Chaps. 83-98.

Chap. 83. (63.)—Generation of All Kinds of Terrestrial Animals.

The only one among the bipeds that is viviparous is man. Man is the only animal that repents of his first embraces; sad augury, indeed, of life, that its very origin should thus cause repentance! Other animals have stated times in the year for their embraces; but man, as we have already [B. vii. c. 4.] observed, employs for this purpose all hours both of day and night; other animals become sated with venereal pleasures, man hardly knows any satiety. Messalina, [Justly called by Juvenal, “meretricem Augustam,” Sat. vi. l. 118.] the wife of Claudius Cæsar, thinking this a palm quite worthy of an empress, selected, for the purpose of deciding the question, one of the most notorious of the women who followed the profession of a hired prostitute; and the empress outdid her, after continuous intercourse, night and day, at the twenty-fifth embrace. In the human race also, the men have devised various substitutes for the more legitimate exercise of passion, all of which outrage Nature; while the females have recourse to abortion. How much more guilty than the brute beasts are we in this respect! Hesiod has stated that men are more lustful in winter, women in summer.

Coupling is performed back to back by the elephant, the camel, the tiger, the lynx, the rhinoceros, the lion, the dasypus, and the rabbit, the genital parts of all which animals lie far back. Camels even seek desert places, or, at all events, spots of a retired nature; and to come upon them on such an occasion is not unattended with danger. Coupling, with them, lasts a whole day; the only animal, indeed, of all those with solid hoofs, with which such is the case. Among the quadrupeds, it is the smell that excites the passions of the male. In this act, dogs also, seals, and wolves turn back to back, and remain attached, though greatly against their will. In the greater part of the animals above mentioned, the females solicit the males; in some, however, the males the females. As to bears, they lie down, like the human race, as previously [B. viii. c. 54.] mentioned by us; while hedgehogs embrace standing upright. In cats, the male stands above, while the female assumes a crouching posture; foxes lie on the side, the female embracing the male. In the case of the cow and the hind, the female is unable to endure the violence of the male, consequently she keeps in motion during the time of coupling. The buck goes from one hind to another in turn, and then comes back to the first. Lizards couple entwined around each other, like the animals without feet.

All animals, the larger they are in bulk, are proportionably less prolific: the elephant, the camel, and the horse produce but one, while the acanthis, [Probably the goldfinch.] a very small bird, produces twelve. Those animals, also, which are the most prolific, are the shortest time in breeding. The larger an animal is, the longer is the time required for its formation in the womb; those, also, which are the longest-lived, require the longest gestation; the growing age, too, is not suitable for the purposes of generation. Those animals which have solid hoofs bear but a single young one, while those which have cloven hoofs bear two. Those, again, whose feet are divided into toes, have a still more numerous offspring; but, while the others bring forth their young perfect, these last bear them in an unformed state, such, for instance, as the lioness and the she-bear. The fox also brings forth its young in an even more imperfect state than these; it is a very uncommon thing, however, to find it whelping. After the birth, these animals warm their young by licking them, and thereby give them their proper shape; they mostly produce four at a birth.

The dog, the wolf, the panther, and the jackal produce their young blind. There are several kinds of dogs; those of Laconia, [A kind of large hound.] of both sexes, are ready for breeding in the eighth month, and the females carry their young sixty or sixty-three days at most; other dogs are fit for breeding when only six months old; the female, in all cases, becomes pregnant at the first congress. Those which have conceived before the proper age, bear pups which are longer blind, though not all the same number of days. It is thought that dogs, in general, lift the leg when they water at six months old; this, too, is looked upon as a sign that they have attained their full growth and strength; when doing this, the female squats. The most numerous litters known consist of twelve, but more generally five or six is the number; sometimes, indeed, only one is produced, but then it is looked upon as a prodigy, and the same is the case, too, when all the pups are of one sex. In the dog, the males come into the world first, but in other animals, the two sexes are born alternately. The female admits the male again six months after she has littered. Those of the Laconian breed bear eight young ones. It is a peculiarity in this kind, that after undergoing great labour, the males are remarkable for their salacity. In the Laconian breed the male lives ten years, the female twelve; while other kinds, again, live fifteen years, and sometimes as much as twenty; but they are not fit for breeding to the end of their life, as they generally cease at about the twelfth year. The cat and the ichneumon are, in other respects, [The number that they bear.] like the dog; but they only live six years.

