as applied to the Colour of the Light of Stars. 53 



accorded with versification in poetry, or avoided tautology. 

 — I may add, that Albus is the most restricted in its signifi- 

 cation. Niger as extended as any. Argenleus and Au- 

 reus are again more limited in their meaning, as are in ge- 

 neral the colours taken from metals. 

 F/.AVUs is put, 



1. For red hair, as flava Mineiva, &c. 



2. For many flowers of different colours, for crimson, &c. And 

 numerous other substances might be added, were it not for 

 swelling this paper. 



Ruber is applied variously: 



1 . To the hyacinth *, as Firg. Eclog. 



" Suave rubens hyacintiuis." 



2. To the red colour of the heavenly bodies before vnnd, as 

 above ijiioted ; 



" Vcnto ruhet aurea Plicebe," &c. 



3. To the moon itself, although her colour is so often con- 

 trasted with red, and called pallida, alba, Candida, &c. ; 

 consequently cannot ever be depended on as representing 

 the red colour of any fixed star, called by the ancients 

 rubra. 



Festus Avienus in the AnthoL Vet, Lai. says, 



" iTparatiim Cyntliia format 



I.'icis lionore jubfir, curvatis coinilius arcus 

 (iiio.l <Jc t'ratre ruLet.'' 



There are so many other instances where ruhere is |)Ut for 

 vilere, splendescere, &;c. that I am convinced no argument can 

 be drawn from its ajjplication to the light of stars by ancient 

 poets. An ingenious paper on this subject, however, has been 

 inserted in the IMnlosojjhical Transactions by Mr. Barker ; but 

 from an examination of the subject among the ancient writers, 

 too long to be in'^erted in full here, I am induced to rely much 

 less than he docs on the particular signification of the ancient 

 terms for colour. 



Similar observations apply to ■Trop'^Dpsoc, ^avSoj, X;t»coj, coB' 

 ruleus, fuluu^, lulew!, albas, niger, &;c. ; and to the words 

 for colours in other languages. In short, in the ])rogress of 

 science, while literature was emerging from the dark ages, 

 the naujes of colours, like other words, were derived from 

 reference to particular coloured bodies: but as there were 



^ It is not (|uitc certain w liat flowers tlic llyaciiitli and Narcissus of tlie 

 aocients were. Our present narcissus lins no properties from wliici) it 

 could be derived, as it evidently is from ►aj»i»». 



J) 3 not 



