τῶν δὲ λοιπῶν τῆς Σικελίας πλευρῶν ἡ μὲν ἀπὸ τοῦ Παχύνου πρὸς Λιλύβαιον διήκουσα ἐκλέλειπται τελέως, ἴχνη τινὰ σώζουσα τῶν ἀρχαίων κατοικιῶν, ὧν ἦν καὶ Καμάρινα ἄποικος Συρακουσίων· Ἀκράγας δὲ Γελῴων οὖσα καὶ τὸ ἐπίνειον καὶ Λιλύβαιον ἔτι συμμένει. τῇ γὰρ Καρχηδονίᾳ τούτων μάλιστα ὑποπιπτόντων τῶν μερῶν, μακροὶ καὶ συνεχεῖς οἱ πόλεμοι γενόμενοι τὰ πολλὰ κατέφθειραν. ἡ δὲ λοιπὴ καὶ μεγίστη πλευρά, καίπερ οὐδʼ αὐτὴ πολυάνθρωπος οὖσα ὅμως ἱκανῶς συνοικεῖται. καὶ γὰρ Ἄλαισα καὶ Τυνδαρὶς καὶ τὸ τῶν Αἰγεσταίων ἐμπόριον καὶ Κεφαλοιδὶς πολίσματά ἐστι· Πάνορμος δὲ καὶ Ῥωμαίων ἔχει κατοικίαν. τὴν δὲ Αἰγεσταίαν κτισθῆναί φασιν ὑπὸ τῶν μετὰ Φιλοκτήτου διαβάντων εἰς τὴν Κροτωνιᾶτιν, καθάπερ ἐν τοῖς Ἰταλικοῖς εἴρηται, παρʼ αὐτοῦ σταλέντων εἰς τὴν Σικελίαν μετὰ Αἰγέστου τοῦ Τρωός. οἰκεῖται δὲ καὶ ὁ Ἔρυξ λόφος ὑψηλός, ἱερὸν ἔχων Ἀφροδίτης τιμώμενον διαφερόντως ἱεροδούλων γυναικῶν πλῆρες τὸ παλαιόν, ἃς ἀνέθεσαν κατʼ εὐχὴν οἵ τʼ ἐκ τῆς Σικελίας καὶ ἔξωθεν πολλοί· νυνὶ δʼ ὥσπερ αὐτὴ ἡ κατοικία λειπανδρεῖ καὶ τῶν ἱερῶν σωμάτων ἐκλέλοιπε τὸ πλῆθος. ἀφίδρυμα δʼ ἐστὶ καὶ ἐν Ῥώμῃ τῆς θεοῦ ταύτης τὸ πρὸ τῆς πύλης τῆς Κολλίνης ἱερὸν Ἀφροδίτης Ἐρυκίνης λεγόμενον, ἔχον καὶ νεὼν καὶ στοὰν περικειμένην ἀξιόλογον.
One of the remaining sides, that stretching from Pachynus to Lilybaeum, is entirely deserted; still it preserves a few traces of the ancient inhabitants, one of whose cities was Camarina. Acragas, which was a colony of the Geloi, together with its port and Lilybaeum, still exist. In fact, these regions, lying opposite to Carthage, have been wasted by the great and protracted wars which have been waged. The remaining and greatest side, although it is by no means densely peopled, is well occupied, for Alaesa, Tyndaris, the emporium of the Aegestani and Cephaloedium, are respectable towns. Panormus has received a Roman colony: they say that Aegesta was founded by the Greeks who passed over, as we have related when speaking of Italy, with Philoctetes to the Crotoniatis, and were by him sent to Sicily with Aegestus the Trojan.
