Page 687 that for that piece of Wickedness acted upon that Man, whatever happen'd to him afterwards was order'd and dispens'd by his own hand. For the very Month and Day of the Month that he kill'd Ophellas, and brought over to him all his Army, the very same Day and Month he again lost both his Sons and his Army. And that which is more especially to be observ'd, was, That God, as a just Law-giver, inflicted on him a double Punishment; for he who had most wickedly destroy'd his Friend, was depriv'd of two Sons together, even by the Hands of those that came along with Ophellas. This Remark ought not to offend those, who slight and despise such Providences.
As for Agathocles, as soon as he landed in Sicily, by a hasty flight out of Africa, he sent for part of his Forces, and march'd to the Consederate City of the Aegestines: And being in want of Money, exacted the greatest part of the Estates of those that were rich, in which Place were Ten thousand Inhabitants. This many of them took very heinously, and met together in private Cabals: But he finding out, that the 〈◊〉 were plotting against him, he brought most dreadful Calamity upon the City: For drawing out all the Poor out of the Town, he cut all their Throats upon the Bank of the River Scamander: And all those who seem'd to be richer than the rest, he put to several Tortures, to force them to confess how much Money they had: For some he broke upon the Wheel; others he bound to his Engines of Battery, and shot them away like Stones. And of others, he cut out the Ankle-bones of their Feet, and by his cruel and unmerciful Dealing, put them to most horrible Torments. He invented likewise another sort of Punishment not much unlike the Phalerian Bull; for he made a Bed of Br ••s exactly after the shape of a Man, wherein were several Openings and hollow Places on every side: Those that he intended to torment, he put into this Bed, and then put fire under it, and burnt them to Death. In this only this Engine differ'd from the Bull. That those that perish'd, and were consum'd in those strait and narrow Holes, were expos'd to the view of every one. He would likewise break in pieces the Ankle-Bones of some of the rich Women with Iron Pincers, and cut off the Breasts of others; and would sometimes lay a weight of Tiles upon the Loins of Women with Child, till he forc'd the Child to leap, as it were, forcibly out of the Womb. While the Tyrant was in this manner endeavouring to find out all the Wealth every Body had, and the whole City was in Terror and Astonishment, some burnt themselves and their Houses together, and others hang'd themselves. And thus Aegesta, in one black and doleful Day, had the Prime and Flower of her Youth cut off. But the young Women and Children the Tyrant transported into Italy, and sold them to the Brutii: And that the very Name of the Place should be extinguish'd and forgotten, he call'd it Dic 〈…〉lis, and granted it for an Habitation to such Runagates as came over to him.
When he heard of the Murder of his Sons, he was so enrag'd at them he had left behind him in Africa, that he sent some of his Friends to his Brother Antandrus at Syracuse, with Oders, that he should cut the Throats of all the Kindred and Relations of those that went over in the Carthaginian Expedition: Who thereupon executing what he was commanded, committed such Slaughters and Murders, as were never at any time before: For he not only hurried away to Destruction young Men in the prime of their Age, as Brothers, Fathers, and Children; but even Grandfathers and Great-Grandfathers, if they happen'd then to be living, tho' they had one Foot even in the Grave, and could neither see nor hear through extremity of old Age: Nay, even Infants carri'd in Arms, that were not sensible of any Harm design'd them before they felt it: They dragg'd away likewise to Execution, Women, whether they were Servants or Kindred to them in Africa, and whoever else that (by their Death) might be occasion of Grief and Sorrow to them: So that while a vast number of Persons of all Ages and Sexes were hal'd away to Execution at the Sea-shore, where the Butchers stood ready for them, Tears, earnest Intreaties upon their Knees, and wo 〈…〉 Lamentations appear'd every where, both from them that were butcher'd, and from others; who so far compassionated the sad Condition of their Neighbours, that their Hearts were as full of Grief, as theirs who were just ready to die. And that which was the most grievous of all was, That after so great a Slaughrer, and that the 〈…〉 lses lay cast forth upon the Shoar, neither Kinsman nor Friend durst bury them, lest any of them should be thought Related to them that were dead. The Multitude of them that were murder'd upon the Shoar was such, that the Sea was did with 〈…〉 od a long way off, which presented to the Eye at a great distance the Horridness of that barbarous Cruelty.
The Histories of Herodotus written in 440 BC is considered to be the founding work of history in Western literature. His history included stories and fables but he claimed to have traveled extensively and learned about many countries through direct observation.
The thesis of Stolen Legacy is that the Egyptians created what is wrongly called Greek philosophy. Dr. James argues that the African origin of Greek Philosophy is well known but rarely discussed. Ancient Greek historians such as Herodotus and Diodorus the Sicilian wrote in significant detail about the contributions of Egypt. Egyptian technology and libraries were unmatched and Greek philosophers such as Pythagoras and Plato studied there. The contribution of Africa to the intellectual foundation of modern knowledge is tremendous but unacknowledged.
The Library of History by Diodorus the Sicilian is one of the most highly regarded universal histories in antiquities. His work includes the history of Egypt, Asia, Africa, Greece and Europe. His book is a must read for research of ancient history.
Bible Study The King James Bible (kjv), World English Bible (web) and Bible in Basic English (bbe) are all examples of public domain books. The King James Bible (kjv) online uses the content from these books and open source software to enhance Bible study capabilities. The site includes the verse of the day, search tools, christian literature and links to related content. It demonstrates the use of open source to create a valuable service.