NOTES ON THE DIALOGUE CONCERNING ORATORY. (continued 2)

[k] For Calvus, see s. xvii. note [c]. For Brutus, see the same section, note [d]. What Cicero thought of Calvus has been already quoted from the tract De Claris Oratoribus, in note [c], s. xvii. By being too severe a critic on himself, he lost strength, while he aimed at elegance. It is, therefore, properly said in this Dialogue, that Cicero thought Calvus cold and enervated. But did he think Brutus disjointed, loose and negligent—otiosum atque disjunctum? That he often thought him disjointed is not improbable. Brutus was a close thinker, and he aimed at the precision and brevity of Attic eloquence. The sententious speaker is, of course, full and concise. He has no studied transitions, above the minute care of artful connections. To discard the copulatives for the sake of energy was a rule laid down by the best ancient critics. Cicero has observed that an oration may be said to be disjointed, when the copulatives are omitted, and strokes of sentiment follow one another in quick succession. Dissolutio sive disjunctio est, quæ conjunctionibus e medio sublatis, partibus separatis effertur, hoc modo: Gere morem parenti; pare cognatis; obsequere amicis; obtempera legibus. Ad Herennium, lib. iv. s. 41. In this manner, Brutus might appear disjointed, and that figure, often repeated, might grow into a fault. But how is the word OTIOSUS to be understood? If it means a neglect of connectives, it may, perhaps, apply to Brutus. There is no room to think that Cicero used it in a worse sense, since we find him in a letter to Atticus declaring, that the oratorical style of Brutus was, in language as well as sentiment, elegant to a degree that nothing could surpass. Est enim oratio ejus scripta elegantissimè, sententiis et verbis, ut nihil possit ultra. A grave philosopher, like Brutus, might reject the graces of transition and regular connection, and, for that reason, might be thought negligent and abrupt. This disjointed style, which the French call style coupé, was the manner cultivated by Seneca, for which Caligula pronounced him, sand without lime; arenam sine calce. Sueton. Life of Calig. s. 53. We know from Quintilian, that a spirit of emulation, and even jealousy, subsisted between the eminent orators of Cicero's time; that he himself was so far from ascribing perfection to Demosthenes, that he used to say, he often found him napping; that Brutus and Calvus sat in judgement on Cicero, and did not wish to conceal their objections; and that the two Pollios were so far from being satisfied with Cicero's style and manner, that their criticisms were little short of declared hostility. Quamquam neque ipsi Ciceroni Demosthenes videatur satis esse perfectus, quem dormitare interdum dicit; nec Cicero Bruto Calvoque, qui certè compositionem illius etiam apud ipsum reprehendunt; ne Asinio utrique, qui vitia orationis ejus etiam inimicè pluribus locis insequuntur. Quintil. lib. xii. cap. 1.

Section XIX.

[a] Cassius Severus lived in the latter end of the reign of Augustus, and through a considerable part of that of Tiberius. He was an orator, according to Quintilian, who, if read with due caution, might serve as a model worthy of imitation. It is to be regretted, that to the many excellent qualities of his style he did not add more weight, more strength and dignity, and thereby give colour and a body to his sentiments. With those requisites, he would have ranked with the most eminent orators. To his excellent genius he united keen reflection, great energy, and a peculiar urbanity, which gave a secret charm to his speeches. But the warmth of his temper hurried him on; he listened more to his passions than to his judgement; he possessed a vein of wit, but he mingled with it too much acrimony; and wit, when it misses its aim, feels the mortification and the ridicule which usually attend disappointed malice. Multa, si cum judicio legatur, dabit imitatione digna CASSIUS SEVERUS, qui, si cæteris virtutibus colorem et gravitatem orationis adjecisset, ponendus inter præcipuos foret, Nam et ingenii plurimum est in eo, et acerbitas mira, et urbanitas, et vis summa; sed plus stomacho quàm consilio dedit; præterea ut amari sales, ita frequenter amaritudo ipsa ridicula est. Lib. x. cap. 1. We read in Suetonius (Life of Octavius, s. 56), that Cassius had the hardiness to institute a prosecution for the crime of poisoning against Asprenas Nonius, who was, at the time, linked in the closest friendship with Augustus. Not content with accusations against the first men in Rome, he chose to vent his malevolence in lampoons and defamatory libels, against the most distinguished of both sexes. It was this that provoked Horace to declare war against Cassius, in an ode (lib, v. ode 6), which begins, Quid immerentes hospites vexas, canis. See an account of his malevolent spirit, Annals, b, i. s. 72. He was at length condemned for his indiscriminate abuse, and banished by Augustus to the isle of Crete. But his satirical rage was not to be controlled. He continued in exile to discharge his malignity, till, at last, at the end of ten years, the senate took cognizance of his guilt, and Tiberius ordered him to be removed from Crete to the Rock of Seriphos, where he languished in old age and misery. See Annals, b. iv. s. 21. The period of ancient oratory ended about the time when Cassius began his career. He was the first of the new school.

[b] These two rhetoricians flourished in the time of Augustus. Apollodorus, we are told by Quintilian (b. iii. chap. 1), was the preceptor of Augustus. He taught in opposition to Theodorus Gadareus, who read lectures at Rhodes, and was attended by Tiberius during his retreat in that island. The two contending masters were the founders of opposite sects, called the Apollodorean and Theodorian. But true eloquence, which knows no laws but those of nature and good sense, gained nothing by party divisions. Literature was distracted by new doctrines; rhetoric became a trick in the hands of sophists, and all sound oratory disappeared. Hermagoras, Quintilian says, in the chapter already cited, was the disciple of Theodorus.

Section XX.

[a] Doctor Middleton says, "Of the seven excellent orations, which now remain on the subject of VERRES, the first two only were spoken; the one called, The Divination; the other, The first Action, which is nothing more than a general preface to the whole cause. The other five were published afterwards, as they were prepared and intended to be spoken, if Verres had made a regular defence: for as this was the only cause in which Cicero had yet been engaged, or ever designed to be engaged, as an accuser, so he was willing to leave those orations as a specimen of his abilities in that way, and the pattern of a just and diligent impeachment of a great and corrupt magistrate." Life of Cicero, vol. i. p. 86, 4to edit.

[b] The Digest enumerates a multitude of rules concerning exceptions to persons, things, the form of the action, the niceties of pleading, and, as the phrase is, motions in arrest of judgement. Formula, was the set of words necessary to be used in the pleadings. See the Digest, lib. xliv. tit. 1. De Exceptionibus, Præscriptionibus, et Præjudiciis. See also Cujacius, observat. xxiii.

[c] The oration for Marcus Tullius is highly praised by Macrobius, but is not to be found in Cicero's works. The oration for Aulus Cæcina is still extant. The cause was about the right of succession to a private estate, which depended on a subtle point of law, arising from the interpretation of the prætor's interdict. It shews Cicero's exact knowledge and skill in the civil law, and that his public character and employment gave no interruption to his usual diligence in pleading causes. Middleton's Life of Cicero, vol. i. p. 116, 4to edit.

[d] Roscius, in the last period of the republic, was the comedian, whom all Rome admired for his talents. The great esteemed and loved him for his morals. Æsop, the tragedian, was his contemporary. Horace, in the epistle to Augustus, has mentioned them both with their proper and distinctive qualities.

——Ea cum reprehendere coner

Quæ GRAVIS ÆSOPUS, quæ DOCTUS ROSCIUS egit.

A certain measured gravity of elocution being requisite in tragedy, that quality is assigned to the former, and the latter is called DOCTUS, because he was a complete master of his art; so truly learned in the principles of his profession, that he possessed, in a wonderful degree, the secret charm that gave inimitable graces to his voice and action. Quintilian, in a few words, has given a commentary on the passage in Horace. Grief, he says, is expressed by slow and deliberate accents; for that reason, Æsop spoke with gravity; Roscius with quickness; the former being a tragedian, the latter a comedian. Plus autem affectus habent lentiora; ideoque Roscius citatior, Æsopus gravior fuit, quod ille comœdias, his tragœdias egit. Lib. xi. cap. 1. Cicero was the great friend and patron of Roscius. An elegant oration in his behalf is still extant. The cause was this: One FANNIUS had made over to Roscius a young slave, to be formed by him to the stage, on condition of a partnership in the profits which the slave should acquire by acting. The slave was afterwards killed. Roscius prosecuted the murderer for damages, and obtained, by composition, a little farm, worth about eight hundred pounds, for his particular share. FANNIUS also sued separately, and was supposed to have gained as much; but, pretending to have recovered nothing, he sued ROSCIUS for the moiety of what he had received. One cannot but observe, says Dr. Middleton, from Cicero's pleading, the wonderful esteem and reputation in which Roscius then flourished. Has Roscius, says he, defrauded his partner? Can such a stain stick upon such a man; a man who, I speak it with confidence, has more integrity than skill, more veracity than experience? a man whom the people of Rome know to be a better citizen than he is an actor; and, while he makes the first figure on the stage for his art, is worthy of a seat in the senate for his virtue. Quem populus Romanus meliorem virum quam histrionem esse arbitratur; qui ita dignissimus est scená propter artificium, ut dignissimus sit curiá propter abstinentiam. Pro Roscio Comœdo, s. 17 In another place, Cicero says, he was such an artist, as to seem the only one fit to appear on the stage; yet such a man, as to seem the only one who should not come upon it at all. Cum artifex ejusmodi sit, ut solus dignus videatur esse qui in scená spectetur; tum vir ejusmodi est, ut solus dignus videatur, qui eo non accedat. Pro Publ. Quinctio, s. 78. What Cicero has said in his pleadings might be thought oratorical, introduced merely to serve the cause, if we did not find the comedian praised with equal warmth in the dialogue DE ORATORE. It is there said of Roscius, that every thing he did was perfect in the kind, and executed with consummate grace, with a secret charm, that touched, affected, and delighted the whole audience: insomuch, that when a man excelled in any other profession, it was grown into a proverb to call him, THE ROSCIUS OF HIS ART. Videtisne, quam nihil ab eo nisi perfectè, nihil nisi cum summâ venustate fiat? nihil, nisi ita ut deceat, et uti omnes moveat, atque delectet? Itaque hoc jam diu est consecutus, ut in quo quisque artificio excelleret, is in suo genere Roscius diceretur. De Orat. lib. i. s. 130. After so much honourable testimony, one cannot but wonder why the DOCTUS ROSCIUS of Horace is mentioned in this Dialogue with an air of disparagement. It may be, that APER, the speaker in this passage, was determined to degrade the orators of antiquity; and the comedian was, therefore, to expect no quarter. Dacier, in his notes on the Epistle to Augustus, observes that Roscius wrote a book, in which he undertook to prove to Cicero, that in all the stores of eloquence there were not so many different expressions for one and the same thing, as in the dramatic art there were modes of action, and casts of countenance, to mark the sentiment, and convey it to the mind with its due degree of emotion. It is to be lamented that such a book has not come down to us. It would, perhaps, be more valuable than the best treatise of rhetoric.

