Pisistratus, his own kinsman, who had taken the power of the archons;
but when he saw how wisely Pisistratus governed the people, and how
careful he was to make them happy and improve them, he freely forgave
him, and remained on good terms with him until he died.
Pisistratus went on ruling the Athenians for thirty-three years, and
when he died they mourned him greatly. In their grief for their loss,
they allowed his sons, Hip'-pi-as and Hip-par'chus, to succeed him,
without raising any objections.
These young men were very careful at first to follow their father's good
example; but they soon began to neglect business for pleasure, and,
instead of thinking of the people's good, they spent much of their time
in feasting and drinking.
In those days there dwelt at Athens two young men named Har-mo'di-us and
A-ris-to-gi'ton. They were intimate friends, and were loved by all on
account of their good qualities, and more especially because they were
so anxious to increase the glory and prosperity of their native city.
Harmodius had a sister who was as good as she was beautiful: so the
people, hoping to please him, chose her to carry a basket of flowers in
the great religious procession which took place in Athens every year.
One of the tyrants, Hipparchus, was very jealous of Harmodius, because
the people loved him so much. He therefore tried to annoy the young man
in every way; and when he heard that his sister had been chosen to bear
the flowers, he rudely forbade her presence at the feast.
This was a great insult, for none but wicked women were forbidden to
appear; and, as Hipparchus had thus publicly disgraced the girl, her
brother was very angry.
His friend, Aristogiton, was as angry as he; and the two young men,
consulting together, decided that as long as these men ruled, the
Athenians would be treated badly, and that it would be well to get rid
of them soon.
XXXVIII. DEATH OF THE CONSPIRATORS.
Harmodius and Aristogiton, having decided to get rid of the tyrants,
told their plans to a few of their friends. Secret meetings were held at
the house of a brave lady called Le-ae'na ("the lioness"), who was the
only woman in the plot.
As the Athenians were in the habit of attending the feast in armor, the
young men waited until then to carry out their plans. They mingled with
the crowd, found a good place near the tyrants, and all at once drew
their swords from their scabbards and attacked their enemies.
Harmodius was so quick that he managed to kill Hipparchus; but, before
his companions could join and protect him, he was cut down by the
tyrants' guards.
Aristogiton, his friend, rushed forward to save him, but was made
prisoner, and dragged before Hippias, who bade him tell the names of his
companions. The young man at first refused to speak; but after a while,
pretending to yield, he named some of the tyrants' friends who were
helping him oppress the Athenians.
The tyrant, in dismay, sent for the accused, and had them and
Aristogiton killed without trial. When he found out his mistake, he
again tried to learn the names of the real conspirators. He knew that
Harmodius and Aristogiton had often visited Leaena: so he had her
imprisoned and tortured, to make her tell the names of the conspirators,
because he wanted to kill them all as he had killed Aristogiton.
The brave woman, knowing that the lives of several young men depended
upon her, and that a single word might cause their death, resolved not
to utter a sound. In spite of the most awful tortures, she therefore
kept her mouth tightly closed; and when she was finally set free, they
found that she had bitten off her tongue for fear of betraying her
friends.
Poor Leaena did not live long after this; and when she died, she was
buried in a beautiful tomb, over which her friends put the image of a
lioness without a tongue, to remind the people of her courage.
The Athenians were very sorry for her death, and mourned the brave
youths Harmodius and Aristogiton for a long time; but the tyranny of the
son of Pisistratus daily grew more cruel and disagreeable.
XXXIX. HIPPIAS DRIVEN OUT OF ATHENS.
Four years passed thus, and the Athenians were hoping that the time
would soon come when they could get rid of Hippias. They were only too
glad, therefore, when they at last found a way to drive him out of the
town.
[Illustration: Delphi.]
You must remember how Megacles had killed the men who came out of
Athene's temple clinging to the cord they had fastened to her statue.
Megacles, as you know, had been banished from Athens with all his family
(the Alcmaeonidae) on account of this crime, but he had always hoped to be
allowed to return.
