Now, they told me that down to the reign of Rhampsinitus there was a

perfect distribution of justice, and that all Egypt was in a high state

of prosperity; but that after him Cheops, coming to reign over them,

plunged into every kind of wickedness. For, having shut up all the

temples, he first of all forbade them to offer sacrifice, and afterward

ordered all the Egyptians to work for him; some, accordingly, were

appointed to draw stones from the quarries in the Arabian mountain down

to the Nile, others he ordered to receive the stones when transported in

vessels across the river, and to drag them to the mountain called the

Libyan. And they worked to the number of a hundred thousand men at a

time, each party during three months. The time during which the people

were thus harassed by toil lasted ten years on the road which they

constructed, along which they drew the stones, a work, in my opinion,

not much less than the pyramid: for its length is five stades, and its

width ten orgyæ, and its height, where it is the highest, eight orgyæ;

and it is of polished stone, with figures carved on it: ten years, then,

were expended on this road, and in forming the subterraneous apartments

on the hill, on which the pyramids stand, which he had made as a burial

vault for himself, in an island, formed by draining a canal from the

Nile. Twenty years were spent in erecting the pyramid itself: of this,

which is square, each face is eight plethra, and the height is the same;

it is composed of polished stones, and joined with the greatest

exactness; none of the stones are less than thirty feet in length. This

pyramid was built in the form of steps, which some call crosssæ, others

bomides. When they had first built it in this manner, they raised the

stones for covering the surface by machines made of short pieces of

wood: having lifted them from the ground to the first range of steps,

when the stone arrived there it was put on another machine that stood

ready on the first range; from this it was drawn to the second range on

another machine; for the machines were equal in number to the ranges of

steps; or they removed the machine, which was only one, and portable, to

each range in succession, whenever they wished to raise the stone

higher; for I should relate it in both ways, as it was related to me.

The highest parts of it were first finished, and last of all the parts

on the ground. On the pyramid is shown an inscription, in Egyptian

characters, how much was expended in radishes, onions, and garlic for

the workmen; which the interpreter, as I well remember, reading the

inscription, told me amounted to one thousand six hundred talents of

silver. If this be really the case, how much more was probably expended

in iron tools, in bread, and in clothes for the laborers, since they

occupied in building the works the time which I mentioned, and no short

time besides, as I think, in cutting and drawing the stones, and in

forming the subterraneous excavation. It is related that Cheops in his

cruelty subjected his daughter to every sort of disgrace, but she

contrived to leave a monument of herself, and asked every one that she

met to give her a stone toward the edifice she designed: of these stones

they said the pyramid was built that stands in the middle of the three,

before the great pyramid, each side of which is a plethron and a half in

length. The Egyptians say that this Cheops reigned fifty years; and when

he died, his brother Chephren succeeded to the kingdom; and he followed

the same practices as the other, both in other respects, and in building

a pyramid. This does not come up to the dimensions of his brother's, for

I myself measured them; nor has it subterraneous chambers; nor does a

channel from the Nile flow to it, as to the other; but this flows

through an artificial aqueduct round an island within, in which they say

the body of Cheops is laid. Having laid the first course of variegated

Ethiopian stones, less in height than the other by forty feet, he built

it near the large pyramid. They both stand on the same hill, which is

about a hundred feet high. Chephren, they said, reigned fifty-six years.

Thus one hundred and six years are reckoned, during which the Egyptians

suffered all kinds of calamities, and for this length of time the

temples were never opened. From the hatred they bear them the Egyptians

are not very willing to mention their names; but call the pyramids after

Philition, a shepherd, who at that time kept his cattle in those parts.

[Illustration: THE GREAT PYRAMID, WITHOUT THE SURFACE STONE.]

They said that after him, Mycerinus, son of Cheops, reigned over Egypt;

that the conduct of his father was displeasing to him; and that he

opened the temples, and permitted the people, who were worn down to the

last extremity, to return to their employments, and to sacrifices; and

that he made the most just decisions of all their kings. On this

account, of all the kings that ever reigned in Egypt, they praise him

most, for he both judged well in other respects, and moreover, when any

man complained of his decision, he used to make him some present out of

his own treasury and pacify his anger. To this beneficent Mycerinus, the

beginning of misfortunes was the death of his daughter, who was his only

child; whereupon he, extremely afflicted, and wishing to bury her in a

more costly manner than usual, caused a hollow wooden image of a cow to

be made and covered with gold, into which he put the body of his

deceased daughter. This cow was not interred in the ground, but even in

my time was exposed to view in the city of Sais, placed in the royal

palace, in a richly furnished chamber. They burn near it all kinds of

aromatics every day, and a lamp is kept burning by it throughout each

night.

The cow is covered with a purple cloth, except the head and the neck,

which are overlaid with very thick gold; and the orb of the sun imitated

in gold is placed between the horns. The cow is kneeling; in size equal

to a large, living cow.

[Illustration: SECTION OF THE GREAT PYRAMID.]

After the loss of his daughter, a second calamity befell this king: an

oracle reached him from the city of Buto, importing, "that he had no

more than six years to live, and should die in the seventh." Thinking

this very hard, he sent a reproachful message to the god, complaining,

"that his father and uncle, who had shut up the temples, and paid no

regard to the gods, and moreover had oppressed men, had lived long;

whereas he who was religious must die so soon." But a second message

came to him from the oracle, stating, "that for this very reason his

life was shortened, because he had not done what he ought to have done;

for it was needful that Egypt should be afflicted during one hundred and

fifty years; and the two who were kings before him understood this, but

he did not." When Mycerinus heard this, and saw that this sentence was

now pronounced against him, he ordered a great number of lamps to be

made, which were lighted whenever night came on, and he drank and

enjoyed himself, never ceasing night or day, roving about the marshes

and groves, wherever he could hear of places most suited for pleasure.

He had recourse to this artifice for the purpose of convicting the

oracle of falsehood, that by turning the nights into days, he might have

twelve years instead of six.

This king also left a pyramid, but much smaller than that of his father,

being on each side twenty feet short of three plethra; it is

quadrangular, and built half way up of Ethiopian stone.

After Mycerinus, the priests said, that Asychis became king of Egypt,

and that he built the eastern portico to the temple of Vulcan, which is

by far the largest and most beautiful in its wealth of sculptured

figures and infinite variety of architecture. This king, being desirous

of surpassing his predecessors, left a pyramid, as a memorial, made of

bricks; on which is an inscription carved on stone, in the following

words: "Do not despise me in comparison with the pyramids of stone, for

I excel them as much as Jupiter, the other gods. For by plunging a pole

into a lake, and collecting the mire that stuck to the pole, men made

bricks, and in this manner built me."

[Illustration: SECTION OF GALLERY IN PYRAMID.]

After him there reigned a blind man of the city of Anysis, whose name

was Anysis. During his reign, the Ethiopians and their king, Sabacon,

invaded Egypt with a large force; whereupon this blind king fled to the

fens; and the Ethiopian reigned over Egypt for fifty years, during which

time he performed the following actions: When any Egyptians committed

any crime, he would not have any of them put to death, but passed

sentence upon each according to the magnitude of his offence, enjoining

them to heap up mounds of earth, each offender against his own city, and

by this means the cities were made much higher; for first of all they

had been raised considerably by those who dug the canals in the time of

king Sesostris. Although other cities in Egypt were carried to a great

height, in my opinion the greatest mounds were thrown up about the city

of Bubastis, in which is a beautiful temple of Bubastis corresponding to

the Grecian Diana. Her sacred precinct is thus situated: all except the

entrance is an island; for two canals from the Nile extend to it, not

mingling with each other, but each reaches as far as the entrance to the

precinct, one flowing round it on one side, the other on the other. Each

is a hundred feet broad, and shaded with trees. The portico is ten orgyæ

in height, and is adorned with figures six cubits high, that are

deserving of notice. This precinct, being in the middle of the city, is

visible on every side to a person going round it; for while the city has

been mounded up to a considerable height, the temple has not been moved,

so that it is conspicuous as it was originally built. A wall sculptured

with figures runs round it; and within is a grove of lofty trees,

planted round a large temple in which the image is placed. The width and

length of the precinct is each way a stade. Along the entrance is a road

paved with stone, four plethra in width and about three stades in

length, leading through the square eastward toward the temple of

Mercury; on each side of the road grow trees of enormous height. They

told me that the final departure of the Ethiopian occurred in the

following manner: it appeared to him in a vision that a man, standing by

him, advised him to assemble all the priests in Egypt, and to cut them

in two down the middle; but he, fearing that the gods held out this as a

pretext to him, in order that he, having been guilty of impiety in

reference to sacred things, might draw down some evil on himself from

gods or from men, would not do so; but as the time had expired during

which it was foretold that he should reign over Egypt, he departed

hastily from the country. When Sabacon of his own accord had departed

from Egypt, the blind king resumed the government, having returned from

the fens, where he had lived fifty years, on an island formed of ashes

and earth. For when any of the Egyptians came to him bringing

provisions, as they were severally ordered to do unknown to the

Ethiopian, he bade them bring some ashes also as a present. The kings

who preceded Amyrtæus were unable, for more than seven hundred years, to

find out where this island was. It was called Elbo, and was about ten

stades square.

After him reigned a priest of Vulcan, whose name was Sethon: he held in

no account the military caste of the Egyptians, as not having need of

their services; and accordingly, among other indignities, he took away

their lands; to each of whom, under former kings, twelve chosen acres

had been assigned. After this, when Sennacherib, king of the Arabians

and Assyrians, marched a large army against Egypt, the Egyptian warriors

refused to assist him; and the priest, being reduced to a strait,

entered the temple, and bewailed before the image the calamities he was

in danger of suffering. While he was lamenting, sleep fell upon him, and

it appeared to him in a vision, that the god stood by and encouraged

him, assuring him that he should suffer nothing disagreeable in meeting

the Arabian army, for he would himself send assistants to him. Confiding

in this vision, he took with him such of the Egyptians as were willing

to follow him, and encamped in Pelusium, at the entrance into Egypt; but

none of the military caste followed him, only tradesmen, mechanics, and

sutlers. When they arrived there, a number of field mice, pouring in

upon their enemies, devoured their quivers and their bows, and the

handles of their shields; so that on the next day, when they fled bereft

of their arms, many of them fell. And to this day, a stone statue of

this king stands in the temple of Vulcan, with a mouse in his hand, and

an inscription to the following effect: "Whoever looks on me, let him

revere the gods."

[Illustration: HALL OF COLUMNS IN THE GREAT TEMPLE OF KARNAK.]