Ambivius Turpio acted in most of Terence's plays, and seems to have been a manager of the theatre. Cicero, in the treatise De Senectute, says: He, who sat near him in the first rows, received the greatest pleasure; but still, those, who were at the further end of the theatre, were delighted with him. Turpione Ambivio magis delectatur, qui in primâ caveâ spectat; delectatur tamen etiam qui in ultimâ.

[e] ACCIUS and PACUVIUS flourished at Rome about the middle of the sixth century from the foundation of the city. Accius, according to Horace, was held to be a poet of a sublime genius, and Pacuvius (who lived to be ninety years old) was respected for his age and profound learning.

Ambigitur quoties uter utro sit prior, aufert

PACUVIUS docti famam senis, ACCIUS alti.

EPIST. AD AUG. ver. 56.

Velleius Paterculus says, that ACCIUS was thought equal to the best writers of the Greek tragedy. He had not, indeed, the diligent touches of the polishing hand, which we see in the poets of Athens, but he had more spirit and vigour. Accius usque in Græcorum comparationem erectus. In illis limæ in hoc penè plus videri fuisse sanguinis. He is often quoted by Cicero in his book De Naturâ Deorum. But after all, it is from the great critic, who gives the best account of the Roman poets, orators, and historians, that we are to take the genuine character of ACCIUS and PACUVIUS, since their works are lost in the general mass of ancient literature. They were both excellent tragic poets: elevation of sentiment, grandeur of expression, and dignity of character, stamped a value on their productions; and yet, we must not expect to find the grace and elegance of genuine composition. To give the finishing hand to their works was not their practice: the defect, however, is not to be imputed to them; it was the vice of the age. Force and dignity are the characteristics of ACCIUS; while the critics, who wish to be thought deep and profound, admire PACUVIUS for his extensive learning. Tragœdiæ scriptores Accius atque Pacuvius, clarissimi sententiarum verborumque pondere, et auctoritate personarum. Cæterum nitor, et summa in excolendis operibus manus, magis videri potest temporibus, quam ipsis defuisse. Virium tamen Accio plus tribuitur; Pacuvium videri doctiorem, qui esse docti affectant, volunt. Quintil. lib. x. cap. 1. It was the fashion in Horace's time to prefer the writers of the old school to the new race that gave so much lustre to the Augustan age. In opposition to such erroneous criticism, the poet pronounces a decided judgement, which seems to be confirmed by the opinion of Quintilian.

Si quædam nimis antiquè, si pleraque durè

Dicere credit eos, ignavè multa fatetur,

Et sapit, et mecum facit, et Jove judicat æquo.

EPIST. AD AUGUST. ver. 66.

But that sometimes their style uncouth appears,

And their harsh numbers rudely hurt our ears;

Or that full flatly flows the languid line,

He, who owns this, has Jove's assent and mine.

FRANCIS'S HORACE.

[f] Lucan was nephew to Seneca, and a poet of great celebrity. He was born, in the reign of Caligula, at Corduba in Spain. His superior genius made Nero his mortal enemy. He was put to death by that inhuman emperor, A.U.C. 818, in the twenty-seventh year of his age. See the Annals, b. xv. s. 70. As a writer, Quintilian says, that he possessed an ardent genius, impetuous, rapid, and remarkable for the vigour of his sentiments: but he chooses to class him with the orators, rather than the poets. Lucanus ardens, et concitatus, et sententiis clarissimus; et, ut dicam quod sentio, magis oratoribus quam poetis annumerandus. Lib. x. cap. 1. Scaliger, on the other hand, contends that Lucan was a true poet, and that the critics do but trifle, when they object that he wrote history, not an epic poem. STRADA in his Prolusions, has given, among other imitations, a narrative in Lucan's manner; and, though he thinks that poet has not the skill of Virgil, he places him on the summit of Parnassus, managing his Pegasus with difficulty, often in danger of falling from the ridge of a precipice, yet delighting his reader with the pleasure of seeing him escape. This is the true character of Lucan. The love of liberty was his ruling passion. It is but justice to add, that his sentiments, when free from antithesis and the Ovidian manner, are not excelled by any poet of antiquity. From him, as well as from Virgil and Horace, the orator is required to cull such passages as will help to enrich his discourse; and the practice is recommended by Quintilian, who observes, that Cicero, Asinius Pollio, and others, frequently cited verses from Ennius, Accius, Pacuvius, and Terence, in order to grace their speeches with polite literature, and enliven the imagination of their hearers. By those poetic insertions, the ear is relieved from the harsh monotony of the forum; and the poets, cited occasionally, serve by their authority to establish the proposition advanced by the speaker. Nam præcipue quidem apud Ciceronem, frequenter tamen apud Asinium etiam, et cæteros, qui sunt proximi, vidimus ENNII, ACCII, PACUVII, TERENTII et aliorum inseri versus, summâ non eruditionis modò gratiâ, sed etiam jucunditatis; cum poeticis voluptatibus aures a forensi asperitate respirent, quibus accedit non mediocris utilitas, cum sententiis eorum, velut quibusdam testimoniis, quæ proposuere confirmant. Quintil. lib. i. cap. 8.

Section XXI.

[a] There is in this place a blunder of the copyists, which almost makes the sentence unintelligible. The translator, without entering into minute controversies, has, upon all such occasions, adopted what appeared, from the context, to be the most probable sense. It remains, therefore, to enquire, who were the several orators here enumerated. CANUTIUS may be the person mentioned by Suetonius De Claris Rhetoribus. Cicero says of ARRIUS, that he was a striking proof of what consequence it was at Rome to be useful to others, and always ready to be subservient to their honour, or to ward off danger. For, by that assiduity, Arrius raised himself from a low beginning to wealth and honours, and was even ranked in the number of orators, though void of learning, and without genius, or abilities. Loco infimo natus, et honores, et pecuniam, et gratiam consecutus, etiam in patronorum, sine doctrinâ, sine ingenio, aliquem numerum pervenerat. De Claris Orat. s. 243. FURNIUS may be supposed, not without probability, to be the person with whom Cicero corresponded. Epist. ad Familiares, lib. x. ep. 25, 26. With regard to Terrianus we are left in the dark. The commentators offer various conjectures; but conjecture is often a specious amusement; the ingenious folly of men, who take pains to bewilder themselves, and reason only to shew their useless learning.

[b] The puny orators are said to be in an infirmary, like sickly men, who were nothing but skin and bone. These, says Cicero, were admirers of the Attic manner; but it were to be wished that they had the wholesome blood, not merely the bones, of their favourite declaimers. Attico genere dicendi se gaudere dicunt; atqui utinam imitarentur nec ossa solum, sed etiam et sanguinem. Cicero De Claris Oratoribus.

[c] What is here said of Calvus is not confirmed by the judgement of Quintilian. See s. xvii. note [c]. His orations, which were extant at the time of this Dialogue, are now totally lost.

[d] For Quintilian's opinion of Cælius, see s. xvii. note [c].

[e] Here again Quintilian, that candid and able judge, has given a different opinion. See s. xvii. note [b]. It may be proper to add the testimony of Velleius Paterculus. Cæsar, he says, had an elevation of soul, that towered above humanity, and was almost incredible; the rapid progress of his wars, his firmness in the hour of danger, and the grandeur of his vast conceptions, bore a near affinity to Alexander, but to Alexander neither drunk, nor mad with passion. Animo super humanam et naturam, et fidem evectus, celeritate bellandi, patientiâ periculorum, magnitudine cogitationum; magno illi Alexandro, sed sobrio neque iracundo, simillimus. Vel. Patercul. lib. ii. s. 41. Even Cicero tells us, that, of all the eminent orators, he was the person who spoke the Latin language in the greatest purity, and arrived at that consummate perfection by study, by diligent application, and his thorough knowledge of all polite literature. Illum omnium ferè oratorum Latinè loqui elegantissimè: ut esset perfecta illa benè loquendi laus, multis litteris, et iis quidem reconditis et exquisitis, summoque studio et diligentiâ est consecutus. De Claris Orat. s. 252.

[f] Cæsar's speech for Decius the Samnite, and all his other productions (except the Commentaries), are totally lost.

[g] This speech of Brutus is also lost with his other works. Cicero says, he heard him plead the cause of Dejotarus with great elegance, and a flow of harmonious periods. Causam Dejotari, fidelissimi atque optimi regis, ornatissimè et copiosissimè a Bruto me audisse defensam. De Claris Orat. s. 21. He tells us in another place, that Cæsar observed of Brutus, that whatever he desired, he desired with ardour; and therefore, in the cause of Dejotarus, he exerted himself with warmth, with vehemence, and great freedom of language. Quidquid vult, valdè vult; ideoque, cum pro rege Dejotaro dixerit, valdè vehementer eum visum, et liberè dicere. Ad Attic. lib. xiv. ep. 1. The same Dejotarus was afterwards defended by Cicero before Cæsar himself. See the Oration pro Rege Dejotaro.

[h] See what is said of Asinius Pollio, s. xii. note [e].

[i] Pliny the younger has the same metaphorical allusions, which we here find in the Dialogue. Speaking of the difference between the oratorial and historical style; the latter, he says, may be content with the bones, the muscles, and the nerves; the former must have the prominence of the flesh, the brawny vigour, and the flowing mane. Habent quidem oratio et historia multa communia, sed plura diversa in his ipsis, quæ communia videntur. Narrat sane illa, narrat hæc, sed aliter. Huic pleraque humilia, et sordida, et ex medio petita: illi omnia recondita, splendida, excelsa conveniunt. Hanc sæpius ossa, musculi, nervi; illam tori quidam, et quasi jubæ decent. Lib. v. ep. 8.

