Volume 5: The Hegemon of Southern Italy, Chapter 30: The Post-War Senate Meeting (Part 3)

The senators exchanged glances, falling silent for a moment. The former mercenary senators were skilled in land warfare but not maritime combat; the Lucanian senators understood mountain fighting and feared the sea; Amendolara had no harbor or warships, so its senators naturally had no experience with naval warfare. That left only the Thurii senators…

Kynogoratas glanced at the others and said, “I recommend Eanilus. He was originally a naval commander of Thurii.”

The other Thurii senators also expressed their agreement, and Davos recognized Eanilus’s talent in this area—otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone to consult him beforehand about organizing the navy. The only concern was that Eanilus’s family owned a shipyard, and Davos worried he might use public resources for private gain. But then he thought again: how could the shrewd and stingy Mesis be easily fooled?

Compared to the well-staffed army, there were still far too few people who understood naval warfare! Davos sighed inwardly.

In the end, Eanilus smoothly became the naval commander of Daonia. He said with emotion, “Our Daonia has strong heavy infantry. Now I no longer have to worry about our warships being burned in the harbor before they even set sail!” It was clear that the incident when Thurii was captured by Croton and its warships were either destroyed or seized still troubled him greatly.

“Daonia’s army has already earned its reputation. What I can do is lead this newly built navy to actively cooperate with the army and create greater victories for the protection of the Daonia Alliance!” After Eanilus finished speaking, all the senators, including Amyntas and his men, smiled and applauded for Eanilus’s appointment.

Polyxides watched Eanilus’s back and a faint sneer appeared on his face.

Davos’s second proposal concerned building a road connecting Castron, Crimissa, and Asperustum. As soon as the proposal was presented, it was unanimously approved by all the senators. The Daonia Alliance had already reaped the benefits of road construction, and even if Davos hadn’t proposed it, another senator would have made a similar motion. By now, the Daonians had developed a different mindset from other Greeks. They no longer believed that a polis only needed convenient sea routes and didn’t need to worry about roads. They not only cared about maritime connections but also considered building good roads an essential infrastructure for a city’s development.

But Davos’s second proposal wasn’t over. He continued, “When we were besieging Crimissa, messengers traveled more than a hundred stades between Thurii and Crimissa every day. Many horses wore out, and sometimes important messages couldn’t be delivered in time. I’ve been thinking: as the territory of the Daonia Alliance gradually expands, the border cities will only get farther from Thurii, the center of the alliance. How can we stay informed of the situation in other Daonian cities so that the Senate can respond promptly to emergencies?”

Davos’s question stirred the senators’ thoughts.

“We have merchant ships traveling frequently, so we can always learn about conditions in other cities,” Mariji suggested. “We could set up special small boats for delivering letters—they’d be fast and wouldn’t exhaust horses.”

“Using sea routes to deliver letters has several problems. First, ships can’t sail in storms, especially in winter. Second, it only works for port cities; inland cities like Nerulum and Asperustum can’t be reached. Third, during war, sending letters by ship is easily intercepted—the sea is too vast to defend completely. And when an army marches and fights, it doesn’t always stay along the coast. How can urgent orders and letters be delivered from a ship to the commander in time?”

Davos pointed out the drawbacks of using ships for communication. Mariji was momentarily at a loss and said apologetically, “My lord, I haven’t thought it through yet.”

“It seems we must rely on land routes. We’re already building roads to connect all the cities of Daonia. Using mules and horses to deliver letters should be faster and more convenient than before,” Cornelius said.

“You’re right. We should focus on land routes, with sea routes as a supplement. I think what we need to do now is assign dedicated public officials to handle letter delivery, making it a regular city-state affair. Therefore, I propose the Alliance establish a Postal Bureau,” Davos said confidently.

Postal Bureau?! When the senators heard this term from Davos, they all found it unfamiliar—clearly, Davos had coined it himself.

