is said by some to be totally extinct. But not many years ago there were, it is asserted, five or six persons in the village of Mousehole, who could converse in it.

C. Mæcenas. according to Pliny, did not sleep during the three last years of his life. To that infirmity the Poet Bourbon was subject in a still higher degree. He seldom enjoyed the blessing of sleep. This gave occasion to the following Epitaphs:

Pervigilis tandem laxatus carcere vitæ,
Borbonius campos cessit ad Elysios.
Illic populea dormit securus in umbra,
Posthabitis vatum lusibus atque focis.
Vos, Orpheu, Musæ, viro ne rumpite somnum,
Hunc oculis nunquam senserat ante suis.

Traxit in angusta qui tot quinquennia cella,
Pervigil, infirmo corpore, Borbonius,
Extremum media gustans in morte soporem,

O bone, ait, tandem dormio: vita, vale.

In the third Satire of the first book of Horace, line 107, the offensive word has been in some expurgated editions changed to mulier. In a beautiful little edition of Horace, lately printed in this country, a new reading of this line occurs, for which it would be difficult to find an authority in any MS. or edition, and of which it would be curious to investigate the origin:

"Nam fuit ante Helenam Sanadon teterrima belli.”

To prove the antiquity of an accented pronunciation in the Greek language, among many passages in the Greek writers, the curious instance, recorded by Ulpian, in his Commentary on the Oration of Demosthenes Tegì σrepávou, although, in the words of Taylor, "neminem fugit, qui de accentibus scripsit," may not be known to all our younger readers. Demosthenes is endeavouring to fix the charge of bribery on Eschines, whom he represents as corrupted by Philip and by Alexander, and consequently their hireling and not their friend or guest. Of his assertion he is willing to submit the truth to the judgment of the assembly. Μίσθωτον ἐγώ σε πρότερον Φιλίππου, καὶ νῦν ̓Αλεξάνδρου καλῶ, καὶ οὗτοι πάντες. Εἰ δὲ ἀπιστεῖς, ἐρώτησον αὐτούς. But, as if he were correcting himself, he adds: μäλño ♪ ε TOUG Unèg σou morow. He indeed puts the question to the people, but with an artifice, which he knew would be successful: πότερον ὑμῖν, ὦ ἄνδρες Αθηναῖοι, μίσθωτος Αἰσχίνης, ἢ ξένος εἶναι ̓Αλεξάνδρου δοκεῖ; he purposely placed the accent improperly on the antipenultima, instead of the last syllable of μισθωτός,in the words of Ulpian, ἑκὼν ἐβαρβά grav,-in order to draw the attention of the people from the question to the pronunciation. This had the desired effect; the accurate ears of the Athenians were struck with the mistake; to correct it, they

called out ofwrds, picturis, from every part of the assembly. Affecting to receive the word as the expression of their sentiments on the guilt of Æschines, he cries out: dojets à λéyou;—

Taylor appears to doubt the truth of the account, although he acknowledges that "erat in eo populo aurium quædam religio, quæ non longe abhorreret a tali historia." The reader is referred to his note on the passage, and to Primatt's defence of Ulpian, in his Defence of an accented pronunciation of Greek prose.

PODAGER VINOSUS.

Tentatum podagra senem Vacerram,
Nec vini tamen abstinentiorem,
Visens Archigenes, amice, dixit,
Cado parcere, si sapis, memento,
Fons est ille tuæ unicus podagræ.
Audivit placide senex monentem,
Et grates, specie probantis, egit.
Verum post aliquot dies reversus
Ad ægrum Medicus, scyphos at illum
Vertentem reperit meraciores:

Eho, quid facis? inquit. At Vacerra;
Fontem sicco meæ, ut vides, podagra.

Idem Græcè.

Ηπείλησεν ἐμοὶ ποδάγρην ἰητρὸς ̓Αμύντας,
Εἰ μὴ ἀπ ̓ ἀκρήτου θυμὸν ἔχω βρομίου.
Τὸν δ ̓ αὖ μᾶλλον ἀεὶ πίνω, βρόμιον γὰρ ὀλέσσας,
Οἴω τὴν πηγὴν τῆς ποδάγρης ὀλέσαι.

Idem Gallicè.

Sur peine de la goute un Médecin m'ordonne

De quitter l'usage du vin;

Moi, loin de renoncer à ce jus si divin,

J'acheve de vuider ma tonne.

Laquais, vite à grands flots remplis moi ce crystal;
Si le vin engendre la goute,

Boire jusqu'à la lie est le secret sans doute
De tarir la source du mal.

