“But the hour being out, the conductor separating them whose gold balls
have no letter from those whose balls are marked, shall cause the crier
to call the alphabet, as first A; whereupon all they whose gold balls
are not marked, and whose surnames begin with the letter A, shall repair
to a clerk appertaining to the custos rotulorum, who shall first take
the names of that letter; then those of B, and so on, till all the names
be alphabetically enrolled. And the youth of this list being 600 foot
in a tribe, that is, 30,000 foot in all the tribes; and 200 horse in a
tribe, that is, 10,000 horse in all the tribes, are the second essay of
the stratiots, and the standing army of this commonwealth to be always
ready upon command to march. They whose balls are marked with M,
amounting, by twenty horse and fifty foot in a tribe, to 2,500 foot and
500 horse in all the tribes, and they whose balls are marked with P, in
every point correspondent, are parts of the third essay; they in M being
straight to march for Marpesia, and they of P for Panopea, to the ends
and according to the further directions following in the order for the
provincial orbs.
“If the polemarchs or field officers be elected by the scrutiny of the
Council of War, and the strategus commanded by the Parliament or the
Dictator to march, the lord lieutenants (who have power to muster and
discipline the youth so often as they receive orders for the same from
the Council of War) are to deliver the second essay, or so many of them
as shall be commanded, to the conductors, who shall present them to the
lord strategus at the time and place appointed by his Excellency to be
the general rendezvous of Oceana, where the Council of War shall have
the accommodation of horses and arms for his men in readiness; and the
lord strategus having armed, mounted, and distributed them, whether
according to the recommendation of their prize arms, or otherwise,
shall lead them away to his shipping, being also ready and provided with
victuals, ammunition, artillery, and all other necessaries; commanding
them, and disposing of the whole conduct of the war by his sole power
and authority. And this is the third essay of the stratiots, which being
shipped, or marched out of their tribes, the lord lieutenants shall
re-elect the second essay out of the remaining part of the first, and
the Senate another strategus.
“If any veteran or veterans of this nation, the term of whose youth or
militia is expired, having a desire to be entertained in the further
service of the commonwealth, shall present him or themselves at the
rendezvous of Oceana to the strategus, it is in his power to take on
such and so many of them as shall be agreed by the polemarchs, and to
send back an equal number of the stratiots.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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