Book 8
2.26
These and many other such arts he employed in order to hold the first place in the affections of those by whom he wished to be beloved. And the games, in which Cyrus used to announce contests and to offer prizes from a desire to inspire in his people a spirit of emulation in what was beautiful and good—these games also brought him praise, because his aim was to secure practice in excellence. But these contests also stirred up contentions and jealousies among the nobles.
2.27
Besides this, Cyrus had made a regulation thatHow Cyrus guarded against coalitions was practically a law, that, in any matter that required adjudication, whether it was a civil action or a contest for a prize, those who asked for such adjudication must concur in the choice of judges. It was, therefore, a matter of course that each of the contestants aimed to secure the most influential men as judges and such as were most friendly to himself. The one who did not win was always jealous of those who did, and disliked those of the judges who did not vote in his favour; on the other hand, the one who did win claimed that he had won by virtue of the justice of his cause, and so he thought he owed no thanks to anybody.
2.28
And those also who wished to hold the first place in the affections of Cyrus were jealous of one another, just like other people (even in republics), so that in most cases the one would have wished to get the other out of the way sooner than to join with him in any work to their mutual interest. Thus it has been shown how he contrived that the most influential citizens should love him more than they did each other.
