2.39.8 they acclaimed. But Heraclides in *Foundations of Temples* says that in Acarnania, where the Actium promontory is and the temple of Actian Apollo, 2.39.9 an ox is sacrificed beforehand to the flies. Nor indeed shall I forget the Samians (a sheep, as Euphorion says, the Samians worship) nor those Syrians inhabiting Phoenicia, of whom some worship doves, and others fish, as excessively as the Eleans worship Zeus. 2.40.1 Well then; since those whom you worship are not gods, it seems to me we should again consider if they are truly daemons, being catalogued in this second rank, as you say. For if they are indeed 2.40.2 daemons, they are both gluttonous and defiled. It is possible to find even openly thus in cities local daemons reaping honour, among the Cythnians Menedemus, among the Tenians Callistagora, among the Delians Anius, among the Laconians Astrabacus. And a certain hero is honoured at Phalerum at the stern of the ship; and the Pythia commanded the Plataeans to sacrifice to Androcrates and Democrates and Cyclaeus and Leucon when the 2.41.1 Median wars were at their height. It is possible to see very many other daemons for one who is able even to look a little closely; for "thrice ten thousand are there on the much-nourishing earth, immortal daemons, guardians of mortal men." 2.41.2 Who are the guardians, O Boeotian, do not begrudge to say. Or is it clear that they are these and those more honoured than these, the great daemons, Apollo, Artemis, Leto, Demeter, Kore, Pluto, Heracles, Zeus himself. But they do not guard us from running away, O Ascraean, but perhaps from sinning, they who indeed have not experienced sins. Here indeed it is fitting to utter the proverb: "An unadmonished father admonishes his child." 2.41.3 But if indeed they are guardians, they are not passionately affected by goodwill towards you, but clinging to your destruction, they press upon your life in the manner of flatterers, being lured by smoke. Somewhere the daemons themselves confess their own gluttony, "for libation and savour; for this we have received as our prize," 2.41.4 they say. What other voice, if the gods of the Egyptians, such as cats and weasels, should get a voice, would they utter than the Homeric and poetic one, fond of the savour of roasted meat and of seasoning? Such indeed among you are the daemons and the gods and if any demigods are so called, like half-asses; for you do not even have a poverty of names for the compositions of impiety. 