30 nos razed. 31 on all thefe advantages as vaftly too fmall to compenfate the Thebes, lofs of their brave general, Thebes Pelopidas, the Orchomenians, being fpirited up by fome Theban fugitives, had formed a defign to change the The ban government into an ariftocracy; and 300 horfemen of the former had been actually fent to put it in execution. Their project, however, was timely discovered by the vigi. lance of the magiftrates, who caufed them to be feized, and The city of put immediately to death. They next fent a fufficient force Orchome against the city of Orchomenos, with orders to put all the men to death, and to fell the women and children for flaves, which was punctually done; after which they razed that noble city to the ground. Pelopidas was then on his way Pelopidas to Theffaly, at the head of a powerful army, whither he had marches a- been fent to affift the Theffalians, who ftill groaned under gainst the the tyranny of Alexander the Pheræan, and had made feveTheffalian tyrant. ral brave efforts to recover their liberty, but had been ftill overpowered by that ufurper. Being joined by the Theffalians, he encamped in the face of the enemy, though far fuperior in number, and con fting of above 20,000 men. A fierce engagement loon enfued, in which both fides fought with uncommon bravery. The place where the battle was fought was called Cynocephala, from feveral little hills on it, between which there ran a large plain. Both fides endeavoured at first to poft themselves on thefe eminences with their foot, whilt Pelopidas ordered his cavalry to charge that of the enemy below; which they did with fuch fuccefs, that they foon put them to the rout, and purfued them over the plain. This obliged the tyrant to gain the tops of the hills, where he greatly annoyed the heffalians that endeavoured to force thofe afcents; fo that Pelopidas was obliged to give over his purfuit to come to their relief. This immediately infpired the Theffalians with fresh courage, who began again to charge the enemy at feveral onfets; and foon threw them into fuch diforder, that they were forced to give way. Pelopidas no fooner perceived the advantage, than he began to look about for Alexander, with a defign of en aging him. Having found him out as he was com manding his right wing, and endeavouring to rally his men, he moved directly to him; and being got near enough to be heard by him, challenged him to decide the battle by fingle combat with him. Alexander, inftead of accepting the offer, turned about, and with all the speed he could ran to fereen himfelt amongst his guards. Upon this Pelopidas charged him with fuch furious fpeed, that he obliged him to retire farther, and fhelter himtelf within the thickeft ranks; the fi ht of which made him attack with fresh vigour, and fight more defperately against him. He tried in vain feveral times to break through their ranks to reach him, cutting down great numbers of thofe that came forward to oppofe him his eagernefs at length exposed him fo far to the darts that were thot at him at a diftance, that fome of them went quite through his armour, and gave him a defperate wound or two, while the reft advanced and ftabbed him in the breaft with their spears. 32 Is killed. : It is fcarce poffible for words to exprefs the grief and defpair which not only his brave I hebans, but likewise the 'Theffalians and other allies, fhowed at the fight of their flain general: fome of the latter, who had perceived the danger he was expofed to, came down the hill with all poffible fpeed to his relief; but when they perceived that they were come too late to fave him, both they and the reft of the little army thought on nothing now but to revenge his death. They rallied accordingly, both horfe and foot, as quick as poffible, and began to charge the enemy afresh, and with fuch defperate fury, that they at length gained a comAlex nder plete victory over them, and killed above 3000 of them in defeated, their purtuit, befides a much greater number which they had flain on the field of battle, though they ftill looked up. 33 The news of his death had no fooner reached Thebes, than the whole city was feen in as deep a mourning as his army. However, they fent a reinforcement to it of 7000 foot and 700 horie, as well to revenge the death of that ge neral, as to improve the victory he had gained over the ene. my; by the help of which they fell to furiously on them, that they quickly broke and totally defcated the fhattered remains of Alexander's army. Hereupon he was forced to fue for peace, and to accept it on fuch conditions as the conquerors thou ht fit to impote. He was at length dif. And at laf patched in his bed by his wife Thebe, affitted by her brothers, about seven years after his defcat. His body was afterwards dragged along the streets, trodden under foot, and left a prey to the dogs. 34 murdered. bans. 35 All this while the Thebans were watching to improve Ambition every commotion that happened, every fuccefs they met of the Thewith, to the forwarding of their then reigning and favourite project, of increafing their power above all the reft, and in their turn to give laws to Greece. Their late