Alfred J. Church

The False Smerdis Is Slain

Now the Persians believed not the words of Cambyses that the kingdom was in the hands of the Magians, thinking that he had said these things for envy and hatred of Smerdis, to the end that the Persians might be made enemies to him. Prexaspes also was very vehement in denying that he had slain the true Smerdis, for indeed he would have been in great peril of his life, now that Cambyses was dead, confessing that he had slain a son of Cyrus with his own hand. Wherefore the Magian reigned in peace, feigning that he was Smerdis the son of Cyrus. And this he did for seven months, during which time he showed great kindness to all the nations over which the kings of Persia rule, so that when he was overthrown all Asia lamented for him, and the Persians only rejoiced. For indeed he sent to every nation and proclaimed that for the space of three years they should neither bear arms nor pay tribute. This proclamation he made at the beginning of his reign, but in the eighth month he was overthrown. And the manner of his overthrowing was this.

There was a certain Otanes among the Persians, that was both well born and rich, so that none other of the people excelled him in these respects. He it was that first had the thought that the Magian, whoever he might be, was not of a truth Smerdis the son of Cyrus; and the reason of his thought was this, that the man never came forth from the castle, and admitted not any of the great men among the Persians to his presence. Having therefore this thought he did thus. He had a daughter, Phœdime by name, that had been married to Cambyses. Now the Magian had taken this Phœdime and the other wives of Cambyses to be his wives. Therefore Otanes sent to his daughter, saying, "Who is this man that is thy husband? Is it of truth Smerdis the son of Cyrus or some other man?" And the woman answered, "I know not, for Smerdis the son of Cyrus I never saw, and I know not who is this man." Then Otanes sent again, saying, "If thou knowest not Smerdis the son of Cyrus yet doth Atossa know. Enquire therefore of her." For Atossa was the daughter of Cyrus. But Phœdime sent to her father, saying, "I cannot come to speak with Atossa, or with any of the women that dwell in the palace. For so soon as this man, whoever he be, came to the kingdom, he ordered it thus with the women in the palace, that they should not have speech the one with the other." But when Otanes heard this it was manifest to him that the matter was indeed as he had thought. Therefore he sent to his daughter a third time, saying, "My daughter, thou art come of a good stock, and shouldst not shrink from such task as thy father shall set thee, though it be full of peril. If this man be not Smerdis the son of Cyrus, but he whom I think him to be, surely he shall not go unpunished, taking thee to wife, and sitting upon the throne of the Persians. Do thou therefore after my words. When the man is asleep, touch his ears; and if thou find that he hath ears, then know that thy husband is Smerdis, the son of Cyrus, but if he hath them not, that he is Smerdis the Magian." Then Phœdime sent to her father, saying, "This truly is a perilous task thou settest me. For if the man have not ears and I be found touching him in this fashion, without doubt he will slay me. Nevertheless, I will adventure it." Now Cambyses had cut off the ears of Smerdis the Magian for some great crime. So when the time came, Phœdime felt the head of the man, and knew that he had no ears. And so soon as it was day, she sent to her father, and told him the truth.

So soon as Otanes heard this he took to him two other of the Persians, Aspathines and Gobryas, princes both of them, and friends to himself, and set forth the whole matter to them. These men had already the same thought about it as had Otanes; and when they heard what he said, they listened to him readily. Then it seemed good to the three, that they should each choose the man whom he judged to be most faithful and steadfast. And Otanes chose Intaphernes, and Gobryas Megabyzus, and Aspathines Hydarnes. And there being now six of them, there came to Susa Darius the son of Hystaspes from Persia, of which province his father was the governor. And it seemed good to the six to take this Darius to them. So these seven men sware to each other that they would keep faith, and so consulted together. And when it came to Darius to declare his sentence, he said, "I thought that I, and none other, knew that the Magian was king, and that Smerdis the son of Cyrus was dead. And indeed I came to Susa in all haste for this very purpose, to contrive that this man should be slain. And now, since ye know the matter also and not I only, my judgment is that we should do the thing speedily and make no delay. For in such a matter it is not well to delay." To this Otanes made reply: "Son of Hystaspes, a valiant man is thy father, and thou art like to prove thyself as good as he. But as to this matter, be not hasty and rash, but deal as prudently with it as may be. And first there must be more of us before we put our hands to it." Then said Darius: "Hearken to me ye that are present. Be ye sure that if ye follow the counsel of Otanes ye will perish miserably, for some one will carry the matter to the Magian, hoping thus to gain advantage for himself. Rather should ye have kept the matter to yourselves, and done the deed without delay. But now, since it hath seemed good to you to make it known to others, and ye have also opened it to me, I say this. Let us do the deed this very day; or verily, if this day pass by and it be not done, I will go before any other, and tell the whole matter to the Magian." To this Otanes made answer: "Come then, since thou wilt have us make haste, and wilt not suffer us to delay, say by what means we may make our way into the palace, for that guards are set about it everywhere thou knowest, having seen them thyself, or, at the least, heard of them. How shall we pass these by?" Darius answered, "There are many things, Otanes, which cannot be shown by words but by deeds only; and many things also which have a fair look when one speaketh of them, yet doth nothing good come of them. As for these guards that are set about the palace, ye yourselves know that it is in no wise difficult to pass them by. For first there is no man of them who, knowing what place we have in this kingdom, will stay us from passing, such reverence, nay, such fear will he have of us; and next, I myself have a most excellent pretence by which I will pass, for I will say that I am lately come from the province of Persia, and that I have a message from my father to the King. And indeed, when a lie is needed, then let a man lie. For they that lie and they that speak the truth seek the selfsame thing. They that lie, lie because they hope by persuading another to gain some advantage for themselves, and they that speak the truth, speak it desiring so to get some gain to themselves, being the better trusted in time to come. Thus, though they follow not in the same way, they seek the same end. And surely, if they were like to get no gain in the matter, then would the speaker of truth become a liar, and the liar a speaker of truth. But as to these guards, whosoever shall let us pass of his own free will, it shall be the better for him in time to come; and whosoever shall seek to hinder us, he shall be counted for an enemy. Him will we thrust aside, and so entering do our business." Then said Gobryas: "My friends, we shall never have fairer chance than this to win back the throne; or, if we fail to win it, then to die. For now we, who are Persians, are ruled by a Mede, and this a Magian, and one, to boot, that hath no ears. As for you that were with Cambyses when he was sick, do ye not remember how, being now about to die, he denounced all manner of evil against you, if ye sought not to recover the kingdom? Then indeed we counted not his words to be true, thinking that he spoke from jealousy of his brother; but now have we proof of them. Wherefore I give my vote for this, that when we break up this assembly of ours we go forthwith against the Magian to slay him.

