Herodotus.(1092) He tells us that Gyges wore a ring, the stone of which,
when turned towards him, rendered him invisible; so that he had the
advantage of seeing others, without being seen himself; and that by means
of this ring, with the concurrence of the queen, he deprived Candaules of
his life and throne. This probably signifies, that in order to compass his
criminal design, he used all the tricks and stratagems, which the world
calls subtle and refined policy, which penetrates into the most secret
purposes of others, without making the least discovery of its own. The
story, thus explained, carries in it a greater appearance of truth, than
what we read in Herodotus.
Cicero, after having related this fable of Gyges’s famous ring, adds, that
if a wise man had such a ring, he would not use it to any wicked purpose;
because virtue considers what is honourable and just, and has no occasion
for darkness.(1093)
(M192) GYGES reigned thirty-eight years.(1094) The murder of Candaules
raised a sedition among the Lydians. The two parties, instead of coming to
blows, agreed to refer the matter to the decision of the Delphic oracle,
which declared in favour of Gyges. The king made large presents to the
temple of Delphi, which undoubtedly preceded, and had no little influence
upon, the oracle’s answer. Among other things of value, Herodotus mentions
six golden cups, weighing thirty talents, amounting to near a million of
French money, which is about forty-eight thousand pounds sterling.
As soon as he was in peaceable possession of the throne, he made war
against Miletus, Smyrna, and Colophon, three powerful cities belonging to
the neighbouring states.
After he had reigned thirty-eight years, he died, and was succeeded by his
son
ARDYS, who reigned forty-nine years.(1095) It was in the reign of(M193)
this prince, that the Cimmerians, driven out of their country by the
Scythæ Nomades, went into Asia, and took the city of Sardis, with the
exception of the citadel.
(M194) SADYATTES reigned twelve years.(1096) This prince declared war
against the Milesians, and laid siege to their city. In those days the
sieges, which were generally nothing more than blockades, were carried on
very slowly, and lasted many years. This king died before he had finished
that of Miletus, and was succeeded by his son.
(M195) HALYATTES reigned fifty-seven years.(1097) This is the prince who
made war against Cyaxares, king of Media. He likewise drove the Cimmerians
out of Asia. He attacked and took the cities of Smyrna and Clazomenæ. He
vigorously prosecuted the war against the Milesians, begun by his father;
and continued the siege of their city, which had lasted six years under
his father, and continued as many under him. It ended at length in the
following manner: Halyattes, upon an answer he received from the Delphic
oracle, had sent an ambassador into the city, to propose a truce for some
months. Thrasybulus, Tyrant of Miletus, having notice of his coming,
ordered all the corn, and other provisions, assembled by him and his
subjects for their support, to be brought into the public market; and
commanded the citizens, at the sight of a signal that should be given, to
be all in a general humour of feasting and jollity. The thing was executed
according to his orders. The Lydian ambassador at his arrival was in the
utmost surprise to see such plenty in the market, and such cheerfulness in
the city. His master, to whom he gave an account of what he had seen,
concluding that his project of reducing the place by famine would never
succeed, preferred peace to so apparently fruitless a war, and immediately
raised the siege.
(M196) CRŒSUS. His very name, which is become a proverb, conveys an idea
of immense riches. The wealth of this prince, to judge of it only by the
presents he made to the temple of Delphi, must have been excessively
great. Most of those presents were still to be seen in the time of
Herodotus, and were worth several millions. We may partly account for the
treasures of this prince, from certain mines that he had, situate,
according to Strabo, between Pergamus and Atarna;(1098) as also from the
little river Pactolus, the sand of which was gold. But in Strabo’s time
this river had no longer the same advantage.
What is very extraordinary, this affluence did not enervate or soften the
courage of Crœsus.(1099) He thought it unworthy of a prince to spend his
time in idleness and pleasure. For his part, he was perpetually in arms,
made several conquests, and enlarged his dominions by the addition of all
the contiguous provinces, as Phrygia, Mysia, Paphlagonia, Bithynia,
Pamphylia, and all the country of the Carians, Ionians, Dorians, and
Æolians. Herodotus observes, that he was the first conqueror of the
Greeks, who till then had never been subject to a foreign power. Doubtless
he must mean the Greeks settled in Asia Minor.
But what is still more extraordinary in this prince, though he was so
immensely rich, and so great a warrior, yet his chief delight was in
literature and the sciences. His court was the ordinary residence of those
famous learned men, so revered by antiquity, and distinguished by the name
of the Seven Wise Men of Greece.
Solon, one of the most celebrated amongst them, after having established
new laws at Athens, thought he might absent himself for some years, and
improve that time by travelling.(1100) He went to Sardis, where he was
received in a manner suitable to the reputation of so great a man. The
king, attended with a numerous court, appeared in all his regal pomp and
splendour, dressed in the most magnificent apparel, which was all over
enriched with gold, and glittered with diamonds. Notwithstanding the
novelty of this spectacle to Solon, it did not appear that he was the
least moved at it, nor did he utter a word which discovered the least
surprise or admiration; on the contrary, people of sense might
sufficiently discern from his behaviour, that he looked upon all this
outward pomp, as an indication of a little mind, which knows not in what
true greatness and dignity consist. This coldness and indifference in
Solon’s first approach, gave the king no favourable opinion of his new
guest.
He afterwards ordered that all his treasures, his magnificent apartments,
and costly furniture, should be showed him; as if he expected, by the
multitude of his fine vessels, jewels, statues, and paintings, to conquer
the philosopher’s indifference. But these things were not the king; and it
was the king that Solon was come to visit, and not the walls and chambers
of his palace. He had no notion of making a judgment of the king, or an
estimate of his worth, by these outward appendages, but by himself and his
own personal qualities. Were we to judge at present by the same rule, we
should find many of our great men wretchedly naked and desolate.
When Solon had seen all, he was brought back to the king. Crœsus then
asked him, which of mankind in all his travels he had found the most truly
happy? “One Tellus,” replied Solon, “a citizen of Athens, a very honest
and good man, who, after having lived all his days without indigence,
having always seen his country in a flourishing condition, has left
children that are universally esteemed, has had the satisfaction of seeing
those children’s children, and at last died gloriously in fighting for his
country.”
Such an answer as this, in which gold and silver were accounted as
nothing, seemed to Crœsus to denote a strange ignorance and stupidity.
However, as he flattered himself that he should be ranked at least in the
second degree of happiness, he asked him, “Who, of all those he had seen,
was the next in felicity to Tellus?” Solon answered, “Cleobis and Biton,
of Argos, two brothers,(1101) who had left behind them a perfect pattern
of fraternal affection, and of the respect due from children to their
parents. Upon a solemn festival, when their mother, a priestess of Juno,
was to go to the temple, the oxen that were to draw her not being ready,
the two sons put themselves to the yoke, and drew their mother’s chariot
thither, which was above five miles distant. All the mothers of the place,
ravished with admiration, congratulated the priestess on being the mother
of such sons. She, in the transports of her joy and thankfulness,
earnestly entreated the goddess to reward her children with the best thing
that heaven can give to man. Her prayers were heard. When the sacrifice
was over, her two sons fell asleep in the very temple, and there
died(1102) in a soft and peaceful slumber. In honour of their piety, the
people of Argos consecrated statues to them in the temple of Delphi.”
“What then,” says Crœsus, in a tone that showed his discontent, “you do
not reckon me in the number of the happy?” Solon, who was not willing
either to flatter or exasperate him any further, replied calmly: “King of
Lydia, besides many other advantages, the gods have given us Grecians a
spirit of moderation and reserve, which has produced amongst us a plain,
popular kind of philosophy, accompanied with a certain generous freedom,
void of pride or ostentation, and therefore not well suited to the courts
of kings: this philosophy, considering what an infinite number of
vicissitudes and accidents the life of man is liable to, does not allow us
either to glory in any prosperity we enjoy ourselves, or to admire
happiness in others, which perhaps may prove only transient, or
superficial.” From hence he took occasion to represent to him further,
“That the life of man seldom exceeds seventy years, which make up in all
six thousand two hundred and fifty days, of which no two are exactly
alike; so that the time to come is nothing but a series of various
accidents, which cannot be foreseen. Therefore, in our opinion,” continued
he, “no man can be esteemed happy, but he whose happiness God continues to
the end of his life: as for others, who are perpetually exposed to a
thousand dangers, we account their happiness as uncertain as the crown is
to a person that is still engaged in battle, and has not yet obtained the
victory.” Solon retired, when he had spoken these words,(1103) which
served only to mortify Crœsus, but not to reform him.
Æsop, the author of the Fables, was then at the court of this prince, by
whom he was very kindly entertained. He was concerned at the unhandsome
treatment Solon received, and said to him by way of advice: “Solon, we
must either not come near princes at all, or speak things that are
agreeable to them.” “Say rather,” replied Solon, “that we should either
never come near them at all, or else speak such things as may be for their
good.”(1104)
In Plutarch’s time some of the learned were of opinion, that this
interview between Solon and Crœsus did not agree with the dates of
chronology. But as those dates are very uncertain, that judicious author
did not think this objection ought to prevail against the authority of
several credible writers, by whom this story is attested.
What we have now related of Crœsus is a very natural picture of the
behaviour of kings and great men, who for the most part are seduced by
flattery; and shows us at the same time the two sources from whence that
blindness generally proceeds. The one is, a secret inclination which all
men have, but especially the great, of receiving praise without any
precaution, and of judging favourably of all that admire them, and show an
unlimited submission and complaisance to their humours. The other is, the
great resemblance there is between flattery and a sincere affection, or a
reasonable respect; which is sometimes counterfeited so exactly, that the
wisest may be deceived, if they are not very much upon their guard.
Crœsus, if we judge of him by the character he bears in history, was a
very good prince, and worthy of esteem in many respects. He had a great
deal of good-nature, affability, and humanity. His palace was a receptacle
for men of wit and learning, which shows that he himself was a person of
learning, and had a taste for the sciences. His weakness was, that he laid
too great stress upon riches and magnificence, thought himself great and
happy in proportion to his possessions, mistook regal pomp and splendour
for true and solid greatness, and fed his vanity with the excessive
submissions of those that stood in a kind of adoration before him.
