April 7. 1855.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



259 



augmented. Thus increased it came into the pos- 

 session of Neleus, who Strabo says first formed 

 a regular library. The library of Neleus was re- 

 moved to Scepsis, a city of Troas. After his 

 death his descendants, who appear to have been 

 not given to literary pursuits, kept the library 

 under lock and key. When they heard of the 

 activity of the king of Pergamus in collecting 

 books, in order to prevent their seizure by his 

 agents, they buried their manuscripts in a damp 

 place under ground, where they were very much 

 injured by the wet and other causes. They were, 

 ■when rediscovered, sold to Apellicon of Teios, a 

 great bookworm, for a large sum of money. He 

 carefully repaired and preserved them at Athens. 

 Soon after his death, however, the city fell into 

 the hands of the Romans, and Sylla took this 

 famous library and conveyed it to Rome, about 

 B. c. 82. (Strabo, book xiii. ; compare Plutarch's 

 Life of Sylla.) 



The first public library at Rome was founded 

 by Asinius Pollio, according to the statement of 

 Pliny. (Nat. Hist. vii. 30. ; xxxv. 2.) 



Augustus founded a library of Greek and 

 Latin books, which was contained in a porch 

 of the Temple of Apollo. (Suetonius, Augustus, 

 29.) 



He also established the Octavian library in the 

 theatre of Marcellus. 



Julius Caesar projected, but did not accomplish, 

 the formation of a Greek and Latin library. 

 (Sueton., Julius, 44.) 



Domitian restored a library at Rome (in the 

 Capitol) which had been burnt, and furnished it 

 with books from all quarters. He even sent to 

 Alexandria for copies and for corrections. (Sue- 

 ton., Domit. 20.) 



A. Gellius (book xvi. 8.) speaks of a library in 

 the Temple of Peace at Rome, and mentions books 

 which it contained. 



He also alludes to the Tiberian library. 

 (Book xiii. 8.) 



The same author names the library of the 

 Temple of Trajan, otherwise known as the Ulpian 

 (book xi. 17.). Diocletian afterwards attached 

 this collection of books to his own house. 



Cicero several times alludes to his own private 

 •collection. 



We learn from him that Atticus also had a 

 library. {Ad Attic, i. 10.) 



Cicero's brother Quintus possessed a library. 

 ■(Cicero, ad Frat. iii. 4.) 



Interesting facts are recorded of the Sibylline 

 books (A. Gell. i. 19. ; Lucian, Adv. Indoct. 4.). 

 This term was applied by the Romans to the 

 various books which they accounted sacred. 

 These books (enumerated by Lactantius from 

 Varro, Instit. i. 7.) were deposited in the Capitol 

 at Rome. The collection was destroyed by fire 

 with the Capitol, u. c. G71. (See Julius Solinus, 



c. 5.) Several of the volumes had been preserved 

 for nearly 500 years with great veneration. 



The collecting of books seems to have been, in 

 Lucian's time, a fashionable luxury. To this cir- 

 cumstance Juvenal and other writers refer. 



Pliny the Younger mentions his " armarium " 

 for books. (Epp. ii. 17.) 



A library fully furnished has been brought to 

 light in Herculaneum. 



Hadrian founded a library at Athens. 



Boetbius makes an allusion to his library. (De 

 Consol. Phil. i. 5. prosa.) 



Cicero mentions a library in the Lyceum. (De 

 Div. ii. 3.) 



He also alludes to the libraries of Greece, as 

 containing an infinite multitude of books. 



Pliny names the library of Minerva. (Nat. 

 Hist. vii. 58.) 



Zosimus records the erection of a library bj 

 Julian at Constantinople. (Book iii. 11.) 



Alexander, Bp. of Jerusalem, collected a library 

 about A. D. 200. To this repository Eusebius ac- 

 knowledges himself to have been indebted. (Hist. 

 Eccl. vi. 21.) 



A valuable library was collected nearly a cen- 

 tury later, by Famphilus at Csesarea. (Hieron. 

 De Script. 75.) 



Lucius Licinius LucuUus had a celebrated 

 library at Rome. B. H. Cowpee. 



"PLOWEBS OF ANECDOTE. 



The subjoined " flowers of anecdote " were dis- 

 covered blooming in the somewhat arid soil of a 

 law-student's common-place book, which belonged 

 apparently to " Thomas Wateridge, of the [Mid- 

 dle ?] Temple," temp. Jas. L 



Seeing that they have " blushed unseen " for 

 nearly two centuries and a half, it will not be 

 surprising if their freshness be found to have 

 somewhat evaporated ; although they may not 

 exactly have " wasted their sweetness on the 

 desert air." 



Since, however, they have thus unexpectedly 

 " blossomed in the dust " of antiquity, they may, 

 perhaps, be deemed not unworthy of transplant- 

 ation to the more genial atmosphere of the pages 

 of'K &Q." 



" JOCO SERIA. OF DIUERS SUBJECTS. 



" Of Death. 

 "By Ellis Swayne, at my chamber, y« 27 Nov. 1611. 

 Mr. Gulson and Richard Grovesey beeinge present. 

 " In Dorsetshire y''® dwelled sometymes one Argentine, 

 commonly called Golden Argentyne, bycause y' y" buc- 

 kles W^h usuall}' he wore in his shooes and bootes, and y* 

 tagges of his [points?] and his lace was commonly all of 

 gold, and sometymes lie was called Duke of Bellmore,* 



• The " Duke of Bellmore " may have been the brother 

 of Lewis Argenton, Esq., who married the sister of Sir 

 John Williams, Knt., and who died in 1611. 



