subsidies which he exacted from them, that at length they mutinied, invested the house where he resided, and set it on fire. Himself, and all who were in it, perished in the flames.

a Antiochus and Philip, the twin-sons of Grypus, to revenge the death of their brother Seleucus, marched at the head of all the troops they could raise against Mopsuestia. They took and demolished the city, and put all the inhabitants to the sword. But, on their return, Eusebes charged them near the Orontes, and defeated them. Antiochus was drowned in endeavouring to swim his horse over that river. Philip made a fine retreat with a considerable body of men, which soon increased to such a number, as enabled him to keep the field, and dispute the empire with Eusebes.

The latter, to strengthen himself upon the throne, had married Selene, the widow of Grypus. That politic princess, upon her husband's death, had found means to secure part of the empire in her own possession, and had provided herself with good troops. Eusebes married her therefore in order to augment his forces. Lathyrus, from whom she had been taken, to avenge himself for this fresh insult, sent to Cnidos for Demetrius Euchares, the fourth son of Grypus, who was brought up in that place, and made him king at Damascus. Eusebes and Philip were too much employed against each other to prevent that blow. For, though Eusebes had well retrieved his affairs, and augmented his power by his marriage, Philip, however, still supported himself, and at last so totally defeated Eusebes in a great battle, that he was reduced to abandon his dominions, and take refuge amongst the Parthians, whose king at that time was Mithri dates II. surnamed the Great. The empire of Syria by this means became divided between Philip and Demetrius. Two years after, Eusebes, assisted by the Parthians, returned into Syria, repossessed himself of part of what he had before, and involved Philip in new difficulties. Another competitor fell also upon his hands, almost at the same time; this was Antiochus Dionysius his brother, the fifth son of Grypus. He seized the city of Damascus, established himself there as king of Colosyria, and supported himself in that city for three years.

Affairs were neither more quiet, nor crimes and perfidy more rare, in Egypt than in Syria. Cleopatra, not being able to suffer a companion in the supreme authority, nor to admit her son Alexander to share the honour of the throne with her, resolved to rid herself of him, in order to reign alone

a A. M. 3912. Ant. J. C. 92. b A M. 3915 Ant. J. C. 89. 15. Athen. 1. xii. p. 550.

Justin. 1. xxxix. c. 4. Pâusan. in Attic, p.

for the future. That prince, who was apprized of her design, prevented her, and put her to death. She was a monster of a woman, who had spared neither her mother, her sons, nor her daughters, and had sacrificed every thing to the ambitious desire of reigning. She was punished in this manner for her crimes, but by a crime equal to her own.

I do not doubt but the reader, as well as myself, is struck with horror at the sight of so dreadful a scene as our history has for some time exhibited. It furnishes us no where with sach frequent and sudden revolutions, nor with examples of so many kings dethroned, betrayed, and murdered, by their nearest relations, their brothers, sons, mothers, wives, friends, and confidants; who, all in cold blood, with premeditated design, reflection, and concerted policy, employ the most odious and most inhuman means to effect their purpose. Never was the anger of Heaven more distinctly visible nor more dreadful than upon these princes and people. We see here a sad complication of the blackest and most detestable crimes, perfidy, imposture of heirs, divorces, poisoning, incest. Princes on a sudden become monsters, vying in treachery and wickedness with each other, attaining crowns with rapidity, and disappearing as soon; reigning only to satiate their passions, and to render their people unhappy. Such a situation of a kingdom, wherein all orders of the state are in confusion, all laws despised, justice abolished, all crimes secure of impunity, denotes approaching ruin, and seems to call for it in the loudest exclamations.

As soon as it was known at Alexandria that Alexander had caused his mother to be put to death, that horrid crime made the parricide so odious to his subjects that they could not endure him any longer. They expelled him, and called in Lathyrus, whom they replaced upon the throne, in which he supported himself to his death. Alexander, having got some ships together, endeavoured to return into Egypt the year following, but without success. He perished soon after in a new expedition which he undertook.

