historical lecturers and essays-第8节

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！





an　Armenian　prince；　a　vassal　of　the　Mede；　who　has　his　wrongs



likewise　to　avenge。　　And　the　two　little　armies　of　foot…soldiersthe



Persians　had　no　cavalrydefeat　the　innumerable　horsemen　of　the



Mede；　take　the　old　king；　keep　him　in　honourable　captivity；　and　so



change；　one　legend　says；　in　a　single　battle；　the　fortunes　of　the



whole　East。







And　then　begins　that　series　of　conquests　of　which　we　know　hardly



anything；　save　the　fact　that　they　were　made。　　The　young　mountaineer



and　his　playmates；　whom　he　makes　his　generals　and　satraps；　sweep



onward　towards　the　West；　teaching　their　men　the　art　of　riding；　till



the　Persian　cavalry　becomes　more　famous　than　the　Median　had　been。



They　gather　to　them；　as　a　snowball　gathers　in　rolling；　the　picked



youth　of　every　tribe　whom　they　overcome。　　They　knit　these　tribes　to



them　in　loyalty　and　affection　by　that　righteousnessthat



truthfulness　and　justicefor　which　Isaiah　in　his　grandest　lyric



strains　has　made　them　illustrious　to　all　time；　which　Xenophon　has



celebrated　in　like　manner　in　that　exquisite　book　of　histhe



〃Cyropaedia。〃　　The　great　Lydian　kingdom　of　CroesusAsia　Minor　as　we



call　it　nowgoes　down　before　them。　　Babylon　itself　goes　down；　after



that　world…famed　siege　which　ended　in　Belshazzar's　feast；　and　when



Cyrus　diedstill　in　the　prime　of　life；　the　legends　seem　to　sayhe



left　a　coherent　and　well…organised　empire；　which　stretched　from　the



Mediterranean　to　Hindostan。







So　runs　the　tale；　which　to　me；　I　confess；　sounds　probable　and



rational　enough。　　It　may　not　do　so　to　you；　for　it　has　not　to　many



learned　men。　　They　are　inclined　to　〃relegate　it　into　the　region　of



myth；〃　in　plain　English；　to　call　old　Herodotus　a　liar；　or　at　least　a



dupe。　　What　means　those　wise　men　can　have　at　this　distance　of　more



than　2000　years；　of　knowing　more　about　the　matter　than　Herodotus；



who　lived　within　100　years　of　Cyrus；　I　for　myself　cannot　discover。



And　I　say　this　without　the　least　wish　to　disparage　these



hypercritical　persons。　　For　there　areand　more　there　ought　to　be；



as　long　as　lies　and　superstitions　remain　on　this　eartha　class　of



thinkers　who　hold　in　just　suspicion　all　stories　which　savour　of　the



sensational；　the　romantic；　even　the　dramatic。　　They　know　the



terrible　uses　to　which　appeals　to　the　fancy　and　the　emotions　have



been　applied；　and　are　still　applied　to　enslave　the　intellects；　the



consciences；　the　very　bodies　of　men　and　women。　　They　dread　so　much



from　experience　the　abuse　of　that　formula；　that　〃a　thing　is　so



beautiful　it　must　be　true；〃　that　they　are　inclined　to　reply：



〃Rather　let　us　say　boldly；　it　is　so　beautiful　that　it　cannot　be



true。　　Let　us　mistrust；　or　even　refuse　to　believe　e　priori；　and　at



first　sight；　all　startling；　sensational；　even　poetic　tales；　and



accept　nothing　as　history；　which　is　not　as　dull　as　the　ledger　of　a



dry…goods'　store。〃　　But　I　think　that　experience；　both　in　nature　and



in　society；　are　against　that　ditch…water　philosophy。　　The　weather；



being　governed　by　laws；　ought　always　to　be　equable　and　normal；　and



yet　you　have　whirlwinds；　droughts；　thunderstorms。　　The　share…market；



being　governed　by　laws；　ought　to　be　always　equable　and　normal；　and



yet　you　have　startling　transactions；　startling　panics；　startling



disclosures；　and　a　whole　sensational　romance　of　commercial　crime　and



folly。　　Which　of　us　has　lived　to　be　fifty　years　old；　without　having



witnessed　in　private　life　sensation　tragedies；　alas！　sometimes　too



fearful　to　be　told；　or　at　least　sensational　romances；　which　we　shall



take　care　not　to　tell；　because　we　shall　not　be　believed？　　Let　the



ditch…water　philosophy　say　what　it　will；　human　life　is　not　a　ditch；



but　a　wild　and　roaring　river；　flooding　its　banks；　and　eating　out　new



channels　with　many　a　landslip。　　It　is　a　strange　world；　and　man；　a



strange　animal；　guided；　it　is　true；　usually　by　most　common…place



motives；　but；　for　that　reason；　ready　and　glad　at　times　to　escape



from　them　and　their　dulness　and　baseness；　to　give　vent；　if　but　for　a



moment；　in　wild　freedom；　to　that　demoniac　element；　which；　as　Goethe



says；　underlies　his　nature　and　all　nature；　and　to　prefer　for　an



hour；　to　the　normal　and　respectable　ditch…water；　a　bottle　of



