he parentage, and filiation of each, just as fancy
directed. Some colonies from Egypt, and Canaan, settled in Thrace; as
appears from numberless memorials. The parts which they occupied were upon
the Hebrus, about Edonia, Sithonia, and Mount Haemus. They also held Pieria,
and Peonia, and all the sea coast region. It was their custom, as I have
before mentioned, in all their settlements to form puratheia; and to
introduce the rites of fire, and worship of the Sun. Upon the coast, of
which I have been speaking, a temple of this sort was founded, which is
called Torone. The name is a compound of Tor-On, as I have before taken
notice. The words purathus, and puratheia, were, in the language of Egypt,
Pur-Ath, and Por-Ait, formed from two titles of the God of fire. Out of one
of these the Grecians made a personage, which they expressed [Greek:
Proitos], Proetus, whose daughters, or rather priestesses, were the
Proetides. And as they followed the Egyptian rites, and held a Cow sacred,
they were, in consequence of it, supposed to have been turned into
[615]cows; just as the priestesses of Hippa were said to have been changed
into mares; the Oenotropae and Peleiadae into pigeons. Proteus of Egypt, whom
Menelaus was supposed to have consulted about his passage homeward, was a
tower of this sort with a purait. It was an edifice, where both priests and
pilots resided to give information; and where a light was continually
burning to direct the ships in the night. The tower of Torone likewise was
a Pharos, and therefore styled by Lycophron [Greek: phlegraia Torone], the
flaming Torone. The country about it was, in like manner, called
[616][Greek: Phlegra], Phlegra, both from these flaming Towers, and from
the worship there introduced. There seems to have been a fire-tower in this
region named Proteus; for, according to the antient accounts, Proteus is
mentioned as having resided in these parts, and is said to have been
married to Torone. He is accordingly styled by the Poet,

[617][Greek: phlegraias posis]
[Greek: Stugnos Torones, hoi gelos apechthetai,]
[Greek: Kai dakru.]

The epithet [Greek: stugnos], gloomy, and sad, implies a bad character,
which arose from the cruel rites practised in these places. In all these
temples they made it a rule to sacrifice strangers, whom fortune brought in
their way. Torone stood near [618]Pallene, which was styled [619][Greek:
Gegenon trophos], _the nurse of the earth-born, or giant brood_.