Page:Arrian's Voyage Round the Euxine Sea Translated.djvu/192

192 original works, "that the ditances between places were ditinctly and accurately marked and divided by the Romans into portions of eight tadia each?"

Would it have been conitent with the character of thee menores terrarum, perons of rank entruted with this charge by public authority, to have neglected one part in twenty-five of the ditance which they were directed to meaure, which, in large extents, would have amounted to a coniderable pacel Thus Herodotus tells us, that the circumference of the lake Morris amounted to 3000 tadia; which extent is etimated by Mucianus, a peron of the greatet: authority, and frequently appealed to by Pliny, to be 450 which is eight tadia, and no more, to a mile. Had the third part of a tadium been added, it would have amounted only to 432 or about 18 miles hort of Mucianus's calculation; a pace too large to be properly overlooked in any urvey that pretends to accuracy.

Again, Pliny tells us, that the 252,000 tadia, which Eratothenes computed to be the circumference of the earth, amounted in Roman meaure to 31,500 This, it is obvious, is no more than eight tadia to a mile; and it is urely very improbable, if Pliny had known (as he mutt have done, had it really been the cae) that ⅓ of a tadium was neceary to be added to make up the mile.