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diff --git a/old/64991-0.txt b/old/64991-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 92bb034..0000000 --- a/old/64991-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5911 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Story of Alexander, by Robert Steele, -Illustrated by Fred Mason - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: The Story of Alexander - - -Author: Robert Steele - - - -Release Date: April 4, 2021 [eBook #64991] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF ALEXANDER*** - - -E-text prepared by MFR, John Campbell, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made -available by Internet Archive (https://archive.org) - - - -Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this - file which includes the original illustrations. - See 64991-h.htm or 64991-h.zip: - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/64991/64991-h/64991-h.htm) - or - (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/64991/64991-h.zip) - - - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive. See - https://archive.org/details/storyofalexander00steeuoft - - -Transcriber’s note: - - Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_). - - Changes to the text are noted at the end of the book. - - - - - -THE STORY OF ALEXANDER - - -[Illustration: - -THE STORY OF ALEXANDER TOLD BY ROBERT STEELE & DRAWN BY FRED MASON - -London in the Strand -David Nutt -1894] - - - - - M. M. S. - A TOKEN OF - FRIENDSHIP AND ADMIRATION - - - - -AN OPEN LETTER - - - _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 listening -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 is true, as -our great English poet said, “Men are but children of a larger -growth”--and it was true of that time--perhaps the 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 for 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 if 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 is only a tale, and the Alexander and Darius, the -Greeks and the Jews, it 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. If, then, you could read 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 castle-hall, and all the people round you are in -dresses like 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 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, if 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 -fighting 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, everyone 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 stories -they delighted in, it will have reached the object of_ - - _Your loving liegeman_ - - _R. S._ - - - - - CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - CHAPTER I. HOW ANECTANABUS WAS KING OF EGYPT, - AND WHY HE FLED INTO THE LAND OF MACEDON 1 - - CHAPTER II. OF OLYMPIAS AND ANECTANABUS, OF THE - MAGIC HE WROUGHT, AND OF THE BIRTH OF ALEXANDER 9 - - CHAPTER III. HOW ALEXANDER TAMED THE HORSE - BUCEPHALUS, AND HOW HE DID HIS FIRST DEED OF - ARMS 21 - - CHAPTER IV. TELLS OF THE EMBASSY OF DARIUS, - OF THE DEATH OF PHILIP, AND THE CROWNING OF - ALEXANDER 30 - - CHAPTER V. HOW ALEXANDER GATHERED AN ARMY - TOGETHER: HOW HE BUILT ALEXANDRIA AND LAID - SIEGE TO THE CITY OF TYRE 39 - - CHAPTER VI. TELLS OF THE FORAY OF KADESH, AND - OF ITS ENDING, AND OF THE TAKING OF THE CITY OF - TYRE 47 - - CHAPTER VII. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO JERUSALEM, - HOW THE BISHOP MET HIM, AND WHAT THERE BEFELL - HIM 55 - - CHAPTER VIII. TELLS HOW DARIUS THE EMPEROR - SENT PRESENTS TO ALEXANDER, AND WHAT WAS THE - PRESENT SENT BACK TO HIM 63 - - CHAPTER IX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER DESTROYED - THEBES AND HOW IT WAS REBUILT, AND OF HIS - RETURN TO PERSIA 73 - - CHAPTER X. HOW ALEXANDER DEFEATED THE PERSIANS, - AND HOW HE WENT TO THE FEAST OF DARIUS 82 - - CHAPTER XI. TELLS OF THE BATTLE BETWEEN ALEXANDER - AND DARIUS, AND OF THE SLAYING OF DARIUS 94 - - CHAPTER XII. HOW ALEXANDER MARRIED ROXANA, - THE DAUGHTER OF THE EMPEROR, AND HOW HE - DEFEATED PORUS THE KING OF INDIA 102 - - CHAPTER XIII. HOW ALEXANDER AND HIS MEN PASSED - THE NIGHT OF FEAR, AND HOW HE SAW THE GREATEST - AND THE LEAST THING ON EARTH 111 - - CHAPTER XIV. HOW ALEXANDER AND HIS ARMY - PASSED THROUGH THE VALLEY OF TERROR AND - SOUGHT THE WELLS OF LIFE 124 - - CHAPTER XV. HOW THE BRAHMANS CAME TO KING - ALEXANDER AND WHAT HE LEARNT FROM THEM: AND - OF THE COMING OF THE AMAZONS 138 - - CHAPTER XVI. HOW ALEXANDER PASSED THROUGH - THE LAND OF DARKNESS AND SLEW THE BASILISK 148 - - CHAPTER XVII. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO THE TREES - OF THE SUN AND THE MOON, AND WHAT THEY TOLD - HIM 159 - - CHAPTER XVIII. HOW ALEXANDER SLEW PORUS AND - WON BACK THE WIFE OF CANDOYL AND WAS KNOWN - OF CANDACE WHEN HE CAME TO HER 171 - - CHAPTER XIX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER DEFEATED - GOG AND MAGOG, HOW HE WENT UP INTO THE AIR - AND DOWN INTO THE SEA 188 - - CHAPTER XX. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO HIS LIFE’S - END AND WAS BURIED, AND WHAT THEREON BEFELL 204 - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER I. HOW ANECTANABUS WAS KING OF EGYPT, AND WHY HE FLED INTO -THE LAND OF MACEDON. - - -Once upon a time a king reigned over the land of Egypt, whose name -was Anectanabus. In his time that land was the richest in the -world, and its people 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 merchants 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 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 daïs, 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 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 petitioned 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 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 daïs, 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 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 Anectanabus -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 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 invoke -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, 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 your defeat, he shall -destroy Persia, he shall be the noblest Emperor of the world.” - -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. - -[Illustration: ONE LION PVTTETH TO FLIGHT MANY DEER] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER II. OF OLYMPIAS AND ANECTANABUS, OF THE MAGIC HE WROUGHT, -AND OF THE BIRTH OF ALEXANDER. - - -It fell on a day that as Anectanabus was travelling through the -land of Macedon, he came to the chief city of 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 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 -Olympias 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 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 outlander, and be like 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 declare 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 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 questions 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. - -[Illustration: Anectanabus telleth the Queen’s fate.] - -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,” said the Queen, “tell -me what shall part Philip and me, for it is told me by my wise -women that if he returns from battle he shall take another wife, -and send me away for ever.” “Nay, not for ever,” 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 moon was 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 -is conjurations, he made a dream for the queen. 