Alberti, Leone Battista, Architecture, 1755

Page concordance

< >
Scan Original
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
< >
page |< < of 320 > >|
    <archimedes>
      <text>
        <body>
          <chap>
            <p type="main">
              <s>
                <pb xlink:href="003/01/084.jpg" pagenum="67"/>
              requires the moſt deliberate Conſideration in
                <lb/>
              what Place or Situation, and with what Cir­
                <lb/>
              cuit of Lines it ought to be fix'd. </s>
              <s>Concern­
                <lb/>
              ing theſe Things there have been various
                <lb/>
              Opinions.</s>
            </p>
            <p type="main">
              <s>
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Cæſar
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              writes, that the
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Germans
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              accounted
                <lb/>
              it the greateſt Glory to have vaſt uninhabited
                <lb/>
              Deſarts for their Confines: Becauſe they
                <lb/>
              thought theſe Deſarts ſecured them againſt
                <lb/>
              ſudden Irruptions from their Enemies. </s>
              <s>The
                <lb/>
              Hiſtorians ſuppoſe that the only Thing which
                <lb/>
              deterr'd
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Seſoſtris,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              King of
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Ægypt,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              from lead­
                <lb/>
              ing his Army into
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Æthiopia
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              was the Want of
                <lb/>
              Proviſions, and the Difficulty of the Places
                <lb/>
              through which he muſt march. </s>
              <s>The
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Aſſyrians
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
                <lb/>
              being defended by their Deſarts and Marſhes,
                <lb/>
              never fell under the Dominion of any foreign
                <lb/>
              Prince. </s>
              <s>They ſay, that the
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Arabians
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              too
                <lb/>
              wanting both Water and Fruits, never felt the
                <lb/>
              Aſſaults, or Injuries of any Enemies.
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Pliny
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
                <lb/>
              ſays that
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Italy
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              has been ſo often infeſted with
                <lb/>
              Armies of Barbarians only for the Sake of her
                <lb/>
              Wines and Figs: We may add that the too
                <lb/>
              great Plenty of ſuch Things as ſerve only to
                <lb/>
              Luxury, are very prejudicial, as
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Crates
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              teaches,
                <lb/>
              both to Young and Old; becauſe it is apt to
                <lb/>
              make the Latter cruel, and the Former effe­
                <lb/>
              minate.</s>
            </p>
            <p type="main">
              <s>
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Livy
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              tells us, that among the
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Æmerici
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              there
                <lb/>
              is a Region wonderfully fruitful, which as it
                <lb/>
              generally happens in rich Soils, engenders a
                <lb/>
              very cowardly weak Race of Men; whereas
                <lb/>
              on the contrary the
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Ligii,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              who dwelt in a
                <lb/>
              ſtony Country, being forced to conſtant La­
                <lb/>
              bour, and to live with great Frugality, were
                <lb/>
              extremely robuſt and induſtrious. </s>
              <s>The State
                <lb/>
              of Things being ſo, it is probable ſome may
                <lb/>
              not diſlike theſe barren difficult Places for
                <lb/>
              fixing a City in; tho' others again may be of
                <lb/>
              a contrary Opinion, deſiring to enjoy all the
                <lb/>
              Benefits and Gifts of Nature, and to want no­
                <lb/>
              thing that may contribute either to Neceſſity
                <lb/>
              or Pleaſure; and for the right uſing of theſe
                <lb/>
              Benefits, the Fathers may provide by Laws
                <lb/>
              and Statutes. </s>
              <s>And they think the Conveni­
                <lb/>
              encies of Life are much more pleaſing when
                <lb/>
              they may be had at home, than when they are
                <lb/>
              obliged to fetch them from abroad: for which
                <lb/>
              Reaſon, they deſire ſuch a Soil as
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Varro
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              tells us
                <lb/>
              is to be found near
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Memphis,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              which enjoys ſo
                <lb/>
              favourable a Climate, that all the Trees even
                <lb/>
              the Vines themſelves, never drop their Leaves
                <lb/>
