Page:History of Greece Vol III.djvu/164

 148 HISTORY OF GREECE. possibility of a contrary result, deserves notice as illustrating Grecian sentiment. 1 On departing from Athens, Solon first visited Egypt, where he communicated largely with Psenophis of Heliopolis and Sonchis of Sais, Egyptian priests, who had much to tell respecting their ancient history, and from whom he learned matters, real or pre- tended, far transcending in alleged antiquity the oldest Grecian genealogies, especially the history of the vast submerged isl- and of Atlantis, and the war which the ancestors of the Athenians had successfully carried on against it, nine thousand years before. .Solon is said to have commenced an epic poem upon this subject, but he did not live to finish it, and nothing of it now remains. From Egypt he went to Cyprus, where he visited the small town of -ZEreia, said to have been originally founded by Demophon, son of Theseus ; it was then under the dominion of the prince Philokyprus, each town in Cyprus having its own petty prince. It was situated near the river Klarius, in a position precipitous and secure, but inconvenient and ill-supplied ; and Solon per- suaded Philokyprus to quit the old site, and establish a new town down in the fertile plain beneath. He himself stayed and became oekist of the new establishment, making all the regulations requisite for its safe and prosperous march, which was indeed so decisively manifested that many new settlers flocked into the new plantation, called by Philokyprus 8oli, in honor of Solon. To our deep regret, we are not permitted to know what these regu- lations were ; but the general fact is attested by the poems of Solon himself, and the lines, in which he bade farewell to Philo- kyprus on quitting the island, are yet before us. On the dispo- sitions of this prince, his poem bestowed unqualified commen- dation. 2 1 Herodot. 5, 29. SoAwv, uvr/p 'A$?/v(uof, of f $T]vaioiai vofiovg noii/aae, cnredr/fiTjcre frea divca, Iva (5;) pf] riva TUV vofiuv avaynua'&y ri SoAwv i9?/r<u. One hundred years is the term stated by Plutarch (Solon, 25). Plutarch, Solon, 26; Herodot. v, 113. The statements of Diogenes that Solon founded Soli in Kilikia, and that he died in Cyprus, are not worthy of credit (Diog. Laert. i. 51-62).