640 Chateaubriamrs Travels 
Plato, have, before they expire, a view 
of Olympus, on which account their 
dying notes are so melodious: but I was 
disappointed. Perhaps, like Horace, I 
am not in the good graces of the Tynda- 
rides, and they would not permit me to 
discover the secrets of their cradle* 
Famous rivers share the same fate as 
famous nations; at first unknow n, then 
celebrated throughout the whole world, 
they afterwards sink into their original 
obscurity. Tl'.e Eurotas, at first deno¬ 
minated Iiimera, now flows forgotten 
under the appellation of Iri; as tlie 
Tiber, more anciently Albula, now rolls 
to the sea the unknown waters of the 
Teverone. I examined the ruins of the 
bridge Babyx, which are insignificant, I 
sought the island of Platanistae, and ima¬ 
gine that I discovered it below Magoula; 
it is a piece of ground of a triangular 
form, one side of wlfich is washed by 
the Eurotas, while the other two are 
bounded by ditches full of rushes, where 
in winter flows this river Magoula, the 
ancient Cnacion. In the island are some 
mulberry-trees and sycamores, but no 
plantains. 1 perceived no indication 
that the Turks still continue to make 
this spot subservient to pleasure ; I ob¬ 
served there a few flow'ers, among others 
blue lilies, some of wliich I plucked in 
memory of Helen ; the perishable crown 
of the beauty yet exists on the banks of 
the Eurotas, but the beauty herself has 
disappeared. 
Tlie view enjoyed, as you walk along 
the Eurotas, is very different from that 
commanded by the hill of the citadel. 
The river pursues a winding course, con¬ 
cealing itself, as I liave observed, among 
reeds and rose-laurels, as large as trees; 
on the left side, the hills of Mount Me- 
nelaion, of a bare and reddish appear¬ 
ance, form a contrast with the freshness 
and verdure of the channel of the Euro¬ 
tas. On the right, the Taygetus spreads 
Ivis magnificent curtain ; tlie whole space 
comprehended between this curtain and 
the river, is occupied by small hills, and 
the ruins of Sparta. These hills and 
these ruins have not the same desolate 
aspect as when you are close to tliem; 
they seem, on the contrary, to be tinged 
with purple, violet, and a light gold co¬ 
lour. It is not verdant meads and 
foliage of a cold and uniform green, but- 
the effects of light, that produce admira¬ 
ble landscapes. On this account the 
rocks and the heatlis of the bay of Naples 
will ever be superior in beauty to the 
in Egypt^ Palestme, 
most fertile vales of France and Eng* 
land. 
Thus, after ages of oblivion, this river^ 
whose banks were trodden by the Lace* 
daiinonians whom Plutarch has celebrat¬ 
ed, this river, I say, perhaps rejoiced, 
amid this neglect, at the soujid of the 
footsteps of an obscure stranger upon its 
shores. It was on the. 18th of August, 
1806, at nine in the morning, that I took 
this lonely w-alk along the Eurotas, which 
will never be erased from my memory. 
If I hate the manners of the Spartans, I 
am not blind to the greatness of a free 
people, neither was it without emotion 
that I trampled on their noble du.st. 
One single fact is sufficient to proclaim 
the glory of this nation. When Nero 
visited Greece, he durst not enter Lace- 
dzeinon. What a magnificent panegyric 
on that city ! 
I began to write down my observations, 
and to take a view of the differevit places; 
this occupied me two full hours; after 
w'hich I deterniined io examine the 
monuments to the west of the citadel. 
I knew that in this quarter the tomb of 
Leonidas must be situated. We wan¬ 
dered from ruin to ruin, the janissary 
following me, and leading the horses by 
the bridle. We were the only living 
human beings aniong such numbers of 
illustrious dead : both of us were bar¬ 
barians, strangers to each other, as well 
as to Greece ; sprung from the forests of 
Gaul, and the rocks of Caucasus, we bad 
met at the extremity of the Peloponnese, 
the one to pass over, the other to live 
upon, tombs which were not those of our 
forefathers. 
In vain I examined the smallest stones 
to discover the spot where the ashes of 
Leonidas were deposited. Fur a rno- 
ment I had hopes of succeeding. Near 
the edifice, resembling a tower, w hich I 
have described as standing to the west 
of the citadel, I found fragments of 
sculpture, which I took to be those of a 
lion. We are informed by Herodotus, 
that there was a lion of stone on the 
tomb of Leonidas; a circumstance 
not recorded by Pausanias. 1 conti¬ 
nued my researches wdth increased ar¬ 
dour, but ail my efforts proved fruit¬ 
less. I know not whether this w’as the 
spot wliere the Abbe Fourmont disco¬ 
vered three curious monuments. One 
of them was a cippus, on which was en¬ 
graven the name of Jerusalem ; perhaps 
a memorial of that alliance between the 
Jews and the Lacedaemonians, w hich is 
mentioned 
