falling on both sides, and especially on that of the Persians, Amasis
the commander of the land-army contrived as follows:—perceiving that the
Barcaians were not to be conquered by force but might be conquered by
guile, he dug by night a broad trench and over it he laid timber of no
great strength, and brought earth and laid it above on the top of the
timber, making it level with the rest of the ground: then at daybreak he
invited the men of Barca to a parley; and they gladly consented, and
at last they agreed to make a treaty: and the treaty they made with one
another was taken over the hidden trench, namely that so long as this
earth should continue to be as it was, so long the oath should remain
firm, and that the men of Barca should promise to pay tribute of due
amount to the king, and the Persians should do no further violence to
the men of Barca. 182 After the oath the men of Barca trusting to these
engagements both went forth themselves from their city and let any who
desired it of the enemy pass within their walls, having opened all the
gates; but the Persians first broke down the concealed bridge and then
began to run inside the city wall. And the reason why they broke down
the bridge which they had made was that they might keep their oaths,
since they had sworn to the men of Barca that the oath should remain
firm continually for so long time as the earth should remain as it then
was, but after that they had broken it down, the oath no longer remained
firm.
202. Now the most guilty of the Barcaians, when they were delivered to
her by the Persians, Pheretime impaled in a ring round about the wall;
and she cut off the breasts of their wives and set the wall round with
these also in order: but the rest of the men of Barca she bade the
Persians carry off as spoil, except so many of them as were of the
house of Battos and not sharers in the guilt of the murder; and to these
Pheretime gave the city in charge.
203. So the Persians having made slaves of the rest of the Barcaians
departed to go back: and when they appeared at the gates of the city of
Kyrene, the Kyrenians let them go through their town in order to avoid
neglect of some oracle. Then as the army was going through, Badres the
commander of the fleet urged that they should capture the city, but
Amasis the commander of the land-army would not consent to it; for
he said that they had been sent against no other city of the Hellenes
except Barca. When however they had passed through and were encamping on
the hill of Zeus Lycaios, they repented of not having taken possession
of Kyrene; and they endeavoured again to pass into it, but the men of
Kyrene would not allow them. Then upon the Persians, although no one
fought against them, there fell a sudden panic, and they ran away for
about sixty furlongs and then encamped. And when the camp had been
placed here, there came to it a messenger from Aryandes summoning them
back; so the Persians asked the Kyrenians to give them provisions for
their march and obtained their request; and having received these, they
departed to go to Egypt. After this the Libyans took them up, 183 and
killed for the sake of their clothes and equipment those of them who
at any time were left or straggled behind, until at last they came to
Egypt.
204. This army of the Persians reached Euesperides, and this was their
furthest point in Libya: and those of the Barcaians whom they had
reduced to slavery they removed again from Egypt and brought them to
the king, and king Dareios gave them a village in the land of Bactria in
which to make a settlement. To this village they gave the name of Barca,
and it still continued to be inhabited by them even down to my own time,
in the land of Bactria.
205. Pheretime however did not bring her life happily to an end any more
than they: for as soon as she had returned from Libya to Egypt after
having avenged herself on the Barcaians, she died an evil death, having
become suddenly full of worms while yet alive: for, as it seems, too
severe punishments inflicted by men prove displeasing 184 to the gods.
Such and so great was the punishment inflicted by Pheretime the wife of
Battos on the men of Barca.
—————
NOTES TO BOOK IV.
1 [ Some enterprises had been entrusted to others, e.g. the attack
on Samos; but this had not been the case with the capture of Babylon,
therefore some Editors have proposed corrections, e.g. {au tou}
(Schweighäuser), and {autika} (Stein).]
2 [ See i. 106.]
3 [ {tes ano 'Asies}: this means Eastern Asia as distinguished from the
coasts of Asia Minor; see i. 103 and 177.]
4 [ {katapausantes}: the expression is awkward if meant to be equivalent
to {kai katepausan}, but it is hardly improved by the alteration to
{katapausontes}. Perhaps the clause is out of place.]
5 [ {ponos}.]
6 [ {peristixantes}: so the two best MSS.; others have {peristesantes}
or {peristexantes}. The word {peristixantes} would be from {peristikho},
equivalent to {peristikhizo}, and is acknowledged in this sense by
Hesychius.]