ἐν δὲ τῇ μεσογαίᾳ τὴν μὲν Ἔνναν, ἐν ᾗ τὸ ἱερὸν τῆς Δήμητρος, ἔχουσιν ὀλίγοι, κειμένην ἐπὶ λόφῳ, περιειλημμένην πλατέσιν ὀροπεδίοις ἀροσίμοις πᾶσιν. ἐκάκωσαν δʼ αὐτὴν μάλιστα ἐμπολιορκηθέντες οἱ περὶ Εὔνουν δραπέται καὶ μόλις ἐξαιρεθέντες ὑπὸ Ῥωμαίων· ἔπαθον δὲ τὰ αὐτὰ ταῦτα καὶ Καταναῖοι καὶ Ταυρομενῖται καὶ ἄλλοι πλείους. ἡ δʼ ἄλλη κατοικία καὶ τῆς μεσογαίας ποιμένων ἡ πλείστη γεγένηται· οὔτε γὰρ Ἱμέραν ἔτι συνοικουμένην ἴσμεν οὔτε Γέλαν οὔτε Καλλίπολιν οὔτε Σελινοῦντα οὔτʼ Εὔβοιαν οὔτʼ ἄλλας πλείους, ὧν τὴν μὲν Ἱμέραν οἱ ἐν Μυλαῖς ἔκτισαν Ζαγκλαῖοι, Καλλίπολιν δὲ Νάξιοι, Σελινοῦντα δὲ οἱ αὐτόθι Μεγαρεῖς, Εὔβοιαν δὲ οἱ Λεοντῖνοι. κεκάκωται δὲ καὶ ἡ Λεοντίνη πᾶσα, Ναξίων οὖσα καὶ αὐτὴ τῶν αὐτόθι· τῶν μὲν γὰρ ἀτυχημάτων ἐκοινώνησαν ἀεὶ τοῖς Συρακουσσίοις, τῶν δʼ εὐτυχημάτων οὐκ ἀεί. καὶ τῶν βαρβαρικῶν δʼ ἐξελείφθησαν πολλαί, καθάπερ οἱ Καμικοὶ τὸ Κωκάλου βασίλειον, παρʼ ᾧ Μίνως δολοφονηθῆναι λέγεται. τὴν οὖν ἐρημίαν κατανοήσαντες Ῥωμαῖοι κατακτησάμενοι τά τε ὄρη καὶ τῶν πεδίων τὰ πλεῖστα ἱπποφορβοῖς καὶ βουκόλοις καὶ ποιμέσι παρέδοσαν· ὑφʼ ὧν πολλάκις εἰς κινδύνους κατέστη μεγάλους ἡ νῆσος, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἐπὶ λῃστείας τρεπομένων σποράδην τῶν νομέων, εἶτα καὶ κατὰ πλήθη συνισταμένων καὶ πορθούντων τὰς κατοικίας, καθάπερ ἡνίκα οἱ περὶ Εὔνουν τὴν Ἔνναν κατέσχον. νεωστὶ δʼ ἐφʼ ἡμῶν εἰς τὴν Ῥώμην ἀνεπέμφθη Σέλουρός τις, Αἴτνης υἱὸς λεγόμενος, στρατιᾶς ἀφηγησάμενος καὶ λεηλασίαις πυκναῖς καταδεδραμηκὼς τὰ κύκλῳ τῆς Αἴτνης πολὺν χρόνον, ὃν ἐν τῇ ἀγορᾷ μονομάχων ἀγῶνος συνεστῶτος εἴδομεν διασπασθέντα ὑπὸ θηρίων· ἐπὶ πήγματος γάρ τινος ὑψηλοῦ τεθεὶς ὡς ἂν ἐπὶ τῆς Αἴτνης, διαλυθέντος αἰφνιδίως καὶ συμπεσόντος κατηνέχθη καὶ αὐτὸς εἰς γαλεάγρας θηρίων εὐδιαλύτους ἐπίτηδες παρεσκευασμένας ὑπὸ τῷ πήγματι.