Meanwhile the beautiful temple at Delphi had been burned to the ground,
and the people were very anxious to rebuild it. They therefore voted a
certain sum of money for this purpose; and, as the Alcmaeonidae offered
to do the work for the least pay, the contract was given to them.
The Alcmaeonidae faithfully carried out the plans, and used the money;
but, instead of building the temple of brick, they made it of pure white
marble, paying for the more costly material themselves.
The priests of Delphi were so pleased with the handsome new building,
and with the generosity of the builders, that they were eager to do them
a good turn. So, knowing that the Alcmaeonidae wanted to get back to
Athens, they told the Spartans who came to consult the oracle, that
Hippias should be driven away, and the Alcmaeonidae allowed to return to
their native city.
As the people believed all the oracle said, the Spartans armed at once,
and, helped by the Alcmaeonidae, began to make war against the Athenians.
By a clever trick, they soon managed to capture the family of Hippias,
and they refused to set them free unless the tyrant left Athens forever.
Thus forced to give in, Hippias left Athens, and withdrew with his
family to Asia Minor. Here he spent all his time in trying to persuade
the different cities to make war against Athens, offering to lead their
armies, for he still hoped to regain his lost power.
The Athenians, delighted at the expulsion of the Pis-is-trat'i-dae, as
the driving-away of Hippias and his family is called in history, now
dared to make statues in honor of their favorites Harmodius and
Aristogiton, and openly expressed their regret that these brave young
men had not lived to see their native city free.
Many songs were composed to celebrate the patriotism of the two
friends; and these were sung on all public occasions, to encourage other
youths to follow their example, lead good and virtuous lives, and be
ready at any time to die, if need be, for the sake of their native land.
Leaena, too, received much praise, for the Athenian women never forgot
how bravely she had endured torture rather than betray the men who had
trusted her.
The Alcmaeonidae, having thus found their way back into the city, now
began to play an important part in the government; and Clis'the-nes,
their leader, urged the Athenians to obey again the laws which had been
made by Solon.
These were slightly changed, however, so as to give more power to the
people; and the government thus became more democratic than ever. Then,
too, Clisthenes said that there should always be ten Athenian generals
who should hold supreme command each for a day in turn.
He also made a law, to the effect that no man should be driven out of
the city unless there were six thousand votes in favor of his exile.
These votes were given in a strange way.
When a man was so generally disliked that his departure seemed best, all
the Athenians assembled in the market place. Then each voter received a
shell (Greek, _ostrakon_), and dropped it into a place made for that
purpose. All in favor of banishment wrote upon their shells the name of
the man they wished to exile. The others left theirs blank.
When all the votes had thus been cast, the shells were carefully
counted, and, if six thousand bore the name of the same man, he was
driven out of the city, or ostracized, as it was called from the name of
the shell, for ten years.
XL. THE GREAT KING.
Hippias, the exiled tyrant of Athens, as we have already seen, had taken
up his abode in Asia Minor, where he made several unsuccessful attempts
to regain his power.
The Greek cities were not ready to help him, however, so he tried to get
another ally. Now, the greatest ruler in Asia Minor was Da-ri'us, the
king who won his throne by the aid of his horse and groom, as you will
see in ancient history.
He was a powerful monarch,--so powerful that the Greeks, who had built
cities all along the coast of Asia Minor, in the country called Ionia,
never spoke of him except as "The Great King."
Darius' kingdom was so large that it was quite impossible for one person
to govern it without help. He therefore divided it into satrapies, or
provinces, each of which was under the care of a satrap, or governor.
These men received their orders from the king, saw that they were obeyed
in all the territory under their care, and kept Darius informed of all
that was going on.
The Great King generally dwelt at Ec-bat'a-na, a city surrounded by
seven walls, each painted in a different but very bright color. Inside
the seventh and last wall stood the palace and treasure house, which was
fairly overflowing with gold and precious stones.
As there were armed soldiers at every gate in the seven walls, only the
people to whom the king was willing to grant an audience could enter.
