THE STORY OF ALEXANDER
WW
G POO UK
Hp oh RSW
Dp PAS
a
SWre |
aN We
— WEF
WN
SS a
PS
° RRSSS ANS
‘ aif re NSS A
x =r eee NES = LS
Toomomrat Mn
M. M. S.
A TOKEN OF
FRIENDSHIP AND ADMIRATION
AN OPEN EET TER
My DEAR GRACIE
When I promised some months ago to tell you a
fairy story, I did not remember that most of them have been
so well told by my friend Mr. Jacobs, and others, that it would
be difficult to find any fresh ones worth telling you.
Then I remembered that there was a time, hundreds of years
ago, when folk here in England were fond of hearing and telling
stories, and when, in the long winter evenings, people gathered
round the castle-fire in the great hall, lord and lady, squires and
dames, pages, varlets, children, even the dogs, all of them listen-
ing to the old chaplain who read them a never-ending tale of a
brave knight and a wicked enchanter, or, better still, to a travelling
tale-teller who brought the last story from France and Italy,
“ Now,†thought I, “the tales that pleased these folk so well
would perhaps suit young people of to-day.†For the men who
lived then were large hearted and simple souled, and if it ts true,
as our great English poet said, ‘Men are but children of a
larger growth"—and it was true of that time—perhaps the
vii stories
stories of the men of those days would still have the power to
please the children of ours.
Well, I began to turn over some of those big books you have
seen in my room, and to read their stories again to choose one
Jor you, and the first story I read was the History of Alexander
the Great. You must not be frightened about the tale, however ;
there are no dates and summaries at the ends of the chapters to
learn, and, though I believe every word of it myself, I am afraid
that f you were to put some of it in your examination paper on
Greek History, the mistress who marked it would be annoyed,
and I am certain that you will not find the pictures like those of
the Greeks in your other books. This ts only a tale, and the
Alexander and Darius, the Greeks and the Jews, tt tells about, are
not the ones you have read of, but different people with the same
names.
The reason for choosing the story of Alexander to tell you is
this: it was the earliest and one of the most interesting of the
stories of the Middle Age. Everyone liked it, everyone knew
something about it, and everyone told it his own way. Even the
animals (in a tale of Reynard the Fox) liked it, and one of them
told it to the lion. All the English poets of those days knew and
loved it. Tf, then, you could vead any of the Middle Age tales,
you could read this one.
So you must now fancy that times are changed; you are
sitting in some great casile-hall, and all the people round you are
in dresses lithe those that Mr. Mason has drawn for you, perhaps
you are sitting on a throne like the queen in the picture, and I
am sitting on the stool before you, and I begin to tell you a
viii ; story
story of the bravest knight in the world, his wars, and the
wonderful things he saw and did. And as all the young folk
gather round and listen, tf the older folk come with them and
bring the great Latin book to see if I tell the story right, when
they can get it (for it is very rare) they will find that I have
taken the story-teller’s privilege—I have left out much that was
not interesting, and I have told you some things the old story-
tellers used to leave out.
Perhaps you will find that there is too much fighting in the
story: if so, remember that it was nearly the only game people
played at in those days, so that it took the place of rowing or
tennis, cycling or cricket among the young people then. But the
Sighting had this serious side to it—that a young lady might wake
any morning and find an army besieging her home, ready to
burn it down and carry her away prisoner. So, you see, every-
one understood about fighting and took an interest in hearing
of it.
And now I leave you with your story. If it pleases you,
and shows you who were the heroes of our ancestors, and what
were the stortes they delighted in, it will have reached the
object of
Your loving hegeman
ix
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I. HOW ANECTANABUS WAS KING OF EGYPT,
AND WHY HE FLED INTO THE LAND OF MACEDON .
CHAPTER II. OF OLYMPIAS AND ANECTANABUS, OF THE
MAGIC HE WROUGHT, AND OF THE BIRTH OF ALEX-
ANDER .
CHAPTER III. HOW ALEXANDER TAMED THE HORSE
BUCEPHALUS, AND HOW HE DID HIS FIRST DEED OF
ARMS
CHAPTER IV. TELLS OF THE EMBASSY OF DARIUS,
OF THE DEATH OF PHILIP, AND THE CROWNING OF
ALEXANDER .
CHAPTER V. HOW ALEXANDER GATHERED AN ARMY
TOGETHER: HOW HE BUILT ALEXANDRIA AND LAID
SIEGE TO THE CITY OF TYRE
CHAPTER VI. TELLS OF THE FORAY OF KADESH, AND
OF ITS ENDING, AND OF THE TAKING OF THE CITY OF
TYRE
xi
PAGE
21
30
39
47
CHAPTER VII. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO JERUSALEM,
HOW THE BISHOP MET HIM, AND WHAT THERE BEFELL
HIM .
CHAPTER VIII. TELLS HOW DARIUS THE EMPEROR
SENT PRESENTS TO ALEXANDER, AND WHAT WAS THE
PRESENT SENT BACK TO HIM
CHAPTER IX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER DESTROYED
THEBES AND HOW IT WAS REBUILT, AND OF HIS
RETURN TO PERSIA
CHAPTER X. HOW ALEXANDER DEFEATED THE PER-
SIANS, AND HOW HE WENT TO THE FEAST OF DARIUS.
CHAPTER XI. TELLS OF THE BATTLE BETWEEN ALEX-
ANDER AND DARIUS, AND OF THE SLAYING OF DARIUS
CHAPTER XII. HOW ALEXANDER MARRIED ROXANA,
THE DAUGHTER OF THE EMPEROR, AND HOW HE
DEFEATED PORUS THE KING OF INDIA.
CHAPTER XIII. HOW ALEXANDER AND HIS MEN PASSED
THE NIGHT OF FEAR, AND HOW HE SAW THE GREATEST
AND THE LEAST THING ON EARTH.
CHAPTER XIV. HOW ALEXANDER AND HIS ARMY
PASSED THROUGH THE VALLEY OF TERROR AND
SOUGHT THE WELLS OF LIFE
CHAPTER XV. HOW THE BRAHMANS CAME TO KING
ALEXANDER AND WHAT HE LEARNT FROM THEM: AND
OF THE COMING OF THE AMAZONS.
CHAPTER XVI. HOW ALEXANDER PASSED THROUGH
THE LAND. OF DARKNESS AND SLEW THE BASILISK
xil
PAGE
55
63
73
82
94
102
III
124
138
148
CHAPTER XVII. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO THE TREES
OF THE SUN AND THE MOON, AND WHAT THEY TOLD
HIM.
CHAPTER XVIII. HOW ALEXANDER SLEW PORUS AND
WON BACK THE WIFE OF CANDOYL AND WAS KNOWN
OF CANDACE WHEN HE CAME TO HER.
CHAPTER XIX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER DEFEATED
GOG AND MAGOG, HOW HE WENT UP INTO THE AIR
AND DOWN INTO THE SEA .
CHAPTER XX. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO HIS LIFE’S
END AND WAS BURIED, AND WHAT THEREON BEFELL.
xili
PAGE
159
171
188
204
FP US xg
CW! =,
, - See Ona R Ui
oe . CAIITH
SS SS
S85 EEL SSESSSS_—_=a
7 a eg rs
CHAPTER I. HOW ANECTANABUS WAS
KING OF EGYPT, AND WHY HE FLED
INTO THE LAND OF MACEDON.
SSSNGy NCE UPON A TIME a king reigned
over the land of Egypt, whose name was
ej )§; Anectanabus. In his time that land was
SÂ¥4@) the richest in the world, and its people
SeeZ23) were wise and happy; but Anectanabus
was the wisest and the noblest of them, and under
his rule all men, both great and small, prospered.
The field-workers ploughed and reaped, the mer-
chants travelled and chaffered, the wise men studied
and wrote and taught, and the great lords watched
over the land, helped the poor, and guarded all men.
Shortly to say, the land of Egypt was in those days
the home of plenty and of peace, of mirth and of game.
Now Anectanabus was, above all men, skilled in
the arts of magic, for he had learned the secrets of
Egypt that were not written down in books, but cut
I A in
in the stone on the sides of the great temples, and
on the Pillars of the Sun: and when he was a young
man he had been taken into the secret chambers of
the Pyramids, and had been laid in the stone coffin
of the gods, and there the secrets had been whispered
to him which the kings and priests of Egypt had
discovered for a thousand years. And chief of all
his crafts, he had the power of making images of
men to do what he would, and whatever the images
did, that the men they were like to, did: and he used
this art to save his land from war. For if a fleet of
ships came to attack his land he would make images
of them in wax to float on water, and images of his
own ships, and then he would cause the ships of the
enemy to turn and flee before his ships or ever a
blow was struck, and as he did, so it happened in
the war. Or if an army came against him, he caused
it to flee in the same way, so that no king of the
countries about dared to come out and make war on
Egypt. And many other arts he used, but all for
the good of his land, so that men loved him and
served him with joy.
It fell upon a day that Anectanabus was sitting in
his palace hall on his dais, and round him were his
dukes and princes, and the great hall of the palace
was filled with men in rich array. In that land, the
king showed himself to men but rarely, and when he
did so he was clothed in his noblest and fairest
dress, with his crown on his head, and his nobles
2 and
and all men were dressed in their best, so that the
hall shone with gold, and sparkled and dazzled with
gems and stones, and the blue and scarlet and purple
and green of the nobles filled the place with a flood
of colour. The chief men of a certain city had peti-
tioned the king about a certain matter, and a great
duke had just risen from his seat to speak about it,
when a cry was heard outside, and through the open
doors, past the great screen, a man in half armour
covered with dust and foam rushed into the presence
of the king.. Then the heralds hurried up to him,
and crossing their wands before him, asked of him
his errand, and why he entered the hall of the king
in such unseemly dress. But he, heeding their
words never a whit, pressed forward, called out with
a loud voice, ‘‘O King, the Persians are on us,†and
straightway staggered, and fell down lifeless, for he
had ridden hard without rest and sleep with the
message of the lord warden of the sea.
A great silence fell on the hall, men looked on
each other’s faces but none spoke or moved; then
the silence was broken by the shuffle of the heralds
bearing away the body of the messenger, and the
dukes drew up nearer to one another, but still no
man spoke; for the king’s face was dark and
troubled, and he had asked none for counsel. Now
Anectanabus was troubled, not because he feared the
enemy, but because he had never before been taken
by surprise, for ever he knew by his magic art the
3 words
words of the message before they were uttered. So
he sat silent for a while, but at last he bethought
himself, and rose and left the hall, going to a little
room behind the dais, where he could be alone, for
he sought to know by his magic art who, and how
many, and where were his foes. But the great lords
sat on in silence in the king’s hall, waiting till some
of them should be sent against the foe, and silently
and noiselessly the people passed out of the hall.
As soon as Anectanabus was alone in his room,
he went to a coffer of oak covered with broad bands
of steel, and opened it with a golden key which he
drew from his breast. Then he drew out a robe of
fair white linen, and putting off his rich attire he
clothed himself in it, keeping on his golden crown. —
Taking some spices, he threw them on a brazier of
burning embers, and opened the casements of the
room, and round and round the brazier he went till
a heavy smoke filled the room, and hung over a
great copper bowl of water on the table in the middle
of it. This done, Anectanabus took a short wand of
polished steel in his hand and pointing it across the
bowl to the four quarters of the earth—North, East,
South, West—he began to utter spells. And now
it seemed as if the smoke from the room gathered
over the water, and disappeared, leaving the room
full of light, and the outside day darkened, and
looking on the surface of the water the king saw a
fleet of ships coming in full sail towards him. But
4 what
what an endless number of them there seemed to
be,—ships large and small, beating the waves with
their oars, over their sides hanging the shields of
dukes and earls and knights, the sun shining from
their weapons, the masts and pennons rising like a
forest, and high over all the banner of Persia flying,
the rising sun conquering the night. Then Anec-
tanabus touched the water with his wand, and all
the ships vanished, and the air of the room was clear
and bright.
With a grave face and a heavy heart Anectanabus
returned to his lords, and ordered them to meet in
arms on the sea-coast in seven days, there to keep
the land from Persians or any other foes, and he
dismissed them each to his place, after he had spoken
brave words to them, and reminded them of the
victories they had won, “and,†he said, “ though the
enemy be many, one lion puts many deer to flight,
and we may well destroy our foes as we have done
before.†But ever in his heart he feared, for that
the foe had come upon him by surprise, and his
magic art had told him nothing of it.
In the night, when all men slept, he rose and went
to the room in which he wrought all his magic, and
clothed himself in the white robes, and brought forth
his instruments from the oaken box, and cast a
yellow powder on the brazier. ‘Then he filled the
great copper bowl with water, looking black in the
dim light of the room, and ‘taking wax he moulded
5 ships,
ships, some white, some black, and set them to float
on the water in the vessel. Next he drew from the
box a rod of palm-wood and touched them one by one,
and as he did so they separated and gathered into
two fleets at either side of the bowl. Then throwing
some incense on the brazier, Anectanabus began to
mutter his magic words, and round and round the
bowl he walked, and the first time he threw in some
gold, and the second time a stone, and the third
time some dust. Soon the two fleets began to move
towards one another, and Anectanabus began to in-
voke destruction on the enemy as he was wont to
do; but when the battle was joined, he saw that the
ships of Egypt were one by one destroyed or taken,
nor could any of his mightiest spells turn the battle.
So he saw that the gods had forsaken him, and that
there was no hope for him; and he deemed it better
to go away and let his kingdom fall into the hands
of the Persians, than to resist them without hope of
victory, and to be made a slave at the end; and his
heart was great, and he had no son or daughter for
whom to fight.
The next day he rose and went about with a light
heart and a merry cheer, and did the things that
were to be done, and when night fell he laid off the
royal robes and the crown of Egypt, and dressed
him as one of the wise clerks of the land, and went
to the barber and caused him to shave off his beard,
and cut his hair, so that no man should know him,
G. 2 and
and he gathered store of gold and jewels, such as he
could carry, and his instruments of magic and of
star-reading, and called to him three of his servants
who had served him all his life, and when they were
loaded with his gear, he slipped out at a postern
gate of the palace, and set off on foot into the world,
not knowing where he should go. Long would it
be to tell what lands he passed through, how he
went from Egypt into Ethiopia, and from thence he
passed through many countries till at the last he
came to Macedon, where it fell that he settled and
ended his days. But no one ever thought him to
be anything but some diviner or soothsayer, nor wist
the folk that he had been a mighty king of men.
The tale tells of the care he left behind him in his
palace when men found that he had gone. The
princes sought their lord in his private chambers,
and when he was not to be seen there, knights and
barons ran about with tears on their cheeks, their
ladies swooned, and all men cursed the day. At the
last, when they could get no news, they joined in
procession to the temple of Serapis, the greatest of
their gods, to ask his aid and counsel in their sore
strait, and there they burned rich incense, and offered
many noble gifts and sacrifices. Then the god gave
them this answer: “ Fear not, O folk, for your king
is safe. Ye shall be subject to the Persians, nor
may ye any way escape. But cease your sorrow;
the son of his works shall return, he shall avenge
i . your
your defeat, he shall destroy Persia, he shall be the
noblest Emperor of the world.â€
So this people made an image of Anectanabus in
black marble, dressed in his royal robes, sceptre in
hand, and crown on head, and beneath the statue
was graved in golden letters the prophecy of their
god Serapis, that men might have it in mind in
the evil days that were on them. For the Persians
conquered them, and year by year they treated them
more hardly, and life was bitter to them, and the
Egyptians looked back year after year to the happy
days of Anectanabus, the last king of Egypt, and
waited in hope till he should come back again.
ae
Dec Weg con ocr Pea aan aseme Adee
| CHAPTER II. OF OLYMPIAS AND ANEC-
TANABUS, OF THE MAGIC HE WROUGHT,
AND OF THE BIRTH OF ALEXANDER.
faq, FELL ON A DAY that as Anec-
i] tanabus was travelling through the land
of Macedon, he came to the chief city of
Wei the land, and there his yeomen took
=| lodging for him, and he thought to dwell
there some days, for the city was fair and well placed
on a fertile plain, and it was in the month of May.
And when he talked to the men of the town he heard
say that Philip, the king of the land, had gone out
to war, but that he had left there his queen Olympias
to govern the folk, and that the next day was, as it
happened, the feast of her birthday. Now this queen
had custom on feast days to ride out into the country
near, and there sports and tournaments were held,
and all folk rejoiced before her. So Anectanabus
thought in his mind that he would go out and look
9 upon
upon her, for he had heard that Olympias was the
fairest woman in Greece,—nay, in all the world.
Early next day after meat, the queen mounted a
white mule and rode through the city to the plain,
with her wise men and her maids about her, and
much she joyed to see the fair show that the city
made, for everywhere that she came the town was
hung with rich hangings and embroidery, and every
man was eager to see the queen, and at all corners
were bands of maidens singing and beating drums
and timbrels. So the queen rode through the city,
and when she came to the plain, each man did his
best in the sports, if by any means he could gain a
prize from her hands. Among the crowd of men on
the plain was Anectanabus, and he looked not at
one thing or another but only at the queen, so that
at the last she turned and saw him, and because he
was unlike all other there in clothing and in bearing
she took notice of him and saw at once that he was
a stranger: and since he looked ever at her face nor
looked away when she turned to him, at the end
she sent men to him to know who he was. So
he came and did her reverence, and she asked him
who he was and what he would, and he told her
that he was a clerk, and that he went from place to
place, doing the will of the great gods: and Olym-
pias bade him come to her at the palace.
Now every day the queen sat on the royal seat in
the great hall of the palace, and men came to her
10 | and
and spoke before her of good and bad, and among
the rest next day came Anectanabus. And as the
queen looked. upon him, he bowed him down, and
said, ‘Hail, fair Queen of Macedon;†and the queen
noted his speech, for he spoke as one that was a king
and not as a clerk, though he were clothed in weeds
of drab and went with shaven crown. So she made
him to sit down before her on a silk-covered seat,
and she began to question him full fairly, whether
he were of Egypt, and what manner of folk were in
that land, and what was the learning of its wise men
—for she knew by his tongue that he was an out-
lander, and belike an Egyptian. And Anectanabus
answered her and told her of the land of Egypt, and
of its wonders, and of its wisdom, how some men
told the meaning of dreams, and whether they were
true or false, and when they should come to pass;
some men understood the song of the birds and the
voice of beasts; some could tell of the birth of
children, and of the length of life; some could de-
clare the secret counsels of men, which never were
spoken to any one; and some could read the course
of the stars and the signs of heaven, and say what
shall come to pass in few years’ time—‘ and, fair
Queen,†continued he, ‘‘I have so clear a knowledge
of all these arts, that I can prove myself a master in
each of them.†So saying, he leaned forward from
his seat, and stared in a study, still as a stone, at her
face. Then said the queen, ‘‘ What art thou musing
II on,
on, Master; why dost thou sit so still?†‘“I am
thinking, O Queen,†said he, ‘‘on the words of my
god, who long ago told me that I should sit in a
strange land an exile, and see the fairest queen on
earth.†Then the queen prayed him to show her
how he sought out these things, and he drew out of
his bosom a little box with seven pieces of ivory in
it, and he showed her how by casting these he could
tell what should happen to men, and answer ques-
tions about their deeds. And he showed her seven
precious stones, on each of which a wondrous figure
was carved, which preserved men who wore them
from all harm. And then he drew out his table of
ivory with three rings upon it, by which he read the
stars: the first ring was of brass, and on it were
marked the twelve houses of fate; the second was
of bright silver, and on it were marked wondrous
beasts, the twelve signs of the heavens; and the
third was of red gold, and on it were marked the
sun and the moon; and as he showed them he told
her the course of the stars, and how they governed
the life of men.
And Olympias said to him, ‘‘O Master, tell me
the day on which my lord that I love was born, and
- then I shall know thy skill.†‘Small skill were
that,†said Anectanabus, “‘to tell the past; is there
naught of the future you would learn?†“Yea,â€
said the Queen, “tell me what shall part Philip and
me, for it is told me by my wise women that if
12 he
AINGUhrienmer UAT GTR UU TR DO
he returns from battle he shall take another wife,
and send me away for ever.†“Nay, not for ever,â€
said the Egyptian, “not for ever, nor for long shall
he put thee away, for will he nill he, he must have
thee for his queen.†Then Olympias wondered
greatly, and she asked Anectanabus how this should
be, and the wise man answered and told her, how
that the great god of her country, Ammon, should
give her a fair son who should help her all his life,
and how that the god would protect her till her son
was grown. Then was the queen right glad, and
she promised Anectanabus that when these things
should happen she would honour him all her life.
Then the wise man rose from his seat, and after
looking on the queen for a while, went from the hall
to make his enchantments as at other times.
Now that night the moonwas at full, when all herbs
have their strongest might, so Anectanabus got him
forth from the city into a wild place, where no man
might see him, and there he drew up herbs for his
enchantments, marking the fairest and best, and
when the hour of the moon was come he plucked
them out by the roots, and washed the earth from
them in running water. Then he ground them
together in a mortar, and wrung out the juice, and
he made an image of the queen in white wax, and
anointed it with the juice of the plants he had
gathered, and calling on the powers of the air with
his conjurations, he made a dream for the queen.
13 So
So she, lying in her palace alone, saw a huge
dragon enter and circle the room three times—then
it came and stood before her, and, lo! it was a man,
but a man in shape like to her god; and the man
told her that she should have a son who should
defend her in all her cares, and override all her foes.
Then the queen woke from her dream, and-stretched
out her hands to the god she had seen, but the room
was dark, so, springing from her bed, she ran to the
door, but that was safely fast, and groping round
she found naught in the room; and sad that her
dream was false, she fell asleep again thinking of
the wise Egyptian, who, mayhap, should tell her what
it meant.
Early on the morrow the queen rose from her
sleep, and sent her housecarles for Anectanabus in
haste; then when he came she took him apart and
told him allher dream. Then said he to the queen :
“Tf thou art willing, and not afraid, I can show thee
this god face to face, and thou waking; but thine
eyes must be opened to see him.â€
So was the queen glad, and she assigned him a
room in her palace; and the next night did
Anectanabus, by his art magic, change himself
into a dragon such as the queen had seen in her
dream, and flying through the air with his heavy
wings he came into the place of the queen. Then
she rose up to meet him, but the sight was so
terrible to her that she covered her face with her
14 hands ;
hands; but soon she heard a voice bidding her look
up, and lo! before her was the figure of her god
Ammon—a strong, fair man, bearing on his head
two horns. Then was she glad of her life, that she
alone of all living women had seen this thing ; and
he spoke to her of all the things that Anectanabus
had told her, and of how her son should ride through
the world.
So fell she to sleep, and when she woke in the
morning light there was none there, and the doors
of the palace were fast, and great thanks she gave to
Anectanabus for his magic, for she wist not that her
god was but a show of the wise Egyptian.
But in that same night that the queen had dreamed,
the Egyptian had so wrought his enchantments
that in the hour of Philip’s star he too had fallen
asleep, and he dreamed that a dragon had taken him
up through the air, and had borne him off to his own
palace, and to the room in which Olympias, his
queen, lay sleeping. Then tried he to draw near
her, but she felt not his touch nor heard his voice;
and suddenly he was ware of a god in the room in
the shape of Ammon, and the god came to the queen
and laid his hand on her, and waked her, and sealed
her with a gold seal. So Philip drew near, and saw
that on this seal were three things graved—the head
of a mighty lion, the burst of the morning sun rising
over the world, and a sharp, keen blade of a sword ;
and he heard the god say: ‘‘ Woman, thy son that
15 I give
I give thee shall be thy defender.†Now Philip
when he woke, was so sore troubled by his dream
that he called on his diviners to say to him what it
should mean. Then said the chief of the magicians:
“© King, this thy dream means that thy wife shall
give thee a son fair and mighty. And because on
the seal thou sawest a lion’s head, as the lion is the
chief of all beasts, this son shall be a chief and a
master among all chieftains. And since on the seal
was the burst of the sunrise, so shall this son ride
through the world, and everywhere shall he be
exalted till he comes to the Land of the East; and
the biting brand showeth that by his sword shall
nations out of number be conquered and bow to
him. But for the dragon that bore thee from hence
to thy own land, he shall be to thee for an aid, and
that right soon.†And then was the king glad in his
heart.
But Anectanabus knew by his box of stones how
that Philip should be sore beset on a certain day,
and so, going out into a desert place, he called up to
him by art magic a great bird from the sea, with
broad wings, great beak, and strong claws like iron.
And as it drew near him it circled him seven times,
and then sunk down at his feet. Then the Egyptian
took and rubbed him with the juice of the plants he
had gathered, from wingtip to wingtip, and from
head to tail, and then with his mightiest spells he
sent him forth over land and sea. And lo! he
16 seemed
seemed no more a sea bird, but a mighty dragon
flying through the air. But far away Philip was in
deadly battle, for he had been all day fighting, and
now was he wearied, and a great stone had struck
him, so that he reeled to the ground, and his men
were at point to fly, and his foes were clamouring
with joy, and their eyes were burning to slay, when
the great dragon flew towards them, and men paused
to see what should happen, and lo! it fell on the
foemen, and first on him who had struck down
Philip, and men’s swords fell on it and were
shivered, and none dared to see its face, and the
men of Macedon took fresh heart, and Philip
sprang up shouting, ‘‘ The God, the Gods for us!â€
and the foe were routed and their king slain, and far
away the great dragon rose in the air and disap-
peared, no man knowing whither.
So Philip came home with much joy, honoured
of men, and when he met his queen he kissed her
fair, and they spoke of their dreams, and of what the
god had promised them. And it fell that two
wonders happened to them. For one day as they
sat at meat in the hall, and folk around them great
and small, a great dragon came into the palace, and
men fled, save some that drew sword and turned
pale, but the king cried out: ‘“ Faith, but this is the
noble dragon that turned the fight for us that other
even.†Then the king was glad, but the great worm
came slowly up the hall till it reached the queen, and
17 B there
there it raised its head on her knees, and she knew
it for the dragon that had come to her, and lifted
its head and kissed it, and all men looked for some
change ; but the dragon turned and went its way out
as it came in, and those outside saw nought save
the Egyptian diviner standing at the gate.
And one other day, as Philip sat in his great hall,
with all his nobles and chief men round him, there
came a singing-bird into the hall and sang a sweet
song, and circled his head, and came and sat on his
knee, and there dropped an egg and flew away. Then
as the king sat and looked, the egg rolled from his
knee and fell to the ground, and there it broke, and
a little worm came out and crawled about, but soon
it died. Then a great clerk near him said: ‘“ This
signifieth, O king, that thy blithe lady’s son shall
walk the world and win it, and die a bitter death
before he may return.†These were the wonders
that happened ere the birth of Alexander.
Now drew on the time when this noble child
was to be born, and as he came to earth temples and
towers tumbled on heaps, thunder rang through the
welkin, darkness fell over the earth, the wind rose
and blew, the lightning flashed over the land, and
great stones fell from the sky. Then Philip feared,
and said: “Surely this son that is born shall do
great things, and men will call me the father of this
childâ€; and with that he went to Olympias and
18 . comforted
comforted her. But the child grew, nor was he like
to father nor mother. His hair was yellow-tawny,
like a lion’s, his eyes were bright and glistening,
piercing like blazing stars; grim and fierce was his
look, one of his eyes black as a coal, the other yellow
like gold; his voice was loud, even from his first
cry, nor could any hear it without inward fear.
Alexander was his name, and the wisest man of all
the world, Aristotle, was his tutor, nor would he
learn of other. Clever and wise was he, nor did he
sit with the crowd of boys, but on a bench beside his
master, for it became not a king’s son to sit down
undistinguished from other boys. In four or five
years he learnt more than many scholars learn in
seventy winters. And when he was eleven years old
he set him to learn the art and craft of battle, to
wield a spear and a lance, to ride a noble steed in
armour, so that in a few years was none equal to
him, and in adventures of arms he surpassed all men.
It fell on a day that Philip the king was with him,
and greatly did he praise him for his deeds, and
much was his heart moved towards him; but he
said: “ Sorely my mind is troubled that nought of
me hast thou in look, nor height, nor colour, whereby
men may know that thou art my sonâ€: for Philip
was tall and black and dark-eyed. Then was the
noble queen Olympias grieved when she heard tell
of the king’s saying, and she sent for Anectanabus,
the Egyptian, and he came, but with little speed,
19 for
for he was now old and grey. And when he was
before her, she asked him what should fall of the
king’s speech, for ever she had feared the doom that
was to come; but he comforted her, and bade her
fear not, for he read day and night the stars for her,
and none of the king’s thoughts were against her.
So he went out, and Alexander with him, and as
they went, ever the Egyptian looked at the stars,
and down at the ground, and sighed. So Alexander
asked him at what planet was he looking, and
Anectanabus showed it him. Then he asked him
why he sighed, and the Egyptian said: “ My hour
draws near, the son of my works shall slay me!
Look over our heads and see that red star shine—
the star of Hercules, how bitterly it moves, but
noble Mercury shines ever, and great Jove, how
jollily he shines—the doom of my destiny is on me.â€
And as he said the word, Alexander stumbled for-
ward,and pushing the unhappy Egyptian, he fell from
the wall of the town where they were walking into
the ditch which surrounded it, and with a cry sank.
The youth plunged in after him, but when he found
his body the old man was dead, and with what
grief we cannot tell, Alexander carried home the
body of Anectanabus to the palace of his mother.
Let others tell the story of her grief, of her tears,
and of the splendid tomb of the exiled king—I
cannot.
20 CHAP. IIT.
PICA SEY Nee LE x Peer
Â¥ SASS Vag NRE
Ce eS
INU) aie ODD) ae NYO Tie INO OR he
CHAPTERIII. HOW ALEXANDER TAMED
THE HORSE BUCEPHALUS, AND HOW
HE DID HIS FIRST DEED OF ARMS.
pea |0 IT WAS THAT there was at this
@| time a certain prince in the land of
Cappadocia, and in the night as he lay
#1 sleeping a vision came to him, and it
= =43 seemed that his room was filled with a
shimmering blaze of light, and while he looked a great
dragon came into the room, and he shut his eyes for
fear. Then there came a voice, saying, “ Fear
not, O king, but look up, and hearken to my
words,†and when he raised his head he saw
an exceeding fair man standing in the room, and
he had two horns on his head, and a golden crown
like one of the gods. Then the vision bade him
convey the horse Bucephalus to the land of Mace-
donia to king Philip; and tell him that he who
should tame this horse should rule the land after
21 him.
him. The prince answered, ‘Where is this horse
Bucephalus that I may take him?†and the vision
said that on the morrow the horse should be
brought him. And suddenly the room was dark,
but the prince lay turning this matter in his mind
till the grey of the first dawn, and he slept.
On the morrow as he sat on his seat under the
oak of judgment, there came to him some of the
country folk bringing with them a fair white colt,
and his mouth was bound with iron chains. As
they came near the king asked them whose was the
foal and why they brought him in chains; and the
men answered that this colt was so wild that no
man dare go near him to mount him, and that he
would take no food since he had left his mother but
the flesh of men. Then they consulted the priest of
the temple, and he bade them carry the young horse
to the king, for he would never be tamed but by a
great king’s son, nor could any other man mount
him. So the king gave them a great reward and
they went their way. Now the horse had on his
forehead two bones like small horns, and the men
called him for that Bucephalus.
Now when the horse was brought to Philip the
king of Macedonia he was fain of him, for he was of
noble form, and it seemed as if he would be the best
horse in the world, so he thanked the prince greatly,
and made men build a stable for the horse of iron
bars, strong and good. Therein was he put, and
22 men
men doomed to death were brought to that place
and thrown to him, and he tore them to pieces, and
fed on them. And no man willingly went near the
stable in which he was. *
It fell on a day when Alexander was come to
youth, that he chanced to stand at a window of the
palace while this wild horse was being led by in iron
chains, and the prince wondered at the sight, for it
seemed to him that this was the noblest of horses,
and he could not tell why he was kept in chains.
But when he had come down to the courtyard the
grooms had gone, so he followed them searching for
the horse’s stable, and at the last he came upon the
iron house, and looking into it he wondered at the
horrible things he saw there. Then one of the
grooms came up to him and told him how the horse
fed on man’s flesh, and how that should be till he
was tamed and ridden by a great king’sson. Hear-
ing this Alexander went up to the bars and called
the horse, and the wild animal came up to them,
and laid out his neck. Then the prince put his
hand through the bars and Bucephalus licked it,
and folded his feet and fell to the ground, looking
up into Alexander’s face.
