Read Ebook: The Story of Alexander by Steele Robert Mason Fred Illustrator

Font size: 10 px 15 px 20 px 25 px 30 px 35 px

Background color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Text color: BlackWhiteGrayLight GrayDark GrayDim Gray

Apply/Save settings

Ebook has 302 lines and 61973 words, and 7 pages

That night as Alexander lay on his bed he dreamed, and in his dream he saw Anectanabus, the wise Egyptian, come to him; on his head were two ram's horns, and his coat was brown. It seemed that he came to him as he lay, and put his hand on his shoulder and said, "Stay thou not in this land of Macedon, but go forth into all lands, for thou shalt conquer them, and they shall be subject to thee, and thou shalt not die, except on a soil of iron, beneath a sky of gold." Then came to him one dressed in robes of blue and purple and gold, covered with all manner of embroidered figures, and on his head was a strange crown of gold and pearls and precious stones, and he said, "The God whom I serve shall teach thee to destroy the empire of the Persians." And last there came to him a very fair lady, tall and graceful, and she looked on him with love, and said, "O Alexander, my heart's lord, when thou hast overcome the Persians, indeed thou shalt reign over them, and I shall be thy queen and lady-love. Let this be the sign between thee and me, that we meet first at the feast of the Lord of Persia."

As to the giving in marriage of the daughter of Darius, the Emperor of Persia, it is to be told that on a set day the wise men of the land came before him, and the painter brought out to them the portraits he had made, and they examined them but found none that was worthy to rule, for one was covetous, and another quarrelsome, and a third given to much speaking, and these faults the wise men read in the faces on the parchment. Then they came to the likeness of Alexander and all men said "This man is born to be lord of men" and they brought it before Darius, and he sent for his daughter Roxana, and made her stand by the picture, and when she did so, she was taller than the figure painted thereon. Then Darius turned away and said nought, but shook his head, and Roxana took with her the cast-away drawing and bore it to her own rooms, and kept it safe; and she vowed offerings to the gods if they would make this man her lord and husband.

But Alexander gathered together all the warriors of the land, and made them a speech: "Lo, barons of Macedon, Thrace, and Thessaly, and all true Greeks, how like you now your liege lord: look on my face and let fear depart: hold up your hearts, and flee from no alien while Alexander lives. The gods have granted me that all the barbarians shall obey me: and there shall be no nation so rich or great under heaven that my name shall not be honoured there, for we of Greece shall be praised and feared over the wide world. Now, then, prepare ye for war; he who has arms of his own, trusty and good, let him take them; he who has them not, let him come to me, and I will furnish him for battle."

Then answered him with one voice all the old knights and peers of his father's army: "Sire, we have fought often in hard fields with Sir Philip, your father, and many winters have gone over our heads; now our force fails us and our flesh is weak, for be the flower never so fresh it fades at the last. Sir, all the days of our youth are long past, we are over-travelled and tired, our heads are white and too weak to bear the helmet or to seek adventures of arms. Excuse us, Lord, we pray, and take with thee younger men, stout in battle, and fit to deal heavy strokes."

"Nay, by my crown," said the king, "I cannot spare my old men; an army of young men will often break their line in battle, trusting to their own strength. I choose the older men who do all their works by plan and counsel." And the old knights yielded to his wishes, and all men praised his wisdom.

Now the time had come when kings go out to war, and Alexander took ship from the coast of Greece and sailed towards Italy. So at the first his army turned towards Chalcedon, a strong and mighty city, and he besieged it. And when the men of the city fought but faintly, Alexander rode up to the walls and cried out with a loud voice: "O men of Chalcedon, either fight bravely or yield up your town without delay"; and they of the city were so fearful that at the sound of his voice they owned him for master, and all the land took him for lord. Then Alexander sailed into Italy and took tribute of all men; even the mighty Romans sent him sixty thousand gold pieces, and Europe was subject to him.

