Polymnia   

looked for nothing less than such a prayer as Pythius in fact
preferred, engaged to grant him whatever he wished, and commanded
him to tell his wish freely. So Pythius, full of boldness, went on
to say:-
"O my lord! thy servant has five sons; and it chances that all are
called upon to join thee in this march against Greece. I beseech thee,
have compassion upon my years; and let one of my sons, the eldest,
remain behind, to be my prop and stay, and the guardian of my
wealth. Take with thee the other four; and when thou hast done all
that is in thy heart, mayest thou come back in safety."
But Xerxes was greatly angered, and replied to him: "Thou
wretch! darest thou speak to me of thy son, when I am myself on the
march against Greece, with sons, and brothers, and kinsfolk, and
friends? Thou, who art my bond-slave, and art in duty bound to
follow me with all thy household, not excepting thy wife! Know that
man's spirit dwelleth in his ears, and when it hears good things,
straightway it fills all his body with delight; but no sooner does
it hear the contrary than it heaves and swells with passion. As when
thou didst good deeds and madest good offers to me, thou wert not able
to boast of having outdone the king in bountifulness, so now when thou
art changed and grown impudent, thou shalt not receive all thy
deserts, but less. For thyself and four of thy five sons, the
entertainment which I had of thee shall gain protection; but as for
him to whom thou clingest above the rest, the forfeit of his life
shall be thy punishment." Having thus spoken, forthwith he commanded
those to whom such tasks were assigned to seek out the eldest of the
sons of Pythius, and having cut his body asunder, to place the two
halves. one on the right, the other on the left, of the great road, so
that the army might march out between them.
Then the king's orders were obeyed; and the army marched out
between the two halves of the carcase. First of all went the
baggage-bearers, and the sumpter-beasts, and then a vast crowd of many
nations mingled together without any intervals, amounting to more than
one half of the army. After these troops an empty space was left, to
separate between them and the king. In front of the king went first
a thousand horsemen, picked men of the Persian nation- then spearmen a
thousand, likewise chosen troops, with their spearheads pointing
towards the ground- next ten of the sacred horses called Nisaean,
all daintily caparisoned. (Now these horses are called Nisaean,
because they come from the Nisaean plain, a vast flat in Media,
producing horses of unusual size.) After the ten sacred horses came
the holy chariot of Jupiter, drawn by eight milk-white steeds, with
the charioteer on foot behind them holding the reins; for no mortal is
ever allowed to mount into the car. Next to this came Xerxes
himself, riding in a chariot drawn by Nisaean horses, with his
charioteer, Patiramphes, the son of Otanes, a Persian, standing by his
side.
Thus rode forth Xerxes from Sardis- but he was accustomed every
now and then, when the fancy took him, to alight from his chariot
and travel in a litter. Immediately behind the king there followed a
body of a thousand spearmen, the noblest and bravest of the
Persians, holding their lances in the usual manner- then came a
thousand Persian horse, picked men- then ten thousand, picked also
after the rest, and serving on foot. Of these last one thousand
carried spears with golden pomegranates at their lower end instead
of spikes; and these encircled the other nine thousand, who bore on
their spears pomegranates of silver. The spearmen too who pointed
their lances towards the ground had golden pomegranates; and the
thousand Persians who followed close after Xerxes had golden apples.
Behind the ten thousand footmen came a body of Persian cavalry,
likewise ten thousand; after which there was again a void space for as
much as two furlongs; and then the rest of the army followed in a
confused crowd.
The march of the army, after leaving Lydia, was directed upon