Thus was the horse tamed, and Alexander lifted
up the gate-bolts and entered the stable boldly, and
stroked Bucephalus on his back with his hand,
while the horse turned his head round and watched
him fondly. Then he got a bridle and saddle, and
23 girt
girt him round and loosed his chains, and leaping
on his back rode him off, while the good white
horse obeyed the rein as if he had been ridden ten
years. Now, while Alexander was riding him round
the courtyard, men had run to king Philip and had
told him how the prince had gone into the cage of
the fierce man-eating horse, and the king came down
to see what should hap, and found Alexander master
of the horse. Then Philip the fierce remembered
the saying of the gods, and he greeted him with
words of praise, and said, ‘Son, of a truth thou
shalt reign in my stead when I am gone, and the
land shall wax great. Ask now a gift of me, and I
will give it.†“Then,†said Alexander, ‘make me
a knight, and a chief with men-at-arms to follow me.â€
Great was the joy of Philip that his son’s first
wish was to be a leader of men in war, and that he
had done this great thing, so he granted it with
good will. ‘I give thee, O son,†said he, “one
hundred of my best horses, and sixty thousand gold
pieces from my coffers, and the best of my chieftains
and proved princes to be thy men, and free of my
house shalt thou be, to abide there in peace, or to
go from it to seek adventure in war. Thou hast
done a man’s deed, and man shalt thou be called.â€
Then the prince gave him lowly thanks, and sped
off to gather together a little band of twelve chief-
tains, picked and proved, leaders of men, whom he
had chosen to lead his men, and when this was
24. done
done each got together tried men to follow them till
the number of the band was made up.
Now when Alexander had got together his band,
he made ready to go out in search of his first
adventure, and in few days he rode out into the
world in knightly array into a land unknown, nor
did he stay until he came into the land of Pelo-
ponnesus. Now the king of this land was called
Nicholas, and when tidings were brought him that
a band of strange knights had come into his land, he
ordered that a host should be gathered together, and
he with a few knights rode out far before his
following, and came to the men of Alexander and
gan question them in his wrath and anger, “Oh, ye
knights, who is your leader, and why come you here
in my land?†Then the courteous knight Alex-
ander came to the front: “Sir knight,†said he,
‘Philip the fierce, king of Macedon, is my father,
and I am his heir Alexander.†And the king stood
up in his stirrups, and sternly looking at him, said,
“Whom think you that] am?†“Sir,†said Alex-
ander, ‘‘ you are as now king of this folk, nor do I
grudge your honour, but beware of pride, for wise
men tell that the highest thing falls soonest, and
that which is least of all is ofttimes brought to the
stars.â€
“True is thy word,†said the king, “and soon
shalt thou prove its truth it may be; look well to
thyself lest thy speech come home to thee.â€
25 Then
Then Alexander burst into rage, and with bitter
words ordered him to return to his following if he
wished safety, and Nicholas the king, flaming with
bitter wasplike anger, took up a handful of mud
and threw it in the face of Alexander, and swore by
the heart of his father that he would put him to
death with his own hands if he fled not. But the
noble Alexander controlled his rage at the foul
insult, and keeping his face by a mighty effort,
though his hands were gripping each other through,
said, “As thou hast wronged me causelessly,
Nicholas, I swear by my father and by my god that
thou shalt see me ere long for this cause, and that I
shall take thy land from thee, or thou my life from
me.†Soa day was set for them to meet in fight,
and they parted on either side.
__ Now were men on both parts getting them ready
for the fight. Alexander hurried home into Macedon
and assembled a mighty host of knights and archers,
men proved and skilled in arms. And when the
host was assembled, with his princes and captains,
he sought the presence of Philip and took his leave,
and mounting Bucephalus his brave white horse, he
led, first of all, his army out of the broad gates of
the town. So on the appointed day the field is
covered with the array of either host, and now men
lift up the banners and shake them out to the wind,
and the clarions sound out till the whole field rings
with the music, and the woods and the hills answer
26 them
them again. Then each noble prepares for battle,
his helm on his head he strides to his horse, and
jumps on his steel-clad saddle, he hangs round his
throat his bright shimmering shield, and handles
his lance. Then is the stamping of steeds, the
stripping of banners, the clouds of dust rise in the
air, and suddenly the crowds meet with a shock in
the middle of the plain. Now the steeds rear up
against each other, and the spears break through
the blazoned shields and through the helmet bars,
while the cypress lance shafts splinter into frag-
ments, and down fall knights and dukes from their
steeds.
Well and nobly did the young Alexander fight
his first battle. Sir Nicholas took him a spear,
and rushed on the young knight to get him a name,
and to keep his oath that he had sworn. Then
Alexander took another lance from his squire, for
the first one was strained in the fight by this time
and might betray him, and they met one another in
the field, and men stayed to see this fight. So sore
were their strokes that the long lances split, even
from point to handgrip, so that there was not an ell
long piece in either man’s hand. Then each threw
the fragment away, and out flashed their swords
from the sheaths, and they hacked and hewed at
each other through mail-coat and helmet. But mail
and helm were good and gave not way, till Alex-
ander grew mad with rage, and with one full stroke
27 he
he struck off the head of King Nicholas clear through
the neck and helm, and he fell down to the earth.
So it was that Alexander got him great worship by
this victory, for all the men of that country and
their lords came to him, and falling on their knees
put them in his mercy, and acknowledged him as
ruler of the land. Thus he defeated his enemy, and
revenged the insult of King Nicholas, and returned
home with fame and good to his father.
The tale tells that as he entered Macedon he
found the town at feast, and his father at his high
table; but another woman sat in the seat of the
queen, for Philip had put away Olympias, as the seers
had told her years before. So Alexander bowed
him down meekly in seeming, and said, “ Father, I
pray thee receive the fruits of my first victory ere I
go hence to the wedding.†‘And whose wedding
dost thou go to?†said the king. ‘To my mother’s,â€
said he, “for I will marry her to some noble king,
and I will make him the greatest king on earth, for
it likes me not to stay here while she is in disgrace,
and I know not for what.†Then Philip grew white
with wrath, but one Lysias, a knight at the table,
said, ‘‘O king, heed not his talk, for this fair queen
shall bring thee a son greater than him.†Turning
to him, Alexander with his truncheon struck him a.
blow so that he fell dead to the ground, and men said
that in truth he had deserved it; but Philip started
up at the deed, and snatching a blade rushed on
28 Alexander,
Alexander, aiming a fierce blow at him, for the gods
had blinded his eyes so that he knew not wisdom
from folly, or right-doing from wrong. But as he
came on, his feet failed him, and ere he reached
Alexander the king staggered, stumbled, and fell to
the ground, though no man saw cause for it. Then
Alexander laughed out loud, and said, “ Does the
Governor of Greece fear one youth? What ails
thee to fall?†and he struck over the tables of the
feast, and dragging the bride out of the hall by her
hair he brought her to his mother, for his heart was
full of wrath at the wrong done to her, while Philip
was carried away stricken with sore sickness. Thus
was his mother avenged, and the marriage feast
disturbed.
But when Alexander’s wrath cooled it came into ©
his heart to make peace between Philip and his
mother, and rising up he went to the bed of Philip,
and there he spoke words as a friend might speak,
and the gods put in the king’s heart to forgive the
death of Lysias, and to reconcile him to his wife;
and so the king rose up, and leaning on Alexander’s
shoulder, went with him to Olympias, and there he
took her in his arms and kissed her, and forgave
all her faults, and she was made queen again, and
reigned in Macedon to her life’s end.
29 CHAP. IV.
i) Wy / hi }
: Ai fps Son
Â¥ BF [i ppliin E
Cae » , or ive†es
XS WSR TR >~Ss Ee
Din oN Ds Qs S NOY (CS ae |
RRS INS ANS OPENS VAS
CHAPTERIV. TELLS OF THE EMBASSY
OF DARIUS, OF THE DEATH OF PHILIP,
AND THE CROWNING OF ALEXANDER.
za seH HE TALE TELLS that on a day men
ee: aN told in Macedon that an embassy from the
NW Bc] Emperor of the World, Darius of Persia,
RS eg] was drawing near; and the whole city
Pere] came out, men, women, and children, to
see them enter. But there was doubt and fear in the
court of Philip, for they were coming to demand
from him the tribute which he had not paid for the
last three years, and the king had made up his
mind to be no more subject to the Persians, and
Alexander had sworn to conquer them in war if his
father would raise an army against them, but Philip
would not, for he knew that no man could count the
armies of Darius, spent he his whole life to that end.
And so the heralds came riding up to the gate of
the town mounted on their high steeds, and there
30 were
were three of them, and each of them was a king,
and wore armour of proof. On each man’s head was
a golden crown, and their pages bore before them
their helmets. The herald who was on the right
wore bright silver armour; his surcoat was dark
green, and on it was worked a fierce tiger rushing
on his prey, and he was the herald of Media. The
herald riding on the left wore black armour from
head to foot, and his surcoat was of scarlet, and on
it was a wild boar turning to face his foe, and this
was the herald of Persia. But the herald in the
middle was clad from head to foot in bright gold,
and his surcoat was of a deep clear blue, and on
it shone the sun high over all the world, and all
men shouted when they saw him, for he was a head
taller than common men, and he was the herald of
the Emperor of the World.
When they reached the gate the trumpeters blew
three long calls on their trumpets with a silence
between each, and the drawbridge, which had been
raised, slowly fell, and the great gate of the city
opened, and the herald of the King of Macedon came
forth and greeted them fair, and offered them rest
and hostage till such time as they should see the
king. But they said, “O dear brother and friend,
it is not fitting that we eat or drink in this town till
we have done the errand of our lord, or till we know
whether we harbour with friends and servants, or
with foes and traitors of the Master of the World.
31 Wherefore
Wherefore we pray you, dear brother, that you will
lead us to the hall of your prince that we may do
our errand, not doubting that after it we shall be
beholden to your love for rest and comfort.†So
the heralds dismounted, and their men remained
without with their horses, while they went into the
town and through the streets up to the palace hall
of Philip.
Now the king was sitting on his throne under the
dais at the upper end of the hall, and on his right
hand sat the noble Alexander, and round the king
on his right and his left were the nobles of the land,
greybeards and youth. And when the coming of
the heralds was told them the king rose from his
seat, and as they stepped forward so did he, and he
came to the middle of the hall and three steps
further, for all men did reverence in those days to
the herald. And he greeted them, and on the neck
of each man he threw a chain of gold, and much he
praised them for their fame. But the heralds spoke
and said, ‘‘O king, we have a message for thee, nor
may we delay.†And he said, ‘‘ Speak on.â€
So the Wild Boar of Persia spake: ‘‘O Philip, for
three years thou hast not sent thy accustomed tribute
to Persia, nor a part of it. Now, therefore, pay it
at once, or fear the wrath of Persia.†Then the
Tiger of Darius the Mede, spake: “‘O king, foras-
much as in past years thou hast served the king,
and as perchance thy land has suffered from famine
32 and
iN
BR ee ERS ETE . BN eT
in 1
BYP’,
and war, thy king and friend, Darius, forgives thee
freely thy past tribute by my mouth.†But the
herald of the Empire of the World added: “On
this condition only, that thou payest over to me
three sacks full of Grecian earth in token of thy
obedience to the great Emperor, and to show that
hereafter thy tribute shall not fail.â€
For a short time there was silence in the great
hall, and then Alexander spake out: “ Fair father
and lord, suffer me to answer for thee.†Then
turning to the heralds, “ Return,†said he, “ return
to your people and to your master, and bid him to
send no more messages here of this matter, for
know that Philip hath a son grown that yields to
no man, and obeys no lord. Tell him that the land
of Macedon which in times past yielded him wealth
so freely is now barren, and will give him hence-
forth no tribute, come what may.†These words
and more he said, yet he departed not from the
courtesy that beseemeth great lords, and the heralds
wondered at his speech, and greatly they praised
him to his father. But Alexander sought out the
herald of the Sun and gave him a fair jewel, and
said to him that it was to retain him against the day
when he should be emperor in his turn.
It must be said that these heralds had gone
through all the lands subject to the Emperor of
Persia, for they had a secret errand from Darius.
Now Darius had no son, and but one fair daughter,
33 c Roxana
Roxana by name, and he was minded to marry her.
to one of the king’s sons of the lands, so the heralds
were straitly charged to get the portraits of the
princes and kings, and in their train was a skilled
painter. Thus it fell that during the three days of
guesting the painter drew a likeness of the prince
exactly his height and size, and it was taken back
to Darius with the other portraits, that the Emperor
might choose the prince who should marry his
daughter, and succeed him in the empire. And
after the three days of hostage the heralds took
their leave of King Philip, and went their way, and
in due time they arrived at the court of Darius, the
proud king of Persia, and there they told him how
his tribute was lost, and how Philip’s son had
spoken.
In Macedon meanwhile many things had hap-
pened, for it was told Philip that all the land of
Armenia had revolted against him, and that the
earls and princes were in arms, so Alexander
gathered a host and marched against them, and,
shortly to tell, he laid waste all the land of the
rebels. But while he had marched away a worse
thing fell to Philip, for a prince of the land, Pau-.
sanius, son of Cerastes, who dwelt in the marches of
Macedon, and was one of his noblest knights, rose
against him. And this was the reason of his re--
bellion :—For many years this lord had loved. the
queen Olympias, and when Philip put her away he
34 had.
had come to the feast of the king’s new marriage to
defy him and to take her away, but when Alexander
restored her to her place he departed sorrowful, and
the love in his heart burned up, till at the last he
summoned all his friends to make war on Philip, if
by any means he might kill him, and carry off the
fair queen to be his wife.
Now Philip gathered together all his men and
went out to war with Pausanius, but the folk that
were with him were few, and when they met in the
field fear fell on him, and he turned and fled to his
castle. Then all men shouted when they saw that
the great Philip had shewn his back, and Pausanius
sprung out of the ranks on his proud steed, and
speeding after the king struck him through the back
to the breast and bore him to the earth, and there
he lay on the highway half dead. Then Pausanius
rode on, and all Philip’s men fell back, for they were
sore troubled when they saw their king wounded to
death. So the prince came to the castle, and joy was
in his heart, for he thought to bring out the fair
queen and to lead her away. But in the heat of his
joy Alexander returned victorious from Armenia
with the nobles of Macedon, and when he heard the
noise of the weapons he spurred into the town.
Now the queen had shut the door of the castle-keep,
and when the noise of the host was heard she flew
to the window at the top, and by the arms and spoil
she knew it was her son returned victorious. Then
35 ; the
the queen called to her son with a loud voice, ‘‘ O
son, who shall never be conquered, avenge and help
thy mother in her need,†and Alexander heard her,
and wrath rose in his heart. But when Pausanius
heard that Alexander had come, he came armed out
of the palace, and with him a host of mighty men,
and the hosts met in mid-field; yet short was the
fight, for Alexander swung out his sharp sword and
with one blow struck him dead, and all his men ~
gave up their weapons to the noble conqueror.
Then came one and told him that his father lay
wounded on the highway, and Alexander rushed
forth and found him as one near death, and he fell
down by his side and wept bitterly. But the old
king said, ‘“‘ Ah, son Alexander, now am I near my
end, but yet am I glad to have lived long enough to
see my slayer so soon killed. Well be thou that
thou hast avenged me.†Then he raised up his head
and looked at his son, but the effort was too much
for him, and with one groan he died.
The tale tells of how Alexander grieved for the
death of Philip as one grieves for the loss of his
father, and of the burial of the old king: how he was
borne on men’s shoulders to bale, how his barons
and knights followed him as he was laid to rest in
his own land, and how all men of the land, rich and
poor, noble and simple, grieved for the loss of the
great king. The next day Alexander sat on his
throne, a bright gold crown studded with gems
36 is
his head, and in his hand the sceptre of his father.
Then the heralds proclaimed that all the court
should draw near, and that all men should do their
liege homage to him, and they came at his call, and
all men acknowledged him as lord on their bended
knees, and Alexander put off his crown from him
and laid it on the throne, and rose up and spoke to
his people in this wise: “ Fair lords, I will in no
wise be contrary to your wills, nor to your deeds.
But I show to you that I hate frauds and malice,
and as I have loved you during my father’s life, so
will I do in time to come. And I both counsel and
pray you that ye dread the gods, and obey them ;
and that ye choose for king him that shall best
provide for the good estate of his people, and that
shall be most courteous and merciful to poor
folk, him that will best keep justice and the right
of the feeble against the mighty, and him that
most boldly shall put him in array to destroy your
enemies; for such ought to be chosen king and
none other.â€
Now when the lords of the land had heard his
reasons abovesaid, and considered his great dis-
cretion, wit, and understanding, they marvelled
greatly, and answered him thus: “ We have heard
and understand thy great reasons, and have received
thy good counsels, and therefore we will and
beseech thee that thou reign over us, and have the
lordship upon us. During thy life may there be
37 none
none who shall deserve to be our king rather than
thou.†And thus they chose him to be their king,
and crowned him, and gave him their troth, and
prayed the gods to bless and maintain him.
That night as Alexander lay on his bed he
dreamed, and in his dream he saw Anectanabus,
the wise Egyptian, come to him ; on his head were
two ram’s horns, and his coat was brown. It
seemed that he came to him as he lay, and put his
hand on his shoulder and said, “Stay thou not in
this land of Macedon, but go forth into all lands,
for thou shalt conquer them, and they shall be sub-
ject to thee, and thou shalt not die, except on a soil
of iron, beneath a sky of gold.†Then came to him
one dressed in robes of blue and purple and gold,
covered with all manner of embroidered figures, and
on his head was a strange crown of gold and pearls
and precious stones, and he said, “ The God whom
I serve shall teach thee to destroy the empire of the
Persians.†And last there came to him a very fair
lady, tall and graceful, and she looked on him with
love, and said, ‘‘O Alexander, my heart’s lord, when
thou hast overcome the Persians, indeed thou shalt
reign over them, and I shall be thy queen and lady-
love. Let this be the sign between thee and me,
that we meet first at the feast of the Lord of
Persia.â€
38 CHAP. V.
rere ads oh
RS Fp RE EB
= Seb
res rd ferorn G
A20|liowolprecs
CHAPTER V. HO
ERED AN ARMY TOGETHER: HOW HE
BUILT ALEXANDRIA AND LAID SIEGE
TO THE CITY OF TYRE.
aay a@|\9 TO THE GIVING in marriage of
“| the daughter of Darius, the Emperor
of Persia, it is to be told that on a set
SY fes)N| day the wise men of the land came
see] before him, and the painter brought
out to them the portraits he had made, and they
examined them but found none that was worthy to
rule, for one was covetous, and another quarrel-
some, and a third given to much speaking, and
these faults the wise men read in the faces on the
parchment. Then they came to the likeness of
Alexander and all men said ‘‘ This man is born to
be lord of men†and they brought it before Darius,
and he sent for his daughter Roxana, and made her
stand by the picture, and when she did so, she was
39 taller
taller than the figure painted thereon. Then Darius
turned away and said nought, but shook his head,
and Roxana took with her the cast-away drawing
and bore it to her own rooms, and kept it safe; and
she vowed offerings to the gods if they would make
this man her lord and husband.
But Alexander gathered together all the warriors
of the land, and made them a speech: ‘‘Lo, barons
of Macedon, Thrace, and Thessaly, and all true
Greeks, how like you now your liege lord: look on
my face and let fear depart: hold up your hearts,
and flee from no alien while Alexander lives. The
gods have granted me that all the barbarians shall
obey me: and there shall be no nation so rich or
great under heaven that my name shall not be
honoured there, for we of Greece shall be praised
and feared over the wide world. Now, then, prepare
ye for war; he who has arms of his own, trusty and
good, let him take them; he who has them not, let
him come to me, and I will furnish him for battle.â€
Then answered him with one voice all the old
knights and peers of his father’s army: “Sire, we
have fought often in hard fields with Sir Philip,
your father, and many winters have gone over our
heads; now our force fails us and our flesh is weak,
for be the flower never so fresh it fades at the last.
Sir, all the days of our youth are long past, we are
over-travelled and tired, our heads are white and too
weak to bear the helmet or to seek adventures of
40 arms.
arms. Excuse us, Lord, we pray, and take with thee
younger men, stout in battle, and fit to deal heavy
strokes.â€
“Nay, by my crown,†said the king, “I cannot
spare my old men; an army of young men will often
break their line in battle, trusting to their own
strength. I choose the older men who do all their
works by plan and counsel.†And the old knights
yielded to his wishes, and all men praised his
wisdom.
Now the time had come when kings go out to
war, and Alexander took ship from the coast of
Greece and sailed towards Italy. So at the first his
army turned towards Chalcedon, a strong and
mighty city, and he besieged it. And when the
men of the city fought but faintly, Alexander rode
up to the walls and cried out with a loud voice: “O
men of Chalcedon, either fight bravely or yield up
your town without delayâ€; and they of the city were
so fearful that at the sound of his voice they owned
him for master, and all the land took him for lord.
Then Alexander sailed into Italy and took tribute
of all men; even the mighty Romans sent him sixty
thousand gold pieces, and Europe was subject to
him.
From Europe the king sailed over the great sea
into Africa, and many days he sought an enemy and
found none, for the fame of him had gone before him.
On a day he sought a temple of the god Ammon
4I with
with his earls and mighty men, and there happed
on the way a marvel. For it fell as he was going,
that a hart with a huge head leaped forth before
them ; hardly had man ever seen so noble a beast.
Then said Alexander: “Lo, the emperor of harts,
slay him ere he escape.†And all men shot, but so
fleet was the hart that none could reach him. Then
Alexander bent a bow, and with a mighty shout let
fly at him, and the arrow struck him and pierced
him through, though all men deemed that the hart
was far out of bowshot. Then his men wondered
greatly, and the country folk who saw the shot
deemed that Alexander was indeed some god, and
the name of the place is called in their tongue
Bowshot to this day. But the king went into the
temple and offered great gifts.
Then went Alexander on his way and came to a
very fruitful land, a land with twelve rivers running
into the sea. And on a night as he lay on his bed
he saw in a dream the god of the land, tall and fair,
clad in a chestnut-brown robe, wearing on his head
a gold, crown, and having two horns like ram’s
horns. And as he dreamed the god said to him,
pointing to a high mountain: “King Alexander,
canst thou lift yonder hill and carry it on thy
shoulder.†“ Nay,†said Alexander, “who is there
under heaven who might try?†“King,†said the
god, “your name shall ever be remembered, till
yonder hill is removed from its place.†Then Alex-
42 ander
ander laughed out with joy, and he said to the
vision: ‘‘ I beseech thee now, O Shining One, tell me
as at this time ere thou pass away how I shall die,
and when my day shall come?†Then the god
looked on him sadly, and said: ‘‘ Truly I hold it
better that a man should not seek to know that
which shall come upon him; yet since thou hast
asked me, I tell thee that thou shalt conquer all
nations, and die by poison, and thy years shall be
finished ere thou reach middle age. Ask me no
more of this as now; far in the Land of the East
thou shalt be told the end of thy days by number.â€
And with these words the light in the room flickered
and blew sideways, and Alexander started up, and
behold there was no man with him. Then in the
morning the king ordered his men to build him
there a city, and that city remains to this day, and
the name of it is Alexandria.
Now when the city was built, and men from
Greece had come thither, with merchants from Tyre
and from far lands, to dwell, to buy, and to sell,
Alexander went forth with his host through all the
land of Egypt, and the men of that land feared him
as one of the high gods. And as he came to a
certain city he found in it an image of a king carved
in black stone, a crown on its head, and a royal
sceptre in its hand; but below it were many words
carven—the words which the god had told the men
of the land many years before. Then Alexander
43 asked
asked the chief men of the city: “Sirs, what statue
is this, and what be the words that are written
beneath it?†And the men of that place answered
him: “ Truly, O king, this man was Anectanabus,
once king of all this land; yet because he was
bidden of the gods he left us, and the writing below
tells us that he shall come again and free us from
the Persians, and make us a great people. And
some men say that it shall be a son of his that shall
do these great things.†Then Alexander knew that
this was that same Egyptian who had been his
fosterer, and he said to the men of the place: “I
knew the man, and for his sake I will make ye free
from all men, rich and happy shall ye be.†And he
fell at the feet of the statue and kissed it, and they
stood by him in silence.
But on a day it was told him that they of Tyre
had destroyed a ship of Alexandria, and had spoken
evil of him, and Alexander marched into Syria with
all his host to subdue it and to conquer Tyre. Now
Tyre was a fair city, built on an island in a bay,
with the sea washing up to its walls. And it was
so strong that no army had ever taken it, and so
rich that its merchants were princes and_ hired
armies to defend them, and all the country round
owned the men of Tyre as their lords. But they of
the city said: “What king shall injure Tyre, for our
walls defend us, and our ships sail every sea, and
bring to us the good things of earth and food and
AA drink,
drink, and our wealth is great, and all men shall
serve us for it?â€
But Alexander and his host were marching
towards them, and one day the men of Tyre saw
the army of Alexander on the plain before them,
for he had taken two strong cities, Damascus and
Sidon, and had made all the land subject to him.
And as they looked the camp seemed to grow and
tents were raised, and no man could count their
number. So Alexander's army was before the
town, and he thought that he should take it easily,
but not a few troubles were suffered before Tyre
submitted to him.
Now it fell that many days had been spent in
fruitless assaults on the city before Alexander found
out that its walls were too high for him to take it
by storm. Everywhere were turrets and towers of
defence, and the wild waves of the sea outside beat
on the walls to as much purpose as the army of
Alexander. Then men began to murmur and com-
plain first of one thing, then ofanother, and Alex-
ander ordered them to construct a great castle beside
the city in the sea, and raise it up to the height of
the walls of the city, that he might prevent ships
coming into it to bring food and riches. But when
the tower was nearly finished the army was in sore
strait, for food was wanting in the camp. Princes,
dukes and fierce knights were famishing, yea, all
men were starving.
45 Then
Then Alexander pitied his men, and resolved to
get provision and help for them, so he sent special
messengers to those tribes which were near, bidding
them to send him help both in men and in food.
And among others he sent to Jaddua, chief bishop
in Jerusalem, and admonished him to send fresh
men for the fight and food for the folk that were
with him, and to pay all the tribute due to Darius
to the Greeks. And he told his scribe to put into
the letter gentle words, saying that it was better to
be the helpers of the men of Macedon than to be
the servants of Darius.
Now when the messengers came to Jerusalem
they were received by the chief bishop in a great
hall, and when they gave him the king’s letter he
went away into an upper room to read it by himself.
But when he had read it he stayed a little, and then
coming down the steps into the hall he gave this
answer to the envoys: “ Sirs, return to Alexander,
and say thus: Many years have passed since I made
oath never to harm Persia, nor to pass in arms
against Darius all the days of his lifeâ€. When Alex-
ander received this answer he was very wroth, and
he vowed to teach the Jews whose orders they
should obey; yet he would not leave the siege of
Tyre, but sent away a part of his army to obtain
food for him and the rest of the Greeks.
46 CHAP. VI.
Syt
Key
iS
cH
ee
WA
Wee) ae
CHAPTER VI. TELLS OF THE FORAY OF
KADESH, AND OF ITS ENDING, AND OF
THE TAKING OF THE CITY OF TYRE.
ee eesfOW THE CHIEF of the band he sent
Akal was Meleager, one of Alexander’s most
WARY) valiant knights, and he had with him
Ga] five hundred lances and their men-at-
ee arms. His orders were to ride through
the valley to the city of Kadesh, which belonged to
Tyre, to drive together all the cattle and flocks in
the plains, and to bring them to the army of
Alexander. So he set out, and with him was Sir
Sampson, a bold knight of the land, who knew all
the country round about. They were so successful
that they gathered together a host of beasts beyond
number, and soon they turned towards Tyre with
delight in their hearts. But before they had tra-
velled a mile all the country was alarmed, and rose
in arms against them, and a very valiant knight,
47 Theosell,
Theosell, came riding out to meet them, and to pre-
vent their getting away before the host appeared.
Now Theosell and his men were armed in plate, and
they made such a sudden rush on the Greeks that .
they struck many down and overrode them, so that
those who fell to the ground never rose after, and
their blows were mighty. Then Meleager was
moved with wrath when he saw the Greeks turn
and flee, and mounted as he was on a young horse
he seized his spear and spurred against the enemy,
striking great blows. Sampson, on the other hand,
broke his lance at the first encounter, and struck
out right and left with the broken end, hewing
down his foes; also Aristes, a noble knight, was
one of those who were chief in their resistance to
the foe, and Caulus had no less an enemy than
Theosell himself. The first stroke of Caulus’ sword
fell on the helmet of Theosell, and struck down
through the wooden crest—the great wild boar’s
head—down into the helmet, and before Theosell
had recovered from the blow a great swing of the
sword struck off his head. Now when this noble
knight was fallen to the ground all the folk that
followed him, and were able, fled away, and Meleager
and his men rejoiced that they had slain the leader
of their foes and had won the field.
Suddenly they were interrupted by the sound of a
horn, and they saw an army marching out of Kadesh
against them under the command of Beritinus, a
48 great
great lord of the country. The tale tells that there
were with him thirty thousand lances clad in plate
armour and mounted, with others following on foot,
so that clouds of dust covered them, and the earth
seemed to shake at their tread. Then the Macedo-
nians were sore dismayed to see such a great host
come out against them, and Meleager was in great
mind to send a message to Alexander, asking him
for aid before they joined battle. But there was no
man who would go on such an errand, or leave his
comrades in danger of death, and all men set their
faces to live and die together.
The first onset of the foe was a fierce one, and
not few of them, with their chief Beritinus, met their
death, but the Macedonians lost Sampson and many
another noble. Then began a long struggle between
the few Macedonians and their foes, till at last they
were beaten down to a little group of tired, wounded,
and bleeding soldiers, breathless and faint, hardly
able to strike a blow, yet resolved not to flee. Then
the brave knight Aristes, although sore wounded
himself, slew one of the enemy, and, leaping on his
horse, spurred off to Alexander for help before all
the little band was destroyed. Little need to tell
that the king was sore grieved, and gathering to-
gether in haste as many of his knights as he could,
he rode off to the rescue of Meleager through the
valley, leaving Tyre and the camp. And ever as he
went his eyes dropped tears as he thought of his
49 D good
good knights slain, and most of all he grieved for
Sampson, whom he loved well.
But while Alexander was riding through the
valley away from Tyre the men of the town were
busy. He had finished a great tower in the water
over against the city wall, and had left a guard
within it to keep it till his return. But Sir Balaan
of Tyre, one of the chief men of the town, prepared
great machines and engines for casting stones into
the tower, and when he had driven the guard from
its walls, he sallied out of the town with a host of
armed men and attacked it. Then the men of the
tower defended it sharply, and sent out showers of
darts and great stones. But Balaan fought so bit-
terly, and sent such a cloud of stones, that none of
the Greeks could show themselves on the tower,
and his slaves brought engines and threw down the
top of the tower and tilted it into the sea, and all
the men in it were slain. Then he got boats and
barges and attacked the bottom of the castle, and
broke down all its lower part, and threw the heaps
into the sea, and the winds and the sea helped him,
and a storm arose and beat the pieces small, so that
not one beam remained fastened to another. Thus
this great work was destroyed in a day, and Balaan
returned to the city and barred the gate as before.
By this time Alexander had come out of the valley
and reached the plain of Kadesh. Before him he
saw here and there a few of his men fighting in
50 scattered
scattered groups, while others of the enemy were
collecting the cattle and sheep to drive them home
again. All over the plain he saw his men struck
down surrounded by heaps of the enemy. Then his
eyes flamed out with wrath at the sight of their
danger, and he struck spurs into Bucephalus his
horse, and springing out with a spear rode straight
at the thickest of his foes; and ever as he rode he
struck them to earth, so that through the thickest of
the throng his way was marked by a clear wide path
and his nobles rode after him. And when his lance
broke he drew out his long sword and struck down
all before him till no man of the enemy was on the
plain who was not stricken down and a prisoner.
Then he turned to those of his men who were still
alive and comforted them with fair words, and
much he praised their valour, and then bound up
their wounds, and the king left order that the dead
should be buried under stone or marble monuments,
and gathering together the prey, great and small,
flocks and herds, he returned with his men to Tyre.
The tale tells that as he rode out of the valley and
came into view of Tyre his first look was towards
the great tower he had built, and sore was he grieved
when he found that it had been destroyed, and that
his soldiers that were in it had perished; and all
the Macedonians mourned, and they trusted no
longer that Tyre would be taken. But that same
night Alexander was sleeping by himself in his tent,
51 and
and he thought that he saw a great vine before him,
and that he put out his hand and plucked one grape
out of a ripe cluster. Then he flung it on the floor
and put his foot on it, and when he had broken it,
lo! wine flowed out, so much that it was a wonder
to see. In the morning, when the king rose, he
called to him a wise man, and bade him tell what
the dream should mean; and the wise man said:
‘O king, fear not ; Tyre is thine own; for this berry
that thou didst break is the town of Tyre, and thou
shalt tread under thy feet its towers within few days.â€
Then the king rejoiced, and set about to make many
plans, if by any means he might come within the
walls of Tyre.
