herodotus

circle are the royal palace and the treasure-houses. The largest ofthese walls is in size about equal to the circuit of the wall roundAthens; and of the first circle the battlements are white, of thesecond black, of the third crimson, of the fourth blue, of the fifthred: thus are the battlements of all the circles coloured with varioustints, and the two last have their battlements one of them overlaidwith silver and the other with gold. 99. These walls then Deïokesbuilt for himself and round his own palace, and the people hecommanded to dwell round about the wall. And after all was built,Deïokes established the rule, which he was the first to establish,ordaining that none should enter into the presence of the king, butthat they deal with him always through messengers; and that the kingshould be seen by no one; and moreover that to laugh or to spit inpresence is unseemly, and this last for every one withoutexception.[112] Now he surrounded himself with this state[113] to theend that his fellows, who had been brought up with him and were of nomeaner family nor behind him in manly virtue, might not be grieved byseeing him and make plots against him, but that being unseen by themhe might be thought to be of different mould. 100. Having set thesethings in order and strengthened himself in his despotism, he wassevere in preserving justice; and the people used to write down theircauses and send them in to his presence, and he determined thequestions which were brought in to him and sent them out again. Thushe used to do about the judgment of causes; and he also took order forthis, that is to say, if he heard that any one was behaving in anunruly manner, he sent for him and punished him according as each actof wrong deserved, and he had watchers and listeners about all theland over which he ruled.101. Deïokes then united the Median race alone, and was ruler of this:and of the Medes there are the tribes which here follow, namely,Busai, Paretakenians, Struchates, Arizantians, Budians, Magians: thetribes of the Medes are so many in number. 102. Now the son of Deïokeswas Phraortes, who when Deïokes was dead, having been king for threeand-fiftyyears, received the power in succession; and having receivedit he was not satisfied to be ruler of the Medes alone, but marchedupon the Persians; and attacking them first before others, he madethese first subject to the Medes. After this, being ruler of these twonations and both of them strong, he proceeded to subdue Asia goingfrom one nation to another, until at last he marched against theAssyrians, those Assyrians I mean who dwelt at Nineveh, and whoformerly had been rulers of the whole, but at that time they were leftwithout support their allies having revolted from them, though at homethey were prosperous enough.[114] Phraortes marched, I say, againstthese, and was both himself slain, after he had reigned two-and-twentyyears, and the greater part of his army was destroyed.