the Romanih Language. 135- 
to the hoftile Romans. But when we confider that a co- 
alition of the two main dialects, which differ fo far as 
not to be reciprocally underllood, muft have been the in- 
evitable confequence of a total reduction; and that fuch 
'a coalition is known never to have taken place, we may 
lay the greater ftrefs upon the many paflages of ancient 
authors ro, in which it is implied that the boafled victories 
of the Romans over the Rhteti, for which public honours 
had been decreed to l. munatus, m. anthony, drusus, 
and Augustus, amounted to no more than frequent re- 
pulfes of thofe hardy people into their mountains; out 
of which their want of fufhcient room and fuftenance, 
(which in our days drives confiderable numbers of them 
into the fervices of foreign powers) compelled them at 
times to make defperate excurfions in queft of necefla- 
ries. And we may alfo from thefe collected authorities 
be induced to give the greater credit to the commentator 
of lucan (Oy and to the modem hiftorians oo y who pofi- 
lively aflert, that the people living near the fourccs of 
the Rhine and the En were never totally fubdued by the 
(5) Videre Rhaeti bella fub Alpibus 
Drufum gerentem et Vindelici. i-ior. lib. 4. Od. iv, 
. immanefque Rhaetos 
Aufpiciis repulit fecundis. Ibid. Od. xiv. 
Fundat ab extremo fiavos aquilone Suevos 
Albis, etindomitum Rbcni Caput . LUC. lib. ii. 52. 
. Rhenumque minacem 
Cornibus infra flit. claud. Laud. Stilich. lib. b.220. 
(tj horten. in lucan, p. .163. edit. 1578. fol. 
( u) sprecHv p. i8, &c. 
Re-* 
