The Good Book (38 page)

  5. When Harpagus came the king asked him, ‘By what death did you slay the child of my daughter Mandane?’

  6. Seeing the herdsman in the room, Harpagus did not try to dissemble.

  7. ‘Sir,’ he said, ‘When you gave the child into my hands I considered with myself how I could carry out your wishes,

  8. ‘And yet, while guiltless of any unfaithfulness towards you, avoid steeping my hands in blood which was in truth your own.

  9. ‘And this was how I contrived it. I sent for this herdsman, and gave the child to him, telling him that by the king’s orders it was to be put to death.

10. ‘And in this I told no lie, for you had so commanded.

11. ‘Moreover, when I gave him the child, I enjoined him to lay it somewhere in the wilds of the mountains, until it was dead; and I threatened him with punishment if he failed.

12. ‘Afterwards, when he had done according to all that I commanded, and the child had died, I sent some of the most trustworthy of my eunuchs,

13. ‘Who viewed the body for me, and then I had the child buried. This, sir, is the simple truth, and this is the death by which the child died.’

14. Thus Harpagus related the whole story in a plain, straightforward way; upon which Astyages, letting no sign escape him of the anger he felt,

15. Began by repeating to him all that he had just heard from the herdsman, and then concluded with saying,

16. ‘So the boy is alive, and it is best as it is. For the child’s fate was a great sorrow to me, and the reproaches of my daughter went to my heart.

17. ‘Truly this has turned out well. Go home then, and send your own son to be with this newcomer who is my grandson,

18. ‘And tonight, let us have a banquet at which you will be guest of honour alongside my grandson, to rejoice in these events.’

19. Harpagus, on hearing this, bowed and went home rejoicing to find that his disobedience had turned out so fortunately.

20. The moment he reached home he called for his son, his only child, a youth of thirteen years, and told him to go to the palace, and do whatever Astyages should direct.

21. Then, in the gladness of his heart, he went to his wife and told her what had happened.

22. Astyages, meanwhile, took the son of Harpagus, and slew him, and cut him in pieces, and roasted some portions before the fire, and boiled others;

23. And when all were duly prepared, he kept them ready for use.

24. The hour for the banquet came, and Harpagus appeared, and with him the other guests, and all sat down to the feast.

25. Astyages and the rest of the guests had joints of meat served to them; but on the table of Harpagus, nothing was placed except the flesh of his own son,

26. All except the hands and feet and head, which were laid by themselves in a covered basket.

27. When Harpagus seemed to have eaten his fill, Astyages called out to him to know how he had enjoyed the repast.

28. On his reply that he had enjoyed it excessively, they whose business it was brought him the basket, and bade him open it, and take out what he pleased.

29. Harpagus accordingly uncovered the basket, and saw within it the remains of his son.

30. The sight, however, did not rob him of his self-possession. Being asked by Astyages if he knew what beast’s flesh it was that he had been eating,

31. He answered that he knew very well, and that whatever the king did was agreeable.

32. After this reply, he took with him such morsels of the flesh as were uneaten, and went home, intending to bury them.

33. Such was the manner in which Astyages punished Harpagus.

34. But Harpagus concealed in his heart his own desire for revenge on Astyages; and he waited until the time was ready.

Chapter 12

  1. Astyages meanwhile, seeing that his grandson was a fine youth, but not wishing to have a Persian for an heir,

  2. Decided to send him to his daughter Mandane and her husband, the real parents, thinking by this means to be rid of responsibility for him.

  3. There in Persia Cyrus grew amain, and when Harpagus believed him to be ready, he sent him a letter concealed in the belly of a hare,

  4. Telling him to rise against Astyages and take the empire of the Medes for his own.

  5. ‘Whether Astyages appoint me his general, or some other noble Mede, does not signify;

  6. ‘For we are all ready to revolt against his tyrannical rule, and see him overthrown,’ Harpagus wrote.

  7. Cyrus considered with himself how he might best inspire the Persians to revolt against Astyages.

  8. The idea he devised was as follows. He took a roll of paper, and called the Persians to an assembly.

  9. Flourishing the roll aloft he said, ‘King Astyages has appointed me your general.

10. ‘I command each of you to go home and fetch your reaping-hook.’ He then dismissed the assembly.

11. Now the Persian nation is made up of many tribes. Those Cyrus assembled and persuaded to revolt from the Medes were the principal ones on which all the others are dependent.

12. They are the Pasargadae, the Maraphians and the Maspians, of whom the Pasargadae are the noblest.

13. The Achaemenidae, from which spring all the Perseid kings, is one of their clans.

14. The rest of the Persian tribes are the Panthialaeans, the Derusiaeans, the Germanians, who are engaged in husbandry;

15. The Daans, the Mardians, the Dropicans and the Sagartians, who are nomads.

16. When, in obedience to the orders they had received, the Persians came with their reaping-hooks,

17. Cyrus led them to a tract of ground, about twenty furlongs each way, covered with thorns, and ordered them to clear it before evening.

18. They accomplished their task; upon which he issued a second order to them, to take a bath the following day, and again come to him.

19. Meanwhile he collected together all his father’s flocks, both sheep and goats, and all his oxen,

20. And slaughtered them, and made ready to give a feast to the entire Persian army.

21. Wine, too, and bread of the choicest kinds were prepared for the occasion.

22. When the morrow came, and the Persians appeared, he bade them recline on the grass, and enjoy themselves.

23. After the feast was over, he requested them to tell him ‘which they liked best, today’s work, or yesterday’s?’

24. They answered that ‘The contrast was indeed strong: yesterday brought them nothing but what was laborious, today everything that was pleasant.’

