Part 9

=Petro´nius Ar´biter.= A favorite of the emperor Nero, and one of the ministers and associates of his pleasures and vices. He was made proconsul of Bithynia, and afterwards was honored with the consulship. Eventually he became out of favor with Nero, and resolved to destroy himself, which he did by having his veins opened, A.D. 66. Petronius distinguished himself by his writings as well as by his voluptuousness. He is the author of many elegant compositions, which are, however, often characterized by impropriety of language.

=Phæ´dra.= A daughter of Minos and Pasiphæ, who married Theseus. She became the mother of Acamas and Demophoon. She brought an unjust accusation against Hippolytus (a son of Theseus before she married him), who was killed by the horses in his chariot taking fright, causing him to be thrown under the wheels and crushed to death. On hearing this Phædra acknowledged the falseness of the charge she had brought against Hippolytus, and hanged herself in despair.

=Phæ´drus.= A Thracian who became one of the freed men of the emperor Augustus. He translated the fables of Æsop into Iambic verse.

=Pha´ethon.= A son of the Sun, or of Phoebus and Clymene. According to Hesiod and Pausanias he was son of Cephalus and Aurora, or of Tithonus and Aurora, according to Apollodorus. He is, however, generally acknowledged to be son of Phoebus and Clymene. Phoebus allowed him to drive the chariot of the sun for one day. Phaethon, on receiving the reins, at once showed his incapacity; the horses became unmanageable, and heaven and earth were threatened with a conflagration, when Jupiter struck Phaethon with a thunderbolt, and hurled him into the river Po, where he perished.

=Phal´aris.= A tyrant of Agrigentum, who treated his subjects with great cruelty. Perillus made him a brazen bull, inside of which he proposed to place culprits, and by applying fire burn them to death. The first to be thus burnt in this manner was Perillus himself. The cruelties practiced by Phalaris were revenged by a revolt of his people, who put him to death by burning him in the bull.

=Pha´on.= A boatman of Mitylene, in Lesbos. He received a box of ointment from Venus, who had presented herself to him in the form of an old woman. When he had rubbed himself with the unguent he became beautiful, and Sappho, the celebrated poetess, became enamored with him. For a short time he devoted himself to her, but soon treated her with coldness, upon which she threw herself into the sea and was drowned.

=Pharnaba´zus.= A satrap of Persia who assisted the Lacedæmonians against the Athenians, and gained their esteem by his devotion to their cause.

=Pha´ros.= A small island in the bay of Alexandria, on which was built a tower which was considered one of the seven wonders of the world. It was erected in the reigns of Ptolemy Soter and Ptolemy Philadelphus, the architect being Sostratus, the son of Dexiphanes.

=Pharsa´lia.= A town of Thessaly, famous for the great battle fought there between Julius Cæsar and Pompey, in which the former obtained the victory.

=Phid´ias.= A celebrated sculptor of Athens, who died B.C. 432. He executed a statue of Minerva, which was placed in the Pantheon.

=Philip´pi.= A town of Macedonia, celebrated for two battles fought there, B.C. 42, between Augustus and Antony and the republican forces of Brutus and Cassius, in which the former were victorious.

=Philip´pus=, king of Macedonia, was son of Amyntas, king of Macedonia. He learnt the art of war from Epaminondas. He married Olympias, the daughter of Neoptolemus, king of the Molossi, and became father of Alexander the Great. Amongst the most important events of his reign was the battle of Chæronea, which he won from the Greeks. The character of Philip is that of a sagacious, prudent, but artful and intriguing, monarch. He was assassinated by Pausanias at the celebration of the nuptials of his daughter, in the forty-seventh year of his age and the twenty-fourth of his reign, about 336 years before the Christian era.

=Philip´pus.= The last king of Macedonia of that name was son of Demetrius. He aspired to become the friend of Hannibal. His intrigues were discovered by the Romans, who invaded his territories, and extorted peace from him on terms which were humiliating. He died in the forty-second year of his reign, 179 years before the Christian era.

=Phi´lo.= A Jewish writer of Alexandria, A.D. 40. His works related to the creation of the world, sacred history, and the laws and customs of the Jewish nation.

