A bird, a frog, a mouse, and five arrows, had been the present of the Scythian king to Darius (Herodot. l. iv. c. 131, 132.).
Substituez une lettre a ces signes
(says Rousseau, with much good taste) plus elle sera
menacante moins elle effrayera; ce ne sera qu'une
fanfarronade dont Darius n'eut fait que rire, (Emile, tom.
iii. p. 146.)
Yet I much question whether the senate and people of Constantinople laughed at this message of the chagan.