Those learned men, those wits and other courtiers, that surrounded this
prince, ate at his table, partook of his pleasures, shared his confidence,
and enriched themselves by his bounty and liberality, took care not to
thwart the prince’s taste, and never thought of undeceiving him with
respect to his errors or false ideas. On the contrary, they made it their
business to cherish and fortify them in him, extolling him perpetually as
the most opulent prince of his age, and never speaking of his wealth, or
the magnificence of his palace, but in terms of admiration and rapture;
because they knew this was the sure way to please him, and to secure his
favour. For flattery is nothing else but a commerce of falsehood and
lying, founded upon interest on one side, and vanity on the other. The
flatterer desirous to advance himself, and make his fortune; the prince to
be praised and admired, because he is his own first flatterer, and carries
within himself a more subtile and better prepared poison than any
adulation gives him.
That maxim of Æsop, who had formerly been a slave, and still retained
somewhat of the spirit and character of slavery, though he had varnished
it over with the address of an artful courtier; that maxim of his, I say,
which recommended to Solon, “That we should either not come near kings, or
say what is agreeable to them,” shows us with what kind of men Crœsus had
filled his court, and by what means he had banished all sincerity,
integrity, and duty, from his presence. In consequence of which, we see he
could not bear that noble and generous freedom in the philosopher, upon
which he ought to have set an infinite value; as he would have done, had
he but understood the worth of a friend, who, attaching himself to the
person, and not to the fortune of a prince, has the courage to tell him
disagreeable truths; truths unpalatable, and bitter to self-love at the
present, but that may prove very salutary and serviceable for the future.
_Dic illis, non quod volunt audire, sed quod audisse semper volent._ These
are Seneca’s own words, where he is endeavouring to show of what great use
a faithful and sincere friend may be to a prince; and what he adds further
seems to be written on purpose for Crœsus: “Give him,”(1105) says he,
“wholesome advice. Let a word of truth once reach those ears, which are
perpetually fed and entertained with flattery. You will ask me, what
service can be done to a person arrived at the highest pitch of felicity?
That of teaching him not to trust in his prosperity; of removing that vain
confidence he has in his power and greatness, as if they were to endure
for ever; of making him understand, that every thing which belongs to and
depends upon fortune, is as unstable as herself; and that there is often
but the space of a moment between the highest elevation and the most
unhappy downfall.”
It was not long before Crœsus experienced the truth of what Solon had told
him.(1106) He had two sons, one of which, being dumb, was a perpetual
subject of affliction to him; the other, named Atys, was distinguished by
every good quality, and his great consolation and delight. The father one
night had a dream, which made a great impression upon his mind, that this
beloved son of his was to perish by iron. This became a new source of
anxiety and trouble, and care is taken to remove out of the young prince’s
way every thing made of iron, as partisans, lances, javelins, &c. No
mention is made of armies, wars, or sieges, before him. But one day there
was to be an extraordinary hunting-match, for the killing of a wild boar,
which had committed great ravage in the neighbourhood. All the young lords
of the court were to be at this hunting. Atys very earnestly importuned
his father that he would give him leave to be present, at least as a
spectator. The king could not refuse him that request, but intrusted him
to the care of a discreet young prince, who had taken refuge in his court,
and was named Adrastus. And this very Adrastus, as he was aiming his
javelin at the boar, unfortunately killed Atys. It is impossible to
express either the affliction of the father, when he heard of this fatal
accident, or of the unhappy prince, the innocent author of the murder, who
expiated his fault with his blood, stabbing himself in the breast with his
own sword, upon the funeral pile of the unfortunate Atys.
Two years were spent on this occasion in deep mourning,(1107) the
afflicted father’s thoughts being wholly taken up with the loss he had
sustained. But the growing reputation, and great qualities of Cyrus, who
began to make himself known, roused him out of his lethargy. He thought it
behoved him to put a stop to the power of the Persians, which was
enlarging itself every day. As he was very religious in his way, he would
never enter upon any enterprise without consulting the gods. But, that he
might not act blindly, and in order to be able to form a certain judgment
on the answers he should receive, he was willing to assure himself
beforehand of the truth of the oracles. For which purpose, he sent
messengers to all the most celebrated oracles both of Greece and Africa,
with orders to inquire, every one at his respective oracle, what Crœsus
was doing on such a day, and such an hour, before agreed on. His orders
were punctually observed; and of all the oracles none gave a true answer
but that of Delphi. The answer was given in Greek hexameter verses, and
was in substance as follows: “I know the number of the grains of sand on
the sea-shore, and the measure of the ocean’s vast extent. I can hear the
dumb, and him that has not yet learnt to speak. A strong smell of a
tortoise boiled in brass, together with sheep’s flesh, has reached my
nostrils, brass beneath, brass above.” And indeed the king, thinking to
invent something that could not possibly be guessed at, had employed
himself on the day and hour set down, in boiling a tortoise and a lamb in
a brass pot, which had a brass cover. St. Austin observes in several
places, that God, to punish the blindness of the Pagans, sometimes
permitted the devils to give answers conformable to the truth.
Crœsus, thus assured of the veracity of the god whom he designed to
consult, offered three thousand victims to his honour, and ordered an
infinite number of vessels, tripods, and golden tables, to be melted down,
and converted into ingots of gold, to the number of a hundred and
seventeen, to augment the treasures of the temple of Delphi. Each of these
ingots weighed at least two talents; besides which, he made several other
presents: amongst others Herodotus mentions a golden lion, weighing ten
talents, and two vessels of an extraordinary size, one of gold, which
weighed eight talents and a half and twelve minæ; the other of silver,
which contained six hundred of the measures called amphoræ. All these
presents, and many more, which for brevity’s sake I omit, were to be seen
in the time of Herodotus.
The messengers were ordered to consult the god upon two points: first,
whether Crœsus should undertake a war against the Persians; secondly, if
he did, whether he should require the succour of any auxiliary troops. The
oracle answered, upon the first article, that if he carried his arms
against the Persians, he would subvert a great empire; upon the second,
that he would do well to make alliances with the most powerful states of
Greece. He consulted the oracle again, to know how long the duration of
his empire would be. The answer was, that it should subsist till a mule
came to possess the throne of Media; which he considered as an assurance
of the perpetual duration of his kingdom.
Pursuant to the direction of the oracle, Crœsus entered into alliance with
the Athenians, who at that time had Pisistratus at their head, and with
the Lacedæmonians, who were indisputably the two most powerful states of
Greece.
A certain Lydian, much esteemed for his prudence, gave Crœsus, on this
occasion, very judicious advice.(1108) “O prince, (says he to him,) why do
you think of turning your arms against such a people as the Persians, who,
being born in a wild, rugged country, are inured from their infancy to
every kind of hardship and fatigue, who, being coarsely clad, and coarsely
fed, can content themselves with bread and water; who are absolute
strangers to all the delicacies and conveniencies of life; who, in a word,
have nothing to lose if you conquer them, and every thing to gain if they
conquer you; and whom it would be difficult to drive out of our country,
if they should once come to taste the sweets and advantages of it? So far
therefore from thinking of beginning a war against them, it is my opinion
we ought to thank the gods that they have never put it into the heads of
the Persians to come and attack the Lydians.” But Crœsus had taken his
resolution and would not be diverted from it.
What remains of the history of Crœsus will be found in that of Cyrus,
which I am now going to begin.
MAPS.
[Map: The World.]
Plate I, part A.
[Map: The World.]
Plate I, part B.
[Map: Egypt with Lybia.]
Plate II, part A.
[Map: Egypt with Lybia.]
Plate II, part B.
[Map: The Carthaginian Empire in Africa.]
Plate III, part A.
[Map: The Carthaginian Empire in Africa.]
Plate III, part B.
[Map: The Carthaginian Empire in Africa.]
Plate III, part C.
[Map: The Expedition of Hannibal.]
Plate IV, part A.
[Map: The Expedition of Hannibal.]
Plate IV, part B.
[Map: The Expedition of Hannibal.]
Plate IV, part B.
[Map: The Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes and Persians.]
Plate V, part A.
[Map: The Assyrians, Babylonians, Medes and Persians.]
Plate V, part B.
FOOTNOTES
_ 1 Of the Method of Teaching and Studying the Belles Lettres_, &c.
vol. iii. and iv.—Trans.
2 Pietate ac religione, atque hâc unâ sapientiâ quòd deorum
immortalium numine omnia regi gubernarique perspeximus, omnes gentes
nationesque superavimus. _Orat. de Arusp. resp._ n. 19.—Trans.
3 Ecclus. x. 8
4 The ancients themselves, according to Pindar, (_Olymp. Od._ vii.)
had retained some idea, that the dispersion of men was not the
effect of chance, but that they had been settled in different
countries by the appointment of Providence.—Trans.
5 Gen. xi. 8, 9.
6 “When the Most High divided the nations, and separated the sons of
Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the
children of Israel” (whom he had in view.) This is one of the
interpretations (which appears very natural) that is given to this
passage. Deut. xxxii. 8.—Trans.
7 Ecclus. xxxvi. 17, xxxix. 19.
8 Acts xv. 18.
9 I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I
will rid you out of their bondage. Exod. vi. 6. Out of the iron
furnace, even out of Egypt. Deut. iv. 20.—Trans.
10 Isaiah v. 26, 30, x. 28, 34, xiii. 4, 5.
11 Sennacherib.—Trans.
12 Ibid. x. 13, 14.
13 Isaiah x. 5.
14 Ibid. ver. 7.
15 Ibid. ver. 12.
16 Because thy rage against me, and thy tumult is come up into mine
ears, therefore I will put my hook into thy nose, and my bridle in
thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.
2 Kings xix. 28.—Trans.
17 Ezek. xxi. 19, 23.
18 Ibid. xxvi. xxvii. xxviii.
19 Ezek. xxviii. 2.
20 Ibid. xxix. 18, 20.
21 Dan. iv. 1-34.
22 This incident is related more at large in the history of the
Egyptians, under the reign of Amasis.—Trans.
