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(23) P. 18.7.5. Minos et Rhadamanthus, both (according to mythology) sons of Jupiter and Europa, and born in Crete. For their distinguished justice while kings on earth, the Greeks represented them as severe and impartial judges in Hades. Minos hears the causes of the dead, and shakes the fatal urn by which their destiny is determined; and Rhadamanthus obliges them to confess their crimes, and punishes them for their offences. Cicero has here

omitted Aeacus, son of Jupiter and Aegina, and king of Oenopia, who is often associated with Minos and Rhadamanthus.-L. Crassus. . . M. Antonius; the former a celebrated orator cotemporary with Cicero ; the latter, Cicero's teacher in rhetoric, at Rome, otherwise called Marcus Antonius Gnipho.

(24) P. 18. l. 7. Quoniam, whilst; the sense seems to require quamquam, as Ernesti remarks; but quoniam is admissible in the sense now given to it.—Graecos judices, i. e. Minos and Rhadamanthus, as stated above.-Tibi ipsi . . . dicenda, [but] the cause must be pleaded for yourself, the crown being of the highest value. The recent translation of Cicero's Tusculan Questions, by W. H. Main (Lond. 1824), renders maximâ coronâ, before a very great assembly. The Latin is, no doubt, capable of this; because corona sometimes means the crowd which surrounds or

encircles any one. But I apprehend the true force and point of the expression here would be lost by such a version. I understand Cicero, who had just named Demosthenes, as alluding here to the last and highest effort of this masterly orator, viz., the celebrated oration περὶ στεφάνου, i. e. pro corona. Demosthenes, in the course of his life, had been twice crowned on the public stage at Athens; once

for his services in expelling the Macedonian garrison from the island of Euboea; and the second time, after the league made with the Thebans. In 334 B. C., his friend Ctesiphon proposed in the Senate, that Demosthenes should be again crowned for his many public, patriotic, and disinterested services. Aeschines, the rival of Demosthenes, took offence at this, and accused Ctesiphon of acting unlawfully and precipitately in this matter, and demanded that he should be fined fifty talents of gold. From various causes, the matter did not come to trial until eight years afterwards; when Demosthenes undertook the defence of Ctesiphon; and through him, the vindication of his own claims, which was the real basis of the dispute. As this was the last, so it was the most perfect of all the public speeches of Demosthenes; and indeed, it is the unquestionable master-piece of ancient ages. An allusion to these well-known facts I suppose Cicero to make, in the phrase maximâ coronâ; which, on the ground that I take, means as much as to say: 'The crown for which you will plead, will be one of the highest possible value; i. e. it amounts to the question of eternal happiness or misery. The idea of a great assembly before which individuals are to plead their cause at the bar of the judges in Hades, is, as it seems to me, foreign to the classical circle of thought; although it is familiar to us, because we insensibly transfer the scriptural account of the judgment day, to the heathen judgment day. It comes, therefore, from the Scriptures, rather than from the Greek or Roman views of our final trial.

P, 18.7. 16. Male, Hercule, narras, by Hercules, you

speak unluckily. The reason follows: Quia...dicerem, i. e. 'I might exhibit some eloquence in descanting against such things,' viz. if he had not been prevented by his Collocutor's disclaiming any belief in them.-Quis enim non etc., who now could not [be eloquent] in a matter of this kind? Convincere, refute.

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(25) P. 18. l. 31. Nusquam possunt, literally they cannot be nowhere, i. e. they must be somewhere. -Quid tandem, literally why at last? Tandem, in such a case, is expressive of surprise or strong feeling; just as we should say, in English: 'Why, in all the world? Why, for heaven's sake?'—Istuc, that ; put for isthoc.-Illas fortunas, those [splendid] possessions, viz. such as the persons present were well acquainted with.-M. Crassus, i. e. Marcus Licinius Crassus, one of the triumvirate with Caesar and Pompey, who was exceedingly rich, and met with a violent death, B. C. 53.-Cneium Pompeium, Pompey the Great, as he has been called, one of the same triumvirate, who also came to a violent end.—Qui ... careant, i. e. who die.

