925 



POMPEIUS, TROGUS. 



PONCE DE LEON, RODRIGO. 



taking possession of Lampsacus. An open war broke out between him 

 and Furnius, and when Antony, who WHS at the time in Alexandria, 

 heard of it, he sent Titius with a fleet of 120 ships against the danger- 

 ous gue.-t. Pompey fled to Armenia, but being overtaken by his 

 enemies and deserted by his troops, he surrendered, and was put to 

 death at Miletus (B.C. 35), either at the command of Antony himself or 

 of Titius, who wished to remove a man who might easily be the cause 

 of a rupture between the triumvirs. Sextus Pompey was forty years 

 old at the time of his death. He had assumed the name of Pius, 

 because he endeavoured to avenge the death of his father and his 

 brother : this surname appears on many of his coins. 

 POMPEIUS, TROGUS. [TiiOGDS.] 

 POMPONIUS MELA. [MELA.] 



POMPO'NIUS SEXTUS, a distinguished Roman jurist. His age 

 may be approximated to from several circumstances. He is supposed 

 to be the Sextus mentioned by Gains in connection with Julianus 

 (ii. 218.) In the extract from the ' Liber Singularis ' of the ' Encheiri- 

 dion ' of Pomponius ('Dig.,' i., tit. 2, 6. 2), we have a list of the various 

 Roman jurists, ending with Salvianus Julianus, from which circum- 

 stance it may be concluded that he was at least younger than Julianus. 

 A difficulty however arises from the fact of a Pomponius being often 

 cited by Julianus (' Dig.,' iii., tit. 5, s. 6), and from there being cited in 

 the ' Digest ' both a Sextus Pompouius and a Sextus and a Pomponius. 

 ('Dig.,' xxx., tit. 1, a. 32.) Sextus Pomponius is cited by Pomponius. 

 (' Dig.,' xxviii., tit. 5, a. 41.) On the whole it seems likely that there 

 was a Pomponius and a Sextus Pomponius who was sometimes simply 

 called Sextus. But if there were two, it is difficult to say when they 

 rest ectively lived or what they respectively wrote. Pomponius sur- 

 vived the emperor Antoninus Pius. ('Dig.,' 1, tit. 12, s. 14.) In one 

 passage be calls Gaiua ('Dig.,' xlv., tit. 3,8. 39) 'Gaius noster.' From 

 all these circumstances it may be concluded that a Pomponius lived 

 under Antoninus Piua and survived him. If there was a Sextus Pom- 

 ponius, he was older than Pomponius. The works of Pompouius, as 

 cited in the Florentine Index, are thirty books ' Ad Q. Mucium Lec- 

 tionutn,' thirty-five to Sabinus, twenty books of Epistola;, fifteen books 

 of Yarise Lectiones, seven books to Plautiua, five books of Fidei-com- 

 snusa, five books of Senatus Consults, five books of ReguUo, and two 

 books of the Encheiridion. 



Tlie ' Eucheiridion,' as extracted in the 'Digest,' is called 'Liber 

 Singularis.' It contains an historical sketch of the origin and progress 

 of the Roman law, and a list of the law writers to the time of Pom- 

 ponius, in which it is also mentioned what writers respectively belonged 

 to the schools of Ateius Capito and Labeo, who lived in the time of 

 Augustus, and were the founders or heads of two separate schools 

 (scholar). 



PONCE, PEDRO, a Spanish Benedictine monk, in the convent of 

 Ofia in Old Castile, was born about 1530. He is considered the 

 inventor of the art of teaching the dumb to speak, which he earned to 

 considerable perfection. According to Ambrosio Morales (' Antigue- 

 dailes de Espaiia,' fol. 38, Alcald, 1575), Ponce had to instruct two 

 brothers and one sister of the Constable of Castile, and a son of the 

 Gran Justicia of Aragon, all of whom were born deaf and dumb. 