23 Ibid. iv. 30.
24 Dan. iv. 31, 32.
25 Thus saith the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I
have holden, to subdue nations before him and I will loose the loins
of kings to open before him the two-leaved gates, and the gates
shall not be shut.
I will go before thee, and make the crooked places straight: will
break in pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of
iron.
And I will give thee the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of
secret places, that thou mayest know, that I the Lord which shall
call _thee_ by thy name, _am_ the God of Israel. Isa. xlv.
1-3.—Trans.
26 Isa. xlv. 13, 14.
27 Ibid. 13, 4.
28 Ibid. 4, 5.
29 Dan. iv. 7, 9.
30 Ἐδυνήθη ἐπιθυμίαν ἐμβαλεῖν τοσαύτην τοῦ πάντας αὐτῷ χαριζεσθαι, ὤσι
ἀεὶ τ᾽ αὐτοῦ γνώμη ἀξιοῦν κυβερνᾶσθαι.—Trans.
31 Dan. vii.
32 Ezek. xix. 3, 7.
33 Joseph. 1. iii. c. 46.
34 Gen. i. 2.
35 Ibid. vi. 11.
36 Psal. cxliv. 15.
37 Laus ipsa, quâ Platonem vel Platonicos seu Academicos philosophos
tantùm extuli, quantùm impios homines non oportuit, non immeritò
mihi displicuit; præsertim quorum contra errores magnes defendenda
est Christiana doctrina. _Retract._ 1. i. c. 1.—Trans.
38 Id in quoque corrigendum, quod pravum est; quod autem rectum est,
approbandum. _De Bapt. cont. Donat._ 1. vii. c. 16.—Trans.
39 Lib. v. c. 19, 21, &c.
_ 40 De Civitate Dei_, 1. v. c. 19.
41 Vol. iv. p. 385.
42 This Mr Rollin has done admirably in the several volumes of his
Ancient History.—Trans.
_ 43 The Method of Teaching and Studying the Belles Lettres_, &c. The
English translation (in four volumes) of this excellent piece of
criticism, was first printed for A. Bettesworth and C. Hitch, in
Paternoster-Row.—Trans.
44 Arborum flos, est pleni veris indicium, et anni renascentis; flos
gaudium arborum. Tunc se novas, aliasque quàm sunt, ostendunt, tunc
variis colorum picturis in certamen usque luxuriant. Sed hoc negatum
plerisque. Non enim omnes florent, et sunt tristes quædam, quæque
non sentiant guadia annorum; nec ullo flore exhilarantur, natalesve
pomorum recursus annuos versicolori nuntio promittunt. Plin. _Hist.
Nat._ 1. xvi. c. 25.—Trans.
45 As the fig-trees.—Trans.
46 Mons. Bossuet.—Trans.
47 Former editions of this Work were printed in ten volumes.—Trans.
48 Xenoph. _in Cyrop._ 1. i. p. 25, 27.—Trans.
49 Quos ad fastigium nujus majestatis non ambitio popularis, sed
spectata inter bonos moderatio provebebat. Justin, 1. i. c.
1.—Trans.
50 Fines imperii tueri magis quàm proferre mos erat. Intra suam cuique
patriam regna finiebantur. Justin, 1. i. c. 1.—Trans.
51 Domitis proximis, cum accessione virium fortior ad alios transiret,
et proxima quæque victoria instrumentum sequentis esset, totius
orientis populos subegit. Justin, 1. i. c. 1.—Trans.
52 Sit hoc jam à principio persuasum civibus: dominos esse omnium rerum
ac moderatores deos, eaque quæ geruntur eorum geri judicio ac
numine; eosdemque optimè de genere hominum mereri; et, qualis
quisque sit, quid agat, quid in se admittat, quâ mente, quâ pietate
religiones colat, intueri; piorumque et impiorem habere rationem—Ad
divos adeunto castè. Pietatem adhibento, opes amovento. Cic. _de
leg._ l. ii. n. 15, 19.—Trans.
_ 53 Manner of Teaching_, &c. vol. i.—Trans.
54 Ἀθήνη.—Trans.
55 Οὐχὶ προειρημένον ἡμερῶν ἀριθμὸν ἁγνεύειν μόνον, ἀλλὰ τὸν βιον ὅλον
ἡγνευκέναι. Demost. _in extrema Aristocratia_.—Trans.
56 Vol. ii. c. 3. § 2.—Trans.
57 Ληνός.
58 Dionysius.
59 Goats were sacrificed, because they spoiled the vines.—Trans.
60 From this fury of the Bacchanalians these feasts were distinguished
by the name of Orgia, Ὀργὴ, _ira, furor_.—Trans.
61 Πάσαν ἐθεασάμην τὴν πόλιν περὶ τὰ Διονύσια μεθύουσαν. Lib. i. _de
leg._ p. 637.—Trans.
62 Liv. 1. xxxix. n. 8, 18.
63 Nihil in speciem fallacius est quàm prava religio, ubi deorum numen
prætenditur sceleribus. Liv. xxxix. n. 16.—Trans.
64 Multa eximia divinaque videntur Athenæ tuæ peperisse, atque in vitam
hominum attulisse; tum nihil melius illis mysteriis, quibus ex
agresti immanique vitâ, exculti ad humanitatem et mitigati sumus,
initiaque ut appellautur, ita re vera principia vitæ cognovimus.
Cic. 1. ii. _de leg._ n. 36.
Teque Ceres, et Libera, quarum sacra, sicut opiniones hominum ac
religiones ferunt, longè maximis atque occultissimis ceremoniis
continentur: à quibus initia vitæ atque victùs, legum, morum,
mansuetudinis, humanitatis exempla hominibus et civitatibus data ac
dispertita esse dicuntur. Cic. _in Verr. de supplic._ n. 186.—Trans.
65 Οἴδεν Ἐλευσὶν ταῦτα, καὶ οἱ τῶν σιωπωένων καὶ σιωπῆς; ὄντων ἀξιον
ἐτόπται. _Orat de sacr. lumin._—Trans.
66 Δαδοῦχος.
67 Κῆρυξ.
68 Βασιλεὺς
69 Ἐπιμελήται
70 Ἱεροποιοὶ.
71 Diogen. Laërt. l. vi. p. 389.
72 Liv. l. xxxi. n. 14.
73 Est et fideli tuta silentio
Merces. Vetabo, qui Cereris sacrum
Vulgârit arcana, sub iisdem
Sit trabibus, fragilemque mecum
Solvat phaselum.
Hor. _Od._ 2. l. iii.
Safe is the silent tongue, which none can blame
The faithful secret merit fame;
Beneath one roof ne’er let him rest with me,
Who “Ceres’ mysteries” reveals;
In one frail bark ne’er let us put to sea,
Nor tempt the jarring winds with spreading sails.
—Trans.
74 Lib. i. p. 26, 71.
75 Tardaque Eleusinæ matris volventia plaustra.
Virg. _Georg._ l. i. ver. 163.
The Eleusinian mother’s mystic car Slow rolling——
—Trans.
76 Herod. l. viii. c. 65.
77 Lib. ix. p. 305.
78 Plut. _in vit. Alex._ p. 671.
79 Zosim. _Hist._ l. iv.
_ 80 Sympos._ l. ii. quæst. 3. p. 635.
81 Errabat multis in rebus antiquitas: quam vel usu jam, vel doctrinâ,
vel vetustate immutatam videmus. Retinetur autem et ad opinionem
vulgi, et ad magnas utilitates reip. mos, religio, disciplina, jus
augurum, collegii auctoritas. Nec verò non omni supplicio digni P.
Claudius, L. Junius consules, qui contra auspicia navigârunt.
Parendum enim fuit religioni, nec patrius mos tam contumaciter
repudiandus _Divin._ l. ii. n. 70, 71.—Trans.
82 Certain instruments were fastened to the tops of oaks, which, being
shaken by the wind, or by some other means, gave a confused sound.
Servius observes, that the same word, in the Thessalian language,
signifies _dove_ and _prophetess_, which had given room for the
fabulous tradition of doves that spoke. It was easy to make those
brazen basins sound by some secret means, and to give what
signification they pleased to a confused and inarticulate
note.—Trans.
83 Pausan. l. ix. p. 602, 604.
84 Plut. _de gen. Socr._ p. 590.
85 Herod, l. i. c. 157. Strab. l. xiv p. 634.
86 Tacit. _Annal._ l. ii. c. 54.
87 Lib. xiv. p. 427, 428.
88 Corium.
89 Προφήται.
90 Ἀνίκητος εἶ, ὦ παῖ.—Trans.
91 ——Cui talia fanti
Ante fores, subitò non vultus, non color unus,
Non comptæ mansere comæ: sed pectus anhelum,
Et rabie fera corda tument; majorque videri,
Nec mortale sonans: afflata est numine quando
Jam propiore dei.
Virg. _Æn._ l. vi. v. 46-51.—Trans.
92 Among the various marks which God has given us in the Scriptures to
distinguish his oracles from those of the devil, the fury or
madness, attributed by Virgil to the Pythia, _et rabie fera corda
tument_, is one. It is I, saith God, that show the falsehood of the
diviners’ predictions, and give to such as divine, the motions of
fury and madness; or according to Isa. xliv. 25, “That frustrateth
the tokens of the liar, and maketh diviners mad.” Instead of which,
the prophets of the true God constantly gave the divine answers in
an equal and calm tone of voice, and with a noble tranquillity of
behaviour. Another distinguishing mark is, that the dæmons gave
their oracles in secret places, by-ways, and in the obscurity of
caves; whereas God gave his in open day, and before all the world.
“I have not spoken in secret, in a dark place of the earth,” Isa.
xlv. 19. “I have not spoken in secret from the beginning,” Isa.
xlviii. 16. So that God did not permit the devil to imitate his
oracles, without imposing such conditions upon him, as might
distinguish between the true and false inspiration.—Trans.
93 Lib. v.
94 Ἐγγαστρίμυθος.
95 Quòd si aliquis dixerit multa ab idolis esse prædicta; hoc sciendum,
quòd semper mendacium junxerint veritati, et sic sententias
temperârint, ut, seu boni seu mali quid accidisset, utrumque possit
intelligi. Hieronym. in cap. xlii. Isaiæ. He cites the two examples
of Crœsus and Pyrrhus.—Trans.
