G A L L ü S OK EOMAN SCENES OF THE TIME OF AUGUSTUS. WITH NOTES AND EXCURSUSES ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE ^-^^ MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OP THE ROMANS. BY PEOFESSOE W.^ A. BECKEE. TRANSLATED BY THB EEV. FKEDEEICK METCALFE, M.A. FELLOW OF LINCOLN COLLEGE, OXFORD, AND HEAD MASTER OF JBRIGHTON COLLEGE. THIBJ) EDITION. NEW YOEK: D. APPLETON & CO., 445 BEOADWAY. 1866, ('A 0/ /fo j^y transfer frona >at. OmeeLilj, AprlJ 1©14. ADVERTISEMENT TO THE SECOND EDITION. SINCE the appearance of the first edition of Gallus in an English form, its learned author, as well as the veteran Hermann of Leipsic, to whom he dedicated his Charicles, have been numbered with the dead, while the irreparable loss thus sustained by the literary world was heightened by the decease, soon after, of Orelli at Zurich. At the period of his too early removal. Professor Becker was engaged in collecting the materials for a second improved and enlarged edition of Gallus : the task of completing which was consigned to Professor Rein of Eisenach, and the deceased's papers placed at his disposal. Besides interweaving in the work these posthumous notes, the new editor has likewise added very much valuable matter of his own, correcting errors where they occurred, throwing new light on obscure points of criticism or an- tiquarian knowledge, and, where the explanations were too brief, giving them greater development. He has further adopted the plan of the English editor, whereby the Excursuses were thrown together at the end, so as not to interfere with the even tenor of the narrative; and the woodcuts removed from the end to their proper place in the body of the text. Much matter has also been extracted from the notes and embodied in the Appendix. These changes have given a unity, con- vi ADVEETISEMENT. secutiveness, and completeness to the work which must materially enhance its literary value. Indeed, so great have been the alterations and additions, and there has been so much transposition and remodelling, that this English edition has required nearly as much time and labour as the preceding one. By the advice of friends many of the citations have now been given at length. The Excursus on the Bulilerinnen has been entirely omitted. It may be added, that the first edition having been for some time exhausted, in order to lose as little time as possible, the proof sheets were, by the kindness of the Grerman publisher, forwarded to this country as they issued from the press. The editor may be permitted to observe, in conclusion, that he is glad to find from the extensive circulation of Gallus in this country and Ame- rica, as well as from the opinions of the press, that the praise he ventured to bestow on the work has been fully borne out. Brighton : Mai/ 1849. TEANSLATOE'S PEEFACE. ^^ ALLUS oder Römische Scenen aus der Zeit Augusts ^^ — such is the German title of Professor Becker's work — was published at Leipsic in 1838. The novelty of its conception, the comparatively fresh ground it broke in the field of Eoman Antiquities, and the exceeding erudi- tion brought to bear on the subject, at once arrested the attention of Grerman scholars, and it has ever since been considered, what its author ventured to hope it would be, ' a desirable repertory of whatever is most worth knowing about the private life of the Eomans.' Soon after its publication, a very lengthened and eulogistic critique ap- peared in the Times London newspaper ; and as it seldom happens that that Journal can find space in its columns for notices of this description, no little weight was attached" to the circumstance, and a proportionate interest created in the work. Proposals were immediately made for publishing it in an English dress, and the book was adver- tised accordingly; but unforeseen difficulties intervened, arising from the peculiar nature of the work, and the plan was ultimately abandoned. In fact, in order to render the book successful in England, it was absolutely necessary that it should be somehow divested of its very Grerman appearance, which, how palatable soever it might be to the author's own viii TRANSLATOES PREFACE. countrymen, would have been caviare to the generality o:' English readers. For instance, instead of following eacl other uninterruptedly, the Scenes were separated by 2 profound gulf of Notes and Excursuses, which, if plungec into, was quite sufficient to drown the interest of the tale. The present translator was advised to attempt certain alterations, and he was encouraged to proceed with the task by the very favourable opinion which some of our most distinguished scholars entertained of the original, and their desire that it should be introduced into this country. The notes have been accordingly transported from their intercalary position, and set at the foot of the pages in the narrative to which they refer. The Scenes therefore succeed each other uninterruptedly, so that the thread of the story is rendered continuous, and disen- tangled from the maze of learning with which the Excur- suses abound. These, in their turn, have been thrown together in an Appendix, and will doubtless prove a very substantial caput coence to those who shall have first dis- cussed the lighter portion of the repast. In addition to these changes, which it is hoped will meet with approba- tion, much curtailment has been resorted to, and the two volumes of the original compressed into one. In order to effect this, the numerous passages from Eoman and Grreek authors have, in many instances, been only referred to, and not given at length ; matters of minor importance have been occasionally omitted, and more abstruse points of disquisition not entered into. Those who may feel an interest in further inquiry, are referred to the Professor'?^ work, in four volumes, on Eoman Antiquities, now i:;i. course of publication in Grermany. At the same time, car ■ has been taken not to leave out any essential fact. TEAXSLATORS PEEFACE. ix The narrative, in spite of the author's modest esti- mate of this section of his labours, is really very interest- ing, nay, wonderfully so, considering the narrow limits he had prescribed for himself, and his careful avoidance of anything not founded on fact, or bearing the semblance of fiction. The idea of making an interesting story the basis of his exposition, and of thus ^ strewing with flowers the path of dry antiquity,' is most judicious. We have here a flesh and blood picture of the Eoman, as he lived and moved, thought and acted, worth more a thousand times than the disjecta Tnemhra, the dry skeleton, to be found in such books as Adam's Roman Antiquities^ and others of the same nature, which, however erudite, are vastly uninviting. In conclusion, the translator will be abundantly satis- fied if, by his poor instrumentality, the English student shall have became acquainted with a most instructive work, and thus his mind stimulated to the further inves- tigation of a subject fraught with peculiar fascination — the domestic habits and manners of the most remarkable people of antiquity. LoNDOi?: iUfa?/ 1844. AUTHOE'S PEEFACE. THEEE was once a period, when no portion of classic lore was more zealously cultivated than the study of Antiquities, by which is meant everything appertaining to the political institutions, worship, and houses, of the ancients. Though the two former of these are the most important, in an historical point of view, yet objects of domestic antiquity excited still greater attention ; and as it was evident that on the understanding of them depended the correct interpretation of ancient authors, the smallest minutiae were deemed worthy of investigation. The greatest philologists of the sixteenth and seven- teenth centuries, such men as Lipsius, Casaubonus, and Salmasius, took great delight in this particular branch of archaeology. The last-mentioned scholar has, in his Exer- citt. ad Solinum, in the notes to the Scrijptt, Hist Äugustce, and Tertullian, De Pallio, as well as elsewhere, displayed his usual acumen and erudition. And although more recent discoveries have often set him rio-ht in the o explanation of manners and customs, still his must always be considered as a rich compilation of most judiciously chosen materials. It however soon became apparent that written ac- counts were frequently insufficient; and, as monuments were gradually brought to light from amidst the rubbish xii author's preface. that hid them, their importance grew more and more manifest. These witnesses of departed grandeur and mag- nificence, of early habits and customs, were canvassed with increasing animation ; and, in Italy, a great number of works appeared descriptive of them; which, however, often evinced rather an ostentation of extensive learning than real depth and penetration. The Italians possessed the advantage of having the monuments before their eyes, and moreover, the Dutch and German scholars contented themselves with throwing together a quantity of loose and unconnected observations, without bestowing much inves- tigation on their relevancy. But it was after the conclusion of the seventeenth century, that this fault reached its height, and the writings became exceedingly unpalatable, from the tasteless fashion of jumbling ancient with modern, and Christian with heathen customs. Even up to the present time not much has been done in explanation of this particular branch of archaeology, and little as such works as Pignorius De Servis, Ferrarius De re Vestiaria, Mercurialis De Arte Gymnastica, Ciaco- nius De Triclinio, Paschalius De Coronis, &c., are calcu- lated to give satisfaction, they still continue to be cited as authorities. Whilst the political institutions have been subjected to profound investigation, the private life of the Eomans has been quite neglected, or nearly so ; and the hand-books, which could not well be entirely silent on this head, have merely presented us hasty notices, taken from the older writers. The works of Maternus, Cilano, and Mtsch, may have been useful in their day, but they are now quite obsolete. Meierotto, who undertook to describe the cus- toms and habits of the Eomans, has confined himself to AUTHORS PREFACE. xiii making a compilation of a quantity of anecdotes, culled from the old authors, and deducing some general charac- teristics from them. Couture has also written three essays, entitled, De la Vie Privee des Romains in the Mem. de VAcad. d. Inscr. i. The most important work that has been written, at least upon one part of Eoman life, is Böttiger's Sahina, as it is the result of actual personal investigation. This deservedly famed archseologist succeeded in imparting an interest even to less important points, and combin- ing therewith manifold instruction, notwithstanding his tediousness, and the numerous instances of haste and lack of critical acumen. We must not omit to mention Mazois' Palace of Scaur us. The work has merits, though its worth has been much increased by translation, and it is a pity that the editors did not produce an original work on the subject, instead of appending their notes to a text which, though written with talent, is hurried and uncri- tical. Dezobry's PoTne du Siede d^ Auguste, may also prove agreeable reading to those who are satisfied with light description, void alike of depth, precision, and scien- tific value. It would be still more futile to seek for instruction in Mirbach's Roman Letters. In the second edition of Creuzer's Abriss. der Römischen Antiquitäten, Professor Bahr has given a very valuable treatise on the objects connected with the meals and funerals. It is the most complete thing of the kind that has appeared, though the work being only in the form of an abstract, a more detailed account was inadmissible. In the total absence of any work, satisfactorily ex- plaining the more important points of the domestic life of the ancients, the author determined to write on this