Peter Parley's 
 
 Tales of Greece and 
 
 Rome 
 
 With Eight Half-tone <Plates 
 
 THE GRESHAM PUBLISHING COMPANY LTD. 
 66 CHANDOS STREET, COVENT GARDEN, LONDON
 
 " Peter Parley " was the pen-name of Samuel G. Goodrich (1793- 
 1860), an American, whose books for children had a wide circulation 
 in the middle of the nineteenth century. 
 
 Printed in Great Britain
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 I. TALES ABOUT GREECE 
 
 CHAPTER I Page 
 
 First settlement of Greece Inachus Uranus Titans Jupiter ... 7 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Settlement of Athens Sparta Corinth Thebes Story of Cadmus 
 Argonautic expedition Legend of the Golden Fleece Story of 
 Theseus Fable of the Minotaur Attica Athens 10 
 
 CHAPTER IH 
 
 Thebes War of the Epigonoi Helen Trojan War Homer .... 1? 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 Hercules The Heraclidse Codrus Abolition of kingly government at 
 Athens 22 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 Government of Sparta Lycurgus Political system Death 27 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 About the first Messenian war The Second Story of Aristomenes 
 Draco Solon Pisistratus State of Greece 35 
 
 CHAPTER VH 
 
 War with Persia Darius sends an army into Greece Their defeat 
 Darius now sends an army of five hundred thousand men Battle of 
 Marathon End of the Persian expedition Fate of Miltiades ... 46 
 
 CHAPTER VHI 
 
 Death of Darius Xerxes He raises an immense army Battle of Ther- 
 mopylae Death of Leonidas and his band 53 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 Naval battles The Athenians leave their city Athens burnt Battle of 
 Salamis Xerxes defeated Distress of his army Battle of Plataea 
 Death of Xerxes Artaxerxes Naval battles Peace 59 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 Pericles Insurrection of the Helots Civil War Archidamus Terrible 
 
 plague at Athens Siege of Plataea 63 
 
 iii 
 
 2049750
 
 J T CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER XI Page 
 
 Alcibiades Siege of Athens Humiliation of Athens Lysander The 
 tyrants The Greeks go into Asia to assist Cyrus Retreat of the ten 
 thousand Greeks Peace Thebes Pelopidas War between Thebes 
 and Sparta Battle of Mantinea Death of Epaminondas Peace . 72 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 Macedonia Philip Sacred War Philip advances toward Greece- 
 Demosthenes The Athenians take possession of Thermopylae Philip 
 persuades the Athenians to let him enter Greece End of the Sacred 
 War Philip undertakes the conquest of Greece Battle of Cheronea 
 Submission of the Grecian States Peace Death of Philip . . '. 77 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 Youthful days of Alexander Bucephalus Alexander ascends the throne 
 He sets out for Persia Battle of the Granicus Battle of Issus 
 Generosity of Alexander He goes to Jerusalem Gaza Conquest of 
 Egypt Building of Alexandria Battle of Arbela Death of Darius 
 Submission of Persia Alexander at the Ganges Hindoos Return 
 of the army to Persepolis Destruction of that city Alexander pro- 
 ceeds to Babylon That city becomes the seat of his empire Sickness 
 and Death 85 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 Character of Alexander Division of the empire Antipater Fate of 
 Athens Death of Demosthenes Story of Phocion Invasion of the 
 Gauls Pyrrhus Achaean League Philopcemen Etolians apply to 
 the Romans Macedonia becomes a Roman province Spartans apply 
 to the Romans Achseans defeated by Metellus Final defeat of the 
 Greeks by Mummius Greece becomes a Roman province .... 95 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 Remains The great men of Greece Aristotle Socrates Plato Homer 
 Anacreon Pindar Theocritus Dress Eating Drinking ... 102 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 Religion of the Greeks Jupiter, Juno, Neptune, Mars, Venus, Minerva., 
 and Apollo Temples and Oracles 110 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 The Romans War with Mithridates His defeat Sufferings of the 
 Greeks Sicilian corsairs Depopulation of Greece Civil Wars of 
 Rome Saint Paul's visit to Greece Constantine Constantinople 
 becomes the seat of his empire Rome Roman empire Alaric 
 Pillage of Rome Division of the empire Western empire extin- 
 guishedEastern empire Taking of Constantinople by the Turks . 114 
 
 II. TALES ABOUT ROME 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 Foundation of Rome-Death of Remus-Romulus made king-Division 
 of the people Rape of the Sabines Death of Romulus . . . . .119
 
 CONTENTS T 
 
 CHAPTER XIX Page 
 
 Numa Pompilius Tullus Hostilius The Horatii and Curiatii Ancus 
 Marcius Tarquinius Priscus The Augurs Assassination of Tarquin 
 Servius Tullius 123 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 Tarquin Visit of the Sibyl War with the Rutuli Story of Lucretia 
 Brutus Expulsion of the Tarquins The Veientes Death of Brutus 
 Porsenna Horatius Codes Clelia Porsenna raises the siege . . 128 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 Coriolanus The Volsci withdraw Dissensions among the people Gin- 
 cinnatus The jEqui and Volsci Dangerous situation of the Roman 
 army Victory of Cincinnatus Enemy pass under the yoke Dis- 
 contentsSpeech of Dentatus Tyranny of the Decemviri Defeat of 
 the Romans Death of Dentatus Story of Virginius 135 
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 JSqui and Volsci Demands of the people Military tribunes Censors 
 Plot of Spurius Maslius Siege of Veii Anecdote Camillus Descent 
 of the Gauls Their overthrow Manlius 143 
 
 CHAPTER XXHI 
 
 The Samnites War with the Latins Execution of Titus Manlius Self- 
 sacrifice of Decius Defeat of the Latins Stratagem of Pontius 
 Fabius Maximus King Pyrrhus Fabricius Pyrrhus leaves Italy . 149 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 Troubles in Sicily Carthage First Punic War Regulus Triumph of 
 the Romans Regulus in Africa Xantippus Fate of Regulus . . 158 
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 Peace and its arts War with Illyria The Gauls Second Punic "War- 
 Siege of Saguntum Character of Hannibal He crosses the Alps 
 Defeat of Scipio Battles Fabius Maximus His successors Battle 
 of Cannae Capua Syracuse Marcellus Scipio carries the war into 
 Africa Hannibal is recalled His defeat Peace 163 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 War with Macedon War against Antiochus Its issue Death of Hannibal 
 Third Punic War Siege of Carthage Its destruction .... 173 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 Growing extravagance Tiberius Gracchus Caius Gracchus He obtains 
 the tribuneship Disturbances in the city Battle Death of Gracchus 177 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII 
 
 Vices of the succeeding period War with Jugurtha Caius Marius Sylla 
 Conspiracy of Catiline The first Triumvirate Julius Caesar . . 180 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 Caeaar sails for Egypt War between Cleopatra and Ptolemy Caesar's 
 return Conspiracy Death Second Triumvirate Battle of Philippi 
 Expedition to Egypt Death of Antony and Cleopatra .... 187
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER XXX P age 
 
 Augustus sole monarch His reign Anecdotes Appointment of a suc- 
 cessorAuguriesDeath of Augustus Tiberius His successors- 
 Decline and fall of the empire 194 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI 
 
 Manners and customs Ranks Religion Augurs Many deities Chris- 
 tianityTemplesFuneral rites Marriage ceremonies 199 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 Roman farms Mode of ploughing Farmhouses Grain Cattle Super- 
 stitions of the farmers Gardens Vines Country houses Descrip- 
 tion of Pliny's villa Aqueducts 207 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 Military affairs of the Romans Division of the army The imperial eagle 
 Music Arms Dress Military rewards Crowns The triumph 
 Naval affairs The war galley Commerce 213 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 Shows of wild Beasts Gladiatorial exhibitions Other sports Carriages 
 Private entertainments Supper rooms Convivial parties Luxuries 
 Theatrical entertainments Clocks and watches The fine arts 
 Books and manner of writing Costume Conclusion 217 
 
 ILLUSTKATIONS 
 
 Facing 
 Page 
 A ROMAN CHARIOT RACE Frontispiece 
 
 ATHENS, THE ACBOPOLIS 40 
 
 LEONIDAS 56 
 
 ALEXANDER THE GREAT 88 
 
 HOMER 104 
 
 VlRGINIUS SLATING HIS DAUGHTER 140 
 
 THE ROMAN SENATE IN SESSION 180 
 
 THE DEATH OF C-ESAR 188
 
 PETER PARLEYS TALES 
 
 L- ABOUT GREECE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 First settlement of Greece by the Phoenicians Inachus Fables 
 about Uranus The Titans Jupiter. 
 
 ABOUT two thousand years before the time of 
 our Saviour, a small colony from Phoenicia 
 arrived in the land of Greece. The Phoenicians 
 were inhabitants of Asia Minor, and at that time 
 had made considerable progress in the art of navi- 
 gation. They appear to have been an enterprising 
 people, and to have become acquainted with the 
 shores of the Mediterranean Sea at an early date. 
 
 The expedition to Greece was headed by a man 
 named Inachus. What induced him to leave his 
 home, and seek a residence in a new country, we 
 cannot tell. Perhaps he loved the wild forest 
 better than towns and villages; or perhaps he had 
 a large family, and chose to leave a well -settled 
 country like Phrenicia, where land was dear, for 
 an unpeopled district, where it would cost nothing; 
 or, possibly, he was fond of hunting, and was
 
 8 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 attracted by the herds of wild deer, which, at 
 that early age, no doubt filled the fertile hills 
 and valleys of Greece; or perhaps he was guilty 
 of some crime, and was obliged to quit his country; 
 or he might have been a man of bold spirit, who 
 loved the excitement of daring enterprise; or he 
 might have been ambitious, choosing rather to rule 
 in the forests than serve in the cities. Peter 
 Parley thinks that any one of these causes might 
 be the real one that occasioned Inachus to settle in 
 Greece. At all events he seems to have been a 
 man of good judgment, for he selected the Pelo- 
 ponnesus as the place of his future abode. At 
 the distance of about twenty miles from the 
 present town of Napoli, he founded a city which 
 he called Argos. 
 
 This is considered the period at which the 
 Grecian history properly commences. The ancient 
 poets have indeed furnished us with wonderful 
 accounts of what happened at an earlier date. 
 Peter Parley will give you a few of their wild 
 stories. Poets usually have some truth on which 
 to graft their high-flown descriptions, but this truth 
 is generally so magnified and adorned with splen- 
 did fiction that you lose sight of it altogether. 
 According to the poets, the original inhabitants 
 of Greece lived in a savage state, wandered in 
 the woods, without law or government, clothed 
 themselves in the skins of wild beasts, and had 
 no other dwellings than the rocks and caverns. 
 Like birds and beasts, they lived on acorns, wild
 
 ABOUT GREECE 9 
 
 fruits, and the raw flesh of animals. Sometimes 
 they did not hesitate to devour their prisoners 
 taken in war. 
 
 But at length Uranus came from Egypt, or 
 Phoenicia, and settled in Greece. He became king 
 of the country, and had a large family, who were 
 giants, and were called Titans. These rebelled 
 against their father, and, after a great deal of 
 terrible fighting, dethroned him, and Saturn, one 
 of his sons, reigned in his stead. Dreading lest he 
 should be treated in the same manner by his own 
 children, Saturn ordered them to be shut up, 
 or put to death immediately after their birth; 
 but Jupiter was concealed by his mother, and 
 sent to Crete, where he was educated. 
 
 Jupiter at length returned, deposed his father 
 Saturn, and succeeded to the throne. The Titans 
 were jealous of him, and declared war against him, 
 but were soon vanquished and expelled from 
 Greece. He then divided his dominions with 
 his brothers Pluto and Neptune. The countries 
 which he reserved to himself he governed with 
 great wisdom; he had his palace and held his 
 court on Mount Olympus. 
 
 Such are the tales handed down to us by the 
 ancient poets, respecting the history of Greece, 
 previous to the arrival of Inachus. We, of course, 
 know that for the most part they are mere fables. 
 But it is probable that they are founded in truth. 
 We may suppose that Uranus was one of the early 
 princes of the country, and that his sons were such
 
 10 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 bold and daring warriors as to acquire, in after 
 ages, the name and fame of giants. 
 
 The story of Jupiter is not incredible, and we 
 may easily believe it. That the Greeks themselves 
 held these traditions to be genuine seems to be 
 evident; for they at length became worshippers of 
 Jupiter, and imagined that he ruled in heaven over 
 the gods, as he had ruled over men on earth. They 
 even fancied that he held his celestial court upon 
 Mount Olympus, and, though surrounded by a 
 multitude of gods and goddesses, was still superior 
 to them all in dignity and power. 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Settlement of Athens Sparta Corinth Thebes Story of Cadmus 
 Argonautic expedition Legend of the Golden Fleece Story 
 of Theseus Fable of the Minotaur Attica Athens. 
 
 WHATEVER degree of credit we may attach to the 
 traditions of the early poets of Greece, it appears 
 certain that the enterprise of Inachus was successful, 
 and that his colony became firmly established in 
 Greece. He appears to have ruled over the people 
 during his lifetime, and his successors possessed the 
 government for more than three hundred years. 
 
 During this long period, the other inhabitants 
 of Greece continued in a barbarous state, and it 
 was not till the year 1556 before Christ, when 
 Athens was founded by Cecrops, a native of Egypt,
 
 ABOUT GREECE 11 
 
 that any permanent improvement took place in 
 their condition. 
 
 This individual appears to have been a man 
 of knowledge and wisdom, He brought with him 
 a colony of his countrymen, and built twelve small 
 cities or villages, of which Athens was one. He 
 gave laws to the wild nations of Greece, whom he 
 divided into twelve tribes, and instituted marriage 
 among them. 
 
 From this period the history of Greece becomes 
 more certain, but only a few principal events have 
 come down to us from antiquity. The settlement 
 of Cecrops appears to have flourished in a remark- 
 able degree, and, as I shall show hereafter, became 
 the most illustrious of all the Grecian states. 
 Sparta, or Lacedsemon, was founded by an 
 Egyptian named Lelex, in the year 1520 B.C. 
 He became its king, and the government remained 
 in his family for many years. It received its name 
 of Lacedaemon from its fourth king. 
 
 Corinth appears to have been founded in 1520 
 B.C., and was for a time subject to Argos; but 
 Sysiphus, a cruel and rapacious man, took posses- 
 sion of it in 1514 B.C., and became its ruler. 
 
 The city of Thebes was founded by Cadmus, in 
 the year 1500 before Christ. His story, as told by 
 the poets, is not uninteresting. It seems he was 
 son of Agenor, King of Phoenicia. At this time 
 Jupiter was looked upon as a god, but instead of 
 setting good examples to the people, he appears to 
 have been guilty of almost every kind of wicked-
 
 12 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 ness. Among other base acts, he seized upon the 
 sister of Cadmus, whose name was Europa, and 
 bore her away beyond the reach of her parents. 
 
 Anxious for the return of his daughter, the 
 old man told his son to go in search of her, and 
 never to return without her. Obedient to the 
 paternal command, he set forth, and for a long 
 period diligently sought by sea and land for his 
 sister. 
 
 But at length, despairing of success, and afraid 
 to return to his father, he went to Greece. He 
 arrived there about the year 1419 B.C., and was the 
 first who introduced the knowledge of letters into 
 the country. It would seem that he was a kind of 
 schoolmaster, and taught the people to read and 
 write. After occupying himself in this way for 
 some time, he built Thebes, as before stated. 
 
 I have thus told you the origin of the most 
 celebrated states of Greece. They appear to have 
 been small at the outset, but they gradually 
 assumed importance, and, in after -ages, acquired 
 immortal fame. After the events last noticed, 
 nothing of particular interest seems to have 
 occurred till 1263 B.C. At this period, an expe- 
 dition was undertaken to Colchis, in Asia Minor. 
 
 What was the particular object of this enterprise 
 is not known. The poets, as usual, have embel- 
 lished the story with so many fictions that it is 
 not easy to discover the exact truth. The expe- 
 dition was commanded by Jason, and so great 
 was the interest excited by it throughout Greece
 
 ABOUT GREECE 13 
 
 that the most celebrated captains of the age were 
 anxious to be engaged in it. 
 
 Among them was Hercules, a man of great 
 strength; Theseus, celebrated for his valour; and 
 other heroes of equal renown. No less than fifty- 
 four of these men embarked in Jason's ship alone. 
 
 This vessel was called Argo, and thence the 
 adventure has been called the Argonautic expe- 
 dition. After some vicissitudes, the heroes arrived 
 at Colchis. Whether they were well or ill received 
 by the king does not appear, but Medea, his 
 daughter, fell in love with Jason, and through 
 her assistance he was enabled to obtain the objects 
 of his voyage. 
 
 This expedition, though at the present day it 
 may seem trifling and unimportant, was looked 
 upon in that age as of the highest consequence, 
 and, in after -times, the Grecian poets appear to 
 have taken particular delight in making it the 
 theme of their songs. Among many fictions to 
 which it has given rise is that of the Golden 
 Fleece. 
 
 According to this story, Phryxus and Helle, son 
 and daughter of the king of Thebes, were destined 
 by an oracle to be sacrificed to the gods. To avoid 
 this fate, they resolved to escape to Colchis; the 
 king of that country, whose name was Mtes, being 
 their uncle. Some friendly deity aided them in 
 their flight, by sending them a ram whose fleece 
 and wings were of gold. 
 
 As they were about to be sacrificed, this creature
 
 14 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 took them upon his back, carried them swiftly 
 through the air, and would, no doubt, have landed 
 them in safety at Colchis; but Helle, who was not 
 accustomed to such rides in the air, became giddy, 
 and, losing her seat, fell into the sea below. For 
 this reason, that part of the sea was called Helles- 
 pont, a name which it retained for ages after, and 
 which is still often given to it. 
 
 Phryxus reached Colchis without accident, and, 
 in gratitude for his preservation, sacrificed the 
 ram and dedicated the golden fleece to Jupiter. 
 He soon after married the daughter of Mtea ; but 
 his father-in-law envied him the possession of the 
 fleece, and murdered him to obtain it. It has been 
 supposed by some writers that Jason, who was 
 a relative of Phryxus, went to Colchis to avenge 
 his death, and bring back the golden fleece. It 
 is possible there might have been some pretext of 
 this sort, but the real object, doubtless, was to 
 obtain plunder, and gratify a love of bold enter- 
 prise, which was common in that age. From this 
 tale of the flying ram, you will be prepared to hear 
 a great many fabulous stories respecting Greece. 
 
 After his return from Colchis, Theseus, whose 
 father was King of Athens, succeeded to the throne. 
 This was an event very gratifying to the people, 
 for he had acquired a very enviable reputation. 
 When he was a young man, Athens was subject 
 to a very disgraceful tribute to Minos, King ot 
 Crete. This obliged the people, annually, to send 
 seven girls and seven youths to that monarch, who,
 
 ABOUT GREECE 15 
 
 on their arrival, were doomed to a miserable slavery. 
 
 When the selection of these unhappy victims 
 was to be made, a general sadness prevailed 
 through the community of Athens, and those upon 
 whom the lot fell shrunk with horror from the 
 dreadful doom. Theseus, anxious to abate these 
 feelings of dread, offered himself as a voluntary 
 sacrifice, and was sent with the other victims to 
 Minos. 
 
 His fame had already reached the ears of Minos, 
 who respected his virtues, and this respect was con- 
 verted into admiration, on beholding the Athenian 
 prince a voluntary captive. Minos received him 
 with kindness, and treated him with the greatest 
 hospitality, gave him his daughter Ariadne in 
 marriage, and declared the Athenians, henceforth, 
 free from a contribution equally cruel and igno- 
 minious. 
 
 The poets have given a different account of this 
 affair, which, however fabulous, is not uninterest- 
 ing. Their story is, that the Athenian captives 
 were always devoured by a dreadful monster called 
 the Minotaur, who dwelt in a labyrinth, which 
 consisted of many winding passages, so artfully 
 contrived that whoever once entered the building 
 could never find his way out. 
 
 On his arrival at Crete, Theseus was put into the 
 labyrinth. But Ariadne, the daughter of Minos ? 
 having fallen in love with him, had furnished him 
 with a skein of thread, one end of which he fastened 
 at the entrance. At length he met with the
 
 16 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 monster, and slew him after a violent struggle. 
 By following back the thread he was able to find 
 his way to the entrance of the labyrinth. Thus, 
 by his courage and prowess, he redeemed the 
 intended victims from the power of the Minotaur, 
 and returned to Greece. 
 
 No sooner was Theseus placed at the head of the 
 state, than he devoted himself to the improvement 
 of the condition of his subjects. In the year 
 1257 B.C. he united the twelve cities of Attica 
 under one government, and gave them a common 
 constitution; thus laying the foundation of the 
 future grandeur of the state. He introduced new 
 regulations, enacted new laws, and enforced them 
 with impartiality and mildness. 
 
 He increased the population of Athens by his 
 liberality and justice; gave additional solemnity to 
 the ceremonies of religion; established a court of 
 justice, and gave greater liberty to his subjects 
 than they had hitherto enjoyed. The entire 
 control of the armies he reserved to himself. The 
 fame which he gained by his victories and policy 
 made his alliance courted by all the neighbouring 
 powers. 
 
 So great was the regard of the Athenians for 
 Theseus, that, after his death, they erected a 
 splendid temple to his memory, which is still to be 
 seen at Athens. 
 
 This temple abounded in stately columns, and 
 was enriched with a great profusion of sculpture of 
 the choicest kind. Battles with the Centaurs were 
 
 (M895)
 
 ABOUT GREECE 17 
 
 the principal subjects. These monsters, half men 
 and half horses, were exhibited in all the attitudes 
 of the most violent contention. Kocks were hurled 
 by the combatants in every direction, and the 
 dying and the dead were finely represented. 
 
 Note. The reader will understand that Attica was a small dis- 
 trict, or independent state, in which Athens was situated, and of 
 which it was by far the largest city. 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 First war of Thebes War of the Epigonoi Story of Helen 
 Trojan War The Iliad of Homer. 
 
 IT was about this time that great difficulties 
 occurred at Thebes. That city had now risen to 
 importance, and was governed by (Edipus, a de- 
 scendant of Cadmus. His two sons, Eteocles and 
 Polynices, appear to have been bad men, and 
 finally brought their unhappy father to his grave 
 by their disputes and quarrels. After his death 
 they mutually agreed to sway by turns the Theban 
 sceptre, and to reign alternately each a year. 
 
 Eteocles, the elder brother, first ascended the 
 throne, but when the year had expired he refused 
 to yield the crown to his brother, as had been 
 agreed between them. Polynices solicited the aid 
 of Adrastus, King of Argos, who gave him his 
 daughter in marriage, and enabled him to assert 
 by force his claims to the throne. 
 
 (M895) B
 
 18 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 He marched against Thebes with a strong army, 
 headed by seven famous generals. Eteocles selected 
 as many leaders to oppose them. After much blood 
 had been shed in skirmishes, the Thebans, impatient 
 of confinement within their walls, marched out and 
 repelled the assailants by a vigorous sally, in which 
 the most illustrious combatants fell on both sides. 
 The two brothers met in the field, and were slain 
 by wounds mutually inflicted upon each other. 
 
 The dead bodies were consumed by fire; and it 
 is said that the ashes of the two miserable brothers 
 separated themselves on the burning pile, as if, 
 after death, sensible of resentment, and hostile to 
 reconciliation. But this part of the story is a 
 mere fiction. 
 
 These events occurred in the year 1225 B.C.; but 
 the troubles of Thebes were not yet ended. Ten 
 years only had elapsed, when the sons of the 
 commanders who had fallen during the siege of 
 Thebes renewed the quarrels of their fathers, and 
 gave rise to the second war of Thebes, or the war 
 of the Epigonoi. The latter were assisted by the 
 people of Corinth, Messenia, Arcadia, and Megara. 
 
 The Thebans engaged all their neighbours in the 
 strife. The two armies met on the banks of the 
 river Glissus; after an obstinate fight, victory 
 declared in favour of the Epigonoi. Thebes was 
 besieged, and compelled to surrender. 
 
 The victors destroyed the lives and property of 
 many of the inhabitants, carried some into captivity, 
 and compelled the remainder to acknowledge the
 
 ABOUT GREECE 19 
 
 infant son of Polynices as their king. It is said 
 that Homer, a famous poet of whom I shall tell you 
 more by and by, wrote an admirable poem upon 
 this war, which, however, is lost. 
 
 The greater part of southern Greece was now 
 settled; the inhabitants were numerous, and some 
 advances had been made towards civilization; but 
 the country was divided into a great many separate 
 and independent states or cities, among whom 
 quarrels and disputes often arose. 
 
 These often resulted in wars, which kept alive 
 a military spirit, and led the people to look upon 
 martial deeds with the most lively interest. A 
 great fighter was more honoured than one of great 
 wisdom, and to have slain a great many persons in 
 battle entitled a man to the fame of a hero. 
 
 It was at this period that a cause of war arose, 
 which induced the Grecian states, for the first time, 
 to unite and act in concert. It appears that Helen, 
 daughter of Tyndarus, King of Lacedaemon, was so 
 universally admired, even in her infancy, that 
 Theseus, with his friend Pirithous, carried her 
 away by force in the tenth year of her age. Her 
 brothers Castor and Pollux recovered her in safety. 
 This occurrence gave her celebrity, and as her 
 beauty increased with her age, her hand was soli- 
 cited by all the young princes of Greece. 
 
 Tyndarus was rather alarmed than pleased at 
 seeing such a number of illustrious suitors to his 
 daughter. He knew that by preferring one he 
 should displease the rest. At last Ulysses, who
 
 20 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 began already to be distinguished in Greece for his 
 sagacity, relieved him from his perplexity. 
 
 This prince, abandoning all hope of obtaining 
 Helen himself, offered to extricate Tyndarus from 
 his difficulties, if he would give him his niece 
 Penelope in marriage. Tyndarus consented, and 
 Ulysses advised the king to bind all the suitors 
 by a solemn oath to approve of the choice which 
 Helen should make from among them. 
 
 He, at the same time, recommended him to 
 engage them all to unite together to defend her 
 person against any attempts to take her from the 
 arms of her husband. This advice was followed; 
 the princes gave their assent, and Helen fixed her 
 choice upon Menelaus, and married him. 
 
 After this, Paris, son of Priam, King of Troy, the 
 handsomest man of his age, came to Lacedsemon, 
 on pretence of sacrificing to Apollo. He was kindly 
 received by Menelaus, who treated him with great 
 hospitality; but, in the absence of that prince on a 
 voyage to Crete, he gained the affection of his wife, 
 Helen, and persuaded her to return with him to 
 Troy, 1198 B.C. 
 
 At his return, Menelaus reminded the princes of 
 their promise and claimed their assistance; they 
 therefore sent ambassadors to the Trojans, to 
 demand the restitution of Helen, which was re- 
 fused. They then resolved to make war against 
 Troy, assembled their forces, and sailed for the 
 coast of Asia. 
 
 The armament of the Greeks amounted to about
 
 ABOUT GREECE 21 
 
 one thousand ships, carrying not less than one 
 hundred thousand men, under the command of 
 Agamemnon. The Trojans, assisted by the princes 
 of Asia Minor, Assyria, and Thrace, assembled a 
 more numerous force to oppose their invaders. 
 
 After a protracted siege of ten years, during 
 which many sanguinary battles were fought, and 
 the best and bravest of both armies slain, Troy was 
 taken, pillaged, and burnt to the ground. Not a 
 vestige of its ruins remains at the present day. 
 The poets suppose that the Greeks made them- 
 selves masters of the city by stratagem. Their 
 account is, that a large wooden horse was erected, 
 which was secretly filled with armed men. The 
 Greek army was then led away from the plains, as 
 if on their return home. 
 
 The Trojans, supposing that the Greeks had 
 gone, brought the wooden horse within the walls, 
 and placed it in the centre of their city. In the 
 night, the Greeks came out of it, opened the gates 
 to their companions, who had returned, and made 
 themselves masters of the city. 
 
 It is most probable that the place was betrayed 
 by some of the Trojans. Most of the citizens 
 perished by the sword, or were carried into cap- 
 tivity. The story of this extraordinary siege, as 
 told by Homer in the Iliad, is interesting in the 
 highest degree, and constitutes the best poem 
 written in ancient times.
 
 22 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 Hercules Stories of him The Heraclidse Establishment of 
 numerous colonies Story of Codrus Abolition of kingly 
 government at Athens. 
 
 I HAVE mentioned Hercules as one of the heroes 
 who accompanied Jason in the Argonautic expedi- 
 tion. He was a man of prodigious strength, and 
 the Greek poets have delighted to embellish his 
 story with extravagant fictions. It is pleasant 
 enough to read these tales, for they display the 
 fancy of the ancient poets, as well as the taste of 
 the people who relished their productions. 
 
 It is said that, even while an infant in his cradle, 
 Juno, the wife of Jupiter, sent two snakes for the 
 purpose of killing him. His little brother was 
 near him at the time, but he ran away in the 
 greatest terror, while Hercules caught the snakes 
 in his hands and instantly squeezed them to death. 
 I cannot tell you all the marvellous actions that 
 are attributed to this hero; a few of the most 
 remarkable will be sufficient. 
 
 It appears that there was a terrible lion, in the 
 country near Mycenae where Hercules lived, which 
 threw the inhabitants into the greatest consterna- 
 tion. Hercules determined to kill him, and accord- 
 ingly went to the place which he frequented. He 
 first assailed him with arrows, but these being of 
 no avail, he attacked him with his club. 
 
 The lion retreated, and Hercules followed him to
 
 ABOUT GREECE 23 
 
 his den. Here the monster struggled for his life, 
 but our hero succeeded in getting his arms round 
 his neck, and by his prodigious strength, choked 
 him to death. 
 
 Another exploit of Hercules was the killing the 
 monster with seven heads, called the Lernaean 
 Hydra. The particular manners and habits of this 
 beast are not revealed to us, but he seems to have 
 been exceedingly dreaded by the people of the 
 neighbourhood. After some skirmishes, Hercules 
 came to close quarters with him, and beat off two 
 or three of his heads with his club. But what was 
 his astonishment to perceive that the heads grew 
 out again as fast as they were knocked off! 
 
 He was a good deal puzzled at this, as I dare 
 say you would have been in such a case, but one of 
 his friends, Jolas, being at hand, Hercules sent him 
 for a red-hot iron, and directed him to sear the 
 places over with it as fast as he beat off the heads. 
 This prevented them from growing again, and the 
 whole seven being beaten off, the monster died. 
 
 These will be enough to give you some idea of 
 the wonderful actions attributed to Hercules, and 
 which induced the Greeks, after his death, to 
 worship him as a hero. At the present day, we 
 reverence men of superior virtue and wisdom; but 
 in the comparatively barbarous age of which I have 
 been speaking, divine honours were rendered to 
 one whose chief excellence lay in great bodily 
 strength. 
 
 It is proper to make another reflection here as to
 
 24 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 the manner in which the Greek religion or myth- 
 ology was formed. In the first place, these 
 marvellous deeds attributed to Hercules were 
 fanciful inventions of the poets, and, for the most 
 part, altogether destitute of truth. Yet they, at 
 length, came to be received as realities, and, 
 consequently, Hercules was regarded as a divinity. 
 
 Falsehood as well as absurdity therefore lay 
 at the foundation of the Grecian faith. They 
 worshipped a man, merely because he could lift a 
 greater weight, or strike a harder blow than another; 
 and further, the evidence to prove his ability to do 
 this was derived from poets, who did not even 
 pretend to tell the truth. 
 
 But I must now leave fables, and tell you history. 
 Hercules, who was a Mycenian prince, was for some 
 reason or other banished with all his family from 
 his country, and the throne was possessed by an 
 usurper. 
 
 His descendants, called Heraclidse, after a century 
 had elapsed, that is about the year 1104 B.C., 
 returned to Peloponnesus, subdued their enemies, 
 and took possession of Mycenae, Argos, and 
 Lacedaemon. A long period of civil war and 
 bloodshed succeeded, and Greece, divided among 
 a number of petty tyrants, suffered equally the 
 miseries of oppression and civil discord. The 
 difficulties of the times drove many of the Greeks 
 from home, who sought an asylum in other 
 countries, and founded many important colonies. 
 
 Some of these were established in Asia Minor,
 
 ABOUT GREECE 25 
 
 some in Egypt, and some in Italy. At the same 
 time most of the islands in the Egean and Ionian 
 seas became inhabited. These settlements, being 
 left to themselves, formed free governments, and, 
 therefore, advanced so rapidly as soon to surpass 
 their parent states in wealth and splendour. 
 
 These latter being ruled by despots, the enter- 
 prise and industry of the people were checked, and 
 their improvement was greatly retarded. Convinced 
 at length that their system of government was 
 wrong, several of the Greek states prepared to throw 
 off the yoke of despotism. Athens and Thebes were 
 the first to set the example, and the rest at length 
 followed. These things happened about the year 
 1070 B.C., not far from the time that David slew 
 Goliath. 
 
 An interesting story of Codrus, the last king of 
 Athens, is handed down by the historians. When 
 the Heraclidae made war against AtEens, one of the 
 oracles, in which the Grecians placed great con- 
 fidence, and which they were accustomed to consult 
 on important occasions, declared that victory would 
 be granted to them provided they abstained from 
 injuring the Athenian king. 
 
 Codrus was a man of noble soul, and preferred 
 the happiness of his country to everything else. 
 Accordingly, he determined to sacrifice his life in 
 order to secure success to the Athenians. With 
 this view, he dressed himself as a common person, 
 and entered the enemy's camp. He provoked a 
 quarrel with a soldier, and was immediately slain.
 
 26 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 The Heraclidse soon discovered that they had 
 killed the Athenian king, and, knowing they had 
 violated the condition upon which the oracle 
 promised them success, they became alarmed, and 
 discontinued the war. 
 
 It is delightful, amid the battles and bloodshed 
 which history presents to us, to meet with instances 
 of pure and noble feeling. The Greeks appear, 
 indeed, to have been a people peculiarly susceptible 
 of generous sentiments, and it is remarkable that 
 in every age they have, in this respect, possessed 
 the same character. This is the more creditable, 
 as in countries more civilized and more enlightened, 
 instances of disinterested patriotism are exceedingly 
 rare. 
 
 I hope you will never cease to admire the noble 
 actions of generous men. I hope, too, you will 
 always cultivate in your own breasts, pure and 
 lofty feelings, and despise narrow and selfish views. 
 
 The Athenians appear to have thought much of 
 the noble conduct of Codrus, for they declared that 
 none but Jupiter, their chief deity, was worthy to 
 be the successor of such a king. Accordingly they 
 abolished royalty altogether, and instituted a new 
 system of government in which the magistrates 
 were elected by the people. The chief officer was 
 called archon; and Medon, the son of Codrus, was 
 first chosen to that office. It was after this, as I 
 have before told you, that the other states of 
 Greece exchanged their despotic institutions for 
 others approaching to freedom.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 27 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 Government of Sparta Lycurgus His history Political 
 system Voluntary death. 
 
 WE must now turn our attention to Sparta. It 
 appears that, at the time of which I have just been 
 speaking, this country possessed a monarchical form 
 of government of a very singular kind. The crown 
 was divided between the two sons of Aristodemus, 
 Eurysthenes and Procles. These two kings reigned 
 jointly, and this double despotism, transmitted to 
 the descendants of each, continued in the separate 
 branches of the family for three centuries. 
 
 It is scarcely possible that such a system should 
 fail to produce disunion and anarchy. Accordingly 
 the inhabitants of Sparta continued to experience 
 all the evils which flowed from the frequent 
 quarrels between their kings. It was not until 
 nearly two centuries had elapsed, during which 
 they had suffered the greatest misery from the 
 selfishness of their rulers, that they resolved upon 
 a change in their system. 
 
 It was in the year 884 B.c. that Lycurgus, a 
 man alike distinguished for his abilities and virtues, 
 was charged with the important duty of reforming 
 the government of Sparta. It will be interesting 
 to know the history of this remarkable man. I 
 will therefore give you the particulars of it, for I 
 love to hold up a model of virtue for your imita- 
 iion.
 
 28 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 He was the tenth in descent from Hercules, and 
 received the sceptre of Sparta on the death of his 
 brother Polydectes. He might have continued* 
 king, as his sister-in-law offered to kill the only 
 son of that prince as soon as he was born, if he 
 would promise to marry her. Lycurgus affected to 
 comply with her wishes, but that he might save 
 the child, he desired her to send her son to him as 
 soon as he was born. 
 
 Accordingly, the boy was sent to his uncle. 
 Lycurgus was at supper with a large party when 
 the babe arrived. He instantly took it into his 
 arms, and holding it up to the view of his country 
 men, exclaimed: "Spartans, behold your king!" 
 The child was recognized as their sovereign by the 
 Spartans, and Lycurgus, relinquishing the throne, 
 governed the kingdom as Protector during the 
 young prince's minority. 
 
 Notwithstanding the reputation for probity 
 which he gained by this transaction, the intrigues 
 of the disappointed queen raised a powerful faction 
 against him, which induced him to retire, and 
 gratify his inclination for visiting foreign countries. 
 
