Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 6 (ERATO) Complete

Translated by G. Macaulay.

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"'Glaucos, thou, Epikydes' son, yea, this for the moment, This, to conquer their word by an oath and to rob, is more gainful. Swear, since the lot of death waits also for him who swears truly. But know thou that Oath has a son, one nameless and handless and footless, Yet without feet he pursues, without hands he seizes, and wholly He shall destroy the race and the house of the man who offendeth. But for the man who swears truly his race is the better hereafter.'

Having heard this Glaucos entreated that the god would pardon him for that which he had said, but the prophetess said that to make trial of the god and to do the deed were things equivalent. (d) Glaucos then, having sent for the Milesians, gave back to them the money: but the reason for which, O Athenians, I set forth to relate to you this story, shall now be told. At the present time there is no descendant of Glaucos existing, nor any hearth which is esteemed to be that of Glaucos, but he has been utterly destroyed and rooted up out of Sparta. Thus it is good not even to entertain a thought about a deposit other than that of restoring it, when they who made it ask for it again."

87. When Leotychides had thus spoken, since not even so were the Athenians willing to listen to him, he departed back; and the Eginetans, before paying the penalty for their former wrongs wherein they did outrage to the Athenians to please the Thebans,[77] acted as follows:--complaining of the conduct of the Athenians and thinking that they were being wronged, they made preparations to avenge themselves upon the Athenians; and since the Athenians were celebrating a four-yearly festival[78] at Sunion, they lay in wait for the sacred ship which was sent to it and took it, the vessel being full of men who were the first among the Athenians; and having taken it they laid the men in bonds.

77. See v. 80.

78. {penteteris}. The reading {penteres}, which is given by most of the MSS. and by several Editors, can hardly be defended.

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