The dasypus [See B. viii. c..] brings forth every month in the year, and is subject to superfœtation, like the hare. It conceives immediately after it has littered, even though it is still suckling its young, which are blind at their birth. The elephant, as we have already [B. viii. c. 10, and in the present Chapter.] stated, produces but one, and that the size of a calf three months old. The gestation of the camel lasts twelve months; the female conceives when three years old, and brings forth in the spring; at the end of a year from that time, she is ready to conceive again. It is thought advisable to have the mare covered so soon as three days, and indeed, sometimes, only one, after she has foaled; and, however unwilling she may be, means are taken to compel her. It is believed also, that it is by no means an uncommon thing for a woman to conceive on the seventh day after her delivery. It is recommended that the manes of mares should be cut, so as to humble their pride, in order to make them submit to be covered by the male ass; for when the mane is long, they are liable to be proud and vain. This is the only animal, the female of which, after covering, runs, facing the north or the south, according as she has conceived a male or a female. They change their colour immediately after, and the hair becomes of a redder hue, and deeper, whatever the colour may naturally be; it is this that indicates that they must no longer be covered, and they, themselves, will even resist it. Gestation does not, however, preclude some of them from being worked, and they are often with foal long before it is known. We read that the mare of Echecrates, the Thessalian, conquered at the Olympic games, while with foal.

Those who are more careful enquirers into these matters, tell us that in the horse, the dog, and the swine, the males are most ardent for sexual intercourse in the morning, while the female seeks the society of the male after mid-day. They say also, that mares in harness desire the horse sixty days sooner than those that live in herds; that it is swine only that foam at the mouth during the time of coupling; and that a boar, if it hears the voice of a sow in heat, will refuse to take its food,—to such a degree, indeed, as to starve itself, if it is not allowed to cover—while the female is reduced to such a state of frantic madness, as to attack and tear a man, more especially if wearing a white garment. This frenzy, however, is appeased by sprinkling vinegar on the sexual parts. It is supposed also that salacity is promoted by certain aliments; the herb rocket, for instance, in the case of man, and onions in that of cattle. Wild animals that have been tamed, do not conceive, the goose, for instance; the wild boar and the stag will only produce late in life, and even then they must have been taken and tamed when very young; a singular fact. The pregnant females, among the quadrupeds, refuse the male, with the exception, indeed, of the mare and the sow; superfœtation, however, takes place in none but the dasypus and the hare.

Chap. 84. (64.)—The Position of Animals in the Uterus.

All those animals that are viviparous produce their young with the head first, the young animal about the time of yeaning turning itself round in the womb, where at other times it lies extended at full length. Quadrupeds during the time of gestation have the legs extended, and lying close to the belly; while, on the other hand, man is gathered up into a ball, with the nose between the knees. With reference to moles, of which we have previously [B. vii. c. 13.] spoken, it is supposed that they are produced when a female has conceived, not by a male, but of herself only. Hence it is that there is no vitality in this false conception, because it does not proceed from the conjunction of the two sexes; and it has only that sort of vegetative existence in itself which we see in plants and trees.

(65.) Of all those which produce their young in a perfect state, the swine is the only one that bears them in considerable numbers as well; and, indeed, several times in the year—a thing that is contrary to the usual nature of animals with a solid or cloven hoof.

Chap. 85.—Animals Whose Origin Is Still Unknown.

But it is mice that surpass all the other animals in fecundity; and it is not without some hesitation that I speak of them, although I have Aristotle and some of the officers of Alexander the Great for my authority. It is said that these animals generate by licking one another, and not by copulation. They have related cases where a single female has given birth to one hundred and twenty young ones, and in Persia some were found, even pregnant themselves, [Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. vi. c. 37, does not quite say this. He says that the young ones looked “as if” they were pregnant, οἷον κύοντα.] while yet in the womb of the parent. It is believed also that these animals will become pregnant on tasting salt. Hence we find that we have no longer any reason to wonder how such vast multitudes of field-mice devastate the standing corn; though it is still a mystery, with reference to them, in what way it is that such multitudes die so suddenly; for their dead bodies are never to be found, and there is not a person in existence that has ever dug up a mouse in a field during the winter. Multitudes of these animals visit Troas, and before this they have driven away the inhabitants in consequence of their vast numbers.

