The notion that Greece contained the same number of states as countries is completely false, although it cannot be denied that the mode of expression in most writings upon Greek history seems to authorize the assertion. It is true that some of those countries, such as Attica, Megaris, Laconia, may be each regarded as a separate state, because each constituted the territory of one city. The others, however, such as Arcadia, Boeotia, etc. did not each form one state, but comprised as many separate states as there were free and independent cities, each of which, with its territory, formed one. Still, however, it must be observed, (_a_) that the natural ties of kindred subsisted; Arcadians, Boeotians, etc. spoke of one another as countrymen. (_b_) Voluntary connections were entered into between different cities, and sometimes all the cities of a country, as, for instance, in Achaia, so that the whole formed one confederation; each individual city nevertheless still preserved its own system of laws and government. Again, (_c_) in consequence of a greater share of power, one city assumed a sort of dominion over the other; as, for instance, that of Thebes over the Boeotian cities. This dominion, however, was always precarious, and depended upon the state of affairs. (_d_) It must likewise be observed, that the constitution of each separate city underwent many changes, wrought generally by influential citizens, (tyrants,) who not only possessed themselves of the supreme power, but also contrived frequently to make it for some time hereditary in their families. Every one will easily discern that the above are the fundamental principles of Greek history, which cannot be too clearly conceived, or too correctly defined; since it is self-evident what a wide field was by such a constitution of things thrown open to practical politics. The more improbable the attainment of fixed constitutions in the separate cities was, the more frequent must have been the political attempts; (attempts facilitated by the narrow extent of the state;) and the more frequently those attempts failed, the more extensive in this intellectual people became the mass of political ideas; the results of which in later times were the legislative codes of Solon and others.