VOL. XXX.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 395 



on it, he took it up whole; it is about a yard in length, and about three 

 quarters broad. The inscription is as follows : 



D M 



G. VALERIVS. G. P GALERIA. VICTOR LVGDVNI. SIG. LEG. II AVG STIP. XVII. 

 ANNOR XLV. CV RA. AGINT. AMNIO. PERPITVO. B 



This inscription confirms what others have found hereabouts; and what 

 Camden and other historians show us, viz. That the second Roman legion, 

 called Augusta, brought into Britain by Claudius Caesar under the conduct of 

 Vespasian, was placed here at Isca or Caer Legion, by Julius Frontinus, to 

 awe the Silures : and that general obtained several victories over ihem and 

 their neighbours in several places hereabouts. 



There seems to be nothing of moment or of difficulty in this inscription; 

 but Victor Lugduni : which as I think we have no ground from history to refer 

 to Lyons in France, so I guess that expression may be thus accounted for. 

 The river Lugg is famous in the neighbouring parts; and as Dynas or Dyn has 

 signified a town in the ancient British language; and that Dun also expresses a 

 hill or down as we still call it, which I think is derived from the British also, 

 probably Lugduni here may express some town or hill near the river Lugg; and 

 since there is a place called to this day Luckton, on the side of the river Lugg 

 in Herefordshire, perhaps that may bid fair to be the very place where Valerius 

 obtained the victory perpetuated by this inscription. 



Of the Maxima and Minima in the Motions of the Celestial Bodies. By Mr, 

 j4br, Demoivre. N° 36o, p. 952. Translated from the Latin. 



Before Kepler astronomers conceived the planets revolved in circular orbits. 

 But that author was the inventor of the theory now used, viz. that the celestial 

 bodies move round the sun, placed in the common focus of the elliptic orbits, 

 by this law, that areas proportional to the times are described by radii drawn 

 to the sun. But it requires the most sublime geometry to show by what cause 

 this is performed, and that it could not be otherwise. This glory was reserved 

 for the celebrated Newton. 



Treading in his steps, Mr. Demoivre has given some corollaries, in N° 352 

 of these Transactions, which are ready theorems, by which are determined 

 the velocities or moments, both of the real and apparent motion about the 

 sun, as also of the approach or recess to or from the sun, at any given point 

 of given orbits. Then, further to improve the theory of the planetary system, 

 by means of the same theorems he has deduced the moments of the said mo- 

 ments, and shown in what points of the orbits are the greatest changes of 

 these velocities, and that by very neat and easy solutions. 



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