Now, while these seven men were thus holding counsel together, there fell out other things which shall now be told. It seemed good to the two Magians to make Prexaspes their friend; and this they did because they knew that he had suffered a great wrong at the hands of Cambyses, who had slain his son by shooting at him, and because he alone among the Persians knew for a certainty that Smerdis the son of Cyrus was dead, having indeed slain him with his own hand, and also because Prexaspes was held in high repute among the Persians. Wherefore they called him to them and sought to make him their friend, binding him by pledges and oaths that he would keep to himself and not disclose to any man the deceit which they had devised against the Persians, and they on their part promised that they would bestow on him all manner of good things. And Prexaspes promised to do as they would have him. Thereupon they said that they would gather together all the Persians to the royal castle; and they bade him go up on a high tower that was in the castle, and proclaim to the men that their King was Smerdis the son of Cyrus, and none other. This commandment they gave him, knowing that he had been shamefully entreated by Cambyses, and because there was no man whom the Persians would be more willing to believe than this Prexaspes, and also because he had often and vehemently affirmed that Smerdis the son of Cyrus was yet alive, and had denied that he had himself slain him. And when Prexaspes had said that he was ready to do all this, then the Magians assembled all the Persians at the royal castle, and set Prexaspes on a high tower, and bade him say on. But the man said not a single thing of that which they had commanded him, but set forth the genealogy of Cyrus, beginning with Achæmenes, and when he came to Cyrus himself, he related all the good which he had done to his people; and when he had ended speaking of this, he told the whole truth about the matter in hand, saying that he had before concealed it, as knowing that it would not be safe for him to speak the truth, but now, he said, there was a strong necessity laid upon him to unfold the whole matter. So he told the Persians how, under compulsion from Cambyses, he had himself slain Smerdis the son of Cyrus, and how the Magian was king of the realm. Also he called down many curses on the Persians if they did not recover the kingdom for the Persians, and so avenge themselves on the Magians. And having said so much, he threw himself down with his head foremost from the tower, and so died.

But the seven Persians, having resolved as hath been before told, to do their business at once and make no delay, prayed to the Gods, and so departed, knowing nothing of that which had befallen in the matter of Prexaspes. But when they were on the way, having now performed the half of the journey, they heard what had befallen. And when they heard it, they stood aside out of the way for a while, and held counsel with themselves. Then Otanes and they that were with him advised that they should by all means defer the matter, neither adventure themselves when all things were in such tumult; but Darius and his friends were urgent that they should finish it forthwith and make no delay. And while they disputed, they saw seven pairs of hawks that were pursuing two pairs of vultures, and tearing them with their claws and picking them with their bills. And the seven when they saw this sight took heart, and assented all of them to the counsel of Darius, and went straightway to the palace. And when they were come to the gates, then it fell out even as Darius had said, for the guards had respect to the seven, knowing them to be princes among the Persians, and not thinking, indeed, that they had any ill purpose, and so let them pass, and it seemed as if the Gods themselves led them to their work, for no one asked them any question. And when they had passed the guards and were come into the hall of the palace, there met them certain of the eunuchs that are wont to carry messages for the King. These enquired of them for what purpose they had come, and blamed the keepers of the door that they had suffered them to pass, and sought to hinder them that they should not go further. Then the seven encouraged one another, and drew their daggers and stabbed those that would have stopped them, making their way with all haste into the chamber of the men. Now it chanced that both the Magians were within, holding counsel about the matter of Prexaspes, what it were best for them to do. And when they perceived that there was a stir among the eunuchs and also heard them cry out, they themselves ran forth, for they would fain know what had happened. And so soon as they knew it, they sought to defend themselves, and one of them laid hold of a bow and the other of a spear. And when they had done this the seven closed with them. Now he that had the bow and arrows found them of no avail, for his enemies were upon him, neither could he use them. But he that had the spear did somewhat with it, for he wounded Aspathines in the thigh, and Intaphernes in the eye. As for Intaphernes he died not of his wound, but the sight of his eye was destroyed. Then the other Magian, he that had the bow and arrows, seeing that they availed him nothing, turned and fled into an inner chamber, for there chanced to be such hard by the chamber where they were; and two of the seven, to wit Darius and Gobryas, followed hard upon him and entered also. And as Gobryas laid hold on the Magian and rolled with him on the ground, Darius stood over them, not knowing what he should do, for it was dark, and he feared lest he should smite Gobryas. And when Gobryas saw that he stood and did nothing, he cried to him, "Why dost thou not strike?" And Darius answered, "I am afraid lest I should smite thee." Then said Gobryas again, "Let drive with thy sword, though it be through the two of us." And Darius hearkened, and let drive with his sword, and, as it chanced, slew the Magian.

