{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_66070/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_66070","id":"gutenberg_66070","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/66070","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Children & Young Adult Reading","Category: History - Ancient","Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Greece -- History -- Juvenile literature","Mythology, Greek -- Juvenile literature"],"text":"THE STORY OF GREECE\n\n\n[Illustration: She changed her into a spider.]\n\n\n\n\n THE\n STORY OF GREECE\n\n TOLD TO BOYS AND GIRLS BY\n\n MARY MACGREGOR\n\n AUTHOR OF \u2018THE STORY OF ROME\u2019\n \u2018THE STORY OF FRANCE,\u2019 ETC.\n\n WITH NINETEEN PLATES IN COLOUR\n BY WALTER CRANE\n\n [Illustration]\n\n\n LONDON: T. C. & E. C. JACK, LTD.\n 35 PATERNOSTER ROW, E.C., & EDINBURGH\n\n\n\n\n TO\n JOYCE MOFFAT SCOTT\n\n\n\n\nDEAR LITTLE JOYCE,--One of the reasons why this book is to be your very\nown is that the story it tells begins in Wonderland, and that is a land\nin which you and all other little people wander at will.\n\nGrown up children, men and women as we call them, do not know the\nsecrets of this strange land, yet there are a few who can always find\ntheir way across its border, as they used to do when they were small\nlike you. Some few others there are who remember its secrets well.\n\nShall I tell you some of the things you hear and see and do in\nWonderland?\n\nWhy, when the wind blows soft, faint whispers reach your ear, but you\nalone know what the whispers tell. When the brooks gurgle you hear\njoyous laughter, and in the springs of water you see the sparkle of\nelfin eyes.\n\nAs the bluebells shake in the breeze, your tiny feet march to the music\nof fairy bands, as the raindrops fall you gather pearls with your\nlittle hands.\n\nThe secrets of this strange Wonderland make you so glad that you laugh\nand dance and sing.\n\n \u2018Great, wide, beautiful, wonderful world,\n With the wonderful water round you curled,\n And the wonderful grass upon your breast,\n World you are wonderfully drest.\u2019\n\nThe ancient Wonderland of Hellas, of which this story tells, was unlike\nyour Wonderland in this, that men and women dwelt in it as well as\nboys and girls, and they, too, saw and heard its secrets. And this was\nbecause, in a way not known to-day, each had kept the heart of a little\nchild.\n\nSo it was that these men and women heard voices in the wind and\nlaughter in the streams, so it was that they saw eyes in water springs\nand pearls in raindrops.\n\nMore even than these things the Hellenes saw. For across lone\nhillsides, through busy fields, in sacred groves and flower-sweet\nmeadows, radiant figures sped. And the simple folk catching glimpses\nof these flitting forms said one to the other, \u2018The gods have come to\nlive among us. Their presence it is that makes the earth so fair, so\nwonderful.\u2019 As the years passed and the Hellenes grew older, sterner\ntimes came. Cities sprang up on hillsides and by river-banks, and the\ngods were seldom seen. Men went to war, battles were lost and won.\n\nBut never, in victory or in defeat, did the people lose their early\nlove of beauty, or that strange, dreamy sense of wonder, which from the\nbeginning was ever plucking at their hearts.\n\nThey longed to fulfil their dreams of beauty, they wished to re-shape\nthe world.\n\nBut, because the world was so great, so wide, they began with one of\ntheir cities, the one of which a poet sang,\n\n \u2018O rich and renowned and with violets crowned,\n O Athens the envied of nations.\u2019\n\nHere they built temples which became the wonder of the world, and in\nthem they placed statues of the old gods of Hellas, beautiful statues\nwrought by master hands out of ivory and gold.\n\nPoets and philosophers lived in Athens, too, and so literature and art\nspread the glory of Greece far and wide, moulding the thoughts and\nquickening the deeds of many peoples.\n\nBefore the glory of Greece faded, Europe had learned from her to follow\ntruth, to love beauty.\n\nThis story tells but a small part of the wonder of this land, yet\nI hope that it will make you love her and wish to learn more about\nher.--Your friend,\n\n MARY MACGREGOR.\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS\n\n\n CHAP. PAGE\n I. WONDERLAND 1\n\n II. THE GREAT GOD PAN 3\n\n III. THE SIX POMEGRANATE SEEDS 6\n\n IV. THE BIRTH OF ATHENE 11\n\n V. THE TWO WEAVERS 13\n\n VI. THE PURPLE FLOWERS 16\n\n VII. DANAE AND HER LITTLE SON 18\n\n VIII. THE QUEST OF PERSEUS 22\n\n IX. ANDROMEDA AND THE SEA-MONSTER 26\n\n X. ACRISIUS IS KILLED BY PERSEUS 29\n\n XI. ACHILLES AND BRISEIS THE FAIRCHEEKED 32\n\n XII. MENELAUS AND PARIS DO BATTLE 38\n\n XIII. HECTOR AND ANDROMACHE 41\n\n XIV. THE HORSES OF ACHILLES 44\n\n XV. THE DEATH OF HECTOR 48\n\n XVI. POLYPHEMUS THE GIANT 54\n\n XVII. ODYSSEUS ESCAPES FROM THE CAVE 58\n\n XVIII. ODYSSEUS RETURNS TO ITHACA 61\n\n XIX. ARGUS THE HOUND DIES 64\n\n XX. THE BOW OF ODYSSEUS 67\n\n XXI. THE LAND OF HELLAS 72\n\n XXII. LYCURGUS AND HIS LITTLE NEPHEW 76\n\n XXIII. LYCURGUS RETURNS TO SPARTA 79\n\n XXIV. THE TRAINING OF THE SPARTANS 82\n\n XXV. THE HELOTS 85\n\n XXVI. ARISTOMENES AND THE FOX 89\n\n XXVII. THE OLYMPIAN GAMES 94\n\n XXVIII. THE LAST KING OF ATHENS 97\n\n XXIX. CYLON FAILS TO MAKE HIMSELF TYRANT 100\n\n XXX. SOLON FREES THE SLAVES 102\n\n XXXI. THE ATHENIANS TAKE SALAMIS 106\n\n XXXII. PISISTRATUS BECOMES TYRANT 109\n\n XXXIII. HARMODIUS AND ARISTOGITON 113\n\n XXXIV. THE LAW OF OSTRACISM 116\n\n XXXV. THE BRIDGE OF BOATS 118\n\n XXXVI. DARIUS REWARDS HISTIAEUS 121\n\n XXXVII. HISTIAEUS SHAVES THE HEAD OF HIS SLAVE 123\n\n XXXVIII. SARDIS IS DESTROYED 126\n\n XXXIX. THE SANDAL SEWN BY HISTIAEUS 129\n\n XL. DARIUS DEMANDS EARTH AND WATER 131\n\n XLI. THE BATTLE OF MARATHON 134\n\n XLII. MILTIADES SAILS TO THE ISLAND OF PAROS 137\n\n XLIII. ARISTIDES IS OSTRACISED 140\n\n XLIV. THE DREAM OF XERXES 145\n\n XLV. XERXES ORDERS THE HELLESPONT TO BE SCOURGED 148\n\n XLVI. \u2018THE BRAVEST MEN OF ALL HELLAS\u2019 153\n\n XLVII. THE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE 156\n\n XLVIII. THE BATTLE OF ARTEMISIUM 161\n\n XLIX. THEMISTOCLES URGES EURYBIADES TO STAY AT SALAMIS 163\n\n L. THEMISTOCLES TRICKS THE ADMIRALS 167\n\n LI. THE BATTLE OF SALAMIS 169\n\n LII. THE BATTLE OF PLATAEA 173\n\n LIII. THE DELIAN LEAGUE 178\n\n LIV. THEMISTOCLES DECEIVES THE SPARTANS 182\n\n LV. THEMISTOCLES IS OSTRACISED 185\n\n LVI. THE ELOQUENCE OF PERICLES 189\n\n LVII. PERICLES AND ELPINICE 194\n\n LVIII. THE CITY OF ATHENS 196\n\n LIX. GREAT MEN OF ATHENS 200\n\n LX. THE THEBANS ATTACK THE PLATAEANS 202\n\n LXI. ATTICA IS INVADED BY THE SPARTANS 205\n\n LXII. THE LAST WORDS OF PERICLES 207\n\n LXIII. THE SIEGE OF PLATAEA 210\n\n LXIV. THE SENTENCE OF DEATH 214\n\n LXV. BRASIDAS LOSES HIS SHIELD 218\n\n LXVI. THE SPARTANS SURRENDER 221\n\n LXVII. BRASIDAS THE SPARTAN 225\n\n LXVIII. AMPHIPOLIS SURRENDERS TO BRASIDAS 228\n\n LXIX. ALCIBIADES THE FAVOURITE OF ATHENS 232\n\n LXX. SOCRATES THE PHILOSOPHER 237\n\n LXXI. ALCIBIADES PRAISES SOCRATES 240\n\n LXXII. THE IMAGES OF HERMES ARE DESTROYED 244\n\n LXXIII. ALCIBIADES ESCAPES TO SPARTA 247\n\n LXXIV. THE SIEGE OF SYRACUSE 249\n\n LXXV. THE ATHENIAN ARMY IS DESTROYED 252\n\n LXXVI. ALCIBIADES RETURNS TO ATHENS 255\n\n LXXVII. ANTIOCHUS DISOBEYS ALCIBIADES 258\n\n LXXVIII. THE WALLS OF ATHENS ARE DESTROYED 261\n\n LXXIX. THE MARCH OF THE TEN THOUSAND 264\n\n LXXX. PELOPIDAS AND EPAMINONDAS 269\n\n LXXXI. THE SEVEN CONSPIRATORS 273\n\n LXXXII. THE BATTLE OF LEUCTRA 277\n\n LXXXIII. THE DEATH OF EPAMINONDAS 281\n\n LXXXIV. THE TWO BROTHERS 286\n\n LXXXV. TIMOLEON SENDS DIONYSIUS TO CORINTH 289\n\n LXXXVI. ICETES TRIES TO SLAY TIMOLEON 293\n\n LXXXVII. THE BATTLE OF CRIMISUS 296\n\n LXXXVIII. DEMOSTHENES WISHES TO BECOME AN ORATOR 300\n\n LXXXIX. DEMOSTHENES THE GREATEST ORATOR OF ATHENS 303\n\n XC. THE SACRED WAR 306\n\n XCI. ALEXANDER AND BUCEPHALUS 309\n\n XCII. ALEXANDER AND DIOGENES 312\n\n XCIII. THE BATTLE OF GRANICUS 315\n\n XCIV. THE GORDIAN KNOT 318\n\n XCV. DARIUS GALLOPS FROM THE BATTLEFIELD 321\n\n XCVI. TYRE IS STORMED BY ALEXANDER 325\n\n XCVII. THE BATTLE OF GAUGAMELA 328\n\n XCVIII. ALEXANDER BURNS PERSEPOLIS 331\n\n XCIX. ALEXANDER SLAYS HIS FOSTER-BROTHER 334\n\n C. PORUS AND HIS ELEPHANT 338\n\n CI. ALEXANDER IS WOUNDED 342\n\n CII. THE DEATH OF ALEXANDER 345\n\n CIII. DEMOSTHENES IN THE TEMPLE OF POSEIDON 349\n\n INDEX 353\n\n\n\n\nLIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS\n\n\n She changed her into a spider, _Frontispiece_\n\n AT PAGE\n Sweet, piercing sweet was the music of Pan\u2019s pipe, 6\n\n Demeter rejoiced for her daughter was by her side, 10\n\n The Wind-god sent a gust from the South, 18\n\n For two days and two nights the boat was tossed hither and\n thither, 20\n\n Often she would stand upon the walls of Troy, 34\n\n \u2018Yea, verily, thou art Odysseus,\u2019 68\n\n In the earliest times, a simple foot-race was the only event, 96\n\n Solon, the wise lawgiver of Athens, 102\n\n They crashed into the Persian army with tremendous force, 136\n\n Ship dashed against ship, till the Persian dead strewed the deep\n \u2018like flowers,\u2019 170\n\n He stood silent before the king, 188\n\n The figure of the goddess was a colossal one, 196\n\n He became a target for every arrow, 220\n\n He drank the contents as though it were a draught of wine, 238\n\n The multitude saluted him with loud acclamations, 258\n\n He left the assembly, hiding his face in his cloak, 304\n\n He ran toward the horse and seized the bridle, 310\n\n With an effort he looked at them as they passed, 348\n\n\n\n\n[Illustration]\n\n\n\n\nTHE STORY OF GREECE\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I\n\nWONDERLAND\n\n\nThe story of Greece began long, long ago in a strange wonderland of\nbeauty. Woods and winds, fields and rivers, each had a pathway which\nled upward and onward into the beautiful land. Sometimes indeed no path\nwas needed, for the rivers, woods, and lone hill-sides were themselves\nthe wonderland of which I am going to tell.\n\nIn the woods and winds, in the trees and rivers, dwelt the gods and\ngoddesses whom the people of long ago worshipped. It was their presence\nin the world that made it so great, so wide, so wonderful.\n\nTo the Hellenes, for that is the name by which the Greeks called\nthemselves, there were eyes, living eyes in flowers, trees, and water.\n\u2018So crowded full is the air with them,\u2019 wrote one poet who lived in the\nfar-off days, \u2018that there is no room to put in the spike of an ear of\ncorn without touching one.\u2019\n\nWhen the wind blew soft, the Hellenes listened to the whispering of a\nvoice. When it blew rough, and snatched one of the children from their\nmidst, they did not greatly grieve. The child had but gone to be the\nplaymate of the gods.\n\nThe springs sparkled clear, for in them dwelt the Naiads or freshwater\nnymphs, with gifts as great as the river gods, who were ofttimes seen\nand heard amid the churning, tossing waters.\n\nIn the trees dwelt the Dryads, nymphs these of the forest, whom the\nHellenes saw but seldom. Shy nymphs were the Dryads, born each one at\nthe birth of a tree, in which she dwelt, fading away when the tree was\nfelled, or when it withered and died.\n\nTheir revels were held in some wooded mountain, far from the haunts of\nmen. Were a human footfall heard, the frolics ceased on the instant,\nwhile each Dryad sped swift for shelter to the tree of her birth.\n\nSo the gods wandered through the land, filling the earth with their\npresence. Yet there was one lofty mountain in central Greece, named\nMount Olympus, which the Hellenes believed was the peculiar home of the\ngods. It was to this great mount that the actual roads on which the\nHellenes walked each day seemed ever to lead.\n\nOn the sides of the mountain, green trees and dark pines clustered\nclose. The summit reached high up, beyond the clouds, so used the\nancient people to tell. Here, where no human foot had ever climbed, up\nbeyond the twinkling stars, was the abode of the gods.\n\nWhat the Hellenes never saw with their eyes, they saw quite clear\nwith their imagination. Within the clouds, where the gods dwelt, they\ngazed in this strange way, upon marble halls, glistening with gold and\nsilver, upon thrones too, great white thrones, finer far than those on\nwhich an earthly king might sit. The walls gleamed with rainbow tints,\nand beauty as of dawns and sunsets was painted over the vast arches of\nOlympus.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II\n\nTHE GREAT GOD PAN\n\n\nThe supreme god of the Hellenes was Zeus. He dwelt in the sky, yet on\nearth, too, he had a sanctuary amid the oak-woods of Dodona.\n\nWhen the oak-leaves stirred, his voice was heard, mysterious as the\nvoice of the mightiest of all the gods.\n\nIn days long after these, Phidias, a great Greek sculptor, made an\nimage of Zeus. The form and the face of the god he moulded into\nwondrous beauty, so that men gazing saw sunshine on the brow, and in\nthe eyes gladness and warmth as of summer skies.\n\nEven so, if you watch, you may catch on the faces of those whose home\nis on the hill-side, or by the sea, a glimpse of the beauty and the\nwonder amid which they dwell.\n\nIt was only in very early times that the chief sanctuary of Zeus was\nat Dodona. Before they had dwelt long in Hellas, the Hellenes built a\ngreat temple in the plain of Olympia to their supreme god and named it\nthe Olympian temple.\n\nHere a gold and ivory statue of the god was placed, and to the quiet\ncourts of the temple came the people, singing hymns and marching in\njoyous procession.\n\nZeus had stolen his great power from his father Kronus, with the help\nof his brothers and sisters. To reward them for their aid the god gave\nto them provinces over which they ruled in his name. Hera, Zeus chose\nas queen to reign with him. To Poseidon was given the sea, and a palace\nbeneath the waves of the ocean, adorned with seaweed and with shells.\n\nPluto was made the guardian of Hades, that dark and gloomy kingdom of\nthe dead, beneath the earth, while Demeter was goddess of the earth,\nand her gifts were flowers, fruits, and bounteous harvests.\n\nAthene was the goddess of war and wisdom, yet often she was to be seen\nweaving or embroidering, while by her table sat her favourite bird, an\nowl.\n\nHermes was known as the fleet-footed, for on his feet he wore winged\nsandals to speed him swift on the errands of the gods.\n\nApollo, the Sun-god, was the youngest of all the Olympian deities. He\ndwelt at Parnassus on the eastern coast of Greece, and his sanctuary\nwas at Delphi.\n\nThe fairest of the goddesses was Aphrodite, Queen of Love. Her little\nson was named Eros, and he never grew up. Always he was a little rosy,\ndimpled child, carrying in his hands a bow and arrows.\n\nMany more gods and goddesses were there in the wonder days of long ago,\nbut of only one more may I stay to tell you now.\n\nThe great god Pan, protector of the shepherds and their flocks, was\nhalf man, half goat. Every one loved this strange god, who yet ofttimes\nstartled mortals by his wild and wilful ways. When to-day a sudden,\nneedless fear overtakes a crowd, and we say a panic has fallen upon it,\nwe are using a word which we learned from the name of this old pagan\ngod.\n\nDown by the streams the great god Pan was sometimes seen to wander--\n\n \u2018What was he doing, the great god Pan,\n Down in the reeds by the river?\n Spreading ruin and scattering ban,\n Splashing and paddling with hoofs of a goat,\n And breaking the golden lilies afloat,\n With the dragon-fly on the river.\n\n \u2018He tore out a reed, the great god Pan,\n From the deep cool bank of the river,\u2019\n\nand then sitting down he \u2018hacked and hewed, as a great god can,\u2019 at the\nslender reed. He made it hollow, and notched out holes, and lo! there\nwas a flute ready for his use.\n\nSweet, piercing sweet was the music of Pan\u2019s pipe as the god placed his\nmouth upon the holes.\n\n \u2018Blinding sweet, O great god Pan!\n The sun on the hill forgot to die,\n And the lilies revived, and the dragon-fly\n Came back to dream on the river.\u2019\n\nOn the hill-sides and in the fields of Hellas, the shepherds heard the\nmusic of their god and were merry, knowing that he was on his way to\nfrolic and to dance among them.\n\nPan lived for many, many a long year; but there is a story which tells\nhow on the first glad Christmas eve, when Jesus was born in Bethlehem,\na traveller, as he passed Tarentum, the chief Greek city in Italy,\nheard a voice crying, \u2018The great god Pan is dead.\u2019\n\nAnd when this same Jesus had grown to be a Man, and \u2018hung for love\u2019s\nsake on a Cross,\u2019 one of our own women poets sings that all the old\ngods of Greece\n\n \u2018fell down moaning,\n Each from off his golden seat;\n All the false gods with a cry,\n Rendered up their deity,\n Pan, Pan was dead.\u2019\n\nAnd the reason that the old gods fell was that the strange Man upon the\nCross was mightier than they. But in the days of ancient Greece the\ngods were alive and strong; of that the Hellenes were very sure.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III\n\nTHE SIX POMEGRANATE SEEDS\n\n\nDemeter, the goddess of the earth, was often to be seen in the fields\nin springtime. As the Greek peasants sowed their seed they caught\nglimpses of her long yellow hair while she moved now here, now there,\namong them. It almost seemed to these simple folk as though already\nthe bare fields were golden with the glory of harvest, so bright\nshone the yellow hair of the goddess. Then they smiled hopefully one\nto the other, knowing well that Demeter would give them a bounteous\nreaping-time.\n\nIn the autumn she was in the fields again, the peasants even dreamed\nthat they saw her stoop to bind the sheaves. Certainly she had been\nknown to visit their barns when the harvest was safely garnered. And\nstranger still, it was whispered among the womenfolk that the great\nEarth-Mother had entered their homes, had stood close beside them as\nthey baked bread to feed their hungry households.\n\nIt was in the beautiful island of Sicily, which lies in the\nMediterranean Sea, that the goddess had her home. Here she dwelt with\nher daughter Persephone, whom she loved more dearly than words can tell.\n\nPersephone was young and fair, so fair that she seemed as one of the\nspring flowers that leaped into life when her mother touched the earth\nwith her gracious hands.\n\n[Illustration: Sweet, piercing sweet was the music of Pan\u2019s pipe]\n\nEarly as the dawn the maiden was in the fields with Demeter, to gather\nviolets while the dew still lay upon them, to dance and sing with her\nplaymates. At other times she would move gravely by the side of her\nmother to help her in her quiet labours.\n\nAll this time, Pluto, King of Hades, was living in his gloomy kingdom\nunderground, longing for some fair maiden to share his throne. But\nthere was not one who was willing to leave the glad light of the sun,\nno, not though Pluto offered her the most brilliant gems in his kingdom.\n\nOne day the dark king came up out of the shadows, riding in his chariot\nof gold, drawn by immortal horses. Swifter was their pace than that of\nany mortal steeds.\n\nPersephone was in a meadow with her playfellows when the king drew\nnear. The maiden stood knee-deep amid the meadow-grass, and, stooping,\nplucked the fragrant sweet flowers all around her--hyacinth, lilies,\nroses, and pale violets.\n\nPluto saw the group of happy maidens, beautiful each one as a day in\nspring, but it was Persephone who charmed him more than any other.\n\n\u2018She shall be my queen and share my throne,\u2019 muttered the gloomy king\nto himself. Then, for he knew that to woo the maiden would be vain,\nPluto seized Persephone in his arms, and bore her weeping to his\nchariot.\n\nSwift as an arrow the immortal steeds sped from the meadow, where\nPersephone\u2019s playmates were left terror-stricken and dismayed.\n\nOn and on flew the chariot. Pluto was in haste to reach Hades ere\nDemeter should miss her daughter.\n\nA river lay across his path, but of this the king recked naught, for\nhis steeds would bear him across without so much as lessening their\nspeed.\n\nBut as the chariot drew near, the waters began to rise as though driven\nby a tempest. Soon they were lashed to such fury that Pluto saw that it\nwas vain to hope to cross to the other side. So he seized his sceptre,\nand in a passion he struck three times upon the ground. At once a great\nchasm opened in the earth, and down into the darkness plunged the\nhorses. A moment more and Pluto was in his own kingdom, Persephone by\nhis side.\n\nWhen the king seized the maiden in the meadow, and bore her to his\nchariot, she had cried aloud to Zeus, her father, to save her. But Zeus\nhad made no sign, nor had any heard save Hecate, a mysterious goddess,\nwhose face was half hidden by a veil.\n\nNone other heard, yet her piteous cry echoed through the hills and\nwoods, until at length the faint echo reached the ear of Demeter.\n\nA great pain plucked at the heart of the mother as she heard, and\nthrowing the blue hood from off her shoulders, and loosening her long\nyellow hair, Demeter set forth, swift as a bird, to seek for Persephone\nuntil she found her.\n\nTo her own home first she hastened, for there, she thought, she might\nfind some trace of the child she loved so well. But the rooms were\ndesolate as \u2018an empty bird\u2019s nest or an empty fold.\u2019\n\nThe mother\u2019s eyes searched eagerly in every corner, but nothing met her\ngaze save the embroidery Persephone had been working, \u2018a gift against\nthe return of her mother, with labour all to be in vain.\u2019 It lay as\nshe had flung it down in careless mood, and over it crept a spider,\nspinning his delicate web across the maiden\u2019s unfinished work.\n\nFor nine days Demeter wandered up and down the earth, carrying blazing\ntorches in her hands. Her sorrow was so great that she would neither\neat nor drink, no, not even ambrosia, or a cup of sweet nectar, which\nare the meat and drink of the gods. Nor would she wash her face. On the\ntenth day Hecate came towards her, but she had only heard the voice of\nthe maiden, and could not tell Demeter who had carried her away.\n\nOnward sped the unhappy mother, sick at heart for hope unfulfilled,\nonward until she reached the sun. Here she learned that it was Pluto\nwho had stolen her daughter, and carried her away to his gloomy\nkingdom.\n\nThen in her despair Demeter left all her duties undone, and a terrible\nfamine came upon the earth. \u2018The dry seed remained hidden in the soil;\nin vain the oxen drew the ploughshare through the furrows.\u2019\n\nAs the days passed the misery of the people grew greater and greater,\nuntil faint and starving they came to Demeter, and besought her once\nagain to bless the earth.\n\nBut sorrow had made the heart of the goddess hard, and she listened\nunmoved to the entreaties of the hungry folk, saying only that until\nher daughter was found she could not care for their griefs.\n\nLong, weary days Demeter journeyed over land and sea to seek for\nPersephone, but at length she came back to Sicily.\n\nOne day as she walked along the bank of a river, the water gurgled\ngladly, and a little wave carried a girdle almost to her feet.\n\nDemeter stooped to pick it up, and lo! it was the girdle that\nPersephone had worn on the day that she had been carried away. The\nmaiden had flung it into the river as the chariot had plunged into the\nabyss, hoping that it might reach her mother. The girdle could not help\nDemeter to recover her daughter, yet how glad she was to have it, how\nsafe she treasured it!\n\nAt length, broken-hearted indeed, Demeter went to Zeus to beg him to\ngive her back her daughter. \u2018If she returns the people shall again have\nfood and plenteous harvests,\u2019 she cried. And the god, touched with the\ngrief of the mother and the sore distress of the people, promised that\nPersephone should come back to earth, if she had eaten no food while\nshe had lived in the gloomy kingdom of Hades.\n\nNo words can tell the joy with which Demeter hastened to Hades. Here\nshe found her daughter with no smile upon her sweet face, but only\ntears of desire for her mother and the dear light of the sun. But alas!\nthat very day Persephone had eaten six pomegranate seeds. For every\nseed that she had eaten she was doomed to spend a month each year\nwith Pluto. But for the other six months, year after year, mother and\ndaughter would dwell together, and as they clung to one another they\nwere joyous and content.\n\nSo for six glad months each year Demeter rejoiced, for her daughter was\nby her side, and ever it was spring and summer while Persephone dwelt\non earth. But when the time came for her to return to Hades, Demeter\ngrew ever cold and sad, and the earth too became weary and grey. It was\nautumn and winter in the world until Persephone returned once more.\n\n[Illustration: Demeter rejoiced, for her daughter was by her side]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV\n\nTHE BIRTH OF ATHENE\n\n\nOne day Zeus was ill. To us it is strange to think of the gods as\nsuffering the same pains as mortals suffer, but to the Hellenes it\nseemed quite natural.\n\nZeus was ill. His head ached so severely that he bade all the gods\nassemble in Olympus to find a cure for his pain. But not one of them,\nnot even Apollo, who was god of medicine as well as Sun-god, could ease\nthe suffering deity.\n\nAfter a time Zeus grew impatient with the cruel pain, and resolved at\nall costs to end it. So he sent for his strong son Hephaestus, and bade\nhim take an axe and cleave open his head.\n\nHephaestus did not hesitate to obey, and no sooner had the blow\ndescended than from his father\u2019s head sprang forth Athene, the goddess\nof war and wisdom. She was clad in armour of pure gold, and held in\nher hand a spear, poised as though for battle. From her lips rang a\ntriumphant war-song.\n\nThe assembled gods gazed in wonder, not unmixed with fear at the\nwarrior goddess, who had so suddenly appeared in their midst. But she\nherself stood unmoved before them, while a great earthquake shook the\nland and proclaimed to the dwellers in Hellas the birth of a new god.\n\nAthene was a womanly goddess as well as a warlike one. She presided\nover all kinds of needlework, and herself loved to weave beautiful\ntapestries.\n\nSoon after the birth of the goddess a man named Cecrops came to a\nprovince in Greece, which was afterwards known as Attica. Here he\nbegan to build a city, which grew so beautiful beneath his hands that\nthe gods in Olympus marvelled. When it was finished, each of the gods\nwished to choose a name for the city Cecrops had built.\n\nAs only one name could be used, the gods met in a great council to\ndetermine what was to be done. Soon, one by one, each gave up his wish\nto name the city, save only Athene and Poseidon.\n\nThen Zeus decreed that Athene and Poseidon should create an object\nwhich would be of use to mortals. To name the city and to care for it\nshould be the prize of the one who produced the more useful gift.\n\nPoseidon at once seized his three-pronged fork or trident, which was\nthe sign that he was ruler of the sea. As he struck the ground with it\nlo! a noble horse sprang forth, the first horse that the gods had seen.\n\nAs Poseidon told the gods in how many ways the beautiful animal could\nbe of use to mortals, they thought that Athene would not be able to\nproduce anything that could help men more.\n\nWhen she quietly bade the council to look at an olive-tree, the gods\nlaughed her to scorn. But they soon ceased to laugh. For Athene told\nthem how the wood, the fruit, the leaves, all were of use, and not only\nso, but that the olive-tree was the symbol of peace, while the horse\nwas the symbol of war. And war did ever more harm than good to mortals.\n\nSo the gods decided that it was Athene who had won the right to name\nthe city, and she gave to it her own name of Athene, and the citizens\never after worshipped her as their own peculiar goddess.\n\nOf this city, which we know as Athens, you will hear much in this\nstory.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V\n\nTHE TWO WEAVERS\n\n\nAthene could not only wield the sword, she could also ply the needle.\n\nIn these olden days there lived in Greece a Lydian maid who could weave\nwith wondrous skill. So beautiful were the tapestries she wrought that\nher fame spread far and wide. Lords and ladies both came from distant\ntowns to see the maiden\u2019s skilful hands at work.\n\nArachne, for that was the maiden\u2019s name, lived in a cottage with her\nparents. They were poor folk, and had often found it hard to earn their\ndaily bread. But now that their daughter was famous for her embroidery\ntheir troubles were at an end. For not only lords and ladies, but\nmerchants, too, were glad to pay well to secure the young maid\u2019s\nexquisite designs.\n\nAnd so all would have been well with Arachne and her parents had not\nthe foolish girl become vain of her work. Soon her companions began\nto weary of her, for of nothing could she talk save of her own deft\nfingers, of her own beautiful embroideries.\n\nThose who loved Arachne grew sad as they listened to her proud words,\nand warned her that \u2018pride ever goes before a fall.\u2019\n\nBut Arachne only tossed her pretty head as she listened to the wisdom\nof older folk. Nor did she cease to boast, even saying that she could\ndo more wonderful work than the goddess Athene.\n\nNot once, but many times did Arachne say that she wished she might\ntest her skill against that of the goddess. And should a prize be\noffered, proudly she declared that it was she who would win it.\n\nFrom Olympus Athene heard the vain words of the maid. So displeased was\nshe with her boldness that she determined to go to see Arachne, and if\nshe did not repent to punish her.\n\nShe changed herself into an old white-haired dame, and came to earth.\nLeaning upon a staff she knocked at the door of the cottage where\nArachne lived, and was bidden to enter.\n\nArachne was sitting in the midst of those who had come to see and to\npraise her work. Soon she began to talk, as she was quick to do, of her\nskill, and of how she believed that her work surpassed in beauty any\nthat Athene could produce.\n\nThe old woman pushed her way through the group that surrounded the\nmaid, and laying her hand upon the shoulder of Arachne she spoke kindly\nto her.\n\n\u2018Be more modest, my child,\u2019 she said, \u2018lest the anger of the gods\ndescend upon you, lest Athene take you at your word, and bid you to the\ncontest you desire.\u2019\n\nImpatiently Arachne shook off the stranger\u2019s hand, and answered, \u2018Who\nare you who dare speak to me? I would Athene might hear my words now,\nand come to test her skill against mine. She would soon see that she\nhad a rival in Arachne.\u2019\n\nAthene frowned at the insolence of the maiden. Then the little company\nwere startled to see the old woman suddenly change into the glorious\nform of the goddess Athene. As they gazed they were afraid and fell at\nher feet.\n\nBut Arachne did not worship the goddess. Foolish Arachne looked boldly\nin her face, and asked if she had come to accept her challenge.\n\nAthene\u2019s only answer was to sit down before an empty loom. Soon each,\nin silence, had begun to weave a wondrous tapestry.\n\nSwift and more swift moved the fingers of the weavers, while the group\nof strangers, gathered now near to the door, watched the webs as they\ngrew and grew apace.\n\nInto her tapestry Athene was weaving the story of her contest with\nPoseidon for the city of Cecrops. The olive-tree, the horse, the gods\nin the council, all seemed to live as they appeared on the web of the\ngoddess.\n\nThe tapestry woven by Arachne was also beauteous as her work was wont\nto be. In it you saw the sea, with waves breaking over a great bull, to\nwhose horns clung a girl named Europa. And Europa\u2019s curls blew free in\nthe wind.\n\nAt length Athene rose from the loom, her work complete. Arachne, too,\nlaid down her spindle, and as she turned to look upon the tapestry of\nthe goddess her courage suddenly failed.\n\nA glance had been enough to show her that her skill was as nothing\nbefore the wonder and the beauty of Athene\u2019s work.\n\nToo late the maiden repented that she had defied the goddess. In her\ndespair she seized a rope and tied it round her neck to hang herself.\n\nBut the goddess saw what Arachne meant to do, and at once she changed\nher into a spider, bidding her from henceforth never cease to spin.\n\nAnd so when you see a spider weaving its beautiful embroidery on a\ndewy morning in the garden, or when you find a delicate web in your\nlumber-room, you will remember how Athene punished poor foolish Arachne\nin the days of old.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI\n\nTHE PURPLE FLOWERS\n\n\nApollo, the youngest and most beautiful of all the gods, dearly loved a\nlad named Hyacinthus.\n\nOfttimes he would leave the other gods sipping nectar in Mount Olympus,\nofttimes he would forsake the many beautiful temples in which he was\nworshipped on earth, that he might be free to wander through the woods\nwith his little friend.\n\nFor Hyacinthus was only a merry little lad, who loved to roam over hill\nand dale, and when the fancy seized him to hunt in the woods.\n\nApollo was never happier than when he was with the boy. Sometimes he\nwould go hunting with him, and then Hyacinthus was merrier than ever,\nfor the world seemed more full of brightness when the Sun-god was by\nhis side. Sometimes the friends would walk together over hill and dale,\nfollowed by the dogs Hyacinthus loved so well.\n\nOne day they had wandered far, and the little lad was tired, so he\nflung himself down in a grassy meadow to rest, Apollo by his side. But\nthe Sun-god was soon eager for a game. He sprang to his feet, crying,\n\u2018Hyacinthus, let us play at quoits before the shadows fall.\u2019\n\nQuoits were flat, heavy discs, and the game was won by the player who\ncould fling the quoits the farthest through the air.\n\nHyacinthus was ever willing to do as Apollo wished, and the game was\nsoon begun. After a throw of more than usual skill and strength the\nfriends laughed gleefully.\n\nO but it was good to be alive in such a happy world, thought\nHyacinthus. And Apollo, as he looked at the merry face of the little\nlad, rejoiced that he was not sitting in the cold marble halls of\nOlympus, but was here on the glad green earth.\n\nBy and by while they still played, Zephyrus, the god of the south wind,\ncame fleeting by. He saw the Sun-god and his little playmate full of\nlaughter and of joy.\n\nThen an ugly passion, named jealousy, awoke in the heart of the god,\nfor he too loved the little hunter Hyacinthus, and would fain have been\nin Apollo\u2019s place.\n\nZephyrus tarried a while to watch the friends. Once as Apollo flung his\ndisc high into the air, the Wind-god sent a gust from the south which\nblew the quoit aside. He meant only to annoy Apollo, but Hyacinthus was\nstanding by, so that the quoit struck him violently on the forehead.\n\nThe lad fell to the ground, and soon he was faint from loss of blood.\n\nIn vain Apollo tried to staunch the wound; nothing he could do was\nof any use. Little by little the boy\u2019s strength ebbed away, and the\nSun-god knew that the lad would never hunt or play again on earth.\nHyacinthus was dead.\n\nThe grief of the god was terrible. His tears fell fast as he mourned\nfor the playmate he had loved so well.\n\nAt length he dried his tears and took his lyre, and as he played he\nsang a last song to his friend. And all the woodland creatures were\nsilent that they might listen to the love-song of the god.\n\nWhen the song was ended, Apollo laid aside his lyre, and, stooping,\ntouched with his hand the blood-drops of the lad. And lo! they were\nchanged into a cluster of beautiful purple flowers, which have ever\nsince been named hyacinths, after the little lad Hyacinthus.\n\nYear by year as the spring sun shines, the wonderful purple of the\nhyacinth is seen. Then you, who know the story, think of the days of\nlong ago, when the Sun-god lost his little friend and a cluster of\npurple flowers bloomed upon the spot where he lay.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII\n\nDANAE AND HER LITTLE SON\n\n\nThe stories I have told you are about the gods of ancient Greece; the\nstory I am going to tell you now is about a Greek hero.\n\nWhen you think of a hero, you think of a man who does brave, unselfish\ndeeds. But to the Hellenes or Greeks a hero was one who was half god,\nhalf man--whose one parent was a god while the other was a mortal. So\nthe god Zeus was the father of Perseus, the hero of whom I am going to\ntell, while his mother was a beautiful princess named Danae.\n\nFrom morning to night, from night till morning, Acrisius, the father of\nDanae, was never happy. Yet he was a king.\n\nA king and unhappy? Yes, this king was unhappy because he was afraid\nthat some day, as an oracle had foretold, he would be slain by his\ngrandson.\n\nThe ancient Greeks often sent to sacred groves or temples to ask their\ngods about the future, and the answer, which was given by a priestess,\nwas called an oracle.\n\nNow Acrisius, King of Argos, had no grandson, so it was strange that\nthe oracle should make him afraid. He hoped that he never would have a\ngrandson.\n\nHis one child, beautiful, gentle Danae he had loved well until he had\nheard the oracle. Now he determined to send her away from the palace,\nto hide her, where no prince would ever find her and try to win her for\nhis bride.\n\n[Illustration: The Wind-god sent a gust from the south]\n\nSo the king shut the princess into a tower, which was encased in\nbrass and surrounded it with guards, so that no one, and least of all a\nprince, could by any chance catch a glimpse of his beautiful daughter.\n\nVery sad was Danae, very lonely, too, when she was left in the brazen\ntower, and Zeus looking down from Olympus pitied her, and before long\nsent a little son to cheer her loneliness.\n\nOne day the guards saw the babe on his mother\u2019s knee. Here was the\ngrandson about whom the king had hoped that he would never be born.\n\nIn great alarm they hastened to the palace to tell the king the strange\ntidings. Acrisius was so frightened when he heard their story that he\nflew into a passion, and vowed that both Danae and Perseus, as her\nlittle son was named, should perish. So he ordered the guards to carry\nthe mother and her babe to the seashore, and to send them adrift on the\nwaters in an empty boat.\n\nFor two days and two nights the boat was tossed hither and thither by\nthe winds and the waves, while Danae, in sore dismay but with a brave\nheart, clasped her golden-haired boy tight in her arms.\n\nThe child slept sound in the frail bark, while his mother cried to the\ngods to bring her and her treasure into a safe haven.\n\nOn the third day the answer to her prayers came, for before her Danae\nsaw an island with a shore of yellow sand. And on the shore stood a\nfisherman with his net, looking out to sea. He soon caught sight of the\nboat, and as it drew near he cast his net over it, and gently pulled it\nto the shore.\n\nIt seemed to Danae almost too good to be true, to stand once again on\ndry land. She thought it was but a dream, from which she would awake to\nfind herself once more tossing on the great wide sea.\n\nBut there stood Dictys, the fisherman, looking at her in wonder. Then\nDanae knew that she was indeed awake. She hastened to thank him for\nhis help, and to ask him where she could find shelter for herself and\nher child.\n\nThen the fisherman, who was the brother of Polydectes, king of the\nisland on which Danae had landed, said that if she would go with him\nto his home he would treat her as a daughter. And Danae went gladly to\nlive with Dictys.\n\nSo Perseus grew up in the island of Seriphus, playing on the sands when\nhe was small, and when he had grown tall and strong going voyages to\nother islands with Dictys, or fishing with him nearer home. Zeus loved\nthe lad and watched over him.\n\nFifteen years passed, and then the wife of Polydectes died, and the\nking wished to marry Danae, for he loved her and knew that she was a\nprincess.\n\nBut Danae did not wish to wed Polydectes, and she refused to become his\nqueen, for indeed she loved no one save her son Perseus.\n\nThen the king was angry, and vowed that if Danae would not come to the\npalace as his queen, he would compel her to come as his slave.\n\nAnd it was even so, as a slave, that Perseus found her, when he\nreturned from a voyage with Dictys.\n\nThe anger of the lad was fierce. How dare any one treat his beautiful\nmother so cruelly! He would have slain the king had not Dictys\nrestrained him.\n\nSubduing his anger as well as he could, Perseus went boldly to the\npalace, and taking no heed of Polydectes, he brought his mother away\nand left her in the temple of Athene. There she would be safe, for no\none, not even the king, would enter the sanctuary of the goddess.\n\n\u2018Perseus must leave the island,\u2019 said Polydectes when he was told of\nthe lad\u2019s bold deed. He thought that if her son were banished Danae\nwould perchance be willing to become his queen.\n\n[Illustration: For two days and two nights the boat was tossed hither\nand thither]\n\nBut Polydectes was too crafty to issue a royal command bidding Perseus\nleave Seriphus. That, he knew, would make Danae hate him more than\never, so he thought of a better way to get rid of the lad. He arranged\nto give a great feast in the palace, and proclaimed that each guest\nshould bring a gift to present to the king.\n\nAmong other youths, Perseus, too, was invited, but he was poor and had\nno gift to bring. And this was what the unkind king wished.\n\nSo when Perseus entered the palace empty-handed, Polydectes was quick\nto draw attention to the lad, laughing at him and taunting him that\nhe had not done as the other guests and brought with him a gift. The\ncourtiers followed the example of their king, and Perseus found himself\nattacked on every side.\n\nThe lad soon lost his temper, and looking with defiance at Polydectes,\nhe cried, \u2018I will bring you the head of Medusa as a gift, O King, when\nnext I enter the palace!\u2019\n\n\u2018Brave words are these, Perseus,\u2019 answered the king. \u2018See that you turn\nthem into deeds, or we shall think you but boast as does a coward.\u2019\n\nThen as Perseus turned and left the banqueting-hall the king laughed\nwell pleased, for he had goaded the lad until he had fallen into the\ntrap prepared for him. If Perseus went in search of the head of Medusa,\nhe was not likely to be seen again in Seriphus, thought the king.\n\nAnd Perseus, as he walked away toward the sea, was saying to himself,\n\u2018Yes, I shall go in search of Medusa, nor shall I return unless I bring\nher head with me, a gift for the king.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII\n\nTHE QUEST OF PERSEUS\n\n\nMedusa and her two sisters were named the Gorgons. The sisters had\nalways been plain and even terrible to see, but Medusa had once been\nfair to look upon.\n\nWhen she was young and beautiful her home was in a northern land where\nthe sun never shone, so she begged Athene to send her to the south\nwhere sunshine made the long days glad. But the goddess refused her\nrequest.\n\nIn her anger Medusa cried, \u2018It is because I am so beautiful that you\nwill not let me go. For if Medusa were to be seen who then would wish\nto look at Athene.\u2019\n\nSuch proud and foolish words might not be suffered by the gods, and the\nmaiden was sharply punished for her rash speech. Her beautiful curly\nhair was changed into serpents, living serpents that hissed and coiled\naround her head. Nor was this all, but whoever so much as glanced at\nher face was at once turned into stone.\n\nTerrible indeed was Medusa, the Gorgon, whose head Perseus had vowed\nto bring as a gift to Polydectes. She had great wings like eagles and\nsharp claws instead of hands.\n\nNow as Perseus wandered down to the shore after he had defied the king,\nhis heart began to sink. How was he even to begin his task? He did not\nknow where Medusa lived, nor did any one on the island.\n\nIn his perplexity he did as his mother had taught him to do; he prayed\nto Athene, and lo! even as he prayed the goddess was there by his\nside. With her was Hermes, the fleet-footed, wearing his winged sandals.\n\n\u2018The gods will aid you, Perseus,\u2019 said Athene, \u2018if you will do as they\nbid you. But think not to find their service easy. For they who serve\nthe gods must endure hardship, and live laborious lives. Will this\ncontent you?\u2019\n\nPerseus had no fears now that he knew the gods would help him, and with\na brave and steadfast heart he answered, \u2018I am content.\u2019\n\nThen Pluto sent to the lad his magic helmet, which made whoever wore\nit invisible. Hermes gave to him the winged sandals he wore, so that\nhe might be able to fly over land and sea, while Athene entrusted to\nhim her shield, the dread \u00c6gis, burnished bright as the sun. The shield\nwas made from the hide of a goat, but the Hellenes thought of it as the\ngreat storm-cloud in which Zeus hid himself when he was angry. For it\nwas the shield of her father Zeus that Athene used.\n\nUpon Medusa herself Perseus would not be able to cast a glance lest he\nbe turned to stone, but looking at the shield he would see her image as\nin a mirror.\n\nThe lad was now armed for his quest, but not yet did he know whither it\nwould lead.\n\nBut Athene could direct him. She said that the abode of the Gorgons was\nknown to none save three sisters called the Gr\u00e6\u00e6. These sisters had\nbeen born with grey hair, and had only one eye and one tooth between\nthem, which they used in turn. Their home was in the north, in a land\nof perpetual darkness, and it was there that Perseus must go to learn\nthe dwelling-place of the Gorgons. So at length the lad was ready to\nset out on his great adventure.\n\nOn and on, sped by his winged sandals he flew, past many a fair town,\nuntil he left Greece far behind. On and on until he reached the dark\nand dreary land where the Gr\u00e6\u00e6 dwelt. He could see them now, the three\ngrey sisters, as they sat in the gloom just outside their cave.\n\nAs Perseus drew near, unseen by them, because of his magic helmet, the\nsisters were passing their one eye from hand to hand, so that at that\nmoment all three were blind.\n\nPerseus saw his chance, and stretching out his hand seized the eye.\nThey, each thinking the other had it, began to quarrel. But Perseus\ncried, \u2018I hold the eye in my hand. Tell me where I may find Medusa and\nyou shall have it back.\u2019\n\nThe sisters were startled by a voice when they had neither seen nor\nheard any one approach; they were more startled by what the voice said.\n\nVery unwilling were they to tell their secret, yet what could they do\nif the stranger refused to give back their one eye? Already he was\ngrowing impatient, and threatening to throw it into the sea. So lest he\nshould really fling it away they were forced to tell him where he would\nfind the Gorgon. Then Perseus, placing the eye in one of the eager,\noutstretched hands, sped swiftly on his journey.\n\nAs he reached the land of which the Gr\u00e6\u00e6 had told him, he heard the\nrestless beating of the Gorgon\u2019s wings, and he knew that his quest was\nwell-nigh over.\n\nOnward still he flew, and then raising his burnished shield he looked\ninto it, and lo! he saw the images of the Gorgons. They lay, all three,\nfast asleep on the shore.\n\nUnsheathing his sword, Perseus held it high, and then, keeping his gaze\nfixed upon the shield, he flew down and swiftly cut off Medusa\u2019s head\nand thrust it into a magic bag which he carried slung over his shoulder.\n\nNow as Perseus seized the terrible head, the serpents coiled around the\nGorgon\u2019s brow roused themselves, and began to hiss so fiercely that the\ntwo sisters awoke and knew that evil had befallen Medusa.\n\nThey could not see Perseus, for he wore his magic helmet, but they\nheard him, and in an instant they were following fast, eager to avenge\nthe death of their sister.\n\nFor a moment the brave heart of the hero failed.\n\nWas he doomed to perish now that his task was accomplished?\n\nHe cried aloud to Athene, for he heard the Gorgons following ever\ncloser on his path. Then more swiftly sped the winged sandals, and soon\nPerseus breathed freely once again, for he had left the dread sisters\nfar behind.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX\n\nANDROMEDA AND THE SEA-MONSTER\n\n\nAs Perseus journeyed over land and sea on his great quest, he often\nthought of the dear mother he had left in Seriphus. Now that his task\nwas done he longed to fly over the blue waters of the Mediterranean\nto see her, to know that she was safe from the cruel King Polydectes.\nBut the gods had work for Perseus to do before he might return to his\nisland home.\n\nAgain and again the lad struggled against wind and rain, trying ever\nto fly in the direction of Seriphus, but again and again he was beaten\nback.\n\nFaint and weary he grew, tired too of striving, so that he thought he\nwould die in the desert through which he was passing.\n\nThen all at once it flashed across his mind that Hermes had told him\nthat as long as he wore the winged sandals he could not lose his way.\nNew courage stole into his heart as he remembered the words of the god,\nand soon he found that he was being carried with the wind toward some\nhigh mountains. Among them he caught sight of a Titan or giant named\nAtlas, who had once tried to dethrone Zeus, and who for his daring had\nbeen doomed to stand,\n\n \u2018Supporting on his shoulders the vast pillar\n Of Heaven and Earth, a weight of cumbrous grasp.\u2019\n\nThe face of Atlas was pale with the mighty burden he bore, and which\nhe longed to lay down. As he caught sight of Perseus he thought that\nperhaps the stranger would be able to help him, for he knew what\nPerseus carried in his magic bag. So as he drew near Atlas cried to\nhim, \u2018Hasten, Perseus, and let me look upon the Gorgon\u2019s face, that I\nmay no longer feel this great weight upon my shoulders.\u2019\n\nThen in pity Perseus drew from the magic bag the head of Medusa, and\nheld it up before the eyes of Atlas. In a moment the giant was changed\ninto stone, or rather into a great rugged mountain, which ever since\nthat day has been known as the Atlas Mountain.\n\nThe winged sandals then bore Perseus on until he reached a dark and\ndesolate land. So desolate it was that it seemed to him that the gods\nhad forsaken it, or that it had been blighted by the sins of mortals.\nIn this island lived Queen Cassiopeia with her daughter Andromeda.\n\nCassiopeia was beautiful, but instead of thanking the gods for their\ngift of beauty, she used to boast of it, saying that she was fairer\nthan the nymphs of the sea.\n\nSo angry were the nymphs when they heard this, that they sent a\nterrible monster to the island, which laid it waste, and made it dark\nand desolate as Perseus had seen.\n\nThe island folk sent to one of their temples to ask what they could do\nto free their island from the presence of the sea-serpent.\n\n\u2018This monster has been sent to punish Cassiopeia for her vain boast,\u2019\nwas the answer. \u2018Bid her sacrifice her daughter Andromeda to the\nsea-serpent, then will the nymphs remove the curse from your homes.\u2019\n\nAndromeda was fair and good, and the people loved her well, so that\nthey were greatly grieved at the oracle. Yet if they did not give up\ntheir princess their homes would be ruined, their children would perish\nbefore their eyes.\n\nSo while the queen shut herself up in her palace to weep, the people\ntook the beautiful maiden down to the shore and chained her fast to a\ngreat rock. Then slowly, sorrowfully, they went away, leaving her a\nprey to the terrible monster.\n\nAs Perseus drew nearer to the sea he saw the maiden. The next moment\nhe was gazing in horror at the sea-serpent, as with open, hungry jaws\nit approached its victim.\n\nQuick as lightning Perseus drew his sword and swooped down toward the\nmonster, at the same moment holding before him the head of Medusa.\n\nAs the eyes of the serpent fell upon that awful sight, it slipped\nbackward, and before Perseus could use his sword, it was changed into a\nrock, a great black rock. And if you go to the shore of the Levant you\nmay see it still, surrounded by the blue waters of the Mediterranean.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X\n\nACRISIUS IS KILLED BY PERSEUS\n\n\nAs soon as Perseus saw that the monster was harmless, he took off his\nmagic helmet, and hastening to Andromeda he broke the chain that held\nher to the rock. Then bidding her fear no more he led her back to the\npalace, where the queen sat weeping for her lost daughter.\n\nWhen the door of her room was opened Cassiopeia never stirred.\nAndromeda\u2019s arms were around her, Andromeda\u2019s kisses were on her cheek\nbefore she could believe that her daughter was in very truth alive.\nThen, indeed, the mother\u2019s joy was boundless.\n\nSo fair, so good was the maiden that Perseus loved her, and thanked\nthe gods who had led him to that desolate land. Before many weeks had\npassed the princess was wedded to the stranger who had saved her from\nthe terrible sea-monster.\n\nTwelve months later they left Cassiopeia, and sailed away to Seriphus,\nfor Perseus longed to see his mother, and to bring to her his beautiful\nbride.\n\nSeven long years had passed since Perseus set out on his quest, and\nDanae\u2019s heart was glad when she saw her son once more.\n\nAs soon as their greetings were over, Perseus left Andromeda with his\nmother, and went to the palace, carrying with him the head of Medusa in\nthe magic bag.\n\nThe king was feasting with his nobles when Perseus entered the\nbanqueting-hall. Long, long ago he had ceased to think of Perseus, for\nhe believed that he had perished on his wild adventure. Now he saw\nhim, grown to be a man, entering the hall, and he grew pale with sudden\nfear.\n\nPaying no heed to any, Perseus strode through the throng of merry\ncourtiers until he stood before the throne on which sat Polydectes.\n\n\u2018Behold the gift I promised you seven years ago, O King!\u2019 cried\nPerseus, and as he spoke he drew forth the head of Medusa and held it\nup for the king to see.\n\nPolydectes and his startled nobles stared in horror at the awful face\nof the Gorgon, and as they gazed the king and all his followers were\nchanged into figures of stone.\n\nThen Perseus turned and left the palace, and telling the island folk\nthat Polydectes was dead, he bade them now place Dictys, the fisherman,\nupon the throne.\n\nHe then hastened to the temple of Athene, and with a glad heart gave\nback to the goddess the gifts which had served him so well--the helmet,\nthe sandals, the shield.\n\nAs his own offering to Athene he gave the head of the Gorgon. She, well\npleased, accepted it, and had it placed in the centre of her shield,\nso from that day the \u00c6gis became more terrible than before, for the\nGorgon\u2019s head still turned to stone whoever looked upon it.\n\nDanae had often talked to Perseus when he was a boy of Acrisius, her\nfather, and of Argos, the city from which he had been banished when\nhe was a babe. Perseus now resolved to sail to Argos with Danae and\nAndromeda. During these years Acrisius had been driven from his throne\nby an ambitious prince. He was in a miserable dungeon, thinking, it\nmay be, of his unkindness to his daughter Danae, when she once again\nreached Argos.\n\nPerseus soon drove away the usurper, and for his mother\u2019s dear sake he\ntook Acrisius out of his dungeon and gave him back his kingdom. For\nDanae had wept and begged Perseus to rescue his grandfather from prison.\n\nIt seemed as though the oracle that long ago had made Acrisius act so\ncruelly would now never be fulfilled. But sooner or later the words of\nthe gods come true.\n\nOne day Perseus was present at the games that were held each year at\nArgos. As he flung a quoit into the air a sudden gust of wind hurled it\naside, so that it fell upon the foot of Acrisius, who was sitting near.\n\nThe king was an old man now, and the blow was more than he could bear.\nBefore long he died from the wound, and thus the oracle of the gods was\nfulfilled.\n\nPerseus was kind as he was brave, and it grieved him that he had caused\nthe death of his grandfather, although it had been by no fault of his\nown.\n\nArgos no longer seemed a happy place to the young king, so he left it,\nand going to a city called Mycen\u00e6, he made it his capital. Here, after\na long and prosperous reign, Perseus died. The gods whom he had served\nloyally, placed him in the skies, among the stars. And there he still\nshines, together with Andromeda and Cassiopeia.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI\n\nACHILLES AND BRISEIS THE FAIRCHEEKED\n\n\nThe story of Perseus belongs to the Heroic Age of Greek history, to the\ntime when heroes were half mortal, half divine. Many other wonderful\ntales belong to the Heroic Age, but among them all none are so famous\nas those that are told in the _Iliad_ and the _Odyssey_. The _Iliad_\ntells of the war that raged around the walls of the city of Troy; the\n_Odyssey_ of the adventures of the goodly Odysseus.\n\nIn the north-west corner of Asia, looking toward Greece, the ruins of\nan ancient city have been discovered. It was on this spot that Troy or\nIlium was believed to have stood.\n\nStrange legends gathered round the warriors of the Trojan War, so\nstrange that some people say that there never were such heroes as\nthose of whom the _Iliad_ tells. However that may be, we know that in\nlong after years, when the Greeks fought with the people of Asia, they\nremembered these old stories, and believed that they were carrying on\nthe wars which their fathers had begun.\n\nThe _Iliad_ and the _Odyssey_ were written by a poet named Homer, so\nmany wise folk tell. While others, it may be just as wise, say that\nthese poems were not written by one man, but were gathered from the\nlegends of the people, now by one poet, now by another, until they grew\ninto the collection of stories which we know as the _Iliad_ and the\n_Odyssey_.\n\nAt first these old stories were not written in a book; they were sung\nor told in verse by the poets to the people of Hellas. And because\nwhat is \u2018simple and serious lives longer than what is merely clever,\u2019\nthese grave old stories of two thousand years ago are still alive, and\npeople are still eager to read them.\n\nSome day you will read the _Iliad_ and the _Odyssey_. In this story\nI can only tell you about a few of the mighty warriors who fought at\nTroy, about a few of their strange adventures.\n\nIf you look at a map of Greece you will easily find, in the south,\nthe country called Peloponnesus. In Peloponnesus you will see Sparta,\nthe capital city, over which Menelaus was king, when the story of the\n_Iliad_ begins.\n\nMenelaus was married to a beautiful queen named Helen. She was the\nfairest woman in the wide world.\n\nOne day there came to the court of the king a prince named Paris. He\nwas the second son of Priam, King of Troy. Menelaus welcomed his royal\nguest and treated him with kindness, but Paris repaid the hospitality\nof the king most cruelly. For when affairs of State called Menelaus\naway from Sparta for a short time, Paris did not wait until he\nreturned. He hastened back to Troy, taking with him the beautiful Queen\nof Sparta, who was ever after known as Helen of Troy.\n\nWhen Menelaus came home to find that Helen had gone away to Troy, he\nswore a great oath that he would besiege the city, punish Paris, and\nbring back his beautiful queen to Sparta; and this was the beginning of\nthe Trojan War.\n\nMenelaus had not a large enough army to go alone against his enemy. So\nhe sent to his brother Agamemnon, who was the chief of all the mighty\nwarriors of Hellas, and to many other lords, to beg them to help him to\nbesiege Troy, and, if it might be, to slay Paris.\n\nThe chiefs were eager to help Menelaus to avenge his wrongs, and soon a\ngreat army was ready to sail across the Hellespont to Asia, to march on\nTroy.\n\nBut before the army embarked, the warriors sent, as was their custom,\nto an oracle, to ask if their expedition would be successful.\n\n\u2018Without the help of goodly Achilles, Troy will never be taken,\u2019 was\nthe answer.\n\nAchilles was the son of Thetis, the silver-footed goddess, whose\nhome was in the depths of the sea. Well did she love her strong son\nAchilles. When he was a babe she wished to guard him from the dangers\nthat would surely threaten him when he grew to be a man, so she took\nhim in her arms and carried him to the banks of the river Styx. Whoever\nbathed in these magic waters became invulnerable, that is, he became\nproof against every weapon. Silver-footed Thetis, holding her precious\nbabe firmly by one heel, plunged him into the tide, so that his little\nbody became at once invulnerable, save only the heel by which his\nmother grasped him. It was untouched by the magic water.\n\nAchilles set sail with the other chiefs for Troy, so it seemed as\nthough the city would be taken by his help, as the oracle foretold.\nWith him Achilles took his well-loved friend Patroclus.\n\nFor nine long years was the city of Troy besieged, and all for the sake\nof Helen the beautiful Queen of Sparta. Often as the years passed, she\nwould stand upon the walls of Troy to look at the brave warriors of\nHellas, to wonder when they would take the city. But when nine years\nhad passed, no breach had yet been made in the walls.\n\nWhen the Hellenes needed food or clothing, they attacked and plundered\nthe neighbouring cities, which were not so well defended as Troy.\n\nThe plunder of one of these cities, named Chryse, was the cause of the\nfatal quarrel between Agamemnon and Achilles.\n\nIn Chryse there was a temple sacred to Apollo, guarded by a priest\nnamed Chryses. His daughter Chryseis, and another beautiful maiden\nnamed Briseis the Faircheeked, were taken prisoners when the town was\nsacked by the Hellenes. Agamemnon claimed the daughter of the priest as\nhis share of the spoil, while Briseis he awarded to Achilles.\n\n[Illustration: Often she would stand upon the walls of Troy]\n\nWhen Chryses the priest found that his daughter had been carried\naway by the Greeks, he hastened to the tent of Agamemnon, taking with\nhim a ransom great \u2018beyond telling.\u2019 In his hands he bore a golden\nstaff on which he had placed the holy garland, that the Greeks, seeing\nit, might treat him with reverence.\n\n\u2018Now may the gods that dwell in the mansions of Olympus grant you to\nlay waste the city of Priam and to fare happily homeward,\u2019 said the\npriest to the assembled chiefs, \u2018only set ye my dear child free and\naccept the ransom in reverence to Apollo.\u2019\n\nAll save Agamemnon wished to accept the ransom and set Chryseis free,\nbut he was wroth with the priest and roughly bade him begone.\n\n\u2018Let me not find thee, old man,\u2019 he cried, \u2018amid the ships, whether\ntarrying now or returning again hereafter, lest the sacred staff of\nthe god avail thee naught. And thy daughter will I not set free. But\ndepart, provoke me not, that thou mayest the rather go in peace.\u2019\n\nThen Chryseis was angry with Agamemnon, while for his daughter\u2019s sake\nhe wept.\n\nDown by the \u2018shore of the loud-sounding sea\u2019 he walked, praying to\nApollo, \u2018Hear me, god of the silver bow. If ever I built a temple\ngracious in thine eyes, or if ever I burnt to thee fat flesh ... of\nbulls or goats, fulfil thou this my desire; let the Greeks pay by thine\narrows for my tears.\u2019\n\nApollo heard the cry of the priest, and swift was his answer. For he\nhastened to the tents of the Greeks, bearing upon his shoulders his\nsilver bow, and he sped arrows of death into the camp.\n\nDogs, mules, men, all fell before the arrows of the angry god. The\nbodies of the dead were burned on great piles of wood, and the smoke\nrose black toward the sky.\n\nFor nine days the clanging of the silver bow was heard. Then Achilles\ncalled the hosts of the Greeks together, and before them all he spoke\nthus to Agamemnon: \u2018Let us go home, Son of Atreus,\u2019 he said, \u2018rather\nthan perish, as we surely shall do if we remain here. Else let us ask\na priest why Apollo treats us thus harshly.\u2019\n\nBut it was easy to tell why Apollo was angry, and Calchas, a seer,\nanswered Achilles in plain-spoken words. \u2018The wrath of the god is upon\nus,\u2019 he said, \u2018for the sake of the priest whom Agamemnon spurned,\nrefusing to accept the ransom of his daughter. Let Chryseis be sent\nback to her father, and for sacrifice also a hundred beasts, that the\nanger of the god may be pacified.\u2019\n\nDeep was the wrath of Agamemnon as he listened to the words of Calchas.\n\n\u2018Thou seer of evil,\u2019 he cried, his eyes aflame with anger, \u2018never yet\nhast thou told me the thing that is pleasant. Yet that the hosts of our\narmy perish not, I will send the maiden back. But in her place will I\ntake Briseis the Fair-cheeked, whom Achilles has in his tent.\u2019\n\nWhen Achilles heard these words he drew his sword to slay Agamemnon.\nBut before he could strike a blow he felt the locks of his golden hair\ncaught in a strong grasp, and in a moment his rage was checked, for\nhe knew the touch was that of the goddess Athene. None saw her save\nAchilles, none heard as she said to him, \u2018I came from heaven to stay\nthine anger.... Go to now, cease from strife, and let not thine hand\ndraw the sword.\u2019\n\nThen Achilles sheathed his sword, saying, \u2018Goddess, needs must a man\nobserve thy saying even though he be very wroth at heart, for so is the\nbetter way.\u2019\n\nYet although Achilles struck no blow, bitter were the words he spoke\nto the king, for a coward did he deem him and full of greed. \u2018If thou\ntakest from me Briseis,\u2019 he cried, \u2018verily, by my staff, that shall not\nblossom again seeing it has been cleft from a tree, never will I again\ndraw sword for thee. Surely I and my warriors will go home, for no\nquarrel have we with the Trojans. And when Hector slaughters thy hosts,\nin vain shalt thou call for Achilles.\u2019\n\nWell did Agamemnon know that he ought to soothe the anger of Achilles\nand prevail on him to stay, for his presence alone could make the\nTrojans fear. Yet in his pride the king answered, \u2018Thou mayest go and\nthy warriors with thee. Chieftains have I who will serve me as well as\nthou, and who will pay me more respect than ever thou hast done. As for\nthe maiden Briseis, her I will have, that the Greeks may know that I am\nindeed the true sovereign of this host.\u2019\n\nThe Assembly then broke up, and Chryseis was sent home under the charge\nof Odysseus, one of the bravest of the Greek warriors.\n\nWhen the priest received his daughter again, he at once entreated\nApollo to stay his fatal darts, that the Greeks might no longer perish\nin their camp. And Apollo heard and laid aside his silver bow and his\narrows of death.\n\nThen Agamemnon called heralds, and bade them go to the tent of Achilles\nand bring to him Briseis of the fair cheeks. \u2018Should Achilles refuse\nto give her up,\u2019 said the angry king, \u2018let him know that I myself will\ncome to fetch the maiden.\u2019\n\nBut when the heralds told Achilles the words of the king, he bade\nPatroclus bring the damsel from her tent and give her to the messengers\nof Agamemnon. And the maiden, who would fain have stayed with Achilles,\nwas taken to the king.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII\n\nMENELAUS AND PARIS DO BATTLE\n\n\nWhen the heralds of Agamemnon had led Briseis away, Achilles stripped\noff his armour, for not again would he fight in the Trojan War. Down\nto the seashore he went alone to weep for the loss of Briseis the\nFaircheeked.\n\nAs he wept he called aloud to his mother Thetis. From the depths of the\nsea she heard his cry, and swift on a wave she reached the shore. Soon\nshe was by the side of her son, and taking his hand, as when he was a\nboy, she asked, \u2018My child, why weepest thou?\u2019\n\nThen Achilles told how Agamemnon had taken from him Briseis, whom he\nloved.\n\n\u2018Go to the palace of Zeus,\u2019 he entreated her, \u2018and beseech Zeus to give\nme honour before the hosts of the Greeks. Let him grant victory to the\nTrojans until the king sends to Achilles to beg for his help in the\nbattle.\u2019\n\nSo Thetis, for the sake of her dear son, hastened to Olympus, and\nbending at the knee of Zeus she besought the god to avenge the wrong\ndone to Achilles.\n\nAt first Zeus, the Cloud-gatherer, was silent, as though he heard her\nnot. \u2018Give me now thy promise,\u2019 urged Thetis, \u2018and confirm it with a\nnod or else deny me.\u2019\n\nThen the god nodded, and thereat Olympus shook to its foundations. So\nThetis knew that she had found favour in the eyes of Zeus, and leaving\nthe palace of the gods she plunged deep into the sea.\n\nZeus hastened to fulfil his promise, and sent to Agamemnon a \u2018baneful\ndream.\u2019\n\nAs the king dreamed, he thought he heard Zeus bid him go forth to\nbattle against the Trojans, for he would surely take the city. But in\nthis Zeus deceived the king.\n\nWhen Agamemnon awoke in the morning he was glad, for now he hoped to\nwin great honour among his warriors. Quickly he armed himself for\nbattle, throwing a great cloak over his tunic, and slinging his sword,\nstudded with silver, over his shoulder. In his right hand he bore the\nsceptre of his sires, the sign of his lordship over all the great hosts\nof Hellas.\n\nThen when he was armed, the king assembled his great army, and after\ntelling his dream, he bade it march in silence toward the city.\n\nBut when the Trojans saw the Hellenes drawing near, they came out to\nmeet them \u2018with clamour and with shouting like unto birds, even as when\nthere goeth up before heaven a clamour of cranes which flee from the\ncoming of winter and sudden rain.\u2019\n\nAs the Trojans approached, Menelaus saw Paris who had stolen his fair\nwife, and he leaped from his chariot that he might slay the prince. But\nParis, when he saw the wrath of Menelaus, was afraid and hid himself\namong his comrades.\n\nThen Hector, his brother, who was the leader of the Trojans, mocked at\nhim for his cowardice, until Paris grew ashamed.\n\n\u2018Now will I challenge Menelaus to single combat,\u2019 he cried. And Hector\nrejoiced at his words and bade the warriors stay their arrows.\n\n\u2018Hearken, ye Trojans and ye Greeks,\u2019 he cried, \u2018Paris bids you lay down\nyour arms while he and his enemy Menelaus alone do battle for Helen and\nfor her wealth. And he who shall be victor shall keep the woman and her\ntreasures, while we will make with one another oaths of friendship and\nof peace.\u2019 So there, without the walls of the city, oaths were taken\nboth by the Greeks and the Trojans. But the heart of Priam, King of\nTroy, was heavy lest harm should befall Paris, and he hastened within\nthe gates of the city that he might not watch the combat. \u2018I can in no\nwise bear to behold with mine eyes my dear son fighting with Menelaus,\u2019\nhe said. \u2018But Zeus knoweth, and all the immortal gods, for whether of\nthe twain the doom of death is appointed.\u2019\n\nThen Menelaus and Paris drew their swords, and Menelaus cried to Zeus\nto grant him his aid, so that hereafter men \u2018may shudder to wrong his\nhost that hath shown him kindness.\u2019\n\nBut it seemed that Zeus heard not, for when Menelaus flung his\nponderous spear, although it passed close to Paris, rending his tunic,\nyet did it not wound him, and when he dealt a mighty blow with his\nsword upon the helmet of his enemy, lo, his sword broke into pieces in\nhis hand.\n\nThen in his wrath, Menelaus reproached the god: \u2018Father Zeus,\u2019 he\ncried, \u2018surely none of the gods is crueller than thou. My sword\nbreaketh in my hand, and my spear sped from my grasp in vain, and I\nhave not smitten my enemy.\u2019\n\nYet even if Zeus denied his help, Menelaus determined to slay his foe.\nSo he sprang forward and seized Paris by the strap of his helmet. But\nthe goddess Aphrodite flew to the aid of the prince, and the strap\nbroke in the hand of Menelaus. Before the king could again reach his\nenemy, a mist sent by the goddess concealed the combatants one from the\nother. Then, unseen by all, Aphrodite caught up Paris, \u2018very easily as\na goddess may,\u2019 and hid him in the city within his own house.