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“ 245 B. C .” (Kitt. cycl. bibl.), returning from his victories in the East, Ptolemy I II . entered
Jerusalem ; where he offered sacrifices, and “ made magnificent presents to the temple.”
Continuing homeward, Ptolemy III. brought back to Egypt the sacred objects carried away by
the Persians. He also gave great attention to the increase of the Alexandrian Library and encouragement
of learning.
A Greek inscription containing the name of Ptolemy I II. presents the following form of the letter
6, and the “ earliest ” example known of UJ (Franz. 81). “ Complications o f ” hieroglyphic siros
also began during his reign (Glidd.). *
“ 244 B. C.” (Pauth. p. 208), the “ Hioung-nou Tartars ” now mentioned in Chinese h is to ry —
by some writers identified with the “ Hunni ” or Huns ; who at a later period invaded Europe from
the East.
“ 243 B. C.,” the “ eighth ” year after his liberation of Sicyon (Polyb., and Clint.), Corinth liberated
by the historian Aratus.
“ The same year ” (Strab., and Schlegel journ. asiat. 1828), Theodotus succeeded by Theodotus
IL, second Greek king of Bactria.
A t this time (Plut. vit. A ra t, and G. M. B. in Kitt. cycl. bibl.), a banker i'u Sicyon, “ whose
whole business consisted in exchanging one species of money for another.”
242 B. C. = “ 19th year ” of his reign in an inscription by king Asoka — (Burn. ii. 779).
“ 241 B. C .” (Liv., and Clint.), the Carthaginians defeated in naval combat by the Romans at
the Aegates Islets off the West end of Sicily ; and suing for peace, the First Punic war brouo-ht to
a close. tt
In the Description of Greece by Heraclides Creticus, the head-covering of the women o f Boeotian
Thebes is said to conceal the face all but the two eyes — (Apollon, mir. 19) : to the present
day, the fashion in Egypt (see figures in Lane’s modern Egyptians). The Boeotians therefore may
have derived the custom through the Cadmeans from Phoenicia ?
Carpinus betulus of Europe and the adjoining portion of Asia. Called in Britain hornbeam or
horn-beech or yoke-elm (Prior), in Germany “ hainbuche ” (Fraas), in France “ charme ” (Nugent),
in Italy “ carpine bianco o commune” or “ carpino” (Lenz), in Greece “ gauros” or “ agriotaoukft
nitha,” m which we recognize the “ carpinum ” by some identified with the “ zygiam ” of the Greeks
(Plin. xvi. 26): possibly therefore the ZYTIA frequent on mount Pelion according to Heraclides
Creticus : — C. betulus was observed by Sibthorp, and Chaubard, from the environs of Constantinople
to the mountains of the Peloponnesus. Westward, the “ carpinus ” is mentioned by Vitruvius ii. 9
by Columella as furnishing handles for agricultural implements, and by Pliny as growino- in Ita li
both on the mountains and plains : C. betulus is described by Tragus p. 1 109, and GerardI p. 1479 ;
IS termed “ carpinus ” by Tournefort inst. 583, and is known to grow in Italy and throughout middle
Europe as far as Britain (Engl. bot. pl. 2032, and. Pers.). The wood being exceedingly hard and
tough continues to be “ used to yoke horned cattle ” (Prior ; see Acer campestre).
240 B. C. (Cic., and Clint.), first dramatic exhibition of Livius Andronicus : regarded as the
beginning of Latin literaiure. This writer or rather translator was by birth a 'Greek . — Seven
years later-, both he and four native Latin writers, Naevius, Plautus, Ennius, and Cato, were all livina
Scirpus lacustris o f Northern climates. Called in Britain bulrush, in Old English “ pole-rush"’
equivalent to the French “ jonc d’eau,” in Anglo-Saxon “ ea-risc ” (Prio r): the “ .scirpus ” havin’o-
no knots according to a Roman proverb — (quoted by Ennius, and Terence), made into rafts in the
days of Plautus, employed also on foofs (Isidor.), and for sails on the river Po and along the coast
of Barbary in the days of Pliny xvi. 70, may be compared : S. lacustris occurs in debris of the lake-
villages of Switzerland (Troyon) ; is described by C. Stephanus p. 520, Tragus, Gesner, Lobel, and
C. Bauhm; is termed “ s. palustris altissimus ” by Tournefort inst. 528; and is known to grow in
shallow water in Barbary, Italy, Portugal, and throughout middle and Northern Europe as far as
Lapland and Iceland (Desf., Savi, Brot., Hook., and Wats.). Eastward, was observed by Sibthorp
and Chaubard, in the rivers of Crete and Greece and called “ supha; ” is known to grow along thè
Paurian mountains and throughout Siberia (Gmel., Bieb., Ledeb., and A. Dec.), and was observed by
Thunberg about mount Fakon in Japan. Farther East, was observed by myself on the Hawaiian
Islanas and in California and Oregon, by Nuttall in Arkansas, by Pursh in Canada, by Baldwin alona
the Atlantic as far South as Lat. 29° in Florida ; and doubtless furnished the “ rushes ” employed by
the aboriginal women of New England for making baskets, witnessed by W. Wood ii. 20, and
or tatties to impart when dashed with water coolness and fragrance to the atmosphere ; used also for
covering palanquins and thatching bungalows (Drur.). Farther East, was observed by Mason v
501 “ exotic ” m Burmah and called “ pan-yen,” little bunches cultivated by both Karens and Burmese
for “ its fragrant roots.”
