Cyropaedia

Things of this sort, both grave and gay, were said and done at the dinner party. And finally when they had made the third libation[*](Xenophon here introduces a Greek custom; the Persians poured no libations. But at the conclusion of a dinner, the Greeks poured three libations: the first, to the gods; the second, to the heroes; the third to Zeus, or to Hermes.) and prayed to the gods for their blessings, the party broke up, and they all went to bed. Then on the morrow, Cyrus[*](The mass meeting) called all his soldiers together and spoke as follows:

Friends, the conflict is at hand; for the enemy are approaching. As for the prizes of victory, if we are victorious—and we must assume that we shall be and work to that end—it is evident that the enemy and all that is theirs will belong to us. But, on the other hand, if we are defeated—in this case, too, all the possessions of the vanquished are invariably the prizes set for the victors.

Accordingly, said he, you must realize that when men who are united as comrades in war are fully persuaded that nothing will come out as it should unless each individual man exerts himself, then many splendid achievements are speedily accomplished; for nothing that needs to be done is neglected. But when each one assumes that there will be some one else to do and to fight, even if he proves a weakling, let me assure you, said he, that to such men, all alike, all that is grievous comes in a flood.

And God has ordained it in some such way as this: in the case of those who will not compel themselves to work out their own good, he assigns others to be their commanders. Now, therefore, let any one[*](Cyrus proposes rewards on the basis of merit) stand up and speak to this question before us, whether he thinks that valour would be more cultivated among us, if the one who will do and dare most is also to receive the greatest rewards, or if we know that it makes no difference whether a man be a coward or not, as we shall all share and share alike.

Hereupon Chrysantas, one of the peers, a man[*](Chrysantas seconds the proposal) neither large nor powerful to look upon, but preminent in understanding, stood up and spoke: Well, Cyrus, said he, I think that you are introducing this discussion not because you think that the bad ought to have an equal share with the good, but because you wish to prove whether a single man will really be found who will care to let it be known that he thinks that, even if he himself does nothing good and noble, he should have an equal share of that which others win by their valour.

Now I, he went on, am neither fleet of foot nor strong of arm, and I know that in view of what I shall accomplish by my bodily strength I should not be judged either the first or the second, or even, I suppose, the thousandth, and perhaps not even the ten thousandth. But on this point I am perfectly clear, that if those who are powerful men take matters vigorously in hand, I shall have as large a share of any good fortune that may come as I deserve. But if the bad do nothing and the good and strong lose heart, I am afraid, said he, that I shall have a larger share than I wish of something other than good.

Thus spoke Chrysantas. And after him[*](Pheraulas adds his support) Pheraulas stood up, one of the Persian commoners, but a man who for some reason or other had from the beginning won Cyrus’s confidence and affection; besides he was well-favoured in body and a gentleman at heart. His speech was as follows:

I think, Cyrus, said he, and all you Persians here assembled, that we are all now starting on an equal footing in a contest of merit; for I observe that we are all taking the same bodily exercise, that we all have the same rations, that we are all considered worthy to move in the same society, and that the prizes are offered alike to all. For obedience to the officers has been enjoined equally upon us all, and whoever shows himself prompt to comply, I observe that he receives honour from Cyrus. Again, to be brave in the face of the enemy is not a thing to be expected of one and not of another, but it is considered far the noblest thing for all alike.

And now, he continued, we have been initiated into a method of fighting, which, I observe, all men naturally understand, just as in the case of other creatures each understands some method of fighting which it has not learned from any other source than from instinct: for instance, the bull knows how to fight with his horns, the horse with his hoofs, the dog with his teeth, the boar with his tusks. And all know how to protect themselves, too, against that from which they most need protection, and that, too, though they have never gone to school to any teacher.

