THE ANCIENTS. 21 



and other materials, he brought his shipwrights toge- 

 ther, and set them to .their task. The master builder's name 

 was Archias. There were three hundred carpenters, besides 

 assistants, who all worked night and day by turns. When 

 the structure attained to half its bulk, it was launched by 

 Archimedes himself, and the remaining portion of the 

 vessel finished on the water. It had three decks, and 

 twenty rows of rowers. The floors in all the rooms were 

 mosaics, ornamented with figurative representations taken 

 from the Iliad. There was a gymnasium, and an English 

 flower-garden, a trelliced vineyard and avenue of trees, to 

 shade the promenades on deck. There was an Aphro- 

 disium, inlaid with a rich and brilliant assortment of 

 Sicilian agates, and cypress panels ; an academic saloon, 

 a library, ten stables, on each side the gangway, and 

 cribs all along the ship's sides, for grooms, harness, and 

 accoutrements. Besides all these surprising things, there 

 was a large reservoir, made of planks caulked and pitched, 

 containing 21,000 gallons of water, under lock and key. 

 By the side of this reservoir, and fed by it, was a 

 pond, also ma5e of planks, lined with lead and carefully 

 covered ; and in this a great number and variety of fish 

 were kept. 



Aristotle's Treatise on Fish is an important one. In 

 his AnimaUa, he recognises 117 kinds of fishes. He 

 dwells on their habits of life, their peregrinations, their 

 likings and aversions, their cunning, loves, modes of 

 propagation, &c. &c. 