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 all her dream. Then said he to the queen: -“If 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.” - -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 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 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: “O 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 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!” and the foe -were routed and their king slain, and far away the great dragon -rose in the air and disappeared, 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 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 child”; and with that he went to Olympias and 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 son”: 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, 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.” And as he said the word, Alexander stumbled forward, 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER III. HOW ALEXANDER TAMED THE HORSE BUCEPHALUS, AND HOW HE -DID HIS FIRST DEED OF ARMS. - - -So it was that there was at this time a certain prince in the land -of Cappadocia, and in the night as he lay sleeping a vision came to -him, and it 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 Macedonia to king Philip; and tell him that he who -should tame this horse should rule the land after 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 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’s son. Hearing 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 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.” - -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.” Then the prince gave him lowly -thanks, and sped off to gather together a little band of twelve -chieftains, picked and proved leaders of men, whom he had chosen to -lead his men, and when this was 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 Peloponnesus. 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 began to 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 Alexander 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 I am?” “Sir,” said -Alexander, “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.” - -“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.” - -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 wasp-like 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.” So a 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 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 fragments, 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 Alexander grew mad with rage, and with one -full stroke 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,” 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 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER IV. TELLS OF THE EMBASSY OF DARIUS, OF THE DEATH OF PHILIP, -AND THE CROWNING OF ALEXANDER. - - -The tale tells that on a day men told in Macedon that an embassy -from the Emperor of the World, Darius of Persia, was drawing near; -and the whole city 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 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. 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 daïs 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.” - -[Illustration: The Heralds of the Emperor Darius.] - -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, forasmuch as in -past years thou hast served the king, and as perchance thy land -has suffered from famine 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.” - -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 henceforth 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, -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 happened, 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, Pausanius, 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 -rebellion:--For many years this lord had loved the queen Olympias, -and when Philip put her away he 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 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 on 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.” - -Now when the lords of the land had heard his reasons abovesaid, -and considered his great discretion, 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 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 subject -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.” - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER V. HOW ALEXANDER GATHERED AN ARMY TOGETHER: HOW HE BUILT -ALEXANDRIA AND LAID SIEGE TO THE CITY OF TYRE. - - -As to the giving in marriage of the daughter of Darius, the Emperor -of Persia, it is to be told that on a set day the wise men of the -land came 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 quarrelsome, -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 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.” - -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 arms. -Excuse us, Lord, we pray, and take with thee younger men, stout in -battle, and fit to deal heavy strokes.” - -“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 delay”; 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 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 Alexander 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.” 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 -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 drink, and -our wealth is great, and all men shall serve us for it?” - -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 complain first of one thing, then of another, and Alexander -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. - -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 life.” When Alexander 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER VI. TELLS OF THE FORAY OF KADESH, AND OF ITS ENDING, AND OF -THE TAKING OF THE CITY OF TYRE. - - -Now the chief of the band he sent was Meleager, one of Alexander’s -most valiant knights, and he had with him five hundred lances and -their men-at-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 travelled a mile all the country was -alarmed, and rose in arms against them, and a very valiant knight, -Theosell, came riding out to meet them, and to prevent 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 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 Macedonians 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 together 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 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 -bitterly, 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 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, 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.” 