 He first went to the isle of Crete, which was 
 then famous for its laws and government, and for 
 the perfection to which its inhabitants had carried 
 the arts. From them the Greeks had derived 
 their knowledge of navigation, and many of their 
 legal institutions. 
 
 From Crete he sailed to Egypt and carefully 
 examined the civil and religious systems of that
 
 ABOUT GREECE 29 
 
 ancient kingdom. After this he passed into Asia, 
 where he still acquired new information. Here he 
 found the poems of Homer, which he collected and 
 brought home with him. He returned to the 
 coast of Asia Minor, and visited the flourishing 
 Greek colonies, which had attained great splendour 
 on the western shore of that peninsula. 
 
 On his return, he immediately set about re- 
 forming the government of his country; a design 
 which he had long had in view. Conscious, how- 
 ever, of the magnitude of his undertaking, he went 
 first to consult the oracle of Apollo, at Delphi. 
 Here he met with a most favourable reception. 
 
 He was saluted by the priestess, who officiated 
 at the oracle, as the friend of the gods, and rather 
 as a divine than a human being. He was told that 
 the gods had heard his prayers, and approved of 
 his plan; he was also assured that the common- 
 wealth he was going to establish would be the most 
 excellent and durable on earth. Strengthened by 
 such authority, he proceeded in the great work of 
 reform. 
 
 Happily, the prejudice of the Spartans, which 
 had induced Lycurgus to leave his country, had 
 now subsided. Convinced of his great wisdom, 
 knowledge, and virtue, they welcomed him on his 
 return, and cheerfully committed to him the im- 
 portant trust of forming a new system of govern- 
 ment for them. 
 
 To estimate the labours of Lycurgus, we must 
 consider that we are speaking of events that took
 
 30 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 place more than two thousand seven hundred years 
 ago. We must remember also that notwithstand- 
 ing the progress that had been made in Greece, 
 Egypt, and Asia Minor, in the arts of civilization, 
 their systems of government were still very im- 
 perfect. 
 
 Many simple truths now universally understood, 
 such as the following : the great end of government 
 should be to make the people happy; all men have 
 an equal right to the protection of the laws, and 
 every individual is, by the intention of Providence, 
 entitled to civil and political and religious liberty 
 these, and a multitude of other plain maxims, 
 were then hidden from the wisest nations of the 
 earth. 
 
 It will not be necessary for me to lay before you 
 the whole system of Lycurgus ; it will be sufficient 
 to mention some of its leading features. He 
 instituted an elective senate of twenty-eight mem- 
 bers, whose office was to preserve a just balance 
 between the power of the kings and that of the 
 people. 
 
 Nothing could come before the assembly of the 
 people which had not previously received the con- 
 sent of the senate; and, on the other hand, no 
 judgment of the senate was effectual without the 
 sanction of the people. 
 
 The king retained his hereditary honours, but 
 relinquished his despotic powers. He presided in 
 the senate, and was the general of the republic; 
 but he could plan no enterorise without the consent
 
 ABOUT GREECE 31 
 
 of a council of citizens. He had the chief seat 
 in every public assembly ; in voting, he was allowed 
 first to give his opinion ; he received strangers and 
 ambassadors, and overlooked public buildings and 
 highways. In war, he received his orders from the 
 senate. 
 
 The senators were chosen, for life, from among 
 the noblest and most virtuous citizens. They were 
 not considered fit to act till they were sixty years 
 of age. They formed the court of judicature from 
 which there was an appeal to the people, who had 
 also a nominal share in the government. These 
 had their greater and lesser assemblies of citizens, 
 which were called together by order of the senate, 
 and in which they could ratify or reject the subject 
 proposed. 
 
 This distribution of power between the king, 
 the senate, and the people, was accompanied by 
 a division of the lands. Each citizen received a 
 small estate, just sufficient to support him in a 
 frugal manner. Lycurgus also attempted to divide 
 the movable property, consisting of furniture and 
 other things, in a similar way, but the rich people 
 would not consent to this. 
 
 It was a maxim with Lycurgus that industry 
 and frugality are the chief sources of virtue and 
 happiness, and that luxury is the bane of society. 
 With these views he now sought to regulate the 
 manners of the people. 
 
 To prevent individuals from becoming rich by 
 amassing heaps of gold and silver, he ordered that
 
 32 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 money should no longer be made of these metals, 
 but that it should be made of iron. As foreigners 
 who came to trade at Sparta would not receive this 
 iron money, the Spartan." themselves began to 
 despise it, and kept no more than was required 
 by their necessities. 
 
 Thus the means of acquiring wealth were neg- 
 lected, extravagance and luxury were banished 
 from the land, and the habits of temperance and 
 frugality prevailed throughout the state. 
 
 Another regulation was, that all men should eat 
 in a common hall at public tables; and that these 
 tables should be served with the plainest food. 
 Lest strangers should attempt to corrupt the citi- 
 zens, they were ordered to leave the place. These 
 regulations were by no means pleasing to the rich 
 people in Sparta. They gradually became the 
 enemies of Lycurgus, and took every opportunity 
 to insult him. 
 
 On one occasion a young man, in a fit of rage, 
 struck him with a stick and put out his eye. 
 Instead of resenting this, the noble-minded Spartan 
 treated the young man with kindness, and induced 
 him to become his attendant. Humbled by this 
 generous treatment, and taught by the example of 
 his master, the youth learned to subdue his pas- 
 sions, and afterwards became an example of wisdom 
 and virtue. I love to tell you of such things as 
 these. 
 
 The public tables were supplied by the inhabi- 
 tants, who were required to send in their provisions
 
 ABOUT GREECE 33 
 
 once a month. No man was allowed to be absent 
 from the common meals. No rude conversation 
 was permitted at these tables, and no boisterous 
 discussion was allowed; each person endeavoured 
 to deliver his sentiments as clearly and concisely 
 as possible. 
 
 Secrecy was also strictly enjoined at these meals. 
 As soon as a young man entered the room, the 
 oldest man present used to say to him, pointing 
 to the door: "Nothing spoken here must go out 
 there". In time, these public dinners became very 
 agreeable to the Spartans, and sources of intellectual 
 enjoyment were found in the discourses which en- 
 livened them. Even the children were carried to 
 them as to a school of temperance and wisdom. 
 
 At seven years of age, the Spartan children were 
 taken from their parents and placed at the public 
 schools. Their discipline there was little else than 
 an apprenticeship to hardship, self-denial, and 
 obedience. In the classes, one of the boys more 
 advanced and experienced than the rest acted as 
 captain, to govern and chastise the rebellious. 
 Their sports and exercises were regulated according 
 to the severest discipline, and made up of labour 
 and fatigue. They went barefoot, with their heads 
 shaved, and fought with one another naked. 
 
 Every institution seemed calculated to harden 
 the body and sharpen the mind for war. In order 
 to prepare them for stratagems and sudden incur- 
 sions, the boys were permitted to steal from each 
 other; but if they were caught in the act, they 
 
 (M895) C
 
 34 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 were punished for their want of dexterity. Though 
 Lycurgus was a wise man, he was not always right. 
 I advise you not to put in practice the Spartan 
 permission to steal, and if you want a good reason 
 for this advice I will give it you; the sixth com- 
 mandment says : " Thou shalt not steal". 
 
 Such were some of the features belonging to the 
 political system of Lycurgus; many parts of it 
 were excellent, and display the greatest wisdom. 
 Some of its principles have descended from that 
 remote age, and are now actually incorporated into 
 the existing constitutions of Europe and America. 
 But it is marked with singular defects, and, on the 
 whole, seems only fitted to make a nation of 
 soldiers. 
 
 The state of society in Sparta after its establish- 
 ment shows its effect upon the people. The 
 Spartan women were bold and masculine, but very 
 patriotic; and the men, though brave, hardy, and 
 patient of fatigue, possessed none of the kinder 
 feelings of humanity or mercy. They treated their 
 slaves, of which they had great numbers, with the 
 utmost rigour, and often killed them for mere sport. 
 All deformed and weakly children, who were deemed 
 unfit for a future life of vigour and usefulness, were 
 exposed to perish in a cavern near Mount Taygetus. 
 I dare say that you will ndt think the better of 
 Lycurgus for this cruel custom it will show that 
 good and evil were mingled in Spartan laws. 
 
 When he had completed his code, Lycurgus told 
 the Spartans that he was going away, and accord-
 
 ABOUT GREECE 35 
 
 ingly he bound them by a solemn oath to obey his 
 laws till his return. He then left the city, and 
 went again to consult the oracle at Delphi. He 
 received the answer that nothing was now neces- 
 sary to complete the glory and happiness of his 
 country. 
 
 Having thus finished the great object to which 
 his life for many years had been devoted, he sent 
 the answer of the oracle to Sparta, and, resolving 
 never to release the people from their oath by 
 returning to the city, voluntarily starved himself 
 to death. 
 
 This act of devotion to the good of his country, 
 led the Spartans to look upon his character with 
 reverence, and to regard his laws as if they came 
 from the hand of a deity. They therefore con- 
 tinued to observe them; and for ages after, the 
 Spartan character, formed by his institutions, was 
 distinguished for bravery and hardihood in war, 
 for stern patriotism, for a love of frugality, and 
 for a severity which never yielded to the softer 
 sentiments of compassion and mercy. 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 About the first Messenian war The Second Story of Aristomenes 
 Draco Solon Pisistratus State of Greece. 
 
 A FEW years after the death of Lycurgus, difficulties 
 arose between the Spartans and their neighbours
 
 36 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 the Messenians. War soon followed, and a bitter 
 strife continued between them for twenty years. 
 Each party was by turne successful, but at length 
 Aristodemus, the Messenian general, despairing of 
 his country's cause, put an end to his existence. 
 With him fell the kingdom of Messenia, which from 
 that time became subject to Sparta. This was 
 called the first Messenian war. 
 
 When the Messenians had been tributaries for 
 thirty-nine years, they resolved to throw off the 
 Spartan yoke, and thus gave rise to the second 
 Messenian war, about the year 685 B.C. The 
 people of Arcadia and Argos gave their assistance, 
 and Aristomenes commanded the united forces. 
 In three successive battles they were victorious 
 over the Spartan army. But in a fourth engage- 
 ment they were betrayed and defeated. 
 
 Aristomenes was taken prisoner with other 
 Messenians, and thrown into a deep cavern. He 
 was the only individual not killed by the fall. 
 The Lacedaemonians were accustomed to treat the 
 worst malefactors in this manner. What must 
 Aristomenes have felt in being hurled down to 
 such a dreadful place! There he lay in that horrid 
 charnel-house, as far as he could get from the 
 putrid bodies around him, wrapped up in his cloak. 
 He had still his armour on his body and legs, but 
 that was of no use to him. After remaining in 
 this dismal place for two days, he perceived a fox 
 eating one of the dead bodies near him; he seized 
 the animal by the tail, and followed him, until he
 
 ABOUT GREECE 37 
 
 came to a small crevice, through which he forced 
 himself, and escaped. 
 
 When Aristomenes returned to his country, he 
 was received by the inhabitants with the utmost 
 enthusiasm and joy. He immediately placed him- 
 self at the head of the Messenian forces, and 
 attacked the enemy with the greatest bravery 
 and success. But he could not avert the ruin 
 of his country. The fortress of Ira, in which he 
 was at length obliged to take refuge, was overcome 
 by treachery, and the whole territory of Messenia 
 was annexed to the Spartan republic. Thus ended 
 the second Messenian war, 668 B.C. 
 
 But in pursuing the Spartan history, we must 
 not forget Athens. The first archon, or ruler, 
 you remember, was the son of Codrus, and became 
 chief magistrate by the choice of the people in 
 1068 B.C. The office was, at first, hereditary, and 
 continued so for more than three centuries. It 
 was afterwards reduced to a period of ten years, 
 and finally became annual. At this time the 
 number of archons was increased from one to nine, 
 who were chosen from the most respectable families 
 in the state. Yet the people derived little advan- 
 tage from these changes, and frequent disturbances 
 agitated the community. 
 
 With a view to removing the existing evils, one 
 of the archons, named Draco, projected a reform 
 in the government. Accordingly he devised a code 
 of laws, which, however, were so severe that they 
 were said to be written in blood. Idleness, as well
 
 38 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 as murder, was punished with death, and when 
 Draco was asked to give his reason for this, he 
 replied that the smallest crimes deserve death, 
 and that there is no higher punishment for the 
 greatest. 
 
 It is strange that such a man as this could be a 
 favourite with the Athenians; yet so it was. One 
 night, as he entered the theatre, the people received 
 him with great applause, and, according to their 
 custom, threw their garments upon him to attest 
 their regard. Such was the eagerness of every man 
 to participate in doing him honour that Draco 
 sank beneath the weight of the clothes, and was 
 smothered to death. 
 
 The excessive rigour of Draco's laws prevented 
 their execution, and the country was soon brought 
 to a state of anarchy. In this distressing condition 
 of the commonwealth, application was made to 
 Solon for advice and assistance. 
 
 This individual was a native of Salamis, an island 
 dependent on Athens; he was esteemed the wisest 
 and most just man among his countrymen; his 
 great learning had acquired him the reputation of 
 being the first of the seven wise men of Greece, 
 and his humanity procured him the love and 
 veneration of every rank among his fellow-citizens. 
 As he never sided with any party, he was con- 
 sidered the refuge of all; the rich liked him 
 because he was rich, and the poor because he was 
 honest. 
 
 Solon commenced his reform in the year 594 B.C.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 39 
 
 He first abolished the laws of Draco, and then 
 proceeded to establish a system which was designed 
 to protect the poor from the oppression of the rich 
 and secure an equitable administration of justice. 
 Having finished his task, he induced the Athenians 
 to bind themselves by oath to an observance of his 
 laws for one hundred years. He then departed for 
 Egypt, and employed himself in travelling through 
 foreign countries. 
 
 Notwithstanding the wise institutions and mild 
 laws of Solon, Athens became a prey to faction 
 and tumult. In the midst of these disturbances, 
 Pisistratus, an ambitious man, sought to elevate 
 himself to the dignity of king. He flattered the 
 people, and, professing to be their champion, drew 
 the giddy multitude into his snares. 
 
 At length Solon returned, after an aosence of 
 ten years, and, perceiving the artful design of 
 Pisistratus, he endeavoured to open the eyes of 
 the people to their danger; but, as if willing to 
 be cheated, they refused his counsel, and placed 
 their confidence in the artful demagogue. Having 
 cut his flesh in various places with his own hand, 
 Pisistratus showed the wounds to his fellow-citizens, 
 told them he had been assaulted, and that his life 
 was in danger. He therefore begged them to 
 grant him a guard of fifty men. 
 
 Solon appeared before them, disclosed to them 
 the real design of this artful scheme, and earnestly 
 besought them to reject the proposal. But they 
 would not listen to this great and good man, and
 
 40 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 in their folly granted the request of Pisistratus. 
 This sealed their fate, for having now obtained a 
 guard of soldiers, he was soon able to increase their 
 number, and in a short time took possession of the 
 citadel. 
 
 The city was now thrown into the most dreadful 
 state of confusion and anarchy, and it was not 
 until after many struggles that Pisistratus was 
 able to establish himself upon the throne. Con- 
 trary to what might have been expected, the 
 usurper proved a mild and just ruler. He gave 
 effect to the institutions of Solon, and by his 
 example taught the people obedience to the laws. 
 
 He encouraged the fine arts, promoted learning, 
 and was the first who ever established a public 
 library in Athens. Under his government the 
 city flourished, and the people forgot the wicked 
 means by which their sovereign obtained his power, 
 in the prosperity that seemed to flow from his 
 administration. 
 
 Pisistratus at length died, and his crown de- 
 scended to his two sons, Hippias and Hipparchus. 
 These individuals seemed to possess all their father's 
 good qualities, as well as his vices. Like him they 
 encouraged learning, and by their agreeable man- 
 ners attracted to their court the finest poets of 
 Greece. Under these circumstances, the society of 
 Athens rapidly advanced in taste and refinement. 
 
 But, fortunate as the reign of Hippias and 
 Hipparchus seemed to be for a time, it was 
 destined to a speedy termination. After enjoying
 
 ABOUT GREECE 41 
 
 their authority for eighteen years, two friends 
 named Harmodius and Aristogiton, incited by 
 some injury one of them had received from Hip- 
 parchus, resolved to destroy the two kings, or 
 sacrifice their own lives in the attempt. Hip- 
 parchus was killed, and the people, roused to assert 
 their freedom, compelled Hippias to leave the city. 
 The monarchy was now abolished, and Athens was 
 once more restored to liberty. This event occurred 
 in the year 510 B.C. I 
 
 Let us now pause a moment in our story, and 
 contemplate the state of Greece at this period. 
 Athens and Sparta were now the two leading 
 states; but nothing could be more unlike than the 
 manners and habits of the two nations. That we 
 may better form an opinion of these rival cities, let 
 us carry our imagination back to that remote age, 
 and fancy that we pay them a visit, while the 
 streets are yet peopled with the living and breath- 
 ing multitude. 
 
 Let us first go to Athens, which is the capital of 
 Attica. We shall enter a bay called the Piraeus, 
 which is the chief harbour of the city; and, after 
 landing, shall pass through several little villages 
 before we reach the town. The distance from the 
 bay is five miles. We shall perceive that Athens 
 consists of two parts, the upper and lower town. 
 The former appears to be a fortress surrounded by 
 a wall sixteen miles in circumference. Within this 
 is a citadel, called the Acropolis, mentioned before; 
 and many magnificent edifices, temples, palaces,
 
 42 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 halls, columns, and statues of glittering marble fill 
 the eye with amazement and delight. 
 
 Among these we can distinguish one structure 
 more sublime than the rest; this can be no other 
 than the Parthenon, which, in its original strength 
 and beauty, promises to set at nought the crumb- 
 ling hand of time. 
 
 As we pass through the lower town, we shall 
 find a people of dark hair, swarthy complexion, 
 and quick flashing eyes. We shall perceive that 
 the houses are without chimneys, and consist some- 
 times of stone, sometimes of brick, and sometimes 
 of mud. We shall observe that a large proportion 
 of the inhabitants are slaves, many of whom bear 
 the marks of great misery. 
 
 As we ascend into the upper town, we shall 
 perceive that we are approaching the abodes of the 
 rich, the luxurious, and the refined. If we visit the 
 various places of public amusement, and the schools 
 of the philosophers; go to the halls of debate, and 
 listen to the orators; study the works of art, and 
 mix with society, we shall at length comprehend 
 the true character and genius of this extraordinary 
 people. We shall perceive that they possess a 
 quick imagination, and great admiration of what- 
 ever is beautiful in nature and art; that they are 
 fond of pleasure, devoted to poetry, and ardent 
 lovers of their country and their country's freedom. 
 
 If we pass through the other states of Greece, 
 we shall perceive that in their government, their 
 buildings, their fashions, and their feelings, they
 
 ABOUT GREECE 43 
 
 all imitate Athens, except Sparta. Here we shall 
 find a proud and solitary people, disdaining to 
 copy the manners and customs of any other 
 country. We shall find that they despise the 
 arts, contemn luxury, and spurn the refinements 
 of learning and taste. 
 
 We shall see the people living almost in poverty, 
 and turning their thoughts exclusively to the 
 profession of arms. We shall discover that other 
 pursuits, arts, polite learning, sciences, and even 
 husbandry itself, are prohibited to the free citizens 
 by law. 
 
 We shall find that the city of Sparta, or Lace- 
 daemon, the capital of Laconia, is built in a circular 
 form, and is about six miles in circumference. We 
 shall perceive that it is surrounded to a considerable 
 extent with vineyards, olive- and plum- trees, gardens 
 and summer-houses; we shall learn that the wine 
 made in the neighbourhood is superior to any in 
 Greece. 
 
 In Sparta we shall see many public edifices, 
 among which there is a temple of brass dedicated 
 to Minerva. We shall also notice a multitude of 
 monuments in honour of the gods and ancient 
 heroes. The houses, we shall perceive, are lofty, 
 and built with great solidity. On different sides 
 of the city we shall find courses for horse- and 
 foot-races, and places of exercise for youth, shaded 
 by beautiful plum-trees. 
 
 We shall discover that in Sparta, as in Athens, 
 there are more slaves than citizens, and that they
 
 44 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 perform all kinds of labour, except those which 
 belong to the soldiers. They cultivate the fields, 
 do the work of the houses, and attend to the 
 mechanic arts. Some of them are very ingenious, 
 and the keys, beds, tables, and chairs of Sparta are 
 in great request throughout Greece. 
 
 If, in our fanciful travels, we should chance to 
 see the haughty Spartans drawn out in battle array 
 against the no less brave Athenians, we shall pro- 
 bably witness a display of martial spirit that has 
 never been surpassed among ancient or modern 
 nations. If we should stay to observe the fierce 
 encounter, we should see, after some skirmishing, 
 the two armies so closely engaged, as, for a time, 
 to appear to form one mass, like a mighty serpent, 
 bending, writhing, and rolling upon the plain. 
 
 Such is a battle between the foot -soldiers; we 
 shall perceive that they are armed, some with 
 spears or javelins, some with swords, some with 
 clubs, some with battle-axes, some with slings, and 
 some with bows and arrows. Each soldier has a 
 helmet of brass or the skin of a beast upon his 
 head, a coat of mail on his body, and a buckler for 
 defence on his arm. We shall observe that the 
 troops of horse are armed with swords and spears, 
 and that, riding among the foot-soldiers, they do 
 great execution. 
 
 In one of these ancient battles we shall hear no 
 thunder of cannon, we shall see no cloud of smoke 
 rising upon the air, for guns were not then in use. 
 But if we listen, we shall hear the clash of swords*
 
 ABOUT GREECE 45 
 
 the ringing of spears, and the groans of struggling 
 and dying men. We shall at length see the mass 
 of warriors separate, and over the field shall mark 
 the strife of single combatants; with deadly 
 hostility they meet foot to foot and hand to 
 hand, and with flashing swords maintain the 
 desperate fight until one or the other is slain. 
 
 We shall hardly form a just estimate of a 
 Grecian battle unless we enter into the feelings 
 of the warriors. They not only consider them- 
 selves as striving for independence and freedom, 
 but they regard all Greece as witnesses of their 
 conduct. They know that infamy attends on 
 defeat, and that renown follows success. 
 
 They look upon martial glory as the greatest 
 earthly good, and imagine that in a future life 
 immortal honour will be awarded to military 
 heroes. They fancy, too, that the gods take a 
 deep interest in their battles, and from their 
 exalted position in the heavens are spectators of 
 the strife. They ever consider that they are 
 fighting in the immediate presence of their deities, 
 and endeavour to conduct themselves in such a 
 manner as to secure their applause. 
 
 However false and vain we may deem the 
 motives which impel the Grecian warriors, we 
 can easily perceive that they are calculated to 
 excite every individual in an army to the most 
 powerful efforts. Under their impulse the narrow 
 thoughts of personal safety are lost in more stirring 
 emotions ; every idea of danger vanishes, and things
 
 46 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 which in cooler moments might seem impossible, 
 are boldly tried and gloriously achieved. 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 War with Persia Description of Persia Darius sends an army 
 into Greece Their defeat Darius now sends an army of five 
 hundred thousand men Battle of Marathon End of the 
 Persian expedition Fate of Miltiades. 
 
 WE now approach a period of deep interest in the 
 history of Greece. There was a flourishing state 
 in Asia Minor, called Ionia, originally settled by 
 emigrants from Athens and other places in Attica. 
 After some years they became subject to Persia, 
 but at length they were anxious to throw off this 
 foreign yoke, and were assisted by the Athenians 
 in an attempt to do so. This drew upon the people 
 the resentment of Darius, King of Persia, who 
 resolved to take vengeance on Athens and her 
 allies. 
 
 Before I proceed to tell you the events which 
 immediately followed, I will give you a sketch of 
 Persia at this period. It was one of the most 
 ancient kingdoms of Asia, and was situated in a 
 direction nearly east from Greece. The distance 
 from one country to the other was about twelve 
 hundred miles, but the empire of Persia then 
 embraced not only that region which properly 
 bore its name, but many adjacent kingdoms, in*
 
 ABOUT GREECE 47 
 
 eluding a large portion of Asia. The number of 
 people subject to its king must have amounted to 
 many millions. 
 
 The eastern nations have always been celebrated 
 for their love of show and magnificence, and at no 
 period was this taste more fully displayed than io 
 Persia during the age of which we are speaking. 
 Nothing could exceed the dazzling splendour of the 
 court of Darius. Whenever the monarch went 
 abroad he was clothed in the most costly silks, and 
 precious gems glittered in every part of his dress. 
 Those who attended him were attired in the same 
 gorgeous manner, for no others were deemed worthy 
 of entering his august presence. 
 
 Darius, as well as the other princes of Persia, 
 took the appellation of King of Kings; and as he 
 could bring into the field an almost countless 
 number of warriors, he had no fear that this 
 arrogant title would be disputed. 
 
 It is probable that he understood in some degree 
 the Grecian character, for in the war which he now 
 contemplated, he summoned to the field an army 
 of many thousand men, and sent also a fleet of 
 several hundred ships. These forces were placed 
 under the command of a young nobleman named 
 Mardonius, who advanced upon Greece by way of 
 Thrace. 
 
 The Greeks were fully aware of uheir danger, and 
 now united for their common defence. The gay 
 and gallant soldier of Athens and the stern warrior 
 of Sparta now forgot their antipathies, and were
 
 48 PETER PARLEY S TALES 
 
 ready, like brothers, to stand side by side in the 
 day of peril, and die or be free together. 
 
 It was as if the light-hearted Frenchmen of our 
 own day should unite with the dauntless but 
 haughty Englishmen, and fight in the same field, 
 and fall or triumph in the same battle. But the 
 time had not yet come when Greece was to put 
 forth her greatest efforts. 
 
 The Persian fleet met with a storm in attempting 
 to double one of the capes of Greece, and a large 
 portion of the vessels were wrecked. No less than 
 three hundred were sunk, and twenty thousand 
 men perished in the waves. The army in Thrace 
 had no better fortune. It was attacked in the 
 night by the Thracians, and immense slaughter 
 ensued. Mardonius himself was wounded, and, 
 with his whole force, fled back to Persia. 
 
 But this signal defeat only increased the resent- 
 ment of Darius, and sharpened his desire for the 
 conquest of Greece. He resolved upon sending 
 a more powerful army into that country, but first 
 despatched two messengers, according to the custom 
 of the times, to demand earth and water, as sym- 
 bols of submission. 
 
 Some of the smaller states were overawed and 
 acknowledged the authority of Darius; but 
 Athens and Sparta, instead of offering up their 
 liberty as demanded, threw one of the heralds into 
 a well and the other into a ditch; and, adding 
 mockery to insult, desired them to take "earth 
 and water" from thence. This was rough treat-
 
 ABOUT GREECE 49 
 
 ment, and may seem better to become the harsh 
 Spartans than the polite inhabitants of Attica. But 
 we should remember that the practice of treating 
 an enemy with courtesy was not then in vogue. 
 
 Darius made no delay in preparing for the war. 
 He collected an army of five hundred thousand 
 men, and a fleet of six hundred ships. This 
 immense force was placed under the command 
 of two experienced generals, Datis and Artaphernes. 
 The fleet set sail, carrying a part of the army on 
 board. They had a prosperous voyage, and on 
 their way to the coast of Greece they took pos- 
 session of the beautiful islands in the ^Egean sea. 
 They landed upon the island of Eubcea, took the 
 city of Eretria, and, overcoming every obstacle, 
 approached the city of Athens. 
 
 Darius had particularly instructed his generals 
 to treat the Grecians with the utmost rigour, 
 on account of the assistance they had given the 
 lonians in their revolt. He required them to lay 
 waste their lands, demolish their temples, and 
 carry the inhabitants into captivity. The time 
 had now arrived when this dreadful doom seemed 
 about to be fulfilled. 
 
 The Athenians were well aware of their situation, 
 and, with the steadiness of men who knew how 
 to die in the discharge of duty, prepared for 
 their defence. Their army consisted of nine 
 thousand Athenians and one thousand Plataeans. 
 Sparta had promised her assistance, but the troops 
 had not yet arrived. 
 
 (MS05) D
 
 50 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 Small as was their force, the Athenians did not 
 despair of success. They were commanded by ten 
 generals, but the chief command was given to 
 Miltiades. Each individual seemed inspired with a 
 resolution to triumph or die, and when the order 
 was given to march, and offer the enemy battle, the 
 men received it with the utmost eagerness and 
 animation. 
 
 The Persian force was about thirty miles 
 from the city of Athens, upon the plains of 
 Marathon. Their countless legions covered the 
 land beyond the reach of the eye. Troops of 
 horses and deep columns of men, armed with 
 bows, swords, or battle-axes, were seen moving 
 over the field. The officers rode to and fro on 
 swift horses, and the generals, also on horseback, 
 and surrounded with horsemen richly dressed, 
 rode in front of the army and seemed to take 
 a proud survey of the field. 
 
 Miltiades approached within a short distance 
 of the Persian army, and took up a strong position 
 at the foot of a mountain. He then caused large 
 trees to be thrown down to impede the motions of 
 the Persian horsemen. Datis noticed these ju- 
 dicious arrangements and knew the unshrinking 
 valour of the Greeks. But, relying upon his 
 superior forces, he did not hesitate to begin the 
 attack. 
 
 No sooner was the signal for the onset given, 
 than the Athenians and Platseans rushed upon 
 the front of the Persian line. Utterly regardless
 
 ABOUT GREECE 51 
 
 of danger, they plunged into the midst of the 
 enemy, and with their whirling swords and battle- 
 axes cut them down on every side. 
 
 The Persians at first regarded them as maniacs, 
 but soon perceived by the death and slaughter of 
 their troops that the Greeks were only excited by 
 courage bordering on despair. They began, in 
 turn, to have their own fears, but for a long time 
 withstood the attack of the Greeks with great 
 steadiness and bravery. 
 
 They even pushed forward, and for a moment 
 broke through the Grecian centre; but in a short 
 time the two wings of the Athenian army were 
 entirely victorious, and the Persians began to give 
 ground. They were soon in the utmost confusion, 
 and fled to their ships for safety. Six thousand of 
 their number were slain in the battle, and seven of 
 their ships were taken, besides others that were 
 burnt. The rest retired, and thus ended the second 
 attempt of Darius to enslave the inhabitants of 
 Greece. 
 
 Such was the celebrated battle of Marathon. It 
 was fought in the year 490 B.C., and has always 
 been regarded as one of the most important engage- 
 ments that ever took place. To this day the plain 
 of Marathon is visited by travellers with the 
 deepest interest, and no one can go to the place 
 without finding his heart warmed, while he thinks 
 of the noble actions which were displayed by the 
 Greeks on that celebrated field. 
 
 The merit of Miltiades, which was so signally
 
 52 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 displayed in this great battle, was repaid at first 
 with the highest honours of the republic, but after- 
 wards with the most shocking ingratitude. He 
 was appointed to the command of a fleet by the 
 unanimous voice of his country, and sent to expel 
 the Persian garrisons from the islands of the JEgean 
 Sea ; but, having retired from an unsuccessful attack 
 upon the island of Paros, he was accused of treason, 
 and sentenced to death. This, however, was 
 changed to a fine of fifty talents. 
 
 Being unable to pay this, he was thrown into 
 prison, and there died of his wounds. Even his 
 body was not allowed to be buried until his son 
 Cimon, who was then very young, had procured 
 the money and paid the fine. 
 
 The glory of Miltiades, however, survived his 
 life, and though the Athenians were unjust to his 
 person, they were not unmindful of his fame. At 
 the distance of half a century a picture of the battle 
 of Marathon was painted by order of the state, and 
 the figure of Miltiades was placed in the foreground, 
 animating his troops to victory. This picture was 
 preserved by the Athenians for ages.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 53 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 Death of Darius Xerxes He raises an immense army Cuts a 
 canal across Mount Athos Crosses the Hellespont Battle of 
 Thermopylae Death of Leonidas and his band. 
 
 DARIUS was not discouraged by the ill success of 
 his generals. He determined to raise a new army, 
 and take the command of it himself. But before he 
 had completed his arrangements, death put an end 
 to his career, and his son Xerxes succeeded him. 
 Inheriting all his father's hatred towards Greece, 
 he resolved to prosecute the war with the greatest 
 vigour. 
 
 Accordingly he raised an army of one million 
 seven hundred thousand infantry, and four hundred 
 thousand cavalry, making in the whole more than 
 two millions of soldiers. His fleet consisted of one 
 thousand two hundred and seven vessels, each 
 carrying two hundred men; beside these were 
 three thousand ships of burden, with six hundred 
 thousand men. 
 
 The army might be said to amount to two 
 millions and a half, which, with the women, ser- 
 vants, slaves, cooks, and others attendant upon it, 
 might make the whole amount to about five 
 millions of souls. This army has never been 
 equalled in number before or since. Such were 
 the mighty preparations made by the young Per- 
 sian monarch to subdue the little peninsula of 
 Greece.
 
 54 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 Sardis, in Asia Minor, was a place where the 
 various nations that were enrolled under the banner 
 of Xerxes were to assemble. When they had col- 
 lected, the king was anxious to amuse himself with 
 the spectacle of a naval engagement. A throne 
 was erected for him on an eminence, and in that 
 situation, beholding all the earth covered with his 
 troops, and all the sea crowded with his vessels, he 
 felt a secret joy from the consciousness of his own 
 superior power. But all the workings of this king's 
 mind were in extremes; a sudden sadness soon 
 took place of pleasure, and, dissolving in a shower 
 of tears, he gave himself up to the reflection that 
 not one of so many thousands would be alive a 
 hundred years after. 
 
 The Persian fleet was to advance along the coast 
 of Asia Minor towards the Hellespont. But as, in 
 doubling the cape of Mount Athos, many ships 
 were detained, he was resolved to cut a passage 
 through the neck of land which joined the moun- 
 tain to the continent, and thus give his shipping a 
 shorter passage. 
 
 This was accordingly executed, and formed a 
 canal a mile and a half long, passing through a 
 considerable mountain. It required immense labour 
 to perform so great a work, but the numbers and 
 ambition of Xerxes were sufficient to surmount all 
 difficulties. 
 
 To urge on the undertaking the faster, he treated 
 his labourers with the greatest severity; while, with 
 the ostentation of an eastern prince, he thus gave
 
 ABOUT GREECE 55 
 
 his commands to the mountain to sink before him: 
 " Athos, thou proud aspiring mountain, that liftest 
 up thy head to the heavens, be not so audacious as 
 to put obstacles in my way. If thou givest me 
 that opposition, I will cut thee level to the plain, 
 and throw thee headlong into the sea." 
 
 Xerxes, in the meantime, had given orders for 
 building a bridge of boats across the Hellespont, 
 for transporting his army into Europe. This strait, 
 which now goes by the name of the Dardanelles, 
 and separates Asia from Europe, is nearly a mile 
 over. But soon after the completion of the bridge, 
 a violent storm arose, and the whole was broken 
 and destroyed. 
 
 The fury of Xerxes was attended with equal 
 extravagance and cruelty. The workmen who had 
 undertaken the task had their heads struck off by 
 his order; and, that the sea itself also might know 
 its duty, a pair of fetters were thrown into it to 
 curb its future irregularities. 
 
 Thus the king, having given vent to his absurd 
 resentment, ordered two bridges to be built in the 
 place of the former; one for the army to pass over, 
 and the other for the baggage and the beasts of 
 burden. Three hundred and sixty vessels were 
 placed across the strait. Large anchors were then 
 cast into the water on both sides, to enable these 
 vessels to resist the violence of the winds and 
 currents. Across these they laid trunks of trees, 
 and flat boards again over them, fastened together 
 so as to serve for a floor or solid bottom.
 
 56 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 "When the whole work was completed, the army 
 having been collected, a day was appointed for 
 them to march over. As soon as the first rays 
 of the sun began to appear, sweet odours of all 
 kinds were abundantly scattered over the new 
 work, and the way was strewed with myrtle. 
 
 Xerxes poured out libations into the sea, and, 
 turning his face toward the east, worshipped the 
 sun, which was at that time the chief object of 
 adoration among the Persians. He then went 
 forward, and gave orders for the army to follow; 
 but the immense train were no less than seven 
 days and seven nights in passing the bridges. 
 The army, having landed in Europe, was joined 
 by the European nations that acknowledged the 
 Persian power, and Xerxes prepared to march 
 forward into Greece. 
 
 It is impossible to reflect upon the intrepidity 
 of the Greeks at this time but with amazement. 
 Their whole force did not exceed eleven thousand 
 two hundred men, yet they resolved to face the 
 immense army of Xerxes. The Grecian forces con- 
 sisted almost entirely of Spartans and Athenians, 
 for a great part of the other Grecians were re- 
 strained by fear from entering into a struggle so 
 desperate. 
 
 It was determined by the Greeks to send a 
 body of troops to defend the pass of Thermopylae. 
 This was a narrow defile, twenty-five feet broad, 
 between Phocis and Thessaly. The command of 
 this important pass was given to Leonidas, the
 
 ABOUT GREECE 57 
 
 King of Sparta, who led thither a body of six 
 thousand men. 
 