As for myself, I have understood from my very childhood how to protect the spot where I thought I was likely to receive a blow; and if I had nothing else I put out my hands to hinder as well as I could the one who was trying to hit me. And this I did not from having been taught to do so, but even though I was beaten for that very act of putting out my hands. Furthermore, even when I was a little fellow I used to seize a sword wherever I saw one, although, I declare, I had never learned, except from instinct, even how to take hold of a sword. At any rate, I used to do this, even though they tried to keep me from it—and certainly they did not teach me so to do—just as I was impelled by nature to do certain other things which my father and mother tried to keep me away from. And, by Zeus, I used to hack with a sword everything that I could without being caught at it. For this was not only instinctive, like walking and running, but I thought it was fun in addition to its being natural.

Be that as it may, he went on, since this method of fighting awaits us, which demands courage more than skill, why should we not gladly compete with the peers here? For the prizes proposed for excellence are equal, but we shall go into the trial not having at stake interests equal with theirs; for they have at stake a life of honour, which is the most happy of all, while we risk only a life of toil unhonoured, which I think is most burdensome.

And this, comrades, gives me the most courage for the competition with these gentlemen, that Cyrus is to be the judge; for he decides not with partiality, but (I swear it by the gods) I verily think that Cyrus loves no less than himself those whom he recognizes as valiant. At any rate, I observe that, whatever he has, he is much more pleased to give it to them than to keep it for himself.

And yet I know that these men pride themselves upon having been trained, as they say, to endure hunger and thirst and cold, but they do not know that in this we also have been trained by a better teacher than they have had; for in these branches there is no better teacher than necessity, which has given us exceedingly thorough instruction in them.

And they have been in training for hard labour by carrying weapons, which all men have so devised that they may be as easy as possible to bear; while we, on our part, have been obliged to walk and to run with heavy burdens, so that the carrying of arms now seems to me more like having wings than bearing a burden.

Let me inform you, therefore, Cyrus, said he, that I, for one, shall not only enter this contest, but I shall also expect you to reward me according to my deserts, whatever I am, for better or worse. And you, my fellow-commoners, he concluded, I recommend you to enter with alacrity into the competition with these gentlemen in this sort of warfare; for now they have been trapped in a contest with commoners.

Thus Pheraulas spoke. And many others from both orders rose to speak in favour of the measure. They decided that each one should receive rewards according to his deserts, and that Cyrus should be the judge. Thus, then, the matter was satisfactorily settled.

And once Cyrus invited a captain and his whole[*](A sham battle: cudgels vs. clods) company to dinner, because he had noticed him drawing up one half of the men of his company against the other half for a sham battle. Both sides had breastplates and on their left arms their shields; in the hands of the one side he placed stout cudgels, while he told the other side that they would have to pick up clods to throw.

Now when they had taken their stand thus equipped, he gave the order to begin battle. Then those on the one side threw their clods, and some struck the breastplates and shields, others also struck the thighs and greaves of their opponents. But when they came into close quarters, those who had the cudgels struck the others—some upon the thighs, others upon the arms, others upon the shins; and as still others stooped to pick up clods, the cudgels came down upon their necks and backs. And finally, when the cudgel-bearers had put their opponents to flight, they pursued them laying on the blows amid shouts of laughter and merriment. And then again, changing about, the other side took the cudgels with the same result to their oppononts opponents, who in turn threw clods.

In this Cyrus admired both the captain’s cleverness and the men’s obedience, and he was pleased to see that they were at the same time having their practice and enjoying themselves and also because that side was victorious which was armed after the fashion of the Persians. Pleased with this he invited them to dinner; and in his tent, observing some of them wearing bandages—one around his leg, another around his arm—he asked them what the matter was; and they answered that they had been hit with the clods.

And he inquired further, whether it had happened when they were close together or far apart. And they said it was when they were far apart. But when they came to close quarters, it was capital fun—so the cudgel-bearers said; but those who had been thoroughly drubbed with the cudgels cried out that it did not seem any fun to them to be beaten at close quarters, and at the same time they showed the marks of the cudgels on their arms and their necks and some also on their faces. And then, as was natural, they laughed at one another. On the following day the whole plain was full of men following their example; and if they had nothing more important to do, they indulged in this sport.