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for them to investigate and find out how true they were. Therefore, since I consider peace to be much better and more advantageous for us both, I myself welcome it and advise you to hold to it. Therefore, I do not forbid you for now, but returning as quickly as possible to the one who sent you, announce that he should never expect to receive Sismanos; but if because of this it seems to him that he must make war against us, declare war within twenty days, in which you will be able to return. For in that many days I shall arrange for the ambassador Amour to remain here, so that if war 2.57 is declared, I may authorize his arrival here by letter. You must in any case think that it is easier and more desirable for him to arrive than to turn back from the campaign as before, being persuaded by my words. But if you neglect and go beyond the deadline, it is no longer safe for me to remain inactive, but I myself will prepare for war from home and I will bring here the Persian alliance, which is ready; and for the future, not even if you yourselves wished it, will it be easy for me to lay down the war, not only on account of the money spent on the preparation for the war, which must be recovered from your land, but also because the barbarians who will come by alliance must not return to their own land with empty hands, but having profited from the enemy's territory. For these reasons, it is necessary for you to use all speed for your journey, and for your king, having learned from us what he thinks will be to his advantage, to report back with the utmost swiftness.” So he said such things; but the ambassadors of Alexander, as if forgetting their former arrogance and changing their grandiloquence in public speaking, became suppliants, asking for a longer deadline to be granted to them. For they said they would show all haste for the journey; but if their king was staying in the extremities of his realm, the days would not be sufficient, being fewer than what was required for the journey to be completed. And since their request 2.58 seemed to be just, thirty days were granted to them, in which they had to return and either confirm the existing peace and the treaties, or declare war. The ambassadors of Alexander, therefore, having received such answers from the great domestic, returned to their own country. But the queen and the entire senate both marveled at his intelligence and were very grateful, because those whom they themselves had dreaded on the previous day and against whom they had no plausible defense, but were beset on all sides by perplexity, these he had made so terrified, that they, neglecting all else, begged concerning the deadline, as if it were a matter of necessity. But that is all on this subject. 