114 -Before Chrift 66. 



It was refolved that the budnefs of providing corn iliould be put under 

 the direction of ibme man of high rank, who might be called in modern 

 language comviijfary-general : and we find Pompey himfelf foon after the 

 reduction of the maritime community appointed to that office. The 

 Romans having adorned their city with the works of the Grecian artifts, 

 they henceforth began to cultivate a tafte for the fine arts ; and from 

 this time they began to be a civilized, but at the lame time, a very cor- 

 rupted, people, even thofe of the firfl rank being ready to commit every 

 crime for money. That extended felfifhuefs which they called patriot- 

 ifm or love of their country, but which was merely a lull of domineer- 

 ing over other nations, became in the minds of their great men iecond- 

 ary to the ambition of domineering over their countrymen. And this 

 ambitious fpirit, which broke out foon after the deflrudion of Carthage, 

 never was extinguiflied, till it finally abolifhed the republican form of 

 government. 



66 — LucuUus returning from Afi-a, brought with him a number of 

 books (part of his plunder), the ufe of which he allowed to the public. 

 This was the fecond library in Rome, the firft being brought by Paulas 

 yEmilius from the plunder of Perfeus king of Macedonia. [Pint, in Lu- 

 ciillo Ifidor.i Orig. L. ^y, c. =f.'] Lucullus is alfo confidered as the, au- 

 thor of luxury in buildings, furniture, and entertainments, among the 

 Romans. {Vel Taterc. L. ii, c ■^'^^^ Reintroduced the culture of cher- 

 ry trees in Italy from Pontus. And many other fruits were alfo intro- 

 duced from the Eaft, e. g. quinces from Crete ; damfons from Damaf- 

 cus -, peaches from Perfia ; lemons from Media ; figs from Egypt and 

 Cyprus; walnuts from Pontus and: Perfia ; chefnuts from Sardes : but 

 mofl of them were imported iiTiniediately from Greece, which had got 

 them from their native countries. The particular time, when each of 

 thefe were firfl planted in Italy is not accurately known. {PUn. Hljl. tiat. 

 L. XV, prij/it//-] 



57 — Ptolemy king of Cyprus was very rich. He had alfo aftroijted 

 a profligate Roman patrician called Clodius, by offering only two talents 

 (£^^y : lo) to raniom him from the Cilician corfairs.. The Roman 

 treafiu-y at this time was poor. For all thefe reafons a decree was paflL- 

 ed at Rome, declaring that he had forfeited his kingdom. Florus [L. iii, 

 c. 9] fays, ' So great was the fame of his riches, (nor was it groundlefs) 

 ' that that people, who were the conquerors of nations and accuftomed 

 ' to give away kingdoms, at the infiigation of Publius Clodius, a tribune, 

 ' commanded the confifcation of an allied king in his Hfetime. And he 

 ' truely on hearing of it anticipated iiis fate by poifon. Moreover Por- 

 ' cius Cato [that model of virtue] brought the wealth of Cyprus in Li- 

 * burnian gallics into the mouth of the Tiber, This tranfadion enrich- 

 ' cd the t;eafury of the Romans more than any of their triumphs.' The 



