When the Greeks arrived at the Isthmus they consulted in what way and in

what places they should prosecute the war. The opinion which prevailed

was that they should defend the pass at Thermopylæ; for it appeared to

be narrower than that into Thessaly, and at the same time nearer to

their own territories. On the western side of Thermopylæ is an

inaccessible and precipitous mountain, stretching to Mount Œta; and on

the eastern side of the way is the sea and a morass. In this passage

there are hot baths, which the inhabitants call Chytri, and above these

is an altar to Hercules. A wall had been built in this pass, and

formerly there were gates in it. The Phocians built it through fear,

when the Thessalians came from Thesprotia to settle in the Æolian

territory which they now possess, apprehending that the Thessalians

would attempt to subdue them; at the same time they diverted the hot

water into the entrance, that the place might be broken into clefts;

having recourse to every contrivance to prevent the Thessalians from

making inroads into their country. Now this old wall had been built a

long time, and the greater part of it had already fallen through age;

but they determined to rebuild it, and in that place to repel the

barbarian from Greece. Very near this road there is a village called

Alpeni, from which they expected to obtain provisions.

[Illustration: CYCLOPEAN WALLS AT CEPHALLOMA.]

The naval forces of Xerxes, setting out from the city of Therma,

advanced with ten of the fastest sailing ships straight to Scyathus,

where were three Greek ships keeping a look-out, a Trœzenian an

Æginetan, and an Athenian. These, seeing the ships of the barbarians at

a distance, betook themselves to flight. The Trœzenian ship, which

Praxinus commanded, the barbarians pursued and soon captured; and then,

having led the handsomest of the marines to the prow of the ship, they

slew him, deeming it a good omen that the first Greek they had taken was

also very handsome. The name of the man that was slain was Leon, and

perhaps he in some measure reaped the fruits of his name. The Æginetan

ship, which Asonides commanded, gave them some trouble, Pytheas, son of

Ischenous, being a marine on board, a man who on this day displayed the

most consummate valor; who, when the ship was taken, continued fighting

until he was almost cut to pieces. But when they found that he was not

dead, but still breathed, the Persians who served on board the ships

were very anxious to save him alive, on account of his valor, healing

his wounds with myrrh, and binding them with bandages of flaxen cloth.

And when they returned to their own camp, they showed him with

admiration to the whole army, and treated him well; but the others, whom

they took in this ship, they treated as slaves. Thus, two of the ships

were taken; but the third, which Phormus, an Athenian, commanded, in its

flight ran ashore at the mouth of the Peneus; and the barbarians got

possession of the ship, but not of the men: for as soon as the Athenians

had run the ship aground, they leaped out, and, proceeding through

Thessaly, reached Athens. The Greeks who were stationed at Artemisium

were informed of this event by signal-fires from Scyathus.

As far as Thermopylæ, the army of Xerxes had suffered no loss, and the

numbers were at that time, as I find by calculation of those in ships

from Asia, a total of five hundred and seventeen thousand six hundred

and ten. Of infantry there were seventeen hundred thousand, and of

cavalry eighty thousand; to these I add the Arabians who rode camels,

and the Libyans who drove chariots, reckoning the number of twenty

thousand men. Accordingly, the numbers on board the ships and on the

land added together, make up two millions three hundred and seventeen

thousand six hundred and ten, exclusive of the servants that followed,

and the provision ships, and the men that were on board them. But the

force brought from Europe must still be added to this whole number, of

which I suppose that there were three hundred thousand men. So that

these myriads added to those from Asia, make a total of two millions six

hundred and forty one thousand six hundred and ten fighting men. I think

that the servants who followed them, together with those on board the

provision ships and other vessels that sailed with the fleet, were not

fewer than the fighting men, probably more numerous; but supposing them

to be equal in number with the fighting men, Xerxes, son of Darius, led

five millions two hundred and eighty-three thousand two hundred and

twenty men to Thermopylæ. This, then, was the number of the whole force

of Xerxes. But the number of women who made bread, wives of officers,

and servants, no one could mention with accuracy; nor of draught-cattle

and other beasts of burden; nor of Indian dogs that followed. I am not

astonished that the streams of some rivers failed; rather is it a wonder

to me how the provisions held out for so many myriads. For I find by

calculation, if each man had a chœnix of wheat daily, and no more, one

hundred and ten thousand three hundred and forty medimni must have been

consumed every day; and I have not reckoned the food for the women,

beasts of burden, and dogs. But, of so many myriads of men, not one of

them, for beauty and stature, was more entitled than Xerxes himself to

possess this power.

[Illustration: ISLAND AND CASTLE OF CORFU.]

The Greeks who awaited the Persian at Thermopylæ were: of Spartans three

hundred heavy-armed men; of Tegeans and Mantineans one thousand, half of

each; from Orchomenus in Arcadia one hundred and twenty; and from the

rest of Arcadia one thousand; from Corinth four hundred; from Phlius two

hundred men, and from Mycenæ eighty. These came from Peloponnesus. From

Bœotia, of Thespians seven hundred, and of Thebans four hundred. In

addition to these, the Opuntian Locrians, being invited, came with all

their forces, and a thousand Phocians. These nations had separate

generals for their several cities; but the one most admired, and who

commanded the whole army, was a Lacedæmonian, Leonidas, son of

Anaxandrides, and a descendant of Hercules, who had unexpectedly

succeeded to the throne of Sparta. For as he had two elder brothers,

Cleomenes and Dorieus, he was far from any thought of the kingdom.

However, Cleomenes and Dorieus both died, and the kingdom thus devolved

upon Leonidas. He had chosen the three hundred men allowed by law, and

marched to Thermopylæ.

When the Persian came near the pass, the Greeks, alarmed, consulted

about a retreat, and it seemed best to the other Peloponnesians to

retire to Peloponnesus, and guard the Isthmus; but Leonidas, perceiving

the Phocians and Locrians very indignant at this proposition, determined

to stay there, and to despatch messengers to the cities, desiring them

to come to their assistance, as being too few to repel the army of the

Medes. Meantime Xerxes sent a scout on horseback, to see how many they

were, and what they were doing. For while he was still in Thessaly, he

had heard that a small army had been assembled at that spot, whose

leader was Leonidas, of the race of Hercules. When the horseman rode up

to the camp, he reconnoitred, and saw not indeed the whole camp, for it

was not possible that they should be seen who were posted within the

wall, but he had a clear view of those on the outside, whose arms were

piled in front of the wall. At this some of the Lacedæmonians were

performing gymnastic exercises, and others combing their hair. On

beholding this he was astonished, but having ascertained their number,

he rode back at his leisure, for no one pursued him, and he met with

general contempt. On his return he gave an account to Xerxes of all that

he had seen, who could not comprehend the truth, that the Greeks were

preparing to be slain and to slay to the utmost of their power.

Xerxes let five days pass, constantly expecting that they would betake

themselves to flight. But on the fifth day, as they had not retreated,

but appeared to him to stay through arrogance and rashness, in rage he

sent the Medes and Cissians against them, with orders to take them

alive, and bring them into his presence. When the Medes bore down

impetuously upon the Greeks, many of them fell; others followed to the

charge, and were not repulsed, though they suffered greatly. But they

made it evident to every one, and not least of all to the king himself,

that they were indeed many men, but few soldiers. The engagement lasted

through the day. The Medes, roughly handled, retired; and the Persians

whom the king called "Immortal," and whom Hydarnes commanded, took their

place and advanced to the attack, thinking that they indeed should

easily settle the business. But they succeeded no better than the Medic

troops, but just the same, as they fought in a narrow space, and used

shorter spears than the Greeks, and were unable to avail themselves of

their numbers. The Lacedæmonians fought memorably, showing that they

knew how to fight with men who knew not, and whenever they turned their

backs, they retreated in close order; but the barbarians seeing them

retreat, followed with a shout and clamor; then they, being overtaken,

wheeled round so as to front the barbarians and overthrew an

inconceivable number of the Persians; and then some few of the Spartans

themselves fell. So that when the Persians were unable to gain any thing

in their attempt on the pass, by attacking in troops and in every

possible manner, they retired. It is said that during these onsets of

the battle, the king, who witnessed them, thrice sprang from his throne,

being alarmed for his army. On the following day the barbarians fought

with no better success; for considering that the Greeks were few in

number, and expecting that they were covered with wounds, and would not

be able to raise their heads against them any more, they renewed the

contest. But the Greeks were marshalled in companies and according to

their several nations, and each fought in turn, except the Phocians, who

were stationed at the mountain to guard the pathway. Again the Persians

failed and retired.

While the king was in doubt what course to take, Ephialtes, son of

Eurydemus, a Malian, obtained an audience of him, expecting that he

should receive a great reward from the king, and informed him of the

path which leads over the mountain to Thermopylæ; and by that means

caused the destruction of those Greeks who were stationed there.

Afterwards, fearing the Lacedæmonians, he fled to Thessaly, and a price

was set on his head by the Pylagori, when the Amphictyons were assembled

at Pylæ. But some time after, he went down to Anticyra, and was killed

by Athenades, a Trachinian. This Athenades killed him for another

reason, which I shall mention in a subsequent part of my history;[28] he

was however rewarded none the less by the Lacedæmonians. Xerxes,

exceedingly delighted with what Ephialtes promised to perform,

immediately despatched Hydarnes with his troops from the camp about the

hour of lamp-lighting.

All night long the Persians marched, and at dawn reached the summit of

the mountain. Here, as I have already mentioned, a thousand heavy-armed

Phocians kept guard, to defend their own country, and to secure the

pathway. The whole mountain was covered with oaks; there was a perfect

calm, and as a considerable rustling took place from the leaves strewn

under foot, the Phocians sprang up and put on their arms, just as the

barbarians made their appearance. Hit by many thick-falling arrows, the

Phocians fled to the summit of the mountain, prepared to perish. But the

Persians took no further notice of the Phocians, but marched down the

mountain with all speed.

