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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A36034	The historical library of Diodorus the Sicilian in fifteen books : the first five contain the antiquities of Egypt, Asia, Africa, Greece, the islands, and Europe : the last ten an historical account of the affairs of the Persians, Grecians, Macedonians and other parts of the world : to which are added the fragments of Diodorus that are found in the Bibliotheca of Photius : together with those publish'd by H. Valesius, L. Rhodomannus, and F. Ursinus / made English by G. Booth ..., Esq.; Bibliotheca historica. English	Diodorus, Siculus.; Booth, George, 17th/18th cent.; Valois, Henri de, 1603-1676.; Rhodoman, Lorenz, 1546-1606.; Photius, Saint, Patriarch of Constantinople, ca. 820-ca. 891. Bibliotheca.; Orsini, Fulvio, 1529-1600.	1700 (1700)	Wing D1512; ESTC R15327	1,369,223	858

the Persian War by Neoptolemus his Verses Philip's Pride His Murther The Cause of it and how it was done and by whom WHen Pythodorus was chief Governor of Athens and Quintus Publius and Tiberius Olymp. 111. 1. Ant. Ch. 334. An. M. 3609. Aemilius Mamercus were Roman Consuls the Hundred and Eleventh Olympiad was celebrated wherein Cleomentis Cletorius wan the Prize In this Year Philip began the War against the Persians and forthwith sent A ta●us and Parmenio before into Asia to free the Greek Cities there from Slavery He himself intending to have the Concurrence of the Gods consulted the Oracle at Delphos whether or no he should be victorious over Philip consults the Oracle the King of Persia The Answer was thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The Ox is crown'd when 's end is near at hand To offer him a Man doth ready stand This doubtful Answer Philip constru'd to his own advantage as if the Oracle had expresly foretold that he should lead away the Persian King as a Victim to the Sacrifice But in truth it fell out quite otherwise and by the effect it appear'd that it had a contrary Signification to wit that Philip in a Throng at the time of a Sacred Festival was to be knock'd on the Head like a Bullock crown'd with a Garland for Sacrifice In the mean time he was very jocund as if he had conquer'd Asia already and concluded the Gods were engag'd with him in the Expedition Without delay therefore he offer'd most costly and magnificent Sacrifices and at the same time solemnized the Marriage of his Daughter Cleopatra by Olympias He Marry'd her to Alexander King of Epirus Brother of Olympias Having therefore a desire of a considerable Appearance of Philip's pompous Festivals at the Marriage of his Daughter Cleopatra the Graecians at this Nuptial Festivity conjoin'd with his Religious Sacrifices he made most pompous Preparation for the Entertainment of his Friends and Guests both with Musick Dancing and Feasting To this End he Invited those that were his special Friends and Familiars all over Greece and commanded his Servants and Attendants that they should invite as many Strangers from all Places as were of their own Acquaintance And his main design in all this was that he might assure all the Graecians of his Kindness towards them and testify his Gratitude by these Friendly Entertainments for the Honours conferr'd upon him A vast Concourse of People therefore were got together from all Places to the Solemnity of these Nuptials which were magnificently Solemniz'd at * Or Aegeas Aeges in Macedonia with all sorts of Sports and Plays so that not only Noblemen and Persons of Quality but even many great Cities presented Philip with Crowns of Gold Among the Cities Athens made one and when the Common Cryer with a loud Voice presented the Crown sent from them to Philip he clos'd with this That if any Plotter of Treason against Philip should hereafter slee to Athens for shelter he should be forthwith deliver'd up By this accidental Publication of this Cryer it seem'd to be intimated as it were by some Divine Providence that some piece of Treachery was near at hand to be executed There were several other the like Words as by a Divine Instigation uttered which portended the King's Death There was then at the Festival Neoptolemus the Tragedian Neoptolemus the Poet. remarkable above all others for the Loudness of his Voice and Famous and Eminent in other respects He had commanded him to repeat some Verses which he was ordered to compose especially relating to the Persian Expedition Whereupon he began to recite a Witty Poem proper as he thought to Philip's intended Passage into Asia wherein he set forth the Glory and Greatness of the