The Syrians a weary of the continual wars made in their country by the princes of the house of Seleucus for the sovereignty, and not being able to suffer any longer the ravages, murders, and other calamities, to which they were perpetually exposed, resolved at last to exclude them all, and to submit to a foreign prince, who might deliver them from the many evils which those divisions occasioned, and restore tranquillity to their country. Some had thoughts of Mithridates, king of Pontus; others of Ptolemy, king of Egypt: but the former was actually engaged in a war with the Romans, and

a A. M. 3921. Ant. J. C. 83. 118. Joseph. Antiqs 1. xiir. c. SA

Justin. E xl. c. 1. et 2. Appian. în Syr. p.

the other had always been the enemy of Syria. They therefore determined upon electing Tigranes king of Armenia, and sent ambassadors to acquaint him with their resolution, and the choice they had made of him. He agreed to it, came to Syria, and took possession of the crown, which he wore 18 years. He governed that kingdom 14 years together by a viceroy named Megadates, whom he did not recall from that office, till he had occasion for him against the Romans.

Eusebes, being driven out of his dominions by his subjects and Tigranes, took refuge in Cilicia, where he passed the rest of his days in concealment and obscurity. As to Philip, it is not known what became of him. It is probable that he was killed in some action against Tigranes. Selene, the wife of Eusebes, retained Ptolemais, with part of Phoenicia and Cœlosyria, and reigned there many years after, which enabled her to give her two sons an education worthy of their birth. The eldest was called Antiochus Asiaticus, and the youngest Seleucus Cybiosactes, I shall have occasion to speak of them in the sequel.

Some time after Ptolemy Lathyrus had been replaced upon the throne of Egypt, a considerable rebellion broke out in the Upper Egypt. The rebels, being overthrown and defeated in a great battle, shut themselves up in the city of Thebes, where they defended themselves with incredible obstinacy. It was at length taken, after a siege of three years. Lathyrus used it with so much rigour, that, from being the greatest and richest city till then in Egypt, it was almost reduced to nothing.

Lathyrus did not long survive the ruin of Thebes. Reckoning from the death of his father, he had reigned 36 years; 11 jointly with his mother in Egypt, 18 in Cyprus, and seven alone in Egypt after his mother's death. Cleopatra, his daughter, succeeded him, who was his only legitimate issue. Her proper name was Berenice; but by the established custom of that family all the sons were called Ptolemy, and the daughters Cleopatra.

Sylla 4, at that time perpetual dictator of Rome, sent Alexander to take possession of the crown of Egypt, after the death of his uncle Lathyrus, as the nearest heir male of the deceased. He was the son of that Alexander who had put his mother to death. But the people of Alexandria had already set Cleopatra upon the throne, and she had been six months in possession of it when Alexander arrived. To accommodate the difference, and not to draw Sylla, the master of Rome, and, in consequence, dispenser of law to the uni

a Cic. in Ver. vi. n. 61. Appian. in Syr. p. 133. Strab. l. xvii. p. 796. b Pausan in Attic. p. 15. c A. M. 3923. Ant. J. C. $1. d Appian. de Bel. Civ. p. 414. Porphyr. in Græc. Seal p. 60.

verse, upon their hands, it was agreed that Cleopatra and he should marry, and reign jointly. But Alexander, who either did not approve of her for a wife or would have no associate in the throne, caused her to be put to death 19 days after their marriage, and reigned alone 15 years. Murder and parricide were no longer reckoned as any thing in those times, and, if I may use that expression, were grown into fashion among princes and princesses.

Some time & after, Nicomedes, king of Bithynia, died, having first made the Roman people his heirs. His country by that means became a province of the Roman empire, as Cyrenaica did also the same year. The Romans, instead of appropriating the latter to themselves, had granted it liberty. Twenty years had since elapsed, during which term sedition and tyranny had occasioned infinite calamities. It is said, that the Jews, who had been long settled there, and composed a great part of the nation, contributed very much to those disorders. The Romans, to put a stop to them, were obliged to accept Cyrenaica, which had been bequeathed to them by the last king's will, and to reduce it into a Roman province.

SECT. VII.

Pompey dispossesses Antiochus Asiaticus of the kingdom of Syria. Troubles in Judæa and Egypt.

Some troubles which happened in Egypt, occasioned by the disgust taken against Alexander, made Selene, the sister of Lathyrus, conceive thoughts of pretending to the crown. She sent her two sons, Antiochus Asiaticus and Seleucus, whom she had by Antiochus Eusebes, to Rome, to solicit the senate in her behalf. The important affairs which employed Rome, at that time engaged in a war with Mithridates, and perhaps the motives of policy from which she had hitherto always opposed the kings who were desirous of joining the forces of Egypt with those of Syria, prevented the princes from obtaining what they demanded. After a residence of two years in Rome, and ineffectual solicitations, they set out upon their return into their own kingdom.