[Illustration: BRIDGE AT CORFU.]

To the Greeks at Thermopylæ, the augur Megistias, having inspected the

sacrifices, first made known the death that would befall them in the

morning; certain deserters afterwards came and brought intelligence of

the circuit the Persians were taking while it was yet night; and,

thirdly, the scouts running down from the heights, as soon as day

dawned, brought the same intelligence. It had been announced to the

Spartans, by the oracle of Apollo, when they went to consult concerning

this war, "that either Lacedæmon must be overthrown by the barbarians,

or their king perish." This answer the prophetess gave in hexameter

verses to this effect:

"Hear me, ye men of spacious Lacedæmon!

Either your glorious town must be destroyed,

By the fell hand of warriors sprung from Perseus,

Or else the confines of fair Lacedæmon

Must mourn a king of Heracleidan race,

For all the strength of lions or of bulls

Is nought to him who has the strength of Zeus;

And never shall that monarch be restrained

Until he takes your city or your king."

Xerxes poured out libations at sun-rise, waited a short time, and began

his attack about the time of full market, as he had been instructed by

Ephialtes. The Greeks with Leonidas, marching out as if for certain

death, now advanced much farther than before into the wide part of the

defile. For the fortification of the wall had protected them, on the

preceding day, in the narrow part. But now engaging outside the narrows,

great numbers of the barbarians fell. The officers of the companies from

behind, with scourges, flogged every man, constantly urging them

forward, so that many of them falling into the sea, perished, and many

more were trampled alive under foot by one another; and no regard was

paid to any that perished. The Greeks, knowing that death awaited them

at the hands of those who were going round the mountain, were desperate,

and regardless of their own lives, displayed the utmost possible valor

against the barbarians. Already were most of their javelins broken, and

they had begun to despatch the Persians with their swords. In this part

of the struggle fell Leonidas, fighting valiantly, and with him other

eminent Spartans, whose names, seeing they were deserving men, I have

ascertained; indeed I have ascertained the names of the whole three

hundred. On the side of the Persians, also, many other eminent men fell

on this occasion, amongst them two sons of Darius, Abrocomes and

Hyperanthes, fighting for the body of Leonidas; and there was a violent

struggle between the Persians and Lacedæmonians, until at last the

Greeks rescued it by their valor, and four times repulsed the enemy.

Thus the contest continued until the Greeks heard that those with

Ephialtes were approaching. Then they retreated to the narrow part of

the way, and, passing beyond the wall, came and took up their position

on the rising ground, all in a compact body, with the exception of the

Thebans: the rising ground is at the entrance where the stone lion now

stands to the memory of Leonidas. On this spot they defended themselves,

first with their swords, then with their hands and teeth, until the

barbarians overwhelmed them with missiles in front, and from above, and

on every side.

[Illustration: PLAINS OF ARGOS.]

Dieneces, a Spartan, is said to have been the bravest man. They relate

that before the engagement with the Medes, having heard a Trachinian

say, that when the barbarians let fly their arrows, they would obscure

the sun by the multitude of their shafts, so great were their numbers,

he replied, not at all alarmed: "That's good; we shall have the

pleasure, then, of fighting in the shade." In honor of the slain, who

were buried on the spot where they fell, and of those who died before,

these inscriptions have been engraved upon stones above them; the first:

"From Peloponnesus came four thousand men;

And on this spot fought with three hundred myriads."

The second was in honor of the three hundred Spartans:

"Go, stranger! tell the Lacedæmonians, here

We lie, obedient to their stern commands!"

An engraved monument was also erected to Megistias the augur, by his

friend Simonides, and was as follows:

"The monument of famed Megistias,—

Slain by the Medes what time they passed the Sperchius;

A seer, who though he knew impending fate,

Would not desert the gallant chiefs of Sparta."

Two of these three hundred, Eurytus and Aristodemus, had been dismissed

from the camp by Leonidas, and were lying at Alpeni desperately

afflicted with a disease of the eyes. But when Eurytus heard of the

circuit made by the Persians, he called for his arms and ordered his

helot to lead him to the combatants; and, while the slave in terror ran

away, his brave half-blind master rushed into the midst of the throng

and perished; but Aristodemus, failing in courage, was left behind. Now

if it had happened that Aristodemus had returned sick to Sparta, or if

both had gone home together, in my opinion the Spartans would not have

shown any anger against them. But since one of them perished, and the

other, who had only the same excuse, refused to die, they must needs get

exceedingly angry with Aristodemus. On his return to Lacedæmon he was

met with insults and infamy. Not one of the Spartans would either give

him fire or converse with him: and he was jeered and hooted at by the

boys who called him "Aristodemus the coward." However, in the battle of

Platæa he removed all the disgrace that attached to him, for he earned

the title of the bravest of the Spartans, and recklessly lost his life.

Xerxes after the massacre passed through among the dead; and having

heard that Leonidas was king and general of the Lacedæmonians, he

commanded them to cut off his head, and fix it upon a pole. It is clear

to me from many other proofs, and not least of all from this, that king

Xerxes was more highly incensed against Leonidas during his life, than

against any other man; for otherwise he would never have violated the

respect due to his dead body; since the Persians, most of all men with

whom I am acquainted, are wont to honor men who are brave in war.

[26] One of the ten thousand chosen men called Immortals, of whom we

shall hear more hereafter.

[23] Literally, "the river Peneus gaining the victory as to the name,

causes the others to be nameless."

[28] The promised account is no where given in any extant writings of

the historian.

_BOOK VIII. URANIA._

CHAPTER I.

THE INVASION OF ATTICA AND THE BATTLE OF SALAMIS.

The Greek fleet from Artemisium put in at Salamis at the request of the

Athenians, who wished to remove their children and wives out of Attica,

and consult what measures were to be taken. The Athenians caused

proclamation to be made, "that every one should save his children and

family by the best means he could." Thereupon the greatest part sent

away their families to Trœzen, some to Ægina, and others to Salamis.

They used all diligence to remove them to a place of safety, from a

desire to obey the oracle, but more particularly for the following

reason. The Athenians say that a large serpent used to live in the

temple as a guard to the Acropolis; they used to do it honor by placing

before it its monthly food, consisting of a honey-cake: this honey-cake

in former time had always been consumed, but now it remained untouched.

When the priestess made this known, the Athenians, with more readiness,

abandoned the city, since even the goddess had forsaken the Acropolis.

As soon as every thing had been deposited in a place of safety, they

sailed to the encampment. Many more ships were assembled together than

had fought at Artemisium, and from a greater number of cities. The same

admiral commanded them as at Artemisium, Eurybiades, son of Euryclides,

a Spartan, though he was not of the royal family. The Athenians,

however, furnished by far the most and the best sailing ships. The whole

number of ships besides the penteconters, amounted to three hundred and

seventy-eight.

When the leaders from the various cities met together at Salamis, they

held a council, in which Eurybiades proposed that any one who chose

should deliver his opinion, where he thought it would be most

advantageous to come to an engagement by sea, of all the places of which

they were still in possession: for Attica was already given up. Most of

the opinions of those who spoke coincided, that they should sail to the

Isthmus, and fight before Peloponnesus; alleging this reason, that if

they should be conquered by sea while they were at Salamis, they would

be besieged in the island, where no succor could reach them; but if at

the Isthmus, they might escape to their own cities.

[Illustration: ANCIENT GREEK WALLS RESTORED.]

While the commanders from Peloponnesus were debating these matters, an

Athenian arrived with intelligence, that the barbarian had entered

Attica, and was devastating the whole of it by fire. The army with

Xerxes were thus three months en route from the passage over the

Hellespont, till they arrived at Athens. They took the city, deserted of

inhabitants, but found a few of the Athenians in the temple, with the

treasurers of the temple and some poor people; who, having fortified the

Acropolis with planks and stakes, tried to keep off the invaders: they

had not withdrawn to Salamis, partly through want of means, and moreover

they thought they had found out the meaning of the oracle which the

Pythian delivered to them, that the wooden wall "should be impregnable";

imagining, that this was the refuge according to the oracle, and not the

ships. The Persians, posting themselves on the hill opposite the

Acropolis, which the Athenians call the Areopagus, wrapped tow round

their arrows, and setting fire to it, shot them at the fence. But those

Athenians who were besieged, still defended themselves, though driven to

the last extremity, and the fence had failed them; nor, when the

Pisistratidæ proposed them, would they listen to terms of capitulation;

but still defending themselves, they contrived other means of defence,

and when the barbarians approached the gates, they hurled down large

round stones; so that Xerxes was for a long time kept in perplexity, not

being able to capture them. At length, in the midst of these

difficulties, an entrance was discovered by the barbarians; for it was

necessary, according to the oracle, that all Attica, on the continent,

should be subdued by the Persians. In front of the Acropolis, but behind

the gates and where no one kept guard, nor would ever have expected that

any man would ascend, there some of them ascended near the temple of

Cecrops' daughter Aglauros. When the Athenians saw that the enemy were

in the Acropolis, some threw themselves down from the wall and perished,

and others took refuge in the recess of the temple. But the Persians who

had ascended first turned to the gates, opened them, and put the

suppliants to death: and when all were thrown prostrate, they pillaged

the temple and set fire to the whole Acropolis.