Persian King and though he was so Famous all the World over yet that Fortune would some time or other bring him down The Poem was thus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Y 're Minds are Higher than the Sky o'er-grown The greatest part of Earth you wish y 're own Houses to Houses join Fools without end You would y 're Lives as well as Lands extend But doleful Death alas Although ye do Creep towards it will gallop unto you Of long Hopes very shortly cut the Clue He added likewise other to the same Sense with these But Philip resting wholly upon these recited his Thoughts were altogether full of his Conquering the King of Persia And he much revolv'd in his Mind the Answer given him by the Oracle which agreed in all Points with the Words of the Tragedian After the Feast for that time was ended and the Sports were to be renew'd the next Day a great number of People in the Night-time flock'd into the Theatre And whereas twelve Images of the Gods amongst other sumptuous Preparations most curiously wrought and richly adorn'd were brought forth in pompous Procession the Image of Philip cloth'd like the Gods in every respect made the Thirteenth hereby arrogating to Philip's Pride himself a Place as if he would be inthron'd among the * There were 12 chief Gods among the Greeks they were call'd Olympii their Names Jupiter Mars Mercury Neptune Vulcan Apollo Juno Vesta Minerva Ceres Diana Venus Vid. Herodotus in Terpsicore Gods The Theatre being now full he himself came forth cloathed in a white Robe his Life-Guard following him at a great Distance designing thereby to evidence it to all that he judg'd himself secure in the Hearts and Affections of the Grecians and therefore stood not in need of the Guard of his Halberteers While he was thus with loud and joyful Acclamations cry'd up as it were to the Stars and the whole Multitude resounded his Praise upon a sudden and beyond all Mens expectation he was treacherously † Phi. murder'd murther'd But for the Clearer and more distinct Understanding of the History in this matter we This was about our 24th of September The manner and occasion of Philip's Murther shall first relate the Causes and Grounds of this Assassination There was one Pausanias a Macedonian of the City call'd Oristis one of the King's Esquires of the Body and for his Beauty dearly belov'd of him This Man taking notice how much another young Youth of the same Name was doted on by Philip fell upon him with very foul and opprobrious Language telling him he was an * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hermaphradite for that he prostituted himself to the Lust of every one that would He resented this Disgrace very ill but conceal'd it for a while Afterwards consulting with Attalus what was to be done for the future he determin'd presently after in an unusual manner to put an end to his own Life For within a while after in a Battel wherein Philip was engag'd against Plurias King of the Illyrians Pausanias in the heat of the Fight interpos'd himself between the

and weighing the Hair with the like Weight of Gold or Silver and then giving that Mony to them that have the Care of the Beasts To the Kites while they are flying they cry out with a loud Voice and throw pieces of Flesh for them upon the Ground till such time as they take it To the Cats and Ichneumons they give Bread soakt in Milk stroaking and making much of them or feed them with pieces of Fish taken in the River Nile In the same manner they provide for the other Beasts Food according to their several kinds They are so far from not paying this Homage to their Creatures or being asham'd of them that on the contrary they glory in them as in the highest Adoration of the Gods and carry about special Marks and Ensigns of Honour for them through City and Country upon which Account those that have the Care of the Beasts being seen after off are honour'd and worshipp'd by all by falling down upon their Knees When any one of them dye they wrap it in fine Linnen and with Howling beat upon their Breasts and so carry it forth to be salted and then after they have anointed it with the Oyl of Cedar and other things which both give the Body a fragrant Smell and preserve it a long time from Putrefaction they bury it in a secret place He that wilfully kills any of these Beasts is to suffer Death but if any kill a Cat or the Bird Ibis whether wilfully or otherwise he 's certainly drag'd away to Death by the Multitude and sometimes most cruelly without any formal Tryal or Judgment of Law For fear of this if any by chance find any of these Creatures