[k] Messala Corvinus has been often mentioned. See for him s. xii. note [e].

Section XXII.

[a] The words sententia and sensus were technical terms with the critics of antiquity. Quintilian gives the distinct meaning of each, with his usual precision. According to the established usage, the word sensus signified our ideas or conceptions, as they rise in the mind: by sententia was intended, a proposition, in the close of a period, so expressed, as to dart a sudden brilliancy, for that reason called lumen orationis. He says, these artificial ornaments, which the ancients used but sparingly, were the constant practice of the modern orators. Consuetudo jam tenuit, ut mente concepta, SENSUS vocaremus; lumina autem, præcipuèque in clausulis posita, SENTENTIAS. Quæ minus crebra apud antiquos, nostris temporibus modo carent. Lib. viii. cap. 5. These luminous sentences, Quintilian says, may be called the eyes of an oration; but eyes are not to be placed in every part, lest the other members should lose their function. Ego vero hæc lumina orationis velut oculos quosdam esse eloquentiæ credo: sed neque oculos esse toto corpore velim, ne cætera membra suum officium perdant. Lib. viii, cap. 5. As Cowley says,

Jewels at nose and lips but ill appear;

Rather than all things, wit let none be there.

[b] In order to form a good style, the sentence should always be closed with variety, strength, and harmony. The ancient rhetoricians held this to be so essentially requisite, that Quintilian has given it a full discussion. That, he says, which offends the ear, will not easily gain admission to the mind. Words should be fitted to their places, so that they may aptly coalesce with one another. In building, the most ill shapen stones may be conveniently fixed; and in like manner, a good style must have proper words in proper places, all arranged in order, and closing the sentence with grace and harmony. Nihil intrare potest in affectum, quod in aure, velut quodam vestibulo, statim offendit. Non enim ad pedes verba dimensa sunt; ideoque ex loco transferuntur in locum, ut jungantur quo congruunt maximè; sicut in structurâ saxorum rudium etiam ipsa enormitas invenit cui applicari, et in quo possit insistere. Felicissimus tamen sermo est, cui et rectus ordo, et apta junctura, et cum his numerus opportunè cadens contingit. Quintil. lib. ix. cap. 4.

Section XXIII.

[a] The remark in this place alludes to a passage in the oration against PISO, where we find a frivolous stroke of false wit. Cicero reproaches Piso for his dissolute manners, and his scandalous debauchery. Who, he says, in all that time, saw you sober? Who beheld you doing any one thing, worthy of a liberal mind? Did you once appear in public? The house of your colleague resounded with songs and minstrels: he himself danced naked in the midst of his wanton company; and while he wheeled about with alacrity in the circular motion of the dance, he never once thought of THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE. Quis te illis diebus sobrium, quis agentem aliquid, quod esset libero dignum? Quis denique in publico vidit? Cum collegæ tui domus cantu et cymbalis personaret; cumque ipse nudus in convivio saltaret, in quo ne tum quidem, cum illum suum SALTATORIUM VERSARET ORBEM, FORTUNÆ ROTAM pertimescebat. Oratio in Pisonem, prima pars, s. 22. Delph. edit. vol. iii.

[b] The passage here alluded to, presents us with a double pun. The word Verres is the name of a man, and also signifies a boar pig, as we read in Horace, Verris obliquum meditantis ictum. Lib. iii. ode 22. The word jus is likewise of twofold meaning, importing law and sauce, or broth; tepidumque ligurierit jus. Lib. i. sat. 3. The objection to Cicero is, that playing on both the words, and taking advantage of their ambiguous meaning, he says it could not be matter of wonder that the Verrian jus was such bad HOG-SOUP. The wit (if it deserves that name) is mean enough; but, in justice to Cicero, it should be remembered, that he himself calls it frigid, and says, that the men, who in their anger could be so very facetious, as to blame the priest who did not sacrifice such a hog (Verres), were idle and ridiculous. He adds, that he should not descend to repeat such sayings (for they were neither witty, nor worthy of notice in such a cause), had he not thought it material to shew, that the iniquity of VERRES was, in the mouth of the vulgar, a subject of ridicule, and a proverbial joke. Hinc illi homines erant, qui etiam ridiculi inveniebantur ex dolore: quorum alii, ut audistis, negabant mirandum esse, JUS tam nequam esse VERRINUM: alii etiam frigidiores erant; sed quia stomachabantur, ridiculi videbantur esse, cum SACERDOTEM execrabantur, qui VERREM tam nequam reliquisset, Quæ ego non commemorarem (neque enim perfacetè dicta, neque porro hac severitate digna sunt) nisi vos id vellem recordari, istius nequitiam et iniquitatem tum in ore vulgi, atque communibus proverbiis esse versatam. In Verrem, lib. i. pars tertia, s. 121.

[c] Quintilian acknowledges that the words esse videatur (it seems to be) occur frequently in Cicero's Orations. He adds, that he knew several, who fancied that they had performed wonders, when they placed that phrase in the close of a sentence. Noveram quosdam, qui se pulchrè expressisse genus illud cælestis hujus in dicendo viri sibi viderentur, si in clausulâ posuissent esse videatur. Quintil. lib. x. cap. 2.

[d] The species of composition, called satire, was altogether of Roman growth. Lucilius had the honour of being the inventor; and he succeeded so well, that even in Quintilian's time, his admirers preferred him not only to the writers who followed in the same way, but to all poets of every denomination. Lucilius quosdam ita deditos sibi adhuc habet imitatores, ut eum non ejusdem modo operis, sed omnibus poetis præferre non dubitent. Lib. x. cap. 1. The great critic, however, pronounces judgement in favour of Horace, who, he says, is more terse and pure; a more acute observer of life, and qualified by nature to touch the ridicule of the manners with the nicest hand. Multo est tersior, ac purus magis Horatius, et ad notandos hominum mores præcipuus.

[e] Lucretius is not without his partisans at this hour. Many of the French critics speak of him with rapture; and, in England, Dr. Wharton of Winchester seems to be at the head of his admirers. He does not scruple to say that Lucretius had more spirit, fire, and energy, more of the vivida vis animi, than any of the Roman poets. It is neither safe nor desirable to differ from so fine a genius as Dr. Wharton. The passages which he has quoted from his favourite poet, shew great taste in the selection. It should be remembered, however, that Quintilian does not treat Lucretius with the same passionate fondness. He places Virgil next to Homer; and the rest, he says, of the Roman poets follow at a great distance. MACER and LUCRETIUS deserve to be read: they have handled their respective subjects with taste and elegance; but Macer has no elevation, and Lucretius is not easily understood. Cæteri omnes longe sequuntur. Nam MACER et LUCRETIUS legendi quidem; elegantes in suâ quisque materiâ, sed alter humilis, alter difficilis. Lib. x. cap. 1. Statius, the poet, who flourished in the reign of Domitian, knew the value of Lucretius, and, in one line, seems to have given his true character; et docti furor arduus Lucreti; but had he been to decide between him and Virgil, it is probable, that he would say to Lucretius, as he did to himself,

——Nec tu divinam Æneida tenta,

Sed longe sequere, et vestigia semper adora.

THEBAIDOS lib. xii. ver. 816.

[f] Aufidius Bassus and Servilius Nonianus were writers of history. Bassus, according to Quintilian, deserved great commendation, particularly in his History of the German war. In some of his other works he fell short of himself. Servilius Nonianus was known to Quintilian, and, in that critic's judgement, was an author of considerable merit, sententious in his manner, but more diffuse than becomes the historic character. See Quintilian, lib. x. cap. 1. The death of SERVILIUS, an eminent orator and historian, is mentioned by Tacitus in the Annals, b. xiv. s. 19; but the additional name of NONIANUS is omitted. The passage, however, is supposed to relate to the person commended by Quintilian. He died in the reign of Nero, A.U.C. 812; of the Christian æra 59.

[g] Varro was universally allowed to be the most learned of the Romans. He wrote on several subjects with profound erudition. Quintilian says, he was completely master of the Latin language, and thoroughly conversant in the antiquities of Greece and Rome. His works will enlarge our sphere of knowledge, but can add nothing to eloquence. Peritissimus linguæ Latinæ, et omnis antiquitatis, et rerum Græcarum, nostrarumque; plus tamen scientiæ collaturus, quam eloquentiæ. Lib. x. cap. 1.

Sisenna, we are told by Cicero, was a man of learning, well skilled in the Roman language, acquainted with the laws and constitution of his country, and possessed of no small share of wit; but eloquence was not his element, and his practice in the forum was inconsiderable. See De Claris Oratoribus, s. 228. In a subsequent part of the same work, Cicero says, that Sisenna was of opinion, that to use uncommon words was the perfection of style. To prove this he relates a pleasant anecdote. One Caius Rufus carried on a prosecution. Sisenna appeared for the defendant; and, to express his contempt of his adversary, said that many parts of the charge deserved to be spit upon. For this purpose he coined so strange a word, that the prosecutor implored the protection of the judges. I do not, said he, understand Sisenna; I am circumvented; I fear that some snare is laid for me. What does he mean by sputatilica? I know that sputa is spittle: but what is tilica? The court laughed at the oddity of a word so strangely compounded. Rufio accusante Chritilium, Sisenna defendens dixit quædam ejus SPUTATILICA esse crimina. Tum Caius Rufius, Circumvenior, inquit, judices, nisi subvenitis. Sisenna quid dicat nescio; metuo insidias. SPUTATILICA! quid est hoc? Sputa quid sit, scio; tilica nescio. Maximi risus, De Claris Oratoribus, s. 260. Whether this was the same Sisenna, who is said in the former quotation to have been a correct speaker, does not appear with any degree of certainty.

[h] For the character of Secundus, see s. ii. note [c].