The Greeks at Salamis, when intelligence was brought them how matters

stood in Athens, were thrown into such consternation, that some of the

generals would not wait until the subject before them was decided on,

but rushed to their ships and hoisted sail, as about to hurry away; by

such of them as remained it was determined to come to an engagement

before the Isthmus. Night came on, and they, being dismissed from the

council, went on board their ships. Thereupon Mnesiphilus, an Athenian,

inquired of Themistocles, on his return to his ship, what had been

determined on by them. And being informed by him that it was resolved to

conduct the ships to the Isthmus, and to come to an engagement before

the Peloponnesus, he said, "If they remove the ships from Salamis, you

will no longer fight for any country; for they will each betake

themselves to their cities; and neither will Eurybiades nor any one else

be able to detain them, so that the fleet should not be dispersed; and

Greece will perish through want of counsel. But, if there is any

possible contrivance, go and endeavor to annul the decree, if by any

means you can induce Eurybiades to alter his determination, so as to

remain here." The suggestion pleased Themistocles exceedingly; and

without answer he went to the ship of Eurybiades, and said that he

wished to confer with him on public business. He desired him to come on

board his ship, and say what he wished. Thereupon Themistocles, seating

himself by him, repeated all that he had heard from Mnesiphilus, making

it his own, and adding much more, until he prevailed on him, by

entreaty, to leave his ship, and assemble the commanders in council. The

upshot of the matter was that Themistocles persuaded the generals in

council to remain and fight at Salamis. Day came, and at sunrise an

earthquake took place on land and at sea. They determined to pray to the

gods, and to invoke the Æacidæ as allies. For having prayed to all the

gods, they forthwith, from Salamis, invoked Ajax and Telamon; and sent a

ship to Ægina for Æacus, and the Æacidae. In the mean time, all the

admirals and captains of Xerxes' fleet advised engaging in a sea-fight,

except Artemisia, who spoke as follows: "Tell the king from me,

Mardonius, that I say this. It is right that I, sire, who proved myself

by no means a coward in the sea-fight off Eubœa, and performed

achievements not inferior to others, should declare my real opinion, and

state what I think best for your interest. Therefore I say this, abstain

from using your ships, nor risk a sea-fight; for these men are as much

superior to your men by sea, as men are to women. And why must you run a

risk by a naval engagement? Have you not possession of Athens, for the

sake of which you undertook this expedition, and have you not the rest

of Greece? They will not be able to hold out long against you; but will

soon disperse, and fly to their cities."

Xerxes was very much pleased with the opinion of Artemisia; he had

before thought her an admirable woman, but now he praised her much more.

However, he gave orders to follow the advice of the majority in this

matter, thinking that they had behaved ill at Eubœa on purpose, because

he was not present. He now prepared in person to behold them engaging by

sea.[29]

Meanwhile, those at Salamis were growing alarmed, and wondered at the

imprudence of Eurybiades; till at last their discontent broke out

openly, and a council was called, and much was said on the subject. Some

said that they ought to sail for the Peloponnesus, and hazard a battle

for that, and not stay and fight for a place already taken by the enemy;

but the Athenians, Æginetæ, and Megareans, declared that they should

stay there and defend themselves. Thereupon, Themistocles, when he saw

his opinion was overruled by the Peloponnesians, went secretly out of

the council, and despatched a man in a boat to the encampment of the

Medes instructing him what to say: his name was Sicinnus, and he was a

domestic, and preceptor to the children of Themistocles. After these

events, Themistocles got him made a Thespian, when the Thespians

augmented the number of their citizens, and gave him a competent

fortune. He, arriving in the boat, spoke as follows to the generals of

the barbarians: "The general of the Athenians has sent me, unknown to

the rest of the Greeks, (for he is in the interest of the king, and

wishes that your affairs may prosper, rather than those of the Greeks,)

to inform you that the Greeks, in great consternation, are deliberating

on flight; and you have now an opportunity of achieving the most

glorious of all enterprises, if you do not suffer them to escape. For

they do not agree among themselves, nor will they oppose you; but you

will see those who are in your interest, and those who are not, fighting

with one another." Having delivered this message to them, he immediately

departed. As these tidings appeared to them worthy of credit, they

immediately landed a considerable number of Persians on the little

island of Psyttalea, lying between Salamis and the continent; and, when

it was midnight, they got their western wing under way, drawing it in a

circle toward Salamis, and those who were stationed about Ceos and

Cynosura got under way and occupied the whole passage as far as Munychia

with their ships, so that the Greeks might have no way to escape, but,

being shut up in Salamis, might suffer punishment for the conflicts at

Artemisium; and they landed the Persians at the little island of

Psyttalea for this reason: that, when an engagement should take place,

as they expected the greater part of the men and wrecks would be driven

there, they might save the one and destroy the other. These things they

did in silence, that the enemy might not know what was going on.

I am unable to speak against the truth of oracles, when I think of the

remarkable oracle of Bacis: "When they shall bridge with ships the

sacred shore of "Diana with the golden sword," and sea-girt Cynosura,

having with mad hope destroyed beautiful Athens, then divine Vengeance

shall quench strong Presumption, son of Insolence, when thinking to

subvert all things. For bronze shall engage with bronze, and Mars shall

redden the sea with blood. Then the far-thundering son of Saturn and

benign victory shall bring a day of freedom to Greece." After such a

prediction and its fulfilment, I neither dare myself say any thing in

contradiction to oracles, nor allow others to do so.

All this night there was a great altercation between the generals at

Salamis. They did not yet know that the barbarians had surrounded them

with their ships. They supposed that they were in the same place where

they had seen them stationed during the day. While the generals were

disputing, Aristides, son of Lysimachus, crossed over from the Ægina. He

was an Athenian, but had been banished by ostracism. From what I have

heard of his manner of life, I consider him to have been the best and

most upright man in Athens. He, standing at the entrance of the council,

called Themistocles out, who was not indeed his friend, but his most

bitter enemy; yet from the greatness of the impending danger, he forgot

that, and called him, for he had already heard that those from

Peloponnesus were anxious to get the ships under way for the Isthmus.

When Themistocles came out, Aristides spoke as follows: "It is right

that we should strive, both on other occasions, and particularly on

this, which of us shall do the greatest service to our country. I assure

you, that to say little or much to the Peloponnesians about sailing from

here is a waste of breath; for I, an eye-witness, tell you, now, even if

they would, neither the Corinthians, nor Eurybiades himself, will be

able to sail away; for we are on all sides enclosed by the enemy. Go in,

and acquaint them with this." But Themistocles bade Aristides go in

himself and convey the tidings. This he did, but the generals would not

even then give credence to his report until there arrived a trireme of

Tenians that had deserted, which Panætius, son of Socimenes, commanded,

and which brought an account of the whole truth. For that action the

name of the Tenians was engraved on the tripod at Delphi, among those

who had defeated the barbarian. With this ship that came over at

Salamis, and with the Lemnian before, off Artemisium, the Grecian fleet

was made up to the full number of three hundred and eighty ships; for

before it wanted two of that number.

Day dawned, and when they had mustered the marines, Themistocles, above

all the others, harangued them most eloquently. His speech was entirely

taken up in contrasting better things with worse, exhorting them to

choose the best of all those things which depended on the nature and

condition of man. As soon as the trireme from Ægina, which had gone to

fetch the Æacidæ returned the Greeks got all their ships under way. The

barbarians immediately fell upon them. Now all the other Greeks began to

back water and make for the shore; but Aminias of Pallene, an Athenian,

being carried onward, attacked a ship; and his ship becoming entangled

with the other, and the crew not being able to clear, the rest thereupon

came to the assistance of Aminias and engaged. Thus the Athenians say

the battle commenced; but the Æginetæ affirm that the ship which went to

Ægina to fetch the Æacidæ, was the first to begin. It is also said, that

a phantom of a woman appeared to them, that she cheered them on, so that

the whole fleet of Greeks heard her, after she had first reproached them

in these words: "Dastards, how long will you back water?" Opposite the

Athenians the Phœnicians were drawn up, for they occupied the wing

toward Eleusis and westward; opposite the Lacedæmonians, the Ionians

occupied the wing toward the east and the Piræus. Of these some few

behaved ill on purpose, in compliance with the injunctions of

Themistocles. The greater part of the ships were run down at Salamis;

some being destroyed by the Athenians, others by the Æginetæ. For the

Greeks fought in good order, in line, but the barbarians were neither

properly formed nor did any thing with judgment. However they proved

themselves to be far braver on this day than off Eubœa, every one

exerting himself vigorously, and dreading Xerxes; for each thought that

he himself was observed by the king.

I am unable to say with certainty how each of the barbarians or Greeks

fought; but with respect to Artemisia, the following incident occurred,

by which she obtained still greater credit with the king. For when the

king's forces were in great confusion, the ship of Artemisia was chased

by an Attic ship, and not being able to escape, she resolved upon a

stratagem. For being pursued by the Athenian, she bore down upon a

friendly ship, manned by Calyndians, and with Damasithymus himself, king

of the Calyndians, on board; whether she had any quarrel with him while

they were at the Hellespont, I am unable to say, or whether she did it

on purpose, or whether the ship of the Calyndians happened by chance to

be in her way; however, she ran it down, and sunk it, and by good

fortune gained a double advantage to herself. For when the captain of

the Attic ship saw her bearing down on a ship of the barbarians, he

concluded Artemisia's ship to be either a Greek or one that had deserted

from the enemy and was assisting them, and so turned aside and attacked

others. Thus she escaped, and in consequence of it became still more in

favor with Xerxes. For it is said that Xerxes, looking on, observed her

ship making the attack, and that some near him said: "Sire, do you see

how well Artemisia fights; she has sunk one of the enemy's ships?"

Whereupon he asked if it was in truth the exploit of Artemisia; they

answered "that they knew the ensign of her ship perfectly well." But

they thought that it was an enemy that was sunk; for no one of the crew

of the Calyndian ship lived to tell the tale and accuse her. And it is

related that Xerxes exclaimed: "My men have become women, and my women

men."

