herodotus

with his wife. Accordingly Intaphrenes did not think it fit that anyone should announce his coming; but as he was one of the seven, hedesired to enter. The gatekeeper however and the bearer of messagesendeavoured to prevent him, saying that the king was lying with hiswife: but Intaphrenes believing that they were not speaking the truth,drew his sword[105] and cut off their ears and their noses, andstringing these upon his horse's bridle he tied them round their necksand so let them go. 119. Upon this they showed themselves to the kingand told the cause for which they had suffered this; and Dareios,fearing that the six might have done this by common design, sent foreach one separately and made trial of his inclinations, as to whetherhe approved of that which had been done: and when he was fully assuredthat Intaphrenes had not done this in combination with them, he tookboth Intaphrenes himself and his sons and all his kinsmen, being muchdisposed to believe that he was plotting insurrection against him withthe help of his relations; and having seized them he put them in bondsas for execution. Then the wife of Intaphrenes, coming constantly tothe doors of the king's court, wept and bewailed herself; and by doingthis continually after the same manner she moved Dareios to pity her.Accordingly he sent a messenger and said to her: "Woman, king Dareiosgrants to thee to save from death one of thy kinsmen who are lying inbonds, whomsoever thou desirest of them all." She then, havingconsidered with herself, answered thus: "If in truth the king grantsme the life of one, I choose of them all my brother." Dareios beinginformed of this, and marvelling at her speech, sent and addressed herthus: "Woman, the king asks thee what was in thy mind, that thou didstleave thy husband and thy children to die, and didst choose thybrother to survive, seeing that he is surely less near to thee inblood than thy children, and less dear to thee than thy husband." Shemade answer: "O king, I might, if heaven willed, have another husbandand other children, if I should lose these; but another brother Icould by no means have, seeing that my father and my mother are nolonger alive. This was in my mind when I said those words." To Dareiosthen it seemed that the woman had spoken well, and he let go not onlyhim for whose life she asked, but also the eldest of her sons becausehe was pleased with her: but all the others he slew. One therefore ofthe seven had perished immediately in the manner which has beenrelated.120. Now about the time of the sickness of Cambyses it had come topass as follows:--There was one Oroites, a Persian, who had beenappointed by Cyrus to be governor of the province of Sardis.[106] Thisman had set his desire upon an unholy thing; for though fromPolycrates the Samian he had never suffered anything nor heard anyoffensive word nor even seen him before that time, he desired to takehim and put him to death for a reason of this kind, as most who report