Now, although so secluded, Darius knew perfectly well all that was
happening in every part of his kingdom, and even in the neighboring
states; for his satraps sent him messengers daily to report all the
news, and he had many paid spies, whose duty it was to tell him all they
knew.
He was therefore one of the first Eastern rulers who heard of the revolt
of the Athenians; and soon after this he learned that Hippias had come
to Asia, and was trying to induce the Greek cities to make war against
the Athenians.
When Hippias arrived at Ecbatana in search of aid, he could not
immediately see the king, but was obliged to send in a message written
on a waxen tablet. This passed from hand to hand, and finally reached
Darius, who, recognizing the name at the bottom of the request,
graciously said that he would receive the exiled tyrant of Athens.
XLI. HIPPIAS VISITS DARIUS.
Hippias was led by one of the officers of the king's household past all
the guards, who respectfully made way for him, and was brought into the
most magnificent dwelling he had ever seen. All the walls were covered
with silken hangings of the richest dyes, and the furniture sparkled
with gold and precious stones.
After passing through many rooms, where he saw richly dressed courtiers,
and guards with jeweled weapons, Hippias was finally brought into a
great audience chamber, at one end of which hung a heavy curtain of
royal purple.
Here all the courtiers knelt, bending over to touch the floor with their
foreheads, in token of homage to The Great King. The officer now bade
Hippias do likewise; and when the Athenian raised his head, after
reluctantly going through this performance, he saw that the curtain had
been quietly pulled aside.
On a beautiful throne of ivory and gold, all overshadowed by a golden
vine bearing clusters of jeweled grapes, sat the Persian king. He was
clad in superbly embroidered robes, wore a diamond crown or tiara, held
a scepter of pure gold, and was surrounded by his officers, who were
almost as richly dressed as he.
As the Athenians were plain people, Hippias had never seen such a sight
before, and stared at the garments, which were far handsomer than those
which the Greek gods were given to wear.
Invited to speak freely and make his errand known, Hippias now told
Darius that he had come to ask his aid against the revolted Athenians.
Darius listened politely to all he had to say, and then sent him away,
graciously promising to think the matter over, and giving orders that
Hippias should be royally entertained in the mean while.
Among Darius' numerous slaves, most of whom were captives of war, there
was a learned Greek doctor called Dem-o-ce'des. This man, hoping soon to
recover his freedom by paying a sum of money, was very careful to hide
his name, and not to tell any one how much he knew.
It happened, however, that the king hurt his foot; and after the Persian
doctors had all vainly tried to cure him, he sent for Democedes, saying
that he would put him to death if he did not speedily help him.
Thus forced to use his knowledge, Democedes did all he could for the
king, and treated the wound so skillfully that the monarch was soon
cured. The king, who had found out from the other captives that the man
was a doctor, now named him court physician, and even had him attend his
wives.
One of these women was A-tos'sa, the favorite queen; and when she became
ill, Democedes was fortunate enough to save her life. The king was so
delighted with this cure, that he bade Democedes choose any reward he
pleased except his freedom.
Democedes, after a few moments' thought, asked permission to visit his
native land once more; and Darius let him go under the escort of fifteen
officers, who had orders not to lose sight of the doctor for a moment,
to bring him back by force if necessary, and to spy out the land.
In spite of the constant watching of these fifteen men, Democedes
managed to escape while they were in Greece, and hid so well that they
were never able to find him. They were therefore obliged to go home
without him; and as soon as they arrived in Persia, they reported to
Darius all they had done on the way.
The Great King questioned them very closely about all they had seen; and
his curiosity was so excited by what they told him, that he made up his
mind to conquer Greece and add it to his kingdom.
He therefore sent for Hippias again, told him that he was ready to help
him, and gave orders to collect one of the largest armies that had ever
been seen. With this army he hoped not only to take the whole country,
but also to get back the runaway doctor, Democedes, who in the mean
while was living peacefully in Greece, where he had married a daughter
of the famous strong man, Milo of Croton.
XLII. DESTRUCTION OF THE PERSIAN HOST.
The Persian preparations for war were hastened by news that all the
Ionian cities had rebelled. These were, as you remember, Greek colonies
founded on the coast of Asia Minor. They had little by little fallen
into the hands of the Persians; but, as they hated to submit to foreign
rule, they had long planned a revolt.
