64 THE TBUE POSITION OF THE HEBREWS 



The next ancient civilization that we must take up 

 here, following the main threads of evolution as far as 

 it is possible in so tangled a skein, is Persia. I have 

 already said that the Persians and Hindus were 

 originally one people — the southern branch of what 

 one may still call " the Aryan race." This " noble " 

 race, as it called itself, enters the story of civilization 

 comparatively late, and again the historical circum- 

 stances give us the explanation. 



We know from a treaty of one of the Hittite kings 

 that the Persians and Hindus were still together, to 

 the east of Asia Minor, in the third millennium before 

 Christ. The Hindu branch then began its long trek 

 towards India, and the Persians settled in the moun- 

 tainous region from the Caspian Sea to the Persian 

 Gulf. In other words, they lived on the very fringe 

 of the region in which civilization was developing, 

 and they were only slowly touched by its influence. 

 They were a pastoral people, of severe and sober 

 habits, entirely absorbed for ages in the tasks of 

 pastoral and agricultural life. 



A kindred people, the Medes, lived nearer to 

 Assyria, and earlier felt the influence of civilization. 

 The Greek historian Herodotus describes their chief 

 city, Ecbatana, with its wooden palace plated with 

 gold and silver and its great temple of the sun. 

 If he is right that the seven walls which surrounded 

 their precious buildings were faced with gold, silver, 

 orange, blue, red, black, and white, we have a very 

 clear connection with the art of Babylonia. No one, 

 in fact, questions that the Medes and Persians learned 

 civilization from Babylonia and Assyria, their nearest 

 neighbours. 



The Medes, as we said, conquered Assyria, and 