From Europe the king sailed over the great sea into Africa, and many days he sought an enemy and found none, for the fame of him had gone before him. On a day he sought a temple of the god Ammon with his earls and mighty men, and there happed on the way a marvel. For it fell as he was going, that a hart with a huge head leaped forth before them; hardly had man ever seen so noble a beast. Then said Alexander: "Lo, the emperor of harts, slay him ere he escape." And all men shot, but so fleet was the hart that none could reach him. Then Alexander bent a bow, and with a mighty shout let fly at him, and the arrow struck him and pierced him through, though all men deemed that the hart was far out of bowshot. Then his men wondered greatly, and the country folk who saw the shot deemed that Alexander was indeed some god, and the name of the place is called in their tongue Bowshot to this day. But the king went into the temple and offered great gifts.

Then went Alexander on his way and came to a very fruitful land, a land with twelve rivers running into the sea. And on a night as he lay on his bed he saw in a dream the god of the land, tall and fair, clad in a chestnut-brown robe, wearing on his head a gold crown, and having two horns like ram's horns. And as he dreamed the god said to him, pointing to a high mountain: "King Alexander, canst thou lift yonder hill and carry it on thy shoulder." "Nay," said Alexander, "who is there under heaven who might try?" "King," said the god, "your name shall ever be remembered, till yonder hill is removed from its place." Then Alexander laughed out with joy, and he said to the vision: "I beseech thee now, O Shining One, tell me as at this time ere thou pass away how I shall die, and when my day shall come?" Then the god looked on him sadly, and said: "Truly I hold it better that a man should not seek to know that which shall come upon him; yet since thou hast asked me, I tell thee that thou shalt conquer all nations, and die by poison, and thy years shall be finished ere thou reach middle age. Ask me no more of this as now; far in the Land of the East thou shalt be told the end of thy days by number." And with these words the light in the room flickered and blew sideways, and Alexander started up, and behold there was no man with him. Then in the morning the king ordered his men to build him there a city, and that city remains to this day, and the name of it is Alexandria.

Now when the city was built, and men from Greece had come thither, with merchants from Tyre and from far lands, to dwell, to buy, and to sell, Alexander went forth with his host through all the land of Egypt, and the men of that land feared him as one of the high gods. And as he came to a certain city he found in it an image of a king carved in black stone, a crown on its head, and a royal sceptre in its hand; but below it were many words carven--the words which the god had told the men of the land many years before. Then Alexander asked the chief men of the city: "Sirs, what statue is this, and what be the words that are written beneath it?" And the men of that place answered him: "Truly, O king, this man was Anectanabus, once king of all this land; yet because he was bidden of the gods he left us, and the writing below tells us that he shall come again and free us from the Persians, and make us a great people. And some men say that it shall be a son of his that shall do these great things." Then Alexander knew that this was that same Egyptian who had been his fosterer, and he said to the men of the place: "I knew the man, and for his sake I will make ye free from all men, rich and happy shall ye be." And he fell at the feet of the statue and kissed it, and they stood by him in silence.

But on a day it was told him that they of Tyre had destroyed a ship of Alexandria, and had spoken evil of him, and Alexander marched into Syria with all his host to subdue it and to conquer Tyre. Now Tyre was a fair city, built on an island in a bay, with the sea washing up to its walls. And it was so strong that no army had ever taken it, and so rich that its merchants were princes and hired armies to defend them, and all the country round owned the men of Tyre as their lords. But they of the city said: "What king shall injure Tyre, for our walls defend us, and our ships sail every sea, and bring to us the good things of earth and food and drink, and our wealth is great, and all men shall serve us for it?"

But Alexander and his host were marching towards them, and one day the men of Tyre saw the army of Alexander on the plain before them, for he had taken two strong cities, Damascus and Sidon, and had made all the land subject to him. And as they looked the camp seemed to grow and tents were raised, and no man could count their number. So Alexander's army was before the town, and he thought that he should take it easily, but not a few troubles were suffered before Tyre submitted to him.

