and Cyrus himself, sailing round from Ionia to Cilicia. 22. Cyrus accordingly ascended the mountains without any opposition, and saw[31] the tents in which the Cilicians kept guard. Hence he descended into a large and beautiful plain, well watered, and abounding with all kinds of trees, as well as vines. It also produced great quantities of sesamum, panic, millet,[32] wheat, and barley. A chain of hills, strong and high, encompasses it on all sides from sea to sea. 23. Descending through this plain, he proceeded, in four days' march, a distance of twenty-five parasangs, to Tarsus, a large and opulent city of Cilicia. Here was the palace of Syennesis, the king of the Cilicians; and through the midst of the city runs a river, called the Cydnus, the breadth of which is two plethra. 24. This city the inhabitants, with Syennesis, had deserted for a strong-hold upon the mountains, except those who kept shops.[33] Those also remained behind, who lived near the sea at Soli and at Issi.
25. Epyaxa, the wife of Syennesis, had arrived at Tarsus five days before Cyrus. But in passing over the mountains which skirt the plain, two companies of Menon's troops had perished; some said that they had been cut to pieces by the Cilicians, while committing some depredations; others, that being left behind, and unable to find the rest of the army or their road, they had been destroyed while wandering about. They amounted to a hundred heavy-armed men. 26. When the rest of Menon's troops came up, full of resentment at the fate of their comrades, they plundered both the city of Tarsus and the palace in it. Cyrus, on entering the city, sent for Syennesis to come to him; but Syennesis answered, that he had never yet put himself in the power of one stronger than himself; nor would he then consent to go to Cyrus, until his wife prevailed upon him, and he received solemn assurances of safety. 27. Afterwards, when they had met, Syennesis gave Cyrus a large sum of money for the support of his army, and Cyrus in return presented him with such gifts as are held in estimation by a king, a horse with a golden bit, a golden chain and bracelets, and a golden scimitar and Persian robe. He also engaged that his country should no more be plundered, and that he should receive back the captured slaves, if they anywhere met with them.
CHAPTER III.
Cyrus is forced to stay twenty days at Tarsus by a mutiny of the Greek soldiers, who, suspecting that they were led against the king, refuse to go farther, and offer violence to Clearchus, who endeavours to force them to proceed. But being told by Cyrus that the expedition is directed against Abrocomas, and promised an increase of pay, they agree to continue their march.
1. Here Cyrus and the army remained twenty days; for the soldiers refused to proceed farther, as they now began to suspect that they were marching against the king, and said that they had not been hired for this purpose. Clearchus, first of all, endeavoured to compel his soldiers to proceed; but, as soon as he began to advance, they pelted him and his baggage-cattle with stones. 2. Clearchus, indeed, on this occasion, had a narrow escape of being stoned to death. At length, when he saw that he should not be able to proceed by force, he called a meeting of his soldiers; and at first, standing before them, he continued for some time to shed tears, while they, looking on, were struck with wonder, and remained silent. He then addressed them to this effect:
3. "Wonder not, soldiers, that I feel distressed at the present occurrences; for Cyrus engaged himself to me by ties of hospitality, and honoured me, when I was an exile from my country, both with other marks of esteem, and by presenting me with ten thousand darics. On receiving this money, I did not treasure it up for my own use, or squander it in luxury, but spent it upon you. 4. First of all, I made war upon the Thracians, and, in the cause of Greece, and with your assistance, took vengeance upon them by expelling them from the Chersonesus, when they would have taken the country from its Grecian colonists. When Cyrus summoned me, I set out to join him, taking you with me, that if he had need of my aid, I might do him service in return for the benefits that I had received from him. 5. But since you are unwilling to accompany him on this expedition, I am under the obligation, either, by deserting you, to preserve the friendship of Cyrus, or, by proving false to him, to adhere to you. Whether I shall do right, I do not know; but I shall give you the preference, and will undergo with you whatever may be necessary. Nor shall any one ever say, that, after leading Greeks into a country of Barbarians, I deserted the Greeks, and adopted, in preference, the friendship of the Barbarians.
6. "Since, however, you decline to obey me, or to follow me, I will go with you, and submit to whatever may be destined for us. For I look upon you to be at once my country, my friends, and my fellow-soldiers, and consider that with you I shall be respected, wherever I may be: but that, if separated from you, I shall be unable either to afford assistance to a friend, or to avenge myself upon an enemy. Feel assured, therefore, that I am resolved to accompany you wherever you go."
7. Thus he spoke; and the soldiers, as well those under his own command as the others, on hearing these assurances, applauded him for saying that he would not march against the king; and more than two thousand of the troops of Xenias and Pasion, taking with them their arms and baggage, went and encamped under Clearchus.
8. Cyrus, perplexed and grieved at these occurrences, sent for Clearchus; who, however, would not go, but sending a messenger to Cyrus without the knowledge of the soldiers, bade him be of good courage, as these matters would be arranged to his satisfaction. He also desired Cyrus to send for him again, but, when Cyrus had done so, he again declined to go.[34] 9. Afterwards, having assembled his own soldiers, and those who had recently gone over to him, and any of the rest that wished to be present, he spoke to the following effect:
"It is evident, soldiers, that the situation of Cyrus with regard to us is the same as ours with regard to him; for we are no longer his soldiers, since we refuse to follow him, nor is he any longer our paymaster. 10. That he considers himself wronged by us, however, I am well aware; so that, even when he sends for me, I am unwilling to go to him, principally from feeling shame, because I am conscious of having been in all respects false to him; and in addition, from being afraid, that, when he has me in his power, he may take vengeance on me for the matters in which he conceives that he has been injured. 11. This, therefore, seems to me to be no time for us to sleep, or to neglect our own safety; but, on the contrary, to consider what we must do under these circumstances.[35] As long as we remain here, it seems necessary to consider how we may best remain with safety; or, if we determine upon going at once, how we may depart with the greatest security, and how we may obtain provisions; for without these, the general and the private soldier are alike inefficient.[36] 12. Cyrus is indeed a most valuable friend to those to whom he is a friend, but a most violent enemy to those to whom he is an enemy. He has forces, too, both infantry and cavalry, as well as a naval power, as we all alike see and know; for we seem to me to be encamped at no great distance from him. It is therefore full time to say whatever any one thinks to be best." Having spoken thus, he made a pause.
13. Upon this, several rose to speak; some, of their own accord, to express what they thought; others, previously instructed by Clearchus, to point out what difficulty there would be, either in remaining or departing, without the consent of Cyrus. 14. One of these, pretending to be eager to proceed with all possible haste to Greece, proposed that they should choose other commanders without delay, if Clearchus were unwilling to conduct them back; that they should purchase provisions, as there was a market in the Barbarian camp, and pack up their baggage; that they should go to Cyrus, and ask him to furnish them with ships, in which they might sail home; and, if he should not grant them, that they should beg of him a guide, to conduct them back through such parts of the country as were friendly towards them.[37] But if he would not even allow them a guide, that they should, without delay, form themselves in warlike order, and send a detachment to take possession of the heights, in order that neither Cyrus nor the Cilicians, ("of whom," said he, "we have many prisoners, and much money that we have taken,") may be the first to occupy them. Such were the suggestions that he offered; but after him Clearchus spoke as follows:
15. "Let no one of you mention me, as
