The Student's Mythology

CÆSAR (Caius Julius),

The Roman general and dictator, holds a high rank among Latin authors. During the most active period of his life, he found time to devote to literary pursuits. Of the works written by him on various subjects, both in prose and verse, we have only his “Commentaries,” in ten books. Seven of these treat of the Gallic war, the rest contain an account of the Civil war. The hurry of military expeditions did not prevent this extraordinary man from observing closely the manners and customs of the different nations with whom he contended. We are indebted to the Commentaries for almost all the accurate information we possess with regard to the inhabitants of ancient Gaul.

Cæsar was not surpassed, even by the writers of the Augustan age, in clearness and beauty of style. He exaggerates nothing, and his most brilliant achievements are related with a certain modest simplicity which is one of the characteristics of true greatness.

CICERO

A Roman orator and statesman. He filled the highest offices in the gift of his country, and took so prominent a part in public affairs, that an account of his life would be also a history of his times. Cicero wrote on the art of public speaking, on philosophy and jurisprudence. This great man, who had saved Rome from the plots of Catiline, and rendered many other signal services to his country, was basely murdered by the order of the second Triumvirate, in the year 43 B. C.

DEMOSTHENES

A famous Athenian orator, who defended the liberties of his country against the aggressions of Philip of Macedon.

DIODORUS,

Surnamed Siculus, from Sicily, his birth-place. He was a celebrated historian, contemporary with Julius Cæsar and Augustus. He wrote a “General History” in forty books, of which we have now fifteen entire, with scattered fragments of the others. Diodorus devoted thirty years to this great work.

EURIPIDES,

A Greek tragedian, was born in 480 B. C., on the day rendered famous by the victory of Salamis. After gaining a high reputation as a dramatist, Euripides retired to Macedon, to the court of King Archelaûs. On the death of the poet, the Athenians begged that his body might be sent to Athens for interment. This request Archelaûs refused, and Euripides was buried with much pomp at Pella, in Macedon. This poet is inferior to Æschylus and Sophocles, not only in dignity of sentiment, but in the moral tone of his dramas. Sophocles is said to have observed that while he represented men as they ought to be, Euripides described them as they were.

HERODOTUS,

Who has been called the Father of History, was born at Halicarnassus, 484 B. C. He spent many years travelling through Europe, Asia and Africa, observing everywhere the manners and customs of the people, and collecting materials for his great work. His account of the Persian war is full of interest, and won for him great popularity among his countrymen.

Herodotus relates many things which seem strange, and even incredible; but these are either traditions of remote times, or accounts received from other travellers. The general opinion is that where Herodotus speaks from his own observation, or relates events of which the memory was still recent, he may be relied upon as an accurate and truthful historian.

JUSTIN (Saint)

A Christian writer of the second century. He is principally celebrated for his “Apology for the Christians,” addressed to the Emperor Antoninus. It is written in a style at once eloquent and persuasive, and it is believed that it had the desired effect, and was the immediate cause of the edict issued by Antoninus in favor of the Christians.

St. Justin addressed a second Apology to Marcus Aurelius, but with far different success. This Emperor was too much under the influence of the heathen philosophers whom he had assembled at his court, to judge impartially in the matter. One of these, Crescentius, a bitter enemy of the Christians, procured the death of their intrepid defender. The martyrdom of St. Justin took place at Rome, about the year 161 A. D.

JUVENAL

A Roman poet of the first century. He was born in the reign of Caligula, but the exact date is not known. Juvenal is celebrated for his satires, in which he attacked the vices and follies of his day, not sparing the emperors themselves where their conduct was deserving of reproach. Hadrian believed that one of the satires of Juvenal was directed against himself; he had not the magnanimity to overlook the offence, and Juvenal was exiled to Lybia, where he died soon after.

MÆCENAS

Minister and favorite of the Emperor Augustus. He was distinguished for the wisdom of his counsels, and his rare abilities as a statesman. Although himself an indifferent poet, he was still a patron of literature and literary men; Virgil, Horace, Ovid and other celebrated writers of the Augustan age, were among his most intimate friends. Such was the care with which Mæcenas sought out and rewarded every species of merit, that his name is proverbially used to denote a generous patron.

Admirable in his public capacity, he was in private life as indolent and luxurious as the most effeminate oriental. His villas were laid out with unexampled magnificence, and his banquets surpassed, in taste and display, those given by Augustus himself.

The later years of Mæcenas offer a sad commentary on the value of human greatness. His constitution, which had never been strong, was weakened by excess. He was tormented by constant wakefulness, and this great man, with the resources of the world at his command, would probably have sacrificed both wealth and power for the common boon of sleep enjoyed by the meanest of his slaves. In vain the physicians exercised their skill; narcotics, monotonous sounds, distant music, all failed to produce the desired effect. A stream was, at length, conducted through a garden adjoining the chamber where he lay, and the soft murmur of the falling waters procured a temporary alleviation. We are told, however, that for three years preceding his death, Mæcenas never slept.

