ts by
the splendour of his banquets, the wealth of gold in his coffers, the
length and depth of his slumbers, and his freedom from trouble and pain.
But my views are different: I hold that the ruler should be marked out
from other men, not by taking life easily, but by his forethought and
his wisdom and his eagerness for work." [9] "True, my son," the father
answered, "but you know the struggle must in part be waged not against
flesh and blood but against circumstances, and these may not be overcome
so easily. You know, I take it, that if supplies were not forthcoming,
farewell to this government of yours." "Yes," Cyrus answered, "and that
is why Cyaxares is undertaking to provide for all of us who join him,
whatever our numbers are." "So," said the father, "and you really mean,
my son, that you are relying only on these supplies of Cyaxares for this
campaign of yours?" "Yes," answered Cyrus. "And do you know what they
amount to?" "No," he said, "I cannot say that I do." "And yet," his
father went on, "you are prepared to rely on what you do not know? Do
you forget that the needs of the morrow must be high, not to speak
of the outlay for the day?" "Oh, no," said Cyrus, "I am well aware of
that." "Well," said the father, "suppose the cost is more than Cyaxares
can bear, or suppose he actually meant to deceive you, how would your
soldiers fare?" "Ill enough, no doubt," answered he. "And now tell
me, father, while we are still in friendly country, if you know of any
resources that I could make my own?" [10] "You want to know where you
could find resources of your own?" repeated his father. "And who is to
find that out, if not he who holds the keys of power? We have given you
a force of infantry that you would not exchange, I feel sure, for one
that was more than twice its size; and you will have the cavalry of
Media to support you, the finest in the world. I conceive there are none
of the nations round about who will not be ready to serve you, whether
to win your favour or because they fear disaster. These are matters
you must look into carefully, in concert with Cyaxares, so that nothing
should ever fail you of what you need, and, if only for habit's sake,
you should devise some means for supplying your revenue. Bear this maxim
in mind before all others--never put off the collecting of supplies
until the day of need, make the season of your abundance provide against
the time of dearth. You will gain better terms from those