The (hape, which a portion of this fubftance had chanced to
a0hm^o proved ; the; journey. The. Greek
had r^cej^da^PRa it; a liycjybidea o f a human figure, ..and, filled
with adpiiration, had -reprefented it as the itnage;of- a caloyet or
monk . vyith| a ; venerable.. beard and. o f a ftriking afpedt. We
re-hoiftjed ;our two adventurers, and mounting our horfes went
hacJt tq ^qi' h i g g l e by the way we came.
T « e ,mountains; on.this fide o f Athens were once noted for
filler. The mines were private property, and were worked for
the benefit of individuals, to the time o f Themiftocles. By his
advice, the republic took. pofleffion o f them, and . applied. the
profits to the building o f triremes to be employed in the war
with iEgina. Demetrius the Phalerdan faid, that the Athenians
laboured on’ them as eagerly as i f they hoped to dig up Plutus
himfelf, the. god of,.riches. The..produqe, . which at firft was
plentiful, failing,; they, ref melted the. old feum and drofs, and
found ore, which, from want.of.(kill, had not been extradted.
T h e well, to which w,e were conducted, was .probably a fliaft.
Attica efteemed moil ex<pfifite was taken hear
the mines. |j
G n our, ^rrival at .the . thicket. where. our baggage lay, a
couple' o f Greeks climbed the .mountain to fearch, for wild
'honey; ^ d , our fervants' began to prepare dinner,, ftriking fire,
and hewing down bujthes, with their fabres..; The fold'of Muf-
tapha JBey, a friendly-Turk;, of Athens, fupplied us with' a fheep
fed- on the fragrant herbage of' Hymettus, They embowelled
the carcafe, and fixed it whole, and warm on,a wooden (p itf
which was-turned ;byone,pf. them fitting on thegroiind. They
cut in pieces the .heart,; liver, and the like, and mingled them
on a ikewer, to be dreiiisd. pn the c o a ls .S om e boughs of green
paafiie ftrved us at:Ancq- fo.r .tablecloth:.'.and difh. _ We fell
to with knives or fingers, for..the latter are principally: ufed ;
apd a Greek, kneeling by Us, circulated 'wine, pouring it
into a {hell. Oür men feafted in their turn; an d made merry,
until;.the heat of noon, overpowered them.
A f t e r (leeping, fome in a (hallow watefcourfé beneath the
fcanty.. (hade under which we had dined, and fome amopg
the thickets ht a diftance, we- mounted and returned back to
Dragonifi, where, a hofpitable Albanian received us, fweeping
the. ground, and fpreading a mat for u s ,. before the door oft his
Houfe. We fupped on 'fowls, cheefe, falted .p l iy ^ qggs» and
fuch articles as could be procured. The evening was concluded
with wild finging and ruftic dancing. We pafled the
night round a fire, having no mountain as before to (helter us,
and the sir getting cold.
In the morning the falconer, after placing a piece o f raw
meat in a tree at a diftance, unhoódéd and difmifled a hawk,
whièh>immediately flew toward i t ; but, (looping mid-way,
feizéd a final! fpeckled owl lurking among the few green tufts,
(battered oh the furface o f the foil. The ravenous bird was
eafily deceived by a bit of flefli, which the falconer fubftituted,
as ufual, in the room of his prey, and loofed the owl,alive from
his .talons. We likewife faw a partridge chafed, taken on the
wing, and carried into a thicket.
T he purple hills 0f Hymettus were the feene of the famous
of Cephalus and Frocris \ The fatal miftake of the
h-ulbarid was faid to have .happened among fome thickets near a
facïed fpring or fountain. ij This feems. the (pot called Pera,
where was a tertiple ó f Venus,''and a water, which was believed ,
to conduce to pregnancy and to an eafy delivery. The fame, it is
probable, is now occupied by; the monaftery o f Gyriani. In
many inftances the temple , or its fite, { with , the .confepm^
portion,' havfe changed their owners, and .tfie ,^eity been difpof-
feffed by. the faint. The c oh vent. is an old irregular building
.* Ovid, de Arte Amandi, L '3. v. 687,
~u on