xiv AUTHORS PREFACE. subject, and was engaged during several years in col- lecting materials for the purpose. His original intention was to produce a systematic hand-book; but finding that this would lead to too much brevity and curtailment, and exclude entirely several minor traits, which although not admitting of classification, were highly necessary to a complete portrait of Eoman life, he was induced to imitate the example of Böttiger and Mazois, and produce a con- tinuous story, with explanatory notes on each chapter. Those topics which required more elaborate investigation, have been handled at length in Excursuses. The next question was, whether a fictitious character, or some historical personage, should be selected for the hero. The latter was chosen, although objections may be raised against this method; as, after all, a mixture of fiction must be resorted to in order to introduce several details which, strictly speaking, may perhaps not be his- torical. Still there were preponderant advantages in making some historical fact the basis of the work, par- ticularly if the person selected was such as to admit of the introduction of various phases of life, in the course of his biography. A personage of this sort presented itself in Cornelius Grallus, a man whose fortunate rise from obscurity to splendour and honour, intimacy with Augustus, love of Lycoris, and poetical talents, render him not a little remarkable. It is only from the higher grades of society that we can obtain the materials for a portraiture of Koman manners ; of the lower orders but little is known. The Augustan age is decidedly the happiest time to select. Indeed, little is known of the domestic habits of the pre- vious period, as Varro's work. De Vita Populi Romani, the fragments of which are valuable enough to make AüTHOE'S PEEFACE. XV US deplore its loss, has unluckily not come 'down to us. The rest of the earlier writers, with the exception of the comedians, whose accounts we must receive with caution, throw but little light on this side of life in their times, inasmuch as domestic relations sunk then into insisfni- ficance, compared with the momentous transactions of public life ; a remark partially applicable to the age of Augustus also. The succeeding writers are the first to dwell with peculiar complacency on the various objects of domestic luxury and comfort, which, now that their minds were dead to nobler aims, had become the most important ends of existence. Hence it is, that apart from the numerous antique monuments >vhich have been dug up, and placed in museums (e. g. the Museum Borhonicurri), our most valuable authorities on Eoman private life are the later poets, as Juvenal, Martial, Statins ; then Petronius, Se- neca, Suetonius, the two Plinies, Cicero's speeches and letters, the elegiac poets, and especially Horace. Next come the grammarians and the digests ; while the Grreek authors, as Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Plutarch, Dio Cassius, Lucian, Athenseus, and the lexicographers, as Pollux, still further enlighten us. The author has made it a rule never to quote these last as authorities, except when they expressly refer to Eoman customs, or when these correspond with the Grrecian. He has also confined himself to a citation of the best authorities, and such as he had actually consulted in person. Their number might have been considerably increased from Fabricius, Bünau's Catalogue^ and other works of the kind. In dividing the work into twelve scenes, the author disclaims all intention of writing a romance. This would, a XTi AUTHOES PREFACE. no doubt, have been a far easier task than the tedious combination of a multitude of isolated facts into a single picture ; an operation allowing but very little scope to the imagination. It was, in fact, not unlike putting together a picture in mosaic, for which purpose are supplied a certain number of pieces of divers colours. What the author has interpolated, to connect the whole together, is no more than the colourless bits, indispensable to form the ground-work of the picture, and bring it clearly before the eye. His eagerness to avoid anything like romance, may possibly have rather prejudiced the narrative, but, even as it is, more fiction perhaps is admitted than is strictly compatible with the earnestness of literary in- quiry. The character of Grallus may seem to have been drawn too pure and noble ; but the author does not fear any censure on this score. His crime has been here sup- posed to be that mentioned by Ovid, linguam nimio non tenuisse mero; and indeed the most authentic writers nowhere lay any very grave offence to his charge. Possibly, the reader may have been surprised that Grallus has not been introduced in more intellectual company, since his position towards Augustus, and friendship with Virgil — very probably with Propertius also — would have yielded a fine opportunity for so doing. But, apart from the hardi- hood of an attempt to describe the sayings and doings of men like these, nothing would have been gained for our purpose, while their very intellectual greatness would have prevented the author from dwelling so much on the mere externals of life. Moreover, it is by no means cer- tain that the early friendship between Virgil and Grallus AUTHOES PEEFACE. xvii continued to the close of the latter's career, after he had fallen into disfavour with Augustus. Such persons as are here portrayed, abounded in Eome, as we learn from Juvenal and Martial. In describing G-allus as coelebs, the author wished to institute an inquiry into those points of domestic life which had hitherto been little attended to, or imperfectly investigated. As far as the customs, occupations, re- quirements, &c., of the fair sex were concerned, Böttiger has given very satisfactory information in his Sahina ; so that the introduction of a matron into Grallus' family might have led to a repetition of matters which that writer has already discussed. In that case the author must also have entirely omitted Lycoris — a personage affording an excellent opportunity of introducing several topics of interest relating to the sex. The relations of marriage, so far as they form the basis of the household, could not be passed over in silence; but it is only in this point of view that the Excursus on Marriage must be considered, as it makes no pretensions to survey the matter in its whole extent, either as a religious or civil institution. The author was desirous to have introduced an ac- count of the public shows, theatre, amphitheatre, and circus, but they required such a lengthy preamble, that the subject was omitted entirely, as being too bulky for the plan of the work. In treating of matters so various, it is quite possible that the author may have occasionally offered erroneous opinions; nor can it be denied that some chapters have been elaborated with more inclination than others ; all he xviii author's PEEFACE. wishes the reader to believe of him is, that he has never shunned the labour of earnest personal investigation ; and he hopes that a work has been composed, which may serve as a desirable repertory of whatever is most worth knowing about the private life of the Eomans. I CONTENTS. Advertisement to the]^Second Edition Translator's Preface . * Author's Preface . . PAGE V vii xi GALLUS. SCENE THE FIRST. THE EOMAtT FAMILY .... ExcuKSUs I. The Women, or Eoman Marriage „ II. The Children and Education III. The Slaves „ IV. The Kelations, Friends and Clients 1 153 182 199 226 SCENE THE SECOND. THE EOMAN HOUSE .... ExcTJESus I. The Structure of the Building . The Manner of Fastening the Doors The Household Utensils The Manner of Lighting II. III. IV. V. The Clocks 14 231 281 285 308 315 CONTENTS. SCENE THE THIRD. Excursus PAÖE D LETTEES . . 28 I. The Library . 322 IL The Books . 325 III. The BookseUers . 334 IV. The Letter . 338 SCENE THE FOURTH. THE JOUENEY .... Excursus L The Lectica and the Carriages II. The Inns 39 341 351 SCENE THE FIFTH. THE VILLA Excursus. The G-ardens 57 358 SCENE THE SIXTH. LYCOEIS 70 SCENE THE SEVENTH. BATHS AND GYMNASTICS 85 Excursus I. The Baths ..... 366 „ IL The Gi-ame of Ball, and other Gymnastic Ex- ercises' ..... 398 DEESS SCENE THE EIGHTH. Ö8 Excursus I. The Dress of the Men . . . .408 „ IL The Dress of the Women . . .431 Appendix. Material, Colour, Manufacture, and Cleaning of Garments . . . . . . 442 CONTENTS. SCENE THE NINTH. PAGE TTTl^, BANQUET . . 110 EXCUESUS I. The Meals . 451 n. The Triclinmm . . 471 in. The Table-utensils . 476 IV. The Drinks .485 SCENE THE TENTH. THE DEINKEES .... ExcuESUS I. The Chaplets and Games „ II. The Social G-ames 125 496 499 SCENE THE ELEVENTH. THE CATASTEOPHE 134 SCENE THE TWELFTH. THE GEAVE .... ExcTJESus, The Burial of the Dead 142 505 Index 525 G A L L U S SCENE THE FIKST. NOCTUENAL EETUEN HOME. THE third watcti of the night was drawing to a close, and the mighty city lay buried in the deepest silence, unbroken, save by the occasional tramp of the Nocturnal Triumviri ^^ as they passed on their rounds to * The nightly superintendence of Kome soon became one of the duties of the triumviri or tresviri, treviri cajpi- tales, who had to preserve the peace and security of the city, and especially to provide against fires. Liv. xxix.. 14 : Trimviris capitalihus mandatum est, utvigilias dis])onerent per urbem servarentque, ne qici nocturni coetus fierent ; utque ab incendiis cavere- tur, adjutores triumviris quinqueviri uti eis Tiberim tunc quique regionis (sdificiis prcsessent. VaL Max. viii. 1, 5. M, Malvius, Cn. Lollius, L. Sextilius, triumviri, quod ad incen- dium in sacra via ortum extinguen- dum tardius venerant, a trib. pi. die dicta ad popidum damnati sunt. They were also called triumviri noc- turni. Liv. ix. 46 ; Val. Max. viii. 1, 6, P. Villius triumvir nocturnus a P. Aquilio, trib. pi. accusatus — quia vigilias negligcntius circumie- rat. The timorous Sosias alludes to them, AmpMtryo Plauti, i. 1, 3 : Quid f aciam nunc,si tresviri me in carcerem compegerint ? because they arrested those whom they found in the street late at night ; and we find the vigiles discharging the same function. Itaque vigiles, qui custodiebant vicinam regionem, rati ardere Trimalchionis domum ef- fregeriint januam subito et cum aqua securibusque tumultuari suo jure coipericnt. Cf. Seneca, Epist. 64. When Petrandus speaks of water, we must suppose that the watch were provided with fire-buckets ; we can scarcely assume that engines {sipfio- nes) are alluded to, although Beck- mann points out, with much proba- bility, that one of the means of extin- guishing fire in the time of Trajan was referred to in Pliny, Ep. x. 42, and Apollodorus in Vett. Mathem. 0pp. p. 32. V. also Isidor. xx. 6 ; Schneider, Eclog. Phys. i. 225, ii. 117; Colum. iii. 10; denique Nat. ii. 16. Buckets {hama, Plin. x. 42 ; Juv. xiv. 305) and hatchets {dolabra. Dig. i. 15, 3) were part of the ap- paratus for extinguishing fires. Pe- tronii Satires, c. 78. Augustus re- modelled this nightly watch, forming seven cohorts, headed by a prefect, called Prcefectus Vigilum. Suet. Aug. 30; Paul. Big.'i. 15. In spite B GALLUS. [Scene T. see that the fire-watchmen were at their posts, or per- haps by the footstep of one lounging homewards from a late debauch.