Soon another tower was in building, right in the
same place as the first had been, half as large again
and higher than the town-walls, firmly anchored and
fastened so that it could not move, close against the
sea-wall of the town. And when the tower was
built Alexander clad himself in armour of steel, its
plates shining in the sun, and went to the top of it
and looked over the town and saw its walls, and
then he looked to his camp and saw the Greeks, and
he resolved to make no more delay but to take it by
storm at once. So he ordered the Macedonians to
make ready for the battle, and when they saw him
on the walls of Tyre to lose no time, but each man
to follow him. Then began the beating of drums
and the loud blare of the trumpets till the town and
52 camp
camp rang with their brazen strokes, and all men
rushed to the assault of the walls. The archers
came within bowshot of the walls, covered with
great shields which they held before them, each
shield covering two men, and shot keenly at every
‘mark that showed itself, and their arrows were
deadly as adders; nor were they of the town less
eager to return their bowshot, and from the walls
they cast great stones among the Greeks. Suddenly
the gates of the town opened, and the Tyrians made
a sally out, wounding and killing many of the
archers, for they were good spearmen, and could
cast the dart. |
But Alexander and his princes had passed up into
the tower, and some of the lords were armed with
lances, and some bore huge two-handed swords, and
many carried the battle-axe, and a few had cross-
bows which shot great bolts of steel. Then from
the tower they passed on to the sea-wall of Tyre and
fought their way among a crowd of foes, Alexander
ever the first. Long were it to tell of the fight and
of his valour, for they of the town worthily with-
stood him, and ere they made sure their footing on
the town-wall, many knights had been_ stricken
down backward into the deep water. But when
they saw that, the Greeks became maddened with
rage, and no.wound could make them pause, and as
they obtained a footing they fell to shooting with
cross-bows, and with their great catapults, each stone
53 like
like a man’s head, and the yeomen got out great
crowbars and began to tear down the turrets and
battlements; while the knights hurried forward
beating down their opponents. At last a breach in
the walls was made, and then the host of Alexander
rushed into the town, eager to revenge the death of
so many of their comrades, and the men of Tyre
thronged thick to the wall to guard the entrance.
But Alexander forced his way through them all and
over the broken wall into the city, and the first man
he met was Balaan. Short was the fight, for
one stroke of his mighty sword laid Balaan low,
and he was thrown into the sea beneath the walls.
Then when the Tyrians were driven from the walls
the Greeks clambered up them with all manner of
ladders, on each step a cluster, and those who had
no ladders climbed up the stones without them, and
in short time Tyre was in their hands, for after the
death of Sir Balaan no man could lead the men of
the town or give them heart to fight.
Then Alexander commanded to cast down the
walls of Tyre, and when it was done it came into
his mind to punish the men of Jerusalem for their
refusal to send him help against Tyre, and his army
moved down towards the city. And on his way he
conquered the land of the Philistines, and burned
down the city of Gaza.
54 CHAP. VIL.
\
a (a \ ee:
Ta
rs
a E :
ST 0
ii
am
SS 2
= \ i yy = : |
CHAP. VII. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO
JERUSALEM, HOW THE BISHOP MET
HIM, AND WHAT THERE BEFELL HIM.
SeaAHEN WORD WAS BROUGHT to
B Poe Jerusalem that Tyre was taken, and that
aa { Alexander was on the march towards the
BPA city to punish it for its disobedience,
eee there was heavy grief and woe, and
Jaddua the bishop was in great awe, for he said to
himself: ‘‘ Now have I but a few days ago refused
to obey this great warrior, and when he the most
needed help I denied it him; better had it been for me
that anything should have happened before I grieved
this man, and did not his command. Woeis me and
my city.†And Jaddua called together the men of the
city, and said: ‘“ Now is Alexander at hand, and
will destroy our city and us unless heaven help us.â€
So men went through the streets, and it was
55 ordered
ordered that all the inhabitants of the city should
fast for three days, men, women and children, and
that they should appear in the temple and cry with
clean hearts to the King of Heaven to keep them
safe from this mighty conqueror. And so it was
that the whole city fell to prayers and fasting, and
woe was:on every face. But on the third night,
when all the city was asleep and the sacrifices ended,
then a shining one stood by the bishop and spoke
joyful words to him, saying: “Sir Bishop, I bring
thee tidings of bliss and solace. I am sent to thee
from the Master of men to bid thee be not cast
down. Now, therefore, rise up early and array all
thy city, its streets and its houses, in fair attire, open
its gates wide, let every man be apparelled in clean
and milk-white clothes. And as for thee and thy
priests and prelates, clothe thee in the dress of thy
rule, and when this conqueror comes, go ye forth to
meet him. And fear not to greet him nobly, for he
must ride and reign over the round world to the
day of his death.â€
Then when the day broke the bishop rose and
called together all the chief of the people, and told
them his vision and what the voice had bade him
do ; and all his clergy and the city assented that so
it should be, that the city should be adorned and
that all men should go forth to meet this their
sovereign. So all the people hurried home and
brought out their richest treasure to adorn the city.
56 The
The broad streets were arched over with awnings
of rich and rare stuffs. The ground was covered
with Tartary silk and with taffeta, that so noble a
ruler should not tread on bare earth. The pave-
ment was covered over with woven stuffs, and
canopies of fine linen were stretched on high over
the gates of the city to keep off the heat of the sun,
and they were gathered on either side with silken
ropes, and drawn back like curtains, while the
houses were hung with Indian stuff of bright blue
embroidered with stars, even to the eaves. Thus
was the town adorned, and when the gates were
opened, men without might deem that they looked
in on one of the seven heavens.
And now the people of the city began to come
out in procession, clothed in their richest robes.
First came the bishop with the priests of the temple,
dressed in royal magnificence. He wore under all
a long robe covered with birds and beasts em-
broidered in blue and purple, and on that a robe
with gold skirts, with many shining stones sprinkled
all over, and set stiff with sapphires and other gems,
and powdered with pearls of the purest hue. Over
this he cast on a cope of chestnut colour with rich
ribands of gold, and round the hem a border of
violet flowers, embroidered with satyrs and fauns .
and the wild beasts of the forest. And on his head
he wore a great mitre forged out of pure gold,
bordered with pearls, and covered with such precious
57 stones
stones that no man might look upon it, for it struck
out shimmering shafts of light like the beams of the
bright sun. And with the bishop came the doctors
of law, the judges of the city, and they were all
dressed in tunics of scarlet silk brought from Tar-
tary, and were loaded with their golden chains of
office ; and after them the clergy, all clothed in their
brightest dress. Such a sight had never been seen
before, nor will it be seen again.
After the bishop and his attendants the whole
city came in order, Mayor, merchants, masters and
men, widows and wives, all came with their com-
panies, and each of them dressed in white linen
pure as the driven snow. Then a company of
children came forth with bells and banners and
blazing torches; some bore censers with silver chains
and burning spices within, whose smoke rose to the
clouds, two bore a cushion of brown velvet em-
broidered with pearls to be held before the bishop
for his book to rest on, others bore candlesticks of
gold and of silver, and the relics of the temple, the
richest of the world. And all the procession went
on till they came to a little place outside the town
whence they could see the temple, and there they
abode the coming of the king.
And now they heard the tramp of feet and the
distant sound of arms and horses, for all men kept
silence in fear and doubt and half-hope, and they
knew not how soon they might be ridden down and
58 slain
slain or made slaves, or whether they should indeed
be saved as the bishop had told them. Then they
saw Alexander riding up with a host of dukes and
princes and earls, and at the same time the king
caught sight of their array, and when Alexander
saw this multitude of men in milk-white clothes he
thought it a marvel, and he turned and saw the
crowd of priests in maniples and stoles, and the
doctors of the law and the prelates in their robes;
and amidst them all, the chief amongst them, the
bishop, dressed in his array of gold and purple and
fine linen; and the king’s eyes fixed on him and look~
ing up he beheld on his mitre a plate of fine gold,
and on it was graven the great name of The Maker
of Men. Then the king commanded his knights to
approach no nearer on pain of their lives, but all,
great and small, to remain behind, and he spurred
on his horse till he came up to the spot where the
bishop was standing, and then jumping down he
fell on his knees before the bishop on the cold earth,
and beating his breast worshipped the Holy Name
that he saw written on his head.
Then all the people bowed themselves down before
Alexander as he stood up, and meekly kneeling they
cried with a keen voice: ‘‘ Long may he live, long
may he live.†Then the fairest lady of them all
came out and cried: ‘Lo, Alexander, the noblest
lord under heaven, long may he live, the mighty
emperor, the wielder of all the world, the mightiest
59 on
on the earth.†And all the people of the city
answered her with one voice: ‘‘ Long may he live,
long may he live.†Then stepped out a man and
he cried out: “‘ Lo, he that overcometh all men, who
shall be overcome never; The greatest, the most
glorious, that ever was made by God.†And all the
people cried out at once: “ Long may he live, long
may he live.â€
Now there were with Alexander many of the rulers
of the land of Syria who had yielded up their lands
to him, and when they saw him bow down, as they
thought, to the bishop of the Jews, they held it a
great wonder. Then Parmeon, one of Alexander’s
princes, went up to him, and asked him why he
bowed down to the bishop of Jews, when all other
men bowed before him instead. And Alexander
answered him: “Nay, I neither hailed him nor
bowed down to him, but to the King of Heaven
alone, the Father of gods and of men. For many
days ago, when I was in Macedon, one appeared to
me in sucha dress and shape as this man now wears.
And I mused in my mind how I might win Asia,
and he bade me fear not, but that all the land should
be mine, and when I saw this man, verily he seemed
the same god who had spoken to me. Now have I
good hope, .by the help of this God whose Name is
written yonder, to conquer Darius and to destroy
the empire of-the Persians.â€
And now the bishop had greeted Alexander full
60 lowly,
lowly, and all men had done him homage, and
they prayed the king to enter into the town, and
Alexander marvelled to see how fair a city it was,
and the people of the land received him with
reverence and joy as he were the leader of them all,
or as one come down from the gods. Then went
they through the town, and the bishop brought them
to the temple that the great knight and king, Dan
Solomon, had built, and the wise men of the temple
came forth, and Alexander heard of their lore.
Then came one of the oldest of them all and spoke
words to the bishop, and he arose and bowed down
before Alexander and said: ‘“O king, verily there are
words concerning thee and thy deeds in the books
of our holy place,†and he ordered the temple
guardians, and they brought out a huge roll, a broad
book full of dark sayings of the times to be, and
there was the saying of a mighty seer, one Daniel
by name, and Alexander read how that the men
out of Greece should utterly destroy the people of
Persia.
Thereupon was Alexander merry of heart, for he
deemed that the time had come, and-that he should
indeed beat down Persia, and he ordered his men to
fetch great gifts, and to each man he gave chains of
gold, and jewels of pearls and of rubies, and to the
bishop he gave store of bezants, great round heavy
golden coins, such as bishops love, and he showed
him a heap of golden talents, but the bishop feared
61 to
to take such riches. Then said the king: ‘‘O Bishop,
ask what thou wilt in this world, anything mayest
thou ask that I may give, and I will grant it thee
ere I go hence.†And the bishop bowed him down
to the ground and said: “O King Alexander, this
thing of all others I deeply desire, durst I name it,
that thou wouldst grant us the use of our law, as
our fathers before us have obeyed it, and if it may
be, grant us that we pay no tribute for seven years,
in memory of the joy of thy coming, then shall all
men pray for thee and serve thee, and, if I may but
add one thing, grant to those of Media and of
Babylon that they may freely obey our law.â€
«That grant I thee,†said the king, “ask now for
thyself, and be served.†“Nay, lord, no more, if I
may have your love and your lordship while my life
lasts,†said the bishop, and he and all men meekly
thanked Alexander. And Alexander appointed a
lord to dwell in the town, hear what men said, and
be his viceroy, and the bishop blessed him, and
he departed into the cities near at hand, and all of
them came out to welcome him and to acknowledge
him their lord.
62 CHAP. VIII.
CO Aad Apr ee
pte /C\ Ag PGR
CHAPTER VIII. TELLS HOW DARIUS
THE EMPEROR SENT PRESENTS TO
ALEXANDER, AND WHAT WAS THE
PRESENT SENT BACK TO HIM.
Saiswees| UT IT FELL THAT SOME of them
A) \e4| of Tyre had fled into the court of
=“24| Darius, and they complained to him of
eA Sa) their city destroyed, and “all this,†said
they, ‘‘we suffered because we obeyed the
great king, the Emperor Darius.†Then began the
Emperor to question them concerning this Alex-
ander, what manner of man he was, what was his
stature and his strength, whether he were brave or
no. And they, willing to bring shame on the name
of their enemy, shewed Darius a painting of him on
parchment. But when Darius looked on it he burst
into laughter, and all men smiled, and he said:
“Well for ye, ye men of Tyre, if ye were beaten by
such a man as this, for never saw I such a warrior,â€
63 for
\ ay AEE EES =
for they had painted him a little shrivelled creature,
more like an ape than a man, with long arms, and
one leg longer than the other, blinking and stupid,
the most miserable object that had ever been seen.
And Darius drove the men of Tyre from his presence,
and asked his wise men concerning Alexander, who
and what manner of man he was ; and they told him
how he was the king’s son of Macedon, and how
they had chosen him as fit to be the husband of
Roxana, and how he had rejected him because of
his small stature.
Then Darius bade search for his portrait and
bring it before him that he might look on him; but
when they sought it they found it not among the
other likenesses, for it is to be said that Roxana the
Queen had borne it with her and treasured it up
with her chief treasures. So he thought within
himself that he would prove the heart and wit of the
Greek, and he commanded, and they brought him
presents for Alexander, and first was a ball covered
with gold ; “for,†said he, “‘ he must have something
to play with;†then he added a hat, “and,†said
he, ‘this is better than a crown;†and last they
brought him a head-covering made of twigs and
osiers ; ‘‘this is better for such an one as thou, O
Alexander, than a bright steel helm.†And Darius
fell back upon his throne, laughing, and ordered
messengers to take them to Alexander, bearing with
them a letter under his broad seal.
64 So
So Darius called for his scribes, and they came
before him, and he ordered them to write a letter to
Alexander, and this was the form of the letter
he wrote :
“DARIUS, the Emperor, king of kings, lord of
lords, predecessor of princes, equal to the Sun, the
lord of the earth, to Alexander, our subject and our
servant.
‘For it is reported to us that thou, through the
vanity and vainglory of thy heart, hast got together
warriors to lay waste parts of our kingdom, and hast
now with thee a number of wretches, thieves and
vagabonds, and by their means dost think to wield
at thy will the power of Persia:
‘‘ Now, therefore, be warned in time, for thou art
weak before me, even if thou hadst gathered against
my empire all the men in the world outside it, for
my people are so many that they are like to the stars
of heaven in number. Submit in time; the Persians
are famed to be unbeaten.
‘It is told me that thou, a dwarf and weakling,
dost covet the rule of all the lands under the wide
heavens, and that, like a storm of wind-blown snow,
driven hither and thither, thou passest over all lands
with a train of ruffians behind thee. I have not yet
armed my men against thee; beware, when my hand
shall be raised, thy life is done. Turn again, boy,
to thy mother’s care; take these toys I send thee.
Know that the riches of Persia are so great, that a
65 E heap
heap of its gold would shut out the light of the sun,
and blame thyself for all the evils that. shall fall
on thee if thou disobey.
“ Now, therefore, return at once to Macedon, or,
not as the son of Philip, but as a leader of a band of
petty thieves shalt thou be hung.â€
And when the letter was written the bearer of the
king’s seal came forward, and the letter was closed,
and cords of green silk run through the edges, and
dipped in wax, and the great seal was stamped upon
the wax, and it was given to the messengers of the
king, with strait commandment that they should
tarry neither night nor day until the king’s letter
was given into the hands of Alexander.
Now, Alexander was standing in the midst of his
barons when the messengers of Darius arrived, and
as their commandment was urgent, he bade them to
be brought to him at once. And when he saw the
letter his heart was filled with rage, nevertheless he
read it out in the hearing of his knights and nobles;
and when these heard it their hearts were moved
with fear of the mighty words of Darius. So
Alexander looked on them and he saw that they were
afraid, and he spoke to them: ‘What now! my
worthy warriors, my bold knights and barons, the
best under heaven that ever king had, let it never
be told against you that the proud boasting of a
letter of Darius brought you to doubt yourselves,
else were it shame indeed. Look you, now, every
day
E
SG \
\5 ee ex
SS SX KIN aw
MAWASASS WISN ny Ny
hele saw the letter Bisheart
ae fille ie yfoge nevee
Beless be readt ott the Reg
tng of Fis hiobe ts S10
serene ti pa
day we ride through a village you may hear as loud
a yelping from any cur at a cottage door, but loud
as they bark they never bite. But methinks his
letter should rather make you rejoice, when he tells
you what treasure of gold he has, for it needs but
to be bold and that treasure shall be yours.†And
then the anger in the king’s heart broke out, and
turning to the messengers of Darius, he said: “ But
for ye, that dare to bring such threats to a Greek, ye
shall learn the anger of Alexander. Take them by
the throats,†said he to the attendants, ‘‘and for
their master’s sake, hang them on the gallows.â€
Then the messengers were amazed, and with a
keen cry called to Alexander: “ Alas, O king, what
fault lies in us, if it please thee, that we should die
thus suddenly.†‘The sayings of your sovereign
lord,†said he, ‘‘ force me to such deeds as I would
never have done else: lo, now, he calls me a thief in
this letter.†But they fell on their knees before him
and said: ‘‘O king, Darius himself dictated those
words, for he knew not of your knighthood, nor of
your strength, nor of your worthiness, and so he
wrote boldly ; but grant us our lives, and leave to
go, and we will show him all your power and your
might.†So Alexander forgave them and made
them a great feast in his own tent, and made much
of them, so that he won their hearts; and they said
to him: ‘‘ Sir Alexander, send with us, we pray thee,
but one thousand of your knights, and we will
67 deliver
deliver Darius into your hands.†But the king
answered them with little love: “ Rejoice in your
feast, O messengers ; verily no knight of mine shall.
be sent to aid in betraying your lord.â€
But in the night, one of the Persian messengers,
a little man and a crooked, having one arm longer
than the other, came to the tent of the king, and
when he was admitted he asked that all men might
be put forth. So they were left alone, and the
messenger drew from his breast a leathern roll, and
in it was a blue embroidered silk bag of fair work,
the lion on one side and the rising sun on the other,
and he laid it in the hand of the king. Then Alex-
ander opened it, and found within a scarf of green
covered with fair half-open flowers, and he looked
on the messenger, and he answered: ‘O king, the
fairest dame in Persia sends thee this to the end
that thou mayest wear it in thy helm. One
day, if the gods will, thou shalt see her and
know her name.†Then the messenger bowed
low, and went his way to his fellows, and all men
slept. .
The next day the messengers were called before
Alexander and his council, and a letter was given
them, closely sealed up, to bear to Darius. Now
this was the form of the letter :
“JT, ALEXANDER OF MACEDON, son and
heir of Philip the defender of Greece, and of
Olympias the fair, to thee Darius, prince of the
68 Persians,
Persians, the conqueror of every land—as you =
yourself—thus write under my seal.
_ “Let no man despise any neighbour who seems
to be smaller and poorer than himself, since the
lowest is often raised to the heavens, and the
proudest ground to dust. And thou, Emperor of
the World as thou callest thyself, dost dishonour to
thy name when thou sendest such gifts out of
Persia. Thou speakest as if thou wert one of the
gods that cannot die. I am but a mortal man, and
I will attack thee.
“Thou hast destroyed thine own renown. If I
am beaten, thou thyself hast called me but a petty
thief, and no honour shalt thou have: if I overcome
thee, the greater glory is mine, and men shall ever
tell how I have conquered a king, the greatest
in the world. Nevertheless I hope that one of
thy tales is true, that of the greatness of thy
riches, for it has raised our hopes, and sharpened
our wits, and made us eager for battle, that we
may the sooner exchange our poverty for thy
riches.
“But as for thy presents, know, O Darius, that
the ball thou hast sent represents the world, and
thou hast handed over the mastery of the world to
me: the hollow hat held before the head when it is
bowed, shows that all kings shall bow before me:
and this headpiece of twigs is to say that ever shall
I overcome, and be overcome never. In the day of
69 thy
thy defeat, O Darius, remember my interpretation
of thy gifts.â€
Then great gifts were given to the messengers,
and they were sent out of the camp to Darius, and
Alexander made all his preparations for the war
against the Persians. But when Darius had read
the letter of Alexander, and heard the words of the
messengers, he was sore angered, and he made up
his mind to fall on the Greeks and to destroy the
power of Alexander. So he wrote to two of his
greatest satraps, the duke Priam and the duke
Antigonus, ordering them to get their forces to-
gether and to go out and seize this insolent lad who
was so bold as to defy the army of the Persians,
and who had entered the borders of Asia with such
a large number of followers. ‘Then,†said Darius,
“bring him bound to me, that he may be well beaten
with scourges and then I will sew him up in a
mantle of bright purple and send him to his mother.
Since he is so proud, the punishment of a child will
be best for him, and when all is over he may play
at home at bowls or handball with his mother’s
servants.â€
Now this letter reached the dukes soon after they
had fought a great battle with Alexander’s men and
had been defeated; so when they had broken the
king’s broad seal and turned the leaf to read the
letter, they looked on one another, and they thought
that Darius could not know what manner of man
70 Alexander
Alexander was, or how hard it was to stand before
him in battle. So Sir Priam the duke wrote to
Darius bya special messenger that this child, whom
they had been ordered to seize, had wasted all their
lands, and had passed through the province, and
that when they had raised an army to meet him,
neither prince nor soldier could face him sword in
hand: and the letter ended by begging the king to
come at once to their aid with as many men as he
could, that the honour of Persia might not be put
to shame.
So Darius called a council to advise him as to the
best means of meeting Alexander, but before they
were met another messenger came with tidings that
the Greeks had crossed the river that was called the
boundary of Persia, and that they were now in the
Emperor's own land. And when this was told the
council all men wondered how that Alexander should
be so bold as to enter Persia, or to disobey the letter
of Darius, and they advised the king to write once
again to him, reproving him, and that if he still
disobeyed, that he should be crushed to the earth,
and the king did so, for he knew not how a man
could disobey his order.
The tale tells that when this letter reached Alex-
ander it found him in great grief, for messengers
had come from Macedon telling that his mother was
like to die, and Alexander had bidden his men strike
their tents and return home to Macedon. So the
71 messengers
messengers drew near ‘trembling, and gave the letter
of Darius to Alexander, and with it was a glove full
of poppy seeds, which are almost the smallest of all
seeds. So Alexander read the letter and he laughed
out, for Darius had told him that even the gods
obeyed him on earth, and now bade him return to
Macedonia ere his wrath should arise. ‘And as a
token,†added Darius, ‘‘I send thee this glove full
of seeds, count them if thou canst, and thou hast
the number of knights in my army. But the seeds
are numberless, and so are the soldiers I rule.â€
Then Alexander called to him the messengers,
and said: ‘“ Hearken, and tell the king that which
you see and hear.†Then he took the glove and
poured out some of the seeds into his hand, and
‘biting them he said: “ Here I see that the soldiers
‘of Darius are passing many, but they seem to be
soft and feeble, as these seeds prove. But be they
‘soft or hard, it matters but little.†And he wrote a
letter to Darius telling him that though he was
returning to Macedon it was not on account of the
threats of the Persians, but because his mother was
at point of death, and that he would return with an
army larger than before. “And in answer to thy
glove full of seeds, I.send thee a purse full of black
pepper, that thou mayst see the comparison between
the Persian and the Macedonian.â€
720 CHAP. IX.
SN AON HL; mM NIT PATTER No Ad
Ae NTT (A
CHAPTER IX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER
DESTROYED THEBES AND HOW IT WAS
REBUILT AND OF HIS .RETURN TO
PERSIA.
(a= | IE TALE TELLS THAT when the
py messengers of Darius departed, loaded
i with rich presents, to carry the message
y ea of Alexander to their lord, Alexander and
aM his host set out on their homeward way,
and passing through Arabia, a great army of Persians
fell on them, under the leadership of duke Amonta, ©
the head of all that province. Long were it to tell of
this fight, for Amonta was one of the bravest of the
Persians, and it seemed that Alexander had found
an equal. Two days the fight had lasted, from the
grey morning till dark night; many were the noble
knights overthrown on both sides, and such showers
of blood fell that the fetlocks of the horses were
covered with blood. But on the third day, the story
73 tells
3 ANA
WA
tells that in broad mid-day the battle was at its
highest, when suddenly the sky began to grow dark,
and, looking up, men saw darkness over the face of
the sun. Then all men feared for the wrath of the
gods, but Alexander cried out to the Greeks with a
mighty voice: ‘‘ See, the Greeks have conquered the
sun of Persia,†and with a great shout, the men of
Macedon fell again on the Persians, and they turned
and fled from the field, and many of them were slain,
struck from their horses by the mighty blows of the
Greeks. Then Amonta the duke was borne away
from the field by the mad rush of the frightened
horses, and his wounds were sore, so that he could
not face the enemy, and at the last he fled with
the rest.
But so it was, that when he came to the Court of
Darius, that he found there the king’s messengers,
who had just arrived from the camp of Alexander,
for they had ridden slowly with the letter and the
gifts. And Darius the emperor was seated on his
dais, holding the letter in his hand unopened, and
he questioned the messengers: “ What said he of
the seeds I sent him?†Then the messengers
answered: ‘The king caught up a handful of
them and bit them, and he said, truly the Persians
were many, but there was one thing that pleased him,
they were but soft.†Then Darius put forth his hand
to the purse and bit at one of the grains in it, and he
said: ‘‘ Truly, be his men even as few as these, if
74 they
they be but as keen and sharp, all the world would
be too weak to meet them in arms.â€
Then the Duke Amonta spake up among the
peers who were standing round, and he said: “ By
your leave, my most gracious lord, this king leads
but few men, but never were there fiercer in the field
than they are. For I fell on them with an army
greater than their own by five thousand men, and
yet they defeated us and slew many fierce earls and
brave knights, and threw down my banner. Three
days we fought with hard blows on either side, yet at
the last hardly did I escape unslain from their hands.
Yet was Alexander none the prouder for their victory,
but he buried the dead Greeks and Persians side by
side in the grave with all honour.†Then the King
of Persia grieved for the death of his knights, but
he rejoiced more at the going of Alexander.
The march of Alexander took him on through
Cilicia and over the mountains of Taurus and into
the land of Troy, and there he saw the place where
Troy had once been, and the famous river Sca-
mander, and grieved because there was no noble
poet like Homer to tell of his deeds. And at the
last he came to Macedon, and there he found his
mother mended of her malady, and great was his
joy. Then he stayed with her some days rejoicing,
and he got together fresh soldiers, and set his
face against the land of Persia, ready to begin a
journey from which he was never to return.
75 Now
Now Alexander marched through the land of
Greece, and the story tells of many adventures
which fell to his lot, for some cities welcomed him
gladly, and others closed their gates against him,
and once the horses of his army were like to have
been lost for want of forage, so that his knights
feared, and murmured against him; but the tale
tells chiefly how he warred against Thebes and
Athens, and what there befell him. Now the town
of Thebes was famous for deeds of arms, and Alex-
ander sent to the town to ask for four bold knights
to go with him to the war with Darius; but the folk
of Thebes shut the gates of the town, and bade him
pass on if he did not wish to meet his death at their
hands. Then Alexander laughed out in scorn and
said: ‘“‘ Ye be brave men, O Thebans, the mightiest
on earth, and now ye have proffered war to my
princes and to me. Why shut ye your gates, for
honour bids you come out and meet me in the field
to maintain your words?â€
Then the siege of Thebes began: he placed four
thousand archers round the town, with orders to
shoot at every wight that showed himself on,the
walls; he set two thousand men, armed with coats
of mail and plate armour, to dig down the walls and
buildings; one thousand were told off to fire the
gates of the town, and three thousand were appointed
to the engines of war. Alexander got together too
a body of slingers to help any of these that were
76 overpowered
overpowered. Now when all things were set, the
trumpets blew out and the assault commenced.
First the archers advanced, covered with their broad:
shields, till they got within bowshot of the walls,
and all at once the hemp cords were drawn and the
arrows flew through the air. Then the arbalasters
bent their crossbows and out whirred the quarrels,
crashing through the coats of mail. The engines
shot out their great stones into the towers, and then
the fire began to burst out at the gates, and soon
the four gates of the town were in flames, and the
town itself began to burn. Then those who were
unslain in the town yielded them up.
But there were two minds in the camp as to
Thebes ; some of Alexander’s peers rejoiced to see
the town burning, but a minstrel of Thebes, Hismon
by name, came before Alexander with a sad face,
asking Alexander to have some mercy on the town.
Then said the king: ‘“‘Why art thou so sad of cheer,
my clerk, before me?†and the minstrel answered:
““O mighty conqueror, if by any means thou canst
show mercy on our rich town.†Then was Alex-
ander wroth that any man should be sad before him
at what the king had willed, and without. more
words he gave strait command that the walls of the
town should be beaten down and every house in it
burnt; and that done he went on his way with his
men, and many of the Thebans went with him, for
that they had no longer a city.
a7 The
‘ The tale tells that one of the knights of Thebes.
who followed Alexander’s host, a valiant and a
mighty man, asked at the temple of his god when
Thebes should be rebuilt and who should build it,
and the god answered: ‘He who shall build the
town shall conquer thrice in strife; when that shall
be, then shall he raise the walls.†Now as the
knight returned to the army of Alexander he heard
the herald proclaiming with the sound of a trumpet
that the king would hold a tournament at Corinth,
and that great games should there be played. So
when the day came the Theban knight came into
the ring, and asked of Alexander permission to
wrestle, and the king appointed a champion to
wrestle with him, and soon the champion was
thrown. Then another wrestler came forth, and he
too was cast to the earth. And Alexander said:
‘‘ Now, in faith, if thou conquer but once again,
thou shalt be crowned for the noblest wrestler in
Greece.†Then came forth a mighty man, the tallest
of the Macedonians, and the Theban knight deemed
that he should indeed be beaten, but he thought on
the words of the god, and the love of his city filled
him, and they scarce grappled before he threw the
giant on the ground, and a great shout went up
from all men.
Then he was brought to the king and knelt
before him, and Alexander took a fair gold crown
filled with precious stones, and set it on his head ;
78 and
and the heralds came to him and said: “Tell us thy
name, O noble knight, that we may write it in our
books.†And he said: “Truly, sirs, my name is
Cityless.†“How so,†said the king; “what
name is that, and how got you it?†‘My lovely
lord,†said the knight, “before you came I had a
people and a town, now have I none, and Cityless
am I, and Cityless must be my name.†Then the
king knew that he was a knight of Thebes, and his
heart relented for the city, and he gave orders to
cry aloud that all men might return with the knight
to rebuild the town in its first state. So was the
saying of the god fulfilled.
So Alexander went on his way through the land
of Greece, and from each town he received help and
tokens of his lordship. But two great cities refused
at first, the cities of Athens and Sparta, though
afterwards they obeyed him. Then he came to the
ocean and sailed over into Asia, and with him were
two hundred thousand men, and tidings came to
Darius, and he called his council and said unto
them: “Lo, how this Greek grows in might, the
more I despise him the greater his power. I sent
him playthings, but now he will master us if we
take not heed.†Then said the king’s brother to
him: “If your majesty do not as this man does, we
may leave our land to him, for in strife he helps his
men in all their needs, and so his name increases.â€
And another lord spoke: ‘This Macedonian is like
79 a
a lion who leaps on his prey with joy.†‘“ How so?â€
said Darius, and the knight answered: “ Years
agone, I was sent with your heralds to Philip his
father to claim our tribute, and then I saw and
heard him. For your herald told how all men
would gather at your orders against the foe of the
empire—Medes, Parthians, Italians—and the youth
said: ‘Yes, but one wolf will worry many sheep,
and a Greek army will rout many barbarians,’ for
so he called the army of the great king.†So Darius
got together his army.
The tale tells that Alexander on a day went to
bathe in a river, and the king was heated and the
river cold, so that he fell sick of a fever and was
like to have died. And all the men of his army
mourned, and said: “Did Darius but know this he
would fall on us with his might;†and truly they
did well to grieve, for the health of the head keeps
all the body well. Then one Philip the Leech, a
young man, but well skilled in all manner of medi-
cine, came to the tent of Alexander, and said: “ My
lord, I can cure you in few hours with a syrup of
herbs.†When the duke Parmenides heard this he
was jealous of Philip, for he feared that Alexander
would promote him to great power, so he came
privily to the king, and said: “O king Alexander,
take not the drink of Philip, and trust him not, for
verily it has been told me that Darius has offered
his fair daughter and great.wealth to the man that
80 shall
shall slay thee,†and with that he showed the king
a letter in which these things were written. Now
Philip had brought the cup to Alexander, and the
king stretched out his hand, and looked him in the
face, and took the cup, and drank it, and gave the
letter to Philip, and the physician looked on it, and
said: ‘‘ My life for thine, O king, as I am guiltless
of evil towards thee.†So Alexander fell into a
sleep, and all men kept such watch that no noise
was heard in the camp, and when he awoke he was
whole and healthy. So he called Philip the Leech
to him, and gave him great rewards, but Parmenides
the traitor he beheaded.