Now it fell that many days had been spent in fruitless assaults on the city before Alexander found out that its walls were too high for him to take it by storm. Everywhere were turrets and towers of defence, and the wild waves of the sea outside beat on the walls to as much purpose as the army of Alexander. Then men began to murmur and complain first of one thing, then of another, and Alexander ordered them to construct a great castle beside the city in the sea, and raise it up to the height of the walls of the city, that he might prevent ships coming into it to bring food and riches. But when the tower was nearly finished the army was in sore strait, for food was wanting in the camp. Princes, dukes and fierce knights were famishing, yea, all men were starving.

Then Alexander pitied his men, and resolved to get provision and help for them, so he sent special messengers to those tribes which were near, bidding them to send him help both in men and in food. And among others he sent to Jaddua, chief bishop in Jerusalem, and admonished him to send fresh men for the fight and food for the folk that were with him, and to pay all the tribute due to Darius to the Greeks. And he told his scribe to put into the letter gentle words, saying that it was better to be the helpers of the men of Macedon than to be the servants of Darius.

Now when the messengers came to Jerusalem they were received by the chief bishop in a great hall, and when they gave him the king's letter he went away into an upper room to read it by himself. But when he had read it he stayed a little, and then coming down the steps into the hall he gave this answer to the envoys: "Sirs, return to Alexander, and say thus: Many years have passed since I made oath never to harm Persia, nor to pass in arms against Darius all the days of his life." When Alexander received this answer he was very wroth, and he vowed to teach the Jews whose orders they should obey; yet he would not leave the siege of Tyre, but sent away a part of his army to obtain food for him and the rest of the Greeks.

Now the chief of the band he sent was Meleager, one of Alexander's most valiant knights, and he had with him five hundred lances and their men-at-arms. His orders were to ride through the valley to the city of Kadesh, which belonged to Tyre, to drive together all the cattle and flocks in the plains, and to bring them to the army of Alexander. So he set out, and with him was Sir Sampson, a bold knight of the land, who knew all the country round about. They were so successful that they gathered together a host of beasts beyond number, and soon they turned towards Tyre with delight in their hearts. But before they had travelled a mile all the country was alarmed, and rose in arms against them, and a very valiant knight, Theosell, came riding out to meet them, and to prevent their getting away before the host appeared. Now Theosell and his men were armed in plate, and they made such a sudden rush on the Greeks that they struck many down and overrode them, so that those who fell to the ground never rose after, and their blows were mighty. Then Meleager was moved with wrath when he saw the Greeks turn and flee, and mounted as he was on a young horse he seized his spear and spurred against the enemy, striking great blows. Sampson, on the other hand, broke his lance at the first encounter, and struck out right and left with the broken end, hewing down his foes; also Aristes, a noble knight, was one of those who were chief in their resistance to the foe, and Caulus had no less an enemy than Theosell himself. The first stroke of Caulus' sword fell on the helmet of Theosell, and struck down through the wooden crest--the great wild boar's head--down into the helmet, and before Theosell had recovered from the blow a great swing of the sword struck off his head. Now when this noble knight was fallen to the ground all the folk that followed him, and were able, fled away, and Meleager and his men rejoiced that they had slain the leader of their foes and had won the field.

Suddenly they were interrupted by the sound of a horn, and they saw an army marching out of Kadesh against them under the command of Beritinus, a great lord of the country. The tale tells that there were with him thirty thousand lances clad in plate armour and mounted, with others following on foot, so that clouds of dust covered them, and the earth seemed to shake at their tread. Then the Macedonians were sore dismayed to see such a great host come out against them, and Meleager was in great mind to send a message to Alexander, asking him for aid before they joined battle. But there was no man who would go on such an errand, or leave his comrades in danger of death, and all men set their faces to live and die together.

The first onset of the foe was a fierce one, and not few of them, with their chief Beritinus, met their death, but the Macedonians lost Sampson and many another noble. Then began a long struggle between the few Macedonians and their foes, till at last they were beaten down to a little group of tired, wounded, and bleeding soldiers, breathless and faint, hardly able to strike a blow, yet resolved not to flee. Then the brave knight Aristes, although sore wounded himself, slew one of the enemy, and, leaping on his horse, spurred off to Alexander for help before all the little band was destroyed. Little need to tell that the king was sore grieved, and gathering together in haste as many of his knights as he could, he rode off to the rescue of Meleager through the valley, leaving Tyre and the camp. And ever as he went his eyes dropped tears as he thought of his good knights slain, and most of all he grieved for Sampson, whom he loved well.

