313

afterwards in the island of Thera, to the defcendants of this tribe.

CL. Thus far the accounts of the Lacedæmonians and Thereans agree; what follows, is related on the authority of the latter only:-Grinus, fon of Æfanius, and defcended from the above Theras, was prince of the island; he went to Delphi, carrying with him an hecatomb for facrifice, and accompanied, amongst other of his citizens, by Battus the fon of Polymneftus, of the family of Euthymus a Minyan; Grinus, confulting the oracle about fomewhat of a different nature, was commanded by the Pythian to build a city in Africa. "I," replied the prince "am too old and too infirm for fuch an "undertaking; fuffer it to devolve on fome of "these younger perfons who accompany me;" at the fame time he pointed to Battus. On their return they paid no regard to the injunction of the oracle, being both ignorant of the fituation of Africa, and not caring to fend from them a colony on fo precarious an adventure.

Or the manes themselves became furies for that purpose:

Their fhades fhall pour their vengeance on thy head.

Ib. 1503.

Oreftes in his madnefs calls Electra one of his furies; that is, one of those which attended to torment him:

Off, let me go: I know thee who thou art,
One of my furies, and thou grappleft with me,
To whirl me into Tartarus.-Avaunt!

Oreftes, 270.

It stands at prefent in the verfion the furies, which is wrong.

1

The

CLI. For seven years after the above event it never rained in Thera; in confequence of which every tree in the place perished, except one. inhabitants confulted the oracle, when the fending a colony to Africa was again recommended by the Pythian: as therefore no alternative remained, they fent fome emiffaries into Crete, to enquire whether any of the natives or ftrangers refiding amongst them had ever vifited Africa. The perfons employed on this occafion, after going over the whole island, came at length to the city Itanus 150, where they became acquainted with a certain dyer of purple, whofe name was Corobius; this man informed them, that he was once driven by contrary winds into Africa, and had landed there, on the island of Platea they therefore bargained with him for a certain fum, to accompany them to Thera. Very few were induced to leave Thera upon this bufinefs; they who did go were conducted by Corobius, who was left upon the island he had defcribed, with provifions for fome months; the rest of the party made their way back by fea as expeditiously as poffible, to acquaint the Thereans with the event.

CLII. By their omitting to return at the time appointed, Corobius was reduced to the greatest

150 Itanus.]-Some of the dictionaries inform, that this place is now called Paleo-Caftro; but Savary, in his Letters on Greece, remarks, that the modern Greeks give this name to all ancient places.-T,

diftrefs; it happened, however, that a Samian veffel, whose commander's name was Colaus, was, in its courfe towards Egypt, driven upon the island of Platea; thefe Samians, hearing the ftory of Corobius, left him provifions for a twelvemonth. On leaving this ifland, with a wifh to go to Ægypt, the winds compelled them to take their courfe westward, and continuing without intermiffion, carried them beyond the columns of Hercules, till, as it fhould feem by somewhat more than human interpofition, they arrived at Tarteffus 5. As this was a port then but little known, their voyage ultimately proved very advantageous; fo that, excepting Softrates, with whom there can be no competition, no Greeks were ever before fo fortunate in any commercial undertaking. With fix talents, which was a tenth part of what they gained, the Samians made a brazen vafe, in the fhape of an Argolic goblet, round the brim of which the heads of griffins 15 were regularly difpofed: this was depo

fited

151 Tarteffus.]-This place is called by Ptolemy, Cateia, and is feen in d'Anville's maps under that name, at the entrance of the Mediterranean: mention is made in Ovid of Tarteffia littora.-T.

152 Griffins. In a former note upon this word I neglected to inform the reader, that in Sir Thomas Brown's Vulgar Errors there is a chapter upon the fubject of griffins, very curious and entertaining, p. 142. This author fatisfactorily explains the Greek word Ipv4 or Gryps, to mean no more than a particular kind of eagle or vulture: being compounded of a lion and an eagle, it is a happy emblem of valour and magnanimity, and therefore applicable to princes, generals, &c. and

from

fited in the temple of Juno, where it is supported by three coloffal figures, feven cubits high, refting on their knees. This was the firft occafion of the particular intimacy, which afterwards fubfifted between the Samians and the people of Cyrene and Thera.

CLIII. The Thereans having left Corobius behind, returned and informed their countrymen that they had made a fettlement in an island belonging to Africa: they, in confequence, determined, that from each of their feven cities a felect number fhould be fent, and that if thefe happened to be brothers, it fhould be determined by lot who fhould go; and that finally, Battus fhould be their prince and leader: they fent accordingly to Platea two fhips of fifty oars.

CLIV. With this account, as given by the Thereans, the Cyreneans agree, except in what relates to Battus; here they differ exceedingly, and tell, in contradiction, the following history:-There is a town in Crete,, named Oaxus, where Etearchus was once king; having loft his wife, by whom he had a daughter, called Phronima, he married a fecond time: no fooner did his last wife take poffefsion of his house, than fhe proved herself to Phronima a step-mother indeed. Not content with injuring her by every species of cruelty and ill-treat

from this it is borne in the coat of arms of many noble families in Europe.-T.

ment, she at length upbraided her with being un-
chafte, and perfuaded her husband to believe fo.
Deluded by the artifice of his wife, he perpetrated
the following act of barbarity against his daughter :
there was at Oaxus a merchant of Thera, whofe
name was Themifon; of him, after fhewing him
the usual rites of hofpitality, he exacted an oath that
he would comply with whatever he fhould require;
having done this, he delivered him his daughter,
ordering him to throw her into the fea. Themifon
reflected with unfeigned forrow on the artifice
which had been practised upon him, and the obliga-
tion impofed; he determined, however, what to
do: he took the damfel, and having failed to fome
diftance from land, to fulfil his oath, fecured a rope
about her, and plunged her into the fea; but he
immediately took her out again, and carried her to
Thera.

CLV. Here Polymneftus, a Therean of fome importance, took Phronima to be his concubine, and after a certain time had by her a fon, remarkable for his fhrill and ftammering voice: his name, as the Thereans and Cyreneans affert, was Battus 153, but I think it was fomething elfe. He was lign tor

*

nor,

153 Battus.]-Battus, according to Hefychius, alfo fignifies, in the Lybian tongue, a king: from this perfon, and his defect of pronunciation, comes, according to Suidas, the word Bartagiev, to ftammer. There was alfo an ancient foolish poet of this name, from whom, according to the fame authority, BaTTakoye fignified an unmeaning redundance of expreffion. Neither muft the

Battus

128-120

221.266.27 4279.

66 71