Then marched he through the land of Media and
Armenia till he came to the great river, the river
Euphrates; and there was no ford over which the army
could pass, so needs must they make a bridge, and
men brought boats and bound them together with
chains, and then they passed over, first the horses and
the baggage, and then the army. And when they
were all over the king took his axe and smote the
chains in sunder so that the swift stream drove down
the boats, and the bridge was broken; then turning to
his men, he said: ‘“‘If we flee, here shall we be over-
taken and slain; better is it that never we turn our
back to the foe, for he that follows has the flower of
victory, and in no wise he that flees. Be happy and
rejoice, for never shall we see Macedon till the bar-
barians bow before us—then shall we blithe return.â€
81 F CHAP. X.
; Vz. LOCO =
D s/ A Fy
ZA ir By VK S
a Re se ec
Ste
TS <=
the poteccanizes Mlexanverin his dis auise.
eal
CHAPTER X. HOW ALEXANDER DE-
FEATED THE PERSIANS, AND HOW HE
WENT TO THE FEAST OF DARIUS.
Ree] OW FOR THE FIRST TIME the
iN armies of the Macedonians and the Per-
sians came in face of each other, and
ip ASN : hopes of victory were on either side, for
z#4@\ the Persians were many, and their battle-
leaders were five hundred noble knights. The sun
shone brightly, the trumpets rang out against each
other, and the long streamers of the lances danced
in the wind ; the horses pranced, and the young
knights clashed their arms. Soon Darius ordered
the battle to begin, the knights laid their spears
in rest, and each, with his shield hung before him,
spurred his horse ; the Greeks came on to meet
them, and they crashed into each other with a thun-
dering noise and a shout, and all the fair field was
covered with stumbling steeds and knights dis-
82 mounted
mounted and wounded and dead; and the clash of
sword-strokes cutting through coats of mail sounded
like the noise of a giant’s smithy. For few minutes
the field was covered with clouds of dust, and Alex-
ander could see nothing of the result, but soon it
appeared that the Greeks had driven back the foe,
and that the first attack of the Persians had failed.
So he called the Greek knights around him, and
after a breathing space he gave orders that in their
turn they should ride on the enemy.
But Darius had seen how his men were being
borne down, and had noted how their king was
first among the Macedonians, and how that no man
stood before his blows, so he called to him one of
his bravest champions, and said to him: “Sir Knight,
seest thou yon leader of the Greeks, look you now,
he wears the colour of my daughter; go thou, arm
thee in fresh armour as a man of Macedon, and
slay him. And if thou so doest, I will give thee
my daughter Roxana to wife, and thou shalt be
after me in the land of Persia.†Then that knight
answered and said: “Thou art my lord; what-
soever thou biddest that will I do, and I will
smite his head from off his shoulders, that no
man may hereafter stand against the Emperor.â€
So he arrayed him in clean bright armour, and
over his armour he put ona silk surcoat in colour
like to that of the Macedonians, and rode out
among them.
83 Now
Now Alexander was ranging his knights for their
grand attack on the Persians, and the trumpets
blew, and all together they charged down on the foe.
Close behind Alexander rode the Persian knight,
and no man could see who he was, for the bars of
his helmet were closed. And Alexander, as his
wont was, rode into the thick of the fight, and struck
great blows here and there, and no man stood before
him. Then the knight drew his sword and spurred
on his horse, and struck the king such a blow that
it cut through his helmet and down into his cheek,
and then as the king wheeled round his horse the
sword broke in the helmet. And when the knights
around saw the blow they rushed on the disguised
Persian, but Alexander stayed them from hurting
him, and said:
“What, my knight, why hast thou wounded thy
lord and thy helper?â€
“Nay,†said the knight, “I am no knight of
thine; this did I for Sir Darius, who promised me
his daughter if I hewed off thy head.â€
“Take him away,†said the king, ‘ but harm him
not till I give order about him.â€
Then Alexander turned to his lords and said:
‘What shall be done to him for this deed?â€
And one man advised to hang him, and another
to cut off his head, and another to burn him alive.
But Alexander looked displeased, and said :
‘Nay, he has but done his duty to his lord, in
84. that
that he obeyed his word, and his lord has all the
blame of his deed. He that condemns him judges
himself, for did I order one of you to slay Darius
that must ye do. Let him depart and go to his
lord, for he strikes a good stroke.â€
So that Persian knight went unharmed from the
camp of Alexander, and told all these things to
Darius.
Then Darius feared, for his army was put to flight,
and his knights began to compare him with the
king of the Macedonians, and he rode away to a
strong city near that place, and there he stayed but
short time, for Alexander followed him, and came
against that city and took it, and found there trea-
sure untold, and the wife of Darius, and his mother,
the wisest woman in all Asia; but Darius himself
escaped him and fled away. There came one of
the princes of Persia to Alexander and offered to
deliver Darius into his hand, for that he had served
that king for twenty years, and yet he had never
given him reward; but Alexander refused to take
Darius by treachery, and he said: ‘‘ One king must
not betray another.†So day by day the Persian lords
came into the Greek camp and owned Alexander as
their emperor.
Now was another army and a greater one being
got together, for all the lords of Persia and the
kings of the countries about, and Porus, king of
India, were summoned for a set day. But letters
85 came
came from the king of India saying that he was
sore sick, and could give no aid till he was reco-
vered, and that then he would come; and letters
came from the mother of Darius, an exceeding wise
woman, in which she bade him make peace with
Alexander and submit to him, or otherwise the
empire of the Persians would be utterly overthrown.
But he would not obey her, for he hoped to destroy
the army of the Greeks from the face of the earth.
So all the might of Persia met at its chief town,
Susa.
After short time the army of the Greeks had got
them ready for the fight, and they began to follow
up the war against Darius, and they went not so
quickly as the Persians, since they were in an
enemy’s land; but at the last they came in sight of
the town of Susa, and behold, it lay in a great plain,
and a river a furlong broad lay between it and them.
So Alexander purposed in his mind to send a herald
to challenge the Persians to fight, for he would not
be said to attack them without granting them due
time. That night, as he lay asleep in his tent, he
dreamed a dream, and a man of Macedon stood by
him, dressed in rich attire, with two horns on his
head, and he knew that it was one of the gods, and
the god said to him: ‘‘ My son, send no messenger
to Susa, but go thyself, so shalt thou see Darius
and his court, for I will be with thee, and no harm
shall come to thee.†Then Alexander arose early in
86 the
the morning and told his knights his dream, and
how the god had promised to guard him. So he
dressed himself as a herald, and rode off with one
of his knights before the sun rose to the army of
Darius. Now when they came to the great river
Granton, which lay between them and the town of
Susa, they found it frozen over with ice a foot thick,
so he bade the lord that was with him to wait there
for him, and he himself rode over the river alone to
the camp of Darius.
The tale tells that this river was wondrous cold
by nature, and that whether by art magic, or because
it was so cold every night, it froze into ice after the
sun went down, and the ice was exceeding thick ;
but when the sun rose and the day warmed, then the
ice cracked and melted, and the river ran so fast that
no man might swim in it, nor might any boat cross
it but with danger, and no bridge could be built
across it for the ice. When the day broke the
ice began to thaw, but Alexander was safely over,
and he rode slowly towards the town. Now when
he came to the wall of Susa he stopped at the
barrier, and bade the men bring him before Darius,
and they obeyed him, for his rich clothing and his
speech showed him to be some great man. And
Darius asked him: ‘‘ What man art thou, and what
doest thou here?†Then Alexander answered him:
“O king, Iam sent to thee by Alexander, he bids
thee prepare for battle; why dost thou stay in the
87 walls
walls of thy town; either come out and fight him
or own him for master.†And Darius said: “Wert
thou the man himself thou couldst not speak more
proudly, but I care never a deal for all thy bold
sayings. Still for thy sovereign’s sake that sent
thee hither, thou shalt sit at supper with me this
even;†and Darius did him great honour, for all
men in those days reverenced the heralds.
So the heralds of Persia welcomed him, and there
came clerks and wise men and talked with him of
the lands of Greece and of the West, and they told
him of the nobles of Persia and of the wonders of
the land and its richness, and of the land of India
and the marvels that men spoke of it. Now among
the clerks was one who was short and crooked and
ungainly, and the others took little heed of him,
and he stayed for a while behind and listened,
saying nought. Then Alexander noticed him and
said within himself: ‘Such a crooked and mis-
shapen man would not be in the court of a king if
he were not exceeding wise,†so he spake to him,
and the clerk answered him in few words but
weighty. But when those of the court were without
for a space, the clerk said: “Were Alexander here,
he would see the fairest maid on earth at the supper
this even; and much honour would she do the
knight who wore her scarf in the front of battle.â€
And with that he drew back, nor did he speak when
Alexander drew out the scarf from his breast. Then
88. the
the clerks and wise men departed and the great
lords came to ask him of the arms of the Greek
lords, and of their deeds in battle, and of Alex-
ander.
When even was come the king gave his hand to
Alexander and led him into the hall of his palace,
and he sat at meat with Darius. And ever he
thought within himself: ‘‘This barbarian does me
great honour in this hall, but soon shall the hall. be
mine by right.†Now the hall of the palace was of
beaten gold ; the walls, the seats, the tables, the floor,
all were covered with thick plates of gold, and the
vessels of service, the cups and dishes and platens,
were of fine gold. And those of the Persians that
were there looked upon Alexander with curiosity,
and they thought little of him since he was so
short, for the heralds of the King of Persia were
taller than any man in Persia, and the Persians are
tall men; but they knew not the wisdom and the
valour of the man, for they wist not that it was
Alexander himself.
As they sat down to meat, Alexander was put in
a seat on the left hand of Darius, and as he looked
around him he saw at the table on the right hand
of the King the fairest damsel that man had ever
seen, and his eyes saw, almost without seeing, that
her robe was of green covered with fair opening
buds, the crown of spring and the promise of
summer. And as he looked on her she lifted her
89 eyes
eyes on him, and saw the scarf of green he wore,
and she looked on his face eagerly and then looked
down and away, and fear and longing and content
and hope and joy struggled in her heart, but her
face was that of a king’s daughter in the palace
hall of her father. Then Alexander rejoiced in his
heart and he said: ‘This maid shall be my very
love and my queen.â€
Now the feast began, servants ran to and fro,
busily helping one another and serving the guests
diligently ; lutes and harps were played by the
minstrels, and as fast as one dish was taken from
the table another was brought, and the butlers
brought forth the wine in great goblets of gold,
studded with gems, and handed them to the guests.
Now Alexander did after the manner of heralds at
the feast of a king, for when he had drunk from the
cup that which was in it, he took it up and put
it in‘the breast of his doublet. Then Roxana the
Queen called to her the servants and they brought
her a cup of wine, and she bade them carry it to the
herald of the Greeks from Roxana the daughter of
the Emperor, and they did so. Then Alexander
bowed low, and rejoiced, and drank from the cup,
and when it was empty, he put it also in his breast.
So the servants of the Persian King saw it and
they were envious and wondered, aa one said to
another: ‘Let us see if he will do it again ;†and
they brought him a third cup, yet more precious, and
90 ~ Alexander
Alexander took it, and again when he had drunk he
put it in his breast for himself. Then these servants
went and fell before the king and told him of the
case, how that the Greek herald had drunk from the
golden cups, and had put them in his breast to take
them away from the feast. So Darius rose up in
his seat, and with a proud, disdainful look, said:
“O friend, why dost thou take my vessels from me?
That is shame to thee and me.†“ Sire,†said Alex-
ander, ‘‘it is custom in our king’s feasts that the
goblet given to the guest is his with what is in it;
but since you keep not this custom here, I give you
your cups,†and taking them from his breast he gave
them to the butlers. So all men’s eyes were on
Alexander, and they wondered that he could stand
before the face of Darius, and they began to consider
his face, his form, and his voice.
Now amongst them that were at meat with
Darius that even was one Anepo, the Herald of the
Sun, he who had formerly visited Macedon, and to
whom Alexander had given a golden chain in earnest
of the days to come. And Anepo looked on him,
and said to himself: ‘‘ Is not this the son of Philip?â€
and just then their eyes crossed, and he saw the face
of Alexander, and noticed how that the eyes were
of two colours—one blue, one dark—and getting up
from his seat he came softly near Darius, who was
sitting on his high seat, and he said to him:
“Verily, O king of kings, this messenger that sitteth
gI here
here is no herald, but Alexander the Macedonian
himself, or Iam no true herald.†Now Alexander
had seen the eyes of Anepo, and when he got up he
watched him, and he heard the sound of his name
in the whisper, and he rose from the table as if he
would handle a lute, but instead he snatched a torch
from the hands of one of them that stood by, and
was out of the hall towards the stables before any
man could say he was gone.
Now by good fortune his horse was fed, so he
loosed him and sprang on his back, and out of the
court like a spark from a fire, and no man could
stop him. But when the alarm was given, Darius
ordered all men to follow, and men rushed in all
directions; they searched the rooms of the palace, they
searched the stables, some clad them in armour and
rode out into the night, and some to the city gates.
But little avail they made, for there was no moon,
and the clearness of the night served but to mislead
them, and their shouts served to warn Alexander of
where they were, and if they kept silence one rode
against another, and many rode into the deep ditches
of the fields or stumbled in the miry ways, and at
last, one by one, they came in, and no man among
them all had heard or seen aught of Alexander, and
well was it for them that they had to face the wrath
of Darius, rather than the sword of the Greek.
In that same hour that Alexander fled out of the
palace of Darius a golden image of the emperor of
92 Persia
Persia fell to the ground, and when men came to
raise it they found it broken into fragments, and
they feared greatly; and when Darius heard of it
he fell aweeping, and he said: “ Surely this tokens
trouble to the empire, and death to me;†and he sat
in sore grief thinking of the boldness of Alexander,
and his courage left him, so that he became weak as
a woman.
Of Roxana it is to be told how her heart was
glad that she had ‘seen the lord of Macedon, and .
great thanks she gave to the gods because he had
seen her face, and noted how fair.she was, for she
had watched without looking at him the turning of
his eyes toward her, and the joy of his heart in her
beauty. That night she sat with her maidens, and
ever she sent one or another for tidings of the
herald, and none brought answer, and at the end
one came and told how all the knights had come
back from the pursuit. Then her maidens came
round about her and praised her beauty above all
other times, and she gave a great gift to that one
who had brought the news of the safety of the
Greek, howbeit the maiden knew not that it was
the meed of her tidings, and thought it was the pay
of her flattering words.
93 CHAP. XI.
CHAPTER XI. TELLS OF THE BATTLE
BETWEEN ALEXANDER AND DARIUS,
AND OF THE SLAYING OF DARIUS.
pear UT ALEXANDER HAD RIDDEN
al
out into the night, and knew not at first
in what direction he was riding, but
soon, when the lights borne by the
mounted men began to scatter over
the fields, he reined in his bonny steed and looked
up to the sky, and there low down he saw the
seven stars rising from the plain, and he turned
his horse’s head and rode slowly towards them,
and ever he waited for some sign, for he knew
that he was coming near the river Granton. But
while he was waiting he saw a great flame rise in
the air far on his left hand, and its rays lay along a
stretch of smooth ice, and beside it was a man on
horseback, and he knew him for his companion that
he had left at the river, and he shouted to him in
94. the
AN
1 Pe
A See EA
the Greek tongue, and when he heard the answer
he spurred his horse and rode on to the ice. But
it was well for him that the fire was before him, for
far on the right the river ice began to crack and
grind, since it was not yet firm,and suddenly his horse
slipped and both sank into the river; and the man
struggled out by the help of the thin ice which broke
off piece by piece before him till he touched bottom,
but the good steed was belike struck by the ice, for
it sank and was drowned. Now when he came to
the shore he was amazed, for there was neither fire
nor light, so he called to the Greek knight, and
when he came up he questioned him, and he found
him sore afraid, “ for,†said he, ‘‘a great dragon has
circled me about for hours, so that I feared to raise
my head.†Then Alexander straitly charged him
that he should not speak of this thing, and they
returned to the camp, and all men rejoiced to see
him.
On the next day King Alexander called to him his
dukes and his captains, and they brought up their
men in fifties and in hundreds and in thousands, till
they were assembled on the plain; and Alexander
rose on high and told them how that he had seen the
might of the Persians, and he encouraged them and
told them that never should the crowds of the
Persians equal the Greeks, for, said he, ‘It takes
many flies to make war on wasps, be they but few;â€
and all the army laughed and rejoiced in his bravery
95 and
and knowledge. Now by this time Darius had
assembled his host and led them forth on the plain
to the shores of Granton, and there he set up the
tents, and prepared him a royal seat and passed his
army before him in review. First the war-chariots
drove by, drawn by swift coursers, and on either side
the chariots were set with scythe blades, keen and
sharp as knives, then the knights passed him in full
armour, and every man followed by his squire and
his footmen, and then passed a host of archers and
crossbowmen : and as each host passed, they went
on into the field and set themselves in array, and
the knights mounted their huge war-horses. And
on their side the Greeks were drawn up in array,
and Alexander was at their head, mounted on his
steed Bucephalus, the best horse under heaven.
Now Alexander spurred out into the open space
and rode before the army of the Persians, and dared
any of their champions to come out and fight with
him, but not one of them durst meet him, for their
hearts were stricken with fear.
So with the sound of trumpets both sides ad-
vanced to the attack, and in few minutes they were
at the sword’s point. The tale tells that for two
miles there was a fight all along the line between
the Persian and the Greek knights. From sunrise
to sunset the slaughter lasted and both sides fought
bravely, the air was thick with arrows, a hail-storm
of winged darts; and now the Persians began to
96 give
give way, their noblest captains were dead, and no-
where had they driven back the Greeks. King
Darius had set himself on his golden car at the
early dawn, and all day he had watched the fiercest
of the fight, and messengers had told him of what
befell, but in the end he lost hope, and took to flight;
and suddenly darkness came upon the land, so that
men feared to move, for the great war-chariots were
thundering over the plain, and whoso got in their
way was cut to pieces by the blades on their wheels,
and the hosts of Persians were mowed down like
corn before them. So Darius reached the Granton
which his men had crossed so proudly the day be-
fore, and he rejoiced that he found it frozen over, and
he rode over the stream in the dead of night, and
many of his great nobles were with him. Then
after him came the flying host of the Persians, and
on they came, till the broad stream was covered
with men and horses. But their weight was too
much for the ice, and it bent down and broke away
from the banks, and then of a sudden it broke into
thousands of pieces, and the night was filled with
the screams of horses and men and their shouts
and cries, and the dark water was filled with strug-
gling crowds striving to pull themselves up on to
little pieces of ice that would not bear their weight ;
until one by one their struggles ceased, and the
rush of the river bore them away, so that of that
mighty host scarce a tenth reached the shore in
safety.
97 G Now
Now over against the plain was a certain castle,
not very strong, and Darius had brought thither
his daughter Roxana, that she might see the battle,
for she had much besought him to let her see the
field, though she told him not that her chief desire
was to see the glory of the Lord of Macedon. But
when the battle was over, and the Persians were
fleeing, the lord of the castle shut the gates, and set
a ward, opening to no man small or great. So on
the morrow the host of the Greeks came near and
summoned this lord to yield up the castle to
Alexander, but he withstood them and laughed at
them. Then Alexander came near, and swore by
the gods that if he yielded not up the castle in an
hour he would hang every man in it on its battle-
ments, but if they yielded to his power he would
save them alive. Then the lord came forth and
sought speech of Alexander, and prayed him con-
cerning the safety of Roxana, and the King laughed
out and said: ‘““Where should she be safer than
with her mother and her grandam, who are with
me in my camp?†So the lord of the castle opened
his gates and they brought forth Roxana in her
litter to Alexander, and he opened not the litter,
but bowed before it, and bade them bear it to her
mother in the camp; and great was the joy of the
queens when they met, for Alexander bore him to
them as a son and not as a conqueror.
Then was Darius in sore grief; for his empire
98 was
was broken, his mother and his wife and his only
daughter were in the hands of his enemy, and
nought of hope was there save the help that Porus
had promised him: so he sent messengers to Alex-
ander offering him all his wealth if he would return
his family into his hands, and go to his own land.
But when the messengers had come to Alexander
and had done their errand to him, Alexander re-
ceived them roughly, and though all the Mace-
donians rejoiced, he said, ‘‘Why does your master
speak thus to me; if I have conquered him, let him
own me as lord; if not, let him come out and meet
me in the field. As for his gold, it is mine when I
wish to take it, without his offer.†And the mes-
sengers returned to Darius loaded with gifts and
honour, while Alexander's men were gathering
together the bodies of them that were slain and
tending the hurts of the wounded. And after the
army was rested, Alexander gave them leave and
they scattered over the plain up and down, and they
found the old-time palace of the kings of Persia and
the tombs of the lords of the land, and one of these
was made of a noble amethyst, graven over with
palm trees and with birds, and so clear was it, that
men might see within it the body; and the name
written on it was Ninus. Others among them came
on a great tower, and they forced it open and found
in it men of all nations, Greeks and barbarians,
who had been put there by Darius, and some had
99 lost
lost a hand, and some an eye, and some a foot.
So when they were brought before Alexander, they
cried to him, and he set them free and gave to each
of them a talent, and they went their ways whither
they would, blessing the Greeks.
Now when the messengers returned to Darius
and told him the words of Alexander, and how that
he needs must give up his empire if he could not
conquer him, the Persian set him to try one last
chance to recover his power, and he sent letters to
Porus, king of India, offering him great wealth and
honour if he would come and fight with Alexander,
and saying that he would pay the wage of the armies
himself, and that all the spoil of the Greeks should
be theirs. And the messengers went their way to
India, but one of the chief men of Darius’ council
came by night secretly to Alexander, and told him
all that was in the mind of Darius. So Alexander
was wroth, and he swore that he would never take
the name of Emperor till Darius was slain, and he
began to prepare his soldiers for an attack upon
Susa, but ere he had given his orders tidings came
that Darius was slain.
And this was the manner of his death. When it
was told in Susa that the Greeks were preparing to
assault the town, all men feared, even the knights
of Darius, and the king withdrew himself into an
inner room of his palace. There came to him two
of his knights whom he loved, and whom he had
100 raised
raised up from the lowest of the people, and had
made great and rich, so that they were equal with
great peers. These foul traitors had said within
themselves, ‘“‘ Surely Alexander has sworn the death
of Darius, and he will give us great praise and
honour if we slay him,†so that when they came
into the room to the king, they drew their swords
and looked on one another, and smote at Darius.
But their hands failed them for fear, so that they
slew not the king at first, and he cried out, “O
sons, why slay ye me; is not my sorrow great
enough, that ye of all men should turn against me?
Yea, and the lord of the Greeks will reward ye and
avenge my death at your hands.†But his words
moved them not, and they thrust their swords
through him, so that the royal robes were covered
with blood, and he fell down, as if dead; while the
knights went out, and none knew that they had
been with the king.
Long did he lie there alone, for his servants
feared to come in before him, but at last his nurse,
an old dame of eighty winters, made as if she had a
petition to offer, and opened the door of the room,
and saw him stricken to death. So she cried aloud,
and the servants ran in, and bore him to a bed in
the palace.
IOI CHAP. XII.
AR
| a
4 RISO i
Pie
oe XII. HOW ALEXANDER MAR-
RIED ROXANA, THE DAUGHTER OF THE
EMPEROR, AND HOW HE DEFEATED
oe THE KING OF INDIA.
mmm] LEN CAME MESSENGERS to Alex-
i IN 4] ander bringing word that Darius lay in
WAG INA his palace nigh death, and that there
\)ii was no man among the Persians who
pe) might give orders or make head against
fan So the king bade arm his knights, and he
rode into the city of Susa, and when the men of the
city saw them coming the chief of them went out to
the gate of the city and received him royally with
reverence and joy, saying, ““Welcome be thou, O
warrior, famed o’er all the world,†while the hearts
of those who had rebelled against Darius failed
them, and they fled from him and hid their heads
till they should know Alexander the King’s thought
of the death of the lord of the Persians.
102 Then
Then Alexander rode through the town to the
palace of Darius, and when he entered it he won-
dered at its beauty, that any mortal man should
make one so fair. The floor was wrought of clear
stones and crystal in divers colours, the walls were
covered with golden plates, on which were set gems
and stars of blue, whose sight dazzled the eyes, and
high over all rose a beautiful dome covered with
enamel and ornaments of trees and flowers. Now
when Alexander had seen these things he went
through the hall and into the chamber of Darius,
and there he saw him laid on his bed at point of
death; for he was so sore smitten that no man
could bind up his wounds, and at every breath the
blood gushed out. And the king of the Greeks was
moved by pure pity, and he leaned over the dying
man and kissed him, and said, ‘“‘Comfort thee, my
lord, and rise and be emperor still in all thy former
honour and dignity, for as for these defeats they are
the fortune of war, which exalts one man and puts
down another; but I, O King, will defend thee and
avenge thee on thine enemies ;†and he burst into
sobs of grief. And Darius raised him on his bed,
and kissed his hand and his neck, and said, “O son,
this is but the common fate of man, nor must I
grieve overmuch. I was rich and grew proud, now
am I poor. Bury me, my son, among my fathers,
the lords of Persia, and rule thou the land. My
mother and my wife are with you; guard them as
103 you
you have done and helpthem. My daughter Roxana
I leave to you for wife; it suits well that a noble
king should have the fairest wife on earth. Take
heed of what I have said ; be tender of my knights,â€
and Darius the king fell back and died.
So it was that in few days after the chief men of
Persia and of Medea came to Alexander and led
him to the throne of Darius, and crowned him with
the golden crown, hailing him Emperor of the
World; and they brought to him the fair damsel
Roxana, the daughter of Darius, covered witha
thick veil, and set her on the throne beside him.
Now Alexander had not seen the damsel, except
once at the supper of Darius her father, though
she had been in his camp for many days, but she
knew him, for she had preserved his portrait since
the time that Darius had thrown it aside, and her
heart was glad that she was to be his queen. And
as the rulers of Persia brought Alexander to the
throne they showed him that it had seven steps—
the first an amethyst, which showed the king should
be of sober mind; the second an emerald, to show
that a king should see clearly ; the third a topaz, to
remind him how things are not what they seem
always; the fourth step a garnet, to remind him of
fame and honour; the fifth an adamant, to show a
king should be steadfast ; the sixth of pure gold, to
show a king should be chief; the seventh of earth,
to remind the king that he must die. And at each
104 step
step the wise men explained its meaning to him,
and on the seventh they crowned him, and fell
down before him, and Roxana with them, and he
lifted her up and raised her veil before them, and
when he saw her he loved her, and with his own
hands he put a crown on her head.
After Alexander was crowned he sent messengers
into all parts of the land to spread the news, and to
give orders for the safety of the land, and he made
a proclamation offering their due reward to the
slayers of Darius. When they heard this the two
knights came forward in hope, and looked to get
great riches, but he ordered them to be hanged near
the grave of Darius, and all the Persian nobles
rejoiced, for they loved Darius, and had grieved
sore at his murder. Then Alexander appointed
one of the uncles of Darius to be lord and governor
of Persia, and he married Roxana, and made a
great feast through the land, which lasted for eight
days, and all the land of Persia rejoiced and was
lad.
: In few days, however, the warlike spirit of Alex-
ander came upon him again, and he resolved to set
out and conquer the king of India, Porus, who had
threatened him with war if he attacked Darius. So
he gathered together a great host of Medes and
Persians, and added them to his own Greeks, and
with them he marched out of Persia towards the
borders of India, through the great desert which lay
105 between
between them, leaving Roxana his queen behind with
her mother and uncle. And after they had spent
many days in the passage, and were wearied of the
wild waste where no water was, and the high hills and
the hollows and the broad plains, the Greeks began
to murmur among themselves, and to ask, “ Why
should we do more, since we have conquered the
Persians, and seized the empire which formerly
took tribute of our fathers? This land of India is
inhabited but by beasts, and as for Alexander, he
lives but for fighting, and if he lived in peace he
would die as if he were starved. Let us leave him
to fight with these barbarians, and go home in
peace.†When Alexander heard them, he gathered
together his knights and peers, and reproached
them. He told them how he had saved them in
their troubles, how he had exposed himself to
danger on their behalf, and how he had always
been first in battle among them. Then he said that
if they feared and deserted him, he would keep
on alone till he had fulfilled his fate, nor would he
return to Greece until he had conquered all lands
under heaven. And when he had finished his
speech the hearts of his princes turned to him,
and they sought his grace, and promised to follow
him everywhere to the death, without question or
murmur.
In these days a messenger arrived from Porus
bearing a message of threats and sneers to Alex-
106 ander,
ander, and when the message was given to him in
the presence of his men, some of the Greeks feared,
for this was a new land to them, and they knew not
what wonders Porus might bring against them.
But Alexander cared never a whit for any of his
words, and the message he sent back was bolder
than that he received, so that Porus became very
angry when he heard it, and he assembled his army
in haste and sent them out forthwith against Alex-
ander, without waiting for a part of it not yet come
to him. And though he had not all his army, yet
he had more soldiers than Alexander, and he had
with him chariots armed with scythes, ten thousand
at least, and he had unicorns in his host, and more
than all he had four hundred elephants, each with a
castle on its back and thirty men in armour. Now
the Greeks had never fought against elephants, nor
had they even seen them, so that they were sore
afraid, for their swords could not pierce the skin of
the elephants, and the great beasts trampled them
down, and the men on their backs threw darts at
them and shot arrows, and there was no means of
turning them back. Thus the Greeks and the
Persians were driven back that day by the Indians
through their elephants. But when night came on
Alexander ordered all his men and they got great
suits of armour and hammered them together, and
they filled them with coals and lit great fires round
about them, so that they became red hot, and all the -
107 night
night the Greeks made these brazen men and kept
them hot, and at first dawn the fires were put out
and these red-hot brazen men were brought before
the host, and when the elephants attacked them as
before and threw their trunks round them to cast
them on the ground and trample them, the hot
metal burnt their trunks and their feet, and they
turned and fled, and trampled down their own men,
hooting horribly. Then Alexander ordered the
Persians to attack the Indian army while it was in
confusion, but Porus rallied them and there was a
great battle ; but at the last Alexander with his men
came to the aid of the Persians, and the Indians
were defeated and Porus took to flight, and fled
away in haste, and Alexander and his host were left
masters of the field.
Next day he marched to a city near that place,
the chief of all that Porus was lord of, and no man
hindered, so that Alexander entered it and found
there the palace of Porus, and his house was noble
and fair. It had four hundred pillars of gold, and
between each was a grape vine with carved leaves
and grapes of all precious stones, some of clear
crystals, some of pearls, some of emeralds, and of
other gems. And all the walls were covered with
thick plates of gold, the thinnest of them was an
inch thick, and they were set with stones like the
stars of heaven, and the doors of the rooms were of
ivory carved and adorned, and the bars and bolts
108 were
were of ebony; the upper rooms were all of cypress
_ or of cedar, and in all the rooms there were golden
statues and images seated on thrones of gold, and
over them hangings of rich embroidery ; and in the
palace hall there was a fair tree, and on the branches
of it were all manner of birds, each painted and
made like to its nature, but with their bills and
claws of fine gold, and whenever the king wished
they made as sweet a melody as if it were the month
of May. But time fails us to tell of all the beauties
of this palace. And when Alexander entered the
palace he wondered greatly and went through it till
he came to a room which was shut, and on it was a
label, ‘‘ For Alexander alone.†Then he stayed, and
he would not enter the room, for he feared some
wile of the Indian King, and he got together his
wise men, and with them he opened the door. But
when he did so, he heard a burst of merry laughter,
and he looked, and lo, before him was a fair young
girl, and she said to him, “It is bravely done of
thee, O Alexander, to open this door with such
aid; am I then so fearful?†And Alexander was
abashed for a moment, but he said, ““O damsel, the
presents of Indian kings are not always so charm-
ing as thou art,†and he sat down beside her and
talked with her. But while she was speaking, one
of the wise men of Greece had watched her, and he
liked not the manner of her eyes, and he came near
to the king and spoke to him, ‘‘O King, beware °
109 of
of this damsel, for methinketh that she is not of
human kind like to other women.†Then the damsel
said, ‘‘ Away with this dotard, O King, kiss my lips
and see if I be nota woman.†And the wise man
said, ““O Alexander, verily this is one of the poison-
maidens of India, for in this land they feed girls
from their birth on deadly poison, so that poison is
their food, and food their poison, and whoever
kisses them dies immediately.†Then one of the
lords of the Persians came forward and said, ‘‘O
fool, how tellest thou such a tale to my lord Alex-
ander,†and turning to Alexander, he said, ‘“ May
thy slave show this dotard is wrong?†And the
king doubted, but he trusted his wise man, so the
Persian lord leaned forward and kissed the girl on
the lips, and fell down dead. Then she laughed
merrily, and said, ‘“‘O Alexander, if thou hadst not
been guided by the counsel of thy wise men, such
would have been thy fate.†But all the Greeks fled
out of the room. Then the maiden blew a whistle
and two great serpents came from their holes in the
corner of the room, and circled round her.
Now the next morn, when men went to fetch
the damsel before King Alexander, they found the
room empty, but for one great snake that lay on
the divan, and they came and told the King, and
he knew that the damsel had been left there to
cause his death, and he was on his guard.