\n\nIn vain did Menelaus search for his foe, yet well did he know that\nno Trojan had given him shelter. For Paris was \u2018hated of all even as\nblack death,\u2019 because it was through his base deed that Troy had been\nbesieged for nine long years.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII\n\nHECTOR AND ANDROMACHE\n\n\nThe gods were angry with Aphrodite because she had hidden Paris from\nthe king, and they determined that, in spite of their oath, the two\narmies should again begin to fight.\n\nSo Athene was sent to the Trojan hosts, disguised as one of themselves.\nIn and out among the soldiers she paced, until at length she spoke to\none of them, bidding him draw his bow and wound Menelaus.\n\nThe soldier obeyed, and the arrow, guided by Athene, reached the king,\nyet was the wound but slight.\n\nWhen the Greeks saw that the Trojans had disregarded their oath, they\nwere full of wrath, and seizing their arms they followed their chiefs\nto battle. \u2018You had thought them dumb, so silent were they,\u2019 as they\nfollowed. But as the Trojans looked upon the enemy there arose among\nthem a confused murmur as when \u2018sheep bleat without ceasing to hear\ntheir lambs cry.\u2019\n\nFierce and yet more fierce raged the battle. Valiant deeds were done on\nboth sides, but when Hector saw that the Greeks were being helped by\nthe gods, he left the battlefield and hastened to the city.\n\nAt the gates, wives and mothers pressed around him, eager to hear what\nhad befallen their husbands, their sons. But Hector tarried only to bid\nthem go pray to the gods.\n\nOn to the palace he hastened to find Hecuba, his mother. She, seeing\nhim come, ran to greet him and to beg of him to wait until she brought\nhoney-sweet wine, that he might pour out an offering to Zeus, and\nhimself drink and be refreshed.\n\nBut Hector said, \u2018Bring me no honey-sweet wine, my lady-mother, lest\nthou cripple me of my courage and I be forgetful of my might. But go\nthou to the temple with all thy women, to offer gifts to Athene and to\nbeseech her aid.\u2019\n\nThen leaving his mother, Hector went to the house of Paris, and\nbitterly did he rebuke him, because he was not in the forefront of the\nbattle.\n\n\u2018Stay but till I arm and I will go with thee,\u2019 answered Paris. But\nHector heeded him not, for he was in haste to find his dear wife\nAndromache and their beautiful boy, Skamandriss. By the people the\nchild was called Astyanax, the City King, for it was his father who\nguarded Troy.\n\nAndromache was not in their house, but on the wall of the city,\nwatching the battle, fearing lest harm should befall her lord. With her\nwas her little son, in the arms of his nurse.\n\nHector dared not linger to search for his wife, but as he hastened back\nto the gates she saw him and ran to bid him farewell ere he returned to\nbattle.\n\nClose to his side she pressed, and her tears fell as she cried:\n\n \u2018Too brave! thy valour yet will cause thy death.\n Thou hast no pity on thy tender child,\n Nor me, unhappy one, who soon must be\n Thy widow. All the Greeks will rush on thee\n To take thy life. A happier lot were mine\n If I must lose thee to go down to earth,\n For I shall have no hope when thou art gone--\n Nothing but sorrow. Father have I none,\n And no dear mother....\n\n Hector, thou\n Art father and dear mother now to me,\n And brother and my youthful spouse besides,\n In pity keep within the fortress here,\n Nor make thy child an orphan nor thy wife\n A widow.\u2019\n\nBut Hector, though he dearly loved his wife, could not shrink from the\nbattle. As Andromache ceased to plead with him, he held out his arms\nto his little son, but the child drew back in fear of the great plumes\nthat waved on his father\u2019s shining helmet.\n\nThen Hector took off his helmet and laid it on the ground, while he\ncaught his child in his arms and kissed him, praying Zeus and all the\ngods to defend him.\n\nAndromache gazed pitifully at her husband as, at length, he gave the\nchild to its nurse, and he seeing her great grief, took her hand and\nsaid:\n\n \u2018Sorrow not thus, beloved one, for me.\n No living man can send me to the shades\n Before my time; no man of woman born,\n Coward or brave, can shun his destiny.\n But go thou home and tend thy labours there,\n The web, the distaff, and command thy maids\n To speed the work. The cares of war pertain\n To all men born in Troy, and most to me.\u2019\n\nThen springing into his chariot, Hector drove swiftly back to the field\nof battle.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV\n\nTHE HORSES OF ACHILLES\n\n\nHector and Paris reached the battlefield at the same moment. The\nTrojans were encouraged to fight yet more fiercely when they saw the\ntwo princes, and soon so many of the Greeks were slain that Agamemnon\ngrew afraid.\n\n\u2018Zeus hath sent me a deceiving dream,\u2019 he said to his counsellors. \u2018If\nthe gods send not their help we must perish, unless indeed Achilles\nwill forget his anger and come to our aid. Verily, Zeus loveth\nAchilles, seeing that he putteth the Greeks to flight that he may do\nhim honour. But even as I wronged him in my folly, so will I make\namends and give recompence beyond all telling.\u2019\n\nThen, casting aside his pride, the king sent messengers to the tent\nof Achilles, to say that he would send back Briseis and give to him\nsplendid gifts if he would but come to the help of the Greeks, for they\nwere flying before the enemy.\n\nBut the heart of Achilles was too bitter to be touched by the fair\npromises of the king, for had he not taken from him Briseis, the lady\nof his love? So he bade the messengers go back to Agamemnon and say\nthat he would not fight, but he would launch his ships on the morrow\nand sail away to his own land.\n\nWhen the king heard that Achilles spurned his gifts, and refused\nto come to his aid, he was afraid. But his counsellors said, \u2018Let\nus not heed Achilles, whether he sail or whether he linger by the\nloud-sounding sea. When the gods call to him, or when his own heart\nbids, he will fight. Let us go once more against the Trojans, and do\nthou show thyself, O king, in the forefront of the battle.\u2019\n\nThen Agamemnon rallied his men and led them against the foe, yet again\nhe was driven back. Chief after chief was wounded, and at length the\nHellenes fled to their ships to defend them from the Trojans. But\nPatroclus determined to plead with Achilles to save his countrymen from\ndefeat. When he entered the tent of his friend he was weeping for pity\nof the dead and wounded.\n\n\u2018Wherefore weepest thou, Patroclus, like a fond little maid that runs\nby her mother\u2019s side?\u2019 asked Achilles as he looked up at the entrance\nof his friend and saw his tears.\n\n\u2018Never may such wrath take hold of me as that thou nursest, thrice\nbrave, to the hurting of others,\u2019 answered his comrade. \u2018The Greeks are\nlying wounded and dead. If thou wilt not come to their help, let me\nlead thy men so that the enemy may be beaten back....\u2019\n\n \u2018And give\n The armour from thy shoulders. I will wear\n Thy mail, and then the Trojans, at the sight,\n May think I am Achilles, and may pause\n From fighting.\u2019\n\nEven as Patroclus pleaded with his friend, a great light flared up\nagainst the sky. The Trojans had set fire to the Greek ships.\n\nThen, at length, Achilles was roused. He would not go himself to the\nhelp of Agamemnon, but he bade Patroclus put on his armour, while he\ncalled together his brave warriors and commanded them to follow his\nfriend to battle.\n\nQuickly Patroclus donned the well-known armour of Achilles, then\ncalling to Automedon, the chariot driver, he bade him harness Xanthus\nand Balius, the immortal horses of his friend, for their speed was\nswift as the wind.\n\nAs Patroclus vanished from sight in the chariot drawn by Xanthus and\nBalius, Achilles prayed to Zeus. \u2018O Zeus,\u2019 he cried, \u2018I send my comrade\nto this battle. Strengthen his heart within him, and when he has\ndriven from the ships the war and din of battle, scathless then let him\nreturn to me and my people with him.\u2019\n\nDown upon the Trojans swept the warriors led by Patroclus. They, seeing\nthe armour of Achilles were afraid, and fled from the ships. But ere\nlong they discovered that it was not Achilles but Patroclus who wore\nthe well-known armour, and they returned to fight with new courage. And\never, where the battle raged most fiercely, did Patroclus bid Automedon\ndrive his chariot.\n\nThen the gods bade Hector find Patroclus and slay him. Little trouble\nhad the prince in finding the warrior who wore the armour of Achilles.\nBravely the two heroes fought, but Patroclus was not able to stand\nagainst the great strength of Hector. Moreover, the gods betrayed him,\nstriking him from behind on the head and shoulders, so that the helmet\nof Achilles fell in the dust. Apollo also snatched his shield from his\narm and broke his spear in two.\n\nWhen Hector saw that his enemy was disarmed, he took his spear and\nstruck him so fiercely that Patroclus fell\n\n \u2018With clashing mail, and all the Greeks beheld\n His fall with grief.\u2019\n\nThe friend of Achilles was wounded to death.\n\nIn his triumph Hector was merciless. He mocked at his fallen foe,\nsaying, \u2018Patroclus, surely thou saidst that thou wouldst sack my town,\nand from Trojan women take away the day of freedom, and bring them in\nships to thine own dear country. Fool, ... I ward from them the day of\ndestiny, but thee shall vultures here destroy.\u2019\n\nFaint though he was, Patroclus answered, \u2018It was not thou, Hector, who\ndidst slay me, but Apollo, who snatched from me my shield and brake my\nsword in twain.\u2019 Then his strength failed and he breathed his last.\n\nNo pity yet showed Hector, for he stripped off the armour of Achilles\nfrom the body of Patroclus that he might wear it himself. But Zeus, as\nhe looked upon the haughty victor, was displeased.\n\n\u2018Ah, hapless man,\u2019 said the god to himself, \u2018no thought is in thy heart\nof death that yet draweth nigh unto thee; thou doest on thee the divine\narmour of a peerless man before whom the rest have terror. His comrade,\ngentle and brave, thou hast slain, and unmeetly hast stripped the\narmour from his head and shoulders.\u2019\n\nThe immortal horses of Achilles wept when they knew that Patroclus was\nslain. Automedon lashed them, he spoke kindly to them, yet would they\nnot move. As a pillar on a tomb, so they stood yoked to the chariot.\nFrom their eyes big teardrops fell, their beautiful heads hung down\nwith grief so that their long manes were trailed in the dust. Thus\nsorely did the immortal steeds grieve for the death of Patroclus.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV\n\nTHE DEATH OF HECTOR\n\n\nFierce and long raged the battle around the body of Patroclus. And\nwhile the armies fought, a messenger hastened to the tent of Achilles\nto tell him that his comrade was slain and that the Trojans fought for\nhis body as it lay naked on the ground, stripped of its armour. \u2018Thy\narmour,\u2019 said the messenger, \u2018Hector has taken for himself.\u2019\n\nWhen Achilles heard the bitter tidings he took dust and poured it with\nboth hands upon his head. \u2018As he thought thereon, he shed big tears,\nnow lying on his side, now on his back, now on his face, and then anon\nhe would rise upon his feet, and roam wildly beside the beach of the\nsalt sea.\u2019 As he cried aloud in his grief his mother, Thetis, heard in\nher home beneath the sea. Swiftly she sped to her son that she might\nlearn why he wept.\n\nAchilles told her all that had befallen Patroclus, and how he himself\ncared no longer to live, save only that he might slay Hector who had\nkilled his friend.\n\nThetis bade her son wait but till the morrow before he went to battle,\nand she would bring him armour made by the great Fire-god.\n\nThen she left him and prayed the god Hephaestus, keeper of the forge,\nto give her armour for her dear son.\n\nHephaestus was pleased to work for so goodly a warrior as Achilles.\nQuickly he set his twenty bellows to work, and when the fire blazed in\nthe forge, he threw into it bronze and silver and gold. Then taking\na great hammer in his hand he fashioned a marvellous shield, more\nmarvellous than words can tell. Before morning a complete suit of\narmour was ready for Achilles.\n\nMeanwhile Hector had all but captured the body of Patroclus. But the\ngods spoke to Achilles, bidding him now succour the body of his friend.\nWithout armour Achilles could not enter the fray, yet he hastened to\nthe trenches that the Trojans might see him.\n\nAround his head gleamed a golden light, placed there by Athene. When\nthe Trojans saw the flame and heard the mighty cry of Achilles, they\ndrew back afraid.\n\nThree times the warrior shouted, and three times the Trojans drew back\nin fear. While they hesitated the Greeks rushed forward and carried\naway the body of Patroclus, nor did they lay it down until they laid it\nin the tent of Achilles.\n\nOn the morrow Thetis came back to her son, bringing with her the armour\nmade by Hephaestus. She found him weeping over the body of his friend.\n\n\u2018My child,\u2019 she said, \u2018him who lieth here we must let be, for all our\npain. Arm thyself now and go thy way into the fray.\u2019\n\nThen Achilles put on the armour of the god in haste, for he feared lest\nanother than he should slay Hector.\n\nWith Achilles once again at their head, the Greek warriors attacked\nthe Trojans with redoubled fury. But it was Hector alone whom Achilles\nlonged to meet, and soon he saw his enemy near one of the gates of\nTroy. Now he would avenge the death of Patroclus. But when Hector saw\nthe great hate in the eyes of his enemy, lo, he turned and fled.\n\n\u2018As a hawk, fastest of all the birds of air, pursues a dove upon the\nmountains,\u2019 so did Achilles pursue the prince until he was forced to\nstand to take breath. Then Hector, encouraged by the gods, drew near to\nhim and spoke, \u2018Thrice, great Achilles, hast thou pursued me round the\nwalls of Troy, and I dared not stand up against thee; but now I fear\nthee no more. Only do thou promise, if Zeus give thee the victory, to\ndo no dishonour to my body, as I also will promise to do none to thine\nshould I slay thee.\u2019\n\nBut Achilles, remembering Patroclus, cried out in anger that never\nwould he make a covenant with him who had slain his friend.\n\nThen with fierce blows each fell upon the other, until at length\nAchilles drove his spear through the armour that Hector wore, and the\nTrojan prince fell, stricken to the ground.\n\nAchilles, his anger still burning fiercely, stripped the dead man of\nhis armour, while many Greek warriors standing near thrust at him with\ntheir spears, saying to one another, \u2018Go to, for easier to handle is\nHector now, than when he burnt the ships with blazing fire.\u2019\n\nThen Achilles tied the dead man to his chariot with thongs of ox-hide\nand drove nine times round the city walls, dragging the fair head of\nHector in the dust.\n\nFrom the tower Priam and Hecuba saw the body of their son dragged in\nthe dust, and bitter was their pain.\n\nBut Andromache knew not yet what had befallen her lord, for she sat\nin an inner chamber wearing a purple cloth. Soon she bade her maids\nprepare a bath for Hector, for she thought that he would return ere\nlong from the battle. She knew not yet that Hector would never return,\nbut as the noise of the wailing of the people reached the room in which\nshe sat, her heart misgave her. In haste she ran to the wall of the\ncity, only to see the chariot of Achilles as it dragged Hector down to\nthe loud-sounding sea.\n\nThen fainting with grief, Andromache fell to the ground, and the diadem\nwhich Aphrodite had given to her on her wedding morn dropped from her\nhead, to be worn by her no more.\n\nDown by the seashore Achilles burned the body of Patroclus with great\nhonour, and when the funeral rites were ended, he dragged the dead\nbody of Hector round the tomb, weeping for the loss of his dear comrade.\n\nBut Zeus was angry with Achilles for treating the Trojan prince so\ncruelly, and he sent Thetis to bid her son give back Hector\u2019s body to\nPriam, who would come to offer for it a ransom. \u2018If Zeus decrees it,\nwhoever brings a ransom shall return with the dead,\u2019 answered Achilles.\n\nThen Zeus sent a messenger to the house of Priam, where the mother\nand the wife of Hector wept, saying, \u2018Be of good cheer in thy heart,\nO Priam.... I am the messenger of Zeus to thee, who though he be afar\noff, hath great care and pity for thee. The Olympian biddeth thee\nransom noble Hector\u2019s body, and carry gifts to Achilles that may\ngladden his heart.\u2019\n\nSo Priam set out alone, save for the driver of the wagon which was to\nbring Hector again to Troy, for so had the messenger commanded. But\nHecuba feared to let the old man go alone to the tent of the enemy.\nWhen he reached the camp of the Greeks, Priam hastened to the tent of\nAchilles, and entering it before his enemy was aware, the old king fell\nat the feet of his enemy and begged for the body of his dear son.\n\nAchilles could not look upon the grief of the old man unmoved, but\nwhen Priam offered him gifts he frowned and haughtily he answered,\n\u2018Of myself am I minded to give Hector back to thee, for so has Zeus\ncommanded.\u2019\n\nThen a truce for nine days was made between the Greeks and the Trojans,\nso that King Priam and his people might mourn for Hector and bury him\nundisturbed by fear of the enemy.\n\nPriam tarried with Achilles until night fell. Then while he and his\nwarriors slept, the king arose and bade the driver yoke the horses and\nmules. When this was done they laid the body of Hector upon the wagon,\nand in the silence of the night set out on their homeward journey.\n\nAt the gates of Troy stood Andromache and Hecuba watching until Priam\nreturned. And when the wagon reached the city the Trojans carried\nHector into his own house. Then Andromache took the head of her dear\nhusband in her arms and said, \u2018Husband, thou art gone young from life\nand leavest me a widow in thy halls. And the child is yet but a little\none ... nor methinks shall he grow up to manhood, for ere then shall\nthis city be utterly destroyed. For thou art verily perished who didst\nwatch over it and guard it, and keptest safe its noble wives and infant\nlittle ones.\u2019\n\nThe following morning Priam bade his people go gather wood for the\nburial, and after nine days the body of Hector was laid on the pile\nand burned. Then his white bones, wrapped in purple cloth, were placed\nin a golden chest. Above the chest a great mound was raised, and thus\nHector, the brave prince of Troy, was buried.\n\nSoon after the burial of Hector Achilles was killed by a poisoned arrow\nwhich Paris aimed at his heel, the one spot of his body that Thetis had\nfailed to bathe in the magic waters of the river Styx. Paris himself\nperished soon after the death of Achilles.\n\nTroy still remained untaken. Then goodly Odysseus told the Greeks that\nalthough they could not take the city by storm, they might take her by\na stratagem or trick.\n\nSo the Greeks, as he bade them, built a huge wooden horse, which was\nhollow within. Here they hid a number of their bravest warriors, and\nthen the main body of the army marched away, as though they were tired\nof trying to take the city. The wooden horse they left as an offering\nto Poseidon. Only a slave named Sinon was left behind to persuade the\nTrojans to drag the horse into the city. But the Trojans needed little\npersuasion. They came out of the city, gazed at the strange horse, half\nfeared a trick, and then, like children amused with a new toy, they\npulled it within the walls of Troy.\n\nSo glad were the Trojans that the enemy had gone away, that they made\na great feast. While they ate and drank, careless of danger, Sinon\nhelped the Greek warriors out of the hollow wooden horse. They waited\nuntil it was late and all was quiet, then they slipped down to the\ngates and flung them open, while their comrades, who had not marched\nfar away, rushed in to plunder and burn the city. Thus after many long\nyears Troy was taken by the counsel of Odysseus.\n\nOne of the first to sail away from the city was Menelaus, with his\nbeautiful queen safe at his side. After many adventures he reached\nSparta and lived with Helen \u2018in peace, comfort, and wealth, and his\npalace shone in its splendour like the sun or the moon.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI\n\nPOLYPHEMUS THE GIANT\n\n\nThe Greek warriors burned and sacked the city of Troy, and then they\nset sail for the sunny isles of Greece. But storms overtook some, the\ngods sent misfortune to others, so that but few reached their own land\nin safety.\n\nOdysseus, King of Ithaca, an island on the western coast of Greece,\nsuffered greater hardships than any other. For ten years he was either\ntossed by the gods on stormy seas, or kept a captive in strange\ncountries. Of some of his adventures I shall tell you now.\n\nWhen Odysseus and his comrades sailed away from Troy, they were\ndriven by a fair wind to the shore of Ismarus. Here dwelt a rich and\nprosperous people called the Cicones.\n\nThe Greeks wished to take much spoil back with them to their homes, so\nthey resolved to slay the Cicones and plunder their city.\n\nSome of the citizens escaped the sword of the adventurers and hastened\nto their kinsmen who dwelt farther from the shore. When they had told\ntheir terrible tidings, their comrades armed themselves and sped to the\nshore to punish the strangers.\n\nOdysseus had tried in vain to make his followers go back to their\nships. They had refused to be hurried, and were now sitting on the\nseashore eating and drinking, heedless of danger.\n\nBefore they were aware the kinsmen of the Cicones had fallen upon them,\nand when the sun went down they had slain six men out of each of the\nstrangers\u2019 ships. The rest barely escaped with their lives.\n\nScarcely had the Greeks reached their vessels and sailed away from\nIsmarus, when Zeus sent a north wind against them. For nine days their\nships were driven hither and thither. Their sails were torn to shreds,\nwhen on the tenth day the sailors caught sight of land. It was the land\nof the lotus-eaters, where the people fed only on the fruit of the\nlotus, a fruit that brought sleep and forgetfulness to the eater.\n\nOdysseus sent three sailors on shore to find out what manner of people\nthe lotus-eaters were. No sooner had they landed than the inhabitants\nbrought them fruit, which they ate with delight. But the honey-sweet\nflowers made them forget Odysseus, their comrades, and their ships.\nThey had no wish save to stay for ever with the lotus-eaters to share\ntheir magic food.\n\nAt length, Odysseus grew tired of waiting for the three sailors to\nreturn, and he himself with a few armed men went on shore to look for\nthem. He thought that perhaps they had been taken prisoners and had\nbeen bound with chains, but he found them lying on the yellow sand,\ndreamy and content.\n\n \u2018And sweet it was to dream of Fatherland,\n Of child, and wife, and slave; but evermore\n Most weary seem\u2019d the sea, weary the oar,\n Weary the wandering fields of barren foam.\u2019\n\nWhen the three sailors saw Odysseus they cried:\n\n \u2018\u201cWe will return no more\u201d\n And all at once they sang, \u201cOur island home\n Is far beyond the wave; we will no longer roam.\u201d\u2019\n\nOdysseus and his comrades were offered fruit by the kindly\nlotus-eaters, but Odysseus waved it aside and bade his men drag away\nthe three sailors who had already eaten. The sailors wept sore, for\nfain would they have dwelt for ever in the land of dreams. But when\nthey were once more on their vessels and had put out to sea, the\nbreezes brought back health to their bodies, vigour to their minds.\nSoon they were able to rejoice that they had left the enchanted\nlotus-land far behind.\n\nWestward sailed the fleet of Odysseus, until it reached the island of\nSicily, where the Cyclopes dwelt. The Cyclopes were giants who had each\nbut one eye, fixed in the middle of his brow.\n\nOdysseus, taking with him only his own crew, landed on the island, for\nhe wished to see the Cyclopes. He had walked but a little way when he\ncame to a great cave, in which stood baskets filled with cheeses and\nmilkpans filled with milk. In this cave dwelt Polyphemus, one of the\nsons of Poseidon, and the fiercest of all the fierce Cyclopes.\n\nInto this cave went Odysseus and his comrades. Polyphemus was not\nwithin; he was out on the hills with his flocks.\n\n\u2018Let us take the cheeses and drive away the lambs and the kids that are\nhere, before the giant returns,\u2019 said the sailors. But Odysseus would\nnot do as they wished, for, said he, \u2018I greatly wish to see the giant\nshepherd who dwells in the cave.\u2019\n\n\u2018Verily,\u2019 said Odysseus, as he told the tale in after days, \u2018verily,\nhis coming was not to be a joy to my company.\u2019\n\nEvening drew on apace, and Polyphemus, driving his flocks before him,\nreached the cave. When he had driven his flocks in before him, the\ngiant took a huge rock and placed it in the doorway.\n\nOdysseus and his comrades had hidden themselves in the dimmest corners\nof the cave when Polyphemus entered. The giant lighted a great fire of\npine wood and began to milk the ewes. Soon the flames lighted up every\ncorner of the cave, and Polyphemus saw his unexpected guests.\n\nIn a voice that struck terror even into the brave hearts of the Greeks,\nso gruff, so loud it was, the giant demanded, \u2018Strangers, who are ye?\nWhence sail ye over the watery ways? On some trading enterprise or at\nadventure do ye rove, even as sea-robbers over the brine?\u2019\n\nBoldly then answered Odysseus, \u2018\u201c_No Man_\u201d is my name. My ship,\nPoseidon, the shaker of the earth, broke it to pieces, for he cast it\nupon the rocks at the border of your country, and brought it nigh the\nheadland, and a wind bore it thither from the sea. But I, with these\nmy men, escaped from utter doom. Give us, we beseech thee, food and\nshelter.\u2019\n\nAs you know, Odysseus had not been shipwrecked, his vessel, safely\nanchored, awaited his return, nor was his true name _No Man_. He dared\nnot tell the giant the truth, lest he should go in search of his\nship and take it for firewood, while he and his companions were kept\nprisoners in the cave.\n\nThe giant said not a word when Odysseus ended his tale, but he\nstretched out his great hand, seized two of the strangers, and devoured\nthem before the eyes of their horrified companions. Then, well\nsatisfied with his meal, he fell fast asleep.\n\nIn the morning the giant finished his breakfast by eating two more of\nhis guests, then, moving away the stone at the entrance of the cave as\neasily as if it had been a feather, he drove his flocks to pasture. He\ndid not forget to replace the stone in the doorway before he turned\naway.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII\n\nODYSSEUS ESCAPES FROM THE CAVE\n\n\nOdysseus was determined that he and his comrades should escape from the\ncave of the dread Cyclops. Hour after hour he pondered how he might\npersuade the giant to let them go, but at length he thought, \u2018I will\nnot persuade him, I will force him to let us go.\u2019\n\nAt that moment, his eye fell upon a great staff or club in a corner of\nthe cave. He bade his companions make a sharp point to it. When this\nwas done he hardened it in the fire and then hid it from sight.\n\nThe day passed slowly, but at length evening came and Polyphemus\nreturned to the cave. His guests shrank into the farthest corner as the\ngiant began his supper, but ere he finished, he again stretched out his\nhand, seized two of his prisoners, and devoured them. Then Odysseus\noffered him a draught of wine which he had brought with him from\nIsmarus.\n\nDeep drank the giant, and ere he fell into a sound sleep he turned to\nOdysseus saying, \u2018_No Man_, thee will I eat last in return for thy gift\nof wine.\u2019\n\nOdysseus waited until he saw that Polyphemus was fast asleep, then he\nbade his comrades put the point of the great staff in the fire. When it\nwas red hot he told them to thrust it deep into the eye of the giant.\nSo great was the pain that the Cyclops leaped up from his sleep and\nhurled away the staff, uttering loud cries of agony.\n\nThe giants who dwelt on the mountains round about heard the voice of\nPolyphemus, and together they hastened to the doorway of the cave.\n\n\u2018What hath so distressed thee, Polyphemus,\u2019 they cried, \u2018that thou\ncriest thus aloud through the immortal night and makest us sleepless?\nSurely no mortal driveth off thy flocks against thy will; surely none\nslayeth thyself by force or craft?\u2019\n\n\u2018_No Man_ is slaying me by guile, nor at all by force,\u2019 answered\nPolyphemus, proud even in his pain.\n\n\u2018If no man is harming thee, it may be that Zeus has sent sickness upon\nthee,\u2019 answered the giants. \u2018Pray thou then to thy father Poseidon for\naid. As for us, we will go back to our slumbers.\u2019\n\nOdysseus laughed to himself as he heard their retreating feet, for now\nhe was sure that he would be able to save himself and his comrades.\n\nWhen morning dawned, Polyphemus, still groaning with pain, groped his\nway to the door. Having found it he pushed the stone a little way to\nthe side to allow his flocks to pass out of the cave. To make sure\nthat his prisoners did not escape with the animals, he sat down by the\nentrance and touched the back of each ram as it passed. But Odysseus\nhad tied his followers with osier twigs beneath the rams, and so, in\nspite of the care of the giant, all his prisoners escaped. Odysseus\nhimself was the last to leave the cave, holding fast to the fleece of\nthe largest ram.\n\nNo sooner had Odysseus rejoined his companions than he loosened the\ntwigs with which he had bound them. Then together they ran to the\nshore, driving before them many of the giant\u2019s best sheep. These they\ntook on board their ship, and then rowed out some way from land.\n\nPolyphemus soon found that he had been outwitted, and he began to\nstumble down toward the sea.\n\nWhen Odysseus saw him, he bade his men rest on their oars, while he\nspoke to the giant in a loud voice.\n\n\u2018Cyclops,\u2019 he cried, \u2018so thou wert not to eat the company of a weakling\nby main might in thy hollow cave. Thine evil deeds were very sure to\nfind thee out, thou cruel man, who hadst no shame to eat thy guests\nwithin thy gates, wherefore Zeus hath requited thee and the other gods.\u2019\n\nIn his rage Polyphemus took a great rock off the top of a mountain and\nhurled it in the direction from which the voice came. The rock fell\nnear to the bow of the ship, so that the waters rose and pushed the\nvessel toward the shore.\n\nBut Odysseus seized a pole and swiftly thrust the ship back from the\nland. Then he bade the sailors pull for the open sea with might and\nmain.\n\nWhen the ship was once more some distance from the shore, Odysseus\ntaunted the giant yet again with his evil deeds.\n\n\u2018Cyclops,\u2019 he cried, \u2018if any one of mortal men shall ask thee of the\nunsightly blinding of thine eye, say that it was Odysseus who blinded\nit, the Waster of Cities, son of Laertes, whose dwelling is in Ithaca.\u2019\n\nThen the giant, in impotent anger, stretched out his hands to the\nheavens and cried, \u2018Hear me, Poseidon, girdler of the earth, god of\nthe dark hair, if indeed I be thy son.... Grant that he may never come\nto his home, even Odysseus, waster of cities, son of Laertes, whose\ndwelling is in Ithaca; yet if he is ordained to see his friends and\ncome into his well-builded house and his own country, late may he come,\nand in evil case, with the loss of all his company, in the ship of\nstrangers, and find sorrows in his house.\u2019\n\nAnd so it came to pass, even as the Cyclops prayed, for only after many\nwanderings did Odysseus reach his home, to find it in the hands of\nthose who prayed that the king might never return to Ithaca.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII\n\nODYSSEUS RETURNS TO ITHACA\n\n\nThe small island of Ithaca, of which Odysseus was king, lay on the\nwestern shore of Greece. His subjects deemed that their king was dead,\nfor ten years had passed since Troy had been destroyed, and yet he had\nnot come home.\n\nBut Penelope, the wife of Odysseus, would not believe that her lord was\ndead; she clung to the hope that he would yet return. Princes came to\nthe palace to beg the queen to wed, but in vain did each one urge his\nsuit, for hope whispered in the heart of Penelope, \u2018My lord is still\nalive.\u2019\n\nLaertes, the father of Odysseus, was too old, her little son Telemachus\nwas too young, to help the queen, when the princes rudely insisted on\nliving in the palace and in wasting the goods of Odysseus. Again and\nagain they entreated her to wed one among them. But the queen grew\nangry and rebuked them for their insolence in living in the palace.\nFrom day to day, from week to week, from month to month, even from year\nto year, Penelope mocked at the impatience of her suitors.\n\nFor she set up in the hall of the palace a large loom and began to\nweave a beautiful robe. \u2018Ye princely youths, my wooers,\u2019 she said, \u2018now\nthat Odysseus is dead, as ye declare, do ye abide patiently, how eager\nsoever on this marriage of mine, till I finish the robe.\u2019\n\nThe princes agreed to wait until the robe was finished, but little did\nthey dream how long the queen would take to her task.\n\nDay after day, day after day, they watched as Penelope sat at her web\nweaving, ever weaving. But night after night, night after night, when\nthe insolent princes had gone to bed, the queen carefully unravelled\nthe work they had seen her do by day.\n\nFor three long years did Penelope mock her suitors in this way, but\nwhen the fourth year came, and the robe was still incomplete, one of\nthe queen\u2019s serving-maids betrayed her secret to the princes.\n\nThen the queen could no longer refuse to wed, yet still she tried to\nput off the day as long as might be. So she promised to marry him who\ncould most easily bend the great bow of Odysseus, and hit the mark on\nwhich she should decide. There was now but a little while until the day\nwould dawn on which the trial of strength and skill was to take place.\n\nTelemachus meanwhile had grown into a tall lad, and, guided by Athene,\nhe left the palace where the princes wasted his wealth to go in search\nof his father. It might be that Odysseus was a captive in some distant\nland.\n\nBut Odysseus was on his way to Ithaca, sailing in the ship of a king\nwho had befriended him.\n\nAs the vessel glided into the harbour of the little island, Odysseus\nlay asleep on the deck. So the sailors lifted him in a rug on which he\nlay and put him down in his own kingdom by the side of the road.\n\nWhen he awoke Odysseus did not at first know where he was, for Athene\nhad covered the land with a thick mist.\n\n\u2018O woe is me now, unto what mortals\u2019 land am I now come?\u2019 cried the\nking, well-nigh in tears with desire for his own country.\n\nEven as he spoke, Athene stood by his side disguised as a young man.\n\n\u2018What land is this?\u2019 asked Odysseus, not yet knowing that it was the\ngoddess to whom he spoke, but thinking that it was one of the country\nfolk.\n\n\u2018Thou art witless, stranger, or thou art come from afar, if indeed\nthou askest of this land,\u2019 said Athene. \u2018Verily it is rough and not\nfit for the driving of horses, yet is it not a very sorry isle, though\nnarrow withal. For herein is corn past telling, and herein, too, wine\nis found, and the rain is on it evermore and the fresh dew. And it is\ngood for feeding goats and feeding kine; all manner of wood is here,\nand watering-places unfailing are herein. Wherefore, stranger, the name\nof Ithaca hath reached even unto Troyland.\u2019\n\nThen Odysseus knew that it was the grey-eyed goddess Athene who spoke\nto him, and he answered, \u2018Methinks that thou speakest thus to mock me\nand beguile my mind. Tell me whether, in very deed, I am come to mine\nown dear country?\u2019\n\nThe goddess did not answer, but silently she scattered the mist that\nthe king might see that he was indeed in his own kingdom.\n\nThen Odysseus was glad and stooped to kiss the earth, knowing that at\nlast his weary wanderings were at an end.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX\n\nARGUS THE HOUND DIES\n\n\nAthene knew that if Odysseus went to the palace, the princes would\npretend that he was not the king, and would perhaps even slay him. So\nshe bade him go, not to the palace, but to the hut of his swineherd\nEumaeus, who had remained loyal to him and to his house.\n\nThat no one, not even the swineherd, might recognise the king, Athene\nchanged him into an old beggar man, with dirty, tattered garments.\n\nIn this miserable guise Odysseus reached the hut of Eumaeus. Now\nEumaeus believed that strangers were sent by Zeus, so he welcomed the\nbeggar and gave him food.\n\nAs he ate, the swineherd sat beside him, bewailing the absence of his\nking, who had never returned from the Trojan War.\n\n\u2018His name,\u2019 said Eumaeus, \u2018even though he is not here, it shameth me to\nspeak, for he loved me exceedingly, and cared for me at heart; nay, I\ncall him \u201cworshipful,\u201d albeit he is far from hence.\u2019\n\nMuch, too, did the swineherd tell of Penelope, of Telemachus, and of\nhow the insolent suitors lived at the palace and wasted the king\u2019s\ngoods. As Odysseus listened, he longed to go at once to the palace to\navenge his wrongs.\n\nThat night the king spent in the hut of his swineherd, lying before the\nfire, while over him the swineherd flung a covering of goatskins. But\nEumaeus did not sleep. He cast over his shoulders a rough mantle, and\ntaking with him a sharp sword he went out to guard his herd of swine.\nAnd the king was glad when he saw how well the swineherd cared for the\nflocks of his absent lord.\n\nIn the morning, as Eumaeus kindled a fire and prepared breakfast for\nthe stranger, footsteps were heard without. Telemachus had returned to\nIthaca, having sought for his father in vain.\n\nEumaeus hastened to welcome his master\u2019s son and \u2018kissed him all over\nas one escaped from death.\u2019 Then he set before the prince the best that\nhis hut could provide.\n\nWhen Telemachus had eaten and had drunk sweet wine out of a wooden\ngoblet, he bade Eumaeus hasten to the palace to tell his mother that he\nhad come safely home. So the swineherd took his sandals, bound them on\nhis feet and set out for the city. Odysseus and Telemachus were left\nalone.\n\nThen Athene came to the hut unseen, and changed Odysseus into his own\ngoodly form, bidding him tell Telemachus who he was.\n\nAt first the prince could not believe that this stranger, so strong, so\nfair, was Odysseus. But when at length he knew that it was indeed his\nfather he embraced him, while tears of joy fell down his cheeks.\n\nThen Athene bade them determine how the king should make himself known\nto Penelope, and how the greedy and insolent suitors should be punished.\n\nThe father and son talked long together and they agreed that on the\nmorrow Telemachus should go to the palace, but to none, no, not even to\nPenelope, was he to tell that Odysseus had returned.\n\nThe arms that hung in the hall of the palace the prince was to hide in\nhis own room, so that when the time for the king\u2019s revenge should come\nthe suitors might find neither sword nor shield with which to defend\nthemselves. Odysseus was to follow his son to the palace when a few\nhours had passed, disguised once more as a beggar.\n\nSo, on the morrow, Telemachus set out for the palace. As he entered the\nhall the first to see him was his father\u2019s old nurse Eurycleia. She\nwas busy spreading the skins upon the oaken chairs, but she left her\nwork and ran to greet the prince, \u2018kissing him lovingly on the head and\nshoulders.\u2019\n\nPenelope, too, coming from her chamber, saw him, and cast her arms\nabout her dear son and fell a-weeping, and kissed his face and both his\nbeautiful eyes. \u2018Thou art come, Telemachus,\u2019 she said, \u2018a sweet light\nin the dark. Methought I should never see thee again.\u2019\n\nWhile Telemachus was still telling his lady-mother all that had\nbefallen him in his search for his father, the beggar, with Eumaeus by\nhis side, entered the court of the palace.\n\nIn the court lay Argus, the great hound that Odysseus himself had\ntrained ere he went to Troy. Old was he now and despised, for no longer\ncould he run in the hunt, swift as the wind. The princes had banished\nhim from the hall, while by the servants he was spurned.\n\nAs the beggar drew near, Argus raised his head, looked at the stranger,\nand began to wag his tail to show his joy. For rags could not hide his\nmaster from the faithful hound.\n\nOdysseus turned his head away, that Eumaeus might not see his tears.\n\n\u2018Surely a hound so noble as this should not lie thus neglected in the\nyard,\u2019 he said to the swineherd.\n\n\u2018In very truth,\u2019 answered Eumaeus, \u2018this is the dog of a man that has\ndied in a far land. If he were what once he was in limb and in the\nfeats of the chase, when Odysseus left him to go to Troy, soon wouldst\nthou marvel at the sight of his swiftness and his strength. There was\nno beast that could flee from him in the deep places of the wood when\nhe was in pursuit of prey.\u2019\n\nAs the king and the swineherd passed on into the palace, Argus fell\nback content to die, for after watching and waiting for twenty years he\nhad seen his master once again.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XX\n\nTHE BOW OF ODYSSEUS\n\n\nIn the hall of the palace the suitors sat feasting, as was their\ncustom. When Eumaeus entered, followed by the beggar, they no sooner\ncaught sight of him than they began to mock at his rags. But Telemachus\ntook a loaf and gave it to the stranger, bidding him go to each prince\nand beg for himself, for said he, \u2018Shame is an ill mate of a needy man.\u2019\n\nOne haughty suitor, named Antinous, rebuked Eumaeus for bringing a\nbeggar to the palace. \u2018Have we not here vagrants enough,\u2019 he said in\nangry tones, \u2018killjoys of the feast?\u2019 And he seized a footstool and\nstruck Odysseus on the shoulder.\n\nPenelope heard how Antinous had treated the stranger in her halls and\nshe was angry. Turning to her old nurse Eurycleia she said, \u2018Nurse,\nthey are all enemies, for they all devise evil continually, but of them\nall Antinous is the most like to black fate. Some hapless stranger is\nroaming about the house, begging alms of the men as his needs bid him;\nall the others filled his wallet and gave him somewhat, but Antinous\nsmote him at the base of the right shoulder with a stool.\u2019\n\nThen she summoned Eumaeus and bade him send the stranger to her, for\nshe wished to know if he had heard aught of Odysseus as he wandered\nfrom place to place.\n\nSo when evening came the old nurse brought a settle, spread over it a\nfleece, and placed it near to Penelope. Then the beggar was brought\nto the queen\u2019s room, and, sitting on the settle, he told to her many\na tale, and some were true and some were false, for he would not yet\nhave her know that he himself was her lord Odysseus.\n\nPenelope wept as she listened to the stories the stranger told. For he\nhad seen Odysseus, and she thought that her husband might yet return in\ntime to save her from the suitors whom she despised.\n\nBut at length the queen dried her tears and called to Eurycleia to come\nwash the feet of the stranger, who was of the same age as her master.\n\nThe old woman answered, \u2018Gladly will I wash his feet, for many\nstrangers travel-worn have ere now come hither, but I say that I have\nnever seen any so like another as this stranger is like Odysseus, in\nfashion, in voice, and in feet.\u2019\n\nThen the king feared lest his old nurse should know him, and he turned\nhis face from the hearth. But she, as she tended him, saw a scar on the\nspot where a boar had wounded him long years before, and she knew her\nmaster had come home.\n\nTears well-nigh choked her, yet she touched his chin lightly and said,\n\u2018Yea, verily, thou art Odysseus, my dear child.\u2019\n\nBut when she would have told the queen, Odysseus bade her be silent,\nuntil he had taken revenge on the princes who were feasting in his\npalace.\n\nAs she dismissed the stranger, Penelope told him that on the morrow the\nsuitors held a feast, when they were to contend for her hand. \u2018Him who\nshall most easily bend the bow of Odysseus I have promised to wed,\u2019 she\nsaid. \u2018Then will I go and forsake this house, this house of my wedlock,\nso fair and filled with all livelihood, which methinks I shall yet\nremember, aye, in a dream.\u2019\n\nThen Odysseus answered, \u2018Wife revered of Odysseus, no longer delay this\ncontest in thy halls; for lo, Odysseus will be here before these men,\nfor all their handling of this polished bow, shall have strung it and\nshot the arrow to the mark.\u2019\n\n[Illustration: \u2018Yea, verily thou art Odysseus\u2019]\n\nPenelope scarce heard the stranger\u2019s words, so troubled were her\nthoughts. She bade him farewell, then went to her room to weep for her\nabsent lord until \u2018grey-eyed Athene cast sweet sleep upon her eyelids.\u2019\n\nOn the morrow Odysseus awoke early, and as he thought of all that he\nhoped to do that day, he lifted up his hands to Zeus.\n\n\u2018O Father Zeus,\u2019 he cried, \u2018if thou hast led me to mine own country of\ngood will, then give me a sign.\u2019 And in answer the god thundered from\nOlympus, and Odysseus knew the voice of the god and was glad.\n\nPenelope too arose early on this fateful day, and when she had put on\nher royal robes she came down the wide staircase from her chamber,\ncarrying in her hand the strong key of her lord\u2019s treasure-chest.\n\nShe unlocked the chest, and taking from it the great bow in its case\nshe laid it upon her knees and wept over it. Then, drawing the bow from\nits case, she carried it into the hall where the suitors were feasting.\n\n\u2018Ye suitors,\u2019 she said, as she laid down before them the bow and the\nquiver of arrows, \u2018Ye suitors, who devour this house, making pretence\nthat ye wish to wed me, lo! here is a proof of your skill. Here is the\nbow of the great Odysseus. Whoso shall bend it easiest in his hands and\nshoot an arrow nearest to the mark I set, him will I follow, leaving\nthis house of my wedlock, so fair which methinks I shall yet remember,\naye, in a dream.\u2019\n\nThen each suitor in turn tried to bend the mighty bow, but each tried\nin vain.\n\n\u2018Give the bow to me,\u2019 cried the beggar, as he saw that the suitors had\nfailed to bend the mighty bow, \u2018give it to me that I may prove that my\nhands are strong.\u2019\n\nThe princes laughed at the words of the stranger. How should the old\nman bend the bow which they in their youthful strength were unable to\nmove?\n\nBut Telemachus gave the bow into the stranger\u2019s hands, for, said he,\n\u2018I would fain see if the wanderer can bend the bow of Odysseus.\u2019 Then\nturning to his mother, the prince besought her to go to her daily tasks\nuntil the contest was over, for not for her eyes was the dread revenge\nof Odysseus. So Penelope with her maidens went to her room, and as she\nspun she mourned for her absent lord.\n\nIn the hall Odysseus stood with his beloved bow in his hand. Carefully\nhe tested it lest harm had befallen it in his absence. Then taking an\narrow from the quiver he placed it on the bow and drew the string, and\nlo! it sped to its mark and reached the wall beyond.\n\nAt once Telemachus, his sharp sword in his hand, sprang to his father\u2019s\nside, while Eumaeus, to whom the beggar\u2019s secret had been told,\nfollowed him fast.\n\nThe suitors leaped to their feet in dismay as the arrows of Odysseus\nfell swiftly among them. Then they turned to the walls to seek the arms\nwhich usually hung there, but Telemachus had carried them away.\n\nNot until the proud suitors were slain did Odysseus cease to bend his\nmighty bow. But at length all was over and none were left to mock at\nthe stranger.\n\nThen Odysseus bade Eurycleia go tell Penelope that her lord had\nreturned and awaited her in the hall.\n\nThe queen lay on her bed fast asleep when the old nurse broke into her\nroom, and, all tremulous with joy, told her that Odysseus had come and\nslain the suitors. Too good were the tidings for Penelope to believe.\n\n\u2018Dear nurse,\u2019 she cried, \u2018be not so foolish. Why dost thou mock my\nsorrow? It may be that one of the gods hath slain the suitors, but\nOdysseus himself hath perished in a strange land.\u2019\n\n\u2018Nay, I mock thee not, dear child,\u2019 answered Eurycleia. \u2018The stranger\nwith whom thou didst talk yesterday is Odysseus.\u2019\n\nYet Penelope could not believe that her lord had returned. She spoke\nsadly to the old nurse, telling her that she was deceived and did not\nunderstand the ways of the gods. \u2018None the less,\u2019 she added, \u2018let us go\nto my child, that I may see the suitors dead, and him that slew them.\u2019\n\nDown in the hall Odysseus, clothed no longer in rags, but in bright\napparel, awaited his wife.\n\nThen Penelope as she gazed upon him knew that it was indeed Odysseus,\nand she threw her arms around him and kissed him, saying, \u2018Be not angry\nwith me, Odysseus, that I did not know thee when I first saw thee. For\never I feared lest another than thou should deceive me, saying he was\nmy husband, but now I know that thou art indeed he.\u2019 So welcome to her\nwas the sight of her lord, that \u2018her white arm she would never quite\nlet go from his neck.\u2019\n\nThus after twenty years did Odysseus come back to Ithaca.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXI\n\nTHE LAND OF HELLAS\n\n\nThe stories of gods and heroes are not pure history. They are myths or\nlegends which have grown with the ages, until sometimes they are told\nas though they were true.\n\nAlthough the tales I have been telling you of the early days of Greece\nare myths, yet the Greeks who lived in later times would often speak of\nthem as though they had actually happened.\n\nI am going to tell you now, not of gods or heroes, but of the true\ndeeds of mortal men. And first of all you will wish to hear a little\nabout the land in which the ancient Greeks lived.\n\nIt was named, as you already know, Hellas, while the inhabitants were\ncalled Hellenes.\n\nBut Hellas and her people had another name given to them by the Romans,\nwho called Hellas Graecia, and the Hellenes Graeci, from a tribe that\ndwelt in a part of the country known as Epirus. Epirus was not a very\nimportant region, but it was well known to the Romans who dwelt in the\nsouth of Italy. We have altered these Roman names a little and call\nHellas Greece, the Hellenes Greeks.\n\nIf you open your atlas at the map of Europe, you will find in the south\nthe little country of Greece, which although it is so small has yet\nflung its influence over all the wide world.\n\nOn three sides Greece is bounded by the Mediterranean Sea, and the\ncountry is now usually known as the Balkan Peninsula.\n\nGreece is a land of great mountains. Of its loftiest summit; Olympus,\nwhich in ancient days was the abode of the gods, you have already read.\n\nThe coast-line is broken up much as is the coast of Scotland, by arms\nof the sea which run far inland, so far inland that it is easy to reach\nthe water from any part of the country.\n\nClose to the shores of Greece lie the islands of the \u00c6gean Sea. In\nthese islands many Greeks settled, so that they became an important\npart of Greece. The \u00c6gean Sea we now call the Archipelago.\n\nIn the time of Homer all Greeks were called Achaeans. But in later\ndays, only those Greeks were called Achaeans who lived in the narrow\nstrip of land in northern Peloponnesus called Achaea.\n\nThe ancient Achaeans dwelt in the valleys, which were cut off from one\nanother by great spurs of mountains. They were united by an ancient\nleague, and quarrelled less with one another than did the other peoples\nof Greece.\n\nBesides the Achaeans there were three other great races in Greece.\n\nThe Dorians came from a little country called Doris, near the famous\nPass of Thermopylae, of which you have still to hear. The Ionians dwelt\non the east side of the \u00c6gean Sea, that is, they lived on the coast of\nAsia, while the \u00c6olians were scattered here and there throughout Greece.\n\nAll these different tribes were Greeks, and they were proud of their\nname, counting all other peoples barbarians, and despising them because\nthey were not Greeks. Many of them were traders or adventurers from\nAsia, and they entered the new country from the north-east, through\nThessaly, and that was not a difficult journey.\n\nOthers crossed over from Asia by sea to search for a new home. But\ntheir galleys were rough, uncomfortable vessels, in which there was\nlittle room for the many who embarked. When storms arose they suffered\ngreat misery, huddled closely together on their small and unseaworthy\nboats. Fear, too, took hold of them and the horror of death.\n\nSo the wanderers were glad when they saw the many little islands that\nwere studded here and there over the \u00c6gean Sea. Some of these islands,\nit is true, were mere rocks, desolate and without water. But there were\nothers where people had already settled and made a home. On these the\nstrangers landed to fight with the inhabitants, until, by the help of\nthe gods, they had conquered and taken possession of them. Here they\nfeasted, glad of heart that the perils of the sea were now at an end.\n\nIn the Heroic Age the kings of the different tribes were believed to\nhave descended from the gods, and each country or state had its own\nking. And so it was when the Heroic Age had passed away. Each tribe or\nlittle nation, living in its own valley or plain, still had its own\nseparate sovereign, and each soon built for itself a city. The city\nmight be small, but it was always surrounded by a wall, which was built\nfor defence. If there was no wall it was not a city but a village,\nhowever large it might be.\n\nIn those days kings were not ashamed to work. They were often to be\nseen in the fields at harvest time, not looking idly on, but toiling\nside by side with their people.\n\nOdysseus, King of Ithaca, is said to have built his own bedroom as well\nas his own boats. He claimed too to be a skilful ploughman and reaper.\nAnd still, for many years after the age of Odysseus, kings worked as\nhard as he had done.\n\nThe queens and princesses were as diligent as the kings. Often they\nwere to be found, like Penelope, sitting at a loom weaving or working\nbeautiful embroideries. They even went to the well themselves to fetch\nwater, and were sometimes to be seen by the riverside, where they\nhelped to wash the linen of the household.\n\nIn battle the king was always on the field, riding before his army in a\nwar chariot.\n\nWhen peace reigned he often sat in the market-place to judge his\npeople. Each suppliant told his own tale and brought his own witnesses.\nThe elders of the city then gave their judgment of the case, after\nwhich the king, taking his sceptre in his hand, stood up to pronounce\nsentence.\n\nBut above all else the king was the chief priest of his people,\noffering sacrifices for them, while they, with due reverence, looked\nupon him as a god.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXII\n\nLYCURGUS AND HIS LITTLE NEPHEW\n\n\nThe Dorians were a brave and sturdy race, braver, perhaps, than any\nother of the Greek tribes. Apollo, the Sun-God, one of the noblest of\nthe Olympians, was the god they held in greatest reverence.\n\nA band of these Dorians came from the north and settled in the valley\nof Laconia, through which flows the river Eurotas. Here they built\nvillages and called themselves Lacedaemonians.\n\nBefore long five of these villages joined together to form a city,\nwhich was named Sparta. Sparta became the capital or chief city in\nLaconia.\n\nAt first the new city was weak, scarcely able to hold her own against\nthe neighbouring tribes, and much less able to add to her dominion. She\nwas indeed hardly able to keep order within her own borders.\n\nSparta was ruled not by one king but by two, and so you might perhaps\nthink that she would be governed better than any other city or state,\nbut this was not so.\n\nThe first kings were twin brothers, for an oracle had bidden the\nSpartans \u2018to take both as kings, but to give greater honour to the\nelder.\u2019\n\nInstead of helping each other to improve their country, the two kings\noften disagreed, and then spent their days in quarrelling. The people\nwere content that they should do so, for while the kings quarrelled\nthey had no time to frame stricter laws or to punish those who\ndisturbed the peace of the city.\n\nIt soon became clear that if Sparta was to grow great and prosperous a\nstrong man must be found to guide the kings as well as the people. This\nstrong man was found in Lycurgus the famous lawgiver.\n\nHistory tells little about the life of the lawgiver, but many legends\ncluster around his name. It is told that Lycurgus belonged to one of\nthe royal houses, and that when his elder brother died he became for a\nshort time one of the kings of Sparta.\n\nThe queen-mother was an ambitious woman, and she wished still to sit\non the throne as she had done while her husband was alive. So she said\nto Lycurgus that she would kill her tiny baby boy who would one day be\nking, if he would marry her. But the lawgiver was angry, and rebuked\nthe queen-mother for wishing to do such a wicked deed.\n\nOne night as he sat at supper with the chief men of Sparta, Lycurgus\nordered his little nephew to be brought to him.\n\nWhen the child was carried into the room he took him in his arms and\nholding him up for all to see, he cried, \u2018Men of Sparta, here is a king\nborn unto us.\u2019 Before them all he placed the babe on the throne, and as\nthe child had not yet been named, he called him Charilaus, the joy of\nthe people.\n\nFrom that time Lycurgus became the guardian of his little nephew and\nthe regent of the kingdom. So upright were his ways, so honest his\nwords, that he was reverenced by the people as greatly as when he was\nking.\n\nMeanwhile the queen-mother had not forgiven Lycurgus for thwarting her\nambition, and she determined to punish him. So she spread a report\namong the people that Lycurgus meant to put his nephew to death that he\nmight again become king.\n\nBefore long the rumour spread by the queen-mother reached the ears\nof Lycurgus, and he at once made up his mind to leave Sparta until\nCharilaus was old enough to reign. As he journeyed from place to place\nLycurgus studied the laws and manners of the different countries, so\nthat when he returned to Sparta he might be able to improve the laws of\nhis own land.\n\nAt Ionia he is said not only to have read the works of Homer, but to\nhave met the poet himself. So wise were many of the customs described\nin the poet\u2019s books that he set to work to reframe those that he\nthought would be of most use in his own country.\n\nSome stories tell that Lycurgus made a copy of part of the poet\u2019s\nworks, for it is thought that the Greeks at this time (about 800 or\n900 B.C.) already knew how to write. It was thus Lycurgus who made the\nworks of Homer well known to his countrymen.\n\nBut in all his travels what interested Lycurgus most was the way the\nsoldiers were trained in Egypt. In other countries he had seen men who\nploughed their fields or plied their trade, leave their work to fight\nwhen war broke out, but the Egyptian soldiers were soldiers and nothing\nelse all the year round.\n\nLycurgus determined that he would train the youths of Sparta as\nstrictly as the soldiers in Egypt were trained. They should be neither\nploughmen nor merchants, but the best soldiers the world had ever seen.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXIII\n\nLYCURGUS RETURNS TO SPARTA\n\n\nWhile Lycurgus was journeying from country to country, Sparta was ruled\nmore badly than before. The laws were not obeyed, and no one punished\nthose who disobeyed them.\n\nThe citizens who cared for the welfare of the State longed for the\nreturn of Lycurgus and even sent messengers to bid him come home.\n\n\u2018Kings, indeed, we have,\u2019 they said, \u2018who wear the marks and assume the\ntitles of royalty, but as for the qualities of their minds they have\nnothing by which they are to be distinguished from their subjects. You\nalone have a nature made to rule and a genius to gain obedience.\u2019\n\nLycurgus was at length persuaded to return to Sparta, but before he\nwould attempt to reform the laws of his country he went to Delphi to\nask the help and advice of Apollo.\n\nThe oracle encouraged the future lawgiver, for it told him that he was\nthe beloved of the gods, who heard his prayers, and that his laws would\nmake Sparta the most famous kingdom in the world.\n\nThen Lycurgus hesitated no more. He went back to Sparta determined to\nspend his life for the good of his country.\n\nHis first act was to call together thirty of the chief men of Sparta\nand tell them his plans. When they had promised to support him he bade\nthem assemble armed, at the market-place at break of day, for he wished\nto strike terror into the hearts of those who were ready to resist any\nchange in the laws of the land.\n\nOn the day appointed, the market-place was crowded with the followers\nof Lycurgus and the mob who had come to see what was going to be done.\n\nKing Charilaus hearing the tramp of armed men was so frightened that he\nfled to the temple of Athene for sanctuary, or, as we should say, for\nsafety. He believed that a plot had been formed against him and that\nhis life was in danger.\n\nBut Lycurgus soon allayed the king\u2019s fears, sending a messenger to tell\nhim that all he wished to do was to give better laws to the State, so\nthat it might grow strong and prosperous.\n\nKing Charilaus was a kind and gentle prince. His brother-king, who knew\nhim well, said, \u2018Who can say he is anything but good. He is so even to\nthe bad.\u2019\n\nWhen he had been reassured by his uncle, Charilaus left the temple of\nAthene, and going to the market-place he joined Lycurgus and his thirty\nfollowers.\n\nLycurgus began his reforms by limiting the power of the kings, for he\ndecreed that on all important matters of State they should consult the\nSenate or Council of Elders.\n\nThe plans of the Senate were laid before the assembly of the people,\nthe members saying \u2018Yes\u2019 if they agreed to them, \u2018No\u2019 if they\ndisagreed. Nor were they allowed to talk together over the matter\nbefore they gave their answer.\n\nLong after the death of the lawgiver, five new rulers, called ephors or\noverseers, were chosen from the people.\n\nAt first the ephors shared their power with the kings, but little by\nlittle they succeeded in getting more power into their own hands. They\nbegan their duties with this strange order to the people, \u2018Shave your\nupper lip and obey the laws.\u2019\n\nAlthough the kings lost some of their power through the laws that were\nmade by Lycurgus, yet they kept their right as priests to offer each\nmonth solemn sacrifices to Apollo for the safety of the city. Before\nthe army marched to battle it was usual, too, for the kings to pray to\nthe gods to give them victory. But there were other priests in Sparta\nas well as those who belonged to the royal houses.\n\nThe supreme command of the army belonged to the kings, who might go to\nwar with any country as they pleased. If a noble or one of the people\ntried to interfere with their decision, he was punished. A bodyguard of\na hundred always attended the royal commanders.\n\nBut as the years passed, a new law was made declaring that only one of\nthe kings should go to battle at the head of the army, and that one was\nforced to account to the people for the way in which he carried on the\nwar.\n\nIn still later times the power of the king on the battlefield was\nchecked by the presence of two ephors. Sometimes a king was glad of\ntheir presence, and would even appeal to them to make the soldiers obey\nthe royal commands.\n\nWhen a king died, no public work was done until ten days after the\nfuneral. Herodotus, a great Greek historian, tells us how the news of\nthe royal death was made known. \u2018Horsemen carry round the tidings of\nthe event throughout Laconia, and in the city women go about beating a\ncaldron. And at this sign, two free persons of each house, a man and a\nwoman, must put on mourning garb (that is sackcloth and ashes), and if\nany fail to do this great pains are imposed.\u2019\n\nLycurgus not only made laws to lessen the power of the kings. He tried\nalso to alter the extravagant customs of the people. Gold and silver\nmoney was banished from the country, and large bars of iron were used\nin its place. These bars were so heavy, and took up so much room, that\nit was impossible to hoard them.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXIV\n\nTHE TRAINING OF THE SPARTANS\n\n\nLycurgus had seen the severe discipline which soldiers in Egypt were\nforced to undergo. He had made up his mind that his own countrymen\nshould be trained as thoroughly.\n\nThe Spartans at this time were poor and their numbers were small,\nperhaps about ten thousand were fit to bear arms. They were surrounded\nby enemies whose attacks they found hard to repulse.\n\nBut Lycurgus thought that if each citizen became a soldier, and that\nif each soldier was trained from his childhood to fight and to endure\nhardship, Sparta would soon have an army that no other power could\nconquer.\n\nSo as soon as a baby boy was born in Sparta he was taken to the Council\nof Elders that they might decide if he should live or die. If the child\nwas strong and healthy he was given back to his parents, if he was weak\nand ailing he was left alone on a hillside to die from cold and hunger.\n\nWhen he was seven years old, the Spartan boy was taken from his home\nto a public training-house. Here the strict discipline commanded by\nLycurgus was begun.\n\nShoes and stockings were never worn by the little lads of Sparta,\nalthough the hills and countryside were rough for unshod feet. In\nwinter they were clad in one garment, just as in summer.\n\nTheir beds were made of rushes, which they had themselves gathered from\nthe banks of the river Eurotas. This was a hard task, for they were not\nallowed to cut them with a knife, but must break them with their hands.\nIn winter the boys used to scatter thistle-down on the rushes to give\na little warmth to their hard couch.\n\nEach child, from the age of seven, cooked his own food, which was\nscanty and plain. If after their meals the boys were still hungry, so\nmuch the better, said Lycurgus. It would teach them to hunt the more\nkeenly, that they might add to their daily portion of food. It would\nteach them to steal from the neighbouring farm-yards or gardens without\nbeing found out.\n\nSo a hungry Spartan boy would often climb into a garden undiscovered,\nor even slip into a stranger\u2019s larder in search of fruit and food.\n\nIf the lads were caught, they were punished, not, I am sorry to tell\nyou, for stealing, but for being so clumsy as to be found out.\n\nOnce a Spartan boy stole a young fox and hid it under his coat. It soon\nbegan to scratch with its claws, to bite with its teeth, until the lad\nwas in terrible pain, yet he would have died rather than tell what he\nwas suffering. Such was the endurance taught to the lads of Sparta.\n\nIf a boy shirked any hardship or flagged at his gymnastic exercises he\nwas flogged, perhaps even tortured. One test of his endurance was a\nterrible scourging, under which he would die rather than utter a cry of\npain.\n\nIn public the boys were trained to be silent, or if they were spoken\nto, to answer as shortly as possible. Their short, abrupt way of\ntalking was called laconic, because the name of their country was\nLaconia. We still use the word laconic when we hear any one speak in as\nbrief a way as possible.\n\nHard as the Spartan training was, cruel as it sometimes became, it yet\nmade boys into strong and hardy soldiers.\n\nGirls, too, were trained, although not so severely as boys. They ran,\nthey wrestled, they boxed with one another, while boys and girls\nmarched together in religious processions and danced on the solemn\nfeast days.\n\nWhen they were twenty years of age, the girls usually married. They\nhad been taught, as had the boys, that they belonged to the State,\nand that they must love their country and serve her with all their\nstrength. So when Spartan mothers sent their sons forth to war, they\nhanded them their shields saying, \u2018Return either with your shield or\nupon it,\u2019 for they feared death less than disgrace or defeat.\n\nThe children were taught to sing in chorus as part of their drill. At\nsome of the festivals three choirs took part, one of old men, one of\nyoung men, and one of boys.\n\nWhen the old men sang a song beginning, \u2018We once were young and brave\nand strong,\u2019 the young men answered, \u2018And we\u2019re so now, come on and\ntry,\u2019 while the boys\u2019 voices rang out bravely when their turn came,\n\u2018But we\u2019ll be strongest by-and-by.\u2019\n\nThe Spartan lads were twenty years old before they left the\ntraining-house to which they had been sent when they were seven. They\nwere then fully-trained soldiers and left the training-house for the\nbarracks.\n\nAfter they married, the men still had to take their meals in the\nbarracks with their fellow-soldiers. Not until they were sixty years of\nage were the Spartans allowed to live and take their meals in their own\nhouse. In this way almost the whole of a Spartan\u2019s life was given to\nthe State.\n\nWhen war actually came and the Spartans were on the field, they were\ntreated with more kindness than in time of peace. Their food was more\nplentiful and pleasant, their discipline less strict. This was done to\nmake the soldiers look forward to war, and to desire it rather than\npeace.\n\nThe younger soldiers, too, were allowed to curl their hair before the\nbattle began, to wear gayer clothes, and to carry more costly arms. It\nis said that Lycurgus thought that \u2018a large head of hair added beauty\nto a good face and terror to an ugly one.\u2019\n\nSo famous became the bravery and the endurance of the Spartans, that\neven now we call one who suffers hardships without complaint \u2018a\nSpartan.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXV\n\nTHE HELOTS\n\n\nWhen Lycurgus made a law compelling soldiers to eat their meals in the\nbarracks, some of the wealthier citizens were indignant.\n\nThey did not wish to sit at table with their fellow-soldiers in batches\nof fifteen; they would rather have gone to their homes and taken their\nmeals with their families.\n\nNor did they enjoy the plain fare on which Lycurgus insisted, a share\nof which each citizen was forced to send to the mess table month by\nmonth.\n\nThe most usual food in Laconia was black broth, which was not a\npalatable soup. When some one ventured to grumble at the broth, the\ncook answered, \u2018It is nothing without the seasoning of fatigue and\nhunger.\u2019 This black broth, with barley meal, cheese, and figs, was the\nSpartan\u2019s daily fare. Meat was a luxury which they enjoyed only on\nspecial occasions.\n\nSo great was the indignation against Lycurgus that a crowd assembled in\nthe market-place to complain of his laws, and to speak harshly of his\nconduct.\n\nWhen they saw the great lawgiver coming toward the market-place they\nwere so angry that they picked up stones to throw at him, and he was\nforced to fly for his life.\n\nHis enemies followed him, but he outstripped them all save one, named\nAlexander. As he turned to see who pursued him so closely, Alexander\nstruck his face with a stick and put out one of his eyes.\n\nAs the others hastened up, Lycurgus showed them what Alexander had\ndone, and they, ashamed of his violence, told the lawgiver to take the\nrash youth and punish him as he would. They then went with him to his\nhouse, to show that they were sorry for what had happened.