dead they stand aloof and with lamentable Cries and Protestations tell every body that they found it dead And such is the * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 religious Veneration imprest upon the Hearts of Men towards these Creatures and so obstinately is every one bent to adore and worship them that even at the time when the Romans were about making a League with Ptolomy and all the People made it their great Business to caress and shew all Civility and Kindness imaginable to them that came out of Italy and through Fear strove all they could that no Occasion might in the least be given to disoblige them or be the Cause of a War yet it so happ'ned that upon a Cat being kill'd by a Roman the People in a Tumult ran to his Lodging and neither the Princes sent by the King to dissuade them nor the Fear of the Romans could deliver the Person from the Rage of the People tho' he did it against his Will and this I relate not by Hear-say but was my self an Eye-witness of it at the time of my Travels into Egypt If these things seem incredible and like to Fables those that we shall hereafter relate will look more strange For it 's reported that at a time when there was a Famine in Egypt many were driven to that strait that by turns they fed one upon another but not a Man was accused to have in the least tasted of any of these sacred Creatures Nay if a Dog be found dead in a House the whole Family shave their Bodies all over and make great Lamentation and that which is most wonderful is That if any Wine Bread or any other Victuals be in the House where any of these Creatures die it 's a part of their Superstition not to make use of any of them for any purpose whatsoever And when they have been abroad in the Wars in foreign Countries they have with great Lamentation brought with them dead Cats and Kites into Egypt when in the mean time they have been ready to starve for want of Provision Moreover what Acts of Religious Worship they perform'd towards Apis in Memphis † Or Mneus an Ox dedicated to the Sun Strabo lib. 17. Mnevis in Heliopolis the Goat in Mendes the Crocodile in the Lake of Myris and the Lyon kept in * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in Leontopolis Leontopolis and many other such like is easie to describe but very difficult to believe except a Man saw it For these Creatures are kept and fed in consecrated Ground inclos'd and many great Men provide Food for them at great Cost and Charge for they constantly give them fine Wheat-Flower Frumenty Sweet-meats of all sorts made up with Honey and Geese sometimes rosted and sometimes boyl'd and for such as fed upon raw Flesh they provide Birds To say no more they are excessive in their Costs and Charges in feeding of these Creatures and forbear not to wash them in hot Baths to anoint them with the most precious Unguents and perfume them with the sweetest Odours They provide likewise for them most rich Beds to lye upon with decent Furniture and are extraordinary careful about their generating and coition one with another according to the Law of Nature They breed up for every one of the Males according to their Kinds the most beautiful She-mate and call them their Concubines or Sweet-hearts and are at great Costs and Charges in looking to them When any of them dye they are as much concern'd as at the Deaths of their Costs of Burial of Sacred Beasts own Children and lay out in Burying of them as much as all their Goods are worth and far more For when Apis through Old Age dy'd at Memphis after the Death of Alexander and in the Reign of Ptolomy Lagus his Keeper not only spent all that vast Provision he had made in burying of him but borrow'd of Ptolomy Fifty Talents of Silver for the same purpose And in our time some of the Keepers of these Creatures have lavisht away no less than a Hundred Talents in the maintaining of them To this may be further added what is in use among them concerning the sacred Ox which they call Apis. After the splendid Funeral of Apis is over those Priests that have the Charge of the Business seek out another Calf as like the former as possibly they can find and when they have found one an end is put to all further Mourning and Lamentation and such Priests as are appointed for that purpose lead the young * Ox through † Or Bull. the City of Nile and feed him Forty Days Then they put him into a Barge wherein is a Colden Cabbin and so transport him as a God to Memphis and place him in Vulcan's Grove During the Forty Days before mention'd none but Women are admitted to see him who being plac'd full in his view pluck up their Coats and shew their Privy Parts After they are forbad to come into the Sight of this New God For the Adoration of this Ox they give this Reason They say that the Soul of Osiris pass'd into an Ox and therefore whenever the Ox is Dedicated to this very Day the Spirit of Osiris is infus'd into one Ox after another to Posterity But some say that the