^ The last streak of the waning moon faintly illumined the temples of the Capitol and the Quad- rigse, and shot a feeble gleam over the fanes and palaces of the Alta Semita, whose roofs, clad with verdant shrubs and flowers, diffused their spicy odours through the warm night-air, and, while indicating the abode of luxury and joy, gave no sign of the dismal proximity of the Campus Sceleratus. In the midst of this general stillness, the door of one of the handsomest houses creaked upon its hinges; its ves- tibule ^ ornamented with masterpieces of Grecian sculpture, its walls overlaid with costly foreign marble, and its doors and doorposts richly decorated with tortoise-shell and precious metals, sufficiently proclaimed the wealth of its of these precautions, fires frequently occurred ; and althougli the Romans possessed no fire-insurance offices, yet such munificent contributions were made for the sufferers' relief, that suspicion sometimes arose of the o"^niers of houses having themselves set them on fire. So says Martial, iii. 52 : Empta domus fuerat tibi, Tongiliane, du- centis ; Abstulit lianc nimimn casus in urbe frequens ; Collatmn est decies ; rogo, non potes ipse videri Incendisss tuam, Tongiliane, domum ? Juvenal describes the zeal of those who, not content vrith rendering pecuniary relief to the, sufferers, also made them presents of statues, pic- tures, books, and so forth. Sat. iii. 215: meliora et plura reponit Persicus orboriim lautissimus, et merito jam Suspectus, tanquam ipse suas incenderit sedes. On the method of extinguishing fires, see also Ulp. Dig. xxxiii. 7, 12 : Acetum q_uoqiie quod exstinguendi in- cendii causa paratur, item centoncs, siphones, jperticas quoque et scalas. 2 Probably like Propertius, when he had the pleasant vision, described in ii. 29. Morning would frequently surprise the drinkers. Mart. i. 29. Biber e in lucem ; vii. 10, 5, coenarein lucera. The debauched life of those who, inverting the order of nature, slept all day and rioted all night, is well sketched by Seneca, Ej). 122. Turpis, qui alto sole semisomnisjacet, et cujus vigilia raedio die incipit. Et adhuc midtis hoc antelucanum est. Sunt qui officia lucis noctisque per- vertunt, nee ante diducunt oculos hesterna graves crapula, quam ap- petere non capit. He terms them Antipodes, who, according to a saying of Cato, iVec orientem unqvÄim solem necoccidentemviderunt. Cf. Colum. FrcBf. 16. * Por a description of the different parts of the house, accompanied by illustrations, see the Excursus on The Eoman House. Scene I.] NOCTURIS^AL EETUEN. 6 owner. The ostiarius, rattling the chain that served as a safeguard against nocturnal depredators, opened the un- bolted door, disclosing as he did so the prospect into the entrance-hall, where a few of the numerous lamps were still burning on two lofty marble candelabra, — a proof that the inmates had not yet retired for the night. At the same time, there stalked through the hall a freedman, whose imperious mien, and disregard of the surl}^ porter, even more than the attending vicarius, at once pointed him out as one possessing much of the confidence of the lord of the mansion. He strode musingly across the thres- hold and vestibule towards the street, and after looking anxiously on all sides, through the dim light and the sha- dows of the lofty atria, turned to his attendant and said, *It is not his wont, Leonidas; and what possible reason can he have for concealing from us where he tarries at this late hour ? He never used to go unattended, whether to the abode of Lycoris, or to enjoy the stolen pleasures of the Subura. Why then did he dismiss the slaves to-day, and hide from us so mysteriously the place of liis destination ?' ^Lydus tells me,' answered the vicar ins, 'that G-allus left the palace in evil mood, and when the slave who was putting on his sandals enquired whence he should escort him on his return, he bade him await him at home, and then hastened, clad in his coloured synthesis, in the direc- tion of the Via Sacra. Not long before his departure, Pomponius had left the house; and Lydus, impelled partly by curiosit}^, and partly by anxiety at the unusual excite- ment of his master, followed at a distance, and saw the two meet near the Temple of Freedom, after which they disappeared in the Via a Cyprio.' 'Pomponius!' returned the freedman, 'the friend and confidant of Largus I No company he for an open and frank disposition, and still less at a jolly carousal, where the tongue is unfettered by copious goblets of pure Setinian wine, and of which the Sicilian proverb too often holds good the next morning, ' Cursed be he who remembers at B 2 GALLÜS. [Scene I. the banquet "*. I don't know, Leonidas,' continued he, after a moment's reflection, ' what dismal foreboding it is that has for some time been pursuing me. The gods are, I fear, wroth with our house ; they hate too sudden pro- sperity, we are told. There was too, methinks, more tran- quillity in the small lodging^ near the Tiber than in this magnificent palace : more fidelity, when the whole house- hold consisted of few besides ourselves, than is to be found in this extensive mansion, filled with many decurice of dearly-purchased slaves, whom their lord hardly knows by sight, ministers of his splendour, but not of his comfort. Above all, there was more cordiality among those who used to climb the steep stairs, to partake of his simple fare, than in the whole troop of visitors who daily throng the vesti- bule and atrium to pay the customary morning greeting.' * Mtcrea) fMudfiova (TV/xTrSrav. Plut. S^mpos. i. 1. The sense in whicli Martial, i. 28, applies this proverb to Procillus, is certainly the only correct one. Lucian, Si/mp. iii. p. 420. 5 The Eoman of wealth and dis- tinction occupied, with his family, the whole of his extensive mansion ; the less affluent rented, in proportion to their requirements and means, either an entire house, or a section of some larger insula, the name by which all hired houses went — and the poorer classes took a small canacu- liim in an upper story, though at a somewhat extravagant price, pensio eell(B, Mart, iii, 30. 3. The poet himself occupied a ccenaeidum of this description in the third sto?y, i. 118, 7, Scalis habito trihus, sed altis ; Sind he says of the miserly Sanctra, who TTsed to take half his coena home with him, vii. 20, 20, Hisc per dv^ centns domum tulit scalas. As in an insula of this description the lodgers might be very different persons, the stairs to their private apartments often led upwards from the street out- side; an arrangement also to be found in the private houses. The cxnaculum assigned to Hispala, for her security after she had discovered the mon- strosities of the Bacchanalia, was of this description. Liv. xxxix. : Consul rogat socrum, ut aliquam partem cedium vacuam facer et, quo Hispala immigraret. Coenaculum super cedes datum est, scalis ferentibus in publi- cum obseratis, aditu in (sdes verso. We learn from Cicero, pro Codio, c. 7, that lodgings could be let even as high as 30,000 sesterces, Ccelius, however, only went to the expense of 10,000, i. e. £80. The Kalends of July were the usual, though perhaps not the only period for changing lodgings. Mart, xii. 32, humorously describes the moving oisifamilia sordida amount- ing to four persons, who managed to transfer all their goods and chattels at one journey. See the Excursus on TM Roman House. Scene I.] IS'OCTUKJS^AL EETUEN, 'Alas! thou art right, Chresimus/ replied the slave; ' this is no longer a place for comfort, and the gods have already given us more than one warning sign. It was not without an object that the bust of the great Cornelius fell down, and destroyed the new pavement inlaid with the image of Isis. Moreover, the beech at the villa, on the bark of which Lycoris carved the name^ of our master, has not put out leaves this spring ; thrice too have I heard in the stillness of night the ominous hooting of the owl.' Conversing thus, they had again reached the vestibule, Avithout perceiving a man who approached with somewhat uncertain gait, from the Temple of Flora. Over his under- garment he wore a festive robe of a bright red colour, such as those in which Eoman elegants of the day used to appear at state-baoquets. His sandals were fastened with thongs of the same dye ; while a chaplet of young myrtle and Milesian roses hung negligently down on the left brow, and appeared to be gliding from his perfumed locks *" ; in short, everything indicated that he was returning from some joyous carousal, where the cünpliovce had not been spared. Not till he had gained the vestibule did Chresimus become aware of his ajjproach. ^ There he is at last,' exclaimed the faithful freedmau, with a lightened heart. ' All hail ! my lord. Anxiety for you brought us out of doors ; we are unused to find you abroad at so late an hour.' * I was with true friends,' answered the master, * and the hours vanish gaily and swiftly over the wine-cup, in familiar converse : Pomponius, too, was my companion nearly all the way home.' At this closing remark the visage of the freedman again became clouded ; he went 6 Propert. i. 18, 21. Ah, quoties teneras resonant mea verba sub umbras, Scribitur et vestris Cyntbia corticibus. ' Ovid, Amor. i. 6, 37. Ergo amor et modicum cii'ca mea tempora vinum Mecum est et madidis lapsa corona comis. Mart. xi. 8, 10 ; divitihus laj^sa co- rona comis ; cf. iii. Qb, 8. 6 GALLÜS. [Scene I. silently towards the door, and having opened it, he and Leonidas followed their lord into the house. While the osti- ariuswdiS engaged in bolting the door, Chresimns proceeded to light a wax-candle at one of the lamps, and led the way, through saloons and colonnades, to the sleeping apartment of his lord. Having arrived in the ante-room, the slave of the toilet, who was in waiting, received the synthesis and sandals, whilst the cubicukcrius threw open the door and drew back the many-coloured tapestry of Alexandria which served as a curtain. Then, after having again smoothed the purple coverlet that nearly concealed the ivory bed- stead, and remained till his master had reposed his'head on the variegated feather tapestry covering the pillow stuffed with the softest wool, he quitted the apartment. He who returned home thus late and lonely, without the usual accompaniment of slaves, was Cornelius Gtallus^, ^ Tbe scanty accounts we possess respecting the personal history of Galkis, are to be found in Dio Cas- sius, Strabo, Suetonins, Virgil, Pro- pertius and Ovid. The few fragments of his poems, even if authentic, afford ns no further information. Gallus was of obscure, at least poor, ancestors, but that did not prevent his obtain- ing the favour of Octavianus, and being included in the select circle of his friends. In the war against Antony he was general of a division of the army, and Dio Cassius, li. 9, commemorates his skilful conquest and defence of the port of Paraeto- nium. After the subjugation of Egypt, Octavianus appointed him Prefect of that country. Dio Cass. c. 17. 'Efc 8e rovTov rrjv Se Afyvirroy viroTeAr} eTroirjcre, koI reo TaWpas Kal irpos rh pabiov rh re KOXKpov rcüv rpoTTwv avreav, rrjv re aiTOWouTreiav Kal rä XP'^M«'''« ouSeyl ßouXevr^ ovx ottcos ey^^'P'*'""' avr^v iroXfjLrjaev, k. r. A. We have no further account of him till on the occasion of his unfortunate end. Dio Cass. liii. 23. Se 5r; VaXKos Kopvr]- \ios Kal e^vßpi(xev virh rrjS rifiris. UoXXa fxef yap Kal [xdraLO. is rhv Avyovarou aneXi]pei, iroKXa Se Kal eiraina irapenparre. Kal yap Kal eiKüuas eavrov iv '6\r}, ws ei eTj/, rfj A'tyuTTTu} ecrrrjcre, Kal ra epya oaa iirenoiriKeL is ras Trvpa/J-iSas eVe'- ypa\pe. It was probably his expedi- dition against the rebellious cities of Heroopolis and Thebes, which caused his downfall. Strabo thus speaks of his end : rdWos /xeV ye Kopv^XLOs, 6 TrpwTOS KaraaraOils eirapx'^'S rris X^P^s inrh Kaiaapos ri\v re 'Hpctiwv Tv6Xiv anoaracrav iiveXOchu 5i' oXiycoi/ eTxe, (Trdcrw re yev'>]de7(jau iv ry ©77- jSaiSi Si« rovs (p6povs iv ßpax^'^ Kar- eXvcreu. At all events Valerius Lar- gus, formerly the confidential friend of Grallus, made these suspicious cir- cumstances the ground of an accusa- Scene I.] Js^OCTURXAL RETUEN. a man received and envied in the higher circles of the Roman world as the friend ?tnd favourite of Augustus, but secretly hated by them ; for though not ashamed of slavishly cringing to the mighty despot, they looked haughtily on the exalted plebeian. He was, however, among the friends of the soberer as well as brighter Muses, universally prized as a man of much learning, and celebrated as a graceful tion against him, and in consequence Angiistus forbad Gallus visiting his house, or remaining in his provinces. (Suet. Aug. 47, Claud. 