Gods take a pleasure in augmenting a power, that is founded upon justice, and guided by reafon, fuch as was the power of Cyrus, Vim temperatam Dii quoque provehunt In majus.

The fecond Reflection.

One of the rules I laid down as useful to direct the boys in the ftudy of history, was principally to enquire after truth, and early to accuftom themselves to know and diftinguifh the characters of it. This is the natural place of applying this rule. Herodotus and Xenophon, who perfectly agree in what I look upon to be the effential part and substance of Cyrus's hiftory, I mean his expedition against Babylon, and his other conquefts, are very different in their accounts of feveral other very important facts, fuch as the birth and death of this Prince, and the establishment of the Perfian empire.

The boys muft not be left ignorant of these differences. Herodotus, and after him Juftin, relate that Aftyages, King of the Medes, upon a frightful dream which he had, married his daughter Mandane to a Perfian of obfcure birth and condition, named Cambyfes. A fon being born of this marriage, the King ordered Harpagus, one of his principal officers, to put him to death. Harpagus gave him to one of the King's fhepherds to be expofed in a foreft; but the child being miraculously saved, and brought up privately by the fhepherd's wife, was at laft difcovered by his grandfather, who was fatisfied with fending him to a diftant place in Perfia, and difcharged his whole in

dignation

dignation upon the wretched Harpagus, whose fon he caused to be killed, and dreffed, and ferved up to his father at an entertainment. The young Cyrus, feveral years after, informed by Harpagus of his birth and station, and encouraged by his advice and remonstrances, raised an army, marched against Aftyages, defeated him, and fo tranflated the empire of the Medes to the Perfians.

The fame Herodotus makes Cyrus die in a manner very undeferving fo great a conqueror. This Prince, according to him, having raised war against the Scythians, and once engaged with them in battle, counterfeited a flight, leaving behind him a large quantity of wine and provifions in the field. The Scythians did not fail to fall upon them. Cyrus returned against them, and finding them all drunk and asleep, he defeated them without difficulty, took abundance of them prifoners, and among the reft the fon of Queen Tomyris, who commanded her army in perfon. This young Prince, whom Cyrus refused to fend back to his mother, recovering from his drunkenness, and not bearing to fuffer captivity, killed himself. Tomyris, animated with a thirft of revenge, gave a fecond battle to the Perfians; and having drawn them in her turn into an ambufcade by a pretended flight, cut off above two hundred thoufand of them, with Cyrus their King. And then cutting off Cyrus's head, fhe threw it into a veffel full of blood, with this infulting fpeech, "Cruel as thou art, fatiate thyself "with blood, which in thy life-time thou hast "ever thirsted after, and always been infatiable."

R 2

"tiable." w Satia te, inquit, fanguine quem fitifti, cujufque infatiabilis femper fuifti.

The question is, which of these two historians, who report the fame hiftory in fo different a manner, is moft deferving of credit. The boys themselves, if properly interrogated by a skilful master, may easily give an answer. The account which Herodotus gives of the first years of Cyrus has more the air of a fable than an history. And for his death, what likelihood is there, that a Prince fo experienced in war, and ftill more commendable for his prudence than courage, fhould have run headlong into the fnares which a woman had laid for him. What the fame hiftorian relates of the violent paffion and childish revenge of Cyrus against a river, which had drown'd one of his facred horfes, and which he caused his army to cut directly into three hundred and fixty channels, is directly oppofite to the character of this Prince, who was famed for his mildnefs and moderation. y Befides, is it probable that Cyrus, who was marching to the conqueft of Babylon, fhould thus lofe the time that was pretious to him, spend the ardour of his troops

occafionibus funt . . . . . huc omnem tranftulit belli apparatum .... Periit itaque & tempus, magna in magnis rebus jactura; & militum ardor, quem inutilis labor fregit; & occafio aggrediendi imperatos, dum ille bellum indictum hofti cum flumine gerit. Senec. lib. 3. de ira, cap. 21.

in fo useless a labour, and lofe the opportunity of furprifing the Babylonians, by amusing himfelf in making war upon a river, instead of carrying his arms against the enemy?

But what abfolutely decides in favour of Xenophon, is the agreement of his account with the Holy Scripture, where we see that Cyrus was fo far from raising the empire of the Perfians upon the ruin of that of the Medes, as Herodotus remarks, that those two nations acted by concert in the fiege of Babylon, and joined their forces to deftroy that formidable power.

Whence then could fo great a difference arise between these two hiftorians? Herodotus will tell us. In the very paffage, where he relates the birth of Cyrus, and in that where he speaks of his death, he informs us, there were then very different manners of reporting these two great events. Herodotus followed that which was most agreeable to his own fancy; and we know he was fond of any thing extraordinary and wonderful, and very eafily gave credit to it. Xenophon was more ferious and lefs credulous; and he tells us in the beginning of his hiftory, that he had very carefully enquired into the birth of Cyrus, his character and education.

We must not conclude from what I have faid, that Herodotus is not to be credited in any thing, because he is fometimes mistaken; this rule would be falfe and unjust; as we fhould be to blame to believe every thing an author fays, because he sometimes fpeaks truth. Truth and falfhood may be found together; but the reader's ability and prudence confift in knowing

R 3

knowing how to diftinguish them, in pointing them out by certain peculiar circumstances, and in making a juft choice and feparation of them, And to this judgment in difcerning what is true or falfe the boys fhould be early inured.

The fecond Piece, taken from the hiftory of the Greeks.

M

Of the grandeur and empire of Athens.

Y defign in this fecond piece of history is to give fome idea of the fuperiority the Athenians held for feveral years over all Greece, and to lay open by what steps and degrees they arrived at that height of power. The principal perfons, who in the fpace of time we fpeak of, contributed moft to the establishment and fupport of the power of this republick, though by very different qualifications, were Themiftocles, Ariftides, Cimon, and Pericles.

Themiftocles indeed laid the foundation of this new power by one fingle piece of advice, in turning the whole force and views of the Athenians towards the fea. Cimon brought thefe naval forces into fervice by his maritime expeditions, which reduced the Perfian empire within an inch of its ruin. Ariftides furnished wherewithal to fupply the expences of the war by his wife oeconomy in the management of the publick treasure. And Pericles laftly, by his prudence fupported and augmented what the

others