8. The great domestic commanded the soldiers in the cities by letters to make preparations, so that, if necessary, he would wage war on the Mysians. And seeing that not only many of the military register, but also not a few of the others, on the pretext that the provisions assigned to each by the emperor were not intact, were completely neglecting the campaigns and depriving the state of the benefit from them, he considered how he might both relieve them of their pressing need, by supplying what was lacking for each from the emperor's foresight, and how he himself might make appropriate use of each of them, by showing that all contribute something to the common advantage. And while he was thus pondering these things by himself, the Pa 2.59 trikiotes approached, having been engaged for a very long time in registers and having had much experience in such matters, and said that he had heard that he wished to prepare everyone for the campaigns without excuse, by supplementing or even adding to the deficiencies from the revenues assigned to them from the public funds. And such matters could neither be better served by any other of all men than by himself, as he himself would know, nor indeed with greater experience. And that, not having been summoned, but having approached first himself, he should ask to be entrusted with the registration, it was not right to suspect. For not out of desire

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αὐτοῖς ἀνερευνῶσιν ἐξευρίσκειν ὡς ἀληθῆ. ἐγὼ μὲν οὖν τὴν εἰρήνην πολλῷ βελτίω καὶ λυσιτελεστέραν ἑκατέροις οἰόμενος ἡμῖν, αὐτός τε ἀσπάζομαι καὶ ὑμῖν ἔχεσθαι ταύτης παραινῶ. διὸ οὐδὲ πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἀπαγορεύω τὸ νῦν ἔχον, ἀλλ' ὡς τάχιστα πρὸς τὸν πέμψαντα ἐπανελθόντες, Σίσμανον μὲν ἀπαγγείλατε μηδέποτε λήψεσθαι προσδοκᾷν· εἰ δ' ἐκείνῳ διὰ ταῦτα πρὸς ἡμᾶς δοκεῖ πολεμητέα εἶναι, ἐν εἴκοσιν ἡμέραις, αἷς δυνήσεσθε ἐπανελθεῖν, τὸν πόλεμον ἀπαγγέλλειν. ἐν τοσαύταις γὰρ καὶ τὸν Ἀμοὺρ πρεσβευτὴν ἐνταυθοῖ παρασκευάσω διατρίβειν, ἵν' εἰ ὁ πόλε 2.57 μος ἀπαγγέλλοιτο, γράμμασιν ἐκείνῳ τὴν ἐνθάδε ἄφιξιν ἐπιτρέψω. πάντως δὲ ῥᾷον οἴεσθαι αὐτὸν ὑμᾶς καὶ προθυμότερον ἀφικέσθαι χρὴ, ἢ πρότερον ἐκ τῆς στρατείας ἀναστρέφειν, πειθόμενον τοῖς λόγοις τοῖς ἐμοῖς. ἂν δ' ἀμελήσαντες τὴν προθεσμίαν ὑπερβῆτε, ἐμοὶ μὲν ἀσφαλὲς οὐκέτι ἡσυχάζειν, ἀλλ' αὐτός τε οἴκοθεν ἐξαρτύσομαι τὰ πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον καὶ τὴν Περσικὴν συμμαχίαν οὖσαν παρεσκευασμένην ἐνθάδε ἄξω· καὶ τοῦ λοιποῦ οὐδ' ἂν αὐτοὶ ἐθέλητε, κατατίθεσθαι ῥᾴδιον ἔσται τὸν πόλεμον ἐμοὶ, οὐ μόνον διὰ τὰ ἀναλωθέντα χρήματα πρὸς τοῦ πολέμου τὴν παρασκευὴν, ἃ κομίζεσθαι