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And thus it is that whether they are exhibited by man or animal, we admit their charm and pay our tribute to them, just as Theron's faithfulness to Roderick drew these words from the lips of the aged Severian: "Hast thou some charm, which draws about thee thus The hearts of all our house even to the beast That lacks discourse of reason, but too oft, With uncorrupted feeling and dumb faith, Puts lordly man to shame?"
A dagger or a lancet, good enough instruments for a manly and heroic death, he could not come at, forsooth! Then, as Thucydides composed a funeral oration over the first victims of that old war, our author feels it incumbent on him to do the same for Severian; they all challenge Thucydides, you see, little as he can be held responsible for the Armenian troubles.
These oracles were called autophones, and were not vouchsafed casually to any one, but reserved for officials, the rich, and the lavish. It was an autophone which was given to Severian regarding the invasion of Armenia. He encouraged him with these lines: Armenia, Parthia, cowed by thy fierce spear, To Rome, and Tiber's shining waves, thou com'st, Thy brow with leaves and radiant gold encircled.
Further, on the subject of Severian's death, he accuses all other writers of a blunder in putting him to the sword; he is really to have starved himself to death, as the most painless method; the fact, however, is that it was all over in three days, whereas seven days is the regular time for starvation; are we perhaps to conceive an Osroes waiting about for Severian to complete the process, and putting off his assault till after the seventh day?
So he buries Severian, and then solemnly ushers up to the grave, as Pericles's rival, one Afranius Silo, a centurion; the flood of rhetoric which follows is so copious and remarkable that it drew tears from me ye Graces! tears of laughter; most of all where the eloquent Afranius, drawing to a close, makes mention, with weeping and distressful moans, of all those costly dinners and toasts.
I suspect you would laugh at me, Philo, if I were to set about convincing you that I am neither Parthian nor Mesopotamian, as this whimsical colony-planter makes me. By the way, he has also a very attractive tale of Severian, learnt, he assures us on oath, from one of the actual fugitives.
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