7 [ The connexion is not clear either at the beginning of the chapter or
here. This clause would seem to be a repetition of that at the beginning
of the chapter, and that which comes between should be an explanation
of the reason why the slaves are blinded. As it stands, however, we
can only refer it to the clause which follows, {ou gar arotai eisi alla
nomades}, and even so there is no real solution of the difficulty, for
it is not explained why nomads should have blinded slaves. Perhaps
the best resource is to suppose that some part of the explanation, in
connexion with the manner of dealing with the milk, has been lost.]
8 [ {te per}: a conjectural emendation for {e per}, "which is a very
great lake".]
9 [ {epi touton arkhonton}: the word {arkhonton} is omitted in some MSS.
and by some Editors.]
10 [ {sagarin}.]
11 [ {tous basileious}: so Wesseling. The MSS. have {tous basileas},
"the kings," which may perhaps be used here as equivalent to {tous
basileious}: some Editors, including Stein, adopt the conjecture {tou
basileos}, "from the youngest of them who, was king, those who," etc.]
12 [ {tou basileos}: some Editors read by conjecture {Skolotou
basileos}, "after their king Scolotos".]
1201 [ {katazonnumenon}: or {kata tade zonnumenon}, "girded in this
manner".]
13 [ {mekhanesasthai ten metera Skuthe}: the better MSS. read
{mekhanasthai} and {Skuthen}: the meaning seems doubtful, and some
Editors would omit the clause as an interpolation.]
14 [ {pros pollous deomenon}: the better MSS. read {pro pollou deomena}.
The passage has been emended in various ways, e.g. {pros pollous deoi
menontas} (Buttmann), {pros pollous menontas} (Bredow), {pro spodou
deomenon} (Stein).]
15 [ {poiesas}: some authorities have {eipas}.]
16 [ Italy means for Herodotus only the Southern part of the peninsula.]
17 [ {diekosioisi}: so the best authorities; others have
{priekosioisi}.]
18 [ {'Italioteon}, i.e. Hellenic settlers in Italy.]
19 [ {to agalmati to 'Apollonos}: {agalma} is used for anything
dedicated to a god, most commonly the sacred image.]
20 [ {katuperthe}: "above," i.e. beyond them towards the North.
Similarly when dealing with Libya the writer uses the same word of those
further from the coast towards the South; see ch. 174.]
21 [ {en autoisi toisi epesi poieon}: "even in the verses which he
composed," in which he might be expected as a poet to go somewhat beyond
the literal truth.]
22 [ Or, "Alizonians".]
23 [ {'Olbiopolitas}.]
24 [ See ch. 101, where the day's journey is reckoned at 200 stades (23
English miles).]
25 [ The meaning of {eremos} here is not waste and barren land, but land
without settled inhabitants.]
26 [ i.e. "Man-eaters".]
27 [ This is the reading of the MSS., but it is not consistent with
the distance given in ch. 101, nor with the actual facts: some Editors
therefore read "four" instead of "fourteen".]
28 [ i.e. "Cliffs".]
29 [ i.e. "Black-cloaks".]
30 [ {'Argippaioi}: it is not certain that this is the form which ought
to be read here: Latin writers make the name "Arimphaei," and in some
MSS. it is given here as {'Orgempaioi}.]
31 [ {agalmati}.]
32 [ {ta genesia}.]
33 [ Or, "violent".]
34 [ Od. iv. 85.]
35 [ {e phuonta phuein mogis}.]
36 [ {prosthekas}, "additions".]
37 [ i.e. of Apollo and Artemis.]
3701 [ Omitting {legon}.]
38 [ The word "Asia" is not contained in the MSS. and need not be
inserted in the text, but it is implied, if not expressed; see chap.
41.]
39 [ {aktai}.]
40 [ {ou legousa ei me nomo}.]
41 [ i.e. 100,000 fathoms, equivalent to 1000 stades; see ii. 6, note
10.]
42 [ {oude sumballein axie}.]
43 [ ii. 158.]
4301 [ {brota}: some MSS. have {probata} "cattle".]
44 [ {omoia parekhomene}: the construction is confused, but the meaning
is that all but the Eastern parts are known to be surrounded by sea.]