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 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 withstood 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 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER VII. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO JERUSALEM, HOW THE BISHOP MET -HIM, AND WHAT THERE BEFELL HIM. - - -When the word was brought to Jerusalem that Tyre was taken, and -that Alexander was on the march towards the city to punish it for -its disobedience, 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. Woe is 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.” - -So men went through the streets, and it was 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.” - -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. - -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 pavement -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 embroidered 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 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 Tartary, 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 companies, 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 embroidered 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 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 looking 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 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.” - -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 such a 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.” - -And now the bishop had greeted Alexander full 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 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.” - -“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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. TELLS HOW DARIUS THE EMPEROR SENT PRESENTS TO -ALEXANDER, AND WHAT WAS THE PRESENT SENT BACK TO HIM. - - -But it fell that some of them of Tyre had fled into the court of -Darius, and they complained to him of 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 Alexander, 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,” 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. - -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 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.” - -And when the letter was written the bearer of the kind’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. - -[Illustration: When he saw the letter, his heart was filled with -rage nevertheless he read it out in the hearing of his knights & -nobles & they were moved with fear.] - -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 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.” - -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 -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.” - -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 Alexander 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: - -“I, ALEXANDER OF MACEDON, son and heir of Philip the defender of -Greece, and of Olympias the fair, to thee Darius, prince of the -Persians, the conqueror of every land--as you say 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 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 thy defeat, O Darius, remember my -interpretation of thy gifts.” - -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 together 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.” - -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 Alexander was, or how -hard it was to stand before him in battle. So Sir Priam the duke -wrote to Darius by a 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 Alexander 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 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.” - -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.” - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER IX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER DESTROYED THEBES AND HOW IT WAS -REBUILT AND OF HIS RETURN TO PERSIA. - - -The tale tells that when the messengers of Darius departed, loaded -with rich presents, to carry the message of Alexander to their -lord, Alexander and 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 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 daïs, 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 they be but as keen and sharp, -all the world would be too weak to meet them in arms.” - -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 Scamander, 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. - -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 Alexander 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?” - -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 -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 cross-bows 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 Alexander 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. - -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; 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.” And another lord spoke: “This Macedonian -is like a lion who leaps on his prey with joy.” “How so?” 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 medicine, 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 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 overtaken 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 barbarians bow before us--then -shall we blithe return.” - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER X. HOW ALEXANDER DEFEATED THE PERSIANS, AND HOW HE WENT TO -THE FEAST OF DARIUS. - - -Now for the first time the armies of the Macedonians and the -Persians came in face of each other, and hopes of victory were on -either side, for 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 thundering noise -and a shout, and all the fair field was covered with stumbling -steeds and knights dismounted 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 Alexander 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; whatsoever -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.” So -he arrayed him in clean bright armour, and over his armour he put -on a silk surcoat in colour like to that of the Macedonians, and -rode out among them. - -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?” - -“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.” - -“Take him away,” said the king, “but harm him not till I give order -about him.” - -Then Alexander turned to his lords and said: - -“What shall be done to him for this deed?” - -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 duly to his lord, in 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.” - -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 treasure 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 -came from the king of India saying that he was sore sick, and could -give no aid till he was recovered, 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 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, -I am sent to thee by Alexander, he bids thee prepare for battle; -why dost thou stay in the 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 misshapen 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.” And with that he drew back, nor did he speak when -Alexander drew out the scarf from his breast. Then 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 Alexander. - -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 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.” - -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, and one said to -another: “Let us see if he will do it again;” and they brought him -a third cup, yet more precious, and 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 Alexander, “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?” 