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Εἶεν ὧν Πρὸς ταῦτα μελάμπεπλος νύξ
Εκχέσι πλῆθος τεράων κατ ̓ ὄρφναν—
Αστέρες τ', ἐκλάμπετἴτω πυρὸς τα
λεσκόπος αἴγλα

Ρᾶον ἂν γναμπταὶ σπιλάδες κατ ̓ ἀκτὰν
Εξερείποιντ', ἢ τὸ, Βρέτανν· Ὁ Δεὺς γὰρ
Σφόδρ' ἀέξει τὸν μεμαώτ' ἀμύνεσ
θαι περὶ πάτρας.

J. B. Trin. Coll. Camb. 1812.

GREEK AND LATIN EPIGRAMS.

Miraturque nihil, nisi quod Libitina sacravit.

HORAT,

Ως οἶνος, τὸ μέλισμ'· ἐπεὶ οὐτιδανὸν καὶ ἄτιμον
Αμφότερον, πρὶν ἴδῃ γῆρας ἐπερχόμενον.

PRISCE Cottylus incubans monetæ,
Nummos colligit indies vetustos :

Si, "Cuinam," rogites, " bono ?"—quid ipse
Dicat Cottylus, autumare non est.

J. B. Trin. Coll. Camb. 1812.

VINDICATION

Of the Translation of ARRIAN'S PERIPLUS of the EUXINE SEA.

MR. RENNEL, after an interval of twelve years from the publication of the work, which, it seems, gives him so much offence, has thought proper, in an angry note to his Illustrations of Xenophon's Anabasis, to censure with no small acrimony the translator of Arrian's Periplus of the Euxine Sea, and this in terms which imply a personal reflection on the Translator. This was altogeΝΟ. ΧΧΧ. CI. JI. VOL. XV.

Y

ther unjustifiable, as it was both unprovoked, and unfounded. The author of that work spoke of Mr. RENNEL, as of a man, "whose knowledge and abilities he respected, and on that account thought it incumbent on him to state his reasons for thus differing from him in opinion." If Mr. RENNEL's desire of praise be not satisfied with this eulogium, the Translator can offer with truth nothing further to soothe his anger, or deprecate his resentment.

Mr. RENNEL's note sets out with complimenting the author of the obnoxious work with the title of a learned Grecian, an epithet ironically introduced. Mr. RENNEL's own work would have been more unexceptionable, could he himself have been seriously complimented with the same title.

The reader of the book might be led to think that the author of the translation of the Periplus had written that work to controvert Mr. R.'s opinions respecting the length of the stadium, and the rate of the sailing of ancient ships, and that the two dissertations were written apparently with a view to lessen the reputation of Mr. R.'s book. But are Mr. R.'s ideas of his own consequence and merits so lofty as to admit of no contradiction to his opinions, without ascribing unworthy motives to those who oppugn them? The author of those dissertations composed them as literary discussions, which he, or any other person, had as good a right to undertake as Mr. R., who has not, informed the public, that he possesses any patent of monopoly for enquiries into ancient Geography. Were the publication a transaction of yesterday, it might be accounted a palliation of such improper insinuations respecting the motives, but surely a space of twelve years should be sufficient to cool geographical ire, or at least to reduce the expression of it into more decorous language. The success of Mr. R.'s publications is a matter as indifferent to the translator of the Periplus, as it may be interesting to their author. Those of Mr. R., as well as the translator, are alike objects of criticism, and will be regarded as such, notwithstanding any complaint, or expression of soreness from those, who are mortified with the liberty taken in examining them.

What may appear extraordinary, Mr. R. declines entering into a defence of those opinions, of the opposition to which he was so jealous, but rather chooses to leave them to the judgment of the public. The translator is perfectly willing to refer them to this decision, and is in no pain on account of the event.

Mr. R. alleges, that the translator has "for want of reflection led himself into some very ridiculous errors.' Into these mistakes, which Mr. R. thinks so ridiculous, the translator was led by Mr. R. himself. The former presumed, that when Greek measures were in question, the author would have reckoned

by stadia, or by multiples of stadia, as Strabo has done, and not by geographical miles or minutes on the Equator, of which Herodotus had no idea.

Mr. R., however, supposes for the translator, that he had substituted miles of about 87 to a degree instead of those of 60. If Mr. R. had read the work with due reflection, the want of which he is so forward to condemn, he might have discovered, that the author ascribed with M. D'Anville 600 stadia=75, not 87 Greek miles to a degree on the Equator.

The translator is willing to refer to the public, whether the notes of admiration, which Mr. R. has placed at the end of this sentence, do not belong to his own blunders, as justly as to those of the translator.

But when Mr. R. is so free in ridiculing the blunders of others, the public may perhaps cast a glance on his own. What must the learned, or even the unlearned world, think of his discovery, that the schoolmen (Qe. whom he means by this term?) had supplied a deficiency in the text of Polybius, by placing a figure of eight, where a nine had originally stood? The only comment upon this emendation of the text is, that Polybius wrote 220 years before the commencement of the Christian era, and the Arabic cyphers, which Mr. R. supposes he employed, were not introduced or known in Europe before the 14th century; or at least 1500 years later than the age of Polybius.

Mr. R., in a kind of Postscript to his note, has suggested that the translator's mistakes do not end here, for among others he has omitted a whole line of distance in the translation, which might very much mislead a geographer, who followed him.