110 CHAP. XIII.
> a
Zh \
NE
Ke PENN HESS NN Se rE
CHAPTER XIII. HOW eee AND
HIS MEN PASSED THE NIGHT OF FEAR,
AND HOW HE SAW THE GREATEST
sah THE LEAST THING ON EARTH.
eg (THIN A MONTH CAME tidings
that Porus had gathered together an-
other army, and would wage war with
Alexander, for the hosts that had been
on the march to him were there, and
hose of the Indians who had fled from the first
battle, and all were anxious to overcome the Greeks.
Alexander set out with his men, though it was in
August, in the hottest of the year, for it was his
habit to attack the enemy and never let them
attack him. But his men suffered greatly from the
heat, and some died of it alone, since their way led
them into a desert place where they had to wear all
their armour, for the land was full of snakes and
adders shining in gold and bright colours, and if
III a man
a man put off his armour and one of these bit him,
his death was certain.
And when they passed the place of the snakes
they came into a dry land where were no rivers or
wells of water, and the army suffered greatly, for the
water in their vessels dried up, and no man had to
drink. For two days they toiled on, searching for
water and finding none, and in the evening a certain
knight, Severus by name, came on a little water in
a hollow beneath some stones, and put it in his
helmet and brought it with joy to Alexander and
offered it to him. Then Alexander thanked him
greatly, and before all his knights he took it up in
his hands, as if he were going to drink it, and then
he put it down and said, ‘If I drink this, will it
sustain all the army, or shall I only be refreshed,
and they thirsty still?†And the knight said,
“Lord, our will is that you be first refreshed.â€
‘What, and all ye perish ?†said the Prince, and he
held out the helmet before his lords, and poured out
the water on the dry ground. “TI will thirst first
and feast last of all my men.†And the hearts of
all his army were rejoiced, as if they had drunk
abundantly.
And that night the wind began to blow, and the
camels smelt water on the breeze, and they lifted
themselves up and went towards it, and none could
stop them, all the hosts followed them, and they
led them after four hours’ journey to a little stream
112 full
full of reeds. The soldiers of the host drank therein,
but when it came to watering the beasts they found
that there were too many of them, for all the goods
of the camp were loaded on elephants, and on
camels, and on mules. Then they searched about,
but they found no other water near, so they made
up their minds to follow this brook till they came to
its end in some great river or lake, and in a day’s
time they came to a great castle in a lake all full of
reeds. So the beasts and the men drank, and when
they had rested they began to enquire whose was
this castle, and what was inside it. Now they rode
round the lake, but nowhere did they see any road
by which the castle could be entered, nor any gate
to it, but there seemed to be men on the walls
who were looking at them and their array. At the
last, however, they saw two rows of great trees
running across the lake towards the castle, and
some of the knights spurred their horses into the
water between them, and found a passage where the
water came up to their horses’ necks. Then they
sounded the trumpets from the shore, but there was
no answer from the castle, nor any banner displayed.
So the knights rode into the water along the cause-
way, and on and on till they came near the castle,
and saw a great gate closed, and over it a notice
carved in great letters filled with bright gold.
And when they had read it they tried to pass on
to the castle, but they found that the road sank, so
112 H that
that their horses had to swim, and great beasts
like sea lions rose through the water, and threw
them off their steeds, so that they turned their
horses’ heads and came to land again, and shewed
all these things to Alexander.
Now these were the words on the stone:
‘““NO MAN MAY ENTER TO THE GREATEST AND
LEAST TREASURE OF THE WORLD, TILL HE HAS
PASSED THE NIGHT OF FEAR.â€
And as the day began to fall, the whole camp
heard a roar as of many wild beasts, and they
looked and saw an army of tigers and dragons
coming against them, and Alexander and his men
drew their swords, but the beasts of the army were
‘so terrified by the roaring of the wild beasts that
they fled away and no man.could stop them, and
needs must the knights and soldiers follow them.
But not far from there was a small lake of sweet
water, and the horses and mules, the camels and the
elephants, crowded into this pool, and gathered to-
gether in a ring in the middle of it, and stood there
trembling and shivering. Then Alexander ordered
his men to pitch their tents round this pool and to
remain on guard, and they began to cut down wood
for fires, and to prepare to lie there at their ease for
some days. When night fell the moon rose over
the mountains, and men ceased work and rested to
enjoy the sweet coolness of the evening air, and the
quiet rest of all things in the moonlight.
114 On
On a sudden, the plain seemed covered with
crawling monsters making for the pool round which
the Greeks were encamped ; giant crayfish, of many
colours, scorpions, and scaled adders. At first their
coming was silent, and they could only be seen in
the bright moonlight coming nearer and nearer, and
then the hiss of the adders and the clash of the
shells was heard, and then the sound grew louder
till it seemed that all the hills resounded with it, and
men heard the keen cry of great dragons coming
down among them. Under the moon the knights
could see the dragons’ crested heads and their golden
breasts, and their eyes flashing out flames of fire, as
they came on and on, nearer and nearer the line,
and they said one to another, “Verily, this is a
night of fear, beyond all other.â€
And Alexander looked to the safety of all men, for
he went round the camp, and saw that all men were
in their place, and he called to him his knights and
strengthened their hearts, and bade them take ex-
ample by him and do as he did. Then he armed
himself and took a shield and a sword, and with his
knights went out before the line and began to slay
the loathsome beasts that had come against them,
while his archers and bowmen were shooting them
down. But ever as they slew and slew, the reptiles
swarmed up, and now and then the shrill cry of a
man in agony would show that one of his knights
or archers was overborne by the flood of writhing
II5 beasts,
beasts, and carried away or slain. For hours the
fight lasted, but when the moon was high in the
heaven the flood of reptiles seemed to cease, and in
a few minutes there were no more living round the
camp, and Alexander gathered his knights and found
that twenty knights and thirty archers had been
slain in this attack.
After the fight was over, men began to light fires
around the camp, and there was soon a ring of flames.
round the host, but before an hour had passed and
men called the fourth hour of the night, the watch-
men raised a cry, and all the army saw a host of
great crabs drawing near the camp. So the knights
in armour of plate came out against them with their
lances, for no swords could smite through their
shells. And again the fighting was fierce, for the
lances were shivered against the crabs, and when
men hewed off their claws they clung still to the
armour and bit through it, till at the last the knights.
snatched up brands from the fires and thrust them
into the open jaws of the crabs, and they turned and
fled, and left the camp at peace.
And when the watchmen called the fifth hour of
the night, there came up from the desert a band of
fierce great lions, white and large as bulls. These
the knights went out to meet, and a fierce battle
took place, but the Greeks feared them not, and soon
these also were put to flight. And there followed
them a rush of wild boars, with great teeth and
116 stout.
stout bristles, and these too were slain or driven
away.
Now the sixth hour of the night drew nigh, and
the moon was low down in the heavens, and the
burden beasts of the army began to come to shore
and lie down, and the men of the host were a-weary,
when the watchmen cried out with a loud voice and
there came up a host of wild men of the woods,
having six hands, and these came up, and they
feared not to rush on the knights, for they knew not
the use of iron, but with bowshots and handblows
they were driven off, and they escaped to the hills
and the woods.
And in the seventh hour there came up a great
fierce beast against them, with a black head, and on
it were three huge horns, and he was larger than an
elephant, and so sore was his attack on the host that
he slew eight and twenty men, but Alexander ran up
to him, and with his sword he slew him, and men
rejoiced, for their hearts began to fail them for the
long watch of the Night of Fear.
Now the day began to break, and the earth was
lightened, though as yet there was no dawn, and the
watchmen called the eighth hour, and there came up
mice as large as foxes, and they came near and fed
on the bodies of those things that were slain, and
when men or beasts came near them, they bit them,
and whatever was bitten fell down dead, and the
archers shot at them and drove them away. Then
117 came
came a crowd of foul bats as large as doves, and
they flew about and flapped their wings in the face
of the soldiers and bit them where they could on
cheeks, or nose, or chin, or ears, and none could
deliver themselves from them, but suddenly the
dawn came, and the sun leaped up over the hills,
and the black bats fled away, and men saw birds of
a red colour come flying in among them, yet without
harming them, as if to wish them joy of the day ;
and the Night of Fear was over.
Then the trumpeters of the Greeks sounded out
their morning blast, and when it was over men
heard another blast of the trumpets from the castle
that they had seen the day before, and a great draw-
bridge was let down, and a boat was brought to it
and set on the lake, and into it entered an old man
dressed in long flowing robes, bearing a precious
casket in his hands, and with him were heralds and
trumpeters. And when they came to the shore
they were met by the guards whom Alexander had
sent to meet them, and they came on to the camp,
and at the gate of the camp the aged man halted,
and Alexander came out to him. Then they greeted
each other, and the elder told Alexander who he
was, and that the castle was set there to guard a
precious thing, the greatest and the lightest thing
in the world, and to show those who came there
what they should do in times to come. Then Alex-
ander was glad of heart, and he besought him to
118 show
show him some of his wisdom. So the elder took
a gold crown out of the casket he bore, and put it
on Alexander’s head, and bade him come with him
to the castle, for that there he should see all these
things.
In going to the castle, Alexander went by boat
with the elder, and his chief knights rode after him
on horseback along the path through the water, and
when they came to the deep place the drawbridge
was let down to them and they mounted it and rode
through the gateway into the courtyard of the castle,
and Alexander and the elder were with them. So
they were led into the great hall of the castle, and
when they entered it they saw, at the place where
the seat of the lord should be, a niche cut in the
wall, and on the arch over it were written the words,
“THE GREATEST TREASURE,†and below it were the
words, ‘“AND THE LEAST.†Now when they went
up to it, they saw a rich cushion, and on it was
lying an egg-shaped stone, and as they looked on it
they saw a circle of brown on it and inside a clear
black ring; and the stone was clear as crystal, and
when one looked into it one saw men, and houses,
and riches, and wealth, and all that man could desire
or think of. So they brought out this treasure and
laid it in the hand of Alexander, and lo! it became
so heavy that he could not hold it, and they laid it
on a beam of a balance, and in the other pan they
placed gold and silver, a great quantity, and it
119 weighed
weighed more than all. Then they cast on the beam
all the treasures they had, and the stone outweighed
them all. Then Alexander sent for the gold that
he had with him, but the stone was heavier than all
the treasure of the Persians and the Greeks. And
Alexander said. ‘Truly, this is the greatest of
treasures.â€
Then the elder bade them take away all those
treasures to their owners, and he took up a pinch of
dust from the ground and laid it on the stone, and
lo! from being so great, there was no mean thing
that did not outweigh it; a blade of straw, a scrap of
wood was heavier than this, and all its beauty and
goodness were gone from it, so that no man would
desire it or look upon it. Then Alexander asked
of him what was this wonder, and why it did
thus, and the elder told him the meaning of all
this, and the name of the stone, and he said
that the castle was put there to guard the way
to the Wells of Life, and he told Alexander
things that should come to pass. Then Alexander
asked him how long he should live, and how should
he die, and the elder told him not, but he said that
he should learn from the trees of the sun and of the
moon when he came to the shores of the great sea.
‘And he told him that first must he go north into the
desert and meet and conquer King Porus, and that
then he should pass into the east through the Valley
of Terror till he saw the Three Wells of Life, and that
120 . then
then he should find the Temple of the Sun and the
trees which should tell him of what was to befall
him. And Alexander gave him great gifts and left
him and returned to his camp. ,
Thus Alexander turned northward, and in few
days he was in the land of Bactria, and all the men
of the land came to him with presents and gifts, and
he received them, and abode there thirty days, that
his men might recover their strength. And there
came to him messengers and told him that Porus
was encamped with his host a four days’ journey
off; and Alexander disguised himself as one of
those that supplied the camp with wine and flesh,
and driving some cattle before him he came into
the camp of Porus, that he might see how many
men he had and what was their mind towards him.
The guards of the camp laid hold on Alexander, for
that he was a stranger, and brought him before
Porus, and the king asked him who he was and
whence he came. Then Alexander answered that
he was a poor man of that land, and the Mace-
donians had taken away his cattle and his goods,
but he had escaped with some which he was trying
to sell. And Porus asked him had he seen Alex-
ander, and what was he doing, and Alexander
answered that he was sitting in his tent warming
himself at a fire. Then Porus laughed out, and he
was glad to hear that his enemy was so feeble that
he had to sit in his tent, and he asked how old he
121 was.
was. And Alexander answered that he was a poor
herdsman and knew not the king’s matters; so
Porus gave him a letter to Alexander and a great
reward, and promised him more if he should bring
an answer again, and Alexander returned to his
camp.
Now the letter of Porus was a challenge to Alex-
ander, offering to meet him in single combat, for he
said that no king or emperor should be such a
coward as to send men to battle unless he joined in
it himself, and that it would be better if only the
kings on each side fought, for it would spare the
blood of the people; and he offered to let the whole
matter rest on this combat, so that if Alexander
won he should be king of India, and if he won then
all the lands should obey him. Now Porus was a
tall man, a head and shoulders taller than any
man of his army, while Alexander was short even
among little men, and Porus counted on an easy
victory.
When the armies drew near in line of battle,
Alexander sent out a herald to Porus accepting his
offer, and in short time all was ready for the fight,
and the two kings, armed in full armour, were
opposite one another. When the fight began, Porus
advanced, proud of his strength and size, and
ignorant of the great strength of Alexander, and
both spurred at each other full tilt, and their lances
broke to shivers, but neither was unhorsed. So
122 they
they turned their horses and drew their swords, and
Porus struck Alexander with his sword, and cut
into the helmet, but the blow of Alexander was so
fierce that it struck Porus out of his saddle and
threw him to the ground senseless. Then all the
knights of India cast up a keen cry, but Alexander
dismounted, and caused the heralds to take off the
helmet of Porus and to give him aid; and when
Porus came to life again he owned him vanquished,
and Alexander gave him back his kingdom, and
from an enemy he became a friend and a subject to
the lord of the Greeks.
On a night after Alexander lay in his tent musing
alone, and he fell to thinking of his short life, and of
the way he had come, and of the wonders of the land,
and of the deeds he should do, when it seemed that
there was with him in the tent his fosterer, the whi-
lom King of Egypt, and he said to him, ‘‘O myson
Alexander, many deeds shalt thou do, and many
wonders shalt thou see, yet trust thou not to thy
sight. Remember the stone in the Castle of the
Lake, which was but the eye of man, for while he
lives it may not be satisfied. Trust men who seem
thy friends, but trust them not overmuch: fear the
gods and them alone, for I am with thee to help thee.â€
Then the god departed, and Alexander lay alone
asleep.
123 CHAP. XIV.
ee. ae Ne
ON i?
2
ae Ht
Ly ae Kal
De .
— XIV. HOW ALEXANDER AND
HIS ARMY PASSED THROUGH THE
VALLEY OF TERROR AND SOUGHT THE
WELLS OF LIFE.
eae AANY HUNDRED YEARS before,
YIN} One of the great heroes of the Greeks,
i | Hercules by name, had come into India,
and had conquered the people of the
iad and had set up great pillars
of Pane wherever he had come. So Alexander,
now that he had beaten Porus in battle, made up
his mind to follow in the footsteps of Hercules and
to see the wonders of India; and King Porus pro-
mised to go with him and to guide him. But
before this he sought to find the Wells of Life of
which the Elder had spoken to him in the castle in
the lake. But Porus knew not of the way, nor any
of the men in his army. So he turned again
towards the South as the Elder had bidden him,
and fared on his way.
124 Now
‘Now as the host was on its march, it fell that the
Greeks came among a poor folk which lived in
holes and caves of the earth, and so poor were they
that no man or woman of them had clothing or
ornament, but they all went naked, save that their
king wore a ring of gold on his head. As Alexander
and his host drew near, this folk sent messengers to
him asking what he wanted among them, and telling
him of their poverty, so that he could win nothing
from them. Then the king made strait inquiry
into their lives, and he found that they were indeed
so poor that they lived in caves and holes of the
hillside, and he was moved by compassion, and
made up his mind that they should be the better
of his coming to them, so he offered to give them
what thing they should ask of him, however great
it should be. Then the king of that folk of naked
wise men drew near, and said: “‘O Alexander, this
is our request ; that thou grant us never to die, for
nothing else do we need.†Then said the king to
them: ‘“O people, needs must that I die one day
myself; how, then, may I grant ye this thing?â€
And the naked wise men said: ‘Since thou must
die, O King, why dost thou hurry from one side of
the world to the other to slay a peaceful folk?â€
For a short while Alexander was silent; then he
spoke: “ Know, O feeble folk, that as the sea is
stirred not by itself but by the breath of heaven, so
I am driven to do the will of the gods.†Then the
125 naked
naked wise men left him and returned to their own
place, for they would take no gifts from Alexander
lest they should become rich.
Two days after the parting with these men the
host of Alexander came on a desert place in which
men saw a great temple, but no man was therein.
Then entered the priests and wise men, and they
saw nought save two great images, one of gold and
the other of silver. And as they considered the
images they saw thereon writing in the old language
of the Greeks, and when they had read it they
understood that these were the images of Hercules
which he had set up when he came into India.
When Alexander saw them he wondered at their
size, and could not believe that they were of solid
gold, so he ordered his men to pierce them through,
and they found no hollow within, but all was of
pure metal. .Now by the finding of these images
Alexander knew that he was in the right way,
because here it was that Hercules had turned back
when he came into the land; but Alexander and his
host went on, for he desired to see all the marvels
of the land of India. So it was that, on the third
day from their parting from the temple, they heard
the sound of a river, and going near it, they found
that it was very broad and deep; and when the
men came up they found that in no wise could
men swim in it to cross it. On the further side
they saw women carrying great maces and battle-
126 axes
axes of gold and silver, but there was no man
among them, or any weapon of iron or bronze, only
of gold or silver. Then Alexander and his men
sought to cross the river in boats, but great black
beasts rose out of the river and bit the boats in half,
so that scarcely did they escape to land with their
lives, and they gave up the thought of seeing the
land guarded by women, and marched on by the
side of the river.
As they were in camp next evening, they heard
suddenly the sound of trumpeting, and the watch-
men told of a host of elephants coming toward
them. Then Alexander asked Porus and his men,
but none knew of any king of this land who could
gather such a host, so men on horseback rode out
to see them, and when they came near they saw no
man with the elephants, and they returned and told
the king. All men were in fear, and the Indians
most of all, for they knew the madness of elephants,
but Alexander bade a few of his men mount their
steeds, and to drag with them each man some swine
before the elephants, for he knew how that the
elephant loathes the swine and cannot remain in
his presence. And it fell as Alexander had said,
for when the elephants heard the squealing and
grunting of the swine their wrath fell, and they
turned, with lowered trunks and flapping ears, and
hurried away from the loathsome sound. Then the
Indians praised the wisdom of Alexander, for that,
127 though
though he was mighty in fight, he would not risk
the lives of his men when he could use craft to
save them.
Now no man in the army had ever been in this
land before, and their hearts began to fail them
when they thought that Hercules had turned back
from the journey, and they grew afraid, and Alex-
ander began to think that the gods were angered at
his boldness, and had sent the herd of elephants to
. drive him away; and so next day he moved the
camp to the west instead of keeping on his march
to the south, and pitched it on a great plain where
there was no shelter of hills or trees, save that to the
south many miles off there was a range of hills.
When even was near, suddenly the clear sky became
covered with thick clouds, the sun became red and
then seemed to go out, and from the thick gloom a
storm broke on the camp. The winds blew, as it
seemed, from all sides, north and south, east and
west; they tore down the tents and scattered them,
so that no shelter was left; and then the thunder
rolled, the lightning flashed, and the hail and rain
ran along the ground. Never had the Greeks and
Indians seen such a storm, and they said among
themselves, ‘‘We are rightly served for leaving the
road we were told to follow, till we had seen the
things we were bidden to see.†So at morning
light Alexander turned his face towards the south,
and the army marched towards the hills. Now
128 though
though these hills seemed small and near, yet they
were really great and far off, so that it was five
days before they came to a valley near them by
which they could enter into the hills ; and as they
came near it they found but a narrow passage into
it, and well-trodden. When they were in it they
found that the valley was broad, and shut in
between high hills on all sides, that no man could
climb them, and there was no water in that valley,
and no living or green thing. Here then they
pitched their tents.
Next morning when they awoke they found the
air thick with snow, and the cold was piercing, so
Alexander ordered great fires to be lit on all sides,
while the varlets were bidden to tread down the snow
and stamp it flat with their feet. Then, as it grew
near midday, the air grew darker and a cloud filled
the valley, and they heard a great noise as if the
earth was being torn apart, and sparks of fire fell
through the cloud, so that the tents were burnt
where they fell, and if they fell on men they burnt
into the flesh and left a scar. Then all the host
were in terror, and Alexander bade them offer
incense and sacrifices to the gods, and they did so,
and a wind sprung up and drove away the clouds,
and left the air clear and cold. When men had
rested for a short time and given thanks to the gods
for their safety, they began to move to the other end
of the valley to pass out, and they came to an altar
129 I in
in the midst, with the bones of dead men lying
round it, but they had not been slain there, for
there was no mark of wound or gyves. On sight of
this the leaders of the host halted around it, but
none of them could read the marks on it or know
to what god it was raised. Now while they were
gathered round it men came running in haste from
the front, and they bore news that there was no way
by which men could leave the valley, and that they
must needs turn back by the way they came in.
Then Alexander gave orders to return, but when
the army did so, lo, there was no way out in that
direction or in any other, for no man could tell the
way by which they had come into that vale. In
short time all men were seeking for a road, but
none could be found, though great rewards were
offered by the king to him who should come upon
the path. Then were the host in great fear, for
they said that the gods were wroth with them, and
had brought them into this land to slay them ; but
Alexander had trust in the words of his god and
feared not.
_ The wise men of the army and the priests of the
gods were all this time gathered round the altar in
the midst of the valley, trying to make out the
meaning of the marks upon it, and now an old
Egyptian diviner came and stood before Alexander
and said to him, “O King, I have read the writing
on the altar, and I can tell thee the way out;†and
130 the
the king said, ‘Say on.†Then said he, “ O Alex-
ander, this valley is the Valley of Terror, of which
ancient stories tell, and whatsover men come into it,
they cannot leave it except one man of them stays
behind a willing victim, to save the rest, wherefore
on the altar are these words, ‘THE ALTAR OF
WILLING victims.’ Now, O King, we cannot leave
this valley till one man of the host stands at the
altar and offers himself to stay here for the safety of
the army, with a willing mind.†And when the
other wise men heard this, they bade the king to
make speed before the whole army should die of
fear, or of hunger. So Alexander called the host
together by the sound of the trumpet, and when they
were all in one place, he rose up and told them how
that the whole army was doomed to die, except that
one man would offer himself willingly to die for the
host. Then all men burst into grief, for many men
there were who would not fear death for the army,
but there was none who would willingly die. So
for the space of half an hour no one came forward.
Then Alexander the Emperor arose and said, “O
Greeks, Persians, and Indians, seeing that I have
led ye into this land it is fitting that I lead you out,
and since this may not be, I myself will stay here so
that ye may safely depart.†Then the leaders came
round him with tears and sobs, but he would not
listen to them, but bade them prepare for their
journey. The trumpets sounded again, and all men
131 kept
kept silence, for they saw Alexander with his left
hand on the Altar of Willing Victims, and his right
hand raised on high, and they heard him devote
himself to the God of the Valley—a willing victim
for the release of the army.
Soon as the words were said, a crash was heard
at the head of the valley, and when men looked they
saw that a huge cliff had fallen, and had opened a
broad way out into the open plain beyond, and men
hurried to load their beasts and the knights rode on,
and at the last Porus rode on with them, for Alexander
had bidden him fear nothing, for the gods had
promised him that he should not die save between a
soil of iron and a sky of gold, so that needs must he
escape from this Valley of Terror, and Alexander
had told the leaders of the host to abide forty days
for him on the plain outside if need be. Now when
all the army had passed through, and no man was
left in the valley but Alexander, standing at the
Altar of Willing Victims, and Bucephalus his horse
by him, it was already evening, and the earth
seemed to shake, and the way out was closed up.
When night fell, and all was dark, then the air
seemed full of fright, and from one side or another
groans were heard, but none came near. As hours
drew on, the horse shivered with fear, and when
Alexander patted his flanks they were covered
with cold dew, and at last Bucephalus put his head
under his master’s cloak, and stood still, trembling.
132 But
Sek Sn We
f
{ Ce ao LI
in
abi
en
US
ethew
§ alread
medio Shake
i ER
fees
A a BS
NS Io
{ ; = = : nN 4
ay
BN
VEN
A
ue
ime ee
on DPDSFZ
(PS G ENG
= headed
But Alexander stood all that night by the altar with
one hand on it, and he saw nothing, and heard but
the groans which echoed through the air.
When day dawned all was still in the valley, and
as Alexander looked about he saw around him
nothing but high rocks coming sheer down from
the mountain sides, but when the sun shone into the
valley, he took heart and began to ride round the
sidés to examine them for himself, and this he did
three times, but he found no way out. Then he sat
down by a great stone, on which was marked a five-
pointed star, with many letters written on it, and as
he did so the words of Anectanabus came into his
mind, how that this star was put for a seal over
Spirits in prison, and he remembered the mighty
words that call on the spirits of the air and the
earth, and he said them, and bade the spirit under
the seal answer him. Then a voice came from under
the stone and answered him, and told who he was,
and how he had been shut under that stone for
hundreds of years to work the will of the gods; and
he asked Alexander to let him go free. So Alex-
ander knew that if he set free this spirit he would
destroy the enchantment of the Valley of Terror,
and he determined to let the spirit go, but first he
questioned him as to the way out, and the road to
the Wells of Life, and how he should know them.
Then said the spirit, ‘‘O Alexander, there be three
Wells of Life, nor is it easy to find them. These be
133 their
their properties. The first is the Well of Life,
and in it if any dead thing is put, it straightway
comes to life again. The second is the Well of
Youth, and in it all who bathe come again to the age
of twenty-five, be they an hundred winters old. The
third is the Well of Never-dying Men, and he who
bathes in it shall not die of any disease or hurt of
iron, yet may he suffer pain of disease and hunger,
but he cannot die. Nor can this well be seen of all
men, or at any day, for but once in a year can it be
seen, and then no more of any man for another year.
For the way out, I myself will lead you and your
horse, and I will give you the stone Elmas, which
shall guide you to the wells, for it shall shine and
sparkle while you are in the right way, and when
you are in the wrong it shall grow dull and dark.
Long and dreary shall the road be, and few may go
with thee to that land.â€
Then Alexander drew his sword and cut away the
words marked on the five-pointed star, and when
they were rubbed out, he hacked away the corners of
the star, and as he did so, the earth shook, and the
stone rolled over, and a young man stood by him
holding a ruby in his hand, and he said, “O King,
take the stone Elmas, and set it in the handle of thy
sword, and come thou and thy horse with me, for
the valley is open, and men shall call it no eee
the Valley of Terror.†So the king came with his
horse, and he passed out where the army had gone,
134 and
and mounted his horse, and turned to thank his
guide, and lo! he was alone. Then he rode into
camp, and all men rejoiced to see him.
Now, as Alexander came into the camp of the
Greeks from the valley, an old man of the country
came up on the other side, and the guards brought
him before the King. Then he asked him concern-
ing the land, and who was the lord of it, and the
old man said that no man ruled in it, and few lived
in it. Then Alexander asked him of the Wells of
Life, and the old man answered that he had seen
them in his youth and had bathed in the Well of
Youth. Then Alexander asked him if he would
guide him to them, and the old man said he would,
but that he would not bathe in them, for he wished
not to live past his time. So he went with Alex-
ander and his host as they travelled far into the
land of Ind.
For many days the host travelled, till at last the
old man said that they were near the land of the
Wells of Life, and then Alexander bade the army to
halt, and he chose out a few of his Greeks and with
them he set out on his search. It had been told
Alexander that in the land there were many wells,
and that none could tell one from another, till they
came to the right one, so that he had prepared a way
to find them out. Now the first well they should
come to was the Well of Life, and Alexander bade
all his men take in hand a salt fish, and wash it in
135 every
every well they came to, till they should see some
strange thing, when they were to tell it tohim. It
must be said that they of the host knew not what
Alexander was seeking, nor what was the reason of
this washing of salt fish. So the men went from
one well to another, laughing and joking, and wash-
ing their salt fish, till one of them, Andreas by name,
dipped his fish into a certain well, and suddenly the
fish came to life in his hand and slipped out into
the well. Then he cried out with a loud voice, and
all the men near came running up to him, but he
could say or do nothing but point to the fish swim-
ming about in the spring. So they fetched Alex-
ander to the spring, and he gave orders to fill a cask
with the water of it, but the old man said that the
water was useless except it were drunk when it
was drawn from the spring. .
Then he came to the Well of Youth, and it was
in a dry land where no man dwelt, for there was no
river or tree near. And Alexander would fain have
the old man bathe in that well, but he would not,
for he said that it was good to be young once, and
to be foolish once, but to be young twice would be
to be always a fool, and old age was best when a man
was tired of life. So the young men bathed in the
spring and their hearts grew hopeful, and they re-
joiced in their youth.
There remained the Well of Never-dying Men to
be sought for, but the old man told them that this
136 was
was not here, nor was there any way to it from that
place, for they must seek it in the dark desert. On
this Alexander asked him of that desert, and he said
that there the land was dark day and night, the sun
shone not there, and there was no track or path for
men to travel by. ‘ Yet,†said the old man “ it will
be easy for thee to enter into the land and to find the
well, for thy stone Elmas will guide thee to it when
thou art in the land.†And with these words the
old man turned away, and when Alexander looked
for him, behold, he was not with them. Then
» Alexander and his men returned to the army.
CHAP. XV.
CHAPTER XV. HOW THE BRAHMANS
CAME TO KING ALEXANDER AND
WHAT HE LEARNT FROM THEM: AND
OF THE COMING OF THE AMAZONS.
eee OW THE TALE TELLS THAT by
Pan \asatal this time the army was encamped near the
AY m| great river of India, the river Ganges.
a jt—— ie Ihe river was very broad so that men
ee] could just see across it from one bank
to another, and it was full of all manner of living
beasts, crocodiles, scorpions, and snakes, so that men
dare not swim in it nor drive in their horses. It
happened on a day, that three men came to the
other side of the river, and stood there, so that the
guards came to Alexander and told him of it, and
he came to the bank over against them. Then the
king bade one of his nobles ask them who they
were, whence they came, and what was their wish ;
and they answered, “ We be Brahmans, that never
thought or did harm, and we bear a message from
138 our
our lord Dindimus to the lord of this army, Sir
Alexander of Greece.†And when he heard this the
king ordered a carpenter to make a boat to pass the
river, and as soon as it was ready, he sent a knight
over the river with a message inviting them to
come: so they crossed the river and stood before
him. Now they were very old men.
Then Alexander spoke to these Brahmans of one
thing and another, and found that they lived in
another manner than the Greeks; for what he es-
teemed rich and noble and good, they set little or
no store by, and what they admired he thought mean
and poor. But since he was a wise king, and one
who desired to learn the secrets of things, he sent a
letter to the chief of the Brahmans asking him to
describe what their nation did, “for,†said he, ‘you
differ from us very greatly, it cannot harm you to
tell us about yourselves, and we may learn from
your example. A candle when it is alight can light
many others without burning less brightly.†And
with this letter of Alexander’s the Brahmans went
away to their lord, and in due time they returned
bearing an answer.
The tale tells in full of these letters, though it
likes me not to write them here at length, but the
answer of Dindimus astonished the Greeks. He
told them that the Brahmans were a lowly folk, who
neither ploughed nor reaped, fished nor hunted, who
lived on the fruits of the earth, and who drank
139 water
water, who fought not and lied not, who studied not,
nor wore fine clothing, who loved the sun and the
sea, the woods and the song of birds, and who cared
neither for iron nor for gold. Then he went on to
reprove them for their worship of evil gods, for their
pride, cruelty, and avarice. However, Alexander
answered him fairly, but only drew on himself a
worse reproof. Then Alexander seized eight of the
chief Brahmans, and put to each of them a question,
saying that the one who answered worst should be
put to death first.
So the first of them was brought before him, and
he said to him, “ This is thy question : Why have
you no graves in which to bury your dead?†The
old man said, ‘‘ We are buried in the cave in the
hillside where we pass our days, that we may know
that our present life is but a training for the future.â€
Then came the second, and the king asked him,
‘Which are more in number, the dead or the
living?†‘ Those that are dead are more in number
than the living, thou thyself knowest how many
men thou hast slain,†said the old man. Then came
the third and Alexander said, ‘What is the most
wicked thing in creation?†‘Man is the most
wicked thing, and thou thyself art one of the worst
of men, for many men hast thou slain, and few hast
thou saved from death.†‘Is night older than day,
or day older than night?†was the next question of
the king, and the Brahman answered him that night
140 was
was older thanday. Then he asked the others these
questions, and to each of them the wise men gave
him a good answer. ‘‘ How do you live, and how
do you die?†“Is death mightier than life >?â€
‘“Who is it that has never been born?†‘* Which
is man’s strongest limb, his right hand or his left ?â€
At the last the lord of Macedon forgave their
bold speech and let them go; but, before they
went, Alexander asked them, as his custom was,
what were the wonders of their land ?