NOTICE

Of D. G. Morhofii Liber de pura Dictione Latina.

D. G. MORHOFII Liber de pura Dictione Latina, edidit J. D. Moshemius, et Notas adjecit, Hanov. 1725, pp. 296, 12mo.

Our readers will not feel any surprise that we should formally

notice a work published at such a distant period, when they hear the reasons which induce us to do it. In the first place the reader may imagine, that because his Library contains the Polyhistor, the Orationes et Programmata, published in 1698, and the Dissertationes Academica et Epistolica, published at Hamburgh in 1699, it contains every detached work, which proceeded from the pen of this profound scholar, when the fact is, that he left behind him some posthumous works, which were not given to the world for some years after his decease, which happened in 1691. It shall be our business to lay a brief account of them before the reader in the course of time. In the next place, the work, with which we shall commence this promised Notice, is by no means easily to be procured, and though the copy now in our possession was sold at the sale of Dr. Gosset's Library, only for 6s. 6d., yet the writer of this Article, who has been a great reader of catalogues, has never met with it in any other catalogue, nor is it mentioned in Brunet's Manuel du Libraire, of which excellent work we are happy to inform our readers, on the authority of M. Renouard, who wrote the account of the Aldine Classics, and is recently arrived in this country from Paris, that an improved edition is now preparing at Paris by the author himself. In the last place, the admirable observations, and the useful learning contained in the book, have more particularly urged us to do it, for the information of the youthful scholar.

We shall be under the necessity of citing the excellent Preface entire, that we may at once acquaint our readers with the origin of this publication, and show them the high value which its editor set on it.

"Quum eloquentiæ studia numquam, nisi segniter et supine tractaverim, nunc vero, quam sustineo, persoua longe aliam mihi curam imponat, requirent forte nonnulli, quid me commoverit, ut in edendo et illustrando libello nonnihil otii mei collocaverim, quem Grammaticus aut Rhetor sibi meliori jure adseruisset. Eis, antequam de ipso disseram libro, quem nunc exire jubeo, satis esse faciendum opinor. Ali

quot elapsi sunt anni, quum exemplum ejus manu exaratum dono mihi daret ex amicis aliquis, hac lege, ut, si quidem fieri posset, publici juris facerem. Recepi conditionem, sed non unius generis negotiis et molestiis impeditus, diu propositum exsequi non potui. Sacro vero, quo nunc fungor, muneri præter omnem opinionem meam admotus, dum chartas lustro, minusque necessarias removeo, hoc Morhofii opusculum in manus incidit et promissi simul memoriam renovat. Neque tamen tum animus mihi erat, curare, ut continuo prodiret, eo quod occupationum mole non tam pressum, quam prope obrutum me cernebam. At quum ejus forte mentionem fecissem apud virum laude mea majorem, et Morhofianæ eruditionis cultorem eximium, is hortari non destitit, ut editionem maturarem, facileque auctoritate sua permovit, ut horarum, quas severioribus eripere possum meditationibus, nonnullas in hanc rem impenderem. Sufficient hæc, spero, depellendis eorum vocibus, qui negotium me suscepisse fortassis existimabunt a rationibus meis valde alienum. Nunc de ipso libro, quæ scitu mihi videbuntur necessaria, breviter monebo. Aliquoties dum in vivis esset, librum de pura dictione promisit vir numquam sine laude nominandus et sempiternum Cimbrorum decus, Dan. Georg. Morhofius (Libro de Patavin. Liviana et alias) ejus etiam testati sunt desiderium viri eruditissimi (vid. Acta Erud. A. 1684. p. 575.). Verum præmatura mors magni hominis uti multis aliis, ita huic etiam ejus consilio intercessit. Morti tamen vicinus, id quod non unus discipulorum ejus mihi affirmavit, ut quas de eo argumento relicturus esset chartas, hæredes colligerent, et cum omnibus communicarent, si non præcepit, certe permisit. Hi itaque jam anno superioris seculi nonagesimo quarto librum hunc expectari a se jusserunt publice, sed, nescio quibus de caussis, ultra propositum haud processerunt. Ego post tot annos quod illis facere non fuit integrum, tandem cum multorum, uti spero, commodo perficio. Continet autem liber hic, præter observationes alias haud paucas, nec plane nullius pretii, regulas et præcepta, quorum ope Latinarum literarum studiosus ad rectam et veram eloquentiam, dictionisque castitatem pervenire queat. Itaque commode inscribi potuisset, Institutiones Latina Linguæ: voce enim purus, id quod ex ipso patet initio, significatione latissima vir eximius utitur. Nobis minus justum visum fuit, quem libro suo dederat indicem auctor, rejicere et cum alio commutare. Cum his eloquentiæ præceptis, præclaro instituto et laudabili, notitiam conjungit criticam librorum et auctorum, ex quibus uberior rerum hauriri queat scientia ; idque tanto facit apparatu et diligentia, ut vel hoc nomine opusculum magnopere commendari mereatur. Neque fortassis multum a vero aberravero, si eos, quorum est juventutem latinis erudire litteris, non male facturos esse dixero si ad ejus normam fidei suæ commissos instituant. Habent hic materiam studiose congestam et dispositam, quam expolire, emendare, et locupletare sine magno labore poterunt. Non tam ego rerum expers sum, neque adeo veri negligens, ut vel mihi persuadeam, vel aliis persuadere cupiam, ad perfectionem proxime laborem hunc accedere. Fateor, ex eo satis patere, quod ultimam parentis manum haud senserit: fateor, ab eo tempore, quo exaratus est, multa, æ ad hoc genus pertinent, a viris doctis scripta et excogitata esse,