96 One method of consulting the oracle was by sealed letters, which
were laid upon the altar of the god unopened.—Trans.
97 Macrob. l. i. _Saturnal._ c. 23.
98 Omnis spiritus ales. Hoc et angeli et dæmones. Igitur momento ubique
sunt; totus orbis illis locus unus est: quid ubi geratur tam facilè
sciunt, quàm enuntiant. Velocitas divinitas creditur, quia
substantia ignoratur.—Cæterùm testudinem decoqui cum carnibus
pecudis Pythius eo modo renunciavit, quo suprà diximus. Momento apud
Lydiam fuerat. Tertul _in Apolog._—Trans.
99 Plut. _in Demosth._ p. 854.
100 Tertull. _in Apolog._
101 Lib. _de verà sapient._, c. 27.
102 Tam barbaros, tam immanes fuisse homines, ut parricidium suum, id
est tetrum atque execrabib humano generi facinus, sacrificium
vocarent. Cùm teneras atque innocentes animas, quæ maximè est ætas
parentibus dulcior, sine ullo respectu pietatis extinguerunt,
immanitatemque omnium bestiarum, quæ tamen fœtus suos amant,
seritate superarent. O dementiam insanabilem! Quid illis isti dii
ampliùs facere possent si essent iratissimi, quàm faciunt propitii?
Cùm suos cultores parricidiis inquinant, orbitatibus mactant,
humanis sensibus spoliant. Lactant. l. i. c. 21.—Trans.
103 Herod l. ii. c 180; l. v. c. 62.
104 About 44,428_l._ sterling.—Trans.
105 Ibid. l. i. c. 50, 51.
106 About 33,500_l._ sterling.—Trans.
107 Diod. l. xvi p. 453.
108 About 1,300,000_l._—Trans.
109 Plut. _de Pyth. orac._ p. 401.
110 Vol. iii.
111 Several reasons are given for this name.—Trans.
112 Pausan. l. ii. p. 88.
113 Apium.
114 Herod. l. viii. c. 26.
115 Παπαὶ, Μαρδόνιε, κόιους ἐπ᾽ ἄνδρας ἤγαγες μαχησομένους ἡμέας, οἵ οὐ
περ᾽ χρημάσων τὸν αγῶνα ποιεῦνται, ἀλλά περὶ ἀρετῆς.—Trans.
116 Plin. l. xvi. c. 4.
117 Pausan. l. v. p. 297.
118 Pausan. l. vi. p. 382.
119 Olympiorum victoria, Græcis consulatus ille antiquus videbatur.
_Tuscul. Quæst._ l. ii. n. 41.—Trans.
120 Olympionicam esse apud Græcos propè majus fuit et gloriosius quàm
Romæ triumphâsse. _Pro Flacco_, n. 31.—Trans.
121 ——Palmaque nobilis
Terrarum dominos evehit ad deos.
_Od._ i. l. i.
Sive quos Elea domum reducit
Palma cœlestes
_Od._ ii. l. i.—Trans.
_ 122 Art. Poet._ v. 412.
123 Nempe enim et Athletæ segregantur ad strictiorem disciplinam, ut
robori ædificando vacent; continentui à luxuriâ, à cibis lætioribus,
à potu jucundiore; coguntur, cruciantur, fatigantur. Tertul. _ad
Martyr._—Trans.
124 The persons employed in this office were called _Aliptæ_.—Trans.
125 Dolus an virtus, quis in noste requirat?—Trans.
126 Gen. xxxii. 24.
127 Captat pedes primùm, luctator dolosus est.—Trans.
_ 128 Iliad_. l. xxiii v. 708, &c. Ovid. _Metam._ l. ix. v. 31, &c.
_Phars._ l. iv. v. 612. Stat. l. vi. v. 847.
129 Dioscoi. _Idyl._ xxii. _Argonautic_, l. ii. _Æneid._ l. v.
_Thebaid._ l. vii. _Argonaut._ l. iv.
130 Πᾶν κράτος.
131 Quid tam distortum et elaboratum, quàm est ille Discobolos Myronis?
Quintil. l. ii. c. 13.—Trans.
132 The Stadium was a measure of distance among the Greeks, and was,
according to Herodotus, l. ii. c. 149, six hundred feet in length.
Pliny says, l. ii. c. 23, that it was six hundred and twenty-five.
Those two authors may be reconciled by considering the difference
between the Greek and Roman foot; besides which, the length of the
Stadium varies, according to the difference of times and
places.—Trans.
_ 133 Hom._ lv. _in Matth._ c. 16.—Trans.
134 ——Tunc ritè citatos
Explorant, acuuntque gradus, variasque per artes
Instimulant docto languentia membra tumultu.
Poplite nunc flexo sidunt, nunc lubrica forti
Pectora collidunt plausu; nunc ignea tollunt
Crura, brevemque fugam nec opino fine reponunt.
Stat. _Theb._ l. vi v. 587, &c.
They try, they rouse their speed, with various arts;
Their languid limbs they prompt to act their parts.
Now with bent hams, amidst the practis’d crowd,
They sit; now strain their lungs, and shout aloud
Now a short flight with fiery steps they trace,
And with a sudden stop abridge the mimic race.
—Trans.
135 Plin. l. vii. c. 20.
136 57 leagues.
137 60 leagues.
138 Herod. l. vi. c. 106.
139 30 leagues.
140 More than 53 leagues.
141 Val. Max. l. v. c. 5.
142 67 leagues.
143 He had only a guide and one officer with him.—Trans.
144 Nec omnes Numidæ in dextro locati cornu, sed quibus desultorum in
modum binos trahentibus equos, inter acerrimam sæpe pugnam, in
recentem equum ex fesso armatis transultare mos erat; tanta
velocitas ipsis, tamque docile equorum genus est. Liv. l.
xxiii.—Trans.
145 Plut. _in Alex._ p. 666.
146 Metaque fervidis Evitata rotis. Horat. _Od._ i. 1. i.
The goal shunn’d by the burning wheels.
—Trans.
147 Hom. _Il._ l. xxiii. v. 334, &c.
148 Plut. _in Alex._ p. 666.
149 Ibid. _in Themist._ p. 124.
150 Ibid. _in Alcib._ p. 196.
151 Pausan. l. iii. p. 172.
152 Ibid. p. 188.
153 Ibid. p. 172.
154 Ibid. l. v. p. 309.
155 Pausan. l. vi. p. 344.
_ 156 Sympos._ l. viii. _quæst._ 4.
157 Plut. _in Alcib._ p. 196.
158 Lib. i. p. 3.
159 Diog. Laërt. _in Solon_, p. 37.
160 About 11_l._
161 About 2_l._
162 Cic. _de Orat._ l. ii. n. 352, 353. Phæd. l. ii. _fab._ 24. Quintil.
l. xi. c 2.
163 Lib. vi. p. 368.
164 Lucian. _in vit. Demonact._ p. 1014.
165 It was Demonax, a celebrated philosopher, whose disciple Lucian had
been. He flourished in the reign of Marcus Aurelius.—Trans.
166 Plut. _in Quæst. Rom._ p. 273.
167 Ὅτι τοῦ χρόνου τἀ σεμεῖα τῆς πρὸς τοὺς πολεμίους διαφορᾶς
ἀμαυροῦντος, αὐτοὺς ἀν λαμβάνειν καὶ καινοποιεῖν ἐπιφθονόν ἐστι καὶ
φιλαπεχθῆμον.—Trans.
168 Plut. _in Lacon. Apophthegm_. p. 211.
169 Lucian. _in Herod._ p. 622.
170 Plut. _de vit Orat._ p. 836.
171 Diod. l. xiv. p. 318.
172 Ibid. l. xv. p. 384.
173 Attica anus Theophrastum, hominem alioqui disertissimum, annotatâ
unius affectatione verbi, hospitem dixit. Quint. l. viii. c.
1.—Trans.
174 Ælian, l ii. c. 8.
175 Boileau, _Art. Poët._ chant. iii.
176 Ignotum tragicæ genus invenisse camœnæ
Dicitur, et plaustris vexisse poëmata Thespis,
Quæ canerent agerentque peruncti fæcibus ora.
Hor. _de Art. Poët._
When Thespis first expos’d the tragic Muse,
Rude were the actors, and a cart the scene,
Where ghastly faces, smear’d with lees of wine,
Frighted the children, and amus’d the crowd.
Roscom. _Art of Poet._
—Trans.
177 Boileau, _Art. Poet._ chant. iii.
M1 A.M. 3440. Ant. J.C. 564.
178 Plut. _in Solon_ p. 95.
M2 A.M. 3464. Ant. J.C. 540.
M3 A.M. 3514. Ant. J.C. 490.
179 Post hunc personæ pallæque repertor honestæ
Æschylus, et modicis instravit pulpita tignis,
Et docuit magnumque loqui, nitique cothurno.
Hor. _de Art. Poët._
This, Æschylus (with indignation) saw,
And built a stage, found out a decent dress,
Brought vizards in (a civiler disguise),
And taught men how to speak and how to act.
Roscom. _Art of Poet._—Trans.
180 Boileau, _Art. Poet._
181 Actoris partes chorus officiumque virile
Defendat, neu quid medios intercinat actus,
Quod non proposito conducat, et hæreat apté.
Ille bonis faveatque, et concilietur amicis,
Et regat iratos, et amet peccare timentes.
Ille dapes laudet mensæ brevis; ille salubrem
Justitiam, legesque, et apertis otia portis.
Ille tegat commissa, deosque precetur et oret,
Ut redeat miseris, abeat fortuna superbis.
Hor. _de Art. Poët._
The chorus should supply what action wants,
And hath a generous and manly part; Bridles wild rage, loves rigid
honesty,
And strict observance of impartial laws,
Sobriety, security, and peace,
And begs the gods to turn blind Fortune’s wheel,
To raise the wretched, and pull down the proud;
But nothing must be sung between the acts,
But what someway conduces to the plot.
Roscom. _Art of Poet_. translat.—Trans.
182 Vol. iv.
_ 183 Manner of Teaching_, &c. vol. iv.