The Athenians, who knew that the Persians were talking of coming over to
conquer them, now offered to help the Ionians, and sent some troops over
to Asia Minor. These joined the rebels, and together they managed to
surprise and burn to the ground the rich city of Sar'dis, which belonged
to Darius.
A messenger was sent in hot haste to bear these tidings to The Great
King; and when he heard them, he was very angry indeed. In his wrath, he
said that he would punish both rebels and Athenians, and immediately
sent his army into Ionia.
The first part of his vow was easily kept, for his troops soon defeated
the Ionian army, and forced the rebels to obey him once more. When
Darius heard this, he was very much pleased; and then, sending for his
bow, he shot an arrow in the direction of Athens, to show that the
punishment of the Athenians would be his next care.
As he was afraid of forgetting these enemies in the pressure of other
business, he gave orders that a slave should appear before him every day
while he sat at dinner, and solemnly say, "Master, remember the
Athenians!"
When the preparations for this distant war were ended, the Persian army
set out for Greece. In order to reach that country, it had to march a
long way through the northern part of Asia Minor, cross a narrow strait
called the Hel'les-pont, and pass along the coast of the AEgean Sea,
through Thrace and Scyth'i-a.
In these countries the Persian army met the fierce and warlike
Scyth'i-ans mounted on their fleet-footed horses, and was nearly cut to
pieces. The Persians were so frightened by the attack of these foes,
that they refused to go any farther, and even beat a hasty retreat.
The Persian fleet in the mean while had sailed along bravely. It soon
came to the promontory formed by Mount A'thos, a tall mountain which
sometimes casts a shadow eighty miles long over the sea. Here a terrible
tempest overtook the fleet, and the waves rose so high that six hundred
vessels were dashed to pieces.
All the rest of the Persian vessels were so damaged by the storm, that
it was soon decided that they had better return home. The soldiers of
The Great King were of course greatly discouraged by these misfortunes;
but Darius was more than ever determined to conquer Greece, and at once
began to gather a second army and to build a second fleet.
XLIII. THE ADVANCE OF THE SECOND HOST.
Darius was very busy preparing this other army to march against Greece.
While the men were being drilled, he sent two messengers to the Greek
towns and islands, bidding them surrender and give him earth and water.
By demanding "earth and water," Darius meant that he wanted them to
recognize him as their king, and as master of all their lands and
vessels. The inhabitants of many of the islands and towns were so
frightened by the messages sent by The Great King, that they humbly
yielded; but when the messengers came to Sparta and Athens, they met
with a different reception.
In both cities the people proudly replied that they were their own
masters, and would not yield to the demands of the Persian king. Then,
angered by the insolent command to give earth and water, the Spartans
entirely forgot that the life of an ambassador is sacred. In their rage,
they seized the Persians, flung one into a pit and the other into a
well, and told them to take all the earth and water they wanted.
This conduct made Darius all the more angry, and he hastened his
preparations as much as he could. He was so active that in a short time
he was able to start out again, with an army of a hundred and twenty
thousand men.
The generals of this force were Da'tis and Ar-ta-pher'-nes, who were
guided and advised by the traitor Hippias. The fleet was to land the
army on the plain of Mar'a-thon, close by the sea, and only one day's
journey from Athens.
When the Athenians heard that the Persians were coming, they immediately
decided to ask the Spartans, who were now their allies, to come to their
aid, and help them drive back the enemy. As there was no time to lose,
they chose as their messenger a fleet-footed Athenian, who made the
journey of a hundred and fifty miles in a few hours, running every step
of the way, and only seldom pausing to rest.
The Spartans listened breathlessly to his tidings, and promised that
they would help the Athenians; but they added, that they would not be
able to start until the moon was full, for they thought that they would
be beaten unless they set out at a certain time.
