pulsion that lay upon you to find your
livelihood for yourselves. Now from this day forward, with heaven's
help, it shall be my care to provide it for you; and now, if so
you will, you have it in your power to take the armour that we wear
ourselves, face the same perils and win the same honours, if so be you
make any glorious deed your own. [16] In former days you were trained,
like ourselves, in the use of bow and javelin, and if you were at all
inferior to us in skill, that was not to be wondered at; you had not
the same leisure for practice as we; but now in this new accoutrement we
shall have no pre-eminence at all. Each of us will wear a corslet fitted
to his breast and carry a shield on his left arm of the type to which we
are all accustomed, and in his right hand a sabre or a battle-axe. With
these we shall smite the enemy before us, and need have no fear that we
shall miss the mark. [17] How can we differ from one another with these
arms? There can be no difference except in daring. And daring you may
foster in your hearts as much as we in ours. What greater right have we
than you to love victory and follow after her, victory who wins for us
and preserves to us all things that are beautiful and good? Why should
you, any more than we, be found lacking in that power which takes the
goods of weaklings and bestows them on the strong?"

[18] He ended: "Now you have heard all. There lie your weapons; let him
who chooses take them up and write his name with the brigadier in the
same roll as ours. And if a man prefers to remain a mercenary, let him
do so; he carries the arms of a servant."

[19] Thus spoke Cyrus; and the Persians, every man of them, felt they
would be ashamed for the rest of their days, and deservedly, if they
drew back now, when they were offered equal honour in return for equal
toil. One and all they inscribed their names and took up the new arms.

[20] And now in the interval, before the enemy were actually at hand,
but while rumour said they were advancing, Cyrus took on himself a
three-fold task: to bring the physical strength of his men to the
highest pitch, to teach them tactics, and to rouse their spirit for
martial deeds. [21] He asked Cyaxares for a body of assistants whose
duty it should be to provide each of his soldiers with all they could
possibly need, thus leaving the men themselves free for the art of war.
He had learnt, he thought, that success, in whatever sphere, was only to
be won