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 -here is no herald, but Alexander the Macedonian himself, or I am 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 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XI. TELLS OF THE BATTLE BETWEEN ALEXANDER AND DARIUS, AND -OF THE SLAYING OF DARIUS. - - -But Alexander had ridden 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 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;” and -all the army laughed and rejoiced in his bravery 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 advanced 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 give way, their noblest captains were dead, and nowhere -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 -before, 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 struggling 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. - -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 -battlements, 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 concerning 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 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 Alexander 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 received them roughly, and -though all the Macedonians 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 -messengers 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 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 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XII. HOW ALEXANDER MARRIED ROXANA, THE DAUGHTER OF THE -EMPEROR, AND HOW HE DEFEATED PORUS THE KING OF INDIA. - - -Then came messengers to Alexander bringing word that Darius lay in -his palace nigh death, and that there was no man among the Persians -who might give orders or make head against him. 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. - -Then Alexander rode through the town to the palace of Darius, and -when he entered it he wondered 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 you have done -and help them. 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,” 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 with a 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 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 glad. - -In few days, however, the warlike spirit of Alexander 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 -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 Alexander, 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 Alexander, 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 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 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 charming 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 -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 not a 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 Alexander,” 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. HOW ALEXANDER AND HIS MEN PASSED THE NIGHT OF FEAR, -AND HOW HE SAW THE GREATEST AND THE LEAST THING ON EARTH. - - -Within a month came tidings that Porus had gathered together -another army, and would wage war with Alexander, for the hosts -that had been on the march to him were there, and those 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 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.” “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. “I 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 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 causeway, 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 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.” - -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 most 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 together 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. - -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 dash 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.” - -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 example 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 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 -watchmen 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 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 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 -drawbridge 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 Alexander was glad of -heart, and he besought him to 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 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.” - -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 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 Macedonians 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 Alexander, 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 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 Alexander, 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 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 whilom -King of Egypt, and he said to him, “O my son 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.” Then the -god departed, and Alexander lay alone asleep. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. HOW ALEXANDER AND HIS ARMY PASSED THROUGH THE VALLEY -OF TERROR AND SOUGHT THE WELLS OF LIFE. - - -Many hundred years before, one of the great heroes of the Greeks, -Hercules by name, had come into India, and had conquered the people -of the land, and had set up great pillars of marble 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 promised 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. - -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?” 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?” 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 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-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 watchmen 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, 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 Alexander -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 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 -mid-day, 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 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 the king said, “Say on.” Then said he, “O -Alexander, this valley is the Valley of Terror, of which ancient -stories tell, and whatsoever 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 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. - -[Illustration: Now when all had left the valley but Alexander, -standing at the Altar of Willing Victims, and Bucephalus his horse -by him, it was already evening, & the earth seemed to shake & the -way out was closed up.] - -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. 