 Here they waited till Xerxes approached. 
 Flushed with hopes of success, and confident of 
 victory, he had expected no obstruction to his 
 march, and, therefore, his astonishment was un- 
 bounded when he found a few desperate men 
 determined to oppose him. He now took a view 
 of their intrenchments, and saw some of the 
 Spartans amusing themselves with military exer- 
 cises, and some with combing their long hair. 
 He enquired the reason of this conduct, and was 
 informed that it was the Spartan manner of pre- 
 paring for battle. 
 
 He waited four days to give them time to reflect 
 on their danger, and at last sent to them to de- 
 liver up their arms. Leonidas, with truly Spartan 
 contempt, told him to " Come and take them ". 
 He then offered, if they would lay down their 
 arms, to receive them as friends, and give them 
 a country much larger and better than what they 
 fought for. " No country ", they replied, " was 
 worth acceptance, unless won by virtue; and as 
 for their arms, they should want them whether 
 as his friends or enemies." Some men among 
 the Greeks were heard to say that the Persians 
 were so numerous that their darts would darken 
 the sun. Dieneces, a Spartan replied: "Then we 
 shall fight in the shade ". 
 
 Thus treated with contempt, Xerxes ordered his 
 columns to advance. But the Spartans, standing
 
 58 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 close, met the onset, and repulsed the enemy with 
 great slaughter. Other columns were brought 
 up, but with no better success. The whole day, 
 the attack was continued, but without avail. On 
 the morrow, the battle was resumed, and Xerxes 
 stimulated his troops to the utmost, by threats 
 and promises. But all was in vain. The whole 
 day was spent in fruitless attempts to force the 
 pass. 
 
 Xerxes was now in the greatest consternation, 
 but he was relieved from this by being told that 
 there was a secret path, by which his men might 
 cross the mountains. A treacherous Greek under- 
 took to show them the way, and twenty thousand 
 troops took advantage of the night, to gain the 
 heights above the Spartan band. 
 
 In the morning, Leonidas, with anguish, dis- 
 covered what had happened, and, knowing that it 
 was idle to make further attempts to defend the 
 pass, sent the army back to Greece, retaining with 
 him about one thousand men; three hundred of 
 these were Spartans, the rest were Thespians and 
 Thebans. 
 
 These he exhorted in the most cheerful manner 
 to prepare for death. " Come, my fellow soldiers," 
 said he, " let us dine cheerfully here, for to-night 
 we shall sup with Pluto." His men, upon hearing 
 his purpose, set up a loud shout, as if they had 
 been invited to a feast, and resolved every man 
 to sell his life as dearly as he could. 
 
 The night now began to advance, and this was
 
 ABOUT GREECE 59 
 
 thought the most glorious opportunity of meeting 
 death in the enemy's camp, when the silence would 
 favour desperation, and the darkness hide the 
 smallness of their numbers. Thus resolved, they 
 made directly to the Persian tents, and in the 
 gloom of the night had almost reached the royal 
 pavilion, with the hope of surprising the king. 
 
 The obscurity added much to the horror of the 
 scene, for the Persians, falling upon each other 
 without distinction, rather assisted the Greeks, 
 than defended themselves. Thus, success seemed 
 to crown the rashness of their enterprise, till, 
 morning beginning to dawn, the light discovered 
 the smallness of their numbers. 
 
 They were therefore soon surrounded by the 
 Persians, who, fearing to fall in upon them, hurled 
 their javelins among them from every quarter, till 
 the Greeks, not so much conquered as tired with 
 conquering, fell among heaps of the slaughtered 
 enemy; leaving behind them an example of in- 
 trepidity never equalled in ancient or modern 
 times. 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 Naval battles The Athenians leave their city Athens burnt by 
 the Persians Battle of Salamis Xerxes defeated He retreats 
 Distress of his army Battle of Plataea Death of Xerxes 
 Artaxerxes Naval battles Peace. 
 
 I HAVE not yet done with the interesting story of 
 this war, but I must stop a moment to reflect upon
 
 60 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 the events just related. We have, in Leonidas and 
 his associates, an example of patriotism and virtue 
 which should make us ashamed to practise selfish- 
 ness and vice. 
 
 Let us recollect, also, that Leonidas was a king; 
 but he cheerfully laid down his life, and resigned 
 all the enjoyments which wealth and power could 
 give him, for the benefit of his country. Alas, 
 how different have been many Christian kings, 
 living in luxury, pomp, and extravagance, to this 
 heathen Leonidas! How few sacrifices of their 
 own personal comfort and happiness have they 
 made for the good of their subjects; how careful 
 have they been of their own privileges; how little 
 have they thought of the rights of others ! 
 
 At the same time that the battle of Thermopylae 
 was fought, an engagement took place at sea 
 between the Grecian and Persian fleets. Several 
 others soon followed, but without any decisive 
 result. In the meantime, the Persian army 
 poured, like the lava from a volcano, through the 
 mountains, upon the devoted cities of Attica. 
 
 Still the Greeks thought not of submission ; they 
 took their wives and children to the islands, and 
 retired on board their fleet, which soon set sail for 
 Salamis. Their unprotected towns were now 
 ravaged, and Athens was plundered and burnt. 
 
 The historians have left us an affecting de- 
 scription of the scene, when the Athenians took 
 leave of their city. There were multitudes of aged 
 men who could not go, and were necessarily left
 
 ABOUT GREECE 61 
 
 behind. The matrons were seen clinging with fond 
 affection to the places in which they had so long 
 resided; the wives filled the streets with loud 
 lamentations, and even the poor domestic animals 
 seemed to take a part in the general concern. 
 
 It was impossible to see those poor creatures run 
 howling and crying after their masters, who were 
 going on ship-board, without being strongly affected. 
 Among these, the faithfulness of a particular dog is 
 recorded, who jumped into the sea after his master, 
 and continued swimming as near as he could to the 
 vessel till he landed in Salamis, and died the 
 moment after on the shore. 
 
 A great battle at sea was now approaching. 
 Xerxes, animated by success, ordered his whole 
 fleet, consisting of one thousand two hundred 
 ships, to attack the Greeks at Salamis. Their 
 fleet consisted of two hundred and seventy vessels. 
 To cheer his men, the Persian king took his station 
 on an eminence, that they might fight under his 
 immediate inspection. Excited by this, and con- 
 fident in their superior force, they fought with 
 great bravery. 
 
 But the Greeks, commanded by Themistocles, 
 were still their superiors, and, after prodigies of 
 valour, obtained a complete victory. Two hun- 
 dred of the Persian ships were burnt, many were 
 destroyed, and the rest were dispersed. The 
 quantity of wrecks, and floating bodies of the 
 slain, was so great that it is said the sea was 
 scarcely visible for a considerable distance. The
 
 62 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 Greeks lost not more than forty ships, of which 
 the crews were principally saved. 
 
 Such was the battle of Salamis, which, like those 
 of Thermopylae and Marathon, will never cease to 
 attract the admiration of mankind. The name of 
 Themistocles, who commanded the Greeks in this 
 famous action, is worthy of being remembered with 
 those of Miltiades and Leonidas. 
 
 Xerxes now found it necessary to make a pre- 
 cipitate retreat. Leaving three hundred thousand 
 men under the command of Mardonius, he set out 
 for Asia Minor with the remainder of his army. 
 Being unprovided with food, they were soon pressed 
 by famine. Many perished, and others only sup- 
 ported life by eating the bark and leaves of trees. 
 Disease also broke out among them, and the hills, 
 valleys, and plains were strewn with the dying and 
 the dead. At length the miserable remnant of the 
 army reached the Hellespont, and, with these, 
 Xerxes returned to Sardis. 
 
 Another overthrow awaited the Persians. Mar- 
 donius, at the head of his three hundred thousand 
 men, was totally defeated at Platsea by the com- 
 bined army of the Athenians and Spartans, under 
 Pausanius, 479 B.C. In this famous battle about 
 one hundred thousand Persians were put to the 
 sword; the Greeks, anxious to rid their country at 
 once of their invaders, refused to give quarter. On 
 the same day they destroyed the remainder of the 
 Persian fleet at Mycale. 
 
 Thus ended the invasion of Greece, nor ever
 
 ABOUT GREECE 
 
 after was a Persian army seen to cross the Helles- 
 pont. The ambitious schemes of Xerxes were now 
 at an end; and his inglorious life was soon after 
 terminated by assassination. He was succeeded by 
 his son Artaxerxes, 464 B.C. 
 
 I ought not here to omit the flight of Themis- 
 tocles, who, understanding that his enemies were 
 plotting his destruction, fled first to the island of 
 Corcyra, and then to the court of Admetus, King of 
 the Molossians. When he arrived, the king was 
 absent, but the queen directed him to stand with 
 Admetus' infant son in his arms. He did so, and 
 when the king returned and found him fondling 
 his infant, he at once received him into favour. 
 
 Artaxerxes continued the war for a time by sea, 
 and Cimon, the son of Miltiades, became scarcely 
 less celebrated than his father, in victories obtained 
 over the Persian fleet. Finally, Artaxerxes sued 
 for peace, and a treaty favourable to the Greeks 
 put an end to the war, in the year 449 B.C. 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 Pericles Insurrection of the Helots Civil War Archidamus 
 Terrible plague at Athens Siege of Plataea. 
 
 THE Greeks, no longer awed by the fear of Persia, 
 began to indulge those enmities toward each other 
 which had before been directed against the common 
 foe. The Athenians lost their military spirit, and
 
 64 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 their leading men, instead of promoting the in- 
 terests of the state, struggled with each other for 
 political ascendency. The citizens were divided 
 into factions, some being in favour of one man 
 and some of another. 
 
 Among the most distinguished of those who were 
 anxious to obtain popular favour was Pericles, a 
 young man, who had descended from some of the 
 first families in Attica, and was, moreover, a skil- 
 ful manager of the people. Professing always to 
 be their servant, he secretly sought his own ele- 
 vation. Although the sensible persons of Athens 
 perceived his motives and understood his character, 
 yet, such was the extraordinary power of his elo- 
 quence, no one was found to withstand him before 
 the people. 
 
 Themistocles was at this time banished. After 
 visiting the court of Admetus, he went to the 
 Persian court, but, being required to fight against 
 his country, he destroyed himself by poison. 
 Aristides, who had been the treasurer of Greece 
 during the war, and was an example of wisdom 
 and justice, was dead; Cimon was a great part 
 of the time absent, and, when at home, found 
 it impossible to resist the art and address of 
 Pericles. At length, getting possession of the 
 public money, the latter secretly distributed it 
 in bribes, so as to obtain friends and supporters, 
 and thus easily secured the multitude to his 
 interests. 
 
 In the meantime, the Helots, or slaves of Sparta,
 
 ABOUT GREECE 65 
 
 who were more numerous than the citizens, rose in 
 open rebellion. These people in time of war served 
 as sailors, or were attached to the army. In time 
 of peace they cultivated the lands, and employed 
 themselves in various mechanical arts. 
 
 They were not negroes, like the slaves who 
 used to be in America, but they were Greeks 
 who were descendants from captives taken in war. 
 They were treated with great severity, and were 
 kept by the laws in a state of constant degrada- 
 tion. They had abundant cause of resentment 
 toward the Lacedaemonians, and in their attempt 
 to achieve their own liberty, deserved the sym- 
 pathy of all Greece. 
 
 Such were their numbers that the Spartans were 
 obliged to ask the aid of the Athenians to quell 
 the insurrection. Cimon at length persuaded the 
 people to give the Spartans the desired assistance; 
 and was himself sent, with a numerous body, 
 for that purpose. The Helots were soon subdued, 
 and the Athenian forces returned. 
 
 But in a short time the slaves rose again, and 
 again the Spartans demanded succour of the 
 Athenians. But Pericles now advised the people 
 not to grant it, and, therefore, it was refused. This, 
 with other circumstances, revived the smothered 
 feelings of jealousy which had long subsisted be- 
 tween these two rival states. 
 
 A slight occasion was sufficient, in such a state 
 of things, to create open war; and this was now at 
 hand. Corcyra, a dependency of Corinth, asked 
 
 (M895) E
 
 66 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 the aid of the Athenians in a rebellion against 
 their lawful government, which was granted. This 
 was deemed by the Spartans a violation of the 
 general policy of Greece, and of the particular 
 understanding between the Athenians and them- 
 selves. 
 
 On this ground, hostilities commenced between 
 the two states, and most of the other Grecian 
 powers took part, on one side or the other. Such 
 was the origin of this war, which resulted in the 
 desolation of some of the finest parts of Greece, 
 and is generally known by the name of the 
 Peloponnesian war. It began in the year 431 B.C. 
 
 This is, in some respects, an interesting portion 
 of Grecian history. The difficulties of the times 
 brought forward a great many remarkable men, 
 whose renown can never perish. The battles be- 
 tween the Greeks were also fruitful in producing 
 heroic actions. But war, at all times a painful 
 subject of contemplation, is much more so when 
 the strife is between members of the same nation. 
 
 A civil war is like a family quarrel, where 
 brother is against brother, and where those who 
 should seek to promote each other's happiness 
 only strive to effect each other's destruction. But 
 however painful this part of the Grecian story may 
 be, we must not entirely pass it over. 
 
 It is necessary that we should become acquainted 
 with the evil, as well as the good deeds of mankind, 
 so that we may not only be incited to virtue 
 by the happiness which usually attends it, but
 
 ABOUT GREECE 67 
 
 warned against vice by the misery which follows 
 in its train. I shall, however, only glance at 
 the events of the Peloponnesian war. 
 
 Archidamus was now the King of Sparta. Put- 
 ting himself at the head of a considerable force, and 
 proceeding to Attica, he ravaged the eastern coast 
 with fire and sword. Pericles, at the same time, 
 sent a fleet to retaliate these injuries upon the de- 
 fenceless coast of Peloponnesus. This compelled 
 Archidamus to return; on his march he spread 
 desolation along the western shore of Attica. 
 
 Pericles now drew out the Athenians, who fell 
 upon the neighbouring province of Megara, the 
 people of whom were allies of Sparta. The in- 
 habitants were either killed or driven away, the 
 towns and villages were burnt, and razed, and the 
 whole district was covered with ruin. 
 
 The next year, the Spartans returned to Attica, 
 and committed the same ravages as before. In the 
 meantime a terrible plague broke out in Athens. 
 The people called upon their gods for aid, but 
 their gods heard them not. In a state of despair, 
 they abandoned themselves to riot and licentious- 
 ness. 
 
 The sick were left to die, and the dead were left 
 unburied; the laws were disregarded, and those 
 who were amidst death, as if seized with madness, 
 only sought to gratify the fleeting passions of the 
 moment. It was a dreadful scene, and I spare my 
 reader the further contemplation of it. I must 
 not omit to mention, however, that Pericles was
 
 68 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 among the number of those who died by the 
 plague at this time. 
 
 The Spartans, after approaching close to Athens, 
 and adding the horrors of war to the terrors of 
 pestilence, drew off their forces, and returned 
 to their own country. The next campaign was 
 signalized by the siege of Plataea, of which, being 
 one of the most memorable on record, I shall give 
 you a particular account. 
 
 The Spartans fixed their camp about the city, 
 in order to lay waste the adjacent places. The 
 Athenians having promised their assistance, the 
 Platseans resolved to suffer the greatest extremities 
 rather than surrender, and prepared for a vigorous 
 defence; while Archidamus, with equal persever- 
 ance, prepared for the siege. 
 
 He first surrounded the city with a circum- 
 vallation of trees, which were laid very close 
 together. Upon these he raised batteries, and 
 formed a terrace sufficient to support his warlike 
 machines. His army worked, without intermission, 
 seventy days and nights. 
 
 The besieged, observing the works beginning to 
 rise around them, threw up a wooden wall upon the 
 walls of the city, opposite the platform, in order 
 that they might always overtop the besiegers. 
 This wall was covered on the outside with hides, 
 both raw and dry, in order to shelter it from the 
 besiegers' fires. They then built another within, in 
 the form of a half-moon, behind which they might 
 retire, in case their outer works were forced.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 69 
 
 In the meantime, the besiegers having mounted 
 their engines of war, shook the city wall in a very 
 terrible manner. The Platseans employed every 
 art that fortification could suggest against the 
 enemy's batteries. They caught with ropes the 
 heads of the battering-rams that were urged against 
 the walls, and deadened their force with levers. 
 
 The Lacedaemonians, finding their attack did not 
 go on successfully, and that a new wall was raised 
 against their platform, despaired of being able to 
 storm the place; they, therefore, changed the siege 
 into a blockade, after having vainly attempted to 
 set fire to the city, which was suddenly quenched 
 by a shower. They accordingly surrounded it with 
 a high brick wall, strengthened on each side by 
 a deep ditch. 
 
 In this manner the wretched Plataeans were 
 cooped up, without any hopes of redress, placed, 
 as it were, at the mercy of the conquerors. There 
 were now in Platsea but four hundred inhabitants 
 and eighty Athenians, with a hundred and ten 
 women to dress their victuals, and no other person, 
 whether freeman or slave, all the rest having been 
 sent to Athens before the siege. 
 
 At last, having lost all hopes of succour, and 
 being in the utmost want of provisions, they formed 
 the resolution of cutting their way through the 
 enemy. But half of them, struck with the great- 
 ness of their danger, entirely lost courage ; the rest, 
 however, persisted in their resolution, and escaped 
 in the following manner.
 
 70 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 They first took the height of the Spartan wall, 
 by counting the rows of bricks that composed it, 
 and employed several men for that purpose, in 
 order that they might make no mistake in the 
 calculation. They then made ladders of a proper 
 length. 
 
 All things being now ready for executing the 
 design, the besieged left the city one night when 
 there was no moon, in the midst of a storm of wind 
 and rain. After crossing the first ditch, they drew 
 near the wall undiscovered, through the darkness 
 of the night, and the noise made by the tempest. 
 They marched at some distance from each other, 
 to prevent the clashing of their arms, and one 
 of their legs was naked, to keep them from sinking 
 so easily into the mire. 
 
 Those who carried the ladders set them in the 
 space between the towers, where they knew no 
 guard was posted, on account of the rain. That 
 instant some of the party, armed with daggers 
 and javelins, mounted the ladders. They had 
 nearly gained the top of the wall, when one of 
 the men, in taking hold of the parapet, threw 
 down a tile, and discovered them to the enemy. 
 
 The alarm was immediately given from the 
 towers, and the besieging army approached the 
 walls, but without perceiving the occasion of the 
 outcry, from the gloom of the night and the 
 violence of the storm. In the meantime, those 
 who had mounted first, having possessed them- 
 selves of two towers, and killed the soldiers who
 
 ABOUT GREECE 71 
 
 guarded them, posted themselves there to defend 
 the passage and keep off the besiegers. 
 
 Their situation was now exceedingly critical, but 
 they finally succeeded in passing the enemy, and 
 took the road towards Thebes, the better to 
 conceal their retreat. Immediately, they perceived 
 the besiegers, with torches in their hands, pursuing 
 them on the road that led to Athens. 
 
 After keeping on their way towards Thebes for 
 some distance, they turned short towards the 
 mountains, and resumed the route to Athens. 
 Two hundred and twelve arrived out of two 
 hundred and twenty who had quitted the place; 
 the rest having returned back to it, through fear, 
 one archer excepted, who was taken. The besiegers 
 having pursued them to no purpose, returned to 
 the camp. 
 
 In the meantime, the Platseans who remained in 
 the city, supposing that all their companions had 
 been killed, sent a herald to demand their dead 
 bodies ; but having been told the true state of the 
 affair, being in absolute want of provisions, and 
 being unable to make the least defence, they 
 surrendered. It is a painful conclusion to the 
 story to say that they were all inhumanly put 
 to death by their conquerors.
 
 72 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 Alcibiades Siege of Athens Humiliation of Athens Lysander 
 The thirty tyrants The Greeks go into Asia to assist Cyrus 
 Retreat of the ten thousand Greeks Peace Thebes Pelopidas 
 War between Thebes and Sparta Battle of Mantinea Death 
 of Epaminondas Peace. 
 
 AFTER the Peloponnesian war had continued for ten 
 years, a truce was agreed upon, and peace was con- 
 cluded a short time after that expired. It was not 
 long, however, before Alcibiades, a celebrated Athe- 
 nian general, persuaded his countrymen to violate 
 the treaty, and thus hostilities were again com- 
 menced. War was pursued with various fortune; 
 the Athenians being usually successful by sea, and 
 the Spartans by land. 
 
 I should have told you before, that in a battle 
 near Potidaea, Alcibiades was severely wounded. 
 In all probability he would have been killed, but 
 Socrates, who fought by his side, bravely defended 
 and rescued him. This brave and friendly action 
 was requited afterwards by Alcibiades, who, in 
 another battle, saved Socrates from the swords of 
 the Boeotians. 
 
 But at length the tide seemed to turn against 
 Athens, and its humiliation evidently drew nigh. 
 The Spartan fleet, under the command of Lysander, 
 blockaded the port, and Agis and Pausanias, two 
 kings of Sparta, with a large army, besieged the 
 city.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 73 
 
 The wretched Athenians, thus hemmed in on 
 every side, without provisions, ships, or hopes of 
 relief, prepared to meet the last extremity with 
 patience; in this manner, without speaking the 
 least word of a capitulation, and dying in the 
 streets by numbers, they obstinately continued on 
 the defensive. But at length, their corn and 
 provisions being exhausted, they found themselves 
 compelled to send deputies to Agis, with offers of 
 abandoning all their possessions, their city and 
 port only excepted. 
 
 These were received with haughtiness by the 
 proud Spartan, and, having been referred to the 
 council of state, were rejected. The Athenians, 
 incapable of resistance, were reduced to absolute 
 submission. Their port was demolished, and an 
 agreement entered into by which their fleet was 
 limited to twelve ships; the people were to under- 
 take no military enterprise in future except under 
 the Lacedaemonians. This occurred in the year 
 404 B.C. 
 
 Lysander now proceeded to overturn the govern- 
 ment of Athens, and establish another in its place. 
 He abolished the elective system, and placed the 
 supreme power in the hands of thirty individuals, 
 generally called the Thirty Tyrants; but these 
 retained their places for only a short period. Such 
 was the despotism and cruelty of their conduct, 
 that in eight months they were all deposed and 
 killed by the Athenians in an insurrection headed 
 by Thrasybulus.
 
 74 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 During the short reign of the thirty tyrants, it is 
 said that as many persons lost their lives at Athens 
 as during ten years of the Peloponnesian war. 
 After their destruction the democracy was restored, 
 and Athens was again left in the possession of her 
 liberty. 
 
 The Grecian states were now in the enjoyment of 
 peace. But the Spartans could never remain in- 
 active. If they had no quarrels of their own, they 
 would join in those of other people. An agent 
 now arrived from Cyrus, brother of the King of 
 Persia, begging their assistance in an attempt he 
 was about to make to dethrone the king. He held 
 out the prospect of large rewards, and the Spartans 
 easily consented to his request. 
 
 Accordingly, an army of thirteen thousand men 
 was soon raised, and sent into Asia Minor. Here 
 they were joined by the forces of Cyrus, and in a 
 short time a battle took place in the neighbourhood 
 of Babylon, between the armies of the rival brothers. 
 Cyrus was defeated and slain. 
 
 Three thousand of the Greeks were killed in the 
 engagement, and the rest found it necessary to 
 make a rapid retreat. They were commanded by 
 Xenophon, who obtained great renown for the skill 
 with which he conducted their march back to their 
 own country. The distance from Babylon to the 
 Euxine was one thousand six hundred miles, and 
 this great space was traversed by the army with 
 scarcely the loss of a man. This took place in the 
 year 401 B.C.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 75 
 
 Soon after these events a civil war again broke 
 out in Greece, in which most of the states were 
 leagued against Sparta. Agesilaus, the Spartan 
 king, ably sustained the honour of his country, 
 but all parties being at length weary and weak- 
 ened by the war, peace was concluded in the 
 year 387 B.C. 
 
 It was about this period that Thebes began to 
 rival the largest cities in Greece, and in the space 
 of a few years rose to a pitch of splendour which 
 surpassed them all. But unhappily the state was 
 agitated by violent factions. The government at 
 this time was in the hands of certain individuals 
 who had usurped the supreme power. Such was 
 the cruelty and injustice of their conduct that 
 many of the noblest inhabitants went into voluntary 
 exile. 
 
 Among these was a young man named Pelopidas, 
 who, though absent from his country, and disgusted 
 with its government, still remembered it with 
 affection. After reflecting anxiously upon the 
 subject, he resolved to attempt the deliverance of 
 his country from the tyranny under which it 
 groaned. Taking with him a few associates, he 
 returned secretly to Thebes, and by a fortunate 
 union of boldness and skill, he crushed the 
 usurpers, and restored the people to their freedom. 
 
 Immediately after this, Thebes was engaged in 
 a war with Sparta. Epaminondas and Pelopidas 
 were her generals. Several skirmishes took place, 
 but at length the two armies met upon the plains
 
 76 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 of Leuctra. After the most desperate fighting 
 on both sides, the Thebans gained a complete 
 victory. 
 
 The Spartans lost more than four thousand men; 
 the Thebans only three hundred. This battle, 
 which is one of the most famous in Grecian history, 
 took place in the year 371 B.C. 
 
 The war continued for several years, with various 
 success; in its progress all Greece became involved 
 in it. Battles were lost and won, conquests were 
 made and abandoned, and alliances broken and 
 concluded, without producing any important bene- 
 fits. At last a great battle was fought at Mantinea, 
 between the Thebans, under Epaminondas, and the 
 combined forces of Athens and Sparta. 
 
 Here again the Thebans were completely vic- 
 torious, but their general, Epaminondas, was among 
 the slain. Thebes doubtless lost more in the death 
 of this remarkable man than she gained in the 
 splendid victory for which he sacrificed his life. 
 The battle of Mantinea was fought in the year 
 362 B.C. 
 
 The states of Greece were now thoroughly worn 
 out with fighting, and, consequently, peace soon 
 followed. An agreement was entered into by all 
 except Sparta, that each should retain what it 
 possessed, and be independent of every other 
 power. A state of repose followed this peace, and 
 the hostile feelings which had been generated by 
 the war were gradually put to rest. 
 
 Let me give you one instance, among the many
 
 ABOUT GREECE 77 
 
 that existed, of the superstitious regard which the 
 Greeks had for their temples. 
 
 A little before his illness, the celebrated Agesi- 
 polis had visited the temple of Bacchus, at 
 Aphyteus, famous for the beauty and coolness 
 of its shady bowers and crystal waters. When 
 taken ill, he had a strong desire to visit the place 
 again, believing that he should then recover. 
 
 He was conveyed to Aphyteus, but soon after his 
 arrival he died without the temple ; for the super- 
 stitious Greeks were afraid of the anger of the 
 deity if they permitted the pollution of death 
 within the building. Thus they thought the act 
 of denying shelter to a dying sufferer rather 
 meritorious than censurable. 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 Macedonia Philip State of Greece Sacred "War Philip advances 
 toward Greece Demosthenes The Athenians take possession 
 of Thermopylae Philip persuades the Athenians to let him 
 enter Greece End of the Sacred War Philip undertakes the 
 conquest of Greece Battle of Cheronea Peace Projected 
 invasion of Persia Death of Philip. 
 
 I MUST now direct the attention of my readers to 
 Macedonia, an extensive country lying to the north 
 of Greece. At present it is within the boundary 
 of Turkey, and constitutes a part of the province 
 called Rumelia. 1 
 
 1 Macedonia is now divided between Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, and Greece.
 
 78 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 This kingdom was founded about 750 years before 
 Christ, by Caranus, a descendant of Hercules. For 
 a long time the people remained in a barbarous 
 state, and were little known beyond their imme- 
 diate neighbourhood. But, gradually emerging from 
 their obscurity, they had reached a considerable 
 pitch of civilization when Philip, a descendant of 
 Caranus, ascended the throne, in the year 360 B.C. 
 
 He was a man of great talents, and his mind 
 was filled with the highest ambition. For several 
 years he was occupied in arranging the affairs of his 
 own kingdom, which were in a distracted state when 
 he came to the throne. This business being com- 
 pleted, he turned his arms against the neighbour- 
 ing countries of Thrace, Thessaly, and Illyria. His 
 efforts being crowned with success, his grasping mind 
 conceived the project of subjugating all Greece. 
 
 Unhappily, the condition of this country was 
 but too favourable to the success of his designs. 
 The warlike spirit, and the jealous love of liberty, 
 which had once distinguished these states, had 
 now passed away. The Athenians had lost their 
 love of martial deeds, and were now devoted to the 
 refinements of luxury and taste. 
 
 The great men among them were no longer 
 generals, naval commanders, and statesmen, but 
 players, poets, and sculptors. The people listened 
 no more with delight to the recital of tales which 
 recorded the heroic deeds of their ancestors, but 
 gave themselves up to the softening and seducing 
 influence of luxurious enjoyments.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 79 
 
 Sparta was no less changed from the simplicity 
 of her ancient manners; her power had been 
 abridged, and nearly destroyed, by the recent 
 independence of the states of Peloponnesus, and 
 she was in no capacity to attempt a recovery of 
 lier former greatness. 
 
 Thebes, in the death of Epaminondas, had lost 
 the only man capable of leading her farther in the 
 path of glory ; and the smaller states, weakened by 
 mutual dissensions, were scarcely able to protect 
 themselves from each other. 
 
 Such was the situation of the Grecian states 
 when the ambitious king of Macedon began to look 
 upon them as the lion in ambush regards the 
 antelope upon which he intends to prey. An 
 opportunity was soon afforded for marching his 
 army into Greece. 
 
 The Phocians, it seems, had ploughed up a field 
 near the temple of Apollo, at Delphi, which was 
 regarded as sacred. The people of the neighbour- 
 ing states considered this an insult to Apollo, and, 
 as other means of adjusting the difficulty proved 
 unavailing, war was at length declared. 
 
 The Phocians were assisted by Athens, Sparta, 
 and several of the Peloponnesian states; while 
 Thebes, Thessaly, and others combined against 
 them. To gain additional strength, the latter 
 called upon Philip of Macedon for assistance, his 
 fame as a military leader having now reached all 
 ears. 
 
 At first the wily monarch did not comply with
 
 80 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 the request, but chose rather that the Grecians 
 should weaken themselves, by fighting with each 
 other, that they might more easily be subdued. 
 Like most other conquerors, he was by no means 
 averse to bloodshed and slaughter, and considered 
 it no part of his duty to promote peace and culti- 
 vate charity among mankind. What he desired was 
 to conquer the nations, not to make them happy. 
 
 He looked, therefore, with secret delight upon 
 the civil wars of his neighbours, knowing that they 
 would the more surely become his victims. At 
 length the time came when he thought it proper 
 to set about the execution of his scheme. 
 
 The history of Greece comprehends so many 
 interesting narratives that I am obliged to pass 
 by very many of them; let me, however, before I 
 go on with my account of Philip the Macedonian, 
 tell you that the greatest part of the Grecian cities, 
 particularly Athens, observed the festivals called 
 Thesmophoria, from a Greek name of the goddess 
 Demeter or Ceres. 
 
 Callippus, one of Plato's disciples, being required 
 by Arete and Aristomache to swear that he would 
 not injure Dion, a celebrated Syracusan, entered 
 the temple, and took the great oath, habited in a 
 purple robe, and holding in his hand a lighted 
 torch. But though he took the oath, he resolved 
 not only to break it, but also to make his sacrilege 
 complete by murdering Dion on the festival of the 
 goddess to whom the temple was dedicated. 
 
 To resume my narrative, Philip raised a large
 
 ABOUT GREECE 81 
 
 army on pretence of going against the Phocians, 
 and marched toward Thermopylae, intending to 
 take possession of that important pass. But at 
 this time there lived in Athens a celebrated orator, 
 named Demosthenes. He was a man of great 
 wisdom, and was sincerely devoted to the cause 
 of his country. He well understood the character 
 of Philip, and easily saw through his ambitious 
 designs. 
 
 When that monarch was already on his way 
 toward Thermopylae, Demosthenes went before the 
 people, and exhibited the danger which threatened 
 them. By his clear reasoning, he proved the truth 
 of what he affirmed, and, by his stirring eloquence, 
 roused the Athenians to action. 
 
 They immediately despatched an army to Ther- 
 mopylae, who, by rapid marches, reached it before 
 the arrival of Philip. When the latter came, 
 finding the pass guarded, he did not attempt to 
 force it, but employed himself against the adjacent 
 districts. 
 
 Meanwhile he secretly caused money to be 
 distributed to various persons in Greece, who 
 warmly espoused his cause; and thus, by bribery, 
 corruption, and other unworthy means, he obtained 
 the consent of the Athenians to let him pass into 
 Greece. 
 
 He now marched against the Phocians, who, 
 being terrified at the approach of his powerful 
 army, submitted without opposition. Thus ended 
 the Sacred War, as it was called, in the year 346 
 
 ( M 895 ) F
 
 82 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 B.c. But I must not neglect to tell you the fate of 
 the poor Phocians. It was decreed that their cities 
 should all be demolished, and that they should, in 
 future, only live in villages. Philip proceeded to 
 execute this hard sentence with the utmost severity, 
 and the silence with which it was done seemed 
 more dreadful than the ravages of war. At the 
 distance of three years Phocis presented a piteous 
 sight of devastation. 
 
 Philip now returned with his army to Macedon, 
 contenting himself with the secret prosecution of 
 his designs; but at length, his plans being matured, 
 he threw off the mask, and openly appeared in arms 
 for the conquest of Greece. As his forces were 
 advancing, the Athenians, by the advice of Demos- 
 thenes formed a league with Thebes, and sent 
 an army to oppose him. 
 
 This consisted of thirty thousand men, partly 
 Athenians and partly Thebans. Philip, at the 
 head of thirty-two thousand men, offered them 
 battle at Chseronea. He was himself on the right 
 wing of his army, and his son Alexander, now nine- 
 teen years of age, led on the left. The Grecian 
 troops were animated by the noblest sentiments, 
 love of country and hatred of oppression. But, 
 unhappily, they were commanded by generals or 
 feeble talents and no experience. 
 
 The battle at length commenced. The Athen- 
 ians made an impetuous charge, and, for a moment, 
 drove back the Macedonian troops. But Philip 
 urged on his men, and, fighting with unexampled
 
 ABOUT GREECE 83 
 
 steadiness and bravery, the Athenians were at 
 length defeated. The Thebans had no better 
 success. They fought with desperate courage, 
 till, many of them being killed, they were forced 
 to yield. 
 
 The result of the battle was a total overthrow of 
 the Grecian forces. This sealed the fate of Greece. 
 She made no further attempts at resistance, but 
 submitted to a humbling peace with the conqueror. 
 While they retained their nominal independence, 
 they acknowledged the supremacy of Philip in all 
 national affairs. 
 
 Soon after these events, Philip projected the 
 invasion of Persia. He submitted his plan to 
 the Greeks, and it was agreed that they should 
 assist him with a large army drawn from the 
 several states. The arrangements were nearly 
 completed, when the king, dreaming only of further 
 conquests, was assassinated, in revenge of a private 
 injury, in the year 336 B.C. 
 
 Having omitted to tell you how Philip was 
 treated by Atheas, King of Scythia, I will mention 
 it here, as the circumstance illustrates the character 
 of the wily Scythian. Atheas had requested the 
 assistance of Philip against his enemies, which 
 had been given, and Philip sent to Atheas to 
 require the pay of the Macedonian troops. 
 
 The envoys despatched on this occasion found 
 the Scythian king in a stable, currying his horse, 
 for, in time of peace, he made but little distinction 
 between himself and his groom. Atheas listened
 
 84 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 to their message, and then deridingly replied that 
 the sterile soil and inclement skies of Scythia 
 scarcely afforded needful food; he, therefore, had 
 nothing worth offering to so great a potentate as 
 Philip. Scythians, he said, were not remarkable 
 for riches, but for hardy bodies and valiant minds. 
 
 Such is the brief history of Philip. He was 
 a man of powerful mind and boundless ambition; 
 had he lived, he would doubtless have ranked 
 among the greatest military heroes of antiquity. 
 It is natural for us to admire the display of great 
 talents; and even when they are directed by 
 grasping selfishness, we are sometimes led to ap- 
 plaud where we ought to condemn. 
 
 But we should reflect that he who seeks to 
 deprive a nation of its liberty and independence, 
 would rob them of things more dear than all other 
 earthly possessions. If, in addition to this, he 
 sheds the blood of innocent men, who fight only 
 in defence of their rights, he adds a crime of the 
 deepest dye to his other iniquities. 
 