But while Alexander was riding through the valley away from Tyre the men of the town were busy. He had finished a great tower in the water over against the city wall, and had left a guard within it to keep it till his return. But Sir Balaan of Tyre, one of the chief men of the town, prepared great machines and engines for casting stones into the tower, and when he had driven the guard from its walls, he sallied out of the town with a host of armed men and attacked it. Then the men of the tower defended it sharply, and sent out showers of darts and great stones. But Balaan fought so bitterly, and sent such a cloud of stones, that none of the Greeks could show themselves on the tower, and his slaves brought engines and threw down the top of the tower and tilted it into the sea, and all the men in it were slain. Then he got boats and barges and attacked the bottom of the castle, and broke down all its lower part, and threw the heaps into the sea, and the winds and the sea helped him, and a storm arose and beat the pieces small, so that not one beam remained fastened to another. Thus this great work was destroyed in a day, and Balaan returned to the city and barred the gate as before.

The tale tells that as he rode out of the valley and came into view of Tyre his first look was towards the great tower he had built, and sore was he grieved when he found that it had been destroyed, and that his soldiers that were in it had perished; and all the Macedonians mourned, and they trusted no longer that Tyre would be taken. But that same night Alexander was sleeping by himself in his tent, and he thought that he saw a great vine before him, and that he put out his hand and plucked one grape out of a ripe cluster. Then he flung it on the floor and put his foot on it, and when he had broken it, lo! wine flowed out, so much that it was a wonder to see. In the morning, when the king rose, he called to him a wise man, and bade him tell what the dream should mean; and the wise man said: "O king, fear not; Tyre is thine own; for this berry that thou didst break is the town of Tyre, and thou shalt tread under thy feet its towers within few days." Then the king rejoiced, and set about to make many plans, if by any means he might come within the walls of Tyre.

Soon another tower was in building, right in the same place as the first had been, half as large again and higher than the town-walls, firmly anchored and fastened so that it could not move, close against the sea-wall of the town. And when the tower was built Alexander clad himself in armour of steel, its plates shining in the sun, and went to the top of it and looked over the town and saw its walls, and then he looked to his camp and saw the Greeks, and he resolved to make no more delay but to take it by storm at once. So he ordered the Macedonians to make ready for the battle, and when they saw him on the walls of Tyre to lose no time, but each man to follow him. Then began the beating of drums and the loud blare of the trumpets till the town and camp rang with their brazen strokes, and all men rushed to the assault of the walls. The archers came within bowshot of the walls, covered with great shields which they held before them, each shield covering two men, and shot keenly at every mark that showed itself, and their arrows were deadly as adders; nor were they of the town less eager to return their bowshot, and from the walls they cast great stones among the Greeks. Suddenly the gates of the town opened, and the Tyrians made a sally out, wounding and killing many of the archers, for they were good spearmen, and could cast the dart.

But Alexander and his princes had passed up into the tower, and some of the lords were armed with lances, and some bore huge two-handed swords, and many carried the battle-axe, and a few had cross-bows which shot great bolts of steel. Then from the tower they passed on to the sea-wall of Tyre and fought their way among a crowd of foes, Alexander ever the first. Long were it to tell of the fight and of his valour, for they of the town worthily withstood him, and ere they made sure their footing on the town-wall, many knights had been stricken down backward into the deep water. But when they saw that, the Greeks became maddened with rage, and no wound could make them pause, and as they obtained a footing they fell to shooting with cross-bows, and with their great catapults, each stone like a man's head, and the yeomen got out great crowbars and began to tear down the turrets and battlements; while the knights hurried forward beating down their opponents. At last a breach in the walls was made, and then the host of Alexander rushed into the town, eager to revenge the death of so many of their comrades, and the men of Tyre thronged thick to the wall to guard the entrance. But Alexander forced his way through them all and over the broken wall into the city, and the first man he met was Balaan. Short was the fight, for one stroke of his mighty sword laid Balaan low, and he was thrown into the sea beneath the walls. Then when the Tyrians were driven from the walls the Greeks clambered up them with all manner of ladders, on each step a cluster, and those who had no ladders climbed up the stones without them, and in short time Tyre was in their hands, for after the death of Sir Balaan no man could lead the men of the town or give them heart to fight.

