XII.] ITS COMPREHENSIVENESS. 245
persons. The truth-of the matter seems to be that Strabo, while
he wished to be read by Romans, expected rather to be read by
Greeks; but he wrote neither for the one nor for the other exclu-
sively, but for cultivated men without reference to their nationality.
His treatise as a whole is congenial both to the practical ideas of
the one people, and to the scientific spirit of the other; and he
says himself that he intends it to be popular, and adapted to £ the
general course of study which is pursued by free-born and cultured
men1.'
The conspicuous merit of Strabo's work is its comprehen-
siveness. He aimed at bringing together, and ex-
hibiting in a readable form, all that it was
important to know about the different countries
of the earth and their inhabitants, and in this respect his
Geography was unique in antiquity. All the four branches, into
which, as we have seen in our first chapter, the subject divides—
mathematical, physical, descriptive, and historical geography —
are represented in his pages. In speaking of each district, he
deals with the conformation of the ground, the nature of the
products, the character and condition of the inhabitants, their
history, and similar topics: and in doing this he does not confine
himself within the range of what we call classical antiquity, for
he includes in his review the whole of the ancient world and
its occupants, whether barbarous or civilised. The Sub-ects
variety of the subjects which he incidentally intro- incidentally
duces greatly enhances the interest of his survey.
Geological peculiarities have an especial attraction for him. Not
only has he furnished us with a large collection of facts relating
to volcanoes and earthquake movements, but he notices other
strange features of the ground, such as the rolled stones of
the Plaine de la Crau (Campi Lapidei) in southern France2.
Climate also is a topic to which he often refers. He dwells
on the cloudy, sunless atmosphere of Britain8, and the monsoons
and the rainy season in India4; and he remarks that the amount
of snow that falls is greater, and the snow-line is lower, on the
northern side of a range of mountains than on the southern*.
1 1.1. 22; cp. a. 5. i. * 4. i. 7*
8 4. 5. s. * 15.1.13. B 16.1.13*