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[361]
When the presidents, and the rest that belonged to the cities, were
come to Berytus, he kept his sons in a certain village belonging to Sidon,
called Platana, but near to this city, that if they were called, he might
produce them, for he did not think fit to bring them before the assembly:
and when there were one hundred and fifty assessors present, Herod came
by himself alone, and accused his sons, and that in such a way as if it
were not a melancholy accusation, and not made but out of necessity, and
upon the misfortunes he was under; indeed, in such a way as was very indecent
for a father to accuse his sons, for he was very vehement and disordered
when he came to the demonstration of the crime they were accused of, and
gave the greatest signs of passion and barbarity: nor would he suffer the
assessors to consider of the weight of the evidence, but asserted them
to be true by his own authority, after a manner most indecent in a father
against his sons, and read himself what they themselves had written, wherein
there was no confession of any plots or contrivances against him, but only
how they had contrived to fly away, and containing withal certain reproaches
against him, on account of the ill-will he bare them; and when he came
to those reproaches, he cried out most of all, and exaggerated what they
said, as if they had confessed the design against him, and took his oath
that he had rather lose his life than hear such reproachful words. At last
he said that he had sufficient authority, both by nature and by Caesar's
grant to him, [to do what he thought fit]. He also added an allegation
of a law of their country, which enjoined this: That if parents laid their
hands on the head of him that was accused, the standers by were obliged
to cast stones at him, and thereby to slay him; which though he were ready
to do in his own country and kingdom, yet did he wait for their determination;
and yet they came thither not so much as judges, to condemn them for such
manifest designs against him, whereby he had almost perished by his sons'
means, but as persons that had an opportunity of showing their detestation
of such practices, and declaring how unworthy a thing it must be in any,
even the most remote, to pass over such treacherous designs [without punishment].
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