45 [ {logion}: some MSS. have {logimon}, "of reputation".]
46 [ Stein reads {eisi de} for {eisi de}, and punctuates so that the
meaning is, "it has become the greatest of all rivers in the following
manner:—besides other rivers which flow into it, those which especially
make it great are as follows".]
47 [ {pente men oi}: this perhaps requires emendation, but the
corrections proposed are hardly satisfactory, e.g. {pente megaloi} or
{pente monoi}.]
48 [ Or "Skios": called by Thucydides "Oskios" (ii. 96).]
49 [ {eti}: most of the MSS. give {esti}, which is adopted by some
Editors.]
50 [ "Sacred Ways".]
51 [ {Gerreon}: in some MSS. {Gerrou}, "the region called Gerros".]
52 [ {tesserakonta}: some Editors have altered this number, but without
authority or sufficient reason.]
53 [ {di eremou}: see note 25 on ch. 18. The region here spoken of is
that between the Gerrians and the agricultural Scythians.]
5301 [ {es touto elos}: i.e. the Dneiper-Liman. (The Medicean and
Florentine MSS. read {es to elos}, not {es to telos}, as hitherto
reported.)]
54 [ {eon embolon tes khores}.]
55 [ {Metros}: i.e. the Mother of the gods, Kybele, cp. ch. 76; some
less good authorities have {Demetros}.]
56 [ {reei de}: most MSS. have {reei men gar}.]
57 [ Or, "Apia".]
58 [ Or, "Goitosyros".]
59 [ The MSS. have also "Arippasa" and "Artimpasa".]
60 [ The authorities have also "Thagimasa" and "Thamimasidas".]
61 [ {ton arkheion}: some read by conjecture {en to arkheio}, "at the
seat of government," or "in the public place".]
62 [ {eson t' epi stadious treis}.]
63 [ {upo ton kheimonon}.]
64 [ {akinakes}.]
65 [ {agalma}: see note 19 on ch. 15.]
66 [ {kata per baitas}.]
67 [ Or, "and put them together in one bundle".]
68 [ See i. 105.]
69 [ {kuperou}: it is not clear what plant is meant.]
70 [ i.e. for this purpose. The general use of bronze is attested by ch.
81.]
71 [ {ode anabibazontes, epean k.t.l}: the reference of {ode} is
directly to the clause {epean——trakhelou}, though in sense it refers
equally to the following, {katothen de k.t.l}. Some Editors punctuate
thus, {ode anabibazontes epean} and omit {de} after {katothen}, making
the reference of {ode} to the latter clause alone.]
72 [ {oruontai}, as in iii. 117, but here they howl for pleasure.]
73 [ Like the Egyptians for example, cp. ii. 91.]
74 [ {mete ge on allelon}: the MSS. have {me ti ge on allelon}. Most
Editors read {allon} for {allelon} and alter the other words in various
ways ({me toi ge on, me toigaron} etc.), taking {me} as in {me oti} (ne
dicam aliorum). The reading which I have adopted is based on that of
Stein, who reads {mete teon allon} and quotes vii. 142, {oute ge alloisi
'Ellenon oudamoisi, umin de de kai dia panton ekista}. With {allon} the
meaning is, "rejecting those of other nations and especially those of
the Hellenes". For the use of {me} after {pheugein} cp. ii. 91.]
75 [ Or, according to some MSS., "as they proved in the case of
Anacharsis and afterwards of Skyles".]
76 [ {gen pollen}.]
77 [ {epitropou}.]
78 [ {peplastai}: some authorities give {pepaistai}, "has been invented
as a jest".]
79 [ {es kheiras agesthai}.]
7901 [ {o theos}.]
80 [ {diepresteuse}: this or {epresteuse} is the reading of most of the
MSS. The meaning is uncertain, since the word does not occur elsewhere.
Stein suggests that it may mean "scoffed (at the Scythians)". Various
conjectures have been tried, e.g. {diedresteuse}, {diedrepeteuse}, etc.]
81 [ {os Skuthas einai}: cp. ii. 8. Some (e.g. Dindorf and Bähr)
translate "considering that they are Scythians," i.e. for a nation so
famous and so widely extended.]
