The small boats used by the Assyrians were made of thin laths of willow plaited over rods also of willow, and bent into the form of a boat.  They were daubed with fine mud soaked with oil or with turpentine, and reduced to a kind of mud which resisted the water and because pine would split; and always remained fresh; and they covered this sort of boats with the skins of oxen in safely crossing the river Sicuris of Spain, as is reported by Lucant; [Footnote 7:  See Lucan’s Pharsalia IV, 130:  Utque habuit ripas Sicoris camposque reliquit, Primum cana salix madefacto vimine parvam Texitur in puppim, calsoque inducto juvenco Vectoris patiens tumidum supernatat amnem.  Sic Venetus stagnante Pado, fusoque Britannus Navigat oceano, sic cum tenet omnia Nilus, Conseritur bibula Memphitis cymbo papyro.  His ratibus transjecta manus festinat utrimque Succisam cavare nemus ]

The Spaniards, the Scythians and the Arabs, when they want to make a bridge in haste, fix hurdlework made of willows on bags of ox-hide, and so cross in safety.

Rhodes (1101. 1102).

1101.

In [fourteen hundred and] eighty nine there was an earthquake in the sea of Atalia near Rhodes, which opened the sea—­that is its bottom—­and into this opening such a torrent of water poured that for more than three hours the bottom of the sea was uncovered by reason of the water which was lost in it, and then it closed to the former level.

[Footnote:  Nello ottanto 9.  It is scarcely likely that Leonardo should here mean 89 AD.  Dr. H. MULLER- STRUBING writes to me as follows on this subject:  “With reference to Rhodes Ross says (Reise auf den Griechischen Inseln, III 70 ff. 1840), that ancient history affords instances of severe earthquakes at Rhodes, among others one in the second year of the 138th Olympiad=270 B. C.; a remarkably violent one under Antoninus Pius (A.  D. 138-161) and again under Constantine and later.  But Leonardo expressly speaks of an earthquake “nel mar di Atalia presso a Rodi”, which is singular.  The town of Attalia, founded by Attalus, which is what he no doubt means, was in Pamphylia and more than 150 English miles East of Rhodes in a straight line.  Leake and most other geographers identify it with the present town of Adalia.  Attalia is rarely mentioned by the ancients, indeed only by Strabo and Pliny and no earthquake is spoken of.  I think therefore you are justified in assuming that Leonardo means 1489”.  In the elaborate catalogue of earthquakes in the East by Sciale Dshelal eddin Sayouthy (an unpublished Arabic MS. in the possession of Prof.  SCHEFER, (Membre de l’Institut, Paris) mention is made of a terrible earthquake in the year 867 of the Mohamedan Era corresponding to the year 1489, and it is there stated that a hundred persons were killed by it in the fortress of Kerak.  There are three places of this name.  Kerak on the sea of Tiberias, Kerak near Tahle on the Libanon,