the emperor Marcus Aurelius. Carthage was the imperial metropolis during the reign of Gordianus, and possessed then theatres, baths, porticoes, and temples. Here the Christians were persecuted for righteousness' sake in the reign of Valerian; and Cyprian, its bishop, suffered martyrdom, A. D. 258. The bishops of Carthage were subordinate to those of Rome, but not to the patriarchs of Alexandria. A double election to the see of Carthage laid the foundation of that schism which afflicted Africa for nearly three centuries, and ended, unhappily, in the extinction of Christianity in that part of the world. In the year 312, Maxentius laid the city in ashes; and in 489, Genseric, king of the Vandals, took it by surprise. At this period, the manufactures of six provinces were concentrated here, where they kept their arms and their treasures also; schools and gymnasia were instituted for the education of the African youth: and grammar, rhetoric, philosophy, languages, and the liberal arts, publicly taught in both the Greek and Latin tongues. The buildings of the city were uniform and magnificent, and a shady grove was planted in the midst of them. The new port, which was both safe and commodious, subserved the commercial industry of the citizens; and the games of the circus and theatre were exhibited almost in the presence of the barbarians.

The reputation of the Carthaginians was not equal to that of their city; and the reproach of "Punic faith" still adhered to their subtle and faithless character. The king of the Vandals, however, chastised their immorality, and subjected their manners to a severe reform. Having permitted his army to satiate their thirst for cruelty and spoils, he instituted a systematic plan of severity and oppression: an edict was promulgated, ordering all Carthaginians, without delay, to deliver up their gold, jewels, and valuables to the royal officers; and any attempt to secrete the smallest portion of property, was declared to be instantly punishable with torture and death. The nobles and senators who were capable of doing so, went into exile; those that remained were reduced to slavery; the proconsular lands were divided amongst the barbarians, and the conqueror reserved for himself the fertile territory of Byzacium, and the adjacent parts of Numidia and Gætulia. During Vandal domination, the defences of the city were suffered to decay; but when Belisarius retook Carthage, and annexed it to imperial Rome in 532, he restored and strengthened the walls. In this revolution, the trade of Carthage suffered no interruption. Belisarius fixed his residence in the palace, seated himself on the throne of Genseric, accepted and distributed the barbaric spoils, and spared those Vandals who made timely submission. Notwithstanding the security conferred upon the city by the strengthening of its works, the Saracens attacked, took, and destroyed it in 698. Since that period it has been constantly subject to Mussulman rule, with the exception of two short periods: first, when occupied by the French, under St. Louis, in 1270; secondly, by the Spaniards, in 1595, under Charles V.

Carthage stood at the head of a gulf, and on a peninsula 45 miles in circumference; the isthmus connecting it with the mainland being three miles broad. On the western side, a tract of land, running into the sea, separated it from a morass, this was strongly fortified by rocks and by a single wall. In the middle of the city stood the Byrsa, or citadel, built by Queen Dido, three miles in circumference, which contained a noble temple to

Esculapius, seated on an eminence, that was ascended by sixty steps. This was the temple in whose devouring flames Asdrubal's bold wife destroyed herself, her children, and 900 Roman deserters, rather than become the slave of the stern conquerors. On the southern side, the city was protected by a triple wall, 30 cubits high, exclusive of the parapets and towers, with which it was flanked at equal distances, each interval being 480 feet. The foundation of the towers was 30 feet below the surface, and contained in that depth two stories of stalls, the lower capable of accommodating 300 elephants; the upper, which was still below the ground-level, 400 horses. The port consisted of two harbours, communicating with each other; and having a common entrance, 70 feet wide, secured with chains. The outer was appropriated to trading vessels of various nations; but the inner, in which was the island Cothon, was capable of floating 220 ships, and was intended principally for vessels of war. Near the Cothon stood a temple of Apollo, containing a statue of the god himself of solid gold; and the interior of the temple was covered with golden plates weighing 1000 talents. The storehouses around were decorated with marble Ionic columns, so that the harbour and island exhibited two magnificent galleries. The admiral's palace stood on the island, directly opposite the entrance, and allowing a view into the sea; but the works going forward in the inner harbour, were concealed from the view of those in the outer one by a double wall. The Carthaginians were not only powerful at sea, but possessed extensive resources otherwise. Hamilcar, in his expedition against Gelon, tyrant of Syracuse, commanded an army of 100,000 men.

