name of Rey, by the Mahomedans; and which was one of the largest and finest cities of the East, but is now a mass of ruins. This province is moreover famous for being the place of captivity of the ten tribes, or rather that part of them which was carried away by the Assyrians of Nineveh ".

5 The ruins of two cities of the name of Rey are noticed by travellers, in the plain, at about 50 miles to the west of the Caspian strait; which was the position of Rages. For Rages, see Tobit, throughout; Strabo, 524, 525; and Polybius, lib. x. Ex. 4.

6 See section XV.

SECTION XII.

THE SATRAPIES CONTINUED.

Caspian and Hyrcanian provinces; and Dahestan-Bows made of Bamboo-Eastern Armenia and Matiene-Colchians not subjected to tribute, but present gratuities-attend Xerxes as auxiliaries-Caucasus, the limit of the Persian power—contains an infinite number of languages-Western Armenia peopled by Phrygians-Mines of gold, silver, lead, copper, and iron, in Mount Taurus-Vallies of Sophene and Diarbekir—Tribes along the south-east coast of the Euxine-Chalybes and Mosynoecians-Mardi, or Anthropophagi-Persia Proper; its tribes emancipated from tribute by CYRUS-Pasagardæ and Persepolis-Artæi, a name of the Persians-Germanians, or Carmanians-Sagartii taken for a tribe from Zagatai-Sarangæans the Euergetæ of Cyrus and the Greeks-Utians, or Uxians-The Persians-the flower of the army of XerxesIslands of the Persian gulf; their various uses-Parthians, Chorasmians, Sogdians, and Arians-Bactrians-Sacæ, distinguished warriors; conquered by Cyrus-Ethiopians of Asia— Indians-vast tribute levied on them; and in gold-Herodotus knew few particulars of India, and misrepresented the natives of it-Vindication of their characters; as well from ancient Authors as from the conduct of Alexander-The Ganges not known to Herodotus-his Padæi, the same with the Gangarida of others-Calanus, the friend and companion of Alexander— Death of Calanus, on a funeral pile-Indian widow burns herself with the body of her husband, in the camp of EumenesAggregate sum of the tribute-Proportions of gold to silver -The southern nations recruited from Caucasus, from remote

times-Population of Egypt-General observations-Cause of the assemblage of so many nations by Xerxes-entire conquest of Europe intended-Rendezvous of the fleet and army of Xerxes-Our Author's history favourable to liberty.

XI. THE Caspians, the Pausica, the Pantimathi, and the Darita, contributed amongst them 200 talents, and formed the 11th Satrapy." Thalia, 92'.

Of these, we find only the Caspians in the army of Xerxes; in which they formed one entire and distinct command: and there were of them both cavalry and infantry; Polym. 67 and 86. The infantry wore vests of skins, had bows made of reeds (bamboos it may be conceived), and scymetars. In effect, they resembled the Bactrians and Arians, their neighbours; 86: and there was a general resemblance in the armour of the Bactrians, Caspians, Parthians, Chorasmians, Sogdians, Gardarians, and Dadica: see Polym. 64, 65, 66, 86; so that all the nations situated to the east and north of Media had so many points of resemblance to each other, as to shew that they had a common origin; that is, doubtless from SCYTHIA: and this is shewn also from many passages in Strabo and Pliny.

It may be observed, that although the Hyrcanians appear in the list of the army with dresses like the Persians, Polym. 62; they are not classed in any Satrapy; and on the contrary, the Darita, and other nations that are classed in the same Satrapy with the Caspians, do not appear in the army. It is pos

1 The tenth only in this arrangement.

sible, however, that the Darita may be meant for the Daha, of whom we have spoken so fully under the head of Scythia, and who effected a settlement in Dahestan at the south-east part of the Caspian sea, between Hyrcania and the ancient course of the river Oxus. See p. 293, et seq.

ар

There are found in Strabo and Ptolemy some notices respecting the Pasica and Aspasiace, who pear to be the Pausica of our Author. (See Strabo, p. 513; Ptolemy, Asia, Tab. vii.) They are placed near to, or bordering on the Chorasmians; whence, of course, the Caspian Satrapy should border northeastward on Chorasmia. On the other hand, the nation of the Caspians inhabited the shore of the sea of that name, (and which they appear to have communicated to it, in that quarter at least), from the mouth of the river Cyrus, southward; Pliny, vi. 13. Strabo, p. 514, places them nearly in the same situation; and Ptolemy between the mouths of the Cyrus and Araxes; which rivers, in ancient times, gained the sea by separate channels. We may therefore conceive the Caspians to have possessed the eastern part of Aderbigian, with the province of Ghilan, &c. The name, however, was obsolete before the time of Strabo.

Thus, then, the 11th Satrapy seems to have extended at least from the mouth of the Cyrus to that of the Oxus, occupying the semicircular tract, which embraces the south part of the Caspian sea, and which is shut up on the inland side by a great ridge of mountains, forming a most romantic and beautiful

amphitheatre, described by modern travellers, and also slightly mentioned by Quintus Curtius 2. So that this Satrapy constitutes one vast natural division of country, and that of the most fertile and productive kind, being the modern provinces of Ghilan, Mazanderan (or Taberistan), Korkan, Dahestan, &c. known in ancient geography by the names of Gela, Maxere, Tapuri, Hyrcania, and the country of the Daha.

In effect, then, Hyrcania should have been included in this division, although omitted in the statement of Herodotus, since it falls geographically between the Caspians and the Pausica; which latter bordered, as we have seen, on Chorasmia, and marked the north-eastern extremity of the Satrapy. The Pantimathi may likewise be included, and may represent one or more of the provinces above enumerated.

XVIII. "The 18th Satrapy was taxed at 200 talents, and was composed of the Matieni, the Saspires, and Alarodians." Thalia, 94 3.

The position of Matiene is well known. It was, properly speaking, the north-west part of Media major, lying above the ascent of Mount Zagros, and between Ecbatana and the lake of Maraga. In Terpsichore, 49, Aristagoras describes it as lying between Armenia and Cissia: and in 52, the Gyndes is described to flow from it, in its course to the Tigris. According to our idea, although it borders on

2 See Della Valle, Vol. iii.; Olearius's Travels, lib. vii.; Hanway's, vol. i.; and Quintus Curtius, lib. vi. c. 4. 3 The eleventh only in this arrangement.