              the whole Year round: or ſuch a one as is
                <lb/>
              under Mount
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Taurus
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              in thoſe Parts which look
                <lb/>
              to the North, where
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Strabo
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              ſays the Bunches of
                <lb/>
              Grapes are three Foot long, and that every
                <lb/>
              ſingle Vine Tree yields half a Barrel of Wine,
                <lb/>
              and one Fig Tree an hundred and forty
                <lb/>
              Pound Weight of Figs; or ſuch a one as is
                <lb/>
              in
                <emph type="italics"/>
              India,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              or the
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Hyperborean
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              Iſland in the
                <lb/>
              Ocean, where
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Herodotus
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              tells us they gather
                <lb/>
              their Fruits twice every Year; or like that of
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Por­
                <lb/>
              tugal,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              where the Seeds that fall by chance
                <lb/>
              yields ſeveral Harveſts, or rather like
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Talge,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              in
                <lb/>
              the
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Caſpian
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              Mountains, where the Earth
                <lb/>
              brings forth Corn without Tillage. </s>
              <s>But theſe
                <lb/>
              Things are uncommon, and rather to be with'd
                <lb/>
              for than had. </s>
              <s>And therefore the wife An­
                <lb/>
              cients who have written upon this Subject,
                <lb/>
              either from their own Obſervations, or the
                <lb/>
              Books of others, are of Opinion, that a City
                <lb/>
              ought to be ſo placed as to have all ſufficient
                <lb/>
              Neceſſaries within its own Territory (as far as
                <lb/>
              the Condition of human Affairs will permit)
                <lb/>
              without being obliged to ſeek them abroad;
                <lb/>
              and that the Circuit of its Confines ought to
                <lb/>
              be fortified, that no Enemy can eaſily make
                <lb/>
              an Irruption upon them, though at the ſame
                <lb/>
              time they may ſend out Armies into the Coun­
                <lb/>
              tries of their Neighbours, whatever the Enemy
                <lb/>
              can do to prevent it; which is a Situation that
                <lb/>
              they tell us will enable a City not only to
                <lb/>
              defend its Liberty, but alſo to enlarge the
                <lb/>
              Bounds of its Dominion. </s>
              <s>But after all, what
                <lb/>
              ſhall we ſay? </s>
              <s>No Place ever had thoſe Ad­
                <lb/>
              vantages more than
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Ægypt,
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              which was ſo
                <lb/>
              ſtrongly fortified in all its Parts, as to be in a
                <lb/>
              Manner inacceſſible, having on one Side, the
                <lb/>
              Sea, and on the other a vaſt Deſart; on the
                <lb/>
              right Hand ſteep Mountains; and on the
                <lb/>
              Left, huge Marſhes; beſides, the Fruitfulneſs
                <lb/>
              of the Soil is ſo great, that the Ancients uſed
                <lb/>
              to call
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Egypt
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              the Granary of the World, and
                <lb/>
              fabled that the Gods made it their common
                <lb/>
              Retreat either for Safety or Pleaſure; and yet
                <lb/>
              even this Country, though ſo ſtrong, and ſo
                <lb/>
              abounding in all Manner of Plenty, that it
                <lb/>
              could boaſt of feeding the Univerſe, and of
                <lb/>
              entertaining and harbouring the Gods them­
                <lb/>
              ſelves, could not, as
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Joſephus
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              informs us, al­
                <lb/>
              ways preſerve its Liberty.</s>
            </p>
            <p type="main">
              <s>THOSE therefore are entirely in the Right,
                <lb/>
              who teach us, though in Fables, that human
                <lb/>
              Affairs are never perſectly ſecure though laid
                <lb/>
              in the Lap of
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Jupiter
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              himſelf. </s>
              <s>Upon which
                <lb/>
              Occaſion we may not improperly make uſe of
                <lb/>
              the ſame Anſwer that
                <emph type="italics"/>
              Plato
                <emph.end type="italics"/>
              made when he
                <lb/>
              was ask'd where that perfect Commonwealth
                <lb/>
              was to be found, which he had made ſo fine
                <lb/>
              a Deſcription of; that, ſays he, was not the </s>
            </p>
          </chap>
        </body>
      </text>
    </archimedes>
Impressum