At length the chief of the band called to Otanes and said, "Young fellow, have you anything worth taking?"
Otanes answered, "I have already told two of your men that I have forty pieces of gold in my hat. But they wouldn't believe me."
"Take off your hat," said the chief.
[Illustration]
The boy obeyed. The chief tore out the lining and found the gold hidden beneath it.
"Why did you tell us where to find it?" he asked. "No one would have thought that a child like you had gold about him."
"If I had answered your questions differently, I should have told a lie," said Otanes; "and none but cowards tell lies"
The robber chief was struck by this answer. He thought of the number of times that he himself had been a coward. Then he said, "You are a brave boy, and you may keep your gold. Here it is. Mount your horse, and my own men will ride with you and see that you reach the end of your journey in safety."
Otanes, in time, became one of the famous men of his country. He was the advisor and friend of two of the kings who succeeded Cyrus.