In this battle perished the admiral, Ariabignes, son of Darius, and

brother of Xerxes, and many other illustrious men of the Persians and

Medes, and the other allies; but only a very few of the Greeks: for as

they knew how to swim, they whose ships were destroyed, and who did not

perish in actual conflict, swam safe to Salamis; whereas, many of the

barbarians, not knowing how to swim, perished in the sea. When the

foremost ships were put to flight, then the greatest number were

destroyed; for those who were stationed behind, endeavoring to pass on

with their ships to the front, that they, too, might give the king some

proof of their courage, fell foul of their own flying ships. The

following event also occurred in this confusion. Some Phœnicians, whose

ships were destroyed, went to the king and accused the Ionians of

destroying their ships and betraying him. It, however, turned out that

the Ionian captains were not put to death, but that those Phœnicians who

accused them, received the following reward. For while they were yet

speaking, a Samothracian ship bore down on an Athenian ship and sunk it.

Just then an Æginetan ship, coming up, sunk the ship of the

Samothracians. But the Samothracians being javelin-men, by hurling their

javelins, drove the marines from the ship that had sunk them, and

boarded and got possession of it. This action saved the Ionians: for

when Xerxes saw them perform so great an exploit, he turned round upon

the Phœnicians, and ordered their heads to be struck off, that they who

had proved themselves cowards, might no more accuse those who were

braver.

The barbarians turned to flight, and sailing away towards Phalerus, the

Æginetæ waylaid them in the strait, and performed actions worthy of

record. For the Athenians in the rout ran down both those ships that

resisted and those that fled; and the Æginetæ, those that sailed away

from the battle: so that when any escaped the Athenians they fell into

the hands of the Æginetæ.

In this engagement the Æginetæ obtained the greatest renown; and next,

the Athenians. Aristides, of whom I made mention a little before as a

most upright man, in this confusion that took place about Salamis, took

with him a considerable number of heavy-armed men, who were stationed

along the shore of the Salaminian territory and were Athenians by race,

landed them on the island of Psyttalea, and put to the sword all the

Persians who were on that little island.

CHAPTER II.

XERXES' RETREAT.

When the sea-fight was ended, the Greeks hauled on shore at Salamis all

the wrecks that still happened to be there and held themselves ready for

another battle, expecting the king would still make use of the ships

that survived. But a west wind carrying away many of the wrecks, drove

them on the shore of Attica, which is called Colias, so as to fulfil

both all the other oracles delivered by Bacis and Musæus concerning this

battle, and also that relating to the wrecks which were drifted on this

shore, which many years before had been delivered by Lysistratus, an

Athenian augur, but had not been understood by any of the Greeks: "The

Colian women shall broil their meat with oars."

When Xerxes saw the defeat he had sustained he was afraid that some of

the Ionians might suggest to the Greeks, or might themselves resolve to

sail to the Hellespont, for the purpose of breaking up the bridges, and

shut him up in Europe. So he planned immediate flight. But wishing that

his intention should not be known either to the Greeks or his own

people, he pretended to throw a mound across to Salamis. He fastened

together Phœnician merchantmen, that they might serve instead of a raft

and a wall, and made preparation for war, as if about to fight another

battle at sea. Every body who saw him thus occupied, was firmly

convinced that he had seriously determined to stay and continue the war,

except Mardonius, who was well acquainted with his design. At the same

time Xerxes despatched a messenger to the Persians, to inform them of

the misfortune that had befallen him. There is nothing mortal that

reaches its destination more rapidly than these couriers of the

Persians. They say that as many days as are occupied in the whole

journey, so many horses and men are posted at regular intervals; neither

snow nor rain, nor heat, nor night, prevents them from performing their

appointed stage as quickly as possible. The first courier delivers his

orders to the second, the second to the third, and so it passes

throughout, being delivered from one to the other, just like the

torch-bearing among the Greeks, which they perform in honor of Vulcan.

The first message that reached Susa, with the news that Xerxes was in

possession of Athens, caused so great joy among the Persians who had

been left behind, that they strewed all the roads with myrtle, burnt

perfumes, and gave themselves up to sacrifices and festivity. But the

arrival of the second messenger threw them into such consternation, that

they all rent their garments, and uttered unbounded shouts and

lamentations, laying the blame on Mardonius, not so much grieved for the

ships as anxious for Xerxes himself. And this the Persians continued to

do until Xerxes himself arrived home.

[Illustration: CELES RIDDEN BY A CUPID.]

Mardonius, seeing Xerxes much afflicted by the defeat at Salamis, and

suspecting he was meditating a retreat, thus addressed the king: "Sire,

do not think you have suffered any great loss in consequence of what has

happened; for the contest with us does not depend on wood alone, but on

men and horses. Be not discouraged; for the Greeks have no means of

escape from rendering an account of what they have done now and

formerly, and from becoming your slaves. If you have resolved not to

stay here, return to Susa, and take with you the greatest part of the

army; but give me three hundred thousand picked men and I will deliver

Greece to you reduced to slavery." Xerxes, delighted and relieved,

granted Mardonius his request. As to Xerxes himself, if all the men and

women of the world had advised him to stay, in my opinion, he would not

have yielded, so great was his terror. Leaving Mardonius in Thessaly, he

marched in all haste to the Hellespont; and arrived at the place of

crossing in forty-five days, bringing back no part of his army, so to

speak. Wherever, and among whatever nation, they happened to be

marching, they seized and consumed their corn; but if they found no

fruit, overcome by hunger, they ate up the herbage as it sprung from the

ground, and from sheer hunger stripped off the bark of trees, and

gathered leaves, both of wild and cultivated plants. But a pestilence

and dysentery falling on the army, destroyed them on their march. Such

of them as were sick, Xerxes left behind, ordering the cities through

which he happened to be passing, to take care of and feed them: some in

Thessaly, others at Siris of Pæonia, and in Macedonia. It was here he

had left the sacred chariot of Jupiter, when he marched against Greece,

but he did not receive it back, as he returned; for the Pæonians had

given it to the Thracians, and when Xerxes demanded it back, said that

the mares had been stolen, as they were feeding, by the upper Thracians,

who dwell round the sources of the Strymon. There the king of the

Bisaltæ and of the Crestonian territory, a Thracian, perpetrated a most

unnatural deed; he declared that he would not willingly be a slave to

Xerxes, but he went up to the top of Mount Rhodope, and enjoined his

sons not to join the expedition against Greece. They, however,

disregarded his prohibition, from a desire to see the war, and served in

the army with the Persian: but when they all returned safe, six in

number, their father had their eyes put out for this disobedience.

The Persians, in great haste crossed over the Hellespont to Abydos in

their ships; for they found the rafts no longer stretched across, but

broken up by a storm. While detained there, they got more food than on

their march, and having filled themselves immoderately, and drunk of

different water, a great part of the army that survived, died; the rest

with Xerxes reached Sardis. Another account is also given, that when

Xerxes in his retreat from Athens arrived at Eïon on the Strymon, from

there he no longer continued his journey by land, but committed the army

to Hydarnes to conduct to the Hellespont, and he himself went on board a

Phœnician ship to pass over to Asia. During his voyage a violent and

tempestuous wind from the Strymon overtook him; the storm increased in

violence, and the ship was overloaded, many of the Persians having

accompanied Xerxes. Then the king, becoming alarmed, calling aloud, and

asked the pilot if there was any hope of safety for them; and he said:

"There is none, sire, unless we get rid of some of this crowd of

passengers." Xerxes, hearing this answer, said: "O Persians, now let

some among you show his regard for the king, for on you my safety seems

to depend." Many having done homage, leapt into the sea, and the ship,

being lighted, thus got safe to Asia. It is added, that Xerxes,

immediately after he landed, presented the pilot with a golden crown,

because he had saved the king's life; but ordered his head to be struck

off, because he had occasioned the loss of many Persians. This story

appears to me not at all deserving of credit, for if such a speech had

been made by the pilot to Xerxes, I should not find one opinion in ten

thousand to deny that the king would have sent down into the hold of the

ship those who were on deck, since they were Persians, and Persians of

high rank, and would have thrown into the sea a number of Phœnicians,

equal to that of the Persians.

When the division of the booty, after the battle of Salamis was

completed, the Greeks sailed to the Isthmus, for the purpose of

conferring the palm of valor upon him among the Greeks who had proved

himself most deserving throughout the war. The generals distributed the

ballots at the altar of Neptune, selecting the first and second out of

all; thereupon every one gave his vote for himself, each thinking

himself the most valiant; but with respect to the second place, the

majority concurred in selecting Themistocles. So each had but one vote,

for first place, but Themistocles had a great majority for the second

honor. Though the Greeks, out of envy, would not determine this matter,

but returned to their several countries without coming to a decision,

yet Themistocles was applauded and extolled throughout all Greece, as

being by far the wisest man of the Greeks. Because he was not honored by

those who fought at Salamis, although victorious, he immediately

afterward went to Lacedæmon, hoping to be honored there. The

Lacedæmonians received him nobly, and paid him the greatest honors. They

gave the prize of valor to Eurybiades, a crown of olive; and of wisdom

and dexterity to Themistocles, also a crown of olive. And they presented

him with the most magnificent chariot in Sparta; praising him highly,

and on his departure, three hundred chosen Spartans, called knights,

escorted him as far as the Tegean boundaries. He is the only man that we

know of whom the Spartans ever escorted on his journey.

Mardonius' first movement was to send Alexander, son of Amyntas, a

Macedonian, as an ambassador to Athens; as well because the Persians

were related to him as because he had been informed that Alexander was a

friend and benefactor of the Athenians. For in this way he thought he

should best be able to gain over the Athenians, having heard that they

were a numerous and valiant people; and besides, he knew that the

Athenians had been the principal cause of the late disaster of the

Persians at sea. If these were won over, he hoped that he should easily

become master at sea, which indeed would have been the case; and on land

he imagined that he was much superior: thus he calculated that his power

would get the upper hand of the Greeks. But the Athenians gave the

following answer to Alexander: "We ourselves are aware that the power of

the Medes is far greater than ours; so that there is no need to insult

us with that. But do not you attempt to persuade us to come to terms

with the barbarian, for we will not. Go, and tell Mardonius that the

Athenians say: 'So long as the sun shall continue in the same course as

now, we will never make terms with Xerxes; but we will go out to oppose

him, trusting in the gods, who fight for us, and in the heroes, whose

temples and images he has burned. Know, therefore, if you did not know

it before, that so long as one Athenian is left alive, the fight shall

be continued.'"