82 [ i.e. about 5300 gallons.]
83 [ {epi to iro}: the MSS. mostly have {epi iro}, and Stein adopts the
conjecture {epi rio}, "on a projecting point". The temple would be that
of {Zeus ourios} mentioned in ch. 87. (In the Medicean MS. the omitted
{i} is inserted above the line beforethe {r}, not directly over it, as
represented by Stein, and the accent is not omitted.)]
84 [ {stadioi}, and so throughout.]
85 [ i.e. 1,110,000.]
86 [ i.e. 330,000.]
8601 [ {stelas}, i.e. "square blocks"; so also in ch. 91.]
87 [ i.e. 700,000.]
8701 [ {os emoi dokeei sumballomeno}, "putting the evidence together".]
88 [ {pasi deka}: probably a loose expression like {ta panta muria},
iii. 74.]
89 [ {psoren}, "mange".]
90 [ Or (less probably) "Skyrmiadai".]
91 [ {Salmoxin}: some inferior MSS. have {Zalmoxin}, or {Zamolxin}, and
the spelling in other writers varies between these forms.]
92 [ {daimona}, sometimes used for deified men as distinguished from
gods, cp. ch. 103.]
93 [ {dia penteteridos}.]
94 [ {bathutera}.]
95 [ {ou to asthenestato sophiste}. No depreciation seems to be intended
here.]
96 [ {andreona}.]
97 [ i.e. the Mediterranean: or the passage may mean simply, "Thrace
runs out further into the sea than Scythia".]
98 [ {gounon}.]
99 [ More literally, "I say this, so far as it is allowed to compare,
etc. Such is the form of the Tauric land".]
100 [ {ede}. The Agathyrsians however have not been mentioned before in
this connection.]
101 [ {stadia}.]
102 [ {tes Skuthikes ta epikarsia}, i.e. the lines running from West to
East.]
103 [ {epanakhthentes}: so the Medicean MS. and another: the rest have
{epanakhthentas}. Some Editors read by conjecture {apeneikhthentas},
"cast away on their coast".]
104 [ {neoisi}.]
105 [ {trieteridas}.]
106 [ Or, "were driven out".]
107 [ {phtheirotrageousi}.]
108 [ Or, "Aiorpata," and "aior" below.]
109 [ i.e. the Royal Scythians: see ch. 20.]
110 [ {epi touto}, the reading of the Aldine edition. The MSS. have {epi
touto}. Stein suggests {dia touto}.]
111 [ {ou peisometha}: some MSS. read {ouk oisometha}. Editors have
emended by conjecture in various ways, e.g. {ou periopsometha}, "we
shall not allow it"; {oi epoisometha} or {oi epeisometha}, "we shall go
out to attack him"; {aposometha}, "we shall repel him".]
112 [ {paras}, or {pasai}, belonging to {gunaikes}.]
113 [ {khersou}, "dry".]
114 [ Perhaps the same as the "Hyrgis" mentioned in ch. 57. Some Editors
read "Hyrgis" in this passage.]
115 [ See ch. 119.]
116 [ {klaiein lego}.]
117 [ {touto esti e apo Skutheon resis}: this refers to the last words,
{klaiein lego}. Most Editors have doubts about the genuineness of the
sentence, regarding it a marginal gloss which has crept into the text;
but perhaps without sufficient reason.]
118 [ Or, "with some slight effect on the course of the war".]
119 [ See i. 216.]
120 [ {eremothentes tou omilou}.]
121 [ {iesan tes phones}.]
122 [ {e mia kai Sauromatai}: some Editors read {e meta Sauromateon}.
The MSS. give {e mia Sauromatai} (some {Sauromateon}). Stein inserts
{kai}.]
123 [ {khairontes eleutheroi}.]
124 [ The list includes only those who voted in favour of the proposal
of Histiaios (i.e. Miltiades is not included in it): hence perhaps Stein
is right in suggesting some change in the text, e.g. {oi diapherontes te
ten psephon basileos kai eontes logou pleistou}. The absence of the
name of Coës is remarked by several commentators, who forget that he had
accompanied Dareios: see ch. 97.]
125 [ Or, "and even so they found the passage of the river with
difficulty".]
126 [ {en Persesi}.]