 The admiration excited by the actions of a great 
 conqueror is like the pleasure caused by the spec- 
 tacle of a city on fire. While the ruddy blaze and 
 the rolling smoke fill the mind with ideas of 
 sublimity, we should not forget the anguish of the 
 suffering inhabitants of the devoted town.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 85 
 
 CHAPTER XIII 
 
 Youthful days of Alexander Bucephalus Alexander ascends the 
 throne He sets out for Persia Battle of the Granicus Battle 
 of Issus Generosity of Alexander He goes to Jerusalem 
 Gaza Conquest of Egypt Building of Alexandria Battle of 
 Arbela Death of Darius Submission of Persia Alexander 
 goes as far east as the Ganges Hindoos Return of the army 
 to Persepolis Destruction of that city Alexander proceeds to 
 Babylon That city becomes the seat of his empire His 
 gloomy state of mind Intemperance Sickness and Death. 
 
 ALEXANDER was born at Pella, the capital of 
 Macedon, in the year 356 B.C. The greatest pains 
 were taken with his education; he was not only 
 trained in all kinds of manly exercises, but the 
 utmost care was taken to cultivate his mind. He 
 enjoyed the instruction of the ablest teachers in 
 Greece, and for several years was the pupil of 
 Aristotle. 
 
 This philosopher lived at Athens, and was justly 
 esteemed the most learned man of the age. Many 
 of his writings have come down to us, and are still 
 read with deep interest, for the wisdom and know- 
 ledge they display. The heroic deeds of Alexander 
 will sooner be forgotten than the philosophy of 
 Aristotle. 
 
 At a very early period Alexander began to 
 exhibit that ambition and love of glory which 
 characterized him through life. On one occasion 
 his friends asked him if he would not be present 
 at the Olympic games to dispute the prize at the
 
 86 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 foot-races, he being very swift of foot. I should 
 tell you, by the way, that these games were 
 celebrated every fifth year, at Olympia in Elis. 
 
 The sports were various. Wrestling was one of 
 them. Great was the strength and skill of those 
 who contended, and fearful the falls that some of 
 them experienced. 
 
 Leaping was another, and wonderful proofs of 
 agility were performed. No one was allowed to 
 contend at the Olympic games who had not 
 regularly exercised himself for ten months before. 
 
 Boxing, too, was practised, and no unfair dealing 
 allowed. Whoever attempted to bribe his adver- 
 sary, or play falsely, was subject to a severe fine. 
 Criminals and guilty persons were not permitted to 
 contend t,t any of the games, and even the father 
 and relatives of the combatant were obliged to 
 swear that they would have recourse to no unfair 
 advantage. 
 
 Throwing the Discus, or Quoit, called forth the 
 energies of many of their bravest warriors, and some 
 of the poetic accounts which are given of the feats 
 performed at this favourite exercise are very 
 astonishing. 
 
 Running was a favourite game, and if we were 
 to believe some of the exaggerated relations about 
 the swiftest runners that entered the Arena, we 
 should conclude that an arrow shot by a strong 
 bowman is not more rapid in its flight than they 
 were. 
 
 Horse and Chariot Races formed another of the
 
 ABOUT GREECE 87 
 
 games, and many a proud steed lay exhausted on 
 the plain, vanquished by prouder and swifter rivals. 
 Perhaps no one of the games was so imposing to 
 the sight as this, of urging the highest bred and 
 fleetest steeds to their utmost speed. 
 
 People assembled from all parts of Greece to 
 witness the Olympic games, in which they took 
 the deepest interest. As great applause was 
 bestowed on the victors, it was supposed that 
 Alexander might wish to be a competitor; but 
 he replied that he did not wish to run a race 
 unless kings were his rivalo. 
 
 While he was at Pella, at an age too young 
 to accompany his father to the wars, it is said 
 that whenever news was brought him of a victory 
 gained by Philip, he remarked despondingly : 
 " My father will conquer everything, and leave 
 nothing for me to do ". 
 
 Another anecdote will serve to display the bold 
 and dexterous horsemanship of this young prince. 
 Philip received, from Thessaly, a noble, strong, 
 fiery, and generous war-horse, called Bucephalus. 
 The king went into the plains, attended by his 
 courtiers, in order to view the perfections of this 
 animal; but upon trial he was so fierce^ and 
 pranced about in so furious a manner, that no 
 one dared to mount him. 
 
 Philip, being very angry that so unmanageable 
 a creature had been sent him, gave orders for 
 their carrying him back again. Alexander, who 
 was present at that time, cried out: "What a noble
 
 88 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 horse we are going to lose, for want of boldness 
 and address to back him!" 
 
 Philip, at first, considered these words as the 
 effect of folly and rashness so common to young 
 men; but as Alexander insisted still more upon 
 what he had said, and was very much vexed to 
 see so noble a creature going to be sent hoire 
 again, his father gave him leave to try what he 
 could do. 
 
 The young prince, overjoyed at this proposal, 
 went up to Bucephalus, took hold of his bridle, 
 and turned his head to the sun, having observed 
 that the thing which frightened him was his own 
 shadow. Alexander, therefore, first stroked him 
 gently with his hand, and soothed him with his 
 voice; then, seeing his fierceness abate, and art- 
 fully taking this opportunity, he let fall his cloak, 
 and, springing swiftly upon his back, first slackened 
 the rein, without striking or vexing him. 
 
 When he perceived that his fire was cooled, 
 that he was no longer so furious and violent, 
 and that he wanted only to move forward, he 
 gave him the rein, and spurred him with great 
 vigour, animating him with his voice to full speed. 
 The noble beast seemed rather to fly than run. 
 While this was doing, Philip and his whole court 
 trembled for fear, and did not once open their 
 lips. 
 
 But when the prince, after having run his first 
 heat, returned with joy and pride, at having 
 broken a horse which was judged absolutely un-
 
 ALEXANDER THE GREAT 
 
 From the statue in the Capitoline Museum, Rome
 
 ABOUT GREECE 89 
 
 governable, all the courtiers endeavoured to outvie 
 one another in their applauses and congratulations. 
 We are told that Philip shed tears of joy upon this 
 occasion, and, embracing Alexander after he had 
 alighted, said to him: "My son, seek a kingdom 
 more worthy of thee, for Macedon is below thy 
 merit ". 
 
 Such was Alexander in his youth; but we are 
 now to observe him as a man. At his father's 
 death, being twenty years of age, he succeeded to 
 the Macedonian throne. He immediately hastened 
 into Greece to confirm the authority that Philip 
 had acquired there. Having assembled a council 
 of the Grecian states at Corinth, then one of the 
 most splendid cities of antiquity, he was appointed 
 general of the combined army destined to invade 
 Persia. 
 
 After some little delay, occasioned by the revolt 
 of Thebes, he set out with an army of thirty 
 thousand foot and five thousand horse, crossed 
 the Hellespont, and pursued his march toward 
 Persia. When he reached the river Granicus, he 
 found an army of more than one hundred thousand 
 Persians ready to dispute his passage ; but, mounted 
 upon the back of Bucephalus, he plunged boldly 
 into the river, followed by his troops, attacked the 
 enemy with irresistible energy, and obtained a 
 complete victory, leaving twenty thousand Persians 
 dead upon the field. 
 
 Proceeding in his march, some of the cities 
 opened their gates, and others resisted the invader.
 
 90 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 But, overcoming all obstacles, Alexander pressed 
 forward till lie approached a small town called 
 Issus. Here Darius, the King of Persia, had 
 assembled a force of four hundred thousand men. 
 A dreadful battle soon followed, and the Greeks 
 were again the conquerors ; losing but four hundred 
 and fifty men themselves, they strewed the ground 
 with the dead bodies of more than one hundred 
 thousand of the enemy. 
 
 While I am relating the scenes of slaughter which 
 attended the steps of the ruthless Macedonian, I 
 must not forget to tell you an instance of his 
 generosity. When Darius saw his army defeated 
 he took to flight, leaving his family unprotected in 
 his tent. This soon fell into the hands of Alex' 
 ander, who found there not only immense riches, 
 but the Persian queen, with her mother, son, and 
 attendants. 
 
 Expecting the severest treatment, the princesses 
 knelt with dignified submission before the con- 
 queror. Alexander begged them to rise, assured 
 them, with a voice of kindness, that they had 
 nothing to fear, and tried every means in his power 
 to put them at ease. He detained them in his 
 camp as prisoners of war, but ever caused them to 
 be treated with the utmost respect. It is remark- 
 able that even in ancient times this conduct of 
 Alexander seems to have been regarded as more 
 worthy of renown than all his conquests. 
 
 The conqueror now marched into Phoenicia, and, 
 after having subdued the rest of the country, laid
 
 ABOUT GREECE 91 
 
 siege to Tyre. This city held out for seven months, 
 when it was taken by storm. He now marched 
 towards Jerusalem, determined to punish the Jews 
 because they had sworn allegiance to Darius. 
 
 On approaching the city he was met by a solemn 
 procession of all the most venerable inhabitants, 
 headed by the high priest arrayed in the vestments 
 in which he was wont to offer up sacrifices to God. 
 The moment the king perceived the high priest, he 
 approached him with an air of the greatest respect, 
 bowed his body, and adored the name of God that 
 was inscribed on a plate of gold on the priest's 
 forehead. 
 
 His courtiers stood in silent amazement at this 
 wonderful and sudden change. At length one of 
 them, named Parmenio, ventured to ask him how 
 he, who was adored by everyone, paid such a 
 tribute of veneration to the priest of a people so 
 insignificant? 
 
 " I do not", replied Alexander, " adore the priest, 
 but the God whose minister he is; for while I was 
 at Dia, meditating on my intended expedition into 
 Persia, this very man, dressed as he now is, appeared 
 to me in a dream, encouraging me to cross the 
 Hellespont boldly, for the God that he worshipped 
 would march at the head of my army, and give me 
 victory over the Persians." 
 
 Having thus answered Parmenio by relating a 
 pretended vision, Alexander embraced the high 
 priest, and accompanied him to Jerusalem, were he 
 assisted at a solemn sacrifice. After conferring
 
 92 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 some privileges on the Jews, he proceeded south- 
 wards till he reached Gaza. 
 
 Here the inhabitants shut the gates of the city 
 against him, and bade him defiance. He besieged 
 the place, and afterwards carried it by storm. 
 Many of the inhabitants were killed, and ten 
 thousand of them were cruelly sold into captivity. 
 He now marched into Egypt, and made an easy 
 conquest of that country, which at this period was 
 crowded with inhabitants, and filled with magni- 
 ficent cities. 
 
 Here he laid the foundation of Alexandria, which 
 soon became one of the most splendid cities in the 
 world. Its ruins still remain in the neighbourhood 
 of the modern town of that name, and no one can 
 look upon the heaps of sculptured marble, the 
 broken columns, obelisks, and statues, but with 
 amazement. 
 
 Success had now greatly changed the character 
 of Alexander. He appears naturally to have 
 possessed much generosity, but from this period he 
 was arrogant, passionate, and cruel. He seems 
 also to have been inflated with a degree of conceit 
 almost amounting to madness. At a subsequent 
 period he even claimed to be a god, and expected 
 of his followers that reverence which is due only to 
 the Divinity. 
 
 Darius had assembled an army of seven hundred 
 thousand men in Assyria. Alexander marched 
 against him, and a great battle took place at 
 Arbela. Here, as in every other conflict, the
 
 ABOUT GREECE 93 
 
 Persians were beaten, and their loss amounted to 
 the prodigious number of three hundred thousand 
 men. The whole Grecian force did not exceed fifty 
 thousand. 
 
 This was a fatal battle to Darius. He now 
 became a fugitive, and, retreating from province to 
 province, was at length murdered by one of his 
 own officers. His accomplished but unfortunate 
 queen had died some time before in captivity. 
 
 The Persian empire thus overthrown, the people 
 submitted to Alexander in the year 330 B.C. The 
 more fully to express his triumph, he made a 
 splendid entry with his whole army into the city 
 of Babylon. At the present time the place where 
 this city stood is a mere desert, scattered over with 
 ruins, scarcely sufficient to mark the spot. 
 
 But in the day of Alexander's triumph it was a 
 proud city, and as he entered the streets, the in- 
 habitants strewed flowers and rich garments in his 
 path; altars were raised on every side, smoking 
 with sacrifices offered in honour of their new 
 master, and all seemed anxious to testify alle- 
 giance. 
 
 Alexander, now conceiving that the gods had 
 decreed to him the empire of the whole world, 
 determined to conquer India. Accordingly he set 
 out on his march, and, overcoming every obstacle, 
 finally reached the Ganges. He would have gone 
 farther, but his soldiers, seeing no end to their 
 toils, refused to proceed. He was therefore obliged 
 to return.
 
 94 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 It is remarkable that the inhabitants of India 
 at that day were nearly the same as now. The 
 descriptions of the people, as given by those who 
 accompanied Alexander, their religion, laws, govern- 
 ment, and character, would suit the present genera- 
 tion of Hindoos with little variation. 
 
 Pursuing his route homeward, the conqueror and 
 the army at length reached Persepolis, the capital 
 of the Persian empire. The ruins of that city are 
 still to be seen in modern Persia, and attest the 
 proud magnificence of its early days. Here Alex- 
 ander gave himself up to the indulgence of his 
 passions, and, in a fit of drunkenness, ordered the 
 city to be set on fire. It was thus destroyed, 
 leaving its noble remains to defy the crumbling 
 lapse of ages. 
 
 From Persepolis Alexander marched to Babylon. 
 After various combats, conquests, cruelties, follies, 
 and excesses, he arrived at that place, and made it 
 the seat of his empire. But riot and indulgence 
 had now debased his character, and led him to the 
 weakest and most wicked actions. His vanity was 
 excessive; and when Clitus, an old soldier, who 
 had once saved his life in battle, intimated that his 
 father was his superior, the enraged king plunged 
 ,a javelin into his bosom, and killed him. 
 
 Bub with all his excitements, the mind of 
 Alexander was clouded with gloom. The cruelties 
 he had committed, the thousands of people he had 
 slain, filled his imagination with ghastly images, 
 and the rivers of blood he had shed seemerl to
 
 ABOUT GREECE 95 
 
 flow with a fearful current throughout all his 
 dreams. 
 
 To dissipate these melancholy fancies he drank 
 immoderate quantities of wine. Frequent banquets 
 for his entertainment were made, and at one of 
 these he drank to such an excess as to fall upon the 
 floor to all appearance dead. He was taken up, 
 but a fever soon followed; and in a few days he 
 died, at the age of thirty- two, after a reign of 
 twelve years. This event occurred in the year 
 323 B.C. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 Character of Alexander Division of the empire Antipater Fate 
 of Athens Death of Demosthenes Story of Phocion Invasion 
 of the Gauls Pyrrhus Achaean League Philopoemen Eto- 
 lians apply to the Romans Macedonia becomes a Roman 
 province Spartans apply to the Romans Achaeans defeated 
 by Metellus Final defeat of the Greeks by Mummius Greece 
 becomes a Roman province. 
 
 IN estimating the character of Alexander, we must 
 attribute more to his good fortune than his wisdom. 
 He was doubtless brave, energetic, and skilful in 
 attacking an enemy, but we must consider that all 
 the eastern nations whom he conquered were sunk 
 in luxury and ease. They had neither knowledge 
 nor spirit for war, but were weak, effeminate, and 
 degraded. They had no able generals, and, having 
 been long ruled by despots, had no love of country, 
 and no attachment to their rulers. It is easy to
 
 PETER PARLEYS TALES 
 
 perceive that it was a very different thing to con- 
 quer nations like these from what it would have 
 been to have conquered countries like Sparta and 
 Athens in their better days. 
 
 In private life Alexander appears to have pos- 
 sessed a generous nature, spoiled, however, by 
 indulgence, flattery, and success. In his youth he 
 was sincere, ardent, and passionately devoted to 
 what was then called glory ; but in after-life he be- 
 came haughty, resentful, dissipated, and debased. 
 
 His murder of Parmenio, one of his best generals, 
 who had, perhaps, contributed more to his renown 
 than any other, ought not to pass unnoticed. 
 
 Alexander, hearing that Philotas, son of Par- 
 menio, had kept back information of a plot against 
 him, concluded at once that both of them were 
 guilty. Philotas was put to the rack, and in his 
 agony confessed himself guilty. Parmenio was 
 afterwards murdered. 
 
 While walking in the palace garden a letter was 
 put into his hand from Alexander, and another, 
 forged, as though it came from his son. While 
 reading the letter, he was approached from behind 
 and stabbed. The aged warrior sank to the earth, 
 and received, in the agonies of death, the gashes of 
 the murderers around him. 
 
 Alexander, mighty as he had been, may be 
 said to have died the victim of his brutality, 
 and seems to have lived rather to dazzle than 
 benefit mankind. 
 
 The jempire of Alexander, at his death, embraced
 
 ABOUT GREECE 97 
 
 nearly all parts of the earth which were then known. 
 Like most other worldly men, he had made no 
 preparation for death. He did not even appoint 
 a successor, or make any other provision for the 
 government of his vast dominions. His generals, 
 therefore, determined to divide the various countries 
 among themselves. Accordingly a distribution of 
 them was made between thirty-three of his prin- 
 cipal officers, who now repaired to their several 
 kingdoms. 
 
 It is not possible for me to give you the history 
 of these various sovereigns, except in general terms. 
 Their power was of short duration, for jealousies 
 soon arose between them, and bloodshed, anarchy, 
 and confusion followed. A new distribution of 
 Alexander's empire was soon found necessary, and 
 it was therefore divided into four great kingdoms. 
 
 In this last division, Macedonia, Epirus, and 
 Greece came into the hands of Antipater. But 
 the Athenians, as well as the other Greeks, hated 
 the Macedonian dominion, and sent a large army 
 against Antipater. At first they were successful, 
 but afterwards they were entirely defeated, and 
 all the states were forced to make a humiliating 
 peace. 
 
 Athens was treated with peculiar severity. 
 Many of the citizens were deprived of their 
 privileges, and, finding their situation insupport- 
 able, went into exile, and settled in Thrace. 
 Antipater required that Demosthenes should be 
 given up; but the orator found means to escape 
 
 (M895) G
 
 98 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 to the island of Calaureia, where he terminated his 
 life by poison, rather than fall into the hands of 
 the Macedonian king. 
 
 The Athenians afterwards erected a statue of 
 brass to his memory, with this inscription: "De- 
 mosthenes, if thy power had been equal to thy 
 wisdom, the Macedonian Mars would never have 
 triumphed over Greece". 
 
 There is a tale, among modern Athenians, that 
 the monument of Lysicrates, which stood at the 
 east end of the Acropolis, was built by Demos- 
 thenes as a place of retirement and study. On 
 this account they call the remains the Lantern 
 of Demosthenes. The truth is, however, in the 
 opinion of the best -informed people, that Demos- 
 thenes had nothing to do with it, and that it 
 was erected to commemorate some victories gained 
 at the Olympic Games. 
 
 Antipater died, leaving his kingdom to Poly- 
 sperchon. For several years Greece shared largely 
 in the revolutions which agitated the empire of 
 Alexander. I shall not attempt to tell you the 
 whole story of this period; a few events, however, 
 are worthy of notice. There lived at this time, 
 in Athens, a poor but honest man, named Phocion. 
 He was fifty times made governor of the city, 
 without ever having solicited a vote. 
 
 This great and good man became unpopular 
 with the fickle and ungrateful Athenians, and after 
 suffering the greatest indignities, was killed by 
 poison at the age of eighty years. His very body
 
 ABOUT GREECE 99 
 
 was banished from the city, and all were forbidden 
 to bestow upon it the last funeral rites. 
 
 About the year 280 B.C. a horde of barbarian 
 warriors from Gaul, now called France, marched 
 into Macedonia. They were commanded by 
 Brennus, and having defeated the King of Macedon, 
 'dispersed themselves over all Greece, in search of 
 plunder. The Greeks attacked them repeatedly, 
 but the fierce barbarians were victorious. 
 
 At length, as a large part of the army, com- 
 manded by Brennus, approached the temple of 
 Apollo at Delphi, with a view to carry off its 
 rich treasures, a terrible storm arose, and an 
 earthquake tore open the earth beneath the feet 
 of the invaders. In this way thousands of them 
 were instantly destroyed, together with their 
 leaders, and the miserable remnant of the army 
 were slain by the inhabitants of Greece. 
 
 About ten years after these events, Pyrrhus, 
 King of Epirus, and the most renowned commander 
 of his time, declared war against Sparta, and 
 brought his armies to the very gates of the city. 
 Animated by something of their ancient spirit, 
 the inhabitants made a noble defence. Men, 
 women, and children engaged with the most 
 determined vigour in the effort to repel the 
 assault. 
 
 Pyrrhus was at length obliged to withdraw, but 
 afterwards, being admitted into the town by 
 treachery, he was killed in the streets by a woman, 
 who threw a tile upon his head from the roof of
 
 100 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 a house. This she did in revenge for the death 
 of her son, which Pyrrhus had occasioned. 
 
 In the year 237 several of the smaller states 
 of Greece formed a league to protect each other 
 against the larger states. Achaia being the prin- 
 cipal of these small states, and having projected 
 the scheme, it was called the Achaean league. 
 Sparta and Etolia declared war against the 
 members of the league, and defeated them in 
 several battles. 
 
 The result was, that the Achaeans were deserted 
 by their colleagues, and therefore applied to the 
 King of Macedon for assistance. This was granted, 
 and the Spartans, under Cleomenes, were over- 
 thrown. Sparta itself became subject to Macedon, 
 and sank into insignificance. The Macedonians 
 returned home, and a temporary suspension of the 
 war took place. 
 
 But it soon broke out afresh, and the Achaeans 
 again sought and obtained succour from Macedon. 
 At this time Aratus was their leader, but Philip, 
 the new King of Macedon, came into Greece, and 
 caused him to be poisoned. 
 
 After his death, the Achaean league was sup- 
 ported by Philopcemen, the last distinguished 
 leader whom Greece produced. He has sometimes 
 been called the last of the Greeks. In the course 
 of the war he took Sparta, and razed its walls to 
 the ground. Thus, this proud city was prostrated, 
 tie ver again to rise from its ruins. 
 
 Philip now turned his arms against the Etolians,
 
 ABOUT GREECE 101 
 
 who, being reduced to the last extremity, applied 
 to the Romans for assistance. Rome, at this time, 
 had become a powerful nation, and was rapidly 
 advancing toward that greatness which she after- 
 wards attained. The request of the Etolians was 
 granted, and thus a foundation was laid for the 
 speedy destruction of Grecian independence. A 
 Roman army marched into Macedonia; Philip gave 
 them battle, but was defeated, and obliged to sue 
 for peace. 
 
 Perseus succeeded Philip, but he was soon in- 
 volved in war with the Romans. He was attacked, 
 defeated, and carried in triumph to Rome, as a 
 prisoner of war. Macedonia was then reduced to 
 a Roman province. This took place in 167 B.C. 
 
 The approaching fate of Greece was not long 
 averted. Disputes rose between the states, war 
 ensued, and the Spartans called on Rome for 
 assistance. Their request was complied with, but 
 with the intention of taking possession of the 
 whole country. The Roman legions marched into 
 Greece, and the Achaean army was defeated by 
 Metellus, their general; the remainder, which had 
 fled to Corinth, were captured by Mummius. The 
 Achaean league was now dissolved, and Greece, 
 humbled, broken, and crushed, became a Roman 
 province in the year 146 B.C.
 
 102 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 Remains The great men of Greece Aristotle Socrates Plato 
 Homer Anacreon Pindar Theocritus Dress of the Greeks 
 Eating Drinking. 
 
 THOUGH I have already described some of the 
 present remains of ancient Greece, I will here de- 
 scribe a few more. If I had told you of them all at 
 one and the same time, it would have wearied you. 
 Before doing so, however, I will give you a very 
 brief description of Athens itself. We have already 
 told you that it consisted of two parts, the upper 
 and lower town, the whole being surrounded with 
 walls. The upper town (Acropolis) consisted of a 
 rocky platform about 200 feet in height, 1000 in 
 breadth from east to west, and 460 in length from 
 north to south. The lower city was built in the 
 plain round the Acropolis, but this plain also 
 contained several hills in the west and south-west. 
 West of the Acropolis was an irregular-shaped hill 
 called Areopagus or Hill of Mars. Here, you will 
 remember, the Apostle Paul preached to the men 
 of Athens. To the south-west was a third hill, the 
 Pnyx, where the assemblies of the people were held, 
 and to the south of this was a fourth hill, known 
 as the Museum. On the eastern and western sides 
 of the city ran two small streams called the Ilissus 
 and the Cephissus. South of the city lay the 
 Saronic Gulf with the harbours of Athens.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 103 
 
 The summit of the Acropolis was, after the Per- 
 sian wars, covered with numerous temples, statues 
 of bronze and marble, and other works of art. Of 
 the temples the grandest was the Parthenon, so 
 called from the virgin goddess Athene. This temple, 
 65 feet in height, was built entirely of Pentelic 
 marble and adorned with a wealth of sculpture by 
 Phidias. The colossal statue of the goddess, wrought 
 in ivory and gold, was one of his masterpieces. Its 
 height, including the base, was nearly 40 feet. The 
 goddess was represented standing and wearing a 
 long robe reaching down to the feet, with a spear 
 in her left hand and an image of victory, six feet 
 high, in her right. Another gigantic statue of the 
 goddess, wrought in bronze, stood in the open air 
 near the west brow of the Acropolis. 
 
 A little to the north of the Parthenon were three 
 temples, now, of course, in ruins. That to the east 
 was called Erechtheum; to the west of this, but 
 under the same roof, was the temple of Minerva 
 Polias, as protectress of the city; the temple to 
 the south was called Pandroseum, from one of the 
 daughters of Cecrops. 
 
 The Octagon Tower of Andronicus Cyrrhestes, 
 or, as it is otherwise called, the Tower of the 
 Winds, is well worth attention. It has a Triton at 
 the top, and the emblematical figures, representing 
 the winds, are of a curious description, and executed 
 with the greatest care. It was the water-clock, as 
 well as the weather guide, of ancient Athens* 
 
 The temple of Apollo Epicurius was another of
 
 104 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 those magnificent structures with which Greece 
 abounded, and which could not be regarded with- 
 out mingled wonder and admiration. It is difficult 
 to say whether the noble pillars yet standing, or 
 the broken fragments lying around in profusion, 
 most affect the mind. Certain it is that both 
 leave a deep impression of the extent and magnifi- 
 cence which once must have adorned this splendid 
 temple. 
 
 It stands on Mount Cotilium in Arcadia, and 
 was built by Iktinos, who erected the Parthenon 
 under the direction of the famous Phidias. The 
 building is of close-grained stone, and the roof of 
 marble. No temple in the Peloponnesus was ad- 
 mired so much as this. 
 
 The temples of Greece are so interwoven with 
 its history that they ought not to be overlooked 
 in the description of this interesting country. I 
 will, therefore, introduce a few more of them by 
 and by, but, for the present, let us continue our 
 narrative. 
 
 I have told you in brief terms the story of 
 Greece, from the time that Inachus, with his little 
 party of followers, established himself amid the wild 
 forests of Peloponnesus, down to the destruction of 
 her liberty by a foreign power. I have described 
 the gradual settlement of the country, and shown 
 you the steps by which Greece ascended to the 
 highest pitch of fame. 
 
 I have detailed her actions in her days of glory, 
 and pointed out the events which attended her
 
 HOMER 
 
 From the bust . in Naples Museur,
 
 ABOUT GREECE 105 
 
 decline and fall. At the period where we now 
 pause, the independence of Greece is no more. 
 Rome in its youth and vigour is beginning to 
 crush the nations around her, and the countries of 
 Leonidas, Miltiades, and Epaminondas are already 
 prostrated beneath her gigantic arm. 
 
 But although Greece has fallen, her history does 
 not close here. My readers are, I trust, too much 
 interested in this country of tall mountains, bright 
 rivers, and green islands, to be willing to leave it 
 yet They are, I hope, eager to pursue the history 
 of the descendants of those Spartans, Athenians, 
 and Thebans, of whom I have given them some 
 account. 
 
 But before I proceed in their story, I am anxious 
 to make you more intimately acquainted with the 
 peculiar manners, customs, feelings, and opinions of 
 the ancient Greeks. I have been constantly afraid 
 that my story would be so long as to render it 
 tedious, and although many people have remarked, 
 that Peter Parley talks too much, I assure my 
 young friends that he is ready to shut his mouth 
 whenever they cease to listen. 
 
 I shall not stop to give you a particular account 
 of the great learning of some of the ancient Greek 
 philosophers. I have already told you something 
 about Aristotle, Demosthenes, and others. I could 
 tell you of Plato, who lived in the time of Alcibi- 
 ades, and was perhaps the greatest of all the 
 ancient philosophers. 
 
 I could tell you also of orators, statesmen,
 
 106 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 generals, and other distinguished individuals, until 
 you would agree that nothing in the history of 
 Greece is so remarkable as the great number of her 
 men of genius. But of these, and other interesting 
 topics, I can only give you a hasty sketch. 
 
 Among the philosophers of ancient Greece, 
 Aristotle, whom I have already mentioned as the 
 preceptor of Alexander, was one of the ablest. 
 He gave public lectures, this being the custom of 
 that day, in which he inculcated his opinions on 
 various subjects. Students came to listen to his 
 instructions from all parts of Greece, and other 
 adjacent countries. It was his custom to deliver 
 his lectures while he was walking, the students 
 at the same time following, eager to catch every 
 word. 
 
 Socrates lived in the time of Alcibiades, and was 
 considered by the Greeks as the wisest and most 
 virtuous man of the age. Yet his very superiority 
 of character raised up enemies against him among 
 the vulgar, the ignorant, and the wicked. These 
 persons induced the Athenians to put him in 
 prison. He was condemned to drink the juice 
 of hemlock, which you know is a strong poison, 
 but this did not disturb his tranquillity. Apollo- ! 
 dorus, one of his disciples, lamented that he should 
 die innocent. "What!" replied Socrates, "would 
 you have me die guilty?" He took the bowl of 
 poison into his hands well might he who brought 
 it turn away his face, and his friends weep! he 
 held it while he commended himself to the gods,
 
 ABOUT GREECE 107 
 
 and then drank it off with the greatest composure. 
 He died in the year 399 B.C. 
 
 Plato was born in the year 429 B.C., and for 
 eight years was the pupil of Socrates. He de- 
 livered his lectures in a grove near Athens, called 
 Academus, from which circumstance the word 
 academy has since been applied to schools. So 
 great was his reputation that the first young 
 men from various parts of the world came to 
 be his pupils. He had very sublime ideas of 
 religion, virtue, and truth, and he delivered these 
 with so much sweetness and eloquence that his 
 listeners were enchanted. The Greeks spoke of 
 him as Plato the Divine. 
 
 There were many other celebrated philosophers 
 in Greece, but I must leave them now and tell you 
 of the poets. Homer, the greatest poet of ancient 
 times, perhaps the greatest that ever lived, I have 
 already mentioned. When this great man was 
 born, how he lived, or where he died are matters 
 of uncertainty. 
 
 The general opinion is that he lived about 
 the year 900 B.C., and was a wandering minstrel 
 who went from place to place, reciting or singing 
 his verses. The Iliad and Odyssey, his two great 
 poems, were composed in separate parts, and, but 
 for the care of Lycurgus, would doubtless have 
 been lost. They celebrated the actions of heroes 
 and imaginary gods, and are full of the deepest 
 interest. 
 
 In the Iliad, Achilles is the bravest Grecian
 
 108 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 warrior, and Hector the bravest Trojan. A battle 
 takes place between them, when Achilles kills 
 Hector, and drags him at his chariot wheels. 
 
 There were a multitude of other poets in Greece, 
 some of whom acquired great celebrity; among 
 these was Anacreon, who wrote about love; Pindar, 
 who composed sublime odes; and Theocritus, who 
 sang about shepherds and shepherdesses, who lived 
 in the country. There were also many poets who 
 wrote pieces for the stage. 
 
 But we must now leave poets and philosophers, 
 and take a view of the private life of the ancient 
 Greeks. The men wore an inner garment called a 
 tunic, over which they threw a mantle ; their shoes, 
 or sandals, were bound under their feet with thongs 
 or ropes. In ancient times the Greeks went with 
 their heads uncovered; but, afterwards, they used 
 hats which tied under the chin. 
 
 The women always covered their heads with 
 a veil which came down upon the shoulders; they 
 wore in their hair golden grasshoppers, and ear- 
 rings were suspended from their ears. The rest of 
 their dress consisted of a white tunic, fastened with 
 a broad sash, and descending in folds down to 
 their heels. 
 
 The Greeks usually made four meals a day : the 
 morning meal, which was taken at the rising of the 
 sun; the next at mid-day; the afternoon repast; 
 and the supper, which was the principal meal, as it 
 was taken after the business of the day. 
 
 In the early ages their food was the fruits of
 
 ABOUT GREECE 109 
 
 the earth, and their drink water; the flesh of 
 animals was introduced at a later period. This 
 brought on the luxuries of the table, and some 
 of the cities of Greece became renowned for pro- 
 ducing excellent cooks. The Spartans, as we have 
 before mentioned, ate at public tables; their 
 chief food consisted of black broth. 
 
 The poor sometimes fed on grasshoppers, and 
 the extremities of leaves. In general the Greeks 
 were very fond of flesh. Their usual drink was 
 water, either hot or cold, but most commonly the 
 latter, which was sometimes cooled with ice. 
 Wines were very generally used, and even per- 
 fumed wines were introduced at the tables of the 
 rich. 
 
 Before the Greeks went to an entertainment, 
 they washed and anointed themselves; when they 
 arrived, the entertainer either took them by the 
 hand, or kissed their lips, hands, knees, or feet, 
 as they deserved more or less respect. It must be 
 observed concerning the guests, that men and 
 women were never invited together. 
 
 They sat at meat either quite upright or leaning 
 a little backward; but in the more degenerate ages 
 they adopted the eastern custom of reclining on 
 beds and couches. As soon as the provisions were 
 set on the table, and before the guests began to eat, 
 a part was offered as a sort of first-fruits to the 
 gods. 
 
 They had a custom, similar to ours, of drinking 
 healths, not only to those present, but to their
 
 110 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 absent friends; and at every name they poured a 
 little wine on the ground, which was called a 
 libation. The entertainment being ended, a hymn 
 was sung to the gods; after this the company was 
 amused with music, dancing, and mimicry, or what- 
 ever could tend to excite mirth and cheerfulness. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 Eeligion of the Greeks Jupiter, Juno, Neptune, Mars, Venus, 
 Minerva, and Apollo Temples and Oracles. 
 
 THE Greeks believed in the existence of many 
 immortal beings called gods and goddesses, who 
 were supposed to exercise their power and influence, 
 some above, and some beneath, the skies. 
 
 I will tell you how some of these imaginary 
 beings are usually represented in drawings, paint- 
 ings, and sculpture. 
 
 JUPITER, supposed to be at the head of them all, 
 is seated on a throne in the clouds, with an eagle 
 beside him. In his right hand he holds his thun- 
 derbolts, to hurl them on the heads of those who 
 call forth his wrath. 
 
 JUNO is represented in a car drawn by peacocks. 
 She was said to be the daughter of Saturn and Ops, 
 and sister and wife of Jupiter. Many temples were 
 erected to her in different parts of Greece, but the 
 most famous were at Argos and Olympia. She was 
 considered the patroness of the most virtuous of her
 
 ABOUT GREECE 111 
 
 sex, and as ready to reward them as to punish 
 vice. 
 
 NEPTUNE is seated in a car on the ocean, with sea- 
 horses attached to it. There are also figures blow- 
 ing conch shells. He was considered to be the son 
 of Saturn and Ops, and brother of Jupiter, Pluto, 
 and Juno. He was the god of the sea, and more 
 powerful than any other of the gods except Jupiter. 
 
 MARS is drawn in a war chariot, with a shield in 
 one hand and a javelin in the other, while fiery 
 steeds convey him swiftly to the fight. 
 
 Besides these there were Venus, the goddess of 
 beauty; Minerva, the goddess of wisdom; Apollo, 
 the god of music and poetry; and very many 
 others. 
 
 They amounted, in fact, to many thousands, and 
 were imagined to fill the earth, the air, and the sea. 
 Every mountain, every hill, and every valley had 
 its presiding deity; the rivers, brooks, lakes, and 
 lawns were all supposed to be the favourite resorts 
 of playful nymphs, that danced and sported among 
 them. 
 
 So lively, indeed, was the imagination of the 
 Greeks, that the thunder seemed to them but the 
 voice of Jupiter; the rushing winds were but the 
 breath of Eolus; the soft breezes of summer were 
 the movement of the zephyr's wing; the echo of 
 the forest was the voice of a goddess; the murmur 
 of a fountain was the music of a nymph; and the 
 gurgling waters of the grotto were but the tones of 
 the presiding deity. All nature, to them, was full
 
 112 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 of life and beauty, and whatever charmed their 
 imagination seemed to become the chosen haunt of 
 immortal beings. 
 
 It is easy to perceive that a religion like this 
 affords great scope for poetry; and it is, doubtless, 
 to this mythology that we may attribute much of 
 the interest belonging to the works of the ancient 
 Greek poets. 
 
 But though there was much that was pleasing 
 in the Grecian religion, there was also much that 
 was painful and revolting, notwithstanding which 
 many of the Greeks entertained a sincere reverence 
 for it. The stories of their gods had come down 
 to them from long tradition, and though every 
 poet added some new inventions of his own, the 
 people observed the ceremonies and rites of religion 
 with considerable strictness. 
 
