HISTORY OF ENGINEERING.

Book I.

feet was placed a tower, which had its foundations laid at a depth of SO feet, and was fourstories in height, being carried up two stories higher than the walls.

There were two harbours, so disposed that they communicated with each other,although they had but one common entrance, which was 70 feet in breadth, secured bychains. One was devoted to merchant ships, and the inner port, as well as the islandcalled Cothon , in the midst of it, which was surrounded by spacious quays, was madesecure for the reception of 220 ships of war. Magazines, storehouses, and all the re-quisites of an extensive arsenal, were constructed around it; and the entrances to theharbours were decorated with marble porticoes, so that the whole might be said to beencompassed by two magnificent galleries. Upon the island was the residence of thegovernor, facing the mouth of the harbour, so that he could see all that was passing bothwithin and without the port. When the merchant ships entered, it was not possible forthem to view what the inner port contained, as it was shut iu by a double wall, and eachport had its particular gate.

The city had three divisions : Byrsa, Megara, and Cothon . Byrsa was three miles incircumference, and stood nearly in the centre of Carthage , surrounded by Megara, whichcontained the houses of the citizens: these, at the time of the third Punic war, werenumbered at seven hundred thousand. Livy gives twenty-three miles for the measure ofits circumference, and Suidas affirms it was the most powerful city in the world : it enjoyedthe dominion of the sea for more than six hundred years, and had an extensive and lucrativecommerce. The Carthaginians possessed three hundred cities in Africa , and their territoryextended from the western confines of Cyrenaica to the Pillars of Hercules, a distanceof upwards of fifteen hundred miles. Spain, Sicily , and all the islands of the Mediter-ranean also belonged to them. The Carthaginians, who disputed the empire of theworld with the Romans for a hundred and eighteen years, were destroyed as a nation ahundred and forty-six years before Christ. iEmilianus, the Roman general, made twoattacks, one against Byrsa, and the other against Cothon ; and having become master ofthe wall which surrounded the port, threw’ a considerable force into the great square ofthe city ; soon after which, Asdrubal abandoned the Carthaginian troops, and went overto the Romans : his wife could not survive such perfidy, and committed herself, children, andfollowers to the flames which then enveloped the citadel and temple. Soon after, thevictorious Romans demolished Carthage , as well as the cities dependent upon it, and theterritory was declared a Roman province.

The enormous wealth that had been amassed by this commercial people is stated byPliny at upwards of four millions four hundred and seventy thousand pounds weight ofsilver, which was carried away by iEmilianus.

Carthage is now at a considerable distance from the sea; the north-east wind and theMerjedali have closed up its ancient harbour. The place is called El Mersa; the port liesto the north and north-west of the city, and forms, with the lake of Tunis , the peninsula onwhich Carthage was built.

MLR A4. WAS -17. CUN*