Page:History of Greece Vol III.djvu/248

 2#2 HISTORY OF GREECE. its terrific working upon the minds of the combatants, are facts not to be called in question ; though the diversity of opinion among chronologists, respecting the date of it, is astonishing. 1 philosopher Thales, in conjunction with the history of the Lydian kings, may be seen farther in the story of Thales and Croesus at the river Halya (Herod, i, 75), a story which Herodotus himself disbelieves. 1 Consult, for the chronological views of these events. Larcher ad Herodot. 5, 74 ; Volney, Recherches sur 1'Histoire Ancienne, vol. i, pp. 330-355 ; Mr. Fynes Clinton, Fasti Hellenici, vol. i, p. 418 (Note ad-'B.c. 617,2); Des Vignoles, Chronologic de 1'Histoire Sainte, vol. ii, p. 245 ; Idcler, Handbuch der Chronologic, vol. i, p. 209. No less than eight. different dates have been assigned by different chronol- ogists for this eclipse, the most ancient 625 B. c., the most recent 583 B. c. Volney is for 625 B. c. ; Larcher for 597 B. c. ; Des Vignoles for 585 B. c.; Mr. Clinton for 603. B. c. Volney observes, with justice, that the eclipse on this occasion " n'est pas 1'accessoire, la broderie du fait, mais le fait principal lui-meme," (p. 347 :) the astronomical calculations concerning the eclipse are, therefore, by far the most important items in the chronological reckon- ing of this event. Now in i-egard to the eclipse of 625 B. c., Volney is obliged to admit that it docs not suit the case ; for it would be visible only at half-past five in the morning on February 3, and the sun would hardly be risen at that hour in the latitude of Media and Lydia (p. 343). He seeks to escape from this difficulty by saying that the data for the calculation, accord- ing to the astronomer Pingrc, are not quite accurate for these early ellipses ; but after all, if there be error, it may just as well be in one direction as in another, i. e. the true hour at which the eclipse would be visible for those latitudes is as likely to have been earlier than half-past five A. M. as to have been later, which would put this eclipse still more out of the question. The chronology of that period presents difficulties which our means of knowledge hardly enable us to clear up. Volney remarks, and the language of Herodotus is with him, that not merely the war between Kyaxare.s and Alyattes (which lasted five years, and was terminated by the eclipse), but also the conquest made by Kyaxares of the territory up to the river Halys, took place anterior (Herodot. i, 103: compare i, 16) to the first siege of Nineveh by Kyaxares, that siege which he was forced to raise by the inroad of the Scythians. This constitutes a strong presumption in favor of Volney's date for the eclipse (625 B. c.) if astronomical considerations would admit of it, which they will not. Mr. Clinton, on the other hand, puts the first siege of Nineveh in the very first year of the reign of Kyaxares, which is not to be reconciled with the language of Herodotus. In placing the eclipse, therefore, in 603 B. c., we depart from the relative arrangement of eventa which Herodotus conceived, in deference to astronomical reasons: and Herodotus is our only authority in regard to the general chronology. According to Ideler, however (and his authority upon f uch a point is con- clusive, in my judgment), astronomical considerations decisively fix this