of his life.
So the Persians got possession of Sardis, and made Croesus prisoner, after he had reigned fourteen years, been besieged fourteen days, and lost his great empire, as the oracle had pre dicted. The Persians, having taken him, conducted him to Cyrus ; and he, having heaped up a great pile, placed Croesus upon it, bound with fetters, and with him fourteen young Lydians, designing either to offer this sacrifice to some god as the first fruits of his victory, or wishing to perform a vow; or perhaps, having heard that Croesus was a religious person, he placed him on the pile for the purpose of discovering whether any deity would save him from being burned alive. When Croesus stood upon the pile, notwithstanding the weight of his misfortunes, the words of Solon recurred to him, as spoken by inspiration of the Deity, that " no living man could be justly called happy. " When this occurred to him, after a long silence he recovered himself, and uttering a groan, thrice pronounced the name of Solon. When Cyrus heard him, he commanded his interpreters to ask Croesus whom it was he called upon: they drew near and asked him, but Croesus for some time kept silence ; but at last, being constrained to speak, said, " I named a man whose discourses I more desire all tyrants might hear, than to be possessor of the greatest riches. "
When he gave them this obscure answer, they again inquired what he said ; and when they persisted in their inquiries, and were very importunate, he at length told them that Solon, an Athenian, formerly visited him, and having viewed all his treas ures, made no account of them ; telling, in a word, how every thing had befallen him as Solon had warned him, though his discourse related to all mankind as much as to himself, and especially to those who imagine themselves happy. The pile being now kindled, the outer parts began to burn : but Cyrus, informed by the interpreters of what Croesus had said, relented, and considering that being but a man, he was yet going to burn another man alive who had been no way inferior to himself in
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prosperity; and moreover fearing retribution, and reflecting that nothing human is constant, commanded the fire to be instantly extinguished and Croesus, with those who were about him, to be taken down ; but they, with all their endeavors, were unable to master the fire.
Croesus, perceiving that Cyrus had altered his resolution, when he saw every man endeavoring to put out the fire but unable to get the better of it, shouted aloud, invoking Apollo, and besought him, if ever any of his offerings had been agree able to him, to protect and deliver him from the present danger : he with tears invoked the god, and on a sudden clouds were seen gathering in the air, which before was serene, and a vio lent storm burst forth and vehement rain fell and extinguished the flames ; by which Cyrus perceiving that Croesus was beloved by the gods, and a good man, when he had had him taken down from the pile, asked him the following question : " Who persuaded you, Croesus, to invade my territories, and to become my enemy instead of my friend ? "
He answered : " O king, I have done this for your good but my own evil fortune, and the god of the Greeks who encour aged me to make war is the cause of all. For no man is so void of understanding as to prefer war before peace : for in the latter, children bury their fathers ; in the former, fathers bury their children. But I suppose it pleased the gods that these things should be so. "
He then thus spoke : but Cyrus, having set him at liberty, placed him by his own side, and showed him great respect ; and both he and all those that were with him were astonished at what they saw. But Croesus, absorbed in thought, remained silent ; and presently turning round and beholding the Per sians sacking the city of the Lydians, he said : " Does it become me, O king, to tell you what is passing through my mind, or to keep silent on the present occasion ? "
Cyrus bade him say with confidence whatever he wished; upon which Croesus asked him, saying, " What is this vast crowd so earnestly employed about? "
He answered, " They are sacking your city and plundering your riches. "
" Not so," Croesus replied ; " they are neither sacking my city nor plundering my riches, for they no longer belong to me, but they are ravaging what belongs to you. "
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The reply of Croesus attracted the attention of Cyrus ; he therefore ordered all the rest to withdraw, and asked Croesus what he thought should be done in the present conjuncture. He answered : " Since the gods have made me your servant, I think it my duty to acquaint you if I perceive anything deserv ing of remark. The Persians, who are by nature overbearing, are poor. If therefore you permit them to plunder and possess great riches, you may expect the following results : whoso acquires the greatest possessions, be assured will be ready to rebel. Therefore, if you approve what I say, adopt the follow ing plan : place some of your bodyguard as sentinels at every gate, with orders to take the booty from all those who would go out, and to acquaint them that the tenth must of necessity be consecrated to Jupiter : thus you will not incur the odium of taking away their property ; and they, acknowledging your intention to be just, will readily obey. "
Cyrus, when he heard this, was exceedingly delighted, as he thought the suggestion a very good one. Having therefore commended it highly, and ordered his guards to do what Croesus suggested, he addressed Croesus as follows : " Croesus, since you are resolved to display the deeds and words of a true king, ask whatever boon you desire on the instant. "
"Sir," he answered, "the most acceptable favor you can bestow upon me is to let me send my fetters to the god of the Grecians, whom I have honored more than any other deity, and to ask him if it be his custom to deceive those who deserve well of him. "
Cyrus asked him what cause he had to complain, that induced him to make this request : upon which Croesus recounted to him all his projects, and the answers of the oracles, and particularly the offerings he had presented ; and how he was incited by the oracle to make war against the Persians. When he had said this, he again besought him to grant him leave to reproach the god with these things. But Cyrus, smiling, said, "You shall not only receive this boon from me, but whatever else you may at any time desire. "
When Croesus heard this he sent certain Lydians to Delphi, with orders to lay his fetters at the entrance of the temple, and to ask the god if he were not ashamed to have encouraged Croesus by his oracles to make war on the Persians, as he would put an end to the power of Cyrus, of which war such
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were the first fruits (showing the fetters), and at the same time to ask if it were the custom of the Grecian gods to be ungrateful.
When the Lydians arrived at Delphi, and had delivered their message, the Pythian is reported to have made this an swer : —
" The god himself even cannot avoid the decrees of fate ; and Croesus has atoned the crime of his ancestor in the fifth generation, who, being one of the bodyguard of the Heraclidae, was induced by the artifice of a woman to murder his master, and to usurp his dignity, to which he had no right. But although Apollo was desirous that the fall of Sardis might happen in the time of the sons of Croesus, and not during his reign, yet it was not in his power to avert the fates : but so far as he allowed they accomplished, and conferred the boon on him ; for he delayed the capture of Sardis for the space of three years. Let Croesus know, therefore, that he was taken prisoner three years later than the fates had ordained ; and in the next place, he came to his relief when he was upon the point of being burned alive. Then, as to the prediction of the oracle, Croesus has no right to complain : for Apollo foretold him that if he made war on the Persians, he would subvert a great empire ; and had he desired to be truly informed, he ought to have sent again to inquire whether his own or that of Cyrus was meant. But since he neither understood the oracle, nor inquired again, let him lay the blame on himself. And when he last consulted the oracle, he did not understand the answer concerning the mule : for Cyrus was that mule ; inas much as he was born of parents of different nations, the mother superior, but the father inferior. For she was a Mede, and daughter of Astyages, king of Media ; but he was a Persian, subject to the Medes ; and though in every respect inferior, he married his own mistress. "
The Pythian gave this answer to the Lydians, and they carried it back to Sardis, and reported it to Croesus, and he, when he heard it, acknowledged the fault to be his, and not the god's.