ALEXANDER. 
268- 
monarch, who otherwife efteemed bravery even in an ene¬ 
my, fired on that occafion with an infolent joy, fpoke thus 
to him: “ Betis, thou (halt not die the death thou deli- 
reft ; prepare therefore to fuffer all the torments which 
revenge can invent.” Betis, looking upon the king with 
not only a firm but a haughty air, did not make the leaft 
reply to his.menaces; upon which the king, more enraged 
than before at his difdainful filence, “ Obferve (faid he), 
I befeech you, that dumb arrogance! Has he bended his 
knee ? Has he fpoken but fo much as one fubmillive word 1 
But I will conquer this obftinate filence, and will force 
groans from him, if I can draw nothing elfe.” At laft 
Alexander’s anger role to fury, his condudt now begin¬ 
ning to change with his fortune: upon which he ordered 
» hole to be made through his heels, when a rope being 
put through them, and this being tied to a chariot, he or¬ 
dered his foldiers to drag Betis round the city till he died. 
He boafted his having imitated upon this occafion Achil¬ 
les, from whom he was defcended, who, as Homer re¬ 
lates, earned the dead body of Heritor to be dragged in the 
fame manner round the walls of Troy ; as if a man ought 
to pride himfelf for having imitated lb ill an example. 
Both were very barbarous; but Alexander was much 
more fo in caufing Betis to be dragged alive, and for no 
other reafon than becaufe he had ferved his fovereign with 
bravery and fidelity, by defending a city with which he 
had intrufted him ; a fidelity that ought to have been ad¬ 
mired, and even rewarded, by an enemy, rather than pu- 
nifhed in fo cruel a manner. 
After befieging and taking Gaza, he went to Jerufalem, 
where he was received by the high priefit; and, making 
many prefents to the Jews, facrificed in their temple. He 
told Jadduas, for that was the prieft’s name, that lie had 
feen in Macedonia a god, in appearance exaftly refembling 
him, who had exhorted him to this expedition againft the 
Perlians, and given him the firmed alfurance of fuccefs. 
Afterwards, entering Egypt, he went to the oracle of Ju¬ 
piter Ammon, and upon his return built the city of Alex¬ 
andria. It was now that he took it into his head to alfume 
divinity, and to pretend himfelf the 1 'on of Jupiter Am¬ 
mon. To foothe and cherifh this ridiculous pretenfion, 
there were not wanting flatterers, thofe common pefts of 
courts, who are more dangerous to princes than the arms 
of their enemies. With this view'he appointed a fefti- 
val, and made an incredibly pompous banquet; to which 
he invited the greateft lords of his court, both Macedo¬ 
nians and Greeks, and molt of the liigheft quality among 
the Perfians, With thefe he fat down at table for fome 
time; after which he withdrew. Upon this Cleon, one 
of his flatterers, began to fpeak; and expatiated very much 
on the praifes of the king, as had before been agreed up¬ 
on. He made a long detail of the high obligations they 
had to him; all which, he obferved, they might acknow¬ 
ledge and repay at a very eafy expence, merely with two 
grains of incenfe, which they fliould offer him as to a god, 
without the leaft fcruple, fmee they believed him fuch. 