Then the eldest of the Brahmans told him of a
wonderful well in the land, that few men dare drink
of, for he that was miserly or unfaithful to his trust
and drank of it, went mad on the spot. But Alex-
ander did not fear this, for no man had ever thought
him miserly, for when he had shared the spoil at
Macedon, he left for himself only hope and glory.
Then the king asked to be led to that place, and he
went with few of his knights without fear, for the
Brahmans were an unarmed folk. Now, as he went
on his way with the Brahman, he came into a cer-
tain town of the land, and saw two men pleading
before the Judge, and he drew near to listen to them.
The first of them stood up before the Judge, and
said, ‘Sir, in time past I bought a house from this
man, and dwelt in it; now, long after, I have found
in it a treasure hid under the earth of the garden,
which is not mine. Accordingly I offered to deliver
the treasure to him, and carried it to his house, but
I4I he
he has refused it and will not take it. Wherefore,
sir, I beseech you that he be compelled to take this
treasure, since he knows full well that it is not mine,
for I have no right to it.†Then Alexander said to
the Brahman, ‘‘ Surely this man is foolish, for he
might keep this treasure to himself.†But the
Judge turned to the other man, and bade him
answer what was said against him. So he stood
up and said, “Sir Judge, that same treasure was
never mine, but he has digged in a place that no
other man who had the house has digged, and hath
made that his own which before had no master.
And, therefore, I have no right to take it.†Then
Alexander said to the Brahman, “ Surely this man
may take it, for the land was his, and the other
man wishes him to take it.â€
As he spoke, the two men talked together for a
moment, and then they turned toward the Judge, and
begged him to take the treasure himself, for they
would have none of it. Then the Judge answered,
and said, ‘‘ Since ye say that ye have no right thereto,
so that neither he to whom the heritage belonged in
time past, nor he to whom it now belongs may have
it, how should I have any right thereto, that am
but a stranger in the matter, and never before heard
a word spoken of it. Would you escape the burden
that falls on you, and give me the charge of the
treasure ; that were evil done of you.†And, after
awhile, he took them and asked of him that had
142 found
found the treasure whether they had any children
orno: so one of them answered that he had a young
son. Then he asked the other if he had a daughter,
and he said that he had. When he heard that, the
Judge was glad, and he ordered them to make a
‘marriage between the two, and that they should give
them the treasure between them as a marriage
portion. And when Alexander heard this judgment,
he had great marvel thereof, and said thus to the
Judge: ‘I trow there is not in all the world so
righteous a judge as thou art.†Then the Judge
looked on him with wonder, for he knew that he was
an outlander by his speech, though he wist not that
he was Alexander, and he asked him whether any
Judge in his own country would have done other-
wise. “ Yea, certainly,†said Alexander, ‘in many
lands would they have judged otherwise.†Then
the Judge had great marvel thereat, and he asked
the king whether it rained, and if the sun shone in
that land ; as if he would give him to understand
that it was strange that the gods should send any
light, or rain, or other good things to themthat do not
right and true judgment. But Alexander had greater
marvel than before, and he said there were but few
such nations upon earth as the people of this land.
Then king Alexander went with the old Brahman
in search of the well, and at the last they came to
the place where the well was, and it was a great
square tank, built down into the ground with blocks
143 of
of stone, the sides covered with green moss, and
the steps damp and slippery, the water at the bottom
dark and clear, but the Brahman put forth his hand
and said to the King, ‘‘O foolish of heart, bathe not
in this well, for thou art both miser and unfaithful.
Miser art thou for thy words about him who found
the treasure: unfaithful in that thy heart judged
not as the Judge of the land did.†And Alexander
turned away in silence, for his heart judged him,
and he dared not enter the well, so he returned to
his army.
And as Alexander went out of that land he
passed through a city, in the which all the houses
of the city were of one height, neither was any
house greater in show than another. Now before
the door of every house was a great pit dug, and
this pit was always open. Then Alexander asked
for the lord or judge of that city, and they told him
that there was in their city no judge or lord. And
the king wondered greatly how such a thing should
be, that a city could remain without a head or a
judge; and he asked of the inhabitants thereof
whereto such things should serve. So the dwellers
in that place answered him and said: “O king,
whereas thou dost wonder that we have no lord
over us to do justice among us, know thou that we
have learnt to do justice ourselves, wherefore we
need no man over us to do it for us.†Then said
he to the men of the city: ‘‘ Why do ye make these
144 pits
pits before the doors of your houses?†And they
answered him: ‘‘ Know, O Alexander, that these
pits are our graves, which every man makes before
his door to be his own house, to which each of us
must go, and there dwell until his deeds are
judged.†And Alexander asked them yet another
question: ‘Why are your houses built of one
height?†and they answered him: ‘“O King, love
and justice cannot be even among all the people of ©
a place if some of them are greater than others, and
no house nor family shall be greater than other in
this our town.†Then Alexander departed from
them, wondering, but well pleased.
The tale tells that before Alexander fought
against Porus he sent messengers to all lands in
Asia, and among the rest to the land of the
Amazons. It is said of that land that only women
live in it, and it is governed by women, and what-
ever man comes into it he is straightway slain; for
the first founders of that land were the wives of the
men that were called Goths, the which men were
cruelly slain, and then their wives took their hus-
bands’ armour and weapons, and fell on their
enemies with manly hearts, and took revenge of the
death of their husbands. For by dint of sword
they slew all men, both old men and children, and
saved the females, and parted out the prey, and
purposed to live ever after without company of
men. And by the example of their husbands they
145 K had
had ever two queens among them, one to lead the
host and fight against enemies, the other to govern
and rule the kindreds. In short time they became
such fierce warriors that they had a great part of
Asia under their lordship nigh a hundred years ;
and among them they suffered no man to live or
abide, but of the nations that were nigh to them
they chose husbands, and they nourished their
children till they were seven years old, and then
their sons they sent to their fathers, but they saved
their daughters and taught them to shoot and to
hunt. It is told that the great Hercules was the
first who daunted their fierceness, and that was
more by friendship than by strength.
Now came messengers from Calistris, queen of
the Amazons, to Alexander, bearing letters from
her in answer to his demand of tribute, for she had
heard how Alexander had followed in the footsteps
of Hercules, and had gone into India, and the
letters told of her land and its customs, and of the
number of warriors she had, and she went on: “I
wonder at thy wit, that thou purposest to fight
with women, for if fortune be on our side, and if it
hap that thou be overcome, then art thou shamed
for evermore, when thou art overcome of women ;
and if our gods be wroth with us, and thou over-
comest us, it shall be little honour to thee that thou
hast overcome a band of women.†And when
Alexander looked over the letter he laughed, and
146 wondered.
wondered on her answer, and said that it was not
seemly to overcome women with sword and anger,
but rather with love and noble dealing: and there-
fore he sent messengers to them offering friendship
and a treaty. Then the queen of the Amazons
came with many of her maidens, and they reached
Alexander when he returned from the land of the
Brahmans, and abode with him many months, and
at the last they departed from him and went to
their own land, being subject to his empire, not by
violence, but by friendship and by love.
And after these things Alexander reared up a
pillar of marble, and upon it he wrote in the tongue
of the Greeks and of the Indians. Now the inscrip-
tion in Greek characters was but this :—
ABTAE
the first five letters of the alphabet, and they stood
for the same words as those in the Indian inscrip-
tion:
AAEZANAPOS BASIAEY> TENOS AIOD EKTISE
‘King Alexander the God-born built this:†and
he graved it deep on the sides of the pillar.
147 CHAP. XVI.
DS
B
‘2
ae Pe
ek We
SNE) 4
:
Ek aay NE x SN!
i P= Ne
Y= ed NY een Dens!
EET A
CHAPTER XVI. HOW ALEXANDER.
PASSED THROUGH THE LAND OF DARK-
NESS AND SLEW THE BASILISK.
| EW DAYS AFTER Alexander and
his army entered into a plain full of
fair flowers and trees. Now the trees
of this land were fruitful and bore all
= manner of food for man, and amongst
them were apples and almonds, vines and pome-
granates, and plums and damsons; and it was
in this land that the Greeks first ate of damsons,
for they did eat of them three days while they were
in the forest. But as they went through the
wood, they came upon giants twice as high as other
men, clad in coats of skin, and covered with long
hair. So the Greeks and the Indians were sore
afraid lest these giants should fall upon them and
slay them, while the giants called one to another,
and came together through the trees to gaze on
148 them
ee
them, for they had never seen men before. When
the Greeks saw that these giants were calling to
“one another and coming together, they drew up in
line of battle, and the knights clad in armour
mounted their battle horses, and the archers and
spearmen prepared their weapons for the onset: for
the Greeks had never heard of giants who did no
harm to men. But these giants were great stupid
oafs who stood gazing with open mouths at Alex-
ander and his men preparing to slay them, and
their food was grapes and pomegranates. And
when the army was drawn up in line, and all men
were ready, Alexander gave the word and they
raised a loud shout so that the woods rang again,
and the giants turned and fled, for they had never
heard sound of man or of trumpet. Then the
knights followed them and slew some six hundred
of them in the field and in the chase, so that none
of them were left in the land round about.
The tale tells that Alexander passed on with
his army, still seeking the wonders of the land and
finding no man in this part of it, till he came to
another river where he halted for many days. And
there came men of the land to him, and Alexander
asked them of the wonders of the land, so they told
him of certain trees near by which grew with the
sun, and when it was high they were great, and as
the sun fell below the earth so the trees grew
smaller and sank down into the soil. But when
149 the
the king would set out to see this marvel, they told
him that no man could go near it for there was a
wild man who guarded the wood and suffered no
one to pass. Then Alexander sought counsel of
his wise men, and they bade him take a fair white
maiden such as the wild man had never seen and
hold her before him, and so they did, and the wild
man became quiet and still at the sight of her, so
the Greeks crept up to him and bound him in great
chains, and brought him before the King’s tent:
now this wild man was covered with hair stout and
strong, and his arms were great, and his strength
was as that of ten men. And when the King had
gazed on him they bound him to a tree, and slew
him, and burnt him to ashes, for he had slain
much folk of that country.
Next day the King and his company came to the
place of the trees, and they wondered at the sight,
how they grew as the day grew, and the height of
them was a spear’s length, and on them were fruits
like to apples, and men called them the trees of the
sun. Now the tent of the King was over against
the place where the trees grew, and in the hot
sunlight he felt thirst, so he bade one of his carles
fetch him an apple, and the man sprang forth to do
his bidding, but when he laid his hand on the fruit
he fell to the ground as if he was slain. There
were birds on those trees among the branches and
some men wished to put their hands on them, for
150 they
they did not fly away from them, but as they did
so, flames of fire came out from the trees; and the
men of the country told them that no man could
touch these trees and live. Then Alexander asked
them of the Land of Darkness, for the stone Elmas
shone brightly, and he knew that he was drawing
near that land: but they said that no man went to
that land, for the way was through a desert that
none could cross.
Then Alexander chose him out of all his army
three hundred young men, able to endure hardship,
and they made them ready to go with him to the
Land of Darkness, while the army was left in the
hand of King Porus; and he gave orders that the
young men should carry with them stores of food
and water to pass through the desert to the land
they sought. Now there was a certain old man in
the army named Bushi, who had two sons chosen
to go with the King, and he bade them to take
him with them to the Land of Darkness, but they
said to him that the King had straightly commanded
that no old man should go with them. Then said
the old man, ‘O Sons, make strong a box, and put
me inside it, and set the box on a mule and carry
it with the baggage, and it shall be for your good,
for a party without old men to advise can come to
no good.†So his sons did as he bade them, and
closed him in a box, and set him on a mule’s back,
and carried him with them to the land. And as:
I51 Alexander
Alexander went on his way they met men of the
land, journeying in the desert, and these told them
of the Well of Life, and how a man had drunk of
that well, but he could not find his way out of the
Land of Darkness, and ever he wandered to and
fro, up and down, till at last he gave up the search,
and dwelt in a tower alone, and as the years rolled
on he grew smaller and smaller, and more and
more cruel, and when men came into that land, he
slew them and fed on their flesh.
Now when Alexander drew near the Land he
came to a desert land, where was neither well nor
living thing, and they hastened through it for five
days, but on the morrow of the sixth day the sun
rose not, and there was no light of day: and so the
king knew that he had come on the Land of Dark-
ness, but the tales that he had heard came to his
mind, and he feared, for he had no mind to wander
through that land without a guide. Then he went
back with his men for half a day’s journey, and lo!
the light of the evening, so he camped in that place
and waited for morning light. On the morrow he
took counsel with his men, as to the way of return,
and he offered great reward to any man who should
show the way of a safe journey back, but his young
men said, ‘‘O King, it is ours to go where thou dost
order us, and what thou biddest, that will we do:â€
and he found no counsel in them. Then the two
sons told their father how the King had stopped
152 and
and asked for counsel, and Bushi bade them bring
him before Alexander, and when they feared he
bade them be bold, for he had good counsel to
give.
The tale tells that the King was sitting sorrowful
in his tent that day, for he dared not enter the Land
without some means of safe return, and he was
unwilling to go back to the army without having
reached his object; and when the guards entered .
and told that an old man sought speech of him, he
thought that one of the gods must have come to
his help. So he made him to sit in his own seat,
for the man was very old and feeble, and asked
him what he would. Then Bushi answered and
said, “O King, hear the words of an old man;
there is no love like the love of a mother for her
young. Now thou hast here with thee many asses
with their foals. This is my word to thee. Leave
here on the borders of the Land, half thy men
with their baggage trains, and leave with them the
young foals, and go thou with their mothers and
the rest of thy men into the Land, and do thy
heart’s desire : then when thou wilt return from this
Land, loosen the mothers and leave them free, and
take them for thy guides, and they will lead thee
back to the place where their young ones be.â€
Then Alexander the King praised him greatly,
and gave rich reward to the young men, his sons,
and he offered to take the old man to the Well of
153 Life,
Life, but he would not, for he said, “‘ How should I
desire to live for ever, being such a man as I am, for
the bitterness of death is past to me.†Then he
gave counsel to the King that no man should bathe
in any well in the land, till he had seen it, for if he
did the well would disappear for a year. So
Alexander did as the old man Bushi advised him,
for he divided his men into two bands, and one he
left on the borders of the Land of Darkness, with
their baggage and with the young foals, and one he
took with him, and the men he took with him he
straightly charged to come to him when they found
the well, and on no account to bathe in it. So he
entered the Land, and the stone Elmas shone witha
light like a star, and guided them on the road for
three days. Buton the fourth day it grew duller,
and Alexander knew that he had passed the place of
the Well of Life; and he ordered his men to search
for the well in all directions, but not to go out of
sound of the trumpets which rang out every hour,
and to come into the camp when it sounded. Seven
times did the trumpet sound, and the scouts came
in, but on the seventh time, one of them, Philotus
by name, came in with his hair wet, and Alexander
knew that he had disobeyed the word of the king,
and had bathed in the well. Then said he to him,
‘““O Philotus, canst thou lead me to the well thou
hast bathed in,†and the man answered, “ Yea,
Lord;†and they set out together, but no well
154 could
could be found. Then the wrath of the King burst
out, for he knew that he should see the Well no
more for a year if he remained in that place, and
that all the labour of his expedition was spent for
nought but to make this Indian immortal, and he
bade men bring great stones, and build them ina
pillar round the Indian and close it at the top, and
they did so, and he was left alive inside the pillar, for
indeed the Greeks could not slay him. This done,
Alexander put the reins on the necks of his asses,
and they turned and led the way to their young, and
in three days he was out of the Land of Darkness
and on his way to the army.
In few days the King set out again with his host
and went on his way towards the mountain lands,
and ever the way led upward till after eleven days’
journey they came to a great plain among the moun-
tains, covered with trees and plants, and well
watered by noble rivers. The fruits were of the
finest savour, and the water was sweeter than milk
or mead, and clearer than crystal. So they went on
through the land for many days, but they found no
man in it, and no houses or temples of the gods;
until they came to a high mountain which seemed
to reach even to the clouds, and no way was there of
crossing it, it was so steep and rugged. But when
they came up to this range they found two passes
which led through the range, and where they met
was a great temple, and the one path led to the-
155 East,
East, the way of the sun-rising, and the other to the
North. Now there was no man to tell them where
these paths led, or what was to be met in them.
Then Alexander thought within himself that he
would go to the East, for the Gods had predicted
that in the East he should learn when and where was
the end of his days, and the army of the King went
through the pass for seven days.
But on the eighth day, a sudden death fell on
many of the men in the host, for when they came
to a certain spot or place among the mountains, ever
one or another noble knight would fall down sud-
denly and lie dead on the road, nor did all men who
passed the place die, but some only. Then fear
came upon all men, and those who had passed the
place dared not move either forward or backward,
and those who had not passed it would not go
forward, nor indeed did the King command them,
for all men said, ‘‘ The wrath of the gods is upon us
for coming into this land.†So Alexander sought to
find the reason for this death, and he went with one
of his knights up the mountains at the side of the
pass, till he came to a place whence he could see
the whole of the pass and the mountains behind it,
and looking down into the valley he saw in one of the
clefts of the hills a loathly serpent, old and wrinkled,
his thin long neck and great head lying on the
ground before it. And while the King looked down,
the ungainly worm slowly raised its heavy head and
156 looked
looked down on the valley, and let it fall again, and
a cry of grief from his men told him that two more
of his knights had fallen dead on the pass, and
Alexander knew that his eyes saw the Basilisk.
The tale tells that this beast is the most deadly
of all serpents, for its venom is such that whatso-
ever living thing it looks on it slays, yea, the very
grass is withered by its deadly breath. And no man
may slay it unawares easily, for once a man slew
one with a lance, and the venom of it was such that
he died from it, though he came no nearer the body
than a spear’s length. This the king knew and he
sought not to slay it with a weapon, but he worked
so that the worm should kill itself; for he caused
his men to make a shield larger than a man, and on
this shield he bade put a bright polished mirror,
and he wrapped his feet in linen, and put off his
armour, and going softly he bore the shield with its
mirror before him, and set it down before the den of
the basilisk, and went his way. But the basilisk
raised its head as its manner was, and looked before
it, and saw its face in the mirror, and the poison of
its own look killed it, so it fell dead with its eyes wide
open, and lay along the path. Then the knight who
was on the mountain watching blew his horn, and
all men heard it and rejoiced and praised the brave
king who had delivered them from the basilisk.
All this while the march of the host had lain
between mountains, and when men climbed to the top
157 they
they saw nothing but other mountains stretching
away as far as they could see, no towns, no villages,
no living things, and on the day after the basilisk
was slain, the road suddenly stopped among the
mountains, and the host could go no further. Then
Alexander the King bade them turn back to the
parting of the ways, and as they passed the place
where the basilisk had been he bade them burn it
in asbestos cloth, and take its ashes, for the ashes
of the basilisk are a precious thing, able to turn lead
into pure gold, but the men found it not, though the
_ great mirror was still there. And at the last they
came to the temple at the parting of the ways, and
the army lay round the temple for a day to rest, for
they were sore wearied with the passage through
the Eastward way. The next day at sunrise two aged
men came out of the temple, and Alexander spoke
with them and they told him of the ways, how that
Bacchus, one of the gods, had made this road when
he came into India and conquered it, and how he
had caused the mountains to come together and
block it up, so that no man should pass through by
it after. Then Alexander asked them of the North-
ward way, and they told him how it led to the Trees
of the Sun and Moon: and they told of the wonders
of the trees, and how they spoke with men’s tongues,
and told what should be in time to come, and
Alexander the King rejoiced.
158 CHAP. XVII.
AS
CHAPTER | XVII. HOW ALEXANDE
CAME TO THE TREES OF THE SUN AND
THE MOON, AND WHAT THEY TOLD
HIM.
OWBEIT ALEXANDER made no
sign to them of his joy, for he seemed
not to believe the old men, and he
said: ‘Have I spread the might of
my name from the East even unto the
West to no end but to become a sport to old
men and dotards.†Then the old men made oath
by the gods that this thing was true, and they told
the King how that these trees spoke both in the
Greek and the Indian language; and Alexander
asked them of the way to this marvel, and the men
answered: ‘‘O King, whosoever thou art, no greater
marvel shalt thou see than this we tell thee of.
The way to it is a journey of ten days, nor can your
army pass because of the narrow paths, and the’
159 want
want of water, but at the most four thousand men
with their beasts of burden and their food.†Then
all the friends of the King and his companions
besought him to go and see this great thing, and
he made as if he hearkened to their prayers, and
consented to go with them. So he left the army
with its baggage and the elephants in the hands of
King Porus his friend, and set out on the Northward
Way to seek the trees which spoke to men.
Now the Northward Way was like the Eastward
one, a narrow road among high mountains, and
little ease was there in going through it, and for
three days they came to no water, but at noon on
the fourth day they came to a spring which flowed
out of a cave on the hillside. Then the Indians
told Alexander that this cave was sacred to Bacchus,
so he entered it and offered up a sacrifice to the
god, and prayed him that he might return safe to
Macedon, lord of the world, but he got no sign
from the god that his prayer was heard. Then on
the morrow he set out, and on the tenth day at even
they came to the foot of a great cliff, shining in the
setting sun from thousands of brilliant points like
diamonds, and from chains of red gold leading from
step to step up the face of the rock, high up beyond
the ken of men. And as the sun shone on it the
steps seemed carved from sapphires and rubies, so
deep were the blue and red of their colour. Then
Alexander the king set up altars to the gods of
160 heaven,
heaven, and offered sacrifices to each one of them, and
he and his men lay that night at the foot of the cliff.
Early in the morning he arose, and when he had
called to him his twelve tried princes, he began to
ascend the steps on the side of the mountain,
and as he went up it seemed to him that he was
going into the clouds, and when he looked down,
the path by which he had come seemed as a silver
ribbon among the hills, and the men of his host
seemed smaller than bees, and nothing that might
happen seemed strange to him, for his joy and
lightness of heart. So on and on they went and
at length they came to the last of the steps, two
thousand five hundred of them, and they found
that on the top of the cliff was a wide plain, and in
the distance they saw a fair palace set ina garden,
and a noble minster shining in the sun like gold.
All the plain was full of rich and noble trees
bearing precious balm and spices, and many fruits
grew on their branches, and the inhabitants of the
plain fed on them, for there were many men on
the plain, and all men and women were clothed in
the skins of panthers or of tigers sewn together, and
they spoke in the Indian tongue. As the Greeks
drew near the palace they saw it, what a fair home it
was, and how it had two broad doors to its hall,
and seventy windows of diverse shape, and when
they came to the doors they found them covered _
with beaten gold, and set with fair stones.
161 8 But
But the doors of the palace opened and shut,
and there stood before them a negro, ten feet high,
with great teeth showing over his lips, his ears
pierced and a great pearl in each, and clothed in
skins. And when he had saluted them he asked
them why they had come to that land, and they
said that they wished to see the trees that spoke,
and to hear something from them. Then the
negro bade them to take three of them, and to put
off their shoes, and their weapons and ornaments,
and to clothe themselves in fair white linen, and
Alexander and two of his companions did so, and
the negro brought them within the palace, leaving
the rest of their companions outside. And as they
went in they marked the fair garden, and in it
were golden vines bearing on them grapes of rubies
and carbuncles, and they saw how precious a place
it was, so that Paradise alone excelled it.
Now when they were come to the inner door of
the hall, the negro bowed himself down before
them, and opened the door before them, but went
not in himself, for that room was the chief of the
palace, and when they lifted up their heads they
saw before them a couch and on it was a man.
Now the hangings of the couch were of golden
brocade, and its coverlet was blue, embroidered
with shining ones in bright gold, and the bedhead
was embroidered with cherubim with glancing
wings, and the canopy with the bright seraphim.
162 The
The curtains were of silk and on them was a fair
garden of needlework, and in it were beasts and
birds, and the pillars were of the same, and all the
points and ornaments were of pearl. The romance
tells that he who rested in that room was one of
the noblest-looking men that ever had life, with a
face bright and bold as fire, his hair was long and
grey, and his beard was as white as the driven
snow. When the King and his peers saw him they
knew that he must be of the blood of the gods and
not of mankind, and they knelt down on the ground
before him, and saluted him with all reverence.
Then he reached out his arms to them, and raised
him on the bed, and answered them: “ Hail,
Alexander,†said he, ‘‘ All hail, thou who wieldest
the earth, thou and thy princes are welcome. Sir,
thou shalt see with thy sight such marvels as never
before man saw; and thou shalt hear of what shall
come, things that no man hath heard but thee.â€
Then was the King astonished that his name was
known, and he said, “Oh, holy happy man, how
dost thou name my name, since thou hast never
seen me before?†And the god answered: ‘“ Yea,
I knew thee ere a word of thy fame had spread
over the earth. Then he went on: “Wish ye to
look upon the trees that bloom for ever, the trees
of the sun and of the moon, that can speak and tell
thee of what is to be?†And Alexander the king .
said, ‘‘Yes by my crown, this would I do more
163 than
than anything else in the world.†Then the god
said, “Art thou clean of body and mind, thou and
thy friends; for no man may enter the place where
they are who is not pure of all stain?†and
Alexander answered that they were. So the Elder
arose from his bed, and cast on him a mantle of
gold, and the ground glittered for the glory of his
weeds, and he led them to the door, and there
stood there two elders like to those Alexander had
seen at the Parting of the Ways, and he gave them
into their hands, and bade them lead them to the
place where they would be. Then he turned and
departed, and Alexander and his friends Ptolemy
and Antiochus went with the elders.
As they went the elders asked them if they had
any metal or rich thing with them, and bade them
cast it off, and one of the elders stayed at the. door
of the minster while the other led them through it,
and after that the three Greek lords passed through
a wondrous thick wood, full of most precious trees,
olives and sycamores, cypresses and cedars, with
balm and myrrh trickling down the trunk and all
manner of incense and aromatic spices. In this
‘wood they came upon a little round clear space, and
when they looked they saw a great tree whereon
was neither fruit nor leaves, bark nor bast, and it
was one hundred feet high. And on it they sawa
bird resting on one of its branches, and the bird
was of the size of a peacock, with a crest such as
164 the
the peacock has, and its cheeks and jaws were red
like a fowl, and its breast was of golden feathers,
and its back and tail of blue speckled with crimson,
and its body of gold and red speckled with grey.
Then Alexander the king stayed and considered
this bird and wondered at it, and the guide
answered his thought: “Why dost thou wait
and wonder, yon is the Phoenix, the bird that lives
a hundred years, and has no mate:†and he turned
them a little way and they saw a spot where two.
trees grew side by side, the trees of the Sun and
the Moon. ‘“ Behold now,†quoth the guide, “ these
holy trees; form in thy mind the question thou
wouldst ask of them, but say it not in words that
can be heard; and thou shalt have an answer in
plain words, such as no other oracle gives. And
this shall be a sign to thee that the gods are good
to thee, since they read thy thoughts and need not
words to tell them thy question.â€
The tale tells us that these trees were not like
others, but their boles and leaves shone like metal,
and the tree of the sun was like gold, and the tree
of the moon was like silver, and the tree of the sun
was the male, and that of the moon the female.
Then Alexander asked his guide: “In what
way will the trees answer me?†and the Elder
answered him: ‘Truly, O King, the Sun-tree
begins to speak in the Indian tongue, and ends in.
Greek ; but the Moon-tree, since it is female, speaks
165 in
in a contrary manner, for it begins in Greek and
finishes in Indian, and thus in two tongues each
tells us its mission of fate.†Then he wished to
offer sacrifices before the trees to honour them as
gods, but the Elder forbade him, for he said that
no living thing was to be injured in this place, and
no fire must be brought there, but that the only
sacrifices offered to the trees were kisses on the
tree-boles. And when he heard this Alexander the
King knelt down on the ground and kissed the
boles of the trees one after the other, and asked
within himself whether he should return to Mace-
don, where his mother dwelt, having conquered all
the earth.
Now, when he had asked this question in his
mind, and he and his fellows were kneeling on the
ground before the tree, suddenly it began to move,
and the leaves began to quiver, though all was still
and calm in the forest, and there was a sound of
going in the tree-tops, and a sighing as if the wind
was rustling through the leaves, and the sighing
and moaning of the leaves grew louder, and with a
swaying sough this answer came to the King:
*“OQ Alexander, unbeaten in war thou art, and shalt
be lord of all the world, yet never shalt thou see
the soil of thy sires, or return to thy dear land of
Macedon ; thou shalt see thy mother and thy land
no more.†When they heard these things the com-
panions of Alexander fell down to the ground as if
166 . dead,
dead, so great was their grief, and they heard no
more of what was said; but Alexander knelt down
before the Moon-tree to ask of it a question. Then
the Elder came to him and said: “O King, the
tree of the Moon answers not till the night has
come, and the moon is full in the sky.†So the
King turned to his companions, and comforted
them with his kind words and gifts, and bade them
be of good cheer.
When the night was come Alexander rose up
again to go before the Moon-tree, and to hear its
oracles, and his companions told him of the danger
of being unarmed and alone by night, but Alexander
feared not, for it was not lawful to slay any one in
that forest, neither was there any man in it save the
guide and themselves. And having adored the tree
and kissed it, he knelt down before it, and thought
to ask when and where should be his end. Then
at the moment when the rays of the moon made
the leaves shine with splendour, he heard a voice
from the tree: ‘Alexander, the end of thy life
draws near; this year shall be thine, but in the
ninth month of the next thou shalt die at Babylon,
deceived by him in whom you fully trust.†Then
he was filled with grief and he looked at his friends,
and he knew that they were ready to die for him if
need be, and he thought of the other companions in
whom he trusted, and that if he slew them he might
save himself, and then he thought of the endless
167 suspicion
suspicion and sorrow he would live in for the rest
of his days, and he remembered the words of the
god when he told him that it was not good for men
to know the end of their days, and he strengthened
his heart and comforted his friends, and he bade
them swear never to reveal the things they had
heard, and again they returned to the minster, and
found tents thereby where they might rest, and beds
of skins, and on an ivory table there was food and
drink set for them, fruit and bread, and water from
the stream. So they slept and rested.
Then in the morning the Elder woke him from
sleep, and led him before the bare tree, and bade
him ask of it what he would, and he knelt before it
and kissed it, and asked in his mind, “ Who is it
that shall harm my mother or sisters or myself?â€
Then he had this answer from the tree: ““O mighty
lord, if I should tell thee the man who should betray
thee it were easy for thee to slay him and to over-
come thy fate, and the oracles would be made of
none effect. Therefore thou shalt die at Babylon,
not by iron, as thou deemest, nor by gold, silver,
nor by any vile metal, but by poison. Thy mother
shall die by the vilest death, and shall lie unburied
in the common way, to be eaten by birds and dogs.
Thy sisters shall live long and happy lives. Short
as thy life shall be, thou shalt be lord of all lands.
Now ask no more, but return to thy army and to
Porus thy friend.†And the Elder came up to him
168 and
and said: ‘‘ Let us depart with speed, for the weep-
ing and moaning of thy companions have offended
the holy ones of the trees,†and Alexander and his
companions departed from the forest. Then he
asked the Elder who was the god of the palace, and he
told the King it was Bacchus, who had sent him to
the temple at the Parting of the Ways, and who
had welcomed him in the palace. So Alexander
came to his peers, and with them went down the
golden stairway and joined the host, and hurried on
day after day until he came to the Parting of the
Ways, and there he found his army under the
command of Porus his friend.
And after the army was gathered together, Alex-
ander the King spoke of his journey to the oracles,
and how he had climbed the stairway, and how he
had been guided by the god, and had asked the trees
of his fate, and he told them that the trees had pro-
mised him that he should conquer the world, and
return to Macedon, and live a long life, and all the
army shouted with joy. But the comrades of
Alexander and his twelve peers were sad, for they
knew what was foretold, yet they said not a word
of it, but shouted with the rest. Then Porus the
Indian doubted of the truth, and he questioned the
king’s companions closely, but they told him not of
the oracle: howbeit he was assured in his heart that
Alexander was to die, and he thought to seize on
the empire, and he began to contrive the king’sâ€
169 death ;
death; and Alexander knew of his questionings,
and kept watch over his doings.