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 sides 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 Alexander 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 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.” - -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 comers 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 longer the Valley of -Terror.” So the king came with his horse, and he passed out where -the army had gone, and mounted his horse, and turned to thank his -guide, and lo I 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 concerning 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 Alexander 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 every well they -came to, till they should see some strange thing, when they were -to tell it to him. 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 washing 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 -swimming about in the spring. So they fetched Alexander 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 rejoiced in -their youth. - -There remained the Well of Never-dying Men to be sought for, but -the old man told them that this 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. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XV. HOW THE BRAHMANS CAME TO KING ALEXANDER AND WHAT HE -LEARNT FROM THEM: AND OF THE COMING OF THE AMAZONS. - - -Now the tale tells that by this time the army was encamped near the -great river of India, the river Ganges. The river was very broad so -that men 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 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 esteemed 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 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.” 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 was older than day. 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 now do you die?” “Is death -mightier than life?” “Who is it that has never been born?” “Which -is man’s strongest limb, his right hand or his left?” - -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 Alexander 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 certain 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 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.” - -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 -found the treasure whether they had any children or no: 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 otherwise. “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 them that 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 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 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 whatever 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 husbands’ 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 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 overcomest 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 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 therefore 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 inscription in Greek characters was but this:-- - - Α Β Γ Δ Ε - -the first five letters of the alphabet, and they stood for the same -words as those in the Indian inscription: - - ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΓΕΝΟΣ ΔΙΟΣ ΕΚΤΙΣΕ - -“King Alexander the God-born built this:” and he graved it deep on -the sides of the pillar. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. HOW ALEXANDER PASSED THROUGH THE LAND OF DARKNESS AND -SLEW THE BASILISK. - - -Few 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 pomegranates, 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 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 Alexander 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 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 -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 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 Darkness, 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:” and he -found no counsel in them. Then the two sons told their father how -the King had stopped 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.” - -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 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 with a -light like a star, and guided them on the road for three days. But -on 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 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 in a 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 -mountains, 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 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 -suddenly 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 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 whatsoever 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 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 Northward 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO THE TREES OF THE SUN AND THE -MOON, AND WHAT THEY TOLD HIM. - - -Howbeit 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 -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 -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 in a 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. - -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. 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.” 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 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 saw a bird -resting on one Of its branches, and the bird was of the size of a -peacock, with a crest such as 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 Phœnix, 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.” - -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 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 Macedon, 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: “O 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 companions of Alexander fell down -to the ground as if 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 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?” 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 overcome 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 and said: “Let -us depart with speed, for the weeping 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, Alexander 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 promised 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’s 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 him tribute. - -[Illustration] - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. HOW ALEXANDER SLEW PORUS AND WON BACK THE WIFE OF -CANDOYL AND WAS KNOWN OF CANDACE WHEN HE CAME TO HER. - - -After these things the host of the Greeks and the Persians and -the Indians was gathered together, in one place, and messengers -came from all the kings of the land to it to Alexander 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 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, and a 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 precious stones, and two hundred and ten chains of red -gold, and thirty rich goblets carved with pelicans 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 drawing 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 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 remembered 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 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 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 processions 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 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 Alexander, thou hast -done thy duly as a true knight, thine adversary is at thy mercy to -slay or to spare.” 