Cyropaedia

And will you be able to give up the beautiful Panthea? asked Cyrus.Yes, Cyrus, said he; for I evidently have two[*](Doctrine of the duality of the soul) souls. I have now worked out this doctrine of philosophy in the school of that crooked sophist, Eros. For if the soul is one, it is not both good and bad at the same time, neither can it at the same time desire the right and the wrong, nor at the same time both will and not will to do the same things; but it is obvious that there are two souls, and when the good one prevails, what is right is done; but when the bad one gains the ascendency, what is wrong is attempted. And now, since she has taken you to be her ally, it is the good soul that has gained the mastery, and that completely.

Well then, answered Cyrus, if you also have decided to go, this is what you must do so as to gain the more credence with them: tell them all[*](Cyrus’s final instructions to Araspas) about our affairs, but frame your account in such a way that your information will be the greatest possible hindrance to the success of their plans. And it would be a hindrance, if you should represent that we were making ready to invade their country at some point; for upon hearing this, they would be less likely to gather in full force, as each man would be afraid for his own possessions at home.

And stay with them as long as possible; for the most valuable information we can have will be in regard to what they are doing when they have come nearest to us. And advise them also to marshal themselves in whatever order seems best; for when you come away, it will be necessary for them to retain this order, even though they think you are familiar with it. For they will be slow to change it, and, if on the spur of the moment they make a change anywhere, they will be thrown into confusion.

Then Araspas withdrew; he got together the most trusted of his attendants, told some of his friends such things as he thought would contribute to the success of his scheme, and was gone.

When Panthea learned that Araspas had gone[*](Panthea sends for Abradatas) away, she sent word to Cyrus, saying: Do not be distressed, Cyrus, that Araspas has gone over to the enemy; for if you will allow me to send to my husband, I can guarantee you that a much more faithful friend will come to you than Araspas was. And what is more, I know that he will come to you with as many troops as he can bring. For while the father of the present king was his friend, this present king once even attempted to separate me from my husband. Inasmuch, therefore, as he considers the king an insolent scoundrel, I am sure that he would be glad to transfer his allegiance to such a man as you.

When Cyrus heard that, he bade her send word to her husband; and she did so. And when Abradatas read the cipher message sent by his wife and was informed how matters stood otherwise, he joyfully proceeded with about a thousand horse to join Cyrus. When he came up to the Persian sentries, he sent to Cyrus to let him know who it was; and Cyrus gave orders to take him at once to his wife.

And when Abradatas and his wife saw each other they embraced each other with joy, as was natural, considering they had not expected ever to meet again. Thereafter Panthea told of Cyrus’s piety and self-restraint and of his compassion for her. Tell me, Panthea, said Abradatas when he heard[*](Abradatas makes common cause with Cyrus) this, what can I do to pay the debt of gratitude that you and I owe to Cyrus? What else, pray, said Panthea, than to try to be to him what he has been to you?

Later Abradatas went to Cyrus. When he saw him he took his right hand in his and said: In return for the kindnesses you have done us, Cyrus, I do not know what more to say than that I offer myself to you to be your friend, your servant, your ally. And in whatsoever enterprise I see you engage, I shall try to co-operate with you to the very best of my ability.

And I accept your offer, said Cyrus. And now I will take leave of you and let you go to dinner with your wife. Some other time you will be expected to dine at my headquarters with your friends and mine.

After this, as Abradatas observed that Cyrus was busily engaged with the scythe-bearing chariots and the mailed horses and riders, he tried to contribute from his own cavalry as many as a hundred chariots like them; and he made ready to lead them in person upon his chariot.

He had the harnessing of his own chariot, moreover, arranged with four poles and eight horses abreast; and his wife, Panthea, with here own money had a golden corselet made for him and a helmet and armlet of gold; and he had the horses of his chariot equipped with armour of solid bronze.

Such was the work of Abradatas; and when Cyrus saw his chariot with four poles, he conceived the idea that it was possible to make one even with eight poles, so as to move with eight yoke of oxen the lowest story of his movable towers; including the wheels, this portion was about three fathoms high from the ground.

Moreover, when such towers were taken along with each division of the army, it seemed to him that they were a great help to his own phalanx and would occasion great loss to the ranks of the enemy. And on the different stories he constructed galleries also and battlements; and on each tower he stationed twenty men.

Now when all the appurtenances of his towers were put together, he made an experiment of their draught; and the eight yoke of oxen drew the tower with the men upon it more easily than each individual yoke could draw its usual load of baggage; for the load of baggage was about twenty-five talents[*](That is, about 1400 pounds; the Attic talent is equivalent to 55 3/4 pounds avoirdupois.) to the yoke; whereas the weight of the tower, on which the timbers were as thick as those of the tragic stage, together with the twenty men and their arms amounted to less than fifteen talents to each yoke of oxen.

Inasmuch, therefore, as he found that the hauling of the towers was easy, he made ready to take them with the army, for he thought that seizing an advantage in time of war was at once safety and justice and happiness.

At this juncture, representatives from the[*](Envoys from India are sent as spies) Indian king arrived with money; they announced also that the Indian king sent him the following message: I am glad, Cyrus, that you let me know what you needed. I desire to be your friend, and I am sending you the money, and if you need more, send for it. Moreover, my representatives have been instructed to do whatever you ask.

Well then, said Cyrus, when he heard this, I ask some of you to remain where you have been assigned quarters and keep guard of this money and live as best pleases you, while three of you will please go to the enemy on pretence of having been sent by the king of India to make an alliance between them and him; and when you have learned how things stand there, what they are doing and proposing to do, bring word of it as soon as possible to me and to your king. And if you perform this service acceptably, I shall be even more grateful to you for that than I am for your bringing the money with which you have come. And this is service which you are eminently fitted to perform; for spies disguised as slaves can give information of nothing more in their reports than what every one knows; whereas men in your capacity often discover even what is being planned.

The Indians were naturally pleased to hear this, and when they had been entertained by Cyrus, they made ready and set out on the following day with the solemn promise that when they had learned as much as they could they would return from the enemy’s side with all possible dispatch.

The rest of his preparations for war Cyrus now[*](Further preparations for the conflict) continued on a magnificent scale, for he was planning no mean enterprise; and he provided not only for that which his allies had agreed upon but he also inspired his friends to rivalry among themselves, in order that each complement might strive to show its men the best armed soldiers, the most skilled horsemen, the best marksmen with spear or bow, and the most industrious workers.

And, as a means of accomplishing this, he took them out to hunt and rewarded those who were in each particular most efficient. Furthermore, those officers who, he saw, were eager to have their own soldiers most efficient he spurred on with praise and with whatever favours he could bestow.