\n\nWhen they reached the door Lycurgus sent them all away save his\nprisoner. Then going into his dining-room, he dismissed his attendants\nand bade Alexander wait upon him. During the meal he uttered no word of\nreproach, although the lad had done him so great an injury.\n\nAlexander lived with Lycurgus until he learned not only to admire but\nto imitate the industry and the gentleness of his host. And so Lycurgus\nhad the pleasure of seeing a rash and wilful lad become a grave and\nsensible citizen.\n\nEach Spartan had a portion or \u2018lot\u2019 of land given to him, on the\nproduce of which he and his family had to live. But citizen soldiers\nhad no time to dig the ground, to sow, to reap, for all their days were\nspent in drill and military exercises. So their land was cultivated for\nthem by the Helots, who had owned Laconia before the Spartans conquered\nthem and took possession of their land.\n\nThe Helots were treated very much as slaves, although they had no\ntaskmasters to drive them to their work. They were even allowed to own\nproperty. But they had many hardships to endure, and were always ready\nto rebel against their masters.\n\nOne of their greatest hardships was that their lives were never safe.\nFor while the Spartans were being trained, they were often sent into\nthe country with orders to kill any Helot who was suspected of wishing\nto rebel.\n\nIn time of war the Helots fought as light-armed troops. If they showed\nthemselves brave and loyal in the service of the State, they were\nsometimes rewarded by being made free.\n\nOnce during the great Peloponnesian War between Sparta and Athens,\nof which you will read in this story, the Spartans believed that the\nHelots had plotted to rise against them. They determined that the\nrising should never take place, and to prevent it they did a cruel\ndeed. For they chose two thousand of the bravest Helots, set them free,\nand gave them a great feast to celebrate the event. Then when the\nfeast was over and the Helots had gone away to their homes, suspecting\nnothing, the Spartans ordered each of the two thousand freed men to be\nput to death. When the bravest were killed, the others were not likely\nto rebel.\n\nThe Spartan army became strong as Lycurgus had foreseen it would,\nif it were trained according to his strict methods. It conquered\nPeloponnesus, and for a time Sparta was the chief city in that land.\n\nBut there was one strange thing about these soldiers. Well as they\nhad been trained, they could never learn how to attack or to take a\ntown that was fortified. \u2018Wall-fighting,\u2019 as the Greeks called it, was\nbeyond their power. Even an ordinary wall or fence would stop them in\ntheir victorious course. At sea too they were not nearly so successful\nas on land.\n\nSparta itself was not, like other Greek cities, surrounded by a wall.\nFor when the citizens once sent to ask Lycurgus if it were necessary\nto enclose their city with a wall, his answer was, \u2018The city is well\nfortified which hath a wall of men instead of brick.\u2019\n\nWhen, after many years, Lycurgus had finished his code of laws, he\ncalled the people together and told them that he was going to Delphi to\nconsult the oracle on an important matter which concerned the State.\n\nBefore he set out he begged them, and also the two kings and the\nSenate, to take an oath to keep his laws unaltered until his return.\nThis they gladly promised to do.\n\nThen Lycurgus journeyed to Delphi, and after offering sacrifices to\nApollo, he asked the god if the laws he had made for his country were\ngood laws.\n\nThe oracle answered that the laws were good, and that as long as the\npeople kept them their fame would endure.\n\nLycurgus sent this answer in writing to Sparta. Then, that the\nSpartans might not be set free from their oath he determined never to\ngo back to the city. Yet it seemed that he could not live away from\nher, and so, for the welfare of the State, as he believed, the lawgiver\nstarved himself to death.\n\nThe Spartans kept the oath that they had taken, and when they died\ntheir sons and their sons\u2019 sons observed it. For five hundred years,\nduring the reigns of fourteen kings, the laws of Lycurgus were\nunaltered and strictly followed.\n\nAfter his death Lycurgus was worshipped as a god, and a temple was\nbuilt for him in Sparta, where sacrifices were offered to him every\nyear.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXVI\n\nARISTOMENES AND THE FOX\n\n\nThe Spartans were eager to fight and to add to their dominions. So they\ndetermined to attack the Messenians, whose country lay west of Laconia,\nclose to their own borders.\n\nOne day, while the Messenians were feasting and offering sacrifices to\ntheir gods, the Spartans sent three youths disguised as maidens across\nthe borderland. Beneath their robes the young soldiers carried arms.\nThey stole quietly in among the Messenians and attacked them in the\nmidst of their feast.\n\nBut although the Messenians were unarmed they soon captured the three\nSpartan lads. They then advanced against the Spartans, and in the\ntumult that followed, one of the kings of Sparta was slain.\n\nThe war, which was thus begun in 743 B.C., lasted for many years, and\nwas known as the First Messenian War.\n\nNo great battle was fought until four years had passed. Even then\nneither side could claim a victory, but so many Messenians had fallen\nthat Aristodemus, their chief, withdrew, with those of his followers\nwho were left, to a mountain fortress called Ithom\u00e9.\n\nThen, as was their custom, when it was difficult to know what to do\nnext, the Messenians sent to consult the oracle. The answer filled them\nwith dismay, for the oracle declared that not until a maiden belonging\nto one of their ancient houses was sacrificed to the gods need they\nhope to conquer the Spartans. But Aristodemus loved his country so\ndearly that he did not hesitate to sacrifice his own daughter to the\ngods.\n\nWhen the Spartans heard what the brave chief had done, they hastened to\nmake peace with the Messenians. They could not hope to conquer those\nfor whom the gods would now fight.\n\nA few years passed, and then the Spartans determined to attack the\nMessenians once again, and to drive them from Ithom\u00e9 their mountain\nfortress.\n\nAgain a great battle was fought, and again neither side could claim the\nvictory. But the king of the Messenians was killed, and Aristodemus was\nchosen to rule in his place. In the fifth year of his reign he defeated\nthe Spartans and drove them from his dominions.\n\nThe victory brought no happiness to the king, for omens of evil seemed\nto pursue him.\n\nIn the temple a brazen shield fell from the hand of the statue of\nArtemis the goddess. The daughter of Aristodemus appeared to her father\nand bade him lay aside his armour. He obeyed, and she then placed on\nhis head a crown of gold and clad him in a white robe. These things\nmeant that the death of the king was near.\n\nAristodemus believed that not only he but his country was doomed, and\ndeeming that he had sacrificed his daughter in vain, he slew himself in\nhis despair on her tomb.\n\nFor twenty years the war still dragged on, and only then were the\nSpartans able to drive the Messenians from Ithom\u00e9 and raze the fortress\nto the ground.\n\nMany of the conquered people fled, while those who remained were\ntreated more harshly than were the Helots. For they were compelled to\npay as tribute to the Spartans half the produce of their lands. This\nwas the end of the First Messenian War.\n\nFor almost thirty years the conquered people bore their cruel lot, then\nin 685 B.C. they rebelled, and the Second Messenian War was begun.\n\nAristomenes, the leader of the rebels, was a bold and daring foe.\nTo show how little he feared the Spartans, he secretly crossed the\nborderland into the enemy\u2019s country, and one night he succeeded in\nentering the city of Sparta itself. He made his way to the temple of\nAthene, and walking in boldly he hung up his shield beside the statue\nof the goddess, with these words tied to it: \u2018Dedicated by Aristomenes\nto the goddess from the Spartan spoils.\u2019\n\nWith a band of his bravest followers, the chief made more than one\nsuccessful raid into the heart of the enemy\u2019s country, and plundered\ntwo of their cities.\n\nAs in the first war, so in this second war, no decisive victory was\ngained at first by either side. But legend tells that Aristomenes did\nmany valiant deeds.\n\nThree times he offered a strange sacrifice to the king of the gods,\nwhich one who had slain in battle a hundred of the foe was alone\npermitted to do. The sacrifice was named the Hekatomphonia.\n\nThe Spartans, alarmed at the daring of Aristomenes, sent to consult\nthe oracle at Delphi. They were told to send to the famous city of\nAthens for a leader. Now the Spartans did not wish to do this, for they\nwere not on good terms with the Athenians. Still, as they dared not\ndisregard the oracle, they did as they were bid.\n\nThe Athenians did not wish to help the Spartans any more than they\nwished to ask for help, yet they too knew they could not ignore the\noracle. So they got out of the difficulty, as they thought, by sending\na lame schoolmaster, named Tyrtaeus. He would not be likely to lead an\narmy far.\n\nBut although Tyrtaeus was a lame man, he was also a poet. His war-songs\nroused the Spartans, and inspired them to fight more bravely than\never. When they marched again to battle they were singing the songs of\nTyrtaeus and marching to victory. Aristomenes was forced to retreat to\nthe mountains to a fortress called Ira.\n\nFor eleven years the war lingered on. The Spartans often encamped\nat the foot of Ira to keep the enemy in check. But again and again\nAristomenes broke out of the fortress, and with a band of followers\ncrossed the border and laid waste Laconia. Twice he was taken prisoner\nand twice he escaped, but the third time he was captured he was carried\nin triumph to the city of Sparta. With fifty of his countrymen he was\nflung from Mount Taygetus into a great chasm in the rock below.\n\nThe fifty followers of Aristomenes were killed by the fall, but\nAristomenes was saved by the gods. For, so the legend tells, an eagle\nwith wings outspread carried him unhurt to the bottom of the pit.\n\nFor three days Aristomenes lay in the cavern surrounded by the dead\nbodies of his comrades. To escape seemed impossible. But when no hope\nwas left in the heart of the brave man, he noticed something move at\nthe foot of the cave. At once he roused himself to look more closely at\nthe moving object; it was a fox, prowling about in search of food.\n\nIn an instant hope was alive in the heart of Aristomenes. If an animal\nhad got into the cave, it was possible for him to get out of it.\n\nWeak though he was for want of food, Aristomenes managed to seize the\ntail of the fox, and to hold it fast when the animal tried to escape.\n\nOnward the fox struggled, until it reached a narrow hole in the rock.\nThen Aristomenes let his deliverer go, while he began at once to\nenlarge the hole.\n\nThe next day, to the joy of his countrymen and to the alarm of his\nenemies, Aristomenes was again in the Messenian fortress.\n\nBut there was a traitor in the camp of the Messenians, and one night,\nsoon after the return of their leader, the mountain fortress at Ira was\nbetrayed into the hands of the Spartans.\n\nIn the battle that followed, Aristomenes was wounded, but gathering\ntogether the bravest of his followers, he made a desperate charge\nthrough the lines of the enemy and escaped. Some time after he died in\nRome, but it is told that two hundred and fifty years later, he was\nseen on a battlefield fighting against the Spartans.\n\nThe Second Messenian War ended, as had the first, in the triumph of the\nSpartans, who again treated their prisoners as slaves. In 464 B.C. war\nagain broke out between the Messenians and Sparta. The Spartans were\nvictorious, and the conquered people were driven from Peloponnesus. But\nin 369 B.C. a great Theban leader called Epaminondas restored freedom\nto the Messenians, and brought them back again to their own country.\n\nThe history of the Messenian War was written by the poet Tyrtaeus,\nwhose songs were sung for many years by the Spartans as they marched to\nbattle.\n\nSome of these songs we can still read for ourselves.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXVII\n\nTHE OLYMPIAN GAMES\n\n\nGreece was made up of many separate States, each independent of the\nother. But there were several bonds which united the States. They spoke\nthe same language, they worshipped the same gods, they kept the same\ngreat festivals.\n\nThe festivals, held by a council called the Amphictyonic Council, were\nhonoured by all the States. The council was made up of men chosen from\ntwelve of the most ancient Greek tribes, and met twice each year.\n\nThe temple of Apollo at Delphi was under the care of the Amphictyonic\nCouncil, and it was at Delphi that the spring-tide festival was held.\nAnother great festival of the Amphictyonic Council was celebrated in\nthe temple dedicated to Demeter at Thermopylae.\n\nThe Amphictyons, as the members of the council were called, did not\ngovern Greece as a parliament governs a country. But they often talked\nof what could be done for the good of the States, and of how their\ninterests could be united more closely.\n\nOf more power to weld the States together than the council, were the\nnational games, where members of all the different countries of Greece\nmet together.\n\nThe chief of these games was the Olympian Games, which were believed to\nhave begun far back in the shadowy past, and to have been revived by\nLycurgus the lawgiver in 776 B.C.\n\nOlympia, where the games were held, was in the country of Elis in\nPeloponnesus. The King of Elis helped Lycurgus to renew the interest of\nthe Greeks in the ancient games.\n\nIt is said that when Apollo first saw the beautiful valley of Olympia\nhe exclaimed, \u2018Here will I make me a fair temple to be an oracle for\nmen.\u2019\n\nThe ancient Stadium, or race-course, was erected in the valley, as\nwell as a temple to Zeus, in which the victors of the games were given\nwreaths of wild olive. These wreaths were valued more than any other\nprize or distinction in Greece. Indeed at Olympia no other reward was\ngiven save the simple, wild olive branches, which were plucked from the\nsacred grove in the Olympian plain, and twined into a wreath.\n\nBut when the victor returned to his own country, he was loaded with\ngifts and honours, for he had gained for his State and for his\nrelations a glory which all longed to possess.\n\nIn the Olympian temple, in later days, there was a marvellous statue of\nZeus in gold and ivory, wrought by the genius of Pheidias, the greatest\nsculptor of Greece.\n\nThe games were open to all, and spectators as well as competitors\nflocked to Olympia from every state in Greece. To the Greeks these\ngames were part of their religion; they were rites pleasing, so they\nbelieved, to the gods.\n\nShould there be war between any of the Greek States at the time of the\ngames, all hostile acts were forbidden in Olympia. Until the festival\nwas over, those who had been in arms, one against another, might meet\nin safety and in peace. Twice or thrice an armed force made its way\ninto the sacred territory of Elis to interfere with the games. This to\nthe Greeks was sacrilege.\n\nIn the earliest times the games lasted only for one day, and a simple\nfoot-race was the only event. But soon the festival came to last for\nfive days, for there were now, not only foot-races, but wrestling,\nboxing, racing in armour, and above all else chariot races. In these\nraces it was not the driver who, if successful, won the wreath of\nolive, but the owner of the chariot.\n\nOn the first day of the games, sacrifices were offered to the gods, on\nthe following three days the races were held, while on the last day the\npeople marched in procession to the temple and again offered sacrifices\nand feasted.\n\nAt the end of every four years the games were celebrated; the time\nbetween the games being called an Olympiad. The year 776 B.C. was\ncounted as the first Olympiad, the second began in 772 B.C. In ancient\ntimes the Greeks reckoned their dates by the Olympiads, thus an event\nwas said to take place in a certain year of a certain Olympiad.\n\nGames were held at many other places as well as at Olympia, but the\nthree most important celebrations, after the Olympian, were the\nIsthmian, the Pythian and the Nemean.\n\nTo these festivals came the poets of Greece, prepared to celebrate in\nsong the skill of the victors. During the intervals between the games,\ngreat numbers of the people assembled in a hall to listen to the poets\nwhile they recited their poems.\n\nAs the years passed the great Greek dramas or plays came to be acted\nalso at these festivals. At first the stage was a simple wooden\nplatform in the open air, but soon wooden buildings were erected. Plays\nwere performed at Athens in a splendid theatre which was hewn out of\nthe solid rock of the Acropolis or citadel of the city. Tier after tier\nwas cut, until the theatre could hold thirty thousand spectators.\n\n[Illustration: In the earliest times a simple foot-race was the only\nevent]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXVIII\n\nTHE LAST KING OF ATHENS\n\n\nYou remember how Cecrops came to Attica and built a city so beautiful\nthat the gods marvelled, and how Athene made the first olive-tree and\nwas therefore awarded the honour of naming the city and becoming its\npatron. The olive-tree was now said to grow on a rock in the stronghold\nor Acropolis of the city.\n\nIn ancient days Sparta was a more important city than the beautiful one\nbuilt by Cecrops, but little by little, as the years passed, Athens\nbecame supreme in Greece and the most glorious city of the world.\n\nAt first Athens, like Sparta and the other States, was governed by\nkings. But while Sparta continued to be a monarchy, Athens became an\noligarchy--that is, she was governed by a few, and these few were\nnobles.\n\nWhen Codrus, the last king of Athens, was on the throne, the State was\ninvaded by the Dorians. An oracle had declared that unless the Athenian\nking was slain in the camp of the enemy, Athens would be taken.\n\nCodrus loved his city and determined to save it from the enemy. So he\ndisguised himself as a peasant and went to the camp of the Dorians,\nwhere he killed the first soldier he met. The comrades of the dead man\nat once fell upon Codrus and, as he had hoped, he was speedily slain.\nThen as the oracle had foretold Athens was saved from the enemy.\n\nThe Athenians resolved that they would no longer have kings to rule\nover them, because they were sure that they could never find any worthy\nto follow Codrus who had died for the sake of his country. This seems\na strange reason for which to overturn the monarchy. In most countries\nit is the bad conduct of their kings which makes the people wish to get\nrid of them.\n\nAs Athens would not have another king, the son of Codrus was given\nneither the power nor the title of royalty. He was named merely archon,\nor ruler. An archon ruled only for ten years.\n\nSoon the Athenians determined to choose nine archons each year, for\nthey thought it would be well to divide the power among these men\nrather than entrust it to one ruler.\n\nThe archons were obliged to consult a council of nobles before they\nmade a new law, while the council had to lay their plans before the\nassembly of the people.\n\nIn this way Athens became before long an oligarchy governed by a few\nnobles. The nobles often proved harsh rulers, taking from the people\nthe rights that had been theirs when Athens was a monarchy.\n\nAt length the people grew so angry that they determined to destroy the\nnobles who treated them so cruelly. But as they were helpless without\na leader, they were glad to follow any ambitious noble who would place\nhimself at their head and lead them to fight against their oppressors.\nToo often the deliverer seized the supreme power himself and oppressed\nthe people more than had the oligarch.\n\nThe usurper was called by the Greeks a tyrant. But the word tyrant did\nnot mean to them, as it means to us, a cruel man. It meant simply one\nwho had seized a power to which he had no real right.\n\nSome of the tyrants were cruel, but others used the power which they\nhad seized for the good of the State.\n\nThe years 700 B.C. to 500 B.C. are known as the Age of the Tyrants,\nbecause there were few States, save Sparta, which did not fall under\nthe power of a tyrant during those years.\n\nOften the people learned to hate a tyrant as greatly as they had hated\nthe nobles under whose harsh treatment they had groaned. But it was\nnot easy to get rid of him, for he usually had hired soldiers to help\nhim to keep the citizens from rebelling. One of the wisest and best of\nthe tyrants was named Pisistratus, and he was a cousin of Solon, the\ngreat lawgiver of Athens.\n\nSolon was not a tyrant, although had he wished he might have become\none.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXIX\n\nCYLON FAILS TO MAKE HIMSELF TYRANT\n\n\nThe people of Attica were divided into three classes. There were\nthe men of the Plain, who owned land and were wealthy; the men of\nthe Shore, who were fisher-folk and traders; the men of the Hill or\nUplanders, who were shepherds and herdsmen.\n\nThese three parties, the Plain, the Shore, the Hill, as they were often\ncalled, were dissatisfied with the way in which they were treated by\nthe nobles. For, little by little, they were taking possession of the\nland and making free men slaves.\n\nWhen the harvest failed, or when trade was bad, the poor were forced to\nborrow from the rich. And if a poor man could not pay his debt when it\nbecame due, his land and his goods were seized by the rich man. Nor was\nthat the worst, for if the land and the goods were not enough to cover\nthe debt, then the poor man himself was taken to be used or sold as a\nslave.\n\nSo great was the discontent of the people, that in 632 B.C. a noble\nnamed Cylon determined to put himself at their head, overthrow those\nwho were in power, and make himself tyrant. But Cylon did not trouble\nto gain the goodwill of the people. He succeeded in seizing the\nAcropolis, but it was by the aid of soldiers whom he had hired from the\nneighbouring city of Megara, not by the help of the people of Athens.\nThe Athenians were indignant when they saw Megarian soldiers in their\ncapital, and they looked on coldly and struck no blow for Cylon when\nthe archons besieged the rebel noble in the citadel.\n\nCylon did not stay to see his plans destroyed; he escaped from the city\nby night, but his followers held the Acropolis until famine stared\nthem in the face. Then they gathered for sanctuary around the altar of\nAthene and threw open the gates of the citadel.\n\nMegacles, the chief archon, promised that the lives of the defenders\nshould be spared, but no sooner had they left the altar than he ordered\nthat they should be put to death.\n\nThe Athenians punished Megacles for this treacherous deed, for he and\nthe family to which he belonged were banished from Athens, while their\nproperty was seized by the State. It is told that the city lay under a\ncurse after the treacherous deed of Megacles, nor was she freed from it\nuntil a priest purified her with solemn religious rites.\n\nCylon had neither gained his own ends nor had he helped the people by\nhis rebellion.\n\nPoverty and debt were hard to bear, yet these the citizens might now\nhave suffered in silence, but injustice drove them to demand that the\nlaws should be reformed. For the archons punished as they pleased those\nwho disobeyed the law, and at the courts, sentence was often passed in\nfavour of those who had bribed or befriended the judge.\n\nWhen the people rose in 621 B.C. demanding that justice should be done\nin the land, the task of reforming the laws was entrusted to one of the\narchons named Draco.\n\nUntil now the laws had not been written, and so many of them were\nunknown to the people. Draco ordered that the laws should be inscribed\non tablets that they might be read by the people. Sometimes he was\nblamed for the severity of these laws, although all he had done was to\nmake them known.\n\nBut the code of laws which Draco drew up was so severe that in later\ndays, as the Athenians read them, they exclaimed in horror, \u2018The laws\nof Draco seem to have been written in blood rather than with ink.\u2019\nAnd indeed there was cause for dismay when the theft of a cabbage was\npunished with death. Draco was thus of little real help to the poor\npeople of Athens.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXX\n\nSOLON FREES THE SLAVES\n\n\nSolon, the wise lawgiver of Athens, was a descendant of King Codrus.\nHis father had given away most of his wealth to help his city or\nhis countrymen, so Solon became a merchant, as the sons of noblemen\noften did in these days of long ago. To increase his business, Solon\njourneyed through many of the states of Greece as well as to Asia.\nWherever he went he studied the laws and manners of the people, just as\nLycurgus the lawgiver of Sparta had done.\n\nSolon was not only a merchant, he was also a poet, and because he was\nboth wise and learned he was counted one of the seven sages of Greece.\n\nWhen Solon returned from one of his journeys about 593 B.C., he was\nmade an archon and asked to reform the laws.\n\nHis first act was a great and unexpected one, for he proclaimed that\nhenceforth no one might be made a slave because he was unable to pay\nhis debts. And more than that, he said that those who were already\nslaves were at once to be set free.\n\nHundreds of men were thus delivered from slavery, many hundreds more\nwere freed from the fear of becoming slaves. As these men ploughed\ntheir own lands and reaped their own harvests they were full of\ngratitude to Solon. For this law alone the name of Solon might well be\nheld in reverence.\n\n[Illustration: Solon, the wise lawgiver of Athens]\n\nSo great was the joy of the people that the day the law was passed was\nkept each year as a festival. But the rich nobles were not pleased\nwith Solon\u2019s act, for they lost many of their slaves and found it less\neasy to add to their wealth.\n\nThe lawgiver also declared that if there was war or strife in the\nState, each citizen must take one side or the other. No one was to be\nallowed to look on idly, or side now with one party, now with another.\n\nSolon restored to the assembly of the people the rights that had been\nwrested from it, and he did all he could to add to its powers.\n\nIn these ways Solon made Greece less and less of an Oligarchy and more\nand more of a Democracy. That is to say, Greece began to be governed by\nthe many rather than by the few.\n\nThe laws made by Solon, and there were many of which I have not told,\nwere written on tables of wood and placed in frames that revolved.\nThese frames were called axones and were numbered.\n\nWhen the laws had been written on the tables of wood they were placed\nin the public hall that they might be read by all. Other copies were\nmade on stone pillars and kept in the portico of the king. Each citizen\ntook an oath that he would keep these laws, which were to remain\nunaltered for a hundred years.\n\nSolon had enemies, as reformers in all ages have had. Some people\ncomplained because his laws were not bold enough, others because they\nwere too bold.\n\nOnce when he was asked if he believed that he had given to the\nAthenians the best possible laws, he answered, \u2018The best they could\nreceive.\u2019\n\nThe complaints of his enemies did not greatly disturb him. He declared\nthat neither friend nor foe influenced him as he worked. \u2018I threw my\nstout shield over both parties,\u2019 he said, and steadfastly refused to\nalter his code.\n\nWhen he ceased to be archon he left Athens and spent ten years seeing\nmany strange people and many new places. It is said that during his\nabsence he met Croesus, King of Lydia, the richest man in the world.\nAs Solon and Croesus did not live at the same time, it is not possible\nthat the wise lawgiver and the rich king could have met, but this is\nthe story that is told.\n\nWhen Solon reached Lydia, he went to the court of Croesus. The nobles\nwere clad in such rich garments and were attended by so many guards\nand pages that the Athenian thought that one of them must be the king\nhimself. But when he actually stood in the presence of the monarch he\nmust have smiled at his mistake, so gorgeously was the king arrayed in\ngold and purple, so plentifully was he bedecked with sparkling jewels.\n\nCroesus thought that Solon would be filled with awe at the sight of his\ngrandeur, but he soon found that purple cloth and rare stones had no\ngreat interest for the Athenian.\n\nThere were still his treasure-houses! These could not fail to impress\nthe stranger. So the king led Solon through gallery after gallery that\nhe might see his pictures, his statues, and all the wonderful things\nthat his wealth had brought to him. Then in a glow of pride he turned\nto his guest, asking if he did not think that Croesus was the happiest\nman in the world.\n\n\u2018Nay, O king,\u2019 answered Solon, \u2018Tellus, one of my own countrymen, was\nhappier than thou, for he died bravely on the battlefield in defence of\nhis country.\u2019\n\nCroesus thought Solon was foolish not to count that man happiest who\nowned the most gold. But he only said, \u2018After Tellus, dost thou count\nme the happiest man in the world?\u2019\n\n\u2018Nay,\u2019 again answered the wise man, \u2018but two sons who loved their\nmother well, and served her with their strength.\u2019\n\nThen the king was angry and he said, \u2018Dost thou not count me a happy\nman?\u2019\n\n\u2018Call no man happy until he dies,\u2019 replied the wise man, \u2018for who knows\nwhat pains the gods may yet have in store for him while he lives.\u2019\n\nCroesus was yet to learn the truth of what Solon said. For in days to\ncome Cyrus, King of Persia, seized his city, took him prisoner, and\ncondemned him to be burned to death.\n\nAs he was being bound to the pyre, Croesus remembered the words of the\nAthenian, and he cried aloud three times, \u2018O Solon, Solon, Solon.\u2019\n\nThe King of Persia had never heard of Solon, and he asked on what\nstrange god his prisoner was calling.\n\n\u2018On no god,\u2019 answered the miserable man, \u2018but on one whom I would that\nall tyrants might meet and converse with.\u2019 He then told Cyrus how Solon\nhad said no one need count himself happy while he lived, as he could\nnot know what misfortunes the gods had yet in store for him.\n\nAlready the pyre had been set alight, but Cyrus, struck by the words he\nhad heard and thinking that he did not know what fate might yet befall\nhimself, ordered Croesus to be set free.\n\nBut the flames had blazed up fiercely, and no one could quench the\nfire. Then Croesus besought Apollo to help him, and lo! the sky\nwhich had been clear grew dark, and a heavy downfall of rain soon\nextinguished the flames.\n\n\u2018Thus,\u2019 says Plutarch, who tells this story, \u2018Solon had the glory by\nthe same saying to save one king and instruct another.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXI\n\nTHE ATHENIANS TAKE SALAMIS\n\n\nSalamis, an island lying about a mile from both Athens and Megara, was\nin the hands of the Megarians. Its position between the two States\nmade it an important one. So the Athenians determined to proclaim war\nagainst the Megarians and try to win Salamis for themselves.\n\nBut the war dragged on so long that the Athenians grew weary, and\nalthough the Megarians still held the island they longed for the war\nto end. The poor soldiers wished to go home to plough their fields,\nthe rich wished to escape from the hardships of the camp to their own\ncomfortable homes.\n\nSo at length peace was made, and a law was passed by the Athenians\nforbidding any one either to say or to write, upon pain of death, that\nAthens ought still to try to win Salamis.\n\nThere were many citizens both indignant and ashamed that such a law had\nbeen passed, yet lest they should be put to death they did not dare to\nsay what they thought.\n\nSolon was away from Athens when this law was passed, and when he came\nback from his journey and found that peace had been made while Salamis\nwas still in the hands of the Megarians, he was much displeased.\n\nSome time had passed since peace had been made, and Solon knew that the\nMegarians were not now as strong as they had been when the Athenians\ngave up fighting. So he determined that he would rouse his countrymen\nto try again to capture the island. Yet what could he do? He would be\nput to death if he defied the law, which said that no one must say or\nwrite that Athens ought still to try to win Salamis.\n\nAt length he hit on a strange plan. He pretended that he was mad, and\npersuaded his own family to spread the report that this terrible fate\nhad befallen him. He then wrote some verses, learned them by heart, and\nran toward the market-place, a cap upon his head. In those days a cap\nwas worn by a man only if he were ill.\n\nSolon soon attracted as much attention as he had hoped to do by his\nstrange gestures and by the words he shouted.\n\nAs the people crowded round him he jumped on to the platform from which\nheralds were used to announce important tidings, and began to recite\nthe verses he had written.\n\n\u2018I came myself as a herald from lovely Salamis, but with song on my\nlips instead of common speech,\u2019 so began the poem. It then went on to\nblame those who wished no longer to fight, and bade them \u2018Arise and\ncome to Salamis to win that fair island and undo our shame.\u2019\n\nAs the people listened they forgot that they had believed Solon was\nmad, and their hearts were stirred by his words.\n\nFrom that day so strong became the desire of the people to blot out\ntheir disgrace and win Salamis, that the law which had so displeased\nSolon was repealed. No one had thought of punishing the man who had\nbroken it.\n\nThe Athenian forces were again mustered; Solon himself being made\ncommander of the troops. His cousin Pisistratus went with him to\nbattle, and it was he who succeeded in taking the port of Salamis.\n\nIn those days Athens had no fleet. Solon sailed toward Salamis in a\nship, but his army followed him in a number of fishing-boats.\n\nWhen the Megarians caught sight of the Athenian ship, they sent one of\ntheir own vessels to find out the strength of the enemy\u2019s fleet.\n\nSolon managed to capture this ship, and all on board were taken\nprisoners. The captured vessel was then manned with Athenians, and the\nmen were ordered to sail slowly and quietly to the island.\n\nSolon meanwhile reached the shore and, landing with his army, at once\nattacked the Megarians. While the fight still raged, the ship manned\nby Athenians sailed unnoticed to the port. The soldiers leaped to\nthe ground, sped swiftly to the city, and took it almost before the\ncitizens were aware of the presence of the enemy.\n\nThe island was soon in the hands of the triumphant Athenians, by\nwhom it was held for many long years, until indeed Philip of Macedon\nconquered Greece.\n\nTo celebrate the victory in after years, an Athenian ship used to sail\nto the island just as the victorious one had done on the actual battle\nday. When it reached the shore, a soldier, armed as though for battle,\njumped to the ground, and with a loud shout ran toward the city, where\nhe was met and welcomed by his countrymen.\n\nClose to the spot where Solon won this victory a temple was built and\ndedicated to the god of battle.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXII\n\nPISISTRATUS BECOMES TYRANT\n\n\nSolon did not expect the laws he made to please each of the three\nparties in Attica. So he was not greatly surprised that while the Plain\nand the Coast were more or less content, the Hill was dissatisfied and\neven rebellious.\n\nPisistratus wished to help the Hill folk, who were shepherds and\nherdsmen, and he hoped at the same time to fulfil his own ambition,\nwhich was to become tyrant of Athens.\n\nSolon did not think that it was good for the State to have a tyrant at\nits head. He warned the people again and again that Pisistratus would\ntake away their freedom. But it was in vain that he spoke, no one would\nlisten to him.\n\nOne day as Pisistratus drove in a chariot to the market-place, the\ncitizens saw to their horror that he had been wounded. They crowded\nround his chariot begging to be told what had happened. This was what\nPisistratus wished. He pointed to his wounds, telling them that the men\nof the Plain had attacked him, because he was defending the rights of\nthe poor Hill folk. But Pisistratus was deceiving the people, for he\nhad given himself these wounds that he might gain the sympathy of the\npeople and be voted a bodyguard.\n\nLest he should be killed outright by his enemies, the citizens agreed\nthat he should have a guard of fifty clubsmen.\n\nAt first Pisistratus seemed content with his guard, but after a time he\nbegan to add to its number now one, then another, until he knew that he\nwas strong enough to defy his enemies. He then seized the Acropolis\nand soon made himself master of the State.\n\nThe leaders of the Plain and the Shore were forced to flee, and the\npeople, in spite of the warnings of Solon, were amazed at the cunning\nand the boldness Pisistratus had shown.\n\nSolon himself felt that all he had done for the State was undone when a\ntyrant ruled at Athens.\n\nOld as he now was, he was brave enough to go to the market-place to\nupbraid the citizens for their folly in having allowed Pisistratus\nto deceive them, and to beg them not to lose their freedom without a\nstruggle. \u2018You might with ease,\u2019 he said, \u2018have crushed the tyrant in\nthe bud; but nothing now remains but to pluck him up by the roots.\u2019\n\nIt is said that he even begged the people to take up arms against\nPisistratus, but they were not bold enough to defy the tyrant.\n\nSo Solon went home sadly, gathered together his arms and laid them on\nthe threshold of his house, saying, \u2018I have done my part to maintain my\ncountry and my laws, and I appeal to others to do likewise.\u2019\n\nHere is a verse from one of the poems which he wrote at this time--\n\n \u2018If now you suffer do not blame the Powers,\n For they are good and all the fault is ours.\n All the strongholds you put into his hands,\n And now his slaves must do what he commands.\u2019\n\nHis friends feared that Pisistratus would punish Solon for his bold\nwords and actions, perhaps even take his life, so they begged him to\nleave the country, but he refused to go.\n\nWhen they asked him why he was not afraid, and to what he trusted to\nsave him from the anger of the tyrant, he answered simply, \u2018To my old\nage.\u2019\n\nAnd his trust was well founded, for Pisistratus treated Solon with\nkindness and with respect. He even asked his advice in matters of\nState.\n\nBut the overthrow of his reforms was more than the old lawgiver could\nbear, and two years later, when he was eighty years of age, he died. It\nis said that by his own wish his ashes were scattered on Salamis, the\nisland which he had won for Athens.\n\nPisistratus was a good tyrant. For five years he ruled, doing all that\nhe could for the welfare of the State. But his enemies, although they\nsaw that Athens grew more prosperous under his control, were ever\nplotting to get rid of him. At the end of five years the Plain and the\nCoast joined together and succeeded in driving Pisistratus from the\ncity.\n\nBut Megacles, the leader of the Coast, quarrelled with the Plain, and\nhe then offered to help Pisistratus to return to Athens.\n\nIt was by a strange trick that the Athenians were persuaded once more\nto allow the tyrant to rule.\n\nIn one of the villages of Attica, Megacles knew of a woman named Phya,\nwho was taller and more stately than most Greek women. He ordered Phya\nto be clad in armour, such as was worn by the goddess Athene, and then\nseating her in his chariot he drove to Athens. Before the chariot went\na herald to proclaim that the goddess Athene was herself coming to bid\nthem open their gates to Pisistratus and to restore him to power.\n\nThe story tells that the Athenians believed that Phya was indeed the\ngoddess, and they hastened to obey her behests. Pisistratus was allowed\nto enter the city and rule it as before.\n\nFor six years all went well, then the tyrant quarrelled with Megacles,\nwho again joined the Plain, and Pisistratus was expelled for the second\ntime.\n\nBut the tyrant was a patient and a persistent man. For ten years he\nlived in a province called Thrace, keeping in touch all the time with\nthe Hill. In 535 B.C. he was back again in Attica, with no goddess to\nhelp him, but with a band of hired soldiers to strengthen his party.\n\nThe Athenian army was sent against the invaders, but Pisistratus\npretended that he did not mean to fight. So the Athenians, thinking\nthemselves safe, sat down to their midday meal. Then, while they were\neating and drinking, the tyrant fell upon them, scattering them with\nbut little loss on either side. As the Athenians fled, the sons of\nPisistratus, Hippias and Hipparchus, rode after them, crying aloud that\nall who went quietly home would be pardoned. The citizens saw that it\nwas useless to resist, so Pisistratus entered Athens as tyrant for the\nthird time.\n\nDuring the next eight years Pisistratus devoted himself to making\nAthens the most beautiful city of the world. He ordered that a new\nfeast should be held in honour of the gods, and he began to build a\nmagnificent temple to Zeus, which he did not live to finish. Many\nlearned men were invited to Athens, and poets and historians were\nencouraged to write and to read their works to the people. It is even\nsaid that Pisistratus collected a library, which he urged the citizens\nto use, but of this we cannot be sure.\n\nThen, thinking perhaps that Athens was strong enough to defy her\nenemies, the tyrant ordered the walls of the city to be pulled down. So\nthat for half a century Athens, like Sparta, was an unwalled town.\n\nIn many of the States where tyrants ruled, Pisistratus had formed\nallies, and he even offered his friendship to Sparta, the State that\ndespised tyrants and would not allow them to rule in Peloponnesus.\n\nPisistratus died in 527 B.C., and was succeeded by his two sons,\nHippias and Hipparchus.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXIII\n\nHARMODIUS AND ARISTOGITON\n\n\nHippias and Hipparchus were as eager as their father Pisistratus had\nbeen to govern Athens well. Nor did they quarrel as to the way in which\nthey could best do this, as brother-tyrants might have done.\n\nBut one day Hipparchus quarrelled with a citizen named Harmodius, and\nto quarrel with Harmodius meant to make an enemy of his great friend\nAristogiton.\n\nHarmodius showed that he was angry with Hipparchus, who then used his\npower as tyrant to punish the citizen. This was unfair, as the quarrel\nwas a private one.\n\nThe tyrant even refused to allow the sister of Harmodius to carry a\nbasket in the procession of the gods, an insult which the citizen could\nill brook. He therefore resolved to revenge himself, and together with\nAristogiton he made a plot to slay not only Hipparchus but his brother\nHippias as well. Only a few friends were told of the plot, which they\nhoped to carry out on the day of the procession. As it was usual to\ncarry arms at the festival, it would arouse no suspicion if the friends\nwere seen to carry theirs.\n\nWhen the day arrived, Harmodius and Aristogiton appeared at the\nfestival bearing lances, as did the other citizens. But to be the more\ncertain of carrying out their plan, they also carried daggers concealed\nbeneath their cloaks.\n\nThe conspirators wished to kill Hippias outside the city gates, while\nhe was arranging the order of the procession. But when they approached\nthe tyrant he chanced to be talking to one of those who knew of the\nplot, and the conspirators fled, thinking that Hippias had learned\ntheir secret.\n\nHippias was saved, but rushing to the market-place the two friends fell\nupon Hipparchus and killed him.\n\nThe conspirators expected the citizens to rally round them, but they\nstood aloof, while Harmodius was seized by the guards and put to death.\nAristogiton was tortured to make him betray the names of those who knew\nof the plot, but he too died, steadfastly refusing to speak.\n\nAlthough at first the Athenians paid little attention to what Harmodius\nand Aristogiton had done and had suffered, they began ere long to think\nof them as heroes who had freed Athens from the rule of one of the\ntyrants. Perhaps this was because Hippias, frightened by his brother\u2019s\ndeath, brought hired soldiers into the city, raised the taxes that\nhe might have money with which to pay his mercenaries, and began to\noppress the citizens in many other ways.\n\nThe discontent of the people encouraged Cleisthenes, the son of\nMegacles, to put himself at their head and lead them against Hippias,\nbut they were soon crushed by the hired soldiers of the tyrant.\n\nCleisthenes then tried to do by a trick what he had been unable to\ndo by force. He knew that he was liked by the priests at Delphi, for\nhe had given munificent gifts to the temple. So he begged them if a\nSpartan came to consult the oracle, no matter about what, to answer\nalways, \u2018Athens must be set free.\u2019 This the priests promised should be\ndone.\n\nThe Spartans had been friendly with Pisistratus, and they did not wish\nto harm his son. But when the oracle\u2019s one answer to all their requests\nwas \u2018Athens must be set free,\u2019 they knew that they must march against\nthe tyrant if they wished their own affairs to prosper. At first they\nwere defeated by the mercenaries of Hippias, but one of their kings\nthen took command of the army and defeated the tyrant, who took refuge\nin the Acropolis.\n\nThe citadel would stand a long siege, as Hippias was well aware. But\nhe was soon forced to surrender, for his children whom he was sending\nsecretly out of the country were captured by the Spartans. On condition\nthat their lives should be spared, Hippias promised to leave the state\nwithin five days.\n\nSo the children were released and sailed with Hippias, under a safe\nconduct, to Asia, where they lived in a small town which had belonged\nto Pisistratus.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXIV\n\nTHE LAW OF OSTRACISM\n\n\nAfter Cleisthenes had set Athens free from the rule of Hippias, he\nbegan to reform the laws and to make Athens a more democratic State\nthan she had yet been.\n\nUntil now the Athenians had been divided into four tribes; Cleisthenes\nsplit up the four tribes into ten. Each of the ten tribes he then\narranged in ten parishes or \u2018demes.\u2019\n\nIn each tribe there were demes made up of the Plain, the Shore, and the\nHill. As these demes had to fight together in time of war, the three\ndifferent parties grew to be friends instead of enemies. And that was\nwhy Cleisthenes had arranged the tribes in this way, instead of making\none tribe consist of ten demes of Hill men and another of ten demes of\nPlain or Coast men.\n\nMembers from the new tribes were sent to the assembly of the people,\nand to the assembly Cleisthenes gave new powers. It could choose its\nown rulers, and punish those who ruled unjustly. It could impose taxes,\nmake war, and settle terms of peace.\n\nBut of all the laws which Cleisthenes made, the one which will interest\nyou most is the one that was called the law of Ostracism. The word\nostracism comes from the Greek _ostrakon_, a shell.\n\nIn Athens there were often two leaders opposed to one another, but each\nas powerful as the other.\n\nCleisthenes thought that it would be a good plan to be able to get rid\nof one of these leaders for a time and so save the city from civil\nwar, which often threatened to overtake it. So he said that when it\nwas necessary to banish one of these leaders, the citizens should meet\ntogether, each being given an oyster-shell on which to write the name\nof the man of whom he disapproved.\n\nIf six thousand votes were given against one leader he was said to be\nostracised, and was compelled to leave the city within ten days for\nfive or perhaps even for ten years. His exile was not a disgrace, it\nwas enforced only for the good of the State. When the five or ten years\nhad passed, the leader returned to Athens to hold as high a position as\nhe had held before and to take possession of his property.\n\nThe reforms of Cleisthenes displeased the nobles who wished Athens to\nbe an oligarchy, and they were angry that so much power had been given\nto the assembly of the people. They said the city would soon be ruined,\nfor how could the people who were unaccustomed to so much power use it\nwell and wisely. But the fears of the nobles were groundless, for from\nthis time Athens grew more prosperous as well as more powerful. She\nsoon had a stronger army, a better fleet, and, as you shall hear, was\nvictorious over her enemies both by land and by sea.\n\nGreat writers and sculptors too added to the glory of Athens and made\nher the most famous city of Greece.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXV\n\nTHE BRIDGE OF BOATS\n\n\nAlong the western shore of Asia Minor there were many Greek colonies.\nOne of these was called Ionia, and the chief city of the Ionian state\nwas Miletus.\n\nThe Greeks who lived in these colonies owned, often against their will,\nthe King of Persia as their overlord. In time of war they were forced\nto fight for him.\n\nIn 521 B.C. a great monarch, named Darius, became King of Persia. He\nadded many kingdoms to his dominions during the first nine years of his\nreign. In 512 B.C. he determined to conquer Greece and add it also to\nhis possessions.\n\nSo he assembled a great army and crossed the Bosphorus, but instead of\ngoing west to Thessaly which lies in the north-east of Greece, Darius\nturned first toward the north, and crossing the Balkans, he reached the\nriver Danube. Beyond the river lay a wild and desolate country, the\nhome of the Scythians, who wandered up and down the land, settling now\nhere, now there, as their fancy pleased.\n\nThe \u2018great king,\u2019 as the Persian monarchs were often called, bade the\nIonian Greeks, who formed part of his army, throw a bridge of boats\nacross the river. When this was done he bade them stay to guard the\nbridge, while he marched with the main body of his men into the wild\nScythian country. Should he not return in sixty days, Darius told the\nIonians that they might break up the bridge and go back to their homes.\n\nNo sooner had the great king crossed the bridge and marched into\nScythia, than his difficulties began.\n\nThe foe he had come to seek was not to be found. Knowing that they were\nnot strong enough to face Darius in battle, the Scythians had driven\ntheir herds far into the desert, while they themselves, like shadows,\ndogged the steps of the Persian army.\n\nTwo months passed, and still the king had not been able to make the\nenemy fight. Their shadowy forms were sometimes seen, but they were\nnever near enough to be attacked.\n\nDarius was unwilling to own that his expedition had been useless. Yet\nhis men were sick from cold, and their provisions were nearly at an\nend, so he had almost made up his mind to order the retreat. But while\nhe still hesitated, the story tells that the Scythians sent one of\ntheir number to the great king, carrying with him as gifts a bird, a\nmouse, a frog, and five arrows.\n\nThe Persians demanded the meaning of these strange gifts, but the\nmessenger had no answer to give. He had been but bidden to give them to\nthe great king and return to his people.\n\nThen Darius called together his council to consider what the offering\nmight betoken.\n\nThe king himself thought that the presents were to show that the\nScythians were ready to surrender their land, for on it the mouse found\nits home; their water, for in it dwelt the frog. The bird was a symbol\nof their war-steeds, and with the arrows showed that they were willing\nto lay down their arms. Darius was satisfied with his own explanation,\nbut one of his councillors thought that the gifts had quite a different\nmeaning.\n\n\u2018O Persians,\u2019 he cried, \u2018listen to my words and be wise. For unless ye\nbecome as birds and fly up into heaven, or go down like mice beneath\nthe earth, or, becoming frogs, leap into the lake, ye will not escape\nbeing shot by these arrows.\u2019\n\nAs he listened to these alarming words, the king thought that after all\nperhaps this was the true meaning of the gifts, so he determined to\nreturn to the Danube. But the sick men and the beasts of burden were\nleft behind when the army set out, for they could not march as quickly\nas Darius wished. The groanings of these miserable men and the cries of\nthe animals were heard by the Scythians, who soon discovered what had\nhappened and set out in pursuit of Darius and his army.\n\nNow the Ionians in charge of the bridge had long been tired of waiting\nfor the return of the great king. He had perished, they said one to the\nother, and it would be well for them to break up the bridge and return\nto their homes.\n\nThose who longed most to throw off their allegiance to the Persians\nmuttered that even if the king had not already perished, he would soon\ndo so, if he reached the Danube without provisions, to find the bridge\nwas no longer there.\n\nMiltiades, an Athenian, was strongly in favour of withdrawing, but\nHistiaeus, tyrant of Miletus, begged the Ionians to remain, for Darius\nwould come back, of that he felt certain. Then turning to the other\ntyrants, he cried, \u2018O ye tyrants, be sure of this, that if we leave\nthe Persians to perish, the men of our cities will rise up against us,\nbecause it is the king who strengthens us in our power; and if he die,\nneither shall I be able to rule in Miletus, nor you in those cities of\nwhich ye are tyrants.\u2019 Then the other tyrants agreed with Histiaeus\nthat it would be for their own good to wait for the king.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXVI\n\nDARIUS REWARDS HISTIAEUS\n\n\nMeanwhile a band of Scythians had reached the banks of the Danube. The\nIonians had already loosed some of the boats on the farther side, that\nthe enemy might think that the bridge was useless. And they, seeing\nthis, and thinking that it would be impossible for Darius to cross the\nriver, turned back to meet him.\n\nBut that same night, after a terrible march, the great king reached the\nriver unnoticed by the Scythians. He saw at once that there were no\nboats on his side of the river. Had the Ionians gone home and left him\nto fall into the hands of his enemy?\n\nThen he bade one of his men who was noted for the strength of his voice\nto call aloud for Histiaeus of Miletus. No sooner was this done than an\nanswering shout was heard, and Histiaeus sent in haste to restore the\nbridge of boats. When the boats were secure, Darius with his weary army\ncrossed to the other side, and was greeted with every token of loyalty\nby the Greeks.\n\nThe king was grateful to Histiaeus when he heard that it was he who had\npersuaded the other tyrants to await his return, after the sixty days\nhad passed, and he bade him ask for whatever he wished.\n\nNow the tyrant longed to build a strong city far from the control of\nthe Persian power. So he asked for land in the country called Thrace,\nwhich stretches north of Macedon to the river Danube, and Darius\ngranted his request.\n\nBut Megabazus, the general of the great king, did not trust Histiaeus,\nand when he came to Sardis, where the king\u2019s court was, he said to\nDarius, \u2018O king, what hast thou done? Thou hast given to a Greek who\nis wise and crafty a city in Thrace, where there is much timber for\nbuilding ships and blades for oars, and mines of silver, and round it\nthere are many people, both Greek and barbarian, who will take him for\na chief and do his will by night and by day. See then that he make not\nwar against thee in time to come.\u2019\n\nDarius feared lest Megabazus was right, and he determined to send for\nHistiaeus and keep him at his own court. Yet as Megabazus might have\nmade a mistake, the message the king sent to the Greek was a kind one.\n\n\u2018O Histiaeus,\u2019 said the king, \u2018I have pondered it well, and I find\nnone who is better minded to me and to my kingdom than thou art. This\nI know, for I have learnt it, not by words but in deed. And now I\npurpose to do great things. Come therefore to me in any wise, that I\nmay entrust them to thee.\u2019\n\nThese words pleased Histiaeus. It seemed to him that the great king was\ntreating him even as one of his counsellors. But when he reached the\nking\u2019s court and was told what the commands of Darius were, he was not\nso well content.\n\n\u2018O Histiaeus,\u2019 said the king, \u2018there is nothing more precious than a\nwise and kind friend, and I knew that this thou art to me. So now thou\nmust leave Miletus and the new city which thou hast built, and come\nwith me to my court at Susa.\u2019\n\nThe Greek found it hard to hide his anger and disappointment. Rather\nwould he be tyrant at Miletus, or ruler in his new city, than a\nfavoured courtier at Susa.\n\nAristagoras, the brother-in-law of Histiaeus, was now made tyrant of\nMiletus, while Darius appointed his own brother Artaphernes to be ruler\nof Sardis.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXVII\n\nHISTIAEUS SHAVES THE HEAD OF HIS SLAVE\n\n\nFor a few years after Histiaeus was summoned to Susa, the Greek cities\nin Asia showed no disloyalty.\n\nBut about 500 B.C. the people of Naxos, an island in the \u00c6gean Sea,\nrose and expelled the nobles from their city. This was the beginning of\na war between Greece and Asia, known as the Ionian revolt.\n\nThe nobles, when they were turned out of Naxos, went to Aristagoras,\ntyrant of Miletus, to beg him to help them to punish the rebels and to\ngain possession of the island.\n\nAristagoras knew that alone he was not strong enough to regain Naxos\nfor the nobles, but he said that he would ask Artaphernes, the Persian\nruler in Sardis, to help him.\n\nSo Aristagoras went to Sardis and begged Artaphernes to give him a\nhundred ships to sail against Naxos, promising if he would do so to\nreward him with money and with gifts.\n\nArtaphernes offered, if Darius would consent, to give not only a\nhundred, but two hundred ships. The great king bade his brother do as\nhe thought well, so two hundred ships, under the command of Megabates,\nwere sent from Sardis to join Aristagoras in his expedition against\nNaxos.\n\nThe two leaders, Aristagoras and Megabates, had not sailed far together\nwhen they quarrelled, and it was because of this quarrel that the plans\nof Aristagoras went awry.\n\nOne night Megabates found that no watch had been set on one of the\nships belonging to Aristagoras. He was so angry with the captain for\nbeing careless that he ordered his head to be placed in one of the\noarholes in the side of the vessel. When this was done the unhappy\nman could do nothing to set himself free, but with hanging head he was\nforced to gaze into the water.\n\nWhen Aristagoras found what Megabates had done he went at once to ask\nhim to set the culprit free. This Megabates refused to do, and the\ntyrant himself released the captain.\n\nTo have his authority flouted in this way made Megabates angry, but\nwhen he would have spoken, Aristagoras proudly bade him be silent,\nsaying, \u2018Did not Artaphernes send you to serve under me?\u2019\n\nPerhaps it would have been wiser to allow the Persian to speak, for now\nhis anger smouldered in his heart, and he resolved to be revenged on\nAristagoras. So he sent a messenger to Naxos to warn the citizens that\nan enemy was at hand.\n\nThe Naxians at once strengthened their walls and brought provisions\ninto their city, so that when Aristagoras arrived, he found to his\nastonishment that the citizens had been warned and were ready to resist\nan attack.\n\nFor four months the Greeks and Persians besieged Naxos, but all their\nefforts to take the city were vain. Then, their money and their\nprovisions having come to an end, Aristagoras was forced to order the\nfleets to withdraw.\n\nThe tyrant was now in great trouble. He had neither gold nor gifts to\ngive to Artaphernes as he had promised. He had wasted Persian money on\na useless expedition, and he had made Megabates his enemy. What would\nDarius say when he heard these things? Aristagoras was afraid that the\nking would no longer allow him to be tyrant of Miletus.\n\nIt seemed to Aristagoras that the only way to save himself from\ndisgrace was to persuade the Greeks in Asia Minor to revolt against\nDarius and himself to become their leader.\n\nNow just at this time Histiaeus was more than ever determined to escape\nfrom the court of Susa. He thought if Aristagoras would but incite the\nGreeks to rebel, Darius would send him back to Miletus to restore\norder to the city.\n\nSo while Aristagoras was still hesitating about rousing the citizens,\na slave was shown into his presence. He came from Histiaeus, and said\nthat his master had bidden him tell Aristagoras to shave off his hair\nand look at the message that was branded on his head.\n\nThis was a strange way to send a message! But Histiaeus had been unable\nto think of any other way to tell Aristagoras what he wished him to do.\nSo he had himself first shaved the head of his slave, and branded on\nit certain signs which meant that the tyrant was to revolt against the\nPersians. He had waited only until the slave\u2019s hair had grown again,\nwhen he had at once sent him to Miletus.\n\nWhen Aristagoras looked at the slave\u2019s head and learned that Histiaeus\nencouraged him to revolt, he hesitated no longer. He determined to\nrouse the Ionian Greeks, and he began with his own city Miletus. When\nhe had assembled the citizens he told them that the time had come to\nthrow off the Persian yoke. He then gave up his position as tyrant that\nMiletus might be made into a democracy. The example of Miletus was\nquickly followed by many other cities, and the Greeks were soon in open\nrebellion against Darius.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXVIII\n\nSARDIS IS DESTROYED\n\n\nThe Ionians knew that they would not be able to throw off the Persian\nyoke without help from their kinsfolk in Greece. So Aristagoras was\nappointed to go to Sparta to beg king Cleomenes to help the Ionians,\nwho were of the same race as were he and his people.\n\nWhen Aristagoras reached Sparta he tried to tempt the king to help the\nIonians by telling him of the wealth he might gain for himself. After\nArtaphernes was conquered at Sardis it would, he said, be an easy\nmatter to go to Susa and seize the treasures of the great king. He then\nshowed Cleomenes a thing he had never seen before--a map engraved in\nbronze. Aristagoras pointed out to him all the countries he might make\nhis own if he would aid the Ionians in their revolt.\n\nThe king listened and looked, then he dismissed the Greek, promising to\nthink over the matter. In three days he sent for Aristagoras and asked\nhim how long it took to journey from Ionia to Susa.\n\n\u2018Three months,\u2019 answered the messenger.\n\n\u2018O stranger,\u2019 then said Cleomenes, \u2018depart from Sparta before the sun\ngoes down; thou art no friend to the Lacedaemonians when thou seekest\nto lead them three months\u2019 journey from the sea.\u2019\n\nIn spite of the king\u2019s command, Aristagoras still tarried in Sparta. He\nhad made up his mind that he would see Cleomenes once again ere he left\nthe country.\n\nSo one day, taking an olive branch in his hand as a sign of peace,\nhe went to the king\u2019s house. He found Cleomenes alone with his little\ndaughter Gorgo, a child about eight years old.\n\nAristagoras begged the king to send his daughter away, but Cleomenes\nsaid, \u2018Pay no heed to the child.\u2019\n\nThen the Greek tried to bribe the king to send help to Ionia. Ten\ntalents he offered, twenty, thirty, but in vain. Forty, fifty! Surely,\nthought Aristagoras, the king would be won by fifty talents.\n\nBut at that moment little Gorgo interfered. \u2018Father,\u2019 she cried, \u2018the\nstranger will corrupt you unless you rise up and go.\u2019\n\nCleomenes listened to the child\u2019s words and knew that they were wise.\nHe rose and left the room, and Aristagoras knew that he had been beaten\nby the little princess.\n\nBut although Sparta would not help, Athens might. So Aristagoras went\nto the beautiful city and found that the Athenians were willing to send\ntwenty ships to the aid of the Ionians. \u2018These ships,\u2019 said Herodotus,\n\u2018were the beginnings of evil both to the Greeks and to the barbarians.\u2019\n\nIn 498 B.C. the Athenian fleet was ready. It sailed across the \u00c6gean\nand the troops landed at Ephesus, where they were joined by the\nIonians. Together they marched upon Sardis.\n\nArtaphernes saw that he could not hope to hold the town against the\nforce that was approaching. So he left the city to be plundered, while\nhe with a small band of soldiers took refuge in the Acropolis.\n\nAs they met with little resistance, the Athenians at once began to\npillage the town. One of the soldiers set fire to a house, and as many\nof them were made of wickerwork, while all the roofs were thatched,\nthe flames spread quickly through the city until Sardis was destroyed.\nThen the Greeks, loaded with plunder, began to march back to Ephesus,\nbut on the way they were met by a troop of Persians and defeated.\nThe Athenians now determined to go home. Aristagoras begged them to\nstay, but they paid no heed to his request, and hastening to the shore\nthey embarked and set sail for Athens. Nor did the Athenians take any\nfurther share in the Ionic revolt.\n\nBut they had already done enough to rouse the anger of Darius. The\ngreat king knew that it would be easy to punish Aristagoras and the\nIonians. As for the strangers who had burned Sardis, one of his capital\ntowns, they, whoever they were, should suffer most heavily. He was told\nthat the strangers were the Athenians.\n\n\u2018The Athenians--who are they?\u2019 he demanded haughtily. And when he had\nbeen told he sent for a bow and shot an arrow high into the air, saying\nas he did so, \u2018O Zeus, suffer me to avenge myself on the Athenians.\u2019 He\nthen bade one of his slaves say to him three times each day as he sat\nat dinner, \u2018O king, remember the Athenians.\u2019\n\nMeanwhile Aristagoras saw that there was little chance of the revolt\nbeing successful against the forces of Darius. So, like a coward rather\nthan like a brave leader, he deserted those whom he had encouraged to\nrebel and fled to Thrace. Here, while besieging a town, he was slain.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXXIX\n\nTHE SANDAL SEWN BY HISTIAEUS\n\n\nNow when Darius heard that Sardis had been destroyed, he sent for\nHistiaeus and said to him, \u2018O Histiaeus, I hear that the man to whom\nthou hast given thy city has been doing strange things. He has brought\nover men from Europe to help the Ionians whom I shall punish.... How\ncan all this seem good to thee? And without thy counsels how could such\na thing be done? See that thou bring not thyself into blame afresh.\u2019\n\nHistiaeus tried not to think of the slave whose head he had shaved and\nwhom he had sent to Aristagoras, as he told the king that he had had\nnothing to do with the revolt in Ionia. He begged to be allowed to go\nto help Artaphernes to put down the rebellion. He would do even more to\nshow his loyalty; he would seize the rich island of Sardinia to add to\nthe possessions of the great king.\n\n\u2018Yea, I swear by the gods whom the king worshippeth,\u2019 he cried, \u2018that I\nwill not put off the tunic in which I shall go down to Ionia, before I\nbring under thy power the mighty island of Sardinia.\u2019\n\nIt was not difficult to persuade Darius that Histiaeus was innocent,\nfor since the Greek had tarried for him at the bridge of boats the king\nwas ever ready to believe in his loyalty. So to his great delight,\nHistiaeus was bidden to go to Sardis and help Artaphernes to put down\nthe revolt.\n\nBut Artaphernes was less easily deceived than the great king. No\nsooner had Histiaeus arrived at Sardis than the Persian accused him of\ntreachery.\n\n\u2018Why did the Ionians rebel against the king?\u2019 he asked the Greek in a\nstern voice.\n\n\u2018I cannot tell,\u2019 answered Histiaeus. \u2018I have marvelled at all the\nthings which have happened.\u2019\n\n\u2018O Histiaeus,\u2019 said Artaphernes, \u2018thou hast thus much to do with these\nmatters. Thou didst sew this sandal and Aristagoras hath put it on.\u2019\n\nThen at length Histiaeus was afraid lest his deceit had been\ndiscovered, and lest he should be punished. So when night came he stole\nout of the city and went as speedily as might be to the sea. From that\ntime he became a sea-robber or pirate, seizing any vessel from which he\ncould hope to get booty, whether it belonged to Greek or to barbarian.\n\nAfter a long time he was taken prisoner by the Persians. Artaphernes\nordered that he should be crucified and that his head should be sent to\nDarius.\n\nBut the great king was displeased that his general had not sent the\nGreek to him alive.\n\n\u2018If Histiaeus had been sent away alive to King Darius,\u2019 says Herodotus,\n\u2018he would not, I think, have suffered any harm, but his trespass would\nhave been forgiven him.\u2019\n\nEven as it was, Darius was determined to show what honour was yet\npossible to his faithless servant. For he ordered his slaves to \u2018wash\nthe head and adorn it well, and to bury it as the head of one who had\ndone much good to himself and to the Persians.\u2019\n\nIn 494 B.C., four years after the Athenians had sailed to the help of\nthe Ionians, the revolt was crushed. Miletus, where the rebellion had\nbegun, was punished more severely than the other rebellious cities.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XL\n\nDARIUS DEMANDS EARTH AND WATER\n\n\nThe Ionic revolt was ended, but Darius had yet to punish the Athenians\nfor burning the city of Sardis. Eight years had now passed since she\nhad been destroyed, yet his anger against the Greeks was as fierce as\never.\n\nDaily during all these years a slave had said to him as he sat at\ndinner, \u2018Sire, remember the Athenians,\u2019 and now, at length, his\nvengeance was at hand.\n\nMardonius, one of the king\u2019s generals, was ordered to invade Greece and\nto bring back with him to Susa the Athenians who had dared to destroy\nSardis.\n\nSo Mardonius crossed the Hellespont, and began to march through Thrace\nand Macedonia. His fleet, with part of his army, was to meet him later,\nbeyond the perilous promontory of Mount Athos.\n\nThe country through which Mardonius marched was wild, and inhabited by\nrough and savage tribes. These tribes attacked the Persian troops so\nfiercely that more than half of them were slain. Meanwhile the fleet\nhad encountered a terrible storm, and three hundred ships were dashed\nto pieces upon the rocks near Mount Athos, while twenty thousand men\nwere drowned.\n\nWhen Mardonius heard of this terrible disaster he knew that his troops\nwould not now be strong enough to invade Greece. So he went back to\nPersia.\n\nBut Darius was as determined as ever to punish the Athenians. He spent\ntwo years in preparations, and then, before he set out for Greece, he\nsent heralds to the different states, demanding from each earth and\nwater. To give earth to the great king was to acknowledge him as ruler\nof their land, to give water was to own that he was monarch of the sea.\n\nMany of the states were afraid to refuse, and sent the earth and water\nwhich Darius demanded, but among these was neither Athens nor Sparta.\n\nSo indignant were these two cities that a barbarian, as they called\nDarius, should send such a demand to the free States of Greece, that\nthey treated his heralds with scant courtesy. The Athenians flung the\nmessenger who came to their city into a deep pit, while he who went to\nSparta was tossed into a well and told that there he would find the\nearth and water that his king desired.\n\nIn the spring of 490 B.C. Darius sent the army and fleet that he had\nassembled, across the \u00c6gean Sea to the island of Euboea. Here there was\na city named Eretria, whose inhabitants had shared in the destruction\nof Sardis. The Persians plundered the city and took its chief citizens\nprisoners, loading them with chains.