Gookin coll. 3. “ S. lacustris” is attributed also to the Southern Hemisphere, to Australia and New
Zealand (Wats., and J. D. Hook,), but as growing in Austral America I found the stem obtusely
trigonal at base.
“ 237 B. C. = loth year of Wang-tching ” or Chi-hoang-ti (Chinese chron. table), beginning of
the Forty-first cycle.
“ 235 B. C.” (Liv., Eutrop., and Clint.), Second closing of the temple of Janus. The Romans
having peace with all nations for the first time since the reign of Numa Pompilius.
The same year = “ 26th year of Asoka ” in inscriptions on columns at Delhi and Allahabad —
(Burnouf !i. 655 to 741).
One hundred and twenty-second generation. Sept. ist, 234, mostly beyond youth : the Greek
poets, Rhianus, Archimelus, Hegesianax of Alexandria, Samius, Alcaeus of Messene, and Dioscorides
of Egypt ; the comic poet, Epinicus ; the philosophers, Evander, Aristón of Ceos, Zenon of
Tarsus, and Chrysippus ; the astronomer Conon of Samos ; the historians, Chares, Phylarchus, Philinus
of Agrigentum, Mnesiptolemus, and Ptolemaeus of Megalopolis ; the grammarian Aristophanes
of Byzantium; the biographer Hermippus ; other Greek writers, Apollonius of Perga, and Antigonus
of Carystus; the Greek painters, Neacles, Cydias, and Antidotus (Bryan): the Latin writer
Marcius; and the Roman painter M. Valerius Messala.
As early perhaps as this date, the first regular work on pharmacy composed by Mantias, a follower
of Herophilus, and the preceptor o f— Heracleides Tarentinus (Galen, and Sm. b. d.).
Rheum rhaponticum of Western Tartary. The PHON o f Mantias — (Gal. sec. loc, viii. 3),
Zopyrus, described by Dioscorides as a medicinal root brought from beyond the Bosphorus, mentioned
also by Oribasius (Daremb.), Aetius, and Paulus Aegineta, is referred here by writers ; and
the “ rawand ” of Elhur, Serapion, Avicenna, and the earlier Arab physicians, is referred here by
Ebn Baitar : R. rhaponticum is known to grow wild from the Volga North of the Caspian to Kras-
nojar on the upper Yenissei (Spreng , and Lindl,). Westward, the “ reon ” or “ ra ” is identified in
Syn. Diosc. with the “ rapóntikóum” of the Romans : the “ radicis ponticae” is mentioned by Celsus
V. 23, and Scribonius Largus; the “ rhacoma,” by Pliny xxvii. 105; the root of R. rhaponticum is
distinguished by Matthaeus Sylvaticus pandect. 589; and the living plant introduced into Euroi>e
prior to 1612, is described by Alpinus libell. rhapon., and Parkinson. By European colonists, was
carried to Northeast America, where it continues under cultivation for its esculent leaf-stalks, and is
caWcd garden rhubarb J also to Tropical Hindustan (Graham). Its root according to Guibourt is
bitter, astringent, and aromatic (Lindl.).
“ 231 B. C.” (Dionys., Blair, and Clint.), first divorce among the Romans, that of Spurius Carvilius.
“ The same year ” (Zonar., Blair, and Clint.), the Corsicans and Sardinians, who had been induced
by the Carthaginians to revolt, subdued by the Romans.
“ 229 B. C.” (Eutrop., Blair, and Clint.), war against the Illyrians on account of their piracies
commenced by the Romans. — At the end of a year, the Illyrian queen Teuta sued for peace.
“ 22S B. C .” (Polyb., Blair, and Clint.), at the invitation of the Achaean and Aetolian Leagues,
Roman ambassadors first visit Athens, Corinth, and other cities o f Greece.
227-6 B. C. (Polyb. V. 89, and Clint, iii. p. 425), the colossus at Rhodes about this time thrown
down by an earthquake. Presents to the Rhodians to repair their losses, sent by the Greek kings
of the East, Mithridates IV., Seleucus I I. Callinicus, Prusias, Attalus, Antigonus Doson, and Ptolemy
III. of Egypt.
“ 226 B. C. (Clint, iii, p. 346), Seleucus II. succeeded by Seleucus III. Ceraunus, fifth Greek
king of Syria.
Hardly later than this year (Sm. b. d.), by invitation of Ptolemy III., Eratosthenes removing to
Egypt to take charge of the Alexandrian library. Parallels o f Latitude were applied to geographical
maps by Eratosthenes. From the entrance to the Mediterranean, his celebrated “ First parallel”
extended through the island of Rhodes, and thence across the Euphrates and Tigris to the mountains
of India, having been determined by observing where the longest day continued “ fourteen hours and
a h a lf; ” — therefore, as afterwards ascertained by Hipparchus, corresponding to “ the Latitude of
36°” (Blair).
According to Eratosthenes (Strab. i. 3. 11), the current in the Strait between Italy and Sicily
changes twice a day ; corresponding in general to the tides of the Atlantic, but not so invariably following
the moon. — Further details respecting the tides of the Atlantic, are given by Posidonius, and
Athenodorus.
Eratosthenes (Strab. i. 3. 3, 4, 9, and xvii. i. 19) maintained. That the Earth is C$AI POei AHC
spheroidal (compare Archimedes). He divided mankind into good and bad, a distinction existing
throughout all nations; he admired the institutions of the Romans and Carthaginians; but states,
that the Carthaginians would sink any vessel containing a foreigner sailing to Sardinia, or the entrance
of the Mediterranean.
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