54 2 PYTHAGOREAN WRITINGS. 



falfe ; that the golden verfes, which, have mofe than 

 one mark of high antiquity, are interpolations, and that 

 Ariftotle muft ftand in palpable contradiction to him- 

 felf. For he has remarked the differences of the pytha- 

 goric opinions ; he therefore was acquainted with more 

 than one pythagoric writing; and yet thefe writings 

 were not at that time extant ! Or did they fomehow 

 exift, only not as we have them at prefent ? — This 

 can no otherwife be proved than by their opinions. I 

 fhould be very glad to fee this proof adduced by our 

 author, concerning all and lingular pythagoric frag- 

 ments. It muft neceflarily contain much new and ex- 

 traordinary matter, lince from all that we know at pre- 

 fent of pythagoric doctrines, it can hardly be made 

 general. 



In regard of Ocellus this author fpeaks in the follow- 

 ing manner : 2. Plato even knew nothing of the hypo- 

 thefls of the eternity of the world, as no philofopher 

 before him had treated of it. Ail maintained an eternal 

 matter ; they were only divided in their notions, whe- 

 ther this formleis fay was produced by an almighty 

 being, and arranged into fueh a world as we now in- 

 habit, or whether it was all the work of chance., — , 

 This hypothecs of the eternity of the world muft have 

 been abfolutely unheard of before Ariftotle ; as he 

 publicly gave him felf out for the inventor of it. Would 

 not the teachers of the old academy, and all other phi- 

 lofophers who diftent from Ariftotle, have held up 

 Ocellus to him for his confufion, if he had actually ex- 

 ifted at that time ? There is not one fihgle antient au- 

 thor known to us, who has made this reproach to 



Ariftotle, 



