PLINY : NATURAL HISTORY 



3 III. Non fuerat haec lues apud maiores patresque 

 nostros, et primum Ti. Claudi Caesaris principatu 

 medio inrepsit in Italiam quodam Perusino equite 

 Romano quaestorio scriba, cum in Asia adparuisset, 

 inde contagionem eius inportante. nec sensere id 

 malum feminae aut servitia plebesque humilis aut 

 media, sed proceres veloci transitu oscuh maxime, 

 foediore multorum qui perpeti medicinam tolera- 

 verant cicatrice quam morbo. causticis namque 

 curabatur, ni usque in ossa corpus exustum esset, 



4 rebellante taedio. adveneruntque ex Aegvpto 

 genetrice tahum vitiorum medici hanc solam operam 

 adferentes magna sua praeda, siquidem certum est 

 Manilium Cornutum e praetoriis legatum Aqui- 

 tanicae provinciae HS CC elocasse in eo morbo 

 curandum sese. acciditque ^ contra ^ saepius ut nova 

 genera morborum gregatim sentirentur. quo mira- 

 bilius quid potest reperiri ? aUqua gigni repente 

 vitia terrarum in parte certa membrisque hominum 



^ acciditque codd. et edd. : accidit quoque Mayhoff. 

 * contra ego transposui : om. V^RT Detlefsen : post nova 

 posuit Mayhoff cum codd.V^dEr vulg. 



" Littre translates maxime by " surtout," " especially 

 through the quick contact of the kiss," which suggests that 

 kissing was more common among the nobles than elsewhere. I 

 think that the cursus verborum points to the translation : " but 

 the nobles through the momentary contact (speedy infection) 

 of a kiss sufFered very much." This is rather obscure, 

 and perhaps vel, " even," has fallen out before veloci. 



' The omission of contra in several MSS. shows that 

 the logic of the passage, which is certainly oddly 

 expressed, has been long misimderstood. The sequence 

 of thought here, as I understand the passage, is : 



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