6 pliny's natueal histoet. [Book I. 



of the people wlio were the conquerors of all other nations. 

 It would liave been more meritorious to have persevered in 

 his labours from his love of the work, than from the gratifi- 

 cation which it afforded himself, and to have accomplished 

 it, not for his own sake, but for that of the Eoman people. 



I have included in thirty-six^ books 20,000 topics, all 

 worthy of attention, (for, as Domitius Piso^ says, we ought 

 to make not merely books, but valuable collections,) gained 

 by the perusal of about 2000 volumes, of which a few only 

 are in the hands of the studious, on account of the obscurity 

 of the subjects, produced by the careful perusal of 100 select 

 authors^ ; and to these I have made considerable additions 

 of things, which were either not known to my predecessors, 

 or which have been lately discovered. JSTor can I doubt 

 but that there still remain many things which I have omitted ; 

 for I am a mere mortal, and one that has many occupations. 

 I have, therefore, been obliged to compose this work at in- 

 terrupted intervals, indeed during the night, so that you will 

 find that I have not been idle even during this period. The 

 day I devote to you, exactly portioning out my sleep to the 

 necessity of my health, and contenting myself with this re- 

 ward, that while we are musing'* on these subjects (accord- 

 ing to the remark of Yarro), we are adding to the length of 

 our lives ; for life properly consists in being awake. 



In consideration of these circumstances and these difficul- 

 ties, I dare promise nothing; but you have done me the 

 most essential service in permitting me to dedicate my work 

 to you. Nor does this merely give a sanction to it, but it 

 determines its value ; for things are often conceived to be of 

 great value, solely because they are consecrated in temples. 



1 have given a full account of all your family — your 



^ " Quern nunc primum liistoriaj Plinianse librvun vocamus, hie non 

 numeratuv, quod sit operis index." Hardouin in Lem. i. 16. 



2 Nothing is known of Domitius Piso, either as an author or an in- 

 dividual. 



3 The names of these authors will be found, arranged by Hardouin 

 alphabetically, with a brief accoimt of them and their works, in Lem. i. 

 157 et seq. ; we have nearly the same Hst in Valpy, p. 4903. 



"* "'Musinamur." We learn from Hardoum, Lem. i. 17, that there is 

 80me doubt as to the word employed by our author, whether it was mu- 

 sinamur or muginamur ; I should be disposed to adopt the former, as 

 being, according to the remark of Turnebus, " verbum a Musis deductiun." 