 The priests and rulers caused splendid temples 
 to be erected to the gods, and the people could not 
 doubt the existence, or despise the character of 
 those immortal beings, to whom such sublime edi- 
 fices were dedicated. 
 
 The number of temples consecrated to the gods 
 in different parts of Greece was very great; in the 
 flourishing ages they were generally of stone, and 
 many of them of costly marble. The perfection of 
 their architecture is matter of astonishment at the 
 present day; it is admitted that no nation and no 
 age has produced anything to rival these public 
 edifices. 
 
 In the ancient temples, statues of the gods to
 
 ABOUT GREECE 113 
 
 whom they are dedicated were erected in, or near, 
 the middle of the building, and enclosed by a rail- 
 ing. Around these were altars, upon which sacri- 
 fices of various kinds were offered. 
 
 The Oracles were certain temples in which future 
 events were said to be made known by means of 
 priests or priestesses, who were supposed to con- 
 verse familiarly with the gods. The oracles of the 
 greatest- repute were the temple of Apollo at 
 Delphi, and the Oracle of Jupiter at Dodona. 
 
 Such was the religion of the ancient Greeks. 
 The gospel had not yet dawned on mankind, and 
 these heathens formed a system for themselves. 
 However ingenious and poetical it may be, we 
 cannot but remark its gross absurdity, and its utter 
 inability to mend the heart and correct the manners 
 of mankind. How poor, indeed, are the attempts of 
 man to form a religion for himself! how contemp- 
 tibly little is Jupiter, the highest of the Grecian 
 deities, and how immeasurably great is the one 
 living and true God revealed in the Scriptures I 
 
 (M895)
 
 114 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 The Romans War with Mithridates His defeat Sufferings of the 
 Greeks Sicilian corsairs Depopulation of Greece Civil wars 
 of Rome Saint Paul's visit to Greece Constantine Constanti- 
 nople becomes the seat of his empire Rome Roman empire 
 Alaric Pillage of Rome Division of the empire Western 
 empire extinguished Eastern empire Taking of Constanti- 
 nople by the Turks. 
 
 WE must now resume the history of Greece. I 
 shall begin at the year 146 B.C., when it became 
 subject to Rome. It is impossible to relate all the 
 great and interesting events which belong to its 
 story from that time to the present, but I shall 
 endeavour to give you a clear view of those which 
 best deserve attention. 
 
 After the conquest of Greece, the Romans put no 
 bounds to their ambition. They became desirous 
 of conquering the whole world, and turning their 
 arms against every nation within their reach, 
 subdued a great part of Europe, and at length 
 invaded Asia. 
 
 Here they were opposed by Mithridates, King of 
 Pontus. He was a man of great abilities, and 
 defeated the Romans in several engagements. The 
 Greeks hated their Roman oppressors, and were 
 induced to take part with Mithridates. But he 
 was at length defeated by a famous general, named 
 Sylla, and the poor Greeks, now left to his mercy, 
 were treated with the most cruel severity. Athens 
 and Bceotia, in particular, excited his anger, and
 
 ABOUT GREECE 115 
 
 were, therefore, covered with desolation by the 
 conqueror. 
 
 Scarcely were these calamities over when this 
 devoted country became the prey of some corsairs, 
 or sea robbers, from Sicily. These pirates were 
 very formidable, having no less than one thousand 
 ships, and being in possession, at one time, of four 
 hundred towns along the borders of the Mediter- 
 ranean. 
 
 For forty years Greece was subject to their cruel 
 depredations. They visited the seaports, burnt 
 and plundered the towns, and slew the inhabitants. 
 Many of these people retired to the mountains, 
 but the country was at length so depopulated that 
 these very corsairs, who were at length conquered 
 and taken, were sent to Greece to repeople it. 
 
 Soon after these events Rome became the 
 theatre of civil war, and Greece, during this 
 unhappy period, was drenched with blood. She 
 also continued to suffer from the oppressions of 
 the Roman rulers, and was repeatedly overrun by 
 the invasions of barbarous tribes from the more 
 northern portions of Europe. 
 
 Amidst all these misfortunes we can find only 
 one event of a pleasing nature. A few years after 
 the death of Christ, the apostle Paul, who had been 
 commissioned by his great master to preach the 
 gospel in distant lands, came to Athens. 
 
 On arriving there his heart was moved to per- 
 ceive that the inhabitants were all devoted to 
 idolatry. He, therefore, went before the people,
 
 116 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 and preached the doctrines of Christianity with 
 great eloquence and effect. He then went to 
 Corinth, and in that city also set forth the great 
 truths of the gospel. Having thus laid the foun- 
 dation of several churches in Greece, he returned to 
 Asia. The fine figure of Paul preaching at Athens, 
 by Rafaelle, is thought to be one of the most 
 perfect ever drawn. 
 
 Hitherto the city of Rome, in Italy, had been 
 the seat of the Roman empire; but Constantine, 
 who became emperor in the year 306 A.D., trans- 
 ferred the government to Constantinople, and 
 made that city the place of his residence. Up to 
 this time the Christians had suffered a most 
 grievous persecution, but this emperor became 
 their friend. 
 
 As he was one day riding at the head of his 
 army, he either saw, or pretended to see, a vision 
 of a splendid cross in the heavens, upon which was 
 written: "Conquer by this". After this he adopted 
 Christianity as the religion of the state, and caused 
 the persecutions to cease throughout his dominions. 
 
 From this period Christianity flourished for a 
 time, and many churches were established through- 
 out Greece. Several of the Greek bishops became 
 eminent for their learning and piety, and Greece 
 itself, for a short time, seemed to be reviving from 
 its ruins. 
 
 It was about one hundred years after Constan- 
 tine that the Roman empire began to be shaken 
 with convulsions which threatened its dissolution.
 
 ABOUT GREECE 117 
 
 It was attacked on every side, and country by 
 country was separated from it. At length, when 
 it was weakened and dismembered, a tribe of 
 terrible barbarians, headed by a fierce leader called 
 Alaric, came from the north. These fell upon 
 Rome, carried the city by storm, and committed 
 a great part of it to the flames. This occurred in 
 the year 410 after the coming of our Saviour. 
 
 Soon after this event the Roman empire was 
 divided into two parts. Rome was the capital 
 of one, and Constantinople of the other. The 
 former was called the Western empire, the latter 
 the Eastern or Greek empire. After the sacking 
 of Rome by Alaric, that city was often visited by 
 barbarian hordes, and finally, in the year 476, 
 the government passed from the Romans into the 
 hands of Odoacer. 
 
 Thus the empire of Rome was extinguished, 
 and a power which had existed for more than one 
 thousand two hundred years was shaken to the 
 earth. An age of darkness now came over the 
 land where light and science had once shone, and 
 a gloom, like that which follows a conflagration at 
 night, overshadowed Europe. 
 
 The Eastern empire continued for many centuries, 
 sometimes rising to a considerable pitch of splen- 
 dour, and then again sinking into insignificance. 
 Finally it was overthrown by the Turks, who took 
 Constantinople in the year 1453 A.D. 
 
 Amidst the calamities which attended and fol- 
 lowed the fall of the Western empire, Greece,
 
 118 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 overrun by barbarian hordes, saw her magnificent 
 cities laid in ruins, her numerous towns levelled 
 with the ground, and those monuments of her 
 glory, which had hitherto escaped outrage, defaced 
 and overthrown; while the descendants of men 
 who blessed the nation with science and art were 
 either enslaved by the invaders, led into captivity, 
 or slaughtered by the swords of the barbarians. 
 Such was the state of Greece, with little variation, 
 from the Gothic invasion till the capture of Con- 
 stantinople by the Turks, which has just been 
 related.
 
 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 IL-ABOUT ROME 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 Foundation of Rome Death of Remus Romulus made king 
 Division of the people Rape of the Sabines Death of Romulus. 
 
 BEFOKE we enter upon the Roman history, I 
 must warn you, my young friends, that the 
 evidence with respect to the events recorded in the 
 first four centuries of that history is by no means 
 to be relied on. It rests upon no better authority 
 than very doubtful traditions. The early annals 
 of all nations have, indeed, the same defect; they 
 are either wholly fabulous, or contain a large 
 mixture of fable. It is necessary, however, that 
 you should be acquainted with Roman history as 
 it is generally received, and, therefore, we will 
 begin with Romulus, who is said to have founded 
 the celebrated city of Rome. 
 
 Who Romulus was we cannot now determine. 
 The ancient poets have left us many stories about 
 him, but they are, probably, all fabulous. One of 
 the stories is, that he and his brother Remus were 
 
 119
 
 120 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 suckled by a wolf. He was doubtless a man of 
 superior intelligence, and gained great influence 
 over the rude people among whom he lived. The 
 popular tale of Romulus is this. That he was the 
 twin brother of Remus; that the mother of the 
 twins, when in prison, put them both into a basket 
 and dropped them into the Tiber, where Faustulus, 
 the shepherd of the King of Alba, found them, and 
 brought them up as his own children. 
 
 In the year 753 before Christ, Romulus laid the 
 foundation of Rome. In this he was assisted by 
 his brother Remus. Arriving on the banks of the 
 Tiber, they disputed for some time about the place 
 where they should plant their new city. Other 
 differences arose between them, and it was at 
 length determined that they should decide the 
 dispute by observing the flight of birds. 
 
 They determined that he who made the most 
 favourable observation should have the entire 
 control, and direct the other in all respects. In 
 compliance with this, each took his station upon 
 a different hill. Twelve vultures appeared to 
 Romulus, and six to his brother; but Remus saw 
 the birds first. Each claimed the victory. A 
 quarrel arose, and when Remus, to show his 
 contempt, leaped over the walls of the city, he 
 was struck dead by his brother's hand. 
 
 Romulus was now eighteen years of age, and 
 sole ruler. A few mud-built cottages, in irregular 
 streets, formed the whole of the little settlement 
 that was one day to be the reigning city of the
 
 ABOUT ROME 121 
 
 world. Even the palace of the chief was merely a 
 rude hovel. The commencement of the city was 
 made upon Mount Palatine, and it was called Rome 
 in honour of its founder. 
 
 The first measure taken by Romulus to promote 
 the increase of his city was a very singular one. 
 He made it a place of refuge for thieves, runaway 
 slaves, and men who had been driven from their 
 native places for some crime. 
 
 The city was hardly raised above its foundation 
 when the people began to form a government. 
 Romulus was chosen king by universal consent. 
 He was clothed in a robe of distinction, and allowed 
 the privilege of a guard to attend his person. 
 Twelve lictors were also appointed to precede him; 
 each of them was armed with an axe, tied up in a 
 bundle of rods. 
 
 Romulus divided the inhabitants into three 
 tribes. Each tribe was again divided into ten 
 curise, or companies of a hundred men. The 
 senate, a body intended to advise and consult 
 with the king, was composed of one hundred of 
 the principal citizens, distinguished for their valour, 
 wisdom, or age. 
 
 The religion of the colony was the earliest care of 
 the new monarch, though it is not now known what 
 were its particular forms at that period. It princi- 
 pally consisted in a blind confidence in the opinions 
 of certain priests, or soothsayers, who pretended to 
 derive a knowledge of the future from the flight of 
 birds, and an examination of the entrails of beasts.
 
 122 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 By the advice of the senate, Romulus now sent 
 deputies to the Sabines, a neighbouring nation, to 
 request their friendship and alliance. The object 
 of this proposal was to procure wives for his 
 subjects, and thus to secure the duration of the 
 city. His embassy was treated with contempt and 
 insult; for the Sabines were warlike and powerful, 
 and were unwilling to form an alliance with a 
 colony of reformed criminals. 
 
 In consequence of this rejection, Romulus pro- 
 claimed, through all the adjacent villages, a great 
 feast in honour of the god Neptune. These enter- 
 tainments were usually attended with sacrifices, 
 and exhibitions of wrestlers, gladiators, and chariot 
 races. He presumed that the Sabines would join 
 in these sports, and bring their wives and children 
 to see the spectacle. 
 
 His hopes were not unfounded. The feast-day 
 arrived, and the Sabines were among the foremost 
 to share its pleasures. On a given signal, a number 
 of Roman youths, with drawn swords, rushed in 
 among the strangers, and seized the most beautiful 
 of their women, and carried them off in triumph. 
 
 A sanguinary war followed this outrage. It was 
 terminated by the conduct of the Sabine women, 
 who had now become the wives of the Romans. In 
 the last battle that was fought, they rushed in 
 between the combatants, and implored their 
 husbands and fathers to desist from their anger, 
 and enter into a treaty of peace and friendship. 
 
 As if by mutual consent the warriors upon both
 
 ABOUT ROME 123 
 
 sides threw down their weapons. A treaty was 
 soon concluded, by which it was agreed that Tatius, 
 King of the Sabines, and Romulus, should be joint 
 kings of Rome. Some time after, Tatius was 
 murdered by the Lavinians, and Romulus again 
 became sole monarch. 
 
 The senate now began to be displeased at the 
 tyrannical conduct of their king. They determined 
 to rid themselves of his presence. On some public 
 occasion he suddenly disappeared. The people 
 were told that he had been mysteriously taken up 
 to heaven, and were taught to worship him as a 
 god. He was probably murdered by the senators. 
 
 The danger to which kings, in almost all ages, 
 have been subject, and the violent deaths which 
 many of them have died, ought to reconcile those 
 of a lowlier situation to their lot. Better is a little 
 with God's blessing than great riches and honours 
 with the fear of an untimely end. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 Numa Pompilius king His character and conduct Tullus Hostilius 
 Story of the Horatii and Curiatii Aricus Marcius Tar- 
 quiniua Priscus His conquests The Augurs Anecdote 
 Assassination of Tarquin -Servius Tullius Horrid conduct 
 of his daughter. 
 
 ON the death of Romulus many difficulties 
 
 occurred in the choice of a successor to the throne. 
 
 The Sabines and the Romans were both desirous
 
 124 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 to elect one from their own numbers. Numa 
 Pompilius, a Sabine, was at length chosen by the 
 senate, with the general consent of the people. 
 
 This king was of a very peaceful and pious 
 disposition. He built many new temples, appointed 
 sacred feasts and offices, and by his example pro- 
 moted a respect for religion and all the virtues. 
 To encourage agriculture, he divided among the 
 poorer part of his subjects the lands which Romu- 
 lus had gained in war. He also abolished all 
 distinctions between the Romans and Sabines. 
 Having reigned forty-three years in peace, he died 
 at the age of eighty. He gave orders that his 
 remains should be enclosed in a stone coffin and 
 buried. It was customary at that time to burn 
 the bodies of the dead. 
 
 Tullus Hostilius succeeded to Numa. He was 
 devoted to the love of arms and enterprise, and 
 sought an early occasion to lead his forces into 
 the field. His first war was with the Albans. 
 The two armies met about five miles from Rome, 
 and were both anxiously waiting for the signal of 
 battle. Just at this time an unexpected proposal 
 was made by the Alban general. 
 
 Advancing between the armies, he offered the 
 Romans a choice of deciding the dispute by single 
 combat. There happened to be at this time in 
 each army three brothers of one birth; those of 
 the Romans were called Horatii, those of the Albans 
 Curiatii. It was determined to leave to them the 
 fate of the two armies. The champions met. Two
 
 ABOUT ROME 125 
 
 of the Horatii were slain in the combat, but the 
 survivor avenged the death of his brothers, and 
 decided the victory for the Eomans. 
 
 On returning home, the young conqueror was 
 met by his sister, whom he beheld bathed in tears, 
 and lamenting the loss of the Curiatii. To one of 
 them she was engaged to be married, and she 
 upbraided her brother for his death. Forgetting 
 all the ties of nature, and provoked by the grief of 
 his sister, he plunged his sword into her bosom. 
 Notwithstanding what has been said to the con- 
 trary, courage and cruelty are too often found 
 in the same bosom. For this crime he was con- 
 demned to die by the senate, but he obtained 
 a pardon by appealing to the people. 
 
 Hostilius died after a reign of thirty-two years. 
 His death was said to have been by lightning, but 
 he more probably fell by treason. His successor 
 was Ancus Martius. This monarch achieved many 
 victories, and greatly enlarged and beautified the 
 city, and added to the wealth of his subjects. He 
 left his sons under the guardianship of Tarquinius 
 Priscus, a native of Corinth, and a man of wealth, 
 who had been persuaded by his wife to come and 
 settle at Rome. On his first entry into the city, 
 it is said that an eagle stooped from the air, took 
 off his hat, and, flying for some time about his 
 chariot, replaced it upon his head. This his wife 
 considered as a presage that he should wear a 
 crown. 
 
 Tarquin used all his arts to set aside the children
 
 126 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 of the late monarch, and to have himself placed 
 upon the throne in their stead. He was successful, 
 and the people unanimously elected him king. The 
 early part of his reign was just and peaceful, but it 
 was soon disturbed by the inroads of neighbouring 
 nations. Having defeated the Latins, and forced 
 them to beg a peace, he turned his arms against 
 the Sabines, who had again risen and passed the 
 Tiber. He attacked their army with much vigour, 
 and completely routed them. 
 
 Having thus subdued his enemies, Tarquin 
 turned his thoughts to public works for the 
 convenience and ornament of the city. It has 
 almost always been a custom during peace for 
 kings to set on foot national works, not only 
 for public advantage, but to occupy the time 
 and attention of their subjects, and to keep them 
 from plots and insubordination. During Tarquin's 
 reign the augurs advanced much in the good 
 opinion of the people, and nothing was undertaken 
 without their advice and approbation. The wife of 
 the king pretended to this art, but she was much 
 excelled by Accius Neevius, the most celebrated 
 augur ever known in Rome. 
 
 On one occasion the king was desirous to try his 
 skill, and asked him whether that which he was 
 then thinking about could be done. Having ex- 
 amined his auguries, he boldly replied that it could. 
 " Why, then," said Tarquin, with a smile, " I had 
 thoughts of cutting this whetstone with a razor." 
 "Cut boldly," replied the augur; and the king
 
 ABOUT ROME 127 
 
 cut it through accordingly. This was probably a 
 trick, planned between the king and the augur, in 
 order to deceive the people, and lead them to give 
 confidence to the answers of the augur. 
 
 The sons of Ancus at length conspired against 
 Tarquin, and procured his assassination. Two 
 . ruffians were hired, who, on pretence of seeking 
 justice of the king, asked to speak with him in his 
 palace, and struck him dead with the blow of an 
 axe. They were put to death, but the sons of 
 Ancus found safety in flight. 
 
 Servius Tullius, the son of a slave, was now 
 appointed king by the senate. In the beginning 
 of his reign he gave his two daughters in marriage 
 to the grandsons of Tarquin. One of these, named 
 Tullia, united with Lucius, her sister's husband, to 
 secure the throne for themselves. The old king 
 was murdered, and the daughter drove her chariot 
 over his mangled body as it was lying in the high- 
 way. Thus perished this monarch, who was just, 
 prosperous, and moderate. The history of kings is 
 full of violence and bloodshed. Too often have 
 monarchs waded " through slaughter to a throne", 
 and as often has a violent death closed their 
 career.
 
 128 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 CHAPTER XX 
 
 Tarquin the Proud Visit of the Sibyl Fate of her books War 
 with the Rutuli Story of Lucretia Her fate Brutus Expul- 
 sion of the Tarquins Judgment of Brutus The Veientes 
 Death of Brutus Porsenna Horatius Codes Clelia Por- 
 senna raises the siege. 
 
 How little did these Eoman kings think that 
 such a one as Peter Parley would ever make them 
 the subject of his conversation to young people, 
 warning them to emulate their virtues, and to 
 avoid their crimes! Lucius Tarquinius, afterwards 
 called the Proud, having thus raised himself to the 
 throne by violence and murder, resolved to support 
 himself there by the same means. His chief aim 
 was to keep the people always occupied, in wars or 
 in public works, that they might have no time to 
 reflect upon his manner of gaining the crown, or to 
 plot his overthrow. 
 
 I must now tell you an odd story. During the 
 reign of this king, a strange woman, called the 
 Sibyl, appeared at Rome, offering to sell nine books, 
 which she said were of her own composing. Tar- 
 quin refused to buy them, and the stranger 
 departed. After burning three of the volumes, 
 she returned and demanded the same price for the 
 remaining six. Being again refused, she went 
 away, and having burnt three more, returned with 
 the rest. These she offered for the same price that 
 she had before asked for the nine.
 
 ABOUT ROUE 129 
 
 Tarquin was much surprised at what seemed the 
 singular impudence of the woman, and consulted 
 the augurs. They blamed him much for not having 
 purchased the nine, and commanded him to spare 
 no expense to procure the remaining three. Tradi- 
 tion states that the strange woman, after delivering 
 the volumes and giving a special charge that their 
 contents should be strictly attended to, vanished, 
 and was never again seen. The books were accord- 
 ingly deposited in a stone chest, and proper officers 
 were appointed to take care of them. 
 
 In the reign of the preceding monarch, the 
 foundation of the Capitol had been laid; and the 
 completion of this building had, for some years in 
 the reign of Tarquin, occupied the attention of the 
 people. When this, however, was finished, they 
 began to grow eager for some new employment. 
 To gratify their desire, Tarquin, on some frivolous 
 pretence, declared war against the Rutuli, and in- 
 vested Ardea, their capital city, with his troops. 
 
 While the army was encamped before the place, 
 Sextus, the son of the king, and Collatinus, were 
 sitting with some friends in a tent drinking wine. 
 The conversation happened to turn upon the 
 beauty and virtue of their wives, each one boasting 
 of his own. At length it was proposed, in order 
 to decide the dispute, to depart immediately for 
 the city, and ascertain in what manner each of them 
 was at that time engaged. Having mounted their 
 horses, though it was quite late in the evening, 
 they galloped off to Rome. 
 
 (M895) I
 
 130 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 There they found Lucretia, the wife oi Collatinus, 
 in the midst of her handmaids, spinning, and 
 directing their labours. In -this she was unlike 
 other ladies of her rank, who passed their time in 
 luxury and indolence. The kind and easy recep- 
 tion which she gave her husband and his friends, 
 notwithstanding the suddenness of their visit, so 
 charmed and delighted them that they at once 
 decided the dispute in her favour. 
 
 Sextus, charmed by her beauty and innocence, 
 privately left the camp and visited the house of 
 Lucretia. Here he repaid his kind reception by 
 the most cruel and dishonourable conduct. 
 
 Next day Lucretia sent for her husband and her 
 father, and told them of the insult which had been 
 offered by Sextus. " For me", she said, " there is 
 nothing now worth living for. I cannot and will 
 not live dishonoured ; but if you have the hearts of 
 men, you will avenge my cause." 
 
 As she finished these words, she drew a dagger 
 from beneath her robe, and stabbed herself to the 
 heart. All remained fixed in sorrow and indigna- 
 tion; the father and the husband burst into tears. 
 Junius Brutus, who had always been thought an 
 idiot, and who chanced to be present, drew the 
 poniard from the wound of Lucretia, and swore he 
 would be the avenger of her wrongs. " From this 
 moment", he cried, " I will pursue Tarquin and his 
 house with a deadly enmity, and devote my life to 
 win and protect the freedom of my country." 
 
 The spectators were astonished to hear such
 
 ABOUT ROME 131 
 
 language from one whom they had always looked 
 upon as a fool. But Brutus had only been playing 
 an assumed part, and had seized a favourable 
 moment to appear in his real character, as the lover 
 of liberty and the Mend of justice. Ordering the 
 dead body to be carried into the forum, he there 
 harangued the people with great fervour and elo- 
 quence. By a decree of the senate, Tarquin and 
 bis family were for ever banished from Rome, and 
 it was made a capital crime to assist in their 
 restoration. 
 
 The kingly power having thus been overthrown, 
 Brutus, and Collatinus, the husband of Lucretia, 
 were appointed the first consuls. The new govern- 
 ment thus formed was called a republic, but it was 
 threatened with destruction at its very commence- 
 ment. Some young men of the principal families 
 of the state, who had been educated in all the 
 pleasures and luxuries of the court, formed a party 
 to restore Tarquin to power. 
 
 This party increased slowly and secretly; and 
 even the sons of Brutus were induced to join them. 
 The plot was accidentally discovered by a slave; 
 and Brutus was called to sit in judgment upon his 
 children. Nothing in nature could be more severe 
 and heart-rending. The accused said nothing in 
 their defence, but waited in silent despair for the 
 sentence which the law pronounced upon their 
 crime. Of all the judges, Brutus alone seemed to 
 have lost the softer feelings of humanity. 
 
 With a stern and unyielding countenance he
 
 132 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 demanded of his sons what they had to say in their 
 defence. This question he repeated three times, 
 when he turned to the executioner and said: "My 
 duty is now discharged; it is for you to perform 
 the rest". Nothing could induce him to alter his 
 decree; neither the prayers of the people, nor the 
 complaints of the young men, nor his own fatherly 
 affection. The unfortunate youths were stripped, 
 whipped with rods, and beheaded in the presence 
 of an awe-struck multitude. There is something 
 stern, but much that is high and noble-minded, in 
 that justice which will not relax its severity to save 
 a son's life. 
 
 All Tarquin's hope now depended on foreign 
 assistance. He prevailed upon the Veientes to 
 assist him with a considerable army, and advanced 
 at their head towards Rome. The consuls went 
 forth to meet them. A battle ensued, in which 
 Brutus, and Aruns, the son of Tarquin, in a furious 
 attack upon each other, were both slain. Great 
 numbers fell on both sides; but the Veientes were 
 driven from the field. 
 
 Though conquered, Tarquin still retained hope. 
 He applied for assistance to Porsenna, King of 
 Etruria (the country which is now Tuscany), and 
 succeeded in obtaining it. A large army was 
 raised, and marched to the neighbourhood of Rome. 
 Great terror was excited in the city. The consuls 
 marched out to give battle, and were carried off 
 from the field covered with wounds. The Romans 
 gave way, were driven back, and pursued to the
 
 ABOUT ROME 133 
 
 bridge which led into the city. All now seemed 
 lost, and all would have been lost but for the 
 valour of a single man. 
 
 This man was a soldier named Horatius Codes. 
 He had been placed as a sentinel to defend the 
 bridge, and opposed himself with great courage 
 to the torrent of enemies. For some minutes he 
 sustained the whole fury of the assault, till the 
 bridge was cut down behind him, when he leapt 
 into the river, and swam back to his fellow soldiers 
 in safety. 
 
 Porsenna was determined to persevere in the 
 siege, and, if necessary, reduce the city by famine. 
 The distress of the Romans soon became almost 
 insufferable, and was only relieved by another 
 instance of great courage and energy. A youth 
 named Mutius resolved to take the life of the 
 Etrurian king. Dressed in the garb of a peasant, 
 he entered the camp of the enemy, and proceeded 
 to the royal tent. Here he found the monarch, 
 with a secretary by his side, reviewing and paying 
 his troops. 
 
 Mistaking the latter for the king, he stabbed him 
 to the heart, and was instantly seized. On Por- 
 senna's demanding the cause of this action, Mutius 
 informed him, without disguise, of his motive, at 
 the same time thrusting his right hand into the 
 fire which was burning on an altar before him. 
 " Behold", said he, " how easily I scorn your 
 vengeance. The Roman can suffer patiently, as 
 well as dare bravely. Three hundred Romans are
 
 134 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 now in your camp, sworn to do that in which ] 
 have failed." 
 
 Porsenna was struck with admiration at the 
 courage of the youth, and gave him a safe-conduct 
 to Rome; in doing this he displayed far more 
 greatness of mind than had been shown by the 
 intended assassin. He then offered the citizens 
 liberal conditions of peace, which were at once 
 accepted. Hostages were given for its proper 
 observance. Clelia, one of the hostages, took 
 advantage of the negligence of her guard, and 
 swam across the Tiber on horseback, followed by 
 her companions, amid a shower of darts from the 
 enemy. 
 
 They presented themselves before the consul, 
 and by him were sent back to Porsenna. The 
 king, not to be outdone in generosity, restored 
 them to their country. Sensible of the honour 
 of his enemies, and the baseness of the Tarquins, 
 whose cause he had espoused, he rejected then 
 alliance, and took up his march from the city. 
 Such instances as these which I have recounted, 
 of disinterestedness and patriotism, show that in 
 reading history we furnish ourselves with examples 
 well worthy of our closest imitation.
 
 ABOUT ROME 135 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 Coriolanus The Volsci withdraw Dissensions among the people 
 Ciucinnatus The ^Equi and Volsci Dangerous situation 
 of the Roman army Victory of Cincinnatus Enemy pass 
 under the yoke Discontents Speech of Deutatus Tyranny 
 of the Decemviri Defeat of the Romans Death of Dentatus 
 Story of Virginias. 
 
 THE next great name in the history of Rome is 
 that of Coriolanus, who was so proud and selfish 
 as to prefer his own revenge to the safety of his 
 country. He left Rome and went to her enemy 
 the Volsci, and with an hostile army sat down 
 before the gates of his native city. By the 
 entreaties of his wife and mother, he was induced 
 to withdraw his troops, and was soon after slain in 
 a tumult of the people. 
 
 There was great joy at Rome when the Volsci 
 withdrew. In the following year troubles arose 
 between the people and the senate, and Quintus 
 Cincinnatus was appointed dictator. The deputies 
 of the senate found him at his plough, dressed like 
 an humble husbandman. He seemed reluctant to 
 leave his retirement, and, bidding a farewell to his 
 wife, he only said: " I fear, my Racilia, that for this 
 year our little field must remain unsown". He 
 regretted that his services were needed, but felt 
 bound to yield to the call of his country. 
 
 His conduct in office was as honest and successful 
 as could have been hoped from the manner in which 
 he received the office. He only attended to the
 
 136 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 true interests of his country, and disregarded the 
 clamour and the flattery of both the contending 
 parties. When by this means he had restored the 
 city to tranquillity, he again sought the quiet and 
 the retirement of his farm. The example of Cin- 
 cinnatus is very often held up for the advantage 
 of young people. He who can render great service 
 to his country, and afterwards be content to retire 
 into private life, is a great man. 
 
 Cincinnatus was not long allowed to enjoy 
 retirement. The ^qui and the Volsci, though 
 defeated and driven back, were able to renew the 
 war, and again advanced towards the city. The 
 consul sent to give them battle was too cautious 
 and timid, and his army was at length driven into 
 a defile between two mountains. No means of 
 escape was left to them, except by fighting a 
 way through their enemies. 
 
 The ^Equi were resolved not to lose an oppor- 
 tunity like this, and strictly guarded every outlet. 
 The Romans were completely hemmed in, and no 
 lot seemed left for them but to be cut in pieces or 
 perish of hunger. In this dilemma some knights 
 succeeded in passing through the enemy's camp 
 without being discovered, and carried news to 
 Borne of the situation of the army. Nothing 
 could exceed the general terror which this pro- 
 duced. The senate saw no means of relief, except 
 in again calling forth the services of Cincinnatus. 
 
 The messengers of the senate found him, as 
 before, in the field. He was astonished at the
 
 ABOUT ROME 137 
 
 authority which was given him, and still more, 
 when he saw the whole senate leaving the city to 
 meet him. His love of simplicity and humble 
 honesty still remained unaltered, and when called 
 upon to select his master of horse, he fixed his 
 choice upon a poor neighbour, named Tarquilius, a 
 sentinel in the army. 
 
 On entering the city, the dictator gave orders 
 that all capable of bearing arms should assemble 
 before sunset in the Campus Martius, with arms 
 and provisions. Commencing his march imme- 
 diately, he came within view of the enemy before 
 daylight. On approaching, he commanded his 
 soldiers to raise a loud shout, that the troops in 
 the defile might learn that relief was at hand. 
 
 The Mqui were quite astonished to find them- 
 selves the besieged instead of besiegers. But being 
 now attacked on both sides, they threw down their 
 arms, and begged for peace. Cincinnatus refused 
 to grant peace, except on condition that the whole 
 army should pass under the yoke. 
 
 This yoke was formed of two spears set upright, 
 with another crossing them on the top. Under 
 this the conquered army was compelled to march, 
 in token of their submission. Their camp was 
 plundered by the Komans of all that was valuable, 
 and their leaders and generals were retained 
 prisoners, to grace the triumph of the conquerors. 
 Cincinnatus then returned to Rome, and resigned 
 his office after having held it but fourteen days. 
 He refused to share in any of the spoils of victory,
 
 138 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 and once more retired to the simple life of the 
 husbandman. Is there one among you who would 
 have acted as nobly as Cincinnatus? 
 
 Discontents again followed the restoration of 
 peace. Tumults arose among the people, who 
 claimed certain privileges which the senate refused 
 to grant. The plebeians complained that they did 
 not receive their rights, and an old soldier named 
 Dentatus was among the most eager to excite them 
 to a contest. 
 
 " For forty years", said he, with an openness of 
 self-praise only to be excused by his age and his 
 services, " I have served my country in the wars. 
 I have fought one hundred and twenty battles, in 
 which, by my single arm, I have not only slain 
 many enemies, but have saved many friends. 
 Three -and -twenty crowns have been placed, by 
 my countrymen, on a head which has grown gray 
 in their service; and I have won trophies of spears, 
 trappings, bracelets, and chains. 
 
 "My body bears forty wounds, in front, each 
 telling of my patriotism. These are my honours; 
 what other have been my rewards? The land 
 which I have won from the enemy has been dis- 
 tributed to enrich those who were already wealthy. 
 My lot has been poverty and contempt." 
 
 The words of Dentatus excited much sympathy 
 among the people. They cried aloud for the 
 passing of a law which should reward such 
 services as they deserved. A tumult ensued. 
 The young patricians rushed into the crowd,
 
 ABOUT ROME 139 
 
 broke the balloting boxes, and dispersed the 
 multitude. For this they were afterwards fined 
 by the tribunes, but the passing of the desired law 
 was prevented. 
 
 The city had now been erected about three hun- 
 dred years, and had seen kings and consuls passing 
 away, while lasting contentions still remained 
 between the senate and the people. Magistrates 
 were overbearing and arbitrary; subjects were 
 proud and factious. It was at length agreed 
 that ambassadors should be sent to Athens and 
 other cities, to collect and bring home a body of 
 laws, that should be adapted to the wants of the 
 Roman people. 
 
 On the return of this embassy, the laws they had 
 collected were put into the hands of ten men, called 
 decemvirs, appointed to select and arrange them. 
 The power of these men was made equal to that of 
 the kings and consuls. For a year they attended 
 industriously to business, and, having completed 
 their work, they were expected to retire from office. 
 Artfully retaining their power for a short time 
 longer, they finally determined to establish them- 
 selves in an absolute tyranny. 
 
 The citizens were now in a state of complete and 
 abject slavery. Their masters ruled them with 
 despotic authority. While in this miserable situa- 
 tion, their old enemies advanced to within ten 
 miles of the city. The Roman army was divided 
 into three parts : one remained in the city, and the 
 other two marched out to give battle.
 
 140 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 The news of the defeat of the army was received 
 at Rome with much rejoicing. It gave an oppor- 
 tunity to the people to exclaim against the ill 
 conduct of their decemvirs. They cried out for 
 a general to lead them to conquest, and demanded 
 the appointment of a dictator. Among others, old 
 Dentatus spoke with his usual freedom and rough- 
 ness. 
 
 This openness exposed him to the hatred of the 
 decemvirs, and they determined to be revenged. 
 On some idle pretence, Dentatus was despatched to 
 the camp, where he was soon cruelly and basely 
 murdered. He was assassinated by a party of 
 soldiers, who had been hired by his enemies. When 
 attacked, he defended himself with great valour, 
 and killed no less than fifteen, and wounded thirty 
 of them, with his own hand. 
 
 Another act of still greater baseness and coward- 
 ice was soon after committed in the city. Appius, 
 one of the decemvirs, when sitting on his tribunal 
 to dispense justice, saw a beautiful young female 
 passing to school, with her nurse. Her charms 
 attracted his attention. 
 
 Her name was Virginia. She was the daughter 
 of Virginius, a centurion, then absent with the 
 army in the field. She was engaged in marriage 
 to Icilius, formerly a tribune of the people, and 
 their nuptials were to have been celebrated at the 
 close of the campaign. It was at first the intention 
 of Appius to break off this alliance, and to marry 
 the girl himself. The laws of the twelve tables,
 
 ABOUT ROME 141 
 
 however, forbade a patrician to marry with a 
 plebeian, and Appius was unwilling to violate a law 
 of which he had been one of the framers. 
 
 A miserable favourite of Appius consented to 
 claim Virginia as his slave. He seized upon her 
 when in school, and carried her before the tribunal 
 of Appius, where he supported his pretended claim 
 by the most palpable falsehoods. The corrupt 
 decemvir adjudged her to be the property of his 
 favourite. Eeproaches and clamours from the 
 people followed this unjust sentence, and all things 
 indicated ,an open insurrection. Icilius boldly 
 opposed the decree, and the friends of the insulted 
 girl sent to Virginius, in the camp, an account of 
 the threatened dishonour of his child. 
 
