[ 298 3 . 
It therefore feems very probable, that this cognomen 
being (o antient, might by fome of the dcfctndents 
of that family be writcn 'Drofus , and afterwards 
more generally Hrufus. For as the Romans endea- 
voured gradually to improve their language, and 
foften its pronunciation, they changed au into 0,and 
again o into u } for the. more agreable found. This 
appears not only from the .examples given already, 
but likewife from many others, which m : ght be 
be produced, as well of common words as proper 
names. Of the former fort are codex from can- 
dex , corns from caurus , lotus from lautus , and Jo- 
rex from fanrex s and of the latter, mulius from 
molt us, rubigo from robigo , vulgus from uolgus, 
V ’ilc anus from Vole anus, and the like. 
) f v * * - 
MAG. II. according to the explication given 
above, arc an abbreviation of the words magijler 
fecundi , which (land for pagi magiftcr anni fecundi , 
was the whole to be exprellcd at length. The word 
pagus dignities a diyifion or large portion of land, 
not much unlike what we call a fbtre or county. 
Hence Caefar in his hiftoty of the Gallic war fais : 
Omnis civitas Helvetia in quatuor pagos divifa 
cjl s . And again lpeaking of the Sue-vi , who were a 
very large nation : Hi centum pagos habere dicun- 
tur c 5 tho 'pagus is fometimes ufed by the poets in 
a more reftrained fenfe, for a ftngle village. So 
Mandela is deferibed by Horace , as rugofus frigore 
pagus v. And Virgil reprefents the rural fports, as 
* Lit. i. cap. 12. 
* Lit. iv. cap. i. 
y Epijt. Lib. i. xviii. ie>$. 
performed 
