their wives and children as you can be to capture them. Take a lesson from hunting: the wild sow when she is sighted will scamper away with her young, though she be feeding with the herd; but if you attack her little ones she will never fly, even if she is all alone; she will turn on the hunters. [18] Yesterday the enemy shut themselves up in a fort, and then handed themselves over to us to choose how many we cared to fight. But if we meet them in open country, and they learn how to divide their forces and take us in front and flank and rear, I wonder how many pairs of eyes and hands each man of us would need! Finally,' he added, 'I have no great wish myself to disturb my Medes in their enjoyment, and drive them out to further dangers.'
[19] Then Cyrus took him up: 'Nay, I would not have you put pressure on any man; only let those who are willing follow me, and perhaps we shall come back with something for all of you to enjoy. The mass of the enemy we should not think of pursuing; indeed, how could we overtake them? But if we cut off any stragglers, we could clap hands on them and bring them back to you. [20] Remember,' he added, 'when you sent for us, we came a long way to do you service; is it not fair that you should do us a kindness in return, and let us have something to take back with us for ourselves, and not stand here agape at all your treasures?'
[21] At that Cyaxares answered, 'Ah, if any will follow you of their own free will, I can but be most grateful.'
'Send some one with me then,' said Cyrus, 'from these trusty men of yours, to carry your commands.'
'Take whomever you like,' he answered, 'and begone.'
[22] Now, as it chanced, among the officers present was the Mede who had claimed kinship with Cyrus long ago and won a kiss thereby. Cyrus pointed to him and said, 'That man will do for me.' 'He shall go with you then,' Cyaxares replied. And turning to the officer, 'Tell your fellows,' he said, 'that he who lists may follow Cyrus.' [23] Thus Cyrus chose his man and went forth. And when they were outside he said, 'To-day you can show me if you spoke truth long ago when you told me that the sight of me was your joy.'
'If you say that,' said the Mede, 'I will never leave you.'
'And will you not do your best,' added Cyrus, 'to bring me others too?' 'By the gods in heaven,' cried the Mede, 'that I will, until you say in your turn that to see me is your joy.' Thereupon, with the authority of Cyaxares to support him, the officer went to the Medes and delivered with message with all diligence, adding that he for one would never forsake Cyrus, the bravest, noblest, and best of men, and a hero whose lineage was divine.
[C.2] While Cyrus was busied with these matters, by some strange chance two ambassadors arrived from the Hyrcanians. These people are neighbours of the Assyrians, and being few in number, they were held in subjection. But they seemed then, as they seem now, to live on horseback. Hence the Assyrians used them as the Lacedaemonians employ the Skirites, for every toil and every danger, without sparing them. In fact, at that very moment they had ordered them to furnish a rear- guard of a thousand men and more, so as to bear the brunt of any rear attack. [2] The Hyrcanians, as they were to be the hindmost, had put their waggons and families in the rear, for, like most of the tribes in Asia, they take their entire households with them on the march. [3] But when they thought of the sorry treatment they got from the Assyrians and when they saw the king fallen, the army worsted and a prey to panic, the allies disheartened and ready to desert, they judged it a fine moment to revolt themselves, if only the Medes and Persians would make common cause with them. So they sent an embassy to Cyrus, for after the late battle there was no name like his. [4] They told him what good cause they had to hate the Assyrians, and how if he was willing to attack them now, they themselves would be his allies and show him the way. At the same time they gave a full account of the enemy's doings, being eager to get Cyrus on the road. [5] 'Do you think,' said Cyrus, 'we should overtake the Assyrians before they reach their fortresses? We look on it as a great misfortune,' he added, 'that they ever slipped through our fingers and escaped.' (This he said, wishing to give his hearers as high an opinion as possible of himself and his friends.) [6] 'You should certainly catch them,' they answered, 'and that to-morrow, ere the day is old, if you gird up your loins: they move heavily because of their numbers and their train of waggons, and to-day, since they did not sleep last night, they have only gone a little way ahead, and are now encamped for the evening.'
[7] 'Can you give us any guarantee,' said Cyrus, 'that what you say is true?'