The Egyptians and the priests show that from the first king to this

priest of Vulcan who last reigned, were three hundred and forty-one

generations of men; and the same number of chief priests and kings. Now,

three hundred generations are equal to ten thousand years, for three

generations of men are one hundred years; and the forty-one remaining

generations that were over the three hundred, make one thousand three

hundred and forty years. Thus, they say, in eleven thousand three

hundred and forty years, no god has assumed the form of a man. They

relate that during this time the sun has four times risen out of his

usual quarter, and that he has twice risen where he now sets, and twice

set where he now rises; yet, that no change in the things in Egypt was

occasioned by this, either in respect to the productions of the earth or

the river, or to diseases or deaths.

CHAPTER VI.

THIRD LINE; FROM THE TWELVE KINGS TO AMASIS.

What things both other men and the Egyptians agree in saying occurred in

this country, I shall now proceed to relate, and shall add to them some

things of my own observation. The Egyptians having become free, after

the reign of the priest of Vulcan, since they were at no time able to

live without a king, divided all Egypt into twelve parts and established

twelve others. These contracted intermarriages, and agreed that they

would not attempt the subversion of one another, and would maintain the

strictest friendship. They made these regulations and strictly upheld

them, for the reason that it had been foretold them by an oracle when

they first assumed the government, "that whoever among them should offer

a libation in the temple of Vulcan from a bronze bowl, should be king of

all Egypt"; for they used to assemble in all the temples. Now, being

determined to leave in common a memorial of themselves, they built a

labyrinth, a little above the lake of Mœris, situated near that called

the city of Crocodiles; this I have myself seen, and found it greater

than can be described. For if any one should reckon up all the buildings

and public works of the Greeks, they would be found to have cost less

labor and expense than this labyrinth alone, though the temple in

Ephesus is deserving of mention, and also that in Samos. The pyramids

likewise were beyond description, and each of them comparable to many of

the great Greek structures. Yet the labyrinth surpasses even the

pyramids. For it has twelve courts enclosed with walls, with doors

opposite each other, six facing the north, and six the south, contiguous

to one another; and the same exterior wall encloses them. It contains

two kinds of rooms, some under ground and some above, to the number of

three thousand, fifteen hundred of each. The rooms above ground I myself

went through and saw, and relate from personal inspection. But the

underground rooms I know only from report; for the Egyptians who have

charge of the building would, on no account, show me them, saying that

they held the sepulchres of the kings who originally built this

labyrinth, and of the sacred crocodiles. I can therefore only relate

what I have learnt by hearsay concerning the lower rooms; but the upper

ones, which surpass all human works, I myself saw. The passages through

the corridors, and the windings through the courts, from their great

variety, presented a thousand occasions of wonder, as I passed from a

court to the rooms, and from the rooms to halls, and to other corridors

from the halls, and to other courts from the rooms. The roofs of all

these are of stone, as also are the walls; but the walls are full of

sculptured figures. Each court is surrounded with a colonnade of white

stone, closely fitted. And adjoining the extremity of the labyrinth is a

pyramid, forty orgyæ in height, on which large figures are carved, and a

way to it has been made under ground.

Yet more wonderful than this labyrinth is the lake named from Mœris,

near which this labyrinth is built; its circumference measures three

thousand six hundred stades, or a distance equal to the sea-coast of

Egypt. The lake stretches lengthways, north and south, being in depth in

the deepest part fifty orgyæ. That it is made by hand and dry, this

circumstance proves, for about the middle of the lake stand two

pyramids, each rising fifty orgyæ above the surface of the water, and

the part built under water extends to an equal depth; on each of these

is placed a stone statue, seated on a throne. Thus these pyramids are

one hundred orgyæ in height. The water in this lake does not spring from

the soil, for these parts are excessively dry, but it is conveyed

through a channel from the Nile, and for six months it flows into the

lake, and six months out again into the Nile. And during the six months

that it flows out it yields a talent of silver every day to the king's

treasury from the fish; but when the water is flowing into it, twenty

minæ. The people of the country told me that this lake discharges itself

under ground into the Syrtis of Libya, running westward toward the

interior by the mountain above Memphis. But when I did not see anywhere

a heap of soil from this excavation, for this was an object of curiosity

to me, I inquired of the people who lived nearest the lake, where the

soil that had been dug out was to be found; they told me where it had

been carried, and easily persuaded me, because I had heard that a

similar thing had been done at Nineveh, in Assyria. For certain thieves

formed a design to carry away the treasures of Sardanapalus, King of

Nineveh, which were very large, and preserved in subterraneous

treasuries; the thieves, therefore, beginning from their own dwellings,

dug under ground by estimated measurement to the royal palace, and the

soil that was taken out of the excavations, when night came on, they

threw into the river Tigris, that flows by Nineveh; and so they

proceeded until they had effected their purpose. The same method I heard

was adopted in digging the lake in Egypt, except that it was not done by

night, but during the day; for the Egyptians who dug out the soil

carried it to the Nile, and the river receiving it, soon dispersed it.

[Illustration: EGYPTIAN BELL CAPITALS.]

[Illustration: HARPOON AND FISH HOOKS.]

While the twelve kings continued to observe justice, in course of time,

as they were sacrificing in the temple of Vulcan, and were about to

offer a libation on the last day of the festival, the high priest,

mistaking the number, brought out eleven of the twelve golden bowls with

which he used to make the libation. Whereupon he who stood last of them,

Psammitichus, since he had not a bowl, having taken off his helmet,

which was of bronze, held it out and made the libation. All the other

kings were in the habit of wearing helmets, and at that time had them

on. Psammitichus therefore, without any sinister intention, held out his

helmet; but they having taken into consideration what was done by

Psammitichus, and the oracle that had foretold to them, "that whoever

among them should offer a libation from a bronze bowl, should be sole

king of Egypt"; calling to mind the oracle, did not think it right to

put him to death, since upon examination they found that he had done it

by no premeditated design. But they determined to banish him to the

marshes, having divested him of the greatest part of his power; and they

forbade him to leave the marshes, or have any intercourse with the rest

of Egypt. With the design of avenging himself on his persecutors, he

sent to the city of Buto to consult the oracle of Latona, the truest

oracle that the Egyptians have, and the answer was returned "that

vengeance would come from the sea, when men of bronze should appear." He

was very incredulous that men of bronze would come to assist him; but

not long after a stress of weather compelled some Ionians and Carians,

who had sailed out for the purpose of piracy, to bear away to Egypt; and

when they had disembarked and were clad in bronze armor, an Egyptian,

who had never before seen men clad in such manner, went to the marshes

to Psammitichus, and told him that men of bronze had arrived from the

sea, and were ravaging the plains. He felt at once that the oracle was

accomplished, and treated these Ionians and Carians in a friendly

manner, and by promising them great things, persuaded them to join with

him; and, with their help and that of such Egyptians as were well

disposed toward him, he overcame the other kings.

[Illustration: EGYPTIAN HELMETS.]

Psammitichus, now master of all Egypt, constructed the portico to

Vulcan's temple at Memphis that faces the south wind; he built a court

for Apis, in which he is fed whenever he appears, opposite the portico,

surrounded by a colonnade, and full of sculptured figures; and instead

of pillars, statues twelve cubits high are placed under the piazza.

Apis, in the language of the Greeks, means Epaphus. To the Ionians, and

those who with them had assisted him, Psammitichus gave lands opposite

each other, with the Nile flowing between. These bear the name of

"Camps." He royally fulfilled all his promises; and he moreover put

Egyptian children under their care to be instructed in the Greek

language; from whom the present interpreters in Egypt are descended. The

Ionians and the Carians continued for a long time to inhabit these

lands, situated near the sea, a little below the city of Bubastis. They

were the first people of a different language who settled in Egypt. The

docks for their ships, and the ruins of their buildings, were to be seen

in my time in the places from which they had removed.

Psammitichus reigned in Egypt fifty-four years; during twenty-nine of

which he sat down before and besieged Azotus, a large city of Syria,

until he took it. This Azotus, of all the cities we know of, held out

against a siege the longest period. Neco was son of Psammitichus, and

became king of Egypt: he first set about the canal that leads to the Red

Sea, which Darius the Persian afterward completed. Its length is a

voyage of four days, and in width it was dug so that two triremes might

sail rowed abreast. The water is drawn into it from the Nile, and enters

it a little above the city Bubastis. The canal passes near the Arabian

city Patumos, and reaches to the Red Sea. In the digging of it one

hundred and twenty thousand Egyptians perished in the reign of Neco.

Psammis his son reigned only six years over Egypt. He made an expedition

into Ethiopia, and shortly afterward died, Apries his son succeeding to

the kingdom. He, next to his grandfather Psammitichus, enjoyed greater

prosperity than any of the former kings, during a reign of five and

twenty years, in which period he marched an army against Sidon, and

engaged the Tyrians by sea. But it was destined for him to meet with

adversity. For, having sent an army against the Cyrenæans, he met with a

signal defeat. And the Egyptians, complaining of this, revolted from

him, suspecting that Apries had designedly sent them to certain ruin, in

order that they might be destroyed, and he might govern the rest of the

Egyptians with greater security. Both those that returned and the

friends of those who perished, being very indignant at this, openly

revolted against him. Apries, having heard of this, sent Amasis to

appease them by persuasion. But when he had come to them, and was urging

them to desist from their enterprise, one of the Egyptians, standing

behind him, placed a helmet on his head, and said: "I put this on you to

make you king." And this action was not at all disagreeable to Amasis,

as he presently showed. When Apries heard of this, he armed his

auxiliaries and marched against the Egyptians with Carian and Ionian

auxiliaries to the number of thirty thousand. They met near the city

Momemphis, and prepared to engage with each other. Apries had a palace

in the city of Sais that was spacious and magnificent.

There are seven classes of people among the Egyptians—priests, warriors,

herdsmen, swineherds, tradesmen, interpreters, and pilots. Their

warriors are called Calasiries or Hermotybies. The Hermotybies number,

when they are most numerous, a hundred and sixty thousand. None of these

learn any business or mechanical art, but apply themselves wholly to

military affairs. The Calasiries number two hundred and fifty thousand

men: nor are these allowed to practise any art, but they devote

themselves to military pursuits alone, the son succeeding to his father.

When Apries, leading his auxiliaries, and Amasis, all the Egyptians, met

together at Momemphis, the foreigners fought well, but being far

inferior in numbers, were, on that account, defeated. Apries is said to

have been of opinion that not even a god could deprive him of his

kingdom, so securely did he think himself established; but he was

beaten, taken prisoner, and carried back to Sais, to that which was

formerly his own palace, but which now belonged to Amasis: here he was

maintained for some time in the royal palace, and Amasis treated him

well. But at length the Egyptians complaining that he did not act

rightly in preserving a man who was the greatest enemy both to them and

to him, he delivered Apries to the Egyptians. They strangled him, and

buried him in his ancestral sepulchre, in the sacred precinct of

Minerva, very near the temple, on the left hand as you enter.

