PHYSICAL AND LITERARY. 113 



This once very great depofitory of the 

 mod precious commodities, and elegant 

 pieces of workmanfliip which nature or 

 art could produce, is now one of the moft 

 miferable villages I ever vifited. This al- 

 fo is the 'prefent ftate of all the odier 

 places I have feen that were fupported 

 and enriched by the credit of an oracle. 

 The lituation of them was generally 

 dreary and uncouth, and confequently 

 they are now abandoned for more conve- 

 nient and pleafant habitations. 



This place has afforded little fatisfac- 

 tion as to antiquities, twelve columns of 

 a portico being all we find here ; they are 

 of the Doric order, and, I believe, the 

 Ihorteft in proportion to their diamerer 

 now found ; the length or height of the 

 fliaft is 20 feet 4 inches j the circumfe- 

 rence 1 3 feet 9 inches ; the diameter 5 feet 

 4 inches ; fo that the height of the fhaft 

 is not quite four diameters, inftead of 

 eight, which, I think, is the prefent pro- 

 portion of the fhaft of a Doric column. 

 We returned here yefterday from vifiting 

 Vol. III. P the 



