57

subject to them, showing the power of the overseers over human actions, for example, the Thracians as plunderers and savage on account of the prevalence of Ares, and those towards the east as hot-tempered and lovers of gold and vigilant about its acquisition, as if possessed by solar spirits and concerned with the material dedicated to the sun. incert.3 That Augustus, having overthrown Antony and Cleopatra, appointed Gaius Cornelius Gallus over what was formerly called Aeria, then Potamia, and now is called Egypt, decreeing that he be called Augustalis from his own name; for this reason it is also the custom for the lieutenants of the prefects to be called Augustales. That in the ranks at the Palatium there were also Augustales, whom the Greeks call sebastophoroi, guarding the shrines of the gods and the images of the emperors and the toga. incert.4 That Euripides in the Helen speaks thus about the Sirens: winged girls, virgins, daughters of Chthon, Sirens; and Aristotle in the Peplos says they are named Thelxiepeia, Aglaopheme, Pasinoe. incert.5 That the Roman Fabius, being mortally wounded in the first Punic war, was carried with rage against Hannibal and, seizing his diadem, died upon him. But in the Persian War, Aristeides says that Leonidas the general, upon seeing the multitude of the Persians at Thermopylae, went out against the enemies and, being pierced by countless spears, went up to Xerxes and, taking his diadem, expired; and the Persian, cutting him open, found his heart was hairy from its innate heat. incert.6 That Numa dedicated ten virgins to Vesta for the guarding of her immortal fire, just as at Athens once in the adyton of Athena Polias an immortal fire is said to have been dedicated by Deucalion. If, then, it happened that the fire was suddenly extinguished, the high priest would strike the virgins with rods that had been wrapped, and the fire would be rekindled by the rubbing of evergreen woods, but not by another fire, with certain incantations. And the oracles are available to those who wish in the works of Tages and Capito and Piso. incert.7 The things once said to Fonteius the Roman came to pass; for he reports certain verses supposedly given once to Romulus in their native tongue, which openly foretold that fortune would abandon the Romans when they themselves forgot their native language. And we have inserted the so-called oracle into our writings on the months. incert.8 That Asonides, having fallen in love with her (Niobe) and not being persuasive, set fire to her house; but she, fleeing, prayed to be turned to stone and was turned to stone. incert.9 That verses are called carmina among the Romans, and prophecy Carmentia. incert.10 That the Romans call slanderers and informers delatores. incert.11 Fortuna among the Romans is good fortune. incert.12 Sporta among them is the basket, which is also called fiscus, although they differ in that the woven thing made of rods is called fiscus, while the one made of bark is called sporta. There is also another type of basket, placed on the head instead of a felt cap, and it is called camela by the Italians, from which also comes camelaucia. FRAGMENTA LIBRIS DE MENSIBUS FALSO TRIBUTA. spur.1 The philosophers say that thunderbolts, a kind of lightning, are produced when a bursting of clouds occurs; for when the earthy substance adjacent to them is ignited, the ignited part is carried to the earth with a rushing sound by the force of the blast. And if the clouds happen to be moist, it is extinguished upon its descent, but if they are more earthy, fiery things are squeezed out. And they say there are two kinds of lightning bolts, of which the one that is sharp and thin and fiery is called arges, while the one that is slow and smoky is called psoloeis; and the former, on account of its thinness, is carried away with speed before it can ignite anything and is gone, so as not even to scorch any of the rarer things, but the slower one is able