\n\nFlushed with victory, the army then crossed over to Attica and landed\nnear the plain of Marathon. There where\n\n The mountains look on Marathon,\n And Marathon looks on the sea,\u2019\n\na great battle was fought between the Greeks and the Persians.\n\nHippias, the tyrant who had fled from Athens many years before, had\nbeen living under the protection of Darius and was now with the Persian\narmy. It is said that it was he who had advised the enemy to land at\nMarathon.\n\nThe army of Darius was much larger than that of the Athenians, for it\nwas one hundred thousand strong, while the Greeks numbered only about\nten thousand trained soldiers.\n\nThe Greeks were commanded by ten generals. If they did not agree how\nto attack the enemy or how to defend themselves, they consulted one of\nthe archons called the polemarch, or commander-in-chief. The polemarch\nat this time was Callimachus. But the glory of the victory of Marathon\nbelongs not to Callimachus but to the general Miltiades.\n\nIt was Miltiades who had urged the Greeks to break up the bridge of\nboats at the Danube and to leave Darius to his fate, and he had ever\nrebelled against the lordship of the Persian king. He had done all he\ncould to encourage the Ionian revolt, and when it was crushed he fled\nto Athens, to which city he belonged.\n\nWhen the Persians landed at Marathon the ten Greek generals met\ntogether to decide how best they might defend their country. Five of\nthem, among whom Miltiades was the most urgent, wished to march at once\nto Marathon to attack the enemy. But the other five were more timid,\nand said that it would be better to wait until they were joined by the\nother Greek States before they risked a battle.\n\nThen Miltiades rose in the council of war to beg Callimachus to give\nhis vote for war without delay. So sure was he of success that his\neagerness decided the polemarch to give his vote as Miltiades wished.\nThus it was settled that the army should march to Marathon without\ndelay.\n\nAt this time an army was usually drawn up for battle in three\ndivisions--the right wing, the left wing, and the centre.\n\nOn the field of Marathon, Miltiades made his wings as deep as possible,\nbut as his army was small, this left his centre less strong than that\nof the enemy.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLI\n\nTHE BATTLE OF MARATHON\n\n\nWhile the council of war was being held, a youth named Philippides was\non his way to Sparta to beg the citizens to hasten to the help of their\ncountry. Philippides was sometimes called by his friends Pheidippides.\n\nAs Philippides sped on his errand a strange adventure befell him, for\nit is told that he met the great god Pan:\n\n \u2018There, in the cool of a cleft, sat he--majestical Pan.\n Ivy drooped wanton, kissed his head, moss cushioned his hoof,\n All the great God was good in the eyes grave-kindly--the curl\n Carved on the bearded cheek, amused at a mortal\u2019s awe,\n As under the human trunk, the goat thighs grand I saw.\n \u201cHalt, Pheidippides!\u201d halt I did, my brain in a whirl;\n \u201cHither to me; why pale in my presence?\u201d he gracious began.\u2019\n\nThe young Athenian was too amazed to answer, he but gazed at the god in\nsilence. Then Pan asked why he was no longer worshipped in Athens, and\npromised that he would fight among the ranks of the Athenians against\nPersia, so that henceforth they would worship him in gratitude for his\nhelp.\n\n \u2018Test Pan, trust me!\n Go bid Athens take heart, laugh Persia to scorn; have faith\n In the temples and tombs. Go say to Athens, \u201cThe Goat-God saith;\n When Persia--so much as strews not the soil--is flung under the sea,\n Then praise Pan who fought in the ranks with your most and least,\n Goat-thigh to greaved-thigh, made one cause with the free and the\n bold.\u201d\u2019\n\nAs a pledge the god then gave to Philippides a handful of a herb called\nfennel.\n\nThe youth then sped on as before until he reached Sparta. But although\nthe Spartans said they were willing to fight, they could not march\nuntil the moon was full, for their religious rites forbade that they\nshould.\n\nSo Philippides, having done his errand, hastened back to Athens and\ntold the citizens all that had befallen him.\n\nGlad that the god had promised his aid the Athenians at once set out\non their march to Marathon. Here they were joined by a force of one\nthousand men from the little town of Plataea. They came to show their\ngratitude to the Athenians who had sent help to them when they were\nattacked by their enemies.\n\nFrom their camp on a hill above the plain of Marathon, the Greeks\nlooked down upon the vast army of the Persians. For several days no\nbattle was fought, the Persians being unable to attack the Athenians\nwithout danger as they were on the hill.\n\nAt length Miltiades, whom the other nine generals were willing to\nfollow, resolved to wait no longer. He ordered his men to advance at a\nsharp run down the hill and to charge the enemy.\n\nWhen they had started, the soldiers could not stop themselves. Quicker\nand quicker they ran, until, when they reached the plain, they crashed\ninto the Persian army with tremendous force.\n\nThe shock was so great that the enemy gave way before it and was driven\nby the Athenians toward the sea or toward a small marsh that lay at one\nend of the plain.\n\nBut while both wings of the Greek army were victorious, the centre,\nwhich was weak, would have been beaten, had not Miltiades seen the\ndanger and called back those who were pursuing the scattered Persian\nwings. Only after a fierce struggle was the centre of the Persian army\nalso driven to the shore in utter confusion.\n\nThose who escaped the sword of the Athenians tried to reach their\nships, but seven of the vessels had been seized by the victors. In the\nstruggle on the shore, Callimachus the polemarch was slain.\n\nThe battle of Marathon was won, and the glory of the victory was due to\nthe prowess and skill of Miltiades.\n\nNo sooner was the victory certain, than the whole army cried that\nPhilippides should race once again, but this time to the Acropolis, to\ntell Athens that by the help of Pan she was indeed saved.\n\n \u2018So Pheidippides flung down his shield,\n Ran like fire once more; and the space \u2019twixt the Fennel-field\n And Athens was stubble again, a field which a fire runs through,\n Till in he broke; \u201cRejoice, we conquer.\u201d Like wine through clay\n Joy in his blood bursting his heart, he died--the bliss!...\n So is Pheidippides happy for ever, the noble, strong man\n Who could race like a god, bear the face of a god, whom a god loved\n so well.\n He saw the land saved he had helped to save and was suffered to tell\n Such tidings, yet never decline, but gloriously as he began\n So to end gloriously--once to shout, thereafter be mute:\n \u201cAthens is saved!\u201d Pheidippides dies in the shout for his meed.\u2019\n\n[Illustration: They crashed into the Persian army with tremendous\nforce]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLII\n\nMILTIADES SAILS TO THE ISLAND OF PAROS\n\n\nUntil the Greeks won their great victory at Marathon, in 490 B.C.,\nthey had always feared the Persians. Now their fear was forgotten.\nThey had still a long struggle before the Persians were banished from\ntheir land, but, inspired by the memory of Marathon, the Greeks fought\nbravely and were sure always that they would be the victors. \u2018It was as\nthough on the day of Marathon the gods had said to the Athenians, \u201cGo\non and prosper.\u201d\u2019\n\nAmong those who fought on this famous field was Themistocles. He was\nyoung then and fought in the ranks, but he was yet to become one of the\ngreatest men that Athens ever knew. Aristides too was there, of whom\nas of Themistocles there are many things to tell; \u00c6schylus, the great\ntragic poet, also bore arms at Marathon.\n\nWhen the battle was over, it was found that the Athenians had lost only\none hundred and ninety-two men, while of the Persians six thousand\nfour hundred lay dead upon the field. In spite of this the army of the\nPersians was still large enough to attack the unwalled city of Athens.\n\nSoon after the battle a bright shield was hung on one of the heights\nof the city, and it was said that a traitor had signalled to the enemy\nthat now was the time to attack her. But Miltiades saw the light as\nwell as the Persians, and guessing what it meant, he took his army back\nto Athens by a forced march. He arrived in time to see the fleet of the\nenemy as it approached the harbour.\n\nBut when the Persian general saw that he need not hope to take the\ncity unawares, he did not venture to risk another battle. An army\nalready flushed with victory would soon scatter his dejected troops. So\nhe ordered the fleet to sail for Asia.\n\nWhile Miltiades was making a forced march back to Athens, Aristides was\nleft at Marathon with a band of soldiers to guard the prisoners and the\nplunder, for his honesty was already well known.\n\nNeither he himself touched any of the treasures of the Persian camp,\nnor did he allow his followers to plunder. Callias, the torchbearer,\n\u2018most cruel and impious of men,\u2019 did, it is true, seize a treasure,\nbut he did so unknown to Aristides. For one of the Persians, thinking\nCallias was of noble rank and hoping to win his favour, fell at his\nfeet, and then, rising, took his hand and led him to a ditch in which a\nlarge quantity of gold had been hidden.\n\nCallias seized the treasure, then lest the Persian should tell what had\nhappened, he slew him.\n\nThe Spartans who had promised to help to fight against their country\u2019s\nfoe did not forget to march to Marathon when the moon was full. They\neven marched one hundred and fifty miles in three days, but in spite of\nthis they reached the battlefield too late to share in the victory.\n\nA mound was raised over the Athenians who had perished, about half a\nmile from the sea. If you go to where\n\n \u2018The mountains look on Marathon,\n And Marathon looks on the sea,\u2019\n\nyou may see it still.\n\nAfter the victory, Miltiades was the hero of Athens. He knew that the\ncitizens would grant what he chose to ask, so he begged for a fleet of\nseventy ships. He knew of a land where gold and treasures were to be\nhad in abundance. Thither would he sail and return to enrich the city.\n\nThe fleet was entrusted to him, but Miltiades did not sail to the\nwonderful land of which he had told, but, so it is said, to the island\nof Paros. Here in the capital city, which was also called Paros,\ndwelt a citizen with whom the Athenian had a quarrel. To punish him,\nMiltiades laid siege to the town, but again and again his attacks were\nrepulsed. Then one day as he was on his way to the temple of Demeter,\nMiltiades was seized with sudden panic. In his haste to leave the\nsacred grove he leaped over a fence, and in doing so he hurt his thigh.\n\nWhen he returned to Athens he was no longer in favour with the people\nwhom he had deceived. Wounded as he was, he was carried into court on a\ncouch and was condemned to pay a heavy fine. But he died before he had\ncollected the money.\n\nMeanwhile Darius heard how his army had been defeated at Marathon. In\nhis wrath he vowed that he would never rest until he had conquered\nGreece.\n\nThree years he spent, preparing once again to invade Europe. His\nheralds were sent all over his wide dominions to gather together a\ngreat army. Horses and corn too the king demanded should be sent \u2018much\nmore than before.\u2019\n\nBut the great king never carried out his plan of again attacking\nGreece, for he died in 485 B.C., after having reigned for thirty-six\nyears. His son Xerxes succeeded to the throne of Persia.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLIII\n\nARISTIDES IS OSTRACISED\n\n\nFour years after the battle of Marathon, Themistocles and Aristides\nwere the two chief citizens in Athens.\n\nThemistocles wished to make Athens a great sea-power, for he was sure\nthat some day the Persians would return. He believed that if the\nAthenians were able to destroy the Persian fleet, all would be well.\nThe land forces of the enemy would be powerless to conquer Greece.\n\nBut if Athens was to have a better fleet, Themistocles knew that she\nmust first have a better harbour. The one that the Athenians used was\nat Phalerum, where the sea almost reached the city. It was only an open\nroadstead, a place where ships might ride at anchor, which would be of\nlittle use to protect vessels from an enemy.\n\nThemistocles knew a better site than Phalerum, where a strong harbour\nmight be built. This was the rocky peninsula of Piraeus, which was\nabout four miles from Athens.\n\nBy his advice three harbours were made here, into which the largest\nvessels could enter. Yet the opening to all three was such that it\ncould be closed easily with chains and logs, so as to prevent the\nentrance of an enemy. The Piraeus soon grew into a large town, for\nthose who did not own land flocked to the port in the hope of finding\nwork.\n\nNot only did Themistocles persuade the Athenians to fortify the\nPiraeus, but he also made Athens a great sea-power.\n\nAt this time there was money to spare in the public treasury, for a\nrich bed of silver had been discovered in an old mine. This money was\nto be divided among the Athenians. Themistocles was brave enough to\nrisk the anger of the people by proposing that it should not be given\nto them, but should be used to build ships.\n\nThe Athenians were eager to conquer the people of \u00c6gina who for years\nhad harried their coasts, and they agreed to his proposal more readily\nthan Themistocles had dared to hope. With the money the State built\ntwo hundred ships, so the people were able to conquer their enemy and\nwere well content. But it was Themistocles alone who wished to prepare\nGreece for a great Persian invasion. Of this the Athenians had no fear.\n\nWhen the ships were ready, Themistocles saw that the soldiers must be\ntrained to manage the vessels, to become indeed good sailors.\n\nA wise Greek named Plato tells us that Themistocles \u2018from steady\nsoldiers turned the Greeks into mariners and seamen, tossed about the\nsea, and gave occasion for the reproach against him, that he took away\nfrom the Athenians the spear and the shield, and bound them to the\nbench and the oar.\u2019\n\nAristides and Themistocles were rivals. They were brought up together,\nand when they were boys they usually took different sides, just as they\ncontinued to do when they were men.\n\nIf you could have watched the boys in school or in the playground you\nwould have seen at once how different they were. Themistocles was\nimpetuous and bold, artful too, if by being so he could gain his own\nends. Aristides was gentle and retiring, honest as the day, in work as\nin play.\n\nThemistocles was not fond of lessons nor yet of games. But he knew a\ngreat deal even as a boy of what was going on in the city and in the\nState, and he was eager to know more.\n\nWhile Aristides and his comrades were laughing and shouting over their\ngame of quoits, Themistocles was walking up and down alone in a quiet\ncorner of the playground. He was rehearsing a speech, which he would\nsoon begin to recite aloud.\n\nSometimes, in more friendly mood, he called his playfellows together\nand delivered his speech to the crowd of little critics. It was usually\nabout the affairs of State--about politics, as we would say.\n\nHis schoolmaster saw that although the lad did not love lessons, he\ncould be an earnest student if he were interested in a subject. One day\nhe said to him, \u2018You, my boy, will be nothing small, but great, one way\nor other, for good or else for bad.\u2019\n\nFrom his boyhood Themistocles was ambitious, and when he grew up he\naccepted bribes, if by doing so he thought he could reach a higher\nposition in the State.\n\nWhen he became a judge he showed favour to his friends, even though to\ndo so was unjust. One of them once said to him that he would be a good\njudge, if he would give sentence \u2018without respect of persons.\u2019 But in\nno way abashed, Themistocles answered, \u2018May I never sit upon the seat\nof judgment where my friends shall not receive more favour from me than\nstrangers.\u2019\n\nAristides was in this, as in other things, the opposite of his rival,\nfor he was an honourable and upright judge. He was ever ready to\nplease or to help a friend, but to do so he would stoop to no act of\ninjustice. Once he accused one of his enemies of a crime, and the\npeople, with whom Aristides was at that time a favourite, wished to\ncondemn the man without listening to his defence. But this Aristides\nwould not allow.\n\nWhen he himself was judge, two people came before him, one of whom was\nan enemy of his own. The other, knowing this, felt sure that he would\nwin his suit, and instead of telling of what he accused the man, he\nbegan to remind Aristides that it was an enemy of his own who stood\nbefore him. But Aristides bade him be silent. \u2018Tell me not,\u2019 he said,\n\u2018what injury he has done to me, but what harm you have suffered from\nhim, for I am trying your cause and not my own.\u2019\n\nThemistocles not only took bribes, but he often tried to make others\naccept them. Many of the Greeks did so, for they could not easily\nresist gold, but Aristides was never one of those who took money from\nThemistocles, or indeed from any one.\n\nWhen Themistocles urged the Athenians to increase their fleet,\nAristides opposed him with all his strength. And he did this, not\nbecause he disliked his rival, but because he believed that it would\nbe better for the State to increase her army rather than to have a\npowerful navy.\n\nAbout this, as about other important affairs, the two great men\ndisagreed so often and so long, that the people thought the city would\nbe governed better if one of the leaders was ostracised.\n\nSo they assembled in the market-place, where each was given an\noyster-shell on which to write the name of the man he wished to be\nbanished from Athens.\n\nAs the citizens were busy writing on their shells, a rough country\nfellow who could not write came up to Aristides and, handing him his\nshell, asked him to put down the name of Aristides. The countryman did\nnot know that he was speaking to Aristides himself.\n\n\u2018Has Aristides done you an injury?\u2019 asked the Athenian, as he took the\nshell.\n\n\u2018None at all,\u2019 answered the fellow, \u2018neither know I the man, but I am\ntired of everywhere hearing him called the Just.\u2019 Aristides did not\nanswer the ignorant countryman, but he quietly wrote his own name upon\nthe shell and handed it back to its owner.\n\nThe necessary number of votes being recorded against him he was\nostracised. As he left the city he lifted up his hands to heaven and\nprayed that the Athenians \u2018might never have any occasion which should\nconstrain them to remember Aristides.\u2019 And this he did although it was\na bitter thing to him to leave the city that he loved so well. In his\nabsence he knew that Themistocles would be able to carry out his plans\nunopposed, and this added to his pain.\n\nBut Themistocles was wiser than Aristides when he urged the Athenians\nto increase their fleet. For although the great king Darius was dead,\nXerxes his son was preparing to invade Greece as his father had hoped\nto do. And without a large and well-equipped fleet, the Athenians would\nhave been unable to meet the Persians at sea.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLIV\n\nTHE DREAM OF XERXES\n\n\nXerxes, the new ruler of Persia, looked every inch a king. He was tall\nand handsome, standing head and shoulders above the great warriors he\nled to battle. But although he looked a king among men, in character he\nwas most unkingly, for he was both weak and foolish. It is true that he\nwas sometimes good-natured, but it was not wise for his people to trust\nhis temper, for he was often seized by sudden fits of rage, when he\nwould do deeds of terrible cruelty.\n\nIn 483 B.C. Xerxes put down a revolt in Egypt. Then his captain and\nkinsman, Mardonius, begged the king to go to Greece to avenge the\nPersian defeat at Marathon.\n\n\u2018O king,\u2019 said Mardonius, \u2018it is not seemly that the Athenians, who\nhave done much wrong to the Persians, should not suffer for their\ndoings.... And now, will any one dare to face thee, O king, with thy\ngreat army from Asia and all thy ships? Sure I am that the Greeks are\nnot so desperate. But if I am wrong and in their rash folly they come\nout to battle, they will find that of all men we are the bravest.\u2019\n\nTo tempt Xerxes yet farther to do as he wished, Mardonius told him\nhow fair a country Europe was, how rich in fruit and trees. \u2018Such a\ncountry,\u2019 said the subtle flatterer, \u2018should belong to none save to\nthee, O king.\u2019 Mardonius hoped that if Greece was made a province of\nPersia, he himself would become her ruler.\n\nBut while Mardonius urged one thing, Artabanus the king\u2019s uncle urged\nanother.\n\n\u2018Thou, O king,\u2019 said Artabanus, \u2018art going against men ... who are said\nto be most brave and strong both by sea and land. And it is right I\nshould say why we ought to fear them. Thou sayest that thou wilt make a\nbridge over the Hellespont and carry thine army through Europe against\nHellas: and so we may be beaten either by land or by sea or by both;\nfor the men are said to be strong, and it would seem that they are, if\nby themselves alone the Athenians destroyed the great host that landed\nat Marathon.\u2019\n\nNow Xerxes was, as I told you, a timid king. So as he listened now\nto one, now to another of his counsellors, he did not know what to\ndo. First he thought that he would go to Greece, then he thought that\nhe would not go. One night, while he still hesitated, the king had\na strange dream. In his dream a man fair and tall stood over him,\nwho said, \u2018Dost thou repent, O Persian, from leading an army against\nHellas, when thou hast charged thy people to gather their hosts\ntogether? Thou doest not well in thy change of counsel, neither is\nthere any one who will forgive thee. Go thou on the road in which thou\ndidst purpose to walk on the day that is past.\u2019\n\nWhen Xerxes awoke he tried to thrust away the memory of his dream, for\nhe now wished to follow the advice of Artabanus and stay at home.\n\nBut the next night, as he slept, he saw the same fair, tall man, who\nchided him for putting aside his words \u2018as though they had never\nbeen spoken.\u2019 \u2018But be thou sure,\u2019 he said, \u2018that if thou set not out\nforthwith, as thou hast become great and mighty in a little while, so\nin a little while shalt thou be made low.\u2019\n\nThe king awoke from this second dream in sudden fear, and springing\nfrom his bed, he bade his servants bring Artabanus to him without delay.\n\nWhen his uncle stood before him, Xerxes told his vision in feverish\nhaste.\n\n\u2018Now if it be a god who sends it,\u2019 said the king, \u2018and if it must be\nthat an army go against Hellas, then the same vision will come to thee.\u2019\n\nThe foolish king then begged Artabanus to put on his clothes, to sit\nupon his throne, and afterwards to lie down upon his bed.\n\nAt first Artabanus refused to do as the king wished. For he said, \u2018If\nthe vision must come, it ought to come to me no more if I put on thy\ndress than if I wear my own, and if I rest on thy couch than if I sleep\non my own. For that which comes to thee in thy sleep, whatever it be,\nis surely not so silly as to think on seeing me that it looks upon\nthee, judging by thy vesture.\u2019\n\nBut at length Artabanus was persuaded to do as the king wished, and lo!\nwhen he had lain down on the royal couch, \u2018the dream of Xerxes came\nand stood over him, saying, \u201cNeither now nor hereafter shalt thou go\nunscathed, if thou seekest to turn aside that which must be.\u201d\u2019 Then the\ndream appeared as though it were about to sear out his eyes with hot\nirons.\n\nArtabanus awoke in great fear, and leaping from the couch he told\nXerxes what he had seen and heard. From that night Artabanus was as\nready as Mardonius to urge the king to invade Greece.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLV\n\nXERXES ORDERS THE HELLESPONT TO BE SCOURGED\n\n\nIn the autumn of 481 B.C. Xerxes led his vast hosts to Sardis. His\nwarriors were of many different races, and each was clad in the dress\nof the country from which he came. Each, too, was armed with his\nown weapon, and each talked his own language. So you can picture to\nyourself with what a strange army Xerxes set out to conquer Greece.\n\nFrom Sardis he sent heralds, with an interpreter, into Greece, to\ndemand from the people earth and water, the signs of their subjection\nto the great king of Persia.\n\nThemistocles was so angry with the interpreter, who was a barbarian,\nfor daring to utter the demands of Xerxes in the Greek language, that\nhe ordered him to be put to death.\n\nAnother messenger was then sent by Xerxes, and he brought with him gold\nto bribe the Athenians to join the Persians. Him also Themistocles\npunished.\n\nNow that danger was near, the Athenians recalled Aristides from exile.\nThey were afraid lest he should join the Persians, for they knew that\nif he did so, many of his friends would go over to the enemy with him.\nBut it was a needless fear, and the citizens might well have trusted\nthe exile not to betray his country. Even before he knew that his\nbanishment was over, Aristides had begun to stir up the Greeks that\nwere with him to fight against the Persians.\n\nThemistocles, too, was using all his influence to persuade the\ndifferent States to lay aside the quarrels they had with one another\nand to fight together against the force that was coming to invade their\nland.\n\nMeanwhile Xerxes, to avoid sailing across the Hellespont with his vast\narmy, ordered a bridge to be built across it. But soon after the bridge\nwas finished, a violent storm dashed it into fragments.\n\nWhen Xerxes heard of the disaster, his cruel and childish temper\nwas roused. He ordered the engineers who had planned the bridge to\nbe beheaded, and that was a cruel act. He also commanded that the\nHellespont should be scourged with three hundred stripes and that a\npair of fetters should be cast into the sea, and these were foolish\nacts. \u2018He sent branders, too, as some say, to brand the Hellespont; and\nhe charged them to rebuke the water and cry unto it, \u201cO bitter water,\nthus doth the king punish thee, because without wrong from him thou\nhast done him harm.\u201d\u2019\n\nBefore long a new bridge was built, with hedges planted on either side,\nso that the horses as they passed across might not be frightened by\nseeing the water.\n\nFirst of the great host came a thousand gallant Persian troops,\nfollowed by a thousand spearmen. The points of their lances were\nturned downward; on the handles, which were held aloft, shone golden\npomegranates.\n\nTen sacred horses, with splendid trappings, stepped behind the\nspearmen, while after the horses came a chariot, dedicated to Zeus, and\ndrawn by eight white horses. No driver was allowed to mount the sacred\nchariot, he might only walk behind, holding the reins in his hands.\n\nXerxes himself was in another chariot, surrounded by a thousand guards,\nbearing spears, upon which glistened apples of gold. Ten thousand of\nthe king\u2019s own bodyguard were named the Immortals, for, if one of their\nnumber was slain or if one died, his place was at once filled, so that\nthe number of the Immortals might never become less.\n\nAs I told you, the Persian army was made up of many different tribes.\n\n\u2018\u00c6thiopians from beyond Egypt were there, clad in leopard skins, and\ncarrying bows made of the central rib of the palm leaf, while their\narrows were reeds tipped with sharp fragments of stone. They carried as\nwell spears, pointed with gazelles\u2019 horns or knotted clubs. Half their\nbody they painted white and half red before going into battle.\u2019 Some\nhad no arms but only a lasso and a long knife; others bore staves that\nhad had their points hardened in the fire.\n\nFrom Caucasus came wild tribes that had no armour to protect their\nbodies, and only wooden hats to guard their heads.\n\nXerxes\u2019s army was indeed vast, but with so many half-clad and but\npoorly armed barbarians in his ranks, he would, had he been wise, have\nfeared to face the small but well-armed and well-trained forces of the\nGreeks.\n\nOn the shore of the Hellespont a throne of white stone or marble was\nplaced, and here Xerxes took his seat to watch his army cross the\nbridge which led from Asia into Europe.\n\nBut before the vast host began to move \u2018Xerxes poured wine from a\ngolden cup into the sea and prayed to the Sun that no harm might happen\nto him, which might prevent him from conquering all Europe. Then he\nthrew the cup into the Hellespont with a golden goblet and a Persian\ndagger.\u2019\n\nIt is said that the king called himself a happy man as he watched the\ncountless numbers of his troops crossing the bridge. But soon after\nArtabanus was amazed to see him burst into tears.\n\n\u2018O king,\u2019 he said, \u2018thou doest strange things; even now thou didst call\nthyself happy and yet thou weepest.\u2019\n\n\u2018Thought came upon me and sorrow for the shortness of the life of man,\u2019\nanswered Xerxes, \u2018because after a hundred years, of all this great host\nnot one shall remain alive.\u2019\n\nWhen the army had crossed the bridge, it marched on toward the plain of\nThessaly, while the fleet, sailing round the south-east point of the\nsame country, anchored near the promontory of Magnesia. Here it was as\nnear to the army as it was possible for it to be. Not long after the\nfleet had anchored, a sudden storm arose, and for three days did much\ndamage to the ships.\n\nThe Greeks meanwhile had been preparing to fight the invaders. They had\nsent spies to Sardis to find out, not only the numbers of the Persian\nhost, but its mettle.\n\nAs it chanced, the spies were captured and were on the point of being\nput to death, when Xerxes ordered them to be brought before him.\n\nWhen they stood in his presence, he demanded why they had ventured into\nthe camp of the enemy. On hearing the reason he bade an officer show\nthem the strength of his army and then send them back unharmed to their\nown country, \u2018For,\u2019 said the king, \u2018if the spies had been killed, the\nGreeks could not have heard beforehand of all my great might, yet it\nwould do them but little hurt to slay three men. But now will I have no\ntrouble by marching against them, when the spies have already told of\nmy mighty army.\u2019\n\nSo confident was the king that he would conquer the enemy without\ndifficulty, that when vessels filled with corn sailed past his fleet on\nthe way to Athens, he would not allow any of his ships to pursue them.\n\n\u2018Whither are they sailing?\u2019 asked Xerxes when the corn ships were\npointed out to him.\n\n\u2018To thy enemies, O king, laden with corn,\u2019 answered his anxious\ncouncillors.\n\n\u2018Why, we are going thither also,\u2019 said the king. \u2018What harm do they do\nby taking corn for me?\u2019\n\nNow that the Persians were actually at hand the Spartans and Athenians\nsummoned the Greek states to a council of war to be held at the\nIsthmus of Corinth. But some of the states were afraid, and instead of\nattending the council they sent earth and water to Xerxes.\n\nThessaly, in the north, would be the first to suffer from the invading\narmy. So a Greek force was sent to the Pass of Tempe, between Mount\nOlympus and Mount Ossa, to try to stop the advance of the Persians.\n\nBut there were other ways by which the enemy could slip past the\nGreeks, so after a time they determined to withdraw from Thessaly. The\nnorthern people, being thus left defenceless, hastened to submit to\nXerxes while there was still time.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLVI\n\n\u2018THE BRAVEST MEN OF ALL HELLAS\u2019\n\n\nThrough the Pass of Thermopylae lay the entrance from the north to the\nsouth of Greece. It was this pass that the Greeks determined to hold\nagainst the Persians when they withdrew from the Pass of Tempe.\n\nThe Pass of Thermopylae was about a mile long and the narrow road\nran between the mountains and the sea. At each end of the pass the\nmountains were sheer cliffs, descending so close to the sea that the\nonly pathway was a mere strip of sand.\n\nTo enter the pass, at either end, it was necessary to go through a\nnarrow entrance called Pylae or the Gates. In the road between the\nPylae or Gates there were hot springs. The Greek word for hot is\nthermos, and that is how the pass came to be named Thermopylae or\nHot-Gates.\n\nAt the narrowest part of the pass stood an old broken-down wall, and\nthis wall was repaired by the order of Leonidas, King of Sparta, that\nit might form a defence against the enemy.\n\nA short distance from the mainland lay the island of Euboea, the strait\nbetween being at one place only two and a half miles in breadth. Here\nthe Greek fleet took up its position under the command of the Spartan\nEurybiades, Themistocles being second in command. Themistocles would\nhave held the chief command had not some of the States refused to serve\nunder an Athenian admiral.\n\nThe land army was led by Leonidas, one of the kings of Sparta. But\nbecause this was now the month of June 480 B.C., the time when the\nOlympic games were held, many of the Spartans did not march with\nLeonidas to Thermopylae. For although the country was in danger, the\ngames, being also religious rites, must be held as usual, and numbers\nof brave soldiers stayed at home to take part in the festival.\n\nWhen Leonidas set out on his march to defend the entrance to the south\nof Greece, he had with him only three hundred Spartans. On the way to\nThermopylae he was joined by troops from other States, so that when he\nreached the pass he was at the head of seven thousand men.\n\nNow there was only one narrow hill track by which the enemy could reach\nthe rear of the Spartans, and strangers to the country were little\nlikely to find it. Yet Leonidas bade the Phocians, who lived in the\ndistrict, guard well this narrow footpath. He would leave nothing to\nchance.\n\nWhen Xerxes with his great army reached Thermopylae, he was told that\nit was in the hands of a small band of Spartans, under king Leonidas.\nThe tidings did not disturb the Persian monarch, he was sure that the\nSpartans would soon leave their post, when they saw his great army.\n\nBut the Spartans did not retreat, although they could see plainly the\nvast hordes that had come against them.\n\nBy and by Xerxes grew impatient and sent a horseman to reconnoitre.\nThe horseman could not see the Spartan camp, for it was hidden by the\nold wall that had been repaired, but he could see the men themselves\nwithout the wall. Their arms were piled up against it in stacks, as\nthough no enemy was near. Some of the soldiers were wrestling with each\nother, others were combing their hair, as if they were getting ready\nfor a festival rather than for a battle.\n\nThe Persian was astonished at what he saw. As the Spartans took no\nnotice of him, he stayed to count their number, and then rode quietly\nback to tell Xerxes all that he had seen.\n\nXerxes, too, was amazed. Why should soldiers trouble to comb their hair\nbefore fighting? Why should they wrestle with one another as though no\ndanger lay before them? He thought that they were doing \u2018childish and\nsilly things,\u2019 for he did not understand that this was the Spartans\u2019\nway of getting ready either to die or to slay their enemies.\n\nIn the Persian camp was an exiled King of Sparta, named Demaratus.\nXerxes sent for him to ask why his countrymen wasted their time,\nwrestling and combing their long curls.\n\n\u2018These men,\u2019 answered Demaratus, \u2018are here to fight for the pass; and\nwhen they have to face a mortal danger, their custom is to comb and\ndeck out their hair. Be sure then, that if thou canst conquer these\nand all the rest who remain behind in Sparta, there is no other nation\nwhich shall dare to raise a hand against thee, for now art thou face to\nface with the bravest men of all Hellas.\u2019\n\nBut Xerxes laughed at the thought of a small band of men like the\nSpartans daring to fight against his great army. He dismissed Demaratus\nand sent to demand that the Spartans should give up their arms. But the\nonly answer that Leonidas sent back was to bid the king \u2018to come and\ntake them.\u2019 It was plain that the Spartans did not fear the enemy. When\none of them was told that the Persian host was so numerous that \u2018the\nflight of their arrows would darken the light of the sun,\u2019 he answered\ncarelessly, \u2018So much the better, we shall fight in the shade.\u2019\n\nFor four days Xerxes waited, expecting the Spartans to flee, but on the\nfifth day they were still there, wrestling and combing their hair as\nbefore.\n\nThen the king sent a band of soldiers to the enemy\u2019s camp, bidding it\ntake these bold Spartans alive and bring them bound into his presence.\n\nBut the Persians could not push their way through the narrow gates\nwhich were guarded by the enemy. They were not only kept at bay, they\nwere thrust back again and again, and many of their number were slain\nby the long spears of the Spartans.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLVII\n\nTHE BATTLE OF THERMOPYLAE\n\n\nXerxes looked on while his soldiers fought at the entrance to the\npass. And they did their best, for they were unwilling that their king\nshould see them beaten back by men who had spent their days in games or\nin bedecking their hair. But they could not stand against the fierce\nattacks of the Spartans, and at length, when many of their number had\nbeen slain, they withdrew.\n\nThe king then ordered his own chosen bodyguard, the ten thousand famous\nImmortals, to advance against the gallant defenders of the pass.\n\nEven at the approach of these renowned warriors, the Spartans did not\nwaver. They pretended to flee, only to turn and slay the barbarians who\nhad followed them into the pass. At length after a furious conflict,\nthe Immortals were forced to give way and return to their camp.\n\nThree times as he watched his Immortals, Xerxes sprang from his throne,\nthinking that all was lost. But the next day he sent them against the\nfoe once more, for now he believed that the Spartans would be too weary\nto fight.\n\nBut Leonidas was careful of the little band he commanded. It was easy\nto hold the pass with only a small number of men. As each company grew\ntired, the king ordered it to withdraw and sent a fresh one to take its\nplace. Soon the entrance to the pass was choked with the dead bodies of\nthe barbarians.\n\nSome of the most valiant of Xerxes\u2019 warriors were next sent against the\nenemy. But they were cowed by the bravery of the Spartans, and as they\nsaw their comrades falling around them, they turned to flee. Then their\nofficers drove them back with lashes.\n\nFor two days, the terrible slaughter never ceased, and Xerxes was\nalmost ready to leave the pass to its brave defenders, so hopeless\nseemed the task of taking it.\n\nBut that night, a Greek named Ephialtes came to the great king, and for\na large sum of money, he offered to show the Persians a path which led\nover the hill down to the pass of Thermopylae. The path was the tiny\ntrack that was guarded by the Phocians.\n\nThe offer of the traitor was at once accepted, and at midnight Xerxes\nsent his officer Hydarmes, at the head of his Immortals, to follow\nEphialtes.\n\n\u2018All night long they followed the path with the mountains on the right\nand on the left. The day was dawning when they reached the peak of\nthe mountain, and there the thousand Phocians were keeping watch and\nguarding the pathway. While the Persians were climbing the hill, the\nPhocians knew not of their coming, for the whole hill was covered with\noak trees, but they knew what had happened when the Persians reached\nthe summit. Not a breath of wind was stirring, and they heard the\ntrampling of their feet as they trod on the fallen oak leaves.\u2019\n\nNo sooner had they heard than the arrows of the Immortals were pouring\nin upon them. They fell back, leaving the pathway free, while they\nhastily put on their armour and prepared to fight to the death. They\ndid not dream that the Immortals had no wish to fight with them. But\nso it was, for the Persians took no more notice of them, but finding\nthe hill path free, they sped downward to the pass to take the Spartans\nin the rear. The Phocians were left alone on the heights almost before\nthey were aware.\n\nLeonidas had heard of the treachery of Ephialtes soon after the traitor\nleft the Persian king. He knew that to try to hold the pass now that he\nwould be attacked in the rear was certain death. Yet the brave king\ndid not hesitate, for his orders had been to hold the pass at all costs.\n\nNor did he waver as he remembered the ominous words of the oracle,\n\u2018Sparta must be overthrown or one of her kings must perish.\u2019 It seemed\nthat he was the king who was doomed to die, but what of that if his\ncountry was saved?\n\nHe resolved that to Sparta alone should belong the glory of the defence\nof Thermopylae. So while there was still time, he sent away all his\nallies, keeping with him only his three hundred Spartans, seven hundred\nThespians who refused to leave him, and four hundred Boeotians, lest\nthey should join the enemy.\n\nThen \u2018when the sun arose, Xerxes poured out wine to the gods and the\nbarbarians arose for the onset, and the men of Leonidas knew now that\nthey must die.\u2019 But they would die fighting, and before they were\nattacked in the rear they would do great deeds.\n\nFierce and desperate was their defence, and before the fury of their\nblows the barbarians fell in heaps. Once again, the Persian officers,\narmed with whips, had to drive their men forward to face the small but\nundaunted band.\n\nIn the confusion many of the great host of Xerxes were pushed into the\nsea, while many more were trampled to death by their comrades.\n\nSo furious was the struggle, that at length the spears of the Spartans\nwere broken in their hands. In a moment, they had seized their swords\nand hundreds of the Persians fell before their terrible thrusts.\n\nBut now the worst that could befall the Spartans happened. Leonidas,\ntheir brave king Leonidas, was slain where he fought in the forefront\nof the battle. A terrible struggle at once began for the body of the\nking.\n\nFour times the Spartans drove back the Persians, and then with one\ntremendous effort they carried away the body of their king.\n\nIt was at this moment that the Immortals, led by the traitor,\nEphialtes, reached the pass. The Spartans hastily withdrew behind the\nwall, which had been repaired by the order of their king. Here, on a\nhillock, \u2018they defended themselves to the last, such as had swords\nusing them, and the others resisting with their hands and teeth; till\nthe barbarians, who had in part pulled down the wall and attacked\nthem in front, in part had gone round and now encircled them upon\nevery side, overwhelmed and buried the remnant which was left, beneath\nshowers of missile weapons.\u2019\n\nAs you read the story of the brave defence of Thermopylae, you do\nnot wonder that Leonidas and his three hundred Spartans have won for\nthemselves immortal fame.\n\nOn the hillock where the little band took their last stand, a stone\nlion was placed in honour of king Leonidas, while in the pass itself a\npillar was erected on which were written these words:--\n\n \u2018Go, tell the Spartans, thou that passest by,\n That here obedient to their laws we lie.\u2019\n\nWhen the battle was over, Xerxes ordered his men to search for the body\nof Leonidas. When it was found he ordered the head to be cut off and\nthe body to be hung upon a cross.\n\nIt was the custom of the Persians to honour the bodies of those who had\nfallen fighting bravely against them. This unusual and cruel treatment\nwas but a proof of the fear the brave Spartan had inspired in the heart\nof Xerxes. Nor could the king forget that he had been on the point of\nleaving the pass in the hands of its brave defenders.\n\nDemaratus could not look at the slaughter of his countrymen unmoved. He\nhad seemed to be a friend of the great king, yet now he longed to warn\nthe Spartans who had stayed at home that the Persians were ready to\nmarch against them.\n\nBut how could he send a message unknown to the Persians. He soon\nthought of a strange and less cruel way than had Histiaeus, who, you\nremember, branded his secret on the head of his slave.\n\nThe exiled king took a writing tablet and scraped away the wax on which\nletters were usually engraved. On the wood beneath he scratched the\nmessage he wished to send. He then poured melted wax on the top of what\nhe had written, and the tablet looked as any other tablet looked.\n\nWhen it reached Sparta, the peopled studied it with amazement. There\nwas a tablet, but where was the message? They turned it this way and\nthat, they peered at it now on one side, now on another--nothing was to\nbe seen.\n\nThen Gorgo, whom you heard of last as a little maiden of eight years\nold, gave the people advice as wise as she had given to her royal\nfather long before. She was grown up since those days and had been\nmarried to brave king Leonidas.\n\n\u2018Scrape off the wax,\u2019 she said to the people, \u2018and see if the message\nlies on the wood beneath.\u2019\n\nAnd when this was done, there stood the warning words of Demaratus, so\nthat all might read.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLVIII\n\nTHE BATTLE OF ARTEMISIUM\n\n\nWhile Leonidas was fighting so bravely on land, Themistocles was with\nthe fleet at Artemisium. If the Persians passed this point and entered\nthe Malian Gulf, they would be able to land troops behind Leonidas and\nsecure the pass of Thermopylae without difficulty.\n\nBut before the Persian fleet reached Artemisium, a sudden storm arose\nand dashed some of the ships upon the rocks, some against each other.\nFor three days the tempest raged, and when at length the sea grew calm,\nfour hundred ships had been destroyed.\n\nIn spite of this disaster, the Persian fleet was still large enough to\nalarm the Greeks. When they saw it sailing off the north of the island\nof Euboea, Eurybiades, the Greek admiral, wished to sail away.\n\nBut the inhabitants of the island went to Themistocles to beg him not\nto let the fleet desert them. So fearful were they, that they offered\nhim thirty talents (about \u00a35800) if he would use his influence to\npersuade the other admirals to stay and protect their island.\n\nThemistocles readily took the money, and sent eight talents (about\n\u00a31552) to Eurybiades and his colleagues to bribe them to remain at\nEuboea.\n\nThe next night another storm arose, and again many of the Persian ships\nwere scattered or dashed to pieces on the rocks. But when the wind fell\nthe ships were repaired and the two fleets met in battle.\n\nThe struggle was fierce and long, but though the Persians lost a\ngreater number of ships than did the Greeks, yet the fleet under\nEurybiades was so heavily damaged that even Themistocles saw that\nsafety lay in retreat. At the same time tidings reached him of the\ndefeat of Thermopylae, and he knew that Xerxes would soon be marching\nto the south. The fleet must hasten home to protect her own coasts.\n\nSo the Greek fleet set sail down the long Euboean strait and did not\nstop until it reached the island of Salamis. But as they sailed,\nThemistocles bade the captains of the Athenian fleets send some of\ntheir ships to the rocks where the Persians would search for water.\n\nOn these rocks Themistocles ordered to be cut in large letters these\nwords, \u2018Ye do wrong, O Ionians, by going against your fathers and\nbringing Hellas into slavery. If ye can, take our side; if ye cannot,\nthen fight for neither. But if this also is impossible, at least in the\nbattle be slack and lazy, remembering that ye are sprung from us and\nthat we are fighting in a quarrel which ye began.\u2019\n\nBy these words Themistocles hoped to win the Ionians to his side; or,\nif that might not be, he hoped at least to make Xerxes so suspicious of\nthem that he would be afraid to let them take part in the battles which\nhad yet to be fought.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XLIX\n\nTHEMISTOCLES URGES EURYBIADES TO STAY AT SALAMIS\n\n\nAfter Xerxes had secured the pass of Thermopylae, a march of six days\nwould bring him to Athens. There was no army in his way, for the\nSpartans and other tribes in Peloponnesus were now fortifying the\nIsthmus of Corinth, so as to protect their cities from the foe.\n\nIf the Athenians wished to save themselves they would have to desert\ntheir city and seek refuge elsewhere, for it was impossible to hold\nAthens against the great army that was marching towards her. Yet\neven to save their lives how hard it was to leave their homes, their\ntemples, their gods!\n\nThe oracle at Delphi was consulted, and told them that \u2018when all was\nlost a wooden wall should still shelter the Athenians.\u2019 Some there were\nwho believed that the oracle meant that if the Acropolis were fortified\nwith timber it would not be taken by the Persians, and these shut\nthemselves up in the citadel and refused to leave the city.\n\nBut Themistocles knew that the only way to save the people was to get\nthem away from Athens, and he used all his eloquence to make them\nwilling to go. When it seemed that he had failed, he tried another\nway--he began to work upon their superstitious fears. He told them that\nAthene, their own goddess, had already deserted the city, and taking\nwith her her pet snake had gone to the sea. He assured them that the\n\u2018walls of wood,\u2019 of which the oracle had spoken, were the good ships\nthat were at Salamis, waiting to defeat the Persians and put their\nfleet to flight.\n\nAt length his words prevailed, and the old men, women, and children\nwere sent to the island of Salamis, while the fighting men joined the\nfleet.\n\nIn the confusion, many faithful animals were forgotten. These ran along\nthe shore, while the ships carrying the fugitives sailed away. One\nfaithful dog leaped into the water and followed his master\u2019s ship until\nit reached Salamis. But when he had dragged himself out of the water\nthe poor creature was so exhausted that he lay down on the shore and\ndied.\n\nMeanwhile Xerxes was marching toward Athens. On the way he ordered\na large company to break off to the west to seize Delphi and the\nsanctuary of the oracle, in which, as the king knew, vast treasures\nwere kept. No Greek would have dared to rob the sacred temple.\n\nWhen the Delphians heard that the Persians were approaching, they fled\nto Parnassus, leaving only sixty men and the priest to defend the\nsanctuary. They did not think that the treasures would be stolen, for\nthe gods would protect their own.\n\nAnd as soon as the barbarians were close to the city, strange things\nare said to have taken place. The sacred arms, which none might touch,\nwere mysteriously carried out and placed in front of the temple. The\nsky was ablaze with brilliant flashes of lightning, while two great\ncrags were wrenched from the heights of Mount Parnassus and fell with a\nloud crash upon the enemy. At the same time, from the temple of Athene\na shout as of a mighty warrior was heard.\n\nThe barbarians were stricken with terror at these strange sights and\nsounds, and they fled, pursued, so they declared, by two Greeks, each\ntaller and more fearful than any mortal they had ever seen.\n\nXerxes had now reached Athens, to find the city deserted, save for the\nfew who had taken refuge in the citadel. These defended themselves\nbravely, and as it was difficult to scale the height on which the\nAcropolis stood, they were able for a time to keep the enemy at bay.\n\nBut at length the wooden defences, in which the people had put their\ntrust, were set on fire by the burning brands of the enemy. At the\nsame time a band of Persian soldiers discovered a secret path on the\nnorth side of the citadel. Although it was steep, they at once began to\nclimb, and before long they reached the summit and entered the citadel.\nThe defenders were slain; the temples were plundered and burned.\n\nAs the Greek fleet lay in the narrow strait between Salamis and the\nAttic coast, the Athenians saw smoke and flames rising from the burning\ncity. They were filled with grief as they gazed upon the destruction of\ntheir homes and their temples, while their wrath burned hot against the\ndestroyers.\n\nThemistocles and the Athenians wished to stay where they were to await\nthe enemy. But the other admirals were anxious to sail to the Isthmus\nof Corinth, where they would be within reach of the Peloponnesian army.\n\nA council of war was called, at which Themistocles urged that they\nshould stay where they were to fight and to conquer the Persian fleet.\nHe reminded the other admirals that in the narrow strait of Salamis\nthe big and heavy ships of the Persians would have no room to move and\nwould be captured without great difficulty. But no one agreed with the\nAthenian general, and the council broke up, after having agreed that\nthe fleet should sail to the Isthmus of Corinth on the following day.\n\nThemistocles was so sure that it was a mistake to move, that he went\nalone to Eurybiades and earnestly begged him not to withdraw. His\ngravity impressed the commander, and he promised to recall the council\nto discuss the matter once more.\n\nNo sooner had the admirals again assembled than Themistocles rose,\nwithout waiting until the council was opened in the usual way, and\nagain explained the urgent reasons why the fleet should stay to fight\nat Salamis.\n\nThe Corinthian admiral was angry already because the council had\nbeen reopened; he was angrier still as he listened to the words of\nThemistocles.\n\nAt length he could keep silent no longer, and he interrupted the\norator, saying in a harsh voice, \u2018Themistocles, at the games they who\nstart too soon are scourged.\u2019\n\n\u2018True,\u2019 answered the Athenian, \u2018but they who loiter are not crowned.\u2019\n\nEven Eurybiades lost his temper as Themistocles urged his wish more and\nmore vehemently, and at length he raised his staff as though he would\nstrike the persistent orator.\n\nThemistocles looked calmly at the admiral and said \u2018Strike if you will,\nbut at least hear me.\u2019 His self-control pleased the Spartan commander.\nHe let his arms drop to his side and listened until Themistocles had\nended his speech.\n\nBut although Eurybiades said nothing, an officer began to taunt\nThemistocles, saying that he was the last man who should urge them to\nstay at Salamis, for he had now no city to defend, as Athens was in the\nhands of the barbarians.\n\n\u2018A base fellow art thou to use such a taunt,\u2019 answered Themistocles.\n\u2018True it is that we have left our houses and our walls, for we will\nnot endure to be made slaves for such things. But in these two hundred\nships here ready to defend you all, we still possess the fairest city\nin Greece.\u2019\n\nThen turning to Eurybiades he said, \u2018By remaining here, thou wilt show\nthyself a brave man. By going away, thou wilt destroy all Hellas, for\nwith the war on land the Athenians have nothing more to do. If thou\nwilt not stay, we will sail away with our two hundred ships and build a\ncity in the west, where the Persians will not trouble us.\u2019\n\nThen Eurybiades grew afraid, for he knew that without the help of the\nAthenians the Greeks need not hope to conquer the enemy, so he agreed\nto stay to fight at Salamis.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER L\n\nTHEMISTOCLES TRICKS THE ADMIRALS\n\n\nEurybiades had determined that the fleet should stay at Salamis. But\nthe other admirals were dissatisfied. When great numbers of the Persian\nships were sighted, and when at the same times Xerxes was seen marching\nwith his vast land forces toward the shore, they were more than\ndissatisfied, they were afraid.\n\nSo they called a secret council at which they resolved to retreat to\nCorinth, as they had wished to do from the first. To settle the matter\nthey bade the pilots get ready to sail.\n\nThemistocles soon heard what had been done, but he was determined to\nthwart the plans of his adversaries. He would force them to fight in\nthe narrow strait of Salamis.\n\nSo he sent a message to the King of Persia, and pretending to be his\nfriend, he warned him that the Greek fleet had determined to escape.\n\u2018If you wish to win a great victory, O king,\u2019 ran the message, \u2018seize\neach end of the strait before the Greek fleet sails away.\u2019\n\nXerxes was overjoyed when he heard that the Greeks wished to escape,\nfor it seemed to him that they must be cowards whom it would be easy to\nbeat.\n\nSo while Themistocles called together a last council of war and did all\nthat he could to delay the fleet, Xerxes was busy securing the strait\nas Themistocles had bidden him do.\n\nThe pilots were on board the Greek ships, impatient to sail, the\nadmirals were listening to Themistocles with but scant courtesy, when\nthe messenger the Athenian was so anxiously awaiting arrived.\n\nThemistocles hastened from the council to find that it was Aristides,\nhis old rival, who had brought the tidings, that the Greek fleet was\nshut in by the Persian ships. Flight was no longer possible.\n\nThen Themistocles told Aristides the trick he had played on the Persian\nking, and how he had at the same time duped the other admirals.\n\nWhether Aristides approved or disapproved of what his old rival had\ndone, he believed that it was well that the battle should be fought\nin the straits, and he determined to support Themistocles. He himself\nhastened to the council, to tell the admirals that they were surrounded\nby the enemy.\n\nAt first the admirals refused to believe such evil news. They did\nnot guess the truth, but they came so near to it that they said\nThemistocles had probably started the rumour, so as to delay their\nflight.\n\nWhile they still talked, some sailors who had deserted from the\nPersians brought the same tale. The Greek admirals were at last\nconvinced that a battle was inevitable.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LI\n\nTHE BATTLE OF SALAMIS\n\n\nOn the morning of the battle, Xerxes ascended a golden throne which had\nbeen placed for him upon a rock that overlooked the sea. Around him sat\nscribes ready to record the events of the battle. That they would all\nbe to the honour of his fleet Xerxes never doubted.\n\nThemistocles saw with pleasure that the wind was rising, making it\ndifficult for the Persians to manage their unwieldy vessels. As he\nwatched their efforts he urged the Greeks to attack them at once.\n\nThe narrowness of the strait, as well as the force of the wind, added\nto the confusion of the enemy and made the number of its ships of\nlittle use. Yet the Persians fought bravely, remembering that the eyes\nof the great king were upon them.\n\nOne of the ships was commanded by a queen named Artemisia. She was\nfighting fiercely when her ship was attacked by an Athenian vessel at\nclose quarters.\n\nArtemisia tried to escape, but as her ship sailed away it was followed\nby the enemy. Straight in her path lay one of Xerxes\u2019 vessels. The\nqueen did not try to avoid it, but pursuing her course struck the ship,\nso that her own countrymen who were on board were sent to the bottom.\n\nWhen the Athenian captain saw what the queen had done, he thought, as\nperhaps she meant him to do, that she had deserted her own side and\nwas now fighting for the Greeks, so he turned back and followed her no\nmore.\n\nFrom his golden throne, Xerxes too saw what Artemisia had done, and he\nsupposed it was a Greek vessel that she had run down. In his delight\nhe exclaimed, \u2018My men are become women, my women men.\u2019 This was a hard\nthing to say of his soldiers who were fighting gallantly for their king.\n\nMeantime the Persian ships were driven into the narrow strait. Ship\ndashed against ship till the Persian dead strewed the deep \u2018like\nflowers.\u2019 When evening fell, two hundred Persian ships had been\ndestroyed and the Greeks had won the great sea-battle of Salamis. The\nglory of the victory was due to Themistocles. There might indeed have\nbeen no battle at Salamis had he not tricked both the Persian king and\nthe Greek admirals.\n\nThe Athenian was proud of his success, and he now determined by another\ncrafty message to Xerxes to drive him out of Greece.\n\nBut first he sent for Aristides, and to test his wisdom he told him\nthat he thought they should sail to the Hellespont to destroy the\nbridge by which Xerxes had crossed into Europe and by which he could\nreturn to Asia.\n\n\u2018Rather than break down the bridge,\u2019 answered Aristides, \u2018we should\nbuild another, if by so doing we may hasten his departure.\u2019\n\nNow this was what Themistocles himself really wished--to hasten the\nking\u2019s retreat. So although he did not mean to destroy the bridge,\nhe sent once again to Xerxes, and this is what he said: \u2018O king, the\nGreeks are hastening to the Hellespont to destroy the bridge by which\nalone thou canst return to Asia. Hasten then to reach the bridge, while\nI delay the Greek fleet, lest evil overtake thee.\u2019\n\nOnce more the king fell into the trap Themistocles had prepared for\nhim. For he set out in haste with the main body of his army for the\nHellespont, leaving Mardonius with a large force to carry on the war as\nwell as he could.\n\n[Illustration: Ship dashed against ship, till the Persian dead strewed\nthe deep \u2018like flowers\u2019]\n\nThe march to the Hellespont was a terrible one, for Xerxes had himself\nlaid waste the land when he advanced upon Athens, and now there was\nneither food nor shelter for his army. The soldiers who were starving\nate plants, grass, the bark of trees--anything to satisfy their hunger.\n\nIn their weakness they were attacked by plague, and hundreds perished\nlong before the Hellespont was in sight. Even when at length the gleam\nof water gladdened the hearts of the soldiers, they were soon stricken\nagain with fear, for where was the bridge?\n\nThe Greeks had not outstripped them, so this was not their doing. A\nstorm had destroyed the bridge. Weak and hungry as they were, the\nsoldiers had to rebuild it before they could cross over to Asia, where\nfood and shelter awaited them.\n\nWhen the Greeks saw that the Persians were marching to the Hellespont,\nthey were eager to follow them. But Themistocles persuaded them to go\nback to Athens to rebuild the city.\n\nThen he sent yet another message to Xerxes, saying, \u2018Themistocles, the\nleader of the Athenians and the best and wisest of the Greeks, has out\nof goodwill to thee held back the allies from chasing thy ships and\nbreaking up the bridge at the Hellespont. So go thy way in peace.\u2019\n\nAlthough Themistocles sent these proud words to the great king,\nhe really believed it was wiser for the Greeks not to pursue the\nretreating army. But he also wished to make Xerxes his friend, so that\nif at any time he was ostracised by the Athenians, he would find a\nwelcome at the Persian court.\n\nGreece was full of rejoicing when she heard of the victory of Salamis.\nThe generals of the different states met at Corinth to propose a reward\nfor the bravest and wisest among themselves.\n\nEach general wrote on a tablet the names of two whom he believed to be\nworthy of a prize. They were not very modest, these brave soldiers of\nGreece, for each general wrote his own name first, though nearly all\nadded beneath, the name of Themistocles.\n\nThe Spartans gave their meed of honour to the great Athenian, for a\ncrown of olive was placed upon his head and he was presented with the\nmost magnificent chariot that Sparta had ever produced.\n\n\u00c6schylus, one of the great Greek poets, wrote a tragedy on the fall\nof Xerxes, called _The Persians_, which was acted in 472 B.C., eight\nyears after the battle of Salamis. Sculptors too wrought statues to\ncommemorate the war, which were placed in the temple of Athene.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LII\n\nTHE BATTLE OF PLATAEA\n\n\nMardonius stayed with his troops in Thessaly during the winter months.\nBut in the spring of 479 B.C. he determined to win Athens from the\nleague which she had formed with the other Greek states, or if he\nfailed to do this, to drive the citizens once again away from their\ncity and occupy it himself.\n\nSo he sent an ambassador to the Athenians to offer, in the name of\nXerxes, not only to repair all the harm that the Persians had done to\nAthens and to the country round about the city, but to give them new\nlands and to treat them as independent allies, if they would make a\ntreaty with the great king.\n\nThe Spartans were afraid that the Athenians would accept so generous\nan offer, and they knew that alone they could not hope to conquer the\nlarge Persian army which Mardonius commanded. So they sent to the\nAthenians to beg them to be true to the league, promising that if\nthey were so, Spartan soldiers would be sent to help them against the\nattacks of the enemy.\n\nBut the Athenians did not need to be entreated to refuse the offer of\nthe great king, for they loved their city and their liberty.\n\n\u2018Tell Mardonius,\u2019 they said to the ambassador whom the Persian general\nhad sent, \u2018so long as the sun moves in his present course we will never\ncome to terms with Xerxes.\u2019\n\nAfter receiving this defiant message, Mardonius marched with his army\nagainst Athens. The Spartans, in spite of their promises, sent no\ntroops to defend the city, and the Athenians were forced once again to\ntake refuge at Salamis.\n\nThen they reproached the Spartans, and in bitter anger they declared\nthat if an army was not sent at once to Attica to attack Mardonius,\nthey would be forced to make an alliance with the enemy.\n\nAgain the Spartans grew alarmed for their own safety. Without further\ndelay they sent a force of five thousand citizens, each attended by\nseven helots. Other troops soon followed, and all were under the\ncommand of Pausanias, who was a relation of Leonidas, the hero of\nThermopylae.\n\nThe Persians had reached the province of Boeotia and were encamped on\nthe plain of Plataea, while the Athenians and the Spartans set up their\ncamp on a hill above the enemy.\n\nMasistius, the favourite and most famous officer of the Persians, led\nhis cavalry against the cavalry of the enemy and soon a fierce conflict\nwas raging. Only after their leader fell wounded from his horse and was\nslain, were the Persians repulsed. The armour of Masistius could not be\npierced by any weapon, but a spear which was thrust into his eye caused\nhis death. In vain the soldiers tried to recover the body of their\ngeneral, again and again they were driven back.\n\n\u2018Then there was a great mourning throughout the army of the Persians,\nfor all lamented for Masistius, shaving themselves and their horses,\nand their beasts of burden. And there was a great cry through all the\nhost, and the sound of it went through all Boeotia, as for the death of\none who next to Mardonius was of most note among the Persians and with\nthe king.\u2019\n\nAs for the Greeks, after having driven the Persian cavalry from the\nfield, they \u2018became much more bold and cheerful, and putting the dead\nbody of Masistius on a car, they drew it along their ranks; and so\nwonderful was it for its stature and its beauty, that the men left\ntheir places and came forward to look upon Masistius.\u2019\n\nPausanias now determined to lead his troops down to the plain. Here\nhe encamped, opposite the Persians, with only the little river Asopus\nbetween the two armies.\n\nThe oracles had foretold that the side which began the attack would be\nconquered; so day after day passed, neither army daring to move.\n\nBut although the Persians dared not attack the Greeks, they did them\nall the harm that they could, for they filled up the springs to which\nthe enemy went for water, and cut off several convoys with provisions.\n\nPausanias was in despair when the water supply was stopped, and he\ndetermined to withdraw and take up a position nearer to Plataea, where\nboth food and water would be secure.\n\nDiscipline had grown slack in the Greek camp, and the retreat, which\nbegan at night, was carried out in a disorderly manner.\n\nOne company set off in haste, but did not halt where Pausanias had\narranged that it should. The Spartans refused to move at all. One of\ntheir captains, \u2018lifting a piece of rock with both hands and flinging\nit at the feet of Pausanias, cried, \u201cThus do I cast my vote against\nthe counsel of flying from the strangers.\u201d\u2019 Only when the retreat was\nnearly ended did the Spartans tardily obey the order to withdraw. This\nwas how it happened that, when morning dawned, the Persians found that\nthe enemy had disappeared, all but the Spartans, whose captain had\ndelayed to follow the orders of Pausanias.\n\nWhen Mardonius caught sight of the loiterers he ordered his men to set\nout in pursuit of them, and before the Spartans could get into position\nthe Persians were upon them. But Pausanias soon learned what was taking\nplace in his rear, and he hastened back with the troops that were with\nhim to aid the disobedient Spartans.\n\nThe Persians had thrust their shields into the ground to form a rough\nbarrier between them and the Spartans, while they sent shower after\nshower of arrows upon the loiterers. The Spartans soon tore down the\nbreastwork of shields, and with their swords in their hands advanced\nupon the enemy.\n\nMardonius did all he could to encourage his men, but they had no armour\nto protect them from the blows of the Spartans, and they were forced\nback toward the river, throwing into confusion those of their own army\nwho were still advancing.\n\nIn the thick of the battle Mardonius rode on a white horse, surrounded\nby ten thousand chosen Persians. He was easily known by his white\ncharger, and many were the spears that were aimed at him by the angry\nSpartans. At length one smote him so that he fell dead to the ground.\n\u2018Thus,\u2019 says Herodotus, \u2018Mardonius paid the recompence for the murder\nof Leonidas.\u2019\n\nNo sooner was their leader slain than the Persians fled in utter\nconfusion, all but forty thousand who were led off the field by one\nof the generals, and these marching north reached the Hellespont and\ncrossed over to Asia in safety.\n\nThose who fled from the field took refuge in their camp, where the\nSpartans attacked them. But the barricades were strong, and the camp\nwas not taken until the Athenians had returned and joined in the\nassault.\n\nAs the Greeks swarmed into the camp they slaughtered the enemy without\nmercy. So severe was the defeat of Plataea that the Persians were\nutterly crushed.\n\nThe spoil in the camp was enormous. Gold and silver dishes were there\nin abundance, rich carpets too, and weapons inlaid with precious\nstones. Horses, camels, mules were captured in great numbers.\n\nIt is told that the great king had left his own magnificent war camp\nfor Mardonius to use.\n\nWhen Pausanias saw it \u2018all blazing with gold and silver and\nembroidered hangings, he commanded the cooks and bakers to make ready\nfor him a banquet, as they had been used to do for Mardonius.\n\nWhen all was ready, he saw couches and tables of gold and silver, all\nfairly spread and a banquet splendidly set forth; and then, marvelling\nat this magnificence and glory, he charged his own servants, by way of\nmockery, to prepare a Spartan feast.\n\nSo the meal was made ready, but it looked not much like the other,\nand Pausanias laughed, and sending for the generals of the Greeks,\npointed to the two banquets, saying, \u2018Men of Hellas, I have brought\nyou together that ye may see the madness of the Medes, who faring thus\nsumptuously came to rob us of our sorry food.\u2019\n\nWhile the battle of Plataea was being fought, the Greek fleet was lying\nat Delos, an island in the \u00c6gean Sea. The Persian fleet was near Samos,\nwhich is not far from the coast of Africa, while close at hand, at Cape\nMycale, the Persian land forces were encamped.