 Virginius returned to the city, burning with his 
 wrongs and purposes of revenge. On the next day 
 he appeared before the tribunal of Appius, leading 
 his daughter by the hand. The accuser was also 
 there, and repeated his charge. Virginius exposed 
 his falsehood, and claimed the rights of a parent 
 and the protection of his country. All was in 
 vain. The tyrant refused to listen to him, and 
 ordered the pretended master to take possession of 
 his slave. 
 
 The throng, which surrounded the tribunal of 
 Appius, was soon dispersed, and Virginia was 
 seized by the rude hands of the lictors. Seeing 
 that all was lost, the father entreated Appius to 
 allow him to take a last farewell of one whom he 
 had so long loved and regarded as his child. With
 
 142 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 this request the decemvir could not but comply. 
 Virginius took his breathless daughter in his arms, 
 and for a few moments gazed in agony upon her 
 beautiful face. 
 
 Then suddenly snatching at a knife which lay 
 in a stall by the forum, he exclaimed : " My 
 dearest, my lost child, this only can save thee". 
 With these words he plunged the weapon into her 
 bosom, and, raising it into the air, swore to devote 
 Appius to death. 
 
 With the bloody knife in his hand, he rushed 
 wildly through the streets of the city, calling upon 
 the people to strike for liberty, and to destroy their 
 tyrants. Thence he pursued his way to the camp, 
 calling upon his fellow soldiers to rise and recover 
 the freedom of which the decemvirs had robbed 
 them. 
 
 The army received his proposal with shouts of 
 approbation. They deserted their generals, and 
 repaired again to the mountain to which they had 
 retired about forty years before. The senate 
 immediately despatched messengers to offer them 
 the restoration of their old form of government. 
 To this they joyfully acceded, and returned in 
 peace to the camp and the city. Of the decemvirs 
 eight went into voluntary exile, and Appius died 
 in prison by his own hands. This event happened 
 in the year 449 B.C. That a bad action sooner or 
 later will meet with its punishment, is a lesson 
 which cannot too deeply be impressed on the mind.
 
 ABOUT ROME 143 
 
 CHAPTER XXII 
 
 JEqui and Volsci Demands of the people Military tribunes 
 Censors Plot of Spurius Mselius Siege of Veii Anecdote 
 Camillas Descent of the Gauls Their overthrow Manlius. 
 
 IN every state of society there must be different 
 orders of people, some to direct and others to 
 execute, some to command and others to obey ; and 
 the great difficulty is to prevent the powerful from 
 oppressing the weak, and the lower orders from 
 rebelling against the higher. Disputes still con- 
 tinued between the senate and the people; and 
 though the JEqui and Volsci, old enemies of the 
 city, approached to its very walls, the tribunes 
 would not permit the levy of troops. They were 
 afterwards induced to take the field, and the hostile 
 armies were completely routed. 
 
 The people now demanded that the plebeians 
 should be admitted to the consulship as well as the 
 patricians. They also called for the abolition of 
 the law which forbade the intermarriage of these 
 two classes. This affair was settled by allowing 
 the plebeians to elect from their number military 
 tribunes, certain officers invested with consular 
 power. Yet this privilege they were fickle enough 
 to abandon in the following year. Two officers, 
 called censors, were first appointed at this time, 
 437 B.C. It was their duty to number the people, 
 and to keep account of the military strength of the 
 community.
 
 144 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 The quiet that followed the creation of this new 
 office was of short duration A famine pressed 
 hard upon the poor, and they renewed their usual 
 complaints against the senate and the consuls. 
 Spurius Mselius at this time aspired to the 
 sovereign power, and endeavoured to acquire 
 influence in the state by daily distributions of corn 
 among the people. At length his house became a 
 complete asylum for the lazy and the profligate. 
 
 Having in this manner procured a large number 
 of obedient and dependent followers, he purchased 
 great quantities of arms, and had them carried by 
 night into his house. The plot was discovered. 
 Cincinnatus, now gray with eighty winters, was 
 once more called upon to save his country. He 
 summoned Mselius to appear before him. The 
 traitor refused to obey him, and was killed upon 
 the spot. The tribunes were much enraged at the 
 death of Meelius, and at the next election the senate 
 was obliged to restore the military tribunes. 
 
 The inhabitants of Veii had long been the rivals 
 and the enemies of Kome; and this rivalry was the 
 occasion of their downfall. The siege of this power- 
 ful city occupied the Romans for ten years. In the 
 summers of this period they were vigorous and 
 constant in their attack; in winter they encamped 
 around it, lying under tents made of the skins of 
 beasts. After having bravely withstood the enemy 
 for the space oi ten years, the besieged were forced 
 to surrender by Camillus. 
 
 In a war with the Falisci, Camillus routed their
 
 VIRG1NIUS SLAYING HIS DAUGHTER
 
 ABOUT ROME 145 
 
 army, and besieged their capital, Falerii. During 
 this siege a schoolmaster, who had the care of the 
 children of the principal inhabitants, secretly visited 
 the Roman camp, and offered to place these chil- 
 dren in the power of Camillus. The consul nobly 
 spurned the offer of this miserable creature, and 
 ordered him to be bound, and flogged into the 
 city by his own scholars. This generous conduct 
 induced the magistrates to make an immediate 
 surrender. 
 
 On his return to Rome, Camillus found himself 
 an object of popular suspicion and hatred. He 
 determined to remain no longer in a city where 
 his great services had received so poor a reward. 
 Bidding farewell to his wife and children, he 
 departed into exile; stopping at the gates, and 
 turning a last glance towards the capitol, he 
 entreated the gods to make his country repent 
 the wrongs she had heaped upon him. He sought 
 refuge in the little town of Ardea. Few things 
 are more bitter than ill-requited services. 
 
 " Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky, 
 Thou dost not bite so nigh 
 
 As benefits forgot; 
 Though thou the waters warp, 
 Thy sting is not so sharp 
 As friend remember'd not." 
 
 Yet, though Camillus had reason to complain, you 
 will agree with me that, in calling down calamities 
 upon his country, he did not act the part of either 
 a good or a great man. 
 
 (11895) K
 
 146 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 Soon after, a body of fierce and barbarous Gauls 
 made a descent upon the city. Their leader, 
 Brennus, having gained a splendid victory in 
 a most bloody and destructive battle, marched 
 directly with all his forces to the city. He found 
 the gates open, and no signs of intended defence. 
 Thinking this might be a stratagem to decoy them 
 into a dangerous position, he advanced with great 
 caution. 
 
 Marching into the forum, he beheld all the 
 ancient senators sitting in their places, silent, 
 unmoved, and undaunted. The splendid habits 
 and venerable appearance of these old men awed 
 the enemy into reverence, until one of them put 
 forth his hand to stroke the beard of Papirius, 
 The noble Eoman could not suffer this insult, and, 
 lifting his ivory sceptre, struck the savage to the 
 ground. This was the signal of a general slaughter. 
 Papirius fell first, and all the rest shared his fate. 
 
 The last hope of Kome now depended upon the 
 strength of the capitol. Without the walls of that 
 fortress everything was distress and misery. Bren- 
 nus first summoned it to surrender, then resolved 
 to besiege it with his army. The Eomans repelled 
 his assaults with the activity and courage of despair. 
 Though actually in great want, they threw loaves 
 of bread into the camp of the enemy, to convince 
 them that they were well supplied with food, and 
 that it was impossible to reduce them by famine. 
 
 Brennus had begun to despair of this attempt, 
 when one of his soldiers, by accident, discovered
 
 ABOUT ROME 147 
 
 footsteps leading up to the rock. By following 
 these they thought the capitol might be surprised. 
 A chosen body of men was ordered upon this 
 service, and at midnight they . endeavoured to 
 accomplish it. They had nearly reached the wall, 
 and the sentinel was asleep on his post. Not a 
 sound was heard. The garrison was saved only 
 by the gabbling of a flock of geese, which were 
 kept for sacred purposes in the temple of Juno. 
 I doubt not you will remember that the capitol 
 of Rome was saved by a flock of geese. 
 
 This roused the sleeping soldiers, and Manlius, a 
 brave patrician, rushed forward to the rampart, and 
 threw two of the enemy from its height. Others 
 came to his assistance, and the walls were soon 
 cleared of the enemy. 
 
 The hopes of the Gauls now began to decline, 
 and Brennus was desirous of an honourable chance 
 to withdraw from the siege. Proposals of peace 
 were made on both sides, and finally the Gauls 
 agreed to receive a thousand pounds weight of 
 gold, and retire from the city. To this the Romans 
 acceded. In weighing the gold, however, they 
 complained of an attempt to defraud them. On 
 this, Brennus, with an insulting air, threw his belt 
 and sword into the scale, exclaiming that it was the 
 only lot of the conquered to obey and suffer. 
 
 Just at this moment, Camillus appeared on the 
 spot, at the head of a large army. He ordered the 
 gold to be carried back to the capitol. "It is our 
 custom", said he, "to ransom, not with gold, but
 
 148 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 with iron. I am dictator of Eome, and will pur- 
 chase peace by my sword." The Romans were 
 animated at once by a new spirit; a battle was 
 fought, and the Gauls were entirely overthrown. 
 So, at least, the Roman writers assert; but other 
 historians tell a very different story. 
 
 For his service in saving the capitol, Manlius was 
 loaded with the gratitude of the people; they 
 built him a house near the scene of his valour, and 
 granted him a public fund for his support. He 
 was not contented with the honours thus bestowed 
 upon him, but with the selfishness of a little mind 
 aspired to the sovereign power. Surrounded by a 
 band of profligate followers, he filled the city with 
 clamours and sedition; till at length his conduct 
 assumed a most treasonable aspect, and he was 
 summoned to appear and answer for his life. 
 
 The place appointed for his trial was in the 
 neighbourhood of the capitol. When he was 
 accused of treason and sedition, he pointed to 
 the citadel he had preserved, and exclaimed: 
 "Behold the monument of my love of country!" 
 The multitude refused to condemn him, while 
 in sight of the capitol; but when he was removed 
 to the Peteline grove, he was sentenced to be 
 thrown from the Tarpeian rock. 
 
 Shortly after this event an occurrence is said 
 to have taken place which shows how superstitious 
 or credulous mankind may sometimes become. A 
 frightful gulf opened in the forum. The augurs 
 were consulted, and declared that it would never
 
 ABOUT ROME 149 
 
 close till Rome had cast into it her most precious 
 possession. On hearing this, Marcus Curtius, a 
 noble youth, declaring that there was nothing 
 more precious than valour and patriotism, armed 
 himself, mounted his horse, and leaped boldly into 
 the midst of the gulf. Historians of Rome say 
 that the gulf immediately closed, and that Curtius 
 was never afterwards seen. If you can believe this 
 strange story, you can do much more than I can. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 The Samnites "War with the Latins Execution of Titus Manlius 
 Self-sacrifice of Decius Defeat of the Latins Stratagem of 
 Pontius Fabius Maxim us King Pyrrhus Great Battle 
 Fabricius Pyrrhus leaves Italy. 
 
 IT is not often that nations remain stationary for 
 any great length of time; they either advance or 
 decline. Having conquered most of the neighbour- 
 ing countries, the Romans began to think of ex- 
 tending the power of their arms. In the year 
 343 B.C. they sent an army against the Samnites, 
 a tribe about a hundred miles distant, descended 
 from the ancient Sabines, and inhabiting that part 
 of Italy which is now comprised in the modern 
 kingdom of Naples. 
 
 The Samnites were a very brave people, and 
 they tried the courage even of the war-worn 
 soldiers of Rome. Great resolution and valour
 
 150 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 were displayed on both sides; at length the Sam- 
 nites were obliged to yield. Thirty thousand of 
 them are said to have been slain on the field of 
 battle. These numbers, however, are probably 
 much exaggerated. Tradition mistakes and de- 
 ceives, and the mists of time, like the mists of 
 nature, seem to magnify the objects which they 
 surround. 
 
 A war with the Latins rapidly succeeded ; indeed, 
 the whole of Roman history is stained with blood. 
 In their arms, costume, and language, the two 
 contending nations so much resembled each other, 
 that it was necessary to resort to the most exact 
 discipline. Orders were given by the consul, 
 Manlius, that no soldier should on any account 
 leave the ranks, on pain of death. These orders 
 being given, both armies were drawn out in order 
 of battle, when one of the enemy advanced from 
 the ranks, and challenged any Roman to single 
 combat. 
 
 For a while all was silent. At length Titus 
 Manlius, son of the consul, and a brave, high- 
 spirited youth, dared to disobey the commands 
 of his father, and stepped forth to accept the 
 challenge. The combat which followed was a 
 severe one; but victory at length declared itself 
 for the Roman. Taking the armour from the dead 
 body of his adversary, the youth returned in 
 triumph to the camp. There he was met with 
 the shouts and cheers of his fellow soldiers. But 
 the father sternly ordered him to be led forth
 
 ABOUT ROME 151 
 
 before the army, and thus addressed him with 
 tears in his eyes: 
 
 " Titus Manlius, you have violated the command 
 of the consul, and have broken the discipline of the 
 camp. I cannot hesitate between love for Rome 
 and affection for my child. And you, my son, 
 will not refuse to die, when your death is to be 
 of service to your country. Lictor, bind him, and 
 let his death be a warning to Romans not to 
 violate the command of their consul." 
 
 The whole army was struck with terror. The 
 old soldiers, who had looked with admiration on 
 the exploit of their champion, shed tears at the 
 harsh and unnatural conduct of the father. Young 
 men, who had seen his valour with delight and 
 emulation, burned with anger at what seemed the 
 cruelty of a fiend rather than the discipline of 
 a soldier. All was confusion, and sorrow, and 
 indignation. And when the axe fell on the head 
 of the devoted boy, an involuntary shudder went 
 through the crowd, and mingled groans and curses 
 bore dark testimony against the consul. The body 
 of the dead was buried with the honours of war. 
 
 Meanwhile the battle was begun with great fury, 
 and the forces were so equally matched that it was 
 fur a long time doubtful which would win the 
 victory. Superstition this day called for another 
 sacrifice. The augurs declared that the commander 
 of that part of the Roman army which should fall 
 into disorder must devote himself to death for his 
 country.
 
 152 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 The left wing of the Roman army faltered and 
 gave way. Its commander, Decius, resolved to 
 offer himself as a sacrifice, in compliance with the 
 answer of the augurs. Clothing himself in a long 
 robe, covering his head, and with his arms stretched 
 forward, standing upon a javelin, he devoted himself 
 to the gods for the safety of Rome. 
 
 Then, mounting his horse, he galloped furiously 
 into the very middle of the enemy, scattering death 
 wherever he passed. After performing prodigies 
 of valour, and carrying dismay to the very heart 
 of the foe, he fell gloriously, covered with wounds. 
 A total rout ensued. The Latins were forced to 
 beg peace on very hard conditions, and two years 
 afterwards were brought into complete submission to 
 the Roman power. This was in the year 340 B.C. 
 
 Eight years afterwards the Roman arms met 
 with a signal disgrace. The senate had refused 
 to grant peace to the Samnites, and Pontius, the 
 general of this people, had determined to gain it 
 by stratagem. He led his army into a defile 
 called Caudium, and took possession of all the 
 roads which led to it. Then he sent forward 
 ten of his men in the dress of shepherds, with 
 directions to throw themselves in the way of the 
 Romans. 
 
 The Roman consul met them, and, supposing 
 them really to be what they appeared, enquired 
 concerning the route of the Samnite army. The 
 shepherds told him, with seeming innocence, that 
 they did not know much about it, but believed
 
 ABOUT ROME 153 
 
 they had gone to besiege Luceria, a town in Apulia. 
 Suspecting no trick, the Eoman consul hurried 
 forward with his army to relieve the besieged city, 
 passing by the shortest road, which lay through 
 the mountain defiles. 
 
 The first notice of his danger was a shout from 
 the enemy. He then found his army completely 
 surrounded, and in the power of the Samnites. 
 Pontius ordered the prisoners to be stripped of 
 their garments, and made to pass under the yoke. 
 It was then agreed that the Romans should leave 
 the territory of the Samnites altogether, and 
 observe for the future the terms of their ancient 
 confederacy. 
 
 The Romans were covered with shame and 
 anguish by this ignominious defeat, and returned 
 home, disarmed, almost naked, and burning with 
 a desire for revenge. The whole city went into 
 mourning, and grief and resentment glowed in 
 every heart. 
 
 This defeat, however, was of no permanent im- 
 portance. The war was carried on as usual for 
 many years, the power of the Romans gathering 
 new increase every day, while that of their enemies 
 declined. They obtained repeated triumphs under 
 Papirius Cursor, and Fabius Maximus reaped 
 glory in conquering the Samnites. 
 
 Being at length driven to extremities, the Sam- 
 nites determined to apply for assistance to Pyrrhus, 
 a successor of Alexander the Great in the kingdom 
 of Epirus. He was a man of great courage, power,
 
 154 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 and ambition, and embarked with much zeal in the 
 enterprise. Sending before him an army of about 
 three thousand men, he soon put to sea himself, 
 with three thousand horse, twenty thousand foot, 
 and twenty elephants. But a small part of this 
 force arrived with him in Italy. Many of his ships 
 were dispersed by tempests, and some of them were 
 entirely destroyed. 
 
 On reaching Tarentum, he commenced an im- 
 mediate reform in the manners of the people he 
 had come to succour. He changed the amusements 
 of peace and luxury into stern preparations for war. 
 The Romans sent a powerful force to oppose his 
 progress. Pyrrhus advanced to meet them, and 
 both armies pitched their tents in sight of each 
 other on opposite banks of the river Liris. 
 
 Pyrrhus was a good soldier, skilful in selecting 
 the position of his own camp, and in observing 
 that of his enemy. When walking along the 
 banks of the river, he was much struck with the 
 Roman method of encampment, and observed that 
 "these barbarians were by no means barbarous". 
 The consul Lsevinus was a man of rash and im- 
 petuous disposition, and resolved to give instant 
 battle. 
 
 His forces were accordingly marched to a part of 
 the river which could be forded, and commenced 
 its passage. Pyrrhus was soon on the spot, and 
 hoped to cut off their cavalry before they could be 
 reinforced by the foot. The Roman legions, how- 
 ever, having effected their passage with much
 
 ABOUT ROME 155 
 
 difficulty, the engagement became general. Victory 
 was for a long time doubtful. 
 
 Pyrrhus turned the fate of the battle by sending 
 forward his elephants. The Eomans had never 
 before seen animals of such strength and magni- 
 tude. They were struck with dismay at the sight 
 of such immense creatures, raging through their 
 ranks, trampling on their horses and riders, and at 
 the sight of the castles on their backs filled with 
 armed men. This movement decided the fortunes 
 of the day. A dreadful slaughter ensued. Pyrrhus 
 obtained a great victory, but with the loss of an 
 immense number of his own soldiers. 
 
 Pyrrhus was not disposed to use harsh measures 
 with the conquered, but desired to treat with them 
 upon honourable terms. He sent his friend Cineas, 
 a celebrated orator, to arrange a peace with them. 
 Cineas was a man of much cunning and persuasion, 
 but he found the Romans were not to be moved 
 either by his artifice or eloquence. To him the 
 senate appeared an assembly of demi-gods, and the 
 city a temple for their residence. 
 
 Ambassadors were soon after sent from Rome, to 
 treat concerning the exchange of prisoners. At the 
 head of this embassy was Fabricius, an aged senator, 
 venerable for his contentment in poverty and his 
 unsullied integrity. Pyrrhus received him with 
 great kindness, and, to try how far he was deserving 
 of his fame, tried to corrupt his honesty by presents 
 and promises. All his efforts were vain. The old 
 man was not to be bribed or intimidated, and the
 
 156 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 king nobly released all the prisoners, on the word 
 of Fabricius that they should be restored if the 
 senate continued the war. 
 
 About the year 280 B.C. the war against Pyrrhus 
 was renewed, in the consulship of Sulpicius and 
 Decius. The terror, which was at first excited by 
 the elephants, had begun to subside, and the two 
 armies met on more equal terms. The Grecians 
 were again the conquerors. Pressed upon all sides, 
 trampled under foot by the elephants, the Eoman 
 army gave way, and were entirely routed, with the 
 loss of six thousand men. The enemy lost about 
 four thousand, and Pyrrhus, the conqueror, ex- 
 claimed that one more such victory would be his 
 ruin. 
 
 This battle closed the campaign, and both armies 
 retired into winter quarters. In the following 
 spring they again took the field. As the two 
 armies approached each other, the physician of the 
 king sent a letter to Fabricius, in which, for a 
 certain reward, he offered to remove his master by 
 poison, and thus put an end to the war. The noble 
 Roman rejected the proposal with disdain, and 
 despatched a messenger to Pyrrhus, to inform him 
 that there was a traitor in his camp, and to lay 
 open the offer that had been made to him. Who 
 is there that can read of these noble actions without 
 wishing to equal them? 
 
 Pyrrhus received the message with astonishment 
 and indignation. " Admirable Fabricius," he ex- 
 claimed, " it would be as easy to turn the sun from
 
 ABOUT ROME 157 
 
 his path, as to turn thee from thine integrity!" 
 After making enquiry among his servants, he 
 became convinced of his physician's treachery, 
 and ordered him to be executed. To make a 
 return for Roman generosity, he at once released 
 all his prisoners. 
 
 Two years afterwards, having increased the 
 number of his soldiers, Pyrrhus separated his 
 force into two divisions, and marched at the head 
 of one of them to attack the enemy. A severe 
 engagement followed. The Romans had learned 
 to turn the elephants to the destruction of their 
 masters. They made large balls, composed of flax 
 and iron, and, setting fire to them, sent them among 
 these animals as they approached their ranks. 
 Made furious by the flames, the elephants turned 
 back, raging through their own army, crushing the 
 soldiers in their path, and spreading terror and 
 destruction on every side. 
 
 The loss of the Grecians was immense; and their 
 king resolved to leave a country where he found 
 only faithless friends and desperate enemies. He 
 embarked with the shattered remnants of his army 
 and returned to his native kingdom. A small 
 garrison was left in Tarentum to save the appear- 
 ance of an entire defeat. 
 
 Rome had now become a very large, powerful, 
 and famous city. In her previous history, which 
 comprises the period of her stern and simple vir- 
 tues, we have seen numerous instances of heroic 
 though savage daring, and of noble though mis-
 
 158 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 guided self-sacrifice. We are now coining to an era 
 of great interest in her history: the First Punic 
 War. At the period 264 B.C., when this war com- 
 menced, the population of Rome was about two 
 hundred and ninety thousand. In the year 266 
 B.c. silver money was first coined at Rome. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 Troubles in Sicily Carthage First Punic War Eegulus Triumph 
 of the Romans Eegulus in Africa Xantippus Fate of 
 Kegulus End of the war. 
 
 ONCE more the Romans turned their attention to 
 foreign conquest. At that period the Cartha- 
 ginians were in possession of the greatest part of 
 Sicily, and were waiting for a favourable moment 
 to become masters of the whole island. Hiero, 
 King of Syracuse, one of the unsubdued Sicilian 
 states, called upon the Carthaginians for assistance 
 against the Mamertines. This tribe in turn sought 
 aid from the Romans; and from this incident 
 sprung the first war between Carthage and Rome. 
 This, which is called the First Punic War, com- 
 menced in the year 264 B.c. 
 
 Carthage was a city on the coast of Africa, 
 founded by a colony of Phoenicians about one 
 hundred and thirty-seven years before the foun- 
 dation of Rome. It was at this time a city of 
 extensive commerce and great wealth. Her fleet
 
 ABOUT ROME 159 
 
 was large and very powerful. She was mistress of 
 the sea, while Rome had nothing that deserved the 
 name of a naval force. 
 
 The Romans resolved to be on equal terms with 
 their enemy, and at once applied themselves to 
 build and fit out a fleet. They found a model for 
 their ships in a Carthaginian vessel that happened 
 to be cast ashore in a tempest. The consul Duilius 
 put to sea with this newly-constructed fleet, and by 
 his skill and valour gained the first naval victory. 
 He destroyed fifty ships of the enemy, and thus 
 deprived them of their before -undisputed sove- 
 reignty of the sea. 
 
 To conquer Sicily, however, it was necessary to 
 carry the war into Africa, and a fleet of three 
 hundred ships was -despatched for that purpose, 
 under the command of Regulus and Manlius. 
 Regulus was of a stern, severe, and frugal disposi- 
 tion, a brave soldier, well skilled and experienced 
 in the arts of war. All his private affections and 
 passions were blended with an inextinguishable 
 love of country. 
 
 The combined fleet of the two generals was the 
 largest that had ever sailed from an Italian port. 
 Their forces amounted to one hundred and forty 
 thousand men. The fleet of the enemy was equally 
 large, and was manned by better sailors. While they 
 fought at a distance the Carthaginians seemed suc- 
 cessful, but when the ships grappled, and the soldiers 
 met foot to foot and arm to arm, Roman valour 
 and energy triumphed. The victory was complete^
 
 160 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 This battle was followed by an immediate descent 
 upon the coast of Africa, when Manlius was recalled, 
 and Regulus was ordered to remain and prosecute 
 the war. Another victory was soon won by the 
 Romans, and eighty of the enemy's towns sub- 
 mitted to their arms. In this extremity the 
 Carthaginians determined to have recourse to 
 foreign assistance. They sent to Lacedsemon, a 
 famous town of Greece, and offered the command 
 of their army to Xantippus, an experienced and 
 veteran general. He accepted the office, requiring 
 ready obedience to his orders, and promising them 
 a speedy victory. 
 
 The city soon began to recover its former spirits 
 and confidence. Xantippus took the field with an 
 army secure of victory and eager for revenge. The 
 battle was skilfully planned, and bravely won. A 
 large part of the Roman army was slain, and 
 Regulus himself was taken prisoner. Other mis- 
 fortunes soon followed. The principal town in 
 Sicily was taken by the Carthaginian general Car- 
 thalo. The Roman fleet perished in a storm, and 
 a new one was built, only to share the same fate. 
 
 The Carthaginians now entertained the hope of 
 arranging a peace on terms more favourable than 
 those offered by Regulus. They thought that the 
 imprisoned general would himself advise a peace, 
 which was to shorten the term of his captivity. 
 He was accordingly sent with the embassy to Rome, 
 on his promise to return in case of a failure in the 
 object of their mission.
 
 ABOUT ROME 161 
 
 When the ambassadors approached Rome, and it 
 was known that they were attended by their old 
 general, crowds went forth from the city to meet 
 them. Regulus received their shouts of joy and 
 welcome in a stern sadness. He refused to enter 
 the gates, saying that he was now the slave of 
 Carthage, and unfit to tread the soil of freedom, 
 much less to partake of the honours which his 
 countrymen wished to bestow on him. 
 
 The senate, as usual, gave audience to the em- 
 bassy without the walls of the city. They were 
 weary of a war which had already been protracted 
 through eight years, and were willing to accede to 
 any reasonable terms. Regulus laid open the 
 objects of the mission, and the proposals of the 
 Carthaginians. The senate discussed them, and 
 gave their opinions on them. It only remained 
 for Regulus to speak, and he spoke freely and 
 eloquently in favour of continuing the war. 
 
 Imprisonment had done nothing to break his 
 heroic character, or to blunt the patriotism of that 
 spirit which would scorn to counsel the dishonour 
 of his country. He felt that his own existence was 
 but as a shadow when compared with the glory of 
 Rome ; he spurned the proposal which would sully 
 her dignity, though it was to relieve him from the 
 pains of imprisonment, or the horrors of a violent 
 death. How very few could be found who would 
 act so disinterestedly! 
 
 The senate admired the patriotism and self- 
 devotion of their old general, and refused to 
 
 (M895) I
 
 162 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 consent to a measure which would end in his ruin. 
 It was in vain, however, that they interfered with 
 entreaties and prayers. He determined to return 
 to his bonds, and refused to see his wife and 
 children, lest the natural affection of a husband 
 and a father should turn him from his fixed reso- 
 lution. Taking leave of the senate and his friends, 
 he departed with the ambassadors for Carthage. 
 We rarely meet with such an instance of heroic 
 virtue and disinterested love of country as this of 
 Regulus, for the circumstances of common life can 
 hardly call it forth. How many who call them- 
 selves patriots would shrink back from such a 
 sacrifice as tha+ made by Regulus! 
 
 At Carthage a most cruel fate awaited him. 
 The Carthaginians were enraged beyond measure 
 when they heard of the counsel which Regulus had 
 given to his countrymen. He was put to death 
 amid the most severe and lingering agonies ; racked 
 with all the instruments of torture which the malice 
 and ingenuity of his enemies could invent. 
 
 Arms were again taken up on both sides, with 
 more than former animosity. The obstinate 
 courage of the Romans at length triumphed. 
 They won a series of victories, and after a con- 
 tinued war of four -and -twenty years, reduced 
 Carthage to accept the terms they saw fit to 
 dictate. Thus ended the First Punic War, in the 
 year 240 B.C.
 
 ABOUT ROME 163 
 
 CHAPTER XXV 
 
 Peace and its arts War with Illyria The Gauls Second Punic 
 War Siege of Saguntum Character of Hannibal He crosses 
 the Alps Defeat of Scipio Battles Fabius Maximus His 
 successors Battle of Cannae Capua Syracuse Marcellus 
 Scipio carries the war into Africa Hannibal is recalled His 
 defeat Peace. 
 
 THE most warlike nation requires its seasons of 
 repose. A period of profound quiet followed the 
 victories over Carthage, and the Romans turned 
 their attention to the arts of peace. They now 
 began to cultivate a fondness for poetry, which in 
 all nations is the first art that rises, and the first 
 that decays. But they did not neglect preparations 
 for war, improving all intervals of repose only to 
 gather fresh vigour for action. 
 
 After a long continuance of peace, they first tried 
 their martial strength on the Illyrians, and after- 
 wards on the Gauls. But they soon found a more 
 formidable enemy in the Carthaginians, who had 
 been again roused to contend with them in arms. 
 The leader of their army was Hannibal, who, when 
 very young, had been brought before the altar by 
 his father, and commanded to swear perpetual 
 enmity to the Romans. How different this from 
 the injunction in holy writ: "Love your enemies; 
 bless them that curse you ; do good to them that 
 hate you; and pray for them which despitefully 
 use you and persecute you " ! The boy laid his 
 hand upon the altar, and, kneeling, took an oath 
 which he never forgot.
 
 164 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 It was at the siege of Saguntum that Hannibal 
 first opposed his military skill to the Romans. 
 The valour of both besiegers and besieged partook 
 of that lofty character which might be supposed 
 to exist only in the battles of romance and fable. 
 Hannibal had offered terms to the Saguntines, but 
 these were of such a nature that, rather than 
 comply with them, many of the citizens gathered 
 their goods together, and, having set them on fire, 
 cast themselves into the flames. 
 
 At this moment it happened that a tower, which 
 had been much battered and shaken, fell to the 
 ground. A body of Carthaginians entered valiantly 
 at the breach, and Hannibal immediately gave 
 orders for a general assault. The place was taken 
 without difficulty. The Saguntines, however, con- 
 tinued to fight with the courage of despair, and 
 many collected their families, and burnt their 
 houses over their heads. Notwithstanding the 
 great destruction of property, the wealth of the 
 conquered city was sufficient to enrich the victors. 
 
 The capture of Saguntum was rather the signal 
 for war between the Romans and Carthaginians 
 than the actual commencement of it. After the 
 sacking of this city, the Romans made vigorous 
 preparations to take the field, and Hannibal began 
 to conduct his army into the heart of the Roman 
 dominions. Having arrived on the banks of the 
 Rhone, he found that the passage of this river 
 would be very bravely disputed by the Gauls on 
 the east side, who assembled in multitudes to
 
 ABOUT ROME 165 
 
 defend their bank. He therefore despatched an 
 officer, with a good part of the army, by night, 
 giving them orders to go to a considerable distance 
 up the river, then to cross it, and endeavour to get 
 behind the enemy. 
 
 Hannibal received notice of their motions, and 
 when he perceived that they had accomplished their 
 object, he began to pass the river with the re- 
 mainder of his army. The Gauls, on perceiving 
 their approach, set up dreadful howlings; but when 
 they heard the shouts of the army behind them, 
 and saw their tents on fire, after a short resistance 
 they fled to their villages. 
 
 In his celebrated passage over the Alps, Hannibal 
 met with much resistance from the barbarous 
 mountaineers. He had to pass through confined 
 openings in the mountains, over which were placed 
 troops of barbarians, who showered down upon his 
 army masses of rock, which crushed vast numbers. 
 His road wound also by a fearful precipice, down 
 which the elephants, which had become unruly, fell, 
 carrying with them everything that stood in their 
 way. Can you conceive anything more terrible 
 than the danger and confusion of such a march! 
 
 But the resolution of Hannibal overcame all 
 these difficulties, and his vigorous measures, with 
 respect to the barbarians, terrified them into sub- 
 mission. After a defeat of one party of these 
 savage inhabitants, another body of them, having 
 contrived a stratagem to entrap him, came to 
 receive him with olive branches and garlands, the
 
 166 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 usual signs of peace. Hannibal suspected the 
 sincerity of their professions, but, fearing, if he 
 rejected their offers, that he should immediately 
 have them for open enemies, he received them 
 kindly. Upon this they brought him hostages 
 and cattle, and appeared to place entire confidence 
 in the Carthaginians. 
 
 Hannibal was so far imposed upon by these faith- 
 less allies that he made them his guides, and for 
 two days they marched at the head of his army. 
 But when they had got into a hollow way, over- 
 looked by steep and craggy rocks, the traitors gave 
 the signal to their companions in ambush, who fell 
 upon his soldiers in front, flank, and rear. At the 
 same time troops of the mountaineers had possessed 
 themselves, as before, of the crags which overhung 
 the precipices, and showered down from thence 
 huge stones upon the Carthaginians. 
 
 After nine days' march Hannibal gained the 
 summit of the Alps. Here he remained awhile, to 
 recruit the strength of his wearied army, and to 
 give time to the sick and wounded to rejoin the 
 main body. Hannibal pointed out to his soldiers 
 the pleasant country lying round the foot of the 
 Alps, and assured them that from this time they 
 might reckon on the capture of the mighty city. 
 The day following he began to descend the moun- 
 tains ; but the difficulties of the descent were found 
 to be more formidable than those of attaining the 
 summit. He was obliged, with incredible labour, to 
 cut a road for his army through the solid rock; yet
 
 ABOUT ROME 167 
 
 with such expedition was this mighty task accom- 
 plished that in four days from the commencement 
 of his descent he found himself in the plains of 
 Italy. This is usually considered one of the most 
 arduous and hazardous enterprises ever executed 
 by any general. 
 
 The astonishment of the Romans was at its 
 height when they heard that Hannibal had success- 
 fully crossed the Alps and arrived in the Roman 
 dominions. Here again he pitched his camp, and 
 stayed to refresh his men ; then, marching onwards, 
 he received intelligence that Scipio was on his way 
 to meet him. This general advanced with all his 
 forces to the Ticinus, a small river on the north of 
 the Po. The two armies approached nearer and 
 nearer to each other, till, on the third day, word 
 was brought in to each army by its scouts that the 
 enemy was in view. A battle quickly ensued, in 
 which Scipio was obliged to retreat. Another 
 battle took place at Trebia, with no better success 
 to the Romans; after which Hannibal crossed the 
 Alps into Etruria. 
 
 Hannibal was pursuing his march towards Rome, 
 when he was overtaken by the Romans near the 
 lake Thrasymenus. In the battle which followed, 
 fifteen thousand Romans were slain, among whom 
 was the consul Flaminius. Rome was in despair 
 on receiving news of this defeat; and, after many 
 debates in the senate, it was at length agreed to 
 appoint Fabius Maximus prodictator. The caution 
 stud prudence of this commander baffled the schemes
 
 168 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 of his enemy. He even found means to enclose 
 the Carthaginian within mountains; and it was 
 only by a stratagem that Hannibal was able to 
 save his army. He collected together a great 
 number of oxen, and, having fastened torches to 
 their horns, commanded them to be driven furiously 
 down an eminence in the direction of the camp. 
 The Romans were in consternation at this unusual 
 sight; and, during their confusion, Hannibal found 
 means to march through a mountain pass into the 
 open country. 
 
 The next great battle between the two armies 
 was at Cannae, where the Eomans again suffered a 
 sad defeat, and ^Emilius, the consul, was slain. 
 The slaughter was terrible on both sides, but that 
 of the Romans was overwhelming. The voice of 
 lamentation and mourning was heard in every part 
 of Rome after the news of the total overthrow of 
 the army; yet the senate refused to redeem the 
 prisoners which Hannibal had taken. 
 
 The Carthaginians retired into winter quarters 
 at Capua. Hannibal despatched his brother Mago 
 bo Carthage with an account of his success. The 
 senate expressed great approbation of his conduct, 
 and at once granted him the supplies of men, 
 elephants, and money for which he had sent. But 
 Hanno, a senator, who from the beginning had 
 been averse to an open war with the Romans, 
 advised that the present time of victory should be 
 employed in negotiating an honourable peace. His 
 advice, however, was neglected, and the supplies
 
 ABOUT ROME 169 
 
 were sent. It is said that Hannibal on this occa- 
 sion sent to Carthage three bushels of rings and 
 other ornaments taken from the Koman knights 
 slain in battle. Such a sight as this is not often 
 to be seen. 
 