To this purpofe he cited the example of the Perfians; and 
added, that, in cafe the reft fhould not care to pay this juf- 
tice to Alexander’s merit, he himfelf was refolved to fliew 
them the way, and to worftiip him in cafe he fiiould return 
into the hall. But that all of them muft do their duty; 
efpecially thofe who profeffed wifdom, and ought to ferve 
the reft as an example of the veneration due to fo great a mo¬ 
narch. It appeared plainly that this fpeech was directed 
to Callifthenes. He was related to Ariftotle, who had 
prefented him to Alexander, his pupil, that he might at¬ 
tend upon that monarch in the war of Perfia. He was 
confidered, upon account of his wifdom and gravity, as 
the fitted perfon to give him fuch wholefome councils as 
were mod likely to preferve him from thofe exceffes into 
which his youth and fiery temper might hurry him. This 
plulofopher feeing that every one on this occafion conti¬ 
nued in deep filence, and that the eyes of the whole af- 
fembly were fixed upon him, addreffed himfelf to Cleon 
in the following wordsHad the king been prefent 
when thou madeft thy fpeech, none among us would have 
attempted to anfvver thee; for he himfelf would have in¬ 
terrupted thee; and not have fuffered thee to prompt him 
to alfume the ■cuftoms of barbarians, in catling an odium 
on his perfon and glory, by fo fervile an adulation. But, 
lince he is abfent, I will anfwer thee in his name. I con- 
fider Alexander as worthy of all the honours that can be 
paid a mortal; but there is a difference between the wor- 
thip of the gods and that of men. The former includes 
temples, altars, prayers, and facrifices; the latter is con¬ 
fined to commendations only, and awful refpect.—We fa- 
lute the latter, and look upon it as glorious to pay them' 
fubmiflion, obedience, and fidelity; but we adore the for¬ 
mer. We inftitute feftivals to their honour, and fing 
hymns and fpiritual forigs to their glory. We muft not 
therefore confound tilings, either by bringing down the 
gods to the condition of mortals, or by railing a mortal to 
the ftate of a god. Alexander would be juftly offended 
fliould we pay to another perfon the homage due to his fa- 
cred perfon only; ought we not to dread the indignation 
of the gods as much, fliould we beftow upon mortals the 
honour due to them alone ? I am fenfible that our mo¬ 
narch is vaftly fuperior to the reft; lie is the greateft of 
kings, and the molt glorious of all conquerors; but then 
he is a man, not a god.—The Greeks did not worihip 
Hercules till after his death; and then not till the oracle 
had exprefsly commanded it. The Perfians are cited as 
an example for our imitation; but how long is it that the 
vanquilhed have given law to the victor? Can we forget 
that Alexander crofted the Hellefpont, not to fubjerit 
Greece to Alia, but Alia to Greece?” The deep filence 
which all the company obferved whilft Callifthenes fpoke 
was an indication, in fome meafure, of their thoughts. 
The king, who ftoocl behind the tapeftryall the time, heard 
whatever had palled. He therefore ordered Cleon to be 
told, that, without infilling any farther, he would only 
require the Perfians to fall proftrate, according to their 
ufual cullom ; a little after which he came in, pretending 
he had been bufied in fome affair of importance. Imme-, 
diately the Perlians fell proftrate to adore him. Polyf- 
perchon, who flood near him, obferving that one of them 
bowed fo low, that his chin touched the ground, bade hint 
in a rallying tone of voice to ftfike harder. The king, of¬ 
fended at this joke, threw Polyfperchon into prifon. As 
for Callifthenes, the king determined to get rid of him, 
and therefore laid to his charge a crime of which he was 
no way guilty. Accordingly, he was thrown into a dun¬ 
geon, loaded with irons, and the moft grievous torments 
were inflirited on him, in order to extort a confeflion of his 
guilt. But he infilled upon his innocence to the laft, and 
expired in the midft of his tortures. 
Nothing has reflerited a greater dilhonour on Alexan¬ 
der’s memory than this unjuft and cruel death of Calift- 
henes; and by this dreadful example he deprived all vir¬ 
tuous men of the opportunity of exhorting him to thofe 
things which were for his true intereft. From that inftant 
no one fpoke with freedom in the council; even thofe who 
had the greateft love for the public good, and a perfonal 
afferition for Alexander, thought themfelves not obliged 
to undeceive' him. After this, nothing was liftened to 
but flattery, which gained fuch an afcendency over that 
prince, as entirely depraved him, and juftly punifhed him, 
for having facrificed, to the wild ambition of having ado¬ 
ration paid him, the moft virtuous man about his perfon. 
“The murder of this philofopher (fays Seneca) was a 
crime of fo heinous a nature, as entirely obliterates the 
glory of all his other actions.” 
His objerit now was to overtake and attack Darius in ano¬ 
ther battle; and this battle was fought at Arbela, when 
victory, granting every thing to Alexander, put an end to 
the Perfian empire. Darius had offered his daughter in 
marriage, and part of his dominions, to Alexander, and 
Parmenio advifed him to accept the terms: “ I would (fays 
lie) if I was Alexander;” “ And fo would I (replied the 
conqueror) if I was Parmenio.” The fame Parmenio,. 
counfelling 
