their daggers they killed the Magians wherever they found one; so that
if night had not come on and stopped them, they would not have left a
single Magian alive. This day the Persians celebrate in common more than
all other days, and upon it they keep a great festival which is called
by the Persians the festival of the slaughter of the Magians, 6701 on
which no Magian is permitted to appear abroad, but the Magians keep
themselves within their houses throughout that day.

80. When the tumult had subsided and more than five days had elapsed, 68
those who had risen against the Magians began to take counsel about the
general state, and there were spoken speeches which some of the Hellenes
do not believe were really uttered, but spoken they were nevertheless.
69 On the one hand Otanes urged that they should resign the government
into the hands of the whole body of the Persians, and his words were as
follows: "To me it seems best that no single one of us should henceforth
be ruler, for that is neither pleasant nor profitable. Ye saw the
insolent temper of Cambyses, to what lengths it went, and ye have had
experience also of the insolence of the Magian: and how should the rule
of one alone be a well-ordered thing, seeing that the monarch may do
what he desires without rendering any account of his acts? Even the best
of all men, if he were placed in this disposition, would be caused by
it to change from his wonted disposition: for insolence is engendered in
him by the good things which he possesses, and envy is implanted in man
from the beginning; and having these two things, he has all vice: for he
does many deeds of reckless wrong, partly moved by insolence proceeding
from satiety, and partly by envy. And yet a despot at least ought to
have been free from envy, seeing that he has all manner of good
things. He is however naturally in just the opposite temper towards
his subjects; for he grudges to the nobles that they should survive and
live, but delights in the basest of citizens, and he is more ready than
any other man to receive calumnies. Then of all things he is the most
inconsistent; for if you express admiration of him moderately, he is
offended that no very great court is paid to him, whereas if you
pay court to him extravagantly, he is offended with you for being a
flatterer. And the most important matter of all is that which I am about
to say:--he disturbs the customs handed down from our fathers, he is a
ravisher o