=Philocte´tes= was one of the Argonauts. He received from Hercules the arrows which had been dipped in the gall of the Hydra. The Greeks, in the tenth year of the Trojan war, were informed by the oracle that Troy could not be taken without these arrows. Philoctetes repaired to the Grecian camp, where he destroyed a number of the Trojans, among whom was Paris, with the arrows. The adventures of Philoctetes are the subject of one of the best tragedies of Sophocles.

=Philome´la.= A daughter of Pandion, king of Athens. Her sister Procne had married Tereus, king of Thrace, and being separated from Philomela spent her time in great melancholy. She persuaded her husband to go to Athens and bring her sister to Thrace. Tereus, on the journey, treated Philomela with great cruelty, and cut off her tongue, confining her in a lonely castle, and reporting to Procne that she was dead. Philomela, however, found means to inform Procne that she was living. In revenge for the cruelty of Tereus, Procne murdered his son and served him up as food at a banquet. On hearing this Tereus drew his sword to slay the sisters, when he was changed into a hoopoe, Philomela into a nightingale, and Procne into a swallow.

=Philopoe´men.= A celebrated general of the Achæans, born at Megalopolis. At an early age he distinguished himself in the field of battle, at the same time appearing fond of agriculture and a country life. He adopted Epaminondas as his model, and was not unsuccessful in imitating the prudence and other good qualities of the famous Theban. When Megalopolis was attacked by the Spartans, Philopoemen, then in his thirtieth year, gave the most decisive proofs of his valor. Raised to the rank of commander, he showed his ability to discharge that important trust, by killing with his own hand Mechanidas, the tyrant of Sparta, and defeating his army. Sparta having become, after its conquest, tributary to the Achæans, Philopoemen enjoyed the triumph of having subdued one of the most powerful states of Greece. He was at length made prisoner by the Messenians, and was treated by their general, Dinocrates, with great severity. He was poisoned in his seventieth year, about 183 years before the Christian era.

=Philos´tratus.= A famous Sophist, born at Lemnos, or, according to some, at Athens. He came to Rome, where he was patronized by Julia, the wife of the emperor Severus. She intrusted him with some papers referring to Apollonius, whose life he wrote. This biography is written with elegance, but contains many exaggerated descriptions and improbable stories.

=Phi´neus.= A son of Agenor, king of Phoenicia, or, according to some, a son of Neptune, who became king of Thrace. He married Cleopatra (called by some Cleobula), the daughter of Boreas, their children being Plexippus and Pandion. After the death of Cleopatra, he married Idæa, the daughter of Dardanus, who, jealous of Cleopatra's children, accused them of an attempt on their father's life, and they were condemned by Phineus to have their eyes put out. This cruelty was punished by the gods, Phineus being made blind, and the Harpies were sent by Jupiter to keep him in continual alarm. He recovered his sight by means of the Argonauts, whom he received with great hospitality.

=Phleg´ethon.= A river in the infernal regions, between the banks of which flames of fire flowed instead of water.

=Phle´gon.= One of the emperor Adrian's freedmen. He wrote a historical account of Sicily, an account of the principal places in Rome, and treatises on different subjects. His style was inelegant, and he evinced a want of judgment in his writings.

=Pho´cion.= An Athenian celebrated for his public and private virtues. He was distinguished for his zeal for the general good, and for his military abilities. The fickleness of the Athenians, however, caused them to lose sight of his virtues, and being accused of treason, he was condemned to drink poison, which he took with the greatest heroism. His death occurred about 318 years before the Christian era.

=Phoe´nix=, son of Amyntor, king of Argos, and Cleobule or Hippodamia, was preceptor to Achilles. He accompanied his pupil to the Trojan war, and Achilles was ever grateful for the precepts he had received from him. After the fall of Troy he died in Thrace, and, according to Strabo, was buried near Trachinia, where his name was given to a river.

=Phry´ne.= A beautiful woman who lived at Athens about 328 years before the Christian era. She was beloved by Praxiteles, who painted her portrait. It is said that Apelles painted his Venus Anadyomene after he had seen Phryne on the sea-shore with disheveled hair. There was another woman of the same name, who was accused of impiety. When her judges were about to condemn her she unveiled her bosom, and her beauty so captivated them that they acquitted her.