Such were the magnitude, splendour, and resources of Carthage, and such the fate of this powerful people. Carthage is now to be sought for like Babylon or Nineveh. Few fragments survive the decay of time, and ravages of man: the triple wall may be traced; and the lesser cisterns are in perfect preservation; they form an oblong, 450 feet in length by 116 in width: there are 18 tanks within the oblong space, each 93 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 27 feet high to the summit of the vault. They derived their supply from rain solely, and are built of rubble-stone imbedded in cement. The large cisterns are situated at Maallakah, and are converted into dwellings or stables. Thirteen can be distinctly counted, but there must have been others. These were supplied with water from Zaghwan, by an aqueduct, after a transport of fifty miles, and discharged by a channel three feet wide. At the foot of the hill of Maallakah are the foundations of an amphitheatre 300 feet in length by 230 in breadth; to which, when it was necessary to convert it into a naumachia, water was supplied from the cisterns. Between the plain and Dowar-es-shat, a circus may also be traced; but the most splendid monument of ancient Carthage that yet remains is the aqueduct. This extraordinary extent of building may be traced from the greater cisterns to Zow-wan, and thence to Zung-gar, a distance of 50 miles. Near the village of Arriana, two leagues N. of Tunis, a range of its arches may be seen, all entire, and 70 feet high, supported by columns 16 feet square. The inside of the conduit was coated with cement, and is still coloured by the water that passed through it so many centuries ago. Temples were erected over the fountains that supplied the aqueduct both at Zow-wan and Zung-gar, and from what remains of the

latter, it appears to have been of the Corinthian order. The Burj-jedeed occupies possibly the site of the temple of Ceres, or of the celebrated Esculapian edifices already spoken of. Near to the shore lie some fragments of masonry, consisting of rubble imbedded in cement, and adjacent are the ruins of a small theatre. The harbour, which may be traced at the salt-pans between Carthage and the Goletta, is now choked up with sand. The position of the port here given is that laid down so clearly by Sir G. Temple, in whose "Excursions in the Mediterranean" will be found also an ample refutation of M. Chateaubriand's conjectures relative to the site of ancient Carthage.

The accompanying view presents as full a representation of all that remains of fallen Carthage as the pencil can express. The small dome in the centre belongs to the lesser cisterns. On its left are seen masses of masonry, conjectured to have once formed part of a Christian church; and still further to the left, the basement of some ancient structures, on which has been erected the Burj-jedeed, or Fort St. Louis. On the right are the ancient Cothon, Halek-el-wad, the Lake of Tunis, and the bay; beyond, the Hammam l'Enf, and the Boo-kurneen; and in the distance, the remarkable mountain Jebel Zaghwan.

"I was prepared to see but few vestiges of its former grandeur; I knew, many could not exist; but my heart sunk within me, when, ascending one of its hills, I beheld nothing more than a few scattered and shapeless masses of masonry. Yes, all vestiges of the splendour and magnificence of the mighty city had passed away, and its very name is now unknown to its present inhabitants."

VALETTA FROM THE QUARANTINE HARBOUR.

MALTA.

"Adieu, thou vilest Quarantine,

That gave me fever and the spleen."

BYRON.

The Marchamette, or Marsa Musceet, the Quarantine Harbour of Malta, is situated directly opposite to Cape Passaro, and on the north-west side of the city of Valetta, the Great Port being on the other, or south-east; Fort St. Elmo occupying and defending the tongue of land which intervenes. On entering, the Valetta point and lighthouse are on the left; and the fortifications and white-houses, climbing the hill to the "Hog's Back," present a brilliant prospect in the broad glare of sunshine. From this harbour little more of the town is visible than the tops of the houses peeping over the fortifications, with towers and embattled walls interspersed. Vessels arriving at Malta, are obliged to anchor near the yellow flag, which droops over the Lazaretto,