Then Alexander commanded to cast down the walls of Tyre, and when it was done it came into his mind to punish the men of Jerusalem for their refusal to send him help against Tyre, and his army moved down towards the city. And on his way he conquered the land of the Philistines, and burned down the city of Gaza.

When the word was brought to Jerusalem that Tyre was taken, and that Alexander was on the march towards the city to punish it for its disobedience, there was heavy grief and woe, and Jaddua the bishop was in great awe, for he said to himself: "Now have I but a few days ago refused to obey this great warrior, and when he the most needed help I denied it him; better had it been for me that anything should have happened before I grieved this man, and did not his command. Woe is me and my city." And Jaddua called together the men of the city, and said: "Now is Alexander at hand, and will destroy our city and us unless heaven help us."

So men went through the streets, and it was ordered that all the inhabitants of the city should fast for three days, men, women and children, and that they should appear in the temple and cry with clean hearts to the King of Heaven to keep them safe from this mighty conqueror. And so it was that the whole city fell to prayers and fasting, and woe was on every face. But on the third night, when all the city was asleep and the sacrifices ended, then a shining one stood by the bishop and spoke joyful words to him, saying: "Sir Bishop, I bring thee tidings of bliss and solace. I am sent to thee from the Master of men to bid thee be not cast down. Now, therefore, rise up early and array all thy city, its streets and its houses, in fair attire, open its gates wide, let every man be apparelled in clean and milk-white clothes. And as for thee and thy priests and prelates, clothe thee in the dress of thy rule, and when this conqueror comes, go ye forth to meet him. And fear not to greet him nobly, for he must ride and reign over the round world to the day of his death."

Then when the day broke the bishop rose and called together all the chief of the people, and told them his vision and what the voice had bade him do; and all his clergy and the city assented that so it should be, that the city should be adorned and that all men should go forth to meet this their sovereign. So all the people hurried home and brought out their richest treasure to adorn the city.

The broad streets were arched over with awnings of rich and rare stuffs. The ground was covered with Tartary silk and with taffeta, that so noble a ruler should not tread on bare earth. The pavement was covered over with woven stuffs, and canopies of fine linen were stretched on high over the gates of the city to keep off the heat of the sun, and they were gathered on either side with silken ropes, and drawn back like curtains, while the houses were hung with Indian stuff of bright blue embroidered with stars, even to the eaves. Thus was the town adorned, and when the gates were opened, men without might deem that they looked in on one of the seven heavens.

And now the people of the city began to come out in procession, clothed in their richest robes. First came the bishop with the priests of the temple, dressed in royal magnificence. He wore under all a long robe covered with birds and beasts embroidered in blue and purple, and on that a robe with gold skirts, with many shining stones sprinkled all over, and set stiff with sapphires and other gems, and powdered with pearls of the purest hue. Over this he cast on a cope of chestnut colour with rich ribands of gold, and round the hem a border of violet flowers, embroidered with satyrs and fauns and the wild beasts of the forest. And on his head he wore a great mitre forged out of pure gold, bordered with pearls, and covered with such precious stones that no man might look upon it, for it struck out shimmering shafts of light like the beams of the bright sun. And with the bishop came the doctors of law, the judges of the city, and they were all dressed in tunics of scarlet silk brought from Tartary, and were loaded with their golden chains of office; and after them the clergy, all clothed in their brightest dress. Such a sight had never been seen before, nor will it be seen again.

After the bishop and his attendants the whole city came in order, Mayor, merchants, masters and men, widows and wives, all came with their companies, and each of them dressed in white linen pure as the driven snow. Then a company of children came forth with bells and banners and blazing torches; some bore censers with silver chains and burning spices within, whose smoke rose to the clouds, two bore a cushion of brown velvet embroidered with pearls to be held before the bishop for his book to rest on, others bore candlesticks of gold and of silver, and the relics of the temple, the richest of the world. And all the procession went on till they came to a little place outside the town whence they could see the temple, and there they abode the coming of the king.

