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and three years a-piece, and above. For they make tlie fevenkings of Rorae, who preceded the confuls, tohave reigned 244years ( 2 ), which is 35 years a-piece': and the firft twelve kingsof Sicyon, ^Egialeus, Europs, &c. tohave reigned 529 years ( 3 ),which is 44 years a-piece: and the firft eight kings of Argos,Inachus, Phoroneus, &c. to have reigned 371 years ( 4 ), whichis above 46 years a-piece : and between the return of the Hera-clidae into Peloponnefus, and the end of the firft Meflenian war,the ten kings of Sparta in one race; Euryfthenes, Agis, Echel-tratus, Labotas, Doryagus, Agefilaus, Archelaus, Teleclus, Alca-menes, and Polydorus: the nine in the other race; Procles, Sons,Eurypon, Prytanis, Eunomus, Polyded.es, Charilaus, Nicander,Theopompus: the ten kings of Mefiene; Crefphontes, Epytus,Glaucus,, Ifthmius, Dotadas, Sibotas, Phintas, Antiochus, Eu-ph aes, Ariftodemus: and the nine of Arcadia; Cypfelus, Olteas,lluchaflion, Phialus, Simus, Pompus, Acgineta, Polymneftor, /Ech-mis ( 5 ), according to chronologers* took up 379 years: whichis 38 years a-piece to the ten kings, and 42 years a-piece to the

nine.

■the Grefik expreffions ,yma» r»» ur’ -c/xu aoj/tjtra. Not that feven generations

were compleated ; but fix were compleated, and the feventh was juft fetting in. The defeat andcaptivity of Perfeus happened in the firlt year of the i;;d olympiad. From the beginning ofthe 1 ;zd to the middle of the lyzd olympiad is 40 and a half olympiads, or 162 years. So 162years are here ftated as equal to lix generations; which is at the rate of 27 years to a generation.'The learned Dodtvell, conceiving that the hiftorian fpeaks of the period of the Roman great-r.efs, from the comniencement of.it -to his own time, as containing feven compleat generations ;and perfuading himfelf that the-commencement was to be ..placed at the end of the third Pimicwar; concludes, in his Diflertation on the age of Dionyft Halicarn. that this accurate writerufed the word yinawaguely, for no definite nurnber of years. Whereas it feetns to me, thatDionylius uniformly values the generation at 2,7 years. As for the Latins, I do not know that•they had any word which anfwered to the Greek yma,, or generation. Their atas rather figni-fied the.natural period of human life: and what they meant by their faculum , they feem notto have known themfelves.

( 2 ) Dionyf. Hal. Antiq. Rom. lib. 1. c. 75. ,p. 61. Livy, lib. 1. c. 60,

( 3 ) Eufeb. Chron. Petavius in Paralipom. Doct. Temp. . ( 4 ) Etifeb. in Chron. Petavius.

( ! ) The fncceffions and fynchronifms of thefe kings of Sparta, MelTene and Arcadia, are ea-Tily to be collefted from Paufanias. The time to be allotted, according to chronologers, to the■entire fucceffions, may be compendiouily eftimated in this manner.

The firft Mdfenian.war ended with the furrender of Ithome in the firft year of the i+th olym-piad, according to-Paufanias, lib. 4. c. 13. And this was probably the laft year of Polydorus,king of Sparta. (Paufan. lib. 3. c. .3 ) From the beginning of the olympiads, therefore, to thelaft year of Polydorus, kingof Sparta, the interval was thirteen complete olympiads, or 52 years.Add 328 years, the-interval from the-return of the Heraclida; to the beginning of the olympiads,according to Eratofthenes; and the fum gives the whole interval, from the return of the Hera-clida; to the end of Polydorus king of Sparta, 380 years complete.

Again : The firft Meflenian war came to an end, when Hippomenes, the fucceflor of Arifto-demus, had reigned four years complete. (Paufan. lib. 4. c. 13.) Therefore Ariftodemus diedin the ift year of the 13th olympiad : and from the beginning of the olympiads to his death, the

interval