Page 788 answer'd, that if they had been put to death by any others Command, they should have, been as Sad at the apprehension of death as other Men; but since they were sent out of the World by so great a King as was Conqueror of the World, they Celebrated their honorable death (which all valiant Men wish for) with Songs of Mirth and Jollity, after the Custom and Manner of their Country: The King wondring at their Courage askt them, whether they would not be his Enemies, if he was so kind and generous as to suffer them to live. They answered, they never were his Enemies, but as Invaded, Oppos'd him to defend themselves, and if any made trial of 'em by fair means, and not by Force and Injury, they would lay out themselves to the utmost, that none should exceed 'em in grateful Offices of respect. Then he askt 'em what pledges they would give of Loyalty. They repli'd, their lives which they had receiv'd from him, and which they wou'd give him up again upon his demand. Nor did they sail him by Breach of promise: For they that return'd into their own Counrey, kept their Countrymen in due Obedience, Four of them which he kept for Squires of his Body, prov'd as true and faithful to the King, as any of the Macedonians.
ALexander himself Marcht again to the River Oxus; for he resolv'd to make against the Sogdians, for he heard that many of them put themselves into Forts and Castles, and refus'd to obey the Provincial Governors the King had placed over them. At the time he was encampt near the River Oxus, two Springs rose out of the Earth near to Alexander's Pavilion, the one of Water, and the other of Oyl: Of which prodigy Pt •lemy Lagus forthwith inform'd the King as soon as he heard of it, whereupon Alexander without delay, at the command of the Priest, Sacrific'd; Aristander the Priest told the King that the Fountain of Oyl portended Labour, but Victory at last, the fruit of Toil and Pain: Marching therefore away with part of his Army against the Sogdians, he left in Bactria, Polyspercon, Attalus, Gorgias, and Meleager to be a Guard in that Country, both to keep them in Obedience that were Reduc'd, and to Subdue the others that had fallen off from their Allegiance; having divided his Army into Five parts, he gave the Command of Three of them to Hephestion; a Fourth part to Caenus and Artabazus: He himself with the Fifth entr'd the Country leading towards Maracanda. The rest enter'd wherever each of them cou'd, and stormed the Forts of them that had possessed themselves of them, and others they took in upon Surrender. After all, the Forces (having first ran over the greatest part of the Country) join'd together at Maracanda, he sent forth Hephestion to bring in Colonies into the Cities of the Sogdians: Coenus and Artabazus he order'd against the Scythians, because he heard Spitamenes was fled to 'em. He himself with the rest of the Army entring into Sogdiana, easily reduc'd the rest of the Towns that had revolted.
AFterwards at the beginning of the Spring, he Marcht to a Rock to which he heard many of the Sogdians fled; and here it was said that the Wife and Daughters of Oxyartes had sheltred themselves. For Oxyartes plac'd them here as in a Hold that was Inexpugnable, he himself being one that had revolted from Alexander. And the King was the more earnest for that this Rock being taken, there appeared no Fort left in Sogdia that cou'd incourage them to a Defection. When he came to the Rock, he found it steep and inaccessable on every side, and that the Barbarians had brought in Provision for a long Siege, and that the depth of the Snow, as it made the Approach of the Mace ••mians more difficult, so it furnisht the Barbarians with plenty of Water. However Alexander resolv'd to assault the Rock. The Proud and Contemptuous answer likewise of the Barbarians stirr'd up Rage and Ambition in Alexander at one and the same time. For whereas at a Parly with them, he promis'd them that if they would Surrender, they should all have liberty to return safely home; they barbarously scoffed at him, and bid him seek some Soldiers that had Wings, who might so take the Rock, for they feared
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.