 These pupils made such progress that, after some time, they not only 

 were able to write correctly, but also to answer any questions put to 

 them. One of them, Don Pedro de Velasco, who lived to be only 

 twenty years of age, spoke and wrote Latin as well as his mother 

 tongue, and was at the time of his death making considerable progress 

 in the Greek language. Another of Punce's pupils became a Benedictine 

 monk, and wax able to make confession and explain his creed by word 

 of mouth. These facts were attested by the best Spanish writers of 

 the time, as well as by our countryman Sir Kenelm Digby, who, in 

 bis 'Two Treatises concerning the Body and Soul of Man' (Paris, 1644, 

 cap. 28, n. 8), says, " This priest brought the young lord to speak as 

 distinctly as any man whosoever ; and I have often discoursed with 

 him whiles I wayted upon the Prince of Wales in Spaine." According 

 to the same author (p. 254), and to Juan do Castaniza (' Vida de San 

 Benito '), Ponce wrote a treatise in Spanish, in which be explained his 

 method, and laid down certain rules as the result of his observations ; 

 but tlii.i interesting work has been lost, though it is generally believed 

 that Juan Pablo Bouet, who in 1620 published his ' Reduction de las 

 Letra*, y Arte para ensenar & hablar loa Mudos,' 4to, 1620, saw and 

 consulted it. Ponce died in 1584, and was buried in the convent of 

 bia order. 



PONCE DE LEON, JUAN, one of the early Spanish discoverers 

 in America, was a native of Leon in Spain, and when a boy was page 

 to Pedro Nunez de Guzman, Sefior of ToraL From an early age he 

 had been schooled to war, and served in tho various campaigns against 

 the Moors of Granada. He accompanied Columbus in his second 

 voyage in 1493, and having subsequently distinguished himself in the 

 campaign against the Indians of Higuey, he was appointed to the 

 command of the conquered territory, as lieutenant of the governor of 

 uiola. In 1508, having received intelligence from the natives 

 that the mountains of the neighbouring island of I'oriquen, or Puerto 

 llico, abounded with gold, he obtained permission from the governor 

 Ovando to make an expedition to the island ; and saiUd thither in a 

 caravel with a few Spaniards, and several Indians to act as interpreters 

 or guides. Ponce landed near the residence of the principal cacique, 

 Agueybana, who treated him and his suite with great kindness, and 



gave them a large quantity of gold. With these good tidings Ponce 

 returned to Hispaniola, and obtained from the governor permission, 

 as well as the necessary supplies, to undertake the subjugation of the 

 island. Before the supplies were completed however his patron 

 Ovaudo was recalled, and succeeded by Don Diego Columbus, who 

 deprived Ponce of his command, and appointed another governor over 

 he island. In the meanwhile Ovaudo, who had now returned to 

 Spain, having made a favourable representation of his merits, Ponce 

 was re-appointed in 1509, and intrusted with the conquest of the island. 

 After many hard-fought battles with the natives, who proved to be 

 far more warlike than those of Hispaniola, and the death of their 

 cacique AgueybanA, who fell in a skirmish, Ponce completed the 

 subjugation of the island ; notwithstanding which he waa again 

 deprived of the command, and replaced by Juan Ceron. 



Incapable of quiet life, Ponce soon turned his eyes to some other 

 scene of conquest. He appears to have conceived the singular idea 

 that there was yet a third world to be discovered, and he hoped to bo 

 the first to reach it ; but as he was then fast advancing in life, and his 

 constitution had been very much impaired by the fatigues and pri- 

 vations of former voyages, he decided to sail first to a certain island 

 of the Bahama group, called Bimiui, where, according to a tradition 

 current among the natives of Puerto Rico, was a fountain possessing 

 the power of restoring youth. In search of this marvellous fountain 

 Ponce sailed, on the 3rd of March 1512, from the port of St. Germain 

 in the island of Puerto Rico. Having arrived at the Bahamas he visited 

 all the islands one after another, and drank of every fountain, river, 

 or lake that he found ; but his inquiries for the island of Bimini were 

 all in vain. Ponce however was not discouraged ; and after repairing 

 his ships he again put to sea, and shaped his course to the north-west. 