In the interior of the island a few inhabitants possess Enna, in which there is a temple of Ceres; it is situated on a hill, and surrounded by spacious table-lands well adapted for tillage. The fugitive slaves, who placed themselves under the leading of Eunus, and sustained in this city a long siege, scarcely being reduced by the Romans, occasioned much damage to the city. The Catanaei, Tauromenitae, and many others, suffered, much in like manner. † Eryx, a very lofty mountain, is also inhabited. It possesses a temple of Venus, which is very much esteemed; in former times it was well filled with women sacred to the goddess, whom the inhabitants of Sicily, and also many others, offered in accomplishment of their vows; but now, both is the neighbourhood much thinner of inhabitants, and the temple not near so well supplied with priestesses and female attendants. There is also an establishment of this goddess at Rome called the temple of Venus Erycina, just before the Colline Gate; in addition to the temple it has a portico well worthy of notice. † The other settlement and most of the interior have been left to the shepherds for pasturage; for we do not know that Himera is yet inhabited, or Gela, or Callipolis, or Selinus, or Euboea, or many other places; of these the Zanclaei of Myloe founded Himera, the people of Naxos, Callipolis, the Megaraeans of Sicily, Selinus, and the Leontini Euboea. Many too of the cities of the aboriginal inhabitants have been destroyed, as Camici, the kingdom of Cocalus, at whose house Minos is reported to have been treacherously cut off. The Romans therefore, considering the deserted condition of the country, and having got possession both of the hills and the most part of the plains, have given them over to horse-breeders, herdsmen, and shepherds, by whom the island has frequently been brought into great perils. First of all the shepherds, taking to pillage here and there in different places, and afterwards assembling in numbers and forcibly taking settlements; for instance, as those under the command of Eunus seized upon Enna. And quite recently, during the time that we were at Rome, a certain Selurus, called the son of Aetna, was sent up to that city. He had been the captain of a band of robbers, and had for a long time infested the country round Aetna, committing frequent depredations. We saw him torn to pieces by wild beasts in the forum after a contest of gladiators: he had been set upon a platform fashioned to represent Mount Aetna, which being suddenly unfastened and falling, he was precipitated amongst certain cages of wild beasts, which had also been slightly constructed under the platform for the occasion.
τὴν δὲ τῆς χώρας ἀρετὴν θρυλουμένην ὑπὸ πάντων οὐδὲν χείρω τῆς Ἰταλίας ἀποφαινομένων τί δεῖ λέγειν; σίτῳ δὲ καὶ μέλιτι καὶ κρόκῳ καὶ ἄλλοις τισὶ κἂν ἀμείνω τις φαίη. πρόσεστι δὲ καὶ τὸ ἐγγύθεν· ὡσανεὶ γὰρ μέρος τι τῆς Ἰταλίας ἐστὶν ἡ νῆσος, καὶ ὑποχορηγεῖ τῇ Ῥώμῃ καθάπερ ἐκ τῶν Ἰταλικῶν ἀγρῶν ἕκαστα εὐμαρῶς καὶ ἀταλαιπώρως. καὶ δὴ καὶ καλοῦσιν αὐτὴν ταμεῖον τῆς Ῥώμης· κομίζεται γὰρ τὰ γινόμενα πάντα πλὴν ὀλίγων τῶν αὐτόθι ἀναλισκομένων δεῦρο. ταῦτα δʼ ἐστὶν οὐχ οἱ καρποὶ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ βοσκήματα καὶ δέρματα καὶ ἔρια καὶ τὰ τοιαῦτα. φησὶ δʼ ὁ Ποσειδώνιος οἷον ἀκροπόλεις ἐπὶ θαλάττης δύο τὰς Συρακούσσας ἱδρῦσθαι καὶ τὸν Ἔρυκα, μέσην δὲ ἀμφοῖν ὑπερκεῖσθαι τῶν κύκλῳ πεδίων τὴν Ἔνναν.
The fertility of the country is so generally extolled by every one, as nothing inferior to Italy, that there is a question as to what we should say of it. Indeed, for wheat, honey, saffron, and some other commodities, it even surpasses that country. In addition to this, its proximity renders the island like a part of Italy itself, so that it supplies the Roman market with produce both commodiously and without trouble. Indeed they call it the granary of Rome, for all the produce of the island is carried thither, except a few things required for home consumption. It consists not only of the fruits of the earth, but of cattle, skins, wool, and the like. Posidonius says that Syracuse and Eryx are situated on the sea like two citadels, and that Enna in the midst, between Syracuse and Eryx, commands the surrounding plains. † The whole territory of the Leontini, which was possessed by the people of Naxos settled in Sicily, suffered much, for they always shared in the misfortunes of Syracuse, but not always in its prosperity. †
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