3.42.1 Come then, let us add this also, that your gods would be inhuman and man-hating daemons, not only rejoicing in the madness of men, but also enjoying manslaughter; now procuring for themselves as occasions for pleasure the armed rivalries in stadiums, now the countless ambitions in wars, so that they might be able to sate themselves unrestrainedly with human slaughter as much as possible; and now in cities and nations, swooping down like plagues, 3.42.2 they have demanded savage libations. Aristomenes the Messenian, at any rate, slaughtered three hundred for Ithometan Zeus, thinking to offer so many and such hecatombs at once for good omens; among whom was also Theopompus, king of the Lacedaemonians, a noble victim. 3.42.3 But the Tauri, the nation who inhabit the Tauric Chersonese, whichever of the strangers they capture among them, of those who have been shipwrecked at sea, they immediately sacrifice to the Tauric Artemis; these sacrifices of yours Euripides 3.42.4 dramatizes on stage. And Monimus relates in his *Collection of Marvels* that in Pella of Thessaly an Achaean man 3.42.5 is sacrificed to Peleus and Chiron; for the Lyctians (and they are a nation of Cretans) Anticleides in his *Returns* declares slaughter men for Zeus, and Dosidas says that the Lesbians offer the 3.42.6 same sacrifice to Dionysus; and the Phocaeans (for I will not pass them by either) - Pythocles in the third book *On Concord* says that they [sacrifice] a man to Taurian Artemis

2.39.8 ἐκείνων ἐπεφήμισαν. Ἡρακλείδης δὲ ἐν Κτίσεσιν ἱερῶν περὶ τὴν Ἀκαρνανίαν φησίν, ἔνθα τὸ Ἄκτιόν ἐστιν ἀκρωτήριον καὶ τοῦ Ἀπόλλωνος τοῦ Ἀκτίου τὸ ἱερόν, ταῖς 2.39.9 μυίαις προθύεσθαι βοῦν. Οὐδὲ μὴν Σαμίων ἐκλήσομαι (πρόβατον, ὥς φησιν Εὐφορίων, σέβουσι Σάμιοι) οὐδέ γε τῶν τὴν Φοινίκην Σύρων κατοικούντων, ὧν οἳ μὲν τὰς περιστεράς, οἳ δὲ τοὺς ἰχθῦς οὕτω σέβουσι περιττῶς ὡς Ἠλεῖοι τὸν ∆ία. 2.40.1 Εἶεν δή· ἐπειδὴ οὐ θεοί, οὓς θρῃσκεύετε, αὖθις ἐπισκέψασθαί μοι δοκεῖ εἰ ὄντως εἶεν δαίμονες, δευτέρᾳ ταύτῃ, ὡς ὑμεῖς φατέ, ἐγκαταλεγόμενοι τάξει. Εἰ γὰρ οὖν 2.40.2 δαίμονες, λίχνοι τε καὶ μιαροί. Ἔστι μὲν ἐφευρεῖν καὶ ἀναφανδὸν οὕτω κατὰ πόλεις δαίμονας ἐπιχωρίους τιμὴν ἐπιδρεπομένους, παρὰ Κυθνίοις Μενέδημον, παρὰ Τηνίοις Καλλισταγόραν, παρὰ ∆ηλίοις Ἄνιον, παρὰ Λάκωσιν Ἀστράβακον. Τιμᾶται δέ τις καὶ Φαληροῖ κατὰ πρύμναν ἥρως· καὶ ἡ Πυθία συνέταξε θύειν Πλαταιεῦσιν Ἀνδρο κράτει καὶ ∆ημοκράτει καὶ Κυκλαίῳ καὶ Λεύκωνι τῶν 2.41.1 Μηδικῶν ἀκμαζόντων ἀγώνων. Ἔστι καὶ ἄλλους παμπόλ λους συνιδεῖν δαίμονας τῷ γε καὶ σμικρὸν διαθρεῖν δυνα μένῳ· τρὶς γὰρ μύριοί εἰσιν ἐπὶ χθονὶ πουλυβοτείρῃ δαίμονες ἀθάνατοι, φύλακες μερόπων ἀνθρώπων. 