Apries being thus dethroned, Amasis, who was of the Saitic district,

reigned in his stead; the name of the city from which he came was Siuph.

At first the Egyptians held him in no great estimation, as having been

formerly a private person, and of no illustrious family; but afterward

he conciliated them by an act of address, without any arrogance. He had

an infinite number of treasures among them a golden foot-pan, in which

Amasis himself and all his guests were accustomed to wash their feet.

This he broke in pieces, had the statue of a god made from it, and

placed it in the most suitable part of the city. The Egyptians flocked

to the image and paid it the greatest reverence. Thus, Amasis called the

Egyptians together and said: "This statue was made out of the foot-pan

in which the Egyptians formerly spat and washed their feet, and which

they then so greatly reverenced; now, the same has happened to me as to

the foot-pan; for though I was before but a private person, I now am

your king; you must therefore honor and respect me." By this means he

won over the Egyptians, so that they thought fit to obey him. He adopted

the following method of managing his affairs: early in the morning,

until the time of full-market, he assiduously despatched the business

brought before him; after that he drank and jested with his companions,

and talked loosely and sportively. But his friends, offended at this,

admonished him, saying: "You do not, O king, control yourself properly,

in making yourself too common. For it becomes you, who sit on a

venerable throne, to pass the day in transacting public business; thus

the Egyptians would know that they are governed by a great man, and you

would be better spoken of. But now you act in a manner not at all

becoming a king." But he answered them: "They who have bows, when they

want to use them, bend them; but when they have done using them, they

unbend them; for if the bow were to be kept always bent, it would break.

Such is the condition of man; if he should incessantly attend to serious

business, and not give himself up sometimes to sport, he would shortly

become mad or stupefied. I, being well aware of this, give up a portion

of my time to each."

He built an admirable portico to the temple of Minerva at Sais, far

surpassing all others both in height and size, as well as in the

dimensions and quality of the stones; he likewise dedicated large

statues, and huge andro-sphinxes, and brought other stones of a

prodigious size for repairs: some from the quarries near Memphis; but

those of greatest magnitude, from the city of Elephantine, distant from

Sais a passage of twenty days. But that which I rather the most admire,

is this: he brought a building of one stone from the city of

Elephantine, and two thousand men, who were appointed to convey it, were

occupied three whole years in its transport, and these men were all

pilots. The length of this chamber, outside, is twenty-one cubits, the

breadth fourteen, and the height eight. But inside, the length is

eighteen cubits and twenty digits, the width twelve cubits, and the

height five cubits. This chamber is placed near the entrance of the

sacred precinct; for they say that he did not draw it within the

precinct for the following reason: the architect, as the chamber was

being drawn along, heaved a deep sigh, being wearied with the work, over

which so long a time had been spent; whereupon Amasis, making a

religious scruple of this, would not suffer it to be drawn any farther.

Some persons however say, that one of the men employed at the levers was

crushed to death by it, and that on that account it was not drawn into

the precinct. Amasis dedicated in all the most famous temples, works

admirable for their magnitude; and amongst them, at Memphis, the

reclining colossus before the temple of Vulcan, of which the length is

seventy-five feet; and on the same base stand two statues of Ethiopian

stone, each twenty feet in height, one on each side of the temple. There

is also at Sais another similar statue, lying in the same manner as that

at Memphis. It was Amasis also who built the temple to Isis at Memphis,

which is spacious and well worthy of notice.

[Illustration: THE GREAT SPHINX.]

Under the reign of Amasis, Egypt is said to have enjoyed the greatest

prosperity, both in respect to the benefits derived from the river to

the land, and from the land to the people; and it is said to have

contained at that time twenty thousand inhabited cities. Amasis it was

who established the law among the Egyptians, that every Egyptian should

annually declare to the governor of his district, by what means he

maintained himself; and if he failed to do this, or did not show that he

lived by honest means, he should be punished with death. Solon the

Athenian brought this law from Egypt and established it at Athens.

Amasis, being partial to the Greeks, bestowed other favors on various of

the Greeks, and gave the city of Naucratis for such as arrived in Egypt

to dwell in; and to such as did not wish to settle there, but only to

trade by sea, he granted places where they might erect altars and

temples to the gods. Now, the most spacious of these sacred buildings,

which is also the most renowned and frequented, called the Hellenium,

was erected at the common charge of the following cities: of the

Ionians,—Chios, Teos, Phocæa, and Clazomenæ; of the Dorians,—Rhodes,

Cnidus, Halicarnassus, Phaselis; and of the Æolians,—Mitylene alone. So

that this temple belongs to them, and these cities appoint officers to

preside over the mart: and whatever other cities claim a share in it,

claim what does not belong to them. Besides this, the people of Ægina

built a temple to Jupiter for themselves; and the Samians another to

Juno, and the Milesians one to Apollo. Naucratis was anciently the only

place of resort for merchants, and there was no other in Egypt: and if a

man arrived at any other mouth of the Nile, he was obliged to swear

"that he had come there against his will"; and having taken such an

oath, he must sail in the same ship to the Canopic mouth; but if he

should be prevented by contrary winds from doing so, he was forced to

unload his goods and carry them in barges round the Delta until he

reached Naucratis. So great were the privileges of Naucratis. When the

Amphyctions contracted to build the temple that now stands at Delphi for

three hundred talents—for the temple that was formerly there had been

burned by accident, and it fell upon the Delphians to supply a fourth

part of the sum—the Delphians went about from city to city to solicit

contributions, and brought home no small amount from Egypt. For Amasis

gave them a thousand talents of alum, and the Greeks who were settled in

Egypt twenty minæ.

Amasis also dedicated offerings in Greece. In the first place, a gilded

statue of Minerva at Cyrene, and his own portrait painted; secondly, to

Minerva in Lindus two stone statues and a linen corselet well worthy of

notice; thirdly, to Juno at Samos two images of himself carved in wood,

which stood in the large temple even in my time, behind the doors. He

was the first who conquered Cyprus, and subjected it to the payment of

tribute.

[12] By the Greek word Πόλος Herodotus means "a concave dial," shaped

like the vault of heaven.

[13] Iliad, vi., 289.

[14] Odyssey, iv., 227.

[15] Odyssey, iv., 351.

_BOOK III. THALIA._

CHAPTER I.

EXPEDITIONS OF CAMBYSES.

Cambyses, son of Cyrus, made war against Amasis, leading with him his

own subjects, together with Greeks, Ionians and Æolians. The cause of

the war was this: Cambyses sent a herald into Egypt to demand the

daughter of Amasis. The suggestion was made by an Egyptian physician,

who out of spite served Amasis in this manner, because Amasis had

selected him out of all the physicians in Egypt, torn him from his wife

and children, and sent him as a present to the Persians, when Cyrus had

sent to Amasis, and required of him the best oculist in Egypt. The

Egyptian therefore, having this spite against him, urged on Cambyses by

his suggestions, bidding him demand the daughter of Amasis, in order

that if he should comply he might be grieved, or if he refused he might

incur the hatred of Cambyses. But Amasis, dreading the power of the

Persians, resorted to a piece of deceit. There was a daughter of Apries,

the former king, very tall and beautiful, the only survivor of the

family, named Nitetis. This damsel, Amasis adorned with cloth of gold,

and sent to Persia as his own daughter. After a time, when Cambyses

saluted her, addressing her by her father's name, the damsel said to

him: "O king, you do not perceive that you have been imposed upon by

Amasis, who dressed me in rich attire, and sent me to you, presenting me

as his own daughter; whereas, I am really the daughter of Apries, whom

he put to death, after he had incited the Egyptians to revolt." These

words enraged Cambyses, and led him to invade Egypt.

[Illustration: EGYPTIAN POTTERY.]

A circumstance that few of those who have made voyages to Egypt have

noticed, I shall now proceed to mention. From every part of Greece, and

also from Phœnicia, earthen vessels filled with wine are imported into

Egypt twice every year, and yet not a single one of these wine jars is

afterward to be seen. In what way, then, you may ask, are they disposed

of? Every magistrate is obliged to collect all the vessels from his own

city, and send them to Memphis; the people of that city fill them with

water, and convey them to the arid parts of Syria; so that the earthen

vessels continually imported and landed in Egypt, are added to those

already in Syria. The Persians, as soon as they became masters of Egypt,

facilitated the passage into that country, by supplying it with water in

this manner. But as, at that time, water was not provided, Cambyses, by

the advice of a Halicarnassian stranger, sent ambassadors to the

Arabian, and requested a safe passage, which he obtained, giving to, and

receiving from him, pledges of faith.

The Arabians observe pledges as religiously as any people: when any wish

to pledge their faith, a third person, standing between the two parties,

makes an incision with a sharp stone in the palm of the hand, near the

longest fingers, of both the contractors; then taking some of the nap

from the garment of each, he smears seven stones, placed between them,

with the blood; and as he does this, he invokes Bacchus and Urania. When

this ceremony is completed, the person who pledges his faith, binds his

friends as sureties to the stranger, or the citizen, if the contract be

made with a citizen, and the friends also hold themselves obliged to

observe the engagement. They acknowledge no other gods than Bacchus and

Urania, and they say that their hair is cut in the same way as Bacchus'

is cut, in a circular form, banged round the temples. They call Bacchus,

Orotal; and Urania, Alilat. When the Arabian had exchanged pledges with

the ambassadors who came from Cambyses, he filled camels' skins with

water, loaded them on all his living camels, and drove them to the arid

region, and there awaited the army of Cambyses. This is the most

credible of the accounts that are given; yet it is right that one less

credible should be mentioned, since it is likewise affirmed. There is a

large river in Arabia called Corys, which discharges itself into the Red

Sea. From this river it is said that the king of the Arabians, having

sewn together a pipe of ox-hides and other skins, reaching in length to

the desert, conveyed the water through it; and that in the arid region

he dug large reservoirs, to receive and preserve the water. It is a

twelve days' journey from the river to the desert, yet he conveyed water

through three pipes into three different places.