[i] Quintilian says, the merit of a fine writer flourishes after his death, for envy does not go down to posterity. Ad posteros enim virtus durabit, nec perveniet invidia. Lib. iii. c. 1. Envy is always sure to pursue living merit; and therefore, Cleo observes to Alexander, that Hercules and Bacchus were not numbered among the gods, till they conquered the malignity of their contemporaries. Nec Herculem, nec Patrem Liberum, prius dicatos deos, quàm vicissent secum viventium invidiam. Quintus Curtius, lib. viii. s. 18. Pliny the younger has a beautiful epistle on this subject. After praising, in the highest manner, the various works of Pompeius Saturninus, he says to his correspondent, Let it be no objection to such an author, that he is still living. If he flourished in a distant part of the world, we should not only procure his books, but we should have his picture in our houses: and shall his fame be tarnished, because we have the man before our eyes? Shall malignity make us cease to admire him, because we see him, hear him, esteem and love him? Neque enim debet operibus ejus obesse, QUOD VIVIT. An si inter eos, quos nunquam vidimus, floruisset, non solum libros ejus, verum etiam imagines conquireremus, ejusdem nunc honor præsentis et gratia quasi satietate languescet? At hoc pravum malignumque est, non admirari hominem admiratione dignissimum, quia videre, alloqui, audire, complecti, nec laudare tantum, verum etiam amare contingit. Lib. i. ep. 16.

Section XXIV.

[a] In the Dialogues of Plato, and others of the academic school, the ablest philosophers occasionally supported a wrong hypothesis, in order to provoke a thorough discussion of some important question.

[b] Cicero was killed on the seventh of December, in the consulship of Hirtius and Pansa, A.U.C. 711; before Christ, 43. From that time to the sixth of Vespasian the number of years is exactly 117; though in the Dialogue said to be 120. See s. xvii. note [e].

Section XXV.

[a] See Plutarch's Lives of Lysias, Lycurgus, Demosthenes, and Hyperides. See also the elegant translation of the Orations of Lysias, by Dr. Gillies.

[b] For Quintilian's opinion of Cæsar's eloquence, see s. xvii. note [b]. To what is there said may be added the authority of Cicero, who fairly owns, that Cæsar's constant habit of speaking his language with purity and correctness, exempted him from all the vices of the corrupt style adopted by others. To that politeness of expression which every well-bred citizen, though he does not aspire to be an orator, ought to practise, when Cæsar adds the splendid ornaments of eloquence, he may then be said to place the finest pictures in the best light. In his manner there is nothing mechanical, nothing of professional craft: his voice is impressive, and his action dignified. To air these qualities he unites a certain majesty of mien and figure, that bespeaks a noble mind. Cæsar autem rationem adhibens, consuetudinem vitiosam et corruptam purâ et incorruptâ consuetudine emendat. Itaque cum ad hanc elegantiam verborum Latinorum, quæ etiam si orator non sis, et sis ingenuus civis Romanus, tamen necessaria est, adjungit illa oratorio, ornamenta dicendi; tum videtur tanquam tabulas bene pictas collocare in bono lumine. Hanc cum habeat præcipuam laudem in communibus, non video cui debeat cedere. Splendidam quamdam, minimeque veteratoriam rationem dicendi tenet, voce, motu: formâ etiam magnificâ, et generosâ quodammodo. De Claris Oratoribus, s. 261.

For Cælius, see s. xvii. note [c]; and for Brutus, the same section, note [d].

[c] Servius Galba has been already mentioned, s. xviii. note [a]. Caius Lælius was consul A.U.C. 614; before the Christian æra, 140. He was the intimate friend of Scipio, and the patron of Lucilius, the first Roman satirist. See Horace, lib. ii. sat. i. ver. 71.

Quin ubi se a vulgo et scenâ in secretâ remôrant

Virtus Scipiadæ, et mitis sapientia Lælî,

Nugari cum illo, et discincti ludere, donec

Decoqueretur olus, soliti.

When Scipio's virtue, and of milder vein

When Lælius' wisdom, from the busy scene

And crowd of life, the vulgar and the great.

Could with their favourite satirist retreat,

Lightly they laugh'd at many an idle jest,

Until their frugal feast of herbs was drest.

FRANCIS'S HORACE.

It is probable, that the harsh manner of Lucilius, durus componere versus, infected the eloquence of Lælius, since we find in Cicero, that his style was unpolished, and had much of the rust of antiquity. Multo tamen vetustior et horridior ille quam Scipio, et, cum sint in dicendo variæ, voluntates, delectari mihi magis antiquitate videtur, et lubenter verbis etiam uti paulo magis priscis Lælius. De Claris Oratoribus, s. 83.

Section XXVI.

[a] For an account of Caius Gracchus, see s. xviii. note [d].

[b] For Lucius Crassus, see s. xviii. note [f].

[c] The false taste of Mæcenas has been noted by the poets and critics who flourished after his death. His affected prettinesses are compared to the prim curls, in which women and effeminate men tricked out their hair. Seneca, who was himself tainted with affectation, has left a beautiful epistle on the very question that makes the main subject of the present Dialogue. He points out the causes of the corrupt taste that debauched the eloquence of those times and imputes the mischief to the degeneracy of the manners. Whatever the man was, such was the orator. Talis oratio quails vita. When ancient discipline relaxed, luxury succeeded, and language became delicate, brilliant, spangled with conceits. Simplicity was laid aside, and quaint expressions grew into fashion. Does the mind sink into languor, the body moves reluctantly. Is the man softened into effeminacy, you see it in his gait. Is he quick and eager, he walks with alacrity. The powers of the understanding are affected in the same manner. Having laid this down as his principle, Seneca proceeds to describe the soft delicacy of Mæcenas, and he finds the same vice in his phraseology. He cites a number of the lady-like terms, which the great patron of letters considered as exquisite beauties. In all this, says he, we see the man who walked the streets of Rome in his open and flowing robe. Nonne statim, cum hæc legis, occurrit hunc esse, qui solutis tunicis in urbe semper incesserit? Seneca, epist. cxiv. What he has said of Mæcenas is perfectly just. The fopperies of that celebrated minister are in this Dialogue called CALAMISTRI; an allusion borrowed from Cicero, who praises the beautiful simplicity of Cæsar's Commentaries, and says there were men of a vicious taste, who wanted to apply the curling-iron, that is, to introduce the glitter of conceit and antithesis in the place of truth and nature. Commentarios quosdam scripsit rerum suarum, valde quidem probandos: nudi enim sunt, et recti, et venusti, omni ornatu orationis, tanquam veste, detracto. Ineptis gratum fortasse fecit, qui volunt illa CALAMISTRIS inurere. Cicero De Claris Orat. s. 262.

[d] Who Gallio was, is not clearly settled by the commentators. Quintilian, lib. iii. cap. 1, makes mention of Gallio, who wrote a treatise of eloquence; and in the Annals, b. xv. s. 73, we find Junius Gallio, the brother of Seneca; but whether either of them is the person here intended, remains uncertain. Whoever he was, his eloquence was a tinkling cymbal. Quintilian says of such orators, who are all inflated, tumid, corrupt, and jingling, that their malady does not proceed from a full and rich constitution, but from mere infirmity; for,

As in bodies, thus in souls we find,

What wants in blood and spirits, swell'd with wind.

Nam tumidos, et corruptos, et tinnulos, et quocumque alio cacozeliæ genere peccantes, certum habeo, non virium, sed infirmitatis vitio laborare: ut corpora non robore, sed valetudine inflantur. Quintil. lib. ii. cap. 3.

[e] Pliny declares, without ceremony, that he was ashamed of the corrupt effeminate style that disgraced the courts of justice, and made him think of withdrawing from the forum. He calls it sing-song, and says that nothing but musical instruments could be added. Pudet referre, quæ quam fractâ pronunciatione dicantur; quibus quam teneris clamoribus excipiantur. Plausus tantum, ac sola cymbala et tympana, illis canticis desunt. Pliny, lib. ii. epist. 14. The chief aim of Persius in his first satire is levelled against the bad poets of his time, and also the spurious orators, who enervated their eloquence by antithesis, far-fetched metaphors, and points of wit, delivered with the softest tone of voice, and ridiculous airs of affectation.

Fur es, ait Pedio: Pedius quid? Crimina rasis

Librat in antithetis; doctus posuisse figuras

Laudatur. Bellum hoc! hoc bellum! an Romule ceves?

Men' moveat quippe, et, cantet si naufragus, assem

Protulerim? Cantas, cum fractâ te in trabe pictum

Ex humero portes?

PERSIUS, sat. i. ver. 85.

Theft, says the accuser, to thy charge I lay,

O Pedius. What does gentle Pedius say?

Studious to please the genius of the times,

With periods, points, and tropes, he slurs his crimes.

He lards with flourishes his long harangue:

'Tis fine, say'st thou. What! to be prais'd, and hang?

Effeminate Roman! shall such stuff prevail,

To tickle thee, and make thee wag thy tail?

Say, should a shipwreck'd sailor sing his woe,

Wouldst thou be mov'd to pity, and bestow

An alms? What's more prepost'rous than to see

A merry beggar? wit in misery!

DRYDEN'S PERSIUS.

[f] For Cassius Severus, see s. xix. note [a].

[g] Gabinianus was a teacher of rhetoric in the reign of Vespasian. Eusebius, in his Chronicon, eighth of Vespasian, says that Gabinianus, a celebrated rhetorician, was a teacher of eloquence in Gaul. Gabinianus, celeberrimi nominis rhetor, in Galliâ docuit. His admirers deemed him another Cicero, and, after him, all such orators were called CICERONES GABISTIANI.

Section XXVIII.

[a] In order to brand and stigmatise the Roman matrons who committed the care of their infant children to hired nurses, Tacitus observes, that no such custom was known among the savages of Germany. See Manners of the Germans, s. xx. See also Quintilian, on the subject of education, lib. i. cap. 2 and 3.

[b] Cornelia, the mother of the two Gracchi, was daughter to the first Scipio Africanus. The sons, Quintilian says, owed much of their eloquence to the care and institutions of their mother, whose taste and learning were fully displayed in her letters, which were then in the hands of the public. Nam Gracchorum eloquentiæ multum contulisse accepimus Corneliam matrem, cujus doctissimus sermo in posteros quoque est epistolis traditus. Quint. lib. i. cap. 1. To the same effect Cicero: Fuit Gracchus diligentiâ Corneliæ matris a puero doctus, et Græcis litteris eruditus. De Claris Orat. s. 104. Again, Cicero says, We have read the letters of Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, from which it appears, that the sons were educated, not so much in the lap of their mother, as her conversation. Legimus epistolas Corneliæ, matris Gracchorum: apparet filios non tam in gremio educatos, quam in sermone matris. De Claris Orat. s. 211. Pliny the elder informs us that a statue was erected to her memory, though Cato the Censor declaimed against shewing so much honour to women, even in the provinces. But with all his vehemence he could not prevent it in the city of Rome. Pliny, lib. xxxiv. s. 14.