\n\nThe Samians were afraid when they saw the Persian army, and begged\nthe Greeks to come to their aid. This they readily agreed to do, and\nsailing to Cape Mycale they landed and attacked and burned the Persian\ncamp. The victory would have been harder to win had not the Ionian\nGreeks who were with the Persians deserted and fought with those of\ntheir own race.\n\nBoth the victory of Plataea and that of Mycale were said to have been\ngained on the same day in August 479 B.C.\n\nBands of Persians had still to be driven from some of the islands of\nthe \u00c6gean and from some of the Greek cities in Asia. But the victory\nof Mycale freed the Ionians from the rule of the great king, ended the\nPersian war, and laid the foundations of the Athenian Empire.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LIII\n\nTHE DELIAN LEAGUE\n\n\nFor at least forty years Sparta was the chief city in Greece, and she\nwas the head of the league which bound the cities of Peloponnesus\ntogether. It was her brave king Leonidas who had fallen gloriously at\nThermopylae, it was her admirals who had been the chief commanders at\nSalamis and at Mycale. The decisive victory of Plataea had been won by\nthe Spartan Pausanias.\n\nBut after the Persian war was ended, the power of Sparta grew less and\nless, while that of Athens increased by leaps and bounds, until it was\nshe who held the first place among all the cities of Greece.\n\nOne reason for this was that Athens, owing to the foresight of\nThemistocles, owned a well-equipped navy and could therefore rule the\nislands of the \u00c6gean which had been wrested from the Persians.\n\nSparta had no navy, nor had she any great statesman to tell her that\nshe must become a great sea-power if she wished still to hold the\nchief place among the cities of Greece. Sparta was content to drill\nher soldiers as she had been taught to do by Lycurgus, and she looked\nwith contempt or with suspicion on what was new or unusual. It was\nonly after Athens had far surpassed her in glory and in empire that\nher ambition was at length aroused, and she determined to win fame for\nherself by destroying her rival. Of Sparta\u2019s efforts to conquer Greece\nyou will read when I tell you about the Peloponnesian wars.\n\nAfter the battle of Plataea, Sparta soon lost the command of the\nallied fleet, through the folly and treachery of Pausanias.\n\nThe admiral was sent to drive the Persians from some of the Greek\ncities in the east. His success at Plataea had made him haughty and\nproud, and he treated his officers with contempt. He flogged his\nmen for small offences or made them stand with an anchor on their\nshoulders. If food or water were scarce, he forbade them to help\nthemselves until his own Spartan troops had been fed.\n\nAristides and another admiral named Cimon, who treated their officers\nwith courtesy and their men with kindness, went to Pausanias to beg\nhim to behave more justly. But the Spartan would not listen to the\nremonstrances of the Athenians. \u2018I have no time to hear complaints,\u2019\nwas his sorry excuse.\n\nWhen Pausanias succeeded in taking Byzantium, which we now know as\nConstantinople, his pride and ambition increased, and he determined to\nplay into the hands of the Persian king.\n\nSo he sent for some of the prisoners, and, setting them free, he bade\nthem carry letters to Xerxes their king. In these letters he offered,\nas only a traitor could do, to subdue Sparta and the other states of\nGreece, and to hold them for the Persian monarch. He asked Xerxes to\ngrant him money to carry on the war, and as a reward for his services\nhe requested the hand of his daughter. Pausanias hoped in this way to\ngain his great ambition and become tyrant of all Greece.\n\nXerxes was pleased with the Spartan\u2019s letter, nor did he stay to wonder\nif so disloyal a citizen would be a faithful ally. He sent a letter\nto bid the traitor \u2018work on night and day to accomplish his purpose,\nwithout letting himself be held back by lack of gold or silver, or want\nof troops, for all should be at his command.\u2019\n\nWhen Pausanias held the king\u2019s letter in his hand, and saw the king\u2019s\nmoney at his disposal, he began to behave as though he was already\nthe son-in-law of the great king. He clad himself as a Persian prince,\nhe journeyed from place to place in royal state, attended by Persian\nguards. The Spartan simplicity in which he had been trained was\nforgotten, and he lived in as great luxury as did his new friends.\n\nRumours of the strange way in which Pausanias was behaving soon reached\nSparta. When it was found that the rumours were true, Pausanias was\nordered to come home, and another commander, named Dorcis, was sent to\ntake his place.\n\nBut before Dorcis reached Byzantium, the fleet had refused to obey\nPausanias and had placed itself under Aristides, the admiral of the\nAthenian ships.\n\nA league, called the Delian League, was then formed, to enable Greece\nto carry on the war against Persia. It was named the Delian League\nbecause its treasures were kept in the temple of Apollo, on the sacred\nisland of Delos.\n\nAthens became the head of the league, Aristides its leader, and so\ngreatly was he trusted that he was asked to arrange the sum of money\nor the number of ships which each city belonging to the league should\nprovide.\n\nMost of the Greek cities in the \u00c6gean islands joined the Delian League,\nas well as those on the north and east coasts of the \u00c6gean Sea. Those\nwho joined took solemn oaths to be true to the demands of the league,\nand their oaths were ratified by sinking masses of iron in the sea. Not\nuntil these reappeared might the people be set free from the vows which\nthey had taken.\n\nPausanias had now returned to Sparta, where he was thrown into prison.\nBut though there was abundant proof of his foolish conduct there was\nnone of his treachery, and he was soon set free.\n\nThe traitor continued to send letters to Xerxes by his slaves, and\nthose who carried them never returned, for Pausanias feared lest they\nshould betray him.\n\nOne of his slaves noticed that those who carried letters to the great\nking never came back. He made up his mind that when his turn came\nto go to Xerxes, he would find out what was in the letter he carried\nbefore he delivered it.\n\nSo when one day he was bidden to hasten with a letter to the Persian\nking, he no sooner left the presence of his master than he broke the\nseal, opened the letter, and found among other things an order for his\ndeath. This was what he expected, and he at once carried the letter to\nthe ephors. It contained proof of the traitor\u2019s guilt.\n\nBut, so it is told, the ephors wished to hear that Pausanias was guilty\nfrom his own lips, so they laid a trap for him.\n\nThe slave was sent to take refuge in a hut that stood in a sacred\ngrove. Pausanias soon heard of the strange conduct of his slave, and,\nas the ephors had foreseen, he at once hastened to the hut to demand\nwhy his servant had not sped on his master\u2019s errand.\n\nTwo of the ephors were hidden behind the hut and could hear all that\nPausanias said to his slave.\n\nIn his anger the admiral forgot to be prudent, and exclaimed that he\nmeant to subdue Greece and deliver her into the hands of Xerxes. The\nephors had heard what they wished. They hastened home and at once\nordered that the traitor should be seized.\n\nBut either Pausanias was warned or he was filled with sudden\nforeboding, for he fled to the temple of Athene for sanctuary. It was\nforbidden to drag a fugitive out the temple, so the ephors ordered that\nthe door should be built up, that he might starve to death.\n\nHis mother, in bitter anger because her son had wished to betray his\ncountry, herself placed the first stone at the door of the temple.\n\nWhen hunger had all but done its work, Pausanias was carried out of the\nsacred place to breathe his last, lest the temple should be polluted by\nthe death of a traitor.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LIV\n\nTHEMISTOCLES DECEIVES THE SPARTANS\n\n\nAfter the battle of Plataea, the Athenians brought their wives and\nchildren back to the city, which the Persians had again left in ruins.\nNot only were the temples and the houses burned, but of the city wall\nscarce a trace was to be found.\n\nThemistocles encouraged the citizens to rebuild the city, and this they\ndid with good will. More beautiful temples, better houses, soon sprang\nup under the eager hands of the citizens.\n\nThe wall they determined to make so strong and so high that they\nwould be able to defend their city against any attack rather than be\ncompelled again to forsake her.\n\nBut Sparta was alarmed at her neighbour\u2019s industry; she was more than\nalarmed, she was suspicious and angry. Athens was making herself too\nstrong, the Spartans murmured in ungenerous mood.\n\nThe wall had risen but a little way from the ground when the Spartans\nsent to ask the Athenians not to go on with their work. The reason they\ngave was a selfish one, for they said, \u2018If the Persians return and\ntake a strongly walled town so near to Peloponnesus, our cities will\nnot be safe.\u2019 They then promised to offer shelter to the Athenians,\nshould they again be forced to leave their city, but only on condition\nthat they would stop building a wall round Athens. They even asked the\nAthenians to help them to destroy the walls that already surrounded the\nother cities of Greece.\n\nThe Athenians were in a dilemma. They were determined to finish the\nwall, yet they dared not anger the Spartans, lest they attacked their\ncity while the wall was still unfinished.\n\nIn their perplexity they turned to Themistocles, who had before now\nsaved them by craft when open defiance threatened to ruin them.\n\nThemistocles was not long in solving the difficulty. He said that\nhe would go as an ambassador to Sparta to talk over the matter.\nOther ambassadors were to follow him only when the walls were nearly\ncomplete, and meanwhile men, women and children, all must work day and\nnight, so that the wall might grow apace.\n\nWhen Themistocles reached Sparta, he at once said to the council that\nhe could do nothing until his fellow ambassadors arrived, and he\npretended that he expected them every day.\n\nHe refused to attend the council alone, and when the Spartans grumbled,\nhe assured them that the Athenians were not going on with the wall.\nWhen they grew impatient he amused them so well by his clever speeches\nthat they forgot for a little while to be angry with him.\n\nBut when day after day passed and still the other ambassadors did not\ncome, the Spartans did not hide their suspicion that they were being\ndeceived. When a rumour reached them that the Athenians had never\nceased to build the wall, which was now nearly complete, they were\nangry indeed, and going to Themistocles they demanded that he should\ntell them the truth.\n\nHe still denied that the citizens had been building the wall in his\nabsence, but if they doubted his word, he bade them send ambassadors\nto Athens, that they might see for themselves whether he was deceiving\nthem or not.\n\nSo the Spartans sent ambassadors to Athens, and then Themistocles bade\nhis colleagues join him, for he knew that now both he and they would be\nsafe. The Spartan ambassadors would be hostages for their lives.\n\nThe first thing the Spartans saw as they approached Athens was a high,\nstrong wall. Then they knew that they had been deceived, and they sent\na messenger to tell their countrymen that Themistocles had played them\nfalse.\n\nThemistocles was no coward. He went into the council and boldly told\nthe Spartans that it was true he had deceived them, so that the walls\nof Athens might be built before they could interfere.\n\nIndignant as the Spartans were and ashamed of their own folly in being\ndeceived by the crafty Athenian, they dared not harm the ambassadors\nlest their own messengers should not return in safety.\n\nSo they sent them away, and Themistocles and his fellows returned in\ntriumph to Athens.\n\nSoon after this the city wall was finished, and Themistocles then urged\nthe people to build another great wall round the Piraeus. When this was\ndone, Athens had the largest and safest harbour in Greece.\n\nThe other states now appointed her to be the head of the allied fleet,\nand no one was more proud of this than Themistocles. For it was he\nwho had first persuaded the Athenians to make themselves into a great\nsea-power.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LV\n\nTHEMISTOCLES IS OSTRACISED\n\n\nFor many years Themistocles had been a favourite with the Athenians.\nBut soon after the walls of the city were complete he began to grow\nless popular.\n\nPerhaps this was his own fault, for he tired the people by boasting\ncontinually of the good he had done to the city. It was known too that\nhe did not hesitate to take bribes, and the citizens were indignant\nthat he should have grown rich in this dishonourable way.\n\nOne day, as he was talking in public with Aristides, he said, \u2018The\nchief excellence of a statesman is to be able to prove and frustrate\nthe designs of public enemies.\u2019 Aristides answered, \u2018Another very\nexcellent and necessary quality in a statesman is to have clean hands.\u2019\nAnd those who listened applauded Aristides the Just, for they knew well\nthat he had never soiled his hands with the gold of his country\u2019s foes.\n\nIn 471 B.C., the people determined to ostracise Themistocles, so weary\nhad they grown of the claims he made upon their gratitude. At the time\nof Pausanias\u2019 death he was living at Argos, which city lies south of\nCorinth. When the papers of the traitor were read it was found that\nThemistocles had written to him. There was nothing in his letters to\nshow that he had meant to help Pausanias to betray his country, yet he\nwas accused of treason.\n\nWhen he heard of the charge that was brought against him, he wrote to\nthe council at Athens, \u2018I, Themistocles, who was born to command and\nnot to serve others, could not sell myself, and Greece with me, into\nservitude to the enemy.\u2019\n\nThese proud words only angered the Athenians the more, and the council\nsent men to arrest him. But Themistocles did not wait to be captured.\nHe fled from Greece to Epirus, where he hoped that King Admetus, whom\nhe had once befriended, would shelter him from his foes.\n\nAdmetus was not at home when the exile reached the palace, so he threw\nhimself upon the mercy of the queen.\n\nShe bade him take her little son in his arms and go sit by the hearth\nuntil her lord returned.\n\nThen, when the king arrived, Themistocles arose, and begged Admetus to\nprotect him, while the little prince stretched out suppliant arms to\nhis royal father.\n\nThis was the most sacred way to proffer a request, and according to the\ncustom of his country the king was pleased to do as Themistocles asked.\nHe refused to give him up to the Athenians, and sent him in safety to\nthe Persian court, where Artaxerxes now reigned.\n\nThemistocles begged one of the officers to take him to Artaxerxes,\nsaying that he was a Greek who had come to see the king on important\nmatters.\n\n\u2018If you will promise to prostrate yourself before the monarch, as is\nthe custom in my country, I will do as you wish,\u2019 answered the Persian.\n\nSome Greeks would have refused to prostrate themselves before any king,\nbut it was easy for Themistocles to conform to the customs of the\ncountry in which he found himself.\n\n\u2018I that come hither,\u2019 he said, \u2018to increase the power and glory of the\nking, will not only submit myself to his laws, but will also cause many\nmore to be worshippers and adorers of the king.\u2019\n\n\u2018Who shall we tell him you are?\u2019 asked the officer, \u2018for your words\nsignify you to be no ordinary person.\u2019\n\n\u2018No man,\u2019 replied Themistocles, \u2018must be informed of this before the\nking himself.\u2019\n\nSo at length the Athenian was brought into the presence of Artaxerxes,\nand after having prostrated himself he stood silent before the king.\n\n\u2018Who art thou?\u2019 asked Artaxerxes.\n\n\u2018O king,\u2019 answered the exile, \u2018I am Themistocles the Athenian, driven\ninto banishment by the Greeks. I come with a mind suited to my present\ncalamities; prepared alike for favours and for anger. If you save me\nyou will save your suppliant; if otherwise, you will destroy an enemy\nof the Greeks.\u2019\n\nArtaxerxes liked the courage the exile showed, but he gave him no\nanswer that day. At night, in his sleep, he was heard to cry aloud for\njoy three times, \u2018I have Themistocles the Athenian.\u2019\n\nIn the morning he commanded his courtiers and captains to assemble in\nthe hall, while the stranger was brought before him.\n\nAs the Athenian passed close to the captains, one of them whispered to\nhim, \u2018You subtle Greek serpent, the king\u2019s good genius hath brought\nthee hither.\u2019\n\nThemistocles thought these were ominous words, but to his surprise the\nking greeted him kindly.\n\nA reward had been offered to whoever should bring the famous Athenian\nto the court of the great king. This reward Artaxerxes now declared\nshould be given to Themistocles himself.\n\nThe Greek besought the king to grant him a year in which to learn the\nPersian language. He promised that when he could speak without an\ninterpreter he would tell Artaxerxes the best way to subdue Greece.\n\nArtaxerxes not only granted his request, but showed him great kindness.\nFor he gave to him three cities, and ordered the inhabitants to supply\nhim with bread, meat, wine and whatever else he might need for himself\nand his family.\n\nIn Magnesia, one of these cities, the Athenian lived content for many\nyears. But at length Artaxerxes assembled an army to invade Greece,\nand he sent for the Greek to come to lead it into his own country.\n\nBut whatever promises he had made to ensure his own safety,\nThemistocles had never really meant to harm the land he loved so well.\n\nSo when the message of Artaxerxes reached him, the Athenian invited\nhis friends to a feast, and after bidding them farewell he offered\nsacrifices to the gods. He then took poison and soon after died.\n\nArtaxerxes respected the Athenian, because he had died rather than\nbetray his country, and he ordered his family to be treated with\nkindness.\n\nThemistocles was buried without the walls of Magnesia, and the\nMagnesians erected a statue to him in their market place, because he\nhad been the \u2018Saviour of Greece.\u2019\n\nIn 464 B.C., three years after the death of Themistocles, Aristides\ndied. The Athenians, both rich and poor, mourned for his loss, because\nhis rare justice, his true patriotism, had made him to be loved and\nhonoured by all who knew him.\n\n[Illustration: He stood silent before the king]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LVI\n\nTHE ELOQUENCE OF PERICLES\n\n\nAfter the death of Aristides, Cimon became commander-in-chief of the\nallied fleet.\n\nCimon was beloved by the Athenians, for he showed them great kindness.\nEvery day he invited some of the poorer citizens to supper. When he\nwalked through the city he ordered several well-dressed slaves to\nfollow him. Then, if he met a citizen clad in shabby or threadbare\ngarments, he would order one of his slaves to exchange clothes with him.\n\nThe allied fleet gained many victories while Cimon was at its head.\n\nIn 470 B.C., he sailed to an island named Scyrus, in which dwelt a\nrace of pirates, who had for many years fallen upon and captured the\nmerchant vessels of Greece. The island of Scyrus lay between Athens and\nThrace.\n\nThe Greek traders were pleased when Cimon banished the pirates, as\nhe was soon able to do. A number of Athenians were sent to settle in\nScyrus, which from that time belonged to Attica.\n\nNow there was a legend which said that in this island there was a grave\nwhere lay the bones of Theseus, one of the old heroes of Hellas.\n\nIt may be that Cimon ordered his men to search for the spot where the\nhero was said to be buried; in any case a grave was found in which lay\nthe body of a giant warrior. No one doubted that this was the body of\nTheseus, and, as the oracle had commanded, the bones were brought to\nAthens and placed in a temple which was henceforth called Theseum. The\nAthenians were loud in the praise of Cimon because he had obeyed the\ncommands of the oracle, and had brought the bones of the hero to Attica.\n\nFour years later Cimon gained two great victories over the Persians,\nby which those Greek cities which had been left under the yoke of the\ngreat king were set free. They then hastened to join the Delian League.\n\nCimon was now at the height of his power, but his friendship with\nSparta, on which the Athenians had always looked with dislike, soon led\nto his downfall.\n\nIn 464 B.C. there was an earthquake in Peloponnesus. Chasms yawned in\nthe valleys, landslips changed the face of the mountains. The loss of\nlife in Sparta itself was terrible, while both houses and temples were\ndestroyed. The Helots, who were always ready to revolt, did so now that\ntheir masters were overwhelmed by this great calamity.\n\nCimon begged the Athenians to forget their old grudge against the\nSpartans and to send to her help, remembering only how they had shared\nin the glory of the Persian war.\n\n\u2018Do not let Greece be lamed of one foot,\u2019 he urged, \u2018and Athens herself\nbe left to draw without her yoke-fellow.\u2019\n\nAn Athenian, named Pericles, who was now one of the chief citizens,\ndid all he could to make the people refuse to send help to Sparta, but\nCimon\u2019s entreaties were successful. He was himself sent at the head of\nthe Athenian troops to help the Spartans to subdue the Helots.\n\nThe rebels had taken refuge in a fortress, and Cimon tried in vain to\nexpel them from their stronghold.\n\nAlways ready to suspect an Athenian, the Spartans began to think that\nCimon did not really wish to dislodge the Helots. They accused him of\ntreachery, and roughly bade him return with his troops to Athens, as\nthey no longer wished for his help.\n\nDuring Cimon\u2019s absence, Pericles and a statesman named Ephialtes had\nmade several changes in the ancient courts of Athens. These changes\ndid not meet with the approval of Cimon, and he tried to restore the\nold customs.\n\nThe citizens soon grew angry with the two leaders because each tried to\ngovern Athens in a different way, and, instead of peace, discord ruled\nin the city. They determined that one of them should be ostracised.\n\nIn 461 B.C. it was resolved to put the matter to the vote. The citizens\nassembled in the market place, and shells were given to them on which\nto write the name of the leader they wished to be banished. When the\nnames were counted it was found that Cimon was ostracised.\n\nSoon after Cimon left Athens, Ephialtes was slain in his own house, and\nit was believed that this cruel deed had been done by the order of some\nof Cimon\u2019s friends, in revenge for the ostracism of their chief.\n\nPericles was now left alone to govern Athens.\n\nHe was not rich, so he could not himself do all that Cimon had done for\nthe people, but he used the public money for the good of the citizens.\nAnd he pleased them by taking from the court of the Areopagus most of\nits ancient power, and giving it to the popular assembly.\n\nTickets, too, were given by his orders to the poorer folk in Athens,\nso that they might be able to go to the theatres and other places\nof public amusement. By these and other acts, Pericles soon won the\ngoodwill of the people.\n\nWhen he was a boy Pericles had been trained by a philosopher named\nAnaxagoras, who had taught him much wisdom. When storms arose they\nseemed unable to disturb the calm of the philosopher\u2019s pupil.\n\nOne day, as he was busy in the market place with affairs of State, a\nrude fellow never ceased to mock and to speak ill of him.\n\nPericles heard all that the man said, but he took no notice, and\nwhen he had finished his task he set out for home. The rough fellow\nfollowed, throwing at him, not stones, but cruel, wicked words.\n\nIt was dark when Pericles reached his house. Turning to one of his\nservants he bade him take a light and see that the man reached home in\nsafety. And this he did although he had been treated so badly.\n\nBecause he was a great orator, Pericles was named the Olympian, but\nby some it was said that he was so called because of the beautiful\nbuildings with which he adorned Athens.\n\nAt this time comedies were acted on the stage, and in these comedies\ngreat statesmen were often ridiculed; that is, fun was made both of\nthemselves and of their actions.\n\nThose who wrote these plays were allowed to use their wit on any one\nor anything that they chose. It was soon seen that the Athenians could\nlaugh heartily at themselves, and that is a good thing that some people\ncan never learn to do.\n\nPericles was too well known to be left alone by the writers of comedy.\nSometimes hard words were spoken of him, as when a writer said that\nhe had a \u2018dreadful thunderbolt in his tongue.\u2019 But he who said this\nknew that the eloquence of Pericles was a great power, and that the\norator could make people believe almost anything that he wished them to\nbelieve.\n\nIt is said that one of the kings of Sparta once asked a noble citizen,\nnamed Thucydides, if he or Pericles were the stronger wrestler.\n\n\u2018When I,\u2019 answered Thucydides, \u2018have thrown him and given him a fair\nfall, by persisting that he had no fall he gets the better of me,\nand makes the bystanders, in spite of their own eyes, believe him.\u2019\nThucydides said this in jest, to show what wonders Pericles could work\nby his eloquence.\n\nBut although others might make fun of Pericles\u2019 great gift of speech,\nhe himself thought of it with reverence. \u2018He was very careful what\nand how he was to speak, insomuch that, whenever he went up to the\nhustings, he prayed the gods that no one word might unawares slip from\nhim, unsuitable to the matter and the occasion.\u2019\n\nPericles encouraged the Athenians to war against many of the Greek\nStates, and when they had subdued them, he bade these States pay\ntribute to Athens. Year by year, under his guidance, the city grew more\npowerful.\n\nIn 449 B.C., Cimon, who had been recalled from exile, sailed with a\nfleet of two hundred ships to Cyprus, where several cities still owned\nArtaxerxes, the Persian king, as their master. He laid siege to the\ntown of Citium, but before it was taken he fell ill. Although he was\nforced to stay in bed, he still sent orders to his men, which helped\nthem to gain two brilliant victories.\n\nCimon did not recover from his illness, and after the death of its\ncommander the fleet returned to Athens.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LVII\n\nPERICLES AND ELPINICE\n\n\nAthens was at first the leader of the Delian League; she soon became\nits ruler.\n\nMany of the allied cities offered to send, as their contribution to the\nleague, money instead of ships. To this Athens agreed gladly, and with\nthe money she added ship after ship to her own fleet. So the navy of\nAthens continued to grow while that of the other states dwindled until\nthey possessed only a few vessels.\n\nThe treasury of the league, which had been kept in the small but sacred\nisland of Delos, was moved to Athens with the consent of the allies.\n\nBut after a time the other cities grew discontented. They complained\nthat the money they sent to the league was not spent on ships alone.\nSome of it, at least, was used to build beautiful temples for the city\nof Athens.\n\nSo dissatisfied were they that they declared that they would leave the\nleague. But they soon found that it would be difficult to carry out\ntheir threat, for Athens was too anxious to receive their contributions\nof money to let them go.\n\nWhen the people who lived on the island of Samos revolted, Pericles\nwent with an army to besiege their capital town, and after nine months\nthe Samians were forced to surrender. The walls of the city were\npulled down, the ships belonging to the island were seized, and the\ninhabitants were forced to pay a heavy fine.\n\nOn his return to Athens, Pericles was welcomed by his own party, but\nElpinice, the sister of Cimon, was indignant that the citizens should\nrejoice at a victory gained over their own countrymen.\n\nOne day, soon after his triumphant return, Elpinice waylaid Pericles\nas he was walking along the streets, and said to him, \u2018These are brave\ndeeds, Pericles, that you have done, and such as deserve our chaplets,\nwho have lost us many a worthy citizen, not in a war with Phoenicians\nor Medes, like my brother Cimon, but for the overthrow of an allied and\nkindred city.\u2019\n\nElpinice hoped to make Pericles ashamed that he had fought with people\nof his own race.\n\nAnd now for two years, from 447 B.C. to 445 B.C., loss after loss\nbefell Athens. While she was struggling with her other enemies, the\nking of Sparta marched into Attica with an army. Athens herself was in\ndanger.\n\nBut before the army reached the city, it was ordered to halt, and soon\nafter it withdrew from Attica.\n\nNo one knew what had made the Spartans spare Athens, but it was said\nthat Pericles had paid their king a large sum of money on condition\nthat he took his army back to his own country.\n\nIn 445 B.C. Athens signed a Thirty Years\u2019 Truce with Sparta, and at the\nsame time peace was made with Persia.\n\nPericles was now able to devote himself to the work which was his\ngreatest pleasure. He spent fourteen years in making Athens so\nbeautiful that it became the wonder city of the world.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LVIII\n\nTHE CITY OF ATHENS\n\n\nWhen the Persians entered Athens they destroyed her temples. Some of\nthese temples had been hastily repaired, others had been hastily built,\nwhen the Athenians returned to their own city.\n\nBut now that peace had been made with the Persians, Athens determined\nto show her gratitude to the gods by building in the city, temples,\n\u2018exceeding magnifical,\u2019 more beautiful indeed than any that had yet\nbeen built.\n\nThe most famous of these temples was the Parthenon or Temple of the\nVirgin, built on the Acropolis, and sacred to the virgin goddess Athene.\n\nThis marvellous temple was planned by a great architect named Ictinus,\nand adorned by a yet greater sculptor called Pheidias.\n\nThe architecture of the Parthenon was Doric, which was the oldest, the\nstrongest as well as the most simple, of the four kinds of Grecian\nbuildings. There were two rooms in the Parthenon with no entrance from\none to the other.\n\nThe figure of the goddess, fashioned by the magic hands of the sculptor\nPheidias, was a colossal one. Calm, majestic, with a smile upon her\nface, she stood in her wondrous temple, clad in a robe of gold.\n\nOn her head she wore a helmet, in her right hand she held fast a little\ngolden figure of the goddess of victory, while her left lay upon her\nshield. At her feet a snake lay coiled.\n\n[Illustration: The figure of the goddess was a colossal one]\n\nNeither of marble nor of bronze was the statue, but of ivory and\npure gold, ivory being used for the flesh, gold for the robe and\narmour, which was studded with precious stones.\n\nNowhere was there so marvellous a statue as this of the goddess Athene\nwrought by Pheidias, save perchance the Zeus at Olympia, which was also\nmoulded by the famous sculptor.\n\nThe statue of Zeus had a strange power over those who gazed upon it.\n\n\u2018Let a man sick and weary in his soul, who has passed through many\ndistresses and sorrows, whose pillow is unvisited by kindly sleep,\nstand in front of this image; he will, I deem, forget all the terrors\nand troubles of human life.\u2019\n\nClose to the Parthenon was an older temple, built not in the Doric but\nin the Ionic style of architecture. It, too, was sacred to Athene and\nalso to Poseidon.\n\nThis temple, which was called the Erechtheum, was held in awe and\nreverence by the Athenians, for in it was kept an ancient wooden image\nof the goddess. So ancient was this \u2018most holy idol\u2019 of the people that\nit looked more like a rough block of wood than a carved figure. The\nholy olive tree, too, was there, which the Persians had cut down, but\nwhich they had been unable to kill, as well as the living snake, the\nsymbol of the presence of the goddess.\n\nThe Erechtheum was to the Athenians a shrine, in which lay hidden the\nstory of their past, the Parthenon was to them a sign of the power and\nthe splendour of the age of Pericles.\n\nOn the western side of the Acropolis rose a magnificent marble wall\ncalled the Propylaea. The marble had been pierced at intervals to make\nfive great gateways, the centre one being for chariots, those on either\nside leading by steps to the Parthenon. Through these gateways the\nAthenians marched in solemn procession on their feast days.\n\nA great theatre, sacred to the god Dionysus, was finished in the age\nof Pericles, and an Odeon or great hall of music was added to it,\nwhere contests of song and music were held. The roof of the Odeon was\npointed like a tent, and was made of the masts of ships that had been\ncaptured from the Persians.\n\nThis pointed roof was said by the wits of Athens to be like the helmet\nof Pericles, whose head was curiously formed, and who often wore a\nhelmet to conceal its strange shape.\n\n\u2018Here comes Pericles,\u2019 says a comic poet of those days, \u2018with the Odeon\nset on his crown.\u2019\n\nAnother great statue of Athene, called Athene Promachos, or Athena\nForemost in Battle, stood just within the Propylaea. It was wrought\nin bronze and showed Athene in armour, holding shield and spear\noutstretched. This statue, also by Pheidias, was fifty feet high and\nstood on a pedestal that raised it twenty feet higher, so that it\ntowered above the roofs of the temples. The golden plume on the helmet\nof the goddess was seen by sailors far out at sea.\n\nWith these and many other great works of art, Pericles adorned the city\nof his love. The Acropolis he said should be no longer a fortress, but\na sanctuary.\n\nSome of the Athenians, among them Thucydides, grumbled because Pericles\nspent the public money on these beautiful buildings.\n\nPericles heard that the citizens were discontented, and in the open\nassembly he rose and bade them tell him if they thought he used more\nmoney than he ought, to adorn the city.\n\n\u2018Too much a great deal,\u2019 was the speedy retort.\n\n\u2018Then,\u2019 said Pericles, \u2018since it is so, let the cost not go to your\naccount but to mine, and let the inscriptions upon the buildings stand\nin my name.\u2019\n\nBut the people, surprised at his generosity, and perhaps wishing to\nshare in the glory of his work, were ashamed that they had complained.\nThey bade him spend as much of the public money as he deemed right and\n\u2018spare no cost until all was finished.\u2019\n\nIn 479 B.C. the Persians had reduced Athens to ruins. Fifty years\nlater she had been built anew and adorned with temples and statues that\nmade her the wonder of the world.\n\nMarble was found in Attica, gold and ivory were bought with money out\nof the treasury, but without the magic hand of Pheidias, marble, gold,\nand ivory had been bought in vain.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LIX\n\nGREAT MEN OF ATHENS\n\n\nAthens, in the age of Pericles, was the home of literary men as well as\nof sculptors and architects.\n\n\u00c6schylus, one of the greatest men of the age, was a diligent writer\nof tragedies or serious plays. You will think that he was diligent\nindeed, when I tell you that he wrote ninety plays, although only seven\nare known to us now. His tragedies were acted in the great theatre of\nDionysus. The _Persae_, his first play, was written eight years after\nthe great sea-fight at Salamis, to tell of the victory the Athenians\nhad won over the Persians.\n\nJust as races were run, and music was written by competitors to win\nrenown and gain prizes at the festival of Dionysus, so plays were\nwritten and prizes were awarded to the successful author at this great\nfeast. These plays might be about the things that were taking place in\nGreece at that very time, or the plot might be taken from the old-world\nstories of Troy. Proud and dauntless were the men and women whom\n\u00c6schylus made to live upon the stage of Athens. Of many of these you\nwill some day read yourself.\n\nSophocles and Euripides also wrote tragedies, and Euripides is known,\ntoo, for the beauty of his songs. He was a magician who made all that\nhe touched radiant with beauty. Many people loved Euripides because of\nthe wonderful songs and plays which he wrote, but some hated him.\n\nAristophanes, the writer of comedies or amusing plays that made\nthe Athenians laugh with uncontrollable glee, was one of those\nwho disliked Euripides and held up some of his works to scorn. But\nSocrates, a greater man than he, loved Euripides and called him his\nfavourite poet.\n\nHerodotus was the first great Greek historian. He was not born in\nAttica, but he lived some years in Athens. He wrote the story of the\nPersian wars, while Thucydides wrote that of the Peloponnesian war.\n\nSome of the greatest teachers in Greece at this time were called\nSophists. A Sophist meant, at first, one who was clever in any\nspecial art. It did not matter what the art was; it might be cooking,\ngardening, teaching.\n\nProtagoras was one of the most famous Sophists, but the Athenians did\nnot treat him well. For he wrote a book which displeased them, so\nthat they condemned it and accused him of writing against the gods of\nGreece. So angry were his enemies that Protagoras knew that he could no\nlonger live safely in Athens. He fled from the city and set sail for\nSicily, but he was drowned before he reached the island.\n\nIt was of his dead friend Protagoras that Euripides was thinking when\nhe wrote in one of his plays, \u2018Ye have slain, O Greeks, ye have slain\nthe nightingale of the muses, the wizard bird that did no wrong.\u2019\n\nThese are a few of the great men who, with Ictinus, Pheidias, and\nmany another of whom I have not told, made the glory of Greece known\nthroughout the wide world.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LX\n\nTHE THEBANS ATTACK THE PLATAEANS\n\n\nThe cause of the Peloponnesian War was jealousy--jealousy between\nAthens and Sparta. Each wished to be the chief State in Greece, and the\nonly way to settle the dispute in those days was by an appeal to arms.\n\nAthens had a great navy and much wealth. She was at the head of an\nempire, but the States which she had subdued, and which she had forced\nto pay tribute, were discontented and unlikely to prove useful allies.\n\nSparta was the head of the Peloponnesian States. She had a strong army,\nbut she had not money with which to carry on war, nor had she, or any\nof her allies save Corinth, a fleet that would be of any use against\nthe large, well-equipped fleet of Athens.\n\nAs long as Athens could keep the mastery of the sea, she would be\nable to defy the enemy. Famine would soon subdue her if she lost this\nmastery, for much of her corn supply came from abroad, and if the corn\nships did not reach the Piraeus with their precious freight, the people\nwould starve.\n\nOn land Athens could not hope to hold her own against Sparta. Pericles\nknew this well, and so he urged the Athenians to place their trust in\ntheir ships.\n\n\u2018Let us give up lands and houses,\u2019 he said, \u2018but keep a watch over the\ncity and the sea. We should not, under any irritation at the loss of\nour property, give battle to the Peloponnesians, who far outnumber us.\nMourn not for houses or lands, but for men; men may give these, but\nthese will not give men. If I thought that you would listen to me, I\nwould say to you, \u201cGo yourselves and destroy them, and thereby prove\nto the Peloponnesians that none of these things move you.\u201d Such is the\npower which the empire of the sea gives.\u2019\n\nThe Peloponnesian War began in the early spring of 431 B.C. when the\ncitizens of the little town of Thebes made a treacherous attack upon\nthe town of Plataea.\n\nThebes belonged to the Boeotian League, which was on good terms with\nSparta, upon bad terms with Athens.\n\nPlataea was in alliance with Athens, but there were traitors among the\ncitizens, and these determined to betray their city into the hands of\nthe Thebans.\n\nOne dark, stormy night the gates of the city were opened to admit a\nband of three hundred Thebans. The main body of the Theban force was\nstill some distance off. At midnight the citizens of Plataea were\nawakened by the sound of trumpets. They dressed in haste, and then\nrushing to the market place found it in the hands of the Thebans,\nwho were calling upon the citizens to forsake Athens and to join the\nBoeotian League.\n\nAt first the Plataeans thought it would be useless to resist the enemy,\nbut before long they found that there was only a small band of Thebans\nin the market place. Heavy rains had made the river Asopus rise, and\nthe main body of the enemy was still on the farther side of the river,\nlooking in vain for a ford.\n\nSo the Plataeans shut their gates, barricaded their streets with\nwagons, and then boldly attacked the enemy.\n\nThe Thebans were soon separated from one another and lost their way\nin the unknown and dusky streets. To add to their confusion, from\nwindows and roofs, heavy missiles were hurled down upon them by the\nangry Plataean women. A few scaled the city wall and escaped, but the\ngreater number, rushing through a large door which they mistook for\none of the city gates, found themselves in a granary from which there\nwas no escape save by the door through which they had entered. It was\nalready held by the Plataeans, and the Thebans were taken prisoners and\ncommanded to lay down their arms.\n\nMeanwhile the main body of the Thebans had reached the city gates to\nfind them guarded by the inhabitants. A herald was sent to bid them\nwithdraw, after releasing the prisoners whom they had taken on their\nmarch to the city. Unless this was done without delay, the Plataeans\nthreatened to put to death the Thebans whom they had captured.\n\nIt was plain that their plot had failed; so, to save their comrades,\nas they believed, the Thebans released their prisoners, recrossed the\nAsopus, and went back to their own city. Then the Plataeans did a\ncruel and treacherous deed, for they slew two hundred of their Theban\nprisoners.\n\nThe Plataeans sent to Athens to ask for help when the Theban army\nappeared without their walls, but the danger was over before help could\nreach them.\n\nYet, lest the Thebans should return, the women and children were taken\nto Athens for safety, while eighty Athenians were sent to garrison the\nwalls of Plataea.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXI\n\nATTICA IS INVADED BY THE SPARTANS\n\n\nIn the month of May 431 B.C. Attica itself was invaded by a large\nSpartan army, under king Archidamus.\n\nBefore he crossed the border into Attica the king bade his army halt,\nwhile he sent an ambassador named Melesippus to the Athenians, to offer\nthem terms if they would submit to him. But Pericles persuaded the\ncouncil to refuse even to listen to Melesippus, who had been told to\nreturn to his own army before the setting of the sun. As he turned away\nfrom the council, Melesippus said to the Athenians, \u2018This day will be\nthe beginning of many woes to the Greeks.\u2019\n\nPericles knew that the Spartans would march into Attica, as soon as\ntheir ambassador had returned, so he ordered the country folk to hasten\nwithin the strong walls of Athens for safety. Their cattle he bade them\nsend to the island of Euboea.\n\nThe Spartans found the Attic farms deserted, but they destroyed and\nburned them, while they trampled down the cornfields and spoiled the\nolive groves and orchards.\n\nAs the invading army drew nearer to Athens, the people within the city\nwalls could mark its progress by the smoke that rose from burning farms\nand villas. The men rushed to the gates, eager to go to attack the\nenemy, and it was all but beyond the power of Pericles to restrain them.\n\nAs winter drew near, Archidamus was forced to retreat, for he had\nneither money nor food to keep his troops longer in the country of the\nenemy.\n\nThen Pericles, knowing that the way was clear, sailed from Athens with\nthirteen thousand men, and surprised many villages on the Peloponnesian\ncoast. He also burned the farms and houses in the district of Megara.\n\nWhen Pericles returned from Megara, a public burial was given, as was\nthe custom, to those who had been slain in battle.\n\nA cedar box, in which were placed the bones of the fallen, was carried\nwithout the walls of the city and buried. For those whose bodies had\nnot been recovered, there was an empty bed covered with a pall. The\nfuneral oration, or Panegyric as it was named, was spoken by Pericles.\n\nHere are a few of the sentences which Thucydides, the historian, heard,\nas he stood among the people and listened to the Panegyric.\n\n\u2018Our city is equally admirable in peace and in war. For we are lovers\nof the beautiful, yet simple in our tastes, and we cultivate the\nmind without loss of manliness. Wealth we employ, not for talk and\nostentation, but when there is real use for it. To avow poverty is with\nus no disgrace; the true disgrace is in doing nothing to avoid it.\n\n\u2018An Athenian citizen does not neglect the State because he takes care\nof his own household; and even those of us who are engaged in business\nhave a very fair idea of politics. We alone regard a man who takes\nno interest in public affairs, not as harmless, but as a useless\ncharacter....\n\n\u2018I would have you day by day fix your eyes upon the greatness of\nAthens until you become filled with the love of her; and when you are\nimpressed with the spectacle of her glory, reflect that this empire has\nbeen acquired by men who knew their duty and had the courage to do it\n... they freely gave their lives to her as the fairest offering which\nthey could present at her feast. The whole earth is the sepulchre of\nfamous men; not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions\nin their own country, but in foreign lands there dwells also an\nunwritten memorial of them, graven, not on stone, but in the hearts of\nmen. Make them your example.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXII\n\nTHE LAST WORDS OF PERICLES\n\n\nWhen the Spartans marched out of Attica, the country folk left the\nsheltering walls of Athens to go back to their fields, to dig, to\nplough, to sow.\n\nThey hoped in due time to reap a plenteous harvest, for their last\nyear\u2019s crops had been destroyed by the enemy. But before the corn was\nripe they knew their hopes were vain. The Spartans had come back, and\nonce again the people were forced to leave their fields and take refuge\nwithin the walls of the capital.\n\nBut in the city itself an enemy appeared, an enemy that worked more\ndreadful havoc than even the Spartan army. The plague had come to\nAthens. It spread rapidly, for the people were crowded together, some\nin sheds, some in tents, and these rough shelters were not kept clean.\nSqualor and lack of room added to the misery of the sick folk.\n\nThousands of those who had fled for safety to the city were stricken by\nthe plague, and at first few recovered. For fear seized upon those whom\nthe plague spared and they left the sick untended, to die, tortured by\nthirst, and alone.\n\nAt length even the Spartans grew afraid, lest upon them too the plague\nshould fall, and they again withdrew from Attica.\n\nThen Pericles sailed to Peloponnesus and attacked the enemy in its\nown country, but with little or no success. But in Thrace, the town\nof Potidaea, which had been besieged by the Athenians for a year, was\nforced to surrender.\n\nNo breach had been made in the walls, but the famine-stricken people\ncould no longer bear the pangs of hunger, nor had they strength left to\ndefend their city.\n\nThe Athenians allowed the miserable inhabitants to leave Potidaea, but\nthe men were forbidden to take anything with them save one garment,\nwhile the women were permitted to take two. Before long Athenian\nfamilies were sent to settle in Potidaea, which then became a colony\nbelonging to Athens.\n\nDuring the war the popularity of Pericles began to wane. It was he who\nhad advised the Athenians to carry on war with the Spartans, and they\nnow accused him of causing all the misery which they had to endure.\n\nWhile he was absent with the fleet in 430 B.C., Cleon, the head of\nthose who were opposed to Pericles, tried to make peace with the enemy,\nbut his efforts were in vain.\n\nCleon was determined, if it were possible, to cause the downfall of\nPericles. So when he returned to Athens, he accused him of using public\nmoney for his own ends.\n\nWhen the public accounts were examined a small sum was missing and\nPericles was fined by the law courts, but no stain was left on his\ncharacter.\n\nThe Athenians were a fickle people, and before long they forgot their\nanger and Pericles found himself as popular as ever. They were even\neager to carry on the war with Sparta.\n\nOnce before Pericles had been attacked by his enemies. He was accused,\nalong with Pheidias the sculptor, of having kept some of the gold which\nwas intended to adorn the statue of Athene in the Parthenon. But it was\neasy to prove that the charge was false, for the gold had been fixed to\nthe statue in such a way that it could be easily detached.\n\nPericles demanded that this should be done, so that the gold might be\nweighed. His enemies could not refuse the test. So the gold was taken\noff the statue, weighed, and found to be correct.\n\nAgainst Pheidias there were other charges, one being that in the frieze\nof the Parthenon there were sculptured portraits of himself and\nPericles. In 432 B.C. the great sculptor was thrown into prison, where\nhe died before the day fixed for his trial.\n\nThe plague, which had disappeared for a year, broke out again in 429\nB.C. with new violence.\n\nPericles had already lost two sons through the terrible scourge. When\nParalus, his favourite child, died, he placed a garland upon his body,\nand shut himself in his house to mourn. Nor could he be persuaded\nafterward to take much interest in the affairs of the State.\n\nA year later, he was himself stricken by the plague. He recovered, but\nwas soon after attacked by fever which he was too weak to resist.\n\nAs he lay dying, his friends gathered around his bed. Thinking that he\ndid not hear what they said, they began to speak to one another of the\ngreat things he had done during his life.\n\nBut Pericles heard, and interrupting them said, \u2018What you praise in me\nis partly the result of good fortune, and, at all events, common to\nme with many other commanders. What I am most proud of, you have not\nnoticed. No Athenian ever put on mourning for an act of mine!\u2019 These\nwere his last words.\n\nPlutarch tells us that \u2018Pericles was indeed a character deserving our\nhigh admiration, not only for his equitable and mild temper, but also\nfor the high spirit and feeling which made him regard it the noblest of\nall his honours, that, in the exercise of such immense power, he never\nhad treated any enemy as irreconcilably opposed to him. And it appears\nto me,\u2019 says Plutarch, \u2018that this one thing gives that otherwise\nchildish and arrogant title a fitting and becoming significance; so\ndispassionate a temper, a life so pure and unblemished, might well\nbe called Olympian, in accordance with our conceptions of the divine\nbeings to whom, as the natural authors of all good and of nothing evil,\nwe ascribe the rule and government of the world.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXIII\n\nTHE SIEGE OF PLATAEA\n\n\nThe Peloponnesian War began with an attack upon the little town of\nPlataea. Two years later, in the early summer of 429 B.C., Plataea was\nagain attacked, this time by the Spartans, who were led by their king\nArchidamus. The town, small though it was, was an Athenian fortress, so\nthe Spartans were eager to raze it to the ground.\n\nBut Plataea stood on sacred territory; for Pausanias, after his great\nvictory over the Persians, had declared that in time of war it should\never be left undisturbed.\n\nThe Plataeans reminded the king of the promise of the Spartan general,\nand begged him to withdraw his troops.\n\nArchidamus would not lead his army away, but he promised to do the\nPlataeans no harm if they would become allies of Sparta, or if they\nwould give up their alliance with Athens and fight on neither side. But\nthe Plataeans would not agree to either of these plans.\n\nThen the king offered to let them leave the town. He promised that\ntheir homes, their orchards, their fields would be kept in good order\nas long as the war lasted, and that they would be given back to them\nwhen peace was made.\n\nIt was a generous offer, and the Plataeans begged to be allowed to send\nto Athens to ask her advice. Her answer speedily settled the matter.\n\n\u2018Athens,\u2019 so ran the message, \u2018never deserted her allies, and would\nnot now neglect the Plataeans, but succour them with all her might.\nWherefore the alliance must stand and the attack of the Spartans be\nwithstood.\u2019\n\nWhen Archidamus heard what Athens had said to the Plataeans, he\ndetermined to besiege the town. The Thebans who were with the Spartan\narmy rejoiced that war was to begin, for they were ever bitter enemies\nof the Plataeans.\n\nThe little town prepared to defend herself against the enemy, sending\naway the women and children to a place of safety. A hundred women\nslaves only were kept to cook and wash for the garrison, which was\nsmall. Yet few in number as they were, the doughty citizens withstood\nthe attacks of the Spartans for two years.\n\nWhen Archidamus ordered his men to raise a mound as high as the\nwall around the town, the Plataeans at once added to the height of\ntheir defences. They also dug beneath the mound of the enemy, and so\nundermined it that it was continually sliding down.\n\nThen lest the walls should at length be scaled by the enemy, the\ncitizens built an inner wall to protect the city yet more strongly.\n\nOften the little garrison looked wistfully for the help that Athens had\nassured them would be sent, but month after month passed and no help\ncame from the plague-stricken city. Yet the Plataeans did not dream of\nsurrender.\n\nArchidamus was in despair, for he knew that his soldiers were seldom\nable to take a walled town. His pride was hurt at the thought of\nbeing beaten by a mere handful of men. He had with him the whole\nPeloponnesian army, yet a garrison of five hundred had been able to\ndefy all his efforts to capture the city.\n\nThe king determined, since he could not take the town by assault,\nto starve it into submission. So he now ordered two great walls to\nbe built round the city, placing on them here and there towers or\nbattlements. The walls were a certain space apart, and this space was\ncovered over, so that the soldiers could live in it as in a camp, while\narmed sentinels paced up and down on the roof.\n\nWhen the second year of the siege began, food grew scarce in Plataea.\nEither the little garrison must force its way out or die of hunger. To\nescape, the soldiers would have to scale the wall, without attracting\nthe attention of the sentinels, and reach the ground on the other side.\n\nMore than half the garrison resolved to stay where it was, but about\ntwo hundred determined to make the perilous attempt.\n\nSo one cold, dark night in the month of December, when the sentinels\nhad retreated into the towers for shelter, the brave two hundred stole\nout of the town, carrying ladders on their backs. They wore little\nclothing, that they might climb and run the easier. That they might\nstep the more quietly their right feet were bare, while on the left\neach wore a shoe to keep him from slipping in the mud.\n\nStealthily they made their way across a ditch and reached the wall\nunseen, unheard. Twelve of the bravest scaled the wall and killed the\nsleepy sentinels, who had sought shelter in the towers from a storm of\nwind and rain.\n\nThe others then mounted the wall, fixed their ladders on the farther\nside and reached the ground in safety, while the twelve, who had waited\nto the last, began to descend.\n\nAll would have been well, had not one man slipped and knocked a tile\noff the top of the wall. It rattled and fell to the ground with a noise\nthat roused the Spartans, who scrambled up the wall in great haste. But\nthe darkness was so dense that they could see nothing.\n\nThose of the garrison who had stayed in the city did all that they\ncould to perplex the enemy, by making a sally on the side of the town\nfarthest from that by which their friends had fled. And when the\nSpartans lit torches and flashed danger signals to the Thebans whose\ncity was not far off, the Plataeans lit beacons, so that the signals\nwere confused.\n\nMeanwhile the fugitives, having reached the ground in safety, were met\nby a band of three hundred Spartans. These were carrying lights, so the\nPlataeans were able to send a shower of arrows among them with sure\nand deadly aim. In the confusion that followed, all save one archer\nsucceeded in crossing a ditch, covered with ice, but too thin to bear\nthe weight of the fugitives. They struggled through the icy water, and\nafter many narrow escapes two hundred and twelve weary men reached\nAthens in safety.\n\nPlataea held out gallantly until the summer of 427 B.C., when famine at\nlength forced her to surrender.\n\nFive judges were sent from Sparta to decide the fate of the prisoners.\nBut the trial was a mere form, for the Thebans had already persuaded\nthe Spartans how to treat the unfortunate men.\n\nEach prisoner as he was brought before the judges was asked if he\nhad helped the Spartans in their war against Athens. As each one\nanswered \u2018No,\u2019 he was led out and put to death. In this way two hundred\nPlataeans and twenty-five Athenians lost their lives, while the city\nthey had so bravely defended was razed to the ground.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXIV\n\nTHE SENTENCE OF DEATH\n\n\nIn the fourth year of the Peloponnesian War the city of Mytilene threw\noff the yoke of Athens. Mytilene was the capital of Lesbos, an island\nnear the coast of Asia. The city had belonged to the Delian league, and\nwhen the league became the empire of Athens, the city remained faithful\nto the empire. But as time passed the Mytileneans became afraid lest\nAthens should treat them as she had treated the Samians, and should\nmake them subjects instead of allies.\n\nWhile Athens was at war with Sparta she would have little time, thought\nthe Mytileneans, to trouble about their small island, so they revolted\nand asked the Spartans to support them, if that should be necessary.\nThe Spartans promised to help the Mytileneans if the Athenians should\npunish their disloyalty, but, as so often happened, they did not\nattempt to keep their promise until it was too late.\n\nAthens was angry when she heard of the revolt at Mytilene. Although\nshe could ill spare the men, she sent an army under a general named\nPaches to blockade the town by sea and by land and so to starve her\ninto submission. At all costs Mytilene must not fall into the hands of\nSparta.\n\nBefore long, so strict was the blockade, food began to run short in\nthe hapless island, and the Spartans failed to send the help they had\npromised.\n\nBut when the citizens were desperate with hunger, a messenger from\nSparta reached the town. He had passed the Athenian army unnoticed and\nhad entered Mytilene, to the delight of the starving people. When he\nassured them that ships laden with corn were on the way and would reach\nthem soon, their joy was unbounded.\n\nDay after day, week after week passed, but the Spartan ships did not\ncome, and hope began to die out of the hearts of the Mytileneans. It\nwas plain that they must either surrender or starve to death; so they\ndetermined to surrender.\n\nThey sent for Paches, and agreed to give up the city, and to leave\ntheir fate to be decided by the Athenian assembly. In the meantime\nabout one thousand of the inhabitants were sent as prisoners to Athens.\n\nThe Athenians had been bitterly angry with the Mytileneans for\nrevolting when their hands were already full with war at home and with\nthe misery caused by the plague. They were in no mood now to deal\nmercifully with them.\n\nCleon, a leather-merchant, who by his own efforts had risen to a high\nposition in the State, roused the temper of the people by his rough and\nnoisy eloquence, and Pericles was no longer alive to restrain it, as he\nhad so often done, by his wiser, calmer speech.\n\nWhen the assembly met, it was Cleon who proposed that all those able\nto bear arms should be put to death, and that the women and children\nshould be sold as slaves. In its angry mood the assembly voted as Cleon\nwished.\n\nNo sooner was the sentence of death passed, than a ship was despatched\nto the island to bid Paches, the Athenian general, carry out the\nterrible decision of the assembly.\n\nBut a little later, when the assembly broke up and escaped from the\ninfluence of Cleon\u2019s eloquence, the members began to be ashamed of\ntheir cold-blooded sentence.\n\nAmbassadors from Mytilene had come to Athens to plead the cause of\ntheir people. When they saw that the Athenians were uneasy, they\npersuaded them to call another meeting of the assembly the following\nmorning, to reconsider the sentence that they had passed.\n\nCleon had felt no regret at the fate of the rebels, and he was\nindignant that the assembly should dream of revoking its decree. When\nit met on the following day he spoke even more vehemently than before,\nurging the members to see that the sentence was carried out.\n\nBut Diodotus, a noble Athenian, whose name has never been forgotten,\nspoke as well as Cleon. So wise were his words that those who had\nalready wished to alter the sentence for pity\u2019s sake, were now sure\nthat wisdom also demanded that the Mytileneans should be spared.\nDiodotus won the day, for Cleon was defeated by a small majority.\n\nNo sooner was the sentence revoked than in hot haste a ship was manned,\nand the crew was bidden to do its utmost to overtake the vessel\nwhich was carrying the sentence of doom to Mytilene. Already it was\ntwenty-four hours since the ship had left Athens. Was it possible to\ncarry the good news in time?\n\nThe ambassadors promised large rewards to the oarsmen if they reached\nthe city before the terrible sentence had been carried out. In their\nanxiety they provided barley, wine, oil for the crew.\n\nThere was no lack of zeal on the part of the sailors. They rowed with\nall their strength, taking but scant rest, and eating the barley, which\nhad been soaked in wine and oil and made into cakes, as they sat at\ntheir oars. They knew that on their speed depended the life or death of\nthousands.\n\nSwifter and swifter flashed the oars of the second ship. In the first\nvessel the sailors pulled slowly, for they were in no haste to deliver\nthe dread tidings which they carried. And it was well that they had no\nheart for their task, for with every muscle strained to the utmost the\ncrew of the second boat reached Mytilene only just in time.\n\nThe death sentence had already reached Paches, and he was preparing to\ncarry it out, when with a glad, triumphant shout the second boat swung\ninto the harbour, and the Mytileneans were saved.\n\nBut even so they paid heavily for their rebellion, for about thirty\nof their leading citizens were executed, their fleet was taken by the\nAthenians, and the walls of their city were destroyed.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXV\n\nBRASIDAS LOSES HIS SHIELD\n\n\nIn 425 B.C., the seventh year of the war, an Athenian fleet of about\nforty ships, under an admiral named Eurymedon, was forced by stormy\nweather to seek shelter on the promontory of Pylos in Messenia. Pylos\nstood on the Bay of Pylos, which you now know as the Bay of Navarino.\n\nTo give the men something to do until the storm allowed them to sail,\nDemosthenes, an officer on board one of the ships, bade them begin to\nbuild a fort. But it was not only to employ the men that he did this,\nbut because he believed that Pylos would make a good fortress from\nwhich to attack the western shore of Peloponnesus.\n\nAt first the men took little interest in the work, for they expected\neach day to leave Pylos. But as the storm continued, they began to work\nwith a will, and soon a fortress that looked fit to defy an enemy was\nfinished.\n\nIt had not been easy work, for the men had no iron tools. They could\nnot cut stones, but were forced to pick out those that fitted into each\nother.\n\nWhen mortar was needed they had to carry it on their backs, bending\nforward that it might not fall, and clasping their hands behind to help\nto keep it in place.\n\nAt length the storm was over and the fleet sailed away, leaving\nDemosthenes with five ships to hold the new fortress. Now the entrance\nto the Bay of Pylos was almost blocked by a narrow, thickly wooded\nisland called Sphacteria.\n\nThe Spartans soon heard that the Athenians had taken possession of\nPylos, which was on their territory. They determined to expel them,\nand an army under Epitadas was at once sent out and took possession\nof the wooded island of Sphacteria, while a Spartan fleet sailed into\nthe Bay of Pylos. On board one of the ships was a famous Spartan named\nBrasidas.\n\nDemosthenes had just time to send to Eurymedon to beg him to return\nwith his forty ships, when the Spartans sailed up to the promontory,\nmeaning to attack and capture the fort.\n\nBut it proved impossible to land. Again and again the Spartan admiral\nmade the attempt, but each time he was forced to withdraw, lest his\nships should be dashed upon the rocks.\n\nBrasidas refused to give in, and he bade his men wreck their vessels\nrather than be beaten back. \u2018Be not sparing of timber,\u2019 he cried, \u2018for\nthe enemy has built a fortress in your country. Perish the ships and\nforce a landing.\u2019\n\nSpurred on by his words, the men drove their ship upon the beach, while\nBrasidas stood fearlessly on the gangway ready to leap upon the shore.\nBut the Athenians saw the bold figure too well, and he became a target\nfor every arrow.\n\nAs he fell back wounded, his left arm hung helpless over the side of\nthe vessel and his shield slipped off and fell into the water. The\nwaves washed it toward the shore, whereupon the enemy dashed down to\nthe edge of the water and drew it in triumph up to the beach.\n\nAfter a desperate struggle the Spartans were forced to withdraw, and\nthe Athenians celebrated their victory by erecting a trophy of their\nspoils, placing, where every eye could see it, the shield of Brasidas.\n\nFor two days the Spartans still fought to gain the fortress, but in\nvain. On the third day, Eurymedon returned with the Athenian fleet, and\nas the Spartan ships did not come to meet him he sailed in at the two\nentrances to the bay of Pylos: for the openings had not been secured by\nthe enemy.\n\nA desperate battle took place. Many of the Spartan ships were empty,\nas their crews were on shore. The Athenians tried to drag away these\nempty vessels, so that the enemy would have no way of escaping from\nSphacteria.\n\nBut the Spartans knew that they must save their vessels at all costs,\nso they fought with redoubled fury and succeeded in rescuing most of\nthe deserted ships. Yet their efforts proved of little use in the end,\nfor though only five ships were captured, the rest of the fleet was so\ndamaged that the Athenians were left in possession of the bay. They at\nonce began to blockade Epitadas and his army in Sphacteria.\n\n[Illustration: He became a target for every arrow]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXVI\n\nTHE SPARTANS SURRENDER\n\n\nWhen Epitadas found that he was shut up on the island of Sphacteria,\nhe sent a messenger to Sparta to tell what had befallen him. The\nephors were so disturbed by his tidings that they at once sent some of\ntheir number to the Bay of Pylos to see what could be done to set free\nEpitadas and his men.\n\nThey soon saw that it would be too difficult a task to relieve the\nisland, so they begged Eurymedon to grant a truce until they sent\nambassadors to Athens to sue for peace.\n\nTheir request was granted, and the Spartan ambassadors at once set sail\nfor Athens.\n\nWhen they entered the assembly, Athens, had she but known it, might\nhave ended the war with honour. But Pericles was no longer there to\ntell her that to do so would be well. Cleon still ruled the assembly\nwith his rough eloquence. Nicias, the leader of those who desired\npeace, although he bitterly disliked Cleon, was not strong enough to\noverthrow him.\n\nThe assembly, urged by its leader, offered the Spartan ambassadors\nterms which it knew they would not accept. After rejecting them, as the\nAthenians expected, the ambassadors returned indignant to Pylos, and\nthe truce was at an end. But Sphacteria was not taken so easily as the\nAthenians had dreamed. In spite of the strict blockade, food was taken\nto the island, so that the Spartans were in no danger of starving.\n\nSometimes swimmers carrying with them linseed, poppy seeds and honey,\nreached the island. Sometimes Helots, tempted by promise of freedom,\nwould manage, when the sky was dark and the sea stormy, to sail past\nthe enemy\u2019s ships, taking cheese, meal and even wine to the Spartans.\n\nIn Athens, the people were growing impatient of the long blockade. When\nDemosthenes sent messengers to the city to ask for reinforcements, they\nbegan to be sorry that they had not offered more reasonable terms to\nthe ambassadors. They looked darkly at Cleon, and began to whisper that\nbut for his counsel peace would certainly have been made.\n\nA meeting of the assembly was called, and Cleon, losing his temper when\nNicias urged that peace should be arranged without delay, said, \u2018It\nwould be easy enough to take Sphacteria if our generals were men. If I\nwere general I would do it at once.\u2019\n\nNicias was a quiet man, but these scornful words roused him to anger,\nand he retorted that if Cleon thought he was able to take the island it\nwould be well that he should go and do so. He was himself a general,\nwhile Cleon was only a leather-merchant, but he was willing to resign\nin his favour.\n\nAt first Cleon thought that Nicias was but jesting, and he pretended\nthat he really wished to go to the help of Demosthenes. But when he\nfound that his opponent was in earnest, he declined the honour, saying\nthat while Nicias was a general, he himself had no training in military\naffairs.\n\nBut the people were not willing to let the leather-merchant escape the\nconsequences of his rash words. They shouted that he must go and prove\nthat he could do as he had said.\n\nWhen Cleon saw that there was no escape he grew reckless, and boasted\nthat he would not only go to Sphacteria, but that he would take the\nisland within twenty days, and either kill all the Spartans on it or\nbring them prisoners to Athens.\n\nSome there were who mocked at his words, others laughed. But all were\nglad that the merchant should go, for they were tired of his rough\nways and rougher speech. If he went he might return with his promise\nunfulfilled and his power with the people would then be lost. If he\ncame back in triumph, the Spartans would have been defeated.\n\nBefore long, Cleon set out at the head of an army for Pylos. When he\narrived he found Demosthenes already prepared to attack the island.\n\nA large part of the forest on Sphacteria had just been burned down\nby some Athenian soldiers. They had been sent to the island to\nreconnoitre, and while making a fire to cook their dinner the trees\nwere accidentally set alight.\n\nThe wood had sheltered the Spartans from the enemy, and the fire\nspoiled their chief defence, so that they were the less prepared to\nface the army of nearly fourteen thousand Athenians, which, led by\nCleon and Demosthenes, now landed on the island.\n\nOutnumbered as the Spartans were, for their army consisted of only\nabout four hundred and twenty soldiers and the same number of Helots,\nthey fought bravely as was their custom.\n\nBut the arrows of the Athenians soon greatly reduced their number,\nwhile to add to the distress of the wounded, as well as of those who\nhad escaped, the ground over which they marched was hot with still\nsmouldering ashes of burnt wood.