184 Quo meliùs nostri illi senes, qui personatum, ne Roscium quidem,
magnoperé laudabant. Lib. iii. _de Orat._ n. 221.—Trans.
M4 A.M. 3509. Ant. J.C. 495.
M5 A.M. 3534. Ant. J.C. 470.
M6 A.M. 3599. Ant. J.C. 405.
M7 A.M. 3524. Ant. J.C. 480.
185 Sententiis densus, et in iis quæ à sapientibus sunt, penè ipsis est
par. Quintil. l. x. c. 1.—Trans.
186 Cui (Euripidi) tu quantum credas nescio; ego certè singulos ejus
versus singula testimonia puto. _Epist._ viii. l. 14. _ad
Famil._—Trans.
187 Ipse autem socer (Cæsar) in ore semper Græcos versus Euripidis de
Phœnissis habebat, quos dicam ut potero, inconditè fortasse, sed
tamen ut res possit intelligi:
Nam, si violandum est jus, regnandi gratià
Violandum est; aliis rebus pietatem colas.
Capitalis Eteocles, vel potiùs Euripides, qui id unum, quod omnium
sceleratissimum fuerat, exceperit. _Offic._ l. iii. n. 82.—Trans.
188 Plut. _in vit._ x. _orat._ p. 841.
189 I know not whether the idea of “a canal, that flows gently through
delicious gardens,” is well adapted to designate the character of
Sophocles, which is peculiarly distinguished by nobleness, grandeur,
and elevation. That of an impetuous and rapid stream, whose waves,
from the violence of their motion, are loud, and to be heard afar
off, seems to me a more suitable image of that poet.—Trans.
190 Tragædias primus in lucem Æschylus protulit: sublimis et gravis, et
grandiloquus sæpe usque ad vitium; sed rudis in plerisque et
incompositus. Quintil. l. x. c. 1.—Trans.
191 Corneille and Racine.—Trans.
192 Φόβος καὶ ἔλεος.
193 Homo sum: humani nihil à me alienum puto. Ter.—Trans.
194 Successit vetus his comœdia non sinc multâ Laude. Hor. _in Art.
Poët._—Trans.
_ 195 Plutus._
_ 196 The Birds._
_ 197 The Knights._
_ 198 The Peace._
199 Quem illa non attigit, vel potiùs quem non vexavit? Esto, populares
homines, improbos, in remp. seditiosos, Cleonem, Cleophontem,
Hyperbolum læsit: patiamur—Sed Periclem, cùm jam suæ civitati maximâ
auctoritate plurimos annos domi et belli præfuisset, violari
versibus, et eos agi in scenâ, non plùs decuit, quam si Plautus
noster voluisset, aut Nævius, P. et Cn. Scipioni, aut Cæcilius M.
Catoni maledicere. Ex fragm. Cic. _de Rep._ l. iv.—Trans.
200 Aristophan. _in Acharn._
201 Eupolis, atque Cratinus, Aristophanesque poëtæ,
Atque alii, quorum comœdia prisca virorum est,
Si quis erat dignus describi, quòd malus, aut fur,
Quòd mœchus foret, aut sicarius, aut alioqui
Famosus; multâ cum libertate notabant.
Hor. _Sat._ iv. l. i.
With Aristophanes’ satiric rage,
When ancient comedy amus’d the age,
Or Eupolis’s or Cratinus’ wit,
And others that all-licens’d poem writ;
None, worthy to be shown, escap’d the scene,
No public knave, or thief of lofty mien;
The loose adult’rer was drawn forth to sight;
The secret murd’rer trembling lurk’d the night;
Vice play’d itself, and each ambitious spark;
All boldly branded with the poet’s mark.
—Trans.
202 Antiqua comœdia sinceram illam sermonis Attici gratiam propè sola
retinet. Quintil.—Trans.
203 Nimium risûs pretium est, si probitatis impendio constat. Quintil.
l. vi. c. 3.—Trans.
204 Non pejus duxerim tardi ingenii esse, quàm mali. Quintil. l. i. c.
3.—Trans.
205 Boileau, _Art. Poet._, chant. iii.
206 Atque ille quidem omnibus ejusdem operis auctoribus abstulit nomen,
et fulgore quodam suæ claritatis tenebras obduxit. Quintil. l. x. c.
1.—Trans.
207 Quidam, sicut Menander, justiora posterorum quàm suæ ætatis, judicia
sunt consecuti. Quintil. l. iii. c. 6.—Trans.
_ 208 Memoirs of the Acad. of Inscript._ &c. vol i. p. 136, &c.
209 Strab. l. ix. p. 395. Herod. l. viii. c. 65.
210 Ὀρχεῖσθαι.
211 It is not certain whether this piece was prior or posterior to the
death of Socrates.—Trans.
212 Plut. _in Aristid._ p. 320.
213 Plut. _in Philipœm._ p. 362.
214 Cic. _in Orat. pro. Sext._ n. 120, 123.
215 O ingratifici Argivi, inanes Graii, immemores beneficii,
Exulare sivistis, sivistis pelli, pulsum patimini.
—Trans.
216 Cic. _ad Attic._ l. ii. _Epist._ 19. Val. Max. l. vi. c. 2.
217 Justin, l. vi. c. 9.
218 Plut. _de glor. Athen._ p. 349.
219 Plut. _Sympos._ l. vii. _quæst._ vii. p. 719.
220 Ἀμαρτάνουσιν Ἀθηναῖοι μεγάλα. τὴν σπουδὴν εὶς τὴν παιδιὰν
καταναλίσκοντες, τουτεστι μεγάλων ἀποστόλων δαπάνας καὶ στρατευμάτων
ἐφύδια καταχορηγοῦντες εἰς τὸ θέατρον.—Trans.
221 Quibus rebus effectum est, ut inter otia Græecorum, sordidum et
obscurum antea Macedonum nomen emergeret; et Philippus, obses
triennio Thebis habitus, Epaminondæ et Pelopidæ virtutibus eruditus,
regnum Macedoniæ, Græciæ et Asiæ cervicibus, velut jugum servitutis,
imponeret. Just. l. vi. c. 9.—Trans.
222 Atheniensium res gestæ, sicuti ego existimo, satis amplæ
magnificæque fuerunt verùm aliquanto minores tamen, quàm famâ
feruntur. Sed quia provenere ibi scriptorum magna ingenia, per
terrarum orbem Atheniensiam facta pro maximis celeorantur. Ita
eorum, quæ fecere, virtus tanta habetur, quantum eam verbis potuere
extollere præclara ingenia. Sallust. _in Bell. Catilin._—Trans.
223 In _Cim._ p. 479, 480.
224 Ἐλλείμματα μᾶλλον ἀρετῆς τινος ἢ κακίας πόνηρεύματα.—Trans.
225 Habet in picturâ speciem tota facies. Apelles tamen imaginem
Antigoni latere tantùm altero ostendit, ut amissi oculi deformitas
lateret. Quintil. l. ii. c. 13.—Trans.
226 Exequi sententias haud institui, nisi insignes per honestum, aut
notabili dedecore: quod præcipuum munus annalium reor, ne virtutes
sileantur, utque pravis dictis factisque ex posteritate et infamiâ
motus sit. Tacit. _Annal._ l. iii. c. 65.—Trans.
M8 A.M. 2900. Ant. J.C. 1104.
227 Lib. vi. c. 52.
228 Lib. viii. p. 365. Plut. _in Lycurg._ p. 40.
229 Plut. _in Lycurg._ p. 40.
230 Herod. l. i. c. 82.
M9 A.M. 3261. Ant. J.C. 743.
231 Pausan. l. iv. p. 216-242. Justin, l. iii. c. 4.
232 Pausan. l. iv. p. 225, 226.
233 Ibid. l. iv. 227-234.
234 Diod. l. xv. p. 378.
235 Et regnata petam Laconi rura Phalanto. Hor. _Od._ vi. l. 2.—Trans.
236 Pausan. l. iv. p. 234, 235. Diod. _in Frag._
237 Pausan. l. iv. p. 235, 241.
_ 238 Memoirs of the Academy of Inscriptions_, vol. ii. p. 84-113.—Trans.
239 Clem. Alex. _in Protrep._ p. 20. Euseb. _in Prœp._ l. iv. c. 16.
240 Pausan. l. iv. p. 241-242.
M10 A.M. 3281. Ant. J.C. 723.
241 Ibid. p. 242, 261. Justin, l. iii. c. 5.
242 Cùm per complures annos gravia servitutis verbera, plerumque ac
vincula, cæteraque captivitatis mala perpessi essent, post longam
pænarum patientiam bellum instaurant. Justin, l. iii. c. 5.—Trans.
M11 A.M. 3320. Ant. J.C. 684.
243 According to several historians, there was another Aristomenes in
the first Messenian war. Diod. l. xv. p. 378.—Trans.
244 Plat. l. i. _de Legib._ p. 629. Plut. _in Agid. et Cleom._ p. 805.
245 Tyrtæusque mares animos in martia bella
Versibus exacuit.
Hor. _in Art. Poët._—Trans.
M12 A.M. 3334. Ant. J.C. 670.
M13 A.M. 3704. Ant. J.C. 300.
M14 A.M. 3680.
M15 A.M. 3718.
M16 3758.
M17 3783.
M18 3800.
M19 3824.
M20 A.M. 3704.
M21 3724.
M22 3743.
M23 3758.
M24 3778.
M25 3781.
M26 3817.
M27 3829.
M28 A.M. 3707.
M29 3710.
M30 A.M. 3723.
M31 3724.
M32 3726.
M33 3728.
M34 3762.
M35 3772.
M36 3784.
M37 3824.
M38 3686.
246 Lib. v. p. 310.—Trans.
M39 A.M. 3726.
M40 3820.
M41 A.M. 3721. Ant. J.C. 283.
M42 A.M. 3741. Ant. J.C. 263.
M43 A.M. 3763. Ant. J.C. 241.
M44 A.M. 3807. Ant. J.C. 197.
M45 A.M. 3845. Ant. J.C. 159.
M46 A.M. 3866. Ant. J.C. 138.
M47 A.M. 3871. Ant. J.C. 133.
