me my authority and riches? You who are my son, and a prince of the happy Corinth, "choose the life of a mendicant, and persevere "in irritating him, who has the strongest claims upon your duty. If the incident which in"duces you to think unfavourably of my con"duct, has any evil resulting from it, the whole "is fallen upon myself; and I feel it the more "sensibly, from the reflection that I was myself "the author of it. Experience has taught you "how much better it is to be envied than pi" tied 59, and how dangerous it is to provoke a superior and a parent-return therefore to my "house." To this speech Periander received no other answer from his son, than that he himself, by conversing with him, had incurred the penalty which his edict had imposed. The king, perceiving 59 Envied than pitied.]—Of this, M. Larcher remarks, that it is a proverbial expression in the French language: it is no less so in our own. The same sentiment in Pindar is referred to by the learned Frenchman, which is thus translated by Mr. West. Nor less distasteful is excessive fame To the sour palate of the envious mind ; Who hears with grief his neighbour's goodly name, And hates the fortune that he ne'er shall find; Yet in thy virtue, Hiero, persevere, Since to be envied is a nobler fate Than to be pitied, and let strict justice steer And arm thy tongue with truth: O king! beware Of every step: a prince can never lightly err. T. perceiving the perverseness of his son to be immutable, determined to remove him from his sight; he therefore sent him in a vessel to Corcyra, which place also belonged to him. After this, Periander made war upon his father-in-law Procles, whom he considered as the principal occasion of what had happened. He made himself master of Epidaurus, and took Procles prisoner; whom nevertheless he preserved alive. LIII. In process of time, as Periander ad vanced 60 Epidaurus.]-This was a city of the Peloponnese, famous for a temple of Esculapius. When the Romans were once afflicted by a grievous pestilence, they were ordered by the oracle to bring Æsculapius to Rome; they accordingly dispatched ambassadors to Epidaurus to accomplish this. The Epidaurians refusing to part with their god, the Romans prepared to depart: as their vessel was quitting the port, an immense serpent came swimming towards them, and finally writhed itself round the prow; the crew, thinking it to be Esculapius himself, carried him with much veneration to Rome. His entrance is finely described by Ovid:— Jamque caput rerum Romanam intraverat urbem, Colla movet: sedesque sibi circumspicit aptas. Which description, fully considered, would perhaps afford no mean subject for an historical painting. Epidaurus was also famous for its breed of horses.--See Virgil, Georgic iii. 43, 4. Vocat ingenti clamore Citharon Taygetique canes, domitrixque Epidaurus equorum. The same fact is also mentioned by Strabo, book viii.—T. VOL. II. P Lycophron disdained to of the messenger who But Periander, vanced in years, he began to feel himself inadequate to the cares of government; he sent therefore for Lycophron to Corcyra, to take upon him the administration of affairs: his eldest son* appeared improper for such a station, and was indeed dull and stupid. take the smallest notice brought him this intelligence. as he felt his affection for the young man to be unalterable, sent his sister to him, thinking her interposition most likely to succeed. When she saw him, "Brother," said she, "will you suffer "the sovereign authority to pass into other "hands, and the riches of our family to be dis persed, rather than return to enjoy them your"self? Let me entreat you to punish yourself no more; return to your country and your family obstinacy like yours is but an unwelcome guest, it only adds one evil to another. Pity is by many preferred to justice; and many, from their anxiety to fulfil their duty to a mother, have violated that which a father might expect. Power, which many so assi duously court, is in its nature precarious †. "Your That is, Cypselus. See chap. 5-note. † A similar sentiment occurs in the Iphigenia in Aulis of Euripides, which is thus translated by Mr. Wodhull : Yet such splendour oft is found Precarious.-Empire, tempting to the view, This "Your father is growing old, do not therefore resign to others, honours which are properly 66 your own." Thus instructed by her father, she used every argument likely to influence her brother; but he briefly answered, “that as long "as his father lived he would not return to "Corinth." When she had communicated this answer to Periander, he sent a third messenger to his son, informing him, that it was his intention to retire to Corcyra; but that Lycophron might return to Corinth, and take possession of the supreme authority. This proposition was accepted, and Periander prepared to depart for Corcyra, the young man for Corinth. But when the Corcyreans were informed of the business, to prevent the arrival of Periander among them, they put his son to death. This was what induced that prince to take vengeance on the Corcyreans. LIV. The Lacedæmonians arriving with a powerful fleet, laid siege to Samos, and advancing towards the walls, they passed by a tower which stands in the suburbs, not far from the sea. At this juncture Polycrates attacked them at This version is by no means accurate. The Greek isτατο δε γ'εστι τὸ καλὸν σφαλερόν. For this, namely power, is an unstable good. at the head of a considerable force, and com He was instantly se pelled them to retreat. conded by a band of auxiliaries, and a great number of Samians, who falling upon the enemy from a fort which was behind the mountain, after a short conflict effectually routed them, and continued the pursuit with great slaughter of the Lacedæmonians. LV. If all the Lacedæmonians had behaved in this engagement like Archias and Lycopas, Samos must certainly have been taken; for these two alone entered the city, with those Samians who sought security within the walls, and having no means of retreat were there slain. I myself one day met with a person of the same name, who was the son of Samius, and grandson of the Archias above mentioned; I saw him at Pitane 61 of 61 Pitane.]-This proper name involves some perplexity, and has afforded exercise for much acute and ingenious criticism. Martiniere, from mistaking a passage of Pausanias, asserts that it was merely a quarter, or rather suburbs of Lacedæmon, and is consequently often confounded with it. This mistake is ably pointed out and refuted by Bellanger, in his Critique de quelques Articles du Dict. de M. la Martiniere. This word is found in Hesychius, as descriptive of a distinct tribe; in Thucydides, of a small town; and in Herodotus, of a whole people:-See book ix. chap. 52, where he speaks of the cohort of Pitane, which in the glorious battle of Platea was commanded by Amompharetus. It is certain |