fuccefs in Theffaly, and the rupture between the Arcadians and Mantineans at the fame time, about fome confecrated money which the former had taken out of the temple of Olympize to pay their troops employed against the Eleans, and which the latter called a downright facrilege, befides other dif cords that reigned in the other ftates of Greece, gave fresh encouragement to Thebes to fet up for arbitrels in thole difputes; and fo much the more, as thofe who had embez zled the facred money, and wanted rather to embroil matters than to have them brought to light, fent that republic word that the Arcadians were juft upon the point of revolting to the Spartans, and adviled them to come and put an immediate ftop to it. At the fame time they dispatched fome private directions to a Theban officer at Tegea, to apprehend feveral of their own people as difturbers of the peace. This was accordingly done, and feveral eminent perfons were confined as pritoners of ftate: they were foon after difcharged, and loud complaints were made against fuch arbitrary and unjuft proceedings. The officer was accufed before the Theban ienate for having intermeddled in their affairs, and endeavoured to interrupt the good correfpondence between the two ftates. It was even infitted on by fome of the Tegeans, that he fhould be indicted and proceeded againft by his principals; whilft the more moderate fort, who forelaw the confequences that were likely to attend fuch appeals, and that it would infallibly bring the Thebans upon them, loudly protefted againft their marching into their territories, and did all they could to prevent, it. The Thebans, however, were become too powerful and ambitious to mifs to fair an opportunity of getting once more footing in Peloponnefus, as they had long ago preme36 ditated; and Epaminondas was fo tar from making a fecret of Epaminontheir defign, that he told the Arcadian deputies in juftifica- das difpica tion of it, that as it was on their account that the Thebans engaged in the war, they had acted treacherously with them Greece. in making peace with Athens without their confent: however, that when he was got with his army on his march into Peloponnefus to aflift his friends, he would 100n fee what proofs the Arcadians would give of their fidelity. peech did not fail to alarm them greatly; elpecially as it was spoken in fuch a magifterial ftyle and threatening tone. Even those who were beft affected to the Thebans could not forbear expreffing their diflike of it; and all that had the welfare of Peloponnetus at heart readily agreed with the Mantineans, that there was no time to be loft to ufe all proper means to prevent the impending itorm. Athens This fes the Itates of Thebes 37 nation against Thebes. ing with their whole fury three volleys of darts at him, Thebes. fome of which he drew out and returned to them, till at 41 length, being covered with wounds, and weakened with the Epaminonlofs of fo much blood, he received a mortal wound from a das killed. javelin, and was with great difficulty rescued from the ene my by his brave Thebans, and brought alive, though fpeechlefs, into his tent. As foon as he had recovered himfelf, he afked his friends that were about him what was become of his fhield; and being told that it was fafe, he beckoned to have it brought to him, and kiffed it. He next inquired which fide had gained the victory; and being an fwered, The Thebans; he replied, Then all is well and upon obferving fome of his friends bewail his untimely death, and leaving no children behind him, he is faid to have anfwered, Yes; I have left two fair daughters, the victory of Leutra, and this of Mantinea, to perpetuate my memory. Soon after this, upon drawing the point of the javelin out of his body, he expired. Athens and Sparta were accordingly applied to, and were easily prevailed upon to affift the Mantineans, and to A combi come into a strict confederacy against the Thebans; and to prevent all difputes about the command of the army, it was agreed that each state should have it in its own territories; which plainly shows how terrified they all were at the apprehenfion or a fresh invasion of the Thebans: for this was a point which neither the Spartans nor Athenians would have fo readily given up to the Arcadians, though these had formerly as ftrenuoufly infifted upon it, even when they were almoft reduced to the lalt extremity, and had never been able to obtain it till now. But Epaminondas was then in full march at the head of his Boeotian troops, with fome Euboean auxiliaries, and a body of ttout Theffalian horfe; and was moreover to be joined by the Meffenians, Arvives, and several other nations, as foon as he had entered Pelo. ponnefus. The confederate army againft him had ordered their rendezvous at Mantinea, the place which they natural38 ly concluded would be first attacked, as being the chief feat Epan iron- of those who had revolted from the Thebans But whilft das makes they were fecuring themselves on that fide, Epaminondas, who wifely confidered how far this confederacy and expedition must have drained the city of Sparta of its main Arength, broke up privately from Nemea, where he had