Amasis died after a reign of forty-four years, during which no great

calamity had befallen him. He was embalmed and buried in the sepulchre

within the sacred precinct, which he himself had built. During the reign

of Psammenitus, son of Amasis, a most remarkable prodigy befell the

Egyptians; rain fell at Egyptian Thebes, which had never happened

before, nor since, to my time, as the Thebans themselves affirm. For no

rain ever falls in the upper regions of Egypt; but at that time rain

fell in drops at Thebes. The Persians, having marched through the arid

region, halted near the Egyptians, as if with a design of engaging;

there the auxiliaries of the Egyptians, consisting of Greeks and

Carians, condemning Phanes because he had led a foreign army against

Egypt, adopted the following expedient against him: Phanes had left his

sons in Egypt; these they brought to the camp, within sight of their

father, placed a bowl midway between the two armies, then dragging the

children one by one, they slew them over the bowl, into which they also

poured wine and water; then all the auxiliaries drank of the blood, and

immediately joined battle. After a hard fight, when great numbers had

fallen on both sides, the Egyptians were put to flight. Here I saw a

very surprising fact, of which the people of the country informed me. As

the bones of those who were killed in that battle lie scattered about

separately, the bones of the Persians in one place, and those of the

Egyptians in another, the skulls of the Persians were so weak that if

you should hit one with a single pebble, you would break a hole in it;

whereas those of the Egyptians are so hard, that you could scarcely

fracture them by striking them with a stone. The cause of this, they

told me (and I readily assented), is that the Egyptians begin from

childhood to shave their heads, and the bone is thickened by exposure to

the sun; from the same cause also they are less subject to baldness, and

one sees fewer persons bald in Egypt than in any other country. But the

Persians have weak skulls, because they shade them from the first,

wearing tiaras for hats.

The Egyptians fled in complete disorder from the battle. When they had

shut themselves up in Memphis, Cambyses sent a Mitylenæan bark up the

river, with a Persian herald on board, to invite the Egyptians to terms.

But when they saw the bark entering Memphis they rushed in a mass from

the wall, destroyed the ship, and having torn the crew to pieces, limb

by limb, they carried them into the citadel. After this the Egyptians

were besieged, and at length surrounded. The neighboring Libyans,

fearing what had befallen Egypt, gave themselves up without resistance,

submitted to pay a tribute, and sent presents, which Cambyses received

very graciously.

On the tenth day after Cambyses had taken the citadel of Memphis, he

seated Psammenitus, the King of the Egyptians, who had reigned only six

months, at the entrance of the city. And by way of insult, he dressed

his daughter in the habit of a slave, and sent her with a pitcher to

fetch water, with other maidens selected from the principal families,

dressed in the same manner. As the girls, with loud lamentation and

weeping, came into the presence of their fathers, all the other fathers

answered them with wailing and weeping, when they beheld their children

thus humiliated. But Psammenitus only bent his eyes to the ground. When

these water-carriers had passed by, he next sent his son, with two

thousand Egyptians of the same age, with halters about their necks, and

a bridle in their mouths; and they were led out to suffer retribution

for those Mitylenæans who had perished at Memphis with the ship. For the

royal judges had given sentence, that for each man ten of the principal

Egyptians should be put to death. Yet, when he saw them passing by, and

knew that his son was being led out to death, though all the rest of the

Egyptians who sat round him wept and made loud lamentations, he did the

same as he had done in his daughter's case. But just then it happened

that one of his boon-companions, a man somewhat advanced in years, who

had lost his all, and possessed nothing but such things as a beggar has,

asking alms of the soldiery, passed by Psammenitus, and the Egyptians

seated in the suburbs. Then, indeed, he wept bitterly, and calling his

companion by name, smote his head. Cambyses, surprised at this behavior,

sent a messenger to say: "Psammenitus, your master Cambyses inquires

why, when you saw your daughter humiliated and your son led to

execution, you did not bewail or lament; and have been so highly

concerned for a beggar, who is no way related to you, as he is

informed." Psammenitus answered: "Son of Cyrus, the calamities of my

family are too great to be expressed by lamentation; but the griefs of

my friend were worthy of tears, who, having fallen from abundance and

prosperity, has come to beggary on the threshold of old age." When this

answer was brought back by the messenger, it appeared to Cambyses to be

well said; and, as the Egyptians relate, Crœsus wept, for he had

attended Cambyses into Egypt, and the Persians that were present wept

also; Cambyses himself, touched with pity, gave immediate orders to

preserve his son out of those who were to perish, but those who were

sent found the son no longer alive, having been the first that suffered;

but Psammenitus himself they conducted to Cambyses, with whom he

afterward lived, without experiencing any violence. And had it not been

suspected that he was planning innovations, he would probably have

recovered Egypt, so as to have the government intrusted to him. For the

Persians are accustomed to honor the sons of kings, and even if they

have revolted from them, sometimes bestow the government upon their

children. Psammenitus, devising mischief, received his reward, for he

was discovered inciting the Egyptians to revolt; and when he was

detected by Cambyses he was compelled to drink the blood of a bull, and

died immediately.

Cambyses proceeded from Memphis to the city of Sais, and entering the

palace of Amasis, commanded the dead body of Amasis to be brought out of

the sepulchre; he gave orders then to scourge it, to pull off the hair,

to prick it, and to abuse it in every possible manner. But when they

were wearied with this employment, for the dead body, since it was

embalmed, resisted, and did not at all fall in pieces, Cambyses gave

orders to burn it, commanding what is impious. For to burn the dead is

on no account allowed by either nation: not by the Persians, for they

consider fire to be a god, and say it is not right to offer to a god the

dead body of a man; nor by the Egyptians, as fire is held by them to be

a living beast, which devours every thing it can lay hold of, and when

it is glutted with food it expires with what it has consumed; therefore,

as it is their law on no account to give a dead body to wild beasts, for

that reason they embalm them, that they may not lie and be eaten by

worms.

Cambyses determined to send to Elephantine for some of the Ichthyophagi,

who understood the Ethiopian language, that he might despatch them as

spies to Ethiopia. When the Ichthyophagi came, he despatched them to the

Ethiopians, having instructed them what to say, carrying presents,

consisting of a purple cloak, a golden necklace, bracelets, an alabaster

box of ointment, and a cask of palm wine. These Ethiopians, to whom

Cambyses sent, are said to be the tallest and handsomest of all men; and

have customs different from those of other nations, especially with

regard to the regal power; for they confer the sovereignty upon the man

whom they consider to be of the largest stature, and to possess strength

proportionate to his size.

When the Ichthyophagi arrived among this people, they gave the presents

to the king, and addressed him as follows: "Cambyses, King of the

Persians, desirous of becoming your friend and ally, has sent us to

confer with you, and he presents you with these gifts, which are such as

he himself most delights in." But the Ethiopian, knowing that they came

as spies, spoke thus to them: "Neither has the king of the Persians sent

you with presents to me, because he valued my alliance; nor do you speak

the truth; for ye are come as spies of my kingdom. Nor is he a just man;

for if he were just, he would not desire any other territory than his

own; nor would he reduce people into servitude who have done him no

injury. However, give him this bow, and say these words to him: 'The

king of the Ethiopians advises the king of the Persians, when the

Persians can thus easily draw a bow of this size, then to make war on

the Macrobian Ethiopians with more numerous forces; but until that time

let him thank the gods, who have not inspired the sons of the Ethiopians

with a desire of adding another land to their own.'" Having spoken thus

and unstrung the bow, he delivered it to the comers. Then taking up the

purple cloak, he asked what it was, and how made; and when the

Ichthyophagi told him the truth respecting the purple, and the manner of

dyeing, he said that the men are deceptive, and their garments are

deceptive also. Next he inquired about the necklace and bracelets, and

when the Ichthyophagi explained to him their use as ornaments, the king,

laughing, and supposing them to be fetters, said that they have stronger

fetters than these. Thirdly, he inquired about the ointment; and when

they told him about its composition and use, he made the same remark as

he had on the cloak. But when he came to the wine, and inquired how it

was made, being very much delighted with the draught, he further asked

what food the king made use of, and what was the longest age to which a

Persian lived. They answered, that he fed on bread, describing the

nature of wheat; and that the longest period of the life of a Persian

was eighty years. Upon this the Ethiopian said, that he was not at all

surprised if men who fed on earth lived so few years; and he was sure

they would not be able to live even so many years, if they did not

refresh themselves with this beverage, showing the wine to the

Ichthyophagi: for in this he admitted they were surpassed by the

Persians. The Ichthyophagi inquiring in turn of the king concerning the

life and diet of the Ethiopians, he said, that most of them attained to

a hundred and twenty years, and some even exceeded that term, and that

their food was boiled flesh, and their drink milk. When the spies

expressed their astonishment at the number of years, he led them to a

fountain, by washing in which they became more sleek, as if it had been

of oil, and an odor proceeded from it as of violets. The water of this

fountain, the spies said, is so weak, that nothing is able to float upon

it, neither wood, nor such things as are lighter than wood; but every

thing sinks to the bottom. If this water is truly such as it is said to

be, it may be they are long-lived by reason of the abundant use of it.

Leaving this fountain, he conducted them to the common prison, where all

were fettered with golden chains; for among these Ethiopians bronze is

the most rare and precious of all metals. After this, they visited last

of all their sepulchres, which are said to be prepared from crystal in

the following manner. When they have dried the body, either as the

Egyptians do, or in some other way, they plaster it all over with

gypsum, and paint it, making it as much as possible to resemble real

life; they then put round it a hollow column made of crystal, which they

dig up in abundance, and is easily wrought. The body being in the middle

of the column is plainly seen, and it does not emit an unpleasant smell,

nor is it in any way offensive; and it is all visible[16] as the body

itself. The nearest relations keep the column in their houses for a

year, offering to it the first-fruits of all, and performing sacrifices;

after that time they carry it out and place it somewhere near the city.

When the spies returned home and reported all that had passed, Cambyses,

in a great rage, immediately marched against the Ethiopians, without

making any provision for the subsistence of his army, or once

considering that he was going to carry his arms to the remotest parts of

the world; but, as a madman, and not in possession of his senses, as

soon as he heard the report of the Icthyophagi, he set out on his march,

ordering the Greeks who were present to stay behind, and taking with him

all his land forces. When the army reached Thebes, he detached about

fifty thousand men, and ordered them to reduce the Ammonians to slavery,

and to burn the oracular temple of Jupiter, while he with the rest of

his army marched against the Ethiopians. But before the army had passed

over a fifth part of the way, all the provisions that they had were

exhausted, and the beasts of burden themselves were eaten. Now if

Cambyses had at this juncture altered his purpose, and had led back his

army, he would have proved himself to be a wise man. But he obstinately

continued advancing. The soldiers supported life by eating herbs as long

as they could gather any from the ground; but when they reached the

sands, some of them had recourse to a dreadful expedient, for taking one

man in ten by lot, they devoured him: when Cambyses heard this, shocked

at their eating one another, he abandoned his expedition against the

Ethiopians, marched back and reached Thebes, after losing a great part

of his army. From Thebes he went down to Memphis, and suffered the

Greeks to sail away. Thus ended the expedition against the Ethiopians.

Those who had been sent against the Ammonians, after having set out from

Thebes, under the conduct of guides, are known to have reached the city

Oasis, which is inhabited by Samians, distant seven days' march from

Thebes, across the sands. This country in the Greek language is called

the Island of the Blessed. But afterward none, except the Ammonians and

those who have heard their report, are able to give any account of them;

for they neither reached the Ammonians, nor returned back. But the

Ammonians make the following report: When they had advanced from this

Oasis toward them across the sands, and were about half-way between them

and Oasis, as they were taking dinner, a vehement south wind blew,

carrying with it heaps of sand, and completely destroyed the whole army.

