Mr. Ferguson on the Antiquity of the Kiliee or Boomerang. 25 



And again, among the forces of Hannibal : 



" Jamque Ebusus Phcenissa movet, movet Artabrus arma 

 Aclide vel tereti pugnax instare veruto." 



Sil. Ital. Punic. \. iil v. 362. 



Mention of the same weapon is found in the rescript directed to Zozimio, Pro- 

 curator of Syria, empowering him to pay a certain annual stipend to Claudius, 

 at that time tribune of one of the Roman legions, and afterwards Emperor, 

 which document is embodied in the life of Claudius, by Trebellius PoUio. 

 Here, among various articles of value, such as mantles, belts, and various sorts of 

 weapons, are specified " Lancea2 Herculeanse duse — Aclides duse — falces duae, 

 &c. (Hist. Aug. Scrip. Minor, v. ii. p. 149.) 



These passages, although they may appear to distinguish the Aclys from 

 straight missiles in general, yet do not afford more than a negative inference. 

 A more satisfactory evidence of the shape of the weapon, may, however, be 

 obtained from a passage of Valerius Flaccus in the above-mentioned enumera- 

 tion of the Mfflotic nations. 



" Nee procul albentes geminS, ferte aclyde parmas 

 Hiberni qui terga Nose, gelidumque securi 

 Eruit, et tota non audit Alizona ripa. 



Fal. JFlac. Argonaut. 1, vi. v. 99. 



For " fert," Burmann reads " ferit," and considers the double Aclys as the 

 instrument in eliciting a warlike sound from the struck shield. He also takes 

 " albentes" to mean white, as having no device, in the same sense as " albus" 

 in Virgil, " parma inglorius alba." But " fert" is the reading of all the MSS., 

 and, as "fert" cannot take an ablative to complete its meaning, "gemina 

 aclyde" must be referred to "albentes." Again, had Valerius intended to 

 convey the same meaning with Virgil, he would have used "albas," or perhaps 

 " albatas," but never " albentes," which means growing white from some other 

 colour, and implies a proximate cause. — " Campique ingentes ossibus albent," 

 (Virg. ^neid.\.x\\. v. 36.) — "Caput quod videam canis albere capillis," 

 Ovid. Heroid. Ep. xiii.) The meaning of the passage would, therefore, appear 

 certainly to be, " close to him, the hewer of the crust of wintry Danube, who 



VOL. XIX. z> 



