580 \Li;;cF.b's miinci; or BOATS. 



twenty-five feet. Though the hold of this vessel was exceeding 

 clfeji. a illicit' nii'.n could MHMI clear it ui' water with a niachiu. i- - 

 vented for that purpose by Archimi de*. An Athenian poitli 

 composed sonic versos on this magnificent vessel, Hiero, who un- 

 derstood the value of verse, icwarded him with a- thousand 

 dimni, that is, six thousand bushels of \vheat, which he CUI-M! to 

 be carried to the Pyreaeus, or port of Athens. Jfiero made after, 

 wards a present of this great vessel to Ptolemy, probably Philadei- 

 phus, king of Egypt, and sent it to Alexandria. As there was at 

 that time a great famine in Egypt, good king Hicro sent along with 

 it several other ships of less burden with three hundred thousand 

 quarters of corn, ten thousand great earthen jars of salt fish, twenty 

 thousand quintals of salt meat, and an immense quantity of other 

 provisions. [Anc. Univ. Hist, 



SECTION 111. 



Xerxcs's Bridge of Boats over the Hellespont. 



XKUXHS, having resolved to attack Greece, that he might omit 

 nothing which could contribute to the success of his under, 

 taking, entered into an alliance with the Cartbagenians, who were, 

 at tiiat time, the most powerful people of the west ; whereby it was 

 agreed, that, while the Persians invaded Greece, the Carthaginians 

 should fall npon the G n ek colonies in Sicily and Italy, and thereby 

 they might be diverted from helping each other. The Carthagi- 

 nians appointed Hamilcar their general, who not only raised what 

 forces he could in Afric, but, with the money sent him by Xerxes, 

 hired a great many n:erc< iiur'n s in Spain, Gaul, and Italy; so that 

 his army consisted of three hundred thousand men, besides a pro. 

 portionable number of ships for transporting his forces, and the 

 necessary provisions. And thus Xerxes, agreeaMeto the prophecy 

 of Daniel, having, by his strength through his riches, stirred up all 

 the nations of the tl.c-n known world against the realm of Gr 

 that is, all the west under the command of Hamilcar, and all the 

 east under his own banners, set out from Susa, to enter upon this 

 war, in the fifth year of his reign, after having spent three years in 

 m :K!ng vast preparations throughout all the provinces of his wid , 

 spreading empire. From Susa he inarched to Sardis, which wax 

 the place appointed for the general rendezvous of all his land 

 forces, while his navy advanced along the coasts of Asia Minor to. 

 wards (he Hellespont. 

 Two things Xerxes commanded to be done before h came to the 



