TRANSFER OF THE CHAP. III. 



parts of the world most advanced in civilization 

 were divided into small kingdoms ruled by petty 

 tyrants, whose subjects had neither rights nor 

 protection to oppose to the claims of their chiefs. 

 Their labour was directed to such purposes as 

 best suited his views. Hence there was no class 

 of subjects possessing property which the chief, 

 if he had occasion for it, could not claim and 

 secure for his own use. This is shown by the 

 relations already given of the kingdom of Lydia 

 under Croesus, and of Celaense under Pytheus, 

 both of whom drew to themselves the whole of 

 that metallic wealth which the labour of their 

 subjects could extract from the bowels of the 

 earth. The precious metals would then for the 

 most part be found in the hands of the kings, 

 as we see was the case with the two who were 

 the largest or at least the most prominent sove- 

 reigns of mining districts. These monarchs, 

 though called kings, were, however, in point of 

 fact, only feudatories of those greater monarchs 

 who successively ruled in the eastern empires 

 of Assyria and of Persia. The precious metals 

 thus collected in the power of these minor kings 

 was ready to be seized upon by, or to be pre- 

 sented to, the greater monarchs whenever occa- 

 sion might call for the delivery of them. It 

 was retained in smaller portions, ready to be 

 given up to form large masses ; and being in 

 few hands could be easily collected and trans- 