 In this way, on Sunday the 27th of March, he came in sight of what 

 he supposed to bo an island, which, from the circumstance of its being 

 discovered on a Palm Sunday, and the ground being covered with 

 flowers, was called 'Pascua Florida." Ponce took possession of the 

 country in the name of Ferdinand and Isabella, and again started in 

 search of the desired island ; but after some mouths of unsuccessful 

 cruise he returned to Puerto liico) and thence to Spain, where he 

 arrived in 1513. Having made a report of his voyage to the king, he 

 was appointed Adelantado de la Florida, and in 1514 he was intrusted 

 with the command of an expedition fitting out at Seville against the 

 Carribees. This however proving unsuccessful, Ponce retired to 

 Puerto Rico, where he resided until 1521, when, being roused by the 

 fame of the recent exploits of Cort<5s, he again fitted out two ships, 

 and, having embarked almost the whole of his property, put to sea. 

 In this manner he came upon the western coast of Florida, where he 

 made a descent ; but the Indians sallying forth to defend their shores, 

 several of his men were slain, and himself wounded by an arrow in the 

 thigh, of which he died soon after at Cuba in 1521. 



(Herrera, Hiitoria de las Indias, dec. 4, lib. ix., cap. viii., ix. ; 

 Navarrete, Coleccion de Viages y Descubrimientos, &o., vol. iii.) 



PONCE DE LEON, RODRIGO, born in 1443, was an illegitimate 

 and younger son of John Ponce de Leon, Count of Arcos, a Castiliau 

 nobleman, and Doiia Leonora Nunez de Pracjo, a lady of rank. The 

 brilliant qualities of tho youth so far gained him the affection of his 

 father, that he asked and obtained the royal sanction to bequeath him 

 his title and estates, to the prejudice of legitimate heirs. Rodrigo 

 served his apprenticeship to the art of war in the various campaigns 

 against the Moors, displaying ou every occasion the greatest ability 

 and personal courage. When scarcely seventeen years old, he obtained 

 at Madrono a victory over the Moors, accompanied with a signal 

 display of personal prowess, for which the king gave the title of the 

 youthful David. At the death of his father, in 1469, Rodrigo suc- 

 ceeded him ill his title, and soon after married the daughter of the 

 Marquis of Villena, the minister of Henry IV., through whoss influence 

 he was raised to the dignity of Marquis of Cadiz. This allitmce 

 attached him to the fortunes of Henry, in his disputes with his brother 

 Alfonso, and subsequently with Isabella, on the accession of the latter 

 to the throne of Castile. Rodrigo did not engage in any open act of 

 resistance ; but retired to his estates, and occupied himself entirely in 

 prosecuting an hereditary feud with the house of Guzman, a family 

 which from ancient times divided with his own the interests of Anda- 

 lucia. In the wars which put an end to the Mohammedan power in 

 the Peninsula, the marquis took a very active part. Having early in 

 1482 received intelligence that the important fortress of Alhama was 

 but slightly garrisoned, he succeeded in scaling the walls and surpris- 

 ing the garrison. In 1483, he accompanied a marauding expedition 

 against Malaga, headed by the grand-master of Santiago, Don Alonso 

 de Cardenas, who entrusted to him the command of the centre ; but 

 being suddenly attacked and surrounded by considerable forces of the 

 enemy, whilst in the intricate passes of the Axarquia, tho Christian 

 army was completely routed, and Rodrigo with a very few knights 

 escaped alive. During the siege of Velez (April 1487) he saved the 

 life of Ferdinand, who, having been surrounded by a party of the 

 enemy, must have perished without his timely aid. Ho also greatly 

 distinguished himself during the siege of Malaga (May, August, 1487) 

 by repulsing a sally made by the garrison, and he was present at the 

 surrender of Baza (1488) and Granada (January, 1492). He survived 

 only a few mouths the close of the Moorish war, to which he had so 

 efficiently co operated, dying in his palace at Seville, on the 28th of 