champagne　or　even　a　carouse　on　fire…water；　let　the　consequences　be



what　they　may。







How　else　shall　we　explain　such　a　phenomenon　as　those　old　crusades？



Were　they　undertaken　for　any　purpose；　commercial　or　other？



Certainly　not　for　lightening　an　overburdened　population。　　Nay；　is



not　the　history　of　your　own　Mormons；　and　their　exodus　into　the　far



West；　one　of　the　most　startling　instances　which　the　world　has　seen



for　several　centuries；　of　the　unexpected　and　incalculable　forces



which　lie　hid　in　man？　　Believe　me；　man's　passions；　heated　to



igniting　point；　rather　than　his　prudence　cooled　down　to　freezing



point；　are　the　normal　causes　of　all　great　human　movement。　　And　a



truer　law　of　social　science　than　any　that　political　economists　are



wont　to　lay　down；　is　that　old　DOV'　E　LA　DONNA？　of　the　Italian　judge；



who　used　to　ask；　as　a　preliminary　to　every　case；　civil　or　criminal；



which　was　brought　before　him；　Dov'　e　la　donna？　　〃Where　is　the　lady？〃



certain；　like　a　wise　old　gentleman；　that　a　woman　was　most　probably



at　the　bottom　of　the　matter。







Strangeness？　　Romance？　　Did　any　of　you　ever　readif　you　have　not



you　should　readArchbishop　Whately's　〃Historic　Doubts　about　the



Emperor　Napoleon　the　First〃？　　Therein　the　learned　and　witty



Archbishop　proved；　as　early　as　1819；　by　fair　use　of　the　criticism　of



Mr。　Hume　and　the　Sceptic　School；　that　the　whole　history　of　the　great



Napoleon　ought　to　be　treated　by　wise　men　as　a　myth　and　a　romance；



that　there　is　little　or　no　evidence　of　his　having　existed　at　all；



and　that　the　story　of　his　strange　successes　and　strange　defeats　was



probably　invented　by　our　Government　in　order　to　pander　to　the　vanity



of　the　English　nation。







I　will　say　this；　which　Archbishop　Whately；　in　a　late　edition；



foreshadows；　wittily　enoughthat　if　one　or　two　thousand　years



hence；　when　the　history　of　the　late　Emperor　Napoleon　the　Third；　his



rise　and　fall；　shall　come　to　be　subjected　to　critical　analysis　by



future　Philistine　historians　of　New　Zealand　or　Australia；　it　will　be



proved　by　them　to　be　utterly　mythical；　incredible；　monstrousand



that　all　the　more；　the　more　the　actual　facts　remain　to　puzzle　their



unimaginative　brains。　　What　will　they　make　two　thousand　years　hence；



of　the　landing　at　Boulogne　with　the　tame　eagle？　　Will　not　that；　and



stranger　facts　still；　but　just　as　true；　be　relegated　to　the　region



of　myth；　with　the　dream　of　Astyages；　and　the　young　and　princely



herdsman　playing　at　king　over　his　fellow…slaves？







But　enough　of　this。　　To　me　these　bits　of　romance　often　seem　the



truest；　as　well　as　the　most　important　portions　of　history。







When　old　Herodotus　tells　me　how；　King　Astyages　having　guarded　the



frontier；　Harpagus　sent　a　hunter　to　young　Cyrus　with　a　fresh…killed



hare；　telling　him　to　open　it　in　private；　and　how；　sewn　up　in　it　was



the　letter；　telling　him　that　the　time　to　rebel　was　come；　I　am



inclined　to　say；　That　must　be　true。　　It　is　so　beneath　the　dignity　of



history；　so　quaint　and　unexpected；　that　it　is　all　the　more　likely



NOT　to　have　been　invented。







So　with　that　other　storyHow　young　Cyrus；　giving　out　that　his



grandfather　had　made　him　general　of　the　Persians；　summoned　them　all；



each　man　with　a　sickle　in　his　hand；　into　a　prairie　full　of　thorns；



and　bade　them　clear　it　in　one　day；　and　how　when　they；　like　loyal



men；　had　finished；　he　bade　them　bathe；　and　next　day　he　took　them



into　a　great　meadow　and　feasted　them　with　corn　and　wine；　and　all



that　his　father's　farm　would　yield；　and　asked　them　which　day　they



liked　best；　and；　when　they　answered　as　was　to　be　expected；　how　he



opened　his　parable　and　told　them；　〃Choose；　then；　to　work　for　the



Persians　like　slaves；　or　to　be　free　with　me。〃







Such　a　tale　sounds　to　me　true。　　It　has　the　very　savour　of　the



parables　of　the　Old　Testament；　as　have；　surely；　the　dreams　of　the



old　Sultan；　with　which　the　tale　begins。　　Do　they　not　put　us　in　mind



of　the　dreams　of　Nebuchadnezzar；　in　the　Book　of　Daniel？







Such　stories　are　actually　so　beautiful　that　they　are　very　likely　to



be　true。　　Understand　me；　I　only　say　likely；　the　ditch…water　view　of



history　is　not　all　wrong。　　Its　advocates　are　right　in　saying　great



historic　changes　are　not　produced　simply　by　one　great　person；　by　one



remarkable　event。　　They　have　been　preparing；　perhaps　for　centuries。



They