They multiply greatly during times of drought; it is said also that when they are about to die, a little worm grows in their head. The mice of Egypt have hard hairs, just like those of the hedge-hog. They walk on their hind feet, as also do those of the Alps. When two animals couple of different kinds, the union is only prolific if the time of gestation is the same in both. Among the oviparous quadrupeds, it is generally believed that the lizard brings forth by the mouth, though Aristotle denies the fact. These animals, too, do not sit upon their eggs, as they forget in what place they have laid them, being utterly destitute of memory; hence it is that the young ones are hatched spontaneously.

Chap. 86. (66.)—Salamanders.

We find it stated by many authors, [Ovid, Met. B. xv. l. 389, makes mention of this belief.] that a serpent is produced from the spinal marrow of a man. Many creatures, in fact, among the quadrupeds even, have a secret and mysterious origin.

(67) Thus, for instance, the salamander, an animal like a lizard in shape, and with a body starred all over, never comes out except during heavy showers, and disappears the moment it becomes fine. This animal is so intensely cold as to extinguish fire by its contact, in the same way as ice does. It spits forth a milky matter from its mouth; and whatever part of the human body is touched with this, all the hair falls off, and the part assumes the appearance of leprosy.

Chap. 87. (68.)—Animals Which Are Born of Beings That Have Not Been Born Themselves—Animals Which Are Born Themselves but Are Not Reproductive—Animals Which Are of Neither Sex.

Some animals, again, are engendered of beings that are not engendered themselves, and have no such origin as those above mentioned, which are produced in the spring, or at some stated period of the year. Some of these are non-productive, the salamander, for instance, which is of no sex, either male or female; a distinction also, which does not exist in the eel and the other kinds that are neither viviparous nor oviparous. The oyster also, as well as the other shell-fish that adhere to the bottom of the sea or to rocks, are of neither sex. Again, as to those animals which are able to engender of themselves, if they are looked upon as divided into male and female, they do engender something, it is true, by coupling, but the produce is imperfect, quite dissimilar to the animal itself, and one from which nothing else is reproduced; this we find to be the case with flies, when they give birth to maggots. This fact is better illustrated by the nature of those animals which are known as insects; a subject, indeed, very difficult of explanation, and one which requires to be treated of in a Book [See the following Book.] by itself. We will, therefore, proceed for the present with our remarks upon the instincts of the animals that have been previously mentioned.

Chap. 88. (69.)—The Senses of Animals—That All Have the Senses of Touch and Taste—Those Which Are More Remarkable for Their Sight, Smell, or Hearing—Moles—Whether Oysters Have the Sense of Hearing.

Man excels more especially in his sense of touch, and next, in that of taste. In other respects, he is surpassed by many of the animals. Eagles can see more clearly than any other animals, while vultures have the better smell; moles hear more distinctly than others, although buried in the earth, so dense and sluggish an element as it is; and what is even more, although every sound has a tendency upwards, they can hear the words that are spoken; and, it is said, they can even understand it if you talk about them, and will take to flight immediately. Among men, a person who has not enjoyed the sense of hearing in his infancy, is deprived of the powers of speech as well; and there are none deaf from their birth who are not dumb also. Among the marine animals, it is not probable that oysters enjoy the sense of hearing, but it is said that immediately a noise is made the solen [Known by us as the razor-sheath.] will sink to the bottom; it is for this reason, too, that silence is observed by persons while fishing at sea.

Chap. 89. (70.)—Which Fishes Have the Best Hearing.

Fishes have neither organs of hearing, nor yet the exterior orifice. And yet, it is quite certain that they do hear; for it is a well-known fact, that in some fish-ponds they are in the habit of being assembled to be fed by the clapping of the hands. In the fish-ponds, too, that belong to the Emperor, the fish are in the habit of coming, each kind as it bears its name. [Martial alludes to these fish-preserves, and the fish coming upon hearing their name, B. iv. Ep. 30, and B. x. Ep. 30.] So too, it is said, the mullet, the wolf-fish, the salpa, and the chromis, have a very exquisite sense of hearing, and that it is for this reason that they frequent shallow water.