likewise another Reason for their Adoration but most fabulous of all other for they say that when Isis and her Son Orus were ready to joyn Battle with Typhon Osiris came up from the Shades below in the form of a Wolf and assisted them and therefore when Typhon was kill'd the Conquerors commanded that Beast to be worshipp'd because the Day was won presently upon his Appearing Some affirm that at the time of the Irruption of the Ethiopians into Egypt a great Number of Wolves flockt together and drove the invading Enemy beyond the City Elaphantina and therefore that Province is call'd * Of the City of Wolves Lycopolitana and for these Reasons came these Beasts before mention'd to be thus ador'd and worshipped CHAP. VII Why the Crocodile is Worship'd Some sorts of Herbs and Roots not Eaten Why other Creatures are Worship'd The manner of their Burials The Lawmakers in Egypt Learned Men of Greece made Journeys into Egypt as Orpheus Homer Plato Solon Pythagoras c. Several Proofs of this as their Religious Rites Fables c. in Greece of Egyptian Extraction The exquisit Art of the Stone-Carvers in Egypt NOW it remains that we speak of the Deifying the Crocodile of which many Crocodil's why ador'd have inquir'd what might be the Reason being that these Beasts devour Men and yet are ador'd as Gods who in the mean time are pernicious Instruments of many cruel Accidents To this they answer that their Country is not only defended by the River but much more by the Crocodiles and therefore the Theeves out of Arabia and Africa being affraid of the great number of these Creatures dare not pass over the River Nile which protection they should be depriv'd of if these Beasts should be fallen upon and utterly destroy'd by the Hunters But there 's another Account given of these Things For one of the Ancient Menas pursu'd by his own Dogs sav'd by a Crocodile Kings call'd Menas being set upon and pursu'd by his own Dogs was forc'd into the Lake of Miris where a Crocodile a Wonder to be told took him up and carri'd him over to the other side where in Gratitude to the Beast he built a City and call'd it Crocodile and commanded Crocodiles to be Ador'd as Gods and Dedicated the Lake to them for a place to Feed and Breed in Where he built a Sepulcher for himself with a foursquare Pyramid and a Labyrinth greatly admir'd by every Body In the same manner they relate Stories of other Things which would be too tedious here to recite For some conceive it to be very clear and evident by several of them not Eating many of the Fruits of the Earth that Gain and Profit by sparing has infected them with this Superstition for some never Taste Lentils nor other Beans and some never eat either Cheese or Onions or such like Food although Egypt abounds with these Things Thereby signifying that all should learn to be temperate and whatsoever any feed upon they should not give themselves to Gluttony But others give another Reason for they say that in the Time of the Ancient Kings the People being prone to Sedition and Plotting to Rebel one of their wise and prudent Princes divided Egypt into several Parts and appointed the Worship of some Beast or other in every Part or forbad some sort of Food that by that means every one Adoring their own Creature and slighting that which was Worship'd in another Province the Egyptians might never agree amongst themselves And this is evident from the Effects for when one Country despises and contemns the Religious Rites and Customs of their Neighbours this always begets Heart-burnings among them But some give this Reason for Deifying of these Creatures They say that in the beginning Men that were of a fierce and beastly Nature herded together and devoured one another and being in perpetual War and Discord the stronger always destroy'd the weaker In process of time those that were too weak for the other taught at length by Experience got in Bodies together and had the representations of those Beasts which were afterwards Worship'd in their Standards to which they ran together when they were in a Fright upon every occasion and so made up a considerable Force against them that attempted to assault them This was imitated by the rest and so the whole Multitude got into a Body and hence it