M48 A.M. 3490. Ant. J.C. 514.
M49 A.M. 3600. Ant. J.C. 404.
M50 A.M. 3641. Ant. J.C. 363.
M51 A.M. 3667. Ant. J.C. 337.
M52 A.M. 3702. Ant. J.C. 302.
M53 A.M. 3819. Ant. J.C. 185.
M54 A.M. 3880. Ant. J.C. 124.
247 Strab. l. xii. p. 534.
M55 A.M. 3682. Ant. J.C. 322.
248 Diod. l. xvi. p. 465. Justin, l. viii. c. 6. Plut. _in Pyrrho_.
249 Quanto doctior majoribus, tanto et gratioi populo fuit. Justin, l.
xvii. c. 3.—Trans.
M56 A.M. 3733. Ant. J.C. 271.
250 Justin, l. xvi. c. 3-5. Diod. l. xv. p. 390.
251 Heraclienses honestiorem beneficii, quàm ultionis occasionem rati,
instructos commeatibus auxiliisque aimittunt; bene agrorum suorum
populationem impensam existimantes, si, quos hostes habuerant,
amicos reddidissent. Justin.—Trans.
M57 A.M. 3640. Ant. J.C. 364.
M58 A.M. 3652. Ant. J.C. 352.
252 l. xvi. p. 435.
M59 A.M. 3667. Ant. J.C. 337.
253 Ibid. p. 478.
M60 A.M. 3700. Ant. J.C. 304.
254 Diod. l. xx. p. 833.
M61 A.M. 3735. Ant. J.C. 269.
M62 A.M. 3789. Ant. J.C. 215.
M63 A.M. 3791. Ant. J.C. 213.
255 It is related, that under Amasis there were twenty thousand
inhabited cities in Egypt. Herod 1. ii c. 177.—Trans.
256 A day’s journey is twenty-four eastern, or thirty-three English
miles and a quarter.—Trans.
257 Strabo, 1 xvii. p. 787.
258 Hom. _Il._ i. ver. 381.
259 Strab. 1. xvii. p. 816.
260 Tacit. _Ann._ 1. ii. c. 60.
261 Thevenot’s _Travels_.
262 Lib. xvii. p. 805.
263 P. 816.
264 Germanicus alus quoque miraculis intendit animum, quorum præcipua
fuere Memnonis saxea effigies, ubi radiis solis icta est, vocalem
sonum reddens, &c. Tacit _Annal._ 1. ii. c. 61.—Trans.
265 Thevenot.
266 L. xvii. p. 807.
267 Diod. lib. i. p. 37.
268 It is proper to observe, once for all, that an Egyptian cubit,
according to Mr. Greaves, was one foot nine inches, and about 3/4 of
our measure.—Trans.
269 Plin. l. xxxvi. c. 8, 9.
270 Plin. l. xxxvi c. 9.
271 Rafts are pieces of flat timber put together to carry goods on
rivers.—Trans.
272 Herod. l. ii c. 124, &c. Diod. l. i. p. 39-41. Plin. lib. xxxvi. c.
12.
273 About 200,000_l._ sterl.—Trans.
274 Strabo mentions the sepulchre, lib. xvii. p. 808.—Trans.
275 Diod. lib. i. p. 40.
276 Lib. xxxvi. c. 12.
277 Herod. l. ii. c. 148. Diod. l. i. p. 42. Plin. l. xxxvi. c. 13.
Strab. l. xvii. p. 811.
278 Æneid, l. v. ver. 588, &c.
279 l. vi. ver. 27, &c.
280 Herod. l. ii. c. 140. Strab. l. xvii. p. 787. Diod. l. i p. 47.
Plin. l. v. c. 9. Pomp. _Mela_, l. i.
_ 281 Vide Herod. et Diod._ Pliny agrees almost with them.—Trans.
282 Mela, l. i.
283 Eighty-five _stadia_.—Trans.
284 11,250_l._ sterling.—Trans.
285 Seneca (_Nat. Quæst._ l. iv. c. 2.) ascribes these verses to Ovid,
but they are Tibullus’s.—Trans.
286 Excipiunt eum (Nilum) cataractæ, nobilis insigni spectaculo
locus.—Illic excitatis primùm aquis, quas sine tumultu leni alveo
duxerat, violentus et toriens per malignos transitus prosilit,
dissimilis sibi—tandemque eluctatus obstantia, in vastam altitudinem
subito destitutus cadit, cum ingenti circumjacentium regionum
strepitu; quem perferre gens ibi à Persis collocata non potuit,
obtusis assiduo fragore auribus, et ob hoc sedibus ad quietiora
translatis. Inter miracula fluminis incredibilem incolarum audaciam
accepi. Bini parvula navigia conscendunt, quorum alter navem regit,
alter exhaurit. Deinde multùm inter rapidam insaniam Nili et
reciprocos fluctus volutati, tandem tenuissimos canales tenent, per
quos angusta rupium effugiunt: et cum toto flumine effusi navigium
ruens manu temperant, magnoque spectantium metu in caput nixi, cum
jam adploraveris, mersosque atque obrutos tantâ mole credideris,
longè ab eo in quem ceciderant loco navigant, tormenti modo missi.
Nec mergit cadens unda, sed planis aquis tradit. Senec. _Nat.
Quæst._ l. iv. c. 2.—Trans.
287 Herod. l. ii. c. 19-27. Diod. l. i. p. 35-39. Senec. _Nat. Quæst._
l. iv. 1 & 2.
288 Lib. xvii. p. 789.
289 Herod. l. ii. c. 19. Diod. l. i. p 32.
290 Justum incrementum est cubitorum xvi. Minores aquæ non omnia rigant:
ampliores detinent tardiùs recedendo. Hæ serendi tempora absumunt
solo madente: illæ non dant sitiente. Utrumque reputat provincia. In
duodecim cubitis famem sentit, in tredecim etiamnum esurit:
quatuordecim cubita hilaritatem afferunt, quindecim securitatem,
sexdecim delicias. Plin. l. v. c. 9.—Trans.
291 Jul. _Epist._ 50.
292 Diod. l. i. p 33.
293 Lib. xvii. p. 817.
294 Socrat. l. i. c. 18. Sozom. l. v. c. 3.
295 Lib. i. p. 30. & lib. v. p. 313.
296 Cùm cæteri amnes abluant terras et eviscerent; Nilus adeò nihil
exedit nec abradit, ut contrà adjiciat vires.—Ita juvat agros duabus
ex causis, et quòd inundat, et quòd oblimat. Senec. _Nat. Quæst._ l.
iv. c. 2.—Trans.
297 Vol. ii.
298 Multiformis sapientia. Eph. iii. 10.
299 Deut. xi. 10-13.
300 Illa facies pulcherrima est, cùm jam se in agros Nilus ingessit.
Latent campi, opertæque sunt valles: oppida insularum modo extant.
Nullum in mediterraneis, nisi per navigia, commercium est: majorque
est lætitia in gentibus, quo minus terrarum suarum vident. Senec.
_Nat. Quæst._ l. iv. c. 2.—Trans.
301 Herod. l. ii. c. 158. Strab. l. xvii. p. 804. Plin l. vi. c. 29.
Diod. l. i p. 29.
302 Plutar. _de Isid._ p. 354.
303 Strab. l. xvii. p. 805. Herod l. ii. c. 73. Plin. l. x. c. 2. Tacit.
_Ann._ l. vi. c. 28.
_ 304 Sat._ vi.
305 Vir bonus tam citò nec fieri potest, nec intelligi—tanquam Phœnix,
semel anno quingentesimo nascitur. _Ep._ 40.—Trans.
_ 306 Od._ iii. l. iv.
307 Strab. l. xvii. p. 805.
308 Or Myos Hormos.—Trans.
309 Strab. l. xvi p. 781.
310 2 Sam. viii. 14.
311 1 Kings ix. 26.
312 He got in one voyage 450 talents of gold, 2 Chron. viii. 18, which
amounts to three millions two hundred and forty thousand pounds
sterling. Prid. _Connect._, vol. i. _ad ann._ 740, _not._—Trans.
313 Strab. l. xvi. p. 481.
314 Part I. i. p. 9.
315 Strab. l. xvii. p. 791. Plin. l. xxxvi. c. 12.
316 Eight hundred thousand crowns, or 180,000_l_. sterling.—Trans.
317 Magno animo Ptolemæi regis, quòd in eà permiserit Sostrati Cnidii
architecti structuræ nomen inscribi. Plin.—Trans.
_ 318 De scribend. Hist._ p. 706.
319 Ne Alexandrinis quidem permittenda deliciis. Quintil.—Trans.
320 A quarter or division of the city of Alexandria.—Trans.
321 Plut. _in Cæs._ p. 731. Seneca, _de Tranquill. Amm._ c. 9.
322 Acts vii. 22.
323 Diod. l. i. p. 63, &c.
_ 324 De Isid. et Osir._ p. 354.
325 Plat. _in Tim._ p. 656.
326 Diod. l. i. p. 70.
327 Pag. 69.
328 Ibid.
329 Ibid.
330 Ibid.
331 Herod. l. ii. c. 136
332 This law put the whole sepulchre of the debtor into the power of the
creditor, who removed to his own house the body of the father: the
debtor refusing to discharge his obligation, was to be deprived of
burial, either in his father’s sepulchre or any other; and whilst he
lived, he was not permitted to bury any person descended from him.
Μηδὲ αὐτῷ ἐκείνῳ τελευτήσαντι εἶναι ταφῆς κυρῆσαι—μήτ᾽ ἄλλον μηδένα
τὸν ἑαυτοῦ ἀπὸ γενόμενον θάψαι. Herod.—Trans.
333 Diod. l. i. p. 71.
334 Ibid. p. 72.
335 Diod. l. i. p. 22.
336 Herod. l. ii. c. 20.
337 Gen. xlvii. 26.
338 Herod. l. ii. c. 60.
339 Ibid. c. 39.
340 Diod. l. i. p. 88.
341 Plut. _de Isid. et Osir._ p. 354.
342 Plut. _Sympos._ l. iv. p. 670
343 Id. _de Isid._ p. 355.
344 Or Egyptian stork.—Trans.
_ 345 De Nat. Deor._ l. i. n. 82. _Tusc. Quæst._ l. v. n. 78.
