Krey—John of Salisbury and the Classics. 975 
Of the prose writers, Cicero, Quintilian and Seneca are used 
most frequently. That oft-quoted passage from the Entheticus 
“Orbis nil habuit mains Cicerone Latinus” shows in what great 
esteem John held this writer. Cicero is constantly quoted in 
almost every one of John’s works and is ranked with the great 
fathers of the Church as the soundest authority on any sub¬ 
ject he touches. To be “as Augustine was and as Cicero had 
been in his later years—an Academician” 1 was his boast, and 
his similarity to this great writer is not confined to philosophy 
alone. So pure is his style and so much nearer to Cicero’s 
than that of any of his contemporaries that the German scholars 
have justly considered it as modelled upon Cicero. A close 
inspection of John’s writings reveals his wide knowledge of 
this author, who excels all others in “copiam dicendi.” The 
so-called Ciceronian work “Ad Herrenium,” the “de Partitione 
Oratoria” and the “de Inventione Rhetorica” were, of course, 
text-books at Chartres and had been known to John as such. 
He owned copies of the “De Officiis” and the “De Oratore,” 
and bequeathed them to the library at Chartres. It is there¬ 
fore perfectly natural that he should quote from these very 
frequently. In his letters especially, but in all his works he 
cites the “ad Eamiliares,” and the frequency and accuracy of 
his quotations show that he probably obtained them directly 
from the original, which was well known at the time. The 
Tusculan Disputations and the Hew Academy are, of course, 
the works upon which he bases his statement that Cicero was 
an Academician in his latter years. 2 These works are con¬ 
stantly cited upon philosophical questions, and the extent of the 
familiarity seems to demonstrate the use of the originals. The 
same charm which the “De Amicitia” has for modern readers 
attracted John. He uses Laelius and Scipio for their views 
on friendship as devoutly as the most enthusiastic freshman. 
With the “Orator” and the “de Hatura Deorum” also he ap¬ 
pears quite familiar. Both works were well known in the Mid¬ 
dle Ages, especially the latter, which :was used by St. Augustine 
in the interpretation of the Scriptures. John’s quotations 
1 Migne, p. 388, et passim. 
2 Migne, p. 388, et passim. 
