Middle J gas. 35 
invention of printing, by bringing to light, 
and dilTeminating the purer remains of 
Greece and Rome^ at length broke the 
chains of barbarifm and fuperftition, which, 
during fo many ages, had tyrannized over 
the underftandings of mankind. 
On this happy revolution. Botany, with 
other fciences, revived, and prefently re- 
fumed another appearance. The publica- 
tion of the P aires Botanici raifed, at once, 
a fpirit of emulation to inveftigate the fub- 
jefts of their works. 
Pliny was firft printed, if not at Verona^ 
in 1468, as is affirmed by fome> and doubt- 
ed by others, at leaft in the fucceeding year, 
at Venice ^ and the avidity with which it was 
received, is manifefted by the numerous im-* 
preffions of it, before the end of that cen- 
tury. 
DioscoRiDES cahie forth firfl '^t CoIpgn^ 
In a Latin tranflation, in 1478, and in the 
original, hj Aldus ^ in 1495* ^^^^ after* 
wards publifhed in Latin by HERMOLAtrs 
Barbarus and Ruellius, in the year 
1516; by Vergilius, in 1518* and by 
CoRiSTARUs in J 529. The learned now ' 
Da prefer 
