Page:Arrian's Voyage Round the Euxine Sea Translated.djvu/22

Rh to the memory of Achilles. Many offerings are upended in this temple, as cups, rings, and the more valuable gems. All thee are offerings to the memory of Achilles. Incriptions are alo upended, written in the Greek and Latin language, in praie of Achilles, and compoed in different kinds of metre. Some are in praie of Patroclus, whom thoe, who are dipoed to honour Achilles, treat with equal repect. Many birds inhabit this iland, as ea-gulls, divers, and coots innumerable. Thee birds frequent the temple of Achilles. Every day in the morning they take their flight, and having moitened their wings, fly back again to the temple, and prinkle it with the moiture; which having performed, they bruh and clean the pavement with their wings. This is the account given by ome perons. Thoe, who come on purpoe to the iland, carry animals proper for acrifice with them in their hips, ome of which they immolate, and others they et at liberty in honour of Achilles. Even thoe, who are compelled by tres of weather to land upon the iland, mut conult the God himelf, whether it would be right and proper for them to elect for acrifice any of the animals, which they hould find feeding there; offering, at the fame time, uch a recompene, as to them eems adequate to the value of the animal o elected. But if this hould be rejected by the Oracle, for there is an Oracle in this temple, they mut then add to their valuation; and if the increaed valuation be till rejected, they mut increae it again, till they find, from the aent of the Oracle, that the price they offer is deemed ufficient. When this is the cae, the beat to be acrificed tands till of its own accord, and makes no effort to ecape. A coniderable treaure is laid up in this temple as the price of thee victims. It is aid that Achilles has appeared in time of leep both to thoe who have approached the coat of this iland, and alo to uch as have