Chap. 90.—Which Fishes Have the Finest Sense of Smell.

It is quite manifest that fishes have the sense of smell also; for they are not all to be taken with the same bait, and are seen to smell at it before they seize it. Some, too, that are concealed in the bottom of holes, are driven out by the fisherman, by the aid of the smell of salted fish; with this he rubs the entrance of their retreat in the rock, immediately upon which they take to flight from the spot, just as though they had recognized the dead carcases of those of their kind. Then, again, they will rise to the surface at the smell of certain odours, such, for instance as roasted sæpia and polypus; and hence it is that these baits are placed in the osier kipes used for taking fish. They immediately take to flight upon smelling the bilge water in a ship’s hold, and more especially upon scenting the blood of fish.

The polypus cannot possibly be torn away from the rock to which it clings; but upon the herb cunila [A species of origanum.] being applied, the instant it smells it the fish quits its hold. Purples also are taken by means of fetid substances. And then, too, as to the other kinds of animals, who is there that can feel any doubt? Serpents are driven away by the smell of harts’ horns, and more particularly by that of storax. Ants, too, are killed by the odours of origanum, lime, or sulphur. Gnats are attracted by acids, but not by anything sweet.

(71.) All animals have the sense of touch, those even which have no other sense; for even in the oyster, and, among land animals, in the worm, this sense is found.

Chap. 91.—Diversities in the Feeding of Animals.

I am strongly inclined to believe, too, that the sense of taste exists in all animals; for why else should one seek one kind of food, and another another? And it is in this more especially that is to be seen the wondrous power of Nature, the framer of all things. Some animals seize their prey with their teeth, others, again, with their claws; some tear it to pieces with their hooked beak; others, that have a broad bill, wabble in their food; others, with a sharp nib, work holes into it; others suck at their food; others, again, lick it, others sup it in, others chew it, and others bolt it whole. And no less a diversity is there in the uses they make of their feet, for the purpose of carrying, tearing asunder, holding, squeezing, suspending [As in the case of the galgulus, mentioned in c. 50.] their bodies, or incessantly scratching the ground.

Chap. 92. (72.)—Animals Which Live on Poisons.

Roe-bucks and quails [See c. of the present Book, as to quails.] grow fat on poisons, as we have already mentioned, being themselves the most harmless of animals. Serpents will feed on eggs, and the address displayed by the dragon is quite remarkable.—For it will either swallow the egg whole, if its jaws will allow of it, and roll over and over so as to break it within, and then by coughing eject the shells: or else, if it is too young to be able to do so, it will gradually encircle the egg with its coils, and hold it so tight as to break it at the end, just, in fact, as though a piece had been cut out with a knife; then holding the remaining part in its folds, it will suck the contents. In the same manner, too, when it has swallowed a bird whole, it will make a violent effort, and vomit the feathers.

Chap. 93.—Animals Which Live on Earth—Animals Which Will Not Die of Hunger or Thirst.

Scorpions live on earth. Serpents, when an opportunity presents itself, show an especial liking for wine, although in other respects they need but very little drink. These animals, also, when kept shut up, require but little aliment, hardly any at all, in fact. The same is the case also with spiders, which at other times live by suction. Hence it is, that no venomous animal will die of hunger or thirst; it being the fact that they have neither heat, blood, nor sweat; all which humours, from their natural saltness, increase the animal’s voracity. In this class of animals all those are the most deadly, which have eaten some of their own kind just before they inflict the wound. The sphingium and the satyr [As to these monkies, see B. xviii. c. 30, and c. 80.] stow away food in the pouches of their cheeks, after which they will take it out piece by piece with their hands and eat it; and thus they do for a day or an hour what the ant usually does [I. e. lay by a store.] for the whole year.

