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day to be at the disposal of the rulers for whatever they needed them for the common good. But when the king went out on a hunt, he led out half of their division. They hunted together, because this practice seemed to them akin to training for war, and it accustomed them to rise earlier and to endure cold and heat, and exercised them with marches and runs, and taught them to shoot a beast with a bow and to throw a javelin, and prepared them to contend against one of the strong beasts. And when hunting they brought a breakfast greater than that of the boys, but the rest was similar. and they did not eat breakfast while hunting, unless it was necessary to stay behind on account of a beast or they wished otherwise to spend time on the hunt. Therefore, eating this breakfast for dinner the next day, they would hunt until dinner, and they counted both these days as one. And they did this so that, if it should be necessary even in war, they might be able to do this. And for relish they had whatever they had hunted, but if not, cress. The remaining tribes spent their time practicing, among other things, both shooting the bow and throwing the javelin and competing with one another in these things. The authorities used the remaining youths for public works requiring strength or speed. And when the youths had spent ten years at these things, they were enrolled among the mature men, and from then on they spent twenty-five years in this way. and if it were necessary to go on a campaign, they campaigned no longer having bows nor javelins, but with what are called close-combat weapons, a breastplate around their chests and a wicker shield in the left hand, and in the right a sword or a falchion. And all the magistrates were appointed from these men. And when they had completed the twenty-five 1.227 years, having become more than fifty years of age from birth, they then passed into the class of elders. The elders no longer campaigned outside their own country, but remaining at home they judged all public and private cases, and they decided capital cases, and they elected all the magistrates. And if anyone either among the youths or among the men transgressed any of the laws, the elders expelled him. And he who was expelled continued without honor for the rest of his life. And among the Persians it was considered shameful both to spit and to blow one's nose and to be seen full of flatulence and for anyone to be seen openly urinating or making an evacuation of the bowels. And they could not do these things, unless they used a moderate diet and consumed the moisture by laboring. These were the customs and laws of the Persians; but Cyrus, having been both nurtured and