was that that Creature which every one suppos'd was the cause of his safety was honour'd as a God as justly deserving that Adoration And therefore at this day the People of Egypt differ in their Religion every one Worshiping that Beast that their Ancestors did in the beginning To conclude they say that the Egyptians of all other People are the most grateful for Favours done them judging Gratitude to be the safest Guard of their Lives in as much as it is evident that all are most ready to do good to them with whom are laid up the Treasures of a grateful Mind to make a suitable Return And for these Reasons the Egyptians seem to honour and adore their Kings no less than as if they were very Gods For they hold that without a Divine Providence they never could be advanc'd to the Throne and being they can confer the greatest Rewards at their will and pleasure they judge them partakers of the Divine Nature Now tho' we have said perhaps more than is needful of their sacred Creatures yet with this we have set forth the Laws of the Egyptians which are very remarkable But when a Man comes to understand their Rites and Ceremonies in Burying their Dead he 'l be struck with much greater Admiration For after the Death of any of them all the Friends and Kindred of the deceased throw Dirt upon their Heads and run about through the City mourning Their Burials and lamenting till such time as the Body be interr'd and abstain from Baths Wine and all pleasant Meats in the mean time and forbear to cloath themselves with any rich Attire They have three sorts of Funerals The Stately and Magnificent the Moderate and the Meanest In the first they spend a Talent of Silver in the second twenty * About 62 l. 10 s. Minas in the last they are at very small Charges They that have the Charge of wrapping up and burying the Body are such as have been taught the Art by their Ancestors These give in a Writing to the Family of every thing that is to be laid out in the Funeral and inquire of them after what Manner they would have the Body interr'd When every thing is agreed upon they take up the Body and deliver it to them whose Office it is to take Care of it Then the Chief among them who is call'd the Scribe having the Body laid upon the Ground marks out how much of the left Side towards the Bowels is to be incis'd and open'd upon which the † The Dissector Paraschistes so by them call'd with an

chief care to preserve and increase his Stores by which means he grew so very Rich that he gain'd larger Territories than ever any King of Thrace had done before him For that part which lay by the Sea Coast ran along from the Borders of the Abderites to the River Ister And that from the Sea up into the main Land was of as great extent as a swift Footman could Travel over in Thirteen Days This Prince was possess'd of so large a Country that his yearly Revenue amounted to above a Thousand Talents During his Reign a War broke forth upon which occasion he rais'd out of Thrace more than an Hundred and Twenty Thousand Foot and Fifty Thousand Horse But it 's necessary that we Ant. Chr. 428. declare the Causes of this War that so the following account may be better understood Sitacles had entr'd into a League with the Athenians and one of the Articles Sitalces his War with the Macedonians was That he should faithfully Assist them in the War wherein they were engag'd in Thrace To this end he rais'd a powerful Army with a design to join with the Athenians to take Calcidea by Force And likewise for the hatred he had to Perdiccas King of Macedonia he resolv'd to restore Amyntas the Son of Philip to his Father's Kingdom For these Causes he was necessitated to raise a very great Army When all things were in readyness he Marc'hd all his Forces out of Thrace and entr d Macedonia But the Macedonians struck with terror at the multitude of their Enemies dar'd not to oppose them but getting in all their Fruits and Goods they could within their Garrisons they kept close within their Forts and Walls The Thracians brought Amyntas along with them as King and first treated the Cities by Messengers and fair Speeches but when none would hearken to them he Assaulted the first Castle in his way and took it by Storm Upon which many of the Cities and Garrisons through fear Ant. Ch. 428. surrender'd of their own accord After they had run through all Macedonia loaded with Rich Booty they made against the Greek Cities of the Calcideans Whilst Sitalces was thus imploy'd the Thessalians Achaians Magnesians and all the other Grecians inhabiting within Macedon and Thermopyle confederated and rais'd a