ἐκ τῆς ὑμετέρας ἀναγκαῖον, ἀλλ' ὅτι καὶ τοὺς κατὰ συμμαχίαν ἥξοντας βαρβάρους οὐ κεναῖς χερσὶν, ἀλλ' ὠφεληθέντας ἐκ τῆς πολεμίας, πρὸς τὴν οἰκείαν δεῖ ἐπαναστρέφειν. διὰ ταῦτα ὑμᾶς τε σπουδῇ χρήσασθαι πρὸς τὴν ὁδοιπορίαν ἀναγκαῖον, καὶ τὸν ὑμέτερον βασιλέα πυθόμενον τὰ παρ' ἡμῶν, ἃ συνοίσειν οἴεται αὐτῷ, τὴν ταχίστην ἀπαγγέλλειν.» ὁ μὲν οὖν τοιαῦτα εἶπεν· οἱ δὲ Ἀλεξάνδρου πρεσβευταὶ ὥσπερ ἐκλαθόμενοι τοῦ προτέρου φυσήματος καὶ τῆς μεγαλοῤῥημοσύνης τῆς πρὸς τὰς δημηγορίας μεταβαλόντες, ἐγίνοντο ἱκέται, πλείω αὐτοῖς παρασχεθῆναι προθεσμίαν. αὐτοὶ μὲν γὰρ ἔφασαν πᾶσαν ἐπιδείξεσθαι σπουδὴν πρὸς τὴν ὁδοιπορίαν· ἂν δ' ὁ βασιλεὺς αὐτῶν ἐν ἐσχατιαῖς διάγῃ τῆς ἀρχῆς, οὐκ ἐξαρκέσειν τὰς ἡμέρας, ἐνδεεστέρας οὔσας, ἢ προσήκει ἀνυσθῆναι τὴν ὁδόν. καὶ ἐπεὶ ἐδόκει ἡ ἀξίωσις αὐτῶν 2.58 δικαία εἶναι, τριάκοντα παρείχοντο αὐτοῖς ἡμέραι, ἐν αἷς ἔδει ἐπαναστρέψαντας ἢ τὴν οὖσαν εἰρήνην ἐπιβεβαιοῦν καὶ τὰς σπονδὰς, ἢ πόλεμον καταγγέλλειν. οἱ μὲν οὖν Ἀλεξάνδρου πρέσβεις τοιαύτας ἀποκρίσεις παρὰ τοῦ μεγάλου δεξάμενοι δομεστίκου, πρὸς τὴν οἰκείαν ἐπανῆκον. βασιλὶς δὲ καὶ ἡ σύγκλητος πᾶσα, ἐθαύμαζόν τε τῆς συνέσεως αὐτὸν καὶ χάριτας ᾔδεσαν πολλὰς, ὅτι οὓς αὐτοὶ ὠῤῥώδουν ἐν τῇ προτεραίᾳ καὶ πρὸς οὓς οὐδὲ ἀπολογίας εὐπόρουν εὐπροσώπου, ἀλλ' ἀπορίᾳ πάντοθεν συνείχοντο, τούτους οὕτω κατέστησεν αὐτὸς περιδεεῖς, ὥστε ἀμελήσαντας τῶν ἄλλων δεῖσθαι περὶ τῆς προθεσμίας, ὡς περί τινος ἀναγκαίου. ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν εἰς τοσοῦτον. ηʹ. Ὁ μέγας δὲ δομέστικος τοῖς μὲν στρατιώταις κατὰ πόλεις ἐκέλευε διὰ γραμμάτων παρασκευάζεσθαι, ὡς, ἢν δέῃ, πολεμήσων τοῖς Μυσοῖς. ὁρῶν δὲ οὐ τοῦ καταλόγου μόνου τοῦ στρατιωτικοῦ πολλοὺς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων οὐκ ὀλίγους προφάσει τοῦ μὴ τὰς παρὰ βασιλέως ἑκάστῳ τεταγμένας χορηγίας ἀκεραίους εἶναι, παντάπασιν ἀμελοῦντας πρὸς τὰς στρατείας καὶ τῆς ἐξ αὐτῶν ὠφελείας ἀποστεροῦντας τὸ κοινὸν, ἐσκέπτετο, ὅθεν ἂν ἐκείνους τε τῆς πιεζούσης ἀπορίας ἀπαλλάξαι, τὸ ἐλλεῖπον ἑκάστῳ πρὸς τὴν ἐκ βασιλέως πρόνοιαν ἀναπληρώσας, καὶ αὐτὸς αὐτοῖς πρὸς δέον χρήσαιτο ἑκάστῳ, πάντας πρὸς τὸ κοινῇ λυσιτελοῦν ἀποδείξας συνεισφέροντάς τι. οὕτω δὲ περὶ τούτων αὐτῷ φροντίζοντι πρὸς ἑαυτὸν, ὁ Πα 2.59 τρικιώτης προσελθὼν, πολὺν δή τινα χρόνον περὶ ἀπογραφὰς ἠσχολημένος καὶ πεῖραν ἐν τοῖς τοιούτοις ἐσχηκὼς πολλὴν, ἀκηκοέναι ἔφασκεν αὐτὸν πάντας βούλεσθαι πρὸς τὰς στρατείας ἀπροφασίστους παρασκευάζειν ταῖς ἐκ τῶν δημοσίων ἀποτεταγμέναις αὐτοῖς προσόδοις τὰ ἐλλείποντα ἀναπληρῶν ἢ καὶ προστιθείς. τὰ δὲ τοιαῦτα οὔτε βέλτιον, ὥσπερ ἂν εἰδείη καὶ αὐτὸς, οὔτε μὴν μετ' ἐμπειρίας πλείονος ἑτέρῳ τινὶ τῶν πάντων ἢ αὐτῷ ὑπηρετηθείη. ὅτι δὲ μὴ προσκληθεὶς, ἀλλ' αὐτὸς πρότερος προσελθὼν, ἐγχειρισθῆναι τὴν ἀπογραφὴν ἀξιοίη, οὐ δίκαιον ὑποπτεύειν. οὐ γὰρ ἐπιθυμίᾳ