(73.) The only animal with toes upon the feet that feeds upon grass is the hare, which will eat corn as well; while the solid-hoofed animals, and the swine among the cloven-footed ones, will eat all kinds of food, as well as roots. To roll over and over is a peculiarity of the animals with a solid hoof. All those which have serrated teeth are carnivorous. Bears live also upon corn, leaves, grapes, fruit, bees, crabs even, and ants; wolves, as we have already [B. viii. c. 34.] stated, will eat earth even when they are famishing. Cattle grow fat by drinking; hence it is that salt agrees with them so well; the same is also the case with beasts of burden, although they live on corn as well as grass; but they eat just in proportion to what they drink. In addition to those already spoken of, among the wild animals, stags ruminate, when reared in a domesticated state. All animals ruminate lying in preference to standing, and more in winter than in summer, mostly for seven months in the year. The Pontic mouse [Probably the ermine. See B. viii. c..] also ruminates in a similar manner.

Chap. 94.—Diversities in the Drinking of Animals.

In drinking, those animals which have serrated [Pliny alludes to dogs, cats, and similar mammifera, as having serrated teeth; the term, however, is quite inappropriate.] teeth, lap; and common mice do the same, although they belong to another class. Those which have the teeth continuous, horses and oxen, for instance, sup; bears do neither the one nor the other, but seem to bite at the water, and so devour it. In Africa, the greater part of the wild beasts do not drink in summer, through the want of rain; for which reason it is that the mice of Libya, when caught, will die if they drink. The ever-thirsting plains of Africa produce the oryx, [See B. viii. c..] an animal which, in consequence of the nature of its native locality, never drinks, and which, in a remarkable manner, affords a remedy against drought: for the Gætulian bandits by its aid fortify themselves against thirst, by finding in its body certain vesicles filled with a most wholesome liquid. In this same Africa, also, the pards conceal themselves in the thick foliage of the trees, and then spring down from the branches on any creature that may happen to be passing by, thus occupying what are ordinarily the haunts of the birds. Cats too, with what silent stealthiness, with what light steps do they creep towards a bird! How slily they will sit and watch, and then dart out upon a mouse! These animals scratch up the earth and bury their ordure, being well aware that the smell of it would betray their presence.

Chap. 95. (74.)—Antipathies of Animals. Proofs That They Are Sensible of Friendship and Other Affections.

Hence there will be no difficulty in perceiving that animals are possessed of other instincts besides those previously mentioned. In fact, there are certain antipathies and sympathies among them, which give rise to various affections besides those which we have mentioned in relation to each species in its appropriate place. The swan and the eagle are always at variance, and the raven and the chloreus [Probably the chlorion of c. 45.] seek each other’s eggs by night. In a similar manner, also, the raven and the kite are perpetually at war with one another, the one carrying off the other’s food. So, too, there are antipathies between the crow and the owl, the eagle and the trochilus; [Supposed to be the golden-crested wren.] —between the last two, if we are to believe the story, because the latter has received the title of the “king of the birds:” the same, again, with the owlet and all the smaller birds.

Again, in relation to the terrestrial animals, the weasel is at enmity with the crow, the turtle-dove with the pyrallis, [An insect. See B. xi. c. 42, if, indeed, this is the same that is there mentioned, which is somewhat doubtful.] the ichneumon with the wasp, and the phalangium with other spiders. Among aquatic animals, there is enmity between the duck and the sea-mew, the falcon known as the “harpe,” and the hawk called the “triorchis.” In a similar manner, too, the shrew-mouse and the heron are ever on the watch for each other’s young; and the ægithus, [It is not known what bird is meant: perhaps the titmouse.] so small a bird as it is, has an antipathy to the ass; for the latter, when scratching itself, rubs its body against the brambles, and so crushes the bird’s nest; a thing of which it stands in such dread, that if it only hears the voice of the ass when it brays, it will throw its eggs out of the nest, and the young ones themselves will sometimes fall to the ground in their fright; hence it is that it will fly at the ass, and peck at its sores with its beak. The fox, too, is at war with the nisus, [A kind of hawk or falcon.] and serpents with weasels and swine. Æsalon [Species unknown.] is the name given to a small bird that breaks the eggs of the raven, and the young of which are anxiously sought by the fox; while in its turn it will peck at the young of the fox, and even the parent itself. As soon as the ravens espy this, they come to its assistance, as though against a common enemy. The acanthis, too, lives among the brambles; hence it is that it also has an antipathy to the ass, because it devours the bramble blossoms. The ægithus and the anthus, [Probably the spring wag-tail.] too, are at such mortal enmity with each other, that it is the common belief that their blood will not mingle; and it is for this reason that they have the bad repute of being employed in many magical incantations. The thos and the lion are at war with each other; and, indeed, the smallest objects and the greatest just as much. Caterpillars will avoid a tree that is infested with ants. The spider, poised in its web, will throw itself on the head of a serpent as it lies stretched beneath the shade of the tree where it has built, and with its bite pierce its brain; such is the shock, that the creature will hiss from time to time, and then, seized with vertigo, coil round and round, while it finds itself unable to take to flight, or so much as to break the web of the spider, as it hangs suspended above; this scene only ends with its death.

