Herodotus' HISTORY BOOK 3 (THALEIA) Complete

Translated by G. Macaulay.

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104. The Indians, I say, ride out to get the gold in the manner and with the kind of yoking which I have described, making calculations so that they may be engaged in carrying it off at the time when the greatest heat prevails; for the heat causes the ants to disappear underground. Now among these nations the sun is hottest in the morning hours, not at midday as with others, but from sunrise to the time of closing the market: and during this time it produces much greater heat than at midday in Hellas, so that it is said that then they drench themselves with water. Midday however has about equal degree of heat with the Indians as with other men, while after midday their sun becomes like the morning sun with other men, and after this, as it goes further away, it produces still greater coolness, until at last at sunset it makes the air very cool indeed. 105. When the Indians have come to the place with bags, they fill them with the sand and ride away back as quickly as they can, for forthwith the ants, perceiving, as the Persians allege, by the smell, begin to pursue them: and this animal, they say, is superior to every other creature in swiftness, so that unless the Indians got a start in their course, while the ants were gathering together, not one of them would escape. So then the male camels, for they are inferior in speed of running to the females, if they drag behind are even let loose [95] from the side of the female, one after the other; [96] the females however, remembering the young which they left behind, do not show any slackness in their course. [97] Thus it is that the Indians get most part of the gold, as the Persians say; there is however other gold also in their land obtained by digging, but in smaller quantities.

[95] {kai paraluesthai}: {kai} is omitted in some MSS. and by some Editors.

[96] {ouk omou}: some Editors omit {ouk}: the meaning seems to be that in case of necessity they are thrown off one after another to delay the pursuing animals.

[97] The meaning of the passage is doubtful: possibly it should be translated (omitting {kai}) "the male camels, being inferior in speed to the females, flag in their course and are dragged along, first one and then the other."

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