Thomas Browne

“ The battle was undecided with the moon at the full, very little daylight, the wind favouring the Greeks, about the hour which proved calamitous to the mightiest of the Greek fleet, and their overthrow came as the day drew to its close.
The fight was near Giant's Hand not far from Woman's Rock and in the storied sea, where Sirius displays the marvellous enchantment.
The cause of this war was that of all wars, excess of prosperity. As wealth spreads spirits rise, and lust and greed of power appear ”

“ Eleven Greek triremes were taken, four completely burnt, seven sent to the bottom. By the fortune of war a single state-barge was taken and towed along to please and amuse the crowd at the triumph.There was plentiful loot and no light booty besides a train of prisoners. And then the whole shore was littered with clothes, armour and corpses. The Romans lost four triremes, many were damaged, and no small proportion of the volunteers were killed; the number of sailors who suffered, besides followers, servants, and mercenaries, was less than at the defeat of Fabius. ”

“ Not to rearrange the thoughts of writers in commonplace books, which will be doing again what has been done, but from a fresh reading of books set down an abstract in free style, to include all that is difficult and worthy of note ”