PELASGI

A name given to the most ancient inhabitants of Greece. They founded colonies in Asia Minor, the islands of the Ægean Sea, and in Italy. The Cyclopean remains in these countries are generally attributed to the Pelasgi. These structures are remarkable for the immense size of the stones of which they are built.

PLINIUS, (Secundus C.)

A Roman writer, generally known as Pliny the Elder; is equally celebrated as a historian and a naturalist. It is not easy to understand how one man could have followed so many different avocations, filled high offices under different emperors, and yet have found time for such a vast amount of composition. While still quite young, Pliny served in Germany, where he commanded a troop of cavalry; he afterwards practised as a pleader at the Roman bar, filled the office of procurator in Spain, and we find him, at the time of his death, in command of the fleet which guarded the coast of Italy.

The application of Pliny to literary pursuits was uninterrupted. He rose to his studies at two in the morning, and during the entire day, whether in the bath, at table, or sitting in his garden, he either listened to reading, wrote, or dictated. Even on his journeys and military expeditions, a secretary always sat in his chariot. We are told that in winter Pliny was careful to provide him with a warm glove of peculiar make, that his fingers might not be too much benumbed to hold the stylus.

We have but one complete work of this author, his Natural History, in thirty-seven books. It treats, not only of natural history, properly so called, but also of astronomy, biography, history, physiology, medicine and the fine arts. The portion which treats of animals possesses now but little interest.

In many instances, the description is so vague as to leave us in doubt as to the particular animal he would designate. He also mingles facts, really observed, with fables of winged horses, monsters with human heads and the tails of scorpions, etc. The ten books on botany are open to the same objections. He attributes to many plants properties altogether fabulous, and his work, although formerly much quoted on these points, has rendered very little service to the art of medicine. The case is different where he speaks of geography, history and the fine arts. On all these points, he imparts much valuable information of which we would otherwise be deprived. The Natural History may be considered, from its wide range of subjects, a sort of Cyclopædia, and it is said that if the Latin language were lost, it might be restored from this work alone.

Pliny perished in the great eruption of Mount Vesuvius which destroyed the towns of Herculaneum and Pompeii. He observed the phenomena accompanying it from the deck of his ship. Wishing to take a nearer view, and also to succor some of his friends whose villas lay near the scene of peril, he steered across the bay, and landed at the foot of the mountain. The next morning, while pursuing his investigations, regardless of the remonstrances of his friends, he was suffocated by the noxious vapors of the volcano. His body was discovered three days later, entirely uninjured, and in an attitude of repose.

C. Plinius Cæcilius Secundus, nephew of the preceding, is generally distinguished as Pliny the Younger. Under the care of his uncle he made such rapid progress in literature, that he was generally accounted one of the most learned men of his age.

He began his career as an orator at the early age of nineteen. After filling the high offices of quæstor, consul and augur, Pliny was appointed by Trajan governor of Bithynia. It was from this country that he wrote his celebrated letter in favor of the Christians. It is interesting and important, as showing the progress of Christianity, and bearing testimony to the purity of life which was the distinguishing mark of its professors.

Pliny has left a collection of letters in ten books. They are addressed to some of the most celebrated persons of the time, and are valuable and interesting for the information they convey with regard to public events, and the manners and habits of his contemporaries. The style of these letters is studied, and they have none of the ease and familiarity of friendly correspondence. It seems probable that they were intended rather for posterity, than for the persons to whom they were ostensibly addressed.

PROCOPIUS

One of the most celebrated historians of the Eastern Empire. He flourished during the reigns of Justin the Elder and Justinian, and accompanied Belisarius as secretary on his military expeditions.

SIMONIDES

This poet excelled particularly in elegiac verse. When the most distinguished poets of Greece wrote verses in honor of those who fell at Marathon, the elegy of Simonides took the prize, although Æschylus was one of the competitors. The compositions of the great tragedian were deficient in the tenderness and pathos for which Simonides was particularly distinguished. The lament of Danaë, and a few scattered fragments, are all that remain of his verses, but these are sufficient to prove that his reputation in this respect was well deserved.

Simonides brought the epigram to all the perfection of which it was capable. The most celebrated of his epitaphs is the monumental inscription composed for the Spartans who died at Thermopylæ: “Stranger, tell the Lacedæmonians that we lie here in obedience to their laws.”

Simonides was held in high esteem at the court of Hiero, king of Syracuse. This prince having inquired of him concerning the nature of God, the poet requested a day to deliberate on the subject. When Hiero repeated his question on the morrow, he asked for two days. As he continued in this manner, doubling the number of days, the king required an explanation. Simonides replied that he postponed his answer, because, the longer he meditated on the subject, the more obscure it became, and the more he felt his inability to treat it in an adequate manner.

Simonides was the master of Pindar; he lived to a very advanced age, so that he became the contemporary of the Pisistratidæ and of Pausanias, king of Sparta. This poet is accused of having become mercenary in his old age, and Greek writers speak of him as the first who wrote verses for money. In this connection, we have a story which would show that the poet was not believed to have forfeited the favor of the gods by his avarice.