57

ὑπηκόους ἐκείνων, τὴν τῶν ἐφόρων δύναμιν ἐπὶ τῶν ἀνθρωπίνων πράξεων ἐνδεικνυμένους, οἷον Θρᾷκας μὲν ἅρπαγας καὶ ὠμοὺς διὰ τὴν τοῦ Ἄρεος ἐπικράτειαν, τοὺς δὲ πρὸς τῇ ἑῴᾳ θερμούς τινας καὶ χρυσοῦ ἐρῶντας καὶ περὶ τὸν τούτου πόρον ἀγρυπνοῦντας, οἷα ἡλιακοῖς δαίμοσιν ἐγκειμένους καὶ περὶ τὴν ἡλίῳ ἀνακειμένην ὕλην ἀναφερομένους. incert.3 Ὅτι ὁ Αὔγουστος καθελὼν Ἀντώνιον καὶ Κλεοπάτραν Γάϊον Κορνήλιον Γάλλον τῆς τὸ πρὶν μὲν Ἀερίας εἶτα Ποταμίας νῦν δὲ λεγομένης Αἰγύπτου προέστησεν, Αὐγουστάλιον αὐτὸν ἐκ τοῦ οἰκείου ὀνόματος καλεῖσθαι θεσπίσας, ταύτῃ καὶ Αὐγουσταλίους τοὺς ὑποφήτας τῶν ὑπάρχων καλεῖσθαι νόμος. ὅτι ἐν ταῖς κατὰ τὸ Παλάτιον τάξεσιν ἦσαν καὶ Αὐγουστάλιοι, οὓς Ἕλληνες σεβαστοφόρους καλοῦσι, τὰς τῶν θεῶν θήκας καὶ τοὺς τῶν βασιλέων τύπους φυλάττοντες καὶ τὴν τήβεννον. incert.4 Ὅτι Εὐριπίδης ἐν Ἑλένῃ περὶ Σειρήνων λέγει οὕτως· πτεροφόροι νεάνιδες παρθένοι Χθονὸς κόραι Σειρῆνες, ὁ δ' Ἀριστοτέλης ἐν πέπλῳ ὀνομάζεσθαι αὐτὰς λέγει Θελξιέπειαν Ἀγλαοφήμην Πασινόην. incert.5 Ὅτι Ῥωμαῖος ὁ Φάβιος καιρίως τρωθεὶς ἐπὶ τοῦ πρώτου Φοινικικοῦ πολέμου μετ' ὀργῆς ἐπὶ τὸν Ἀννίβαν ἐνεχθεὶς καὶ ἁρπάσας αὐτοῦ τὸ διάδημα ἐναπέθανεν αὐτῷ. ἐν τῷ Περσικῷ δέ φησιν ὁ Ἀριστείδης, ὅτι Λεωνίδης ὁ στρατηγὸς θεασάμενος τὸ τῶν Περσῶν πλῆθος ἐν Θερμοπύλαις ἐπῆλθεν ἐκ τοῦ ἐναντίου τοῖς πολεμίοις καὶ ἀπείροις περιπαρεὶς δόρασιν ἐπὶ Ξέρξην ἐπῆλθε καὶ περιελόμενος αὐτοῦ τὸ διάδημα ἐξέπνευσεν· ἀνατεμὼν δὲ αὐτὸν ὁ Πέρσης εὗρε τὴν καρδίαν αὐτοῦ ἐκ τῆς ἐμφύτου θέρμης τετριχωμένην. incert.6 Ὅτι ὁ Νουμᾶς δέκα παρθένους ἀνέθηκε τῇ Ἑστίᾳ εἰς φυλακὴν τοῦ παρ' αὐτῇ ἀθανάτου πυρός, καθάπερ ἐν Ἀθήναις ποτὲ ἐν τῷ τῆς Πολιάδος Ἀθηνᾶς ἀδύτῳ ὑπὸ ∆ευκαλίωνος λέγεται ἀθάνατον πῦρ ἀνατεθῆναι. εἰ οὖν συνέβη τὸ πῦρ ἄφνω ἀποσβεσθῆναι, ὁ μὲν ἀρχιερεὺς ῥάβδοις ἠμφιεσμέναις ἔπαιε τὰς παρθένους, συνθλίψει δὲ ξύλων ἀειθαλῶν ἀλλ' οὐ πυρὶ αὖθις ἀνήπτετο μετά τινων ἐπιλόγων τὸ πῦρ. κεῖνται δὲ τοῖς βουλομένοις τὰ λόγια παρὰ Τάγητι καὶ Καπίτωνι καὶ Πίσωνι. incert.7 Πέρας ἔλαβε τὰ Φοντηΐῳ τῷ Ῥωμαίῳ ῥηθέντα ποτέ· ἐκεῖνος γὰρ στίχους δοθέντας τινὰς δῆθεν Ῥωμύλῳ ποτὲ πατρίοις ῥήμασιν ἀναφέρει, τοὺς ἀναφανδὸν προλέγοντας, τότε Ῥωμαίους τὴν τύχην ἀπολείψειν, ὅταν αὐτοὶ τῆς πατρίου φωνῆς ἐπιλάθωνται. καὶ τὸν μὲν λεγόμενον χρησμὸν τοῖς περὶ μηνῶν γραφεῖσιν ἐντεθείκαμεν. incert.8 Ὅτι Ἀσωνίδης ἐρασθεὶς αὐτῆς (τῆς Νιόβης) μὴ πεισθείσης τὸν οἶκον ἐνέπρησεν· ἡ δὲ φεύγουσα εὔξατο λιθωθῆναι καὶ ἐλιθώθη. incert.9 Ὅτι κάρμινα παρὰ Ῥωμαίοις λέγεται τὰ ἔπη καὶ Καρμεντία ἡ μαντεία. incert.10 Ὅτι δηλάτορας τοὺς διαβόλους καὶ συκοφάντας καλοῦσι Ῥωμαῖοι. incert.11 Φορτοῦνα παρὰ Ῥωμαίοις ἡ εὐδαιμονία. incert.12 Σπόρτα παρὰ αὐτοῖς ἡ σπυρίς, ἣ καὶ φίσκος καλεῖται, κἂν διαφέρωσι τῷ φίσκον μὲν καλεῖσθαι τὴν ῥαβδωτὴν πλεκτάνην, σπόρταν δὲ τὴν φλοιώδη. ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἑτέρα κατασκευὴ σπυρίδος, ἀντὶ πίλου τῇ κεφαλῇ ἐπιτιθεμένη, καλεῖται δὲ παρ' Ἰταλοῖς κάμελα, ἐξ οὗ καὶ καμελαύκια. FRAGMENTA LIBRIS DE MENSIBUS FALSO TRIBUTA. spur.1 Τοὺς σκηπτοὺς οἱονεὶ κεραυνοὺς οἱ φιλόσοφοί φασι γενέσθαι, ὅταν ῥῆξις νεφῶν γένηται· τῆς γὰρ παρακειμένης αὐτοῖς γεώδους οὐσίας ἐξαφθείσης τὸ ἐξαφθὲν ὑπὸ τῆς ῥιπῆς ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν μετὰ ῥοίζου φέρεται. καὶ ἐὰν μὲν ὑγρὰ τυγχάνῃ ὄντα τὰ νέφη, ἅμα τῇ καταφορᾷ σβέννυται, εἰ δὲ γεωδέστερα, πυροειδεῖς ἐκθλίβονται. δύο δὲ εἴδη κεραυνῶν εἶναί φασιν, ὧν ὁ μὲν ὀξὺς καὶ μανὸς καὶ διάπυρος ἀργὴς ὀνομάζεται, ὁ δὲ βραδὺς καὶ καπνώδης ψολόεις· καὶ ὁ μὲν διὰ τὴν λεπτότητα καὶ πρὶν ἐκπυρῶσαι φερόμενος οἴχεται διὰ τάχους, ὡς μηδὲ ἐπιφλέξαι τι τῶν ἀραιοτέρων, ὁ δὲ βραδύτερος ἱκανὸς μὲν