And now they heard the tramp of feet and the distant sound of arms and horses, for all men kept silence in fear and doubt and half-hope, and they knew not how soon they might be ridden down and slain or made slaves, or whether they should indeed be saved as the bishop had told them. Then they saw Alexander riding up with a host of dukes and princes and earls, and at the same time the king caught sight of their array, and when Alexander saw this multitude of men in milk-white clothes he thought it a marvel, and he turned and saw the crowd of priests in maniples and stoles, and the doctors of the law and the prelates in their robes; and amidst them all, the chief amongst them, the bishop, dressed in his array of gold and purple and fine linen; and the king's eyes fixed on him and looking up he beheld on his mitre a plate of fine gold, and on it was graven the great name of The Maker of Men. Then the king commanded his knights to approach no nearer on pain of their lives, but all, great and small, to remain behind, and he spurred on his horse till he came up to the spot where the bishop was standing, and then jumping down he fell on his knees before the bishop on the cold earth, and beating his breast worshipped the Holy Name that he saw written on his head.

Then all the people bowed themselves down before Alexander as he stood up, and meekly kneeling they cried with a keen voice: "Long may he live, long may he live." Then the fairest lady of them all came out and cried: "Lo, Alexander, the noblest lord under heaven, long may he live, the mighty emperor, the wielder of all the world, the mightiest on the earth." And all the people of the city answered her with one voice: "Long may he live, long may he live." Then stepped out a man and he cried out: "Lo, he that overcometh all men, who shall be overcome never; The greatest, the most glorious, that ever was made by God." And all the people cried out at once: "Long may he live, long may he live."

Now there were with Alexander many of the rulers of the land of Syria who had yielded up their lands to him, and when they saw him bow down, as they thought, to the bishop of the Jews, they held it a great wonder. Then Parmeon, one of Alexander's princes, went up to him, and asked him why he bowed down to the bishop of Jews, when all other men bowed before him instead. And Alexander answered him: "Nay, I neither hailed him nor bowed down to him, but to the King of Heaven alone, the Father of gods and of men. For many days ago, when I was in Macedon, one appeared to me in such a dress and shape as this man now wears. And I mused in my mind how I might win Asia, and he bade me fear not, but that all the land should be mine, and when I saw this man, verily he seemed the same god who had spoken to me. Now have I good hope, by the help of this God whose Name is written yonder, to conquer Darius and to destroy the empire of the Persians."

And now the bishop had greeted Alexander full lowly, and all men had done him homage, and they prayed the king to enter into the town, and Alexander marvelled to see how fair a city it was, and the people of the land received him with reverence and joy as he were the leader of them all, or as one come down from the gods. Then went they through the town, and the bishop brought them to the temple that the great knight and king, Dan Solomon, had built, and the wise men of the temple came forth, and Alexander heard of their lore. Then came one of the oldest of them all and spoke words to the bishop, and he arose and bowed down before Alexander and said: "O king, verily there are words concerning thee and thy deeds in the books of our holy place," and he ordered the temple guardians, and they brought out a huge roll, a broad book full of dark sayings of the times to be, and there was the saying of a mighty seer, one Daniel by name, and Alexander read how that the men out of Greece should utterly destroy the people of Persia.

Thereupon was Alexander merry of heart, for he deemed that the time had come, and that he should indeed beat down Persia, and he ordered his men to fetch great gifts, and to each man he gave chains of gold, and jewels of pearls and of rubies, and to the bishop he gave store of bezants, great round heavy golden coins, such as bishops love, and he showed him a heap of golden talents, but the bishop feared to take such riches. Then said the king: "O Bishop, ask what thou wilt in this world, anything mayest thou ask that I may give, and I will grant it thee ere I go hence." And the bishop bowed him down to the ground and said: "O King Alexander, this thing of all others I deeply desire, durst I name it, that thou wouldst grant us the use of our law, as our fathers before us have obeyed it, and if it may be, grant us that we pay no tribute for seven years, in memory of the joy of thy coming, then shall all men pray for thee and serve thee, and, if I may but add one thing, grant to those of Media and of Babylon that they may freely obey our law."