 Victory now began to turn to the side of the 
 Romans. Hanno, a general under Hannibal, was 
 defeated with great loss, and the latter was himself 
 overpowered by Marcellus, and retreated to Tar- 
 entum. Sicily having been converted to the Car- 
 thaginian interest, Marcellus laid siege to Syracuse 
 with a powerful army; and it was forced to 
 surrender to the Roman arms. This fine city was 
 a seaport of Sicily, and a flourishing republic. It 
 was the most opulent and the most powerful of all 
 the Grecian cities, and by its own strength alone 
 was able, at different times, to contend with all the 
 power of Carthage and Rome. 
 
 Syracuse is said to have been often besieged by 
 powerful armaments without success; and to have 
 contained within its walls fleets and armies that 
 were the terror of the world. It was first governed 
 by kings; but for the space of two hundred years 
 considerable obscurity involves its history, till we 
 discover it to have been conquered by the Romans 
 and added to their empire. The city did not, 
 however, long remain under the Roman yoke. It 
 was erected into a republic, with a popular govern- 
 ment; after which it was again under the guidance 
 of kings till the time that Marcellus sat down with 
 a Roman army before its walls.
 
 170 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 The Romans were for a long time baffled in their 
 attacks upon this place by the wonderful machines 
 and fires of Archimedes. Marcellus obtained pos- 
 session of it during a public festival, while the 
 soldiers and citizens were indulging in wine. He 
 was admitted through one of the gates by Sosis, a 
 brazier, and deputies were shortly after sent to him, 
 tendering submission and entreating favourable 
 terms. Marcellus granted life and liberty to all 
 of free condition, but gave up the city to be plun- 
 dered. He commanded the soldiers to spare the 
 citizens; but the ungovernable army committed 
 many cruelties whilst searching for plunder. To 
 the great sorrow of the conqueror, Archimedes 
 himself fell a victim to the anger of a lawless 
 soldier. 
 
 The Romans now brought over Syphax, a Nu- 
 midian king, to aid them against the Carthaginians ; 
 but Massinissa, a young warrior in alliance with 
 Hannibal, overthrew him in a great battle, and 
 slew thirty thousand men. By treachery and 
 stratagem, Hannibal made himself master of 
 Tarentum. But when the Capuans implored 
 his assistance against the Romans, who were 
 besieging their city, he hastened thither, and, 
 being unable to induce the enemy to join battle, 
 lie left his camp silently, and hastened to the 
 walls of Rome. The Romans were much surprised 
 to behold Hannibal advancing to the capital, but 
 they opposed him with so much valour that he 
 despaired of being able to effect his purpose.
 
 ABOUT ROME 171 
 
 Meanwhile Capua was left without relief, and 
 fell into the hands of the Romans. 
 
 Three general battles were fought between Mar- 
 cellus and Hannibal in the space of three days. 
 In the first engagement victory was doubtful, 
 in the second the Carthaginians had the ad- 
 vantage, and in the third the Romans were 
 conquerors. But the consuls were unable to 
 keep the field; whilst Hannibal ravaged the 
 countries of Italy, and took a considerable body 
 of Romans prisoners. The city of Tarentum, 
 however, in which he had left a garrison, was 
 entered by Fabius, and all the inhabitants were 
 put to the sword. Shortly after this, Marcellus 
 was slain in an ambush by the Numidians, and his 
 colleague was mortally wounded. Asdrubal, the 
 brother of Hannibal, left Spain, crossed the Alps 
 with a powerful army, and descended upon Italy, 
 for the purpose of joining forces with his brother. 
 The idea of this union threw the Romans into the 
 greatest consternation. It did not, however, take 
 place, for Asdrubal was suddenly attacked, near 
 the river Metaurus, by the consuls, and his whole 
 army was destroyed; he himself was killed. This 
 was the most fatal blow that Hannibal had ever 
 received. 
 
 Having concluded the war in Spain, Scipio 
 returned to Rome, and was elected consul. Sicily 
 was assigned him for his province, but, being 
 desirous to go with an army into Africa, the senate 
 gave him permission to sail with a body of forces
 
 172 PETER FARLEY'S TALES 
 
 into that country, if he thought it would be for the 
 interest of the republic. A dreadful plague broke 
 out in the Roman and Carthaginian armies; but 
 the latter had to bear the miseries of famine as 
 well as pestilence. Scipio's generals committed the 
 most cold-blooded cruelties in the cities and coun- 
 tries to which they were sent, and the enormities 
 of these officers were afterwards urged against 
 Scipio himself. The Romans, at this time full of 
 superstitious fears, sent to Phrygia, in obedience 
 to an oracle, to bring the goddess Cybele to Rome. 
 This deity was nothing more than a shapeless 
 stone; when it arrived, it was placed with great 
 ceremony in the temple of Victory. 
 
 Hannibal was at length recalled by the Cartha- 
 ginian senate to Africa. On leaving the scene of 
 his splendid victories, he could not refrain from 
 tears. As he approached the African coast he 
 commanded the man at the mast-head to tell what 
 he saw; who answered: "The ruins of a tomb on 
 an eminence". This omen appeared unfavourable; 
 continuing his voyage, Hannibal at length landed 
 between Susa and Adrumetum. 
 
 A conference took place between the Roman and 
 Carthaginian generals near Zama, in which it was 
 in vain attempted to arrange terms of peace. A 
 dreadful engagement ensued, and the Carthaginians 
 were defeated with great slaughter. After this the 
 enemy was obliged to sue for peace on any terms; 
 and, the war being terminated, Scipio returned to 
 Rome in triumph, and was honoured with the sur-
 
 ABOUT ROME 173 
 
 name of Africanus. Thus closed the Second Punic 
 War. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 War with Macedon War against Antiochus Its issue Death ot 
 Hannibal Third Punic War Biege of Carthage Its destruc- 
 tion. 
 
 DURING the contest with Carthage, the Romans 
 carried on a vigorous war against Philip, King 
 of Macedon. This monarch was frequently de- 
 feated by the consul Galba, and was forced to 
 withdraw from the siege of Athens. He was 
 afterwards driven into Thessaly, and obliged 
 to beg for peace. This was granted to him, on 
 condition of his paying a very large sum of money ; 
 and liberty was thus restored to Greece. 
 
 The next expedition of the Romans was against 
 Antiochus, the King of Syria. He attempted to 
 obtain peace by an offer to quit all his possessions 
 in Europe, and such in Asia as were in alliance 
 with Rome. But his offer was made at too late a 
 season. Scipio had perceived his own superiority, 
 and was resolved to reap the benefit of it. The 
 Syrian monarch took the field at the head of eighty 
 thousand men; his enemies were much inferior 
 in numbers, but of better discipline and firmer 
 courage. 
 
 Antiochus was entirely routed, his own chariots, 
 armed with scythes, being driven back upon his
 
 174 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 men, and bearing death in their path. He was 
 compelled to accept peace on such terms as the 
 Romans offered. One of the conditions of this 
 peace was that he should deliver up Hannibal, 
 who in his age and exile had sought refuge at 
 the court of this prince. 
 
 Aware that he could no longer expect protection, 
 Hannibal secretly departed, and, after leading 
 awhile the life of a wanderer, he visited the court 
 of Prusias, King of Bithynia. To this, the last 
 place of his refuge, the mean resentment of the 
 Romans pursued him, and the base Prusias pro- 
 mised to deliver his guest into the hands of his 
 enemies. 
 
 The old general had been ungratefully driven 
 from his native country, and had found on every 
 side nothing but treachery and baseness. He 
 resolved never to be taken by the Romans, and 
 carried as a show and spectacle to the city at 
 whose gates he had appeared as a conqueror. In 
 a ring on his finger he always concealed a dose of 
 poison. To this he was at last compelled to have 
 recourse to prevent his being taken prisoner. Thus 
 perished the greatest general of his age. He trod 
 the paths of glory, but, alas! "The paths of glory 
 lead but to the grave ". 
 
 About fifty years after the close of the Second 
 Punic War, the Romans sought a pretence to renew 
 hostilities. During the long interval of peace, 
 Carthage had so increased in wealth and power 
 as both to be an object of alarm to Rome and to
 
 ABOUT ROME 175 
 
 hold out to her avarice a prospect of plunder. 
 The consuls set out with an army to effect the 
 entire destruction of the rival city. 
 
 The Carthaginians vainly endeavoured to avert 
 the ruin which was gathering over their heads. 
 They made an absolute surrender of themselves, 
 by their ambassadors, and requested to know what 
 was the will of Rome. They were answered that 
 they must send three hundred of their noblest youth 
 as hostages to the consuls at Lilybaeum, and hear 
 their further pleasure when they arrived at Utica. 
 Thither the consuls repaired with a powerful army, 
 and ordered their unfortunate enemies to deliver 
 up all their arms. 
 
 This humiliating command was at length com- 
 plied with, and the consuls informed the deputies 
 that their countrymen must leave the city, as it 
 was the will of Rome to raze it to the ground. 
 It was then that this wretched people gathered 
 courage from despair. The ambassadors returned 
 home; and when they had told the full extent 
 of their misfortunes, the people loudly reproached 
 such of the senate as had consented to the delivery 
 of hostages and the surrender of arms. 
 
 The noise of military preparations resounded on 
 all sides. The citizens were engaged day and 
 night in manufacturing weapons, and the women 
 cut off their long hair to make strings for the bows. 
 The Romans, apprehending no resistance from a 
 disarmed people, made no haste towards Carthage; 
 and they at last came before the city, to find a
 
 176 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 terrible enemy, completely armed, to oppose them. 
 
 Several battles were fought before the walls, in 
 which the Romans were defeated. They at length 
 called in the aid of treachery, and the fate of 
 Carthage was sealed. One by one the fortresses 
 of the city were taken, and the enemy advanced 
 into its very heart. The temple only remained. 
 This was the last refuge of deserters from the 
 Roman camp, and of such Carthaginians as were 
 the foremost to undertake the war. Aware that 
 resistance was vain, and sure that they should 
 receive no mercy, they at length set fire to the 
 building, and perished in the flames. Such was 
 the end of Carthage. It has been usual to talk 
 of Carthaginian perfidy; but you must bear in 
 mind that we have only Roman evidence as to 
 that perfidy; and that the conduct of the Romans 
 in many cases, particularly with respect to the last 
 Punic war, was of a dishonourable kind. 
 
 Other states soon met with a similar fate. 
 Corinth, one of the noblest cities of Greece, was 
 levelled to the ground by a Roman army. Nu- 
 mantia, the strongest city in Spain, was besieged 
 by Scipio, and was fired by its desperate inhabi- 
 tants. Not one of them escaped death. Spain 
 thenceforth became a Roman province. I hope 
 that one efiect produced on your minds by hearing 
 of these fearful events will be to deepen your 
 hatred of war, and to heighten your love of peace.
 
 ABOUT ROME 177 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII 
 
 Growing extravagance Tiberius Gracchus His character and fate 
 Caius Gracchus He obtains the tribuneship Disturbances 
 in the city A party retire to Mount Aventine Battle Death 
 of Gracchus. 
 
 AFTER the fall of Carthage, and the destruction 
 of Corinth and Numantia, Rome was left the 
 mistress of the world, and without a rival in wealth 
 or power. The spoils of Asia corrupted the public 
 simplicity, and led to a spirit of idle extravagance 
 and grasping avarice. Among the people were 
 two men who perceived this growing corruption, 
 and resolved, if possible, to repress it. These were 
 Tiberius and Caius Gracchus. If it were not for 
 the virtuous energies of good men, opposing and 
 frustrating the evil acts of the worldly-minded 
 and wicked, this world would be much worse 
 than it is. 
 
 As a first step to this, Tiberius Gracchus ob- 
 tained the renewal of a law, which enacted that 
 no person in the state should possess over five 
 hundred acres of land. This law greatly disgusted 
 the wealthy, and they endeavoured to persuade the 
 people that the only object of its passing was to 
 breed disorder and confusion in the state. 
 
 But their efforts were in vain. Tiberius was 
 very eloquent, and possessed great influence. This 
 he employed in advancing the interests of the 
 poor at the expense of the rich; till at length 
 
 (MS95) M
 
 178 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 he fell a victim to his zeal, and was murdered in 
 a tumult of the senators. 
 
 Caius Gracchus was but twenty-one years of age 
 at the death of his brother. He lived in solitude, 
 and passed his time in the cultivation of eloquence. 
 His first office was the quaestorship of the army 
 in Sardinia. Here he obtained great respect and 
 favour; and when the King of Numidia sent a 
 present of corn to the Romans, he ordered his 
 ambassadors to say that it was a tribute to the 
 virtues of Caius Gracchus. 
 
 This message the senate treated with scorn, and 
 dismissed the ambassadors as ignorant barbarians. 
 The insult so enraged young Gracchus that he left 
 the army at once, and offered himself to the people 
 as a candidate for the tribuneship. He was de- 
 clared tribune in spite of the warmest opposition 
 from the senate, and soon became very popular and 
 powerful in the state. 
 
 Gracchus, however, found the favour of the 
 populace but an unstable support, and when he 
 stood a third time for the tribuneship he failed in 
 obtaining it. This was the signal for his de- 
 struction. The consul Opimius, surrounding his 
 own person with a powerful guard, took every 
 occasion to insult Gracchus, that he might kill him 
 in the quarrel which he hoped to provoke. 
 
 Gracchus avoided every meeting with the consul, 
 and would not condescend even to wear arms in 
 self-defence. His friend Flaccus, however, a zealous 
 tribune, resolved to oppose party to party. One
 
 ABOUT ROME 179 
 
 morning, when the consul was sacrificing, according 
 to custom, at the capitol, the two parties attended 
 there. At this time one of the lictors cried out 
 insultingly to Flaccus and his party: "Ye factious 
 citizens, make way for honest men ". 
 
 This insult so provoked the party to whom it 
 was addressed that they instantly fell upon the 
 lictor and killed him. Gracchus and his followers 
 then retired to Mount Aventine. A proclamation 
 was at once issued by the consuls, declaring that 
 whoever should bring them the head of Gracchus, 
 or of Flaccus, should receive its weight in gold. 
 Pardon was also offered to all who would leave 
 him, and return to their homes. 
 
 This produced the desired effect. One by one, 
 the mean, the avaricious, the timid, and the fickle 
 deserted, till but a very small number remained 
 with their leaders. The consul Opimius led his 
 soldiers to the mount, and a terrible conflict fol- 
 lowed, in which about three thousand citizens were 
 slain. Gracchus retired to the temple of Diana, 
 where he was resolved to put an end to his own 
 life. This was prevented by two of his friends, 
 who had accompanied him, and who persuaded him 
 to save himself by flight. He was closely pursued, 
 and his friends were cut down by his side, as they 
 were fighting bravely in his defence. At length, 
 being surrounded and driven to despair, he pre- 
 vailed upon his own slave to kill him. 
 
 Thus died Caius Gracchus, about ten years after 
 his brother Tiberius, and six years after he first
 
 180 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 busied himself in the affairs of the republic. He is 
 blamed by historians as a factious and seditious 
 man, seeking to bring about troubles in the state 
 for his own elevation. If this be true, then he was 
 indeed wicked and abandoned; but if, as appears 
 , to be the case, in his contests with the senate, he 
 was moved by no other desire than that of ad- 
 vancing the interests of the people by a just and 
 necessary reform of existing abuses, then he is 
 entitled to be numbered among the patriots who 
 deserve the gratitude of mankind. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII 
 
 Vices of the succeeding period War with Jugurtha Fortunes of 
 Caius Marius Sylla Conspiracy of Catiline The first Trium- 
 virateConquests and fortunes of Julius Csesar. 
 
 IT is but a hateful task to dwell upon the vices of 
 any nation, especially if it have afforded instances 
 of superior virtue; but at the period to which I am 
 now arrived, Rome became very corrupt. The 
 remaining period of Roman history is marked by 
 vices which we have not before been obliged to 
 look upon. Luxury and corruption succeeded to 
 the stern virtue of the earlier periods. The poorer 
 classes were reduced to a slavish submission, and 
 the wealthy ruled them with an absolute dominion. 
 While in this miserable state at home, however, the 
 Romans still pursued their foreign conquests with 
 success.
 
 ABOUT ROME l&l 
 
 Jugurtha was an ambitious Numidian, who 
 usurped the throne, after destroying one of the 
 king's sons and banishing another. The surviving 
 brother fled to Rome, and laid his just complaints 
 before the senate. This assembly had reached such 
 a degree of corruption that the gold of Jugurtha 
 was able to bribe most of its members, and the 
 suppliant monarch perished in the snare of his 
 enemy. 
 
 A continuance of his cruel and despotic conduct 
 at length brought upon him the vengeance of the 
 Roman people. In the consulship of Marius this 
 monarch was delivered into their hands, and sent 
 to Rome to adorn the triumph of his conqueror. 
 He died in prison, B.C. 104. 
 
 The disputes of the rival consuls, Sylla and Caius 
 Marius, now began to create confusion in the re- 
 public. Marius, who had been the pride of the 
 republic, was at last driven into banishment, and 
 the distresses of his exile were very severe. After 
 a series of adventures, he arrived in Africa, and 
 went on shore near Carthage. He had scarcely 
 landed when the Roman prsetor sent him word 
 that he must leave the coast immediately. 
 
 Struck with wonder and indignation, Marius for 
 a while remained in silence, his eyes cast upon the 
 ground. The messenger demanded what answer 
 he should return to the praetor. "Tell him," 
 replied the fallen general, " that you have seen 
 Caius Marius sitting on the ruins of Carthage." 
 By this he pointed out, most forcibly, the in-
 
 182 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 stability of human power, and the greatness of his 
 own misfortunes. He returned to his ship, and 
 spent the greater part of the winter on the sea. 
 
 Marius afterwards returned to Italy, and, joining 
 his forces with those of Cinna, his most zealous 
 partisan, he laid siege to Rome. Having entered 
 the city, he committed the most cruel outrages, 
 and murdered many of the senators and principal 
 men. His cruelties were only terminated by his 
 death a few days afterwards. 
 
 After a successful campaign in Asia, Sylla re- 
 turned to Italy, defeated his enemies, and became 
 master of Rome. No man ever made a more cruel 
 use of victory than Sylla. Having committed enor- 
 mities of the most gross and bloody character, he 
 caused himself to be elected dictator, and of his 
 own accord resigned his office and went into retire- 
 ment. Soon after his resignation he died. 
 
 On the death of Sylla the city was doomed to 
 be distracted by the dissensions of Pompey and 
 Crassus: one the richest man in Rome, the other 
 the most beloved general. Pompey added very 
 much to his military glory by clearing the Mediter- 
 ranean of pirates. But while he was thus pursuing 
 his conquests abroad, Rome was nearly ruined by 
 the conspiracy of Catiline. 
 
 This was a conspiracy of many of the ambitious 
 and aspiring men of the state to elevate themselves 
 on the ruins of their country. They were led by 
 Sergius Catiline, a man who had wasted his fortune 
 and his character by an ill-spent life, and whose
 
 ABOUT ROME 183 
 
 only hope was in some desperate resource like the 
 present. The conspiracy was discovered in season 
 to be checked. The celebrated orator Cicero, at 
 that time consul, distinguished himself by his 
 energy and activity in quelling it. Many of the 
 traitors were at once executed. Catiline fell in 
 battle, fighting with the courage of despair, and 
 performing prodigies of valour. 
 
 At this time Pompey was just returning from the 
 East in triumph, and Julius Csesar had left his 
 prsetorship in Spain, ricn and covered with glory. 
 These two generals then formed a connection with 
 Crassus, and it was resolved that nothing for the 
 future should be done in the state without the 
 consent of all of them. The union of these three 
 men was called the First Triumvirate. 
 
 The first step of Csesar at this time was to obtain 
 the consulship and begin his plans of empire. In 
 order to gain popularity he obtained the passing of 
 a law for dividing certain lands among the poor 
 citizens. He then consulted with his confederates 
 about sharing the foreign provinces between them. 
 The partition was soon made. Syria was assigned 
 to Crassus, Spain to Pompey, and Gaul to Csesar. 
 
 Csesar now assumes a most important part in the 
 history of the republic. Gaul was composed of 
 many fierce and powerful nations. The expedition 
 of Caesar into this country and Britain continued 
 eight years. During this period he fought very 
 numerous battles, and subdued many barbarous 
 tribes. But his attention was then withdrawn to
 
 184 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 the condition of Eome itself, where a contest was 
 raging which was a matter of personal interest, 
 and which resulted in a war that changed the 
 Roman republic into a despotic monarchy. 
 
 Pompey, who remained in Rome during Caesar's 
 absence, had acquired the good-will of the senate, 
 and was disposed to contend with him for the palm 
 of greatness. The jealousies between these two 
 great men ran so high that at length there remained 
 no mode of ending their disputes but in having 
 recourse to arms. Caesar, by a decree of the senate, 
 was ordered to disband his forces within a limited 
 time, and unless he complied with this demand he 
 was to be treated as an enemy of the republic. He 
 refused to obey unless Pompey would also disband 
 his forces, and declared that he would march into 
 Italy and avenge the injuries done to himself and 
 the commonwealth. 
 
 Rome was now to be involved once more in the 
 horrors of a civil war. Caesar immediately collected 
 his forces and sent them, under the command of 
 Mark Antony, to seize Aretium, while he himself 
 remained at Ariminum. It is related that when 
 Caesar received the news which rendered it necessary 
 for him either to act with vigour or to surrender 
 himself to the senate, he sat down to table with his 
 friends as usual, and, after sunset, set out with all 
 possible secrecy and a small retinue. His light 
 going out, he missed his way, and wandered about 
 for some time till he found his guide, who brought 
 him into the road again. At break of day he came
 
 ABOUT ROME 185 
 
 up with his troops on the banks of the Rubicon, a 
 little river which formed the boundary of his pro- 
 vince, and which is believed to be the same stream 
 that is now called the Pisatello. He hesitated 
 whether or not to cross the limits of his govern- 
 ment. At length, spurring his horse into the 
 water, he exclaimed aloud to his soldiers: "Let us 
 go, my friends, where the gods and the injustice of 
 our enemies call us ". Then, drawing his sword, he 
 passed over the river, and was followed by his 
 whole army. Since this time it has become a 
 proverb, when anyone has actually commenced a 
 hazardous enterprise from which he cannot draw 
 back, to say : " He has passed the Rubicon ". I 
 dare say you will not go through your lives with- 
 out hearing it quoted. 
 
 Caesar, having passed the Rubicon, and thus 
 invaded the territories of the republic, had no 
 other course left than to prosecute the war which 
 he had begun. His forces were composed of 
 veteran troops, valiant, hardened by the fatigues 
 of war, and strongly attached to their general. In 
 six months after he had crossed the Rubicon, Caesar 
 had made himself master of all Italy. 
 
 Pompey was obliged to leave Italy at the mercy 
 of his rival, and Caesar went back to Rome to take 
 possession of the public treasures. Having pro- 
 vided for the continuance of the war, he again left 
 the city, to subdue the lieutenants of Pompey, who 
 had long been at the head of a veteran and vic- 
 torious army in Spain.
 
 186 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 While thus employed in the conquest of Spain, 
 his rival was equally active in making preparations 
 to oppose him. All the kings of the East had 
 espoused the cause of Pompey, and sent him very 
 liberal supplies. He attacked the lieutenants of 
 Caesar in that part of the empire with great 
 success; and crowds of nobles and citizens from 
 Eome thronged daily to join him. 
 
 Caesar's affairs had begun to look dark, when he 
 was at length brought to a general battle at Phar- 
 salia. Pompey had become confident by success, 
 and his camp presented to the victors all the 
 magnificence of an entertainment rather then the 
 necessary and usual accommodations of the field. 
 This battle ended in the total overthrow of 
 Pompey's forces, and he was himself obliged to 
 escape by flight. 
 
 He first sailed to Amphipolis and endeavoured 
 to collect fresh forces, but Caesar's activity obliged 
 him to depart from thence to Mitylene, where he 
 had left his wife, Cornelia. Here he was detained 
 two days by the badness of the weather; and 
 having increased his fleet with a few galleys, he 
 sailed to Cilicia, and thence to Cyprus. He then 
 resolved to go to Egypt and beg the assistance of 
 Ptolemy. From this king he received favourable 
 promises, but was basely murdered by his order.
 
 ABOUT ROME 187 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX 
 
 Caesar sails for Egypt War between Cleopatra and Ptolemy- 
 Caesar's return to Rome Honour bestowed on him Conspiracy 
 Death Second Triumvirate Battle of Philippi Expedition 
 to Egypt> Troubles Death of Antony and Cleopatra. 
 
 THERE is that in great riches and power which 
 seldom fails to make a man ambitious to attain 
 yet more than he possesses; he thus excites 
 jealousy and envy, and often brings destruction 
 upon his head. Among the Roman leaders instances 
 of this kind are almost without number. Having 
 now obtained a complete victory, his success only 
 inspired Caesar to new activity. He set sail for 
 Egypt in pursuit of his fugitive enemy, and arrived 
 at Alexandria. Here he received news of his death, 
 and ordered a magnificent tomb to be erected to his 
 memory. 
 
 The government of Egypt was at this time in 
 dispute between Cleopatra and her brother Ptolemy. 
 Caesar claimed the right of deciding the contest, and 
 gave a decree in favour of the lady, by whose charms 
 he had been captivated. A war was the consequence, 
 in which Ptolemy was killed, and Egypt subdued by 
 the Romans. 
 
 It is not necessary to follow Caesar through his 
 many victorious expeditions. The course that is 
 to be tracked only through blood we can derive 
 little pleasure or profit from pursuing. Cato, who 
 gave many instances of stern and unbending virtue, 
 was the last surviving general of Pompey's army,
 
 188 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 and on his death, by suicide, in the city of Utica, 
 Caesar returned in triumph to Rome. 
 
 This triumph was of the most splendid kind. 
 His conduct, too, was highly honourable for his 
 clemency to the partisans of Pompey. The people 
 were blinded by his great success. They heaped 
 every honour on him. He was called the emperor 
 and father of his country, and his person was 
 declared to be sacred. 
 
 Having restored prosperity to the city, and 
 framed wise laws for its future good, Csesar was 
 again obliged to go to Spain. The friends of 
 Pompey had resolved to protract the war in that 
 quarter, and had brought a large army into the 
 field. Csesar advanced upon them with almost 
 incredible despatch, completely routed them, and 
 by this last victory subdued all his open enemies. 
 
 The senate conferred new honours upon Csesar, 
 and when he had been appointed dictator, it was 
 rumoured that he intended to make himself king. 
 Jealousies sprang up among the people. A con- 
 spiracy was formed against him, in which no less 
 than sixty senators were engaged. At the head 
 of it were two formidable leaders: Brutus, whose 
 life Caesar had spared at Pharsalia, and Cassius, 
 who had been pardoned soon after. They were 
 both praetors at that time. The former prided 
 himself on being descended from the Brutus who 
 first gave Rome freedom. It is to be regretted 
 that the second Brutus could not have done justice 
 to his country without treachery to his friend.
 
 ' ABOUT ROME 189 
 
 The ides of March 1 had been selected by the 
 conspirators for the execution of their design. 
 Many prodigies are said to have foretold the 
 death of Csesar, for the Romans were very super- 
 stitious. Among these were unnatural appear- 
 ances in the animals prepared for sacrifice, astonish- 
 ing omens from the flight of birds, and dreams of 
 alarming import. 
 
 All these Csesar disregarded; and though his 
 wife, Calpurnia, the night before his assassination, 
 dreamed that he was stabbed in her arms, he 
 resolved to go on the following morning to the 
 senate-house. On his way thither he met with 
 Spurina, an augur, who had cautioned him to 
 beware of the ides of March. "Well, Spurina," 
 said he, " the ides of March are come." " Come, 
 Csesar, but not past," was the reply. 
 
 Having arrived at the senate-house the con- 
 spirators surrounded the curule chair, and Cimber, 
 one of the party, began to supplicate Csesar, till in 
 the earnestness of his suit he grasped the extremity 
 of his robe, as if to prevent him rising. This was 
 the appointed signal. Casca, who was behind, now 
 stabbed him slightly in his shoulder. Caesar 
 instantly turned, and with the steel writing 
 instrument wounded him in the arm. 
 
 The other conspirators now rushed forward, but 
 Csesar continued to defend himself with great 
 
 1 Ides was a denomination given by the Romans to a certain day in each 
 month. In March, May, July, and October, they fell on the fifteenth day, 
 and in the other months on the thirteenth.
 
 190 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 intrepidity, till he perceived Brutus among the 
 number of his assassins. From that moment he 
 resigned himself to his fate. "And thou, too, 
 oh Brutus T he exclaimed, as the latter plunged 
 bis dagger into his bosom. Then, covering his 
 head with his robe, he sank down at the base 
 of Pompey's statue, after having received three- 
 and- twenty wounds. If Caesar's glory be enough 
 to excite ambition, surely his death is enough 
 to allay it for ever. 
 
 As soon as the conspirators had despatched 
 Csesar, they retired to the capitol, and guarded 
 the approaches to it by a body of gladiators. 
 The people were struck with horror and astonish- 
 ment. Mark Antony and Lepidus resolved to 
 make the deed pave the way to their own 
 elevation. They harangued the multitude, and 
 inflamed them with such indignation that they 
 would have killed the murderers on the spot. 
 
 At this moment Augustus, the grand-nephew 
 of Caesar, arrived at Rome and joined his interests 
 with those of Lepidus and Antony. Thus was 
 formed the Second Triumvirate. They divided 
 the provinces among themselves, and each con- 
 sented to the sacrifice of his best friends to the 
 caprice or vengeance of his colleagues. In this 
 horrible proscription three hundred senators and 
 three thousand knights were slain. 
 
 Brutus and Cassius fled to Greece, and persuaded 
 the Roman students at Athens to declare with them 
 in the cause of freedom. In Syria, in Macedonia,
 
 ABOUT ROME 191 
 
 and the neighbouring countries, they soon raised 
 a formidable army, and placed themselves at its 
 head. Their first intention was to march against 
 Cleopatra, who had made great exertions to assist 
 their opponents. From this, however, they were, 
 diverted. Their enemy marched into Macedonia 
 to meet them. A battle was fought at Philippi. 
 in which Cassius was entirely defeated, and threw 
 himself upon his sword. In a second battle that 
 followed shortly after, at the same place, the troops 
 of Brutus were also routed. 
 
 This unfortunate Roman, with a small number 
 of friends, passed over a rivulet, and, night ap- 
 proaching, sat down under a rock which concealed 
 him from the enemy. Perceiving that all was 
 lost, "Oh, unhappy Virtue," he exclaimed, "I 
 have worshipped thee as a divinity, but thou art 
 only a name!" He also fell on his own sword, and 
 of all the conspirators against Caesar, not one died 
 a natural death. Had I the, time, I could say much 
 about Cato and Brutus; by many their characters 
 are highly esteemed; but we must go on with our 
 history. 
 
 The triumvirs made a new division oi the 
 provinces, by which all the power and wealth 
 of the empire were placed in the hands of Antony 
 and Octavius. The former of these visited Greece, 
 and other states under his dominion, to receive 
 their flattery and homage. Cleopatra, the cele- 
 brated Queen of Egypt, was summoned to appear 
 before him. Conscious that her beauty would
 
 192 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 enable her to deal with the Roman as she pleased, 
 she resolved to visit his court in obedience to 
 his command. 
 
 Being arrived at the mouth of the Cydnus, 
 she embarked in a vessel, whose stern was of gold, 
 the sails of purple silk, and whose oars, covered 
 with plates of silver, gently kept time to the sounds 
 of flutes and cymbals. The queen lay under a 
 canopy of rich cloth of gold, adorned like Venus 
 rising out of the sea, surrounded with children, 
 like Cupids, fanning her. Her women, beautifully 
 dressed as Naiads and Graces, were leaning neg- 
 ligently on the sides and shrouds of the vessel. 
 The sweets of the burning perfumes reached the 
 banks of the river, which were thronged by multi- 
 tudes of people. 
 
 Antony was at once captivated by her beauty, 
 and sacrificed everything to its possession. He 
 had summoned her to show that he was her 
 conqueror, but in doing so he became her slave; 
 he fell into a snare of his own contriving. He 
 followed the queen into Egypt, and remained 
 there buried in luxury and dissipation. Meanwhile 
 Augustus led back his veteran army into Italy, 
 and deprived husbandmen and shepherds of their 
 lands, to settle them as bounties on his troops. 
 
 This occasioned the most severe distress, and it 
 was soon followed by another civil war, between 
 Augustus and the consul Lucius, brother of Antony. 
 Lucius was entirely overthrown ; and the colleagues 
 met at Brundusium, and arranged their differences.
 
 ABOUT ROME 193 
 
 To make their union more binding, a marriage was 
 concluded between Antony and Octavia, the sister 
 of Augustus. 
 
 Lepidus having been banished, Augustus now 
 resolved to set aside Antony, and thus be the 
 sole master of Rome. Antony's conduct was 
 such as to give him ample opportunities for the 
 performance of this design. Negligent of all 
 business, he was the servant and slave to the 
 pleasures of Cleopatra, thus giving offence to the 
 Roman people, and heaping the most bitter insults 
 upon his wife Octavia. 
 
 Augustus now made open war, and the two 
 armies took the field, one mustering all the forces 
 of the east, the other of the west. A great naval 
 battle was fought near Actium, a promontory in 
 Acarnania. The fortune of the day was decided 
 by the conduct of Cleopatra, who fled from the 
 engagement, attended by sixty sail. Antony was 
 shameless enough to follow her, and abandon his 
 soldiers to their fate. 
 
 The victor pursued the unhappy fugitives to 
 Egypt, where they both coon after died. Antony 
 stabbed himself on hearing a report of .the queen's 
 death, and Cleopatra perished by the bite of an asp, 
 which was conveyed to her in a basket of figs. 
 
 (M806)
 
 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 CHAPTER XXX 
 
 Augustus sole monarch His reign Anecdotes Appointment of a 
 successor Auguries Death of Augustus Tiberius His suc- 
 cessors Decline and fall of the empire. 
 
 You will almost suppose, from what I have told 
 you, that no one in great power could die a natural 
 death among the Romans; certain it is that most of 
 their great men came to a violent end. Augustus 
 was now left sole master of the Roman empire. He 
 soon returned to Rome in triumph, and began 
 to efface the memory of his former cruelty by 
 magnificent shows and splendid entertainments. 
 Having waded through blood to the throne, he 
 determined to establish it in the affection oi the 
 people by clemency and justice. 
 
 He did much to improve the laws and manners 
 of the city, and at every step of his progress was 
 loaded with additional honours. A laurel was 
 ordered to be planted at his gate. His house 
 was called the palace. He had the title of the 
 Father of his Country, and indeed he did every- 
 thing in his power to reform the rough character of 
 the Romans. 
 
 Though he could condemn or acquit when he 
 thought proper, he gave the laws their proper 
 course, and would sometimes plead in person for 
 those he desired to protect. An old soldier one 
 day claimed his assistance in a certain cause, but 
 Augustus desired him to apply to an advocate
 
 ABOUT ROME 195 
 
 "Ah!" replied the soldier, "I did not bid you find 
 another soldier to fight for you at the battle of 
 Actium." The reply so pleased Augustus that he 
 pleaded his cause in person, and won it for him. 
 
 Cornelius Cinna, a grandson of Pompey, had 
 entered into a conspiracy against him, but the plot 
 was discovered before its execution. Augustus, 
 resolved to mortify Cinna by the greatness of his 
 generosity, thus addressed him: "I have twice 
 given you your life, first as an open enemy, now as 
 a secret conspirator; I now give the consulship, 
 and let me see if your fidelity will not surpass my 
 confidence ". 
 
 In his old age, Augustus appointed his son-in-law, 
 Tiberius, for his successor, and associated him with 
 himself in the government of the empire. About 
 this time he solemnized the census, by which the 
 population of the city was found to be four million 
 one hundred and thirty -seven thousand. It is 
 doubtful if the census be correct. While this was 
 performing, by a mighty assemblage in the Campus 
 Martius, it is said that an eagle flew several times 
 about the head of the emperor, then, directing its 
 flight to a neighbouring temple, perched over the 
 name of Agrippa. This was interpreted by the 
 augurs as an omen of the death of Augustus, and 
 shortly after he died. The flights of eagles, and 
 other birds, partake too much of the marvellous 
 to be believed. 
 
 Under Augustus the Roman empire became the 
 fourth great empire of the world. Its dominions,
 
 196 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 at the time of his death, extended on the west to 
 the Atlantic Ocean, on the north to the Rhine and 
 the Danube, on the east to the Euphrates, and on 
 the south to the sandy deserts of Arabia and Africa. 
 Such, indeed, was the glorious state of Rome in the 
 time of Augustus, that, to this day, when speaking 
 of the most flourishing period in the history of any 
 country, we call it the Augustan age. In this reign 
 the SAVIOUR OP THE WORLD was born at Bethlehem 
 in Judaea, an event of a thousand times more im- 
 portance to mankind than all the circumstances of 
 the Roman history put together. 
 
