Page 534 But when he heard of the Death of Memnon, he call'd his Friends together, and ask'd their Advice, Whether he should send a General with the Army, or go himself in Person, and try his Fortune with the Macedonians. Some were of Opinion for the King to go himself, for that they said, the Persians would then with more chearfulness venture their Lives. But Charidemus the Athenian, who was in great Esteem for his Valour and Prudence as a General, (for under Philip he gain'd a great Reputation, and was his chief and principal Adviser in all his weighty Affairs,) advis'd Darius not to lay the Kingdom rashly at stake, but still to continue Lord of Asia, and keep the Government in his own Hand, and to appoint an Experienc'd General to manage the Concerns of the War. And he told him, that an Hundred thousand Men, of which Number a Third Part to be Mercenaries out of Greece, were sufficient for the Expedition, and engag'd that he would see the Thing accomplish'd. The King at the first agreed to what he said: But his Friends peremptorily rejected this Advice; suspecting that Charidemus sought for the chief Command, out of design to give up all into the Power of the Macedonians. Hereupon Charidemus was in such a Rage, as that he call'd them all Cowards: With which Words, the King was much more offended than before; and whereas Anger never suffers a Man to consider wisely before hand, Darius orders him to be bound in a Belt, (which is the manner of the Persians,) and delivers him to his Guard to be put to Death: Who when he was leading to Execution, cry'd out, That the King would in a short time repent of what he had done in this Matter, and would be punish'd for that unjust Judgment against him by the loss of his Kingdom. Thus fell Charidemus from the top of all his Hopes and Expectations through the unseasonable Liberty of his Tongue. But the King, as soon as his Anger was over, presently repented of what he had done, and accus'd himself as guilty of a most horrid Crime: But the Power of a King could not undo that which was past Remedy. Considering therefore how valiant the Macedonians were, and musing upon the Courage of Alexander, he enquir'd where he might have a fit Person to succeed Memnon in the chief Command of the Army, and when none could be found, he was forc'd to run the Hazard himself for the saving of his Kingdom. He forthwith therefore order'd all his Forces to be call'd together from all Parts, and to Rendevouz at Babylon. Then he made choice of such of his Kindred and Friends as he thought fit, and to some he gave Commands in the Army according to their several Qualities, and others he appointed to attend upon his Person as his Life-Guard. As soon as the time before fix'd upon for the Expedition was come, they all Rendevouz'd at Babylon, to the Number of Four hundred thousand Foot, and an Hundred thousand Horse; Hence he march'd away with this vast Number of Men towards Cilicia, taking along with him his Mother, Wife and Children; that is to say, a Son and two Daughters.
In the mean time, Alexander (while Memnon was living, hearing how Chius and the Cities of Lesbos were surrender'd into the Hands of Memnon, and that Mitylene was taken by Storm, and that he was ready to invade Macedonia with a Navy of Three hundred Sail, and that many of the Graecians were upon the Point of Revolting) was very much perplex'd and discontented. But as soon as he heard of Memnon's Death, his Mind was more at rest. But within a short time after he fell desperately sick, and growing worse and worse, sent for Physicians, who coming to him, were all afraid to administer any thing, looking upon him as irrecoverable: Saving that there was one Philip of Acarnania, (whose Practice it was commonly to make use of desperate Medicines,) promis'd to cure him by a Potion; the King hereupon readily comply'd with him, especially because he heard Darius was on his march from Babylon. Then the Physician deliver'd the Potion, which through the Art and Skill of Philip, and the Advantage of the Natural Strength of the Patient, presently cur'd the King: Who being thus beyond all Hope recover'd, bountifully Rewarded the Physician, and receiv'd him into the Number of his most faithful Friends.
About the same time Alexander receiv'd Letters from his Mother, wherein (among other Things which she thought fit to advise him of) she wish'd him to have a care of Alexander of Lyncestas, who was a very valiant Man, and of a generous Disposition, and not inferior to any for his Faithfulness to Alexander. But many things concurring that seem'd to fortify the Accusation, he was seiz'd and committed to Custody, in order to his Legal Trial. But Alexander having Intelligence that Darius was within a few Days march, sent Parmenio before with the Army to gain the Passes and the Gates, as they were call'd; who marching away with all speed, possess'd himself of them, beating off the Barbarians, who were there before him. Darius, that he might march with more ease, had left all his heavy Baggage and Rabble behind him at Damascus, a City of Syria. Hence he march'd with all the speed he could, hearing that Alexander had preposfess'd
The Histories of Herodotus written in 440 BC is considered to be the founding work of history in Western literature. His history included stories and fables but he claimed to have traveled extensively and learned about many countries through direct observation.
The thesis of Stolen Legacy is that the Egyptians created what is wrongly called Greek philosophy. Dr. James argues that the African origin of Greek Philosophy is well known but rarely discussed. Ancient Greek historians such as Herodotus and Diodorus the Sicilian wrote in significant detail about the contributions of Egypt. Egyptian technology and libraries were unmatched and Greek philosophers such as Pythagoras and Plato studied there. The contribution of Africa to the intellectual foundation of modern knowledge is tremendous but unacknowledged.
The Library of History by Diodorus the Sicilian is one of the most highly regarded universal histories in antiquities. His work includes the history of Egypt, Asia, Africa, Greece and Europe. His book is a must read for research of ancient history.
Bible Study The King James Bible (kjv), World English Bible (web) and Bible in Basic English (bbe) are all examples of public domain books. The King James Bible (kjv) online uses the content from these books and open source software to enhance Bible study capabilities. The site includes the verse of the day, search tools, christian literature and links to related content. It demonstrates the use of open source to create a valuable service.