lain for fome time encamped, and marched all that night with a design to have furprised that important capital: but his project being timely difcovered, the vigilant king took care to difconcert it; fo that, though the Theban general made feveral vigorous affaults on that city, he was fo ftoutly repulfed, and the Spartans behaved with fuch intrepid valour, that he was forced to retire and turn his thoughts against Mantinea, which he judged by this time to have been quite defenceless. He judged rightly indeed; for the place was not only drained of its troops, but likewife of its inhabitants, who took that opportunity, whilft the fcene of war was in Lacedæmon, to gather in their harvest, and were Marea. scattered all over the country; fo that he would not have met with any difficulty in gaining the town, had not the Athenian auxiliaries come unexpectedly to its relief, and given him a fresh repulse. * unfuc cefful ar tempt on Sparta, 39 And on Thele two laft defeats greatly exafperated the Theban general, who had never till now been used to them, and could not but toreiee that they would not only leffen his reputa. tion with his allies, but, if not timely retrieved, would fully the glory of all his former exploits. What added to his prefent difficulties was, that the time allotted him for his expedition was almoft expired; fo that he had but a fhort space left to undertake fome brave atchievement, which might recover his and his country's honour, and keep up the spirits of his auxiliaries and those under his protection. He was moreover got very far into the enemy's country, and faw plainly enough how narrowly they watched all his motions, and how well prepared they were to oppose him whatever attempt he refolved upon, whether to attack them or to retreat. Under all thefe difficulties, he rightly confidered, that he muft immediately refolve upon decifive battle; in which, if his priftine fortune followed him, he might at Battef once retrieve his affairs, and make himtelt mafter of PeloMantinca. ponnefus; or, if that failed him, as it lately had done, fallhonourably in the attempt. In this engagement Epaminondas made the wifeft difpofition of his troops, attacked and fought with the most intrepid courage and conduct, and had opened himfelf a way through the Spartan pha lanxes, thrown them into the utmolt contufion, and made a terrible flaughter of them, infomuch that the field of battle was covered with their wounded and flain, when, in the heat of the fight, having ventured himself too far in order to give them a total overthrow, the enemy rallied again, pour 40 : The confequence of this great general's fall, and of this bloody fight, in which neither fide could boaft any great advantage over the other, but a great lofs of men on both fides, infomuch that Xenophon makes it a drawn battle, was, that both parties agreed on a ceffation of arms, and parted, as it were by confent, to take care of their wounded and flain. The Thebans indeed thus far gained the greater fhare of glory, that they renewed the fight, and after a most defperate conteft, gained the victory over thofe Spartans that opposed them, and rescued the body of their dying eneral out of their hands. However, an effectual end was Peace conput to this bloody war, and a general peace agreed on by all but Sparta; who refufed it only becaufe the Meffenians were included in it. But as to the Thebans, they had no great reafon to boast of this dear-bought victory, fince their power and glory began to decline from that very time; fo that it may be truly faid, that it role and fet with their great general. 42 cluded. time. 43 On the death of Epaminondas, the Thebans relapfed into State of their former ftate of inactivity and indolence; and at laft Thebes to the prefent: having ventured to oppofe Alexander the Great, their city was taken, and the inhabitants flaughtered for feveral hours, after which the buildings were deltroyed. It was rebuilt by Caffander, but never afterwards made any confiderable figure among the ftates of Greece. About the year 46 B. C. it fell under the power of the Romans, under which it continued till the extinction of their empire by the Turks. It is now called Thive, and is nothing to what it was formerly; yet it is four miles in circumference, but fo full of ruins, that there are not above 4000 Turks and Chriftians in it. It is now famous for a fine fort or white clay, of which they make bowls for pipes after the Turkish fashion. They are never burnt, but dry naturally, and become as hard: as a tone. There are two moiques in Thebes, and a great many Greek churches. It is teated between two fmail rivers, in E. Long. 23. 40. N. Lat. 38. 