THE sea called Sargasso, though four hundred miles from any land, and so deep as no ground is to be found by sounding, yet abounds with an herb called Sargasso, like samphire; so thick, that a ship, without a stroag gale, can hardly make her way. As this great sea is impedited by this contemptible weed; so there is nothing so small and inconsiderable in our eyes, but may be able to afflict us, even then when we are iu the fulness of our sufficiency. 1. Sapores, the king of Persia, besieged the city of Nisibis: but St. James, the holy bishop thereof, by his prayers obtained, that such an infinite number of gnats came into his army, as put it into the greatest disorder: these small creatures flew upon the eyes of their horses, and tormented them in such a manner that, growing furious, they shook off their riders, and the whole army was hereby so scattered and brought into confusion, that they were enforced to break up their siege and depart. 2. About they ear of our Lord 872,came into France such an innumerable company of locusts, that the number of them darkened the very light of the sun they were of an extraordinary bigness, had a sixfold order of wings, six feet, and two teeth, the hardness whereof surpassed that of a stone. These eat up every green thing in all the fields of France. At last, by the force of the winds, they were carried into the sea, and there drowned; after which by the agitation of the waves, the dead bodies of them were cast upon the shores, and from the stench of them (together with the famine they had made with their former devouring) there arose so great a plague, that it is verify thought every third person in France, died of it. 3. Marcus Varro writeth, that there was a town in Spain undermined with conies, another likewise in Thessaly by the mouldwarps. In France the inhabitants of one city were driven out and forced to leave it by frogs. Also in Africk the people were compelled by locusts to void their habitations: and out of Gyaros an island, one of the Cyclades, the islanders were forced by rats and mice to fly away. Moreover in Italy the city Amycle was destroyed by serpents. In Ethiopia, on this side the Cynomolgi, there is a great cou try lies waste and desert, by reason that it was dispeopled sometimes by scorpions, and a kind of pismires called Solpuga. And, if it be true that Theophrastus reporteth, the Trerians were chased away by certain worms called Scolopendres. 4. Myas is a principal city in Ionia, situate on an arm of the sea, assigned by Artaxerxes with Lamp acus and Magne sia to Themistocles, when banished his own country. In after times the water drawing off the soil, brought forth such an innumerable multitude of fleas, that the inhabitants were fain to forsake the city, and went with their bag and baggage to retire to Miletus, nothing hereof being left but the name and memory in the time of Pausanias. 5. Annius writes, that an ancient city situate near the Volscian Lake, and called Contenebra, was in times past overthrown by pismires, and that the place is thereupon vulgarly called to this day," the camp of ants." (14.) Curiosities of Literature, vol. 1. p. 78. (1.) Gault, Tab. Chron. p. 279.-(2.) Ibid. p. 599. Zuing. Theat. vol. 3. 1. 2. p. 634.-(3.) Plin. Nat. Hist.l. 8. c. 29. p. 212.—(4.) Heyl. Cosm, p. 658. Zuing. Theat. vol. 3. 1. 2. p. 634.— (5.) Camer.Oper. Subcisiv. cent. 2. c.13. p. 49 6. The 6. The Neuri, a people bordering upon the Scythians (one age before the expedition of Darius into Scythia), were forced out of their habitations and country by serpents; for whereas a multitude of serpents are bred in the soil itself, at that time there came upon them from the desert places above them such an abundance of them, and so infested them, that they were constrained to quit the place, and to dwell amongst the Budini. 7. In Media there was such an infinite number of sparrows that eat up and devoured the seed which was cast into the ground, that men were constrained to depart their old habitations, and remove to other places. 8. The island of Anaphe had not a partridge in it, till such time as an Astypalean brought thither a pair that were male and female; which couple in a short time did increase in such a wonderful manner, that, oppressed with the number of them, the inhabitants upon the point were forced to depart from the island. : consumed the fruits and leaves of all trees and herbs, and eat up the worts and other plants to the very stalks and stumps of them. As also the same year, by an unusual increase and swelling of the sea, the rivers overflowed their banks, and there was such an inundation, especially of the Tweed and Forth, that divers villages were overturned thereby, and a great number both of men and all sorts of cattle perished in the waters. 11. In the year 1581, an army of mice so overrun the Marches in Dengry Hundred in Essex, near unto South Minster, that they gnawed the grass to the very roots, and so tainted it with their venomous teeth, that a great and fatal distemper fell upon the cattle that afterwards grazed upon it. 12. About the year 1610 the city of Constantinople and the countries thereabouts were so plagued with clouds of grasshoppers, that they darkened the beams of the sun, and left not a green herb or leaf in all the country; they entered into the very bed-chambers, to the great annoyance of the inhabitants, being almost as big as dormice, with red wings. 