3800.) Account of Dr. Hager’s Deteétian of Literary Forgeries. 129 
‘vertifement for a new tontine on mortgage- 
fecurity, which I found to poffefs every ad- 
vantage both of profit and fafety. No 
plan of the kind can in my opinion be 
more perfect ; and I readily took the oc- 
cafion it afforded me of making a provifion 
by it for each of my children and grand- 
children ; and I would recommend it to 
others like minded. 
Your conftant reader, 
Fan. 14, 1800. B.A. 
ee 
For the Monthly Magazine: 
-AN ACCOUNT OF DR. HAGER’S DET EC- 
TION OF THE LATE CELEBRATED 
FORGERIES OF THE LOST BOOKS OF 
LIVY, AND OF THE MARTINIAN aND 
NORMAN CODES, AT PALERMO IN 
SICILY. 
[ Extra&ed from Dr. Beifter’s Berlin Fournal.} 
OSEPH Vella, a native of the ifland of 
Malta, and atitular chaplain, repaired 
to Sicily, with a view of fecking his for- 
tune, and happened to’refide at Palermo, 
when, in 1782, Mohammed Ben Ofman, 
“Ambaflador from the Emperor of Moroc- 
co, on his return from Naples to Mekines, 
forced by adverfe winds, was confirained 
to put in there fora fewdays. This Ma- 
homedan of diftinction was fhewn what- 
ever the Sicilians had of Arabic monu- 
ments and books; and for want of a better 
interpreter, Vella officiated in the. capacity 
of Dragoman, as being mafter of the popu- 
Jar idiom of Malta, which was known to be 
a dialeét, however degenerate, of the Ara- 
bic. Let the reader conceive to himfelf a 
rude peafant from a part of the country 
where the accent is broadeft and harfhelt : 
fuch a one may, perhaps, in cafe of necef- 
fity, ferve as a guide to a traveller from the 
capital ; but will he be qualified 'to explain 
or reftore corrupt paflages in the work of 
anelecant writer? How well or ill fatif- 
fied the Arabian from Morocco was with his 
interpreter, no one could know; however, 
they were feen converfing with each other, 
and Vella from that moment ftyled himlelf 
ia confummate Arabic fcholar. It would 
be needleis to particularize every intiance 
of his unparalleled affurance in expounding 
any Arabic paflage or writing that was 
laid before him ; or to ftate the grofs errors 
he in thofe attempts frequently committed 
againft hiftory and chronology; or to 
ention the unruffied compofure withwhich 
he retracted his former affertions and fub- 
ftituted new explanations in their place, 
when any fuch miftake was pointed out to 
him. Some of thefe incidents are divert- 
ing, particularly on account of the impli- 
cit confidence repofed in him by perfons of 
the higheft diftinétion. I fhall only cop- 
fine myfelf to his fidzzons. 
1. He gave out that he poffeffed feven- 
teen of the loft books of Livy, in Arabic, 
being a prefent of the Grand-mafter of 
Malta, who had received this literary trea- 
fure of a Frenchman, that took it froma 
fhelf in St. Sophia’s church at Conftanti- 
nople. It is well known that moft of the 
Greek and Roman celaffics having been 
tranflated by. the Arabians, feveral of the 
ancient writers were fooner known to/Eu- 
rope in their Arabic drefs than in the ori- 
ginal. It is equally notorious how much 
all men of letters regret that of 142 books 
of Livy’s Roman Hiftory, only 75 thould 
remain. Such an important lofs has gi- 
ven rife to many falle reports * and to 
feveral deceptions. It has often been af- 
ferted that. Livy’s Hiftory exifled entire 
in. an Arabic tranflation: and Conftanti- 
nople, the Iile of Chios, and the townof 
Fez in Africa, have, in turn, been ftated 
to poffeis it. Vella’s ftory is of all the mof 
improbable. An ancient voluminous ma- 
nuicript, totally unconnected with reli- 
gion, was to have been placed upon a fhelf 
in one of the principal mofques, notwith- 
ftanding all of them have their appropri- 
ate libraries. But admitting the alleca- 
tion, was it likely that an unbelieving 
Frank, who could have but few opportunt- 
ties to behold the interior of the temple, 
fhould obtain permiffion te walk in it with- 
out conftraint, .fo as to be able to make 
fuch a difcovery and commit fucha theft ? 
Vella, however, was too politic to print 
his mapufcript, though Dowager Lady 
SPENCER, then on her tour through Italy, 
offered to defray the expences of the pub- 
lication. At length, indeed, he had the 
effrontery, by way of fpecimen, to edit an 
Italian tranflation of the 60th book. Bue 
Sas ve 
* Applications have likewife been made 
to ws concerning this fubje&t. The originals 
of the two letters of Pope Leo X. addrefifed to 
the city of Magdeburg, repeatedly printed, 
and in which he requests the tranf{miliion of 
the whole Latin copy of Livy, to be found 
there, are preferved in his Pruffian Majefty’s 
library at Berlin. Learned Brandenburgers 
have maintained that the invaluable manu- 
{cript in gueftion had aétually exifted in the 
library belonging to the cathedral of Magde- 
burg 3 butthat, during the adminiftration of 
Margrave Joachim Frederic, in the latter part 
of the fixteenth century, a canon had pur- 
loined it, leaving it in the poffeffion of his 
heirs, till on: the general ruin of that city it 
was deftroyed. Vide Bayle, art. Leon X. note 
T. (Bicker) 
mark } 


