the prefect, the Greeks next assaulted the Jews in the streets and
market-place, attacked their houses, rooted up the groves of trees
around their synagogues, and tore down the decree by which the
privileges of citizenship had been confirmed to them. The Greeks then
proceeded to set up by force a statue of the emperor in each Jewish
synagogue, as if the new decree had included those places of worship
among the temples, and, not finding statues enough, they made use of the
statues of the Ptolemies, which they carried away from the gymnasium
for that purpose. During the last reign, under the stern government
of Tiberius, Flaccus had governed with justice and prudence, but under
Caligula he seemed to have lost all judgment in his zeal against the
Jews. When the riots in the streets could no longer be overlooked,
instead of defending the injured party, he issued a decree in which
he styled the Jews foreigners; thus at one word robbing them of their
privileges and condemning them unheard. By this the Greeks were hurried
forward into further acts of injustice, and the Jews of resistance. But
the Jews were the weaker party: they were overpowered, and all driven
into one ward, and four hundred of their houses in the other wards were
plundered, and the spoil divided as if taken in war. They were stoned,
and even burnt in the streets, if they ventured forth to buy food for
their families. Flaccus seized and scourged in the theatre thirty-eight
of their venerable councillors, and, to show them that they were no
longer citizens, the punishment was inflicted by the hands of Egyptian
executioners. While the city was in this state of riot, the Greeks gave
out that the Jews were concealing arms; and Flaccus, to give them a
fresh proof that they had lost the rights of citizenship, ordered that
their houses should be forcibly entered and searched by a centurion and
a band of soldiers.

During their troubles the Jews had not been allowed to complain to the
emperor, or to send an embassy to Rome to make known their grievances.
But the Jewish King Agrippa, who was on his way from Rome to his
kingdom, forwarded to Caligula the complaints of his countrymen, the
Jews, with an account of the rebellious state of Alexandria. The riots,
it is true, had been wholly raised by the prefect's zeal in setting up
the emperor's statue in the synagogues to be worshipped by the Jews, and
in carrying into effect the emperor's decree; but, as he had not been