346 Herod. l. ii. c. 65.
347 Diod. l. i. p. 74. 75.
348 Herod. l. iii. c. 27, &c. Diod. l. i. p. 76. Plin. l. viii. c. 46.
349 Pliny affirms, that he was not allowed to exceed a certain term of
years; and was drowned in the priests’ well. Non est fas eum certos
vitæ excedere annos, mersumque in sacerdotum fonte enecant. _Nat.
Hist._ l. viii. c. 46.—Trans.
350 Above 11,250_l._ sterling.—Trans.
351 Quis nescit, Volusi Bithynice, qualia demens
Ægyptus portenta colat? Crocodilon adorat
Pars hæc: illa pavet saturam serpentibus Ibin.
Effigies sacri nitet aurea Cercopitheci,
Dimidio magicæ resonant ubi Memnone chordæ,
Atque vetus Thebe centum jacet obruta portis.
Illic cœruleos, hic piscem fluminis, illic
Oppida tota canem venerantur, nemo Dianam.
Porrum et cœpe nefas violare, ac frangere morsu.
O sanctas gentes, quibus hæc nascuntur in hortis
Numina!
Juven. _Sat._ xv.—Trans.
352 Diodorus affirms, that in his time, the expense amounted to no less
than one hundred thousand crowns, or 22,500_l._ sterling. Lib. i. p.
76.—Trans.
_ 353 Imag._
354 Diod. l. i. p. 77, &c.
355 Ipsi qui irridentur Ægyptii, nullam belluam nisi ob aliquam
utilitatem, quam ex eâ caperent, consecraverunt. Cic. lib. i. _De
Nat. Deor._ n. 101.—Trans.
356 Which, according to Herodotus, is more than 17 cubits in length: l.
ii. c. 68.—Trans.
357 P. 382.
358 P. 377 and 378.
359 Rom. i. ver. 22, 25.
360 Tom. v. pp. 25, 26.
361 Herod. l. ii. c. 85, &c.
362 About 137_l._ 10_s._ sterling.—Trans.
363 Diod. l. i. p. 81.
364 Twelve _Arouræ_. An _Egyptian Aroura_ was 10,000 square cubits,
equal to three roods, two perches, 55-1/4 square feet of our
measure.—Trans.
365 The Greek is, οἴνου τέσσαρες ἀρυστῆρες, which some have made to
signify a determinate quantity of wine, or any other liquid: others,
regarding the etymology of the word ἀρυστὴρ, have translated it by
_haustrum_, a bucket, as Lucretius, lib. v. 51, others by _haustus_,
a draught or sup. Herodotus says, this allowance was given only to
the two thousand guards who attended annually on the kings. Lib. ii.
c. 168.—Trans.
366 Lib. i. p. 67.
367 Herod. l. ii. c. 164, 168.
368 Cant. i. 8. Isa. xxxvi. 9.
369 Diod. p. 76.
370 Ψυχῆς ἰατρεῖον.—Trans.
371 It will not seem surprising that the Egyptians, who were the most
ancient observers of the celestial motions, should have arrived to
this knowledge, when it is considered, that the lunar year, made use
of by the Greeks and Romans, though it appears so inconvenient and
irregular, supposed nevertheless a knowledge of the solar year, such
as Diodorus Siculus ascribes to the Egyptians. It will appear at
first sight, by calculating their intercalations, that those who
first divided the year in this manner, were not ignorant, that, to
three hundred sixty-five days, some hours were to be added, to keep
pace with the sun. Their only error lay in the supposition, that
only six hours were wanting; whereas an addition of almost eleven
minutes more was requisite.—Trans.
372 Lib. ii. c. 84.
373 Diod. l. i. p. 73.
374 Τὴν δὲ μουσικὴν νομίζουειν οὐ μόνον ἄχρηστον ὑπάρχειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ
βλαβερὰν, ὡς ἄι ἐκθηλύνουσαν τὰς τῶν ἀνδρῶν ψυχάς.—Trans.
375 Diod. l. i. pp. 67, 68.
376 Or Ham.—Trans.
377 Diod. l. i. p. 67.
378 Tom. ii. p. 64.
379 Lib. x. c. 54.
380 Swineherds, in particular, had a general ill name throughout Egypt,
as they had the care of so impure an animal. Herodotus (l. ii. c.
47.) tells us, that they were not permitted to enter the Egyptian
Temples, nor would any man give them his daughter in
marriage.—Trans.
381 Xiphilin. _in Apophthegm_. _Tib. Cæs._ Κείρεσθαί μου τὰ πρόβατα,
ἀλλ᾽ οὐκ ἀπαξύρεσθαι βούλομκι.
382 Plin. l. xiii. c. 11.
383 The Papyrus was divided into thin flakes, (into which it naturally
parted,) which being laid on a table, and moistened with the
glutinous waters of the Nile, were afterwards pressed together, and
dried in the sun.—Trans.
384 Posteà promiscuè patuit usus rei, quâ cons ... immortalitas
hominum.—Chartæ ... maxime humanitas constat in memoriâ.—Trans.
385 Plin. l. xix. c. 1.
386 Isa. xiv. 9.
387 Exod. ix. 31.
388 Plin. lib. xix. c. 1.
389 Proximus Byssino mulierum maximè deliciis genito: inventum jam est
etiam [scilicet Linum] quod ignibus non absumetur, vivum id vocant,
ardentesque in focis conviviorum ex eo vidimus mappas, sordibus
exustis splendescentes igni magis, quàm possent aquis: _i.e._ A flax
is now found out, which is proof against the violence of fire; it is
called living flax; and we have seen table napkins of it glowing in
the fires of our dining rooms; and receiving a lustre and a
cleanness from flames, which no water could have given it.—Trans.
390 Ezek. xxvii. 7.
391 Των δ οστις λωτοιο φαγοι μελιηδεα καρπον,
Ουκ ετ απαγγειλαι παλιν ηθελεν, ουδε νεεσθαι.
Μη πω τις λωτοιο φαγων, νοστοιο λαθηται.
_Odyss._ ix. ver. 94, 95, 102.
—Trans.
392 Ægyptus frugum quidem fertilissima, sed ut propè sola iis carere
possit, tanta est ciborum ex herbis abundantia. Plin. l. xxi. c.
15.—Trans.
393 Numb. xi. 4, 5.
394 Exod. xvi. 3.
395 Inundatione, id est, ubertate regio fraudata, sic opem Cæsaris
invocavit, ut solet amnem suum.—Trans.
396 Percrebuerat antiquitùs urbem nostram nisi opibus Ægypti ali
sustentarique non posse. Superbiebat ventosa et insolens natio, quòd
victorem quidem populum pasceret tamen, quòdque in suo flumine, in
suis manibus, vel abundantia nostra vel fames esset. Refudimus Nilo
suas copias. Recepit frumenta quæ miserat, deportatasque messes
revexit.—Trans.
397 Nilus Ægypto quidem sæpe. sed gloriæ nostræ nuaquam largior
fluxit.—Trans.
398 Ezek. xxix. 3, 9.
399 Gen. xii. 10-26.
400 Diod. l. i. p. 41.
401 An historian of Cyrene.—Trans.
402 Sir John Marsham’s _Canon Chronic_. Father Pezron; the Dissertations
of F. Tournemine, and Abbé Sevin, &c.—Trans.
403 Or Ham.
M64 A.M. 1816. Ant. J.C. 2188.
404 Or Cush, Gen. x. 6.
405 The footsteps of its old name (Mesraim) remain to this day among the
Arabians, who call it Mesre; by the testimony of Plutarch, it was
called χημία, Chemia, by an easy corruption of Chamia, and this for
Cham or Ham.—Trans.
406 Herod. l. ii. p. 99. Diod. l. i. p. 42.
407 Diod. l. i. pp. 44, 45.
408 Three thousand two hundred myriads of Minæ.—Trans.
409 See Sir Isaac Newton’s _Chronology_, p. 30.
410 Diod. p. 46.
M65 A.M. 1920. Ant. J.C. 2084.
M66 A.M. 2084. Ant. J.C. 1920.
411 Gen. xii. 10-20.
M67 A.M. 2179. Ant. J.C. 1825.
M68 A.M. 2276. Ant. J.C. 1728.
412 Lib. xxxvi. c. 2.
413 Justin ascribes this gift of heaven to Joseph’s skill in magical
arts: Cùm magicas ibi artes (Egypto) solerti ingenio percepisset,
&c.—Trans.
M69 A.M. 2298. Ant. J.C. 1706.
414 Exod. i. 8.
M70 A.M. 2427. Ant. J.C. 1577.
415 Heb. urbes thesaurorum. LXX. urbes munitas. These cities were
appointed to preserve, as in a storehouse, the corn, oil, and other
products of Egypt. Vatab.—Trans.
416 Exod. i. 11, 13, 14.
M71 A.M. 2494. Ant. J.C. 1510.
M72 A.M. 2513. Ant. J.C. 1491.
417 This name bears a great resemblance to Pharaoh, which was common to
the Egyptian kings.—Trans.
418 Lib. iii. p. 74.
419 Herod. l. ii. c. 102, 110. Diod. l. i. pp. 48, 54.
420 Τὰ νοήματα ἐκμενσώθηναι, lib. xii. c. 4.
M73 A.M. 2513. Ant. J.C. 1491.
421 2 Chron. viii. 9. But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no
servants for his work.—Trans.
422 150 stadia, about 18 miles English.—Trans.
423 Tacit. _Ann._ l. ii. c. 60.
424 Legebantur indicta gentibus tributa—haud minùs magnifica quàm nunc
vi Parthorum aut potentiâ Romanâ jubentur—Inscribed on pillars, were
read the tributes imposed on vanquished nations, which were not
inferior to those now paid to the Parthian and Roman powers.—Trans.
M74 A.M. 2448.
M75 A.M. 2530.
M76 A.M. 2533.
M77 A.M. 2549.
425 The reader may consult, on this subject, two learned dissertations
of Abbé Renaudot, inserted in the second volume of _The History of
the Academy of Inscriptions_.—Trans.