quorum hic vestigia frustra quæsiveris: fateor partem eorum, quæ ad Historiam linguæ Latinæ litterariam, pertinent, in Polyhistore quoque expositam esse: fateor denique, puræ dictionis leges non raro negligere eum, qui puræ dictionis auctor aliis esse studet. Verum hæc omnia non prohibere contendo, quo minus uberem ex ejus lectione fructum percipiant, qui his rebus delectantur. Nævos facile excusabit præmaturus viri egregii obitus, qui, si ipsemet hunc fœtum edidisset, longe nobis alium exhibuisset. Ac licet quædam hic extent ab aliis clarius aut eruditius enarrata, multa tamen admista sunt, quæ aliorum aut diligentiam aut attentionem effugerunt, multa quoque, in quibus nemo ingenium et memoriam tentavit: qualia sunt, quæ de scriptoribus indicum, Grammaticis et aliis copiose et erudite docentur. Sint et aliqua eorum, quæ hic leguntur, in Polyhistore jam enarrata, sunt tanien hæc pauca et multa pauciora illis, quorum nulla in Polyhistore reperitur memoria. Quamobrem supplementi instar spectari poterit hic liber ad ea, quæ parcius de rebus ad eloquentiam Latinam pertinentibus in Polyhistore disseruntur, aut penitus omittuntur.

Quæ vel illustrationis, vel emendationis indigere indicavi, ea in subjectis adnotationibus et illustravi, et emendavi. Si quis est, qui se maximi facere virtutes Morhofianas dicit, is me sibi prorsus consentientem esse sciat. Verum hoc studium tantum haud apud me potuit, ut propterea nefas duxerim, ab opinione doctissimi viri discedere, aut committendum mihi esse crediderim, ut auctoritate ejus in errorem minus cauti abriperentur. Sanctior mihi est veritas quam ullius hominis memoria. Hinc inde quædam addidi, quæ post scriptum hunc librum inter eruditos gesta sunt: locupletiora additamenta iis reliqui, ad quos harum rerum cura pertinet. Satis a me datum est his litteris, quas numquam serio et ex instituto colere potui. Nunc majora me sibi totum vindicant, grande in primis Sacrarum Antiquitatum Opus, cujus me prodromum mox esse daturum spero. Vale. Dabam in illustri Juliad. XXVI.

Martii MDCCXXV.

The Table of Contents is as follows. We would direct the attention of the student to the 6th, 7th, and 13th chapters.

C. 1. Quid sit pura Dictio?-C. 11. De Characteribus externis puræ Dictionis.-C. 111. De pura Dictione considerata Ratione Characterum interiorum.-C. IV. De Proprietate Vocum.-C. v. De Proprietate Vocum ex Usu æstimanda.-C. VI. De Nomenclatoribus.-C. VII. De Lexicorum et Indicum Scriptoribus.C. VIII. De Phrasibus, earumque Selectu et Phraseologicis Scriptoribus.-C. IX. De Verbis et Phrasibus civilibus et Formulis Latina Linguæ.-C. x. De Vocibus barbaris et Germanismis.-C. XI. De Observatione Puritatis instituenda.-C. XII. De translatis, quæ Loco propriorum adhibentur.-C. XIII. De Particulis, earumque accurata Observatione instituenda.-C. IV. De Particulis connectentibus expletivis, earumque Variatione.C. xv. De Puritate Dictionis Ratione Formæ consideratæ.-C. XVI. De Sententia puri Sermonis.