ions, nor whether the god granted the hand of the princess to
her barbarian suitor. All we know is, that the incursions and intrigues
of the Scythians continued to be a perpetual source of trouble to the
Medes, and roused them either to rebel against Assyria or to claim the
protection of its sovereign. Esarhaddon, in the course of his reign,
was more than once compelled to interfere in order to ensure peace and
quietness to the provinces on the table-land of Iran, which Sargon had
conquered and which Sennacherib had retained.*

* Several recent historians allege that Sennacherib did not
keep the territories that Sargon had conquered, and that the
Assyrian frontier became contracted on that side; whereas
the general testimony of the known texts seems to me to
prove the contrary, namely, that he preserved nearly all the
territory annexed by his father, and that Esarhaddon was far
from diminishing this inheritance. If these two kings
mention only insignificant deeds of arms in the western
region, it is because the population, exhausted by the wars
of the two preceding reigns, easily recognised the Ninevite
supremacy, and paid tribute to the Assyrian governors with
sufficient regularity to prevent any important military
expedition against them.

He had first to carry his arms to the extreme edge of the desert, into
the rugged country of Patusharra, lying at the foot of Demavend, rich
in lapis-lazuli, and as yet untrodden by any king of Assyria.* Having
reached his destination, he captured two petty kings, Eparna and
Shitirparna, and exiled them to Assyria, together with their people,
their thoroughbred horses, and their two-humped camels,--in fine, all
the possessions of their subjects. Shortly after this, three other
Median chiefs, hitherto intractable--Uppis of Par-takka, Zanasana of
Partukka,** Ramatea of Urakazabarna--came to Nineveh to present the king
with horses and lapis-lazuli, the best of everything they possessed, and
piteously entreated him to forgive their misdeeds.

* The country of Patusharra has been identified with that of
the Patischorians mentioned by Strabo in Persia proper, who
would have lived further north, not far from Demavend;
Sachau calls attention to the existence of a mountain chain
Patashwar-gar or Padishwar-gir, in front of Choarcne, and he
places the country of Patusharra between Demavend and the