[c] For Aurelia, the mother of Julius Cæsar, see The Genealogical Table of the Cæsars, No. 2.

[d] For Atia, the mother of Augustus, see Genealogical Table of the Cæsars, No. 14. As another instance of maternal care, Tacitus informs us that Julia Procilla superintended the education of her son. See Life of Agricola, s. iv.

Section XXIX.

[a] Quintilian thinks the first elements of education so highly material, that he has two long chapters on the subject. He requires, in the first place, that the language of the nurses should be pure and correct. Their manners are of great importance, but, he adds, let them speak with propriety. It is to them that the infant first attends; he listens, and endeavours to imitate them. The first colour, imbibed by yarn or thread, is sure to last. What is bad, generally adheres tenaciously. Let the child, therefore, not learn in his infancy, what he must afterwards take pains to unlearn. Ante omnia, ne sit vitiosus sermo nutricibus. Et morum quidem in his haud dubiè prior ratio est; rectè tamen etiam loquantur. Has primùm audiet puer; harum verba effingere imitando conabitur. Et naturâ tenacissimi sumus eorum, quæ rudibus annis percipimus; nec lanarum colores, quibus simplex ille candor mutatus est, elui possunt. Et hæc ipsa magis pertinaciter hærent, quæ deteriora sunt. Non assuescat ergo, ne dum infans quidem est, sermoni, qui dediscendus est. Quint. lib. i. cap. 1. Plutarch has a long discourse on the breeding of children, in which all mistakes are pointed out, and the best rules enforced with great acuteness of observation.

[b] Juvenal has one entire satire on the subject of education:

Nil dictu fœdum visuque hæc limina tangat,

Intra quæ puer est. Procul hinc, procul inde puellæ

Lenonum, et cantus pernoctantis parasiti.

Maxima debetur puero reverentia.

SAT. xiv. ver. 44.

Suffer no lewdness, no indecent speech,

Th' apartment of the tender youth to reach.

Far be from thence the glutton parasite,

Who sings his drunken catches all the night.

Boys from their parents may this rev'rence claim.

DRYDEN'S JUVENAL.

[c] The rage of the Romans for the diversions of the theatre, and public spectacles of every kind, is often mentioned by Horace, Juvenal, and other writers under the emperors. Seneca says, that, at one time, three ways were wanted to as many different theatres: tribus eodem tempore theatris viæ postulantur. And again, the most illustrious of the Roman youth are no better than slaves to the pantomimic performers. Ostendam nobilissimos juvenes mancipia pantomimorum. Epist. 47. It was for this reason that Petronius lays it down as a rule to be observed by the young student, never to list himself in the parties and factions of the theatre:

——Neve plausor in scenâ

Sedeat redemptus, histrioniæ addictus.

It is well known, that theatrical parties distracted the Roman citizens, and rose almost to phrensy. They were distinguished by the green and the blue, Caligula, as we read in Suetonius, attached himself to the former, and was so fond of the charioteers, who wore green liveries, that he lived for a considerable time in the stables, where their horses were kept. Prasinæ factioni ita addictus et deditus, ut cœnaret in stabulo assidue et maneret. Life of Caligula, s. 55. Montesquieu reckons such party-divisions among the causes that wrought the downfall of the empire. Constantinople, he says, was split into two factions, the green and the blue, which owed their origin to the inclination of the people to favour one set of charioteers in the circus rather than another. These two parties raged in every city throughout the empire, and their fury rose in proportion to the number of inhabitants. Justinian favoured the blues, who became so elate with pride, that they trampled on the laws. All ties of friendship, all natural affection, and all relative duties, were extinguished. Whole families were destroyed; and the empire was a scene of anarchy and wild contention. He, who felt himself capable of the most atrocious deeds, declared himself a BLUE, and the GREENS were massacred with impunity. Montesquieu, Grandeur et Décadence des Romains, chap. xx.

[d] Quintilian, in his tenth book, chap. 1. has given a full account of the best Greek and Roman poets, orators, and historians; and in b. ii. ch. 6, he draws up a regular scheme for the young student to pursue in his course of reading. There are, he says, two rocks, on which they may split. The first, by being led by some fond admirer of antiquity to set too high a value on the manner of Cato and the Gracchi; for, in that commerce, they will be in danger of growing dry, harsh, and rugged. The strong conception of those men will be beyond the reach of tender minds. Their style, indeed, may be copied; and the youth may flatter himself, when he has contracted the rust of antiquity, that he resembles the illustrious orators of a former age. On the other hand, the florid decorations and false glitter of the moderns may have a secret charm, the more dangerous, and seductive, as the petty flourishes of our new way of writing may prove acceptable to the youthful mind. Duo autem genera maximè cavenda pueris puto: unum, ne quis eos antiquitatis nimius admirator in Gracchorum, Catonisque, et aliorum similium lectione durescere velit. Erunt enim horridi atque jejuni. Nam neque vim eorum adhuc intellectu consequentur; et elocutione, quæ tum sine dubio erat optima, sed nostris temporibus aliena, contenti, quod est pessimum, similes sibi magnis viris videbuntur. Alterum, quod huic diversum est, ne recentis hujus lasciviæ flosculis capti, voluptate quâdam pravâ deliniantur, ut prædulce illud genus, et puerilibus ingeniis hoc gratius, quo propius est, adament. Such was the doctrine of Quintilian. His practice, we may be sure, was consonant to his own rules. Under such a master the youth of Rome might be initiated in science, and formed to a just taste for eloquence and legitimate composition; but one man was not equal to the task. The rhetoricians and pedagogues of the age preferred the novelty and meretricious ornaments of the style then in vogue.

Section XXX.

[a] This is the treatise, or history of the most eminent orators (DE CLARIS ORATORIBUS), which has been so often cited in the course of these notes. It is also entitled BRUTUS; a work replete with the soundest criticism, and by its variety and elegance always charming.

[b] Quintus Mucius Scævola was the great lawyer of his time. Cicero draws a comparison between him and Crassus. They were both engaged, on opposite sides, in a cause before the CENTUMVIRI. Crassus proved himself the best lawyer among the orators of that day, and Scævola the most eloquent of the lawyers. Ut eloquentium juris peritissimus Crassus; jurisperitorum eloquentissimus Scævola putaretur. De Claris Orat. s. 145. During the consulship of Sylla, A.U.C. 666, Cicero being then in the nineteenth year of his age, and wishing to acquire a competent knowledge of the principles of jurisprudence, attached himself to Mucius Scævola, who did not undertake the task of instructing pupils, but, by conversing freely with all who consulted him, gave a fair opportunity to those who thirsted after knowledge. Ego autem juris civilis studio, multum operæ dabam Q. Scævolæ, qui quamquam nemini se ad docendum dabat, tamen, consulentibus respondendo, studiosos audiendi docebat. De Claris Orat. s. 306.

[c] Philo was a leading philosopher of the academic school. To avoid the fury of Mithridates, who waged a long war with the Romans, he fled from Athens, and, with some of the most eminent of his fellow-citizens, repaired to Rome. Cicero was struck with his philosophy, and became his pupil. Cùm princeps academiæ Philo, cum Atheniensium optimatibus, Mithridatico bello, domo profugisset, Romamque venisset, totum ei me tradidi, admirabili quodam ad philosophiam studio concitatus. De Claris Orat. s. 306.

Cicero adds, that he gave board and lodging, at his own house, to Diodotus the stoic, and, under that master, employed himself in various branches of literature, but particularly in the study of logic, which may be considered as a mode of eloquence, contracted, close, and nervous. Eram cum stoico Diodoto: qui cum habitavisset apud me, mecumque vixisset, nuper est domi meæ mortuus. A quo, cum in aliis rebus, tum studiosissime in dialecticâ exercebar, quæ quasi contracta et adstricta eloquentia putanda est. De Claris Orat. s. 309.

[d] Cicero gives an account of his travels, which he undertook, after having employed two years in the business of the forum, where he gained an early reputation. At Athens, he passed six months with Antiochus, the principal philosopher of the old academy, and, under the direction of that able master, resumed those abstract speculations which he had cultivated from his earliest youth. Nor did he neglect his rhetorical exercises. In that pursuit, he was assisted by Demetrius, the Syrian, who was allowed to be a skilful preceptor. He passed from Greece into Asia; and, in the course of his travels through that country, he lived in constant habits with Menippus of Stratonica; a man eminent for his learning; who, if to be neither frivolous, nor unintelligible, is the character of Attic eloquence, might fairly be called a disciple of that school. He met with many other professors of rhetoric, such as Dionysius of Magnesia, Æschylus of Cnidos, and Zenocles of Adramytus; but not content with their assistance, he went to Rhodes, and renewed his friendship with MOLO, whom he had heard at Rome, and knew to be an able pleader in real causes; a fine writer, and a judicious critic, who could, with a just discernment of the beauties as well as the faults of a composition, point out the road to excellence, and improve the taste of his scholars. In his attention to the Roman orator, the point he aimed at (Cicero will not say that he succeeded) was, to lop away superfluous branches, and confine within its proper channel a stream of eloquence, too apt to swell above all bounds, and overflow its banks. After two years thus spent in the pursuit of knowledge, and improvement in his oratorical profession, Cicero returned to Rome almost a new man. Is (MOLO) dedit operam (si modo id consequi potuit) ut nimis redundantes nos, et superfluentes juvenili quadam dicendi impunitate, et licentiâ, reprimeret, et quasi extra ripas diffluentes cœrceret. Ita recepi me biennio post, non modo exercitatior, sed propè mutatus. See De Claris Oratoribus, s. 315 and 316.