23.) Imme- diately after his disgrace, numerous other accusers appeared, who suc- ceeded in getting him exiled and his property confiscated. Gallus could not endui'e his fall, and killed him- self with his sword. This account agrees with that of Suet. Aug. QQ. Neque enim temere ex omni numero in amicitia ejus afflicti rejoerienticr, prcster Salvidienum Bufum, quern ad considaticm usque, et Cornelium Gal- ium, quern ad prcBfecturam Mgypti, ex infima titrumque fortuna 'pro- vexerat. Qicorum alterum res novas molientem damnandwni senatui tra- didit, alteri ob ingratum et malevo- lum animum domum et provineiis suis interdixit. Scd Gallo quoque et accusatorum denunciationibus et senatus-considtis ad necem compidso laudavit quidem jpietatem tantopere pro se indignantiuvi : cceterum et illacrimavit et vicem steam conquestus est, quod sibi soli non liceret amicis, quaienus vellet, irasci. That his highly treasonable speeches against Augustus were the principal cause of his condemnation is proved by Ovid, Trist, ii. 445 : Nee f nit opprobrio celebrasseLyccridaGallo, Sed linguam nimio non tenuisse mero ; and Amor. iii. 9, 63 : Tu quoqne, si falsam est temerati crimen amici, Sanguinis utque anim£e, prodige Galle, tuae. Ammian. Marc. xvii. 4, brings a more severe charge against him : Longe auteon postea Corn. Gallus, Octa- viano res tenente Romanas, Mgypti procurator, exJiausit civitatem (The- hsis) plurimis interceptis, reversusque cmn furtorum accusaretur et popu- lates provincicB, stricto incubuit ftrro. But it is mentioned neither by Sue- tonius, Dio Cassius, nor 0\-id, as the cause of his disgrace ; and that Gallus ten years before, at least, was neither a violent nor a dishonest man, the friendship of Virgil, who inscribed his tenth Eclogue to him, testifies : Pauca meo Gallo, sed quse legat ipsa Ly- coris, Carmina sunt dicenda : neget quis carinina Gallo ? The contempt too with which Largus was treated, and the regret of Au- gustus, show that he had not deserved such a fate. Donat. relates, Vit. Virg. X. 39, Verum usque adeo hunc Galium Virgil ius amarat,td quartus Georgicormn a medio usque ad finem ejus latcdem contineret. Quern postea, jubente Augusto, in Aristai fabidam conwmtavit. But this proves less the guilt of Gallus, than that the recollection of his end was painful to Augustus. His passion for Lycoris arose about nine or ten years before his death, and the circumstance of his renewing the connexion with her, after her infidelity, is, like other in- cidents, imaginary. 8 GALLUS. [Scene I. and elegant poet; while in the more select convivial circle he was beloved as a cheerful companion, who always said the best of good things, and whose presence gave to the banquet more animation than dancers and cliorauloe. Not- withstanding the renowned name he had taken, he had in reality no claim to the glorious family reminiscences which it suggested. The trophies indicative of former triumphs which decked the door and door-posts^ of his mansion, were the unalienable adjuncts of the house itself ; earnest mementos of a glorious past, and serving as an admonition to each occupier, what his aim must be, would he avoid the humiliating feelinsf of living;' undistincruished in the habitation of renown. His grandfather had arrived a stranger in Eome, a little before the reign of terror, when Caius Marius and L. Cornelius Cinna profited by the absence of the most powerful man of the time^ to effect a reaction, the ephemeral success of which only served to prepare more securely the way to fame for the ambitious Sylla. It was through Cinna himself that Grallus obtained the right of a citizen, and in conformity with the custom of the period he adopted the Cornelian name, along with the surname^^ which denoted his extraction. But the hor- rors of Sylla's proscriptions drove him from Eome, and he returned to Gaul, where he had since been residing in ^ The Triumphator was permit- ted to suspend the spoilia at his door. Liv. X. 7, xxxviii. 43. These marks of Taloiir achieved, remained as the unalienable property of the house which they had first rendered ilhis- trious, and could not, even in case of sale, be taken down. Plin. xxxv. 2 ; Alice f oris et circa limina animorum ingentium imagines eraoit, affixis Jios- tium spoliis, quce nee emtori refigere liceret ; triumphahantque etiam do- minis mutatis ijpsce domus, et erat hmc stimulatio ingens, exjprobantibus tectis, quotidie imbellem dominum intrare in alienum trium'plium. Cic. mil. ii. 28. *" The custom by which the stranger assumed the name of him, through whom he obtained the right of a citizen, is generally known. Cic. ad Fam. xiii. 36. Cum Deme- trio Mega mihi vetustum hospitium est ; familiaritas autem tanta, quanta cum Siculo nullo. Ei (Cornelius) Boldbella rogatu meo civitatem a CcBsare impetravit, qua in re ego interfui. Itaque nu7ic P. Cornelius vocatur. Scene I.] XOCTUEXAL EETüRX. 9 ignoble obscurity at Forum Julii. There Gralius passed the first years of his childhood, under the careful auspices of his father, who saw in the happy disposition and lofty spirit of his boy the harbingers of no ordinary future. Therefore, although he could not be accounted wealthy, he determined to make ever}^ sacrifice in order to give his son such an education as usually fell to the lot of the sons of senators and knights. When the boy had been instructed in the first elements of knowledge by an accomplished Greek tutor, his father set out with Gralius for Eome, and after carefully search- ing for a suitable person, placed him under the tuition of a grammarian of great repute. Gralius subsequently attended the school of a celebrated rhetorician, and also took les- sons in Latin eloctition, which had lately become some- what fashionable ; nor was he allowed to intermit those studies even after he had passed the threshold of boyhood and put on the toga, the symbol of riper years. At the age of twenty he was sent to Athens, even at this period the nurse of all the profound and elegant sciences, in order to give a finish to his education, and to combine in him Attic elegance with Eoman solidity. Gralius was still at Athens, when the faithful Chresimus brought him the news of the death of his father, who after accomplishing his grand object, the education of his sod, had returned to Forum Julii. He wept tears of love and gratitude with the true-hearted Chresimus, and left Athens to take possession of the small patrimony bequeathed him by his father, and which he found much more insignificant than he had supposed. There was just enough for him to live on with tolerable comfort in a provincial town, but it would only keep him like a beggar in Eome ; nevertheless he resolved to seek his fortune in the focus of the world, and a year later returned to Eome, a powerful, resolute, and highly-educated man. There the terrific scenes of the second triumvirate were not long over, and the republicans, driven from Italy, 10 GALLUS. [Scene f. were preparing beyond the sea for the final struggle. There were only two parties to choose from, and Grallus did not long hesitate which to espouse. It was not any particular inclination to the ambiguous Octavianus, still less to either of the other potentates, that determined him to take up arms for the cause of the triumvirate. He was convinced that the time had arrived, when the crumbling edifice of the republic must be annihilated, and the am- bition of a selfish aristocracy kept down by the mighty energies of one supreme ruler. Perhaps, too, he was actuated by the hope that his merits were more likely to be appreciated, and meet with proper acknowledgment from one raised above the petty consideration of rivalry, than from the haughty patricians, who were accustomed to look down upon merit striving to emerge from obscurity. He first took part in the campaign against Sextus Pompeius, under the command of Salvidienus. His gal- lantry and fortitude at the unlucky sea-fight, which took place not far from the destructive rocks of Scylhi, did not fail to attract the eye of Octavianus, \vhom he soon after followed to the decisive battle of Philippi. There, too, his warlike deeds were adorned with fresh laurels, and in returning with the victor back to Italy, his social qualities soon made him the agreeable companion, and before long, the intimate friend, of Octavianus, — a friendship which he had tact enough to keep up. The proper hours of re- laxation he spent in familiar intercourse with Virgil, the younger Proper tins, and other congenially-minded friends of the Muses ; but he by no means neglected the more grave occupations to which his distinguished oratorical powers called him. The war against Antony and Cleopatra summoned him again into the field, and now commenced the most brilliant period of his life. The able manner in which he took and held the important seaport, Parsetonium, the destruction of the hostile fleet, and many other spirited exploits, raised him so high in the estimation of Octavianus, that when Scene I.] NOCTURNAL RETURK 11 Antony and Cleopatra atoned for their long intoxication of pleasure and folly by voluntary death, and Egypt was enrolled among the number of Roman provinces, he, being in the undivided possession of the supreme authority, made Gallus governor of the new province, under the title of Prefect. The command of so rich a province could, Octavianus doubtless thought, with more safety be en- trusted to him than to a senator. Was it wonderful, theu, that when G-allus found him- self suddenly placed at so great an elevation, his sanguine and fiery disposition carried him occasionally beyond the bounds of moderation, and that, — after severely chastising the rebellious cities, especially the w^ondrous Thebes, — he caused statues of himself to be erected, and the record of his deeds to be eu graved on the pyramids ? Was there anything unusual in his carrying off the treasures and valuables of the subjugated cities, as a fit recompense for his exertions ? Octavianus, who had now assumed the more noble name of Augustus, heard the report of these acts with a concern, v/hich the enemies, whom the good fortune of Grallus had raised up against him, did not fail to foment. So without being actually angered with his former friend, he recalled him to Eome, and nominated Petronius, a man by no means well-disposed towards him, as his successor. G-allus was not pleased with his recall, although it had been made in such a manner, as in a great measure to efface its unpleasantness. The riches which had followed him from Egypt to Rome, enabled him to live with a magnificence hitherto quite unknov/n to him, aud in the superabundance of such enjoyments as served to heighten the pleasures of life. Still accounted the favourite of Au- gustus, and always admitted as a welcome guest to the select circle that had access to the table of this mighty sovereign, he now saw people, who, ten years before, vv^ould scarcely have deigned to acknowledge his saluta- tion, vying with each other to gain his friendship. 