mighty Army for they were afraid lest the Thracians who were so P. 313. powerful should make an inroad into their Country and bring them under the Thracian Yoke And the Calcideans did the like Sitalces hereupon being inform'd of the great Armies rais'd against him by the Grecians and knowing his Army was not able to indure the sharpness of the approaching Winter struck up a Peace with Perdiccas and in confirmation thereof contracted a Marriage with him and so march'd his Army back into Thrace In the mean time whilst these things were on foot the Lacedemonians with Another inroad into Attica their Confederates made another irruption out of Peloponesus into Attica under their King Archidamus who had the Sovereign Command of the Army and after they had destroy'd all the standing Corn when it was near ripe and made havock and spoil all over the Country they return'd to their respective Habitations The Athenians on the other hand were not in heart to oppose them but were under sore Calamities by Plague and Famine and therefore altogether despair'd of any good issue and event of the War And these were the things observable this Year Euclides was Ruler of Athens when the Romans chose Three Military Tribunes Olymp. 88. 2. Ant. Chr. 427. War between the Syracusians and the Leontines in the room of Consuls Marcus * Manlius Mannius Quintus Su'pitius Pretextatus and Servitius Cornelius Cossus At this time in Sicily the Syracusians made War upon them of Leontum a Colony brought thither from the Calcideans originally Athenians who being overpress'd by the power of the Syracusians and in great danger to lose their City sent Embassadors to Athens for speedy and seasonable aid to deliver them from their present Exigency The chief among them that were sent was Gorgias the Orator the most Eloquent Man of his time He Gorgias the Orator was the first that taught the Rules of Rhetorick and was so famous for his wise and learned Orations that all his Scholars as a Gratuity gave him an Hundred † A Mina in Silver is about 3 l. 9 s. Mina's apiece When he came to Athens and had Audience he made an Oration to the People concerning the League desired and by his new and ingenious way of speaking the Athenians were so taken who were otherwise Men of great Wisdom and Eloquence that they were struck with admiration For he adorn'd his Speech with most excellent Figures * Paranomacisms 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Figures call'd Synoeceiosms Oxymorons Paranomacisms and the like and artificial composures of Words and Sentences as by Opposites Paranomacisms equal Periods like Terminations and the like gingling strains of Rhetorical Wit to allure and intice his Auditors which at that time for its novelty was much admired But now it 's lookt upon to savour too much of affectation and to be ridiculous especially when by frequency and often repetition it becomes fulsome and tedious Gorgias having perswaded the Athenians to enter into a League with the Leontines return'd to Leontinum with great Reputation for his Eloquence Ant. Chr. 427. The Athenians for some time before had an hankering Mind after Sicily by reason of the richness of the Soyl and therefore were now more willingly perswaded by Gorgias and decreed to send Aid as was desir'd The pretence was to assist them who were their own Countrymen and were brought into great straits but in truth their chief Design was to gain the Island for not many Years before when the War broke forth between the Corinthians and them of Corcyra and both address'd themselves to the Athenians for Aid to make them their Confederates the People of Athens resolv'd to side with the Corcyreans because Corcyra was so situated that it was a very ready and convenient Pass over from thence into Sicily In short the Athenians being now Masters at Sea and every where successful had many Confederates and were richly furnished both with Men and Money had many Cities under their power were possess'd of a mighty Treasure in ready Money brought from Delos gathered from the Inhabitants of Greece to the value of above Ten Thousand † Ten Thousand Talents amounts to 1875000 l. Sterling the lesser Talent The greater Talent is 250 l. The lesser is 187 l. 10 s. Talents Moreover they had likewise many excellent Officers and expert Commanders by these Advantages the Athenians were grown very confident that they should both overcome the Spartans and having subdu'd all Greece win also the P. 314. whole Island of Sicily These were the Reasons induced them to resolve to assist the Leontines and to that end sent them Ant. Chr.