25. Cyrus instantly seized on their reply, and explained his purpose in these words:

26. ‘Men of Persia, thus do matters stand with you. If you choose to listen to my words, you may enjoy these and ten thousand similar delights,

27. ‘And never condescend to any slavish toil; but if you will not listen, prepare yourselves for unnumbered toils as hard as yesterday’s.

28. ‘Now therefore follow my bidding, and be free. For myself I am ready to undertake your liberation;

29. ‘And you, I am sure, are no whit inferior to the Medes in anything, least of all courage.

30. ‘Revolt, therefore, from Astyages, without a moment’s delay.’

Chapter 13

  1. The Persians, who had long been impatient of the Median yoke, now that they had found a leader, were delighted.

  2. Meanwhile Astyages, informed of Cyrus’ doings, sent a messenger to summon him.

  3. Cyrus replied, ‘Tell Astyages that I shall appear in his presence sooner than he will like.’

  4. Astyages, when he received this message, instantly armed all his subjects,

  5. And, as if he had lost his senses, appointed Harpagus as their general, forgetting how greatly he had injured him.

  6. So when the two armies met, only a few of the Medes fought; others deserted openly to the Persians; while the greater number counterfeited fear, and fled.

  7. Astyages, on learning the shameful flight and dispersion of his army, broke out into threats against Cyrus,

  8. And directly armed all the Medes who had remained in the city, both young and old;

  9. And leading them against the Persians, fought a battle, in which he was utterly defeated, his army destroyed, and he himself captured.

10. Harpagus then, seeing him a prisoner, came near, and exulted over him with jeers.

11. Among other cutting speeches he made, he alluded to the supper where the flesh of his son was given him to eat,

12. And asked Astyages to answer him now, how he enjoyed being a slave instead of a king?

13. Astyages looked in his face, and asked him in return, why he claimed as his own the achievements of Cyrus?

14. ‘Because,’ said Harpagus, ‘it was my letter which made him revolt, and so I am entitled to the credit of the enterprise.’

15. Then Astyages declared that in that case he was at once the silliest and the most unjust of men:

16. The silliest, if when it was in his power to put the crown on his own head, he had placed it on the head of another;

17. The most unjust, if on account of that supper he had brought slavery on his own people, the Medes.

18. For, supposing that he was obliged to invest another with the kingly power, and not retain it himself, yet justice required that a Mede, rather than a Persian, should receive the dignity.

19. Now, however, the Medes, who had been no parties to the wrong of which he complained, were made slaves instead of lords,

20. And slaves moreover of those who till recently had been their subjects.

21. Thus after a reign of thirty-five years, Astyages lost his crown, and the Medes, in consequence of his cruelty, were brought under the rule of the Persians.

22. The Medes’ empire over the parts of Asia beyond the Halys had lasted one hundred and twenty-eight years, except during the time when the Scythians had the dominion.

23. Cyrus kept Astyages at his court during the remainder of his life, without doing him any further injury, because he was his grandfather.

24. Such were the circumstances of the birth and upbringing of Cyrus, and such were the steps by which he mounted the throne.

25. It was at a later date that he was attacked by Croesus, and overthrew him, as related in an earlier portion of this history.

26. Cyrus’ overthrow of Croesus made him master of the whole of Asia.

Chapter 14

  1. After the conquest of Lydia by the Persians, the Ionian and Aeolian Greeks sent ambassadors to Cyrus at Sardis, and prayed to become his tributaries as they had been to Croesus.

  2. Cyrus listened attentively to their proposals, and answered them by a fable.

  3. ‘There was a certain piper,’ he said, ‘who was walking one day by the seaside, when he espied some fish;

  4. ‘So he began to pipe to them, imagining they would come out to him on the land.

  5. ‘But when he found that his hope was vain, he took a net, and enclosing a great number of them, drew them ashore.

  6. ‘The fish then began to leap and dance; but the piper said, “Cease your dancing now, as you did not choose to dance when I piped to you.”’

  7. Cyrus gave this answer because, when he urged the Ionians and Aeolians to revolt from Croesus, they refused;

  8. But now, when his work was done, they offered allegiance. It was in anger, therefore, that he made this reply.

  9. The Ionians, on hearing it, set to work to fortify their towns, and held meetings at the Panionium,

10. Which were attended by all excepting the Milesians, with whom Cyrus had concluded a separate treaty, allowing them the terms they formerly had with Croesus.

11. The other Ionians resolved, with one accord, to send ambassadors to Sparta to beg assistance.

12. Now the Ionian Greeks of Asia, who meet at the Panionium, have built their cities in a region where the air and climate are the most beautiful in the world:

13. For no other region is as pleasant as Ionia, neither above it nor below it, nor east nor west of it.

14. For in other countries either the climate is too cold and damp, or else the heat and drought are sorely oppressive.

15. The Ionians do not all speak the same language, but have four different dialects.

16. Towards the south the main city is Miletus, next to which lie Myus and Priene; all these three are in Caria and have the same dialect.

17. Their cities in Lydia are Ephesus, Colophon, Lebedus, Teos, Clazomenae and Phocaea. The inhabitants of these towns have a dialect of their own.

18. There are three other Ionian towns, two in the isles, namely, Samos and Chios; and one on the mainland, namely Erythrae.

19. Of these Chios and Erythrae have the same dialect, while Samos has a language of its own.

20. Of the Ionians at this period, the Milesians were in no danger of attack, as Cyrus had received them into alliance.