=Phryx´us.= A son of Athamas, king of Thebes, and Nephele. On the plea of insanity, Nephele was repudiated by Athamas, who then married Ino, who persecuted Phryxus with inveterate hatred, because he was to succeed to the throne in preference to one of her own children. Being apprised that Ino had designs on his life, he started with his sister Helle to go to Ætes, king of Colchis. According to the poets they mounted on a ram, whose fleece was gold, which soared into the air, directing its course to Colchis. Helle became giddy, and falling into the sea (afterwards called the Hellespont), was drowned. Phryxus arrived at the court of Ætes, whose daughter Chalciope he married. Sometime afterwards he was killed by his father-in-law. The murder of Phryxus gave rise to the famous Argonautic expedition under Jason, the object being to recover the Golden Fleece, which Jason succeeded in obtaining.

=Phyl´lis.= A daughter of Sithon, or, according to other writers, of Lycurgus, king of Thrace. She received Demophoon, who landed on her coasts on his return from the Trojan war, and fell in love with him, and he reciprocated her affection; but afterwards proving faithless, Phyllis hanged herself, and according to an old tradition, was changed into an almond tree.

=Pi´cus.= King of Latium, son of Saturn, who married Venilia. As he was hunting he was met by Circe, who became enamored with him. She changed him into a woodpecker.

=Pier´ides.= A name given to the Muses, because they were born in Pieria, or, as some say, because they were supposed to be the daughters of Pierus, a king of Macedonia, who settled in Boeotia.

=Pin´darus.= A celebrated lyric poet of Thebes. When he was young it is said that a swarm of bees settled on his lips and left on them some honey, which was regarded as a prognostic of his future greatness. After his death great respect was shown to his memory, and a statue was erected in his honor in one of the most public places in Thebes. Pindar is said to have died at the age of eighty-six, B.C. 435. Of his works, the odes only are extant; they are admired for sublimity of sentiment and grandeur of expression.

=Piræ´us.= A celebrated harbor at Athens about three miles from the city. It was joined to the town by two walls, one built by Pericles, and the other by Themistocles.

=Pirith´ous.= Son of Ixion and Dia, the daughter of Deioneus. He was king of the Lapithæ, and wished to become acquainted with Theseus, king of Athens, of whose fame and exploits he had heard. They became cordial friends. Pirithous married Hippodamia, and invited the Centaurs to attend his nuptials, where, having become intoxicated, they behaved with great rudeness, on which they were attacked and overcome by Theseus, Pirithous, Hercules, and the rest of the Lapithæ. Many of the Centaurs were slain, and the rest saved their lives by flight.

=Pisan´der.= A commander in the Spartan fleet during the Peloponnesian war. He was greatly opposed to democracy at Athens. He was killed in a naval battle near Cnidus, B.C. 394.

=Pisis´tratus.= A celebrated Athenian who distinguished himself by valor in the field and by eloquence at home. He obtained a bodyguard of fifty men to defend his person, and having thus got a number of armed men on whom he could rely, he seized the citadel of Athens, and soon made himself absolute. After this a conspiracy was formed against him, and he was banished from the city. He soon, however, re-established himself in power, and married the daughter of Megacles, one of his greatest enemies, whom he afterwards repudiated. On this his popularity waned, and he fled from Athens, but after an absence of eleven years he returned, and was received by the people with acclamation. He died about 527 years before the Christian era.

=Pi´so.= A celebrated family at Rome, eleven of whom had obtained the consulship, and some of whom had been honored with triumphs for their victories. Of this family the most famous were--LUCIUS CALPURNIUS, who was tribune of the people about 149 years before Christ, and afterwards consul. He gained honor as an orator, a statesman, and a historian. CAIUS, another of the family, distinguished himself during his consulship by his firmness in resisting the tumults raised by the tribunes and the clamors of the people. CENIUS, who was consul under Augustus, rendered himself odious by his cruelty. He was accused of poisoning Germanicus, and, being shunned by his friends, destroyed himself. LUCIUS, a governor of Spain, who was assassinated by a peasant. LUCIUS, a governor of Rome for twenty years, during which time he discharged his duties with moderation and justice. CAIUS, who was at the head of a conspiracy against Nero. He committed suicide by venesection.