[Illustration: SAND STORM IN THE DESERT.]

When Cambyses arrived at Memphis, Apis, whom the Greeks call Epaphus,

appeared to the Egyptians; and when this manifestation took place, the

Egyptians immediately put on their richest apparel, and kept festive

holiday. Cambyses, seeing them thus occupied, and concluding that they

made these rejoicings on account of his ill success, summoned the

magistrates of Memphis; and when they came into his presence, he asked

"why the Egyptians had done nothing of the kind when he was at Memphis

before, but did so now, when he had returned with the loss of a great

part of his army." They answered, that their god appeared to them, who

was accustomed to manifest himself at intervals, and that when he did

appear, then all the Egyptians were accustomed to rejoice and keep a

feast. Cambyses, having heard this, said they were liars, and put them

to death. Then he summoned the priests into his presence, and when the

priests gave the same account, he said, that he would find out whether a

god so tractable had come among the Egyptians; and commanded the priests

to bring Apis to him. This Apis, or Epaphus, the Egyptians say, is the

calf of a cow upon which the lightning has descended from heaven. It is

black, and has a square spot of white on the forehead; on the back the

figure of an eagle; and in the tail double hairs; and on the tongue a

beetle. When the priests brought Apis, Cambyses, like one almost out of

his senses, drew his dagger, meaning to strike the belly of Apis, but

hit the thigh; then falling into a fit of laughter, he said to the

priests: "Ye blockheads, are there such gods as these, consisting of

blood and flesh, and sensible of steel? This, truly, is a god worthy of

the Egyptians. But you shall not mock me with impunity." Then he gave

orders to scourge the priests, and kill all the Egyptians who should be

found feasting. Apis, wounded in the thigh, lay and languished in the

temple; and at length, when he had died of the wound, the priests buried

him without the knowledge of Cambyses.

But Cambyses, as the Egyptians say, immediately became mad in

consequence of this atrocity, though he really was not of sound mind

before. His first crime he committed against his brother Smerdis, who

was born of the same father and mother; him he sent back from Egypt to

Persia through envy, because he alone of all the Persians had drawn the

bow, which the Ichthyophagi brought from the Ethiopian, within two

fingers' breadth; of the other Persians no one was able to do this.

After the departure of Smerdis for Persia, Cambyses saw the following

vision in his sleep: he imagined that a messenger arrived from Persia

and informed him that Smerdis was seated on the royal throne, and

touched the heavens with his head. Upon this, fearing for himself, lest

his brother should kill him, and reign, he sent Prexaspes, the most

faithful to him of the Persians, to Persia, with orders to kill Smerdis.

Having gone up to Susa, he killed Smerdis; some say, when he had taken

him out to hunt; but others, that he led him to the Red Sea and drowned

him. This they say was the first of the crimes of Cambyses; the second

was that of marrying his own sister, who had accompanied him into Egypt.

The Greeks say, that one day Cambyses made the whelp of a lion fight

with a young dog; and this wife was also looking on; the dog being

over-matched, another puppy of the same litter broke his chain, and came

to his assistance, and thus the two dogs united got the better of the

whelp. Cambyses was delighted at the sight, but she, sitting by him,

shed tears. Cambyses, observing this, asked her why she wept. She

answered, that she wept seeing the puppy come to the assistance of his

brother, remembering Smerdis, and knowing that there was no one to

avenge him. The Greeks say, that for this speech she was put to death by

Cambyses. But the Egyptians say, that as they were sitting at table, his

wife took a lettuce, stripped off its leaves, and then asked her husband

"whether the lettuce stripped of its leaves, or thick with foliage, was

the handsomer." He said: "When thick with foliage." Whereupon she

remarked: "Then you have imitated this lettuce, in dismembering the

house of Cyrus." Whereupon he, in rage, kicked her and inflicted such

injuries that she died.

Thus madly did Cambyses behave toward his own family; whether on account

of Apis, or from some other cause, from which, in many ways, misfortunes

are wont to befall mankind. For Cambyses is said, even from infancy, to

have been afflicted with a certain severe malady, which some called the

sacred disease.[17] In that case, it was not at all surprising that,

when his body was so diseased, his mind should not be sound. And toward

the other Persians he behaved madly in the following instances: for it

is reported that he said to Prexaspes, whom he highly honored, and whose

office it was to bring messages to him, whose son was cupbearer to

Cambyses, no trifling honor by any means, he is reported to have said:

"Prexaspes, what sort of a man do the Persians think me? and what

remarks do they make about me?" He answered: "Sir, you are highly

extolled in every other respect, but they say you are too much addicted

to wine." The king enraged cried out: "Do the Persians indeed say that,

by being addicted to wine, I am beside myself, and am not in my senses?

then their former words were not true." For, on a former occasion, when

the Persians and Crœsus were sitting with him, Cambyses asked, what sort

of a man he appeared to be in comparison with his father Cyrus; they

answered, that he was superior to his father, because he held all that

Cyrus possessed, and had acquired besides Egypt and the empire of the

sea. Crœsus, who was not pleased with this decision, spoke thus to

Cambyses: "To me, O son of Cyrus, you do not appear comparable to your

father, for you have not yet such a son as he left behind him." Cambyses

was delighted at hearing this, and commended the judgment of Crœsus. So,

remembering this, he said in anger to Prexaspes: "Observe now yourself,

whether the Persians have spoken the truth, or whether they who say such

things are not out of their senses: for if I shoot that son of yours who

stands under the portico, and hit him in the heart, the Persians will

appear to have said nothing to the purpose; but if I miss, then say that

the Persians have spoken the truth, and that I am not of sound mind."

Having said this, and bent his bow, he hit the boy; and when the boy had

fallen, he ordered them to open him and examine the wound; and when the

arrow was found in the heart, he said to the boy's father, laughing:

"Prexaspes, it has been clearly shown to you that I am not mad, but that

the Persians are out of their senses. Now tell me, did you ever see a

man take so true an aim?" But Prexaspes, perceiving him to be out of his

mind, and being in fear for his own life, said: "Sir, I believe that a

god himself could not have shot so well." At another time, having,

without any just cause, seized twelve Persians of the first rank, he had

them buried alive up to the head.

While he was acting in this manner, Crœsus the Lydian thought fit to

admonish him in the following terms: "O king, do not yield entirely to

your youthful impulses and anger, but possess and restrain yourself. It

is a good thing to be provident, and wise to have forethought. You put

men to death who are your own subjects, having seized them without any

just cause; and you slay their children. If you persist in such a

course, beware lest the Persians revolt from you. Your father Cyrus

strictly charged me to admonish you, and suggest whatever I might

discover for your good." He thus manifested his good-will, in giving

this advice; but Cambyses answered: "Do you presume to give me advice,

you, who so wisely managed your own country; and so well advised my

father, when you persuaded him to pass the river Araxes, and advance

against the Massagetæ, when they were willing to cross over into our

territory? You have first ruined yourself by badly governing your own

country, and then ruined Cyrus, who was persuaded by your advice. But

you shall have no reason to rejoice; for I have long wanted to find a

pretext against you." So saying, he took up his bow for the purpose of

shooting him; but Crœsus jumped up and ran out. Cambyses, unable to

shoot him, commanded his attendants to seize him, and put him to death.

But the attendants, knowing his temper, concealed Crœsus for the

following reason, that if Cambyses should repent, and inquire for

Crœsus, they, by producing him, might receive rewards for preserving him

alive; or if he should not repent, or sorrow for him, then they would

put him to death. Not long afterward Cambyses did regret the loss of

Crœsus, whereupon the attendants acquainted him that he was still

living; on which Cambyses said: "I am rejoiced that Crœsus is still

alive; they, however, who disobeyed my orders and saved him, shall not

escape with impunity, but I will have them put to death." And he made

good his word.

He committed many such mad actions, both against the Persians and his

allies, while he stayed at Memphis opening ancient sepulchres, and

examining the dead bodies; he also entered the temple of Vulcan, and

derided the image, for the image of Vulcan is very much like the

Phœnician Pataici, which the Phœnicians place at the prows of their

triremes, and is a representation of a pigmy. He likewise entered the

temple of the Cabeiri, (into which it is unlawful for any one except the

priest to enter) and these images he burnt, after he had ridiculed them

in various ways: these also are like that of Vulcan; and they say that

they are the sons of this latter. It is in every way clear to me that

Cambyses was outrageously mad; otherwise he would not have attempted to

deride sacred things and established customs. For if any one should

propose to all men, to select the best institutions of all that exist,

each, after considering them all, would choose his own; so certain is it

that each thinks his own institutions by far the best. It is not

therefore probable, that any but a madman would make such things the

subject of ridicule. That all men are of this mind respecting their own

institutions may be inferred from many proofs, but is well illustrated

by the following incident: Darius once summoned some Greeks under his

sway, and asked them "for what sum they would feed upon the dead bodies

of their parents." They answered, that they would not do it for any sum.

Then Darius called to him some of the Indians called Callatians, who are

accustomed to eat their parents, and asked them, in the presence of the

Greeks, "for what sum they would consent to burn their fathers when they

die." But they made loud exclamations and begged he would speak words of

good omen. Such then is the effect of custom: and Pindar appears to me

to have said rightly "that custom is the king of all men."

[Illustration: ATTACK ON FORT.]

Whilst Cambyses was invading Egypt, the Lacedæmonians made an expedition

against Polycrates, who had made an insurrection and seized on Samos. At

first, having divided the state into three parts, he had shared it with

his brothers Pantagnotus and Syloson; but afterward, having put one of

them to death, and expelled Syloson, the younger, he held the whole of

Samos, and made a treaty of friendship with Amasis, King of Egypt,

sending presents, and receiving others from him in return. In a very

short time the power of Polycrates increased, and was noised abroad

throughout Ionia and the rest of Greece; for wherever he turned his

arms, everything turned out prosperously. He had a hundred fifty-oared

galleys, and a thousand archers. And he plundered all without

distinction; for he said that he gratified a friend more by restoring

what he had seized, than by taking nothing at all. He accordingly took

many of the islands, and many cities on the continent; he moreover

overcame in a sea-fight, and took prisoners, the Lesbians, who came to

assist the Milesians with all their forces; these, being put in chains,

dug the whole trench that surrounds the walls of Samos.