 Of the period that followed the death of 
 Augustus we may form some idea from the fact 
 that the seven succeeding emperors perished by a 
 violent death. Their reigns were short, turbulent, 
 and bloody; and they all died by poison or by the 
 sword. Vespasian was the first emperor after 
 Augustus who died in his bed. Is not this fact 
 worthy of being remembered? seven emperors in 
 succession died a violent death! One would have 
 almost thought that no man in his right senses 
 would have worn the diadem. 
 
 Titus, the son of Vespasian, first became known 
 by his valour at the siege of Jerusalem. He was 
 made emperor A.D. 79, and died two years after- 
 wards deeply lamented. His successor, Domitian, 
 was the last of the twelve Csesars. The early part 
 of his reign was tranquil, but he afterwards de- 
 graded himself by his vices, and perished by the 
 dagger of an assassin.
 
 ABOUT ROME 197 
 
 From the death of Domitian, A.D. 96, to the 
 reign of Constantino, Roman history possesses very- 
 little interest. It is a tissue of luxury and crime. 
 The soldiers elevated their favourite to the throne, 
 as often as it was made vacant by the dagger of the 
 assassin, or the self-destroying profligacy of its 
 occupant. 
 
 Constantine the Great removed the seat of the 
 court from Rome to the place where old Byzantium 
 formerly stood, and called it from his own name 
 Constantinopolis. From that time the two cities 
 looked on each other with jealousy, and soon after 
 the age of Constantine a separation was made of 
 the empire. Rome was called the capital of the 
 western, and Constantinople the capital of the 
 eastern dominions of Rome. Constantine died 
 A.D. 337, after a reign of thirty-one years of great 
 glory and prosperity. His empire was divided 
 among his three sons. 
 
 From the death of this great emperor the 
 condition of the Roman dominions became very 
 desperate. The people were luxurious, corrupt, 
 and factious. In this situation they presented an 
 easy spoil to the hardy and ferocious nations of the 
 north, who poured down upon the sunny plains of 
 Italy with a force as terrific and as inevitable as 
 that of the avalanche which tumbles from the 
 cloud-hidden summits of the Alps, and sweeps 
 away whole villages in its frightful descent. 
 
 The great city, that had ?o long been the terror 
 of the world, was compelled to send ambassadors
 
 198 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 to its besiegers to beg for terms of peace, or to 
 request to fight with them in the open field. To 
 this message the Gothic monarch replied with 
 laughter, that " thick grass was more easily cut 
 than thin " ; implying that their troops, when 
 cooped up in a city, would offer a more easy and 
 speedy conquest than when drawn out in order of 
 battle. 
 
 The fate of Rome was fixed. The barbarians 
 were this time prevailed on to depart by an im- 
 mense tribute, but they soon returned. Conscious 
 of their own strength, they ravaged the city, de- 
 stroying its monuments, sparing neither private 
 dwe lings nor public edifices, neither sex, nor age, 
 nor religion. 
 
 Such was the end of the western empire of Rome. 
 Its final dissolution was occasioned by an irruption 
 of the northern tribes under Odoacer, A.D. 476 
 The eastern empire continued an independent 
 sovereignty from A.D. 395 till the time of Con- 
 stantine Dracoses, A.D. 1453. 
 
 Of the emperors of the eastern empire, Justinian 
 was among the most celebrated. His reign chiefly 
 owed its splendour to Belisarius, one of the greatest 
 generals of his age, who gained many victories over 
 the Goths, and led their king in triumph through 
 the streets of Constantinople. He conquered Italy, 
 and refused the crown that was offered him. He 
 died in the year 565. His history has been much 
 coloured by the poets, and among other fictions it 
 has been stated that in his old age his eyes were
 
 ABOUT ROME 199 
 
 put out, and he was compelled to beg his bread in 
 the streets of Constantinople. 
 
 In the year 1453, Mahomet II, emperor of the 
 Turks, besieged and took Constantinople, and thus 
 put a final period to the Koman name. When 
 Mahomet was surveying the splendid and desolate 
 palaces of Constantino, " a melancholy reflection on 
 the vicissitudes of human greatness forced itself 
 upon his mind, and he repeated this distich of 
 Arabian poetry : ' The spider hath wove his web in 
 the imperial palace, and the owl hath sung her 
 watch-song on the towers of Afrasiab ' ". 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI 
 
 Manners and customs Hanks Religion Augurs Many deities 
 Christianity Temples Funeral rites Marriage ceremonies. 
 
 I AM now going to give you an account of the 
 manners and customs of the great people whose 
 history you have just read. I shall tell you about 
 their domestic habits, and about their public ob- 
 servances; about their state of society, agriculture, 
 shows, dresses, religion, marriage ceremonies, funeral 
 rites, military institutions, and public edifices. 
 
 The people of Rome, as you have been already 
 told, were at first divided into two classes, the 
 patricians and plebeians. It was to the struggles 
 for power between these ranks that most of the 
 difficulties in the state were owing. To these ranks
 
 200 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 a third was afterwards added, called equites, or 
 knights; and the custom of making slaves of the 
 subjects of conquered nations introduced a fourth 
 division. 
 
 You have seen that the government of Rome was 
 subject to very numerous changes. At one time 
 it was under a king, at another under consuls, 
 decemviri, dictators, or emperors. The other 
 officers of the state were numerous, and invested 
 with very different degrees of power. 
 
 The ministers of religion among the Romans did 
 not form a distinct order of citizens, but were 
 chosen from the most virtuous and honourable men 
 of the state. The superstitions of the time gave 
 rise to the establishment of a college of augurs, 
 whose business it was to explain dreams, oracles, 
 and prodigies, and to foretell future events. They 
 drew their auguries or presages concerning futurity 
 from the appearance of the heavens, and inspection 
 of the entrails of birds and beasts. 
 
 Of course they could no more divine the future 
 than the old women whom you may sometimes meet 
 with in our villages, who pretend to " tell your for- 
 tune" by examining the grounds of coffee-cups. 
 The weakest and most ignorant are now too well 
 informed to give credit to these pretences. From 
 this fact you can form some opinion as to the 
 general intelligence of the Romans compared with 
 that of our own countrymen. 
 
 The augurs at Rome interpreted the will of the 
 gods in the affairs of making war and peace, and
 
 ABOUT HOME 201 
 
 none dared to dispute their authority. No business 
 of importance could be proceeded in without first 
 consulting them; and their advice, whatever it 
 might be, was, by a decree of the senate, to be 
 religiously observed. 
 
 The office of an augur was important and 
 honourable, and was sought after by many of 
 the principal persons in the Roman senate. Cato, 
 the censor, was a member of their college, and also 
 Cicero, though they both appear to have been fully 
 sensible of the extravagance and folly of the art 
 they practised. A remark is attributed to Cato, 
 that he wondered how one augur could look in the 
 face of another without laughing. 
 
 The religion of the Romans was a belief in many 
 deities. Every virtue and vice of the human heart, 
 every faculty of the mind and body, every property 
 of the real and imaginary world, was presided over 
 by its peculiar god. Every grove, and mountain, 
 and stream had its nymph or naiad, and every 
 hero and sage of the country was elevated to the 
 rank of a divinity. 
 
 Every religious sect was tolerated at Rome 
 except the Jews and the Christians. They were 
 persecuted with unrelenting cruelty, until the mild 
 precepts of the true religion triumphed over super- 
 stition and ignorance. Christianity at length 
 prevailed over conflicting religious opinions, and 
 was adopted as the religion of the state A.D. 311. 
 
 The number of deities whom the Romans wor- 
 shipped occasioned the erection of a great number
 
 202 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 of temples. Many of these were very splendid 
 edifices, adorned with all the arts of sculpture, and 
 filled with offerings and sacrifices. Those built to 
 the inferior deities were of less magnificence and 
 grandeur, and were merely styled sacred houses. 
 In the dwelling of every wealthy family there was 
 a private chapel, in which they worshipped their 
 household gods. Ancient Rome is said to have 
 contained four hundred and twenty temples. 
 
 Marriage was very much favoured by the laws 
 of Rome, and severe penalties were inflicted on 
 those who remained single. At one period the 
 censors obliged all the young bachelors to make 
 oath that they would marry within a certain time. 
 Augustus increased the penalties on bachelors, and 
 bestowed rewards on those who were parents of a 
 numerous offspring. 
 
 The parties were betrothed some time before the 
 actual celebration of the marriage. This was 
 attended with many ceremonies, at which the 
 priests and augurs assisted. The contract of mar- 
 riage was drawn up in the presence of witnesses, 
 and confirmed by the breaking of a straw between 
 the engaged pair. The bridegroom then presented 
 his bride with the wedding ring, and the father of 
 the bride gave a great entertainment. 
 
 The wedding ring was worn on the third finger 
 of the left hand, from a notion that a nerve of that 
 finger communicated directly with the heart. In 
 dressing the bride they never failed to divide her 
 locks with the point of a spear, to signify that she
 
 ABOUT ROME 203 
 
 was about to become the wife of a warrior. They 
 then crowned her with a chaplet of flowers, and put 
 on her a veil proper for the occasion. 
 
 Her toilet being completed, she was led in the 
 evening towards the bridegroom's house by three 
 boys, whose parents were still alive. Five torches 
 were carried before her, and also a distaff and 
 spindle. Being come to the door, she herself 
 bound the posts with wreaths of wool washed over 
 with melted tallow, to keep out witchcraft. In 
 going into the house she was by no means to touch 
 the threshold, but was to be lifted over by main 
 force. When she had entered, the bridegroom 
 presented her with the keys, and with two vessels 
 containing fire and water. 
 
 The bridegroom then gave a grand supper to all 
 the company. The festival was accompanied with 
 music and dancing, and the guests sang verses in 
 praise of the new- married couple. 
 
 The funeral rites of the Romans present a very 
 interesting subject. Burning the dead, though 
 practised by the Greeks from very early times, 
 was not adopted in Rome till the later ages of the 
 republic. It afterwards became universal, and was 
 continued without interruption till the introduction 
 of Christianity, when it gradually fell into disuse. 
 
 Among the Romans the bed of the sick was 
 never abandoned to hired nurses and servants. It 
 was attended by the relatives and intimates, who 
 waited till the last hour, and bade a last farewell 
 to their dying friend. The body of the dead was
 
 204 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 bathed in perfumes, dressed in rich garments, and 
 laid out on a couch strewed with flowers. The 
 outer door of the house was shaded with branches 
 of cypress. According to the heathen mythology, 
 Charon would not convey the departed spirit across 
 the river Styx without payment of a fixed toll. A 
 small coin was therefore placed in the mouth of the 
 deceased to meet this demand. You smile at this 
 piece of superstition, and well you may. 
 
 The funeral took place by torch-light. The 
 body was borne by near friends and relatives on 
 an open bier covered with the richest cloth. 
 Lictors dressed in black regulated the procession. 
 If the deceased had been a soldier, the badges 
 of his rank were displayed, and the corps to which 
 he belonged marched with their arms reversed. 
 
 Before the corpse were carried images of the 
 deceased and his ancestors. Then followed musi- 
 cians and mourning women, who were hired to 
 sing his praises, and dancers and buffoons, one 
 of whom attempted to represent the character of 
 the dead man, and imitate his manner when alive. 
 The family of the deceased followed the bier in 
 deep mourning, the sons with their heads covered, 
 the daughters unveiled and with their hair dis- 
 hevelled. Magistrates and patricians attended 
 without their badges or ornaments; and the pro- 
 cession was closed by his freed men with the cap 
 of liberty on their heads. 
 
 The funeral ceremonies of a man of rank were 
 distinguished by an oration in his honour pro-
 
 ABOUT ROME 205 
 
 nounced over the body by a friend. The scene of 
 this display was the forum, and in the later ages 
 of the republic it became very common. While the 
 practice of burial prevailed, the body was either 
 interred without a coffin, or placed in a kind of 
 deep chest called a sarcophagus. On the termina- 
 tion of the rites, the sepulchre was strewed with 
 flowers, and the mourners took a farewell of the 
 remains of their friend. The attendants were then 
 sprinkled with water by the priests, and all were 
 dismissed. 
 
 When the custom of burning the body was intro- 
 duced, a funeral pile was raised in the form of an 
 altar, and the bier was placed upon it. The pro- 
 cession then moved slowly about to the sound of 
 solemn music, when the nearest relative advanced 
 from the train with a lighted torch and set fire 
 to the pile. Perfumes and spices were then thrown 
 into the blaze, and the embers were quenched with 
 wine. The ashes were collected and placed in a 
 costly urn, which was deposited in the family 
 sepulchre. In the funeral solemnities of a soldier, 
 his arms, and the spoils he had won from the 
 enemy, were sometimes added to the funeral pile. 
 
 It was the custom of the heathen nations to 
 sacrifice on the tomb of the deceased those animals 
 to which he was most attached during his life. In 
 the more remote and barbarous ages men were 
 often the victims, domestic slaves and captives 
 taken in war; and sometimes friends have thus 
 devoted themselves from feelings of affection.
 
 206 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 No burial was allowed within the walls of the 
 city, except to the vestal virgins, and some families 
 of high distinction. The tombs of military men 
 were usually raised in the Field of Mars, and those 
 of private citizens in the gardens of their villas, or 
 by the side of the public roads. Many of these 
 monuments are still standing. The sepulchres of 
 the great and wealthy are engraven with long and 
 pompous lists of their titles, honours, and achieve- 
 ments. The tombs of the humble bear but a simple 
 lesson to the reader, ana some beautiful and touch- 
 ing expressions of sorrow or hope for the departed. 
 
 How much more affecting and impressive are 
 the simple rites of Christian burial than the pomp 
 and splendour of the Roman! Everything is so 
 still, and simple, and unaffected that the mind 
 rests only on the solemnity of death, without being 
 distracted by display and splendour. 
 
 Prayers are offered up in the church, the friends 
 and relatives follow the body in silent procession, 
 and enter with it into the graveyard, where 
 the generations of the family are sleeping. The 
 body is consigned to the earth whence it came, 
 ashes to ashes and dust to dust. Prayers are again 
 said, and the mourners are dismissed to their sad 
 homes, cheered, however, with the blessed consola- 
 tions which their religion bestows.
 
 ABOUT ROME 207 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 Roman farms Mode of ploughing Farmhouses Grain Cattle 
 Superstitions of the farmers Gardens Vines Country 
 houses Description of Pliny's villa Aqueducte. 
 
 THE farms and gardens of the Romans must now 
 be described to you. In the early and more virtuous 
 ages of the state the cultivation of the fields, and 
 a few rude trades connected with it, were the only 
 occupations. The man most valued and honoured 
 was the best husbandman, and many of the most 
 ancient families received their names from their 
 success in the cultivation of plants, or the rearing 
 of cattle. 
 
 It is probable that at this period the ground was 
 broken up only by the spade. Afterwards, when the 
 farms were enlarged, more expeditious means were 
 discovered. Some of the Roman modes of plough- 
 ing are still in use. They always ploughed with 
 oxen, a single pair, or sometimes three abreast, 
 yoked by the neck and horns. 
 
 The farmhouses were at first little huts, but 
 they were soon enlarged to suit the increasing pos- 
 sessions of the owners. We read at a later period 
 of large storehouses and granaries, cellars for wine 
 and oil, and barns, together with separate buildings 
 for the care and rearing of every species of domestic 
 animal. 
 
 The kinds of grain in common cultivation were 
 the same as those now known in Europe, with the
 
 208 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 exception of maize or Indian corn. The ancient 
 mode of converting grain into meal was by pound- 
 ing it with an instrument something like the pestle 
 and mortar. Mills moved by cattle, and by water, 
 are later inventions. 
 
 Much care was paid by the Romans to the rear- 
 ing of cattle. Sheep were secured under cover 
 during the winter, notwithstanding the mildness 
 of the Italian climate. Shearing-time was a season 
 of general festivity. Goats were made as profitable 
 to the farmer as sheep. Their hair was clipped 
 every year, and woven into a kind of coarse stuff, 
 and their milk was the chief supply of the dairy. 
 
 The Roman farmers were very superstitious. 
 They refrained from all labour on the fifth day of 
 the new moon; on the seventh and tenth they 
 planted vines and harnessed young oxen to the 
 yoke; on the ninth they commenced a journey. 
 The skeleton of an ass's head was hung up at 
 the boundary of the farm, to enrich the soil and 
 drive away the effects of blight. The same figure, 
 carved in brass and crowned with vines, was affixed 
 as an ornament to their couches. 
 
 In the remote ages, the gardens of the Romans 
 contained only a few of the most common pot-herbs, 
 and orchard trees. The more delicious fruits, and 
 more beautiful flowers, were introduced at a much 
 later period from the eastern countries. The style 
 of ornamental gardening was heavy and formal, 
 producing a gloomy shade rather than displaying 
 beautiful scenery. It was the fashion to fill the
 
 ABOUT ROME 209 
 
 gardens with dark walks, shaded with evergreens, 
 loaded with statues, and bounded by high clipped 
 hedges. 
 
 It is supposed that the Romans obtained a know- 
 ledge of the cultivation of the grape, and of the art 
 of making wine, from Greece. They took great 
 care of their vineyards, and laboured in cultivating 
 the plants with much art and industry. The mode 
 of gathering and pressing the grape was the same 
 that is now practised. The vintage was a time of 
 festival, and the rustics made merry with the per- 
 formance of a rude kind of comedy, and pouring 
 out libations of new wine to Jupiter and Venus. 
 
 The wine was kept in jars shaped like urns, 
 some of which are said to have been so large as to 
 form, when filled, a load for a yoke of oxen. They 
 were commonly ranged in cellars, but were some- 
 times buried in the earth, or even bedded in solid 
 masonry. The wine was usually kept to a great 
 age. It was held in much less favour than the 
 wine of Greece, and was much cheaper. 
 
 I am now going to describe the Roman villas. 
 Originally they were nothing more than very 
 humble farmhouses; but with the progress of 
 wealth and luxury, they were made by degrees 
 more extensive and costly. Some of them were 
 surrounded with large parks, in which deer and 
 various foreign wild animals were kept. Large 
 fish-ponds were also not unfrequently attached to 
 them, and were stocked at great expense. Gener- 
 ally, however, the villas were merely surrounded 
 
 (1(896) O
 
 210 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 by gardens, and in size and appearance resembled 
 those of modern Italy. 
 
 The philosopher Pliny the younger was a noble- 
 man and man of fortune, and the owner of four 
 magnificent villas. Of two of these he has left 
 minute descriptions; you may now read about one 
 of them. It was seated on a rising ground, facing 
 the south, with the Apennine mountains raising 
 their tall cliffs in the distant background. A 
 porch fronted the house, with a terrace before it, 
 adorned with various figures, and bounded by a 
 hedge of box. Hence you passed by an easy 
 descent into a lawn, surrounded by walks, and 
 adorned with box cut into the shapes of various 
 animals. 
 
 Beyond this lawn you entered a ground for 
 exercise, laid out in the form of a circus, orna- 
 mented with well -trimmed box and other shrubs, 
 and fenced with a wall covered by box. On the 
 outside of the wall was a meadow, and beyond were 
 other meadows, fields, and thickets. 
 
 Opposite the portico stood a square edifice, which 
 encompassed a small area shaded by four plane- 
 trees, with a fountain in the midst refreshing the 
 surrounding verdure. This apartment consisted of 
 a bedchamber and a dining - room. A second 
 portico looked out upon this little area. Another 
 room, situated by the nearest plane-tree, enjoyed 
 constant greenness and shade. In the same build- 
 ing were dressing-rooms, porticoes, baths, and 
 rooms for playing different games. The sides of
 
 ABOUT ROME 211 
 
 one room were encrusted half-way with carved 
 marble, thence, to the ceiling, branches of trees 
 were painted, with birds intermixed with the 
 foliage. 
 
 In front of these buildings and porticoes was a 
 spacious circus, surrounded by plane-trees, covered 
 with ivy. Between these were planted box- and 
 bay -trees, mingling their shade. The inward 
 circular walks were perfumed with roses. A 
 thousand different and fantastic shapes were given 
 to the box, which bordered the straight and wind- 
 ing alleys that intersected the grounds. At the 
 end of one of these walks was an alcove of white 
 marble, shaded with vines, and supported by four 
 pillars. 
 
 A fountain here emptied itself into a marble 
 basin, contrived with so much art as to be always 
 full without overflowing. Sometimes Pliny supped 
 here with his friends, and then the basin served for 
 a table, the larger vessels being placed about the 
 margin, and the smaller ones swimming about in 
 the form of little boats and water-fowl. 
 
 In front of the alcove stood a summer-house of 
 exquisite marble, with projecting doors which 
 opened into a green enclosure. Next to this was 
 a private recess, furnished with a couch, and over- 
 shaded by a spreading vine which reached to the 
 top. Here, also, a fountain rose and instantly 
 disappeared. In different parts of the walks were 
 several marble seats, and throughout the whole 
 circus were small rills refreshing the verdure of
 
 212 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 the scene. There is some difference between the 
 mansion I have described, and Peter Parley's little 
 brown house; but then there is safety in the one, 
 and there was insecurity in the other. 
 
 It was not till the year 441 after its foundation 
 that Kome obtained its supplies of water by means 
 of aqueducts. They afterwards became so numer- 
 ous, that it has been calculated they furnished the 
 city about five hundred thousand hogsheads every 
 day. They were built of brick, and were some- 
 times thirty, forty, or even sixty miles in length. 
 The water was conveyed to reservoirs, and thence 
 distributed through metal pipes over the town in 
 great abundance. Only four aqueducts now re- 
 main for modern Rome; yet so pure are the sources 
 from which they draw their supplies that no city 
 can boast of such clear and healthful water. 
 
 Great attention was paid to ornament in the 
 erection of the aqueducts. One built by Agrippa, 
 when sedile under Augustus, contained one hundred 
 and thirty reservoirs, and five hundred fountains, 
 adorned with statues and columns. Remains 
 of many others at this day bear witness to their 
 beauty and convenience. 
 
 It is not often that we reflect upon the great 
 value of our commonest blessings. How little 
 do we think of the value of water, yet what should 
 we do without it? These Roman reservoirs may be 
 the means of exciting a few reflections on this 
 subject in our minds,
 
 ABOUT ROME 213 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 Military affairs of the Romans Division of the army The imperial 
 eagle Music Arms Dress Military rewards Crowns 
 The triumph Naval affairs The war galley Commerce. 
 
 You have already heard that the Romans were 
 continually engaged in wars. Their military 
 affairs, therefore, occupied most of the attention 
 of the most distinguished citizens. According 
 to the Roman laws every free-born citizen was 
 a soldier, and bound to serve in the army at any 
 period from the age of seventeen to that of forty- 
 six. 
 
 The Roman forces were divided into legions, 
 each of which consisted of three thousand foot- 
 soldiers and three hundred horsemen. The stan- 
 dard of the legion was the imperial eagle. It was 
 made of gilt metal, and was borne on a spear by an 
 officer of rank. The soldiers regarded it with a 
 reverence which approached to devotion. The 
 cavalry carried pennons on which the initials of 
 the emperor or of the legion were embroidered in 
 letters of gold. 
 
 The only instrument of martial music, among 
 the Romans, was the brazen trumpet. Some of 
 the soldiers were armed with light javelins, and 
 others with a heavier weapon of a similar de- 
 scription. All, however, carried shields and short 
 swords, which they wore on the right side. They 
 were dressed in a metal cuirass, with an under
 
 214 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 covering of cloth, which was generally red, and 
 hung loose to the knee. On the head they wore 
 brazen helmets, ornamented with flowing tufts 
 of horse hair. The Roman soldier bore loads 
 which were almost incredible. He carried fifteen 
 days' victuals, utensils, a saw, a basket, a mattock, 
 an axe, a hook and leathern thong, a chain, a pot, 
 and from three to twelve stakes the whole weigh- 
 ing at least sixty pounds. The uniform of the 
 generals was an open scarlet mantle. 
 
 The cavalry wore a coat of mail, of brazen 
 or steel scales, or of chain-work, sometimes plated 
 with gold. Under this they wore a close garment 
 which reached to their buskins. They rode without 
 stirrups, and their saddles were merely cloth folded 
 to suit the convenience of the rider. The discipline 
 of the army was maintained with great strictness 
 and severity. 
 
 Rewards of various kinds were held out to those 
 who distinguished themselves by an extraordinary 
 exploit. The mural crown was presented to him 
 who, in the assault, first scaled the ramparts of 
 a town. A soldier who saved his comrade's life in 
 battle was entitled to the civic crown, which was 
 thought a distinction of the highest honour. The 
 general who conquered in a battle was decorated 
 with the triumphal laurel leaf. 
 
 But the highest ambition of every Roman com- 
 mander was to obtain a triumph. This was the 
 gift of the senate, and was only granted on occasions 
 of splendid victory. When decreed, the general
 
 ABOUT ROME 215 
 
 returned to Rome, and was appointed to the 
 supreme command of the city on the day of his 
 entry. A sculptured arch was erected, under 
 which the procession was to pass, and scaffoldings 
 were raised for spectators in all the public squares 
 and streets. 
 
 The procession moved at daylight from beyond 
 the walls of the city. A band of cavalry, with 
 military music, took the lead. They were followed 
 by a train of priests in their sacred robes, with 
 attendants leading to sacrifice a hecatomb of the 
 whitest oxen. Next came chariots laden with 
 spoils, the arms and standard of the conquered, 
 followed by long trains of the captives, conducted 
 by lictors. 
 
 Loud notes on the trumpet then announced the 
 approach of the victor, dressed in a robe of purple, 
 crowned with laurels, and bearing a sceptre of 
 ivory. He rode in a splendid car, drawn by four 
 horses, preceded by the Roman eagle, guarded by 
 a troop of cavalry. The most distinguished officers 
 of the army, in their richest dress and trappings, 
 surrounded him; a band of children clothed in 
 white followed, flinging clouds of perfumes and 
 flowers on the air, and singing hymns of praise to 
 the conqueror. 
 
 Last of all came the victorious army, their 
 weapons wreathed with laurel, and their burnished 
 armour gleaming in the sunshine. Countless mul- 
 titudes of the citizens lined the streets, and every 
 window and every scaffolding shone with beauty.
 
 216 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 The procession was greeted on all sides by loud ac- 
 clamations, joy and revelry reigned in the city, and 
 a scene was displayed of a magnificence and gor- 
 geousness not to be paralleled in modern history. 
 
 The first vessel of the Eoman navy is said to 
 have been built on the model of a captured Car- 
 thaginian galley. Their ships were roughly and 
 slightly constructed, and, though very large, unfit 
 to contend with boisterous and tempestuous 
 weather. They were clumsy and ill-fashioned, 
 with a high stern and sides, and rowed with two 
 or three tiers of oars on different decks. The 
 prows of the ships were armed with iron, usually 
 carved into the shape of some animal's head; the 
 upper deck was surmounted with a movable turret, 
 from which the soldiers could throw their weapons 
 with advantage. 
 
 The merchant ships of the Romans were of a 
 size corresponding with the purposes for which 
 they were intended. Before the discovery of the 
 magnet, by which the mariner can now direct his 
 course in safety over the pathless waves, navigation 
 was necessarily confined to the coast. These 
 coasting vessels were considered large if they 
 reached the burden of fifty tons. Though the 
 Carthaginian and Roman ships were numerous, 
 one single man-of-war of the present day, carrying 
 eighty or a hundred guns, would have scattered 
 them all on the waves. The invention of gun- 
 powder gave a fearful addition of power to ships of 
 war.
 
 ABOUT ROME 217 
 
 Rome was long supplied with the products of the 
 east by the merchants of the maritime states 
 of the Mediterranean. It was not till the conquest 
 of Egypt by Augustus that the trade became ex- 
 clusively her own. Of this commerce Alexandria 
 was the centre. 
 
 The principal imports into Italy from India 
 consisted of drugs and spices; cotton cloths and 
 muslins from the coasts of Coromandel and Mala- 
 bar; of silk from China; and of large quantities of 
 diamonds and pearls from Bengal and the pearl- 
 fisheries near Cape Comorin. From Persia and 
 Arabia they procured the richest carpets, silks, and 
 embroidered stuffs, together with rice and sugar. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 Shows of wild beasts Gladiatorial exhibitions Other sports 
 Chariot racing The circus Carriages Private entertainments 
 Supper rooms Convivial parties Luxuries Theatrical 
 entertainments Clocks and watches The fine arts Books 
 and manner of writing Costume Conclusion. 
 
 THE contention of wild beasts and gladiators was 
 a favourite amusement among the Romans. The 
 first amphitheatre erected in Rome for the shows of 
 wild beasts and gladiators was a mere temporary 
 building of wood, probably erected by Julius 
 Caesar. The Flavian amphitheatre, better known 
 by the name of Colosseum, was commenced in the
 
 218 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 reign of Vespasian, and is supposed to have con- 
 tained upwards of eighty thousand persons. 
 
 The wild beasts were secured in dens round the 
 arena in the centre, which was strongly fenced, and 
 surrounded by a canal, to guard the spectators 
 against their attacks. A vast number of wild 
 beasts were made to destroy each other in these 
 very cruel exhibitions. Eleven thousand are said 
 to have been killed during four months of triumph 
 in honour of a conquest over the Dacians; and five 
 hundred lions were killed in a few days on a similar 
 occasion. 
 
 The first public combats of gladiators took place 
 at Borne in the close of the fifth century from the 
 foundation of the city. They were exhibited at a 
 funeral. From that period they became frequent 
 on such occasions, and afterwards, on days of public 
 festival, were considered a material part of the 
 ceremonies. Many times, five hundred pairs of 
 these wretched beings have been led to the public 
 games to sacrifice each other for the amusement of 
 barbarous spectators. They were at first taken 
 from captives in war, or malefactors, afterwards 
 from slaves trained to the profession. 
 
 They fought with various weapons, some in com- 
 plete armour, others with only a trident and a net, 
 in which they endeavoured to entangle their 
 adversary, and thus slay him. It is needless to 
 give a minute account of these inhuman butcheries. 
 They were conducted with the most bloody and 
 savage spirit, and are sufficient proofs of the
 
 ABOUT ROME 219 
 
 degraded and brutalized condition of the period in 
 which they were tolerated. 
 
 I will now change the picture, and give you an 
 account of some of the less barbarous amusements 
 of the Romans. Among these were several games 
 of ball, played, as among us, both with the hand 
 and foot. The young men chiefly engaged in 
 sports in the open air, to make them more active 
 and vigorous. Boxing, wrestling, and throwing 
 the discus, or quoit, formed a prominent part of 
 these amusements, but chariot driving took the 
 lead of all others. 
 
 For the better enjoyment of horse and chariot 
 races there was an enclosed course, immediately 
 adjoining the city, called the circus. It was rather 
 more than a mile in circumference, and was sur- 
 rounded with seats and three tiers of galleries. In 
 the centre was a barrier of twelve feet in breadth 
 and four feet high, around which the race was 
 performed; and at one end was a triumphal arch, 
 through which the successful charioteer drove, 
 followed by the shouts and applause of the 
 assembly. 
 
 Four chariots usually started together, the 
 drivers of which were distinguished by dresses of 
 different colours. Each colour had its particular 
 partisans, who betted largely on the success of 
 their favourite. These sports were exceedingly 
 popular, and repeated in endless succession. 
 
 Of the form of carriages in use among the 
 Romans we have no precise description. They
 
 220 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 were of various kinds, open and covered, chairs and 
 couches, borne on poles by slaves in livery. The 
 couch was furnished with pillows and a mattrass, 
 and with feet of silver or gold to support it when 
 set down. There was also a kind of close litters, 
 drawn by mules, and of carriages on two and four 
 wheels, painted of various colours, and highly 
 ornamented. 
 
 The horses were yoked to the carriage by means 
 of a straight or curved crossbar passing over their 
 necks, and were directed by bridles and reins, 
 which were sometimes of embroidered silk, with 
 gold bits. Besides mules and horses, many other 
 animals were occasionally used in carriages, such as 
 dogs, goats, and deer, and even bears, leopards, 
 lions, and tigers. But this, of course, was merely 
 for a whimsical amusement, and not for real 
 service. 
 
 When the Romans were poor and simple they 
 lived chiefly on milk and vegetables, with a coarse 
 kind of pudding made of flour and water. But as 
 they began to grow powerful, and to conquer the 
 neighbouring nations, they became acquainted with 
 the luxuries of the people they subdued, and intro- 
 duced them into their own state. As they found 
 in Greece models of the fine arts, so Asia furnished 
 them with new and numerous sources of pleasure 
 in the gratification of their senses. 
 
 In the later days of the republic great attention 
 was paid to cookery, and various apartments were 
 constructed in the houses of the rich for the enter-
 
 ABOUT ROME 221 
 
 tainment of company. The supper-rooms of some 
 of the emperors were hung with cloths of gold and 
 silver, enriched with jewels. Tables were made for 
 them of fine gold, and couches with frames of 
 massive silver. The Romans always reclined on 
 these couches to take their meals. 
 
 At great entertainments the supper -room was 
 hung with flowers, and the guests were crowned 
 with garlands. The floor was generally bare, 
 though richly ornamented, and the ceiling was 
 inlaid with a fret-work of gold and ivory. Scented 
 oil was used for lighting the apartments, and mas- 
 sive carved lamps of figured bronze reflected their 
 brilliancy on the gay and beautiful scene. 
 
 Some of the more voluptuous and degraded of 
 the Roman emperors, in the decay of the republic, 
 were most extravagant and ridiculous in providing 
 rare dishes for their table. The livers and brains 
 of small birds, the heads of parrots and pheasants, 
 and the tongues of peacocks and nightingales, 
 formed a part of their daily food. They never 
 deserved to gaze on a peacock's beauty, or to hear 
 a nightingale's song. But the most luxurious dish 
 that graced the table of the Romans was an entire 
 boar, roasted and stuffed with game and poultry. 
 
 How miserable must have been the condition 
 of the people, whose masters could lavish their 
 wealth in such wanton and disgraceful indulgence 
 of their meanest appetites! On one occasion the 
 senate was assembled to consult on the best mode 
 of dressing an immense turbot, which had been
 
 222 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 presented to the emperor. In our time a council 
 of cooks might have been called on an affair of 
 so much importance, but it would hardly have 
 been a subject to bring before the rulers of the 
 people. The Romans, however, would have been 
 less rapidly enslaved and degraded if their 
 emperor and senate had always been employed 
 as innocently as in discussing the most desirable 
 manner of dressing a fish. 
 
 Theatrical entertainments were first introduced 
 into Rome in the year of the city 391. They were 
 originally little more than dances to the sound 
 of the flute. It was more than a hundred years 
 before the drama attained to much dignity or 
 excellence. Actors were always held in contempt, 
 but were enabled, from the patronage they received, 
 to accumulate large fortunes. Theatres were at 
 first built in the villages in the vicinity, and the 
 first permanent edifice of this kind in the city was 
 built of stone, and calculated to contain forty 
 thousand spectators. 
 
 The use of such clocks and watches as we have 
 at present was unknown to the Romans. The 
 sun-dial was introduced four hundred and forty 
 years after the building of the city. About a 
 century afterwards a kind of water-clock was 
 invented; this was contrived with much ingenuity, 
 and answered all purposes for the measurement of 
 time. 
 
 The fine arts were unknown in Rome till after 
 the sixth century of her existence, when they were
 
 ABOUT ROME 223 
 
 introduced by the successful captains of her armies 
 from the nations they had conquered. After a taste 
 for the arts had been thus formed, large enclosed 
 galleries were built around the mansions of the 
 rich, and were adorned with the finest specimens 
 of painting and sculpture. 
 
 In the dwellings of the most affluent patricians 
 these galleries also contained splendid libraries, 
 which were open to the inspection of the learned 
 and the curious. Collections of books were then, 
 of course, very rare on account of the great expense 
 and difficulty of transcribing them. They were 
 sometimes written on parchment, but more fre- 
 quently on a paper made from the leaves of a plant 
 called papyrus. The leaves were pasted together 
 at the ends, and then made up into a roll, which 
 was enclosed in a covering of skin or silk, 
 fastened with strings or clasps. 
 
 Writing was performed with a reed split and 
 pointed like our pen, and dipped in ink. Matters 
 not intended for preservation were usually written 
 with a pointed instrument on tables spread with 
 wax. When letters were sent forward for delivery 
 they were perfumed and tied with a silken thread, 
 the ends of which were sealed with common wax. 
 
 The usual garments of the Komans were the 
 toga and the tunic; the former a loose woollen robe 
 of a semicircular form and without sleeves; the 
 latter a close white garment worn, when abroad, 
 under the toga, but alone in the house. The men 
 usually went bareheaded. For the feet the usual
 
 224 PETER PARLEY'S TALES 
 
 coverings were the buskin and the sandal. The 
 buskin reached about half-way up the leg; the 
 sandal was a mere sole fastened to the foot by 
 straps and buckles. 
 
 I have now told you all that I can tell you 
 at present about the history, the manners and 
 customs, and all other matters relating to the 
 ancient Romans. 
 
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