Then orders were sent to the host to prepare for
their march, for Alexander was minded to set out
and conquer the nations that had not yet submitted
to him, yet before he started, he bade men set up
two marble pillars at the temple of the Parting of
the Ways, and between them a pillar of gold, and
on it was written in the language of the land, how
that Alexander the king had come to this spot and
had conquered all nations, and it said how that
there was no passage to the Eastward but to the
Northward only. And when this was done all the
tents were struck and the host moved into a land to
the north, where they had not yet been; and the
people of the land brought hi
CHAP, XVIII
MG
[
pA d
c
Sea ee
3
NE DES
I lee
Teo AY)
a SY Re RGR ee Ae
a ah he = a PAY
ah) ESN] S
en ea
rae NAS abl 3
Be eS
CHAPTER XVIII. HOW ALE
SLEW PORUS AND WON BACK THE
WIFE OF CANDOYL AND WAS KNOWN
OF CANDACE WHEN HE CAME TO HER.
a FTER THESE THINGS the host of
rol the Greeks and the Persians and the
Indians was gathered together in one
place, and messengers came from all
Sree! the kings of the land to it to Alex~
ander the king, bringing gifts of rare and precious
things, of gold and spices, of the skins of a fish like
to a leopard’s skin, of living lions and other wild
beasts. Now, among these was the messenger of a
Queen of the land, Candace by name, the widow of
a great king friend and cousin of Porus; and they
brought with them letters to King Porus from her.
And when Alexander heard tell of her, he asked the
King of India concerning her, who she was, and what
manner of men she ruled over, and Porus answered °
171 and
and told him how she was the fairest woman in India,
and how she had married his near kinsman, and
had borne him three sons, Candoyl, Marcippus, and
Caratros. Then he told him how he had sent his
daughter to her for safety, and how she had married
her to Caratros, her youngest son, who should reign
after her, as the custom of that folk was: and he
told of the gods she worshipped, and of the people
she ruled, and of the riches of the land. Then
Alexander was fain of her presence, and sent rich
gifts, and a golden image of Ammon his god, anda
letter in which he asked her to journey towards the
mountains and meet him there, and he gave the
messengers wealth and a strict command to tarry
not till they brought him word again. But Porus
purposed evil in his heart, for he sought to stir up
wrath against Alexander in Roxana the Queen.
Thus the messengers came to Queen Candace
and they laid before her the letter of Alexander, and
his gifts, and told how she had been honoured by
the wealth given to her messengers, and besought
her to meet the Lord of the Greeks, but she would
not, for she knew the double mind of Porus, and
would not adventure herself where she could meet
him, yet was she willing to please Alexander, so
she sent again her messengers, and richer gifts than
before, and a letter praising his knighthood and
his valour, and the power of his gods. Now these
were her gifts, a crown of gold set with a hundred
172 precious
precious stones, and two hundred and ten chains of
red gold, and thirty rich goblets carved with peli-
cans and parrots, five Ethiopian slaves of one age,
a rhinoceros, a thousand beryls in caskets of ebon-
wood, and four elephants to carry this wealth, and
on the back of each was the skin of a spotted panther,
rich and precious. So the messengers went their
way, and with them Queen Candace sent a cunning
painter, and she prayed him in private to make her
a portrait of the king on parchment, noting all his
shape and proportion. And it was done as she
said, for Alexander received her gifts and well
entreated her messengers, and sent them home;
and when they came the painter brought his draw-
ing before her, and she rejoiced, for she had longed
to see what manner of man the Greek lord was,
and now was her wish fulfilled.
It fell on a day that Alexander was in his tent,
and one of his clerks was there with him, and as
men went out and he chanced to be alone with the
king, he fell on his knees before him, and besought
grace. Then Alexander comforted him and bade
him speak out boldly and fear not. So this clerk
told the king how Porus knew that the death of
Alexander was near, and that he had gathered
together men from all parts to slay him, and he told
him how that the men of Gog and Magog were on
the march from the frozen lands of the North at the
pay of Porus. Then Alexander asked how this ©
173 should
should be, and the clerk told him that he had been
sent to them in years back by Darius, and that then
it had been a full year’s journey, but now had they
come nearer, so that one month saw the beginning
and the end of the way to them, when Porus had
sent him. Then the Lord of the Greeks grew
wrathful and began to doubt all men, for he remem-
bered that he should die by the hands of a friend
whom he trusted, wherefore he sent messengers for
Porus, and when he came he said to him: ‘“‘O Porus,
is not the half of my throne sufficient for thee, but
thou must adventure to slay me by the hand of the
outer barbarians? True knight thou art not, or
thou wouldest scorn to do by another what thou
durst not attempt thyself.†But Porus the king
stood silent, and turned red and purple and white
in turns, and then he tugged off his glove and threw
it at the feet of Alexander on the ground. Then
said Alexander: “‘O Porus, though mayhap it were
better to slay thee as a traitor, yet thou hast been
my fellow at board and bed, and I will meet thee as
thou wishest, that at least thou shalt die as a true
knight, if thou couldst not live as one.†Then he
called for his page and he bade him take up the
glove and put it in his helmet against the set day.
On the third day at sunrise all men rose up early
and came to the field of war outside the camp, and
each man took his place round the field, the Greeks
on the south, the Indians on the north, and the
174 Persians
Persians where they would on either side. And as
they looked they saw the tent of Alexander hung
with green silk and embroideries at the east end of
the field, and the tent of Porus hung with cloth of
gold at the other. Before the doors stood pages
and trumpeters, and from time to time long calls rung
out in the air, notes of defiance and of confidence.
From end to end of the field ran a partition dividing
it into two strips, for the battle was to be fought
out with the lance alone, and in the middle was a
high seat in which Ptolemy the king’s lieutenant
was to sit as judge. Beside and below him were
places for the heralds, and as time wore on they
took their seats. And now the bustle round the
tents increased, and men went in and out, and the
noise of the hammer on the rivets rose between the
calls. Then came a pause, and the squires brought
long lances and laid them before the heralds, and
they measured them side by side, and returned
them to the squires, who bore them back to their
tents. A long call was sounded, and a troop of
men brought in between them the famous white
horse Bucephalus, and at the sight of him all the
warriors of Greece shouted, for many times had
they followed him in battle, and they deemed him
the best horse in the world, though he was now
stricken in years; and when this shout died away
another was raised by the Indian knights as their
lord’s great black horse came in to the field, and
175 the
the two horses smelled each other from afar, and
neighed out their defiance. ;
Now sounded the drums and clarions, and from
afar the procession of the lord of the lists came into
the field, and amid the shouts of the army Ptolemy
sat down on the throne, and all men kept silence.
Then the heralds rose and saluted him, and he
spoke to them, and soon they broke up into two
parties, and went one to each tent, and each man’s
eyes followed a party, this way or that. As they
came before the tent doors, the squires drew aside
the curtains and the kings stood before the heralds,
clad in armour from head to foot. Then the pro-
cessions re-formed and with lowly reverence the
knights were brought before the lord of the lists,
where they repeated one by one the solemn oath that
they had used no charm or magic against their foe,
but that the battle should be fought, man to man
and horse. to horse, till death: and as they stood
side by side the giant Porus showed taller and
stronger when compared with the Lord of Macedon.
Then the knights mounted their horses, and
saluting each other and the lord of the lists, they
turned away and rode to the end of the lists and
stood there two images of bright steel, waiting for
the sign of battle. A few moments pass, the lord
of the field rises, and the trumpet-call rings out, first
low and steady and strong, then higher and louder
till it seems to carry men’s hearts with it to the
176 clouds,
clouds, and in the midst of its last and loudest call
the baton is thrown down, and the two knights are
spurring towards one another; no man breathes,
each stride brings them nearer, their aim seems
true, when a shout rises from the Greeks, and next
second both knights are on the ground, the air is
filled with curses and cries, the lists are peopled
with heralds and knights and squires, the black
horse is galloping wildly over the field, Alexander
is kneeling by the side of his horse Bucephalus,
and Porus is lying still on the field, for he had
shifted his lance and taken traitor’s aim at the good
horse and slain him, while Alexander had struck
him on the helm and thrown him far on the
ground.
So the lord of the lists stood up and bade the
heralds bring the knights before him, but they
came back and told him how Porus lay deathlike
on the field, yet was he unhurt to all seeming, so
Ptolemy spake to Alexander and said, “‘ Sir Alex-
ander, thou hast done thy duty as a true knight,
thine adversary is at thy mercy to slay or to spare.â€
Then Alexander answered, ‘‘Were it not for his
traitorous dealing to my good steed I would forgive
him yet again, nor may I slay him unarmed, but by
to-morrow morn I will meet him again on foot,
sword to sword, till one of us die.†Then the
squires carried Porus away to his tent, and the
Indian knights went away from the field shamefast, ©
177 M but
but the Persians and the Greeks rejoiced in the
fame of their lord, and mourned over the death of
the good steed Bucephalus. That day Alexander
built a tomb for his horse and laid him there, and
bitter were the tears he shed, for it seemed to him
that the best days of his life were beginning to leave
him, and his evil days had begun.
When the morrow came all men went again to
their places, and the heralds and the trumpeters
sat down in their seats, and Ptolemy bade silence.
Then the two knights were brought before him, on
foot, armed with sword and dagger, and he placed
them before each other, and bade them fall to when
the trumpet sounded. The heralds rose and made
proclamation: ‘Lo ye, all men here present, these
knights, Sir Alexander of Macedon and Sir Porus
of India, be met for the agreement of certain differ-
ences between them; if now any man shall enter
this field, or aid them in any way, he shall fall
under pain of death, until this difference be voided.â€
Then all men kept silence, till the lord of the field
let fall his sceptre and the trumpets rang out one
shrill call.
Scarcely had the sound died away before the two
knights began circling round each other, like birds
watching an opportunity to dart in and seize their
prey; but they dared not adventure, for Porus was
tall and long of reach, and Alexander was nimble
and long-armed and very mighty, and each man
178 wished
wished to strike a blow that would end the fight at
once, and time after time they came near each other
and stepped back again, till at the last Porus struck
at the left shoulder of Alexander, which was just in
his reach, and Alexander caught the blow on his
shoulder, and running forward struck with his right
arm alone, and drove his sword-edge through helm
and cheek-bone and skull, and Porus fell dead on the
ground, and the Greeks shouted with joy. Thus
was the treason of Porus, his evil thoughts and his
unknightly deeds, avenged by Alexander. But when
he was dead the Lord of Macedon gave him burial
like one of the kings, and he built over him a
temple, with walls and towers and priests to pray
for him perpetually.
At this time it fell that Candoy]l, the eldest son of
Candace the queen, came before his mother and
said to her, “ Fair mother and queen, grant me that
I may leave thy lands and journey out into the
world;†and she said, ‘Go, my son, with my
blessing and leave, and tarry not till thou return.â€
So he got together much wealth and departed, with
his wife and his servants, and came to a certain
Strong city called Bebrik, and harboured there, and
when the morrow was come and he departed, the
king of Bebrik came round and met him on a certain
bent, and slew many of his men, and one of the
king’s knights took the lady and bore her off to the
town, shrieking and lamenting so as to pierce the
179 . heart
heart of any true knight: for it is to be said that
the king of Bebrik had loved her for many years.
Then was Candoyl sore troubled, and he went on
his way to the army of Alexander to seek his grace,
if by any means he would help him to recover his
lady and love. Soon he came near the camp and
entered it, and the watchmen took him and brought
him before Ptolemy, the most noble of the Greeks
after Alexander, and he asked him, ‘‘What manner
of man art thou, and what dost thou here? What
is the cause of thy coming? Let us know thy
name?†“Sire,†said he, “I am Candoyl, the son
of Candace the conqueress,†and he told him of his
coming, and of what befell him in the way. Then
Ptolemy hurried from the tent, leaving Candoyl in
ward of a knight, and went into the cabin where the
King was lying, and found him asleep. So he waked
him gently and told him the tidings, how a knight,
the son of Candace the queen, had come to crave
his help against the king of Bebrik, who had reft
his wife from him.
Then said Alexander, ‘‘Go back again to thy
tent, put on thy head the richest diadem I have, a
crown of red gold, and a king’s mantle, and seat
thee in the king’s seat as though thou wert myself,
let my knights come about thee and call thee by my
name with all due reverence, and then send mes-
sengers for me, and call me Antiochus, and I shall
obey thy bidding as I were thy liegeman. And
180 when
when I come to thy call, and kneel before thee,
declare to me all the case of Candoyl’s adventure
openly before him, and be not abashed when I bow,
nor bid me not to rise, but let thy countenance be
solemn when thou art speaking, and say then,
‘Antiochus, my noble, let us see thy wisdom in
this matter, do thou wisely advise me.’†So Ptolemy
hurried away and clothed him in the dress of an
emperor, and sent for Alexander in the name of
Antiochus, and when he was come, he told him the
tale before Candoyl, and asked his advice. Then
answered Antiochus, “Were it your will, noble
Emperor, I would fare with this knight to recover
his wife, and would bid the king of Bebrik on pain
of his eyes restore her, and if not, we should grind
his city and him to dust.†Then Candoyl bowed
before the king, and said, “Sir Antiochus, of all
men ‘be thou happy, thy wisdom is worthy of a
king clad in gold with crown and sceptre.†So
Alexander and Candoyl rode forth that same night,
and when it was dawn they came before the wails of
Bebrik. Then the watch on the gate saw them, and
cried out, “Who are ye, O knights; whence and
what is your errand?†And Alexander answered,
“It is Sir Candoyl, that has come for his spouse,
and I am the messenger of the Lord of Macedon,
and I bid you, if you will save your city from
destruction, to yield his bride to him without delay.â€
Then the burghers of the city were filled with fear, ©
181 though
though they were a stiff-necked folk, and they went
in a body to the palace of their king, and burst open
the gates and brought forth the dame, and led her
to her husband in all honour. So Candoyl thanked
him heartily, and said, “I pray thee, dear prince,
pass with me to my mother, that thou mayst have
the honour and reward thou hast merited for thy
deeds.†Then was the King rejoiced at these words,
and he said, ‘“‘ Go we to Alexander to ask his leave,
and gladly will I follow thee and do thy will;†for
he would not have him to think him other than
Antiochus ; so they went to Ptolemy and he gave
him full leave to depart.
Now drew they near the city of Candace the
queen, and she heard of the coming of Candoyl her
son and his wife, and how she had been taken pri-
soner by the king of Bebrik, and released by a
knight of Macedon, who was with them, and she
was glad in her heart, and greatly rejoiced. Intoa
chamber she went and changed all her weeds, and
put on a robe of red gold and a rich mantle over it,
a crown and a kerchief clustered with gems, and
came down from her palace gate surrounded by her
knights, and found them before it. So she clasped
her son in her arms and kissed him, and said,
‘“Welcome be thou, my loved son, and thou, my
dearest daughter, and Iam glad of your guest, as
the gods give me joy:†and Alexander looked on
her, and his heart rejoiced, for he thought her likest
182 of
of all women to Olympias his mother ; fair and fresh
was she as a falcon, or as some spirit from another
world. So they came into her castle-hall, full of
precious stones and adorned with gems, its pillars
of porphyry, and its floor of bright crystal, clear as
a river, and there they sat at meat—Alexander and
ee and Candoyl, served together at the high
table.
On the morrow at first light Candace the queen
came with her ladies and took the Greek knight
Antiochus through the palace and showed him how
richly it was built, and all the wonders in it, great
and small. And when he had seen all these things
she asked him of the palace of Alexander, and he
told her how it was not so rich as hers, but was a
home for fighting men to rest in, and to prepare for
new wars, while the palaces of the Kings of the East
were fitter to make men long for ease than to give
them heart for the toil and danger of battle. Then
said the Queen, “ Other wonders still shall I show
thee, O Antiochus, wonders that no king hath the like
of,†and she bade her servants go forth, and giving
her hand to the Greek led him into a room, covered
with cypress and with cedar from floor to roof,
where they sat down on two thrones in the room.
Soon a mighty sound was heard, and as the Greek
looked out he saw the trees and the fields and the
town moving round him, and he knew that he was
in a chamber that turned round by some hidden
183 : power.
power. It is to be said that this room was turned
round by the strength of twenty tame elephants that
the queen kept for this end, and every day she came
and satin the chamber and looked from the window
while it was turned for a space. So as the false
Antiochus looked he wondered and said, “ Verily,
O Queen, were such a wonder as this in our land
of Macedon, proud would our lord the king be of it
above all his treasuresâ€; and Candace looked on
him and said, ‘‘ Alexander, this is but little to the
wonders that the men of this land can show the
Greeks.â€
Then Alexander sprang up from his seat at the
calling of his name, for well he knew the danger he
was in, and all his face turned pale, since any of the
kings of India would give his weight in gold to
have him in their power, and he said, “ Nay, lady,
my name is Antiochus,†but she rose and took him
by the hand with a kindly laugh, and going to the
recess drew back the tapestry hanging and shewed
him a picture in parchment whereon he was painted
dressed in his royal robes. ‘‘ See for thyself,†said
she, ‘‘ that I have made no mistake.†Then as the
king looked on the picture his face turned yellow,
and his flesh trembled. ‘‘ Why fades thy fair hue?â€
said the lady, ‘‘thou warrior of all the world, the
conqueror of Persia and of India, the Medes and
the Parthians! Lo, now, thou art here ina woman’s
ward, in spite of all thy worthy deeds. Where is
184 now
now thy praise that reaches up to heaven? It is
gone at once, at the turning of the breath of a
woman.†‘Then she waited for a space, but the lord
of Macedon answered her naught, for his heart
waxed hot within him, and he ground his teeth with
rage as he looked hither and thither, so she said,
““Why dost thou vex thy soul, Sir Conqueror, what
may thy manhood avail thee, or all thy rage?â€
Then the King answered her and said, ‘“‘ For one
thing only I grieve, that I have not my sword, nor
may I see any weapon.†“And, my fair knight,
what bold brave deed would thy sword help thee to, if
thou hadst one?†‘Since Iam taken unawares,â€
quoth he, ‘‘surely I would slay thee where thou
sittest, and myself after.†Then Candace the Queen
laughed out, ‘‘ That were the deed of a true knight,â€
said she, ‘‘ but not yet are we to do and suffer such
things ; hast thou not rescued my son’s wife from
the hands of the king of Bebrik? Surely I shall
save thee unharmed from my folk. Yet were it
known that thou wert here, not all my power could
save thee, since thou hast slain the Lord of India,
good Porus, whose daughter my youngest son Cara-
tros has taken to wife. But no man has seen thy
picture from the day I had it till now.†Then the
Lord of Macedon came near her, and she took him
by the hand and led him into the hall of the
palace.
Now when Candace the Queen left Alexander
185 in
in the hall she came on her two sons Candoyl and
Caratros, and they were in sore strife. For after the
Queen had borne away with her the Greek, Caratros
said to his brother Candoyl, ‘‘ Now has this Greek
Lord slain my father-in-law, Porus the Good, and
needs must I have revenge or my wife will go mad.
I will slay this lord Antiochus, his friend and
messenger, and when he comes to revenge his ser-
vant, I will go out and slay him in combat.†But
Candoyl answered him, “ My brother, the Lord of
Macedon has helped me, and this knight, Sir
Antiochus, has recovered for me my wife: I brought
him hither, and I shall lead him in safety to his
lord’s tents.†Then Candace the Queen said,
‘‘Caratros, my son, what honour will come to thee
for slaying a guest and a friend? Shall anything
come of it but sorrow?†But Caratros grew angry
and said, ‘‘ What ails thee brother, that we should
strive with each other in this matter, leave me to
do my will.†Then Candace the Queen went quickly
and took Alexander into council and told him how
her son wished to slay him, and how Candoyl
would fight for him. ‘ Lord Alexander,†said she,
“I pray thee, make peace between my children.â€
Then Alexander rose up, and came to the room of
the brethren, and the clash of swords was heard,
so he caught up a weapon and ran between them
and beat down their swords, saying, “ Fair lords,
this must not be, ye must not fight alone.†And
186 after
after he had quieted them, he spake to Caratros in
fair words, saying, “‘ My good lord, if you end my
life, you can win no praise for it, since I am in thy
hands. Alexander has seven hundred knights as
good as I am, if I were precious to him, would he
have let me come in a strange land without ward or
retinue? Not so, my lord, but if in truth you
desire to look on Alexander, you need but give me
the goods I crave for and I will immediately put
that prince into your hands.†Then Caratros
rejoiced, and kissed his brother in his joy; and
Candace the Queen called to her Alexander and
said, “‘ Happy should I be, if you were ever with
me, then should all my foes be destroyed.†So
she gave him a crown of amethysts and diamonds,
and a noble mantle, and dearly she kissed him, and
bade him farewell. And the Lord of Macedon
departed and with him Candoyl went as his guide,
for he thought that Caratros his brother might again
change his mind and work him evil, if the Greek
knight returned alone to the camp; and he purposed
to lead him through the mountains and to shew him
the place where Candace his mother worshipped the
great gods, and heard oracles of things to come, and
learned the mysteries of the gods.
187 CHAP. XIX.
PP STG
: FO SY IG ty
sre Se re; Ly
erential
ee a
PA
Ae
AVA Whee |icg
rat Sos |B A
Peta i) fy B 9M,
os ween ABN: a SG be
COON Bs LSND BA Raat
5 a SH PAS
rs EAE (3 he
FACT
(3 NaN
mn
RG
ne
LFS BORSA S
: PO Saitig Soci \
CHAPTER XIX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER
DEFEATED GOG AND MAGOG, HOW HE
WENT UP INTO THE AIR, AND DOWN
INTO THE SEA.
epee | A NDOYL and Alexander rode from the
=| city out into the open country, and all
day passed through it, till as the sun
went down they came near the hills,
si and they found there a cave, great
beyond measure, hidden between two hills, and
there they harboured all night. And when evening
was come Candoyl spoke to Alexander and said,
“Sir, in this cave men say that the gods appear,
and tell men what shall come to pass.†Then was
Alexander rejoiced and gave thanks to the gods,
and went in to the darkest part of the cave, but
Candoyl abode at the mouth. And as Alexander
drew near he saw a great cloud and from it a light
glimmering like stars, and as he gazed him thought
188 he
he saw in the midst of it a throne, and on it was a
great grisly. god whose eyes shone out fierce like
lanterns. Then was Alexander sore dismayed, and
fell to the ground. “ Hail, Alexander!†quoth that
high god. ‘Sire, what is thy name, and how shall
I call thee?†said the king. ‘“Thinthisus is my
name, and all the world is under my hand. Yet
hast thou built a city in thy name, and thou hast
set me there no temple.†‘Sire, if I return to
Macedon, I will build thee a temple as master of the
gods: none shall be like it in any land.†“ Nay,
nay, long not thereafter; thou shalt never look on
that land. Go further, and behold.†Then the king
looked and he saw another cloud not far off, so he
went thither, and lo! another grim god seated before
him. Kneeling on the earth he asked, “ Who art
thou, Lord?†and the god answered him, “I am
Serapis, the god of thy father, the father of gods.â€
Then said Alexander, ‘“‘ Tell me, I pray thee, the
name of the man that shall slay me:†but the god
answered him, ‘‘O king, in time past I told thee
that should any man know the cause of his death
beforehand, he would suffer greatly; be of good
heart, thou hast conquered many nations, thou shalt
yet do great deeds; thou hast built a mighty city
which shall endure for ever; many men shall resort
there, and many races of kings shall rule it; thou
shalt die and ‘be buried in a noble city far from
thine own land.†Alexander bowed himself down —
189 before
before the god and returned to the mouth of the
cave, and found Candoyl waiting for him in the
morning dawn, and the plain lay before him covered
with his armies, and he bade farewell to the son of
Candace, each departing to his own.
It fell as Alexander rode on towards his camp
that he began to doubt in his mind that something
was wrong, for all things looked to be untended,
and no guards were set round the army, and as he
drew nearer he heard shouts and cries, so he
spurred up his steed and rode into the camp, and
no man stopped him, for all were drawn to one
place. But when he had come thither he found
that the Greeks were drawn up in array, and that
the Indians and Persians were running hither and
thither, shouting and crying; so that every now
and then a band of them would turn against the
Greeks and make as if to force their way among
them, and when they were driven back they would
again begin to cry and shout. So the Lord of
Macedon rode up among them, and no man of the
Indians knew him, for his helmet was closed, and
he came to his own men and they knew him, and
shouted for joy and opened a way for him. Then
he sent for Ptolemy, and when he was come he
asked him what was the cause of this trouble and
why the Indians were so sore afraid. But it is to
be said that at the sound of Alexander’s voice all
men had returned to their tents and the guard had
190 gone
gone out round the camp. Then Ptolemy told the
king how that men had come to the camp three
days agone telling of a new and strange folk coming
from the north, frightful beyond bearing, and how
they destroyed all things they came across and
spared nothing that was good, but what they con-
sumed not they wasted, and whom they kept not
for slaves they killed in their wanton sport. And
they were short, shorter than any men, and no man
might look on them without fear. So these men
had fled from before them, and they had come to
King Alexander to preserve them from their ene-
mies, and Ptolemy charged them to tell their tale to
no man. But when they had been in the camp two
days and had not seen the Lord of Macedon, their
fear broke out again, and they told their tale to
whoever would hear them, and the story spread, and
a saying arose among the Indians that this foe was
right at hand, and they clamoured for Alexander to
come out and lead them, and they threatened to tear
the camp to pieces if he came not.
Then were these ambassadors of fear brought
before Alexander, and he questioned them of this
people and of its coming, and they told him how
that they were scarce ten days’ journey from them,
and that they were settled in that land and had
sown a crop, for it was ever their custom to come
into a land at sowing time and to make the men of
that land their slaves, so that they reaped the ~
IQI harvest
harvest for them, and then to slay them or drive
them out to starve. And the ambassadors told how
this race of dwarfs raged horribly at the name of
Alexander, and said they had come to destroy him
and the Greeks from the face of the earth, and they
told last how these men were enemies of the Gods
themselves above all things, so that evil was their
good and good their evil. Then Alexander asked
which of them had seen this folk, but no man had
seen them, save one who had been far off them. So
he sent for the clerk who had told him of the double-
dealing of Porus and straitly questioned him, and
he told the king how these folk were scarce two
cubits high, but stronger than mortal men. ‘‘ For
in winter they wear no clothing, but they are covered
with hair from their waist downward; their mouths
are huge and set with fangs like a wild boar, their
hands are like lion’s claws, no man may look on
their eyes when they are set on him, and their ears
are so great that in sleep they serve as coverlets.
Two princes have they, whose names are Gog and
Magog.†Moreover the clerk said mayhap the
saying of the ambassadors was true, that they would
wait where they were till next spring time, yet
mayhap they might move before winter came on.
Then Alexander decided that he would attack these
dwarfs in the land where they were and drive them
back to their own land.
The tale tells that the march of the army lay
192 through
through a strange land and many wonders there
befell them, for they passed through the valley of
Serpents and fought the griffins; they came to the
shores of the sea and saw there wondrous beasts,
and many things of which it were long to speak.
On the third day of their march they came into a
dark valley smelling sweetly of all spices, there
cloves and ginger, and the pepper plant grew. But
among these shrubs were many serpents and adders,
who lived on the plants and had none other food,
and these snakes had on their heads an emerald
crown, as it were of goldsmith’s beaten work. Now
the people of that land, when they wish to gather
the pepper, set fire to this wood, and the flame
drives away the snakes, but blackens and rivels the
pepper. In the hills of this place were many
precious stones called smaragds, and Alexander set
his heart on gathering them, and sent men to climb
the hills, but when they came near the place where
the stones were, beasts came out and fell on them,
in shape like lions but with cleft claws a yard across,
and among them were griffins, with birds’ wings
and beak and claws but otherwise like to a lion,
and each of them so strong that it might bear away
a knight full armed on his horse. Then came
up Alexander and encouraged his dukes, and bade
them shoot with a will, and the archers and arba-
lasters shot altogether, and the knights struck down
and killed many of the beasts with their lances and
193 N their
their battleaxes, but the griffins tore the knights
from their saddles and with their tails blinded them
so that they could not see where to strike, and at
last the Greeks were driven down, and over two
hundred of those who wore golden spurs were slain
in that fierce fight. Yet were a few of the griffins
beaten down, and four of them were bound in strong
chains and borne away by Alexander.
On the morrow after the host had come clear
away from these hills, it came to a great and mighty
river running straight down to the shores of ocean,
and its banks were covered with huge reeds, longer
than the highest tree, and so heavy that twenty men
could scarce lift them. Of these reeds Alexander
bade them make barges and ferry over his host, for
the river was twenty furlongs broad, and two days
were spent in the crossing over of the army. And
when Alexander and his men were on the further
side of the river the people of the land came to him,
and they were a simple folk, clothed in the skins of
great fish and of beasts. Nor were they inhos-
pitable, for they brought sponges, white and purple,
mussels so great that six men might make a meal
of one, eels from the river thicker than a man’s
leg, and lampreys weighing twenty pounds each.
Then Alexander thanked them for their gifts, and
gave them great rewards, and asked them of their
land and its wonders, and they told him of the
sirens who lived in that river, women with long
194 hair
hair for clothing who lived in the water like fishes.
Yet when these creatures saw any man they drew
him into the water, if he knew not their craft, and
kept him there till he died, and sometimes they
bound him to the great reeds and forced him to
make sport for them till at the last they killed him,
for they had neither love nor hate nor any care or
thought, naught of mankind save its outward sem-
blance. Then Alexander bade his men to search for
these beasts and offered great rewards, and at the
last two of them were taken and brought before
him, and they were white as snow, their hair came
down to their feet round their body, and they were
taller than men have custom to be, yet they could
not live without water, and in few hours’ time both
were dead.
And Alexander the king spoke with their wise
men of the combat with the dwarfs from the desert
of the north, since the men of that land were ex-
ceeding wise, and they told him of the way by which
he could fall on them at unawares; and when they
knew that he had with him in the host the griffins
they rejoiced and told him of a marvellous thing.
Then the Lord of Macedon caused his smiths to
make him a chair of black iron, and on the top of
it at each corner was a large smaragd stone, and
they brought the chair to the top of an exceeding
high mountain in that land, and when they had
come thither they bound the griffins to each corner
195 of
of the chair at the bottom with great and very
strong chains, for Alexander was minded to be
carried up into the air by the griffins that he might
see all lands. So when he was set in his chair and
covered round with great bars of iron, he bade
them uncover the eyes of the griffins, and they saw
the smaragd stones fixed high above them and all
at once they flew up towards the stones, for the
sight of that stone is meat and drink to these
animals, and they hunger to gather it together and
to bear it off to their dens, neither care they for
any hurt they receive in the getting of it. So they
flew and soon Alexander was borne out of sight of
men, high above the clouds, and he saw the earth
below him like a basin, and the lands, and the way
to the dwarfs, the men of Gog and Magog, and still
they flew higher and the earth grew small likea
mill-stone and the ocean and the rivers seemed like
a writhing adder, and then the gods struck the
griffins with fear, and they shut their eyes and
stretched out their wings, and sunk lower and lower
till they lay at the last on the ground in a green
field in a strange land, and Alexander looked round
and saw far off the towers of Jerusalem. But the
griffins arose, and flew away till they came to their
nest in the mountains, and when they came thither
the Lord of Macedon left his seat and made his
way through the hills till he came to the river,
when he crossed it and came to his army again.
196 Then
Then marched the host on its way and at the
last it came near the country of the ambassadors
where the abominable dwarfs were, and when they
came there the ambassadors went forward to bring
the news of the coming of the Greeks. It chanced
that the third day after the coming of the am-
bassadors was a feast of the dwarf-folk, and all the
men of that country kept the news of the coming
of the Greeks from them so that they met in all
their number in one place. It was of custom
among them that every feast some one should be
slain in torment that the chief men of the dwarf-
folk might give a presage of what should befall the
folk, and that feast one of them was to be slain for
he had given food to a man that was starving in a
prison cell. So the ambassadors returned and told
Alexander what was to be done; and he deemed it
well to fall on them when they were all in one place.
And this he did, and the fight was long and sore
between him and the dwarfs, for the dwarfs were
so small that they escaped the lance point, and they
ran under the horses and houghed them, and their
skins were so tough that the arrows glanced off
them, if they did not hit straight, and the sword
edges slipped, but the claws of the dwarfs and their
teeth and their arrows availed them little against
the armour of the Macedonians.
In the night after the battle of the first day the
guards cried out for that lights were moving on the
197 field
field of battle, and soon three dwarfs came near
holding in their hands peeled white wands; and
when the guards saw them they brought them to
the tent of Alexander. Then the eldest of them
said, ‘‘O leader of the Greeks from Macedon, truly
ye be braver than the Persians or the men of India,
give us now an ounce of gold and a sword for each
man and we will return whence we came.†Then
Alexander said, ‘‘O leader of the dwarfs, haters of
God and men, meseems I am not come to this land
but to free mankind from you. If ye abide my face
till day I will slay you all, and if ye flee I will
pursue you till ye return to your own land.†Then
he bade his men to take them and lead them from
the camp.
It was of custom among this folk to travel in
great waggons, and to make of these their forts in
times of danger, so on the morrow when the Greeks
and the Persians drew out in battle array, the
dwarf-folk came not forth all to attack them as on
the day before, but the more part stayed within the
waggons, and when the knights rode up to the
waggons their progress was stopped and they could
go no further, and the dwarfs stood on the waggons
and mocked and jeered at them as they shot their
arrows at them, and the knights were sore angered
and brought up firebrands but the dwarfs had
covered the waggons with hides so that they burnt
not. So that day wore on, and when night came
198 the
the Greeks returned to their camp, and they spent
the night in plans for the morrow. When it was
light the army of Alexander got them ready for
another day’s fighting, but when they came out on
the plain, they found not the hordes of the dwarfs
for they had departed, burning all the country round.