17. THEBES, in Egypt, one of the most renowned cities of the ancient world. It was alfo called Diopolis, or the city: o Jupiter, and was built, according to fome, by Ofiris, according to others by Bufiris. Its length, in Strabo's time, Ancient was 80 furlongs, or ten miles; but this was nothing in com- Univerfal pariton of its ancient extent, before it was ruined by Cam- Hiftory, byfes, which, we are told, was no less than 4 ftadia, or vol. i. 52 miles and an half. The wealth of this city was to great, that, after it had been plundered by the Perfians, what was found, on burning the remains of the pillage, amounted to above 300 talents of gold and 2300 of filver Mr Bruce vifited the ruins of this celebrated city; but informs us that nothing now remains except four temples, and thefe neither fo entire nor magnificent as fome others at Theft. Bruce's Travels. thebes, a place called Dendera. Thebes has been celebrated by Homer for its hundred gates; but Mr Bruce informs us, that no veftiges of these are now remaining, neither can we difcover the foundation of any wall it ever had; " and as for the horsemen and chariots it is faid to have fent out, all the Thebaid fown with wheat would not have maintained one half of them. Thebes, at least the ruins of the temples called Medinet Tabu, are built in a long ftretch of about a mile broad, moft parfimoniously chofen at the fandy foot of the mountains. The Horti Penfiles, or hanging gardens, were furely formed upon the fides of thefe hills, then fupplied with water with mechanical devices. The utmoft is done to fpare the plain, and with great reafon; for all the fpace of ground this ancient city has had to maintain its myriads of horses and men, is a plain of three quarters of a mile broad between the town and the river, upon which plain the water rifes to the height of four and five feet. All this pretended populousness of ancient Thebes I therefore believe to be fabulous." Mr Bruce, after examining the ground on which Thebes is fuppofed to have ftood, thinks that it had no walls, and that confequently Homer's ftory of its having an hundred gates is misunderftood. The mountains of the Thebaid ftand close behind the town, not in a ridge, but standing fingle, so that you can go round each of them. A hundred of these are faid to be hollowed out for fepulchres and other purposes. Thefe, he thinks, were the hundred gates of Honer; in proof of this they are still called by the natives Beeban el Meluke," the ports or gates of the kings." All that is laid of Thebes by poets or hiftorians after the days of Homer is meant of Diofpolis, which was built by the Greeks long after Thebes was deftroyed, as its name teftifies; though Diodorus fays it was built by Bufiris. It was on the east side of the Nile, whereas ancient Thebes was on the weft, though both are confidered as one city; and Strabo fays, that the river runs through the middle of Thebes, by which he means between Old Thebes and Diofpolis. THEFT, or SIMPLE LARCENY, is "the felonious taking and carrying away of the personal goods of another." This offence certainly commenced then, whenever it was that the bounds of property, or laws of meum and tuum, were eftablifhed. How far fuch an offence can exift in a state of nature, where all things are held to be common, is a queftion that may be folved with very little difficulty. The disturb. ance of any individual in the occupation of what he has feized to his present use, seems to be the only offence of this kind incident to fuch a ftate. But, unquestionably, in focial communities, when property is established, any violation of that property is fubject to be punished by the laws of fociety; though how far that punishment fhould extend is matter of confiderable doubt. By the Jewish law it was only punished with a pecuniary fine, and fatisfaction to the party injured; and in the civil law, till fome very late conftitutions, we never find the punifhment capital. The laws of Draco at Athens punished it with death: but his laws were faid to be written with blood; and Solon afterwards changed the penalty to a pecuniary mul&t. And fo the Attic laws in general continued; except that once, in a time of dearth, it was made capital to break into a garden and feal figs: but this law, and the informers against the offence, grew fo odious, that from them all malicious informers were ftyled ycophants; a name which we have much perverted from its original meaning. From thefe examples, as well as the reafon of the thing, many learned and fcrupulous men have queftioned the propriety, if not lawfulnefs, of inflicting capital punishment for fimple theft. And certainly the natural punishment for injuries to property feems to be the lofs of the offender's own proper. Theft. ty; which ought to be univerfally the cafe, were all mens fortunes equal. But as thofe who have no property themfelves are generally the most ready to attack the property of others, it has been found neceffary, inftead of a pecuniary, to fubftitute a corporal punishment; yet how far this corporal punishment ought to extend, is what has occafioned the doubt. Sir Thomas More and the Marquis Beccaria, at the diftance of more than two centuries, have very fen. fibly propofed that kind of corporal punithment which approaches the nearest to a pecuniary fatisfaction, viz. a tem porary imp:itonment, with an obligation to labour, first for the party robbed, and afterwards for the public, in works of the moft flavish kind; in order to oblige the offender to repair, by his industry and diligence, the depredations he has committed upon private property and public order. But, notwithstanding all the remonttiances