Chap. 96.—Instances of Affection Shown by Serpents.

On the other hand, there is a strict friendship existing between the peacock and the pigeon, the turtle-dove and the parrot, the blackbird and the turtle, the crow and the heron, all of which join in a common enmity against the fox. The harpe also, and the kite, unite against the triorchis.

And then, besides, have we not seen instances of affection in the serpent even, that most ferocious of all animals? We have already [In B. viii. c. 22.] related the story that is told of a man in Arcadia, who was saved by a dragon which had belonged to him, and of his voice being recognized by the animal. We must also make mention here of another marvellous story that is related by Phylarchus about the asp. He tells us, that in Egypt one of these animals, after having received its daily nourishment at the table of a certain person, brought forth, and that it so happened that the son of its entertainer was killed by one of its young ones; upon which, returning to its food as usual, and becoming sensible of the crime, it immediately killed the young one, and returned to the house no more.

Chap. 97. (75.)—The Sleep of Animals.

The question as to their sleep, is one that is by no means difficult to solve. In the land animals, it is quite evident that all that have eyelids sleep. With reference to aquatic animals, it is admitted that they also sleep, though only for short periods, even by those writers who entertain doubts as to the other animals; and they come to this conclusion, not from any appearance of the eyes, for they have no eyelids, indeed, to close, but because they are to be seen buried in deep repose, and to all appearance fast asleep, betraying no motion in any part of the body except the tail, and by starting when they happen to hear a noise. With regard to the thunny, it is stated with still greater confidence that it sleeps; indeed, it is often found in that state near the shore, or among the rocks. Flat fish are also found fast asleep in shallow water, and are often taken in that state with the hand: and, as to the dolphin and the balæna, they are even heard to snore.

It is quite evident, also, that insects sleep, from the silent stillness which they preserve; and even if a light is put close to them, they will not be awoke thereby.

Chap. 98.—What Animals Are Subject to Dreams.

Man, just after his birth, is hard pressed by sleep for several months, after which he becomes more and more wakeful, day by day. The infant dreams [Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. iv. c. 10, maintains the contrary. But in B. vii. he asserts that infants do dream.] from the very first, for it will suddenly awake with every symptom of alarm, and while asleep will imitate the action of sucking. There are some persons, however, who never dream; indeed, we find instances stated where it has been a fatal sign for a person to dream, who has never done so before. Here we find ourselves invited by a grand field of investigation, and one that is full of alleged proofs on both sides of the question, whether, when the mind is at rest in sleep, it has any foreknowledge of the future, and if so, by what process this is brought about, or whether this is not altogether a matter quite fortuitous, as most other things are? If we were to attempt to decide the question by instances quoted, we should find as many on the one side as on the other.

It is pretty generally agreed, that dreams, immediately after we have taken wine and food, or when we have just fallen asleep again after waking, have no signification whatever. Indeed, sleep is nothing else than the retiring [See Lucretius, B. iv. l. 914, et seq.] of the mind into itself. It is quite evident that, besides man, horses, dogs, oxen, sheep, and goats have dreams; consequently, the same is supposed to be the case with all animals that are viviparous. As to those which are oviparous, it is a matter of uncertainty, though it is equally certain that they do sleep. But we must now pass on to a description of the insects.

Summary. —Remarkable facts, narratives, and observations, seven hundred and ninety-three.

