Some time after this, Pheraulas invited the
Sacian to an entertainment, and when the hour
arrived, he set before his friend and the other
guests a most sumptuous feast, which was serv-
ed in vessels of gold and silver, and in an apart-
ment furnished with carpets, and canopies, and
couches of the most gorgeous and splendid de-
scription. The Sacian was much impressed
with this magnificence, and he asked Pherauleta
whether he had been a rich man at home, thai
is, before he had joined Cyrus's army. Phe-
raulas replied that he was not then rich. His
father, he said, was a farmer, and he himself
had been accustomed in early life, to till the
ground with the other laborers on his father's
farm. All the wealth and luxury which he now
enjoyed had been bestowed upon him, he said,
by Cyrus.
" How fortunate you are !" said the Sacian ;
" and it must be that you enjoy your present
riches all the more highly on account of having
experienced in early life the inconveniences and
ills of poverty. The pleasure must be more
intense in having desires which have long been



Conversations. 259

Riches a source of disquiet and care. Argument of Fberaulas.