(26) P. 19. l. 15. Revolveris eodem, you move in a circle, i. e. you argue in one.-Etiam quod sentio, the very thing which, or exactly what, think.Esse... dicis, then you affirm that they [who are dead] do still exist.—Portâ Capena, a gate of Rome so named, because it led towards Capena.-Calatini, etc., heroes and patriots of former days.

The Greek asiwua means, in logic, whatever is so said, in a perfect sentence, that it must be either true or false. Pronunciatum, then, is a proposition, declaration, something declared.—Id ergo . falsum, is not exactly fitted to the previous omne pronuntia

tum. The fact is, that the construction of the sentence is broken off by the parenthesis, and begun anew or resumed at id etc.; that then is an affirmation, which is true or false.

(27) P. 20. 1. 30. Ecqui, sign of interrogation merely, like the word num; do you see then, etc.? -Dejeceris, you have removed or abstracted, viz., by granting that men are not miserable after death, the sum of their misery is of course greatly diminished; as the sequel shews.-Haberemus in vita, i. e. we should, while living, have continually before us endless misery.-Calcem, literally the heel; but here figuratively, the extremity.

Epicharmus (fl. 440 B. C.) was a poet and Pythagorean philosopher, who introduced comedy at Syracuse, under king Hiero. He was imitated by the Roman Plautus. He is reported to have made a metrical version of the maxims of Pythagoras, and so to have divulged the secrets of the School. Aristotle and Pliny make him the inventor of the Greek letters y and 9.-The phrase, acuti nec insulsi hominis, corresponds pretty exactly to our vulgar English expression, a shrewd sort of a man, and no fool of a fellow. At least, this gives the sense of the original, better than a more stately expression.

Ut Siculi, inasmuch as he is a Sicilian; for Sicilians were deemed, by the ancients, to be men of acute minds.-Quam, i. e. quam sententiam.-Me Graece... Latine, that I am not any more wont to introduce Greek when speaking Latin, than I am to introduce the Latin while speaking Greek.—Jam agnosco Graecum, I readily discern the Greek; but does he mean the Greek man, or the Greek lan

guage that corresponded with what Cicero had uttered? The latter, Mr. Main says; and perhaps correctly; for a reference to what precedes the quotation, would incline one so to think. Still it is possible, that the speaker means to say: "I discern in this sentiment the shrewd Greek philosopher;" but, on the whole, I cannot think this to be the probable interpretation. He seems to design to say, that although Cicero had not expressed the Greek, he could discern what it must be, or recal it to mind. The verse of Epicharmus, Αποθάνειν ἢ τεθνάναι, ου μοι διαφέρει, which Sextus Empiricus (advers. Mathemat.) has preserved, does not appear to contain the sentiment which Cicero has here expressed in Latin.-Perfice, accomplish or complete your undertaking, viz., to shew, that I should regard the not being obliged to die, as miserable.

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(28) P. 21.7. 18. Jam...est, that now is indeed no difficult task.-Cui proximum etc., near to which [death], is the time after death, etc.--Id est enim etc., for that [viz. dying] is coming to that etc.-Uberius ista, [speak] more at large upon these things.-Haec... assentiar, these thorny matters (as I confess) compel me before I can yield my assent to them.-Ut enim non efficias etc., although you may not effect, etc.; tamen etc., yet you may succeed in shewing, etc.-Continentem orationem, continuous or uninterrupted speech.-Superbum . . . esset, that would be acting haughtily or arrogantly; for esset Ernesti reads est, but (with Rath) I prefer esset.-Geram tibi morem, I yield to thee, or I grant your request; mos sometimes signifies one's own will or opinion; and gero, to manage, direct, etc. Hence gero tibi morem, literally I di

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