Paragraph 23 23. The Samians as they made their way towards Sicily reached Locroi Epizephyroi, and at the same time the people of Zancle, both themselves and their king, whose name was Skythes, were encamped about a city of the Sikelians, desiring to conquer it. Perceiving these things, Anaxilaos the despot of Rhegion, being then at variance with those of Zancle, communicated with the Samians and persuaded them that they ought to leave the Fair Strand alone, to which they were sailing, and take possession of Zancle instead, since it was left now without men to defend it. The Samians accordingly did as he said and took possession of Zancle; and upon this the men of Zancle, being informed that their city was possessed by an enemy, set out to rescue it, and invited Hippocrates the despot of Gela to help them, for he was their ally. When however Hippocrates also with his army had come up to their rescue, first he put Skythes the ruler of the Zanclaians in fetters, on the ground that he had been the cause of the city being lost, and together with him his brother Pythogenes, and sent them away to the town of Incyos; 12 then he betrayed the cause of the remaining Zanclaians by coming to terms with the Samians and exchanging oaths with them; and in return for this it had been promised by the Samians that Hippocrates should receive as his share the half of all the movable goods in the city and of the slaves, and the whole of the property in the fields round. So the greater number of the Zanclaians he put in bonds and kept himself as slaves, but the chief men of them, three hundred in number, he gave to the Samians to put to death; which however the Samians did not do.
Paragraph 24 24. Now Skythes the ruler of the Zanclaians escaped from Incyos to Himera, and thence he came to Asia and went up to the court of Dareios: and Dareios accounted him the most righteous of all the men who had come up to him from Hellas; for he obtained leave of the king and went away to Sicily, and again came back from Sicily to the king; and at last he brought his life to an end among the Persians in old age and possessing great wealth. The Samians then, having got rid of the rule of the Medes, had gained for themselves without labour the fair city of Zancle.