as free men, they are the most
worthless and cowardly of all men, but on the other hand, if regarded
as slaves, they are the most attached to their master and the least
disposed to run away of all slaves. This is the reproach which is cast
against the Ionians by the Scythians.

143. Dareios then marching through Thrace arrived at Sestos in the
Chersonese; and from that place, he passed over himself in his ships to
Asia, but to command his army in Europe he left Megabazos a Persian, to
whom Dareios once gave honour by uttering in the land of Persia 126 this
saying:--Dareios was beginning to eat pomegranates, and at once when he
opened the first of them, Artabanos his brother asked him of what he
would desire to have as many as there were seeds in the pomegranate: and
Dareios said that he would desire to have men like Megabazos as many as
that in number, rather than to have Hellas subject to him. In Persia, I
say, he honoured him by saying these words, and at this time he left him
in command with eight myriads 127 of his army.

144. This Megabazos uttered one saying whereby he left of himself an
imperishable memory with the peoples of Hellespont: for being once at
Byzantion he heard that the men of Calchedon had settled in that region
seventeen years before the Byzantians, and having heard it he said that
those of Calchedon at that time chanced to be blind; for assuredly they
would not have chosen the worse place, when they might have settled in
that which was better, if they had not been blind. This Megabazos it was
who was left in command at that time in the land of the Hellespontians,
and he proceeded to subdue all who did not take the side of the Medes.

145. He then was doing thus; and at this very same time a great
expedition was being made also against Libya, on an occasion which
I shall relate when I have first related this which follows.--The
children's children of those who voyaged in the Argo, having been driven
forth by those Pelasgians who carried away at Brauron the women of the
Athenians,--having been driven forth I say by these from Lemnos, had
departed and sailed to Lacedemon, and sitting down on Mount Taygetos
they kindled a fire. The Lacedemonians seeing this sent a messenger to
inquire who they were and from whence; and they answered the question
of the messenger saying that they were Minyai and children of heroes who
sailed in the Argo, for 128 these, they said, had put in to Lemnos and
propagated