"That grant I thee," said the king, "ask now for thyself, and be served." "Nay, lord, no more, if I may have your love and your lordship while my life lasts," said the bishop, and he and all men meekly thanked Alexander. And Alexander appointed a lord to dwell in the town, hear what men said, and be his viceroy, and the bishop blessed him, and he departed into the cities near at hand, and all of them came out to welcome him and to acknowledge him their lord.

But it fell that some of them of Tyre had fled into the court of Darius, and they complained to him of their city destroyed, and "all this," said they, "we suffered because we obeyed the great king, the Emperor Darius." Then began the Emperor to question them concerning this Alexander, what manner of man he was, what was his stature and his strength, whether he were brave or no. And they, willing to bring shame on the name of their enemy, shewed Darius a painting of him on parchment. But when Darius looked on it he burst into laughter, and all men smiled, and he said: "Well for ye, ye men of Tyre, if ye were beaten by such a man as this, for never saw I such a warrior," for they had painted him a little shrivelled creature, more like an ape than a man, with long arms, and one leg longer than the other, blinking and stupid, the most miserable object that had ever been seen. And Darius drove the men of Tyre from his presence, and asked his wise men concerning Alexander, who and what manner of man he was; and they told him how he was the king's son of Macedon, and how they had chosen him as fit to be the husband of Roxana, and how he had rejected him because of his small stature.

Then Darius bade search for his portrait and bring it before him that he might look on him; but when they sought it they found it not among the other likenesses, for it is to be said that Roxana the Queen had borne it with her and treasured it up with her chief treasures. So he thought within himself that he would prove the heart and wit of the Greek, and he commanded, and they brought him presents for Alexander, and first was a ball covered with gold; "for," said he, "he must have something to play with;" then he added a hat, "and," said he, "this is better than a crown;" and last they brought him a head-covering made of twigs and osiers; "this is better for such an one as thou, O Alexander, than a bright steel helm." And Darius fell back upon his throne, laughing, and ordered messengers to take them to Alexander, bearing with them a letter under his broad seal.

So Darius called for his scribes, and they came before him, and he ordered them to write a letter to Alexander, and this was the form of the letter he wrote:

"DARIUS, the Emperor, king of kings, lord of lords, predecessor of princes, equal to the Sun, the lord of the earth, to Alexander, our subject and our servant.

"For it is reported to us that thou, through the vanity and vainglory of thy heart, hast got together warriors to lay waste parts of our kingdom, and hast now with thee a number of wretches, thieves and vagabonds, and by their means dost think to wield at thy will the power of Persia:

"Now, therefore, be warned in time, for thou art weak before me, even if thou hadst gathered against my empire all the men in the world outside it, for my people are so many that they are like to the stars of heaven in number. Submit in time; the Persians are famed to be unbeaten.

"It is told me that thou, a dwarf and weakling, dost covet the rule of all the lands under the wide heavens, and that, like a storm of wind-blown snow, driven hither and thither, thou passest over all lands with a train of ruffians behind thee. I have not yet armed my men against thee; beware, when my hand shall be raised, thy life is done. Turn again, boy, to thy mother's care; take these toys I send thee. Know that the riches of Persia are so great, that a heap of its gold would shut out the light of the sun, and blame thyself for all the evils that shall fall on thee if thou disobey.

"Now, therefore, return at once to Macedon, or, not as the son of Philip, but as a leader of a band of petty thieves shalt thou be hung."

And when the letter was written the bearer of the kind's seal came forward, and the letter was closed, and cords of green silk run through the edges, and dipped in wax, and the great seal was stamped upon the wax, and it was given to the messengers of the king, with strait commandment that they should tarry neither night nor day until the king's letter was given into the hands of Alexander.

