day, a lawless band, not contented with destroying my harvest and plundering my little property, seized my daughter and me, and dragged us away in chains. What farther injuries, what farther insults we might have suffered, it is impossible to determine, since Heaven was pleased to effect our deliverance when we had least reason to expect it.'
"Such was the history of Chares, which Sophron and his family listened to with fixed attention. When he had finished, the father of Sophron again embraced the venerable stranger, and assured him of all the safety which their mountains could bestow. 'But,' added he, 'if so imminent a danger is near, it behoves us to consult for the general safety; let us assemble all our friends and neighbours, that they may consider whether life is of more consequence than liberty; and if they determine to retain that freedom which they have received from their ancestors, by what means it maybe best defended.' Sophron then immediately went out, and ascending a neighbouring rock, thus shouted out, in a voice that echoed over the neighbouring valleys: 'Arm, O ye inhabitants of Lebanon, and instantly meet in council; for a powerful invader is near, and threatens you with death or slavery!' This sound was instantly repeated by all who heard it; so that in a short time the intelligence was dispersed to the very confines of the country.
"It was not long before a numerous assembly was convened. The aged appeared with all the majestic dignity of wisdom and experience; their countenances, indeed, indicated the ravages of time, but temperance and exercise had preserved them from the loathsome diseases which grow on luxury and
indolence. They were attended by their sons in all the pride of youth and vigour, who rushed along in arms, and seemed to breathe deliberate rage and unconquerable opposition. When they were all assembled on a spacious plain, Sophron rose, and with a becoming modesty, recited the adventures of the preceding night, and the alarming intelligence he had just received. He had scarcely finished before a general cry of indignation burst unanimously from the whole assembly. When it had a little subsided, a venerable old man, whose beard, white as the snow upon the summits of the mountains, reaching down to his middle, slowly arose, and leaning upon his staff, spoke thus:—'Ninety years have I tended my flocks amid these mountains, and during all that time I have never seen a human being who was bold enough to propose to the inhabitants of Lebanon that they should fear death more than infamy, or submit to the vassals of a tyrant.' At this a second cry, which seemed to rend the very heavens, was raised, and farther deliberation judged unnecessary, except upon the most effectual means of defence. For this purpose the aged and most experienced retired to a little distance to consult. They were not long in their deliberations; it was unanimously agreed that all who were able to bear arms should be embodied, and wait for the approach of the enemy, within the boundaries of their own mountains. The nature of the country, always rough, and in many parts inaccessible, would afford them, they thought, sufficient advantages even against the more numerous and better disciplined troops of the invader; and, by the common consent of all, Sophron was named the
general of his country, and invested with supreme authority for its defence.
"When these measures had been resolved upon, the assembly dispersed, and Sophron was left alone with Chares. It was then the stranger thus accosted him with a deep sigh:—'Did success, O virtuous Sophron, depend entirely upon the justice of the cause, or upon the courage and zeal of its defenders, I should have little doubt concerning the event of the present contest, for I can truly say, that in all the various countries I have visited, my eyes have never seen a more martial race than I have this day beheld assembled; nor can I doubt that their sentiments correspond to their appearance; all, therefore, that can be effected by patience, activity, and dauntless courage, will be achieved by your countrymen in defence of their liberty; but war, unfortunately, is a trade where long experience frequently confers advantages which no intrepidity can balance. The troops which are now approaching have been for years inured to the practice of slaughter; they join to a courage which defies every danger, a knowledge of every fraud and subtility which can confound or baffle an adversary. In bodily strength, in numbers, your countrymen are superior; even in courage, and the contempt of danger, they are probably not inferior to their enemies; but such are the fatal effects of military skill and discipline, that I dread the event of a combat with such an army and such a leader.'
"'Alas!' answered Sophron, 'how well do the mature reflections of your wisdom accord with my presaging fears! I know that my countrymen will perform everything that can be effected by men in
their situation, and that thousands will generously sacrifice their lives rather than abandon the cause they have undertaken to defend; yet, when I consider the superior advantage of our enemies, my fears are no less active than your own. This consolation, however, remains, that I shall either see my country victorious, or avoid the miseries which will attend her ruin.'
"'Hear me, then,' replied Chares. 'The virtues of your friends, my own obligations to yourself, and the desire I feel to oppose the career of mad ambition, conspire to wrest from me a dreadful secret, which I have hitherto buried in my own bosom, and had determined to conceal from the knowledge of mankind. I have already told you that much of my life has been dedicated to the acquisition of knowledge, and the investigation of the laws of nature. Not contented with viewing the appearance of things as they strike our senses, I have endeavoured to penetrate into the deeper recesses of nature, and to discover those secrets which are concealed from the greater part of mankind. For this purpose I have tried innumerable experiments concerning the manner in which bodies act upon each other; I have submitted the plants, the stones, the minerals, which surround us, to the violence of all-consuming fires; I have examined their structure, and the different principles which compose them, with the patient labour and perseverance of a long life. In the course of these inquiries I have made many curious and important discoveries, but one above the rest, which I will now impart under the promise of eternal and inviolable secrecy. Know, then, that I have found out an easy and expeditious combination
of common materials, the effect of which is equal or superior to the most potent and destructive agents in nature. Neither the proudest city can maintain its walls, nor the strongest castle its bulwarks, against the irresistible attacks of this extraordinary composition. Increase but the quantity, and the very rocks and mountains will be torn asunder with a violence that equals that of earthquakes. Whole armies, proud of their triumphs, may be in an instant scattered and destroyed like the summer's dust before the whirlwind; and, what increases the prodigy, a single man may securely give death to thousands. This composition I have hitherto concealed, in pity to the miseries of mankind; but since there appears no other method of preserving the virtuous inhabitants of these mountains from slavery and ruin, I am determined to employ it in their defence. Give orders, therefore, that a certain number of your countrymen provide me with the ingredients that I shall indicate, and expect the amplest success from your own valour, assisted by such powerful auxiliaries.'