426 The sixteen letters brought by Cadmus into Greece, are α, β, γ, δ,
ε, ι, κ, λ, μ, ν, ο, π, ρ, σ, τ, υ. Palamedes, at the siege of Troy,
_i.e._ upwards of two hundred and fifty years lower than Cadmus,
added the four following, ξ, θ, φ, χ; and Simonides, a long time
after, invented the four others, namely, η, ω, ζ, ψ.—Trans.
M78 A.M. 2517. Ant. J.C. 1547.
427 Herod. l. ii. c. 111. Diod. l. i. p. 54.
M79 A.M. 2800. Ant. J.C. 1204.
428 I do not think myself obliged to enter here into a discussion, which
would be attended with very perplexing difficulties, should I
pretend to reconcile the series, or succession of the kings, as
given by Herodotus, with the opinion of archbishop Usher. This last
supposes, with many other learned men, that Sesostris is the son of
that Egyptian king who was drowned in the Red-Sea, whose reign must
consequently have begun in the year of the world 2513, and continued
till the year 2547, since it lasted thirty-three years. Should we
allow fifty years to the reign of Pheron his son, there would still
be an interval of above two hundred years between Pheron and
Proteus, who, according to Herodotus, was the immediate successor of
the former; since Proteus lived at the time of the siege of Troy,
which, according to Usher, was taken An. Mun. 2820. I know not
whether his almost total silence on the Egyptian kings after
Sesostris, was owing to his sense of this difficulty. I suppose a
long interval to have occurred between Pheron and Proteus;
accordingly, Diodorus (lib. i. p. liv.) fills it up with a great
many kings; and the same must be said of some of the following
kings.—Trans.
429 Herod. l. ii. c. 112, 120.
430 Ὡς τῶν μεγαλων ἀδικημάτον μεγάλαι εἰσὶ καὶ αἱ τιμωρὶαι παρὰ τῶν
Θεῶν.—Trans.
431 L. ii. c. 121, 123.
432 Herod. l. ii. c. 124, 128. Diod. l. i. p. 57.
433 Herod. l. ii. p. 139. 140. Diod. p. 58.
434 Herod. l. ii. c. 136.
435 The remainder of the inscription, as we find it in Herodotus, is—for
men plunging long poles down to the bottom of the lake, drew bricks
(πλίνθος εἴρυσαν) out of the mud which stuck to them, and gave me
this form.—Trans.
M80 A.M. 2991. Ant. J.C. 1013.
436 1 Kings iii. 1.
M81 A.M. 3026. Ant. J.C. 978.
437 1 Kings xi. 40. and xii.
M82 A.M. 3033. Ant. J.C. 971.
438 2 Chron. xii. 1-9.
439 The English version of the Bible says, The Lubims, the Sukkiims, and
the Ethiopians.—Trans.
440 Or, of the kingdoms of the earth.—Trans.
M83 A.M. 3063. Ant. J.C. 941.
441 2 Chron. xiv. 9-13.
442 Herod. l. ii. c. 137. Diod, l. i. p. 59.
M84 A.M. 3279. Ant. J.C. 725.
443 2 Kings xvii. 4.
M85 A.M. 3285. Ant. J.C. 719.
444 Ἐς ἐμέ τις ὁρέων. εὐσεβης ἔστω—Trans.
445 Chap. xvii.
446 The Vulgate calls that city Alexandria, to which the Hebrew gives
the name of No-Amon, because Alexandria was afterwards built in the
place where this stood. Dean Prideaux, after Bochart, thinks that it
was Thebes, surnamed Diospolis. Indeed, the Egyptian Amon is the
same with Jupiter. But Thebes is not the place where Alexandria was
since built. Perhaps there was another city there, which also was
called No-Amon.—Trans.
447 Nahum iii. 8, 10.
448 Herod. l. ii. c. 142.
M86 A.M. 3299. Ant. J.C. 705.
449 Afric. apud Syncel. p. 74. Diod l. i. p. 59.
M87 A.M. 3319. Ant. J.C. 685.
450 Herod. l. ii. c. 147, 152.
451 He was one of the twelve.—Trans.
M88 A.M. 3334. Ant. J.C. 670.
452 Herod. l. ii. c. 153, 154.
453 This revolution happened about seven years after the captivity of
Manasseh, king of Judah.—Trans.
454 Lib. i. p. 61.
455 Herod. l. ii. c. 157.
456 Isa. xx. 1.
457 Herod. l. i. c. 105.
458 Herod. l. ii. c. 2, 3.
M89 A.M. 3388. Ant. J.C. 616.
459 He is called Necho in the English version of the Scriptures.—Trans.
460 Herod. l. ii. c. 158.
461 Allowing 625 feet (or 125 geometrical paces) to each stadium, the
distance will be 118 English miles, and a little above one-third of
a mile. Herodotus says, that this design was afterwards put in
execution by Darius the Persian, b. ii. c. 158.—Trans.
462 Herod. l. iv. c. 42.
463 Joseph. _Antiq._ l. x. c. 6. 2 Kings, xxiii. 29, 30. 2 Chron. xxxv.
20-25.
464 2 Kings xxiii. 33, 35. 2 Chron. xxxvi. 1, 4.
465 The Hebrew silver talent, according to Dr. Cumberland, is equivalent
to 353_l._ 11_s._ 10-1/2_d._ so that 100 talents, English money,
make £35,359 7_s._ 6_d._ The gold talent, according to the same
source, is 5075_l._ 15_s._ 7-1/2_d._, so the amount of the whole
tribute was 40,435_l._ 3_s._ 1-1/2_d._—Trans.
466 Lib. ii c. 159.
467 Megiddo.—Trans.
468 From the time that Solomon, by means of his temple, had made
Jerusalem the common place of worship to all Israel, it was
distinguished from the rest of the cities by the epithet _Holy_, and
in the Old Testament was called _Air Hakkodesh_, _i.e._ the city of
holiness, or the holy city. It bore this title upon the coins, and
the shekel was inscribed _Jerusalem Kedusha_, _i.e._ Jerusalem the
holy. At length Jerusalem, for brevity’s sake, was omitted, and only
_Kedusha_ reserved. The Syriac being the prevailing language in
Herodotus’s time, Kedusha, by a change in that dialect of _sh_ into
_th_, was made Kedutha; and Herodotus giving it a Greek termination,
it was writ Κάδυτις or Cadytis. Prideaux’s _Connection of the Old
and New Testament_, ol. i. part i. p. 80, 81. 8vo. Edit.—Trans.
M90 A.M. 3397. Ant. J.C. 607.
469 Jer. xlvi. 2.
470 2 Kings, xxiv. 7.
471 A rivo Ægypti.
472 This little river of Egypt, so often mentioned in Scripture as the
boundary of Palestine towards Egypt, was not the Nile, but a small
river, which, running through the desert that lay betwixt those two
nations, was anciently the common boundary of both. So far the land,
which had been promised to the posterity of Abraham, and divided
among them by lot, extended. Gen. xv. 18. Josh. xv. 4.—Trans.
M91 A.M. 3404. Ant. J.C. 600.
473 Herod. l. ii. c. 160.
474 Herod. c. 160.
M92 A.M. 3410. Ant. J.C. 594.
475 Jer. xliv. 30.
476 Herod. l. ii. c. 161. Diod. l. i. p. 62.
477 Ezek. xxix. 3.
478 Ezek. xvii. 15.
479 Isa. xxxi. 1, 3.
480 Ezek. xxix. 2, 3, 4.
481 Ezek. xxix. 8, 9.
482 Chap. xxix. xxx. xxxi. xxxii.
M93 A.M. 3416. Ant. J.C. 588.
483 Jer. xxxvii. 6, 7.
M94 A.M. 3430. Ant. J.C. 574.
484 Herod. l. ii. c. 161, &c. Diod. l. i. p. 62.
485 The baldness of the heads of the Babylonians was owing to the
pressure of their helmets; and their peeled shoulders to their
carrying baskets of earth, and large pieces of timber, to join Tyre
to the continent. Baldness was itself a badge of slavery; and joined
to the peeled shoulders, shows that the conqueror’s army sustained
even the most servile labours in this memorable siege.—Trans.
486 For the better understanding of this passage, we are to know that
Nabuchodonosor sustained incredible hardships at the siege of Tyre;
and that when the Tyrians saw themselves closely attacked, the
nobles conveyed themselves and their richest effects on shipboard,
and retired into other islands. So that when Nabuchodonosor took the
city, he found nothing to recompense the toil which he had undergone
in this siege. S. Jerom.—Trans.
487 Chap. xxix. 18, 19, 20.
488 Jerem. xliii. 12.
489 Herod. l. ii. c. 163, 169. Diod. l. i. p. 62.
490 Ezek. xxx. 22.
491 Ezek. xxx. 24.
492 Ezek. xxx. 25.
493 Ver. 14, 17.
494 I have given the names of these towns as they stand in our English
version. In the margin are printed against Zoan, Tanis; against Sin,
Pelusium; against Aven, Heliopolis; against Phibeseth, Pubastum,
(Bubastus;) and by these last names they are mentioned in the
original French of M. Rollin.—Trans.
495 Jerem. xliv. 30.
496 Ezek. xxx. 13
497 Jerem ch. xliii. xliv.
M95 A.M. 3435. Ant. J.C. 569.
_ 498 In Tim._
499 Herod. l. ii. c. 172.
500 Herod. l. ii. c. 73.
501 The cubit is one foot and almost ten inches. Vide supra.—Trans.
502 Or, 58,125_l._ sterling.—Trans.
503 Ἐπῆρξε δὲ καὶ Ἑλλήνων τῶν ἐν τῆ Ἀσίᾳ, καταβὰς δὲ ἐπὶ Θάλατταν, καὶ
Κυπρίωι καὶ Αἰγυπτίων, p. 5. edit. Hutchinsoni.—Trans.
M96 A.M. 3479. Ant. J.C. 525.
504 Bochart, part II. l. ii. c. 16.
505 The first scene of the fifth act, translated into Latin by Petit, in
the second book of his _Miscellanies_.—Trans.
506 Herod. l. iii. c. 17-19.