12 GALLUS. [Scene T. Although Grallus was advancing to that period of life when the Eoman was considered no longer a youth, he had not yet prevailed upon himself to throw constraint on the freedom of his existence, by entering the bonds of matrimony. Indeed, the stricter forms of marriage began generally to be less liked; and no law inflicting a -penalty on celibacy had at that time been passed. At an earlier period of his life, the narrowness of his circumstances had led him to look with shyness on mar- riage, in consequence of the expenses attendant on such an increased establishment as the grand notions of the Eoman ladies would have rendered unavoidable. He also even more dreaded the state of dependence into which he would have been thrown, if he had married a person of fortune; and being at the same time averse to concu- binage, had preferred contracting an intimacy of a less durable nature with certain accomplished Hetairai, who were capable not only of admitting, but also of returning his passion. Thus, after his return, he contiliued to pursue an un- fettered course of life, regulated by his own inclinations alone ; a life which others much envied, and which would have been a happy one, had it not been for his impetuous and passionately excitable temperament, and unsparing- freedom of speech, especially in his cups. These causes were beginning to throw a cloud over his future prospects ; for, although raised by Augustus from the depths of poverty to honour and wealth, he had nevertheless too much straightforwardness not to express frequently his loud disapprobation of many arbitrary proceedings and secret cruelties, perpetrated by his benefactor. Clandestine envy, which was busy about him, had dexterously profited by these speeches, and there was even talk of a complaint secretly lodged against him by his former friend and confidant, Largus, on the score of misgovernment in Egypt. At all events, G-allus could not conceal from himself, that for some time past a coolness had pervaded Scene I.] IS^OCTURNAL EETURN 13 Augustus' manner towards him, and that his former inti- mate familiarity had been succeeded by a tone of haughty and suspicious reserve. But although his present position would have enabled Grallus to regard this alteration with indifference, still his estimation among the higher circles of Eome depended too much on the favour of Aumistus for him to neojlect using all his endeavours to remain, at any rate in outward appearance, in possession of the emperor's good graces. It was for this reason that he had this evening been supping at the imperial board, without invitation, as he had always been accustomed to do ; but he had found Augustus in a worse humour than ever, and among the company his bitter enemy, Largus. Some caustic remarks touching the fate of Thebes, drew forth from the irritable Grallus an acrimo- nious retort, which Augustus replied to with still greater severity. As soon therefore as the latter had withdrawn^ ^, according to his custom, Gallus also departed, to spend the evening more agreeably in the company of Pomponius and other friends. " Suet. Aug. 74, Convivia non- nunquam et serius inibat et maturius rel'wquebat, cum convives et coenare incipcrent, priusquam Ule discum- beret, et permanerent digresso eo. SCENE THE SECOND. THE MOENING. THE city hills were as yet unillumined by the beams of the morning sun, and the uncertain twilight, which the saffron streaks in the east spread as harbingers of the coming day, was diffused but sparingly through the windows and courts into the apartments of the mansion. Grallus still lay buried in heavy sleep in his quiet chamber, the care- fully chosen position of which both protected him against all disturbing noises, and prevented the earl}^ salute of the morning light from too soon breaking his repose \ But around all was life and activity. From the cells and cham- bers below, and the apartments on the upper floor, there poured a swarming multitude of slaves, who presently pervaded every corner of the house, hurrying to and fro, and cleaning and arranging with such busy alacrity, that one unacquainted with these customary movements, would have supposed that some grand festivity was at hand. A whole decuria of house-slaves, armed with be- soms and sponges, under the superintendence of the atriensis, began to clean the entrance rooms. Some in- spected the vesfÄbulum, to see whether any bold spider had spun its net during the night on the capital of tlie pillars, or groups of statuary; and rubbed the gold and tortoise-shell ornaments of the folding-doors and posts at ' One thing that the Komans especially kept in view in planning their sleeping-apartments, was that their situation should he removed from all noise. Pliny, Ep. ii. 17, boasts of these qualities being pos- sessed by a bed-chamber at his villa. Junctum est cuhiculum noctis et somni. l^on illud voces servulo- rum, non maris murmur, nan tem- 'pesiatum motus, non fulgurum lu- men, ac ne diem quidem sentit, nisi fenestris apertis. Tarn alti ahditi- que secreti ilia ratio, quod inter jacens andron parictem cubiculi hortique distinguit, atque ita omnem sonum media inanitate consumit. Scene II.] MOENING. 15 the entrance, and cleaned tlie dust of the previous day from the marble pavement. Others again were busy in the atriwrn and its adjacent halls^ carefully traversing the mosaic floor, and the paintings on the walls, with soft Lycian sponges, lest any dust might have settled on the wax-varnish with which they were covered ^. They also looked closely whether any spot appeared blackened by the smoke of the lamps ; and then decked with fresh garlands^ the busts and shields which supplied the place of the ima- gines inajorum ^, or waxen masks of departed ancestors. 2 Many of tlie colours -used by i the ancients for wall-painting, as, for ' instance, the minium, conld not stand the effects of the light and atmo- sphere, and, to make them durable, a varnish of Punic wax, mixed with a little oil, was laid on the wall, when dry, with a paint-brush of bristles. See Vitruv. yii. 9, and Plin. xxxiii. 7, 40. ^ Although the stemmata, which constituted the ancestral tree, could find no application here, still it was not unusual to crown with chaplets, even the portraits of strangers. Mart. X. 32 : Hs3c mihi quse colitur violis pictura rosis- que, Quos referat vultus, Caeditiane, rogas ? * The beautiful custom of olden time of placing the imagines majo- rum in the atria or their al(B, must have lost more and more in signifi- cancy, and even grown obsolete, after so many who had neither majores, in that sense, nor any title whatever to such distinction — some of them being persons of the lowest class, and others even slaves — became very wealthy, assumed high-sounding names, and lived in magnificent edifices. And again, many who were entitled to imagines, found them, perhaps, too insignificant in appearance to consort with the magnificence of the rest of their dwelling. These imagines were waxen masks, formed after the life, cer(B, which those only had the right of setting up, who had borne a curule ofiice,viz. from "CaaXoicBdile upwards. Polyb. vi. 53. On the manner of arranging them, Vitruv. says, vi. o, Imagines item alte cum suis orna- onentis ad latitudinem alarum sint constitute. The ornamenta are clear- ly designated by Seneca, De Benef. iii. 28, Qui imagines in atria expo- nunt et nomina familice sues longo ordine ac multis stemmatum illigata flexuris in -parte prima mdium collo- cant, noti magis quam nobile sunt. Still more so by Plin. xxxv. 2, 2, Ex- pressi cera vultus singulis disponc- hantur armariis. — Stemmata vero li- neis discurrehant ad imagines pictas. Polyb. vi. 53 : HwAtj'a paidia vepni- devres : and, ravras St) ras elKSuas eV TcTs SrjfJLOTeAecri Ovaiais avoiyov- T€? KGa/xoicri (piXdrijxoiis : lastlv, Auct. Eicg. ad Mess. 30, Quidqitaque index sub imagine dicat. The masks were kept in little presses, placed up against the wall, under which stood the name of the deceased, his honours and merits, tituli, Ovid. Fast. i. 591. [The several imagines were connect- ed with each other by garlands ; for 16 GALLUS. [Scene II. In the cavum cedium or interior court, and the larofer peristylium, more were engaged in rubbing with coarse linen cloths the polished pillars of Tenarian and Numidian marble'^, which formed a most pleasing contrast to the intervening statues and the fresh green verdure of the vacant space within. The Tricliniarch and his subordi- nates were equally occupied in the larger saloons : where stood the costly tables of cedar-wood, with pillars of ivory supporting their massive orbs, which had, at an immense Pliny's words, stemmata lineis dis- currehant ad imagines 'pictas, do not seem capable of any other than the literal meaning ; and so likewise the stemmatum flexurcB of Seneca.] On festive days, when these armaria were opened, the imagines received fresh crowns oflaiirel. It is evident from Pliny, that, at a later period, instead of the masks, cly'peat(B imagi- nes, as they were called, and busts were substituted. Imaginum qui- dem. picticra, qua maxime similes in (Bvum propagabantur figures, in fo- tum exolevit. Mrei ponuntur clypei, argentcB fades surdo figurarum dis- crimine. Again : Aliter apud ma- jores in atriis lime er ant qiice specta- rentur, non signa 'externorum artifi- cum, nee cera nee marmora ; expressi cera vultus, &c. Those persons who had no images to boast of in their own family, and yet wished some such ornament for their atrium, had no course left but alienas effigies colere. ^ The most valuably species of white marbles were the Parian, the Tentelican, and the Hymet- tian; which latter two Böttiger mistakes for the same. Strabo expressly says fxapixäpov S' eVrl Tr]s re 'TjUrjTr/a? Kol rrjS UsvTeXi- KTjS KaWiffra fieraWa ■kX7](Tlov rris TToAeus. Horn. Od. ii. 18, 3 ; Plin. H. N. xxxvi. 3. If it be correctly supposed, as was first imagined from Pausanias, that Pentelicus was in early times comprehended under the name Hymettus, we must un- derstand Pentelican marble by the Hymettiis columnis trabibus so fre- quently mentioned, especially by the poets. Besides these there was that of Luna in Italy, now called Carrara marble. Variegated marbles {marmor ma- cidosum, Plin. H. N. xxxvi. 5; in- gentium macxdcB columnarum, Sen. Ep. 115), brought not only from Greece, but even from Asia and Africa, became afterwards more fa- shionable. The most precious sorts were the golden -yellow, Numidian ; that with red streaks, Phrygian, Syn- nadic, or Mygdonian ; the Teenarian, or Laconian, or verde antico, a kind of green porphyry ; and the Carys- tian (from Euboea) with green veins. But even this natural variety was not sufficient for the demands of taste. In Nero's time veins and spots were artificially let into the coloured mar- ble. So says Pliny, xxxv. 1 : Nero- nis (principatu inventum) maculas, qucs non essent, crustis inserendo unitatem variare, ut ovatus esset Numidicus, ut purpura distinguere- tur Synnadicus, qualiter illos nasci aptarent delicice. Scene IL] MOEXING. 