educated by these, and having passed the age of a youth and being counted among the men, was esteemed in all things. And already, his maternal grandfather Astyages, who ruled the Medes, having passed from life, his son Cyaxares, who was also named Darius, succeeded to his father's rule, being Cyrus' maternal uncle. And he who ruled the Assyrians, his kingdom having grown to a great size, and being ruler of the very populous Assyrian race, and having brought the Arabs under his control, and having acquired the Hyrcanians as subjects and the Syrians as tributaries, and besieging the Bactrians, and having already overthrown the nation of the Hebrews, and having subjected very many other 1.228 nations, thought that if he should weaken the Medes, he would more easily rule all those around. And having considered these things, he both prepared those under him and also sent to Croesus, king of the Lydians, and to both the Phrygians, and to the Paphlagonians and Indians, and to the Carians and Cilicians, asking them to be his allies as he was setting out against the Medes, as the war would also be advantageous to them, saying that the nation was powerful, and had made an alliance by marriage with the Persians and could acquire aid from them, and that the one was being organized by the other, so that if someone did not weaken them first, they would attack and conquer each of the nations. He therefore sent such arguments to each of the nations; and of these, some being moved by these arguments, and others being persuaded also by money and gifts, and some also being overcome by fear of the Assyrian, agreed to be allies. But Cyaxares, having learned these things, both he himself

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ἡμέραν ἑαυτοὺς τοῖς αρχουσι κεχρῆσθαι οπῃ ἐδέοντο σφῶν ὑπὲρ τοῦ κοινοῦ. οταν δ' ἐπὶ θήραν ἐξῄει ὁ βασιλεύς, ἐξῆγε τῆς μοίρας αὐτῶν τὴν ἡμίσειαν. ἐθήρων δὲ κοινῇ, οτι συγγενὴς αὐτοῖς ἐδόκει αυτη ἡ μελέτη τῇ ἀσκήσει τῇ πρὸς τὸν πόλεμον, καὶ ειθιζεν ἀνίστασθαι πρωιαίτερον καὶ ψύχους καὶ θάλπους ἀνέχεσθαι, καὶ ὁδοιπορίαις καὶ δρόμοις ἐγύμναζε, καὶ τοξεῦσαι θηρίον καὶ ἀκοντίσαι ἐδίδασκε, καὶ πρός τι τῶν ἀλκίμων θηρίων ἀνταγωνίσασθαι παρεσκεύαζεν. ἐφέροντο δὲ θηρῶντες αριστον πλεῖον μὲν τῶν παίδων, ταλλα δὲ ομοιον. καὶ οὐκ ἠρίστων θηρῶντες, εἰ μὴ ἐδέησεν η θηρὸς ενεκα ἐπιμεῖναι η αλλως διατρῖψαι περὶ τὴν θήραν ἠθέλησαν. τὸ ουν αριστον τοῦτο δειπνήσαντες τὴν ὑστέραν μέχρι τοῦ δείπνου ἐθήρευον, καὶ μίαν τὰς ἡμέρας ταύτας ἐλογίζοντο αμφω. τοῦτο δ' ἐποίουν ινα καν ἐν πολέμῳ δεήσῃ, δύνωνται τοῦτο ποιεῖν. οψον δὲ ειχον ο αν ἐθήρασαν, εἰ δ' ου, τὸ κάρδαμον. αἱ δὲ μένουσαι φυλαὶ διέτριβον μελετῶσαι πρὸς τοῖς αλλοις καὶ τοξεύειν καὶ ἀκοντίζειν καὶ πρὸς ἀλλήλους ταῦτα διαγωνίζεσθαι. τοῖς δὲ μένουσι