[e] Cicero is here said to have been a complete master of philosophy, which, according to Quintilian, was divided into three branches, namely, physics, ethics, and logic. It has been mentioned in this section, note [c], that Cicero called logic a contracted and close mode of eloquence. That observation is fully explained by Quintilian. Speaking of logic, the use, he says, of that contentious art, consists in just definition, which presents to the mind the precise idea; and in nice discrimination, which marks the essential difference of things. It is this faculty that throws a sudden light on every difficult question, removes all ambiguity, clears up what was doubtful, divides, develops, and separates, and then collects the argument to a point. But the orator must not be too fond of this close combat. The minute attention, which logic requires, will exclude what is of higher value; while it aims at precision, the vigour of the mind is lost in subtlety. We often see men, who argue with wonderful craft; but, when petty controversy will no longer serve their purpose, we see the same men without warmth or energy, cold, languid, and unequal to the conflict; like those little animals, which are brisk in narrow places, and by their agility baffle their pursuers, but in the open field are soon overpowered. Hæc pars dialectica, sive illam dicere malimus disputatricem, ut est utilis sæpe et finitionibus, et comprehensionibus, et separandis quæ sunt differentia, et resolvendâ ambiguitate, et distinguendo, dividendo, illiciendo, implicando; ita si totum sibi vindicaverit in foro certamen, obstabit melioribus, et sectas ad tenuitatem vires ipsâ subtilitate consumet. Itaque reperias quosdam in disputando mirè callidos; cum ab illâ verò cavillatione discesserint, non magis sufficere in aliquo graviori actu, quam parva quædam animalia, quæ in angustiis mobilia, campo deprehenduntur. Quint. lib. xii. cap. 2.

Ethics, or moral philosophy, the same great critic holds to be indispensably requisite. Jam quidem pars illa moralis, quæ dicitur ethice, certè tota oratori est accommodata. Nam in tantâ causarum varietate, nulla ferè dici potest, cujus non parte aliquâ tractatus æqui et boni reperiantur. Lib. xii. Unless the mind be enriched with a store of knowledge, there may he loquacity, but nothing that deserves the name of oratory. Eloquence, says Lord Bolingbroke, must flow like a stream that is fed by an abundant spring, and not spout forth a little frothy stream, on some gaudy day, and remain dry for the rest of the year. See Spirit of Patriotism.

With regard to natural philosophy, Quintilian has a sentiment so truly sublime, that to omit it in this place would look like insensibility. If, says he, the universe is conducted by a superintending Providence, it follows that good men should govern the nations of the earth. And if the soul of man is of celestial origin, it is evident that we should tread in the paths of virtue, all aspiring to our native source, not slaves to passion, and the pleasures of the world. These are important topics; they often occur to the public orator, and demand all his eloquence. Nam si regitur providentiâ mundus, administranda certè bonis viris erit respublica. Si divina nostris animis origo, tendendum ad virtutem, nec voluptatibus terreni corporis serviendum. An hoc non frequenter tractabit orator? Quint. lib. xii. cap. 2.

Section XXXI.

[a] Quintilian, as well as Seneca, has left a collection of school-declamations, but he has given his opinion of all such performances. They are mere imitation, and, by consequence, have not the force and spirit which a real cause inspires. In public harangues, the subject is founded in reality; in declamations, all is fiction. Omnis imitatio ficta est; quo fit ut minus sanguinis ac virium declamationes habeant, quam orationes; quod in his vera, in illis assimulata materia est. Lib. x. cap. 2. Petronius has given a lively description of the rhetoricians of his time. The consequence, he says, of their turgid style, and the pompous swell of sounding periods, has ever been the same: when their scholars enter the forum, they look as if they were transported into a new world. The teachers of rhetoric have been the bane of all true eloquence. Hæc ipsa tolerabilia essent, si ad eloquentiam ituris viam facerent: nunc et rerum tumore, et sententiarum vanissimo strepitu, hoc tantum proficiunt, ut quum in forum venerint, putent se in alium terrarum orbem delatos. Pace vestrâ liceat dixisse, primi omnium eloquentiam perdidistis. Petron. in Satyrico, cap. 1 and 2. That gay writer, who passed his days in luxury and voluptuous pleasures (see his character, Annals, b. xvi. s. 18), was, amidst all his dissipation, a man of learning, and, at intervals, of deep reflection. He knew the value of true philosophy, and, therefore, directs the young orator to the Socratic school, and to that plan of education which we have before us in the present Dialogue. He bids his scholar begin with Homer, and there drink deep of the Pierian spring: after that, he recommends the moral system; and, when his mind is thus enlarged, he allows him to wield the arms of Demosthenes.

——Det primos versibus annos,

Mæoniumque bibat felici pectore fontem:

Mox et Socratico plenus grege mutet habenas

Liber, et ingentis quatiat Demosthenis arma.

[b] Cicero has left a book, entitled TOPICA, in which he treats at large of the method of finding proper arguments. This, he observes, was executed by Aristotle, whom he pronounces the great master both of invention and judgement. Cum omnis ratio diligens disserendi duas habeat partes; unam INVENIENDI, alteram JUDICANDI; utriusque princeps, ut mihi quidem videtur, Aristoteles fuit. Ciceronis Topica, s. vi. The sources from which arguments may be drawn, are called LOCI COMMUNES, COMMON PLACES. To supply the orator with ample materials, and to render him copious on every subject, was the design of the Greek preceptor, and for that purpose he gave his TOPICA. Aristoteles adolescentes, non ad philosophorum morem tenuiter disserendi, sed ad copiam rhetorum in utramque partem, ut ornatius et uberius dici posset, exercuit; idemque locos (sic enim appellat) quasi argumentorum notas tradidit, unde omnis in utramque partem traheretur oratio. Cicero, De Oratore. Aristotle was the most eminent of Plato's scholars: he retired to a gymnasium, or place of exercise, in the neighbourhood of Athens, called the Lyceum, where, from a custom, which he and his followers observed, of discussing points of philosophy, as they walked in the porticos of the place, they obtained the name of Peripatetics, or the walking philosophers. See Middleton's Life of Cicero, vol. ii. p. 537, 4to edit.

[c] The academic sect derived its origin from Socrates, and its name from a celebrated gymnasium, or place of exercise, in the suburbs of Athens, called the Academy, after Ecademus, who possessed it in the time of the Tyndaridæ. It was afterwards purchased, and dedicated to the public, for the convenience of walks and exercises for the citizens of Athens. It was gradually improved with plantations, groves and porticos for the particular use of the professors or masters of the academic school; where several of them are said to have spent their lives, and to have resided so strictly, as scarce ever to have come within the city. See Middleton's Life of Cicero, 4to edit. vol. ii. p. 536. Plato, and his followers, continued to reside in the porticos of the academy. They chose

——The green retreats

Of Academus, and the thymy vale,

Where, oft inchanted with Socratic sounds,

Ilyssus pure devolv'd his tuneful stream

In gentle murmurs.

AKENSIDE, PLEAS. OF IMAG.

For dexterity in argument, the orator is referred to this school, for the reason given by Quintilian, who says that the custom of supporting an argument on either side of the question, approaches nearest to the orator's practice in forensic causes. Academiam quidam utilissimam credunt, quod mos in utramque partem disserendi ad exercitationem forensium causarum proximè accedat. Lib. xii. cap. 2 Quintilian assures us that we are indebted to the academic philosophy for the ablest orators, and it is to that school that Horace sends his poet for instruction:

Rem tibi Socraticæ poterunt ostendere chartæ,

Verbaque provisam rem non invita sequentur.

ARS POET. ver. 310.

Good sense, that fountain of the muse's art,

Let the rich page of Socrates impart;

And if the mind with clear conception glow,

The willing words in just expressions flow.

FRANCIS'S HORACE.

[d] Epicurus made frequent use of the rhetorical figure called exclamation; and in his life, by Diogenes Lærtius, we find a variety of instances. It is for that manner of giving animation to a discourse that Epicurus is mentioned in the Dialogue. For the rest, Quintilian tells us what to think of him. Epicurus, he says, dismisses the orator from his school, since he advises his pupil to pay no regard to science or to method. Epicurus imprimis nos a se ipse dimittit, qui fugere omnem disciplinam navigatione quam velocissima jubet. Lib. xii. cap. 2. Metrodorus was the favourite disciple of Epicurus. Brotier says that a statue of the master and the scholar, with their heads joined together, was found at Rome in the year 1743.

It is worthy of notice, that except the stoics, who, without aiming at elegance of language, argued closely and with vigour, Quintilian proscribes the remaining sects of philosophers. Aristippus, he says, placed his summum bonum in bodily pleasure, and therefore could be no friend to the strict regimen of the accomplished orator. Much less could Pyrrho be of use, since he doubted whether there was any such thing in existence as the judges before whom the cause must be pleaded. To him the party accused, and the senate, were alike non-entities. Neque vero Aristippus, summum in voluptate corpora bonum ponens, ad hunc nos laborem adhortetur. Pyrrho quidem, quas in hoc opere partes habere potest? cui judices esse apud quos verba faciat, et reum pro quo loquatur, et senatum, in quo sit dicenda sententia, non liquebat. Quintil. lib. xii. cap. 2.

Section XXXII.

[a] We are told by Quintilian, that Demosthenes, the great orator of Greece, was an assiduous hearer of Plato: Constat Demosthenem, principem omnium Græciæ oratorum, dedisse operam Platoni. Lib. xii. cap. 2. And Cicero expressly says, that, if he might venture to call himself an orator, he was made so, not by the manufacture of the schools of rhetoric, but in the walks of the Academy. Fateor me oratorem, si modo sim, aut etiam quicumque sim, non ex rhetorum officinis, sed ex Academiæ spatiis extitisse. Ad Brutum Orator, s. 12.

Section XXXIII.

[a] The ancient critics made a wide distinction, between a mere facility of speech, and what they called the oratorical faculty. This is fully explained by Asinius Pollio, who said of himself, that by pleading at first with propriety, he succeeded so far as to be often called upon; by pleading frequently, he began to lose the propriety with which he set out; and the reason was, by constant practice he acquired rashness, not a just confidence in himself; a fluent facility, not the true faculty of an orator. Commodè agenda factum est, ut sæpe agerem; sæpe agenda, ut minus commodè; quia scilicet nimia facilitas magis quam facultas, nec fiducia, sed temeritas, paratur. Quintil. lib. xii.

