guarding the entrance which lay towards the sea, directed their
course with guides along the upper road; and passing unperceived by the
Paionians they fell upon their cities, which were left without men, and
finding them without defenders they easily took possession of them. The
Paionians when they heard that their cities were in the hands of the
enemy, at once dispersed, each tribe to its own place of abode, and
proceeded to deliver themselves up to the Persians. Thus then it
happened that these tribes of the Paionians, namely the Siropaionians,
6 the Paioplians and all up to the lake Prasias, were removed from their
place of habitation and brought to Asia;

16. but those who dwell about mount Pangaion, and about the Doberians
and Agrianians and Odomantians, 7 and about the lake Prasias itself,
were not conquered at all by Megabazos. He tried however to remove even
those who lived in the lake and who had their dwellings in the following
manner:--a platform fastened together and resting upon lofty piles stood
in the middle of the water of the lake, with a narrow approach to it
from the mainland by a single bridge. The piles which supported the
platform were no doubt originally set there by all the members of the
community working together, but since that time they continue to set
them by observance of this rule, that is to say, every man who marries
brings from the mountain called Orbelos three piles for each wife and
sets them as supports; and each man takes to himself many wives. And
they have their dwelling thus, that is each man has possession of a hut
upon the platform in which he lives and of a trap-door 8 leading through
the platform down to the lake: and their infant children they tie with
a rope by the foot, for fear that they should roll into the water. To
their horses and beasts of burden they give fish for fodder; and of fish
there is so great quantity that if a man open the trap-door and let down
an empty basket by a cord into the lake, after waiting quite a short
time he draws it up again full of fish. Of the fish there are two kinds,
and they call them paprax and tilon.

17. So then those of the Paionians who had been conquered were being
brought to Asia: and Megabazos meanwhile, after he had conquered the
Paionians, sent as envoys to Macedonia seven Persians, who after himself
were the men of most repute in the army. These were being sent to
Amyntas to demand of him earth and water for Dareios the king.