Weekly national intelligencer., 1864-03-17

day when dealing with such subjects. Mr.. Grote
is inclined to make considerable abatement from
the number Of the non -combatant attendants and
retainers of the army of Xerxes, as calculated by
Herodotus, but herein he fails to make due allow
ance for the peculiar custom of Eastern armies, in
which, at the present day, the number of camp
followers is greater beyond comparison than that
of European armies. The probabilities are that the
old Father Of History did not err in assuming as
the basis Of his computation under this head that
| the non-combatants who waited on the movements
Of the army Of Xerxes were at least equal in num-
ber to the fighting men. Rawlinsou, in his valp-
able notes on the narrative of Herodotus, after
subjecting the statements, of the historian under
this head to careful analysis, and reducing them
| according to that analysis, sets down the number
of the land forces of the Persian invaders at
,190, 900 men, and the sea force at 341 900, be-
ing an aggregate Of ,531 ,6lO fighting men engaged
in the expedition. II
Heeren, on the other hand, in his Historical
Researches" ayows the opinion that the account of
Herodotns is entirely authentic and trustworthy a,
well in the basis of his statements as in the num-
Der ascribed to the Persian hosts He says that in
our own day we have seen the Empire of France,
under the First Napoleon, assemble nearly mil
lion of warriors; [" and we cannot, therefore, be
surprised that two millions and half should have
been collected from the vast extent Of Asia and no
inconsiderable portion of Europe Also"
But, waving critical inquiry as to exact num-
bers, where, at the lowest calculation, the number
was SO vast, how were these multitudes fed? For
tunately for the credit and credibility Of Herodo
tus, he is not silent on this point We learn from
him that ccmmissariat preparations had been made
by Xerxes on the largest scale " for four full years"
before the expedition started. This was the Pc
riod he spent, says the historian, Sin collecting
his host and making ready all things that pere
meedfnl for his soldiers And it was not till the
close of the fifth year that he set forth On his
march. = Book vii, oh. 20.] Magazines of stores
had then been accumulated on the line of march,
Xerxes laid up stores of provisions in divers
places" says Herodotus, "to save the army and
the beasts of burden from suffering want upon
their march into Greece. He in 1uired carefully
about all the sites, and had the stores laid up in
such as were most convenient, causing them to be
brought across from various parts of Asia, and in
various ways some in transports and others in
chantmen. ~ Book vii, ch. Is We may add
that Leuhe Acte, or "The White Strand" .
Greek settlement on the coast of the Propontis,
(subsidized by the Persian monarch was his chief
depot of supplies for the expedition.
Besides these arrangements Xerxes levied contr-
buttons the cities and countries through which he
passed. The Greeks" says Herodotu,, I" who
had to feed the army and to entertain Xerxes were
thereby brought to the very extremity of Distress
insomuch that some Of them were forced even to
forsske house and home. When the Thasisns re-
ceived and feasted the host, Antpater one of their
citizens of best repute and the man to whom the
business was assigned, showed vouchers that the
Of the meal was four hundred talents of silver"
about $500, 900 in gold of our currency "Es-
Inmates almost 10 the same amount" says Herodo-
tus, were made by the superintendents (of sup
plies) on other cities" Heralds preceded the
army to fix the amount Of these acquisitions, and
the people we've hidden to have stores Of corn,
ready ground, fattoned cattle, poultry, 80. in
waiting for the arrival of the army at designated
points. So great were these exactions that Hero
dotus records as a pleasant joke the saying of
Megacreon of Ab1era, who reco nmended his coun-
trymen ~ to go to the temples in body and thank
the gods very warmly for their past goodness in
that they had caused Xcrxes to be content with
one meal day." for, adds the historian, explain
ing the point Of the joke, !" had the order been to
provide breakfast for the King as well as dinner
| the Abderites must either have fed before Xerxes
came, or else have awaited his coming and beon
brought to absolute ruin. Book vii, chapters
| 1l9, 100.
| Iu addition to dcpots of supplies and forced
contributions Xerxes c,used vast number of
transp rts laden with grain to npany the host
along shore. The number of these provision craft
and other merchant ships" says Herodotus, twas
beyond count" GBook vii, chap. 191.
| And yet, notwithstanding all these preparations
and precautions, such was the number Of his forces
that in point Of fact they sometimes suffered from
want. So true was this that Eschylus, in his
drama of "The Persian.," represents the very
Earth as being an ally Of the Greeks, because she
refused to furnish sustenance to tho hordes of the
invader" wasting by hunger the too exces-
s;ve multitude"
The sources of information in regard to the
Il