17 expense, been conveyed to Eome from the primeval woods of Atlas. In one the wood was like the beautifully dappled coat of a panther, in another the spots, being more regular and close, imitated the tail of the peacock, a third re- sembled the luxuriant and tangled leaves of the apiuon, each of them more beautiful and valuable than the other ; and many a lover of splendour would have bartered an estate for any one of the three. The tricliniarii cau- tiously lifted up their purple covers, and then whisked them over with the shaggy gausape, in order to remove any little dust that might have penetrated through. Xext came the side-boards, several of which stood against the walls in each saloon, for the purpose of displaying the gold and silver plate and other valuables. Some of them were slabs of marble, supported by silver or gilded ram's feet, or by the tips of the wings of two griffins looking in opposite directions. There was also one of artificial marble, which had been sawn out of the wall of a G-recian temple, while the slabs of the rest were of precious metal. The costly articles displayed on each were so selected as to be in keeping with the architec- tural designs of the apartment. In the tetrastylus, the simplest saloon, stood smooth silver vessels unadorned by the ars toreutica, except that the rims of most of the larger bowls were of gold. Between these were smaller vessels of amber, and two of great rarity; in one of which a bee, and in the other an ant, had found its transparent tomb. On another side stood beakers of antique form, 'to which the names of their former possessors gave their value, and an historical importance ^. " The passion for collecting ob- jects curious on account of their an- tiquity, or from having belonged to some illustrious person, had become prevalent in the time of Gallus ; V. Hor. Sat. ii. 3, 21 ; 64. p. 3, 90 ; at all events it was not far off. This mania became still more ridiculous, when ignorance credited the grossest falsehoods and histo- rical impossibilities. The instances we have mentioned are really re- coimted by Martial, viii. 6, who ridicules these argenti fianosa stcm- raata. The archetypa of Trimalchio are still more laughable. Petr. 52, 18 GALLUS. [Scene II. There was, for instance, a double cup, whicli Priam had inherited from Laomedon ; another that had belonged to Nestor, unquestionably the same from which Hecamede had pledged the old man in Pramnian wine before Troy : the doves which formed the handles^ were much worn, — of course by Nestor's hand. Another again was the gift of Dido to JEneas, and in the centre stood an im- mense bowl, which Theseus had hurled against the face of Eurytus. But the most remarkable of all was a relic of the keel of the Argo ^ ; it was indeed only a chip, but who could look on and touch this portion of the mostancient of ships — on which perhaps even Minerva herself had placed her hand — without being transported in feeling back to the days of old. Gallus himself was far too en- lightened to believe in the truth of these legends, but every one was not so free from prejudice as he; it was more- over the most recent fashion to collect such antiquities. On the other hand, in the Corinthian saloon stood vessels of precious Corinthian bronze, whose worn handles and peculiar smell sufficiently announced their antiquity, together with two large golden drinking cups, on one of which were engraved scenes from the Iliad, on the other from the Odyssey^. Besides these there were smaller Habeo scyphos urnales plus minus, quemadonodum Cassandra occiditfilios siios, et pueri mortui jacentsicutivere 2nites. Habeo cajpidem quam reliquit Patroclo Prometheus, uhi Bmdalus Niohem in equum Trojanum includit. V. Lueian. PMlop. 19. '' ßiad, xi. 632, seq. Martial, or the possessor of the goblet, no doubt had in his eye the passage of Homer which runs : AolclI 5e TreAetc^Ses dfxcpls %Ka(TTov xP'^ö'^"^' vefj.46ovTo: and the Roman poet says: Pollice de Pylio trita columha nitet. ^ The ancients also had their relics, and looked with veneration on a chip of the Argo. Martial, who is so fond of ridiculing folly and credu- lous simplicity, speaks quite seriously (vii. 19) on the subject: Fragmentum quod vile putas et inutile lig- num, Hffic f uit ignoti prima carina maris. — SaBcula vicerunt; set! quamvis cesserit annis, Sanctior est salva parva tabella rate. But perhaps this valuable relic be- longed to Domitian himself, or to some other patron of distinction, and the poet for this reason ajffected to credit the story. The ancients used also to collect natural specimens and other rarities. ^ The Corinthian brass, as it was called, was used in the manufacture Scene II.] MOEXING. 19 beakers and bowls composed of precious stones, either made of one piece only, and adorned with reliefs, or of several cameos united by settings of gold. G-enuine Murrbina vases also, — even at that time a riddle,' and according to report imported from the recesses of Par- thia, — were not wanting. The Egyptian saloon, however, surpassed the rest in magnificence. Every silver or golden vessel which it con- tained was made by the most celebrated toreutce^ and possessed a higher value from the beauty of its work- manship than even from the costliness of its materiaP^. There was a cup by the hand of Phidias, ornamented with fishes that seemed only to want water to enable them to swim; on another w^as a lizard by Mentor, and so exact a copy of nature, that the hand almost started back on touching it. Then came a broad bowl, the handle of which was a ram wüth a golden fleece, more beautiful than that brought by Phryxus to Colchis, and upon it of vessels which, were sold for high prices. Eespecting the composition of it, a secret which was lost even in the time of the ancients, see 0. Miiller's ArchcBology, translated by Leitch; and Plin. xxxiv. 2, 3, and Petron. 50, jokingly. Connoisseurs detected its genuineness by the pe- culiar odour it acquired by Oxydation. Mart. ix. 60, 11. Consulerit nates, an olerent mra Corinthon. Beckmann even affirms thatthe money-changers had recourse to their noses to judge of the genuineness of the coins, as Arrian, in Epict. i. 20, o apyvpoyvu- jjLwv 7rpo(rxp>?Tai Kara ^oKifxaaiav rov voixlcTjxaTOS rfj o\|/et, rfj acprj, t? ö(r(l)paaia (but apyvpoyvwixccu is not a money-changer). The marks more- over of having been long in use, were not imobserved. Mart. ix. 58: Nil est tristius Heclyli lacemis : Non ansae veterum Corintliiorum. "• The most celebrated Toreut?e, Mys, Myron, Mentor, and even Phi- dias, had often to lend their names to the relievos cut on the vessels, though not always with any good reason for so doing. Mart. : iii. 35. Artis PMcTiacas toreuma darum, Pisces adspicis : adele aqiiam, na- tabunt. iii. 41. Inserta phialte Meutoris manu ducta Lacerta vivit, et timetur argen- tum. vi. 92. Ceelatus serpens in patera My- ronis arte. viii. 51. Quis labor in pbiala ? docti Slyos, anne Myronis ? Mentoiis bfec manus est? an, Polyclete, tua? Stat caper ^olio Thebani vellere Phryxi Cultus : ab hoc mallet vecta fuisse soror. Goblets by Mentor, who also imi- tated in metal the joocula Theridea, were very highly esteemed. Plin. xxxiii. 11, 12. c 2 20 GALLUS. [Scene IL a dainty Cupid. The name of the artist who executed it was unknown, but all were unanimous in thinking that M3^s and Myron, Mentor and Polycletus, had equal claims to the honour. No less worthy of admiration were the ingenious works in glass^ from Alexandria; beakers and saucers of superb moulding, and imitating so naturally the tints of the amethyst and ruby, as completely to deceive the beholder ; others shone like onyxes, and were cut in relief; but superior to all were some of the purest crystal, and uncoloured. Still there was one object which, on account of its ingenious construction, attracted more than anything else the eyes of all spec- tators. This was a bowl of the colour of opal, surrounded at the distance of a fourth part of an inch by an azure network, carved out of the same piece as the vessel, arid only connected with it by a few fine slips that had been left. Beneath the edge of the cup was written the following inscription ; the letters were green, and projected in a similar manner, supported only by some delicate props : Bibe, vivas onultis aiinis. How many disappointments must the artist have experienced before he accomplished the labour of making such a vessel, and what a price must Grallus have paid for it ! In the Cyzicenian saloon no such ornaments were to be seen; but the slaves had more work in cleaning the windows and window-frames which reached to the ground, and in preventing the view from being obscured by dull spots in the glass. Whilst the mansion was being thus cleansed and adorned throughout, whilst the disjpensator was busied in recasting the account of the receipts and expenditure during the last month, to be ready for his master's in- spection, and the cellarius was reviewing his stock, and considering how much would supply the exigencies of the day, and the superior slaves were engaged, each with his allotted task — the vestibulum had already begun to be filled with a multitude of visitors, who came to Scene IL] MOEXIXG. 21 pay their customary morning salutation to their patron. The persons who presented themselves differed not only in their grades, but also in the motives of their attend- ance^ ^ Citizens of the inferior class, who received sup- port from the hand of Gallus ; young men of family, who expected to make their fortunes through the favourite of Augustus ; poor poets and idlers, who looked to a com- pensation for these early attentions, by a place at the board of Grallus, or contented themselves with a share of the diurnal sportula ; a few friends really attached to him by gratitude or affection. Amongst the number were, no doubt, some vain fellows, who felt so flattered at having admission to a house of distinction, that they disregarded the inconvenience of dancing attendance thus early before the door of their dominus or rex, and waited impatiently for the moment when they were to be admitted. For this was not the only visit of the kind they intended to pay this morning; and there were some even with whom this made the second or third door visited already. As soon therefore as the ostiarius let them in, each one pressed forward to the atrium, or became lost to view in the colonnades, beguiling the interval with gazing about them, and conversing with one another. Meamvhile G-allus had risen from his couch, though later than he usually did : he was not however inclined to receive the crowd of visitors, about whom he was perfectly indifferent. Accordingly the nomenclator, who had already arranged the order of those who were to be introduced, was instructed to say that bis lord was indisposed, and would not make his appearance to-day. At the same time he was ordered, if Pomponius, or any other intimate friends should call, to admit them into the cuhiculuin; but all other visits were to be declined. " On the subjects of Salutatio and Sportida, see the foiirth Excursus on the First Scene. 99 GALL US. [Scene II. The throng had long taken its departure, when to- wards the end of the second hour of the day Pomponius arrived. He was a man near upon forty : his hollow but gleaming eye, his pale and sunken cheeks, the half sensual, half scornful expression about his mouth, as well as the negligent folds of his voluminous toga, at once pointed him out as one of those dissipated men, who are accus- tomed to riot all night in wild revelry and forbidden gambling-, or in the oroies of the Subura, Althouo'h of distinguished parentage, and left heir to a fortune of nearly two millions of sesterces^ usurers and harlots had long since sung the dirge of his patrimony ^^. Instead of his parental mansion, he now inhabited a lodging near the Tiber, hired for three thousand sesterces^ while his attendants were limited to a few shabby slaves. Household stores he had none : his bread, and wine fresh from the vat, were brought from the nearest tavern ^^ Notwithstanding, however, he possessed sufficient wit and intelligence to make him wel- come even in the best circles. An adept in every kind of amusement, ever ready to enter into any jovial scheme, and fully acquainted with the ways and means of insuring its success ; unequalled, besides, as a director of a feast, and a perfect connoisseur in wines and dishes, he managed to make people forget the less recommendatory points in his character, and (which was an enigma to many) was not excluded from the table even of Augustus. He had, in like manner, by his pleasantry and merry disposition, and by a thousand little kindnesses, and, as it seemed too, by some more important tokens of genuine friendship, contrived to become indispensable to the freeliving Grallus. It is true that the cautious Chresimus was not the only '2 Thus Plautiis, True. ii. 1, 3, says : Huic homini amanti mea hera ajpiul nos dixit ncBniam de bonis. ^^ The description is borrowed from Cic. in Pis. 27. 