[29] Seated on the mountain side upon a magnificent throne of ivory

and gold, as others relate.

_BOOK IX. CALLIOPE._

CHAPTER I.

THE WAR CONTINUED; BATTLE OF PLATÆA AND SIEGE OF THEBES.

When Alexander returned and made known to Mardonius the answer of the

Athenians, he set out from Thessaly, and led his army in haste against

Athens; and wherever he arrived from time to time, he joined the people

to his own forces. So far were the leaders of Thessaly from repenting of

what had been before done, that they urged on the Persian much more: and

Thorax of Larissa, who had assisted in escorting Xerxes in his flight,

now openly gave Mardonius a passage into Greece. When the army on its

march arrived among the Bœotians, the Thebans endeavored to restrain

Mardonius from advancing farther, assuring him that to take up his

station there would be equivalent to subduing the whole of Greece

without a battle. For if the Greeks should continue firmly united, as

they had done before, it would be difficult even for all mankind to

overcome them. "But," they continued, "if you do what we advise, you

will without difficulty frustrate all their plans. Send money to the

most powerful men in the cities; split Greece into parties, and then,

with the assistance of those who side with you, you may easily subdue

those who are not in your interest." But he was infatuated with a

vehement desire to taking Athens a second time, and fondly hoped, by

signal-fires across the islands, to make known to the king while he was

at Sardis, that he was in possession of Athens. When he arrived in

Attica, he did not find the Athenians there; but was informed that most

of them were at Salamis on board their ships. So he took the deserted

city ten months after its capture by the king.

But Mardonius was by no means desirous to stay longer in Attica. He

lingered awhile there to see what the Athenians would do, but neither

ravaged nor injured the Attic territory, being in expectation all along

that they would come to terms. But when he could not persuade them he

withdrew, before the Spartans, under Pausanias, could reach the Isthmus,

having first set fire to Athens, and if any part of the walls, or

houses, or temples happened to be standing, these he threw down and laid

all in ruins. He marched out for the reason that the Attic country was

not adapted for cavalry; and if he should be conquered in an engagement,

there was no way to escape except through a narrow pass, so that a very

small number of men could intercept them. He determined therefore to

retire to Thebes, and to fight near a friendly city, and in a country

adapted for cavalry.

[Illustration: BŒOTIA.]

The Lacedæmonians arrived at the Isthmus and went into camp. When the

rest of the Peloponnesians, who favored the better cause, saw the

Spartans marching out, they thought it would be a disgrace to absent

themselves from the expedition of the Lacedæmonians. Accordingly, when

the victims proved favorable, they all marched out from the Isthmus and

advanced to Eleusis. The Athenians crossed over from Salamis, and joined

them there. At Erythræ in Bœotia, they learnt that the barbarians were

encamped on the Asopus, at which they consulted together, and formed

opposite, at the foot of Mount Cithæron. When the Greeks did not come

down to the plain, Mardonius sent against them all his cavalry, under

command of Masistius, a man highly esteemed among the Persians. He was

mounted on a Nisæan horse, that had a golden bit, and was otherwise

gorgeously caparisoned. When the cavalry rode up to the Greeks, they

charged them in squadrons, and called them women. By chance the

Megarians happened to be stationed in that part which was most exposed,

and there the cavalry chiefly made their attack. The Megarians, being

hard pressed, sent a herald to the Greek generals with this message:

"The Megarians say, We, O confederates, are not able alone to sustain

the Persian cavalry. So far we have held out against them by our

constancy and courage, though hard pressed; but now, unless you will

send some others to relieve us, we must abandon our post." Pausanias

immediately called for volunteers to go to that position, and relieve

the Megarians. When all the others refused, three hundred chosen men of

the Athenians undertook to do it, whom Olympiodorus, son of Lampon,

commanded. After a short but spirited battle, as the cavalry were

charging, the horse of Masistius, being in advance of the others, was

wounded in the flank by an arrow, and in pain, reared and threw

Masistius. As he fell, the Athenians immediately seized his horse and

attacked him. At first they were unable to kill Masistius, he was so

thoroughly armed. Underneath he had a golden cuirass covered with

scales, and over the cuirass a purple cloak. By striking against the

cuirass they did nothing; until one of them, perceiving what was the

matter, pierced him in the eye. So he fell and died. The whole Persian

army, and Mardonius most of all, mourned the loss of Masistius. They cut

off their own hair and that of their horses and beasts of burden, and

gave themselves up to unbounded lamentations. The sound reached over all

Bœotia, of mourning for the loss of a man who, next to Mardonius, was

most esteemed by the Persians and the king.

The Greeks placed the body on a carriage, and carried it along the

line—an object worthy of admiration, on account of its stature and

beauty—and the men, leaving their ranks, came out to view Masistius.

After this, they determined to go down toward Platæa, for the Platæan

territory appeared to be much more convenient for them to encamp in than

the Erythræan, as it was better supplied with water. Over the foot of

Mount Cithæron near Hysiæ, into the Platæan territory they marched, and

formed in line, nation by nation, near the fountain of Gargaphia, and

the precinct of the hero Androcrates, on slight elevations and the level

plain. The whole Grecian army assembled at Platæa, reckoning heavy-armed

and light-armed fighting men, amounted to one hundred and ten thousand.

When the barbarians, with Mardonius, had ceased to mourn for Masistius,

they also marched to the Asopus, which flows by Platæa, and on their

arrival were drawn up by Mardonius. Of barbarians there were three

hundred thousand, as has been already shown; but of Greeks who were

allies of Mardonius no one knows the number, for they were not reckoned

up; but, to make a guess, I conjecture that they were assembled to the

number of fifty thousand. These were infantry; the cavalry were

marshalled apart.

On the second day, both sides offered sacrifices. For the Greeks,

Tisamenus, son of Antiochus, was the person who sacrificed, for he

accompanied this army as diviner. The sacrifices were favorable to the

Greeks, if they stood on the defensive; but if they crossed the Asopus,

and began the battle, not so.

[Illustration: COAT OF MAIL.]

To Mardonius, who was very desirous to begin the battle, the sacrifices

were not propitious; but to him also, if he stood on the defensive, they

were favorable: for he too adopted the Greek sacrifices, having for his

diviner Hegesistratus, an Elean, and the most renowned of the Telliadæ.

This man, before these events, the Spartans had taken and bound for

death, because they had suffered many atrocious things from him. In this

sad condition, as being in peril for his life, and having to suffer many

tortures before death, he performed a deed beyond belief. For as he was

confined in stocks bound with iron, he got possession of a knife, which

had by some means been carried in, and immediately cut off the broad

part of his foot—the most resolute deed I ever heard of. Then, as he was

guarded by sentinels, he dug a hole through the wall and escaped to

Tegea, travelling by night, and by day hiding himself in the woods and

tarrying there. Thus, though the Lacedæmonians searched for him with

their whole population, on the third night he arrived at Tegea; but they

were struck with great amazement at his daring, when they saw half his

foot lying on the ground, and were not able to find him. In time, cured

of his wounds, he procured a wooden foot, and became an avowed enemy to

the Lacedæmonians. However, at last his hatred conceived against the

Lacedæmonians did not benefit him; for he was taken by them when acting

as diviner at Zacynthus, and put to death. The death of Hegesistratus

took place after the battle of Platæa: but at that time, on the Asopus,

he was hired by Mardonius for no small sum to sacrifice, and was very

zealous, both from hatred to the Lacedæmonians and from a love of gain.

Meantime, Timagenides, a Theban, advised Mardonius to guard the passes

of Mount Cithæron; saying, that the Greeks were continually pouring in

every day, and that he would intercept great numbers. Eight days had

already elapsed since they had been posted opposite each other; but

Mardonius thought the suggestion good, and as soon as it was night, sent

some cavalry to the passes of Cithæron, that lead to Platæa, which the

Bœotians call The Three Heads; but the Athenians, The Heads of Oak. The

horsemen that were sent did not arrive in vain; for issuing on the

plain, they took five hundred beasts carrying provisions from

Peloponnesus to the army, with the men who attended the beasts of

burden. The Persians not only took the booty, but killed without mercy,

sparing neither beast nor man. Two more days passed, neither being

willing to begin the battle; but when the eleventh day after the two

armies had been encamped opposite each other in Platæa was almost gone,

and the night was far advanced, and silence appeared to prevail

throughout the camps, Alexander, son of Amyntas, who was general and

king of the Macedonians, rode up on horseback to the sentries of the

Athenians, and desired to confer with their generals. Most of the

sentries remained at their posts, while some ran to the generals, and

told them, "that a man had come on horseback from the camp of the Medes,

who uttered not a word more, but, naming the generals, said he wished to

confer with them." They immediately repaired to the out-posts, and

Alexander addressed them as follows: "O Athenians, I leave these words

with you as a deposit, entreating you to keep them secret, and not tell

them to any other than Pausanias, lest you should ruin me. I should not

utter them, were I not extremely concerned for the safety of all Greece;

for I am myself a Greek by origin, and would by no means wish to see

Greece enslaved instead of free. I tell you, then, that the victims have

not been favorable to Mardonius and his army, or else you would have

fought long ago; but now, he has determined to dismiss the victims, and

to come to an engagement at dawn of day; fearing, as I conjecture, that

you may assemble in greater numbers. Therefore be ready. But if

Mardonius should defer the engagement, and not undertake it, persevere

remaining where you are, for in a few days provisions will fail him. And

if this war should terminate according to your wishes, it is right that

you should bear it in mind to effect my freedom, who on behalf of the

Greeks have undertaken so hazardous a task, as to acquaint you with the

intention of Mardonius, in order that the barbarians may not fall upon

you unexpectedly. I am Alexander the Macedonian." Thus having spoken, he

rode back to the camp and his own station.

