HISTORY OF MARINE ARCHITECTURE.

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conjecture; inasmuch as, had any determinate grounds existed, on which aclear and positive statement could have been formed, there is no necessityof argument to convince the world, that the points would, long ere this, havebeen very satisfactorily settled.

The Greeks made only two principal distinctions in their appellative terms :their gallies with one tier of oars, which they called Monocrota, and those ofsuperior rate, which were indiscriminately named Polycrota. In the latterclass were consequently included all those stiled by the Romans, Biremes,Triremes, or Quinquiremes, as well as others of still increasing magnitude,up to that most formidable of all floating structures, at least in ancient times,built by Ptolemy Philopater. Meibomius, whose opinion, in some respects,has been rather closely followed by l’Escalier, in his account of the ancientgallies, asserts, that in the Bireme, or vessel having two ranks of oars, the seats ofthe rowers, as far as regarded one tier, were small pieces of board, fixed to the sideof the vessel, of sufficient breadth and length that one person might sit on it com-modiously, and that for the other, benches were fixed athwart ship to the same endand purpose. In the Trireme, two rows, the upper and lowermost, were seatedon the steps, or projecting boards, affixed to the sides, and the intermediate rankon the cross benches.

He proceeds farther to state the different arrangements made in the galliesof superior size precisely in the following terms : in the Quadrireme, two ranksof rowers were seated on the steps affixed to the sides, and two on the crossbenches ; in the Quinquireme, three were ranged on the side, and two on thethwarts; in the Hexereme, there were three rows, or ranks, of each de-scription. The same regulations were adopted in all those vessels of superiorsize, which are mentioned by ancient authors, from the Heptereme up to thatof Ptolemy, with its forty banks of oars. There are, however, many, andindeed very forcible objections, to great part of this opinion and distribution •objections, which, having been already • stated at some length, will, it may beconcluded, fully prove their futility. The Trireme, like the modern ships of theline, in the middle or third rate, was of the class, as has been before observed,most in request and use; for, though the mention of Quadriremes andQuinquiremes occasionally occurs in the account of ancient fleets, the linesof battle, it is generally, nay universally, admitted, were principally composed ofTriremes. Comparatively speaking, all other large gallies were not more frequentthan the first and second rates of the present age. The Biremes served as frigates,Vol. I. L

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