τῶν ἐφήβων ἐκέχρηντο αἱ ἀρχαὶ πρὸς ἰσχύος η τάχους εργα δημόσια. ἐπειδὰν δ' ἐπὶ τούτοις οἱ εφηβοι δέκα ετη διήγαγον, ἐτέλουν εἰς τοὺς τελείους ανδρας, καὶ εκτοτε πέντε καὶ εικοσιν ουτω διῆγον ἐνιαυτούς. καὶ εἰ εδει στρατεύεσθαι, τόξα μὲν οὐκέτι εχοντες οὐδὲ παλτὰ ἐστρατεύοντο, τὰ δὲ ἀγχέμαχα οπλα καλούμενα, θώρακα περὶ τοῖς στέρνοις καὶ γέρρον ἐν τῇ ἀριστερᾷ, ἐν δὲ τῇ δεξιᾷ μάχαιραν η κοπίδα. καὶ αἱ ἀρχαὶ δὲ πᾶσαι ἐκ τούτων καθίσταντο. ἐπειδὰν δὲ τὰ πέντε καὶ εικοσι 1.227 διετέλεσαν ετη, ησαν μὲν πλειόνων γεγονότες ἐνιαυτῶν η πεντήκοντα ἀπὸ γενεᾶς, ἐξήρχοντο δὲ τηνικαῦτα εἰς τοὺς γεραιτέρους. οἱ δὲ γεραίτεροι ἐστρατεύοντο μὲν οὐκέτι εξω τῆς ἑαυτῶν, μένοντες δ' οικοι ἐδίκαζον τά τε κοινὰ καὶ τὰ ἰδιωτικὰ ξύμπαντα, καὶ τὰ θανατικὰ δ' ἐκεῖνοι εκρινον, καὶ τὰς ἀρχὰς ἁπάσας ᾑροῦντο. καὶ ην τις η ἐν ἐφήβοις η ἐν ἀνδράσι παρέβη τι τῶν νομίμων, οἱ γεραίτεροι αὐτὸν ἐξέκρινον. ὁ δ' ἐκκριθεὶς ατιμος διετέλει τὸ λοιπὸν τοῦ βίου. αἰσχρὸν δὲ παρὰ Πέρσαις λελόγιστο καὶ τὸ ἀποπτύειν καὶ τὸ ἀπομύττεσθαι καὶ τὸ φύσης ωφθαι μεστοὺς καὶ τὸ φανερὸν τινὰ γενέσθαι οὐροῦντα η κοιλίας ποιούμενον εκκρισιν. ταῦτα δὲ οὐκ ἠδύναντο ποιεῖν, εἰ μὴ μετρίᾳ διαίτῃ ἐχρῶντο καὶ τὸ ὑγρὸν ἐκπονοῦντες ἀνήλισκον. Ταῦτα μὲν τὰ εθη τῶν Περσῶν καὶ τὰ νόμιμα· Κῦρος δὲ τούτοις τραφείς τε καὶ παιδευθείς, καὶ τὴν εφηβον ὑπερβὰς ἡλικίαν καὶ τοῖς ἀνδράσι καταλεγείς, ἐν απασιν εὐδοκίμησεν. ηδη δὲ τοῦ μητροπάτορος αὐτοῦ τοῦ τῶν Μήδων βασιλεύοντος ̓Αστυάγους τὴν ζωὴν μεταλλάξαντος ὁ παῖς ἐκείνου Κυαξάρης, ος καὶ ∆αρεῖος ὠνόμαστο, τὴν πατρικὴν ἀρχὴν διεδέξατο, τοῦ Κύρου τυγχάνων μητράδελφος. ̔Ο δὲ τῶν ̓Ασσυρίων κρατῶν, εἰς μέγα τῆς βασιλείας αὐξηθείσης αὐτῷ, καὶ αρχων μὲν τοῦ φύλου τῶν ̓Ασσυρίων οντος πολυπληθοῦς, ὑφ' ἑαυτὸν δὲ πεποιημένος τοὺς Αραβας, ὑπηκόους δὲ καὶ τοὺς ̔Υρκανίους κτησάμενος καὶ τοὺς Σύρους ὑποφόρους, τούς γε μὴν Βακτρίους πολιορκῶν καὶ τὸ τῶν ̔Εβραίων γένος ηδη καταστρεψάμενος, καὶ αλλα δὲ πλεῖστα 1.228 τῶν ἐθνῶν θέμενος ὑποχείρια, ῳετο, εἰ τοὺς Μήδους ἀσθενώσειε, πάντων γε τῶν πέριξ ῥᾷον κρατήσειν. ταῦτα δὲ διανοηθεὶς τούς τε ὑφ' ἑαυτὸν ἡτοίμαζεν, επεμψε δὲ καὶ πρὸς Κροῖσον τὸν βασιλέα Λυδῶν καὶ πρὸς αμφω τοὺς Φρύγας, πρὸς Παφλαγόνας τε καὶ ̓Ινδοὺς καὶ πρὸς Κᾶρας καὶ Κίλικας, αἰτῶν συμμαχήσειν αὐτῷ κατὰ Μήδων ὡρμημένῳ, ὡς καὶ αὐτοῖς τοῦ πολέμου συμφέροντος, δυνατὸν ειναι λέγων τὸ εθνος, ἐπιγαμίαν τε πρὸς Πέρσας πεποιημένον καὶ τὴν παρ' ἐκείνων προσκτήσασθαι ἀρωγήν, καὶ θάτερον συγκροτεῖσθαι παρὰ θατέρου, ωστε εἰ μή τις αὐτοὺς φθάσας ἀσθενώσει, ἑκάστῳ τῶν ἐθνῶν ἐπιόντας κρατήσειν αὐτῶν. ὁ μὲν ουν τοιούτους λόγους πρὸς εκαστον τῶν ἐθνῶν διεπέμπετο· τῶν δὲ τὰ μὲν τοῖς λόγοις τούτοις παρακινούμενα, τὰ δὲ καὶ χρήμασι καὶ δώροις ἀναπειθόμενα, ενια δὲ καὶ φόβῳ τοῦ ̓Ασσυρίου κρατούμενα συμμαχήσειν κατέθεντο. Κυαξάρης δὲ ταῦτα μαθὼν αὐτός τε