Accordingly, Cyrus far surpassed all others in 1 the art of making much of his friends by gifts of food. And how he far surpassed in every other way of courting favour, I will now explain. Though he far exceeded all other men in the amount of the revenues he received, yet he excelled still more in the quantity of presents he made. It was Cyrus, therefore, who began the practice of lavish giving, and among the kings it continues even to this day.
Cyropaedia. Xenophon. Walter Miller (Translator). Cambridge, MA. 1914.
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