BABYLON AND PERSIA

380 MEDIA, BABYLON, AND PERSIA.ments to his father, who, with a few troops, hadbravely held the defensive, and who now gained adecisive victory over the rebels of Parthia and Hyr¬cania.This was in 518 B.C., and within the sameyear the faithful Satrap of Bactria routed those ofMargiana.II.In 5 17 B.C. Persia alone virtually remained in astate of insurrection.Yet the king stayed in Media,which he thought safest to control by his presence,and sent an army against the false Bardiya.Verywisely he kept his Persian troops in Media and sent'the Median troops to Persia to avoid the contagiousinfluences of national sympathies.After two battlesfought in Persia the impostor was taken and executedin the summer of 517 B.C. ;but his followers in Ara¬chosia held out several months longer, and it was onlyin February, 516, that their leaders were at lastcaptured and put to death.But it seemed as thoughas fast as threads were fastened at one end theyravelled out at the other.While the king was inMedia and Persia, Babylon for the second timerevolted from him in favor of a man who pretendedthat he was Nebuchadrezzar the son of Nabonidus.This new rising, however, was easily quelled by oneof Dareios' generals, and the impostor was slain(January, 5 16 B.C.).The king meanwhile had already,in his indefatigable activity, gone to Egypt, wherehe put forth all his powers of conciliation to retainthe affections of that important part of the empire.Egyptian monuments bear arriple witness to his suc¬cess, and his wise rule obtained for him a place^mong the great national lawgiversof the Egyp-