fay for thefe reafons we can exped: Jitde fatisfadiori 
from Strabo, and lefs may we hope for from Dionyjins 
Afer^ Arrianus^ Stepbanus Byzantium , & others. Where- 
fore next having rccourfe to the Arabians, who in Geo- 
graphy deferve the iecond place after the GrcecianSy I 
find in Naffir Eddin the Latkude of By^anttum^ which 
he terms Bu^antiya^ and Conjtantiniya^ to be 4f degrees, 
and iViVlug Begs Aftronomicall Tables the lame to be 
exprefTed. Abulfeda cheifly follows four Principall Au- 
thors as his Guides, in the compiling of his Geographi- 
cal Tables, thofe are, Alfaras^ Albiruny^ Hon Saiid Al' 
magrabyy laftly Ptolemy^ whole Geography he terms 
a defcription of the ^iuadranty (or the fourth part of the 
Earth) inhabited; and all thefe, according to his afTer- 
tion, ^\7!iCQ,Bf'^antium ixi ^'j; degrees of Latitude. And 
here it may juftly be wondered, how this difference 
fhould arife between the Greek Copies of Ptolemy, and 
thofe tranflated into Arabic]^ by the command of Alma- 
mouy the Learned Calif e of Babylon i tor Abulfeda ex* 
prelly relates, that Ptolemy was firft interpreted in his 
time, that is, in the computation of Almecinus in. Erpe^ 
nius's Edition, and of Emir Cond 2i Perfian Hiftoriogra- 
fher, more then 800 years fince: Concerning which A-^ 
ulfeda^ writes thus, This Boo]^ (difcourling of P^<?/^/wys 
Geography) was tranflated out of the Grcecian Language 
into the Arabic\, for Almamon : And in this I find (by 
three fairMSSof Abulfeda) Byzantium to be conftantly 
placed in 4f^. and as conftantly in the Gw/^ Copies in 
41''. f'. But in the Tc^oxifo^ yuLvm^ of Chryfococca, out of 
the P^ry?<^« tables, (made about the year i34<^ in Sca^ 
tiger % Calculation,) it is placed in 45- To reconcile the 
difference between the Greeks and Arabians may feem 
impoflible, for the common refuge of flying to the cor- 
ruption of numbers by Tranfcribers, and laying the 
fault on them, which fometimes is the Author s^ will not 
help us in this particular,- feeing the Gw/^ Copies a- 
A a a a 2 gree 