[Illustration: THE FISHERMAN.]

The generals of the Athenians went to the right wing, and told Pausanias

what they had heard from Alexander; but as the army was deprived of

water and harassed by the cavalry of Mardonius, they remained to

deliberate on these and other matters. They had no longer any

provisions, and their attendants, who had been despatched to the

Peloponnesus to get provisions, were shut out by the cavalry, and unable

to reach the camp.

On consultation the generals of the allies resolved, if the Persians

should defer making the attack on that day, to remove to the island of

Oëroë, ten stades distant from the Asopus, on which they were then

encamped. This is an island in the midst of the continent. For the

river, dividing higher up, flows down to the plain from Mount Cithæron,

having its streams about three stades separate from each other, and

united together below. To this place they determined to remove, that

they might have an abundant supply of water, and the cavalry might not

harass them, as when they were directly opposite. So, in the night, at

the hour agreed upon, they fled from the cavalry toward the city of the

Platæans until they arrived at the temple of Juno, which stands before

the city of the Platæans, twenty stades distant from the fountain of

Gargaphia. They then encamped round the Heræum and stood to their arms

before the sacred precinct.

When Mardonius was informed that the Greeks had withdrawn under cover of

night, and saw the place deserted, he summoned Thorax, of Larissa, and

said: "O son of Aleuas, what will you say now, when you see this ground

deserted? For you, their neighbor, said that the Lacedæmonians never

fled from battle, but were the first of men in matters of war; but now

we all see that they have fled away during the past night, in terror of

us, who are truly the most valiant in the world." Then without more ado

he led the Persians at full speed, crossing the Asopus in the track of

the Greeks, as if they had betaken themselves to flight. He directed his

course only against the Lacedæmonians and Tegeans; for on account of the

hills he did not espy the Athenians, who had turned into the plain. The

rest of the commanders of the barbarians' brigades, seeing the Persians

advancing to pursue the Greeks, all immediately took up their standards,

and pursued, each as quick as he could, without observing either rank or

order; thus they advanced with a shout and in a throng, as if they were

about to overwhelm the Greeks.

The Persians made a fence with their osier-shields, and let fly their

arrows so incessantly that the Spartans being hard pressed, and the

victims continuing unfavorable, Pausanias looked toward the temple of

Juno of the Platæans, and invoked the goddess, praying that they might

not be disappointed of their hopes.

[Illustration: JUNO.]

While he was yet making this invocation, the Tegeans, starting first,

advanced against the barbarians; and immediately after the prayer of

Pausanias, the victims became favorable to the Lacedæmonians. Then they

advanced against the Persians, who withstood them, laying aside their

bows. First of all a battle took place about the fence of bucklers; and

when that was thrown down, a long, obstinate fight ensued near the

temple of Ceres, till at last they came to close conflict, when the

barbarians laid hold of the Spartan spears and broke them. Indeed, in

courage and strength, the Persians were not inferior, but were lightly

armed, ignorant of military discipline, and not equal to their

adversaries in skill. They rushed forward upon the Spartans, only to

perish. In that part where Mardonius happened to be, fighting upon a

white horse, at the head of a thousand chosen men, the best of the

Persians, there they pressed their adversaries most vigorously. For as

long as Mardonius survived, they held out, defended themselves, and

overthrew many of the Lacedæmonians; but when Mardonius had died, and

the troops stationed round him, which were the strongest, had fallen,

then the rest turned to flight, and gave way to the Lacedæmonians. Their

dress, too, was particularly disadvantageous to them, being destitute of

defensive armor. Here satisfaction for the death of Leonidas, according

to the oracle, was paid to the Spartans by Mardonius; and Pausanias

obtained the most signal victory we have ever heard of. Mardonius died

by the hand of Aïmnestus, a man of distinction at Sparta, who, some time

after the Medic affairs, at the head of three hundred men, engaged at

Stenyclerus with all the Messenians, and he himself perished and his

three hundred. When the Persians at Platæa were put to flight by the

Lacedæmonians, they fled in disorder to their own camp, and to the

wooden fortification which they had made in the Theban territory. It is

a wonder to me that, when they fought near the grove of Ceres, not one

of the barbarians was seen to enter into the sacred enclosure, or to die

in it, but most fell round the precinct in unconsecrated ground. I am of

opinion, if it is allowable to form an opinion concerning divine things,

that the goddess would not receive them because they had burnt her royal

temple at Eleusis.

When the Persians and the rest of the throng arrived in their flight at

the wooden wall, they mounted the towers before the Lacedæmonians came

up, and defended the wall in the best way they could; so that when the

Lacedæmonians arrived, a vigorous battle took place before the walls. So

long as the Athenians were absent, the barbarians defended themselves,

and had much the advantage over the Lacedæmonians, as they were not

skilled in attacking fortifications; but when the Athenians came, then a

vehement fight at the walls took place, and continued for a long time.

But at length the Athenians, by their valor and pluck, surmounted the

wall, and made a breach; there at length the Greeks poured in. The

Tegeans entered first, and plundered the tent of Mardonius, and among

other things took away the manger for his horse, all of bronze, and well

worth seeing. This manger of Mardonius the Tegeans placed in the temple

of the Alean Minerva; but all the other things they took they carried to

the same place as the rest of the Greeks. The barbarians no longer kept

in close order, nor did any one think of valor; but they were in a state

of consternation, as so many myriads of men were enclosed within so

small a space; and the Greeks had such an easy opportunity of

slaughtering them, that of an army of three hundred thousand men, except

forty thousand with whom Artabazus fled, not three thousand survived. Of

Lacedæmonians from Sparta, all that died in the engagement were

ninety-one; of Tegeans, sixteen; and of Athenians, fifty-two.

[Illustration: ELEGANT VASES AND AMPHORÆ.]

Pausanias made proclamation that no one should touch the booty, and

commanded the helots to bring together all the treasures. Dispersing

themselves through the camp, they found tents decked with gold and

silver, and couches gilt and plated, and golden bowls, and cups, and

other drinking vessels; they also found sacks on the waggons, in which

were discovered gold and silver cauldrons: and from the bodies that lay

dead they stripped bracelets, necklaces, and scimetars of gold; but no

account at all was taken of the variegated apparel. Of this the helots

stole a great deal and sold it to the Æginetæ, so that the great wealth

of the Æginetæ here had its beginning, for they purchased gold from the

helots as if it had been bronze. They collected the treasures together,

and took from them a tithe for the god at Delphi, from which the golden

tripod was dedicated, which stands on the three-headed bronze serpent,

close to the altar; they also took a tithe for the god at Olympia, from

which they dedicated the bronze Jupiter, ten cubits high; and a tithe to

the god at the Isthmus, from which was made the bronze Neptune, seven

cubits high. They divided the rest, and each took the share he was

entitled to, of the gold, silver, and other treasures, and beasts of

burden. Now what choice treasures were given those others who most

distinguished themselves at Platæa, is mentioned by no one. But for

Pausanias, ten of every thing was selected and given him—slaves, horses,

talents, camels, and all other treasures in like manner. It is said also

that when Xerxes fled from Greece, he left all his own equipage to

Mardonius; Pausanias, therefore, seeing Mardonius' equipage furnished

with gold, silver, and various-colored hangings, ordered the bakers and

cooks to prepare a supper in the same manner as for Mardonius: and,

astonished at the profusion set before him of gold and silver couches

handsomely carved, and gold and silver tables, and magnificent

preparations for the supper, he in derision ordered his own attendants

to prepare a Laconian supper by the side of it, and when the repast was

spread, the difference was so ridiculous that he laughed, and sent for

the generals of the Greeks and said: "Men of Greece, I have called you

together to show you the folly of the leader of the Medes, who left such

sumptuous fare as this, to come to us, who have such poor fare, to take

it from us." A considerable time after these events, many of the

Platæans found chests of gold and silver, and other precious things. And

still later was discovered a skull without any seam, consisting of one

bone, and an upper jaw which had teeth growing in a piece, all in one

bone, both the front teeth and the grinders; and there was likewise

discovered the skeleton of a man five cubits high.

When the Greeks had buried their dead in Platæa, they immediately

determined, on consultation, to march against Thebes, and to demand the

surrender of those who had sided with the Medes, amongst the first of

them Timegenides and Attaginus, who were the chief leaders; and, if they

should not give them up, they resolved not to depart from the city

before they had taken it. On the eleventh day after the engagement, they

arrived and besieged the Thebans, requiring them to give up the men;

and, receiving "No" for an answer, they ravaged the country, and

attacked the walls. As they did not cease damaging them, on the

twentieth day Timegenides spoke thus to the Thebans: "Men of Thebes,

since the Greeks have so resolved that they will not give over besieging

us until either they have taken Thebes, or you have delivered us up to

them, let not the Bœotian territory suffer any more on our account. But

if, being desirous of money, they demand us as a pretence, let us give

them money from the public treasury; for we sided with the Mede by

general consent, and not of ourselves alone. If, however, they carry on

the siege really because they want us, we will present ourselves before

them to plead our cause." He appeared to speak well and to the purpose;

and the Thebans immediately sent a herald to Pausanias, expressing their

willingness to surrender the men. When they had agreed on these terms,

Attaginus escaped from the city, and his sons, who were brought before

him, Pausanias acquitted from the charge, saying that boys could have no

part in the guilt of siding with the Mede. As to the others whom the

Thebans delivered up, they thought that they should be admitted to plead

their cause, and moreover trusted to repel the charge by bribery; but

he, as soon as he had them in his power, suspecting this very thing,

dismissed the whole army of the allies, and, conducting the men to

Corinth, put them to death.

