OPSOPHAGY. 539 



were proposed ; some were guessed hy the CEdipuses at 

 tabkj whilst salt-and- water was drunk by those Davuses 

 who could not make them out: fables, epigrams, odes, 

 bits of epic or drama were recited by their several au- 

 thors, as now at a French reimion of literati. The latest 

 news and scandal of the week went round; sometimes 

 thaumaturgists (it is a curious coincidence that Roman- 

 cathoHc saints and Greek conjurors should have the 

 same name !) stood on their heads and belched forth 

 flames ; buJBFoons come in to make sport ; some ' old 

 lady of eighty was persuaded to dance/ and as she gave 

 in, a bevy of young Hebes in arachnean robes made their 

 appearance, whose many twinkling feet, moving to the 

 music as swiftly as the wings of a bird (TroSw/ceas opvt,6a^ 

 &<;), added their charm to the entertainment. 



Long before this, the ' poets ' had ' mounted their 

 horse,' as getting drunk was euphemiously called by this 

 polite people, and held on as long as they could ; the 

 ladies meanwhile having eaten such nougats* {yar/aXa) 

 and other sweetmeats as the sex was always partial 

 to, began to smile and to wink over 'Venus' milk' 

 (one of their favourite names for wine) ; while that 

 knowing fellow, o 6cf>0aXfib<i, the ' Eye ' of the table, to 

 whom the ' regna vini' had been committed, glanced up 

 and down the length of the board, to prevent any pause 



* We liardly know whether to include sugar (sacoharum) or 

 any true saccharine products as among the sweetmeat luxuries, 

 or vaiyaXa, of the ancients. From Phny's account, sugar would 

 seem to have been used rather as a medicine than a bonne bouche ; 

 his words are, ' Sugar is a produce of Arabia and India, whereof 

 that which comes from India is the best ; it is a kind of honey, 

 gathered and candied in certain canes ;' it is white, hke fine 

 gum, brittle between the teeth ; the lumps are seldom bigger 

 than the size of a filbert, and serve only for -physic. ' 



' So Arrian calls it : /ieXt to Koka^uvov to Xeyofifvov traKxapi. 



