Page 768 for that nothing of his own was given by his Father in Law, to him who was Lord and owner of all. Virathus therefore at that time, neither washt nor sat down, altho' he was earnestly intreated so to do. And whereas the Table was plentifully furnish'd with rich Dishes of Meat, he only distributed some Bread and Flesh amongst them that came along with him. After he had a little more than tasted the Meat himself, he order'd his Bride to be brought to him, and having Sacrific'd after the manner of the Spaniards, he mounted her on Horseback, and forthwith carry'd her away to his Appartments in the Mountains: For he accounted Sobriety and Temperance the greatest Riches, and the Liberty of his Country gain'd by Valour, the surest Possession. In his Leagues and Treaties he was very careful and exactly faithful to his Word, and spoke plainly and sincerely what he intended, instructed therein (without any other Arts) by his own natural Principles of honesty and fair dealing.
100. Demetrius, while he staid at Laodicea, spent his time in Banquetting, and such like Luxury; and yet exercis'd his Tyranny upon many in the mean time, not at all better'd by his Afflictions.
101. The Cnotians contended for the Sovereignty of the Island, which they alledg'd, belong'd to them, both upon the account of the Ancient Dignity of the City, and the Glory and Renown of their Ancestors in the Heroick times. For some say that Jupiter was brought up amongst them, and that Minos, who had the Dominion of the Seas, was bred up by Jupiter, at Cnossius, and excell'd all other Men in Virtuous Accomplishments.
102. But in Egypt, King Ptolemy for his Cruelty, was hated of all his Subjects: For his Manners were not to be compar'd with his Brother Philometer's; for he was of a mild and gentle Nature, but the other fierce and cruel; and therefore the People long'd for a Change, and earnestly waited for a fit opportunity to Revolt.
103. At the time when Ptolemy (after the Solemn manner of the Aegyptians) was Inthron'd at Memphis, his Queen Cleopatra was deliver'd of a Son, at which he exceedingly rejoic'd, and call'd him Memphites, because he was Born in the City Memphis, at the time of his Solemn Inauguration. But while he was Celebrating his Son's Birth day, he forgot not his usual Cruelty, for he order'd some of Cyrene (who had brought him into Aegypt) to be put to death, because they rebuk'd him something too freely, upon the account of the Strumpet Irene.
104. After Diegylis King of Thrace, came to the Throne, he was so puft up with his prosperity, that he began to Rule over his People not as his Subjects and Friends, but to Domineer over them, as so many Slaves and Bondmen: For he put many good and honest Thracians by Tortures to death, and abus'd with the highest marks of disgracemany others: For he spar'd neither Woman nor Boy that were handsom and beautiful, and stuck not at stripping Men out of all they had, by force and and strong hand, but fill'd all his Dominions with Rapine and Violence. He plunder'd and spoil'd likewise the Cities of Greece that border'd upon him, and abus'd some of the Captives, and put others to death with exquisite Torments. After he had taken the City Lysimachia (which belonged to Attalus) he burnt it down to the Ground, and pickt out the greatest Persons of Quality from amongst the Captives, and put them to death with strange and unheard of Tortures: For he cut off the Heads, Hands, and Feet of their Children, and hung them about their Parents Necks, and exchang'd the Members of Men and Women one from another. Of some he cut off their Hands, and clove them down the small of the Back, and sometimes would cause the Members to be carry'd about upon the top of their Spears, so that he far exceeded Phalaris himself, and Apollodorus the Tyrant of the Cassandrians. His Barbarity is more evident in this one Instance following. When he was celebrating his Nuptials, after the Ancient manner of the Thracians, he catcht up Two young Men of Greece that were Travelling, who were Subjects to Attalus, and were Brothers, both very beautiful. The one was fully attain'd to Mans Estate, and the other was near bordering upon it; Diegylis caus'd them both to be introduc'd Crown'd with Garlands, after the manner of the Victims: The younger being laid along and extended at length by the Officer, as one ready to cut him off at the Middle, the Tyrant cry'd out, that Kings and private Men, were not to offer the like Sacrifices; hereupon the Elder making great lamentation, out of endear'd Love to his Brother, interpos'd himself between him and the Sword, upon which Diegylis commanded he should be likewise laid along, and then doubling his Cruelty, at one stroak dispatch'd them both, the Spectators all applauding so noble a piece of Dexterity. Many such like wicked acts were committed by him.
105. When Attalus understood that Diegylis was hated by all his Subjects for his Cruelty and Covetousness, he took a quite contrary Course: And therefore when he had
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.