Page:Asoka - the Buddhist Emperor of India.djvu/103

Rh He instructs his ofﬁeers that they must induce the wilder tribes 'to trust me and grasp the truth that—"the King is to us even as a father; he loves us even as he loves himself; we are to the King even as his children."' The companion edict inculcates similar principles to he applied to the government of the more settled population.

The army, comprising, according to established rule, the four arms of infantry, cavalry, elephants, and chariots, was not a militia, but a permanent force, maintained at the royal cost, liberally paid, and equipped from the Government arsenals. The edicts, as might be expected, throw no light upon its organization in the reign of Asoka, and the information on record chiefly derived from Megasthenes, refers to the time of Chandragupta. The navy, as in Europe until recent times, was regarded as a branch of the army. No evidence as to the extent of the naval force maintained by the Mauryas is available, but it is known that the ancient Hindus did not shun the 'black water' as their descendants do, and that the States of Southern India maintained powerful navies for centuries. It is, therefore, probable that the Maurya ships were not restricted to the rivers, but ventured out to sea. Chânakya, indeed, expressly states that the head of the naval department should look after sea-going ships aswell as those concerned with inland navigation.

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