Now, Alexander was standing in the midst of his barons when the messengers of Darius arrived, and as their commandment was urgent, he bade them to be brought to him at once. And when he saw the letter his heart was filled with rage, nevertheless he read it out in the hearing of his knights and nobles; and when these heard it their hearts were moved with fear of the mighty words of Darius. So Alexander looked on them and he saw that they were afraid, and he spoke to them: "What now! my worthy warriors, my bold knights and barons, the best under heaven that ever king had, let it never be told against you that the proud boasting of a letter of Darius brought you to doubt yourselves, else were it shame indeed. Look you, now, every day we ride through a village you may hear as loud a yelping from any cur at a cottage door, but loud as they bark they never bite. But methinks his letter should rather make you rejoice, when he tells you what treasure of gold he has, for it needs but to be bold and that treasure shall be yours." And then the anger in the king's heart broke out, and turning to the messengers of Darius, he said: "But for ye, that dare to bring such threats to a Greek, ye shall learn the anger of Alexander. Take them by the throats," said he to the attendants, "and for their master's sake, hang them on the gallows."

Then the messengers were amazed, and with a keen cry called to Alexander: "Alas, O king, what fault lies in us, if it please thee, that we should die thus suddenly." "The sayings of your sovereign lord," said he, "force me to such deeds as I would never have done else: lo, now, he calls me a thief in this letter." But they fell on their knees before him and said: "O king, Darius himself dictated those words, for he knew not of your knighthood, nor of your strength, nor of your worthiness, and so he wrote boldly; but grant us our lives, and leave to go, and we will show him all your power and your might." So Alexander forgave them and made them a great feast in his own tent, and made much of them, so that he won their hearts; and they said to him: "Sir Alexander, send with us, we pray thee, but one thousand of your knights, and we will deliver Darius into your hands." But the king answered them with little love: "Rejoice in your feast, O messengers; verily no knight of mine shall be sent to aid in betraying your lord."

But in the night, one of the Persian messengers, a little man and a crooked, having one arm longer than the other, came to the tent of the king, and when he was admitted he asked that all men might be put forth. So they were left alone, and the messenger drew from his breast a leathern roll, and in it was a blue embroidered silk bag of fair work, the lion on one side and the rising sun on the other, and he laid it in the hand of the king. Then Alexander opened it, and found within a scarf of green covered with fair half-open flowers, and he looked on the messenger, and he answered: "O king, the fairest dame in Persia sends thee this to the end that thou mayest wear it in thy helm. One day, if the gods will, thou shalt see her and know her name." Then the messenger bowed low, and went his way to his fellows, and all men slept.

The next day the messengers were called before Alexander and his council, and a letter was given them, closely sealed up, to bear to Darius. Now this was the form of the letter:

"I, ALEXANDER OF MACEDON, son and heir of Philip the defender of Greece, and of Olympias the fair, to thee Darius, prince of the Persians, the conqueror of every land--as you say yourself--thus write under my seal.

"Let no man despise any neighbour who seems to be smaller and poorer than himself, since the lowest is often raised to the heavens, and the proudest ground to dust. And thou, Emperor of the World as thou callest thyself, dost dishonour to thy name when thou sendest such gifts out of Persia. Thou speakest as if thou wert one of the gods that cannot die. I am but a mortal man, and will attack thee.

"Thou hast destroyed thine own renown. If I am beaten, thou thyself hast called me but a petty thief, and no honour shalt thou have: if I overcome thee, the greater glory is mine, and men shall ever tell how I have conquered a king, the greatest in the world. Nevertheless I hope that one of thy tales is true, that of the greatness of thy riches, for it has raised our hopes, and sharpened our wits, and made us eager for battle, that we may the sooner exchange our poverty for thy riches.

"But as for thy presents, know, O Darius, that the ball thou hast sent represents the world, and thou hast handed over the mastery of the world to me: the hollow hat held before the head when it is bowed, shows that all kings shall bow before me: and this headpiece of twigs is to say that ever shall I overcome, and be overcome never. In the day of thy defeat, O Darius, remember my interpretation of thy gifts."

Share on: WhatsApp @Hash Facebook Tweet