ran away to Tegea, travelling during the nights and in the daytime
entering a wood and resting there; so that, though the Lacedemonians
searched for him in full force, he arrived at Tegea on the third
night; and the Lacedemonians were possessed by great wonder both at
his courage, when they saw the piece of the foot that was cut off lying
there, and also because they were not able to find him. So he at that
time having thus escaped them took refuge at Tegea, which then was not
friendly with the Lacedemonians; and when he was healed and had procured
for himself a wooden foot, he became an open enemy of the Lacedemonians.
However in the end the enmity into which he had fallen with the
Lacedemonians was not to his advantage; for he was caught by them while
practising divination in Zakynthos, and was put to death.

38. However the death of Hegesistratos took place later than the
events at Plataia, and he was now at the Asopos, having been hired by
Mardonions for no mean sum, sacrificing and displaying zeal for his
cause both on account of his enmity with the Lacedemonians and on
account of the gain which he got: but as the sacrifices were not
favourable for a battle either for the Persians themselves or for
those Hellenes who were with them (for these also had a diviner for
themselves, Hippomachos a Leucadian), and as the Hellenes had men
constantly flowing in and were becoming more in number, Timagenides the
son of Herpys, a Theban, counselled Mardonios to set a guard on the pass
of Kithairon, saying that the Hellenes were constantly flowing in every
day and that he would thus cut off large numbers..

39. Eight days had now passed while they had been sitting opposite to
one another, when he gave this counsel to Mardonios; and Mardonios,
perceiving that the advice was good, sent the cavalry when night came
on to the pass of Kithairon leading towards Plataia, which the Boeotians
call the "Three Heads" 46 and the Athenians the "Oak Heads." 47 Having
been thus sent, the cavalry did not come without effect, for they caught
five hundred baggage-animals coming out into the plain, which were
bearing provisions from Peloponnesus to the army, and also the men
who accompanied the carts: and having taken this prize the Persians
proceeded to slaughter them without sparing either beast or man; and
when they were satiated with killing they surrounded the rest and drove
them into the camp to Mardonios.

40. After this deed they spent t