Page:The Natural History of Pliny.djvu/476

 442 plint's natural history. [Book V. Sartona^, a distance of fifty miles, thence to Melitene^, in Cappadocia, distant seventy -fonr^ miles, and thence to Ele- gia'*, in Armenia, distant ten miles ; receiving in its course the rivers Lycus^, Arsanias^, and Arsanus. At Elegia it meetg the range of Mount Taurus, but no efiectual resistance is offered to its course, although the chain is here twelve miles in width. At its passage'^ between the mountains, the river bears the name of Omma^ ; but afterwards, when it has passed through, it receives that of Euphrates. Beyond this spot it is full of rocks, and runs with an impetuous tide. It then divides that part of Arabia which is called the country of the Orei^, on the left, by a channel three ^ Other readings liave "Pastona" here, said by D'Anville to be the modern Pastek. 2 Called the metropoHs of Lesser Armenia by Procopius. It was situate between Anti-Taurus and the Euphrates, and celebrated for its fertility, more especially in fruit-trees, oil, and wine. The site of the city Mehtene is now called Malatiyah, on a tributary of the Euphrates, and near that river itself. 3 It is generally supposed that " twenty-foiir " would be the correct reading here. ^ There were two places of this name. The one here spoken of was a town of Lesser Armenia, on the right bank of the Euphrates, at the fu-st, or prmcipal curve, which takes place before the river enters Mount Taurus. It is represented by the modern Iz Oghlu. 5 No other writer is found to make mention of the Lycus, which flows into the Euphrates, though there is a river formerly so called, which flows into the Tigris below Larissa, the modem Nimroud. D'Anville is of opinion, that it is formed from the numerous springs, called by the people of the district Bing-gheul, or the " Thousand Springs." ^ Now called the Myrad-Chai. Ritter considers it to be the south arm of the Euphrates. The Arsanus is mentioned by no writer except Pliny. • 7 The defile at this place is now called the Cataract of Nachour, ac- cording to Parisot. 8 The more general reading here is "Omfra." Hardouin is of opinion, that this is the district referred to in the Book of Judith, ii. 24. In the Vulgate, it appears to be twice called the river Mambre; but in our version it is called Arhonai. ^ Bumouf has concluded, from a cuneiform inscription which he deciphered, that the name of this people was Ayura, and that Hardouin i^s wrong in conjecturing that it was a name derived from tlie Greek opos, " a mountain," and designating the people as a mountain tribe. If Bumouf is right, the proper reading here would seem to be Aroei, or Arrhcsi.