ans
who were in the ships: "Ionians, the days of your number are past, and
ye are not acting uprightly in that ye yet remain waiting: but as ye
stayed before from fear, so now break up the passage as quickly as ye
may, and depart free and unhurt, 123 feeling thankfulness both to the
gods and to the Scythians: and him who was formerly your master we
will so convince, that he shall never again march with an army upon any
nation."

137. Upon this the Ionians took counsel together; and Miltiades the
Athenian on the one hand, who was commander and despot of the men of
the Chersonese in Hellespont, was of opinion that they should follow the
advice of the Scythians and set Ionia free: but Histiaios the Milesian
was of the opposite opinion to this; for he said that at the present
time it was by means of Dareios that each one of them was ruling as
despot over a city; and if the power of Dareios should be destroyed,
neither he himself would be able to bear rule over the Milesians, nor
would any other of them be able to bear rule over any other city; for
each of the cities would choose to have popular rather than despotic
rule. When Histiaios declared his opinion thus, forthwith all turned to
this opinion, whereas at the first they were adopting that of Miltiades.

138. Now these were they who gave the vote between the two opinions, and
were men of consequence in the eyes of the king, 124--first the despots
of the Hellespontians, Daphnis of Abydos, Hippoclos of Lampsacos,
Herophantos of Parion, Metrodoros of Proconnesos, Aristagoras of
Kyzicos, and Ariston of Byzantion, these were those from the Hellespont;
and from Ionia, Strattis of Chios, Aiakes of Samos, Laodamas of Phocaia,
and Histiaios of Miletos, whose opinion had been proposed in opposition
to that of Miltiades; and of the Aiolians the only man of consequence
there present was Aristagoras of Kyme.

139. When these adopted the opinion of Histiaios, they resolved to add
to it deeds and words as follows, namely to break up that part of the
bridge which was on the side towards the Scythians, to break it up, I
say, for a distance equal to the range of an arrow, both in order that
they might be thought to be doing something, though in fact they were
doing nothing, and for fear that the Scythians might make an attempt
using force and desiring to cross the Ister by the bridge: and in
breaking up that part of the bridge which was towards Scythia they
resolved to say that they w