Father Montfaucon mentions a difficulty, in his opinion of much consequence, in regard to the places of those who contended for the prize in the chariot-race. They all started indeed from the same line, and at the same time, and so far had no advantage of each other; but he, whose lot gave him the first place, being nearest the boundary at the end of the career, and having but a small compass to describe in turning about it, had less way to make than the second, third, fourth, &c. especially when the chariots were drawn by four horses, which took up a greater space between the first and the others, and obliged them to make a larger circle in coming round. This advantage twelve times together, as must happen, admitting the Stadium was to be run round twelve times, gave such a superiority to the first, as seemed to assure him infallibly of the victory against all his competitors. To me it seems, that the fleetness of the horses, joined with the address of the driver, might countervail this odds; either by getting before the first, or by taking his place; if not in the first, at least in some of the subsequent rounds; for it is not to be supposed, that in the progress of the race the antagonists always continued in the same order in which they started. They often changed places in a short interval of time, and in that variety and vicissitude consisted all the diversion of the spectators. It was not required, that those who aspired to the victory should enter the lists, and drive their chariots in person. Their being spectators of the games, or even sending their horses thither, was sufficient; but in either case, it was previously necessary to register the names of the persons for whom the horses were to run, either in the chariot or single horse-races. At the time that the city of Potidæa surrendered to Philip, three couriers brought him advices; the first, that the Illyrians had been defeated in a great battle by his general Parmenio; the second, that he had carried the prize of the horse-race in the Olympic games; and the third, that the queen was delivered of a son. Plutarch seems to insinuate, that Philip was equally delighted with each of these circumstances.(148) Hiero sent horses to Olympia, to run for the prize, and caused a magnificent pavilion to be erected for them.(149) Upon this occasion Themistocles harangued the Greeks, to persuade them to pull down the tyrant’s pavilion, who had refused his aid against the common enemy, and to hinder his horses from running with the rest. It does not appear that any regard was had to this remonstrance; for we find, by one of Pindar’s odes, composed in honour of Hiero, that he won the prize in the equestrian races.