EURIPUS. 



301 



While the Venetians were in possession of Negropont, a Jesuit, Father 

 Babin, studied the tides of the Euripus with attention, in order to 

 reconcile the varying accounts of ancient authors. Seneca says it 

 changed fourteen times in twenty-four hours. 



Septemque cursus flectit et totidem refert, 

 Dum lapsa Titan mergat oceano juga. 



Pliny, Pomponius Mela, and Strabo, all agree in assigning seven 

 times of flux and reflux ; but F. Babin says his observations deter- 

 mined him to the usual tides with the exception of certain days in 

 which the stream appeared to follow no regular order, namely, the 

 first five days of the moon's first quarter, and the same of her last 

 quarter. 



On each side of this narrow channel, the Euripus swells into con- 

 siderable breadth. Towards the south the shores project again, and 

 form a basin of four or five miles diameter, which from the town ap- 

 pears land-locked ; the northern part of the channel spreads uninter- 

 ruptedly to the breadth of eight or ten miles, the shores of Eubcea 

 and Bceotia retreating in a number of steep sloping headlands. 



Having crossed the bridge, we turned to the right, and took the 

 road for Martino, a village which we had been assured was six hours or 

 eighteen miles distant from Negropont. The fort on the hill was to 

 our left. In half an hour we reached Halae, a village situated on a 

 cultivated plain not far from the coast. The Euripus here spreads 

 itself into a large bay, at the northern extremity of which was a small 

 island, with a ruined tower and church, dedicated to St. Nicholas. 

 Fifteen years ago, a band of robbers made this place their haunt, until 

 they were extirpated by Ali Pasha. In two hours and a half from 

 Negropont, or at rather more than seven miles distance, we came on 

 the side of a large ancient town ; the fields were strewed with squared 

 stones, and though no line of walls was to be traced on the land, two 

 piers, which projected like horns, and formed a small circular * har- 



Atpevx tj^wcra.. — Strabo, lib. ix. 