CHAPTER II.

THE BATTLE OF MYCALE.

On the same day on which the defeat at Platæa occurred, another happened

to take place at Mycale in Ionia. For while the Greeks were stationed at

Delos, there came to them as ambassadors from Samos, Lampon,

Athenagoras, and Hegesistratus, being sent by the Samians, unknown to

the Persians. When they came to the generals, Hegesistratus urged that

"if only the Ionians should see them, they would revolt from the

Persians, and that the barbarians would not withstand them; or, if they

should withstand them, the Greeks would not find any other such booty."

Invoking, too, their common gods, he besought them to deliver Grecian

men from servitude, and to repel the barbarian; and he said, "that this

would be easy for them to do, for their ships sailed badly, and were not

fit to fight with them; and, if they suspected at all that they were

leading them on deceitfully, they were themselves ready to go on board

their ships as hostages." The Samian stranger was so earnest in his

entreaties, that Leotychides asked: "O Samian friend, what is your

name?" "Hegesistratus," he answered; upon which, interrupting the

rest of his discourse, Leotychides exclaimed: "I accept the

"Hegesistratus,"[30] my Samian friend; only do you take care that before

you sail away both you yourself and those who are with you, pledge your

faith that the Samians will be zealous allies to us." The Samians

immediately pledged their faith and made oath of confederacy with the

Greeks. The others sailed home, but he ordered Hegesistratus to sail

with the fleet, regarding his name as an omen. The Greeks tarried that

day, and on the next sacrificed auspiciously, Deiphonus, son of Evenius,

of Apollonia in the Ionian gulf, acting as diviner.

The following incident befel his father, Evenius. There are in this

Apollonia sheep sacred to the sun, which by day feed near the river that

flows from Mount Lacmon through the Apollonian territory into the sea,

near the port of Oricus; but by night, chosen men, the most eminent of

the citizens for wealth and birth, keep watch over them, each for a

year: for the Apollonians set a high value upon these sheep, in

consequence of some oracle. They are folded in a cavern at a distance

from the city. There, once on a time, Evenius, being chosen, kept watch,

and one night when he had fallen asleep during his watch, wolves entered

the cave, and destroyed about sixty of the sheep. When he discovered

what had happened, he mentioned it to no one, purposing to buy others,

and put them in their place. This occurrence, however, did not escape

the notice of the Apollonians; and as soon as they discovered it, they

brought him to trial, and gave sentence that, for having fallen asleep

during his watch, he should be deprived of sight. But after they had

blinded Evenius, from that time forward neither did their sheep

multiply, nor did the land yield its usual fruit. An admonition was

given them at Dodona and Delphi, when they inquired of the prophets the

cause of the present calamities "that they had unjustly deprived

Evenius, the keeper of the sacred sheep, of his sight; for they

themselves had sent the wolves, and would not cease avenging him, until

the people should give such satisfaction for what they had done, as he

himself should choose, and think sufficient: then, the gods themselves

would give such a present to Evenius, that most men would pronounce him

happy, from possessing it." The Apollonians, keeping this answer secret,

deputed some of their citizens to negociate the matter with Evenius. One

day when he was seated on a bench, they went and sat down by him, and

conversed on different subjects, till at length they began to

commiserate his misfortune, and leading him artfully on, they asked,

"what reparation he would choose, if the Apollonians were willing to

give him satisfaction for what they had done." Not having heard of the

oracle he made this choice, "if any one would give him the lands of

certain citizens," naming those who he knew had the two best estates in

Apollonia, "and besides these a house," which he knew was the handsomest

in the city, he said, "he would thenceforth forego his anger, and this

reparation would content him." Immediately taking him up they said, "the

Apollonians make you this reparation for the loss of your eyes, in

obedience to an oracle they have received." He thereupon was very

indignant, on hearing the whole truth, for he had been deceived; but the

Apollonians bought the property from the owners, and gave him what he

had chosen, and immediately the gift of divination was implanted in him,

so that he became very celebrated.

Deiphonus, the son of this Evenius, was brought by the Corinthians to

officiate as diviner to the army.

The Greeks at length determined to sail to the continent: having

therefore prepared boarding-ladders, and all other things that were

necessary for a sea-fight, they sailed to Mycale. No one was seen near

the camp, ready to meet them, but they beheld the ships drawn up within

the fortification, and a numerous land-force disposed along the beach,

thereupon Leotychides, advancing first in a ship, and nearing the beach

as closely as possible, made proclamation by a herald to the Ionians,

saying: "Men of Ionia, as many of you as hear me, attend to what I say;

for the Persians will understand nothing of the advice I give you. When

we engage, it behooves every one first of all to remember Liberty; and

next the watch-word, Hebe; and let him who does not hear this, learn it

from those who do hear." The meaning of this proceeding was the same as

that of Themistocles at Artemisium; for either these words, being

concealed from the barbarians, would induce the Ionians to revolt, or,

if they should be reported to the barbarians, would make them

distrustful of the Greeks. Then the Greeks put their ships to shore,

landed on the beach, and drew up in order of battle. But when the

Persians saw them preparing for action, and knew that they had

admonished the Ionians, they suspected that the Samians favored the

Greeks, and took away their arms.

Then the Greeks advanced toward the barbarians; and a rumor flew through

the whole army that a herald's staff was seen lying on the beach and

that the Greeks had fought and conquered the army of Mardonius in

Bœotia. Thus the interposition of heaven is manifest by many plain

signs; since on this same day on which the defeat at Platæa took place,

and when that at Mycale was just about to happen, a rumor reached the

Greeks in this latter place; so that the army was inspired with much

greater courage, and was more eager to meet danger.

The Athenians, and those who were drawn up next to them, forming about

half the army, had to advance along the shore over level ground; but the

Lacedæmonians and their associates, along a ravine and some hills. So

that whilst the Lacedæmonians were making a circuit, those in the other

wing were already engaged. Now, so long as the bucklers of the Persians

remained standing, they defended themselves strenuously, and had not the

worst of the battle; but when the Athenians and their comrades mutually

encouraged one another, in order that the victory might belong to them,

and not to the Lacedæmonians, they flew with such vigor into the battle,

that the face of affairs was immediately changed. They broke through the

bucklers and fell in a body upon the Persians. They sustained the attack

and defended themselves for a time but at last fled to the

fortification. The Athenians, Corinthians, Sicyonians, and Trœzenians,

drawn up in order together, following close upon them, rushed into the

fortification at the same time. When the fortification was taken, the

barbarians no longer thought of resisting, but all except the Persians

betook themselves to flight; they, in small detachments, fought with the

Greeks who were continually rushing within the fortification. And of the

Persian generals, two made their escape, and two died. Artayntes and

Ithramitres, commanders of the naval forces escaped; but Mardontes, and

Tigranes, generals of the land army, died fighting. While the Persians

were still fighting, the Lacedæmonians came up, and assisted in

accomplishing the rest. Of the Greeks themselves many fell on this

occasion, especially the Sicyonians, and their general Perilaus. The

Samians, who were in the camp of the Medes and had been deprived of

their arms, as soon as they saw the battle turning, did all they could,

wishing to help the Greeks; and the rest of the Ionians, as the Samians

led the way, fled from the Persians and attacked the barbarians. The

Milesians had been appointed to guard the passes for the Persians so

that in the event of failure they might have guides to conduct them to

the heights of Mycale. They, however, did every thing contrary to what

was ordered; guiding them in their flight by other ways which led to the

enemy, and at last themselves assisted in slaying them. Thus Ionia

revolted a second time from the Persians. In this battle of the Greeks,

the Athenians most distinguished themselves. When they had killed most

of the barbarians, some fighting and others flying, they brought out all

the booty on the beach, including several chests of money, and burnt the

ships and the whole fortification. Then they took into their alliance

the Samians, Chians, Lesbians, and other islanders, who were then

serving with the Greeks, bound them by pledges and oaths that they would

remain firm and not revolt; then sailed to the Hellespont, and home.

[Illustration: BAS-RELIEF OF THE MUSES.]

SYNCHRONISTICAL TABLE OF THE PRINCIPAL EVENTS IN HERODOTUS.

GREEKS.

------------------------------------------------

_Peloponnesus._

------------------------------------------------

B.C.

Rape of Io from Argos 1687

Pelops conq. the Pelopon 1362

Eurystheus conquered 1311

Rape of Helen 1290

Aristodemus conq. the Pelo. 1190

_Lacedæmon._ | _Corinth._

|

Procles and Eurysthenes | Oligarchy of

kings 1178 | Bacchiadæ.

Theras col. Callista | Cypselus born 700

(Thera) 1150 |

Lycurgus 884 | Seizes the

Battus migrates | trannny 663

from Cal. and | Periander 633

founds Cyrene 632 | Banishes

First war with | Lycophron 575

Tegea 620 | Sends 300

Ariston and | Corcyræan

Anaxandrides, | boys to

kings of Lacedæmon 574 | Alyattes 565

Ally with Crœsus 554 | Dies 563

| Miltiades, son

Tegea taken 546 | of Cypselus,

War with Argives | founds

about Thyrea 545 | Chersonesus 560

Send troops ag't. |

Polycrates 525 |

Demaratus 520 | Stesagoras

Cleomenes 515 | succeeds 531

Dorieus migrates |

to Libya 515 | Miltiades, son of

Cleo. violates the | Cimon, succeeds

Argive grove 514 | 515

Cleomenes expels |

Clisthenes |

from Athens 508 | Takes Lemnos 510

Invades Attica 507 |

Demaratus exiled 492 | Retires before the

| Scythians 507

Leotychides king 492 |

Cleomenes kills | Escapes from the

himself 490 | Persians to

Leonidas slain at | Imbros 497

Thermopylæ 480 |

Pausanias wins |

at Platæa 479 | At the battle

Leotychides at | of Salamis 480

Mycale 479 |

---------------------------+-------------------------

_Attica, Bœotia, | _Greeks in Asia

Phocis, Ætolia, etc._ | and the Islands._

---------------------------+-------------------------

B.C. | B.C.

