Cyropaedia

Now you, the commander of the rear-guard,[*](He gives his final directions) as you are behind all the rest with your men, issue orders to your own division that each man watch those immediately in front of him, encourage those who are doing their duty, threaten violently those who lag behind, and punish with death any one who turns his back with traitorous intent. For it is the duty of the men in the front ranks with word and deed to encourage those who follow them, while it is your business, who occupy the rear, to inspire the cowardly with greater fear than the enemy does.

That is what you have to attend to. Now you, Euphratas, who are commander of the division in charge of the engines, manage to have the teams that draw the towers follow as close as possible behind the phalanx.

And you, Daüchus, who have command of the baggage-train, bring up all your division of the army next after the towers, and let your adjutants punish severely those who advance or fall behind further than is expedient.

And you, Carduchus, who have charge of the carriages which convey the women, bring them up in the rear next after the baggage-train. For, if all this follows, it will give an impression of numbers and will afford us an opportunity for an ambuscade; and if the enemy try to surround us, they will have to make a wider circuit; and the greater the circuit they have to make, the weaker they must necessarily make their line.

That is your course to pursue. But do you, Artaozus and Artagerses, have each of you a regiment of your infantry behind the carriages.

And you, Pharnuchus and Asiadatas, keep each of you the regiment of cavalry under your command out of the main line and take your stand by yourselves behind the carriages, and then come to me with the rest of the officers. You must be just as fully ready, though in the rear, as if you were to be the first to have to join battle.

And you, the commander of the men on camels, take your position also behind the women’s carriages and do whatever Artagerses commands you.

And finally, do you officers of the chariot forces cast lots, and let the one to whose lot it falls bring up his hundred chariots in front of the main line; of the other two hundred, one shall take its place in line upon the right flank of the army, the other on the left, and follow the phalanx each in single file.

Thus did Cyrus plan his order of battle. But Abradatas, the king of Susa, said: I will[*](Abradatas asks for the post of danger) gladly volunteer to hold for you the post immediately in front of the enemy’s phalanx, Cyrus, unless you have some better plan.

And Cyrus admired his spirit and clasped his hand, and turning to the Persians in command of the other chariots he asked: Do you consent to this? But they answered that it was inconsistent with their idea of honour to yield the place to him; accordingly, he had them cast lots; and Abradatas was assigned by lot to the place for which he had volunteered, and took his place over against the Egyptians.

This done, they went away, and when they had attended to the details of all that I have mentioned, they went to dinner; and then they stationed their pickets and went to bed.

Early on the following day Cyrus was sacrificing,[*](They prepare for battle) and the rest of the army, after breakfasting and pouring libations, proceeded to array themselves with many fine tunics and corselets and helms. And they armed their horses also with frontlets and breastplates; the saddle-horses also they armed with thigh-pieces and the chariot teams with side-armour. And so the whole army flashed with bronze and was resplendent in purple.

And Abradatas’s chariot with its four poles and[*](Panthea arrays Abradatas for the battle) eight horses was adorned most handsomely; and when he came to put on his linen corselet, such as they used in his country, Panthea brought him one of gold, also a helmet, arm-pieces, broad bracelets for his wrists—all of gold—and a purple tunic that hung down in folds to his feet, and a helmet-plume of hyacinth dye. All these she had had made without her husband’s knowledge, taking the measure for them from his armour.

And when he saw them he was astonished and turning to Panthea, he asked: Tell me, wife, you did not break your own jewels to pieces, did you, to have this armour made for me?No, by Zeus, answered Panthea, at any rate, not my most precious jewel; for you, if you appear to others as you seem to me, shall be my noblest jewel. With these words, she began to put the armour on him, and though she tried to conceal them, the tears stole down her cheeks.

And when Abradatas was armed in his panoply he looked most handsome and noble, for he had been favoured by nature and, even unadorned, was well worth looking at; and taking the reins from his groom he was now making ready to mount his chariot.

But at this moment Panthea bade all who stood near to retire and then she said: Abradatas, if ever any[*](She exhorts him to bravery) woman loved her husband more than her own life, I think you know that I, too, am such a one. Why, then, should I tell of these things one by one? For I think that my conduct has given you better proof of it than any words I now might say.

Still, with the affection that you know I have for you, I swear to you by my love for you and yours for me that, of a truth, I would far rather go down into the earth with you, if you approve yourself a gallant soldier, than live disgraced with one disgraced: so worthy of the noblest lot have I deemed both you and myself.

And to Cyrus I think we owe a very large debt of gratitude, because, when I was his prisoner and allotted to him, he did not choose to keep me either as his slave or as a freewoman under a dishonourable name, but took me and kept me for you as one would a brother’s wife.

And then, too, when Araspas, who had been charged with my keeping, deserted him, I promised him that if he would let me send to you, a far better and truer friend than Araspas would come to him, in you.

Thus she spoke; and Abradatas, touched by[*](The parting) her words, laid his hand upon her head and lifting up his eyes toward heaven prayed, saying: Grant me, I pray, almighty Zeus, that I may show myself a husband worthy of Panthea and a friend worthy of Cyrus, who has shown us honour.As he said this, he mounted his car by the doors in the chariot-box.