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296 296 HERODOTUS

and of the whole Persian people, among whom he is of necessity included. He cuts the victim in pieces, and having boiled the flesh, he lays it out upon the tenderest herbage that he can find, trefoil especially. When all is ready, one of the Magi comes forward and chants a hymn, which they say recounts the origin of the gods. It is not lawful to offer sacrifice unless there is a Magus present. After waiting a short time the sacrificer carries the flesh of the victim away with him, and makes whatever use of it he may please.

Of all the days in the year, the one which they cele- brate most is their birthday. It is customary to have the board furnished on that day with an ampler sup- ply than common. The richer Persians cause an ox, ^a horse, a camel, and an ass to be baked whole and so served up to them ; the poorer classes use instead the smaller kinds of cattle. They eat little solid food, but abundance of dessert, which is set on the table a few dishes at a time : this it is which makes them say that " the Greeks, when they eat, leave off hungry, having nothing worth mention served up to them after the meats ; whereas, if they had more put before them, they would not stop eating," They are very fond of wine, and drink it in large quantities. Such are their customs in these matters.

It is also their general practice to deliberate upon affairs of weight when they are drunk ; and then on the morrow, when they are sober, the decision to which they came the night before is put before them by the master of the house in which it was made ; and if it is then approved of, they act on it ; if not, they set it aside. Sometimes, however, they are sober at their first deliberation, but in this case they always reconsider the matter under the influence of wine. iBool• /., Chapters 131-133.-)