73'J 



BllUTUS. 



other principal squares are Oorlogo plaats, Michael's 

 plants, and Snnds plants. The principal churches ;;iv 

 St Michael's and the church of St (iiulule. B. also 

 contains an academy of arts and sciences, a foundling 

 hospital, and a central school with a library of 1 00,000 

 volumes, a valuable gallery of paintings, and a cal >inet 

 of natural history. The school of medicine and that 

 of botany have also apartments, and there is a public 

 botanic garden. The town is ornamented with 20 

 public fountains, all embellished with sculpture. The 

 manufactures of R are celebrated throughout Europe 

 and America, particularly its lace, camlets, and car- 

 pets ; the first alone employs 10,000 individuals. Its 

 carriages surpass even those of London and Paris. 

 The other articles made here are ticking, various 

 kinds of cotton and woollen stuffs, silk stockings, gal- 

 loons, earthenware, &c. It carries on considerable 

 trade with the interior of the Netherlands, and also 

 with foreign countries, by means of its canals. The 

 principal uf these was constructed in 1560 and 1561, 

 and leads to Antwerp: it is 110 feet above the level 

 of the sen. The city owes its origin to St Gery, who, 

 in the 7th century, built a chapel on an island in the 

 Senne, and preached to the peasants. As the num- 

 bers collected here became great, it was surrounded 

 with a wall in 1044, and became, in process of time, 

 the residence of the dukes of Brabant, and of the 

 Austrian governors. Jt was several times captured 

 by the French, and, in 178990, took the lead in the 

 troubles which broke out in the Netherlands. The 

 population of Brussels is about 100,000. 



BRUTUS, or BRUTE, in the fabulous history of Bri- 

 tain, was the first king of the island, according to 

 Geoffrey of Monmouth. He is said to have been the 

 son of Sylvius, and grandson of Ascanius, the son of 

 tineas, and to have ueen born in Italy. He landed 

 at Totness, in Devonshire, destroyed the giants who 

 then inhabited Albion, and called the island from his 

 own name. At his death, the island was divided 

 among his three sons : Locrine had England, Cumber 

 Wales, and Albanact Scotland. 



BRUTUS, Lucius Junius, son of Marcus Junius and 

 the daughter of the elder Tarquin, saved his life from 

 the persecutions of Tarquin the Proud by feigning 

 himself insane, on which account he received the sur- 

 name Brutus (stupid). During a plague that broke 

 out at Rome, he accompanied the son of Tarquin to 

 the oracle in Delphi. When Lucretia, the wife of 

 Collatinus, plunged a dagger into her bosom, that she 

 might not outlive the insult which she had suffered 

 from Sextus, the son of Tarquin, B., being present, 

 threw off the mask. He drew the dagger, all bloody, 

 from the wound, and swore vengeance against the 

 Tarquins, explaining to the astonished spectators the 

 reason of his pretended imbecility, and persuading all 

 who were present to take the same oath. The people 

 submitted to his guidance, and he caused the gates to 

 be shut, the inhabitants to be assembled, and the body 

 to be publicly exposed. He then urged the banish- 

 ment of the Tarquins. After this had been resolved 

 on, B. proposed to abolish the regal dignity, and in- 

 troduce a free government. It was then determined 

 that two consuls should exercise supreme power for a 

 year, and Junius Brutus and Tarquinius Collatinus 

 were chosen for the first term. Tarquin, who had 

 seen the gates shut against him, and found himself 

 deserted oy his army, sent ambassadors to Rome to 

 demand a restoration of his private property, and, at 

 the same time, to promise that he would make no at- 

 tempt against the republic. His request was granted. 

 The ambassadors, however, set on foot a conspiracy, 

 and drew into it many young men, among whom were 

 the two sons of B. and the nephews of Collatinus. 

 But a slave named Vindex discovered the plot. The 

 criminals were imprisoned, and the consuls caused the 



people the next morning to be called to the canritia. 

 All were deeply shocked to see the sons of B. among 

 the prisoners, and their father on the judgment- seat 

 to condemn them. Collatinus wept, and even the 

 stern Valerius sat silent. But B. arose firmly, and, 

 after their crime had been proved beyond a doubt, 

 ordered the lictors to execute the law. Neither the 

 entreaties of the people nor of his sons could alter his 

 resolution. He witnessed the horrible spectacle with- 

 out emotion, and did not leave the assembly until 

 after the execution. He was called back, however 

 when Collatinus wished to save his guilty nephews. 

 The people condemned them all, ana chose Valerius 

 consul in place of Collatinus. In the -mean time, 

 Tarquin, supported by Porsenna, collected an army, 

 and marched against Rome. The consuls advanced to 

 meet him. B. led the cavalry ; Aruns, son of Tarquin , 

 commanded the body opposed to him. They pierced 

 each other with their spears at the same moment, and 

 both fell, A. C. 509. The Romans came off conquer- 

 ors, and B. was buried with great splendour. The 

 women lamented him a whole year, as the avenger of 

 the honour of their sex. 



BRUTUS, Marcus Junius. This republican resem- 

 bled in spirit, as well as in name, the expeller of Tar- 

 quin. He was at first an enemy of Pompey, who had 

 slain his father in Galatia, but forgot his private en- 

 mity, and was reconciled to him, when he undertook 

 the defence of freedom. He did not, however, as- 

 sume any public station, and, after the unfortunate 

 battle of Pharsalia, surrendered nimself to Casar, 

 who received him with the tenderest friendship, as he 

 had always loved him, and regarded him almost like 

 his own son, because the mother of Bratus, sister of 

 the rigid Cato, had been the object of his affection. 

 In the distribution of the offices of state, the dictator 

 appointed B. to the government of Macedonia. Not- 

 withstanding these benefits, B. was the head of tl;e 

 conspiracy against Caesar, deeming the sacrifice of 

 private friendship necessary for. the welfare of his 

 country. He was led into the conspiracy by Cassius, 

 who, impelled by hatred against Caesar, as well as by 

 the love of freedom, sought, at first, by writing, and 

 then by means of his wife, Junia, sister of B., to gain 

 his favour ; and, when he thought him prepared for 

 the proposal, disclosed to him, verbally, the plan of 

 a conspiracy against Caesar, who was then aiming at 

 the supreme power. B. agreed to the design, and his 

 influence led many of the most distinguished Romans 

 to embrace it also. Cassar was assassinated in the 

 senate-house. In public speeches B. explained the 

 reasons of this deed, but he could not appease the 

 dissatisfaction of the people, and retired, with his 

 party, to the capitol. He soon after took courage, 

 when the consul P. Cornelius Dolabella, and the 

 praetor, L. Cornelius Cinna, Caesar's brother-in-law, 

 declared themselves in his favour. But Antony, 

 whom B. had generously spared, was reconciled to 

 him only in appearance, and obtained his leave to 

 read Caesar's will to the people. By means of this 

 instrument, Antony succeeded in exciting the popular 

 indignation against the murderers of Caesar, and they 

 were compelled to flee from Rome. B. went to 

 Athens, and endeavoured to form a party there among 

 the Roman nobility ; he gained over, also, the troops 

 in Macedonia. He then began to levy soldiers openly, 

 which was the easier for him, as the remainder of 

 Pompey's troops, since the defeat of their general, 

 had been roving about in Thessaly. Hortensius, the 

 governor of Macedonia, aided him; and thus B., 

 master of all Greece and Macedonia, in a short time 

 stood at the head of a powerful army. He went now 

 to Asia, and joined Cassius, whose efforts had been 

 equally successful. In .Rome, on the contrary, the 

 triumvirs prevailed. All the conspirators had beta 



