303-413

دور

412

try, from Phoenicia to Cadytis, a city which belongs
to the Syrians of Palestine, and in my opinion equal
to Sardis, together with all the commercial towns
as far as Jenyfus, belong to the Arabians. This
is alfo the cafe with that space of land which from
the Syrian Jenyfus extends to the lake of Serbonis.
from the vicinity of which mount Cafius 7 ftretches
to the fea. At this lake, where, as was reported,
Typhon was concealed, Egypt commences. This
tract, which comprehends the city Jenyfus, mount
Cafius, and the lake of Serbonis, is of no trifling

Jenyfus,]-Stephanus Byzantinus calls this city Inys, for
that is manifeftly the name he gives it, if we take away the
Greek termination. But Herodotus, from whom he borrows,
renders it Jenis. It would have been more truly rendered Do-
rice Janis, for that was nearer to the real name. The hifto-
rian, however, points it out plainly by faying, that it was three
days journey from mount Cafius, and that the whole way was
through the Arabian defert.-Bryant.

Mr. Bryant is certainly mistaken with respect to the fituation of this place. It was an Arabian town, on this fide lake Serboais compared with Syria, on the other compared with Ægypt. 412 When Herodotus fays that this place was three days journey from mount Cafius, he must be understood as speaking of the 413 Syrian fide; if otherwife, Cambyfes could not have been fo embarraffed from a want of water, &c.-See Larcher farther -See Larcher firanes

on this fubject. Egunt

Mount Cafius.]-This place is now called by feamen mount Tenere; here anciently was a temple facred to Jupiter Cafius; in this mountain alfo was Pompey the Great buried, as some affirm, being murdered at its foot. This, however, is not true, his body was burnt on the fhore by one of his freedmen, with the planks of an old fishing-boat, and his afhes being conveyed to Rome, were depofited privately by his wife Cornelia in a vault of his Alban villa.-See Middleton's Life of Cicero.-T.

112.

*

448

6

extent; it is a three days journey over a very dry

VI. I fhall now explain what is known to very few of those who travel into Egypt by fea. Twice in every year there are exported from different parts of Greece to Ægypt, and from Phoenicia in particular, wine fecured in earthen jars, not one of which jars is afterwards to be feen. 1 fhall defcribe to what purpose they are applied: the principal magiftrate of every town is obliged to collect all the earthen veffels imported to the place where he refides, and fend them to Memphis. The Memphians fill them with water, and afterwards transport them to the Syrian deferts. Thus all the earthen veffels carried into Egypt, and there carefully collected, are continually added to those already in Syria.

VII. Such are the means which the Perfians have

With water.]-The water of the Nile never becomes im pure, whether referved at home, or exported abroad. On board the veffels which pafs from Ægypt to Italy, this water, which remains at the end of the voyage, is good, whilst what they happen to take in during their voyage corrupts. The Egyptians are the only people we know who preserve this water in jars, aș others do wine. They keep it three or four years, and fometimes longer, and the age of this water is with them an increase of its value, as the age of wine is elfewhere.-Ariftides Orat. Egyptiac.

Modern writers and travellers are agreed about the excellence

of the water of the Nile; but the above affertion, with respect to its keeping, wants to be corroborated.-T.

conftantly

conftantly adopted to provide themselves with water See in these deserts, from the time that they were first mafters of Egypt. But as, at the time of which we hafpeak, they had not this refource, Cambyses listened

6

to the advice of his Halicarnaffian guest, and solicited of the Arabian prince a fafe paffage through his territories; which was granted, after mutual promifes of friendship.

VIII. These are the ceremonies which the Arabians obferve when they make alliances, of which no people in the world are more tenacious. On thefe occafions fome one connected with both parties stands. betwixt them, and with a sharp stone opens a vein of the hand, near the middle finger, of those who are about to contract. He then takes a piece of the veft of each perfon, and dips it in their blood, with which he ftains feveral ftones purposely placed in the midft of the affembly, invoking during the procefs Bacchus and Urania. When this is finished, he who folicits the compact to be made

9 Tenacious.]-How faithful the Arabs are at this day, when they have pledged themselves to be so, is a topic of admiration and of praife with all modern travellers. They who once put themselves under their protection have nothing afterwards to fear, for their word is facred. Singular as the mode here defcribed of forming alliances may appear to an English reader, that of taking an oath by putting the hand under the thigh, in use amongst the patriarchs, was surely not lefs fo.

"Abraham faid unto the eldest fervant of his houfe that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh." Gen. xxiv. 2.-T.

pledges

1:5

107-111

137

10

3:01

THALIA.

pledges his friends for the fincerity of his engage-
ments to the ftranger or citizen, or whoever it
may happen to be; and all of them conceive an
indifpenfable neceffity to exist of performing what
they promife. Bacchus and Urania are the only
deities whom they venerate. They cut off their
hair round their temples, from the fuppofition that /
Bacchus wore his in that form; him they call
Urotalt, Urania, Alilat ",

7.135 Dead 1.107

IX. When the Arabian prince had made an alliance with the meffengers of Cambyfes, he ordered all his camels to be laden with camel fkins filled with water, and to be driven to the deferts, there to wait the arrival of Cambyfes and his army. Of this incident the above feems to me the more po bable narrative. There is also another, which, 226 however I may disbelieve, I think I ough

not to

3

omit. In Arabia is a large river called Corys,
which lofes itself in the Red Sea from this river
the Arabian is faid to have formed a canal of the 89
fkins of oxen and other animals fewed together,
which was continued to the above-mentioned de-
ferts, where he alfo funk a number of cisterns to
receive the water fo introduced. From the river
to the defert is a journey of twelve days; and they
fay that the water was conducted by three distinct
canals into as many different places.

10

Alilat.]-According to Selden, in his treatise de Diis Syris, the Mitra of the Perfians is the fame with the Alitta or Alilat of the Arabians.-T.

X. At the Pelufian mouth of the Nile Pfammenitus, the fon of Amafis, was encamped, and expected Cambyfes in arms. Amafis himself, after a

388 387 reign of forty-four years, died before Cambyfes had

advanced to Ægypt, and during the whole enjoyment of his power he experienced no extraordinary calamity. At his death his body was embalmed, and deposited in a fepulchre which he had erected for himself in the temple of Minerva ". During the reign of his fon Pfammenitus Ægypt beheld a 42 moft remarkable prodigy; there was rain at the 422 Egyptian Thebes, a circumstance which never happened before, and which, as the Thebans themfelves affert, has never occurred fince. In the higher parts of Ægypt it never rains, but at that period we read it rained at Thebes in diftinct drops 2.

12 428

7

12

XI. The Perfians having paffed the deserts, fixed their camp oppofite to the Ægyptians, as with the defign of offering them battle. The Greeks and Carians, who were the confederates of the Ægyp

* Temple of Minerva.]-This is not expreffed in the original text, but it was evident that it is in the temple of Minerva, from chap. clxix. of the second book.-T.

12 In diftin&t drops.]-Herodotus is perhaps thus particular, to diftinguish rain from mist.

407 It is a little remarkable that all the mention which Herodotus

makes of the ancient Thebes, is in this paffage, and in this flight manner. In book ii. chap. xv. he informs us that all Ægypt was formerly called Thebes.-T.