. History of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia and Assyria . et armiesvery much smaller, but composed of homogenous elements,all animated with the same spirit and drilled in the sameschool. By continual conquests, the Persians were now reducedto only two outlets for their energies, in two oppositedirections— in the east towards India, in the west towardsGreece. Everywhere else their advance was arrested bythe sea or other obstacles almost as impassable to theirheavily armed battalions: to the north the empire wasbounded by the Black Sea, the Caucasus, the CaspianSea, and the Siberian steppes ;
. History of Egypt, Chaldea, Syria, Babylonia and Assyria . et armiesvery much smaller, but composed of homogenous elements,all animated with the same spirit and drilled in the sameschool. By continual conquests, the Persians were now reducedto only two outlets for their energies, in two oppositedirections— in the east towards India, in the west towardsGreece. Everywhere else their advance was arrested bythe sea or other obstacles almost as impassable to theirheavily armed battalions: to the north the empire wasbounded by the Black Sea, the Caucasus, the CaspianSea, and the Siberian steppes ; to the south, by the IndianOcean, the sandy table-land of Arabia, and the Africandeserts. At one moment, about 612 , it is possiblethat they pushed forward towards the From theIranian plateau they beheld from afar the immense plain ^ India is not referred to in the Behistun Inscription, but is mentionedin one of the Inscriptions of Persepolis, and in that of campaign in which it was subjugated must be placed about 512 FUNERAL OFFERINGS. THE VOYAGE OP SCYLAX OF CARYANDA 193 of the Hapta Hindu (or the Punjab). Darius invaded thisterritory, and made himself master of extensive districtswhich he formed into a new satrapy, that of India, butsubsequently, renouncing all idea of pushing eastward asfar as the Ganges, he turned his steps towards the south-east. A fleet, constructed at Peukela and placed underthe command of a Greek admiral, Scylax of Caryanda,descended the Indus by order of the king; * subjugatingthe tribes who dwelt along the banks as he advanced,Scylax at length reached the ocean, on which he venturedforth, undismayed by the tides, and proceeded in a westerlydirection, exploring, in less than thirty months, the shoresof Gedrosia and Arabia. Once on the threshold of India,the Persians saw open before them a brilliant and lucrativecareer: the circumstances which prevented them fromfollowing up this preliminary success are unknown—
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