PHILÆNI, were two brothers, citizens of Carthage, who
sacrificed their lives for the benefit of their country. At
the time when the Carthaginians ruled over the greater
part of Africa, the Cyrenians were also a great and wealthy
people. The intervening country being all sandy, and of
an uniform appearance, there was neither river nor moun-
tain to distinguish their limits; a circumstance which in-
volved them in frequent disputes and contentions. After
their armies and fleets had often been routed and put to
flight on both sides, and they had weakened one another
greatly, fearing lest, by and by, some third people should
fall upon the conquered and the conquerors, both parties
agreed to a cessation of arms, which was followed by an en-
gagement, "that upon a day appointed deputies should set
out from their respective homes, and the place where they
met one another should be accounted the common bound-
ary of both nations." Accordingly, the two brothers call-
ed Philæni, when sent from Carthage, made all despatch
to perform their journey. The Cyrenians, who proceeded
more slowly, found themselves somewhat late; and becom-
ing apprehensive of punishment for mismanaging the affair,
charged the Carthaginians with setting out before the ap-
pointed time, and made a mighty bustle about it, being
resolved not to be overreached. But as the Carthaginians
declared their willingness to accept any other terms, pro-
vided only these were fair, the Cyrenians made this pro-
posal to the Carthaginians, viz. either to be buried alive
in the place which they claimed as the boundary to their
nation, or to advance forward to whatever place they in-
clined upon the same condition. The Philæni accepted
the offer, and, sacrificing themselves to their country, were
actually buried alive. In the spot where they were in-
terred the Carthaginians dedicated to the memory of the
two brothers altars, which, being called Ara Philænorum,
served as a boundary to the empire of the Carthaginians,
which now extended from this monument to the Pillars
of Hercules, or, according to the observations of the mo-
derns, about 1420 geographical miles. Sallust, in his his-
tory of the Jugurthian war, records the singular circum-
stance here related.
PHILANTHROPY is compounded of two Greek words
signifying the love of mankind. It is therefore of nearly
the same import with benevolence, and differs from friend-
ship, as the latter affection subsists only between a few
individuals, whereas philanthropy comprehends the whole
human race.
Whether man has an instinctive propensity to love his
species, which makes him incapable of happiness except in
the midst of society, and impels him to do all the good
that he can to others, feeling their felicity an addition to
his own, is a question which has been warmly debated
amongst philosophers ever since metaphysics was studied
as a science. See METAPHYSICS AND MORAL PHILOSOPHY.