Then Alexander provided good store of food and
drink and began to follow up the abominable dwarfs,
for well he knew that he should find neither on the
road, for these wretches destroy all the crops and
poison and defile all the springs of water they pass.
And after many days he came to the land of the
dwarfs, and there he found two-and-twenty kings,
and fought a great battle with them, and made
them give up all the iron and copper in their land,
and then he set his men to build a great wall at the
entrance to their land.
Now the land of the dwarfs lies behind two very
high mountains and there is no way by which men
may come in or go out of it but between these
mountains, so Alexander built a wall across from
one to the other and he strengthened it with the
iron and the copper of the dwarfs, and wrought
mighty spells on it, so that no dwarf should pass
over it, and left them there. And all the world
rejoiced and praised the name of Alexander, and
this deed of his was counted the greatest of his life.
And in after days a tale grew, and men told how
every day the dwarf-folk came down to the wall and —
199 tore
tore it down bit by bit with their claws, and night
by night the spells of Alexander prevailed and the
wall was made whole again, because this folk feared
not the gods, nor obeyed them. But the tale tells
that when the enemy of the gods and the deceiver
of men shall come on earth, he will teach them to
name their children “ Inshallah,†which means,
if the gods will, and then when they call their
children to help them, they will tear down the wall,
and come out from their prison, and destroy the
cities of Alexander, and the works of men since his
time, and bring death on all men, if the gods stay
them not.
Furthermore men told of this dwarf-folk, that they
have among them sorcerers who work such spells
that the might of the dwarfs is increased an hundred-
fold, and that when the time shall come, these sor-
cerers will run through the air between heaven and
earth, swifter than the wind, and will slay a child, and
will dip the weapons of the dwarf-folk in its blood,
and each of the dwarfs shall have with him a hundred
warriors on horseback, armed with mace and spear.
And when they ride out through the broken wall and
through the iron threshold that Alexander built to
strengthen the wall, the hooves of their horses shall
wear away a span-depth from the lower threshold of
iron, and their spear-points shall wear. away a span-
height from the upper threshold of brass. And these
sayings of men show how great was their fear of the
200 dwarf-folk,
dwarf-folk, and their thanks to the Lord of Macedon,
who freed the land from them.
After these things the heart of Alexander was
lifted up and he thought within himself that he was
even as one of the high gods, for he had travelled
through the air, where no man had been before,
borne by griffins on an iron throne, and he had
saved all men from the foes of mankind, and he had
raised himself above all men in power and dignity,
nor had any man conquered him or stood before his
face. So when his army turned and came to the
shores of ocean, a new thought came into his mind
how that he would see the wonders of the sea, and
the things that live there, and come not up to the
surface of the deep.
So he ordered, and his cunning men began to
make for him great sheets of green glittering glass,
and to shape it into a box, and bind it with great
girths of iron, that he might sit in it and see all
things that were without it, while he himself was
untouched. Then he bade them take it to the
borders of ocean, and bind great chains to it, and
take it in a boat, and when he was entered into it to
let it sink to the bottom of the sea for a set space of
time. And as all things were ready, and he had
given in charge to Roboas, son of Antipater, whom
he loved, to draw him up after the set time, there
came to him a clerk who had been sent to him by .
Roxana the Queen on a special errand. So the
201 clerk
clerk drew near, and said, ‘“O Alexander, thus
saith Roxana thy Queen and thy love: Many nights
have I been troubled concerning thee, for a man
with two horns on his head has stood by me, and
has warned me of evil that may hap to thee. Now,
therefore, I send thee a ring, one of the treasures of
Darius, my father; slay and offer a sacrifice to the
gods, rub the ring with the blood, and wear it, and
no evil shall happen thee on the sea or under it.â€
Then Alexander did as the messenger bade him,
and offered the sacrifice to the gods, and put the
ring on his finger, but none of those who stood by
understood the matter, for the message was a secret
one.
The tale tells that Alexander entered into the
vessel of glass, and quickly shut the wicket; and
his princes pointed it with pitch so that no water
might come in at the joints, and in a moment he
entered the deep with a heavy plunge. There saw
he fish whose figures he had never dreamed of,
with forms diverse and horrible, and creeping
things and four-footed things crawling on the sea
bottom, and feeding on strange fruits of corals and
sea weeds and trees growing on the sand and sea
ooze, and great monsters came sailing up to the
side of the cage and looked in and turned away
affrighted, and other sights he saw such that he
would never tell to any man till the day of his
death, for they were so horrible that tongue could
202 not
$O5 en
DDNRPA
2)
1] \
bate
Dent RS AT
PEL UIE SRS
not tell or man hear them told, and Alexander fell
down on the floor of his vessel of glass and lay
there for a time without life.
Now when the set time was come that Alexander
was to be drawn up, it fell that Roboas, the son of
Antipater, was struck by some god with blindness,
for he loosened the chain from the ship and let it
fall so that it ran into the seaand sunk. And as
he saw what he had done, and how he had destroyed
the life of his lord, he plunged into the sea straight-
way, if so be he might die with him, for his
comrades were like to tear him in pieces. But the
great iron chains falling into the sea broke the
vessel of glass, and the gods saved Alexander again,
for the chains crushed him not, and the glass
wounded him not, and he was borne to the surface
of the sea whether by the rush of the water or by
the virtue of the ring of Roxana, and his princes
saw him come to the surface and they took him up,
for they thought it was Roboas, and when they
found it was Alexander great was their joy, and
Roboas also they brought up, and Alexander forgave
him, for much did he love him.
203 CHAP. XX.
ER XX. HOW ALEXAN
TO HIS LIFE’S END AND WAS BURIED,
AND WHAT THEREON BEFELL.
vAURTHERMORE AFTER THE
Rw! descent of Alexander into the sea, mes-
=I b), sengers came from Susa with the word
yy, aS that the king of Babylon, Nabuzardan,
SSS" had refused the tribute that he ought to
pay, and had declared war against the Lord of Mace-
don, for he deemed that Alexander would not
return from the far lands to which he had departed,
and he thought that the city Babylon could not
be taken of man, for it was exceeding great and
strong, and needed help of no man when it was
closed up. Then Alexander the king grew very
wroth, and bade all men prepare to go to Babylon,
for he would gather all the armies of the empire
against it, and he turned his face towards the land
of Babylon and marched towards it, and they went
204 through
through mighty deserts and strange lands, and
many strange things they saw and wild beasts of
strange shapes, and some that breathed out fire,
and had teeth and claws like iron, and were covered
with scales like brass. But above all wonders of
the land men brought him a certain bird called
Caladrius. Now this bird is white of colour and
hath no part of blackness, and its nature is such
that when a man suffers from great sickness, and
this bird turneth away its face from him that is
sick, then without doubt the man shall die. And
if the sick man shall escape, the bird setteth its
sight on him and beholdeth him as it were fawning
and playing. And Alexander made proof of its
wondrous gifts.
Now the land of Babylon is the best land to bear
all manner of bread-corn and fruit and wine; full of
sweet spices, herbs, and trees; and most rich of
precious stones and of divers metals, with great
plenty of camels, horses, oxen, asses, mules and
other beasts. And the greatness of the city may
scarcely be told, for the walls were fifty cubits thick,
and as much in height, and the city was four
hundred and fourscore furlongs about. The walls
were of burnt tiles and brick, and without was a
broad ditch and deep. Into that ditch ran the
river Euphrates all about the city. And in the
front of the walls were an hundred gates, and about
the walls were dwelling places for them that should ©
205 defend
defend the city, and those places of defence were
wondrous huge and strong.
On the day that Alexander came into the land of
Babylon, there met him messengers from his
mother Olympias and from Aristotle the wise,
whom he had left to govern the land of Macedon.
And Olympias wrote telling of troubles in the
kingdom, how Antipater the father of Cassander
and Roboas had stirred up the people against her,
and how he sought to be king of Macedon, for he
had heard that Alexander should return no more to
Greece. But Aristotle wrote praising the wondrous
works he had wrought, and the sights he had seen.
Soon the Lord of Macedon pitched his tents before
the walls of Babylon, and called on Nabuzardan its
king to yield himself up. Now it was the custom
of Alexander when he besieged a town that for
three days a white flag hung over his tent, and
after that a black one flew, and if the town yielded
while the white flag was flying, then Alexander
_ received it into the number of his friends, but if
they yielded not then were they treated as enemies
and slain or sold for slaves. And three days did
the heralds come to the walls of Babylon, and
sound their trumpets and call on them to yield, but
they did not, and on the fourth day, Alexander
brought up great catapults and sent huge stones
into the city, and the people feared and sent out the
dead body of Nabuzardan their king, and yielded
206 them
them to the mercy of Alexander. Then the Lord of
Macedon entered into the city with all his men,
and they came into it and abode there many
months.
So Alexander reigned in Babylon, and of the gold
of India and of Persia he bade men make him a
throne, and they brought the gold on horses, and
on camels, and on elephants, and cast it into a heap
twelve cubits high, and this was the fashion of the
throne they made. It was at the top of twelve steps,
and was surrounded by twelve images, the shapes of
his twelve tried princes, and each of these held up the
heavy work of the canopy of the throne. The seat
of the throne was of smaragd stone, green and clear,
and above all, in the canopy, was a lovely carbuncle
which shone in the darkest of the night like a sun,
and on the steps of the throne were engraved the
names of all the countries of the world, for they
were subject to his rule. Then made he a crown
adorned with noble and precious stones, rich beyond
all telling, and on it was a name telling of his
power and might. And his heart swelled within
him and he forgot the warnings of the gods who
had told him of his death.
Then wondrous things began to happen in the
land, signs and marvels, for on one day an ass fell
upon a noble lion and kicked it to death, nor did
the lion resist, and on another day a child was born
in shape like a lion from the waist up, and the child
207 spoke
spoke a word and died. So Alexander asked his
wise men and the priests of Babylon, and they told
him that it showed evil that should happen to him.
And this is how the evil came. There was a certain
great lord in Macedon, Antipater by name, and he
sent to gather poison from the rock of Nonacris,
and so strong was this poison that no cup or vessel
might contain it, save only it were made from the
hoof of a horse. So when he had gathered it he
sent messengers to his son Cassander with the
poison, and he bade him fear not to use it. Now
Cassander and Roboas his brother had determined
evil towards Alexander in their hearts since the day
when Roboas had let Alexander loose in the sea,
and since the day when Cassander had come into
the camp to Alexander. For when Cassander had
done his homage to his lord, one of the Indian kings
came up and fell on the ground before him, and
kissed the ground at his feet, and Cassander laughed
out at the Indian king, wherefore Alexander was
offended, and struck him a blow so that he reeled
against the wall. So when the poison came Cas-
sander rejoiced, and he told his brother, and they set
a day to kill the Lord of Macedon, the noble Alex-
ander.
The tale tells how Alexander held high feast in
his palace at Babylon, seated on his golden throne
with his crown on his head, and Roxana the queen
by his side, and with him the twelve princes of
208 Greece,
Greece, who had been his companions and his
friends from the days of his youth up. And they
rejoiced and were glad, for all nations were put
under their feet, and the burden of warfare was
over, and now they had to rule the folk and to lead
happy days, and they trusted that they should be
great kings under Alexander the emperor. And
now men passed the wine, and full draughts were
drunk, and Nearchus told a tale of the wonders
that he had seen in the great sea of ocean when he
had sailed there at the orders of Alexander, and
another great lord reached for a lyre and sung a
song of old days. Then men told tales of their
deeds in battle, and each man boasted how near he
had been to Alexander in the days of the great
battles, and at the last men fell to talk of that good
steed Bucephalus, and how he bore the king in battle,
and served him faithfully, and fought with him,
and Cassander said to Roboas his brother “ What
thou hast to do, that do,†and Roboas rose and
brought a cup to Alexander, and said “Dear Lord,
this cup is made from the hoof of thy brave steed,
Bucephalus the white; drink we a cup in memory
of this horse, the best in the world.†And Alex-
ander rose and said “O Bucephalus, my fair horse,
thou failedst me never; were this cup my bane, I
would refuse it not from thee,†and he drank it
down. Then he sat down for a space, and then he
fell forward from his seat, and his sword fell from
209 O its
its sheath, and pierced his side, and he called but
twice “Help! Help!†Yet when his lords ran to
him and raised him, he said ‘“‘ Nay, my good lords
of Macedon, it is nought; drink ye and rejoice for
the good days to come,†but he turned to Cassander
and said “ My faithful liegeman, go and fetch me
somewhat to ease me of this pain,†for he trusted
in Cassander as he did in his nearest friend. But
Cassander brought him that which only increased
his pain.
That night Alexander the king lay alone in his
palace at Babylon, for he would have no man near
him to watch by him or to guard him, and as he
lay the cold poison weighed on his heart. Then his
brain grew dizzy and faint, and the room seemed
measurelessly great, and all men seemed far away.
The beginning of the night seemed to be long time
past, the dawn of day was still too far away to
hope for, the pain became over great to bear, the
poison ran through the veins and seemed to eat his
throat with a cold fire, and in the midst of his
trouble and fear the light went out and the dark-
ness came on him like a net round him. Then he
feared indeed, for he knew that he could not stay
there with the terror that was on him, and he tried
to stand and walk, but he could not for his wound
and the poison that he had drunk, he thought of
the great cold river flowing near and the water
seemed to call him, so he crawled out of the room
210 on
on hands and knees painfully, step by step, till the
morning broke and he found himself in the garden
of the palace close on the bank of the river, and
said, ‘‘ The gods have left me, and I know not why ;
but one more effort, and I shall be free of this
burning and wound.†Then he heard a great cry
“My lord, my life!†and Roxana the Queen came
running down the garden to him, and after her the
women, and the lords of Greece. So one of them
snatched a shield from the guard that came up and
laid it on the ground for the King, and Roxana
sat him on the shield and rested his head on her
bosom, while Ptolemy held up his golden shield
over him to guard his eyes from the rays of the
morning sun, and a cry of confused voices went up
round him. Then Roxana the Queen said, for in
truth she knew not what to say, “See, my lord, a
canopy of gold for my Emperor.†“ Aye, fair lady
love,†said Alexander, ‘‘a sky of gold, and a soil
of iron; now are the fates accomplished and my
time is surely come; bear me back to my bed that
I may die there.†Then at the word all men there
burst into tears and lamentation, for the end of all
things seemed at hand now their lord was to die so
young, and what words can tell the grief of Roxana
the Queen.
So his lords bore him gently to his bed in the
palace, and stood round it, and listened to the words
that he spoke, and Alexander sent for his scribes
211 and
and bade them bring parchment and an inkhorn for
his will. So it was done and he shared out all the
lands that he had conquered amongst his war-dukes,
to every man of them a kingdom. And he left to
the priests of Egypt a thousand talents of gold and
his body that they should keep it for ever, and for
his wife Roxana, if she should have a son he should
be Emperor after him, if a daughter she should be
married to the best of the Macedonians and he
should be Emperor. Then Alexander put his seal
to the parchment, and all the dukes put their seals
on it as witnesses, and the will was folded up and
laid in a precious casket before them all.
Now drew on the time that this noble Prince was
to die, and all the world suffered with the pain of
losing him. The thunders rolled and crashed, the
lightnings flashed wide over the land, and there
was a darkness of thick clouds, and the earth was
rent hither and thither, and huge towers toppled and
fell, so that all that was strong and well-founded
became weak and unstable as water, and the founda-
tions of all things were shaken. Then men in far-
off lands feared and wondered what these things
should mean, and when they hurried to the temples
of the gods to enquire, the oracles answered “The
earth is poorer to-day by the loss of its most noble
knight and king,†and all men knew that Alexander
was dying. Then the seamen heard voices over the
sea of weeping and wailing, and they knew that all
212 people
people mourned for the death of the Lord of Macedon,
the bravest, the most courteous, and most generous
of knights. .
But the army of the Macedonians came round
the dwelling of their chief, as it ever was their wont
in time of danger, though they knew that they could
not help him, nor he them, in this his day of passing
away from them. Their hearts longed to see him
once more, to look on the face that had led them
smiling into danger and out of it again, and it may
be, to touch the hand that had struck such blows in
their aid, or had given such gifts to them as he had.
So Alexander the king was brought on his bed into
the great hall of his palace, and the Macedonians
crowded round to see him, and one of them was
over-bold and asked him “ Whom dost thou leave
to be lord of thine army?†and Alexander lifted up
his head and said “ Perdiccas, I leave my army and
my Queen in thy charge, take care of them: as I have
loved thee, love and keep them in my memory.â€
Then the Macedonians began to weep and lament
and those who were near kissed the cold hand of
their king, and they went out, and the sound of their
sobs and lamentations was like the dying away of a
thunder storm far off.
There stood up in the midst of them a lord of
Macedon, Solentius by name, and said “Men of
Macedon, our land was a small one, and our name -
was lightly esteemed in Greece, till this man’s father
213 was
was born, and he ruled us and made us a mighty
people among the Greeks, and subdued Athens and
made us first among the folk of our land. And
when he died, and Alexander our lord came to the
throne he went wide into the world, and rode over
it, and conquered it, and he made the footmen of
his army lords over the people and kings among
the barbarian folk, so that no man stands before
the Macedonians, and they are the first of folk
under heaven. Now is he at point to die, and what
shall fall to us, for no man has he left behind him
who can take his place. Soon shall the empire of
the Macedonians be broken to pieces, and the name
of the country be forgotten.†And all men said that
he had spoken true, and they lamented exceedingly.
And Alexander died: and the sun was eclipsed.
Then Ptolemy sent physicians, and they em-
balmed the body of Alexander, and dressed it in
his imperial robes, and set it in a chariot, and with
all the army of Macedon, marched from the land of
Babylon to the land of Egypt, to the city of
Alexandria which Alexander had built. And when
they were come there, Ptolemy built a golden
sepulchre for him in a high place looking over the
city he had built and the sea, and there he set a
chair of state, and in it was the body of Alexander,
clothed as the Emperor of the World, with his crown
upon his head : his right hand held a golden sceptre,
and his left a golden ball, and on his knees lay his
214 sword,
sword, sheathed and swaddled in his girdle, for he
should no more draw it in the face of the foe.
The tale tells of Olympias that when men told in
Macedon that Alexander was dead, Antipater the
traitor sent men, and they seized the lovely queen,
and slew her, and cast out her body to the beasts of
the field, and the fowls of the air; and great wars
followed that cruel deed. And other things are told
of the son of Alexander and Roxana, but never did
he reach the empire of his father, nor attain the
fame of Alexander.
Onaday there came to the tomb of Alexander
wise men from all lands, and one said, ‘‘ Alexander
made his treasure of gold, and the gold endures, but
not Alexander.†The second said, ‘“ Yesterday the
whole world did not satisfy him, to-day four ells are
enough.†The third said, “ Yesterday he ruled the
people, to-day the people rules him.†The fourth
said, “Yesterday he could save a multitude from
death, to-day he cannot save his own life.†The
fifth said, “Yesterday he led his army from the city,
to-day they led him to his burial.†The sixth said,
“Vesterday he pressed down the earth, to-day it
weighs him down.†The seventh said, “ Yesterday
all men feared him, to-day they hold him in small
honour.†The last said, “ Yesterday he had friends
and enemies, to-day all men are alike to him.â€
Then they went away, and Alexander was alone,
sitting in his chair of state, watching his city.
215
VAP LOE ASL BRAT PR OW wy
Ol Th) cepa eee LWA
RA aod rAd
‘.
CA ve Ce et yar
ay boy re ee RAK ASA
ie $36 SE Rie
ERNE AVEC epee
a2 Peas
Sy
ie patra) F
AT (234 §
SSOFUGENTILLESSE AND OF FRANCHISE.
5 ce + a ae eer
eal A
Py €') Alena Ty y
fe
U
Ny ag
NH
x
AFTER-WORDS
THE STORY WHICH HAS JUST BEEN TOLD
may be looked on as the result of ten centuries of Eastern
and Western imagination. The career of the historical
Alexander is perhaps. one of the most important things,
in its way, that have happened on our earth, and could
not fail to give rise to a plenteous crop of legend and of
marvels. Even in his lifetime the Greek orators allowed
their language to run riot in the telling of his deeds, which
required no exaggeration to stand out before the world.
The form of the story was fixed much as we have it now,
certainly before the third century of our era, and probably
much earlier, in the work of which a corrupt text
has come down to us, under the name of Callis- oe Lext
thenes, one of the companions of Alexander. Ce.
The Greek text of this work was printed by
Muller (Paris, 1877) from three MSS. in the Bibliotheque
Nationale at Paris, which represent three different classes of
MS. There are about twenty MSS. of the work known.
The origin of this romance is probably Egyptian. In
fact, there seems little reason to doubt Favre's guess, that
its composition was due to one of the Ptolemies, p,.,5,
who were successors of Alexander on the Egyp- 4zxan-
tian throne, and willing to legitimatise their rule drian origin
by connecting it with that of the last of the %#e
ancient kings. The style of the Greek seems to Oman:
be Alexandrian, and Nicephorus Calistes (X. 36), speaks of
the Life of Alexander written by the Alexandrian. Other
considerations tend to support the Egyptian origin of the
romance. The character of the magic is distinctly Egyp-
tian (see a very interesting discussion of some points in
Budge’s Syriac Version of the Alexander Story, pp. xxxix.
et seg.). The way in which magic has been attributed to
Anectanabus agrees with Egyptian tradition, which has
219 always
always attributed supernatural powers to him. Reuvens,
in his Third Letter (p. 76), gives an account of a papyrus
describing some of his magical powers, and Tertullian,
in the “De Anima†(lvii.), names him as one of the
masters of magic.
The story was translated into Latin by Julius Valerius
early in the fourth century, since the translation is one of the
; sources of the “Itinerarium Alexandri†(340-
Julius Va 345 a.p.). An epitome of Julius Valerius, made
keriusand : : .
his Epitome, 11 _the ninth century, was published by Zacher
(Halle, 1867). Our earliest MS. of Julius Vale-
rius is at Turin, and dates from about 800 a.v. He is
quoted by Syncellus in the eighth century, and by Malala in
the ninth.
The most important translation—the one which is known
as the “ Historia Alexandri Magni de Proeliisâ€â€”is, how-
ever, due to the tenth century. Leo the Archpriest seems
to have been sent on an embassy to Constantinople to the
Emperors Constantine and Romanus (920-944) by John
and Marius, Dukes of Campania (941-965), and while there
he seems to have collected many books, among which was
the Story of Alexander. On his return he was commanded
by Duke John to translate the story into Latin.
The Alexander Story came into European literature early
in the twelfth century. As far as we know it was introduced
Alberi by Alberic de Besancon. Of his work there
eric de “i fi
Besanon. €XiSts now only a fragment of about 105 lines,
And the first printed by Heyse, Berlin, 1856, 8vo. We
decasyllabic can, however, judge of it by the decasyllabic
fe poem, of which two portions are printed by
Meyer. It was founded on Julius Valerius and the authentic
histories of Alexander. Alberic rejects with disdain the
story of Anectanabus’ parentage of Alexander, judging it a
220 disgrace
disgrace to any true knight to be base-born. The character
of the missing parts of the poem may also be
gathered from the German version of Lamprecht ieee ees
the preacher, who wrote towards the end of the “7°â€
twelfth century, and who seems to have made use of
Alberic’s poem till it concluded with the episode of
Nicholas. The poems printed by Meyer here change their
versification, and are henceforth in Alexandrines, the con-
tinuator being Simon le Poitevin.
The development of the Alexander Story in Europe is
due, however, neither to Alberic nor Lamprecht, but to
Lambert li Tors and Alexandre de Bernay (or
Paris), who in the middle of the century wrote Lambert ii
the romance in Alexandrines. The poem was hs a
full of the magical wonders which Alberic had pon
rejected ; it adopted the Egyptian origin of Alex-
ander and the wondrous stories of Bucephalus, and became
instantaneously popular. .
But medieval listeners were not satisfied with so meagre
information as the Romance of Alexander gave. Here
was a great king foully murdered, beautiful queens
beheaded ; is there no justice in the skies? So in ae Bee
quick succession came the “Testament d’Alex- “â€
andre†of Pierre de Saint Cloor, and in 1190 ‘“‘ La Vengeance
Alexandre†of Gui de Cambrai. Another poem on the
same subject was written between 1288-1308 by Jean le
Nevelois (Nevelaux), and a new cycle of poems was opened
by the ‘“ Voeux du Paon†of Jacques de Longuyon, 1312,
the “Restor du Paon†of Brisebarre de Douay (before
1338). The Alexander cycle finishes by Jean de la Mote’s
‘Parfait du Paon,†1340.
Meanwhile the Alexander Story itself had gone on its
way. Eustace of Kent had incorporated it in his (still
pes inedited)
inedited) ‘“‘Roman de Toute Chevalrie†in the middle of
the thirteenth century. Four manuscripts of
hia % this work still exist, and it seems to be the stock
ae from which many English translations have been
made, notably that published by Weber in 1810. About
the same time the prose translation of the “ De Proeliisâ€
was made, a translation which profoundly influenced the
later story-tellers. Soon the Epitome of Julius Valerius,
and a letter of Alexander to Aristotle, giving an account of
the wonders of India, were translated. Frére Jehan de
Vignay wrote a prose romance of Alexander in 1341, unfor-
tunately lost, and the roll is closed in 1445 by ‘1’Histoire
d’Alexandre†of Jean Wauquelin.
Our English versions seem to have been later. Very
few of them have been printed, a fact perhaps due to the
: very insufficient support extended to the Early
ie English Text Society, which has printed the
eens: portions to be found of two of them. Our earliest
version seems to be that of which some extracts are given
in Warton. There was an English version of 48,000
lines or so of the Alexander Story, belonging to the Duke
of Roxburghe, but the MS. has disappeared. Weber, in
his “Early English Metrical Romances,†gives a rhymed
poem of 8031 lines. Two fragments are known of an
alliterative translation of Lambert li Tors, which must
have been of enormous length; and a nearly complete
poem, which follows pretty closely the ‘De Proeliis,†is
printed under the name of “The Wars of Alexander.â€
The three last are published by the Early English Text
Society. Gower, in the *‘Confessio Amantis,†also makes
use of episodes of the romance. Cockayne printed an A.S.
version of the letter of Alexander.
We have thus run down the line which brought the
222 tale
tale from Egypt to Chaucer’s doors, so that he could sing
that—
“* Alisaundre’s storie ts so commune
That everie wight that hath discrecionne
Hath herde somewhat or al of his fortune ;â€
but we would not have the reader think that here is an
exhaustive list, even along the line of descent we have
traced, of the forms of the Alexander Story. Amongst
other European versions are the German prose version
(printed in 1478, Aug. Vind., fo.), made by John Hartlieb
Moller, at the command of Albert, Duke of Bavaria.
There are further, early Spanish, Italian, Norse, Swedish,
Dutch, and Russian versions. An early rhyme, preserving
an incident of the story, is printed by Schiller, ‘‘Thesaur.
Antiq. Teuton,†t. i., in the Rhythm. de S. Annone, xiv., xv.
It hardly comes within our province to refer to other
forms of the Alexander Story in Europe, except in the
briefest possible way. A work often mistaken for the “De
Proeliis†is the compilation of Radulphus of St. Albans,
who compiled from Quintus Curtius and other authors a Life
of Alexander. In 1236 William of Spoleto wrote a Life of
Alexander in Latin elegiacs, a work quoted by Warton as
of Aretinus Quilichinus.
The Pseud-Callisthenes is often spoken of as the work
of Simeon Seth, protovestiarius of the palace of Antiochus
at Constantinople, and was in the last century considered
a translation from the Persian about the year 1070. Other
reasons apart, the dissimilarity between the
Egyptian and the Persian forms of the story J»dependent
would disprove this theory. Just as the Egyptians pee
represented Alexander as the son of the last of Yan’
their native kings, so the Persians represented
him (in the popular legend) as the son of Darius (Codo-
223 mannus
mannus of the Kayanian dynasty), and of a daughter of
Philip of Macedon, who was brought up by his grand-
father, and afterwards overcame his elder brother. An
independent tradition seems to have grown up among
the Arabs, making him the son of an old woman, and born
in obscurity, his name being originally Mazban (Lord of
the Marches), son of Marzabah, descended ‘from Yunan,
son of Japhet (Burton, “ Arabian Nights â€).
An early Arabic version of the Greek must have been made
about the eighth century, from which the Syriac version we
have at present was made, but unfortunately. this
Syriac Ver’ has not been found. A Syriac version was made
a in the eighth century, of which parts exist ; but
our most complete version is that made in the seventh—
ninth century, and published with a version by Budge. Eight
chapters of this are missing, and it is noticeable that the
source of the translation did not contain the interpolations
from Palladius (367-431) which the Greek text now does.
An Armenian version is attributed to Moses of Chorene
(fifth century), who certainly knew the story.
The story early passed into Hebrew. It is found in Jos. °
ben Gorion (lib. II. p. 94, ed. Oxon. 1704, 4to), and a
pseudonymous translation of the work of Ptolemy, son of |
Lagos, by Samuel ben Judah ben Sibbon of Granada,
appeared in the thirteenth century. (See a French trans-
lation of a Hebrew version by J. Levi, ‘‘ Revue des Etudes
Juives,†III. 241.) It is found in the Arabic of Said ibn
Armenian, attik (939 A.D.), Patriarch of Alexandria (Euty-
Hebrew, chus., ed. Pocock, Oxon. 1606), and in Gregory
Arabic, Pere Abul Farag (1265). Mohl believed that Firdusi
sian, Ethio- had an Arab author before him when writing
pic, Coptic. of Alexander. Among the Persian writers may
be named Firdusi (1024), Nizami (1203), and Mirkond
224 (1497).
(1497). An Ethiopic version will shortly be published
y Budge; and among others existing are versions in
Coptic, Malay, and Siamese. Several detached incidents
connect themselves with the story. Thus we may mention
the “Iter ad Paradisum,†twelfth century (of Talmudic
origin), printed at Konigsberg, 1859; the Gog and Magog
story, &c.
The Egyptian king who figures in our story as Anecta-
nabus is known to history as Necht-neb-f (Nakhtenephen).
His mutilated statue and two inscriptions are in
the British Museum. He was overthrown by pene
Ochus, and retreated into Ethiopia some four “â€â€
years after the birth of Alexander. We have already
referred to the reputation for magic that attached to him
early in the Christian era. The form Anectanabus is used
as being the form (sometimes shortened to Anec) in which
the name appears in Gower and the poet of “The Wars of
Alexander.†His history may be read in Wiedemann,
*‘ Aegyptische Geschichte,†p. 716, or in Maspero, “ Histoire
du Peuples de I’Orient,†pp. 566-7.
It is difficult to resist the conclusion that Plutarch
had before him such a collection of tales as the
“Pseud-Callisthenes,†and was thinking of them Pf. Bird
when he wrote his first pages of the Life of Alex- Cee ee
ander. The tradition of his birth from the visit Syry.
of a dragon is accounted for by the habits of the
Macedonian women, who are accustomed to pet large snakes.
Justin XI. 2, 3, and XII. 16, and Solinus, cap. XV., also
mention the tradition. Other points where Plutarch is
contradicting the legend will readily suggest themselves.
However, this is saying nothing more than that many of |
the stories must have grown up about the time of Alex-
ander, or soon after his death. The filiation of Alexander
225 P and
and Ammon is one of these, the cartouche of Alexander
being “ Alexander, son of Amen.â€
There has been no attempt to give a Greek character to
the story. Even when the alteration of a letter would have
made a good Greek name, as in the case of Pausanius, it
has not been altered, and Sir Samson, Sir Balaan, speak for
themselves. But, on the other hand, as the tales make him
Christian or Pagan by turns, we have not tried to make
him consistent. In the same way, it was found impossible
to leave out the visit to Jerusalem, which makes such a
central point in the medieval stories.
A word as to the illustrations—not those of our book,
but those of the veritable medieval illuminators. Among
: the chief treasures of the British Museum are its
pias illuminated copies of the Alexander Romance,
uminated
Copies. notably 19. D. 1 and 20. B. xx. Some others are
older, but these are filled with most beautiful
paintings of the incidents of the story. I may be allowed
to mention one thing here which I have noticed. In each
of them, at the beginning, is a sort of frontispiece divided
into compartments, and labelled The Castle of Cairo, The
Town of Babylon (with Anectanabus shown on the walls or
elsewhere), The Garden of Balm, and The Mills of Babylon.
Now, these seem to have no connection with the French
prose translation in which they are found. Cairo is not
mentioned in it, there is no story of a garden of balm, and
there is no story of the mills of Babylon, which are large
floating water-mills like those at Old London Bridge.
FINISHED THIS THIRTIETH DAY OF MAY
1894 BY ME, ROBERT STEELE, AND PRINTED
BY BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO., LONDON,
FOR DAVID NUTT IN THE STRAND.
Ari \ 1082