efore the death of _Alexander_ the great: and _Quintus
Fabius Pictor_, [21] the oldest Historian of the _Latines_, lived an
hundred years later than that King, and took almost all things from
_Diocles Peparethius_, a _Greek_. The Chronologers of _Gallia_, _Spain_,
_Germany_, _Scythia_, _Swedeland_, _Britain_ and _Ireland_ are of a date
still later; for _Scythia_ beyond the _Danube_ had no letters, 'till
_Ulphilas_ their Bishop formed them; which was about six hundred years
after the death of _Alexander_ the great: and _Germany_ had none 'till it
received them, from the western Empire of the _Latines_, above seven
hundred years after the death of that King. The _Hunns_, had none in the
days of _Procopius_, who flourished 850 years after the death of that King:
and _Sweden_ and _Norway_ received them still later. And things said to be
done above one or two hundred years before the use of letters, are of
little credit.

_Diodorus_, [22] in the beginning of his History tells us, that he did not
define by any certain space the times preceding the _Trojan_ War, because
he had no certain foundation to rely upon: but from the _Trojan_ war,
according to the reckoning of _Apollodorus_, whom he followed, there were
eighty years to the Return of the _Heraclides_ into _Peloponnesus_; and
that from that Period to the first Olympiad, there were three hundred and
twenty eight years, computing the times from the Kings of the
_Lacedaemonians_. _Apollodorus_ followed _Eratosthenes_, and both of them
followed _Thucydides_, in reckoning eighty years from the _Trojan_ war to
the Return of the _Heraclides_: but in reckoning 328 years from that Return
to the first Olympiad, _Diodorus_ tells us, that the times were computed
from the Kings of the _Lacedaemonians_; and _Plutarch_ [23] tells us, that
_Apollodorus_, _Eratosthenes_ and others followed that computation: and
since this reckoning is still received by Chronologers, and was gathered by
computing the times from the Kings of the _Lacedaemonians_, that is from
their number, let us re-examin that Computation.

The _Egyptians_ reckoned the Reigns of Kings equipollent to Generations of
men, and three Generations to an hundred years, as above; and so did the
_Greeks_ and _Latines_: and accordingly they have made their Kings Reign
one with another thirty and three years a-piece, and above. For they make
the seven Kings of _Rome_ who preceded the Consuls to have Reigned 244
years, which is 35 yea