SO THALIA.

other Persians. Ho once made a remarkable speech
to Proxaspes, for whom he professed the greatest re­
gard, who received all petitions to the king, and whose
son enjoyed the honourable office of royal cup-bearer.
" What," says he, upon some occasion, " do the Per-
" sians think of me, or in what terms do they speak of
" me?" " Sir," he replied, " in all other respects they
"speak of you with honour; but it is the general
" opinion that you are too much addicted to wine."
"What!" returned the prince in anger, "I suppose
" they say that I drink to excess, and am deprived of
" reason; their former praise, therefore, could not be
" sincere." At some preceding period, he had asked
of those whom he used most familiarly, and of Croesus
among the rest, whether they thought he had equalled
the greatness of his father Cyrus. In reply they told
him, that ho was the greater of the two, for that to
all which Cyrus had possessed, he had added the em­
pire of Egypt and of the ocean. Croesus, who was
present, did not assent to this. "Sir," said he to
Cambyses, " in my opinion you are not equal to your
" father; you have not such a son as he left behind
" him." Which speech of Croesus was highly agree­
able to Cambyses.

XXXV. Remembering this, he turned with great
anger to Prexaspes: " You," said he, " shall presently
"be witness of the truth or falsehood of what the
" Persians say. If I hit directly through the heart
" your son, who stands yonder, it will be evident thai
"they speak of me maliciously; if I rtiss my aim, they
"will say true in affirming that I am mad." No sooner
had he spoken, than he bent his bdw, and struck the'
young man. When he fell, the king ordered his body
to be opened, and the wound to be examined. He was
rejoiced to find that the arrow had penetrated his
heart; and turning to the father with a malicious
smile, " You observe," said he, " that it is not I that
" am mad, but the Persians who are foolish. Tell
" me," he continued, " if you ever saw a man send an
" arrow surer to its mark?" Prexaspes, seeing he was
mad, and fearing for himself, replied, "I do not think,
" Sir, that even the deity could have aimed so well."