'We will give you hostages,' they said; 'we will ride off at once and bring them back this very night. Only do you on your side call the gods to witness and give us the pledge of your own right hand, that we may give our people the assurance we have received from you ourselves.'
[8] Thereupon Cyrus gave them his pledge that if they would make good what they promised he would treat them as his true friends and faithful followers, of no less account than the Persians and the Medes. And to this day one may see Hyrcanians treated with trust and holding office on an equal footing with Persians and Medes of high distinction.
[9] Now Cyrus and his men took their supper and then while it was still daylight he led his army out, having made the two Hyrcanians wait so that they might go with them. The Persians, of course, were with him to a man, and Tigranes was there, with his own contingent, and the Median volunteers, who had joined for various reasons. [10] Some had been friends of Cyrus in boyhood, others had hunted with him and learnt to admire his character, others were grateful, feeling he had lifted a load of fear from them, others were flushed with hope, nothing doubting that great things were reserved for the man who had proved so brave and so fortunate already. Others remembered the time when he was brought up in Media, and were glad to return the kindnesses that he had shown them; many could recall the favours the boy had won for them from his grandfather through his sheer goodness of heart; and many, now that they had seen the Hyrcanians and heard say they were leading them to untold treasures, went out from simple love of gain. [11] So they sallied forth, the entire body of the Persians and all the Medes, except those who were quartered with Cyaxares: these stayed behind, and their men with them. But all the rest went out with radiant faces and eager hearts, not following him from constraint, but offering willing service in their gratitude. [12] So, as soon as they were well afield, Cyrus went to the Medes and thanked them, praying that the gods in their mercy might guide them all, and that he himself might have power given him to reward their zeal. He ended by saying that the infantry would lead the van, while they would follow with the cavalry, and whenever the column halted on the march they were to send him gallopers to receive his orders. [13] Then he bade the Hyrcanians lead the way, but they exclaimed, 'What? Are you not going to wait until we bring the hostages? Then you could begin the march with pledges from us in return for yours.'
But he answered, as the story says, 'If I am not mistaken, we hold the pledges now, in our own hearts and our own right hands. We believe that if you are true to us we can do you service, and if you play us false, you will not have us at your mercy; God willing, we shall hold you at ours. Nevertheless,' he added, 'since you tell us your own folk follow in the Assyrian rear, point them out to us as soon as you set eyes upon them, that we may spare their lives.'
[14] When the Hyrcanians heard this they led the way as he ordered, marvelling at his strength of soul. Their own fear of the Assyrians, the Lydians, and their allies, had altogether gone; their dread now was lest Cyrus should regard themselves as mere dust in the balance, and count it of no importance whether they stayed with him or not.
[15] As night closed in on their march, the legend runs that a strange light shone out, far off in the sky, upon Cyrus and his host, filling them with awe of the heavenly powers and courage to meet the foe. Marching as they did, their loins girt and their pace swift, they covered a long stretch of road in little time, and with the half light of the morning they were close to the Hyrcanian rear-guard. [16] As soon as the guides saw it, they told Cyrus that these were their own men: they knew this, they added, from the number of their fires, and the fact that they were in the rear. [17] Therefore Cyrus sent one of the guides to them, bidding them come out at once, if they were friendly, with their right hands raised. And he sent one of his own men also to say, 'According as you make your approach, so shall we Persians comport ourselves.'
Thus one of the two messengers stayed with Cyrus while the other rode up to his fellows. [18] Cyrus halted his army to watch what the tribe would do, and Tigranes and the Median officers rode along the ranks to ask for orders. Cyrus explained that the troops nearest to them were the Hyrcanians, and that one of the ambassadors had gone, and a Persian with him, to bid them come out at once, if they were friendly, with their right hands raised. 'If they do so,' he added, 'you must welcome them as they come, each of you at your post, and take them by the hand and encourage them, but if they draw sword or try to escape, you must make an example of them: not a man of them must be left.'
Such were his orders. [19] However, as soon as the Hyrcanians heard the message, they were overjoyed: springing to their steeds they galloped up to Cyrus, holding out their right hands as he had bidden. Then the Medes and Persians gave them the right hand of fellowship in return, and bade them be of courage. [20] And Cyrus