Section XXXIV.

[a] There is in this place a trifling mistake, either in Messala, the speaker, or in the copyists. Crassus was born A.U.C. 614. See s. xviii. note [f]. Papirius Carbo, the person accused, was consul A.U.C. 634, and the prosecution was in the following year, when Crassus expressly says, that he was then only one and twenty. Quippe qui omnium maturrimè ad publicas causas accesserim, annosque natus UNUM ET VIGINTI, nobilissimum hominem et eloquentissimum in judicium vocârim. Cicero, De Orat. lib. iii. s. 74. Pliny the consul was another instance of early pleading. He says himself, that he began his career in the forum at the age of nineteen, and, after long practice, he could only see the functions of an orator as it were in a mist. Undevicessimo ætatis anno dicere in foro cœpi, et nunc demum, quid præstare debeat orator, adhuc tamen per caliginem video. Lib. v. epist. 8. Quintilian relates of Cæsar, Calvus, and Pollio, that they all three appeared at the bar, long before they arrived at their quæstorian age, which was seven and twenty. Calvus, Cæsar, Pollio, multum ante quæstoriam omnes ætatem gravissima judicia susceperunt. Quintilian, lib. xii. cap. 6.

Section XXXV.

[a] Lipsius, in his note on this passage, says, that he once thought the word scena in the text ought to be changed to schola; but he afterwards saw his mistake. The place of fictitious declamation and spurious eloquence, where the teachers played a ridiculous part, was properly called a theatrical scene.

[b] Lucius Licinius Crassus and Domitius Ænobarbus were censors A.U.C. 662. Crassus himself informs us, that, for two years together, a new race of men, called Rhetoricians, or masters of eloquence, kept open schools at Rome, till he thought fit to exercise his censorian authority, and by an edict to banish the whole tribe from the city of Rome; and this, he says, he did, not, as some people suggested, to hinder the talents of youth from being cultivated, but to save their genius from being corrupted, and the young mind from being confirmed in shameless ignorance. Audacity was all the new masters could teach; and this being the only thing to be acquired on that stage of impudence, he thought it the duty of a Roman censor to crush the mischief in the bud. Latini (sic diis placet) hoc biennio magistri dicendi extiterunt; quos ego censor edicto meo sustuleram; non quo (ut nescio quos dicere aiebant) acui ingenia adolescentium nollem, sed, contra, ingenia obtundi nolui, corroborari impudentiam. Hos vero novos magistros nihil intelligebam posse docere, nisi ut auderent. Hoc cum unum traderetur, et cum impudentiæ ludus esset, putavi esse censoris, ne longius id serperet, providere. De Orat. lib. iii. s. 93 and 94. Aulus Gellius mentions a former expulsion of the rhetoricians, by a decree of the senate, in the consulship of Fannius Strabo and Valerius Messala, A.U.C. 593. He gives the words of the decree, and also of the edict, by which the teachers were banished by Crassus, several years after. See A. Gellius, Noctes Atticæ, lib. xv. cap. 2. See also Suetonius, De Claris Rhet. s. 1.

[c] Seneca has left a collection of declamations in the two kinds, viz. the persuasive, and controversial. See his SUASORIÆ, and CONTROVERSIÆ. In the first class, the questions are, Whether Alexander should attempt the Indian ocean? Whether he should enter Babylon, when the augurs denounced impending danger? Whether Cicero, to appease the wrath of Marc Antony, should burn all his works? The subjects in the second class are more complex. A priestess was taken prisoner by a band of pirates, and sold to slavery. The purchaser abandoned her to prostitution. Her person being rendered venal, a soldier made his offers of gallantry. She desired the price of her prostituted charms; but the military man resolved to use force and insolence, and she stabbed him in the attempt. For this she was prosecuted, and acquitted. She then desired to be restored to her rank of priestess: that point was decided against her. These instances may serve as a specimen of the trifling declamations, into which such a man as Seneca was betrayed by his own imagination. Petronius has described the literary farce of the schools. Young men, he says, were there trained up in folly, neither seeing nor hearing any thing that could be of use in the business of life. They were taught to think of nothing, but pirates loaded with fetters on the sea-shore; tyrants by their edicts commanding sons to murder their fathers; the responses of oracles demanding a sacrifice of three or more virgins, in order to abate an epidemic pestilence. All these discourses, void of common sense, are tricked out in the gaudy colours of exquisite eloquence, soft, sweet, and seasoned to the palate. In this ridiculous boy's-play the scholars trifle away their time; they are laughed at in the forum, and still worse, what they learn in their youth they do not forget at an advanced age. Ego adolescentulos existimo in scholis stultissimos fieri, quia nihil ex iis, quæ in usu habemus, aut audiunt aut vident; sed piratas cum catenis in littore stantes, et tyrannos edicta scribentes, quibus imperent filiis, ut patrum suorum capita præcidant; sed responsa in pestilentiâ data, ut virgines tres aut plures immolentur; sed mellitos verborum globos, et omnia dicta factaque quasi papavere et sesamo sparsa. Nunc pueri in scholis ludunt; juvenes ridentur in foro; et, quod utroque turpius est, quod quisque perperam discit, in senectute confiteri non vult. Petron. in Satyrico, cap. 3 and 4.

[d] Here unfortunately begins a chasm in the original. The words are, Cum ad veros judices ventum est, * * * * rem cogitare * * * * nihil humile, nihil abjectum eloqui poterat. This is unintelligible. What follows from the words magna eloquentia sicut flamma, palpably belongs to Maternus, who is the last speaker in the Dialogue. The whole of what Secundus said is lost. The expedient has been, to divide the sequel between Secundus and Maternus; but that is mere patch-work. We are told in the first section of the Dialogue, that the several persons present spoke their minds, each in his turn assigning different but probable causes, and at times agreeing on the same. There can, therefore, be no doubt but Secundus took his turn in the course of the enquiry. Of all the editors of Tacitus, Brotier is the only one who has adverted to this circumstance. To supply the loss, as well as it can now be done by conjecture, that ingenious commentator has added a Supplement, with so much taste, and such a degree of probability, that it has been judged proper to adopt what he has added. The thread of the discourse will be unbroken, and the reader, it is hoped, will prefer a regular continuity to a mere vacant space. The inverted comma in the margin of the text [transcriber's note: not used, but numbered with decimal rather than Roman numerals] will mark the supplemental part, as far as section 36, where the original proceeds to the end of the Dialogue. The sections of the Supplement will be marked, for the sake of distinction, with figures, instead of the Roman numeral letters.

SUPPLEMENT.

Section 1.

Section 2.

Section 3.

Section 4.

Cum sexaginta numeret Casselius annos;

Ingeniosus homo est: quando disertus erit?

Lib. vii. epig. 8.

Section 5.

Section 6.

Section 7.

Section 8.

Section 10.

Section 11.

Quintiliane, vagæ moderator summe juventæ,

Gloria Romanæ, Quintiliane, togæ.

Lib. ii. epig. 90.

It is generally supposed that he was a native of Calaguris (now Calahorra), a city in Spain, rendered famous by the martial spirit of Sertorius, who there stood a siege against Pompey. Vossius, however, thinks that he was born a Roman; and GEDOYN, the elegant translator mentioned section 6. note [a], accedes to that opinion, since Martial does not claim him as his countryman. The same writer says, that it is still uncertain when Quintilian was born, and when he died; but, after a diligent enquiry, he thinks it probable that the great critic was born towards the latter end of Tiberius; and, of course, when Domitius Afer died in the reign of Nero, A.U.C. 812, A.D. 59, that he was then two and twenty. His Institutions of an Orator were written in the latter end of Domitian, when Quintilian, as he himself says, was far advanced in years. The time of his death is no where mentioned, but it probably was under Nerva or Trajan. It must not be dissembled, that this admirable author was not exempt from the epidemic vice of the age in which he lived. He flattered Domitian, and that strain of adulation is the only blemish in his work. The love of literature may be said to have been his ruling passion; but, in his estimation, learning and genius are subordinate to honour, truth, and virtue.

Section 12.

Section 13.

Section XXXVI.

[a] When great and powerful eloquence is compared to a flame, that must be supported by fresh materials, it is evident that the sentence is a continuation, not the opening of a new argument. It has been observed, and it will not be improper to repeat, that the two former speakers (Messala and Secundus) having stated, according to their way of thinking, the causes of corrupt eloquence, Maternus, as was promised in the outset of the Dialogue, now proceeds to give another reason, and, perhaps, the strongest of all; namely, the alteration of the government from the old republican form to the absolute sway of a single ruler.

[b] The colonies, the provinces, and the nations that submitted to the Roman arms, had their patrons in the capital, whom they courted with assiduity. It was this mark of distinction that raised the ambitious citizen to the first honours in the state. To have a number of clients, as well at home as in the most important colonies, was the unremitting desire, the study, and constant labour of all who aimed at pre-eminence; insomuch that, in the time of the old republic, the men who wished to be distinguished patrons, impoverished, and often ruined their families, by their profusion and magnificence. They paid court to the common people, to the provinces, and states in alliance with Rome; and, in their turn, they received the homage of their clients. See Annals, b. iii. s. 55.

[c] We read in Quintilian, that oral testimony, and depositions signed by the witnesses, were both in use in his time. Written evidence, he observes, was easily combated; because the witness who chose to speak in the presence of a few who signed his attestation, might be guilty of a violation of truth with greater confidence; and besides, not being cited to speak, his being a volunteer in the cause was a circumstance against him, since it shewed that he acted with ill-will to the opposite party. With regard to the witness who gives his testimony in open court, the advocate has more upon his hands: he must press him with questions, and in a set speech observe upon his evidence. He must also support his own witnesses, and, therefore, must draw up two lines of battle. Maximus patronis circa testimonia sudor est. Ea dicuntur aut per tabulas, aut a præsentibus. Simplicior contra tabulas pugna. Nam et minus obstitisse videtur pudor inter paucos signatores, et pro diffidentiâ premitur absentia. Tacitâ præterea quâdam significatione refragatur his omnibus, quod nemo per tabulas dat testimonium, nisi suâ voluntate; quo ipso non esse amicum ei se, contra quem dicit, fatetur. Cum præsentibus verò ingens dimicatio est: ideoque velut duplici contra eos, proque his, acie confligitur, actionum et interrogationum. Quint. lib. v. cap. 7.

