The Twitter Herodotus

4.1 Darius invaded Scythia to punish the S for once occupying Media. After 28 yrs the S went home 2 find their women had lived w/the slaves.

4.2 All the Scythians' slaves are blinded. This has to do w/the fact that the Scythians drink milk, and they use their slaves to churn it.

4.3 The children of the women and these slaves fought the Scythians when they returned from Media--until the S. got the idea to use whips.

4.4 Seeing the whips, the slaves lost their fighting spirit, and the Scythians got their land back after their 28-year occupation of Media.

4.5 The Scythians say their king Targitaus had 3 sons. An omen involving sacred gold led to the youngest of them gaining the sovereignty.

4.6 The Scythian people, according to the Scythians, were descended from these three brothers.

4.7 This is how Scythia came to be, so they say. The land north of Scythia is inaccessible because the air there is filled with feathers.

4.8 But the Greeks who live around the Black Sea say that Heracles fell asleep in what is now Scythia and woke to find his mares missing.

4.9 A half snake woman had them & wd return them if H. had sex w/her. 3 sons later H got his horses. He instructed her re. the boys' future.

4.10 Per H.'s instructions, she gave the sovereignty of the country to the youngest, Scythes, who was able to properly use H.'s bow & belt.