While residing at the court of Scopas, king of Thessaly, he was engaged by that prince to compose a poem in his honor for an approaching banquet. Whether Simonides found the exploits of Scopas too barren a subject for his muse, or that his piety led him to introduce higher themes, we do not know; but when the verses were recited before the assembled court, the praises of Castor and Pollux were mingled largely with those of his royal patron.

A mortal might have been content to share his honors with the divine pair; but Scopas grudged every line which did not celebrate his own fame. When Simonides approached to receive his reward, the king gave him half the appointed sum, saying, that was for his part; for what related to Castor and Pollux, they would no doubt bestow a generous recompense. The disconcerted poet returned to his place amid the jeers and laughter of the guests. In a little while, a slave brought him word that two young men on horseback were at the gate, and desired earnestly to speak with him. Simonides went out, but found no one; while he was looking to see which way the strangers had gone, the roof of the palace fell with a terrible crash, burying Scopas and his guests beneath the ruins.

On being informed of the appearance of the young men who had sent for him—of their snow white steeds and shining armor, he knew that it was indeed Castor and Pollux who had acknowledged, in this manner, the homage of his verse.

SOPHOCLES

Was the second in order of time of the great tragic poets of Greece. In true dramatic excellence, he is generally considered the first. The poet was only sixteen when he was selected to lead the chorus of Athenian youths who celebrated with lyre and song the erection of the trophy in honor of the victory at Salamis. In his twenty-fifth year, he carried off the tragic prize from Æschylus. He gained the same triumph over other competitors, taking the first prize on twenty-four different occasions.

Irreproachable in private life, distinguished for his skill in every manly exercise, and a rare excellence in the arts of poetry and music, Sophocles was considered by his admiring countrymen as an especial favorite of the gods. The remark of the ancient sage that no man is to be accounted happy before he dies, was verified in the case of this great poet. If the morning of his life was bright in the lustre of national glory and personal renown, the evening was clouded by the misfortunes of his country, and domestic unhappiness. Sophocles served with courage, but without gaining much distinction, in the Peloponnesian war, and was a witness of the miseries which that fatal struggle brought upon Greece. He died in the year 405, B. C., a few months before the defeat of Ægos-potamos completed the misfortunes of Athens. He was deeply lamented by the Athenians, who seem to forget the calamities of the time in their grief at the loss of so illustrious a citizen. Sophocles wrote one hundred and thirty dramas, of which seven remain. Of these, the Œdipus Tyrannus and the Antigone are the most admired.

STRABO

A celebrated geographer, born at Amaseia, in Pontus, about the year 24, B. C. He spent many years in travelling, at first for his own gratification, and in the pursuit of knowledge, but afterwards by the order of Augustus. He was already advanced in life when he compiled his great work on geography. It is divided into seventeen books, and contains much valuable and interesting information with regard to the manners and customs of the nations he had visited.

Little was known at that time of the extent and form of earth. Strabo imagined that the entire habitable portion was included between two meridians, one of which passed through the island of Ierne, (Ireland,) and the other through Ceylon.

TITICACA

A lake in Bolivia, celebrated for the ruins of Tiahuanico on its shores. They stand on an eminence which, from the water-marks surrounding it, seems to have been formerly an island in the lake. So great a change has taken place, that the level of the lake is now 135 feet lower, and its shores 12 miles distant. These ruins are believed to be the most ancient on the American continent. The Peruvians knew nothing of their origin, but had a vague tradition that they were built by giants in a single night. They regarded them, therefore, with superstitious awe, and connected them, as we have seen, with the fables of their mythology. These ruins, like some in the the Old World, are often called cyclopean, on account of the size of the blocks of stone used in their construction. There are still remaining, monolithic pillars, statues and doorways, sculptured in a style entirely different from that observed on any other American monuments. We may form some idea of the size of the blocks used, from the measurement of one doorway, which is 10 ft. high, and 13 ft. broad, with an opening, 6 ft. 4 inches, by 3 ft. 2 inches, the whole being cut from a single stone.

Some of the buildings appear to have been of pyramidal form, and to have covered several acres. Of the people who executed such stupendous works, we know absolutely nothing, except that they preceded the Peruvians, and were farther advanced in the arts of civilized life than any nation existing on the continent at the time of its discovery.

VARRO

A Latin writer, celebrated for his extensive learning. He is said to have composed five hundred volumes, all of which are now lost, with the exception of two treatises; one on agriculture, the other on the Latin language. The latter is dedicated to Cicero, an intimate friend of the author.

The life of Varro was eventful: he was favored by Julius Cæsar, proscribed by Antony, and passed his later years in literary ease under the protection of Augustus. Speaking of Varro, St. Augustine says, that “it is an equal subject of wonder, how one who read such a number of books, could find time to compose so many volumes; and how he who composed so many volumes, could have found leisure to peruse such a variety of books.”