“The main function of the Postal Bureau is to receive letters and parcels from Daonian citizens and then deliver them to the recipients…” Davos gestured as he patiently explained. “We’ll set up a Postal Bureau in every city, staffed with public officials who receive and transport letters every day. At the same time, we’ll establish relay stations every forty or fifty stades along the roads, also staffed with public officials. Each relay station will have a simple inn and will keep horses. When a messenger arrives at a station, he can rest, get food and water, and then continue on his way… In this way, while the Postal Bureau serves the people in peacetime, news from other cities will also flow through it to the Senate every day, so we can know what’s happening within Daonia’s territory. During wartime, army messengers can use our road system to stop at relay stations for supplies, change horses, and quickly transmit military orders…”

“What a brilliant idea! Truly worthy of the God-Touched One!” Kynogoratas exclaimed involuntarily. “If the… Postal Bureau is established, it will not only benefit the army and the people, but it will also strengthen ties among citizens of different cities. The cities of the Daonia Alliance will become even closer! I think… in the future, we could also set up Postal Bureaus in our allied cities to enhance our interactions with them.” As a seasoned former magistrate, Kynogoratas immediately saw the bright prospects the Postal Bureau would bring to the Daonia Alliance.

“I hope the Postal Bureau can be set up as soon as possible! Once I’m in Crimissa, I won’t have to worry so much about my children!” Scombrus said happily.

“I heard you usually complain that ‘they don’t obey and you don’t want to live with them,’ didn’t you?” Strombopoli asked with feigned curiosity.

Scombrus tossed his head: “Someone without children wouldn’t understand. Don’t talk nonsense.”

That remark nearly provoked Strombopoli into an argument with him, and the others laughed while trying to calm them down.

Mesis stood up with a grimace: “Magistrate, now we’re building the Postal Bureau and relay stations. The costs of these buildings, the salaries of public officials, the expense of keeping horses—how much more will the treasury have to pay out?!”

Before Davos could explain, Mariji jumped in: “Mesis, don’t you get it yet? The Postal Bureau will charge fees for delivering letters and parcels for the people, won’t it? The relay stations have inns—travelers will pay to stay there, won’t they? I really wonder how you became Treasurer!”

Mariji seized the opportunity to rib Mesis.

But Mesis didn’t care this time; instead, he eagerly asked Davos: “Will a fee be charged for delivering a letter? How much?”

Davos nodded: “The main purpose of the Postal Bureau is to transmit messages and serve the people, so it shouldn’t be too expensive. I think one obol per letter is fine. As for parcels, the price will depend on their size and weight—we’ll leave that to Mariji and the future head of the Postal Bureau to discuss.”

“One obol per letter—I think the people will gladly accept that price. I’m afraid the Postal Bureau will be very busy in the future!” Cornelius laughed. “Because after this land distribution, many citizens will have their ‘allotments’ in different cities. They’ll need this Postal Bureau to send messages and strengthen management of their lands.”

Cornelius’s words resonated with many senators—not only common citizens but also they themselves had allotments distributed across different cities. So they all approved Davos’s proposal.

Mesis, still silently calculating the Postal Bureau’s income, realized the revenue would be substantial and immediately asked: “Will the Postal Bureau’s profits go to the treasury?”

“After deducting public official salaries and various costs, the remaining profits will of course go to the treasury.” Davos’s words made Mesis beam. “Furthermore, I propose the establishment of a Road Bureau. It will be responsible for planning, building, maintaining all roads of the Alliance, and managing roadside facilities.”

This proposal also won the senators’ approval. They had enjoyed the benefits of the roads, and they also knew that once a road was built, it required ongoing professional maintenance; otherwise, it would fall into disrepair in just a few years.

“Will there be tolls for using the roads in the future?” Mesis looked at Davos hopefully.

“Free of charge,” Davos said.

“Building an intercity road costs at least thirty talents—that doesn’t include the land cost, since the road land was planned before the land was distributed to citizens and belongs to the Alliance, so no purchase is needed. If we had to buy the land, the cost would multiply several times over. And the subsequent maintenance costs are ongoing. Can’t we charge at least a little?” Mesis pleaded.

“Roads are different from the postal service. If we charge, most people might simply avoid our roads—it wouldn’t affect their travel. Instead, the roads we worked so hard to build, intended to serve the people, would end up being used only by a few. That would go against our original purpose in building them,” Davos explained earnestly.

“The magistrate is right! The people of our Daonia Alliance can enjoy comfortable, flat roads! They can enjoy highly skilled but low-cost medical care! They can enjoy convenient and fast… um… postal service! Our citizens receive land allotments just by serving in the military! Our citizens can take tests and become public officials with salaries!… Daonia has created so many benefits for its people. Tell me, can even the most prosperous Greek city-state, Athens, do all this?!” Pleisinas said, full of passion.