The Persians in the mean while were advancing rapidly, so the Athenians
started out to meet them with no other help than that of their neighbors
the Pla-tae'ans. The whole Greek force numbered only ten thousand men,
and was under the command of the ten Athenian generals who were each
entitled to the leadership for a day in turn.
Among these ten Athenian generals were three remarkable
men,--Mil-ti'a-des, Ar-is-ti'des, and The-mis'to-cles. They consulted
together, hoping to find a plan by which their small army could
successfully oppose the Persian host, which was twelve times greater.
At last Miltiades proposed a plan which might succeed, provided there
was but one chief, and all obeyed him well. Aristides, who was not only
a good man, but also remarkably just and wise, at once saw the
importance of such a plan, and offered to give up his day's command, and
to carry out his friend's orders just as if he were nothing but a common
soldier.
[Illustration: Themistocles.]
The other generals, not wishing to appear less generous than he, also
gave up their command to Miltiades, who thus found himself general in
chief of the Athenian and Plataean armies. So he speedily made his
preparations, and drew up his small force on the plain of Marathon,
between the mountains and the sea.
XLIV. THE BATTLE OF MARATHON.
The Greek army seemed so very small beside the huge host of invaders,
that the Persians felt perfectly sure that it would surrender as soon as
the fight began. Imagine their surprise, therefore, when the Greeks,
instead of waiting for them, gave the signal for battle, and rushed
furiously upon them.
The daring and force of the Greek attack so confused the Persians, that
they began to give way. This encouraged the Greeks still further, and
they fought with such bravery that soon the army of The Great King was
completely routed.
Hippias, fighting at the head of the Persian army, was one of the first
to die; and when the Persians saw their companions falling around them
like ripe grain under the mower's scythe, they were seized with terror,
rushed toward the sea, and embarked in their vessels in great haste.
The Athenians followed the enemy closely, killing all they could reach,
and trying to prevent them from embarking and so escaping their wrath.
One Greek soldier even rushed down into the waves, and held a Persian
vessel which was about to push off.
The Persians, anxious to escape, struck at him, and chopped off his
hand; but the Greek, without hesitating a moment, grasped the boat with
his other hand, and held it fast. In their hurry to get away, the
Persians struck off that hand too; but the dauntless hero caught and
held the boat with his strong teeth, and died beneath the repeated
blows of the enemy without having once let go. Thanks to him, not one of
those enemies escaped.
The victory was a glorious one. The whole Persian force had been routed
by a mere handful of men; and the Athenians were so proud of their
victory, that they longed to have their fellow-citizens rejoice with
them.
One of the soldiers, who had fought bravely all day, and who was covered
with blood, said he would carry the glad news, and, without waiting a
moment, he started off at a run.
Such was his haste to reassure the Athenians, that he ran at his utmost
speed, and reached the city in a few hours. He was so exhausted,
however, that he had barely time to gasp out, "Rejoice, we have
conquered!" before he sank down in the middle of the market place, dead.
The Greeks, having no more foes to kill, next began to rob the tents,
where they found so much booty that each man became quite rich. Then
they gathered up their dead, and buried them honorably on the
battlefield, at a spot where they afterward erected ten small columns
bearing the names of all who had lost their lives in the conflict.
Just as all was over, the Spartan force came rushing up, ready to give
their promised aid. They were so sorry not to have had a chance to fight
also, and to have missed a share in the glory, that they vowed they
would never again allow any superstition to prevent their striking a
blow for their native land whenever the necessity arose.
Miltiades, instead of permitting his weary soldiers to camp on the
battlefield, and celebrate their victory by a grand feast, next ordered
them to march on to the city, so as to defend it in case the Persian
fleet came to attack it.
The troops had scarcely arrived in town and taken up their post there,
when the Persian vessels came in; but when the soldiers attempted to
land, and saw the same men ready to meet them, they were so dismayed
that they beat a hasty retreat without striking another blow.
XLV. MILTIADES' DISGRACE.
The victory of Marathon was a great triumph for the Athenians; and
Miltiades, who had so successfully led them, was loaded with honors. His
portrait was painted by the best artist of the day, and it was placed in
one of the porticos of Athens, where every one could see it.