Before Chrift 1012 — 916. 25 



cargoes ; and that his fliips, hke the Spaniih galleons of the prefent day, 

 imported the bullion, partly for the benefit of his induftrious and com- 

 .mercial neighbours. [I Kings, cc. 7, 9, 10 — U Chron. cc. 2, 8, g.] 



Solomon alfo eflabliftied a commercial correfpondence with Egypt, 

 whence he received horfes, chariots, and linen yarn. The chariots coft 

 600, and the horfes 1 50, fhekels of filver each. [/ Kings, c. i o — 11 Chron. 

 cc. I, 9.3 



1 003 — The Thracians at this time had the empire of the fea, as Caf- 

 tor alleges, and held it nineteen years. Of their power at fea, or of the 

 commerce neceflary to fupport it, we know little or nothing. 



916 — The Rhodians now, and probably long before, made a cou'- 

 fiderable figure as a commercial people ; and it is probable that they 

 had carried on a flourifhing trade for fome centuries, being noted by 

 Homer as an opulent people in the time of the Trojan war. [Iliad, L. \i, 

 V. 668.] They excelled in Ihip-building, and their voyages extended to 

 the fartheft limits of the Mediterranean fea, at the wefl end of v.'hich, 

 according to Strabo, they eftabliflied colonies. It was perhaps firom 

 this refpectable appearance of their naval power that Caflor has inferted 

 them in his lift offovereigns of the fea : and we know from better au- 

 thority that they retained a command of the fea many ages afterwards. 

 \Strabo, L. i, p. 57. with Ju/iin, L. xxx, c. 4. for the date, 198 before Chri/l.l 

 What is, however, infinitely more to their honour, is, that they cleared 

 the fea of pirates, and compofed a code of maritime laws for the regula- 

 tion of trade and navigation, which were fo judicious and equitable, 

 that they were generally adopted by other nations, and held in the 

 higheft refpeft for many ages. The Rhodian regulations for the fliares 

 payable to the commander, officers, and feamen ; the rules to be ob- 

 ferved by freighters and paflengers while onboard ; the penalties on the 

 commander or feamen for goods injured by their neglect, by the want 

 ot fufficient tarpawlins and pumps, or by their careleirnefs or abfence 

 troni their ihips ; the penalties for barratry, for robbery of other fliips, 

 and for carelefsly running foul of other iliips ; the punifliment of the 

 commander for running away with the fliip ; the punifliment for plun- 

 dering a wreck ; the compenfation payable to the heirs of feamen who- 

 loft their lives in the fervice of their ftiip ; the regulations of charter- 

 parties, bills of loading, and contracts of partnerfliip or joint adventures, 

 the rules for bottomry, for average, falvage, the rates of falvage for re- 

 covering goods from the bottom in ly, 12, and 22^ feet water; and the 

 payment of demurrage, as enadcd in the Rhodian laws, were all copied 

 by the Roman emperors, and incorporated into the Roman law ; and 

 from it they were moftly aftlimed into the naval code, known by the 

 name ot the law of Oleron, which is in a great meafure in force to this 

 day. And thus the Rhodians have had the glory of regulating the mar- 

 VoL. I. D 



