II. Histiæus perceiving himself suspected, fled the very first night towards the fea: and inftead of fulfilling his engagements with Darius, to whofe power he had promised to reduce the great ifland of Sardinia, affumed the command of the Ionian forces against him. Paffing over into Chios, he was seized and thrown into chains by the inhabitants, who accufed him of coming from the king with fome defign against their state. When they had heard the truth, and were convinced that he was really an enemy to Darius, they released him.

III. Hiftiæus was afterwards interrogated by the Ionians, why he had so precipitately impelled Arif

1

Greek; but M. Larcher, thinking perhaps the expreffion somewhat inclining to vulgarity, has rendered it thus, "You contrived the plot which he has executed." Not very unlike this phrafe ufed by the Perfian to Ariftagoras, is our English one of ftanding in another perfon's fhoes; which perhaps may be traced to times more remote than may at first be imagined. Aristophanes in his Equites has this expreffion :

Ουκ, αλλ' οπες πίνων πεπονθόταν χεσει

ανης

Τοισι τρόποις τοις σοισιν ωσπες βλαυτιοισι χρωμαι.

When the Greeks reclined upon their couches at meals and entertainments, they pulled off their fandals; if any one on any occafion wanted to leave the apartment, he put them on again. Therefore, fays the poet, I do that with respect to your manners, as a man does at an entertainment, who, wanting to go out of the room, uses another perfon's fandals. It would by no means be an uninteresting work, to trace the meaning of our proverbial expreffions to their remoteft application: for my own part I am well convinced, that more of them might be discovered in the customs and languages of Greece and Rome, than an English antiquary would at firft perhaps be willing to allow.-T.

tagoras,

tagoras to revolt, a circumftance which had occafioned the iofs of fo many of their countrymen. His anfwer was infidious, and calculated to imprefs the Ionians with alarm; he told them what really was not the fact, that his conduct had been prompted by the avowed intentions of Darius to remove the Phoenicians to Ionia, the Ionians to Phoenicia.

2

IV. His next measure was to fend letters to certain Perfians at Sardis, with whom he had previously communicated on the fubject of a revolt; these he entrusted to Hermippus, a native of Atarnis, who abused the confidence repofed in him, by delivering the letters into the hands of Artaphernes. The governor, after acquainting himself with their contents, defired Hermippus to deliver them according to their first directions, and then to give to him the anfwers intended for Hiftiæus. In confequence of the intelligence which he by thefe means obtained, Artaphernes put a great number of Perfians to death.

V. A tumult was thus excited at Sardis; but Hiftiæus failing in this project, prevailed on the

2 To remove the Phænicians, &c.]—It was the easier to make the Ionians credit this affertion, becaufe fuch kind of tranfmigrations were frequent amongst the Affyrians and Perfians. It is well known that the Jews were removed to Babylon and Media, and Hyrcanians were to be found in Afia Minor: it would indeed be endless to enumerate all the tranfmigrations which were made by the command of thofe people.-Larcher. We have already seen a great part of the Pæonians of Thrace removed into Afia by order of Darius. See book v. ch. 15.—T:

Chians to carry him back to Miletus. The Milefians, delighted with the removal of Aristagoras, had already tafted the fweets of liberty, and were little inclined to give admiffion to a fecond mafter. Hif tiæus attempting to effect a landing at Miletus in the night, was by fome unknown hand wounded in the thigh: rejected by his country, he again fet fail for Chios, whence, as the inhabitants refused to entrust him with their fleet, he paffed over to Mitylene*. Having from the Lesbians obtained the command of eight triremes properly equipped, he proceeded to Byzantium. Here he took his station, and intercepted all the veffels coming from the Euxine, except those which confented to obey him.

VI. Whilst Histiæus, with the aid of the people of Mitylene, was acting thus, Miletus itself was threatened with a most formidable attack, both by fea and land. The Perfian generals had collected all their forces into one body, and making but little account of the other cities, advanced towards Miletus. Of those who affifted them by fea, the Phonicians were the most alert; with thefe ferved the Cyprians, who had been recently fubdued, as well as the Cilicians and Ægyptians.

VII. When the Ionians received intelligence of this armainent, which not only menaced Miletus, but the rest of Ionia, they fent delegates to the Panio

* Mitylene.]—In the first book, chap. 160. it is written Mytilene: the difference is in the original.

nium.

The refult of their deliberations was, that they should by no means meet the Perfians by land; that the people of Miletus fhould vigorously defend their city; and that the allies should provide and equip every veffel in their power; that as foon as their fleet should be in readiness they fhould meet at Lade, and rifque a battle in favour of Miletus. Lade is a small island immediately oppofite to Miletus.

VIII. The Ionians completed their fleet, and affembled at the place appointed; they were reinforced by the collective power of the Æolians of Lefbos, and prepared for an engagement in the following order. The Milefians furnished eighty veffels, which occupied the east wing; next to thefe were the Prienians, with twelve, and the Myufians with three fhips; contiguous were the Chians in one hundred veffels, and the Teians in

3 Panionium.]-See chap. 148. of book the first.-In my this word, I omitted to mention, that the Panionium probably fuggefted to Milton the idea of his Pandemonium.

note upon

Meanwhile the winged heralds by command

Of fovran power, with awful ceremony

And trumpet's found, throughout the hoft proclaim
A folemn council forthwith to be held

At PANDEMONIUM, the high capital

Of Satan and his peers.

T.

Lade.]-Paufanias informs us that this island was divided into two, one of which parts was called Afterius, from Afterius the fon of Anactes.-See book i. chap. 25.-T.

feventeen: beyond thefe were the Erythreans and Phocæans, the former with eight, the latter with three fhips. The Lesbians in feventy fhips were next to the Phocæans; in the extremity of the line, to the weft, the Samians were pofted in fixty ships: the whole fleet was compofed of three hundred and fifty-three triremes.

IX. The Barbarians were poffeffed of fix hundred veffels as foon as they came before Miletus, and their land forces alfo were arrived, the Perfian commanders were greatly alarmed by the intelligence they received of their adversaries force; they began to apprehend that their inferiority by fea might at the fame time prevent their capture of Miletus, and expofe them to the refentment of Darius. With thefe fentiments, they called together those Ionian princes who, being depofed by Ariftagoras, had taken refuge amongst the Medes, and were prefent on this expedition.-They addressed them to this effect: "Men of Ionia, let each of you now fhew his zeal in the royal caufe, by endeavouring to detach from this confederacy his " own countrymen: allure them by the promise "that no punishment fhall be the confequence of "their revolt; that neither their temples nor other " edifices fhall be burned; that their treatment shall "not in any refpect be more violent than before. "If they perfevere in trufting to the event of a "battle, tell them that the contrary of all these "will affuredly happen;-themselves fhall be hur