And when they had slain the two Magians, and had cut off their heads, they left the two that were wounded, for these had not strength to follow them and might also serve to keep the castle, and rushed forth, holding the heads of the two Magians in their hands, and called to the other Persians, to whom also they told the thing which they had done and showed the heads. And while they did this they slew any Magian whom they chanced to meet. Then the other Persians, when they knew what had been done, and how they had been deceived of the Magians, thought it well to do likewise, and drew their daggers and slew all the Magians whom they found. And indeed they had not left any Magian alive, only that the darkness stopped them in their deed. This day the Persians keep ever in remembrance, and hold a great feast upon it, calling it the "Massacre of the Magians." And on that day no Magian may come forth, but they all keep themselves in their houses.

Now, after four days, when the tumult had now ceased, the seven met to take counsel concerning the affairs of the kingdom. And first they discoursed as to what manner of government it would be best to establish. Then Otanes set forth his opinion that it would be well to give the power to the whole nation. "For consider," he said, "what oppression ye endured from Cambyses, and of late also from this Magian. For even a good man, if he be not bound to answer for his doings, hath his heart lifted up in him, and is led astray to do all manner of violence and wrong, and to shed innocent blood. But if the people bear rule, then every man answereth for his doings, and all have right and justice." To this Megabyzus made answer: "I like not more than doth Otanes the rule of one man; but I agree not with him when he seeketh to give power to the multitude. For if the oppression of one man be hard to bear, how much less to be endured is that which a man suffereth from the multitude! For the one knoweth the thing that he doeth, but the other knoweth not anything. My counsel, therefore, is that we choose out a company of the wisest men of the nation, and commit the government unto them." Last of all Darius said: "I hold with that which Megabyzus hath said of the multitude; but with that which he hath said of the few I hold not. For I count nothing to be better than the rule of one man. And indeed if the government be with the few that are accounted wise then arises strife between them, and from strife civil war, and at last one ruler is set up. And as for the multitude, though there be not strife, yet no man thinketh but of his own gain. And here also at the last one man is wont to stand up and set right that which hath been ill done; and so do things come round to the rule of one. For which reasons, and because it is not well to change the customs of our forefathers, I give my vote that we commit the government to one man."

Now when Darius had thus spoken, four out of the seven declared themselves to be of the same opinion. Then Otanes, seeing that he could not prevail, said this: "I perceive that it must needs be that we set up one of us to be a king, either casting lots or giving the choice to the Persians that they should elect whom they will, or by some other means. Now in this strife I take no part. I wish not to rule or to be ruled. Therefore I stand apart from the whole matter on this condition, that I be not subject to any of you, neither I, nor my children, nor my children's children after you." To these words they all agreed. So Otanes contended not for the kingdom, but stood apart. And to this day his house only of the whole nation of the Persians is free, being subject so far only as it will, but not transgressing the laws of the realm.

After this the seven took counsel together how they might best choose one of them to be king. And first they determined that to Otanes and to his children for ever, if the kingdom should fall to another than he, there should be given year by year a Median robe and such other gifts as are counted to be most honourable among the Persians. And this they did because Otanes first devised the whole matter, and set them upon slaying the Magian. This then they gave to Otanes for himself; and to the others of the seven, that it should be lawful for them at all times to have audience of the King, and that without announcement made. Also they deemed that it should not be lawful for the King, whoever he might be, to take to himself a wife, except from the families of the seven. And as to the kingdom, they agreed among themselves upon this sign, that they should all ride together before the city the next morning, and that he should be king whose horse should first neigh. Now Darius had for a groom a cunning fellow, whose name was Œbares. This man had a device by which he could make a horse neigh; and this he did the next morning when the seven rode together before the city. And it also befell that when the horse of Darius neighed there came lightning and thunder from a clear sky. And when the five others saw this they leaped from their horses, and did obeisance to Darius.

Thus was Darius the son of Hystaspes made King of the Persians.