1805.) Epigrams, Fragments, and Fugitwve Pieces, fromthe Greek. 341 
vit hune librum’ detractis lafcivioribus 
epigrammatis ut ipfe gloriatur.”” 
To this imperteét and taftelefs abridg- 
ment the fcholars of Europe were referred 
until the feventeenth century ; and this 
might have been added to the number of 
inftances on record where abridgments 
have furvived their originals, had nota 
youth of Burgundy, the pride and wonder 
of the age in which he lived, refcued the 
parent-collection from total oblivion. 
Claude de Saumaife, well known to us 
by the name of Salmafius, was one of 
thofe original and hardy geniufes of the 
ixteenth and beginning of the feventeenth 
centuries, who braved the terrors of reli- 
gious perfecution, and embraced tenets 
rather trom conviction than the fafhion of 
the times. His mother was a Proteftant, 
and had infufed into his mind her notions 
on points of faith with fuch affiduity, 
that, after a refidence in Paris of two or 
three years, he fled from that city to Hei- 
delberg, for the exprefs purpole of en- 
jeying in freedom his religious opinions. 
Re arrived at that city at the age of four- 
teen (under the efcort of fome merchants 
who were going to Frankfort fair), with 
recommesdatory letters to all the learned 
there from Ifaac Cafaubon, with whom 
he had become intimate at Paris. To 
oblige his father, he fiudied civil Jaw un- 
der Gothofredus. But his own inclina- 
tion induced him to avail bimfelf of the 
permiffion granted him of perufing the 
books contained in the library of the Pa- 
Jatinate. To accomplifhthis purpofe, he 
fat up every third night, and was already 
pronounced by Cafaubon “ ad miraculum 
docius.”’ His time was employed in com- 
paring printed editions with their MSS. 
and in tianfcribing the MSS. not hitherto 
printed, 
He foon difcovered that Maximus Pla- 
nudes had been unfaithful in the office he 
had undertaken ; and put together that 
collection, which, though unpublifhed, 
hes ever fince been known by the name 
of Salmafan, and conftan:ly referred to 
by fucceeding cotmmentators. 
Various caufes prevented Salmafius 
from publifhing his favourite work. To- 
wards the ciofe of life he was in great 
efiimation among the fovereigns of Eu- 
rope, and, on his return trom Sweden, 
was unforiunately engaged to undertake 
the defence of the unhappy Houle of 
S wart, which called down upon him the 
reta:iation of Milton, with whom he was 
in no refpect qualified to mealure lances. 
Thus elated by the attentions of the great, 
and humbled in a contef{ with an ob{cure 
individual, his mind fluQuated between 
the extremes of grandeur and debafement, 
and feems for ever to have loft that firm 
ferenity, that juft appreciation of its own 
powers, which neither aims at things be- 
yond its grafp, nor facrifices to a tempo- 
rary repulfe the purfuit in which it was 
formed to excel from inclination and ex- 
perience. 
I cannot conclude this paper without 
flightly noticing the principal fources from 
which (befides the Anthologia) the mate- 
rials of the enfuing obfervations have 
been collected. The firft is Athenzus, 
who was an Egyptian, a native of Nau- 
cratos, and flourifhed in the third cen- 
tury, From his extraordinary powers of 
memory, and from the extenfive learning 
which his works difplay, he has acquired 
and merited the title of the Grecian Varro. 
Of thefe works, which were numerous, 
that of the ** Deipnofophift”’ only remains 
tous, and is alone fufficient to fupport 
his charaéter and juftify his pre-eminence. 
To us, at leaft, it is rendered a moft inva- 
luable treafure by the quotations it con- 
tains from the moft celebrated works of 
the moft celebrated authors, and from 
authors whofe names alone: would have 
furvived to us but for the fragments which 
it preferves. He conveys information in 
the'moft pleafing manner on the moft inte- 
refting fubjedis, the cuftoms, manners, 
and opinions, of the Greeks ; and we are 
likewi!e indebted to him for feveral of the 
pcems which the later colleétors have in- 
ferted in the Anthologia. 
Joannes Stobzeus was fo called from the 
place of his birth, Stobe, in Macedonia. 
His age is not precifely afcertained, but 
has been conjectured by Heeren, his com- 
mentator, to have been abcut the end of 
the fourth and beginning of the fifth cen- 
turies. He alfo was the colleftor of an 
Anthologia, but on a very different prin- 
ciple from any that we have mentioned. 
The inftruétion of a favourite fon was the 
{cope of his labours ; and to this we are 
indebted for both the colleé&tions which 
we have under his name, but which, in 
all probavility, were but feparate parts 
_of the fame work. They both confift of 
extraéts from the moft excellent philofo- 
phers, and moral and dramatic writers of 
Greece. Toa work conta:mirg the united 
wildom of the beft ages of antiquity, and 
the molt beautiful poetry which the vigo- 
rous genius of Athens ever produced, the 
title of a well-arranged common-place 
book is perhaps now the ftrongeft recom. 
mendation that can be given ; and to fuch 
praife are the books of Stobzeus entitled. 
Fragments 
