island. It would therefore have been imprudent to suffer such allies to be ruined by the Carthaginians, who would not have been the better friends to the Syracusans for having renounced the Romans by force. It was therefore a decisive stroke, to fly immediately to the aid of the Romans; and as Syracuse would necessarily fall after Rome, it was absolutely requisite to hazard every thing, either to save Rome, or fall with her.

If the facts, which history has preserved of so long and happy a reign, are few, they do not give us the less idea of this prince, and ought to make us exceedingly regret the want of a more particular information concerning his actions.

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The sum of an hundred talents, (an hundred thousand crowns) which he sent to the Rhodians, and the presents he made them after the great earthquake, which laid waste their island, and threw down their Colossus, are illustrious instances of his liberality and magnificence. The modesty with which his presents were attended, infinitely exalts the value of them. He caused two statues to be erected in the public square at Rhodes, representing the people of Syracuse placing a crown upon the head of the Rhodians; as if, says Polybius, Hiero, after having made that people such magnificent presents, far from assuming any vanity from his munificence, believed. himself their debtor upon that very account.

And indeed the liberality and beneficence of a prince to strangers is rewarded with interest, in the pleasure they give to himself, and the glory he acquires by

them.

There is a pastoral of Theocritus (Idyll. 16.) which bears the name of the king we speak of, wherein the poet seems tacitly to reproach that prince, with paying very ill for the verses made in honour of him. But the mean manner in which he claims, as it were, a reward for the verses he meditates, leaves room to

conclude, that the imputation of avarice falls with more justice upon the poet than upon the prince, distinguished and esteemed, as we have seen, from his liberality.

It is to Hiero's just taste, and singular attention to every thing that concerned the public good, that Syracuse was indebted for those amazing machines of war, of which we shall soon see it make so great an use, when besieged by the Romans. Though that prince seemed to devote his cares entirely to the tranquillity and domestic affairs of the kingdom, he did not neglect those of war; convinced, that the surest means to preserve the peace of his dominions, was to hold himself always in readiness to make war upon unjust neighbours, who should attempt to disturb it. He knew how to profit by the advantage he possessed of having in his dominions the most learned geometrician the world had ever produced; it is plain I mean Archimedes. He was illustrious, not only by his great ability in geometry, but his birth, as he was Hiero's relation. Sensible alone to the pleasures of the mind, and highly averse to the hurry and tumult of business and government, he devoted himself solely to the study of a science, whose sublime speculations on truths purely intellectual and spiritual, and entirely distinct from matter, have such attraction with the learned of the first rank, as scarce leaves them at liberty to apply themselves to any other objects.

Hiero had, however, sufficient influence over Archimedes, to engage him to descend from those lofty speculations to the practice of those mechanics, which depend on the hand, but are disposed and directed by the head. He pressed him continually, not to employ his art always in soaring after immaterial and intellectual objects, but to bring it down to sensible and corporeal things, and to render his reasonings in some measure more evident and familiar to the ge

nerality of mankind, by joining them experimentally with things of use.

Archimedes frequently conversed with the king, who always heard him with great attention and extreme pleasure. One day, when he was explaining to him the wonderful effects of the powers of motion, he proceeded to demonstrate, "That with a certain given power any weight whatsoever might be moved." And applauding himself afterwards on the force of his demonstration, he ventured to boast that if there were another world besides this we inhabit, by going to that he could remove this at pleasure. The king, surprised and delighted, desired him to put his position in execution, by removing some great weight with a small force.

Archimedes preparing to satisfy the just and rational curiosity of his kinsman and friend, chose out one of the galleys in the port, caused it to be drawn on shore with great labour, and by abundance of men. He then ordered its usual lading to be put on board, and besides that, as many men as it could hold. Afterwards, placing himself at some distance, and sitting at his ease, without trouble, or exerting his strength in the least, by only moving with his hand the end of a machine, which he had provided with numerous cords and pullies, he drew the galley to him upon the land, with as much ease, and as steadily as if it had swum upon the water:

The king, upon the sight of so prodigious an effect of the powers of motion, was entirely astonished; and judging from that experiment of the efficacy of the art, he earnestly solicited Archimedes to make several sorts of machines and battering engines for sieges and attacks, as well for the defence as assault of places.

It has been sometimes asked, whether the sublime knowledge, of which we speak, be necessary to a king; and if the study of arts and sciences ought to form a part of the education of a young prince? What we read here demonstrates their utility. If king Hiero had wanted taste and curiosity, and employed

himself solely in his pleasures, Archimedes had remained inactive in his closet, and all his extraordinary science been of no advantage to his country. What treasures of useful knowledge lie buried in obscurity, and in a manner hid under the earth, because princes set no value upon learned men, and consider them as persons useless to the state. But when, in their youth, they have imbibed some small tincture of arts and sciences, for the study of princes ought to extend no farther in that point, they esteem such as distinguish themselves, by their learning, sometimes converse with them, and hold them in honour, and by so glorious a protection, make way for valuable discoveries, of which the state soon reaps the advantage. Syracuse had this obligation to Hiero; which, without doubt, was the effect of his excellent education; for he had been bred with uncommon care and attention.

What has been said hitherto of Archimedes, and what we shall presently add, with respect to those admirable machines of war, which were used during the siege of Syracuse, shows how wrong it is to despise those sublime and speculative sciences, whose only objects are simple and abstract ideas. It is true, that all mere geometrical or algebraical speculations do not relate to useful things. But it is also as true, that most of those, which have not that relation, conduct or refer to those that have. They may appear unprofitable, as long as they do not deviate, if I may so say, from this intellectual world; but the mixed mathematics, which descend to matter, and consider the motions of the stars, the perfect knowledge of navigation, the art of drawing remote objects near by the assistance of telescopes, the increase of the powers of motion, the nice exactitude of the balance, and other similar objects, become more easy of access, and in a manner familiarise themselves with the vulgar. The labour of Archimedes was long obscure, and perhaps contemned, because he confined himself to simple and barren speculations. Ought we therefore

to conclude, that it was useless and unprofitable? It was from that very source of knowledge, buried till then in obscurity, that shot forth those brilliant lights, and wonderful discoveries, which displayed from their birth a sensible and manifest utility, and inspired the Romans with astonishment and despair when they besieged Syracuse.

Hiero was great and magnificent in all things, in building palaces, arsenals, and temples. He caused an infinite number of ships of all burthens to be built for the exportation of corn; a traffic in which almost the whole wealth of the island consisted. • We are told of a galley built by his order, under the direction of Archimedes, which was reckoned one of the most famous structures of antiquity. It was a whole year in building. Hiero passed whole days amongst the workmen, to animate them by his

presence.

This ship had twenty benches of oars. The enormous pile was fastened together on all sides with huge nails of copper, which weighed each ten pounds and upwards.

The inside had in it three galleries or corridors, the lowest of which led to the hold by a descent of stairs, the second to apartments, and the first to soldiers' lodgings.

On the right and left side of the middle gallery, there were to the number of thirty apartments; in each of which were four beds for men. The apartment for the officers and seamen had fifteen beds, and three great rooms for eating; the last of which, that was at the stern, served for a kitchen. All the floors of these apartments were inlaid with small stories in different colours, taken from the Iliad of Homer. The ceilings, windows, and all the other parts, were finished with wonderful art, and embellished with all kinds of ornaments.

In the uppermost gallery, there was a gymnasium,

Athen. 1. v. p. 206-209.