Deucalion 1570 | Ion goes to Asia 1391

Cecrops 1550 |

Erectheus 1510 | Æolian migrations

Ion, son of Xuthus 1427 | under Orestes,

Rape of Medea by the | Penthilus, and

Argonauts 1349 | Echelatus 1210-1174

Theseus defeated |

Eurystheus 1311 | Ionian migrations

Decaleans give up | (driven from the

Helen to the Tyndaridæ | Pelop. by the

1296 | Achæans) 1130

Pelasgians expelled |

from Attica, conquer | Dorian migration

Lemnos 1162 | Samians reach

Codrus 1153 | Tartessus 640

Rape of Ath. women | Thrasybulus 625

from Brauron 1152 | Conquered by

Alcmæon, the last | Crœsus

Archon 683 | Conquered by

Conspiracy of Ceylon 612 | Harpagus 542

Legislation of Solon 594 | Phocæans defeat

Megacles mar. Clisthenes' | Carthaginians,

daughter 570 | etc.

Pisistratus, tyrant 561 | Found Hyela 535

Expelled 559 | Polycrates tyrant

Re-established 555 | at Samos 532-523

Re-expelled 553 |

Regains it 542 | Samians found

Dies 528 | Cydonia 524

Hipparchus succeeds 528 | Syloson obtains

Assassina. of Cimon 527 | Samos 512

Hipparchus assassinated | Ionians commence

514 | disturbances 504

Hippias succeeds 514 |

Expelled 510 | Burn Sardis 503

Factions of Clisthenes | Joined by the

and Isagoras 509 | Cyprians 502

Clisthenes expelled 508 | Miletus taken 498

Inv. of Cleomenes 507 | Aristagoras slain 498

Athenians defeat the |

Bœotians, invade | Samians take Zancle 497

Eubœa, and conquer | Chios, Tenedos,

the Chalcidians 506 | etc., taken by

Miltiades gains the | the Persians 497

battle of Marathon 490 | Phocians defeat

Dies 489 | Thessalians 482

Xerxes takes Athens 480 |

Battle of Salamis 480 | Ionians join the

Mardonius retakes | allies at Mycale 479

Athens 479 |

BARBARIANs

-------------------+---------------------+-------------------

| | _Scythians

_Phœnicians._ | _Egyptians._ | and

| | Cimmerians._

-------------------+---------------------+-------------------

| |

Migrated | God-kings, | Cimmerians

from the | 17570 | invade

Erythræan | to | Asia,

to | 15570. | but

Phoenicia, | | expelled

about | Menes | by the

2267. | to | Scythians

| Mœris, | about

Colonized | 2235 | 624.

Thasos, | to |

1550. | 1416. | Scythians

| | rule

Founded | Sesostris | Upper

Carthage, | to | Asia,

819. | Sethon, | 624

| 1416 | to

Circumnavigate | to | 596.

Libya, | 671. |

609. | | Invaded

| Twelve kings | by

| to | Darius,

| Amasis | 508.

| 671 |

| to | Invade

| 525. | the

| | Chersonesus;

| | Miltiades

| | retires,

| | 507.

-----------------------------------------+-----------------

|

_Assyrians and Babylonians._ | _Lydians._

|

-----------------------------------------+-----------------

B.C. |

Empire 1221-711 | Atyadæ to

Semiramis 747-733 | 1221.

Medic revolt 711 | Heraclidæ

| 1221-716.

_Babylonia._ | _Media, etc._ | Gyges, 716.

| | Ardys, 678.

Nitocris, | Deioces, 700. | Cimmerians

604-561. | Div. the Medes. | take Sardis,

Turns the | Phraortes, 647. | 634.

Euphrates | Invades Assyria | Sadyattes,

and improves | Perished before | 629.

Babylon. | Nineveh. | Milesian war,

| Cyaxares, 625. | 622-610.

Labynetus | Conq. Assyria. | Alyattes, 617.

(Belshazzar), | Besieges | Drove out

son of | Nineveh, 603. | Cimmerians,

Nitocris, | Scythian invasion, | 613.

succeeds. | 624-596. | War with

Arbitrates | Astyages, 585. | Cyaxares, 602.

between | CYRUS born, | Crœsus, 560.

Cyaxares | 571. |

and | King in sport, | Conquers

Alyattes. | 561. | Greeks.

| |

| | Visited by

| | Solon.

| _Persian Empire_ |

CYRUS, king 550.

Attacked by Crœsus. Conquers Lydia, and takes Sardis. Mazares punishes

Lydian rebels. Harpagus takes Phocæa, conquers Ionia and Æolis.

Babylon taken by Cyrus, 536.

Massagetan expedition. Cyrus slain, 530.

CAMBYSES, 530-523. Conquers Egypt, 525. Unsuccessful expedition against

the Ethiopians and Ammonians. Wounds Apis. Goes mad. Slays his brother

Smerdis. Marries and kills his sister. Magian revolt. Dies, 523.

SMERDIS MAGUS, 523. Conspiracy of the Seven. Death of the Magi.

DARIUS, 522-485. Sends Democydes to spy Greece. Babylonian revolt.

Babylon taken by Zopyrus, 516. Restores Syloson to Samos, 512. Barca

conquered, 512. Invades Scythia, 508. Megabazus subdues Thrace. Otanes

subdues Lemnos and Imbros. Disturbances in Ionia. Burning of Sardis,

503. Cyprians join the revolt, 502; conquered, 501. Miletus taken, 498.

Pacification of Ionia, 497. Mardonius marches against Greece, 495.

Wrecked at Athos. Darius sends to Greece for earth and water, 493.

Expedition of Datis and Artaphernes, 492; enslave Naxos and Eretria,

490. Marathon, 490. Preparations for another invasion, 489. Egyptian

revolt, 486.

XERXES, 485-479. Subdues Egypt, 484. Prepares for a Greek expedition.

Leaves Susa, April, 481. Winters at Sardis. Battle of Thermopylæ, 480.

Takes Athens, 480. Battle of Salamis, Sept., 480. Retires to Asia.

Mardonius defeated at Platæa, and the Persian fleet at Mycale, the same

day, Sept. 22, 479.

HERODOTEAN WEIGHTS AND MONEY, DRY AND LIQUID MEASURES,

AND MEASUREMENTS OF LENGTH.

_Eubœic or Attic Silver Weights and Money._

WEIGHT (Avoirdupois). VALUE.

lbs. oz. grs.

1 Obol — — 11.08 $.033

6 Obols 1 Drachma — — 66.5 .198

100 Drachmæ 1 Mina — 15 33.75 19.784

60 Minæ 1 Talent 56 15¼ 100.32 1187.00

_Æginetan Silver Weights and Money._

lbs. oz. grs.

1 Obol — — 16 $.04½

6 Obols 1 Drachma — — 96 27.00

100 Drachmæ 1 Mina 1 5¾ 78.96 —

60 Minæ 1 Talent 82 3¾ 30.46 1620.00

The gold Stater of Crœsus and the gold Daric are each supposed to be

worth about 20 Attic silver drachmæ, or about $4.00 in our money.

Herodotus makes the Babylonian Talent equal to 70 Eubœic Minæ, but

Hussey calculates its weight at 71_lbs._ 1½_oz._ 69.45_grs._ If,

however, these are reckoned by comparison with our gold money, they are

worth much more.

_Attic Dry Measures._

Gallons. Quarts.

1 Chœnix — 1

48 Chœnices 1 Medimnus 12 —

1 Medimnus and }

3 Chœnices } 1 Persian Artaba 12 3

_Liquid Measures._

Gallons. Pints.

1 Chœnix — 1½

48 Chœnices 1 Amphora 9 —

Hesychius considers the Aryster to be the same as the Cotyla, which

Hussey calculates to hold half a pint.

_Measures of Length._

Miles. Yards. Feet. Inches.

1 Digit (finger's breadth) — — — .7584

4 Digits 1 Palm (hand-breadth) — — — 3.0336

3 Palms 1 Span — — — 9.1008

4 Palms 1 Foot — — 1 0.135

2 Spans or 6 Palms 1 Cubit — — 1 6.2016

1 Cubit and 6 Digits 1 Royal Cubit — — 1 8.4768

4 Cubits 1 Fathom (Orgya) — — 6 0.81

100 Feet or 16⅔ Orgyæ 1 Plethrum — 33 2 1.5

6 Plethra 1 Stadium — 202 0 9

30 Stadia 1 Persian Parasan 3 787 1 6

2 Parasangs 1 Schœnus 6½ 494 3 0

The Egyptian Cubit contained nearly 17¾ inches.

The Arura contained 21,904 square English feet, or a fraction over half

an acre.

[30] Hegesistratus means "leader of an army."

UNIFORM WITH THIS VOLUME.

PLUTARCH FOR BOYS AND GIRLS. Selected and edited by Prof. John S. White.

Quarto, with many illustrations $3 00.

This edition contains all the "Lives" and "Parallels" in Plutarch's own

words, with such omissions only as were necessary to adapt them for

young readers. There is also an Introduction and Life of Plutarch by the

editor. As a standard work, adapted to both boys and girls, its wealth

of anecdote and faithful portrayal of character render it peculiarly

valuable.

"Precious ore and no dross."—_Home Journal._

"It is a pleasure to see in so beautiful and elegant a form, one

of the great books of the world. The best Plutarch for young

readers."—_Literary World._

"Shows admirable scholarship and judgment."—_The Critic._

G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS,

NEW YORK AND LONDON.

End of Project Gutenberg's The Boys' and Girls' Herodotus, by John S. White