CJafsir. COMMON PIGEON. 219 



drawn away, to notify to diftant friends, the depar- 

 ture of the unhappy criminal. 



In the Eajl, the ufe of thefe birds feems to have 

 been improved greatly, by having, if we may ufe the 

 expreffion, relays of them ready to fpread intelligence 

 to all parts of the country. Thus the governor of 

 Damiata circulated the news of the death of Orrilo : 



Tofto che'l Caftellan di Damiata 

 Certificoffi, ch'era morto Orriloy 

 La Colomba lafcio, ch'avea legata 

 Sotto I'ala la lettera col iilo. 

 Quelle ando al Cairo, ed indi {x\. lafciata 

 Un' altra altrove, come quivi e ftilo : 

 Si, che in pochiffime ore ando Tavvifo 

 Per tutto Egitto, ch'era Orrilo uccifo *. 



But the fimple ufe of them was known in very early 

 times : Anacreon tells us, he conveyed his billet-doux, 

 to his beautiful Bathyllus^ by a dove. 



"Eycu a Avccv-piovTi 



Kat WV Qi'iXq IKilvii 



I am now Anacreon^ flave. 



And to me entrufted have 



A\\ the o'erflowings of his heart. 



To Bathyllus to impart ; 



Each foft line, with nimble wing. 



To the lovely boy I bring. 



* As foon as the commandant of Damiata heard that Orrilo 

 was dead, he let loofe a pigeon, under whofe wing he had tied a 

 letter ; this fled to Cairo, from whence a fccond was difpatched to 

 another place, as is ufual ; fo that in. a very few hours, z\\ Egypt 

 was acquainted with the death of Om/i'. A)-ioJ}o,ca?ito i^. 



•J- Anacreon^ ode g. £(\- TTB^t-s^ccv. 



Q^ 2 Taurofthenes 