\n\nAt length Epitadas, the Spartan general, was slain, and the few\nsoldiers who were still able to fight retreated to a hill on which was\nan old ruined fort. Here they took their stand, determined to keep the\nenemy at bay. And they did so until the Athenians found a path up a\nsteep crag, from the top of which they could command the Spartan fort.\n\nUnseen by the brave defenders, the enemy scaled the almost precipitous\npath, and when they reached the top they at once began to shoot arrows\ndown upon the startled soldiers.\n\nBut soon Cleon bade them stay their arrows while he sent a herald to\nthe Spartans to bid them surrender.\n\nSpartan troops had never yet yielded to a foe. Ever they had conquered\nor fought to the death. Cleon believed that now, as their brave fellows\nat Thermopylae had done, they would rather die than yield.\n\nBut the Spartans dropped their shields and waved their hands above\ntheir heads to show that they would cease to fight. They begged to\nbe allowed to ask the advice of their friends on the mainland. Their\nrequest was granted, and their friends bade them \u2018to take counsel for\nthemselves, but to do nothing disgraceful.\u2019\n\nTwo hundred and ninety-two Spartans, who were all that were still\nalive on Sphacteria, then surrendered, one hundred and twenty of these\nbelonging to the noblest families in Sparta. Never after this surrender\nwere the Spartans considered invincible.\n\nCleon was now able to return to Athens, which he reached within twenty\ndays from the time he left the city, bringing with him, as he had\nboasted that he would do, his Spartan prisoners.\n\nThe Athenians rejoiced at the success of their army, but they laughed\nas they thought of the strange general who had led it to victory.\n\nAs for the prisoners, they were glad to hold them as hostages. The\nSpartans would be less likely to invade Attica while their comrades\nwere in Athens.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXVII\n\nBRASIDAS THE SPARTAN\n\n\nThe Athenians were encouraged by the victory they had gained at\nSphacteria to hope for still greater success to their arms, and in 424\nB.C. they marched boldly into the country of Boeotia. At Delium they\nseized and fortified a temple, sacred to Apollo.\n\nNow the Boeotians were indignant with the Athenians for invading their\nland, but they were still more angry that they had dared to enter their\ntemple. They at once marched against the enemy and defeated them with\ngreat loss, but the temple was still left in the hands of the Athenians.\n\nAs was the custom in those days, the defeated generals asked the\nvictors to allow them to bury their comrades who had fallen on the\nbattlefield. But the Boeotians answered \u2018When you give us back our\ntemple you shall bury your dead.\u2019\n\nThe Athenians refused to do this, saying that Delium, the site on which\nthe temple stood, belonged to Attica, and they had a right to stay in\ntheir own land.\n\n\u2018If you are in your own land,\u2019 retorted the Boeotians, \u2018do as you wish\nwithout asking our consent.\u2019 It was easy to say this, for they knew\nthat the defeated army was not strong enough to defy them.\n\nWhen the invaders still refused to leave the temple, the Boeotians\ndetermined to drive them away by setting fire to the wooden barricades\nwith which the Athenians had fortified the temple.\n\nSo they took a large beam of wood, and scooping out the centre made\nit into a hollow tube. To one end they fastened, by an iron chain, a\nhuge caldron. In the caldron they placed charcoal and sulphur, while to\nthe other end of the tube they tied bellows, by which a strong current\nof air could be blown through to the other end. When this was done the\ncharcoal and the sulphur in the caldron were fanned into a great blaze,\nand the fortifications of the temple were soon on fire.\n\nThe Athenians tried to quench the flames in vain, and at length they\nwere forced to flee, leaving the temple to the triumphant Boeotians,\nwho no longer refused to let them bury their comrades.\n\nThe defeat of Delium was followed by many other disasters, and was the\nbeginning of the downfall of the empire of Athens.\n\nMeanwhile Brasidas had recovered from the wound that he had received at\nPylos.\n\nNever had there been so strange a Spartan as Brasidas. His countrymen\nspoke as little as possible, and what they did say they said in a\nbrief, concise manner. In later days such short, pithy speech was\ntermed laconic. This name was used because Sparta was also called\nLaconia. But Brasidas was not laconic, he spoke quickly and with ease,\nand while his comrades liked to do things in the way their fathers had\ndone, Brasidas loved new ways and bold adventures.\n\nSpartans were seldom liked by strangers, for they were rough, often\neven discourteous in their manner; but Brasidas had winning ways, and\nwherever he went he made friends. He was not only pleasant, he was also\njust, and strangers soon learned that his word could be trusted.\n\nThis was the man who was now sent with an army through Thessaly. The\ncountry was for the most part loyal to Athens, yet the Spartans reached\nMacedon unhindered.\n\nBrasidas had been told that the city of Acanthus was ready to fling\nopen her gates to him, but he found them guarded. He asked to be\nallowed to enter that he might tell the people why he had come to their\ncity, and they, won by his kind and simple manner, admitted him.\n\nHis first words pleased them, for he told them that he knew how\npowerful they were, and that if they refused to throw off their\nallegiance to Athens many other cities would be encouraged by their\nexample.\n\nIf they would trust themselves to Sparta, he promised that their city\nshould be free. \u2018But should you refuse,\u2019 and his voice grew stern, \u2018and\nsay that I have no right to force an alliance on a people against its\nwill, I will ravage your land, and force you to consent. And for two\nreasons will I do this. The tribute you pay to Athens injures Sparta by\nmaking her foe stronger, and your example will make other cities resist\nthe claims of Sparta.\u2019\n\nThe Acanthians were afraid that Brasidas would fulfil his threat and\ndestroy their fields, and trample on their grapes which were now ripe\nand ready to pluck, so they determined to trust Sparta and throw off\ntheir allegiance to Athens.\n\nBrasidas was pleased, for, as he had foreseen, other cities quickly\nfollowed the example of Acanthus.\n\nEncouraged by his success the Spartan general now determined to attack\nAmphipolis, an important town in Thrace, standing on the bank of the\nriver Strymon.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXVIII\n\nAMPHIPOLIS SURRENDERS TO BRASIDAS\n\n\nAmphipolis belonged to the Athenians, who had sent Thucydides and\nEucles to guard the city lest it should be attacked by the Spartans.\nThucydides had not only the city but a large district also to protect,\nand he was at this time stationed with his troops at some distance from\nAmphipolis, while Eucles was in the city itself.\n\nThe bridge over the Strymon, which led to the city, was carelessly\nguarded. So when, on a cold and wintry day, Brasidas reached the\nriver, he took the bridge without difficulty, making prisoners the few\nsoldiers who held it.\n\nMessengers were at once sent to Thucydides to tell him that the\nSpartans had seized the bridge, and to beg him to come as quickly as\npossible to protect the city. Before the day was over, Thucydides had\nreached Eion, at the mouth of the Strymon. But his speed was of no\navail, for Amphipolis had already surrendered, tempted by the easy\nterms that Brasidas had offered.\n\nWhen the Athenians heard that the city was lost, they were indignant\nwith Thucydides, and chiefly through the influence of Cleon, who\ndisliked him, he was sent into exile.\n\nThe punishment was severe, but Thucydides was not idle during his\nbanishment. He travelled from place to place, and everywhere he went\nhe paid great attention to the ways of the people and to the manner\nin which their cities were governed. He himself wrote, \u2018Associating\nwith both sides, with the Peloponnesians quite as much as with the\nAthenians, because of my exile, I was thus enabled to watch quietly the\ncourse of events.\u2019\n\nAfter having studied the \u2018course of events,\u2019 Thucydides began to write\nabout the Peloponnesian war, and he became the greatest of all the\nhistorians of Greece.\n\nAfter the surrender of Amphipolis in 424 B.C., city after city forsook\nits allegiance to Athens. Scione did not even wait for the Spartans\nto demand admission, they opened their gates and begged Brasidas to\nenter. His presence pleased the people well, and when he had spoken to\nthem their enthusiasm knew no bounds. They sent for a crown of gold\nand placed it on his head, calling him the \u2018liberator of Hellas.\u2019 Many\nof the people, too, cast garlands over him as they were used to do to\nvictors at a race.\n\nUntil now Brasidas had fought loyally for the sake of his country, but\nafter the crown of gold had rested on his head he grew more ambitious\nto win fame for himself than glory for his country. It was his ambition\nthat made him now do all that he could to keep Sparta from making peace\nwith Athens, as she wished to do.\n\nCleon, too, was eager that the war should continue, not in order to win\nrenown for himself, but rather that Athens might regain the empire that\nBrasidas was snatching from her grasp.\n\nTwo years after the surrender of Amphipolis, Cleon urged the Athenians\nto make an effort to retake the city. His rough eloquence persuaded\nthem to undertake the task. He was himself appointed general, and was\nsent to Thrace at the head of a large army.\n\nAs he marched through the country he took several towns before he\nreached Eion, at the mouth of the river Strymon.\n\nHere he halted, meaning to wait for reinforcements. But his soldiers\nhad little respect for their general. Was he not after all only a\nleather-merchant? What could he know about war? And they clamoured to\nbe led at once against the enemy. Cleon did not dare to refuse to do\nas his army wished, and he ordered his whole force to march toward\nAmphipolis to find out the strength of the enemy.\n\nBrasidas was encamped with his army on the top of a hill, near to the\ncity, from which he could watch every movement of the enemy.\n\nWhen he saw the Athenians approaching, he ordered his men to march into\nthe town where the Spartan Clearidas was now governor.\n\nCleon at once supposed that Brasidas had taken shelter within the walls\nof Amphipolis so as to avoid a battle. Feeling no longer anxious, he\nleft his army near the city, but not drawn up ready for battle, and\nhimself rode carelessly forward to look at the surrounding country.\n\nMeanwhile some Athenian soldiers heard the restless movement of men and\nhorses within the walls, others looking under the gates saw many feet\ngathering together. It was clear that preparations were being made by\nthe Spartans to sally out and attack them.\n\nA messenger was sent in haste to find Cleon. The general no sooner\nheard the report than he hurried back to his army, and commanded it at\nonce to retreat toward Eion. To do this the Athenians had to march past\nAmphipolis with their right sides unprotected, for their shields were\ncarried always on their left arm, which was now the farthest from the\nwalls of the city.\n\nThe men had no confidence in their general, and they began to retreat\nin disorder. From within the city, Brasidas was watching with keen eyes\nthe movements of the enemy. Suddenly he cried, \u2018These men will never\nwithstand our onset. Look at their quivering spears and nodding heads.\nMen who are going to fight never march in such a fashion as this. Open\nthe gates at once that I may rush on them forthwith.\u2019\n\nSo the gates of the city were flung open and out dashed Brasidas\nfollowed by his men, as he charged right into the centre of the\nAthenian army. The left wing, seized with panic, fled. Clearidas\nmeanwhile led a body of men against the right wing, and a fierce\nstruggle followed.\n\nCleon, less at home on a battlefield than in the assembly at Athens,\ngrew frightened at the unusual sights and sounds, and fled, leaving his\narmy without a leader. As he fled an arrow pierced him and he fell to\nthe ground, wounded to death.\n\nBrasidas also, as he turned to go to the help of Clearidas, was\nwounded. His followers carried him within the walls of the city. He\nlived long enough to know that the Athenians were utterly defeated.\n\nThe people of Amphipolis had learned to love Brasidas, and he was\nburied with great splendour in the market-place. A temple was built to\nhis honour, and every year sacrifices were offered and games were held\nin memory of the brave soldier.\n\nSo deep was the affection of the people that they determined to forget\nthat their city had been founded by an Athenian, and henceforth to\ncount Brasidas the Spartan the true founder of Amphipolis.\n\nAs Cleon and Brasidas were both dead, the peace party, with Nicias at\nits head, was able to arrange terms with the king of Sparta, and in\nspring, 421 B.C., the Peace of Nicias was signed. The first part of the\nPeloponnesian War, which had begun ten years before, was ended.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXIX\n\nALCIBIADES THE FAVOURITE OF ATHENS\n\n\nThe Peace of Nicias, which was made for fifty years, did not last more\nthan six. Thucydides tells us that it did not really last even so long.\nFor although for six years neither Spartans nor Athenians invaded each\nother\u2019s land, yet they did as much harm as they could to one another.\n\n\u2018So that,\u2019 says the wise historian, \u2018if any one objects to consider it\na time of war, he will not be estimating it rightly.\u2019\n\nAlmost as soon as peace was signed, Sparta and the State of Argos\nquarrelled. Each wished to get help from Athens, so each sent\nambassadors to her. The Argives boldly begged Athens to join them\nagainst Sparta; the Spartans were content to remind her that she had\nsigned the Peace of Nicias.\n\nIn Athens at this time there was a rich young noble named Alcibiades,\nwho wished the Athenians to make an alliance with the Argives.\n\nBut the Spartan ambassadors had already been welcomed by the Athenians,\nbecause they had come with full power to arrange fair terms. Alcibiades\nwas as determined as he was angry. To gain what he wished he resolved\nto play a trick on the Spartan ambassadors. So he went to them in\nsecret, and told them how foolish they had been to tell the Athenians\nwhat great powers they had, for the assembly would certainly wrest from\nthem more than they wished to give.\n\n\u2018When the assembly meets, tell the people,\u2019 said Alcibiades, \u2018that you\nhave no power, but that you will send their demands to the Spartan\ncouncil. I will support you and all will be well, for you will have\ntime to think over their wishes.\u2019\n\nThe ambassadors thought that the young noble knew better than they\nhow his countrymen should be treated, and they promised to follow his\nadvice.\n\nSo when the assembly met the next day, the Spartans declared that they\nhad come only to report what the Athenians should say, that they had no\npower to arrange terms until they had heard from their own council.\n\nNo sooner had they spoken than Alcibiades jumped to his feet, and to\nthe dismay of the ambassadors he pointed to them with scorn, saying,\n\u2018These men say one thing one day, and another thing the next day; they\nare not to be trusted. Let us refuse to have anything more to do with\nthem.\u2019\n\nThe Athenians at once agreed with Alcibiades that it was useless to\ntreat with such unreliable ambassadors, and they then made an alliance\nwith the Argives.\n\nWhen the Spartans reached their own country they told how they had\nbeen deceived by Alcibiades, and how rudely they had been treated by\nthe assembly. And this, as well as the alliance which the Athenians\nhad made with the Argives, was the cause of the second part of the\nPeloponnesian War.\n\nThe Spartans were thirsting to avenge the battle of Sphacteria, and to\nwipe out the memory of their surrender. When they met the Athenians in\n418 B.C. at Mantinea they fought with the courage and the fierceness\nthat had made them invincible until the fatal day of Sphacteria.\n\nAlcibiades, whose trick had been the cause of so much mischief, was the\nson of an Athenian, named Clinias.\n\nWhile Alcibiades was still young his father died, and Pericles became\none of his guardians. He was a beautiful baby, a handsome boy, and when\nhe grew to be a man he was so brave and so winning in his ways that he\nmade friends very easily.\n\nBut he made enemies as well as friends, for he was wild and wayward,\nwhile his pride often made him behave with scant courtesy even to those\nwhom he should have treated with reverence and respect.\n\nStaid, sensible folk were shocked at his careless, extravagant ways.\nNicias distrusted him. But the citizens loved him and forgave him much,\nfor he spent his wealth freely among them, and often entertained them\nwith public shows.\n\n\u2018They love and hate and cannot do without him,\u2019 wrote Aristophanes, as\nhe watched the Athenians now cherishing, now chiding, their favourite.\n\nOne day, he was a mere lad at the time, he was wrestling with a\nplaymate, when, thinking he was going to be thrown, he suddenly bit his\ncompanion\u2019s hand with all his strength. His friend quickly let go his\nhold, crying, \u2018You bite, Alcibiades, like a woman.\u2019\n\n\u2018No,\u2019 answered the boy, \u2018like a lion.\u2019\n\nAnother day he was throwing dice in the street with his playmates, when\na wagon pulled by two horses approached. It was the turn of Alcibiades\nto throw, and he shouted to the driver to stop, but the man paid no\nheed to the boy and drove on. The other children scampered out of the\nway, but the wilful little noble flung himself down in front of the\nhorses and cried to the driver to go on now if he pleased.\n\nAfraid lest he should hurt the boy the man at once pulled up his\nhorses, while those who had been looking on in terror rushed forward\nand dragged the foolish little fellow out of danger. But Alcibiades had\nmade the driver pull up and he was content.\n\nHis want of self-control became greater as he grew older. When he was\nat a grammar school he one day asked the schoolmaster to lend him one\nof Homer\u2019s books. The master said that he did not possess it, whereupon\nthe rude boy struck him and then turned and walked away. Some years\nlater he struck a citizen whose talent in the theatre had outshone his\nown.\n\nWhen he was a young man he walked into the assembly with a pet quail\nhidden under his cloak. This would have raised a storm of indignation\nhad it been done by anyone else.\n\nIn the law court one of Alcibiades\u2019 friends was accused, when the\nfavourite at once seized the writ and tore it in pieces before the face\nof the judge.\n\nThe young nobleman was rich, and much of his wealth he spent on horses.\nHe sent seven chariots to the Olympic games, and once, to the great\ndelight of the Athenians, their favourite won the first, second, and\nthird prizes.\n\nEuripides, the poet, sang of the triumph of Alcibiades in these lines:\n\n \u2018But my song to you,\n Son of Clinias, is due.\n Victory is noble; how much more\n To do as never Greek before;\n To obtain in the great chariot race\n The first, the second, and third place;\n With easy step advanced to fame,\n To bid the herald three times claim\n The olive for one victor\u2019s name.\u2019\n\nAt one time Alcibiades owned a very large, handsome dog, for which he\nhad paid an enormous price. He ordered his tail, which Plutarch tells\nus was \u2018his principal ornament,\u2019 to be cut off.\n\nHis friends said that it was a stupid deed, and told him that every\none in Athens was angry that he had spoiled the noble appearance of\nhis dog. But Alcibiades only laughed, saying, \u2018Just what I wanted has\nhappened then. I wished the Athenians to talk about this, that they\nmight not say something worse of me.\u2019\n\nIt was natural that so reckless and generous a youth should be\nsurrounded by a crowd of flatterers, ready to applaud his foolish and\nsometimes insolent acts.\n\nBut Alcibiades had no love for these careless admirers, although he\nwould spend hours with them at feasts and revels. His affection he gave\nto one whom you would scarcely have expected the gay young nobleman to\nnotice--to Socrates, the great philosopher and teacher of Athens.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXX\n\nSOCRATES THE PHILOSOPHER\n\n\nSocrates was born in 469 B.C. He was not a noble like Alcibiades, but\na man of humble birth. Nor was he handsome as was his disciple, but\nplain, even ugly, the people said. He was small, too, and dressed with\nlittle care.\n\nIf anyone wished to find the philosopher, he knew that he had only to\ngo to the market-place or into the streets. Here, from early morning\nuntil late at night, Socrates was to be seen, and always he was\ntalking, talking to all who were willing to listen. And there were ever\nmany who were not only willing but eager to hear what the teacher had\nto say, for his words were so wise, his conversations so strange.\n\nSocrates believed that the gods had sent him to teach the Athenians.\nFrom his boyhood he had heard a voice within him, bidding him to do\nthis, not to do that. He often spoke of this voice to those who became\nhis disciples. It became known as the d\u00e6mon of Socrates.\n\nThe philosopher was a soldier as well as a teacher, and his philosophy\ntaught him how to endure hardship as well as or even better than could\nthe ordinary Athenian.\n\nIn heat or in cold he wore the same clothing, and in all weathers he\nwalked with bare feet. He ate little and drank less whether he was in\nthe camp or in the city.\n\nXanthippe, the wife of Socrates, had not a good temper, and she would\noften scold the philosopher. That may have been because while he was\nteaching wisdom in the market-place, Xanthippe was at home wondering\nhow to provide food for her husband and their children with the few\ncoins she possessed. Socrates was never paid by his disciples, and so\nit often happened that Xanthippe found it difficult to get food and\nclothing for her household.\n\nThe philosopher taught for many years, but at length, in 399 B.C., his\nenemies accused him of speaking against the gods of Athens. He had\neven dared, so they said, to speak of new gods whom the people should\nworship, and that was a crime worthy of death.\n\nSocrates took little trouble to defend himself against the accusations\nof his enemies. His d\u00e6mon, he said, would not allow him to plead for\nhis life. So he was condemned to death, but only by a majority of five\nor six votes out of six hundred.\n\nFor thirty days Socrates was in prison, and he spent the time\nin talking to his friends just as he had been used to do in the\nmarket-place.\n\nOne of his disciples, named Crito, bribed the jailer to allow his\nprisoner to escape, but Socrates refused to flee. He did not fear\ndeath, but faced it calmly as he had faced life.\n\nOn the day before the sentence was carried out, he talked quietly to\nhis disciples of the life to which he was going, for he believed that\nhis soul, which was his real self, would live after he had laid aside\nhis body as a garment.\n\nWhen the cup of hemlock, a poisoned draught, was brought to him, his\nfriends wept, but he took the cup in his hand, and drank the contents\nas though it were a draught of wine.\n\nHis last words to Crito were to remind him to pay a debt. \u2018Crito, we\nowe a cock to Asclepius,\u2019 he said. \u2018Discharge the debt and by no means\nomit it.\u2019 Asclepius was the god of medicine, and in this way Socrates\nshowed his reverence for the religious customs of his country.\n\n[Illustration: He drank the contents as though it were a draught of\nwine]\n\nThis was the man who found in Alcibiades, despite his wild ways, a\nnoble mind and a kind heart. These he determined to educate. And\nhis pupil was quick to see that Socrates spoke truth to him. He soon\nlearned to appreciate his kindness and to stand in awe of his virtue.\nSometimes, indeed, the words of his master \u2018overcame him so much as to\ndraw tears from his eyes, and to disturb his very soul.\u2019\n\nSo dear did the philosopher become to Alcibiades that he often lived\nin the same tent with him and shared his simple meals. Yet sometimes\nhe was tempted by his flatterers when they begged him to come to spend\nthe days in pleasure and the nights in feasting. Then he would yield to\ntheir entreaties and for a while desert and even avoid his master.\n\nBut the philosopher did not leave his pupil unchecked to do as he\nwished. He \u2018would pursue him as if he had been a fugitive slave.... He\nreduced and corrected him by his addresses, and made him humble and\nmodest, by showing him in how many things he was deficient, and how\nvery far from perfection in virtue.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXI\n\nALCIBIADES PRAISES SOCRATES\n\n\nOne of the most famous disciples of Socrates was Plato. He loved his\nmaster well, and wrote down many of his conversations, so that his\nwords may still be read.\n\nIn a book, named the _Symposium_, Plato tells us that Socrates and his\nfriends met at a banquet one day and spoke to each other in praise of\nlove.\n\nWhen it came to Alcibiades\u2019 turn to speak, he was eager to tell of the\nlove he had for Socrates. He began by begging the others not to laugh\nif he said first of all that Socrates was like the images of the god\nSilenus, which they had often seen in the shops of Athens.\n\nNow Silenus was a satyr, a strange figure that was half man, half goat.\nIn his mouth were pipes and flutes upon which he played, while his\nimages were made to open, and within each might be seen the figure of a\ngod.\n\nAs the gay company thought of the uncouth figure of the satyr, at which\nthey had often stared in shop windows, they could not but laugh at\nAlcibiades for comparing his master to such an image.\n\nBut when the young nobleman went on to speak of the god that was hidden\nin Socrates, just as the image of one was concealed in the body of the\nsatyr, it may be that the laughter of the gay company was hushed. For\nin truth the disciple could say no greater thing about the master he\nloved than this, that within him he bore the likeness of a god.\n\nBut Silenus was not the only satyr that reminded Alcibiades of his\nmaster. Marsyas, a wonderful flute-player also made him think of\nSocrates. For, said Alcibiades, \u2018Are you not a flute-player, Socrates?\nThat you are, and a far more wonderful performer than Marsyas. He\nindeed with instruments used to charm the souls of men by the power of\nhis breath. But you produce the same effect with your voice only, and\ndo not require the flute; that is the difference between you and him.\u2019\n\nPericles, and other great Athenian orators, Alcibiades had heard, he\nsaid, unmoved, while Socrates\u2019 words, \u2018even at second hand and however\nimperfectly repeated, amaze and possess the souls of every man, woman\nand child who comes within hearing of them.\u2019\n\nAlcibiades then told his astonished listeners how his master\u2019s\neloquence held him as with chains of gold.\n\n\u2018This Marsyas,\u2019 he says, \u2018has often brought me to such a pass that I\nhave felt as if I could hardly endure the life which I am leading ...\nand I am conscious that if I did not shut my ears against him, and\nfly from the voice of the siren, he would detain me until I grew old,\nsitting at his feet. For he makes me confess that I ought not to live\nas I do, neglecting the wants of my own soul, and busying myself with\nthe concerns of the Athenians; therefore I hold my ears and tear myself\naway from him.\u2019\n\nSo greatly did the words of Socrates disturb Alcibiades that sometimes\nhe even wished that his master were dead and could trouble him no more,\nand \u2018yet I know,\u2019 he adds quickly, \u2018that I should be much more sorry\nthan glad if he were to die; so that I am at my wit\u2019s end.\u2019\n\nBut it was not only his master\u2019s eloquence that Alcibiades praised\nbefore the gay company of revellers, it was his deeds as well.\n\nDuring the Peloponnesian War both Socrates and Alcibiades were present\nat the siege of Potid\u00e6a.\n\n\u2018There we messed together,\u2019 said Alcibiades, \u2018and I had the opportunity\nof observing his extraordinary power of sustaining fatigue and going\nwithout food. In the faculty of endurance he was superior not only to\nme, but to everybody; there was no one to be compared to him, yet at a\nfestival he was the only person who had any real power of enjoyment.\u2019\n\n\u2018Cold, too,\u2019 Alcibiades said, \u2018Socrates could bear without flinching.\nThe winter at Potid\u00e6a was severe, the frost intense. The Athenian\nsoldiers stayed indoors when they could; when they were forced to be\nout they put on as many extra clothes as they could find, their feet\nthey swathed in felt and fleeces.\u2019\n\nBut Socrates, \u2018with his bare feet on the ice and in his ordinary dress,\nmarched better than the other soldiers who had shoes, and they looked\ndaggers at him, because he seemed to despise them.\u2019\n\nYet another tale of his endurance Alcibiades told to the listening\ncompany.\n\n\u2018One morning,\u2019 he said, \u2018Socrates was thinking about something which he\ncould not resolve; he would not give it up, but continued thinking from\nearly dawn until noon--there he stood, fixed in thought; and at noon\nattention was drawn to him, and the rumour ran through the wondering\ncrowd that Socrates had been standing and thinking about something ever\nsince the break of day. At last, in the evening, after supper, some\nIonians out of curiosity (it was now summer) brought out their mats\nand slept in the open air that they might watch him, and see whether\nhe would stand all night. There he stood all night until the following\nmorning, and with the return of light he offered up a prayer to the sun\nand went his way.\u2019\n\nNot even yet had Alcibiades exhausted the praises of his master, and\nthe gay company listened spell-bound and bewildered to the young noble.\nThey had not guessed how well he loved, how gravely he had studied the\nwords and ways of Socrates. Now it was of the courage of his master\nthat he wished to tell, for Socrates had saved his life in battle.\n\n\u2018This was,\u2019 said Alcibiades, \u2018the engagement in which I received the\nprize of valour; for I was wounded and he would not leave me, but he\nrescued me and my arms; and he ought to have received the prize of\nvalour which the generals wanted to confer on me, partly on account of\nmy rank, and I told them so (this Socrates will not impeach or deny),\nbut he was more eager than the general that I and not he should have\nthe prize.\u2019\n\nWhen the Athenians fled after the defeat of Delium, the young nobleman\nwas on horseback, and being himself safe, he watched Socrates, who was\namong the foot-soldiers.\n\n\u2018There you might see him,\u2019 said Alcibiades, \u2018just as he is in the\nstreets of Athens, stalking like a pelican, and rolling his eyes,\ncalmly contemplating enemies as well as friends, and making very\nintelligible to anybody even from a distance that whoever attacked him\nwould be likely to meet with a stout resistance; and in this way he and\nhis companions escaped.\u2019\n\nWith one more tribute to his master, Alcibiades ended his discourse on\nlove:\n\n\u2018His absolute unlikeness to any human being that is or ever has been is\nperfectly astonishing. His are the only words which have a meaning in\nthem, and also the most divine, ... extending to the whole duty of a\ngood and honourable man. This, friends, is my praise of Socrates.\u2019\n\nYou will be glad to know that Socrates valued the love of his disciple\nand returned it.\n\n\u2018I only love you,\u2019 said the philosopher, \u2018whereas other men love what\nbelongs to you; and your beauty, which is not you, is fading away, just\nas your true self is beginning to bloom. And I will never desert you,\nif you are not spoiled and deformed by the Athenian people: for the\ndanger which I most fear is that you will become a lover of the people,\nand will be spoiled by them. Many a noble Athenian has been ruined in\nthis way.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXII\n\nTHE IMAGES OF HERMES ARE DESTROYED\n\n\nIn the island of Sicily there were many different states. In some\nof these dwelt Greeks who owned Corinth as their mother-city. Trade\nbetween Sicily and Corinth was good, and because of this Corinth was\ngrowing more powerful than Athens liked.\n\nWar broke out in 416 B.C. between Segesta and Selinus, two cities in\nthe west of Sicily. When Selinus was joined by another town named\nSyracuse, the Segestans in dismay sent to the Athenians to ask for\ntheir help.\n\nIt had long been the ambition of Alcibiades to conquer Sicily. He\nbelieved, too, that it would add to the glory of Athens if the island\nbecame part of the Athenian empire.\n\nSo he now urged the assembly to send a fleet to Sicily, reminding them\nthat if it could conquer Syracuse, it would then be in its power to\nruin the trade of Corinth with Sicily.\n\nHe did not tell the Athenians how great his ambitions were, but he told\nthem enough to make them wish to help the Segestans, that they might in\nthis way gain new territory for Athens.\n\nThe assembly made up its mind to send ambassadors to Segesta, to find\nout if the town was able, as she said she was, to provide money to\ncarry on the war, if the Athenians provided soldiers.\n\nWhen the ambassadors returned in the spring of 415 B.C. they brought\nback with them a sum of money from the grateful Segestans. They\nreported, too, that the wealth of the city was far greater than they\nhad dreamed. But although the ambassadors did not know until too late,\nthey had been deceived by the townsfolk.\n\nFor the rich plate and splendid ornaments with which the Segestans had\nadorned each feast to which the ambassadors had been invited, were\ntaken secretly from house to house. So that the gold and silver dishes\nthat dazzled the eyes of the Athenians were always the same, although\nthey believed that each of their hosts owned the splendid dishes with\nwhich his table was laden.\n\nThe sacred treasures of their temples, too, the Segestans pretended\nwere of gold, while in reality they were of silver.\n\nBut the ambassadors were convinced that the people they had visited\nwere rich, and their report made the Athenians ready to do as\nAlcibiades and his party wished. So it was agreed that sixty vessels\nshould be sent to the help of Segesta.\n\nNicias, bent as ever on peace, did all he could to hinder the\nexpedition. But when, in spite of all he could say, the assembly still\ndetermined to send a fleet to Sicily, he persuaded it at least to\nincrease the number of ships from sixty to a hundred. Nicias himself,\nalong with Lamachus and Alcibiades, was appointed commander of the\nexpedition.\n\nBut the night before the fleet was to sail a strange event took place.\n\nAll over the city, at the corner of streets, in some niche of a public\nbuilding, in front of the houses of the citizens, stood statues or\nbusts of the god Hermes, on short pedestals or pillars.\n\nThese figures were reverenced by the Athenians, just as the image\nof the Madonna by the roadside or in villages and towns abroad is\nworshipped by Roman Catholics.\n\nOn the night before the expedition the statues of Hermes were chipped\nand broken, so that the god could no longer be recognised.\n\nIn the morning as the Athenians went along the streets of the city,\nbent on their usual business, these poor defaced images stared them\nin the face. Little groups gathered at street corners, before public\nbuildings, wherever they had been used to see the statues of Hermes. At\nfirst they gazed at their mutilated god in fear, but fear soon changed\nto anger.\n\nWho had dared to do this impious thing, they asked one another.\nIt would surely bring down the wrath of the gods on the Sicilian\nexpedition.\n\nIt was perhaps natural that the people should suspect their favourite\nAlcibiades. Was he not often reckless and ever a mischief maker? They\nwere too excited to remember that he was not likely to do anything to\ndelay the expedition on which his heart was set.\n\nWhen he heard that the people thought that he had defaced the images,\nAlcibiades demanded to be brought to trial. But no proof had yet been\nfound of his guilt, and it was decided that the fleet should sail, and\nthat Alcibiades should go with it.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXIII\n\nALCIBIADES ESCAPES TO SPARTA\n\n\nA great crowd gathered at the Pir\u00e6eus to see the fleet set sail for\nSicily. Groups clustered together, talking eagerly of the new empire\nthat was to be won in the West, and the glory that Athens would gain\nfrom her conquests. It was a noisy, happy crowd.\n\nSuddenly the heralds called for silence, and a hush fell upon the\nlight-hearted folk as the priests prayed to the gods for the success of\nthe expedition. Sacrifices, too, were offered by officers and sailors\nalike. Then to the strain of a hymn, in which the crowd of onlookers\njoined, the anchors were raised and the fleet sailed slowly away.\n\nWhen the ships reached Sicily each commander had a different plan to\npropose.\n\nNicias, having learned how the ambassadors had been deceived, wished\nto sail homewards, without helping the Segestans. Lamachus, a brave,\nblunt soldier, wished to sail at once to Syracuse, and take the city\nby a sudden attack. Alcibiades proposed that they should do nothing\nuntil they had made allies of those cities that were not friendly to\nSyracuse, and to this plan the other commanders at length agreed.\n\nMeanwhile two ships from Athens had followed Alcibiades to Sicily, for\nthe assembly had determined to arrest him, and bring him home to be\ntried for the destruction of the images of Hermes.\n\nAlcibiades went quietly on board one of the ships, but he knew that if\nhe went back to Athens he would be condemned to death. So daring a deed\nas the spoiling of their god was more than the Athenians could forgive\neven to their favourite. And there were many who believed he was guilty.\n\nSo when the ship reached a seaport town in Italy, Alcibiades slipped\non shore and escaped from his enemies. In his absence the Athenians\ncondemned him to death and confiscated his property, while the curses\nof the gods were called down upon his head.\n\nAlcibiades was very angry when he heard what his countrymen had done,\nand in his wrath he cried, \u2018I will make them feel that I am alive.\u2019\nAnd he fulfilled his threat. For he went at once to the Spartans, the\nenemies of his own country, and told them the plans of the Athenian\ngenerals. He bade them send a clever general, named Gylippus, with an\narmy to Syracuse, to help the city to withstand the attacks of the\nAthenians. He also advised them to build a fort at Decelea, a town in\nAttica, and to send troops there to harass the Athenians as much as\npossible.\n\nTo betray his country in this way would have been an unworthy deed for\nany Athenian; it was the more unworthy in Alcibiades, because he had\nlearned from Socrates the true meaning of honour and righteousness.\n\nThe Spartans were eager to profit by the advice of the traitor, and\nthey saw for themselves the wisdom of his words. But in their hearts\nthey did not trust the man who had betrayed his country.\n\nAlcibiades stayed in Sparta for some time, and while he was there he\ntried to win the confidence of the people by doing as they did.\n\n\u2018People who saw him wearing his hair cut close, bathing in cold water,\neating coarse meal and dining on black broth, doubted or rather could\nnot believe that he had ever had a cook in his house, or had even seen\na perfumer or had worn a mantle of purple.\u2019\n\nIt was said that Alcibiades was like a chameleon; because just as it\ncan change its colour as it chooses, so could the Athenian change his\ndress and his customs as he willed.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXIV\n\nTHE SIEGE OF SYRACUSE\n\n\nNicias and Lamachus now determined to attack Syracuse without delay.\n\nThey succeeded in seizing the high ground which joined the town to the\nmainland of Sicily. Across this ground they began to build a wall,\nmeaning to cut the Syracusans off from help by land. The Athenian fleet\nthen sailed into the harbour of Syracuse, that so no help might reach\nthe city by sea.\n\nBut before the wall was finished, two things had happened to frustrate\nthe plans of the Athenians.\n\nThe Syracusans did not mean to let the enemy finish the wall if they\ncould prevent it, so they sailed out of the city to drive them away. In\nthe struggle which followed Lamachus was killed, and Nicias was left\nalone to carry on the siege.\n\nBut what was perhaps even worse for the Athenians than the death of\ntheir general, was the arrival of Gylippus the Spartan commander.\n\nAlmost before the Athenians were aware, Gylippus, at the head of his\ntroops, marched into Syracuse. Nor did he rest until he had driven them\nfrom the hill on which they were encamped, and forced them to take up\ntheir position close to the harbour.\n\nNicias was ill, and his illness made him more hopeless than perhaps he\nwould otherwise have been. He wrote to the assembly to tell it that the\nSpartans had wrested from the Athenians all that they had gained, and\nthat they were now themselves in danger of being besieged.\n\nThe fleet, he said, had been drawn up on the beach for months, and\nwould have to be repaired before it was seaworthy. Even then it would\nbe difficult to man the vessels, for many of the crew had died and many\nmore were out of practice.\n\nSo faint of heart was the Athenian general that, at the end of his\ngloomy report, he urged that the whole enterprise should be given up,\nor if not, that at least a new fleet might be sent out without loss of\ntime. For himself he begged that he might be recalled, as he was ill\nand unfit for his duties.\n\nThe assembly refused this last request, but it sent a new fleet to his\nhelp, commanded by Eurymedon and Demosthenes.\n\nMeanwhile Gylippus was not idle. He attacked the Athenians both by land\nand sea. By land he was victorious, but at sea he was defeated.\n\nUndaunted, he at once ordered that the bows of the Spartan vessels\nshould be made heavier and shorter. When this had been done he again\nattacked the enemy\u2019s fleet, and when the battle ended Gylippus held the\nentrance to the harbour.\n\nThe Athenians were now in great peril, for they were besieged both by\nland and sea. They could not leave the harbour unless they cut their\nway through the fleet of the victorious Syracusans, and this they had\nno courage to attempt.\n\nBut on the day after the battle which had seemed to seal their fate,\nhope awoke once more in the Athenian ranks, for the new fleet, under\nEurymedon and Demosthenes, came in sight.\n\nThe new commanders at once determined that the hill above Syracuse\nmust be retaken. So on a moonlight night the attempt was made. But\nalthough a band of Athenians gained the hill, took a fort and repulsed\nsix hundred of the enemy, they were soon afterwards put to flight. Many\nof the soldiers flung away their shields, as they were driven down\nthe hill, and fell over the cliffs. Others were pushed back upon their\ncomrades who were still climbing upwards, so that soon the whole army\nwas in confusion.\n\nThis disaster crushed the spirit of the Athenians. Many of the\nsoldiers, too, had fever caused by the marshy ground on which their\ncamp was pitched. Many more were ill or wounded.\n\nEurymedon and Demosthenes advised Nicias to order the whole army\nto sail away before the entrance to the Great Harbour was entirely\nblockaded, but to this he would not consent. It seemed that he was\nafraid to return to Athens to tell that the expedition had failed.\n\nDemosthenes then urged Nicias at least to leave the harbour and sail to\na point where their supplies could not be stopped by the enemy. This\ntoo, Nicias refused to do.\n\nBut soon after his refusal, large reinforcements reached the Spartans,\nand the general\u2019s obstinacy gave way. He ordered the fleet to prepare\nto leave the harbour.\n\nThe men were glad to desert their unhealthy quarters and got ready in\nhaste, but secretly, that the Syracusans might not suspect their plans.\n\nAll was ready, when, on 27th August 413 B.C., the night before the\nfleet was to sail, an eclipse of the moon took place.\n\nNicias was filled with superstitious fears. What might the eclipse not\nportend? He sent to the soothsayers, who said that the fleet must on no\naccount leave the harbour for twenty-seven days. To disobey the oracle\nwould be fatal, so Nicias believed, and he at once forbade the fleet to\nsail until the twenty-seven days had passed.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXV\n\nTHE ATHENIAN ARMY IS DESTROYED\n\n\nThe Athenians made their preparations to retreat as secretly as\npossible, but the Syracusans soon discovered their plans. When they\nheard that their departure was delayed for twenty-seven days, they\ndetermined to attack the Athenian fleet once more, and again they were\nsuccessful.\n\nOn land the Athenians repulsed Gylippus, but they gained little by\nthis success, for the Syracusans had made up their mind that the whole\nAthenian army should be destroyed.\n\nSo, as Demosthenes had foreseen, they barricaded the entrance to the\nGreat Harbour, drawing their ships across it and lashing them together\nwith chains.\n\nNicias saw that a battle must be fought, and he ordered a great number\nof the land troops to go on board the fleet. At all costs he must\nstrengthen his navy.\n\nThe first thing the Athenians had to do was to break through the ships\nthat were lashed together at the mouth of the harbour. But before the\nchains could be broken the enemy was upon them, surrounding them on\nevery side. Despair gave the Athenians courage, and so desperately did\nthey fight that for a time it seemed that they might yet escape.\n\nAbove the crash of vessels rose the cheers or groans of those who\nwatched the battle from the shore.\n\nThucydides gives us a picture of the hopes and fears, the triumph and\ndespair of those who fought as of those who watched. He says:\n\n\u2018The fortune of the battle varied, and it was not possible that the\nspectators on the shore should all receive the same impression of it.\nBeing quite close and having different points of view, they would\nsome of them see their own ships victorious; their courage would\nthen revive, and they would earnestly call upon the gods not to take\nfrom them their hope of deliverance. But others, who saw their ships\nworsted, cried and shrieked aloud, and were by the sight alone more\nutterly unnerved than the defeated combatants themselves.\n\n\u2018Others again who had fixed their gaze on some part of the struggle\nwhich was undecided were in a state of excitement still more terrible;\nthey kept swaying their bodies to and fro in an agony of hope and\nfear, as the stubborn conflict went on and on; for at every instant\nthey were all but saved or all but lost. And while the strife hung in\nthe balance, you might hear in the Athenian army at once lamentation,\nshouting, cries of victory or defeat, and all the various sounds which\nare wrung from a great host in extremity of danger.\u2019\n\nAt length the Athenians were pushed back and yet further back, until\nthe fleet was stranded on the shore. The soldiers who had been left on\nland now rushed forward and succeeded in saving sixty of their ships\nfrom the enemy.\n\nDemosthenes urged the men to embark and try once again to cut their way\nout of the harbour, but they refused, so crushed were they by their\ndefeat. To retreat by land was all that the Athenians could now try to\ndo, yet in their hearts they knew that the retreat must end in slavery\nor in death.\n\nThe sick and the wounded were left behind. But those who were stricken\nwith fever, caused by the marsh land on which they had been encamped,\nclung to their comrades, and scarce knowing what they did, begged that\nthey might not be left behind. But their strength soon failed, and they\nsank down by the wayside to die.\n\nNicias, ill as he was, did all in his power to encourage and cheer his\nmen. He himself led the van, Demosthenes brought up the rear.\n\nAfter marching for several days, the Athenians were parched with\nthirst. When at length they reached a stream, it was to find the enemy\nawaiting them on the farther bank.\n\nBut their thirst was intolerable, and paying no heed to the foe, the\nsoldiers rushed to the water. As they stooped to drink, the Syracusans\nfell upon them and put them to death.\n\nDemosthenes and his men had fallen behind the rest of the army, and had\nalready been forced to surrender. Nicias now saw that he, too, must\nsubmit to Gylippus.\n\nSeven thousand prisoners were sent by the Spartans to work in stone\nquarries. These quarries were like dungeons, but they were open to the\nsky, and during the day the scorching sun beat down piteously on the\nmiserable prisoners, while at night the cold was so intense that sleep\nwas impossible.\n\nHere they were kept for seventy days, with only enough food to keep\nthem alive, and with scarcely any water to drink. Many of the men died,\nthose who survived were sold as slaves.\n\nNicias and Demosthenes were both put to death. It is said that they\nwere tortured, although Gylippus did all he could to save them from the\nangry Syracusans. Thus in disaster and defeat ended the expedition that\nsailed forth so bravely from Athens two years before.\n\nThucydides says that this expedition was \u2018the greatest adventure\nthat the Greeks entered into during this war, and, in my opinion,\u2019\nhe adds, \u2018the greatest in which the Greeks were ever concerned; the\none most splendid for the conquerors and most disastrous for the\nconquered, for they suffered no common defeat, but were absolutely\nannihilated--land-army, fleet and all--and of many thousands only a\nhandful ever returned home.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXVI\n\nALCIBIADES RETURNS TO ATHENS\n\n\nAlcibiades fled from the Athenians to Sparta, but he did not stay there\nlong, for he soon grew tired of living as simply and frugally as the\npeople of that country. He had, too, made an enemy of one of the kings\nof Sparta, so in the autumn of 412 B.C. he fled to Miletus in Asia\nMinor, where Tissaphernes, the Persian governor, ruled for the great\nking.\n\nTissaphernes was a cruel man, but he was easily pleased by flattery.\nAlcibiades soon discovered the governor\u2019s weakness, and he determined\nto win his favour by his agreeable speeches. He succeeded so well that\nthe Persian named some of his parks and pavilions Alcibiades, in honour\nof the eloquent Athenian.\n\nThe luxury and ease with which the Persians were surrounded pleased\nAlcibiades after his course of Spartan fare and discipline, and he\nindulged for a time in even greater magnificence than did Tissaphernes.\nHis anger against the Athenians had gradually grown less vehement, and\nhe now began to wish that they would forget their hatred of him and\nrecall him from exile.\n\nBut they had little thought to spare for the traitor, for troubles were\npouring in upon them on every side. They had but lately heard of the\ncomplete overthrow of their fleet and army in Sicily, and they were\nnow building a new fleet with money which Pericles had put aside long\nbefore, lest at any time Attica should be invaded by sea.\n\nThe Spartans, too, were still at Decelea, where they had built a fort,\nnot fourteen miles from the city. Town after town that had been allied\nwith Athens in the time of her prosperity now became her enemy.\n\nIn their despair the Athenians had taken a desperate step--they had\nasked their old enemies the Persians to come to their aid.\n\nIt was then that Alcibiades saw an opportunity, as he thought, to help\nthe people whom he had so cruelly betrayed, and at the same time to\nplease the Persians.\n\nSo he sent a message to the Athenians to say that if they would place\nthe government of Athens in the hands of a party named \u2018The Four\nHundred,\u2019 he would be able to persuade Tissaphernes to make an alliance\nwith them. For his master, the great king, would make no terms with\nAthens as long as she was a democracy.\n\nThe Athenians followed Alcibiades\u2019 advice, and the government of the\ncity was entrusted to The Four Hundred for a short time. But Alcibiades\nhad not so much influence as he had believed, and the Persian\ngovernment still refused to help the Athenians.\n\nPartly perhaps in anger with Tissaphernes, partly because the Athenians\nwere not satisfied with the rule of The Four Hundred, Alcibiades helped\nto overthrow them and to make Athens once again a democracy.\n\nSo grateful were the people for his help, that they declared his exile\nwas at an end, and bade him return to Athens.\n\nBut although Alcibiades longed to go back to Athens, he was content\nto wait until he could return covered with glory. By his own request\nhe was given the command of a few ships, and with these he set sail\nfor the Hellespont. Mindarus, the Spartan admiral, with a large army\nwas there, hoping to stop the corn supply of Athens on its way to the\ncity from the Black Sea. If the corn supply was stopped, Athens would\nstarve, and Mindarus knew that the city would then soon be in the hands\nof the Spartans.\n\nThe Athenian fleet was in three divisions, and the one commanded by\nAlcibiades passed the Hellespont unseen by the enemy and took Mindarus\nby surprise.\n\nBy land and sea desperate battles were fought, and in both the\nAthenians were victorious. Mindarus was slain, and the Spartan fleet\nwas destroyed. The Hellespont was not blocked, and Athens was no longer\nin danger of starving.\n\nThe Spartans in their own laconic way sent a brief message to Sparta to\ntell of their defeat. The despatch was seized by the Athenians before\nit reached its destination. This is what the victorious people read:\n\u2018The ships are gone; Mindarus is slain; the men are starving; we know\nnot what to do.\u2019\n\nFor two years, from 409 B.C. to 407 B.C., Alcibiades stayed at the\nHellespont retaking cities which had thrown off their allegiance to\nAthens and joined Sparta. Then feeling that now he might return with\nglory, he set sail for Athens.\n\nPlutarch tells us that as Alcibiades drew near to the Pir\u00e6us he was\nafraid to venture on shore, until he saw friends waiting to welcome him:\n\n\u2018As soon as he was landed the multitude who came out to meet him\nscarcely seemed so much as to see any of the other captains, but came\nin throngs about Alcibiades and saluted him with loud acclamations, and\nstill followed him; those who could press near him crowned him with\ngarlands, and they who could not come up so close, yet stayed to behold\nhim afar off, and the old men pointed him out and showed him to the\nyoung ones.\u2019\n\nIn the assembly, crowns of gold were placed on his head, and he was\ncreated general, with absolute power, over both the land and the sea\nforces.\n\nHis estates were given back to him, and a \u2018holy herald\u2019 was bidden to\nabsolve him from the curses which had been pronounced against him.\n\nThe high priest alone refused to obey, for he said, \u2018If he is innocent,\nI never cursed him.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXVII\n\nANTIOCHUS DISOBEYS ALCIBIADES\n\n\nThe king of Persia was not pleased with his governor Tissaphernes,\nbecause he had made an alliance with neither the Athenians nor the\nSpartans. So he now sent his younger son Cyrus to take the place of\nTissaphernes, bidding him make terms with the Spartans.\n\nLysander was now in command of the Spartan fleet. He was as brave and\nas skilful an admiral as Brasidas had been, although he could not win\nthe trust of strangers as his famous countryman had done. But he gained\nthe affection of his men and cared for their welfare.\n\nCyrus invited Lysander to a feast and tried to bribe him to join the\nPersians, but in vain.\n\nThe Persian prince then offered to give him whatever he chose to ask.\nLysander wished nothing for himself, but, to the surprise of all who\nwere present, he begged that the daily wage of his sailors might be\nincreased.\n\nIn September 407 B.C., the Spartan sailed with his fleet close to the\nharbour of Ephesus. About the same time, Alcibiades, with the Athenian\nfleet, arrived at Notium, from which port he could watch the movements\nof the enemy.\n\nAs he had little money with which to pay his men, he determined to\nleave the fleet in charge of his pilot, Antiochus, while he, taking\nwith him a few ships, sailed away to plunder a neighbouring city. In\nthis way he hoped to find the money that he needed. Alcibiades strictly\nforbade Antiochus to risk a battle.\n\n[Illustration: The multitude saluted him with loud acclamations]\n\nNo sooner, however, had the admiral gone than the pilot disobeyed his\norders, and with a number of ships he sailed past the Spartan fleet,\nchallenging Lysander to fight.\n\nThe Spartan in reply merely sent a few vessels to drive away the\nreckless pilot, but the ships that had been left at Notium soon noticed\nthat Antiochus was being chased, and they at once hastened to join him.\n\nIn a short time the two fleets were engaged in battle. Antiochus was\nslain, and fifteen of the Athenian ships were taken or sunk. Those\nthat escaped sailed to Samos, where Alcibiades soon joined them. He\ndetermined, if it were possible, to avenge the punishment the Spartans\nhad inflicted on the Athenian vessels, so he sailed to Ephesus and\noffered battle to Lysander. But the Spartan had won a great victory and\nhe did not mean to risk a defeat. He refused to fight again.\n\nAlcibiades still had enemies in Athens, and they were so angry with\nhim for having left the charge of the fleet to Antiochus that they\nclamoured for his command to be taken from him. The assembly was forced\nto yield to them, and Alcibiades was deposed, while the command was\ngiven to an Athenian named Conon.\n\nThe admiral then fled to a city on the Hellespont, where he had long\nago bought a castle, lest at any time he should need a place of refuge\nfrom his enemies.\n\nConon, the new commander, gained a great victory, at the island of\nArginus\u00e6, on the coast of Asia. After the victory a storm arose, and a\ndozen Athenian vessels which had been disabled in the battle went down\nwith all their crews on board.\n\nNo attempt was made to rescue the unfortunate sailors, and eight\nAthenian generals were ordered to come home to be tried for neglect of\nduty. Six only obeyed.\n\nThe assembly met and condemned the generals, but their sentence was\nleft undetermined. On the day after the trial a festival was held in\nthe city, at which solemn family gatherings took place.\n\nWhen the relations of those who had perished at Arginus\u00e6 appeared, clad\nin black, their number roused the people to fresh fury against the\ncondemned generals.\n\nThe assembly met shortly afterwards, and one of the members demanded\nthat the people should vote without delay, and if the generals were\nfound guilty that they should be put to death.\n\nNow the generals had not yet finished their defence; moreover, there\nwas a law in Athens that prisoners should be judged and sentenced one\nat a time.\n\nAt first the assembly wished to obey this law, but the mob was so\nfierce that it yielded, and pronounced sentence of death on all the\ngenerals at once. To each was brought a cup of hemlock.\n\nSocrates was present in the assembly, and he was not afraid to denounce\nthe sentence as unlawful. Nor would he withdraw his protest in face of\nthe angry crowd. This was a brave deed, such as you would expect from\nthe great philosopher.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXVIII\n\nTHE WALLS OF ATHENS ARE DESTROYED\n\n\nThe last battle of the Peloponnesian War was fought in the Hellespont\nin 405 B.C. The Athenians had drawn up their ships near a desolate spot\nnamed \u00c6gospotami, and they soon found that it was an awkward place from\nwhich to get provisions for the army. There were no houses near, from\nwhich they could demand help, so the sailors were forced to leave their\nships and scour the country round about for food. So dreary was the\nspot that the Athenians longed to fight at once.\n\nBut Lysander was in a strong position on the other side of the strait;\nhe had, too, a plentiful supply of food, so that he did not mean to let\nhimself be forced into a battle.\n\nAgain and again the Athenians sailed across the strait, hoping to tempt\nthe Spartans to fight, but Lysander refused to move.\n\nAs the weeks passed, the Athenians grew careless of an enemy that\nseemed too lazy or too cowardly to fight. They left their ships\nwell-nigh unguarded, and wandered over the country in large numbers in\nsearch of food.\n\nAlcibiades, from his castle not far off, saw that the Athenians were\nin a dangerous position, and that they were leaving their ships\nunprotected. He rode over to \u00c6gospotami to warn the generals to seek\na safer position. At Sestos, a town but two miles off, they would be\nbetter able to defend themselves from the Spartans, should they be\nattacked. They would also be able to command provisions.\n\nBut the generals did not wish to listen to Alcibiades, and their pride\nforbade them to follow his advice. They spoke rudely to him, telling\nhim to be gone, that now not he but others had the command of the\nforces.\n\nThe very day after Alcibiades had warned them, the Athenians, leaving\ntheir ships for the most part unmanned, set out to search the\ncountryside for food.\n\nLysander knew how the enemy usually spent the afternoons. Now that they\nhad grown heedless of danger he determined to attack the forsaken ships\nwithout further delay.\n\nSo he ordered his vessels to row quickly across the strait and he\nfound, as he expected, the Athenian fleet utterly unprepared for battle.\n\nThere was indeed no battle fought, for the Spartans easily captured one\nhundred and seventy ships, and took more than four thousand prisoners,\namong whom were three or four admirals.\n\nConon alone, with eight ships, succeeded in escaping. But he dared not\nreturn to Athens with tidings of the disaster, for he knew that if he\ndid so he would be condemned to death. So he sent a ship to carry the\nterrible news to the city.\n\nIt was evening when the vessel reached Pir\u00e6us.\n\n\u2018The noise of wailing spread all up the Long Walls into the city, as\none passed the tidings on to another; that night no one slept.\u2019 For now\nthere was no fleet to hinder the Spartans from stopping the supply of\ncorn, and the Athenians knew that they must starve or surrender.\n\nFor a little while the city refused to yield. But she had no allies, no\nships, no money, and no corn could enter the town. The wretched people\nwere dying of hunger before Athens surrendered to the Spartans in March\n404 B.C.\n\nShe expected no mercy from her conqueror. Even as she had destroyed\nmany a Spartan town, so she thought that now she herself would be\nutterly ruined.\n\nBut Sparta proved less harsh than Athens had deemed was possible. The\ncity was indeed to be \u2018rendered harmless for ever, but not destroyed.\u2019\n\nAll that was left of her fleet was taken away, and the walls of Pir\u00e6us\nand the walls leading to Athens were pulled down.\n\nLysander stood near, looking on, as the Athenians and the Spartans\ntogether began to break down the walls.\n\nIt was not so gloomy a scene as you might have expected. Perhaps the\nAthenians were glad that at length the long and desperate struggle had\ncome to an end. Flute players and dancers were present, and added a\nstrange touch of gaiety to the crowd.\n\nSoon after the surrender of Athens, Lysander was ordered to put\nAlcibiades to death, lest he should encourage the Athenians at any time\nto throw off their allegiance to Sparta.\n\nPlutarch tells us that \u2018those who were sent to assassinate him had not\ncourage enough to enter the house, but surrounded it first and set it\non fire.\n\n\u2018Alcibiades, as soon as he perceived it, getting together great\nquantities of clothes and furniture, threw them upon the fire to choke\nit, and having wrapped his cloak about his left arm, and holding his\nnaked sword in his right, he cast himself into the middle of the fire,\nand escaped securely through it, before his clothes were burnt.\n\n\u2018The barbarians, as soon as they saw him, retreated, and none of them\ndurst stay to wait for him, or to engage with him, but, standing at a\ndistance, they slew him with darts and arrows.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXIX\n\nTHE MARCH OF THE TEN THOUSAND\n\n\nIn 404 B.C., soon after the disaster of \u00c6gospotami, Darius, king of\nPersia, died. His eldest son Artaxerxes succeeded to his father\u2019s\nthrone.\n\nCyrus, the younger son, who was present at his father\u2019s death, was\naccused by Tissaphernes of trying to secure the throne for himself.\n\nArtaxerxes believed Tissaphernes, and Cyrus was arrested, and would\nhave been put to death had not his mother pleaded that his life might\nbe spared.\n\nThe king listened to his mother\u2019s request and set his brother free.\nHe even allowed him to govern the provinces that had been his in his\nfather\u2019s lifetime.\n\nBut Cyrus felt no gratitude to his brother, he hated him, and was\ndetermined if it were possible to seize his throne.\n\nSo he hired a large number of Greek soldiers, for now that there was\npeace between Athens and Sparta, many of them were idle and glad to\ntake service under Cyrus.\n\nThe prince pretended that he was going to fight against Tissaphernes,\nand no one save himself and the Spartan, Clearchus, who was the leader\nof the Greeks, knew that the army was going to Babylon to fight against\nArtaxerxes, king of Persia.\n\nAmong the Greek soldiers was Xenophon, a scholar and a pupil of\nSocrates, who wrote the story of this expedition.\n\nEarly in 401 B.C., Cyrus assembled his troops at Sardis. When they\narrived at Tarsus, a city on the coast of Cilicia, the soldiers began\nto suspect that Cyrus was going to lead them against Artaxerxes. They\nwere not afraid of the great king, but they were afraid to leave the\nsea behind them, for that was ever a terrible thing to the Greeks. So\nthey refused to march farther.\n\nClearchus, who was a stern commander and no favourite with his men,\ntried in vain to quell their rebellion, but all his efforts were vain.\nNot a step forward would they march.\n\nHe had used his authority and failed, now he resolved not to command\nbut to persuade. So he called his men together again, and as he looked\nat them he wept.\n\nTheir grim, stern commander shedding tears! The soldiers stared at him\nin open-eyed wonder.\n\nThen Clearchus bade them see in how difficult a position they had\nplaced him, for he must either fail Cyrus or forsake them. Forsake\nthem he could not, so he declared, for were they not \u2018his country, his\nfriends, and his allies\u2019?\n\nThese words pleased the soldiers well, but what pleased them even more\nwas that when Cyrus sent to ask their commander to go to his tent, he\nrefused to go.\n\nBut they were less content when Clearchus reminded them that as they\nrefused to follow Cyrus, they could no longer expect him to give them\nfood or wages. What, he asked them, did they mean to do?\n\nAll that they could do was to send a few of their number to the prince\nto ask him where he intended to lead them.\n\nCyrus answered that he was taking them to the river Euphrates, to fight\nagainst a Persian rebel, and at the same time he offered to increase\ntheir wages if they would obey Clearchus.\n\nThe Greeks were far from home, and not knowing what else to do, they\nagreed to follow their commander. But they did not trust Cyrus,\nand they still suspected that he wished to march beyond the river\nEuphrates. And when they reached the river their suspicions proved\ntrue, for Cyrus told them plainly that he was going to Babylon to\ndethrone his brother Artaxerxes.\n\nAs the Euphrates was unusually shallow, the army was able to cross over\non foot, and soon afterwards it was in the desert of Arabia.\n\nXenophon tells us that the desert was \u2018smooth as a sea.\u2019 There were no\nlarge trees in all the great expanse, but there were many shrubs that\nhad a pleasant scent.\n\nThe soldiers did not find the march across the desert dull, for they\nsaw many strange beasts, unlike any they had ever seen--wild asses,\nostriches, antelopes,--and these they hunted with zest.\n\nWhen the desert lay behind them they found themselves in a land where\nfields had been dug and gardens tended. Here, too, a little before\nthem, was Artaxerxes, with a great army, ready to fight to the death\nfor his crown.\n\nThe king was encamped at a place called Cunasc\u00e6, where in the summer of\n401 B.C. a battle was fought. Strange as it may seem, before a blow was\nstruck, the Persians were seized with panic and turned to flee. Only\nTissaphernes at the head of the cavalry stood firm.\n\nCyrus with a small body of men, about six hundred in number, dashed\nupon the centre of the army, for there, surrounded by six thousand\nhorsemen, was Artaxerxes. The guards scattered before his fierce\nattack, and the king turned to fly with them.\n\nThen Cyrus, careless of aught save his desire to slay his brother, and\ngain his crown, galloped after him, attended by only a few of his own\nbodyguard.\n\nAs he drew near to the king, he hurled a javelin at him and wounded him\nslightly. Almost at the same moment Cyrus himself was wounded in the\neye, and shortly after he fell from his horse and was slain.\n\nCyrus was dead, and ten thousand Greek soldiers were left alone with\ntheir generals in a strange land, surrounded by enemies. Tissaphernes\npretended to be a friend to the Greeks, and offered to guide them\nsafely home. So the two armies set out together, but before long the\nGreek soldiers grew suspicious of the Persians. To reassure the men,\nTissaphernes invited Clearchus and his captains to his tent.\n\nThe Greek general accepted the invitation, and, never dreaming of\ntreachery, he went to the Persian\u2019s tent with four other generals,\ntwenty captains and a few soldiers.\n\nNo sooner had they entered than the captains and soldiers were seized\nand put to death by the order of Tissaphernes. Clearchus and the other\ngenerals were loaded with chains and sent to the king. Artaxerxes\ncommanded that they, too, should be put to death.\n\nThe Persians believed that the Greek army would now be forced to\nsurrender. For, alone in an unknown land, without a leader, how could\nthey hope to reach their own country?\n\nBut the greatness of their danger roused the courage of the Greeks.\nXenophon, who was at the time only a young man, made an eloquent speech\nto the army, bidding them choose new generals and obey them, for in\nthis way only could they hope to escape from their enemies.\n\nThe men did as he advised, choosing Xenophon himself as one of the new\ngenerals.\n\nAnd now began the retreat of the ten thousand through untold\ndifficulties. To go back the same way as they had come was impossible,\nfor the roads would be guarded by the Persians. So they turned to the\nnorth and marched through a wild and barren country, where fierce\nhillmen held the narrow passes through which they must pass.\n\nSometimes the savage tribes hurled down upon them from the heights\ngreat pieces of rock, and the soldiers lived in dread of being crushed\nto death by their unseen foes.\n\nWhen they reached Armenia it was December and bitterly cold. They were\novertaken by a snowstorm so severe that many of the men lost their way.\nIn vain they tried to rejoin their comrades, and at length, utterly\nworn out, they stumbled into great snowdrifts or lay down on the road\nto die.\n\nStill the army struggled bravely on, in the face of the biting north\nwind, until at length it reached a tributary of the river Euphrates.\nThis they crossed in safety, to find that most of their difficulties\nwere over, for soon after they reached a city called Gymnias.\n\nGymnias was a prosperous mining town, and the inhabitants welcomed the\nten thousand gladly and gave them food and shelter, after they had\nheard of the terrible difficulties through which the men had come.