The eldest d, called Antiochus, resolved to pass through

a A. M. 3928. Ant. J. C. 76. Appian. in Mithridat. p. 218. De Bel. Civil. 1. i. p. 420. Liv. Epit. 1. Ixx et xciii. Plat in Lucul. p. 492.

b A. M. 3931. Ant. J. C. 73. Cic. vi. in Ver Orat. n. 61-67.

c Reges Syria, regis Antiochi filios pueros, scitis Romæ nuper fuisse ; qui venerant non propter Syriæ regnum. nam id sine controversia obtinebant, ut a patre et a mojoribus acceperant; sed regnum Ægypti ad se et ad Selenem matrem suam pertinere arbitrahantur. Hi, postquam temporibus populi Romani exclusi, per senatum agere quæ voluerant non potuerunt. in Syriam, in regnum patrium profecti sunt.

d Eorum alter, qui Antiochus vocatur, iter per Sicilium facere voluit.

Sicily. He experienced an insult there which is hardly credible, and shows how much Rome was corrupted in the times we speak of, to what an excess the avarice of the magistrates sent into the provinces had risen, and what horrid rapine they committed with impunity, in the sight and with the knowledge of the whole world.

Verres was at that time prætor in Sicily. As soon as he heard that Antiochus was arrived at Syracuse, as he had reason to believe, and had been told, that that prince had abundance of rare and precious things with him, he judged his arrival a kind of rich inheritance fallen to him. He began by sending Antiochus presents considerable enough, consisting in provisions of wine, oil, and corn. He then invited him to supper. The hall was magnificently, adorned. The tables were set off with all his vessels of the most excellent workmanship, of which he had a great number. The feast was sumptuous and delicate, for he had taken care that nothing should be wanting to make it so. In a word, the king withdrew well convinced of the prætor's magnificence, and still better satisfied with the honourable reception he had given him.

He invites Verres to supper in his turn; exposes all his riches, a vast quantity of silver plate, and not a few cups of gold set with jewels, after the custom of kings, especially those of Syria. There was among the rest a very large vessel for wine, made out of one precious stone. Verres takes each of these vessels into his hand one after the other, praises and admires them, while the king rejoices that the prætor of the Roman people is so well pleased with his entertainment. From thenceforth the latter had no other thoughts than how to rifle Antiochus, and send him away fleeced and plundered of all his rich effects. He sent to desire that he would let him have the finest of the vessels he had seen at his house,

с

az Itaque isto (Verre) prætore venit Syracusas. Hic Verres haereditatem sibi venisse arbitratus est, quod in ejus regnum ac manus venerat is, quem iste et audierat multa secum præclara habere, et suspicabatur. Mittit homini munera satis larga; haec ad usum domesticum, vini, olei, quod visum erat, etiam tritici quod satis esset. Deinde ipsum regem ad cænam invitat. Exornat ample mag. nificeque triclinium Exponit ea, quibus abundabat, plurima ac pulcherrima vasa argentea. Omnibus curat rebus instructum et paratum ut sit convivium. Quid multa? Rex ita discessit, ut et istum copiose ornatum, et se honorifice acceptum arbitraretur.

Vocat ad cænam deinde ipse praetorem. Exponit suas copias omnes: nultum argentum, non pauca etiam pocula ex auro, quae, ut mos est regius et max ime in Syria, gemmis erant distincta clarissimis. Erat etiam vas vinarium ex una gemma pergrandi.-Iste unumquodque vas in manus sumere, laudare, mirari Rex gaudere prætori populi Romani satis jucundum es gratum illud esse convivium.

teret.

c Postea quam inde discessum est, cogitare iste nihil aliud, quod ipsa res de claravit, nisi quemadmodum regem ex provincia spoliatum expilatumque dimit Mittit rogatum vasa ea, quae pulcherrima apud illum viderat: ait se suis cælatoribus velle ostendere, Rex, qui istum non nosset, sine ulla suspicione libentissime dedit. Mittit etiam truilam gemmeam rogatum: velle se. eam diligentius considerare. Ea quoque mittitur.