127 [ i.e. 80,000.]
128 [ {gar}: some MSS. read {de}; so Stein and other Editors.]
129 [ i.e. Castor and Polydeukes the sons of Tyndareus, who were among
the Argonauts.]
130 [ {Phera} (genitive).]
131 [ From {ois} "sheep" and {lukos} "wolf" ({oin en lukoisi}).]
132 [ {phule}, the word being here apparently used loosely.]
133 [ {'Erinuon}.]
134 [ {meta touto upemeine touto touto}: some Editors mark a lacuna
after {upemeine}, or supply some words like {sunebe de}: "after this the
children survived, and the same thing happened also in Thera, etc".]
135 [ Or, "Grinos".]
136 [ {Euphemides}: the MSS. have {Euthumides}: the correction is from
Pindar, Pyth. iv. 455.]
137 [ {onax}, the usual form of address to Apollo; so in ch. 155.]
138 [ Or, "Axos".]
139 [ i.e. Aristoteles, Pind. Pyth. v. 87.]
140 [ {metaxu apolipon}.]
141 [ Or, "it happened both to himself and to the other men of Thera
according to their former evil fortune"; but this would presuppose the
truth of the story told in ch. 151, and {paligkotos} may mean simply
"adverse" or "hostile".]
142 [ {eontes tosoutoi osoi k.t.l.} They could hardly have failed to
increase in number, but no new settlers had been added.]
143 [ {usteron elthe gas anadaiomenes}, "too late for the division of
land".]
144 [ Or, "Thestis".]
145 [ The MSS. give also "Aliarchos" and "Learchos".]
146 [ {mathon ekasta}.]
147 [ {ton terioikon}: i.e. conquered Libyans.]
148 [ {nesioteon panton}: i.e. the natives of the Cyclades, cp. vi. 99.]
149 [ {amphirruton ten Kurenen einai}: some Editors read by conjecture
{ten amphirruton Kurenen einai} (or {Kurenen ten amph, einai}), "that
Kyrene was the place flowed round by water".]
150 [ {pselion}.]
151 [ Or, "Giligammai".]
152 [ i.e. the plant so called, figured on the coins of Kyrene and
Barca.]
153 [ Or, "Asbytai".]
154 [ i.e. further from the coast, so {katuperthe}, ch. 174 etc., cp.
ch. 16.]
155 [ Or "Cabales".]
156 [ See i. 216.]
157 [ Distinct from the people of the same name mentioned in ch. 183:
those here mentioned are called "Gamphasantes" by Pliny.]
158 [ {glukuteta}, "sweetness".]
159 [ {allen te ekatomben kai de kai}.]
160 [ {epithespisanta to tripodi}, which can hardly mean "prophesied
sitting upon the tripod".]
161 [ Lit. "the men come together regularly to one place within three
months," which seems to mean that meetings are held every three months,
before one of which the child is brought.]
162 [ See ii. 42.]
163 [ i.e. in the middle of the morning.]
164 [ {tripsin}: the "feel" to the touch: hence it might mean either
hardness or softness according to the context.]
165 [ {troglodutas}: "Troglodytes".]
166 [ {uperballonti}: "when his heat is greatest".]
167 [ {ede}.]
168 [ Or "red".]
169 [ {domon}: Reiske reads {omon} by conjecture, "over his shoulder".]
170 [ Or (according to some MSS.), "practise this much and do it well".]
171 [ {akatapseusta}. Several Editors have adopted the conjecture
{katapseusta}, "other fabulous beasts".]
172 [ {orues}: perhaps for {oruges} from {orux}, a kind of antelope.]
173 [ {diktues}: the meaning is uncertain.]
174 [ {ekhinees}, "urchins".]
175 [ Or "Zabykes".]
176 [ Or "Zygantes".]
177 [ {eie d' an pan}: cp. v. 9. Some translate, "and this might well be
so".]
178 [ {oud' areten einai tis e Libue spoudaie}.]
179 [ i.e. corn; cp. i. 193.]
180 [ {bounous}.]
181 [ See ch. 167.]
182 [ {meden allo neokhmoun kata Barkaious}: cp. v. 19.]
183 [ {paralabontes}.]
184 [ {epiphthonoi}.]