According to the story told by Nicolaus Damascenus[698], Damonno, the wife of Cadys, whose reign is ascribed to the middle of the eighth century[699], after her royal husband’s death won over by her wealth a large number of Lydians, expelled her brother-in-law Ardys, and then married her lover Spermos and proclaimed him king. When banished by Spermos and Damonno, Ardys goes into business at Cyme as a waggon-builder (ἁμαξοπηγῶν) and is keeping a hotel (πανδοκεύων) there when called back to the throne of Sardis. He is brought back by a tavern-keeper or retail trader (κάπηλος) named Thyessos[700], who as his reward asked and received that this inn or shop (καπηλεῖον) should be exempt from paying dues (ἀτελές) and after a time became rich from his shop-keeping (καπηλεύειν) and as a result established near it a market and a shrine of Hermes[701]. The part played in this story by innkeepers may, at first sight, seem odd. But as pointed out by Radet[702] in discussing the word κάπηλος, innkeeper was probably synonymous with merchant in the days of Ardys (766–730 B.C.)[703], when Lydia was already becoming a great highway of commerce between Further Asia and the Aegean[704]. The Lydian merchants of the period must have seen the advantage of providing food and shelter for the members of the caravans with whom they traded. Waggon-building, which was one of the occupations of the banished Ardys[705], is part of the same activity, connected with the famous road that did as much to make the fortunes of ancient Lydia as railways will some day do to revive them in the future.