Section XXXVII.

[a] For an account of Mucianus, see section 7, note c [transcriber's note: reference does not match]; also the History, b. ii. s. 5. Suetonius relates that Vespasian, having undertaken to restore three thousand brazen plates, which had perished in the conflagration of the capital (see the Hist. of Tacitus, b. iii. s. 71), ordered a diligent search to be made for copies, and thereby furnished the government with a collection of curious and ancient records, containing the decrees of the senate, acts of the commons, and treaties of alliance, almost from the building of the city. Suetonius, Life of Vespasian, s. 8. This, with the addition of speeches and letters composed by men of eminence, was, most probably, the collection published by Mucianus. We may be sure that it contained a fund of information, and curious materials for history; but the whole is unfortunately lost.

[b] The person intended in this place must not be confounded with Lucius Crassus, the orator celebrated by Cicero in the Dialogue DE ORATORE. What is here said, relates to Marcus Crassus, who was joined in the triumvirate with Pompey and Cæsar; a man famous for his riches, his avarice, and his misfortunes. While Cæsar was engaged in Gaul, and Pompey in Spain, Crassus invaded Asia, where, in a battle with the Parthians, his whole army was cut to pieces. He himself was in danger of being taken prisoner, but he fell by the sword of the enemy. His head was cut off, and carried to Orodes, the Parthian king, who ordered liquid gold to be infused into his mouth, that he, who thirsted for gold, might be glutted with it after his death. Caput ejus recisum ad regem reportatum, ludibrio fuit, neque indigno. Aurum enim liquidum in rictum oris infusum est, ut cujus animus arserat auri cupiditate, ejus etiam mortuum et exangue corpus auro uteretur. Florus, lib. iii. cap. 11. Cicero says, that with slender talents, and a small stock of learning, he was able for some years, by his assiduity and interest, to maintain his rank in the list of eminent orators. Mediocriter a doctrinâ instructus, angustius etiam a naturâ, labore et industriâ, et quod adhibebat ad obtinendas causas curam etiam, et gratiam, in principibus patronis aliquot annos fuit. In hujus oratione sermo Latinus erat, verba non abjecta, res compositæ diligenter; nullus flos tamen, neque lumen ullum: animi magna, vocis parva contentio; omnia ferè ut similiter, atque uno modo dicerentur. Cicero, De Claris Oratoribus, s. 233.

[c] Lentulus succeeded more by his action than by real ability. With a quick and animated countenance, he was not a man of penetration; though fluent in speech, he had no command of words. His voice was sweet and melodious; his action graceful; and with those advantages he was able to conceal all other defects. Cneius autem Lentulus multo majorem opinionem dicendi actione faciebat, quam quanta in eo facultas erat; qui cum esset nec peracutus (quamquam et ex facie et ex vultu videbatur) nec abundans verbis, etsi fallebat in eo ipso; sed voce suavi et canorâ calebat in agendo, ut ea, quæ deerant, non desiderarentur. Cicero, De Claris Oratoribus, s. 234. Metellus, Lucullus, and Curio, are mentioned by Cicero in the same work. Curio was a senator of great spirit and popularity. He exerted himself with zeal and ardour for the legal constitution and the liberties of his country against the ambition of Julius Cæsar, but afterwards sold himself to that artful politician, and favoured his designs. The calamities that followed are by the best historians laid to his charge. Lucan says of him,

Audax venali comitatur Curio linguâ;

Vox quondam populi, libertatemque tueri

Ausus, et armatos plebi miscere potentes.

Lib. i. ver. 269.

And again,

Moméntumque fuit mutatus Curio rerum,

Gallorum captus spoliis, et Cæsaris auro.

PHARSALIA, lib. iv. ver. 819.

[d] Demosthenes, when not more than seven years old, lost his father, and was left under the care of three guardians, who thought an orphan lawful prey, and did not scruple to embezzle his effects. In the mean time Demosthenes pursued a plan of education, without the aid or advice of his tutors. He became the scholar of Isocrates, and he was the hearer of Plato. Under those masters his progress was such, that at the age of seventeen he was able to conduct a suit against his guardians. The young orator succeeded so well in that prelude to his future fame, that the plunderers of the orphan's portion were condemned to refund a large sum. It is said that Demosthenes, afterwards, released the whole or the greatest part.

Section XXXVIII.

[a] The rule for allowing a limited space of time for the hearing of causes, the extent of which could not be known, began, as Pliny the younger informs us, under the emperors, and was fully established for the reasons which he gives. The custom, he says, of allowing two water-glasses (i.e. two hour-glasses) or only one, and sometimes half a one, prevailed, because the advocates grew tired before the business was explained, and the judges were ready to decide before they understood the question. Pliny, with some indignation, asks, Are we wiser than our ancestors? are the laws more just at present? Our ancestors allowed many hours, many days, and many adjournments, in every cause; and for my part, as often as I sit in judgement, I allow as much time as the advocate requires; for would it not be rashness to guess what space of time is necessary in a cause which has not been opened? But some unnecessary things may be said; and is it not better, that what is unnecessary should be spoken, than that what is necessary should be omitted? And who can tell what is necessary, till he has heard? Patience in a judge ought to be considered as one of the chief branches of his duty, as it certainly is of justice. See Plin. b. vi. ep. 2. In England, there is no danger of arbitrary rules, to gratify the impatience of the court, or to stifle justice. The province of juries, since the late declaratory act in the case of libels, is now better understood; and every judge is taught, that a cause is tried before him, not BY HIM. It is his to expound the law, and wait, with temper, for the verdict of those whom the constitution has intrusted.

[b] Pompey's third consulship was A.U.C. 702; before Christ, 52. He was at first sole consul, and in six or seven months Metellus Scipio became his colleague.

[c] The centumviri, as mentioned s. vii. note [c], were a body of men composed of three out of every tribe, for the decision of such matters as the prætors referred to their judgement. The nature of the several causes, that came before that judicature, may be seen in the first book DE ORATORE.

[d] The question in this cause before the centumviri was, whether Clusinius Figulus, the son of Urbinia, fled from his post in battle, and, being taken prisoner, remained in captivity during a length of time, till he made his escape into Italy; or, as was contended by Asinius Pollio, whether the defendant did not serve under two masters, who practised physic, and, being discharged by them, voluntarily sell himself as a slave? See Quintilian, lib. vii. cap. 2.

Section XXXIX.

[a] The advocates, at that time, wore a tight cloak, or mantle, like that which the Romans used on a journey. Cicero, in his oration for Milo, argues that he who wore that inconvenient dress, was not likely to have formed a design against the life of any man. Apparet uter esset insidiator; uter nihil cogitaret mali: cum alter veheretur in rheda, penulatus, unà sederet uxor. Quid horum non impeditissimum? Vestitus? an vehiculum? an comes? A travelling-cloak could give neither grace nor dignity to an orator at the bar. The business was transacted in a kind of chat with the judges: what room for eloquence, and that commanding action which springs from the emotions of the soul, and inflames every breast with kindred passions? The cold inanimate orator is described, by Quintilian, speaking with his hand under his robe; manum intra pallium continens.

Section XL.

[a] Maternus is now drawing to a conclusion, and, therefore, calls to mind the proposition with which he set out; viz. that the flame of oratory is kept alive by fresh materials, and always blazes forth in times of danger and public commotion. The unimpassioned style, which suited the areopagus of Athens, or the courts of Rome, where the advocate spoke by an hour-glass, does not deserve the name of genuine eloquence. The orations of Cicero for Marcellus, Ligarius, and king Dejotarus, were spoken before Cæsar, when he was master of the Roman world. In those speeches, what have we to admire, except delicacy of sentiment, and elegance of diction? How different from the torrent, tempest, and whirlwind of passion, that roused, inflamed, and commanded the senate, and the people, against Catiline and Marc Antony!

[b] For the account of Cicero's death by Velleius Paterculus, see s. xvii. note [e]. Juvenal ascribes the murder of the great Roman orator to the second Philippic against Antony.

——Ridenda poemata malo,

Quam te conspicuæ divina Philippica famæ,

Volveris a primâ quæ proxima.

SAT. x. ver. 124.

I rather would be Mævius, thrash for rhymes

Like his, the scorn and scandal of the times,

Than the Philippic, fatally divine,

Which is inscrib'd the second, should be mine.

DRYDEN'S JUVENAL.

What Cicero says of Antonius, the celebrated orator, may be applied to himself: That head, which defended the commonwealth, was shewn from that very rostrum, where the heads of so many Roman citizens had been saved by his eloquence. In his ipsis rostris, in quibus ille rempublicam constantissime consul defenderat, positum caput illud fuit, a quo erant multorum civium capita servata. Cicero De Oratore, lib. iii. s. 10.

Section XLII.

[a] The urbanity with which the Dialogue is conducted, and the perfect harmony with which the speakers take leave of each other, cannot but leave a pleasing impression on the mind of every reader of taste. It has some resemblance to the conclusion of Cicero's Dialogue DE NATURA DEORUM. In both tracts, we have a specimen of the politeness with which the ancients managed a conversation on the most interesting subjects, and by the graces of style brought the way of instructing by dialogue into fashion. A modern writer, whose poetical genius cannot be too much admired, chooses to call it a frippery way of writing. He advises his countrymen to abandon it altogether; and this for a notable reason: because the Rev. Dr. Hurd (now Bishop of Worcester) has shewn the true use of it. That the dialogues of that amiable writer have an intrinsic value, cannot be denied: they contain a fund of reflection; they allure by the elegance of the style, and they bring us into company with men whom we wish to hear, to know, and to admire. While we have such conversation-pieces, not to mention others of the same stamp, both ancient and modern, the public taste, it may be presumed, will not easily be tutored to reject a mode of composition, in which the pleasing and useful are so happily blended. The present Dialogue, it is true, cannot be proved, beyond a controversy, to be the work of Tacitus; but it is also true, that it cannot, with equal probability, be ascribed to any other writer. It has been retained in almost every edition of Tacitus; and, for that reason, claims a place in a translation which professes to give all the works of so fine a writer.