of fpeculative politicians and moralifts, the punishment of theft ftill continues throughout the greate part of Europe to be capital: and Puffendorf, together with Sir Matthew Hale, are of opinion that this muft always be referred to the prudence of the legislature; who are to judge, fay they, when crimes are become fo enormous as to require fuch fanguinary re ftrictions. Yet both thefe writers agree, that such punish. ment fhould be cautiously inflicted, and never without the utmoft neceffity. The Anglo Saxon laws nominally punished the't with death, if above the value of twelvepence: but the criminal was permitted to redeem his life by a pecuniary raniom; as, among their ancestors the Germans, by a fated number of cattle. But in the 9th year of Henry I. this power of redemption was taken away, and all perfons guilty of larceny above the value of twelvepence were directed to be hanged; which law continues in force to this day. For though the inferior species of the't, or petit larceny, is only punitned by whipping at common law, or (by itat. 4 Geo. I. c. 11.) may be extended to transportation for feven years, as is alfo exprefsly directed in the cate of the Plate-glafs Com pany; yet the punishment of grand larceny, or the ftealing above the value of twelvepence (which fum was the ftandard in the time of king Athelftan, 800 years ago), is at com. mon law regularly death: which, confidering the great in termediate alteration in the price or denomination of mo ney, is undoubtedly a very rigorous conftitution; and made Sir Henry Spelman (above a century fince, when money was at twice its prefent rate) complain, that while every thing elfe was rifen in its nominal value, and become dearer, the life of man had continually grown cheaper. It is true, that the mercy of juries will often make them strain a point, and bring in larceny to be under the value of twelvepence, when it is really of much greater value: but this, though evidently juftifiable and proper when it only reduces the prefent nominal value of money to the ancient ftandard, is otherwife a kind of pious perjury, and does not at all excute our common law in this relpect from the imputation of feverity, but rather ftrongly confeffes the charge. It is likewife true, that by the merciful extenfions of the benefit of clergy by our modern flatute-law, a perfon who commits a fimple lar ceny to the value of thirteen pence or thirteen hundred pounds, though guilty of a capital offence, fhall be excufed the pains of death; but this is only for the first offence. And in many cafes of fimple larceny the benefit of clergy is taken away by ftatute: as from horte-ftealing in the prin cipals and accellories both before and after the fact; theft by great and notorious thieves in Northumberland and Cumberland; taking woollen cloth from off the tenters, or linens, fuftians, calicoes, or cotton goods, from the place of manufacture (which extends, in the laft cafe, to aiders, af fifters, า Theobald. [ 415 ] ing to the great malice and mifchief of the theft in fome of THEFT-Bote (from the Saxon theof, i. e. fur, and bete, THELIGONUM, in botany: A genus of plants be- THEMISON, a phyfician of Laodicea, a disciple of Af- THEMISTOCLES, the renowned Athenian admiral, THE ma thought proper to abufe it as earneftly; for which Pope at Theobro The cacao, or chocolate tree, we fhall defcribe in the "This tree delights in fhady places and deep valleys. It "The cocoa-nuts being gently parched in an iron pot over the fire, the external covering feparates eafily. The kernel is levigated on a fmooth ftone; a little arnotto is added, and with a few drops of water is reduced to a mals, and formed into rolls of one pound each. This fimple preparation is the moft natural, and the beft. It is in daily ufe in moft families in Jamaica, and feems well adapted for rearing of children." See CHOCOLATE. THEOCRACY, in matters of government, a ftate go- THEOCRITUS, the father of paftoral poetry, was The compofitions of this poet are diftinguifhed, among their vol. viii. 1 THE [ 416 ] Theedote, their refpective merits. His paftorals ought to be conTheodore fidered as the foundation of his credit; upon this claim he will be admitted for the finisher as well as the inventor of his art, and will be acknowledged to have excelled all his imitators as much as originals ufually do their copies. The works of this poet were first published in folio by Aldus Manutius at Venice in 1495. A more elegant and correct edition was printed by Henry Stephens at Paris in 1566. An edition was published at Leiphic in 1765, with valuable notes by the learned Reike. But what will molt highly gratify the admirers of paftoral poetry, is an edition published in 1770, 2 vols 4to, by Mr Thomas Warton. It is accompanied by the fcholia of the beft editors, and the different readings of 15 MSS. THEODOLITE, a mathematical inftrument for measu Upon this he, without lofs of time, fet fail, and landed at The Genoefe were not a little confounded with this un. THE long expected. He fettled an adminiftration during his ab. Theodore, The grave, great teacher, to a level brings Beftow'd a kingdom and deny'd him bread. the |