3000 HS. or 24:1. was the rent paid also by Sulla, before he arrived at wealth and power. Plut. Sulla, 1. For more about the price of hired lodgings, and the houses themselves, see Mei- erotto, ii. p. 104, seqc[. Scene IL] MORMJS-G. 23 one who shook his head at this : and some affirmed, that before the recall of Grallus to Eome, Pomponius had lived in familiar intercourse with Lycoris^ and that he had sworn to effect the downfall of the former in revenge for being supplanted by him. It was certain that he had of late been a most intimate associate of Largus, from whom it was surmised that he received considerable pecuniary aid. On the other hand, Pomponius had himself concerted measures with Grallus for gaining the confidence of his most dangerous foe, and thus becoming apprised of any peril that might threaten him, and had moreover frequently warned him about the other's plans. How then could Grallus consider the cautions which reached him as any thing else than empty fears and calumnies ? Two other men had entered at the same time as Pomponius, so different in manner, thoughts, and actions, that it required all the versatility with which their companion was gifted to fill up the chasm between them. Lentulus, young, vain, and wealthy, was the exact prototype of those well-dressed, self-sufficient, shallow young men of our own day, so graphically described by a modern French author, as being helles bourses cVetalage : qiCy a-t-il au fond f du vide^^. No one dressed with more care, or arranged his hair in more elegant locks, or diffused around him such a scent of cassia and stakte, nard and balsam. No one was better acquainted with the latest news of the city : — who were betrothed yesterday, who was Caius' newest mistress, why Titus had procured a divorce, on whom Neaera had closed her doors. The whole business of his day consisted in philandering about the toilets of the ladies, or strolling through the colonnades of Pompeius, or the almost completed Septa, humming Alexandrian or Graditanian songs, or, at most, in reading or writing a love epistle : in short, he was a complete specimen of what the L. Desnoyers, Lcs Btotiens de Paris, Livre des Cent et un, ili. p. 61. 24 GALLUS. [SCEXE II. Eomans contemptuously called hellus liomio^^. It can be easily imagined that Grallus was not very anxious for ihh society of such a person ; but Pomponius saw only that Lentulus was rich, that few gave . better dinners, and be- sides, he liked his folly, which often served as a butt for his own wit and sarcasms. What a strong contrast to this smooth coxcomb was Calpurnius ! whose lofty stature and manly bearing, free alike from stiffness and negligence, commanded respect; while the simple throw and scanty gatherings of his toga., in the highly drawn up sinus of which his right arm rested, reminded one of the orators of the republic. In his dark eyes, overshadowed by lofty brows, there glowed a tran- quil fire, and if you watched at the same time the earnest folds of his forehead and the bitter curl of his lips, you almost believed that you saw before you one who had fallen out with fate, or meditated revenge. ' Welcome, friends I ' cried Gallus, as they entered the peristyle, where according to custom he was enjoying the fresh morning air. ' And you too, Lentulus ? What, are you not afraid lest the dampness of the morning air should destroy the ingenious edifice of 3^our locks ? ' 'Joke away!' replied Lentulus, 'who knows whether I live not happier under it than ye do in many a new state fabric, built only in your thoughts ? But enough of that. I will leave you directly to your momentous consultations, and only come now to propose that we should not breakfast with you to-day, as we agreed yes- ^^ Such a bellus homo Martial ad- mirably describes, iii. 63 : Bellus homo est, flexos qui digerit ordine crines : Balsama qui semper, cinnama semper olet. Cantica qui Nili, qui Gaditana susuiTat ; Qui mo vet in varios bracliia vulsamodos. Inter fcemineas tota qui luce cathedras Desidet,atque aliqua semper in aure sonat. Qui legit hinc illinc missas, scribitque ta- bellas. Pallia vicini qui refugit cubiti. Qui seit quam quis amet ; qui percouvivia currit ; Hirpini veteres qui bene novit avos. Well may we say, after casting a glance upon the bellies homo of our own day, ' Men are now as men ever were.' Scene IL] MOENIIS-G. 25 terday, but that you come instead to my house. Not merely for the sake of the excellent oysters that I received this morning from the Lucrine lake, and the splendid rhotnhus sent me yesterday from Kavenna — these would at most be an attraction for Pomponius alone — hut for the purpose of admiring a work of art of surpassing grace and beaut}^ You know Issa, Terentia's lap-dog^ ^ ? I have had the little imp painted, sweetly reposing upon a soft cushion : it was only finished yesterday, and the illu- sion is, I assure you, complete. Place it by the side of the delicate little animal, and you will think either that both are painted, or both alive.' G-allus laughed loudly at this enthusiasm about a lap-dog, and even on the visage of Calpurnius a smile gradually got the better of his'habitual scowl. ' I believe you, my Lentulus,' replied the first ; ' and it grieves me to be able neither to make acquaint- ance with the Lucrine and Eavennan strangers, nor to enjoy the high artistic treat. Cogent reasons induce me to spend a few weeks in the country, and I have just determined to set off this morning.' ' Into the country ? To the villa ?' cried Pomponius and Calpurnius, in astonishment, whilst Lentulus affectedly supported his chin with his left hand. — ' So it is,' said G-allus ; ' and I had already ordered my slave to make my apologies for not breakfasting with you, and to invite you to my villa instead.' *Well, well, if such be the case,' said Lentulus, 'I have nothing to do, but wish you a pleasant journey thither. But I make one condition, that you take your *^ The delicicB of the Eonian ladie.s are known through the passer of Les- bia, and the parrot of Corinna. The Issa here mentioned belongs, it is true, to a later period, and to no lady, but to the painter Publius, who had painted her for himself. Mart. i. 110. The same poet, vii. 87, names as such favourite objects, bubo, catel- la, cercopithecos, ichneumon, pica, draco, luscinia. The lap-dog of the lady was naturally an object of tender blandishment to the lover. Indeed this is enjoined by Clsereta, — Plaut. Asin. i. 3, 32. Cf. Mart, xiv.198 ; Juv. vi. 654; Petron.64, 71 ; Plin.£)j. iv. 2. 26 GALLUS. [Scene II. first meal at my house after your return. I am only sorry that you will not see Issa, for this very day will Terentia receive this proof of my affection.' Having thus said, he sped away through the halls and atrium, carefully avoiding the busy slaves, lest they should soil the snowy w^hiteness of his garments, and hastened to arrange the breakfast : since Pomponius, at all events, would not forget the Lucrine oysters aud the rlioimhus. ' So to Capua, then ? ' said Pomponius, musingly, after the departure of Lentulus, and appearing at the same time to be occupied with other thoughts than the recent in- vitation. ^Into the lap of enjoyment and idleness ! ' put in Cal- purnius gloomily. ' And Lycoris ? ' asked Pomponius inquiringly, whilst he involuntarily held his nether lip between his teeth. ' Will grant my request, I hope, and spend these weeks in Baise.' ' And the fine plans of yesterday ? ' interrupted Cal- purnius : ' are we children that we swear death to the tyrant, and within twelve hours afterwards quietly repose on the soft pillow of pleasure and voluptuousness ? ' ' Calpurnius,' said G-alLus earnestly, ^the incautious ex- pressions cajoled from the tongue by the Setinian wine must not be interpreted too literally the next morning. I have, it is true, been grievously insulted, and by the very man from whose hand I received all my fortune ; but I will never forget what is due to gratitude, and for the same reason, that I feel how easily I can be provoked, I will withdraw into the retirement of the countr}?- for a while. Virgil and Propertius have already left Rome to enjoy the charms of nature, and I too pine for a more simple way of life.' ' G^allus is right,' cried Pomponius, as if awaking from a dream, * he is right ;' — while Calpurnius, turning away his head, bit his lip. ^ He will thus best show that he has no desire to take part in any movement that may Scene 1 1. J MORNING, 27 be made, and he leaves true friends behind him to avert any danger that may threaten him in his absence. But since the hour of departure is so near, his time must be precious, Calpurnius. Let us therefore now depart. Fare- well, Grallus ! happy omen be thy speed I ' With this he went, forcing the silent Calpurnius away. SCENE THE THIED. STUDIES AND LETTEES, GALLUS had for some time past kept as much as pos- sible aloof from the disquieting labours of public life^, and had been accustomed to divide his time between the pleasures of the table and of love, the societ}^ of friends, and the pursuit of his studies, serious as well as cheerfuP. On the present occasion also, after his friends had departed, he withdrew into the chamber, where he used daily to spend the later hours of the morning, in converse with the great spirits of ancient Grreece — a pursuit animating and refreshing alike to heart and soul — or to yield himself up to the sport of his own muse. For this reason, this apartment lay far removed from the noisy din of the street, so that neither the rattlino^ of the creakino^ wains and the stimulating cry of the mule-driver, the clarions and dirge of the pompous funeral, nor the brawlings of the slaves ^ hurrying busily along, could penetrate it. A lofty 1 In this description of the mode of life to which Grallus, after a long continuance of active exertion, had resigned himself, reference has been principally had to Cic. Fam. ix. 20. Omnem nostrmn de repuhlica cur am, cogitationem de dicenda in senatu sententia, commentationem causa- rum ahjecimus. In Epicuri nos ad- versarii nostri castra conjecimus. No doubt this Epicurism would as- sume a different form in Grallus from that of Cicero, yet the latter's account of his morning occupations might very well be transferred to Gallus : H(BC igitur est nunc vita nostra. Mane ,salutatus dond et bonos viros midtos, sed tristes, et hos lestos victores, qui me quidcm peroßciose et 'per amanter observant. Tibi salutatio defluxit. Uteris one involve ; aut scribo, aid lego. In the retirement of country- life (Plin. Ep. ix. 9, 36), there was, no doubt, more likelihood of such quiet enjoyment than amid the num- berless interruptions of the bustling metropolis, which Pliny describes, Ep. i. 9 : &i quern interroges : Hodie quid egistil respondeat: Officio togcB virilis interfui, sponsalia aut nuptias frequentavi : ille me ad signandum testamentum, ille in advocationem, ille in consilium rogavit. So also Hor. Epist. ii. 2, 65. Even at the country house many were subjected to the solicitations of their neigh- bours. Plin, Ep, ix. 15. ^ The characteristic bustle of the slaves, as they ran along the street, is Scene III.] STUDIES AND LETTERS. 