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"Still," said Bartja, "I hope you will keep his conduct a secret from my brother, for he has been very good to me." Prexaspes bowed, but Darius said: "We must keep an eye on the fellow. Just here, so far from the king's gate and in the midst of nations hostile to Persia, we want governors who are more ready to obey their king than this Oroetes seems to be.
"To that pirate!" asked Oroetes, and his face darkened. "The very same," answered Prexaspes, not appearing to notice the change in Oroetes' face. "Phanes has already received assurances from this important naval power, which sound as if we might expect a favorable answer to my proposal." "The Phoenician, Syrian and Ionian ships of war would be quite sufficient to cope with the Egyptian fleet."
"Still," said Bartja, "I hope you will keep his conduct a secret from my brother, for he has been very good to me." Prexaspes bowed, but Darius said: "We must keep an eye on the fellow. Just here, so far from the king's gate and in the midst of nations hostile to Persia, we want governors who are more ready to obey their king than this Oroetes seems to be.
But I don't find Zopyrus' proposal a bad one." "Then so let it be," said Darius, yielding. "In that case Oroetes must provide us with the uniform of Lydian Taxiarchs." "You'd better take the splendid dress of the Chiliarchs at once, I think," cried Gyges. "Why, on such young men, that would excite suspicion directly." "But we can't appear as common soldiers." "No, but as Hekatontarchs."
"If I had allowed Oroetes' little daughter Parysatis, my youngest favorite, to come out alone with me to-night, this wonderful sight would have been my last; tomorrow there would have been one pair of eyes less in the world." Bartja took Sappho's hand and held it fast, saying, "I fancy one wife will content me as long as I live."
At last I saw a man on horseback a merchant from Kelaenze dragged him from his horse, jumped into the saddle, and, before the next morning dawned, I was back again with our invalid, bringing the best physician in Sardis, and Oroetes' most commodious travelling-carriage.
"The physician Democedes is from Crotona, a place which must be somewhere very near the setting sun." "But is inhabited by Greeks, like Athens." added Oroetes. "Ah, my young friends, you must beware of those fellows; they're as cunning, deceitful, and selfish, as they are strong, clever, and handsome." "Democedes is generous and sincere," cried Zopyrus.
Why, he seems to fancy he is King of Lydia!" "Do you dislike the satrap?" said Zopyrus. "Well, I think I do," was the answer. "I always take an aversion or a fancy to people at first sight, and very seldom find reason to change my mind afterwards. I disliked Oroetes before I heard him speak a word, and I remember having the same feeling towards Psamtik, though Amasis took my fancy."
As it was through his mediation that the kings of the island were allowed to retain their crowns, they will be willing to listen to his advice. In short the Athenian leaves nothing uncared for, and knows every road and path as if he were the sun himself He showed us a picture of the world on a plate of copper." Oroetes nodded and said, "I have such a picture of the world too.
But when at last, inspired and carried away by his eloquence, we had unanimously decided on war, he began to speak once more on the best ways and means of prosecuting it successfully." Here Darius was obliged to stop, as Zopyrus had fallen on his neck in an ecstasy of delight. Bartja, Gyges and Oroetes were not less delighted, and they all begged him to go on with his tale.
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