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The other Persians were silent; all feared to raise their voice
against the plan proposed to them. But Artabanus, the son of
Hystaspes, and uncle of Xerxes, trusting to his relationship, was
bold to speak: "O king!" he said, "it is impossible, if no more
than one opinion is uttered, to make choice of the best: a man is
forced then to follow whatever advice may have been given him; but if
opposite speeches are delivered, then choice can be exercised. In
like manner pure gold is not recognised by itself; but when we test it
along with baser ore, we perceive which is the better. I counselled
thy father, Darius, who was my own brother, not to attack the
Scyths, a race of people who had no town in their whole land. He
thought however to subdue those wandering tribes, and would not listen
to me, but marched an army against them, and ere he returned home lost
many of his bravest warriors. Thou art about, O king! to attack a
people far superior to the Scyths, a people distinguished above others
both by land and sea. 'Tis fit therefore that I should tell thee
what danger thou incurrest hereby. Thou sayest that thou wilt bridge
the Hellespont, and lead thy troops through Europe against Greece.
Now suppose some disaster befall thee by land or sea, or by both. It
may be even so; for the men are reputed valiant. Indeed one may
measure their prowess from what they have already done; for when Datis
and Artaphernes led their huge army against Attica, the Athenians
singly defeated them. But grant they are not successful on both
elements. Still, if they man their ships, and, defeating us by
sea, sail to the Hellespont, and there destroy our bridge - that,
sire, were a fearful hazard. And here 'tis not by my own mother wit
alone that I conjecture what will happen; but I remember how narrowly
we escaped disaster once, when thy father, after throwing bridges over
the Thracian Bosphorus and the Ister, marched against the
Scythians, and they tried every sort of prayer to induce the
Ionians, who had charge of the bridge over the Ister, to break the
passage. On that day, if Histiaeus, the king of Miletus, had
sided with the other princes, and not set himself to oppose their
views, the empire of the Persians would have come to nought. Surely
a dreadful thing is this even to hear said, that the king's fortunes
depended wholly on one man.
"Think then no more of incurring so great a danger when no need
presses, but follow the advice I tender. Break up this meeting, and
when thou hast well considered the matter with thyself, and settled
what thou wilt do, declare to us thy resolve. I know not of aught in
the world that so profits a man as taking good counsel with himself;
for even if things fall out against one's hopes, still one has
counselled well, though fortune has made the counsel of none effect:
whereas if a man counsels ill and luck follows, he has gotten a
windfall, but his counsel is none the less silly. Seest thou how God
with his lightning smites always the bigger animals, and will not
suffer them to wax insolent, while those of a lesser bulk chafe him
not? How likewise his bolts fall ever on the highest houses and the
tallest trees? So plainly does He love to bring down everything that
exalts itself. Thus ofttimes a mighty host is discomfited by a few
men, when God in his jealousy sends fear or storm from heaven, and
they perish in a way unworthy of them. For God allows no one to have
high thoughts but Himself. Again, hurry always brings about
disasters, from which huge sufferings are wont to arise; but in delay
lie many advantages, not apparent (it may be) at first sight, but
such as in course of time are seen of all. Such then is my counsel to
thee, O king!
"And thou, Mardonius, son of Gobryas, forbear to speak foolishly
concerning the Greeks, who are men that ought not to be lightly
esteemed by us. For while thou revilest the Greeks, thou dost
encourage the king to lead his own troops against them; and this, as
it seems to me, is what thou art specially striving to accomplish.
Heaven send thou succeed not to thy wish! For slander is of all evils
the most terrible. In it two men do wrong, and one man has wrong done
to him. The slanderer does wrong, forasmuch as he abuses a man behind
his back; and the hearer, forasmuch as he believes what he has not
searched into thoroughly. The man slandered in his absence suffers
wrong at the hands of both: for one brings against him a false charge;
and the other thinks him an evildoer. If, however, it must needs be
that we go to war with this people, at least allow the king to abide at
home in Persia. Then let thee and me both stake our children on the
issue, and do thou choose out thy men, and, taking with thee whatever
number of troops thou likest, lead forth our armies to battle. If
things go well for the king, as thou sayest they will, let me and my
children be put to death; but if they fall out as I prophesy, let thy
children suffer, and thyself too, if thou shalt come back alive. But
shouldest thou refuse this wager, and still resolve to march an army
against Greece, sure I am that some of those whom thou leavest behind
thee here will one day receive the sad tidings that Mardonius has
brought a great disaster upon the Persian people, and lies a prey to
dogs and birds somewhere in the land of the Athenians, or else in that
of the Lacedaemonians; unless indeed thou shalt have perished sooner
by the way, experiencing in thy own person the might of those men on
whom thou wouldest fain induce the king to make war."
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