=Pit´tacus=, a native of Mitylene in Lesbos, was one of the seven wise men of Greece. He died in the eighty-second year of his age, about 570 years B.C., the latter part of his life being spent in retirement. Many of his maxims were inscribed on the walls of Apollo's temple at Delphi, to show how high an opinion his countrymen entertained of his abilities as a moralist and philosopher.

=Plau´cus L. Muna´tius.= A Roman conspicuous for his follies and extravagance. He had been consul, and had presided over a province, but he forgot his dignity, and became one of the most servile flatterers of Antony and Cleopatra.

=Platæ´a.= A town of Boeotia, near Mount Citheron, celebrated as the scene of a battle between Mardonius, the general of Xerxes, king of Persia, and Pausanias, who commanded the Athenians. The Persians were defeated with great slaughter.

=Pla´to.= A celebrated philosopher of Athens. He was educated carefully, his mind being cultivated by the study of poetry and geometry, whilst his body was invigorated by the practice of gymnastics. He began his literary career by writing poetry and tragedies. At the age of twenty he was introduced to Socrates, with whom he was for some time a pupil. After traveling in various countries, he retired to the neighborhood of Athens, where his lectures were attended by a crowd of learned, noble, and illustrious pupils. He died on his birthday in the eighty-first year of his age, about 348 years before the Christian era. His writings were so celebrated, and his opinions so highly regarded, that he was called the Divine.

=Plau´tus, M. Ac´cius.= A dramatic poet born in Umbria. He wrote twenty-five comedies, of which only nineteen are extant. He died about 184 years before the Christian era.

=Plei´ades.= A name given to seven daughters of Atlas and Pleione. They were placed after death in the heavens, and formed a constellation.

=Plin´ius, C. Secun´dus=, called the Elder, was born at Verona, of a noble family. He distinguished himself in the field, and was appointed governor of Spain. When at Misenum in command of the Roman fleet, Pliny observed the appearance of a cloud of dust and ashes, which was the commencement of the famous eruption of Mount Vesuvius which overwhelmed Herculaneum and Pompeii. He sailed for the scene of the eruption, where he was suffocated by the vapors emitted. This occurred in the seventy-ninth year of the Christian era.

=Plin´ius, C. Cæcil´ius Secun´dus=, surnamed the Younger Pliny, was son of L. Cæcilius by the sister of Pliny the Elder. At the age of nineteen he distinguished himself at the bar. When Trajan was invested with the purple Pliny was created consul. He died in the fifty-second year of his age, A.D. 113. Pliny had much to do with the persecutions of the Christians in the early promulgation of the Christian religion. The Rev. James Copland, M. A., in an admirable little work entitled "Reasons why we Believe the Bible," gives a very interesting letter from Pliny to the emperor Trajan, asking instructions how to deal with the Christians when they were cited to appear before him.

=Plutar´chus=, the celebrated biographer, was born at Chæronea, his father being distinguished for his learning and virtues. After traveling in quest of knowledge, he retired to Rome, where he opened a school. Subsequently he removed to Chæronea, where he died at an advanced age about the 140th year of the Christian era. His most esteemed work is the Lives of Illustrious Men.

=Plu´to=, son of Saturn and Ops, inherited his father's kingdom with his brothers, Jupiter and Neptune. He received as his portion the kingdom of the infernal regions, of death, and funerals. He seized Proserpine as she was gathering flowers, and carrying her away on his chariot, she became his wife and queen of the infernal regions.

=Plu´tus=, the god of riches, was the son of Jason, or Jasius, and Ceres.

=Pol´lio, C. Asin´ius.= A Roman consul in the reign of Augustus, who distinguished himself equally by his eloquence and exploits in war. He wrote a history and some tragedies, and died in his eightieth year, A.D. 4.

=Pol´lux.= A son of Jupiter and Leda, brother to Castor.

=Polyb´ius.= A native of Megalopolis. He distinguished himself by his valor against the Romans in Macedonia, He wrote an universal history in Greek, and died about 124 years B.C.

=Polydec´tes.= A son of Magnes, king of Seriphos. He received with kindness Danae and her son Perseus, who had been exposed on the sea. Polydectes was turned into stone by being shown Medusa's head by Perseus.

=Polyhym´nia.= One of the Muses, daughter of Jupiter and Mnemosyne. She presided over singing and rhetoric.