Roman authors quoted. —Manilius, [M. Manilius, mentioned in c. 2. Nothing certain is known of him, but by some he is supposed to have been the senator and jurisconsult of that name, contemporary with the younger Scipio. The astronomical poem which goes under his name was probably written at a much later period.] Cornelius Valerianus, [See end of B. iii.] the Acta Triumphorum, [See end of B. v.] Umbricius Melior, [A famous soothsayer, who predicted to Galba, as we learn from Tacitus, the dangers to which he was about to be exposed. He wrote on the science of Divination, as practised by the Etruscans.] Massurius Sabinus, [See end of B..] Antistius Labeo, [A Roman legislator, proconsul of Gallia Narbonensis, and long a favourite of Augustus. According to Aulus Gellius, his works were very numerous. He also wrote a treatise on the Etruscan divination.] Trogus, [Trogus Pompeius. See end of B..] Cremutius, [See end of B..] M. Varro, [See end of B. ii.] Macer Æmilius, [See end of B..] Melissus, [See end of B..] Mucianus, [See end of B. ii.] Nepos, [See end of B. ii.] Fabius Pictor, [He was the most ancient writer of Roman history in prose. His history, which was written in Greek, is supposed to have commenced with the arrival of Æneas in Italy, and to have come down to his own time. He was sent by the Romans to consult the oracle at Delphi, after the battle of Cannæ.] T. Lucretius, [The famous poet and writer on the Epicurean philosophy. He was born B.C. 98, and slew himself B.C. 54.] Cornelius Celsus, [See end of B..] Horace, [Q. Horatius Flaccus, one of the greatest Roman poets.] Deculo, [Nothing is known of this writer; indeed, the correct reading is a matter of doubt.] Hyginus, [See end of B. iii.] the Sasernæ, [Father and son, who wrote treatises on agriculture, as we learn from Columella.] Nigidius, [See end of B..] Mamilius Sura. [A writer on agriculture, mentioned by Columella.]

Foreign authors quoted. —Homer, Phemonoë, [A priestess of Delphi, said to have been the inventor of hexameter verse. Servius identifies her with the Cumæan Sibyl. Pliny quotes from her in c. 8, probably from some work on augury attributed to her. A work in MS. entitled “Orneosophium,” or “Wisdom of Birds,” is attributed to Phemonoë. She is said to have been the first to pronounce the celebrated Γνῶθι σεαυτὸν, commonly attributed to Thales.] Philemon, [An Athenian comic poet of the New Comedy, born either at Soli in Cilicia, or at Syracuse. Plautus has imitated several of his plays.] Bœus [Nothing is known of this writer, who wrote a poem on ornithology, as here stated. Athenæus is doubtful whether the writer was a poet, Bœus, or a poetess, Bœo.] who wrote the Ornithogonia, Hylas [Nothing is known of this writer.] who wrote an augury, Aristotle, [See end of B. ii.] Theophrastus, [See end of B. iii.] Callimachus, [See end of B. iv.] Æschylus, [The Greek tragic poet of Athens, several of whose plays still exist.] King Hiero, [See end of B..] King Philometor, [King Attalus III. See end of B..] Archytas [See end of B..] of Tarentum, Amphilochus [See end of B..] of Athens, Anaxipolis [See end of B..] of Thasos, Apollodorus [See end of B..] of Lemnos, Aristophanes [See end of B..] of Miletus, Antigonus [See end of B..] of Cymæ, Agathocles [See end of B..] of Chios, Apollonius [See end of B..] of Pergamus, Aristander [See end of B..] of Athens, Bacchius [See end of B..] of Miletus, Bion [See end of B..] of Soli, Chæreas [See end of B..] of Athens, Diodorus [See end of B..] of Priene, Dion [See end of B..] of Colophon, Democritus, [See end of B. ii.] Diophanes [See end of B..] of Nicæa, Epigenes [See end of B. ii.] of Rhodes, Euagon [Of this writer nothing whatever seems to be known.] of Thasos, Euphronius [See end of B..] of Athens, Juba, [See end of B. v.] Androtion [See end of B..] who wrote on Agriculture, Æschrion [See end of B..] who wrote on Agriculture, Lysimachus [See end of B..] who wrote on Agriculture, Dionysius [Cassius Dionysius of Utica, flourished B.C. 40. He condensed the twenty-eight books of Mago into twenty, and dedicated them to the Roman prætor Sextilius.] who translated Mago, Diophanes [See end of B..] who made an Epitome of Dionysius, Nicander, [See end of B..] Onesicritus, [See end of B. ii.] Phylarchus, [See end of B..] Hesiod. [See end of B..]