The Lacedæmonians, arriving with a great armament, besieged Samos,

attacked the fortifications, and passed beyond the tower that faced the

sea near the suburbs; but afterward, when Polycrates himself advanced

with a large force, they were driven back, and after forty days had been

spent in besieging Samos, finding their affairs were not at all

advanced, they returned to Peloponnesus; though a groundless report got

abroad, that Polycrates coined a large quantity of the money of the

country in lead, had it gilt, and gave it to them; whereupon they took

their departure. This was the first expedition that the Lacedæmonian

Dorians undertook against Asia.

Those of the Samians who had fomented the war against Polycrates set

sail for Siphnus when the Lacedæmonians were about to abandon them, for

they were in want of money. The Siphnians were at that time the richest

of all the islanders, having such gold and silver mines, that from the

tenth of the money accruing from them, a treasure was laid up at Delphi

equal to the richest; and they used every year to divide the product of

the mines. When they established this treasure, they asked the oracle,

whether their present prosperity would continue with them for a long

time; but the Pythian answered as follows: "When the Prytaneum in

Siphnus shall be white, and the market white-fronted, then shall there

be need of a prudent man to guard against a wooden ambush and a crimson

herald." The market and Prytaneum of the Siphnians were then adorned

with Parian marble. As soon as the Samians reached Siphnus, they sent

ambassadors to the city in a ship which, like all ships at that time,

was painted red. And this was what the Pythian meant by a wooden ambush

and a crimson herald. These ambassadors requested the Siphnians to lend

them ten talents; the Siphnians refused the loan, and the Samians

proceeded to ravage their territory. The Siphnians were beaten, and

compelled to give a hundred talents.

[Illustration: THE OBELISK.]

I have dwelt longer on the affairs of the Samians, because they have the

three greatest works that have been accomplished by all the Greeks. The

first is a mountain, one hundred and fifty orgyæ in height, in which is

dug a tunnel, beginning from the base, with an opening at each side. The

length of the excavation is seven stades, and the height and breadth

eight feet each; through the whole length of it is dug another

excavation twenty cubits deep, and three feet broad, through which the

water conveyed by pipes reaches the city, drawn from a copious fountain.

The architect of this excavation was a Megarian, Eupalinus, son of

Naustrophus. The second work is a mound in the sea round the harbor, in

depth about one hundred orgyæ; and in length more than two stades. The

third is a temple, the largest of all we have ever seen; of this, the

architect was Rhœcus, son of Phileus, a native.

CHAPTER II.

USURPATION OF SMERDIS THE MAGUS AND ACCESSION OF DARIUS.

While Cambyses, son of Cyrus, tarried in Egypt, and was acting madly,

two magi, who were brothers, revolted. One of these, Cambyses had left

steward of his palace, the other was a person very much like Smerdis,

son of Cyrus, whom Cambyses, his own brother, had put to death. The

magus Patizithes, having persuaded this man that he would manage every

thing for him, set him on the throne; and sent heralds in various

directions, particularly to Egypt, to proclaim to the army, that they

must in future obey Smerdis, son of Cyrus, and not Cambyses. The herald

who was appointed to Egypt, finding Cambyses and his army at Ecbatana in

Syria, stood in the midst and proclaimed what had been ordered by the

magus. Cambyses, believing that he spoke the truth, and that he had

himself been betrayed by Prexaspes, and that he, when sent to kill

Smerdis, had not done so, looked toward Prexaspes, and said: "Prexaspes,

hast thou thus performed the business I enjoined upon thee?" But he

answered: "Sire, it is not true that your brother Smerdis has revolted

against you, nor that you can have any quarrel, great or small, with

him. For I myself put your order into execution, and buried him with my

own hands. I think I understand the whole matter, O king: the magi are

the persons who have revolted against you,—Patizithes, whom you left

steward of the palace, and his brother Smerdis." When Cambyses heard the

name of Smerdis, the truth of this account and of the dream struck him:

for he fancied in his sleep that some one announced to him that Smerdis,

seated on the royal throne, touched the heavens with his head.

Perceiving, therefore, that he had destroyed his brother without a

cause, he wept bitterly for him, deplored the whole calamity, and leapt

upon his horse, resolving with all speed to march to Susa against the

magus. But as he was leaping on his horse, the chape of his sword's

scabbard fell off, and the blade, being laid bare, struck the thigh;

wounding him in that part where he himself had formerly smitten the

Egyptian god Apis. Mortally wounded, he asked what was the name of the

city. They said it was Ecbatana. And it had been before prophesied to

him from the city of Buto, that he should end his life in Ecbatana. He

had imagined that he should die an old man in Ecbatana of Media, where

all his treasures were; but the oracle in truth meant in Ecbatana of

Syria. When he had thus been informed of the name of the city, though

smitten by misfortune, he returned to his right mind; and comprehending

the oracle, said: "Here it is fated that Cambyses, son of Cyrus, should

die."

Twenty days later he summoned the principal men of the Persians who were

with him, told them his vision and his great mistake, shed bitter tears,

and charged them never to permit the government to return into the hands

of the Medes. When the Persians saw their king weep, all rent the

garments they had on, and gave themselves up to lamentation. Soon the

bone became infected, the thigh mortified, and Cambyses, son of Cyrus,

died, after he had reigned in all seven years and five months, having

never had any children. Great incredulity stole over the Persians who

were present, as to the story that the magi had possession of the

government, and agreed that it must be Smerdis, son of Cyrus, who had

risen up and seized the kingdom. Prexaspes, moreover, vehemently denied

that he had killed Smerdis; for it was not safe for him, now that

Cambyses was dead, to own that he had killed the son of Cyrus with his

own hand.

The magus, after the death of Cambyses, relying on his having the same

name as Smerdis the son of Cyrus, reigned securely during the seven

months that remained to complete the eighth year of Cambyses; in which

time he treated all his subjects with such beneficence, that at his

death, all the people of Asia, except the Persians, regretted his loss.

For the magus, on assuming the sovereignty, despatched messengers to

every nation he ruled over, and proclaimed a general exemption from

military service and tribute for the space of three years. But in the

eighth month he was discovered in the following manner. Otanes, son of

Pharnaspes, was by birth and fortune equal to the first of the Persians.

This Otanes first suspected the magus not to be Smerdis the son of

Cyrus, from the fact, that he never went out of the citadel, and that he

never summoned any of the principal men of Persia to his presence.

Having conceived suspicion of him, he contrived the following artifice.

Cambyses had married his daughter, whose name was Phædyma; the magus of

course had her as his wife, as well as all the rest of the wives of

Cambyses. Otanes therefore, sending to his daughter, inquired whether

her husband was Smerdis, son of Cyrus, or some other person; she sent

back word to him, saying that she did not know. Otanes sent a second

time, saying: "If you do not yourself know Smerdis, son of Cyrus, then

inquire of Atossa, for she must of necessity know her own brother." To

this his daughter replied: "I can neither have any conversation with

Atossa, nor see any of the women who used to live with me; for as soon

as this man, whoever he is, succeeded to the throne, he dispersed us

all, assigning us separate apartments." When Otanes heard this, the

matter appeared much more plain; and he sent a third message to her in

these words: "Daughter, it becomes you, being of noble birth, to

undertake any peril that your father may require you to incur. For if

this Smerdis is not the son of Cyrus, but the person whom I suspect, it

is not fit that he should escape with impunity, but suffer the

punishment due to his offences. Now follow my directions: watch your

opportunity, and whenever you discover him to be sound asleep, touch his

ears; and if you find he has ears, be assured that he is Smerdis, son of

Cyrus; but if he has none, then he is Smerdis the magus." To this

message Phædyma answered, saying "that she should incur very great

danger by doing so; for he kept the sides of his head concealed, and if

he had no ears, and she should be discovered touching him, she well knew

that he would put her to death; nevertheless she would make the

attempt." Cyrus, during his reign, had cut off the ears of this Smerdis

the magus, for some grave offence. Phædyma, therefore, determining to

execute all that she had promised her father, catching the magus sound

asleep on his couch one day felt for his ears, and perceiving without

any difficulty that the man had no ears, as soon as it was day, she sent

and made known to her father what the case was.

Thereupon Otanes, having taken with him Aspathines and Gobryas, who were

the noblest of the Persians, and persons on whom he could best rely,

related to them the whole affair; and they agreed that each should

associate with himself a Persian in whom he could place most reliance.

Otanes accordingly introduced Intaphernes; Gobryas, Megabyzus; and

Aspathines, Hydarnes. Just at this time Darius, son of Hystaspes,

arrived at Susa from Persia, where his father was governor, and the six

Persians determined to admit Darius to the confederacy. These seven met,

exchanged pledges with each other, and conferred together. When it came

to the turn of Darius to declare his opinion, he addressed them as

follows: "I thought that I was the only person who knew that it was the

magus who reigns, and that Smerdis, son of Cyrus, is dead; and for this

very reason I hastened hither in order to contrive the death of the

magus. But since it proves that you also are acquainted with the fact,

it appears to me that we should act immediately." Otanes said to this:

"Son of Hystaspes, you are born of a noble father, and show yourself not

at all inferior to him; do not, however, so inconsiderately hasten this

enterprise, but set about it with more caution; for we must increase our

numbers, and then attempt it." Darius replied to this: "Be assured, ye

men who are here present, if you adopt the plan proposed by Otanes, you

will all miserably perish; for some one will discover it to the magus,

consulting his own private advantage; indeed, you ought to have carried

out your project immediately, without communicating it to any one else;

but since you have thought fit to refer it to others, and have disclosed

it to me, let us carry it out this very day, or be assured, that if this

day passes over, no one shall be beforehand with me and become my

accuser, but I myself will denounce you to the magus." Otanes, seeing

Darius so eager, replied: "Since you compel us to precipitate our

enterprise, and will not permit us to defer it, tell us in what way we

are to enter the palace and attack him; for you yourself know that

guards are stationed at intervals; and how shall we pass them?" "There

are many things," said Darius, "that can not be made clear by words, but

may by action; and there are other things that seem practicable in

description, but no signal effect proceeds from them. Be assured that

the guards stationed there will not be at all difficult to pass by: for

in the first place, seeing our rank, there is no one who will not allow

us to pass, partly from respect, and partly from fear; and in the next

place, I have a most specious pretext by which we shall gain admission,

for I will say that I have just arrived from Persia, and wish to report

a message to the king from my father. For when a lie must be told, let

it be told. Whoever of the doorkeepers shall willingly let us pass,

shall be rewarded in due time; but whoever offers to oppose us must

instantly be treated as an enemy." After this Gobryas said: "Friends,

shall we ever have a better opportunity to recover the sovereign power,

or if we shall be unable to do so, to die? seeing we who are Persians,

are governed by an earless Medic magus. Those among you who were present

with Cambyses when he lay sick, well remember the imprecations he

uttered at the point of death against the Persians, if they should not

attempt to repossess themselves of the sovereign power: we did not then

believe this story, but thought that Cambyses spoke from ill-will. I

give my voice that we yield to Darius, and that on breaking up this

conference we go direct to the magus." And all assented to his proposal.