29 window, 'through which shone the light of the early morn- ino' sun, pleasantly illuminated from above the moderate- sized apartment, the walls of which were adorned with elegant arabesques in light colours, whilst between them, on darker grounds, the luxurious forms of attractive danc- ing girls were seen sweeping spirit-like along. A neat couch, faced with tortoise-shell and hung with Babylonian tapestry of various colours — by the side of which was the scrinium containing the poet's elegies, which were as yet unknown to the majority of the public, and a small table of cedar-wood, on goat's-feet of bronze, comprised the whole of the supellex. Immediately adjoining this apartment was the library, full of the most precious treasures acquired by Gailus, chiefly in Alexandria. There, in presses of cedar-wood, placed round the walls, lay the rolls, partly of parch- ment, and partly of the finest Egyptian 'papyrus, each supplied with a label, on which was seen, in bright red letters, the name of the author and title of the book. Above these again were ranged the busts, in bronze or marble, of the most renowned writers, an entirely novel ornament for libraries, first introduced into Eome by Asinius Pollio, who perhaps had only copied it from the libraries of Pergamus and Alexandria. True, only the chief repre- sentatives of each separate branch of literature were to be found in the narrow space available for them ; but to com- pensate for this, there were several rolls which contained the portraits of seven hundred remarkable men. These were the hebdomades or peplography of Varro, who, by means of a new and much-valued invention ^, was enabled ■well known from comic ^vriters, and currentes is their peculiar epithet. Terence, Eun. Prol. 36 ; Heaut. Prol. 31. Examples occur in almost erery one of the comedies of Plautus. So hasty a pace was not, however, becoming to a respectable free-man Liberos homines per urbem medico magis par est gradu Ire ; servuli esse dico, festiuautem currere. ^ The question as to what was the benig nissimuyn Varronis . inventum, has been lately revived. The chief passage in Pliny, xxxv. 2, bearing Plautus Toiii. iii. 1, 19. ' ^^ ^^^ matter is certainly in a tone of 30 GALLÜS. [Scene III. in an easy manner to multiplv the collection of bis por- traits^ and so to spread copies of them, with short biogra- phical notices of the men, through the whole learned world. admiration. Imaginum amove fla- grasse quondam testes sunt Atticus ille Ciceronis, edito de Ms vohcmine, et Marcus Varro henignissimo in- vento insertis voluminum suorum foicunditati non nominihus tantum septingentorum illustrium, sed et aliquo modo imaginihuSy non passiis intercidere figuras, ant vestustatem (svi contra homines valere, inventor muneris etiam Diis invidiosi, quando immortalitatem no7i solum dedit, ve- rum etiam in omnes terras onisit, ut frcBsentes esse uhique et claudi (?) fossent. It was an Iconography (consisting of one hundred rolls and sheets, each one of which contained seven pictures, with short biogra- phies, e])igramma, Grell, iii. 11 ; cpi- grammatum adjectione, or elegiis, S}'Tnmach. Ejp. i. 2. 4), unquestion- aisly the same book that Cicero, ad Attic, xvi. 11, calls U.^TrXoypacpiav Varronis, and that bore the name Hehdomades (Gell. iii. 10, qui in- scrihmtur (libri) hebdomades s. de imaginihus) ; but opinions are divid- ed as to wherein consisted its novelty and remarkableness. Brotier and Falconnet suppose that they were drawings on parchment or canvas. Visconti calls them des portraits 'peints sans doute sur parchemin. On the other hand, De Pauw be- lieved that it was an invention for the multiplication of the portraits, and that it was copper-plate en- graving, which Ottfr. Müller con- siders most probably to have been the case. Quatremk-e de Quincy sets up a similar hypothesis, which, however, rests on a very insecure basis. Eaoul-Eochette gives the fol- lowing account of it : ' M. Quatre- mere de Quincy n'est point occupe de cette discussion preliminaire. Fidele ä sa methode de traiter les questions d'antiquite d'apr^s les seules textes antiques, sans avoir egard aux opinions des critiques mo- dernes, qui ont pu s'exercer sur les memes sujets, I'illustre auteur n'a fait aucune mention des idees de Brotier, de Falconnet et de Pauw. Encore moins aurait-il pu citer I'ex- plication d'un autre savant, laquelle rentre pourtant a pen pr^s dans la sienne, mais qui se trouve en quelque sorte cachee dans un ou^Tage d'ar- cheologie chretienne, ou Ton ne s'aATserait pas d'aller la ehercher. Je veux parier de I'idee de Mun- ter, qui rappelant, au debut de ses recherches sur I'iconographie chre- tienne, I'iuvention de Varron, sup- pose qu'elle consistait en portraits graves aux traits sur des planches de bois, et imprimes sur parchemin, tout en repoussant 1' opinion, que ces portraits, ainsi imprimes, aient pu etre colories ou enlumines en pin- ceau, de la main de Lala, comme on pourrait le croire d'apres un autre ' passage de Pline (xxxv. 11, 40) : Lala Cyzicena — Marci Varronis inventa EomcB et penicillo finxit {et cestro in ebore). Le docte antiquaire Danois n'admet pas, en eflfet, dans le texte de Pline, la legon inventa, qu'il sup- pose une correction de quelque criti- que moderne, au lieu i^Q juventa, qui lui parait la le^on originale. Mais il se trompe certainement en ce point ; les mots : M. Varronis inventa, de ce passage de Pline, s'accordent trop bien avec le Varronis benignissimum SCRNE III.] STUDIES AND LETTERS. 1 On the other side of the library was a larger room, in which a number of learned slaves were occupied in tran- scribing, with nimble hand, the works of illustrious Grreek inventum de 1' autre texte, pour qu'il y ait le moindre lieu de douter, qu'ils u'expriment I'un et I'autreJ-a pensee de Pline, et qu'ils ne se rapportent I'un et I'autre un precede de Varron ; la legon inventa est d'ailleurs celle des meilleurs editions, conipris 1' edi- tion princeps de 1469. Cela pose, riiypothese de M. Quatremere de Quincy aequiert le plus haut degre de probabilite ; il suppose, que Var- ron fit executer au ccstre siir ivoire par la main de Lala, les portraits de son iconograptiie, dont eile avait peint les modeles au pinceau ; et que ces portraits, imprimes sur toile, se mul- tipliaient au moyen d'une pression ineeanique, dont le precede etaittrop simple et trop facile a trouver pour qu'il ait pu ofFrir le moindre embarras ä I'industrie Romaine de cette age.' The chief points of this hypo- thesis, with which Eaoul-Rochette coincides, are, that the inventum Varronis^v&s a means of miütiplying portraits ; that Lala of Cyzikos fxu-- nished the designs, and engraved them on ivory ; and that tinted en- gravings of them were made on can- vas, by means of several plates ; but the last assumption ' rests on a pure misapprehension. Cicero names the work ne7rAo7pa^io, analogously to the Panathenaic Peplos : of which Suidas under neVAos says : U^ttXov ^TToirjcrau rrj 'Adrjva Kal eveypaipav rovs apicTTOvs iu avra. Arist. Equit, 566. äi^Spes a|iOi tov Tre- ttAou. Aristotle named thus his ge- nealogy of the Homeric heroes ; the word therefore denotes nothing more than a gallery of remarkable persons, as Popma, and after him Ernesti, have sufficiently shown. As for can- vas, or any substance whatever, on which the pictures were painted, it is not to be thought of. The process with the cestrum may have been merely a species of en- caustic engraving — but as to whether it was a simple biuming in of the out- line, or in some way a kind of stip- pling,we are still in the dark — whilst the drawing, by means of this biuming in, was to receive its tinted appear- ance or its consistency as an .engra- ving on the ivory, in order to bring forth the ivory-pictiu'es, Pliny rather obscurely describes XXV. 11, 41. En- causto pingendi duo fuisse anti- quitus genera constat, cera, et in ebore, cestro, id est, vinculo, donee classes fingi cosperunt. The other suppositions also appear very untenable. And it woidd ap- pear very strange if, for the piu'pose of engraving, they had taken such a fragile material as ivory, whilst cop- per or other durable metal presented itself. Besides, the reading of in- venta iorjuventa is very imsafe, and the last expression is so like one of Pliny's own, that we may entirely decide in favoiu' of it. Letronne opposed this hypothe- sis ; but the grammatical scruples that he raises are totally groundless. He denies that the invention con- sisted in a means of midtiplying, and supposes painted portraits, so that in that case inventum would simply mean a new idea. But the words of Pliny are clearly in oppo sition to him ; for besides that the epithet bcnignisshium conveys the idea of communication and common GALLUS. [Scene III. and the more ancient Eoman authors, both for the supply of the library, and for the use of those friends to whom Gall us obligingly communicated his literary treasures. Others were engaged in giving the rolls the most agree- able exterior, in gluing the separate strips of papyrus together, drawing the red lines which divided the dif- ferent columns, and writing the title ''in the same colour; in smoothing with pumice-stone and blackening the edges ; fastening ivory tops on the sticks round which the rolls were wrapped, and dyeing bright red or yellow the parch- ment which was to serve as a wrapper. G-allus, with Chresimus, entered the study, where the freedman, of whom he was used to avail himself in his studies '*, to make remarks on what was read, to note down utility, Pliny also expressly says : verum etiam in omnes terras onisif, ut ])r(ssentes esse ubique possent. It is therefore evident that he speaks of numerous copies ; and besides this, he says : non nominihis tantuni sejp- tirigentorum illustrium, sed et aliquo modo imaginihus, and gives ns posi- tively to understand that they were no regular portraits. Still it is to be doubted whether it could have been an engraving, on a plate of copper^ or any other metal, as such an in- vention would haye been of the ut- most moment, and necessarily less transitory. Pliny, too, would hardly have passed over the technical part of this new branch in the art of de- sign ; we cannot, therefore, include copper-plate engraving under aliquo onodo. Perhaps these aliquo modo ima- gines were portraits done Silhouette- fashion, or painted by means of shab- loons, or something similar ; for it can hardly be supposed that they were executed in colours, as in the Oriental painting, as it is called. Whether, when wall-painting at a later period became so general, this contrivance may have been made use of in a set of uniform arabesques, must be an- swered in the negative. Though it would not be impossible ; for even in the good times of art, they used to bethink themselves of methods of abbreviating labour {compendiarias, Plin. XXXV. 10, 36.) And perhaps we might refer to this the words of Petronius, c. 2, where he speaks of the decline of the arts of oratory and painting. Quis postea ad summam Tlmcydidis, quis Hyperidis adfamam processit ? ac ne carmen quidem sani coloris enituit ; sed omnia quasi eo- dem cibo pasta non potuerunt usque ad senectutem canescere. Pictura quoque non alium exitum fecit, post- quam Mgyptiarum audacia tam magncB artis compendiariam invenit. But in that case it would be strange if repetitions of the same paintings were not to be found at Hercula- neum and Pompeii. * Among the librarii were some who were made use of in studying, for the purpose of extracting and Scene IIL] STUDIES AND LETTERS. 33 particular passages, or to commit to paper his own poetical effusions, as they escaped him, was already awaitino- him. After giving Chresimus further instructions to make the necessary preparations for an immediate journey, he re- clined, in his accustomed ma/uner, on his studying couch, noting down remarks, a studiis. Orell. laser. 719; Suet. Claud, 28. Ac super h-os (libertos, maxime sus- pexit) Polybium a studiis qui S(spe inter duos Consules amhulahat. We see clearly what their business was from a letter of the young Cicero, Fam. xvi. 21 : Peto a te, ut quam celerrime lihrarius mihi mittatur, onaxime quidem Grmcus ; multum enim mihi eripitur opercB exscriben- dis hypomnematis. Best adapted for this purpose were the notarii, raxv- ypdcpoL, (T7)ixeioypd(l)oi, who wrote by means of marks, Sia a-rnxHuv — the short-hand writers of antiquity, unex- celled perhaps in facility even by the moderns. [This art was introduced into Eome during the last hundred years of its freedom. Plutarch ( Cat. Min. 23) calls Cicero, and Dio. Cass. Iv. 7, Maecenas, the inventor of it. Isodorus, i. 21, mentions Ennius as the founder of tachj-graphy, and the freedmen of Cicero and Msecenas, Tiro and Aquila, as those who in practice had further improved it. Gellius, xvii. 9, speaks not of steno- graphy, but of a kind of secret cy- pher-writing in use between Csesar, Oppius, and Balbus : In his epistolis quibusdam in locis inveniuntur li- terce singidarice sine coagmentis syllabarur/i, quas tu putes positas incondite ; nam verba ex his Uteris confici nulla possunt. Erat autem conventum inter eos clandestinum de commutando situ literarum, ut in scrip)to quidem alia ali