=Polyni´ces.= A son of OEdipus, king of Thebes, and Jocasta. He inherited his father's throne with his brother Eteocles, and it was agreed that they should reign a year alternately. Eteocles first ascended the throne, but refused to resign the crown. Polynices upon this fled to Argos, where he married Argia, the daughter of Adrastus, the king of the country, and levied an army with which he marched on Thebes. The battle was decided by a combat between the brothers, who killed each other.

=Polyphe´mus.= A celebrated Cyclops, son of Neptune and Thoosa, the daughter of Phorcys. He is represented as a monster with one eye in the middle of his forehead. Ulysses was his captive, but escaped by putting a firebrand in the monster's eye.

=Pomo´na.= A nymph at Rome, who was supposed to preside over gardens and to be the goddess of fruit trees.

=Pompe´ii or Pompei´um.= A town of Campania. It was partly destroyed by an earthquake, A.D. 63, and sixteen years afterwards it was swallowed up by another earthquake. Herculaneum, in its vicinity, shared the same fate.

=Pompe´ius, Cnei´us=, surnamed Magnus from his exploits, was son of Pompeius Strabo and Lucilia. In the contentions which existed between Marius and Sylla, Pompey linked himself with the latter. Subsequently he united his interest with that of Cæsar and Crassus, thus forming the first triumvirate. A breach soon occurred, and at the great battle of Pharsalia, where the forces of Cæsar and Pompey met, the latter was totally defeated, and fled to Egypt, where he was assassinated in the fifty-eighth year of his age, B.C. 48. He left two sons, Cneius and Sextus, who at their father's death were masters of a powerful army, with which they opposed Cæsar, but were defeated at the battle of Munda, where Cneius was slain. Sextus escaped, and was put to death by Antony about thirty-five years before the Christian era.

=Por´cia.= A daughter of Cato of Utica, who married Bibulus, and after his death Brutus. She was distinguished for her prudence and courage. After her husband's death she killed herself by swallowing burning coals. She is said to have given herself a severe wound to show that she could bear pain.

=Porphyr´ius.= A Platonic philosopher of Tyre. He studied eloquence at Athens under Longinus, and afterwards retired to Rome. His most celebrated work was in reference to the Christian religion. Porphyry died A.D. 304, aged seventy-one years.

=Porsen´na or Por´sena.= A king of Etruria, who declared war against the Romans because they refused to restore Tarquin to the throne; He was prevented from entering the gates of Rome by the valor of P. Horatius Cocles, who at the head of a bridge kept back Porsenna's army, whilst the bridge was being cut down by the Romans to prevent the entry of their enemies into the city. Eventually Porsenna abandoned the cause of Tarquin.

=Praxit´eles.= A famous sculptor of Greece, who lived about 324 years before the Christian era. The most famous of his works was a Cupid, which he gave to Phyrne. He executed a statue of Phyrne, and also one of Venus.

=Pri´amus.= The last king of Troy was son of Laomedon, by Strymo, called Placia by some writers. He married Arisba, whom he divorced in order to marry Hecuba, by whom he had a number of children, the most celebrated of whom were Hector, Paris, Deiphobus, Helenus, Laodice, and Cassandra. After he had reigned some time, Priam was anxious to recover his sister Hesione, who had been carried into Greece by Hercules, and to achieve this, he manned a fleet, the command of which he gave to his son Paris, who, instead of obeying the paternal instructions, carried away Helen, the wife of Menelaus, king of Sparta. This caused the Trojan war, which lasted for ten years. At the end of the war Priam was slain by Neoptolemus, the son of Achilles.

=Pro´bus, M. Aure´lius.= A native of Pannonia. His father was a gardener, who became a military tribune. His son obtained the same office in the twenty-second year of his age, and distinguished himself so much by his probity and valor that he was invested with the imperial purple. He encouraged the arts, and by his victories added to the glory of his country. He was slain by his soldiers in the fiftieth year of his age, B.C. 282.

=Proco´pius=, born of a noble family in Cilicia, was related to the emperor Julian. He signalized himself under Julian, and afterwards retired to the Thracian Chersonesus, whence he made his appearance at Constantinople, and proclaimed himself master of the Eastern Empire. He was defeated in Phrygia, and beheaded A.D. 366. There was a famous Greek historian of the same name, who wrote the history of the reign of Justinian, and who was secretary to Belisarius.