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, 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 differences 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.” 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 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 Candoyl, 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.” 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 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 messengers for me, and call -me Antiochus, and I shall obey thy bidding as I were thy liegeman. -And 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 walls 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.” Then the -burghers of the city were filled with fear, 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 prisoner 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. Into a 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 -I am glad of your guest, as the gods give me joy:” and Alexander -looked on her, and his heart rejoiced, for he thought her likest -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 Candace 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 -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 everyday she came and sat in 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 treasures”; 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.” - -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 banging 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?” 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 in -a woman’s ward, in spite of all thy worthy deeds. Where is 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?” 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 I am taken unawares,” 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,” 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 Caratros 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 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 servant, 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.” 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 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 teamed the mysteries of the gods. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. TELLS HOW ALEXANDER DEFEATED GOG AND MAGOG, HOW HE -WENT UP INTO THE AIR, AND DOWN INTO THE SEA. - - -Candoyl 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, 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 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 now 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.” 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 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 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 -consumed 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 enemies, 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 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 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 arbalasters shot altogether, and the knights struck -down and killed many of the beasts with their lances and their -battle-axes, 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 -inhospitable, 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 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 semblance. 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 exceeding 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 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 like a 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 on 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. - -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 ambassadors 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 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 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 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 sorcerers 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 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 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.” 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. - -[Illustration: Alexander sees the wonders of the sea] - -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 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 sea and sunk. And as he saw what -he had done, and how he had destroyed the life of his lord, he -plunged into the sea straightway, 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. - - - - -[Illustration] - - - - -CHAPTER XX. HOW ALEXANDER CAME TO HIS LIFE’S END AND WAS BURIED, -AND WHAT THEREON BEFELL. - - -Furthermore after the descent of Alexander into the sea, messengers -came from Susa with the word that the king of Babylon, Nabuzardan, -had refused the tribute that he ought to pay, and had declared war -against the Lord of Macedon, 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 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 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, now 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 -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 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 Cassander rejoiced, and he told his brother, and -they set a day to kill the Lord of Macedon, the noble Alexander. - -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 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 Alexander -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 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 darkness -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 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 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 -foundations 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 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.” -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 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 embalmed 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 -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. - -On a day 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, “Yesterday 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.” - -Then they went away, and Alexander was alone, sitting in his chair, -of state, watching his city. - -[Illustration: WHO SHALL ME GIVEN TEARES TO COMPLAIN - -THE DEATH OF GENTILLESSE AND OF