Meantime the magi, on consultation, determined to make Prexaspes their

friend: both because he had suffered grievous wrong from Cambyses, who

shot his son dead with an arrow; and because he alone of all the

Persians knew of the death of Smerdis, son of Cyrus, as he had

despatched him with his own hand; and moreover, Prexaspes was in high

repute with the Persians. Therefore, having sent for Prexaspes, they

endeavored to win his friendship, binding him by pledges and oaths, that

he would never divulge to any man the cheat they had put upon the

Persians, assuring him that in return they would give him every thing

his heart could desire. When Prexaspes had promised that he would do as

the magi wished, they made a second proposal, saying, that they would

assemble all the Persians under the walls of the palace, and desired

that he would ascend a tower, and assure them that they were governed by

Smerdis, son of Cyrus. Prexaspes assented, and the magi, having convoked

the Persians, placed him on the top of a turret, and commanded him to

harangue the people. But he purposely forgot what they desired him to

say, and, beginning from Achæmenes, described the genealogy of Cyrus'

family; told them what great benefits Cyrus had done the Persians; and

finally declared the whole truth, saying that he had before concealed

it, as it was not safe for him to tell what had happened; but that in

the present emergency necessity constrained him to make it known. He

accordingly told them that he, being compelled by Cambyses, had put

Smerdis, son of Cyrus, to death, and that it was the magi who then

reigned. After he had uttered many imprecations against the Persians, if

they should not recover back the sovereign power, and punish the magi,

he threw himself headlong from the tower. Thus died Prexaspes, a man

highly esteemed during the course of his whole life.

[Illustration: MAMELUKE TOMB, CAIRO.]

The seven Persians, resolving to attack the magi without delay, had

offered prayers to the gods, and were in the midst of their way when

they were informed of all that Prexaspes had done, whereupon they again

conferred together; and some, with Otanes, strongly advised to defer the

enterprise while affairs were in such a ferment; but others, with

Darius, urged to proceed at once. While hotly disputing there appeared

seven pairs of hawks pursuing two pairs of vultures, and plucking and

tearing them. The seven, on seeing this, all approved the opinion of

Darius, and forthwith proceeded to the palace, emboldened by the omen.

When they approached the gates, it happened as Darius had supposed; for

the guards, out of respect for men of highest rank among the Persians,

and not suspecting any such design on their part, let them pass by,

moved as they were by divine impulse; nor did any one question them. But

when they reached the hall, they fell in with the eunuchs appointed to

carry in messages, who inquired of them for what purpose they had come;

and at the same time that they questioned them they threatened the

doorkeepers for permitting them to pass, and endeavored to prevent the

seven from proceeding any farther. They instantly drew their daggers,

stabbed all that opposed their passage on the spot, and then rushed to

the men's apartment. The magi happened to be both within at the time,

and were consulting about the conduct of Prexaspes. But seeing the

eunuchs in confusion, and hearing their outcry, they hurried out, and

put themselves on the defensive. One snatched up a bow, and the other a

javelin, and the parties engaged with each other. The one who had taken

up the bow, seeing his enemies were near and pressing upon them, found

it of no use; but the other made resistance with his spear, and first

wounded Aspathines in the thigh, and next Intaphernes in the eye; and

Intaphernes lost his eye from the wound, but did not die. The other

magus, when he found his bow of no service, fled to a chamber adjoining

the men's apartment, purposing to shut to the door, and two of the

seven, Darius and Gobryas, rushed in with him; and as Gobryas was

grappling with the magus, Darius standing by was in perplexity, fearing

that he should strike Gobryas in the dark; but Gobryas, seeing that he

stood by inactive, asked him why he did not use his hand. He answered:

"Fearing for you, lest I should strike you." "Never mind," said Gobryas,

"drive your sword through both of us." Darius obeyed, thrust with his

dagger, and by good fortune hit the magus.

Having slain the magi, and cut off their heads, they left the wounded of

their own party there, as well on account of their exhaustion as to

guard the acropolis; but the other five of them, carrying the heads of

the magi, ran out with shouting and clamor, and called upon the rest of

the Persians, relating what they had done, and showing them the heads;

and at the same time they slew every one of the magi that came in their

way. The Persians, informed of what had been done by the seven, and of

the fraud of the magi, determined themselves also to do the like; and

having drawn their daggers, they slew every magus they could find; and

if the night coming on had not prevented, they would not have left a

single magus alive. This day the Persians observe in common more than

any other, and in it they celebrate a great festival, which they call

"The Slaughter of the Magi." On that day no magus is allowed to be seen

in public.

When the tumult had subsided, and five days had elapsed, those who had

risen up against the magi deliberated on the state of affairs. Otanes

advised that they should commit the government to the Persians at large,

"for," said he, "how can a monarchy be a well-constituted government,

where one man is allowed to do whatever he pleases without control?"

Megabyzus advised them to intrust the government to an oligarchy, and

said: "Let us choose an association of the best men, and commit the

sovereign power to them, for among them we ourselves shall be included,

and it is reasonable to expect that the best counsels will proceed from

the best men." Darius expressed his opinion the third, saying: "What

Megabyzus has said concerning the people was spoken rightly, but if

three forms are proposed, and each the best in its kind, democracy,

oligarchy, and monarchy, I contend that the last is far superior. For

nothing can be found better than one man, who is the best; since acting

upon equally wise plans, he would govern the people without blame, and

would keep his designs most secret from the ill-affected. But in an

oligarchy, whilst many are exerting their energies for the public good,

strong private enmities commonly spring up; for each wishing to be

chief, and to carry his own opinions, they come to deep animosities one

against another, whence seditions arise; and from seditions, murder; and

from murder recourse is always had to a monarchy; and thus it is proved

that this form of government is the best. Also when the people rule, it

is impossible that evil should not spring up, and powerful combinations,

for they who injure the commonwealth act in concert; and this lasts

until some one of the people stands forward and puts them down; and on

this account, being admired by the people, he becomes a monarch; this

again shows that a monarchy is best. Moreover, we should not subvert the

institutions of our ancestors, when we see how good they are."

Four of the seven adhered to this opinion. Then said Otanes:

"Associates, since it is evident that some one of us must be made king,

I will not enter into competition with you; for I wish neither to govern

nor be governed. But on this condition I give up all claim to the

government, that neither I nor any of my posterity may be subject to any

one of you." The six agreed to these terms, and he withdrew from the

assembly; and this family alone, of all the Persians, retains its

liberty to this day, and yields obedience only so far as it pleases, but

without transgressing the laws of the Persians. The rest of the seven

consulted how they might appoint a king on the most equitable terms; and

they determined that Otanes and his posterity forever should be given a

Median vest yearly, by way of distinction, together with all such

presents as are accounted most honorable among the Persians, for he

first advised the enterprise, and associated them together. And they

made the resolution that every one of the seven should have liberty to

enter into the palace without being introduced, and that the king should

not be allowed to marry a wife out of any other family than of the

conspirators. With regard to the kingdom, they determined that he whose

horse should first neigh in the suburbs at sunrise, while they were

mounted, should have the kingdom.

Darius had a groom, a shrewd man, whose name was Œbares, to whom, when

the assembly had broken up, Darius said: "Œbares, we have determined

that he whose horse shall neigh first at sunrise, when we ourselves are

mounted, is to have the kingdom. Now, if you have any ingenuity,

contrive that I may obtain this honor, and not another." Œbares

answered: "If, sir, it depends on this, whether you shall be king or

not, keep up your spirits; for no one else shall be king before you; I

know a trick that will make him neigh." At dawn of day, the six, as they

had agreed, met together on horseback; and as they were riding round the

suburbs, Darius' horse, at the signal from Œbares, ran forward and

neighed, and at that instant lightning and thunder came from a clear

sky. These things consummated the auspices, as if done by appointment,

and the others, dismounting from their horses, did obeisance to Darius

as king.

[Illustration: EGYPTIAN WAR CHARIOT, WARRIOR AND HORSES.]

Accordingly Darius, son of Hystaspes, was declared king, and all the

people of Asia, except the Arabians, were subject to him. The Arabians

never submitted to the Persian yoke, but were on friendly terms, and

gave Cambyses a free passage into Egypt; for without the consent of the

Arabians the Persians could not have penetrated into Egypt. Darius

contracted his first marriages with Persians; he married two daughters

of Cyrus, Atossa and Artystona; Atossa, you remember, had been before

married to her brother Cambyses, and afterward to the magus. He married

another also, daughter of Smerdis, son of Cyrus, whose name was Parmys;

and he had besides, the daughter of Otanes who detected the magus. His

power was fully established on all sides. He erected a stone statue,

representing a man on horseback; and he had engraved on it the following

inscription: "Darius, son of Hystaspes, by the sagacity of his horse,

(here mentioning the name,) and by the address of Œbares, his groom,

obtained the empire of the Persians." In Persia, he constituted twenty

governments, which they call satrapies; set governors over them, and

appointed tributes to be paid to him from each. In consequence of this

imposition of tribute, and other things of a similar kind, the Persians

say Darius was a trader, Cambyses a master, and Cyrus a father. The

first, because he made profit of every thing; the second, because he was

severe and arrogant; the last, because he was mild, and always aimed at

the good of his people. If the total of all his revenues is computed

together, fourteen thousand five hundred and sixty Euboic talents were

collected by Darius as an annual tribute,[18] passing over many small

sums which I do not mention. This tribute accrued to Darius from Asia

and a small part of Libya; but in the course of time another revenue

accrued from the islands, and the inhabitants of Europe as far as

Thessaly. This treasure the king melts and pours into earthen jars, and

knocking away the earthen mould when he wants money he cuts off as much

as he has occasion to use.

The Cilicians were required to send each year to Darius three hundred

and sixty white horses, one for every day. The Persian territory alone

was not subject to tribute; but the Persians brought gifts. The

Ethiopians bordering on Egypt, whom Cambyses subdued when he marched

against the Macrobian Ethiopians, and who dwell about the sacred city of

Nysa, celebrate festivals of Bacchus, use the same grain as the

Calantian Indians, and live in subterraneous dwellings. These brought

every third year two chœnices of unmolten gold, two hundred blocks of

ebony, five Ethiopian boys, and twenty large elephants' tusks.

CHAPTER III.

INDIANS, ARABIANS, AND ETHIOPIANS.