\n\nBut the soldiers did not linger long at Gymnias. They were eager to set\nout again, for a guide promised that in five days he would bring them\nto the sea.\n\n\u2018On the fifth day the Greeks came to a hill, and when the van reached\nthe summit a great cry arose. When Xenophon and those at the rear heard\nit they thought that an enemy was attacking in front; but when the cry\nincreased as fresh men continually came up to the summit, Xenophon\nthought it must be something more serious, and galloped forward to the\nfront with his cavalry.\n\n\u2018As he drew near he heard what the cry was--\u201cThe Sea, the Sea.\u201d\u2019\n\nA few days more and the ten thousand were on Greek soil. Here they\nrested for a month, offering glad sacrifices of thanksgiving to Zeus,\nwho had brought them back in safety to their own land.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXX\n\nPELOPIDAS AND EPAMINONDAS\n\n\nWhen Sparta heard that Artaxerxes had been able neither to force the\nten thousand to surrender nor to slay them, she thought that his army\ncould not be very powerful. So, confident in her own strength she went\nto war against the great king, dreaming that she would conquer Persia\nand add it to her dominions.\n\nBut instead of conquering the country, the Spartans were so often\ndefeated that, in 387 B.C., they were willing to make peace on any\nterms which Artaxerxes chose to make.\n\nAnd the king saw to it that the terms were severe, for he demanded that\nthe Greek cities in Asia, which had now been free for ninety years,\nshould once again acknowledge him as their lord.\n\nTo those Greeks who loved their country truly, it seemed better to\nfight to death than to accept such terms. Nor will you wonder at this\nas you read the proud words in which the king couched his demands.\n\n\u2018King Artaxerxes thinks it just,\u2019 he wrote, \u2018that the Greek cities in\nAsia should belong to him. He also thinks it just to leave all the\nother Grecian cities both small and great independent, except three\ncities which are to belong to Athens as of old. Should any parties\nrefuse to accept this peace I will make war upon them, along with those\nwho are of the same mind, both by land and sea, with ships and with\nmoney.\u2019\n\nThe states of Greece accepted these terms, which were carved on stones\nand placed in their temples, so that it could be seen by all that\nGreece was no longer free.\n\nAlthough Sparta had been defeated by the Persians, she was the most\npowerful state in Greece. Wishing to add to her possessions, she\ndetermined to seize the little town of Thebes, which at this time was\nfriendly with Athens.\n\nThe two governors of Thebes, Leontiades and Ismenias, did not get on\nwell together. Leontiades disliked his colleague so bitterly that he\nwas ready even to betray his city, if by doing so he could injure\nIsmenias.\n\nIn September 382 B.C. a Spartan army, led by a general named Ph\u0153bidas,\nchanced to be marching through B\u0153otia. Not far from the walls of Thebes\nthe soldiers halted to rest.\n\nLeontiades thought this was the opportunity for which he had been\nwaiting. He would be able to get rid of Ismenias with the help of the\nSpartans. They had already determined to seize the town, but this the\ntraitor did not know. He went secretly to the camp, asked for Ph\u0153bidas,\nand was admitted to the general\u2019s tent. He at once offered to open the\ngates of Thebes to the Spartans on the following day.\n\nIt would be an easy matter to seize the citadel if the gates were\nopened, for on the morrow a festival kept by women alone was to be held\nthere, while at noon the men would be in their houses dozing during the\nhottest part of the day.\n\nThe Spartan general was as eager to take the city as Leontiades could\ndesire, and the traitor slipped back to the city thinking of nothing\nsave that Ismenias would soon be out of his way.\n\nAt noon on the following day, the Spartans marched to the gates of\nThebes, and there, according to his compact, was Leontiades waiting to\nadmit them. Silently he drew the keys from under his cloak, unlocked\nthe gates, and Ph\u0153bidas at the head of two thousand men entered the\ncity. They made their way at once to the citadel, took possession of\nit, and made the women, who were keeping the festival, prisoners.\n\nBefore long the men of Thebes roused themselves from their noontide\nnap, to find, to their dismay, that their wives and daughters were in\nthe hands of the Spartans.\n\nLeontiades ordered his rival Ismenias to be arrested, and soon after\nthe miserable governor was sent to Sparta and cruelly put to death.\n\nThree hundred Thebans, who were determined not to submit to Sparta,\nsucceeded in escaping from the city and reaching Athens. Many who\nwished to flee did not dare to do so, lest in their absence harm should\nbefall their wives and daughters.\n\nLeontiades was rewarded for his treachery by being still allowed to\nrule in Thebes, along with a Spartan general. So harshly did Leontiades\nuse his power that the people hated him, but years passed before the\ntyrant\u2019s power was wrested from him.\n\nDuring these years those who had fled to Athens often heard from the\nmiserable Thebans of the hardships they suffered under the stern rule\nof Leontiades.\n\nAmong the exiles was a young nobleman named Pelopidas. Often he would\ntell his fellow exiles that it was dishonourable to dwell in comfort in\nAthens while their city was not free, and he would urge them to march\nagainst the Spartans, and banish them from Thebes.\n\nPelopidas had a great friend in Thebes named Epaminondas. And although\nthe two friends did brave deeds not only for their city, but for\nGreece, they are remembered most of all for the great love they bore\neach to the other.\n\nBoth were of noble birth, but Pelopidas was rich, while Epaminondas was\npoor. Pelopidas had a generous nature, and used his money to help those\nwho were not so well off as he was. Even among his friends many were\nquick to accept his kindnesses, but Epaminondas would never take from\nhim either gold or gifts.\n\nPelopidas resolved that if Epaminondas would not share his wealth, he\nwould share his friend\u2019s poverty. So he bade his slaves lay aside his\nsoft, silk robes, that he might clad himself in garments as simple as\nthose of Epaminondas. He would allow no rich dishes to be set before\nhim at table, but he ordered that his food should be both plain and\nscanty. In the camp he endured hardships as a common soldier, in war he\nshowed himself bold as a lion.\n\nThe friends were clever and well-trained, both in mind and body, but\nPelopidas was often to be found in the fields, while Epaminondas was\nlistening to lectures.\n\nEach longed to serve his country well, but no touch of jealousy\ndisturbed the beauty of their friendship. It was founded deep on\nreverence and love.\n\nSome years before the treachery of Leontiades, when the Spartans were\nat war with Athens, the Thebans had sent a troop of soldiers to the\naid of Sparta. Among the soldiers were the two friends Pelopidas and\nEpaminondas.\n\nThe company with which the Theban soldiers fought was beaten, and many\nfled from the field. But Pelopidas and Epaminondas joined their shields\ntogether and fought on bravely. Pelopidas was wounded seven times, and\nat length, faint with the loss of blood, he fell to the ground.\n\nEpaminondas thought that his comrade was dead, but he resolved that the\nenemy should have neither the arms nor the body of his friend. So he\nstood over him with his shield, willing rather \u2018to die than forsake his\nhelpless Pelopidas.\u2019\n\nSoon Epaminondas himself was so severely wounded that he was no longer\nable to defend the body of his friend. Had not the king of Sparta\nchanced to see his danger, and with a few followers dashed to his\nrescue, he would have been slain by the foe. But the king carried off\nboth Epaminondas and Pelopidas, who was then found to be still alive.\n\nPelopidas recovered, although his wounds had been severe, and never did\nhe forget that it was his friend who had saved his life.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXI\n\nTHE SEVEN CONSPIRATORS\n\n\nThree years passed before the Theban exiles, encouraged by Pelopidas,\nformed a plot to deliver their city from the Spartans.\n\nThey were helped in their plans by Phyllidas, a Theban who had stayed\nin the city and become secretary to the Spartan governors Archias and\nPhilippus. He had taken this position under the enemy that he might be\nable the better to help his own countrymen. He agreed with Pelopidas\nthat the time to act had now come.\n\nEpaminondas was also in Thebes, but he would have nothing to do with\nthe plot. He would fight when the time for fighting came, but to slay\neven tyrants unawares was not to his liking.\n\nPelopidas and six other exiles did not share the scruples of\nEpaminondas. They disguised themselves as farmers or country folk, and\none evening reaching Thebes as it began to grow dark, they slipped one\nby one at different times into the city. They then found their way to\nthe house of a citizen named Charon, who had promised to shelter them.\n\nSnow was falling and the streets were nearly deserted, so that the\nreturn of the exiles was unnoticed.\n\nOn the following day, Archias and Philippus were to be present at a\ngreat banquet. Phyllidas, the secretary, had promised to bring to the\nfeast seven beautiful Theban women. He told no one that the promised\nguests were the seven exiles, who had resolved to don a second disguise\nto enable them to be present at the banquet.\n\nThe day of the feast passed slowly for the conspirators, but at length\nevening came, and the exiles were putting on the garments that were to\nmake them appear like beautiful women, when a loud knock came to the\ndoor.\n\nAlready the long day had tried them sorely, and the knock filled them\nwith foreboding.\n\nWhen the door was opened their hearts beat quicker, for there stood a\nsoldier who bade Charon come to the banqueting hall without delay.\n\nHad Charon betrayed them? The exiles looked uncertainly one at the\nother. Then they grew ashamed of their distrust and bade their host\nhasten to Archias to allay his suspicions, if indeed they had been\naroused.\n\nCharon was brave and true and he knew that the lives of the seven men\nwere in his hand. He hoped that they trusted him, yet he wished to\ndispel any doubt that they might have. So he hastened to the nursery of\nhis little son, and carrying the child to Pelopidas, he placed him in\nhis arms, saying, \u2018If you find me a traitor, treat the boy as an enemy\nwithout any mercy.\u2019\n\nBut the exiles protested, and truly, that they trusted him well and\nneeded no such hostage, while Pelopidas bade him take the child back to\nhis nurse.\n\nThen Charon, staying only to ask the help of the gods, hastened to the\nbanqueting hall.\n\nArchias and his secretary were awaiting him, and Archias said, \u2018I have\nheard, Charon, that there are some men just come lurking into the town.\nWe fear lest they have come to stir up the citizens.\u2019\n\n\u2018Who are they? Where are they hidden?\u2019 asked Charon. For he wished to\nfind out how much Archias knew.\n\nBut Archias knew nothing. It was but a rumour that had reached him.\n\n\u2018Do not disturb yourself because of a rumour,\u2019 said Charon, who had now\nno fear of discovery. \u2018There are many tales told in the market-place.\nBut I will find out if there is truth in what you have heard.\u2019\n\nArchias was glad to leave the matter to Charon, for he was impatient\nto go back to the feast. So Charon hastened back to his house to tell\nPelopidas and his comrades that their fears were needless, for Archias\nsuspected nothing.\n\nBut although Charon did not know it, a letter was at that moment being\nplaced in the hands of Archias that might easily have ruined both him\nand the conspirators. For it told Archias the whole plot, as well as\nthe names of those who were to take part in it.\n\nThe letter had been sent from Athens, and as the messenger handed it\nto the Spartan governor, he said, \u2018The writer of this desired that it\nmight be read at once; it is on urgent business.\u2019\n\nBut Archias could think of nothing that night save the banquet and the\nbeautiful Theban women, who should now soon arrive.\n\nThrusting the letter unopened under the cushion on which his head\nrested, Archias cried, a smile upon his face, \u2018Urgent business\nto-morrow.\u2019 And these words were ever after used as a proverb by the\nGreeks.\n\nThe conspirators had now reached the hall. Their beautiful dresses were\nwide and loose, for beneath their splendour they wore armour. On their\nheads were garlands of pine and fir, so that their faces might not be\nseen.\n\nArchias and his guests clapped their hands gleefully. Here at last were\nthe beautiful Theban women whose presence Phyllidas had promised should\ngrace the banquet.\n\nBut in a moment the conspirators had torn off their disguise. Archias\nand Philippus were slain almost before they had time to realise their\ndanger, while the guests who had rushed to their aid were also put to\ndeath.\n\nPelopidas and his comrades then hastened to the house of Leontiades.\nBut he heard them knocking at the door, and when they rushed into his\nroom a few seconds later, he met them with his sword drawn, and slew\nthe first man who entered.\n\nA terrible struggle then took place between Leontiades and Pelopidas,\nbut at length the traitor was wounded to death.\n\nThe conspirators then ran to the prison, ordered the gates to be\nopened, and the prisoners to be set free and armed, for their only\ncrime had been loyalty to their city.\n\nAs day began to dawn, troops from Athens poured into the city to help\nthe Thebans. The Spartans fought fiercely, but after a few days the\ngarrison was forced to surrender, and once again Thebes was free.\n\nThe grateful citizens then assembled in the market-place, where the\npriests crowned Pelopidas and Charon, while the people appointed them\ngovernors of the city.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXII\n\nTHE BATTLE OF LEUCTRA\n\n\nThebes had always been a dull, unambitious, little town, but now her\nambition awoke. She was not content only to be free, she wished to\nbecome the most important town in B\u0153otia.\n\nAnd there was one of her citizens who was so great a soldier and so\nwise a statesman, that he was able to do for Thebes more than she\ndreamed. Epaminondas not only made Thebes the chief city in B\u0153otia, but\nseveral years later, he conquered the Spartans, and so made her the\nmost important town in Greece.\n\nPelopidas, too, fought for the glory of his country. He became the\ncaptain of a band of three hundred young Thebans, who had sworn to\ndefend their city with their lives.\n\nThese three hundred soldiers, more strictly trained than other youths,\nwere named the Sacred Band, because each member was a friend to the\nother. As they had sworn to defend their city so they had promised to\nstand by one another unto death.\n\nAfter many victories, of which you will read, the Sacred Band fell on\nthe battlefield. Even their conqueror, as he looked upon them shed\ntears, saying, \u2018Perish any man who suspects that these men either did\nor suffered anything that was base!\u2019\n\nFor two years after Thebes won back her freedom, Sparta never ceased to\ntry to wrench it from her. But at the end of two years she was forced\nto leave the Thebans alone, for all her soldiers were needed to fight\nagainst the Athenians, who had once more declared war against their\nancient foe.\n\nWhile the Spartans and the Athenians waged war one against the other\nEpaminondas was not idle, for he subdued the B\u0153otian cities which had\ndared to help Sparta while Thebes was in her power.\n\nPelopidas, too, won a great victory in 375 B.C. against the Spartans at\nOrchomenus. He had with him only the Sacred Band and a small company of\ncavalry when he found himself unawares facing a large Spartan army.\n\n\u2018We are fallen into the midst of the enemy,\u2019 cried one of the Band.\n\u2018Why so, more than they into the midst of us?\u2019 said Pelopidas.\n\nThe rare confidence of their captain inspired the Band to fight even\nmore valiantly than usual, and to win a great victory over the large\narmy of the Spartans.\n\nThis victory encouraged the Thebans so much that in the following year\nthey succeeded in banishing the Spartans from B\u0153otia.\n\nThebes was now at the head of the B\u0153otian Confederacy, just as Sparta\nwas ruler of the Laconian Confederacy. Four years later, in 371 B.C.,\nthe Greek States met to arrange terms of peace among themselves.\n\nIt was agreed that each city should be treated as independent. But when\nAgesilaus, king of Sparta, rose to take the oath, he took it not alone\nfor his own city, but for the cities that belonged to her allies as\nwell.\n\nEpaminondas sprang to his feet to remonstrate, saying that if Agesilaus\nwas allowed to take the oath for the allied cities, he too must be\npermitted to take it for all the cities of B\u0153otia.\n\nThe Spartan king, angry with the bold demand of the Theban, taunted him\nwith taking away the liberty of the B\u0153otian cities.\n\n\u2018And what do you do with the liberty of the cities of Laconia?\u2019\nretorted Epaminondas.\n\nAgesilaus was astonished at what he considered the insolence of the\nTheban. In a rage he snatched up the treaty of peace, struck out the\nname of Thebes, crying that if the Thebans wished war they should have\nit. The other cities signed the treaty, so Sparta and Thebes were left\nto settle their quarrel alone.\n\nEpaminondas hastened back to Thebes, where he was at once chosen\ngeneral of the Theban army.\n\nWithout delay he set out to secure a pass by which he thought the\nSpartans would attempt to enter B\u0153otia.\n\nBut the Spartans, led by Cleombrotus, one of their kings, did not try\nto enter by the pass. Finding a narrow mountain track, they succeeded\nin eluding Epaminondas, and marching within eight miles of Thebes.\n\nHere, on the plain of Leuctra, the Spartans encamped in 371 B.C.\n\nNear to Leuctra were the tombs of two B\u0153otian maidens. Many years\nago they had slain themselves, because of the cruelty with which the\nSpartans had treated them.\n\nAn old prophecy said that some day the Spartans would be defeated at\nthe tombs of the maidens. Epaminondas, although he did not greatly\nbelieve in soothsayers, encouraged his captains to fight by reminding\nthem of this old saying.\n\nBefore the battle Pelopidas had a strange dream. In his dream he saw\nthe two maidens of Leuctra alive and wandering about the plain. Their\nfather, too, was there, and Pelopidas heard him say that if the Thebans\nwished for victory, they must sacrifice to the gods a maiden with\nchestnut hair.\n\nWhen he awoke, Pelopidas told his dream to the other captains, and as\nthey were wondering what to do, a colt of a bright chestnut colour ran\nthrough the camp.\n\n\u2018So,\u2019 cried a soothsayer, \u2018the sacrifice is come. Expect no other, but\nuse that which the gods have sent.\u2019\n\nThen the colt was solemnly offered in sacrifice at the tombs of the\nmaidens. And the army was content, for the gods, they were sure, would\ngive them the victory.\n\nUntil now a Greek army had always been drawn out in a long, narrow\nline. But Epaminondas arranged his men in a new way. His left wing was\nonly a few men wide, but it was fifty men deep, which made it unusually\nstrong.\n\nPelopidas with his Sacred Band was placed in front of the heavy left\nwing, while the rest of the army was arranged as usual.\n\nThe Spartan cavalry attacked the Theban horse, but it was soon driven\nfrom the field. Cleombrotus was with his right wing and he now led it\nagainst the strong left wing of the enemy.\n\nBravely as the Spartans fought, they could not withstand the onslaught\nof the left wing, led by the Sacred Band.\n\nCleombrotus fell and was carried from the field, wounded to death. The\nSpartans still struggled bravely, although their king was slain. But\nwhen Epaminondas called to his men, \u2018Give me a step more and the day\nis ours,\u2019 the Thebans spurred on to one more effort, broke the Spartan\nline and put it to flight. The Thebans had won the day, with but little\nloss of life, while four hundred Spartans had been slain.\n\nCleombrotus was the first Spartan king who had fallen on a battlefield\nsince the fatal day of Thermopylae.\n\nThe terrible news of the defeat of Leuctra was sent to Sparta, but the\ncitizens were too well disciplined to show the dismay which they must\nhave felt.\n\nThey had been beaten by the inhabitants of the dull little town of\nThebes, yet no sound of grief was heard in their streets, nor was any\nsign of mourning to be seen.\n\nIt was on a festive day that the fateful tidings reached the city, and\nsacrifices were offered and games held as though nothing had happened\nto interrupt the usual rites.\n\nThose whose friends had fled looked sullen and ashamed, for it was\ncounted a disgrace to leave a lost battlefield alive. Those whose\nfriends had fought to the death were to be seen in the streets the\nfollowing day, with faces that were calm and content. Of such stern\nstuff were the Spartans made.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXIII\n\nTHE DEATH OF EPAMINONDAS\n\n\nThebes was now the most powerful city in Greece. But Epaminondas was\nnot yet content. He wished to invade Sparta.\n\nIn November 370 B.C. he marched with his army into Arcadia, which lay\nto the north of Laconia. Here he was joined by all those who wished to\nthrow off the Spartan yoke. His army soon numbered forty thousand, some\neven say it was seventy thousand strong.\n\nSparta could hardly believe that any one had dared to invade her\nterritory. She was used to fighting in other states of Greece or in\nother countries, but it would be a new experience if she was forced\nto fight for her own homes. Yet there was Epaminondas and his army\nencamped within sight of the city.\n\nThe Spartan women had never before seen the smoke of an enemy\u2019s fire\ncamp, and they gave way to despair, in spite of their stern training in\nself-control.\n\nBut the Theban general was too wise to attack the city. He knew that\nthe Spartans had gathered together a large army, and that they would\nfight to the death for their homes. So, satisfied that he had encamped\nin sight of Sparta, he turned away, destroying the land through which\nhe passed. The Spartans were eager to follow and fight with the enemy\nwho had defied them, but their king refused to lead them to battle.\n\nEpaminondas was not yet ready to leave Spartan territory. He led his\narmy to the country of Messenia, which the Spartans had conquered many\ncenturies before, banishing or making slaves of the people.\n\nThe Theban general roused the descendants of these slaves, and\nencouraged them to build a new city on Mount Ithom\u00e9, where Aristomenes\nhad made his gallant stand against the Spartans.\n\nWhile the first stones of the new city were being laid, the sound of\nflutes was heard. When it was finished it was named Messenia. A large\npiece of ground which belonged to Sparta was given by Epaminondas to\nthe citizens of the new town. Those who had been slaves or Helots were\nnow free men.\n\nThe army then marched back to Thebes, which it reached four months\nafter the time for which Epaminondas had been appointed commander.\n\nIn spite of all he had done for his country, his enemies wished him to\nbe punished, because he had not laid down his command on the proper\nday. But he appealed to the people, and they gladly made him, along\nwith Pelopidas, general for another year.\n\nWhen the year had passed, Epaminondas was treated coldly, not only by\nhis enemies but by the people also, because he had failed to surprise\nand take the city of Corinth.\n\nIn Thessaly at this time there was a cruel king named Alexander. So\nbadly did he treat his subjects, that they begged the Thebans to come\nto their help.\n\nPelopidas was sent to Thessaly to punish Alexander, unless he promised\nto treat his people less harshly. The king was forced to listen to\nthe Theban general, but he was angry because Pelopidas had dared to\ninterfere with him and he resolved to punish him.\n\nFor some time the king found no opportunity to reach his enemy, but at\nlength Pelopidas was foolish enough to go through Thessaly with only a\nfew followers.\n\nAlexander was overjoyed to have the general in his power, and he at\nonce sent a band of men to capture him and throw him into prison.\n\nBut the Thebans were very angry when they heard that their favourite\ngeneral was a prisoner, and they determined to set him free. So they\nsent a large army into Thessaly to rescue Pelopidas.\n\nEpaminondas went with the army as an ordinary soldier, and you can\nimagine how he must have longed to be at its head, so that he might\nhimself deliver his friend.\n\nThe Theban generals were not clever, and though they did all they could\nto conquer the army that Alexander sent against them, they soon saw\nthat the battle was going against them.\n\nThen they showed that if they were not clever they were wise, for they\nwent to Epaminondas, and begged him to take command of the army.\n\nBut it was too late for even a clever general to rescue Pelopidas,\nand all Epaminondas could do was to save the Theban army from being\ndestroyed.\n\nThe Thebans were so grateful to Epaminondas for his help that they made\nhim general once more, and sent him back to Thessaly with a larger army\nthat he might save his friend.\n\nAlexander knew that he need not hope to conquer the great Theban\ngeneral, and a few days after Epaminondas entered Thessaly, the king\nset Pelopidas free. He then asked the Thebans to make peace with him.\n\nThree years later, in 364 B.C., Pelopidas was ordered to go at the head\nof an army against his old enemy.\n\nAs he was ready to leave Thebes, the sun was eclipsed and the\nsoothsayers did not hesitate to say that this was a bad omen. Many of\nthe soldiers were afraid to march, and Pelopidas was too angry to wait\nto force them to go with him, so he set out with only a few men. When\nhe reached Thessaly he bade all those who hated the tyrant to join him.\n\nThousands who had groaned under the cruelty of the king flocked to his\nside, but even then the army of Alexander was twice as large as his.\n\nThe two forces met at a place called Cynoscephal\u00e6, where a great battle\nwas fought.\n\nPelopidas led his men well, and himself fought so bravely that the\nbattle was all but won in spite of the greater strength of the enemy.\nSuddenly Pelopidas caught sight of Alexander, and forgetting everything\nsave his desire to avenge his imprisonment, he sprang forward to slay\nthe tyrant. Ere his followers could reach him, he himself was struck\ndown and killed.\n\nAlexander was defeated and his kingdom was taken from him. But the\nThessalians could not rejoice, because Pelopidas, to whom they owed\ntheir deliverance, had been slain. They buried him with great pomp on\nthe field where he had fallen.\n\nEpaminondas was filled with grief at the loss of his dear friend. He\ntried to forget his sorrow in serving his country.\n\nIn 362 B.C. he fought at Mantinea against the Spartans, on the field\nwhere long before he had saved the life of Pelopidas.\n\nNever had Epaminondas fought more bravely than on this day, leading the\nB\u0153otians against the foe \u2018as a war-galley ploughs through the waves\nwith its beak.\u2019\n\nThe victory was well-nigh gained, when a Spartan thrust his pike\nthrough the breast of Epaminondas. He fell, and his men carried him off\nthe field to a little hill, from which the battle could be seen.\n\nFor a short time the great general lay unconscious, but at length he\nopened his eyes and asked if his shield was safe. He was told that it\nwas safe and that the battle was won.\n\nThen he begged to see his two chief officers. They had fallen on the\nfield, and when the news was broken to him, the dying man said,\n\n\u2018Then you had better make peace.\u2019\n\nThe head of the spear that had struck the general was still in the\nwound. As it was withdrawn he breathed his last.\n\nIt was Epaminondas who had made Thebes great. After his death she\nslowly slipped back into her old insignificant position.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXIV\n\nTHE TWO BROTHERS\n\n\nThe city of Corinth stood upon the narrow isthmus that joined the\nmainland of Greece to the Peloponnesian peninsula. She had two\nharbours, a large fleet, and she carried on a prosperous trade with\nother countries.\n\nAs the city grew strong and populous, she began to plant colonies in\nother lands. One of the wealthiest of these colonies was the town of\nSyracuse in Sicily.\n\nIn 346 B.C. Syracuse was in the power of a tyrant named Dionysius. The\nother cities in Sicily would have been in the same plight had their\ninhabitants not fled to a neighbouring town, and sought the aid of a\npowerful prince named Icetes. Icetes had a large army, and with its\nhelp they hoped to be able to overthrow Dionysius.\n\nBut trouble after trouble overtook the people, for the Carthaginians\nhad sailed from Africa and had reached their shores. Sicily was in\ndespair lest they should conquer the island and make it their own.\n\nIn their distress, the Sicilians sent messengers to Corinth,\ntheir mother-city, to beg her to help them to get rid of both the\nCarthaginians and Dionysius.\n\nIcetes pretended to approve of this, but no sooner had the ambassadors\nset out for Corinth than he made friends with the Carthaginians. He\nhoped that if they drove Dionysius away, he himself would become tyrant\nof Sicily.\n\nIn Corinth, about twenty years earlier, there dwelt two brothers of\nnoble birth--one was named Timophanes, the other Timoleon. Never were\ntwo brothers more unlike save that both were brave. Timophanes was\ncruel and ambitious, while Timoleon was gentle and content. Yet under\nhis quiet ways Timoleon had one strong passion and that was the love he\nbore his country.\n\nTimophanes was a captain in the Corinthian army; his brother served in\nthe ranks.\n\nOnce when the captain was sent against a neighbouring state, he was\nthrown from his horse, which had been wounded. He fell close to the\nenemy and his men fled, leaving him in danger of being taken prisoner.\n\nTimoleon saw what had happened, and rushing from the ranks, he stood\nover Timophanes with his shield, and defended him from the spears which\nwere being hurled at him by the enemy. Although he himself was sorely\nwounded, he never flinched. But at length his comrades rushed to his\naid and drove off the foe. Timoleon had saved his brother\u2019s life.\n\nNot long after this, Timophanes was given the command of four hundred\nforeign soldiers. This pleased the captain, but to the dismay of the\ncitizens he used the troops to make himself tyrant of the city.\n\nAll who dared to oppose him he put to death, while he ruled so harshly\nthat he was hated and feared by everyone.\n\nTimoleon was ashamed of his brother\u2019s behaviour. He begged him to treat\nthe people more kindly, and if he must rule at least to rule with\njustice. But Timophanes first mocked at his brother\u2019s words, and then\nhe grew angry and refused to listen to them.\n\nGentle as Timoleon was, he could be strong when there was need to be\nso. In a short time he went again to his brother, taking with him two\nfriends who used to admire Timophanes.\n\nTogether the three men besought the tyrant to give up the power he had\nso wrongfully seized, and to serve his country in an upright way.\n\nAgain Timophanes laughed at his friends, but when they persisted in\ntheir entreaties he grew angry, and rudely bade them begone. Then\nTimoleon hid his face in his cloak and wept, while the others put his\nbrother to death.\n\nThe Corinthians, for the most part, praised Timoleon because he loved\nhis country so well that he sacrificed his brother for her sake. But\nthere were some citizens who blamed Timoleon for allowing his brother\nto be put to death before his eyes. His mother refused to see him and\ncalled down upon him the curses of the gods. This pained Timoleon more\nthan anything else, and he begged her to see him, if it were but once.\nBut she would not allow him to enter her house.\n\nTimoleon loved his mother, and her treatment made him so sad that he\nrefused either to eat or to drink. He resolved to starve himself to\ndeath rather than endure his mother\u2019s reproaches.\n\nHis friends did all they could to comfort him, and at length they\nsucceeded in persuading him to eat. But his sorrow was too great to\nlet him stay in Corinth, so he left the city, and for several years he\nlived by himself. Even when he returned to Corinth, he still refused to\ntake part in any public business.\n\nTimoleon was fifty years old when in 346 B.C. the Syracusans sent to\nthe Corinthians to beg for help against the Carthaginians.\n\nThe Corinthians determined to send an army to Sicily to help their\nfellow-countrymen, but they could find no one willing to go at its head.\n\nSome one proposed that Timoleon should be made commander of the force\nthat had been raised, and he was at once appointed.\n\nPerhaps Timoleon thought that it was now time that he should do\nsomething for his country; in any case he undertook the task that was\ngiven him with goodwill.\n\nOne worthy citizen bade Timoleon act \u2018like a man of worth and\ngallantry. For,\u2019 said he, \u2018if you do bravely in this service we shall\nbelieve that you delivered us from a tyrant; but if otherwise, that you\nkilled your brother.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXV\n\nTIMOLEON SENDS DIONYSIUS TO CORINTH\n\n\nTimoleon was ready to sail to Sicily with a fleet of seven vessels and\na force of about one thousand men, when a message from Icetes reached\nthe Corinthians.\n\nThe traitor told them it was useless to try to help the people of\nSicily, for he had joined the Carthaginians, and their combined army\nwould easily crush any force that was sent against them.\n\nThis made the Corinthians so angry that they at once added two hundred\nsoldiers to Timoleon\u2019s small army, as well as three vessels to his\nfleet.\n\nEven so, Timoleon\u2019s task seemed hopeless. Athens, with hundreds of\nships and with tens of thousands of men, had failed to take Syracuse.\nHow then could the Corinthian hope to do so with his handful of men and\nhis small fleet?\n\nBefore he sailed, Timoleon journeyed to Delphi to offer sacrifices to\nApollo. As he prayed in the temple, a wreath slipped from its place\nand fell upon his head. It seemed to Timoleon that Apollo was already\ncrowning him with victory.\n\nAt length all was ready, and the army embarked and set sail with a\nfavourable wind. Suddenly a bright flame leaped out from the sky and\nhovered over the ship in which Timoleon sailed. The flame soon changed\ninto a torch which guided the ships until they reached Rhegium, a town\nin Sicily.\n\nHere Timoleon learned that Icetes had already defeated Dionysius, who\nwas now shut up in the citadel of Syracuse, and that he had sent the\nCarthaginians with twenty warships to Rhegium to keep the Corinthians\nfrom reaching Sicily.\n\nTimoleon had only ten vessels, and he knew it would be impossible to\nleave Rhegium unless he could in some way cheat the enemy.\n\nSo he pretended to agree to Icetes\u2019 demands, and then begged the\nCarthaginian generals to go with him to the assembly to tell the people\nwhat they had agreed. Meanwhile he had given orders to his fleet to be\nready to sail the moment he returned.\n\nIn the assembly the generals and the people of Rhegium began to talk,\nand they grew so interested in what they were saying that they paid\nvery little attention to Timoleon. The generals indeed forgot all about\nhim, which was just what the Corinthians had hoped would happen.\n\nBy and by when the conversation seemed most engrossing, Timoleon\nslipped quietly out of the hall and hastened to the harbour. The moment\nhe was on board his ship, the fleet set sail and before long reached\nSicily in safety.\n\nWithout their generals, the Carthaginians had not known what to do,\nand while they had hesitated Timoleon had escaped. But when the\nCarthaginian generals found out how they had been tricked, their\nindignation knew no bounds.\n\nNot far from the small town at which the Corinthians landed was a city\nnamed Adranum, where there was a temple consecrated to the god Adranus.\nThis deity was reverenced throughout the whole island.\n\nThe city was divided into two parties, one of which sent for Icetes,\nthe other for Timoleon, to help them each against the other.\n\nBoth generals at once set out for Adranum, Icetes with five thousand,\nTimoleon with only twelve hundred men. On the second day the\nCorinthians found that in spite of all their haste they had been\noutstripped by the army of Icetes. It was already encamped close to the\ncity.\n\nThe Corinthian officers begged Timoleon to order a halt, as there\nseemed no need for further haste, and their men needed food and rest\nafter their hurried march.\n\nBut Timoleon wished to take the enemy by surprise. He thought that if\nthey did not delay they would reach Icetes and his men while they were\nputting up their tents and preparing supper. So instead of listening to\nhis officers, he seized his shield, and going to the head of his army\nhe bade them follow him and he would lead them to victory. The enemy\u2019s\ncamp was still three and a half miles away, but the Corinthians marched\non bravely.\n\nAs Timoleon had hoped, he reached the camp of the enemy while the men\nwere getting ready a meal and were unprepared to fight.\n\nBefore they were aware of his approach, Timoleon had fallen upon them\nand put them to flight, taking the camp as well as many prisoners.\n\nThe people of Adranum at once opened their gates to the victorious\ngeneral, and told him that when the battle began, the doors of their\ntemple suddenly opened of their own accord. On the threshold stood\ntheir god, holding his javelin in his hand. It was trembling as though\nthe god was weary with its weight.\n\nOther cities, when they heard of the victory of the Corinthians, gladly\nentered into alliance with them.\n\nMeanwhile Dionysius, shut up in Syracuse by Icetes, was growing tired\nof his position, and food was becoming scarce in the citadel. He, too,\nthought it would be well to make terms with Timoleon.\n\nSo he sent to the Corinthian general to offer to surrender the citadel\nif he would promise to send him in safety to Corinth.\n\nWhen Timoleon heard this he felt more than ever sure that the gods were\non his side. He gladly accepted the tyrant\u2019s offer, and at once sent\ntwo of his officers and a company of men to receive the keys of the\ncitadel.\n\nDionysius treated the Corinthians well, leaving to them a number\nof horses, a store of weapons and two thousand soldiers. He himself\nescaped from the city and fled to the camp of Timoleon. Soon afterwards\nhe set sail for Corinth.\n\nTidings of his arrival was sent before him, and as the ship drew near\nto the harbour, the people gathered there in excited groups. They had\noften shuddered at the tale of the cruel deeds of the man who was now\ncoming to their city, shorn of his power. They were eager to see him.\n\nA few weeks later they wondered if this man had really been as cruel\nas they had been told. They saw him contentedly loitering in the\nmarket-place or spending long hours in the shops of the perfumers, and\nit seemed to them as though he must always have been as harmless as he\nwas now. In later years the tyrant is said to have taught the boys and\ngirls of Corinth to read, and he also trained those who wished to sing\nin public.\n\nTimoleon had not been fifty days in Sicily before Dionysius was on his\nway to Corinth. The Corinthians were so pleased with their general\nthat they determined to send him reinforcements, both of cavalry\nand infantry. But it was some time before the fresh troops reached\nTimoleon, for the Carthaginian fleet was waiting near the coast of\nItaly to bar the way.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXVI\n\nICETES TRIES TO SLAY TIMOLEON\n\n\nThe small band of Corinthians who now held the citadel of Syracuse was\nclosely besieged by Icetes. But soon he grew tired of waiting for it to\nsurrender and hit, as he thought, on a quicker way of driving the enemy\nout of the island.\n\nWithout Timoleon he would not fear the Corinthians, so he resolved to\nget rid of him without delay. He hired two foreign soldiers and sent\nthem to Adranum with orders to kill the general.\n\nTimoleon went about without a bodyguard, as Icetes knew. When the\nassassins reached the city, he was in the temple, sacrificing to the\ngods, for it was a festival.\n\nWith their daggers hidden beneath their cloaks, the men slipped in\namong the crowd of worshippers and were soon standing together, close\nto the altar.\n\nAs they hesitated to strike the fatal blow, a sword flashed out behind,\nand one of them fell slain to the ground.\n\nHis companion, in his terror, forgot to kill Timoleon, and laid hold of\nthe altar lest he too should be slain by an unseen foe.\n\nWhen his terror grew a little less he did not try to obey Icetes\u2019\norders, but begged Timoleon to spare his life and he would tell him\neverything.\n\nTimoleon promised that his life should be safe, and then the miserable\nman confessed that he and his friend had been hired by Icetes to kill\nthe Corinthian general.\n\nMeanwhile the stranger who had killed one of the assassins had fled to\nthe top of a great precipice that overlooked the city. Here he was\ncaptured, and as he was hurried before Timoleon he told the guards that\nthe man he had slain was one who years before had killed his father. He\npleaded that he had done right to punish the evil-doer.\n\nIt may be that the Corinthians and the citizens of Adranum agreed with\ntheir prisoner; in any case they were so grateful that he had saved the\nlife of Timoleon that they gave him a gift of money and set him free.\n\nAs the attack on Timoleon had failed, the Carthaginians thought they\nwould try to frighten the citadel of Syracuse into surrendering. So\nthey decked the masts of their ships with wreaths, and hung Grecian\nshields over the sides of their vessels. Then with shouts of victory\nthey sailed toward the harbour.\n\nFrom the citadel, the garrison saw the ships and heard the shouts,\nbut it was not so easily deceived as Mago, the general of the\nCarthaginians, had expected. The Corinthians were sure that Timoleon\nwould have managed to let them know had he been defeated, so they\nlaughed at the enemy\u2019s trick and stayed safe within their walls.\n\nSoon after this the reinforcements sent from Corinth joined Timoleon,\nand he then marched to Syracuse.\n\nMago had already begun to doubt the loyalty of Icetes. He feared that\nhe was trying to make terms with Timoleon. When, a little later, he\nsaw the soldiers of both generals talking together in a friendly way\nas they fished for eels in the marshes near to the city, he grew more\nsuspicious. Day by day his fears grew, until at length in a panic, he\nordered his troops to embark and set sail for Africa.\n\nThe very day after Mago had deserted his post, Timoleon himself reached\nSyracuse. He looked at the empty harbour. Where was the enemy? Not a\nsingle Carthaginian vessel was to be seen.\n\nWhen Timoleon learned how Mago had fled, he laughed at his cowardice,\nand still laughing he offered a reward to anyone who would tell him\nwhere the Carthaginians had hidden.\n\nBut although Mago had fled, Icetes and his men still held the city.\nBut the wisdom of Timoleon and the valour of his troops soon put them\nto flight, and without the loss of one Corinthian soldier the city was\ntaken.\n\nThis wonderful success was said by everyone to be due to the good\nfortune that followed all that Timoleon undertook.\n\nThe citizens of Syracuse thought that Timoleon would now make himself\ntyrant. To their surprise as well as to their joy, he proclaimed that\nthey themselves were to govern the city. He ordered the public crier\nto go through the streets, bidding all those who were willing, to come\nwith pickaxe and hammer to pull down the citadel which Dionysius had\nbuilt.\n\nThe people did not need to be asked twice. With right goodwill they\ndestroyed not only the citadel, but the palaces in which the tyrants\nof Syracuse had dwelt. And while they pulled down the walls, flutes\nsounded and women danced and sang. On the places where the palaces had\nstood, Timoleon ordered courts of justice to be built.\n\nSo neglected and forsaken had the city been during the rule of the\ntyrants, as well as during the siege, that grass was growing in the\nmarket-place, grass enough to feed the soldiers\u2019 horses.\n\nAll over Sicily, cities had been deserted, and in some of them deer and\nwild boars wandered up and down the streets.\n\nTimoleon saw that if the island was to grow prosperous again, those who\nhad fled must be brought back, and new citizens must come and settle in\nthe different cities.\n\nSo he sent to Corinth to ask her to send out colonists to the island.\nThis she did, and she also sent vessels to Asia to bring back to their\nisland home those who had taken refuge there. Soon sixty thousand\ncitizens were added to the inhabitants of Sicily.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXVII\n\nTHE BATTLE OF CRIMISUS\n\n\nThe exiles who had returned to Sicily, and the colonists who had come\nto settle there, were needed, not only to till the ground but to defend\nthe island. For the Carthaginians, angry with Mago\u2019s failure, now sent\nto Sicily an enormous army, seventy thousand strong.\n\nThe Syracusans were frightened to see so large a force, and not more\nthan three thousand men were willing to go with Timoleon against the\nenemy. He hired four thousand soldiers, but of these one thousand\ndeserted before a battle was fought.\n\nNear the river Crimisus the Carthaginians encamped, and thither\nTimoleon hastened with his faint-hearted army.\n\nOn their way they met a number of mules laden with baskets of parsley.\nNow the Sicilians were used to place wreaths of parsley upon the tombs\nof their dead, so they were sure that it was a bad omen to meet the\nmules, and they grew still more uneasy.\n\nBut Timoleon laughed at their fears, telling them that in Corinth the\nvictors at the games were crowned with chaplets of parsley. He then\nlifted some from the baskets, and twisting it into a wreath he placed\nit on his head, his officers first and then the soldiers following his\nexample.\n\nAt that moment two eagles flew toward the army. One carried in its\ntalons a snake, which it had killed, the other uttered loud cries as of\nvictory. Here was a good omen! It was ever a sign of success to see an\neagle, and the soldiers thanked the gods and plucked up courage.\n\nBefore long Timoleon led his men to the top of a hill that looked down\non the river Crimisus. But at first he could see nothing, for a thick\nmist veiled the river.\n\nThe hill was still hidden from sight when the mist lifted from the\nriver, and Timoleon saw that the Carthaginians had begun to cross to\nthe other side, but they had no idea that the enemy was near.\n\nNow was the time, thought Timoleon, to charge the enemy, while it was\ncrossing the river. So bidding the trumpets sound, he seized his shield\nand ordered his troops to advance.\n\nThe courage of the men had returned, and with cheers they rushed down\nthe hill and charged the Carthaginians, who, taken by surprise, yet\nfought bravely. They wore heavy armour and their breastplates were able\nto resist the thrust of the Corinthian spears. Soon the men were at\nclose quarters with swords drawn, and a terrible struggle began.\n\nIt seemed that now one side, now the other would conquer. While the\nvictory still hung in the balance, a violent storm broke over the\nbattlefield.\n\nThe thunder crashed so that the orders of the officers could no longer\nbe heard. Lightning flashed in the eyes of the startled horses and\nblinded them, while torrents of rain and hail dashed in the faces of\nthe Carthaginians.\n\nAs the ground grew muddy, the soldiers slipped and fell to the ground.\nThe Sicilians, who wore light armour, easily struggled to their feet,\nbut their foes found it almost impossible to rise.\n\nSoon the river overflowed its banks and swept across the battlefield.\nThis was more than the Carthaginians could bear, and they turned and\nfled, but many were overtaken by the swift-footed Sicilians and slain.\n\nThe victorious army found more spoil than they had thought possible--a\nthousand breastplates and ten thousand shields of marvellous\nworkmanship, as well as ornaments of gold and silver were taken.\n\nWhen tidings were sent to Corinth of the great victory of Crimisus, the\nrichest of the spoil was also sent to the city.\n\nOn the booty were written these words, \u2018The people of Corinth and\nTimoleon, their general, having redeemed the Greeks of Sicily from\nCarthaginian bondage, make oblation of these to the gods, in grateful\nacknowledgement of their favour.\u2019\n\nSicily was now free, and the people in their gratitude begged Timoleon\nto become their king. But this he would not do, nor would he even keep\nthe command of the army. His wife and children whom he had left in\nCorinth joined him, and for a time he lived with them in Syracuse as\nquietly as any other citizen. When he left the city it was to live in a\nbeautiful country house which was given to him by the grateful people\nof Syracuse.\n\nAs he grew older, Timoleon\u2019s eyesight failed, and at length he became\nquite blind. But old and blind as he was the people did not forget all\nthat he had done for them, and they loved and trusted him as in happier\ndays.\n\nIf trouble arose in the assembly, they would beg him to come to give\nthem his advice. And the old man would order his car, which was drawn\nby mules, and be driven to the hall. Here he would sit and listen to\nthe troubles of the people, and when he spoke it was seldom that his\nwords were not obeyed.\n\nThree or four years after the battle of Crimisus, Timoleon died. The\ngrief of the Syracusans was deep, for they had loved their deliverer\nwell.\n\nThousands of men and women, clad in white and crowned with garlands,\nfollowed his body as it was carried slowly through the city, past the\nplaces where once the palaces of the tyrants had stood.\n\nAs the bier was laid on the funeral pile, a herald cried aloud, \u2018The\npeople of Syracuse inter Timoleon the Corinthian at the public expense\nand decree that his memory be honoured for ever, by games held each\nyear, the prizes to be competed for in music, in horse-races and all\nsorts of bodily exercises, and this because he suppressed tyrants,\noverthrew the barbarian, replenished the principalities that were\ndesolate with new inhabitants, and then restored the Sicilian Greeks to\nthe privilege of living by their own laws.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXVIII\n\nDEMOSTHENES WISHES TO BECOME AN ORATOR\n\n\nDemosthenes, the great Athenian orator, was born in 384 B.C. He was a\nshy and delicate boy, and often stammered when he spoke. Some of his\ncompanions were cruel enough to laugh at him and even to imitate his\nstammer. So he would often slip away from his playmates, but when they\nsaw that he did not join in their games, they but laughed at him the\nmore.\n\nThe father of Demosthenes was a rich man, He died when his little\nson was seven years old, leaving his fortune to his child. But the\nguardians who took charge of Demosthenes and his wealth were careless\nand dishonest men. Some of the boy\u2019s money they lost, some they spent\non themselves.\n\nAs the child grew older, his guardians found that there was little\nmoney left to use for his education. They could not afford to get the\nbest teachers, nor did they pay well those whom they employed. So that\nDemosthenes was often taught carelessly or not at all.\n\nOf the boy\u2019s mother we are told little, save that she was kind to her\ndelicate little son and tended him with care. But she, too, died while\nhe was still young.\n\nDemosthenes did not learn his lessons well or quickly, but he was\ninterested in all that went on around him, and he soon began to\ndistrust his guardians. Long before he was sixteen years old, he knew\nthat they had lost his money, and even then he hoped that some day he\nwould be able to punish them.\n\nThe boy loved the beautiful city of Athens in which he grew up. Never\ndid he tire of gazing at the wonderful temples, the noble statues which\nmade her renowned throughout Greece.\n\nThere were in these as in other days famous orators in Athens, to whom\nthe citizens were ever eager to listen. For they were well pleased\nto be reminded of the glorious days of Thermopylae, and of Marathon,\nthough now they were not anxious to win glory on the battlefield. They\nhad grown rich and indolent, and were content to stay at home, content\nto go to games and to theatres.\n\nDemosthenes often heard his teachers talk of the great orators of\nAthens, and he wished that he might listen to their eloquent speeches.\n\nOne day Callistratus, a famous orator, was to speak at a great trial\nthat was taking place in the city.\n\nThe boy begged to be allowed to go, and his tutor at length agreed to\nfind a corner in the hall where the boy might sit to see and to hear\nall that went on.\n\nDemosthenes could imagine no greater treat than to be there, hidden\naway in the midst of the crowd, to listen to Callistratus.\n\nThe speech was a great one, and when it was over the Athenians crowded\nround the orator, eager to applaud, while many followed him to his\nhome. Demosthenes came away with his ambition roused. He said to\nhimself, \u2018I too will be an orator and make the people do as I wish.\nThey shall applaud me, even as they have applauded Callistratus to-day.\u2019\n\nBut another reason that made him wish to speak in public was that he\nmight expose the dishonesty of his guardians in the law courts. For he\ncould not be content until they were punished.\n\nWhen the boy had made up his mind to be an orator he lost no time in\nbeginning to study. He knew that he must work hard if he would succeed.\n\nFor two years he read history, wrote speeches, and when it was\npossible, went to hear famous orators. When he was eighteen he thought\nthat he was ready to speak in public. So he went to the law courts and\naccused his guardians of theft.\n\nAt first little notice was taken of what the lad said, but he pleaded\nhis cause again and again, until at length he won his suit, and his\nguardians were punished. But it was too late to recover the money,\nwhich was now nearly all lost.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER LXXXIX\n\nDEMOSTHENES THE GREATEST ORATOR OF ATHENS\n\n\nDemosthenes had spoken in the law courts, but he was not content. His\ngreat ambition now was to speak in the assembly of Athens. He wished\nto remind the Athenians of their glorious past, he wished to encourage\nthem to fight against the enemies of their country.\n\nHis first attempt was a failure. His voice was weak, his sentences\nlong, and before he had finished what he wished to say, the people were\nlaughing and jeering, so that he was forced to sit down.\n\nAs he left the assembly he was so unhappy that he thought he would\nnever speak to the people again. He walked along the streets, scarcely\nknowing, in his distress, where he went.\n\nSuddenly he felt some one touch his arm, and looking up he saw a very\nold man who had been in the assembly, and had heard him speak. He had\nseen how disappointed Demosthenes was as he left the hall, and he\nhad determined to encourage him. So first he praised the crestfallen\norator, saying that his speech had reminded him of the great orator\nPericles, and then he upbraided the young man for being so easily\ndiscouraged by the laughter of the people.\n\nDemosthenes allowed himself to be comforted and made up his mind to try\nagain, thinking that perhaps after all he would be able to make the\npeople listen to him. But in spite of all his efforts he could not hold\ntheir attention, and he left the assembly, hiding his face in his cloak\nthat none might see his sorrow.\n\nAn actor, named Satyrus, who knew him well, followed him home, for he\nguessed that Demosthenes would be in despair. The orator did not hide\nhis trouble from his friend. \u2018The citizens will listen to any one, even\nto those who have not studied, rather than to me,\u2019 he said in bitter\nanger. \u2018A sailor with a foolish story will make them applaud, while if\nI tell them tales of the glorious deeds of their own countrymen they\npay no heed.\u2019\n\n\u2018You say true, Demosthenes,\u2019 answered Satyrus, \u2018but I will soon tell\nyou how this is if you will recite to me some lines from one of our\ngreat poets.\u2019\n\nDemosthenes did as his friend asked. But although he said the words\ncorrectly, his voice was dull and his attitude was stiff and awkward.\n\nSatyrus said nothing when his friend ended, but himself began to repeat\nthe same lines. Yet you would scarcely have known that they were the\nsame, for the eyes of the actor flashed, his voice rang clear, then\nsank to a whisper, his body swayed now this way, now that, as he sought\nto make the meaning of the poem plain.\n\nThen Demosthenes understood as he had never done before how it was that\nhis carefully studied speeches did not interest the Athenians. He must\nnot only read or recite them, he must act them, so that the things of\nwhich he spoke might become real to those who listened.\n\nFrom that day Demosthenes began to work in a different way. He made one\nof the cellars of his house into a study, that there, undisturbed, he\nmight practise his voice and gestures. He stayed in this strange study\nfor two or three months at a time, and lest he should be tempted to\ngo to theatres or games, he shaved one side of his head, \u2018that so for\nshame he might not go abroad, though he desired it ever so much.\u2019\n\n[Illustration: He left the assembly, hiding his face in his cloak]\n\nAt other times to strengthen his voice he would go to the seashore\nwhile a storm was raging, and putting pebbles in his mouth he would try\nto make his words heard above the roar of the waves. He also recited\nspeeches while he was out of breath from running up some steep hill,\nand at home he would stand before a large mirror to watch his gestures\nand the expression of his face.\n\nAnd his hard work and perseverance were rewarded, for Demosthenes\nbecame what he most desired to be, the greatest orator of Athens. His\nenemies learned to fear his speeches, his friends to count upon them to\naid their cause.\n\nDemosthenes was thirty-three years of age when he made his first speech\nagainst Philip of Macedon, who now, in 356 B.C., invaded Greece.\n\nThe king would gladly have made an alliance with the Athenians and\ngained their goodwill. But they, wishing to recover Amphipolis, which\nhe had taken from them, refused to make peace.\n\nDemosthenes lost no opportunity to speak against Philip. He reminded\nhis countrymen that the king was \u2018not the man to rest\u2019 content with\nthat he has subdued, but is always adding to his conquests, and casts\nhis snare around us while we sit at home postponing.\u2019 In another speech\nhe told the Athenians that they chose their captains, \u2018not to fight,\nbut to be displayed like dolls in the market-place.\u2019\n\nThese and other speeches against the king of Macedon were called \u2018The\nPhilippics\u2019 of Demosthenes, and still to-day, if some one makes a\nspeech against a special person, although his name is not Philip, we\ncall the speech a \u2018Philippic.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XC\n\nTHE SACRED WAR\n\n\nPhilip of Macedon began to reign in 359 B.C. When he was sixteen years\nof age he was taken by Pelopidas as a hostage to Thebes. Here he\nstayed for three years, reading Greek literature and learning to love\nit, studying Greek art and learning to admire it. The craft of war he\ngained from the great Theban general Epaminondas.\n\nWhen Philip went back to Macedon as king, he trained his army in the\nmovements he had first seen used by the Theban troops under their\nfamous general.\n\nAt this time a war called the Sacred War was going on in Greece.\n\nDelphi, where the temple of Apollo stood, had been seized by the\nPhocians, who were led by a bold commander named Philomelus. The home\nof the Phocians was near Mount Parnassus.\n\nIn the temple vast treasures had been stored; these, said Philomelus,\nshould be safe as of old. But when he fortified the city and brought a\nlarge army of soldiers to guard it, the other Greek states said it was\ntime to interfere--that Delphi must be taken from the Phocians.\n\nPhilomelus at once resolved to increase his army, but he had no money\nto pay more soldiers. The Phocians had already spent all that they\npossessed on the war, and the citizens of Delphi had been so heavily\ntaxed that they could give no more.\n\nMoney Philomelus must have! So he began to borrow from the treasures of\nthe temple, which he had promised should be untouched. As the war went\non he took more gold, more of the sacred treasures, none of which he\nwas able to replace.\n\nWhen the Thebans and their allies met Philomelus, he and his hired\ntroops were soon put to flight. Philomelus fled alone to the top of a\nprecipice, pursued by the enemy. He must either leap into the awful\nabyss or be captured by the angry soldiers. In a moment he had made his\nchoice, and when the Thebans reached the spot where he had been seen\nbut a second before, he was no longer there.\n\nBut other leaders replaced Philomelus, and they too rifled the temple\nof Apollo.\n\nAt length the Phocians grew so bold that they determined to attack\nPhilip of Macedon who had invaded Thessaly, and drive him from Greek\nterritory. They forced the king to return to Macedon, but he soon came\nback with a large army and the Phocians retreated to the famous pass of\nThermopylae. They hoped that Athens would help them to hold the pass\nagainst Philip, but in spite of the Philippics of Demosthenes, she did\nnothing.\n\nAlone, the Phocians were not strong enough to resist Philip\u2019s attack,\nand they were forced to surrender. The pass, which the king had long\nresolved to gain, was in his hand.\n\nWhen the Athenians heard of the disaster they were dismayed, and when\nDemosthenes again urged them to take up arms against the invaders, his\nappeal was not made in vain.\n\nIn August 338 B.C. the united army of Athenians and Thebans marched\nagainst the Macedonians, and met them in the plain of Ch\u00e6ronea, where a\ngreat battle was fought.\n\nPhilip\u2019s famous son Alexander, who was then only eighteen years old,\nwas in command of one of the wings of the Macedonian army. Young as he\nwas, it was his attack upon the Sacred Band of Thebans that determined\nthe battle.\n\nThe Sacred Band fought to the last, and was cut down where it stood.\nSoon the rest of the Greek army fled from the fatal field, Demosthenes,\nwho was among the foot soldiers, taking flight with his comrades.\n\nOn the roadside, not far from the town of Ch\u00e6ronea and near to Thebes,\nis a tomb, where the fallen heroes of the Sacred Band were laid.\n\nStanding over the tomb is the statue of a lion, now partly in ruins,\nwhich was placed there as though to protect the bodies of the slain.\n\nThe victory of Philip at Ch\u00e6ronea left Athens, and indeed all Greece,\nat the mercy of the king, and he treated her well. His chief ambition\nwas to conquer the kingdom of Persia, and the army he meant to lead\nagainst the great king was to be made up of Greeks as well as of\nMacedonians.\n\nBut in 336 B.C., before his plans could be carried out, Philip was\nmurdered.\n\nWhen Greece heard the tidings she rejoiced, for now again she hoped to\nbe free. None was more glad than Demosthenes, for he, as you know, had\nalways been a bitter enemy of the king.\n\nThe orator was wearing black clothes at the time, because he had but\nlately lost his daughter. When he heard that Philip had been murdered,\nhe put them away and clad himself in gay garments, while he placed a\nwreath upon his head.\n\nOnly one Athenian was found to reprove the Athenians for their hasty\nand foolish joy.\n\nPhocion, who was both a general and an orator, said gravely, \u2018Nothing\nshows greater meanness of spirit than expressions of joy at the death\nof an enemy. Remember that the army you fought at Ch\u00e6ronea is lessened\nby only one man.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCI\n\nALEXANDER AND BUCEPHALUS\n\n\nAlexander, the son of Philip of Macedon, became king in 336 B.C. The\nqueen-mother adored her brave son and dreamed of the great things he\nwould do when he became a man. She did all she could to awake his\nambition, telling him that he was descended from Achilles, the hero of\nTroy, and bidding him, when he was older, strive to do nobler deeds\nthan his great ancestor had done. One of his tutors called the young\nprince Achilles, while he named himself Ph\u0153nix, after the tutor of the\nold Greek hero.\n\nThe Iliad of Homer, which tells of the deeds of Achilles, Alexander\nknew by heart. When he was a man he always carried a copy with him on\nhis campaigns. It is said that he slept with it as well as his sword\nbeneath his pillow.\n\nAlexander might almost have been a Spartan boy, so simple was his\ntraining. He learned to ride, to race, to swim, but he never cared to\nwrestle as did most lads of his time. Nor would he offer prizes for\nsuch contests at the games which were held each year.\n\nWhen the prince was asked if he would run in the Olympic games, for he\nwas fleet of foot, he answered, \u2018Yes, if I could have kings to race\nwith me.\u2019\n\nEven as a lad he was eager to win glory, and when he heard of a great\nvictory gained by his royal father, or of a town that had been subdued\nby him, he was more sorry than glad, and said to his companions, \u2018My\nfather will make so many conquests that there will be nothing left for\nme to win.\u2019\n\nOne day, while Alexander was still a boy, a Greek from Thessaly arrived\nat the court of Macedon, bringing with him a noble horse, named\nBucephalus, which he offered to sell for \u00a32600.\n\nPhilip went with his son and his courtiers to look at the horse and\nto test its powers. But when any one approached or tried to mount,\nBucephalus reared and kicked, and became so unmanageable that the king,\ngrowing angry, bade the Thessalian take the animal away.\n\nThe prince had been watching the horse keenly, and as he was being led\naway, the lad exclaimed, \u2018What an excellent horse do they lose for want\nof skill and courage to manage him!\u2019\n\nPhilip heard what his son said, but at first he took no notice of his\nwords. But when the prince said the same thing again and again, he\nlooked at Alexander, and saw that he was really sorry that the horse\nwas being sent away.\n\nThen, half mocking, the king said, \u2018Do you reproach those who are older\nthan yourself, as if you knew more and were better able to manage him\nthan they?\u2019\n\n\u2018I could manage the horse better than others have done,\u2019 answered the\nprince.\n\n\u2018And if you fail what will you forfeit?\u2019 asked the king.\n\n\u2018I will pay the whole price of the horse,\u2019 said Alexander quickly.\n\nThe courtiers laughed at the confidence of the prince, but paying no\nattention to them, he ran toward the horse and seizing the bridle\nturned Bucephalus, so that he faced the sun. For the prince had noticed\nthat the steed was afraid of his own shadow as it flitted backward and\nforward with his every movement.\n\nAfter speaking quietly to the horse and patting him, the prince flung\naside the mantle he was wearing, and nimbly mounted on his back. Using\nneither whip nor spur, he let the animal choose his own pace. And\nBucephalus was content to go at a quiet trot.\n\n[Illustration: He ran toward the horse and seized the bridle]\n\nGradually Alexander urged him on to a gallop, with voice and spur. As\nthe pace grew quicker and quicker, the king looked on in fear lest the\nlad should be thrown. But when he saw that the horse was well under\ncontrol, and that Alexander had turned and was coming back, he burst\ninto tears of joy, while the courtiers loudly applauded the prince.\n\nAs he leaped from the horse, Philip kissed him and said, \u2018O my son,\nlook thee out a kingdom equal to and worthy of thyself, for Macedon is\ntoo little for thee.\u2019\n\nSoon after this the king sent for a famous philosopher, named\nAristotle, to teach his son.\n\nAlexander was quick to learn, and his eager interest in his studies\npleased Aristotle. In after days, when the prince had become a king and\nwas adding kingdom after kingdom to his possessions, he wrote to his\nold tutor, \u2018I assure you I had rather excel others in the knowledge of\nwhat is excellent than in the extent of my power and dominions.\u2019\n\nWhen Philip was murdered, Alexander was twenty years of age, \u2018a\nstripling,\u2019 Demosthenes said, making light of his youth. But had\nDemosthenes known the character of the prince, he would not have spoken\nthus slightingly of his years.\n\nThe orator not only rejoiced when Philip was murdered, but he urged the\npeople to rouse themselves and throw off the yoke of Macedon. The old\ndays when the Athenians would not listen to Demosthenes were long past.\nNow his matchless eloquence could hold them spellbound, even when they\nrefused to be guided by his advice. But in Athens, as in many other\ncities, discontent had long been smouldering, and fanned by his words\nit broke out into a blaze.\n\nThe young king found that he must put down rebellion in Greece before\nhe set out, as he wished to do, to conquer Persia.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCII\n\nALEXANDER AND DIOGENES\n\n\nWhen Alexander marched at the head of his army into Thessaly, not a\nblow was struck. His presence seemed enough to gain the allegiance of\nthe Thessalians.\n\nThe king then went to Corinth, where ambassadors from many of the Greek\nstates met him. Young as he was, they chose Alexander to be general\nover the Greek troops which were to go with the Macedonians to invade\nAsia.\n\nEvery one in Corinth was eager to see the king. From the surrounding\ntowns, too, the people crowded into the city, that they might look at\nthe young monarch who was going to lead their soldiers on so great an\nexpedition.\n\nThey did not dream of all that he would do, how he would spread their\ncustoms, their language, their culture over Asia first, and then\nover all the world. But looking at him they knew that he would be a\nconqueror.\n\nAmong those who wished to see Alexander were many philosophers and\ngreat men. But one strange philosopher, called Diogenes, showed no\ninterest in the king.\n\nAlexander heard of this man, who was said to sit all day in a tub or\nbarrel. As Diogenes did not come to see him, he resolved to go to\nsee Diogenes. He found the philosopher outside the gates of Corinth,\nsitting in a tub which was placed so that the rays of the sun fell upon\nhim.\n\nWhen the philosopher saw the king and the courtiers who accompanied\nhim, he roused himself from his meditations and looked at the young\nsovereign.\n\nAlexander spoke kindly to him, and asked if there was anything he\nwished.\n\n\u2018Yes,\u2019 answered Diogenes, \u2018I would have you not stand between me and\nthe sun.\u2019\n\nThe courtiers were indignant at such an answer, but Alexander laughed,\nand being pleased with the philosopher\u2019s indifference to his rank, he\nsaid to them, \u2018If I were not Alexander, I should like to be Diogenes.\u2019\n\nSoon after this the king, believing that he had secured the fealty of\nGreece, went back to Macedon. In the spring of 335 B.C. he hoped to set\nout to invade Asia.\n\nBut the wild tribes on the borders of Macedon began to be restless, and\nthe king was forced to subdue these foes nearer home before he went to\nAsia. While he was driving them beyond his borders, a rumour that he\nwas dead reached Greece.\n\nIf Alexander was dead it was a good chance, thought the Thebans, to\ndrive the Macedonians from their citadel, and without waiting to find\nout if the rumour was true they revolted. Demosthenes tried to persuade\nthe Athenians to go to the help of the Thebans, but although his\neloquence moved them it had not power to make them act.\n\nThe Thebans soon found to their cost that Alexander was not dead. He\nwas, indeed, on his way to Greece to punish them for revolting.