FRANCHISE. - -THE END] - - - - -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. - -[Sidenote: _Greek Text of Pseud-Callisthenes._] - -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 Callisthenes, one of the companions of Alexander. The Greek -text of this work was printed by Muller (Paris, 1877) from three -MSS. in the Bibliothèque Nationale at Paris, which represent three -different classes of MS. There are about twenty MSS. of the work -known. - -[Sidenote: _Probable Alexandrian origin of the Romance._] - -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, who were successors of Alexander -on the Egyptian throne, and willing to legitimatise their rule by -connecting it with that of the last of the ancient kings. The style -of the Greek seems to 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 Egyptian (see -a very interesting discussion of some points in Budge’s Syriac -Version of the Alexander Story, pp. xxxix. _et seq._). The way in -which magic has been attributed to Anectanabus agrees with Egyptian -tradition, which has 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. - -[Sidenote: _Julius Valerius and his Epitome._] - -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” (340-345 A.D.). An epitome of Julius -Valerius, made in the ninth century, was published by Zacher -(Halle, 1867). Our earliest MS. of Julius Valerius is at Turin, and -dates from about 800 A.D. 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 Proeliis”--is, however, 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. - -[Sidenote: _Alberic de Besançon. And the decasyllabic poem._] - -[Sidenote: _Lamprecht’s Version._] - -The Alexander Story came into European literature early in the -twelfth century. As far as we know it was introduced by Alberic -de Besançon. Of his work there exists now only a fragment of -about 105 lines, first printed by Heyse, Berlin, 1856, 8vo. We -can, however, judge of it by the decasyllabic 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 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 the preacher, who wrote towards the end of the -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 continuator being Simon le Poitevin. - -[Sidenote: _Lambert li Tors and Alexandre de Paris._] - -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 the romance in Alexandrines. The poem was full of the magical -wonders which Alberic had rejected; it adopted the Egyptian origin -of Alexander and the wondrous stories of Bucephalus, and became -instantaneously popular. - -[Sidenote: _The Alexander Cycle._] - -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 quick succession came the “Testament d’Alexandre” -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. - -[Sidenote: _Eustace of Kent._] - -Meanwhile the Alexander Story itself had gone on its way. Eustace -of Kent had incorporated it in his (still inedited) “Roman de -Toute Chevalrie” in the middle of the thirteenth century. Four -manuscripts of this work still exist, and it seems to be the stock -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 Proeliis” 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. Frère Jehan de -Vignay wrote a prose romance of Alexander in 1341, unfortunately -lost, and the roll is closed in 1445 by “l’Histoire d’Alexandre” of -Jean Wauquelin. - -[Sidenote: _English Versions._] - -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 English Text Society, which has printed the -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.” 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 tale from Egypt -to Chaucer’s doors, so that he could sing that-- - - “_Alisaundre’s storie is so commune_ - _That everie wight that hath discrecionne_ - _Hath horde somewhat or al of his fortune;_” - -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. - -[Sidenote: _Independent Legends--Persian, Arabic._] - -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 would -disprove this theory. Just as the Egyptians represented Alexander -as the son of the last of their native kings, so the Persians -represented him (in the popular legend) as the son of Darius -(Codomannus of the Kayanian dynasty), and of a daughter of Philip -of Macedon, who was brought up by his grandfather, 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”). - -[Sidenote: _Syriac Versions._] - -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 has not been found. A Syriac -version was made 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. - -[Sidenote: _Armenian, Hebrew, Arabic, Persian, Ethiopic, Coptic._] - -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 translation of a Hebrew version by J. Levi, “Revue -des Etudes Juives,” III. 241.) It is found in the Arabic of -Said ibn Batrik (939 A.D.), Patriarch of Alexandria (Eutychus., -ed. Pocock, Oxon. 1606), and in Gregory Abul Farag (1265). Mohl -believed that Firdusi had an Arab author before him when writing -of Alexander. Among the Persian writers may be named Firdusi -(1024), Nizami (1203), and Mirkond (1497). An Ethiopic version -will shortly be published by 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. - -[Sidenote: _Anectanabus._] - -The Egyptian king who figures in our story as Anectanabus is known -to history as Necht-neb-f (Nakhtenephen). His mutilated statue -and two inscriptions are in the British Museum. He was overthrown -by Ochus, and retreated into Ethiopia some four 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 -l’Orient,” pp. 566-7. - -[Sidenote: _Plutarch and the Alexander Story._] - -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 when he wrote his first pages of the Life of -Alexander. The tradition of his birth from the visit 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 Alexander, or soon -after his death. The filiation of Alexander and Ammon is one of -these, the cartouche of Alexander being “Alexander, son of Amen.” - -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. - -[Sidenote: _Medieval Illuminated Copies._] - -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 illuminated copies of the Alexander -Romance, notably 19. D. I 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. - - - - - * * * * * * - - - - -Transcriber’s note: - - Obvious typographical errors and punctuation errors have been - corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within - the text and consultation of external sources. - - Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text, - and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained. - - Pg 25: ‘and gan question’ replaced by ‘and began to question’. - - Pg 55: ‘CHAP. VII’ replaced by ‘CHAPTER VII’. - - Pg 131: ‘and whatsover men’ replaced by ‘and whatsoever men’. - - Pg 163: ‘the earth. Then’ replaced by ‘the earth.” Then’. - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE STORY OF ALEXANDER*** - - -******* This file should be named 64991-0.txt or 64991-0.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/6/4/9/9/64991 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. 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