which united with the Tigris, while the other fell into the sea by an
independent mouth. It is the +Ulai+ of the prophet Daniel. _Pas_
is said to be an old Persian word, meaning _small_. By some writers the
name +Pasitigris+ was applied to the united stream of the Tigris
and Euphrates, now called the +Shat-el-Arab+. The courses of the
rivers and the conformation of the country in the parts here have all
undergone great changes, and hence the identification of localities
is a matter of difficulty and uncertainty. The following extract from
Strabo will illustrate this part of the narrative:—
Polycletus says that the +Choaspes+, and the +Eulæus+, and
the +Tigris+ also enter a lake, and thence discharge themselves
into the sea; that on the side of the lake is a mart, as the rivers do
not receive the merchandize from the sea, nor convey it down to the
sea, on account of dams in the river, purposely constructed; and that
the goods are transported by land, a distance of 800 stadia, to Susis:
according to others, the rivers which flow through Susis discharge
themselves by the intermediate canals of the Euphrates into the single
stream of the Tigris, which on this account has at its mouth the name
of Pasitigris. According to Nearchus, the sea-coast of Susis is swampy,
and terminates at the river Euphrates; at its mouth is a village
which receives the merchandize from Arabia, for the coast of Arabia
approaches close to the mouths of the Euphrates and the Pasitigris;
the whole intermediate space is occupied by a lake which receives
the Tigris. On sailing up the Pasitigris 150 stadia is a bridge of
rafts leading to Susa from Persis, and is distant from Susa 60 (600?)
stadia; the Pasitigris is distant from the Oroatis about 2,000 stadia;
the ascent through the lake to the mouth of the Tigris is 600 stadia;
near the mouth stands the Susian village Aginis, distant from Susa 500
stadia; the journey by water from the mouth of the Euphrates up to
Babylon, through a well-inhabited tract of country, is a distance of
more than 3,000 stadia.—Book xv. 3, _Bohn’s trans._
[112] The 3rd part of the _Indika_, the purport of which is to prove
that the southern parts of the world are uninhabitable, begins with
this chapter.
[113] Here and subsequently meaning the Persian Gulf.
[114] It is not known when or wherefore Ptolemy sent troops on this
expedition.
* * * * *
Transcriber's Notes
Obvious typographical errors have been silently corrected. Variations
in hyphenation, spelling, accents and punctuation remain unchanged.
Italics are represented thus _italic_ and geapertt thus +gespertt+.
In the original, with one exception, Tamil is spelt with the diacritic
.. beneath the l. As this symbol is not available, the reader is asked
to imagine it.