ly undertaken the war
with the Persians, they were to involve them in it nevertheless against
their will; and after that they were to return to their own land and
attack the enemy, if it should seem good to them in council so to do.

121. Having formed this plan the Scythians went to meet the army of
Dareios, sending off the best of their horsemen before them as scouts;
but all 112 the waggons in which their children and their women lived
they sent on, and with them all their cattle (leaving only so much as
was sufficient to supply them with food), and charged them that they
should proceed continually towards the North Wind. These, I say, were
being carried on before:

122, but when the scouts who went in front of the Scythians discovered
the Persians distant about three days' march from Ister, then the
Scythians having discovered them continued to pitch their camp one day's
march in front, destroying utterly that which grew from the ground: and
when the Persians saw that the horsemen of the Scythians had made their
appearance, they came after them following in their track, while the
Scythians continually moved on. After this, since they had directed
their march towards the first of the divisions, the Persians continued
to pursue towards the East and the river Tanais; and when the Scythians
crossed over the river Tanais, the Persians crossed over after them and
continued still to pursue, until they had passed quite through the land
of the Sauromatai and had come to that of the Budinoi.

123. Now so long as the Persians were passing through Scythia and the
land of the Sauromatai, they had nothing to destroy, seeing that the
land was bare, 113 but when they invaded the land of the Budinoi,
then they fell in with the wooden wall, which had been deserted by the
Budinoi and left wholly unoccupied, and this they destroyed by fire.
Having done so they continued to follow on further in the tracks of
the enemy, until they had passed through the whole of this land and had
arrived at the desert. This desert region is occupied by no men, and it
lies above the land of the Budinoi, extending for a seven days' journey;
and above this desert dwell the Thyssagetai, and four large rivers flow
from them through the land of the Maiotians and run into that which is
called the Maiotian lake, their names being as follows,--Lycos, Oaros,
Tanais, Syrgis. 114

124. When therefore Dareios came to the desert region, he ceased from
his course a