That part of India toward the rising sun is all sand; for of the people

with whom we are acquainted, and of whom any thing certain is told, the

Indians live the farthest toward the east of all the inhabitants of

Asia; and the Indians' country toward the east is a desert, by reason of

the sands. There are many nations of Indians, and they do not all speak

the same language; some of them are nomads, and they inhabit the marshes

of the river, and feed on raw fish, which they take going out in boats

made of bamboo, one joint of which makes a boat. These Indians wear a

garment made of rushes cut from the river, beaten flat, platted like a

mat, and worn as a corselet. Other Indians, living to the east of these,

are nomads, and eat raw flesh; they are called Padæans. When any one of

this community is sick, if it be a man, the men who are his nearest

connections put him to death, alleging that if he wasted by disease his

flesh would be spoiled; and no matter if he denies that he is sick, they

are not likely to agree with him, but kill and feast upon him. And if a

woman be sick, the women who are most intimate with her do the same as

the men. And whoever reaches to old age, they sacrifice and feast upon;

but few among them succeed in growing old, for before that, every one

that falls into any distemper is put to death. Other Indians have

different customs: they neither kill any thing that has life, nor sow

any thing, nor are they wont to have houses, but they live upon herbs,

and have a grain of the size of millet, in a pod, which springs

spontaneously from the earth; this they gather, and boil and eat it with

the pod. When any one of them falls ill, he goes and lies down in the

desert, and no one takes any thought about him, whether dead or sick.

All these Indians whom I have mentioned have a complexion closely

resembling the Ethiopians. They are situated very far from the Persians,

toward the south, and were never subject to Darius.

Those who border on the city of Caspatyrus and the country of Pactyica

are the most warlike of the Indians, and these are they who are sent to

procure the gold. In this desert, and in the sand, there are ants in

size somewhat less indeed than dogs, but larger than foxes. Some of them

which were taken there, are in the possession of the king of the

Persians. These ants, forming their habitations under ground, heap up

the sand, as the ants in Greece do, and in the same manner; and they are

very much like them in shape. The sand thus heaped up is mixed with

gold. The Indians go to the desert to get this sand, each man having

three camels, on either side a male harnessed to draw by the side, and a

female in the middle; this last the man mounts himself, having taken

care to yoke one that has been separated from her young as recently born

as possible; for camels are not inferior to horses in swiftness, and are

much better able to carry burdens. What kind of figure the camel has I

shall not describe to the Greeks, as they are acquainted with it; but

what is not known respecting it I will mention. A camel has four thighs

and four knees in his hinder legs. The Indians then, adopting such a

plan of harnessing, set out for the gold, having before calculated the

time, so as to be engaged in their plunder during the hottest part of

the day, for during the heat the ants hide themselves under ground.

Amongst these people the sun is hottest in the morning, and not, as with

us, at mid-day; during this time it scorches much more than at mid-day

in Greece; so that, it is said, they then refresh themselves in water.

But as the day declines, the sun becomes to them as it is in the morning

to others; and after this, as it proceeds it becomes still colder, until

sunset, then it is very cold. When the Indians arrive at the spot with

their sacks, they fill them with the sand, and return as fast as

possible. For the ants, as the Persians say, immediately discovering

them by the smell, pursue them, and they are equalled in swiftness by no

other animal, so that if the Indians did not get the start of the ants

while they were assembling, not a man of them could be saved. Now the

male camels (for they are inferior in speed to the females) would

otherwise slacken their pace, dragging on, not both equally; but the

females, mindful of the young they have left, do not slacken their pace.

Thus the Indians obtain the greatest part of their gold.

[Illustration: MILITARY DRUM.]

The extreme parts of the inhabited world somehow possess the most

excellent products; while Greece enjoys by far the best-tempered

climate. In India, the farthest part of the inhabited world toward the

east, all animals, both quadrupeds and birds, are much larger than they

are in other countries, with the exception of horses; in this respect

they are surpassed by the Medic breed called the Nysæan horses. Then

there is an abundance of gold there, partly dug, partly brought down by

the rivers, and partly seized in the manner I have described. And

certain wild trees there bear wool instead of fruit, which in beauty and

quality excels that of sheep; and the Indians make their clothing from

these trees. Again, Arabia is the farthest of inhabited countries toward

the south; and this is the only region in which grow frankincense,

myrrh, cassia, cinnamon, and ledanum. All these, except myrrh, the

Arabians gather with difficulty. The frankincense they gather by burning

styrax, which the Phœnicians import into Greece. Winged serpents, small

in size, and various in form, guard the trees that bear frankincense, a

great number round each tree. These are the same serpents that invade

Egypt. They are driven from the trees by nothing else but the smoke of

the styrax. Vipers are found in all parts of the world; but flying

serpents in Arabia, and nowhere else; there they appear to be very

numerous.

The Arabians obtain the cassia, which grows in marshes or shallow lakes,

by covering their whole body and face, except the eyes, with hides and

skins, and thus avoiding the attacks of the winged animals, like bats,

which infest the marshes, and screech fearfully, and are exceedingly

fierce. The cinnamon they collect in a still more wonderful manner.

Where it grows and what land produces it they are unable to tell; except

that some say it grows in those countries in which Bacchus was nursed.

Large birds bring those rolls of bark, which we, from the Phœnicians,

call cinnamon, for their nests, which are built with clay, against

precipitous mountains, where there is no access for man. The Arabians,

to surmount this difficulty, cut up into large pieces the limbs of dead

oxen, and asses, and other beasts of burden, carry them to these spots,

lay them near the nests, and retire to a distance. The birds fly down

and carry up the limbs of the beasts to their nests, which not being

strong enough to support the weight, break and fall to the ground. Then

the men, coming up, gather the cinnamon, much of which they export to

other countries. Still more wonderful is the fragrant ledanum. For it is

found sticking like gum to the beards of he-goats, which collect it from

the wood. It is useful for many ointments, and the Arabians burn it very

generally as a perfume. They are famous for their perfumes; and there

breathes from Arabia, as it were, a divine odor. They have two kinds of

sheep worthy of admiration, which are seen nowhere else. One kind has

large tails, not less than three cubits in length, which, if suffered to

trail, would ulcerate, by the tails rubbing on the ground. But every

shepherd knows enough of the carpenter's art to prevent this, for they

make little carts and fasten them under the tails, binding the tail of

each separate sheep to a separate cart. The other kind of sheep have

broad tails, even to a cubit in breadth. Where the meridian declines[19]

toward the setting sun, the Ethiopian territory extends, being the

extreme part of the habitable world. It produces much gold, huge

elephants, wild trees of all kinds, ebony, and men of large stature,

very handsome, and long-lived.

Such are the extremities of Asia and Libya. Concerning the western

extremities of Europe I am unable to speak with certainty, for I do not

admit that there is a river, called by barbarians Eridanus, which

discharges itself into the sea toward the north, from which amber is

said to come; nor am I acquainted with the Cassiterides Islands, whence

our tin comes. For in the first place, the name Eridanus shows that it

is Grecian and not barbarian, and coined by some poet; in the next

place, though I have diligently inquired, I have never been able to hear

from any man who has himself seen it, that there is a sea on that side

of Europe. However, both tin and amber come to us from the remotest

parts. Toward the north of Europe there is evidently a very great

quantity of gold, but how procured I am unable to say with certainty;

though it is said that the Arimaspians, a one-eyed people, steal it from

the griffins. Nor do I believe this, that any men are born with one eye,

and yet in other respects resemble the rest of mankind. However, the

extremities of the world seem to surround and enclose the rest of the

earth, and to possess those productions which we account most excellent

and rare.

CHAPTER IV.

REIGN OF DARIUS TO THE TAKING OF BABYLON.

Of the seven men that conspired against the magus, it happened that one

of them, Intaphernes, by an act of insolence, lost his life shortly

after the revolution. He wished to enter the palace in order to confer

with Darius; but the door-keeper and the messenger would not let him

pass, saying, that the king was engaged, but Intaphernes, suspecting

they told a falsehood, drew his scimetar, cut off their ears and noses,

and having strung them to straps taken from his bridle, hung them round

their necks, and dismissed them. They presented themselves to the king,

and told him the cause for which they had been so treated. Darius,

fearing lest the six had done this in concert, sent for them, one by

one, and endeavored to discover whether they approved of what had been

done. When he found that Intaphernes had not done this with their

knowledge, he seized Intaphernes himself, and his children, and all his

family, having many reasons to suspect that he, with his relations,

would raise a rebellion against him. And he bound them as for death: but

the wife of Intaphernes, going to the gates of the palace, wept and

lamented aloud; and prevailed on Darius to have compassion on her. He

therefore sent a messenger to say as follows: "Madam, king Darius allows

you to release one of your relations who are now in prison, whichever of

them all you please." She deliberated, and answered: "Since the king

grants me the life of one, I choose my brother from them all." Darius,

wondering at her choice, asked: "Madam, the king inquires the reason

why, leaving your husband and children, you have chosen that your

brother should survive; who is not so near related to you as your

children, and less dear to you than your husband?" "O king," she

answered, "I may have another husband if God will, and other children if

I lose these; but as my father and mother are no longer alive, I cannot

by any means have another brother; for this reason I spoke as I did."

This pleased Darius so well that he granted to her the one whom she

asked, and also her eldest son; all the rest he put to death.

[Illustration: ALPHABET.]

It happened not long after this that Darius, in leaping from his horse

while hunting, twisted his foot with such violence that the ankle-bone

was dislocated. At first thinking he had about him Egyptians who had the

first reputation for skill in the healing art, he made use of their

assistance. But they, by twisting the foot, and using force, made the

evil worse; and from the pain which he felt, Darius lay seven days and

seven nights without sleep. On the eighth day, as he still continued in

a bad state, some one who had before heard at Sardis of the skill of

Democedes the Crotonian, made it known to Darius; and he ordered them to

bring him to him as quickly as possible. They found him among the slaves

altogether neglected; and brought him forward, dragging fetters behind

him, and clothed in rags. As he stood before him, Darius asked him

whether he understood the art. He denied that he did, fearing lest, if

he discovered himself, he should be altogether precluded from returning

to Greece. But he appeared to Darius to dissemble, although he was

skilled in the art; he therefore commanded those who had brought him

thither to bring out whips and goads. Whereupon he owned up, saying that

he did not know it perfectly, but having been intimate with a physician,

he had some poor knowledge of the art. Upon which Darius put himself

under his care, and by using Grecian medicines, and applying lenitives

after violent remedies, he caused him to sleep, and in a little time

restored him to his health, though Darius had begun to despair of ever

recovering the use of his foot. After this cure, Darius presented him

with two pairs of golden fetters; but Democedes asked him, if he

purposely gave him a double evil because he had restored him to health.

Darius, pleased with the speech, introduced him to his wives, with the

remark that this was the man who had saved the king's life; whereupon

each of them dipped a goblet into a chest of gold, and presented it

brimful to Democedes—so munificent a gift, that a servant named Sciton,

following behind, picked up enough staters that fell from the goblets to

make him a rich man.