110 ORIGIN ANI) DECLINE OF THE 



Hindus, who followed Alexander into Persia, and 

 which we find on the borders of Media, with Eume- 

 NES, eight 3'ears after the death of the former. It 

 was commanded by the brave Ket£us, probably 

 Ketu, or the fiery meteor of war ; and there was cer- 

 tainly little, or no compulsion used by the Greeks, 

 for they took even their wives and families along 

 with them. Keteus died fig-htins^ valiantly, and his 

 two wives insisted upon burning themsehes with the 

 dead body ; but it was found that the eldest was 

 with child, and therefore she was prevented from fol- 

 lowing her husband. The youngest went triumphant- 

 ly, and was led by her brother, and other relatives, 

 and servants, to the funeral pile.* 



Claudius received also an embassy from a king 

 of Ceylon : and when Trajan was marching against 

 the Part kia}is in the year 103, some princes o^' India 

 sent embassadors to him, requesting him to settle 

 some disputes between them and their neighbours, 

 probably the Part/iia?is. It is remarkable, that dur- 

 ing this expedition, Trajan was constantly supplied 

 with oysters from Great Britain ; and which were 

 preserved fresh, by a particular process, discovered 

 by one of the first epicures of the age. There were 

 embassadors fiom India sent to Antoninus Pius, 

 to Djocletjan, and Maxjmian; to Theodosius, 

 Hkuaclius, and Just in tan ; and Ave readf of two 

 Hinduk'mgs, putting themselves under the protection 

 of Diocletian and IMaxtmian, and their names 

 were Gennoeon and Esatec/h. In the year 274, 

 AuRELiAN took Palmyra, and made Queen Zenobia 



* DiODOR. vSic. lib. xix. C. 2. 

 t Anc. Univ. Hist. vol. \viii. p. 78. 