9. Astypalea of old had no hares in it but when one of the isle of Anaphe had put a brace into it, they in a short time so increased, that they destroyed almost all that the inhabitants had sowed; whereupon they sent to consult the oracle concerning this their calamity, which advised them to store themselves with greyhounds, by the help of which they killed six thousand hares in the space of a year, and many more afterwards, whereby they were delivered from their grieved them certain grounds in the uttermost ance. 10. In the seventeenth year of the reign of Alexander the Third, king of the Scots, such an incredible swarm of palmer-worms spread themselves over both Scotland and England, that they 13. Cassander, in his return from Apollonia, met with the people called Abderitæ, who, by reason of the multitude of frogs and mice, were constrained to depart from their native soil, and to seek out habitations for themselves elsewhere; and fearing they would seize upon Macedon, he made an agreement with them, received them as his associates, and allot. The borders of Macedonia, wherein they might plant and seat themselves. country of Troas is exceedingly given to breed great store of mice, so that already they have forced the inhabitants to quit the place and depart. (6.) Herod. l. 4. p. 256.-(7.) Diod. Sicul. 1. 3. c. 3. p. 79.-(8.) Athen. Deippos, 1. 9. e. 14. p. 400.-(9.) Ibid.—(10.) Zuing. Theatr, vol. 3. 1. 2. p. 634.-(11.) Speed's Maps, p. 31. Chetw. Hist. Collect. cent. 6. p. 162.(12.) Knowle's Turk. Hist. p. 1908. Clark's Mir. c. 108. p. 481.--(13.) Plin. 1. 10. c. 65. p. 304. Justin. Hist. 1. 15. p. 172. END OF BOOK VI. N. B. In the following INDEX, the small numerals denote the Vol.; the first figures ch. 17. Accidents attending the bodies, fortunes and deaths Accioline, his barbarous cruelties, ii. 30. a. 16. chosen a new favourite in his seraglio, Fati- a. 25 Achmet, Emperor, kept 3000 concubines, ii. 196. a. 84. Achmetes, the cruelty and ingratitude of Bajazet to Acilius, Aviola, returns to life amidst his funeral conquers his enemies after losing his hand, Acindinus of Antioch, his justice to a defrauded Acting of tragedy, an involuntary disease which Actors, ancient, their incredible riches and fame, one who was a dwarf, i. 67. a, 14. VOL. II. a. 10. Adrianus I. Pope, ii. 205. a. 96. II. Pope, the first to whom an Emperor, III. Pope, ordained that Emperors should IV. Pope, an Englishman of very mean IV. Pope, made the Emperor hold his IV. Pope, choaked with a fly, i. 114. a. 31. Pope, ii. 210, a. 224. VI. Pope, dies discontented and broken- Adrianus Ælius, succeeds Trajan, ii. 179. a. 15. a. 8. his vast quickness in business, i. 89, a. 19. Adrianus Emperor, punished by the prayer of Seve. Adversity borne with magnanimity, i. 334. ch. 32. Æmilius, Paulus, his vast conquests and poverty, i. 395. a. 12. Æneas saves his household gods and his father, i. Enother, a giant of vast strength, j. 72. a. 15. Eschines, his behaviour when abused by Aristippus, i. 333. a. 9. his eloquence and death, ii. 221. a.-8. Affability. instances of it, i. 302. ch. 24. Agamemnon, tired of his high station, ii. 137. a.11. his love for his children, i. 247. a. 7. holds his hand in the fire without emotion, his self-confidence and success, i.362.a.7. Agrippa, rewards Thaumastius forgiving him drink, - Menenius suppresses a mutiny by a fable, - Corn. a specimen of his magic art, ii. 71. a. 1. . his magical tricks, ii. 270. 2. 18. Air-pump invented by Mr. Boyle, i. 383. a. 39. Albania, the inhabitants see best in the dark, i. 161. 3. 9. Albericus, Earl of Northumberland, deceived by a Albertus, of Brandenburg, had no suture in the skull, Bishop of Mentz, his observations on read- Albert, Emperor, killed by his nephew, ii. 185. a. 85. 194. a. 15. his body free from decay 2000 Albuna, Marc. Bishop of Æthiopia, 150 years old, i. 92. a. 19. Alcæus, Greek poet, ii. 227. 3. 4. his beauty even in age, i 44 a. 4. adopted the manner of all the persons he his dream and death, ii. 295. a. 34 Aldred, Archbishop of York, his pride to William the Aldus Manutius, printer at Venice, ii. 257. a. 2 II. Pope, poisoned, ii. 207. a. 61 III. his haughty treatment of Frederick made the Emperor prostrate himself at his -- returns from the altar in a fright at thun- IV. pillaged England, ii. 208. a. 168 209. a. 210 his incest with his daughter Lu- cretia, ii. 106. a. 10 killed by the poison he had pre- 51. a. 18 L 1 Alexander the Great, his desire to be thought a God, Alexius II. Emp. murdered by his successor Andro- ii. 17.2.3 his sanguine hopes, i. 195, a. 1 his early greatness of spirit, i. 214, a. 11 - his desire to perpetuate hisname, ii.125,a.13 his good fortune, ii. 401, a. id his wish on seeing the ocean i. 193, a. 9 finds a remedy for Ptolemy's wound in a a. 2 reverences the Jewish High Priest, ii. 289, weeps at the murder of Darius, i. 209, a. 1 his contempt of flattery, i. 229, a. 12 Alexander Bala, King of Syria, deceived by the ora Alexander ab Alexandro sees an apparition, ii. 423, nicus, ii. 193, c.60 Alexius Comnenus, Emperor, ii. 193, a. 57 his wish against incontinence, i. 194, a. 17 the ignorance of the clergy in his time, ii. 75, a. 13 Algiers, the Dey of, strangely assassinated, and a Alphonsus, King of Naples, his regard for learning ship, i. 334, a. 4 a. 13. - his loss by gaming, li. 67, is foretold of his over- his inercy and goodness, throw by his father's ghost, i. 127, a. 5 - his skill in shooting, ii. 259, a. 9 Alred, Thomas, his death occasioned by drunken- Altades, King of Babylon, his sloth and idleness, ii. Altoble, his cruelty amply revenged, ii. 86, a. 5 a. 11 Alvilda, a virgin, never uncovered her face, i.202, a.7 when a child, ii. 298, a. 14 a. 16 Amulius, King of the Latins, wants to be thought a god, ii. 17, 3. 1 Amurath |