It is very clear from this captious observation, that Mr. R. could not have read the work he is so desirous to censure. The distance between the River Achæus and the Herculean Promontory is stated to be in the translation 180, instead of 150 stadia, and the distance from the Herculean Promontory to another promontory, (a hundred and eighty stadia) is omitted altogether. But if Mr. R. had turned to page 77 of the Dissertation he would have found this mistake corrected. The words of the amended translation are, ، From the Achæus to Prom. Herculis 150 stadia. From Prom. Herc. to another promontory 180 stadia." In the Table or Summary of the Distances, this mistake is again corrected (page 100). Mr. R. does no credit to his own candour in selecting this mistake, which is twice corrected in other parts of the book, from others which he lays to the charge of the translator, but does not think proper to specify.

April 1817.

F.

320

AN ACCOUNT

Of Researches made among the Ruins of Pompeii,

in 1813.

THE beautiful representations of Pompeian antiquities lately published from the drawings of Sir William GELL and Mr. GANDY having given additional interest to this subject; our readers will probably be gratified in perusing the brief abstract here offered of a French work which we have reason to believe extremely rare in England. It is an octavo volume comprising ninety-three pages, closely printed, and fifteen plates, besides an engraved frontispiece, exhibiting the simple title of POMPEI. But the first page describes it as an Account of Researches made at Pompeii, in presence of her majesty the queen of the Two Sicilies (for so is here qualified Madame Murat) in the months of March and May, 1813. "Fouille faite à Pompeï, &c." From a signature which occurs in p. 50, the author of this work appears to be Mons. de Clarac-and most of the plates that illustrate it, have been engraved from his designs.

It is almost unnecessary to inform the classical reader that in the year of Christ, 79, Pompeii, which Seneca has described as the most celebrated city in this part of Campania, was overwhelmed by an eruption of burning ashes from Mount Vesuvius; having suffered much from an earthquake fifteen years before;-the buried city was accidentally discovered in the last century, and various excavations siuce made, have brought to light a street of tombs-a Temple of Isis— a villa-a Theatre-several shops and small dwelling houses-a barrack or guard-room, and other edifices-with some skeletons, and several articles of domestic furniture, besides pictures, medals, &c. From p. 2. of the volume before us, we learn that it was resolved in 1812, to ascertain the original extent of this city, by clearing from earth and cinders, the walls which surrounded it, and which are supposed to form a circuit of 1600 or 1700 toises. Some of these walls are of considerable strength, and above twenty feet in certain placesfortified with a sort of towers in which are posterns. Those ramparts are nearly twelve feet thick. It appears that they have undergone repairs not long before the destruction of the city; probably after it had been besieged by Sylla, and after the earthquake in the year 63 of Christ.

In clearing the grand street which passes before the Temple of Isis, and apparently crosses the whole city, intersected occasionally by others, the workmen having descended to the ancient pavement, and opened the entrance to the great portico of the theatre, were engaged in digging near the surface, among ashes and cinders, above which was little more than one foot of vegetative earth.- Here it seemed improbable that any thing curious should be found, and they were about to desist, when one of them discovered a bone-then a whole

skeleton-some medals of brass and silver, and one of gold-after this, a considerable number appeared, and many of the small gold coins (of the Roman Emperors) were as fresh as when they first issued from the mint.-It is supposed that the unfortunate proprietor, whom death arrested in his flight, had carefully endeavoured to preserve this gold,-for it was separated from the other coins of inferior yalue, and wrapped in a piece of stuff, so totally decomposed that it mouldered away immediately on being touched.-But the other medals were contained in a purse or rather a large wrapper of linen made from flax or hemp, and like that used at present. Some of this ancient linen is still so strong, that, after a lapse of seventeen centuries, it cannot be easily torn.

From the situation of the skeleton, covered only with a thin coat of earth, and lying over a bed of ashes ten feet deep, we may perceive how rapid and abundant must have been the shower of cinders which buried Pompeii, at the moment when this unfortunate person attempted, but in vain, to save himself.-Many other bodies were discovered, on the same day, as the skeleton above mentioned. A mother dragging after her two young da ighters, and pressing to her bosom a little infant, appears to have fallen a victim to the burning ashes, near the wall of the portico in the street of tombs.-They seem to have crowded together; their bones are so intermixed that it is probable the mother and her children expired in each other's embraces. That they were a family of some opulence and even elegance, may be inferred from their gold rings and other ornaments: one ring is in the form of a serpent with many folds; another, which from its small size we may suppose to have been worn by a young girl, is mounted with a garnet bearing the device of a thunderbolt. The ear-rings resemble little balances or scales, of which the basins are represented by pearls suspended by a golden thread. (Similar earrings are preserved in the Cabinet des Antiques at Paris.) Two of the pearls are sufficiently perfect; the others have suffered.

In most of the houses explored at Pompeii, the reservoirs or cisterns for water are generally of marble, and situated in the midst of small courts, (impluvium). It appears that at the moment when this city was destroyed by the eruption, one of the houses was actually in a state of reparation many pieces of marble and handsome tiles were found heaped together just below the wall, as ready for the workmen, who were to finish with them the edge of the roof, and to form the gutters. These tiles are well-shaped and ornamented with figures of dogs and foxes. One picture was discovered in this house: it is neatly and spiritedly executed, and represents (on a red ground,) Peace holding in the right hand an olive-branch, and in the left a cornucopiæ. Besides some sculptures in white marble, the houses abovementioned offered many interesting objects; locks and other fastenings of doors both of brass and iron, and in several respects not unlike those at present in use among us, a balance or pair of scales with brass bowls about five inches in diameter, and hung by wellwrought chains: the weight used with this balance is a pretty bronze

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