* About 360. 〈◊〉 P. 754. Three thousand Furlongs they came to a City call'd Automolus and there Encamp'd thence marching forward they came to a mountain shelving down on both sides with steep and sharp Rocks having a deep Valley in the midst out of which rose a soft stone spiring up like unto a sharp Rock at the Foot of which was a wide Cave overshadow'd with Ivy and Leaves of the Yew tree in which is reported Queen Lamia a Lady of admirable Lamias Cave Beauty formerly dwelt but for her Cruelty they say her face was afterwards transform'd into the shape of a Beast for it 's reported that * All her Children they say were kill'd by Juno because they were got by Iupiter being bereav'd of all her Children she took it so grievously that she envy'd all other women that had Children and commanded the poor Infants to be pluck't out of their mothers Arms and forthwith murther'd And therefore even to this day the Tale of this woman is fresh among Children and with the Name of Lamia they are presently put into a very great fright Moreover being given much to Drunkeness she let every one do what they pleas'd without any inquiry after men's manners and because she never seriously minded what was done in her Province it was believ'd that she was blind And therefore there 's a Ant. Ch. 306. Fable told by some that she put her Eyes into a little purse excusing her drunken Sottishness by such an invented Tale as if that was the reason she saw nothing That she was in Africa one brings in Euripides for a witness for so he says 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 To whom is that most hateful Name unknown Or of th' African Lamia the spawn But Ophellas removing again Travel'd with great toil and labour through a dry and thirsty Country full of wild Beasts for they did not only want Water but Bread and other Provision so that the whole Army was in danger to perish These Sandy Deserts near the Syrtes were pester'd with noisom Serpents and all sorts of hurtful beasts and it being for the most part deadly to be bitten by these venomous creatures many were brought into a sad condition out of the reach both of friends help and remedy from Medicines For some of the Serpents were of the same colour with the Earth so that none could see them before they were hurt so that many treading upon them were stung to death At last after two months miserable travel with much ado they carne to Agathocles his Camp where they pitcht their Camps at a small distance one from another on the other hand the Carthaginians hearing that they were come up to him were in a great Consternation seeing the great forces that were making against them Agathocles hearing of his approach went to meet him and advis'd him by all means to have a care of his Army after so tedious and hard a Journey and to see them well refresh'd He himself lay quiet a few days observing every thing that was done in the neighbouring Camp at length taking his opportunity when the greater part of Ophellas his Army were gone a forraging into the Country and taking notice that Ophellas never suspected any thing of what he was in contriving he suddainly call'd his Army together and before them accus'd Ophellas for that being call'd for as an Assistant in this War he went about Ant. Ch. 306 to betray him and having incens'd the multitude drew out his whole Army in Battalion against him and his Cyrenians Ophellas growing amaz'd at this unexpected alteration put nevertheless himself and the men he had with him in a posture of defence but the Enemy being too quick for him and he too weak for them he was there slain upon the place Agathocles persuaded the rest that were left to lay down their Arms then telling them what great things he would do for them he got the whole Army to himself And thus Ophellas by indulging his Ambition and being over credulous came to this fatal Catastrophe In the mean time Bomilcar at Carthage was waiting for an opportunity Bomilcar ●sp 〈…〉 to b 〈…〉 〈◊〉 of C●rthage 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an is put to a 〈…〉 P. 755. to put in execution what he had a long time been hammering in his brain in order to gain the Soveraign power and authority And although he had several times fit occasions offer'd him for that purpose yet always some light and inconsiderable cause or other intervening put a stop to his design For some superstitious persons many times are preparing to act great and remarkable pieces of Wickedness and yet always chuse rather to delay than act to put off than execute the thing which even then Ant. Ch. 306 came to pass For concluding he had a fair opportunity offer'd him the better to effect his purpose he sent away the most eminent Persons of the Citizens that were about him in an Expedition against the Numidians that he might have none of the Nobility at hand to oppose him but then checkt by his own Fears he durst not reveal to any his design of gaining the Principality and so he let the matter fall again At length it fell out that he attempted to set up himself at the very same time that Ophellas was cut off by Agathocles and neither of them knew what was done in one another's Camp For Agathocles knew nothing of the Ambition of the other or of the Tumult and Disorder that was in the City which he might at that time have easily subdu'd For if Bomilcar had been surpriz'd and taken in the very Fact he would have chosen rather to have join'd with Agathocles than to have given up himself to be punish'd by the Citizens Neither did the Carthaginians know any thing of Agathocles his falling upon Ophellas for they might easily have overcome him by joining with Ophellas But I suppose both sides were well enough content to be ignorant although they were things of great weight and concern and contrived by them that were near one to another For Agathocles being plotting to cut off a Person that was his Friend and Associate minded not to enquire after any thing that was in doing with the Enemy And Bomilcar on the other side contriving how to overturn the Liberties of his Country cared not what was in agitation in Agathocles his Camp whose purpose was now not so much to conquer Ant. Ch. 306 an Enemy as to subdue his own Fellow-Citizens Matters being thus here some may find fault with History seeing many things of divers Natures falling out at one and the same time and that Writers are forc'd to break in with new Matter of another nature and to divide between things done at the same instant that the Truths related may delight the more But to Answer this the History that is deny'd this liberty although it afterwards represents the things done yet it