harge of lewdness and persuades her husband that
the truth is so. He then being convinced by his wife, devised an unholy
deed against the daughter: for there was in Oaexos one Themison, a
merchant of Thera, whom Etearchos took to himself as a guest-friend
and caused him to swear that he would surely serve him in whatsoever he
should require: and when he had caused him to swear this, he brought and
delivered to him his daughter and bade him take her away and cast
her into the sea. Themison then was very greatly vexed at the
deceit practised in the matter of the oath, and he dissolved his
guest-friendship and did as follows, that is to say, he received the
girl and sailed away, and when he got out into the open sea, to free
himself from blame as regards the oath which Etearchos had made him
swear, he tied her on each side with ropes and let her down into the
sea, and then drew her up and came to Thera.

155. After that, Polymnestos, a man of repute among the Theraians,
received Phronime from him and kept her as his concubine; and in course
of time there was born to him from her a son with an impediment in his
voice and lisping, to whom, as both Theraians and Kyrenians say, was
given the name Battos, but I think that some other name was then given,
139 and he was named Battos instead of this after he came to Libya,
taking for himself this surname from the oracle which was given to him
at Delphi and from the rank which he had obtained; for the Libyans call
a king battos: and for this reason, I think, the Pythian prophetess in
her prophesying called him so, using the Libyan tongue, because she knew
that he would be a king in Libya. For when he had grown to be a man,
he came to Delphi to inquire about his voice; and when he asked, the
prophetess thus answered him:

"For a voice thou camest, O Battos, but thee lord Phoebus Apollo
Sendeth as settler forth to the Libyan land sheep-abounding,"

just as if she should say using the Hellenic tongue, "For a voice thou
camest, O king." He thus made answer: "Lord, I came to thee to inquire
concerning my voice, but thou answerest me other things which are not
possible, bidding me go as a settler to Libya; but with what power,
or with what force of men should I go?" Thus saying he did not at all
persuade her to give him any other reply; and as she was prophesying to
him again the same things as before, Battos departed while she was yet
speaking, 140 and went away to Thera.

156.