Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 6 (ERATO) Complete

Translated by G. Macaulay.

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76. For when Cleomenes was consulting the Oracle at Delphi, the answer was given him that he should conquer Argos; so he led the Spartans and came to the river Erasinos, which is said to flow from the Stymphalian lake; for this lake, they say, running out into a viewless chasm, appears again above ground in the land of Argos; and from thence onwards this water is called by the Argives Erasinos: having come, I say, to this river, Cleomenes did sacrifice to it; and since the sacrifices were not at all favourable for him to cross over, he said that he admired the Erasinos for not betraying the men of its country, but the Argives should not even so escape. After this he retired back from thence and led his army down to Thyrea; and having done sacrifice to the Sea by slaying a bull, he brought them in ships to the land of Tiryns and Nauplia. 77. Being informed of this, the Argives came to the rescue towards the sea; and when they had got near Tiryns and were at the place which is called Hesipeia,[66] they encamped opposite to the Lacedemonians leaving no very wide space between the armies. There the Argives were not afraid of the open fighting, but only lest they should be conquered by craft; for to this they thought referred the oracle which the Pythian prophetess gave in common to these and to the Milesians,[67] saying as follows:

"But when the female at length shall conquer the male in the battle, Conquer and drive him forth, and glory shall gain among Argives, Then many wives of the Argives shall tear both cheeks in their mourning; So that a man shall say some time, of the men that came after, 'Quelled by the spear it perished, the three-coiled terrible serpent,'

66. The MSS. give also "Sepeia" and "Sipeia." The place is not elsewhere mentioned.

67. See ch. 19.

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