2.41.2 Τίνες εἰσὶν οἱ φύλακες, ὦ Βοιώτιε, μὴ φθονέσῃς λέγειν. Ἢ δῆλον ὡς οὗτοι καὶ οἱ τούτων ἐπιτιμότεροι, οἱ μεγάλοι δαίμονες, ὁ Ἀπόλλων, ἡ Ἄρτεμις, ἡ Λητώ, ἡ ∆ημήτηρ, ἡ Κόρη, ὁ Πλούτων, ὁ Ἡρακλῆς, αὐτὸς ὁ Ζεύς. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀποδρᾶναι ἡμᾶς φυλάττουσιν, Ἀσκραῖε, μὴ ἁμαρτάνειν δὲ ἴσως, οἱ ἁμαρτιῶν δῆτα οὐ πεπειραμένοι. Ἐνταῦθα δὴ τὸ παροιμιῶδες ἐπιφθέγξασθαι ἁρμόττει πατὴρ ἀνουθέτητος παῖδα νουθετεῖ. 2.41.3 Εἰ δ' ἄρα καὶ εἰσὶ φύλακες οὗτοι, οὐκ εὐνοίᾳ τῇ πρὸς ὑμᾶς περιπαθεῖς, τῆς δὲ ὑμεδαπῆς ἀπωλείας ἐχόμενοι, κολάκων δίκην ἐγχρίμπτονται τῷ βίῳ, δελεαζόμενοι καπνῷ. Αὐτοί που ἐξομολογοῦνται οἱ δαίμονες τὴν γαστριμαργίαν τὴν αὑτῶν, λοιβῆς τε κνίσης τε· τὸ γὰρ λάχομεν γέρας ἡμεῖς, 2.41.4 λέγοντες. Τίνα δ' ἂν φωνὴν ἄλλην, εἰ φωνὴν λάβοιεν Αἰγυπ τίων θεοί, οἷα αἴλουροι καὶ γαλαῖ, προήσονται ἢ τὴν Ὁμηρι κήν τε καὶ ποιητικήν, τῆς κνίσης τε καὶ ὀψαρτυτικῆς φίλην; τοιοίδε μέντοι παρ' ὑμῖν οἵ τε δαίμονες καὶ οἱ θεοὶ καὶ εἴ τινες ἡμίθεοι ὥσπερ ἡμίονοι κέκληνται· οὐδὲ γὰρ οὐδὲ ὀνομάτων ὑμῖν πενία πρὸς τὰς τῆς ἀσεβείας συνθέσεις. 3.42.1 Φέρε δὴ οὖν καὶ τοῦτο προσθῶμεν, ὡς ἀπάνθρωποι καὶ μισάνθρωποι δαίμονες εἶεν ὑμῶν οἱ θεοὶ καὶ οὐχὶ μόνον ἐπιχαίροντες τῇ φρενοβλαβείᾳ τῶν ἀνθρώπων, πρὸς δὲ καὶ ἀνθρωποκτονίας ἀπολαύοντες· νυνὶ μὲν τὰς ἐν σταδίοις ἐνόπλους φιλονικίας, νυνὶ δὲ τὰς ἐν πολέμοις ἀναρίθμους φιλοτιμίας ἀφορμὰς σφίσιν ἡδονῆς ποριζόμενοι, ὅπως ὅτι μάλιστα ἔχοιεν ἀνθρωπείων ἀνέδην ἐμφορεῖσθαι φόνων· ἤδη δὲ κατὰ πόλεις καὶ ἔθνη, οἱονεὶ λοιμοὶ ἐπισκήψαντες, 3.42.2 σπονδὰς ἀπῄτησαν ἀνημέρους. Ἀριστομένης γοῦν ὁ Μεσ σήνιος τῷ Ἰθωμήτῃ ∆ιὶ τριακοσίους ἀπέσφαξεν, τοσαύτας ὁμοῦ καὶ τοιαύτας καλλιερεῖν οἰόμενος ἑκατόμβας· ἐν οἷς καὶ Θεόπομπος ἦν Λακεδαιμονίων βασιλεύς, ἱερεῖον εὐγενές. 3.42.3 Ταῦροι δὲ τὸ ἔθνος, οἱ περὶ τὴν Ταυρικὴν χερρόνησον κατοικοῦντες, οὓς ἂν τῶν ξένων παρ' αὑτοῖς ἕλωσι, τούτων δὴ τῶν κατὰ θάλατταν ἐπταικότων, αὐτίκα μάλα τῇ Ταυρικῇ καταθύουσιν Ἀρτέμιδι· ταύτας σου τὰς θυσίας Εὐριπίδης 3.42.4 ἐπὶ σκηνῆς τραγῳδεῖ. Μόνιμος δ' ἱστορεῖ ἐν τῇ Τῶν Θαυμα σίων Συναγωγῇ ἐν Πέλλῃ τῆς Θετταλίας Ἀχαιὸν ἄνθρωπον 3.42.5 Πηλεῖ καὶ Χείρωνι καταθύεσθαι· Λυκτίους γὰρ (Κρητῶν δὲ ἔθνος εἰσὶν οὗτοι) Ἀντικλείδης ἐν Νόστοις ἀποφαίνεται ἀνθρώπους ἀποσφάττειν τῷ ∆ιί, καὶ Λεσβίους ∆ιονύσῳ τὴν 3.42.6 ὁμοίαν προσάγειν θυσίαν ∆ωσίδας λέγει· Φωκαεῖς δέ (οὐδὲ γὰρ αὐτοὺς παραπέμψομαι)- τούτους Πυθοκλῆς ἐν τρίτῳ Περὶ ὁμονοίας τῇ Ταυροπόλῳ Ἀρτέμιδι ἄνθρωπον