herodotus

his father, who was of a harsh temper, and when he could no longerendure him, he departed and came to Egina. Being established there hesurpassed in the first year all the other physicians, although he waswithout appliances and had none of the instruments which are used inthe art. In the next year the Eginetan State engaged him for a paymentof one talent, in the third year he was engaged by the Athenians for ahundred pounds weight of silver,[118] and in the fourth by Polycratesfor two talents. Thus he arrived in Samos; and it was by reason ofthis man more than anything else that the physicians of Croton gottheir reputation: for this event happened at the time when thephysicians of Croton began to be spoken of as the first in Hellas,while the Kyrenians were reputed to have the second place. About thissame time also the Argives had the reputation of being the firstmusicians in Hellas.[119]132. Then Demokedes having healed king Dareios had a very great housein Susa, and had been made a table-companion of the king; and exceptthe one thing of returning to the land of the Hellenes, he hadeverything. And first as regards the Egyptian physicians who tried toheal the king before him, when they were about to be impaled becausethey had proved inferior to a physician who was a Hellene, he askedtheir lives of the king and rescued them from death: then secondly, herescued an Eleian prophet, who had accompanied Polycrates and hadremained unnoticed among the slaves. In short Demokedes was very greatin the favour of the king.133. Not long time after this another thing came to pass which wasthis:--Atossa the daughter of Cyrus and wife of Dareios had a tumourupon her breast, which afterwards burst and then was spreadingfurther: and so long as it was not large, she concealed it and saidnothing to anybody, because she was ashamed; but afterwards when shewas in evil case, she sent for Demokedes and showed it to him: and hesaid that he would make her well, and caused her to swear that shewould surely do for him in return that which he should ask of her; andhe would ask, he said, none of such things as are shameful. 134. Sowhen after this by his treatment he had made her well, then Atossainstructed by Demokedes uttered to Dareios in his bedchamber some suchwords as these: "O king, though thou hast such great power, thou dostsit still, and dost not win in addition any nation or power for thePersians: and yet it is reasonable that a man who is both young andmaster of much wealth should be seen to perform some great deed, inorder that the Persians may know surely that he is a man by whom theyare ruled. It is expedient indeed in two ways that thou shouldest doso, both in order that the Persians may know that their ruler is aman, and in order that they may be worn down by war and not haveleisure to plot against thee. For now thou mightest display some great