\n\nOutside the walls of their city he halted, so that the citizens might\nsubmit, if so they willed. But they, still dreaming of liberty, refused\nto surrender.\n\nThen Alexander attacked the city and captured it with little\ndifficulty. He determined to give the other cities in Greece a lesson\nby punishing the rebels severely. So he pulled down their houses and\nutterly destroyed their town, leaving untouched only the temples, and a\nhouse in which a great poet named Pindar had dwelt.\n\nDemosthenes was bitterly disappointed that the Athenians had not sent\nto help the Thebans. He feared, too, that Alexander would now march\nagainst Athens, and destroy her as he had destroyed Thebes. But the\nking only sent to demand that eight of the orators who had done their\nbest to incite the people to rebel against him, should be sent to him\nas hostages.\n\nDemosthenes would have been among the eight, and he urged the Athenians\nnot to \u2018hand over their sheep-dogs to the wolf.\u2019 But Phocion said that\nit would be wise to do as Alexander asked.\n\nAt length the assembly sent Damocles to the king to plead the cause of\nhis comrades, for he was, after Demosthenes, the greatest orator in\nAthens.\n\nAlexander listened to Damocles and was persuaded to leave the orators\nin their own city, for he believed that the fate of Thebes would make\nAthens afraid to rebel.\n\nOf the loyalty of the Greek troops the king was sure, for were they not\ngoing to avenge the invasion of Greece by Xerxes?\n\nThe king did not mean to return to Macedon to reign, rather did he\ndream of a throne in one of the great cities which he was going to\nconquer. So before he marched away, he divided his royal domain and his\nwealth among his friends.\n\nPerdiccas, one of his friends, was dismayed at the generosity of the\nking, and asked him what he was keeping for himself.\n\n\u2018Hope,\u2019 answered Alexander. Then Perdiccas refused to accept his share\nof the king\u2019s gifts, saying, \u2018We who go forth to fight with you need\nshare only in your hope.\u2019\n\nAntipater, one of his father\u2019s generals, Alexander left in Macedon to\nlook after his kingdom.\n\nAt length in the spring of 334 B.C., after saying good-bye to his\nmother, whom he dearly loved, the king marched with an enormous force\nto the Hellespont and crossed it. The great expedition had really\nbegun.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCIII\n\nTHE BATTLE OF GRANICUS\n\n\nBefore Alexander crossed the Hellespont he had seen that the opposite\nshore was held by his Macedonians. While the army landed he himself\nsailed to the \u2018Harbour of the Ach\u00e6ans.\u2019 Midway in the strait he took a\ngolden dish in his hand, and flung from it an offering to Poseidon and\nto the Nereids. It is said that the king himself steered the ship in\nwhich he sailed to the Mysian shore.\n\nCrossing the plain of Troy, the king climbed the hill of Ilion, and\nhere in a forsaken little town he found a temple to Athene, to whom he\noffered sacrifice. He left his own armour in the temple, taking in its\nplace an ancient suit that had once been hung upon the walls, a trophy\nof war.\n\nOn the tomb of his ancestor, Achilles, he laid a garland, while\nHeph\u00e6stion, his beloved friend, placed one on the grave of Patroclus.\nThe old Greek stories had entered into the very fibre of the young\nking, and in this way he did honour, as he deemed, to his glorious\nancestor. He felt ready now to do deeds as great as his hero had done.\n\nWhen Alexander rejoined his army, it had advanced to the river\nGranicus, and there, on the opposite bank, was a great force under\nDarius, king of Persia. Alexander would have to conquer this great host\nbefore he could advance into Asia.\n\nOne of his officers, named Parmenio, begged the king to wait to cross\nthe river until early the next morning, when the enemy would not be\ndrawn up in battle array.\n\n\u2018I should be ashamed,\u2019 answered the king, \u2018having crossed the\nHellespont to be detained by a miserable stream like the Granicus.\u2019 He\nthen ordered the army to advance, and himself dashed into the river,\nfollowed by his horse-guards.\n\nThe Granicus was not a river to be despised, for the current was\nstrong, and the horses kept their feet with difficulty.\n\nA storm of arrows was poured upon the struggling horses and their\nriders, and it seemed as though the attempt to cross in the face of\nthe foe would be useless. But the king refused to be daunted, and the\nsoldiers followed their intrepid leader, until at length they reached\nthe opposite bank.\n\nBut to clamber up the bank was no easy matter. The sides of the river\nwere slippery, and the horses having no firm foothold, stumbled and\nfell. Only after great and repeated efforts did Alexander and those who\nfollowed him reach the top of the bank. Wet and exhausted, they had\nno time to form their ranks before the Persians dashed upon them. A\ndesperate hand-to-hand fight was at once begun.\n\nThe enemy was quick to notice Alexander, for he wore a large plume of\nwhite feathers in his helmet, while his buckler was more splendid than\nthat of any of his soldiers.\n\nTwo Persian officers, wishing to win the glory of having killed the\nking, attacked him together. One of them, riding close to Alexander,\nrose in his stirrups, and brought his battle-axe down with all his\nstrength upon the helmet of the king. So fierce was the blow that the\ncrest was torn away along with one of the plumes, while the axe cut its\nway through the helmet, until the edge touched Alexander\u2019s hair.\n\nAgain the officer raised his axe, but ere he could strike, Clitus, the\nfoster-brother of Alexander, slew the officer with his sword and the\nking was saved.\n\nThe famous phalanx of the Macedonians now threw itself upon the enemy,\nand the Persians tried in vain to repel the fierceness of the attack.\nSoon the whole army was put to flight, all save a band of Greek\nsoldiers who were fighting for Darius.\n\nThese withdrew to a height above the battlefield, and sent to Alexander\nto ask for quarter. But the king refused their request, and ordered his\nmen to attack the little company.\n\nThe Greeks fought desperately, and Alexander lost more men in this\nstruggle than he had lost in all the rest of the battle. His horse,\nwhich was not the famous Bucephalus, was killed on the field.\n\nWhile in this great battle, fought in 334 B.C. on the banks of the\nGranicus, the Persians lost a great number of men, only thirty-four\nMacedonians, it is said, were slain.\n\nThe spoil was enormous, and Alexander determined that the Greeks should\nhave a generous share. To Athens he sent three hundred Persian bucklers\nto be offered to Athene, with these words inscribed, \u2018Alexander, son of\nPhilip, and the Grecians, except the Laced\u00e6monians, won these from the\nbarbarians who inhabit Asia.\u2019\n\nAthens accepted the king\u2019s offering to their goddess, but they\nchurlishly refused to send ships to help him to conquer the coast towns\nwhich he must now attack.\n\nWhile dividing the spoil of the Granicus, Alexander did not forget his\nmother. To her he sent all the plate he had taken, as well as beautiful\ncloth of wonderful purple dye. For himself he kept but little.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCIV\n\nTHE GORDIAN KNOT\n\n\nAfter the battle of Granicus, many Persian towns submitted to the\nconqueror. Those along the coast of Asia Minor that refused to open\ntheir gates, the king quickly subdued.\n\nDuring the winter he reached a city called Gordion, about which a\nstrange story is told.\n\nIn the citadel of Gordion was an old, roughly built wagon, which had\nonce belonged to a peasant named Gordius. Long, long ago Gordius had\nridden into the town in his wagon, and the oracle had declared that\nthis peasant had been chosen by the gods to be king of Phrygia, in\nwhich country Gordion stood.\n\nWhen Gordius was made king, almost the first thing he did was to\ndedicate his wagon to the gods, tying the yoke to the pole with fibre\ntaken from the bark of a tree. The Gordion knot, as it was named, was\ntwisted and tangled in a bewildering way, and looked as though it would\ndefy the most skilful fingers to untie. Yet an oracle had said that\nwhoever should succeed in undoing this wonderful knot would become king\nover all Asia.\n\nMany men who wished to wear a crown came to Gordion to try to undo the\nknot, but not one of them had been able to unravel the twisted fibre.\n\nWhen Alexander, with his victorious army, rode into Gordion, every one\nwondered if the king would be able to untie the famous knot.\n\nAlexander was not long in going to see the ancient wagon. He looked at\nthe puzzling knot and soon saw that he would not be able to untie it.\n\nBut he did not mean to be beaten. He would solve the problem in his own\nway. So taking his sword in his impatient hands, with one swift stroke\nhe cut the formidable knot in two.\n\nThe onlookers, both Phrygians and Macedonians, shouted with delight,\nfor lo! the oracle was fulfilled, and Alexander would become monarch of\nAsia.\n\nAs the knot was cut in twain, a great thunderstorm raged over the town,\nand the people said, \u2018It is Zeus who sends the storm to show that he is\npleased that the prophecy is fulfilled.\u2019\n\nWhile Alexander had been conquering the towns along the coast of Asia,\nDarius had been gathering together another great army, which numbered,\nso it was said, six hundred thousand men. The king himself commanded\nthe vast army, and in the spring of 333 B.C. he set out to find\nAlexander.\n\nDarius was not a skilful general, nor was he a brave king, but he had\nno doubt that he would conquer Alexander.\n\nWhen Alexander still lingered in one of the coast towns, Darius deemed\nthat it was cowardice that kept him there, so little did he know of the\ncharacter of his foe. It was illness alone that kept Alexander from\nadvancing against the great king.\n\nSome said that it was the hardships of the battlefield that had made\nthe king ill, others that while he was still heated after a long march\nhe had bathed in a river, the waters of which were very cold.\n\nTo the dismay of his soldiers, who adored their brave leader, the king\ngrew worse and worse. He was so ill that it seemed that he must die.\n\nHis physicians were afraid to give the king medicine, for should he die\nthey would be accused of giving him poison.\n\nAt length one of the physicians, named Philip, to whom Alexander had\nshown great kindness, determined that whatever happened to him, he\nwould do his utmost to save the king\u2019s life.\n\nAlexander himself was content to take what Philip ordered, so impatient\nwas he to be well and at the head of his army once again.\n\nSo Philip left the king for a few moments to prepare the medicine that\nhe believed would cure him.\n\nWhile he was absent, a letter was brought to Alexander from his officer\nParmenio. It besought the king not to trust Philip, as he had been\nbribed by Darius to poison him. Vast sums of money and the hand of the\ngreat king\u2019s daughter, said Parmenio, were to be the reward of the\nphysician.\n\nWhen Alexander had read the letter, he put it under his pillow, showing\nit to no one, not even to his beloved friend Heph\u00e6stion. He had no\nsooner done so than Philip returned with the medicine. The king took it\nwithout hesitation. Then, drawing the letter from beneath his pillow,\nhe bade his physician read it.\n\nPhilip was horrified as he read the false accusation, and flinging\nhimself down by the bed, he entreated the king to trust him and to fear\nnothing.\n\nThe drug was a powerful one, and after taking it the king was\nunconscious for hours. His nurses whispered to one another that he was\ndead.\n\nBut after a time he opened his eyes, weak indeed, but no longer in\ndanger. Philip tended him until his strength returned, and he was at\nlength able to go out to show himself to his Macedonians. For they had\nbeen in constant fear lest aught should befall their king, and nothing\nwould satisfy them until they had seen his face.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCV\n\nDARIUS GALLOPS FROM THE BATTLEFIELD\n\n\nAs soon as he had recovered from his illness, Alexander led his army to\nmeet Darius. He found the great king in the pass of Issus, in October\n333 B.C.\n\nDarius had first encamped on the plain of Issus, in a strong position,\nwhere his vast army would have had room to fight.\n\nBut he dreamed that Alexander would try to escape him, so he ordered\nhis men to march through the narrow mountain passes to meet the enemy.\n\nA Macedonian, who had deserted, begged Darius not to leave the plain.\n\u2018But,\u2019 said the king, \u2018if I stay here, Alexander will escape me.\u2019\n\n\u2018That fear is needless,\u2019 answered the Macedonian, \u2018for assure yourself\nthat far from avoiding you, he will make all speed to meet you, and is\nnow most likely on his march toward you.\u2019\n\nWhen Alexander knew that Darius had left the plain for the pass of\nIssus, he was pleased, for he knew that the enemy would now be hemmed\nin between the mountains and the sea.\n\nBefore long the two armies were close together. Alexander led his\nright wing against the left wing of the Persians. Here he was soon\nvictorious, and free to attack the centre of the enemy, where Darius\nsat in his chariot, surrounded by a band of Persian nobles.\n\nAs the great king saw Alexander and his followers drawing nearer and\nnearer, he began to grow afraid. Soon he could bear his fears no\nlonger, and leaping from his chariot, he mounted a horse and fled from\nthe field.\n\nWhen the Persians saw that their king had fled, they stayed to fight\nno longer. Even the cavalry, which had withstood every attack, now\nwavered, then broke and fled with the rest.\n\nThe great hosts sought to hide themselves from their pursuers among the\nmountain passes, but thousands were captured and slain.\n\nDarius in his haste had left his shield and his royal cloak behind, but\nhe would not stay to recover them. On and on he fled until he reached a\ntown on the river Euphrates.\n\nAlexander was well pleased with his great victory, but he would fain\nhave captured the Persian king. To a wound in his thigh he paid little\nattention, nor did it prove dangerous. But it made it impossible for\nhim to overtake Darius.\n\nWhen the king returned from the pursuit of his enemy, he found his men\npillaging the Persian camp. The tent of Darius, which was beautifully\nfurnished, and which also had a great store of gold and silver, was set\napart for Alexander himself.\n\n\u2018Let us now cleanse ourselves from the toils of war in the baths of\nDarius,\u2019 said the king as he entered the tent of the defeated monarch.\n\n\u2018Not so,\u2019 answered one of his followers, \u2018but in Alexander\u2019s rather;\nfor the property of the conquered is and should be called the\nconqueror\u2019s.\u2019\n\nAlexander\u2019s early training had been simple as that of a Spartan, and\nthe luxury of the great king\u2019s tents amazed him.\n\nIn one there were numerous baths and many boxes of ointment, in another\na table was spread for a magnificent feast. As Alexander looked at it\nall, he turned to his followers and said, \u2018This, it seems, is royalty.\u2019\n\nBut his early training still influenced him, and he kept his simple\ntastes and cared little for dainty fare or other luxuries.\n\nOnce a queen to whom Alexander had been kind sent to his tent, day by\nday, some of the dishes which had been prepared for her own table. And\nat length, that he might always fare well, she sent cooks and bakers.\n\nBut the king would not accept them, for he said that his old tutor had\ngiven him the best possible cooks. They were, \u2018a night march to prepare\nfor breakfast, and a moderate breakfast to create an appetite for\nsupper.\u2019\n\nHe told the queen, too, how when he was a boy his tutor Leonidas used\nto look often in his wardrobe, lest his clothes were too fine, and in\nhis room, to see that his mother had not given him cushions for his\ncouch or soft pillows for his bed.\n\nAs Alexander sat down to supper on the evening of the victory of Issus,\nthe sound of wailing and weeping fell upon his ear. It seemed to him\nas the weeping of women, and he demanded to be told at once who was in\ntrouble.\n\nHis officers said that it was the mother, and wife and children of\nDarius who were weeping. For they had heard that Alexander had returned\nwith their lord\u2019s shield and cloak, and they thought that he must have\nbeen slain.\n\nThen the king bade one of his followers go tell the royal mourners that\nDarius lived, and that they need fear no harm from Alexander. For he\nmade war upon Darius not because he bore him ill will, but because he\nwished to gain his dominions. He promised that he would provide them\nwith all the comforts which they had been used to receive from the\ngreat king.\n\nWhen Darius was safe beyond the Euphrates, he remembered that his wife\nand mother had been left to the mercy of his conqueror. So he wrote to\nAlexander, begging that they might be sent to him and offering to make\na treaty with the king.\n\nHere is part of the proud answer that Alexander sent to Darius.\n\n\u2018I am lord of all, Darius,\u2019 he wrote, \u2018and therefore do thou come to me\nwith thy requests. Thou hast only to come to me to ask and receive thy\nmother and wife and children, and whatever else thou mayest desire. And\nfor the future, whenever thou sendest, send to me as to the great king\nof Asia, and do not write as to an equal, but tell me whatever thy need\nbe, as to one who is lord of all that is thine. Otherwise I will deal\nwith thee as with an offender. But if thou disputest the kingdom, then\nwait and fight for it again, and do not flee; for I will march against\nthee, wheresoever thou mayest be.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCVI\n\nTYRE IS STORMED BY ALEXANDER\n\n\nAlexander did not cross the Euphrates in search of Darius. He knew that\nthe great king could do him no harm, even should he again assemble a\nlarge army. So for a time he left Darius to do as he pleased, while he\nhimself went on with his own plan.\n\nNearly all the towns in Syracuse were ready to open their gates to\nAlexander. Some that had found Darius a hard master, hailed him as a\ndeliverer.\n\nTyre alone, while saying that she was ready to do as the king willed,\nrefused to receive either a Persian or a Macedonian into the city.\n\nAlexander wished to offer sacrifice to the deity of Tyre, whose temple\nwas within the city, and when the people refused to open their gates,\nhe was so angry that he at once laid siege to the town.\n\nTyre stood on an island, about half a mile from the mainland. Near the\ncoast the water was shallow, while close to the walls of the city it\nwas deep.\n\nThe Tyrians believed that they could hold their city against Alexander,\nfor the walls were built high, on the top of a steep and dangerous\ncliff.\n\nAs the king had no fleet, he could not attack the city until he had\nbuilt a causeway from the mainland to the island, so he ordered his men\nto begin the work without delay.\n\nBut when the causeway stretched almost to the island, the Tyrians\ndid all that they could to hinder the workmen. They sent among them\nshowers of arrows, and hurled down upon them great pieces of rock, so\nthat they found it impossible to complete the causeway.\n\nBut the king was not easily beaten. He ordered the men to build towers\nalong the causeway, and to tie leather screens from one tower to\nanother, so that they might be protected from the arrows and missiles\nof the enemy.\n\nThen the Tyrians dragged a ship, loaded with dry wood, as near to the\ncauseway as they dared to venture, and set it on fire. The towers were\nsoon in flames, and while the Macedonians tried in vain to extinguish\nthem, the enemy never ceased to send showers of arrows among the\nunfortunate men, so that many of them lost their lives.\n\nAlthough the Tyrians had destroyed the work of months, Alexander still\nrefused to give in. He now sent to the cities round about, and bade\nthem send ships to guard his soldiers until the causeway was finished.\nIn seven months from the time it was begun, the causeway reached to the\nfoot of the rock on which the city stood.\n\nIn July 332 B.C. a breach was made in the wall, and, led by Alexander\nhimself, the Macedonians rushed in triumph into the city that had so\nlong defied them.\n\nThe Tyrians fought fiercely, for they knew they need not look for mercy\nif the city was taken. But they were soon overpowered, and the town was\ngiven up to plunder. The soldiers were eager for spoil, but spoil alone\ncould not satisfy them. As they thought of the weary months which they\nhad spent in trying to reach the island, they wreaked their rage on the\nmiserable citizens, massacring all on whom they could lay their hands.\n\nAfter Tyre had fallen, Alexander was master of Syria, and could control\nthe eastern Mediterranean.\n\nFrom Tyre, the king marched southward until he reached Egypt. Here,\nafter making himself lord of the country, he founded the city which is\nstill called after him, Alexandria.\n\nDuring the siege of Tyre, Darius had again sent to Alexander, offering\nto him a large ransom for his family, as well as the hand of his\ndaughter and all the provinces west of Euphrates.\n\nWhile Alexander and his generals were talking over the offer of Darius,\nParmenio exclaimed, \u2018If I were you I should accept these terms.\u2019\n\n\u2018And I,\u2019 answered the king, \u2018would accept them if I were Parmenio.\u2019\n\nTo Darius, Alexander\u2019s reply was haughtier than ever. \u2018If thou comest,\u2019\nso ran his words, \u2018and yield thyself up into my power, I will treat\nthee with all possible kindness; if not, I will come myself to seek\nthee.\u2019\n\nSoon after this the wife of Darius died. Alexander had always treated\nher well, and now he buried her with great honour.\n\nOne of her servants fled to Darius to tell him the sad tidings. He told\nhim, too, of the kindness Alexander had ever shown to his royal captive.\n\n\u2018O king,\u2019 said the servant, \u2018neither your queen when alive, nor your\nmother, nor children wanted anything of their former happy condition,\nunless it were the light of your countenance. And after her decease,\nStatira, the queen, had not only all due funeral ornaments, but was\nhonoured also with the tears of your very enemies; for Alexander is as\ngentle after victory as he is terrible in the field.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCVII\n\nTHE BATTLE OF GAUGAMELA\n\n\nIt was now almost two years since the battle of Issus, and Alexander\ndetermined once more to meet Darius, who had again assembled a large\narmy.\n\nIn the spring of 331 B.C. the king went back to Tyre, and by August\nhe had reached Thapsacus, a town on the banks of the river Euphrates.\nHe wished to go on to Babylon, the capital of the Persian empire, but\nthe direct way to the city, which was down the Euphrates, was guarded\nby Cyrus with a large army. So Alexander struck off across the north\nof Mesopotamia, and reaching the Tigris marched along the river on the\neastern side. Above Nineveh he crossed to the other bank, and after\nmarching southward for several days, he heard that Darius was encamped\non a plain near Gaugamela, on the river Bum\u014ddus.\n\nEven to the brave Macedonian generals, the vast hosts of the Persians\nlooked formidable.\n\nParmenio looking at them begged the king to surprise the enemy by a\nnight attack rather than risk a battle in daylight.\n\n\u2018I will not steal a victory,\u2019 answered Alexander.\n\nThe night before the battle the king slept soundly, as though nothing\npreyed upon his mind. In the morning his generals found him still fast\nasleep, so without disturbing him they themselves bade the soldiers\nhave breakfast.\n\nAt length Parmenio went to wake the king, and having with difficulty\nroused him, he asked how it was possible he could sleep so soundly\nwhen the most important battle of his life had to be fought that day.\n\n\u2018You slept, sire, as though you were already victorious,\u2019 said the\nanxious general.\n\n\u2018Are we not so indeed,\u2019 answered the king, \u2018since we are at last\nrelieved from the trouble of wandering in pursuit of Darius, through a\nwide and wasted country, hoping in vain that he would fight us?\u2019\n\nAlexander, who was already dressed, now put on his helmet, which was of\niron, yet so polished was it that it shone as silver. Great skill had\nbeen lavished on the decoration of his belt, which was indeed the most\nsplendid part of his dress. He then ordered his army to be drawn up in\nbattle array, while he mounted Bucephalus, who was old now, yet eager\nfor battle.\n\nBefore the king gave the signal to attack, he stretched out his right\nhand to heaven, and called upon the gods to defend and strengthen the\nGreeks, if he indeed were the son of Zeus.\n\nBy the side of Alexander rode a soothsayer, clad in a white robe and\nwearing on his head a crown of gold. He pointed to the sky, and the\nsoldiers looking up saw an eagle flying over the king\u2019s head and on\ntoward the Persian army. \u2018It is a good omen,\u2019 they cried, and shouted\nto be led at once against the foe.\n\nA moment later the order was given, and the Macedonians rushed upon the\ngreat hosts of the enemy.\n\nDarius thought that his war-chariots would cause deadly havoc among his\nenemies, for scythes were fastened to the wheels to mow down all who\ncame within reach.\n\nBut the Macedonian archers drew their bows and sped their arrows among\nthe charioteers, while the strongest seized the reins of the horses,\nand pulled the drivers from their seats. Then the soldiers opened wide\ntheir ranks so that those chariots that still had drivers rattled\nharmlessly past them.\n\nAlexander was already attacking the centre of the Persian army, where,\nas at the battle of Issus, Darius sat in his chariot, looking on at the\nstruggle.\n\nAll at once he saw Alexander with his chosen companions drawing nearer\nand nearer, and once again his courage failed. Fiercer and fiercer\nraged the battle, closer and closer drew Alexander to the Persian king.\n\nThe horsemen grouped in front of Darius were driven backward and fled,\nall save the bravest who never flinched, but fell in a supreme effort\nto keep the enemy from approaching any nearer to the king\u2019s chariot.\n\nEven as they fell they still tried to keep back the foe, clinging\ndesperately to the legs of the horses as they galloped over their\nwounded bodies.\n\nDarius was in immediate danger of being captured. In vain the driver\ntried to turn the royal chariot, the bodies of the fallen soldiers\nwould not allow the wheels to move. The horses plunged and kicked in an\nagony of fear, and the charioteer was helpless.\n\nThen, as the king had done on the field of Issus, he did now. He leaped\nfrom the chariot, mounted a horse and fled from the battlefield.\n\nAlexander followed the king in swift pursuit; it seemed impossible\nthat he could escape. But Parmenio, who was commanding the left wing,\nwas almost overpowered by the enemy. He sent a messenger to overtake\nAlexander, and beg him for help.\n\nThe king reluctantly gave up his pursuit of Darius, and rode back with\nhis companions to give his general the help he had entreated. But\nby the time he reached the left wing his aid was no longer needed.\nParmenio had wrested victory from the foe.\n\nSo the king again set out in pursuit of Darius, but all that he\ncaptured was the chariot, the shield and the bow of the coward king.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCVIII\n\nALEXANDER BURNS PERSEPOLIS\n\n\nThe battle of Gaugamela in 331 B.C. decided the fate of the Persian\nempire. Darius was no longer the great king, for Alexander took the\ntitle as well as the dominions of his foe.\n\nAt Babylon, to which city Alexander now marched, the gates were thrown\nopen to welcome him, the people coming out to meet the conqueror, led\nby their priests.\n\nAlexander received them kindly, and bade the Babylonians not be afraid\nstill to worship their own national god.\n\nHere, in this great city, the king dreamed that he would set up his\nthrone. Babylon should be the capital of his new empire.\n\nNot far from Babylon was the city of Susa, where the Persian kings\nusually spent the winter months. Susa also surrendered to the great\nking without a blow being struck.\n\nThere were many treasures and much gold in both Babylon and Susa;\nperhaps the most wonderful treasure was a piece of purple cloth, which\nwas worth an enormous sum of money. Although it had been laid aside for\none hundred and ninety years, yet its marvellous colour was as perfect\nas it had ever been.\n\nThe spoils for which the Greeks cared most were some that had been\ncarried away by Xerxes. Among those that they found at Susa were\nstatues of Harmodius and Aristogeiton. By the order of Alexander, they\nwere now sent back to Athens.\n\nBut even greater treasures than any the king had yet found were stored\nin palaces hidden among the highlands of Persia. To these palaces\nAlexander resolved to march, although the way led through narrow\nmountain passes which were guarded by a Persian army.\n\nBy attacking the enemy both in the front and in the rear, Alexander\ncaught the Persians in a trap. They were speedily cut to pieces or fell\ndown the dangerous mountain tracks in a vain effort to escape.\n\nThen unhindered by any foe, the king marched on to one of the great\ncities of the Persian kings, which the Greeks called Persepolis, or\n\u2018the richest of all the cities under the sun.\u2019\n\nSo great were the treasures stored in the palace of Persepolis, that\nten thousand pairs of mules and five thousand camels were needed to\ncarry them away.\n\nFor four months Alexander lingered in the city. His soldiers were proud\nindeed of their king when for the first time they saw him sitting under\na canopy of gold on the throne of the Persian monarchs.\n\nA Corinthian, who was a great friend of Alexander\u2019s, exclaimed at\nthe sight, \u2018How unfortunate are those Greeks who have died without\nbeholding Alexander seated on the throne of Darius!\u2019\n\nBefore he left Persepolis to go in search of Darius, Alexander gave a\ngreat feast.\n\nIt was then that the king, urged by the excited revellers, allowed the\npalace to be burned.\n\nWith a wreath of flowers on his head and a lighted torch in his hand,\nthe king, followed by his guests, surrounded the palace, and set light\nto it. The soldiers also seized torches and amid shouts and merriment\nthey, too, helped to destroy the palace of the Persian kings.\n\nThe Macedonians thought that the burning of the palace was a sign\nthat Alexander did not mean to dwell among the barbarians, and they\nrejoiced. For they were growing weary of marching into unknown\ncountries, and they were beginning to think wistfully of their\nhomeland.\n\nAlexander was soon sorry for the wild impulse which had seized him, and\nhe gave orders to put out the fire as speedily as might be.\n\nThe officers in Alexander\u2019s army had become rich with the spoils of\nconquered cities, and the king found that they were growing as fond\nof ease and luxury as the Persians. Their tables were loaded with\ndelicacies, servants attended to their slightest wish. One officer even\nhad his shoes made with silver nails.\n\nSuch indulgence annoyed the king and he reproved his officers, telling\nthem that toil was more honourable than pleasure.\n\n\u2018How is it possible,\u2019 he said, \u2018if you cannot attend to your own body,\nthat you look well after your horse, or keep your armour bright and in\ngood order? You should surely avoid the weaknesses of those you have\nconquered.\u2019\n\nTo set his army an example, the king now began to hunt more than was\nhis custom and with less care for his own safety. When the soldiers\nwere sent against an enemy, Alexander himself went with them, and\nendured the same hardships and dangers as his men.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XCIX\n\nALEXANDER SLAYS HIS FOSTER-BROTHER\n\n\nEarly in 330 B.C. Alexander left Persepolis to go in search of Darius.\n\nAfter a long and difficult march of three hundred miles, to which his\nsoldiers took only eleven days, the king heard that Darius had passed\nthe defile called the \u2018Caspian Gates.\u2019 For five days he allowed his\nmen, who were utterly exhausted, to rest, before he again started in\npursuit of the fugitive.\n\nAfter passing through the Caspian Gates, Alexander heard that Bessus,\na kinsman of Darius, who was also his officer or satrap, had made him\na prisoner. Loaded with chains, Darius was being carried away to the\ndistrict over which Bessus ruled.\n\nThis made the king the more determined to reach the unfortunate\ncaptive. For four days he hurried on until at length he reached a\nvillage where Bessus and his men had stayed the evening before. He was\ntold that the satrap was going to make a forced march that night.\n\nThe king learned of a shorter road, by which he might overtake the\nfugitives, but there was no water to be found on the way. Alexander did\nnot hesitate. With only a small company he set out the same evening,\nand when morning dawned he had ridden forty-five miles. The fugitives\nwere now within sight.\n\nWhen the barbarians who were with Bessus saw the king in the distance\nthey fled. The satrap quickly took the chains off his captive, bidding\nhim mount a horse and follow them. When Darius refused he stabbed him\nand rode away, leaving the wretched king to die or to fall into the\nhands of his enemy.\n\nA few Macedonians who were riding in front of the king reached the\nwounded man first, and gave him water, for which he begged. Darius then\nlay back and before Alexander arrived, he had breathed his last.\n\nThe king looked at his fallen foe with pity, and then flung over him\nhis own cloak. His body he sent to the queen-mother, that it might be\nburied beside the other Persian kings at Persepolis.\n\nBessus was betrayed into the hands of Alexander not long afterwards.\nNaked and chained he was placed on the road by which Alexander\u2019s army\nmust pass.\n\nThe king stopped when he reached the satrap, and asked him why he had\nmurdered Darius, who had always treated him well.\n\nBessus answered that he did it to win Alexander\u2019s favour.\n\nHis reply won no pity from the king, who ordered him to be scourged and\nsent to prison. Some time after he was brought to trial and sentenced\nto a cruel death.\n\nUntil now Alexander had lived almost as simply as when he was a lad,\nand but lately he had reproved his officers for their indolent and\nluxurious habits. Now he gradually began to adopt the customs of\nthe East. He dressed in purple and surrounded himself with Persian\ncourtiers, and acted as though he was indeed a descendant of the gods.\nThe Macedonians were quick to take offence at the favour their king\nshowed to the Persians.\n\nPhilotas, a son of Parmenio, resented the king\u2019s deeds, more perhaps\nthan any other of his generals. He was proud and his haughty ways had\nmade his men dislike him.\n\nParmenio would sometimes say to him, \u2018My son, to be not quite so great\nwould be better.\u2019 But Philotas would take no notice of the rebuke.\n\nOne day he declared that but for him and his father, the king would\nnever have conquered Asia. \u2018Yet it is he, the boy Alexander who enjoys\nthe glory of the victories and the title of king,\u2019 said the foolish\nofficer.\n\nAlexander was told of the boastful way in which Philotas had spoken,\nbut he neither reproved nor punished him.\n\nA little later a plot was made against his life, and Philotas would not\nallow those who wished to warn the king to enter his presence. Then\nAlexander, who knew of this also, ordered Philotas to be seized and\nimprisoned.\n\nHe was tried before an assembly of Macedonians and confessed that he\nhad known of the plot to kill the king, and yet had neither warned him\nnor allowed others to do so.\n\nThe Macedonians condemned him to death, and themselves carried out the\nsentence, throwing at him their javelins.\n\nAlexander had been patient with Philotas and his punishment was just,\nbut now the king did a cruel deed. For thinking that his old and\nfaithful general Parmenio might have shared in the treachery of his\nson, he sent a messenger to slay him.\n\nThe king\u2019s despatch was taken to Parmenio and put into his hand. As he\nbegan to read it he was stabbed in the back.\n\nFrom this time the king\u2019s temper grew less and less controlled. At one\nof the royal feasts he lost it altogether. A guest sang a song which\nmade a jest of some Macedonians who had been beaten by the Persians.\nThe old soldiers were indignant, the more so that Alexander paid no\nheed to their anger and bade the singer sing on.\n\nClitus, the king\u2019s foster-brother, had a quick temper, and he cried\nout, \u2018It is not well done to expose the Macedonians before their\nenemies; since though it was their unhappiness to be overcome, yet are\nthey much better men than those who laugh at them.\u2019\n\n\u2018Clitus pleads his own cause,\u2019 said the king, \u2018when he names cowardice\nmisfortune.\u2019\n\nThe king spoke half in jest, half in anger, for he knew well that\nClitus and all his Macedonians were brave men and no cowards.\n\nBut Clitus sprang to his feet at Alexander\u2019s words and cried, \u2018Yet, O\nking, it was my cowardice that once saved your life from the Persians,\nand it is by the wounds of Macedonians that you are now the great king.\u2019\n\n\u2018Speak not so boldly,\u2019 answered the king, and in his voice there was a\nthreat, \u2018or think not you will long enjoy the power to do so.\u2019\n\nClitus was now too angry to care what he said, and he spoke to the king\nyet more bitterly, until Alexander could brook no more. He took an\napple from the table before him, and flinging it at his foster-brother,\nfelt for his sword. But one of his guards, foreseeing what might\nhappen, had removed it. His guests now gathered around the king, trying\nto soothe his anger. Alexander pushed them aside, and ordered one of\nhis guard to sound the alarm. This would have assembled the whole army\nand the man hesitated, whereupon Alexander struck him on the face.\n\nMeanwhile a friend had hurried Clitus out of the room, but he slipped\nback again by another door, and boldly taunted the king with the way in\nwhich he treated his old soldiers.\n\nThen in a passion Alexander snatched a spear from one of his guards,\nrushed upon Clitus and stabbed him to death.\n\nA moment later the king\u2019s anger faded away, and he looked in horror\nupon the dead body of his foster-brother. He seized the spear again and\ntried to kill himself, but his guards wrenched it away, and led him to\nhis own room. There he lay all through the long night and all through\nthe following day, weeping for his foster-brother whom he had slain.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER C\n\nPORUS AND HIS ELEPHANT\n\n\nThe Macedonians had now for some time been longing to march homeward\nrather than into new and unknown lands. But Alexander\u2019s ambition was\nnot yet satisfied, and in 327 B.C. he determined to march into India,\nto add that land also to his conquests.\n\nThe army was laden with booty, and the king saw that unless it were\nleft behind the men would not be able to march. It would be no easy\nmatter to make the soldiers give up their plunder, but Alexander knew\nwell how to manage men.\n\nHe ordered all his own share of plunder, all his unnecessary clothing,\nalmost all his ornaments, to be burned. His courtiers did as they saw\ntheir king do, and when the soldiers were ordered to follow Alexander\u2019s\nexample, they did so without a murmur, while some even cheered.\n\nWithout the plunder the soldiers marched easily, and soon reached the\nPunjab, where the king of the district brought to Alexander\u2019s aid five\nthousand men.\n\nThe army marched on unopposed, until it came to the river Hydaspes, or\nas we call it now the Jhelum. Here it was forced to halt, for on the\nopposite bank was a powerful Indian king, named Porus, and a large army.\n\nPorus had with him a number of elephants, and when they trumpeted, the\nhorses of the Macedonians took flight. The banks of the river were\nslippery, and the enemy was ready with arrows, should the king order\nhis army to cross the river.\n\nAlexander had made up his mind to cross the Hydaspes, but first he\nwished to put Porus off his guard.\n\nSo night after night, by the king\u2019s orders, a trumpet called the\ncavalry to march. It advanced always to the edge of the river, while\nPorus, thinking the whole army was going to cross, commanded his\nelephants to be moved to the bank, and his great hosts to be drawn up\nready for battle.\n\nHour after hour the Indians waited, but the Macedonians never attempted\nto cross, and so they grew listless and each night less vigilant. Even\nPorus began to think the Macedonians must be cowards, and he paid less\nand less attention to their movements. This was what Alexander had\nexpected would happen.\n\nBut one stormy night, when the Indians were off their guard, the\nking with part of his army crossed to a wooded island that lay in\nthe middle of the river. It was a terrible night. Lightning flashed,\nthunder crashed, and several of Alexander\u2019s men were killed as they\nstruggled breast high in the water. With great difficulty the others\nreached the farther side, to find that Porus had realised his danger. A\nthousand horsemen and sixty armed chariots awaited the daring king. But\nAlexander captured the chariots and slew four hundred of the cavalry.\n\nThe whole Macedonian army had now joined the king, and a desperate\nbattle was fought. Hour after hour the conflict raged, neither side\ngaining the victory.\n\nAt length, when the elephants were dead or their riders slain, when the\nIndians were flying in every direction, Porus knew that the day was\nlost.\n\nYet he disdained to flee and fought on, seated upon an elephant of\nenormous size, for he himself was more than six feet in height. Only\nwhen he was wounded in his shoulder, did he turn to ride away from the\nfield.\n\nIt is told that while the battle was raging the elephant took the\ngreatest care of his master. And when the animal saw that the king was\nfaint from his wounds, he knelt down carefully that Porus might not\nfall. Then with his trunk he drew out the darts that were left in the\nbody of the king.\n\nAlexander had seen how bravely his enemy had fought, As he watched him\nriding from the field, he thought he would like to speak with so great\na warrior, and he sent to ask him to return. He himself went out to\nmeet the king, and was amazed at his great height and at his beauty.\n\nWhen Alexander asked Porus how he wished to be treated, he answered,\n\u2018As a king.\u2019\n\n\u2018For my own sake I will do that,\u2019 replied the great king; \u2018ask a boon\nfor thy sake.\u2019\n\n\u2018That,\u2019 said Porus, \u2018containeth all.\u2019\n\nAs was his way, Alexander treated the fallen king right royally, giving\nback to him his kingdom and adding to it new territories.\n\nTwo cities were built close to the battlefield. One was named\nBucephala, after Alexander\u2019s famous horse which, some say, was wounded\nand died after the battle. But others tell that Bucephalus had died\nshortly before the battle of old age, for he had lived for thirty\nyears. The king grieved for the loss of his noble steed as for the loss\nof a friend.\n\nThis terrible battle made the Macedonians still more unwilling to\nadvance farther into India.\n\nBefore them lay a desert which would take eleven days to cross. The\nsoldiers could not face a long march in a strange land, without water\nand without guides.\n\nWhen Alexander ordered the army to advance, the Macedonians who had\nfollowed him loyally through every difficulty, refused to obey.\n\nNothing he could say would make them advance a step farther.\n\n\u2018There they stood, looking hard at the ground with tears trickling down\ntheir cheeks, yet resolute still not to go forward.\u2019\n\nThen Alexander dismissed them in anger. But the next day he sent for\nthem again and told them that he was going to advance. They, if they\nchose to forsake him in a hostile land, could go back to Macedon.\n\nStill in anger the king left them and went to his tent, and shut\nhimself up for two days, refusing to see any of his companions.\n\nPerhaps he thought his obstinate Macedonians would yield. But although\nit grieved them to thwart their king, the soldiers remained firm.\n\nOn the third day Alexander left his tent and offered sacrifices to the\ngods, as he always did before beginning a new adventure. But the signs\nwere unfavourable, and against this the king was not proof. So he sent\nto tell the army that he had determined to lead them in the direction\nof home.\n\nIn a transport of joy the faithful Macedonians hastened to the king\u2019s\ntent. Some of them wept as they thanked \u2018the unconquered king that he\nhad permitted himself to be conquered for once by his Macedons.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER CI\n\nALEXANDER IS WOUNDED\n\n\nAlexander determined to begin the homeward journey by sailing down the\nHydaspes to the Indus in order to reach the ocean.\n\nThe king himself with part of the army embarked in the ships which\nawaited them on the Hydaspes. The rest of the army was divided into two\ncompanies, and marched on either bank of the river, one being under\nHeph\u00e6stion, the king\u2019s friend.\n\nOn the way the fleet and the army joined their forces in order to\nsubdue some of the warlike tribes that refused to submit to them.\n\nOne of these tribes, the Malli, Alexander pursued to their chief city,\nwhich stood where the town of Multan has since been built.\n\nThe city was easily taken, but not so the citadel in which the Malli\nhad taken refuge.\n\nBefore the walls surrounding it could be scaled, ladders were needed,\nand two were hurriedly brought to the spot. But it was difficult to\nplace them in position, for the Malli hurled upon the soldiers every\nmissile on which they could lay their hands.\n\nAlexander growing impatient, seized one of the ladders, and covering\nhimself with his shield he placed it in position and began to mount.\n\nPeucestas, carrying the sacred shield of Troy, and Leonnatus, two of\nthe companions, followed closely after their king, while Abreas began\nto climb the second ladder which was now also ready for use.\n\nThe king was soon standing alone on the top of the wall, having flung\ndown those of the Malli who were keeping guard at that point.\n\nIn despair the Macedonians saw the danger to which their king had\nexposed himself. He was a mark for every weapon hurled from the citadel.\n\nThey rushed in a body to the ladders, and began to mount in such\nnumbers that the ladders both gave way, Peucestas, Leonnatus and Abreas\nalone having first reached the top of the wall.\n\nHis friends called aloud to Alexander, entreating him to come back. But\nhe leaped down on the other side among his foes. Fortunately he landed\non his feet, and at once placing his back against the wall, he strove\nto keep back the enemy as they rushed upon him.\n\nThe foremost fell before the swift stroke of the king\u2019s sword, as did\nalso those who followed him. At two more the king hurled stones which\nfelled them to the ground. After that the Malli were afraid to approach\nclose to the great king, but they began to throw at him stones and\ngreat pieces of rock.\n\nA moment later his three companions had leaped down and were by the\nside of their king, ready to defend him with their lives.\n\nAbreas fell at his feet almost at once, pierced by a dart. Alexander\nhimself was wounded, but fought on until at length, faint through loss\nof blood, he fell fainting on his shield.\n\nPeucestas covered him with the sacred shield, while Leonnatus fought on\ndesperately until help came.\n\nA few of the Macedonians, maddened by the thought of their king\u2019s\ndanger, scrambled up on each other\u2019s shoulders, and leaped down on the\nother side to rescue him and his three companions if they still lived.\n\nSome ran to the gates, and opened them, and the anxious soldiers poured\nin and took the citadel. They believed that their king was dead, and\nthey wreaked their fury on the miserable inhabitants, leaving neither\nmen, women nor children alive.\n\nAlexander was not dead, and although his wound was severe, he\nrecovered. But the rumour of his death had reached the camp near the\nriver where the main body of the army had been left. No letters, no\nmessages could make the grief-stricken soldiers believe that their king\nstill lived.\n\nAlexander was brought down the river in a ship. He was lying on a couch\nin the stern of the vessel as he drew near to the camp, and he ordered\nthe canopy which screened him to be raised that his soldiers might see\nhim.\n\nAt first they thought it was but his lifeless body which they beheld,\nbut as he drew nearer still, the king waved his hand. Then a great\nshout of joy rent the air.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER CII\n\nTHE DEATH OF ALEXANDER\n\n\nIn the autumn of 325 B.C. Alexander began to march through the desert\nof Gedrosia on his way to Babylon.\n\nThe heat was terrible, and the soldiers were soon parched with thirst,\nwhile sinking sand added to the hardship of the march.\n\nAlexander tramped by the side of his men across the dreary waste,\nsharing all their privations and cheering them by his presence. But\nbefore he left the desert of Gedrosia, the king had lost more than a\nfourth part of the army that had set out with him from India two short\nmonths before.\n\nAt length the exhausted soldiers reached Susa, and here the king\nallowed them to rest. He himself found much to do, for many of the\nsatraps whom he had left in charge of different provinces had betrayed\ntheir trust. They had treated cruelly those who were in their power,\nand had formed plots to make themselves kings over their own provinces.\nIt may be that they thought Alexander would never come back from his\nperilous journey in the East.\n\nWhen he had punished those who had proved faithless, were they\nMacedonians or Persians, he turned to a matter on which his heart was\nset--the union of the peoples of the East and the West.\n\nThe king tried to accomplish this in different ways. He had already\nbuilt cities in the East, and left in them Greeks and Macedonians along\nwith the native Asiatics.\n\nNow he himself wedded Statira, the daughter of Darius, Heph\u00e6stion\nmarried her sister, while several Macedonian generals, following the\nexample of the king, took the daughters of Persian nobles to be their\nwives. Many of the soldiers, too, married women of the East.\n\nAlexander hoped that little by little the two races would learn to know\neach other better and to have the same interests.\n\nIn the spring of 324 B.C. Alexander went to Ecbatana, where the Persian\nkings had been used to spend the summer months. Shortly afterwards he\nmet his whole army at Opis, not far from Babylon, and discharged many\nof the Macedonian veterans who were no longer fit to fight because of\nold age or because of the wounds from which they had suffered. The king\npromised to provide for these old warriors for the rest of their lives.\nHe expected them to welcome their dismissal and their reward.\n\nBut the Macedonians had been growing more and more jealous of the\nfavours Alexander had been showing to the Persians, and now the\nfeelings that they had been forced to hide found words.\n\nThey bade the king discharge not only the veterans but his loyal\nMacedonians. Some even dared to shout, \u2018Go and conquer with Zeus, your\nfather.\u2019\n\nThe king, in sudden anger, sprang from his seat, down among the angry\nthrong, and ordered thirteen of the ring-leaders to be put to death. He\nthen bade the others go away if they wished. They had been only poor\nshepherds on the hills of Macedon, he reminded them, until his father\nPhilip had made them rulers of Greece. He had shared with them the\nwealth of the East, and had kept nothing for himself, save his purple\nrobe and his royal diadem.\n\nAlexander then went to his palace, and in three days he sent for the\nPersian nobles, to whom he gave the posts of honour which until now had\nbeen held by the Macedonians.\n\nPlutarch tells us that when the Macedonians, who had stayed in their\nquarters in spite of their dismissal, heard what Alexander had done,\n\u2018they went without their arms, with only their undergarments on, crying\nand weeping, to offer themselves at his tent, and desired him to deal\nwith them as their baseness and ingratitude deserved ... yet he would\nnot admit them to his presence, nor would they stir from thence, but\ncontinued two days and nights before his tent, bewailing themselves,\nand imploring him as their lord to have compassion on them. But on\nthe third day he came out to them, and seeing them very humble and\npenitent, he wept himself a great while, after a gentle reproof spoke\nkindly to them and dismissed those who were too old for service with\nmagnificent rewards, and with recommendation to Antipater that when\nthey came home, at all public shows and in the theatres, they should\nsit in the best and foremost seats, crowned with chaplets of flowers.\u2019\n\nDuring the summer which he spent at Ecbatana, a great sorrow befell\nthe king. Heph\u00e6stion, his dearest friend, took ill, and in seven days\nhe was dead. For three days the king would touch no food. No one could\ncomfort him, for well the king knew that no one would ever fill the\nplace that Heph\u00e6stion had held in his heart. The body of his friend\nthe king ordered to be taken to Babylon, where it was burnt on a pyre\nadorned with great magnificence. Chapels were built in his honour in\nAlexandria and other cities.\n\nIn June 323 B.C., a month after the funeral rites, Alexander, who was\npreparing for a great expedition by sea, went to the river Euphrates to\ninspect some new harbours which he had ordered to be built.\n\nThe place was unhealthy, because of the many marshes that lay round\nabout the river, and the king was attacked by fever. He refused to take\nany care and daily he grew worse, until at length he was forced by\nweakness to stay in bed.\n\nA rumour that he was dead reached the Macedonians, and they hastened to\nthe palace, begging to be allowed to see their king once more.\n\nAlexander was not dead, but he was too weak to speak, as one by one the\nsoldiers were permitted to walk quietly past his bed. With an effort he\nlooked at them as they passed, and feebly raised his hand in farewell.\n\n\u2018After I am gone will you ever find a king worthy of such heroes as\nthese?\u2019 he murmured as they slowly filed out of the room.\n\nThen he drew his signet ring from his finger and gave it to an officer,\nsaying that he left his kingdom \u2018to the best man.\u2019 So the great king\npassed away at the age of thirty-three.\n\n[Illustration: With an effort he looked at them as they passed]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER CIII\n\nDEMOSTHENES IN THE TEMPLE OF POSEIDON\n\n\nWhen Alexander set out on his great expedition to Asia, Demosthenes was\nliving in Athens, and for five years nothing happened to disturb the\nquiet habits of his life.\n\nHe loved his city well, and with his own money he had rebuilt the walls\nof Athens. Many other services he had done for his countrymen, and\nbecause of these, one of the Athenians proposed to the people that a\nhero\u2019s crown of gold should be bestowed upon Demosthenes.\n\nThis they were very willing to do. So at one of the great Athenian\nfestivals, when the people were assembled in the theatre, a herald\nproclaimed that a golden crown had been awarded to the orator because\nof all that he had done for his city.\n\nBut \u00c6schines, another great orator, was angry that this honour should\nhave been given to Demosthenes, whom he happened to dislike. So he\nbrought a lawsuit against him, and attacked his enemy in a speech that\nbecame famous.\n\nBut Demosthenes defended himself in a still more brilliant speech, and\nwon his case, which so annoyed \u00c6schines that he left Athens and never\nagain returned to the city.\n\nSix years later, Demosthenes was accused of having taken bribes. It was\nnot proved that he had done so, yet he was found guilty and sentenced\nto pay a heavy fine.\n\nAs he had not money enough to pay the fine, he was thrown into prison.\nBefore long he escaped and fled to the sea-coast town of \u00c6gina, not far\nfrom Athens. Often he would sit on the shore or pace up and down the\nsands, looking wistfully toward the city he loved.\n\nWhen tidings of the death of Alexander reached Athens, the Greeks\nresolved once more to try to fling off the yoke of Macedon. Demosthenes\nwas recalled to the city, and his voice encouraged the Athenians in\ntheir determination to fight for liberty.\n\nBut Antipater hastened to Attica with an army, and soon put down the\nrevolt of the Athenians. He then condemned Demosthenes to death, for\nit was well-known that his Philippics had often roused the Athenians\nto show their hatred of Philip, and he had, too, continually spoken\nagainst his son Alexander.\n\nWhen Demosthenes heard that he had been condemned, he fled to the\ntemple of Poseidon, in the island of Calauria. Antipater at once sent\nsoldiers, led by a man named Archias, to capture the fugitive. Archias\nhad once been an actor, and was well known to Demosthenes.\n\nArchias reached Calauria, and going to the temple he begged Demosthenes\nto come out of the sanctuary, saying that if he did so he would be\npardoned.\n\nBut Demosthenes knew that this was a false promise and he said, \u2018O\nArchias, I am as little affected by your promises now as I used\nformerly to be by your acting.\u2019\n\nNow Archias had been proud of his acting, so this made him very angry\nwith Demosthenes, and he began to threaten him with all kinds of evil.\n\n\u2018Now,\u2019 said the orator, \u2018you speak like an oracle of Macedon; before,\nyou were acting a part. Therefore wait only a little, while I write a\nword or two to my family.\u2019\n\nThen he rose and went into the inner temple, and taking a tablet and\nhis own pen in his hand, he sat down as though to write. He had a habit\nof putting his pen into his mouth and biting it, and he did so now. It\nseemed as though he was thinking what he would write. But all the while\nhe was sucking poison which he had concealed in his pen.\n\nThen, knowing that the poison would soon do its work, Demosthenes\nleaned on the altar, his face hidden in his cloak.\n\nArchias had now grown tired of waiting, and he went into the temple\nagain and bade Demosthenes come, without more delay.\n\nThe orator rose, uncovering his head, and looking at Archias, he said,\n\u2018I will depart while I am alive out of this sacred place.\u2019 But as he\ntried to walk toward the door he staggered and fell by the altar. The\npoison had done its work.\n\nAntipater had no interest in the art or in the culture of Greece, and\nher glory soon faded under his rule. Athens, Sparta, Corinth, as well\nas the smaller states, all ceased to be independent.\n\nAs the power of Greece grew less, that of Rome was growing greater and\ngreater. In 196 B.C. she conquered Macedon and restored to Greece her\nliberty.\n\nFifty years later, Corinth defied the Roman power, and treated her\nambassadors with insult. The Roman consuls then sent an army into\nGreece to conquer the country, and add it to their great dominions.\n\nBut although the Romans conquered Greece, and so made her subject to\nthem, they could not escape her influence. The Greek language was\nspoken by every educated Roman, Greek plays were acted at Rome, Greek\nliterature was read and studied.\n\nWherever the Romans went they carried with them the habits and the\nculture of the people whom they had conquered. And the greatest and\nmost precious thing the Greeks had to teach the world was, \u2018the just\nconsideration of the truth of things everywhere.\u2019\n\n\n\n\nINDEX\n\n\n Ach\u00e6ans, the, 73.\n\n Achilles, and Briseis the Fair-cheeked, 32;\n fatal quarrel with Agamemnon, 34;\n the horses of, 44; Hector slain by, 48 _et seq._;\n death of, 52.\n\n Acrisius, king of Argos, 18;\n killed by Perseus, 29.\n\n Acropolis at Athens, the, 97.\n\n Admetus, king, 186.\n\n \u00c6gis of Athens, the, 23, 30.\n\n \u00c6gospotami, disaster at, 261.\n\n \u00c6olians, the, 73.\n\n \u00c6schines, lawsuit against Demosthenes, 349.\n\n \u00c6schylus, 172, 200.\n\n Agamemnon, king, 33, 34.\n\n Agesilaus, king of Sparta, 278, 279.\n\n Alcibiades, 232\u2013236;\n friendship with Socrates, 236, 238, 240, 243;\n expedition to conquer Sicily, 244\u2013248;\n flight to Sparta, 247\u2013248;\n betrayal of Athenians to the Spartans, 248;\n return to Athens, 255;\n Antiochus\u2019 disobedience, 258;\n death of, 263.\n\n Alexander the Great, at battle of Ch\u00e6ronea, 307;\n and his horse Bucephalus, 309;\n conquests in Greece, 312 _et seq._;\n and Diogenes, 312;\n conquest of Persia, 314, 315 _et seq._;\n cutting of the Gordian knot, 318;\n illness of, 319;\n defeat of Darius at Issus, 322;\n treatment of Darius and his wife and family, 323, 327;\n siege of Tyre by, 325;\n defeat of Darius at Gaugamela, 328;\n burning of Persepolis by, 331;\n pursuit of Darius, 334;\n treatment of Philotas, 335;\n slays his foster-brother, 336;\n conquests in India, 338;\n victory over King Porus, 338;\n wounded at siege of the citadel of Malli, 342;\n east and west united by, 345;\n death of, 345.\n\n Alexander, king of Thessaly, Pelopidas\u2019 expedition against, 282.\n\n Amphictyonic Council, the, 94.\n\n Amphipolis, surrender of, 228.\n\n Andromache and Hector, 41, 50, 51, 52.\n\n Andromeda and the sea-monster, 26.\n\n Antinous, 67.\n\n Antiochus, 258.\n\n Antipater, 350.\n\n Aphrodite, 4, 40.\n\n Apollo, 4, 11, 35, 46, 76, 79, 95;\n and Hyacinthus, 16.\n\n Arachne, story of, 13.\n\n Archias, 273, 274, 275;\n and Demosthenes, 350.\n\n Archidamus, invasion of Attica by, 205;\n siege of Plataea under, 210\u2013213.\n\n Arginus\u00e6, battle of, 259.\n\n Argos, war with Sparta, 232.\n\n Argus, the hound, 64.\n\n Aristagoras, 122, 123, 124, 126.\n\n Aristides, 138, 140\u2013144, 148, 168, 170, 179, 180, 185, 188.\n\n Aristodemus, 89.\n\n Aristogiton, 113.\n\n Aristomenes and the fox, 91.\n\n Aristophanes, 200, 234.\n\n Aristotle, 311.\n\n Artaphernes, 122, 123, 127, 129, 130.\n\n Artaxerxes, 186, 193;\n march of Cyrus against, 265;\n Spartan expedition against, 269.\n\n Artemisium, battle of, 161.\n\n Athene, 4, 11, 12, 13, 22, 23, 30, 36, 41, 62, 65, 97, 196, 198.\n\n Athenian Empire, foundation of, 178.\n\n Athenians, the, taking of Salamis by, 106;\n alliance with Ionians against Darius, 127;\n defeat of Persian army at Marathon, 134;\n victory in bay of Pylos over the Spartans, 220;\n surrender of Spartans at Sphacteria to, 221;\n invasion of B\u0153otia by, 225;\n defeat at Syracuse, 249, 252\u2013254;\n defeat by Spartans under Lysander, 259.\n\n Athens, city of, 12, 196\u2013199;\n war with Dorians, 97;\n oligarchic government of, 98;\n three parties of, 100;\n Persian attack on, 137;\n sea-power of, 140, 184, 194;\n war with Sparta, 195;\n great men of, 201;\n jealousy of Sparta causing Peloponnesian war, 202 _et seq._;\n revolt of Mytilene against, 214;\n second Peloponnesian war, 233;\n surrender to the Spartans, 261\u2013263.\n\n Atlas, 26.\n\n Attica, Spartan invasion of, 205.\n\n\n Babylon, taken by Alexander the Great, 331.\n\n Bessus, 334, 335.\n\n B\u0153otia, invasion of, 225.\n\n B\u0153otian League, the, 203.\n\n Bow of Odysseus, the, 67.\n\n Brasidas the Spartan, 219, 225, 226\u2013231.\n\n Bridge of Boats, Darius\u2019, 118.\n\n Briseis the Fair-cheeked, 32.\n\n Bucephalus, 309, 329, 340.\n\n\n Callistratus, 301.\n\n Carthaginians, the, expedition against Syracuse, 286, 288, 289;\n defeated by Timoleon at Crimisus, 296.\n\n Cassiopeia, 27.\n\n Cecrops, 11.\n\n Ch\u00e6ronea, battle of, 307.\n\n Charilaus, 77, 80.\n\n Charon, 273, 274, 275, 276.\n\n Cimon, 179, 189\u2013193.\n\n Clearchus, 264, 265, 267.\n\n Cleisthenes, 114, 115\u2013116.\n\n Cleombrotus, 279, 280.\n\n Cleomenes and Aristagoras, 126.\n\n Cleon, 208, 215, 216, 221, 222\u2013224, 228\u2013231.\n\n Clitus, 336.\n\n Codrus, the last king of Athens, 97.\n\n Conon, 259, 262.\n\n Conspiracy of the Seven Thebans, 273.\n\n Corinth, the two brothers of, 286.\n\n Crimisus, battle of, 296.\n\n Croesus, king of Lydia, 103, 104, 105.\n\n Cyclopes, the, 56.\n\n Cylon, 100.\n\n Cynoscephal\u00e6, battle of, 284.\n\n Cyrus, king of Persia, and Croesus, 105.\n\n ---- march against king Artaxerxes, 264\u2013268.\n\n\n Damocles, 314.\n\n Danae, story of, 18.\n\n Darius, king of Persia, war against Greece, 118;\n Histiaeus rewarded by, 121;\n Ionian rebellion against, 124;\n expedition against Athens, 131;\n defeat at Marathon, 134;\n death of, 139.\n\n ---- king of Persia, wars with Alexander the Great, 315, 319;\n defeat near the pass of Issus, 321;\n defeat at battle of Gaugamela, 328;\n retreat and death, 334.\n\n Delian League, the, 178.\n\n Delium, defeat of Athenians at, 226.\n\n Demeter, story of, 4, 6.\n\n Demosthenes, 218, 219, 222, 223, 250, 251, 252\u2013254, 307, 308, 311,\n 313, 349.\n\n Diodotus, 216.\n\n Diogenes, 312.\n\n Dionysius of Syracuse, 286, 289.\n\n Dorians, the, 73, 76.\n\n Draco, code of laws of, 101.\n\n Dryads, the, 1.\n\n\n Elpinice and Pericles, 195.\n\n Epaminondas, 93, 269, 271\u2013272, 277, 280\u2013285, 306.\n\n Ephialtes the treacherous Greek, 157, 159.\n\n Ephialtes the statesman, 190, 191.\n\n Epirus, 72.\n\n Epitades, 219, 221, 223.\n\n Erechtheum, the, 197.\n\n Eros, 4.\n\n Eucles, 228.\n\n Euaeus the swineherd, 64, 66, 67.\n\n Euripides, 200, 201, 235.\n\n Europa, 15.\n\n Eurybiades, 153, 161, 166, 167.\n\n Eurymedon, 218, 219, 220, 221, 250, 251.\n\n\n Gaugamela, battle of, 328.\n\n Gordian knot, the, 318.\n\n Gorgo, 127, 160.\n\n Gorgons, the, 22.\n\n Gr\u00e6\u00e6, the, 23.\n\n Granicus, battle of, 315.\n\n Greece, 72.\n\n Gylippus, 248, 249, 250, 252, 254.\n\n\n Harmodius, 113.\n\n Hecate, 8.\n\n Hector, 39, 41, 46, 48, 51, 52.\n\n Hecuba, 41, 50, 51.\n\n Helen of Troy, 33, 53.\n\n Hellespont, the scourging of the, 148.\n\n Helots, the, 85, 190.\n\n Heph\u00e6stion, 342, 345, 347.\n\n Heph\u00e6stis, 11.\n\n Hera, 3.\n\n Hermes, 4, 23, 245.\n\n Herodotus, 201.\n\n Hipparchus, 113.\n\n Hippias, 113, 132.\n\n Histiaeus, 120, 121, 123, 129.\n\n Homer, 32, 78.\n\n Hyacinthus, story of, 16.\n\n\n Icetes, 286, 289, 293.\n\n Ictinus, 196, 201.\n\n _Iliad, The_, 32.\n\n Ionians, the, 73, 118.\n\n ---- revolt of, 123\u2013130.\n\n Ismenias, 270.\n\n\n Laced\u00e6monians, the, 76.\n\n Lamachus, 245, 247, 249.\n\n Leonidas, king of Sparta, 153, 154, 155\u2013158.\n\n Leontiades, 270, 276.\n\n Leuctra, battle of, 277\u2013280.\n\n Lotus-eaters, the, 55.\n\n Lycurgus the lawgiver, 76, 78, 79, 80, 82, 87, 88.\n\n Lysander, 258, 261, 263.\n\n\n Mago, 294.\n\n Mantinea, battle of, 233.\n\n Marathon, battle of, 132, 134, 136.\n\n Mardonius, 131, 145, 172, 175, 176.\n\n Masistius, 174.\n\n Medusa, 21, 22.\n\n Menelaus, king, 33, 39, 53.\n\n Megabetes, 123, 124.\n\n Messenia, city of, 282.\n\n Messenian war, the first, 89.\n\n ---- the second, 90.\n\n Miltiades, 120, 133, 135, 136, 137, 138, 139.\n\n Mindarus, 256, 257.\n\n Mycale, battle of, 177.\n\n Mytilene, revolt against Athens, 214.\n\n\n Naiads, the, 1.\n\n Nicias, 221, 222, 231, 232, 234, 245, 251, 252, 254.\n\n ---- peace of, 231, 232.\n\n\n Odeon of Athens, the, 197, 198.\n\n Odysseus, story of, 52, 54 _et seq._\n\n _Odyssey, The_, 32.\n\n Olympian Games, the, 94.\n\n Olympus, Mount, 2.\n\n Oracles, the Grecian, 18.\n\n Orchomenus, battle of, 278.\n\n Ostracism, law of, 116.\n\n\n Paches, 214, 215.\n\n Pan, 4, 5.\n\n Paris, 33, 39, 44, 52.\n\n Parmenio, 320, 327, 328, 330, 335.\n\n Parthenon, the, 196, 197.\n\n Patroclus, 34, 45\u201347, 48.\n\n Pausanias, 174, 175, 177, 179\u2013181, 185, 210.\n\n Pelopidas, 271, 273, 277, 279, 282, 284, 306.\n\n Peloponnesian war, the first, 202\u2013231.\n\n ---- the second, 233\u2013263.\n\n Penelope, story of, 61, 66, 67\u201371.\n\n Perdiccas, 314.\n\n Pericles, 190, 194\u2013195, 198, 202, 205, 207, 215, 233.\n\n Persephone, story of, 6.\n\n Persepolis, burning of, 331.\n\n Perseus, story of, 19.\n\n Persia, wars with Greece, 118\u2013139, 145\u2013177;\n conquest by Alexander the Great, 314, 315.\n\n Pheidias, 3, 95, 196, 198, 199, 201, 208.\n\n Philip, king of Macedonia, 305, 306\u2013308, 310, 311.\n\n Philip, the physician of Alexander, 319, 320.\n\n Philippus, 273.\n\n Philomelus, 306, 307.\n\n Phocians, the, 306.\n\n Phocion, 308, 314.\n\n Ph\u0153bidas, 270.\n\n Phyllidas, 273, 274.\n\n Pirates, the Grecian, 189.\n\n Pisistratus, 99, 107, 109\u2013112.\n\n Polydectes, king, 20, 21, 26, 30.\n\n Polyphemus, the giant, 54.\n\n Porus and his elephant, 338.\n\n Poseidon, 3, 12, 15.\n\n Potid\u00e6a, siege of, 207, 208.\n\n Plague in Athens, 207, 209.\n\n Plataea, battle of, 172; siege of, 210\u2013213.\n\n Plato, 240.\n\n Plutarch, 209, 235, 257, 263, 346.\n\n Pluto, 4, 6.\n\n Priam, king of Troy, 33, 39, 50, 51.\n\n Propyl\u00e6a, the, 197.\n\n Protagoras, 201.\n\n Pylos, sea-fight of, 216.\n\n\n Rome, rise of, 351.\n\n\n Sacred Band of Thebans, 277, 278, 307, 308.\n\n Sacred war, the, 306.\n\n Salamis, siege of, 106.\n\n ---- battle of, 169\u2013172.\n\n Samos, revolt against Athens, 194.\n\n Sardis, destruction of, 126.\n\n Satyrus and Demosthenes, 304.\n\n Scythians, Darius\u2019 war against, 118, 120.\n\n Sicily, Alcibiades\u2019 expedition against, 244;\n war with Carthaginians and Dionysius of Syracuse, 286;\n freed by Timoleon, 299.\n\n Socrates, 201, 260;\n friendship with Alcibiades, 236, 240\u2013243.\n\n Solon the lawgiver, 99, 102, 106, 110, 111.\n\n Sophists, the, 201.\n\n Sophocles, 200.\n\n Sparta, 33, 76;\n war with Messenians, 89;\n war against Persia, 154, 156\u2013160;\n wars with Athens, 195 _et seq._, 232, 333;\n destruction of Athenian army at Syracuse, 249\u2013254;\n victory over Antiochus under Lysander, 259;\n surrender of Athens to, 261\u2013263;\n expedition against Thebes, 270, 273 _et seq._\n\n Spartans, the, training of, 82.\n\n Sphacteria, blockade of, 219, 221.\n\n Syracuse, siege of, 249;\n Corinthian expedition under Timoleon to, 286, 289 _et seq._\n\n\n Telemachus, 61, 62, 65, 66, 67, 69, 70.\n\n Ten Thousand, the march of, 264\u2013267.\n\n Thebes, war with Plataea, 202, 211, 213;\n conspiracy to obtain freedom from Sparta, 273;\n rise of, 277;\n Sacred War against Phocians, 306.\n\n Themistocles, rivalry with Aristides, 137, 140\u2013144;\n war against Xerxes, 148;\n at pass of Thermopylae, 153;\n at battle of Artemisium, 161;\n tactics to defeat Persian fleet at Salamis, 163\u2013167;\n Spartans deceived by, 182;\n ostracised, 185;\n death of, 187, 188.\n\n Thermopylae, battle of, 153, 156\u2013160.\n\n Theseus, king, 189.\n\n Thetis, 34, 39, 48, 49, 51, 52.\n\n Thrace, city of, 121, 122.\n\n Thucydides, 192, 198, 201, 206, 228, 229, 252, 254.\n\n Timoleon, 286, 288, 293, 296, 298.\n\n Timophanes, 286.\n\n Tissaphernes, 254, 258, 264, 266.\n\n Trojan War, the, 32.\n\n Troy, city of, 32, 52.\n\n Tyrants, Grecian, 98.\n\n Tyre, siege by Alexander, 325.\n\n Tyrtaeus, 91, 93.\n\n\n Xenophon, 264, 266, 267, 268.\n\n Xerxes, king of Persia, 139;\n his dream, 145;\n invasion of Greece by, 148;\n scourging of Hellespont by, 148;\n Athens plundered by, 164;\n defeat of his fleet at Salamis, 169.\n\n\n Zephyrus, 17.\n\n Zeus, 3, 8, 9, 11, 23, 38, 39, 47, 51, 95, 197.\n\n\n\n PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY\n THOMAS NELSON AND SONS, LTD.\n\n\n\n\nTranscriber\u2019s Notes\n\n\nPunctuation, hyphenation, and spelling, including ligatures, were made\nconsistent when a predominant preference was found in the original\nbook; otherwise they were not changed.\n\nSimple typographical errors were corrected; unbalanced quotation\nmarks were remedied when the change was obvious, and otherwise left\nunbalanced.\n\nIllustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs\nand outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support\nhyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to\nthe corresponding illustrations.\n\nThe index was not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page\nreferences.\n\n\u201cPotid\u00e6a\u201d and \u201cPotidaea\u201d occur with equal frequency in the text; both\nspellings have been retained.","title":"The Story of Greece: Told to Boys and Girls","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":102432}